Aiming in World of Warships is not point-and-shoot. Your shells take several seconds to travel to the target, you’re both moving, and your guns spread shells across an area rather than landing in a single spot. This guide covers everything you need to land consistent hits: leading targets, reading flight time, dispersion, sigma, and how to get citadel strikes.
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Leading moving targets
The most important aiming skill. Your shells take 3–10+ seconds to reach their target depending on range and shell velocity. During that time, the target keeps moving. You must aim ahead of where the ship is now to where it will be when your shells arrive.
How much to lead: Hold Alt while aiming to display the shell flight time (shown as the left value beneath your crosshair). That number tells you exactly how many seconds your shells are in the air. Multiply the target’s speed by flight time and aim that far ahead.
A simpler rule of thumb: at 12 km against a target moving across your bow at full speed, lead by roughly 2–3 ship lengths. At 18 km, lead by 4–5 lengths. Fast targets (destroyers, French ships) need more lead; turning or decelerating targets need less.
Reading target movement: Watch the smokestack smoke direction. Smoke curving toward the stern means the ship is moving forward — aim ahead. The smoke is one of the clearest visual indicators of movement direction when you can’t read the exact speed.
Your own movement doesn’t affect aim: Your ship’s own speed and heading have no impact on shell travel path. Aim the same whether stationary or maneuvering.
Shell flight time display
Press Alt during battle to see three values beneath your crosshair. The leftmost is the shell flight time in seconds to your current aiming point. This is the definitive tool for calculating lead — no estimation required if you use it.
You can also enable Full Alternative Battle Interface in Settings so the flight time displays permanently without having to hold Alt.
Different ammunition types can have different shell velocities — check this in port. AP and HE from the same gun often fly at different speeds, which changes the required lead if you switch mid-engagement.
Dispersion: why your shells scatter
Your shells don’t all land at the exact aim point. They spread across a roughly elliptical area called the dispersion ellipse. The size of this ellipse determines how spread your shots are.
Key facts about dispersion:
- The displayed dispersion value in port is the horizontal width of the ellipse at maximum range — at closer ranges the ellipse is smaller
- Each turret generates its own independent dispersion ellipse. Firing all guns at once (Backspace) overlaps multiple ellipses centred on your aim point
- Shell distribution follows a normal curve — more shells cluster toward the centre of the ellipse, fewer at the edges
- Dispersion is identical for AP and HE shells from the same gun
Reducing dispersion: The Aiming Systems Modification 1 upgrade reduces dispersion ellipse area by 7%. Engaging targets at closer range naturally reduces the ellipse size. Pressing X to lock a target slightly improves dispersion compared to not having a target locked.
Sigma: what it actually means
Sigma describes how tightly shells cluster toward the centre of the dispersion ellipse. Higher sigma = more shells landing near where you aimed, fewer shells at the edges.
- Default sigma for most destroyers, submarines, and cruisers: 2.0
- Yamato: 2.1 — noticeably tighter grouping than average battleships
- Stalingrad (Soviet heavy cruiser): 2.65 — the best sigma in the game
- Some battleships have sigma as low as 1.4–1.5, making hits at range more luck-dependent
A ship with high sigma and wide dispersion still lands more shells in the centre than a ship with low sigma and narrow dispersion. They measure different things: dispersion is the size of the bullet impact zone, sigma is the probability distribution within it.
Sigma cannot be upgraded. It is fixed per ship. Factor it into your choice of engagement range — low-sigma ships are less penalised at closer range where the ellipse physically shrinks.
Citadel hits
The citadel is the armoured box protecting a ship’s engine rooms, magazines, and vital machinery. A citadel hit deals 100% of the shell’s listed damage — the maximum possible outcome for any AP hit and the highest single-shot damage in the game.
Where is the citadel?
- Usually in the midship section, roughly beneath the funnels and between the forward and rear turrets
- Typically positioned at or just below the waterline — it’s not directly visible on most ships
- Battleships and cruisers have heavily fortified citadels; destroyers have no conventional citadel
The exact position varies by ship. Check the port detail view or look up individual ships on the Wargaming wiki for precise citadel locations.
