Aces High Bulletin Board

General Forums => Wishlist => Topic started by: shreck on December 04, 2008, 07:34:34 PM

Title: PANTHER--> please
Post by: shreck on December 04, 2008, 07:34:34 PM
with over 6,500 built, I think it deserves a place here!  :rock
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: opposum on December 04, 2008, 09:11:11 PM
i agree  :pray :pray :pray :pray :pray :pray :pray


Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: skribetm on December 04, 2008, 11:06:56 PM
YOU MEAN THIS SEXY THANG!!!?

(http://img397.imageshack.us/img397/5007/ccimg3df3.png)

 :O

Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on December 05, 2008, 01:18:51 PM
with over 6,500 built, I think it deserves a place here!  :rock

 It actually could fit in with the current tanks we have very nice. Tiger, Firefly, T34/85 and another Panther could kill. So it wouldn't be super uber.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: waystin2 on December 05, 2008, 01:21:59 PM
Two thumbs up! :aok :aok
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: chris3 on December 07, 2008, 05:53:25 PM
im for it too  :aok :aok

cu chris3
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: SmokinLoon on December 07, 2008, 07:01:00 PM
I dont have the stats in front of me, but the Panther would be a faster, more menouverable, and quicker firing than the Tiger in AH2

The Panther's 75mm gun would be at worst the same as the AH2 17lb'er in the M4 Firefly, the armor would behave very similar if not a tad bit better than the AH2 Tiger's (providing it is modeled properly), and its speed would rival the T34 (30mph v 35mph).  Certain things cant be modeled by HTC that figured into the real world battlefield experience of the Pzr V, such as the less than steller transmission, etc. 

If it were to be introduced into the AH2 realm, I suspect it would be perked the same as the Tiger is not even more.

However, I suspect the Pzr V is not the front-runner to be added.   ;)
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: glock89 on December 07, 2008, 07:02:36 PM
I'm all in for the Panther. :pray
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: B4Buster on December 07, 2008, 07:11:28 PM
I think we should get more Medium and light tanks before we get another heavy. It should be added eventually though (even though it was riddled with engine problems)  :O
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: VansCrew1 on December 07, 2008, 07:29:11 PM
 :aok :aok
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: splitatom on December 07, 2008, 07:37:00 PM
seconded
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Rich46yo on December 07, 2008, 08:42:36 PM
Yeah. It wouldnt be uber considering the other tanks we have. I think the Panther is probably the "most needed" new GV for the game.

Want to beat it? Get to a side shot or to the rear. Am I right that frontal wise it was the hardest kill for WW-ll tanks? How do the other tanks rate, compared to it, with frontal shots?
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Masherbrum on December 07, 2008, 08:51:32 PM
I know regarding the Panther, the A and D models had a good shot-trap beneath the mantlet that was used to ricochet AP shells down into the thin roof, where the shell would kill the driver and bow gunner.

Even the picture posted in this thread points it out.   MANY Panthers were knocked out in WWII from the Front, using this "passed along" bit of "Intel". 

Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: FLOTSOM on December 07, 2008, 09:23:27 PM
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Panther-tank (http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Panther-tank)

nice brief read on the Panther
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BnZs on December 07, 2008, 09:27:24 PM
I've got to say, we BY FAR need a standard gunned M-4 more than we need another uber-tank right now. As the last FSO showed. Firefly is too much for Panzer, but the M-8 is not an ideal stand-in for facing Panzers, and having to use stand-ins sucks anyway.

And we had the anachronism of having to use Fireflies in Tunisia, because that is the only Sherman we have, and then having to give the Axis buckets of Tigers, just to bring the field level with the Fireflies...its a mess I tell ya.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Masherbrum on December 07, 2008, 09:30:40 PM
I've got to say, we BY FAR need a standard gunned M-4 more than we need another uber-tank right now. As the last FSO showed. Firefly is too much for Panzer, but the M-8 is not an ideal stand-in for facing Panzers, and having to use stand-ins sucks anyway.

And we had the anachronism of having to use Fireflies in Tunisia, because that is the only Sherman we have, and then having to give the Axis buckets of Tigers, just to bring the field level with the Fireflies...its a mess I tell ya.

We don't need another Sherman.   CHAR, Panther, Matilda would be more adequate.   
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: vonKrimm on December 08, 2008, 12:38:28 AM
We don't need another Sherman.   CHAR, Panther, Matilda would be more adequate.   

Chars & Matildas :rofl :rofl :rofl :rofl :rofl....yes, let us get some uber-slow & uber-undergunned GVs in there; we can play "The Fall of France" & "Dunkirk"
At least ask for the Somua S-35 & Crusader II.  Better yet, get us the Crusader III/IV &  Pz IIIj/1, heck even the Pz IIIg would be fun & useful [6pdr(57mm), 3inHow(think 75mm on LVTa4), 50mm/L60, 50mm/L42 respectively]

Back on topic, yes the Panther would be nice to have.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on December 08, 2008, 11:04:30 AM
Yeah. It wouldnt be uber considering the other tanks we have. I think the Panther is probably the "most needed" new GV for the game.

Want to beat it? Get to a side shot or to the rear. Am I right that frontal wise it was the hardest kill for WW-ll tanks? How do the other tanks rate, compared to it, with frontal shots?

No it wasn't the hardest to kill head on. It's sloped armor helped it at standoff ranges from other well gunned tanks but it was nothing super. It could however stand on it's own against say the 75mm Shermans and other Brit tanks with low velocity main guns at close ranges. It was designed to kill T-34's of which it did a great job. The transmission was a little weak but German Panther drivers learned how to minimize the types of driving that caused a lot of the break downs. It also had the ability to operate both treads individually giving it the ability to spin on a dime. It's suspension was also another innovative design (although complicated) gave it a very smooth ride while driving over rough terrain giving it a more stable gun barrel for shooting on the move. If HT went with anything less say a standard Sherman or Brit tank they would be wasting their design time because nobody after the first few days would use it. (my opinion). If you look into German tank kills the first 50 guys you will see that the Tiger and stug are the main vehicles that are responsible. I had posted awhile ago about the stug being a better addition than the standard Sherman or Churchill and I got blasted. I mentioned that the Stug had more tank kills than the two combined. I still stand by my post. Just to balance the GV line up for the sake of balance is a dumb way to look at things. First this is a game not a history lesson. Who cares if the line up is unbalanced. It's having planes and GV's that will bring the most enjoyment and a Sherman or Chirchill won't do it.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on December 08, 2008, 11:11:40 AM
I've got to say, we BY FAR need a standard gunned M-4 more than we need another uber-tank right now. As the last FSO showed. Firefly is too much for Panzer, but the M-8 is not an ideal stand-in for facing Panzers, and having to use stand-ins sucks anyway.

And we had the anachronism of having to use Fireflies in Tunisia, because that is the only Sherman we have, and then having to give the Axis buckets of Tigers, just to bring the field level with the Fireflies...its a mess I tell ya.

