Two variants of this Russian tank destroyer are coming in the Hornet’s Sting major update — one as a standard researchable vehicle, and one as a squadron vehicle!
2S19M1 (researchable) and 2S19M2 (Squadron Vehicle): A Tank Destroyer for the USSR at Rank V
At a glance:
Long-barreled 152 mm howitzer!
HE, APHEBC, and HEAT rounds.
Autoloader.
Good mobility.
Not much armor protection.
Vehicle History [expand type=details] The development of the 2S19 “Msta-S” began at the Ural Plant in 1976, and later on design bureaus of several companies in the Soviet’s military industry were involved in the work. The first one was released in 1983 and a year later, field tests began with the 2S19 being accepted into service in 1989. Based on operating experience, some shortcomings of the vehicle appeared, primarily related to the imperfect fire control system. These shortcomings were eliminated with the advent of the modernized 2S19M1 and 2S19M2 variants. In addition to the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the 2S19 is in service with Venezuela, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Ethiopia and Georgia.
Introducing the 2S19M1 and 2S19M2!
In the Hornet’s Sting major update, the 2S19M1 and M2, featuring a long-barreled 152 mm howitzer, an automatic loader and a good selection of shells are coming to the Soviet ground forces tree. Specifically, the 2S19M1 will be in the research line and the 2S19M2 will come as a new Squadron Vehicle. Let’s take a closer look!
The main weapon of the 2S19M1 and M2 is the long-barreled 152 mm howitzer that features automatic gun loading. There’s a plethora of available shells for this mighty gun, including two HE shells with up to 11.7 kg in TNT equivalent, a HE-VT shell, a HEAT shell and an APHEBC shell. These are all good for different scenarios that you may encounter while in battle!
All of the available ammunition — where a maximum of 50 can be taken into battle — is stored in the turret and is fed into the breech of the gun through an autoloader. The rate of fire is the main difference between the researchable 2S19M1 and 2S19M2 squadron vehicle at 8 and 10 rounds per minute respectively. Both reload rates are good and don’t depend on the skills of your crew!
Interesting: Most likely, “Msta” was named after a small river that flows in the Novgorod and Tver regions of Russia. However, there is also a version that the name of this vehicle is associated with an obsolete form of the word “revenge” in Russian.
If the 2S19M1 and M2’s hull looks familiar, then you’re right. This hull is from the T-80 and T-72 series tanks, with reworked armor protection parameters to reduce the overall weight. The 2S19M1 and M2 can reach a maximum road speed of 60 km/h, but — as very typical to Soviet and Russian tanks — the reverse speed is really poor at just 4 km/h.
In terms of surviving hits from enemy tanks, well it might be a bit of a problem. That’s because this vehicle is huge in size, has a low reverse speed, has poor gun depression and is very difficult to hide the vehicle in a bush or behind terrain cover. In addition to this, the 2S19M1 and M2 will generally be an easy target for aircraft due to the large size and thin armor. This armor will be able to withstand fire from machine guns, but anything larger in caliber will pierce straight through and give you a bad day.
So, we’ve talked about the good and bad. How do you play this thing? Get to a good position for sniper fire or go behind your teammates when attacking as a support vehicle. With a careful, yet aggressive playstyle, the 2S19M1 and M2 will show their best side thanks to their firepower and reload speed.
That’s it for this one! You can research the 2S19M1 in the Soviet research tree and get the 2S19M2 for squadron activity points or buy it outright for Golden Eagles with the release of the Hornet’s Sting major update. Happy tanking!
Please note that this vehicle’s characteristics may be changed before it is added to the game.
Screenshot Competition – Agile Warriors!
Welcome to the 161st War Thunder Steam Screenshot Competition!
A big thanks to all who submitted screenshots last week! This week we will be focused on the smaller vehicles with lots of agility. Take a picture with a fighter aircraft, light tank, or coastal vessel! The three most popular and three selected by us will get 300 GE. See the winners down below!
Let’s begin the 161st edition of our competition!
Create a stunning screenshot and submit it on the War Thunder Steam Community Hub with the tag #WTscreen161. You have time until the 7th of March to submit your screenshot.
