GamingDiver / WoWs Legends Ships / Lightning

World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Lightning

Also called: 雷电 Beta

U.K. · Tier VII · Destroyer · Tech Tree: Dueling Destroyers

Smoke destroyerThe smoke cycle holds cap edges and trades gunfire from cover.

Playstyle

Anchor near a smoke cycle on a contested cap and trade gunfire from inside the cloud
The smoke is your sustain tool; rotating mid-smoke wastes the cycle for the next contest
Avoid: Rotating mid-smoke

Key characteristics

Smoke + SonarLong-duration sonarQuick accelerationSlow HE shells

On this page

Community stats
Playstyle
How to get Lightning
Builds
Cohort position
Stats and specs
Charts
Background
Armor
Exteriors

Community Data

Lightning Community Stats

Across 22,000+ Standard battles from 270+ players, Lightning averages a 63% win rate, 48,600 damage and 1.2 kills per battle, and survives 49% of them.

Community Data

Lightning Community Stats

Log in to GamingDiver and upload your data to see Community Data for Lightning: community win rate, damage, survival, spotting, and your own comparison.

Playstyle

Overview

Lightning is a Tier VII British smoke destroyer with 6 smoke charges on a short cooldown: the many smokes are the kit, setting up aggressive and defensive plays that one-smoke DDs cannot. Hold cap edges and trade gunfire from cover, then re-smoke before the next window closes. Standout traits: best Sonar duration in T7 DDs (180 s, 2nd of 12) and quick acceleration in T7 DDs (2.1 s, 2nd of 42). The trade is HE shell velocity in T7 DDs (774, 35th of 35).

Positioning

Anchor near a smoke cycle on a contested cap and trade gunfire from inside the cloud. The smoke is your sustain tool; rotating mid-smoke wastes the cycle for the next contest. Your guns lose penetration at range, so aim AP at broadsides you can still citadel and put HE into superstructures and upper-hull sections, rather than the bow-in or belt armor your shells bounce and shatter on. Shooting from the cloud gives you away at 2.5 km, and a destroyer here is spotted at about 7 km, so you see it coming with roughly 4.5 km to spare. Vision is mutual: past the 2 km guaranteed ring you cannot see out either, and only your Sonar bubble (3.5 km) sees out; past that you are shooting at what a teammate holds lit. Enemy sonar (about 4.4 km) and radar (about 9.4 km) read straight in regardless. At 600 m the screen is wider than standard, so it can cover a teammate holding the same line as well as your own hull.

Potato Avoidance

Rotating mid-smoke

The smoke is a static firing position; if you leave it before the cycle ends, you give up the trade you set up and the next contest opens without a smoke to fall back on.

Signature Traits

Long-duration sonar ↗

180 s Sonar duration, best of T7 DDs.

ELITE SMOKE ↗

Extra smoke charges · 6 Smoke
Fast smoke cycle · 60 s

Quick acceleration ↗

~2.1 s from a stop to 12 kt, top decile of T7 DDs. Rebuilds speed quickly after a turn or a stop, so it re-angles and repositions without staying a stationary target.

WEAK MAIN BATTERY ↗

Slow HE shells · 774 m/s
Slow AP shells · 774 m/s

Acquisition

How to get Lightning

Lightning is available in the Dueling Destroyers branch of the U.K. Tech Tree for 18,000,000 credits after researching it in the branch. Known module upgrades cost up to 4,500,000 credits.

While you save up, check active promo codes for free doubloons, camouflages, and other rewards.

Show U.K. tech-tree branch diagram

U.K. Tech Tree

Lightning sits in the Dueling Destroyers branch. The highlighted path shows the local branch context inside the full U.K. tree.

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

U.K.IIIIIIIVVVIVIIVIII★

Destroyer

Cruiser

Cruiser Split

Battleship

Battleship Split

Carrier

Tier VRenownPBSB547 Tier VIIVanguardPBSB508 Tier ★St. VincentPBSB210 Tier VIIIDrakePBSC209 Tier VIIIDuncanPBSB209 Tier VIIAlbemarlePBSC208 Tier VIIHawkePBSB208 Tier VISurreyPBSC207 Tier VIRookePBSB207 Tier VDevonshirePBSC206 Tier IVHawkinsPBSC205 Tier IVTigerPBSB205 Tier IIIHermesPBSA204 Tier VIIITemerairePBSB112 Tier ★DaringPBSD110 Tier ★MinotaurPBSC110 Tier ★ConquerorPBSB110 Tier VIIIJutlandPBSD109 Tier VIIINeptunePBSC109 Tier VIILightningPBSD108 Tier VIIEdinburghPBSC108 Tier VIIImplacablePBSA108 Tier VIJervisPBSD107 Tier VIFijiPBSC107 Tier VIKing George VPBSB107 Tier VIcarusPBSD106 Tier VLeanderPBSC106 Tier VQueen ElizabethPBSB106 Tier VFuriousPBSA106 Tier IVAcastaPBSD105 Tier IVEmeraldPBSC105 Tier IVIron DukePBSB105 Tier IIIWakefulPBSD104 Tier IIIDanaePBSC104 Tier IIIOrionPBSB104 Tier IIValkyriePBSD103 Tier IICaledonPBSC103 Tier IWeymouthPBSC102

Builds

Pair with a commander whose unique skill complements her main armament; check the build tool for current recommendations.

