GamingDiver / WoWs Legends Ships / Minotaur
World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Minotaur

Beta
U.K. · Tier ★ · Cruiser
Radar support cruiserLight caps and smoke-firing DDs; farm from cover.
Playstyle
  • Sit 12-15 km on a flank that gives you firing arcs into rotated cruisers and exposed BB broadsides
  • Avoid: Firing AP into thin destroyers or unangled bows
Key characteristics
High AP DPMLobs over islandsRadar (11 km)Smoke + SonarQuick-fuse AP
Community Data

Minotaur Community Stats

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Playstyle

Overview

Minotaur is a Legendary British AP-only cruiser with cohort-best AP DPM (662,069): she carries no HE shells at all, so every salvo is AP into broadsides or wasted. The hull is fragile, so the kit is fragile-spammer chasing soft targets and dodging in open water rather than trading punches. She also packs the super-heal, but the kit is offense first, sustain second. Surveillance Radar (11 km, 40 s active) is the cap-control consumable on top, so she sets fights as well as winning them. Standout traits: best AP always-pen window in Legendary CAs (60°) and best AP guaranteed-ricochet angle in Legendary CAs (75°).

Positioning

Sit 12-15 km on a flank that gives you firing arcs into rotated cruisers and exposed BB broadsides. The hull is fragile; ration trades to ones that pay AP citadels back, and lean on speed and consumables to dodge focus when it comes. Open water is fine when the closest threat is far enough that the salvo timing favors you.

Potato Avoidance

Firing AP into thin destroyers or unangled bows

Without HE the wrong target nets over-pens or shatters; pick broadside cruisers and BB sides only, and route around situations where the only shot is into a bow. AP discipline is the kit.

Signature Traits

Surveillance Radar

11 km range, 40 s duration. Detects all enemy ships within a fixed radius regardless of line-of-sight. Controls caps and punishes smoke-firing DDs.

Wide always-pen zone

60.0° AP min ricochet angle, best of Legendary CAs. Larger impact-angle window where shells always penetrate.

Late auto-bounce

75.0° AP guaranteed ricochet angle, best of Legendary CAs. Auto-bounce kicks in later than peers'.

AP DPM machine

662069 AP DPM, best of Legendary CAs. Punishes broadsides.

Long-reach AA

6.0 km AA reach, best of Legendary CAs.

Quick-fuse AP

0.01 s AP fuse timer, bottom decile of Legendary CAs. Detonates earlier in the plate; trades belt-citadels for reliable damage against thin targets (cruiser-on-cruiser specialty).

Acquisition

How to get Minotaur

Minotaur is a Premium ship and not available to unlock in the Tech Tree. Acquisition path: Campaign.

Official WG availability sources
  • “Theseus' Bane” Campaign Breakdown Campaign Start: 2021-12-21 · End: 2022-01-30 Official campaign breakdown naming this ship as a campaign/reward-context ship; explicit source windows are used when present, otherwise the end date is inferred from the next indexed campaign breakdown when available.
  • Through the Spy Glass: Brisbane Ship feature / release Start: 2023-12-13 · End: open/unknown end Official Through the Spy Glass feature for this ship; useful as a release/availability source, but not a guaranteed current-store listing.
  • Colors of Freedom Store price varies 2023-06-20
  • Holiday Update: Chilling With the Beasts Store price varies 2021-12-16

Builds Beta

Build for reload, concealment, smoke/radar utility, AP performance, and survivability.

Open in Build Tool →

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Cohort position

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Where Minotaur sits among Legendary CAs (21 ships). Notable standouts are shown first; the rest of the cohort-ranked stats are in the expand below. Acquisition variants (Black Friday, Founders Edition) are counted once with their base ship, not as separate peers.

