Berlin's Five: Staff Breakdown!

Jambijon: Hello Tankers!   With the Berlin's Five going on sale, some of the community guys wanted to provide a breakdown of the tanks included in the bundle.  All tanks included come with a "zero skill" Brothers in Arms.   Most of it you may have already known and if you have any other input, please share!   IS-2:   Other than the T29 the IS-2 is definitely my go-to tier VII heavy.  The gun on this thing is amazing for tier VII.  Having a 390 alpha is really helpful when your dispersion is lacking and though its hull armor is a little thinner than the IS it’s definitely angled more efficiently so it doesn’t have that flat “shot trap” the IS has.  I would usually try to get into a position where my cupola was somewhat tucked away behind cover since it’s a fairly large target.  Your weak points are pretty pronounced so it’s best to ensure they can’t aim at you without moving their turret. - Jambijon Pros: Very good penetration and damage for Tier VII Very high pen with HEAT rounds 50 HP more than IS Well angled armor with no “shell trap” at the turret base like the IS has Cons: Terrible dispersion (0.44) Only -6 gun depression Tight internal module/crew placement makes it prone for critical damage.   Interesting fact:   “A single unit of 10 IS-2s from the 72nd Regiment engaged and claimed to have destroyed no less than 41 Tigers and “Ferdinand’s” in several engagements between April and May 1944, claiming the loss of eight tanks.” Source: http://www.tanks-enc...oviet_IS-II.php   Image from tanks-encyclopedia.com     Cromwell B: The Cromwell B is a community favorite for tier VI strongholds. With nominal differences from the original Cromwell, players will feel right at home in the Crommie B, sporting its trademark white star and bumper stickers. Arguably the perfect marriage between DPM and mobility, Cromwells in general have amazing run-and-gun capabilities. If you're up against a team of these in a Strongholds battle, take care to focus fire and take these things out one-by-one because you want to take their guns out of the fight ASAP. -DomoSapien
  Pros: It goes really fast (64km/h) Decent gun depression A platoon of 3 is a force to be reckoned with Runs circles around slower tanks (flanking nightmare) Awesome DPM Cons: Armor? What armor? (Very thin, not sloped very well) Module/Crew damage should be expected Can’t mount Vertical Stabilizer Inaccurate gun   Interesting fact:   “They saw extensive action with the British Army, forming part of the 6th Airborne Division, 7th Armoured Division, 11th Armoured Division, Guards Armoured Division, and 1st (Polish) Armoured Division. The tank was also used by the 1st (Czechoslovakian) Independent Armoured Brigade Group as part of the First Canadian Army in Dunkirk.”[10] “Cromwells were used as the main tank in the armoured brigades of the 7th Armoured Division, while being used in the armoured reconnaissance regiments of the other British armoured divisions (Guards Armoured Division and 11th Armoured Division) in North-west Europe. It excelled at this task because of its speed and low profile.[20] The tank was praised for its speed and reliability, while its low profile made it harder to spot.”   Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cromwell_tank Image from tanks-encyclopedia.com     M4A3E8 Thunderbolt VII:   I am a big fan blocking damage and at a distance the 123mm hull armor can perform very well when standing off against some fast firing mediums and light tanks. Blocking TD and Heavy Tank rounds is asking a lot of the Thunderbolt. Flanking with the beast is pretty great, which is what my favorite thing to do. You know and it pays tribute to the way the Creighton rocked the tank world. - KrzyBoop Pros: Comes with a “zero-skill” Brothers in Arms Crew Great frontal hull armor (123.5mm) Large tracks that will eat up HEAT shells Excellent gun handling, dispersion and aim time rival other tier 6 American mediums Decent top speed with good ground resistances Cons: Turret armor is lacking compared to other E8/Jumbos Bad acceleration, power to weight ratio, and has trouble climbing up hills Has several weak-points – cupola, roof, turret ring, and machine gun port. Low signal range   Interesting Fact:   “Abe Abrams wore out six tanks – all named Thunderbolt – during the war, but he never had one shot out from under him. He usually rode at the head of his columns, standing in the turret and chewing on a cigar. The New York Times reported” Source: http://warfarehistorynetwork.com/daily/wwii/colonel-creighton-abrams-at-the-battle-of-the-bulge/   Image from warfarehistorynetwork.com     ISU-122s:   This tank made me fall in love with TDs.  