Lightning

13.8

Destroyer | U.K. | Tier VIII

Tech Tree Position

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Battle Levels

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VIII

8,900,000

Lightning — British Tier VIII destroyer.

In comparison with her predecessors, the L-class ships turned out to be almost 200 tons heavier. To compensate for the weight of the new 120 mm guns with a 50-degree laying angle, quadruple torpedo tubes had to be installed. Throughout World War II, the destroyer had served in units with warships like Ark Royal, Valiant, and Warspite. Lightning sank on March 12, 1943, after taking two torpedo hits from German motor torpedo boats (Schnellboot) during an operation to intercept a German convoy.

Modules

	Rate of Fire (shots/min)	180° Turn Time (sec)	Maximum Dispersion (m)	Maximum HE Shell Damage (HP)	Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell (%)	Maximum AP Shell Damage (HP)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
120 mm/50 QF Mk.XI on a CP Mk.XX mount	13.3	9	106	1,700	9	2,200		0	650,000

	Hit Points (HP)	Armor (mm)	Armor (mm)	Main Turrets (pcs.)	Secondary Gun Turrets (pcs.)	AA Mounts (pcs.)	Torpedo Tubes (pcs.)	Hangar Capacity (pcs.)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Lightning (A)	13,000	6	20	3		2/4/1/3	2			0	850,000
Lightning (B)	15,900	6	20	3		4/6	2			39,000	2,750,000

	Rate of Fire (shots/min)	Torpedo Tubes Reload Time (sec)	180° Turn Time (sec)	Maximum Damage (HP)	Torpedo Speed (knot)	Torpedo Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
533 mm Mk IX(*)	0.6	96	7.2	15,866	61	8		0	800,000

	IDS_SHIP_PARAM_SUO_INCREASE_DIST (%)	Maximum Firing Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Mk VIII mod. 1		0		0	400,000
Mk VIII mod. 2		0		25,000	1,550,000

	Maximum Speed (knot)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Propulsion: 48,000 hp	36		0	700,000

Compatible Upgrades

Slot 1
Slot 2
Slot 3
Slot 4
Slot 5

Player Opinion

Performance

Background

The L and M class destroyers were a class of destroyers built and launched between 1938 and 1942. The defining feature of this class was their new QF 4.7-inch Mk XI guns which fired a heavier shell than their predecessors and were placed on fully enclosed weatherproof mounts.

Lightning was laid down on November 15th, 1938 and launched April 22nd, 1940. She would serve in WW2 for the Royal Navy from 1941 until 1943 when she was sunk by German torpedo boats while attempting to intercept a German Convoy.

The Ship

Lightning is the Tier VIII ship in the British Destroyer Line and is a direct upgrade in terms of play style and capabilities over the Jervis. Similar to her predecessors she thrives in a defensive role.

Armament

Lightning uses the 120 mm/50 QF Mk XI gun which has far improved characteristics over the guns that are used on Jervis. The most apparent differences will be the 360 degree traverse on all of her gun mounts and the flatter shell trajectory making them some of the easiest destroyer guns at Tier VIII to use. Her HE shells have an average alpha damage per shell at 1700 but an above average base fire chance at 9 percent. Her AP shells have an alpha damage of 2200 per shell however they are heavier and fly faster than the many of her contemporaries shells giving them an above average shell penetration. The damage per minute for her AP and HE shells are average due to the 4.5 base reload on her guns. Lightning has some of the most effective destroyer guns at the tier when used defensively and in knife fights. The 360 degree turret traverse and good firing arcs allow her to maneuver heavily while keeping all of her gun mounts on target much easier than other ships in the tier. The average damage per minute on the AP and HE shells can be mitigated by her captain using the above average fire chance and AP penetration to increase the effective damage.