Open in Build Tool →

Commanders frequently paired with this ship Ariadne M. Davis Grotmaz Smart

Have a build you swear by? Open it in the Build Tool and hit Save build to share it here, or browse the Ship Builds guide for proven loadouts across the fleet.

Cohort position

Hide ▾

Where Lightning sits among Tier VII DDs (41 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.

BestTime to 90% speed6.6 s (1/42) Top 10%Acceleration (0-12 kt)2.1 s (2/42) Top 10%Turn speed retained93.1% (2/42) Top 25%Smoke fire bloom2.45 km (7/42) Top 25%Fires per minute7.09 (6/35) Top 25%AP arming threshold20 mm (7/33) Top 25%Displacement2,700 t (11/42) Bottom 25%Hit points15,900 HP (35/42) Bottom 25%Main battery caliber120 mm (30/37) Bottom 25%HE shell damage1,700 (30/35) Bottom 25%Flak damage per salvo (expected)400 (15/17) WorstNo secondaries (35 of 42 in cohort) WorstAP velocity774 m/s (33/33) WorstHE velocity774 m/s (35/35)

See 32 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Lightning -- 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(21/42) Concealment6.9 km(19/42) Air detection3.45 km(19/42) Rudder shift3.8 s(17/42) Turning circle590 m(13/42) Main battery range10.79 km(27/37) Main battery reload4.5 s(19/37) HE fire chance9%(11/35) HE DPM133,875(14/35) AP shell damage2,200(21/33) AP DPM173,250(19/33) Main dispersion95.9 m(13/37) Engine power48,000 hp(29/42) Power / turn radius81.4 hp/m(25/42) Power-to-weight17.78 hp/t(28/42) AP pen at 10 km71 mm(14/34) Effective HE DPM (incl. fire)186,467(13/35) AA DPS187(18/42) AA range4.5 km(18/42) AA threat452(24/42) Torpedo range9.99 km(17/38) Torpedo damage≈14,433(24/38) Torpedo speed62 kt(25/38) Torpedo reaction time7.8 s(17/38) Torpedo reload96 s(22/38) Max armor20 mm(27/42) Citadel belt20 mm(25/42) Bow armor19 mm(22/42) Stern armor19 mm(23/42) NormAP fuse timer0.01 s(25 of 33 tied at this value) NormAP ricochet start45°(25 of 33 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(25 of 33 tied at this value)

Peers in this cohort

Compare Tier VII Destroyers

Show all 41 peers

Gustav Julius Maerker

Stats & specs

Customize in the Build Tool →

Survivability

Hit PointsInitial: 13,000 → 15,900

Displacement2,700 t

Hull dimensions

Length x beam at the waterline, plus draft. Length matters when dodging torpedoes; beam and draft shape how hard the ship is to hit.

110.6 x 11.2 m

Armor range13–20 mm

Plate armor thicknesses13, 16, 19, 20 mm

Armor material/layer entries22

Fire resistance

stock hull: 1 − 0.667 fire coefficient = 33.3%; top hull: 1 − 0.6337 fire coefficient = 36.6%. Lowers how often hits set you on fire. It does not reduce the damage a burning fire does per second; fires burn at the full rate on every ship.

Initial: 33.3% → 36.6%

Fire duration30 s

Fire damage

One unattended fire: 0.003 of max HP per second (0.3%) × 30 s = 0.09 of the pool; 0.09 × 15,900 HP = 1,431 HP on this ship. 4 fire points can burn at once.

0.3% of HP per second

Flood duration40 s

Flood damage

One unattended flood: 0.0025 of max HP per second (0.25%) × 40 s = 0.1 of the pool; 0.1 × 15,900 HP = 1,590 HP on this ship.

0.25% of HP per second

Torp Reduction

1 − 0.333 hull torpedo-damage coefficient / 0.333 unprotected baseline = 0%. Reduces torpedo hit damage. It does not affect flooding: floods start as often and tick at the full rate.

Magazine HP

Per-turret powder-magazine HP, a separate pool from the ship's. Penetrating hits wear it down and the turret is likelier to be knocked out as it falls, so a larger pool keeps the guns firing through punishment that silences a peer's.

8,000

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.

