Pola
Pola is a ship girl from Kantai Collection, modeled after the third Zara-class heavy cruiser of the Royal Italian Navy. Despite her refined appearance, she is characterized by her relaxed demeanor and an extreme passion for alcohol. She debuted as an event completion reward in the Spring 2016 Event "Establish! Land-based Air Corps" and was later made available through standard sea area drops.
Overview
Pola is a ship girl from Kantai Collection, modeled after the third Zara-class heavy cruiser of the Royal Italian Navy. Despite her refined appearance, she is characterized by her relaxed demeanor and an extreme passion for alcohol. She debuted as an event completion reward in the Spring 2016 Event "Establish! Land-based Air Corps" and was later made available through standard sea area drops.
Appearance
Pola has long, wavy platinum blonde hair, thick eyebrows, droopy grayish-brown eyes, and a large bust. Her default outfit consists of a white long-sleeved shirt under a black bodice, a red miniskirt decorated with anchors, a red bow, a white mini hat, white thighhigh socks, and grey boots. Her rigging resembles her sister Zara's, though Pola's outfit covers her shoulders. When heavily damaged, she manually removes her shirt to drape it over her rigging, covering her chest with her hair. She also has special collaboration graphics featuring her in casual shopping attire with a wine glass and a convenience store uniform.
Personality
Pola maintains a curious and gentle demeanor, yet she is an exceptionally heavy drinker who spends much of her day under the influence. She moves at her own easygoing, unbothered pace, indulging in alcohol at every opportunity and often drinking until she loses her memory. When intoxicated, she exhibits a habit of shedding her clothing, feeling that her garments are inconvenient.
Abilities
Pola natively possesses long range, enabling her to shell alongside battleships early in battle. She can equip seaplane bombers and seaplane fighters in addition to standard reconnaissance planes, helping secure air superiority in maps where aircraft carriers are restricted. Because she is not categorized as an aviation cruiser, she refrains from anti-submarine attacks, allowing her to target surface vessels directly in mixed enemy fleets. Upon her remodeling, her firepower, torpedo, and anti-air performance improve, and she provides the Ro.44 Seaplane Fighter.
Background
Her character attributes stem from the historical Zara-class heavy cruiser Pola, which was immobilized by a torpedo during the Battle of Cape Matapan in 1941. Before sinking, her crew drank wine to warm their bodies after being drenched in cold seawater and removed their wet clothes while waiting for rescue. Her excessive drinking habit and stripping traits in the game serve as references to these historical events.
Relationships
Her older sister, Zara, constantly worries about Pola's heavy drinking and reprimands her whenever she becomes intoxicated. Pola harbors deep anxiety toward Royal Navy vessels due to historical events, having panicked and fled upon encountering the battleship Warspite. However, she also demonstrates a nervous curiosity toward them, successfully bonding with the battleship Nelson over shared drinks. She behaves casually around the Admiral, frequently inviting them to join her drinking sessions.
Trivia
Because of her non-stop drinking, fans affectionately nickname her using a portmanteau of alcoholic and heavy cruiser. When the Naval Base Counter Bar furniture is installed in the game, her section displays wine bottles continuously for 24 hours. During seasonal voice line updates, official developer statements explicitly noted that Pola alone would continue drinking even after autumn wine voice lines concluded for all other ship girls.