If you were using standard shemans in the FSO you would have been at a disadvantage. The current Panzer is more than a match for a standard Sherman at standoff ranges. The 75mm  L/48 gun that is on our panzers is a very good gun, much better than the Sherman's low velocity 75mm. There were Tigers in Tuinisia (not many) . A standard Sherman didn't have a chance against  Tigers. There also wasn't a large number of Shermans in Africa either.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Denholm on December 08, 2008, 11:47:52 AM
How about more planes first? There's a large gap in some of the bomber plane sets.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on December 08, 2008, 12:01:54 PM
How about more planes first? There's a large gap in some of the bomber plane sets.


I wouldn't mind seeing some other Japanese planes, but nomore Spits.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Babalonian on December 08, 2008, 06:33:39 PM
On topic, I love the panther, it was a very trademark tank of WWII, and should definetley be added to this game at one point or another.

More off-topic, IMO the largest gap in this game atm is the huge lacking of the very common (mass produced) early and midwar era GVs.  Some of the larger latewar era tanks would be awesome too, but would contribute to the lacking early and midwar era armor in this game if they were added first.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on December 09, 2008, 11:21:35 AM
On topic, I love the panther, it was a very trademark tank of WWII, and should definetley be added to this game at one point or another.

More off-topic, IMO the largest gap in this game atm is the huge lacking of the very common (mass produced) early and midwar era GVs.  Some of the larger latewar era tanks would be awesome too, but would contribute to the lacking early and midwar era armor in this game if they were added first.

Heres the problem with adding ew tanks. Nobody plays in EW !!!!!!!!!!!! So adding EW tanks to the game is just wasting time on something that would not be used much. The gap between EW and MW tanks is that armor and guns got better. It would be like the B-25c's The only people that use them are perk farmers hitting strats or flying at 30k + to avoid contact. I see alot of people flying the H model but the C is a hanger queen.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: B4Buster on December 09, 2008, 11:27:02 AM
I would also like to see the standard M4 for special even purposes. If you think about it, it's really surprising it's not allready in game
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on December 09, 2008, 12:17:54 PM
I would also like to see the standard M4 for special even purposes. If you think about it, it's really surprising it's not allready in game


Go to the Joesph Stalin thread and read why it wouldn't be a good addition.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Babalonian on December 09, 2008, 02:43:17 PM
Heres the problem with adding ew tanks. Nobody plays in EW !!!!!!!!!!!! So adding EW tanks to the game is just wasting time on something that would not be used much. The gap between EW and MW tanks is that armor and guns got better. It would be like the B-25c's The only people that use them are perk farmers hitting strats or flying at 30k + to avoid contact. I see alot of people flying the H model but the C is a hanger queen.

I doubt EW tanks would be used much in the EWA (but then again, not much is).  Maybe as a challenge and a perk farmer in the LWA (like a lot of vehicles/planes already are).  But in scenarios and organized events, I'm sure they would be most welcomed.  While I understand a lot of things can be put into this game that will only become hanger queens (imo due to superior vehicles/planes being readily available for no to little cost in the same arena), there just aren't a lot of tanks in the game yet.  And most requests I've seen and participated in for early to mid-war era tanks are for the common models and varients, the ones that saw thousands upon thousands on the front lines at well over hundreds of historical battles (Panzer IIIs & IVs, STuGs IIIs & IVs, Shermans, the list goes on (and I don't want to play favorities)).

To say they shouldn't be added because they won't be used in the large LWA is questionable, it's always hard to say what the demand will be for something that isn't in existence.  Will they be popular to use against Tigers? Likely not.  Will they be popular in general? I think so.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: B4Buster on December 09, 2008, 02:49:52 PM
Not so much as being used in EW as filling in gaps for scenarions, snapshots, FSO's, ETC
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on December 09, 2008, 04:09:40 PM
In my opinion the stug would be the best choice since it was in action throughout the war. I would take a little bit of remodeling to achieve the stug 4 for LW. Too many people are against TD's in here. Their afraid of a turretless gv. I don't think it would be that big a deal .
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 01, 2009, 07:12:20 AM
In my opinion the stug would be the best choice since it was in action throughout the war. I would take a little bit of remodeling to achieve the stug 4 for LW. Too many people are against TD's in here. Their afraid of a turretless gv. I don't think it would be that big a deal .

Yeah the stug defo deserves a spot in the game as it was used from start to finish and is quick firing but lacks the turret of course so it would be balanced. I'd personally love to see the Panther G in the game but it would probably mean having to add a late war allied tank like the pershing which is a bit of a grey area as they didnt see all that much combat. Maybe churchill or matilda from british side but il2 would be perfect to balance against the panther/tiger
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: skullman on March 01, 2009, 10:29:49 AM
I would love to see the panther added.I am a fan of german armour.The panzer is my favorite ride but in a spawn battle I am at a disadvantage.I am a prtty good shot but most often finding to have to lay in 2 or more rounds to kill a firefly.I have lost many a gunfight due to underpowered gun although I was aiming for a soft spot and beat them to the trigger.Thhe panzer is fine in an ambush situation but in a headon fast spawn war it is a disadvantage.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 01, 2009, 11:20:45 AM
I would love to see the panther added.I am a fan of german armour.The panzer is my favorite ride but in a spawn battle I am at a disadvantage.I am a prtty good shot but most often finding to have to lay in 2 or more rounds to kill a firefly.I have lost many a gunfight due to underpowered gun although I was aiming for a soft spot and beat them to the trigger.Thhe panzer is fine in an ambush situation but in a headon fast spawn war it is a disadvantage.

Well the panther had great sloped armour in the front but nothing special in the sides or rear, its high velocity 75mm long barrelled pak (same gun as panzer IV just different barrell) had roughly same penetration power as the 88mm on the tiger so the problem lies with balancing axis/allied tanks if the panther was to be introduced which is obviously should be - i cannot understand its omission beyond the game balance point of view - there isnt much on the british or american side that realistically match up well against those tanks bar maybe the late war pershing. I meant IS-2 not IL-2 :) in my previous post which was a match for the tiger and panther but it had a slow reload time and poorer optics. The german optics were fabulous. But that isnt modelled in game which is another interesting thing that could be added...

We could really talk about 10+ tanks or jagdpanzers to add to AH from the german side and maybe one of the SU soviet vehicles but I think allied tanks are poor which is why we will probably never see the best overall tank of the war - the panther. Its mechanical problems were sorted out (never as reliable as a t34 but what would u rather be in), its the tiger that needed constant repair as someone said earlier - maybe they just read about kursk...
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Boxboy on March 01, 2009, 07:36:45 PM
Talking about the "use" of any new addition in the MA is just silly, nothing but most uber will be used. We have tons of planes that hardly ever get used in the MA because they are not an uber ride.

To those that say they aren't interested in history I ask just what are you interested in? This a WWII game/sim, which is based on ,gasp, history.  Many of us are in the game ONLY for the history and could care less that some Russian/Brit/US plane can dominate the MA.

The M4 sherman was one of the most produced tank in WWII, and definately has a both a need and a right to be included in the game/sim.  If for nothing else the senario folks, because no matter what gets added after new wears off no one will use it unless its UBER.

