War Thunder News

[p][/p][p]As per tradition, the Holiday Box awaits you in the in-game Item Shop, available for purchase with Golden Eagles. It contains a variety of useful items, including a Premium Account, Silver Lions, universal backups and boosters, premium vehicles, and all vehicles that were previously sold for Golden Eagles or War Bonds but are currently not available in-game or on the Market (list below).[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Getting the Holiday Box is a bargain! If you have opened enough boxes, you’ll be guaranteed to receive talismans and premium vehicles. And that’s not all, as the average value of the box contents are almost one and a half times the price of the box itself![/p][p]Additionally, after opening a specific number of boxes, you’ll receive memorable additional rewards:[/p]

• [p]For 3 boxes, the “Looking into 2026” decal[/p]
• [p]For 5 boxes the “Christmas sack” decoration for ground vehicles[/p]
• [p]For 7 boxes the “Spruce garland” profile icon frame[/p]
• [p]For 10 boxes the “Christmas night” profile background[/p]

[p][/p][h2]The Holiday Box[/h2][h3]Guaranteed Prize: 1 day premium account + 120000 Silver Lions (total purchase price of 490 Golden Eagles).[/h3][p]Additional Guaranteed Prize:[/p]

• [p]1 day premium account — 15% chance[/p]
• [p]3 days premium account — 10% chance[/p]
• [p]7 days premium account — 5% chance[/p]
• [p]100000 SL — 16% chance[/p]
• [p]250000 SL — 8% chance[/p]
• [p]500000 SL — 4% chance[/p]
• [p]1000000 SL — 2% chance[/p]
• [p]100% booster for 3 battles — 20% chance[/p]
• [p]Universal backup — 5 pieces — 20% chance[/p]

[p]Additional random prizes:[/p][p]1) Talisman for vehicles (15% chance but at least once for every 14 box openings); breakdown of chance by vehicle rank:[/p]

• [p]Rank I — 16% chance[/p]
• [p]Rank II — 20% chance[/p]
• [p]Rank III — 25% chance[/p]
• [p]Rank IV — 18% chance[/p]
• [p]Rank V — 10% chance[/p]
• [p]Rank VI — 7% chance[/p]
• [p]Rank VII — 3% chance[/p]
• [p]Rank VIII — 1% chance[/p]

[p]If all vehicles of the dropped rank already have a talisman, the player will be refunded the full 999 GE for the Holiday Box.[/p][p]2) Premium vehicles including unavailable for sale (15% chance but not less than once for every 14 box openings); breakdown of chances by vehicle ranks:[/p]

• [p]Rank I — 20%[/p]
• [p]Rank II — 20%[/p]
• [p]Rank III — 20%[/p]
• [p]Rank IV — 20%[/p]
• [p]Rank V — 10%[/p]
• [p]Rank VI — 7%[/p]
• [p]Rank VII — 3%[/p]

[p]If all vehicles of the dropped out rank are already obtained, the player will be refunded the full 999 GE for the Holiday Box.[/p][p]Unavailable for purchase vehicles presented in the Holiday Box along with the usual premium vehicles:[/p]

