World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Primal

Beta
U.S.A. · Tier V · Battleship · Premium
Mid-range battleship anchorHold a mid-range lane and trade with the enemy line.
Playstyle
  • Choose a central or safe flank lane where Primal does not need to sprint across the map
  • Avoid: Do not chase fast ships or expose full broadside just to keep every turret firing
Key characteristics
Strong AASpotter planeSlow reload
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Community Data

Primal Community Stats

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Playstyle

Overview

Primal is a Tier V American premium battleship variant built around classic slow U.S. battleship fundamentals: take a lane early, angle before the fight starts, and use the hard-hitting 356 mm salvo cycle to punish broadside targets from mid range.

Positioning

Choose a central or safe flank lane where Primal does not need to sprint across the map. Pre-angle into likely fire, hold enough distance to turn between salvos, and let improved AA and steady main-battery pressure support the team push.

Potato Avoidance

Chase fast ships or expose full broadside just to keep…

Primal is too slow to repair a bad rotation, so patient angles and clean target selection matter more than forcing one extra salvo.

Signature Traits

Strong torpedo belt

40.0% torpedo damage reduction, best of T5 BBs.

Heavy armor

406.0 mm max plate, best of T5 BBs.

Long DCP window

20.0 s Damage Control duration, best of T5 BBs. Stays fire / flood immune longer per activation.

Heavy citadel belt

343.0 mm citadel belt, top decile of T5 BBs. Citadels through angle are rare.

Slow reload

30.8 s reload, bottom decile of T5 BBs. Salvos punish more, but cycle is slower than peers.

Wide dispersion

217.6 m max horizontal dispersion, bottom decile of T5 BBs. Long-range salvos are noticeably wider than peers'.

Acquisition

How to get Primal

Primal 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.

Best listed chance for this ship

  • Two Titans. One King 1% V Premium battleship Primal Collaboration containers · Two Titans. One King
Official WG availability sources
Show direct source rows

Builds Beta

Use an American battleship commander focused on accuracy, reload, survivability, and fire resistance. Inspirations that tighten dispersion, improve repair-party value, or reduce fire pressure fit the mid-range anchor plan.

