World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Nagato

Also called: 长门 Beta
Tank battleshipA health pool that outlasts the line: soak trades peers cannot afford to take.
Playstyle
  • Anchor a flank at 14-17 km where the team can rotate behind you
  • Avoid: Absorbing focus with nobody trading behind you
Key characteristics
410 mm AP overmatch2 sigma accuracy17 km gun rangeHeavy HE shellsSlowEasily spotted
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Community Data

Nagato Community Stats

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Playstyle

Overview

Nagato is a Tier VI Japanese tank battleship (65,000 HP): top-decile hit points let her hold trades that drain peer BBs out faster than the shells they fire back. The kit is line-holder, not striker. Standout traits: best punchy HE secondaries in T6 BBs (2,400) and best close-range AP pen in T6 BBs (810.8 mm).

Positioning

Anchor a flank at 14-17 km where the team can rotate behind you. The HP pool lets you absorb focus that drains peer BBs out, but absorbing focus without trading is just wasted HP; pick salvo targets that exploit the angle others avoid. The helm answers quickly (13 s), so she can break an incoming salvo that slower hulls have to eat.

Potato Avoidance

Absorbing focus with nobody trading behind you

On a hull this size 65,000 HP is the flank's budget rather than your own, and soaking only wins while teammates convert that attention into damage; the number that decides the flank is your side's remaining HP against theirs, not your personal one-for-one. Hold the angle, keep the guns cycling, and if the ships behind you have stopped firing, fall back and re-engage with support rather than feeding the pool one salvo at a time.

Signature Traits

Turtleback armor

Deck armor angled downward over the citadel, forming a roof outside it. Deflects shells arriving at a low angle up and away, so flat-trajectory fire from close range struggles to reach the citadel.

ELITE SECONDARIES
  • Punchy HE · 2400 max
  • Burny secondaries · 10%
LOBBING BATTERY
  • Close-range AP brick · 810.8 mm
  • Tight grouping
  • Big-caliber AP overmatch · 28.6 mm
  • High-arc HE shells · 18.67°
Stiff AP fuse

68 mm AP arming threshold, bottom decile of T6 BBs. Over-pens thin plates; the trade-off pays off when most targets are battleship belt armor.

Acquisition

How to get Nagato

Nagato is available in the Outranging Battleships branch of the Japan Tech Tree for 9,000,000 credits after researching it in the branch. Known module upgrades cost up to 2,250,000 credits.

Show Japan tech-tree branch diagram
Japan Tech Tree

Nagato sits in the Outranging Battleships branch. The highlighted path shows the local branch context inside the full Japan tree.

Builds

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

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Cohort position

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Where Nagato sits among Tier VI BBs (31 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 dispersion bracket33 (1 of 7 tied) BestSecondary HE alpha2,400 (1 of 4 tied) Top 10%Hit points65,000 HP (3/32) Top 10%Main battery caliber410 mm (3/32) Top 10%Secondary fire chance10% (4/31) Top 25%Rudder shift13 s (7/32) Top 25%Main battery range16.53 km (5/32) Top 25%Main battery reload25 s (5/32) Top 25%Sigma2 (5/32) Top 25%HE DPM124,800 (6/31) Top 25%AP DPM241,920 (5/32) Top 25%Main dispersion203 m (7/32) Top 25%Secondary DPM (per side)262,800 (7/32) Top 25%AP pen at 10 km587 mm (6/32) Top 25%Deck armor76 mm (9/32) Bottom 25%Max speed26 kt (27/32) Bottom 25%Stealth profile14.84 km / 11.87 km (29/32 / 29/32) Bottom 25%Traverse-to-turn ratio3.82 × (25/32) Bottom 25%Acceleration37.3 s (25/32) Bottom 25%AP arming threshold68 mm (25/32) Bottom 25%Displacement45,816 t (26/32) Bottom 25%Power-to-weight1.8 hp/t (25/32) Bottom 25%AA threat1,010 (25/32) Bottom 25%Flak per wave (expected)630 (25/32) Bottom 10%Smoke fire bloom14.45 km (31/32) WorstNo torpedoes (26 of 32 in cohort)
See 22 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Nagato -- 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.

