2961

Yeah, nothing lowers your morale more than riding the tail end of a higher end tank going “plink plink plink” as your ammo uselessly bounces off.

2962

At the same time, having shells plink off you like you are sitting in a veranda in the rain is a most satisfying experience. I miss my beta IS-4.

I skip tiers 2-5 by having a pre-order Pz V-VI and and an elite SU-26 and a willingness to use free xp. I also have the M4freebie but it’s so awful i only play it once a day. I went straight to the Stug in a few evenings play as now I’m on the long grind to the T-54 in my '44, I also want to play a TD line too.

If anyone who joins now wants to fast track it, buy a Lowe or KV5 and some gold for premium and free xp. The 60k+ credits and xp you receive from a premium win will race you through the tiers fairly quickly.

2963

I don’t mind the M4A2E4 at all, it’s fairly decent.

2964

Yeah I find it comparable to the T34.

2965

Can confirm that lag hasn’t been an issue for two days now. Feels a little strange with the tank no longer behaving as a drunk sailor though. :)

T-34 can move though. Has a far better accuracy gun. That gun has higher penetration. And the tank itself is a far smaller target.

Which is why I also sold mine after 30 games or so for a nice 300,000 credits boost (which really matters early on). Other, non premium tier 5 tanks were completely outperforming it in earning potential.

2966

So, I hear a lot about how Premium tanks earn more cash. Is that because the game applies a multiplier to Premium tank use, or is it just because it lets you jump into higher earning tiers faster than if you grind up naturally?

Also, is there a good write-up on how heavy tanks work? I’m getting to the point where I need to decide what to do after the Lee; I figured I would just get a Sherman, but I’m now wondering if I should get a T1 Heavy and go down that line…

2967

I would say give the heavies a try. I don’t know if you need a strategy guide really, I think you will pick up quickly the differences from a medium (slower, tougher, bigger gun, etc.)

The Tier 5 and 6 US heavies (T1 and M6) aren’t as tough as the Soviet equivalents (KV and KV-3), but the US Tier 7 (T29) is quite good and can bounce a lot of hits off its huge turret. I have trouble going toe to toe with one in my IS.

Also, I’m sure its been linked before, but I found the wiki tank descriptions useful when looking ahead. It’s not updated for 6.4 though.

2968

The premium Sherman is inferior to a T34-85 but I think it’s on par at least with the regular T-34, overall. The Sherman’s armor is nicely sloped and bounces a fair number of shots, even though its silhouette is too tall. The gun is mid-pack I think, but I’ve gotten a fair number of kills with it.

I have indeed contemplated selling it, and will probably do so as soon as I get something decent to elite status, probably my T-34-85 (which is one of my favorite tanks).

2969

They just plain make more cash, period. Theres some sort of multiplier I think.

Plus their repairs and ammo are cheaper than a tank of their Tier normally would be.

2970

Does it actually tell you that in game? If it does I have never seen it. You would think they would emphasize that point, as it is the best aspect of those premium tanks, imo.

2971

Personally I strongly prefer the mediums. The main thing to think about is do you like to play a game of maneuverability or do you like slow deliberate actions but with a big gun and able to take lots of damage. (The other alternative which you haven’t mentioned is TDs, which are very good at sniping, not very manueverable and only so-so at taking damage with a few exceptions, and are generally best at defensive play.)

The heavies at least at Tier V are very slow. The KV is a slow lumbering hulk. The T1 in some ways feels worse, since it is so huge and slow (although the KV with KV-2 turret is also just a massive target). The KV does get some nice guns with outstanding penetration and damage. The T1 gun is pretty crappy for a heavy and is basically the same as the Sherman mediums get. I haven’t gone any higher with American or Russian heavies.

The Tiger I didn’t feel that bad to me in terms of speed. That could be because the contrast from T-28 to KV is very stark, but the Pzkw IV is actually pretty slow, so Pzkw IV to VK3601(H) to Tiger is just a long sequence of relatively slow tanks.

Some of the mediums are fast and nimble, which for me is a lot of fun. The T-34 is very nimble for a medium, it has a decent gun with good penetration, so-so damage, and high rate of fire. Unfortunately it doesn’t take much damage and its armor is quit thin compared to the other tanks in its class. Ultimately though it leads to the T-44 and T-54. The T-44 is very tough, fast, nimble, and dangerous – a lot of fun to drive.

