IJN Atago

Atago has all the makings to be a stronger ship, but she falls victim to being older, and less capable than some newer ships

Written by

Captn_Thatch

Atago

Excellent Kiter
Witherer
Great Torpedoes

Scope:

It's v 3.8 during the Origin of Wisdom Campaign for Mainz and Sirocco. Next up on the review list for this update is another older cruiser, Atago, which represents one of the first campaign and later GXP ships brought to the game. For many cruiser players, Atago represents one of their first premium ships or playstyles they will have learned. Atago is available in the shop for 750k Global XP. Atago is an AVERAGE ship with a MODERATE skill floor and a HIGH skill ceiling.

Rating Matrix:

[BAD, WEAK, AVERAGE, GOOD, GREAT],
{LOW, MODERATE, HIGH, EXTREME}

History:

Named after Mount Atago, Atago was the second of the Takao-Class Cruisers, though she would be completed 2 months earlier than sister Takao. Laid down in April 1927 at Kure Naval Arsenal, Atago was launched in June 1930, and commissioned into the Imperial Japanese Navy in 1932. During trials, Atago and sister Takao faced seaworthiness issues due to their top-heaviness. By 1940, the ships were altered by reducing the size of the bridge, moving the main mast aft, and adding torpedo bulges which then improved the stability of the ship.

The design was an improvement over the preceding Myoko class, which sought to resolve many of the issues of the class, with improved Anti-Air, moving the torpedoes to the upper deck, and featured 10x Type 3 20cm Naval Guns in twin turrets. The Type 3 20cm gun was the heaviest of any heavy cruiser at the time. Akin to her predecessors, Atago was top-heavy. Akin to her sisters, Atago was upgraded repeatedly throughout her career receiving numerous Anti-Air upgrades, and eventually the Type 93 Oxygen Torpedo. Her original Anti-Air Suite was woefully inadequate with just a pair of 40mm guns, which changed as she received over 60 Type 96 AA guns during the course of her upgrades.

Atago participated in many major naval battles throughout the Pacific Theatre of World War 2. Atago met her fate on 23 October 1944 in the Palawan Passage, when USS Darter struck Atago with 4 torpedoes setting her ablaze, quickly capsizing claiming 360 of her crew. Atago served as Admiral Kurita's flagship at the time she was struck; Kurita was among the 520+ rescued by Yugumo-Class sisters Asashimo and Kishinami.

Pro Et Contra:

Strengths:

Fire starter
Good Torpedoes
Good top speed
Kiter

Weaknesses:

Weak Armor
Weak AA
Mediocre AP Pen
Long Reload

The Basics:

Atago represents another older cruiser from the early days of the game, regardless of the version. Atago is complimented well by her strong sparring ability, and on average will tend to have more strengths than the average cruiser, at a cost of a defensive focused mindset and woefully lacking defenses. This is a wonderfully familiar ship, has access to great torpedoes with somewhat questionable arcs, punchy, long ranged gunnery, and a knack for withering her over-extended opponents. This is a ship where strategic theory, and how the ship is used almost directly correlate to her overall performance.

Offense:

GOOD

The first list up to bat is the main battery range, some ships in here are going to be quite similar. From stem to stern, the bulk of this list points to a bell curve difference in mean range of just 0.5km and 1km at the flanges. There's not a lot of diversity here, and is a major reason for allowing kit lists in comparison. About half of those cruisers will take DPM builds and the other will focus more on range and dispersion. Similar numbers, with drastically different implementation.

Stock Main Battery Range:

Sigfried: 17.1
*Riga: 16.1
Bagration: 16
Chapayev: 16
Kutuzov: 16
Hipper: 15.8
Martel: 15.8
Azuma: 15.8
P. Eugen: 15.8
**Mainz: 15.8
Ochakov: 15.5
Baltimore: 15.5
AL Balti: 15.5
Wichita: 15.5
Albemarle: 15.5
Amalfi: 15.4
Mogami: 15.3
Suzuya: 15.3
Edinburgh: 15.3
Cleveland: 15.3
Atago: 14.7

Let's start with this; Mogami and Atago quite obviously have different base ranges, Atago, the worst on the list. However, Atago can work around her concealment and short range with a much more refined armor scheme, Mogami and Suzuya need some more space to help protect their more vulnerable armor layouts.

