T-22 Medium On Sale!

The Third Option

By:

IrmaBecx

Special shout out to TackyPing, who has requested this review.

So if you’re quick about it, you could be the proud owner of one of the most sought after tanks in the game. Yes, the T-22 Medium is on sale for the first time, and it’s not cheap. 20K gold they want for the plain jane version, and 25K for all the trimmings.

That’s a lot of gold. And yet I did briefly consider it myself.

I wrote a while back that when choosing between the Russian Medium tanks, you want to get the T-22, and if you can’t get that one, you get one of the other two. That sounds straightforward enough.

But is the T-22 still the gold standard? The non plus ultra of Soviet Mediums? And should you therefore consider throwing all that gold at it?

I fired up the press account loan vehicle to try to find out.

Russian Medium tanks are famously more fragile than you expect them to be; I found that out the hard way when I first got hold of them. But with the V-shaped hull and pike nose of the T-22, it looks as if this might be the exception.

Otherwise, it’s pretty much the same as the others. A high DPM 100 mm gun, six degrees of gun depression, and it does 55 km/h with about 20 horsepower per ton.

Actually, the armour isn’t all that thick. 80 mm sides and 100 mm front doesn’t exactly sound like an IS-7, but it’s all about the angles. You can autobounce pretty much any gun in the game out to 40 degrees side angle, and you even get a strip of spaced armour long the side. The front plate will likewise autobounce if you use gun depression, or if you wiggle side to side on flat ground.

And that’s really all there is to say about the T-22. It may look funny, but it’s really not a very complicated vehicle.

I drive a couple of games to try to get back into it, it’s been quite a while since I drove the thing. This is not one of those tanks I always have a go in when I’m on the press account. I always figured I’d get around to acquiring it for my collection one day, but now I’m not so sure. The Object 140 is my Russian Medium tank weapon of choice, and this is pretty much the same tank with a different armour layout.

Is it powerful? Sure. Does it bounce shots? Absolutely.

Is it going to be worth all that gold?

Maybe.

According to my calculations, the T-22 Medium has the fourth highest DPM of any Medium tank, but you’ll have to dole it out 310 alpha at the time. Being Russian it also has those HE shells with a little extra bang in them, 420 alpha rather than the expected 380 or 400. You also get a much slower shell speed than the tech tree tanks, around 1000 m/s. That’s only marginally faster than the HEAT rounds, but that doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Such similar shell speeds mean you can use the same point of aim no matter which shell type you are using.

On flat ground, the pike nose only shows around 240 mm of effective armour. That’s not so great. But you only have to angle it three degrees to either side or upwards to start getting bounces. If you come across something with really high penetration, you’ll need more of an angle.

A lot of people seem to either struggle with or not like pike nose tanks. You sometimes see experienced layers trying to reverse side scrape, which is perfectly doable with the forward placement of the turret, and of course not a lot of things are going to go through that V-shaped hull. You can bounce most shells out to 40 degrees, and a calibrated HEAT round from a Jägeru out to 20 degrees. That’s pointing the gun over the inside rear drive wheel.

My personal experience is it’s seldom practical, but it does work. Just make sure you don’t drive forward when you meant to go backwards.

I’ve been running an “everything to the left” setup, but I will me making a few changes. More engine power instead of traverse, and more hipoints since the tank relies on autobounces anyway. With 90 rounds capacity you can bring a few extra HE shells with no problem.

I’m not sure about calibrated shells. You can fight Heavy tanks in the T-22 Medium if you have a good position with cover, and 330 HEAT penetration is a lot more comfortable than 300. This is one of few tanks I’m running adrenaline on; I don’t actually recall what my rationale was for that.

Out on the battlefield, it seems I’m not the only one taking an interest in the T-22. I see one or two almost every game, which is kind of cool. This is the first time the T-22 has been available as a straight bundle, and I hope people who have been waiting for that are happy with their new tank.

I manage to take a few out as well. It takes a little while to get used to the pike nose.

The contemporary T-22 doesn’t quite feel like the overpowered monster it has the reputation of being. It’s certainly powerful, but it is still a 100 mm Medium tank, and that’s about as far as you can get from the current Heavy tank and big gun TD meta. It’s still a nice drive. But is it twenty to twenty five thousand gold nice? It’s definitely not 20K gold better than my beloved old Object 140.

But it’s not really the same style of tank as the T-62A or the 140. The kinky armour profile makes it more of a brawler, and it can cosplay a Heavy tank for a short while. The 100 mm won’t have anyone fooled, though.

The armour profile is the great strength of the T-22, but it’s not always easy to figure out what to do with it. I’ve just been going the Medium route and trying to get into as much trouble as I can. This game is an excellent example; it’s a win, and not a very exciting one, but you’ll see me take on first one and then another T-22 Medium by the A cap on Castilla:

So yeah, that may have been one too many. The difference is the second tank has a height advantage on me, and so has an easier time penetrating the shots. I am running calibrated shells here by the way, and you can see me being quite liberal with the HEAT rounds. Also note the 440 alpha strike on the Grille; those HE rounds do make a difference.

The T-22 can bounce the biggest guns in the game, but you’ll have to work a little at it to make that happen. The overall feeling I’m having is the same one I got when I first drove the Object 140: this tank is more fragile than I thought it would be.

Sure, it’s fun to drive, and it’s not terribly hard to be successful in it. But I’m not sure the curious armour profile warrants a place for it in my garage, because that it really all this tank is about.

So should you buy one?

