World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Pensacola

Beta
Utility cruiserFlexible support -- spot, screen, and farm where the team needs it.
Playstyle
  • Sit 12-15 km from a contested cap where an island shadows you from the opposite battleship line
  • Avoid: Open-water broadside trading
Key characteristics
Heavy AP pen2 sigma accuracyStrong AASonarCitadel broadsides
Community Data

Pensacola Community Stats

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

Log in & upload to see Community Data

Playstyle

Overview

Pensacola is a Tier V American heavy cruiser with Sonar as her vision tool. Hydro lets her contest islands and smoke without exposing the hull to vision cycles, which shapes how she pressures caps. AA (365 AA DPS at 4.2 km, +100% Defensive AA flak burst) is heavy enough to make her the team's air-defense anchor on top of the lead role; CV strikes route around her, not through. Standout traits: best AP fuse timer in T5 CAs (0.033 s) and best AP always-pen window in T5 CAs (60°).

Positioning

Sit 12-15 km from a contested cap where an island shadows you from the opposite battleship line. Hydro (4.4 km on ships, 3.1 km on torpedoes) lights up DDs and incoming torpedoes inside its bubble, so you can push the cap edge from cover without taking the spotting cycle; prefer cover positions over open-water flanks. Her citadel sits high enough that even glancing broadside shots can land citadel pens; treat island cover as a hard requirement, not a preference. Trade only when the angle keeps the citadel sides hidden.

Potato Avoidance

Open-water broadside trading

Her 203mm shells citadel cruisers on the wrong frame, and her 32,700-HP hull does not recover from a punished salvo. Pick rotations and angles deliberately; the chip-damage role pays better than the trade-blow role on a cruiser of this profile.

Signature Traits

Exposed citadel

Citadel sits unusually high relative to the waterline. Broadside trades get citadelled where peers would shrug off the salvo. Stay angled and avoid full broadside even briefly.

Big-caliber overmatch

14.2 mm overmatch threshold, top decile of T5 CAs. Punishes bow-tanking ships peers can't crack.

Close-range AP brick

417.9 mm AP pen at 1.5 km, top decile of T5 CAs. Citadels broadside cruisers up close.

Wide always-pen zone

60.0° AP min ricochet angle, best of T5 CAs. Larger impact-angle window where shells always penetrate.

Burny secondaries

9.0% best HE fire chance per secondary shell (before target resistance), best of T5 CAs. Stacks fires faster than peers in a brawl.

Stiff AP fuse

34.0 mm AP arming threshold, bottom decile of T5 CAs. Over-pens thin plates; the trade-off pays off when most targets are battleship belt armor.

Acquisition

How to get Pensacola

Pensacola is available in the Bombarding Heavy Cruisers branch of the U.S. Tech Tree for 2,400,000 credits after researching it in the branch. Known module upgrades cost up to 480,000 credits.

Show U.S.A. tech-tree branch diagram
U.S. Tech Tree

Pensacola sits in the Bombarding Heavy Cruisers branch. The highlighted path shows the local branch context inside the full U.S. tree.

U.S. heavy cruisers are well suited to bombarding enemy ships with powerful, super-heavy armor-piercing shells and high-explosive shells, but they lack torpedoes entirely. Starting from Tier VII, they bring Radar and Sonar together to the battle to detect hidden enemy warships.
Advantages
Improved AP shells, Long-duration Radar starting at Tier VII
Disadvantages
Low-velocity shells, Poor protection

Builds Beta

Build for AP performance, reload, turret/rudder handling, concealment, and survivability.

Open in Build Tool →

Have a build you swear by? Open it in the Build Tool and hit Save build to share it here.

Cohort position

Hide

Where Pensacola sits among Tier V CAs (28 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.

