World of Tanks – Beginner’s Guide – Best Starting Lines for Each Class

It is not a heavily guarded secret that World of Tanks is a hard game to get into. Veteran players seal clubbing in their 2J‘s , terrible low tier tank balance, lack of proper explanation of game mechanics and RNG being unfavorable at lower tiers are contributing factors towards a bad experience for new players, discouraging new players from ever coming back to the game.

That is exactly why The Armored Patrol in collaboration with YouTuber/Twitch streamer RagingRaptor are launching a series of video/text guides to help new players get used to the game, properly explain the game mechanics and acquaint them with the general state of the game to make their experience just that tiny bit less painful.

First installment in our series of beginner‘s guides – a class-based tank line guide specifically made for those who are just starting the game.

Beginner‘s Guide – Best Starter Lines

First of, we need to note that the main judging factor about whether or not a tree is beginner-viable is the grind or let‘s call it tank effectiveness. There is no bigger turn off than a stinky tier 7 tank you play that can‘t do anything to its contemporaries. Second factor – learning capabilities. A tank must offer a specific playstyle for players to adopt and develop his new abilities around it, like abusing camouflage mechanics, finding irregularities in terrain to take advantage of well armored turret armor, etc. Third factor – capabilities of the top tier. Tier X vehicles are what we ultimately grind for, and the performance of the top tier will be heavily taken into account, but not as much as grind itself.

As for the selected lines, there will be one out of each vehicle class we deem as most beginner friendly. We will take every single vehicle tier V – X, and write a detailed guide on how to use each of them most effectively, detailing the things the vehicle excels / suffers at, and optimal playstyle in addition to what new it brings for a new player.

With that all out of the way, let‘s head onto the heavy tanks

Heavy tanks, the armored beasts

IS-7 tank line.

IS-7 with recent buffs is still an amazing tier X vehicle after all these years. It won‘t struggle to perform equally with the more modern heavy tank ‚powerhouses’ such as the 277 or 5A and might even outperform them in some ways. The still viable tier X, paired with relatively painless grind and well performing lower tiers make this the most optimal heavy tank line to start with.

Tier 5 – KV-1

KV-1 is alright.

Survivability

The hull armor is what you can expect, with correct angling and positioning it should be able to bounce shells from equal and lower tier. Turret armor is quite alright for the tier which in conjuction with the gun depression can work rather well for the tier. The hitpoints of the vehicle are lowest from all tier 5 heavies, 640, which leaves little more to be desired, but also some room for errors.

Firepower

With the 85mm gun while the accuracy is relatively lousy and you will be aiming for a while after stopping. Just don‘t expect to get snapshots with this tank, hidden values are notoriously bad on this vehicle. While the gun‘s handling doesn‘t fare well, the DPM and alpha are pretty good and penetration is decent, not to mention the very un-soviet 7 degrees of gun depression, which will allow a lot more of map positions to be available for you to abuse and even playing hull down.
Also, while not the most wisest choice, 122mm U-11 howitzer is a viable choice at this tier. Packing alright penetration and absurd 410 HE alpha damage, this tank can outright oneshot some vehicles of its own tier, mainly tank destroyers. It‘s just that like all howitzers, the gun is very inaccurate and aims forever.

Mobility

The KV is your pure heavy tank, it won‘t win any drag races. The traverse rate for both turret and hull is bad, and the tank is not very fast at all, capable of only 34 km/h which it will likely not ever reach unless going downhill thanks to very underwhelming base 10.2 specific power ratio.

Spotting

The view range is abysmal lowest out of all tier 5 heavy tanks and nearly one of the worst at tier 5 in general, only saved by the fact is the only tank worse with SU-85 280m of view range. In the best case scenario view range will be just above 400 without binoculars, which is really bad as the tank will be blind most of the time.

Verdict:

KV-1 is alright. It‘s not great but it‘s a nice pit stop for players to learn about armor angling and the importance of correct positioning in the map.

 

Tier 5 – KV-1S

Just an upgraded KV-1?

Survivability

Compared to the KV-1, survivability goes down. The hull armor remains mostly the same but the turret is new and not as well armored/angled and receives a massive cupola weak spot. Overall, KV-1S gets more health, 660, but loses the good turret armor of the KV-1, with the new turret being somewhat inconsistent and penetrable by tier 5 tanks.