4,800

Repairable: penetration50%

Repairable: steering gear50%

Bow section HP

Damage saturation pool for the bow: penetrations here deal their normal share until twice this much penetration damage has landed on the section (2 × 2,500 = 5,000), then further hits on it deal half damage. A penetration deals 0.33 × the shell's max damage; once the section is saturated it deals exactly half of that (0.5 × 0.33 = 0.165 × max damage), so a 3,000-damage shell's pen goes from 990 to 495. Overpens (0.1 × max damage) and citadels (1.0 ×) ignore saturation. Pens on the ship's other, unsaturated sections still deal the normal 0.33 ×. A larger pool keeps that part of the ship taking full damage for longer; a small one saturates fast and protects the ship's HP.

2,500

Casemate section HP

This section has no practical saturation cap: every hit here keeps dealing its normal share of damage (on most ships the citadel; on many destroyers the casemate).

No saturation cap

Hull section HP

Damage saturation pool for the hull: penetrations here deal their normal share until twice this much penetration damage has landed on the section (2 × 11,900 = 23,800), then further hits on it deal half damage. A penetration deals 0.33 × the shell's max damage; once the section is saturated it deals exactly half of that (0.5 × 0.33 = 0.165 × max damage), so a 3,000-damage shell's pen goes from 990 to 495. Overpens (0.1 × max damage) and citadels (1.0 ×) ignore saturation. Pens on the ship's other, unsaturated sections still deal the normal 0.33 ×. A larger pool keeps that part of the ship taking full damage for longer; a small one saturates fast and protects the ship's HP.

11,900

Superstructure section HP

Damage saturation pool for the superstructure: penetrations here deal their normal share until twice this much penetration damage has landed on the section (2 × 1,100 = 2,200), then further hits on it deal half damage. A penetration deals 0.33 × the shell's max damage; once the section is saturated it deals exactly half of that (0.5 × 0.33 = 0.165 × max damage), so a 3,000-damage shell's pen goes from 990 to 495. Overpens (0.1 × max damage) and citadels (1.0 ×) ignore saturation. Pens on the ship's other, unsaturated sections still deal the normal 0.33 ×. The superstructure is not exempt: it saturates exactly like the bow and stern, so shells aimed at it stop dealing full damage once this pool is used up. A larger pool keeps that part of the ship taking full damage for longer; a small one saturates fast and protects the ship's HP.

1,100

Stern section HP

Damage saturation pool for the stern: penetrations here deal their normal share until twice this much penetration damage has landed on the section (2 × 1,200 = 2,400), then further hits on it deal half damage. A penetration deals 0.33 × the shell's max damage; once the section is saturated it deals exactly half of that (0.5 × 0.33 = 0.165 × max damage), so a 3,000-damage shell's pen goes from 990 to 495. Overpens (0.1 × max damage) and citadels (1.0 ×) ignore saturation. Pens on the ship's other, unsaturated sections still deal the normal 0.33 ×. A larger pool keeps that part of the ship taking full damage for longer; a small one saturates fast and protects the ship's HP.

1,200

Main Battery

These main guns are dual-purpose: they also fire at aircraft and feed the AA Defense card.

ModuleArtillery: 120 mm/50 QF Mk XI

Mounts / barrels3 mounts / 6 barrels

Reload time4.5 s

Firing range (base)9.8 km

Firing range (top fire control)10.8 km

Turret traverse20 °/s

Turret armor6 mm

Guns to bear

180° − 160° (the most restricted aft-facing mount's arc) = 20° off bow; 180° − 141° (the most restricted forward-facing mount's arc) = 39° off stern. How far off the bow (or stern) the ship must angle before every main turret can fire: the widest blind wedge among the rear-facing (or forward-facing) mounts, from each mount's trainable arc.

20° off bow / 39° off stern

See the firing-arcs diagram ↓

Shell Grouping (σ)2

Dispersion type

In practice: the baseline curve for a standard destroyer -- at max range (10.8 km) shells land in an ellipse about 96 m wide and 58 m tall. Also on this curve (225): AL Avrora, AL Yukikaze, AL Z24, Acasta, Achilles, Adriatico, Aigle, Akatsuki, Akizuki, Albany, Allen M. Sumner, Attilio Regolo and 213 more.

Standard destroyer

Max Horiz Disp

Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the dispersion model:

σ_{H} = (\frac{R}{30} \cdot \frac{idealRadius - minRadius}{idealDistance} + minRadius) \cdot 30

= (\frac{10789.9}{30} \cdot \frac{8 - 0.5}{1000} + 0.5) \cdot 30 = 95.9 m

95.9 m at 10.8 km

Max Vert Disp

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range:

σ_{V} = σ_{H} \cdot radiusOnMax

= 95.9 \cdot 0.6 = 57.6 m

57.6 m at 10.8 km

Med Horiz Disp

50%-hit horizontal radius:

σ_{H, 50} = σ_{H} \cdot \frac{0.6}{σ}

= 95.9 \cdot \frac{0.6}{2} = 28.8 m

28.8 m at 10.8 km

Med Vert Disp

50%-hit vertical radius:

σ_{V, 50} = σ_{V} \cdot \frac{0.6}{σ}

= 57.6 \cdot \frac{0.6}{2} = 17.3 m

17.3 m at 10.8 km

Turret turn time

180 degrees / 20 deg/s traverse speed = 9 s.

