Glossary

This list will attempt to explain some of the more common jargon found within WoT that is not always readily apparent to the newer player.

List

1 shot/1 shotted - To kill or be killed with one shot.

88 - Any of the German 8.8 cm guns (8.8 cm PaK 36 L/56, 8.8 cm KwK L/71, etc).

Alpha - The amount of damage that a gun does in a single shot (E.G. "the IS-3 does 390 alpha").

AP - An Armor Piercing shell.

Armor Skirts - Additional armor plates designed to protect less protected parts of tanks, usually the sides of the hull.

Arty - Artillery, Self Propelled Guns (e.g. "Arty is lit up").

Autoloader - An automatic loading mechanism first used by the French, and exclusively used by French and USA tanks during the time period covered in the game. An autoloader eliminates the need for a crew member to server as a Loader. Tanks with an autoloader are capable of firing several shots in rapid succession, drawing rounds from a revolving drum that holds several rounds. These are not to be confused with an autocannon, as these fire single shots from full-size cannons. When the rounds in the drum are used up, the autoloader refills it. This can take some time, so taking shelter behind cover while reloading is recommended. Theoretically it should be possible to stop the autoloader and fire before the drum is fully refilled, if necessary, but this is not possible in the game. Some modern (not in game) autoloaders draw ammunition directly from the ammo rack, eliminating the drum from the process.

Autocannon - A lower caliber weapon capable of fully automatic fire (burst-fire in the game), but unlike machine guns, they fire shells instead of bullets. Used in early-war light tanks to give them an edge versus their (at the time) machine gun-armed opponents. However, autocannons rapidly fell behind in the shell-vs-armor race and quickly became used only by few specialized German reconnaissance vehicles. However, autocannon use vastly expanded in the region of anti-aircraft defense.

BiA - The crew skill Brothers in Arms

Bounce - A shot that ricocheted off of or failed to penetrate another tank (e.g. "My shot bounced").

Brawler - A tank that works best in close range combat. Generally these have good armor and a powerful, if not overly accurate gun. Unlike a Flanker (listed below), these tanks are generally not quick, but they can fight facing the front of an enemy just fine.

Buff- To make a module, vehicle, or equipment stronger by changing its stats. It's done by programmers to re-balance anything they feel is underpowered and thus unbalanced (e.g. "Buff the PzKpfw 38 nA. It's too weak!).

Camo Net - Short for Camouflage Net.

Camper - A player who spends most part of the match sitting in one spot, passively waiting for enemies instead of actively taking part in the action. Mostly used with a negative sense (e.g. [username] is a camper! He's been sitting in that bush the whole match!!!).

Campinovka - Nickname for the map titled 'Malinovka' due to the amount of camping which takes place on this map.

Cap - To capture the enemy base (e.g. "Cap before they do" meaning capture the enemy base before they can capture yours. This is usually said towards the end of the battle.).

Carry - When one tank or group single handedly win a game with little to no help from the team.

Critical Hit, Crit - A shot that damaged a module or crew member in another tank (e.g. I got a critical/crit hit for no damage on that IS-7).

Cupola - Additional small "turret" on top of the superstructure/tank turret, usually reserved for the Commander. It provides him with 360° vision. However, the downside is that cupolas usually present a rather vulnerable target and damaging it usually means incapacitation of the vehicle's Commander.

Derp Gun - A short, high-damage gun with a very long reload time and low penetration. Usually associated with howitzers and guns that primarily fire HE, like the KV-2's 152mm gun.

DPM - Damage Per Minute, a correlation between the guns average damage, and its rate of fire, to give a number on how much potential damage the tank can do if it fires every time it reloads for an entire minute.

Drive Wheel - Part of the running gear of a tank, the drive wheel serves to propel the tracks, usually identifiable from the idler wheel by it's sprocketed design. Depending on the transmission set up it can either be in the front or rear of the tracks. Damage to it can immobilize a tank with relatively little damage compared to the middle portion of the track. If you want to de-track an enemy tank, you should aim for the drive or idler wheel rather than just any part of the track.

Face Hugging - The practice of placing the front of your hull against the front of the enemy's hull (e.g. Why do IS-7 drivers always face hug Mauses?).

Finger of God - Mostly tier 10 artillery ( Especially T92 ) May also refer to the FV215b (183).

Flanker - A tank that works best when used to attack enemy tanks from the sides and rear, preferably while they're already engaged with another member of your team (i.e. flanking tactics). They may also be referred to as a "flanking tank". Generally these tanks are fast, maneuverable, and fare poorly when engaging enemies from the front. The French and American autoloaders are prime examples of this type.

GLD/EGLD - Enhanced Gun Laying Drive, a piece of equipment that reduces aim time by 10%.

