- For the character from Nazi Zombies, see "Tank" Dempsey.
Tanks are heavily armored, heavily armed tracked combat vehicles.
In-Game 
Edit
Tanks are seen in every Call of Duty game except Call of Duty Black Ops on the Nintendo DS. During World War II, Nazi Germany used tanks alongside infantry with simultaneous air support to create the strategy of "blitzkrieg" ("lightning war" in German). German tanks during World War II included the Panzer, Panther, and Tiger Tanks. The Allies also recognized the importance of tanks in warfare. They manufactured and used tanks such as the American M4 Sherman Tank, the British Crusader Tank and the Russian T-34.
Call of Duty: United Offensive features operable tanks in multiplayer: The Americans and British command the Sherman Tank, the Russians have the T34, and the Germans have the Panzer IV. These medium tanks are equipped with a main cannon and a coaxial machine gun operated by the driver, and an open MG turret operated by a second player. Medium tanks take 33% damage from the front, 50% damage from the side, 100% damage from the back, and 140% damage from underneath. In addition to these tanks, the Germans and Russians command special tank destroyers, who have a powerful but immobile main cannon and a frontal machine gun. They are the Elefant and the SU-152, respectively. Tank destroyers take 20% damage from the front, 40% damage from the side, 60% damage from the back, and 140% damage from underneath. Both tanks and tank destroyers have 900 health.
In Call of Duty 2, enemy tanks are encountered during the single player campaign and they must be destroyed with explosives. The tanks used by the allies are Crusaders and Shermans. The tanks used by the Germans are Panzer II (used on the eastern front), Panzer IV (used in North Africa) and Tiger I (used on the western front).
Call of Duty 3 sees a return in the use of tanks in Multiplayer. The player can also control a tank in the mission The Black Baron
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare depicts the use of modern, main battle tanks such as the Russian T-72 and the American M1 Abrams in the campaign. However, they cannot be used in multiplayer.
In Call of Duty: World at War, one can man a tank in multiplayer with up to two people in it. One person drives the tank and uses the cannon, and the other uses the HMG on the top. The latter can also crouch for greater cover if desired.
In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, M1 Abrams tanks are seen in multiple places throughout the game, most prevalent being the mission Of Their Own Accord, during the Battle of Washington D.C..
Below is a list of tanks used in the Call of Duty series.
American Edit
M3 Stuart Edit
The Stuart Light Tank was an American light tank used by Allied forces in many battles throughout World War II. It was named after an American Civil War Confederate Cavalry General, J.E.B. Stuart
M4 Sherman Edit
The M4 Sherman was a medium tank used by Allied forces during the Second World War. It was christened "Sherman" after the American Civil War General, William Tecumseh Sherman.
M26 Pershing Edit
The M26 Pershing was an American heavy tank used by Allied forces during the Second World War. Armed with a 90mm M3 gun, it was America's answer to Germany's Panther and Tiger where the M4 Sherman couldn't penetrate its heavy armor. It was named after General John Joseph "Black Jack" Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Force during the Western Front in World War I. It was used by the United States Army in Call of Duty: WWII.
M1 Abrams Edit
The M1 Abrams is an American main battle tank. It was named after Gen. Creighton Abrams, the commander of 37th Armored Division in Vietnam. It was used by the United States Marine Corps in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and used by the United States Army in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.
M48 Patton Edit
The M48 Patton is an American medium tank used during the Vietnam War. It was named after General George S. Patton, commander of the U.S. Third Army during World War II and one of the earliest American advocates for tanks in battle. It appears in the Berlin Wall multiplayer level of Call of Duty: Black Ops.
British Edit
Crusader Edit
The Crusader tank was the primary tank of British forces in the North Africa campaign during World War II. It was replaced by American tanks in the invasion of Italy.
Sherman Firefly Edit
The Sherman Firefly is a British variant of the Sherman Tank that was used during World War II. The Sherman Firefly is used in the video game Call of Duty 3 by the Polish in the mission, The Black Baron.
