Each weapon's data in the game files contains a list of all units in the game, and has a specific 'Penetration' value listed against each and every one of these units.įor example, the 75mm cannon on a Cromwell Tank, a medium-sized gun in all respects, has a Penetration value of 0.4 against a StuG IV, a 0.9 value against an Ostwind, and a 2.1 value against a Heavy Armored Car. In Company of Heroes, this entire concept revolves around the 'Penetration' value of different weapons. Remarkably simple, it simulates the interaction between the various types of bullets and shells flying around the battlefield, and the armor that's ready to receive and deflect those munitions.

This is the story of armor and armor-piercing munitions, which is still being played out on the modern battlefield - with heavier tanks and larger guns to destroy them.Ĭompany of Heroes implements this aspect of warfare in a system called 'Penetration'. Naturally, tank armor got even heavier, and eventually a type of shell was developed that could go through the thick metal and explode with massive force inside. Large, powerful cannons were developed that could lob explosive shells at these tanks, blowing the armor apart or at least causing damage to the propulsion or weapons systems. This vehicle, now known as a 'Tank', eventually evolved into numerous armor-clad vehicles that performed various tasks on the battlefield - whether lightly armored trucks for ferrying infantry through enemy fire, or heavily-armored tanks meant to battle each other and raze enemy structures.Īs tanks became commonplace, weapons to destroy them soon followed. This situation went on for almost three years, until the British developed a new and ingenious solution: a vehicle clad in thick layers of metal, so thick that bullets from a machine gun could not possibly hope to hurt the men inside. As a result, advancing armies were bound to sustain terrible casualties for every mile they took, and this eventually persuaded all sides in the conflict to entrench themselves and wage a very slow war of attrition. Spewing plenty of bullets, it was capable of killing infantry by the dozens as they charged at it, and easily lay waste to the few trucks and other vehicles that existed on the battlefield. In the First World War, the Machine Gun became one of the most terrifying weapons on the battlefield.

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