Ship

"Ships", also referred as "kantai musume" or just "kanmusu" ("ship girls" in Japanese), or simply "girls", are the core of the game. They each are anthropomorphic representations of real World War II warships, with some of their design and personality being derivated from real elements.

• There are 322 ships (833 including all remodels, + 2 NPC) as of the 2026/01/28 update.

They come in various Types, Classes, Remodels, and degrees of Rarity, with each having various set of Stats and Mechanics.

• The majority of ships ingame comes from the "Imperial Japanese Navy" (IJN), with some other ships from either the "Imperial Japanese Army" (IJA), or other nations.

The ways to acquire ships are:

• Construction (crafting),
  • Large Ship Construction (LSC),
• Combat node Drops,
• Quests rewards.

Ship Type Identification

Those tabs correspond to the ones seen in the Composition menu.

• See here for a complete description of the types names in the game.

Ships included in this tab: "Fast Battleships" (FBB), "Battleships" (BB), "Aviation Battleships" (BBV).

Type		Abbreviation		Gameplay Notes	Base Stats
戦艦	Battleships	戦	BB	Battleships (BB) notably utilize Large Caliber Main Guns, Recon Seaplane Recons, and AP Shells, having heavy firepower and armor , but lacking torpedo & ASW stats. They: Are required to unlock the "Second Shelling Phase". Must be "Fast+" to be placed in the Escort of a Combined Fleet.	Speed Group Slow B Long Range
	Fast Battleships		FBB	Fast Battleships (FBB) are BB with higher speed. They: Usually have more permissive Routings, Can be placed in the Escort of a Combined Fleet regardless of their speed.	Speed Group Fast B2 Long Range
航空戦艦	Aviation Battleships	航戦	BBV	Aviation Battleships (BBV) are BB capable of using Bomber Seaplane Bombers and Seaplane Fighters. They: Can participate in Aerial Combat, Have some ASW capacities.	Speed Group Slow B Long Range

• "BC" is supposedly for "Battle Cruisers" (real code is CC), only seen in the Composition menu's filtering tabs, mostly referring to the Kongou-class.

Ships included in this tab: "Standard Aircraft Carriers" (CV), "Armored Aircraft Carriers" (CVB), and "Light Aircraft Carriers" (CVL).

Type		Abbreviation		Gameplay Notes	Base Stats
正規空母	Standard Aircraft Carriers	空母	CV	Standard Aircraft Carriers (CV) notably utilize Dive Bombers, Torpedo Bombers, Fighters, required to take part in both Aerial Combat and regular Combat, with their "plane slot" stat being the most important. They: Must equip / bombers to be able to carry any attack. Must not be more than Shouha Lightly Damaged (小破) in order to attack. Cannot attack during Night Battle without the right equipment.	Speed Group Fast B2 Short Range
装甲空母	Armored Aircraft Carriers	装母	CVB	Armored Carriers (CVB) are CV with the exceptions of being able to launch planes even when being ChuuhaModerately Damaged (中破).	Speed Group Fast B2 Short Range
軽空母	Light Carriers	軽母	CVL	Light Carriers (CVL) are weaker CV, with usually more permissive Routings. They are capable of attacking submarines.	Speed Group Slow B Short Range

• Light Aircraft Carriers & Standard Aircraft Carriers are termed 正規空母, or Fleet Carriers, to distinguish them from "Escort Carriers" or other carrier types. This term most often refers only to Standard Aircraft Carriers.

Sub-Type	Abbreviation	Gameplay Notes
Escort Carriers	CVE	Escort Carriers (CVE) are CVL with a base ASW stat. They are: Able to be placed in the main fleet of a Transport Combined Fleet, Required for some Expeditions' requirements, Able to perform Opening ASW, as other CVL cannot reach enough ASW to trigger them.
Night Carriers	CVN	Night Carriers (CVN) are carriers capable of Carrier Night Air Attacks without needing a NOAP .

Ships included in this tab: "Heavy Cruiser" (CA) and "Aviation Cruiser" (CAV).

Type		Abbreviation		Gameplay Notes	Base Stats
重巡洋艦	Heavy Cruisers	重巡	CA	Heavy Cruisers (CA) are relatively flexible, utilizing Medium Caliber Main Guns, Torpedoes, and Recon Seaplane Recons, and having strong firepower , torpedo , and "night attack power " stats, but no ASW.	Speed Group Fast B2 Medium Range
航空巡洋艦	Aviation Cruisers	航巡	CAV	Aviation Cruisers (CAV) are CA capable of using Bomber Seaplane Bombers and Seaplane Fighters. They: Can participate in Aerial Combat, Have some ASW capacities.	Speed Group Fast A Medium Range

Ships included in this tab: "Light Cruisers" (CL), "Torpedo Cruiser" (CLT), and "Training Cruiser" (CT).

