WOT Blitz: Leichttraktor Review

Greetings fellow tank commanders! (I wish to thank the website Armored Patrol for making this image available on Google Images! It was really difficult to find a decent historical image of the Leichttraktor.)

I remember when I played this tank for the first time in Tutorial. So many people just forget about this little guy as soon as they finish the tutorial. This tank was one of the first prototypes developed by the German Army during the interwar year period due to restrictions imposed by the Treaty of Versailles, which forbade the Germans from building tanks. You can see that the name of this vehicle is quite unthreatening as it means “Light Tractor”. In fact, many early German vehicle prototypes were disguised with names of agricultural equipment to evade watchful eyes of the British and the French. So, how does this vehicle perform in battle? Let’s find out!

Leichttraktor with the 37 mm KwK – Notice its rear-mounted turret!

The side view of this vehicle allows us to clearly see the radio comm frame!

Kind of looks like a kid with a schoolbag lol

 

ARMOUR

HP: 185, Hull Armour (Front): 14 mm, Hull Armour (Side & Back): 12 mm, Turret Armour (Front, Side and Back): 14 mm

It sure feels a bit weird to see a tank that is so poorly armoured after reviewing the Panzer B2 740(f). But don’t worry as you will only encounter tier 1 and tier 2 tanks. With an HP of 185, you will have to be careful to preserve your health. Your armour is thin so you can’t reliably bounce shots. However, it is still one of the better armoured tanks in tier 1 so you are not at a particular disadvantage. If you see the three images above, you will notice a lot of flat surfaces, which means you will have to ensure that you do not expose your hull too much to enemy fire. Also, I would like to mention that the engine seems to be located at the very front. Any tank with decent penetration capability can set you on fire. I have seen many experienced seal clubbers who target the front lower glacis plate whenever they see a Leichttraktor in the field.

 

FIREPOWER (37 mm KwK 36 L/46.5)

AP Shell Damage: 30 ~ 50, AP Shell Penetration: 30 ~ 50 mm, Shots per minute: 15.25, Aiming Time: 1.7 seconds, Dispersion per 100 m: 0.46, View Range: 220 m, Ammo Capacity: 150 rounds

This is the primary gun I use for this tank. I mentioned that this tank does not have the armour to be brawling with other tanks at close range. This gun, while being the first gun you get, is quite capable with a superb reloading speed and decent penetration. You won’t have much trouble penetrating most tier 1 tanks and with APCR, you can penetrate tier 2 tanks easily. The dispersion is not fantastic at 0.46 but this shouldn’t be a problem at lower tiers as all tanks have poor accuracy. As far as I know, the Leichttraktor has the best view range in tier 1 and this allows you to get the first shot. This means with the proper equipment configuration you can take up the role of a sniper for your team.

 

FIREPOWER (2 cm Breda)

AP Shell Damage: 9 ~ 15, AP Shell Penetration: 22 ~ 37 mm, Shots per minute: 65.06, Aiming Time: 1.8 seconds, Dispersion per 100 m: 0.53, View Range: 220 m, Ammo Capacity: 420 rounds

Do you notice that “(i)” and the name “Breda” that sounds so un-German? Yes, your instinct was right – this weapon is not German but Italian. It was a 20 mm light anti-aircraft gun manufactured by Breda Meccanica Bresciana, an Italian armaments firm that still makes small firearms today. This weapon must be used at close-quarters due to its horrible dispersion of 0.53. I do not recommend this weapon however due to the previously mentioned reason about its weak armour. Coupled with its worse aiming time, do NOT ever think about sniping with this gun as you will almost certainly miss. It also fires somewhat slowly which makes it even less capable. If you compare this with the Panzer II’s 2 cm FlaK 38, you will know what I am talking about. In short, stick with the 37 mm KwK cannon as it fits this vehicle’s character.

