World of Warships: Legends ship guide

Dido

Also called: 黛朵 Beta
U.K. · Tier V · CL Cruiser · Premium
HE fire-spam cruiserGuns farm HE fires and sustained DPM; Sonar contests islands and smoke without exposing the hull.
Playstyle
  • Sit 12-15 km from a contested cap where an island shadows you from the opposite battleship line
  • Avoid: Open-water broadside trading
Key characteristics
Heavy torpedoesLobs over islandsSmoke + SonarDefensive AAThick deck armorSlow HE shells
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Community Data

Dido Community Stats

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Playstyle

Overview

Dido is a Tier V British light cruiser whose 133mm guns farm HE fires and sustained DPM, with Sonar as her vision tool: Hydro lets her contest islands and smoke without exposing the hull. Standout traits: best extra smoke charges in T5 CAs (5) and best deck armor in T5 CAs (89 mm).

Positioning

Sit 12-15 km from a contested cap where an island shadows you from the opposite battleship line. Hydro (4.2 km on ships, 3 km on torpedoes) lights up DDs and incoming torpedoes inside its bubble, so you can push the cap edge from cover without taking the spotting cycle; prefer cover positions over open-water flanks. 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

Open-water broadside trading

Her 133mm shells citadel cruisers on the wrong frame, and her 29,500-HP hull does not recover from a punished salvo. Pick rotations and angles deliberately; the chip-damage role pays better than the trade-blow role on a cruiser of this profile.

Signature Traits

ELITE SMOKE
  • Extra smoke charges · 5.0 Smoke
  • Fast smoke cycle · 70.0 s
Thick deck armor

89.0 mm armor deck, best of T5 CAs. Eats plunging fire and HE that peers don't.

ELITE MAIN BATTERY
  • Fast turret traverse · 10.0°
  • High-arc AP shells · 42.2°
Nimble for the tonnage

11.59 hp per ton, top decile of T5 CAs. Engine punch outclasses the hull's mass, so the ship retains speed through sustained turns better than peers.

Slow HE shells

792.0 m/s HE muzzle velocity, bottom quartile of T5 CAs. Lobby trajectory, harder to land at range.

Thin bow plate

13.0 mm bow, bottom quartile of T5 CAs. Bow-on doesn't save you against same-tier guns.

Acquisition

How to get Dido

Dido 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

  • Mystic Lantern 0.2% Tier V Premium ship Event containers · Mystic Lantern · 1 of 25 ships
  • Mystic Box 0.012% Tier V Premium ship Event containers · Mystic Box · 1 of 25 ships
Official WG availability sources
Show direct source rows

Builds Beta

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

Open in Build Tool →

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Cohort position

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Where Dido sits among Tier V CAs (28 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 10 tied) BestDisplacement6,900 t (1 of 2 tied) BestDeck armor89 mm (1 of 2 tied) Top 10%AP arming threshold22 mm (3/28) Top 10%Power-to-weight11.59 hp/t (3/28) Top 25%Stealth profile10.79 km / 6.47 km (5/28 / 5/28) Top 25%Rudder shift6.5 s (4/28) Top 25%HE DPM142,500 (6/26) Top 25%Acceleration23.8 s (6/28) Top 25%Torpedo damage≈14,767 (5/24) Bottom 25%Main battery range14.26 km (22/28) Bottom 25%HE fire chance8% (23/26) Bottom 25%AP velocity792 m/s (26/28) Bottom 25%Max armor89 mm (24/28) WorstMain battery caliber133 mm (1 of 2 tied) WorstAP shell damage2,550 (1 of 2 tied) WorstNo secondaries (3 of 28 in cohort) WorstHE velocity792 m/s (1 of 3 tied) WorstEnd plates13 mm (1 of 4 tied / 1 of 4 tied)
See 19 mid-pack stats