After that date, 6 winners will be selected (3 of which will be the highest rated by the community and 3 selected by our judges), each of which receive a reward of 300GE.
Terms:
Your screenshot must include a Light Tank, Coastal Vessel, or Fighter.
You must add the #WTscreen161 tag (title cannot have any other text in it).
Artists may only win by popular vote once per four screenshot competitions.
Screenshots need to be compliant with the War Thunder rules.
You need to be the author of the screenshot.
Screenshot needs to be new. You cannot use those which have previously been published or used in other competitions.
We will only accept raw screenshots from the game. You cannot use any editing software nor any other visual enhancements (like Nvidia Ansel filters).
You can use filters and settings built into War Thunder.
You can use the replay functionality built into War Thunder.
Rewards will be delivered to the author's account within 14 working days.
And now, time for the winners of the competition’s 160th edition – The Lone Wolf!
Each winner will get 300GE! Congratulations and see you next week!
The IAR 316B Is Temporarily Available for the Alouette III’s First Flight!
The Aérospatiale Alouette III multi-purpose helicopter designed by French company Sud Aviation made its first flight on February 28th, 1959. This helicopter was popular among countries and saw widespread service, with more than 2,000 Alouette III helicopters being produced. The number of operating countries reached 80, with Romania being one of them who gave the helicopter the designation of IAR 316.
The IAR 316B is temporarily available at a 30% discount for Golden Eagles!
You can get this helicopter at a 30% discount for 5,992 Golden Eagles!
When: From today until March 3rd (11:00). Where: France > Helicopter > Premium vehicles.
About this helicopter
The IAR 316B (rank V) is a Romanian-produced variant of the SA 316B, differing from the original Alouette III in that it has a new engine and a reinforced main and tail rotor. The IAR 316B is armed with two 7.62 mm machine guns and Malyutka-2 ATGMs and S-5K rockets for use against ground vehicles!
Location Improvements for Advance to the Rhine, Sinai and Jungle!
Today we’re taking a look at the visually updated Advance to the Rhine, Sinai and improved Jungle that will be coming in the Hornet’s Sting major update!
Advance to the Rhine
The war has now reached the right bank of the Rhine. The ancient city here has survived a series of air raids and now its cobblestone streets with the ruins of buildings and the ghosts of abandoned trams have become a real battlefield.
We’ve updated the graphics for one of the most popular city locations in War Thunder! Our artists have replaced the building models and completely updated the textures on this location, all while preserving the navigation, capture points and cover locations familiar among players. Advance to the Rhine has received many decorative elements in the design of the streets for greater historical authenticity, and the vegetation has been updated and adjusted.
Sinai
We now move on from Western Europe to the Sinai Peninsula on the border of the continents of Asia and Africa. In the missions on this location, we’ve carried out a major graphical update to the environment. The color shades of sand and rocks have changed, small stones on passages will no longer obstruct the movement of armored vehicles, and the sand dunes look more natural.
The look of the roads has changed both for the sandy part and for the cluster of rocks. A small amount of architecture has changed, with some houses in the villages replaced with more authentic white-walled ones. A railway and telegraph line have been added between the main combat areas and the water channel. Vegetation, rock formations and landforms have been added to the combat area and outside of it in the desert.
Jungle
From the dry sands of the desert, we move to the beautiful tropical jungles of the Solomon Islands! Meet the new Jungle, where in addition to visual improvements, we’ve made several important changes to gameplay. This location has received updated vegetation in the form of palm trees, bushes, and the terrain now looks more natural. Small villages have been built in different parts of the location, which liven up the appearance of the combat area for ground vehicles.
The river that flows through the entire location can now be crossed at any place without the risk of drowning. The map designers have made it so that it’s impossible to climb the mountain in square B1, as it was previously possible to shoot from it through to all capture points. Plus, the positions in squares E4 and E5 have been closed off.
The Welsh Flag for St. David’s Day!
Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus (Happy St. David’s Day)!
March 1st is St. David’s Day! A special day for the people of Wales, who go to parades, music festivals and wear the daffodil and leek. The Welsh flag features a red dragon passant with a white and green background, and makes a temporary return to War Thunder for Golden Eagles.
The Welsh flag decal is temporarily available to purchase for Golden Eagles!
