World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Aki

Beta
Long-range battleshipMax-range AP sniper: trade from open water and bow-tank between salvos.
Playstyle
  • Park 14-17 km from a contested cap with island cover within one rotation of your bow
  • Avoid: Launching airstrikes at maneuvering targets
Key characteristics
460 mm overmatch2.1 sigma accuracy18 km gun rangeSlow
Community Data

Aki Community Stats

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Playstyle

Overview

Aki is the Legendary Japanese airstrike battleship. Her right-trigger fires a line of dive bombers in place of torpedoes, which gives her a damage source that does not need line of sight on top of her main battery. Standout traits: best torpedo belt percent in Legendary BBs (55) and best armor plate in Legendary BBs (560 mm).

Positioning

Park 14-17 km from a contested cap with island cover within one rotation of your bow. The airstrike line wants to cross the cap and the predictable retreat lane, both of which favor positions a little further back than a brawler would take. Open-water lanes are pure downside; you do not need line of sight to score with the airstrike, so cover is free upside.

Potato Avoidance

Launching airstrikes at maneuvering targets

The squadron's travel time is long enough that a healthy DD or cruiser with engine boost simply turns out of the cone. Reserve strikes for capping destroyers, island-huggers, and anyone already tying up with a teammate.

Signature Traits

Airstrike alt-armament

Right-trigger fires a bomber line in place of torpedoes. Rewards behind-cover positioning with the cap in range.

Strong torpedo belt

55.0% torpedo damage reduction, best of Legendary BBs.

Heavy armor

560.0 mm max plate, best of Legendary BBs.

Tight grouping

Sigma 2.1, best of Legendary BBs. More shells land near aim.

Punchy HE secondaries

2600.0 max HE alpha per secondary shell, best of Legendary BBs. Bigger per-shell damage than peers.

Low AP DPM

211429 AP DPM, bottom decile of Legendary BBs. Citadel windows matter more than spam.

Acquisition

How to get Aki

Aki is a Premium ship and not available to unlock in the Tech Tree. Acquisition path: Containers. Container chances are shown as the listed odds of receiving this exact ship, dividing grouped ship-pool odds across the resolved ships and including nested container paths when a crate can drop another crate.

Best listed chance for this ship

  • Mystic Chest 4.966667% Tier VIII Premium ship or Legendary Tier ship Event containers · Mystic Chest · 1 of 3 ships
  • Mystic Lantern 0.745% Tier VIII Premium ship or Legendary Tier ship Event containers · Mystic Lantern → Mystic Chest · 1 of 3 ships
  • Mystic Box 0.099333% Tier VIII Premium ship or Legendary Tier ship Event containers · Mystic Box → Mystic Chest · 1 of 3 ships
Official WG availability sources
Show direct source rows
  • Mystic Chest 4.966667% · Tier VIII Premium ship or Legendary Tier ship

Builds Beta

Primary Legendary premium. Jisaburō Ozawa carries the full airstrike skill suite and his Hidden Hand adds +1 squadron and cuts cooldown 50% (roughly doubles strike output across a match). Pair with Commander Worf (Sky Attack trait: more damage per dropped projectile) for raw damage, or Jonathan Hawke (Big Game Hunter trait: more airstrike damage vs BB / CA / CV) for big-target focus.

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Cohort position

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Where Aki sits among Legendary BBs (17 ships). Notable standouts are shown first; the rest of the cohort-ranked stats are in the expand below. Acquisition variants (Black Friday, Founders Edition) are counted once with their base ship, not as separate peers.

BestSigma2.1 (1 of 3 tied) BestHE alpha2,600 (1 of 2 tied) BestMax armor560 mm (1 of 2 tied) Top 10%Acceleration7.9 s (2/17) Top 25%Hit points102,300 HP (4/17) Top 25%Main battery caliber460 mm (3/17) Top 25%Main battery range17.7 km (3/17) Top 25%Main dispersion193.7 m (5/17) Top 25%Secondary fire chance10% (3/15) Top 25%Citadel belt410 mm (5/16) Top 25%Deck armor135 mm (3/16) Bottom 25%Max speed26.3 kt (16/17) Bottom 25%Fires per minute5 (15/16) Bottom 25%HE DPM104,286 (14/16) Bottom 25%AP arming threshold77 mm (15/17) Bottom 25%Power-to-weight2.05 hp/t (16/17) Bottom 25%AA threat1,959 (14/17) WorstAP DPM211,429 (17/17)
See 24 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Aki -- here's where she sits on every other ranked stat in the cohort. Stats tagged NORM are tied across more than half the cohort, so the value is the cohort default rather than a standout.