With a basic foray into the cruiser strategy of the tier there are two basic concepts: Wither, or Strike, Kill & Vanish. The vast and overwhelming majority of players will gravitate towards the withering playstyle; it's just safer. The select few brazen warriors who learn Strike, Kill and Vanish will greatly appreciate the efficacy this playstyle has to offer, though be warned, it is quite punishing and requires a well guided hand.

By equipping for DPM, Atago gains the ability to fire off a few more shells than Mogami, where Mogami will need to fight more-so from range. This has more to do with their armor and defensive capabilities, rather than object differences between their firepower. Mogami lives quite firmly in the 'witherer' category, with a pair of points to note. First, Mogami Sister Suzuya is one of the best witherers currently in the meta, and; secondly, the Mogami Sisters have a "boxier" armor profile which lends itself more difficult to earn those critical ricochets needed to succeed in closer range engagements. Now, Atago is not so graciously up-armored in this regard that she is immune to shells or criticism; but rather, is generally on the whole able to partake in both playstyles, earning the ability to compete for closer engagements, rather than just being locked into longer ranges.

Zao on both PC and Blitz was long ago the master of both these strategies (owing to a greater potential damage margin), Atago is the first with the ability to somewhat compete in it. Mogami and Suzuya are outright afraid to leave the sanctity of their open water kingdoms. Atago predecessor Myoko represents the first of these ships to somewhat develop the fundamentals of these philosophies. Azuma is a fickle ship, but is generally not as strong a kiter as the former, and rather tends to live more heartily in the Strike, Kill, Vanish philosophy.

Kit Shells per Minute

Cleveland: 126
**Mainz: 120
Edinburgh: 109
Kutuzov: 102
Suzuya: 90
Chapayev: 90
Ochakov: 82
AL Balti: 55.6
Martel: 54
Wichita: 54
Baltimore: 50.9
Bagration: 49
Hipper: 47.5
Albemarle: 43.2
Atago: 42
Mogami: 40
Amalfi: 38.2
P. Eugen: 36.9
*Riga: 34.8
Azuma: 23.5
Sigfried: 14

This kit with reload and short range gives Atago a 2-shot lead over Mogami. It's not very much, but it is certainly helping to dent that 16s stock reload. There's nothing wrong with kitting Atago for range, just expect subpar HE DPM. This chart is important, because it represents a much more tangible number that Captains can expect to see on the battlefield.

-Ships equipped for DPM: Edinburgh, Azuma, Hipper, Atago, Cleveland, AL Baltimore.-Ships equipped for Range: Baltimore, Mogami, Suzuya, Albemarle, Mainz, Eugen, Martel, Chapayev, Riga, Amalfi

Yes, I'm aware there are some differences in particular ships that might be a bit different than what each Captain may have on theirs. Let's keep in mind, similar ships will produce similar results in most cases, and similar ships will have different builds to explore a greater difference in comparison. i.e AL Baltimore and TT Baltimore; similar ships with drastically different builds based off some very tiny numbers; including muzzle velocity and reload. Seeing the list above, I don't think many will disagree with those choices for their comparisons.

Kit HE Damage Per Minute

Cleveland: 289,800
Suzuya: 243,000
Kutuzov: 224,400
Chapayev: 207,000
**Mainz: 204,000
Ochakov: 180,400
AL Balti: 155,876
Baltimore: 152,700
Martel: 151,000
Wichita: 151,200
Albemarle: 142,560
Atago: 138,600
Mogami: 132,000
Hipper: 128,316
Bagration: 122,500
Amalfi: 118,723
*Riga: 106,258
Azuma: 105,750
P. Eugen: 90,000
Sigfried: 60,923
Edinburgh: 0

It's not much a surprise there, and this list should make a bit of sense. DPM Cleveland tops out with near 300k, Ranged Suzuya seconds the list with her 243k. 90 shells/min is based off her range kit (no commanders) and gives Suzuya a great deal of wiggle room in her Witherer focused playstyle. While Suzuya can get quite punchy, she's quite easy to punch into and thus tends to use range as her best defense. Mogami spins a similar tale with better HE ballistics, pen and fire chances, but grossly loses out in the trade over HE DPM. Atago edges a bit closer to the median, but is still subpar, despite fantastic HE performance. Azuma has pretty decent HE when compared Shell to Shell, but lacks overall DPM due to low shell count because of larger guns.

