Type 5 Heavy

Modules

Tier	Gun	Penetration (mm)	Damage (HP)	Rate of fire (rounds/minute)	Dispersion (m/100m)	Aiming time (s)		Weight (kg)	Price ()
X	14 cm/50 3rd Year Type	257/290/70	600/600/770	3.51	0.38	2.5		5600	332000
X	15 cm/45 41st Year Type	75/192/252	900/900/680	3	0.47	2.9		6700	330000

Tier	Engine	Engine Power (hp)	Chance of Fire on Impact (%)		Weight (kg)	Price ()
X	2x Kawasaki Type 98 V-12 Kai (600)	1370	20		1020	132000

Tier	Suspension	Load Limit (т)	Traverse Speed (gr/sec)	Rmin		Weight (kg)	Price ()
X	Type 5 Heavy	160	20	B/2		40000	82500

Tier	Radio	Signal Range (m)		Weight (kg)	Price ()
X	Type 3 Ko	750		560	54000

Compatible Equipment

Compatible Consumables

Pros and Cons

Pros:

- Very frontal armor with rather small weakspots that are resistant against most low tier vehicles. Even when unangled, Type 5 Heavy is almost immune to every standard AP ammunition (except tier 10 TDs)!

- Gargantuan HP pool of 2900, 2nd highest in the entire game.

- Has very tough side armor, making it much more effective at sidescraping compared to other Japanese heavies.

- Unlike Type 4 Heavy, hull cheeks are no longer a weakspot, which further improves Type 5's ability to angle its armor, especially when combined with it's very good side armor.

- Good alpha damage and exceptionally good gun handling with the 14 cm gun, able to snap shots very effectively.

- Great gun depression (-10).

- Excellent reverse speed, something that was lacking on previous tanks.

- Huge size and mass means that Type 5 can easily push other tanks and their wrecks around, facehug effectively and is so large that it can act as cover for smaller tanks and when destroyed as effective roadblock.

- Huge ammo capacity on both guns, will never run out of ammo on battle.

Cons:

- Biggest tier 10 in the game; easy to hit even at long range and vulnerable to SPGs.

- Poor overall mobility.

- The 14 cm gun has underwhelming fully aimed dispersion, poor DPM and below-average penetration with premium rounds. It also suffers from high penetration dropoff over the distance, making it very unwieldy at long distances.

- Has an option to use the 15.2 cm; however, after the nerfs, its almost completely useless. It deals less damage than the HE shells of the 60TP and E 100, while having much worse accuracy, gun handling and more notably no AP and HEAT shells whatsoever.

- Armor is quite flat, which makes it vulnerable to tier 10 TDs and premium ammo when not angled; high armor thickness with lack of weakspots encourages usage of premium ammo.

- Huge ammorack is easily damaged from side.

- Suffers from frontal transmission - can receive engine damage from the front.

Performance

Type 5 Heavy looks very similar to Type 4 Heavy, but in reality, it is notable improvement over it. Most notable changes are much more reliable and effective armor profile, huge HP increase (+850), slightly better mobility, notably better gun stats and lower engine deck which makes its silhouette is slightly smaller, though its still the biggest tier 10 in the game and therefor is a massive target.

Type 5 Heavy is one of only few tier 10 tanks with two alternative gun choices. Previously, the 15.2 cm was considered outright the superior option to the point where the 14 cm gun was redeemed completely obsolete; however, after the patch 1.5, this was humorously reverted, with the 15.2 cm receiving huge nerfs while 14 cm receiving some buffs. The 15.2 cm carries only two shells - a HE and HESH shells with alpha damage of 900, with only difference being the higher penetration of the HESH shells (192 mm vs 75 mm). The gun suffers from poor accuracy and rate of fire, but it does have surprisingly good shell velocity and accuracy when moving. The damage output of the gun is outright pathetic for a tier 10 vehicle - it has the same rate of fire with 10 less alpha than the Sheridan with 15 cm, a light tank! In addition, it's also outclassed by the other 15 cm wielding heavies, the 60TP and E 100, when exclusively firing HE, while those tanks also have an option to fire AP and HEAT shells as well as having much better accuracy. The only appeal of the 15.2 cm gun is it's ridiculously expensive HESH shells that can penetrate some medium tanks and maybe tier 8 heavy tanks from weakspots; however, its penetration is still too low to do much against most heavies, resulting in very low damage output, while also having to pay massive amounts of credits as the shell cost remains unchanged from the days when it had 1400 alpha damage. With all this in the mind, it is heavily recommended not to use the 15.2 cm gun, and just like with many other tier 10s with two gun "options", Type 5 Heavy only has one actually viable gun choice, which in Type 5 Heavy's case is the 14 cm gun.

