Developer Bulletin Public Test News article
Waterline Update 13 Jun 2023 for summer & fall.

Captains! Due to the installation of the update, the server will be unavailable
from: Wed. Aug. 16 5:00 AM Central
until: Wed. Aug. 16 8:00 AM

We're adding loads of new features to Update 12.7, which has made the Update size larger than usual—about 8.5 GB, and it may take longer to download it.

Update 12.7: Lüshun at the Dockyard

Update Navigator! Click on the buttons to go to the related activities.

The Update Navigator will help you keep track of what's new in World of Warships. Complete simple combat missions to obtain rewards!

Each signal light of the Navigator is associated with a specific activity that's available in the current update. The signal lights will turn red on the Navigator when you can start completing the connected activities, and they'll turn green once you've completed them. Turn all the signal lights green to unlock a combat mission that will deliver you the main reward!

In Update 12.6, the main reward is a pair of Air Supply containers.

Please note: If you've met all the requirements but the button to get the combat mission is still unavailable, please restart the game and/or refresh the page. The button should then become available, and you'll be able to click it. [The lights and the button work only in the News article on the World of Warships site. - Ed.]

Update 12.7 delivers the following:

Construction of Lüshun at the Dockyard ● Concealed Maneuvers: Stage 2 ● Steel Will ● Battle Pass ● Visual and Audio Enhancements ● The Armory ● Trade-In ● Ranked Battles ● Clan Battles ● Brawls ● Various Improvements and Changes ● The Return of Arpeggio of Blue Steel -Ars Nova- ● Content Additions and Changes ● Other Changes and Improvements

Construction of Lüshun at the Dockyard

The construction of X Lüshun is commencing at the Tan Yun Dockyard with the release of Update 12.7.

The ship is armed with four 130 mm main battery guns housed in two turrets. She has a high firing rate and great damage per minute for her AP shells. Her flat-trajectory ballistics mean that she effectively can fire over long ranges. As for her torpedo armament, it's represented by two quintuple-tube torpedo launchers armed with deepwater torpedoes. The ship has low maneuverability but good concealment.

X Lüshun is distinguished by an unusual set of consumables: she has access to Heavy Repair Teams with long operation and cooldown times and Hydroacoustic Search, but she doesn't have Engine Boost or Smoke Generator.

The construction process comprises 35 phases, 30 of which can be progressed through by completing Dockyard combat mission groups.
You can also complete shipbuilding phases by spending 1,950 Doubloons per phase and purchasing Starter Packs: 10 shipbuilding phases in exchange for 11,000 Doubloons and 5 shipbuilding phases in exchange for 7,000 Doubloons.
The Dockyard combat missions can be completed during a period that spans Update 12.7; Update 12.8; and the first 3 weeks of Update 12.9. The Dockyard will remain in your Port until the release of Update 12.10.

All details about the new Dockyard appear in a separate article.

Complete the first combat mission of the Start From Scratch chain dedicated to the construction of Lüshun to turn the first Update Navigator signal light green.

Concealed Maneuvers: Stage 2

Update 12.7 features the second stage of the Concealed Maneuvers temporary battle type. Its goal is to test new consumables for aircraft carriers: Air-Dropped Minefield and Smoke Curtain Generator. The battles utilize a 9 vs. 9 format with Tier IX–X ships.

You'll also be able to rent X Essex and X Taihō. X Essex can call in a special bomber airstrike to deploy an Air-Dropped Minefield, while X Taihō's attack aircraft can deploy smoke screens. We've discussed these mechanics in greater detail for Stage 1.

For this iteration of Concealed Maneuvers, players can participate helming submarines. This ship type also interacts with minefields: each mine has a mooring cable attached to it; if a submarine comes into contact with a cable, the mine will explode and deal damage. The amount of damage and chances of critical damage being inflicted depend on the distance between the submarine and the mine.

We've updated the look of the inactive minefield marker, as well as the visual effects of various interactions with mines.

Read more about Stage 2 of the game mode in this article.

Earn 7,000 Base XP playing Tier IX–X ships and superships to turn the second Update Navigator signal light green.

