KV-85

R106_KV85 (Stock)

Totals

900000 Price

820 Hit Points

45.9 / 46.8 kgWeight

Crew

1. Commander

Armor

75/60/60Hull Armor(front/sides/rear, mm)

100/90/90Turret Armor(front/sides/rear, mm)

Maneuver

500 h.p.Engine Power

34 km/hSpeed Limit

28 deg/secTraverse Speed

Firepower

160 Standard Shell Damage

120 mmStandard Shell Penetration

4.9 Gun Loading

28 deg/secTurret Traverse Speed

Communication

320 mView Range

325 mSignal Range

KV-1S

KV-85

ISKV-13

VI

900000

A further development of the KV-1S tank. Unlike the previous modification, the KV-85 had enhanced armament. The vehicle was developed in the spring of 1943 at the Chelyabinsk Kirov Plant. The tank entered service on August 8, 1943, and was mass produced until September, with a total of 148 vehicles manufactured. The KV-85 was used by the breakthrough armored regiments of the Red Army.

• KV-85
• KV-85B
• KV-85-100
• KV-85-122M

KV-85

Stock

KV-85B

	Level	Turret	Weight (t)	Turret Armor (front/sides/rear, mm)	Gun Traverse Speed (deg/s)	View Range (m)
	V	KV-85	8000	100/90/90	28	320

	Level	Gun	Weight (t)	Average Penetration (mm)		Rate of Fire	Dispersion at 100 m	Aiming Time
	VI	85 mm D-5T	1500	120/161/43	160/160/280	12.24	0.38	2.9

	Level	Engine	Weight (t)	Engine Power (h.p.)	Chance of Fire on Impact
	VI	V-2K	750	500	15

	Level	Suspension	Weight (t)	Load Limit	Traverse Speed (deg/s)
	V	KV-85	12400	46.8	28

	Level	Radio	Weight (t)	Signal Range (m)
	IV	9R	0	325

KV-85B

Speed

KV-85-100 IS

	Level	Turret	Weight (t)	Turret Armor (front/sides/rear, mm)	Gun Traverse Speed (deg/s)	View Range (m)
	VI	KV-122 mod. 1944	7400	100/90/90	28	340

	Level	Gun	Weight (t)	Average Penetration (mm)		Rate of Fire	Dispersion at 100 m	Aiming Time
	VI	85 mm D-5T	1500	120/161/43	160/160/280	12.24	0.38	2.7

	Level	Engine	Weight (t)	Engine Power (h.p.)	Chance of Fire on Impact
	VII	V-2IS	750	600	15

	Level	Suspension	Weight (t)	Load Limit	Traverse Speed (deg/s)
	VI	KV-122	12400	49	30

	Level	Radio	Weight (t)	Signal Range (m)
	V	10R	0	360

KV-85-100

Recon

KV-85-122M KV-13

	Level	Turret	Weight (t)	Turret Armor (front/sides/rear, mm)	Gun Traverse Speed (deg/s)	View Range (m)
	VI	KV-122 mod. 1944	7400	100/90/90	28	340

	Level	Gun	Weight (t)	Average Penetration (mm)		Rate of Fire	Dispersion at 100 m	Aiming Time
	VII	100 mm S-34	1920	170/210/50	250/250/330	7.89	0.38	2.7

	Level	Engine	Weight (t)	Engine Power (h.p.)	Chance of Fire on Impact
	VII	V-2IS	750	600	15

	Level	Suspension	Weight (t)	Load Limit	Traverse Speed (deg/s)
	VI	KV-122	12400	49	30

	Level	Radio	Weight (t)	Signal Range (m)
	VII	10RK	0	440

KV-85-122M

Attack

	Level	Turret	Weight (t)	Turret Armor (front/sides/rear, mm)	Gun Traverse Speed (deg/s)	View Range (m)
	VI	KV-122 mod. 1944	7400	100/90/90	28	340

