Tanks of the Month: Let’s Roar with the Germans!

When we think about German tanks, the first one to come to the mind is the Tiger. This month, two German tigers will roar on the battlefields. Take command of the heavies: PanzerKampfwagen VI Tiger and PanzerKampfwagen VIB Tiger II and join the battle!

From 1^st October at 07:30 until 16^th October at 07:00, all credits earned with the German tier VII heavy tank PzKpfw VI Tiger will be increased by 30%.

From the 16^th October at 07:30, to the 1^st November at 07:00, the credits earned with the German tier VIII heavy tank PzKpfw VIB Tiger II will be increased by 25%.

Fill your treasury during this month thanks to the German big cats!

History

The Tiger I

When the Germans encountered the heavy tanks from Russia and France, they realised that their light tanks were outgunned and poorly armoured. In 1941, the order for a new heavy tank was given, with features such as 100mm of armour and a gun that could penetrate a similar depth of armour at a distance of a mile (1.6 km)!  Four companies were asked to present their prototypes, and all were shown to Hitler on his birthday. The most suitable version was designed by Henschel. The prototype weighed 45 tons, and had a 8.8 cm gun.

 Production of the PanzerKampfWagen VI Ausf. E, called the Tiger, started in August 1942. The tank weighed 50 tons, and after the first 250 units had been produced, the engine was upgraded from 642 to 694 hp. It was the first tank to have an overlapped bearing system: the tracks wheels were in two layers (one front and one back) and all the wheels were overlapped and interspersed. The suspension was comprised of eight independent torsion bars, which made for very smooth riding even for such a big vehicle. The 88 mm KwK36 L/56 gun had a muzzle brake and an electric trigger.

Production ceased in August 1944 after 1,335 units had been produced. The Tiger was the most powerful tank of its time, but despite its firepower and thick armour, it was never used for its original purpose – it was just too slow. However, it was a very good tank when used in a defensive role and was capable of knocking-out almost any Allied vehicle.

The King Tiger

The PanzerKampfWagenVI AusfB, also known as Tiger II or King Tiger, represents a complete redesign of the previous vehicle. It was ordered in August 1942 as a heavy tank with 150mm armour, an 88mm gun and a sloped glacis. The first models were produced in February 1944. 

The Tiger II had a longer hull, which was needed for the installation of an extra pair of wheels. The turret was narrower than the Tiger one, and was mounted with the 88 mm KwK43 L/71 gun. However, the engine remained the same as its predecessor, resulting in the tank being somewhat underpowered despite the powerful gun and strong armour.

However, by this stage of the war, German tank production was being rationalised, and only two tanks remained in production in 1945: the Tiger II and the Panther.  This resulted in many of the parts for these two vehicles being interchangeable.

In the end, only 492 were produced.  1500 King Tigers has been ordered, but the production process was severely disrupted by Allied bombing raids which wiped out 95% of the Henschel plant.  It is estimated that around 650 Tiger IIs were destroyed in the plant before they ever saw service.

Here is a table to sum up the main characteristics of these two steel vehicles.

The Tiger and Tiger II in World of Tanks

These days, the heart of matter is, of course, how these tigers perform on the battlefields of World of Tanks. Here, we take a closer look at them, focusing on the modules available.  Afterwards we present some general playing tips.

The PzKpfw VI Tiger is a German tier VII heavy tank, which comes after the VK3601 (H) and leads to the tier VIII PzKpfw VIB Ausf.B Tiger II. Let’s take a look at the tech-tree specifications in detail:

PzKpfw VI Tiger

Engines

Four engines are available for the tank.

The stock engine is the same as that used on the medium tank VK 36 01. It is a tier VI engine which can get your tank moving up to 30 km/h. If you want to accelerate more quickly and get rid of that feeling of being glued to the ground when you start the battle, you can mount the Maybach HL 210 P 30, which is tier VII. All the engines can be researched one after each other as they are in the same branch of modules. You’ll want to race through them as quickly as you can to get to the top one.  This will allow you to reach the maximum speed in just a few seconds. After all, a quick boost is useful in all situations.

Suspensions

The stock suspension, the Transportketten, can carry 58.9 tons and allows the tank to reach 22 deg/sec traverse speed. Researching and equipping the Breitketten tracks will increase the traverse speed by 2 deg/sec and the load limit by 0.3 tonnes.

Radio

The stock radio is the tier VI FuG 7 which has a signal range of 415m. Researching the tier IX FuG 12 will provide an outstanding improvement to 710m. This radio capability will help to prevent your heavy being caught unawares by incoming enemies.

Turret

The stock turret has a higher profile than the top one (see pictures below).  The size and shape of the gun mantle will make penetration much more difficult for enemies who are shooting into your front. However, watch your sides.  The turret is longer, which makes it easier to spot and shoot into.  You should also bear in mind that the 100mm armour is on the thin side, meaning most tanks of the same tier will be able to penetrate your armour easily.

The PzKpfw VI with the stock turret and stock gun	...and the top turret and the second gun.

The PzKpfw-VI-Tiger-I-Porscheturm turret provides thicker armour, which will make you more confident in battlefield. However, your hull is quite boxy, and needs to be kept hidden wherever possible – a good reason to equip the armoured turret and make it the only part of the tank that you expose. Finally, the improvement in view range should be a good reason to research it.  Still not convinced?  You’ll need to equip the better turret if you want to mount the top gun – the mighty 8.8cm KwK L/71.