From a production stand point alot of the art work and balistic work has been done to make both the M4 and Pzkp III with the 50mm gun, the M4a2 with the 76mm gun could also be added without as much work as making an entirely NEW tank like the panther.  The facts are that both the Tiger and the Panther and the Tiger II for that matter were badly designed for HP/weight which caused numberous tranny failures which we do not model in AH , the Tiger and Tiger II were so large and heavy that alot of roads and terrain were impassible them (also not modeled here).
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 02, 2009, 09:42:33 AM
Talking about the "use" of any new addition in the MA is just silly, nothing but most uber will be used. We have tons of planes that hardly ever get used in the MA because they are not an uber ride.

To those that say they aren't interested in history I ask just what are you interested in? This a WWII game/sim, which is based on ,gasp, history.  Many of us are in the game ONLY for the history and could care less that some Russian/Brit/US plane can dominate the MA.

The M4 sherman was one of the most produced tank in WWII, and definately has a both a need and a right to be included in the game/sim.  If for nothing else the senario folks, because no matter what gets added after new wears off no one will use it unless its UBER.

From a production stand point alot of the art work and balistic work has been done to make both the M4 and Pzkp III with the 50mm gun, the M4a2 with the 76mm gun could also be added without as much work as making an entirely NEW tank like the panther.  The facts are that both the Tiger and the Panther and the Tiger II for that matter were badly designed for HP/weight which caused numberous tranny failures which we do not model in AH , the Tiger and Tiger II were so large and heavy that alot of roads and terrain were impassible them (also not modeled here).

I really dont get where your coming from boxboy. No one is mentioning the tiger II, the panther was sorted after its horrific rushed debut at kursk but granted it wasn't as reliable as the t34/sherman but it had a kill death ratio of about 5:1 v sherman and 9:1 versus t34 - the tiger was more like 10:1 on t34 maybe 6-7:1 on sherman basically due to better trained crews and tactics not to mention not the open terrain of russia. we are talking about the best all round tank of WW2 the panther so it should be in the sim and balance is obviously an important aspect of the game, the japanese planes are fairly out classed you could say so the N1k2j is included even though less than 450 were actually built - the zero and ki84 are both good in their own ways but the n1k really balances things out. As for uber I see plenty of people upping planes of all kinds its not just a spit16, la7, blah blah fest You only get that with p51s and fw190s in the stratosphere. Personally I fly all planes to avoid staleness and many people do similar for the challenge for the perks etc. Its all rock paper scissors in AH there is no uber. Uber = perked.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: skribetm on March 02, 2009, 10:16:58 AM
Personally I fly all planes to avoid staleness and many people do similar for the challenge for the perks etc. Its all rock paper scissors in AH there is no uber. Uber = perked.

the most fun i have in this game is when i fly the p-40e(and pretend to be ben affleck). most memorable engagement in p-40e was with an f4u-1a on the deck, he bnz'ed me first, then he lost e advantage. proceeded to turn/stall fight me until he ran out of bullets. now it's my chance to get on his six! unfortunately, he flies faster so he was able to get home. or i think i just wasn;t wearing my glasses.. my memory on specifics eludes me. i just know it was fun!

Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Belial on March 02, 2009, 10:24:59 AM
P-A-N-T-H-E-R......let me in one of those things and i will be a bear to send back to the tower :rock
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: bj229r on March 02, 2009, 11:31:57 AM
I had, up until now, always assumed Panzer was German for Panther, hence they were the same machine.........apparently not :frown:
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Boxboy on March 02, 2009, 12:29:43 PM
Where I am coming from is we don't NEED another uber tank.  Balance what? You have the tiger and Firefly and the next best down from those is the pzkw IV, followed I suppose by the T-34 85, and the T-34 76mm.

What is lacking is the most or one of the most produced tanks of the war the Sherman M4, and kill ratio means nothing when you have 10,000 Shermans and the other guy has 500 Panthers sooner or later numbers will tell as it did in WWII.  That statement is also true of the T-34 (which if memory serves me was rated the best tank of WWII overall).

I see no balancing being needed on the upper end of the scale at all, unless you want to introduce the 90mm Pershing which saw limited action near the end of the war.

It's not that I hate the Panther I just think some others should come before it,
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Cajunn on March 02, 2009, 02:50:38 PM
 :aok
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Motherland on March 02, 2009, 05:54:18 PM
I had, up until now, always assumed Panzer was German for Panther, hence they were the same machine.........apparently not :frown:
Panzer is German for armor.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: JunkyII on March 02, 2009, 11:56:41 PM
Panther would be nice, but people are talking about evening out the field, we should add the M18 Tank Detroyer, I hear it was a beast at Bastogne holding off like a battilion with only 4 tanks
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 03, 2009, 12:06:34 AM
I had, up until now, always assumed Panzer was German for Panther, hence they were the same machine.........apparently not :frown:

Panzer means tank.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: SKYGUNS on March 03, 2009, 12:34:10 AM
Panther would be neat BUT! we already have 2 German Tanks, 2 Russian tanks and one Brit Sherman.


WE HAVE NO UNMODIFIED AMERICAN TANKS




we could use more light-medium allied armor in my opinion
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 03, 2009, 12:42:56 AM
Where I am coming from is we don't NEED another uber tank.  Balance what? You have the tiger and Firefly and the next best down from those is the pzkw IV, followed I suppose by the T-34 85, and the T-34 76mm.

What is lacking is the most or one of the most produced tanks of the war the Sherman M4, and kill ratio means nothing when you have 10,000 Shermans and the other guy has 500 Panthers sooner or later numbers will tell as it did in WWII.  That statement is also true of the T-34 (which if memory serves me was rated the best tank of WWII overall).

I see no balancing being needed on the upper end of the scale at all, unless you want to introduce the 90mm Pershing which saw limited action near the end of the war.

It's not that I hate the Panther I just think some others should come before it,

The T34 was the best tank of the war if you rely on the history channel, the fact it entered the war early and the 80,000+ that were produced of which I think 50k were knocked out in WW2. Sure 80k+ would win any numbers game but the "tommy cooker" sherman M4 defo is pretty much in same boat as the t34 from the economical stand point, both were cheap and quick to throw off production lines but the were outclassed in comparison to the german tanks. Ask any ex-tanker WW2 what'd he prefer to be in and all you'll hear is panther or more usually tiger (usually hits that knocked it out werent completely fatal to the tank & crew and it was recoverable)- the amount of recycled tigers is phenomenal from WW2 the germans probably put more effort into tiger recovery on battlefields unless it was a lost cause (ammo exploded) at night than they did into any other GV it was so valuable. Sending patrols of 2-4 tigers out against a horde of whatever the soviets had in store that day and coming back with cricket scores wasn't abnormal. The panther is UBER from frontal armour and gun perspective but it wouldnt be much in comparison to a tiger to defeat as to how AH tanking and gvs are modelled.


