I hope this guide helps to make you an informed decision about going into the Swedish tech tree. The goal is to (hopefully) give a nice overall gameplay and historical summary of each tank, without going into too much detail. I want you to be able to leave each section with a good idea for what to expect while using that vehicle. I also hate steam guides that are just links to Youtube videos. I guess that makes me a boomer.

I am not an expert about tanks, and I'm definitely not an expert at War Thunder. What I lack in expertise I make up with enthusiasm! Sweden is a fun nation filled to the brim with unique and interesting vehicles, no copy paste here (*cough*centurions*cough*)! Edit: It seems that Sweden got the copy and paste treatment during the Fire and Ice update in October 2022.

Before we get into the nitty-gritty, here is the TL;DR version of the Swedish tank tree.

Sweden is a specialist nation focused on sniping and being sneaky.

Strengths

• Decently mobile
  
• Low profile vehicles
  
• Ridiculous levels of penetration (You get APDS rounds in reserve tanks)
  
• Top tier gun depression
  
• Good optics
  
• Very few genuinely bad tanks

Weaknesses

• Little to no armor, lots of open top tanks
  
• Small or cramped crews
  
• A lot of your ammo has low post penetration damage
  
• Most early SPAA isn't great at anti-air duties
  
• Gaps within tech tree - poor selection at certain BR brackets
  
• Almost no pintle mounted machine guns for air defense or pinging enemies
  
• Basically no HMG's in the entire tree
  
• High repair costs
  
• Poor access to good ground attack aircraft

These pros and cons are mostly focused on the low to mid ranked, natively designed Swedish tanks. Once you start getting higher in the tech tree, I feel like tanks start to homogenize into "NATO-style" and "Warsaw Pact Style".

Also, talking about air and ground forces combined is a bit out of the scope of this guide but its worth mentioning - Sweden does not have a lot great ground attack aircraft (compare it to the American air tech tree for example). There are a couple worth noting (A21A-3 and the 3 different SAAB's), but in my experience its better to use Swedish aircraft for CAP (combat air patrol) instead of CAS especially because of the gap in SPAA from 4.3 to 8.3 (no the ZSU-57-2 is not an anti aircraft gun its a tank destroyer). Even with access to radar SPAA, you will probably want to run a fighter in your lineup to fight strike drones and space bombers.

The Finnish army has cross tree tanks from Germany, Britian, and Russia. These have their own complimentary strengths and weaknesses.

The Finnish sub-tree is mostly generalist medium tanks used to fill in your existing lineups at different battle ratings.

Strengths

• Most tanks slot easily into existing Swedish lineups (4.0, 5.7, 7.7, 9.3, Top Tier)
  
• All-rounder generalist tanks
  
• THEY HAVE ARMOR
  
• New unique vehicle - the BT-42
  
• Squadron vehicle is strong and has a high battle rating

Weaknesses

• Lots of copy-paste tanks
  
• Manages to introduce a tank stranded alone at its battle rating (Charioteer)
  
• High tier squadron vehicles like to attract teammates with skill issues

This guide will be focused on realistic battles, and not arcade or sim.
Arcade is fun and all but it favors heavier armor, and Sweden doesn't have much of that.


Strv/Stridsvagn = Tank (Swedish)
Ps./Panssarivaunu = Tank (Finnish)
Strf/Stridsfordon and CV/Combat Vehicle = Infantry fighting vehicle
Pbv/Pansarbandvagn = Armored personnel carrier
Ikv/Infanterikanonvagn = Infantry support assault gun
Sav/Stormartillerivagn = Assault artillery
Pvkv/Pansarvärnskanonvagn = Tank destroyer
Lvkv/Luftvärnskanonvagn = Self propelled anti aircraft gun

Slpgr/Spårljuspansargranat = Tank grenade with tracer
Slpprj/Spårljuspansarprojektil = Tank projectile with tracer
Slpsgr/Spårljuspansarspränggranat = High explosive explosive anti tank round with tracer
Slspgr/Spårljussprängpansargranat = High explosive round with tracer
Slsgr/Spårljusspränggranat = Explosive round with tracer
Rökgr/Rökgranat = Smoke round
Kulsgr/Kulspränggranat = Fragmentation explosive grenade
Rbs/Robotsystem = Guided weapon system

These guidelines will overlap with general tactics you will use while playing other nations. However, they are absolutely vital for success with Sweden.


Early on, your primary source of damage will be a high penetration, low damage round (APDS and HEAT). Unlike nations with superior APHE rounds (((i.e. Russia))), you cannot rely on one shot kills with your tanks.

When you engage with an enemy tank, try to kill their gunner with your first shot. While they may be able to scoot back into cover, they will not be able to return fire.


On the vast majority of tanks, the gunner sits on the left side of the tank (from your point of view, it will be the right side of the turret). Note that some SPAA actually have two gunners and will still be able to fire back if you kill one of them and some higher rank vehicles have a commander override system, allowing the commander to quickly take over the gunner controls.

This part of the turret is usually protected by a mantle, and will be one of the more well defended areas. You'll have to experiment to find out which tanks you're able to brute force from the front. You have a major advantage due to your above average penetration, so use it.

Sometimes you'll be in a situation where trying to shoot the gunner is either risky or impossible. If you're not sure you'll be able to make that shot, aim for the barrel instead. Its even more effective than killing the gunner (since they have to spend time to repair it) but it is a lot more risky. Barrels have very weird hitboxes and they love to bounce shots. The best angle to hit a barrel is if its facing 90 degrees away from you (i.e. its pointed directly left or right compared to where you're facing). The second best angle is if its facing straight at you, but smart players know to wiggle their aim while they reload to make it difficult for you to hit their barrel.


Once you have access to HEAT rounds, knowing where the ammo sits in enemy tanks will allow you to reliably one shot all tanks (until reactive armor and blowout panels are invented, but that is much later down the tech tree).

As long as the superplastic jet of molten metal hits a unit of ammunition, it will (usually) explode, and explode the rest of the tank with it.

APDS/APFSDS rounds can also detonate ammunition, provided they have enough kinetic energy remaining. This means a side on shot into an ammo rack is much more likely to detonate ammunition vs a frontal shot thats gone through the front armor, the transmission, and a crewmember before hitting the ammunition.


The Tiger 1 has notoriously exposed ammo racks, even when not fully loaded with ammunition. It can be relatively easy to hit its ammunition.

Something like the KV-1S may be much harder to ammo rack - the majority of the ammo is low to the ground. There is also ammo stored in the turret, but that requires them to take a full ammo load.

Use the x-ray camera to figure out where the ammo is stored on tanks you are unfamiliar with. The x-ray camera is your friend.


This should be a no brainer if you're a superior tanker armed with esoteric "Protection Onion" knowledge.

Sweden rewards defensive, supporting, proactive play. You are going to have to rely on your teammates to aggressively push into enemy capture points. Sometimes you're just going to have to push into enemy positions yourself - its unavoidable. With Sweden it will be a lot harder than other nations. You just don't have the capability to survive getting shot.

Stay in the backlines if possible. Most of your vehicles have excellent optics to abuse these positions. APDS rounds have very high muzzle velocities and are very easy to aim over long range. You also have access to tanks with superior gun depression. This allows you to sit farther back on hills, which both improves your armor by angling it more steeply and also lets you quickly reverse into full cover. Use these to your advantage.

Support your teammates. Staying in the backlines doesn't mean sniping from spawn (although there are maps that let you do this). Stick near your team and help them - but just be careful about your positioning. Sometimes its just good enough that you get a revenge kill for your recently deceased battle buddy.

If you're by yourself then be sneaky and patient. A lot of Swedish vehicles are low profile. The vast majority of players are like the T-rex in Jurassic Park - their vision is based on movement. If you sit in a bush and turn off your engine, you'll be surprised at how much aggro you can dodge.

Welcome to Sweden.

These two dudes are pretty average for reserve tanks (i.e. they're pretty fast, have good rate of fire, and have poor armor), outside of the one unique thing they provide.


You eventually unlock APDS rounds. In a reserve tank.


These are overkill when up against BR1.0 opponents, but they are very useful when uptiered or sniping. Everyone complains about a reserve tank getting APDS rounds, but the real problem is that they do absolutely pitiful post penetration damage. Make sure your first shot kills their gunner, because you will almost certainly have to shoot them multiple times in order to secure a kill.

If you're more confident about your ability to hit weak spots, use the APCBC round. It has some explosive filler and enough penetration to get the job done.

I've found the Strv m/31 to have weirdly laggy turning controls. I'm not sure why thats the case, but turning with it feels very awkward. Otherwise its essentially the same tank as the m/38.
This has been fixed as of 2/16/2022

Pros

• Good acceleration and turning
  
• APDS ammo can penetrate anything within your BR range
  
• APCBC ammo is strong when against similar BR opponents
  
• Good ROF

Cons

• APDS round has poor post penetration damage
  
• Poor armor
  
• Cramped, small crew
  
• Tanks may have problems ramming through walls due to low weight/speed
  
• Strv m/31 has poor turning controls

Overall: It’s fast, it’s fun, it sounds like a lawn mower. It has everything you want in a tank! Contender for the best new tank in the Fire and Ice update.

HE is a lot of fun to use, but I do need to point out that the HE shell only has 2.2kg of TNT in it. While this is a lot, it does not delete anything it touches. Doing things like hitting tracks or side skirts will thwart your fun times. Aim for cupolas and the lower part of front turrets to splash the tank roofs.

The 10-13 second reload is pretty slow in comparison to normal tanks, but its actually pretty decent for a large caliber HE shooter.

I have heard reports that the armor has inherited some Russian Trolling Factor, but I personally always just die when I get hit. So don't get hit. Simple as.

Pros

• Big dumb HE shell (2.2kg TNT)
  
• Decent reload speed for a big dumb HE slinger
  
• Researchable HEAT is decent
  
• Good acceleration and top speed
  
• Surprisingly good reverse (-11 km/h)

Cons

• Your reload speed is still slow compared to everyone else you will face
  
• Slow turret turn speed
  
• Poor gun depression
  
• Very poor armor
  
• Small, cramped crew
  
• Large turret
  
• Poor turning while stationary
  
• No secondary machine guns

---

This is essentially just an upgraded Strv m/38 - you have slightly more armor, and slightly better gun depression (-15 degrees).

Pros

• Great rate of fire
  
• Good gun depression (-15 degrees)
  
• APDS rounds (researchable)
  
• Decent acceleration and good turning

Cons

• Poor reverse
  
• Bad armor (only effective vs HMG and some autocannon fire from the front)
  
• APDS has poor post penetration damage

---

SPAA thats bad at its job - killing planes. I'd focus on killing the squishier tanks at its BR.
Due to its absolutely pathetic ammo load (3 belts of 36 shots), it is somewhat risky to take the HEFI-T belts for dedicated plane shooting - its better to stick with the default belt if you're going after mixed targets.

Pros

• Autocannon
  
• Good top speed
  
• Fast reload while you have ammo
  
• Surprisingly good optics

Cons

• Poor defensive capability - open top, no armor, 2 crewmembers
  
• Bad gun elevation for SPAA (only +45 degrees)
  
• Very little ammo
  
• Poor reverse

---

In 1949, Sweden was looking into developing a mechanized assault gun carrier as part of its push to develop a new generation of armored fighting vehicles. The point of the Ikv 72 was to replace towed artillery pieces, and to do it in a cost effective (i.e. cheap) way. Despite being designed to replace artillery, the initial prototype was only armed with 3 machine guns and was essentially just a mobile machine gun nest. Swedish engineers couldn't quite fit a 105mm gun into the chassis, so they settled with the 75mm Kan m/41 instead.

A great tank to learn how to abuse your Swedish gun depression (and time traveling ability - you'll be fighting early WW2 tanks in a vehicle designed in 1950). This thing is surprisingly good - its small and very mobile. You will be able to blitz into strong positions at the start of a round.

Its gun depression will spoil you - its so good. The best way to use this is to sit behind a hill and spot enemies with your binoculars. Once you spot an enemy, you can poke your head over the hill and fire, then reverse back into cover. The reload speed on this tank is objectively speaking, average. However at its battle rating it is very slow when compared with your peers. Reloading while in cover is a good idea. You cannot afford to trade shots - you'll lose. Your armor will not protect you against even HMG fire.

A minor problem is that you are pretty unstable when shooting. If you're sitting at a weird angle on a hill, you may get pushed enough to prevent follow up shots without repositioning yourself.

Pros

• Top tier gun depression (-20 degrees)
  
• APHE for squishy tanks
  
• AP for uptier tanks
  
• Smoke shells
  
• Good acceleration and turning
  
• Good reverse (-13 km/h)
  
• Neutral Steering
  
• Low profile

Cons

• Open top
  
• Very poor armor when not hull down
  
• Casemate
  
• Unstable after firing - follow up shots may be tricky
  
• Below average reload speed

---

Hoo boy, the first real stinker of a tank. Its a tank destroyer without, uh, the ability to destroy tanks. Hang in there. The 1946 version is a significant upgrade.

Pros

• Decent gun depression
  
• Smoke shells

Cons

• Low velocity shells (~500 m/s)
  
• Low armor penetration for a tank destroyer
  
• Very sensitive to uptiers
  
• Poor armor
  
• Poor reverse speed
  
• Casemate
  
• High profile
  
• No coaxial or pintle MG

---

I really shouldn't rag on a tank made in 1929, but this thing sucks.

You can't angle it because the armor is only 17.5mm thick on the front. Your starting round is, at best, usable. The reserve tanks you get as Sweden are better than this thing. They're faster and at least have a special gimmick with their APDS rounds.

Use this because you have to, not because it offers anything unique.

Pros

• It only costs 700 SL to buy so you can start researching the Finnish sub-tree
  
• Good rate of fire

Cons

• Its a British tank
  
• Oh you need me to elaborate?
  
• Very poor armor
  
• Slow acceleration
  
• Terrible reverse speed (-4km/h)
  
• Solid AP is meh

---

Overall: Your big crew is your only defense. Rush the APHE shell, and it becomes tolerable. Not great, but usable.

If you've played the T-28 over in the Russian tree, then you already know what to expect. If you have the dubious privilege of playing it for the first time, then here's what to expect: "oh god why am I using this piece of junk I could be playing a fun tank instead".

Once you get past the terrible stock shrapnel shell, you'll do a lot better. Until then, you'll need to rely on cheeky side shots and preying on the squishier low rank tanks. Anything with armor will foil you until you unlock the APHE round, which is quite good.

Defensively, your only real protection is your goofy geometry and your very large crew. Lots of replacement gunners and drivers crammed in there! Just don't get shot in the side and you'll survive a shot or two from the front.

Pros

• Large crew
  
• Strong (researchable) APHE round
  
• Decent acceleration
  
• Lots of LMG's

Cons

• Starts with the terrible Sh-354T shrapnel shell
  
• Poor gun depression
  
• Very poor armor
  
• Very poor stationary turning
  
• Large profile

---

Should you buy? Only if you're a collector.

A copy of the Strv m/38, but with the premium talisman.

This version has two coaxial LMG's and improved frontal turret and drivers port armor.

Unique Pros

• Improved drivers port armor
  
• Two coaxial LMG's

Unique Cons

• None

---

The TD stands for Twitch Drop, not Tank Destroyer.