BestSecondary fire chance9% (1/25) BestAP fuse timer0.03 s (1 of 11 tied) BestAP ricochet start60° (1 of 3 tied) Top 10%Rudder shift8.2 s (2/28) Top 10%HE alpha1,800 (3/25) Top 10%Secondary HE pen21 mm (3/25) Top 10%AP auto-bounce angle67.5° (3/28) Top 10%AA DPS365 (3/28) Top 10%AA threat1,155 (3/28) Top 25%Main battery caliber203 mm (6/28) Top 25%Acceleration9.2 s (6/28) Top 25%Turn-speed retention172.6 hp/m (4/28) Bottom 25%Main battery reload13.5 s (25/28) Bottom 25%AP velocity792 m/s (26/28) Bottom 25%AP arming threshold34 mm (23/28) Bottom 25%Deck armor38 mm (23/28) WorstTraverse-to-turn ratio2.59 × (28/28) WorstHE velocity792 m/s (1 of 3 tied) WorstSecondary range4 km (1 of 9 tied) WorstNo torpedoes (4 of 28 in cohort)
See 22 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Pensacola -- 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 points32,700 HP(9/28) Max speed32.5 kt(17/28) Concealment11.71 km(15/28) Air detection7.03 km(15/28) Main battery range14.62 km(12/28) Sigma2(15/28) HE shell damage2,800(9/26) HE fire chance14%(11/26) Fires per minute6.22(18/26) HE DPM124,444(17/26) AP shell damage4,500(9/28) AP DPM200,000(16/28) Main dispersion124.7 m(10/28) Secondary DPM (per side)96,000(10/25) Engine power107,000 hp(9/28) Displacement12,321 t(21/28) Power-to-weight8.68 hp/t(13/28) AA range4.2 km(16/28) Max armor102 mm(13/28) Citadel belt102 mm(10/28) Stern armor30 mm(15/28) NormBow armor30 mm(22 of 28 tied at this value)

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

Sonar 4.4 kmDef-AAFighter
Survivability
Hit PointsInitial: 31,200 → 32,700
Displacement12,321 t
Armor range6–102 mm
Plate armor thicknesses6, 13, 16, 19, 25, 30, 32, 38, 65, 76, 102 mm
Armor material/layer entries49
Fire resistanceInitial: 20% → 23.3%
Fire duration30 s
Torp Reduction4%
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.
16,400
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.
9,800
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 203 mm/55 Mk14
Mounts / barrels4 mounts / 10 barrels
Reload time15 s
Firing range (base)13.3 km
Firing range (top fire control)14.6 km
Turret traverse4 °/s
Shell Grouping (σ)
ƒShell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
2
Max Horiz Disp
ƒHorizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (13295/30·(8−1.1)/1000 + 1.1)·30 = 124.7 m
124.7 m
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 124.7 × 0.6 = 74.8 m
74.8 m
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 124.7 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 39.9 m
39.9 m
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 74.8 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 23.9 m
23.9 m
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 4 deg/s traverse speed = 45 s.
45 s
Base shells/min
ƒ10 broadside guns x 60 / 15 s base reload = 40.
40
HE shells
HE Damage2,800
HE Velocity792 m/s → 823 m/s
Fire Chance14%
HE penetration
ƒ34 mm ≈ 203 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
34 mm
HE full-salvo alpha
ƒ2,800 HE damage x 10 broadside guns = 28,000.
28,000
Base HE DPM
ƒ28,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 15 s base reload = 112,000.
112,000
Base fires/min
ƒ10 HE shells x 60 / 15 s reload x 14% fire chance = 5.6.
5.6
AP shells
AP Damage4,500 → 4,600
AP Velocity792 m/s → 853 m/s
Min Ricochet60 deg
Guaranteed Ricochet67.5 deg
Fuse Timer0.033 s
Fuse Threshold34 mm
AP overmatch
ƒfloor(203 mm caliber / 14.3) = 14 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
14 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 × 2846 × 118^0.69 × 0.203^-1.07 × 853^1.38 = 467.2 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
467.2 mm
AP Pen Far
ƒSame formula at the ship's max firing range (18.3 km), where the shell has slowed to 351.5 m/s: 1e-7 × 2846 × 118^0.69 × 0.203^-1.07 × 351.5^1.38 = 137.5 mm.
137.5 mm
AP full-salvo alpha
ƒ4,600 AP damage x 10 broadside guns = 46,000.
46,000
Base AP DPM
ƒ46,000 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 15 s base reload = 184,000.
184,000
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.
30
AA Defense
AA mount pointsInitial: 12 → 23
Close-range AA DPS
ƒSum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (52×3.5×0.9) + (40×3.5×0.85) + (26×3.5×0.9) = 365. 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.
365
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
4.2 km
40 mm Bofors Mk2 (upgraded hull only)6×4 40mm
20 mm Oerlikon Mk4Initial: 8×1 → 17×1 20mm
28 mm Mk2 mod. 2 (stock hull only)4×4 28mm
127 mm Mk19 mod. 6 (DP)8×1 127mm
Far aura
DPS
ƒIncludes 26 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose secondaries firing as AA in this range band.
26
Range4.2 km
Medium aura
DPS52
Range3.5 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 26 + Medium 52 = 78
78
Near aura
DPSInitial: 22 → 40
Range2 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 26 + Medium 52 + Near 40 = 118
118
S
Secondary Battery
Mounts8
Firing range4.0 km
Shell Grouping (σ)1
Caliber127 mm
Reload time4.5 s
HE Damage1,800
Muzzle Velocity657 m/s
Fire Chance9%
Armor Pen21 mm
Min Ricochet91°
Max Ricochet60°
Secondary dispersion type
ƒMax dispersion = range (km) × 57 + 30. Each dispersion type sets its own slope; this is not a percentage applied to a standard baseline.
Standard
Max secondary dispersion @ 4 km
ƒ4 km × 57 + 30 = 258 m.
258 m
Maneuverability
Engine moduleEngine: 107,000 hp
Engine power107,000 hp
Maximum speed32.5 kt
Turning circle radius620 m
Engine power multiplier speed threshold7 kt
Traverse-to-turn ratio2.6× drags
Concealment
Detectability by sea11.71 km
Detectability by air7.03 km
Smoke firing penalty6.54 km
Detect after firing main guns11.71 km
Detect Fire Sea13.71 km
Detect Fire Air10.03 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 60 s reload · 5 s active
Choose one
Sonar2 charges · 180 s reload · 92 s active · 4.4 km ship detect · 3.13 km torpedo detect
Defensive AA Fire3 charges · 140 s reload · 25 s active · +100% flak burst boost
Catapult Fighter4 charges · 70 s reload · 55 s active · 5.56 km patrol radius · 1 squadron size
Module options (2)

