IN game World of Tanks equipment can be supplied different types shells, such as armor-piercing, sub-caliber, cumulative and high-explosive fragmentation shells. In this article we will look at the features of the action of each of these projectiles, the history of their invention and use, the pros and cons of their use in a historical context. The most common and, in most cases, standard shells on the vast majority of vehicles in the game are armor-piercing shells(BB) caliber device or sharp-headed.
According to Ivan Sytin's Military Encyclopedia, the idea of the prototype of the current armor-piercing shells belongs to an officer Italian fleet Bettolo, who in 1877 proposed using the so-called “ bottom shock tube for armor-piercing projectiles"(before this, the shells were either not loaded at all, or the explosion powder charge was calculated to heat up the head of the projectile when it hits the armor, which, however, was not always justified). After penetrating the armor, the damaging effect is provided by projectile fragments heated to a high temperature and fragments of armor. During the Second World War, shells of this type were easy to manufacture, reliable, had fairly high penetration, and worked well against homogeneous armor. But there was also a minus - on sloping armor the projectile could ricochet. The greater the thickness of the armor, the more fragments of armor are formed when penetrated by such a projectile, and the higher the destructive power. 
The animation below illustrates the action of a chambered sharp-headed armor-piercing projectile. It is similar to an armor-piercing sharp-headed projectile, but in the rear part there is a cavity (chamber) with a TNT explosive charge, as well as a bottom fuse. After penetrating the armor, the shell explodes, striking the crew and equipment of the tank. In general, this projectile retained most of the advantages and disadvantages of the AR projectile, being distinguished by a significantly higher armor-protection effect and slightly lower armor penetration (due to the lower mass and strength of the projectile). During the War, the bottom fuses of shells were not sufficiently advanced, which sometimes led to a premature explosion of a shell before penetrating the armor, or to failure of the fuse after penetration, but the crew, in case of penetration, rarely felt better about it.
Sub-caliber projectile(BP) has a rather complex design and consists of two main parts - an armor-piercing core and a pallet. The task of the pallet, made of mild steel, is to accelerate the projectile in the barrel bore. When a projectile hits a target, the pan is crushed, and the heavy and hard pointed core, made of tungsten carbide, pierces the armor.
The projectile does not have an explosive charge, ensuring that the target is hit by fragments of the core and fragments of armor heated to high temperatures. Sub-caliber projectiles have significantly less weight compared to conventional armor-piercing projectiles, which allows them to accelerate in the gun barrel to significantly high speeds. As a result, the penetration of sub-caliber projectiles turns out to be significantly higher. The use of sub-caliber shells made it possible to significantly increase the armor penetration of existing guns, which made it possible to hit even outdated guns against more modern, well-armored armored vehicles.
At the same time, sub-caliber shells have a number of disadvantages. Their shape resembled a coil (shells of this type and streamlined shape existed, but they were significantly less common), which greatly worsened the ballistics of the projectile, in addition, the lightweight projectile quickly lost speed; as a result, at long distances the armor penetration of sub-caliber projectiles dropped significantly, turning out to be even lower than that of classic armor-piercing projectiles. During World War II, sabot projectiles did not work well against sloping armor because the hard but brittle core easily broke under bending loads. The armor-piercing effect of such shells was inferior to armor-piercing caliber shells. Small-caliber sub-caliber projectiles were ineffective against armored vehicles that had protective shields made of thin steel. These shells were expensive and difficult to manufacture, and most importantly, scarce tungsten was used in their manufacture.
As a result, the number of sub-caliber shells in the ammunition load of guns during the war was small; they were allowed to be used only to hit heavily armored targets at short distances. The German army was the first to use sub-caliber shells in small quantities in 1940 during battles in France. In 1941, faced with heavily armored Soviet tanks, the Germans switched to extensive use of sub-caliber shells, which significantly increased the anti-tank capabilities of their artillery and tanks. However, a shortage of tungsten limited the production of projectiles of this type; as a result, in 1944, the production of German sub-caliber shells was discontinued, while most of the shells fired during the war years were of a small caliber (37-50 mm).