Stock Fire Chance %

Sigfried: 34
Azuma: 27
Albemarle: 17
Atago: 17
Mogami: 17
Amalfi: 15
Martel: 15
*Riga: 14
Baltimore: 14
AL Balti: 14
Wichita: 14
Cleveland: 13
P. Eugen: 13
Hipper: 13
Bagration: 13
Chapayev: 12
Kutuzov: 12
Ochakov: 12
Suzuya: 11
**Mainz: 8
Edinburgh: 0

These are base values. Azuma, Atago and Mogami place quite well. IJN CA/CL HE has wonderful all-around characteristics that muscle their way into better categories than most. While they may not be perfect, they are extremely reliable. Don't let Suzuya's 11% fool you, she more than doubles the shell count of the former ships of the argument. All of these ships are very reliable fire-starters, some, more exceptional than others. Coupled with certain commander skills, this number can jump up pushing Atago into the upper echelons of fire-starting potentials.

Now, let's dissect the 610mm Torpedoes.

Stock Torpedo Broadside Weight

Mogami: 137,864
Suzuya: 137,864
Atago: 122,400
**Mainz: 109,600
P. Eugen: 82,200
Hipper: 82,200
Ochakov: 75,500
Kutuzov: 72,000
Bagration: 72,000
Edinburgh: 62,132
Albemarle: 62,132
Sigfried: 54,800
Chapayev: 53,799
Amalfi: 50,668
Martel: 47,499
Azuma: 0
Baltimore: 0
Cleveland: 0
AL Balti: 0
Wichita: 0
*Riga: 0

Just like that, all 3 of these ships, Mogami, Suzuya and Atago, place 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. Atago trails Mogami and Suzuya, both of which are tied with their equivalent torpedo loadout. In these lists, Atago is equipped with her F1 torpedoes which neither Suzuya, nor Mogami have. While there are some minor differences, Atago can equip the longer-range torpedoes found on the others. To match them, Atago (Mogami) forfeits her F1's for 10km (11km), 62 knt (60 knt), matching 17233 alpha strike, improving to 1.6km (1.7) concealment, and an 8s shorter reload of 101s (109s).

Stock Torpedo Speed

Atago: 76
Sigfried: 65
Ochakov: 65
Chapayev: 65
**Mainz: 64
Hipper: 64
Edinburgh: 62
Albemarle: 62
Kutuzov: 60
P. Eugen: 60
Martel: 60
Mogami: 60
Suzuya: 56
Bagration: 55
Amalfi: 51
Baltimore: 0
Cleveland: 0
AL Balti: 0
Wichita: 0
Azuma: 0
*Riga: 0

This is the reason I generally run the F1's on Atago. They're fast and punchy. Atago, as previously mentioned tends to have the more flexible playstyles of the IJN Cruisers. This can certainly entertain your opponent's quick trips back to port behind a well guided hand, or your own, without. Concealment is an art sometimes more than a science. Atago enjoys fairly strong concealment values, and can be kit for it effectively enough to participate in the "Strike, Kill, and Vanish" mantra. What's scarier, is Atago has both the AP means, torpedo broadside, gunnery broadside, agility, speed and concealment values to breathe life into this wonderful and often quite theatric style of engagement.

Atago has more forgiving torpedo arcs than those found on Mogazuya. Captains will learn an almost classic and tell-tale maneuver when swinging their rudder hard to drop both torpedo salvos in sequence.

Surprise, Atago, and now you have 8 torpedoes inbound with 10 incoming shells with an actively evading cruiser, you did not realize was there until she fired upon you as you first detected her torpedoes...this can be a recipe for disaster to any captain, in any vessel, properly played.

Conversely, the longer-range kiting engagements of Suzuya and Mogami will often score successful torpedo hits on distracted targets, charging you down to try fruitlessly to catch you. Captains, I'm quite sure by this point of the summary, one can divine being on fire is quite distracting. Use this tactically to your advantage.

Muzzle Velocity:

~870m/s

With similar ballistic performance between HE/AP, Atago features exceptionally well-rounded gunnery. IJN CA's feature unique (good) dispersion values (similar, but improved from USN CA's) with ballistics that facilitate long range engagements, with smooth low drag yet rounded arcs that entertain wonderful accuracy.

