Difference between revisions of "Centurion Mk 1"

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== Description ==
 
== Description ==
−
''In the description, the first part needs to be about the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle, as well as its key features. In the second part, tell the reader about the ground vehicle in the game. Insert the screenshot of the vehicle. If the novice player does not remember the vehicle by name, they will immediately understand what kind of vehicle it is talking about.''
+
<!--''In the description, the first part needs to be about the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle, as well as its key features. In the second part, tell the reader about the ground vehicle in the game. Insert the screenshot of the vehicle. If the novice player does not remember the vehicle by name, they will immediately understand what kind of vehicle it is talking about.''-->
 +
[[File:GarageImage_Centurion Mk 1.jpg|420px|thumb|left]]
 +
{{break}}
 +
The '''Centurion Mk 1''' is a Rank IV British medium tank with a battle rating of 5.7. It was introduced in [[Update 1.67 "Assault"]]. It is equipped with the well-known British [[Ordnance QF 17-pounder|QF 17-pounder]] mounted on a new hull that definitively makes the Cromwell chassis outdated.
 +
 
 +
This tank does not play like any of the preceding British vehicles: while its mobility is below average for a rank IV medium, it compensates with armour, meaning that you will actually be able to withstand frontal combat and return fire, even if you get hit. It is the first medium to feature the late-game British armour pattern: a strong turret, thick and well-angled upper-glacis, weak lower glacis and thin sides. British tankers must get used to this configuration since it is found on every following medium tank.
 +
 
 +
The Centurion Mk.1 moves away from the familiar Cromwell chassis. While not being as fast or maneuverable, It does have sloped frontal armour, a strongly armoured turret, and a good [[Ordnance QF 17-pounder|QF 17-pounder]] gun with access to APDS.
 +
 
 +
''Mobility''<br>
 +
The Centurion easily reaches its top speed of 39 km/h on almost any ground, due to its wide tracks and good engine, even at stock performances. It also has a refreshingly good reverse speed (~13 km/h) (compared to the dreadful reverse speed of tanks on the Cromwell chassis) and can turn on the spot quite fast.
 +
 
 +
''Armour''<br>
 +
The main improvement from previous British mediums is its thick and sloped armour. Reaching 152 mm on the turret and a good 76 mm angled at 58° on the front hull, this tanks can actually block point-blank shots from most cannons it will face like the Russian [[85 mm Tank Gun D-5|D-5T]], the Japanese [[Type 5 75 mm Tank Gun|Type II 75 mm]] and even some German guns at 500 m (see [[Centurion_Mk.1#Specific_enemies_worth_noting|"specific enemies worth nothing"]] for more info). This tank can actually expose its upper glacis since it will bounce most shots. This tank still has weak spots though: gun and MG mantlet are "only" 127 mm thick, barely angled and lower glacis is 76 mm at 44°, meaning close-range shots will eventually penetrate. It also has thin side armour, meaning that the tank is vulnerable to flank attacks and compound angling cannot be done effectively without exposing the sides. These traits mean that the Centurion Mk.1 can happily stand up most frontal shots at this rank.
 +
 
 +
''Firepower''<br>
 +
The gun does not fire any shells with explosive filler, meaning that pinpoint accuracy is needed to get reliable kills (aiming for important modules, crew, or ammo racks). This canon's reload rate is faster than average at this BR, meaning you will be able to land 2 shots before your enemy can even fire. As any other tanks equipped with the [[Ordnance QF 17-pounder|QF 17-pounder]], you will have to grind through subpar AP, APBC and APCBC shells before getting APDS. This last type of shell helps make accuracy quite easy and remains effective at long ranges while not being too costly in terms of silver lions.
 +
 
 +
A minor issue to notice is that the machine gun has very poor elevation and is loader-controlled, meaning that it cannot target even low flying aircraft and that it will be disabled once you lose two or more crew members.
  
 
== General info ==
 
== General info ==
 
=== Survivability and armour ===
 
=== Survivability and armour ===
−
''Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpfull for survival in combat?''
+
<!--''Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpfull for survival in combat?''
  
