Marceau Build & Guide | WoWs Legends

Playstyle

Overview

Marceau is a Tier VIII French stealth-leaning destroyer with strong surface detection (7.1 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. Standout traits: best HE DPM in T8 DDs (246,667) and best top speed in T8 DDs (44 kt).

Positioning

Hold concealment edges on the contested cap at 7.1 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 7.1 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

HE DPM machine

246667 HE DPM, best of T8 DDs. Sustained fire pressure.

Fast for the class

44.0 kt, best of T8 DDs. Lets you rotate flanks or escape disengagements.

Long Engine Boost

180.0 s Engine Boost duration, best of T8 DDs.

Fast acceleration

~8.0 s to max forward speed, top decile of T8 DDs. Rebuilds speed quickly after a turn or stop. (Acceleration decode is validated in-game but not yet confirmed across every ship.)

Wide dispersion

97.8 m max horizontal dispersion, bottom decile of T8 DDs. Long-range salvos are noticeably wider than peers'.

Short torp range

6.0 km torpedo range, bottom decile of T8 DDs. Must close to deliver.

Acquisition

How to get Marceau

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

ContainersAppears in official container odds below; availability depends on the container being sold or awarded.

Best listed chance for this ship

Mystic Chest 4.966667% Tier VIII Premium ship or Legendary Tier ship Event containers · Mystic Chest · 1 of 3 ships
Mystic Lantern 0.745% Tier VIII Premium ship or Legendary Tier ship Event containers · Mystic Lantern → Mystic Chest · 1 of 3 ships
Mystic Box 0.099333% Tier VIII Premium ship or Legendary Tier ship Event containers · Mystic Box → Mystic Chest · 1 of 3 ships

Official WG availability sources

Official WoWS Legends container odds Containers Official container drop rows linked below include direct and nested effective ship odds.

Show direct source rows

Mystic Chest 4.966667% · Tier VIII Premium ship or Legendary Tier ship

Builds Beta

Build for gun reload/range, speed, rudder, survivability, and fire pressure. Torpedo skills are secondary unless leaning into ambush play.

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Cohort position

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Where Marceau sits among Tier VIII DDs (25 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 speed44 kt (1/25) BestHE DPM246,667 (1/24) BestAcceleration8 s (1/25) Top 10%Traverse-to-turn ratio17.12 × (3/25) Top 10%AP DPM313,333 (3/23) Top 10%Turn-speed retention130.9 hp/m (3/25) Top 10%Power-to-weight23.57 hp/t (3/25) Top 25%Engine power96,842 hp (4/25) Top 25%AA DPS277 (7/25) Top 25%AA range5.2 km (5/25) Top 25%AA threat1,039 (7/25) Bottom 25%Rudder shift6.3 s (21/25) Bottom 25%AP velocity808 m/s (19/23) Bottom 25%HE velocity808 m/s (19/24) Bottom 25%Displacement4,108 t (20/25) Bottom 25%Torpedo reload150 s (22/24) Bottom 10%Main dispersion97.8 m (24/25) WorstHE fire chance5% (1 of 7 tied) WorstTorpedo range6 km (24/24)

See 19 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Marceau -- 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 points20,500 HP(9/25) Concealment7.1 km(18/25) Air detection3.55 km(18/25) Main battery caliber127 mm(17/25) Main battery range11.04 km(9/25) Main battery reload3.6 s(12/25) HE shell damage1,850(13/24) Fires per minute6.67(11/24) AP shell damage2,350(11/23) AP fuse timer0.01 s(13/23) AP arming threshold21 mm(11/23) Torpedo damage14,833(16/24) Torpedo speed60 kt(18/24) Repair heal rate1 %/s(6/9) Deck armor19 mm(9/18) NormAP ricochet start45°(17 of 23 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(17 of 23 tied at this value) NormMax armor20 mm(22 of 25 tied at this value) NormCitadel belt20 mm(21 of 24 tied at this value)

Peers in this cohort

Show all 23 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 2Def-AAEngine Boost

Survivability

Hit Points20,500

Displacement4,108 t

Armor range13–20 mm

Plate armor thicknesses13, 19, 20 mm

Armor material/layer entries24

Fire resistance40%

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.

