Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Rate This Thread
Hop To
#4170304 - 09/17/15 11:38 PM The path to BR 7 and beyond?  
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 16,082
- Ice Offline
Veteran
- Ice  Offline
Veteran

Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 16,082
Philippines / North East UK
I've been enjoying BR 6.7 German tanks but I have recently unlocked the Panther II and eventually, the Leopard I. I loved the Panther II for its speed but have learned to respect the paper-thin armor. When I got the Leopard, I could not wait to try it out. However, being at BR 7.0, I knew I was going to face the big boys.

I did not want to suffer a really slow grind so I bought the Talisman upgrade for the Panther II and the Leopard I. I'm also playing on a premium account.

Are there any tips I can get from the community regarding playing these tanks on higher BR Arcade battles?

I am currently having a hard time pen'ing tanks of BR 7.0 and above, but I'm getting one-shotted most of the time. What I notice is that they all seem to be using the DM12 ammo type but until I get that, I seem to be a sitting duck. In BR 6.7 fights, at least the Panther II could survive the first shot but in BR 7.0. The Leopard seems to have thinner armor than the Panther but I guess it makes up for it with the slope? I can't really tell because the in-game tooltips seems to be dependent on camera angle when determining effective thickness of the armor. Still, being able to run around the battlefield is fun coming from spending all my time in Tiger IIs.


- Ice
Inline advert (2nd and 3rd post)

#4170401 - 09/18/15 12:00 PM Re: The path to BR 7 and beyond? [Re: - Ice]  
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 3,743
HeinKill Offline
Senior Member
HeinKill  Offline
Senior Member

Joined: May 2006
Posts: 3,743
Cloud based
At this level I have the Jagdtiger, M46, IS3, IS4m. I don't have the Leopard but can speak from observing how others successfully seem to use them, or how I use the M46.

As far as I am concerned, these are what I would call 'ambush' vehicles. The M46 and Leopard have good speed, maneouverability and fast reload, but crap armour. My IS3, IS4 and even my Jagdtiger can one-shot kill you.

Therefore you cannot move for any distance in enemy sight and expect to live. Here would be my tips for any M46/Leopard or even T-10m:

- Assume that everything out there can kill you with one shot (and by now, most good players at these levels know your weaknesses).

- Your tactical goal is to flank the enemy and ambush from side or rear.

- If you don't get a first shot kill and the enemy gets front on to you, use your relative speed to relocate and re-engage.

- Never stay exposed and duke it out with one of the above heavies or even an SPG at this level.

It might help to know how your opponent is thinking.

My IS4, IS3, or the (I)SU122, are slow, turn like a three legged cow in mud, and the loader is a concussed drunk. I get one shot, and one shot only, against a tank like yours and unless it kills or disables, I am dead.

So this is how I fight:

- Defensively. At the start of a match, I find a good defensible position where you can't flank or get behind me, and I wait for you to come to me.

- I would rather let you go past me, than take a risky shot

- I always have a fallback position picked out. I shoot, and reverse back behind cover.

- I may be lucky and not get killed first hit, but my crew will usually get knocked out. So aggression by the attacking tank is recommended. Timidity allows me to recover and reload.

- I never advance on an enemy position on my own, only in the company of other heavies, because my speed and reload time is so slow. So if you see one of me, assume there are more!

- We love it when we see one Leopard, M60 or M103 alone trying to duke it out with us. On the other hand, we hate being caught alone against even one Leopard or M60 because unless we get a first shot kill...


[Linked Image]
#4170415 - 09/18/15 12:56 PM Re: The path to BR 7 and beyond? [Re: - Ice]  
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 16,082
- Ice Offline
Veteran
- Ice  Offline
Veteran

Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 16,082
Philippines / North East UK
When I first got these vehicles, I thought "Great! Now I have something I can use to capture points with!" But I quickly realized this is not the case. Sure, I can get there ahead of everybody else, but a kid with a slingshot can kill me.

Now I'm thinking the speed is to get me into (and out of) an ambush position where I can lie in wait, but at this point, my ammo is very weak (DM13 - 282/275/114mm pen at 500m for the Leo, PzGr 39/43 - 219/198/97mm pen at 500m for Panther) so I need to stick with the big boys, have them take the first shots at the enemy, then I finish them off. I'm nowhere near useful at this point other than for scouting. Or maybe just plinking the enemy then going somewhere else.

