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I've done only the Easy 8, but have extensive experience with both the Easy 8 and the Sherman.

I would say that your choice should revolve around what path you want to pursue next.

If you enjoy a faster, run-and-gun playstyle, the Easy 8 is a superior platform. Once fully upgraded, it is very mobile and can flank easily. The recent patch has also given it the 105mm, but I feel that the 76mm is still the Easy 8's natural gun - the 105mm requires you to stop to fire too often.

If you like taking advantage of terrain and positioning in a more defensive fashion, then the Jumbo is a good tank. It's fairly mobile, and the armor is decent especially if you angle it well. You can trade shots with some similar-tier tanks, and maybe even a few Tier 7s.

The former leads to the excellent US Medium tank line, which has excellent tanks all the way to Tier 9. If you want to stick with mediums exclusively, Easy 8 is the only real way to go.

The latter leads to the US heavy tank line, which has a very good Tier 7 and an average Tier 8, but somewhat uneven tanks for the rest of the tree (especially the T34, one of the worst tanks of its tier). The bad tanks are getting replaced soon though, so the poor performance of later US heavies may change.

The Jumbo goes to the T20 as well, so you can go down either line from it if you want.

I finished grinding to the VK 2801 last night and got four kills in my first (and so far only) match. And that was with the 50mm. I had most of the modules researched from other vehicles, but without the better suspension I only had the capacity to mount the best engine. This thing just flies; I can tell it is going to be a ton of fun to play.

I swear by my Easy8. It's an absolute wrecker of lower tiers, and is able to defeat higher tier heavies that are unsupported. A highly flexible machine.

Against higher tier foes, the vaunted Jumbo Armor is not enough. The US 90mm for example can punch through the hull easily, and the 105 derp is seriously obsolete at Tier 6. The M1A2 is a far superior weapon, which the Jumbo alas doesn't have the speed to really use to it's maximum effectiveness, unlike an Easy8.

I remember holding off a Tiger II with my Easy 8. I pumped the bastard full of holes, and if my team gave me the slightest support, he'd have been toast. Even then, it was funny seeing his frontal armor with more holes than plates on it

PeZook wrote:I remember holding off a Tiger II with my Easy 8. I pumped the bastard full of holes, and if my team gave me the slightest support, he'd have been toast. Even then, it was funny seeing his frontal armor with more holes than plates on it

The E8, unlike the Jumbo, can pretty much circle-kill any heavy. It's agility is pretty unmatched amongst Mediums, and the M1A2 has great DPS provided it can penetrate a flank. I've solo'ed Tiger IIs, and even a somewhat damaged E-75 due to that amazing agility. You have such a tight turn radius that your angular velocity exceeds most heavy turret rotations. Plus your fast reverse gear allows you to juke pretty well even if they hull-turn into you.

Well, the engagement I described happened on a flank in Himmelsdorf, so there was little place to maneuver. Maybe I could have played it better, but still...fighting a Tiger II head on and living for a good long while?

I just plain love the Easy 8.

Nephtys wrote:

PeZook wrote:I remember holding off a Tiger II with my Easy 8. I pumped the bastard full of holes, and if my team gave me the slightest support, he'd have been toast. Even then, it was funny seeing his frontal armor with more holes than plates on it

The E8, unlike the Jumbo, can pretty much circle-kill any heavy. It's agility is pretty unmatched amongst Mediums, and the M1A2 has great DPS provided it can penetrate a flank. I've solo'ed Tiger IIs, and even a somewhat damaged E-75 due to that amazing agility. You have such a tight turn radius that your angular velocity exceeds most heavy turret rotations. Plus your fast reverse gear allows you to juke pretty well even if they hull-turn into you.

Any poorly driven heavy. A good heavy can just hull-turn along along with turret-turn to easily catch up with the Easy 8.

There are a lot of poorly driven heavies, however, especially in the tiers one normally plays with an Easy 8.

Victory!
Battle: Westfield Sunday, January 01, 2012 1:24:31 AM
Vehicle: T29
Experience received: 2,215
Credits received: 62,094
Battle Achievements: Steel Wall

T29 is the most horrifying killing machine possible on a slight incline. Went up solo against TWO King Tigers and WON.