This flag is available for 500 Golden Eagles over the weekend period.
“Wales” flag decal
When: From today until March 3rd (07:00 GMT). Where: You can find this decal by going to Nickname → Decals → Common → World Flags.
"Hornet's Sting" Update Trailer
Introducing the next major update trailer for War Thunder: Hornet's Sting!
Update 2.43.0.122
Aircraft
A bug that sometimes caused launched ARH missiles to not display on a client and to not trigger RWR has been fixed. (Report).
Patch notes reflect only key changes, meaning they may not include a complete list of all improvements made. Additionally, War Thunder is constantly being updated and some changes may not require an update. Changes reflected in patch notes are formed by taking reactions and requests of the community from the bug reporting service, forums and other official platforms into account. Bug fixes and changes are implemented in order of importance, for example a game-breaking bug will be worked on and implemented sooner.
Raider Hunter: Strasbourg
The French Strasbourg battleship with its non-standard armament layout is the main reward in the Raider Hunter vehicle event!
Strasbourg: An Event Vehicle Battleship for France at Rank VI
At a glance:
Improved armor!
Main battery guns at the front.
Good speed.
Reconnaissance aircraft.
Radar.
Mediocre air defense.
Vehicle History [expand type=details] During the interwar period, France urgently needed new competitive battleships that would comply with the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty. In 1932, two Dunkerque-class battleships were ordered for the French Navy, designed as a response to the latest warships of the leading naval powers. Strasbourg was the second battleship of this type, built at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard and launched in December 1936. With the outbreak of World War II, she took part in the hunt for the German battleship Admiral Graf Spee and escorted French convoys.
After the capitulation of France, Strasbourg was sent to the port of Mers-el-Kebir in Algeria, where she was soon attacked by the Royal Navy, but was able to break through to Toulon. Strasbourg remained there until 1942 as the flagship of the Vichy fleet, without taking part in any significant combat missions. In 1942, after Hitler ordered the occupation of the south of France, the crew of the battleship, among others, was ordered to scuttle the ship. Strasbourg was raised in 1943 and the dismantling of the ship for metal began. On August 18th 1944, Strasbourg was bombed by U.S. aircraft and was sunk again. The ship was raised again in 1946, however the restoration of the battleship was considered too costly and in 1955 Strasbourg was sold for scrap.
Introducing Strasbourg!
The vehicle reward in the Raider Hunter event is the Strasbourg battleship, the sister ship of the Dunkerque! Strasbourg has an unusual main caliber gun arrangement and has reinforced hull armor, all while maintaining excellent mobility. Diving into the details!
Let’s first look into the differences between the well-proven Dunkerque battleship. Despite all of its advantages, the Dunkerque has a noticeable downside and that’s its armor. Armor in the most important areas can be penetrated by any battleship, which forces you to limit the tactics needed when playing this ship. The Strasbourg on the other hand partially solves this problem, as the thickness of the main armor belt has increased from 225 mm to a quite acceptable 283. Plus, the thickness of the armor on the slopes and armored deck have increased, and the already decent main battery turret armor has slightly improved. The result of this is good protection from enemy fire, allowing you to bully even the best battleships in the game at long distances!
The interesting part of the Dunkerque-class battleships is their unusual gun arrangement. Strasbourg has two four-barrel turrets that are concentrated at the bow of the ship, while 16 secondary caliber guns are positioned closer to the stern with an onboard salvo possible from 10 of these guns. Eight 330 mm caliber guns can fire high-explosive and semi-armor-piercing shells at a rate of two shots per minute with a trained crew, which is about standard for battleships. Perhaps one of the most noticeable disadvantages of the Strasbourg is its anti-air defenses. Like the Dunkerque, there’s only two-larger caliber machine guns and slow-firing 37 mm guns. A big advantage for detecting air threats is the ME-140 / MR-126 radar (found only on the Cobert heavy cruiser).
Despite the reinforced armor, Strasbourg retains remarkable performance characteristics for a battleship, with a relatively small turning radius and a maximum speed of 30 knots (over 54 km/h). A pair of Loire 130C hydroplanes that can lay smoke screens and even capture points are a very useful bonus!