The Pzkw IV as mentioned is slow and sluggish. Tough turret, weak body. Very good gun. Did not enjoy the VK3001(H) or the VK3001§ much. They share guns and the guns are all decent. The VK3001(H) is very fast when fully upgraded. You can kind of play it like a T-28. Fast gun which can move quickly to trouble spots – doesn’t take much to kill it, very thin armor. VK3001§ decent speed, moderate ability to take damage. I haven’t played VK3601(H) since beta, so can’t comment much on it, but my impression is that it is generally well liked.

The Sherman is kind of mid-way between the Pzkw IV and T-34. Decent damage, decent speed and maneuverability, takes a fair bit of damage (especially compared to the T-34). The M4A3E8 easy-eight Sherman above it feels undergunned. Haven’t gotten any further in this line.

2972

I believe there’s something to that effect in one of the hint screens. It does seem like from a “make-money perspective” they ought to emphasize it more.

2973

Yea, its definitely a preference thing. The mediums have their place on the battlefield, which I am glad for because it brings nice variety. I still think it’s worth it to try some heavies though. I haven’t tried the T1, and it is undergunned but fairly quick. The KV is solid but slow. It can dominate completely in T5 and below battles, which is of course a lot of fun (though they are going to nerf it).

I’ve said before I think that the VK3601 is a lot of fun and worth a try. It has a pretty good gun, decent mobility, and it is tough for a medium of its tier.

I have a T-34 and I’d like to try a T-44, but I have been playing the heavies more of late.

2974

The KV-5 is still my main source of income. The only downside being IMO it is outclassed by many other high tier tanks. So effectively if you are against a group of IS-4’s you’ve taken the slot of what could have been a better high tier tank on your own team.

I’ve also seen too many Lowe’s and KV-5’s try and go lone wolf against the opposing team. Complete waste of a tank and straightaway you’ve handicapped your own side. Alternatively though you can be a great meat shield for your fellow tanks as often the opposing side will be falling over themselves to take out the “wallet warrior” premium and forget the other 3-4 tanks in your group taking them out one by one. :)

2975

The fun thing about the easy eight is its top gun. it gets a machine gun like 76mm gun that has decent penetration and damage compared to the gun that is most like it, the T-34 57mm. It goes bang like once every two seconds or less! While the individual hits dont count for much, they tend to come in bunches. Bang! bang! bang! extremely fun tank, quick on its feet as well.

The KV1 is a slow lumbering beast. Both the guns that go in the KV2 fridge turret are very much fun. The KV3 that follows it is also very slow but an otherwise normal tank. It being so slow leads to very tactical play. I tend to do well in it, because it forces me to play patient. I always get killed too soon for running in front of the pack.

One can, and probably should play TD’s defensively. But the germans didnt call them sturmgeschutze, or assault guns for nothing. They can work amazingly well in the 2nd line of an offence. tag along a kv3 or IS and pick on anything that threatens your big buddy bullet magnet.

After kv3 the soviet heavy lines becomes more like medium tanks, in that they get quicker and more nimble. Well its dont take much to be more nimble than a kv3!

The american heavy line starts out being rather frustrating, but once you get the big gun on the tier 7 T29, its just teh sex.

2976

I went ahead and plunked for a T14 for XP grinding - can’t justify buying a Lowe and when I feel spendy and plunk for the $$$ ammo it’s fun. Sure it’s literally shooting quarters at people, but those quarters also blow things up.

2977

So apparently they have disabled (temporarily?) all tracers on the US server. I guess tracer duration and color are handled completely client side, and cheating had become too rampant on the russian server.

2978

This helps explain why they’ve disabled turret shaking when hit, and why they are so cool with allowing you to import new tank skins. Both decisions, IMO, hurt the game. But if you’re doing so much work client-side, I guess you have to pick your battles…

2979

The lag is largely fixed though. Had some nice matches last night.

2980

I hope they finally do what they talked about in beta and leave all tracers off arty view, so that you can’t use them to spot enemy arty with ridiculous precision. At one point they talked about wanting to make it necessary to scout out arty.