Trying to get around the tungsten shortage problem, the Germans produced Pzgr.40(C) sub-caliber projectiles with a hardened steel core and surrogate Pzgr.40(W) projectiles with a regular steel core. In the USSR, fairly large-scale production of sub-caliber shells, created on the basis of captured German ones, began at the beginning of 1943, and most of the shells produced were of 45 mm caliber. The production of these shells of larger calibers was limited by a shortage of tungsten, and they were issued to troops only when there was a threat of an enemy tank attack, and a report was required to be written for each shell used. Also, sub-caliber shells were used to a limited extent by the British and American armies in the second half of the war.
HEAT projectile(KS).
The operating principle of this armor-piercing ammunition differs significantly from the operating principle of kinetic ammunition, which includes conventional armor-piercing and sub-caliber projectiles. A cumulative projectile is a thin-walled steel projectile filled with a powerful explosive - hexogen, or a mixture of TNT and hexogen. At the front of the projectile, the explosive has a goblet-shaped recess lined with metal (usually copper). The projectile has a sensitive head fuse. When a projectile collides with armor, the explosive detonates. At the same time, the lining metal is melted and compressed by the explosion into a thin stream (pestle), flying forward at extremely high speed and piercing armor. The armor effect is ensured by a cumulative jet and splashes of armor metal. The hole of a cumulative projectile is small in size and has melted edges, which has led to a common misconception that cumulative projectiles “burn through” armor.
The penetration of a cumulative projectile does not depend on the speed of the projectile and is the same at all distances. Its production is quite simple; the production of the projectile does not require the use of a large amount of scarce metals. The cumulative projectile can be used against infantry, artillery as a fragmentation high explosive shell. At the same time, cumulative shells during the war were characterized by numerous shortcomings. The manufacturing technology of these projectiles was not sufficiently developed, as a result, their penetration was relatively low (approximately the same as the caliber of the projectile or slightly higher) and was unstable. Rotation of the projectile at high initial speeds made it difficult to form a cumulative jet; as a result, cumulative projectiles had a low initial speed, small sighting range firing and high dispersion, which was also facilitated by the non-optimal shape of the projectile head from an aerodynamic point of view (its configuration was determined by the presence of a notch).
The big problem was the creation of a complex fuse, which should be sensitive enough to quickly detonate a projectile, but stable enough not to explode in the barrel (the USSR was able to develop such a fuse suitable for use in powerful tank and anti-tank guns, only at the end of 1944). The minimum caliber of a cumulative projectile was 75 mm, and the effectiveness of cumulative projectiles of this caliber was greatly reduced. Mass production of cumulative projectiles required the deployment of large-scale production of hexogen.
The most widely used cumulative shells were German army(for the first time in the summer and autumn of 1941), mainly from 75 mm guns and howitzers. Soviet army used cumulative shells, created on the basis of captured German ones, from 1942-43, including them in the ammunition loads of regimental guns and howitzers, which had a low initial speed. The British and American armies used shells of this type, mainly in the ammunition loads of heavy howitzers. Thus, in the Second World War (unlike the present time, when improved shells of this type form the basis of the ammunition load of tank guns), the use of cumulative shells was quite limited, mainly they were considered as a means of anti-tank self-defense of guns that had low initial speeds and low armor penetration with traditional shells (regimental guns, howitzers). At the same time, all participants in the war actively used other anti-tank weapons with cumulative ammunition - grenade launchers, aerial bombs, hand grenades.
High-explosive fragmentation projectile(OF).
It was developed in the late 40s of the twentieth century in Great Britain to destroy enemy armored vehicles. It is a thin-walled steel or cast iron projectile filled with an explosive substance (usually TNT or ammonite), with a head fuse. Unlike armor-piercing shells, high-explosive fragmentation shells did not have a tracer. When it hits a target, the projectile explodes, hitting the target with fragments and a blast wave, either immediately - a fragmentation effect, or with some delay (which allows the projectile to go deeper into the ground) - a high-explosive effect. The projectile is intended primarily to destroy openly located and sheltered infantry, artillery, field shelters (trenches, wood-earth firing points), unarmored and lightly armored vehicles. Well-armored tanks and self-propelled guns are resistant to fragmentation high explosive shells.