Russian Edit
T-34 Edit
The T-34 medium tank was the main tank used by the Soviet Union during World War II. T-34/85s were used in many Soviet-client and formerly-Soviet client states after the war's ending.
T-55Edit
The T-55 is a Soviet main battle tank. It was used by the North Vietnamese Army in Call of Duty: Black Ops.
T-62 Edit
The T-62 is a Soviet main battle tank. It was used by the MPLA, Mujahideen, and Soviet Armed Forces in Call of Duty: Black Ops II.
T-72 Edit
The T-72 is a Soviet main battle tank. It was used by Ultranationalists and OpFor forces in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
T-90Edit
The T-90 is a Russian main battle tank. It appears in Modern Warfare 3 alongside the T-72 as the MBT of the Russian Army.
Unknown Soviet Tank Edit
The Unknown Soviet Tank is a massive tank. Only one such tank was used by the Soviet Armed Forces in Call of Duty: Black Ops II level "Old Wounds".
German Edit
The German tanks to appear in the games, except for those in Modern Warfare 3, are all from the WWII Panzer family. 'Panzer' is derived from the German 'Panzerkampfwagen' meaning 'armored fighting vehicle'.
Panzer II Edit
The Panzer II is a light tank armed with only a 2cm FLaK auto-cannon and 1-2 machine guns. It is fought in Call of Duty 2.
Panzer IV Edit
The Panzer IV medium tank was the most common German tank of WWII, which is reflected in game. Armed with a 7.5cm L/48 high-velocity gun and two to three machine guns. It was fought in most WWII Call of Duty games except Call of Duty 2.
Panzer V 'Panther' Edit
The Panther medium (by German classification, actually heavier than Allied heavy designations at 45t) was made as a response to the T34 and learned from it, with heavy, sloped armor and a very long-barreled high-velocity 7.5cm gun L/70. It was fought in Call of Duty 3 and Call of Duty: World at War.
Panzer VI 'Tiger' Edit
The Tigers shared the Panzer VI designation and were both very heavy tanks armed with an 8.8cm high-velocity gun.
Panzer VI E 'Tiger I' Edit
The Tiger was the first production heavy tank of the Wehrmacht with heavy, flat-sided armor and an 8.8cm KwK-36 L/56 gun. It was fought in several games.
Panzer VI B 'Tiger II' Edit
The Tiger II was - in essence - an exaggeration of the Panther and the Tiger I with even heavier, sloped armor and the dreaded 8.8cm KwK-43 L/71 gun. It was fought in Call of Duty: Finest Hour, Call of Duty 3 and Call of Duty: World at War.
Leopard 2 Edit
The Leopard 2 is a German main battle tank used by the Bundeswehr (today's German Army). It appears in Modern Warfare 3's reveal trailer and in "Scorched Earth".
Italian Edit
Fiat M13/40 Edit
The Fiat M13/40 was an Italian medium tank used during World War II.
Japanese Edit
Type 97 Edit
The Type 97 was a medium tank widely used by the Imperial Japanese Army in the Pacific theater of World War II. It is usually adorned with camouflaging leaves that are also used by Japanese ambush soldiers.
FrenchEdit
Renault R35Edit
The Renault R35 was a French light tank used in World War II.
Gallery Edit
Call of Duty: World at War Edit
Tanks in World at War are seen and are able to be operated in multiplayer in the maps Roundhouse, Seelow, Downfall and Outskirts. The tank is driven in third-person. They are equipped with a cannon which is operated by the driver and a turret that can be operated by another person. While tanks are powerful they are slow and can be destroyed by bazookas and sticky grenades. Two satchel charges can obliterate a tank even at full health. A common strategy is to acquire all tanks in a level and then use them on the opposition. In this way, tanks can be almost unstoppable but can still be put down by experienced players and those who use teamwork. Operating the turret is risky as it will leave the player exposed as "sniper bait" to all other enemy players but if operated correctly can be a quick way to nab a kill streak. Using the perk Greased Bearings will increase rotation speed and allow for faster targeting, Water Cooler reduces the overheating of the turret, Leadfoot allows the tank to move faster, Ordnance Training halves the reload time of the tank cannon, and Coaxial Machine Gun gives the driver a machine gun.
