World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Novik

Also called: 诺维克 · Новик · Nowik Beta
Tutorial-tier shipLearn the fundamentals: movement, aim, shell travel, and reading the minimap.
Playstyle
  • Stay near your team; do not push ahead alone
  • Avoid: Sailing in a straight line
Key characteristics
High HE / fire outputHigh fire chanceEasily spotted
On this page
Community Data

Novik Community Stats

Across 370+ Standard battles from 120+ players, Novik averages a 74% win rate, 19,200 damage and 1.4 kills per battle, and survives 61% of them.

Community Data

Novik Community Stats

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

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Playstyle

Overview

Novik is a Tier I Soviet cruiser - a tutorial-tier ship. The kit is for learning basic mechanics: movement, aiming, shell travel time, gun rotation, and reading the minimap. Match impact comes from making fewer mistakes than the other Tier I players, not from gear advantages. Notable: HE fire chance in T1 CAs (8, 3rd of 11) and fires per minute in T1 CAs (4.8, 2nd of 11).

Positioning

Stay near your team; do not push ahead alone. At Tier I the goal is practicing the basics, so pick a teammate to follow and learn how to lead your shots while their ship is in your field of vision.

Potato Avoidance

Sailing in a straight line

Even Tier I players will lead a predictable target; learn to make small course changes between salvos to break enemy aim. This is the single highest-impact habit to build at this tier.

Signature Traits

LOBBING BATTERY ↗
  • High fire chance · 8%
  • High fire pressure · 4.8 fires/min
  • High-arc HE shells · 42.21°
  • Fire-starter cruiser
Easily spotted ↗

9.3 km surface detect, worst of T1 CAs. Visible before you can react; position early.

Thin citadel floor ↗

10 mm citadel bottom, bottom quartile of T1 CAs. Deep-water torps and underwater pen do more damage.

Acquisition

How to get Novik

Novik is available in the Novik branch of the U.S.S.R. Tech Tree as an early line ship.

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

Show U.S.S.R. tech-tree branch diagram
Official WG availability sources
  • Update: March 2020 Tech tree line Start: 2020-03-09
    • I Novik
    • All the cruisers will become available for you to research and purchase once the Update goes live, so try them out and find the skill and mod combos that work best for you.

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 AL AvroraAL ChapayevAL Tallinn

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

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Where Novik sits among Tier I CAs (11 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.

