really, there's one golden rule in this case: can the panther beat the churchill 1v1.
the panther should still be able to kill the churchill on a 1v1 basis, but it should take a long time.
This sounds like a great golden rule (a meatshield tank is not a meatshield tank if it evaporates quickly).
However, in order to keep it balanced, Churchill should be given a potato gun (so that the Panther doesn't die). The problem with potato-gun meatshields is that they become extremely unattractive to fire upon. (Thus, the enemy ignores them and jumps straight for the damage-dealers).
An idea would be to have (buffed) Churchill retain decent penetration at close range (up to 15-ish?), and make Penetration fall off more rapidly for further ranges.
Other ideas that might help:
- Give Churchill 45 range (with or without veterancy).
This will allow it to threaten MGs/infantry and open way for infantry. It will also make Churchill a bit less kite-able, and might allow it to kite infantry, when supported. All other heavies have 45 range on their gun, and each of them have more potent guns (against both tanks/infantry). Moreover, Churchill is one of the slowest heavy tanks.
- Allow Churchill to toss artillery flares.
That way, trying to utilise Anvil benefits will not murder your popcap.