The definitive Sherman, M4A1, one of the most well recognized iconic tanks of all time
The Sherman Firefly, with 76mm gun
The M4 Sherman, formally Medium Tank, M4, was the primary tank used by the United States during World War II. It was also distributed to the Allies via lend-lease. It was used from 1942 to 1973, seen action both on east and western front. Evolved from previous medium and light tanks, it was the first American medium tank with the main gun mounted on a fully traversing turret, unlike the older tanks, which has a 37mm gun turret and a 75mm gun attached at the front side of the tank. Over 50,000 Shermans are built during the WW2.
Most Shermans are armed with a 75mm main gun with two M1919A4 Browning .30 Machine gun and one M2 Browning .50 Machine gun. Later models (i.e. M4A3E8 'Easy eight' Sherman) are upgraded to 76mm M1A1 high velocity gun, or the M68A1/British L7 105mm rifled gun. Like the M50/51 Super Sherman used by Israel in 1970s.
The Sherman Firefly tank is a modified British variant of the Sherman. It is equipped with a powerful OQF 17 Pounder (76.2mm) gun instead of a low velocity 75mm gun, it has a M2HB Browning .50 Machine gun for crew protection. Used widely by commonwealth forces as tank destroyer. In real life, most Sherman Fireflies have equipped an extra M1919A4 Browing .30 Machine gun at front slope. Even with these improvements, the Sherman in general still did not have enough power to take out the much more powerful and armored German Tigers and Panthers, and were still easy prey. However the Firefly was able to be a good match for the Panzer IIl, Panzer IV or the Panther (if the shell hits its side or rear armor), due to the effective range of its 17-pounder gun.
Another downside is most Shermans have thin armor (max 62mm thick, but mostly 51mm), its an easy target for Tigers, Panthers or even Panzer IVs ang StuG Assault guns.
Despite the M4 being inferior than German Panthers and Tigers, in the Pacific theater, the M4 proved to be superior than the Japanese Type-97 tanks (or even some rarer heavy tanks). In Western front, its number usually outnumbered the German Tank, thus despite taking heavy losses from Panzers and Flak cannons, the Sherman eventually overwhelmed the German defense. Especially near the end of the war, Easy Eight Shermans and Sherman Fireflies are more common, while the Germans has very little number of tanks available. In first two games, you can command your tank as well as operate its .50 caliber M2 heavy machinegun. In Hell's Highway however, you will play as the commander of sherman firefly, you can move and shot the tank like the other FPS games (Like Call of Duty, Metal of Honor series), you can also operate the .50 cal. In these levels, you will mostly fight alone. Remember to dig in your tank commander when he is taking fire.
Tank Stats[]
Turret armor: 76/51/51 mm
Hull armor: 51/38/38 mm
Armament: 75mm Gun M3
Crew[]
There are 5 men to drive a Tank.
- Commander
- Gunner
- Loader
- Driver
- Assistant Driver/Bow Gunner
Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30[]
The M4A1 Sherman is first seen in Brother in Arms in the mission "Buying the Farm". It is then seen again in "Alternate Route" and finally come in pair in "No Better Spot to Die". The M4A1 Sherman is quite vulerable when facing Panzer IVs, move the tank frequently to avoid being constantly pounded.
Brother in Arms: Earned in Blood[]
M4A3 Shermans are seen supporting your squads in the Hill 30 missions, later on mission Baupte, player can command one of the Shermans to support them, they can either use M4 to take out enemy Panzer IVs, or destroy them using the Panzerfaust. Beware that the M4A3 is vulnerable to German anti-tank weapon, and its commander can be killed sometimes.
Brothers in Arms: Hells Highway[]
The Sherman Firefly is seen a couple of times. Now only armed with a single .50 cal machinegun and a more powerful, long range, tank-on-tank battle designed 17-pounder gun. It is controlled by the player in "Operation: Garden". It is also controlled again in "Black Friday", and it is finally controlled in "Tooth and Nail". If you (the tank commander) took too many fire from the enemy, don't forget to dig in, this also can help you with the aiming the 17-pounder gun, because the crosshair will be smaller when you dug in. Also you should make the good use of the excellent mobility of the Sherman to gain advantage to enemy Panzers, furthermore, the 17-pounder gun is really accurate and long range, you can engage from the distance that the enemy Panzer IV has difficulty to retaliate. But look out for Panthers, their longer 75mm gun can hit you from long range and hits very hard. If you can see enemy tanks or emplacement from a long range, dig in your commander and start shooting, the enemies will never be able to know you are there and fire back, even if they use Panzerschreck, you will have enough time to dodge them. Only three types of enemy will be your real threat: 88mm Flak guns, enemy Panzers, and Panzerschreck teams.