World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Smolensk

Beta
U.S.S.R. · Tier ★ · Cruiser · Premium
Smoke farming cruiserFarm from smoke; lean on team or radar for spotting.
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
High HE / fire outputSmoke + SonarDefensive AAFragileWeak AA
On this page
Community Data

Smolensk Community Stats

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

Log in & upload to see Community Data

Playstyle

Overview

Smolensk is a Legendary Soviet 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 AP shell velocity in Legendary CAs (950) and best Repair Party charges in Legendary CAs (3).

Positioning

Sit 12-15 km from a contested cap where an island shadows you from the opposite battleship line. Hydro (4.9 km on ships, 3.5 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 130mm shells citadel cruisers on the wrong frame, and her 35,500-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

Flat AP shells

950.0 m/s AP muzzle velocity, best of Legendary CAs. Flatter trajectory, less lead, harder to dodge.

Extra heal charges

3.0 Repair Party charges, best of Legendary CAs. More total HP available across a match.

Tight dispersion

129.1 m max horizontal dispersion, top decile of Legendary CAs. Accurate at range.

Sharp rudder

7.5 s rudder shift, top decile of Legendary CAs. Snappy weave.

Fragile HP pool

35500.0 HP, bottom decile of Legendary CAs. Trade hits sparingly.

Weak torp belt

0.0% torpedo damage reduction, bottom decile of Legendary CAs. Torps hit for closer to their printed damage.

Acquisition

How to get Smolensk

Smolensk is a Premium ship and not available to unlock in the Tech Tree. Acquisition path: Premium/Event.

Builds Beta

Pair with a commander whose unique skill complements her main armament; check the build tool for current recommendations.

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 Smolensk sits among Legendary CAs (22 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.

BestRudder shift7.5 s (1/22) BestMain dispersion129.1 m (1/22) BestAP velocity950 m/s (1 of 2 tied) BestRepair charges3 (1 of 6 tied) Top 10%Stealth profile11.92 km / 7.15 km (3/22 / 2/22) Top 10%HE DPM384,000 (3/21) Top 10%HE velocity950 m/s (3/21) Top 10%Displacement10,230 t (2/22) Top 10%Power-to-weight10.56 hp/t (3/22) Top 25%Max speed35 kt (5/22) Top 25%Traverse-to-turn ratio21.81 × (4/22) Top 25%Fires per minute12.8 (6/21) Top 25%AP DPM554,667 (4/22) Top 25%Acceleration24.9 s (5/22) Top 25%AP arming threshold22 mm (4/22) Bottom 25%Main battery caliber130 mm (20/22) Bottom 25%AP fuse timer0.01 s (20/22) Bottom 25%Torpedo range8.01 km (11/13) Bottom 25%Torpedo speed60 kt (11/13) Bottom 25%Torpedo reload131 s (11/13) Bottom 25%Citadel belt100 mm (20/22) Bottom 25%Deck armor16 mm (20/22) Bottom 10%Main battery range15.22 km (21/22) Bottom 10%Sigma2 (21/22) Bottom 10%Engine power108,000 hp (21/22) Bottom 10%Turn-speed retention144 hp/m (21/22) Bottom 10%AA DPS422 (21/22) Bottom 10%AA threat1,741 (21/22) Bottom 10%Max armor100 mm (21/22) WorstHit points35,500 HP (22/22) WorstNo secondaries (8 of 22 in cohort) WorstRepair heal rate0.5 %/s (1 of 10 tied) WorstEnd plates16 mm (1 of 4 tied / 1 of 4 tied)
See 5 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Smolensk -- 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.