A carbon copy of the Strv m/39, but now with an eye catching purple stripe!

Huh...where did the talisman go? Yeah. Its one of those premium that's not really a premium. At least its free.

Screenshot courtesy of the War Thunder wiki page.[wiki.warthunder.com]

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Should you buy? Its a low tier seal clubber. Its fun and strong, but its still a low rank premium so its not going to help you grind out the tech tree.

A Swedish puma!
Ok, maybe its not as strong as the Puma, but it is a really fun low tier vehicle. Unfortunately, its only available via the Gaijin market since it was an event vehicle. Thankfully its a fairly cheap one and will probably remain cheap.
While the gun won't be penetrating armor from the front, you'll be using its high speed to flank people anyway.

Pros

• High ROF
  
• Fast reload
  
• 6 Crewmembers
  
• Good top speed
  
• Can go full speed forward and reverse
  
• Decent turn radius for a wheeled vehicle

Cons

• Below average penetration
  
• No armor
  
• Its price is based on the open market - so who knows what this will cost you to acquire

---

Should you buy? Only if you're a collector.

For all practical purposes, this is a carbon copy of the Vickers Mk.E in the tech tree, with one difference which its name hints at - it is the Russian version of the tank, with a Russian gun and Russian )))))))))))) factor.

The 45mm 20-K cannon comes with a very good APHE round and an AP round you can safely ignore. Otherwise it is exactly the same as the Vickers - i.e. squishy and slow.

Unique Pros

• Russian gun is very good compared to British gun
  
• Slightly faster base reload

Unique Cons

• Russian gun has much less gun depression

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Works like an upgraded reserve tank. Kinda average at everything, but still has your APDS round. I found the gun to be inaccurate at longer ranges, plus your optics aren't really great so its a bit of a moot point.

Pros

• APDS round
  
• Decent mobility
  
• Good ROF

Cons

• Poor armor
  
• Cramped crew

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The Pvkv III was one of the several prototype tank destroyers that Sweden tested out in the 1950's. Like its brother the Pvkv II, this used an old chassis (Strv m/41 S/II) but with a new and larger turret.

Overall: Extremely good optics, but poor armor and gun handling.

The Pvkv III is a sniping tank - I don't know of any tank at or around its battle rating that has 10x optics. To supplement its excellent zoom, you have a very decent AP round by default. You can eventually unlock an APHE round, but I found its usefulness to be situational based on matchmaking. At your BR, the APHE is usually sufficient. If you get uptiered, you will be facing things with significantly trickier armor (primarily the KV-1 and T-34 but also things like Churchill and the ARL-44 can show up too) so you may need solid AP to punch through them. Its not even like the solid AP is bad either, its actually quite a good round and you'll do fine with it during the stock grind.

However, the real secret sauce for this tank is its rate of fire and damage potential. It doesn't have the fastest firing rate, nor the biggest gun, nor APHE with the most explosive filler, but overall? You have an absolutely disgusting amount of potential firepower here.

Mobility is average for its rank but the turret is a bit sluggish and wobbly.

Pros

• Good starting AP round
  
• Researchable APHE round
  
• Decent ROF
  
• Above average gun depression (-12 degrees)
  
• Excellent optics (10x magnification)
  
• Spaced out crew, hard to die in one shot
  
• Hull mounted LMG

Cons

• Poor armor
  
• High profile
  
• Open top/back
  
• Exposed ammo in the back of turret
  
• Sluggish gun handling
  
• Poor reverse (-5kmh)

---

The Lago is designated a medium tank despite being more of a light tank in functionality. Not a lot of armor, but good mobility and a responsive turret. Despite having a crew of 5, they are really cramped and you'll likely get knocked out if you get hit.

The Lago also gets a APDS round, which is still very useful at this BR.

Pros

• APDS Round
  
• Decent acceleration and turn speed
  
• Decent turret traverse speed
  
• Large Crew

Cons

• Very cramped crew
  
• Poor armor

---

This tank is the fatter older brother to the Lago. It is much more armored compared to the Lago, but it sacrifices the APDS round. As a tradeoff, it gets a decent AP round, smoke rounds, and an absolutely devastating APHE round (260g of HE filler???). I usually take a little bit of each.

Despite being uparmored, its still not that tanky. Your turret face is pretty vulnerable, and the turret itself is HUGE. 3 out of 4 crewmembers are in the turret, so a turret shot will pretty much knock out your tank.

I personally prefer the Lago over this.

Fun fact: the EH stands for "single engine, hydraulic gearbox".

Pros

• Flexible ammo choices
  
• Extremely power APHE round (if it penetrates)
  
• Somewhat armored
  
• Good acceleration and turn speed
  
• Great gun depression (-15 degrees)

Cons

• Large profile turret
  
• Poor armor on turret face
  
• Most of the crew is in the turret

---

A new (and welcome) addition to the Swedish tech tree - SPAA that is actually good at killing aircraft!

As an additional bonus, its surprisingly hard to kill for SPAA - no exposed gunner and enough armor to defend against HMG fire (at least from the front).
Ammo management is important for this vehicle - the reload time is quite long (10.4s->8s aced). You don't want to waste ammo while fighting...but also don't forget to reload partially empty magazines between engagements.

Pros

• Smoke launchers
  
• No exposed crew
  
• Well armored for SPAA
  
• Good muzzle velocity
  
• High ROF

Cons

• Wimpy AP ammo
  
• Sluggish aiming for SPAA
  
• Poor vertical aiming height (+48 degrees)
  
• Long reload

Fun fact: The Pbv 301 is actually an APC.

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Yep, its one of those AA gun trucks that most nations get in low BR's.

Overall: Exposed crew but a dangerous gun. Drive around backwards once you're expecting enemy contact.

An interesting feature is its access to SAPHE-I shells - armor piercing with explosive filler. They sacrifice a little bit of armor penetration for a lot more damage.

Its pretty good at killing tanks, although the gun itself is pretty wobbly so shooting at range will require some discipline. Unlike a lot of AA trucks, the truck cabin doesn't get in the way. You still can't aim down, but it doesn't force you to aim way up in the air like most gun trucks. Its gun depression is pretty bad, so you may have issues aiming on hilly terrain.

Aircraft is a bit tricky because of its relatively low ROF and somewhat sluggish turret traverse. Try to aim in a proactive way - aim where you expect the plane to pass by, rather than just chasing it around in the air.

Pros

• SAPHE-I ammo
  
• Good at killing tanks at its BR
  
• Decent offroad despite being wheeled
  
• Truck cabin doesn't get in the way

Cons

• Exposed crew
  
• Bad gun depression (-6 deg)
  
• Sluggish turret traverse
  
• Slow ROF for SPAA
  
• Wobbly gun while firing

---

Derp gun lovers, rejoice! Prepare to blast some fools with your spicy köttbulle launcher.

Its very slow projectile speed of 285 m/s means it will be difficult to aim at range, but big brain gamers will use this to lob shots while in cover (or to hit enemies who are behind cover). It has a spaced out crew of 4, so you will probably survive getting shot - even though each lost crewmember means your already slow reload will suffer.

Be sure to use your hull mounted machine gun to break obstacles in your path so your HE shell doesn't detonate on random garbage.

You will be bringing this tank with you in a lot of early to mid lineups. It can punch way above its BR and its a decent backup tank if you run out of other options.

Pros

• 5.8KG HE shell
  
• Decent acceleration
  
• Uptiers don't matter - you can blast everyone
  
• 4 spaced out crew members
  
• Hull mounted LMG is very useful for clearing out garbage in front of you

Cons

• Long reload (19.5s -> 15s aced)
  
• No armor
  
• Open top, exposed crew
  
• Casemate
  
• Poor gun depression
  
• Very slow projectile speed (285 m/s)
  
• Slow gun targeting

---

240mm HEAT at BR 3.0?

Swedish bias.

The mobility of the tank and reload speed has been sacrificed for a larger gun. On the plus side despite squeezing a larger gun into the exact same chassis, Swedish engineers managed to increase the vertical depression of this vehicle. More bias.

A weird quirk due to the cannon breach is that you cannot aim to the right as far as you can to the left.

If you're coming from the 1944 version of this tank, this version will feel amazing - however it's really not that great. Its still a derpy casemate. You'll be running this in a lot of lineups regardless.

Pros

• Immune to uptiers
  
• HEAT round has amazing penetration
  
• Great gun depression (-14 degrees)

Cons

• HEAT round has low muzzle velocity (425 m/s)
  
• Poor armor
  
• High profile
  
• Slow reload (13s -> 10s aced)
  
• Poor reverse speed
  
• No coaxial or pintle MG

Should you buy? Only if you're a collector.

This is basically a carbon copy of the S-II except you get some cool decals and the premium talisman bonuses.









Big value, Gaijin.

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A premium version of the Strv m/42 EH. What does your hard earned money earn you? A pintle mounted MG (and a talisman).

You unfortunately cannot buy this straight from Gaijin - it is an untradable event vehicle.

Unique Pros

• Pintle mounted LMG

Unique Cons

• Who knows when you'll be able to get this in the future

---

This is the tank that made me fall in love with Sweden. While my favorite tank is the S-tank, and my go-to tank in this BR is the Pvkv m/43 (1946), this was the tank that really made me excited to keep playing the Swedish tech tree.

It has no armor and wobbles around when you move, but its ability to snipe pretty much everything at and above its BR is no joke. The optics on this tank are unmatched at this tier. The gun is pretty accurate, but you will have trouble hitting smaller weak spots (such as the KV-1 turret cheeks) at long range.

You will likely survive any hit that doesn't detonate the ammo (which is stored in the back of the turret) since the driver and machine gunner are very distant from the turret crew.

Pros

• Great APCBC shell (researchable)
  
• Great muzzle velocity
  
• Top tier magnification
  
• Great gun depression (-14 degrees)
  
• Turreted
  
• Resistant to uptiers
  
• Large, spaced out crew (6)

Cons

• Unstable when moving and braking
  
• Long reload (13s -> 10s aced)
  
• Exposed turret crew
  
• Exposed ammo
  
• Weak armor
  
• High profile
  
• Slow turret traverse
  
• Poor reverse

---

The Pvkv IV is what happens when you dump your skill points into intimidation and strength and forget about dexterity.

The main weakness of this vehicle is its turret speed. There's no getting around it - its terrible. Four degrees a second of rotation means you'll be playing this tank like a casemate. The majority of your aiming will be from your tracks, not your turret.

The upside of this is that you have access to ammo that is good in any situation you may find yourself in. A decent APHE round for general use, HE for open tops, and APDS for cracking the heaviest tanks you'll come across.

The APDS round has very poor post penetration damage due to its small caliber, but sometimes killing one crew member at a time will get the job done. Eventually.

Overall this tank was usable but not very fun.

Pros

• Good APHE shell (researchable)
  
• Overkill APDS shell (researchable)
  
• Resistant to uptiers
  
• Good reload speed
  
• Very good gun depression (-14 deg)
  
• Rank 3 vehicle at BR 3.0

Cons

• Very poor armor
  
• Painfully slow aiming speed
  
• No pintle mounted MG
  
• Small crew (3)

---

Fun fact: "Delat Torn" literally means "split turret", an apt description for a tank whos breech awkwardly sticks out the back of the turret.
Sweden doesn't have a lot of brawler type tanks. This is one of them. Zoom into early flanking positions, bait dummies by "missing", then slap people who do don't know you have a 3 second reload. A fringe benefit to this tank is that even when you run out of ready ammo, the reload speed doesn't suffer too badly (unlike the SAV or French autoloaders for example). For reference, at my crew level, it takes about 7 seconds to reload with an empty magazine.

Don't rely on your armor. It will bounce stuff on occasion but this isn't exactly a heavy tank.

Pros

• Semi-automatic loader with a 4+1 round magazine
  
• Decent reload speed even when autoloader is empty
  
• Good acceleration and turning
  
• Good APCBC ammo (researchable)

Cons

• Open back of turret
  
• Poor armor
  
• High profile

---

A stinker of an SPAA gun...at least when you're shooting at planes.

Aggravatingly slow turret traversal make it very difficult to track aircraft. Its rate of fire is very slow if you're trying to get rounds on air targets.

That being said, this thing is insane against ground targets. In fact, this is my go-to tank for the "Kill enemy vehicles as an SPAA" and "Get X multikills" missions. Its rank III so it qualifies, but its battle rating isn't so high that you'll run into too many heavily armored tanks you can't destroy. This thing is actually kind of insane once you figure out how to play ground forces. If this is your first time playing at 2.7, the L-62 may not feel that useful...but once you get some experience and come back, you'll realize how much of a seal clubber it really is.

Use your evil Swedish autocannon powers responsibly.

Pros

• Autocannon
  
• SAP round is deadly (against tanks)
  
• Great ROF for AT purposes
  
• Superior turret speed for AT purposes

Cons

• Open top
  
• No armor
  
• Slow horizontal turret traverse
  
• Poor gun depression
  
• Slow ROF for AA purposes
  
• Slow muzzle velocity for AA purposes
  
• Somewhat limited ammo
  
• Poor reverse

---

This tank destroyer is awesome.

You get the awesome slpgr m/43 APCBC shell that the Pvkv II gets. You get an obscene amount of turret depression. You get great optics. You get a faster reload speed compared to the Pvkv II. Best of all, you even get a pintle mounted LMG.

No seriously - I love that freaking LMG. After being farmed by aircraft constantly, you finally get a tank with the ability to fight back...kinda sorta.

Use that gun depression! This thing ends up being pretty tanky when far away and in defilade. Tanks like the KV-1 will basically be unable to damage you if you're not at point blank range. Tanks using chemical rounds like HE/HEAT can still pop you even when you're in an ideal position.

A quirk this vehicle has is that it can't aim to the left as far as it can to the right.

Pros

• Great APCBC shell
  
• Great optics
  
• Pintle mounted LMG
  
• Great acceleration, decent turning
  
• Amazing vertical depression (-15 degrees)
  
• Good muzzle velocity (~900 m/s)
  
• Resistant to uptiers

Cons

• Open top
  
• Poor armor (when on flat ground)
  
• Casemate
  
• Poor reverse

---

You may have flashbacks to the Ikv 72 at this point. Don't worry! This tank is a lot better...even though its still not what I would call great.

This thing is perfect for ambushing while hull down. You have great gun depression and a great reverse gear, so shooting and then scooting back into cover is very easy to do. Coming from tanks with much better optics, this one will feel significantly harder to snipe with - both because of the muzzle velocity and decreased zoom. Your HEAT-FS round deletes open tanks and has enough explosive filler to sometimes delete heavier tanks too. Its very good.

...but this is a Swedish tank we're talking about here. You have no armor and will get eaten alive by HMG's and CAS. Be sneaky and reposition when you can.

Pros

• HEATFS round with 400mm pen
  
• Basically immune to uptiers
  
• Good acceleration and mobility
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Good reverse
  
• Low profile
  
• Great gun depression (-16 degrees)

Cons

• No armor
  
• Casemate
  
• No coaxial or pintle machine gun to destroy obstacles

---

The final form of the Pvkv m/43.
I need to revisit this tank to re-evaluate it at some point. At the moment, I feel like my personal skill issues are holding it back more than the tank itself.

