World of Warships prepares its 11th Anniversary with Kurama, Marlborough B and new Operations

World of Warships is preparing to celebrate its 11th Anniversary with one of its busiest updates of 2026. Update 15.8 will bring back Festive Rewards—better known to veteran players as Snowflakes—alongside a free birthday gift, an anniversary Port, a dedicated reward calendar, the Early Access debut of Japanese supercruiser Kurama and new collection routes leading to Spanish unique Commander Pascual Cervera y Topete and Soviet battleship Sovetskaya Rossiya.

The update will also launch a Black Friday-themed Dockyard featuring Marlborough B and introduce three Operations designed specifically for lower-tier ships. These PvE scenarios are intended to help new Captains learn essential mechanics while giving established players a reason to return to ships that rarely fit into the existing Operations rotation.

Wargaming has presented Update 15.8 as the celebration of 11 years since World of Warships launched on September 17, 2015. However, most of the detailed mechanics currently come from development and Public Test information. Exact prices, mission requirements and reward values may still be adjusted before the update reaches the live servers.

Snowflakes turn fleet size into anniversary currency

Festive Rewards remain the central system behind the Anniversary event. Eligible Tier V–X ships will carry a Snowflake that can be removed by completing a Base XP objective. Each ship can provide its reward once during the event, meaning that the total earning potential is directly connected to the number of qualifying vessels in a player’s Port.

Under the current development plan, the Base XP requirement and Festive Token reward increase with the ship’s Tier:

• Tier V requires 200 Base XP and awards 25 Festive Tokens.
• Tier VI requires 250 Base XP and awards 35 Festive Tokens.
• Tier VII requires 300 Base XP and awards 50 Festive Tokens.
• Tier VIII requires 400 Base XP and awards 75 Festive Tokens.
• Tier IX requires 500 Base XP and awards 100 Festive Tokens.
• Tier X requires 600 Base XP and awards 125 Festive Tokens.
• Superships require 600 Base XP but award 200 Steel instead of Tokens.

This is a significant distinction for anyone planning to obtain Kurama. Existing superships contribute Steel rather than Festive Tokens, so they do not directly help players reach the Early Access supercruiser’s Token requirement.

The system also includes a secondary mission requiring 1,000 Base XP. Completing it allows players to trigger additional Snowflakes on other eligible ships without taking each one into battle individually. The number of additional rewards depends on the size of the player’s Port, rising from one bonus for collections containing fewer than 25 ships to seven for collections of at least 600.

That system reduces the repetitive workload for long-term players with exceptionally large fleets. It does not remove the advantage created by fleet size: collectors will still earn considerably more currency because they own more eligible ships. The anniversary remains partly a retrospective reward for years of account progression rather than a level playing field between new and established Captains.

Kurama headlines the Festive Token exchange

The principal ship reward is Kurama, a new Japanese supercruiser entering Early Access. Development information currently places its price at 11,000 Festive Tokens.

That is a substantial target. A player relying exclusively on Tier X ships would need to activate 88 Snowflakes to reach 11,000 Tokens, while a collection concentrated around lower Tiers would require considerably more. Mixed fleets will therefore need to calculate their expected total before deciding whether Kurama is realistic.

Early Access should also be understood correctly. Kurama is not being presented as an anniversary-exclusive Premium ship. It is a supership being made available ahead of its broader release route. Spending 11,000 Tokens gives players earlier access, but the final live article should clarify when and how it will become obtainable after the event.

That makes Kurama a less automatic choice than a genuinely exclusive vessel. Players who value immediate access may consider it the clear headline reward. Others may gain more permanent account value from Supercontainers, collection containers, enemy destruction effects or other items available through the anniversary exchange.

The correct decision depends on a player’s Port and priorities. A large account already containing most obtainable ships may value Kurama’s novelty. A developing account could benefit more from spreading its Tokens across resources and collection progress.

