Rooikat Mk.1D

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This page is about the British light tank Rooikat Mk.1D. For other versions, see Rooikat (Family).
Rooikat Mk.1D
uk_rooikat_76.png
GarageImage Rooikat Mk.1D.jpg
ArtImage Rooikat Mk.1D.png
Rooikat Mk.1D
AB RB SB
8.3 8.3 8.3
Class:
Research:135 000 Specs-Card-Exp.png
Purchase:380 000 Specs-Card-Lion.png
Show in game

Description

In 1976, the South African Armoured Corps issued a new project for a "New Generation Armoured Car", intended to replace the 4x4 Eland 90 in service as they were struggling to provide adequate support for the heavier Ratel IFVs in tank warfare. Following the inadequate performance of the initial prototype series, new specifications were issued, and new prototypes were designed by Sandock-Austral with assistance from German firm Thyssen-Henschel, leading to the light Class 1 ("Cheetah Mk1") and medium Class 2 ("Cheetah Mk2") fitted with a modification of the 76 mm OTO Melara naval cannon, as well as the heavy Class 3 ("Bismarck") fitted with a 105 mm L7. While the Class 2 was originally designed in two variants — the 2A having the engine at the front to allow a rear compartment for carrying infantry, and the 2B with a conventional rear-engined setup — such plans were later scrapped in favour of creating a vehicle more focused on reconnaissance and anti-tank capabilities, retaining the Ratel for the IFV role. The Class 2B prototype was selected for development, and limited production for further testing began in 1987, when it was christened the Rooikat. Mass-production began in mid 1990.

Introduced in Update 1.95 "Northern Wind", the Rooikat Mk.1D is a powerful and nimble light tank. It has excellent mobility, allowing it to easily set up ambush positions, flank, or reposition after sniping. While the gun somewhat lacks in post-penetration damage, the APFSDS shell's penetration is sufficient for even the heaviest opponents that it may face. Coupled with access to a two-plane stabiliser and laser rangefinder, the Rooikat excels in long range sniping, and can also perform well in closer range engagements, although it risks having to take multiple shots to take out a target.

General info

Survivability and armour

Smoke grenades
Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle
ESS
Creation of a smoke screen in the direction of movement of the vehicle
Armourfront / side / back
Hull30 / 25 / 20
Turret25 / 25 / 15
Crew4 people
Visibility84 %

Armour on the Rooikat chassis is light, but reasonably good. It will be safe from heavy machine guns from almost all the angles. While theoretically the 12.7 mm rounds can penetrate flat sides from up to 500 m and damage them from some angles when closer than 100 m, that almost never happens. 20 mm autocannons and above will be able to penetrate almost anywhere, and so SPAA and cannon-armed aircraft will be a significant threat.

The Rooikat Mk.1D has two hull-mounted smoke groups and ESS, making the tank difficult to finish off and allowing it to use smoke offensively whenever it's needed. Unfortunately, the Rooikat Mk.1D does not have thermal scope to see through ESS in RB, while many enemies do.

Protection against heavier weapons vary greatly depending on the enemy skill and ammunition type.

Against big kinetic shells: While there are three crew members sitting in a straight line when facing the tank straight, the design of the tank is nonetheless confusing to people which do not bother to learn enemy tanks layouts - the turret and the driver crew are located at different heights, allowing for random misses and there is only one small fuel tank, which is difficult to hit on accident. Furthermore, the ammo racks are small and the last one is located on a side that almost no one ever fires at. By not charging at enemy tanks directly and taking less ammunition, the Rooikat Mk.1D can sometimes survive up to 20 kinetic shots from up to 3 tanks at the same time.

Against chemical ammunition: This vehicle is vulnerable to overpressure, and its hull roof can be overpressurized by HEAT or HESH if hit correctly, so anyone actually expecting Rooikat Mk.1D can instantly destroy it. Therefore, the Rooikat Mk.1D's key to survival is mobility.

The Rooikat Mk.1D also comes stock with a desert yellow camouflage, which can be problematic on certain maps.