The main advantage of a high-explosive fragmentation projectile is its versatility. This type of projectile can be used effectively against the vast majority of targets. Another advantage is that it costs less than armor-piercing and cumulative projectiles of the same caliber, which reduces the cost of combat operations and firing training. In case of a direct hit in vulnerable areas (turret hatches, engine compartment radiator, ejection screens of the aft ammunition rack, etc.), the HE can disable the tank. Also hit by projectiles large caliber can cause destruction of lightly armored vehicles, and damage to heavily armored tanks, consisting of cracking of armor plates, jamming of the turret, failure of instruments and mechanisms, injuries and concussions of the crew.
A German monk who discovered the propellant properties of gunpowder, he never imagined that he would become the progenitor of a new god - the god of war.
The Birth of Artillery
The monk’s discovery was very quickly used in military affairs, and soon two directions for the development of weapons appeared, which used the propellant properties of gunpowder. The first of these was the creation of a lightweight manual small arms, the second is the production of guns. The emergence of manual firearms did not lead to the creation of a new type of army. They simply armed existing ones, replacing bows and light throwing spears - darts - in the infantry and cavalry. But the appearance of cannons created new troops, which in Rus' were called “firearms,” and which the Italian weapons theorist Niccolo Tartaglia proposed to call artillery, which translated means “the art of shooting.” Some researchers believe that this appeared much earlier than the discovery of the German monk, with the invention of the first throwing machines - ballistas. Be that as it may, artillery became the god of war precisely with the creation of firearms.
Development of the God of War
Over time, military affairs did not stand still, and artillery pieces not only improved, but also new types appeared: howitzers, mortars, jet systems volley fire and others. In the twentieth century, artillery truly dominated the battlefields. And along with the development of guns, artillery ammunition for them also developed.
Types of projectiles
First artillery shell, which was fired at the enemy, was nothing more than an ordinary stone loaded into a ballista. With the advent of cannons, special stone and then metal cannonballs began to be used. They caused damage to the enemy due to kinetic energy received during the shot. But back in the twelfth century AD, China used a high-explosive projectile thrown at the enemy by means of a catapult. Therefore, the proposal to make hollow cores with an explosive inside did not take long to come. This is how the high-explosive artillery shell appeared. It caused significant damage to the enemy due to the energy of the explosion and the scattering of fragments. After the advent of armored targets, special armor-piercing, sub-caliber and cumulative ammunition were developed to combat them. Their task was to penetrate the armor and disable the mechanisms and manpower located in the armored space. There are also projectiles special purpose: lighting, incendiary, chemical, propaganda and others. IN Lately are gaining popularity guided munitions, which themselves adjust their flight to more accurately hit targets.
High explosive shells
A landmine is one that causes damage to the enemy through a shock wave, high temperature and explosion products (some explosives, for example, produce toxic emissions when burned). A high-explosive projectile in its pure form is practically never used. The explosive charge is placed in a durable metal casing that can withstand high pressure in the bore. Therefore, when detonated, the shell forms a large number of fragments. This type of ammunition is called a high-explosive fragmentation projectile (HEF). Overwhelming majority artillery ammunition these are the OFS.
Shrapnel
Since it is difficult to guarantee uniform dispersion of fragments when detonating a conventional OFS, a high-explosive fragmentation projectile with ready-made submunitions was developed. This type of ammunition was called “shrapnel” (in honor of its inventor, British officer Henry Shrapnel). It is most effective when detonated at a height of several meters from the ground. In modern ammunition damaging elements They have the shape of feathered pyramids, which allows them to hit even lightly armored targets.
Land mine against armor
At the end of the 40s of the twentieth century, a high-explosive projectile was developed in Great Britain to destroy enemy armored vehicles. It had a thin-walled body that contained an explosive charge and a detonator with a moderator. Upon contact with the armor, the thin metal shell was destroyed, and the explosive was flattened over the armor, capturing as much as possible large area. After this, the detonator was triggered and the explosive was detonated. As a result, the crew and mechanisms in the armored space were damaged by internal fragments and the top layer of armor was burned. This type received the name armor-piercing high-explosive projectile. However, with the advent of dynamic protection and spaced armor, it was considered ineffective. Currently, such shells are in service only in their homeland - Great Britain.