 

MOBILITY

Weight: 8.05 tons, Horsepower: 100, Top Speed: 36, Hull Traverse: 46 degrees per second, Turret Traverse: 39 degrees per second

Mobility wise, this tank does not shine. While not bad among its tier 1 fellows, this tank will make you frustrated at times as it struggles to climb hills and relatively steep slopes. When you are playing on Mines or on Copperfield, you will notice that this tank takes quite a bit of effort to get to the main area of conflict. Hull traverse and turret traverse speeds are not bad as you can see above. You shouldn’t really expect to be rapidly moving about at the front as most tanks will not fail to hit you. Top speed is not bad but you will most likely get around 25 to 30 km/h when you are moving in flat ground. Due to the apparent limits to its mobility, I suggest that you focus on staying back and letting your faster teammates to fight up front. You should support your teammates while staying behind good cover.

 

LOGISTICS

For the Leichttraktor, I use the following equipment configuration:

Improved Ventilation, Enhanced Gun Laying Drive, Coated Optics

These items should allow you to maximize the performance of the Leichttraktor. With the Coated Optics module, you should be able to increase your view range to 242 m. While Binoculars would further extend the view range to 275 m, you need to be absolutely stationary for it to be of any effect. I am not a big fan of stationary warfare and tactical repositioning can save your life in critical moments. If you are confident of your abilities to hold back enemy tanks from your static position (maybe you know a secret spot from where you can snipe without trouble!), then by all means choose the Binoculars!

In terms of ammunition, I carry:

AP: 100 rounds, APCR: 40 rounds, HE: 10 rounds

Using APCR may become a necessity when you encounter better armoured tier 2 foes. Especially if you meet a Panzer II, despite becoming much weaker in its damage output after the 2.7 update, is still a dangerous tank to the Leichttraktor due to its armour profile. With poor mobility, you cannot expect the Leichttraktor to reliably flank and surprise a Panzer II, much less a BT-2. However, make sure not to overuse the APCR as APCR addiction can be costly and difficult-to-cure. Carry a few HE rounds for base reset.

The new 2.8 update has brought about new changes to consumables. Now you have consumables that have cool down such as Repair Kit and Multi-Purpose Restoration Pack in a separate section. In another section, you have so called permanent consumables or “Provisions” that last for the entire duration of a single battle. This new change should give you more tactical flexibility. Well done Wargaming!

Multi-Purpose Restoration Pack, Repair Kit, First Aid Kit

Chocolate Bar, Standard Fuel, Protective Kit

Just to provide you with detailed information, I have written down the specific effects of these new provisions:

• Chocolate Bar: +3% to crew mastery
• Standard Fuel: +3% to engine power, +3% to turret traverse speed
• Protective Kit: +15% to protection to crew from injuries, +10% to module repair speed, +20% to fire protection, +10% to ammo rack and fuel tank durability

I think if you can afford them you should buy all of them to maximize your chances of winning. Protective Kit should be absolutely essential in my opinion.

 

DANGEROUS TANKS

This tank is fragile because it does not have good armour. Every tank should be a concern for you if you are driving the Leichttraktor. But these are the tanks that you should particularly watch out for:

Some call the tier 1 MS-1’s 47 mm gun a “Nuke Cannon”. It is certainly devastating to the Leichttraktor. Be wary of this tank!

Tier 2 Chi-Ni has a gun that can deal 110 damage with HE. The HE shell can penetrate up to 28 mm of armour. Your armour WILL be penetrated!

Tier 1 Renault Otsu has an absurdly tough hull armour. Your AP shells will bounce off most of the time. With a small turret, it is hard to land a shot if the target is moving.

While this tank has paper armour, watch out for its firepower! It can deal up to 95 damage with its HE shell.

If a Cruiser III sees you, he will eat you up as its Pom-Pom will chew through your armour.

 

CONCLUSION

The Leichttraktor is an excellent start for those who are starting anew in World of Tanks Blitz and those who want to start the German tech tree. As many German tanks had their engines in the front, learning how to drive this tank effectively should help you later as you advance to higher tiered German tanks. Hope you found this review to be useful!