How to hit the citadel
Aim at the waterline on a broadside target. Your shell needs to:
- Have enough penetration to pass through the belt armour
- Hit within the citadel’s vertical extent
- Penetrate the citadel armour itself
Aim your crosshair at the hull just above the waterline when an enemy ship is broadside. This puts shells on the optimal path to pass through the belt and into the citadel.
AP is required. HE shells can technically hit citadels on rare occasions but lack the penetration needed reliably. Use AP.
Broadsides only. A ship angled toward you has dramatically thicker effective armour at the waterline — shells ricochet or fail to penetrate. Citadel attempts on angled targets are a waste of AP. Wait for the target to show their side.
Plunging fire
At very long range, shells follow a steep downward arc and can hit the thin deck armour directly rather than the belt. This allows citadel hits through the top of the ship rather than the side — effective against ships with weak deck armour at extreme range. Battleships like Vermont and Yamato firing at 18–20 km sometimes land citadels via plunging fire even against a slightly angled target. Hard to control deliberately; treat it as a bonus at maximum range.
Citadel matchups by class
Battleship shooting at cruisers: AP at almost any mid-range broadside angle produces citadels. Large-calibre AP shells easily penetrate cruiser belt armour. The most reliable citadel scenario in the game.
Cruiser shooting at cruisers: Reliable at close to mid-range against broadside targets. Your AP is calibrated for this match-up.
Cruiser shooting at battleships: Possible at close range against specific battleships with exposed citadels (Mikasa, older designs), but most modern high-tier battleships are specifically built to deny cruiser citadels. Don’t expect consistent results.
Destroyer shooting at anything: Destroyers lack the shell calibre to reliably penetrate belt armour. Focus on fires and torpedo damage rather than citadel attempts — use HE and torpedoes as your primary weapons.
AP penetration and bounce angles
AP shells ricochet when the angle of impact is too steep (shell arriving nearly parallel to the armour face). The standard ricochet angles:
- 90°–60° from perpendicular: guaranteed ricochet
- 60°–45°: chance to ricochet
- Less than 45°: no ricochet
This is why angling your ship works defensively: you increase the ricochet chance for incoming shells. And why you should only fire AP at targets showing decent broadside — anything more than ~45° angle of presentation will start causing your shells to bounce off.
Over-penetration is the other failure mode: shells pass completely through thin targets (destroyers, destroyer-calibre hits on superstructures) without detonating fully, dealing only 10% of maximum damage. This is why HE is generally better than AP against destroyers.
Practical aiming under fire
- Zoom in with Shift for better precision at range — crosshair sway reduces when zoomed
- Lock your target with X — slightly improves dispersion and displays shell flight time updates dynamically
- Use the shell camera to watch where your previous salvo landed, then adjust aim for the next — see how to follow shells
- Adjust for angling — if a target angled bow-on after you fired, your next AP salvo will likely bounce; switch to HE immediately
- Close range when possible — dispersion ellipse shrinks drastically at 8–10 km vs 18–20 km, dramatically improving effective accuracy
How do I lead targets in World of Warships?
Aim ahead of where the target is now, to where it will be when your shells arrive. Hold Alt to display shell flight time beneath your crosshair. Lead the target by however many seconds of movement the flight time shows. At 12 km against a fast-moving cruiser crossing your bow, roughly 2–3 ship lengths of lead is the starting point.
What is sigma in World of Warships?
Sigma is the accuracy distribution stat. Higher sigma means more shells cluster toward the centre of the dispersion ellipse. Most ships use 2.0 sigma; high-accuracy ships like Yamato (2.1) and Stalingrad (2.65) are notably more consistent. Sigma cannot be upgraded — it’s fixed per ship.
How do you get citadel hits in World of Warships?
Use AP shells, aim at the waterline of a broadside target, and ensure your guns have enough calibre to penetrate the belt armour. The citadel is located midship below the waterline. Angled targets will ricochet your shells — wait for the enemy to show their side. See the full citadel section above for per-class matchup details. More detail in the dedicated citadel hits guide.
Why do my shells scatter so much in World of Warships?
Dispersion is built into the game. At maximum range, even high-accuracy ships spread shells across a large area. Close the range — dispersion ellipse size shrinks significantly as you get closer, making every shot more likely to land near your aim point. Getting from 18 km to 12 km can double your effective accuracy for a given ship.