Firepower

While KV-1S retains the same 85mm gun and gets minor handling increases, the gun depression goes WAY down to -3.5 which is near unusable and painful. That‘s why the 122mm gun is likely the best option for this tank as it gets -5 degrees, which is a bit better. Plus, the 122mm is more fitting for this tank, as the vehicle is much more mobile compared to the KV-1, meaning going straight up for enemy medium tanks being an actual option

Mobility

KV-1S is much more mobile than the KV-1, with its mobility resembling a proper heavium (heavy tank that moves like a medium). It‘s not amazing but 13.6 hp/t and 43 km/h will allow you to be much more versatile on the battlefield.

Spotting

View range is still very bad, although not quite as terrible as the KV-1. With binoculars and few other view range enhancing items it‘s not that hard to reach the magical 445m mark.

Verdict and playstyle:

This would be a decent entry for the player as a more mobile out of heavy tanks players will get used to at higher tiers, such as IS-7. The limited penetration on the top 122mm should also teach how to aim at weak spots.

The vehicle should be used to mess with enemy medium tanks, as at higher tiers the vehicle won’t be able to do anything to heavies.

 

Tier 6 – KV-85

Upgraded KV-1/1S hybrid

Survivability

The hull armor remains the same, and it is utterly unreliable at this tier, but turret is borrowed from KV-1S and is improved a little, meaning there is a possibility that bounces will occur. Overall, the KV-85 is quite easy to punch through for most tanks and has a good slab of HP to play with.

Firepower

The 100mm gun is very nice and capable. It has enough penetration to challenge tier 7s, nice alpha damage and decent-ish gun handling. DPM is also very nice but the tank has only -3 degrees of gun depression, which is very painful in some hill maps.

However, you should unlock the 122mm gun on the KV-85 as well, as it gets shared on the IS, the next tank in the line. But don‘t use it, as it is much worse than the 100mm gun.

Mobility

Mobility is somewhere between KV-1 and KV-1S. It has alright 13 hp/t specific power but very underwhelming 34 km/h top speed. The hull and turret rotation isn‘t amazing, but better than most other heavies.

Spotting

Shares same view range as KV-1S, which at this tier is even worse.

Verdict:

As a heavy tank, it has a very capable 100mm gun. But as a platform, it lacks armor and speed to make it amazing. It‘s not bad.

 

Tier 7 – IS-1

Roll out the big guns.

Survivability

The vehicle has similar turret to its predecessor but even this vehicle will get penetrated similar or even lower tiered tanks, and unless the enemy hits the angled sides of the turret the shell is more or less likely to penetrate. Hull is quite a bit better this time around, with some trollish angles and far better effective armor. However, armor still shouldn’t be trusted.

Firepower

The 122mm gun you unlocked on the KV-85 is pretty good at this tier. It packs the heaviest punch out of all tier 7 heavy tanks, with mediocre penetration and gun handling. Furthermore, -6 gun depression is quite usable.

Also it is for the best that you unlock the top 122mm cannon just so you wouldn’t have to on the IS-3.

Mobility

Unfortunately the speed doesn’t get any better, but the vehicle will accelerate faster thanks to better specific power ratio. Turret doesn’t turn very well, but the hull enjoys medium-like turning levels.

Spotting

350m of view range isn’t very good, but with binoculars alone will allow achieving nearly 445m view range. It’s better to carry a pair of binoculars and vents + rammer for this vehicle.

Verdict and playstyle:

The IS-1 is quite decent as a tier 7 heavy. The armor is unreliable but might be surprisingly bouncy at times, paired with a heavy hitting cannon and decent acceleration, IS is a quite decent tier 7.

The vehicle is a perfect city peek-a-BOOM tank. Wait for enemy heavy tanks to fire and then use your big cannon to shave large chunks of health from enemy vehicles.

 

Tier 8 – IS-3

The best one yet, all rounder

Survivability

IS-3 introduces the first pike nose armor principle to the line-up. To make the most of the armor, always engage the enemy head on! Sidescraping will only weaken your armor, so consider getting comfortable with reverse sidescraping from now on.

