Update 8.5 Patch Notes – World of Warships Blitz

At the end of October, we pushed out an update outside of our usual cycle to make a clear shift in the direction of the game. It was an update that focused on speeding up progression, improving rewards across battle modes, and making long-term goals feel more achievable.

Your feedback since then has made one thing clear: we're moving in the right direction, and we should keep moving toward a more rewarding and time-respectful experience—but we also need to find the perfect balance.

Update 8.5 continues those efforts. Progression remains faster and smoother than before, but we're making a small adjustment to battle rewards as we tune things toward that soft spot. Battle mode rewards are being adjusted from 35% to 25%, keeping the improvement meaningful while bringing it closer to a sustainable long-term level.

This update builds on the foundation we set in October, and you'll continue to see refinements like this as we shape the game into something more enjoyable, more rewarding, and more respectful of your time.

Here's what's new in 8.5.

Operations (New System)

Operations arrive in Update 8.5 as a new passive mission system. You'll see an Operations icon in the Port that opens a world map filled with missions tailored to your account.

Each mission has ship and Commander requirements, its own duration, and guaranteed rewards—with a chance of extra bonus rewards based on the tiers and levels of the ships and Commanders you assign. Missions refresh daily, and you also get a few free re-rolls each day if you want to try for better ones.

It's a new way to put your warships to work and earn steady rewards while you play (or even while you're offline).

Alternative Techlines: German Battleship "What If?" Line

Update 8.5 introduces a brand-new alternative Techline—a set of ships built around the "what if history had taken a different turn?" thought experiment.

When France capitulated in June 1940, the terms of surrender historically left the French fleet under Vichy control, with the understanding it would remain neutral. In this first alternate scenario, we explore a world in which the negotiations played out a bit differently.

Instead of mirroring the real-world armistice signed at Compiègne, the agreement—here called the "Armistice of Bordeaux"—added specific naval clauses. To secure leniency in occupation and maintain a measure of sovereignty, the Vichy government agreed to transfer its most modern capital ships to German hands.

The Kriegsmarine gave these ships new names, drawn from German folklore and made prominent by Wagner's "The Ring of the Nibelung" opera cycle.

Now, these ships serve as instruments of propaganda: a way to show that they carry a reborn purpose under German control. Their names are:

Tier V – Rheingold
Tier VI – Nibelheim
Tier VII – Weltenbrand
Tier VIII – Waltraute
Tier IX – Schwertleite
Tier X – Götterdämmerung

Wing Strike is the signature skill of the new German alternative Techline. While it's active, your main guns gain extra damage and AP shell penetration, letting your salvos hit noticeably harder during the window.

To gain the benefits of Wing Strike you need to... well, strike from the wing. Just fire at any targets that expose their broadsides. The angle doesn't need to be perfect, and the target can still be angling toward you or away from you—just not too much.

In simple terms:

If you're firing from the side of your target, Wing Strike takes effect.
If you’re firing straight at their bow or stern, it won't.

This keeps the gameplay more tactical: position well, time your salvos, and Wing Strike will reward you with a heavier hit.

It's the first step into expanding the "what if?" concept, and more alternative-history lines will follow in future updates.

Battle Statistics Filter

A big community request is finally here: you can now filter your Battle Statistics.
If you want to check how you've been doing with certain tiers, nations, or ship types, you can just tap the new filter button and narrow things down instantly.

Options you don't have any battles for will be greyed out, and whatever you pick stays active until you close the page. It's a small change, but it makes digging through your stats way smoother—and it's something you all asked for, so we're happy to bring it in.

Shipyard Exchange

Until now, the Shipyard's Resources section had a technical limit that stopped us from letting you trade resources more freely. With 8.5, that restriction is finally gone.

This means we can start using the Resource Exchange more often moving forward—including letting you trade larger quantities without restrictions whenever the feature appears in future events.

Themes: The Creative Inspirations Behind Each Month's Content

January: Trident & Thunder

January strikes with Trident & Thunder—a theme built around precision, speed, and the crackling energy of the open sea.
At the center of it all is Loyal, a British Tier VIII destroyer featuring in the Blitz Pass. She's sharp, nimble, and unafraid to cut straight through the storm. Loyal represents mastery through control—the idea that even in the midst of chaos, a skilled Captain can guide the ship with confidence and purpose.

