Best Early MBTs

Main battle tanks or MBTs are a product of the Cold War, a next step of tank evolution following the era of medium and heavy tanks. MBTs have the best of both worlds: they are mobile, they hit really hard and they are highly versatile. Today we’re going to talk about the best early MBTs available in War Thunder. Compared to their modern counterparts, they don’t have advanced electronics, fancy stabilizers and other cool gadgets, but they are universal tanks through and through.
Subtitles are available in the following languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Polish, Turkish, Chinese, Portuguese.
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[@JustinPlaysTV]

I absolutely love how the turret desync is shown in the official videos :D

[@GENERICNICK-kj4lm]

Yootoober

[@panzerlite1123]

Same

[@Minebrawlzzz]

We need to get you verified justin! Journey to 100k

[@ellinecockburn2601]

Hey Justin.

[@gabrielneves6602]

Which moment, i didn't saw it

[@viperlabs7735]

gotta love how they talk about aphe and apds when talking about the chieftain even though they have it at a br where it faces almost exclusively heatfs and apfsds

[@baryonyx9241]

My man, the front of the turret on my chieftan got penned by the APHE from a T 54.

[@viperlabs7735]

@@baryonyx9241 sounds about right for snail math

[@ommsterlitz1805]

2:50 Love how Gaijin explain the AMX 30 is worse in every bit to the Leopard but since it's French it have to nerfed in the game and placed an higher BR of 7.7 with an higher repair cost 👏👏

[@blackvenom6782]

You know ist worse than the Leopard because it has the most cracked shell for its br

[@omnipotank]

Chieftain is apparently worse despite being 8.3

[@terrynewsome6698]

The irony of this coming out the same day Russia reactivates the t-54-3 in frontline service should not be lost to us.

[@shappar5039]

Upgrades people, upgrades.

[@nkvdofficer5047]

Well the source is shaddy to say the least and its all based of a few images of the same train

[@DatBoi_TheGudBIAS]

Bruh, they are regressing in tank history XD, soon they will send T26 and bt7s to Batle

[@byzantinehoney3384]

How is Ukraine losing to a country that uses shovels and t54. Embarrassing

[@LevSeven_]

@@byzantinehoney3384 “losing” lmao

[@alistairbadger4413]

The Vickers mk1 is a very fun tank to drive. You do have to be careful due to the poor armour, but the mobility combined with its gun and insane reload speed allows for more interesting plays than with its Centurion equivilents in my opinion.

[@n1co2017]

get’s 7.62’ed

[@comediangj4955]

Well it was called the "Vickers MBT"

[@yajamanvamsikrishna509]

It was our MBT for a long time in India after independence ❤

[@petrkdn8224]

its just a turm 3 without the 30mm... and people tell me im insane.. the 30mm is not worht the br increase, as this tank EXCELS at 7.7

[@n1co2017]

@@petrkdn8224 wtf are you on about the turm 3 is far better and if you can’t use it skill issue because it is sometimes as useful if not more useful than the main gun.

[@irishkiwi477]

L3/33 is my favourite MBT

[@TR33ZY_CRTM]

The M22 and the ASU-57 are my favorite MBTs

[@Corxed]

Absolutely unmatched.

[@nagyzsombor3661]

​@@Corxed 😂😂😂😅

[@TomPrickVixen]

Since u asked: the Magach 3 (ex US) premium. The ERA on 7.7 is very handy against early ATGMs and a lot of tanks using HEATFS at that BR, + has a ton of smoke, and a 105mm gun.

[@HakimFinger1953]

The US was my top vehicle for two years, I agree with you.

[@Krimpzz]

I have the Israeli one and it’s quite a good vehicle absorbing a ton of ammunition at 7.7 I get a lot of kills and it has smoke it’s really one of the best premiums if it had apsdfs it Would be insane for 8.0

[@MrApm101]

I love how the T55A is considered the best early tier MBT but in reality was hated by literally everybody that was a crew in one. Classic.

[@MrMorvana]

It's the bests, in game. There is no consideration for autonomy, logistic, ease of production or upgrade, ability for the crew to use the tank on the long term, escape it, or even see outside... For sure, the T-55 had an amazing design for tank battles like the Soviets had during WWII (Koursk...), for the rest it's an other story...

[@russman3787]

The T-54 and T-55 were generally considered the best tanks of their time. They did become out dated very quickly, though, because of how fast tanks developed in the cold war.