Armour type:

  • Rolled homogeneous armour (hull, turret, cupola)
  • Wheel (tires, torsion bars)
Armour Front (Slope angle) Sides Rear Roof
Hull 25 mm (77°) Upper glacis - Centre
10 mm (75°) Upper glacis - Sides
30 mm (23°) Lower glacis - Centre
15 mm (23°) Lower glacis - Sides
20 mm (25°) Top
25 mm (0-9°) Bottom
20 mm Upper plate
20 mm (29°) Lower plate
25 mm (13°) Front glacis - Centre
10 mm (15°) Front glacis - Sides
20 mm (0-13°) Driver compartment
10 mm (0-17°) Crew compartment
5 mm Radiator vents
Turret 25 mm (26-28°) Turret front
25 mm Gun mantlet - external
30 mm (cylindrical) Gun mantlet - internal
25 mm (12-16°) 15 mm (15°) 15 mm (10°) Front
10 mm (0-11°) Rear
Cupola 25 mm (cylindrical) Base
25 mm (spherical) Dome
25 mm (spherical) Dome

Notes:

  • Tires and torsion bars are 10 mm thick.
  • The storage box behind the turret is 5 mm thick.
  • The internal part of the gun mantlet overlaps with parts of the turret front.

Mobility

Speedforward / back
AB134 / 41 km/h
RB and SB121 / 37 km/h
Number of gears12 forward
4 back
Weight26.5 t
Engine power
AB1 082 hp
RB and SB567 hp
Power-to-weight ratio
AB40.8 hp/t
RB and SB21.4 hp/t
Game Mode Max Speed (km/h) Weight (tons) Engine power (horsepower) Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
Forward Reverse Stock Upgraded Stock Upgraded
Arcade 134 41 26.5 879 1,082 33.17 40.83
Realistic 121 37 501 567 18.91 21.4

The mobility on the Rooikat Mk.1D is best described as good. It's decently fast, both on and off-road, but suffers from a poor turning circle and a somewhat under-powered engine when stock. Users should not be surprised if they have trouble climbing even mild grades from a standstill and it is not uncommon to need to back up and gain some momentum before being able overcome some hills.

In arcade mode, the Rooikat Mk.1D is one of the fastest tanks in the game, and it's basically impossible to outrace it if there is an asphalt road nearby, which is expected from a wheeled tank, however it might crash into a wall and flip over if forced to turn while driving at a maximum speed.

Areas with mud (very specific places on maps like the hill entrances on White Rock Fortress or some river banks) must be avoided, as the Rooikat Mk.1D nearly instantly slows down to 8 km/h while moving through it until all of the wheels are freed. Fortunately, mud is very visible and its generally possible to drive around it.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference
AB2 833 → 5 127 Sl icon.png
RB3 050 → 5 520 Sl icon.png
SB3 642 → 6 592 Sl icon.png
Total cost of modifications112 000 Rp icon.png
189 400 Sl icon.png
Talisman cost2 300 Ge icon.png
Crew training110 000 Sl icon.png
Experts380 000 Sl icon.png
Aces1 400 Ge icon.png
Research Aces830 000 Rp icon.png
Reward for battleAB / RB / SB
120 / 160 / 200 % Sl icon.png
208 / 208 / 208 % Rp icon.png
Modifications
Mobility Protection Firepower
Mods new wheels.png
Tires
Research:
6 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
9 600 Sl icon.png
250 Ge icon.png
Mods new car suspension.png
Suspension
Research:
5 400 Rp icon.png
Cost:
8 600 Sl icon.png
230 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank break.png
Brake System
Research:
5 400 Rp icon.png
Cost:
8 600 Sl icon.png
230 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank filter.png
Filters
Research:
6 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
9 600 Sl icon.png
250 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank transmission.png
Transmission
Research:
6 500 Rp icon.png
Cost:
10 000 Sl icon.png
270 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank engine.png
Engine
Research:
6 500 Rp icon.png
Cost:
10 000 Sl icon.png
270 Ge icon.png
Mods tank tool kit.png
Improved Parts
Research:
1 800 Rp icon.png
Cost:
9 600 Sl icon.png
250 Ge icon.png
Mods extinguisher.png
Improved FPE
Research:
1 600 Rp icon.png
Cost:
8 600 Sl icon.png
230 Ge icon.png
Mods tank reinforcement uk.png
Crew Replenishment
Research:
6 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
9 600 Sl icon.png
250 Ge icon.png
Mods engine smoke screen system.png
ESS
Research:
6 500 Rp icon.png
Cost:
10 000 Sl icon.png
270 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank horizontal aiming.png
Horizontal Drive
Research:
6 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
9 600 Sl icon.png
250 Ge icon.png
Mods night vision device.png
NVD
Research:
6 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
9 600 Sl icon.png
250 Ge icon.png
Mods tank cannon.png
Adjustment of Fire
Research:
5 400 Rp icon.png
Cost:
8 600 Sl icon.png
230 Ge icon.png
Mods airstrike.png
Airstrike
Research:
5 400 Rp icon.png
Cost:
8 600 Sl icon.png
230 Ge icon.png
Mods new tank vertical aiming.png
Elevation Mechanism
Research:
6 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
9 600 Sl icon.png
250 Ge icon.png
Mods scouting.png
Improved optics
Research:
6 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
9 600 Sl icon.png
250 Ge icon.png
Mods scout streak.png
Scout UAV
Research:
6 000 Rp icon.png
Cost:
9 600 Sl icon.png
250 Ge icon.png
Mods art support.png
Artillery Support
Research:
6 500 Rp icon.png
Cost:
10 000 Sl icon.png
270 Ge icon.png
Mods tank laser rangefinder.png
Laser rangefinder
Research:
6 500 Rp icon.png
Cost:
10 000 Sl icon.png
270 Ge icon.png
Mods smoke screen.png
Smoke grenade
Research:
6 500 Rp icon.png
Cost:
10 000 Sl icon.png
270 Ge icon.png