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

HullUpgrade
  • Hit points31,200 → 32,700
  • Rudder shift10.7 → 8.2 s
  • AA mounts12 → 23
  • Close-range AA DPS39 → 92
  • Maximum AA range3.1 → 3.5 km
  • Turret traverse4 → 6 °/s
Fire controlUpgrade
  • Main battery range13,295 → 14624.5 m

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
Shell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
Max Horiz Disp124.7 m
Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (13295/30·(8−1.1)/1000 + 1.1)·30 = 124.7 m
Max Vert Disp74.8 m
Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 124.7 × 0.6 = 74.8 m
Med Horiz Disp39.9 m
50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 124.7 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 39.9 m
Med Vert Disp23.9 m
50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 74.8 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 23.9 m
Dispersion familyCruiser Disp.
Standard cruiser dispersion baseline.
AP Pen Close467.2 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 × 2846 × 118^0.69 × 0.203^-1.07 × 853^1.38 = 467.2 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
AP Pen Far137.5 mm
Same formula at the ship's max firing range (18.3 km), where the shell has slowed to 351.5 m/s: 1e-7 × 2846 × 118^0.69 × 0.203^-1.07 × 351.5^1.38 = 137.5 mm.
HE penetration34 mm
34 mm ≈ 203 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
AP overmatch14 mm
floor(203 mm caliber / 14.3) = 14 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
AP AOE Radius30
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 time45 s
180 degrees / 4 deg/s traverse speed = 45 s.
HE full-salvo alpha28,000
2,800 HE damage x 10 broadside guns = 28,000.
AP full-salvo alpha46,000
4,600 AP damage x 10 broadside guns = 46,000.
Base HE DPM112,000
28,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 15 s base reload = 112,000.
Base AP DPM184,000
46,000 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 15 s base reload = 184,000.
Base shells/min40
10 broadside guns x 60 / 15 s base reload = 40.
Base fires/min5.6
10 HE shells x 60 / 15 s reload x 14% fire chance = 5.6.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS365
Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (52×3.5×0.9) + (40×3.5×0.85) + (26×3.5×0.9) = 365. 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 range4.2 km
Longest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
AA threat index1155
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