Steel Will

Update 12.7 features a special event called Steel Will. As part of the event, X Ruggiero di Lauria — a battlecruiser project with eight 457 mm guns in four turrets — will be available in exchange for Steel in the Armory. It was the largest ship ever designed for the Italian Navy.

The ship's guns are armed with mighty SAP shells, as well as AP shells with standard characteristics, though they have a short firing range. X Ruggiero di Lauria stands out for her high speed, effective armor against HE shells, and low detectability. Her high-positioned citadel, modest HP pool, and weak AA defenses are her notable disadvantages. Her consumable set includes enhanced Repair Party, which restores 33% of citadel damage, and choice between Fighter and Spotting Aircraft.

In Update 12.7, the ship and the Made of Steel permanent camouflage will be available in exchange for 36,000 Steel. The ship will be added to the Armory on a permanent basis in a future update.

During the event, you'll also be able to purchase camouflages for Steel instead of the Clan and Ranked Tokens that they were previously available for. In addition, the North Sea permanent camouflage for X Incomparable will be on sale. These camouflages will no longer be available for and , and unused tokens will be removed from the game and converted into Steel — 1 Ranked Token for 600 Steel and 1 Clan Token for 2,000 Steel.

This way, if you haven't had a chance to obtain camouflages in exchange for or , you'll have an opportunity to acquire them for Steel in Update 12.7. Their cost will be updated but kept at a similar rate.

Given the removal of Ranked and Clan Tokens, the list of rewards in Clan and Ranked Battles will be updated. The details are available in separate articles on our website.

Nota bene: Once the Steel Will event is over these camouflages will be unavailable for purchase.

Battle Pass

Following tradition, Update 12.7 delivers a fresh Battle Pass (BP). Earn BP Points for completing daily and weekly combat missions, advance through the BP progress bar, and earn rewards.

The final reward of the Free Battle Pass is a bonus package for a Tier VII ship.
The Premium BP offers even more valuable in-game items, and its final reward is 10,000 Research Points.

You can find more information about the Battle Pass in Update 12.7 in a dedicated article on our website.

Complete the first mission of the daily combat mission chain of Battle Pass 12.7 to turn the fifth Update Navigator signal light green.

Visual and Audio Enhancements

We're continuing to upgrade the audio-visual components of our game.

Visuals

In Update 12.7, HD textures are being added to the New York Port, as well as the New Dawn, Polar, and Islands maps. These three maps also feature an updated collision model for islands that exactly matches their contours. This will reduce the number of situations where ships get stuck near them.

The maps with HD textures have had more birds and fish added to them — players will notice sharks, and dolphins will appear to accompany their ships during calm moments of battle.

We've animated the unfolding of antennas and funnels on a number of aircraft carriers, as well as the rotation of funnels on a few French battleships and IX Wujing. These changes apply only to ships that have these features incorporated into their designs.

The visuals at low graphics quality settings have been improved to the point of being practically the same as the visuals at high graphics quality settings as of 2021. The game performance at the lowest quality graphics settings has also been improved.

Audio

We've updated the sound effects for guns firing, shells hitting ships and water, over-penetrations, ricochets, and waves dashing against ship bows. The sounds of battles occurring far from players will be clearly distinguishable and accurately simulate sounds traveling over long distances.

The quality of all sound effects and interactions has been improved. The sound environment will adapt to the battle conditions, prioritizing sounds of greater significance and bringing them to the foreground.

Details on visual and audio changes are available in this article.

The Armory

New Unique Upgrades

Update 12.7 introduces unique upgrades for X Petropavlovsk and X Manfred von Richthofen, for 19,200 Research Points each.

Ballistic Capped Armor-Piercing Shells is installed in X Petropavlovsk's sixth slot:

AP shell damage: +10%
Maximum dispersion of main battery guns: –10%
Number of consumable charges: –1

Aerodynamic Torpedo Fin Stabilizers is installed in X Manfred von Richthofen's sixth slot:

Torpedo bomber HP: +15%
Maximum torpedo damage: +10%
Torpedo arming distance: –10%

Brisbane

With the release of the update, X Brisbane will become available for 252,000 Coal.

