MBT/IFV Loadouts Part 2

In Part 2 I'll talk about the different setups and what is effective and what is not effective. What I use is usually determine by what is the most common ways other vehicles and infantry are trying to take out my MBT/IFV. I tend not to change my loadout too much but if I see the enemy change tactics I will change my tactics or loadout to defeat them.

My most common MBT and IFV loadouts are as follows.

MBT

   -Reactive armor
   -IR smoke
   -Canister shell

IFV

   -Reactive armor
   -IR smoke
   -APFSDS-T shells

Those loadouts are my most commonly used. In my opinion very few attachments can be used in place what those I just listed. Reactive armor is pretty much irreplaceable and should never be changed. It protects you against other MBT/IFVs and against enemy engineer weapons. The only downsides are that it won't help you against enemy C4 or enemy repair torches.

IR smoke is currently a somewhat controversial attachment because of the minimal reload time it has. I think in most situations though IR smoke is very important. In the March balancing patch tank armor was nerfed and the effectiveness of Javelins were buffed. Unlike reactive armor though there are times you can get away without using IR smoke. Large maps that have a lot of open spaces, helicopters and other tanks IR smoke is definitely needed. Smaller maps that aren't as wide open and don't have many air vehicles smoke isn't as crucial. Smaller maps are more difficult to achieve a line of sight that is required for lock-on weapons. A tank driver can easily use building and structures as cover to break the lock-on weapons. Using IR smoke on a much smaller map provides the enemy an easy opportunity to use C4 against you.

Canister shell is an extremely useful attachment for use against infantry and air vehicles. One of it's main benefits is that it doesn't suffer from the bullet drop as much as the main tank shells do. It's very good at both long and short range. Have a C4 ninja rushing you? Canister shell. See a hill humping sniper being useless? Canister shell. I would always recommend equipping canister shell if you find yourself driving a tank alone. It can make up for not having a second seat gunner.

Oh how I love APFSDS-T shells. It amazes me how many people driving IFV's don't have these equipped. It really does. Hands down the best weapon attachment for all IFV's. AP shells have very few downsides and a lot of upsides to using them. AP shells can bypass reactive armor. So even if a tank is equipped with reactive armor the AP shells will penetrate it and damage the tank. The other upside is that it partially blinds the enemy's vision when taking fire. The other upside is that they're extremely useful in destroying buildings and structures that can be used as cover. The only downside is that they're not too effective against infantry like the normal high explosive IFV rounds are. Some will say the lower rate of fire for AP shells are a downside but I don't think that. In order to win against tanks while in an IFV you must make every shot count. Having a slightly lower rate of fire for AP shells makes it easier to keep all rounds on target.

Those are my attachments that I use most commonly on MBT/IFV's and why I use them. In Part 3 I will talk about strategy, tips, tricks and other setups. I hope this makes you a better player and better teammate.

                                                                                       -Tr0y