BestPower-to-weight5.75 hp/t (1/12) Top 10%Fires per minute4.8 (2/11) Top 25%Hit points14,500 HP (3/12) Top 25%Main battery range10.32 km (4/12) Top 25%HE DPM102,000 (3/11) Top 25%Time to 90% speed21.8 s (3/12) Top 25%Acceleration (0-12 kt)10.1 s (3/12) Top 25%Power / turn radius35.4 hp/m (4/12) Top 25%Displacement3,080 t (4/12) Top 25%Citadel belt50 mm (4/12) WorstStealth profile9.33 km / 5.6 km (12/12 / 12/12) WorstAA threat9 (1 of 3 tied)
See 12 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Novik -- 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 speed25 kt(5/12) Smoke fire bloom3.53 km(8/12) Rudder shift4.1 s(5/12) Turning circle500 m(9/12) Main battery caliber120 mm(8/12) Main battery reload5 s(5/12) HE shell damage1,700(7/11) Main dispersion92.4 m(9/12) HE velocity823 m/s(6/11) Engine power17,700 hp(5/12) Max armor50 mm(8/12) NormTurn speed retained81%(11 of 12 tied at this value)
Survivability
Hit Points14,500
Displacement3,080 t
Hull dimensions
ƒLength x beam at the waterline, plus draft. Length matters when dodging torpedoes; beam and draft shape how hard the ship is to hit.
111.4 x 12.9 m (ship-model figure)
Armor range6–50 mm
Plate armor thicknesses6, 10, 13, 24, 30, 50 mm
Armor material/layer entries39
Fire resistance
ƒtop hull: 1 − 1 fire coefficient = 0%. 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.
0%
Fire duration30 s
Fire damage
ƒOne unattended fire: 0.003 of max HP per second (0.3%) × 30 s = 0.09 of the pool; 0.09 × 14,500 HP = 1,305 HP on this ship. 4 fire points can burn at once.
0.3% of HP per second
Flood duration40 s
Flood damage
ƒOne unattended flood: 0.0025 of max HP per second (0.25%) × 40 s = 0.1 of the pool; 0.1 × 14,500 HP = 1,450 HP on this ship.
0.25% of HP per second
Torp Reduction
ƒ1 − 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.
0%
Magazine HP
ƒPer-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.
7,300
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.
4,400
Repairable: penetration50%
Repairable: citadel10%
Repairable: steering gear50%
Section HP
Bow section HP
ƒDamage saturation pool for the bow: penetrations here deal their normal share until twice this much penetration damage has landed on the section (2 × 900 = 1,800), 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.
900
Auxiliary section HP
ƒDamage saturation pool for the auxiliary room: penetrations here deal their normal share until twice this much penetration damage has landed on the section (2 × 2,400 = 4,800), 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.
2,400
Hull section HP
ƒDamage saturation pool for the hull: penetrations here deal their normal share until twice this much penetration damage has landed on the section (2 × 10,900 = 21,800), 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.
10,900
Superstructure section HP
ƒDamage saturation pool for the superstructure: penetrations here deal their normal share until twice this much penetration damage has landed on the section (2 × 200 = 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 ×. 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.
200
Stern section HP
ƒDamage saturation pool for the stern: penetrations here deal their normal share until twice this much penetration damage has landed on the section (2 × 900 = 1,800), 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.
900
Citadel section HP
ƒThis 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
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 120 mm/45 Model 1892
Mounts / barrels8 mounts / 8 barrels
Reload time5 s
Firing range (base)9.4 km
Firing range (top fire control)10.3 km
Turret traverse8 °/s
Turret armor13 mm
Turret traverse arcs
ƒHow far each mount can train, in degrees to either side of the mount's own facing. A rear turret with ±150° leaves a 60° blind wedge over the bow; one-sided arcs are wing mounts that cover a single side. The data does not say which way each mount faces, so the arcs are listed per mount without bow/stern angles.
162° port-only, 162° starboard-only, ±152°, 2x 154° arc, 120° port-only, 120° starboard-only
Guns to bear
ƒCounted from each mount's firing arc: no mount leaves a blind wedge, so every gun bears straight ahead. 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.
all guns bear at the bow
Shell Grouping (σ)2
Dispersion type
ƒIn practice: 11% tighter (better) horizontal dispersion and 11% less vertical spread at max range (10.3 km) than a standard cruiser: about 92 m wide × 55 m tall, against 104 m × 63 m. 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
ƒHorizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the dispersion model: σH=(R30·idealRadius−minRadiusidealDistance+minRadius)·30 =(1031830·8−0.51000+0.5)·30=92.4m
92.4 m at 10.3 km
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: σV=σH·radiusOnMax =92.4·0.6=55.4m
55.4 m at 10.3 km
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius: σH,50=σH·0.6σ =92.4·0.62=27.7m
27.7 m at 10.3 km
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius: σV,50=σV·0.6σ =55.4·0.62=16.6m
16.6 m at 10.3 km
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 8 deg/s traverse speed = 22.5 s.
22.5 s
Shells/min
ƒ5 broadside guns x 60 / 5 s base reload = 60.
60
HE shells
HE alpha1,700
HE Velocity823 m/s
Fire Chance8%
HE penetration
ƒ20 mm ≈ 120 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
20 mm
HE full-salvo alpha
ƒ1,700 HE damage x 5 broadside guns = 8,500.
8,500
HE DPM
ƒ8,500 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 5 s base reload = 102,000.
102,000
Fires/min
ƒ60 shells/min × 0.08 (8% fire chance) = 4.8.
4.8
AA Defense
AA mount points2
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching family on the in-game AA card. Base AirDefense aura max range is 1 km; dual-purpose mount auras extend it.
1 km
7.62 mm Maxim machine gun2×1 8mm
Near aura
Guns7.62 mm Maxim machine gun
Continuous DPS
ƒEffective DPS: 3 raw aura damage × 3.5 × 0.85 hit probability = 9 - the same in-game units as the Close-range AA DPS headline.
9
Range1 km
Maneuverability
Engine power17,700 hp
Maximum speed25.0 kt
Turning circle radius500 m
Rudder shift time4.1 s
Engine power-boost threshold7.0 kt
Engine spool-up time15.3 s
Reverse spool-up time7.7 s
Reverse speed
ƒtop speed / 4 + 4.9 = 25 / 4 + 4.9 = 11.2 kt. Base value; speed modifiers scale it.
11.2 kt
Crash stop
ƒSeconds 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.
24 s
Engine boost threshold (reverse)
ƒSpeed below which the engine's built-in power boost applies in reverse.
7.9 kt
Acceleration 0-90%
ƒTime to reach 90% of top speed (22.5 kt of 25.0 kt).
21.8 s
Acceleration 0-99%
ƒTime to reach 99% of top speed (24.8 kt of 25.0 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.
34.4 s
Guns in a full turn
ƒWith the rudder hard over the hull turns 6.7°/s, so a target drifts across the bow at that rate. Turret traverse minus hull turn: 8 − 6.7 = +1.3°/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 (+1.3°/s spare)
Concealment
Detectability by sea
ƒBase value, no camouflage. With a Grade IV permanent camo (or any disposable camo): 9.33 km x 0.955 = 8.91 km. Camouflage does not change detectability by air.
9.33 km
With Grade IV camouflage (sea)
ƒDetectability by sea 9.33 km x 0.955 (Grade IV permanent camo or any disposable camo) = 8.91 km.
8.91 km
Detectability by air5.6 km
Smoke firing penalty3.53 km
Detect when firing (sea)
ƒmax(main battery range, sea detectability 9.33 km) = 10.32 km. Equal to the ship's main battery range (never below base detectability): firing makes you visible to everyone you can reach.
10.32 km
Detect when firing (air)
ƒAir detectability 5.6 km + gun-firing bloom 2.4 km = 8 km. The bloom tracks main-battery caliber 120 mm × 0.020 = 2.4 km.
8 km
Detect when on fire (sea)
ƒSea detectability 9.33 km + 2.0 km while burning = 11.33 km.
11.33 km
Detect when on fire (air)
ƒAir detectability 5.6 km + 3.0 km while burning = 8.6 km.
8.6 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
✦
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 60 s reload · 5 s active
Module options (1)