The torpedo armament of Lightning is centered entirely around defensive use. Her 2 quadruple torpedo launchers have a base reload of 96 seconds, an alpha damage of 15886, and a speed of 61 knots which are average for the tier. Being a British Destroyer she has the ability to single launch her torpedoes allowing captains to very accurately launch torpedo salvos and launch partial salvos. The ability to single launch her torpedoes comes with the downside of having only 8km range. The short range forces her to come to much closer ranges in order to effectively launch her torpedoes and make them very hard to use if the enemy vessel is sailing away or has Surveillance Radar .

The utility of Lightning is arguably her strongest trait. She has the standard British Smoke Generator  consumable that has the shortest emission time and duration in the game in exchange for having the highest number of charges and shortest recharge rate in the game. It discourages sitting and firing from smoke but allows her captain to be much more liberal when using it to disengage. She has the British Destroyer short range Hydroacoustic Search  consumable which trades ship detection range for much longer action time. Her concealment is superb with 7.02 km base concealment allowing her to achieve a 5.5 km concealment when combined with Concealment System Modification 1  and Concealment Expert. While she does not have access to an Engine Boost consumable and has a low top speed of 36 knots, she has improved acceleration by default and can get up to speed faster than any other nation's destroyers.

Anti-Aircraft

Lightning is the first British Destroyer in the tech tree to have access to long range AA however her AA defenses overall are below average for Tier VIII. Her continuous damage of 100 is on the lower side of her tier. Her damage from flak bursts is standard at 1260 however only fires 1 flak burst per salvo without modification. She does not have access to a Defensive AA Fire consumable making any investment in AA modules or captain skills yield little return in usefulness.

Battle Performance

Similar to the rest of the line Lightning excels as a defensive destroyer especially when being used to contest cap points. She can be one of the most formidable destroyers to attempt to push given her incredibly low concealment, ability to aggressively knife fight, and single launch torpedoes.

Captains of Lightning should opt to play on a flank that the enemy is pushing or very likely to push which might mean waiting and seeing how the enemy team behaves before committing to an area. Lightning is best used as a buffer between an approaching enemy force using her excellent concealment and acceleration to engage enemy destroyers and using single launch torpedoes to dissuade an enemy push. Lightning will out spot most enemy destroyers that she faces allowing her to place herself in a better position to engage or disengage if the fight is unfavorable. She is more forgiving to mistakes than other destroyers due to her British Smoke Generator 

and improved acceleration allowing her to disengage from unfavorable scenarios more easily and more often than others.

Pros:

360 degree traverse on all main battery mounts
Single launch ability on her torpedo tubes
Ability to reach 5.5 km concealment with appropriate upgrades
Improved acceleration standard allowing captains to quickly reach top speed
Long Lasting Hydroacoustic Search  consumable
Shortest recharge on Smoke Generator  consumable in the game

Cons:

Only 8km range on the torpedoes
Below average AAA
Low top speed at 36 knots base
British Smoke Generator  with the lowest bloom time and uptime in the game
British Hydroacoustic Search  with low ship detection range

Research

Availability of researchable upgrades for Lightning is as follows:

Hull: Upgrade to Hull (B). Research of this module unlocks progression to IX Jutland.
Gun Fire Control System: Upgrade to main battery for an additional 10% range.

Optimal Configuration

Lightning should be tailored toward improving her concealment first and her firepower second to enhance her ability to engage and disengage when desired. Her torpedoes have more limited uses and should hold less priority than her guns.

Upgrades

The recommended upgrades for Lightning are as follows:

Slot 1: Main Armaments Modification 1
Slot 2: Engine Room Protection *
Slot 3: Aiming Systems Modification 1
Slot 4: Steering Gears Modification 1
Slot 5: Concealment System Modification 1

The Hydroacoustic Search Modification 1 special upgrade for Slot 2 provides a 20% (36 second) action time boost to Hydro.

Commander Skills

Lightning uses a playstyle that is almost the same as the remainder of the destroyers in the British Tech Tree and will use a very similar build. Below is a recommended build for Lightning and the British Tech Tree destroyers.

