World of Warships Fighters Mechanics Guide

World of Warships Fighters Mechanics Guide by Deathskyz

So this topic keeps popping up a lot. And we have some of the most heated discussions regarding this.

The topic of USN CVs vs IJN CVs. And how some will argue that its the USN CVs that are better, while others advocate that the IJN CVs dominate the sky.

So with the help of many people, we spent hours calculating via a Skype chat that effectively killed 80% of our brains.

So this is the result. Thanks to Amade, Haku, Footscray, IJN_Yura and many others who helped try to understand

This is how AA Mechanics and Fighter vs Fighter Mechanics work.

Firstly, it is NOT, repeat, NOT a Damage over Time.

So that Average DPS you see is NOT really Damage Per Second.

Secondly, ONE squad can only engage ONE squad at a time.

AA mechanics work like this. (Values here are all in top configuration, without skills or modules)

Every second, a calculation is performed with this formula:

Chance of 1 Squad to shoot down 1 Plane:

Total DPS / Survivability = (X)*100%/sec

So for example in Tier 4s, a Langley Fighter Squadron meets a Hosho Fighter Squadron.

We know that the Langley fighter squad has a average DPS of 31 (per fighter) so the Squad has a DPS of 186 and a survivability of 760 whereas the Hosho fighter squad has an average DPS of 28 (per fighter) so the squad has a DPS of 112 and a survivability of 780.

So when they vie in battle this calculation is performed:

For the Langley: 186(Langley Fighter’s total DPS) / 780(Hosho Fighter’s Survivability) = 23.85%/sec.

For the Hosho: 112(Hosho Fighter’s total DPS) / 760(Langley Fighter’s Survivability) = 14.74%/sec.

What does this mean? It means that in that engagement, the Langley’s fighters has a 23.85% chance every second to shoot down one of the Hosho’s fighters (That % increases the less planes there are in the squad) while the Hosho only has a 14.74% chance every second to shoot down one of the Langley’s fighters.

So we can clearly see how in a 1v1 Squad Engagement, the USN CV will more or less win that engagement.

Ok so we got 1 Squad vs 1 Squad… But what happens if there is 1 Langley squad vs 2 Hosho Squads?

Well you would think that the two squads will combine their DPS, so simply multiply the chances by two right?

Well no… Apparently now, TWO rolls of 14.74% happens every second. This is because the stats of TWO squads are NOT cumulative. So neither their survivability nor their DPS are combined.

To calculate that – this formula is used every second:

Chance of N squad to shoot down 1 Plane:

1 – (1-X)^N

Where X is the % chance of plane shot down every second (1 squad vs 1 squad)

And N is the number of squads.

So once again we look at the Langley vs Hosho example, when both meets in battle (assuming at the exact same time)

This calculation is performed: 1 – (1-0.2385)^2 = 27.3%/sec.

So when 2 Hosho squads meets 1 Langley squad, the Langley still retains the 23.85%/sec chance to shoot down a Hosho Fighter.

But the 2 Hosho Squads will now have a 27.3%/sec chance to shoot down 1 Langley Fighter.

Bear in mind that this is calculations are ALL made with the assumption that both meet at the SAME time and both have FULL squadrons of 6(USN) or 4(IJN). The % values will differ when the planes are shot down during an engagement. This calculation is to show in engagement which squad will shoot down the other’s fighter first.

With that, here are our calculations:

(No Crew Skills, No Ship Upgrades)

Alright lets understand this data…

Lets look at 12 Fighters vs 12 Fighters as an example, lets say a Lexington(211) fights a Shokaku(311)

​So there are 2 USN Squads vs 3 IJN Squads, each totalling 12 fighters.

This calculation is therefore performed:

USN: 1 – (1-0.2333)^2 = 41.22%/sec

IJN: 1 – (1-01749)^3 = 38.78%/sec

So we can prove that in the initial engagement, the USN Squads has a higher chance to shoot down the first plane, as a result, their next calculation after the Shokaku squads loses 1 fighter squad will have a higher %/sec to shoot down the next plane.

In summary, during squad engagements

In a 1USN vs 1IJN engagement, the USN will usually get the first enemy plane down. Their %/sec being 61%(Langley) – 50%(Midway) higher than their IJN counterparts

In a 1USN vs 2 IJN engagement, the IJN are likely to get the first enemy plane down. Their %/sec being 22%(Ryujo) – 33%(Taiho) higher than their USN counterparts

In a 2USN vs 2IJN engagement, the USN will win. Their %/sec being 65%(Ranger) – 43%(Midway) higher than their IJN counterparts

In a 2USN vs 3IJN engagement, the USN theoretically has the upper hand. Their %/sec ranges from 5%(Indy) – 18%(Ranger) higher than their IJN counterparts. Even when both sides have equal numbers, the USN has the upper hand.

I hope that this thread gives you an understanding of the chances at play when Fighter squadrons engages other Fighter Squadrons.

This thread assumes that

• Squads will focus the same enemy squad
• Squads are at full strength (6 for USN, 4 for IJN)
• All squads meet at the same time

This thread does not account for

• USN Planes being faster
• Crew skills and/or Ship Upgrades
• Ships AA Auras
• IJN re-arm times
• Catapult Fighters

tl;dr: In equal and sometimes less numbers, the USN fighters will win.

Q&A:

• Does AA Mechanics on Ships work the same way?

Yes. Ship AA works the same way. Ships have 3 types of AA Aura’s

​Long Range AA: 88mm, 127mm etc. etc.

Medium Range AA: 40mm Bofors, 55mm Gerat etc. etc.

Close Range AA: 12.7mm Brownings, 25mm AA, 20mm Oerlikons

These 3 AA Auras are Cumulative, so the 3 different DPS will combine to form the total DPS to be used in the formula

TOTAL DPS / SURVIVABILITY = (X)*100%/sec

Multiple ships do not accumulate, rather their own separate rolls are made.

• Can two planes (or more) be shot down at the same time?

Yes. Although the chances are very low and we did not include this in the original thread as the it would complicate things. But if you are interested, the chances for example of 2 Hosho Squads shooting down 2 Langley fighters at the same time are 0.147∩0.147 = 2%