Mandatory disclaimer:
This is for new players like myself looking for some tips. Nothing more, nothing less. This is not a complete guide but rather some random things I felt like sharing and simply my opinion =)
– Yes, I'm new.
– Yes, I suck.
– Yes, I believe I can provide tips without being a veteran elite master.
– No you don't get a TL;DR.
– …yes!
1: Be patient and methodical if the situasion allows for it:
If the game ain't going turbo and I see there will be time to fight then I stay patient. It allows for the enemy to become impatient and make a mistake like poking when he shouldn't. I noticed this when I had a "tomato start" in games and took like half my HP in damage. Part of me wanted to ragequit to garage but I found that if I fall back and become more methodical and patient in those situasions I can mostly end up doing my full HP in damage by the end of the game. So now I apply that mentality BEFORE I do silly things.
I also try to "counter my own mistakes". If I screw up in situasions, it makes sense that others are bound to also do similar mistakes. So I stop doing them and look for enemies that keep doing them. But this time my barrel is where the enemy earlier made sure that I "took one for the team"!
2: Identify the game state.
Is it a rush? Where is the rush? Game going turbo or stalemate? Check minimap and use these things to make sound decisions on tactical retreats or being where the action is at the correct time. You get zero rating, credits and experience from being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Plan accordingly!
3: Don't trade your HP early. Look for early enemy mistakes.
You would be surprised how many enemies overestimate their speed and get caught in the open in the start or are just plain impatient. Remember that you are a WAY bigger threat with close to full HP later on in the game. People might panic if you take em head on or you can win 1v2's that benefit your chances of a win or free damage.
4: Identify if you are a core-tank or a support tank in a matchup and play accordingly.
If my tank has a +2 matchup and i'm scraping the bottom of the low tier barrel. I will be of no use if I plant my tank in the first brawl and trade shots like a dumbass with all my shots ricocheting and blocking the friendly big boi tanks from carrying my ass. I might be better suited to spot key locations. I might be a good tank to poke out between shots in a brawl and go for enemy tank tracks with HE ammo. You would be surprised of how much XP, credits and WN8/WTR stats you can get from de-tracking and spotting +2 enemy tanks throughout a game. Sure beats my other alternative of just being a 20000-80000 kg paperweight that instantly implodes in the first firefight.
5: Minimap, minimap, minimap (and general awareness).
The games current state is love, the games current state is life. Rest your gun at key points during downtime and check the minimap + your surroundings when the situasion allows for it. The more you know the more you are prepared for what comes next. Information gathered when not in a direct firefight is just as important as the firefight itself.
6: Don't play.
Most of the things I've learned so far that made me better (other then what comes as a rare epiphany) comes from watching good streamers and reading other peoples advice on forums. Even if I know the advice beforehand, it allows me to actively think about it and sub-conciously add it to my play. And good streamers are just a goldmine of information on how to play. Actively put yourself in their shoes and think "what you would do right now?". If they do something different, take a moment and analyze why and how it might be a better way to go about things. If in doubt, ask the streamer or your fellow viewers. As most are kind and helpful. This is way more fun than it sounds if you take the time to find a handful of streamers you genuinely think are cool people to interact and hang out with.
7: Don't get tilted. And if you are tilted then take a break (subjective)
This one is less objective, but something that has helped me alot in all competitive gaming enviroments. From playing chess, to rated battlegrounds in WoW and ranked masters in Overwatch. If I get negatively emotional about the game then I start to think differently. And it's just a downhill train of compounding mistakes that lead me to making worse outcomes. If I find myself frustrated then I simply just take a break from the game. It can be the end of a session or just me stretching my legs, watching a TV show and getting back at it once its out of my system. You are not here for the game. The game is here for you. Keep this in mind!
8: Documentation
This game is NOT new-player friendly. And the sooner I accepted that and started to scour reddit forum, tanks.gg and the WoT wikipedia to check stats, gameplay notes and learn about the game mechanics from the official discord and content creators, the better i was off. Learning about a game might not be as sexy as playing it. But taking that time, then playing it in a better way is! Camouflage/spotting/view range and all the different stats listed on a tank are things you should learn by heart. And how effective armour works. As the armour values in the game don't take into account the angle of armor. The site also shows you some hidden stats that are key to your tanks preformance. Like terrain resistance for tracks and other hidden "soft stats" on the gun handling.
9: Do NOT be greedy on credits!
Out of all the resources in this game I feel like credits is the rarest one. It's needed for most things and alot of it is expensive. But it's worth it to spend them and you should spend them in my opinion. Even if it means credits being your "bottleneck" for progression. This just means you need to grind some cash before you hop into the next tank and I don't find this to be a bad thing. It allows for my crew to get better and for me to get important perks like Sixth sense, Off-road driving, Snap shot and Intuition faster. I always train my crew with credits. I always buy 3 equipments for the tank. I always use the best modules for my tank. I always shoot gold ammo if my gun has bad penetration and I'm in a situasion that calls for a few "dabs of the 2 key". I play for fun and being in a tank that is better equipped for combat preformance IS fun!
Closing thoughts:
Currently I'm at around 1100-1200 wn8 / 5500 WTR and hope to keep climbing. But I only allow myself to check this once a week as to not focus on it. I'm here to have fun and blow stuff up. Not to chase stats. But it sure is fun if I improve. And I hope you will too fellow tomato. Keep on tanking! =)