Pascual Cervera receives a more accessible collection route

The Anniversary event will allow Festive Tokens to be exchanged for standard Battle of Santiago de Cuba containers. Each standard container provides a guaranteed element for the historical collection associated with Spanish unique Commander Pascual Cervera y Topete.

Pascual Cervera is not technically being introduced by Update 15.8. He arrived as part of Update 15.7 and can already be obtained by completing the 60-element Battle of Santiago de Cuba collection. Premium collection containers are currently one of its acquisition routes, while those containers also have a possibility of dropping Tier IX Spanish Premium battleship Triunfante.

What changes during the Anniversary is the availability of standard collection containers for Festive Tokens. This gives players a gameplay-based route toward collection completion rather than leaving progress tied entirely to Premium containers or other paid offers.

Pascual Cervera is Spain’s first unique Commander in World of Warships. Wargaming states that he includes enhanced skills and two talents activated by completing specific actions in battle. That makes him mechanically different from a standard historical or event Commander with only a distinctive name and portrait.

For players building around Spanish cruisers or Triunfante, the Commander could be a more meaningful long-term reward than an Early Access supership. The difficulty is that both goals compete for the same anniversary currency. Spending heavily on Battle of Santiago containers reduces the Tokens available for Kurama and the Soviet collection.

Before exchanging Tokens, players should inspect their existing Battle of Santiago collection progress and account for duplicate elements. The final exchange price per container and duplication rules will determine the real cost of completing the remaining stages.

Red Steel Titan leads to Sovetskaya Rossiya

A second 60-element collection, Red Steel Titan, will offer Soviet Tier IX Premium battleship Sovetskaya Rossiya as its completion reward.

Sovetskaya Rossiya is based on the fourth vessel of the historical Sovetsky Soyuz class. None of those battleships were completed, but their planned construction gives the new Premium a more concrete historical foundation than many of the speculative high-tier designs found elsewhere in the game.

The current anniversary plans include Red Steel Titan collection containers among the rewards connected to Festive Tokens. The free birthday package is also expected to contain three Red Steel Titan Premium containers, giving players an initial amount of collection progress before they decide whether to invest additional currency.

This collection presents a different value proposition from Kurama. Sovetskaya Rossiya is a Tier IX Premium ship rather than a supership in temporary Early Access. Premium status normally makes Tier IX vessels useful for Credit earning and Commander training, while avoiding the high service costs associated with supership gameplay.

That does not automatically make the Soviet battleship the better choice. Completing a 60-element collection can require a considerable number of containers, particularly if duplicates become frequent. Players should wait for the final container prices and exchange ratios before assuming that the ship will be cheaper than Kurama.

The key advantage is permanence. Collection progress can potentially retain value even if the ship is not completed immediately, although Wargaming must confirm whether Red Steel Titan will remain obtainable after Update 15.8 or become temporarily unavailable when the Anniversary ends.

The free birthday gift includes Premium time and cosmetics

After completing the first battle of Update 15.8, players are expected to become eligible for a special birthday gift in the Armory. According to the current development information, the package contains:

• The Happy Blastday enemy destruction effect.
• The Blast & Bash permanent camouflage.
• Three Battle of Santiago de Cuba containers.
• Three Red Steel Titan Premium containers.
• 11 days of Warships Premium Account.

This is separate from the rewards earned by removing Snowflakes. Players should therefore claim the Armory gift even if they do not intend to complete the larger anniversary grind.

The package provides an introduction to both featured collections, but six containers will not be enough to finish either 60-element set. Its primary practical value comes from the 11 days of Premium Account, while the collection elements reduce the amount of additional investment required later.

Enemy destruction effects are also becoming a more prominent cosmetic category. Happy Blastday is included in the free gift, while the Press F destruction effect is expected to cost 2,500 Festive Tokens. Other effects will appear through the anniversary login calendar and dedicated containers.

