War Thunder’s Giulio Cesare Will Join Italy’s Bluewater Fleet as a Premium Battleship
The Rank VI Conte di Cavour-class ship will carry 10 320 mm guns, protected ammunition, and a broad anti-aircraft suite, but no air detection radar.
War Thunder will add Giulio Cesare to Italy’s Bluewater fleet with its next major update. Gaijin’s Steam announcement presents the ship as a Rank VI premium battleship based on the Conte di Cavour class.
Giulio Cesare brings 10 320 mm guns with high penetration, giving the ship plenty of reach against enemy vessels. The guns have less explosive filler than some comparable weapons, but the battleship can still threaten targets at long range and punish exposed ammunition areas when fights move closer.
Its ammunition sits below the waterline and receives strong protection, which lowers the chance of a devastating detonation. Long-range positioning remains the safer choice, although Giulio Cesare should have more room for aggressive plays than many contemporary battleships. Its armor and speed are inherited from the existing Conte di Cavour design.
Giulio Cesare’s anti-aircraft weapons
The ship does not have air detection radar, so commanders will need to rely on its guns and situational awareness when aircraft approach. Its anti-aircraft defense includes 100 mm dual-purpose cannons, 37 mm guns, and 13.2 mm weapons.
Keeping the ship moving and dealing with fires around the ammunition elevators will be important. Giulio Cesare is not immune to ammunition detonations, but its below-waterline storage makes those losses harder to trigger than on many other ships.
What comes with the Giulio Cesare pack
The pre-order pack is listed at 79.99 and includes the RN Giulio Cesare for Italy, 30 days of Premium Account time, and 3,000 Golden Eagles. Buyers also receive the “Veni, vidi, vici” title, the “Roman Emperor” decal, and the Flag of Genoa.
Players can reach the Gaijin Store through the in-game hangar by selecting Shop, then Online Store. The ship’s characteristics may still change before Giulio Cesare enters the game.
Giulio Cesare’s history and its link to Novorossiysk
Giulio Cesare was laid down on June 24, 1910, and launched on October 15, 1911. She did not see combat in World War I, but later fought during World War II. At the Battle of Calabria, she exchanged fire with the British Mediterranean Fleet at roughly 24 km. A shell from HMS Warspite struck near her rear funnel and knocked out four boilers, yet the ship survived.
She also avoided destruction during the attack on Taranto that sank her sister ship Conte di Cavour. After Italy’s armistice in September 1943, the Allies interned Giulio Cesare at Malta. War reparations transferred her to the Soviet Union in 1949, where she was renamed Novorossiysk and served as a training ship and Black Sea Fleet flagship.
On October 29, 1955, an explosion tore open the ship’s bow while she was anchored at Sevastopol. Giulio Cesare capsized with the loss of more than 600 crew members. Investigators concluded that an old German mine, triggered by the anchor chain, caused the disaster. The ship was salvaged on May 4, 1957, and later scrapped.
Giulio Cesare already appears in War Thunder as Novorossiysk in the USSR tech tree. Adding the original Italian configuration lets Gaijin place the class in a second national lineup, while giving Italy its first top-tier premium ship. Tell us what you think in the comments, and follow us on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, and Telegram.
War Thunder
Developed by Gaijin Entertainment
War Thunder is a free-to-play vehicular combat MMO featuring aircraft, ground vehicles, and naval craft spanning from the early 20th century to the modern era. Players progress through technology trees across multiple nations, unlocking increasingly advanced military vehicles. The game offers three realism tiers for each vehicle type: arcade, realistic, and simulator modes. Originally developed as a flight simulator under the name "World of Planes," the game expanded to include tanks in 2014 and naval forces later, becoming a combined-arms experience. A mobile version was released in 2023.
- Genre Shooter, Simulator, Tactical
- Platforms Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Linux, PC (Microsoft Windows), PlayStation 5, Mac, Xbox One
- Perspective First person, Third person, Virtual Reality
- Modes Single player, Multiplayer, Co-operative, Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO)
- Release January 28, 2013
- Publisher Gaijin Entertainment
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