Game mechanics

Crew is the lifeblood of any war machine. Boats and ships can require as few as a handful of men or as many as thousands to operate efficiently. In War Thunder's naval battles, the Crew Loss mechanic is used to simulate victory by attrition, whether it's through sailor casualties or structural damage that would otherwise render the ship unsalvageable. Damage to critical components and special compartments reduces the percentage of crew able to perform their duties. Once the number of usable crew falls below the minimum required to operate the ship, the ship will be scuttled immediately.

Battle Pass is an event during which you will earn progress points and use them to open new levels. Each opened level brings you a valuable reward, from Silver Lions and boosters to exclusive season prizes: decorations, profile icons and premium vehicles.

A mortar is a type of smoothbore cannon that exclusively uses high-angle plunging fire. It is designed for indirect fire, with projectiles, technically known as bombs, that drop onto targets from above. Mortars are typically smaller, lighter weapon systems with a shorter range compared to other cannons.

War Thunder’s matchmaking system is generally simple, but comes with some key caveats depending on the game mode; these are vital to understand to make the most of your vehicles and lineups. Learn more about rules around which vehicles you will be able to field and face in battle in this article.

Planes, tanks and ships all have their ways to set things on fire. One of them is to use weapons such as flamethrowers or incendiary bombs. Read more about them — in this article.

Beginning in February 2024, War Thunder will feature a new format of regular in-game events. The events will follow each other almost without interruption and will sometimes be tied to holidays. At the same time, each event will be dedicated to a single vehicle.

Airborne radars are found on aircraft at both low and high ranks, if an aircraft is equipped with radar then a radar display will be present in the right portion of a player's screen, as well as a compass displaying the player's current heading and the directions to detected targets at the top of the screen.

Drones, also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) or Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV), are vehicles that are controlled remotely and as such do not have a pilot inside. With their introduction in Update "Drone Age", drones are now an available asset for ground combat players to make use of in battle. Drones come in two classes, Scout Drones and Strike Drones.

There are various techniques you can use to avoid the different types of air-to-air missiles. As a general rule though, situational awareness is absolutely key, you should be looking out to see if any aircraft around you could have air-to-air missiles and judging what type they are likely to have. If an enemy is on your tail keep looking to see if a missile is launched. You may not get a visual warning (depending on missile type) and even if you do it may be too late.

Update "Wind of Change" added active protection systems (APS) to ground vehicles. These devices provide automatic defense against ATGMs or slow flying shells like HEAT-FS. While it is possible to shoot down incoming ATGMs manually, particularly using machine guns, this can be difficult against fast-moving or minimally visible missiles; thus, active protection systems provide an extra layer of security against ATGM threats.