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World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Gaede

Beta

Germany · Tier V · Destroyer · Tech Tree: Area-Control Destroyers

Torpedo destroyerSpot and strike with torps; trade guns only when ahead.

Playstyle

Hold concealment edges on the contested cap at 6.4 km detection
Avoid: Burning the 6.4 km concealment advantage on guns

Key characteristics

Torpedoes (8 km)Strong AASmoke + SonarEngine Boost

Community Data

Gaede Community Stats

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Playstyle

Overview

Gaede is a Tier V German stealth-leaning destroyer with strong surface detection (6.4 km). The kit opens detection windows most peer DDs cannot match, so her value is contesting caps from concealment edges where the detection band holds. AA (155 AA DPS at 3.5 km) is heavy enough to make her the team's air-defense anchor on top of the lead role; CV strikes route around her, not through. Standout traits: best engine power in T5 DDs (80,000 HP) and best power per turn radius in T5 DDs (115.9 HP).

Positioning

Hold concealment edges on the contested cap at 6.4 km detection. The band opens windows for unspotted torpedo drops and clean repositions; lean into the gaps your peer DDs cannot read, and back out before detection closes.

Potato Avoidance

Burning the 6.4 km concealment advantage on guns

Every salvo lights you up and gives back the detection edge that makes the kit work; reserve guns for finishing damage on already-spotted ships, and prioritize torpedo drops you can fire while undetected.

Signature Traits

Long-range AP brick

66.7 mm AP pen at max range, best of T5 DDs. Threatens citadels even from range.

Close-range AP brick

189.1 mm AP pen at 1.5 km, top decile of T5 DDs. Citadels broadside cruisers up close.

Top-tier AA

155.0 AA DPS, best of T5 DDs (median 84.0).

Heavy powerplant

80000.0 hp engine, best of T5 DDs. More headroom for accelerating out of stops and maintaining speed in turns.

Holds speed in turns

115.9 hp per metre of turn radius, best of T5 DDs. Engine power overpowers lateral drag, so speed loss in sustained turns is mild.

Nimble for the tonnage

26.47 hp per ton, best of T5 DDs. Engine punch outclasses the hull's mass, so the ship retains speed through sustained turns better than peers.

Acquisition

How to get Gaede

Gaede is available in the Area-Control Destroyers branch of the Germany Tech Tree for 2,400,000 credits after researching it in the branch. Known module upgrades cost up to 660,000 credits.

Show Germany tech-tree branch diagram

Germany Tech Tree

Gaede sits in the Area-Control Destroyers branch. The highlighted path shows the local branch context inside the full Germany tree.

8 ships in highlighted branch · scroll to inspect all Germany lines.

GermanyIIIIIIIVVVIVIIVIII★

Destroyer

Destroyer Split

Cruiser

Battleship

Battleship Split

Carrier

Tier VIIIF. SchultzPGSD209 Tier VIIIP. RupprechtPGSB209 Tier VIIG. J. MaerkerPGSD208 Tier VIIZietenPGSB208 Tier VIZ-31PGSD207 Tier VIP. HeinrichPGSB207 Tier VMackensenPGSB206 Tier IVDerfflingerPGSB205 Tier ★Z-52PGSD110 Tier ★Großer KurfürstPGSB110 Tier ★Manfred von RichthofenPGSA110 Tier VIIIZ-46PGSD109 Tier VIIIRoonPGSC109 Tier VIIIFriedrich der GroßePGSB109 Tier VIIZ-23PGSD108 Tier VIIHipperPGSC108 Tier VIIBismarckPGSB108 Tier VIIAugust von ParsevalPGSA108 Tier VIMaassPGSD107 Tier VIYorckPGSC107 Tier VIGneisenauPGSB107 Tier VGaedePGSD106 Tier VNürnbergPGSC106 Tier VBayernPGSB106 Tier VWeserPGSA106 Tier IVT-22PGSD105 Tier IVKönigsbergPGSC105 Tier IVKönigPGSB105 Tier IIIV-170PGSD104 Tier IIIKarlsruhePGSC104 Tier IIIKaiserPGSB104 Tier IIIRheinPGSA104 Tier IIKolbergPGSC103 Tier IIV-25PGSD102 Tier IDresdenPGSC002

Builds Beta

Build for concealment, survivability, gun handling, torpedo utility, and cap-control tools.

