Just an Idea I put into words:
HMS Leopard-quick summary
Laid down in 1912 and completed in December of 1915, HMS Leopard was essentially a scaled up version of her cousin, Tiger, but armed with newer model 6” guns, as well as eight 15” weapons. Leopard displaced some 29,000 tons normal, and was slightly better protected than Tiger. Completed too early for small tube boilers, she nevertheless could steam at 28 knots, as she displayed at Jutland, where her 15” shells claimed the battle cruiser Seydlitz despite her crew’s inexperience and poor shooting. Retained after the Washington Naval treaty in exchange for scrapping the battleship Benbow, she also survived the second interwar treaty, at the expense of HMS Ramilies. In September 1939, she was still recognizable as the battle cruiser from 1915. Eight 4” guns, a pair of octuple pom-poms, and a dozen .5” machine guns were the only armament changes, while newer fire control, bulges, a seaplane, and better flash protection were the only other improvements. She hunted raiders, using her top speed, now just 26.5 knots, to stay in range of the cruiser Deutschland long enough to cripple her with gunfire and close the range. The battle cruiser continued raider hunting until May, 1940, when she was attached to Force H to counter the Regia Marina, just in case. When France surrendered, Leopard joined the rest of the squadron in attacking the fleet in Mers-El Kebir, and together with Hood, forced the fleeing Strasbourg to beach herself. Leopard spent the next year and a half operating with Force H, covering Malta convoys, and once facing Italian battleships, which withdrew when she and Renown pressed them. Leopard was in dry dock when Ark Royal launched her famous attack on Bismarck, however. With the threat of Japan attacking Far Eastern colonies, she was sent with Repulse and Prince of Wales to Singapore, but lost a propeller blade shortly after departing from Ceylon and had to turn back. During this time a minor refit was given to her aging engines, as Leopard was down to 24 knots, barely battleship speed. She was rushed through the refit, and completed it in time to cover convoys withdrawing from the Far East, before joining Somerville’s fast squadron of carriers to operate against the Kido Butai, which was on its way to attack British bases in India. The carriers, now free to operate at faster due to not having to steam with old battleships, successfully launched a night attack which crippled Kaga with torpedoes, forcing the Japanese to withdraw. Leopard was sent to the Eastern Mediterranean to assist in running more convoys, before rejoining Force H to cover Operation Torch. She was then sent home to help contain the German units in Norway, which she did into 1943, however the old ship was beginning to show her age, and it was decided she was best suited for bombardment duties due to her lack of armor and deteriorating speed. She supported the Allied landings in Sicily and Italy, and was slightly damaged by a 500 pound bomb. After repairs, she escorted a carrier strike on Tirpitz, holed up in her fjord, then joined Operation Overlord, pouring shells into German positions, before being laid up in August of 1944, and decommissioned in May, 1945. The old ship was scrapped by mid-1946, having more than paid off for the effort needed to build her.