World of Tanks Fighting Against Artillery Guide

World of Tanks Fighting Against Artillery Guide by Sittingduck75

Artillery for the non Artillery player.

So you start a battle and there are little green and red squares on the mini-map.

First general rule, Static targets are DEAD. Therefore camping by base is a very bad idea and camping in general is still a bad idea. Here is why. Your team is bunched up and static. A non moving target will die to artillery every time. No rock/house covers you more then one side and the opposing artillery will move to get an angle on you. Lastly by staying near base, you are closer to your own artillery and will expose them to scouts. A good scout tank detects at 500m and an Arty that fires isn’t hidden.

Second general rule, artillery fires slow and misses quite a bit. A tier 5 SPGs fires about every 15 seconds with about 50% hit ratio. So if you get hit and tracked you have a second to fix and move. That said repair kits are your friend. Also you don’t need to hide all the time. Also if you need SPG support you are going to have to wait as long as 30 seconds. Artillery is a slow process but can be decisive.

Third general rule, ignore artillery’s plea for protection. You should kill scouts on sight, not to help your SPG, but to help yourself. Scouts do the rain dance that brings the metal rain and SPG without eyes is nearly useless. Also if you are close to your SPGs when the scouts show up the SPG is dead from counter battery fire anyway. So move up and let your SPG sit back by themselves. If you can, do chase the scout down.

Fourth general rule, in Himmelsdorf and other urban areas you can almost ignore artillery. High building block most line of artillery fire so don’t be overly worried about it. That said some lines work and so keep your eyes open and if you get hit switch sides of the street.

You’re a light tank. Laugh manically as enemy artillery pose little to no threat to you and the green squares are going to give half of there credits and xp to you. Not a bad deal. But now remember your light tank basics. Once spotted move, and keep moving, and those straight lines are for squares. Basically drive drunk. Also you should read this scout thread.
World of Tanks Scouting Advanced Guide

You’re a medium tank. Feel a little nervous. You are bigger and slower then a light and a much more likely target for the metal rain. But if you drive drunk, like a light, you are still very hard to hit and you aren’t the red squares favorite meal. I know you want to shoot things all the time but sometimes just spotting is the best idea. Any green square that can see a target because of you is going to give half of there credits and xp to you. Lastly kill any scout/light as fast as you can.

You’re a heavy. Grown and get ready to write another flaming post on the forums. You are a target of choice, big, slow, and lots of hitpoints. Credit and xp gold for a SPG. Your plan is simple, try not to drive in the open, no stopping when in the open, do not drive straight lines, try to get on far sides of hills, and do not stay in the same place for to long. In an artillery heavy match you are a liability instead of an asset to your team. Try to scare away lights and mediums from the front.

You’re a tank destroyer. Sigh as your favorite tactic of camping wont work. You are the last line of defense and sometimes a SPG only hope of avoiding death by scout. So here are the basics, no long term sniping, fire and move, try not to drive in the open, no stopping when in the open, do not drive straight, try to get on far sides of hills, and do not stay in the same place for to long. I think I repeated myself but let me do it again. Fire and move. Static targets are DEAD.

Artillery makes the game move. When playing with and against artillery remember static targets are DEAD. By moving you decrease an artillery effectiveness and by tracking your opponent you bring their death. And the next time you think SPGs are OP, try it.