COH: Stoffer's Wehrmacht Armor Guide

Armour Selection 

Note on veterancy: All Wehrmacht vehicles save for the King Tiger can be levelled up from the Kampfkraft Center. For the Stug, StuH, Panther and Pz IV, they recieve machine gunners at level 2, and additional armour at level three, alongside various other improvements. If you plan on playing tank heavy, it is a must to upgrade them. 

StuG 

Historically, the Sturmgeschutz III and IV were combined the most mass produced armoured vehicle in the Third Reich. Essentially a a high velocity 75mm L/48 gun attached to either a panzer III or IV chassis (hence the III and IV model numbers). While the guns incredibly limited traverse, about 10 degrees in either direction, was a liability, its capable stopping power and respectble armour made it a quality assault gun. Also, unlike most German vehicles, it was mechanically very reliable, as one that had sank in the mud during the retreat from the USSR was discovered in 2005, and only required a little maintanance to get working again. About 10,000 were built. 

In Company of Heroes, the StuG is your first available tank. Able to be purchased at Tier 3 (assault phase), a quick Stug can be infinitly useful, as at this piont there is little that can challenge it. Its armour and firepower is comparable to the American Sherman, but a well microed enemy tank will simply run circles around it, and you will be unable to return fire thanks to the fixed gun. Useful early game, but not really worth building once better options are available. 

StuH 

Historically, the Sturmhaubitze 42 was an infantry support vehicle using the same layout as the StuG III. Instead of the high velocity 75mm gun, the StuH was armed with a 105mm leFH 18 howitzer, ideal for destroying buildings, infantry formations and other soft targets. Its concussive effect made it also highly effective against bunkers and other concrete structures. About 1200 were constructed. 

In CoH, the StuH is available only to the Blitz doctorine, and the bane of infantry blobs. Possessing the same armour as the StuG gives it some survivability, but its howitzer is useless against enemy armour. The splash damage of the main gun is enough to wipe out entire formations of infantry, and clear buildings with little difficulty. However, it appears as though the Wehrmacht only hires blind insane asylum escapees for StuH gunners, and as such it can rarely hit the broad side of a barn. Use against infantry formations and watch the gibs, just make sure there are infantry nearby to pick off survivors the the StuH will never hit. The MG granted at level 2 is really important to the StuH, as it allows it to be even more effective against infantry, and unlike the howitzer gunner, can aim. 

Panzer IV 

Historically, the Panzerkampfwagon IV was the workhorse of the Wehrmacht. Initially intended as an infantry support tank, much like the later StuH which would take up that role, while Panzer IIIs handled the tank vs. tank warfare. It was quickly realized that the Pz III was too light to engage most enemy armour, and a new design would be needed. The appearance of the T-34 also exacerbated the situation. In the end, the Pz IV Auf G was developed, armed with a long barreled high velocity 75mm KwK 40 L/43 or L/48 (Ausf H). This new design allowed the Pz IV to compete with the T-34 and the various heavily armoued vehicles employed by the British Army. Similar performance to the M4 Sherman and T-34, slightly better protection than the M4. 8500 of the various models were produced. 

In CoH, the Panzer IV is your basic medium tank. Able to compete with the regular Sherman or Cromwell, it is a respectible tank, but become outclassed rather rapidly in tank on tank warfare. Also note that its accuracy is considerable worse than its allied compatriats. Best used as an infantry hunter or to take out more agile light vehicle, like M8s, Stuarts and Tetrarchs. It is fairly affordable, and you'll probably deploy one or two at least in a battle, as if nothing else they round out an assault force. A generalist tank, good at everything, great at nothing. 

Panther 

Historically, the Panzerkampfwagon V was a developement of lessons learned on the eastern front. Faced with the agile, powerful and durable T-34, the OKW (Ober Kommando Wehrmacht, Army High Command) knew they needed something with similar performance. In the end, the Panther, as it became known as, was a heavily armoured, fast moving well armed nightmare. Armoured with 80 mm of highly sloped frontal protection, it was highly resistant to most anti-tank weapons and comparitive enemy armour. The 7.5 cm Rheinmetall-Borsig KwK 42 (L/70) was capable of penetrating the armour of other medium tanks with ease due to its very high velocity, and could even challenge the heavy armour at the time of its inception. However, its first deployment during the Battle of Kursk was less than inspiring, as early models were plagued with technical issues and common breakdowns. However, once those issues were by and large ironed out, the Panther proved itself to be a supremely effective combat vehicle, widely considered the best tank of the war alongside the T-34/85. 4000 were built. 

