Phoenix Build & Guide | WoWs Legends

Playstyle

Overview

Phoenix is a Tier III American light 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. Standout traits: best turret traverse rate in T3 CAs (10) and best heavy citadel belt in T3 CAs (76 mm).

Positioning

Sit 10-13 km from a contested cap where an island shadows you from the opposite battleship line. Hydro (3.9 km on ships, 2.8 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.

Potato Avoidance

Open-water broadside trading

Her 152mm shells citadel cruisers on the wrong frame, and her 24,000-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

Heavy citadel belt

76.0 mm citadel belt, best of T3 CAs. Citadels through angle are rare.

Fast turret traverse

10.0°/s turret traverse, top decile of T3 CAs. Tracks fast-rotating targets peers can't keep up with.

Fast for the class

35.0 kt, top decile of T3 CAs. Lets you rotate flanks or escape disengagements.

Big-caliber overmatch

10.6 mm overmatch threshold, top decile of T3 CAs. Punishes bow-tanking ships peers can't crack.

Low AP DPM

75000 AP DPM, bottom decile of T3 CAs. Citadel windows matter more than spam.

Low fire chance

7.0% fire chance per HE shell, bottom decile of T3 CAs. AP carries more weight.

Acquisition

How to get Phoenix

Phoenix is available in the Early U.S. Cruisers branch of the U.S. Tech Tree for 85,000 credits after researching it in the branch. Known module upgrades cost up to 17,000 credits.

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

U.S. Tech Tree

Phoenix sits in the Early U.S. Cruisers branch. The highlighted path shows the local branch context inside the full U.S. tree.

The early U.S. cruisers focus on providing a powerful broadside from their rapid-firing guns, and they are your starting point to the U.S. Tech Trees. From Tier III, you gain access to a useful self-defense tool: Sonar.

Advantages: High rate of fire, Sonar consumable starting at Tier III
Disadvantages: Limited main battery firing angles, Low-velocity shells

3 ships in highlighted branch · scroll to inspect all U.S. lines.

U.S.A.IIIIIIIVVVIVIIVIII

Destroyer

Cruiser

Light cruiser split

Battleship

Alternative battleship

Hybrid battleship

Carrier

Tier IIWickesPASD027 Tier IIIClemsonPASD019 Tier IVFarragutPASD005 Tier VMahanPASD006 Tier VIBensonPASD008 Tier VIIFletcherPASD021 Tier VIIIA. M. SumnerPASD114 Tier IAlbanyPASC003 Tier IISt. LouisPASC004 Tier IIIPhoenixPASC024 Tier IVOmahaPASC005 Tier VPensacolaPASC012 Tier VINew OrleansPASC014 Tier VIIBaltimorePASC017 Tier VIIIBuffaloPASC109 Tier VDallasPASC206 Tier VIHelenaPASC207 Tier VIIClevelandPASC208 Tier VIIISeattlePASC209 Tier IIIWyomingPASB004 Tier IVNew YorkPASB006 Tier IVNevadaPASB105 Tier VNew MexicoPASB034 Tier VIColoradoPASB008 Tier VIIIowaPASB018 Tier VIIIMainePASB118 Tier VTennesseePASB106 Tier VINorth CarolinaPASB012 Tier VIIKansasPASB108 Tier VIIIMinnesotaPASB109 Tier VIConnecticutPASB207 Tier VIINebraskaPASB208 Tier VIIIDelawarePASB209 Tier IIILangleyPASA004 Tier VRangerPASA006 Tier VIILexingtonPASA012

Builds Beta

AL Baltimore, AL Montpelier, and Captain Janeway are useful American cruiser commander directions. Inspirations usually support accuracy, reload, concealment, agility, or survivability so the ship can keep influencing fights without giving up easy citadels.

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Commanders frequently paired with this ship AL Baltimore AL Montpelier

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Cohort position

Hide ▾

Where Phoenix sits among Tier III CAs (12 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.

BestCitadel belt76 mm (1 of 4 tied) Top 25%Max speed35 kt (3/12) Top 25%Rudder shift7 s (3/12) Top 25%Traverse-to-turn ratio6.11 × (3/12) Top 25%Main battery caliber152 mm (4/12) Top 25%Engine power90,000 hp (3/12) Top 25%Turn-speed retention142.9 hp/m (3/12) Top 25%Power-to-weight11.46 hp/t (4/12) Top 25%Torpedo reload44 s (3/11) Bottom 25%Torpedo range5.49 km (10/11) WorstFires per minute1.75 (11/11) WorstHE DPM52,500 (11/11) WorstAP DPM75,000 (12/12) WorstNo secondaries (8 of 12 in cohort) WorstDeck armor10 mm (1 of 3 tied)