It speed is decent and the armor might be lacking, but oh man, once you get into a good position this thing just melts tanks.  There isn’t a lot to say.  This thing pumps out DPM and will sometimes bounce a couple shots with its front armor since the gun mantlet is rather large. - Jambijon   Pros: Incredible DPM (+3k with BIA crew) Good gun stats for a tier VII with a 122mm gun Decent top speed Great crew trainer for higher tier soviet TDs Cons: Shell velocity is very slow – Have to lead your shots Turn speed is lacking Narrow gun traverse Only the gun mantlet provides any real protection   Interesting fact:   "Whilst the ISU-122 tended to use armor piercing rounds, due to supply issues, they often found themselves firing high-explosive shells designated OF-471. These shells weighed 25 kilograms, had a muzzle velocity of 800 m/s, and had a 3 kilogram TNT charge. This proved absolutely excellent for AT duties as the explosion and shock-wave sent across the mechanisms on the targeted tank were sometimes enough to knock it out even without penetrating!" Source: http://www.tanks-enc...iet/ISU-122.php   Image from tanks-encyclopedia.com  
  T-34-85 "Rudy":   This tank is special to me because both of my parents immigrated to the United States from former-soviet-bloc Poland, and I still remember seeing re-runs of the show from which it originates, “Czterej pancerni i pies” (that’s Polish for “4 Tankers and a Dog” ) , on TV when I would visit family in Poland as a child.   While “Czterej Pancerni i Pies” was most well-known for the TV adaptation, it originates as a novel by Janusz Przymanowski. A key difference between the two is that in the novel, “Rudy” was a T-34, and not a T-34/85. Functionally, in-game the Rudy is virtually identical to the T-34-85, with negligible differences in weight and concealment. If you know how to play the T-34-85, you know how to play the Rudy.   - DomoSapien Pros: - Solid penetration and alpha for a medium of its tier
- Decent overall mobility and gun handling - Great jack-of-all-trades medium - Awesome decals on the turret, chassis, and barrel (featuring the crew’s hand/pawprints, the tank’s designated number 102, and the Polish White Eagle crest Cons: - Average hull and turret armor will not protect you from most vehicles of your tier or higher - Happy gun: this vehicle does not have a lot of gun depression at -7 degrees
- Szarik doesn’t bark
To clear up a common misconception, there is no special barking noise for 6th sense on the Rudy. This was a common misconception caused by some popular modpacks and some misinformation on one of our shop articles. We got quite a few "my dog isn't barking" tickets in Support, to the point where one of my colleagues actually had a sticky note on his monitor that said "the dog doesn't bark. It's a MOD!"   Image from dziennik.pl   Set photo of the main cast: ; color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: sans-serif; background: none;"> Olgierd Jarosz, "Olgierd" - tank commander, played by Roman Wilhelmi. Gustaw Jeleń, "Gustlik" - loader, played by Franciszek Pieczka. Jan Kos, "Janek" - gunner/radio operator, later the second commander, played by Janusz Gajos. Grigorij Saakaszwili, "Grześ" - driver. Native Georgian, played by Włodzimierz Press. Tomasz Czereśniak, "Tomuś, Tomek" - second gunner, played by Wiesław Gołas.   Interesting fact: "Rudy" is Polish for "Readhead" or "Ginger" - it was named after the fiance and love interest of Gunner-Radio Operator Janek Kos, a red-haired supporting character by the name of Marusia Ogoniok. The vehicle receives its moniker in episode 5 of the television series.   Thanks for stopping by!  Good luck out there!