You can get the Strasbourg battleship for France in the Raider Hunter event that started today! Click below to see the full details about this event.
Please note that this vehicle’s characteristics may be changed before it is added to the game.
Pre-order: Marder CLOVIS
Today we’ll be taking a look at a new premium for Germany and France — the experimental Marder CLOVIS light tank featuring an oscillating turret!
Marder CLOVIS: A Premium Light Tank for Germany (pre-order pack) and France (Golden Eagles) at Rank V
At a glance:
Drum-style automatic loader with 12 rounds!
Good mobility.
105 mm HEAT shells.
Coaxial 20 mm cannon.
Poor armor protection.
Vehicle History [expand type=details] In 1979, the Marder DF 105 prototype was built in Germany, featuring an oscillating FL-15 turret on the chassis of the German Marder IFV. To compensate for the increased weight of the turret, the vehicle was given a more powerful engine. The Marder DF 105 received the classification of “Combat Tank” and was considered for use as an IFV/APC combat support vehicle, tank destroyer and even SPG. This experimental vehicle did not go into production and was preserved as a single prototype. Further down the line, on the basis of the Marder DF 105, the Marder CLOVIS prototype was built featuring greater turret protection and a 20 mm autocannon paired with the main gun. This modification was also not accepted for serial production and never left the prototype stage.
Pre-order - Marder Clovis Pack Can be purchased through the store in-game. Shop > Online Store 49.99
Marder Clovis (Rank V, Germany)
Premium account for 15 days
2000 Golden Eagles
Pre-order bonus: unique "Dial M for Marder" title
Pre-order bonus: M for Marder decal
Introducing the Marder CLOVIS!
Featuring an oscillating turret with a 105 mm gun and 20 mm autocannon along with good mobility, this new premium light tank is coming for both Germany and France! You’ll be able to pre-order the German one starting today to receive pre-order bonuses, and purchase the French one with the release of the next major update for Golden Eagles. Let’s take a closer look!
In general the Marder CLOVIS is similar to the DF105 in many ways, as they both feature a 105 mm gun with HEAT, HE and Smoke shells, plus two “drum” magazines in the oscillating turret with 6 shells in each. This provides automatic loading capability which in turn means a great reload speed, regardless of crew skills! There’s a rather awesome and extra addition to the Marder CLOVIS turret however, and that’s a coaxial 20 mm automatic cannon, great for taking out low-flying helicopters and lightly armored vehicles.
The Marder CLOVIS uses the same chassis as the DF105, which in turn means it has the same 720 HP engine and general mobility. Thanks to this, mobility on roads and across rough ground is going to be enough to get to some great positions on the map to take out and scout enemies for your teammates!
Primarily a support and scout vehicle, the Marder CLOVIS can also be used in close-range engagements thanks to its quick reload speed. Since the main round for this tank is the French 105 mm HEAT shell with 400 mm of penetration, this tank will have no problem penetrating steel homogeneous armor. Like all light tanks however, the Marder CLOVIS has poor armor protection, where the hull is unlikely to withstand autocannon fire, and anything that penetrates the turret will likely cause the drum magazine ammo to detonate. Stick with your teammates or move to advantageous positions with care, utilizing your speed advantage.
That’s it for today! The premium Marder CLOVIS will help you research any German or French tank up to rank VI. Thanks to this tank’s reload speed and mobility, you’ll have a fun time taking out enemies. Keep an eye out for more dev blogs coming your way!
Please note that this vehicle’s characteristics may be changed before it is added to the game.
Update 2.43.0.120
Other
For win64 clients, the utility that collects data on game crashes and offers to send it to the developers has been replaced. Due to the dump generation, it now allows data collection on “silent” crashes that previously occurred without any messages at all. Now when sending reports, you must send the “metadata” file containing the CrashID from the “.game_logs\” folder in the root folder of the game.
Patch notes reflect only key changes, meaning they may not include a complete list of all improvements made. Additionally, War Thunder is constantly being updated and some changes may not require an update. Changes reflected in patch notes are formed by taking reactions and requests of the community from the bug reporting service, forums and other official platforms into account. Bug fixes and changes are implemented in order of importance, for example a game-breaking bug will be worked on and implemented sooner.