High explosive fuses
The first fuse for high-explosive fragmentation ammunition was an ordinary fuse, which was ignited when fired from a cannon and initiated the detonation of explosives after a certain time. However, after the advent of rifled guns and conical-shaped projectiles, which guaranteed that the front part of the hull would encounter an obstacle, impact fuses appeared. Their advantage was that the explosive exploded immediately after contact with the obstacle. For destruction, the impact fuses were equipped with a moderator. This allowed the ammunition to first penetrate the obstacle, thereby dramatically increasing its effectiveness. By equipping a landmine with such a fuse with a more massive body with thick walls (which made it possible, due to kinetic energy, to penetrate deep into the walls of long-term firing points), we obtained a concrete-piercing projectile.
By the way, at the initial stage of the Great Patriotic War with the help of 152-mm concrete-piercing shells they successfully fought with German armored vehicles. If hit medium or light german tank the shell, due to its weight, first destroyed the car, tore off the turret, and then exploded. The disadvantage of impact fuses was that when they hit viscous soil (for example, a swamp), they did not work. I was able to fix this problem remote fuse, allowing you to detonate ammunition at a certain distance from the muzzle of the gun barrel. Currently, this type of detonator is used in almost all OFS. It allows, for example, firing tank guns at air targets (helicopters).
Combat use of high-explosive shells
High-explosive fragmentation shells are the main type of ammunition used by modern artillery systems. They are used to destroy fortifications, damage and destroy various enemy military equipment, weapons, and manpower. With their help, passages are made in engineering defensive structures. For example, in the final period of the Great Patriotic War, Soviet ISU-152s, using a 152-mm high-explosive fragmentation projectile, successfully destroyed German bunkers, which ensured a breakthrough for the 1st and 2nd Guards tank armies Katukova and Bogdanov northeast of Berlin. Even the most powerful non-nuclear weapons of our time (Smerch RZSO) rely on 9M55F high-explosive fragmentation rockets, which when fired in salvos are equated to weapons of mass destruction.
People who follow the news feed quite often hear words such as land mine, high-explosive mine or high-explosive fragmentation mine in the description of emergency events and incidents. Today, in the era of the heyday of the terrorist threat, not only adults, but also children know what a landmine is. A high-explosive mine has become a favorite weapon of terrorists, with which they can keep the population of cities in fear, inflicting painful blows on social infrastructure. Although literally some 20 years ago such terminology was the lot of the military and in most cases we only heard about landmines in reports from military conflict zones.
Despite the fact that combat tactics have undergone significant changes, landmines continue to be used as a means of deterring enemy advances. Artillery of all calibers massively use fragmentation ammunition. Armor-piercing high-explosive ammunition continues to be used to equip tank units and anti-tank forces.
The ability to inflict enormous destruction and cause significant casualties in a matter of seconds makes the landmine the main fire weapon.
What is the difference between a high-explosive charge and a high-explosive projectile?
It should be said right away that an artillery shell, mine or aerial bomb is a munition device that may differ in the principle of impact, purpose and scope of application. However, all of the ammunition listed is based on one single principle - high-explosive action, i.e. striking effect. Both mines and shells can be high explosive. Any ammunition that contains an explosive is high explosive. This can be either a concrete-piercing or high-explosive fragmentation projectile or anti-tank ammunition with a combined effect.
High explosive charge is an engineering term describing a certain amount of explosive used for detonation. The blast wave in this case is the main damaging effect. The secondary damaging factors in a landmine explosion are the explosion products. Detonation of explosives can be of direct or indirect action. As a rule, to activate a high-explosive charge, it is used electrical discharge, chemical reaction, fire method or mechanical impact. An electric spark and a fire cord are the main means of detonating a stationary high-explosive charge, while impact mechanism, incendiary tubes become detonators for directional ammunition. The explosive, enclosed in a casing or container, is an already defined type of ammunition, ready for use. The high-explosive projectile and aerial bomb are the main ammunition of artillery systems and aviation, the mine is the main fire engineering and technical means.
