Not many armored vehicles can surprise you on the battlefield like the 180-ton steel giant known as the “Maus” German heavy tank.
After the "Lowe" project was completed, development of this tank lasted from March 1942 until June 1944.
The “Krupp” company planned to create 141 of these tanks, but the regular bombing by British Air Forces disrupted this plan and in 1943, during the
“Ruhr Pocket” operation, the “Krupp” military plant suffered extremely serious damage.
As a result, manufacturing of the “Maus” was impossible for nearly eight months.
By the time the installation was restored, the order was reduced; "Krupp" was to produce two tanks and one turret instead of 141 vehicles.
If the British Air Force hadn’t bombed the German military plants repeatedly, putting their work to standstill, there's a possibility that additional "Maus"
tanks could have been adopted for service and used on the battlefields of World War II.
However, that didn’t happen.
In World of Tanks, the "Maus" is a top tier vehicle in the German heavy tank branch.
We're going to rate the combat characteristics of this vehicle in comparison with other tier 10 heavy tanks.
We’ll use a scale of 1 to 10 to evaluate these characteristics. 1 being the lowest and 10 the highest.
The movement and mobility characteristics are worse than its tier mates.
Hull traverse speed is 15 degrees per second, turret traverse speed is 14 degrees per second.
Its maximum speed is 20 km/h.
The firing characteristics aren't the strongest feature of this tank either.
Aiming time is 2.9 seconds.
Accuracy of the gun is 0.38 m at a distance of 100 meters.
Alpha damage averages 490.
The average penetration of an armor piercing shell is 246 millimeters.
This tank is one of the best-armored in the game.
The higher glacis is 200 mm thick and situated at an angle of 52 degrees, which means it can resist shots from the most powerful guns in the game.
Its side armor is 185 mm, but its slope angle is 0 degrees, which decreases its effectiveness.
The frontal armor of its turret is 240mm and it is convex-shaped.
Side armor of the turret is 210 mm and situated at an angle of 30 degrees. This armor can be a hard nut to crack for the majority of tanks.
This tank has 3,000 hit points, the highest rate in the game.
As other heavy tanks of this tier, except the British, it has view range of 400 meters.
Let’s sum up:
The disadvantages of the Maus are its low acceleration and mediocre fire potential.
In addition, its giant silhouette makes the tank an excellent target for artillery.
The main advantages of this vehicle are its huge amount of HP and solid armoring.
The weak spots are the sides of its turret, the lower glacis, and the poor-armored parts of its hull that can be penetrated by shooting at its tracks at an angle.
Let’s talk about the battle tactics.
The Maus is THE vehicle for the front line. It can take a lot of damage and shield allies from enemy fire.
Traditionally, city maps are considered to be the ideal place for heavy tanks to fight in.
You can hold position or push the flanks.
And the chances of being shot by artillery are really low.
You shouldn't forget about your weak spots: hide the lower glacis, and turn your turret so enemies have no opportunity to aim at its sides.
It’s really important to understand what you're going to do during each stage of a battle.
You shouldn’t rush forward during the first minutes just because you don't see anyone ahead of you.
An enemy can be waiting for you around the corner.
If you're sure there's only a few tanks ahead of you, gather your teammates, and then push forward.
Support of your teammates is really important -- if a Maus is left alone, it becomes an easy target for enemies since it can't fight on two fronts.
Let’s use “Ruinberg” as an example.
We're only going to talk about the city parts of the map because we highly recommend you avoid its open territories.
At the start of the battle, you should move to section G3 and use the destroyed building as cover.
From there you can shoot through the embrasure.
If enemies are rushing through the third line or using defensive tactics, you'll be able to inflict damage on them while remaining protected.
From this square you'll be able to take the following steps:
If there are a lot of enemy tanks, move to section F2 and shoot them from behind the corner.
Push the third line or even move to section J2 if enemies break through the small town.
Generally, on every map, you should perform several actions that may provide your team with some advantages over your enemies.
The Maus is not able to move fast from one flank to another. That's why you should predict the flank where you will meet the main enemy forces, so
you can perform your role there.
On open maps such as “Malinovka”, “Prokhorovka”, “El Halluf”, “Sand River” and “Steppes” you won’t fulfill the potential of this tank.
The Maus is slow, so it's really hard to change position or find cover quickly.
Its giant size lets enemies scout it quickly and artillery will shoot as soon as possible.
And its mediocre penetration, as well as poor accuracy, makes it impossible for you to shoot enemies at a long distance.
On “Malinovka”, the best decision is to stay near the monastery or barns.
On “El Halluf”, you can hide behind the mountains.
On “Sand River”, get to the city and try to hide from enemy fire.
On “Steppes”, you may use stones as cover and fire on other heavy tanks from there.
“Prokhorovka” is one of the most unfavorable maps for the Maus because you can be scouted and destroyed before you even get into position.
That’s why you should move carefully and use existing buildings in the village for cover.
Any other actions will lead to certain death.
The effectiveness of the Maus is heavily dependent on the map.
That's a significant problem of playing this vehicle.
In valleys or other locations where you can hide from artillery it can really do a lot, but as soon as the Maus appears on an open map or when it's left
alone, it becomes very vulnerable.
It’d be a surprise if you’re able to successfully finish the battle.
We should also mention another weak point of the Maus: when you position your tank at an angle, an enemy can shoot your track.
A shell will penetrate it and hit the armor, which is only 80 millimeters thick.
At long range you shouldn’t be afraid of it, but in close combat you should position your tank to increase the chances of a ricochet when an enemy is aiming at you.
During a facehug against almost any tank, you can use your weight to your advantage.
Ramming damage is not high, but it can come in handy.
To increase the efficiency of your tank in battle, you should buy the following equipment:
The Tank Gun Rammer, the Gun Stabilizer and the Enhanced Gun Laying Drive will help your tank in close combat, improving your aim, and helping
you shoot faster.
As for the skills of your crew, the most effective combination is the following:
That’s all for now. Good luck on the battlefield!