G.W. Tiger (P) - German tier 8 Artillery tank - World of Tanks

The G.W. Tiger (P) is a German tier 8 self-propelled gun.

Conceptualization of a heavy SPG mounted on an elongated Porsche Tiger chassis. It is known that Ferdinand Porsche intended to develop the SPG; however, the work was never started.

The G.W. Tiger (P) leads to the G.W. Tiger.

Performance

The G.W. Tiger (P) is very different from its predecessor, the G.W. Panther. The G.W. Tiger (P) is significantly less mobile, while gun performance is more about damage than accuracy.

The outstanding feature of the G.W. Tiger (P) is its lack of mobility. Due to weak engine and abysmal ground resistance it will often struggle to reach even 20 kilometers per hour in stock configuration. The term "slug" would even seem out of place since it's beyond sluggish.

The engine upgrade delivers a meager 6.67% more power, in exchange for an eye-watering 31.000 experience. You'll still want this upgrade, as improved mobility is desperately needed, but the difference won't be spectacular. If you have credits to spare, consider using a fuel consumable, which will make movement less painful.

Relocating between firing positions is time consuming, and a retreat from an exposed position will be as slow as it will be hazardous. It might be prudent to instead opt for a perhaps less rewarding but safer position further back. The practically non-existent camouflage rating of the G.W. Tiger (P) provides another reason to choose a position as far back as possible.

Should your team push hard on one flank and leave the other wide open, the G.W. Tiger (P) will be hard pressed to keep up with the other tanks, even if it does not stop to lob a single shell at the enemy.

Alternatively, you could stay in place to provide support fire, take your chances with enemy tanks possibly exploiting the flank left open by your team mates, and hope for the best. However, realize that the low mobility of the G.W. Tiger (P) makes it extremely difficult to defend against scouts, especially ones that move horizontally to you, forcing you to turn.

The combination of fire and movement is unfortunately not very practical due to the slow speed, low tank traverse rate and narrow gun arc of the G.W. Tiger (P). Should you attempt to utilize the reload time of the gun for movement, the time needed to traverse the tank, the direction of the target, and the direction of your movement and back to another target can be substantial, especially when tough terrain is involved. There will be comparatively few seconds left to move the tank when aim time is accounted for, thus slowing the already sluggish movement rate of the G.W. Tiger (P) down to a crawl.

What the G.W. Tiger (P) does offer, however, is the most powerful stock gun of any tier VIII artillery. The 17 cm "Kanone 72" is in terms of damage, penetration and burst radius more akin to the 180/183mm top guns of some tier IX/X SPG’s than the 152/155mm guns of other tier VIII SPG’s. If you want a hard-hitting gun but can't stand the lengthy reload of the biggest guns, the 17 cm "Kanone 72" might suit you.

The top gun of the G.W. Tiger (P), the 21 cm "Mörser 18/1" is a different beast altogether with a lot worse accuracy, a lot longer reload, but a devastating effect on enemies. This gun deals 1100 alpha damage if it penetrates, which can only happen to some light tanks, tanks with paper thin armor, or vehicles with an open roof. The longer reload of the top gun means fewer shots fired, less time spent acquiring targets, and more time available for movement. A 21 cm Mörser can also be found as the top gun of similar tier IX and tier X German SPG's.

Despite its drawbacks, it remains a favorable choice for Frontline. It is undeniably powerful as an attacker, but can be challenging to navigate back towards your side covering a distance of about 3km if your defenses fail as a defender. When positioned well, its shell's almost 60-degree impact arc at max range, shell speed and the wide coverage span enable you to effectively gun down almost everyone on the map from the attack side. As a defender, it is strongly recommended to retreat until you reach a point just beyond the border of the last area where the pillbox batteries are located, given your sluggish speed in the case of a defense breaching you'll become a juicy target for everybody.