The M4 Hybrid (Composito) Sherman IC Firefly is an up-gunned modification of the M4 Hybrid, which is the special combination of the first and second variants of the early-generation Medium Tank M4 (Sherman) family. The turret of the original M4A4 Sherman VC Firefly is directly mounted on an M4 Hybrid variant hull rather than the regular M4A4 variant hull, making it a very distinctive derivative of the M4A4 Sherman IC Firefly. This is a unique tank that served mostly with the Italian Army and is armed with the powerful 76 mm Ordnance QF 17-pounder tank gun. Due to the scarcity of historical information on this vehicle, it is unknown to what extent this unique derivation of the famed "firefly" truly engaged in World War II. Following the reconstruction of Italy in 1945, some M4 Hybrid (Composito) Sherman IC Firefly tanks were transported to the country and redesignated as M4 Tipo IC Composito. A minor military command for the territorial defence was founded in 1946, and the unit received numerous other M4 Sherman variants. They laid the groundwork for Italy's first post-war tanker training school. All M4 Sherman variants were formally decommissioned in 1952.
Introduced in Update 1.85 "Supersonic", the M4 Tipo IC Composito in the Italian Army ground forces is comparable to its British counterpart, as it was delivered by the British Army after World War II to aid in the reconstruction of Italy and the development of a territory defence force. The M4 Tipo IC Composito, armed with the renowned 76 mm Ordnance QF 17-pounder tank gun, will provide players with an extremely substantial increase in firepower above the early variants of the M4 Sherman used by the Italian Army ground forces, which were equipped with the 75 mm M3 tank gun. The M4 Tipo IC Composito, along with the M4A4 Sherman VC Firefly, will form the major backbone of the Italian Army's ground forces; however, it lacks access to armour-piercing discarding sabot (APDS) ammunition, which the latter has.