World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Theseus

Beta
U.K. · Tier VII · Aircraft Carrier · Premium
Skip-bomber carrierSkip HE bombs along the waterline; hunt distracted targets and dodge AA bubbles.
Playstyle
  • Keep Theseus behind your own battle line and close to friendly cruisers, because her AA is thin: 410 DPS, among the lowest at her tier
  • Avoid: Treating her like a heavy-strike carrier and throwing small squadrons into dense AA
Key characteristics
Big squadronsTough planesSharp rudderStrong torpedo beltSaturates bow fastWeak AA
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Community Data

Theseus Community Stats

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Community Data

Theseus Community Stats

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Playstyle

Overview

Theseus is a British Tier VII premium aircraft carrier built around fast, sturdy planes rather than a heavy strike package. Her aircraft fly at 182 knots, the fastest of 13 Tier VII carriers, and each plane carries 2,670 HP, 3rd at her tier, so she reaches targets quickly and loses fewer planes per pass. Her bombs hit for 7,600 with a 35 percent fire chance, which suits starting fires on large targets. The trade is small squadrons of 6 planes with 16,200 squadron HP (near the bottom of her tier), modest 3,800 damage torpedoes, and a fragile, slow hull: 47,600 HP and 25 knots, both last of 13.

Positioning

Keep Theseus behind your own battle line and close to friendly cruisers, because her AA is thin: 410 DPS, among the lowest at her tier, reaching only 3.5 km, tied for the shortest. Her hull is nimble for a carrier, with a 10.7 s rudder shift and an 890 m turning circle, both the best of 13, so use islands and hard turns to slip torpedoes and spoil bombing runs. At 25 knots she is too slow to escape by speed alone, so reposition early, and let her fast planes cover distant flanks instead of sailing the carrier toward the fight.

Potato Avoidance

Treating her like a heavy-strike carrier and throwing small squadrons into dense AA

With only 6 planes per squadron and 16,200 squadron HP, a whole group can be shredded before it delivers much damage, even with tough individual planes. Pick isolated or damaged targets and use the 182 knot speed to get in and out quickly; a carrier with depleted hangars leaves her team without spotting and her own 47,600 HP hull with no way to influence the battle.

Signature Traits

Sharp rudder ↗

10.7 s rudder shift, best of T7 CVs. Snappy weave.

ELITE ARMOR ↗
  • Strong torpedo belt · 28%
  • Saturates bow fast · 1300 HP
  • Torpedo belt specialist
Stealthy air torps ↗

1.1 km torpedo detect, best of T7 CVs. Targets see them later, dodge less.

Fragile HP pool ↗

47600 HP, worst of T7 CVs. She dies fast if a surface ship reaches her, so hold position behind the fleet and keep clear of pushes.

Slow for the class ↗

25 kt, worst of T7 CVs. Hard to rotate flanks or disengage; commit positioning early.

Acquisition

How to get Theseus

Theseus 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.

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

Best listed chance for this ship

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Want the full picture? Each container page charts the odds as you open more crates - including pity guaranteed-reward timers and, for GD Supporters, pack math personalized to your port.

Builds

Invest first in plane survivability and restoration, since small squadrons make every lost aircraft costly and her 2,670 HP planes reward being kept alive. Next, strengthen her bombs, which carry most of her damage with a 35 percent fire chance, ahead of her short-ranged 3 km torpedoes. Ship survivability and AA come last, though her 47,600 HP hull appreciates spare points. Check current picks in the Build Tool before committing points.

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Cohort position

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Where Theseus sits among Tier VII CVs (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.

