Panzer III L Medium Tank

Contributors

Vehicle

Faction

Afrikakorps

Medium tank effective against infantry, vehicles, and structures. Less armor than other medium tanks.

The Panzer III L Medium Tank is a DAK medium tank unit. In multiplayer skirmishes it is available from the Panzerarmee Kommand.

The Panzer III behaves similarly to the UKF Crusader II tank. It is a lighter tank than typical medium tanks seen in other factions, meaning it has greater mobility but less durability. This is most evident in its lower armour values that make it more vulnerable to penetrating weapons. Like the Crusader, it is by default quite effective against infantry and most vehicles especially as it can bully them around unless anti-tank measures are available. In addition, compared to the Crusader II, this unit has a better main cannon with greater penetration and damage values, alongside slightly higher armour.

Due to the relatively low durability of this tank, it is best to use its speed to flank enemies as it is less reliable for frontal engagements soaking damage.

On its own the Panzer III can seem like a very plain generalist unit, however as with most DAK vehicles it can scale quite well with Armory upgrades, granting it bonuses like extra health, auto-repair, and access to special abilities. The Panzer III can be formidable with a mixture of upgrades and numbers, although when it comes to dealing with heavy frontal armour it can still struggle especially at long range.

At veterancy level 1 it gains the active ability Rapid Fire, which lowers movement speed in exchange for increased rate of fire and accuracy.

Armor

medium tank

150

Veterancy

1800 XP

Unlocks veteran ability. Increases turret traverse speed, and acceleration.

5400 XP

Increases rotation rate, rate of fire, and accuracy.

10800 XP

Increases rotation rate, rate of fire, and acceleration.

Veterancy Abilities

Rapid Fire: Active ability gained upon reaching veterancy level 1. For a short duration, the unit gains increased rate of fire and accuracy, but reduces its movement speed. Useful in situations where a fast retreat or pursuit is not necessary, as it is otherwise a straight combat buff. Has a long cooldown.

Upgrades

MG 34 Machine Gun

Upgrades the unit with a pintle-mounted machine gun.

MG 34 Machine Gun: Upgrades the unit with a pintle-mounted machine gun (a top mounted turret that can rotate to face any direction). Increases anti-infantry performance.

Abilities

Blitzkrieg

Increases vehicle speed, rate of fire, and makes unit harder to hit when active.

Hold Fire Disabled

Unit will not engage unless given a manual attack order when active.

Stealth Off

Toggle to enable Stealth. Vehicle must be out of combat for at least 6 seconds before it can stealth again.

Emergency Repair Kits

The unit will slowly repair damage when out of combat and stationary.

Restores +%1% health per second.

Smoke Canisters

Orders the vehicle crew to deploy smoke canisters in front of the vehicle.

120

Rapid Fire

Orders the crew to slow their vehicle and focus on firing the main gun.

+30% accuracy and +30% rate of fire. Reduces speed by -50%.

180

Armor-piercing Rounds

Orders the crew to load armor-piercing ammunition.

Vehicle Awareness

Enables the vehicle to detect enemy vehicles in the fog of war.

Vehicle Capture

Increases speed, rotation rate, and allows the vehicle to capture and decapture territory.

+20% speed and +15% rotation rate.

Note: Armor-Piercing Rounds and Blitzkrieg are campaign exclusive abilities and are not available in skirmishes.

Armory Upgrades/Abilities

Emergency Repair Kits: Passive ability. The unit will repair itself when stationary and out of combat. Requires the Emergency Repair Kits upgrade from the Armory.
Smoke Canisters: Active ability. Drops smoke directly in front of the vehicle. Requires the Vehicle Survival Package upgrade from the Armory.
Vehicle Capture: Passive ability. The unit gains increased movement speed, rotation rate, and is able to capture/decapture territory. Requires the Rapid Advance upgrade from the Armory.
Tungsten Core Ammunition: Globally upgrades the penetration of all tank guns and autocannons. Cosmetically the weapon's tracer effects are also changed to a greenish colour. Requires the Tungsten Core Ammunition upgrade from the Armory.

Armored Support Battlegroup

Vehicle Awareness: Passive ability. The vehicle can detect enemy vehicles in the fog of war. Requires the Vehicle Awareness perk.
Panzer Storm: Active battlegroup ability. Upon activation, globally increases the speed of all vehicles and grants them immunity to engine criticals for the duration.

Weapons

Mg42-panzer-iv-ger	Near	Mid	Far
Accuracy	0.65	0.55	0.2
Range	7	20	35
Penetration	2.2	1.8	1.4

50mm-long-barrel-panzer-iii-ak	Near	Mid	Far
Accuracy	0.075	0.048	0.035
Range	10	20	40
Penetration	180	125	110

Mg34-coaxial-panzer-iii-ak	Near	Mid	Far
Accuracy	0.35	0.25	0.1
Range	7	20	35

Mg34-hull-panzer-iii-ak	Near	Mid	Far
Accuracy	0.35	0.25	0.1
Range	10	20	35

25mm-tank-mortar-smoke-ak	Near	Mid	Far
Range	0	27.5	55
Penetration	35	35	35

Tank-smoke-ak	Near	Mid	Far
Range	0	27.5	55
Penetration	35	35	35

Change Log

1.6 'Coral Viper' April 2 2024

Panzer 3 Hull Machine Gun

Affects all Panzer III Variants

This change gives the Panzer III’s hull machine gun tracking that is closer to those used by other Allies and Axis vehicles.

Hull machine gun tracking from left to right increased from 3 to 10
Hull machine gun firing cone increased from 10 to 15