High explosive projectile. Operating principle
The main area of application of high-explosive ammunition is the destruction of buildings and structures, shelters and shelters for manpower. In field and combat conditions, these are, as a rule, trenches and dugouts, brick and wooden structures and structures. High-explosive artillery shells are most often used as a fire engineering tool used by large-caliber artillery systems. When a projectile hits a target, as a result of the detonation of explosives, a high-explosive effect on objects occurs. The power of the ammunition to impact objects is determined by the high explosiveness of the charge. High explosiveness characterizes the ability of an explosive to create a certain amount of explosion products in a short period of time that can have a destructive effect.
The more powerful the charge, the greater the pressure created on the surrounding airspace, and accordingly stronger shock wave. Speaking in simple language, the high-explosive effect when detonating a charge manifests itself in splitting and throwing environment at the point of explosion. Distinctive feature high-explosive shells is the specificity of their destructive effect. IN normal conditions, in open space, the shock wave created by the detonation of a high-explosive charge diverges evenly over the entire radius of action, losing the intensity of its impact on objects as the distance increases. When detonating a charge in a confined space or limited area, lethal effect landmine increases. Compared to other types of ammunition, high-explosive shells are significantly inferior in terms of damaging power.
It should be taken into account that the high explosiveness of the charge may be different. The measure of high explosiveness of each ammunition depends on the potential of the explosive (HE) and the specific energy released by it at the moment of explosion. The performance of explosives used to fill ammunition may vary. The force and power of the explosion are influenced by the specific volume and composition of gaseous products resulting from the detonation of explosives. It is quite difficult to accurately determine the actual performance of a particular explosive, therefore the high explosiveness of a certain explosive charge is usually expressed in relative units. As a rule, the high-explosive effect of an explosive is compared with the result of the action of a certain amount of TNT. The specific volume of products resulting from the explosion is measured in TNT equivalent.
Based on these data, we can draw a conclusion. The power of a high explosive projectile is determined by the amount and type of explosive. An increase in the number of explosives leads to an increase in the caliber of ammunition. More powerful explosives make it possible to achieve the required destructive effect without increasing the caliber of the projectile. For example, for armor-piercing high-explosive anti-tank shells, the main thing is not the caliber, but a certain damaging effect. Due to their high penetrating power, such projectiles can penetrate deep into the armor, after which the high-explosive charge leads to its further destruction.
Unlike a high explosive mine or bomb, a projectile is a percussion munition. those. The high-explosive action is preceded by a shock action caused by the kinetic energy of the projectile's flight. The flight of the projectile can have a canopy or flat flight path. Howitzers and mortars are most often used to defeat enemy personnel and destroy defensive structures. Tank guns and anti-tank artillery use mainly armor-piercing high-explosive shells to combat armored vehicles. The main task that needs to be solved in this case is to disable armored vehicles by overcoming the armored protection.
Various types and types of high explosive shells
Shells, mines, aerial bombs, and grenades are fire weapons and can have varying degrees of high-explosive action, primary or auxiliary. This determines the purpose of the ammunition, for what purpose this or that projectile is intended. In order to achieve a great destructive and damaging effect, projectiles are used in which high-explosive action is the main one. High-explosive shells and aerial bombs are used to destroy long-term structures and field shelters. To combat heavy armored vehicles, directional landmines and armor-piercing high-explosive shells are used. This type of ammunition is distinguished by the enormous kinetic energy possessed by the projectile fired from the barrel. The penetrating ability of armor-piercing projectiles is achieved due to the high speed of the projectile and the core made of the strongest metal alloy. Once in the armor plate, the projectile destroys the surface layer, after which a high-explosive charge detonates, destroying the armor plate.
In those ammunition where the main purpose of their use is to achieve a certain result, the high-explosive effect is auxiliary. Here the main emphasis is on other damaging factors. High-explosive fragmentation shells, like hand grenades, are used to destroy manpower. The high-explosive action in this case serves as an auxiliary factor, due to which the projectile body is destroyed into small fragments. When detonated, projectile fragments or fragments specially included in the ammunition receive enormous kinetic energy, becoming the main damaging factor.
