IS-2
"It is a fact that under equal conditions, large-scale battles and whole wars are won by troops which have a strong will for victory, clear goals before them, high moral standards, and devotion to the banner under which they go into battle."
- – General Georgy Zhukov
The IS-2 is the final word in Soviet heavy tank design, known for its heavy sloped armor and hilariously powerful 122mm main cannon. Designed in response to the German Tiger and Panther tanks, the IS-2 first saw service in the invasion of Romania and the Baltics, where it was shown to be capable of taking shots from even the feared German 88. This came at a trade-off however, of relatively poor crew ergonomics and an exceptionally slow rate of fire of about 3 rounds a minute for a trained crew. Crewed by the best veterans the Soviets could muster and train, the IS-2s led many of the most important offensives of Operation Bagration and the push into Germany.
Flames of War
Being introduced in 1944, the IS-2 is only available in Late War.
The IS-2 is pretty much the epitome of the Red Army playstyle, with rather impressive hard stats balanced by a whole host of soft stat issues that the player needs to work around to get the most out of their points investment.
The most glaring one is the cannon: AT14, FP 2+, and Brutal. This would all be relatively impressive (even if it's ahistorically weak) if it wasn't for the (historically accurate) Slow firing rule. This means that your tanks are going to have a really hard time killing things on the move, but whatever they do hit tends to die. Fortunately, the IS-2 has some important features that help mitigate this issue. The first is the next of it's impressive hard stats: Front Armor 10. This is some of the heavier armor in game, making it capable of standing up and dueling with the Tigers and Panthers that German players love to bring (you save on a 3 at range). This will let you roll up, take a round of shooting, then dish it back in equal measure. The second is the 3+ skill rating on your crew, letting you use movement orders like blitz and shoot and scoot along with terrain to protect your tanks until they're ready to fire (though the 3+ cross will fail you more than you'd like). The mobility is ok, letting you get where you need to, but try and avoid area terrain, since 3+ cross will result in you probably leaving behind a valuable tank or 2.
What you are left with is a peculiar tank that requires a very particular style of play to maximize its great strengths against its plethora of weaknesses and make its points back. Fortunately, these weaknesses give you a tank that is relatively cheap for what it brings at a bit over 7 points each. This makes it actually feasible to build a list out of at tournament conditions (looking at you, Tiger). And a phenomenal support vehicle for any list. Roll them up, relying on artillery to take care of enemy anti tank guns, and use terrain to block enemy lines of fire until you get in range. Use your skill to mitigate your slow firing rule through blitz checks, then assault infantry on the objective. Chances are, your opponent will focus on those heavy tanks moving on their objectives, leaving the rest of your army a lot of room to maneuver. Focus your IS-2 on dealing with enemy heavies; this will remove something they're uniquely suited for and help them make their points back. The IS-2 isn't like German heavy weights, able to operate with minimal support, but rather a cog in a well oiled machine. When it works with the rest of the army, it can contribute well beyond its weight. When isolated and left alone, it will die and not do anything.
In Real Life
By 1942, the heavy KV-1 tank was being more and more obsolete, with its poor mobility, high complexity, and mediocre firepower, it was becoming increasingly at risk of having production stopped and its design bureau closed down, so, the bureau put resources into development of a "universal tank", to replace both the KV-1 and T-34, the KV-13. That of course didn't work, but one of the prototypes was selected for a new heavy tank, named after glorious leader and people's comrade Joseph Stalin, the IS-1 was born, and it pretty quickly was replaced with the IS-2, mounting a powerful 122mm cannon, capable of penetrating Tigers and Panthers with its armour piercing, while also packing a high explosive shell that could knock out tanks through sheer force alone. Of course, such a powerful gun had tradeoffs, its shells had to be loaded in 2 pieces, making its rate of fire at most 3-4 rounds per minute, and it was only capable of holding 28 rounds in total. The first real action of the IS-2 was in 1944, where it was claimed to have destroyed 40 Tigers and Elefant Tank Destroyers for only 8 tanks. In late 1944, the design was simplified with a new hull that offered more protection. After the war, IS-2s were sold to many armies around the world, from European Satellite States like East Germany to China and North Korea during the Korean War.
| Soviet Forces in Flames of War | |
|---|---|
| Tanks: | T-70 - Valentine - M5/M3 Stuart - M3 Lee - T-34 - KV - Churchill - IS-2 - Captured Tank Platoon - T-28 - BT-7 - KV-2 - T-26 |
| Transports: | M3 Scout Car - Universal Carrier - SdKfz 251 |
| Infantry: | Rifles - Motor Rifles - Penal Company - Storm Group - SMG Company - Engineer Sapper Company |
| Artillery: | Katyusha - 152mm Artillery - 122mm Artillery - 76mm Artillery - 120mm Mortars - 82mm mortars |
| Tank Destroyers and Assault Guns: | 45mm Anti Tank - 57mm Anti Tank - 76mm Anti Tank - 100mm Anti Tank - SU-76 - SU-85 - SU-100 - SU-122 - SU-152 - ISU-122/ISU-152 |
| Recon: | Scout Platoon - BA-64 Platoon - Armored Reconnaissance Platoon - Reconnaissance Platoon |
| Aircraft: | Il-2 Sturmovik |
| Anti-Aircraft: | ZSU M17 - DShK AA MG Platoon |
| Midwar Monsters: | KV-3 - KV-5 - T-43 |