The Merkava Mk.4 in War Thunder: A Call for Accurate Armor Modeling
After extensive gameplay with the Israeli ground forces and particularly the Merkava series, it’s clear that the Merkava Mk.4 is currently one of the least accurately represented MBTs in top-tier War Thunder. This is not a matter of personal preference — the discrepancy between the tank’s real-world specifications and its in-game performance is significant.
Real-World Protection Capabilities
The Merkava Mk.4 was designed with a clear focus on crew survivability and modular protection. Its armor design reflects years of operational experience and combat lessons, incorporating several key elements:
Modular Composite Armor: The Mk.4 uses modular composite armor panels, allowing quick replacement and repairs on the battlefield. This armor is designed to withstand both kinetic and chemical energy threats.
Internal Protective Layout: Unlike most tanks, the Merkava places the engine in the front, acting as an additional layer of protection. The ammunition is stored in isolated, fireproof compartments, further enhancing survivability.
Sloped and Reinforced Turret Armor: The turret is not only heavily armored but also angled to deflect incoming rounds, including top-attack threats.
Crew-Centric Design: Approximately 70% of the tank’s total system weight is focused on protecting the crew — a stark contrast to the global average of ~50%.
These features are well-documented in both official defense sources and open publications.
In War Thunder, the Merkava Mk.4 is modeled with significantly lower protection than what is supported by real-world data:
The kinetic protection values are modeled with an internal armor multiplier of 0.10x, which is lower than even basic rubber-fabric screens used as add-on armor in some vehicles.
Cold War-era APFSDS rounds like DM23 or 3BM22 can penetrate the upper front plate (UFP) and even the turret with relative ease — this is inconsistent with documented protection values of the actual tank.
The rear door of the tank is modeled at 30mm of armor, although reference photos and defense reports indicate that it is significantly thicker and reinforced.
The game currently does not model SLERA (Self Limiting Explosive Reactive Armor) modules, which are part of the Mk.4’s protection system.
The Balance vs. Accuracy Debate
While game balance is important, accuracy should be the foundation. The Merkava should not be intentionally weakened to the point where it becomes non-competitive at 11.3–11.7 BR. A tank from the early 1970s should not be able to consistently penetrate the frontal arc of a modern MBT like the Merkava Mk.4.
An accurate armor model does not imply overpowering the tank — it simply means representing it as it was designed: a well-protected, survivable main battle tank suitable for modern battlefield conditions.
Conclusion
The Merkava Mk.4 is a symbol of Israel’s advanced defense capabilities. Its current state in War Thunder neither reflects its real-world performance nor does it provide players with a fair and immersive gameplay experience. The vehicle deserves to be treated with the same level of detail and respect as other top-tier MBTs in the game.
I urge Gaijin to re-evaluate the Merkava Mk.4’s armor model using verified, publicly available sources and bring its in-game performance closer to reality. This would improve both balance and authenticity across top-tier ground battles.
the merks need their long overdue recognition of crew survivability it is dire they fix this, but gaijin stays silent on the subject. even going as far as to not give any feedback as to why they haven’t fixed the non-working APS. and for anyone who says they nerfed it, no they did not, it is bugged and they haven’t fixed it.
Ah… understood ngl those 90 degree angles on that letter are kinda sus if u ask me…
Know about the balls, and agree… but top meshes are current addition towards top nade attacks and somethink tells me engineers with first world kind of paygrade would add top mesh much earlier if it did anything to regular rpg rounds, and not just now when drones appeared
Well you have to think not only they fight in the desert but they also fight in urban areas where enemies with rpgs can be hiding on top of tall buildings.
Wait a minute, its all good to be discussing possible armor values of the Merkava turret armor, as far as I am concerned and the readings I have done online, this particular incident occurred due almost 1 ton of explosive material detonating below the tank, if this is the case, this is not proof of bad turret cheek or frontal plate armor (listed in many areas in game as 300-375mm of protection against kinetic rounds).
In fact these multiple sheets of turret armor (seen in the above photo), might be the best indicator we have to increase the armor values of the turret protection we have in game. It is hard to make out what these sheets are made up of but, I am guessing a combination of composite materials and steel, which does increase the protection against kinetic rounds.
As for some of the comments below about T-90m , this is not a comparison between tanks. T-90m does indeed have great frontal armor and turret cheek protection, this has been proven. The question here is the overall turret and frontal armor of the Merkava tank in game.
Haha, yes, it was destroyed by an IED device modified from a large-equivalent aviation bomb, so I only used it to show the structure after the armour module fell. As for the composition of the structure inside, I have shown the relevant content and personal speculation in this or another Mekava 4 discussion before, so I will not repeat the description here.
Well then no one can claim that Merkava has poor armor because of this incident, the goal is to increase the in-game values ranging from 300 to 450mm of protection frontally which is not the case in the actual Merkava 4M tank. Internet sources in the form of digital drawings in brochures is not accurate either.
I hope drones dont become a major player in war thunder, we already have crazy artillery at lower brs and having to contend with kamikadze drones I hope not!
I know this topic is primarily focused on armour, but it’s probably the best place to ask as other Merk players are here.
Have any of you fellas noticed that the Trophy just… consistently fails to work? Like just straight up not even engaging ?
I am often dying to ATGM’s, everything from TOW’s to Kornets to Vikhrs, and in these instances, the APS doesn’t even ‘fire’. It makes no attempt to intercept - even when the projectile is very much in its engagement zone.
I genuinely can’t recall the last time it successfully intercepted anything. Even in the rare instances I do catch it ‘firing’, it never actually stops the incoming projectile, it will still hit and often fatally.
Am I just experiencing confirmation bias or is it like this for you guys too?
It’s the same for us. Every time I get an ATGM it tells me there’s something 1 millisecond before it impacts also. Last time I got hit by a Vikhr, it got my tracks, my breach, my barrel, and a crewmate, the APS technically fired. I don’t know if that’s how it works in real life, but I hope it isn’t because it’d basically be the most useless thing I’ve ever seen (having in account that in battle, if the tank is disabled there’s not much to do). I usually have to directly point the dispenser directly to the helicopter for it to do something (still breaks my track and gun). So yeah, do not trust it at the slightest. I have to say that beam riding missiles are a complete beast as they go straight to the target from the start (they have the laser receptor behind) so putting smoke without moving is not the most reliable thing (with IOG beam riding missiles), it’s better to try to take cover (it’s nightmarish in desert/snowy maps as sometimes there isn’t a rock in a 500 meter radius). Only way to avoid them is timing your smoke at making the missile explode before impact, it works with KH-38s too, it will just disable the whole tank quite literally.
There are more issues with it IRL, but reaction speed isn’t actually the main thing. The Trophy is able to open and close on the Merkava 4, the prior would technically have a much faster response time, but in practice it is often closed since in security maintenance the system is too prone to damage, and also might injure civilians/friendly. The Trophy has been seen to fail against Kornet, but mostly they fail to react against sub 100m rockets.