Turning circle770 m(17/32) HE fire chance30%(23/31) Fires per minute5.76(20/31) Secondary HE pen23 mm(13/31) AP velocity806 m/s(14/32) HE velocity805 m/s(18/31) Engine power82,300 hp(24/32) Turn-speed retention106.9 hp/m(23/32) Effective HE DPM (incl. fire)167,874(9/31) Secondary range5 km(16/32) AA DPS302(24/32) AA range5 km(14/32) Repair charges3(15/32) Max armor356 mm(15/32) Citadel belt305 mm(17/32) Bow armor26 mm(12/32) Stern armor26 mm(13/32) NormAP fuse timer0.03 s(22 of 32 tied at this value) NormAP ricochet start45°(28 of 32 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(28 of 32 tied at this value) NormTurn speed retained81%(31 of 32 tied at this value) NormRepair heal rate0.5 %/s(19 of 32 tied at this value)
Survivability
Hit PointsInitial: 49,000 → 65,000
Displacement45,816 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.
225 x 34.6 m, draft 10 m
Armor range6–356 mm
Plate armor thicknesses6, 16, 19, 25, 26, 38, 40, 44, 50, 70, 76, 120, 152, 197, 203, 207, 229, 276, 289, 305, 356 mm
Armor material/layer entries60
Fire resistance
ƒDoes 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.
Initial: 26.6% → 30%
Fire duration60 s
Fire damage
ƒEach fire ticks 0.3% of max HP per second for the full 60 s, so one unattended fire burns 18% of the pool (11,700 HP on this ship). 4 fire points can burn at once. Verified against measured burn ticks in replay data.
0.3% of HP per second
Flood duration40 s
Flood damage
ƒA flood ticks 0.5% of max HP per second for the 40 s duration, so one unattended flood costs 20% of the pool (13,000 HP on this ship). Verified against measured flood ticks in replay data.
0.5% of HP per second
Torp Reduction
ƒReduces 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.
25%
Magazine HP
ƒPer-turret powder-magazine HP, a separate pool from the ship's. Penetrating hits wear it down and the turret is likelier to be knocked out as it falls, so a larger pool keeps the guns firing through punishment that silences a peer's.
32,500
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.
19,500
Effective HP
ƒBase 65,000 HP plus everything Repair Party can restore: 0.5%/s x 28 s = 9,100 HP per charge, x3 charges = 27,300 HP. Ceiling, not a prediction: a charge only restores damage actually taken, and only the regeneratable share of it. Across 1,826 players in our replay corpus the median ship realized about half of this, mostly because half the charges go unspent — when Repair Party IS pressed it returns ~97% of the per-charge figure above.
92,300
Repairable: penetration50%
Repairable: citadel10%
Repairable: steering gear50%
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 410 mm/45 Type3
Mounts / barrels4 mounts / 8 barrels
Reload time25 s
Firing range (base)15 km
Firing range (top fire control)16.5 km
Turret traverse3.8 °/s
Turret armor457 mm
Turret traverse arcs
ƒHow far each mount can train, in degrees to either side of the mount's own facing, read from in-game data. A rear turret with ±150° leaves a 60° blind wedge over the bow; one-sided arcs are wing mounts that cover a single side. The data does not say which way each mount faces, so the arcs are listed per mount without bow/stern angles.
4x ±145°
Guns to bear
ƒHow far off the bow (or stern) the ship must angle before every main turret can fire: the widest blind wedge among the rear-facing (or forward-facing) mounts, from each mount's trainable arc. Mount facing is inferred from turret stations and verified against known layouts, including Izumo's aft-facing forward turret.
35° off bow / 35° off stern
AP pen max range474 mm
HE fire DPM vs T6 BB43074
Effective HE DPM vs T6 BB167874
Shell Grouping (σ)2
Max Horiz Disp
ƒHorizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the verified WoWS dispersion model: σH=(R30·idealRadiusminRadiusidealDistance+minRadius)·30 =(16531.930·102.81000+2.8)·30=203m