I found the tank usable, but not nearly as fun as the 1946 version. The APDS round doesn't one shot reliably but you'll need it for the absolute onslaught of heavy tanks you'll be coming up against.


Also, what the heck is up with that random window thing on it?
Editors note (later): You put it over the drivers hatch so you can drive when its raining and you don't get soaked. That's just where its stored.








Pros

• Starts with the strong slpgr m/43 round
  
• Researchable APDS round (243mm pen)
  
• Great gun depression (-15 degrees)
  
• Great optics
  
• Pintle mounted LMG

Cons

• APDS round has poor post penetration damage
  
• Casemate tank
  
• Poor armor when not hull down
  
• Mediocre armor when hull down
  
• Map sensitive - pray for big maps with hilly terrain

---

The iconic T-34! Unless you're a brand new player to War Thunder, you should be pretty familiar with this thing just from fighting against it non-stop.

The main strength of the T-34 is its incredibly wacky armor. It bounces things it has no business bouncing. The giant fuel tanks on its sides act as WW2 ERA and they will protect the crew from what would normally be lethal side shots (at the small cost of being set on fire). If you've ever shot at a T-34, you already know about its huge Russian Bias Factor.

What you may not be familiar with is the gun on the T-34. One of the features of the Russian tree are guns that have juuuust enough penetration to not call them bad, but with the explosive filler to delete everything you manage to penetrate. If you aren't flanking then you will need to aim for frontal weak spots. Mirror matches against other Russians can be quite tricky.

The turret has a great turning rate but like all Russian tanks it has poor gun depression. Keep in mind there's a 100 degree arc to the rear where your engine deck prevents you from aiming down at all.

Pros

• Armor is very troll-y
  
• Decent acceleration
  
• Decent stationary turning
  
• Good performance in bad terrain (mud/snow)
  
• Good horizontal aim speed

Cons

• Poor gun depression
  
• Ammo can be very dependent on knowing where weakspots are
  
• Catches on fire easily

---

Overall: Great gun, alright armor, meh engine. Not quite a sniper, not quite a brawler. Great addition to the 4.0 lineup.

Hot off the heels of the T-34 its another War Thunder all-star - the Pz.IV!

Again - unless you're a brand new player to War Thunder, you should be familiar with this tank just from fighting against it all the time.

The main strength of this tank is its excellent gun and, conveniently, you start out with your best ammo. I wouldn't bother bringing any other round other than a couple smoke shells. The actual aiming is quite bad - the turret is very slow and even the turn rate of the tank is slow. It will be hard to swing your gun around to react to sudden enemies.

You actually have half decent frontal armor. You can't fully angle due to the hull armor being beveled, but it can protect you occasionally which is more than can be said about almost all of your Swedish tanks up to this point.

Pros

• Starts with its best round (which is very good)
  
• Spaced armor on turret
  
• Decent armor for a medium tank at this rank
  
• Smoke grenades
  
• Smoke shells

Cons

• Slow turret speed
  
• Below average acceleration/top speed
  
• Poor stationary turning
  
• Beveled front armor makes angling less effective
  
• Cramped crew
  
• The Finnish version lacks the side skirts and add on armor package

---

Let’s start with the good features of this tank. First, it’s fully stabilized at a very low battle rating. This lets you play much more aggressively, unless America or the UK are your enemies. They still have the occasional low speed stabilizer. You also can unlock a HEAT-FS round that's perfectly adequate but nothing special. You have all the advantages for the first shot - make it count because otherwise you'll die...

...and you will definitely die in this. You can't stand up to even HMG fire unless its at very long range, so make sure you run away if you can't one shot American or the occasional Russian tank with pintle mounted HMG's. Your rate of fire isn't anything exceptional so sticking around for follow up shots won't be an option sometimes. I had to content myself with getting a lot of assists with this.

Frankly, there are better tanks above AND below this thing so...use it because you have to, not because you want to.

I will say that this thing thrashes the Hellcat, which is something you will be seeing a lot of. It's open topped and your HEAT+stabilized gun deletes it.

Pros

• Fully stabilized
  
• Amphibious
  
• Light tank scouting and improved repair
  
• Exhaust Smoke System (ESS)
  
• Low profile turret
  
• Heat round is excellent vs light tanks

Cons

• Stock APCR is pretty bad
  
• Poor post penetration damage on HEAT and APCR
  
• Very poor gun depression (-4 degrees)
  
• Very poor armor
  
• Poor stationary turning
  
• Awkward battle rating
  
• Small crew (3)

---

Overall: Decent all-rounder sort of medium tank

Your main weapon doesn't have any stand out strengths. It does have -12 degrees of depression and you get access to an APDS round, but the gunner optics are nothing special (6x) so sniping will be harder. Thankfully your armor is both fairly thick and has funky geometry that will troll enemies sometimes, so close range combat isn't off limits. You don't get a low speed stabilizer so watch out for American tanks.

Its forward acceleration is pretty good. It'll take a bit to get fully up to your top speed but you'll hit 40 kmh offroad pretty quickly. Being a British tank means you rival the Russians in having the worst reverse speed in the game. This makes popping out around corners very risky.

Its a lot faster to just use your neutral steering and turn around in most cases.

Pros

• Decent acceleration
  
• Turret face has pretty decent armor
  
• Above average gun depression (-12 degrees)
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Smoke mortar
  
• Researchable APDS round

Cons

• Stock suffering syndrome
  
• Chassis armor isn't reliable
  
• Meh stock round, APDS round is tier 3 mod
  
• Only access to solid AP ammo
  
• Terrible reverse speed (-3kph)

Should you buy? It's very fun and strong but not a good investment for grinding.

Originally posted by The book "Bofors: 350 Years":

In 1947, Bofors conducted a study regarding self propelled artillery pieces. One of the concepts Bofors built was a 12 cm automatic cannon on a track chassis. The idea was to create a combat vehicle with high levels of firepower, primarily against tanks. The attempted prototype did not lead to any deal, but Bofors received important knowledge. With prior knowledge in the field of naval guns it was possible to handle larger ammunition rounds automatically in a limited space. Therefore, they were well equipped, when the Army Administration two years later gave Bofors the task of designing and delivering a test copy of a 15.5 cm self propelled artillery piece, leading to the Bandkanon.

Thank you dLFN for providing the translation.

A unique and powerful (albeit tricky) premium tank. Its quirk is that it has a 7 round autoloader with access to both a decent APHE round, and a decent HE round. The penetration of the APHE round is good, but you will still struggle to penetrate the frontal armor of heavier tanks. Watch out for the KV-1 and Shermans and anything with add-on track armor.

As with all autoloaders, once your magazine is empty the ROF significantly decreases. A good way to speed this process up is to resupply on a capture point - the ammo you get goes directly into the magazine.

For reference, after firing the last round it takes me 15 seconds until I was ready to fire again, and an additional 19 seconds until the second round was ready. Each round took 15 seconds to reload afterwards.

Fun fact: The gun on this tank is a naval gun with a shortened barrel.

Pros

• 1.2 second autoloader
  
• Low profile
  
• Good acceleration and turn speed
  
• Great reverse speed
  
• Smoke grenades (They don't cover much area though)

Cons

• Exposed crew
  
• Only 3 crewmembers
  
• No armor
  
• No secondary machine guns
  
• Below average muzzle velocity
  
• Surprisingly big vehicle
  
• Empty autoloader magazine takes a long time to reload (Up to ~90 seconds total)
  
• Availability depends on the mood of Gaijin

---

Should you buy? Not really, unless you're a collector. It's a good vehicle but low rank premiums are rarely worth buying unless they are exceptional in some way.

Overall: Its a M4 Sherman but faster. No pintle mounted HMG and much weaker turret armor are serious downsides. You still get the good M4 gun and low speed stabilizer so its still strong in close range brawls but I am very annoyed that Sweden continues to be afraid of putting high caliber machine guns on their tanks.

Your upper front plate is slightly thicker but at a more shallow construction angle which makes it a moot point, outside of overmatching I guess? It really doesn't matter that much but it is something unique about the III/IV.

Unique Pros

• No hull mg port weak spot
  
• Faster top speed and reverse
  
• Better HPT means better hill performance

Unique Cons

• Weaker gun mantlet, weaker turret (no extra armor on the right side)
  
• No pintle mounted HMG :'(
  
• No additional armor on the sides

---

Should you buy? No. Despite being a heavy tank (a rarity for the Swedish tech tree) it is overpriced and has no complimentary lineup. Even as a collector I find myself unwilling to purchase this vehicle.

The KV line of heavy tanks are named after Kliment Voroshilov, a Soviet politician and defense commisar.

"Dimitri!"
"Yes Anton?"
"Are you of rememberings to give Sweden a vehicle for this update?"
"Anton....we just had big update a month ago. There is no time!"
"Dimitri you know the punishment for failing me."
"Anton, Sweden will have a brand new vehicle for next update."
"That is what I was thinking you would be of saying, Dimitri."

The Swedish BMP-1 has a bit of an elevated skill floor. If you were facing other light vehicles it would be braindead easy to use but because you're in the Superheavy Battle Royale Battle Rating Bracket (SHBRBRB), you will have to proceed much more carefully.

You are quite mobile even when stock, so getting into good flanking spots (or stealing caps for precious RP) will be easy to do. The main problem is that your HEAT round lacks one hit kill potential. Knowing the vehicles you're shooting at will help your decision making. If you're against a tank with a slow turret like a Panther, you're probably safe to take your time and shoot again. If you're against an American or Russian tank armed with a HMG, you should probably run away and settle for an assist because you have terrible armor (even if it does have some (((( factor since its Russian).

It took a while before playing this thing really clicked for me, but once it did I realized I was really underestimating its power level.

Pros

• Quite nimble - good acceleration and stationary turning
  
• Low profile
  
• Upper plate can bounce a lot of stuff
  
• Frontal engine/transmission can eat up damage too
  
• Decent rate of fire
  
• Amphibious (9kmh in water)
  
• Good suspension makes firing on the move easier
  
• ESS (3 uses)
  
• Commander optics (5x)

Cons

• Very poor gun depression (-4 degrees)
  
• Overall terrible armor
  
• Small crew (3)
  
• Poor post pen damage
  
• Isolated in tech tree
  
• Very noisy, very distinct

---

This is an awkward looking tank at an awkward time in Swedens history.

The reason why its such a weird tank is that it was basically used as a stopgap measure while the Swedes figured out what they were doing with their tanks post WW2. Despite its strange look, it was actually considered a successful design! Even after they were decommissioned, the turrets were used as static defense emplacements for a while.

Lets talk about that ginormous turret. It does have good frontal angles, but its not going to reliably protect you against enemy fire. Its kind of sluggish and because its so top heavy the gun wobbles a lot while moving and braking fast. Its definitely a sniper kind of tank. Coming from tanks like the Pvkv II and the m/43 (1946) this will feel like a downgrade sometimes. The optics aren't as good (6x), there's no zoom toggle, and you'll be fighting much tougher opponents. Despite that, its still a decent tank. Keep playing it the same way you've played the previous sniper tanks - find a nice hill, play hull down, and try not to get hit.

With the addition of the Finnish sub-tree this little tank isn't alone at 5.7 anymore and can finally be brought in a lineup!

Pros

• Starts with the strong slpgr m/43 round
  
• APDS round (researchable)
  
• Conical turret face has bounce potential
  
• Great vertical depression (-15 degrees)
  
• Light tank spotting and improved repair
  
• Pintle mounted LMG
  
• Smoke grenades

Cons

• Poor acceleration and top speed (especially for a light tank)
  
• High profile
  
• Huge turret makes it top heavy and wobbly (like the Pvkv II)
  
• Weak armor overall
  
• Poor reverse (-5 kmh)

---

The Lvkv 42 is a great all-rounder SPAA. It is both mobile and easy to aim the gun and it also has good ammo for killing both ground and air targets. Its main limitations are that it has basically no armor and it has a pretty limited amount of ammo.

Your poor gun depression can be somewhat improved by using your hydropneumatic suspension to tilt your gun down an additional couple of degrees.

Pros

• Good acceleration and mobility
  
• Good at both aircraft and tank killing (at its BR)
  
• Very responsive turret
  
• Good rate of fire
  
• Large crew (5)
  
• Hydropneumatic suspension

Cons

• Irrelevant armor
  
• Open top
  
• Awkward battle rating
  
• Poor gun depression (-5 deg)
  
• Very small ammo supply for SPAA

---

You would think this is like the R3, but unfortunately it is nowhere near as good. Italian chads win this time.

This USH is pretty meh. Your speed is going to top out at about 45-50kmh most of the time and your gun will only be able to deal with the lightest of light tanks. Don't be fooled by the raw penetration numbers - the AP ammo has extremely bad performance against anything other than perfectly flat plates because its APCR.

Against aircraft it's nothing exciting. You have a fast firing weapon with high projectile speed and your turret has excellent elevation speed and good horizontal speed. However you don't have enough ammo to split duties between anti-ground and anti-air. You get 400 shots and you'll use them up fast.

Your armor is also mostly to keep the crew inside the vehicle than to protect them. Even rifle caliber bullets can penetrate you at close range. Having only 2 crew means getting shot at means instant death, basically.

In the end, fast = fun and on the maps where you can go fast its almost enjoyable to use this. I would avoid combat with tanks and focus on killing aircraft and capturing control points.

Pros

• High ROF
  
• Good projectile speed
  
• Good mobility on paved surfaces
  
• Good turret speed
  
• Quite small
  
• Great gun depression for SPAA (-10 deg)

Cons

• Terrible armor
  
• Limited ammo
  
• Poor AP round
  
• Gun overheats after ~5 seconds of shooting (77 shots)
  
• Slow reload for SPAA (9.1->7)
  
• Poor to average mobility on offroad surfaces
  
• Small crew (2)

---

Normal people:
Swedish engineers: What if we put an autoloader on artillery

This thing is pure Swedish weirdness. Its also extremely awkward to use. I can see how a really good player could absolutely demolish with this thing. I am not a really good player so I find it quite difficult to use.

The obviously good traits about this tank: big gun and fast shooting. The non obvious good traits: its actually pretty survivable as well. It has a large crew, they're all spaced out, and since its an autoloader it doesn't suffer from losing crewmembers. Also, its extremely easy to accidentally hit your giant barrel which is annoying, but not lethal.

Beware the big brain gamers - they know to just shoot your giant, fat, juicy ammo rack (which is vulnerable to HMG fire).

This thing also gets access to VT shells and can aim up high enough to shoot at aircraft.

The higher functioning part of your brain: NO WHY WOULD YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT DOING THAT STOP WE ONLY HAVE 14 SHOTS YOU'RE FIGHTING EARLY JET FIGHTERS AND LATE PROP PLANES YOU'RE GOING TO MISS AND THEN WE WONT HAVE ANY AMMO LEFT AND WE'LL PROBABLY DIE BECAUSE WE CAN'T AIM STRAIGHT UP WHY ARE YOU AGGROING PLANES

Your lizard brain: haha jet go explody

It's actually effective anti air. No really, I'm not joking. It just has a very high skill floor because of your limited ability to adjust your aim. Your shells have excellent speed which makes hitting air targets decently easy. You just have to be aiming in the right spot beforehand - predictive aiming, not tracking aiming.

HE-VT is viable against ground targets, but keep in mind that the minimum arming distance is 300m. Use direct fire when closer, and try to airburst when farther. Your mileage may vary based on the state of HE in whatever patch you're currently playing in.