Concealment16.08 km(12/17) Air detection12.86 km(11/17) Rudder shift24.9 s(12/17) Traverse-to-turn ratio4.64 ×(12/17) Main battery reload25.2 s(7/17) AP shell damage14,800(7/17) Secondary DPM (per side)265,800(12/17) Secondary HE pen26 mm(5/15) AP velocity780 m/s(9/17) HE velocity805 m/s(9/16) Engine power158,000 hp(13/17) Turn-speed retention175.6 hp/m(9/17) Displacement77,095 t(13/17) AA DPS547(13/17) AA range5 km(13/17) Repair charges3(7/17) NormSecondary dispersion bracket57(12 of 17 tied at this value) NormAP fuse timer0.03 s(15 of 17 tied at this value) NormAP ricochet start45°(14 of 17 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(14 of 17 tied at this value) NormSecondary range5 km(10 of 17 tied at this value) NormRepair heal rate0.5 %/s(12 of 17 tied at this value) NormBow armor32 mm(13 of 16 tied at this value) NormStern armor32 mm(13 of 16 tied at this value)

All values are ship base stats with modifications and upgrade changes denoted inline.

Repair 3
Survivability
Hit Points102,300
Displacement77,095 t
Armor range16–560 mm
Plate armor thicknesses16, 18, 19, 25, 32, 50, 57, 75, 80, 100, 135, 140, 200, 230, 270, 290, 340, 350, 410, 500, 560 mm
Armor material/layer entries70
Fire resistance40%
Fire duration60 s
Torp Reduction55%
Steering gear HP
ƒDurability of the steering gears. As this pool drops, hits are likelier to jam the rudder; unlike most modules the steering can be knocked out and repaired but is never permanently destroyed.
30,700
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 460 mm Type94
Mounts / barrels2 mounts / 6 barrels
Reload time28 s
Firing range17.7 km
Turret traverse4 °/s
Shell Grouping (σ)
ƒShell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
2.1
Max Horiz Disp
ƒHorizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (17698/30·(9−2.8)/1000 + 2.8)·30 = 193.7 m
193.7 m
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 193.7 × 0.8 = 155 m
155 m
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 193.7 × 0.308 (σ=2.1) = 59.7 m
59.7 m
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 155 × 0.308 (σ=2.1) = 47.7 m
47.7 m
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 4 deg/s traverse speed = 45 s.
45 s
Base shells/min
ƒ6 broadside guns x 60 / 28 s base reload = 12.9.
12.9
HE shells
HE Damage7,300
HE Velocity805 m/s
Fire Chance35%
HE penetration
ƒ77 mm ≈ 460 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
77 mm
HE full-salvo alpha
ƒ7,300 HE damage x 6 broadside guns = 43,800.
43,800
Base HE DPM
ƒ43,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 28 s base reload = 93,857.
93,857
Installed HE DPM
ƒ43,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 25.2 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 104,286.
104,286
Base fires/min
ƒ6 HE shells x 60 / 28 s reload x 35% fire chance = 4.5.
4.5
AP shells
AP Damage14,800
AP Velocity780 m/s
Min Ricochet45 deg
Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg
Fuse Timer0.033 s
Fuse Threshold77 mm
AP overmatch
ƒfloor(460 mm caliber / 14.3) = 32 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
32 mm
AP Pen Close
ƒCanonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: 1e-7 × Krupp × mass^0.69 × caliber_m^-1.07 × v0^1.38 = 1e-7 × 2574 × 1460^0.69 × 0.46^-1.07 × 780^1.38 = 883 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
883 mm
AP Pen Far
ƒSame formula at the ship's max firing range (22.1 km), where the shell has slowed to 527.5 m/s: 1e-7 × 2574 × 1460^0.69 × 0.46^-1.07 × 527.5^1.38 = 514.7 mm.
514.7 mm
AP full-salvo alpha
ƒ14,800 AP damage x 6 broadside guns = 88,800.
88,800
Base AP DPM
