Japan is a mysterious country.
Some of the largest vehicles were produced on these small islands.
Steel monsters were put afloat, and tremendous squadrons took to the skies.
Japanese engineers were dreamers and romantics.
They always aimed to create something exceptional, ground vehicles included.
But they lacked their own advanced technology for tanks and needed a sample.
From the 1930s, they had been looking to Europe:
in France, Great Britain, and other countries.
But they didn’t launch mass production of tanks.
In the early 1940s, the Japanese saw the achievements of the German engineers.
The Tiger is the most famous heavy tank of World War II.
In World of Tanks, it occupies Tier VII.
This huge rectangle on tracks has decent armor and an accurate gun.
Although this vehicle is quite dynamic for its type,
its role is to stand its ground and deter opponents from a distance.
The Japanese were in awe.
They paid an astronomical sum for access to the early Tiger model,
including a fully loaded tank and all blueprints.
The Tiger had become Japanese.
To implement this advanced technology,
the Tiger needed to be shipped to Japan –
thousands of kilometers away and through a world at war.
According to one story, the tank remained in Europe
and returned to service with the German army in 1944.
Another legend says
that the disassembled Tiger was sent to Japan by cargo submarine.
But it sank and buried the future of Japanese heavies at the bottom of the sea.
But what would have happened if the Tiger reached Japan?
World of Tanks gives us an opportunity to see.
The differences between the models can only be seen under a magnifying glass.
And they are not just cosmetic.
The most significant difference is that the Tiger is placed in Tier VI.
Having a Tier VII vehicle in the previous Tier sounds excellent!
But this is both a blessing and a curse.
The armor of the Tier VII Tiger isn’t very useful.
The front armor is 100 mm thick, and side hull and turret armor is 80 mm thick.
However in Tier VI, these values will be a problem for many opponents.
Especially, if you know your Tiger well enough.
Shells don’t bounce off its angular hull.
But if the hull is angled towards incoming fire,
the enemy won’t be able to penetrate your armor easily.
In this “diamond shape” the Tiger is extremely strong
and can be used effectively to keep you fighting on the battlefield.
Even when receiving damage,
the Tiger can survive for a long time: It has 950 hit points.
Some of your opponents may have less than half as many hit points.
Of course, you can’t pass the durability of a Tier VII vehicle to Tier VI.
Otherwise the Japanese Tiger would be a sponge, soaking up damage.
If you don’t want to tempt fate under fire,
the Japanese Tiger, like the German one,
has characteristics that allow it to watch the battle from afar.
With a view range of 370 meters
it would be hard to find a better value in Tier VI.
The maneuverability is quite good.
You can drive around looking for strong positions with a speed of 35 km/h.
Fast aiming times, quick reloads, high accuracy,
and excellent damage per minute
means the Tiger has everything required for “heavy TD” tactics...
...Everything but armor penetration.
Its shells can penetrate only 132 mm of armor.
This is where the Tiger can falter.
The gun is the reason the tank was placed in Tier VI.
However this is how it was configured historically.
To face a Tier VII tank,
you’ll need to sharpen your vehicle knowledge
and remember where a shell can penetrate their armor.
But a Tier VIII enemy vehicle may force you to retreat.
The Japanese Tiger is not a vehicle that can fight any storm.
Such vehicles can only be found in Tier X.
But the Japanese didn’t buy the Tiger to win the war with a single vehicle.
It was meant to become the beginning of something…bigger.
Japanese heavy tanks, as envisioned, were battleships on tracks.
Resembling vehicles seen in science fiction movies from the mid-20th century.
Even the Maus looks like a Mini Cooper next to them.
In the Pacific theater of war, with jungles, islands, and mountains;
regular tanks weren’t very useful.
That’s why specific medium tanks comprised the core of Japanese vehicles.
But who knows what could have happened if these vehicles existed.
It will remain a mystery, just like the fate of the real Japanese Tiger.
Nobody knows whether it was destroyed with the German army
or buried on the ocean floor.
But in World of Tanks, the vehicle can be as it was intended to be.
It’s a missing link in the Japanese branch
that will open the way for the heavy line.
Premium status of the Tiger will allow players to train the crew for these odd,
but extraordinary vehicles.
And they will be appearing in the game very soon.