Pros

• 3.2 second autoloader
  
• Giant HE shells (7.5kg)
  
• Researchable HE-VT shells
  
• Great muzzle velocity
  
• Excellent reverse
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Crew is very spaced out
  
• Large crew (6)
  
• Cool animated reload

Cons

• Only 14 shots
  
• Very poor horizontal coverage (+/- 10 degrees)
  
• Irrelevant armor
  
• Poor optics
  
• Absolutely horrible gun depression (-2 degrees)
  
• Very large vehicle
  
• Huge, exposed ammo rack
  
• No secondary machine guns for breaking obstacles

Fun fact: The Bkan 1C holds the world record for fastest firing artillery piece, shooting 15 rounds in 45 seconds.

Bonus fun fact: The Bkan 1C was rumored to be able to shoot nuclear artillery rounds, unfortunately no documents exist to back up this claim as Sweden's limited nuclear weapons program focused primarily on missiles and bombs.

---

While the T-34-85 is classified as a medium tank, I would strongly recommend playing it more like a tank destroyer. Your chassis armor at this BR is poor and while your turret has a fairly good frontal profile your gigantic turret ring is a major weak spot from all angles.

You don't have enough penetration to brainlessly shoot at heavies and Panthers, so make sure you know the weak spots of commonly faced enemies at 5.7. The good thing is that pretty much any penetrating shot is going to delete whatever it was you just hit.

Pros

• Strong stock round
  
• Good horizontal aiming speed
  
• Good stationary and low speed turning
  
• APCR? I guess? Don't bother with it.

Cons

• Increasingly irrelevant armor
  
• Large turret ring weak point
  
• Poor gun depression (-5 degrees)

---

The United Kingdom calling this a "Medium Tank" is just another lie in the tapestry of lies that the Eternal Anglo has wrought upon the world. I would describe this as a tank destroyer. Its fast and has a big gun, but very poor defensive capability.

Use your speed responsibly. Get an aggressive position that isn't suicidal, and do what TD's do best - hold angles. Ideally you want the enemy to push into you. If you push to enemies, you will quickly become very familiar with how slow -3kmh is as you try to reverse back into cover. Then you'll die.

The real weakness of this is its horrendous battle rating. Sweden has nothing, not even aircraft at its BR. I just brought a bunch of backups and spaded it by itself. If in the future there was a lineup at this battle rating, I would still avoid using this except in desperation.

The mobility and sheer penetration of its gun saves this tank from being trash tier, but only just.

Pros

• Strong APDS round (tier 2 research)
  
• Enough armor to withstand HMG fire and 20mm autocannons at longer ranges
  
• Good acceleration and top speed
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Smoke grenades (2 salvos)
  
• Smoke shells

Cons

• Very poor armor overall
  
• Poor gun depression (-5 degrees)
  
• Small crew (3)
  
• Terrible reverse speed (-3 kmh)
  
• Isolated in tech tree

Note: The model in game is possibly incorrect. Finland bought Model B's which have a fume extractor (the bulge in the middle of the barrel). The one in game in the Model A. Note the Finnish roundel in the picture (courtesy of wikipedia)

Should you buy? It depends. The King Tiger is definitely a fan favorite, but the problem is that it sits at a barren wasteland in terms of support vehicles to bring with it. If it was a GE premium I would say no, but because its a coupon premium it will only go up in price over time. If you are interested in it, or if you're a collector, I would say you should pick it up sooner rather than later. The best time to buy coupon vehicles is a month or two after the coupons start appearing on the market.

Overall: Very strong tank but with well known weaknesses. As with all heavy tanks, very sensitive to matchmaking.

The King Tiger has fantastic hull armor but the Kungstiger has the bad version of the turret which only features 100mm thick cheeks at the thinnest point. The long 88 is one of the best guns at 6.7 (and definitely the most powerful choice that Sweden has at 6.7) so any penetrating shot will easily one-tap nearly any vehicle you'll face.

---

To mitigate the downside of the thin turret cheeks you can perform a black magic ritual by wiggling your turret. Doing this prevents your opponent from easily hitting the thinnest parts of your turret, sometimes. A mixture of complex turret geometry and janky netcode, combined with an extra large barrel mean that your enemy will have to take extra care while aiming. This won't make you immortal by any means but it can buy you a few more seconds before you reload/repair/whatever and can be the difference between life and death. Pair this with bushes and being at long range to be extra annoying pro gamer.

Some people may consider this dishonorable play but lets be real, most of us need all the help we can get...or maybe its just a personal skill issue and I'm projecting.

---

Note: To remove all hull ammo, only take 23 rounds in total.

Pros

• Strong main weapon with high muzzle velocity
  
• Flexible ammo choices (APHE, APCR, HE)
  
• Strong frontal armor
  
• Great suspension
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Good reverse (-12 kmh)
  
• Smoke mortar (12 uses)
  
• Wont have to face against Sweden in matchmaking

Cons

• Acceleration and top speed are below average
  
• Below average gun depression (-8 deg)
  
• No side skirts, easier for enemies to gauge where your thinner side armor is
  
• Turret ring is a prominent weak spot
  
• Turret cheeks are quite weak
  
• Sensitive to uptiers
  
• CAS magnet

---

In the 1950's, there was a push for Sweden to develop its own MBT. Besides the S-tank, there were actually three other prototype tanks considered during this time, the Kranvagn, the A-Tank and the T-Tank. The Kranvagn or Emil was a tank based on the AMX 50, the A-tank was based on the American M60 Patton, and the T-tank was based on the German (Tyskland) Leopard 1.

Sven Berge was the mastermind behind the S-tank design. Instead of a traditional turret, he decided to go with a fixed gun and use hydropneumatic suspension to aim the entire tank.

If you had to pick one tank to feature Sweden, this would be it. Its such a departure from regular tank design. Its so weird. I love it! Well, uh, I love the real life version of this thing.

In War Thunder, its a different story. There are a couple flaws holding this tank back from being an absolute terror on the battlefield.

First of all, the hull aiming system is an absolute mess. Gaijin keeps fiddling around with it, and they keep breaking it, fixing it, then breaking it again. My only advice is to find a wide flat area to shoot from. Otherwise you will suffer.

The other problem is that this tank is designed to keep its crew alive. That's really great for real life applications, but in game it causes issues. Since your gun is fixed in place, your tank cannot aim if its transmission is damaged. The transmission is right in the front of the tank (along with a questionably placed fuel tank which is actually non-flammable hydraulic fluid in real life). When you get shot, you will be unable to fire back unless your target is directly in front of you. This is a major problem if you're by yourself.

Once you get past these first two issues, there are so many things to love about this tank.

It has a blistering fast reload speed (4 second autoloader). It's somewhat nerfed from its real life fire rate (3 second reload, Gaijin fix pls). Since its an autoloader, crew getting knocked out doesn't affect your rate of fire or interrupt your reloading. You have top tier optics, a laser rangefinder, and great APDS rounds. You are a deadly sniper - one that can both dish out and take damage.

Despite having only have 3 crewmembers, the tank can function with only 1 crewmember alive.

Your armor is extremely strong vs what I would call "traditional" rounds i.e. AP/APHE/APCBC. Chemical rounds are a different story. HEAT doesn't care about your sharply angled hull, and HE/HESH will pop you outright. ATGM's pack enough punch to pop you as well (even though you should have PLENTY of warning if you're playing in the backfield). If you're unlucky enough to face actual APFSDS, they will punch straight through you all the way to your ammo rack and blow you up.

Overall, the S-tank has a high skill floor. Its finnicky aiming makes small adjustments annoying, snap firing almost impossible, and its very dependent on the map you're on. However, once you know what you're doing it is very strong.

Pros

• Extremely good frontal armor against non-HEAT
  
• Very low profile
  
• Very strong APDS round
  
• Very good optics
  
• Laser rangefinder
  
• Autoloader (4 sec)
  
• Able to function with 1 crewmember
  
• Able to turn tank while repairing (sometimes)
  
• Good acceleration
  
• Very good reverse
  
• Ammo rack is difficult to hit frontally
  
• Pintle mounted LMG
  
• Smoke launchers
  
• Smoke rounds
  
• Commander sight

Cons

• Frontal """"fuel tank"""" can get you killed from multiple fires
  
• Very vulnerable from the sides
  
• Almost useless when transmission or engine is damaged
  
• Poor post penetration damage
  
• Very bad on certain maps
  
• Hull aiming is unreliable based on what Gaijin has been fiddling with

HEATFS? Check.
Laser rangefinder? Check.
Obscene optics? Check.
Mobility? Check.
Armor? Definitely not check.

This thing is your introduction to high tier light tanks. Get into key positions fast. Snipe poor fools who don't have laser rangefinders. Use your binoculars to farm assists. This thing is amazing.

Pros

• HEATFS round
  
• Amazing optics
  
• Laser rangefinder
  
• Good acceleration and mobility
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Pintle mounted LMG
  
• Smoke launchers (with two uses)
  
• Spotting and repairing abilities
  
• Somewhat resistant to uptiers
  
• Commander optics
  
• Commander Fire Control

Cons

• Very poor armor
  
• HEATFS rounds are hard to snipe with at extreme range
  
• Poor post penetration damage against armored targets - may require followup shots

---

This thing is awesome. Its fast, sneaky, and has a great (arguably overpowered) weapon.

Being wheeled means the usual - great on road, fine offroad, suffering in mud snow and water. The USH is especially sluggish in poor terrain and hills. The turning radius for this thing also leaves much to be desired. The driver turns the wheel slowly - it can take ~3 seconds to shift fully from left to right.

This is a very small profile vehicle. In fact, it is so small that you may have trouble breaking walls with it. Make sure you get some momentum before you try to smash through stuff. Obviously you cant shoot the wall but that wastes your precious ammo.

The double rocket launcher you get is extremely powerful. You get 9 shots in 2 launchers, with the ability to shoot over 2 rockets a second. The rockets are very fast (820 m/s) and are easy to aim at distance. The launcher itself has a slow traverse speed, so you will not be able to react quickly to targets in different directions very well. The launcher is also sneaky - the muzzle flash is very small and the shots are surprisingly quiet. Be careful at close range because accidentally shooting something at point blank can kill your own vehicle.

Reloading the guns takes a long time - your ammo storage for the launcher must be empty and you have to wait 45 seconds on a capture point + ~2 seconds to ready the launcher.

The HEAT rounds have plenty of penetration but pretty poor post pen damage. I would strongly recommend that you set up your keybinds so you only fire one launcher at a time and also have the ability to directly select your secondary weapon. It will conserve ammo and also make it a lot easier to aim.

Pros

• Very strong main weapon
  
• Very good top speed (on paved surfaces)
  
• Small profile
  
• Resistant to uptiers
  
• Scouting and improved repairing ability

Cons

• Poor turning
  
• Poor reverse
  
• Very poor speed in rough terrain
  
• Map sensitive
  
• Slow turret traverse
  
• No secondary LMGs to break obstacles

---

At the end of WW2 the Swedish armed forces were in a bad situation in terms of armored fighting vehicles. The British Centurion Mk 3 tank fit Swedish requirements perfectly and in 1950 the Swedish army attempted to acquire a number of these tanks. However Britain did not want to sell any tanks due to the ongoing Korean war, with an expected wait until 1958. The French AMX-13 was considered and the project EMIL started in 1951 with the aim of creating a domestic tank as a suitable replacement. In 1952 the British army changed their mind and agreed to sell 80 Centurion tanks to Sweden, with another 160 being ordered in 1955.

This tank is identical to the Centurion Mk 3 found in the British tech tree. It's a very traditional medium tank. You're neither slow or fast. You're armored but not heavily so. You've got a good gun but nothing exceptional. It's pretty average at about everything. Its the first Swedish tank you get that has a 2-plane stabilizer, which really redeems this thing in my opinion. Without the stabilizer, this tank would be pretty bad.

Be aware that it has ammo storage in the front of the tank. It is protected by about 130mm of armor, which is nothing at this BR. If you thought you could be clever and bring less ammo in order to empty it - good idea, except in order to fully deplete it you can only bring 9 total shots. So play hull down as much as possible. This problem will persist with the Swedeturion line until the later versions eventually store it in the floor instead.


Pros

• Good APDS round (researchable)
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Smoke launchers
  
• Stabilizer
  
• Decent reverse
  
• Commander optics

Cons

• Poor post penetration damage
  
• Vulnerable ammo racks
  
• Mediocre gun optics (compared to other Swedish vehicles)

---

During the Defence Decision of 1958 Sweden decided to order additional Centurion tanks from Britain. However the Swedish army was unsatisfied with receiving the Centurion Mk 3 as the 84mm gun was becoming obsolete and demanded the latest version of the Centurion, that being the Centurion Mk 10 equipped with the 105mm L7A1 gun. A total of 110 Centurion Mk 10 tanks were ordered and delivered between 1959-1960 and given the designation Strv 101.

This has a lot in common with the Strv 81: its an all rounder kind of tank. This particular version has a few upgrades compared to the previous version. It has a much stronger upper front plate (although the lower plate is the same thickness from before) as well as improved turret armor.
The main gun is changed from the British 20 pounder (84mm) gun to the 105mm L7A1 gun which improves pen and post pen damage, with the addition of a HESH shell.

You also get researchable NVG, for whatever that's worth.

Pros

• Good stock APDS round
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Smoke launchers
  
• Stabilizer
  
• Decent reverse
  
• Commander optics

Cons

• Poor post penetration damage
  
• Vulnerable ammo racks
  
• Mediocre gun optics (compared to other Swedish vehicles)

---

The ZSU is a tank destroyer disguised as an SPAA platform. While you are decent at keeping the skies clear, its real strength is its ability to wreck light and medium tanks. You may still struggle against the heavy tanks at this tier.

The recoil on the guns is quite high, so shooting at longer range targets can be tricky if you're trying to shoot quickly.

MLG Protip: Because of the high impulse from the guns, shooting behind you while driving forward acts as a major speed boost, which lets you keep up with light tanks at the start of the round. You can use this slavic nitro boost to get early, aggressive positions.

Pros

• Strong APHE round for ground targets
  
• High ROF for ground targets
  
• High shell velocity
  
• Responsive turret
  
• Two gunners
  
• Large crew (6)

Cons

• Terrible armor
  
• Open top
  
• Filled to the brim with ammo
  
• Poor gun depression (-5 degrees)
  
• Below average ROF when shooting at air targets
  
• Prolonged fire is very inaccurate (arguably a plus when shooting at air targets)

---

Overall: Too good for its own good. Keeps getting moved up in BR, and now it got its HE-VT shells removed. Regardless its still good at what its designed to do - killing aircraft (and the occasional light tank).

If you've never used SPAA with radar before, here's what you need to know:

Radar requires line of sight in order to track a target - helicopters or jets behind hills or trees will not be detected or be able to locked. Locked on aircraft near terrain will cause the radar to act strangely. With practice, you can adjust for this behavior.
Radar only indicates the compass heading and range that the aircraft is in - you'll need to figure out where it is vertically.
Radar also only passively detects aircraft that is within a certain vertical angle from your radar system - if they are directly above you and you aren't already tracking them, you will not pick them up.
Most helicopters and some jets have a radar warning system that lets them know when they're being pinged by radar. It is not precise, but it does let them know 1: that radar SPAA is around and 2: the general direction you are in. If you want to be tricky, you can toggle your radar on and off to minimize the information they get from their RWS.

