In my previous post, I delved into the spotting and camouflage mechanics of World of Tanks. In this article, we’ll explore 1) checkpoints, 2) double bushes, and 3) how to find unspotted enemies.
Checkpoints
Understanding Checkpoints
In World of Tanks, vehicles have two main types of checkpoints: Visibility Checkpoints and View Range Checkpoints.
There are five visibility checkpoints on the tank: two in the middle of the front and rear armor, two in the middle of each side of the tank, and a single visibility checkpoint on the turret, specifically on the gun mantlet.
View range checkpoints, on the other hand, are both situated on the turret. The first is the checkpoint on the gun mantlet and the second is in the middle of the turret’s top.
Low-Risk Enemy Spotting
We can minimize risks when trying to peek or spot enemies by using the gun mantlet checkpoint.
There are three different ways:
- Expose just your gun mantlet checkpoint while hiding your hull armor behind a hill. This strategy works best when you’re climbing a steep incline.
- Point your gun and hull forward, briefly show only your gun mantlet, and then quickly retreat behind cover.
- By turning your turret, reveal only your gun mantlet while sidescraping. Be cautious, as enemies can penetrate the side of the turret. To avoid this, don’t turn your turret too much.
The Double Bushes
15 m Rule
If you fire within a 15m range of bushes, the camouflage bonus disappears. To avoid this situation, you need to maintain a distance of 15 m from the bushes.
If the bushes and your vehicle are within 15 m, the bush will vanish in sniper mode, when you’re outside that range, it becomes opaque.
Some people might wonder why their bushes turn transparent, not vanishing. That’s because your settings might be different from mine.
How to Double Bushes?
Remember that getting within 50m is the only way to spot an enemy with 100% effective camouflage. By using double bushes, you won’t get spotted unless the enemy is within 50m.
If you have two bushes right in front of you, stay 15m away from them and fire. Even though your camouflage value decreases due to firing, you can still remain undetected.
The bushes don’t need to be directly in front of you. They just need to be positioned between you and the enemy tank.
How to Find Enemy in Bushes
By reversing these mechanics, you can also locate hidden enemies in bushes even if they’re not spotted.
When you do get spotted, there are two major factors to consider:
1. Which side of your checkpoints is hidden
2. Whether there are bushes where the enemy tank is likely to be
Here is a video as an example:
In the Video
My visibility checkpoints were hidden from the blue circled area by a small hill, as shown in the picture. This led me to suspect that the enemy spotted me from the red circled area. Especially, there is a popular spot for light tanks.
This kind of play can really frustrate light tank players. Even just a single shot can change the result of the game as preserving hit points is really important for LTs.