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In this episode we're not going to talk about ordinary tanks. The topic of this video is the support that covers your assault, the self-propelled guns.
It is no secret that any change to the self-propelled guns causes a lot of discussion in the forum and chat, mostly because the artillery is the most vulnerable type of
vehicle in World of Tanks. On the other hand, it also has the most dangerous and powerful weapons.
In most discussions about SPGs, the players talk about Tier IV and higher artillery. Nobody thinks about the players using the tier 2 and tier 3 self-propelled guns. Maybe
players think that the tactics for these vehicles are too simple and similar to those used by the noobs in their MS-1s. However, the tactics for the low tier SPGs are
actually very difficult to master.
The low tier vehicles have completely different dynamics, on other allies and enemies. You can't just buy the Su-26 and own everything on the battlefield.
Without the proper cover and support, you'll soon end up just another smoking wreck.
That's why we're going to talk today about tactics for tier 2 and tier 3 self-propelled guns. Let's go!
The Basic Rules
You should learn all of the rules for playing self-propelled guns at the lower tiers before you take a closer look at their characteristics. Let's look at the difference between
the tactics for these vehicles and higher tier artillery.
The first rule. The gameplay in lower-Tier battles is fast.
Battles on Malinovka between tier 10 heavy tanks and tier 8 artillery are a tactical encounter, in which players exploit the mistakes of their opponents. However, the low
tier battles are a bit different: players begin driving toward the enemy base in the first seconds of combat to die quickly or to become heroes.
You will run into a lot of inexperienced players in these battles. They don't know how to scout, shoot, or defend the base properly. They are the main reason for all of the
chaos on the battlefield.
So what should the poor artillery do in these battles? You should move! You should move as much as possible.
The less-experienced players always drive to the usual "best" spots at the beginning of the match. We strongly recommend that your SPG should follow behind your
allies; don't stay by yourself on the flank of the action. If you stay near your teammates, it will increase your chances for survival, since they can protect you from enemy scouts.
Forget about comfortable spots behind buildings and in cozy bushes. Watch your mini-map very closely and learn how to tell when your position is becoming dangerous
due to the appearance of enemies on the flanks, gaps in friendly lines, or an undefended friendly base.
The second rule. Pick the right targets to destroy.
As we said earlier, the gameplay in low tier battles is really fast. Why is that? Because almost all of the tanks at this Tier have paper-thin armor, weak guns, and good acceleration.
There is no worse enemy for the artillery than the fast tanks, because you just can't shoot them easily. In contrast to their high tier brethren, the low tier self-propelled
guns have a slightly faster aiming speed, but it is still hard to destroy a moving BT-2.
That is why you must pick the right target. You should choose the enemy tank with the worst maneuverability, because it is the easiest target. For example, this target
might be the T-28, T-26, AT-1, PzKpfw35 (t), and so on.
If you waste your energy trying to kill a fast tank, you might miss the chance to destroy a slow, defenseless tank. Let your light tanks take care of the enemy scouts, while
you are taking out the more heavily armored enemies in support of the friendly advance.
The third rule. Don't forget about self-defense!
Few players realize that the self-propelled gun is as good at destroying enemies at close range as it is at long range.
The less-experienced players lose their courage when they see an approaching enemy, so they try to run away, and then they die. Don't forget that both friendly and
enemy tanks have very thin armor in the lower Tier battles, so even the smaller self-propelled guns can do a lot of damage in close combat. You might even destroy your
opponent with a single shot.
The players call this tactic "TD-mode", after the tank destroyers that use shoot-and-scoot tactics. In other words, if you see an approaching enemy, don't try to run away.
Find a good, defensible position and wait for the enemy.
Of course, the enemy won't be afraid of you, because inexperienced players don't know that experienced SPGs can be very dangerous. Your defensive spot can help
you destroy the enemy as they approach, so you can stay alive.
In addition, experienced players might also use their SPG as a tank destroyer. Seriously, this is possible, even with their weak armor. Vehicles like the Su-26, T57, and
StuPz I Bison are really useful for this play style. All of these SPGs have good speed and powerful guns. And the Su-26 even has a turret!
We will have a closer look at the toys for the young artillerists in the second part of our video. In other words, just now. Let's begin!
The Gods of War
We've already told you the basic rules for playing self-propelled guns in low Tier battles. However, you might still have questions like "What SPG is best? And how do I
use it?" So we made this brief overview of all tier 2 and tier 3 self-propelled guns. We will tell you what you're up against just in case you decide to research some artillery.
First of all, let's take a closer look at the Soviet tier 2 SPG, the Su-18.
Actually, it is not really even a self-propelled gun. It is an upgraded MS-1. Except for the fact that this vehicle is artillery, it hasn't got any unique features. It is slow, with
poor maneuverability and a moderate gun. You'd better choose an excellent position at the beginning of the battle --you won't be able to move far. We highly recommend
that you research the next vehicle, the Su-26, as quickly as possible.
The Soviet tier 3 vehicle is the Su-26.
Experienced players know that this vehicle is very good. Before the Bat.Chat 155 was released, it was the only artillery with a turret that could turn 360 degrees.
In addition, this vehicle has good speed and an accurate gun with a fast reloading speed. As for the cons, this vehicle deals less damage than other artillery of the same
tier. This SPG has a lot of pros though, so it is really a lot of fun.