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Cohort position

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Where Primal sits among Tier V BBs (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 armor406 mm (1 of 6 tied) Top 10%AA DPS473 (3/25) Top 10%AA threat1,383 (2/25) Top 25%Rudder shift13.6 s (7/25) Top 25%AP velocity823 m/s (5/25) Top 25%HE velocity861 m/s (5/25) Top 25%Citadel belt343 mm (5/24) Bottom 25%Max speed21 kt (22/25) Bottom 25%Stealth profile14.69 km / 11.75 km (22/25 / 22/25) Bottom 25%Main dispersion217.6 m (23/25) Bottom 25%Power-to-weight1.03 hp/t (21/25) Bottom 25%Deck armor25 mm (21/24) Bottom 10%Main battery reload30.8 s (24/25) Bottom 10%Secondary DPM (per side)142,286 (24/25) WorstSigma1.5 (1 of 4 tied)
See 28 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Primal -- 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 points53,200 HP(15/25) Traverse-to-turn ratio3.1 ×(18/25) Main battery caliber356 mm(14/25) Main battery range15.76 km(13/25) HE shell damage5,000(16/25) HE fire chance30%(15/25) Fires per minute7.01(10/25) HE DPM116,883(12/25) AP shell damage10,500(12/25) AP DPM245,455(11/25) HE alpha1,800(15/24) Secondary fire chance9%(12/24) Secondary HE pen21 mm(17/24) Acceleration36.8 s(16/24) AP arming threshold59 mm(11/25) Engine power37,000 hp(19/25) Turn-speed retention57.8 hp/m(19/25) Displacement36,000 t(9/25) AA range4.2 km(16/25) Repair charges3(13/25) Bow armor25 mm(15/24) Stern armor25 mm(15/24) NormSecondary dispersion bracket57(20 of 25 tied at this value) NormAP fuse timer0.03 s(20 of 25 tied at this value) NormAP ricochet start45°(24 of 25 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(24 of 25 tied at this value) NormSecondary range4 km(17 of 25 tied at this value) NormRepair heal rate0.5 %/s(23 of 25 tied at this value)
Survivability
Hit Points53,200
Displacement36,000 t
Armor range6–406 mm
Plate armor thicknesses6, 16, 25, 40, 51, 70, 102, 115, 140, 160, 203, 343, 406 mm
Armor material/layer entries44
Fire resistance23.3%
Fire duration60 s
Torp Reduction40%
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.
26,600
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.
16,000
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 356 mm Mk7
Mounts / barrels4 mounts / 12 barrels
Reload time34.2 s
Firing range15.8 km
Turret traverse3 °/s
Shell Grouping (σ)
ƒShell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
1.5
Max Horiz Disp
ƒHorizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the verified WoWS dispersion model: σH=(R30·idealRadiusminRadiusidealDistance+minRadius)·30 =(1576330·1221000+2)·30=217.6m
217.6 m
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: σV=σH·radiusOnMax =217.6·0.6=130.6m
130.6 m
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius: σH,50=σH·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =217.6·0.382(σ=1.5)=83.1m
83.1 m
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius: σV,50=σV·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =130.6·0.382(σ=1.5)=49.9m
49.9 m
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 3 deg/s traverse speed = 60 s.
60 s
Base shells/min
ƒ12 broadside guns x 60 / 34.2 s base reload = 21.1.
21.1
HE shells
HE Damage5,000
HE Velocity861 m/s
Fire Chance30%
HE penetration
ƒ59 mm ≈ 356 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
59 mm
HE full-salvo alpha
ƒ5,000 HE damage x 12 broadside guns = 60,000.
60,000
Base HE DPM
ƒ60,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 34.2 s base reload = 105,263.
105,263
Base fires/min
ƒ12 HE shells x 60 / 34.2 s reload x 30% fire chance = 6.32.
6.32
AP shells
AP Damage10,500
AP Velocity823 m/s
Min Ricochet45 deg
Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg
Fuse Timer0.033 s
Fuse Threshold59 mm
AP overmatch
ƒfloor(356 mm caliber / 14.3) = 24 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
24 mm
AP Pen Close
ƒCanonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v01.38 =107·2545·680.40.69·0.3561.07·8231.38=730.3mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
730.3 mm
AP Pen Far
ƒSame formula at the ship's max firing range (19.7 km), where the shell has slowed to 489 m/s: P=107·2545·680.40.69·0.3561.07·4891.38=356mm.
356 mm
AP full-salvo alpha
ƒ10,500 AP damage x 12 broadside guns = 126,000.
126,000
Base AP DPM
ƒ126,000 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 34.2 s base reload = 221,053.
221,053
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.
60
AA Defense
AA mount points49
Close-range AA DPS
ƒSum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (80×3.5×0.75) + (85×3.5×0.7) + (21×3.5×0.75) = 473. 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.
473
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
4.2 km
40 mm Bofors Mk210×4 40mm
20 mm Oerlikon Mk439×1 20mm
127 mm Mk19 mod. 6 (DP)8×1 127mm
Far aura
DPS
ƒIncludes 21 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose secondaries firing as AA in this range band.
21
Range4.2 km
Medium aura
DPS80
Range3.5 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 21 + Medium 80 = 101
101
Near aura
DPS85
Range2 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 21 + Medium 80 + Near 85 = 186
186
S
Secondary Battery
Mounts14
Firing range4.0 km
Shell Grouping (σ)1
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
127 mm Mk19 mod. 6 (×8)
Caliber127 mm
Reload time4.5 s
HE Damage1,800
Muzzle Velocity657 m/s
Fire Chance9%
Armor Pen21 mm
Min Ricochet91°
Max Ricochet60°
Show 1 more gun family
127 mm Mk7 (×6)
Caliber127 mm
Reload time7 s
HE Damage1,800
Muzzle Velocity960 m/s
Fire Chance6%
Armor Pen21 mm
Min Ricochet91°
Max Ricochet60°
Maneuverability
Engine moduleEngine: 37,000 hp
Engine power37,000 hp
Maximum speed21 kt
Turning circle radius640 m
Engine power-boost threshold7 kt
Acceleration 0-90%
ƒTime to accelerate from 0 kt to 90% of top speed (18.9 kt of 21). Numerical integration of the WoWS engine model with the inputs decoded for this ship: maxPower=(Pm)0.42=(37,00036,000)0.42=1.0116; drag(v)=v|v|Vmax2·maxPower; piecewise acceleration a(v)={maxPower·2+drag(v)v<7 ktP(t)+drag(v)v7 kt; the engine ramps over τ=Tup2.61=602.61=23s. Euler step vn+1=vn+a(vn)Δt,Δt=0.01s until t90=min{t:v(t)0.9Vmax}=36.8s. The 0.42 exponent, quadratic drag and the TimeScale 2.61 are the calibrated game constants (New York's 60/2.61 = 23.0 s spool-up matches in-game); no closed form.
36.8 s
Acceleration 0-99%
ƒTime to accelerate from 0 kt to 99% of top speed (20.8 kt of 21). Same integration as the 0-90% row, read where t99=min{t:v(t)0.99Vmax}=61.2s. 99% (not 100%) because exact top speed is asymptotic - thrust equals drag at Vmax, so the last fraction of a knot is never quite gained.
61.2 s
Traverse-to-turn ratio
ƒHow many degrees the turret can swing for each degree the hull turns. Turn rate ωhull=180π·Vmax(m/s)Rturn=180π·21.0·0.5144640=0.97°/s, so ratio=ωturretωhull=30.97=3.1×. Below 5 the turrets drag in a turning fight; 25+ keeps up with any rudder.
3.1× drags
Concealment
Detectability by sea14.69 km
Detectability by air11.75 km
Smoke firing penalty12.73 km
Detect after firing main guns
ƒmax(base sea detectability, gun-firing bloom range). Firing never pulls your detection closer than base concealment.
14.69 km
Detect Fire Sea16.69 km
Detect Fire Air14.75 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 80 s reload · 20 s active
Repair Party3 charges · 80 s reload · 28 s active · 0.5% heal per second · 14% of max HP total heal
Choose one
Catapult Fighter3 charges · 60 s reload · 55 s active · 5.56 km patrol radius · 1 squadron size
Observation Seaplane3 charges · 200 s reload · 30 s active · 1 squadron size · +10% main-battery range bonus
Secondary Battery Booster3 charges · 160 s reload · 30 s active · +100% damage boost · +50% reload boost

