The GSOR is the new tier 8 British Tank Destroyer available from this years Christmas Boxes so let’s rip the wrapping paper off and see what’s in the box.
I hope you where very lucky to get one in the boxes btw, this tank is thicc!
The Look
Well its not a looker but its also not ugly. Maybe smugly. (Smexy ugly)
It has a relatively small turret which should make it harder to hit and the 105mm gun looks right for this vehicle. The TD really doesn’t look like it can unleash hell by delivering 1280 damage in only 6 seconds but it can make it one of the most dangerous tanks to face in tier 8 or below and it can clip out so many tanks it meets, people really need to give this tank respect on the battlefield. The more I look at it the better I like it
The stats
I used 3 of my 5 skill Bitch Barn (FV4005) crew which covered most of the skills this TD needs.
Let’s start with that all important gun, the 105mm AT L7A1 which is a 4-shot autoloader with a interclip of 2 seconds and a full reload of 40 seconds running my crew and equipment.
Standard penetration is only 226mm with a 1,066 m/s shell speed meaning you will need to hit that 2 key more often than not and there is another major reason to do this and that is the ‘special’ ammo not only has a very nice penetration of 321mm but has a much faster shell velocity at 1.411m/s. Average alpha is a respectable 320 damage per shot giving a 1280 average burst potential.
What makes this tank stand out is the autoloading gun having 4 rounds in the clip with a very fast 2 second interclip giving it an amazing 1280 burst damage output in only 6 seconds but the down side, and there has to be one, to stop this thing being a god of all tanks is a long reload of 40 seconds meaning you need to play this tank very carefully.
Dispersion is 0.3 at 100m and I have a 2 second aim time which is important so it aims in between shells. DPM is low at 1,667 but understandable being an autoloader which relies on burst damage between the long reloads.
The TD carries only 40 rounds which at first seems pretty low but considering the long reload, it shouldn’t really prove a problem.
With 11 degrees gun depression playing ridge lines is possible and having a small profile turret helps but remember, don’t get greedy and always try to empty the clip. Gun elevation is not good at only 10 degrees so it has problems ‘getting its gun up’.
The rest
Speed is listed at 60 forward and 17 reverse which is ok but to be honest it felt sluggish getting up to speed and climbing any slopes but with only a 640 engine power, 14.55 specific power, that’s not surprising and this thing isn’t actually a lightweight but it felt ok going over different surfaces.
Turret traverse feels really good for a tank destroyer and I really enjoyed playing it.
The TD has a respectable 1200 health with 152 turret and 99 hull armour so you might bounce the odd low calibre gun but the idea of this tank is not to trade. It has a nice camo rating of 37.86 so you can be sneaky in it and bush camp with success.
Playing it
As you all know, I LOVE my bitch barn, I love BIG GUNS and I cannot lie so when I started this review, I really didn’t think I would like this tank but after playing it I really do like it.
Its started with a little disappointment because its not like a greyhound at getting up to speed but when it got there it was good. Turret traverse was good and it felt a little more like a medium tank than a tank destroyer so rather than just camp I played it like a second line medium and really enjoyed it. I hear people complain about the gun but I didn’t find any issues with it, you can’t expect it to have so much burst and be as accurate as a laser.
I tried both AP and the APDS and the shell velocity and pen of the APDS is just too attractive to ignore and having such a long full reload you really can’t afford to waste a shot or a pen.
You need to play this tank with care and not be too greedy trying to empty a full clip or you will be punished. Play it clever and it will reward you, consider how and where to be safe while you spend 40 seconds reloading because people who can count will come after you.
It really is so much fun waiting for a tank to fire and then doing a drive by and killing it In summary, I like this tank, the good parts out weight the bad and I would defiantly be happy getting one from a Christmas box so good luck to you all and I wish you a Merry Christmas.
SwedishLadyC 