(05-09-2011, 01:36 PM)Crusader Wrote: I'm still playing, although not as fast as in the beta. Since the wipe and release I'm taking it easy and kind of waiting for the US Tank Destroyer tree to try something new. I also am not spending money on the game and without premium things go notably slower.
In the beta I had lots of fun with my fully upgraded IS-4. It performed better for me then the IS-7 because the IS-4 has the hardest front turret in the game (and a very sloped one at that), making it ideal for entrenched battles where I can hide my hull and just face my enemies with the turret. Since it also has the same gun as the IS-7 I like it a bit more then the IS-7 itself.
Since I played a few thousand battles in beta I got the premium reward tank, the M4A2E4. It's a fun little tank. Good frontal armor, although no match for a heavy. It does have a pretty decent gun and can take on most mediums and lights of it's own tier. I like it a lot. I use it to earn money with to buy other tanks.
I wanted to do something different in live after I lost my beloved IS-4 so I decided to go down the russian medium tank line. In beta I was very impressed with the T-44 and especially the T-54 tanks. They worried me more then meeting a T10 heavy. Althoug playing a super-armored sniper is fun (which is the IS-4 playstyle most of the time) I wanted something different. I am now at the A20 and working hard to get the T34 medium. The A-20 is... well.. a pain. It's weak in armor, weak in firepower and weak in turning speed. The only thing it's got going is top speed. Although I did kill a Hummel with it once and got the scout bonus. That was fun. got me 3000 xp too (first battle of the day, no premium).
In beta I also had a Hummel and I liked playing arty from time to time, but I decided to switch Russian there as well. got a little SU-25 now, which is fun. Less fun is that the game likes to pitch me in battles against Tier 7 tanks. Ouch.
So mainly waiting for the USA's TD's for something new.
Yeah, the A-20 grind is terrible, especially w/o premium. The T-34 is an excellent tank for it's tier though, and does very well as long as the match does not go over Tier 6 machines. Just like in RL, it can't do much vs anything along the lines of Tier 7 heavies or meds, but that's only fair. I kept this tank in my garage, both in beta and on live now. Make sure to use the 57mm Zis gun. It is a buzzsaw. The other guns are, meh.
The Russian line is weird, with the T-34 being great, the 34/85 after it being not bad and the T-43 basically being a T-34/85 with more HPs and nothing else, but stiffer competition. The T-44 stock is crap, but upgraded it is nice. I enjoyed it in the beta, and I'm enjoying it now. I do have to say though, that overall, the US medium line is more enjoyable for me, with the T20 being my favorite medium tank in the whole game, although I've not tried the T-54 or Pershing in beta. I am playing both the T-44 and the T23 right now, and the T23 is a nice tank, although sometimes a bit overmatched vs Tier 8 and over heavies. It is a T20 with more HPs and better speed overall, but with the same gun, it's ... eh.
GL and try to be patient with the A-20. Hopefully, the 5X XP for first wins will help you to grind it out.