Currently, 35mm SPAA like the Gepard, XM246, PGZ09, Za-35, Cheiftan Marksman, and ITPSV are very strong. Their APHE round is ridiculous, capable of shredding any tanks apart with ease coupled with their high fire rate. Playing the Gepard at 8.3 feels nasty, as while there are tanks you cannot pen frontally, you can disable them in a matter of seconds.
I propose a nerf to the APHE shell, as the amount of post pen damage this thing does is ridiculous. Needing not only the penetration, but the APHE filler can make it so that these things won’t be used as IFV’s instead of their intended role as SPAA, while still being able to defend themselves.
These tanks currently function as better IFV’s than IFV’s like the Badger, and I think it’s time for them to finally be forced into the real role of anti air, which they already excel at.
A simple fix without Gajin putting in the monumental effort of slightly tweaking APHE, would be to move all the Gepards to 9.0, and the Za-35 and Itspsv to 9.3.
Tell me you haven’t used the M163 and Shilka without telling me you haven’t used the M163 or Shilka.
M163 is probably the worst radar SPAA in the game. Radar is inaccurate and the Vulcan, while good on aircraft, is atrocious on a ground based platform. The ZSU-37-2 is a better AA than the Shilka in my experience.
While CAS at 8.3 isn’t particularly strong, it still exists in enough capacity where nations like Germany and Japan don’t get anything else besides 35mm SPAA at that BR, leaving some nations with no valid SPAA at that BR.
That doesn’t work, because at the end of the day, they are still gun based SPAA. At that BR, you start fighting aircraft with early laser guided munitions (A4E if I remember correctly) and it’s at the same BR as the M247, which is a much better AA than the Gepards in my experience.
I’d rather they just outright remove the APHE shell than move them up to 9.0. Ideally, they make the APHE shell actually function normally and not be ridiculous but if they can’t do that, then just remove the APHE and leave it at 8.3.
I’d be fine with taking the APHE away. At the end of the day, they are still SPAA’s and these ones specifically can usually carry 40 APDS rounds in the off chance they need to defend themself.
I see it as perfectly balanced. Leaves them with a way to defend themselves while also forcing them into their anti air role.
The “radar” sucks so much it wont even give u even a remotely usable trajector and since your cannon isnt stabilized yeah good luck doing anything to a moving target (cough jets) and the guns spread is horrendous. It is arguably one of the worst SPAA in the entire game. Shilka is a tad more usable but still not something i really wanna have to rely on as my anti air