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Well, as a topic title says, it would be nice if some of the more experienced Pz V-IV drivers would share their tactics and game style with this tank.

There is two main problems for me: first, it's the battles, when my dear Pz V-IV is one of the top tanks, it looks to me, that i suck hardcore in those battles. Second- how to deal with the awfull gun depression? It's just killing me to have a gun, which is utterly useless, if you try to  storm some hill.

Don't get me wrong, I love this monster of a tank, in a high tier battles it's hell of a scout and arty hunter, if you choose your route carefully enough.

My tactic in this "monster" of tank was to sell it after 10 rounds and regret I didn't go for the heavy preorder pack.

it's main features are
-turns like a drunken turtle and loses too much speed in corners. fast in a straight line, but as soon as you have to turn or break ... awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww
-as you mentioned aweful gun depression. even the AMX12t seems better on hills
-abysmal gun ... 106 penetration and 110 damage on tier 6? it is easily outgunned by most T5 tanks
-scout? really? it is big and easy to spot, and the view range is only average if at all

How should one make up a tactic with those "gifts" the tank received. I wonder you kept it for that long. The only point to keep it in the garage would be, that you can't buy it anymore. If I would have to pick "worst tank of the game" it would be pretty high on my list.

too clumsy for playing med
gun is too bad for sniping
too clumsy and big for playing scout
no damage output and ... soso armor makes it also impossible to imitate a heavy.

For every job there are tanks that are suited better, and will produce more credits, even not being premium

I'll type a little 'guide' about how I play this tank, but I'm currently at work. Should be up in about 2-3 hours.

Kampfiltis, on 11 May 2012 - 02:10 PM, said:

And still, i love it. It looks awesome, can take some beating, have good speed and acceleration and there is few players each battle, who take this tank seriously enough and engage. But the best stuff is that this tank is one hell of a rammer, it's fun to see how Hummels, TDs up to Jagdpanther and mediums shake in panic, when my Pz V-IV goes for the ramm with full speed.

Usertmp, thank you

Here we go!

General tactics:
Get to a forward position, wait for an opportunity to flank/hit some opponents, hit and run. Make sure you have backup from your team.

Know what your teammates are doing.

Speed:
The tank itself is pretty fast, but only in a straight line. Use this speed to get into and out of engagements quickly. Or to be the first at a good spot.

Don't rush to your death.

Armor:
'Meh-ish'. At distance it's ok, but at close range, its hull armor is useless since people will aim for your weak turret. At range this turret is too small to hit reliably. If you're at Tier 8/9, just ignore your armor completely and focus on keeping your HP a healthy amount. Get close enough to hit their weakspots, but remain at a distance where they don't have a reliable chance to hit your turret.

Don't facehug

Gun:
'Meh-ish' again, the T-25 got a slightly better gun (and it's at Tier 5!). It's has a pretty fast reload, use this to pump quite a few shots into your enemy before you disappear or before he's killed by your team.
The enemies you'll be facing, will mostly be higher tiered than you. Learn their weakspots, and abuse them. Ignore the turrets of most (if not all) tanks, your gun is way to weak to penetrate them. The gun gets a little stronger if you use goldammo, but only just a little. Penetration increases from 106 to 143 mm. Not much, but enough to penetrate some tanks from the front hull, but still has some awkward bounces.

Goldammo is the way to go here, if you have gold to spend.

Gundepression:
Heh, this is one of the reasons why this tank is hated this much. Like most of you know, this tank has no gundepression. Fix to this? Learn at what angle you're able to shoot. Any ground that has a higher angle than your 'shootangle' is forbidden ground. Avoid places like that, or rush over it. Bumps kill your aim, make sure your front isn't halfway up a slope, if possible, make sure your back is up a little slope/bump.

Make sure the back of your tank is located higher than the front.

Traverse speed:
Another reason to hate. This tank turns like a barge. Avoid darting around the map, use the most efficient routes. To compensate, use 'Clutch Braking', 'Enh. Torsion Bars 5+ t Class' and 'Octane'. You don't need a fire extinguisher. If you're on fire, you're dead anyway. I've the feeling the tank became a little more agile with 'Torsion Bars' on it, but it could be a placebo effect (according to the wiki, it is). They do increase track hitpoints though.

Know your maps

Equipment:
Ventilation
Rammer
Enh. Torsion Bars 5+ t Class

Consumables:
Small Repair Kit
Small First-Aid Kit
100-octane Gasoline

Skills:
Commander: Mentor
Gunner: Camo
Driver: Clutch Braking
Radio Operator: Camo
Loader: Adrenaline Shot

If you need to know more, ask me.

I feel like I've forgotten something, but I don't know what.

Here's a detailed guide how to play this tank. follow the flow of medium tanks to a hill.
Once on top, spot a target you want to damage, and ram full speed into it.

By now, you should be dead, but assuming you are not, let your allies kill the target while you bounce of its side, back away, and do it again.

Exocet6951, on 11 May 2012 - 05:59 PM, said:

Why can't people give some serious/usable advice to people who want to play this tank seriously?

Usertmp, on 11 May 2012 - 06:01 PM, said:

Because it's slow, turns slowly, has a gun that belongs in tier4, and armor that can barely stop tier 5 guns.
It has one advantage: it's weight. It's heavy as hell, so you can ram and do a lot of damage. It's the only way to hurt tanks tier5+ frontally.

Overall, it's a bad tank, and hte only time it was ever decent is in the few days after release date, since you were mostly against other pz V-IV and beta shermans that couldn't penetrate it frontally.