Type		Abbreviation		Gameplay Notes	Base Stats
軽巡洋艦	Light Cruisers	軽巡	CL	Light Cruisers (CL) are very flexible, utilizing Medium Caliber Main Guns, Torpedoes, Recon Seaplane Recons, and ASW equipment, and having strong torpedo , ASW , and "night attack power " stats.	Speed Group Fast B2 Medium Range
重雷装巡洋艦	Torpedo Cruisers	雷巡	CLT	Torpedo Cruisers (CLT) have a very high torpedo stat, having the strongest "night attack power " in the game. They: Can equip Minisub Midget Submarines and carry out Opening Torpedo Salvo, Should utilize Torpedoes or Secondary Guns.	Speed Group Fast B2 Medium Range
練習巡洋艦	Training Cruisers	練巡	CT	Training Cruisers (CT) behave similarly to Light Cruisers, with the ability to increase exp earned from Exercises. The bonus depends on their position and number in the fleet as well as their level. See below for bonus values: CT Experience Bonus: [math]\displaystyle{ \text{Mod}_\text{CT} }[/math] Fleet Affected Ships CT Level Notes 1-9 10-29 30-59 60-99 100+ The flagship's level if it is a CT, highest leveled CT otherwise. 1 Katori-class non-flagship All 1.030 1.050 1.070 1.100 1.150 Asahi not present 2 Katori-class non-flagship 1.040 1.060 1.080 1.120 1.175 1 Katori-class flagship 1.050 1.080 1.120 1.150 1.200 1 Katori-class flagship + 1 Katori-class 1.100 1.130 1.160 1.200 1.250 1 CT non-flagship All 1 Asahi present, but not counted as a CT 2 CT non-flagship 1.030 1.050 1.070 1.100 1.150 3 CT non-flagship 1.040 1.060 1.080 1.120 1.175 Asahi flagship All surface 0.630 0.648 0.672 0.690 0.720 Asahi present [1][2] SS(V) 1.365 1.404 1.456 1.495 1.560 Katori-class flagship + 1/2CT All surface 1.103 1.134 1.176 1.208 1.260 SS(V) 1.523 1.566 1.624 1.668 1.740 Asahi flagship + 2CT All surface 1.155 1.187 1.218 1.260 1.313 SS(V) 1.595 1.639 1.682 1.740 1.813 CT list: Asahi (Base), Katori/Kai , Kashima/Kai Some level intervals have not been sampled yet. Bug: when no CT is flagship, Asahi bonuses do not work.	Speed Group Slow B Medium Range

Ships included in this tab: "Destroyers" (DD).

Type		Abbreviation		Gameplay Notes	Base Stats
駆逐艦	Destroyers	駆逐	DD	Destroyers (DD) are very versatile, utilizing Small Caliber Main Guns, Torpedoes, and ASW equipment, and having high torpedo , ASW , and evasion , and good "night attack power " stats, to the detriment of firepower and armor. They: Have lower resource consumption, Very permissive Routings. Have access to special Night Cut-Ins.	Speed Group Fast B2 Short Range

Ships included in this tab: "Coastal Defense Ships" (DE).

Type		Abbreviation		Gameplay Notes	Base Stats
海防艦	Coastal Defense Ships	海防	DE	Coastal Defense Ships (DE) are weak ships with high ASW stat, utilizing ASW equipment. They: Can perform special OASW with lower ASW stat, Provide HP Modernization, Luck Modernization, or ASW Modernization, Cannot equip Engine Improvements, and so cannot be Speed Modded.	Slow Speed Short Range

• In Kancolle, "Coastal Defense Ships" are labeled as "DE", and real "Destroyers Escort" as DD instead of DE.

Ships included in this tab: "Submarines" (SS) and "Submarine Aircraft Carriers" (SSV).

