Kuma Build & Guide | WoWs Legends

Playstyle

Overview

Kuma is a Tier III Japanese light cruiser with Sonar as her vision tool. Hydro lets her contest islands and smoke without exposing the hull to vision cycles, which shapes how she pressures caps. Standout traits: best HE alpha in T3 CAs (2,400) and best HE DPM in T3 CAs (160,000).

Positioning

Sit 10-13 km from a contested cap where an island shadows you from the opposite battleship line. Hydro (3.9 km on ships, 2.8 km on torpedoes) lights up DDs and incoming torpedoes inside its bubble, so you can push the cap edge from cover without taking the spotting cycle; prefer cover positions over open-water flanks.

Potato Avoidance

Open-water broadside trading

Her 140mm shells citadel cruisers on the wrong frame, and her 24,200-HP hull does not recover from a punished salvo. Pick rotations and angles deliberately; the chip-damage role pays better than the trade-blow role on a cruiser of this profile.

Signature Traits

Heavy HE shells

2400.0 damage per HE shell, best of T3 CAs. Punishes superstructure and modules harder than peers.

HE DPM machine

160000 HE DPM, best of T3 CAs. Sustained fire pressure.

Heavy magazine armor

35.0 mm magazine protection, best of T3 CAs. Detonation-resistant.

Thick citadel floor

35.0 mm citadel bottom, best of T3 CAs. Deep-water torps and underwater pen do less.

AP DPM machine

180000 AP DPM, top decile of T3 CAs. Punishes broadsides.

Soft superstructure

6.0 mm superstructure, bottom quartile of T3 CAs. HE farms harder.

Acquisition

How to get Kuma

Kuma is available in the Early Japanese Cruisers branch of the Japan Tech Tree for 85,000 credits after researching it in the branch. Known module upgrades cost up to 19,120 credits.

Show Japan tech-tree branch diagram

Japan Tech Tree

Kuma sits in the Early Japanese Cruisers branch. The highlighted path shows the local branch context inside the full Japan tree.

2 ships in highlighted branch · scroll to inspect all Japan lines.

JapanIIIIIIIVVVIVIIVIII★

Destroyer

Destroyer Split

Cruiser

Cruiser Split

Battleship

Hybrid Battleship

Carrier

Tier VIIsePJSB527 Tier VIIIDewaPJSB309 Tier VIISuwoPJSB308 Tier VIIIKitakazePJSD219 Tier VIIIYūgumoPJSD209 Tier VIIITakahashiPJSC209 Tier VIIKagerōPJSD208 Tier VIIShimantoPJSC208 Tier VIShiratsuyuPJSD207 Tier VIOmonoPJSC207 Tier VHatsuharuPJSD206 Tier VGokasePJSC206 Tier IVMinekazePJSD205 Tier IVAganoPJSC205 Tier VIIAkizukiPJSD108 Tier VIIShōkakuPJSA108 Tier VIAkatsukiPJSD107 Tier VFubukiPJSD106 Tier IVMutsukiPJSD105 Tier IChikumaPJSC035 Tier IIWakatakePJSD024 Tier VIIIIzumoPJSB021 Tier ★YamatoPJSB018 Tier IITenryūPJSC015 Tier IIIKumaPJSC013 Tier VIIAmagiPJSB013 Tier ★ShimakazePJSD012 Tier VIIIIbukiPJSC012 Tier VINagatoPJSB010 Tier VIIMogamiPJSC009 Tier VRyūjōPJSA009 Tier VIMyōkōPJSC008 Tier IIIIshizuchiPJSB008 Tier VAobaPJSC007 Tier IVKongōPJSB007 Tier VFusōPJSB006 Tier IVFurutakaPJSC005 Tier IIIIsokazePJSD003 Tier IIIHōshōPJSA002

Builds Beta

AL Atago, AL Azuma, and Arpeggio Haguro are useful Japanese cruiser commander directions. Inspirations usually support accuracy, reload, concealment, agility, or survivability so the ship can keep influencing fights without giving up easy citadels.

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Commanders frequently paired with this ship AL Atago AL Azuma Arpeggio Haguro

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Cohort position

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Where Kuma sits among Tier III CAs (12 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.