Gold Consumables - Consumables that can be purchased with in-game gold or a higher credit price than regular consumables. Some are passive, and some need you to press the 4, 5, or 6 keys to activate.

Gold Round - A munition which can be purchased for in-game gold or a higher credit price than regular rounds, such as HEAT or APCR. These munitions usually have better penetration or damage rates. The term is still used even though these rounds can be purchased in game for credits. A player is said to be 'shooting gold' when using 'gold rounds'.

Grind/ing- A term used by players to describe the process of upgrading the modules on a tank or earning experience towards the next tank. This is to research each module and 'grind out' the credits to purchase them. Some tanks seem to take longer than others to 'grind out' and are said to be a 'hard grind'.

Glacis Plate - Describes the sloped front-most section of the hull of a tank or other armored fighting vehicle. In a head-on-head armored engagement, the glacis is the largest and most obvious target available to an enemy gunner.

Gun Elevation - The gun's maximum angle above horizontal (i.e. aiming up).

Gun Depression - The gun's maximum angle below horizontal (i.e. aiming down).

Gun Handling - The overall performance of a gun on a tank. includes reload time, aim time, accuracy, etc. (For example, the M18 Hellcat has very good gun handling, but the KV-1S has very bad gun handling)

Hard Stats Stats that are fixed and thus "hard", such as penetration and armor.

HUD - Heads up Display. Common term for the targeting reticle, range, reload and health status in middle of the screen. Can be toggled on and off with "V".

Hull Down - To keep your tank's hull below a hill or other obstacle to prevent shots hitting it

Idler Wheel - Part of the running gear of a tank, the idler wheel is usually identifiable from the drive wheel by the lack of sprockets. Depending on the transmission set up it can either be in the front or rear of the tracks. Damage to it can immobilize a tank with relatively little damage compared to the middle portion of the track. If you want to de-track an enemy tank, you should aim for the drive or idler wheel rather than just any part of the track.

Keeper - A tank that you enjoy so much that you keep in your garage rather than sell to progress to the next on the tech tree.

Lemming Train - When most (or all) of the tanks in one team simply follow other tanks in one direction, leaving other parts of map undefended.

Lit - Vehicle is spotted and 'lights up' on the mini-map - eg "Arty is lit!"

LL - Lend Lease. A tank that was built by one nation and provided to another under the Lend Lease Act (i.e. "Matilda LL" refers to the Matilda with a Soviet crew as opposed to the British Matilda).

Magical Forest - The Forest in the Murovanka map. Has since been removed in patch 9.3.

Mantlet - Moving part of armor, attached to the gun, protecting the gap in front armor through which the gun passes. Mantlets came in different sizes and shapes - and also functions. Mantlets usually partially overlap front armor, though in case of Tiger I, gun shield/mantlet is THE turret front armor, same as with Sherman (76). The second extreme is Sherman (75), where originally the narrow gun shield expanded to cover a weaker part of the front turret armor with an additional layer.

MM - Match Maker - the system used for building teams in public matches. It is a sophisticated algorithm that follows a set of rules to select teams from the "wait" queue that are as evenly balanced as possible. Teams "matched" are dependent on the tanks in the "wait" queue and.

Mod - A WoT in-game or forum moderator, or a visual or audio modification to one's game client.

Nerf - To weaken an equipment, vehicle, or module by modifying its stats. It's done by programmers to rebalance anything they feel is too powerful and thus unbalanced (e.g. "Nerf the T29 turret armor. It's too strong.").

NS - Nice shot

o7 or o> - Salute. Often used to greet friends and fellow clan members. The "o" represents a person's head, and the "7" or ">" represents the person's arm, making the salute.

Peek-a-boo/Peek-a-boom - The tactic of rounding a corner to take a shot at another tank and immediately reversing back to the cover of the corner while reloading.

Pen - Penetration, either the stat or a shot penetrating a tank.

Premium Consumables - See Gold Consumables

Premium Rounds - See Gold Rounds

R2D2 - The mini turret on the front hull of the KV-5.

Racked - Instant destruction of a tank when the ammunition rack is hit. (To "rack" an enemy is to destroy him with an ammo rack hit).

Rush - To charge either directly or indirectly at the enemy.

Scout - A tank that actively endeavors to spot enemy vehicles (e.g. Go scout that position!). Usually a light or medium tank, although, sometimes a tank destroyer or heavy tank will do the job in a pinch.

Seal Clubber - A player, who despite having many battles, still plays mostly low tier vehicles.

Side Scraping - See Tactics: Sidescraping and Reverse Angling

Skin - A cosmetic mod that customizes a tank's texture.

