15 cm Pz.W.42

15 cm Pz.W.42

15 cm Pz.W.42

Germany

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
2.3	2.3	2.3

Class:

PREMIUM

Tank destroyer

Purchase:4 800

Show in game

Description

The 15 cm Pz.W.42 (15 cm Nb.W.41) auf Sf. is a premium rank II German tank destroyer with a battle rating of 2.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.53 "Firestorm".

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back

Hull8 / 8 / 8

Turret10 / 10 / 10

Crew3 people

Visibility88 %

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour (hull, rocket launcher mount)
• Structural steel (rocket launcher tubes, undercarriage)
• Wheel (front tires)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	8 mm (6°) Engine compartment 8 mm (32°) Driver cabin	8 mm (31-35°) Top 8 mm (37°) Bottom 8 mm (52°) Engine vents 8 mm + 8 mm (37°) Storage bins	8 mm (35°)	8 mm (7°) Engine compartment 8 mm
Rocket launcher	N/A	10 mm Launcher mount 8 mm Tubes	10 mm Launcher mount	8 mm Tubes

Notes:

• Suspension wheels are 6 mm thick while tracks are 8 mm thick and torsion bars are 5 mm thick.
• Wheels are 10 mm thick and mudguards are 4 mm thick.
• The belly armour is 8 mm thick.

Armour used on this vehicle is fairly typical of other armoured half-tracks, enough to block rifle calibre machine guns from most angles, but practically non-existent against any anti-tank weapon. That said, it can be surprisingly durable thanks to the large radiator and engine that can soak up shrapnel from high explosive shells which are too small to cause hull break.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB51 / 9 km/h

RB and SB47 / 9 km/h

Number of gears6 forward

1 back

Weight7.1 t

Engine power

AB130 hp

RB and SB68 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB18.3 hp/t

RB and SB9.6 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	51	9	7.1	97	130	13.66	18.31
Realistic	47	9		60	68	8.45	9.58

The 15 cm Pz.W.42 has decent mobility for a half-track: it is quick enough to get where you want to or behind cover when in trouble. The top reverse speed is -8 km/h (RB).

Modifications and economy

Repair cost

AB851

RB1 286

SB1 177

Crew training10 000

Experts165 000

Aces470

Research Aces710 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

2 × 90 / 150 / 170 %

2 × 148 / 148 / 148 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Suspension Brake System Filters Transmission Engine	Improved Parts Improved FPE Crew Replenishment	Horizontal Drive Elevation Mechanism Artillery Support

Armaments

Main armament

150 mm Wgr.41 Spr rocket

Ammunition20 rounds

Belt capacity10 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

23.4 → 18.0 s

Fire rate120 shots/min

Vertical guidance-7° / 40°

150 mm Wgr.41 Spr rocket					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	20	-7°/+51°	±180°	N/A	13.2	18.3	22.2	24.6	26.1	23.40	20.70	19.08	18.00
Realistic					8.9	10.5	12.8	14.1	15.0

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
Wgr.41 Spr	Rocket	42	42	42	42	42	42

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%
Wgr.41 Spr	Rocket	340	39.06	0.0	0.1	N/A	79°	80°	81°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the 15 cm Pz.W.42

Full ammo	Visual discrepancy
20	No

Notes

• Rockets deplete from left to right, top row first and then bottom row.
• It is not possible to select how many rockets to bring into battle.

Machine guns

7.92 mm MG42 machine gun

Ammunition2 550 rounds

Belt capacity150 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate1 200 shots/min

7.92 mm MG42
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Pintle	2500 (150)	1200	-5°/+35°	±45°

A single MG42 is mounted over the driver compartment. It has a limited traverse but is fast firing. Its low calibre makes it useful only for spotting, knocking out unarmored vehicles or getting the occasional assist against low flying planes.