−
''If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.''
+
''If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.''-->
 +
'''Armour type:'''
 +
* Rolled homogeneous armour (Hull, Turret sides, Turret roof)
 +
* Cast homogeneous armour (Turret front, Gun mantlet, Cupola)
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
 +
|align="center" colspan="6"| '''Tank Armour Table'''
 +
|-
 +
! Armour !! Front !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
 +
|-
 +
| Hull || 76.2 mm (58°) ''Front glacis'' <br> 76.2 mm (44°) ''Lower glacis'' || 51 (12°) + 6 mm  || 38 mm (7°) ''Top'' <br> 38 mm (18°) ''Bottom'' || 29 mm <br> 8-14 mm ''Engine deck''
 +
|-
 +
| Turret || 127 mm (2-58°) ''Turret front'' <br> 127 mm (6-40°) ''Gun mantlet'' || 76 mm (9-11°) || 76 mm (1°) <br> 38 mm (89°) ''Turret underside'' || 25 mm
 +
|-
 +
! Armour !! Sides !! Roof
 +
|-
 +
| Cupola || 90 mm || 19 mm
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
'''Notes:'''
 +
*Tracks and suspension wheels are both 20 mm thick.
 +
*The steel boxes around the turret and hull give a 4 mm additional protection, though this seems to be a negligible addition.
 +
*Spaced armour plates are placed on the side of the Centurion, giving an additional 6 mm of side armour.
  
 
=== Mobility ===
 
=== Mobility ===
−
''Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and maneuverability as well as the maximum speed forward and backward.''
+
<!--''Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and maneuverability as well as the maximum speed forward and backward.''-->
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
 +
|-
 +
!colspan="3" | Mobility characteristic
 +
|-
 +
! Weight (tons)
 +
!colspan="1" | Add-on Armour<br>weight (tons)
 +
!colspan="1" | Max speed (km/h)
 +
|-
 +
|rowspan="2" | 42.3 || colspan="1" rowspan="2" | N/A || colspan="1" | 39 (AB)
 +
|-
 +
|35 (RB/SB)
 +
|-
 +
!colspan="3" | Engine power (horsepower)
 +
|-
 +
!colspan="1" | Mode
 +
!Stock
 +
!Upgraded
 +
|-
 +
|''Arcade''
 +
|930
 +
|___
 +
|-
 +
|''Realistic/Simulator''
 +
|531
 +
|600
 +
|-
 +
!colspan="3" | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
 +
|-
 +
!colspan="1" | Mode
 +
!Stock
 +
!Upgraded
 +
|-
 +
|''Arcade''
 +
|21.98
 +
|__.__
 +
|-
 +
|''Realistic/Simulator''
 +
|12.55
 +
|14.18
 +
|-
 +
|}
  
 
== Armaments ==
 
== Armaments ==
 
=== Main armament ===
 
=== Main armament ===
−
''Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibilty of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: <code><nowiki>{{main|Name of the weapon}}</nowiki></code>. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.''
+
<!--''Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibilty of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: <code><nowiki>{{main|Name of the weapon}}</nowiki></code>. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.''-->
 +
{{main|Ordnance QF 17-pounder (76 mm)}}
 +
 
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="6" | [[Ordnance QF 17-pounder (76 mm)|76 mm OQF 17-pounder]]
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="3" rowspan="1" style="width:5em" |Capacity
 +
! rowspan="1" | Vertical <br> guidance
 +
! rowspan="1" | Horizontal <br> guidance
 +
! rowspan="1" | Stabilizer
 +
|-
 +
| colspan="3" | 74 || -12°/+20° || ±180° || N/A
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="6" | Turret rotation speed (°/s)
 +
|-
 +
! style="width:4em" |Mode
 +
! style="width:4em" |Stock
 +
! style="width:4em" |Upgraded
 +
! style="width:4em" |Prior + Full crew
 +
! style="width:4em" |Prior + Expert qualif.
 +
! style="width:4em" |Prior + Ace qualif.
 +
|-
 +
| ''Arcade'' || 10.7 || _._ || _._ || _._ || _._
 +
|-
 +
| ''Realistic'' || 10.7 || _._ || _._ || _._ || _._
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="1" style="width:4em" |Stock
 +
! colspan="1" style="width:4em" |Prior + Full crew
 +
! colspan="1" style="width:4em" |Prior + Expert qualif.
 +
! colspan="1" style="width:4em" |Prior + Ace qualif.
 +
|-
 +
| 7.6 || _._ || _._ || _._
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
 
