vyshka
4021
I just started playing 3 weeks ago and the lower tiers didn’t seem that bad to me. I think tier 4 was much more a pain than the lower tiers.
Marcin
4022
Yeah, fair enough. You can stay in the lower tiers and only die 70% of the time, or advance into the upper tiers to improve those odds to 90% of the time.
And if you play every single day for a month, you just MIGHT get to a point where you break even! ^_^
schurem
4023
There are some pretty good rides even at tier 4. The pzIII, the T-28, the american and russian t4 tank hunters are all pretty damn good.
With the introduction of the tier 5 light tanks, the situation for many of the tanks currently designated scout tanks should improve markedly regarding matchmaking.
The thing when starting out with WoT is to learn not to mind dying. Also line abreast > column :P
Also, as soon as you die you can exit the battle and play with a different tank. You get full xp / credits when the battle eventually ends. You don’t need to watch!
Yeah, definitely jump in. I love playing the low tiers still, and while a lot of the folks there are doing what I do, with elite tanks just making money or grinding up experience to transfer, there’s a lot of folks just starting out still.
I started playing about two weeks ago. At the start, sure, I died a lot. However, it didn’t take too long before I started doing better. Currently I am playing with tier 2/3 tanks switching between light/medium/tank destroyer/artillery depending on my mood. It helps that there’s always something to work toward, be it xp for a new component, money for a new tank you just researched or just training your crew.
I got my Jagdpanther yesterday, after endless (and sometimes frustrating) battles with the Jagdpanzer IV. Even without any upgrade it plays better than the Jagdpanzer. I can’t wait for the 88mm/L71 gun :)
Or, as an alternative, you could watch how other people play, think a little, maybe read a guide or two. I bet this will improve your death ratio.
Just be cautious, stay in a pack and shoot stuff - that’s the game in a nutshell. :)
RichVR
4029
Or get a Marder II. Stay way back hidden in a bush. And murder everyone on the other team.
The E-50 and E-75 seem to be afflicted with the same problems most German tanks have; i.e. terrible stock performance, big xp investments to upgrade. Both are sluggish before you unlock the 50k xp final engine. The E-75 starts with the same turret as the Tiger II which is woefully underarmoured, and a gun that is truly effective vs tier 9 and 10 targets is a good 63k xp down the road.
The E-50 I have managed to break even in so far but the E-75 is more problematic; I think my win percentage is merely 30% at this point. my opposite numbers in most matches seem to invariably be upgraded IS4s and T34s which can take me on in almost any circumstance… plus the tank is so slow that generally if I make a mistake there is no getting out of it.
I am thinking at this point I will just throw in a chunk of free xp to get the engine upgrade (which is the same for both E-50 and E-75).
Anyone played an E-100? What am I looking forward to there?
Marcin
4031
Thanks for the politeness on the lrn2ply. :) I realize I’m coming across as a bit of a hater, but I played the crap out of the game in the beta, went away for a while, and now I can’t seem to get my skills back no matter what, and I think the game is a bit hostile to new players in the state that it is.
By comparison, I’ve done much the same with Bad Company 2 (played on release, took a long break, then came back) and those skills took far less time to regain. Yes, they’re not the same type of game - but what I’m trying to communicate is that tactical experience (i.e. knowing the maps inside out) counts for a lot in WoT, and that’s not something you can catch up on easily. And the game being so deadly means there will be a lot of frustration early on, again not a great mark for it being newb-friendly.
Anyway.
I think the E-50 is a dream tank for anyone with a team soldier mindset. It’s such a fantastic support weapon. The bigger maps favor it vs the T-54, but there’s enough cover, rolling slopes, and concealment for it to harass heavies effectively.
I’ve seen some really nice plays by E-50s. Scooting alongside a column of heavies, spotting and engaging selectively. When the fight turns into a “behind the cover” stalemate, he tries to find a flanking route - or at least spots the enemy flank attempt and delays it. It is the ultimate shoot-and-scoot tank. The final 105 on it has a blisteringly quick aiming time, hits hard, penetrates decently, and is very accurate. With a gunlaying drive, vertical stabilizer, and optics, I think this would be a fun sniper tank.
JoshV
4033
It should be noted that until you get the last gun upgrade, you will not be murdering anyone. Switch to explosive and plink away.
In fact, that’s probably a good hard lesson to learn early, when to switch to explosive, and getting a feel for each tanks armor values so you know when you have no hope of penetrating.
Even the Enhanced Gun Laying Drive is not necessary. With just a Vertical Stabilizer, Improved Ventilation and Coated Optics, my E-50 is frighteningly effective in peekaboo fights.
It’s the best tier 9 medium at the moment, outdoing the Patton by a slight margin.
If it had Patton’s gun depression, it would make the other two completely obsolete (as even the Patton’s view range advantage would then be too marginal, considering everything else).
Is there some rule of thumb I should be following here? I don’t think I’ve ever swapped to HE considering it’s lack of penetration.
ShivaX
4036
If you can’t penetrate use HE. HE almost always does damage, barring extreme armor differences - ie shooting a Maus with an Easy8’s HE probably wont hurt it, but then again your AP will NEVER hurt it so doing 1% every third shot is better than nothing.
My policy on the Marder II (which I still keep around as elite for fun and cheap credits and exp) is to skip the middle 75, as it’s nowhere near as good as the final gun (the Russian 76 I think, a captured piece), and the rapid-firing 50mm earlier gun is a real hoot to play.
I keep coming into this thread to see if they have fixed the games horrible matchmaking problems. Its too bad they havent yet. I cant go back to playing the game at all until they do.
I don’t think they ever will. Haven’t they publicly stated they’re satisfied with matchmaking currently?
Yes, if your penetration indicator (the triangle) is yellow, it may be wise to switch to HE (knowing if you can still penetrate will only come with experience). If it is red, definitely switch to HE.
HE does not rely on penetration to do damage. It almost always* does some damage to the target, based on its armor strength, even without penetration. If HE does penetrate, it deals massive damage.
*Here is a detailed explanation of how HE works.