In CoH, the Panther is your dedicated tank destroyer. Its high speed, good armour, and high firepower allows it to take on any tank and come out victorious. With proper micro, it can even take out Pershings. However, its main gun has little splash damage, rendering it rather vulnerable to infantry, and its fairly high cost means you want to make sure it is always fully repaired. Having a repair bunker or two behind your lines is always useful, as the Panther is quick enough to get out of any engagement it can't win. Combined with some good infantry, like MP40 volks or LMG42 grens, you can punch through the most determined of resistance. Best to deploy in pairs. Veterancy is all but a must, as it greatly improves the effectiveness of the tank, especially since they are not easily replaced. 

Ostwind 

Historically, the Flakpanzer IV Ostwind (literally, East Wind) was a developement of the early Wirbelwind (Whirlwind). Designed as a mobile anti-air platform to protect tank formations from low flying fighter-bombers, due to the Luftwaffe being incresingly unable to provide air superiority. Its 37mm autogun proved to be much more effective than the Wirbelwind's quadruple barrel Flakvierling. Essentially a 37mm anti-air gun mounted on a Panzer IV chassis. Little combat performance is available, as only 30 were built. 

In CoH, the Ostwind is a high performance anti-infantry weapon. Able to make short work of blobs, and even single sqauds due to its high accuracy and rate of fire. Be wary though, as while it may be on a Pz IV chassis, it has little to no armour or health, easily killed by the lightest of armoured vehicles. A useful addition to any armoured force, especially if your enemy really likes Rangers. 

Tiger 

The most iconic vehicle of the Wehrmacht. The Panzerkampfwagen VI Ausführung H (there is a reason Wehrmacht vehicles got short nicknames) was a feared vehicle by allied tank crews. Armed with the feared 88 mm Kwk 36 L/56 gun, the Tiger could defeat the armour of any tank belonging to Germany's enemies at ranges greater than 1km. With armour 80mm at the thinnest, most tanks had to close to piont blank range and fire at the rear to have any chance of defeating the tank. However, its protection could have been greatly improved with no additional weight if the armour had been sloped, but Hitler wanted it to bear no similarity to the T-34 or other soviet designs. In the end, the Tiger remained all but invincibile until the advent of the Sherman Firefly and the T-34/85 and later war allied and soviet heavy tanks. However, the tank was very slow, and more were lost to mechnaical failure than enemy action. They made little impact on the war however, with only 1355 built, compared to 48,000 T-34s and 40,000 Shermans. 

In CoH, the Tiger is an endgame unit avaiable to the Blitz doctorine. Possessing very high durability, and a main gun that can ruin someones day, they are well worth the 1000 MP. You can only have one on the field at a time however, but if you have a PE player with a Bergetiger, you can have upwards of three! The tiger can defeat any tank in open combat, and its only true threat comes from very well microed Pershings or a well utilized firefly. Againt fireflies, try to corner it or just chase it (beware of ambushes!) or lure it into a trap of panzershrecks, that being the most effective option. Those tanks have armour like paper, and are little threat in a straight up fight. Also note that the Tiger is highly effective against infantry, its high accuracy and good splash damage can really butcher clumped infantry, but its primary purpose should be tank destruction. Use it as a spearhead to an assault, supported by infantry and other armour of some sort, Panthers preferrably, but panzers will work well too. In fact, your biggest threat comes from the 5% bug, a sherman with 5% health taking 5 hits to the rear to finish off will usually give your enemy enough time to get something together to try and knock out the tiger. As with the Panther, try and keep repair forces of some sort on hand to keep your investment alive. 

