M3 Armored Personnel Carrier

The M3 Armored Personnel Carrier (also known as the M3 truck or M3 halftrack) is a USF vehicle unit. In skirmishes, it can be produced from the .

The M3 halftrack is the USF's version of a utility truck. By default it can transport infantry, tow heavy weapons, reinforce squads, and re-crew abandoned weapons. It also benefits from Support Veterancy meaning it can gain experience when nearby friendly units gain experience.

The M3 halftrack is armed with frontal facing machine gun and thus can contribute to fights directly. However, this weapon is fairly weak, generally dealing less than half the usual damage per second (DPS) compared to the .

This unit is the USF's primary transportation and forward reinforcement vehicle, which can be very helpful especially on larger maps. Note that reinforcement time is increased by +100% for units located 45+ meters away from the HQ, and +100% for units in combat. These penalties can stack for total +200% penalty. It also has a unique ability to re-crew abandoned weapons on the field at a small Manpower cost. This can be quite handy as it essentially produces a new squad to take over a weapon, without relying on sacrificing an existing infantry squad's members to take it. The result is not only Manpower savings, but also prevents the hassle or risk of having weakened squads on the field that need to be reinforced.

Care must be taken when using this near the frontline, as it is fairly easy to destroy due to its low health and armour. While it is capable of self-defence or contributing to fights, it is certainly not specialized for combat duties.

Upon reaching veterancy level 1, it can choose between Salvage Crew or Fortify Position abilities. Salvage Crew is an active ability that can salvage abandoned team weapons into Munitions or vehicle wrecks into Fuel. Fortify Position is a passive that buffs nearby friendly infantry with faster construction speed and faster ability recharge. See below sections for more info.

At a cost of Munitions, it may be upgraded to one of three different forms:

• M45 Quad Mount Conversion: Converts the unit into the . This grants the unit an AA cannon that can shoot down aircraft and is effective against infantry and some light vehicles. In exchange, loses all previous utility functions and changes veterancy abilities entirely.

• 75mm Anti-Tank Conversion: Converts the unit into the . This grants the unit an AT cannon that is effective against vehicles but ineffective against infantry by default (though the 75mm Halftrack does gain a barrage ability that can be effective against infantry and structures). In exchange, loses all previous utility functions and changes veterancy abilities entirely.

• Medical Conversion: Converts the unit into the . Grants the unit the ability to passively heal nearby friendly squads. The halftrack still retains its previous utility functions. In exchange, the unit loses its default machine gun, becoming completely unarmed.

In both cases of upgrading the M3 halftrack with a weapon, the unit loses all of its previous utility perks, including the ability to transport troops, tow weapons, reinforce infantry, re-crew abandoned weapons, and loss of the Support Veterancy passive. See each individual unit page for more info.

Overall, as with other utility trucks the default M3 can be quite handy in the early stages of a match where anti-vehicle measures are still weak, allowing it to work more aggressively to support infantry. If one can deal with the extra micromanagement, utilizing it as a transport can be invaluable for flanks and getting around suppression from HMG teams, for example. Towing any abandoned weapons and/or re-crewing them can also be rewarding especially as a way to save Manpower without sacrificing existing infantry squad integrity. However, once some anti-vehicle measures are deployed the M3 is incredible vulnerable and thus care must be taken to ensure it is not destroyed quickly.

In most cases players will be quick to specialize the M3 with its conversion upgrades on a fairly quick basis. Grabbing the M16 upgrade early can make the M3 a menacing shock vehicle if there are no real counters available, while the 75mm conversion is very handy when anti-tank weapons are needed. If the M3 is not going to be armed, then upgrading it to the Medical version is very useful as it can then serve as both a forward healing and reinforcement method - notably, it does not lose its utility functions.