Tank Aces Again (Part Two: United States and Soviet Union)

More Tanky Goodness

Today we cover the other two major nations of the war; The United States of America, with it's heartland industry powering it, and the Soviet Union, with their ahead-of-their-time designs that lead the way in tank shape.
 I tried to keep the tanks mentioned unique to each nation, however, the Sherman was widely used by the British and the Soviet Union through the 'Lend-Lease' programme, so unfortunately the United States only has the basic models mentioned, with the more interesting upgrades, and the powerful Pershing coming later on.

The United States of America

 M4, M4A1, M4A2 'Sherman'

 One of the most recognisable tanks, and the one used by most nations during the war, the 'Sherman' has always received mixed reviews from crews, historians and wargamers. Some would call it the best tank of the war, while others would say the high sides and rumoured 'explosive' tendency made it an underpowered death-trap. Regardless, the Sherman will always be one of the first tanks that spring to mind when the word 'tank' is mentioned.

 The Sherman, much like the Cromwell has a very middle-of-the-road statline. With front armour 6 giving it a hint of a chance in long range engagements, but against Panzers the 75mm gun always feels slightly underpowered, and against StuGs is lucky to get through, unless you sneak them round the sides. As for special rules, there's no 'Protected Ammo' to see here, so tankers will have to pray for decent dice rolls to remount. The addition of the 'Stabiliser' rule allows the Sherman to keep up a high rate of fire on the move, but at the penalty of +1 to hit.

M4A1 (76mm)

 The American forces recognised the need for a heavy gun on the Sherman to deal with Panthers and Tigers, and so the M4A1 (76mm) was produced, and was so successful that it also found its way into British and Soviet tank companies. The 76mm gun was spread to other models of the Sherman, but they will be discussed at a later date.

  The M4 (76mm) is usually mounted on an uparmoured Sherman chassis, to give it more survivability. This extra point of armour puts it on a better footing than its Panzer counterpart, making engagements between the two more likely to come out in favour of the Sherman, Another upgrade for the 76mm is the addition of 'Protected Ammo' meaning if the tank is bailed, the reroll to remount will get it back in the game quicker. The gun retains the stabilizer rule, giving it a good output of fire. The anti-tank for the gun above is the earlier model 76mm, later models go up to anti-tank 13, making it an even more fearsome opponent in the field.

The Soviet Union

T-34 obr 1942

 With almost 35,00 T-34's produced wielding the 76mm gun, this model was the most produced tank of the second world war, far outstripping any model of Sherman, Panzer and even it's upgunned comrade the T-34-85. The T-34 was well made, decently armed when it first entered service, and had a design which introduced the concept of sloped armour to the German command.

 With front armour to equal most other medium tanks, slightly improved side armour and a throttle that can send the tank 32" at the double, and wide-tracks to keep it moving through rough terrain, the T-34 obr 1942 is able to hold its own on the field for the most part. The downsides to the tank are firstly the gun; with an anti-tank rating of 9, the gun will struggle to trouble Panzers and Shermans at range, and will most likely leave StuGs untouched. Secondly, limited vision is going to add an additional +1 to hit, should the tank need to rotate its turret beyond 90°, thankfully this is not often, and if need be a coupla can be purchased to negate the rule completely.

T-34-85 obr 1944

 Much like with the American Sherman, the Soviet command realised that the gun on their main battle tank would need an upgrade to give it a fighting chance against Panzers, Panthers and Tigers. So, they equipped the T-34 with an 85mm gun, welded more armour to it, and sent it out to battle once more

 The upgraded T-34 gains an additional point of front armour, but at a cost. The additional weight means the engine can no longer reach the speed of the T34 obr 1942, and all that weight counteracts the tracks ability to pull the tank through mud. Therefore the T-34-85 loses 'Fast Tank' and 'Wide Tracks', The main difference though is the gun; a massive jump from anti-tank 9, all the way up to anti-tank 12 allows the T-34-85 to put the fear into Panzers as even at long range the likelihood of a penetrating hit is high.

 The main issue with both T-34s mentioned above is not the tank itself, but rather the crew. The best skill rating one can hope for is 'Trained', unlike every other nation where  they can call upon a 'Veteran' core, however this will be counteracted by numbers, so more poorly trained tanks, or less better trained? We shall see.

 Next issue: Irresistible Forces and Immovable Objects