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Cohort position

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Where Gaede sits among Tier V DDs (21 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.

BestMain dispersion84.9 m (1 of 2 tied) BestEngine power80,000 hp (1/21) BestTurn-speed retention115.9 hp/m (1/21) BestPower-to-weight26.47 hp/t (1/21) BestAA DPS155 (1/21) Top 10%Hit points15,700 HP (3/21) Top 10%AA threat373 (2/21) Top 25%Stealth profile6.38 km / 3.19 km (4/21 / 4/21) Top 25%AP shell damage3,000 (3/19) Top 25%Torpedo speed65 kt (6/21) Bottom 25%Rudder shift5.2 s (18/21) Bottom 25%Main battery range10.25 km (18/21) Bottom 25%Fires per minute3.13 (18/21) Bottom 25%HE DPM78,261 (19/21) Bottom 25%Displacement3,022 t (19/21) Bottom 25%Torpedo reload90 s (17/21) Bottom 25%Deck armor10 mm (15/16)

See 19 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Gaede -- 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.

Max speed36 kt(13/21) Traverse-to-turn ratio5.2 ×(7/21) Main battery caliber128 mm(7/21) Main battery reload4.6 s(12/21) AP DPM156,522(7/19) AP velocity830 m/s(11/19) HE velocity830 m/s(11/21) Acceleration9.8 s(7/21) AP arming threshold21 mm(11/19) AA range3.5 km(7/21) Torpedo range8.01 km(11/21) Torpedo damage13,700(13/21) Max armor16 mm(13/21) Bow armor16 mm(11/20) Stern armor16 mm(11/20) NormAP fuse timer0.01 s(17 of 19 tied at this value) NormAP ricochet start45°(18 of 19 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(18 of 19 tied at this value) NormCitadel belt16 mm(19 of 20 tied at this value)

Peers in this cohort

Show all 19 peers

Stats & specs

Customize in the Build Tool →Shell ballistics chart More tools in the WoWS Legends Data Lab

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

Sonar 4.4 kmSmokeEngine Boost

Survivability

Hit PointsInitial: 15,000 → 15,700

Displacement3,022 t

Armor range10–16 mm

Plate armor thicknesses10, 13, 15, 16 mm

Armor material/layer entries25

Fire resistanceInitial: 20% → 23.3%

Fire duration30 s

Torp Reduction0%

Magazine HP

The magazine is the module a detonation comes from. Penetrating hits to it raise the detonation chance from 1% toward 30% as its HP is worn down, so a larger magazine pool rides out citadel hits longer before a detonation becomes likely.

7,900

Steering gear HP

Durability 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.

4,700

Main Battery

ModuleArtillery: 150 mm L/48 Tbts KC/36

Mounts / barrels4 mounts / 4 barrels

Reload time5.1 s

Firing range (base)9.3 km

Firing range (top fire control)10.2 km

Turret traverse8 °/s

Shell Grouping (σ)

Shell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.

Max Horiz Disp

Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (9314/30·(8−0.5)/1000 + 0.5)·30 = 84.9 m

84.9 m

Max Vert Disp

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 84.9 × 0.6 = 50.9 m

50.9 m

Med Horiz Disp

50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 84.9 × 0.319 (σ=2) = 27.1 m

27.1 m

Med Vert Disp

50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 50.9 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 16.3 m

16.3 m

Turret turn time

180 degrees / 8 deg/s traverse speed = 22.5 s.

22.5 s

Base shells/min

4 broadside guns x 60 / 5.1 s base reload = 47.1.

47.1

HE shells

HE Damage1,500 → 2,200

HE Velocity830 m/s → 835 m/s

Fire Chance6% → 12%

HE penetration

In-game data: 25 mm = 128 mm caliber / 5.12 (non-standard HE penetration ratio).

25 mm

HE full-salvo alpha

2,200 HE damage x 4 broadside guns = 8,800.