9 s

Shells/min

Zero upgrades: 6 broadside guns x 60 / 4.571 s (4.5 s = 32 ticks) base reload = 78.8. All upgrades (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10% reload): 6 broadside guns x 60 / 4 s all-upgrades reload (4.5 s × 0.9 Main Battery Mod. 3 = 4 s) = 90.

Initial: 78.8 → 90

HE shells

HE alpha1,700

HE Velocity774 m/s

Fire Chance9%

HE fire DPM vs T7 BB52574

Effective HE DPM vs T7 BB186449

HE penetration

20 mm ≈ 120 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).

20 mm

HE full-salvo alpha

1,700 HE damage x 6 broadside guns = 10,200.

10,200

HE DPM

Zero upgrades: 10,200 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4.571 s (4.5 s = 32 ticks) base reload = 133,875. All upgrades (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10% reload): 10,200 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4 s all-upgrades reload (4.5 s × 0.9 Main Battery Mod. 3 = 4 s) = 153,000.

Initial: 133,875 → 153,000

Fires/min

Zero upgrades: 78.8 shells/min × 0.09 (9% fire chance) = 7.09. All upgrades (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10% reload): 90 shells/min × 0.09 (9% fire chance) = 8.1.

Initial: 7.09 → 8.1

AP shells

AP alpha2,200

AP Velocity774 m/s

Min Ricochet45 deg

Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg

Fuse Timer0.01 s

Fuse Threshold20 mm

AP overmatch

floor(120 mm caliber / 14.3) = 8 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

8 mm

AP Pen Close

AP formula evaluated at muzzle velocity:

P = 10^{- 7} \cdot K \cdot m^{0.69} \cdot d^{- 1.07} \cdot v_{0}^{1.38}

= 10^{- 7} \cdot 2300 \cdot {28.12}^{0.69} \cdot {0.12}^{- 1.07} \cdot 774^{1.38} = 215.4 mm

215.4 mm point-blank

AP Pen Far

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (10.8 km), where the shell has slowed to 330.3 m/s:

P = 10^{- 7} \cdot 2300 \cdot {28.12}^{0.69} \cdot {0.12}^{- 1.07} \cdot {330.3}^{1.38} = 66.5 mm

66.5 mm at 10.8 km

AP full-salvo alpha

2,200 AP damage x 6 broadside guns = 13,200.

13,200

AP DPM

Zero upgrades: 13,200 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4.571 s (4.5 s = 32 ticks) base reload = 173,250. All upgrades (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10% reload): 13,200 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4 s all-upgrades reload (4.5 s × 0.9 Main Battery Mod. 3 = 4 s) = 198,000.

Initial: 173,250 → 198,000

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: 533 mm Mk IX**

Launchers / tubes2 launchers × 4 tubes = 8 tubes

Reload time96 s

Projectile speed

Speed of the top torpedo module (all-upgrades configuration, 62.0 kt); the stock torpedo module runs 61.0 kt.

Initial: 61 kt → 62 kt

RangeInitial: 8.01 km → 9.99 km

Maximum simulated damage

Initial: 44,300 × 0.333 = 14,767 → 43,300 × 0.333 = 14,433 (warhead alpha × saturation coefficient, stock → upgraded torpedo). Most targets only intersect one hull section, so a hit transfers about 1/3 of the warhead alpha (2/3 when the warhead blast >= 5000 and the burst reaches a second section). For this ship:

D_{sim} = α \cdot c = 43, 300 \cdot 0.333 = 14, 433

. In battle, a hit on the torpedo belt deals the per-hit figure × (1 − the target's torpedo protection %), a bow or stern hit deals it in full, and a torpedo never counts as a citadel hit.

Initial: ≈ 14,767 → ≈ 14,433

Maximum damage (ammunition)

43,300 warhead alpha / 3 + 1,100 blast = 15,533. Warhead alpha / 3 plus the blast addend: the per-torpedo damage figure. The 'Maximum simulated damage' row above applies target geometry to the same warhead.

15,533

Torpedo module damage

Per-torpedo module/blast damage parameter. Most torpedoes carry 500 to 2,000; ships announced by WG as dealing increased module damage carry 9,000 to 12,000, so their hits knock out engines, rudders, and turrets far more often. Comparative figure.

1,100

Torpedo detectability1.3 km

Reaction time

How long a target has to dodge after your torpedo is spotted at its detectability range (lower means less warning):

t_{react} = \frac{1.3 km}{62 kt \times 2.6855} = 7.8 s

. 2.6855 converts knots to m/s on the game clock. Base value; commander torpedo-concealment skills lower it further.

