- Yes
- No
caid’s suggestion #128
I would like to suggest a more balanced yet funny to-play alternative to the M2A4, the M1 Combat car
the idea behind this suggestion is not without consideration and for some it could be debated. but to my opinion, the M2A4 is the best reserve tank of the game. it has great mobility, Great firepower and good protection. those who seek to define a good tank would agree it’s the balance between mobility, firepower, and protection. those 3 main points are the most important criteria that make a tank good or not. of course, this does not apply to specialized tanks the same way. the M2A4 is not a specialized tank. it’s a Light tank used for general duty. if we look at the other reserve tanks, the M2A4 can place himself amounts the top 3 in each of those 3 categories. no other tanks can pretend to do that much. the only rival is the BT-5 which is more mobile and carries more firepower while being weaker, and the Strv M/31 who carry more firepower, similar protection, and more mobility. if we look at the overall ranking, the M2A4 ends in my opinion first followed by the BT-5 up close and the Strv M/31 a bit behind. it sounds unfair to the other nations who have reserve vehicles sometimes much weaker. and if you tank the M2A4 and give it a bit more protection, it becomes the M3 Stuart that sits comfortably at 2.0
this suggestion aims to offer the players an alternative to this tank that would be more fair for the other nation without making the gameplay for the new players less enjoyable. The M1 is more mobile but has a lot less protection and firepower than the M2A4. it would be rather easy to play but would often find foes that would simply be too hard to engage without being careful or exploiting their weakness.
The Combat Car M1 was a design made by Henry Knox who spent the last 8 years doing trials and failed to develop a new tank in competition with the Engineer Walter Christie. The Combat car M1 was tested in August 1934 under the name of Combat Car T5. the tank was accepted to service in 1939 for the cavalry as the Combat Car M1. 89 of that tank was built from 1935 to 1938. they had serial differences over the M2 light tank used by the Infantry. notably, the different cupola for the commander, slightly different suspension, rubber track, and the 12.7mm shoulder stabilized. The combat car M1 had a poorer visibility for the commander which made them tend to have their head out during the maneuver. the track was all metal and the armament didn’t have a shoulder pad which made them less stable. serial variants were built with little difference from each other. the first 58 had a flat front turret with a round back making it into a “D” shape view from above. while the 31 last had an octagonal turret shape. the engine cover was also slightly different with the last vehicles changing from the round engine cover to the angular one. but those didn’t make the tank be considered as a different variant. in 1938 a new variant was created under the designation of M1A1 combat car which had a redesigned rear hull to allow easier access to the engine and give a better fuel capacity, and the buggy was moved a bit more to the rear. 19 M1A1 combat car was built in 1938. The last version was the M1A1E1 which was introduced in 1938 with a Gibson engine. As those 2 variants are not performing differently and would make the developer waste time creating a redundant design, I would suggest to only the first M1 combat car introduced in 1935.
the M1 combat car served the US cavalry until 1940 when it was incorporated to the Armored force as the M1A1 light tank. it served mainly as a training vehicle and was notably used in the Philippines in 1941-1942 the tanks were withdrawn from Services in 1942 as it was just considered obsolete for the US needs. it never saw combat. about 110 of those tanks of all variants were built.
Firepower
the main armament of this tank is the 12.7mm M2HB. This heavy machine gun was designed as standard anti-tank armament in the US during the 30s. naturally, this was a choice that was quickly obsolete as the armor of the tanks quickly became thicker during the 30s which made the heavy machine-gun soon become just inadequate. the high fire rate and the penetration in the 30mm at close range still make this armament capable of dealing with a lot of targets, particularly in the early WW2 vehicles. the elevation ranges from -10° to +40° which makes this tank quite comfortable in almost all terrain. the turret can turn on 360° which makes it easier to play than the M2A2. a 7.62mm M1919A4 is placed in the turret and manned by the gunner having an independent fire angle. it is also capable of the same elevation and depression. there is also a roof-mounted 7.62mm and a bow-mounted 7.62mm all with independent use. 600 rounds for the 12.7mm and 6,700 rounds for the 7.62mm are carried. the tank do not include a shoulder stabilizer for any of those guns.
Mobility
the tank would be highly mobile to the point it would be annoying for the other player and easy to lose control. mounting the Continental R-670-3, -5, W-670-7 providing up to 262 hp, the tank will not lack power to move around. this engine is a pretty strong one that is also found in other M2 and M3 light tanks. but what makes this tank most interesting is the weight being about 8.5 tonnes which makes it a lot lighter than the M2A4 or M3 light tank. this makes the tank have a much greater acceleration and also a higher top speed. capable of reaching 72.4 km/h (45 mph) it would be one of the fastest tracked tanks of the game. with a power weight of over 30 hp/tonnes, it would be pretty hard to catch up even with the modern MBTs. the transmission being the same as the M2A2 will give the tank a 5 forward and 1 backward gear.
Protection
the protection of this tank is nothing exceptional. but it is still pretty decent compared to the other reserve tanks. with 16mm on all sides except the top and bottom, it would be capable of taking LMG fire and shrapnel without issue. the main armament including the heavy machine gun would be a real treat for this tank. the tank is fairly small and very nimble which would make it rather difficult to track and hit at long range. the crew of 4 men is disposed of the same way the M2A4 and M3 light tanks are in-game. 2 men in the turret, 2 men in the hull. the commander is manning the 12.7mm while the gunner is manning the 7.62mm. if one of them is gone, the armament will be disabled naturally.
Sources
Technical Manual For The Light Tank M3 AMTORG Edition Dated 1942
FM 23-65 Basic Field Manual Browning Machine Gun Caliber .50, HB, M2 (Mounted In Combat Vehicles) April, 10th, 1940
Special Text No. 48 Automatic Weapons 1939 Edition
FM 23-50 Browning Machine Gun Caliber .30, HB, M1919A4 (Mounted In Combat Vehicles) Manuals Dated 1940 and April, 12th, 1942
Spoiler
Many (most) of the source was taken from the Original topic made by ACR_1990_N64@psn which suggested this tank in the old forum. a large part of this suggestion should be credited to him.