January is about momentum, accuracy, and the thrill of commanding the sea with a steady hand.

February: Drag Racing

February roars in with Drag Racing—a full-throttle theme built on raw power, roaring engines, and the need for speed.
Headlining the month is Washington, a U.S. Tier VIII battleship in the Blitz Pass. Strong, bold, and built to push ahead, she captures the spirit of competition—a battleship that never backs off, never slows down, and always surges forward.

February is all about acceleration, impact, and the pulse-pounding rush of a race to the finish.

Collection Book Pages

Trident & Thunder

From the depths of the sea to the peaks of Olympus, the powers of storm and tide unite. Trident & Thunder channels the wrath of Poseidon and the might of Zeus, where every wave crashes with divine fury and every strike of lightning marks a god's command. This collection celebrates the legends of sea and sky—eternal forces that shape the fate of sailors and empires alike.

Featured Items

Title: Wielder of Power
Obtained from the Daily Login Rewards of January 2026.
Frame: The Abyssal Throne
Obtained from the Blitz Pass of January 2026.
Portrait: Poseidon Earthshaker
Obtained from the Blitz Pass of January 2026.
Camouflage: Imperium (Loyal)
Obtained from the Blitz Pass of January 2026.

Milestone Rewards

2 items collected – Premium time: 7 days
3 items collected – Epic title: Wielder of Lightning
4 items collected – exclusive frame: The Thunder Throne

The Trident & Thunder Collection Book page opens January 1, 2026, and will remain permanently available once unlocked.

Drag Racing

Drag Racing celebrates the spirit of pure speed—where precision, courage, and timing decide victory in the blink of an eye. Every contender pushes beyond limits, chasing glory down the straightaway with nothing but power, focus, and heart.

Featured Items

Title: Challenger
Obtained from the Daily Login Rewards of February 2026.
Frame: Drag Racing
Obtained from the Blitz Pass of February 2026.
Portrait: Anthony Darby
Obtained from the Blitz Pass of February 2026.
Camouflage: Drag Racer (Washington)
Obtained from the Blitz Pass of February 2026.

Milestone Rewards

2 items collected – Premium time: 7 days
3 items collected – Epic title: Apex Racer
4 items collected – exclusive frame: Number One

The Drag Racing Collection Book page opens February 1, 2026, and will remain permanently available once unlocked.

New Unique Camouflages

Drag Racer (Washington)
Imperium (Loyal)
Imperium (Theseus)
Odin's Wrath (Dalarna)
Aureate (Georg Hoffman)
War Paint (Niord)
Chrome Runner (Hughes)
Gilded Runner (Osborne)
The Righteous (Christopher)
The Wanted (Burrows)
Vercingetorix (Götterdämmerung's line)

Daily Login Rewards

Starting this season, we're updating how Daily Login Rewards work. From now on, each month's lineup will always include at least one Tier VI or higher Premium ship, together with her historical camouflage and an Epic Commander from the same nation.
This is part of our ongoing effort to make the game more rewarding and to give you something meaningful to look forward to every month.

Here's what's waiting across December, January, and February:

December

Italian Tier VII Premium cruiser Gorizia
Epic Commander Vincenzo Romano
Gorizia's historical camouflage and more

January

German Tier VII Premium battleship Scharnhorst
Epic Commander Alfred von Tirpitz
Scharnhorst's historical camouflage and more

February

European Tier VII Premium destroyer Błyskawica
Epic Commander Son of the Land
Błyskawica's historical camouflage and more

This new structure is here to stay, giving you something substantial to collect every month just for logging in.

New Warships

German AH Battleship Line (Tiers V–X)

Alternative-history battleships born from captured hulls and German ambition.

Rheingold – German Tier V Battleship
Rheingold sets the tone for the entire line: fast-firing, aggressive, and built to punish anyone who gives you an angle. She's the entry point to new German flavor. One that rewards bold positioning and clean timing.