The VEAK can engage light tanks effectively, and you can sometimes penetrate heavier tanks on the sides. I'd still avoid fighting enemy tanks if possible.

You no longer get HE-VT rounds which is unfortunate but it's still capable as an SPAA with practice.

Pros

• Radar equipped SPAA
  
• Great ROF
  
• Extremely responsive turret
  
• Researchable HE-VT shells
  
• Good acceleration
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Good optics
  
• Fully stabilized
  
• Pintle mounted LMG
  
• Hunter killer system

Cons

• Large profile
  
• Very poor armor
  
• Vulnerable ammo storage
  
• Poor gun depression (-5 degrees)
  
• Track OR Scan
  
• Gaijin don't know how to balance it so they keep messing with it

Super secret protip: if you run out of ammo with your main gun, you can still keep the skies clear with your pintle mounted LMG. Your radar lead indicator works as long as you have the LMG directly selected.

---

This is the big brother to the UDES 33. Gaijin is flip flopping stuff in the tech tree - this used to be after the UDES and now its before it.

Like the Lvrbv 701 it also gets smoke grenade launchers stock, which is nice because this thing isn't that great after all the ATGM nerfs that have happened recently.

I'm not saying that the Pvrbv 551 is bad - you are definitely going to kill whatever you hit with it. I'm just saying that the UDES is smaller, faster, has a better reverse gear, and is just as effective. I still include both in my 8.3 lineup.

Pros

• 800mm penetration ATGM (researchable)
  
• Improved turret turn speed
  
• Slightly improved arc of fire (120 degrees)

Cons

• Cannot fire while moving
  
• Fairly big profile
  
• Slow reverse
  
• Less gun depression than most Swedish ATGM carriers

---

All round solid medium tank with only two real downsides. The first is that your turret is painfully slow, and the second is that your reload speed is also painfully slow. If you find yourself in a showdown with an enemy tank, you will probably lose due to your reload.

Your strengths are your good turret armor, decent mobility, and a powerful APHE shell.

For whatever reason, you get a very large selection of ammo types. Your workhorse round will be the APHE round (the best one being the BR-412D) but bringing a few smoke shells is always a good idea as well. Skip the APCR, the APDS round is good on longer range maps while the HEAT-FS is good at shorter range maps. I prefer the APDS just because they're easier to aim with.

Your commander sight is one of the unfortunate ones that aren't better than your binoculars so there's no real use for them besides immersion, I guess?

The smoke launcher you can research is the goofy Soviet smoke barrels that launch off the back of your tank. They're good for when you're retreating but not good for covering you while you're stuck doing repairs.

Pros

• Soviet APHE mini nukes
  
• Flexible ammo choices
  
• Pintle mounted HMG
  
• Decent armor
  
• Smoke barrels (2)
  
• Smoke shells
  
• Commander sight

Cons

• Slow turret speed
  
• Below average reload speed
  
• Very poor gun depression (-4 degrees)
  
• Most of your crew is crammed in the turret

---

Should you buy? This is a decent tank to get (especially if its on sale) to help with the midgame grind, plus it offers some unique gameplay with its MCLOS ATGM's.

The RB 52 designation is for the Robot 52 ATGMs this tank is equipped with. These are just rebranded French SS.11 ATGMs.

These are not the easy to aim SACLOS ATGM. These are MCLOS - manually guided. When you fire one it flies upward for a bit and you do not gain control until it flies about 250m away (unless you get tricky with hills). After that, you can manually control it with the arrow keys. They are quite twitchy and are difficult to aim precisely at long range.

Still, they're useful in certain situations. They are not brain dead easy to use, especially under pressure. Keep in mind that once you fire a missile, you will be unable to move your tank because your tank movement controls will be assigned to the missile instead. I am unsure if you can be clever with keybinds to avoid this.

Fun fact: the Swedish marines used the the RB 52's as anti-ship missiles for a time, making them the smallest anti-ship missiles in the world. They were to be used to defend against landing craft. You will not be doing this in War Thunder (sadly).

Unique Pros

• Equipped with 3 ready to fire ATGMs that have 600mm of pen

Unique Cons

• RB 52 are vulnerable to getting shot and exploding
  
• RB 52 have tricky aiming (MCLOS)
  
• RB 52 have a minimum target distance of ~250m if on flat ground
  
• After firing the missile you will be immobilized until it explodes

---

Should you buy? If you enjoy the 103A, this is a great tank to help out the midgame grind but overall S-tanks are situational at best for the average player.

This is the prototype version of the S-tank. As far as mechanics go, its exactly the same as the Strv-103A - minus the pintle mounted LMG. Its essentially a backup S-tank.

Unique Pros

• It has a premium talisman

Unique Cons

• No pintle mounted LMG
  
• No commander sight

---

Should I buy? Maybe in the past when this was an absolute seal clubber - but its been bumped up in BR several times and its now at the point where its no longer a blatantly pay2win vehicle. It is merely very good.

The VIDAR's main advantages (and the thing people complain about) is that it gets gen2 thermals as well as a laser rangefinder. The major downside is that all you have is HE, so accurate shots matter a lot more than they would with, say, APFSDS or HEAT. I don't want you to get the impression I think the VIDAR is bad - because it is very good, but I think people complain about it more than is warranted.

In my opinion the true strength of the VIDAR is that its extremely difficult to 1 shot. Unless you get a solid hit on the giant ammo rack in the very back, of course.

Its mobility is very good but your gun handling is pretty meh (it is an artillery piece after all).

A hidden weakness is that while its stat card says it has a 7.8-6 sec reload, that is only for the ready rack ammo which is very small - only 2. After you shoot 3 times your reload will be increased to ~10 seconds. The first ready round replenishment will take about 20 seconds, and subsequent steps take about 10 seconds each. This is affected by crew skill so this is only a rough estimation.

Pros

• Very good mobility, excellent reverse (-38kmh)
  
• Gen 2 thermals & LRF at a low BR
  
• HE-VT, smoke shells
  
• Pintle mounted HMG
  
• Enough armor to resist 20mm autocannons frontally
  
• Weirdly difficult to kill in a single hit (usually)
  
• Large crew (5)

Cons

• Poor gun handling
  
• Terrible gun depression (-2.5 deg)
  
• Extremely large ammo rack
  
• Slow reload when ready rack is empty

As you've probably guessed from the name, the Ikv 91-105 is essentially an upgraded Ikv 91.

As a light tank, your best defense is to not get hit. LMG fire is the only thing you'll be protected from.

As far as your weaponry goes, your bigger gun now has access to APFSDS rounds (once researched). This combined with your excellent optics makes the 91-105 an ideal sniper. An additional bonus is now you come with stabilizers - allowing you to make snap shots while on the move more effectively. The main problem I find is that because you have so much magnification it can be difficult to aim with the gunner sight if you're in urban areas.

If you're firing from a hull down position, keep in mind that your gun depression is improved off the sides of the tank.

Pros

• APFSDS round (researchable)
  
• Great optics
  
• Stabilizer
  
• Decent acceleration and mobility
  
• Decent reverse gear
  
• Laser rangefinder
  
• Smoke launchers
  
• Light tank scouting, improved repair, and recon drone
  
• Commander Optics
  
• Commander Fire Control

Cons

• Poor post penetration damage
  
• Very poor armor
  
• No variable zoom on main gun for short ranges

---

If you skipped to the end and just looked at the pros and cons, you may come away with an impression that the CVFIN wasn't half bad. WELL YOU'RE WRONG. ITS AT LEAST THREE QUARTERS BAD.

The lack of ATGM's is a major problem - your only option to frontally engage MBT's is by track and barrel torture which is risky in a 1v1 scenario. This is largely a map problem but you run into a lot of situations where you just can't do anything to a guy you stumble across.

"Well why don't you just flank?"

This isn't even THAT mobile of a vehicle. Stuff like Rooikats and Centauros will outgun AND outspeed you. It is still, regrettably, your only real option. Flank stuff and get your sideshots in.

Its decent at engaging helicopters at close range...even though its lacking the UTAAS Universal Tank and Anti-Aircraft System) module that is CLEARLY modeled in game. Giving it the ability to track air targets would actually give people a reason to use it. You'll just have to GIT GUD and manually aim for now.

Pros

• Upper front plate can defend against small autocannons (<20mm)
  
• Lots of empty space inside
  
• Stock APDS belt
  
• Reserchable APFSDS belts
  
• Good acceleration
  
• Excellent reverse
  
• Large magazine
  
• Gen 2 thermals (Gunner, Commander)
  
• Smoke grenades (5 salvos)
  
• Light tank scouting, improved repair, and recon UAV
  
• Commander sight (1-6x)
  
• Commander fire control
  
• Hunter killer system

Cons

• Not enough penetration to defeat heavy tanks and MBT's from the front
  
• Low ROF means disadvantage vs other autocannon light tanks
  
• Armor is largely irrelevant
  
• Small crew (3)
  
• Lengthy reload (~13 sec)
  
• Overheats after about 60 rounds of continuous firing

---

The Stridsfordon 9040B is the first member of the Stridsfordon family you get access to in the Swedish tech tree. The Strf 90 began development in 1993 to replace the older inferior Pbv 302 with a more modern multipurpose infantry fighting vehicle.

Unlike most other IFVs the Strf 9040B doesn't come equipped with any missiles and must rely solely on the 40mm Bofors gun. 143mm of penetration at point blank leaves a lot to be desired at top tier as you will struggle frontally against tanks such as the T-64 and T-72, where as most western MBTs and IFVs can be killed frontally with ease. The fast firing gun combined with the good mobility makes the Strf 9040B a very potent flanker. It can also shoot down helicopters and low flying planes since it gets access to HE-VT rounds, which for some reason don't have any tracers which make them hard to aim for you but also hard to dodge for them.

The main gun gets 24 shots - these reload one at a time via the ready rack. It takes quite a while to reload when fully empty. Thankfully, you can magically switch between APFSDS and HE-VT rounds instantly as long as you have rounds in the magazine.

In open areas, play in a more support style. Secure flanks, use your proximity shells to kill helicopters, and spot enemies. It will be harder for you to get into flanking positions to kill MBT's, although you will do just fine against other light tanks.

In urban areas, be very aggressive. Use your mobility to take forward positions and get those critical side shots on enemy MBTs. Be aware that even if you knock out their main gun, you can still die from retaliatory HMG fire.

Pros

• Great mobility
  
• 2nd gen thermals (gunner)
  
• Proximity fuse HE rounds
  
• Light tank scouting, improved repair, and recon drone
  
• Hunter killer system

Cons

• Struggles frontally against more armored foes, especially Russian MBTs.
  
• Poor armor - beware close range HMG fire
  
• Small APFSDS rounds have poor post penetration damage
  
• Small magazine makes extended firefights difficult

---

In the late 1970s and early 1980s it was decided that all the aging Strv 101 and Strv 102 (The Strv 102 was an Strv 81 upgraded to Strv 101 standards) should be modernized. The tanks received Blazer ERA as well as upgraded electronics and fire control systems. They were given the designations Strv 101R and Strv 102R respectively. At the same time 80 of the most worn out Strv 102s were picked out to receive more extensive modification. On top of the regular upgrades they also received a better engine that made it more mobile and drastically changed the ease of maintenance. These extra upgraded Strv 102 were designated the Strv 104.

In game the Strv 104 is the same kind of jack of all trades like the Strv 101 is with some improvements. The ERA it gets is only effective against chemical rounds (260mm chemical protection vs 5mm kinetic protection). This gives the tank great survivability against HEAT-FS as the frontal coverage is very good. Be aware that kinetic rounds will still go straight through. Unlike other Centurion tanks the ammunition isn't spread all over the inside of the tank and is instead mostly located in the turret and in the floor which decreases the risk of being ammo racked significantly over the earlier models.

It fires the same APFSDS round the Strv 103C and Ikv 91-105 does which has enough firepower to kill any enemy it'll face. The high velocity of the round and the access to a laser rangefinder makes the tank very effective as a sniper. The better engine gives it slightly more mobility than the Strv 101 which is a very welcome upgrade.

In uptiers it suffers somewhat - it's primary advantage of having ERA is negated since almost every tank will be firing kinetic rounds. The Strv 104 is outperformed mobility wise by almost all MBTs. It has to be played more carefully as a sniper in an uptier, which should be a familiar playstyle if you've made it this far into the Swedish tree. While playing at it's own tier or in a downtier the ERA is more effective since HEAT-FS is a much more common round while the mobility is on par with most tanks. Overall it's still a strong addition to your lineup.

Pros

• Stabilized
  
• APFSDS round (researchable)
  
• Laser rangefinder
  
• ESS / Smoke launcher
  
• Blazer ERA, effective against chemical rounds
  
• Commander Sight (10x)
  
• Commander Override System
  
• Hunter Killer System

Cons

• ERA is useless against kinetic rounds

---

The last Swedish centurion. A project in the late 80s aimed to modernize the existing Strv 102Rs/Strv 104s and Strv 103s to fit 1990s standards as a stopgap until newer tanks would be available. The modernization program was scrapped since Sweden decided to lease the Leopard 2A4 (Strv 121) until the Strv 122s could be delivered.

The Strv 105 plays very similar to it's predecessor but gets access to a much better APFSDS round and thermals but sits at 9.0. Sweden lacks a 9.0 lineup and you'll most likely be bringing this to 9.3 with the Strf 9040B. The Centurion chassis is utterly outmatched at this BR in armor and speed. Facing T-80s, Leopard 2s and M1A1s isn't uncommon for the Strv 105. The ERA helps slightly against HEAT warheads but most of the rounds you'll see are kinetic and tandem charge HEAT warheads which render your ERA useless. It packs decent firepower and decent optics so the tank should ideally be used in a sniping role.

As of the "Danger Zone" patch the Strv 105 has had it's generation 2 thermals downgraded to generation 1 thermals.

Pros

• Comes stock with decent APFSDS
  
• Researchable APFSDS is extremely strong for its BR (436mm pen@point blank)
  
• Decent frontal armor against auto-cannons, HEAT
  
• Upgraded optics compared to earlier versions
  
• Pintle mounted LMG
  
• Good commander optics
  
• Commander Override System

Cons

• Sluggish acceleration, top speed and turning
  
• Slow turret traverse and elevation
  
• Poorly armored against APFSDS rounds and big ATGM's

---

They did it. The madmen did it. They put a Marksman turret on a Leopard 2 chassis!

The speed you get from the Leo 2 is extremely nice. It lets you play like a light tank - you can get aggressive positions and early caps. You will absolutely shred light tanks that you come across and you can kill heavier tanks from the sides as well. The problem is that you aren't exactly sneaky because your turret is gigantic, and you have a little spinny radar thing on the top of your already giant turret. The sheer potential devastation from this thing flanking an enemy team should not be underestimated.

For anti-aircraft purposes, you're pretty decent for close range defense. Your rate of fire and large ammo reserve means you can really spray and pray at air targets. Anything that gets within 1km of you is in serious danger of getting shot down. Longer range targets are trickier because your radar lead drifts quite a lot. I'd mostly stick with shooting at helicopters who aren't maneuvering much. The main problem with longer range targets is that your guns are so loud that jets can hear you pretty much anywhere on the map so if they're paying attention they will know they need to evade.