Not standouts for Dido -- 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 points29,500 HP(17/28) Max speed34 kt(10/28) Traverse-to-turn ratio5.79 ×(14/28) Main battery reload8 s(11/28) Sigma2(15/28) Fires per minute6(12/26) AP DPM191,250(14/28) Main dispersion131.4 m(19/28) Engine power80,000 hp(18/28) Turn-speed retention137.9 hp/m(10/28) AA DPS203(15/28) AA range4.5 km(12/28) AA threat586(18/28) Torpedo range8.01 km(13/24) Torpedo speed61 kt(10/24) Torpedo reload72 s(10/24) Citadel belt89 mm(17/28) NormAP ricochet start45°(25 of 28 tied at this value) NormAP auto-bounce angle60°(25 of 28 tied at this value)
Survivability
Hit Points29,500
Displacement6,900 t
Armor range10–89 mm
Plate armor thicknesses10, 13, 25, 30, 38, 51, 89 mm
Armor material/layer entries53
Fire resistance23.3%
Fire duration30 s
Torp Reduction4%
Main Battery
ModuleArtillery: 133 mm/50 QF Mk.I
Mounts / barrels5 mounts / 10 barrels
Reload time8 s
Firing range14.3 km
Turret traverse10 °/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 =(1425530·81.11000+1.1)·30=131.4m
131.4 m
Max Vert Disp
ƒVertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: σV=σH·radiusOnMax =131.4·0.6=78.8m
78.8 m
Med Horiz Disp
ƒ50%-hit horizontal radius: σH,50=σH·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =131.4·0.32(σ=2)=42m
42 m
Med Vert Disp
ƒ50%-hit vertical radius: σV,50=σV·GetHalfHitsRatio(σ) =78.8·0.32(σ=2)=25.2m
25.2 m
Turret turn time
ƒ180 degrees / 10 deg/s traverse speed = 18 s.
18 s
Base shells/min
ƒ10 broadside guns x 60 / 8 s base reload = 75.
75
HE shells
HE Damage1,900
HE Velocity792 m/s
Fire Chance8%
HE penetration
ƒIn-game data: 25 mm = 133 mm caliber / 5.32 (non-standard HE penetration ratio).
25 mm
HE full-salvo alpha
ƒ1,900 HE damage x 10 broadside guns = 19,000.
19,000
Base HE DPM
ƒ19,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 8 s base reload = 142,500.
142,500
Base fires/min
ƒ75 shells/min x 8% fire chance = 6.
6
AP shells
AP Damage2,550
AP Velocity792 m/s
Min Ricochet45 deg
Guaranteed Ricochet60 deg
Fuse Timer0.033 s
Fuse Threshold22 mm
AP overmatch
ƒfloor(133 mm caliber / 14.3) = 9 mm (AP auto-penetrates plating this thick or less).
9 mm
AP Pen Close
ƒCanonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: P=107·K·m0.69·d1.07·v01.38 =107·2882·36.30.69·0.1331.07·7921.38=297.7mm. Matches the in-game spec card.
297.7 mm
AP Pen Far
ƒSame formula at the ship's max firing range (17.8 km), where the shell has slowed to 294.6 m/s: P=107·2882·36.30.69·0.1331.07·294.61.38=76mm.
76 mm
AP full-salvo alpha
ƒ2,550 AP damage x 10 broadside guns = 25,500.
25,500
Base AP DPM
ƒ25,500 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 8 s base reload = 191,250.
191,250
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 TR Mk IV
Launchers / tubes2 launchers × 3 tubes = 6 tubes
Reload time72 s
Projectile speed61 kt
Range8.01 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=44,300·0.333=14,767.
≈ 14,767
Torpedo detectability1.3 km
Flooding chance265%
Torpedo launcher traverse25 °/s
Torp Turn
ƒTime to rotate the launchers 180 deg: tturn=180°25°/s=7.2s.
7.2 s
Torp Arming188 m
Per-side salvo damage
ƒOne side firing, all torpedoes hitting: per-side tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 3 x 14,767 = 44,301.
44,301
AA Defense
AA mount points9
Close-range AA DPS
ƒSum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (19×3.5×0.9) + (28×3.5×0.85) + (19×3.5×0.9) = 203. 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.
203
Maximum AA range
ƒLongest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
4.5 km
40 mm Vickers 2-pdr. Mk VII2×4 40mm
20 mm Oerlikon Mk IV2×1 20mm
20 mm Oerlikon Mk V4×2 20mm
20 mm Oerlikon Mk.IIIA1×1 20mm
Far aura
DPS
ƒIncludes 19 continuous AA damage from dual-purpose main battery firing as AA in this range band.
19
Range4.5 km
Medium aura
DPS19
Range2.5 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 19 + Medium 19 = 38
38
Near aura
DPS28
Range2 km
Total DPS in Aura
ƒFar 19 + Medium 19 + Near 28 = 66
66
Maneuverability
Engine moduleEngine: 80,000 hp
Engine power80,000 hp
Maximum speed34 kt
Turning circle radius580 m
Rudder shift time6.5 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 (30.6 kt of 34 kt), from our in-house acceleration model.
23.8 s
Acceleration 0-99%
ƒTime to reach 99% of top speed (33.7 kt of 34 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.
38.1 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·34.0·0.5144580=1.73°/s, so ratio=ωturretωhull=101.73=5.8×. Below 5 the turrets drag in a turning fight; 25+ keeps up with any rudder.
5.8× slow
Concealment
Detectability by sea10.79 km
Detectability by air6.47 km
Smoke firing penalty4.58 km
Detect after firing main guns
ƒmax(base sea detectability, gun-firing bloom range). Firing never pulls your detection closer than base concealment.
10.79 km
Detect Fire Sea12.79 km
Detect Fire Air9.47 km
Guaranteed Detect2 km
Consumables
Damage Control Party∞ charges · 60 s reload · 5 s active
Choose one
Sonar2 charges · 180 s reload · 94 s active · 4.2 km ship detect
ƒDerived from the consumable's 30 m grid-unit range (km = grid units x 30 / 1000): 140×301000=4.2 km
· 2.97 km torpedo detect
ƒDerived from the consumable's 30 m grid-unit range (km = grid units x 30 / 1000): 99×301000=2.97 km
Defensive AA Fire3 charges · 140 s reload · 25 s active · +100% flak burst boost
Smoke Generator5 charges · 70 s reload · 20 s emit / 40 s cloud active
Main Battery Reload Booster2 charges · 180 s reload · 16 s active · +67% reload boost