203 m at 16.5 km
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: σV=σH·radiusOnMax =203·0.8=162.4m
162.4 m at 16.5 km
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius: σH,50=σH·0.6σ =203·0.62=60.9m
60.9 m at 16.5 km
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius: σV,50=σV·0.6σ =162.4·0.62=48.7m
48.7 m at 16.5 km
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 3.8 deg/s traverse speed = 47.4 s.
47.4 s
Shells/min
ƒ8 broadside guns x 60 / 25 s base reload = 19.2.
19.2
HE shells
HE Damage6,500
HE Velocity805 m/s
Fire Chance30%
HE penetration
ƒ68 mm ≈ 410 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
68 mm
HE full-salvo alpha
ƒ6,500 HE damage x 8 broadside guns = 52,000.
52,000
HE DPM
ƒ52,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 25 s base reload = 124,800.
124,800
Fires/min
ƒ19.2 shells/min x 30% fire chance = 5.76.
5.76
AP shells
AP Damage12,600
AP Velocity806 m/s
Min Ricochet45 deg
Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg
Fuse Timer0.033 s
Fuse Threshold68 mm
AP overmatch
ƒfloor(410 mm caliber / 14.3) = 28 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
28 mm
AP Pen Close
ƒCanonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v01.38 =107·2711·10200.69·0.411.07·8061.38=859.3mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
859.3 mm point-blank
AP Pen Far
ƒSame formula at the ship's max firing range (16.5 km), where the shell has slowed to 523.1 m/s: P=107·2711·10200.69·0.411.07·523.11.38=473.2mm.
473.2 mm at 16.5 km
AP full-salvo alpha
ƒ12,600 AP damage x 8 broadside guns = 100,800.
100,800
AP DPM
ƒ100,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 25 s base reload = 241,920.
241,920
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.
150
AA Defense
AA mount pointsInitial: 14 → 50
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching family on the in-game AA card. Base AirDefense aura max range is 3.1 km; dual-purpose mount auras extend it.
5 km
25 mm Type96 mod. 114×3 25mm
25 mm/60 Type96 mod. 1 (upgraded hull only)24×1 25mm
25 mm Type96 mod. 1Initial: 14×2 → 12×2 25mm
127 mm Type89 A1 (DP)
ƒDual-purpose: your secondaries doing double duty against aircraft. The same mounts appear on the Secondary Battery card - shared guns, not extra hardware.
4×2 127mm
Far aura
Guns127 mm Type89 A1 (DP)
Continuous DPS
ƒEffective DPS in in-game units (raw aura damage × 3.5 × hit probability, summed per contributing aura) - matches the Close-range AA DPS headline's currency. Includes 39 from dual-purpose secondaries firing as AA in this range band.
39
Range5 km
Medium aura
Guns25 mm Type96 mod. 1 + 25 mm/60 Type96 mod. 1
Continuous DPS
ƒEffective DPS: 100 raw aura damage × 3.5 × 0.75 hit probability = 262 - the same in-game units as the Close-range AA DPS headline.
Initial: 113 → 262
Range3.1 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 39 + Medium 262 = 301
301
Flak bursts
Bursts
ƒEach ~2 s wave fires 2 quick salvos of 2 clouds ahead of the attacking squadron - up to 4 clouds per wave × 210 damage each. Planes that fly into a cloud take its damage; clouds dissipate before the next wave lands. Defensive AA Fire, where fitted, multiplies the salvo repeats within each wave.
2 salvos × 2 clouds
Cloud damage
ƒDamage a plane takes for flying into one flak cloud, before any reductions.
210
Cloud spawn chance
ƒEach cloud in the pattern rolls this chance to spawn, so waves average fewer clouds than the maximum. Often called flak 'hit chance', but spawned clouds always damage planes that fly into them - the roll is on spawning.
75%
Wave rate
ƒA flak wave spawns roughly every 2 s - timed frame-by-frame from gameplay footage and consistent across ships.
every ~2 s
Fired by
ƒFlak keeps firing while at least one secondary battery mount is operational - even losing every other AA mount does not stop it.
