Škoda T50 Review/Guide, The Epic Carry Machine

I review the Škoda T50, a tier 9 Czechoslovakian medium tank in World of Tanks (WoT), with replays of tier 10 Serene Coast and tier 10 Swamp battles.
The Skoda T 50 is capable of epic carries due to the combination of a superb autoloader gun and solid mobility. That said, the Skoda T50 is squishy and requires finesse to be effective.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Superb compact burst damage (960 damage in 3.6 sec)
Excellent max gun depression (-8)
Excellent gun handling
Good accuracy (0.35)
Good acceleration
Manageable clip reload (21 sec)
Weak armor
Large profile
Top speed (50 km) is somewhat low relative to its peers
Mediocre hull traverse
Recommended Equipment
1. Optics
2. VStab
3. Vents
This video is part of my "Road to Unicum" series in which I share what I learned as I progressed towards account Unicum rating (top 1%) with silver ammo only. I talk through how I'm reading the battle as it unfolds and discuss key decisions and mistakes. My hope is that these videos meaningfully help players improve their gameplay.
"Road to Unicum" full guide and FAQs:
taugrim.com/201...
If you want to support my WoT habit (thanks that's generous of you), you can support me on Patreon, send me gold in-game, donate via PayPal, or simply shop on Amazon:
taugrim.com/201...
Cheers,
Taugrim
Patreon: / taugrim
KZbin: / taugrim
Twitter: / taugrim
Blog: taugrim.com
Facebook: / taugrim

[@taugrim]

Here is the link to _Marine's replay: wotreplays.eu/site/3837246#swamp-marine-t30 He was SOOO clutch in the back half of that Swamp battle. Also, since I have picked up some subs not familiar with my content, I'll pin this: This video is part of my "Road to Unicum" series in which I share what I learned as I progressed towards account Unicum rating (top 1%) with silver ammo only. I talk through how I'm reading the battle as it unfolds and discuss key decisions and mistakes. My hope is that these videos meaningfully help players improve their gameplay.

[@TodayIFoundSomethingShiney]

Trigger Warning: APCR is default ammo in the T30 :-D

[@taugrim]

IMO you would have penned most of your silver ammo shots. There is a misconception among the community that Unicums are Unicums because they spam premium ammo, but that's not really the case. It's the decision-making that makes Unicums Unicums. Your use of terrain/dead tank to stay alive and buy time were simply huge.

[@TodayIFoundSomethingShiney]

Oh I know! More so its for the APCR travel speed, as its easier to lead rounds. I prefer APCR in most situations, as its generally easier to lead targets and will shoot through destructible items. AP would have been fine, thats for sure

[@groadmiradonitz3762]

My salute sir Taugrim. A true Medium tank player.We MT's Dont care about kills. All we care about is momentum to flank and exploit. Deal damage as hard as we could, then disappeared.

[@primal_fear9933]

Skoda T50 is definitely one of my favourite tanks in the game due to its excellent firepower and mobility, offering great flexibility. Having said that, my current favourite has to be the newly buffed T9 Foch TD. It also has decent mobility, workable armor with even better firepower... we're talking about 1600 potential clip damage in 7.5 sec here. Of course not having a turret is a major drawback, but it can be compensated by good tank traverse speed.

[@taugrim]

I have a love/hate relationship with non-turreted tanks. On the one hand, they often have potent guns. But the inability to fight around corners effectively drives me nuts. It's probably why I don't enjoy the Strv 103B, even though it is a good tank.

[@WrekuiemForAMeme]

Love the way you commentate, clear and calm without coming across as arrogant. Only complaint is that there aren't more frequent videos :p keep up the good work :)

[@taugrim]

I hope to post more videos in the coming weeks. Stay tuned...

[@jonny41561]

Glad to see u posting again loved the guide from the start.

[@vixenator7657]

Enjoyed as always. Just started up the Czech line to tier 6 so this info is very timely. Thanks!

[@SeattleForge]

Always great narrative. Glad you’re back.

[@DylanRoberts7]

Absolutely love yours videos and I just found you last night. I have pretty good stats (unicum recent) but I still find myself learning from your replays. It's amazing.

