Tiger II

The Tiger II is a Tier VIII German Heavy Tank.

## Strategy

### Pros

* Strong frontal armor, nearly impossible for tier 7's and most 8's to penetrate without switching to premium ammunition.
* Great DPM (at 2454), combined with good accuracy and insane penetration.
* Surprising mobility for such a heavy vehicle.

### Cons

* Turret has almost no sloping, and can be easily overmatched by premium ammunition and some high-pen free ammunition (although it is a relatively small target)
* Hull armor will struggle to bounce Tier VIII and IX Tank Destroyer shells.
* Constant engine damage

### As Tiger II

Always angle your hull, try to avoid pointing your turret away from the enemy tank you are facing unless they are reloading and you need to shoot another tank.

### Against Tiger II

This tank's side and rear are weak and easily penetrated. However, facehugging can neutralize the sloping of its armor, making it thinner and more easily penetrated. Don't try this tactic unless you're a heavy tank with decent gun depression and strong armor yourself.

## History

Development of a heavy tank design had been initiated in 1937; the initial design contract was awarded to Henschel. Another design contract followed in 1939 and was given to Porsche. Both prototype series used the same turret design from Krupp; the main differences were in the hull, transmission, suspension and automotive features. The Henschel version used a conventional hull design with sloped armor resembling the layout of the Panther tank. It had a rear-mounted engine and used nine steel-tired, eighty-centimeter-diameter overlapping road wheels per side with internal springing, mounted on transverse torsion bars, in a similar manner to the original Henschel-designed Tiger I. To simplify maintenance, however, as when the same steel-tired road wheels were used on later Tiger I hulls, the wheels were only overlapping *without* being interleaved—the full rubber-rimmed road-wheel system that had been in use on nearly all German half-tracks used the interleaved design, later inherited by the early production versions of the Tiger I and Panther.

The Porsche hull designs included a rear-mounted turret and a mid-mounted engine. The suspension was the same as on the *Elefant* tank destroyer. This had six road wheels per side mounted in paired bogies sprung with short longitudinal torsion bars that were integral to the wheel pair; this saved internal space and facilitated repairs. One Porsche version had a gasoline-electric drive (fundamentally identical to a Diesel-electric transmission, only using a gasoline-fueled engine as the prime mover), similar to a gasoline-electric hybrid but without a storage battery; two separate drivetrains in parallel, one per side of the tank, each consisting of a hybrid drive train; gasoline engine–electric generator–electric motor–drive sprocket. This method of propulsion had been attempted before on the rejected Tiger (P) (which had been rebuilt as *Elefant)* and in some US designs and was put into production in the World War I era Saint-Chamond tank and the post-World War I FCM Char 2C. The Porsche suspension components were later used on a few of the later *Jagdtiger* tank destroyers. Another proposal was to use hydraulic drives. Dr. Porsche's unorthodox designs gathered little favour.

Development of a heavy tank design was initiated in 1937; the initial design contract was awarded to Henschel. Another design contract followed in 1939 and was given to Porsche. Both prototype series used the same turret design from Krupp; the main differences were in the hull, transmission, suspension and automotive features.

The Henschel version of the Tiger II used a conventional hull design with sloped armor resembling the layout of the Panther tank. It had a rear-mounted engine and used nine steel-tired, eighty-centimeter-diameter overlapping road wheels per side with internal springing, mounted on transverse torsion bars, in a similar manner to the original Henschel-designed Tiger I. To simplify maintenance, however, as when the same steel-tired road wheels were used on later Tiger I hulls, the wheels were only overlapping *without* being interleaved—the full rubber-rimmed roadwheel system that had been in use on nearly all German half-tracks used the interleaved design, later inherited by the early production versions of the Tiger I and Panther.

## Stats (Updating, as of Update 5.7)

### Stock

Hit Points, HP 1350

Main Armor, mm (Turret, Hull)

Front 82, 100

Sides 82, 82

Rear 65, 82

Chance of Fire Upon Impact- %20

View Range, m 240.0

Concealment-%

While Stationary 17

While Moving 11

Upon Firing While Stationary 4

### Fully Upgraded

Hit Points, HP 1450

Main Armor, mm (Turret, Hull)

Front 100, 165

Sides 82, 82

Rear 82.82

Chance of Fire on Impact 20%

View Range, m 240.0

Concealment %

While Stationary 17

While Moving 11

Upon Firing While Stationary 4

## Upgrades (Updating, as of Update 5.7)

### Guns

Gun 8.8cm Kw.K. 36L/56

Weight, t 57.02

Aiming Time, s 4.5