Gneisenau Build & Guide | WoWs Legends

Playstyle

Overview

Gneisenau is a Tier VI German torpedo-equipped battleship: she carries deck torpedoes reaching 6 km on a hull most BBs lack. The torps are a brawl-range threat that forces approaching ships to peel off or eat a wave; the main battery is the primary damage source, the torps are the trap. HE pen sits at the 1/4 caliber ratio instead of the standard 1/6, so HE spam is a real damage option here - pens roughly 1.5x more armor than a same-caliber peer's HE round. Standout traits: best top speed in T6 BBs (32 kt).

Positioning

Anchor a flank at 14-17 km with bow toward the closest threat, then use the speed advantage at 32 kn to rotate to the cap that needs a second battleship rather than the one your team already has. Mobility means you can pick which fight you are in; do not waste it by holding center the whole match.

Potato Avoidance

Using the 32-kn speed to push rather than to rotate

The mobility advantage is about picking which cap fight you arrive at, not about leading the brawl line; a fast BB that overextends loses HP that the kit cannot trade back.

Signature Traits

Turtleback armor

Sloped internal armor between the lower belt and the citadel deck. Bounces AP shells that penetrate the upper belt, so close-range broadside trades are survivable against same-tier guns.

Improved HE penetration

HE pen at the 1/4 caliber ratio instead of the standard 1/6. HE-spam is a real damage option here, not just a fire-starter; pens roughly 1.5x more armor than a same-caliber peer's HE, shared by 7/27 T6 BBs.

Punch-through secondaries

38.0 mm best HE pen across secondary families, best of T6 BBs. Pens hull plates peers' secondaries shatter on.

Fast torpedoes

64.0 kt torpedo speed, best of T6 BBs. Less reaction time for targets to dodge.

Fast for the class

32.0 kt, best of T6 BBs. Lets you rotate flanks or escape disengagements.

Low HE DPM

67692 HE DPM, bottom decile of T6 BBs. Don't bank on burn pressure.

Acquisition

How to get Gneisenau

Gneisenau is available in the Brawler Battleships branch of the Germany Tech Tree for 9,000,000 credits after researching it in the branch. Known module upgrades cost up to 2,250,000 credits.

Show Germany tech-tree branch diagram

Germany Tech Tree

Gneisenau sits in the Brawler Battleships branch. The highlighted path shows the local branch context inside the full Germany tree.

7 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

AL Bismarck, AL Prinz Heinrich, and AL Scharnhorst are useful German battleship commander directions. Inspirations usually favor accuracy, reload, AP performance, HP, survivability, or secondary/brawling bonuses depending on how aggressively you want to play.

Open in Build Tool →

Commanders frequently paired with this ship AL Bismarck AL Prinz Heinrich AL Scharnhorst

Have a build you swear by? Open it in the Build Tool and hit Save build to share it here.

Cohort position

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Where Gneisenau sits among Tier VI BBs (27 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.

BestMax speed32 kt (1 of 2 tied) BestSecondary HE pen38 mm (1 of 3 tied) BestTorpedo speed64 kt (1 of 2 tied) BestTorpedo reload68 s (1 of 2 tied) Top 10%Engine power160,000 hp (3/27) Top 10%Power-to-weight3.98 hp/t (3/27) Top 25%Main battery reload23.4 s (7/27) Top 25%Turn-speed retention192.8 hp/m (4/27) Top 25%Secondary range5.3 km (5/27) Bottom 25%Fires per minute5.23 (23/27) Bottom 25%AP DPM178,462 (24/27) Bottom 25%HE alpha1,700 (24/26) Bottom 25%Acceleration9.1 s (23/27) Bottom 25%Citadel belt260 mm (22/26) WorstHE DPM67,692 (27/27)

See 32 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Gneisenau -- 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.

