StuG III Ausf. B User's Guide

The Assault Gun

The Sturmgeschütz (or StuG for short) was originally conceived by General Erich von Manstein who wanted a tracked assault gun to knock out pill-boxes and other fortifications.  On June 15 1936, the order was given to Daimler-Benz AG to develop and produce an armored infantry support vehicle mounting 75mm gun.  The gun was to have a limited traverse of minimum 25 degrees in order to provide direct support up to 6 kilometers. The gun was to be mounted in a superstructure that provided full protection for the crew. The height of this vehicle was not to exceed the height of an average man.  Based on the Panzer III chassis already in production, the first StuGIII's saw action in France, 1940.  Altogether, the StuG III was inexpensive to build compared to turreted tanks and performed it's function as an assault gun very well.

For more information about the StuG III Ausf. B and other WWII equipment, please visit the main portion of my website and search for them under the appropriate heading.

Crew Positions

Position 1 is the Driver.

Position 2 is the Commander.

Position 3 is the Gunner.

Position 4 is the Loader & Radio Operator

 Armor Protection

Front View

Rear View

Position 1 - The Driver

The driver starts the StuG's engines by hitting the e key on the keyboard.  After they've been started the transmission is set in the forward gear position by default, but can be changed by hitting the r key.  To change gears the player must use the [ and ] keys.  To increase or decrease your engine's horsepower use your joystick's y-axis (forwards and backwards).  To steer left and right, use your joystick's x-axis (side-to-side).  Use your number pad on your keyboard to look around in a 300 degree arc.  Hitting the del key on your number pad will switch to the periscope view, but only if you've already his the o key to deploy the periscope and close the vision slit.  The Ins key on your keyboard's number pad will show you your instruments.  

You'll find these same basic operations for all land vehicles in World War II Online.

Driver's View (Open Vision Slit)

Driver's View (Closed Vision Slit / Deployed Periscope)

Driver's Periscope View (1x Magnification)

Driver's Guages

Position 2 - The Commander

The StuG's commander is similar to those of other vehicles.  He begins "buttoned up" (all hatches closed) and with a view of the inside of the tank.  To see outside he can be deployed/un-deployed using the o key on your keyboard.  Once the commander is deployed he is vulnerable to enemy fire, but he can also hear and see things around the StuG much better.  To use his binoculars, press the del key to toggle between levels of magnification.  Unlike the commanders of other vehicles, the StuG's commander has the ability to determine range - an extremely powerful and useful advantage.  To do this he must be in his binocular view and align the desired target with the crosshairs, then press the r key on the keyboard.  In eight seconds the targets estimated range will appear in the text box at the bottom of your screen.

Commander's View (Un-deployed)

Commander's View (Deployed)

Binocular View (With the crosshairs aligned on the target and range determined.)

Position 3 - The Gunner

The 75mm KwK 37 L / 24 main gun is at the front of the tank, offset to the right.  To fire the StuG's main gun it must first be deployed by opening the top hatch and setting up the periscope, which is done by hitting the d key on your keyboard.  During this time the gunner is exposed to top fire that can reach inside the tank since the hatch is open.  The gunner can also open/close his front view-port by hitting the o key, and can see through it by using the del key on your keyboard's number pad.  While open, the gunner is exposed to enemy small arms fire from the front.

You can fire the main gun by hitting your joystick's primary fire button or the f key on your keyboard.  This gun can be traversed 25° from the center of the tank in either direction .  The player can switch to the gun-sight view by hitting the del key on your keyboard's number pad, and there are 2 levels of magnification. The sight's range can be adjusted by using the page-up and page-down key.  The minimum range setting is 10 meters and the maximum is 3370 meters.  If you cannot see the range indicator, press the ~ to toggle it on or off.  If you cannot see the range indicator, press the ~ to toggle it on or off.  To switch between armor piercing and high explosive ammunition use the backspace key.

To hit the target of who's range you've already determined using the commander, adjust the range on the gun-sight appropriately, then put the large triangle in the center of the sight on the target.  Due to shot dispersion, your first attempt my not result in a hit.  Also, the ballistics for each of the three StuG round types are different, and small adjustments to the sight maybe be needed to insure accuracy.

The StuGIII Ausf. B carries 6 armor-piercing, 12 high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT), and 26 high-explosive rounds.  Penetration data in WWII Online is a closely guarded secret since a lot of research has been done at the expense of CRS.  However, the most common accepted information for gamers in recent history has been "WWII Ballistics - Armor and Gunnery" by Lorrin Rexford Bird and Robert D. Livingston.  They list the following data for the 7.5cm KwK 37 L / 24 gun firing against rolled homogenous armor plate:

Gunner's View (Un-deployed)

Gunner's View (Deployed)

Gunner's View (Deployed and View-port Opened)

Gunner's Zoomed View-port

Gunner's Gun-sight View (2x Magnification)

Gunner's Gun-sight View (Note: An AP rounds has been fired at the target.)

Position 4 - The Loader & Radio Operator

This position currently has no player function in this game.  He can be killed, although it does not affect the radio functions of the tank, nor does is prevent rounds from being re-loaded.

The Loaders & Radio Operator's View

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