These effects alter the presentation of destroying an enemy ship without changing its combat outcome. Their value is consequently subjective, and players pursuing gameplay rewards should consider them lower priority than ships, Steel or collection progress.

Long-term Captains receive expanded Honorable Service rewards

The Anniversary update also expands the Honorable Service system, which rewards players on the anniversary of their first battle, provided they have completed at least 25 battles.

The planned 11-year reward contains:

• The For Meritorious Service patch.
• Three weeks of Warships Premium Account.
• Five Legendary economic bonuses of each type.
• 12 Supercontainers.
• 15 White permanent camouflages.
• A 50% discount coupon.

This should not be confused with a universal login package. It is specifically for accounts reaching 11 years of service and is tied to the anniversary date of the player’s first battle. Eligible players whose personal anniversary falls during the opening days of Update 15.8 may need to wait up to a week for delivery.

The structure is generous, but naturally benefits the oldest accounts. New players receive the general birthday gift and event rewards, while the most extensive Honorable Service package recognizes continuous account history.

Maritime Parade and the Daily Calendar establish the celebration

Update 15.8 will introduce the Maritime Parade Port, with ships and background scenes decorated for the Anniversary. The 11 Years of Glory commemorative flag will provide another permanent record of the event.

September’s Daily Login Calendar is also being expanded. It begins on September 1 and runs through the end of the month, with a broader selection of rewards than the normal calendar. Planned items include Supercontainers, Warships Premium Account days, Coal, Credits, Free XP, Doubloons, signals, economic rewards, Decals Premium containers and Enemy Destruction Effects containers.

The calendar extends the Anniversary beyond Update 15.8’s main launch window. Players will need to enter the game regularly to claim its full value, although the precise catch-up rules should be checked in the live client.

A Birthday Wishing Wharf is also planned, offering access to new arrivals Friedrich Carl and Chikuma Shō-Gō, the Bordfest permanent camouflage and returning ships such as Sibir and Victoria. Friedrich Carl will additionally be sold through an Admiral Pack.

Chikuma Shō-Gō will open access to a separate four-element historical collection covering the ship’s final battle. Completing it awards seasoned Japanese Commander Keizō Komura, the Chikuma Shō-Gō flag and a collection achievement.

The number of simultaneous reward tracks creates variety, but it also makes the event economy harder to read. Festive Tokens, Wishing Wharf offers, Premium containers, collection progress and the Dockyard all run alongside one another. Players should avoid treating every activity as mandatory and identify which rewards materially improve their account.

Marlborough B brings Black Friday into the Dockyard

The new Dockyard will allow players to construct Marlborough B, a Black Friday version of the Tier IX British battleship Marlborough.

Marlborough B retains the central identity associated with the original ship: sixteen 356 mm guns arranged across four quadruple turrets, a relatively high rate of fire and good concealment for a battleship. Its weaknesses include poor main-battery accuracy, vulnerable armor and an exposed citadel that can punish aggressive positioning.

Under the current development plan, the Dockyard contains 28 construction phases. Combat missions can complete 23, leaving five phases that must be purchased with Doubloons.

The announced prices are:

• 1,400 Doubloons for an individual phase.
• 4,500 Doubloons for a five-phase starter pack.
• 8,500 Doubloons for a ten-phase starter pack.

If these values reach the live server unchanged, purchasing the five-phase starter pack would establish a minimum direct cost of 4,500 Doubloons for players completing every mission phase. Missing the starter pack and buying the five mandatory phases individually would cost 7,000 Doubloons.

Starter packs are only available until the player completes ten phases through combat missions. Anyone committed to obtaining Marlborough B should therefore make that decision before progressing too far into construction.

Dockyard missions are scheduled to remain active throughout Update 15.8 and the first three weeks of Update 15.9. The final week of Update 15.9 will allow unfinished construction to be completed with Doubloons.

