[4Tran]

Tank Information - Part III


Note that the official website hasn't updated the tank information since the first episode, so there may be discrepancies.

---------------------------------------------------------------

New Ooarai Tanks

Renault Char B1 bis
Weight: 31.5 tons
Height: 2.8m
Crew: 4
Top road speed: 28km/h
Cross-country speed: 16km/h
Main gun: 47mm 32 calibers
Secondary gun: 75mm 17 calibers
Maximum turret armor: 56mm, riveted
Maximum hull armor: 60mm

Pros: Decent all-around protection for the early part of the war; two guns means that it can theoretically take on either tanks or soft targets.
Cons: Slow road speed; One man turret; 75mm gun has poor penetration; riveted armor.
Ideal role: Heavy breakthrough roles (early war only).

Summary: The Char B1 bis is a poor man's Lee. The 47mm gun for taking out enemy tanks, but it's penetration is about par with the 38(t)'s 37mm gun. This weapon is mounted in a one-man turret, so it's harder to use than most others. The hull-mounted 75mm gun shares a lot of similarities with the one on the Pz. IVD. It has an even shorter barrel though, so it has less accuracy and penetration; and on top of that, it has no traverse. It's also meant to be manned by four crew, so an undermanned vehicle will skip the radio operator. This isn't a very good tank, but it does have its uses.
Sexiness factor: While the Char B1 bis isn't a very good tank, it has a lot of interesting quirks from an interesting shape to the big air-intake grille on the side. It's pretty sexy, and an interesting addition to the team.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Panzer IV F2/G

Weight: 23.2 tons
Height: 2.68m
Crew: 5
Top road speed: 40km/h
Cross-country speed: 16km/h
Main gun: 75mm 43 calibers
Maximum turret armor: 50mm
Maximum hull armor: 50 + 30mm

Pros: Powerful main gun, decent armor, good ergonomics, good sight
Cons: The extra 30mm hull armor is bolted in place so it's less strong than a 1-piece plate.
Ideal role: Everything except for the heavy breakthrough role.

Summary: The Pz. IVF2 is also known as the Pz. IVG. It's an effective all-around workhorse that can fulfill just about every role. While it doesn't have the guns and armor of a Tiger or a Panther, it's almost as good, and it's a much more common vehicle. On the plus side, it's a much more reliable vehicle than the German heavies. It's also a more operationally capable AFV, so it's the most flexible and dependable tank in the German arsenal. Original Pz. IVF2s are basically upgraded from the original Pz. IVs (longer gun and more armor), so Ooarai's upgrade counts as (almost) a new tank.
Sexiness factor: Pretty darned sexy.

---------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------

Pravda Tanks

T-34/76 1940 model

Weight: 26 tons
Height: 2.44m
Crew: 4
Top road speed: 55km/h (!)
Cross-country speed: not specified
Main gun: 76.2mm 30.5 calibers
Maximum turret armor: 45mm
Maximum hull armor: 45mm sloped 60° from vertical
Tank Recognition Notes: The 1940 model has only one periscope on the turret.

Pros: Excellent speed, good maneuverability on soft terrain, good gun and sloped armor for the early part of the war.
Cons: Two man turret, no radio for most units.
Ideal role: Everything except breakthrough early in the war; not so good for anti-tank work later on.

Summary: The T-34 was the right tank at the right time. When it first saw combat, it was the only tank in the work to mount a long mid-sized gun in the turret and to have good front armor, and to have excellent speed. The gun and armor became less effective as enemy tanks got upgunned and uparmored, but this was the best tank in the world at the time. Even today, the T-34 is one of the most influential tanks ever. It's equivalent to the Sherman in most ways except that it is more cramped and has less crew comfort features.
Sexiness factor: As a rule, Soviet tanks are sexy, and the T-34/76 is one of the sexiest among them. There are only two Soviet tanks that beat it out.