Main battery reload4.5 s(7/22) AA range5.2 km(9/22) Torpedo damage≈13,400(10/13) NormAP ricochet start45°(15 of 22 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(15 of 22 tied at this value)
Survivability
Hit Points35,500
Displacement10,230 t
Armor range13–100 mm
Plate armor thicknesses13, 16, 20, 25, 50, 70, 100 mm
Armor material/layer entries34
Fire resistance40%
Fire duration30 s
Torp Reduction0%
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.
16,200
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.
10,700
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 16×130 mm
Mounts / barrels4 mounts / 16 barrels
Reload time5 s
Firing range15.2 km
Turret traverse30 °/s
Shell Grouping (σ)
ƒShell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
2
Max Horiz Disp
ƒHorizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the verified WoWS dispersion model: σH=(R30·idealRadiusminRadiusidealDistance+minRadius)·30 =(1522030·80.51000+0.5)·30=129.1m
129.1 m
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: σV=σH·radiusOnMax =129.1·0.6=77.5m
77.5 m
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius: σH,50=σH·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =129.1·0.32(σ=2)=41.3m
41.3 m
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius: σV,50=σV·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =77.5·0.32(σ=2)=24.8m
24.8 m
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 30 deg/s traverse speed = 6 s.
6 s
Base shells/min
ƒ16 broadside guns x 60 / 5 s base reload = 192.
192
HE shells
HE Damage1,800
HE Velocity950 m/s
Fire Chance6%
HE penetration
ƒ22 mm ≈ 130 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
22 mm
HE full-salvo alpha
ƒ1,800 HE damage x 16 broadside guns = 28,800.
28,800
Base HE DPM
ƒ28,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 5 s base reload = 345,600.
345,600
Installed HE DPM
ƒ28,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4.5 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 384,000.
384,000
Base fires/min
ƒ16 HE shells x 60 / 5 s reload x 6% fire chance = 11.52.
11.52
AP shells
AP Damage2,600
AP Velocity950 m/s
Min Ricochet45 deg
Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg
Fuse Timer0.01 s
Fuse Threshold22 mm
AP overmatch
ƒfloor(130 mm caliber / 14.3) = 9 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
9 mm
AP Pen Close
ƒCanonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v01.38 =107·1900·33.40.69·0.131.07·9501.38=244mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
244 mm
AP Pen Far
ƒSame formula at the ship's max firing range (19 km), where the shell has slowed to 317 m/s: P=107·1900·33.40.69·0.131.07·3171.38=53.7mm.
53.7 mm
AP full-salvo alpha
ƒ2,600 AP damage x 16 broadside guns = 41,600.
41,600
Base AP DPM
ƒ41,600 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 5 s base reload = 499,200.
499,200
Installed AP DPM
ƒ41,600 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4.5 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 554,667.
554,667
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.
10
Torpedoes
ModuleTorpedoes: 533 mm PTA-53-68-bis
Launchers / tubes2 launchers × 5 tubes = 10 tubes
Reload time131 s
Projectile speed60 kt
Range8.01 km
Maximum simulated damage
ƒEstimate of WG's in-game value; matches the in-game port screen within ±5%. Saturation: most targets only intersect one hull section, so the sim transfers ~1/3 of the warhead alpha (2/3 when the warhead blast >= 5000 and the burst reaches a second section). For this ship: Dsim=α·c=40,200·0.333=13,400.
≈ 13,400
Torpedo detectability1.2 km
Flooding chance240%
Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s
Torp Turn
ƒTime to rotate the launchers 180 deg: tturn=180°25°/s=7.2s.
7.2 s
Torp Arming185 m
Per-side salvo damage
ƒOne side firing, all torpedoes hitting: per-side tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 5 x 13,400 = 67,000.
67,000
AA Defense
AA mount points10
Close-range AA DPS
ƒSum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (61×3.5×0.9) + (20×3.5×0.85) + (54×3.5×0.9) = 422. 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.
422
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
5.2 km
45 mm SM-20-ZIF6×4 45mm
25 mm 4M-1204×4 25mm
Far aura
DPS
ƒIncludes 54 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose main battery firing as AA in this range band.
54
Range5.2 km
Medium aura
DPS61
Range3.5 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 54 + Medium 61 = 115
115
Near aura
DPS20
Range3.1 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 54 + Medium 61 + Near 20 = 135
135
Maneuverability
Engine moduleEngine: 108,000 hp
Engine power108,000 hp
Maximum speed35 kt
Turning circle radius750 m
Engine power-boost threshold7 kt
Acceleration 0-90%
ƒTime to accelerate from 0 kt to 90% of top speed (31.5 kt of 35). Numerical integration of the WoWS engine model with the inputs decoded for this ship: maxPower=(Pm)0.42=(108,00010,230)0.42=2.6909; 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=402.61=15.3s. Euler step vn+1=vn+a(vn)Δt,Δt=0.01s until t90=min{t:v(t)0.9Vmax}=24.9s. 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.
24.9 s
Acceleration 0-99%
ƒTime to accelerate from 0 kt to 99% of top speed (34.6 kt of 35). Same integration as the 0-90% row, read where t99=min{t:v(t)0.99Vmax}=40.2s. 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.
40.2 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·35.0·0.5144750=1.38°/s, so ratio=ωturretωhull=301.38=21.8×. Below 5 the turrets drag in a turning fight; 25+ keeps up with any rudder.
21.8× snappy
Concealment
Detectability by sea11.92 km
Detectability by air7.15 km
Smoke firing penalty5.28 km
Detect after firing main guns
ƒmax(base sea detectability, gun-firing bloom range). Firing never pulls your detection closer than base concealment.
11.92 km
Detect Fire Sea13.92 km
Detect Fire Air10.15 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 60 s reload · 5 s active
Choose one
Sonar2 charges · 180 s reload · 96 s active · 4.44 km ship detect
ƒDerived from the consumable's 30 m grid-unit range (km = grid units x 30 / 1000): 148×301000=4.44 km
· 3.12 km torpedo detect
ƒDerived from the consumable's 30 m grid-unit range (km = grid units x 30 / 1000): 104×301000=3.12 km
Defensive AA Fire3 charges · 140 s reload · 25 s active · +100% flak burst boost
Smoke Generator2 charges · 240 s reload · 15 s emit / 89 s cloud active
Repair Party3 charges · 80 s reload · 28 s active · 0.5% heal per second · 14% of max HP total heal
ƒHeal per second (0.5%) x active time (28 s) = up to 14% of max HP restored per charge if the consumable runs its full duration.