11,000

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.

6,200

Main Battery

ModuleArtillery: 127 mm/54 Mle 1948

Mounts / barrels4 mounts / 8 barrels

Reload time4 s

Firing range11 km

Turret traverse30 °/s

Shell Grouping (σ)

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

2

Max Horiz Disp

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Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (11045/30·(8−0.5)/1000 + 0.5)·30 = 97.8 m

97.8 m

Max Vert Disp

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Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 97.8 × 0.6 = 58.7 m

58.7 m

Med Horiz Disp

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50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 97.8 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 31.3 m

31.3 m

Med Vert Disp

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50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 58.7 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 18.8 m

18.8 m

Turret turn time

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180 degrees / 30 deg/s traverse speed = 6 s.

6 s

Base shells/min

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8 broadside guns x 60 / 4 s base reload = 120.

120

HE shells

HE Damage1,850

HE Velocity808 m/s

Fire Chance5%

HE penetration

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21 mm ≈ 127 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).

21 mm

HE full-salvo alpha

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1,850 HE damage x 8 broadside guns = 14,800.

14,800

Base HE DPM

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14,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4 s base reload = 222,000.

222,000

Installed HE DPM

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14,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.6 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 246,667.

246,667

Base fires/min

ƒ

8 HE shells x 60 / 4 s reload x 5% fire chance = 6.

6

AP shells

AP Damage2,350

AP Velocity808 m/s

Min Ricochet45 deg

Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg

Fuse Timer0.01 s

Fuse Threshold21 mm

AP overmatch

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floor(127 mm caliber / 14.3) = 8 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

8 mm

AP Pen Close

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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 × 2200 × 32.5^0.69 × 0.127^-1.07 × 808^1.38 = 227.4 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

227.4 mm

AP Pen Far

ƒ

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (13.8 km), where the shell has slowed to 260.6 m/s: 1e-7 × 2200 × 32.5^0.69 × 0.127^-1.07 × 260.6^1.38 = 47.7 mm.

47.7 mm

AP full-salvo alpha

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2,350 AP damage x 8 broadside guns = 18,800.

18,800

Base AP DPM

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18,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4 s base reload = 282,000.

282,000

Installed AP DPM

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18,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.6 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 313,333.

313,333

AP AOE Radius

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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.

10

◇

Torpedoes

ModuleTorpedoes: 550 mm lance-torpilles

Launchers / tubes4 launchers × 3 tubes = 12 tubes

Reload time150 s

Projectile speed60 kt

Range6 km

Maximum simulated damage13,733 (est.)

Alpha damage41,200

Torpedo detectability1.5 km

Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s

Torp Turn7.2 s

Torp Arming185 m

Per-side salvo damage

ƒ

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

164,796

AA Defense

AA mount points9

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: (39×3.5×1) + (16×3.5×0.95) + (25×3.5×1) = 277. 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.

277

Maximum AA range

ƒ

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

5.2 km

40 mm/56 Bofors Mk23×4 40mm

40 mm/56 Bofors Mk12×2 40mm

20 mm/70 Oerlikon Mk244×2 20mm

DPS

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Includes 25 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose main battery firing as AA in this range band.

25

Range5.2 km

DPS39

Range3.5 km

Total DPS in Aura

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Far 25 + Medium 39 = 64

64

DPS16

Range2 km

Total DPS in Aura

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Far 25 + Medium 39 + Near 16 = 80

80

Maneuverability

Engine moduleEngine: 96,842 hp

Engine power96,842 hp

Maximum speed44 kt

Turning circle radius740 m

Engine power multiplier speed threshold7 kt

Traverse-to-turn ratio17.1× snappy

Concealment

Detectability by sea7.1 km

Detectability by air3.55 km

Smoke firing penalty2.65 km

Detect after firing main guns7.1 km

Detect Fire Sea9.1 km

Detect Fire Air6.55 km

Guaranteed Detect2 km

✦

Consumables

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

Engine Boost2 charges · 120 s reload · 180 s active · +20% speed bonus

Repair Party2 charges · 120 s reload · 14 s active · 1% heal per second · 14% of max HP total heal

