Armored Warfare News

Commanders!

This week, we’ve prepared another set of attractive items for you:

• ZTQ-15 Tier 9 Premium Light Tank
• K1A1 Tier 7 Premium Main Battle Tank along with Korean camouflage
• Type 90 Tier 7 Premium Main Battle Tank along with Japanese camouflage
• K21 Tier 8 Premium Armored Fighting Vehicle
• Spirithaven Treasure Trove with 10.000 Golds

Between November 12 and November 19, 2020, the following items will be available:


[h2]ZTQ-15[/h2]


The ZTQ-15 is the current most modern domestic Chinese Light Tank and is reserved for the Chinese military only with its export counterpart, VT-5, offered for export. The ZTQ-15 Light Tank is intended to be used in mountainous regions of China where standard MBTs are all but impossible to operate. You can learn more about it in our dedicated article.



In Armored Warfare, the ZTQ-15 is a Tier 9 Premium Light Tank. It combines excellent mobility with plenty of firepower as well as adequate protection for its Tier and vehicle class. It also features several neat elements that increase its value on the battlefield, such as its active suspension and the ability to launch guided missiles from its gun or its advanced ERA. For players who prefer fast-paced, high-risk and high-reward combat style, it’s one of the best options out there.

This vehicle is available via Loot Crates, which drop ZTQ-15 parts. Collect 100 ZTQ-15 parts from these Loot Crates to assemble the whole vehicle.






[h2]K1A1[/h2]


The K1A1 is an upgraded version of the older South-Korean K1 MBT. It’s a very distant relative of the Abrams MBT with the main difference being the presence of a hydro-pneumatic suspension, allowing the vehicle to tilt itself forward, backward and to the sides.



In Armored Warfare, the K1A1 is a Tier 7 Premium MBT. The combination of a 120mm gun, good mobility and solid armor (all of them roughly the same as the M1A1 has) as well as the ability to mark enemy targets for increased damage make it powerful opponent even in its basic form with additional upgrades readily available.

The K1A1 is also available in the South Korean bundle, which contains:

• K1A1 Tier 7 Premium MBT
• Korean camouflage
• Korean "Squad Leader" decal

You can learn more about the Korean camouflage in our dedicated article.






[h2]Type 90[/h2]


The Type 90 is the current service main battle tank of the Japanese Self-Defense Force. On the outside, it vaguely resembled the German Leopard 2, but inside, the vehicle’s completely different. It was adequately armed and armored for the time it was developed in, but what made it really stand out were its cutting-edge Japanese electronics and its hydraulic suspension, allowing the tank to tilt itself forward or backward, enhancing its gun elevation and depression beyond what the turret would normally allow. This trait was considered to be an important for Japan, as much of its landmass is covered by mountainous areas. You can read more about it in our dedicated article.



In Armored Warfare, the Type 90 is a Tier 7 Premium Main Battle Tank. Gameplay-wise, it resembles the Leopard 2 and Abrams version of the same Tier. The difference between the Leopard and the Type 90 MBT lie in the presence of an automatic loading mechanism – otherwise, the firepower and protection levels is roughly the same with the Japanese tank having a little less armor, compensated by more module hitpoints. Overall, it is not the best-protected MBT on the battlefield, requiring careful long-range gameplay. However, the advanced electronics installed in this tank as well as its hydraulic suspension allow it to aim faster than all its class and Tier counterparts.

The Type 90 is also available in the Japanese bundle, which contains:

• Type 90 Tier 7 Premium MBT
• Japanese camouflage
• Two Japanese decals
• Japanese red flag

You can learn more about the Japanese camouflage in our dedicated article. This vehicle is available via Loot Crates, which drop Type 90 parts. Collect 100 Type 90 parts from these Loot Crates to assemble the whole vehicle.






[h2]K21[/h2]


The K21 is a modern Infantry Fighting Vehicle, designed to replace the K200 series in the Korean Army. It features good protection and a hi-tech weapon system with the "hunter-killer" capability. You can read more about it in our dedicated article.



