BattleSeaWiki · Combat
Armor and damage
How strong each material is, what armor stops, and where a hit's energy goes.
Strength and armor are different things
Every part has integrity: the damage it takes before it is destroyed. Armor adds a rating on top, which cuts each hit down before it reaches that integrity. Deck is the weakest structure, plain hull is 4 times stronger, and each grade of armor is both tougher and far heavier.
| Full block | Mass | Integrity | Armor rating | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deck | 15 t | 5 MJ | None | 2 Coins |
| Hull | 15 t | 20 MJ | None | 2 Coins |
| Light armor | 49.5 t | 22.5 MJ | 130 MJ | 80 Coins |
| Medium armor | 126 t | 108 MJ | 520 MJ | 160 Coins |
| Heavy armor | 257 t | 324 MJ | 1,170 MJ | 480 Coins |
What armor stops
A hit of energy E against a plate rated R delivers E × E ÷ (E + R). A shell far below the rating only chips the plate; one far above it passes almost whole. A hit under 1% of the rating does nothing at all, which is why light anti-aircraft fire cannot hurt armor.
| One round of | Energy | Through light armor | Through medium armor | Through heavy armor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12.7cm Gun | 24.1 MJ | 16% | 4% | 2% |
| 20.3cm Gun | 98.6 MJ | 43% | 16% | 8% |
| 36cm Gun | 526 MJ | 80% | 50% | 31% |
| 46cm Triple Gun | 1,401 MJ | 92% | 73% | 54% |
| Torpedo | 2,003 MJ | 94% | 79% | 63% |
Read across a row: the larger the round, the less any plate takes off it. Weapons lists every round's energy.
Where a hit's energy goes
The part that is struck takes 75% of the energy. The other 25% is shared among the parts inside the blast radius.
A gun shell that flies into a hole already shot in a hull does not pass through. It strikes the nearest standing hull around the hole with 50% of its energy, so hitting the same place keeps opening it.
Knocking out equipment
A gun, engine, radar or other fitting stops working when it falls to 10% of its integrity, before it is destroyed. An engine also stops when water reaches it, unless hull encloses it on all six sides. So a ship can be silenced or stopped before it sinks.