Summarily, Atago brings a lot of toys to the party, like Mogami and Suzuya. All entertain wonderful dispersion and sigma values, which tend to float near the top of their respective classes. Suzuya employs gunnery that can be a dream to use at mid-long range. Atago has gunnery that is equally adept at all ranges. Captains should be aware, Atago's AP can punch well even around 10km, but beyond that will lose much of its meaningful inertia resulting in weakening penetration values. All in all, it's hard to argue against anything other than a GOOD rating. You've got access to very flexible weaponry to say the least.

Defense:

WEAK

Here's where Atago starts to hurt a bit. She's not particularly well armored, but is more-so armored than her same tier counterparts, Mogami, Azuma and Suzuya. While there are some aspects worth pointing out, it's fairly well known that the majority of Atago's defensive capability comes more from her playstyle, than her ability to actually mitigate or defend against damage. Mogami and Suzuya answer this call with superior range and ballistics, coupled with above average handling is adept at dodging incoming fire. However, it's important to consider this key facet, as it is not particularly quantifiable, and is in fact quite skill dependent.

So, let's first discuss and dissect the things we can quantify, then loop back on the things we can qualify.

Torpedo Damage Reduction System of 16%, this is actually quite good for the class. It's not going to really take that much sting off the torpedo, but it's better than nothing. The average is around 10.

Atago comes with 25mm plating on the accessories. 41mm decking. 40+mm decking is very important, as this is proof to most HE spam. Further down, 127mm at the belt. Above water citadel, and a 25mm freeboard. On the whole, this armor package is weak, but can bounce some things when angled correctly. Key differences include Mogazuya's 25mm deck plating and 30mm auxiliary room plating. That big difference is the exact spot where most well placed shot on Mogami/Suzuya, normalize, penetrate, and shoot right through that 25mm deck, and right down into the citadel. Atago lacks this, and replaces it instead with flush 40mm decking and no auxiliary rooms.

Next, let's look at Base HP and EHP.

Base Health Pool:

Sigfried: 55,500
Azuma: 52,500
P. Eugen: 45,000
Hipper: 43,800
Amalfi: 42,800
**Mainz: 42,500
Baltimore: 42,400
AL Balti: 42,400
Bagration: 42,000
*Riga: 42,000
Kutuzov: 40,700
Atago: 40,100
Albemarle: 39,400
Mogami: 39,100
Suzuya: 38,000
Martel: 38,000
Wichita: 37,900
Chapayev: 37,000
Cleveland: 36,900
Edinburgh: 36,400
Ochakov: 34,730

Atago is almost smack dab in the middle. Maybe just a slight nudge below.

Base Effective Health Pool

Azuma: 86,184
Sigfried: 73,980
Albemarle: 70,880
Baltimore: 65,624
AL Balti: 65,624
Edinburgh: 65,480
Amalfi: 60,692
P. Eugen: 60,120
Hipper: 58,472
**Mainz: 56,780
Bagration: 56,112
*Riga: 56,112
Atago: 54,440
Kutuzov: 54,364
Mogami: 52,204
Chapayev: 51,504
Suzuya: 50,768
Wichita: 50,612
Martel: 48,584
Cleveland: 47,204
Ochakov: 46,378

As we can see in terms of EHP, Azuma tops the card and second overall on base HP. Azuma has a rather average heal in terms of percentage, but heals back considerably more actual health, due to an extra charge and a healthy base HP.

Atago sits middle of the pack, above both Mogami and Suzuya. Mogami and Suzuya both tend to lay in the lower portions of the pack in terms of overall survivability; especially for heavy cruisers. Yes, Mogami and Suzuya have the same percentage heals, however, different base HP, thus different Effective HP, to the tune to Mogami's favor by about 2k. Atago is able to heal somewhere in the 13.5k region, decreasing to Suzuya with 12,7k. In terms of health, it's really not much but it is better than nothing. Atago and the crew are not quite the bottom of the list, but, there's many more above her than below.

Strategically, Atago has excellent defensive strategy in the withering/kiting techniques. Inversely, this is measured by the ships ability to do damage, rather than her ability to resist it. In terms of maneuverability, Atago is better than most, but that won't stop well placed >380mm.