Secondary battery
Flak zone
ƒThe activation band: flak fires while attacking planes are inside it. Clouds are placed ahead of the planes' path, so bursts can land short of 2.5 km or past 5 km - once planes get inside the band, new waves stop. AA range bonuses push the outer edge out; the 2.5 km inner edge does not move.
2.5-5 km
S
Secondary Battery
Mounts22
Firing range5.0 km
Shell Grouping (σ)1
Secondary dispersion type
ƒThis ship's secondary families don't share one dispersion bracket. Each family is listed below with its own slope; max dispersion = secondary range (km) × that family's slope + 30 m.
Improved (40%) + Standard
127 mm Type89 A1 (×4) (DP)
ƒDual-purpose: the same mounts also fire at aircraft, so they appear on the AA Defense card too - shared guns, not extra hardware.
Caliber127 mm
Reload time5 s
HE Damage2,100
Muzzle Velocity725 m/s
Fire Chance8%
Armor Pen21 mm
Show 1 more gun family
140 mm 3rd Year Type (×18)
Caliber140 mm
Reload time8 s
HE Damage2,400
Muzzle Velocity850 m/s
Fire Chance10%
Armor Pen23 mm
Maneuverability
Engine power82,300 hp
Maximum speed26 kt
Turning circle radius770 m
Rudder shift time13 s
Engine power-boost threshold7 kt
Engine spool-up time23 s
Reverse spool-up time11.5 s
Reverse speed
ƒtop speed / 4 + 4.9 = 26 / 4 + 4.9 = 11.4 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.
11.4 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 from in-game data. The full curve is on the acceleration chart.
46.5 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).
7.9 kt
Acceleration 0-90%
ƒTime to reach 90% of top speed (23.4 kt of 26 kt), from our in-house acceleration model.
37.3 s
Acceleration 0-99%
ƒTime to reach 99% of top speed (25.7 kt of 26 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.
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·26.0·0.5144770=1.00°/s, so ratio=ωturretωhull=3.81.00=3.8×. Below 5 the turrets drag in a turning fight; 25+ keeps up with any rudder.
3.8× drags
Concealment
Detectability by sea14.84 km
Detectability by air11.87 km
Smoke firing penalty14.45 km
Detect when firing (sea)
ƒEqual to the ship's main battery range (never below base detectability): firing makes you visible to everyone you can reach. Matches the in-game 'Detect Firing Sea' value on all 8 unmodified captures, and range-modified captures track the modified range.
16.53 km
Detect when firing (air)
ƒAir detectability plus the gun-firing bloom (8.2 km, which tracks main-battery caliber x 0.020). Matches the in-game 'Detect Firing Air' value on every captured ship.
20.07 km
Detect when on fire (sea)
ƒBase sea detectability + 2.0 km while burning; matches the in-game 'Detect Fire Sea' value on every captured ship.
16.84 km
Detect when on fire (air)
ƒBase air detectability + 3.0 km while burning; matches the in-game 'Detect Fire Air' value on every captured ship.
14.87 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 80 s reload · 10 s active
Repair Party3 charges · 80 s reload · 28 s active · 9,100 HP (14% of max HP) total heal (per charge)
ƒHeal per second (0.5%) x effective active time (28 s) = up to 14% of max HP restored per charge.
· 27,300 HP (42% of max HP) total heal (all charges)
ƒ14% per charge x 3 charges = up to 42% of max HP if the whole Repair Party loadout is used.
· 325 HP/s (0.5% of max HP) heal per second
ƒ0.5% of max HP (65,000 HP) per second = 325 HP/s. WoWS heals a flat percent of MAX HP each second, so this rate holds at any health level.
Choose one
Catapult Fighter Hull B only3 charges · 80 s reload · 90 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
· 1 squadron size
Observation Seaplane Hull B only3 charges · 200 s reload · 30 s active · 1 squadron size · Tightens main-battery shell grouping
Secondary Battery Booster Hull B only3 charges · 160 s reload · 30 s active · +100% grouping · -50% dispersion
Module options (3)