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 Disp131.4 m
Horizontal dispersion ellipse width at max range, from the verified WoWS dispersion model: $\sigma_H = \left(\dfrac{R}{30}\cdot\dfrac{\text{idealRadius}-\text{minRadius}}{\text{idealDistance}} + \text{minRadius}\right)\cdot 30$ $= \left(\dfrac{14255}{30}\cdot\dfrac{8-1.1}{1000} + 1.1\right)\cdot 30 = 131.4\,\text{m}$
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 Disp78.8 m
Vertical dispersion ellipse height at max range: $\sigma_V = \sigma_H \cdot \text{radiusOnMax}$ $= 131.4 \cdot 0.6 = 78.8\,\text{m}$
Shell scatter height @ 10 km55.1 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.
Med Horiz Disp42 m
50%-hit horizontal radius: $\sigma_{H,50} = \sigma_H \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 131.4 \cdot 0.32\;(\sigma = 2) = 42\,\text{m}$
Med Vert Disp25.2 m
50%-hit vertical radius: $\sigma_{V,50} = \sigma_V \cdot \text{GetHalfHitsRatio}(\sigma)$ $= 78.8 \cdot 0.32\;(\sigma = 2) = 25.2\,\text{m}$
AP Pen Close297.7 mm
Canonical community AP formula (jcw780/wows_shell), evaluated at muzzle velocity: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot K \cdot m^{0.69} \cdot d^{-1.07} \cdot v_0^{1.38}$ $= 10^{-7}\cdot 2882 \cdot 36.3^{0.69} \cdot 0.133^{-1.07} \cdot 792^{1.38} = 297.7\,\text{mm}$. Matches the in-game spec card.
AP Pen Far76 mm
Same formula at the ship's max firing range (17.8 km), where the shell has slowed to 294.6 m/s: $P = 10^{-7}\cdot 2882 \cdot 36.3^{0.69} \cdot 0.133^{-1.07} \cdot 294.6^{1.38} = 76\,\text{mm}$.
HE penetration25 mm
In-game data: 25 mm = 133 mm caliber / 5.32 (non-standard HE penetration ratio).
AP overmatch9 mm
floor(133 mm caliber / 14.3) = 9 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 alpha10
All 10 barrels bear on the broadside.
Turret turn time18 s
180 degrees / 10 deg/s traverse speed = 18 s.
HE full-salvo alpha19,000
1,900 HE damage x 10 broadside guns = 19,000.
AP full-salvo alpha25,500
2,550 AP damage x 10 broadside guns = 25,500.
Base HE DPM142,500
19,000 HE full-salvo alpha x 60 / 8 s base reload = 142,500.
Base AP DPM191,250
25,500 AP full-salvo alpha x 60 / 8 s base reload = 191,250.
Base shells/min75
10 broadside guns x 60 / 8 s base reload = 75.
Base fires/min6
75 shells/min x 8% fire chance = 6.

