World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Also known as Black Black

Black B

Beta
U.S.A. · Tier VII · Destroyer · Premium · Black Variant
Torpedo destroyerBuilt around the torpedo battery: flood lanes with fish and avoid stand-up gun fights.
Playstyle
  • Sit at the edge of a contested cap from concealment and cycle torpedo waves into lanes the enemy has to…
  • Avoid: Holding 13.7-km torpedoes for a perfect shot
Key characteristics
Long, heavy torpedoes (14 km)Radar (7.5 km)SmokeEngine BoostFast turret traverseHigh-arc HE shells
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Community Data

Black B Community Stats

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Playstyle

Overview

Black B is a Tier VII American torpedo destroyer reaching 13.7 km. The torpedoes travel at 43 kt, so target reaction time is shorter than peer DDs; this is a torpedo-spam kit, not a gun trade kit. Standout traits: best turret traverse rate in T7 DDs (34) and best lingering smoke in T7 DDs (124 s).

Positioning

Sit at the edge of a contested cap from concealment and cycle torpedo waves into lanes the enemy has to use - 13.7 km reach at 43 kt means the wall arrives before targets can react. Drop on probable lanes from cover, stay unspotted between waves, and let the wall do the work. Your guns lose penetration at range, so aim AP at broadsides you can still citadel and put HE into superstructures and upper-hull sections, rather than the bow-in or belt armor your shells bounce and shatter on.

Potato Avoidance

Holding 13.7-km torpedoes for a perfect shot

The kit pays out by saturating lanes, not by waiting for guaranteed broadsides; missed waves still force rotations and protect your team's flank. Idle torpedo tubes are the worst output state.

Signature Traits

Surveillance Radar

7.5 km range, 19 s duration. Detects all enemy ships within a fixed radius regardless of line-of-sight. Controls caps and punishes smoke-firing DDs.

Engine Boost

+8% speed, 120 s duration. Engine Boost consumable temporarily raises top speed. Mobility on demand to reposition, chase a kill, or break contact.

ELITE MAIN BATTERY
  • Fast turret traverse · 34.0°
  • High-arc HE shells · 43.4°
ELITE TORPEDOES
  • Long-range torps · 13.71 km
  • Heavy · 23200.0 damage
Lingering smoke

124.0 s smoke cloud linger, best of T7 DDs. Each puff stays up longer after you stop laying it, holding the shield.

Long-duration radar

19.0 s Surveillance Radar duration, best of T7 DDs. Keeps caps lit longer.

Acquisition

How to get Black B

Black B is a Premium ship and not available to unlock in the Tech Tree. Acquisition paths: Containers, Campaign, and Collaboration. 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

Official WG availability sources
  • "Lucky Six" Campaign Breakdown Campaign Start: 2022-06-20 · End: 2022-07-24 Official campaign breakdown naming this ship as a campaign/reward-context ship; explicit source windows are used when present, otherwise the end date is inferred from the next indexed campaign breakdown when available.
  • Silent Orca Campaign Breakdown Campaign Start: 2024-11-18 · End: 2024-12-15 Official campaign breakdown naming this ship as a campaign/reward-context ship; explicit source windows are used when present, otherwise the end date is inferred from the next indexed campaign breakdown when available.
  • Phantom of Sherwood Campaign Breakdown Campaign Start: 2025-11-03 · End: 2025-11-30 Official campaign breakdown naming this ship as a campaign/reward-context ship; explicit source windows are used when present, otherwise the end date is inferred from the next indexed campaign breakdown when available.
  • Official WoWS Legends container odds Containers Official container drop rows linked below include direct and nested effective ship odds.
  • Treasure Hunt Event/store source Start: 2021-08-09 · End: open/unknown end Official ship/event post that can indicate store, collaboration, event, return, or limited availability.
  • Fury, WAAAGH! and Legends: Warhammer 40,000 collaboration in detail Event/store source Start: 2021-11-05 · End: open/unknown end Official ship/event post that can indicate store, collaboration, event, return, or limited availability.
  • "Gaming against Cancer" Charity Event Event/store source Start: 2021-11-05 · End: open/unknown end Official ship/event post that can indicate store, collaboration, event, return, or limited availability.
  • The Return of Treasure Hunt Event/store source Start: 2022-08-05 · End: open/unknown end Official ship/event post that can indicate store, collaboration, event, return, or limited availability.
Show direct source rows

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Cohort position

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Where Black B sits among Tier VII DDs (34 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.