The panther only came up against allied armour in '44 in small numbers and nearly every available unit was pretty much on the eastern front anyway to combat the hordes of t34s. The P IV was considered enough for the sherman m4 and the workhorse stugs. I'm beginning to think this debate is useless anyhow on the way tanks are modelled in AH, all with same main gunsight, lack of depth with speed, hitting power & trajectory being pretty much the winner beyond who sees who first. Go google about he panther G and you'll find most sources saying it was the all round best tank but it just was more costly and difficult to produce. I reckon if the pershing had seen more combat and had an earlier introduction it would have won the title hands down in a "which tank would i prefer to sit in" or best of WW2 question.

When I talk about balance I'm generally speaking about scenarios and from a historical perspective, like you said earlier I couldnt care less if everyone was in an uber german/japanese or russian/american tank or plane. ACTUALLY WE NEED JAPANESE GVS but I suppose it wouldnt be hard to throw the american m4 sherman into the mix seen as its base is already there. ?BTW I'd consider the t34/85 ahead of the panzer IV for sure in AH with the t34/74 and IV tied.

Saying the T34 was best tank of WW2 is the same as saying the P51 was the best fighter of ww2 - we could argue it to the death.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: skullman on March 03, 2009, 01:50:46 PM
I would just like to see a larger selection of armour-the japs and the stuart maybe-add some destroyers like the hellcat and slugger.I just want some variety.It is a shame though to up a panzer in a spawn war(my favorite)and be at a disadvantage due to the firefly superior armour in a headon position
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Boxboy on March 04, 2009, 04:44:57 PM
The T34 was the best tank of the war if you rely on the history channel, the fact it entered the war early and the 80,000+ that were produced of which I think 50k were knocked out in WW2. Sure 80k+ would win any numbers game but the "tommy cooker" sherman M4 defo is pretty much in same boat as the t34 from the economical stand point, both were cheap and quick to throw off production lines but the were outclassed in comparison to the german tanks. Ask any ex-tanker WW2 what'd he prefer to be in and all you'll hear is panther or more usually tiger (usually hits that knocked it out werent completely fatal to the tank & crew and it was recoverable)- the amount of recycled tigers is phenomenal from WW2 the germans probably put more effort into tiger recovery on battlefields unless it was a lost cause (ammo exploded) at night than they did into any other GV it was so valuable. Sending patrols of 2-4 tigers out against a horde of whatever the soviets had in store that day and coming back with cricket scores wasn't abnormal. The panther is UBER from frontal armour and gun perspective but it wouldnt be much in comparison to a tiger to defeat as to how AH tanking and gvs are modelled.


The panther only came up against allied armour in '44 in small numbers and nearly every available unit was pretty much on the eastern front anyway to combat the hordes of t34s. The P IV was considered enough for the sherman m4 and the workhorse stugs. I'm beginning to think this debate is useless anyhow on the way tanks are modelled in AH, all with same main gunsight, lack of depth with speed, hitting power & trajectory being pretty much the winner beyond who sees who first. Go google about he panther G and you'll find most sources saying it was the all round best tank but it just was more costly and difficult to produce. I reckon if the pershing had seen more combat and had an earlier introduction it would have won the title hands down in a "which tank would i prefer to sit in" or best of WW2 question.

When I talk about balance I'm generally speaking about scenarios and from a historical perspective, like you said earlier I couldnt care less if everyone was in an uber german/japanese or russian/american tank or plane. ACTUALLY WE NEED JAPANESE GVS but I suppose it wouldnt be hard to throw the american m4 sherman into the mix seen as its base is already there. ?BTW I'd consider the t34/85 ahead of the panzer IV for sure in AH with the t34/74 and IV tied.

Saying the T34 was best tank of WW2 is the same as saying the P51 was the best fighter of ww2 - we could argue it to the death.

Well you are doing the same thing when you discuss your view point, you are just using balistic's and armour thickness, but to effectively rate a tank or any other piece of military equipment, it ease of operation, ability to repair, its mechanical durability, speed and yes the ease in which it is produced.

The "tommy cooker" was given a bad rap because of its gasoline (petrol to you Europeans :) ) engine, when in fact it was the poor ammo storage that caused the problem in most cases.  Its main defense vs Tigers and Pathers was speed.  BTW knocking the "history channel" because they get a few things wrong is like whapping your history teacher cause you found a "flaw" in the textbook, and this bit of info came from the "military channel" and years of reading books and playing war games like this one  :cool:
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: shreck on March 04, 2009, 04:59:03 PM
 P A N T H E R !   please!  :aok
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 05, 2009, 05:30:57 AM
I've been to a good few museums, read a load of books like yourself (Otto Carius one was the best tanker book ive read - Tigers in the Mud) and seen pretty much all the standard tanks (t34s IS2's, panther aus G, Panzer IV, Shermans, matildas, cromwell, crusader etc) pretty much all bar the tiger in real life and also got to stand on top and got inside russian, sherman too as there are plenty to go round and they usually leave them out in the open :). The is2 and t34s look like a 16 year old trainee welded them and the sherman isnt much better - I sure as hell wouldn't have liked to have been a in a sherman with that high profile and generally weak armour. The panther was a sublime piece of equipment and best looking of the tanks I've seen in reality. The optics on the mg and main gun were pretty good. Lot of historians say the germans shouldve just gone for numbers and produced the panzer IV as you could make 4 of them for every tiger.

Anyway after going off the point - the moral of the story is I'd just like to see a few extra GVs, if the wirbelwind can make it into the game anything can.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Cajunn on March 18, 2009, 05:11:16 AM
What do you think the perks would be on the Panther, I heard the gun was as effective as the 88 on the tiger....
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Boxboy on March 18, 2009, 06:29:18 AM
Rapp all the things you have said are true, the main problem with the Panther in real life, aside from early mechanical problems, came from precisely what you have stated it was a very time intensive tank to build and the Americans and Russians could build 10 tanks for every Panther produced.

None of these computer games can model these types of "real life" things into a shooter so all we get are "tech spec" things armour slope/thickness, gun velosity, etc etc etc.

The facts remain that the Allies won war, and it makes one wonder how they did it up against such superior equipment?

The Panther would just add another up gunned GV to the set and we have 3 now, so for game play the Panther is not needed except for "senario" use and in that vein I would think the M4a1 would be the next tank for "Senario" use.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Cthulhu on March 18, 2009, 10:59:57 AM
The facts remain that the Allies won war, and it makes one wonder how they did it up against such superior equipment?
I think the answer to that lies in cemetery's around the country. I met a corpsman who had plenty of ghastly stories about "hosing" the crew out of killed Shermans. The salvagable ones were welded up, painted (inside, for obvious reasons :uhoh), given new crews, and returned to the front lines.

So the answer, which I'm sure you already know, was by sheer numbers.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: stephen on March 18, 2009, 06:45:14 PM
Great idea, but it would just be another heavily perked tank for the M4's to have thier way with..
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 19, 2009, 10:34:39 AM
What do you think the perks would be on the Panther, I heard the gun was as effective as the 88 on the tiger....