Sniper - A tank that works best when used to shoot at enemy tanks from maximum effective range, preferably with one or more friendly tanks in front of you. These friendly tanks benefit you both as spotters and as a means of keeping the enemy preoccupied enough that they'll need to shoot at them instead of at you. Generally these snipers have guns with very good accuracy, usually high damage, a high camouflage coefficient, and sometimes poor armor.

Soft Stats - Stats that are not fixed and "hard", and can vary between tanks. This includes accuracy and terrain passability, among others.

Sponson - Part of tank hull located above tracks. Often used to store ammunition, or in some cases to mount the tank's armament. This is visible on the M3 Lee, where the main tank's armament is sponson-mounted.

Spotter - A tank that spots enemy vehicles for artillery, TDs, and/or snipers, allowing them to fire beyond their own visual range.

Sprem - A term used for premium ammunition. Short for Silver Premium.

Stock - A tank with starting equipment or a module that comes with the tank when it is purchased. Stock equipment can perform decent at best or it is bad (e.g. the stock Pz.Kpfw. IV has a difficult stock grind).

Sui-scout or Suicide Scout - A player (usually with a 'scout' tank) who rushes off to find the enemy as soon as the game counter starts. Usually rushes headlong, often to the enemy base, with no support and before arty can get set up and load. Ends in the rapid death of the scouting tank, many times within seconds of the game starting.....

Support Tank - A tank with weak armor, but at least a decent gun, that can best help by firing from the second line (i.e. from a position behind better-armored friendlies). Whether or not a tank should be considered a "support tank" may vary depending on the tier(s) of the enemies being faced. Unlike a sniper tank, a support tank will try to remain close to the front line, but not on the front line. Unlike a flanking tank, a support tank will not actively attempt to flank.

Team Killer - Someone who deliberately kills or damages a friendly tank.

Track - Short for "de-track". The act of destroying another tank's tracks, thus rendering it immobile (e.g. Track that Maus!).

Tracked - A tank that has had one or both tracks destroyed (e.g. "Maus tracked). Short for "de-tracked".

Tumor - A non-usable turret on top of a tank's turret or casemate (e.g. The machine gun turret on the top of the T110E5). They are usually less armored than other areas on the tank.

Turret Ring - Present only with rotating turrets, the turret ring covers a bearing/turret rotation mechanism. It's a vulnerable spot on most tanks, as armor is usually thinner than on the rest of the turret, with sensitive machinery/crew located directly behind.

Unicum/Unicorn - A name for one of the top players in the game, in terms of skill.

Wallet Warrior - A player who drives a tier 6, 7, or 8 premium tank who is new to the game and is the only higher tier tank they own.

Wolfpack - A team of highly coordinated medium tanks. Made popular by the Type 59.

Ammunition

AP - Armor Piercing, ammunition type dedicated to penetrating enemy armor and thus disabling a tank. Often used as blanket term covering all various kinetic energy full-bore projectiles, "classic" AP shot was made of solid metal with no filler nor composite structure, relying only on its mass to penetrate and do sufficient damage to the enemy tank. While most WWII countries used APHE, the United Kingdom preferred to use solid shot and while theoretically tests showed some difference in the internal damage of target tank, in real combat conditions it usually did not matter.

APCR - Armor Piercing, Composite, Rigid, basic subcaliber armor-piercing ammunition. APCR body consisted of a penetrator, with significantly smaller diameter than the bore, and of light metal casing around it, to fill up the bore. The light metal part was non-detachable. Lighter mass gave the projectile higher muzzle velocity and higher penetration, however the smaller sectional density given by the light weight, but full bore diameter, caused high drag resulting in APCR losing velocity rapidly. APCR was used by all major players in WWII.

HE - High Explosive, a generally used term for any shell whose primary damage mechanism comes from an explosion of its charge, as opposed to kinetic damage done by the mass of the shell. There are multiple kinds of HE projectile, the most often used is probably HE-Frag, which has a shell that fragments on impact, creating a hail of lethal shrapnel. A pure HE shell would have thin walls and would create very little fragmentation, relying on the blast to do the damage. Thus, HE shells were often designed against hardened positions, etc. However, practice showed that HE-Frag can be almost as effective as pure HE, while being more effective against soft targets, and as HE-Frag took over the role, it took over the designation as well.

HEAT - High Explosive, Anti-Tank, armor-piercing projectiles using hollow charge effect. Cup-shaped charge forms a thin jet of gases or of HEAT liner material, that travels at very high velocity. Contrary to kinetic energy AP, HEAT maintains the same penetration regardless of the shell velocity, so it was a popular choice for low-velocity guns and howitzers. However, WWII HEAT was often prone to failure and had usually short range. On the other hand it was cheap to produce - by the war's end, German tanks often carried a significant portion of their ammunition load in HEAT, replacing both AP and HE shells.

