World of Warships: Legends ship guide

AL Zara

Also called: AL 扎拉 Beta
Italy · Tier VI · CA Cruiser · Premium · Zara Variant
SAP cruiserTrade SAP volleys into exposed sides; survival is angling and target choice, not citadel fishing.
Playstyle
  • Hold 12-15 km angles with islands close enough to break line of sight when focus comes; wait for soft c…
  • The kit pays best when you choose your salvo target, not when you chase one
  • Avoid: Pouring SAP into bow-in or heavily armored targets
Key characteristics
Long torps (10 km)55 mm SAP penStealthy (10.9 km)Wide SAP fragmentsHeavy magazine armorWeak torpedoes
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Community Data

AL Zara Community Stats

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Playstyle

Overview

AL Zara is a Tier VI Italian SAP cruiser: her 203mm main battery fires semi-armor-piercing shells (54.9mm of fixed penetration) in place of HE. SAP lands one big guaranteed hit instead of fishing for fires, and it pens reliably without the angle checks AP lives or dies on, so she punishes broadsides, soft cruisers, and superstructures hard. The catch is that SAP shatters on heavy belt armor, so the kit is picking targets it bites rather than trading into a bow-in battleship. Standout traits: top-decile torpedo belt percent in T6 CAs (19) and top-decile armor plate in T6 CAs (150 mm).

Positioning

Hold 12-15 km angles with islands close enough to break line of sight when focus comes; wait for soft cruisers and exposed superstructures where SAP lands full penetration rather than firing into the belt or bow armor it shatters on. The kit pays best when you choose your salvo target, not when you chase one.

Potato Avoidance

Pouring SAP into bow-in or heavily armored targets

SAP shatters on the belt armor AP would pen, so salvos into an angled battleship are wasted damage. Her 33,500-HP hull does not recover from a punished salvo, so hunt the broadsides, soft cruisers, and exposed superstructures SAP bites cleanly, and angle to survive the return fire while you wait for them.

Signature Traits

ELITE MAIN BATTERY
  • Wide SAP fragments · 30.0 m
  • Fast AP shells · 11.63 s
ELITE ARMOR
  • Heavy magazine · 150.0 mm
  • Armored casemates · 150.0 mm
  • Hardened superstructure · 19.0 mm
  • Heavy · 150.0 mm
Strong torpedo belt

19.0% torpedo damage reduction, top decile of T6 CAs.

Weak torpedoes

12500.0 damage per torpedo, bottom decile of T6 CAs.

Acquisition

How to get AL Zara

AL Zara 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.

Best listed chance for this ship

  • Azur Lane V Crate 3% Azur Lane Premium Ship Collaboration containers · Azur Lane V Crate · 1 of 2 ships
  • Azur Lane Crate: Ultimate II 0.666667% Azur Lane Premium Ship Collaboration containers · Azur Lane Crate: Ultimate II · 1 of 9 ships
  • Azur Lane Crate: Ultimate III 0.5% Azur Lane Premium Ship Collaboration containers · Azur Lane Crate: Ultimate III · 1 of 12 ships
Official WG availability sources
Show direct source rows

Builds Beta

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Cohort position

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Where AL Zara sits among Tier VI CAs (43 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.