Hit points58,200 HP(20/27) Concealment14.64 km(17/27) Air detection11.71 km(17/27) Rudder shift19.2 s(14/27) Traverse-to-turn ratio4.4 ×(8/27) Main battery caliber380 mm(17/27) Main battery range16.12 km(10/27) Sigma1.8(17/27) HE fire chance34%(15/27) AP shell damage11,600(12/27) Main dispersion209.6 m(13/27) Secondary DPM (per side)232,048(9/27) Secondary fire chance8%(17/26) AP velocity820 m/s(11/27) HE velocity820 m/s(13/27) AP arming threshold63 mm(11/27) Displacement40,198 t(8/27) AA DPS337(16/27) AA range4.5 km(21/27) AA threat1,084(12/27) Repair charges3(13/27) Max armor350 mm(17/27) Bow armor26 mm(11/26) Stern armor26 mm(11/26) Deck armor100 mm(19/26) NormSecondary dispersion bracket57(20 of 27 tied at this value) NormAP fuse timer0.03 s(18 of 27 tied at this value) NormAP ricochet start45°(24 of 27 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(24 of 27 tied at this value) NormTorpedo range6 km(3 of 5 tied at this value) NormTorpedo damage13,700(3 of 5 tied at this value) NormRepair heal rate0.5 %/s(17 of 27 tied at this value)

Peers in this cohort

Francesco Caracciolo vs

Show all 26 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.

Repair 3Fighter

Survivability

Hit PointsInitial: 50,900 → 58,200

Displacement40,198 t

Armor range13–350 mm

Plate armor thicknesses13, 16, 20, 26, 32, 35, 40, 45, 50, 70, 80, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 150, 200, 260, 350 mm

Armor material/layer entries50

Fire resistanceInitial: 26.6% → 30%

Fire duration60 s

Torp Reduction22%

Magazine HP

ƒ

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.

29,100

Steering gear HP

ƒ

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.

17,500

Main Battery

ModuleArtillery: 380 mm L/52 Drh LC/34

Mounts / barrels3 mounts / 6 barrels

Reload time26 s

Firing range (base)14.7 km

Firing range (top fire control)16.1 km

Turret traverse5 °/s

Shell Grouping (σ)

ƒ

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

1.8

Max Horiz Disp

ƒ

Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (14656/30·(12−2.2)/1000 + 2.2)·30 = 209.6 m

209.6 m

Max Vert Disp

ƒ

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 209.6 × 0.6 = 125.8 m

125.8 m

Med Horiz Disp

ƒ

50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 209.6 × 0.344 (σ=1.8) = 72.1 m

72.1 m

Med Vert Disp

ƒ

50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 125.8 × 0.344 (σ=1.8) = 43.3 m

43.3 m

Turret turn time

ƒ

180 degrees / 5 deg/s traverse speed = 36 s.

36 s

Base shells/min

ƒ

6 broadside guns x 60 / 26 s base reload = 13.8.

13.8

HE shells

HE Damage4,400

HE Velocity820 m/s

Fire Chance34%

HE penetration

ƒ

95 mm ≈ 380 mm caliber / 4 (improved HE penetration: German BBs, Yamato-class, and a handful of others).

95 mm

HE full-salvo alpha

ƒ

4,400 HE damage x 6 broadside guns = 26,400.

26,400

Base HE DPM

ƒ

26,400 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 26 s base reload = 60,923.

60,923

Base fires/min

ƒ

6 HE shells x 60 / 26 s reload x 34% fire chance = 4.71.

4.71

AP shells

AP Damage11,600

AP Velocity820 m/s

Min Ricochet45 deg

Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg

Fuse Timer0.033 s

Fuse Threshold63 mm

AP overmatch

ƒ

floor(380 mm caliber / 14.3) = 26 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

26 mm

AP Pen Close

ƒ

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 × 2450 × 800^0.69 × 0.38^-1.07 × 820^1.38 = 729.4 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

729.4 mm

AP Pen Far

ƒ

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (20.2 km), where the shell has slowed to 531.1 m/s: 1e-7 × 2450 × 800^0.69 × 0.38^-1.07 × 531.1^1.38 = 400.6 mm.

400.6 mm

AP full-salvo alpha

ƒ

11,600 AP damage x 6 broadside guns = 69,600.

69,600

Base AP DPM

ƒ

69,600 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 26 s base reload = 160,615.

160,615

AP AOE Radius

ƒ

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.

120

◇

Torpedoes

ModuleTorpedoes: G7a T1

Launchers / tubes2 launchers × 3 tubes = 6 tubes

Reload time68 s

Projectile speed64 kt

Range6 km

Maximum simulated damage12,700 (est.)