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

HullUpgrade
  • Hit points49,000 → 65,000
  • Rudder shift18.8 → 16.9 s
  • AA mounts14 → 50
  • Close-range AA DPS43 → 100
Fire controlUpgrade
  • Main battery range15,029 → 16531.9 m
EngineUpgrade
  • Time to 90% speed37.9 → 37.3 s

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
Max Horiz Disp203 m at 16.5 km
Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the verified WoWS dispersion model: σH=(R30·idealRadiusminRadiusidealDistance+minRadius)·30 =(16531.930·102.81000+2.8)·30=203m
Shell scatter width @ 5 km120 m
Horizontal scatter at a fixed 5 km, from the same verified dispersion model as the rows below - a knife-fight-range anchor comparable across ships.
Shell scatter width @ 10 km156 m
How wide your shells scatter at 10 km, from the same dispersion model as the max-range figure above. Picking a fixed range makes this number directly comparable from ship to ship: max-range dispersion makes a longer-range gun look worse even when it's tighter at any common range. The interactive Dispersion tab on the Charts card plots the full curve from 0 to max range.
Shell scatter width @ 15 km192 m
Horizontal scatter at a fixed 15 km, from the same verified dispersion model - the long-range anchor. Only shown when the ship's guns reach 15 km.
Max Vert Disp162.4 m at 16.5 km
Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: σV=σH·radiusOnMax =203·0.8=162.4m
Shell scatter height @ 10 km100.1 m
How tall the same scatter ellipse is at 10 km. Comparable from ship to ship for the same reason as the width value above. The height/width ratio is a piecewise-linear curve through three points from the ship's own dispersion data: radiusOnZero=0.2 at 0 m, radiusOnDelim=0.6 at delim·Rmax=0.5·16531.9=8266 m, and radiusOnMax=0.8 at 16531.9 m. Above the kink: k=0.6+(0.80.6)·10000826616531.98266=0.642, so σV=σH·k=156·0.642=100.1m.
Med Horiz Disp60.9 m at 16.5 km
50%-hit horizontal radius: σH,50=σH·0.6σ =203·0.62=60.9m
Med Vert Disp48.7 m at 16.5 km
50%-hit vertical radius: σV,50=σV·0.6σ =162.4·0.62=48.7m
AP Pen Close859.3 mm point-blank
Canonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v01.38 =107·2711·10200.69·0.411.07·8061.38=859.3mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
AP Pen Far473.2 mm at 16.5 km
Same formula at the ship's max firing range (16.5 km), where the shell has slowed to 523.1 m/s: P=107·2711·10200.69·0.411.07·523.11.38=473.2mm.
AP pen 5 km708 mm
AP penetration at a fixed 5 km, read off the same PC-validated ballistic curve as AP Pen Close/Far: the shell's impact velocity at that range fed through the canonical community AP formula P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v1.38. Fixed anchors make ships directly comparable at the same fighting distance; the Charts card plots the full curve.
AP pen 10 km587 mm
AP penetration at a fixed 10 km, read off the same PC-validated ballistic curve as AP Pen Close/Far: the shell's impact velocity at that range fed through the canonical community AP formula P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v1.38. Fixed anchors make ships directly comparable at the same fighting distance; the Charts card plots the full curve.
AP pen 15 km496 mm
AP penetration at a fixed 15 km, read off the same PC-validated ballistic curve as AP Pen Close/Far: the shell's impact velocity at that range fed through the canonical community AP formula P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v1.38. Fixed anchors make ships directly comparable at the same fighting distance; the Charts card plots the full curve.
AP flight time @ 10 km5.18 s
How long an AP shell takes to reach a target at a fixed 10 km, from the same numerically integrated trajectory the Charts card plots. The shell slows under quadratic air drag, adrag=kρv2, where ρ is air density from a standard-atmosphere profile and k bundles the shell's drag coefficient, caliber and mass: k=πCdd28m=π·0.355·0.4128·1020=2.3×105. That runs from a 806 m/s muzzle velocity in 0.02 s steps under gravity 9.8 m/s² until the shell lands, then divides by 2.77: the game clock runs faster than real time, and that factor was measured against stopwatch runs in the Training Room. Lower is better, since a faster shell is harder to dodge and needs less lead.
HE flight time @ 10 km5.63 s
How long an HE shell takes to reach a target at a fixed 10 km, from the same numerically integrated trajectory the Charts card plots. The shell slows under quadratic air drag, adrag=kρv2, where ρ is air density from a standard-atmosphere profile and k bundles the shell's drag coefficient, caliber and mass: k=πCdd28m=π·0.505·0.4128·938.5=3.55×105. That runs from a 805 m/s muzzle velocity in 0.02 s steps under gravity 9.8 m/s² until the shell lands, then divides by 2.77: the game clock runs faster than real time, and that factor was measured against stopwatch runs in the Training Room. Lower is better, since a faster shell is harder to dodge and needs less lead.
HE penetration68 mm
68 mm ≈ 410 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
AP overmatch28 mm
floor(410 mm caliber / 14.3) = 28 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
AP AOE Radius150
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 alpha8
All 8 barrels bear on the broadside.
Turret turn time47.4 s
180 degrees / 3.8 deg/s traverse speed = 47.4 s.
HE full-salvo alpha52,000
6,500 HE damage x 8 broadside guns = 52,000.
AP full-salvo alpha100,800
12,600 AP damage x 8 broadside guns = 100,800.
HE DPM124,800
52,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 25 s base reload = 124,800.
AP DPM241,920
100,800 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 25 s base reload = 241,920.
Shells/min19.2
8 broadside guns x 60 / 25 s base reload = 19.2.
Fires/min5.76
19.2 shells/min x 30% fire chance = 5.76.