[@vertice2759]

the best MBT are the ones gaijin places right next to ww2 tanks

[@Sebastian-yl7nq]

The APHE alone on the T-55A is what made me fall in love with it

[@rajingcajun488]

Seems weird to put the Chieftan on here instead of the centurion…

[@chasethepup7676]

5:50 Your welcome

[@Arthur_Neves]

Its bcz chieftain at least has armour going for it. Centurion on the other side is worse in every single aspect to every single presented mbt

[@jonnymcjonface6068]

@@Arthur_Neves but the Centurion was the first MBT?

[@Arthur_Neves]

@@jonnymcjonface6068 arguably yes

[@Panzerkampf1995]

It’s the same like the M60A1

[@TK-221]

Love the STB-1 and it's suspension

[@kocayrklibirinsan3056]

when they gonna add "automatic" hull control? when you do hull down in hills, it should auto-hull control.

[@snap_oversteer7483]

I miss the times when it had apds and 17kph reverse speed as well...

[@frankieM_]

@@snap_oversteer7483 it still does have APDS tho?

[@snap_oversteer7483]

@@frankieM_ isnt it just HEATFS now? Im talking about the STB-1 not the Type 74's here remind you

[@fullsetsunk4090]

​@@snap_oversteer7483You got it reversed, it used to have HEATFS, but now it's just APDS (and HESH)

[@tizanikandothers]

Of-40 superiority💪

[@misteronsepatro7018]

The AMX30 is so much fun to use I love it as a french maining France in war thunder

[@bravotroopergaming9122]

I just finished researching the AMX-30 (1972) it is my first MBT. Now I have to grind out a half a million lions. 🙄🙄🙄

[@alphawolf6214]

you're gonna love the 20mm

[@ChaosToxic]

@@alphawolf6214 But hate mostly everything else

[@alphawolf6214]

@@ChaosToxic well not really, i mean the only real thing that is lacking is the stabilizer but i hope you don't play the french tanks to have stabs x)

[@bravotroopergaming9122]

@@alphawolf6214 lol, I definitely don’t. After the M4A4 SA50 I doubt any tank will be worse than that thing when it comes to lack of stabilization.

[@timharnans]

My first MBT was Magach 1. I love the M48/M60 tanks to this day.

[@drsipp407]

Magach 1 is probably the best tank in isreal tree for a long time until you get to 8.0 literally everything else is garbage

[@righty5890]

The Leopard 1 and it's bugged armor is very fun, bouncing ATGMs from the BMP-2M two times in a row is very nice!

[@maximiliensonnic3356]

I love how the Chieftain is considered to be the second worst early mbt while still being the one with the highest BR.

[@nagyzsombor3661]

Gaijin dont like the brits it has a br that gets a lot of uptier and 10-12k repair cost.. 🙄

[@omnipotank]

Even though it has the best gun out of all of them and armor. The mobility is still alright compared to the others.

[@baryonyx9241]

@@omnipotank 298 mm of pen is not good, also that armor isnt saving you from nothing other than you're own top speed.

[@dominiksoukal]

Good job Gajin you missed the M60A1 (aos)

[@astonrichardson5288]

I’m pleased the Centurion and Stridsvagn 103A got some love :)

[@auliaparsadaharahap664]

7.7 is really the pinnacle of british mbt (vickers, conqu and cent), after that it getting worse..

[@petrkdn8224]

both rooikats are very good and the olifant mk2 is very good, gen 2 gunner/commander thermals that are very high positioned, DM63 Apfsds which shreds everything at its br, and pretty good mobility for a centurion derivative

[@baryonyx9241]

@@petrkdn8224 the first roikat has a horrible gun

[@baryonyx9241]

Also the olifant got a pterry underwelming turret traverse, other than that its good.

[@DerFuzzball]

I love hearing more about the Italian tree. I hope more people decide to play with italy. It has a lot of unique vehicles that can be fun to play with

[@MrToasterWaffles]

Italy is my main, I love the M60 premium, what a beautiful tank ❤

[@LithuanianBadger]

Love how AMX pros are only 20mm auto cannon 😂

[@bruhman5385]

Gaijin: Since the Leopard 1 is 7.3 we decided to put the AMX-30 at 7.7...Why? Because it's fr*nch obviously, duh.

[@Solveig.Tissot]

​@@bruhman5385 Average Virgin Cringe Brainless Fatherless Anti France Troll Fanboy taking Copium over here ⬆️

[@thechickenmaster6543]

Putting the leopard 1 as the thumbnail for this video yet still keeping it at 7.3 instead of 7.7 where it should be is pretty funny in a sense

[@TR33ZY_CRTM]

Skill issue

[@ChaosToxic]

@@TR33ZY_CRTM Rat

[@HIFLY01]

@@TR33ZY_CRTM yeah its lowered because German mains have skill issues

[@carsamba0055]

are there any plans to make fire extinguishers reloadable at captured points?

