We demonstrate a continuous-wave (CW) Nd:YVO₄-potassium gadolinium tungstate (KGW) intracavity Raman laser with a diode-to-Stokes optical efficiency of 34.2%. By optimizing the cavity arrangement and reducing the cavity losses, 8.47 W Stokes output at 1177 nm was obtained under an incident 878.6 nm diode pump power of 24.8 W. The influence of cavity losses on the power and efficiency of the CW Raman laser, as well as the potential for further optimization, was investigated based on the numerical model. The observation of thermally-induced output rollover was well explained by the calculation of the thermal lensing and cavity stability, indicating that the end-face curvature played an important role when the end-face of the crystal was highly reflective coated to make the cavity. A 10.9 W Stokes output under 40.9 W incident pump was also demonstrated with a cavity arrangement less sensitive to the end-face curvature, which is the highest output power of CW intracavity Raman lasers reported.