8,800

Base HE DPM

8,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 5.1 s base reload = 103,529.

103,529

Base fires/min

4 HE shells x 60 / 5.1 s reload x 12% fire chance = 5.65.

5.65

AP shells

AP Damage3,000 → 3,700

AP Velocity830 m/s → 835 m/s

Min Ricochet45 deg

Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg

Fuse Timer0.01 s

Fuse Threshold21 mm

AP overmatch

floor(128 mm caliber / 14.3) = 8 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

8 mm

AP Pen Close

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 × 1933 × 45.3^0.69 × 0.15^-1.07 × 835^1.38 = 220 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

220 mm

AP Pen Far

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (12.8 km), where the shell has slowed to 279.1 m/s: 1e-7 × 1933 × 45.3^0.69 × 0.15^-1.07 × 279.1^1.38 = 48.5 mm.

48.5 mm

AP full-salvo alpha

3,700 AP damage x 4 broadside guns = 14,800.

14,800

Base AP DPM

14,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 5.1 s base reload = 174,118.

174,118

AP AOE Radius

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.

◇

Torpedoes

ModuleTorpedoes: G7 Steinbutt

Launchers / tubes2 launchers × 4 tubes = 8 tubes

Reload time90 s

Projectile speed65 kt

Range8.01 km

Maximum simulated damage12,700 (est.)

Alpha damage38,100

Torpedo detectability1.3 km

Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s

Torp Turn7.2 s

Torp Arming201 m

Per-side salvo damage

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

101,600

AA Defense

AA mount points10

Close-range AA DPS

Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (12×3.5×1) + (34×3.5×0.95) = 155. 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.

155

Maximum AA range

Longest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.

3.5 km

37 mm Flak LM/43Initial: 37 mm Flakzwilling 30 (2×2) → 37 mm Flak LM/43 (2×1)

20 mm Flak 38Initial: 8×1 → 4×1 20mm

20 mm Flakvierling 38 (upgraded hull only)4×4 20mm

DPSInitial: 5 → 12

Range3.5 km

DPSInitial: 26 → 34

Range2 km

Total DPS in Aura

Medium 12 + Near 34 = 46

Maneuverability

Engine moduleEngine: 80,000 hp

Engine power80,000 hp

Maximum speed36 kt

Turning circle radius690 m

Engine power multiplier speed threshold7 kt

Traverse-to-turn ratio5.2× slow

Concealment

Detectability by sea6.38 km

Detectability by air3.19 km

Smoke firing penalty2.39 km

Detect after firing main guns6.38 km

Detect Fire Sea8.38 km

Detect Fire Air6.19 km

Guaranteed Detect2 km

✦

Consumables

Damage Control Party∞ charges · 40 s reload · 5 s active

Smoke Generator2 charges · 240 s reload · 15 s emit / 61 s cloud active

Engine Boost2 charges · 180 s reload · 120 s active · +8% speed bonus

Sonar2 charges · 180 s reload · 92 s active · 4.4 km ship detect · 3.13 km torpedo detect

Module options (3)

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

HullTrade-off

Hit points15,000 → 15,700
Rudder shift7.3 → 5.2 s
Close-range AA DPS31 → 46
Turret traverse8 → 6 °/s

Fire controlUpgrade

Main battery range9,314 → 10245.4 m

TorpedoesUpgrade

Range7.5 → 8.01 km
Speed62 → 65 kt

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

Shell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.

Max Horiz Disp84.9 m

Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (9314/30·(8−0.5)/1000 + 0.5)·30 = 84.9 m

Max Vert Disp50.9 m

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 84.9 × 0.6 = 50.9 m

Med Horiz Disp27.1 m

50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 84.9 × 0.319 (σ=2) = 27.1 m

Med Vert Disp16.3 m

50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 50.9 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 16.3 m

Dispersion familyDD Disp.

Standard destroyer dispersion baseline.

AP Pen Close220 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 × 1933 × 45.3^0.69 × 0.15^-1.07 × 835^1.38 = 220 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

AP Pen Far48.5 mm

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (12.8 km), where the shell has slowed to 279.1 m/s: 1e-7 × 1933 × 45.3^0.69 × 0.15^-1.07 × 279.1^1.38 = 48.5 mm.