King Tiger 

Historically, the Panzerkampfwagen VI Ausf. B, or Konigstiger, was the single most powerful armoured vehicle to see combat operations in the Second World War, save for some ultra heavy tank destroyers, usually based off the Tiger's hull. Weighing in at 70 tons, and possessing 180mm of sloped armour at the front, and 80mm of sloped armour in the rear, it was the single most difficult target to destroy. There is no record of any armoured vehicle every pentrating its frontal armour, and to penetrate its side or rear armour, allied and soviet tanks had to close well within range of its devestating 88mm main gun. Only in one engagement were King Tiger loses fairly similar to OpFor losses, On the Vistula River, with 15 KTs destroyed to 19 IS-IIs. However, the vehicles was incredibly slow, at only 41 km/h, and prone to mechanical breakdowns due to lack of testing and very complicated components. While leaving a lasting impression on anyone who survived an encounter with a Tiger II, or any German soldier to fight alongside one, they made little impact on the war, with only 487 produced. 

In CoH, the King Tiger is the Super-Heavy tank available to the Terror doctorine. While ingame it is nowhere near the mobile fortress it was on the battlefield, properly utilized it can do a lot of damage. Remember YOU ONLY GET ONE!, when called in, despite being free, it reduces your MP income by 100 for 5 minutes. Usually best to use it defensively for those 5 minutes. The KT possess over 2500 health and the same armour as the Tiger. Even when an AT gun penetrates, it does very little damage. However, the KT takes forever and a half to repair, even with half a dozen pio squads working on it, so you want to avoid damage as much as possible. Its main gun can eat Shermans for breakfast, taking only 3-4 hits to destroy each one, barring the 5% bug of course, and can of course shrug off any damage. However, its main gun has much lower splash damage than the Tiger I, making it far more vulnerable to infantry. When the time comes for your final push, use the KT as the spearhead. It may be very slow, but it is a superb meatshield and distraction, while your panthers and infantry wreak any enemy threats. Also note that the KT is the only tank where engaging AT guns head on is viable, it takes two hits to destroy the enemy gun, and you will take only about 3% damage. Just beware, the tank is horribly vulnerable without support due to its slow speed, very slow turret traverse and fairly long reload times, but it is an invaluable asset to an assault force. 

Note: I personally think the KT is underpowered, I would be far happier paying 1500 - 2000MP to call one in, and it actually be combat effective, rather than just a meat shield. A better main gun would be nice, and better armour for one, it seems most weapons can penetrate it just as easily, if not easier, than the Tiger. Nevermind the fact it is irreplaceable. 



Armour Tips 

Facing 

An important thing to remember while using tanks is that different directions of the armour has different values. A shot to the rear will do large amounts of damage, while a shot to the front may simply glance off. Given the general idiocy of the new vehicle AI, this is especially important to remember, as tanks seem to like to show off their vulnerable rear armour to any tank you order it too attack. A good idea is back a tank into an area which can't be flanked (edge of map, alley, etc) and let it fire away, but of course that only works while playing defensively. 

Micromanagement 

It is especially important to micro your expensive and fairly vulnerable tanks on the battlefield. It is important their are no seperate commands for things like reverse or turn around, so you have to go in and click like a mad man. If you want a tank to reverse, click right behind it and it will back up, over medium distances sometimes if you give it a move order with a facing order towards where it is initially, it tends to back to the location. Also very important for when you withdraw, as you don't want battle damaged tanks fleeing the area with their rear armour exposed. Also, try to move the tank in unison with its turret by giving it small turn or move orders, allowing the main gun to stay on the enemy and continuing to fire, especially important with slow tanks like the Tiger and King Tiger. 

Infantry Support 

No matter how effective a tank may be at killing infantry, it will never be as good as an infantry squad itself. For AT tanks like the Panther, anti-infantry troops are an absolute requirment to deal with AT squads and the like, for Anti-Infantry tanks, you need troops to pick of stragglers and survivors, and provide AT support if you have no suitable tanks available. Also, infantry react much quicker than tanks, making ambushes far less effective. 

Artillery 

Arty is the bane of infantry, but most of your heavier tanks can get through with minor damage. If you see a 25pdr barrage comming down on you, don't be afraid to drive right through it, arty shells can and will bounce of heavier armour. Just be forewarned, arty usually means the enemy is preparing an attack, and your light vehicle and infantry support will be unable to pass through the barrage without suffering horrendous losses. 

Bridges 

In short, Beware! A wired bridge will spell instant doom for any tanks on it, along with crippling your offensive. The allies' explosives are cloaked when on bridges, so you never know if it will explode upon your crossing. bridges also tend to mean concentrations of AT guns and MGs if they are not wired, making any crossing a risky proposition. On the reverse, having a goliath around ready to blow a bridge an enemy force is crossing is always good if you have the resources for it, just remember your cutting off your own attack route by doing that. 