Torpedoes

Torpedo detectability1.3 km
Estimated torpedo reaction time8.2 s
detectability / (speed kt x 2.6 community game-speed factor).
Torpedo speed61 kt
Travel time to max range50.5 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 damage88,602
All tubes hitting one target: tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 6 x 14,767 = 88,602.
Per-side salvo damage44,301
One side firing, all torpedoes hitting: per-side tubes x per-torpedo simulated damage = 3 x 14,767 = 44,301.

AA defense

Close-range AA DPS203
Sum across every AA aura on this ship of (aura.continuous_damage x 3.5 x aura.hit_probability). Here: (19×3.5×0.9) + (28×3.5×0.85) + (19×3.5×0.9) = 203. 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 range4.5 km
Longest-reaching aura across AA-only + dual-purpose auras.
AA threat index586
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 29,500, 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 & stern13 mm

Overmatched by 125+ guns across the bracket. Can’t reliably bow-tank; gets bow-citadelled and overpenned.

Belt / citadel89 mm

Thin belt: battleship AP citadels straight through it broadside. Rely on angle, speed and concealment, never sit flat.

Farming10 mm

Superstructure and extremities take HE pens and AP overpens from nearly any gun: steady chip damage. Fire resistance 23%, fires burn 30s. Range-by-range in the ballistics tool →

Section Plates HP cap Threats Tactic
Bow13 mm primary (range 13–30 mm)4,000 (14% of HP)
Overmatched by 203mm+ (Desert Falcon, Baleares)Angle bounces 152mm13 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)25 mm primary (range 13–38 mm)22,100 (75% of HP)
Overmatched by 380mm+ (Bayern, Gneisenau)Angle bounces 356mm25 mm: HE pens from 150mm+
Largest HP pool. Citadel sits behind these plates; thinner deck and side plating absorb the rest.
Stern13 mm primary (range 13–30 mm)1,700 (6% of HP)
Overmatched by 203mm+ (Desert Falcon, Baleares)Angle bounces 152mm13 mm: HE pens from 127mm+
Mirror of bow. Same fast saturation.
Citadel89 mm primary (range 13–89 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.
Superstructure10 mm primary (range 10–89 mm)1,900 (6% 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 HP11,800 magazine HPMagazine detonation1–30% chance · below ~75% HPPer-turret powder-magazine HP. Detonation chance scales from 1% (no mag damage) to 30% (full mag damage); this range is the in-game value. Detonation can't roll while the ship is above ~75% HP (the standard detonation-protection threshold, not a per-ship stat). Smaller magazines saturate to the 30% ceiling faster.
AA mount (40 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.
Rudder (module)separate HP pool, does not drain ship HP8,900 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.

Approximated side profile.
Open the 3D armor viewer →
3D armor viewer
Open in Charting Tool

Acceleration and Ballistics Chart

Exteriors

Skins & permanent camouflages

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

  • Dido 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.