ƒ88,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 28 s base reload = 190,286.
190,286
Installed AP DPM
ƒ88,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 25.2 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 211,429.
211,429
AP AOE Radius
ƒAP shell over-penetration splash radius; scales with shell mass. Wickes 102mm = 3, standard 152mm CL ~ 20, Iowa 406mm ~ 270, Yamato 460mm = 400, Incomparable 650mm = 550 (max). Larger value = bigger splash damage area when AP over-pens.
400
Squadrons
Airstrike
Plane HP3,000
Plane max speed180 kn
Planes per strike4
Ordnancetorpedo, 5,000 dmg
Strike reload30 s
Launch arc-75° to 75°
AA Defense
AA mount points66
Close-range AA DPS
ƒSum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (73×3.5×0.75) + (2×3.5×0.85) + (15×3.5×0.85) + (23×3.5×0.85) + (30×3.5×0.85) + (14×3.5×0.85) + (20×3.5×0.75) + (20×3.5×0.75) = 547. Covers AA-only mounts plus dual-purpose secondaries (Bismarck 105mm, USN 5"/38 cruiser secondaries) and dual-purpose main batteries (Sumner-class 5"/38, Akizuki-line 100mm). Formula validated against in-game captures on California, Sumner, Manfred von Richthofen, Dante Alighieri (exact) and within +/-17% on the remaining verified ships.
547
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
5 km
40 mm/60 Type 514×2 40mm
25 mm/60 Type96 mod. 114×1 25mm
25 mm Type96 mod. 212×3 25mm
25 mm Type96 mod. 28×3 25mm
25 mm Type96 mod. 116×3 25mm
13 mm Type932×2 13mm
127 mm Type89 A1 mod. 2 (DP)6×2 127mm
127 mm Type89 mod. 3 (DP)6×2 127mm
Far aura
DPS
ƒIncludes 40 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose secondaries firing as AA in this range band.
40
Range5 km
Medium aura
DPS73
Range3.5 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 40 + Medium 73 = 113
113
Outer Near aura
DPS82
Range3.1 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 40 + Medium 73 + Outer Near 82 = 195
195
Inner Near aura
DPS2
Range1.2 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 40 + Medium 73 + Outer Near 82 + Inner Near 2 = 197
197
S
Secondary Battery
Mounts14
Firing range5.0 km
Shell Grouping (σ)1
Secondary dispersion type
ƒMax dispersion = range (km) × 57 + 30. Each dispersion type sets its own slope; this is not a percentage applied to a standard baseline.
Standard
Max secondary dispersion @ 5 km
ƒ5 km × 57 + 30 = 315 m.
315 m
127 mm Type89 A1 mod. 2 (×6)
Caliber127 mm
Reload time7.5 s
HE Damage2,100
Muzzle Velocity725 m/s
Fire Chance8%
Armor Pen21 mm
Min Ricochet91°
Max Ricochet60°
Show 2 more gun families
127 mm Type89 mod. 3 (×6)
Caliber127 mm
Reload time6 s
HE Damage2,100
Muzzle Velocity725 m/s
Fire Chance8%
Armor Pen21 mm
Min Ricochet91°
Max Ricochet60°
155 mm 3rd Year Type (×2)
Caliber155 mm
Reload time12 s
HE Damage2,600
Muzzle Velocity925 m/s
Fire Chance10%
Armor Pen26 mm
Min Ricochet91°
Max Ricochet60°
Maneuverability
Engine moduleEngine: 158,000 hp
Engine power158,000 hp
Maximum speed26.3 kt
Turning circle radius900 m
Engine power multiplier speed threshold7 kt
Traverse-to-turn ratio4.6× drags
Concealment
Detectability by sea16.08 km
Detectability by air12.86 km
Smoke firing penalty15.98 km
Detect after firing main guns16.08 km
Detect Fire Sea18.08 km
Detect Fire Air15.86 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 80 s reload · 10 s active
Repair Party3 charges · 80 s reload · 28 s active · 0.5% heal per second · 14% of max HP total heal
Secondary Battery Booster3 charges · 160 s reload · 30 s active · +100% damage boost · +50% reload boost
Module options (1)

Stats above use the fully-upgraded modules. These are the research-tree alternatives; trade-offs are flagged.