BestHE DPM160,000 (1/11) Top 10%Fires per minute6.67 (2/11) Top 10%AP DPM180,000 (2/12) Top 10%Main dispersion111.9 m (2/12) Top 10%Torpedo reload42 s (2/11) Top 25%Rudder shift7 s (3/12) Top 25%Main battery reload5.4 s (3/12) Top 25%AP arming threshold23 mm (4/12) Top 25%Engine power90,000 hp (3/12) Top 25%Turn-speed retention140.6 hp/m (4/12) Top 25%Torpedo range6.99 km (3/11) Top 25%Deck armor51 mm (3/12) Bottom 25%Main battery caliber140 mm (10/12) Bottom 25%Main battery range12.58 km (10/12) WorstNo secondaries (8 of 12 in cohort) WorstBow armor15 mm (1 of 4 tied)

See 24 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Kuma -- 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 points24,200 HP(5/12) Max speed34.5 kt(5/12) Concealment9.88 km(8/12) Air detection5.93 km(7/12) Traverse-to-turn ratio5.35 ×(7/12) HE fire chance10%(7/11) AP shell damage2,700(8/12) AP velocity850 m/s(9/12) HE velocity850 m/s(8/11) Acceleration9.5 s(5/12) Displacement7,948 t(9/12) Power-to-weight11.32 hp/t(5/12) AA DPS106(8/12) AA range3.1 km(6/12) AA threat295(6/12) Torpedo damage10,833(8/11) Torpedo speed57 kt(7/11) Max armor65 mm(7/12) Citadel belt65 mm(6/12) Stern armor25 mm(5/12) NormSigma2(11 of 12 tied at this value) NormAP fuse timer0.03 s(9 of 12 tied at this value) NormAP ricochet start45°(11 of 12 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(11 of 12 tied at this value)

Peers in this cohort

Show all 11 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 3.87 kmFighter

Survivability

Hit PointsInitial: 23,000 → 24,200

Displacement7,948 t

Armor range6–65 mm

Plate armor thicknesses6, 10, 13, 15, 19, 25, 30, 35, 40, 51, 65 mm

Armor material/layer entries29

Fire resistanceInitial: 6.7% → 10%

Fire duration30 s

Torp Reduction0%

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.

12,100

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.

7,300

Main Battery

ModuleArtillery: 140 mm/50 Type3

Mounts / barrels7 mounts / 7 barrels

Reload time6 s

Firing range (base)11.4 km

Firing range (top fire control)12.6 km

Turret traverse8.5 °/s

Shell Grouping (σ)

ƒ

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

2

Max Horiz Disp

ƒ

Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (11436/30·(8−1.1)/1000 + 1.1)·30 = 111.9 m

111.9 m

Max Vert Disp

ƒ

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 111.9 × 0.6 = 67.1 m

67.1 m

Med Horiz Disp

ƒ

50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 111.9 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 35.8 m

35.8 m

Med Vert Disp

ƒ

50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 67.1 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 21.5 m

21.5 m

Turret turn time

ƒ

180 degrees / 8.5 deg/s traverse speed = 21.2 s.

21.2 s

Base shells/min

ƒ

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

60

HE shells

HE Damage2,400

HE Velocity850 m/s

Fire Chance10%

HE penetration

ƒ

23 mm ≈ 140 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).

23 mm

HE full-salvo alpha

ƒ

2,400 HE damage x 6 broadside guns = 14,400.

14,400

Base HE DPM

ƒ

14,400 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 6 s base reload = 144,000.

144,000

Base fires/min

ƒ

6 HE shells x 60 / 6 s reload x 10% fire chance = 6.

6

AP shells

AP Damage2,700

AP Velocity850 m/s

Min Ricochet45 deg

Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg

Fuse Timer0.025 s

Fuse Threshold23 mm

AP overmatch

ƒ

floor(140 mm caliber / 14.3) = 9 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

9 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 × 1794 × 38^0.69 × 0.14^-1.07 × 850^1.38 = 199.6 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

199.6 mm

AP Pen Far

ƒ

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (15.7 km), where the shell has slowed to 272.5 m/s: 1e-7 × 1794 × 38^0.69 × 0.14^-1.07 × 272.5^1.38 = 41.5 mm.

41.5 mm

AP full-salvo alpha

ƒ

2,700 AP damage x 6 broadside guns = 16,200.

16,200

Base AP DPM

ƒ

16,200 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 6 s base reload = 162,000.

162,000

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.

8

◇

Torpedoes

ModuleTorpedoes: Type6

Launchers / tubes4 launchers × 2 tubes = 8 tubes

Reload time42 s

Projectile speed57 kt

Range6.99 km

Maximum simulated damage9,933 (est.)

Alpha damage29,800

Torpedo detectability1.2 km

Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s

Torp Turn7.2 s

Torp Arming176 m

Per-side salvo damage

ƒ

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

39,732

AA Defense

AA mount pointsInitial: 4 → 8

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: (28×3.5×0.9) + (6×3.5×0.85) = 106. 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.