	Level	Gun	Weight (t)	Average Penetration (mm)		Rate of Fire	Dispersion at 100 m	Aiming Time
	VII	122 mm D-2-5T	2600	175/217/61	390/390/530	3.75	0.46	3.4

	Level	Engine	Weight (t)	Engine Power (h.p.)	Chance of Fire on Impact
	VII	V-2IS	750	600	15

	Level	Suspension	Weight (t)	Load Limit	Traverse Speed (deg/s)
	VI	KV-122	12400	49	30

	Level	Radio	Weight (t)	Signal Range (m)
	VII	10RK	0	440

Compatible Equipment

Compatible Consumables

Player Opinion

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Has two good gun choices in the 100mm and the 122mm
• Good maneuverability and speed for a heavy tank
• Strong turret armor

Cons:

• Absolutely no gun depression. -3 degrees is considered none.
• Poor view range
• Poor aim time and dispersion
• Rather weak hull and turret armor
• 122mm takes as long as artillery to reload

Performance

The KV-85 is characterised by its poor armour, excellent guns and its above-average mobility for a heavy tank. Coming right out of the KV-1S, players will be right at home playing the KV-85 as they are virtually the same tank. However, the KV-85 has one of the poorest non-SPG gun depression ratings at only -3 degrees, making the tactic of "ridge popping"- or even just fighting on hills- difficult to employ without taking a considerable amount of incoming fire. Even the slightest irregularity in the ground (that you wouldn't notice in any other tank) can leave you with your gun suddenly aiming up into the air and your shot going high.

When fully stock, the KV-85 is very frustrating and difficult to play. The stock 85mm D-5T gun is wholly inadequate for its tier and will fail to penetrate a KV-1 most of the time. The tank's main advantage, its speed, can only be found in the upgraded engine, meaning that a stock KV-85 is very sluggish, and with the stock suspension, the tank is very difficult to manoeuvre. The weak armour, slow speed, and poor penetration of the 85mm D-5T gun would mean that it is very hard tank to grind, not to mention that an upgraded gun requires both the turret and the new suspension. However, the difficult grind is well worth the effort, as the KV-85 has impressive selections of guns, as well as being very manoeuvrable for a heavy tank.

When armed with the 100mm S-34 gun, the better penetration and damage should make driving the KV-85 considerably more enjoyable. With a reload time of around 7 seconds or more, an average alpha damage of 250 and an accuracy of 0.38, the tank is well equipped for dealing with tanks of tiers 7 and 8. The low alpha means that this gun is suited as a gun much like the E-25's or the Cromwell's, where DPM is its main advantage, where its good rate of fire coupled with respectable penetration and damage can lay waste to enemies in minutes. With the upgraded engine, the KV-85 essentially become a slower but better armoured medium tank that can flank slower heavy tanks and target their sides and weaker rear armour, as well as aid team mates who are attempting a push from the front. That being said, the poor alpha of the 100mm S-34 gun means that trying to "slug it out" with other heavies is a death sentence, in particular against tier 8s where the gun's accuracy and DPM is near useless due to your lack of hitpoints against them. Use it as an impromptu sniper or flanker and this tank can be very useful to the team. However, it is worthy of noting that if you are able to weave your way through enemy groups with this tank, deal damage to a multitude of opponents while using the 100mm S-34, while making yourself as difficult to pen or even hit as possible, chances are you may not only walk out with a fat payout, but also potentially an ace tanker mastery badge.

When equipped with the 122mm D-2-5T, the tank changes drastically from a flanker into an opportunistic brawler. The 20 sec long reload, poor accuracy of 0.50 and an aiming time of 3.6 seconds mean that this gun is best suited for close to point blank combat, where the gun's impressive damage of 390 will send medium and light tanks flying off the map and leave gaping holes in heavies; literally halving the hit points of most tier 6 heavy tanks. However, the inaccuracy of the gun means that the tank must get close to the enemy, where its weak hull armour can easily be penetrated. As such, it would be wise to follow another heavy tank for supporting fire and when they are shot by the opposing enemy and they are reloading, you can "pop out" and cripple enemies standing in your way with 390 average damage without fear of retaliation. In the right hands, this gun can easily cause the most damage, just watch out for misses and non-penetrations, as a single AP shell costs 1025 credits.