HullUpgrade
  • Turret traverse4 → 10 °/s

See all derived stats

Show

Numbers the spec table cannot show directly: alpha-strike math, DPM, dispersion, AP penetration. Click the formula chip on any row to reveal how it is calculated.

Main battery formulas

Shell Grouping (σ)2.1
Shell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
Max Horiz Disp193.7 m
Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (17698/30·(9−2.8)/1000 + 2.8)·30 = 193.7 m
Max Vert Disp155 m
Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 193.7 × 0.8 = 155 m
Med Horiz Disp59.7 m
50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 193.7 × 0.308 (σ=2.1) = 59.7 m
Med Vert Disp47.7 m
50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 155 × 0.308 (σ=2.1) = 47.7 m
AP Pen Close883 mm
Canonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: 1e-7 × Krupp × mass^0.69 × caliber_m^-1.07 × v0^1.38 = 1e-7 × 2574 × 1460^0.69 × 0.46^-1.07 × 780^1.38 = 883 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
AP Pen Far514.7 mm
Same formula at the ship's max firing range (22.1 km), where the shell has slowed to 527.5 m/s: 1e-7 × 2574 × 1460^0.69 × 0.46^-1.07 × 527.5^1.38 = 514.7 mm.
HE penetration77 mm
77 mm ≈ 460 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
AP overmatch32 mm
floor(460 mm caliber / 14.3) = 32 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
AP AOE Radius400
AP shell over-penetration splash radius; scales with shell mass. Wickes 102mm = 3, standard 152mm CL ~ 20, Iowa 406mm ~ 270, Yamato 460mm = 400, Incomparable 650mm = 550 (max). Larger value = bigger splash damage area when AP over-pens.
Broadside guns used for alpha6
All 6 barrels bear on the broadside.
Turret turn time45 s
180 degrees / 4 deg/s traverse speed = 45 s.
HE full-salvo alpha43,800
7,300 HE damage x 6 broadside guns = 43,800.
AP full-salvo alpha88,800
14,800 AP damage x 6 broadside guns = 88,800.
Base HE DPM93,857
43,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 28 s base reload = 93,857.
Base AP DPM190,286
88,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 28 s base reload = 190,286.
Installed HE DPM104,286
43,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 25.2 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 104,286.
Installed AP DPM211,429
88,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 25.2 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 211,429.
Base shells/min12.9
6 broadside guns x 60 / 28 s base reload = 12.9.
Installed shells/min14.3
6 broadside guns x 60 / 25.2 s installed Artillery reload = 14.3.
Base fires/min4.5
6 HE shells x 60 / 28 s reload x 35% fire chance = 4.5.
Installed fires/min5
6 HE shells x 60 / 25.2 s installed reload x 35% fire chance = 5.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS547
Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (73×3.5×0.75) + (2×3.5×0.85) + (15×3.5×0.85) + (23×3.5×0.85) + (30×3.5×0.85) + (14×3.5×0.85) + (20×3.5×0.75) + (20×3.5×0.75) = 547. Covers AA-only mounts plus dual-purpose secondaries (Bismarck 105mm, USN 5"/38 cruiser secondaries) and dual-purpose main batteries (Sumner-class 5"/38, Akizuki-line 100mm). Formula validated against in-game captures on California, Sumner, Manfred von Richthofen, Dante Alighieri (exact) and within +/-17% on the remaining verified ships.
Maximum AA range5 km
Longest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
AA threat index1959
SUM over AA auras of (aura DPS x aura range km). A plane crossing the AA bubble is exposed to each aura for a time proportional to that aura's range, so long-reach DPS is worth more than the same DPS in a short bubble. Units: DPS*km; used to rank overall AA threat across the cohort.
Near aura range3.1 km

Secondary battery dispersion

Secondary dispersion typeStandard
Max dispersion = range (km) × 57 + 30. Each dispersion type sets its own slope; this is not a percentage applied to a standard baseline.
Max secondary dispersion @ 5 km315 m
5 km × 57 + 30 = 315 m.