After World War II, the Royal Australian Navy started reducing its fleet with the goal of improving the quality of its ships rather than increasing their number. Australia built five modern destroyers and acquired two aircraft carriers from Britain. They also considered purchasing larger ships to escort aircraft carriers. Cruiser Minotaur, equipped with dual-purpose main guns and under development in Britain at that time, could have been a suitable option.

The ship is similar to cruiser X Minotaur but with significant game play differences. X Brisbane is equipped with HE shells, AP shells that have standard parameters for the ship type, and enhanced torpedo armament. The ship's torpedoes have a large count per salvo and good range. The ship has weak armor but low detectability. She's also equipped with Specialized Repair Teams, which will allow you to restore a significant part of her HP. In addition to Specialized Repair Teams, the ship has access to Hydroacoustic Search and Surveillance Radar. The cruiser also boasts improved engine parameters that allow X Brisbane to gain speed quickly.

See this News article for more information about changes in the Armory.

Trade-In

During the first 2 weeks of Update 12.7, a special tab called "Trade-In" will be added to the Armory. There, players can decommission certain Tier V–X Premium and special ships, including rare ones. Doing so will grant significant discounts on a number of other ships obtainable for Doubloons.

All the details are available on our Development Blog and in this news article.

Ranked Battles

Ranked Battles Season 13 kicks off in Update 12.7. Ships of all types are allowed to participate. Battles will be fought in a 6 vs. 6 format with Tier VIII ships in the Bronze League and Tier IX ships in the Silver and Gold Leagues.

In Season 13, the rule for keeping a Star in the event of a loss is the same for all leagues. Only the top XP earner on the losing team keeps a Star.

All details about Ranked Battles Season 13 are available in a dedicated article on our website.

Clan Battles

A week after Update 12.7 is out, Clan Battles Season 22 — dubbed "Anaconda" — will commence. Battles will be fought in a 7 vs. 7 format with Tier X ships and superships.

Restrictions

No aircraft carriers and submarines in battles.
No more than one supership per team.
No more than one battleship per team.

Restrictions for specific ships

No more than one X République, X Preussen, X Ragnar, X Gdańsk, X Petropavlovsk, X Napoli, and X Marseille.
No more than two X Kléber and/or X Marceau in total.
Banned from battles: X Ohio, X Kremlin, X St. Vincent, X Småland, and ★ Condé.

For ships that have analogs (for example, Black Friday ships or collaboration ships), the restrictions will be applied automatically if they apply to the original.

More details about the new season of Clan Battles are available in a dedicated article on our website.

Brawls

Update 12.7 features three Brawls in different formats:

The first will see superships battling in a 1 vs. 1 format
The second one will be a clash of Tier IX ships in a 3 vs. 3 format:
- No more than two cruisers, two battleships, and two destroyers
- Divisions of up to three players
The third will pit superships against each other in a 4 vs. 4 format:
- No more than two battleships and two destroyers. Aircraft carriers are not allowed
- Divisions of up to four players

Brawl 1 will start on: Mon. Aug. 21 11:00 AM Central.

Details about this and the other Brawls has been published in a separate article on our website.

Various Improvements and Changes

Upgrade Recommendation System

Update 12.7 delivers an upgrade recommendation system for each ship. Just like Commander skills, the recommended upgrades will now be marked with a special icon.

Players will be able to buy all the recommended upgrades and mount them in vacant slots at once with the help of a special button that has been added.

Distinctive Insignia Updates

The design of the Distinctive Insignia section for emblems and patches is being updated. The Patch Architect tab has been added, allowing players to create their own patches by combining different available elements — the symbol, patch shape, border color, background color, and texture. You'll also be able to generate a random patch from the available elements.

All players will get access to background and border colors, as well as patch textures, to correspond to the distinctive insignia they already have on their accounts. At the same time, those who have special backgrounds (Black Friday ones, for example) will receive new unique elements.