Recommended Commander Skills
Cost (points)	Attack				Defense
1	Grease the Gears +15% main battery traverse speed.	Liquidator +30% chance (multiplicative) of causing flooding. ★	Consumables Specialist −7.5% cooldown time of all Consumables except: Damage Control Party , Repair Party . ★★	Gun Feeder -40% time to switch shell type.	Incoming Fire Alert Receive a warning about a salvo fired at your ship from more than 4.5 km. ★	Preventive Maintenance −30% chance of main armament, engines, steering becoming incapacitated +15% to HP of secondary and AA guns. ★★★
2	Demolition Expert +1% chance of main and secondary HE shells causing a fire. +15% to the damage-inflicting area of HE shells fired at submarines. ★	Swift Fish +5% torpedo speed. ★	Consumables Enhancements +10% action time of: Hydroacoustic Search , Surveillance Radar , Smoke Generator , & Engine Boost . ★★	Extra-Heavy Ammunition +7.5% main battery AP shell damage. +10% damage from depth charges. ★	Priority Target The detection indicator will show the number of enemies aiming at you with main battery. ★★	Last Stand The ship remains able to move and maneuver - slowly - while the engine or steering gears are incapacitated. ★★★
3	Main Battery & AA Specialist -5% main battery reload time. +10% continuous AA damage. ★★	Fill the Tubes -10% torpedo tubes reload time. ★	Adrenaline Rush -0.2% reload time of all armaments per 1% HP lost +0.2% AA continuous damage per 1% HP lost. ★★	Inertial Fuse for HE Shells +25% armor penetration of HE shells Base fire chance reduced by half.	Superintendent +1 charge to all consumables. ★★★	Survivability Expert +350 HP per ship tier. ★★
4	Main Battery & AA Expert +20% main battery range. +15% flak damage. ★	Swift in Silence So long as the ship remains undetected: +8% ship speed +5% main battery reload time. ★	Radio Location Shows the direction to the nearest enemy ship. The enemy is alerted that a bearing has been taken.. ★★	Fearless Brawler +1 flak burst per salvo. -10% main battery reload when ship is spotted. ★★	Concealment Expert -10% detectability range of the ship. ★★★	Dazzle For 15 seconds after you are detected: * +20% dispersion of enemy shells fired at you. * +8% ship speed. ★★
Key: ★★★ - Extremely Useful ★★ - Frequently Useful ★ - Occasionally Useful No stars - Not Useful

Consumables

Lightning can equip the following consumables:

Slot 1: Damage Control Party 
Slot 2: Short-Burst Smoke Generator  - 6 charges
Slot 3: Short-Range Hydro-Acoustic Search  - 3 charges

Signals

Lightning captains benefit from signal flags that enhance her main battery armament and torpedo armament, such as Victor Lima (), India X-Ray (), and Juliet Whiskey Unaone (). Sierra Mike () is useful for increasing maneuverability.

Recommended Signal Flags
Combat
Juliet Charlie -100% to the risk of magazine detonation. ★★	Juliet Yankee Bissotwo -20% to flooding duration.	India Yankee -20% to fire duration. ★	Hotel Yankee -20% to damage received when ramming the enemy. +50% to damage dealt when ramming the enemy.	Victor Lima +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +4% chance of torpedoes causing flooding. ★★★	India X-Ray +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +5% to the risk of your ship's magazine detonating. ★★★
Juliet Whiskey Unaone +15% chance of causing flooding. +5% to the risk of your ship's magazine detonating. ★★★	Mike Yankee Soxisix +5% to secondary battery maximum firing range. -5% to maximum dispersion of secondary battery shells. -5% to secondary battery loading time.	November Echo Setteseven +5% continuous AA damage at all ranges. +5% damage from flak bursts.	Sierra Mike +5% to the ship's maximum speed. ★★★	November Foxtrot -5% reload time on all consumables. ★★	India Delta +20% to the amount of HP recovered when Repair Party  is used.
X-Ray Papa Unaone +10% action time of a Smoke Generator . ★★	Sierra Bravo +10% action time of Hydroacoustic Search  -10% reload time of Defensive AA Fire . ★

Note: Use of the Juliet Charlie signal makes detonation impossible.