Overall, IS-3’s armor is pretty great. Roughly 200mm of frontal effective armor will allow you to bully lower tiered and, if hull armor is hidden, tank even tier X shells due to amazing turret armor. Just remember, face hugging taller tanks than yours will reveal very weak top turret armor!

Furthermore, tank has an amazing side armor profile, with the upper side armor being multilayered and very thick. If the player gets the feeling of IS-3 and how it should be used, IS-3 performs very well with such advanced techniques such as reverse sidescraping.

1500 hitpoints is alright, but this tier marks the beginning of 750 alpha guns, so use it wisely.

Firepower

The top 122mm BL-9 is a great cannon, but will require a bit of grinding to get it. Playing the IS-3 stock will require a lot of premium ammo, so save up a lot of credits and free XP just to skip the horrific stock grind.

With the 122mm BL-9 unlocked, the IS-3 is a great tier 8 heavy tank. It has good penetration for the tier, capable premium shell, decent for a big caliber gun accuracy, alright aim time and surprisingly snap shotty gun, meaning some of un-aimed or shots on the move will hit the target.

Mobility

IS-3 is a relatively mobile heavy tank. While it doesn’t have the top speed of a medium, only 38, it’s still quite fast and will reach the destination faster than other heavies.

Spotting

IS-3 retains 350m view range, which is very bad for the tier. However, if IS-3 is used to brawl against heavies, the view range shouldn’t be a big issue until later in the game.

Verdict and playstyle:

IS-3 is a jack of all trades. It’s a pretty good tier 8 heavy that has a relatively painful stock grind, but once the main armament is unlocked, it’s all good from there on.

IS-3 is a brawler – hull down combat master. Use your vehicle to engage heavies head-on. If the enemy team has a lot of superheavies/hull down vehicles, IS-3 has the capability to go toe-to-toe with enemy medium tanks as well.

 

Tier 9 – Object 257

Trollish armor.

Survivability

Object 257 is rather odd in terms of armor. The armor is upper hull armor is very good while the lower hull is rather weak. Furthermore, side armor is very thick on the upper part and ridiculously sloped on the lower one, meaning side scraping (especially reverse sidescraping) works extremely well on this vehicle, with a lot of room for overangling. Even if caught side to enemy vehicles, your trollish side armor can bounce even high penetration rounds. Just beware, lower side is only 45mm thick, and 150mm guns will overmatch you with a guaranteed penetration.

Turret armor is somewhat of a letdown on this vehicle.On paper it is rather thick and well sloped, but the twin cupola weak spots are stand out and are rather easy to hit, so keep moving at all times to throw off opponents’ aim!

Firepower

The main gun here is the new top 122mm with 440 alpha damage, good penetration and alright gun handling (It doesn’t get much better compared to IS-3) and to top it all off, APCR shell as standard which means much higher base shell velocity.

Overall, it’s a pretty good gun for a tier 9 heavy tank.

Mobility

50 km/h top speed, alright acceleration and really good traverse means the 257 can keep up with some mediums and use its very good armor against them.

Spotting

The view range gets big upgrade, now it’s 390m base. Using coated optics and a decently skilled crew or vents will allow to reach the 445m base view range easily.

Verdict and playstyle:

Object 257 is a good tier 9 heavy tank. Being reasonably mobile, with trollish protection that works and a good gun, in the hands of a competent user this vehicle can work really well.

Object 257 is a pure heavy or medium line brawler. Utilizing the weird armor layout in the right way can reward the player with a lot of damage bounced and paired with its alright cannon, be a decent experience overall.

 

Tier 10 – IS-7

The true heavium.

Survivability

IS-7 has amazing armor. Upper hull is impenetrable without premium shells, and lower plate is roughly 230mm thick, which will allow for some lucky bounces at times.

The main highlights of the armor are the turret, which is borderline impenetrable by any normal means and the very amazing layered side armor profile, meaning learning proper reverse sidescraping is a must on this vehicle!

Firepower

The only 130mm gun is pretty good. While it doesn’t fire the fastest, doesn’t handle the best or do the most damage, it’s still a very capable cannon at the tier.

Mobility

IS-7 is very fast considering the armor it has on itself.It has nearly 60 km/h top speed and specific power ratio of nearly 18 hp/t, meaning reaching the top speed isn’t impossible under the right circumstances, like city streets.

