Tactics A few noob questions...

[LSD]

Firstly, the bayonet. On, or off?
I'm pretty sure there's an accuracy penalty with my long distance shots with the bayo on, but after searching the forums, it seems there isn't a penalty. Do you guys usually have your bayos on, or do you fix it on when you think the time is right?

Secondly, adjusting the tank dials. No idea what the 'real' term is for that, but i mean pressing Q + E while in some tanks. Even on practice maps where it tells me exactly how far away a tank is, say, 200 meters, if i set the dial to 200m, it goes WAY too high. Any tips on this?

Next up, enemy machine guns. What's the best way to deal with them, mainly if they're out of grenade range. My current tactic is to wait for the gunner to reload, then rush him with my bayonet...but they don't reload until they've mowed through a few team mates :/

Something i've been wondering, how do you take out the tracks on a tank?. I've only managed it 4-5 times, and i'm wondering if there's a specific place to target, or a specific distance requirement.

Finally, Tank Battles
What would you reccomend as a tank for a noob? I can hit a target at about 1000m 90% of the time, usually use my MG to sight them out...thing is, i get hit A LOT. Also, where's the best place to aim when head to head with a tank. If the enemy isn't shaking his rear, which is the weakest point on an tank's front?

Cheers.

 

[Klaus]

- There's absolutly no penalty for bayonat or atleast nothing noticable, not even in the most long range maps.

- Adjusting tank dials is mostly neccesery in long range maps like Arad, Berezina or Blackday July, its a matter of practice to see what ranges work when.

- What you said is one tactic I like to use, but since the MG'er is one guy, just shooting at him works fine. Try smoking the MG position or just firing at it with a rifle.

- For the tanks there are plenty of videos on youtube that explain the best locations to hit the various tanks for a 1-2 shots kill. Basiclly any tank is good as long as you know how to angle it.
A T34 angles at 1/11 while a Tiger tank angles at 10.5. If you want to be accurate with the angling, the way I like to do it as a driver is having the enemy tank just on the side of the hatch, when you see "half" of it on your screen. when it is at that position approx. you are well angled.

 

[Cpt-Praxius]

Hey, I think I played with you in a tank and we both got killed yesterday

Firstly, the bayonet. On, or off?

Aiming in the game is pretty much identical in either case, but I would suggest it being on, since it's easier and more effective to take someone out using the bayo then with your normal clubbing of the weapon.

I'm pretty sure there's an accuracy penalty with my long distance shots with the bayo on, but after searching the forums, it seems there isn't a penalty. Do you guys usually have your bayos on, or do you fix it on when you think the time is right?

On... then again, it depends on the type of game play. 95% of the time it is on, but if I'm on a map with a bunch of campers and long shotters, I might not even bother putting it on if there's little chance of getting up close. But you never know, which is why I put it on.

Secondly, adjusting the tank dials. No idea what the 'real' term is for that, but i mean pressing Q + E while in some tanks. Even on practice maps where it tells me exactly how far away a tank is, say, 200 meters, if i set the dial to 200m, it goes WAY too high. Any tips on this?

I never bothered with those, in fact I didn't even know they added that to the game. I just aim with the tip of the central triangle and if my shot is off a bit, I raise my barrel to compensate. Once thing I noticed with the Panzerfausts is that when I adjusted the sights, I tend to forget to adjust them back and screw up my next shot.... which is why I usually just stick to the default sights and use my best judgement.

Next up, enemy machine guns. What's the best way to deal with them, mainly if they're out of grenade range. My current tactic is to wait for the gunner to reload, then rush him with my bayonet...but they don't reload until they've mowed through a few team mates :/

Flank left or right of them where they can't rotate. It may take some time to run wide and around, rather then straight at them, but it's smarter and you stay alive longer.... that and they can't see you at all coming from behind or the side.

But some use their ears and if they hear footsteps coming at them, they may check out who you are, so crouch walk up to them to be more quiet, or just simply try and rush into them before they can do anything.

Another solution is to get a rifle, semi-auto or sniper rifle and pick them off from a distance. At longer distances those weapons are far more accurate then the MG and you'll see him a lot easier then he'll see you (tracers) just take your time, prop your weapon for stability and peg one into their eyeball.

Do this a number of times in a round and they'll eventually quit the MG class.

Something i've been wondering, how do you take out the tracks on a tank?. I've only managed it 4-5 times, and i'm wondering if there's a specific place to target, or a specific distance requirement.

I haven't looked into that myself much since the mod, but basically just aim for the tracks and see what happens. If you aim too high though, you generally smack into the engine or ammo and thus cause damage. You can also damage the engine so that they can't move anymore (similar effect to taking out their tracks)

Finally, Tank Battles
What would you reccomend as a tank for a noob? I can hit a target at about 1000m 90% of the time, usually use my MG to sight them out...thing is, i get hit A LOT. Also, where's the best place to aim when head to head with a tank. If the enemy isn't shaking his rear, which is the weakest point on an tank's front? Cheers.

If you get the chance, hit them directly head on with a round or directly head on in the rear. Hit them head on on the sides as well but it usually takes an extra shot or two.

If the body of the tank is angled (no clear straight-on shot of the front or sides) you will usually deflect unless you hit the right spot. When you encounter an enemy tank, turn the body of your tank so that they move out of the driver's view either left or right and then align your barrel to your enemy. If you keep yourself head on to an enemy, you're not going to last very long.

Here's an example:

^ I just roughly whipped this up to show you that if a tank's shells hit your tank at any of the green angles, most of the time they will deflect.... any shots hitting in the red angles will cause a lot of damage.

The angles vary depending on the tank in question and you may notice the tank used in my diagram isn't one from the game.

Basically when you see an enemy tank, right away turn your body so that you present one of the green angles and move your turret to target so that your barrel is a little more beyond the given angle.

Example from in game:

^ This guy almost has it and may deflect some shots, but I find if I move the barrel so that it's pointing just a smidge more past 11 o'clock (towards 10), anything coming at you in that direction usually can't do much to you. Based on the tank in the distance, where he's aiming at him, etc..... he's left his front too exposed to that tank.

I find the IS2 has the best deflection abilities out of all the tanks, and it's shell can smack the tar out of pretty much any other tank in the game, however it's reload is painfully slow and only two people can be in the tank at once (no additional MG spot)

 

[LSD]

Haha! Small world, i did play with you, think it was on Arad_night...i remember asking if you "knew how to shoot" when you hopped into my tank. I meant like, if you knew how to target and...stuff, which you did, just not when i drove us into a Tiger and a Panzer IV at the same time >_>

Anyways, thanks a lot for the help man. And is the IS2 the one which comes with a tiny amount of shells, something like 18? I usually pick that, because the gun looks like a nasty piece of work, but the reload is like you said...slowwww...
I'll keep in mind what you said about tank positioning. Hopefully i'll see you on the battlefield again

Cheers guys!

 

[Cpt-Praxius]

Yeah the IS2 has that little machine gun on the back of the turret you can't use, has a large barrel, slow to reload and it's viewport while driving is the long rectangular one you don't look right into at first.

Also another pointer, since the mod days you could always mouse-wheel to open hatches and viewports in the tanks to get different views, from viewport to looking outside of the tank (Unbuttoned) yet with Ostfront, when looking through the viewport in most of the tanks (Default view when you first enter the tank) if you mouse-wheel down, you will get a closer view out of the viewport. (not with the T34 though)