BestTraverse-to-turn ratio18.46 × (1/34) BestTorpedo range13.71 km (1/33) Top 10%Rudder shift3 s (3/34) Top 10%Torpedo damage≈23,200 (2/33) Top 25%Main battery reload3.2 s (9/34) Top 25%Acceleration16.6 s (7/34) Top 25%AA range5 km (9/34) Bottom 25%Max speed35 kt (28/34) Bottom 25%AP shell damage2,100 (29/32) Bottom 25%Main dispersion97.6 m (30/34) Bottom 25%AP velocity792 m/s (29/32) Bottom 25%HE velocity792 m/s (31/34) Bottom 10%Torpedo speed43 kt (31/33) WorstHE fire chance5% (1 of 8 tied)
See 25 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Black B -- 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 points16,700 HP(23/34) Concealment7.09 km(23/34) Air detection3.55 km(23/34) Main battery caliber127 mm(21/34) Main battery range11.01 km(11/34) HE shell damage1,800(21/34) Fires per minute4.69(22/34) HE DPM168,750(11/34) AP DPM196,875(19/32) AP arming threshold21 mm(14/32) Engine power60,000 hp(17/34) Turn-speed retention107.1 hp/m(11/34) Displacement2,924 t(17/34) Power-to-weight20.52 hp/t(11/34) AA DPS240(10/34) AA threat827(10/34) Torpedo reload96 s(16/33) Max armor20 mm(19/34) Citadel belt20 mm(19/34) Deck armor19 mm(11/28) NormAP fuse timer0.01 s(25 of 32 tied at this value) NormAP ricochet start45°(26 of 32 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(26 of 32 tied at this value) NormBow armor19 mm(30 of 34 tied at this value) NormStern armor19 mm(31 of 34 tied at this value)
Survivability
Hit Points16,700
Displacement2,924 t
Armor range6–20 mm
Plate armor thicknesses6, 13, 19, 20 mm
Armor material/layer entries28
Fire resistance36.6%
Fire duration30 s
Torp Reduction0%
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 5×127 mm
Mounts / barrels5 mounts / 5 barrels
Reload time3.6 s
Firing range11 km
Turret traverse34 °/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 =(1101330·80.51000+0.5)·30=97.6m
97.6 m
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: σV=σH·radiusOnMax =97.6·0.6=58.6m
58.6 m
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius: σH,50=σH·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =97.6·0.32(σ=2)=31.2m
31.2 m
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius: σV,50=σV·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =58.6·0.319(σ=2)=18.7m
18.7 m
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 34 deg/s traverse speed = 5.3 s.
5.3 s
Base shells/min
ƒ5 broadside guns x 60 / 3.6 s base reload = 83.3.
83.3
HE shells
HE Damage1,800
HE Velocity792 m/s
Fire Chance5%
HE penetration
ƒ21 mm ≈ 127 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
21 mm
HE full-salvo alpha
ƒ1,800 HE damage x 5 broadside guns = 9,000.
9,000
Base HE DPM
ƒ9,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.6 s base reload = 150,000.
150,000
Installed HE DPM
ƒ9,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.2 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 168,750.
168,750
Base fires/min
ƒ83.3 shells/min x 5% fire chance = 4.17.
4.17
AP shells
AP Damage2,100
AP Velocity792 m/s
Min Ricochet45 deg
Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg
Fuse Timer0.01 s
Fuse Threshold21 mm
AP overmatch
ƒfloor(127 mm caliber / 14.3) = 8 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
8 mm
AP Pen Close
ƒCanonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v01.38 =107·2598·250.69·0.1271.07·7921.38=218mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
218 mm
AP Pen Far
ƒSame formula at the ship's max firing range (13.8 km), where the shell has slowed to 248.7 m/s: P=107·2598·250.69·0.1271.07·248.71.38=44.1mm.
44.1 mm
AP full-salvo alpha
ƒ2,100 AP damage x 5 broadside guns = 10,500.
10,500
Base AP DPM
ƒ10,500 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.6 s base reload = 175,000.
175,000
Installed AP DPM
ƒ10,500 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.2 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 196,875.
196,875
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.
10
Torpedoes
ModuleTorpedoes: 533 mm quintuple
Launchers / tubes2 launchers × 5 tubes = 10 tubes
Reload time96 s
Projectile speed43 kt
Range13.71 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=34,800·0.667=23,200.
≈ 23,200
Torpedo detectability0.9 km
Flooding chance206%
Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s
Torp Turn
ƒTime to rotate the launchers 180 deg: tturn=180°25°/s=7.2s.
7.2 s
Torp Arming133 m
Per-side salvo damage
ƒOne side firing, all torpedoes hitting: per-side tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 10 x 23,200 = 232,000.
232,000
AA Defense
AA mount points12
Close-range AA DPS
ƒSum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (20×3.5×1) + (27×3.5×0.95) + (23×3.5×1) = 240. 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.
240
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
5 km
40 mm Bofors Mk13×2 40mm
20 mm Oerlikon Mk47×1 20mm
20 mm Oerlikon Mk202×2 20mm
Far aura
DPS
ƒIncludes 23 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose main battery firing as AA in this range band.
23
Range5 km
Medium aura
DPS20
Range3.5 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 23 + Medium 20 = 43
43
Near aura
DPS27
Range2 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 23 + Medium 20 + Near 27 = 70
70
Maneuverability
Engine moduleEngine: 60,000 hp
Engine power60,000 hp
Maximum speed35 kt
Turning circle radius560 m
Rudder shift time3 s
Engine power-boost threshold7 kt
Engine spool-up time7.7 s
Reverse spool-up time3.8 s
Acceleration 0-90%
ƒTime to reach 90% of top speed (31.5 kt of 35 kt), from our in-house acceleration model.
16.6 s
Acceleration 0-99%
ƒTime to reach 99% of top speed (34.6 kt of 35 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.
28.2 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·35.0·0.5144560=1.84°/s, so ratio=ωturretωhull=341.84=18.5×. Below 5 the turrets drag in a turning fight; 25+ keeps up with any rudder.
18.5× snappy
Concealment
Detectability by sea7.09 km
Detectability by air3.55 km
Smoke firing penalty2.65 km
Detect after firing main guns
ƒmax(base sea detectability, gun-firing bloom range). Firing never pulls your detection closer than base concealment.
7.09 km
Detect Fire Sea9.09 km
Detect Fire Air6.55 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 40 s reload · 5 s active
Smoke Generator2 charges · 240 s reload · 28 s emit / 124 s cloud active
Choose one
Engine Boost2 charges · 180 s reload · 120 s active · +8% speed bonus
Surveillance Radar3 charges · 150 s reload · 19 s active · 7.5 km radar range
ƒDerived from the consumable's 30 m grid-unit range (km = grid units x 30 / 1000): 250×301000=7.5 km