Spotting

400m. Is still quite good at tier X. Nothing to write home about.

Verdict and playstyle:

The top tier IS-7 is still a very competitive vehicle. It has very good armor paired with decent main armament and a fast platform. While it’s not the number 1 pick for competitive events, it can still hold its own.

IS-7 can use most tactics quite well. It is capable of playing against medium tanks, brawling against heavy tanks or flanking enemies. It is a very versatile heavy tank and a heavy tank you should unlock first as a beginner.

 

Medium tanks – the all-rounders 

There are many good medium tank lines, but one in particular takes the prize for its versatility and easy learning curve.

Centurion AX line

Say what you want about the Centurions, but they are versatile, jack of all trades tanks that teach the importance of gun depression, gun handling and good ammunition choices according to the situation. For this reason alone, Cent AX is a far better choice than tanks like 430U for a beginning player.

Tier 5 – Crusader

It’s not Cromwell, but it’s not bad.

Survivability

Armor of british mediums up until tier 8 is the same – unreliable or no armor to speak about. Low hit points and mediocre mobility contribute further to this aspect, it is not a tank that takes hits well.

Firepower

Crusader doesn’t pack impressive armament, only a 6 pounder “pew pew” cannon. The base penetration of 110mm will struggle to penetrate most heavy tanks at the same tier, and while premium penetration of 180mm will help deal with most same tiered heavies, although when uptiered the tank will be relatively useless. The cannon’s main advantage is high DPM and -12 degrees of gun depression, but relatively bad gun handling for a fast firing gun will not allow the player to spam the cannon as the tank isn’t particularly accurate and doesn’t aim quick enough. The very impressive gun depression will make a lot of unusable for many other tanks positions viable and help the tank stand out among the crowd.

Mobility

The tank is mobile, but not fast. It turns well, accelerates well, and the speed is alright. Overall, the mobility is quite literally, “alright”, with the main turnoff factor being mediocre 44 km/h top speed, but 22km/h backwards speed will prove far more helpful thanks to the tank’s playstyle.

Spotting

360m. base view range will help to reach the full 445m. view range cap with binos, although the view range isn’t good, it’s usable.

Verdict and playstyle:

Crusader is a very support based medium. It’s not very quick, but the pew pew cannon paired with very impressive reverse speed, acceleration and -12 degrees of gun depression will make flanking for side shots or surprise attacks comfortable.

Overall, it’s not bad and is an important stop to learn the playstyle of the rest of the tree and the importance of correct positioning utilizing your strengths.

 

Tier 6 – Cromwell

Best tier 6 light tank?

Survivability

The survivability isn’t what makes Cromwell an amazing tier 6, the armor isn’t going to protect from anything but the hitpoint pool is a big advantage for the tank, being 750, which paired for the very active playstyle of this tank will help the player a lot.

Firepower

Cromwell gets a much needed gun upgrade, the main armament deals respectable damage very fast, making it very proficient at eliminating light tanks and some other mediums. While the penetration is 145mm which will suffice for most tanks at the tier, the heaviest of the heavies will still resist this unless flanked, funnily enough that is exactly what Cromwell is amazing at.

Mobility

Main stand out ability of the Cromwell is simply how fast it is, it is incredibly fast beating even some light tanks and rivaling the most fast tanks at the tier. It is very fast to accelerate, can keep its speed and turns well – a true speed demon.

Spotting

View range remains at 360m. base. However unlike at tier 5, I think that you won’t notice that view range difference a lot, as your main advantage is staying very active and punishing enemy light tanks in the key points of the map. However, if the player desires to spot and help the team in the late game, binoculars will help out big time to reach that view range cap.

Verdict and playstyle:

The Cromwell is a really great light tank. It possesses good hitpoints, great speed potential and a decent main armament meaning that assassinating contemporary light tanks is going to be relatively easy, as long as you remember to ram some overpowered light tanks like Type 64 first before you get out-DPM’d. The speed of the tank allows you to utilize the map to your liking, making ambushes easy to organize, key positions fast to reach and the whole gameplay very enjoyable.

Tier 7 – Comet

A quite literally worse Cromwell

Survivability

Comet doesn’t have much in terms of armor, but if used correctly it can work. When hull down and using full amazing gun depression, the turret armor is quite strong in some spots and can bounce lower tier and some same tier tanks shells, but is still useless when uptiered.