[@rudolfpalasievic705]

Just a reminder it was a Czechoslovakian tank not just czech , because Slovakia and Czech republic were once one country but now they spllited i just wanted to point it out. Anyway big fan great videos really enjoy them :)

[@taugrim]

+Rudolf Palasievic thanks for pointing that out. I'm an American and we tend to have an unsophisticated view of the world 😂

[@evoSieg]

Yes, T6-T8 guides please!

[@pteromyini2372]

So, are you going to upload on a regular basis now? Or is it still on and off whenever you have time? Anyhow, I love your content, and you're a lot of the reasons I've become as good as I am today. (63% r/wr and 3000 r/WN8 with unicum overalls) Keep doing what you're doing, cause I'll keep watching you every time you upload a video ;)

[@Moff_EBRracer]

what a speech by trev there

[@razorx9262]

so very helpful, about to buy the autoloading gun on my own Skoda, this helped soo much, thanks a ton Sir Taugrim

[@taugrim]

You are going to love the autoloader, the gun handling is good and the burst is compact.

[@razorx9262]

just bought the autoloader and had a cracking first game, it really is very fun to play with. It just shits on tier 8's and 7's , haha, and Sir Taugrim, hope u do a video on the upcoming new USSR tanks ( the rear turreted tanks )

[@Razzku]

I'm grinding through Czech tree. T6-T8 would be nice ;)

[@taugrim]

OK, if other people agree with you, I can post videos of tiers 6-8. The tier 6 is excellent, tier 7 workable, but the tier 8 is about as miserable an experience I've had on any tank at that tier.

[@RyItar]

T6 was a reason why it took me so long to do the czech tree.Had such a blast on this tank that i didn't want to make other tanks in this tree.Sold Skoda T25 and grinded whole tree was quite nice experience and i ended up with 5 perk crew.

[@_metal_militia773]

You always have great videos. Thanks!

[@michabaron4129]

ABout your question at the end of the video - hell yeah i'd love too see more lower tier tanks.

[@mothboy5]

i recently got my skoda t 50 after a long and painful tvp vtu grind. i run it with rotation mechanism, v stabs and vents and im telling you its my favourite tank ive ever played, above even obj 430 and 140

[@spilledcoffee383]

What crew skills do you recommend? I have 3 skills on each member from using saved up crew books

[@TodayIFoundSomethingShiney]

Glad you posted our swamp battle!

[@TodayIFoundSomethingShiney]

PS: How close now to 3rd Mark? Im almost there, its been easily one of the hardest to do

[@taugrim]

I'm somewhere between 87-89%, so not close but not too far. I think I can 3-mark the Skoda T50 but I'd need to have a hot streak for 10-15 battles.

[@taugrim]

Me too! The Swamp battle was a great example of how Unicums coordinate in real time to enable a carry. Your play the back half of that battle was very clutch.

[@das_killer169]

i watch you non-stop. You are a great world of tanks player, hopefully i see you in a match and man oh man i have had a blast in my t71, i see why you liked it.

[@taugrim]

Thanks, glad you're enjoying these videos :) The T71 really benefitted from the change to light tank MM (which I think was a great change by WG). The only meaningful thing the T71 lost with patch 9.18+ was some penetration, but that was totally sensible given that the T71 no longer sees tier 10s.

[@das_killer169]

i have had really high and very high damage and spotting damage games. Its a all around great tank to me and i have marked it in 45 battles so it might be the one tank i go for three marks on.

[@MegaKarasawa]

Love your content. Ran into you the other day, but my toon and I weren't going to give you good content. :-P Thanks to you and a few others my recent stats are unicum with a 60% win rate. I'm having to recover from all the light tanks I use to play.

[@taugrim]

Grats on hitting recent Unicum WN8 + 60% WR. Honestly, recent stats are the most important thing to pay attention to, as they reflect *current* skill level. Having a WN8 at the account level is really for bragging rights only.