Top 25%Concealment13.8 km (3/12) Bottom 25%Air torpedo range3 km (9/10) Bottom 25%Air torpedo speed40 kn (9/10) WorstNo secondaries (1 of 12 in cohort) WorstAA range3.5 km (12/12) WorstSquadron size6 (1 of 4 tied) WorstDeck HP24,000 HP (12/12)
See 26 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Theseus -- 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 points47,600 HP() Max speed25 kt() Air detection9.67 km() Rudder shift10.7 s() Turning circle890 m() Time to 90% speed34.4 s() Acceleration (0-12 kt)15.8 s() Engine power40,000 hp() Turn-speed retention44.9 hp/m() Displacement18,040 t() Power-to-weight2.22 hp/t() AA DPS410() AA threat1,295() Max armor40 mm() Citadel belt40 mm() Bomb alpha7,600() Bomb fire chance35%(4/9) Bomb penetration37.1 mm() Air torpedo alpha3,800() Air torpedo stealth1.1 km() Hangar capacity18(5/12) Squadron HP16,200 HP() Squadron restore time100 s(8/12) Plane HP2,670 HP() NormBow armor19 mm(6 of 11 tied at this value) NormStern armor19 mm(6 of 11 tied at this value)
Survivability
Hit Points47,600
Displacement18,040 t
Hull dimensions
ƒLength x beam at the waterline, with the hull's draft where the client carries one. Ships whose client entry holds only the 260 x 20 m placeholder use a curated real-world figure instead, and any ship we have no trustworthy size for omits this row rather than print the placeholder. Length matters when dodging torpedoes; beam and draft shape how hard the ship is to hit.
210.8 x 32.16 m
Armor range6–40 mm
Plate armor thicknesses6, 13, 19, 21, 25, 40 mm
Armor material/layer entries47
Fire resistance
ƒtop hull: 1 − 0.6337 fire coefficient = 36.6%. Does not reduce the damage a burning fire does per second: replay-measured burn ticks run at the full rate on every ship. By elimination it lowers how often hits set you on fire; ignition-rate replay data is consistent with that but too confounded by attacker mix to measure the reduction directly.
36.6%
Fire duration60 s
Fire damage
ƒOne unattended fire: 0.4% of max HP per second × 60 s = 24% of the pool = 24% × 47,600 HP = 11,424 HP on this ship. 4 fire points can burn at once. Verified against measured burn ticks in replay data.
0.4% of HP per second
Flood duration30 s
Flood damage
ƒOne unattended flood: 0.25% of max HP per second × 30 s = 7.5% of the pool = 7.5% × 47,600 HP = 3,570 HP on this ship. Verified against measured flood ticks in replay data.
0.25% of HP per second
Torp Reduction
ƒ1 − 0.24 hull torpedo-damage coefficient / 0.333 unprotected baseline = 28%. Reduces torpedo hit damage. Replay data shows no effect on floods: flood ticks run at the full rate and flood frequency does not decline with protection.
28%
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.
14,300
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 roughly this much damage has landed on the section, then further hits on it deal half damage. Our replay analysis shows the step: once a section is saturated, a penetration there deals exactly half (Plymouth AP 1,125 to 563). Across 415 such steps in 180 battles, about 3 in 4 later penetrations on that ship dealt half; the rest landed on sections not yet saturated. 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.
1,300
Casemate section HP
ƒDamage saturation pool for the casemate: penetrations here deal their normal share until roughly this much damage has landed on the section, then further hits on it deal half damage. Our replay analysis shows the step: once a section is saturated, a penetration there deals exactly half (Plymouth AP 1,125 to 563). Across 415 such steps in 180 battles, about 3 in 4 later penetrations on that ship dealt half; the rest landed on sections not yet saturated. 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.
5,700
Auxiliary section HP
ƒDamage saturation pool for the auxiliary room: penetrations here deal their normal share until roughly this much damage has landed on the section, then further hits on it deal half damage. Our replay analysis shows the step: once a section is saturated, a penetration there deals exactly half (Plymouth AP 1,125 to 563). Across 415 such steps in 180 battles, about 3 in 4 later penetrations on that ship dealt half; the rest landed on sections not yet saturated. 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.
5,700
Hull section HP
ƒDamage saturation pool for the hull: penetrations here deal their normal share until roughly this much damage has landed on the section, then further hits on it deal half damage. Our replay analysis shows the step: once a section is saturated, a penetration there deals exactly half (Plymouth AP 1,125 to 563). Across 415 such steps in 180 battles, about 3 in 4 later penetrations on that ship dealt half; the rest landed on sections not yet saturated. 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.
35,700
Superstructure section HP