See all derived stats

Show

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)2
Shell grouping (sigma); shown in-game as Shell Grouping.
Max Horiz Disp129.1 m
Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the verified WoWS dispersion model: $\sigma_H = \left(\dfrac{R}{30}\cdot\dfrac{\text{idealRadius}-\text{minRadius}}{\text{idealDistance}} + \text{minRadius}\right)\cdot 30$ $= \left(\dfrac{15220}{30}\cdot\dfrac{8-0.5}{1000} + 0.5\right)\cdot 30 = 129.1\,\text{m}$
Max Vert Disp77.5 m
Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: $\sigma_V = \sigma_H \cdot \text{radiusOnMax}$ $= 129.1 \cdot 0.6 = 77.5\,\text{m}$
Med Horiz Disp41.3 m
50%-hit horizontal radius: $\sigma_{H,50} = \sigma_H \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 129.1 \cdot 0.32\;(\sigma = 2) = 41.3\,\text{m}$
Med Vert Disp24.8 m
50%-hit vertical radius: $\sigma_{V,50} = \sigma_V \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 77.5 \cdot 0.32\;(\sigma = 2) = 24.8\,\text{m}$
AP Pen Close244 mm
Canonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot K \cdot m^{0.69} \cdot d^{-1.07} \cdot v_0^{1.38}$ $= 10^{-7}\cdot 1900 \cdot 33.4^{0.69} \cdot 0.13^{-1.07} \cdot 950^{1.38} = 244\,\text{mm}$. Matches the in-game spec card.
AP Pen Far53.7 mm
Same formula at the ship's max firing range (19 km), where the shell has slowed to 317 m/s: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot 1900 \cdot 33.4^{0.69} \cdot 0.13^{-1.07} \cdot 317^{1.38} = 53.7\,\text{mm}$.
HE penetration22 mm
22 mm ≈ 130 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
AP overmatch9 mm
floor(130 mm caliber / 14.3) = 9 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 alpha16
All 16 barrels bear on the broadside.
Turret turn time6 s
180 degrees / 30 deg/s traverse speed = 6 s.
HE full-salvo alpha28,800
1,800 HE damage x 16 broadside guns = 28,800.
AP full-salvo alpha41,600
2,600 AP damage x 16 broadside guns = 41,600.
Base HE DPM345,600
28,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 5 s base reload = 345,600.
Base AP DPM499,200
41,600 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 5 s base reload = 499,200.
Installed HE DPM384,000
28,800 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4.5 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 384,000.
Installed AP DPM554,667
41,600 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 4.5 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 554,667.
Base shells/min192
16 broadside guns x 60 / 5 s base reload = 192.
Installed shells/min213.3
16 broadside guns x 60 / 4.5 s installed Artillery reload = 213.3.
Base fires/min11.52
16 HE shells x 60 / 5 s reload x 6% fire chance = 11.52.
Installed fires/min12.8
16 HE shells x 60 / 4.5 s installed reload x 6% fire chance = 12.8.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability1.2 km
Estimated torpedo reaction time7.7 s
detectability / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).
Torpedo speed60 kt
Travel time to max range51.3 s
range / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).
Tube count10
2 launchers x 5 tubes.
Per-side salvo5 torpedoes
tube count / 2 (symmetric port/starboard launcher layout; common on cruisers and battleships with deck torpedoes).
Full-salvo damage134,000
All tubes hitting one target: tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 10 x 13,400 = 134,000.
Per-side salvo damage67,000
One side firing, all torpedoes hitting: per-side tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 5 x 13,400 = 67,000.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS422
Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (61×3.5×0.9) + (20×3.5×0.85) + (54×3.5×0.9) = 422. 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 range5.2 km
Longest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
AA threat index1741
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 range3.1 km

Armor Beta

Hull HP 35,500, 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 & stern16 mm

Overmatched by 77+ guns across the bracket. Can’t reliably bow-tank; gets bow-citadelled and overpenned.

Belt / citadel70 mm

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

Farming13 mm

Superstructure and extremities take HE pens and AP overpens from nearly any gun: steady chip damage. Fire resistance 40%, fires burn 30s. Range-by-range in the ballistics tool →

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow16 mm primary (range 16–25 mm)2,100 (6% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (Gouden Leeuw)Angle bounces 203mm16 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.
Hull (midship)16 mm primary (range 16–100 mm)24,300 (68% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (Gouden Leeuw)Angle bounces 203mm16 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern16 mm primary (range 16–25 mm)1,700 (5% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (Gouden Leeuw)Angle bounces 203mm16 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel70 mm primary (range 16–100 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.
Superstructure13 mm2,100 (6% 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 HP16,200 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 (45 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 HP9,700 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
Open in Charting Tool

Acceleration and Ballistics Chart

Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

  • Smolensk 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.