The light vehicle meta

I was watching the NMC 2v2 cup the other night and came to a conclusion about the light vehicle meta after seeing countless of games where light vehicle play almost always determined the outcome of a game by snowball effects.

It is pretty obvious at this point that all light vehicles have too much of an impact on a game. Good light vehicle play can seal you the deal, which of course should be the case if you have 'good' light vehicle play. But there is a little problem with this light vehicle play, namely that the Allied light vehicles have an edge over the Axis light vehicles when it comes to roles and utility. In this post I will be focussing on the 222, the PZ II LUCHs, the PUMA (okw and ostheer), the STUART, the AEC and the T70. I will be going by each light vehicle, their roles and utility and the points where adjustments need to be made, as well as the general thought that I like to portray with this post: Allied light vehicle play has the edge.

222
The 222 has a very wonky role. It is supposed to be an anti infantry scout car. But it is currently being used as a deterrent to the light vehicle meta. Getting multiple 222s out is almost a given as Ostheer, since you have no such other reliable way of dealing with the current light vehicle meta. The 222 in pairs are very effective and can defeat a T70, an AEC and a STUART. Although good stuart play, with the free vet 0 stun ability, can deal quite effectively with 2 222s, the 222 is still too potent for its current cost. Yet we can't deny that the 222 seems to have an identity crisis when it comes to its role.

Its cost needs to be increased and it needs to get a definite role in the game. If this means Anti infantry, so be it, but then give Ostheer a decent light vehicle that has a definite role as to deal with light vehicles as the STUART and the AEC. If the 222 needs to be more anti light vehicle orientated, give it the features that this role requires: more armor and more damage vs vehicles such as the STUART and the AEC.

The PZ II LUCHS
The Luchs has a definite anti-infantry role whilst being a scout unit at the same time. It functions very well in its role. It can't effectively deal with other light vehicles such as the STUART and the AEC and it shouldn't. It can go toe to toe with a T70, but this is reasonable. It is vulnerable to bazookas, which is also reasonable.

The Luchs is in a good spot.

The PUMA
The Puma is definite anti-vehicle unit and fits its role wonderfully. It has good range, good accuracy and can hunt down wounded vehicles for that last defeating blow. It isn't effective vs infantry and can't do much against them. The puma can be used quite effectively in groups to counter more expensive and arguably better units. Yet when spammed they are quite weak to anti tank infantry. They are quite squishy.

The Puma is in a good place, but I would like to see the puma be tech reliant when used by our Ostheer call in warriors.

The T70
The T70 is an anti-infantry light vehicle and fits its role perfectly. It is a very potent and fast light vehicle that can ruin every infantry unit's day. It can wipe squads fast and can be used effectively for harassing, chasing wounded squads down and as a scout vehicle. The T70 is weak to handheld anti tank weaponry, but can get away with eating a shreck for the sake of getting that important squad wipe after just a few rounds fired.

The T70 is in a good place and fits its role wonderfully. Although I would like to see its damage or accuracy (not sure which causes the problem I am talking about) dealt down a bit. The T70 can wipe units so quickly that it sometimes is a no brainer to eat a shreck and simply eradicate the squad before they get a change to fire another. Its impact is too devastating most of the time.

The STUART
The stuart is a tank that has, just as the 222 does, an identity crisis of its own. The stuart is an anti-vehicle and anti-infantry vehicle and can perform both roles effectively. Although it won't reach the anti infantry effectiveness of a Luchs or a T70, it isn't far of either. This vehicle can effectively fight the Axis light vehicles and Axis infantry whilst being able to stun at vet 0 right out of the box. It is however vulnerable to handheld anti tank weaponry, but can eat a shot or two to get that important last shot on a vehicle or squad. On top of this, its crew can self repair and instantly repair critical damage when needed, albeit with a risk.