Alpha damage38,100

Torpedo detectability1.3 km

Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s

Torp Turn7.2 s

Torp Arming198 m

Per-side salvo damage

ƒ

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

38,100

AA Defense

AA mount pointsInitial: 29 → 25

Close-range AA DPS

ƒ

Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (31×3.5×0.75) + (57×3.5×0.7) + (44×3.5×0.75) = 337. 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.

337

Maximum AA range

ƒ

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

4.5 km

37 mm Flak LM/42Initial: 37 mm Flakzwilling 30 (8×2) → 37 mm Flak LM/42 (6×2)

20 mm Flakvierling 387×4 20mm

20 mm Flakzwilling 38Initial: 14×2 → 12×2 20mm

105 mm L/65 Dop. L. C/31 (DP)7×2 105mm

DPS

ƒ

Includes 44 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose secondaries firing as AA in this range band.

44

Range4.5 km

DPSInitial: 11 → 31

Range3.5 km

Total DPS in Aura

ƒ

Far 44 + Medium 31 = 75

75

DPSInitial: 66 → 57

Range2 km

Total DPS in Aura

ƒ

Far 44 + Medium 31 + Near 57 = 132

132

S

Secondary Battery

Mounts15 → 11

Firing range5.3 km

Shell Grouping (σ)1

Secondary dispersion type

ƒ

Max 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 @ 5.3 km

ƒ

5.3 km × 57 + 30 = 332.1 m.

332.1 m

Caliber105 mm

Reload time3.35 s

HE Damage1,200

Muzzle Velocity900 m/s

Fire Chance5%

Armor Pen20 mm

Min Ricochet91°

Max Ricochet60°

Show 2 more gun families

Caliber150 mm

Reload time7.5 s

HE Damage1,700

Muzzle Velocity875 m/s

Fire Chance8%

Armor Pen38 mm

Min Ricochet91°

Max Ricochet60°

Caliber150 mm

Reload time7.5 s

HE Damage1,700

Muzzle Velocity875 m/s

Fire Chance8%

Armor Pen38 mm

Min Ricochet91°

Max Ricochet60°

Maneuverability

Engine moduleEngine: 160,000 hp

Engine power160,000 hp

Maximum speed32 kt

Turning circle radius830 m

Engine power multiplier speed threshold7 kt

Traverse-to-turn ratio4.4× drags

Concealment

Detectability by sea14.64 km

Detectability by air11.71 km

Smoke firing penalty13.37 km

Detect after firing main guns14.64 km

Detect Fire Sea16.64 km

Detect Fire Air14.71 km

Guaranteed Detect2 km

✦

Consumables

Damage Control Party∞ charges · 80 s reload · 15 s active

Repair Party3 charges · 80 s reload · 28 s active · 0.5% heal per second · 14% of max HP total heal

Choose one

Catapult Fighter3 charges · 60 s reload · 55 s active · 5.56 km patrol radius · 1 squadron size

Observation Seaplane3 charges · 200 s reload · 30 s active · 1 squadron size · +10% main-battery range bonus

Secondary Battery Booster3 charges · 160 s reload · 30 s active · +100% damage boost · +50% reload boost

Module options (2)

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

HullTrade-off

Hit points50,900 → 58,200
Rudder shift26.9 → 19.2 s
AA mounts29 → 25
Close-range AA DPS77 → 88
Turret traverse5 → 6 °/s

Fire controlUpgrade

Main battery range14,656 → 16121.6 m

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)1.8

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

Max Horiz Disp209.6 m

Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (14656/30·(12−2.2)/1000 + 2.2)·30 = 209.6 m

Max Vert Disp125.8 m

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 209.6 × 0.6 = 125.8 m

Med Horiz Disp72.1 m

50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 209.6 × 0.344 (σ=1.8) = 72.1 m

Med Vert Disp43.3 m

50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 125.8 × 0.344 (σ=1.8) = 43.3 m

AP Pen Close729.4 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 × 2450 × 800^0.69 × 0.38^-1.07 × 820^1.38 = 729.4 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

AP Pen Far400.6 mm

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (20.2 km), where the shell has slowed to 531.1 m/s: 1e-7 × 2450 × 800^0.69 × 0.38^-1.07 × 531.1^1.38 = 400.6 mm.

HE penetration95 mm

95 mm ≈ 380 mm caliber / 4 (improved HE penetration: German BBs, Yamato-class, and a handful of others).