• [p]Т-62 №545[/p]
• [p]Vijayanta[/p]
• [p]M728 CEV[/p]
• [p]Type 69-IIa[/p]
• [p]IS-2 "Revenge"[/p]
• [p]M26E1[/p]
• [p]KV-1E[/p]
• [p]SAV 20.12.48[/p]
• [p]M43 "G.C.Leoncello"[/p]
• [p]Panzer IV/70(A)[/p]
• [p]Achilles (65 Rg.)[/p]
• [p]T-34 (1st Gv.T.Br.)[/p]
• [p]МК-IX "Valentine" (USSR)[/p]
• [p]Stuart VI (5th CAD) (USA)[/p]
• [p]P40 "G.C. Leoncello"[/p]
• [p]Pz.Sfl.Ic[/p]
• [p]A-129 International (p)[/p]
• [p]Mi-24D (USSR)[/p]
• [p]UH-1C XM-30[/p]
• [p]BO 105 CB-2[/p]
• [p]IAR 316B[/p]
• [p]MiG-17AS[/p]
• [p]Su-7BMK[/p]
• [p]J35A[/p]
• [p]T-2 Early[/p]
• [p]MiG-21 SPS-K (Germany)[/p]
• [p]F-84F IAF[/p]
• [p]Milan[/p]
• [p]S.O.4050 Vautour IIN[/p]
• [p]Hunter FGA.9[/p]
• [p]Lightning F.53[/p]
• [p]F-86F-35[/p]
• [p]F-89D[/p]
• [p]J29D[/p]
• [p]Sea Hawk Mk.100 (Germany)[/p]
• [p]Attacker FB.2[/p]
• [p]Fw 190 D-9 (USSR)[/p]
• [p]Spitfire Mk IXc (USSR)[/p]
• [p]La-11[/p]
• [p]Dolgushin's La-7[/p]
• [p]Bostwick's P-47M-1-RE[/p]
• [p]Lanovski's P-47M-1-RE[/p]
• [p]P-51D-10[/p]
• [p]P-38K[/p]
• [p]J2M4 Kai[/p]
• [p]Fw 190 A-5 (Japan)[/p]
• [p]A6M5 Ko[/p]
• [p]Tempest Mk V (Germany)[/p]
• [p]He 219 A-7[/p]
• [p]Bf 109 Z-1[/p]
• [p]Plagis' Spitfire LF Mk IXc[/p]
• [p]Prendergast's Spitfire FR Mk XIVe[/p]
• [p]Pokryshkin's P-39N-0 (USSR)[/p]
• [p]Pe-2-205[/p]
• [p]IL-2M "Avenger"[/p]
• [p]Golovachev's Yak-9M[/p]
• [p]P-61A-11[/p]
• [p]A6M2 (USA)[/p]
• [p]Ki-96[/p]
• [p]P-47D (Germany)[/p]
• [p]La-5FN (Germany)[/p]
• [p]Typhoon Mk Ib[/p]
• [p]I-16 type 28[/p]
• [p]YP-38[/p]
• [p]He 112 B-1/U2[/p]
• [p]Wellington Mk Ic (Germany)[/p]
• [p]Boomerang Mk II (Great Britain)[/p]
• [p]D.520 (Great Britain)[/p]
• [p]Hudson Mk V (Great Britain)[/p]
• [p]Havoc Mk I (Great Britain)[/p]
• [p]Hurricane Mk.I/L FAA M[/p]
• [p]Prinz Eugen[/p]
• [p]Stroyny[/p]
• [p]Neustrashimy[/p]
• [p]USS Cowell[/p]
• [p]IJN Kiyoshimo[/p]
• [p]RN Geniere[/p]
• [p]Z20 Karl Galster[/p]
• [p]T31[/p]
• [p]HMCS Haida[/p]
• [p]Fairmile D (5001)[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][h2]Ground Vehicles[/h2]

• [p]BMPT, BMPT-72 — the Battle Rating in all modes has been increased from 10.3 to 10.7. Because the vehicles turned out to be very effective, it’s possible that the BR increase to 10.7 might not be enough for them to become balanced. We will continue to monitor them and will make changes if needed.[/p]
• [p]T-64B — Battle Rating in all game modes has been increased from 9.7 to 10.0.[/p]
• [p]A bug that caused some APDS shells to lack an armor plate that demonstrated the penetration characteristics in the hangar has been fixed.[/p]

[h2]Locations and Missions[/h2]

• [p]\[Assault] Sinai — a bug that caused the invisible rocks to appear in the mission has been fixed. (Report).[/p]

[h2]Customization and Achievements[/h2]

• [p]Demonstration camouflages for BMPT, BMPT-72 — the conditions for automatic camouflage selection have been corrected to desert conditions.[/p]

[hr][/hr][p]Patch notes reflect only key changes, meaning they may not include a complete list of all improvements made. Additionally, War Thunder is constantly being updated and some changes may not require an update. Changes reflected in patch notes are formed by taking reactions and requests of the community from the bug reporting service, forums and other official platforms into account. Bug fixes and changes are implemented in order of importance, for example a game-breaking bug will be worked on and implemented sooner.[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p]

[p]Starter Packs for all nations and 6 additional, selected packs are available on Steam at a discount![/p][p]When: From December 24th (11:00 GMT) until January 5th (18:00 GMT)[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][h3]KMS Gneisenau Pack[/h3][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][h3]F/A-18C Hornet (Swiss) Pack[/h3][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][h3]RAH-66 Comanche Pack[/h3][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][h3]T-80U-E1 Pack[/h3][h3][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/h3][h3]A-10A Thunderbolt (Early) Pack[/h3][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][h3]RDF/LT Pack[/h3][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p]

[p][/p][h2]Aircraft[/h2]

• [p]A bug on some aircraft that caused hits to some parts of the fuselage to never lead to the wings tearing off has been fixed.[/p]
• [p]For rank VII–VIII aircraft without the detailed avionics damage model (no new electronics modules), on direct hits the following changes were made:[/p]
• [p]Avionics and fire-control equipment can no longer be disabled by fragmentation or kinetic damage.[/p]
• [p]Avionics and fire-control equipment can no longer be disabled by relatively small HE damage (i.e., less than from a hit by a small‑warhead AAM such as Stinger, or equivalent munitions of other types).[/p]
• [p]It is no longer possible to disable all weapons at once.[/p]
• [p]HE damage to the fuselage from a hit by a large‑warhead AAM (e.g., AIM‑9 or larger) or equivalent munitions of other types now always disables the use of guided weapons, as well as the radar electronics and the RWR.[/p]
• [p]Blast damage from a hit by a small‑warhead AAM or equivalent munitions of other types has a chance greater than 50% to disable the use of guided weapons, and a separate chance greater than 50% to disable the radar electronics and RWR.[/p]
• [p]The chance to disable other systems from blast damage caused by hits from any AAM or equivalent munitions of other types has been reduced (down to 30%).[/p]
• [p]F/A-18E — a bug that caused the 500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs and 1000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs to incorrectly display on some hardpoints has been fixed. (Report).[/p]
• [p]JAS39E — the height of the extended landing gear struts have been corrected to make overall height correct and to fix the bug with the part of the frontal strut piston clipping into the walls of the other half. (Report).[/p]