If you’ve been coveting the T-22 for a long time, then here’s your chance to throw some money at the problem. That’s fair enough. But I do think you need to have a specific interest in the T-22 for it to be worthwhile, something beyond the fact you heard it was good. You also want to make sure the six degrees of gun depression and the pike nose front won’t catch you by surprise.

If you are an avid fan of Russian Medium tanks, and you drive the other two regularly, then likewise this might be a good investment. If you happen to be a reverse sidescrape enthusiast for some reason, then it’s practically a must have.

Do note the T-22 has an even lower credit coefficient than the T-62A and the Object; this is definitely not a premium tank. It’s not going to make you any more credits than your tech tree beater, quite the contrary in fact.

But the T-22 is a nice drive. I had some fun taking it out for a few games. Not enough to warrant a purchase for me, but still enjoyable. I suppose you’re not risking a whole lot by dropping the gold on it except abject poverty. Once you get your head around the armour profile it’s not a difficult tank do drive.

Me, I actually think I’d rather have the 121B; a tier X Type 59. The T-22 Medium used to be on my want list, but over time I’ve grown less interested in it, and I don’t feel it would add a whole lot to my collection. The armour layout is definitely unique, but it’s really not all that different from the other Russian Mediums. If it had a flat front plate, I think you’d be hard pressed to tell them apart.

It’s a good tank. Good and expensive. If you want to treat yourself a little this holiday season then I’m all for that, but I encourage you to do your research and make sure you know what it is you are getting. It’s not automatically going to make you a super unicorn and it doesn’t give you a lot for free. It’s also been in the game for quite a while at this point, and experienced players will know how to deal with it.

I can’t really find a lot of fault with the T-22 Medium. It does what it’s supposed to, and does it well. For me that’s not quite enough to make it worthwhile, especially not in such an expensive bundle.

IrmaBecx says it’s a thumbs up, but still a pass from me.

Help! I Have A Defender Mk. 1!

Facing The Demon

By:

IrmaBecx

So I got a couple of new tanks. I got a couple of snow globes from the EU community team (special thanks!), and they both had tanks in them. In a strange twist of fate, both of these were tanks I’ve always liked but would never buy on my own.

One is the Defender Mk. 1.

I remember I wrote about the Mk.1 when it came out, and I wasn’t overly impressed with it, but on closer inspection it’s actually lot more interesting than I gave it credit for.

If you didn’t know, I’m not what you call a huge fan of the Defender series tanks, but If I had to drive one, it would most definitely be this one. It’s a strange hybrid, part Centurion, part Action X, and part autoloader; this is one of very few four shot autoloaders in the game.

Since it’s the holidays, I figured maybe I’d give the thing a go. I have plenty of resources, so there’s really no excuse not to kit it out. Let’s see what it’s all about!

My problem with Defender tanks is really down to aesthetics. I used to really hate the IS-3 defender because there were platoons of them everywhere, but these days it’s really not such a menace. I suppose I’m old fashioned, but I prefer my camos to be green and brown, and my tanks to be at least convincing fakes.

To get the autoloader, you’re going to lose a bit of DPM; almost 300, but auoloaders aren’t about DPM anyway, they’re about burst damage, and in return you get 6 km/h higher top speed, more engine power, and much, much better turret armour. That’s not a bad tradeoff at all, and the Mk. 1 outperforms the regular Centurion by almost 10% average winrate with the same amount of drivers.

I do like my Centurions, I even got the FV 4202 recently to finish off the British Medium line, and if you suspend disbelief and maybe squint a little, the Mk. 1 could perhaps be some kind of experimental prototype. You get a very British 20-pounder, meaning excellent gun handling, good standard penetration, and quick shell speed but low alpha damage, only this one carries four shots with a 2 second interclip and just under sixteen seconds clip reload. That means your damage potential is 760 alpha over six seconds.

So I loaded up my new Mk. 1 and pressed the button. It didn’t go badly at all:

Then I drove a few more. There’s no question the Brits built the weapon, it places the shots exactly where you want them to go, and despite the low alpha for the tier, the burst damage is devastating. After six games I have yet to fire a premium round.

First impressions? Mobility is excellent, and the turret bounces as expected. Sixteen seconds isn’t really all that long to wait unless you are being swarmed by opponents. The autoloader is one of the better ones I’ve come across. Except for the sound; I guess that’s either the transmogrifier or the flux capacitor making that droning noise, I don’t get as irritated by the Defender styling as I had expected.

It’s actually a nice tank. I kind of like it.

I figured I’d do some research to try to fine tune my setup.

You’ll only lose 30 DPM running the calibrated shells, which will actually allow you to punch through the front of a Tiger II with standard AP, and the turret front of an E 75 with APCR. That could come in handy, and the thing is so mobile anyway I’m not worried about removing the ventilation. You also have about the best viewrange in tier VIII already, so you probably won’t miss the six metres you are giving up.

The Mk. 1 has ten degrees of gun depression, but that is a Centurion hull, and the front plate isn’t all that well angled. Most tanks will punch through it, and you need to be firing over the outside of your front drive wheels using the full ten degrees to autobounce.

Looking at the turret front, I don’t believe I’ll get a lot of use out of the armour upgrade, so I’ll stick with the extra hitpoints. The only other adjustment I made is cutting back a little on the APCR, I don’t think I’ll be needing a lot of it.

Running a few more games, I don’t seem to notice a lot of difference in overall performance. 46 km/h isn’t super fast for a Medium, but the Mk. 1 is still definitely agile enough, because you can’t really play it like a regular Medium tank anyway. Starting from a full clip, it will take you 30 seconds to do around 1500 damage; that’s if all eight go in, and then you’re on that long reload again.

