A new pair of tank destroyers is here. Today we compare Panzerjäger Tiger (P) and SU-152. Find the description of each vehicle below.

If you want to see a GIF with these tank hunters, check our Twitter post at https://twitter.com/IndieMaximGames/status/1045690877295951873


Panzerjäger Tiger (P)


Jagdtiger or "Hunting Tiger" is the common name of a German turretless heavy tank destroyer. Jagdtiger was the heaviest armored fighting vehicles used operationally during World War II. It carried a 128 mm PaK 44 L/55 main gun, capable of out-ranging and defeating any Allied tank. The gun used two-part ammunition, which meant that the projectile and the cased propellant charge were loaded separately. Two loaders were tasked with the work. The destroyer used a boxy superstructure, with its sides integral with the hull sides, on top of a lengthened Tiger II chassis.

The resulting vehicle featured a very heavy armor with 250 mm armor on the front of the casemate and 150 mm on the glacis plate. The main gun mount had a limited traverse of only 10 degrees which meant that the entire vehicle had to be turned to aim outside that narrow field of fire. Jagdtiger suffered from a variety of mechanical and technical problems due to its immense weight and underpowered engine. The vehicle had frequent breakdowns and about 20% were lost in combat; most were destroyed by their own crews when abandoned, mainly due to mechanical breakdowns or a lack of fuel in the final stages of the war. The destroyer saw service in small numbers from late 1944 to the end of the war on both the Western and Eastern Front, with only between 70 and 88 vehicles produced.


SU-152


SU-152 is a Soviet heavy tank hunter that mounted a 152 mm gun-howitzer on the chassis of a KV-1S heavy tank. Although its original role was to fight against infantry and destroy fortifications, it proved to be a cheap, widely-produced, and effective heavy-tank killer. It was capable of knocking out the heaviest German armored vehicles, like Tiger and Panther tanks and Elefant tank destroyers.
The disadvantages of the vehicle included a low rate of fire due to the heavy ammunition, low ammunition storage, and a cramped crew compartment. The 65 mm of sloped frontal armor still left it vulnerable frontally to the Tiger tanks and Elefant tank destroyers at long range and the Panzer IV tanks and StuG III/IV tank hunters at medium and short ranges. The 152 mm gun, while having a maximum range far superior to the 88 mm, had a much shorter accurate range than either the 88 mm or the 7.5 cm gun and was still vulnerable to return fire at the same distance. This made it most effective for use in ambushes, where the German heavy tanks' advantages could be nullified, and the SU-152's one-shot kill potential could be best utilized.
From the second half of 1943 to the end of World War II, SU-152s were used on all Soviet fronts. Eventually, the design was replaced by the more reliable and better-armored ISU-152.

Edited on 08.10.2018 - fixed the description of Panzerjäger Tiger (P)

One idea can spark an inspiration and change a life forever. Read our next dev diary to know how the idea of creating Klotzen! Panzer Battles was born and changed the life of our studio head, Zoran Stanic.

https://www.klotzenthegame.com/developer-diary4-how-the-idea-of-klotzen-was-born-part-1/

Today we have a new pair of tank hunters to compare. Marder III Ausf. M vs SU-85. Find the description of each vehicle below.

If you want to see a GIF with these tank hunters, check our Twitter post at https://twitter.com/IndieMaximGames/status/1043140839076253696

Marder III Ausf. M

Marder III Ausf. M is a German tank destroyer based on the Geschützwagen 38(t) Ausf. M, a purpose-designed vehicle for self-propelled gun use, armed with the 75 mm PaK 40 anti-tank gun. Ausf. M was the final variant of the Marder series and a significant improvement over previous models, with its lower silhouette, sloped armor, and more functional fighting compartment. It was the variant that was produced in the largest numbers, with 942 vehicles built in two series from May 1943 to May 1944.
The various Marder IIIs fought on all European fronts and North Africa, with the Sd. Kfz. 139 being used mainly at the Eastern Front, though some also fought in Tunisia. Marder III was mechanically reliable and its firepower was sufficient to destroy the majority of Soviet tanks on the battlefield at combat range.
The weaknesses were mainly related to survivability. The combination of a high silhouette and open-top armor protection made Ausf. M vulnerable to indirect artillery fire. The armor was also quite thin, making the design highly vulnerable to enemy tanks and to close-range machine-gun fire. From 1944, the weak-armored Marder series were phased out of production in favor of the Jagdpanzer 38(t) but served until the end of the conflict.

SU-85

SU-85 is a Soviet self-propelled gun based on the chassis of the T-34 medium tank and meant to serve as tank destroyer. The gun is a modification of the earlier SU-122 self-propelled howitzer. The 122 mm M-30S howitzer got replaced with a D-5T high-velocity 85 mm anti-tank gun, and this is where the vehicle got the "85" designation. D-5T was capable of penetrating the Tiger I from 1000 m, and the vehicle had a low profile and excellent mobility.

SU-85 entered combat in August 1943 and saw active service across the Eastern Front until the end of the war. Though a capable weapon, it was found that its 85 mm weapon was not adequate to penetrate the armor of the larger German armored fighting vehicles. When the up-gunned T-34-85 medium tank entered mass production in the Spring of 1944, there was no point in continuing production of the tank destroyer without superior firepower. In light of this, SU-85 production was stopped in late 1944 and replaced with the the SU-100 tank destroyer, armed with the more powerful 100 mm D-10S gun.

A new pair of tanks to compare is right here! Tell us which tank you like more and why. You can find the small description of each tank below. Today we compare Crusader I and Panzer III Ausf. J.