The 14 cm gun, on other hand, isn't nearly as hopeless. While the gun isn't particularly special or impressive either, it is by no means awful like the 15.2 cm. It retains the same alpha damage and penetration from the Type 4 Heavy. It no longer packs the highest alpha damage in the tier, though 600 is still pretty impressive at tier 10. It packs two AP shells with 257 and 290 mm penetration, respectively. The premium penetration is rather underwhelming, but after the buffs, it is workable - the extra 8 mm difference is noticeably, which allows Type 5 Heavy to fight other super-heavies like E 100, Maus and other Type 5 Heavies more effectively. The most peculiar feature, alongside it's AP shells as premium, is its notably good dispersion when moving. Combined its rather solid aim time of 2.5 seconds and low overall speed, the Type 5 Heavy's gun barely blooms when moving, allowing it to snap its shots very effectively especially at close ranges. Even when the gun has to be fully aimed, its fast aim time, being more in line with 122-130 mm guns (or even better in some cases), allows it to aim for weakspots rather quickly. Bear in mind that although it has a good gun handling, the damage per minute and fully aimed dispersion are both still poor, so it is recommended to fully aim your shots against heavily armored targets to make the best use of its high HP pool and alpha damage.

Like all the Japanese heavies, Type 5 Heavy lacks a true frontal weak point. If it faces tier 8s, tier 9s with lower penetration or tier 10s that are firing standard ammo, Type 5 Heavy can pretty much laugh at them. While peeking from corner is still reliable and easy way due to lack of lower plate weakpoint, Type 5 can now also sidescrape very effectively due to much better side armor compared to Type 4 Heavy and hull cheeks. The Type 5 Heavy also can angle its turret when it is reloading, like Maus and E 100, although it is not recommended to angle the turret too much due to pre-angled turret sides. Type 5 Heavy can go hulldown due to its tall profile and -10 degrees of gun depression, but the turret is huge and flat and may be an easy target if sat on a ridge, so it is often recommended to stick to corners instead if possible.

Despite the armor being extremely thick, its also very flat, so some HEAT shells and tier 10 TDs can still penetrate it without much issues. Because of this, the Type 5 Heavy driver shouldn't get too confident with the tank's armor, and instead use it accordingly against right targets. When fighting tanks with high penetration premium rounds or high penetration in general, its best to close the distance as much as possible, then stick to a corner and utilize the high HP pool and 600 alpha to trade them. The combination of this high HP pool and 600 alpha means that Type 5 Heavy can win trades against almost every tank in the game, assuming it is able to penetrate its every shot, with only the E 100 and 60TP being able to challenge it. Avoid long range engagaments as much as possible, especially against tanks with HEAT and good armor - HEAT doesn't lose penetration over distance, while the Type 5 Heavy's own gun struggles hard at range, due to its poor accuracy, high penetration dropoff at long distances and low DPM. Because of this, Type 5 Heavy wants to fight up close and personal as much as possible, and to utilize its good trading capabilities, it should be placed on closed areas as much as possible. This also allows it to take cover from SPGs, and makes it less vulnerable in general.

The way Type 5 Heavy plays also depends on the map and matchup. If top tier against tier 8s and 9s, the Type 5 Heavy is a monster and is very hard to defeat. Learn the penetration values of each tank, and then prioritize the targets accordingly. Any tank with less than 290 mm penetration with premium rounds will have very hard time against the Type 5 Heavy. Observe what shells the enemy tanks are using as well. Any tank with access to shells with over 300 mm penetration are the biggest threat, and should be your priority target. As said, any vehicle with less than 290 mm penetration with premium shells is not a major threat, and can be ignored until the actual threats are taken out. When top tier, the Type 5 Heavy can play aggressively and just roll forward. In this kind of matchup, you don't necessarily have to stick on a hard cover, but generally if possible, it's still better to stick on urban areas with hard cover. Pick a flank you think you can push the most effectively, and just roll forward. The Type 5 Heavy is very hard to penetrate with lower tier vehicles, and even if they can penetrate it, they have to burn through it's huge HP pool to actually take it down. Even if the Type 5 Heavy is taken down, chances are that it has already influenced the battle enough to win it.