[@scottpoet]

Kind of put the skoda 50 on the back burner after I ground out the top gun an modules. I'm playing the AMX 30 more since the buffs. I had a negative winrate with it, so makes me feel warm inside to see a +50% winrate with it. Honestly, my impression is that the AMX 30 has more carry potential, but overall skoda is the better tank.

[@taugrim]

I've played 46 battles in the AMX 30 after purchasing it over the weekend. The speed is great, but the gun is flaky and has crappy handling. The alpha and DPM are great, and it's nice that the turret provides solid protection. I find I can carry much more effectively in the Skoda T50, but I think it's a preference thing.

[@scottpoet]

If given a choice, I would play the AMX 30 in tier 9 matchups so I can bully other 9s and lower tier tanks, but I'd rather play the skoda 50 in tier 10 cuz it's a better support tank. Also, arti is more of a problem for the AMX 30 and your exposure time.

[@AnishMikeLancaster]

Thanks man, I was having a terrible time in this

[@gunga_gaming1129]

Awesome gameplay ;D love ur vids

[@davidmarks509]

Yes I would like to see the tier 6 to 8 tanks. I just wish that t-34-100 wasn't in the skoda line, it doesn't' belong there :)

[@Maaalarkey]

David Marks yea that tank sucks.. i got and stayed there as i suck at it and cant enjoy it

[@kedarunzi9139]

It kinda does belong in there. After ww2 (as a relatively poor nation), we tried to upgun the t-34 with the soviet 100mm cannon. Never progressed past plans tho. With how the vehicle plays, nothing beats the tvp vtu in the worst vehicle ever

[@luisronaldofigo]

He's alive !

[@geuros]

I absolutely love Škoda T50, was just 3% of 3-marking it... it's excellent, I like it probably even more than TVP, because I fire mainly standard rounds, which makes TVP quite useless with 248 pen in tier X mm... like, IS-7 slightly angled is a big FU already, not talking about Maus or Type 5... E50M with over 20mm pen advantage feels like different tier

[@doublenerdiron1207]

Nice video Taugrim, makes me really want to get it now! Quick question I've been thinking about grinding to the AMX 13 90 and I've heard a lot of people like it, but Idk what the best equipment for it is, any suggestions? Maybe Batchat 12t too?

[@taugrim]

Optics, VStab, Vents

[@BlackRain770]

no gold o.O dude i love you already first video i watch

[@taugrim]

I've played all Random Battles with 100% silver ammo :)

[@davidmarks509]

One of the best things about driving Skoda is when the say " I am pony" Well it sounds like that always get a bit of a laugh out of that :)

[@kedarunzi9139]

I am pony? During what action does the crew mention it? When you successfully penetrate? One of the lines is "Ještě jeden takový zásah a je po nich!" which cannot really be translated well.. I would say the closest translation would be "One more hit like that and they're a goner!"

[@bena3269]

I would love it if you featured the tier 7 and 8 tanks in this line.

[@taugrim]

OK, I will do that, there have been several people asking and I know those tanks are a pain point for most players. The tier 8 was one of the worst tanks I've ever suffered through LOL.

[@ULT_Ferrotarou]

You should make a video about how to be arty safe. I think a lot of people don't understand that concept.

[@tompok76tompok76]

Very cool ride :D thks for it. I took much information from it. :D

[@magecraft2]

Wondering what your views on different ammo types in autoloaders. I do not use prem rounds so normally it is if I take any HE? I always have some but this may be a legacy from single shot guns. I normally decided based on ammo load and reload times. Also more info on the lower tier Czech tanks would be great as I am at the t34-100.

[@taugrim]

I find HE on autoloaders to be largely unhelpful, because of the long clip reload times. With single-shot tanks, it's easy to switch between ammo types, but with autoloaders, not so much.

[@halflifelai]

After lots of grinds on TVP VTU, I got his older brother T 50. Do you only shoot standard shell during stock period? I am also a kind of player avoid shooting gold ammo with poor positioning.

[@taugrim]

I've only used silver ammo in Random Battles. Kind of my thing.

[@infinitelyexplosive4131]

I noticed you were pushing only 40-50fps for a lot of the video. Is there a reason you don't drop graphical settings more to hit a stable 60fps?

