Hello,
I’m curious about how accurately War Thunder simulates projectile motion, such as for tank shells or artillery rounds.
In physics, this type of motion is known as projectile or parabolic motion, where the trajectory forms a parabola and the movement combines fconstant horizontal velocity with accelerated vertical motiondue to gravity.
I have two main questions:
-
Does the game account for all the key physical factors?
For example: initial velocity, launch angle, projectile mass, air resistance, etc.
Is the trajectory realistically simulated using physics-based calculations, or is it simplified in some way? -
What about the projectile’s orientation during flight?
Does the shell maintain the same orientation it had when it was fired (e.g., staying level), or does it adjust to match the trajectory — with the nose pointing in the direction of motion (i.e., tangent to the curve)?
Additionally, does the game simulate rotation around the projectile’s longitudinal (A) axis caused by rifling in the barrel, like in real life? This rotation would provide gyroscopic stability, and I’m wondering if that’s included in the simulation.
I’d really appreciate any insights, especially if someone has looked into how the ballistic model works in the game or can share official sources.
Here’s an illustration to help visualize what I mean:
