Tactics Talk: Light tanks on El Halluf

Had a game this morning I wanted to highlight. It was a Tier 8/7 battle and I was in my Primo Victoria. Each team had 3 arties, and 1 light tank. Ours was a T71 CMCD. We were in the Southwest spawn.

In a MT, especially one with good gun depression, I almost always start at the C2/B2 brawl. From there you can get shots on the heavies crossing, and punish any opponents who poke too far from the opposite side. It's also pretty arty-safe if you hug the side of the mountain.

Leaving the spawn I'm in the habit of watching the minimap to see how our team is dispersing. (See: Tankers Workshop #2: The Minimap). I've discovered that I can often - but not always - predict how the battle is going to go based on the initial deployment. This was one of those games.

From the outset our T71 CMCD - which remember was our only light tank - went right up the 1 line, cut across at B2 and rounded the rock at A2. That's not a particularly great move for a few reasons:

1. They're not going to spot much on their way up there. By going up the 1 line they're basically giving us no vision on the rest of the map.
2. They MIGHT have gotten an early peek at anybody at B2, but either they got there too fast or may have been too low on the hill. They didn't spot anybody.
3. If they did light somebody when they rounded A2 it would only have been useful if those enemies were all the way back at A5. There arty MIGHT have a shot at them. Otherwise they're probably in cover.
4. You could argue that by spotting at that corner they might give their heavies/mediums pause and stop them/slow them from pushing up. But if you're driving a WZ-111, AMX 65T, or a Type 59 are you really going to be afraid to push into a lone T71 CMCD? No.

...and they weren't. If T71 had just done an active scouting run and bailed out I might have chalked it up to a not terribly useful active run, but hey, worth a try I guess. Unfortunately T71 then parked at A2 and tried to brawl the oncoming heavies by themself.

Want to guess how that went? Yes, they were dead in under 20 seconds. Our only light tank is out of the game, we have no vision to the south and the end result was a 7-15 loss.

Was it entirely their fault? No, of course not. Our heavies didn't win the A1 corner, our TDs couldn't hold up in the south. Our arties weren't effective enough when they did have shots. But...if we'd had more vision, we might have been able to take a couple more of their guns out of the game. Who knows if that changes the outcome.

My point here is not to call out that T71 CMCD driver. Notice I didn't even post their name. Simply to remind you that you should make plays for a reason and play the strengths of your tank. Brawling tier 8 heavies, frontally, in a T71 CMCD, from a position where none of your team can help you, is not a smart play.

GLHF!