 +
===== Ammunition =====
 +
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
 +
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
 +
|-
 +
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
 +
! rowspan="2" class="unsortable" | Type of <br /> warhead
 +
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration''' '''''in mm''''' '''@ 90°'''
 +
|-
 +
! 10m
 +
! 100m
 +
! 500m
 +
! 1000m
 +
! 1500m
 +
! 2000m
 +
|-
 +
| Shot Mk.6 || AP || 160 || 157 || 133 || 112 || 96 || 86
 +
|-
 +
| Shell Mk.1 || HE || 9 || 9 || 9 || 9 || 9 || 9
 +
|-
 +
| Shot Mk.4 || APC || 165 || 160 || 138 || 108 || 94 || 81
 +
|-
 +
| Shot Mk.8 || APCBC || 171 || 168 || 156 || 143 || 130 || 120
 +
|-
 +
| Shot SV Mk.1 || APDS || 228 || 226 || 207 || 189 || 159 || 134
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
 +
! colspan="10" | Shell details
 +
|-
 +
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
 +
! rowspan="2" class="unsortable" | Type of <br /> warhead
 +
! rowspan="2" |Velocity <br /> in m/s
 +
! rowspan="2" |Projectile<br />Mass in kg
 +
! rowspan="2" | ''Fuse delay''
 +
''in m:''
 +
! rowspan="2" | ''Fuse sensitivity''
 +
''in mm:''
 +
! rowspan="2" | ''Explosive Mass in g<br /> (TNT equivalent):''
 +
! rowspan="2" | ''Normalization At 30° <br> from horizontal:''
 +
! colspan="3" | ''Ricochet:''
 +
|-
 +
! 0%
 +
! 50%
 +
! 100%
 +
|-
 +
| Shot Mk.6 || AP || 883 || 7.7 || N/A || N/A || N/A || -1° || 47° || 60° || 65°
 +
|-
 +
| Shell Mk.1 || HE || 883 || 7.0 || 0.4 || 0.5 || 883 || +0° || 79° || 80° || 81°
 +
|-
 +
| Shot Mk.4 || APC || 883 || 7.7 || N/A || N/A || N/A || -1° || 48° || 63° || 71°
 +
|-
 +
| Shot Mk.8 || APCBC || 883 || 7.7 || N/A || N/A || N/A || +4° || 48° || 63° || 71°
 +
|-
 +
| Shot SV Mk.1 || APDS || 1203 || 1.7 || N/A || N/A || N/A || +1.5° || 75° || 78° || 80°
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
 +
! colspan="7" | Smoke characteristic
 +
|-
 +
! Ammunition
 +
! Velocity <br /> in m/s
 +
! Projectile<br />Mass in kg
 +
! ''Screen radius <br /> in m''
 +
! ''Screen time <br /> in s''
 +
! ''Screen hold time <br /> in s:''
 +
! ''Explosive Mass in g<br /> (TNT equivalent):''
 +
|-
 +
| 17pdr Shell SS Mk.1 || 754 || 8.4 || 13 || 5 || 20 || 50
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
 
 +
===== [[Ammo racks|Ammo racks]] =====
 +
[[File:Ammoracks_Centurion Mk 1.png|right|x250px|thumbnail|[[Ammo racks|Ammo racks]] of the Centurion Mk.1]]
 +
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
 +
|-
 +
! class="wikitable unsortable" |Full<br /> ammo
 +
! class="wikitable unsortable" |1st<br />  rack empty
 +
! class="wikitable unsortable" |2nd<br />  rack empty
 +
! class="wikitable unsortable" |3rd<br />  rack empty
 +
! class="wikitable unsortable" |4th<br />  rack empty
 +
! class="wikitable unsortable" |Visual<br /> discrepancy
 +
|-
 +
|| '''74''' || 71&nbsp;''(+3)'' || 55&nbsp;''(+19)'' || 39&nbsp;''(+35)'' || 1&nbsp;''(+73)'' || style="text-align:left" | Yes
 +
|-
 +
|}
  
−
=== Additional armament ===
+
Turret & Center empty: 39&nbsp;''(+35)''
−
''Some tanks are armed with several guns in one or more turrets. Evaluate the additional weaponry and give advice on its use. Describe the ammunition available for additional weaponry. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage. If there is no additional weaponry remove this subsection.''
 