Secondary battery dispersion

Secondary dispersion typeStandard
Max dispersion = range (km) × 57 + 30. Each dispersion type sets its own slope; this is not a percentage applied to a standard baseline.
Max secondary dispersion @ 4 km258 m
4 km × 57 + 30 = 258 m.

Secondary battery firepower

Secondary DPM (per side)96,000
Sum across all secondary families of (per-side barrels × 60 / reload_s × alpha), where per-side barrels = mounts × barrels-per-mount / 2 (the guns that bear on one broadside target). Per-family: 8×1 127 mm (4/side) × 60/4.5 × 1800 = 96,000. Assumes every shell hits (real hit rate is lower; the Brawl matchup tool on the Compare page folds in dispersion + target armor).
Max HE alpha1800
Maximum HE damage per shell across secondary HE families. Best on this ship: 1800 from the 127 mm family.
Max HE fire chance9%
Maximum per-shell fire chance across secondary HE families (before target fire resistance is applied). Best on this ship: 9% from the 127 mm family.
Max HE pen21 mm
Maximum HE armor penetration across secondary HE families (caliber × 1/6 for most nations; 1/4 for German/UK BBs). Shells whose pen falls under a plate's armor thickness shatter for 0 hull damage though fire chance still applies. Best on this ship: 21 mm from the 127 mm family.

Armor

Hull HP 31,20032,700 with hull upgrade, distributed across 5 hull zones, each with its own plate thicknesses, saturation cap, and pen thresholds. HP caps are the exact in-game values, not estimated.

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow30 mm primary (range 16–30 mm)900 (3% of HP)
Overmatch not possible at T VIAngle bounces 410mm30 mm: HE pens from 203mm+
Bow-tank fits behind this exterior plate. Saturation is FAST here; the cap is often only a few thousand HP.
Hull (midship)25 mm primary (range 6–65 mm)25,700 (79% of HP)
Overmatched by 380mm+ (Bayern, Gneisenau)Angle bounces 356mm25 mm: HE pens from 150mm+
Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern30 mm primary (range 6–102 mm)2,200 (7% of HP)
Overmatch not possible at T VIAngle bounces 410mm30 mm: HE pens from 203mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel102 mm primary (range 19–102 mm)≈ 165,500 (effectively no cap)
Citadel pen ×0.10 damageOver-pen: ×0.10 damage
Effectively no cap; citadel pool sits at ~165k HP on every ship. Damage is gated by pen/over-pen multipliers instead (×0.10 direct pen, ×0.10 over-pen).
Superstructure6 mm primary (range 6–38 mm)2,600 (8% 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 HP16,400 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.
Secondary mount (127 mm mount)separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP800 per-mount HPDestroyed at 0 HPPer-mount HP for the heaviest secondary on this ship. A mount destroyed at 0 HP is out for the rest of the battle; DCP does not repair destroyed mounts. Smaller (lighter-caliber) secondaries typically share the same HP value.
AA mount (40 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 HP9,800 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 Pensacola. Cards are condensed; use each source link for full context.

Buff ×3Main Battery ×1
2023-06-15

Ministry of Balance: Italian Concerto

  • Upgraded Main Battery reload speed reduced from 15 to 13 s.
  • Stock Hull rudder-shift time reduced from 9.12 to 8.2 s.
  • Upgraded Hull rudder-shift time reduced from 7.0 to 6.3 s.
Read the full official post
Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

  • Pensacola default exterior
    DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior
  • Yt Pensacola preview
    Yt PensacolaDecorative

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.