106

Maximum AA range

ƒ

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

3.1 km

25 mm Type96 mod. 1 (upgraded hull only)6×2 25mm

13 mm Type93 (upgraded hull only)2×1 13mm

76.2 mm 3rd Year Type (stock hull only)2×1 76mm

6.5 mm 3rd Year Type (stock hull only)2×1 7mm

DPS28

Range3.1 km

DPS6

Range1.2 km

Total DPS in Aura

ƒ

Medium 28 + Near 6 = 34

34

Maneuverability

Engine moduleEngine: 51,000 hp

Engine power90,000 hp

Maximum speed34.5 kt

Turning circle radius640 m

Engine power multiplier speed threshold7 kt

Traverse-to-turn ratio5.4× slow

Concealment

Detectability by sea9.88 km

Detectability by air5.93 km

Smoke firing penalty4.17 km

Detect after firing main guns9.88 km

Detect Fire Sea11.88 km

Detect Fire Air8.93 km

Guaranteed Detect2 km

✦

Consumables

Damage Control Party∞ charges · 60 s reload · 5 s active

Sonar2 charges · 180 s reload · 90 s active · 3.87 km ship detect · 2.8 km torpedo detect

Catapult Fighter1 charges · 70 s reload · 55 s active · 5.56 km patrol radius · 1 squadron size

Module options (2)

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

HullTrade-off

Hit points23,000 → 24,200
Rudder shift9 → 7 s
AA mounts4 → 8
Close-range AA DPS3 → 34
Maximum AA range3 → 3.1 km
Turret traverse8.5 → 8 °/s

Fire controlUpgrade

Main battery range11,436 → 12579.6 m

See all derived stats

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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 Disp111.9 m

Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (11436/30·(8−1.1)/1000 + 1.1)·30 = 111.9 m

Max Vert Disp67.1 m

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 111.9 × 0.6 = 67.1 m

Med Horiz Disp35.8 m

50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 111.9 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 35.8 m

Med Vert Disp21.5 m

50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 67.1 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 21.5 m

Dispersion familyCruiser Disp.

Standard cruiser dispersion baseline.

AP Pen Close199.6 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 × 1794 × 38^0.69 × 0.14^-1.07 × 850^1.38 = 199.6 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

AP Pen Far41.5 mm

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (15.7 km), where the shell has slowed to 272.5 m/s: 1e-7 × 1794 × 38^0.69 × 0.14^-1.07 × 272.5^1.38 = 41.5 mm.

HE penetration23 mm

23 mm ≈ 140 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).

AP overmatch9 mm

floor(140 mm caliber / 14.3) = 9 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

AP AOE Radius8

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

Barrels that can bear on one beam (6 of 7); casemate/wing mounts only fire one side.

Turret turn time21.2 s

180 degrees / 8.5 deg/s traverse speed = 21.2 s.

HE full-salvo alpha14,400

2,400 HE damage x 6 broadside guns = 14,400.

AP full-salvo alpha16,200

2,700 AP damage x 6 broadside guns = 16,200.

Base HE DPM144,000

14,400 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 6 s base reload = 144,000.

Base AP DPM162,000

16,200 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 6 s base reload = 162,000.

Base shells/min60

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

Base fires/min6

6 HE shells x 60 / 6 s reload x 10% fire chance = 6.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability1.2 km

Estimated torpedo reaction time8.1 s

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

Torpedo speed57 kt

Travel time to max range47.2 s

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

Tube count8

4 launchers x 2 tubes.

Per-side salvo4 torpedoes

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

Full-salvo damage79,464

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

Per-side salvo damage39,732

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS106

Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (28×3.5×0.9) + (6×3.5×0.85) = 106. 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 range3.1 km

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

AA threat index295

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 range1.2 km

Armor

Hull HP 23,000 → 24,200 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	15 mm primary (range 10–15 mm)	3,700 (15% of HP)	Overmatched by 283mm+ (Nassau, Von Der Tann)Angle bounces 203mm15 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)	25 mm	18,200 (75% of HP)	Overmatch not possible at T IVAngle bounces 356mm25 mm: HE pens from 150mm+	Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern	25 mm primary (range 10–25 mm)	2,000 (8% of HP)	Overmatch not possible at T IVAngle bounces 356mm25 mm: HE pens from 150mm+	Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel	65 mm primary (range 10–65 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	6 mm primary (range 6–51 mm)	1,600 (7% 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	12,100 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.
AA mount (25 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	7,300 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 Kuma can equip, from in-game data.

DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior

Kuma

Kuma Community Stats