ƒDamage saturation pool for the superstructure: penetrations here deal their normal share until roughly this much damage has landed on the section, then further hits on it deal half damage. Our replay analysis shows the step: once a section is saturated, a penetration there deals exactly half (Plymouth AP 1,125 to 563). Across 415 such steps in 180 battles, about 3 in 4 later penetrations on that ship dealt half; the rest landed on sections not yet saturated. 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 roughly this much damage has landed on the section, then further hits on it deal half damage. Our replay analysis shows the step: once a section is saturated, a penetration there deals exactly half (Plymouth AP 1,125 to 563). Across 415 such steps in 180 battles, about 3 in 4 later penetrations on that ship dealt half; the rest landed on sections not yet saturated. 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.
1,300
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
✈
Squadrons
Total plane capacity116
Flight deck HP24,000
Hangar HP24,000
Skip bomber
Plane HP2,700
Cruising speed182 kt
OrdnanceHE skip bomb, 7,600 alpha
Squadron size6 planes
Planes per drop3
Bombs per plane2
Bombs per drop
ƒ3 planes per drop x 2 bombs each = 6.
6
Alpha per drop
ƒ6 bombs x 7,600 alpha = 45,600, if every bomb hits. Before armor, saturation and the target's damage reduction; a real drop lands a share of it.
45,600
Fire chance35%
Bomb penetration37.1 mm
Hangar max18
Hangar restore+3 every 100 s, start 12
Recovery time100 s
Torpedo bomber
Plane HP2,670
Cruising speed182 kt
Ordnancetorpedo, 3,800 alpha
Squadron size4 planes
Planes per drop2
Torpedoes per plane2
Torpedoes per drop
ƒ2 planes per drop x 2 torpedoes each = 4.
4
Alpha per drop
ƒ4 torpedoes x 3,800 alpha = 15,200, if every torpedo hits. Before armor, saturation and the target's damage reduction; a real drop lands a share of it.
15,200
Flooding chance15%
Torpedo arming time4 s
Torpedo arming distance82 m
Hangar max12
Hangar restore+2 every 120 s, start 8
Recovery time120 s
Squadron consumables
Patrol Fighters
Charges4
Duration60 s
Reload10 s
Evasive Maneuver
Charges2
Duration10 s
Reload150 s
Damage reduction-50%
Return to Carrier
EffectAll aircraft return to carrier.
AA Defense
AA mount points23
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching family on the in-game AA card. Base AirDefense aura max range is 3.5 km; dual-purpose mount auras extend it.
3.5 km
40 mm Bofors Mk VII17×1 40mm
40 mm/39 QF Mark VII6×4 40mm
Outer Medium aura
Guns40 mm Bofors Mk VII
Continuous DPS
ƒEffective DPS: 77 raw aura damage × 3.5 × 1 hit probability = 270 - the same in-game units as the Close-range AA DPS headline.
270
Range3.5 km
Inner Medium aura
Guns40 mm/39 QF Mark VII
Continuous DPS
ƒEffective DPS: 40 raw aura damage × 3.5 × 1 hit probability = 140 - the same in-game units as the Close-range AA DPS headline.
140
Range2.5 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒOuter Medium 270 + Inner Medium 140 = 410
410
Maneuverability
Engine power40,000 hp
Maximum speed25 kt
Turning circle radius890 m
Rudder shift time10.7 s
Engine power-boost threshold7 kt
Engine spool-up time23 s
Reverse spool-up time11.5 s
Reverse speed
ƒtop speed / 4 + 4.9 = 25 / 4 + 4.9 = 11.2 kt. The community reverse-speed model from the WoWs ShipBuilder project, the same source as the acceleration model on this card. Base value; speed modifiers scale it. Not shown on the in-game card.
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. Same community-model simulation as the acceleration times, using the ship's own reverse-power ratio. The full curve is on the acceleration chart. A real replay test (one ship, not this one) measured full reverse stopping about a quarter faster than a plain Stop order from top speed, and about a tenth faster from full reverse speed; this simulation only covers the full-reverse case.
41.2 s
Engine boost threshold (reverse)
ƒSpeed below which the engine's built-in power boost applies in reverse. Matches the in-game maneuverability card's reverse threshold (Vampire II reads 10.5 here and the card shows 11; the card rounds half up).
10 kt
Acceleration 0-90%
ƒTime to reach 90% of top speed (22.5 kt of 25 kt), from our in-house acceleration model.
34.4 s
Acceleration 0-99%
ƒTime to reach 99% of top speed (24.8 kt of 25 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.
55.4 s
Concealment
Detectability by sea13.8 km
Detectability by air9.67 km
Detect when firing (air)
ƒAir detectability 9.67 km + gun-firing bloom 0 km = 9.67 km. The bloom tracks main-battery caliber x 0.020. Matches the in-game 'Detect Firing Air' value on every captured ship.
9.67 km
Detect when on fire (sea)
ƒSea detectability 13.8 km + 2.0 km while burning = 15.8 km; matches the in-game 'Detect Fire Sea' value on every captured ship.
15.8 km
Detect when on fire (air)
ƒAir detectability 9.67 km + 3.0 km while burning = 12.67 km; matches the in-game 'Detect Fire Air' value on every captured ship.
12.67 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
✦
Consumables
Automatic Damage Control Party∞ charges · 90 s reload · 60 s active
Automatic Fighter4 charges · 40 s reload · 150 s active · 5 km patrol radius
ƒDerived from the consumable's 30 m grid-unit range (km = grid units x 30 / 1000): 167×301000=5 km
· 4 squadron size