When facing only tier 10s, the Type 5 Heavy has to be more careful. Positioning is extremely important - getting caught in the open against tier 10 premium rounds, TDs and SPGs is a deathwish. Try to find a place with hard cover. Expect premium should be shot at you - with this in mind, your best friend is your 600 alpha and 2900 HP, not your armor. The HP is precious - try to save it as much as you can! Don't carelessly peek corners - if there's a hulldown T110E3 in front of you, its pointless to peek, as you are most likely going to lose HP for nothing. Play cautiously and wait for a good opportunity to peek. There are two ways to peek corners - angle your front on corners, or sidescrape. As Type 5 Heavy doesn't have a lower plate weakspot, it can angle it's front around 45 degrees on corners. Sometimes, you can angle even more and expose only your front - when angled correctly, it can bounce any shell in the game. Baiting shots is crucial, and it can be surprisingly effective due to Type 5 Heavy's armor layout. Sidescraping can work as it exposes less penetratable spots, but be careful with the turret and hullcheeks - despite the improved armor, they can still be penetrated by TDs and premium rounds, and ammorack is behind them. Because of this, its often better to just peek corners, take a shot, fire, and then utilize the good reverse speed to get back to the cover. Type 5 Heavy's side armor is very thick, and additionally is covered by extreme spaced armor. If you're caught in the open against a tank firing HEAT, you can intentionally overangle the Type 5 Heavy as a last effort move to the point where you have your entire side exposed. If your opponent doesn't respect your side armor enough, they might carelessly shoot HEAT at Type 5 Heavy's side - the spaced armor is so strong that it can bounce HEAT shells almost flat on, which can trick many players. Keep in mind that not the entire side armor is spaced; however, the area where the spaced armor begins is somewhat obscured, making it not too obvious where the spaced armor is and where it's not. Keep in mind that this doesn't work at all against AP and APCR shells, so its somewhat risky. It is important to note that despite all the things you can do, there will be matchup where the Type 5 Heavy will struggle hard. This results in rather inconsistent performance - sometimes you feel pretty helpless. However, this is natural for a super-heavy tank, and it is balanced with the fact that how powerful the Type 5 Heavy is inside a good matchup, so don't be too disappointed if you happen to perform poorly in some games.

Finally, Type 5 Heavy's massive size (even bigger than the Maus!) has its own unique advantages and disadvantages. With its size and speed combined, the Type 5 Heavy is a juicy target for artillery. If there is artillery in the game, try to stay in cover as much as possible. Also, try to avoid going anywhere without allies. Type 5 Heavy which is left alone is easy target for more mobile tanks. Its poor reload and DPM makes it further more vulnerable when isolated. Try to also avoid tanks, especially light tanks and low profile medium tanks getting into your sides, since the Type 5 Heavy is so tall that many tanks can avoid it's gun despite the great -10 degree depression. Even 1 tank with you is better than nothing and generally should be enough to save you from that kind of trouble. Try to keep yourself close to buildings and other obstacles, so sidehugging is harder. On other hand, the huge size has some unique benefits - Type 5 Heavy is so massive that it can act as mobile cover for its allies, as even an E 100 is able to hide behind it! In addition, it can block streets and flanks even when destroyed. Only a Maus is able to push it due to Type 5 Heavy being the 2nd heaviest tier 10 in the entire game. Combined with the Type 5 Heavy's height, good gun depression and large caliber, it is able to hit roofs of many tanks and overmatch them effectively. For example, Type 5 Heavy is able to hit IS-7's roof if it gets facehugged by one - rendering the tactic ineffective against the Type 5 Heavy.

All in all, while the Type 5 Heavy is still relatively easy to play, it has some quirks and important facts to keep in mind in order to play it effectively. Utilize your HP pool to close the distance against your enemies, then use the combination of that HP, armor, and 600 alpha to outtrade your opponents. It doesn't quite have the armor of the Maus or the punch of the E 100, but it combines some features from both, while bringing its own unique quirks, such as the size, armor layout, gun depression and gun handling to the table. The Type 5 Heavy is no longer a powerful meta tank as it used to be, and while its reputation has gone down with its derp gun becoming practically useless, it is still able to put in work with the 14 cm gun, especially in a good matchup. (Note: As of Update 1.13, June 22 2021, the 15cm gun of Type 4 and 5 Heavy was buffed a bit. The 15cm gun gets an AP shell of 252mm and 700 damage. Dispersion is also reduced by 0.03%)

Early Research

Unlike most other tier 10s, Type 5 Heavy doesn't come out as elited if you for some reason haven't researched 14cm gun on Type 4 Heavy (after update 1.5). Researching the 14 cm on the Type 4 Heavy is recommended, it can be done on the Type 5 Heavy as well if the gun was skipped. While the 15.2 cm gun can still be used on the Type 5 Heavy, it is heavily recommended not to use it.

Suggested Equipment