It had a higher muzzle velocity and similar high accuracy but it dropped off more dramatically over the 88mm at longer ranges due to being a smaller round. Using specialised ammo APCBC-HE the panthers gun had more penetration against armour but the 88mm had better penetration and range with normal AP and HE shells again probably due to it just being a bigger calibre. The germans ran short of tungsten very quickly too so you might see a layout of 2 HVAP :P. As for the perk the value it should resemble the current firefly....as it was just more accurate when taking GV ah modeling into question
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigKev03 on March 19, 2009, 04:29:03 PM
I would like to see the Panther as well but it would have to have a good perk put on it.  I would say more than the Tiger.  The frontal armor on the Panther was outstanding (about 80mm at a 55 degree angle and 100mm matlet armor) and any shot from the front would make it difficult to kill at range.  The side armor would be the weak spot as it was only about 40mm-50mm.  The 75mm KwK42(L/70) gun would outclass all guns in the game.  Due to the long barrel and the higher powder charge gave this gun can a muzzle velocity that can kill anything in the game at range and other vehicles would have trouble penetrating the Panthers armor at that range.  On a prior post it stated as the range increased it made accuracy a problem.  That is not the case.  The high muzzle velocity and the flat trajectory of the gun made hitting targets easier as accuracy was not sensitive to range.  Bring forth the Panther!!!!!!

BigKev
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Cajunn on March 19, 2009, 06:09:24 PM
I would like to see the Panther as well but it would have to have a good perk put on it.  I would say more than the Tiger.  The frontal armor on the Panther was outstanding (about 80mm at a 55 degree angle and 100mm matlet armor) and any shot from the front would make it difficult to kill at range.  The side armor would be the weak spot as it was only about 40mm-50mm.  The 75mm KwK42(L/70) gun would outclass all guns in the game.  Due to the long barrel and the higher powder charge gave this gun can a muzzle velocity that can kill anything in the game at range and other vehicles would have trouble penetrating the Panthers armor at that range.  On a prior post it stated as the range increased it made accuracy a problem.  That is not the case.  The high muzzle velocity and the flat trajectory of the gun made hitting targets easier as accuracy was not sensitive to range.  Bring forth the Panther!!!!!!

BigKev

Yep yep, they claim it was lethal at 3000 yds.!
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 20, 2009, 11:32:58 AM
On a prior post it stated as the range increased it made accuracy a problem.  That is not the case.  The high muzzle velocity and the flat trajectory of the gun made hitting targets easier as accuracy was not sensitive to range.  Bring forth the Panther!!!!!!

BigKev

Yes it was the case. The 88mm shell 10kg fired from the tiger had more weight thus more lasting velocity. whereas the 7kg shell from the 75mm long barrelled panther gun lost its velocity and dropped off more at longe ranges, the 75mm had superior armour penetration up to about 1500 yards after that it lost momentum much more rapidly than the heavy 88mm shell due to being a smaller lighter shell.....makes perfect sense.

The germans considered using the long barrelled 75mm on the tiger but found sloped armour didnt matter much when when being hit with a colossal 88mm round and it had better HE explosive radius and was more effective in general with all the ammo types. Whereas as I specifically stated before the panther was only better without question with a specific ammo type. Otherwise the tiger would've been fitted out with the same gun as the panther so as to have lighter, smaller, more compact ammo thus more storage. It was also a cheaper gun and smaller so would've lightened to weight on the tiger but they stuck with the 88mm for the above reasons.

Regarding the frontal armour on the panther yes it was superb but many were knocked out from the front by lucky or very well aimed hits by tanks not capable of defeating the panther on paper i.e. . The lower front gun mantel plate often deflected shots downwards into the driver/radio operators 16mm thick compartments and also the firefly was capable of defeating the mantle and gun armour but not the hull using APCBC. I dont think the panther would be more perked than the tiger at all. Its only faster and sexier looking.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Boxboy on March 20, 2009, 12:04:35 PM
I think the answer to that lies in cemetery's around the country. I met a corpsman who had plenty of ghastly stories about "hosing" the crew out of killed Shermans. The salvagable ones were welded up, painted (inside, for obvious reasons :uhoh), given new crews, and returned to the front lines.

So the answer, which I'm sure you already know, was by sheer numbers.

Exactly my point, but we cannot model that in AHII or anyother game, unless we make some kind of Bomberesk formations for t-34's where you launch 5 tanks to 1 Tiger (hardly possible IMHO)
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Masherbrum on March 20, 2009, 12:44:05 PM
It had a higher muzzle velocity and similar high accuracy but it dropped off more dramatically over the 88mm at longer ranges due to being a smaller round. Using specialised ammo APCBC-HE the panthers gun had more penetration against armour but the 88mm had better penetration and range with normal AP and HE shells again probably due to it just being a bigger calibre. The germans ran short of tungsten very quickly too so you might see a layout of 2 HVAP :P. As for the perk the value it should resemble the current firefly....as it was just more accurate when taking GV ah modeling into question.

I'm curious, where are you getting this info from?   The bottom line is this, the 75mm on the Panther took out most Allied armor out to 3,000 yards.   Any book, documentary, information, etc that I have EVER read, has stated this to be fact.   Not only that many sources I have read have said that "The Panther is superior to the T34/85 in frontal fire."   The Panther Model G could also penetrate T34/85 frontal armor at 2,000m.   

Most probably don't understand the comparison between the 75mm and the 88mm.   The Panther is a MEDIUM tank, not a Heavy Tank like the Tiger.   However, the design of the Panther is carried over in the Leopard II and Abrams.

If the Panther was EVER implemented, it would be at almost Tiger level Perk. 
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 20, 2009, 03:10:44 PM
I'm curious, where are you getting this info from?   The bottom line is this, the 75mm on the Panther took out most Allied armor out to 3,000 yards.   Any book, documentary, information, etc that I have EVER read, has stated this to be fact.   Not only that many sources I have read have said that "The Panther is superior to the T34/85 in frontal fire."   The Panther Model G could also penetrate T34/85 frontal armor at 2,000m.   

Most probably don't understand the comparison between the 75mm and the 88mm.   The Panther is a MEDIUM tank, not a Heavy Tank like the Tiger.   However, the design of the Panther is carried over in the Leopard II and Abrams.

If the Panther was EVER implemented, it would be at almost Tiger level Perk. 


What does ""The Panther is superior to the T34/85 in frontal fire." mean? For taking hits?? no watermelon sherlock. An 88 hitting a t34/85 at 96000000 degree angle would rip it apart - a panthers shell would slide nicely in between the metal molecules. Thanks for also pointing out the blatantly obvious that the panther is a medium tank, we never knew that. The panther influenced a lot of tank designs a long long time before any leopard or abrams came out. Just like most german technology did.

I'm basing this from cross referencing armour penetration tables from the german bundes war archive and allied tests pre and post war.

