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Heavy Metal: The IS-2 Shielded Review

Tank Commanders!

A unique Tier VII Premium Soviet heavy tank, the legendary  VII IS-2 shielded , awaits you at the end of the ongoing Road to Berlin game event. But what can you expect when you finally claim this reward tank, and how should you play it for best effect?

Here, our Community Contributor Ravvi takes a look at the IS-2 Shielded and gives us his thoughts about the special Road to Berlin exclusive. Check it out!

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Overview

The  VII IS-2 shielded  is another variant added to the IS tank group, alongside the IS-2 Berlin (Soviet Premium tank), IS-2 (Chinese Heavy tank), and the IS-2M.

What makes the IS-2 shielded unique compared to its counterparts are the metal sheets (Soviet fencing) covering the front hull, sides, and top of the turret. This provides the IS-2 shielded with additional protection from HE (High Explosive) rounds and some HEAT (High Explosive Anti-Tank) rounds. While this additional protection is only 5mm thick, it can make a rather decent difference when facing those rounds.

It also shares the same 122mm gun that is on the other IS variants, the 122mm D-25T. Its base values are 5.09 rounds per minute, with a dispersion of 0.44. The IS-2 Shielded has a HP of 1230, which is the same as the Standard IS, but less than its premium counterparts. With an engine power of 600 hp this gives the IS-2 Shielded a power-to-weight ratio of 12.91.

Strengths

  • Better gun handling compared to the standard IS
  • More armor protection on the front upper plate, sides, and turret roof
  • Can be earned for FREE during the Road to Berlin event

Weaknesses

  • View range of 340m: lacking in the sight department
  • Top speed of 30km/h: slightly slower than the standard IS
  • Low terrain resistance; has difficulty on poor terrain

Performance

While lacking in mobility compared to the standard IS, the main playstyle of this tank is similar to all its other variations: peek-and-boom. Angle your armor efficiently to bounce any rounds that come your way.

Fortunately, its 122mm gun is very dominant against other Tier VII tanks. Though it may struggle against some well-armored Tier VIII tanks, the IS-2 Shielded can still hold its own if you play it effectively and aim for weak spots. Making an impact in the game will help secure victory.

Equipment

Recommended Setup
Hover your cursor over the images for more information on each piece of equipment.

The standard Heavy tank set up: the Gun Rammer for increasing your damage per minute, the Enhanced Gun Laying Drive to further increase your already-decent gun handling, and the finish with Improved Ventilation to give an overall boost to the vehicle's performance.

Crew Skills

승무원
Commander
승무원
Gunner
승무원
Driver
승무원
Loader
Hover the mouse cursor over the skill and ability images to see the effects triggered when acquired.

It’s recommended to start by training all your Crew members in the Repair skill. Upon reaching 100%, switch your Commander to Sixth Sense, followed by Snapshot for even better accuracy, and then Smooth Ride and Safe Stowage. Once these are mastered, feel free to drop Repair for Brothers in Arms before revisiting Repair again.

Adrenaline Rush

Decreases the gun reload time by 10% if your vehicle's HP drops below 10%.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100%.

Brothers in Arms / Sisterhood of Steel

Increases the training level of your crew members by 5%.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100% for every single crew member.

Band of Brothers

Increases the training level of your crew members by 5%.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100% for every single crew member.

Also works if other crew members have Brothers in Arms / Sisterhood of Steel.

Call for Vengeance

Reports the enemy vehicles' location for two more seconds after the destruction of the own vehicle.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100%.

Clutch Braking

Increases the traverse speed of your vehicle.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Concealment

Increases the camouflage value of your vehicle.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Controlled Impact

Increases the ramming damage dealt and decreases damage taken by ramming.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Deadeye

Increases the chance of landing a critical hit.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100%.

Designated Target

Keeps targetes vehicles visible for two more seconds.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100%.

Eagle Eye

Allows you to identify damaged/destroyed modules as well as injured crew members of an enemy vehicle by hovering your mouse over it for several seconds.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100%.

Firefighting

Reduces the duration and damage taken by fire.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Intuition

Grants a slight chance of changing the shell type without having to reload again.

Doesn't work with autoloaders. Works also while reloading.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100%.

Jack of All Trades

Reduces the performance penalty of wounded crew members.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Mentor

Increases the Crew XP gained for each member apart from the commander.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Off-Road Driving

Increases the mobility on medium and soft terrain.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Preventative Maintenance

Reduces the chance of taking fire.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100%.

Recon

Increases the view range of your vehicle.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Relaying

Increases the signal range of your allies' vehicles within your signal range.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Repair

Reduces the repair time of destroyed modules.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Safe Stowage

Increases the durability of your vehicle's ammo rack.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100%.

Signal Boosting

Increases the signal range of your vehicle.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Situational Awareness

Increases the view range of your vehicle.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Sixth Sense

Shows a lightbulb three seconds after you've been spotted.

Works only if the skill progress has reached 100%.

Smooth Ride

Reduces the dispersion penalty while driving.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Snap Shot

Reduces the dispersion penalty of traversing the turret.

The higher the skill progress, the higher the effect.

Additional Grousers

Increases the mobility on soft and medium terrain.

Binocular Telescope

Increases the view range of your vehicle by 25%.

Your hull must stand still for at least 3 seconds.

Camouflage Net

Increases the camouflage value of your vehicle tremendously.

Your hull must stand still for at least 3 seconds.

Enhanced Gun Laying Drive

Reduces the aiming time of your gun by 10%.

Coated Optics

Increases the view range of your vehicle by 10%.

Tank Gun Rammer

Reduces the reload time of your gun by 10%.

Spall Liner

Decreases damage taken by ramming and high-explosive splash.

Toolbox

Decreases the repair time of destroyed modules.

Cumulative with the Repair skill.

Improved Ventilation

Increases the training level of your crew members by 5%.

Vertical Stabilizer

Reduces the dispersion penalties of hull and turret traverse, as well as driving by 20%.

"Wet" Ammo Rack

Increases the module HP of your ammo rack.

Conclusion

Even though it seems like yet another IS premium, after playing the  VII IS-2 shielded  myself, I've found that I can play a bit more aggressively due to the metal sheets on the tank. Also, with the slightly better gun handling, I was able to quickly pull off shots much quicker than I would in the standard IS or any of the IS variants. Although its mobility is a little worse, you'll still have more than enough speed to get to the fight in time to put your improved gun handling into action.

Want to try it out yourself? You still have time to pick this tank up, so jump into the Road to Berlin event before it ends on the morning of 18 May, and get yourself a very solid Tier VII tank!

Did you enjoy this article? Get more quality content and catch our Community Contributor Ravvi dominating the battlefield in his IS-2 shielded, live on his Twitch channel.

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