  
 
=== Machine guns ===
 
=== Machine guns ===
−
''Offensive and anti-aircraft machine guns not only allow you to fight some aircraft, but also are effective against lightly armoured vehicles. Evaluate machine guns and give recommendations on its use.''
+
<!--''Offensive and anti-aircraft machine guns not only allow you to fight some aircraft, but also are effective against lightly armoured vehicles. Evaluate machine guns and give recommendations on its use.''-->
 +
{{main|BESA (7.92 mm)}}
 +
 
 +
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="7" | [[BESA (7.92 mm)|7.92 mm BESA]]
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="7" | ''Coaxial mount''
 +
|-
 +
! colspan="4" rowspan="1" style="width:5em" |Capacity (Belt capacity)
 +
! rowspan="1" | Fire rate <br> (shots/minute)
 +
! rowspan="1" | Vertical <br> guidance
 +
! rowspan="1" | Horizontal <br> guidance
 +
|-
 +
| colspan="4" | 3,375 (225) || 600 || ±7° || ±7°
 +
|-
 +
|}
  
 
== Usage in the battles ==
 
== Usage in the battles ==
−
''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''
+
<!--''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''-->
 +
This tank is a good Jack-of-all-trades, meaning it can effectively deal with any situation with good effectiveness, meaning you can play it as you like, as long as you follow a few specific guidelines and patterns, in order not to get shot down too easily.
 +
 
 +
'''Hide LFP''': In any engagement, this is the weakest part of your frontal armour, behind it there is your main ammo rack and driver, avoid showing this part of the tank to the enemy.
 +
 
 +
'''Stay on the move''': This tank has good mobility, use it to make it harder to target your weak spots at close ranges and avoid shots at long ranges.
 +
 
 +
'''No hull angling''': Since your sides are weak, do not try angling since it will only allow the enemy to get an easy kill. Use your good hull traverse (turning on the spot) to always face directly your foe. When turning corners, take a ''large turn'' in order to show only your frontal armour to anything that can be waiting around the corner.
 +
 
 +
'''Angle turret between shots''': While your hull sides are not that thick, your turret's side armour is much more forgiving at 89 mm, nod your turret ~ 10° to the right in order to maximise frontal LOS thickness.
 +
 
 +
'''Compensate parallax''': Your gun and optics are very far apart from each order meaning that your shells will always fall 1 meter left of your crosshair at ''any range'' (no convergence). This is particularly important in RB/SB battle since there is no aiming assistance to help you.
  
 
=== Pros and cons ===
 
=== Pros and cons ===
−
''Summarize and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Do not use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - they have a substitution in the form of softer "inadequate", "effective".''
+
<!--''Summarize and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Do not use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - they have a substitution in the form of softer "inadequate", "effective".''-->
−
 
 
 
'''Pros:'''
 
'''Pros:'''
−
*
+
* Fast firing 17-pounder armament with APDS rounds.
−
 
+
* Good gun depression of -12°.
 +
* Decent front sloping armour.
 +
* Tough round sloping turret front.
 +
* Average mobility and decent maneuverability.
 +
* Good reverse speed.
 +
* Neutral steering.
 +
* Good stock mobility.
 +
* Access to smoke grenades.
 +
* Centurion Mk 1 can fill the role of a heavy tank if needed.
 +
* Turret can be angled for a much more effective armour thickness.
 +
* Frontal armour is quite resistant to the 85mm, 76mm and even the German 88mm (KwK36) guns at medium/long range.
 +
* Benefits greatly from the learning curve of the Comet I and Challenger, their players will find themselves at home when playing the Centurion.
 +
* Armour is a huge step up from the Comet I and the Challenger.
 +
* Centurion Mk 1 is arguably the best BR 5.7 tank, as it has a well balanced stats in terms of armour, mobility and firepower.
 +
* Mastering this tank will provide a good learning curve for the next Centurion variants.
 +
* Very low risk of fire.
 +
* Turret's top armour is thick, can resist most aircraft guns.
 
'''Cons:'''
 
'''Cons:'''
−
*
+
* No APHE rounds available, precision and knowledge of enemy tanks are required.
 +
* Large tank size, especially length.
 +
* Weak side armour, angling the armour too much will result in the side armour being penetrated.
 +
* Front ammo rack to left of driver, penetration to the lower glacis will likely ignite or destroy it.
 +
* Centurion Mk 1 is slow for a medium tank.
 +
* Unlike its later iterations, no [[Gun Stabilizer|gun stabilizer]].
 +
* Difficult to get kills with stock shells. They can penetrate but they may not destroy a tank, resulting in a lot of kill assists.
 +
* Weak Lower Frontal Plate (LFP), a weakness carried over to all British tanks onward.
 +
* Subpar turret armour (127 mm).
 +
* Top armour covering the engine is poor, only 8 mm.
  