Summarily, Atago has access to the cookie cutter hydro-acoustic search, however, this is ultimately and totally for self-defense, and is too short ranged to be used to spot encroaching destroyers. Below average armor, outright weak Anti-Air and a struggling HP/EHP firmly shove Atago into a weak rating here. Atago's best defense is literally just running away, or killing her attackers, however; she happens to be excellent at both of those things.

Anti-Air Suite:

WEAK

Atago just does not have capable Anti-Air. This shouldn't surprise you, as most of her sisters were sunk or heavily damaged by carrier-based aircraft during major naval battles. Azuma however, has excellent Anti-Air.

Average Anti-Air Suite Damage Per Second

Baltimore: 365
AL Balti: 365
Cleveland: 363
**Mainz: 357
Sigfried: 354
Azuma: 342
Hipper: 288
Bagration: 280
P. Eugen: 279
Kutuzov: 264
Edinburgh: 263
*Riga: 262
Amalfi: 240
Wichita: 217
Albemarle: 211
Chapayev: 207
Martel: 204
Ochakov: 196
Mogami: 127
Atago: 90
Suzuya: 67

A WEAK rating here is almost self-explanatory. Some Destroyers have better AA.

Maneuverability:

GOOD

I'm essentially going to let the numbers preface my argument here. With all things considered, Atago has pretty good handling, she's both fast and reasonably agile.

Base Top Speed

Amalfi: 38.1
Ochakov: 36
Chapayev: 35.5
Atago: 35.5
Bagration: 35.5
Azuma: 35
*Riga: 34.5
Mogami: 34.5
Suzuya: 34.5
Martel: 33.5
Sigfried: 33.5
Wichita: 33.5
**Mainz: 33
Albemarle: 33
Cleveland: 33
Kutuzov: 33
Edinburgh: 32.5
Baltimore: 32.5
AL Balti: 32.5
P. Eugen: 32
Hipper: 32

Stock Turn Radius

Azuma: 920
*Riga: 920
Bagration: 890
Chapayev: 890
Sigfried: 880
Atago: 790
P. Eugen: 770
Kutuzov: 760
Mogami: 750
Suzuya: 750
Ochakov: 750
Hipper: 740
Baltimore: 730
AL Balti: 730
**Mainz: 720
Albemarle: 720
Martel: 690
Edinburgh: 680
Amalfi: 680
Wichita: 680
Cleveland: 660

Kit Rudder Shift

Sigfried: 14
Azuma: 12.3
Bagration: 11.5s
*Riga: 11.5
Amalfi: 11
**Mainz: 10.5
Hipper: 9.7
Martel: 8.9
Albemarle: 8.6
Atago: 8.1
P. Eugen: 7.8
Cleveland: 7.2
Chapayev: 7
Ochakov: 6.9
Edinburgh: 6.9
Wichita: 6
Kutuzov: 5.4
Mogami: 5.1
Baltimore: 4.9
AL Balti: 4.9
Suzuya: 4.5

Generally, with Atago I tend to run propulsion mod. Atago accelerates quicker and tops out at a higher speed than Mogazuya. This allows Atago to speed jockey a bit better than either Mogami or Suzuya are capable, which translates to better defense. However, equipping Atago with Steering gears will knock that rudder shift down to 6.5s. Due to the meta of the class and tier, the vast majority of cruisers will run steering gears.

Double Steering Gears?-Whatever floats your goat. Personally, getting closer to the action can be very helpful. Just ask any destroyer main that's been throat punched by a Suzuya. Yes, Atago can do it too. It's a lot harder to do this the further away you are.

-There are exceptions here, Wichita, Cleveland, Hipper, Amalfi; are equipped with propulsion mod on this list. Riga, Sigfried, Azuma generally run Damage Control Mods. * Cleveland/Wichita show base turn times for Baltimore/Cleveland Class, Hipper/Eugen kit to differ for their respective kit traits, and Amalfi can generally run either, propulsion or steering gears.