The stuart basically fulfills the role of a 222 and PUMA in one and the role of a Luchs and PUMA in one. This doesn't mean that the stuart is just as good at both these functions as its counterparts are, but it can do it quite effectively. This is pretty disturbing since an Axis player needs to get 2 different vehicles to get this kind of functionality. (Double 222 is an answer to this, but it still doesn't yield the same result as a stuart and you need to micro two units. Trade off is that you can have those 222s at multiple places at once. Still I would take a stuart over 444 any day)

The AEC
The AEC is a tank that has, just as the 222 and the stuart do, an identity crisis of its own. The AEC is an anti-vehicle and anti-infantry vehicle and can perform both roles effectively. Although it won't reach the anti infantry effectiveness of a Luchs or a T70, it isn't far of either. This vehicle can effectively fight the Axis light vehicles and Axis infantry. It is however vulnerable to handheld anti tank weaponry, but can eat a shot or two to get that important last shot on a vehicle or squad. Although this vehicle is more vulnerable to a double 222 strategy than the Stuart, it can still, with good micro and support, deal with the 222s effectively since they are vulnerable to small arms fire.

The AEC basically fulfills the role of a 222 and PUMA in one and the role of a LUCHS and PUMA in one. This doesn't mean that the AEC is just as good at both these functions as its counterparts are, but it can do it quite effectively. This is pretty disturbing since an Axis player needs to get 2 different vehicles to get this kind of functionality. (again double 222 is right there)


As we can see, there are some light vehicles that provide effective AT and AI in one package. These vehicles make it far easier to control the battlefield and create an effective snowball for the mid and late game. The AEC and the STUART are no brainer choices for an UKF and USF player. Why get an AA HT or an M20 when the STUART can do the same and can deal with any light armor that might be present along the way? Why skip the AEC when it can fulfill the AI and light AT role and give you easy dominance over the early to mid game?

Why would you skip going double 222s, which only cost 30 fuel, when they can simply fight off infantry and more expensive light vehicles with good micro? Again a no brainer, albeit a necessary one in order to survive the light vehicle meta from the Allied side. But still, it is flawed.

These issues are hampering the game and need to be fixed asap. It isn't fun, it isn't well thought through and it isn't helping with the quality of the game.

Edit: spelling and grammer

222
The 222 has a very wonky role. It is supposed to be an anti infantry scout car. But it is currently being used as a deterrent to the light vehicle meta. Getting multiple 222s out is almost a given as Ostheer, since you have no such other reliable way of dealing with the current light vehicle meta. The 222 in pairs are very effective and can defeat a T70, an AEC and a STUART. Although good stuart play, with the free vet 0 stun ability, can deal quite effectively with 2 222s, the 222 is still too potent for its current cost. Yet we can't deny that the 222 seems to have an identity crisis when it comes to its role.

Its cost needs to be increased and it needs to get a definite role in the game. If this means Anti infantry, so be it, but then give Ostheer a decent light vehicle that has a definite role as to deal with light vehicles as the STUART and the AEC. If the 222 needs to be more anti light vehicle orientated, give it the features that this role requires: more armor and more damage vs vehicles such as the STUART and the AEC.

The PZ II LUCHS
The Luchs has a definite anti-infantry role whilst being a scout unit at the same time. It functions very well in its role. It can't effectively deal with other light vehicles such as the STUART and the AEC and it shouldn't. It can go toe to toe with a T70, but this is reasonable. It is vulnerable to bazookas, which is also reasonable.

The Luchs is in a good spot.

The Luchs is basically what the 222 should have been. Meanwhile, the FlaK-HT should have taken over the anti-infantry role for OKW. Meanwhile Ostheer would need to get some way of dealing with light vehicles, although that part could be forgone if we switched the PzGren upgrade to two singular Schreck upgrades (i.e. one upgrade for one Panzerschreck which can be researched two times for 90 ammo the first time and 30 ammo the second time for a remaining total of 120 ammo). That would allow for early enough AT on the field to make a dedicated light anti-vehicle vehicle unnecessary, while also fixing the other problems.

TL;DR:
- make the 222 perform similar to the Luchs and raise its cost accordingly - perhaps even make it worse against vehicles compared to the Luchs
- make the Luchs OKW's mostly anti-vehicle oriented light vehicle, cost adjustment as needed
- make the FlaK-HT actually work as an anti-infantry unit
- break up the PzSchreck upgrade on PzGrens into two separate upgrades for the same amount of ammo for both Schrecks as it is now.
- Do whatever you want with OKW's Puma

Double 222 is an answer to this, but it still doesn't yield the same result as a stuart and you need to micro two units. Trade off is that you can have those 222s at multiple places at once. Still I would take a stuart over 444 any day)

444, heh...