It seems WoT Blitz players are the first to officially see a major overhaul of premium shells in the game. Update 3.9 has just been released featuring a change of premium shells being ‘P2W’ to ‘A alternative’.
Things to Know
- Damage will decrease by an average of 15% (will not affect U.K. HESH shells)
- Prices will decrease by an average of 20%, with some vehicles seeing reductions as high as 40%
For certain Premium vehicles that use Premium shells more than others, we’re increasing the penetration of standard shells:
- Churchill III
110mm to 130mm - Matilda IV
86mm to 97mm - Matilda BP
110mm to 130mm - M4A2E4 Sherman
92mm to 106mm - T14
92mm to 106mm - T26E4 Super Pershing
170mm to 205mm
With these changes, these vehicles will see an increase in Credit earnings.
Some researchable tech tree vehicles had their Premium shell penetration values increased as well:
- M3 Lee, M8A1, M4 Sherman, M7, T21, M4A3E2 Sherman Jumbo, and M4A3E8 Sherman
75mm M3 and 75mm AT M3 guns, 92mm to 106mm - E 100
Gun 15cm Kw.K. L/38 gun, 235mm to 258mm - Medium II and Medium III
Gun QF 6-pdr 8 cwt Mk. I gun, 57mm to 65mm - Churchill I, Crusader, and Cromwell
Gun QF 6-pdr Gun Mk. V gun, 110mm to 130mm - Ha-Go, Chi-Ni, and Chi-Ha
Gun 5.7cm Gun Type 97 gun, 30mm to 38mm - Renault FT and D1
Gun 37mm APX SA18 gun, 29mm to 37mm - D2 and B1
Gun 47mm SA35 gun, 45mm to 62mm
Shells for the SU-100Y and Tankenstein will not be changed.
Player Inequality & Vehicle Advantages
There are two primary reasons why we’ve made these adjustments:
Player Inequality
Not everyone can afford Premium shells. Those who can enjoy certain benefits in battle and will likely have a much more impressive “Average Damage Per Battle” stat than those who stick to standard shells. Tournaments can also make players feel like they’re at a disadvantage if they’re not fully stocked on Premium shells.
Therefore, we decided to reduce the average damage of Premium shells, thereby leveling the playing field a bit and hopefully placing a greater influence on player skill. Reduced damage also means reduced Credit earning, so we’ve lowered prices accordingly.
Vehicle Advantages
Consider the inherent performance of each vehicle class; typically, heavy tanks will fire slower and less accurately than other classes to balance out their standard damage dealing potential. When Premium shells are introduced to this mix, however, medium or light tanks have a notable advantage: a higher rate-of-fire means they can fire more Premium shells, and thus deal more damage than you’d expect.
As a result, if two heavy tanks both use Premium shells, a face-off can be relatively balanced. However, if one of those heavy tanks runs into a medium tank or tank destroyer, the higher firing rate and accuracy combined with the increased damage of a Premium shell can give the lighter vehicle a distinct advantage.
By reducing the damage of Premium shells, we hope to make Premium shells an alternative, not a replacement. With the new adjustments, tank commanders will now have a choice:
- Equip Standard Shells
Requires better aiming and knowledge of weak spots, but can deal more damage - Equip Premium Shells
Better penetration, but lower damage potential
With these changes, Premium shells should no longer be a “silver bullet” for tanks taking advantage of their firing rate or tank destroyers that stay on the edge of the map. As always, we’ll be closely monitoring player feedback and data in regards to these adjustments and make further changes if necessary.
Let’s just hope it works out on Blitz and it gets implemented on WoT PC and Console as well.