7.8 s

Flooding chance

This torpedo carries a flooding-chance value of 2.59 per hit, shown as

2.59 \times 100 = 259 %

. Values above 100% are normal: in battle the base chance is scaled down by the target's torpedo protection (the Torp Reduction stat on its Survivability card) and any flood-resistance modifiers, so a value above 100% keeps flooding likely even through partial protection.

259%

Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s

Launch arcscentreline

Torp Turn

Time to rotate the launchers 180 deg:

t_{turn} = \frac{180 °}{25 ° / s} = 7.2 s

7.2 s

Torp Arming197 m

Per-side salvo damage

One side firing, all torpedoes hitting: per-side tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 8 x 14,433 = 115,464. Each hit on the target's torpedo belt is reduced by its torpedo protection %.

115,464

AA Defense

AA mount pointsInitial: 7 → 11

Maximum AA range

Longest-reaching family on the in-game AA card. Base AirDefense aura max range is 2.5 km; dual-purpose mount auras extend it.

4.5 km

40 mm/39 QF Mark VII1×4 40mm

20 mm Oerlikon Mk IV4×1 20mm

20 mm Oerlikon Mk V (upgraded hull only)6×2 20mm

12.7 mm Mk III (stock hull only)2×4 13mm

Gunsmain battery (DP)

Continuous DPS

Effective DPS in in-game units (raw aura damage × 3.5 × hit probability, summed per contributing aura) - matches the Close-range AA DPS headline's currency. Includes 24 from dual-purpose main battery firing as AA in this range band.

Range4.5 km

Guns40 mm/39 QF Mark VII

Continuous DPS

Initial: 11 × 3.5 × 1 = 38 → 9 × 3.5 × 1 = 32. Raw aura damage × 3.5 × hit probability, the same in-game units as the Close-range AA DPS headline.

Initial: 38 → 32

Range2.5 km

Total DPS in Aura

Far 24 + Outer Medium 32 = 56

Guns20 mm Oerlikon Mk IV + 20 mm Oerlikon Mk V

Continuous DPS

Initial: 12 × 3.5 × 1 = 42 → 37 × 3.5 × 1 = 130. Raw aura damage × 3.5 × hit probability, the same in-game units as the Close-range AA DPS headline.

Initial: 42 → 130

Range2 km

Total DPS in Aura

Far 24 + Outer Medium 32 + Inner Medium 130 = 186

186

AA explosions

Each ~2 s salvo fires 2 AA explosions in quick succession, each leaving 1 cloud ahead of the attacking squadron - up to 2 clouds per salvo × 200 damage each. Planes that fly into a cloud take its damage; clouds dissipate before the next salvo lands. Defensive AA Fire, where fitted, multiplies the AA explosions within each salvo, and commander skills that raise the Number of AA explosions add to it.

2 per salvo, 1 cloud each

Cloud damage

Damage a plane takes for flying into one flak cloud, before any reductions.

200

Cloud spawn chance

Every potential cloud spawns - the full pattern, every salvo. Often called flak 'hit chance', but spawned clouds always damage planes that fly into them - the roll is on spawning.

100%

Salvo interval

A new flak salvo (the AA explosions above) fires roughly every 2 s.

every ~2 s

Fired by

Flak keeps firing while at least one main battery mount is operational - even losing every dedicated AA mount does not stop it.

Main battery

Flak zone

The activation band: flak fires while attacking planes are inside it. Clouds are placed ahead of the planes' path, so clouds can land short of 2.5 km or past 4.5 km - once planes get inside the band, new salvos stop. AA range bonuses push the outer edge out; the 2.5 km inner edge does not move.

2.5-4.5 km

See the AA layers diagram ↓

Maneuverability

Engine power48,000 hp

Maximum speed36.0 kt

Turning circle radius590 m

Rudder shift timeInitial: 5.3 s → 3.8 s

Engine power-boost threshold33.5 kt

Engine spool-up time7.7 s

Reverse spool-up time3.8 s

Reverse speed

top speed / 4 + 4.9 = 36 / 4 + 4.9 = 13.9 kt. Base value; speed modifiers scale it.

13.9 kt

Crash stop

Seconds from top speed to a dead stop after ordering full reverse: reverse power winds in over the reverse spool-up while water drag does most of the braking, using the ship's own reverse-power ratio. The full curve is on the acceleration chart. Full reverse stops about a quarter faster than a plain Stop order from top speed.

15.7 s

Engine boost threshold (reverse)

Speed below which the engine's built-in power boost applies in reverse.

9.8 kt

Acceleration 0-90%

Time to reach 90% of top speed (32.4 kt of 36.0 kt).