Nibelheim – German Tier VI Battleship
Nibelheim builds on the rapid-reload identity, giving you more flexibility and bite in every engagement. She's reliable, responsive, and immediately comfortable to play.

Weltenbrand – German Tier VII Battleship
Weltenbrand sharpens the line's identity. She uses a lighter German battery with fewer barrels and a stronger, larger-caliber secondary suite. The refit shifts her toward high-impact counterattacks, giving you the tools to punish opponents who expose themselves at the wrong moment.

Waltraute – German Tier VIII Battleship
Waltraute brings the line into its intended rhythm. She keeps the fast, lightly armored French hull but swaps in a lighter German main battery built for quick follow-up shots. The refit turns her into a ship that excels at catching exposed broadsides and pressing the advantage the moment an opponent slips.

Schwertleite – German Tier IX Battleship
Schwertleite steps into late-game power levels with fast-cycling guns and big punishing volleys. She carries the famed French hull speed but now with a flanking edge that gives her a distinct identity at Tier IX.

Götterdämmerung – German Tier X Battleship
The pinnacle of the new line. Götterdämmerung delivers a devastating mix of reload speed, accuracy, and striking power. With Wing Strike active, her salvos feel explosive. Perfect for Captains who enjoy dictating the pace of battle and finishing fights with authority.

U.S. Destroyer Line (Tiers VII–X)

Fast, flexible destroyers built around SAP shells and Staggered Smoke.

Hughes – U.S. Tier VII Destroyer
Hughes introduces the line's signature mechanic: Staggered Smoke. You can toggle it on or off for perfect timing, letting you dictate visibility and pressure while your SAP shells chew through targets.

Osborne – U.S. Tier VIII Destroyer
Osborne ramps up the damage potential with even better SAP performance and the same flexible smoke system. She's ideal for Captains who like constant pressure and hit-and-run control.

Christopher – U.S. Tier IX Destroyer
Christopher adds reach and bite to the playstyle. She's a comfortable mid-to-long-range marksman, able to sustain pressure while keeping herself safe with Staggered Smoke windows.

Burrows – U.S. Tier X Destroyer
Fast, sharp, and relentless—Burrows is the final evolution of the line. She pairs high SAP output with the best Staggered Smoke usage in the branch, letting her maintain map pressure from the first minute to the last.

Premium Ships

Georg Hoffman – German Tier X Destroyer
An enhanced Schultz variant, Georg Hoffman brings Survive-and-Strike gameplay to Tier X with more HP, stronger AA, and access to Sonar III. Tough, dependable, and surprisingly punchy.

Washington – U.S. Tier VIII Battleship
Based on North Carolina, Washington arrives with improved performance and a refined skill setup. She's dependable, accurate, and steady—a battleship made for Captains who like clean broadsides and consistent results.

Niord – European Tier IX Battleship
Niord blends big-ship firepower with destroyer-style tools. With Pommern's guns up front and Karl XIV Johan's torpedoes at the sides, she offers multiple attack paths and a flexible, modern battleship feel.

Loyal – British Tier VIII Destroyer
Sister ship to Lightning, Loyal plays fast and fluid—now with Torpedo Reload added to her toolkit. A great pick for destroyer Captains who enjoy consistent pressure and flexible engagement options.

Theseus – British Tier VIII Aircraft Carrier
Theseus is a Colossus-class carrier designed for pure offensive play. Her offensive capabilities hit harder than you might expect, with high fire-starting chances and strong follow-up damage. Limited hangar size means every strike counts—and when it lands, it lands big.

Queen's Diamond – Japanese Tier X Battleship
This heavily armed, octahedron-shaped ship is used by the Borg Collective to transport the Borg Queen. Like all Borg vessels, it's heavily protected and capable of transwarp travel.

Voyager – U.S. Tier X Cruiser
Voyager is an Intrepid-class starship operated by Starfleet. Voyager is most famous for making an epic 7-year journey through the Delta Quadrant under the command of Captain Janeway.

Dalarna – European Supership Destroyer
A supercharged evolution of Halland. She has high skill ceilings and massive payoff—perfect for destroyer mains who want total map control.