Guns

The three first guns can be mounted with the stock turret.  However, you will need to research the Porschetrum turret if you want to mount the top KwK 36 L/56 gun.  The stock gun does have excellent values for penetration and damage for a tier VI gun (actually better values than the other nation tier VI guns). However, when equipped on a tier VII tank, it is less impressive, so you’ll want to upgrade it as quickly as you can. The KwK 36 L/56 and KwK 42 L/28 are less precise than the stock gun, so you should shoot only when you see the reticle circle has shrunk to its smallest size.  Fortunately, you won’t have to  wait for long as the aiming time is very short, especially the KwK 42 L/28 when you are not moving. The damage dealt by all of these guns is very reasonable. The poor penetration value of the bigger calibre one is compensated for by its average damage. If you manage to shoot at the right place, your enemy won’t have long to live.

The top gun is the 8.8 cm KwK 43 L/71, and has both a good accuracy and a good damage potential. The penetration is also excellent, allowing you to deal damage with most shots if you aim well. It is possible that the aiming time of almost 3 seconds will be uncomfortable at first, but the waiting time is nothing compared to the joy of a good and deadly shot!

The Tiger1 with the 8.8 cm KwK 43 L/71 gun. Get ready to battle with this deadly weapon!

PzKpfw VIB Tiger II

Engines

Three engines are available for this tank.

All these engines are already available with the Tiger I, so if you have researched them with the previous tank, don’t sell them and just re-equip them for this one. Even with the top engine, you will still only reach a top speed of 28 km/h, so don’t think you can run fast on the front: you are super-heavy, and should rely on your armour and tactics, not your speed.

Suspensions

The stock suspension, the PzKpfw-VIB-Standardketten, can carry 68.5 tons and allows the tank to reach 23 deg/sec traverse speed. Researching and equipping the PzKpfw VIB verstärkte Ketten tracks will increase the traverse speed by 3 deg/sec and allow you to mount up to 72.97 tons onto it. If you want to mount the top turret on the tank, you will need to upgrade the suspensions first.

Radio

As for the previous tank, the stock radio is the tier VI FuG 7 and the upgraded one is the tier IX FuG 12. As always, longer signal range is better.

Turret

Both turrets allow you to mount all the guns, but the research of the top turret is necessary if you want to research the next tank in the tree, the tier IX E-75. The top turret is better in almost all aspects than the stock one – it has more armour and far better sloping. Whilst the sides are thinner, the front is much thicker, but a little less sloped. The sides of the top turret are rounded enough to deflect some shots, but as usual, keep your flanks hidden.  The choice of turret is a matter of taste for some.  However, most would say that because of the slope, thicker frontal armour and increased hit poit amount that the Henschel-Turm is better.

The PzKpfw VIB with the stock turret and stock gun	...and with the top turret and the top gun.

Guns

All the guns can be mounted with both turrets. You can see that the stock gun is the top gun of the previous tank. So, given that your basic weapon is already good in terms of damage and accuracy, you can expect even more destructive power when you improve it! You can see this by looking at the other guns available. They are both equal in terms of damage and caliber, but the KwK 46 L/68 penetrates much further. They also both take less time to aim than the stock gun, always good news for those who like to shoot and move.  However, power always comes with a price and in this case the cost of the speed of firing.

Playing Tips

Now that you know more about these tanks, let’s find out how to tame these wild cats in the battlefields!

Tiger I

As you have seen, this tank has quite a boxy hull, making it vulnerable to penetration. Avoid exposing your hull and use the top of your turret as a shield – it is thick enough to prevent some damages. Use hull-down tactics when you can, but be warned that the gun depression is quite small. If you must show your hull, try to angle it when possible. Facing the enemy at a 90 degree angle makes it much easier to penetrate your hull, so you should avoid facing the enemy head-on.

Your gun is extremely accurate compared to those of other nations.  This means that you don’t need to get close and can shoot from far away. You can use armor piercing, explosive or composite shells with all of your guns.

You are a heavy metal beast, so don't rush.  You are better covering the front line from behind. Find a nice place to hide your hull and shoot at enemies, using the power of your gun before they spot you. The use of coated optics can be useful for this tank if you like to shoot at your enemies from far away.  It is always a good idea to mount that most standard of equipment – the gun rammer.

Tiger II 

The Tiger II has a stronger frontal plate than its predecessor, but you still need to hide the lower part of it as it's a huge weak spot.  Additional weak spots include the machine gun and the commander’s cupola. However, the main plate and gun mantlet are well-armoured, and the turret is rounded enough for you to see the enemy shells ricochet of it.

The great accuracy and the good penetration of all of the guns make this tank an ideal sniper. Just find a good ambush spot and shoot at the enemies. In addition, as the tank is very high and accurate, you can shoot over your team mates whilst they try to push through a bottle-neck. 

Make sure you stay hidden while reloading. You can use the binocular telescope or coated optics to be a great sniper, but as with the Tiger I, remember to pick up a gun rammer as soon as possible.

Now you know a bit more about these two German heavies. Remember that you will earn more credits with the PzKpfw VI Tiger until the 16 of the month, and then more credits with the PzKpfw VIB Tiger II until the end of the month.  

And we can't resist the chance to show you a picture of our own King Tiger in the Wargaming office... 

Bring out your Tigers and strike up a roar on the battlefields!