6.6 s

Acceleration 0-99%

Time to reach 99% of top speed (35.6 kt of 36.0 kt). 99% rather than 100% because true top speed is asymptotic (thrust meets drag), so the last fraction of a knot is never quite gained.

16.6 s

Guns in a full turn

With the rudder hard over the hull turns 8.3°/s, so a target drifts across the bow at that rate. Turret traverse minus hull turn: 20 − 8.3 = +11.7°/s, so the guns hold the target through the turn. Main Battery Mod. 2 (+20% traverse) and Mod. 3 (−15%) move this line.

hold target (+11.7°/s spare)

See the full acceleration curve ↓

Concealment

Detectability by sea

Base value, no camouflage. With a Grade IV permanent camo (or any disposable camo): 6.9 km x 0.955 = 6.59 km. Camouflage does not change detectability by air.

6.9 km

With Grade IV camouflage (sea)

Detectability by sea 6.9 km x 0.955 (Grade IV permanent camo or any disposable camo) = 6.59 km.

6.59 km

Detectability by air3.45 km

Smoke firing penalty2.45 km

Detect when firing (sea)

max(main battery range, sea detectability 6.9 km) = 10.79 km. Equal to the ship's main battery range (never below base detectability): firing makes you visible to everyone you can reach.

10.79 km

Detect when firing (air)

Air detectability 3.45 km + gun-firing bloom 2.4 km = 5.85 km. The bloom tracks main-battery caliber 120 mm × 0.020 = 2.4 km.

5.85 km

Detect when on fire (sea)

Sea detectability 6.9 km + 2.0 km while burning = 8.9 km.

8.9 km

Detect when on fire (air)

Air detectability 3.45 km + 3.0 km while burning = 6.45 km.

6.45 km

Guaranteed Detect2 km

✦

Consumables

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

Smoke Generator6 charges · 60 s reload · 10 s emit / 40 s cloud active · 600 m radius

Sonar3 charges · 120 s reload · 180 s active · 3.5 km ship detect
ƒ
Derived from the consumable's 30 m grid-unit range (km = grid units x 30 / 1000): $\frac{117 \times 30}{1000} = 3.5 km$
· 2.5 km torpedo detect
ƒ
Derived from the consumable's 30 m grid-unit range (km = grid units x 30 / 1000): $\frac{83 \times 30}{1000} = 2.5 km$

Module options (3)

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

HullUpgrade

Hit points13,000 → 15,900
Rudder shift5.3 → 3.8 s
AA mounts7 → 11
Close-range AA DPS27 → 46

Fire controlUpgrade

Main battery range9,809 → 10789.9 m

TorpedoesTrade-off

Range8.01 → 9.99 km
Alpha damage44,300 → 43,300
Display damage14,767 → 14,433
Speed61 → 62 kt

Under the hood

Show ▾

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

The constants behind the formulas and the long tail: shell and dispersion inputs, fixed-range anchors, salvo math, layered AA. Click the formula chip on any row to see how it is calculated.

Main battery formulas

vs standard DDStandard

The standard destroyer dispersion curve.

Shell scatter width @ 5 km52.5 m

(166.7 × (8 − 0.5) / 1000 + 0.5) × 30 = 52.5 m. Horizontal scatter at a fixed 5 km, from the same dispersion model as the rows below - a knife-fight-range anchor comparable across ships.

Shell scatter width @ 10 km90 m

(333.3 × (8 − 0.5) / 1000 + 0.5) × 30 = 90 m. How wide your shells scatter at 10 km, from the same dispersion model as the max-range figure above. Picking a fixed range makes this number directly comparable from ship to ship: max-range dispersion makes a longer-range gun look worse even when it's tighter at any common range. The interactive Dispersion tab on the Charts card plots the full curve from 0 to max range.

Shell scatter height @ 5 km25.1 m

How tall the scatter ellipse is at a fixed 5 km, from the same model, comparable from ship to ship. The height/width ratio is a piecewise-linear curve through three points from the ship's own dispersion data:  $radiusOnZero = 0.2$  at 0 m,  $radiusOnDelim = 0.5$  at  $delim \cdot R_{m a x} = 0.5 \cdot 10789.9 = 5395$  m, and  $radiusOnMax = 0.6$  at 10789.9 m. Below the kink:  $k = 0.2 + (0.5 - 0.2) \cdot \frac{5000}{5395} = 0.478$ , so  $σ_{V} = σ_{H} \cdot k = 52.5 \cdot 0.478 = 25.1 m$ .

