HMS Stag was a two funnel, 30 knot destroyer ordered by the Royal Navy under the 1896 – 1897 Naval Estimates.

[2] Stag was a slightly modified version of the three "thirty-knotters" ordered from Thornycroft the previous year,[b] with a little more power, increased beam and a revised superstructure.

[6][7] Stag was laid down as yard number 334 on 16 April 1898 at Thornycroft's Chiswick shipyard on the River Thames and was launched on 18 November 1899.

[11] She was commissioned at Chatham on 2 September 1902 by Commander Sir Douglas Egremont Robert Brownrigg for outbound journey to the Mediterranean, where she was placed in the fleet reserve at Malta.

On 30 August 1912 the Admiralty directed all destroyers were to be grouped into classes designated by letters based on contract speed and appearance.

[16] In February 1913, Stag was still listed as a part of the Mediterranean Fleet,[17] but by April it was reported that she, along with Desperate, Foam and Jed were to be laid up at Malta, to await new crews to be sent from Devonport.

[21] These patrols, manned with nucleus crews only in peacetime,[e] would have the wartime duty of defence of the East Coast, patrolling to prevent hostile ships from approaching the coast without being detected and attacked, and defence of ports against enemy raids.

[26] On 25 September 1914 while on patrol 7 nmi (8.1 mi; 13 km) south-east of the Isle of May at the mouth of the Firth of Forth Stag reported being missed by two torpedoes fired by an unknown submarine.