Firepower

Comet doesn’t have particularly great firepower, and your main tool isn’t the cannon, but the gun depression. While the DPM is quite nice, the penetration is rather bad for the tier and while gun handling gets quite alright, the relatively low damage output thanks to low penetration unless flanking heavier tanks makes the firepower very disappointing.

Mobility

Where Cromwell decided to be the fastest kid on the block, Comet went back to the Crusader levels of mobility. While the top speed is still quite respectable, the tanks turns very well and accelerates quickly, it is nowhere as good as the Cromwell.

Spotting

Comet gets a much needed view range boost, this time being 380m. base. This makes reaching 445m. view range possible without binos, which will help with spotting quite a lot.

Verdict and playstyle:

Comet is a very mediocre medium that could potentially have decent games if the strengths of the tank are utilized properly. The player should take hilltop positions where gun depression will reinforce your terrible armor or flanking enemies using minimap to your advantage.

Tier 8 – Centurion I 

The first of the Centurions.

Survivability

The Centurions, fitting to the first modern MBT of the world, has good armor protection on the turret. The hull armor is very weak and it’s unlikely that the hull will bounce anything, even when angled. However, the tank has a decent chunk of hitpoints, and that paired with the quite good armor will allow this thing to take a few hits reliably.

Firepower

Centurions finally get actually good gun options. The top 20 pounder is a very competitive weapon. While the alpha damage isn’t amazing, the standard penetration and gun handling stats are very good. Not to mention the -10 gun depression, which will allow to dish out that damage and avoid taking some damage in return if not aimed well.

Mobility

The mobility is very comparable to the Comet. Where the previous tanks make up for their lack of armor by being very fast to accelerate, the Centurion isn’t the fastest thing in the world, but it will be able to reach the 50 km/h top speed most of the time.

Spotting

We finally get the gold standard 400m view range. This will help a lot when deciding which equipment you want to use, as crew skills themselves can boost this number to 445m, meaning avoiding coated optics is a possibility.

Verdict and playstyle:

Centurion is a decent to good tier 8 medium. The armor will hold its own with same tiered and higher tanks unless premium is getting fired. Everything about the tank is relatively good and quite enjoyable to play.

 

Tier 9 – Centurion 7/1

The better Centurion 1, but the grind sucks.

Survivability

7/1 is relatively strong for a medium tank, while the hull is not on the T-54 levels of strong, if angled well it can bounce quite a lot of shots from lower tiers and higher tiers. However, the turret is very strong and nearly impenetrable when using gun depression, which makes the 7/1 a relatively well frontally armored medium.

Firepower

The 105mm top gun is an amazing piece of armament. It gets amazing standard penetration, capable high-pen high explosive rounds and a situational premium HESH round. Furthermore, the gun handling is amazing, with the only real drawback being long reload time. Pair this with -10 degrees of gun depression and great turret armor, and you have a very capable mountain ridge warrior.

Mobility

It’s a bit better than the Centurion I’s mobility thanks to better engine supporting the additional weight added by extra armor and a new armament. Tank still turns great and accelerates well, meaning the top speed of 50 km/h is reachable.

Spotting

The view range of 410m is very very good, meaning sneakier tank destroyers that rely on their camo values might be a bit easier to discover and tanks at range will be detected faster.

Verdict and playstyle:

7/1 is overall a great piece at tier 9. A very capable armor scheme, decent mobility and a fantastic firepower makes this a very capable tank.

 

Tier 10 – Centurion AX

7/1 but better.

Survivability

The biggest change compared to the 7/1 is a new turret, it’s very cylindrical rather than the traditional 7/1’s design. This actually makes it a bit worse in some situations, albeit when using the full gun depression, it will still be hard to penetrate without gold ammo. Regardless, the armor should hold as long as it is used well.

Firepower

The 105mm now is very competitive, it retains high-pen HE shell while gaining a new premium shell with superior penetration than the standard shell. The DPM is very good, gun handling is wonderful and -10 gun depression with great standard pen makes this tank a jack of all trades.

Mobility

Is roughly on par with 7/1, as the improvements are very marginal with the top speed increasing by 3km/h, and a small specific power ratio. Overall, it’s a very mobile tank.