[@bmohr9826]

I mean, when you have a Leo fighting a jumbo it’s hard not to be a good mbt

[@yixuan7043]

love the t55/type 59

[@snap_oversteer7483]

Not my favorite tank but among these I love STB-1. I used to play it when it wasnt nerfed to hell and back and its still my most played tank.

[@kocayrklibirinsan3056]

take a look at 2:13, even in their video turret is glitching.

[@VeteranManiac]

OF-40 all the way. The first one, mk.2a and the godsend that is the MTCA. Fast, well armed, and fun to play.

[@casematecardinal]

The of40 is my favorite early mbt. But stabilized and unstabilized are both fun. The earlier one is extremely mobile for the br and the armor is super trolly. Its possibly the best 7.7 mbt as unlike the t54 you have a lot of flexibility

[@laurentwu9566]

How about the type 69 and type 69 II-a

[@Mr_Unavailable]

Even more reason for OddBawZ to play the OF-40 MK.1.

[@videre8884]

Please finally do something about the spawn camping..........The repair costs in connection with spawn camping is really bad. This is extremely annoying, especially with Top Tier. Players don't pay attention to the task (protect something or conquer something) but go straight to the spawn point and destroy everything that appears there. I think that no vehicle should be destructible in the spawn point, even if the opponent is right in front of the vehicle

[@stevenhannweg1644]

STB definitivly as gold... way more versitile then every other mbt in every aspect

[@frankieM_]

gold is a solid maybe because of the movement speed not being the greatest, its easily a silver, idk why the OF-40 was somehow better than it purely because it could reverse faster even though its armor is worse

[@karomonarch]

@@frankieM_ Personally, armor is useless if you you aren't fast enough to maneuver against an enemy, OF-40 is better.

[@casematecardinal]

@@frankieM_ play it. The mobility is surprising

[@fullsetsunk4090]

Would've been a gold when it was 7.7, was able to reverse, had insane zoom and HEATFS

[@stevenhannweg1644]

@@fullsetsunk4090 they shreded the reverse speed on all stb bases... exept of the premium...

[@Slayer_Jesse]

since you mentioned the vickers mark 1, can you fix the armor hole in the mark 3 turret face that allows it to die to machine gun rounds?

[@onceatemofie9986]

Lol had the same problem. Took the breach out from a t-55 and he started machine gunning me. I thought that he wanted to take out me tracks but no he was shooting at my turret face taking out 2 crewmen

[@TheNobleBrit]

Not going to lie several vehicles I absolutely hated when I first played them stock compared to fully spaded The Centurion mk10 The Vickers MK1 And the Falcon Now they all are in my top 5 best vehicles in war thunder. Absolutely love every single one, they all have their problems, but when you play them right, I consistently get 6-12 kills per game. And the Falcon is my go-to for eradication.

[@sampackman69]

The Falcon melts basically everything I love it I usually just run around the map shredding Russian tanks from the side, then when the respawn in a Heli or a Plane, I just wait for them to come to me

[@DominusObiscum]

out of all those MBTs the Chieftain Mk3 i believe is the only one sitting at 8.3 BR rest are below that, guess all that armor is too OP.

[@urfaceaface6776]

gotta love the of-40

[@maxwellmaragia2272]

Seeing soviet heavies being obliterated by tanks 10 years newer than it is the culmination of war thunder. What a stupidly unfair game

[@SnakierElm62]

Centurion Mk.1 was my first one

[@ArsenyPro]

I would love to see more mbts in the Italian TT ;)

[@ev17dan]

T55 made in the 40s Nato tanks made in the 70s with laser range finders, well done gaijen, well done, up there with the soviet 11.3 jet with no countermeasures

[@russman3787]

The T-55 was made in the late 50s.

[@multybuilder]

which soundtrack was used in this episode?

[@dexcz0669]

Q: could you make triathlon of mbts/ same category tank on specific br? Like 8.7 or 7.3

[@thesparpanzer4151]

Would it be Possible to Redo the climbing the ranks series?

[@El_JFS]

The for the of-40 love ❤ it’s one on my favorite tanks in game, quick, fast reactions and lethal :)

[@TR33ZY_CRTM]

But its from the Meme Republic of Italy, so it's irrelevant

[@user-jw8jn7lh8c]

itll be a cold day at the snail HQ before they update italy

[@memely4454]

@@TR33ZY_CRTM🥰sure buddy

[@TR33ZY_CRTM]

@@memely4454 Cope and seethe, Giuseppe.

