Proposal for Ariete Armor Change (POLL)

Machinery of War Discussion Ground Vehicle
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Proposal for Ariete Hull Armor Buff - Balanced Composite Protection

Would you like to see this change or similar to the Ariete’s armor in game?

  • Yes
  • No
0 voters

The Ariete MBT in War Thunder is currently underperforming in hull protection due to an unbalanced armor composition. According to official sources, the Ariete’s hull and turret both feature composite armor, yet in game, the hull is modeled as HHA only with no composite layers. This results in an inadequate KE protection of 220-240mm, significantly below comparable MBTs.

This post aims to propose a more balanced hull armor composition based on existing in-game models use of composite protection while ensuring realistic performance matching its era and role.

Current In-Game Ariete Hull Armor Layout:

ariete old front

70mm High Hardness Rolled Armor
80mm Air Gap
40mm High Hardness Rolled Armor Backplate
Effective KE Protection: 220-240mm
Effective CE Protection: 270-290mm

This lacks any composite elements, making the Ariete highly vulnerable even to older APFSDS rounds, while its contemporaries (Leopard 2A4, Challenger 1) feature NERA-based composite hulls.

Proposed Armor Layout (Based on Similar MBTs & Composite Trends)

70mm High Hardness Rolled Armor Outer Layer
50mm Air Gap (Enhances NERA effectiveness, similar to observed turret layout)
20mm High Hardness Rolled Armor
200mm NERA Composite
20mm High Hardness Rolled Armor Backplate

Estimated Effective Protection:

Kinetic Energy (KE): 295-310mm VS 120mm DM33 (Comparable to Leopard 2A4, and T-72A effectiveness at similar angles)
Chemical Energy (CE): 510-630mm (NERA effectiveness comparable to other MBTs in-game)

This proposed composite structure aligns with both:

  1. How other MBTs in-game apply NERA and composite layers
  2. The Ariete’s actual armor description from Oto Melara’s documentation

Why This Change Is Necessary:

The Ariete’s own manufacturer states it has composite armor in both hull and turret (currently missing in the hull in War Thunder).

Spaced Armor is not the same as Composite Armor.

All contemporary MBTs have NERA-based protection in their hulls.
Its current protection is far lower than its peers, making it unreasonably vulnerable at 10.7 BR.
The proposed effective KE is in line with other tanks (Leopard 2A4 vs 120mm DM33: 300-315mm KE, , T-72A vs 120mm DM33: 300-320mm KE).

Ariete armor side view2
Ariete armor side view21280×720 389 KB

I hope Gaijin considers this change to accurately reflect the Ariete’s intended armor composition. Thank you.

8 Likes
2

I agree, even just for gameplay reasons the Ariete deserves to have hull composite armor, not to mention the sources that state it exists.

1 Like
3

https://community.gaijin.net/issues/p/warthunder/i/MA8ugNxKkXQm

Accepted, well-written and comprehensive bug report for the Arietes armor. However, “forwarded as a suggestion” (over a year ago)? I don’t really understand why armor bug reports are handled as suggestions.

In my opinion ammunition selection reports are understandable to be forwarded as suggestions. Most vehicles have a large selection of ammunition they could fire IRL, but only a handful is available in game, which is understandable as the ammunition pool available in game is chosen based on balance and performance primarily.

Armor on the other hand is not really a soft parameter by any means. Either the armor layout is correct or it is not. A suggestion for a fix makes it seem like it’s entirely up to the developers’ personal opinions if it gets fixed or not.

-“Hi, the armor is incorrect, please fix it. Here are the sources”

-“Ok, we’ll make it a suggestion for a fix.”
-“Yeah, we decided not to take any action, it was a suggestion only after all.”

4 Likes
4

What bugs me is that Gaijin makes the tanks for the game based on whatever knowledge they do and dont have and thats okay for them to estimate and guess but we need in depth documentation or rather hard proof on the tank to get a armor buff or other various changes.

1 Like
5

Exactly. Obviously there won’t be any publicly available documents with precise armor composition schemes for most modern vehicles, but a little guesstimation goes a long way.

For example, is it really plausible that a modern Italian MBT (that the manufacturer states has composite armor in the hull) only has spaced RHA plates for hull armor?

I wonder where they got the spaced armor scheme from in the first place.

1 Like
6

Your proposed values are still wrong.
According to the common estimation the turret armor should be 500mm against KE in its frontal arch (so most likely 480mm sloped) and 470mm against KE in the hull.

2 Likes
7

To achieve those values, we would also need to adjust other tanks like the Leopard 2A4. My proposal focuses on fixing the Ariete within the current game framework, rather than reworking all NATO tanks. Many NATO vehicles do not have their correct armor modeled, but fixing every one of them is beyond the scope of this discussion.

The references to 480mm and 470mm KE are just as much estimations as my proposed values because no one truly knows the Ariete’s exact armor layout. Modern Armor IV is purely an estimate based on mathematical guesswork. While it’s a solid attempt at analysis, we still lack definitive data on the internal composition and how it translates to KE protection. Additionally, KE protection values vary depending on the shell being fired, which is often overlooked in these discussions.

Ultimately, my goal is to bring the Ariete’s armor in line with how similar tanks are modeled in-game, ensuring it isn’t disproportionately weak compared to its contemporaries.

1 Like
8

Exactly, Im not sure where they got the spaced armor scheme from either.