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

Fire controlUpgrade
  • Main battery range9,380 → 10,318 m

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 cruiser11% tighter H · 11% shorter V
H = horizontal, V = vertical spread. This ship's curve against the standard cruiser curve, both evaluated at this ship's max range (10.3 km) with the same model as Max Horiz/Vert Disp: horizontal 92 / 104 m − 1 = -11%, vertical 55 / 63 m − 1 = -11%. Shell grouping (σ) is separate: it sets how shells bunch toward the centre of this ellipse.
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 km25.8 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·Rmax=0.5·10318=5159 m, and radiusOnMax=0.6 at 10318 m. Below the kink: k=0.2+(0.5−0.2)·50005159=0.4908, so σV=σH·k=52.5·0.4908=25.8m.
Shell scatter height @ 10 km53.4 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·Rmax=0.5·10318=5159 m, and radiusOnMax=0.6 at 10318 m. Above the kink: k=0.5+(0.6−0.5)·10000−515910318−5159=0.5938, so σV=σH·k=90·0.5938=53.4m.
HE flight time @ 10 km11.14 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, adrag=kρv2, where ρ is air density from a standard-atmosphere profile and k bundles the shell's drag coefficient, caliber and mass: k=πCdd28m=π·0.487·0.1228·20.48=0.000134. That runs from a 823 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)5
Counted from each mount's firing arc: most barrels that bear at once: 5 of 8, on the beam; casemate/wing mounts only fire one side.

Model inputs

HE muzzle velocity823 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.

AA defense

AA DPS at max range9
Only families that reach 1 km contribute at the outer edge of the AA bubble. In-game families: 7 62mm Maxim MG 2 2x1 -> 9 DPS @ 1 km.
AA DPS layered by range9 DPS @ 1 km
@ 1 km: 9 from one family. 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-blank9
9 = 9 DPS: the sum of every family's average DPS, achievable only inside the closest-range family (1 km).
AA threat index9
9 × 1 = 9. 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 km
Open in Charting Tool

Ship Charts

Background

The pioneer ship of a scout cruiser type, Novik carried rapid-fire guns but was weak in terms of armor. In the course of her service, she was the fastest cruiser in the world.

Armor Beta

Hull HP 14,500, distributed across 5 hull zones, each with its own plate thicknesses, saturation cap, and pen thresholds.

Bow & stern6 mm

Overmatched by 60+ AP guns across the bracket. Can’t reliably bow-tank; gets bow-citadelled and overpenned.

Belt / citadel50 mm

Thin belt: battleship AP citadels straight through it broadside. Rely on angle, speed and concealment, never sit flat.

Farming6 mm

Superstructure and extremities take HE pens and AP overpens from nearly any gun: steady chip damage. Fire resistance 0%, fires burn 30s. Range-by-range in the Compare tool →

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow6 mm primary (range 6–30 mm)900 (6% of HP)
Overmatched by 127mm+ AP (Farragut)6 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.
Stern6 mm primary (range 6–13 mm)900 (6% of HP)
Overmatched by 127mm+ AP (Farragut)6 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel50 mm primary (range 6–50 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.
Superstructure6 mm primary (range 6–30 mm)200 (1% 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 HP7,300 magazine HPTurret knocked outPer-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 (8 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 HP4,400 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.

Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

Every custom exterior Novik can equip.

  • Novik default exterior
    DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior

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.