[@s.shadow8094]

Most Bullshit Tank OF-40

[@azuresstuff2363]

Hey, I was wondering if we would get the Soviet bomber version of the C-47 in the game. I believe the USSR variant was called the Li-2 and had different engines, defensive turrets, and of course bombs. I think it would be a cool edition, tech tree or even premium

[@DummyThunder]

finally another MBT video

[@JafuetTheSame]

do you know you have ships in the game as well?

[@farazsid4270]

Patiently waiting for T-55AMV or T-55MV @ Br: 8.3 & T-55M5 @ 8.7 along side the T-62M1.

[@12LoLproductions]

K5 might be a little strong for 8.7

[@ej1025]

T-62MV as well

[@alexandervandenberghe2550]

same

[@farazsid4270]

@@ej1025 Yes but later on!!

[@Veneto_Mapping]

When Is gonna be released the Edge for mobile?

[@joemcnicholas9851]

Great video

[@cheeselemon8712]

Nebraskan balls

[@bencezrinyi6761]

Where did you get that from?

[@peloncito7279]

🎉 nain nain nain

[@NishnaValleyRailVideos]

Thank you for this information.

[@TinyTank77]

Oklahomian balls

[@Halley_Suv]

The Khalid is pretty awesome

[@kollebg]

Legendary T55 😎

[@timixl00]

Of-40 is 100% my faforite mbt italy fast

[@abdurrahmankhaidiralrafi1261]

Can u reduce leopard i repare cost? Cus i wont spend 8k onky for repairing paper armor mbt

[@rokasb9441]

3:41 lets observe a rare encounter of an early mbt winning against just as mobile twin-boom automated tank destroyer :)

[@TankBagi]

M47 90mm reload time 9.5s Leo 1 105mm reload tine 8.7s Same br :))

[@Snadeone]

I love Gaijin mentioning sub-caliber ammunition as advantages of MBTs, while in game they have been bugged for good part of a month doing inconsistent damage to no damage at all.

[@petrkdn8224]

dont aim for the engine then? aim for crew and ammo, apds is not a one shot one kill round, thats APHE

[@hdehilter9016]

@@petrkdn8224 APDS makes post-pen damage, and sometimes makes a lot, what u are talking about it's APCR

[@grahh7234]

Q: will we see any skins for the Eurocopter Tigers ingame

[@GuyInBlackClothes]

I would love to use the M60 more in America but it's literally the only tank worth playing besides the M163

[@ishiddddd4783]

OF40 casually tanking maus rounds, and shattering 105 apds with it's mantlet

[@Andrew-iq4qh]

I keep getting upteired no matter what to 7.7 whilst using 6.3. I do not have the pen to kill many tanks, and I dont have the armor to resist 7.62 Can the Battle Rating system be fixed, because I am loosing a lot of SL and I cannot gain more than 200 research per match since a 50kg bomb from 50meters away kills me

[@tacticalturtlez4906]

Don’t think the strv 103 deserves an honorable mention. It’s not particularly fast and has light tank levels of armor protection. It’s main benefit is auto loader, high power gun, and it’s ability to be operated by 1 person. But it’s far more of a light sniping tank than an MBT

[@terrynewsome6698]

The centurion should be here instead of the cheiften, especially given the it a gen 2 on the verge of becoming gen 3.

[@koltenstavely1606]

The same should be said for the M60, being replaced by earlier Pattons

[@terrynewsome6698]

@@koltenstavely1606 yep, maybe the m-47 for the American tree, and the m48 for Germany

[@baryonyx9241]

The chieftan isnt even good, ild rather take the crenturion honesly.

[@x-plane1188]

MBTs - that's great, but what does the T-55 medium tank have to do with it?

[@yosef_tetro]

You forgot about the Tiran 4S

[@capitainsheep1137]

Hi gaijin please add the T-55 Enigma and researchable additionnal Armor like ( tusk2 or Armor like bunker Sherman day 16

[@amg_lennart2924]

Since when is there german audio available😮

[@Victory_In_Jesus]

Hello, I have a genuine question. How would I go about contacting you guys with a special "request". I am on ps4 so I cannot get downloadable camos, or even make them. My request is regarding a special camo for the p40e, it would mean a lot to me if you guys might consider my request, thank you!