German 8.8cm KwK36 L/56
Projectile weight: 10.4 kg (APCBC)
Sectional Density: 1.910
Muzzle Velocity: 773 m/s
Total Kinetic Energy: 3107 KJ
Kinetic Energy pr. cm^2: 51.09 KJ

German 7.5cm KwK42 L/70
Projectile weight: 6.8 kg (APCBC)
Sectional Density: 1.719
Muzzle Velocity: 925 m/s
Total Kinetic Energy: 2909 KJ
Kinetic Energy pr. cm^2: 65.88 KJ

The panther could take out ANY allied tank within 2000 yards to say 3000 would not be including late war allied tanks like the IS2 but i'm not going to say that with 100% certainty. As i said before the tigers 88m didnt suffer from as much distance falloff as the panthers lighter projectile did even though the panthers shell had a significant initial higher velocity. Mass x momentum etc potential kinetic not going there as i dont really care. Wikpedia has amazingly got something right after a quick check - the tigers 88mm gun figures are certainly correct I'm not sure about the panthers as theybare in different increments but this is probably correct on 100 to 2000m

7.5-cm KwK 42    70    Panzergranate 39/42    138    124    111    99    89
                                Panzergranate 40/42    194    174    149    127    106


. Its also worth noting the tigers had its sights adjusted to 4000m for AP rounds and 5000m for HE - I think the panther ranged out to 3000-4000max obviously the 5000m on tiger was for HE and the 75mm HE mm wasnt worth firing at that range.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7.5_cm_KwK_42

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8.8_cm_KwK_36



Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Masherbrum on March 20, 2009, 03:41:19 PM
What does ""The Panther is superior to the T34/85 in frontal fire." mean? For taking hits?? no watermelon sherlock. An 88 hitting a t34/85 at 96000000 degree angle would rip it apart - a panthers shell would slide nicely in between the metal molecules. Thanks for also pointing out the blatantly obvious that the panther is a medium tank, we never knew that. The panther influenced a lot of tank designs a long long time before any leopard or abrams came out. Just like most german technology did.

I'm basing this from cross referencing armour penetration tables from the german bundes war archive and allied tests pre and post war.

German 8.8cm KwK36 L/56
Projectile weight: 10.4 kg (APCBC)
Sectional Density: 1.910
Muzzle Velocity: 773 m/s
Total Kinetic Energy: 3107 KJ
Kinetic Energy pr. cm^2: 51.09 KJ

German 7.5cm KwK42 L/70
Projectile weight: 6.8 kg (APCBC)
Sectional Density: 1.719
Muzzle Velocity: 925 m/s
Total Kinetic Energy: 2909 KJ
Kinetic Energy pr. cm^2: 65.88 KJ

The panther could take out ANY allied tank within 2000 yards to say 3000 would not be including late war allied tanks like the IS2 but i'm not going to say that with 100% certainty. As i said before the tigers 88m didnt suffer from as much distance falloff as the panthers lighter projectile did even though the panthers shell had a significant initial higher velocity. Mass x momentum etc potential kinetic not going there as i dont really care. Wikpedia has amazingly got something right after a quick check - the tigers 88mm gun figures are certainly correct I'm not sure about the panthers as theybare in different increments but this is probably correct on 100 to 2000m

7.5-cm KwK 42    70    Panzergranate 39/42    138    124    111    99    89
                                Panzergranate 40/42    194    174    149    127    106


. Its also worth noting the tigers had its sights adjusted to 4000m for AP rounds and 5000m for HE - I think the panther ranged out to 3000-4000max obviously the 5000m on tiger was for HE and the 75mm HE mm wasnt worth firing at that range.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7.5_cm_KwK_42

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8.8_cm_KwK_36

It seems you're so hell bent on anger you mixed up your info.   The bold above states that you say the Panther has an 88mm main gun, when it has a 75mm main gun.  I never mentioned the Tiger with the exception of comparing the two categories.

I'm sorry but I know all of this information already.   The Panther was the best tank of WWII, the only sad thing about it, was the use of inadequate Final Drive gears for it's weight.   They were designed for a 30 ton weight limit, not the final weight used in the field (42-44 tons which varied on additional tracks, equipment, etc). 

As for 3000m, given the right adversary, I bet it could knock out an opposing tank at that distance.   That "smaller" but "longer barrelled" Main gun was nasty.   The lighter round used the velocity instead of mass.   Both have their pro's and con's.   But again, I'm staying on the line of the topic of the thread, not the Tiger. 

Don't bother responding.   It isn't worth it.   
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 21, 2009, 09:56:09 AM
I like how you included don't bother responding...why because you're wrong and don't want to get shown up anymore? The tiger kwk 36 beat the 75m kwk42 at ranges exceeding 1500m end of. I mixed up no info in my prior thread, read the sentence again or how many times it takes....where does it say i said the panther had a 88m gun? If english isnt your first language your excused if it is then that was a pretty bad attempt at an attack, typos or spelling attacks died out as an art form in the 20th century.
I'm not hell bent on anger either I'm hell bent on putting facts in peoples faces attacking posts and using ridiculous information glazed from discovery or the history channels or from books that raped another books dodgy facts. But you can be my friend for realising the panther was the best tank of the war :).
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Masherbrum on March 21, 2009, 11:40:07 AM
I like how you included don't bother responding...why because you're wrong and don't want to get shown up anymore? The tiger kwk 36 beat the 75m kwk42 at ranges exceeding 1500m end of. I mixed up no info in my prior thread, read the sentence again or how many times it takes....where does it say i said the panther had a 88m gun? If english isnt your first language your excused if it is then that was a pretty bad attempt at an attack, typos or spelling attacks died out as an art form in the 20th century.
I'm not hell bent on anger either I'm hell bent on putting facts in peoples faces attacking posts and using ridiculous information glazed from discovery or the history channels or from books that raped another books dodgy facts. But you can be my friend for realising the panther was the best tank of the war :).

I'm not wrong.   You made comparisons that I never did.   I NEVER MENTIONED THE TIGER I's GUN!   I see your reading comprehension is still failing, as I pointed it out in my first reply.   You're the only one who is again stating the obvious that a larger caliber gun, is more effective.

Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 21, 2009, 02:58:39 PM
My reading failed? I never said the panther had a 88mm gun......which you tried to highlight incorrectly in bold. Re-read the sentence like I said before.
"An 88 hitting a t34/85 at 96000000 degree angle would rip it apart - a panthers shell would slide nicely in between the metal molecules." Now where does that say the panther had 88mm gun??? Your wrong, your reading comprehension failed.

The larger calibre gun (88mm) was only more effective beyond 1500 metres too by the way, the 75mm kwk 42 penetrated more armour all the way out to that distance until it lost its velocity whereby the 88mm became superior at amour penetration. I don't care if you didnt mention the tigers gun but since you made A.D.D comments like the tiger was a heavy tank and panther medium I decided to add in a bit of info. The general direction of the thread had people thinking that the panthers kwk 42 was god almighty 3000m kill gun so i'm not directly aiming things your way with each sentence.

I could also nit pick and make bold highlights to your crazy incomprehensible sentence "The Panther is superior to the T34/85 in frontal fire."  NO ONE MENTIONED THE T34/85 FRONTAL FIRE!!!! what is frontal fire? shooting when the turret is 100% aligned with the hull correctly by factory default or taking hits to the front glacis/hull/mantel?