In Armored Warfare, the K21 is a Tier 8 Premium Armored Fighting Vehicle. In the game, it is an IFV with solid protection and firepower, but also excellent mobility. It carries Mechanized Infantry.






[h2]Spirithaven Treasure Trove[/h2]


Today, we have a special offer for you. A veritable treasure trove of 10.000 Gold awaits you at a discounted price.



Please note that this item can only be purchased once per user. You can find out more about Gold and its uses in our dedicated article.





We hope that you will enjoy the offer and, as always:

See you on the battlefield!

Commanders,

In addition to the Polish Independence Day events, we’ve thought it prudent to mention another important holiday – the Veterans Day, celebrating the sacrifices of war veterans world-wide.



This year, we’ve prepared a flag for you that some of you have been asking about for a long time – the Gadsden Flag.

The Gadsden Flag, also known as the “Don’t tread on me” flag or a “Rattlesnake” flag, was created during the American Revolution by General Christopher Gadsden. In fact, it’s one of the oldest American flags in existence, predating even Old Glory.



The flag is now available on MY.GAMES Market in a free bundle. Please note, however, that in order to use it, you must have the option to use flags activated.

See you on the battlefield!

Commanders!

On November 11, Poland celebrates its 102nd anniversary of as an independent nation and, like every year, we’re celebrating its Independence Day with it!



In addition to the already active Crew Experience bonus, an extra 25% bonus to Credit income will be available until November 12.

This year, we’ve also prepared a very special gift for you, available until November 13, 2020 (15:00 CET).

The gift contains:

• T-72M LWP skin for the T-72 Ural Tier 5 MBT
• “Polish Soldier” player avatar
• 3 Polish decals, modeled after various famous Polish armored units
• Polish modern camouflage
• Brown base color (please note that this color currently has an incorrect shade of brown and will be fixed in the future)

The T-72M LWP skin turns your T-72 Ural into an export version operated by the pre-1989 Polish military, giving off a distinctive Warsaw Pact vibe. You can read more about it in our dedicated article. The same base color used on this vehicle is also available separately as a part of the gift.



The camouflage, however, is based on a modern pattern, as recently applied to the overhauled T-72M1 Main Battle Tanks for the Polish military. The decision to somewhat modernize the Polish T-72M1 MBTs was taken in 2018, following a long and arduous debate. The modernization is generally very narrow – apart from a new coat of paint, these tanks are receiving new night optics and some improved communication equipment. The first of these were transferred back to the Polish army in August 2020.



And last but not least, the decals include the following unit crests:

• 10 Brygada Kawalerii Pancernej
• 11 Lubuska Dywizja Kawalerii Pancernej im. Króla Jana III Sobieskiego
• 1 Warszawska Brygada Pancerna im. Tadeusza Kościuszki

As well as a Polish soldier avatar. The gift is, as usual, available on MY.GAMES Market:



Please note that this Friday, a special Polish-themed contest is launching with epic prizes. Don't miss out on that!

We hope that you will enjoy the event an, as always:

See you on the battlefield!

On the 11th of November, starting from 8:00 CEST (10th of November, 11 PM PST), the server will not be available for 5 hours due to the application of Update 0.33.7478



[h2]List of Update 0.33.7478 Changes[/h2] 

Challenger and PTZ-89 HESH Changes

These vehicles received the following changes to their HESH shells:

• Shells renamed from L31A5 to L31A4
• Challenger 1 HESH damage reduced from 510 to 460
• PTZ-89 HESH damage reduced from 510 to 430
• PTZ-89 HESH shell now has the same penetration and velocity as the one of the Challenger 1 MBT

Leopard 2 Changes

All Tier 7 to Tier 10 Leopard MBTs were adjusted as such:

• Added the Improved Propellant module to all of them, reducing the kinetic shell penetration loss over distance by 10 percent
• Improved the thickness of mid- and rear-part of its flanks by 20mm
• Reload time improved by 0.4s

2T Stalker

• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)

AFT-10

• ATGM penetration increased from 1400mm to 1450mm
• ATGM damage increased from 1200 to 1300
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• ATGMs now accelerate to their maximum flight speed faster
• ATGMs are now a bit less agile but also less affected by soft-kill APS