[h2]Ground Vehicles[/h2]

• [p]In the test drive mission for high-rank Chinese vehicles the M1A1 HC tank and Leopard 2A5 tank have been switched places, so that the electro-optical APS of the M1A1 HC would not interfere with the ATGM guidance when shooting at other targets.[/p]

[h2]Locations and Missions[/h2]

• [p]Pradesh — the altitude of clouds has been increased.[/p]
• [p]Ash River — a bug with the ground textures appearance has been fixed. All temporarily disabled missions on this location have been brought back to the rotation.[/p]

[h2]Game mechanics[/h2]

• [p]A bug that caused the intecepted (shot down) munition to not deal damage to the player and their allies has been fixed (Report).[/p]
• [p]The mechanics of crediting the destruction by the intercepted munitions has been corrected. If the intercepting player and the player who has launched the munition are in the different teams, then only the destruction of their enemies are credited to each one. If they are in the same team, the player who has launched the munition gets credit for the enemies, and the player who has intercepted it gets credit for the destruction of their teammates.[/p]
• [p]A bug that caused the destruction of the munition by the explosion of intercepted munition to be also counted as an interception has been fixed. This fix only affects the chain-destroyed munitions, so if one of the munitions destroyed by the explosion of the intercepted munition (or an explosion of any munition in the chain) will destroy an enemy, the destruction will be credited to the player that has intercepted the first munition in the chain.[/p]

[h2]Other[/h2]

• [p]The content needed for the infantry CBT has been added to the game. You can apply for the CBT here.[/p]

[hr][/hr][p]Patch notes reflect only key changes, meaning they may not include a complete list of all improvements made. Additionally, War Thunder is constantly being updated and some changes may not require an update. Changes reflected in patch notes are formed by taking reactions and requests of the community from the bug reporting service, forums and other official platforms into account. Bug fixes and changes are implemented in order of importance, for example a game-breaking bug will be worked on and implemented sooner.[/p]

[p][/p][p]❄️ 🎯 Snow is falling, all around us! It’s Christmas, cold outside and snowing, so it’s time to take a break from regular battles and have a little fun with your enemies by throwing (firing!) snowballs at them![/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]How to play[/h2][p][/p][p][/p][p]In Tank Snowball, you play with the unique Snowballer tank, which comes kitted out with a snowball launcher that shoots the Snowball Mk 1. Every Snowballer has a dedicated Elf crew and a target plate sticking up top. Your mission? Hit those enemy target plates with your Snowball Mk 1! The first team to get 60 target hits (destructions) or the first team to capture the enemy’s point wins the snowball fight.[/p][p][/p][p]Hitting an enemy’s target plate will knock it over and your Elves will launch fireworks to celebrate the nice shot! However, it won’t totally destroy the enemy’s vehicle. It will disable their launcher and they won’t be able to shoot, meaning they’ll need to repair their vehicle for 7 seconds before they can use it again.[/p][p][/p][p]If your target plate gets hit, we recommend you retreat, wipe the snow off, get some fresh warm clothes (repair in a hidden spot!), and then get back out there to shoot more snowballs at the enemy![/p][h2]Get a reward![/h2][p]Are you good at firing snowballs? You’ll be rewarded with this unique Firework Mortar decoration, specially made for this event![/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]The Firework Mortar can be placed on any ground vehicle and will fire off fireworks when you get a destruction in any random battle![/p]

• [p]You can see the progress of the task for the Firework Mortar by clicking on your nickname and going to Achievements → Tank Snowball[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][h3]Event Details & Features[/h3]

• [p]You can find the event under Events & Tournaments > “Tank Snowball”[/p]
• [p]You don’t need any vehicles or lineups made; the Snowballer tank is automatically used when you take part[/p]
• [p]The event is set in the \[Battle] mode and the first team to 60 destructions or whoever captures the enemy’s point wins[/p]
• [p]Only Silver Lions can be earned in this event.[/p]
• [p]Mission points do not count towards the Winter Concert ground task.[/p]
• [p]If you want the Firework Mortar decoration but don’t want or can’t play Tank Snowball, you can purchase it in the Achievements → Tank Snowball window for 499 GE[/p]
• [p]There is only one spawn in this event as you cannot be fully destroyed[/p]
• [p]When your target plate is hit, you won’t be able to shoot: you need to repair for 7 seconds and reload to be able to shoot again[/p]
• [p]When you hit enemy target plates, festive fireworks are launched[/p]
• [p]Your Snowballer tank is crewed by green Elves — make sure to take care of them![/p]

[p][/p][p]Have a great snowball fight! ❄️ 🎯[/p]