Tank Crew tips

Playing Tips
As a Tank Crewman you should fight other tanks and try to support the infantry as well. However, your primary objective should always be hunting down and destroying enemy tanks. Here are a few do's and don'ts:

DO

- Stay in forests if the enemy has planes

- Your heaviest armor is on the front so face frontally towards the enemy.

- Do your best to stay in your tank at ALL times

- Focus on destroying enemy armor and supporting infantry

DON'T

- Never fire HE shells into a capture point when teammates are capping it, even if there are enemies inside

- If you spawn in a tank you don't own you should only shoot the MG if it is necessary(tree target practice is not necessary, contrary to popular belief). Otherwise you risk giving away the tank's position.

- Be careful with sticking your head out of the tank. Often an enemy will be waiting beside your tank to shoot you out.

- DO NOT SPAWN ON FRIENDLY TANKS, unless there is a surplus of tanker spawns compared to tank spawns(there will be at first). It wastes crewman in the Assault Team, and can cause the team to not have tanks anymore.

If you want to know more about tank tactics, visit this excellent guide at the forums.

Tier I
The 3 starting tanks of each faction, the Soviet T-38, the US M2A2, and the German Panzer I, are all severely under-gunned compared to their counterparts as each of them are armed only with an MG and must, as a general rule of thumb, rely on flanking and hiding manoeuvres in order to stay alive and support their team. When assaulting an enemy tank, it is suggested to ambush it as close as possible as your small rounds may struggle to penetrate even side armour at a distance, and to keep moving as your main advantage is speed, potentially out-running your adversaries turret traverse rate.

T-38

 * Armed with a single 7.62mm MG, the T-38 has the lowest DPS of its peers, but compensates with its 360 degree view and longest sustainable fire, owing to its single MG firing
 * Amphibious abilities give it a certain edge in manouverability over its counterparts. However the lack of major water crossings on every map makes this bonus subjective at best, and is also subject to available points along river banks to make a landing
 * Frontally, it is able to penetrate the hulls of its Tier I peers, as well as the T-26 and the Panzer II C (See below) but is unable to penetrate the thick sloped frontal armour of the M5 Stuart. On the side armour, it is able to penetrate all other Light tanks, however a 90 degree angle is necessary, especially for its Tier IV counter-parts. From the rear, up close,

M2a2

 * Armed with a large .50 Calibre MG and a second .308 LMG, the M2A2 has a strong armament over its peers. However, it compensates for this by its tall silhouette, thin armour, and restricted FoV, with the .308 and .50 seperated into two seperate turrets, essentially creating a "Blind spot" that will need protection by a second gunner, a friend or a helpful passerby.
 * The .50 calibre is able to penetrate similar values at the T-38, however can do so much more easily and at a greater distance.

Panzer I

 * Armed with dual 7.92 MGs, the Panzer I is similar to the T-38 in terms of play style, however has slightly higher silhouette and slightly greater DPS and Ammo Consumption owing to its double MGs

tier II
Your first "real" tank. This includes the T-26, Panzer II C and, to an extent, the M5 Stuart. These tanks are easily competitive to Light Tanks of all tiers, and can be more than a match to its foes when in the hands of a skilled Tank Crew.

T-26

 * Packing the Soviet standard 45mm, it is a powerful weapon you will see in all 3 Soviet Light tanks, beaten only by the Chaffee's 75mm main gun. The T-26 can engage all enemy targets from almost any angle as its gun's performance is mimicked for the rest of the Soviet Light Tank designs, its weakness lies in its low mobility, weak armour and high silhouette.
 * The M2A2's .50 can easily penetrate your armour from all sides at a distance, and you stand next to 0% chance of ricocheting 20mm Autocannon shells from all angles. However, due to its tall silhouette and British origins, it does not suffer from low-gun-depression syndrome as later Soviet tanks do, can engage close infantry more effectively, and can fire from behind a hill more easily as its tall turret and good gun depression allow it this ability.

M5 Stuart

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Panzer II C

 * Armed with a 20mm KwK 30 Autocannon and a coaxial 7.92 MG, the Panzer II is a powerful contender able to deal out a large amount of punishment in a short time, before skirting back into cover to reload and finish a tank off.
 * While the panzer II C boasts a firepower upgrade over the panzer I, its armor shape and thickness remains essentially unchanged, leaving it very vulnerable to fire from most other light tanks.

Tier III
These are the upper-middle weight tanks, strong opponents in their own right and powerful weapons in the right hands. They act as the middle ground between your lower Tier tanks, and the Top Tier tanks

BT-7

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M5 Stuart

 * A superior tank to its Tier II peers, yet inferior to its Tier III counterparts, the Stuart is mentioned again as it sits in the middle of these Tiers, a fact reflected by the presence of only 3 US Light Tanks available

Panzer 38(t)

 * The panzer 38(t) has strong frontal armor and a solid 37.2mm main cannon making it a great contender against most other light tanks. Its speed is decent, although the 38(t) is not nearly as mobile as the luchs. The 38(t) should mainly be used for ranged engagements, and it is a great tank for infantry support, considering it carries a coaxial MG and is currently the only german light tank with a support gunner seat. Those who are newer to tank driving might want to try the 38(t) over the luchs, as the luchs relies on good driving and flanking to be most effective.

Tier IV
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T-70

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M24 Chaffee

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Panzer II L (Luch)

 * The panzer II "Luchs" is a thinly armored, highly mobile scout tank - a tank fit for a blitzkrieg. It is armed with a hard hitting 20mm autocannon and a coaxial MG34. The Luchs is best utilized by skilled drivers who can effectively flank enemy tanks, giving the driver a better chance at penetrating enemy armor from the sides and rear. With APCR ammunition and proper flanking, the Luchs can quickly dispose of other light tanks in roughly 1.5 autocannon clips. However, the Luchs' relatively weak armor for a top tier light tank make it somewhat of a glass cannon - tankers should use its mobility to evade enemies returning fire.