Usage in battles

Combat tactics

The 15 cm Pz.W.42 is a lightly armoured vehicle and should be played as a long distance tank destroyer. Take advantage of your devastating firepower to disable the strongest opponents while staying at a distance guaranteeing your survivability. Your armour isn't strong enough to resist even machine gun fire beyond 500 m. But your weapon layout allows you to show only a small part of your vehicle. Refrain from rushing towards the frontline: your armour is weak and your mobility is limited so avoid close combat. Your rockets have good penetration power allowing you to stay at a distance but the inaccurate nature of rocket launchers is detrimental to your performance as you'll need two to three rockets to secure a hit on an enemy vehicle. You have no gun sight allowing to set an elevation for a preset distance so you'll have to take ranging shots. The delay between rockets is short but you have only 10 rockets. The drop over distance is very consequent with rockets so targeting enemies beyond 1 km is neigh impossible as you won't be able to keep your eyes on the target to make necessary aim corrections. Your mobility is rather poor, with a rigid suspension, narrow tracks and front tires. Terrain irregularities will make you slow down and hinder your progress. Position your vehicle carefully when sitting at a shooting spot to be able to hide it as soon as you reload.

Notable enemies

With its thin armour, any enemy can knock out the 15 cm Pz.W.42. But some stand out by their dangerosity:

• Tanks and tank destroyers firing HEAT shells that can cause hullbreak: M4A3 (105), StuH 42 G, Pz.III N, M4A3 (105) (France) and Sav m/43 (1946),
• Fast-firing SPAA vehicles who can shower you continuously with bullets and even detonate your rockets in flight: M15A1 CGMC, Sd.Kfz. 6/2, ZUT-37, BTR-152A, AC Mk II AA, So-Ki, CCKW 353 AA and Lvtdgb m/40.

How to defeat a 15 cm Pz.W.42

• Do not attack the 15 cm Pz.W.42 frontally as long as it has rockets available. Engage it once all rockets were shot and before the 15 cm Pz.W.42 gets back behind cover.
• Take a shot as quickly as you can, before it can shoot and target the gunner position (under the rocket launcher).
• If the Panzerwerfer is lurking at a good distance, progress under cover and be aware that rockets have a curved trajectory so pick your cover accordingly.
• If you have no other option than to attack it frontally, blind it with smoke before closing the gap or plan a pincer move with a teammate.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Decent mobility
• Fast reload for ten rockets
• Will do huge amounts of damage to SPAA and light tanks due to rockets large blast radius

Cons:

• Poor penetration (~40 mm)
• Paper thin armour, even the smallest calibre machine guns can destroy it

History

Development

Production started in 1942 by the Opel company based on a Maultier half track. It was produced in series from April 1943 to March 1944 together with the accompanying ammunition vehicle, the Sd.Kfz. 4. In total Opel 296 Panzerwerfer 42 and 251 produced ammunition vehicles Sd.Kfz. 4.

In-game description

A modified Nb.Wf.41 ten-barreled rocket-propelled mine-thrower was installed on the adapted chassis of an Opel Maultier tractor trailer enclosed in armor. It was developed in 1942. During its production from 1943 to 1944 about 300 mounts were released. They were widely used by the Wehrmacht. Due to the use of a mine-stabilization system based on rotation, a higher degree of accuracy and lower spread was achieved than that of rocket-propelled projectiles with tailfin stabilization systems.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the 15 cm Pz.W.42 from live.warthunder.com.

Images

• 

  Pz.IV F2 alongside a 15 cm Pz.W.42.

Videos

Something you don't expect to see when looking at vehicles ammo: 15 cm Pz.W.42 - HowToPlay1337

Panzerwerfer 42 Tank Review - NUSensei

See also

Other vehicles of similar configuration and role

• Calliope
• BM-8-24
• BM-13N

External links

• [Devblog] T25 Medium Tank and Panzerwerfer 42 Auf.Sf
• [Wikipedia] Panzerwerfer
• [Tanks Encyclopedia] Sd.Kfz.4 Panzerwerfer