Concealment:

GOOD

Kit Surface Concealment

*Riga: 13.1
Chapayev: 12.9
Kutuzov: 12
Sigfried: 11.8
P. Eugen: 11.7
**Mainz: 11.8
Hipper: 11.6
Martel: 11.6
Ochakov: 11.4
Cleveland: 11.3
Mogami: 11.1
Azuma: 10.9
Albemarle: 10.9
Bagration: 10.8
Edinburgh: 10.8
Atago: 10.6
Baltimore: 10.5
AL Balti: 10.5
Wichita: 10.4
Suzuya: 10.2
Amalfi: 9.2

Everything in here is running concealment mod. There are no commander skills factored in. The mark for building into a concealment build effectively is around 10.5km. Many cruisers will opt for other inspirations, and some other equipment. Atago generally benefits from concealment, as this will allow her to expose her opponent's weaknesses with superior positioning and tactics. The unspoken part of Strike, Kill, Vanish is that the very vast majority of this strategy relies meticulously on concealment, timing, and tactful positioning. The results can be straight-up derp-y, when a well-set trap is sprung. Atago enjoys a near blissful 9.4km maxed concealment rating.

Consumables:

AVERAGE

Atago has access to the standard cookie cutter 3.1/4.4km hydro-acoustic search, which lasts for 96s, and comes with a 180s reload. Base with x2 charges.

Repair Party Effective Health

Albemarle: (35,000)
Azuma: 401/s 28s. 40sr x3~~ (33,684)
Edinburgh: (29,080)
Sigfried: (18,480)
P. Eugen: (15,120)
Hipper: (14,672)
Chapayev: (14,504)
**Mainz: (14,280)
Baltimore: (14,224)
AL Balti: (14,224)
*Riga: (14,112)
Bagration: (14,112)
Kutuzov: (13,664)
Atago: 240/s 28s. 60sr x2~~ (13,440)
Mogami: 234/s 28s. 60sr x2~~ (13,104)
Suzuya: 228/s 28s. 60sr x2~~ (12,768)
Wichita: (12,712)
Amalfi: (11,928)
Ochakov: (11,648)
Cleveland: (10,304)
Martel: (10,080)

Atago has a below average heal in the sense that there are ships with worse Base HP pools but better EHP. This is a ship that can regenerate some health, but is on the whole below average here.

Like the other IJN Cruisers, Atago also has an extra charge of patrol fighters, which come in their own slot. Matches the standard 100s duration, with an 80s reload.

Commanders:

There are two main concepts here as described; Witherer, or Strike, Kill, Vanish. As said above, most will gravitate towards withering. Withering generally involves building into and improving range and handling; whereas the other involves building into concealment and involves a much greater degree of situational awareness

AL Atago: Generally, the go to for Atago. This skill set is quite well-rounded. Captains who pair this commander with concealment inspirations will bring Atago's concealment to 9.4km, which is quite versatile for the damage potential Atago has. Opting out of concealment makes it harder for this build to be successful in closer engagements.

Death from Below -200m Torp Concealment
Beyond Range +10% to gun range
Arsonist +8% chance of fire, +10% HE Alpha, +10% to incoming damage
Punch Through +10% AP Alpha, +6% to AP pen
Fixated +5% to dispersion, -5% sigma
Refill Station -10% to reload

ARP Takao: She was almost more-so built for Azuma than Atago with her inspiration. This will help really keep those big 310s on target. Azuma also has great AA, Atago does not. Azuma also handles like a huge commercial container ship.

Toss and Turn +5% AA DPS, -3% Rudder Shift
Beyond Range +10% to gun Range
Seer +1^(o)/s Turret Traverse, +5% Torpedo Detection
Punch Through +10% to AP Alpha, +6% AP Pen
Fixated +5% to dispersion, -5% sigma
Refill Station -10% to reload

Yamamoto Isoroku: Essentially the free version of Takao/Atago. Much of the skill sets you see above work well for either Mogami, Atago or Azuma. His inspiration buffs AP Pen by +6%.

Mikawa Gunichi: Interestingly enough, Mikawa brings a much different look to Atago, giving her a 40.3 knot top speed with a 5.3s rudder shift. Oh, and knocks out about 8.5s off her 180^(o) turret traverse time. This build is quite cheeky. Pair with Swirski for additional concealment and then the next slot is yours: I might suggest looking into some of the Italian Commander's Inspirations. Captains, you may wind up stuck with <16km range, but you will gain the ability to set traps almost at your will.