BestAP fuse timer0.03 s (1 of 21 tied) Top 10%Stealth profile10.92 km / 6.55 km (4/43 / 5/43) Top 25%Torpedo reload71 s (7/33) Top 25%Max armor150 mm (9/43) Top 25%Citadel belt150 mm (7/41) Top 25%Deck armor80 mm (6/40) Bottom 25%Max speed32 kt (37/43) Bottom 25%Rudder shift9.8 s (36/43) Bottom 25%AP DPM150,857 (38/42) Bottom 25%Power-to-weight6.54 hp/t (35/43) Bottom 25%AA range4 km (38/43) Bottom 10%Torpedo damage≈12,500 (31/33) Bottom 10%Torpedo speed53 kt (31/33)
See 26 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for AL Zara -- 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 points33,500 HP(23/43) Traverse-to-turn ratio4.3 ×(33/43) Main battery caliber203 mm(14/43) Main battery range14.85 km(24/43) Main battery reload14 s(31/43) Sigma2(23/43) AP shell damage4,400(23/42) Main dispersion135.5 m(31/43) Secondary DPM (per side)90,000(21/38) HE alpha1,500(21/38) Secondary fire chance6%(23/38) Secondary HE pen17 mm(27/38) AP velocity900 m/s(13/42) Acceleration26.6 s(27/43) AP arming threshold34 mm(29/42) Engine power95,000 hp(27/43) Turn-speed retention163.8 hp/m(13/43) Displacement14,530 t(29/43) AA DPS257(27/43) AA threat808(32/43) Torpedo range9.99 km(11/33) Bow armor16 mm(25/41) Stern armor16 mm(25/41) NormAP ricochet start45°(33 of 42 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(31 of 42 tied at this value) NormSecondary range4.5 km(26 of 38 tied at this value)
Survivability
Hit Points33,500
Displacement14,530 t
Armor range13–150 mm
Plate armor thicknesses13, 16, 19, 20, 25, 30, 65, 70, 80, 90, 120, 140, 150 mm
Armor material/layer entries63
Fire resistance30%
Fire duration30 s
Torp Reduction19%
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 203 mm/53 Ansaldo 1927
Mounts / barrels4 mounts / 8 barrels
Reload time14 s
Firing range14.8 km
Turret traverse7 °/s
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 =(1485030·81.11000+1.1)·30=135.5m
135.5 m
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: σV=σH·radiusOnMax =135.5·0.6=81.3m
81.3 m
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius: σH,50=σH·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =135.5·0.32(σ=2)=43.3m
43.3 m
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius: σV,50=σV·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =81.3·0.32(σ=2)=26m
26 m
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 7 deg/s traverse speed = 25.7 s.
25.7 s
Base shells/min
ƒ8 broadside guns x 60 / 14 s base reload = 34.3.
34.3
HE shells
HE penetration
ƒfloor(203 mm caliber / 6): standard HE penetration.
33 mm
SAP shells
SAP Damage5,200
SAP Velocity900 m/s
SAP Pen (mm)54.9
SAP Fragment Radius
ƒSAP shell fragment splash radius; the area over which a SAP hit scatters fragment damage. Scales with shell mass (90mm ~ 5, 203mm CA ~ 20-30, 320mm = 175, 406mm = 250, 457mm = 400, max) and is tuned per ship, so two ships with the same SAP caliber can differ (135mm ranges 5-24). Larger value = wider fragment spread per hit.
30
AP shells
AP Damage4,400
AP Velocity900 m/s
Min Ricochet45 deg
Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg
Fuse Timer0.033 s
Fuse Threshold34 mm
AP overmatch
ƒfloor(203 mm caliber / 14.3) = 14 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
14 mm
AP Pen Close
ƒCanonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v01.38 =107·2450·125.30.69·0.2031.07·9001.38=451.4mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
451.4 mm
AP Pen Far
ƒSame formula at the ship's max firing range (18.6 km), where the shell has slowed to 422 m/s: P=107·2450·125.30.69·0.2031.07·4221.38=158.7mm.
158.7 mm
AP full-salvo alpha
ƒ4,400 AP damage x 8 broadside guns = 35,200.
35,200
Base AP DPM
ƒ35,200 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 14 s base reload = 150,857.
150,857
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.
30
Torpedoes
ModuleTorpedoes: 533 mm tubo lanciasiluri
Launchers / tubes2 launchers × 3 tubes = 6 tubes
Reload time71 s
Projectile speed53 kt
Range9.99 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=37,500·0.333=12,500.
≈ 12,500
Torpedo detectability1 km
Flooding chance207%
Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s
Torp Turn
ƒTime to rotate the launchers 180 deg: tturn=180°25°/s=7.2s.
7.2 s
Torp Arming164 m
Per-side salvo damage
ƒOne side firing, all torpedoes hitting: per-side tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 3 x 12,500 = 37,500.
37,500
AA Defense
AA mount points20
Close-range AA DPS
ƒSum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (41×3.5×0.9) + (26×3.5×0.85) + (16×3.5×0.9) = 257. 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.
257
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
4 km
37 mm/54 Breda 19386×2 37mm
20 mm/65 Breda 193910×1 20mm
20 mm/65 Breda 19354×2 20mm
100 mm /47 OTO 1928 (DP)6×2 100mm
Far aura
DPS
ƒIncludes 16 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose secondaries firing as AA in this range band.
16
Range4 km
Medium aura
DPS41
Range3.5 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 16 + Medium 41 = 57
57
Near aura
DPS26
Range2 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 16 + Medium 41 + Near 26 = 83
83
S
Secondary Battery
Mounts6
Firing range4.5 km
Shell Grouping (σ)1
Caliber100 mm
Reload time6 s
HE Damage1,500
Muzzle Velocity850 m/s
Fire Chance6%
Armor Pen17 mm
Min Ricochet91°
Max Ricochet60°
Secondary dispersion type
ƒMax dispersion = range (km) × 57 + 30. Each dispersion type sets its own slope; this is not a percentage applied to a standard baseline.
Standard
Max secondary dispersion @ 4.5 km
ƒ4.5 km × 57 + 30 = 286.5 m.
286.5 m
Maneuverability
Engine moduleEngine: 95,000 hp
Engine power95,000 hp
Maximum speed32 kt
Turning circle radius580 m
Rudder shift time9.8 s
Engine power-boost threshold7 kt
Engine spool-up time15.3 s
Reverse spool-up time7.7 s
Acceleration 0-90%
ƒTime to reach 90% of top speed (28.8 kt of 32 kt), from our in-house acceleration model.
26.6 s
Acceleration 0-99%
ƒTime to reach 99% of top speed (31.7 kt of 32 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.
43.6 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·32.0·0.5144580=1.63°/s, so ratio=ωturretωhull=71.63=4.3×. Below 5 the turrets drag in a turning fight; 25+ keeps up with any rudder.
4.3× drags
Concealment
Detectability by sea10.92 km
Detectability by air6.55 km
Smoke firing penalty6.02 km
Detect after firing main guns
ƒmax(base sea detectability, gun-firing bloom range). Firing never pulls your detection closer than base concealment.
10.92 km
Detect Fire Sea12.92 km
Detect Fire Air9.55 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 60 s reload · 5 s active
Choose one
Exhaust Smoke Generator2 charges · 180 s reload · 20 s emit / 35 s cloud active
Defensive AA Fire3 charges · 140 s reload · 25 s active · +100% flak burst boost
Catapult Fighter3 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

