IS-6
IS-6
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[Client Values; Actual values in
10,600  Cost |
| 1550310 HP Hit Points |
| 51.5/59.927.22/59.9 t Weight Limit |
- Commander (Radio Operator)
- Gunner
- Driver
- Loader
| 700700 hp Engine Power |
| 35/14 km/h Speed Limit |
| 2626 deg/s Traverse |
| 13.5925.72 hp/t Power/Wt Ratio |
| NoNo Pivot |
| // mm Hull Armor |
| 150/150/100150/150/100 mm Turret Armor |
AP/APCR/HE
AP/APCR/HE Shells |
1025/4800/608
1025/4800/608 Shell Cost |
| 390/390/530390/390/530 HP Damage |
| 196/225/61196/225/61 mm Penetration |
|
5.13 r/m ▲
5.13 r/m Standard Gun ▲ Rate of Fire Standard Gun |
|
2000.7 ▲
Standard Gun
▼
Standard Gun
▲
2000.7 Standard Gun ▲
Standard Gun
▼
Standard Gun
▲ Damage Per Minute Standard Gun |
|
0.44 m ▲
0.44 m With 50% Crew: 0.545 m ▲ Accuracy With 50% Crew: 0.545 m |
| 2.8 s 2.8 s Aim time |
| 2424 deg/s Turret Traverse |
| 360° Gun Arc |
| -6°/+20°-6°/+20° Elevation Arc |
| 3737 rounds Ammo Capacity |
| 1515 % Chance of Fire |
| 350 m 350 m View Range |
| 730 m 730 m Signal Range |
Additional Statistics
(Top Configuration)
Camouflage
- Stationary: 7.1%
- When Moving: 3.7%
- When Firing: 1.4%
Terrain Resistance
- On Hard Ground: 1.15
- On Medium Ground: 1.44
- On Soft Ground: 2.21
Dispersion Change Values
- Turret Contribution
- Rotation: 0.12
- Shot Recoil: 3.84
- Suspension Contribution
- Acceleration: 0.22
- Turning: 0.22
With 100% Crew
VIII
10600
The IS-6 is a Soviet tier 8 premium heavy tank.
Plans for this vehicle were drawn up in the construction bureau of the Chelyabinsk Kirov plant from December 1943 to the summer of 1944. Further development and the construction of the first prototype took place at the Uralmash plant. However, the vehicle had no advantages over the other heavy tank designs under consideration, and its armor was seen as inferior to the IS-4 (Object 701), so the IS-6 was not selected for production.
The IS-6 replaced the KV-5 as the Soviet Tier 8 premium heavy tank available through the in-game store from patch 0.7.3. It is also currently available from the gift shop as a bundle with a garage slot all year-round. It is the 2nd (defender) cheapest of the Tier 8 premium heavy tanks. It has good armour and decent mobility, but an inaccurate gun with fairly low penetration.
Once one of the most common premium tanks in the game, the IS-6 has suffered heavily from powercreep as well as the new matchmaking. Even its main advantage, the preferential match making, has been largely nullified by the fact that it will see mostly tier 9 matches, for which it is poorly suited due to its low penetration.
Modules / Available Equipment and Consumables
Modules
Guns
| Tier | Gun | Penetration (mm) |
Damage (HP) |
Rate of fire (rounds/minute) |
Dispersion (m/100m) |
Aiming time (s) |
Weight (kg) |
Price (  )
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VIII | 122 mm D-30 | 196/225/61 | 390/390/530 | 5.13 | 0.44 | 2.8 | 2590 | 135140 |
Engines
| Tier | Engine | Engine Power (hp) |
Chance of Fire on Impact (%) |
Weight (kg) |
Price ( )
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IX | V-12 A | 700 | 15 | 750 | 84000 |
Suspensions
| Tier | Suspension | Load Limit (т) |
Traverse Speed (gr/sec) |
Rmin | Weight (kg) |
Price ( )
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VIII | IS-6 | 59.9 | 26 | B/2 | 11000 | 27920 |
Radios
| Tier | Radio | Signal Range (m) |
Weight (kg) |
Price ( )
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| X | 10RKM | 730 | 100 | 52200 |
Compatible Equipment
Compatible Consumables
Player Opinion
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Very good DPM, good alpha damage
- Well-angled hull and strong turret armor, very durable when properly positioned
- Decent mobility for the armor that it carries
- Good crew trainer - crew slots match most high tier Soviet heavy tanks
- Preferential matchmaking (tier 9 max, no tier 10 battles)
Cons:
- Poor standard and premium penetration
- Poor gun handling, aim time and accuracy
- Poor gun depression
- Poor viewrange, easily outspotted
Performance
Most Soviet heavy tank players who went to the IS line should feel right at home with the IS-6. In many ways, the IS-6 is essentially an IS that has been moved up to Tier 8, but still meets the same opponents.