High-explosive fragmentation shells are the main fire weapon of artillery. This type of projectile is the most widespread. The main reason is the versatility of this type of ammunition. With the help of mini-shells and shells of this type, you can simultaneously achieve not only the destruction of defensive structures and infrastructure, but also defeat enemy personnel. Unlike high-explosive ammunition, high-explosive fragmentation bombs and shells have a thick shell and have a smaller explosive charge. In this case, the relative mass of the projectile itself is much higher.
Today, high-explosive shells have been practically replaced by high-explosive fragmentation ammunition. Modern types shells they have artillery systems, allow you to solve a full range of tasks on the battlefield. Volumetric explosion ammunition is used to destroy large defensive structures and long-term fortifications. As for armor-piercing high-explosive ammunition, they continue to be used in tank units as the main means of destroying enemy armored vehicles. Appearance cumulative ammunition significantly increased the tactical capabilities of anti-tank defense weapons. Land mines will remain for a long time perhaps the main means of armed struggle on the battlefield.
If you have any questions, leave them in the comments below the article. We or our visitors will be happy to answer them
The high-explosive effect of shells is to displace and destroy defensive structures, buildings and military equipment beyond
explosion energy account.
To obtain the greatest high-explosive effect, by the time of the explosion the projectile must penetrate to a certain optimal depth into the barrier. Therefore, the high-explosive action is preceded by the impact action of the projectile.
High-explosive action is the main one for high-explosive, concrete-piercing and high-explosive fragmentation shells when the fuse is set to high-explosive action. For cumulative, fragmentation and chamber armor-piercing shells it will be additional.
The damaging factors of the high-explosive action of a projectile are the shock wave and explosion products, which spread in the environment in all directions from the point of explosion.
When highly compressed and heated explosion products expand, they rush towards the direction of least resistance of the medium - towards the surface of the obstacle. As a result, part of the medium (soil) is thrown to the surface and a cone-shaped funnel is formed (Fig. 6.9), the dimensions of which are characterized by depth and radius. If the radius of the funnel is equal to the depth, then such a funnel is called normal if the radius is more depth, the funnel is called shallow, otherwise it is called deep.
Around the point of projectile rupture in the ground, three zones are distinguished: the compression sphere, the destruction sphere, and the concussion sphere. In a compression sphere with a radius of several projectile calibers, the soil shifts and becomes compacted. In the sphere of destruction, which has a radius, a strong shock wave propagates, which disrupts the bonds between soil particles, leading to the formation of cracks in the soil and the destruction of defensive structures. In the shaking sphere, the shock wave will be weakened and will only cause oscillatory movement of soil particles without destroying durable structures.
The characteristics of a high explosive action are taken to be the radius of destruction and the volume of ejected soil or the volume of the crater.
kiTo determine the radius of destruction (in m) there is an empirical formula
where is a coefficient depending on the properties of the medium; is the mass of the bursting charge, kg.
Prive coefficient values
data in table 6.2, Comparing coefficients 
we can conclude that the properties of the medium have a much lesser effect on the high-explosive effect of the projectile than on the fragmentation effect.
Formula (6.17) shows that the radius of destruction increases with increasing weight of the explosive charge and, therefore, for projectiles of the same type with increasing caliber. Further, the fracture radius decreases with increasing strength of the medium.
For 122-mm and 152-mm high-explosive fragmentation shells, the radius of destruction in medium-strength soil is 1.65 and 2.03 m, respectively.
The volume of the crater depends on the mass of the explosive charge and the depth of the projectile at the moment of explosion. On average, we can assume that for every kilogram of explosive there is 1.2-1.5 m 3 of funnel volume.
As the depth of the projectile increases, the funnel becomes deep and its volume decreases. If the depression is large enough, a camouflage will occur, that is, an underground explosion without the formation of a crater.
The explosion of the projectile at the optimal depth is ensured by a fuse, the duration of which must be quite definite.