See 24 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Phoenix -- 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 points24,000 HP(7/12) Concealment10.34 km(9/12) Air detection6.2 km(8/12) Main battery range12.8 km(6/12) Main battery reload7.2 s(7/12) HE shell damage2,100(7/11) Main dispersion113.3 m(5/12) AP velocity853 m/s(5/12) HE velocity853 m/s(5/11) Acceleration9.7 s(8/12) AP arming threshold25 mm(9/12) Displacement7,850 t(7/12) AA DPS123(6/12) AA range3.1 km(6/12) AA threat271(8/12) Torpedo damage11,733(6/11) Torpedo speed56 kt(8/11) Max armor76 mm(5/12) Bow armor25 mm(5/12) Stern armor25 mm(5/12) NormSigma2(11 of 12 tied at this value) NormAP fuse timer0.03 s(9 of 12 tied at this value) NormAP ricochet start45°(11 of 12 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(11 of 12 tied at this value)

Peers in this cohort

Show all 11 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.

Sonar 3.87 km

Survivability

Hit PointsInitial: 22,300 → 24,000

Displacement7,850 t

Armor range6–76 mm

Plate armor thicknesses6, 10, 13, 15, 25, 37, 38, 76 mm

Armor material/layer entries38

Fire resistanceInitial: 6.7% → 10%

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.

12,000

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.

7,200

Main Battery

ModuleArtillery: 152 mm/53 Mk14

Mounts / barrels6 mounts / 6 barrels

Reload time8 s

Firing range (base)11.6 km

Firing range (top fire control)12.8 km

Turret traverse10 °/s

Shell Grouping (σ)

ƒ

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 = (11636/30·(8−1.1)/1000 + 1.1)·30 = 113.3 m

113.3 m

Max Vert Disp

ƒ

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 113.3 × 0.6 = 68 m

68 m

Med Horiz Disp

ƒ

50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 113.3 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 36.2 m

36.2 m

Med Vert Disp

ƒ

50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 68 × 0.319 (σ=2) = 21.7 m

21.7 m

Turret turn time

ƒ

180 degrees / 10 deg/s traverse speed = 18 s.

18 s

Base shells/min

ƒ

3 broadside guns x 60 / 8 s base reload = 22.5.

22.5

HE shells

HE Damage2,100 → 2,200

HE Velocity853 m/s → 914 m/s

Fire Chance7% → 12%

HE penetration

ƒ

25 mm ≈ 152 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).

25 mm

HE full-salvo alpha

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2,200 HE damage x 3 broadside guns = 6,600.

6,600

Base HE DPM

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6,600 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 8 s base reload = 49,500.

49,500

Base fires/min

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3 HE shells x 60 / 8 s reload x 12% fire chance = 2.7.

2.7

AP shells

AP Damage3,000 → 3,100

AP Velocity853 m/s → 914 m/s

Min Ricochet45 deg

Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg

Fuse Timer0.025 s

Fuse Threshold25 mm

AP overmatch

ƒ

floor(152 mm caliber / 14.3) = 10 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).

10 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 × 1772 × 47.6^0.69 × 0.152^-1.07 × 914^1.38 = 233.1 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

233.1 mm

AP Pen Far

ƒ

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (16 km), where the shell has slowed to 268.6 m/s: 1e-7 × 1772 × 47.6^0.69 × 0.152^-1.07 × 268.6^1.38 = 43 mm.

43 mm

AP full-salvo alpha

ƒ

3,100 AP damage x 3 broadside guns = 9,300.

9,300

Base AP DPM

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9,300 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 8 s base reload = 69,750.

69,750

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: Mark 11

Launchers / tubes2 launchers × 2 tubes = 4 tubes

Reload time44 s

Projectile speed56 kt

Range5.49 km

Maximum simulated damage10,833 (est.)

Alpha damage32,500

Torpedo detectability1.1 km

Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s

Torp Turn7.2 s

Torp Arming173 m

Per-side salvo damage

ƒ

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

21,666

AA Defense

AA mount pointsInitial: 4 → 10

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: (6×3.5×0.9) + (15×3.5×0.9) + (19×3.5×0.85) = 123. 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.

