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The volumetric shell mechanic, added to War Thunder on September 2nd, 2020, in the “Raining Fire” update, doesn’t accurately reflect the real-world physics of shell behavior and their physical impact on tanks (or other objects). Here’s why.
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The volumetric shell mechanic implemented in the game gave all shells a “volume,” thereby adding a new quality to all shells with a caliber of 15mm or more, which now accounts for the shell’s dimensions. Previously, a shell was a single point, and all penetration and other shell effects on a tank were calculated based on a single hit point. Since September 2020, all shells have multiple hit points.
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While this qualitative change to shells did lead to a reduction in hits and penetrations in areas where a shell wouldn’t penetrate in real life, the developers overlooked a very crucial physical aspect of shells: energy.
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Energy is the most vital quality of kinetic shells in real life. A shell’s penetration and subsequent damage to tanks occur precisely because of the shell’s energy, which is formed by multiplying an object’s speed by its mass. The more energy a shell has, the greater its penetration.
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Unfortunately, neither in 2020 nor five years later in 2025 have the developers added this very important, perhaps the most important, characteristic to shells. The consequences of this are felt by every player to this day.
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Currently, in the game, if a shell fails to penetrate an object that it should penetrate according to its characteristics due to a poorly configured tank model or other technical nuances of the game, the shell “disappears” without dealing any damage to the tank that was shot at. Of course, this didn’t happen in reality.
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In real life, if a shell failed to penetrate a tank’s armor plate, the immense kinetic energy remaining in the shell would cause critical, and sometimes catastrophic, damage to the tank’s mechanisms, aggregates, and components, even without actual penetration. For instance, a 122mm D-25T shell from an IS-2, weighing 16 kg and traveling at over 800 m/s, possessed enormous kinetic energy that didn’t just vanish “into thin air.” Instead, it transferred to the tank upon impact. For example, a “Panther” after such a hit would become combat-ineffective due to critical damage to its aiming drives, control components, and other damages, including potential incapacitation or injury to the crew.
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Even if a hypothetical IS-2 failed to penetrate the upper glacis of a “Panther,” which in itself was extremely rare in reality, the “Panther” would sustain such damage that it would require field or factory repairs.
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Accordingly, the in-game volumetric shell mechanic urgently requires refinement or the addition of a new shell mechanic that imparts energy to them. Such changes would achieve both greater realism in the game and unlock more potential for large-caliber guns. However, leaving things “as is” will continue to be a mistake that will cost both players and developers dearly.
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Consequently, the in-game volumetric shell mechanic urgently requires immediate refinement or the addition of a new shell mechanic that imparts energy to them.
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Such changes would achieve both greater realism in the game and unlock more potential for large-caliber guns. However, leaving things ‘as is’ will continue to be a mistake that will cost both players and developers dearly.
There is nothing to change.
It functions, there are no existing bugs related to volumetric shells.
Even World of Tanks has volumetric rounds.
I get that heavy tanks are difficult to learn how to defeat, but keep at it.
In-fact in your post your only issue was armor, which would be a tank by tank basis.
It seems you are not a good player or you ain’t play in this game for a long time. If you can’t see the problem of volumetric shells, you should try to play for example on IS-2, SU/ISU-152, T30, T34, FV4005 and many other tanks with big guns. At least, you don’t even need play on this tanks to understand that. This problem you can feel on any other tanks with 15mm+ caliber gun.
I have been playing in War Thunder since August 2014 and I feel the problems of volumetric shells every battle. Tell me, why am I can’t penetrate and kill Panther into the tank’s side with 105mm shell T29?