 
== History ==
 
== History ==
−
''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the ground vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too big, take it to a separate article, taking a link to an article about the vehicle and adding a block "/historical reference" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/Name-vehicles/historical reference) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to include links to sources at the end of the article.''
+
<!--''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the ground vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too big, take it to a separate article, taking a link to an article about the vehicle and adding a block "/historical reference" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/Name-vehicles/historical reference) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to include links to sources at the end of the article.''-->
  
 
== Media ==
 
== Media ==
Line 42: Line 294:
  
 
== Read also ==
 
== Read also ==
−
''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example,''
+
[https://warthunder.com/en/news/4515-development-centurion-mk-i-a-tank-for-a-new-era-en/ [Devblog<nowiki>]</nowiki> Centurion Mk I: A Tank for a New Era]
−
* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
 
−
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''
 
−
''ETC.''
 
  
 
== Sources ==
 
== Sources ==
Line 51: Line 300:
 
* ''topic on the official game forum;''
 
* ''topic on the official game forum;''
 
* ''other literature.''
 
* ''other literature.''
 +
 +
{{Britain medium tanks}}

Revision as of 16:50, 25 November 2018

Introducing Wiki 3.0
Centurion Mk 1
uk_centurion_mk_1.png
Centurion Mk 1
Britain flag.png Britain
IV Rank
Battle rating:
AB RB SB
6.0 6.0 6.0
Class:
Research:46 000 Specs-Card-Exp.png
Purchase:155 000 Specs-Card-Lion.png

Description

GarageImage Centurion Mk 1.jpg


The Centurion Mk 1 is a Rank IV British medium tank with a battle rating of 5.7. It was introduced in Update 1.67 "Assault". It is equipped with the well-known British QF 17-pounder mounted on a new hull that definitively makes the Cromwell chassis outdated.

This tank does not play like any of the preceding British vehicles: while its mobility is below average for a rank IV medium, it compensates with armour, meaning that you will actually be able to withstand frontal combat and return fire, even if you get hit. It is the first medium to feature the late-game British armour pattern: a strong turret, thick and well-angled upper-glacis, weak lower glacis and thin sides. British tankers must get used to this configuration since it is found on every following medium tank.

The Centurion Mk.1 moves away from the familiar Cromwell chassis. While not being as fast or maneuverable, It does have sloped frontal armour, a strongly armoured turret, and a good QF 17-pounder gun with access to APDS.

Mobility
The Centurion easily reaches its top speed of 39 km/h on almost any ground, due to its wide tracks and good engine, even at stock performances. It also has a refreshingly good reverse speed (~13 km/h) (compared to the dreadful reverse speed of tanks on the Cromwell chassis) and can turn on the spot quite fast.

Armour
The main improvement from previous British mediums is its thick and sloped armour. Reaching 152 mm on the turret and a good 76 mm angled at 58° on the front hull, this tanks can actually block point-blank shots from most cannons it will face like the Russian D-5T, the Japanese Type II 75 mm and even some German guns at 500 m (see "specific enemies worth nothing" for more info). This tank can actually expose its upper glacis since it will bounce most shots. This tank still has weak spots though: gun and MG mantlet are "only" 127 mm thick, barely angled and lower glacis is 76 mm at 44°, meaning close-range shots will eventually penetrate. It also has thin side armour, meaning that the tank is vulnerable to flank attacks and compound angling cannot be done effectively without exposing the sides. These traits mean that the Centurion Mk.1 can happily stand up most frontal shots at this rank.

Firepower
The gun does not fire any shells with explosive filler, meaning that pinpoint accuracy is needed to get reliable kills (aiming for important modules, crew, or ammo racks). This canon's reload rate is faster than average at this BR, meaning you will be able to land 2 shots before your enemy can even fire. As any other tanks equipped with the QF 17-pounder, you will have to grind through subpar AP, APBC and APCBC shells before getting APDS. This last type of shell helps make accuracy quite easy and remains effective at long ranges while not being too costly in terms of silver lions.