But yeah; it’s kind of fun to drive. I’m liking the Mk. 1 in spite of everything.

Three things should inform your playstyle. Armour profile, autoloader, and mobility.

Strong turret and fairly weak hull means you need to find hull down positions, or at least use some form of cover. Against slower opponents you can try to circe and side hug, but be careful of crossfire and fighting opponents from multiple angles at once; they’ll punch right through that Centurion hull.

That said, I have been going the Medium route, and if you have someone to give you a little breathing space while you reload the clip, that’s definitely viable. I don’t think the Mk. 1 feels slow at all, with over a thousand horsepower on tap it’s quick off the line and reaches top speed in short order.

The autoloader means you have to account for the clip reload first and foremost, and you want to keep back a little bit. Rushing forward to try and chase the damage will be counter productive; what you want to do is let them come to you and hold on to your hitpoints for when the clipping out opportunities come towards the endgame. I still get around 0.3 dispersion without ventilation, and you can definitely work from range.

But topping out at 46, you also want to plan your movements a little in advance. Make sure you can pull back to safety if you get rushed, and start moving early if you have a long way to go. The Mk. 1 is not fast so much as agile, meaning it’s good at manoeuvring rather than at relocating.

All the tools you need at your disposal in other words.

The Defender Mk. 1 is a hull down Medium with a difference. Not a lot of difference, but crucial. If you know how to drive a Comet or something already, all you have to do is account for the autoloader and you’re off to a good start.

That basically means handling the clip reload, but that’s just the first step. Having an autolaoder also gives you more options. 190 alpha may sound a little anaemic for single shot work at tier VIII, but it’s certainly enough to take someones track off or finish off a low health opponent.

I have to say I’m happier with the tank than I though I’d be, and the styling doesn’t irritate me nearly as much as I expected. It’s more engaging to play than I remembered. I liked it fine when I reviewed it, but I didn’t think it was anything special, and I can’t say I’ve thought about it since. If this was any other Defender I would have probably sold it or used it for target practice, but this one is definitely a keeper for me.

So if you happen to find a Defender Mk. 1 in one of those snow globes, I think you should count yourself lucky. Unless you absolutely hate fantasy tanks, or British vehicles, or autoloaders, there are a lot of things to like about it. It’s not very difficult to drive, even for an autoloader because of the strong turret and straightforward hull down playstyle,

It strikes me you can also get it from the auction, right now the price is 8300 gold, and there are almost 1500 of them left. I think that’s a fair price. Next one will be 7500, and that’s practically a bargain if this is something you’re interested in.

Ten people bought it while I wrote the paragraph above.

So yeah, it’s definitely thumbs up from me. I’d even go so far as to say this is the only Defender styled tank thus far to even be considered for the coveted tank philosophy seal of approval, and it’s making a really strong case for itself.

Irmabecx says I was wrong before; this is not a definite “Maybe”. It’s actually quite a pleasant surprise.

Happy holidays, everyone.

Snow Globe Tank: AMX M4 54

The Brute From Issy-les-Moulineaux

By:

IrmaBecx

So this is one of those reviews where you know I’m not going to be able to maintain any kind of objectivity. Back in 2014 I was a German separatist tank driver, and the only other nation I was eyeing was the French, which wasn’t even in the game yet.

The vehicle in question is not only French, it also has a 130 mm main armament; arguably the most powerful one in the game. The one contender would be the Object 263, but no other 130 mm has 480 alpha standard AP.

You’re going to have to be very, very lucky to get your hands on an M4 54; I believe the drop rate is only one percent. But the real disappointment isn’t going to be not getting one, but the fact this tank isn’t in the regular tech tree. I would have loved to see even just the tier IX and X.

As it is, I’m going to keep the dream alive, just like I still do with the VK 90 from last year. It’s funny a Medium tank player like myself having two Heavy tanks on the top of my want list, but I’m really only missing the 121B for my tier X Medium tank collection to be complete.

Just like the VK, I fell really hard for the M4 54, and I suppose it was inevitable. You can’t drop a 130 mm tank into the game without my starting to pay really close attention. But is this one not simply a tier X French E 75?

Well, perhaps. If that was true it wouldn’t be such a bad thing; the E 75 is a very powerful tank, and the E 100 at tier X differs significantly from it.

But the way I see it, the AMX stands on its own, and again like the VK 90 there’s really nothing else like it in the game. You get really strong frontal armour, a main armament that packs a hefty punch, and fair mobility for such a big, well armoured tank. What else could you possibly need to hold the line?

The AMX M4 54 is a brute. It my look like those other flimsy Frenchies, but this is more of a SuperHeavy than anything else, only it’s faster. The side armour isn’t quite that super, but 100 mm is going to get you a long way, and in most any kind of hull down situation you’ll be showing 350-400 mm of effective armour with a little gun depression.

About the only weakspot is the turret roof and hatches, which is totally fair. The hull hanging over the tracks has weak undersides just like the Easter Island tanks, and it also angles inwards against the front plate just like the AMX M4 49.

If you follow my writing, you’ll know I simply love a 130 mm weapon, and as stated this might be the most powerful one in the game. It would have been fine with the regular alpha, but those 20 extra damage add another dimension of uniqueness to an already fairly unique tank.

I say “unique”, but that’s really just the minor details. This is first and foremost a hold-the-line Heavy tank, and if you’ve driven other Heavys like the aforementioned E 75, the M4 49, EXP, or maybe the E 75 TS, you won’t have any problems adapting your playstyle to the M4 54.

