The Bismarck class was most certainly glorified raiders. Or better yet, super Hipper class ships.

Their secondary guns were also specifically position and constructed to sink merchants rather than protect them from destroyers and light cruisers (which the big guns were supposed to blast apart). Also add the many DP 105mm guns. They were all positioned to be able to fire at ships to the front and rear (as would happen in a convoy) rather than fire out the broadside where any attacker would come from.

Also Bismarck's armour was specifically made for close combat rather than the falsely assumed plunging fire (with which she sank Hood). Her deckarmour was only marginally better than Hood's on the deck. Also her torpedoarmour was just about the best in the world. Bob Ballard proved when he went back to her that not a single torpedo fired at her ever penetrated her armour (the impact-on-deck theory doesn't hold water as the topedoes were set to quite a few meters depth).
The fact that more care was put on vertical belt and topedoarmour indicates that she was meant to meet her enemies so close that she could sweep sailors from the other ship with the barrels of her guns.

A raider in extreme... Never a slugger like the Rodney and Nelson, or the KGV class.