Shell scatter height @ 10 km52.7 m

How tall the same scatter ellipse is at 10 km. Comparable from ship to ship for the same reason as the width value above. The height/width ratio is a piecewise-linear curve through three points from the ship's own dispersion data:  $radiusOnZero = 0.2$  at 0 m,  $radiusOnDelim = 0.5$  at  $delim \cdot R_{m a x} = 0.5 \cdot 10789.9 = 5395$  m, and  $radiusOnMax = 0.6$  at 10789.9 m. Above the kink:  $k = 0.5 + (0.6 - 0.5) \cdot \frac{10000 - 5395}{10789.9 - 5395} = 0.5854$ , so  $σ_{V} = σ_{H} \cdot k = 90 \cdot 0.5854 = 52.7 m$ .

AP pen 5 km121 mm

AP penetration at a fixed 5 km, from the same ballistic curve as AP Pen Close/Far: the shell's impact velocity at that range fed through the AP formula  $P = 10^{- 7} \cdot K \cdot m^{0.69} \cdot d^{- 1.07} \cdot v^{1.38}$   $= 10^{- 7} \cdot 2300 \cdot {28.12}^{0.69} \cdot {0.12}^{- 1.07} \cdot {508.2}^{1.38} = 121 mm$ , where 508.2 m/s is the shell's speed when it arrives at 5 km (from 774 m/s at the muzzle). Fixed anchors make ships directly comparable at the same fighting distance; the Charts card plots the full curve.

AP pen 10 km71 mm

AP penetration at a fixed 10 km, from the same ballistic curve as AP Pen Close/Far: the shell's impact velocity at that range fed through the AP formula  $P = 10^{- 7} \cdot K \cdot m^{0.69} \cdot d^{- 1.07} \cdot v^{1.38}$   $= 10^{- 7} \cdot 2300 \cdot {28.12}^{0.69} \cdot {0.12}^{- 1.07} \cdot {347.2}^{1.38} = 71 mm$ , where 347.2 m/s is the shell's speed when it arrives at 10 km (from 774 m/s at the muzzle). Fixed anchors make ships directly comparable at the same fighting distance; the Charts card plots the full curve.

HE flight time @ 10 km7.33 s

How long an HE shell takes to reach a target at a fixed 10 km, from the same numerically integrated trajectory the Charts card plots. The shell slows under quadratic air drag,  $a_{drag} = k ρ v^{2}$ , where  $ρ$  is air density from a standard-atmosphere profile and  $k$  bundles the shell's drag coefficient, caliber and mass:  $k = \frac{π C_{d} d^{2}}{8 m} = \frac{π \cdot 0.343 \cdot {0.12}^{2}}{8 \cdot 28.12} = 6.9 \times 10^{- 5}$ . That runs from a 774 m/s muzzle velocity in 0.02 s steps under gravity 9.8 m/s² until the shell lands, then divides by 2.77 because the game clock runs faster than real time. Lower is better, since a faster shell is harder to dodge and needs less lead.

AP flight time @ 10 km7.33 s

How long an AP shell takes to reach a target at a fixed 10 km, from the same numerically integrated trajectory the Charts card plots. The shell slows under quadratic air drag,  $a_{drag} = k ρ v^{2}$ , where  $ρ$  is air density from a standard-atmosphere profile and  $k$  bundles the shell's drag coefficient, caliber and mass:  $k = \frac{π C_{d} d^{2}}{8 m} = \frac{π \cdot 0.343 \cdot {0.12}^{2}}{8 \cdot 28.12} = 6.9 \times 10^{- 5}$ . That runs from a 774 m/s muzzle velocity in 0.02 s steps under gravity 9.8 m/s² until the shell lands, then divides by 2.77 because the game clock runs faster than real time. Lower is better, since a faster shell is harder to dodge and needs less lead.

Guns per full salvo (alpha, DPM)6

3 mounts × 2 barrels = 6; all 6 bear on the broadside.

Model inputs

Krupp (AP)2,300

Armor-penetration constant of the AP shell; penetration scales straight with it, so a 10% higher Krupp is 10% more penetration at every range.

AP shell mass28.12 kg

Enters penetration as mass^0.69 and slows the shell's drag deceleration, so a heavier shell keeps more velocity at range.

AP drag coefficient0.343

Air drag on the AP shell in flight; lower keeps velocity, and with it penetration, at long range.

AP muzzle velocity774 m/s

Starting speed of the AP shell; penetration scales with velocity^1.38.

HE muzzle velocity774 m/s

Starting speed of the HE shell; sets its flight time and lead.

idealRadius8

Horizontal dispersion growth per idealDistance of range, in 30 m units; the slope of the scatter-width line.

minRadius0.5

Horizontal dispersion at zero range, in 30 m units; the intercept of the scatter-width line.

idealDistance1,000 m

Range step over which horizontal dispersion grows by idealRadius.

taperDist4,000 m

Inside this range the scatter width tapers toward minRadius instead of following the line.

radiusOnZero0.2

Vertical scatter as a share of horizontal at zero range.

radiusOnDelim0.5

Vertical scatter as a share of horizontal at the delim point.

radiusOnMax0.6

Vertical scatter as a share of horizontal at maximum range.

delim0.5

Where the vertical-scatter curve bends, as a share of maximum range.