AA defense

AA DPS at max range39
Only families that reach 5 km contribute at the outer edge of the AA bubble. In-game families: 25mm Type96 14x3 -> 74 DPS @ 3.1 km; 25mm Type96 single 24x1 -> 126 DPS @ 3.1 km; 25mm Type96 double 12x2 -> 63 DPS @ 3.1 km; 127mm40 Type 89 4x2 -> 39 DPS @ 5 km.
Maximum AA range5 km
Longest-reaching family on the in-game AA card. Base AirDefense aura max range is 3.1 km; dual-purpose mount auras extend it.
AA DPS layered by range39 DPS @ 5 km, 302 DPS @ 3.1 km
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-blank302
Sum of every family's average DPS, achievable only inside the closest-range family (3.1 km).
AA threat index1010
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.

Secondary battery dispersion

Secondary dispersion typeImproved (40%) + Standard
This ship's secondary families don't share one dispersion bracket. Each family is listed below with its own slope; max dispersion = secondary range (km) × that family's slope + 30 m.
127 mm × 4 dispersion typeStandard
Max dispersion = range (km) × 57 + 30 for this family. Slope is set per gun model.
127 mm × 4 max disp @ 5 km315 m
5 km × 57 + 30 = 315 m.
140 mm × 18 dispersion typeImproved (40%, German battlecruiser type)
Max dispersion = range (km) × 33 + 30 for this family. Slope is set per gun model.
140 mm × 18 max disp @ 5 km195 m
5 km × 33 + 30 = 195 m.