Improved HE PenYes

This ship's HE shells use a 1/4 (~0.25) caliber-to-pen ratio instead of the standard 1/6 (~0.167) - 0.249 in this case. Lets HE pen ~95mm armor instead of ~63mm. Hits every German cruiser (150mm CL, 203mm CA) and BB (350mm+), British heavy cruisers / Lion / Nelson, a handful of other premiums.

AP overmatch26 mm

floor(380 mm caliber / 14.3) = 26 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

AP AOE Radius120

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 time36 s

180 degrees / 5 deg/s traverse speed = 36 s.

HE full-salvo alpha26,400

4,400 HE damage x 6 broadside guns = 26,400.

AP full-salvo alpha69,600

11,600 AP damage x 6 broadside guns = 69,600.

Base HE DPM60,923

26,400 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 26 s base reload = 60,923.

Base AP DPM160,615

69,600 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 26 s base reload = 160,615.

Base shells/min13.8

6 broadside guns x 60 / 26 s base reload = 13.8.

Base fires/min4.71

6 HE shells x 60 / 26 s reload x 34% fire chance = 4.71.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability1.3 km

Estimated torpedo reaction time7.8 s

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

Torpedo speed64 kt

Travel time to max range36.1 s

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

Tube count6

2 launchers x 3 tubes.

Per-side salvo3 torpedoes

tube count / 2 (symmetric port/starboard launcher layout; common on cruisers and battleships with deck torpedoes).

Full-salvo damage76,200

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

Per-side salvo damage38,100

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS337

Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (31×3.5×0.75) + (57×3.5×0.7) + (44×3.5×0.75) = 337. 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 range4.5 km

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

AA threat index1084

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

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 @ 5.3 km332.1 m

5.3 km × 57 + 30 = 332.1 m.

Secondary battery firepower

Secondary DPM (per side)232,048

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: 7×2 105 mm (7/side) × 60/3.35 × 1200 = 150,448 + 4×2 150 mm (4/side) × 60/7.5 × 1700 = 54,400 + 4×1 150 mm (2/side) × 60/7.5 × 1700 = 27,200. Assumes every shell hits (real hit rate is lower; the Brawl matchup tool on the Compare page folds in dispersion + target armor).

Max HE alpha1700

Maximum HE damage per shell across secondary HE families. Best on this ship: 1700 from the 150 mm family.

Max HE fire chance8%

Maximum per-shell fire chance across secondary HE families (before target fire resistance is applied). Best on this ship: 8% from the 150 mm family.

Max HE pen38 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: 38 mm from the 150 mm family.

Armor

Hull HP 50,900 → 58,200 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	26 mm primary (range 26–70 mm)	2,700 (5% of HP)	Overmatched by 380mm+ (Bayern, Richelieu)Angle bounces 356mm26 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)	16 mm primary (range 16–350 mm)	43,700 (75% of HP)	Overmatched by 283mm+ (Graf Spee, Scharnhorst)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	26 mm primary (range 26–90 mm)	1,500 (3% of HP)	Overmatched by 380mm+ (Bayern, Richelieu)Angle bounces 356mm26 mm: HE pens from 203mm+	Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel	260 mm primary (range 13–260 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).
Superstructure	200 mm primary (range 200–350 mm)	3,100 (5% 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	29,100 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.
Secondary mount (150 mm mount)	separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP	800 per-mount HP	Destroyed at 0 HP	Per-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 (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.
Engine (module, research)	engine coefficient (unconfirmed)	-0.100 research estimate	Largest on BB/BC; zero on destroyers	Engine durability isn't a per-ship HP field in the binary. This small negative coefficient is non-zero only on battleships, battlecruisers, and the heaviest cruisers, and is exactly zero on every destroyer, so it scales with hull displacement rather than any commander skill. Most likely an engine drag or power term in the same family as the decoded deceleration fields; exact meaning unconfirmed in the current decoder.
Rudder (module)	separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP	17,500 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.

Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior

Gneisenau

Gneisenau Community Stats

Gneisenau Community Stats

Playstyle

Overview

Positioning

Potato Avoidance

Signature Traits

How to get Gneisenau

Builds Beta

Cohort position

Peers in this cohort

Stats & specs

See all derived stats

Main battery formulas

Torpedoes

AA defense

Secondary battery dispersion

Secondary battery firepower

Armor

Shell ballistics chart

Skins & permanent camouflages

Primary official WG sources