The high-explosive effect of concrete-piercing projectiles differs from the high-explosive action of high-explosive and high-explosive fragmentation projectiles in that by the time of the explosion the projectile only partially penetrates the barrier (Fig. 6.10). In this case, the characteristic of a high-explosive action is taken to be a value (in m) equal to the increment in the depth of the crater formed during the impact action, and determined using the empirical formula
where C is the distance from the center of gravity of the explosive charge to the bottom of the crater at the moment of explosion, m.
Formula (6.18) is similar in structure to formula (6.17). Magnitude C takes into account the fact that during an open explosion, the high-explosive effect is weakened, and to a greater extent, the further the center of gravity of the explosive charge is from the surface being destroyed. The coefficient is 0.20-0.15 for concrete, and 0.12 for reinforced concrete, i.e. it will be less than for high-explosive and high-explosive fragmentation shells.
The total effect of the concrete-piercing projectile is characterized by the total depth of the funnel
in which the value is determined by the Berezan formula. I
Before the battle begins, shells must be loaded into the tank. Without them, the tank will not be able to fire and, accordingly, will be useless. The number of shells that can be loaded into a tank depends on the type of tanks in WoT, or more precisely on the type of gun (caliber) and turret. Different types shells have different properties.
Regular shells
Armor-piercing (AP) shells
Armor-piercing shells are the main type of shell that can be fired by almost any weapon. This projectile deals damage only if the armor is broken enemy (accompanied by the messages “Breakthrough” and “There is a penetration”). He can also damage modules or crew, if it gets into Right place(accompanied by the messages “Hit” and “There is a hit”). If the penetrating power of the projectile is not enough, it will not penetrate the armor and will not cause damage (accompanied by the message “Did not penetrate”). If a projectile hits the armor at too sharp an angle, it will ricochet and also cause no damage (accompanied by the message “Ricochet”). High-explosive fragmentation shells - have greatest potential damage, But insignificant armor penetration. If a shell penetrates the armor, it explodes inside the tank, causing maximum damage and additional damage to modules or crew from the explosion. A high-explosive fragmentation projectile does not need to penetrate the target's armor - if it does not penetrate, it will explode on the tank's armor, causing less damage than if it penetrates. The damage in this case depends on the thickness of the armor - the thicker the armor, the more damage from the explosion it absorbs. In addition, the damage from explosions of high explosive shells is also absorbed by tank screens, and the slope of the armor is also not affected, nor is its given value affected. High-explosive fragmentation shells can also damage several tanks at the same time, since the explosion has a certain radius of action. Tank shells have a smaller high-explosive radius, while self-propelled gun shells have a maximum radius. It is also worth noting that only when firing high-explosive shells is it possible to receive the Bombardier award!Sub-caliber (AP) shells
Sabot shells are the main type of shells for most medium tanks of tier 10, some medium tanks of tier 9 and light tanks T71, M41 Walker Bulldog, as well as M4A1 Revalorisé, IS-5, IS-3 with MZ, T26E5. The operating principle is similar to armor-piercing ones. They are distinguished by increased armor penetration and a higher projectile speed, but they lose more penetration with distance and have less normalization (they lose effectiveness more when firing at an angle to the armor).Improved projectiles
Sub-caliber (AP) shells
Sabot shells are the most common premium shells in the game, installed in almost any weapon. The operating principle is similar to armor-piercing ones. They are distinguished by increased armor penetration, but have less normalization (they lose more effectiveness when fired at an angle to the armor).Cumulative (CS) projectiles
What are cumulative projectiles? These are improved shells for many tanks in the game, with the exception of shells for the top gun light tank T49 and tank destroyer Ikv 103, which are not improved. Their penetration is noticeably higher than that of standard armor-piercing shells, and the damage they cause is at the level of armor-piercing shells for the same weapon. The penetration effect is achieved not due to the kinetic energy of the projectile (as with an AP or BP), but due to the energy of the cumulative jet formed when an explosive of a certain shape is detonated at a certain distance from the armor. They are not subject to the normalization rule, three calibers and they do not lose armor penetration with distance, but quickly lose armor penetration when hitting a screen.The detailed design of a cumulative projectile is presented on Wikipedia.
