Tactics turn into strategy.
Brute force gives in to intelligence.
This is how a Tanker becomes a Strategist.
The Art of Strategy game event begins on April 21.
During it, you will be able to either control one vehicle
or take command of an entire squad.
The first four days
brings you unlimited play in the Strategist vs. Strategist format.
This is a duel between two players,
each controlling a squad of seven Tier X vehicles
and a number of defenses.
Use these first days to complete the in-game tutorial
and learn all the nuances of playing as a Strategist.
To enter a battle as a Strategist, you first need to assemble your squad.
You can use a standard one,
but it's better to select vehicles suited to your playstyle.
Your squad should be balanced by vehicle types.
You won't be able to use reward vehicles
for Personal Missions, the Global Map, and Ranked Battles;
special or rental vehicles; or vehicles with special mechanics.
But your choices are not limited to your Garage.
A Strategist can use any available vehicle.
The vehicles will have predefined consumables, equipment, and crews.
You can't change them, but you won't have to pay for them, either.
In addition to the vehicles,
six types of defenses are available to a Strategist.
In your Garage,
you can select three of them that will be available in battle.
Watchtowers have good view range and concealment.
Although they are destroyed with one shot,
they are an effective auxiliary means of scouting.
Machine-Gun Turrets can effectively destroy lightly armored vehicles.
They can also penetrate the sides of some heavy tanks.
Flamethrowers have short ranges
but ignore armor completely and cause damage to any target.
Place Flamethrowers in places where they can't be shot at from afar.
Anti-Tank Guns are stationary snipers.
They have good concealment,
as well as effective long ranges and penetration.
Although their damage per shot is not particularly impressive,
if a vehicle stays in the fire sector for too long,
it risks staying there for good.
Gun Turrets fire in a small arc at an unlimited distance.
They have high damage per shot
but require cover due to their long reload time.
Finally, there are Multiple Rocket Launchers.
MRLs cause low damage
but can reach the enemy behind low cover and impact a significant area.
They are indispensable when fighting dense clusters of enemies.
All long-range guns match well with Watchtowers.
But remember that you won't be able to control defenses or move them in battle
after you've deployed them.
Defenses are a brand-new feature for World of Tanks, with new mechanics.
During the Art of Strategy event, their settings may change
to ensure the best gaming experience for both Tankers and Strategists.
You will have one minute to deploy your squad and defenses.
You can use auto-deployment,
but it's best to surprise your enemy and do it your way.
If you don't manage to deploy all defenses on the battlefield in time,
the remaining ones will be deployed automatically.
And if you deploy your vehicles and defenses quickly,
you can use the remaining time to give orders to your vehicles.
In this case, they will act immediately after the countdown is over.
When playing as a Strategist, you control your squad.
You can select the vehicle by clicking on it or its card in the squad panel,
or by using a hotkey.
You can select several vehicles at once
by holding the left mouse button and dragging a box around them.
A right click will send them into position.
If they encounter enemies on their way, they'll stop and engage in combat.
Double-right-click to Rush.
In this mode, tanks fire on the move
without changing their course when encountering enemies.
Same with attack.
A single click is a positional skirmish,
while a double click is close-range combat
involving attacking the enemy's sides and rear.
To retreat under fire, give the order to withdraw.
The vehicles will reverse
while exposing their frontal armor to enemy fire.
Hold the F key and right-click an area
to indicate the position to which they should retreat.
The vehicles perform the set task even without your orders.
By default, your subordinates are in the Adapt mode.
They will look for cover in their zone of action
and fire at any enemy they see.
If you want a vehicle to stay at a specific position, press R.
This will give the order to hold their position.
Using Recon by pressing T
is useful for mobile vehicles hidden in vegetation.
In this mode, the vehicles don't fire at the enemy until they're spotted.
This is very useful for passive scouting.
After changing modes, you can go back to the Adapt mode by pressing E.
The Shift key will help you stay two steps ahead of your opponent.
Hold it to give a series of sequential orders.
All given orders can be canceled by pressing the Spacebar.
Press Q to take control of the selected vehicle.
This action stops all previous orders,
but it might help win a battle at the right moment…
Or lose it if you focus too much on one vehicle
and forget about the responsibilities of the squad commander.
A Strategist must monitor the whole squad.
The X key can help with that.
Special markers for the vehicles and sound notifications
will help you react to threats on time.
They'll let you know that one of your tanks has been spotted,
where it's taking fire from, and when it's almost—or completely—destroyed.
To win, you need to either destroy the enemy squad or capture their base.
Destroying defenses isn't necessary.
Starting from April 25, the event will have different rules.
By default, you will only be able to play as a Tanker—
control one vehicle from your Garage
and fight in a team of seven players against one Strategist.
Platoons are disabled here,
and vehicle limitations are the same as for the Strategist.
You can only select vehicles available in your Garage,
and equipping the vehicles, repairing them, and replenishing ammo
all follow the same rules as in Random Battles.
Play as a Tanker to earn Orders and Intel.
You need the former to play 1v1 and the latter to try your skills
as a Strategist in a battle against seven Tankers.
Both roles will have their own missions.
Complete them to receive collection items,
such as styles, decals, inscriptions, and unique crew members.
Complete the collection and get even more rewards:
equipment, Personal Reserves, Crew Books, bonds, and a commemorative badge.
And for victory in each format, you’ll get commemorative medals.
In addition, the Art of Strategy has its own leaderboards.
Reach the top and earn special rewards for the best of the best!
Vehicles await your orders, Commanders.
Gather your squad, use your mind to win, and master the Art of Strategy!