Armaments

Laser rangefinder
Reduces the error and increases the maximum measurable distance of the rangefinder
Night vision device
Improves visibility by enhancing natural light or active illumination.

Main armament

Two-plane stabilizer
Reduces the swing of the gun in two planes while moving
Ammunition48 rounds
First-order10 rounds
Reloadbasic crew → aces
8.7 → 6.7 s
Vertical guidance-10° / 20°
Main article: GT-4 (76 mm)

The Rooikat Mk.1D is armed with the Denel 76 mm GT-4 cannon. As far as game-play goes, it is essentially a hand-loaded version of the OTO-Melara 76 mm/62 gun found on the OTOMATIC. It fires the same APFSDS and has HE with similar performance to the shell found on the OTOMATIC, albeit not VT-fused and thus far less useful. Its APFSDS has the ability to frontally penetrate any opponent in its battle-rating bracket, although the odd Maus may be troublesome, particularly if it is angled.

It has a base 8.7 second reload, which can be reduced to 6.7s through a fully trained and aced crew. Unfortunately this reload is exactly as long as the reload on 105mm armed vehicles it may face in its battle-rating bracket such as the Leopard series, OF-40 series, Centauro, and AMX-30 series. It also has the somewhat questionable accuracy of the OTO-Melara 76 mm, so do not be surprised if its shots aren't pinpoint, though this matters more for shooting down the odd helicopter than for tanks. It gets access to a laser rangefinder to make long range shots easier which is useful on large maps like Sinai. It has decent turret traverse and good firing angles, so its quite flexible in terms of positioning.

76 mm GT-4 Turret rotation speed (°/s) Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode Capacity Vertical Horizontal Stabilizer Stock Upgraded Full Expert Aced Stock Full Expert Aced
Arcade 48 -10°/+20° ±180° Two-plane 38.1 52.7 64.0 70.8 75.3 8.71 7.70 7.10 6.70
Realistic 23.8 28.0 34.0 37.6 40.0

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
10 m 100 m 500 m 1,000 m 1,500 m 2,000 m
76/62 APFSDS APFSDS 311 308 301 291 281 271
76/62 HE HE 20 19 18 16 14 14
Shell details
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Explosive mass
(TNT equivalent) (g)
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
76/62 APFSDS APFSDS 1,615 2.18 - - - 78° 80° 81°
76/62 HE HE 915 6.3 0.2 0.1 969.12 79° 80° 81°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the Rooikat Mk.1D
Full
ammo
1st
rack empty
2nd
rack empty
3rd
rack empty
4th
rack empty
5th
rack empty
6th
rack empty
Visual
discrepancy
48 46 (+2) 37 (+11) 29 (+19) 19 (+29) 11 (+37) (+47) Yes

Notes:

  • Shells are modeled individually and disappear after having been shot or loaded.
  • Rack 6 is a first stage ammo rack. It totals 10 shells and gets filled first when loading up the tank.
    • This rack is also emptied early: the rack depletion order at full capacity is: 6 - 1 - 2 - etc. until 5.
    • Simply not firing when the gun is loaded will move ammo from racks 1-5 into rack 6. Firing will interrupt the restocking of the ready racks.
  • The visual discrepancy concerns the total number of shells as well as the number of shells per rack:
    • 49 shells are modeled but you can pack only 48 shells.
    • Rack 1 is modeled as 4 shells but contains only 3 shells.

Machine guns

Ammunition3 750 rounds
Belt capacity250 rounds
Reloadbasic crew → aces
10.4 → 8.0 s
Fire rate500 shots/min
7.62 mm Browning MG4
Mount Capacity (Belt) Fire rate Vertical Horizontal
Coaxial 3,750 (250) 500 N/A N/A

Usage in battles

The Rooikat Mk.1D should be played either as long range support (with the help of the scouting mechanic) or in quick flanking manoeuvres.