BestMain battery reload2.9 s (1 of 2 tied) BestAP DPM662,069 (1/21) BestAP arming threshold12 mm (1/21) BestAP ricochet start60° (1 of 5 tied) BestAP auto-bounce angle75° (1/21) BestAA range6 km (1 of 4 tied) BestRepair heal rate2 %/s (1 of 3 tied) Top 10%Air detection7.29 km (3/21) Top 10%Traverse-to-turn ratio25.4 × (3/21) Top 25%Concealment12.15 km (4/21) Top 25%Acceleration10.05 s (6/21) Top 25%Displacement16,970 t (5/21) Top 25%AA DPS665 (4/21) Top 25%AA threat3,148 (4/21) Bottom 25%Main battery caliber152 mm (17/21) Bottom 25%Engine power110,000 hp (18/21) Bottom 25%Max armor127 mm (17/21) Bottom 25%Citadel belt101 mm (17/21) WorstNo secondaries (8 of 21 in cohort) WorstAP fuse timer0.01 s (21/21)
See 17 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Minotaur -- 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 points48,000 HP(15/21) Max speed33.5 kt(13/21) Rudder shift13.6 s(7/21) Main battery range15.55 km(13/21) Sigma2.05(13/21) Main dispersion140.3 m(10/21) AP velocity768 m/s(15/21) Turn-speed retention166.7 hp/m(14/21) Power-to-weight6.48 hp/t(13/21) Torpedo range11 km(7/13) Torpedo damage16,767(7/13) Torpedo speed62 kt(8/13) Torpedo reload96 s(6/13) Deck armor57 mm(15/21) NormRepair charges2(15 of 21 tied at this value) NormBow armor25 mm(14 of 21 tied at this value) NormStern armor25 mm(13 of 21 tied at this value)

Stats & specs

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

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

Radar 11 kmSonar 5.47 kmRepair 2Smoke
Survivability
Hit Points48,000
Displacement16,970 t
Armor range6–127 mm
Plate armor thicknesses6, 13, 16, 19, 25, 32, 38, 51, 57, 81, 90, 101, 127 mm
Armor material/layer entries62
Fire resistance40%
Fire duration30 s
Torp Reduction21%
Magazine HP
ƒThe 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.
21,700
Steering gear HP
ƒDurability 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.
14,400
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 152 mm/50 Mk XXVI
Mounts / barrels5 mounts / 10 barrels
Reload time3.2 s
Firing range15.6 km
Turret traverse38 °/s
Shell Grouping (σ)
ƒShell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
2.05
Max Horiz Disp
ƒHorizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (15550/30·(8−1.1)/1000 + 1.1)·30 = 140.3 m
140.3 m
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 140.3 × 0.6 = 84.2 m
84.2 m
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 140.3 × 0.314 (σ=2.05) = 44 m
44 m
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 84.2 × 0.314 (σ=2.05) = 26.4 m
26.4 m
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 38 deg/s traverse speed = 4.7 s.
4.7 s
Base shells/min
ƒ10 broadside guns x 60 / 3.2 s base reload = 187.5.
187.5
HE shells
HE penetration
ƒfloor(152 mm caliber / 6): standard HE penetration.
25 mm
AP shells
AP Damage3,200
AP Velocity768 m/s
Min Ricochet60 deg
Guaranteed Ricochet75 deg