I drove the M4 54 quite extensively in testing because I liked it so much, and that hasn’t changed. I love French tanks. But that is not the reason I love this one so much; it’s much more about the combination of excellent mobility and a 130 mm gun, with some pretty dam sturdy armour to cover your worst mistakes.

How sturdy is it?

Well, you can watch me bully an IS-4 in my first game out on the press account below. If my driving looks a little strange that’s because I was having some tremendous lag, and my damage output isn’t so great. But I did at least keep that IS-4 very busy so the rest of my team could do the heavy lifting.

Oh, and I saved the BatChat:

My setup isn’t super complicated. I run extra hitpoints because it’s a Heavy, extra engine power because it’s already quite mobile, and I don’t run calibrated shells because there’s simply no need. Curiously, the M4 54 gets premium AP shells, which normalise better that APCR and don’t fail against tracks and spaced armour like HEAT does. They also have 10 more damage than your IS-7 or 111 5A remium rounds, and penetrate a little deeper. Even the HE damage is a little bit higher.

In fact, the tank itself isn’t super complicated. It looks like exactly what it is; a big, tall, burly Heavy tank, and that’s what it plays like as well. All you need to do is either find a good position to work from or go head to head in a knife fight one on one brawl and you should do fine.

So is it overpowered? Pay to win?

Well, sure. A bit. Maybe. But it also has some reasonable weakspots; you turn past ten degrees and those angled plates at the front clear up, you turn the turret and the turret side clears up, and the lower plate is only 100 mm, meaning even a tier IX Heavy tank will go through it out to something like 45 degrees side angle. The hatches on top I mentioned already, and of course it’s a tall tank with mediocre side armour, so stay out of crossfire.

You can see how much damage I take in the videos, although that may of course be my own fault and not the tank. The shot from the IS-4 that hit my hatch I will however firmly put down to Russian bias.

But I think what makes the new AMX such a dangerous opponent is the fact it’s so easy to drive. It really doesn’t have a lot of drawbacks, and none that will surprise even a moderately experienced driver.

So yeah. I could keep rambling on about how much I like it and how I’m going to cry myself to sleep again tonight because it’s not in the regular tech tree, but I’ll not get long winded. Just like last years VK 90, this is a fantastic vehicle and it’s gone straight to the top of my “want” list.

It is no longer fair to say I’m not very interested in Heavy tanks, and the very reason for that is tanks like the M4 54.

Should you get it?

If you can, yes. Absolutely. I don’t think you should spend too much of your resources trying to get one; I like that there is a ten snow globe limit and you’re guaranteed to get the tank, but I would much prefer a straight up bundle as always; even a monstrously expensive one.

The AMX M4 54 is going to be a classic. It’s more accessible than the VK 90 or even the WZ-111 5A, it’s very powerful, and it’s so easy to drive. It has everything, even eight degrees of gun depression to help you maximise your armour profile and work those ridgelines and hull down positions.

It’s a solid proposition. If you were curious about the VK 90 but sceptical about the rear turret layout, then this one will be much more up your alley.

IrmaBecx says tank philosophy approved. With a gold star.

I’ll leave you with my second game out, again taking heavy damage but holding the line:

Crate Of The Month: The STG

Rear Turret Medium?!

By:

IrmaBecx

So from today you can get your hands on a brand new tier VIII premium tank with a difference; two differences in fact, and they are both significant enough to make you either love or hate it.

Yes, the STG has arrived. You may have seen it out there being tested not too long ago.

And it’s a curious tank to say the least. You get a 122 mm main armament just like the Chinese Mediums, and then you get a rear turret and excellent mobility like the Chrysler K. You also get a strong turret but fairly mediocre hull armour, and what I suppose most people consider limited gun depression: five degrees.

So if you struggle with gun depression or with a rear turret; and it is a little awkward, then I can tell you right away that this tank is not going to be for you.

But for a Medium tank elitist and quirk tank enthusiast? That’s a different proposition.

So 210 mm frontal turret armour. 100 mm front plate and 45 mm sides. I get a 12.63 second reload yielding 1900 DPM with a rammer; AP and APCR don’t get as much value out of calibrated shells. This is of course the ubiquitous 122 mm D-25, very much the same as on a lot of other Russian tanks.

But the interesting comparison here is against Chinese Mediums like the T-34-3 or the tech tree T-34-2. You might add the T-44 running the 122 mm, but sadly that’s still nowhere near competitive on account of the low DPM. Basically, you get 5 mm extra penetration with slower shell speed, but the same razor sharp aimtime.

The armour is a little better on paper, but since the STG is a little awkward to manoeuvre, it’s not certain you’ll notice that. Specific power is also in favour of the STG. The 100 mm front plate looks good on paper, but there is a fold in the middle yielding an upper and a lower upper plate, and it’s only the lower upper part that’s 100 mm. The upper upper part is just 30 mm, meaning anything over 90 mm will overmatch it. The lower upper part is not as well angled as, say the T-34-3, and aiming down over your inner drive wheel, most tanks you face will punch through the front plate of the STG where a T-34-3 will bounce.

There’s more bad news. 45 mm side armour allows you to side scrape Heavy tank guns out to 20 degrees or so, but you have two wedges either side angling towards the front plate that will flatten out in a side scraping position. Your turret also has a fairly prominent hatch on your right hand side.

But with almost 20 horsepower per ton and 50 degrees of traverse, the STG is supremely agile, and if you are used to derpy Russian 122 mm weapons, you’ll have no problems with the STG D-25TS.