Secondary battery firepower

Secondary DPM (per side)262,800
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: 4×2 127 mm (4/side) × 60/5 × 2100 = 100,800 + 18×1 140 mm (9/side) × 60/8 × 2400 = 162,000. Assumes every shell hits (real hit rate is lower; the Brawl matchup tool on the Compare page folds in dispersion + target armor).
Max HE alpha2400
Maximum HE damage per shell across secondary HE families. Best on this ship: 2400 from the 140 mm family.
Max HE fire chance10%
Maximum per-shell fire chance across secondary HE families (before target fire resistance is applied). Best on this ship: 10% from the 140 mm family.
Max HE pen23 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: 23 mm from the 140 mm family.

Armor Beta

Hull HP 49,00065,000 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.

Bow & stern26 mm

Overmatched by 80+ AP guns across the bracket. Can’t reliably bow-tank; gets bow-citadelled and overpenned.

Belt / citadel305 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 30%, fires burn 60s. Range-by-range in the Compare tool →

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow26 mm primary (range 26–76 mm)3,300 (5% of HP)
Overmatched by 380mm+ AP (Bayern, Richelieu)Angle bounces 356mm26 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)26 mm primary (range 16–305 mm)48,800 (75% of HP)
Overmatched by 380mm+ AP (Bayern, Richelieu)Angle bounces 356mm26 mm: HE pens from 203mm+
Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern26 mm primary (range 6–120 mm)2,400 (4% of HP)
Overmatched by 380mm+ AP (Bayern, Richelieu)Angle bounces 356mm26 mm: HE pens from 203mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel305 mm primary (range 26–305 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.
Superstructure16 mm2,100 (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 HP32,500 magazine HPTurret knocked outPer-turret powder-magazine HP, a separate pool that does not drain ship HP. As it is worn down the turret is likelier to be knocked out, and a smaller pool gets there faster.
Secondary mount (140 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 (25 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.
Engine (module, research)engine coefficient (unconfirmed)-0.110 research estimateLargest on BB/BC; zero on destroyersEngine durability isn't a per-ship value in the game data. This small negative coefficient is non-zero only on battleships, battlecruisers, and the heaviest cruisers, and is exactly zero on every destroyer, so it scales with hull displacement rather than any commander skill. Most likely an engine drag or power term in the same family as the deceleration stats; its exact meaning is not yet confirmed.
Rudder (module)separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP19,500 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.

Open in Charting Tool

Ship Charts

Balance History

Balance updates affecting Nagato. Cards are condensed; use each source link for full context.

Buff ×6Main Battery ×6
2026-07-30

Ministry of Balance: Anniversary Tune-Up

  • Stock main battery reload time reduced from 32 to 25 seconds.
  • Upgraded main battery reload time reduced from 29 to 25 seconds.
Read the full official post
2022-06-16

Summer Update: The High Roll

  • Upgraded main battery reload time decreased from 32 to 29 s.
  • Maximum AP shell damage increased from 12,100 to 12,600.
Read the full official post
2022-04-19

Balance Overdue!

  • Nagato gets buffed.
  • Moving on, Nagato, the ever-controversial Japanese battleship that deleted enemies with one salvo and missed entirely with the next, started showing some cracks in her potential. We’re addressing it indirectly, by boosting her damage-per-minute numbers - namely, she gets 29 seconds of main gun reload, down from 32 seconds, as well as AP shell max damage boosted to 12,600, up from 12,100. This may actually look more effective than it actually is, but we’re sure the ship should now fall in line better with her immediate rivals.
Read the full official post
2021-08-26

September update: the Redinforcements

  • Maximum speed increased to 26 knots, rudder shift time decreased for both hulls from 15.2 and 13.7 to 14.4 and 12.9 respectively.
  • Shell grouping increased by 2.5%.
Read the full official post
Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

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.