Sandbox 2021: Reworked SPG Mechanics

New Shell Types

What is the difference between the new shells, and when should they be used?

Standard

Penetration
Damage
Burst Radius
Damage to Modules
Stun

Stuns the crew. Has a large burst radius and can damage several targets at once. Causes low damage. Does not damage modules/injure crew members upon non-penetration. Has a low shell velocity but a high angle trajectory.

Alternative

Penetration
Damage
Burst Radius
Damage to Modules
Stun

Does not stun the crew. Has decent penetration and a small burst radius. Causes higher damage. Causes damage to modules/injures crew members upon penetration. Has a higher shell velocity but a lower angle trajectory.

Tactical

Penetration
Damage
Burst Radius
Damage to Modules
Stun

Has no burst radius or stun effect. Causes the highest damage upon penetration. Can only damage one target. Has the highest penetration and shell velocity but the lowest angle trajectory.

Standard shell: High-Explosive with stun. Penetration doesn't change, damage is decreased by 10%. If it doesn't penetrate, it doesn't cause critical damage to modules and crew members. It has the lowest shell velocity, but a higher trajectory. This shell will be useful in situations when you need to hit and stun several targets at once.

Alternative shell: High-Explosive without stun. This shell is useful for firing at light and medium armored vehicles. Its burst radius is two times smaller than that of a standard shell, and its area of effect is four times smaller.

At the same time, its armor penetration will be 50% higher than the current value, and its damage will be 10% higher. Unlike the standard ammo, it will be able to damage internal modules and injure the crew. Additionally, it has a higher shell velocity than the standard shell, but a lower trajectory.

Armor-Piercing shell. This shell is intended for rare combat situations. It's effective against slow well-armored vehicles that can't be damaged much with HE shells. Armor-piercing shells will not have a burst radius and stun; they will be able to hit only one target when fired from a short distance. At the same time, they cause much higher damage than HE shells if they penetrate, which is 4 to 6 times more likely. Armor-piercing shells have the highest velocity of all, and travel at the lowest angle to the ground.

Will the HE shell changes from the previous Sandbox tests affect SPG shells?

No. The damage mechanics for SPG HE shells and standard HE shells of other vehicles will be different.

How does adding new shells solve the issue with stun?

Currently, SPG players have 2 almost identical types of shells. With the new system, maximum efficiency can be achieved only by playing with different shell types. Now, there will be three shell types available for various situations in battle. Only one of them has the ability to stun, so the total amount of stun in the game will be decreased.

What is the role of Armor-Piercing shells in the new system?

In this new system, Armor-Piercing shells are meant for certain tactical situations. They will be effective against slow and well-armored vehicles that cannot easily be damaged with HE shells, and have high penetration and good damage.

But if the situation demands switching the AP shell to another one or vice versa, the Intuition perk, which considerably decreases the time required to change the shell, will help you to be flexible and react to the situation in battle.

Will these changes affect Premium SPGs?

Premium SPGs will continue to use their old shells.

Tell us more about fast switching between shells.

This is the job of the reworked Intuition perk. It will become a skill that changes the shell type in the loaded gun faster the more it's trained. The fully trained skill will speed up reloading by 60%, and bonuses from "Brothers in Arms", Improved Ventilation, and Extra Combat Ration can increase this value up to 83.16%.

Will the bonus to reloading work if I change the shell type during the reload?

No. The skill only works if the shell is fully loaded.

Will there be compensation for special shells?

It's too early to say: we are testing the mechanics and want to hear your feedback first.

Counteracting SPGs

How does Sound Detection work?

Sound Detection works if the vehicle is in the splash damage area, whether it's spotted or not. If the artillery fires with a lead and the vehicle is not in the damage area when it fires, the indicator will not work. The damage area will depend on the burst radius of the artillery shell.

Why did you design Sound Detection this way?

We want to give additional information about the SPGs' actions and decrease the unexpectedness of their fire. Players who receive a warning that they are about to be fired at can perform evasive actions. For example, drive closer to a building or a rock, or leave the area that is under the SPG fire.

Understanding where the artillery is firing from allow you to choose safer positions and make your offensive more efficiently. It will also prevent situations where SPG players would just scare other players off by simply aiming at them and not firing.

If two vehicles are within the danger zone, will Sound Detection work for both players?

Yes, Sound Detection will work for both.

What will happen to an existing minimap hit mark if the SPG fires faster than once every 10 seconds, and will it be displayed on buildings and water?

Marks appear when the shell hits and remain on the minimap for 10 seconds. This time is the same for all SPG hits and doesn't depend on reload time or vehicle Tier. If the shell hits a building or water, the mark will also be displayed.

How useful is the information about SPG hit locations?

Very useful. Marks help you to understand how many SPGs fired shells and how long ago they did so. With this information, you can figure out when it's safe to change positions and which areas are safest from artillery fire. This will help minimise HP loss from SPG fire.

Brighter shell tracers don't look like a useful feature. What are they for?

Don't underestimate the new tracers—they provide a lot of useful information about SPG actions. For example, they help to gauge the location of an SPG and when and where it will fire. All this opens up new possibilities for planning your actions against the artillery.

You can also combine the information from brighter tracers with SPG hit markers for a better evaluation of the battle situation.

General Sandbox Questions

Why do I have to download the full Sandbox server client again each time?

This is how the Sandbox server works, because each iteration works on a separate client that is tested and built separately from other new features. Unfortunately, the production process requires this approach.

When will the accumulated Sandbox Tokens be transferred to the main server?

Between 24–48 hours after the tests are concluded. We'll try to do it as soon as possible and will notify you after the Tokens have been transferred to the main server.

Are Tokens unique to each testing stage, or can they be saved up and spent all at once on the rewards for the last stage?

All Tokens earned within a single test must be spent before the next Sandbox stage begins. Tokens don't stack, so don't forget to choose a reward in the time between the tests.

Where and when will the survey be sent?

The survey will appear in the main game client. Some players who have fought a certain number of battles will receive the survey during the test period. All the other players who have played 5 battles or more will receive surveys within several days after the test ends. If you don't receive the survey immediately, don't worry: surveys will be sent out in batches to lower the load on the servers.

Will Personal Missions and the conditions for earning particular awards be revised?

If the analysis of the received data shows that the changes will strongly affect Personal Missions, we will work on changing the conditions to some of them. But this will happen only after the revised mechanics are accepted by the community and released.

What will be tested during the final stage of the Sandbox?

Everything depends on the results of the HE shells and artillery testing: will improvements be needed? Will we be able to implement them with a tight deadline? How will the community react to them?

Stay tuned for the next updates!