I can tell you I liked the tank right away. It’s certainly novel, and although it is a little awkward to drive, that is also part of the charm. It’s a unique tank that needs a slightly different headspace than your other Medium tanks; even something like the mighty Chimera.

So what’s it like to drive? I loaded up my press account loaner to find out.

No surprises in terms of setup. I run my standard combat setup with a speed boost and dual repair kits, about 30% premium rounds, and a few HE shells. I have to say I was a little disappointed in the “Guard” camo; instead of the magnificent Soviet style painting with the tank crew and slogan, the Blitz version looks more like the P.43/06 anniversario.

Ergo standard camo. It’s not like I need to save credits on the press account anyway. And with that, off we go.

I usually like to show my first game out, but it was a complete disaster. I didn’t get a grace period; straight into a tier IX game, and although we had a Medium/Light tank advantage, of course no one went the Medium route on Canals, meaning we quickly lost both map control and bases, and it was over very quickly from there. I only did two shots of damage before I got taken out.

Here’s my second game:

That went a went a little better; as you can see I managed to stay alive on 1% of my hitpoints and put out 2K damage in what was otherwise basically a lemmingtrain steamroll. The STG will not punch through the front of a Tiger II with uncalibrated premium rounds, but with the fairly thin frontal armour, you don’t want to fight Heavy tanks head on anyway.

The thing the STG does well in those situations is actually sidehugging. Your mobility is so much better than pretty much any Heavy tank out there, and if you juke back and forth, they won’t get a bead on you.

This game also shows you can’t be too aggressive with the STG. You have a fairly long reload, and you can’t really rely on the hull armour. What you can rely on however is the camo rating; the STG has I think the best camo of any tier VIII Medium tank, so you might want to take some cues from Tank Destroyer gameplay.

But yeah, it’s fun. It takes a little while to get into the rear turret and long reload playstyle, but as I said that’s also what makes it fun. Trying to do things a little differently.

I will say the STG is not a tank for beginners; it’s probably the least noob friendly vehicle I’ve come across. You might even call it noob hostile.

Also, it’s a crate tank, and you probably know my feelings about crates by now.

So I can’t imagine you’ll be seeing a lot of them out there, which is a shame, because I do think we need more tanks like this in the game; offbeat, curious, not your average tank in some manner.

I’ll also say I’ve been struggling a little with it, it can sometimes be hard to find your spot on the team and your role on the battlefield. The 5 degrees of gun depression is going to put a lot of people off, and as I said the whole setup makes it a little awkward to drive.

So should you buy one?

No. It’s a crate tank, and I don’t condone that kind of behaviour. But I think you should keep an eye out for when it comes for sale in a regular bundle if you have any sort of interest in tanks that are a little out of the ordinary.

The STG is a Pro tool; not in the sense that it gives you freedom of movement and action like, say, the AMX 30 Prototype, but int hat it takes a careful and knowledgeable driver to make it work at all. You will struggle to find spots to work from, because it doesn’t really compare to anything else out there.

But I also think the STG is a Pro tool in the sense it will have important things to teach you that you wouldn’t otherwise learn and that will diversify your gameplay, make you see the game in a different way. That’s in the best of all worlds, of course.

If you do choose to gamble for the STG, I think you should take a minute to consider what you are getting yourself into. This is not a pay to win tank; it’s more like gamble to struggle one. For it to make any kind of sense, I think you need to understand and be interested in the very specific things it has to offer.

So yeah; it’s a thumbs up with a lot of caveats for me. I like the STG, but I don’t actually know quite how to drive it yet, and for most drivers I think either the T-34-3, the Chimera, or the tech tree T-34-2 would be a better option if you are curious about the 122 mm Medium tank playstyle.

Stay cool out there.

Pro Tools: AMX 30 B

Not A Royal Ordnance L7A1

By:

IrmaBecx

So you know how people say tier IX tanks are sometimes more worth it because they are “stronger in their tier” or “stronger tier for tier”? The AMX 30 1er Prototype and the AMX 30 B are the perfect example of this.

It’s a bit of a bad comparison for the 30 B, because the Prototype is perhaps the most exquisitely balanced tank in the game; the finest Medium tank you could ever get your hands on. For all its strength, the 30 B is not that.

And really, it’s a lot to do with the prominent commander’s hatch on top of the turret; an obvious weakspot. The Proto has a flat turret top. Otherwise, the 30 B is the better tank; it has better DPM, better gun handling, better penetration, better shell speed, better accuracy, much better ground resistance values, and it goes faster. The only thing the 1er Proto does better is actually armour thickness and 11% of credit coefficient.

The gun mantlet of the Proto is thicker than on the 30 B, and so is the armour behind it. But in 99% of situations that’s not going to matter. If you are hull down against a Ho-Ri III running calibrated shells, that will likely go through the 30 B and bounce off the Prototype, but that’s because it’s an AP shell and not HEAT.

But as much as I love my Proto, the 30 B always held a special place in my heart. It was one of the first tanks I supertested, around two and a half years ago now, and back then it was a little more, lets say “exuberant”. I do drive the production version on my press account, and I’ve always really liked it; I’ve been meaning to pick one up one day.

The question is, however: do I really need another 105 mm Medium tank, especially in the current game meta?

And the answer is, no; I need two. I need the 121B because it’s a hybrid; a 105 mm Object 140, and I need the 30 B because except for the E 50 M, it’s the only 105 mm Medium tank at tier X that doesn’t have a Royal Ordnance L7A1 clone for a main armament. The 30 B carries the 105 mm mle. F1, and of course that makes it all worth it.