[@taugrim]

I honestly can't tell the difference between 40 and 60 fps. I can tell the difference at 30 and below. It looks nicer on the higher setting :)

[@super_frag_8835]

That would be cool to see the tier 6 to 8 M/T..

[@germanrrjr]

hi Taugrim, what are your recommendations for this tank? can you research the turret and gun before tracks? and leave tracks and engine the last?, take care bro

[@taugrim]

With any tank that doesn't need the tracks to mount upgrades and equipment, I do the guns/turrets, then engines, then tracks, then radios last.

[@rodsernesi5358]

Hello Taugrim. Nice job, as always. I'd like to see more from you, but ehi, it's a hobby. I'm going to unlock T50 today after learnt to play a non Armour tank as the TVP TVU is. I forced me to play the t8, it is bad. Once you get the 88mm gun things are better. Ok. Or question, I'm going to unlock everything to have the T50 full researched, with the last gun. Everyone saying me that doesn't worth to grind the cannon, that with the stock gun is terrible. Do you agree? Last, what about ammo load out? Do you really need some gold ammo (they are HEAT?)

[@taugrim]

What I did was Free XP the turret and the autoloader gun, then grind the suspension and engine. The autoloader gun is what makes the tank. Don't bother researching the 100mm R11 gun until you have researched the other upgrades, as you'll never use the R11 gun. For ammo load out, you should carry as many HEAT rounds as you think you'll need. I don't use premium ammo in Random Battles as I find it to be very problematic for tank balance, but there's no reason for you to do as I do.

[@UndeadBoogie]

Did you ever do a tier 10 review on this line, or is it so similar to this that there's no need? I wasn't able to find it if you did.

[@taugrim]

I haven't reviewed the TVP 50/51, but the playstyle is very similar, just a bigger clip and more compact burst in the tier 10.

[@Flippy617]

Going to be straight-up honest here and say the first time I saw you in a public match I really hated you, but the more and more videos you release i have started to feel that my respect for you is slowly increasing. I still do not agree with your strain to fire only standard rounds on many of your tanks, of course that is something you decide for yourself as I think gold rounds are useful in many situations not not necessarily the type of round to be spamming. Of course a Unicum tend to know when to switch rounds to adjust the situation. Keep up the good work Taugrim, hope you see you in a pub match ;) - N3RV3 [-G-] P.S. I recently 3-marked my STB-1 so I am in a pretty good mode.

[@taugrim]

You're not alone - other Unicums have said to me (and are correct) that by not running premium ammo I'm not making use of available tools. I wish WG would rebalance ammo types like Armored Warfare did, where each ammo type has pros and cons, and it creates tradeoff decisions. I appreciate your taking the time to post. I've seen you around and know you're a good player. o7 P.S. one reason I've made the series is to address the perception that Unicums do well because they spam premium ammo, which isn't the case. Decision-making is what makes a Unicum a Unicum. Also, I see a lot of pubbies using premium ammo as a crutch instead of properly flanking / aiming / etc.

[@oncebittentwiceshy639]

I pretty much free XP'd from 7-9. However, I didn't like the T50 very much because of the 3 shot mag. I always felt that missing 4th shell. Couldn't be happier with the 50/51, though.

[@taugrim]

The 7 is actually decent. The 8 was hell. I don't fault you for Free XP'ing through them though. I've done that with other tanks I didn't want to play. The Skoda T50 continues to be one of my favorite tanks. If it had a 4th shell in the clip I think it would be too much compact burst.

[@Lostforface]

Taugrim dunno I like the dmg on 10.5 gun

[@zombievikinggaming4258]

Would you ever think of adding crew skill recommendations or would that be too mundane?

[@weak1ings]

Hey Taugrim, I am currently at 2650 WN8 for my last 1k battles, But I only have won 55.71% which suggest that I probably sit back a lot more than I should. What are some tips towards becoming a better player and winning more games? (currently want to reach 3200 WN8 in my last 1k battles for trying to get into MAHOU.)

