I believe you rarely see this vehicle in games, and its appearance rate is much lower than Tiger West and other rocket carriers like Calliope or M26/T99 , which is not without reason.
Pz.W.42 should be BR3, here is the reason:
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The Pz.W.42 only has 68 HP
For better explanation, this motorcycle has 26 HP, while the sdkfz7 has 137 HP
You can hardly find a vehicle with lower power than Pz.W.42, even the engines of Daimler armored car are better than it.
It makes Pz.W.42 difficult to reach the ideal shooting position, and it is also difficult for it to escape when encountering danger. -
The armor of Pz.W.42 is very weak
8mm Armor means that even tank light machine guns can penetrate it, and its armor can only defend against ordinary infantry.
It’s hard to say that its defense is better than those open-topped vehicles.
And when the rocket is launched, it will produce huge sound flame and smoke…You’re basically shouting ‘I’m here’ to everyone, further reducing its survivability. -
The power of 158mm rockets has been overestimated
Many people believe that large caliber rocket means enormous lethality, IT IS NOT.
The filling weight of the 158mm Wgr.41 Rocket is actually very close to that of the American M8 rocket, and its penetration is even lower than that of the Browning M2 machine gun. It can’t even blow up Stuart.
And because this is a rocket, it has a descent and a much slower flight speed than a shell, which makes it easy for it to miss those fast moving light vehicles that are likely to enter cover before the rocket even arrives.
Its killing power against infantry is similar to two German 105mm HE shells hitting the same position at the same time, far inferior to slG 33.
Rockets in game have a very strange feature, they work normally when they hit the ground, but when they hit a wall, their power becomes very low, even completely ineffective.
So its actual performance is not as good(or stable) as that of large caliber HE.
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Ammunition quantity
It has 10+10 rockets, which may not seem like a very small number, but you will inevitably waste rockets on calibration landing points and bugs where rocket explosions are completely ineffective. In this case, 20 rounds are not enough.
And due to its slow speed, it takes very long time for Pz.W.42 to replenish ammunition, I usually get off the vehicle directly instead of returning to the supply point. -
Vertical guidance and sight position
Due to the sight being located at the rear of the car and lower than the driver’s cabin, you cannot use the sight when shooting forward, resulting in a significant decrease in the initial hit rate.
And when you reach the attack position, you often need to face the enemy sideways in order to shoot downwards, and when you do so, it actually expands your hit box, making it easier for you to be destroyed.
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Applicability
For anti infantry, the Panzer III N Panzer IV F1/E and sdkfz234/3(Not to mention slG 33) have done better. They have sufficient firepower, better protection, faster speed(This is important because you need to reach the appropriate shooting position).
When they meet Sherman or T-34. Not like Pz.W.42, they can shoot back and penetrate those tanks, so they are not completely helpless.
Based on the above reasons, Pz.W.42 should be BR3 instead of BR4.
What’s your opinion
- Yes, Pz.W.42 should be BR3
- No, Pz.W.42 is good enough for BR4