Defensive AA Fire3 charges · 140 s reload · 25 s active · +100% flak burst boost

Module options (1)

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

HullUpgrade

Turret traverse30 → 15 °/s

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 Disp97.8 m

Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (11045/30·(8−0.5)/1000 + 0.5)·30 = 97.8 m

Max Vert Disp58.7 m

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 97.8 × 0.6 = 58.7 m

Med Horiz Disp31.3 m

50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 97.8 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 31.3 m

Med Vert Disp18.8 m

50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 58.7 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 18.8 m

AP Pen Close227.4 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 × 2200 × 32.5^0.69 × 0.127^-1.07 × 808^1.38 = 227.4 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

AP Pen Far47.7 mm

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (13.8 km), where the shell has slowed to 260.6 m/s: 1e-7 × 2200 × 32.5^0.69 × 0.127^-1.07 × 260.6^1.38 = 47.7 mm.

HE penetration21 mm

21 mm ≈ 127 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).

AP overmatch8 mm

floor(127 mm caliber / 14.3) = 8 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

AP AOE Radius10

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 alpha8

All 8 barrels bear on the broadside.

Turret turn time6 s

180 degrees / 30 deg/s traverse speed = 6 s.

HE full-salvo alpha14,800

1,850 HE damage x 8 broadside guns = 14,800.

AP full-salvo alpha18,800

2,350 AP damage x 8 broadside guns = 18,800.

Base HE DPM222,000

14,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4 s base reload = 222,000.

Base AP DPM282,000

18,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4 s base reload = 282,000.

Installed HE DPM246,667

14,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.6 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 246,667.

Installed AP DPM313,333

18,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.6 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 313,333.

Base shells/min120

8 broadside guns x 60 / 4 s base reload = 120.

Installed shells/min133.3

8 broadside guns x 60 / 3.6 s installed Artillery reload = 133.3.

Base fires/min6

8 HE shells x 60 / 4 s reload x 5% fire chance = 6.

Installed fires/min6.67

8 HE shells x 60 / 3.6 s installed reload x 5% fire chance = 6.67.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability1.5 km

Estimated torpedo reaction time9.6 s

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

Torpedo speed60 kt

Travel time to max range38.5 s

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

Tube count12

4 launchers x 3 tubes.

Per-side salvo12 torpedoes

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

Full-salvo damage164,796

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

Per-side salvo damage164,796

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS277

Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (39×3.5×1) + (16×3.5×0.95) + (25×3.5×1) = 277. Covers AA-only mounts plus dual-purpose secondaries (Bismarck 105mm, USN 5"/38 cruiser secondaries) and dual-purpose main batteries (Sumner-class 5"/38, Akizuki-line 100mm). Formula validated against in-game captures on California, Sumner, Manfred von Richthofen, Dante Alighieri (exact) and within +/-17% on the remaining verified ships.

Maximum AA range5.2 km

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

AA threat index1039

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 20,500, 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	20 mm primary (range 19–20 mm)	2,900 (14% of HP)	Overmatched by 305mm+ (Cherbourg, Brandenburg)Angle bounces 283mm20 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	15,400 (75% of HP)	Overmatched by 283mm+ (Scharnhorst '43, Schill)Angle bounces 203mm19 mm: HE pens from 127mm+	Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern	20 mm primary (range 19–20 mm)	2,000 (10% of HP)	Overmatched by 305mm+ (Cherbourg, Brandenburg)Angle bounces 283mm20 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 ×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	19 mm	1,300 (6% 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	11,000 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 (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	6,200 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 Marceau can equip, from in-game data.

DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior

Marceau

Marceau Community Stats