Hi, I’m Seli, a Russian tank player. I have the complete tree and several premium vehicles, and I wanted to point out an inconsistency in the BR of the three T-72B3s.
T-72B3 (11.3 BR) This seems like a somewhat odd BR to me, as it was previously at 11.7, though personally I find it more comfortable at this range.
T-72B3A (12.3 BR) It’s essentially the same vehicle, but without the side ERA bags and with the Arena-M system. Paying a full 1 BR solely for the ability to intercept missiles — useful against CAS — feels excessive to me. At most, I’d place it at 11.7. I usually use it in open terrain, where CAS and helicopters are a lesser concern.
T-72B3 Arena (11.0 BR) And here comes the big contradiction: this vehicle is practically a T-72B3A, but with only 8 charges for the Arena system and the V-84 engine. Despite those disadvantages, there’s a full 1 BR difference between them. In my opinion, it could perfectly sit at 11.3.
Furthermore, the T-72B3 Arena shares its BR with the T-80UD/UE, the T-72B3 Arena with considerably superior upgrades. To top it off, the T-80UD is at 10.7, the range where third-generation MBTs already have thermal vision — such as the Leopard 2A4 or the M1 Abrams — which makes the comparison even more striking.
Well you just pointed out the fantastic way of “balancing by data” done by this game, where the BR change is decided according to how people play it. Your reasoning makes absolute sense: two tanks that are literally side grade to each other should be at the same BR,and yet this is not the case.
The only consideration i would make, however,is regarding the T-80UD: 10.7 is still perfect as a BR and the lack of thermals is bearable considering you have amazing protection and a fantastic firepower. I tried this tank when it was 10.3 and it was absolutely nasty,now that it’s in 10.7 i didn’t hear any complaints so i think it is still good
the B3A also has relict on the side instead of contact 5
and the standard B3 has an awful stock grind because of the T-72B3 UBH modification which gives an extra 25% HP (it might also give relict ERA but I’m not sure), which the B3 Arena doesnt get at all but the B3A basically starts with
so there is a lot more nuance than you give credit for
B3 starts with Kontakt-5 only all around the tank (well, mostly all around) and the UBH package gives it dual Relikt on the sides of the hull and on the sides of the turret,while the B3A gets a single layer of Relikt only on its sides