Great, thanks a lot Usertmp

Exocet6951, on 11 May 2012 - 06:08 PM, said:

It isn't slow, traverse can be fixed (sort of) with Clutch Braking, its a Tier 5 gun and its front armor can stop Tier 5/6/7.
That's not an advantage, its lighter than a VK3601(H), comparable to the VK3001(P) and a bit heavier than a VK3001(H). All three of which I will not ram enemies with.

And if it isn't decent, then how could I get a Top Gun, Reaper and an Ace Tanker in one game?
Edited by Usertmp, 11 May 2012 - 06:13 PM.

bReeTz, on 11 May 2012 - 06:11 PM, said:

Np mate, I still play it daily.

Got my winrate from 48% to 52% in a few weeks.

Even though I don't own a PzV/IV and I don't think I'll ever do, I've given Usertmp a +1 for his detailed and thoughtful guide, and for being willing to help a fellow driver. That's an attitude I'd like to see more often in the forums.

Usertmp, on 11 May 2012 - 06:13 PM, said:

By that analogy, the M3 Lee is a brilliant tank because I know someone who had a great game with it.

Then, the gun can be listed as a tier5 gun, but it's barely worthy of being one.
I say it's slow, because it takes a while to go to top speed, and you cannot turn at all. Speed is not just about listed top speed.
About the weight now, the VK3001P is as big as a tiger, it's a HUGE tank, and for a medium tank, that sort of weight is something to fear.
Lastly, the armor cannot stop 135mm+ pen guns, not without great angling and low rng rolls.
Edited by Exocet6951, 11 May 2012 - 06:39 PM.

Exocet6951, on 11 May 2012 - 06:39 PM, said:

What if every tank is brilliant, if you know how to play it?

The gun is indeed a bit UP, but nothing why it shouldn't be a Tier 5. Can you give me some reasons why the L/48 shouldn't be a Tier 5?

It has pretty decent acceleration, I'm as fast as most scout tanks, untill they reach speeds I cannot. Like I said, the traverse can be fixed with the correct skills/equipment/consumables.

The VK3601(H), VK3001(H) and the Panther hulls, are all as big as a Tiger. And oh, mostly you're getting into higher tier matches, where you are completely out-sized and out-weighed. Also, ramming isn't only about dealing damage; it's also about taking damage. And I suppose you know the fact that the less armor you have, the more damage you take. So, how can a tank that doesn't stop guns with 135+ mm penetration, be a decent ramming tank?

Also, enemies have the urge to avoid being rammed. Your traverse speed isn't that high, but higher than you imply.

Edit: Oh, almost forgot. Your effective frontal superstructure armor, is 148mm. A bit of angling, not 'great angling' like you said (Yeah, 'great' as in 'good', not as 'high/extreme'), and it's even thicker. Enough to bounce tier 6-7 guns.
Edited by Usertmp, 11 May 2012 - 07:05 PM.

Because armor has much less influence than speed and weight.
Next, the L48 comes at an awkward part of the game where guns aim more slowly, yet still have relatively low penetration and damage. The L48 just simply doesn't have enough punch to do the trick in tier5, and it's only acceptable on the pz3/4 because that tank is fast and agile enough to flank.

As for traverse, you can limit just how bad it is, but since it's all percentage based, you can never fix it. It turns like a river barge with no skills and consumables, it'll turn like a faster river barge with, when compared to other mediums, that is.

Usertmp, on 11 May 2012 - 06:51 PM, said:

Weak argument, a maus has pretty decent acceleration, and is as fast as most scout tanks until they reach speeds it cannot. And THAT is a good analogy, because despite low top speed, the maus had great acceleration.

Then not many mediums outweigh you, infact, you have to wait for tier7 or 8 for that. And that specifically what I said: ram with the flow of mediums, ie: other mediums. Why you think I would encourage much heavier heavy tanks is frankly insulting.


Lastly, not every tank is good. There are some rotten apples that are simply not good when compared to similar tiered tanks, and despite players making the best of them, it won't be a good tank. For example, the D2.


But you know what? It really doesn't matter, you are convinced it's a good tank, and I'm not. We obviously won't convince each other, so I set forth the motion to agree to disagree.

Exocet6951, in overall you are right, the flaws of this tank it the main reason it is so rare seen in battles (in my 300+ battles with this tank only ONCE i met another Pz V-IV driver), but, on the other case, it can bring much fun. Why? Because it's fun for me to drive a tank, whick is thought to be useless by majority of the players, but i still manage to kick some buts and get decent win rate. Is it fun to get 3 kills in a KV? Or Pz IV? No, but it's fun to get those 3 kills in this tank

Peace!

I probably seem really stupid but uh.. what tank are you talking about? V-IV? III/IV? I have no idea lol o\

FoeHamster419, on 11 May 2012 - 07:45 PM, said:

This:

http://worldoftanks....rmany/pzv_pziv/

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If I receive ~150HP damage, for a ~200HP damage dealt, I won't call it efficient, thus I would not recommend ramming.

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Actually, on my V/IV, it aims pretty f***ing fast. Yes, it's UP on a V/IV, but on tier 5 it's decent. If it is, why don't I hear a lot of complaints?

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For a German medium, it has a normal traverse rate. With consumables ofcourse. But if you need consumables for it, doesn't directly mean it's bad.

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How is having a topspeed of 55km/h and scoutlike acceleration, not fast?

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Sorry, but can you rephrase that sentence? In it current form, I do not fully understand it. Nofi.

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Never played that tank, no comment. But I'm (almost) sure people can handle that tank, if they put their back into it.

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For me, it does matter. If a player gives another player some advice, I feel is wrong, I'm trying to correct him and make him see he is wrong.
Edited by Usertmp, 11 May 2012 - 08:09 PM.

And what makes you think you are right yourself?
Just because you don't like my way of playing doesn't me it's wrong.

Dangerous road to travel on, young grasshopper.