A minor issue to notice is that the machine gun has very poor elevation and is loader-controlled, meaning that it cannot target even low flying aircraft and that it will be disabled once you lose two or more crew members.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armour type:

  • Rolled homogeneous armour (Hull, Turret sides, Turret roof)
  • Cast homogeneous armour (Turret front, Gun mantlet, Cupola)
Tank Armour Table
Armour Front Sides Rear Roof
Hull 76.2 mm (58°) Front glacis
76.2 mm (44°) Lower glacis 		51 (12°) + 6 mm 38 mm (7°) Top
38 mm (18°) Bottom 		29 mm
8-14 mm Engine deck
Turret 127 mm (2-58°) Turret front
127 mm (6-40°) Gun mantlet 		76 mm (9-11°) 76 mm (1°)
38 mm (89°) Turret underside 		25 mm
Armour Sides Roof
Cupola 90 mm 19 mm

Notes:

  • Tracks and suspension wheels are both 20 mm thick.
  • The steel boxes around the turret and hull give a 4 mm additional protection, though this seems to be a negligible addition.
  • Spaced armour plates are placed on the side of the Centurion, giving an additional 6 mm of side armour.

Mobility

Mobility characteristic
Weight (tons) Add-on Armour
weight (tons) 		Max speed (km/h)
42.3 N/A 39 (AB)
35 (RB/SB)
Engine power (horsepower)
Mode Stock Upgraded
Arcade 930 ___
Realistic/Simulator 531 600
Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
Mode Stock Upgraded
Arcade 21.98 __.__
Realistic/Simulator 12.55 14.18

Armaments

Main armament

Main article: Ordnance QF 17-pounder (76 mm)
76 mm OQF 17-pounder
Capacity Vertical
guidance 		Horizontal
guidance 		Stabilizer
74 -12°/+20° ±180° N/A
Turret rotation speed (°/s)
Mode Stock Upgraded Prior + Full crew Prior + Expert qualif. Prior + Ace qualif.
Arcade 10.7 _._ _._ _._ _._
Realistic 10.7 _._ _._ _._ _._
Reloading rate (seconds)
Stock Prior + Full crew Prior + Expert qualif. Prior + Ace qualif.
7.6 _._ _._ _._
Ammunition
Penetration statistics
Ammunition Type of
warhead 		Penetration in mm @ 90°
10m 100m 500m 1000m 1500m 2000m
Shot Mk.6 AP 160 157 133 112 96 86
Shell Mk.1 HE 9 9 9 9 9 9
Shot Mk.4 APC 165 160 138 108 94 81
Shot Mk.8 APCBC 171 168 156 143 130 120
Shot SV Mk.1 APDS 228 226 207 189 159 134
Shell details
Ammunition Type of
warhead 		Velocity
in m/s 		Projectile
Mass in kg 		Fuse delay

in m:

Fuse sensitivity

in mm:

Explosive Mass in g
(TNT equivalent): 		Normalization At 30°
from horizontal: 		Ricochet:
0% 50% 100%
Shot Mk.6 AP 883 7.7 N/A N/A N/A -1° 47° 60° 65°
Shell Mk.1 HE 883 7.0 0.4 0.5 883 +0° 79° 80° 81°
Shot Mk.4 APC 883 7.7 N/A N/A N/A -1° 48° 63° 71°
Shot Mk.8 APCBC 883 7.7 N/A N/A N/A +4° 48° 63° 71°
Shot SV Mk.1 APDS 1203 1.7 N/A N/A N/A +1.5° 75° 78° 80°
Smoke characteristic
Ammunition Velocity
in m/s 		Projectile
Mass in kg 		Screen radius
in m 		Screen time
in s 		Screen hold time
in s: 		Explosive Mass in g
(TNT equivalent):
17pdr Shell SS Mk.1 754 8.4 13 5 20 50
Ammo racks
Ammo racks of the Centurion Mk.1
Full
ammo 		1st
rack empty 		2nd
rack empty 		3rd
rack empty 		4th
rack empty 		Visual
discrepancy
74 71 (+3) 55 (+19) 39 (+35) 1 (+73) Yes

Turret & Center empty: 39 (+35)

Machine guns

Main article: BESA (7.92 mm)
7.92 mm BESA
Coaxial mount
Capacity (Belt capacity) Fire rate
(shots/minute) 		Vertical
guidance 		Horizontal
guidance
3,375 (225) 600 ±7° ±7°

Usage in the battles

This tank is a good Jack-of-all-trades, meaning it can effectively deal with any situation with good effectiveness, meaning you can play it as you like, as long as you follow a few specific guidelines and patterns, in order not to get shot down too easily.