Gallery

References

Ships of U.K.

Destroyers	II Medea • III Valkyrie • III Campbeltown • IV Wakeful • V Acasta • VI Icarus • VI Gallant • VII Jervis • VII Jupiter '42 • VIII Lightning • VIII Cossack • VIII Cossack B • IX Jutland • IX Somme • X Daring • X Druid
Cruisers	I Black Swan • II Weymouth • III Caledon • IV Danae • V Emerald • V Hawkins • V Exeter • VI Leander • VI Devonshire • VI London • VI Dido • VI Orion '44 • VII Fiji • VII Surrey • VII Belfast • VIII Edinburgh • VIII Albemarle • VIII Cheshire • VIII Tiger '59 • VIII Belfast '43 • VIII Hampshire • VIII Nottingham • VIII AL Cheshire • VIII STAR Edinburgh • IX Neptune • IX Drake • X Monmouth • X Minotaur • X Goliath • X Plymouth • X Gibraltar • X Defence • ★ Edgar
Battleships	III Bellerophon • III Indefatigable • III Dreadnought • IV Orion • IV Queen Mary • V Iron Duke • V Tiger • V Agincourt • VI Warspite • VI Queen Elizabeth • VI Renown • VI Repulse • VI Repulse B • VII King George V • VII Rooke • VII Hood • VII Nelson • VII Duke of York • VII Collingwood • VII Renown '44 • VII Rodney • VIII Monarch • VIII Hawke • VIII Vanguard • IX Lion • IX Duncan • IX Marlborough • IX Scarlet Thunder • X Conqueror • X St. Vincent • X Thunderer • X Incomparable • X Cumberland • X [[Ship:[Conqueror]\|[Conqueror]]] • ★ Devastation
Aircraft Carriers	IV Hermes • VI Furious • VI Ark Royal • VIII Implacable • VIII Indomitable • VIII Colossus • VIII Theseus • X Audacious • X Malta • X [[Ship:[Audacious]\|[Audacious]]] • ★ Eagle