[@taugrim]

Win rate is the most easily padded stat in the game - just start platooning with other skilled players. What I recommend is checking yourself and other Unicums on jaj22.org.uk/wotstats.html and looking at the "Platoon stats" section. A lot of players with 60+% WR are running a lot of 2-man and 3-man padding platoons. Tank selection and amount of premium ammo can also help influence your WR, e.g. play stronger tanks if you want to raise your WR.

[@lolsoez5804]

:D i have same problem and honestly i just cant camp in the back i need to be aggresive just i will push or get yoloed :D (2700 recent) overall (2k - 8k games)

[@nebojsakmezic9763]

Any chance of t54e1? I enjoy it very much, have good avrg dmg and xp but want to improve it further

[@user-pp9yk3tu4z]

I love your boss dude but can you upload more often

[@srbinsrbijanovic20]

road to moj kuurac !!!

[@taugrim]

Road to My Chef? I don't understand LOL.

[@nebojsakmezic9763]

Nemo da psujes, ispadamo stoka pred pristojnim covjekom.

[@TheSelfeDestruct]

I noticed that you run silver ammo only in some of your auto-loaders, just wondering why?

[@taugrim]

I run 100% silver ammo in Random Battles. Always have, always will. taugrim.com/2015/02/19/road-to-unicum-guide-videos-for-world-of-tanks/#no-gold-ammo

[@jorandxd]

I started with this tank yesterday, and now I haveit with full equip. I come back playing for 1 year or more. But I see alot of New maps and old Who was change alot too. Its Hard for me know what Its the Best spot where I can go with my t50 :(

[@taugrim]

The new maps are mostly better than the old, with the exception of Erlenberg. You'll get used to it.

[@jorandxd]

@@taugrim the iceone? I hateit xD

[@taugrim]

Yep, that's the one

[@Dropem7777]

I doubt you will see this but if you do. I would love some advice for when starting the tank out how I should play.

[@taugrim]

That's too broad a question for me to answer. Can you be more specific?

[@Dropem7777]

@@taugrim Thank you a ton for responding. I just recently got the tank and while it does feel decent to use stock I find it hard to get any real damage in matches. What equipment should I be going for first and would it be smart for me to take it where I would usually take an american medium fighting on ridge lines?

[@Thee_Sinner]

What is a Guard? I assume new Russian prem med? Lol

[@kitcat4650]

It is a Russian, tier VIII, premium medium, with a rear mounted turret STG, that has a special camo layout. Equipped with a 122mm D-25TS gun. 390 390 530 Average damage (HP), 212 248 61 Average Penetration (mm) & 4.29 Rate of Fire (rounds/min).

[@hgfs6479]

i made it to unicum officially

[@taugrim]

Congrats! It's a huge milestone to reach :)

[@hgfs6479]

finally ~:)~ now i get to be focused to max

[@notmyname998]

When do you get to unicum? At 2500?

[@taugrim]

WN8 defined Unicum as 2450, so if you're at 2.5k you're already there.

[@27Zangle]

Love this tank, but can't get past 40% win with it. I keep getting into games where the entire team lemmings or they are little sitting AFK in base. No other tank has such luck as when I am in this one.

[@taugrim]

I hope it's gotten better for you. It's a great tank.

[@27Zangle]

@@taugrim - Kinda. It is now at 41%. My P44. Pantera with a 20 more games has a 57% win ratio and do really well on it. Love the T50, but perhaps it is just me. However, I do keep getting really silly games where people just sit around or out in the open.

[@echo_9835]

the tier 7 stock is SO bad. its literally worse than the tier 5 in almost every way... I hate playing it, but im out of Free XP, any tips?

[@UlyssesJF]

echogameadventures Use personal reserves and only play it until you get the daily double with it. Otherwise it's a regular medium stock.

[@RyItar]

After you get 100mm gun i found it good.1,5k average dmg reload coudl be a bit shorter but it wasn't a problem as long i wasn't shot back or traded one for one and i quite enjoyed it. As far for T8 ohhh fuck me.I did my czech tank with friend that was also grinding that line and for me VTU was easier to play because i used to play Skoda T40 alot.I think that i skiped engine and just went as fast as i coudl to Skoda T50.