I'm not stating the obvious in saying a larger calibre gun is more effective, you sure don't have much information on these topics if you believe the 88 was totally more effective. The 75mm was better at AP within likely combat ranges 800-1200m, the 88mm was better in a more all round manner (soft targets, bunkers, longe range shelling) and had a longer AP range. 

Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: GREric on March 23, 2009, 08:18:05 PM
Wasnt it called "Germany's Problem Child"? But I would love to have it! I would own everyone in it.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 23, 2009, 08:37:58 PM
Wasnt it called "Germany's Problem Child"? But I would love to have it! I would own everyone in it.

Guderian referred to the initial panthers as that as over half had to be recalled for refitting of the intial 500 or so produced but it wasn't a common or lasting nickname afaik.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on March 24, 2009, 10:53:16 AM
Exactly my point, but we cannot model that in AHII or anyother game, unless we make some kind of Bomberesk formations for t-34's where you launch 5 tanks to 1 Tiger (hardly possible IMHO)


This isn't WW2 it's a game where everyone can use the plane and gv set so sheer numbers that the Russian and the Americans isn't applicable here .
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on March 24, 2009, 11:13:33 AM


 The lower front gun mantel plate often deflected shots downwards into the driver/radio operators 16mm thick compartments and also the firefly was capable of defeating the mantle and gun armour but not the hull using APCBC. I dont think the panther would be more perked than the tiger at all. Its only faster and sexier looking.
[/quote]





This mantle problem was corrected in the G model and might have been in the A as well, I'll have to check on that. People are missing the point here . The Panther was designed to defeat the T-34 and it did that job well. When the Panther and Tigers were designed the American and British tanks were being  handled by Mk IV's in the desert. These tanks were designed for the open grass lands of Russia not the hedge rows of Normandy. Side armor wasn't a concern for the type of warfare that was being conducted in Russia. Most tank battles in Russia were done at distance and in open terrain where frontal armor was the only concern. The side armor was adequate for standoff tank battles. If the Germans fought the Firefly at standoff ranges then goodbye Firefly. The German gun and armor set up would have rendered the Firefly at a huge disadvantage from the simple fact is that the Sherman tank could be knocked out at over 3000 yards head on by the Tiger and Panthers. I don't think the Firefly's gun was capable of taking out a Tiger or even a Panther's frontal armor at those ranges. Also you have to remember that German infantry and armor operated in harmony with one another. It was the Panzer Grenader's job to protect the flanks of the Panzer's and from infantry placed magnetic mines. No other army in WW2 had the type of tactics the Germans did in relation to armor and infantry unison

Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 24, 2009, 12:23:42 PM

 The lower front gun mantel plate often deflected shots downwards into the driver/radio operators 16mm thick compartments and also the firefly was capable of defeating the mantle and gun armour but not the hull using APCBC. I dont think the panther would be more perked than the tiger at all. Its only faster and sexier looking.






This mantle problem was corrected in the G model and might have been in the A as well, I'll have to check on that. People are missing the point here . The Panther was designed to defeat the T-34 and it did that job well. When the Panther and Tigers were designed the American and British tanks were being  handled by Mk IV's in the desert. These tanks were designed for the open grass lands of Russia not the hedge rows of Normandy. Side armor wasn't a concern for the type of warfare that was being conducted in Russia. Most tank battles in Russia were done at distance and in open terrain where frontal armor was the only concern. The side armor was adequate for standoff tank battles. If the Germans fought the Firefly at standoff ranges then goodbye Firefly. The German gun and armor set up would have rendered the Firefly at a huge disadvantage from the simple fact is that the Sherman tank could be knocked out at over 3000 yards head on by the Tiger and Panthers. I don't think the Firefly's gun was capable of taking out a Tiger or even a Panther's frontal armor at those ranges. Also you have to remember that German infantry and armor operated in harmony with one another. It was the Panzer Grenader's job to protect the flanks of the Panzer's and from infantry placed magnetic mines. No other army in WW2 had the type of tactics the Germans did in relation to armor and infantry unison



The shot trap wasn't corrected until late september 1944 on the Aus G. The panther was a germanized version of the T34 to an extent and was intended to stop it yes...but I doubt the germans thought they'd only be using the panther in the east after '43 as optimistic as some of their high command were...

The side armour was a concern because the frontal armour had already been given a no no by hitler upon initial development and ordered to be upgraded a further 20mm or so. The sides were kept low on armour to save weight as with most german tanks the planned weight was always exceeded by late prototype phase. I don't think any tank was designed for hedge row fighting - some were just more suitable to it by chance.

The Germans doctrine or having troops protect tanks only came into effect when they started producing big heavy hitting tanks (tiger I & II, panther) instead of their nimble concentrated blitzkrieg tactics with the earlier panzers. 
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on March 24, 2009, 01:34:14 PM
I am referring to the use of troops with the heaver tanks and yes during the early stages of Blitzkrieg it wasn't implamented to the extent that it was later in the war. Hedgerow fighting for the late war German tanks were successful primarily because of the consealed defensive positions it took up for fighting , hence the story of Barkmann's corner. But surprise on the flanks was always a threat because of the lack of panzer grenadiers in most cases and the close in fighting that was present with that type of fighting where in Russia it really wasn't as much a factor. I don't think the Germans even gave  American or the British armor a second thought. Having fought against the Sherman and almost all the British tank set in Africa so having tanks like the Tiger and the Panther was all icing on the cake. By the time the Germans fought the American and British in Normandy even better tanks and tank destroyers were in place. Many Tigers and Panthers lost during the Normandy battles were mechanical related and the others were destroyed by air. From what I have read not many Tigers were once and for all knocked out due to damage done by another tank. Many were retrieved from the field and repaired. Ernst Barkmann speaks of how he was assigned another Panther while his was being repaired and upon climbing into the tank noticed brain matter that was still splattered on the interior of the tank. His tank was repaired and damaged again and repaired again until it was finally lost due to falling into a bomb crater and destroyed by the crew. Most if not all WW2 tanks were prone with thin side armor even todays tanks have thinner side armor in comparsion to their frontal armor.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 24, 2009, 02:06:22 PM
I am referring to the use of troops with the heaver tanks and yes during the early stages of Blitzkrieg it wasn't implamented to the extent that it was later in the war. Hedgerow fighting for the late war German tanks were successful primarily because of the consealed defensive positions it took up for fighting , hence the story of Barkmann's corner. But surprise on the flanks was always a threat because of the lack of panzer grenadiers in most cases and the close in fighting that was present with that type of fighting where in Russia it really wasn't as much a factor. I don't think the Germans even gave  American or the British armor a second thought. Having fought against the Sherman and almost all the British tank set in Africa so having tanks like the Tiger and the Panther was all icing on the cake. By the time the Germans fought the American and British in Normandy even better tanks and tank destroyers were in place. Many Tigers and Panthers lost during the Normandy battles were mechanical related and the others were destroyed by air. From what I have read not many Tigers were once and for all knocked out due to damage done by another tank. Many were retrieved from the field and repaired. Ernst Barkmann speaks of how he was assigned another Panther while his was being repaired and upon climbing into the tank noticed brain matter that was still splattered on the interior of the tank. His tank was repaired and damaged again and repaired again until it was finally lost due to falling into a bomb crater and destroyed by the crew. Most if not all WW2 tanks were prone with thin side armor even todays tanks have thinner side armor in comparsion to their frontal armor.

