M-18
|
Aces High II Vehicle | |
| M-18 | |
| |
| Variant of | M-10 |
|---|---|
| Type | Tank Destroyer |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Buick |
| Crew | 5 |
| Dimensions | Width 9ft 5 in. Length 21ft 10in. Height 7ft 9in. |
| Max Speed | 50mph |
| Aces High II Ordnance Options | |
| Primary Armament | M1A1 76mm gun in M62 mount |
| Options | HE (High Explosive) |
| AP (Armor Pierceing) | |
| none | |
| Secondary Armament | 1x Browning M2 HB heavy |
| Aces High II Armor Thickness | |
| Turret Front | 25.4mm |
| Turret Side | 12.7mm |
| Turret Rear | 12.7mm |
| Gunshield | 19.05mm |
| Hull Front | 12.7mm |
| Hull Side | 12.7mm |
| Hell Rear 12.7 | 12.7mm |
| Hull Top | 7.87mm |
| Hull Bottom 4.83 | 4.83mm |
| Aces High II Main Arenas | |
| Earliest MA | Late War |
| Typical perk cost | 1 (Late War) |
| ENY value | 20 (Late War) |
| Available on carrier | no |
| how to edit | |
Contents
The M-18 in World War II[edit]
The 76 mm Gun Motor Carriage (GMC) M18 was an American tank destroyer of World War II. The manufacturer, Buick, gave it the nickname "Hellcat" and it was the fastest tracked armored fighting vehicle during the war with a top speed up to 60 mph. Hellcat crews took advantage of the vehicle's speed to protect against hits to its thin armor. Many German Panther and Tiger tanks were destroyed because they could not turn their turrets fast enough to return fire.
The T70 prototype for the M18 first saw combat at Anzio, Italy, and production versions of the M18 were used in North-West Europe and Italy from the summer of 1944 onwards.
The M18 carried a five-man crew as well as 45 rounds of main gun ammunition, and an M2 Browning machine gun on a flexible ring mount for use against aircraft and infantry.
The M18 served primarily in Western Europe, but was also present in the Pacific.
On September 19, 1944, in the Nancy Bridgehead near Arracourt, France, the 704th Tank Destroyer Battalion was attached to the 4th Armored Division. Lt. Edwin Leiper led one M18 platoon of C Company to Rechicourt-la-Petite, on the way to Moncourt. He saw a German tank gun muzzle appearing out of the fog 30 feet away, and deployed his platoon. In a five minute period, five German tanks of the 113 Panzer Brigade were knocked out for the loss of one M18. The platoon remained in their position and destroyed ten more German tanks, with the loss of another two M18s. One of the platoon's M18s, commanded by Sgt Henry R. Hartman, knocked out six of these and lived to fight another day. Most of these knocked-out German tanks were Panthers.
source http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M18_Hellcat
Development[edit]
Unit Deployment[edit]
External Links[edit]
The M-18 in Aces High II[edit]
The M18 in Aces High is best used just as it was by the US forces in WWII: as a tank destroyer. It is not an engagement vehicle that can pull up to the front lines and trade shots with the enemy, it must utilize its best asset and stay on the offensive. The 51mph max speed is the cornerstone attribute of the M18 "Hellcat". The hull on all 4 sides has 13mm of armor, which is barely enough to stop a .50 caliber round outside 400 yards. If close, the .50 caliber just might punch through. The turret does not fair much better save for the front where combined with the gun mantlet there is a total of 44mm of armor. The only machine gun on the M18 is a .50 caliber M2 Browning found on most US vehicles in WWII, and it is mounted on top for AA duties. The turret itself has an open top and therefore is very exposed and susceptible to damage from aircraft strafing attacks. The M18 falls short as an HE platform as well, since if it gets within auto-ack range the turret is easily destroyed, and secondly the 76mm M1A2 L / 55 fired the weakest HE from any tank in AH, with only 103 lbs of HE damage (3 shots to destroy town buildings). In short, it is not good at anything except flanking enemy tanks. However, on that note no other vehicle in Aces High can flank and destroy enemy tanks as well as the M18, either.
In short, hit fast and hard, stay hidden as much as possible and use its great speed and acceleration to avoid being hit. The M-18 also has the lowest turret crown of any gun platform in the ground war making it very stealthy for peaking over hills without being seen! It is best used to go deep into enemy territory and lay in wait sniping heavy armor unaware of its presence, Tigers and tiger 2s are helpless against it at close range from behind! Always try to relocate as much as possible, staying out of site and engine off to help hear the enemy coming, then crawl over the hills your hiding behind to get a good rear target shot. To help defeat aircraft, stay inside buildings or under heavy trees, engine off as much as possible. Gunnery skill is very important in the M-18, a good tanker won't let you have a second shot, so make sure you are close enough to get a one shot kill!
To defeat the M-18, HE ammo is your best bet and a good ability to lead a fast moving target, HE means you only have to get close to kill or track it, at close range machine guns will turret and or kill it with not much effort and aircraft easily kill or turret it.