Spotting

410m view range remains great at tier X, and will help you spot tanks at range.

Verdict and playstyle:

Centurion AX might not be the best tier X medium, but when used by a capable person, it can punish heavy tanks and with clever ammo choice decimate thinly armored vehicles. It’s a great choice for a beginner and teaches you the importance of ammo choice, gun handling, positioning, mobility and trading when necessary.

 

Light tanks – high risk, high reward.

While it’s unadvised to play a light tank line for a beginner, as light tanks required a lot of positioning and game knowledge, we will list the best one to start with.

T-100LT line

If you want a capable light tank line, this is the way to go. EBR’s are overall superior to these tanks, but a bit too hard to use for a beginner.

Tier 5 – T-50

A light tank Crusader that’s better.

Survivability

While the raw armor thickness is rather meh at best, at range and when angled it might bounce a shot, if lucky. Also, hit point poor is rather bad, so don’t put your armor to the test.

Firepower

The 47mm is alright. The penetration is quite low, but if used right and behind heavy tanks should work, but should have no problem dealing with light tanks. Furthermore, the DPM is quite good, paired with respectable gun handling makes this a fairly usable tank against any tank class.

Mobility

The mobility is quite nice, with great acceleration, decent top speed and nice turning speeds.

Spotting 

350m. at tier 5 is quite alright, with binos you can reach full view range, making it alright at scouting.

Verdict and playstyle:

T-50 can do pretty much everything. The gun is a pew pew high-DPM cannon which can deal with most other tanks at tier 5 and some higher tiered vehicles, and when outclassed, can still scout if necessary.

Play as a pocket medium tank, poke to get easy shots, flank whenever possible, abuse your high DPM and if in an open map, use your view range to spot for other teammates.

 

Tier 6 – MT-25

T-50 improved.

Survivability

The armor can be surprisingly strong at some times, but not to be relied on. Also, 590 hit point health pool can help you with juking out against some mediums or mainly light tanks.

Firepower

While not the most accurate, this gun has a decent reload with alright alpha damage. However, in some fights you will find yourself out matched against better light tank guns at this tier, like the one on Type 64.

Mobility

Similar to T-50, it performs roughly on par while being a tiny tad faster.

Spotting

360m view range isn’t very useful at this tier, if you meet tier 8 tanks. However, passive scouting should still work

Verdict and playstyle:

Play this tank as a pocket medium, engage other light tanks and passive scout when required. It has the potential to be a decent vehicle if used cleverly.

 

Tier 7 – LTG

Is this thing even from earth?

Survivability

It’s important not to underestimate the armor of this tank, turret cheeks are very strong, some tier 7s might bounce on how well angled the turret is. Due to the relatively high for a light tank raw armor thickness, the tank might actually bounce tier 5 shells, meaning this is a decent seal clubber.

Firepower

The 85mm this tank gets is quite decent. Alright penetration, alpha damage and gun handling with respectable dispersion values make this tank quite decent at brawling with other light tanks. Just don’t pick a hill to fight on, your gun depression is rather bad at -5.

Mobility

It should be as fast as an MT-25, though it lacks the specific power ratio of an MT-25, so might be slower to accelerate, but still maintain its top speed to problem.

Spotting

At tier 6 you can work with 360 m. view range, but at tier 7 this is quite weak and you will find yourself constantly outspotted by other light tanks.

Verdict and playstyle:

LTG is a bit of an offensive take on the light tank design. It’s primarily made to harass other light tanks and lower tier vehicles, which puts this vehicle in a light medium, or a “pocket medium” category, a trait the rest of the line shares.

 

Tier 8 – LTTB

Light Tank Tank Battle.. tank?

Survivability

The LTTB has a relatively decent armor all around, but as it is at tier 8, it’s very unlikely to bounce anything that’s not a tier 6 or 7. Pair that with 1080 hitpoint pool, at this tier you are a relatively fragile tank since tanks with 750 alpha damage begin to appear, and you are not the smallest of tanks either.

Firepower

The armament is quite good however, your alpha damage begins to fade a bit, but relatively high rate of fire will make flanking more beneficial to you as you will make your DPM matter. The gun dispersion, handling and reload time are quite good, which makes this more of a dogfighter than a trader and makes sniping possible.