Altay

• Fixed this vehicle’s UI armor values to correspond to the actual ones

BMP-3 and BMP-3M

• Updated the armor of these vehicles (their frontal armor is now able to withstand the fire of 30mm autocannons at certain distance)

BMPT Mod.2000

• 30mm AP shell penetration loss over distance brought to the same value as for other vehicles
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• ATGMs are now a bit less agile but also less affected by soft-kill APS
• ATGM damage increased from 920 to 1000

BMPT Mod.2017

• 30mm AP shell penetration loss over distance brought to the same value as for other vehicles
• Delay between ATGM launches increased from 3s to 4s
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• The vehicle no longer fires from both autocannon barrels at once
• ATGM penetration increased from 1000mm to 1100mm
• ATGM damage increased from 850 to 900

BMPT-72

• ATGM damage increased from 850 to 900
• Delay between ATGM launches reduced from 4s to 3s
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• The vehicle no longer fires from both autocannon barrels at once

Bradley FV

• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• 30mm AP shell damage increased from 23 to 32
• Autocannon rate of fire increased from 400 to 450 RPM for 30mm shells
• 40mm AP shell penetration increased from 210mm to 230mm
• Delay between ATGM launches reduced from 3s to 2s
• Tandem HEAT ATGM damage increased from 850 to 900
• Tandem HEAT ATGM penetration increased from 950mm to 1000mm

CRAB

• Delay between ATGM launches reduced from 3s to 2s
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• ATGMs now accelerate to their maximum flight speed faster
• Somewhat reduced the camouflage penalty for ATGM launches

Hunter AFV

• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• 40mm AP shell damage increased from 38 to 44
• 40mm AP shell penetration increased from 192mm to 210mm
• 40mm AP shell rate of fire reduced from 450 to 400

K-153C Raybolt

• Viewrange increased from 425m to 440m
• Somewhat reduced the camouflage penalty for ATGM launches
• Target lock time reduced from 1.7s to 1.6s
• Magazine reload time reduced from 17s to 15s

K21

• 40mm AP shell penetration increased from 210mm to 230mm

K21 XC-8

• This vehicle now has a 4-round Ready Rack with 3.5s between shots within the Rack and 5s reload time once it’s empty

Kornet-EM

• ATGM damage increased from 900 to 1100
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• ATGMs now accelerate to their maximum flight speed faster
• ATGMs are now a bit less agile but also less affected by soft-kill APS
• Fixed an issue where this vehicle wasn’t dealing the correct damage when firing in the single launcher mode

Leclerc T-40

• 40mm AP shell penetration increased from 210mm to 230mm

M1128 Stryker

• Stock gun reload time reduced from 6.2s to 4.5s

M113 Hellfire

• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)

M1134

• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• Tandem HEAT ATGM damage increased from 850 to 900
• Tandem HEAT ATGM penetration increased from 950mm to 1000mm
• Removed the restriction on the amount of ATGMs simultaneously in flight

NM142

• Tandem HEAT ATGM damage increased from 850 to 900
• Tandem HEAT ATGM penetration increased from 950mm to 1000mm
• Delay between ATGM launches reduced from 3s to 2s
• ATGMs now accelerate to their maximum flight speed faster
• Somewhat reduced the camouflage penalty for ATGM launches
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)

Ramka-99

• 30mm AP shell penetration loss over distance brought to the same value as for other vehicles
• Delay between ATGM launches reduced from 4.5s to 3.5s
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• The vehicle no longer fires from both autocannon barrels at once

Rosomak

• 30mm AP shell damage increased from 23 to 32
• Autocannon rate of fire increased from 400 to 450 RPM

Rosomak M1

• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• 30mm AP shell damage increased from 23 to 32
• Autocannon rate of fire increased from 400 to 450 RPM

Sphinx

• ATGM damage increased from 750 to 850
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• ATGMs now accelerate to their maximum flight speed faster
• ATGMs are now a bit less agile but also less affected by soft-kill APS
• Stock 40mm AP shell penetration increased from 210mm to 230mm
• Upgraded 40mm AP shell penetration increased from 252mm to 260mm