[@jdawwwgytb]

Most definitely the T-55a

[@c0ldyloxproductions324]

Tbh I think of the panther as an unofficial mbt and some historians agree, it checks all the marks for one good mobility, excellent armor, powerful gun, And thanks to its suspension it can even fire on the move affectively

[@sirnigel4332]

It is not even close you weheraboo….also it’s reliability was horrible

[@c0ldyloxproductions324]

@@sirnigel4332 top speed 30-33 mph, some of the best armor of ww2 one of the highest velocity guns of ww2 yes it was reliability was actually fixed after the a variant too so ya I’d say it’s pretty close

[@cdgncgn]

MBT was about standardization. Heavy tanks came back with abrams, leo 2.But historians ... who cares ? Once old heavies were decommissioned the new mediums with similar guns were used. T-72 internally was a medium. It was general purpose. Same with jets generations, it started as a marketing thing. Newer heavies came vs older mediums in Iraq 91. Thing is, Soviets managed their medium armor nearly on par with heavies of the west.

[@Kalashnikov413]

If that's the case, then a lot of WWII tanks can be classified as an MBT

[@c0ldyloxproductions324]

@@Kalashnikov413 naw not really the Sherman wasn’t well armed. Or was was the t34 initially and even when they were up gunned by the time they were their armor was already out matched then on top of the the Sherman wasn’t really fast enough either the panther was really the first tank to combine everything

[@tuananhlenguyen4899]

I find hard when switching aggressive tiger 2 to stealthy sniper leo 1 =((

[@paulrg1212]

me gusta el t55a aparte que mi pais tiene este tanque :D

[@tianhaoju4634]

Sometimes just gotta love throwing hesh around on the chieftains chaps

[@idfklol776]

Can we get one with jets?

[@big_meaty_thighs2519]

103C is my favorite MBT

[@Xtariz]

What happend to flak clouds?... The air misses it's charm without it

[@CyberBot17]

very funny that the day gaijin posts a video about early MBTs that contains the T-55 Russia is seen with T-55s on a train heading to, well you know

[@tomweigel2005]

Strv 103 on 7.3 Br is just ridiculous. Its frontal armor can only be pentrated by Rockets, It has an Auto loader, it can survive with 1 crewmate left and it got a laser rangefinder.

[@CzechThunder]

7.7 but same

[@oguz9670]

I like to destroy that tank with my APFSDS rounds.

[@sleysy289]

Centurion MK3?

[@icata12345]

I played them and hate them all but amx-30 is the best because of the 20 mm and those heat :)

[@phoenix-bv7bw]

Where's the stabilized American M60A1 (AOS)? does it not qualify as a Early MBT?

[@ComesPerpetvs]

OF40 and T55! ❤❤

[@Russinh0]

Russia: Ok, nowdays tank x tank battles are very rare so i dont will send T-72B3 and T-80BVM to Fight, i will send T-54 tanks to use as artillery Gaijin: T-54 MBT

[@bruhman5385]

Gaijin: AMX-30 definitely a mobile mid range fighter The non-existant stab: You serious?!

[@FuriousFire898]

Centurions: Am i a joke to you?

[@TR33ZY_CRTM]

Yes, yes you are.

[@Goofy253]

They missed the best low tier MBT the m22

[@ellinecockburn2601]

My fav early MBT is the Leopard 2K

[@k_balu-8104]

Its not an early MBT though

[@TotallyNotASpy]

Now if only the Strv-103s could aim properly without shaking like crazy.... Gaijin pls fix

[@ODST_Parker]

Just a reminder that the M47 (105/55) is a completely incorrect model. It's a Spanish M47E2, not the Italian OTO M47 prototype. They've been "aware of the issue" for years, and have not changed it.

[@doomtark8480]

Italy doesn't get much love at all, shame that Gaijin hates them

[@mariocxdyt]

We need new videos of climbing ranks They have old information that is wrong nowadays Day 1

[@destroyerofcringe3475]

I’m gonna call it the one that wins is gonna be a premium Edit: Okay I’m glad I’m wrong

[@alanamato9382]

I wonder by what criteria they make these videos. M60 first MBT? that would be the M48, Chistain mk3? Would the Centurion Mk3/10, T55? Not the first MBT is the T54. And Sweden where?

[@Thakkii]

Gaijin please add more events for tanks only , Realistic battles for ground battles are a mess with planes , as a new player im getting constanly harassed by planes , yes i don't have planes and i dont plan to grind them since i like tanks more . Decided to try the game out for the tanks and i cant play more than 2 matchs before log out , decided to try arcade battles , dont like them since you spoted the whole time . I understand you don't want to split players but do you play your own game? or you have bias towards planes? i wonder.

[@shadows5525]

Why we cant test drive all vehicles? (those that are still locked in research)

[@Kalashnikov413]

Because most likely that people would just go to the test drive and forgot about playing the actual game

[@buffunicorn3188]

The Panther 2

[@baseformrolf6710]

4:32 why did he say it with such a “u” sounding tone 😭😭