Mobility

The tank is quite fast this time around. Capable of driving at just short of 70 km/h with high acceleration and maneuverability values this tank is quite fast.

Spotting

380m. view range this time around is still lacking, but reaching view range cap is possible without the binos, but this might not be a priority considering it’s not a spotter, but more of a fighter.

Verdict and playstyle:

LTTB is quite alright, (albeit it’s useless compared to LT-432) with aggressive play is its preferred playstyle

 

Tier 9 – T-54 ltwt.

And WG thought this tank was a good idea.

Survivability

T-54 ltwt has more armor than some tier 9 mediums. The hull armor won’t protect you, but if you use your light tank mobility and try to disturb opponents’ aim, your turret might bounce a shot from lower tier and in some cases, higher tier tanks.

Firepower

The 100mm gun this vehicle gets is a pure harasser – the relatively high alpha damage, comfortable gun handling and very fast speed make this a light tank killer, as you can ram very effectively and finish off contemporary lights with ease.

Mobility

The T-54 ltwt doesn’t lose the LTTB’s mobility even after all of the armor it gets, which allows it to ram for a lot of damage and effectively dispose of competition.

Spotting

With 390m view range, coated optics and a few view range crew skills will allow to reach the max cap and above.

Verdict and playstyle: The lightweight is an amazing vehicle, the strong armor for a light tank, fast speed and a punchy gun will rip to shreds light tanks, paper tank destroyers and other things that want to mess with you.

 

Tier 10 – T-100LT

Mr. Shoot on the move

Survivability

The pancake turret design paired with the steeply angled hull armor makes this light tank have over 200mm. of effective armor frontally, making this thing very dangerous for tier 8s and even some tier 10s bounce unlucky shots off this tank’s armor.

Firepower

The best trait of this vehicle is its ability to hit shots on the move even at the longest distances. You will find that the accuracy of the 100LT, which doesn’t appear very good on paper, still holds up pretty well. The gun also has decent penetration, alpha damage and reload which makes it a very capable pocket medium tank when dealing with lesser armored targets.

Mobility

100LT is very fast and can easily maintain that 72 km/h speed. This makes the tank very effective at disposing of fast light tanks, and this might be the only early game counter to the EBR-105, as HE and even APCR can’t reliably penetrate this tank frontally.

Spotting

390m. view range doesn’t change, and it might seem rather lacklustre, but considering the very aggressive playstyle of this tank, this shouldn’t impact your gameplay a lot.

Verdict and playstyle:

T-100LT is one of the, if not the best tier 10 light tank out there, and one of the only counters to EBR-105 there are. It’s a great choice for semi-experienced players who have already grinded to tier X on one of their lines, as playing light tanks effectively without knowledge isn’t an easy task.

 

Tank destroyers – your health is gone!

Tank destroyers are fun vehicles if you want to mess around and shave off half of the enemies’ HP in a single shot. Time to have some fun!

Grille 15 line

Full of decent and fun vehicles, this line is the way to go for beginners to learn the importance of camouflage.

Tier 5 – Toaster IVc. (Pz. Sfl. IVc)

It really toasts the enemies.

Survivability

None.

Firepower

The whole line has very nice cannons, this tank is no exception. The top 88mm is able to 2shot or 3shot most tanks at the tier and have no problems penetrating even tier 7 heavy tanks. Pair that with great reload time and wonderful gun handling, and you have a very dangerous tier 5 tank destroyer.

Mobility

The tank is fairly mobile, allowing to reposition quickly in case enemies get too close.

Spotting 

340m. Isn’t great, but since you are going to spend most of your time stationary, binos will increase this to decent levels.

Verdict and playstyle:

It’s a very capable if not the best tier 5 tank destroyer and a joy to play, as long as you don’t get shot

 

Tier 6 – Nashorn

It’s good, but not too good.

Survivability

None. At least it gets alright HP pool.

Firepower

The gun is the same as that on the Tiger 1, with very high base penetration, adequate alpha damage and very good handling and reload time which makes this tank very dangerous to any tier 5,6 and even 7 vehicle with its great DPM.

Mobility

It’s not as fast as the Toaster, and it takes a while to pick up speed as the specific power ratio isn’t very good, but it’s not as slow as a superheavy. However, it can turn relatively well.