The 122 mm D-30 is for all intents and purposes the natural evolution of the IS's top gun, the 122 mm D-25T (and in fact, the D-30 was historically a modified version of the D-25T). It has marginally improved penetration (186 mm), marginally improved accuracy (0.44 m), and shorter aim time (2.8 s), none of which are appreciable for its tier. Using the gun at ranges above 100 m requires a lot of patience in allowing the gun to fully aim in, and even then the gun can and will miss. It works best at medium to close ranges. The rate-of-fire and alpha damage are quite good, however, and at shorter ranges the IS-6 can use its superior damage output to its advantage, especially against the Löwe and T34. An Enhanced Gun Laying Drive and a Vertical Stabilizer are highly recommended. The limited ammunition capacity of only 37 rounds coupled with the high rate-of-fire and necessity of splitting between all 3 kinds of ammo means that running short of ammunition is a very real possibility, and shots should be taken with care.
The IS-6 is relatively well-protected when compared to other tier 8 premiums. Unlike the KV-5, which depends on raw armour thickness and a high number of HP to in order to absorb hits, the IS-6 relies on its very well-sloped armour to bounce incoming enemy fire. Additionally, the IS-6 lacks the distinct weak spots that the KV-5 has. While not nearly as impenetrable as the T34 or IS-3's frontal turret, the IS-6 is still reasonably well-protected. Angling and sidescraping will really boost the IS-6's survivability, especially since the side armour is just as thick as the front and is either sloped or covered with some form of spaced armor. The rear of the turret and hull are significantly weaker than the other sides, however, and one should be very careful about enemy tanks getting behind the IS-6. When angling the IS-6, one must be careful not to expose the hull "shoulder plates" too much, as too much angling of the front plate will at the same time straighten out one of the "shoulders", making it easier to penetrate.
More than most any other Tier 8 premium heavy tank (with the distinct exception of the very mobile FCM 50 t) the IS-6 is better at reacting to the changes of a dynamic battlefield. The good mobility of this tank, combined with it's other features gives it the flexibility that many other Tier 8 premium heavy tanks lack. All of this combines to allow the IS-6 to get in close, where it can make good use of it's high alpha, moderately accurate gun.
As a Tier 8 premium tank, the IS-6 is good at earning credits. However, the expensive ammunition, particularly when shooting APCR, will quite noticeably cut into its profits.
In the game's files and in official matchmaking charts, the IS-6 is known by its Ob'yekt (Object) designation: Object 252.
Crew Skills
As a premium tank, it is generally not recommended that a dedicated crew be run on the IS-6. Instead, one should use an existing Soviet heavy tank crew. If none exists, however, then the following options are probably the most viable.
- Repair as the first skill for all the crew members is a solid choice, allowing broken tracks or other damaged modules to be brought to operational condition as quickly as possible. Repair kits can thus be saved for more important modules like the gun or ammunition rack.
- A more specialized set of first skills would be Repair (Commander and Loader), Snap Shot (Gunner), and Smooth Ride (Driver). The loader only has perks available, which are not useful until they have reached 100%. Repair is the most viable option for the loader, which may later be swapped out for his perks. The combination of Snap Shot and Smooth Ride act like a Vertical Stabilizer, reducing the accuracy penalties while moving in a straight line or turning the turret. When combined with an actual Vertical Stabilizer, this can make a significant difference, especially given the IS-6's terrible dispersion and aim time. Mentor may also be used instead of Repair if the emphasis is on getting the other crew members' skills up faster. Smooth Ride may be substituted with Off-Road Driving for improved overall mobility or Clutch Braking, which is always useful on any heavy tank for the increased hull traverse, allowing them to counter circling tanks better.
- Upon reaching 100% on the first skills, dropping the commander's skill for Sixth Sense is highly advised, as it is one of the most important perks in the game. It is especially valuable in matches with artillery, since in a heavy tank being spotted usually means an artillery round is on its way towards you. The loader's skill may be dropped in favor of Safe Stowage.