Fuse Timer0.005 s
Fuse Threshold12 mm
AP overmatch
ƒfloor(152 mm caliber / 14.3) = 10 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
10 mm
AP Pen Close
ƒCanonical 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 × 2672 × 58.85^0.69 × 0.152^-1.07 × 768^1.38 = 320 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
320 mm
AP Pen Far
ƒSame formula at the ship's max firing range (19.4 km), where the shell has slowed to 312.5 m/s: 1e-7 × 2672 × 58.85^0.69 × 0.152^-1.07 × 312.5^1.38 = 92.5 mm.
92.5 mm
AP full-salvo alpha
ƒ3,200 AP damage x 10 broadside guns = 32,000.
32,000
Base AP DPM
ƒ32,000 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.2 s base reload = 600,000.
600,000
Installed AP DPM
ƒ32,000 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 2.9 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 662,069.
662,069
AP AOE Radius
ƒAP 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.
20
◇
Torpedoes
ModuleTorpedoes: 533 mm QR Mk II
Launchers / tubes4 launchers × 4 tubes = 16 tubes
Reload time96 s
Projectile speed62 kt
Range11 km
Maximum simulated damage15,667 (est.)
Alpha damage47,000
Torpedo detectability1.3 km
Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s
Torp Turn7.2 s
Torp Arming191 m
Per-side salvo damage
ƒper-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.
125,336
AA Defense
AA mount points18
Close-range AA DPS
ƒSum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (143×3.5×0.9) + (33×3.5×0.85) + (37×3.5×0.9) = 665. 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.
665
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
6 km
76.2 mm/70 Mk VI8×2 76mm
20 mm Oerlikon Mk V10×2 20mm
Far aura
DPS
ƒIncludes 37 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose main battery firing as AA in this range band.
37
Range6 km
Medium aura
DPS143
Range5 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 37 + Medium 143 = 180
180
Near aura
DPS33
Range2 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 37 + Medium 143 + Near 33 = 213
213
Maneuverability
Engine moduleEngine: 110,000 hp
Engine power110,000 hp
Maximum speed33.5 kt
Turning circle radius660 m
Engine power multiplier speed threshold31.2 kt
Traverse-to-turn ratio25.4× instant
Concealment
Detectability by sea12.15 km
Detectability by air7.29 km
Smoke firing penalty5.83 km
Detect after firing main guns12.15 km
Detect Fire Sea14.15 km
Detect Fire Air10.29 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
✦
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 60 s reload · 5 s active
Repair Party2 charges · 60 s reload · 20 s active · 2% heal per second · 40% of max HP total heal
Sonar2 charges · 180 s reload · 100 s active · 5.47 km ship detect · 3.8 km torpedo detect
Choose one
Smoke Generator2 charges · 240 s reload · 20 s emit / 113 s cloud active
Surveillance Radar2 charges · 180 s reload · 40 s active · 11 km radar range