Spotting

360m view range will work thanks to campy playstyle as your binos should always be deployed.

Verdict and playstyle:

Use your devastating DPM to punish any enemy that pushes a single flank, but try to remain unspotted while doing so. Best to find a bush and wait for the enemy push to happen.

 

Tier 7 – Sturer Emil

Tier 7 Death Star.

Survivability

Unless you are at a ridge using your full insane -15 gun depression and even then, this tank’s armor is not going to work.

Firepower

This tank is a beast at destroying vehicles and look classy doing so. The devastating top cannon deals nearly 500 alpha damage with each shot, with tier 8 levels of penetration, great accuracy and aim time. Pair that with -15 degrees of gun depression, and your creativity of finding spots to punish your enemies will be unparalleled. Just remember, you only have 15 shells.

Mobility

This tank is very slow. Having a specific power ratio of below 10 and very low top speed means you are not going to be able to escape your opponents if they push. At least it can turn relatively well.

Spotting

Just like the previous tanks, 370m isn’t great, but considering campy playstyle you should have your binos activated at all times.

Verdict and playstyle:

With the only big letdown being very slow speed and low ammo count, this thing still is a very fun tank to play with as it allows you to support your team with your great damage output, meaning enemies will fear to push the corner you are holding.

 

Tier 8 – Rhm. Borsig Waffentrager.

All your health are belong to us.

Survivability

None, really. Unless you consider the great camouflage value of this tank a survivability aspect.

Firepower

The guns are amazing right off the bat. With the stock 128mm being the best overall choice, but the 15cm delivering glorious 750 alpha damage moments. Whether it is the great gun handling and penetration of the 128mm, or monstrous damage potential of the 15cm at tier 8, both cannons are great for the tier and depend on your playstyle, as a borsig with the 12.8cm is more suited to campy players, with 15cm working best in close quarters. Did I mention this tank has a fully rotating turret and great camouflage values?

Mobility

The top speed is very mediocre at 35 km/h. This won’t let you get away from light tank rushes or tricky situations quickly, meaning you will have to react well in advance to the situation in the battlefield.

Spotting

360m. Isn’t great, but considering that most of the time you will be stationary with binos and a camo net active, this doesn’t matter too much, unless you are running away.

Verdict and playstyle:

Borsig is one of the best tank destroyers at the tier, with the great weapon choices, stealthy design and a turret of all things will prove to be of great detriment to the enemy.

 

Tier 9 – Waffentrager auf Pz. IV

Let’s combine everything good about this line into a single package

Survivability

None. But it does have decent camouflage values.

Firepower

The great gun choices expand even more, now you have the ability to have a painless stock grind and pick between very competitive top gun choices – 12.8cm of the Jagdtiger, but it’s better, or the E-100’s 15cm gun. While the 15cm is even better this time round, the 12.8cm gets a lot of improvements and is hands down the best gun for this tank, combining great alpha, handling and reload time.

Mobility

Unlike the tanks before it, this tank can reach 38 km/h top speed and maintain it on flat ground, meaning it’s not the slowest of vehicles.

Spotting

While the play style doesn’t change over borsig’s, retaining that 370m makes you wish you had more.

Verdict and playstyle: The WT Pz. 4 is a great tank, with the playstyle being exact same as the Borsig while also allowing you to be more aggressive thanks to better mobility. Camp and use your great cannon to great extent.

 

Tier 10 – Waffenträger Auf. E-100 Grille 15

Taste my German accuracy!

Survivability

What’s survivability?

Firepower

The 15cm is a pretty great cannon for the tier, with very capable penetration, insane shell velocity, laser-like accuracy and very fast aiming time, this tank takes the tendencies of its ancestors and combines them to be the best in class.

Mobility

Grille 15 is quite fast, as it is able to reach 60 km/h quite easily, meaning that punishing aggressive light tanks is a very easy task and abandoning a fallen sector of the map quite easy to do.

Spotting

390m. view range is not bad, but it will require an experienced crew to reach 445m. since you cannot use coated optics on this tank.

Verdict and playstyle:

Grille 15 is a very capable tank destroyer with its deadly 15cm and great speed, making it devastating in early game and late game. Just remember that you are a glass cannon.