[@busyend]

Nice

[@yereverluvinuncleber]

A 'bunch' is not the collective name for a number of tanks, suitable for bananas or carrots &c but not tanks. You could use 'squadron' or 'troop'. If you are going to use 'bunch', you might as well use 'whoop', 'gaggle' or 'flange'.

[@TheMadricks]

Qustion: I am watching often, that autoloaders are taken to push stats. It gives me the feeling, that I am can only get unicum, if I am use this overpowerd BC's and Skodas. Is it not possible that you show tanks like the Leopard 1, or other normal tanks? I'd like get to WN8 1,4k without this unfair overpowerd autoloaders, because I am gonna hate them.

[@taugrim]

You may have a misunderstanding on how WN8 works. WN8 has expected values per tank, so if you play an autoloader, your rating is calculated based on your relative performance against other drivers of the same tank. So you can't just play an autoloader to stat pad. You have to be actually good with it, compared to other players.

[@TheMadricks]

Thx for answer.

[@kikonekikic4057]

You have some nice videos, but why do you go out of sniper mode every time you fire. I would understand if you this in some tank with 10 s reload but in autoloader? You just lose focus

[@taugrim]

I'm trying to view the broader area. Sometimes I see things that cause me to switch targets.

[@ibeendreamingofthetr]

why do u always shoot and get out of snipe mode? just trying to understand the game.

[@taugrim]

I don't want to tunnel vision. I want to see if there's anything else going on around me. This game is about managing information, having awareness. In some cases it's helped me realize that a newly-spotted tank is looking at me.

[@Piridajac]

With that tier 9 I have the best statistic on acc but with tier 10 I'm worst ever... :( I can't handle tier 10 well... tips

[@pavelos3848]

What view range you have on this tank?

[@robgoose8126]

I literally just bought the tvp, could've used this lol.

[@taugrim]

The VTU or the TVP 50/51?

[@robgoose8126]

50/51. Haven't even played a game in it yet, need credits first

[@jameshogg3613]

Nice game

[@gavinlitz9722]

You stuttered when you were giving examples of spotters. Such as the E25. Don't worry, I would feel guilty seal clubbing in that thing.. But meh, I don't care.

[@lightning794]

tbh you should have coule heatclips for types mauses e100s turrets etc

[@echo_9835]

he doesnt shoot ANY gold

[@das_killer169]

he does not load gold that's one of his number one rules.

[@lightning794]

Rusty Rage i bet he likes the op super heavy meta

[@das_killer169]

yeah i think so but he is suck a good player he dont need gold

[@lightning794]

Rusty Rage o use gold just to maus and op5heavy

[@CantFindNemo]

666 likeee taugrim :0

[@christopherlabedzski7575]

The only way to be a unicum is to spam gold to most tanks, that's how I got 60wr, yes it's not a skill if used gold but if you use gold a lot the game becomes easy at least for me

[@taugrim]

Clearly not familiar with my channel, eh? I'm Super Unicum with 100% silver ammo in Random Battles. Original account, no mods, no gold ammo.

[@christopherlabedzski7575]

True, but most players prefer using gold ammo anyway, more pen the better,

[@Mr.P.Griffith]

Great vids. I think ive watched most if not all. But this one is very jittery. It feels like you lost a lot frames somewhere. I'll give it another 5 minutes, but if it doesn't smooth out I'll have to stop watching.

[@Mr.P.Griffith]

Nope. Can't do it. :( It's making me dizzy. The Skoda T50 is one of my fav tanks too.. I take it out when I need reassurance that I'm a decent player. philspamoni NA

[@taugrim]

It may be my driving / mouse handling. I make a lot of sudden movements with my mouse. The frame rates were consistently in the 40s, so that shouldn't be an issue.

[@kjetildg]

J7? give me a break, that spot is bad.

[@trolltractor3141]

tbh swamp is pretty busted

[@michals1108]

Such a noobs playing on NA server... You couldn't play like this on EU for sure m8.

[@erichemingway5294]

Autoloaders are the true cancer of the game.

[@taugrim]

They add flavor to the game. Most squishy autoloaders are straightforward to counter if you leverage hard cover correctly.