Hide LFP: In any engagement, this is the weakest part of your frontal armour, behind it there is your main ammo rack and driver, avoid showing this part of the tank to the enemy.

Stay on the move: This tank has good mobility, use it to make it harder to target your weak spots at close ranges and avoid shots at long ranges.

No hull angling: Since your sides are weak, do not try angling since it will only allow the enemy to get an easy kill. Use your good hull traverse (turning on the spot) to always face directly your foe. When turning corners, take a large turn in order to show only your frontal armour to anything that can be waiting around the corner.

Angle turret between shots: While your hull sides are not that thick, your turret's side armour is much more forgiving at 89 mm, nod your turret ~ 10° to the right in order to maximise frontal LOS thickness.

Compensate parallax: Your gun and optics are very far apart from each order meaning that your shells will always fall 1 meter left of your crosshair at any range (no convergence). This is particularly important in RB/SB battle since there is no aiming assistance to help you.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Fast firing 17-pounder armament with APDS rounds.
  • Good gun depression of -12°.
  • Decent front sloping armour.
  • Tough round sloping turret front.
  • Average mobility and decent maneuverability.
  • Good reverse speed.
  • Neutral steering.
  • Good stock mobility.
  • Access to smoke grenades.
  • Centurion Mk 1 can fill the role of a heavy tank if needed.
  • Turret can be angled for a much more effective armour thickness.
  • Frontal armour is quite resistant to the 85mm, 76mm and even the German 88mm (KwK36) guns at medium/long range.
  • Benefits greatly from the learning curve of the Comet I and Challenger, their players will find themselves at home when playing the Centurion.
  • Armour is a huge step up from the Comet I and the Challenger.
  • Centurion Mk 1 is arguably the best BR 5.7 tank, as it has a well balanced stats in terms of armour, mobility and firepower.
  • Mastering this tank will provide a good learning curve for the next Centurion variants.
  • Very low risk of fire.
  • Turret's top armour is thick, can resist most aircraft guns.

Cons:

  • No APHE rounds available, precision and knowledge of enemy tanks are required.
  • Large tank size, especially length.
  • Weak side armour, angling the armour too much will result in the side armour being penetrated.
  • Front ammo rack to left of driver, penetration to the lower glacis will likely ignite or destroy it.
  • Centurion Mk 1 is slow for a medium tank.
  • Unlike its later iterations, no gun stabilizer.
  • Difficult to get kills with stock shells. They can penetrate but they may not destroy a tank, resulting in a lot of kill assists.
  • Weak Lower Frontal Plate (LFP), a weakness carried over to all British tanks onward.
  • Subpar turret armour (127 mm).
  • Top armour covering the engine is poor, only 8 mm.

History

Media

An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.

Read also

[Devblog] Centurion Mk I: A Tank for a New Era

Sources

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

  • topic on the official game forum;
  • other literature.


Britain medium tanks
Valentine  Valentine I · Valentine IX · Valentine XI
Cromwell  Cromwell I · Cromwell V · Cromwell V (RP-3)
Cromwell derivatives  Challenger · Avenger · Comet I · Comet I "Iron Duke IV" · Charioteer Mk VII
Centurion  Centurion Mk 1 · Centurion Mk.2 · Centurion Mk 3 · Centurion Mk.5 AVRE · Centurion Mk 10 · Centurion Action X · FV4202
Vickers MBT  Vickers Mk.1 · Vickers Mk.3 · Vickers Mk.7
Chieftain  Chieftain Mk 3 · Chieftain Mk 5 · Chieftain Mk 10
Challenger 1  Challenger Mk.2 · Challenger Mk.3 · Challenger DS
Challenger 2  Challenger 2 · Challenger 2 (2F) · Challenger 2 TES · Challenger 2 OES · Challenger 2E · Challenger 2 Black Night
Challenger 3  Challenger 3 TD
Australia  A.C.I · A.C.IV · Centurion Mk.5/1
South Africa  Olifant Mk.1A · Olifant Mk.2 · TTD
India  Vijayanta · Bhishma TWMP
Israel  ▄Sho't Kal Dalet
Jordan  Khalid
Sweden  ▄Strv 81 (RB 52)
USA  Grant I · Sherman II · Sherman Firefly · Sherman IC "Trzyniec"

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