Immobilization 

Various allied weapons can result in immobilizing, or at least damaging your tanks' engines. For lighter tanks, you can usually still move quick enough to get out of the area, but if something like a KT or Tiger gets its ability to move comprimized, you need to move fast to rescue it. If it is properly supported initially, and it was just a suicidal rifle squad, then don't worry and fix it up. If the tank was out on its own and has been buttoned up by bren fire, chances are things won't end well. If nothing else, it tells you where the enemy is making a push and where you need to respond. However, the lost tank becomes a very expensive early warning system... Offense and Defense 

Armour was, in the Third Reich and the USSR, used as the spearhead of any attack, being the key component of the Mechanized Blitzkreig. Moving through the weakest pionts in the enemy line and knocking out communications and other mobile forces while leaving heavily defended regions to more conventional formations allowed the Wehrmacht to caputure Paris in 2 weeks. 

Offense 

On the attack, force composition is the most critical component of your strategy. While it will certainly be important to watch over your armoured force once it is on the move, making sure you have the right tanks in the first place is even more important. Since armour is best used for the final push, you should know by that time what your enemy is focusing on, and can create your force to suite that. If they are focusing on infantry, a StuH and Panzer IVs should be your primary component, with Ostwinds for backup. Keeping at least one Panther or Tiger is recommended, as chances are they have at least one tank. If the enemy is focusing on Armour, the opposite is true. Focus on Panthers and Tigers will ruin someone's day, with a Panzer IV or Ostwinds for support. 

Also, choosing your route of attack is also critical. Armour is far more vulnerable to chokepionts and killzones than infantry, and as such bridges, intersections and towns should be avoided. Open country is where tanks operate best, or at least the path of least resistance. Also, try to keep your armour in a tactically expediant formation. By that I mean avoid coloumns as much as possible, as that minimizes effective firepower and maximizes the effectiveness of an enemy ambush or roadblock. Also keep a "meatshield" tank in front, like a Tiger or King Tiger, not only will they bear the brunt of a counter-attack most effectively, but they will also crush tank traps and whatnot which will most likely be in the way somewhere. 

As always, Infantry support is critical to success, see my infantry guide for which troops would be most efficient in these tasks. 

Defense 

A simple piont to make is that some tanks function far better on the defensive than most. Anti-Infantry tanks are generally inadvaisable for defensive purposes due to the fact that so many other more cost efficient tools are available, like MG42s and bunkers. Also, you must decide what you will use your armour for defensively, a rapid-reaction force or a semi-static defense. Both have their own pros and cons. Rapid-Reaction will allow you to defend more places effectively, however your overall defensive line will be more susceptible to breakthrough, as your primary defesnive force will be committed at one definitive place, rather than evenly spread out. A semi-static defense on the otherhand will render each of your defending areas more fortified, but if one area collapses, you will have precious little to send there. However, certain vehicles are incapable of one or the other. King Tigers are terrible rapid reaction, while Panzer IVs are too fragile to operate in a static situation. 

For Static, establish a standrd killzone with infantry, support weapons and possibly one AT gun. With that done, build one or two repair bunkers nearby for whatever armour will be committed to the situation. Place your armour in the most suitable position, a ditch or other enviromental depression will offer Vehicle Cover (-25% accuracy to whatever shoots at your tank), otherwise whatever position offers the best field of fire. Keeping the tank just off the line can also be effective, running a KT up when the enemy makes a push may be enough to scare them into pulling back, at least temporarily. KT, Tiger and Panther are best suited to semi-static defense. 

For Rapid Reaction, create what is more or less an attack force, just with more focus on AT than Anti-Infantry. Panthers + Tiger/KT + Ostwind or Panzer IV is a solid force, with your heaviest/slowest tank forming a static base for your more mobile assets to operate around. Use light forces to hold whatever chokepionts are on the map, usually an MG or two, a Pak and whatever infantry can be spared will be sufficient. They just have to survive until the armour arrives. Tactics are more or less the same as when on the attack, with a focus on saving whatever static defenses are in place in the area you are relieving, i.e. MGs, Paks, Infantry. Do not keep infantry with your reaction force, simply use the ones you have at each defensive area.

Posted in: Company of Heroes, Gaming