War Thunder News

The ELC is an experimental light tank destroyer developed by AMX as part of a special programme launched by the French Ministry of Defense during the 1950s. Mobile, extremely small and packing a punchy gun, the AMX ELC will soon be available for the French armored vehicles enthusiasts!

[h3]AMX ELC bis, tank destroyer, France, rank IV[/h3]
Features:

• Very small profile
  
• Good mobility
  
• Decent HEATFS rounds
  
• Limited turret traverse
  
• Light protection
  
• Small crew
  

The AMX ELC bis will join the ranks of the French self-propelled guns in the upcoming “Wind of Change” update. Highly compact and quite mobile, the AMX ELC bis is the perfect mid tier tank destroyer being able to not only infiltrate the enemy lines with ease due to its small size and mobility but also to cause severe chaos behind enemy lines thanks to its deadly 90 mm cannon and HEATFS rounds!



However, the AMX ELC bis’ small size also brings with it the inherent drawback of only limited protection. On top of this, the vehicle is home to just two crew members! As a result, the vehicle’s survivability to enemy fire is quite poor, being easily knocked out by just one penetrating shot. To prevent an untimely demise, tankers may utilize the ELC bis’ good mobility in order to stay ahead of the enemy and thus out of line of fire. However, tankers should also be aware of this vehicle’s peculiar turret traverse mechanism which is limited by a rather wide sector in front of the vehicle.



Be sure to add the unique AMX ELC bis to your in-game collection right after the “Wind of Change” update is live. The update is almost ready, and we’re looking forward to it with you! Stay tuned!

The Mirage F1C represents the next step in the evolution of the legendary French Mirage series of jet fighters, following the introduction of the earliest models at the start of the 1960s. Veteran French pilots may look forward to the arrival of this even more capable Mirage variant with the “Wind of Change” major update coming to War Thunder!

Briefly: A further development of the Mirage jet fighter, featuring a more powerful engine and, contrary to the original aircraft, a swept wing design.

[h3]Mirage F1C, jet fighter, France, Rank VII[/h3]
Features:

• New swept wing design
  
• Potent air-to-air missiles
  
• Effective radar
  
• Huge bomb load
  
• Lacks more advanced weaponry for strike missions
  

In War Thunder, the Mirage F1C will be the new top jet fighter awaiting seasoned French aviators in the next major update coming soon to the game. Unlike its delta wing-predecessors, the Mirage F1C features a new swept wing design as well as an advanced radar and highly efficient air-to-air missiles. Sounds enticing enough already? Let’s take a more detailed look!



The first and most noticeable difference pilots will encounter on the new Mirage is the missing delta wing design - a distinct feature of the original aircraft. Instead, the Mirage F1C is outfitted with a more traditional swept wing design. The second and main difference is an effective radar and advanced air-to-air missiles. The Mirage F1 radar is capable of detecting targets against the ground, as well as at distances up to 6,000 metres up. The advanced radar is complemented by excellent air-to-air missiles, which include both the familiar Matra 530 and Magic 1, as well as the new Super Matra 530F medium-range missiles with an semi-active radar seeker. The new Mirage with 5 suspension points is capable of carrying missiles for both close combat and for attacking distant targets, and the new radar allows effective locking on targets at all practical heights - both above and below the aircraft. The fast-firing 30mm DEFA cannons that come by default on the Mirage F1C will help it stay armed even when the missiles are depleted.

Additionally, pilots can also configure the Mirage F1C to conduct strike missions thanks to the aircraft’s ability to mount not only bombs up to 3x2,000 lbs, but also unguided SNEB rockets with a decent penetrating power and DEFA 553 gunpods.



The Mirage F1C is lined up to land in player hangars with the arrival of the next major update and will soon become the new apex predator of the French aviation tree at Rank VII. In the meantime, keep a close watch on the news as we continue unveiling what exciting new features and additions await you in the “Wind of Change” upcoming update. Until then, clear skies and happy hunting pilots!

Together with texture upscaling and new surface rendering options, the new version of the War Thunder graphic engine brings numerous minor features and improvements. Meet new visuals coming soon in the “Wind of Change” update!

The effect from a shock wave from tank gun firing and exploding bombs and shells is now visible on vegetation and trees, as well as on the effects of fire and smoke. For example, when firing a tank gun, you will notice grass bending along the blast wave. A HE round explosion near a burning vehicle will change the direction and speed of the smoke and flame particles. Aircraft bombs, when detonated, cause the surrounding trees and bushes to bend under the action of the blast wave - the more explosive the bomb, the stronger the effect!

We have also improved the effects of shots and hits. After an explosion of a tank shell, you will now see the effects of fragments hitting the elements of the game environment around the impact point. Shockwave impulse from gunshots and explosions now make leaves from trees around to drop to the ground.


Together with the constantly directed wind and the one-directional bending of the grass caused by it, the game locations will now feature areas with changing intensity and direction of the wind. Gusts of wind affect objects in the game environment - waves of vibrations from a dynamically changing wind pass through the grass and trees.


War Thunder locations for mixed battles will now have the GPU-generated grass filler that does not affect the performance. The new grass exists alongside the regular one, enhancing the view of the ground, creating a juicy filling layer between the soil and tall grass. If a player prefers to disable the regular grass to improve the game performance, the land on locations will not be bare even on the low graphic settings. However, the GPU grass could also be disabled in the tank sniper sight, the same way as the regular grass, in order to avoid affecting the gameplay. It is worth noting, that the GPU grass is completely subject to physical phenomena that affect ordinary vegetation - it squishes under the tracks of tanks, swayed by the wind and bent down by the shock waves of close explosions and tank gun shots. Like the GPU objects you already know, the new grass will work for all game clients - both on PC and consoles.