See all derived stats

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

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)1.5
Shell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
Max Horiz Disp217.6 m
Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the verified WoWS dispersion model: $\sigma_H = \left(\dfrac{R}{30}\cdot\dfrac{\text{idealRadius}-\text{minRadius}}{\text{idealDistance}} + \text{minRadius}\right)\cdot 30$ $= \left(\dfrac{15763}{30}\cdot\dfrac{12-2}{1000} + 2\right)\cdot 30 = 217.6\,\text{m}$
Max Vert Disp130.6 m
Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: $\sigma_V = \sigma_H \cdot \text{radiusOnMax}$ $= 217.6 \cdot 0.6 = 130.6\,\text{m}$
Med Horiz Disp83.1 m
50%-hit horizontal radius: $\sigma_{H,50} = \sigma_H \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 217.6 \cdot 0.382\;(\sigma = 1.5) = 83.1\,\text{m}$
Med Vert Disp49.9 m
50%-hit vertical radius: $\sigma_{V,50} = \sigma_V \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 130.6 \cdot 0.382\;(\sigma = 1.5) = 49.9\,\text{m}$
AP Pen Close730.3 mm
Canonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot K \cdot m^{0.69} \cdot d^{-1.07} \cdot v_0^{1.38}$ $= 10^{-7}\cdot 2545 \cdot 680.4^{0.69} \cdot 0.356^{-1.07} \cdot 823^{1.38} = 730.3\,\text{mm}$. Matches the in-game spec card.
AP Pen Far356 mm
Same formula at the ship's max firing range (19.7 km), where the shell has slowed to 489 m/s: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot 2545 \cdot 680.4^{0.69} \cdot 0.356^{-1.07} \cdot 489^{1.38} = 356\,\text{mm}$.
HE penetration59 mm
59 mm ≈ 356 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
AP overmatch24 mm
floor(356 mm caliber / 14.3) = 24 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
AP AOE Radius60
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 alpha12
All 12 barrels bear on the broadside.
Turret turn time60 s
180 degrees / 3 deg/s traverse speed = 60 s.
HE full-salvo alpha60,000
5,000 HE damage x 12 broadside guns = 60,000.
AP full-salvo alpha126,000
10,500 AP damage x 12 broadside guns = 126,000.
Base HE DPM105,263
60,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 34.2 s base reload = 105,263.
Base AP DPM221,053
126,000 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 34.2 s base reload = 221,053.
Base shells/min21.1
12 broadside guns x 60 / 34.2 s base reload = 21.1.
Base fires/min6.32
12 HE shells x 60 / 34.2 s reload x 30% fire chance = 6.32.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS473
Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (80×3.5×0.75) + (85×3.5×0.7) + (21×3.5×0.75) = 473. 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 index1383
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)142,286
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 + 6×1 127 mm (3/side) × 60/7 × 1800 = 46,286. 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 Beta

Hull HP 53,200, 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.

Bow & stern25 mm

Overmatched by 32+ guns across the bracket. Can’t reliably bow-tank; gets bow-citadelled and overpenned.

Belt / citadel343 mm

Citadels come from a flat broadside at close range; held past ~30° of angle, AP shatters or bounces.

Farming16 mm

Superstructure and extremities take HE pens and AP overpens from nearly any gun: steady chip damage. Fire resistance 23%, fires burn 60s. Range-by-range in the ballistics tool →

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow25 mm primary (range 25–40 mm)1,400 (3% of HP)
Overmatched by 380mm+ (Bayern, Gneisenau)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)16 mm primary (range 16–343 mm)39,900 (75% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (Moltke, Graf Spee)Angle bounces 203mm16 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern25 mm primary (range 6–203 mm)1,300 (2% of HP)
Overmatched by 380mm+ (Bayern, Gneisenau)Angle bounces 356mm25 mm: HE pens from 150mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel343 mm primary (range 6–343 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).
Superstructure25 mm primary (range 25–406 mm)900 (2% 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 HP26,600 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 HP16,000 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.

Approximated side profile.
Open the 3D armor viewer →
3D armor viewer
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Acceleration and Ballistics Chart

Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

  • Primal default exterior
    DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior
  • Decorative
    Kong IdahoDecorative

Primary official WG sources

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