HESH - High Explosive Squash Head (Exclusive to British tanks in-game), HESH rounds are thin metal shells filled with plastic explosive and a delayed-action base fuze. The plastic explosive is "squashed" against the surface of the target on impact and spreads out to form a disc or "pat" of explosive. The base fuze detonates the explosive milliseconds later, creating a shock wave that, owing to its large surface area and direct contact with the target, is transmitted through the material. In the case of the metal armor of a tank the compression shock wave is conducted through the armour to the point where it reaches the metal/air interface (the hollow crew compartment), where some of the energy is reflected as a tension wave. At the point where the compression and tension waves intersect a high-stress zone is created in the metal, causing pieces of steel to be projected off the interior wall at high velocity, Unlike high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) rounds which are shaped charge ammunition, HESH shells are not specifically designed to perforate the armour of main battle tanks. HESH shells rely instead on the transmission of the shock wave through the solid steel armour.

Pzgr - Panzergranate, German designation of kinetic energy (AP) projectiles. Usual designation for most frequently used shells was Pzgr.39 (APCBC) and Pzgr.40 (APCR).

Sprgr - Sprenggranate, German designation for HE shells.

Vehicle Shorthand (Guide)

In battle there often isn't time to type full names. Many players don't know how to touch-type, for one thing, and battle doesn't allow much time to begin with.

1) It's very typical in battles for players to refer to specific vehicles in shorthand. This is often done by only listing the model number. For example, "212" instead of "Object 212". If you aren't sure, you can review the list of tanks in the battle on the side of the screen in detail by pressing the Tab key. Once you familiarize yourself with most of the tank names, you shouldn't have any problems. Shorthand may vary somewhat according to the tanks in the battle. For instance if there were VK 30.01 (H)'s in the battle, but no VK 30.01 (P)'s, a player may leave off the H and just say "3001". Some other examples:

• 212 instead of Object 212
• 3001H instead of VK 30.01 (H)
• 1S instead of KV-1S (Do not confuse the "1" with an "I")

2) Another common tendency, especially when talking to friendlies, is to only use the prefix. For example, if you're the only VK model on the team, players will most likely refer to you as "VK" instead of by your tank's model number. AMX, KV, and M4 are other common prefixes used.

3) Models that don't have numbers and have unique names are often shortened. Some examples:

• Ferdi instead of Ferdinand
• BatChat instead of Bat Chatillon 25 t
• Patton instead of M46 Patton

4) Likewise, players might shorten a name using initials, such as:

• JT - Nickname for the Jagdtiger

5) Sometimes a player may simply not have time to even worry about identifying you specifically and say "VK" even though there are four VKs on your team. For example, "VK behind you!". Usually this is done because the player typing doesn't know your model number and doesn't have time to look. However, in most situations this should be avoided because in this example, it would confuse the other three VKs, possibly getting them killed as they look behind them for enemies that aren't there.

Vehicle Nicknames

6) Lastly, there are a few nicknames that have carried over from real life or that players have come up with based on the general appearance of a certain vehicle. Some of these are:

• Bathtub - Nickname for the S35 CA due to its open top that looks like a bathtub.
• Darth Vader - Nickname for the Pz.Kpfw. IV Schmalturm with the over-sized Schmalturm turret.
• Doom Turtle - Nickname for the T95 due to its low speed, strong armor and excellent gun.
• Dracula - Nickname for the GW Panther, due to the armor that sticks up around the back (looks like a collar).
• Duck - Nickname for the AMX 40 due to its duck-like appearance..
• Easy 8 / E8 - Nickname for the M4A3E8 Sherman. This one was also used in real life.
• Fatton - Nickname for the M48A1 Patton and M46 Patton due to their huge size for medium tanks.
• Flakbus/Flaktoaster - Nicknames given to the Pz.Sfl. IVc due to its long, boxy shape and open top which make it look like a bus/toaster.
• Awful Panther - Nickname for the Aufklärungspanzer Panther.
• Jumbo - Nickname for the M4A3E2. This one was also used in real life.
• King Tiger / KT - Nickname for the Pz.Kpfw. Tiger II. This one was also used in real life.
• LOLtraktor - Nickname for the Leichttraktor.
• Micro/Mini Maus - Nickname for both the Hotchkiss H35 and Pz.Kpfw. 38H 735 (f).
• Mutant 6 - Nickname for the M6A2E1, due to the bobble shaped turret.
• School Bus - Nickname for the SU-14-2 and the TOG II*.
• Toaster - Nickname for the Pz.Sfl. IVc, due to its toaster-like look.
• Waffletraktor - Generic nickname for any of the German Waffenträger tank destroyers, beginning with the Rhm.-Borsig Waffenträger.