All in all, the KV-85 is a very versatile tank, able to be played as a flanker and a brawler. The frustratingly terrible gun depression, armour, and sometimes even the inaccuracy of guns of the tank may be and often will be a great disadvantage, but is more than made up for by the KV-85's mobility and good gun damage. Play this tank cautiously and patiently to have the best results.

Early Research

After the split of the KV-1S and KV-85, the S-34 gun is no longer needed to be researched first if seeking the 122mm D-2-5T, however, you still need the top turret and the upgraded suspension. The top engine will further enhance the KV-85's agility and will make playing the tank considerably more rewarding.

Historical Info

As the war continued, the KV-1 continued to get more armour to compensate for the increasing effectiveness of German weapons. This culminated in the KV-1 model 1942 (German designation KV-1C), which had very heavy armour, but lacked a corresponding improvement to the engine. Tankers complained that, although they were well-protected, their mobility was poor and they had no firepower advantage over the T-34 medium tank.

In response to criticisms, the lighter KV-1S was released, with thinner armour and a smaller, lower turret in order to reclaim some speed. Importantly, the KV-1S had a commander's cupola with all-around vision blocks. It also had a sophisticated planetary transmission that significantly increased reliability, and allowed use of more efficient regenerative geared steering, unlike the solely clutch and brake steering systems used the Panzer III, IV and T-34. Its reduced weight allowed it to achieve a top speed of 43.3 km/h. Over 1,300 were built before production ended in August 1943. Although KV-1S was the best of the mass-produced KV tanks, overcoming its predecessors problems, more modern tanks were already in sight. Up-arming the regular turret of the KV-1S with an 85mm S-31 resulted in the KV-1S-85 or KV-85G. This was rejected as it came with the unacceptable loss of a dedicated commander, reducing the turret crew to two. However, the thinning-out of the armor called into question why the tank was being produced at all, when the T-34 could seemingly do everything the KV could do and much more cheaply. The Soviet heavy tank program was close to cancellation in mid-1943.

The appearance of the German Panther tank in the summer of 1943 convinced the Red Army to make a serious upgrade of its tank force for the first time since 1941. Soviet tanks needed bigger guns to take on the growing numbers of Panthers and the few Tigers. A stopgap upgrade to the KV series was the short-lived KV-85 or Objekt 239. This was a KV-1S with the new turret from the Object 237(IS-85) still in development, mounting the same 85 mm D-5T gun as the SU-85 and early versions of the T-34-85. The 85 mm proved capable of penetrating the Tiger I from 1000 m and the demand for it slowed production of the KV-85 tremendously (only 148 were built in the end). The KV-85 appeared on the front beginning in September 1943 and its production ended by December 1943. Soviet industry was therefore able to produce a heavy tank as well armed as the Tiger I before the end of 1943. In spite of being an excellent opponent to the Tigers and Panthers, the KV-85 was built in too few a number to influence the war. The complete Object 237 was accepted into service as the IS-85 and was produced in the autumn and winter of 1943-44; they were sent to the front as of October 1943 and production of the IS-85/IS-1 was stopped by the spring of 1944 once the IS-122/IS-2 entered full-scale production.

• KV-85 – A KV-1S with the 85mm D-5T cannon in a new turret, with the ball mounted hull machine gun removed and the hole welded shut, 148 of these tanks were produced in the second half of 1943 until the spring of 1944; they were a stopgap until the IS tank series entered production.
• KV-100 - A KV-85 with the 100mm S-34 cannon. One prototype was made in 1944. Not taken in service.
• KV-122 (Object 239) - A KV-85 with the 122mm D-25T cannon. One prototype was made in 1944. Not taken in service.

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Sources and External Links

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kliment_Voroshilov_tank

USSR

Heavy Tanks

ja:XBOX:R106 KV85