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 Disp135.5 m
Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the verified WoWS dispersion model: $\sigma_H = \left(\dfrac{R}{30}\cdot\dfrac{\text{idealRadius}-\text{minRadius}}{\text{idealDistance}} + \text{minRadius}\right)\cdot 30$ $= \left(\dfrac{14850}{30}\cdot\dfrac{8-1.1}{1000} + 1.1\right)\cdot 30 = 135.5\,\text{m}$
Shell scatter width @ 10 km102 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.
Max Vert Disp81.3 m
Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: $\sigma_V = \sigma_H \cdot \text{radiusOnMax}$ $= 135.5 \cdot 0.6 = 81.3\,\text{m}$
Shell scatter height @ 10 km54.5 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.
Med Horiz Disp43.3 m
50%-hit horizontal radius: $\sigma_{H,50} = \sigma_H \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 135.5 \cdot 0.32\;(\sigma = 2) = 43.3\,\text{m}$
Med Vert Disp26 m
50%-hit vertical radius: $\sigma_{V,50} = \sigma_V \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 81.3 \cdot 0.32\;(\sigma = 2) = 26\,\text{m}$
AP Pen Close451.4 mm
Canonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot K \cdot m^{0.69} \cdot d^{-1.07} \cdot v_0^{1.38}$ $= 10^{-7}\cdot 2450 \cdot 125.3^{0.69} \cdot 0.203^{-1.07} \cdot 900^{1.38} = 451.4\,\text{mm}$. Matches the in-game spec card.
AP Pen Far158.7 mm
Same formula at the ship's max firing range (18.6 km), where the shell has slowed to 422 m/s: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot 2450 \cdot 125.3^{0.69} \cdot 0.203^{-1.07} \cdot 422^{1.38} = 158.7\,\text{mm}$.
HE penetration33 mm
floor(203 mm caliber / 6): standard HE penetration.
AP overmatch14 mm
floor(203 mm caliber / 14.3) = 14 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
AP AOE Radius30
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.
SAP Fragment Radius30
SAP shell fragment splash radius; the area over which a SAP hit scatters fragment damage. Scales with shell mass (90mm ~ 5, 203mm CA ~ 20-30, 320mm = 175, 406mm = 250, 457mm = 400, max) and is tuned per ship, so two ships with the same SAP caliber can differ (135mm ranges 5-24). Larger value = wider fragment spread per hit.
Broadside guns used for alpha8
All 8 barrels bear on the broadside.
Turret turn time25.7 s
180 degrees / 7 deg/s traverse speed = 25.7 s.
AP full-salvo alpha35,200
4,400 AP damage x 8 broadside guns = 35,200.
Base AP DPM150,857
35,200 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 14 s base reload = 150,857.
Base shells/min34.3
8 broadside guns x 60 / 14 s base reload = 34.3.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability1 km
Estimated torpedo reaction time7.3 s
detectability / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).
Torpedo speed53 kt
Travel time to max range72.5 s
range / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).
Tube count6
2 launchers x 3 tubes.
Per-side salvo3 torpedoes
tube count / 2 (symmetric port/starboard launcher layout; common on cruisers and battleships with deck torpedoes).
Full-salvo damage75,000
All tubes hitting one target: tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 6 x 12,500 = 75,000.
Per-side salvo damage37,500
One side firing, all torpedoes hitting: per-side tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 3 x 12,500 = 37,500.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS257
Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (41×3.5×0.9) + (26×3.5×0.85) + (16×3.5×0.9) = 257. 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 range4 km
Longest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
AA threat index808
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 range2 km