The Clan backgrounds of patches will be updated — the Pentagon and Shield will become available. Players with two or three Pentagon Clan backgrounds will be compensated with 1,000 or 2,000 Coal, respectively.

Categorization of symbols, patches, and emblems is being added. Moreover, we've improved the rendering technology — patches, including existing ones, will look more realistic.

Battle Type Selection Screen Update

We've reworked the battle type selection screen. The upper section of the screen will display the permanently available battle types, and the lower section will display the temporary and seasonal types. Existing descriptions of all battle types are going to be added and updated. The information will be available via the i key.

Certain battle types will get tooltips when hovering over their icons, showing restrictions on tiers, ship types, and specific ships, as well as the time until the start or end of the battle type, Sprint, or Prime Time.

Ship Features Update

The display of Premium and special ship features in the Equipment tab has been updated.

The Return of Arpeggio of Blue Steel -Ars Nova-

Arpeggio of Blue Steel -Ars Nova- is making its return to World of Warships in Update 12.7! The Blue Steel ships and Commanders that you are already familiar with will once again gather to face off against the Fleet of Fog. A new Arpeggio of Blue Steel container that can drop themed ships will also be available!

Each Arpeggio of Blue Steel container includes (the percentage indicates the drop chances of each group of items):

64% – 14× one of { , , , }; or
16.5% – 96,000 Elite Commander XP; or
16.5% – 32,000 Free XP; or
5% – 2,250,000 Credits; or
4.5% – one of { V ARP Haruna, V ARP Hiei, V ARP Kirishima, V ARP Kongō, VIII ARP Maya, VIII ARP Takao, VII ARP Ashigara, VII ARP Myōkō, VII ARP Nachi, or VII ARP Haguro }
1.5% – X ARP Yamato

The ships come with Arpeggio-themed Commanders. If you already have all the items from the Ships group, you will receive 96,000 Elite Commander XP instead.

Full details about the event can be found in a separate article.

Complete the first combat mission in a special chain dedicated to the Arpeggio and World of Warships collaboration to turn the third Update Navigator signal light green.

Content Additions and Changes

The update brings the following items to the game:

The Free Wind permanent camouflage for VIII Numancia and Adventurer for VIII Le Fantasque

Navigator Treasures and Roaring Bear patches

Navigator Treasures, Asus, Fyodor Ushakov, and The National Navy of Uruguay flags

Commander Fyodor Ushakov with individual voiceover

Flags Premium container

Details on how to obtain this new content will be announced later.

Future Changes

The following ships have been added for testing by developers, supertesters, and community contributors: VIII Yumihari, IX Adatara, X Bungo, and IX Tsurugi.

In Update 12.8, German Carriers containers will be updated — their contents and names will change.

German Carriers containers will be renamed German Reserves. Each German Reserves container includes (the percentage indicates the drop chances of each group of items):

40% – 5x one of { , , , }; or
36% – 15х one of { India Yankee, Juliet Charlie, November Foxtrot, November Echo Setteseven } signal flags; or
7% – 1,000 Coal; or
7% – 3,000 Free XP; or
5% – 1 day of Warships Premium Account; or
5% – 2x "Black, White, Red" camouflages.

German Carriers Premium containers will be renamed German Cruiser Premium containers. Each German Cruiser Premium container includes three items:
Slot 1

3x "Black, White, Red" camouflages

Slot 2

40% – one of { , , , }; or
36% – 50х signal flags of one type: { India Yankee, Juliet Charlie, November Foxtrot, November Echo Setteseven }; or
11.5% – 12,500 Free XP; or
5% – 5,000 Coal; or
5% – 3 days of Warships Premium Account; or
2.5% – VIII Schill.

Slot 3

3x "Black, White, Red" camouflages

You need to open 42 containers to be guaranteed a ship. If you already possess Schill and she drops again, you'll receive 12,500 Free XP.

The contents of Air Supply Premium containers are getting updated in Update 12.8.

Each Air Supply Premium container includes three items
Slot 1

5x expendable camouflages of one type: Yellow, Deep Red, Viridian, Blue Steel, Cobalt Blue, Deep Blue — 100%