Map Changes in Update 9.8

Tank Commanders,

Following the release of Update 9.8, the maps Karelia, Sand River, Westfield and Siegfried Line will be tweaked for balance, gameplay and aesthetic reasons. You'll find detailed descriptions of the changes in the following sections.

Karelia

Reasons for changes:

• There was an 8% disparity of victory rates between the two bases.
• The terrain was very uneven, which made it frustrating for players to position themselves in good firing positions.

What was done:

• The terrain was made more regular as a result.
• The area in the eastern part of the map was made equally accessible for both teams.
• The plateau was made more 'attractive' (for more even distribution of vehicles on the map and gameplay variations).

Sand River

Reasons for changes:

• There was a significant disparity in victory rates: 8% for Encounter Battles and 20% for Assault Modes.
• The terrain was too uneven for traversing and positioning.

What was done:

• The mountain was made more accessible for the team spawning in the left base.
• The height of the slope was reduced, which should fix the imbalance in the Assault mode.
• The height of the spot position was reduced, which prevents easy defense of the right base in Standard battle.
• The opportunities for long-range fire were removed, which allows the assaulting team to break through the defense of the right base.
• The height of the sand dune was reduced to fix the imbalanced position of the right base.
• The terrain was made passable; now these zones can be used as another direction, as the number of exit points in the gullies was increased.

Westfield

Reason for changes:

• There was a 10% disparity in victory rates for this map, due to terrain advantages given to the top base.

What was done:

• Multiple balance-related adjustments were involved.
• The height difference was reduced to increase comfort of play.
• Additional gameplay options along the lines were added.

Siegfried Line

Reasons for changes:

• We received a number of complaints about difficulties for the assaulting team.
• There were requests from the game community to increase the number of covers on the open part of the map, such as adding new pillboxes and destroyed vehicles.

What was done:

• The bushes around the pillboxes in the center of the map were removed.
• Existing pillboxes were replaced with larger pillboxes.
• The height and layout of the hills were balanced.
• The lakes were reworked in such a way that vehicles can now get out of them.
• The position in the lower left corner of the map was removed for balance reasons.
• The terrain in the road area was elevated to increase the assault potential of the direction.
• Balance-related adjustments were made in the right part of the map.