Game mechanics
In Update 1.43, the first multi-turreted tank was added into the War Thunder, namely the T-35. With its introduction, a system allowing independent tank turret control was added. By default, the turrets follow the main turret direction and when firing, all turrets that can fire in the direction of the mouse cursor will fire.
An autoloader is a mechanism that automatically reloads a weapon and removes spent cartridges. Autoloaders are used on various types of military equipment, such as tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, self-propelled guns, and even anti-aircraft guns. The main purpose of this mechanism is to make the crew's job easier, reduce its size, and, in most cases, increase the rate of fire.
Naval ships vary greatly in size, from the smallest boats to heavy multi-ton cruisers. The greater the displacement of a ship, the more difficult it will be to sink it. But sinking is not the only way to deal with the enemy, which is why it is important to know what parts make up their equipment and where their weakest points are.
Engine Smoke System is a system used to generate artificial smoke screens, primarily on tanks. The screen is created by spraying fuel onto hot parts inside the engine, such as the turbine blades or the exhaust manifold. The high heat instantly turns the fuel into vapor, which then cools and condenses in the air, forming a thick white screen of smoke that hides the vehicle from view. Many ground units (mostly Cold War-era or modern vehicles) are equipped with ESS, and even some ships and floatplanes can create a smoke screen.
To increase survivability in a battle, some vehicles have duplicate control functions. For example, in some vehicles, the commander can fire the gun, and in others, the gunner can drive the tank. The mechanic was implemented to War Thunder in Update 2.7 “Red Skies”.
Chaff (also known as “Window” in World War II) are small strips of radar reflecting material (aluminium, metallized paper, fiberglass or metallized polymer based films) that are released in large quantities by an aircraft’s countermeasure dispenser which create a cloud of false radar targets.
A smoke grenade launcher is a device used to quickly create smoke or smoke screens around a vehicle. The game includes several smoke grenade types that vary in how and how fast they produce a screen, as well as in how they are deployed: some smoke charges are ground‑deployed canisters, while others are fired as shells from a launcher. Launchers may be mounted externally on the vehicle’s armor or installed inside the fighting compartment.
Decorations are cosmetic items that you can place on vehicles to give them a unique appearance. They can be applied to ground vehicles and ships, but not to aircraft. Decorations are purely visual and do not provide gameplay benefits such as armor protection. While camouflage foliage may obscure parts of a vehicle, its effect is limited compared to dedicated camouflage patterns and their detail is reduced at distance.