- Brothers-in-Arms is a good perk to have on any tank, but requires all crew members to have it at 100% before it works. The bonus to crew skills is particularly noticeable when combined with Improved Ventilation. It improves nearly every aspect of the tank's performance, but is generally better saved for later in favor of more important skills and perks like Repair and Sixth Sense.
Early Research
As a premium tank, the IS-6 has no upgrades.
Suggested Equipment
Gallery
Historical Info
Between the 13th and 17th of November 1943, the OGK NKTP, along with the VAMM (Voennaya Akademiya Mekhanizatsii i Motorizatsii - Military Academy of Mechanisation and Motorisation) and the NATI (Nauchniy AvtoTraktorniy Institut - Automobile and Tractor Research Institute), began work on further increasing the IS-2 heavy tank's firepower and protection by developing a heavy assault tank. The project was originally intended to produce a tank with a rear-mounted superstructure and an electromechanical transmission similar to that of the Ferdinand, and was led by Deputy Chief of the GBTU (Glavnoye Bronyetankovoye Upravleniye - Main Tank Directorate) I. Lebedev. Early the next month, the design bureau of the Experimental Plant No. 100 in Chelyabinsk, under the leadership of Zhosef Kotin, designer of the KV and IS heavy tanks, began work on a new heavy tank project. Eventually, two designs for the IS-6 were submitted, both in the "classical" tank configuration.
On 8 June 1944, the NKTP ordered the Experimental Plant No. 100, along with the Uralmashzavod (Ural Machine Plant) to begin design and construction of the two IS-6 designs as the Ob'yekt 252 and Ob'yekt 253 respectively. Preliminary design work had already been completed by the Experimental Plant No. 100 under A. Yermolayev, and most of the remaining design work would be the responsibility of Uralmashzavod, as the ChKZ (Chelyabinsk Kirov Zavod - Chelyabinks Kirov Plant), with which the Experimental Plant No. 100 was associated, was also preoccupied with the production of existing tank designs, as well as with work on the Ob'yekt 701 heavy tank (the prototype of the IS-4). The Experimental Plant No. 100 would be responsible for construction of the prototypes, while the Uralmashzavod would be responsible for assembly and testing of the prototypes.
Strictly speaking, there were two different tanks which received the same designation IS-6: the Ob'yekt 252 and the Ob'yekt 253. The IS-6 featured ingame is the Ob'yekt 252. It was manufactured in October 1944, and can be easily distinguished from the Ob'yekt 253 by the large-diameter road wheels and lack of track support rollers. The suspension had previously been tested on the IS-3 experimental heavy tank (Ob'yekt 244, not to be confused with the other IS-3, the Ob'yekt 703). It was armed with the 122 mm D-30, an improved version of the 122 mm D-25T (not to be confused with the later 122 mm 2A18 howitzer, which also had the name of D-30). The D-30 was equipped with a shell rammer for increased rate-of-fire, and also had a compressed gas system to purge the barrel of gun fumes after firing. It was fitted with a 700 hp V-12U diesel engine and a conventional mechanical transmission, while the Ob'yekt 253 was fitted with the new electro-mechanical transmission. The Ob'yekt 252 underwent factory testing from 8 to 27 November 1944 before being sent, along with the Ob'yekt 253, for further testing at the NIIBT (Nauchno-Ispitatyelniy Institut BronyeTekhnika - Research and Testing Institute for Armoured Vehicles) testing grounds in Kubinka.
Comparative testing with the Ob'yekt 701 showed that both IS-6 prototypes were broadly equivalent to it in firepower and mobility, but were inferior in armour protection. Neither IS-6 design was eventually selected for production; the Ob'yekt 252, with its mechanical transmission, was found to offer no significant advantages over existing heavy tanks, while the Ob'yekt 253's electrical transmission was found to be too bulky, too unreliable, and required too much space for the cooling units. The increased weight of the electrical transmission also reduced the vehicle's maneuverability, eliminating any advantages in handling the electrical transmission would have provided. Further development of both IS-6 designs was thus halted.
Historical Gallery
Historical Accuracy Errata
*d-30 gun was an improvement of d-25t but in the game the stats are the same. HEAT and HE were only able to be fired from artillery version of d-30.
- Like many soviet tanks in game the IS-6 has increased gun depression. In reality it had -3° instead of -6°
- Its armour was unhistorically increased in patch 1.2, most notibly the turret front from 150->190 and the upper glacis from 100->110 (mm)