It’s an interesting story, actually. You may know the Leopard 1, the AMX 30, the STB-1, and the Progetto 65 all come from the same joint project, and the 105 mm mle. F1 was developed for the envisioned “standard tank”, along with the fantastic and oh-so-French Obus G round.

Since HEAT rounds work better without spin stabilisation, the Obus G has an inner and an outer shell connected by ball bearings, and only the outer shell rotates from the rifling. That means you will get spin stabilisation, but the plasma beam won’t dissipate when the shell explodes.

What happened was that Germany adopted the L7 instead of the F1, and each nation ended up developing their own tank based on the prototypes.

For all intents and purposes, the F1 doesn’t differ all that much from any other tier X 105 mm Medium tank gun. Compared to the top of the line L7A3 Bordkanone, the F1 is only fractions worse in every respect except DPM. But it makes me happy knowing every time I fire a HEAT round that’s not a boring old T384E4 or L-38; it’s a spin stabilised Obus à Charge Creuse de 105 mm Modéle F1.

So is the AMX going to be worth fifteen thousand gold?

In a word? Yes. Not because of the Obus G round, but because the AMX 30 B is a fantastic drive. It’s soo agile, it’s almost like driving a Light tank. And if you are tired of getting smacked in the face in your Leopard every time you poke out to take a shot, there is no better remedy than the 30 B except maybe the STB-1.

That’s a good point, actually. All you have to do is slog through the other Japanese Mediums, and you’ll end up with a tank that in many respects is better than the AMX. The STB has much better armour, better DPM, and the turret is flatter. But it doesn’t quite offer the same freedom of movement the AMX does, and besides I’ve had my STB for ages at this point.

Really, if I wanted to diversify my collection, I’d get a collectible Heavy tank and not a Medium. I’ve had my eye on the VK 90 for quite a while. But I do still fashion myself a Medium tank driver, and I have always wanted a 30 B. 15K gold is steep, but it’s not all that steep, especially since I got most of the gold from watching streams and selling off surplus FCMs.

Anyway, the question is moot, because I already bought it.

But for you, there is still time. You could just grind out the STB-1 and do the hull down thing better. You could slog through the stock PTA; famously one of the hardest grinds in the game, and end up with the non plus ultra Leopard 1; you just won’t bounce anything off your gun mantlet. Or, if you are curious about French Medium tanks, you can wait and get a good deal on the 1er Prototype.

Me, I finally made the decision. It’s not a great bundle, but it is within reason; you get all nine equipment slots unlocked which is my main concern, and you also get the “Corporal” attachment which I think looks cool but wouldn’t normally pay for.

So I set all equipment slots to the left except extra hitpoints, extra engine power, and high end consumables, load up on croissants and paté, grab some repair kits, and load 29 APCR, 13 HEAT, and 7 HE rounds. I’m thinking about running the calibrated shells too, but DPM isn’t fantastic, so we’ll see after a few games.

All done. Time to go. And I’m hesitating a little, because it is a sort of momentous occasion. I’ve driven the tank before; in fact I drove it on the press account just the other day, but it’s always different on my main account.

First game out was a bust, but we ended up winning. And after that, it’s been a bit of ups and downs, but mostly up. I’ve won a few games where I only did like 1000 damage and didn’t really accomplish anything, but that’s all right. I’m in it for the long haul.

Actually, part of the reason I’ve been wanting the AMX 30 B is I realised how much mileage I’ve been getting out of my WZ-111 5A. I mean, I had a tier X premium for ages; I just never drove it. But it is nice having a tier X go-to vehicle that doesn’t lose any credits, and I’ve been thinking I might want another one.

After a handful of games, it all comes back to me. I remember why I loved this tank so much in testing, and why it’s been on my want list ever since; other than the Object 140, the AMX 30 B personifies the playstyle I aspire to as a tank driver. It’s just so agile.

Agility is not the same as speed, but this could actually be the fastest tier X Medium tank in the game. It’s either the AMX or the Leopard 1.

And speaking of the Leopard, you might say the AMX is somewhere in between the Leo and the STB-1. It’s not as robust as the STB but it’s faster, and it doesn’t quite have the firepower of the Leo, but it bounces more shots. I know you can get a few bounces off the Leo, but you can’t angle up your armour on a ridgeline and get those expected bounces the way the AMX can. The front plate is 55 mm, and then 40 mm closer to the turret. That means it will autobounce either a 120 or a 155 mm shell depending on where it hits.

But your mobility is the real “armour”, and that takes a little getting used to. When I see a fast tank I immediately think of brawling, and you can certainly brawl in the AMX 30 B. But that’s not really its forte; what it does really well is simply go where it needs to be, and positioning should be among your first considerations.

Continuing the Leopard comparison, I feel a different level of confidence rolling out in my new AMX than in my old Leo, and it’s actually a little strange. What little armour you have is about equivalent to being able to put your hand in the way when someone tries to slap you in the face, but even that little bit makes an enormous difference.

To finish off, it’s important to note we are in fact comparing the AMX to the best Medium tank in the game except for the armour. The Leopard has everything, except the one thing the AMX has over the Leo – a gun mantlet.

So yeah, I feel I made the right decision. But more than that, I feel the AMX 30 B is a tank I’m going to get some real mileage out of, and not just because it’s new to me.

Three things make me think that. It’s fast and agile, which is what I like. It should comfortably pay for its own upkeep. And perhaps most importantly: I’m not scared to drive it the way I am my Leopard 1. I’ve put thirty games on it since I bought it, and things aren’t going bad at all. Stats are up, damage output in healthy, and I’m having fun driving it.

