May brings major updates, gifts and a festive atmosphere to Modern Warships!

This month, you can look forward to a major update to the filter and sorting system, a collection of festive avatars, a special port and, as always, a large amount of new equipment!

Main Features of the Update

⭐️ Filters system fully reworked in the Lobby and Store

Unique filters have been added for each subsystem — you can now quickly find the exact equipment you need, such as laser-based AA or missiles with underwater launch capability. Building loadouts is now easier and more precise.

Equipment:

• Filters by system type
• Filters by target type
• Filters by ricochet parameters
• By upgrade status
• By equipment status (installed/not installed)
• and much more

Key gameplay-related parameters have been added for each subsystem — this will make it easier to find effective loadouts

Customization:

A filter category by acquisition source has been added (store, Battle Pass, events, ranks, etc.)

⭐️ Sorting added for ships and equipment:

Item sorting has been improved in the Equipment Store and Lobby (it will also be added to the Market later).

• Default
• Recently acquired
• Recently used
• By price (Equipment Store only)

⭐️ Matchmaking improvements

• Work on the system is ongoing. Within the next month, we will re-enable the updated server-side matchmaking.
• The calculation of ship and equipment power within teams has been fully reworked.
  This will allow for more balanced battles and fairer opponent selection.

⭐️ A new (or old 🤔) port has been added to the game!

The location will be available to all players for free throughout May.

⭐️ A new collection of avatars has been added to the store to celebrate the game's anniversary.

Celebrate the occasion with unique looks! The collection is limited and will be available from May 1 to May 31.

⭐️ Improved helicopter takeoff behavior: helicopters can now turn immediately after takeoff.

⭐️ The scale of the icons on the mini-map has been returned to its previous setting

⭐️ Rebalance

We have rebalanced several ships and pieces of equipment to improve the characteristics of older units. A detailed article regarding these changes is available in a separate article

Battle Pass: “Five Years of Supremacy”

• The new Battle Pass season is available from May 1 to May 31. Discover the opportunity to complete 40 BP stages, each granting access to valuable rewards.
• Complete the pass to the end and receive the main reward of the season — the destroyer HMS Defender (D36). The main reward of the season can be obtained by absolutely all players who complete the Battle Pass to the end.
• By purchasing the Premium Battle Pass, you will unlock 5 BP stages, immediately unlocking the opportunity to receive the unique reward from the fourth stage.
• Purchasing the VIP Battle Pass unlocks 10 BP stages and immediately grants access to 5 unique rewards, which we will tell you about below.
• Complete daily missions and unlock unique rewards, including HMS Defender (D36).

Destroyer HMS Defender (D36)

T3, available in the free Battle Pass track.

Armament

1. Missile battery (ASM) — Storm Shadow Mk2 [x1]🔒
2. Missile battery (ASM) — RUM-139 Swarmer [x2]
3. Missile battery (ASM) — RUM-139 Swarmer [x2]
4. Cannon— MK8 Mod 1 (155 mm) [x1]
5. Helicopter — RAH-66 Comanche [x1]
6. Autocannon — SSTD [x2]🔒
7. Air defense — Sea RAM [x2]
8. Air defense — Sea RAM [x2]
9. Air defense — Sea RAM [x2]
10. Air defense — Aster 15 ED [x1]🔒

Features:

A modern stealth destroyer of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. Equipped with an innovative integrated electric propulsion system, it has sufficient maneuverability in all weather conditions. The ship's armament is highly modular, with an emphasis on air defense and reliable protection against aerial threats. It has two free missile slots, one gun, a helicopter and three double slots for any additional AA systems. Its unique armament includes Storm Shadow Mk2, extremely powerful long-range anti-ship cruise missiles with advanced guidance and targeting software, also equipped with a sequential launch system for maximum efficiency. For offensive and defensive scenarios, the ship has two specialized SSTD torpedo autocannons, equipped with advanced AI-assisted data processing and fully automatic sonar detection and engagement of underwater threats. Finally, it features a special variant of the Franco-Italian all-weather vertical-launch AA system Aster 15 ED, offering more powerful missiles, an improved reload mechanism and increased response range. This destroyer is prepared for the most intense aerial attacks while also remaining far from defenseless against traditional naval threats.

X-49 SpeedHawk helicopter

T3, available in the VIP Battle Pass.

Features:

An experimental helicopter project from the Pathfinder program. Its unique design includes not only the installation of powerful missile armament, but also a three-bladed, streamlined pusher propeller with control surfaces at the exhaust. This configuration provides high speed and increased stability in gusty winds. Its armament starts with SPEAR-3 SH air-launched anti-ship missiles, featuring fast target acquisition and an improved tracking system. It also carries AGM-114X, an experimental version of powerful air-launched anti-ship missiles with fast target acquisition and high firepower. Finally, it is equipped with LAU Twin X49 (70 mm) unguided air-launched rockets for engaging both surface and underwater targets at close range. This helicopter is not only highly mobile, but also serves as a simple yet effective combat platform.