Secondary battery firepower

Secondary DPM (per side)265,800
Sum across all secondary families of (per-side barrels × 60 / reload_s × alpha), where per-side barrels = mounts × barrels-per-mount / 2 (the guns that bear on one broadside target). Per-family: 6×2 127 mm (6/side) × 60/7.5 × 2100 = 100,800 + 6×2 127 mm (6/side) × 60/6 × 2100 = 126,000 + 2×3 155 mm (3/side) × 60/12 × 2600 = 39,000. Assumes every shell hits (real hit rate is lower; the Brawl matchup tool on the Compare page folds in dispersion + target armor).
Max HE alpha2600
Maximum HE damage per shell across secondary HE families. Best on this ship: 2600 from the 155 mm family.
Max HE fire chance10%
Maximum per-shell fire chance across secondary HE families (before target fire resistance is applied). Best on this ship: 10% from the 155 mm family.
Max HE pen26 mm
Maximum HE armor penetration across secondary HE families (caliber × 1/6 for most nations; 1/4 for German/UK BBs). Shells whose pen falls under a plate's armor thickness shatter for 0 hull damage though fire chance still applies. Best on this ship: 26 mm from the 155 mm family.

Armor

Hull HP 102,300, distributed across 5 hull zones, each with its own plate thicknesses, saturation cap, and pen thresholds. HP caps are the exact in-game values, not estimated.

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow32 mm primary (range 32–350 mm)8,900 (9% of HP)
Overmatched by 460mm+ (Aki, Musashi)Angle bounces 410mm32 mm: HE pens from 203mm+
Bow-tank fits behind this exterior plate. Saturation is FAST here; the cap is often only a few thousand HP.
Hull (midship)19 mm primary (range 18–560 mm)76,700 (75% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (Scharnhorst '43, Schill)Angle bounces 203mm19 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern32 mm primary (range 25–350 mm)10,300 (10% of HP)
Overmatched by 460mm+ (Aki, Musashi)Angle bounces 410mm32 mm: HE pens from 203mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel410 mm primary (range 16–410 mm)≈ 165,500 (effectively no cap)
Citadel pen ×0.10 damageOver-pen: ×0.10 damage
Effectively no cap; citadel pool sits at ~165k HP on every ship. Damage is gated by pen/over-pen multipliers instead (×0.10 direct pen, ×0.10 over-pen).
Superstructure50 mm primary (range 50–500 mm)3,400 (3% of HP)
Any HE ≥16 mm pens at full damage
Any HE ≥16 mm pens at full damage. HE-spam target, and the section saturates fast (often only a few thousand HP).
Secondary mount (155 mm mount)separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP800 per-mount HPDestroyed at 0 HPPer-mount HP for the heaviest secondary on this ship. A mount destroyed at 0 HP is out for the rest of the battle; DCP does not repair destroyed mounts. Smaller (lighter-caliber) secondaries typically share the same HP value.
AA mount (40 mm mount)separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP200 per-mount HPDestroyed at 0 HPPer-mount HP for the heaviest AA on this ship. An AA mount destroyed at 0 HP stops shooting down planes for the rest of the battle; DCP does not repair destroyed mounts. HE shells specifically target AA mounts since the small-caliber HP pool falls fast.
Rudder (module)separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP30,700 module HPIncapacitated at 0 HPWhen module HP reaches 0 the rudder locks at its current angle until DCP repairs it. Repair via Damage Control Party.

Saturation cap = HP a section can absorb before further damage to it is reduced (the "bow-tank" effect). Citadel pool is ~165k on every ship (effectively no cap); damage is gated by pen/over-pen multipliers instead. Superstructure saturates fast but HE always pens regardless of the plate thickness. Rudder (and other module HPs) are a separate pool from ship HP: damaging a module doesn't drain ship HP. Incapacitated modules like the rudder and engine are restored by DCP, but secondary and AA mounts destroyed at 0 HP stay out for the rest of the battle.

Shell ballistics chart

AP penetration, impact velocity, flight time and impact angle vs range. Click to load the interactive chart.

Balance History

Balance updates affecting Aki. Cards are condensed; use each source link for full context.

2026-04-30

Ministry of Balance: Viva la Marina!

  • Air Support: Special-effect activation distance reduced from 7.5/8/8.5/9 km to 7/7.4/7.7/8 km.
  • Hidden Hand: Airstrike-launched torpedo damage penalty deepened: now -25/22/18/15% (was -20/17/13/10%).
Read the full official post
Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

Every custom exterior Aki can equip, from in-game data.

  • Aki default exterior
    DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior

Primary official WG sources

Filtered to official World of Warships: Legends pages where this ship is a focus, reward, line member, or high-context variant mention.