High Explosive (HE) shells
These shells differ from conventional high-explosive fragmentation shells by either a larger explosion radius (when playing on self-propelled guns) or increased armor penetration (HESH shells on some British guns). It is also worth noting that only when firing high-explosive shells is it possible to receive the Bombardier award.Armor-piercing (AP) shells
Armor-piercing premium shells are found on several vehicles in the game and differ from regular armor-piercing shells or have increased armor penetration for the same damage ( 152 mm M-10 ( "type": "Gun", "mark": "152 mm M-10", "data": ( "Level": "VI", "Penetration": "110/136/86 mm", "Damage" : "700/700/910 units", "Average damage per minute": "1750/1750/2275 units/min", "Rate of fire": "2.5 rounds/min", "Reload time": "24 s", " Spread": "0.6 m/100m", "Convergence": "4 s", "Weight": "2300 kg", "Price": "60000" ) )) and for most guns Japanese tanks, or less armor penetration with more damage ( 130 mm B-13-S2 ( "type": "Gun", "mark": "130 mm B-13-S2", "data": ( "Level": "VIII", "Penetration": "196/171/65 mm", " Damage": "440/510/580 units", "Average damage per minute": "1650/1913/2175 units/min", "Rate of fire": "3.75 rounds/min", "Reload time": "16 s" , "Spread": "0.38 m/100m", "Convergence": "2.9 s", "Weight": "5290 kg", "Price": "147000" ) )).Penetration rules for cumulative projectiles
Update 0.8.6 introduces new penetration rules for cumulative projectiles:
- The cumulative projectile can now ricochet when the projectile hits armor at an angle of 85 degrees or more. During a ricochet, the armor penetration of the ricocheted cumulative projectile does not decrease.
- After the first penetration of the armor, the ricochet can no longer work (due to the formation of a cumulative jet).
- After the first penetration of the armor, the projectile begins to lose armor penetration at the following rate: 5% of the armor penetration remaining after penetration - per 10 cm of space traversed by the projectile (50% - per 1 meter of free space from the screen to the armor).
- After each penetration of the armor, the armor penetration of the projectile is reduced by an amount equal to the thickness of the armor, taking into account the angle of inclination of the armor relative to the flight path of the projectile.
- Now the tracks also serve as a screen for cumulative projectiles.
Changes to ricochet in update 0.9.3
- Now, when a projectile ricochets, it does not disappear, but continues its movement along a new trajectory, and 25% of the armor penetration is lost for an armor-piercing and sub-caliber projectile, while the armor penetration of a cumulative projectile does not change.
Projectile tracer colors
- High-explosive fragmentation - the longest tracers, noticeable orange in color.
- Sub-caliber - light, short and transparent tracers.
- Armor-piercing - similar to sub-caliber ones, but more noticeable (longer, lifetime and less transparency).
- Cumulative - yellow and thinnest.
What type of projectile should I use?
Basic rules when choosing between armor-piercing and high-explosive fragmentation shells:
- Use armor-piercing shells against tanks of your level; high-explosive fragmentation shells against tanks with weak armor or self-propelled guns with open deckhouses.
- Use armor-piercing shells in long-barreled and small-caliber guns; high-explosive fragmentation - in short-barreled and large-caliber. The use of small-caliber HE shells is pointless - they often do not penetrate, and therefore do not cause damage.
- Use high-explosive fragmentation shells at any angle, do not fire armor-piercing shells at an acute angle to the enemy's armor.
- Targeting vulnerable areas and shooting at right angles to the armor are also useful for HE - this increases the likelihood of breaking through the armor and taking full damage.
- High-explosive fragmentation shells have a high chance of inflicting small but guaranteed damage even if they do not penetrate armor, so they can be effectively used to knock down a grapple from the base and finish off opponents with a small margin of safety.
For example, the 152mm M-10 gun on the KV-2 tank is large-caliber and short-barreled. How larger caliber projectile, so large quantity there is an explosive substance in it and thus more damage he applies. But due to the short length of the gun's barrel, the projectile is fired with a very low initial velocity, which leads to low penetration, accuracy and range. In such conditions, armor-piercing projectile, which requires an accurate hit, becomes ineffective, and high-explosive fragmentation should be used.
Detailed review of shells
|
|
Loading...