See all derived stats

Show ▾

Numbers the spec table cannot show directly: alpha-strike math, DPM, dispersion, AP penetration. Click the formula chip on any row to reveal how it is calculated.

Main battery formulas

Shell Grouping (σ)2.05
Shell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
Max Horiz Disp140.3 m
Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (15550/30·(8−1.1)/1000 + 1.1)·30 = 140.3 m
Max Vert Disp84.2 m
Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 140.3 × 0.6 = 84.2 m
Med Horiz Disp44 m
50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 140.3 × 0.314 (σ=2.05) = 44 m
Med Vert Disp26.4 m
50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 84.2 × 0.314 (σ=2.05) = 26.4 m
Dispersion familyCruiser Disp.
Standard cruiser dispersion baseline.
AP Pen Close320 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 × 2672 × 58.85^0.69 × 0.152^-1.07 × 768^1.38 = 320 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
AP Pen Far92.5 mm
Same formula at the ship's max firing range (19.4 km), where the shell has slowed to 312.5 m/s: 1e-7 × 2672 × 58.85^0.69 × 0.152^-1.07 × 312.5^1.38 = 92.5 mm.
HE penetration25 mm
floor(152 mm caliber / 6): standard HE penetration.
AP overmatch10 mm
floor(152 mm caliber / 14.3) = 10 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
AP AOE Radius20
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 alpha10
All 10 barrels bear on the broadside.
Turret turn time4.7 s
180 degrees / 38 deg/s traverse speed = 4.7 s.
AP full-salvo alpha32,000
3,200 AP damage x 10 broadside guns = 32,000.
Base AP DPM600,000
32,000 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.2 s base reload = 600,000.
Installed AP DPM662,069
32,000 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 2.9 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 662,069.
Base shells/min187.5
10 broadside guns x 60 / 3.2 s base reload = 187.5.
Installed shells/min206.9
10 broadside guns x 60 / 2.9 s installed Artillery reload = 206.9.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability1.3 km
Estimated torpedo reaction time8.1 s
detectability / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).
Torpedo speed62 kt
Travel time to max range68.2 s
range / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).
Tube count16
4 launchers x 4 tubes.
Per-side salvo8 torpedoes
tube count / 2 (symmetric port/starboard launcher layout; common on cruisers and battleships with deck torpedoes).
Full-salvo damage250,672
tube count x per-torpedo simulated damage (all torpedoes hitting).
Per-side salvo damage125,336
per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS665
Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (143×3.5×0.9) + (33×3.5×0.85) + (37×3.5×0.9) = 665. 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 range6 km
Longest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
AA threat index3148
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 48,000, 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
Bow25 mm primary (range 16–25 mm)2,000 (4% of HP)
Overmatched by 380mm+ (Bismarck, Richelieu)Angle bounces 356mm25 mm: HE pens from 150mm+
Bow-tank fits behind this exterior plate. Saturation is FAST here; the cap is often only a few thousand HP.
Hull (midship)51 mm primary (range 16–127 mm)32,500 (68% of HP)
No common caliber overmatches51 mm: most HE shatters, standard pen from 356mm+
Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern25 mm primary (range 16–25 mm)2,900 (6% of HP)
Overmatched by 380mm+ (Bismarck, Richelieu)Angle bounces 356mm25 mm: HE pens from 150mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel101 mm primary (range 13–101 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).
Superstructure13 mm primary (range 13–57 mm)2,000 (4% 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 HP21,700 magazine HPMagazine detonation1–30% chance · below ~75% HPPer-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 (76 mm mount)separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP200 per-mount HPDestroyed at 0 HPPer-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 HP13,000 module HPIncapacitated at 0 HPWhen module HP reaches 0 the rudder locks at its current angle until DCP repairs it. Repair via Damage Control Party.

Saturation cap = HP a section can absorb before further damage to it is reduced (the "bow-tank" effect). Citadel pool is ~165k on every ship (effectively no cap); damage is gated by pen/over-pen multipliers instead. Superstructure saturates fast but HE always pens regardless of the plate thickness. Rudder (and other module HPs) are a separate pool from ship HP: damaging a module doesn't drain ship HP. Incapacitated modules like the rudder and engine are restored by DCP, but secondary and AA mounts destroyed at 0 HP stay out for the rest of the battle.

Shell ballistics chart

AP penetration, impact velocity, flight time and impact angle vs range. Click to load the interactive chart.

Balance History

Balance updates affecting Minotaur. Cards are condensed; use each source link for full context.

Buff ×12Main Battery ×1Torpedo ×1Consumable ×1
2026-05-28

Ministry of Balance: Summertime Refit

  • Main battery firing range increased from 15.34 to 15.55 km.
  • Improved AA guns: Increased the number of flak bursts and their damage.
  • Hull HP increased from 43,300 to 48,000:
  • Engine HP increased from 43,300 to 48,000.
  • Bow HP increased from 2,000 to 2,300.
  • Stock auxiliary space HP increased from 6,000 to 6,700.
  • Stock hull stern HP increased from 2,900 to 3,200.
  • Stock hull HP increased from 32,500 to 36,000.
  • Stock hull steering gear HP increased from 13,000 to 14,400.
  • Stock hull superstructure HP increased from 2,000 to 2,200.
  • +2 more official change lines in the source post.
Read the full official post
Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

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.

2022-09-01 · Official ship feature / stats Transformers Go Legendary Official source 2023-06-20 · Official ship feature / stats Colors of Freedom Official source 2021-12-16 · Patch notes Holiday Update: Chilling With the Beasts Patch notes 2022-01-27 · Patch notes February update: fortes fortuna adiuvat Patch notes 2022-09-29 · Patch notes Halloween Update: New Friends, Old Foes Patch notes 2023-06-15 · Patch notes Summer Update: Always Courageous Patch notes