What more could you ask for?

But this is still a fragile Medium tank, the preferred target for campy doom cannons and hysterical Light tank drivers crying over losing their missiles to the impending Sheridan buff. The AMX is the kind of tank people will push on when your hitpoints are down because they think it’s a pushover.

Here is a quick game I had today. Not spectacular, but it shows off the freedom of movement; the go-where-you-are-needed capability, and hopefully a bit of the vim and verve that makes me like this tank so much:

So should you get one? That’s a big “maybe”.

First of all it’s an expensive tank, and you could actually get something quite similar in the tech tree, although not quite this exact combination of abilities, and for me, the way the 30 B is balanced is a big selling point. It’s a reasonable tank; not too strong, not too weak, and with some definite strengths to take advantage of.

It’s also an extravagance of the highest order, perhaps more so than other collectible or premium tanks at tier X. You don’t buy the 30 B just because you want a tier X Medium, you buy it because you want the particular things it has to offer. If you did just want a Medium tank, there are plenty of options in the tech tree.

But if you like fast and agile tanks, and you don’t need a lot of armour, then the AMX is a wonderful drive; I really am very happy with it. And having played the game going on seven years now, I’m glad I waited to get it; there aren’t a lot of tanks I want that I don’t have already. I have to say this one was worth waiting for.

There are a few issues that should inform your decision. The AMX 30 B has the lowest DPM of any non autoloading tier X Medium tank. Much of the armour is thin enough to get overmatched. And overall, the stats aren’t very impressive. There really are only two things to make up for all the mediocrity; it has the joint highest top speed, and almost the same specific power as the Leopard 1. While lacking around 100 horsepower, the AMX is five tons lighter, making effective horsepower per ton almost exactly the same. 130% credit coefficient isn’t stellar, but it will pay for the upkeep.

This is not what you call a noob friendly vehicle. Mobility is a powerful advantage, but it will only get you so far. It can also quickly land you in more trouble that you can handle.

It’s hard to put your finger on wha’s so great about the AMX 30 B, and if you have trouble seeing what could possibly be so great about it, then I think you should think twice about making the investment. It looks great, it drives great, but none of those things is what makes it great. It’s a hull down tank, but likewise that isn’t really the sum of what it is.

I think what makes me like the AMX so much is the fact it puts my driving and decision making in focus. It’s all about the gameplay and how you take advantage of the fantastic mobility; what situations you can manufacture, and how you deal with ones that develop beyond your control.

As a side note, I can tell you if you are worried about the weak hatch on top, I take very few hits to that in my AMX. And really; why would people shoot at the hatch when your side armour is 35 mm and your upper front plate is 40 mm?

I win more games than I lose in the AMX 30 B, and that’s really all I care about, because this tank isn’t about stats; it’s about driving. It’s about putting yourself out there in a fast and flimsy tank and showing what you are made of. They say Light tanks is the hardest class to play, but this isn’t very far off. Except for the patchy armour and comparatively low DPM, there isn’t a lot to hold you back.

So yeah, it’s thumbs up from me. I love the AMX. But that doesn’t mean you should get one. If you are looking for something fast and extravagant you don’t really need but you want anyway, then that’s a pretty fair description of the AMX 30 B.

I will leave you with one more game; this one is an unexpected Mastery. I was really just holding the ridgeline on Normandy, but when the red team started pushing towards the A cap, I figured I had to do something about it:

You can see the shots don’t always penetrate, but I’m still not running the calibrated shells. You do notice the comparatively low DPM when brawling other Mediums, and it’s hard to get calculated bounces off the gun mantlet, because they’ll just shoot at your hull.

That is not to say I think the tank is struggling, because it simply isn’t. I don’t win all my games in it, but I do find that when I win, and sometimes when I don’t, I often have those “good games” that are my sole reason for playing at all these days. Bottom line, I’m very happy with my new AMX 30 B.

See you out there. I’ll be in the French sports tank with the spare parts camo.

Crate Of The Week: Centurion 5/1 RAAC

Aussie Centurion

By:

IrmaBecx

So if you like your British Mediums, and I know there are a few of you out there, You now have the chance to add to your collection. The Centurion 5/1 RAAC is here.

And it’s a handsome vehicle; I always liked the look of the Centurions. But in terms of driving, my relationship to them has been up and down to say the least. I recently gave in and got the FV4202, and I still haven’t been able to make it work properly.

But this is a very different proposition. It’s really just a premium Centurion I; mediocre mobility, strong turret front, and low alpha on a short reload.

What’s it like to drive?

I’m not going to lie, my first four games were all losses in spite of my healthy damage output, and I was poised to write a long, rambling paper about how small calibre Medium tanks are now completely obsolete and why no one should ever drive them again.

But my fifth game out was a five kill Mastery, so I think I’m going to give the RAAC Cent the benefit of the doubt, and try to keep things at least a little bit objective.

Objectively, the RAAC Centurion is a tech tree Centurion only better. The 20 pounder gun is exactly the same, but the armour and engine power are both superior. It’s sort of in between the Cent I and the Cent 7/1 in terms of power, which I guess would be fine if two of the tanks weren’t in the same tier. I’m not sure how I feel about this blatant tech tree power creep.

The bigger question I think, is whether or not these tanks are still viable at all?