HeinKill, IS3s and IS4s are currently my bane, along with the fast T-44s and T-54s. What's the best spot to shoot at? Obviously the front upper armor is the worst bit but I've had some successful pens from the lower armor (usually when tanks are coming up an incline) and have taken the driver out and maybe score an ammo kill.

What do you mean by "I would rather let you go past me, than take a risky shot"??


- Ice
#4170434 - 09/18/15 01:23 PM Re: The path to BR 7 and beyond? [Re: - Ice]  
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 3,743
HeinKill Offline
Senior Member
HeinKill  Offline
Senior Member

Joined: May 2006
Posts: 3,743
Cloud based
Originally Posted By: - Ice

HeinKill, IS3s and IS4s are currently my bane, along with the fast T-44s and T-54s. What's the best spot to shoot at? Obviously the front upper armor is the worst bit but I've had some successful pens from the lower armor (usually when tanks are coming up an incline) and have taken the driver out and maybe score an ammo kill.

What do you mean by "I would rather let you go past me, than take a risky shot"??


What do you take me for capitalist plutocrat?! A traitor to the motherland that I should share such secrets with you?

Oh, OK, assuming you would buy me a virtual beer...

IS3 has a shot trap under the barrel on the turret = crew kill. IS3 armour is angled at front so a direct hit will deflect, but hit it from about 20 degrees, and you can pen. Sides are pretty vulnerable.

IS4 I die mostly from turret shots. The turret is easiest to knock out, leaving the tank disabled. Aim for the space where the turret meets the body of the tank, or the back of the turret. When I get turret shot, I usually self destruct rather than wait around getting the sh%t kicked out of me while I repair.

What I mean by "I would rather let you go past me, than take a risky shot" is that I don't risk taking a shot in the IS4 unless I am sure I will get a kill. I'd rather stay hidden and hope you don't see me, than take a shot and miss. Because if I miss, my reload time is so bad you could get two or three shots on me before I'm ready again. (And if you hit my turret ring, I never will be...)

It's like this - imagine the worm below had a 100mm cannon.




[Linked Image]
#4170458 - 09/18/15 01:55 PM Re: The path to BR 7 and beyond? [Re: - Ice]  
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 16,082
- Ice Offline
Veteran
- Ice  Offline
Veteran

Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 16,082
Philippines / North East UK
IS3 - I have heard of this, but don't know where it actually is. Is it just the gap where the turret joins the hull? Or is it that small space with the driver's sights? I hated IS3s when they were showing up in BR 6.7 fights.

IS4 - The armor is thick on the turret and I don't think I can pen properly unless he's fully perpendicular in facing.

So basically, aim for between the turret and the hull, or the turret itself. I'm so used to taking shots at either side of the main gun to disable gunner/loader in Tiger/Panther/Jagdpanther but doing so in IS3/IS4 is useless as my shots just ricochet off...

cheers
Now time for some drinks on me....


- Ice
#4172562 - 09/23/15 09:01 PM Re: The path to BR 7 and beyond? [Re: - Ice]  
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 16,082
- Ice Offline
Veteran
- Ice  Offline
Veteran

Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 16,082
Philippines / North East UK
Holy smokes!

I take back what I thought and said about the Leopard! With the DM12 armor, I'm back in business! IS-4s and T-10s are easily penned even head-on dead-center on their hull armor. In fact, it's my preferred way to kill as it usually means the fragmentation damage gets the driver, gunner, and loader... if not, it'll get the ammo bins behind the driver. The T-54s I can shred to bits as well.

ar15


- Ice

Moderated by  RacerGT 

Quick Search
Recent Articles
Support SimHQ

If you shop on Amazon use this Amazon link to support SimHQ
.
Social


Recent Topics
Carnival Cruise Ship Fire....... Again
by F4UDash4. 03/26/24 05:58 PM
Baltimore Bridge Collapse
by F4UDash4. 03/26/24 05:51 PM
The Oldest WWII Veterans
by F4UDash4. 03/24/24 09:21 PM
They got fired after this.
by Wigean. 03/20/24 08:19 PM
Grown ups joke time
by NoFlyBoy. 03/18/24 10:34 PM
Anyone Heard from Nimits?
by F4UDash4. 03/18/24 10:01 PM
RIP Gemini/Apollo astronaut Tom Stafford
by semmern. 03/18/24 02:14 PM
10 years after 3/8/2014
by NoFlyBoy. 03/17/24 10:25 AM
Copyright 1997-2016, SimHQ Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.6.0