The Su-26 is like a machinegun. It can hurt multiple targets on the battlefield. This is the type of artillery that can shoot light moving tanks due to its really amazing
accuracy (for an SPG!).
Don't forget about "TD-mode" with the Su-26. This vehicle is highly effective in this mode. It's useful even in the city environment, because you can fight effectively in
close combat. Just turn the turret and shoot the enemy, as if you were in a tank!
It is a pretty good tier 2 vehicle. It has good speed and a powerful weapon with a good elevation.
These characteristics allow you to follow your teammates and stay protected by them, so you can do a lot of damage to your enemies. Also, experienced players often
use this SPG during championships due to its effective high explosive anti-tank shells, which can penetrate even tier 5 and tier 6 tanks. In addition, the Bison can destroy
enemies behind cover due to its good trajectory of indirect fire.
Overall, it is quite good for a tier 2 self-propelled gun.
The Sturmpanzer II is not as good as the Bison for a tier 3 German SPG. This vehicle isn't very maneuverable. The range is poor and the damage is inadequate. There
are a lot of other more powerful tier 3 self-propelled guns. This vehicle is like driving a bathtub due to its low speed. The aiming speed is very long, so here is some
advice for you: get to a position where you will have plenty of protection from enemy fire; if possible, of course.
"TD-mode" is nearly useless with this vehicle due to it's slow aiming speed and poor accuracy.
The first American SPG is the T57.
This is a really interesting piece of artillery. Experienced players prefer to use this vehicle like a tank destroyer due to its amazing speed, excellent weapon, small size,
good armor, long view range, (which is about 385 meters), and large quantity of ammunition.
This self-propelled gun has a lot of pros. It is a universal vehicle: you can be a scout, you can shoot like a regular SPG or use "TD-mode" like a tank destroyer, or you can
just follow the light tanks with a crazy smile on your face.
We strongly recommend this vehicle for players who are interested in low tier self-propelled guns or who just want to have some fun.
The next American self-propelled gun is the M37. This vehicle has adequate speed, maneuverability, and armor. However, it has an impressive105mm Howitzer M4. The
gun averages 400 damage. The M37 can destroy almost any enemy in its class with one shot, and any survivors will take a lot of damage.
Of course, this high damage is balanced with other characteristics. The M37 has a slow aiming speed as well as very poor accuracy. Don't forget that this self-propelled
gun is also highly prone to ammo rack damage.
The first vehicle in the French artillery branch is the Renault BS.
This SPG is similar to the Su-18. It is the tier 1 Renault with "SPG-mode" created by an added howitzer. This vehicle has poor maneuverability as well as view and fire
range. The high rate of fire and accuracy are definitely the pros of this vehicle.
All in all, you will definitely want to research the next vehicle as soon as possible and never go back to this SPG.
The Lorraine 39L AM.
This is an interesting French tier 3 self-propelled gun. Gameplay for this vehicle is similar to that of the American M37. In other words, this SPG has a powerful gun and
its maneuverability is about average.
In contrast to the M37, the Lorraine has a very quick aiming speed, good range, and great speed. If you add up all of these pros, you can see that the overall value of this
self-propelled gun is very high. Experience players will also consider this vehicle to be similar to the Su-26, which is generally the best low tier self-propelled gun.
Unfortunately, this vehicle also has some cons. One of the worst is the REALLY slow speed of the shell. You will feel much better when you get to higher Tier battles,
because this makes it very hard to hit fast tanks.
Know your enemy
Of course, the last part of this episode is about your enemies. Let's take a closer look at the most common enemies of low tier self-propelled guns to find out just how dangerous they can be.
The BT-2, M2 LT, Tetrarch, and T2 LT are fast and very maneuverable light tanks. These tanks are not dangerous at long range, even if they stop to shoot. You and your
teammates can destroy them before they can say "Fire!" due to their slow aiming speed and poor accuracy.
However, if they are at close range, you are dead meat. They will attack from your flanks, encircling to destroy you and then go for other SPGs. (***)
The Hotchkiss H35, and PzKpfw 35 (t) have better armor. In addition, these vehicles are equipped with pretty good guns, but they are slow. They are not dangerous, if
your allies can cover you.
The T-28 and T-26 are really dangerous at both medium and close ranges because their players often use howitzers with high explosive shells.
The AT-1 is a tank destroyer with a howitzer. Experienced players really like this vehicle. If you see an AT-1 with 5 frags on the opposite team, the odds that you will be
their 6th kill are fairly high.
The Marder II is a famous tank destroyer. The view range of this vehicle is 360 meters. It has a really good rate of fire for tier II. This TD is also equipped with a very
accurate weapon with a high penetration. And if your team is already dead, this tank will definitely be a huge problem.
The T82 is an American tank destroyer, similar to the M37. It has average maneuverability, good view range, and a powerful main gun, which can easily destroy other tier
3 vehicles with a single shot. And only one thing can save you from this TD. It has very poor accuracy.
So that's it.
We hope that nobody will say that low tier self-propelled guns are easy to play after this tutorial, because it is really hard.
Research your SPGs carefully, play World of Tanks, and good luck on the Battlefield!