A tank can also crush to death any unfortunate enemy player who happens to get into its path, resulting in much blood and a rather satisfying 'squishing' sound. The leadfoot perk makes crushing enemy players slightly easier, but the tactic itself should not be relied on. It may be of some use between reloads, as well as against players who are either stupid enough to stand still as a pair of caterpillar tracks are about to roll over their bodies or just aren't paying attention.
The quickest way to destroy enemy tanks lies with Satchel Charges and sticky grenades. If a Satchel Charge is detonated under the front half of a tank, the tank will be damaged to such an extent that one sticky grenade will finish it off. A Satchel Charge detonated under the back half of the tank will destroy the tank there and then without exceptions. If, however, one is not likely to lure a tank into driving over a charge, there is another method: two Satchel Charges placed at the back followed by a sticky grenade to the back of the tank will destroy it regardless of its health. The Satchel Charges are suggested to be placed on the ground right behind the tank, instead of the back itself, as this seems to be more effective. However, the sticky grenade does not always set off the charges and so it is advised for the player to detonate the charges manually.
Tanks in the multiplayer have 1350 health, and take 0.5 base damage from gunfire, unless from the PTRS-41, which does 10-30 damage per bullet depending on where the player shoots. Fragmentation grenades do 60 base damage, sticky grenades do 336 base damage, Bazookas do 240 base damage, Rifle Grenades do 150 base damage, shells from other tanks do 300 base damage, and Satchel Charges also do 300 base damage (unless they hit the underside, in which they will always destroy the tank instantly). Damage is multiplied by 1.2 if it hits the side of the tank and by 2 if it hits the back of the tank. A 6.75 multiplier is awarded to Satchels under the back half. Non-sticky explosives have to destroy the armor plating of the tank before damaging it. Satchel Charges and sticky grenades do not take armor plating into account.
Randomly-generated namesEdit
Soviet UnionEdit
Much like Randomly generated soldiers, certain T-34s in the campaign draw names from a Soviet-specific name pool. They are listed below. Note that names with three "x"s instead of a number can be assigned any number between 100 and 600.
- Kirovsky Factory No. XXX
- Kharkov Locomotive Factory
- Ural Rail Works No. XXX
- Nizhny Machine Factory No. XXX
- Putilov Factory No. XXX
- Tiger Tamer
- Rodina!
- Sasha's Chariot
- Moscow Military District
- 29th Uralskaya Tank Corps
United KingdomEdit
Despite being cut from the game, tank names remain in the files. Some names are in situ from Call of Duty 3.
- Gravedigger
- Angel Maker
- Cannonball
- Lucky Lucy
- Greta Garbo
- Hole in One
- Smokey
- Untouchable
- Hellcat
- Jerry's Medicine
- Her Majesty
- Storm Crow
- Dust Devil
- Homewrecker
- Jack the Ripper
- Divine Intervention
- Bloody Mary
- Pandemonium
United States of AmericaEdit
- Marauder
- Laughing Joe
- Detroit Iron
- Mississippi Iron
- Big Bertha
- Pacific Thunder (this replaced "Kraut Killer" on the 9th of April 2008, as the former name was considered to not "make sense for our [Treyarch's] US campaign")
- Five Day Express
- Thumper
- Wicked Witch
- Uncle Sam
Call of Duty: Black OpsEdit
Tanks are only seen during the Vietnam missions and in the bonus game mode Dead Ops Arcade. It is a power up that gives the player a controllable T-55 tank and unlimited ammunition for the cannon. There are also multiple Soviet and American tanks on the multiplayer map Berlin Wall.
Trivia Edit
- If the treads manage to get totally destroyed (indicated by black tread/treads on the damage indicator), the tank will look severely damaged and will no longer be able to be driven. However, the cannon and turret can still be used.
- In the Wii version, there are no tanks in multiplayer, due to Wii's RAM limitations.
- The player can gib players by running them over with a tank.
