Tanks are divided into 5 classes, most having subclasses
Light tanks -
Passive scout (Camps in bushes to spot crosses/advances)
Active scout (Drives around to spot crosses/advances and is aggressive)
Lightium (Excels at flanking and killing squishy targets)

Medium tanks -
Lightium (Excels at flanking and killing squishy targets, has less armour, useful for positioning)
TDium (Camps)
Heavium (Brawls, close range trading)

Heavy tanks -
Heavium (Brawls, close range trading)
Support (Waits for opportunities to pick off targets, usually in the middle of a gun fight)
Super Heavy (Heavy armour, rolls in and blocks hits, very slow)

TDs -
Assault TD (Close range brawler like v4/slow and steady and heavily armoured like t95. Breakthrough tanks)
Sniper TD (Snipes)
TDium (Can play like a TD-MT hybrid, very rare at tier 10)
Light TD (Can play like a TD-LT hybrid, very rare at tier 10)
Support TD (Mid range tank, generally have decent armour and good guns, but are inadequate at sniping)

SPGs -
SPG (also not covering this one, just press Shift and G)

Knowing your class and subclass changes the way you play and influence the game
Currently the meta is Heaviums and Assault TDs - use this to influence the Tech Trees you wish to go down

Russia - Tech Trees
Obj 261 - Spg
Obj 268 v4 - Assault TD
Obj 268 - Support TD
Obj 277 - Heavium
IS-7 - Heavium (note - on the heavier end of the classification than 277)
Obj 705a - Super Heavy
IS-4 - Super Heavy
ST-II - Heavy
Obj 430u - Heavium
Obj 140 - Medium
K-91 - Medium
T-100 LT - Passive Scout

USA - Tech Trees
T92 HMC - Spg
T110e3 - Assault TD
T110e4 - Assault TD
T110e5 - Heavium
M-V-Y - Heavium
T57 Heavy - Support Heavy
M48 Patton - Medium
Sheridan - Lightium

UK - Tech Trees
Conqueror GC - Spg
FV4005 - Support TD
Badger - Assault TD
S. Conqueror - Heavy
Centurion AX - Medium
Concept 5 - TDium
Manticore - Passive Scout

Sweden - Tech Trees
Strv 103b - Camping TD
Kranvagn - Heavy (autoloader)
Udes 15/16 - Medium

Poland - Tech trees
60TP - Super heavy
Cs-63 - Lightium

Japan - Tech trees
Type 5 Heavy - Super heavy
Type 71 - Heavy
Stb-1 - Medium
Ho-ri 1 - Support TD

Italy - Tech trees
Rinoceronte - Support Heavy
Progetto 65 - Medium
Minotauro - Assault TD

Germany - Tech Trees
G.W.E 100 - Spg
Jg.Pz E 100 - Support / Assault TD
Grille 15 - Camping TD
Pz.Kpfw. VII - Super heavy
Maus - Super heavy
E100 - Super heavy
E50M - Heavium
Leopard 1 - Medium
Rhm. Pzw. - Passive scout / Lightium

France - Tech trees
B-C 155 58 - Spg (autoloader!)
Foch B - Assault TD / Camping TD (autoloader)
AMX 50b - Support Heavy
AMX M4 54 - Heavy
B-C 25t - Lightium
Amx 13 105 - Lightium (mini B-C) / Passive Scout
EBR 105 - Active Scout

Czech - Tech Trees
TVP T 50/51 - Lightium
Vz 55 - Heavium (Autoloader)
Vz51 Tesak - Lightium

China - Tech Trees
WZ-113G FT - Support TD
WZ-111 5a - Heavium
121 - Heavium
WZ-132-1 - Lightium / Passive scout
Bz75 - Heavium

Bear in mind these are not accurate to the entire Tech Tree and are Gross oversimplifications of actual gameplay style

After choosing your tank, your play style is dictated by the class is comes under - bear in mind, classes that do not match the job their doing are still capable of doing that job, e.g: a heavy spotting. This is generally not a good idea

Passive Scouting -
This is done by mobile and well camouflaged light tanks
They use bushes to achieve higher camo rating.
Trees and Shrubs can be used as bushes too, Trees need to be knocked over before use however
Avoid Engagements in these types of tanks. Generally you do not have the staying power to fight others. This is a very team reliant Subclass. Without TDs you will not get assist and will eventually be spotted, then die.

Active Scouting -
This is done by very mobile tanks, and can be done in anything with view range
Wheeled vehicles do this somewhat well
Active scouting does NOT mean suicide scouting, but rather scouting on the move. This means binocs and camo net are not an option.
Good positions for active scouting are generally slopes, where you can poke your gun or cupola up to spot, and get back very quickly

Lightiums -
The hardest light tank subclass, these tanks act as support vehicles, finding holes in enemy lines to exploit weak side armour and assisting pushes. Some of these tanks can brawl, having armour that is more reliable than some mediums. This isn't a subclass that is easy to summarise, and one I personally do not recommend

Standard Mediums -
You play support, using your mobility to assist different flanks and to abuse openings. It is an all class. You can camp, you can brawl, you can flank

Lightiums -
Very mobile mediums. Generally lose armour for this, leading to the loss of being able to brawl. Extra Mobility means these mediums can act more like a Light tank and are much more flexible as a result

Heaviums -
These mediums lose mobility for armour. They are great brawlers. They can outtrade a wide variety of opponents with large calibre guns. They currently are the meta, being able to stomp entire flanks with decent mobility and armour

Heaviums -
Much the same as with medium Heaviums, they are the perfect mixture of Armour and mobility, the current meta tanks

Standard Heavies -
Decent armour, below par mobility and large guns. Not the most flexible, but they get the job done