As a wheeled vehicle, the mobility is excellent and allows the Rooikat to get to ambush or sniping spots very quickly before the slower and heavier opponents show up. Although the gun penetrates far above its weight for its calibre, the post-penetration damage leaves something to be desired and can punish careless point-and-click targeting. Drivers of the Rooikat must take this in mind and put extra thought on where on a target they should aim, as its rather long reload does not leave room for error with such limited post-pen damage.

If a player decides to snipe with the Rooikat, they should adopt a "shoot-and-scoot" strategy: shoot an opponent, fall back behind cover and relocate to a new firing spot to avoid retaliation. An opponent returning fire will most likely not have any issues taking you out within 1 or 2 shots.

While it's not very recommended, the Rooikat Mk.1D can quickly rush down enemy sniper tanks and attack them at close range. Double smoke screens also help with this, as they can be used to force snipers to abandon their cover. It is possible to attack capture points in the same manner if there are allies to cover the reckless light tank. Smokes might prolong tanks life for up to 2 minutes, sometimes allowing the Rooikat Mk.1D to steal a victory.

It is important to not bully ATGM tanks unless the kill is guaranteed, because they will vaporize any light tanks that are a nuisance to them immediately and the small APFSDS of the Rooikat Mk.1D can, against all odds, shatter upon hitting some ATGM tanks or disable only one of the crew members, ultimately failing to stop them from retaliating.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • One of the fastest ground vehicles in-game (120 km/h in RB), even with stock modules it can often drive off-road as fast as an upgraded BMP-2
  • Access to APFSDS rounds
  • Sides and front can stop .50 cals at slight angle or at 100+ metres
  • Laser Rangefinder helps with aiming at any range
  • Very good reverse speed at -43 km/h
  • Has good zoom variety for a light tank, having X8-12 zoom compared to usual X7-8 of light tanks at the rank
  • Incredible stock grind experience thanks to stock APFSDS and good gun handling & excellent speed on the appropriate terrain

Cons:

  • Despite the indicated top speed, the vehicle will rarely get to 100+ km/h and there aren't many maps that allow to use it in a meaningful way either
  • Not as good at reversing as other British light tanks or the Object 906
  • Weak armour overall, it will succumb to any autocannon fire instantly
  • Vehicle will not be able to stabilise the gun at speeds of 75+ km/h (46.6+ mph)
  • The 76/62 APFSDS has very punctual post-pen damage. It's not uncommon to take 3+ rounds to finish a target off
  • Reload rate is rather average - mediocre when taking into account the lackluster sabot damage
  • Has a rather large turning circle, so turning around in confined areas may require 3-point turns.

History

Devblog

During the mid 1970s, the South African armed forces issued a specification which kickstarted the development of the "New Generation Armoured Car" project. The aim of the project, as the name suggests, was the development of a new heavy armoured car that would replace dated existing designs in the near future.

First test beds were developed in the late 1970s, intended to primarily trial various designs for mobility. At the same time, South Africa was involved in some local conflicts with the neighbouring state of Angola during the mid '70s - mid '80s, further shaping the development of the ongoing project.

In the early 1980s, having sought knowledge and expertise from German engineers, several prototype designs were built and tested. Among them, the eight-wheeled 'Cheetah Mk.2' armed with a 76 mm gun was selected as the winner and was subsequently procured by the South African army. Small scale production began in the late 1980s, with the Cheetah Mk.2 officially receiving the name 'Rooikat' after entering service. Following initial limited production runs, mass production commenced in mid 1990, which led to a total of over 240 Rooikats being produced.

In the early 2000s, the Rooikat 76 Mk.1D was developed under a modernisation program, becoming the most modern modification of the vehicle. The upgrade introduced several smaller improvements, such as improved commander optics and number of smoke launchers as well as others. Over 170 Rooikat 76 Mk.1Ds serve with the South African army today.

Media

Skins
Images
Videos

See also

Other vehicles of similar configuration and role

External links


Britain light tanks
A13  A13 Mk I · A13 Mk I (3rd R.T.R.) · A13 Mk II · A13 Mk II 1939
A15  Crusader II · Crusader "The Saint" · Crusader III
A17  Tetrarch I
IFV  Warrior
Wheeled  Daimler Mk II · AEC Mk II · Fox · Vickers Mk.11
Other  VFM5
South Africa 
SARC  SARC MkIVa · SARC MkVI (2pdr) · SARC MkVI (6pdr)
Ratel  Ratel 90 · Ratel 20
Rooikat  Rooikat Mk.1D · Rooikat 105 · Rooikat MTTD
Other  Concept 3 · Eland 90 Mk.7
USA  Stuart I · Stuart III