Nephtys wrote:Victory!
Battle: Westfield Sunday, January 01, 2012 1:24:31 AM
Vehicle: T29
Experience received: 2,215
Credits received: 62,094
Battle Achievements: Steel Wall

T29 is the most horrifying killing machine possible on a slight incline. Went up solo against TWO King Tigers and WON.

If the enemy is forced to shoot at a T29's front turret armor, it cannot lose!

Unless it's a sensible german tank and puts round after round into the cupola and ears, which works more often than I expect. Quite how pummelling the commander into soup kills a tank I don't know, but there you go.

As a side note, here's a reminder about the SDN chat channel. There's some regulars now, even.

"Realistically," if you toss enough rounds in through the turret armor, and you'd expect ricochets to also affect the gunner, loader, and ammo rack. Explosive destruction of the tank would be possible (ammo rack) as would simply hammering the thing into uselessness by wrecking the turret. so yeah, that works.

I rather doubt that bits of cupola flying through the turret is going to do much for the health of the turret crew.

Vanas wrote:Unless it's a sensible german tank and puts round after round into the cupola and ears, which works more often than I expect.

This is why you shake your turret around to prevent a clean shot on the ears. And that's assuming you're facing an opponent sensible enough to target them (never a good assumption in pubs).

If I'm in a tier 9 or maybe an 8, I'm glad if you shake your turret too much. I don't think those ears do damage anymore, and since the sloped armor buff the turret top isn't so good a candidate anymore (it's still doable if you're above the target), so that makes the sides of the turret right next to the mantlet the best target. Turning helps make them an easier, more reliable shot. It's one of the reasons I'm eagerly awaiting the M103.

xthetenth wrote:If I'm in a tier 9 or maybe an 8, I'm glad if you shake your turret too much. I don't think those ears do damage anymore, and since the sloped armor buff the turret top isn't so good a candidate anymore (it's still doable if you're above the target), so that makes the sides of the turret right next to the mantlet the best target. Turning helps make them an easier, more reliable shot. It's one of the reasons I'm eagerly awaiting the M103.

Hits to the ears still do damage. I recently brought a T29 down around 40% with several hits to the ears using the Mk IV 105mm HE .

I don't like shooting for the ears, frankly. The side of the turret is about as good a target, and if the guy's wobbling it's even better. It's not as good as the area above the turret used to be when you could pen more reliably, since that was huge and I could reliably hit, but it's a better target than the ear. Plus, if you aim carefully the ear and side will be in your reticule for the best chance of hitting.

PeZook wrote:Ah,that would explain why Simon1Jester responded to my polite inquiry with an insult

By the way, I just ran into that guy on Arctic Region.

He's a complete and utter shithead, one of the most perfect examples of the "sit around and troll" brigade I've seen yet. Basically competent, going by his stats, but still a total shithead.

For those who haven't noticed, if you input the code NEWYEAR in the Account Management page on their site after the 7.1 patch is released, you'll get a Tetrarch in its own hangar slot.

Vanas wrote:Unless it's a sensible german tank and puts round after round into the cupola and ears, which works more often than I expect. Quite how pummelling the commander into soup kills a tank I don't know, but there you go.

Well, if you wreck the optics, the tanks is as good as dead for the mission, since it kinda needs to see targets to shoot

You still need optics to locate tanks that other tanks have spotted for you, is that right?

Raving insanity. I just got a Steel Wall in my KV. I took a total of one hundred and thirteen hits, from several autocannon equiped lights, as I sat there tracked. It was like being in a hailstorm.

Cool. My personal record is 60 hits on a Hotchkiss, including a BT-7 that kamikaze'd (and died) into my side.

Those fights can be fun. I was top tank in my KV-3 with no heavy or TD in the top end of the other team and ended up with a Steel Wall after something like 50 hits and still had over 50% of my health too. KV-3 as top tier is just unfair; damn thing is a brick although slow as hell.