- Sniper mode = Zooming in using the mouse wheel or shift so that the camera is now centered where your gun's barrel is pointing.
- Third Person / Normal mode = This is the state where you can see your tank from a third persons perspective.
- Strategic View (Arty) = This is the top down view that SPG's get when you press Shift in one of them, it is very handy to use and I generally stay in this view mode 90% of the time.
- TD Mode = When an enemy tank gets a bit too close I like to leave Strategic View so I can see my artillery in third person (normal mode). Generally I prefer shooting tanks that are close to my artillery in third person instead of a top down perspective since I can see how much of the reticule the tank takes up instead of a ring on the ground around / behind him.
In situations where you're pulling around a corner to do a quick peek-a-boom (drive out of cover, shoot, run back behind cover) it is best to zoom in. It could be a building, a large rock, or even those annoying trains that you can't shoot through. This is because of how World of Tanks handles where your barrel should point based on where your cross-hair is pointing on the map from a different view point. I'm pretty sure a lot of you have noticed when you are close to certain objects your gun stays trained on it for a few seconds as you pass it or looks up into the sky for some odd reason (I believe it has to deal with collision boxes).
Pretty much when such time sensitive subjects comes up as poping around a corner between a guys reload. Think of those few seconds it takes for your barrel to turn towards the target, where if you where zoomed in you could already aim directly at where the tank is as soon as you can see it. Those seconds could mean the difference between getting shot / killed and living long enough to get that next shot off. Several times zooming in before I turn a corner has saved me, especially when I notice that my tank decided to look at the second story window instead of where a tank would actually be!
Hugging a Tank
Now I'm sure at some point you've been touching the tank you are shooting at, be it side hugging a tank destroyer to going face to face with another brawler. A lot of times it doesn't matter if you zoom in or out since it is almost impossible to miss, however when your tank is tall and the other tank is short you'll have a pretty good chance of actually shooting over them! When zoomed out you can't really tell if your gun is looking at the tank, or just over it. However when you're in sniper mode and the tank covers all of your reticule you'll know you can hit it unless someone suddenly moves. Too often have I missed easy shots because I didn't bother zooming in to make sure my gun was elevated all the way down to guarantee a hit.
Now after you have shot though you'll want to zoom out as fast as you can. In situations like these angling and where you are can be very important. In a lot of cases while driving a TD a scout or medium decided hugging my side was a good idea, however they didn't pay attention to where we where backing up too and they ran into a house allowing me to scrape them off directly into the path of my gun. Another good part is that you can see where the other tank that is shooting you is looking so you can hopefully turn just enough so his shot bounces off an angled section of hull or is dispersed through your tracks. Since you're reloading anyway knowing what is happening around your tank and its angle is more important then staring at a wall / weak spot when you still have over 3 seconds to reload.
Running all over the place
Now in a lot of maps, especially the new ones there are a LOT of bumps on the ground. For fast tanks or people shooting on the move it becomes increasingly difficult to hit anything while your camera is bouncing up and down on the screen. In situations where I'm running over terrain other then smooth roads I like to shoot from third person. It is easier to keep my cross-hair centered on the middle of the tank I'm shooting at so my chances of hitting him increase compared to clicking the trigger when my tank suddenly dips an inch (and my cross-hair dips a mile).
TD Mode
Now there exists a magic distance in which I switch from strategic view to third person for my artillery. This distance changes a bit based on the terrain around me. Generally though this range is about a map square. You can also avoid those frustrating cases where you happen to hit a parked car or a destructible wall that you couldn't see on the top down view while focused on that tank. Just yesterday I one shot a tank hunting for me in TD mode which I'd probably miss in Strategic because of a destructible object that was in front of me that I just noticed and shifted my pre-aimed location to avoid it of before he came around the corner and died to an arty round to the face.
However TD mode is less reliable the further the enemy tank is since you'll want to see how far you may overshoot him or under shoot him. In cases where I get a chance to pre-aim or he's around a grid square away or further I'd stay in strategic. The chances of overshooting is higher but with pre-aiming I'll KNOW if I can hit him when he walks over that completely zoomed in circle.
Finally
And then there are those obvious occasions when zooming in to sniper mode is a good idea. These include when shooting over 100m (sniping), aiming for specific weak spots like the commanders hatch, and other occurrences where you need to hit a certain spot. As you play the game you'll notice the different situations where you'll need to enter sniper mode to get a hit, and then there are also those times where you have to zoom out into third person to focus more on maneuvering your tank.
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