Additional Information

Device Quality Grading
Your graphics settings will now auto-adjust based on your device's hardware when you log in after the update, making sure you're always running the best settings for smooth performance.
Silver Storage Rule Optimization
We've improved how extremely large sums of Silver are handled to prevent overflow issues. Surplus amounts of Silver will now be automatically converted into Silver Chests upon returning to Port.
Shop UI Improvements
General visual and usability improvements have been implemented to make navigation smoother and easier without changing how anything works.
Map Collision Improvements
We've added a new internal checker that helps us automatically spot islands that aren't behaving correctly. With this tool detecting problem areas across all maps, we'll be able to fix issues more quickly in upcoming updates, keeping navigation smoother and more consistent for everyone.
Ad Choice Box
You can now pick your preferred reward when watching a new ad that can be found in the Port. Each ad grants a choice box where you select the item you want, giving you more control over what you earn.
Video Bank
Every ad you watch now adds points to a new Video Bank in the Port. Collect 100 points to open a special crate containing a random reward. It's a simple way to earn extra rewards over time.

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue where the Mission tab showed persistent red-dot notification even when nothing was available to claim.
Several incorrect notification badges (red dots)—especially around Missions—have been fixed to prevent false alerts.
Resolved a Fleet Challenge bug where progress would appear to be 100% but wouldn't immediately register on the server, blocking the Final Rewards.
Corrected Connecticut's torpedo squadron count, which was displaying an incorrect value.
Fixed a problem where the Crawling Smoke Generator skill could fail to activate in specific conditions.

Ship Balancing

Skill Adjustments

Crawling Smoke Generator (CMW)
Duration reduced starting from level I to bring its uptime more in line with other concealment tools.
Air Defense Alert
Duration increased from 20 to 30 seconds, giving you a longer defensive window against incoming air attacks.
Spain Tech Tree – Burst Fire
Added a 20% dispersion reduction during burst fire for more reliable salvos.

U.S. Cruisers (Line 1)

Light improvements to comfort and performance:

Slight main battery range increases across the line
~5% increase to shell velocity for a more responsive gunnery feel
Affected ships include New Orleans, Black New Orleans, Wichita, Baltimore, Rochester, Anchorage, Tulsa, Des Moines, Oregon City, Salem

European Destroyers

Gdańsk

Main battery damage slightly reduced (from 390 to 370)
Reload time increased from 3.8 to 4.3 seconds

Halland: HP increased for better survivability (from 15,500 to 17,100)

Defence: Reload time reduced from 10 to 8.4 seconds

Yodo: Increased AA from Level 3 to Level 4.

Japanese Cruisers

Ibuki: Torpedo reload improved from 67.5 to 58 seconds

Zaō / Black Zaō: Torpedo reload improved from 78.5 to 65 seconds

IP Collaborations

Star Trek – New Content!

Star Trek returns with brand-new content! Iconic ships and Commanders are warping back into the fight, joined by fresh rewards and surprises to explore. Whether you're a veteran of the stars or setting out on your first voyage, this comeback brings more ways than ever to boldly go where no Captain has gone before.

What's Next

With 8.5 setting the pace for smoother progression and more player-friendly systems, we also want to share a glimpse of what we're working on next.

Premium Ship Upgrade System

A lot of older Premium ships have been overshadowed by newer releases, and we want to change that. We're exploring a new upgrade system designed specifically for Premium ships—something that gives each one a new edge, a clearer identity, and a reason to bring them back into your regular rotation.

Camouflage: Visual vs. Stats

We're also planning a split between visual camouflages and stat bonuses.
This would let you use the look you love while keeping the stats you want—for example, wearing a unique skin while still getting the bonuses of the historical camouflage. It's a highly requested improvement, and we're excited to explore it.

Turbo Strike V2

Turbo Strike is getting a second look. We want the mode to feel more unique, clearer in its goals, and friendlier for all skill levels. Turbo Strike V2 aims to keep the fun and intensity while polishing the overall experience, so it plays better every time you queue into it.

Please note: These are long-term projects, and while development is underway, they will not roll out in the very next update.

More on the Horizon

These are just the major points we can talk about today. More improvements, features, and experiments are already in motion, and we're looking forward to sharing them as they get closer.

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