U-511
U-511 is a submarine fleet girl in Kantai Collection based on the German Navy's Type IXC U-boat. Introduced as the game's first foreign submarine, she enters service as a quiet, reserved girl. Through further modernization, she converts into the Imperial Japanese Navy's RO-500, undergoing a dramatic transformation in her appearance, personality, and manner of speech.
Overview
U-511 is a submarine fleet girl in Kantai Collection based on the German Navy's Type IXC U-boat. Introduced as the game's first foreign submarine, she enters service as a quiet, reserved girl. Through further modernization, she converts into the Imperial Japanese Navy's RO-500, undergoing a dramatic transformation in her appearance, personality, and manner of speech.
Appearance
U-511 features pale skin, light platinum-blonde hair with a single long ahoge, and jade-blue eyes. She wears a black wetsuit with spats under a light green vest, and a garrison cap fitted with a periscope component and fins. A collar with a communication device sits around her neck with an antenna stretching overhead. She wears gold-trimmed knee-high tights and rudder-like shoes. Her rigging includes a split submarine bow unit mounted on her hips and a handgun modeled after a 10.5cm deck gun.
Personality
In her U-511 state, she is timid and easily anxious in an unfamiliar foreign setting, though she works hard to adapt to life at the naval base and occasionally mixes German words into her speech. Upon remodeling into RO-500, her personality shifts into an energetic, cheerful girl with a tan who speaks fluent Japanese and fully embraces naval base life.
Abilities
She possesses high evasion, high luck, and strong armor for a submarine. Her unique combination of low durability and solid defensive stats allows her to avoid heavy damage during routine sea sorties, making her exceptionally cost-effective for resource gathering. She arrives with the WG42 anti-ground rocket launcher, which enhances anti-installation combat capabilities when equipped on surface ships.
Background
The real U-511 served in the German Navy before being transferred to Japan in 1943. Renamed RO-500 and based at Maizuru, she did not see frontline combat but served as a training target for anti-submarine forces. Surviving the war, she was scuttled in Wakasa Bay in 1946. She made her debut in Kantai Collection during the Winter 2015 event.
Relationships
She respects her fellow German shipgirls Bismarck and Prinz Eugen, learning about Japanese seasonal traditions from Prinz Eugen. She integrates well with the Japanese submarines, affectionately referring to I-58 as Decchi. Though initially distant and shy toward the Admiral, she grows deeply trusting of their leadership over time.
Trivia
Because her appearance changes so drastically upon remodeling, a dedicated portion of players chooses to keep her in her original U-511 state. Her transition into a different nation's service with a complete rename and wardrobe change follows the precedent established by Hibiki's conversion into Verniy.