T-72 Ural

• Rebalanced this vehicle’s armor and improved its visual model quality

T-15 Armata

• ATGM penetration increased from 1200mm to 1300mm
• ATGM damage increased from 900 to 1100
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• ATGMs now accelerate to their maximum flight speed faster
• ATGMs are now a bit less agile but also less affected by soft-kill APS

T-90MS

• Fixed this vehicle’s smoke deployment location

Type 89

• Fixed an issue where Mechanized Infantry would sometimes die upon disembarkation

VCAC Mephisto

• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)

VBR

• Viewrange increased from 410m to 430m
• Upgraded ATGM damage increased from 600 to 650
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• ATGMs now accelerate to their maximum flight speed faster
• ATGMs are now a bit less agile but also less affected by soft-kill APS
• Somewhat reduced the camouflage penalty for ATGM launches

Warrior

• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)
• ATGMs now accelerate to their maximum flight speed faster
• ATGMs are now a bit less agile but also less affected by soft-kill APS
• Autocannon rate of fire increased from 400 to 450 RPM
• Stock ATGM damage increased from 500 to 550
• Upgraded ATGM damage increased from 560 to 600
• 30mm AP shell penetration loss over distance brought to the same value as for other vehicles

Wiesel HOT

• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)

Wilk XC-8

• PELE shell damage increased from 550 to 600
• Missile reload time reduced from 4s to 3.5s

ZTQ-15

• Simplified the ERA and spaced armor layout in order to reduce the number of unintended weakspots
• Fixed the issue that caused this vehicle’s machinegun blast to appear in an incorrect spot

ZUBR PSP

• Tandem HEAT ATGM damage increased from 850 to 900
• Tandem HEAT ATGM penetration increased from 950mm to 1000mm
• Delay between ATGM launches reduced from 3s to 2s
• Missile reload time reduced from 4s to 3.5s
• ATGMs now accelerate to their maximum flight speed faster
• Somewhat reduced the camouflage penalty for ATGM launches
• ATGM minimum damage dealt upon non-penetration changed to take armor thickness more into account (thick armor hits now do less damage)

General Changes

• Fixed the issue that allowed for an incorrect full magazine reload when switching shells during the reloading process
• Fixed the issue that broke some HE shells (the “violet HE rounds with broken description” bug)
• Fixed an issue with the Defense active ability, which incorrectly reduced the hull traverse rate value
• WPB Anders, PL-01 and Draco: Removed the module that improves these vehicles’ time to switch between different shell types since these vehicles already have this ability by default
• Fixed the XM1A3 Archangel gun collision model
• Fixed an issue where the Leopard 2 MBT would keep the name Leopard 2A4HU even after the 2A4HU skin was disabled
• Port Storm: Fixed the textures on several buildings
• Fixed a rare issue where some AI vehicles would not fire at players
• Fixed an issue that arose in Update 0.33, where the PCs with their GPUs significantly more powerful than their CPUs would suffer from performance losses
• Fixed an issue that caused vehicle shadows to remain even when the vehicles were no longer spotted
• Fixed an issue where the HQ PvE mission change timer did not correspond to the actual server timer
• Fixed a number of smaller visual model issues
• Fixed some smaller UI issues
• Added a number of assets for future events

Commanders!

The first reward vehicle that you’ll be able to obtain in the Echoes of War Battle Path campaign will be none other than one of the symbols of the Soviet military, the legendary ZSU-23-4 Shilka.



The Shilka (named after a Siberian river) came to be in the early 1960s as an attempt to provide Soviet mechanized forces with a short-range highly mobile anti-air platform that would also feature some basic protection. The designation itself, ZSU-23-4, stands for “self-propelled anti-aircraft gun” with the number signifying its gun caliber (23mm) and the amount of barrels (4).

Of course, Shilka wasn’t the first such design in the Red Army – ever since the 1950s, the Soviet Union had been operating a vehicle called ZSU-57-2, which, as you might have guessed from the abovementioned nomenclature, was armed with two large 57mm cannons on a heavily modified T-54 chassis – in an enclosed turret. The Soviets adopted this vehicle after witnessing (and later exploiting) the power of close support aircraft and ground troop cooperation.