I think up to 43% of all german tanks in Normandy and resulting battles afterards in France were abandoned or destroyed by their own crews, the amount of tanks knocked out by air power was massively exaggerated but they certainly made bits of other softer AFVs, I cant seem to find the figures now but I think only about 20% of german tanks were knocked out by enemy tanks of course usually by flanking with 4-5 shermans and the many hidden AT guns which claimed more than allied tanks themselves.

After reading Tigers in the Mud by Otto Carius its just phenomenal how those tigers stood up to shots from all angles and all calibres and your very correct on most of them being knocked out with non fatal hits, they often counted 60+ hits from 76m AT guns tank shells and loads of AT rifle hits near the vision slots.
They towed them back at night usually or sometimes by another tiger during battle  (which was also a major cause of breakdowns due to the stress placed on the towing tank) to be repaired/welded/refitted and back in action sometimes the next day, brain matter and blood were a common occurrence in the very later days of the war when there was no time to do anything from many eye witness tankers accounts I've read. Panthers were more prone to fires and ammo blowing up so there wasnt as many of those "recycled" - I think its also related to lower quality armour due to lack of mangenese - not even its more vulnerable sides and rear.

The british conducted tests and found german armour of 80mm in'43 approximate to 92 of theirs whilst seeing what range they could penetrate a tiger with a firefly (they incorrectly thought 1800m for a long time). 
Bottom line I'd love to see the panther make its entry into this game.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: shreck on March 24, 2009, 02:36:29 PM
  P A N T H E R ,  will do nicely!     TY :aok
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on March 24, 2009, 02:38:49 PM
Tigers in the Mud is a good book. The best reading I have come across about panzer battles is "1st SS Pzr. and 12th SS Pnzr div Panzer Battles in Normandy" also Amazon sells these soft bound books one called "Panzer Aces" and the other escape me but. Panzer Aces is a number of different stories form various famous tank commanders from Russia to the battles in France. Some of these stories are amazing. How they did it day in and day out still amazes me.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigKev03 on March 24, 2009, 06:43:27 PM
If we got the panther in this game it would have to have a high perk on it.  Even though its armor was not as thick as the tiger's its gun had more penetration due to the higher muzzle velocity.  In this game we tend to see GV battles at ranges less than 2000m.  Very few times do I see someone engaging from extreme range and I blame this on the terrain in this game.  If we had the desert map terrain or a steppe type map then you would see more extended GV battles.  But with our style of spawn camping, short drives to bases, and base defense we won't see the actual lethality of the Panther as it was in WWII.  The Panther hands down would defeat any armor of any vehicle in this game at range (even the tiger).  In this game I have given up on expecting realism in vehicle damage.  Example:  I am in a tiger and I hit a panzer or a sherman at 1000m or less from the broadshide below the turret.  This round in real life would have destroyed or disabled the vehicle.  In this game the vehicle does not blow but contiues to operate as if nothing has happened.  How many times have you hit a vehicle more than once and it contiue to fire at you an kill you in one shot.  I dont like this but what can you do?  What Ihave done is begin to fight at range when I am in the main battle tanks.  True the panther had thinner armor than the tiger but due to its slope of 55 degrees it was harder to penetrate as compared to the tigers vertical armor.  3" of sloped armor could be compared to 4" or 5" inches of vertical armor.  Only weakness to the Panther was side armor but so was the tiger when it came to side armor.  In addition, the Panther had a value in real life that I dont think this game can replicate.  The Panther was stabilized by suspension that consisted of front drive sprockets, rear idlers and eight double-interleaved rubber-rimmed steel bogie wheels on each side, suspended on a dual torsion bar suspension which provided a very stable firing platform even while on the move.  The panther could shoot and move and hit all at the same time.  Anyway I would liketo see the Panther as well as other vehicles but I dont think we will see it anytime soon.

Out,
BigKev

Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Cajunn on March 24, 2009, 06:53:54 PM
If we got the panther in this game it would have to have a high perk on it.  Even though its armor was not as thick as the tiger's its gun had more penetration due to the higher muzzle velocity.  In this game we tend to see GV battles at ranges less than 2000m.  Very few times do I see someone engaging from extreme range and I blame this on the terrain in this game.  I

Out,
BigKev





Hummmmmm, I have been in some really long range engagements in the past so I don't know if I can support this statement.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: rapp25 on March 24, 2009, 07:00:55 PM
I've hit a t34 at 7-8k with a panzer IV (I could judge from planes flying overhead) and I also regularly see some of the GV lovers in my squad on top of hills firing at distances whereupon they probably have exceeded that. I distinctly remember running around as a pilot in the middle of an enemy GV spawn directing fire from a guy firing from the top of a hill, a rather humerous waste of my time but was sure funny seeing those super long range kills that wouldnt even exist in modern day tanking.

I don't think the panther should be heavily perked at all as the GVing lacks depth. The only real advantage might be the high velocity gun making it easier to range real quick compared to other tanks but it would be minimal with the current modelling imo.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: Tr1gg22 on March 27, 2009, 03:15:58 PM
show me the panther! ;)
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: stephen on March 27, 2009, 04:06:19 PM
The problems in GV'ing needs to be address'd. i.e. Shermans being bullet proof in the turret when hit dead on at 500yds from panthers, and tigers taking damage on the frontal armor from insane ranges(over 3000).
Its isnt a gripe, its an actual gulf in leathality bettween a low perk sherman and a hi perk tiger, and it just isnt fair...

I've just about taken my last Tiger out for anything other than spawn camping... the Panther is going to get the same treatment if we dont do somthing to make changes happen.

I take a Tiger out because its hard to kill, and with the low cost of the firefly that just hasnt been the case for a very long time.

The short barreld t34 was introduced 1st, and its a coffin, yet the 1st sherman is a god machine with a mantlet that even the 88 has problems getting through, let alone the turret itself..
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: BigPlay on March 27, 2009, 05:23:22 PM
The problems in GV'ing needs to be address'd. i.e. Shermans being bullet proof in the turret when hit dead on at 500yds from panthers, and tigers taking damage on the frontal armor from insane ranges(over 3000).
Its isnt a gripe, its an actual gulf in leathality bettween a low perk sherman and a hi perk tiger, and it just isnt fair...

I've just about taken my last Tiger out for anything other than spawn camping... the Panther is going to get the same treatment if we dont do somthing to make changes happen.

I take a Tiger out because its hard to kill, and with the low cost of the firefly that just hasnt been the case for a very long time.

The short barreld t34 was introduced 1st, and its a coffin, yet the 1st sherman is a god machine with a mantlet that even the 88 has problems getting through, let alone the turret itself..


We don't have a Panther ....yet. I wish we did.
Title: Re: PANTHER--> please
Post by: stephen on March 30, 2009, 05:46:58 PM
I meant the panzer mark IV