La Surprise was a River-class frigate originally ordered by the Royal Navy as HMS Torridge (K292) in 1942 and built by Blyth Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. Ltd., launched in August 1943. Transferred to the Free French Naval Forces in March 1944 and renamed La Surprise, she served under pennant numbers K292, later F08, and finally F708. After training at Tobermory, she escorted convoys in the English Channel and participated in the Normandy invasion at Gold Beach in June 1944. Damaged by an acoustic mine on 20 June and involved in a collision with USS Ramsden on 16 October, she continued service, engaging German forces near Royan and Île de Ré in 1945. On 17 July 1950, during exercises near Port Lyautey in Morocco, La Surprise collided with the submarine Laubie, formerly German U-766, causing damage but no casualties. In 1964, she was transferred to the Royal Moroccan Navy, converted into the royal yacht Al Maouna, and served until being scrapped in 1975.

La Surprise was introduced with the initial release of the French coastal tech tree in Update "Dance of Dragons". She was the second River-class vessel introduced to the game after the HMS Spey. Her main guns shine primarily due to their high rate of fire, while maintaining enough explosive filler and penetration to threaten all reserve destroyers. Her secondary armament is also very effective and well-distributed, making her a difficult target for any approaching aircraft. Finally, she can equip an unusually large number of depth charges, though this essentially turns the entire aft-most deck into a high explosive payload waiting to be ignited. The bow-mounted Hedgehog mortar launcher similarly suffers from being an attractive target for enemy guns while remaining highly situational. When engaging coastal vessels, she can handle multiple opponents at once, making her an extremely dangerous vessel; however, she often spawns alongside destroyers on most maps, making it challenging and time-consuming for her to escape the kill zone of enemy destroyers.