Art of Strategy: Tips and Tricks

Prepare Your Squad Carefully

Before charging into battle, it’s wise to check out your squad and defenses. A roster is already pre-assembled, so you don’t have to worry about finding yourself in a battle without forces to command. The default squad is a solid strike team. However, one of the ways to best your opponent is to have a plan even before the battle starts. To this end, you may want to replace certain (or even all) vehicles in your squad to achieve the synergy that you need. Make sure to choose vehicles you know well.

Regardless of what you plan to do in a battle, be sure to pick vehicles with a similar speed. Mixing vehicles of very different speeds and assigning them the same task will mean that they won’t be able to act as a single force and are likely to get separated and destroyed one by one. The Maus won’t be able to catch up with your quick Chinese heavies when you send them to attack, meaning that the Chinese brawlers would have to wait for the much slower German before advancing further, losing one of their main advantages: their speed.

So if you’re a natural-born attacker, we advise you to arrange your squad accordingly: Combine quick heavies, such as the Soviet XIS-7 and XObject 277 or the Chinese XWZ-111 model 5A and X113 , and try to outmaneuver your opponent. Be sure to take some mobile tank destroyers that can keep up and support your front line with firepower. The XObject 268 Version 4 or XObject 268 are both ideal for that role—not only can they pack a punch, but they also have enough armor to survive return fire. Add the XBat.-Châtillon 25 t to the mix for quick spotting and dueling power, and you’re all set.

Even if you’re more of a defender, don’t go too heavy on the slow and armored component—such vehicles are only capable of straightforward attacks, making you very predictable. Remember that, eventually, you’re going to need to advance into enemy territory, and that’s much harder to do with slow and “blind” superheavy beasts. So try to have at least three vehicles with higher mobility to spearhead your counteroffensive as soon as you’ve fended off the initial enemy attack.

Remember that all vehicles available to the Strategist have equipment, improved consumables, a crew trained to 100% with skills and perks set for the vehicle type they’re manning, and a full rack of special ammunition. And you don’t pay a single credit for any of that! So don’t let your strategic talent be constrained by fear of credit costs—we’ve got that covered for you.

Defenses

AT GUN

FLAMETHROWER

GUN TURRET

MG TURRET

MRL

WATCHTOWER

Your defenses are an extension of your vehicle squad and should help you fulfill your masterplan. Flamethrowers and AT Guns are great at fending off enemy attacks, but they won’t help you on your offensive, while MRLs and Gun Turrets can provide fire support to your forces even on the opponent’s half of the map.

Keep in mind that defenses are rarely placed close to main confrontation areas where vehicles meet each other at close range. Most of them come into play when one of the teams advances into enemy territory. That’s why they are called defenses!

Some of the defenses are self-reliant, such as the Gun Turret. It shoots across the whole map and is very likely to always have targets as long as your vehicles are operational. Even isolated, it has a decent view range of its own and can find its own targets. It will do great in any squad composition.

MRLs are, in many aspects, similar to the Gun Turret. They have a respectable range, albeit limited to a wide sector of fire. However, they can be destroyed with a single shot, so if you pick them, it would be best to “greet” the enemy as far from your base as possible to give your MRLs more time to shoot.

Other defenses only display their full potential when coupled. The best example would be Flamethrowers and MG Turrets. Most (if not all) Flamethrower positions have been chosen so that they are protected from long-range fire and act as stoppers at narrow passages. At the same time, MG Turrets are meant to be placed to protect your Flamethrowers and make it harder for the enemy to safely outrange or outmaneuver them. Use them in conjunction!

The Watchtower and AT Gun is another prime combo example. It’s very straightforward: Watchtowers spot, AT Guns shoot, enemy hit points drop, and you win. Keep in mind that AT Guns have a narrow sector of fire and so can only protect very specific directions. Their positions are usually covered with vegetation to keep them concealed or are protected by some obstacle from flanking directions.

More Advice

• Know your strengths and exploit them. If you have the speed while the enemy has the firepower and armor, use your advantage instead of playing their game. Capturing the enemy base is a viable win condition. The opponent may simply be too slow to get back to their base in time.
• In 1v1 battles, your opponent will have an equally hard time trying to keep track of what’s going on in battle. Force a dynamic, maneuverable battle upon them to overload them with decisions.
• Create task forces of approximately equal speed.
• If you see that a direction is heavily defended, relocate and advance in a different one—a Strategist does not have enough defenses to cover the whole map.
• Remember that AI-controlled vehicles are not esports players. Heavier, more armored vehicles will survive on the battlefield for longer, even without your direct intervention. However, if you want some complex maneuvers on that Progetto, you’d better control it yourself.
• Don’t get too carried away with assuming direct control of vehicles. You may lose the overall picture.
• Combine defenses to support your grand strategy.
• Check out the opponent’s squad and defenses, and calculate your actions accordingly. If your opponent has Flamethrowers, advancing through the urban area of a map may not be the best idea.
• Be sure to check out indications on the vehicle panel at the bottom of the screen. For instance, it will show whether a vehicle has been spotted, in which case it may be wise to reposition it.
• If you want your squad to focus fire, order them which target to shoot at.
• Trick AI-controlled vehicles and defenses into shooting at you with smart positioning behind an obstacle.
• Do not leave your defenses alone if you currently intend only to defend. Supporting a defense with a vehicle multiplies its efficiency and survivability. If left alone, defenses will slow the enemy down but will eventually be destroyed. You may choose to use your vehicles elsewhere and have your defenses buy you time to attack. In this case, be sure not to waste precious time leaving your vehicles idle.
• Look for ways to cover whole directions with your defenses. For example, three AT Guns can make the top part of Airfield a dead end for your opponent if you assign them a passive spotter. Be sure to switch the spotter vehicle into the Recon stance.

FAQ

Why can’t I add a certain vehicle to my squad?

The XPanhard EBR 105 , XST-II , XStrv 103B , XM-V-Y , and XCS-63 are unavailable due to their mechanics that add an extra level of complexity to AI configuration. We believe that the game has more than enough amazing vehicles for you to fully realize your strategic potential even without those vehicles. As for vehicles earned through Personal Missions, clan activities, etc., it’s simple: To make the event completely fair, we decided only to allow vehicles available to everyone.

Why were the EU3 and EU4 peripheries added?

Running the Art of Strategy event is very demanding for us in terms of hardware, so we have temporarily added the EU3 and EU4 peripheries in order to reduce queue times specifically for the event.