While offering a lot of firepower, the ZSU-57-2 was still a design from the WW2 era, intended to be used against propeller-driven (and therefore slow) aircraft. It had a rudimentary fire control system and by the time it entered service in 1955, it was effectively obsolete because after the Korean War, everyone saw that the future would belong to jet planes.

As a result, the work on its replacement therefore began practically immediately after it entered service. There were two basic directions of development – a twin 37mm autocannon project called Enisey (built to be a rough equivalent to the American M42 Duster) and a quad 23mm autocannon project called Shilka. The prototypes of both vehicles were ready by 1960 with the trials taking place until 1961. During various joint exercises, the Shilka would ultimately turn out to be considerably more effective than the Enisey (despite Enisey’s good performance) and would enter service in 1962.



The defining characteristics of the Shilka would be its low weight (mere 19 tons), light armor and high firepower of its quad water-cooled 23mm guns. Thanks to its excellent cooling system, the vehicle was able to fire as many as 3400 rounds per minute. The system was guided by rather advanced radar and was therefore capable of engaging even fast-flying targets.

The Shilka would turn out to be a very successful design. Roughly 6500 were built between 1964 and 1982 (the original production run ended in 1968) with some 2500 of them exported all over the world. They participated in pretty much every major conflict of the 20th century, including the Soviet-Afghan War, the Vietnam War, the Yom Kippur War, the Gulf War and many others, sometimes even appearing on both sides. The brutal volume of fire it offered in combination with HE shells would often be used against soft ground targets with excellent results. Several modernized variants exist, more than two dozen countries or organizations still operate it and it is even now being used in several conflicts, including the Donbass War or the Syrian Civil War.



In Armored Warfare, the Shilka will be a Tier 4 Premium Armored Fighting Vehicle. Once again, just by taking one look at it, it is not difficult to determine this AFV’s main feature – it is not long-range accuracy or heavy armor, but its sheer, uncompromising volume of fire.

But before we get into any details, the usual disclaimer:

The numbers below are very preliminary as the vehicle has not been properly tested. They are sure to change and should only be discussed as an indicator of how we’d like to set the vehicle up. With that being said:

In order to imagine how the Shilka will perform in the game, you can start with the XM247 that sits one Tier higher.



The Shilka will have very light armor only (protecting it against machinegun fire) and average mobility due to the fact that its 21 tons will be propelled forward by a diesel engine producing just 280hp. Its maximum speed will therefore be limited (50 km/h), as will its agility and acceleration. As you can also see from its size, its camouflage levels won’t be great either. This will not be an agile, stealthy, fast scout.

However, these downsides are more than compensated by its weapons and viewrange. Let’s talk about the firepower first.

The Shilka is armed with four 23mm guns with the combined rate of fire of 3400 rounds per minute. This is achieved by using overheat mechanics similar to those utilized by the M48 GAU-8 Tier 10 TD. Simply put, the guns do not utilize magazines, but instead heat up when being fired. If you fire them too much, they overheat and need several seconds to cool down. Much like in real life, the weapon system will offer excellent elevation (+85 degrees) but only mediocre gun depression.

There will be three types of rounds available:

• Basic AP (100mm of penetration, 18 damage)
• APDS (150mm of penetration, 15 damage), available via additional progression
• PELE (70mm of penetration, 20 damage with non-penetration PELE damage mechanics), available via additional progression

Additionally, all these rounds will also deal reduced damage upon non-penetration automatically, much like those of the M48 GAU-8. This will not allow the vehicle to destroy MBTs from frontal angles, but anything lighter is pretty much fair game.



The already excellent viewrange for its Tier (440m) will be possible to improve even further by activating the Radar ability, which will trade some of your (already low) camouflage for extra spotting abilities.

In summation, the Shilka will be the undisputed king of damage output on lower Tiers, balancing its firepower by its low survivability. This will make the vehicle highly suitable for PvE but, at the same time, any PvP mode will require careful gameplay and staying behind your team’s MBTs.

We hope that you will enjoy this vehicle and, as always:

See you on the battlefield!