Clandestine -6% to concealment
Ingenious +1.6^(o)/s turret traverse, -7% incoming damage
Full Speed Ahead +5% top speed, -10% Rudder Shift
Velocious +5% top speed
Steer Clear -7% Rudder Shift and Rudder Repair
Fully Packed -5% consumable reload, +1 consumables

Heihachiro Togo: The base hybrid commander for the Japanese Nation, Togo is almost best left out of the conversation. He does have some usable skill sets, mostly as a hybrid between the two builds spelled out above. I tend to save him more for Akizuki. You could find a successful build here if you try, but personally I would go for one of the others.

Upgrades:

Atago is a premium ship; and has the option to equip Type F1 torpedoes, which shorten range by 2km, worsen their detection by 200m, lessening their alpha strike by about 2kmin exchange for +14 knots pace of 76knts. No XP is required.

Modifications:

Slot 1: Aiming Systems Mod 1. This is very straight forward.
Slot 2: Steering Gears Mod 2 or Propulsion Mod, the only wrong answer here is technically Damage Control Mod.
Slot 3: Concealment Mod 1. Atago doesn't have quite the reach of her successors, but she hides just as well. Keeping her hidden keeps her alive, just like most destroyers, when you have no armor, concealment is your lifeline. Range builds could see this swapped out for steering gears, but then you just about entirely lose the ability to contest key areas, and are then firmly stuck in the Witherer playstyle.
Slot 4: Main Battery Mod 3. This helps Atago stay more relevant, however, Gun Fire Control System also helps, and adds +5% to your gun range. By the numbers, Atago is hurt more by her reload than her range.

Research:

Just like Baltimore or Benson, Atago is a crucial design of her nation. As such, she's in many bureau projects already and will probably be in more to come.

Yamato
Shimakaze
Gearing
Khabarovsk

Improvements:

Unwind the fabric of Time? Atago is a victim of progression. Atago, or maybe Eugen might just be the poster children of Power Creep. I'd suggest looking at her sluggish reload as a good place to start for bumping Atago up in the rankings. As of now, Atago is just flat out-classed by Suzuya.

Summary:

AVERAGE

Sigh. Sometimes the truth of the matter just isn't all it's made out to be. Atago has all the makings to be a stronger ship, but she falls victim to being older, and less capable than some of these newer ships. Suzuya, in particular, fills a very similar niche as Atago, but does it with better HE DPM and almost twice the shell count and fire potential for a brisk 2k-ish loss in EHP to Atago. It takes a strong captain to make Atago shine over Suzuya in many situations, though, this is not to say Atago is incapable. Atago is currently available in store for 750k XP while, Suzuya, might just be a fond wish to those who missed their chance. So that counts for something.

Atago can certainly be entertaining, and is not so difficult to play that she feels unrewarding. Atago fell into an average rating here, but just so narrowly missing on good. The reason behind this, is Atago by the numbers tends more to tread the water, rather than surf it or sink. There are plenty of ships weaker, but there are also quite a few stronger as well. Atago needs both a bit of luck, and a bit of skill to make her consistent and reliable, and is just as capable of producing highlight reels as those above her. Overall poor defensive statistics contribute to her lack luster rankings; weak AA, weak HP, vulnerability to 380mm, are just too much to hold a good rank without seriously factoring in the captain's capability. Sub-par HE DPM does not save Atago from falling in the rankings, with otherwise solid offensive marks. To be good overall, Atago's offense would need to be great, not just good.

Naturally, we can conclude that the good and the bad cancel each other out her to become average. Coupled with strong handling marks, this helps float Atago up into what might equate to perhaps the strongest average rating. Atago may well be one of those classic benchmark type ships, like Baltimore, Martel, De Grasse, Tirpitz or Benson, that just seemingly encompasses this intrinsic panache of how we interpret both basic and advanced strategies alike from certain types of ships.

Atago is a homage to a bye-gone era. Before a time when Suzuya brought a 100k HE DPM swing upwards, Atago surely would rank higher, and she probably does grab that GOOD rank. For now, as she stands, she earns probably the best average rating you can earn without dragging your foot over the line into good. It's important to remember this ranking represents the skill floor. Atago, however, may be one of the better ships in terms of skill ceiling.