E-50

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Good gun accuracy and aim time.
• Excellent at ramming.
• Excellent upper front plate (around 300mm effective).
• High top speed.

Cons:

• Because of the weight, tank is slow to stop.
• Turret armor can be easily penetrated.
• Big lower glacis plate, which is only 100mm thick (only 160mm effective)
• Easily catches fire from shots to lower armor plate
• Sluggish without top engine

Performance

The E-50 is a massive improvement over the Panther II in terms of survivability, maneuverability, and Damage, if you play it correctly. It is still not a heavy tank, but it can last a minute or two going up against tier 8, 9 and sometimes 10 heavies. Always try and turn your hull so you're not 90 degrees to the enemy attacking, the German medium hulls are great for bouncing angled shots if the enemy is just shooting at the largest target; which is usually your hull. The 8.8cm L100 is great for sniping, and you should use that to your advantage in long distance standoff fights with heavies as you can still make critical hits at 500m and more with a competent gunner, this will improve with the 10.5cm's increased damage. A nice fast shell speed goes with the 88/L100 so hitting moving scouts is easy and it has half decent damage output even against heavy tanks, but don't expect to win a 1 on 1 head on. Using the speed of the E-50 and its maneuverability will win you many tank on tank battles as it has decent acceleration but is hampered by slow track turn speed. Most players either look at you as a very low HP heavy tank, or a slow fat Medium tank, use it to your advantage and flank them while they ignore you or think you've run away. When you unlock the 10.5cm L/52 you'll see a significant performance improvement against heavy tanks with the increase penetration value, and negligible drop in accuracy. With the top components unlocked and installed and a proper Player you are a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield.

Early Research

The upgrade path is subject of heated debate. Probably the 2 most common paths are:

Engine > Tracks > Turret > 105 L/52

88L100 > Engine > Tracks > Turret > 105 L/52

Grinding the engine first gives the tank a needed boost in the acceleration, which improves your chances to evade artillery fire and improves the ability to successful flanking enemy's. However, grinding the 88/L100 while tedious, will grant you a gun that can penetrate tier 10 tanks more reliably, and lessen the burden for future grinding.