So… let’s talk about the Singaporean subtree for China.
It is needless to say that Singapore going to China is a bad idea, and a pretty stupid one too, but let’s break down exactly why this is a bad idea and how the role Singapore is intended to fill can be done better.
Part 1: The unneeded monotonizing of the Chinese tree
“But China is all copy-paste anyway-” Can it. 1) Not so much anymore, and 2) the point of this section is to stop that issue from getting worse.
There are two halves to the idea of a Singaporean subtree. There’s the unique vehicles, and the copy-paste ones. In both cases, China has better options. The copy-paste vehicle problem is obvious: it’s making an existing problem in the Chinese tree even worse.
The unique vehicle problem is a little more nuanced though. In theory, unique vehicles are good, and in practice, they usually are. Usually. The thing is that in all of these cases, China has their own options. In place of the SSPH, there’s the PLZ45. In place of the Bionix 25, there is a whole gaggle of options to fill that niche: YW307, YW309, CM21A2, NFV1, NVH1, NVH4, NGV1, I can keep going, you get the idea. Similarly, the Bionix II has its own set of options for replacements from China such as the VN1C, QL550, and CS/VN3C, as does the Hunter AFV with vehicles like the VN12. We can debate what vehicle fits what exactly niche and what is most comparable but I think the point is pretty clear. China has a lot of unique options for replacements, especially in the form of weird 1980s and ‘90s prototypes, and vehicles from the last 15 years.
The point of all of this is that Singapore going to China is needless. There’s also the very loud objections of many Singaporean players, but it is not my place to have a say in that so I am setting this aside and looking at this purely from a tree health standpoint. China has options for everywhere Singapore has vehicles to fill, so why not put Singapore to better use for a tree that needs it?
Part 2: ASEAN and the Japan problem
Gaijin’s primary reasoning for Singapore going to the Chinese tree is because Japan is getting a Thai VT4. But Singapore has a better place it can go: Japan. Wait, hear me out!
Put simply, Japan’s ground is in a very sorry state. The 4 Thai vehicles we got have not much rectified that, being an extremely mixed bag.
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The M163 is… whatever. It is a nice 7.3 SPAA to complement the M47, Type 99, and Ho-Ri Production, but it is also copy-paste slop and isn’t even the Thai upgrade of it.
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The M60A3 TTS is pointless copy-paste because Japan actually has a very strong 9.0 lineup already of the Type 87 RCV, Type 89, Type 74 (E), and Type 74 (F).
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The Stingray is good as a lineup filler, but it occupies a niche that is already filled by the Type 16 when what the 9.3 lineup really needs is a non-premium MBT.
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The BM Oplot-T ostensibly aids the 12.0 lineup, but Japan already has a very strong 12.0 and the Oplot is quite definitively the worst 12.0 tank in the game.
The big issue with Thailand is that the subtree has not done that much to rectify the holes in the Japanese tech tree which is why a subtree would be useful. The Stingray and M163 help fix lineup holes, but the M60A3 TTS and the BM Oplot-T exist where Japan already has strong lineups.
The way to fix this is adding more vehicles from ASEAN, especially at low and mid tiers. Thailand is a member of ASEAN, and the Indonesian Mi-35P is a signal that Gaijin is already heading further in the direction of ASEAN going to Japan. But if ASEAN is heading more and more to Japan, Singapore is a pretty big one to leave out, especially at the mid to high tiers where Japan really needs it. Singapore has unique vehicles such as the SSPH, Bionix and Bionix II, and Hunter AFV. Even the less unique vehicles like the Leopard 2SG can be another lineup filler and do that the Oplot-T was supposed to do—that is, being an MBT that isn’t hot garbage.
The obvious counter to this is the historical relationship between Japan and many of the ASEAN countries. On one hand, there is some validity to that. However, on the other hand, Thailand showed that reasoning went out the window long ago. By using Singapore as a piece of a larger ASEAN subtree for Japan, alongside Thailand, Indonesia, and several other ASEAN countries, and only adding the unique vehicles from each one, with maybe a few copy-pastes as lineup fillers where needed, Japan can be bolstered and made more competitive while also maintaining the uniqueness of the tree. Speaking of which:
Part 3: Tree variety
The idea of a tech tree, at least in theory, is to give a unique play experience that is not found in other trees by representing interesting vehicles from a nation or nations. The onslaught of copy-paste we get every update makes that ideal ostensible at best, but let’s be idealistic for a moment and think about the purpose of different trees. Is it not to provide a unique experience?
I am not denying that Singaporean vehicles could provide unique flair to the Chinese tree. However, that tree already has unique options and if Singapore goes to China, Japan is left high and dry with fewer unique options, and unlike China, it does not have the indigenous variety to compensate. Singapore and the rest of ASEAN going to Japan instead keeps both trees varied, rather than benefitting one at the significant expense of another.
Part 4: Conclusion
I am not anti-subtree. In fact, I have a history of being quite vocally pro-subtree, and this post is no exception. I am not against the idea of Singapore being in the game. More nations being represented is a good thing and subtrees allow adding the unique parts of those nations to spice up the larger trees without needless copy-paste.
But the fundamental issue here is about who needs what. Japan and China both need more unique options, but only 1 has the indigenous variety to make that happen without subtrees: China. Tree health is important and adding Singapore to China is not healthy to any tree for the same reason that adding any other piece of ASEAN to China would also not be healthy to any tree.
And adding a subtree to China is not inherently a bad idea. But if it is going to happen, add something like North Korea with the Tŏkch’ŏn, Shin’heung, 323, and the unique variants of their 7 quadspillion Ch’ŏnmas. North Korea has no argument for going to anyone except China. There are also Pakistan and Bangladesh which have already begun being added to China, especially Pakistan.
But when the opportunity presents itself to enrich a tree that needs it and cannot be enriched without subtrees, that opportunity should be taken.
Anyway, that’s my soapbox. Have a nice day and go touch grass (do as I say, not as I do).