We continue to improve the visual effects of fires, flames and explosions. Now shadows from dynamic effects have appeared on the ground and assets of the game environment, organically fitting them into the overall picture of the game. The shadows from the large-scale effects are most noticeable, such as an explosion of an aircraft on the ground, the destruction of a building in a cloud of dust and debris, and massive smoke from a burned tank.


The “Wind of Change” update brings a number of cosmetic micro-effects that improve the overall perception of the game world: floating litter on city streets, falling leaves in forests, wind-blown dust on sandy locations, sparks next to fires burning in locations. These effects are enabled only when the player enters their area of ​​effect and has little to no effect on game performance.

The Merkava Mk.4B is the latest and most advanced variant of the famous Israeli main battle tank, entering production in the early 2000s. Soon, both the Merkava Mk.4B as well as the upgraded Mk.4M version will be arriving to War Thunder as the top vehicles of the upcoming Israeli ground forces tree awaiting tankers in the next major update “Wind of Change''!

Briefly: The most advanced iteration of the Merkava MBT, featuring a novel active protection system, capable of intercepting certain incoming projectiles.

[h3]Merkava Mk.4M, main battle tank, Israel, rank VII[/h3]
Features:

• Strengthened armor
  
• Improved mobility
  
• Powerful 120mm cannon
  

In War Thunder, the Merkava Mk.4B will mirror its real-life counterpart by becoming the top vehicle available to tankers in the upcoming Israeli ground forces tree, arriving as part of the next major update “Wind of Change''. Joining the fight in both its base model as well as in the upgraded Mk.4M variant, tankers in War Thunder may look forward to the arrival of a highly capable Israeli MBT to top ranked battles!

Veteran tankers in War Thunder are well familiarized with the Merkava series of MBTs as they are a common appearance in high ranked battles. Known for their exceptional survivability and respectable offensive capabilities, the new Merkava Mk.4B continues building upon these basic design principles established with the very first vehicle of the series. As a result, the Merkava Mk.4B inherits its predecessor's MG253 120mm smoothbore cannon along with access to highly potent kinetic and chemical ammunition choices. Furthermore, the vehicle also retains its signature comprehensive machine gun arsenal as found on previous models, albeit reduced by turret-mounted one rifle-caliber MG.



While the Merkava Mk.4B retains its lethal firepower, the changes it received to its protection are far more significant. For starters, the vehicle retains the strong modular composite armor found on the Merkava Mk.3D. However, the shape has been optimized to increase its effectiveness even further. As a result, the turret of the Merkava has become more rounded, particularly at the front section, thus virtually eliminating certain weak points found on previous variants.

Furthermore, the Merkava Mk.4M is equipped with the novel ‘Trophy’ active protection system with so-called ‘hard-kill’ ability. This means that the system is able to detect slow incoming projectiles, such as missiles, and launch a tight spread of small projectiles in its direction in an effort to destroy the incoming threat before it makes contact with the vehicle.



As the changes implemented on the Merkava Mk.4B also increased its mass once again, engineers fitted the vehicle with a more powerful 1,500 horsepower diesel engine, bringing it roughly on par with most other nations’ MBTs found in the game. As a result, not only does the Merkava Mk.4B compensate for its increased mass, but it’s also able to attain a higher top speed, going up to 64 km/h on paved roads.

The Merkava Mk.4B and Mk.4M will await all tankers at the top rank of the upcoming Israeli ground forces tree, arriving to War Thunder as part of the next major update “Wind of Change''. In the meantime, keep a weather eye on the news as we continue showcasing more exciting new additions and features awaiting you in the upcoming update. Until then, happy hunting tankers!

In the upcoming “Wind of Change” update, we will introduce hard-kill active protection systems for War Thunder armored vehicles!

The hard-kill active protection is a system that hits against incoming projectiles fired at your vehicle, thus eliminating or significantly reducing the damaging effect. Usually, such a system includes sensors to detect approaching threats, a computing unit that analyzes the data received from sensors and permits threat neutralization, as well as a set of counter-munitions that intercept the incoming projectile. As soon as the sensors detect a projectile aimed at the vehicle, counter-ammunition is fired in its direction to destroy the enemy projectile by a directed pattern of shrapnel.

The first serial hard-kill APS was the Soviet "Drozd", which began to be used on tanks of the T-55 series. It was also planned to be used with the T-62 tanks, as well as T-80U and T-84 tanks for testing purposes of the modified APS units. Later, the hard-kill active protection was used by the Israeli armed forces on their Merkava Mk.4M main battle tanks. At present, various models of such systems are widely used on other models of vehicles worldwide.



The first tanks equipped with hard-kill active protection systems in the War Thunder “Wind of Change” update will be the Soviet T-55AMD-1 with the “Drozd” APS, the British Challenger Black Night with “Iron Fist”, and the Israeli Merkava Mk.4M and its advanced “Trophy” APS. Depending on the model, the characteristics of the hard-kill APS differ in the sector of radar and counter-munitions, the threat response time, and the ability to intercept anti-tank rounds at high speeds. For example, the earlier APS units are able to effectively counteract the relatively slow anti-tank guided missiles and shape-charged rounds in the end of their trajectory. Up-to-date hard-kill units are capable of counteracting even high-velocity kinetic ammunition, including APFSDS rounds fired from long distances.

In the game interface, the effective sector of the APS locator and the remaining number of counter-munitions are displayed in the lower left corner of the vehicle's combat interface, on the indicator of the current position and received damage. Counter-ammunition, as well as regular ammunition, can be replenished at captured points during battle. To train out combat scenarios for using hard-kill APS, a marked zone appears in the test drive that is fired by an AI tank. Try the new protection options, learn your equipment and master it in battles!