If you want to see a GIF with these tank hunters, check our Twitter post at https://twitter.com/IndieMaximGames/status/1040614882884898816

Crusader I

Crusader I was one of the primary British cruiser tanks during the early part of the Second World War and made important contributions to the British victories during the North African Campaign. The Crusader I variant was fitted with a 2-pounder (57mm) main gun. The design was to prove vital during the Battle of El Alamein at Tobruk and in Tunisia. The Crusader tank didn’t see active service beyond Africa and would be replaced by M3 Grant and Sherman medium tanks.

Panzer III Ausf. J

Panzer III Ausf. J is the most common version of Panzer III which saw fighting in Russia and North Africa. It was equipped with a short-barreled 50mm gun. Ausf. J fared well in fighting against British Crusader cruiser and US-supplied M3 Stuart light tanks. However, it was less effective against heavy armored Matilda II tanks. The production stopped in 1942.

Music is a vital part of any game set in WW2, and our game is no exception. Read the next entry of our Developer Diary to know more about the man behind the music for Klotzen.

https://www.klotzenthegame.com/developer-diary3-interview-with-tomas-oliva/

Since we run out of famous tanks, Today we compare tank hunters, Stug III Ausf. G and M18 Hellcat. Tell us which tank hunter you like more and why. You can find the small description of each hunter below.

If you want to see a GIF with these tank hunters, check our Twitter post at https://twitter.com/IndieMaximGames/status/1038065961394425856

Sturmgeschütz III Ausf G (StuG III)

The German assault gun employed as a tank hunter, also known as StuG III. StuG III was built on a chassis of a Panzer III tank, but the turret was replaced with fixed superstructure mounting a more powerful gun. Due to not having a turret, the hunter was cheaper and faster to produce compared to German tanks. For example, it was cheaper than Panzer III. StuG was armed with 7.5 cm StuK 40 L/48 cannon. The StuG III series proved very successful and served on all fronts. Because of their low silhouette, they were easy to camouflage and hard to hit. However, the lack of a turret was a severe disadvantage, so the tank hunters were best used defensively. The StuG assault guns were cost-effective compared to the heavier German tanks, and as the German military situation deteriorated later in the war, more StuGs were built than tanks.

M18 Hellcat

The American tank destroyer, M18 Hellcat was designed from the start to be a fast tank destroyer. It used the same engine and 76mm gun as the Sherman tank but was smaller, lighter, more comfortable, and significantly faster. However, that meant that the armor of the M18 Hellcat was light and provided very little protection from the most commonly used German antitank weapons. Other disadvantages were the inconsistent performance of its 76 mm gun against the frontal armor of later German designs, such as the Tiger and Panther, and the open-topped turret that left the crew exposed to snipers, grenades, and shell fragments. The production of M18 Hellcats ran from July 1943 to October 1944, and they were used in the Italian, European, and Pacific theatres, and even in the Korean War.

We've just released another one at https://www.klotzenthegame.com/developer-diary2-interview-with-piotr-forkasiewicz/

We've just released one at https://www.klotzenthegame.com/developer-diary1-interview-with-dario-magdic/

A new pair of tanks, featuring our in-game models, is here! Today we compare Panzer III Ausf. J and M4 Sherman. Tell us which tank/panzer you like more and why. You can find the small description of each tank below.

If you want to see a GIF with these tanks, check our Twitter post at https://twitter.com/IndieMaximGames/status/1032976174090211328

Panzer III Ausf. J

Panzer III Ausf. J was the most common version of Panzer III which saw fighting in Russia and North Africa. It was equipped with a short-barreled 50mm gun. The tanks fared well in fighting against British Crusader cruiser and US-supplied M3 Stuart light tank. However, they did less effective against heavily armored Matilda II tanks. The production stopped in 1942.

M4 Sherman

In WW2, M4 Sherman was the most used by the US medium tank. Its main armament was 75 or 76mm gun and three machine guns. The tank was reliable, relatively cheap to produce, and available in great numbers, with a lot of them being shipped to the Soviet Union through the lend-lease program. M4 first saw combat in late 1942 in North Africa as a part of the British army and then during the operation Torch, also used by the US army. It was superior to the German and Italian lighter tanks but was no match for increasing numbers of German heavy tanks. However, M4 was able to fight on with the help of numerical superiority.

A new pair of tanks, featuring our in-game models, is here! Today we compare Panzer IV Ausf. D and T-34/76. Tell us which tank/panzer you like more and why. You can find the small description of each tank below.

If you want to see a GIF with these tanks, check our Twitter post at https://twitter.com/IndieMaximGames/status/1030457586179559424

Panzer IV Ausf. D

The best variant of Panzer IV medium tank that was used in the early stages of the war (up to the invasion of Soviet Union in June 1941). It had a low-velocity 75mm gun and two MG34 machine guns. Panzer IVD gun was not well suited against British tanks during the invasion of France, as it had difficulty penetrating the armor of Matilda II tanks. The main advantage of IVD was speed, as it was faster than its British and French counterparts, better organization, and radios that were implemented in the tanks.

T-34/76

Standard Soviet medium tank in the first part of the war (until the production of T-34/85). The T-34 had well-sloped armor, a relatively powerful engine, wide tracks, and a powerful 76.2mm gun. It is often called T-34/76. During Winter, T-34 had an advantage over German tanks through its ability to move over deep mud or snow. T-34 was superior then any tank Germans had in service at the beginning of the war, and German Panzer V Panther was designed to counter it. It is considered by many to be the best tank design of WW2.