Destroyers

Netherlands	IX Groningen • X Tromp
U.S.A.	II Sampson • II Smith • III Wickes • IV Clemson • V Nicholas • V Hill • VI Farragut • VI Monaghan • VII Mahan • VII Sims • VII Sims B • VIII Benson • VIII Kidd • IX Fletcher • IX Benham • IX Halford • IX Black B • IX Black • IX Johnston • IX Frank Friday • X Gearing • X Somers • X Forrest Sherman • X [[Ship:[Gearing]\|[Gearing]]] • ★ Joshua Humphreys
Europe	II Tátra • III Romulus • IV Klas Horn • V Visby • V Muavenet • VI Västerås • VI Stord • VII Skåne • VII Grom • VII Błyskawica • VII Stord '43 • VIII Öland • VIII Split • VIII Orkan • IX Östergötland • IX Lambros Katsonis • IX Velos • IX Friesland • IX Jäger • X Halland • X Gdańsk • X Småland • X Ragnar • X Södermanland • ★ Dalarna
Germany	II V-25 • III G-101 • IV V-170 • V T-22 • VI Ernst Gaede • VI T-61 • VI Karl von Schönberg • VII Leberecht Maass • VII Z-31 • VII Z-39 • VII Z-32 • VII Z-33 • VII Z-34 • VII Z-38 • VIII Z-23 • VIII Gustav-Julius Maerker • VIII Z-35 • IX Z-46 • IX Felix Schultz • IX Z-44 • IX ZF-6 • X Z-52 • X Elbing • X Z-42 • X Georg Hoffmann • X Lübeck
U.S.S.R.	II Storozhevoi • III Derzki • IV Izyaslav • V Gremyashchy • V [[Ship:Gnevny (< 06.03.2017)\|Gnevny (< 06.03.2017)]] • V Podvoisky • V Okhotnik • VI [[Ship:Ognevoi (< 06.03.2017)\|Ognevoi (< 06.03.2017)]] • VI Gnevny • VII [[Ship:Kiev (< 06.03.2017)\|Kiev (< 06.03.2017)]] • VII Minsk • VII Leningrad • VII Tashkent '39 • VIII [[Ship:Tashkent (< 06.03.2017)\|Tashkent (< 06.03.2017)]] • VIII Ognevoi • VIII Kiev • IX Udaloi • IX Tashkent • IX Neustrashimy • X Khabarovsk • X Grozovoi • X Delny • X [[Ship:[Grozovoi]\|[Grozovoi]]] • ★ Zorkiy
Italy	II Curtatone • III Nazario Sauro • IV Turbine • V Maestrale • VI Aviere • VI Leone • VII Luca Tarigo • VII FR25 • VIII Vittorio Cuniberti • IX Adriatico • IX Paolo Emilio • X Attilio Regolo
Pan-America	VI Juruá • X La Pampa
Japan	II Tachibana • II Umikaze • II Tachibana Lima • III Wakatake • IV Isokaze • V Minekaze • V Fūjin • V Kamikaze • V Kamikaze R • V Mutsuki • VI [[Ship:Mutsuki (< 01.12.2016)\|Mutsuki (< 01.12.2016)]] • VI Fubuki • VI Hatsuharu • VI Shinonome B • VI Shinonome • VII [[Ship:Hatsuharu (< 01.12.2016)\|Hatsuharu (< 01.12.2016)]] • VII Akatsuki • VII Shiratsuyu • VII Yūdachi • VIII [[Ship:Fubuki (< 01.12.2016)\|Fubuki (< 01.12.2016)]] • VIII Akizuki • VIII Kagerō • VIII Asashio • VIII HSF Harekaze II • VIII Asashio B • VIII HSF Harekaze • VIII AL Yukikaze • IX [[Ship:Kagerō (< 01.12.2016)\|Kagerō (< 01.12.2016)]] • IX Yūgumo • IX Kitakaze • IX Minegumo • IX STAR Kitakaze • X Shimakaze • X Harugumo • X Hayate • X AL Shimakaze • X [[Ship:[Shimakaze]\|[Shimakaze]]] • ★ Yamagiri
U.K.	II Medea • III Valkyrie • III Campbeltown • IV Wakeful • V Acasta • VI Icarus • VI Gallant • VII Jervis • VII Jupiter '42 • VIII Lightning • VIII Cossack • VIII Cossack B • IX Jutland • IX Somme • X Daring • X Druid
France	II Enseigne Gabolde • III Fusilier • IV Bourrasque • V L'Adroit • V Jaguar • V Siroco • VI Duchaffault • VI Guépard • VI Aigle • VII Le Hardi • VII Vauquelin • VIII L'Aventurier • VIII Le Fantasque • VIII Le Terrible • IX Orage • IX Mogador • X Cassard • X Kléber • X Marceau • X Kléber CLR
Pan-Asia	II Longjiang • III Phra Ruang • IV Shenyang • V Jianwei • VI Fushun • VI Anshan • VII Gadjah Mada • VIII Hsienyang • VIII Siliwangi • VIII Loyang • VIII Fenyang • VIII Loyang B • VIII Zhu Que • VIII Ship Smasha • IX Chung Mu • X Yueyang • X Lüshun • ★ Kunming
Spain	X Álvaro de Bazán
Commonwealth	III Vampire • VII Haida • VII Huron • X Vampire II

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Modules

Compatible Upgrades