Super Heavies -
Poor mobility, but extremely thick armour. Can stomp flanks. Out of meta due to Premium Rounds. Not recommended but fun - Avoid artillery in this tank

Heavy TDs - These are usually autoloaders, and are great at picking off targets at the cost for armour and staying power. If you have two of these tanks, you can pick off targets easily one by one, so these are considered somewhat in meta

Sniper TDs -
Boring 3rd line gameplay. You take sightlines and shoot enemies that approach. Very powerful and easy to play but relatively out of meta and poor performers for winning games

Assault TDs -
This is where the fun begins. You act like a super heavy with a better gun, but without a turret or full turret. Out of meta due to gold spam, but fun and usable regardless

Medium TDs -
The rarest subclass. Usually have turrets and ability to move as they please around the battlefield - T25/2 as an example

Light TDs -
Rare just like medium TDs, they are generally only low tier. Kanon jpz 105 and E25 are examples

Equipment is important to gameplay. It improves your tank and how you play it. You get full equipment list from tier 5, but some special equips are only available at higher tiers

Gun rammer - Essential to almost ALL tanks. Improves your Reload by 10%. A meta Equipment. Cannot be equipped on autoloaders/reloaders (exceptions exist - Chi-ri)

Vents - Improve everything about your tank threw crew by 5%. Increases Crew skills too (if applicable)

Optics - Improves your View range by 10%. Many light and medium tanks benefit from this (some heavies can benefit from this, using a secondary build for open maps)

Vstabs - improves stabilisation of gun by 20%. Used on all tanks, except for ones with already good gun stabilisation e.g t110e5 and T-100lt. Only unlocks at tier 8 for all tanks, cannot be equipped for TDs. Tier 5 and up LTs get vstab and American tier 7 tanks get vstab.

Binocs - Improves View range by 25% when stationary for 3 seconds - only use if it is the only way you can get max view range, or if you plan to go super passive

Camo net - improves camo by 10% when stationary for 3 seconds - not recommended due to Low Noise Exhaust

Low Noise Exhaust - Improves camo by 6% at all times, crucial for light tanks to get over 36% camo. All light tanks should run this

Commanders Vision System - Removes enemies concealment while behind bushes and while moving, useful on all light tanks

Improved Aiming Unit - Improves your gun dispersion by 5% at ALL times. Acts as an additive stabiliser since gun handling is on the handling stats and base dispersion

Improved Rotation Mechanism - Improves your rotation speed, does NOT effect gun handling as that stat is to counterbalance the extra speed, only increases gun handling when moving forward and doing nothing else

Turbocharger - Increases top speed forward and reverse and Acceleration, really good equipment for slow tanks and tanks with good top speed but low p/w

Improved Radio Set - Makes your spotted time less, while increasing enemy spotted time

Improved Hardening - Increases track health and vehicle load limit along with HP and repair speed of tracks

Improved Configuration - 50% more health of crew and modules, saving throw system preventing one fire, one ammorack and one engine destruction a game

Gun laying Drive - 10% faster aiming speed (only while stationary)

Spall Liner - better HE protection, better Ramming protection, less stun duration and protection of crew

Additional Grousers - better maintaining speed and ground resistances. Refer to Tanks.gg to look at your tanks actual top speed. If it does not match your rated top speed, grousers may be applicable (IS-7, Kranvagn as examples)

For Passive scouts -
CVS, Optics, exhaust for t8-10, switch binocs out incase optics does not give full VR. For under tier 8, switch CVS for vents, rammer or other equipment
For active scouts -
The same as passive.

For Mediums -
Optics, Vstab Rammer or Vents Vstab Rammer or Turbo Vstab Rammer
You may drop vstab on tanks that don't require it - they have good enough handling as it
Autoloaders cannot equip rammer, replace it with another equipment such as turbo, vents

For Heavies (general) -
Improved hardening, Vstab, Rammer or Improved hardening, rammer, turbo.

For Heaviums -
Turbo, Vstab, Rammer or IH, rammer, turbo
Dependent on tank / your confidence in hitting shots

For Autoloaders -
Vents, Improved Aiming, Vstab

For TDs -
Improved Aiming, vents (if applicable), Rammer (if applicable).


These are general builds. Feel free to experiment. To see stats of tanks check out Tanks.gg

To check Armour of enemy tanks and where to shoot them, Check using the site tanks.gg

Tanks have 3 common weakspots

Cupola (sticks up from turret)
Lower Glacis plate (bottom of the tank)
Turret ring (self explanatory)

These weakspots don't appear on all tanks, so its best to research that yourself
Some tanks have other weakspots to note: Turret rings (either side extrusions or just under the turret, applies to Super Conqueror and T-150 respectively, something to look for) and MG ports (Not common, but seen on T29, T32, T26e4 - generally american tanks)

Other weakspots that can be useful are as follows -
Sponsons, often when looking at a tank from below, they may have overhanging hull over the tracks you may pen. These are known as sponson weakspots. Appears on all Assault Italian TDs
Engine decks, often when a tank sidescrapes or when you get above them, you can get the protrusion of their engine deck. Shooting this can start fires. Appears on tanks like the Udarniy, Concept 1b, some italian TDs

Crew is very important. General role skills will always be taken first (BIA, Repairs for heavies, BIA camo and Repairs in that order for other classes)

The meta and discussion over crew skills is still ongoing, I will update this later

Buy Preset Nation exterior style for 75000 on every tank. 750 credits per game for 2% - 4% extra concealment is large and necessary for good gameplay
You will get free styles over time from events. These are useful too

This guide does not cover everything and is not very indepth. This does cover quite a lot of important things though, and if you wish to get even better you should check out guides on Youtube to learn more (Stay away from QuickyBaby though, he's a noob)