Secondary battery dispersion

Secondary dispersion typeStandard
Max dispersion = range (km) × 57 + 30. Each dispersion type sets its own slope; this is not a percentage applied to a standard baseline.
Max secondary dispersion @ 4.5 km286.5 m
4.5 km × 57 + 30 = 286.5 m.

Secondary battery firepower

Secondary DPM (per side)90,000
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: 6×2 100 mm (6/side) × 60/6 × 1500 = 90,000. Assumes every shell hits (real hit rate is lower; the Brawl matchup tool on the Compare page folds in dispersion + target armor).
Max HE alpha1500
Maximum HE damage per shell across secondary HE families. Best on this ship: 1500 from the 100 mm family.
Max HE fire chance6%
Maximum per-shell fire chance across secondary HE families (before target fire resistance is applied). Best on this ship: 6% from the 100 mm family.
Max HE pen17 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: 17 mm from the 100 mm family.

Armor Beta

Hull HP 33,500, distributed across 5 hull zones, each with its own plate thicknesses, saturation cap, and pen thresholds. HP caps are estimated from the standard WoWs damage-allocation model.

Bow & stern16 mm

Overmatched by 124+ guns across the bracket. Can’t reliably bow-tank; gets bow-citadelled and overpenned.

Belt / citadel150 mm

AP can citadel a flat broadside even at range. Stay angled and avoid showing the full side.

Farming16 mm

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

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow16 mm primary (range 16–30 mm)≈ 1,675 (~5% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (Graf Spee, Scharnhorst)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)140 mm primary (range 19–150 mm)≈ 25,125 (~75% of HP)
No common caliber overmatches140 mm: no common HE pens
Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern16 mm primary (range 16–120 mm)≈ 1,675 (~5% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (Graf Spee, Scharnhorst)Angle bounces 203mm16 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel150 mm primary (range 13–150 mm)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.
Superstructure19 mm primary (range 19–150 mm)no cap
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).

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
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Acceleration and Ballistics Chart

Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

  • AL Zara default exterior
    DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior
  • Azur Lane
    Azur ZaraAzur Lane

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.