5 replies to this topic

[Mindtunnel]

I did a quick search through the forums and surprisingly have found little mention of this technique! It is called the sidescrape and can be a very effective tactic on the battle field. It is very effective for tanks with rear mounted turrets but also very useful for mid and front mounted turrets as well. This first image is an example of sidesrcaping.

As you can see in the image above you rely on your side armor to bounce the incoming shells and for many tanks, requires that you point the rear of your tank towards the enemy. Now why would you ever want to point the rear of your tank towards the enemy and purposely take shots at the side? Because the angle of attack is decreased, thus allow for more shots to ricochet. Not only that, but your tracks will also absorb many shots and people are more tempted to take the shot, since instinct is to shoot at the side of a tank. Another advantage of this is the fact that the side armor of most tanks are flush while the front have weak spots; such as, drivers view port and radio man's turret.

Below are some examples explaining how the angle of attack differs between sidescrapping and the regular corner hull down position.



As you can see above, with the regular cornering technique, incoming fire approaches at a 55° angle. While with the sidescraping tactic, incoming fire only approaches at a 20° angle.
Now keep in mind this tactic should not be used in close quarters, unless driving a rear mounted turret, as it would be difficult to face the front of your hull towards the enemy if he decides to further approach. Sidescraping is most effect behind a rock, or other obstacle, in a fairly open area.



As you can see enemy fire would be coming at you from a very sharp angle, whilst you have a clear shot at both of them. I have deflected 21 out of 22 shots with this method using a KV-1 in a Teir VII match. With Wargaming's claims of a near future decrease in bullet normalization this tactic will increase in effectiveness. While this method takes some time to get used to and may become frustrating at first, as you might expose your rear by accident, once mastered can be very rewarding.

Edited by Mindtunnel, Oct 10 2012 - 11:26.

[Superaman]

This technique will be used a lot with that tier 10 Brit Heavy, nice post!

[Eidolone]

It's a great technique for vehicles that have relatively thick side armor.  E-100, Maus, KV-4 etc all excel at this.  For the tanks that have strong front armor but thin sides this is not recommended.

[DamoclesCommando]

this tactic has been around a LONNGG time, one of the only ways to play a 4502p dig further into the forums its there

[Gath69]

Yeah referred to most oftenly as the reverse peekaboo.  Essential for the German Heavies, but like you said can be used on just about anything as you still have a good chance your tracks absorb a shot or a bounce due to extreme angles.  Its the only way the 4502P is worth a damn and very nice on the KT, E-75 and of course the Maus and IS lines.

[SouthboundPachyderm]

When the IS-4 was first moved to tier X this was a very viable tactic for keeping it (and the driver) alive.  The only downside to the positioning is that it puts you further away from your hard cover and more likely to take artillery splash.

Edited by kraftinator, Oct 10 2012 - 15:00.