---------------------------------------------------------------

T-34/85

Weight: 31.5 tons
Height: 2.74m
Crew: 5
Top road speed: 55km/h (!)
Cross-country speed: 29.9km/h (!!)
Main gun: 85mm 53 calibers
Maximum turret armor: 90mm
Maximum hull armor: 47mm sloped 60° from vertical
Tank Recognition Notes: The T-34/85 is differnt from a T-34/76 in having a bigger gun and a commander's cupola.

Pros: Excellent speed, good maneuverability on soft terrain, good gun on a 30 ton tank.
Cons: No significant faults other than a lack of crew comforts.
Ideal role: Everything except breakthrough.

Summary: The T-34/85 is just an upgunned and slightly uparmored version of the classic T-34. By the late war, its protection is only decent, but the 85mm gun is a fearsome weapon against almost any foe. It finally received a three-man turret, and there are now radios in every tank. It's not as good as a Tiger or Panther in a duel, but it's more rugged, has better range and endurance, and you can build a whole lot more of them. The T-34/85 is an all around very good tank, and almost perfectly suited for the predominant Soviet doctrine.
Sexiness factor: As sexy as they come. What can beat one of the best tanks in World War II?

---------------------------------------------------------------

KV-2

Weight: 53 tons
Height: 3.32m (!)
Crew: 6
Top road speed: 26km/h
Cross-country speed: 12km/h
Main gun: 152mm (!) 24 calibers
Maximum turret armor: 100mm
Maximum hull armor: 75mm
Tank Recognition Notes: C'mon, this one should be obvious!

Pros: Excellent protection for the early part of the war. The main gun is ridiculously powerful for a tank.
Cons: Slow and prone to breaking down. The gun has a low rate of fire and limited ammunition, and poor accuracy. The turret cannot traverse if the tank is on a slope. Overly heavy. Very tall profile.
Ideal role: Super-heavy infantry support (early war only)

Summary: The KV-2 is the artillery gun version of the standard Soviet heavy tank. It boasts one of the largest-caliber guns ever placed into a tank turret, and it's designed to mostly destroy fortifications. The gun could destroy tanks either by using low-velocity piercing rounds, or just blasting them with HE rounds. KV-2s have been known to perform supremely well at times, but it wasn't worth using in the long run.
Sexiness factor: KV-2 = Soviet tank = sexy. Even though the KV-2 isn't a very good tank overall, it's flaws are interesting, and it takes tank design into interesting places.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Josef Stalin 2; JS-2 in the show

Weight: 46 tons
Height: 2.73m
Crew: 4
Top road speed: 37km/h
Cross-country speed: 24km/h
Main gun: 122mm 43 calibers
Maximum turret armor: 160mm
Maximum hull armor: 100mm sloped 60° from vertical
Tank Recognition Notes: It looks like a T-34/85, but it has a muzzle brake at the end of the gun.

Pros: Excellent all-around protection, powerful gun, decent speed and range.
Cons: Only 28 rounds of ammunition, low rate of fire.
Ideal role: Heavy breakthrough roles, support roles.

Summary: The JS-2 (better known as IS-2) was the replacement for the Soviet KV-1 heavy tank. It boasts excellent protection and very good HE firepower. While the gun isn't ideal for dealing with enemy tanks, it's still can punch through armor at goodly ranges - it's better than a Tiger I at both protection and penetration. The IS-2 is the ideal tank for Soviet doctrine and is arguably the best heavy tank of the entire war.
Sexiness factor: Another really sexy Soviet tank. The only reason it doesn't get a top prize is because its immediate successor is a lot sexier.

Overall, the Pravda lineup is vastly superior to Ooarai's. The T-34/76s are outclassed by the upgrade Pz. IV, is about even with the StuG III, and is better than all the other tanks. The T-34/85 is even better. Ooarai has no answer for the KV-2, and the IS-2 is a complete nightmare.

But as we should know by now, tank specs are only part of the equation, and superior tactics will overcome poor odds on paper.

Note: Soviet tank armor was often built to poor quality tolerances, so some units will fare better against enemy fire than others.