Pros:

• Default belts are great at killing air and ground targets
  
• Great acceleration and top speed
  
• Excellent reverse (-31kmh)
  
• Excellent turret rotation and elevation
  
• Top tier gun depression for SPAA (-10 degrees)
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Unmatched frontal hull armor for its BR
  
• High ROF
  
• No reloading needed unless swapping to APDS belts
  
• HE-SD rounds have extremely long range (4-5km) before they self destruct

Cons

• Very limited ammo for APDS belts
  
• Extremely large, vulnerable turret
  
• Turret armor only resistant to HMG's or smaller
  
• Widely spaced guns make shooting small, close targets tricky (like barrels)
  
• Guns overheat after shooting ~160 rounds
  
• Very distinct firing sound + tracers lets every enemy on the map know exactly what you are

---

In 1975 as the Ikv 102 and Ikv 103 were being phased out in favor of the Ikv 91 some of the old chassis were instead repurposed as an anti air vehicle armed with the Robotsystem 70. In total 57 of the vehicles were made and used between 1984 and 2000.

This vehicle is a mixed bag. The vehicle only carries 6 SAMs in total which will run out fast. It also has a lengthy reload of 15.6 seconds with an unskilled crew. For SPAA, it has pretty low elevation of only 35 degrees will make it difficult to shoot down air targets closer to you. You may find that you'll have to get creative with hills in order to get a lock on target.

Speaking of locking on target, this does not get an active radar system. You will have to find your targets with your Mk. 1 Eyeball. This is both a blessing and a curse - while it makes finding targets at long range more difficult, it also does not alert jets and helicopters with Radar Warning Systems. Your missiles are not fire and forget - you will have to guide them onto your target. The tracking system will help with this, but the horizontal and vertical aiming speed is poor so if your target is too close you will have issues keeping up with it.

The Lvrbv 701 has poor self defense abilities. While the stock missile is adequate against air targets, it is only effective against light vehicles like enemy SPAA. The Rb 70 Mk 2 missile (which is a tier 2 modification) has 200mm of pen which can save you in a pinch. As an added bonus, The Snail has blessed this vehicle with stock smoke grenades, which are always useful. Unless you're dead of course.

Pros

• Does not trigger RWS on jets
  
• Scouting ability
  
• Stock smoke grenades
  
• Can engage light ground targets with missiles in a pinch

Cons

• Not effective against MBT's
  
• Lengthy reload
  
• Low ammo capacity
  
• Poor elevation
  
• Poor horizontal and vertical aiming speed for SPAA
  
• No armor
  
• Exposed gunner

This is the first good ATGM platform you'll get access to as Sweden. It’s quite a fun little vehicle as well - it’s speedy and packs a punch.

You don't have to expose your whole tank to fire, but your gunner is very exposed. This thing has a whopping -20 degrees in gun depression though! The downside is that you can only aim in an arc in front of you and that the traversal speed is pretty slow.

Recently (August 7th, 2023) they have significantly increased the UDES battle rating but gave it access to the Rb 55c ATGM, which is a pretty significant upgrade.

Weirdly, the Pvrbv 551 is now a lower BR than the UDES but who's keeping score? Also now it’s before the UDES so who cares about the insane ramblings of an obsessed gamer because it’s all dust in the wind to Gaijin.

Pros

• Reserchable TOW-2B equivalent with 800mm of penetration
  
• Good optics
  
• Good acceleration and mobility
  
• Good reverse speed
  
• Neutral steering
  
• Small profile
  
• Top tier gun depression (-20 degrees)
  
• Only have to expose gunner to fire

Cons

• Have to expose gunner to fire
  
• ATGM is slow (~300m/s)
  
• Cannot fire while moving
  
• No secondary machine guns to break obstacles
  
• Very poor armor
  
• Open top
  
• Small crew
  
• Long reload

---

Overall: Kinda terrible. Top attack missiles are situationally useful but hard to one shot with. Autocannon is basically useless.




The main strength of the Pbv 302 is its top attack missile. Let me emphasize that it is TOP ATTACK ONLY. It looks like you'd be able to fire this missile while in cover, but you would be wrong. It aims from the turret There is a way to toggle aiming from the ATGM's elevated position - whatever your shortcut is, it will be displayed on the hotbar under this icon (mine is Alt+F).

While in this aiming mode, your turret is locked in place and you are restricted to a 30 degree arc in the direction your turret was facing. However you will be able to aim and shoot your missile while completely hull down, a significant improvement! Whether this actually makes the vehicle good still remains to be seen but I think at best this might elevate the Pbv 302 from BAD to merely MEH.

Your turret has a large area where it cannot depress itself over the body of the vehicle. Its quite large, about 110 degrees.

That being said, the top attack missile is good for what it lets you do - hit enemies while they are in defilade (and unable to fire back at you). The problem is that it rarely one-shots. You will usually have to fire at least 2 missiles in order to destroy MBT's. Your long reload coupled with your low ammo supply means you will have to either be happy with assists or you'll have to camp control points. I think the best way to play this is in a support role - aim at enemy tank center of turret, destroy its breech, let your nearby allies know he's disabled, and then let them finish the job.

Your autocannon is bad. You can eventually unlock a HVAP belt that lets you destroy treads and light tanks more effectively. Even with HVAP belts the turret is slow, has small belts, and reloads slowly. Its really not something you want to rely on.

Pros

• Top attack ATGM
  
• Amphibious
  
• Smoke launchers (2 uses)
  
• Can fire while hull down *NEW*

Cons

• Pathetic autocannon
  
• Low one-shot potential for ATGM's
  
• Long reload // limited ammo for ATGM's
  
• No armor
  
• Poor top speed

---

Overall: A welcome addition from the Finnish army, the T-55M is surprisingly flexible and is overall quite a good tank for almost all situations.

The main weakness of this tank is its low rate of fire and its frustratingly slow turret. Pre-aiming at where you think your target will be is vital, because reacting to new enemies will usually get you killed. Follow up shots can also get you killed, as your reload speed is quite slow and if you simply sniped a gunner they will be able to replace the crewman and shoot back before you're able to shoot again.

Its speed is merely average, so you're going to have to fight the light tanks for early caps for your Parts & FPE research points.

Pros

• Decent stock APDS
  
• Wide variety of ammo choices can provide some flexibility while grinding modules
  
• Armor will occasionally save you (when at or below your BR)
  
• Stabilizer
  
• Laser Rangefinder
  
• Smoke launcher (4 salvos), smoke shells, engine smoke system (3 uses)
  
• Commander sight (5x)
  
• Pintle mounted HMG (excellent at killing helicopters)

Cons

• Below average reload speed
  
• Poor gun depression (-5 degrees)
  
• Very slow horizontal and vertical aiming
  
• No neutral steering
  
• Most of the crew is tightly packed in the turret

---

Overall: Decent armor, decent mobility, and a decent gun make this a genuinely aggressive tank for Sweden.

Its a bit difficult starting out since you only have HEAT, but I would recommend you ignore the siren song of the tier 1 dart (its not great) and focus on parts+FPE. Once you unlock FPE you can unlock the MUCH better tier 2 dart. Just hang in there, its not too bad.

The main strategy of this tank is to point it toward your enemy and just go for it. You're decently mobile (going forward) so you should be leveraging your good armor by being aggressive. If you're lucky enough to be in a full downtier, hold W and kill everything because this thing is a monster when you're top tier.

Coming from the T-55, the autoloader feels like a godsend. I would strongly recommend taking no more than the maximum capacity of it, which is 22 rounds. You store secondary ammo inside of the fuel tanks. I don't have to explain why that's bad for your long term outlook.

Pros

• Brutally powerful in a downtier
  
• Strong UFP and turret cheek armor, plus giant breech can partially protect crew
  
• Pintle mounted HMG
  
• Autoloader (7.1 second reload, 22 rounds)
  
• Smoke launcher (6 salvos)
  
• Dozer blade
  
• ESS (3 uses)
  
• Commander optics (5x)

Cons

• Very weak LFP
  
• Fuel tanks everywhere mean you will be set on fire if you get shot
  
• Stock suffering syndrome (especially before you get FPE)
  
• Very poor gun elevation speed
  
• No neutral steering
  
• Small crew (3)
  
• Terrible reverse (-4 kmh)
  
• Poor gun depression (-6 degrees)
  
• IR Searchlight (gives away your position if you don't turn it off)

Fun fact: The T-72A (the model the export M1 was based on) was nicknamed Dolly Parton by US intelligence due to its bulging turret cheek and roof armor.

Should I buy: If you can't afford the CV90105 or if you just prefer the slightly lower BR, this is a great tank.

Overall: The Leo 1A5NO is very capable in whichever role you play it in, aggro or sniper.

The Leopard 1A5 is just a straight up good tank. Good mobility, good gun, and the armor is right in the sweet spot between "I don't want to get murdered by autocannons" and "APFSDS is going to go straight through me no matter what I do". That is to say - frontally you have enough armor that if you fight autocannons, you should have enough time to get a shot off. If you miss, well, you're probably gonna die.

One important bit of kit that not everyone will know about is that your commander sight has a ridiculous 20x magnification on it. You can use your LRF and fire with your commander, so extremely long range sniping is quite easy to do.

The only negative things I can say about the Leo are that your pintle mounted LMG's don't have enough elevation to engage helicopters (still great at killing ATGMs) and that your horizontal and vertical targeting speeds are quite slow for a high ranked NATO tank.

Pros

• Gets DM33
  
• Great reverse speed (-25km/h)
  
• Good stationary turning
  
• UFP and turret armor is strong against most autocannons
  
• Gen 1 thermals (gunner only)
  
• LRF
  
• Smoke grenades (4 salvos)
  
• Commander sight (4-20x)
  
• Commander fire control
  
• Hunter killer system

Unique pros

• Premium talisman
  
• Gets additional pintle mounted MG3

Cons

• Poor armor against non-autocannons
  
• Poor gun handling
  
• Pintle mounted LMGs have very poor elevation

Unique cons

• No dozer blade compared to other Leo 1A5
  
• No LWS

Fun fact: The decal saying "Slem" on the turret means naughty in Norwegian.

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Notes: has APHE belt

The Strf 9040C is a heavily armored variant of the Strf 9040B introduced in 2002. The addition of air conditioning and better survivability against landmines, hand held anti tank weapons and IEDs makes the vehicle well suited for international operations. The weight of 4 tons and space of the extra equipment came at the sacrifice of one soldier (Like carrying capacity, not an actual human sacrifice).

In War Thunder the Strf 9040C is the highest placed IFV at 10.0 and as such regularly faces enemies it was never intended to fight. It's best used in urban settings to flank enemies as the Slpprj m/01 round which while is better than what the Strf 9040B gets is still inadequate to kill most enemies it'll face frontally unless aiming for weakspots which even then will require a large amount of shots due to the poor post penetration damage. However when engaging an enemy from the sides it's a different story as a few rounds will often be enough to kill a tank. The armor is useless against kinetic rounds but will make it difficult for tanks who have HEAT rounds to kill you. The C version of the CV90 includes a spall liner which reduces post penetration damage by a significant margin.

Pros

• Decent mobility
  
• HE-VT is capable of killing early spawn helicopters easily
  
• Hunter killer system
  
• Light tank scouting, improved repair, and recon drone
  
• Spall liner

Cons

• Mobility is lacking compared to other light tanks and some MBTs
  
• Low magazine capacity makes extended firefights difficult
  
• Slpprj m/01 requires very careful aiming when facing enemies frontally

---

The Strv 121 is a German Leopard 2A4 in Swedish service. In 1994 Germany and Sweden entered an agreement with the intention of procuring a replacement for the Strv 103 and Strv 104 with German vehicles. While waiting for Leopard 2A5s to become available Sweden loaned 160 Leopard 2A4s from Germany since the only alternative would be modernizing the obsolete Strv 103 and Strv 104 tanks.

In War Thunder there isn't any difference between the Strv 121 and Leopard 2A4 other than the fact that the Strv 121 doesn't start with HEAT-FS - you come stock with the DM13 APFSDS round. This makes the grind a lot more bearable.

Just like its German counterpart the Strv 121 has major weakspots that any experienced player will hit with ease. The hull armor is mediocre, a center mass shot will usually kill the tank. Carrying more than 16 rounds will significantly increase the risk of being ammo racked as the extra rounds will be stowed next to the driver. The turret can be disabled by shooting at either the gunner sight or the thin mantlet, getting one shot through the turret weakspots is rare but it will almost always kill 1-2 crew members and leave you with a 40 second repair.

Because of the weaknesses the tank is at its strongest when used hull down. However, it is one of the very few tanks Sweden gets that you can play aggressively with. Your armor and speed are good enough to protect you against enemies who are forced to snap shot at you. I personally found this tank to be extremely fun and a major change of playstyle from what I was used to playing in Sweden up to this point.

Pros

• Stock DM13 APFSDS
  
• Researchable DM23 APFSDS
  
• Excellent turret cheek armor
  
• Decent upper front plate armor
  
• Blow out panels - 15+1 round capacity
  
• Flexible optics - good FOV zoomed out, good max magnification zoomed in
  
• Bulldozer blade
  
• Commander fire control
  
• Commander optics (no thermals)

Cons

• Big weakspots in the turret
  
• Weak lower front plate is a major weakness
  
• Secondary ammunition rack is a major vulnerability
  
• Gen 1 thermals

---

The Lvkv 90 started as a project in the late 90s due to the lack of armored short range anti air for Swedish armored and mechanized units. This had been an issue for almost 30 years following the retirement of the Lvkv m/43. The main differences between the Lvkv 90 and a Strf 90 is the elongated turret and radar on top of the turret. Sweden ordered 30 Lvkv 90s in 1997 and are still in use today. Three of these Lvkv 90s were upgraded for international operations, becoming the Lvkv 9040C.

The Lvkv 9040C is a great IFV. Yeah I'm calling it an IFV because it's best suited for that role in War Thunder. Shooting down planes and helis is a lot harder with the stock HE round, so the vehicle is only effective as an IFV when starting out. The radar is pretty good since it has separate tracking and scanning systems. Unlike the VEAK, after you lock onto an aircraft your scanning radar will continue to work and keep you updated about any other aircraft in the sky. It also has IRST which doesn't warn the enemy aircraft of the lock.

The magazine has the same small size and long reload as every other Strf 90XX (8 seconds for the first round, 14 for second round, 68 for full reload) which makes it difficult to fight drawn out fights due to evasive maneuvers from pilots. Your shells do not have tracers which makes it harder for aircraft to see when they're under fire, but observant pilots will still see the muzzle flashes coming from your barrel.

The Lvkv is surprisingly tanky for a SPAA. It gets the composite armor turret that the Strf 9040C gets and it also has a very spaced out crew of 5. You have two "spare" crewmembers sitting in the back passenger compartment and most people have no idea about them. In addition the Lvkv 9040C gets a spall liner that reduces post penetration damage significantly. Unless you get overpressured by a missile or bomb, it can be quite difficult to kill you in one shot.