Deterrence 300 grenade launcher

T3, available in the VIP Battle Pass.

Features:

A modern Egyptian rocket-type grenade launcher designed for precision strikes at long distances. It can engage surface and underwater targets and features an advanced target coordinate acquisition system, allowing it to bypass flares. Thanks to factory projectile optimization, it has simplified reloading and an increased rate of fire.

Kh-90 missile battery

T3, available in the VIP Battle Pass.

Features:

A Russian long-range hypersonic anti-ship cruise missile with folding delta wings and an improved guidance system that allows it to bypass enemy flares. It has a reinforced hull and carries a cluster warhead that splits into several charges just before striking the enemy.

DM2A5 torpedo

T3, available in the Premium Battle Pass.

Features:

One of the latest German heavy torpedo developments, featuring an advanced digital conformal sonar system for operation in complex conditions. It can ignore enemy anti-torpedo countermeasures and is equipped with a battery-powered electric motor for high speed. It carries an enlarged warhead to increase effectiveness against targets at medium range.

Legendary camouflage “Storm Wings”

Available in the VIP Battle Pass.

Epic Camouflage “Artstorm Elite”

Available in the Premium Battle Pass.

Rare camouflage “Super Warships”

Available in the free Battle Pass track.

Decals

The new “Modern Warships Anniversary” collection has been added. You can earn decals from this collection through various in-game activities throughout May.

Pass Vault

In this update, the Pass Vault has been expanded with another season, “Age of Annihilation”, released in September 2025. Inside the pass, you can find valuable VIP rewards, customization items, and the assault landing ship HMS Fearless (L170).

Ship & Equipment Remasters

• A-10A Thunderbolt II strike fighter
• USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51) destroyer
• USS Gravely (DDG-107) destroyer
• RF Yaroslav Mudryi frigate
• USS Nimitz (CVN-68) aircraft carrier
• Melara Rapid gun

🛠 Bugfixes

• Arid Frontier: helicopter water splash effects appeared on land
• 3D camos: models were displayed at a reduced scale
• Market: incorrect weapon configuration was applied in test drive
• Tutorial: interface was not blocked during the upgrade step on first completion
• Arid Frontier: incorrect underwater terrain geometry
• Clan Squad: the leader was kicked to the lobby when a player left
• SLBM: targeting reticle did not appear during quick launch
• Arctic (Escort): incorrect underwater terrain
• Greenlands (Escort): projectiles were blocked by an invisible part of an island
• Squad: the leader’s ship appeared sideways in the port for squad members
• Events: offers did not open at launch without restarting the game
• Offline Battle: aircraft could not be deployed after switching from online
• Team Deathmatch: incorrect team composition at match start (4v5)
• Stone Peaks: submarines could enter underwater terrain

🛠 Bugfixes | Models & Gameplay

• RF Loon: incorrect rudder animation
• RF Loon: engines remained active underwater after destruction
• JS Ibuki: smoke was visible before the ship was detected
• WS-3: model appeared oversized in the Ranked Store preview
• KSAM Block 2: platform rotation animation was applied to the gun
• M242 Bushmaster: missing firing sound
• Ka-58 Black Ghost: incorrect control surface animation
• USS Midway (CV-41): incorrect minimap icon displayed
• USS Montana (BB-67): aiming point offset
• ROKS KDDX (KDX-IV): “Plasma” camouflage effect displayed incorrectly
• Su-57M: incorrect weapon bay door animation
• HMS Hood: aiming point offset
• HMS Hood: side engines rotated along the wrong axis
• USS Shiloh (CG-67): smokestack textures disappeared
• H-18: incorrect missile bay hatch animation
• Garpun (30 mm): mount was embedded into the hull
• PLZ-05 (155 mm): gun base rotated together with the turret
• RF Vladivostok (68M-bis-Zif): torpedoes launched along an incorrect trajectory
• USS Boston (CAG-1): missing main gun textures
• USS Boston (CAG-1): model elements were visible before detection
• RF Bora (Project 1239): model elements were visible before detection
• JARI USV: aiming point offset
• OH-2B Shuriken: aiming point offset
• USS Iowa (BB-61): helicopter spawned hovering above the deck
• USS Iowa (BB-61), USS Montana (BB-67), JS Musashi Aegis, JS Yamato Aegis, HMS Hood: fixed artifacts between barbette and turrets
• CN Type 094: Chinese Navy Day camouflage displayed with artifacts