Torpedoes

Estimated torpedo reaction time7.8 s

1300 m / (62.0 kt × 2.6855) = 7.8 s. detectability / (speed kt x 2.6855 m/s per knot on the game clock).

Torpedo speed62.0 kt

Travel time to max range60 s

9990 m / (62.0 kt × 2.6855) = 60 s. range / (speed kt x 2.6855 m/s per knot on the game clock).

Tube count8

2 launchers × 4 tubes.

Per-side salvo8 torpedoes

2 launchers × 4 tubes = 8, all to either side (centreline launchers train across - full salvo to either side).

Full-salvo damage115,464

All tubes hitting one target: tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 8 x 14,433 = 115,464. Each hit on the target's torpedo belt is reduced by its torpedo protection %.

AA defense

AA DPS at max range25

Only families that reach 4.5 km contribute at the outer edge of the AA bubble. In-game families: 20mm Oerlikon MK4 4x1 -> 52 DPS @ 2 km; 20mm Oerlikon MK V 6x2 -> 78 DPS @ 2 km; 2 pdr MkVII Quad 1x4 -> 32 DPS @ 2.5 km; Far AA (?) -> 25 DPS @ 4.5 km.

AA DPS layered by range25 DPS @ 4.5 km, 57 DPS @ 2.5 km, 187 DPS @ 2 km

@ 4.5 km: 25 from one family; @ 2.5 km: 32 + 25 = 57; @ 2 km: 52 + 78 + 32 + 25 = 187. Cumulative AA DPS at each family range threshold. Inner ranges stack the outer families, so a target closing the distance hits stronger AA bubbles as it crosses each band.

AA DPS at point-blank187

52 + 78 + 32 + 25 = 187 DPS: the sum of every family's average DPS, achievable only inside the closest-range family (2 km).

AA threat index452

52 × 2 + 78 × 2 + 32 × 2.5 + 25 × 4.5 = 452. 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.

Open in Charting Tool

Ship Charts

Background

An L-class destroyer, a next step in the development of J-class ships. In comparison with her predecessors, she had fewer torpedo tubes and new, more powerful 120 mm guns mounted in turrets with the design that enabled firing at aircraft.

Armor Beta

Hull HP 13,000 → 15,900 with hull upgrade, distributed across 5 hull zones, each with its own plate thicknesses, saturation cap, and pen thresholds.

Bow & stern19 mm

Overmatched by 137+ AP guns across the bracket. Can’t reliably bow-tank; gets bow-citadelled and overpenned.

Farming19 mm

Superstructure and extremities take HE pens and AP overpens from nearly any gun: steady chip damage. Fire resistance 37%, fires burn 30s. Range-by-range in the Compare tool →

Section	Plates	HP cap	Threats	Tactic
Bow	19 mm primary (range 19–20 mm)	2,500 (16% of HP)	Overmatched by 283mm+ AP (Scharnhorst, Scharnhorst '43)Angle bounces 203mm19 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)	19 mm primary (range 16–19 mm)	11,900 (75% of HP)	Overmatched by 283mm+ AP (Scharnhorst, Scharnhorst '43)Angle bounces 203mm19 mm: HE pens from 127mm+	Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern	19 mm primary (range 16–20 mm)	1,200 (8% of HP)	Overmatched by 283mm+ AP (Scharnhorst, Scharnhorst '43)Angle bounces 203mm19 mm: HE pens from 127mm+	Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel	20 mm primary (range 13–20 mm)	≈ 165,500 (effectively no cap)	Citadel pen: full damageOver-pen: ×0.10 damage	Effectively no cap; citadel pool sits at ~165k HP on every ship. An AP citadel penetration deals the shell's full damage, the biggest single hit available; only over-penetrations are damped, to ×0.10.
Superstructure	19 mm	1,100 (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	8,000 magazine HP	Turret knocked out	Per-turret powder-magazine HP, a separate pool that does not drain ship HP. As it is worn down the turret is likelier to be knocked out, and a smaller pool gets there faster.
AA mount (40 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	4,800 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.

Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

Every custom exterior Lightning can equip.

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.

2021-05-13 · Patch notes May Update: Things Are Heating Up! Patch notes 2021-11-25 · Patch notes December Update: Dragon's Breath Patch notes 2022-07-21 · Patch notes Anniversary Update: New Horizons Patch notes

Lightning

Lightning Community Stats

Lightning Community Stats

Lightning Community Stats

Playstyle

Overview

Positioning

Potato Avoidance

Signature Traits →

How to get Lightning

Builds

Cohort position

Peers in this cohort

Stats & specs

Under the hood

Main battery formulas

Model inputs

Torpedoes

AA defense

Ship Charts

Background

Armor Beta

Skins & permanent camouflages

Primary official WG sources

Signature Traits