I find the main weakness that this has is its slow reload speed, lack of range, and its lack of elevation. You will find that jets fly very high before doing their attack runs (if they're smart). Hitting them even at the lowest points of their dive can be tricky. Also, helicopters at this rank FAR outrange your HE-VT rounds (3.5km max range). Technically you could try to use your darts beyond that range, but good luck with that.

Pros

• Multipurpose vehicle - can engage both planes and tanks effectively
  
• Decent mobility
  
• Large, spaced out crew
  
• Generation 2 thermals for the gunner
  
• Better elevation than other Strf 9040 variants (50° as opposed to 35°)
  
• Track + Scan capability
  
• IRST doesn't alert aircraft with RWS when you lock on
  
• Spall liner

Cons

• Very slow reload speed (8 seconds for the first round, 14 for second round, 68 for full reload)
  
• Stock HE shell makes the SPAA ineffective in an SPAA role when you first unlock it
  
• Low turret traverse speeds for an SPAA (20.8° stock)
  
• Limited elevation for SPAA makes it hard to hit very high targets
  
• Max range of 3.5km for HE-VT makes it hard to engage distant helicopter ATGM snipers
  
• Low magazine capacity
  
• No scouting
  
• High profile radar may give away your position

---

The ASRAD-R is a joint project between the Swedish company Saab and the German company Rheinmetall to create a modular short range anti air system that can be mounted on almost any vehicle. In War Thunder the system is mounted on an M113 test bed even though it would be way better if it was mounted on the Nasu APC or Unimog truck chassis

The ASRAD-R fixes a lot of the issues the Lvrbv 701 comes with. Instead of having only 6 SAMs it carries 8 with 4 missile tubes instead of just 1. This helps a lot in case your first missile misses. The BOLIDE missile is 120 m/s faster than the RB 70 Mk 2 missile with a range of 9 kilometers which makes shooting down helicopters camping at a long distance easier, a common foe you'll encounter. Unlike the Lvrbv 701 you get access to a search radar and thermal optics that makes spotting enemies much easier. The BOLIDE missile has the same amount of pen as the RB 70 Mk 2 and can be used in self defense in a pinch.

After a buff in July of 2024 the elevation has doubled from 35 degrees to 70 degrees which makes this a pretty good SPAA.

Pros

• Gen 1 thermals (gunner)
  
• Decent against planes and helis
  
• Missile can kill light tanks and MBTs with a well placed shot (in emergencies)
  
• Can shoot 4 missiles before needing to reload
  
• Unmanned turret
  
• Track + Scan capability

Cons

• The M113 chassis means it won't be able to stop anything bigger than LMG fire
  
• Poor agility overall

---

---

While the Strf 9040 began being delivered to the Swedish army in 1998 concerns were raised about it's lethality against enemy MBTs. A technical demonstrated based on the Strf 9040A was ordered in 1999 armed with an Rbs 56 BILL II ATGM launcher similar to the armament other contemporary infantry fighting vehicles such as the BMP and Bradley were already equipped with.

The biggest difference from other Strf 90s is the ATGM launcher. It completely changes how the vehicle plays compared to other Swedish IFVs. Due to being based on the Strf 9040A the stabilizer is terrible and will disengage above roughly 12 km/h. The missile launcher folds in when travelling above 20 km/h and takes about 5 seconds to fully deploy. These factors make the vehicle poorly suited for the quick flanking play style the other Strf 90s excel at.

The BILL's missiles are its main strength - they are top attack like the TOW-2B ATGMs. Attacking enemies in cover is tricky but rewarding. I've found it more difficult to do top attacks with the gun sight so use the commander sight if you have the time. The missile's damage is unreliable and will also detonate if you pass over allied vehicles or dead tanks (even prop dead tanks like the ones around the C point of Campania).

Against NATO tanks, roof attacks will be very effective. Against Soviet style tanks, it may require both missiles to penetrate due to rooftop ERA. Also keep in mind that you may run into tanks with APS systems which will negate your ATGM attacks. No, you aren't missing your shots or getting ghost missiles - they are being destroyed by APS.

It's best to keep your distance, stay behind cover, scout out enemies, and take targets of opportunity. This is made easy since the Strf 9040 BILL has an excellent commander sight. It is highly responsive and has a great zoomed out FOV with high quality thermals.

Pros

• Decent mobility
  
• Proximity fuse HE rounds
  
• Commander override system
  
• Has two top attack ATGMs per reload
  
• Excellent commander sight
  
• High quality thermals (Gen 2)
  
• Light tank goodies (scouting, improved repair, UAV)

Cons

• No armor
  
• Stabilizer only works at very low speeds
  
• Missile launcher folds in and takes time to deploy
  
• Can only fire missiles while stationary
  
• Small autocannon magazine capacity makes extended firefights difficult

---

In 2003 Finland purchased 124 surplus Leopard 2A4s from Germany. Most have been phased out in favor of the Leopard 2A6 but some still remain in reserve and specialist roles such as bridgelayers and engineering vehicles.

Yeah, this is almost exactly identical to the Strv 121 other than the fact that you'll have to suffer with HEATFS for a while. Instead of having 1 great MBT you now have 2 great MBTs! Wonderful turret armor with mediocre hull armor so try to stay hull down. Don't ever carry more than 16 rounds, trust me, you'll regret it.

Pros

• Stock DM13 APFSDS
  
• Researchable DM23 APFSDS
  
• Excellent turret cheek armor
  
• Decent upper front plate armor
  
• Blow out panels - 15+1 round capacity
  
• Flexible optics - good FOV zoomed out, good max magnification zoomed in
  
• Bulldozer blade
  
• Commander fire control
  
• Hunter killer capability
  
• Commander optics (no thermals)

Cons

• Stock suffering syndrome
  
• Breech and gunner optics are major weakspots in turret armor
  
• Weak lower front plate is a major weakness
  
• Secondary ammunition rack is a major vulnerability
  
• Only gen 1 thermals

---

Should I buy: This is an extremely good high tier premium tank. If you can afford it, get it.

Overall: The CV 90105 XC-8 is an excellent light tank in War Thunder. Highly mobile, strong gun with an autoloader, and plenty of high tech goodies to play with (LWS, fully stabilized, gen 3 thermals, great commander sights, scout drones).

After the CV 90105 TML project; a project between a Swedish and French company during the 90s to create a light tank on the popular CV 90 chassis. The project failed to attract customers but the concept of a light tank based on the CV 90 chassis persisted. A newer prototype using the Belgian XC-8 turret instead of the French TML turret was unveiled in 2014. The XC-8 turret differs by having a laser warning system, an autoloader and a stabilizer.

Like the CV 90120 you have a laser warning system (LWS). When someone uses a laser rangefinder or a laser guided missile or bomb, it will alert you that you have been pinged and give you a general direction whence the ping came from. It usually won't save you from an enemy tank using its LRF but it will give you enough time to get into cover if someone is aiming at you with other laser-guided weaponry. This is especially important because of all the revenge Hellfire drones flying around. If you get a LWS warning and you're certain you aren't going to be shot by an enemy tank, its probably a helicopter or drone launched missile. Pop smoke and run away.

The poor survivability is the tanks biggest weakness. It's thin armor is only enough to stop .50 cals frontally. 2 out of the 3 crew members are located in the cramped turret together with the autoloader magazine which will often lead to one shots. The weak roof armor and lack of any roof mounted machine guns will make it an easy target for aircraft.

Speaking of the autoloader, this will require you to be conscious of your ammo situation. If you empty the magazine, it will take about 20 seconds before you will be able to fire again.

This tank does have smoke launchers with a unique quirk. They are designed to give you 360 degrees of smoke protection over 4 different salvos.

Fun fact: The XC-8 turret made the vehicle capable of firing ATGMs, a feature we're unfortunately missing in War Thunder.

Fun fact #2: The previous fun fact is out of date! They just added gun launched ATGM's when they added in the new Patria summer event vehicle. Is it any good? Not really. Its nice to have it as an option, and its hilarious since it also reloads in 5 seconds. I would stick with DM33 and carry a couple of ATGM's for the rare cases where you need that splash damage.

Pros

• Very good acceleration, top speed, and turning
  
• Strong main weapon (DM33)
  
• Gun launched, tandem warhead ATGM
  
• Autoloader (5 second reload)
  
• High quality gen 3 thermals (gunner/commander)
  
• LWS
  
• Good gun handling/aiming
  
• Commander optics (2-8x)
  
• Commander fire control

Cons

• Very poor armor
  
• Personally found it easy to oversteer when turning at high speed (i.e. skill issue)
  
• No pintle mounted machine gun

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Should I buy: No, not unless you're a collector. Although if you're not a fan of light tank gameplay then this is a better choice if you want a top tier Swedish premium.

There is nothing special about this except its extremely bugged smoke launchers which suck.
Otherwise its just a premium Leopard 2a4 with lame camo netting.

---

Should I buy: No, not unless you're a collector.

Pros
Fast = Fun
Autoloader (5 sec, 12 rounds)
Extremely good gun handling for a non-SPAA
Extremely rare (for Sweden) coax HMG
Gen 2 thermals (gunner)
Flexible ammo choices (HEAT, HESH, APFSDS, ATGM)
LRF/LWS
Smoke launcher (4 salvos)
Each smoke activation gives 360 of smoke coverage

Cons

• Price is determined by marketplace
  
• Stock suffering
  
• Stabilizer will deactivate at higher speeds (~60kmh)
  
• Terrible armor
  
• Very large
  
• Wide turning radius, no stationary turning since its wheeled

After the questionable CV 90105 TML project the Swedish company Hägglunds decided to create their own light tank of the future without the help of the French company GIAT. To achieve MBT levels of firepower that could compete with tanks such as the Leopard 2 Hägglunds decided to experiment with a powerful 120mm smoothbore gun. The first prototype was unveiled in 1998, which is the vehicle we currently have in War Thunder. Hägglunds was bought by BAE Systems in 2004 but work on vehicle was still ongoing. The latest variant of the vehicle, the CV 90120 Ghost was shown off in 2011 with a big focus on stealth and went on to inspire the famous Polish PL-01.

The CV 90120 is an incredibly powerful light tank. It's often the most mobile vehicle on the battlefield and will almost always get into a favorable position first. It also has a good reverse speed allowing it to reposition quickly if necessary. The 120mm gun has an autoloader with a reload of 5 seconds and access to the Slpprj m/95 round with 600mm of pen gives the CV 90120 some of the best firepower in the Swedish tech tree. Some of the best optics in the game with high levels of magnification and a wide field of view (1.5x-24x for commander view, 3x-10.5x for gunner view) with Gen 3 thermals to both the commander and gunner optics turns the tank into an extremely lethal sniper. The laser warning system will give you a warning if someone uses a laser rangefinder on your position or if a helicopter with a laser guided missile is currently aiming at you. This can give you a very early warning and make you safe from some helicopters, you will usually not have enough time to move after someone has used their laser rangefinder on you due to the speed of APFSDS shells. Be aware since the laser rangefinder can't tell the difference between an enemy laser and a friendly laser.

The CV 90120 has access to a scout drone which can be used to spot targets. Unlike earlier drones this one comes equipped with thermals which will greatly aid you in spotting targets. Just be careful and keep the time spent in the drone as short as possible.

There are some downsides however, most notably that your lack of armor means you'll only stop .50 cals. No roof mounted machine gun makes the tank a sitting duck for early spawn helicopters and any aircraft brave enough to strafe you (this is uncommon as SAM SPAAs exist). The big profile of the CV 90120 can make you very easy to spot. Instead of starting with APFSDS like other Swedish tanks at this tier, it starts with HEATFS which makes the stock grind painful at best.

Pros

• Best firepower of any light tank
  
• Highly mobile
  
• Autoloader (5 sec)
  
• Great optics (3.5-10x)
  
• Light tank scouting, improved repair, and scouting drone (has thermals)
  
• Gen 3 thermals (gunner/commander)
  
• Laser Warning System
  
• Commander sight (1.5-24x)
  
• Commander fire control
  
• Hunter killer system

Cons

• Poor armor protection, only protects against .50 cals at best
  
• Very vulnerable to high explosive shells and artillery
  
• End of line double RP costs penalty
  
• Stock suffering syndrome
  
• Large profile

Fun fact: The CV 90120 Ghost almost certainly inspired the tanks we saw in the Warfare 2077 event. This is pure speculation but very likely.

Bonus fun fact: The commander sight looks like DOOM.









Super secret bonus fun fact: this tank is the only tank in the entire Swedish tech tree to have a coaxial HMG.

---

The procurement of the Strv 122 begun with the scrapping of the project Stridsvagn 2000 and with the establishment of project Stridsvagn Ny (Literally meaning project tank new) in 1991. Various tanks such as the M1A2 Abrams, Challenger 2, Leclerc and Leopard 2 all competed to be the tank that would suit Swedish needs the best. The Leopard 2 won and the Swedish army decided to adopt it, with some changes to fix the perceived flaws of the original Leopard 2. The tank received an additional internal spall liner and more armor on the front of the hull and the roof of the turret to give it more protection against portable anti tank weapons carried by infantry. It also received a major overhaul to the fire control systems, new smoke grenade launchers and thicker hatches.

In-game the Strv 122 is one of the best 11.7 MBTs. Like the German Leopard 2A5 it's based on the mantlet remains a weakspot but it's significantly smaller than the weakspot on the Strv 121. The additional armor on the UFP helps in cases where enemies misidentify the tank for a Leopard 2A5, which happens quite frequently as the Strv 122 is a rare sight on the battlefield. Compared to other western MBTs it can be played more aggressively in a brawler role but still remains a perfect sniper due to the near invincibility when hull down. The tank has access to blowout panels for the main ammunition rack that can fit 15 rounds. With your extra round loaded in the breach this means it has a safe ammo capacity of 16 rounds. In addition the Strv 122 gets a spall liner that reduces post penetration damage significantly and unless hitting the breach perfectly you will almost never be one shot.

The Strv 122 fires the Slpprj m/95 round which is found on the CV 90120 and is an Israeli round in Swedish service. It has 589mm of pen and performs as well as other top tier APFSDS rounds. There is also the Slsgr m/95 which was recently changed from time fused HE to contact fuse HE which makes it actually usable, it's not on-par with Russian HE but deals with lighter vehicles very well.

Pros

• Extremely strong frontal turret armor
  
• Good upper front plate armor
  
• Tiny hard to hit weakspot
  
• Spall liner
  
• Gen 2 thermals (gunner/commander)
  
• No HEAT-FS grind
  
• Blowout panels - 16 round capacity (15+1 in the breech)
  
• Commander optics (2-8x)
  
• Commander fire control
  
• Hunter killer system

Cons

• Lower front plate remains a prominent weakspot
  
• Slower than other MBTs

Green areas are very difficult to pen.
Red areas are easy to pen.
Yes, I made the picture in paint.

This image assumes the enemy fires DM53, the round with (currently) the most penetration of any APFSDS round in game. HEATFS can only exploit the weakness in the breach and LFP. APFSDS rounds with low pen may occasionally fail to penetrate the UFP. Tandem warhead ATGMs can go through all of the green areas, except for the turret cheeks as long as the wedge piece is still intact.

The Strv 122B PLSS is a small modernization of the Strv 122A. The two biggest additions were the new commander sight and an extra belly plate for more protection from landmines.