123

Maximum AA range

ƒ

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

3.1 km

76.2 mm Mk10Initial: 2×1 → 4×1 76mm

28 mm Mk2 mod. 2 (upgraded hull only)2×4 28mm

12.7 mm Browning M2 mod. 1 (upgraded hull only)4×1 13mm

7.6 mm Hotchkiss Mk1 (stock hull only)2×1 8mm

DPS15

Range3.1 km

DPSInitial: 2 → 6

Range3 km

Total DPS in Aura

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Medium 15 + Far 6 = 21

21

DPS19

Range1.2 km

Total DPS in Aura

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Medium 15 + Far 6 + Near 19 = 40

40

Maneuverability

Engine moduleEngine: 90,000 hp

Engine power90,000 hp

Maximum speed35 kt

Turning circle radius630 m

Engine power multiplier speed threshold7 kt

Traverse-to-turn ratio6.1× slow

Concealment

Detectability by sea10.34 km

Detectability by air6.2 km

Smoke firing penalty4.65 km

Detect after firing main guns10.34 km

Detect Fire Sea12.34 km

Detect Fire Air9.2 km

Guaranteed Detect2 km

✦

Consumables

Damage Control Party∞ charges · 60 s reload · 5 s active

Sonar2 charges · 180 s reload · 90 s active · 3.87 km ship detect · 2.8 km torpedo detect

Module options (2)

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

HullUpgrade

Hit points22,300 → 24,000
Rudder shift9.1 → 7 s
AA mounts4 → 10
Close-range AA DPS4 → 40
Maximum AA range3 → 3.1 km

Fire controlUpgrade

Main battery range11,636 → 12799.6 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 Disp113.3 m

Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range. (R/30·(idealRadius−minRadius)/idealDistance + minRadius)·30 = (11636/30·(8−1.1)/1000 + 1.1)·30 = 113.3 m

Max Vert Disp68 m

Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range = max horizontal × radiusOnMax = 113.3 × 0.6 = 68 m

Med Horiz Disp36.2 m

50%-hit horizontal radius = max horizontal × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 113.3 × 0.32 (σ=2) = 36.2 m

Med Vert Disp21.7 m

50%-hit vertical radius = max vertical × GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) = 68 × 0.319 (σ=2) = 21.7 m

Dispersion familyCruiser Disp.

Standard cruiser dispersion baseline.

AP Pen Close233.1 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 × 1772 × 47.6^0.69 × 0.152^-1.07 × 914^1.38 = 233.1 mm. Matches the in-game spec card.

AP Pen Far43 mm

Same formula at the ship's max firing range (16 km), where the shell has slowed to 268.6 m/s: 1e-7 × 1772 × 47.6^0.69 × 0.152^-1.07 × 268.6^1.38 = 43 mm.

HE penetration25 mm

25 mm ≈ 152 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).

AP overmatch10 mm

floor(152 mm caliber / 14.3) = 10 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 alpha3

Barrels that can bear on one beam (3 of 6); casemate/wing mounts only fire one side.

Turret turn time18 s

180 degrees / 10 deg/s traverse speed = 18 s.

HE full-salvo alpha6,600

2,200 HE damage x 3 broadside guns = 6,600.

AP full-salvo alpha9,300

3,100 AP damage x 3 broadside guns = 9,300.

Base HE DPM49,500

6,600 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 8 s base reload = 49,500.

Base AP DPM69,750

9,300 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 8 s base reload = 69,750.

Base shells/min22.5

3 broadside guns x 60 / 8 s base reload = 22.5.

Base fires/min2.7

3 HE shells x 60 / 8 s reload x 12% fire chance = 2.7.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability1.1 km

Estimated torpedo reaction time7.6 s

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

Torpedo speed56 kt

Travel time to max range37.7 s

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

Tube count4

2 launchers x 2 tubes.

Per-side salvo2 torpedoes

tube count / 2 (symmetric port/starboard launcher layout; common on cruisers and battleships with deck torpedoes).

Full-salvo damage43,332

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

Per-side salvo damage21,666

per-side salvo x per-torpedo simulated damage.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS123

Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (6×3.5×0.9) + (15×3.5×0.9) + (19×3.5×0.85) = 123. 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 range3.1 km

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

AA threat index271

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 range1.2 km

Armor

Hull HP 22,300 → 24,000 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
Bow	25 mm primary (range 10–38 mm)	3,200 (13% of HP)	Overmatch not possible at T IVAngle 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)	25 mm primary (range 6–25 mm)	18,000 (75% of HP)	Overmatch not possible at T IVAngle bounces 356mm25 mm: HE pens from 150mm+	Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern	25 mm primary (range 10–25 mm)	1,800 (8% of HP)	Overmatch not possible at T IVAngle bounces 356mm25 mm: HE pens from 150mm+	Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel	76 mm primary (range 13–76 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).
Superstructure	6 mm primary (range 6–10 mm)	800 (3% 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	12,000 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 (76 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	7,200 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 Phoenix can equip, from in-game data.

DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior

Phoenix

Phoenix Community Stats