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.

Main battery formulas

Shell Grouping (σ)2
Max Horiz Disp97.6 m
Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the verified WoWS dispersion model: $\sigma_H = \left(\dfrac{R}{30}\cdot\dfrac{\text{idealRadius}-\text{minRadius}}{\text{idealDistance}} + \text{minRadius}\right)\cdot 30$ $= \left(\dfrac{11013}{30}\cdot\dfrac{8-0.5}{1000} + 0.5\right)\cdot 30 = 97.6\,\text{m}$
Shell scatter width @ 10 km90 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 Disp58.6 m
Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: $\sigma_V = \sigma_H \cdot \text{radiusOnMax}$ $= 97.6 \cdot 0.6 = 58.6\,\text{m}$
Shell scatter height @ 10 km52.3 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 Disp31.2 m
50%-hit horizontal radius: $\sigma_{H,50} = \sigma_H \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 97.6 \cdot 0.32\;(\sigma = 2) = 31.2\,\text{m}$
Med Vert Disp18.7 m
50%-hit vertical radius: $\sigma_{V,50} = \sigma_V \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 58.6 \cdot 0.319\;(\sigma = 2) = 18.7\,\text{m}$
AP Pen Close218 mm
Canonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot K \cdot m^{0.69} \cdot d^{-1.07} \cdot v_0^{1.38}$ $= 10^{-7}\cdot 2598 \cdot 25^{0.69} \cdot 0.127^{-1.07} \cdot 792^{1.38} = 218\,\text{mm}$. Matches the in-game spec card.
AP Pen Far44.1 mm
Same formula at the ship's max firing range (13.8 km), where the shell has slowed to 248.7 m/s: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot 2598 \cdot 25^{0.69} \cdot 0.127^{-1.07} \cdot 248.7^{1.38} = 44.1\,\text{mm}$.
HE penetration21 mm
21 mm ≈ 127 mm caliber / 6 (standard HE penetration ratio).
AP overmatch8 mm
floor(127 mm caliber / 14.3) = 8 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
AP AOE Radius10
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 alpha5
All 5 barrels bear on the broadside.
Turret turn time5.3 s
180 degrees / 34 deg/s traverse speed = 5.3 s.
HE full-salvo alpha9,000
1,800 HE damage x 5 broadside guns = 9,000.
AP full-salvo alpha10,500
2,100 AP damage x 5 broadside guns = 10,500.
Base HE DPM150,000
9,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.6 s base reload = 150,000.
Base AP DPM175,000
10,500 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.6 s base reload = 175,000.
Installed HE DPM168,750
9,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.2 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 168,750.
Installed AP DPM196,875
10,500 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 3.2 s installed reload (Main Battery Mod. 3 = -10%) = 196,875.
Base shells/min83.3
5 broadside guns x 60 / 3.6 s base reload = 83.3.
Installed shells/min93.8
5 broadside guns x 60 / 3.2 s installed Artillery reload = 93.8.
Base fires/min4.17
83.3 shells/min x 5% fire chance = 4.17.
Installed fires/min4.69
93.8 shells/min x 5% fire chance = 4.69.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability0.9 km
Estimated torpedo reaction time8.1 s
detectability / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).
Torpedo speed43 kt
Travel time to max range122.6 s
range / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).
Tube count10
2 launchers x 5 tubes.
Per-side salvo10 torpedoes
10 (centerline launchers train across - full salvo to either side).
Full-salvo damage232,000
All tubes hitting one target: tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 10 x 23,200 = 232,000.
Per-side salvo damage232,000
One side firing, all torpedoes hitting: per-side tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 10 x 23,200 = 232,000.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS240
Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (20×3.5×1) + (27×3.5×0.95) + (23×3.5×1) = 240. 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 range5 km
Longest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
AA threat index827
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

Armor Beta

Hull HP 16,700, 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 & stern19 mm

Overmatched by 135+ guns across the bracket. Can’t reliably bow-tank; gets bow-citadelled and overpenned.

Farming13 mm

Superstructure and extremities take HE pens and AP overpens from nearly any gun: steady chip damage. Fire resistance 37%, fires burn 30s. Range-by-range in the ballistics tool →

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow19 mm primary (range 6–20 mm)≈ 835 (~5% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (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≈ 12,525 (~75% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (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 13–20 mm)≈ 835 (~5% of HP)
Overmatched by 283mm+ (Scharnhorst, Scharnhorst '43)Angle bounces 203mm19 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel20 mm primary (range 13–20 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.
Superstructure13 mm primary (range 13–19 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.

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Acceleration and Ballistics Chart

Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

  • Black B default exterior
    DefaultThe ship’s standard exterior

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.