The reward is less novel than an entirely new vessel because Marlborough B is explicitly a Black Friday interpretation of an existing battleship. Its appeal will depend on whether players missed the original Dockyard, enjoy Marlborough’s unusual sixteen-gun playstyle or specifically collect Black ships.

Trial by Fire teaches the fundamentals from Tier II

Trial by Fire is the first of three new Operations and becomes accessible with Tier II ships. At lower Tiers, an allied flagship accompanies the team, providing assistance, repairs and buffs while players learn basic navigation and gunnery.

Tier V and VI versions remove that support and introduce more advanced requirements, including capturing a key area and firing from within smoke. The scenario therefore scales its complexity instead of simply increasing enemy health and damage.

This is a sensible onboarding structure. Co-op Battles teach basic weapon handling, but they provide limited direction and are often completed quickly by experienced players. Trial by Fire gives newer Captains a more controlled environment with recognizable objectives and explicit support.

Swarm of Steel turns torpedo avoidance into a lesson

Swarm of Steel becomes available from Tier III and focuses on fighting enemy destroyers. Its lower-tier version introduces torpedo evasion, one of the most important survival skills in World of Warships.

At Tier V and VI, damaged enemy destroyers can retreat, disappear from detection and regroup for another attack. Players must also capture and defend key areas, creating a more demanding version of the same underlying scenario.

Teaching concealment and torpedo prediction through a structured Operation is more useful than expecting new players to learn exclusively through repeated deaths in Random Battles. It also gives destroyer-heavy PvE encounters a clearer educational role.

Beehive introduces aircraft-carrier pressure

Beehive opens at Tier IV and is designed around fighting aircraft carriers. Its introductory version teaches players to recognize and respond to aerial attacks, while higher-tier variants add defensive objectives requiring the team to split and manage several tasks simultaneously.

This Operation arrives after the aircraft and anti-aircraft changes introduced in Update 15.7, making it a timely training environment. Players can experiment with the revised AA Defense Priority and related systems without the pressure of competitive matchmaking.

All three new Operations remain available up to Tier VI. Teams contain five players through Tier IV and expand to seven at Tier V and VI. If matchmaking for a Tier IV-or-lower battle exceeds 30 seconds, empty positions can be filled by bots.

Experienced players with more than 200 battles will receive more challenging versions when entering the low-tier scenarios. This helps prevent the Operations from becoming trivial farming environments for veteran accounts.

The existing Killer Whale Operation is also receiving a Tier V–VI variation. Its revised objective involves rescuing a damaged allied cruiser from an enemy base and escorting it to safety.

The Operations may be the most important long-term feature in Update 15.8. Anniversary currencies and Dockyards are temporary, but giving Tier II–VI ships a repeatable PvE purpose addresses a longstanding gap in the game’s activity structure.

Update 15.8 is ambitious, but its economy needs careful reading

The 11th Anniversary combines meaningful free rewards with several competing progression systems. The birthday gift, login calendar and Snowflakes provide clear value without requiring direct spending. At the same time, Kurama, two major collections, the Wishing Wharf and Marlborough B encourage players to divide resources across multiple long-term targets.

The most important decision will be how to spend Festive Tokens. Kurama offers immediate access to a new supership, Pascual Cervera strengthens Spanish fleets and Sovetskaya Rossiya offers a permanent Tier IX Premium reward. None is automatically correct for every account.

Marlborough B requires a compulsory Doubloon contribution even if every mission is completed. Its five-phase starter pack is significantly cheaper than purchasing the mandatory phases individually, but it must be bought before substantial mission progress removes the option.

Players should also remember that Update 15.8 remains under testing. Wargaming has warned that its mechanics, values and content may change before release. The final update article—not the development announcement—should be treated as definitive for prices, mission requirements, collection rules and availability periods.

If the planned structure survives testing, the Anniversary will offer both a substantial temporary reward program and a permanent improvement for PvE players. Kurama may be the headline, but the introduction of scalable low-tier Operations could prove to be Update 15.8’s most consequential addition.