Type		Abbreviation		Gameplay Notes	Base Stats
潜水艦	Submarines	潜	SS	Submarines (SS) have high torpedo stats, and are limited to the Opening Torpedo Salvo, the Closing Torpedo Salvo, and Night Battle. They: Are only vulnerable to ASW only. Utilize Sub Submarine Torpedoes and Submarine Equipment. Can inately trigger Opening Torpedo Salvos after reaching level 10. Have access to special Night Cut-Ins.	Speed Group Slow C Short Range
潜水空母	Submarine Aircraft Carriers	潜母	SSV	Submarine Aircraft Carriers (SSV), are SS that can equip Recon/Bomber/ seaplanes.	Speed Group Slow C Short Range

Ships included in this tab: "Seaplane Tenders" (AV), "Fleet Oilers" (AO), "Submarine Tenders" (AS), "Amphibious Assault Ships" (LHA), "Repair Ships" (AR).

Type		Abbreviation		Gameplay Notes	Base Stats
水上機母艦	Seaplane Tenders	水母	AV	Seaplane Tenders (AV) notably utilize Recon/Bomber/ seaplane Recons/Bombers/Fighters, as well as some Main Guns and Minisub Midget Submarines, participating in most Combat stages, given the correct setup. They can also be used for an Anti-Installation role, as they can carry most Anti-Ground Equipment.	Speed Group Fast C Short Range
補給艦	Fleet Oilers	補給	AO	Fleet Oilers (AO) can notably refuel ships mid-sortie using Underway Replenishment. They can also carry various support equipment, which can be useful for Resource Farming.	Speed Group Slow B Short Range
潜水母艦	Submarine Tenders	潜母艦	AS	Submarine Tenders (AS) are very weak, mostly used for certain Routings They can perform a powerful but limited special attack with SS(V).	Speed Group Slow B Medium Range
揚陸艦	Amphibious Assault Ships	揚陸	LHA	Amphibious Assault Ships (LHA) are mostly used for an Anti-Installation role, notably utilizing "Landing Equipment".	Speed Group Slow B Short Range
工作艦	Repair Ships	工	AR	Repair Ships (AR) have the ability to perform "Anchorage Repairs" outside of sorties, when equipped with Ship Repair Facility, synergizing when several AR are used. On Kai, when equipped with Ship Repair Facility, they gain the ability to perform "Emergency Anchorage Repairs" during sorties on certain nodes.	Speed Group Slow C Short Range

Notes

• Some ships have unic "type names", being derivated from other regular types. Those names usually do not have any effect gameplay-wise.
• Even so several types of ships are very similar (FBB/BB/BBV, CV/CVL, CA/CAV, & CL/CLT/CT), they nonetheless are different types than can not always be interchanged.
  • So far, the following types are fully interchangeable regarding Routing, Expeditions, and Quests requirement:
    • CV & CVB,
    • SS & SSV.
• Some ships have remodels shifting their type, their class, and/or their name, see below for more details.

Ship Availability

The exhaustive list on how to obtain ships.

Notes

• Some ships are also rewarded in Quests.
• Several ships are currently dropable for a limited time, see here.
• Some ships may become buildable or droppable in future updates.

Ship Stats & Remodels

Each ship has a given set of stats, affecting its combat behaviors. Those stats can be modified via Modernization, Leveling (including Marriage), Remodeling, or by simply equipping said ship.

• See here for more details.

Most ship remodels have 改 (Kai) added in their name, which stands for Modified, Revised, Improved, or Altered in Japanese. For the 2nd remodel, ニ (Ni), 2 or Second in Japanese can be added.

• Some ships can also have variations depending on their nationality, for special remodels, or may even be renamed after a remodel.
• This naming scheme can also be found on some equipment.
• In some situations, "改" (Kai) is called "改一" (Kai Ichi) for "Remodel 1". This is notably the case for some submarine types.

Remodel names

Nation	1st Remodel	2nd Remodel	3rd Remodel	4th Remodel
Japanese	改	改二	改三	改四
Japanese (romaji)	Kai	Kai Ni	Kai San	Kai Yon
Italian	改	Due
German	改	Zwei	Drei
French	改	Deux
Rusian	改	Dva
English	改	Mk.II
Sweedish	改	Andra

In real life, Kai is translated as Mk.II (1st remodel / 2nd model), Kai Ni as Mk.III (2nd remodel / 3rd model), and so on.

