The Merkava 2 BATASH (also know as Merkava 2D, Merkava 2 Dor Dalet or Merkava 2B Dor Dalet) is the final evolution of the Israeli Merkava 2 main battle tank. This variant is equipped with the BATASH armor kit, offering improved protection against chemical energy projectiles without a significant weight increase. Being the final evolution of the Merkava 2, it also gets access to more advanced ammunition than its tech tree counterparts.
| Pros: | Cons: |
| Amazing gun handling | Unstabilized commander sight |
| Thermal sight for the gunner | Low quality thermal sight |
| Good zoom for the gunner and commander | Lack of high FOV sight option |
| Large amount of smoke grenades | Relatively large profile |
| Good composite armor | Poor protection against KE threats |
| Good mobility | Only 6 rounds of first stage stowage |
Main Armament
The main armament of the Merkava 1 and 2 is the 105mm Sharir cannon. Being a rifled cannon means that it has access to a wide variety of ammunition however only two of them will prove to be useful in battle. The gun handling of the Merkava series of tanks is one of the best at their respective BR, featuring up to 40 degrees a second horizontal speed and up to 10 degrees a second of vertical speed.
M413 APFSDS will be your primary shell, featuring good penetration and overall great ballistics for its BR. The M413 is also known as DM33 in German service so it may be familiar to some players since it is found in a wide variety of tanks in multiple tech trees. While the shell may have good penetration, you will often still need to aim for weakspots, especially when facing Soviet tanks. Additionally, due to the relatively light penetrator, the post penetration spalling can be quite lacking at times so its advised that you aim for specific modules and especially ammo racks.
The M416 Smoke shell, on the other hand, may lack any anti-armor capabilities, but it can come in very handy at denying enemies line of sight, especially at the start of the game with its relatively average 16-meter smoke screen radius. Firing this shell at known enemy routes can disorient enemies and conceal your movement, allowing you to get into a better position.
Armor and Survivability
While the armor of the Merkava 2D may not be the greatest, you will often find yourself surviving a decent amount of hits. This is in part thanks to the massive engine and transmission in the front of the tank but also because of the add-on composite armor on the turret.
While the composite armor may not be good at stopping kinetic energy shells, it can make your turret appear wider than it actually is and make people shoot parts of it that will not cause any spall to enter the crew compartment.
Where the BATASH armor excels however is stopping chemical energy projectiles. The driver side of the upper front plate can not only stop HEAT shells but also even ATGMs, even tandem charge ones if you get lucky! The turret also has similar armor values to the hull, being able to stop most if not all HEAT shells even from the side as well as ATGMs.
The tank itself can be pretty survivable, however due to how close all three crew members sit to each other, a penetrating hit can often take you out in one shot, especially from the side. The two massive ammo racks in the rear also don’t help with this as one shot to either of them will guarantee a massive fireball erupting from your tank.
Mobility
For its size and armor, the Merkava 2 can has decent mobility. With an engine that produces 900 horsepower, you can get this massive 63 ton charior moving at speeds of up to 54 kph pretty easily. It is recommended that you remove the “Mine Protection” modification since it adds unnecessary weight without any measurable improvement in survivability.
In addition to the 54 kph speed forwards, the tank can also go 24 kph in reverse, being able to get out of most situations as long as your powerpack remains undamaged.
Conclusion
The Merkava 2D is a really powerful main battle tank with great gun handling and a powerful APFSDS shell. Like all tanks, it is recommended to avoid getting shot in the first place but it can survive a hit, even if the fighting compartment is penetrated.
The main playstyle of this tank is frontline support, being right next to but not behind more armored friendlies and supporting them while also guarding flanks utilizing your amazing turret rotation speed.
An alternate playstyle for more experienced players will be one more similar to a light tank, relying on the tank’s mobility to get side shots off on slower enemies, focusing on flanking all the while you can tank a shot if you make a mistake.