HE penetration25 mm

In-game data: 25 mm = 128 mm caliber / 5.12 (non-standard HE penetration ratio).

AP overmatch8 mm

floor(128 mm caliber / 14.3) = 8 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

AP AOE Radius15

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 alpha4

All 4 barrels bear on the broadside.

Turret turn time22.5 s

180 degrees / 8 deg/s traverse speed = 22.5 s.

HE full-salvo alpha8,800

2,200 HE damage x 4 broadside guns = 8,800.

AP full-salvo alpha14,800

3,700 AP damage x 4 broadside guns = 14,800.

Base HE DPM103,529

8,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 5.1 s base reload = 103,529.

Base AP DPM174,118

14,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 5.1 s base reload = 174,118.

Base shells/min47.1

4 broadside guns x 60 / 5.1 s base reload = 47.1.

Base fires/min5.65

4 HE shells x 60 / 5.1 s reload x 12% fire chance = 5.65.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability1.3 km

Estimated torpedo reaction time7.7 s

detectability / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).

Torpedo speed65 kt

Travel time to max range47.4 s

range / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).

Tube count8

2 launchers x 4 tubes.

Per-side salvo8 torpedoes

8 (centerline launchers train across - full salvo to either side).

Full-salvo damage101,600

tube count x per-torpedo simulated damage (all torpedoes hitting).

Per-side salvo damage101,600

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS155

Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (12×3.5×1) + (34×3.5×0.95) = 155. 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 range3.5 km

Longest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.

AA threat index373

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 range2 km

Armor

Hull HP 15,000 → 15,700 with hull upgrade, 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
Bow	16 mm primary (range 15–16 mm)	2,100 (13% of HP)	Overmatched by 283mm+ (Moltke, Graf Spee)Angle bounces 203mm16 mm: HE pens from 127mm+	Bow-tank fits behind this exterior plate. Saturation is FAST here; the cap is often only a few thousand HP.
Hull (midship)	16 mm primary (range 13–16 mm)	11,800 (75% of HP)	Overmatched by 283mm+ (Moltke, Graf Spee)Angle bounces 203mm16 mm: HE pens from 127mm+	Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern	16 mm primary (range 13–16 mm)	1,300 (8% of HP)	Overmatched by 283mm+ (Moltke, Graf Spee)Angle bounces 203mm16 mm: HE pens from 127mm+	Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel	16 mm primary (range 10–16 mm)	≈ 165,500 (effectively no cap)	Citadel pen ×0.50 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 (×0.50 direct pen, ×0.10 over-pen).
Superstructure	10 mm	1,300 (8% 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).
Turret (module, per magazine)	separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP	7,900 magazine HP	Magazine detonation1–30% chance · below ~75% HP	Per-turret powder-magazine HP. Detonation chance scales from 1% (no mag damage) to 30% (full mag damage); this range is the in-game value. Detonation can't roll while the ship is above ~75% HP (the standard detonation-protection threshold, not a per-ship stat). Smaller magazines saturate to the 30% ceiling faster.
AA mount (37 mm mount)	separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP	200 per-mount HP	Destroyed at 0 HP	Per-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 HP	4,700 module HP	Incapacitated at 0 HP	When 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 Gaede. Cards are condensed; use each source link for full context.

Nerf ×12

2023-06-15

Ministry of Balance: Italian Concerto

Stock Hull HP reduced from 15,700 to 15,000.
Bow HP reduced from 2,100 to 2,000.
Hull HP reduced from 11,800 to 11,300.
Magazine HP reduced from 7,900 to 7,500.
Steering Gear HP reduced from 4,700 to 4,500.
Upgraded Hull HP reduced 16,500 to 15,700.
Bow HP reduced from 2,200 to 2,100.
Stern HP reduced from 1,400 to 1,300.
Hull HP reduced from 12,400 to 11,800.
Magazine HP reduced from 8,300 to 7,900.
+2 more official change lines in the source post.

Read the full official post

Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

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.

2026-04-30 · Patch notes May Update: From Rome to Edo Patch notes