There’s no question they can be. In any tank you can stay at the back of the pack and get a few shots in, riding the coattails of others all the way to the win. But that doesn’t tell us anything about the viability of a specific vehicle. The fact is you are going to have to work a little harder to put out the damage int he Cent 5/1 than in something with higher alpha damage, and that means it’s not going to appeal to everyone.

The hull down thing isn’t very hard to do. You set up behind a ridge and then you drive back and forth trying to get shots out. But that’s just one part; not all maps have a dominant hull down position where you can just go and do your thing, you need to be able to build a coherent playstyle around the hull down thing.

So yeah, a bit of a “Pro gear” tank. Not super noob friendly. But it can be really rewarding, and when it does work, it chews straight through your opponents in spite of the low alpha damage. You’ll really only struggle against heavily armed tier IX opponents, and even then, the standard penetration goes a long way.

If you have a look at my mastery game above, you’ll notice a few things. I don’t push too far forward initially, wanting to maintain a good hull down position and not get in crossfire. But I don’t hang around there when my teammates push up; this is Supremacy, after all.

See how the first shot on that FCM 50t both hit and penetrated; that’s pinpoint accuracy and snappy gun handling with tier IX penetration values at work.

Also note my tracking shots against the IS-3; if you catch someone on this situation, there’s not a whole lot they can do. I’m relatively safe behind the small dip in the terrain; the IS-3 isn’t likely to go through my turret front even with calibrated skill rounds.

Also. Do take a moment to note how good the RAAC Centurion looks. It really is a handsome tank.

And it is available now, although there is a caveat. You have a 97% chance of not getting one every time you open a crate.

So who would drive the Centurion 5/1?

British tank enthusiasts. People who like Centurions. Drivers of the Defender Mk. I perhaps? But definitely someone who has played the game enough to understand and appreciate the low alpha/strong turret/gun depression combination.

And I did enjoy driving it, but it’s just not quite my style. I used to really love driving my Centurion I, and this has the exact same hull down woodpecker playstyle. But these days my British project is the FV4202 HESH machine, and so I’m not looking for a premium Centurion, even if it is outright better than the tech tree version.

If you are the exact right kind of player, you are going to love the RAAC 5/1, but it is definitely a niche type of tank. You have to somehow justify running the lowest alpha in tier. I can do that in my FV301 since it’s so fast and agile, has great camo and top of the line viewrange, but a comparatively slow Medium like this?

Well. It’s faster than a regular Centurion. But still; even if you love everything about the 5/1, I would still advise you to wait for a regular bundle where you know the price up front.

Am I going to pick one up later?

No. It’s a nice drive, but like I said it’s not quite “me”. I’m super happy with my hybrid Chimera in terms of British tier VIII premiums.

Should you get one?

If you know your way around a Medium tank, like British vehicles, and enjoy permatracking and death by a thousand cuts, then I only have three caveats.

1. This is a low alpha tank meaning you need to work harder for your damage. 2. It’s a tank that requires an experienced driver. And 3. It’s also a crate tank – don’t gamble on crates.

Other than that, it’s thumbs up from me.

Battle Pass Prize Tank: The “Rudolph”

Rudolph

By:

IrmaBecx

So I like to give Wargaming a shout out when they do something good, and even being someone who is generally super grumpy about the whole holiday thing, I have to say they got the new tier VI “Rudolph” tank exactly right.

Yes. I will totally drive an Easy 8 with some boards and twigs stuck to it to make it look like a sleigh and get into the spirit of things.

And that, really, is what the Rudolph is all about; holiday spirit. You have to admit they got the holiday spirit just right when even the old Grinch wants to drive it.

And there’s nothing to it. Both the Easy 8 and the Fury have been in the game forever; they are regular hull down Mediums with a bit of gun mantlet, and so is the Rudolf. It’s on the press account already, so I had a go in it first thing.

Nothing spectacular happened, but I also didn’t struggle in the least. The Rudolph works just like you think it will, and if you’ve driven a Sherman variant before, you can drive this one too.

Sure, the Easy 8 isn’t exactly the pinnacle of fascinating tier VI Medium tank design. But it isn’t meant to become a daily beater or a staple of tournament play, just a bit of silly fun over the holidays. It’s not the thousand damage one shot kind of fun, just a bit of wholesome 76 mm merriment.

For that, you could do a whole lot worse than a run of the mill US Medium, and let’s not pretend this tank is anything else. American tanks are built to be mediocre at everything, but that also means they aren’t outright bad at anything. And the Rudolph certainly looks the part; endearingly silly, like it’s going to a masquerade.

So that’s what you should expect from it, a bit of silly, dressed up fun for the holidays. And next year you can take it out again along with your santa claus avatar. It’s not going to have a lot of appeal beyond being a christmas ornament, but I don’t think it has to. I’m sure people spend more than the price of the battle pass on candles alone, and they don’t even get any boosters.

So yeah, it’s a tier VI Medium. That in itself isn’t super exciting, and it’s not going to replace your Bromwell or your T-34-85 M as a credit grinder.

But hey, the thing has antlers. Clearly the intention here is not so much competitiveness, or even utility, as plain amusement. And the Rudolph is fun to play because it looks silly. Not because it can turn on a dime or always places the shots just right, but because it’s dressed up like a christmas sleigh.

It’s not fun because it can drive straight through tier VII teams or somehow makes you magically Smasher proof, but because it’s about something completely different: a bit of holiday spirit. Playing a character. Driving a red nosed tank.

So it’s a thumbs up from me, and it’s super easy to tell if it’s going to be worth it for you. The Rudolph is ll about the looks, and so if you like the way it looks, it’ll be worth it.