She was built by Cammell Laird during the First World War, completing on 13 November 1916, but was lost in a collision with the destroyer Negro on 21 December that year.

[2] 515 long tons (523 t) of oil fuel were carried, giving a range of 4,290 nautical miles (7,950 km; 4,940 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).

[2] The standard anti-submarine armament for flotilla leaders such as Hoste from June 1916 onwards was two Type D depth charges on chutes.

On the morning of 20 December, Hoste suffered a failure of her steering gear at high speed, almost colliding with several other ships, and was detached to return to Scapa with the destroyer Negro as escort.

At about 01:30 hr on 21 December, in extremely poor weather, with gale-force winds and a heavy sea, Hoste's rudder jammed again, forcing the ship into a sudden turn to port.