Ōyodo (大淀, namesake: Ōyodo River) was a light cruiser built for the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II and the only ship of her class to be completed before the end of the war. She was designed as a command cruiser for submarine operations, intended to operate alongside the E15K Shiun floatplane; however, by the time she entered service in 1943, the concept was obsolete, compounded by the underperformance of the Shiun. As a result, Ōyodo spent much of the war relegated to transport and escort duties. She briefly served as the final flagship of the Combined Fleet after her Shiun hangar was converted into a conference room, before fleet command relocated to the Hiyoshidai underground bunker. Following frontline service in Philippine waters, she returned to Japan in late February 1945 and was based at Kure, where she was sunk during an air raid on Kure Naval Base.

Ōyodo was introduced in Update 2.53 "Line of Contact". Armed with the same 15.5 cm Type 3 guns as the “light cruiser fit” of the Mogami-class heavy cruisers, she delivers considerable firepower for her displacement. However, the large aircraft hangar and flight operations occupying the entire stern limit her main battery to just six barrels, mounted in two forward triple turrets. This layout results in gameplay similar to the later Tone-class aviation cruisers, favouring bow-on positioning – using islands for cover and exposing only the forward section to fire all main guns from a relatively protected stance.