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.

AA defense

AA DPS at max range270
Only families that reach 3.5 km contribute at the outer edge of the AA bubble. In-game families: 2 pdr MkVII Quad 6x4 -> 140 DPS @ 2.5 km; 40mm Bofors Mark VII single 17x1 -> 270 DPS @ 3.5 km.
Maximum AA range3.5 km
Longest-reaching family on the in-game AA card. Base AirDefense aura max range is 3.5 km; dual-purpose mount auras extend it.
AA DPS layered by range270 DPS @ 3.5 km, 410 DPS @ 2.5 km
@ 3.5 km: 270 from one family; @ 2.5 km: 140 + 270 = 410. 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-blank410
140 + 270 = 410 DPS: the sum of every family's average DPS, achievable only inside the closest-range family (2.5 km).
AA threat index1295
140 × 2.5 + 270 × 3.5 = 1295. 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.
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Ship Charts

Background

A light carrier of the Colossus class - the most numerous class of light aircraft carriers in the Royal Navy - Theseus occupies an intermediate position between the Illustrious-class heavy carriers and escort carriers. To reduce costs and expedite construction, technologies used in building merchant ships were employed. Theseus actively participated in the Korean War as part of the UN forces. Later, she was refitted for service in Training Squadron, Home Fleet, before being placed in reserve in 1956.

Armor Beta

Hull HP 47,600, 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 & stern19 mm

Overmatched by 137+ AP guns across the bracket. Can’t reliably bow-tank; gets bow-citadelled and overpenned.

Belt / citadel40 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 37%, fires burn 60s. Range-by-range in the Compare tool →

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow19 mm primary (range 19–40 mm)1,300 (3% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ AP (Scharnhorst, Scharnhorst '43)Angle bounces 203mm19 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)19 mm primary (range 6–25 mm)35,700 (75% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ AP (Scharnhorst, Scharnhorst '43)Angle bounces 203mm19 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern19 mm primary (range 19–40 mm)1,300 (3% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ AP (Scharnhorst, Scharnhorst '43)Angle bounces 203mm19 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel40 mm primary (range 21–40 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 mm primary (range 13–40 mm)200 (0% 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).
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 HP14,300 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 Theseus can equip.

  • Theseus default exterior
    DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior

Primary official WG sources

GamingDiver has indexed official WG mentions for this ship, but none are focused enough to show as a primary source card here. Low-context list, crate, comparison, or passing mentions are intentionally filtered out.

Source status No high-context source card yet Filtered for precision