In War Thunder the Strv 122B PLSS is near identical to it's predecessor. The extra belly plate does not matter for gameplay purposes and is an optional modification which you might as well uninstall to save some weight as it weighs 2400kg, it will never help you except in some extremely rare circumstances such as driving down the hill on Ash River and getting shot in the floor. The new commander sight gets access to gen 3 thermals, has great zoom and a wide field of view which makes it excellent for scouting large areas. Just like the Strv 122 the tank also has access to blowout panels for the main ammunition rack that can fit 15 rounds, with an extra round loaded in the breach it has a safe ammo capacity of 16 rounds. Like the Strv 122A the tank features a spall liner that decreases post penetration damage.

The Strv 122B PLSS fires the Slpprj m/95 round just like the Strv 122A. It has 589mm of pen and performs as well as other top tier APFSDS rounds. There is also the Slsgr m/95 which was recently changed from time fused HE to contact fuse HE which makes it actually usable, it's not on-par with Russian HE but deals with lighter vehicles very well.



Fun fact: The commander sight can do this! The keybind to toggle it is "Switch Radar/IRST search on/off". It's useful for peeking above cover with the commander sight, the hitbox always stays in the retracted position so HE shells aren't a worry if you're peeking over cover.



Pros

• Same great protection as the Strv 122A
  
• Spall liner
  
• Gen 1 thermals (gunner) // Gen 3 thermals (commander)
  
• No HEAT-FS grind
  
• Blowout panels - 15+1 round capacity
  
• Unique commander sight that can elevate itself (2x-8x)
  
• Commander fire control
  
• Hunter killer system

Cons

• Commander sight is a magnet for Russian HE shells
  
• Slower than other MBTs

Green areas are very difficult to pen.
Red areas are easy to pen.
HE to the camera is dangerous.
Yes, I made the picture in paint.

This image assumes the enemy fires DM53, the round with (currently) the most penetration of any APFSDS round in game. HEATFS can only exploit the weakness in the breach and LFP. APFSDS rounds with low pen may occasionally fail to penetrate the UFP. Tandem warhead ATGMs can go through all of the green areas, except for the turret cheeks as long as the wedge piece is still intact.

---

In 2010 the Swedish military experimented with increasing 360 degree protection from handheld AT-weapons after seeing how tanks fared in urban combat. Existing composite materials were switched out for newer and lighter composites to keep the tank under the 65 ton weight limit. Additionally the tank had composite screens on the sides of the crew compartment. In total the upgrades only increased the total weight by 350 kilograms.

In War Thunder this is just a slightly chubbier Strv 122. The weight difference is negligible and so far I haven't been able to tell the difference between the other Strv 122s mobility. The extra composite on the sides make you pretty much as immortal as Russian MBTs when it comes to surviving HEATFS however it's insufficient to stop missiles and kinetic rounds above 35mm, the composite gives you time to react if caught off guard by an anti air or IFV.

Like the Strv 122B I heavily recommend not having the mine protection installed as it increases the weight by 2400kg. The extra composite is useful of course however I find losing the commander sight found on the Strv 122B PLSS too much of a drawback so see this tank as somewhat of a downgrade.

This tank marks the end of the line for Swedish ground vehicles unless Gaijin adds the Strv 2000, Leopard 2A8NOR or Strv 123 in the future which seems unlikely as the Strv 2000 was never made and the latter two expected to enter service in 2026.

Pros

• Same great protection as the Strv 122B
  
• Spall liner
  
• Gen 1 thermals
  
• No HEAT-FS grind
  
• Blowout panels - 15+1 round capacity
  
• Commander fire control
  
• Hunter killer system

Cons

• Slower than other MBTs.

The Ilmatatojum...uhh...ItO 90M is a Finnish XA-180 APC with the French Crotale NG missile system installed in it. The first prototype of this vehicle was produced in 1990, after successful testing an additional 20 units were delivered to Finland by 1993 and recieved the designation ItO 90. In 2007 the ItO 90 underwent modernization which most importantly gave the vehicle thermal optics and changed the designation to ItO 90M.

In War Thunder the ItO 90M is one of the best anti air platforms equipped with eight powerful VT1 missiles with no need to reload. The missiles have a firing range of 12km and are capable of pulling an astonishing 50Gs, these factors make it incredibly easy to shoot down planes and helicopters. The mobility on the ItO90M is terrible and even the smallest incline will pose a serious obstacle. As of the update Sky Guardians the VT-1 has the agility of a truck and it's not that hard to dodge anymore since it's so sluggish to turn, they did increase the G tolerance to 50Gs but that doesn't matter if the missile turns like a semi truck on ice.

The radar is incapable of detecting threats flying very low or directly above you. If you detect a plane and it starts side climbing it may be a good idea to track it manually in case it goes outside of your radar range which is made easier with the thermal gunner sight. When shooting at a helicopter that is firing ATGMs you have to curve the flight path or there's a risk of your own missile being destroyed. The ItO 90M recently got IRST which won't alert enemy aircraft when you're locking onto them however it won't show you the range to the target.

Fun fact: Ilmatorjuntaohjus translates to anti-aircraft missile or surface-to-air missile

Pros

• Equipped with the best surface-to-air missiles (for now) Good missiles, depending on the patch
  
• No need to reload after firing
  
• Gen 3 thermals (gunner)
  
• Scouting
  
• IRST
  
• Track + Scan capability

Cons

• Lacks any sort of mobility uphill
  
• Lacks self defense against ground targets
  
• Absolutely massive profile
  
• Insufficient armor to stop anything above 7.62mm rounds.

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Pros

• Good overall mobility
  
• Researchable Mango APFSDS (Tier 1)
  
• Reserachable gun fired ATGM
  
• Gunner thermals (Gen 1)
  
• LRF
  
• Pintle mounted HMG
  
• Very strong frontal armor
  
• Side armor is strong enough to withstand some APFSDS autocannons
  
• Autoloader
  
• Smoke launder (4 salvos)
  
• ESS (3 uses)
  
• Dozer blade
  
• Commander sight
  
• Commander fire control
  
• Hunter killer system

Cons

• Stock HEAT-FS
  
• Poor gun depression (-5 degrees)
  
• Poor vertical aim speed
  
• No neutral steering
  
• Ammo is stored everywhere in the tank (bring 28 rounds for carousel only)
  
• No laser warning system
  
• You have to research night vision before you can research thermals (what???)

War Thunder does a pretty terrible job at communicating some of the more subtle game mechanics. There are many features that the game doesn't even tell you about. We have moved this section to its own guide as it keeps growing and its easier to keep it up to date this way.

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3118897418

Please check it out if you're interested in ESOTERIC KNOWLEDGE.

This section is dedicated to any tanks completely removed from the game. Not hidden like the Panther 2 or the Maus, but completely removed and unplayable in War Thunder. Doubtful that this section will ever expand.


The CV 90105 TML was a joint project between the French company GIAT and the Swedish company Hägglunds in an attempt to create a light tank based on the popular Strf 90 chassis to cater towards the international market. The tank only used components that were already available from both companies which kept the prices very low and would attract current customers who already operated vehicles from the Strf 90 family. The turret came from the AMX-10RC which featured a 105mm cannon and was modified to suit the needs of the light tank, most notably by stabilizing the gun (This is false, it was never stabilized apparently). The only prototype was shown in 1994 and although it failed to attract any customers it led to debate regarding the future of light tanks.

The CV 90105 TML is an excellent light tank in War Thunder. It has some of the highest mobility in it's BR range only beaten by armored cars. The 105mm gun has no issues killing any tank it faces. The CV 90105 also gets gen 2 thermals for both the gunner and commander at only 9.0 which gives you quite an advantage over the enemies you'll face as many won't even have thermals at all.

The poor survivability is the tanks biggest weakness. It's thin armor is only enough to stop .50 cals frontally. 3 out of the 4 crew members are located in the cramped turret together with the first stage ammo storage which will often lead to one shots. The weak roof armor and lack of any roof mounted machine guns will make it an easy target for aircraft.

This tank does have smoke launchers but they have a unique quirk - the first salvo makes a wide smoke screen in front of you while the second salvo covers a wide arc behind you. Fire them together for a 360 degree smoke screen!

The strengths of the vehicle allows it to be effective even up to 10.0 but it will struggle killing some foes when uptiered all the way to 11.0.

Fun fact: TML stands for Tourelle Modulaire Légère which roughly translates to Light Modular Turret (I do not speak French so Google translate may be inaccurate)

Pros

• Excellent mobility
  
• Gen 2 thermals (gunner/commander)
  
• Scouting
  
• DM23 APFSDS round
  
• 360 degree smoke deployment

Cons

• Weak armor that won't stop anything above .50 cals.
  
• Rear mounted turret makes it dangerous to peek around corners.

If you made it this far (without cheating and skipping to the end) then I thank you. Heck even if you skipped straight to the end I thank you. I'd also like to thank everyone who gave me a Steam award! You are all super generous with your internet points and it makes me happy whenever I get notified someone has sent me one.

I'd also like to thank dLFN for his help with the later vehicles in the Swedish tech tree. I really appreciate the work he's put into this thing. I originally thought he'd just give me his opinions on the tanks I haven't unlocked yet, but he has gone WAY beyond that. You're an awesome dude and you've made this stupid guide way better.

Originally posted by dLFN:

It's been my pleasure! And it was never a stupid guide, I enjoyed reading it.

More detailed information about the Swedish tech tree can be found at the War Thunder wikipedia page[wiki.warthunder.com].

Whether you found this helpful or useless, please do the engagement thing and let me know how I can improve! I appreciate feedback, whether its positive or negative. Its all good to me.

If you're interested in the Italian tech tree or the French tech tree please check out my guide on them!
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2736462704
https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2810480744

2022.1.24

• Initial Release

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2022.4.29 (Major Update: Winds of Change)

• Updated tech tree to include Strv 105
  
• Added placeholder section for Strv 105 evaluation

2022.5.21

• Finished Strv 105 section
  
• Added terminology for some vehicle and ammunition designations in the "Introduction" section

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2022.6.15 (Major Update: Danger Zone)

• Updated Strv 122A & Strv 122B PLSS
  
• Updated Strv 105
  
• Added Pvkv III placeholder

2022.6.16

• Finished Pvkv III section and updated tech tree image

2022.7.25

• Featured as one of the example guides for Gaijin's Steam Guide Contest! Thank you for recognizing our hard work.

2022.8.26

• Updated some of the tech tree ratings at top tier after getting more experience with them.

2022.8.27

• We are now ISO 8601[en.wikipedia.org] compliant

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2022.9.14 (Major Update: Drone Age)

• Added Pbv 302 (BILL) placeholder
  
• Added Leopard 1A5NO placeholder
  
• CV 90105 TML changed to CV 90105 XC-8
  
• Updated vehicles that have drones
  
• Added drones section to the high tier technology section

2022.10.15

• Finished Pbv 302 (BILL) section
  
• Finished CV 90105 section
  
• Updated tech tree (just in time for Finland sub tree to be added soon)
  
• Random small edits

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2022.10.25 (Major Update: Fire and Ice)

• Added placeholders for Finnish sub-tree
  
• T-28, T-34 (1941), Pz.IV J, PT-76-B, Comet 1, ZSU-57-2, T-34-85, Charioteer Mk.VII, T-54 (1951), T-72M1, Leo 2A4, T-80U

2022.10.26 (actual release date of Fire and Ice)

• Added the rest of the placeholder tanks that I wasn't aware of
  
• BT-42, Vickers Mk.E, T-28E, Leo 2A6
  
• Small edits to earlier sections, since there's a lot of new Swedish players because of the update. Started unlocking and evaluating all the new Finnish vehicles.

2022.12.1

• More various minor changes, updated the drone section
  
• Pvlvv got moved from 1.3 to 1.7? lol ok whatever
  
• Finnish vehicles up to the T-54 have been finished
  
• Received generous donation to review the premium Leo earlier this week so that will get started as well

2022.12.4

• Updating detailed names thanks to the research InFerNos1 did
  
• Re-organized some tech tree stuff that Gaijin moved and I didn't notice until now

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2022.12.20 (Major Update: Apex Predators)

• Added placeholder for T-55M, which is the only new ground vehicle Finland is getting in this patch
  
• Lots of misc. editing in older sections

2023.1.15

• Revised tech tree graphic, hopefully it looks better

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2023.3.7 (Major Update: Sky Guardians)

• Added placeholder section for the new ItPsV 90 (probably wont get this vehicle done anytime soon as I am currently working hard on my Italian tech tree guide)

2023.4.10

• Finished spading T-55M and updated section on it
  
• Finished Leo 1A5NO
  
• Initial review of ItPsV 90
  
• Updated tech tree overview

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2023.6.19 (Major Update: La Royale)

• Added initial draft sections for Sherman III/IV and CV9030FIN
  
• Updated tech tree image

2023.8.7 (Major battle rating re-balance - 2.27.2.15)

• Updated UDES 33, CV 90105
  
• Authors note: LOL they buffed the VEAK by lowering its BR indirectly

2023.8.27.

• Updated tech tree overview and finished review of the CV-FIN
  
• Probably wont do anything else until THE FOLDERING happens in September because I'm going to have to completely re-do all the tech trees in the guides I made. :(

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2023.9.20 (Major Update: Sons of Attila)

• Added placeholder section for Vidar and Pvkv IV
  
• Tech tree rework in progress

2023.9.25

• Rearranged everything and put in the WIP tech tree image

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2023.10.31 (Major Update: Kings of Battle)

• Added section for Finnish BMP

2023.11.4

• Bought and reviewed the VIDAR now that its in an actually balanced BR

2023.12.2

• Finally updated the tech tree, thanks ArtyTheBoog for motivating me by shaming me

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2023.12.14 (Major Update: Air Supremacy)

• Added rank 8
  
• Added placeholder for Strv 122B+
  
• Added information about spall liners to Strf 9040C, Lvkv 9040C, Leopard 2A6, All Strv 122s

2023.12.21

• Removed high tier technology section and made it into it's own guide that you can visit here if you wish. https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3118897418

2024.2.6

• At some point Gaijin gave the ability for the Pbv 302 to aim its ATGM independently from the turret, greatly improving its usefulness, this has been updated in the guide.

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2024.3.13 (Major Update: Alpha Strike)

• On vacation lul

2024.3.19

• Added placeholder section for Christian II (lets be honest its just a premium 2a4)
  
• Realized that I never updated stuff for the re-arranged Rank 8 update
  
• Moved around rank 6-8 stuff, still need to update tech tree image
  
• Re-added the high tier tech section to point to the guide, the need for people to know about this stuff outweighs my hatred of self promotion

2024.4.24

• Updated VEAK (they removed its HE-VT and moved it down to 7.7)
  
• Added placeholder section for the Kungstiger

2024.4.27

• Updated tech tree/fixed it

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2024.6.19 (Major Update: Seek and Destroy

• Added placeholders for USH-204 and CV9035DK
  
• Updated VIDAR

2024.6.20

• Updated tech tree, updated BMP picture, realized I never finished the Pvkv IV section somehow so I finished that too

2024.6.22

• Finished battle pass King Tiger section

2024.7.24

• Updated ASRAD-R due to the elevation buff of 35 degrees to 70 degrees.
  2024.8.22
  
• Various editorializing
  
  

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  2024.9.10 (Major Update: Dance of Dragons
  
  • Added section for KV-1 m1942