Special names

Kanji	Romaji	Ships	Meaning/Notes
甲	A (Kō)	Chitose A, Chiyoda A, Nisshin A	Reference to AV cappable of carrying Type A Kouhyouteki.
		Shoukaku Kai Ni A, Zuikaku Kai Ni A	Reference to "Type-A destroyers", having a high-seas escorting role
乙	B (Otsu)	Kasumi Kai Ni B, Isokaze B Kai, Hamakaze B Kai, Yahagi Kai Ni B, Zuihou Kai Ni B, Haruna Kai Ni B	Reference to "Type-B destroyers", having an AA escorting role
丙	C (Hei)	Kongou Kai Ni C, Hiei Kai Ni C, Haruna Kai Ni C, Kirishima Kai Ni C	Reference to "Type-C destroyers", having advance frontline cabilities
丁	D (Tei)	Asashio Kai Ni D, Yamakaze Kai Ni D, Urakaze D Kai, Tanikaze D Kai, Amagiri Kai Ni D, Kiyoshimo Kai Ni D Yuubari Kai Ni D, Kuma Kai Ni D	Reference to "Type-D destroyers", having an ASW escorting role
戊	E (Bo)	Akagi Kai Ni E, Kaga Kai Ni E, Ryuuhou Kai Ni E	Night carriers
航	Kō	Chitose Kou/Kai/Ni, Chiyoda Kou/Kai/Ni, Suzuya Kou Kai Ni, Kumano Kou Kai Ni	Carrier remodel of non-carrier ships, Kō being the abbreviation used for "CV".
特	Toku	Yuubari Kai Ni Toku, Mogami Kai Ni Toku, Mikuma Kai Ni Toku	Reference to the Toku Daihatsu Landing Craft, the bigger Daihatsu Landing Craft.
母	Bo	Kamoi Kai Bo	Kamoi's "flying boat carrier" remodel
護	Go	Kaga Kai Ni Go	Kaga's "escort carrier" remodel, based on JS Kaga
重	Jū	Yamato Kai Ni Juu	Yamato's "Heavy" remodel
戦	Sen	Houshou Kai Ni Sen	Houshou's "power projection carrier" remodel
-	Mod.2	Nevada Kai Mod.2, Saratoga Mk.II Mod.2, Fletcher Kai Mod.2	American's 2nd variant
-	Nuovo	Conte di Cavour Nuovo	Conte di Cavour's "New" remodel

Renamed girls

"Expatriation" Original name New name Hibiki Verniy Yukikaze Dan Yang Shimushu EK-31 Tsushima Lin An Yashiro Cheng An U-511 Ro-500 C.Cappellini UIT-24 I-503 Luigi Torelli UIT-25 I-504 Amphion Perth Langley La Fayette Brooklyn O'Higgins Phoenix General Belgrano Heywood L. Edwards JDS Ariake Richard P. Leary JDS Yuugure Gangut Oktyabrskaya Revolyutsiya Volochaevets Chiryou Maru Souya (Maru) Littorio Italia

Type change Original name New name Scharnhorst Shinyou Kasuga Maru Taiyou Yawata Maru Unyou Izumo Maru Hiyou Kashiwara Maru Junyou Tsurugizaki Shouhou Takasaki Zuihou Taigei Ryuuhou Roma Aquila

Some of those names are not directly mentioned in the game, but are sometimes used by the Devs.

• Shinshuu Maru also beared other names (R1, GL, MT, Ryujo Maru) for dissuasive reasons.

Ship Rarity

In the game, ship cards will change depending on the rarity. The backgrounds, the top left "Ship Type", and the remodel petal are affected:

Background	Rarity	Icon Petals	Flower & Fog Color	Notes
	Very Common (blue)	"Iron cross"	N/A
	Common (light blue)		N/A
	Uncommon (cyan)		Light Blue
	Rare (silver)	"12 petals"	White
	Very Rare (gold)		Gold
	Holo (rainbow)	"16 Petals"	Cyan
	S Holo (shiny rainbow)	"Rising Sun Cross"
	SS Holo (shiny rainbow + particles)		Red Gold for USN ships	The "particles" depend on the nationality: Sakura petals for Japanese ships Stars for USN ships Pollens for French ships

Exceptions:

• Souya, Ryuuhou, Taiyou, and Unyou do not have any "remodel Flower & Fog".
• Despite being "S Holo", Bismarck Kai has a gold Flower & Fog, and Bismarck Drei has a red Flower & Fog.

Notes

• Card rarity does not perfectly match the real API rarity, which is irrelevant in all cases outside of ship Construction & Drops.
  • See here for the full list of ship cards ranked by card and API rarity.
  • When sinking a ship, the displayed background will be the one corresponding to its API rarity and not its actual card background.

See Also

For more comprehensive lists, see:

• Ship List
• Ship List (Image)
• Ships required for quests
• Ships improvement helpers
• Ship Classes
• Drop List
• Ship/Availability
• Ship/Rarity
• NPC
• Enemy ships (Abyssals)