121 Guide

Hello and welcome to the Tier 10 Chinese medium, the 121!



Tank specs:

Gun:

122 mm 60-122TG
Ammo Count: 40
Damage: 440/440/530
Penetration: 258/340/68
Rate of Fire: 6.25 rounds per minute
Accuracy: 0.35
Aim Time: 2.7
Elevation: -3°/+15°
Price: 185140

Turret:

121
Armor: 240/130/60
Traverse Speed: 40 d/s
Traverse Arc: 360°
View Range: 400 m
Price: 66000
Weight: 10000 kg

Engine:

12150L7
Power: 580 hp
Fire Chance: 12%
Type: Diesel
Price: 25000
Weight: 935 kg

Suspension:

121
Load Limit: 42 tonnes
Traverse Speed: 50 d/s
Price: 82500
Weight: 7700 kg

Radio:

A-220B
Range: 750 m
Price: 54000
Weight: 40 kg

Tech Tree:


Overview:
The 121 is one of the Tier 10 vehicles that come fully elite and does not have upgrades. This means that the only way to push the vehicle past its stated stats will be the usage of crew skills, consumables and equipment.
The 121 is based on a slightly bigger and up-armoured Type 59(WZ-120) chassis. It is about as big as the Soviet T-62A, which does make it slightly easier to hit than its predecessors, but can still be considered a small vehicle. Thank goodness it features quite improved armour when compared with its predecessor. Unfortunately, whilst definitely a tougher vehicle, its lower hull is also just a little bigger and easier to hit, though thankfully it is still a small weak spot. Its gun elevation does not let it use the tough turret as well as the Chinese tank might have wanted.
It comes with a 122mm gun quite similar to the one on the IS-4, one of the Tier 10 Soviet heavy tanks. This 60-122TG gives it very good damage per shot for a medium tank (like an IS-4), great penetration and decent accuracy. Unfortunately we also have pretty much non-existent gun depression and elevation. Tanks larger than the 121 with vulnerable top parts like periscopes or cupolas can feel relatively safe because the Chinese just can’t reach them. Every bump in the road has the potential to make the gun unusable and reset its aim time, which is also relatively slow for a medium tank. Missing is also risky thanks to the somewhat low reload speed.
Speaking of speed, the 121 is again not very good. The top speed is good but its weak engine is actually a step down from the WZ-120, especially noticeable when going up-hills. The good turn rate and terrain passability seem to somewhat make up for these shortcomings and it can be quite agile at low speeds.
All in all, the 121 is a well armoured, relatively small medium tank with usable mobility. It is definitely not an easy vehicle to use, having to always go for the flattest of terrains, maintain some distance even when circling or turret hugging most of its enemies. Even so, its high damage per shot, great penetration and excellent wolf-pack potential should be respected.
Price: 6 100 000
Camouflage: Good
Gun Elevation: -3°/+15°

Pros:
- Very good damage per shot.
- Good agility at low speeds.
- Good turret and hull armour.
- Relatively small and with decent camo.

Cons:
- Lacks in acceleration/hill climbing.
- Gun depression and elevation is pathetic.
- Relatively frequent module damage.
- Not good aim time and reload speed.

Designation:
1.Warrior 2. Medium Support Tank 4. Heavy Tank Hunter 4.Brawler 5. Sniper 6. Flanker
The 121 can be an excellent wolf pack tank and is a great brawler and hit-and-runner.
Direct Engagement 121: Ramer; Vertical Stabilizer; Ventilation
Scouting Medium 121: Coated Optics; Ramer; Ventilation/ Camouflage Net

Crew:
1. Commander (also a radioman)
2. Gunner
3. Driver
4. Loader

Crew skills (only an example, up to 4th skill):

Spoiler:

Modules:
Hull:
Armor scheme currently in use:

Spoiler:

120/80/60
Hull armour is quite decent for a medium tank. It can protect relatively (might still get penned if unlucky) well from about 210mm of penetration and 245mm HEAT penetration. Side and rear are obviously very easy to penetrate.
Lower hull is easier to hit than on the WZ-120 and is penetrable with 195+ penetration. It is still a relatively small weak spot though.

Suspension:
121 / Max.capacity 42.00 / Turn speed 50 deg per sec.
Turning speed is very good.  Has good ground passability values, probably put by WG in order to balance out the weak engine.

Engine:
V-55 / 580 horse power / 12% chance of fire
Engine is not good for a T10 medium tank. The horse power per ton ratio is far from satisfying. The only reason the vehicle is moving as well as it does is thanks to absurdly good ground passability values. The 121 accelerates acceptably to 40km/h, but after that it does not do well. It does keep its speed though, but cant climb hills as well as its predecessor. It can also survive at least 10 minutes on removed speed governor.

Radio:
A-220B- 750meters
Good radio.

Turrets:
121
Armor: 240/130/65
Rotation: 40 degrees/second
View range: 400m
Turret is actually quite tough. The most powerful cannons in the game with 246+ penetration can penetrate it frontally, but only if the 121 is standing still and at close range. Its top is a lot tougher than the T-54 turret and is a hard weak spot to taller tanks. Its side is sloped too, which can help it bounce if shot at from a large distance but it is not all that great up close. Rear is obviously paper, though vehicles with less than 200 penetration should do their best to hit it where it is not too sloped.

Guns:
122mm 60-122TG
RoF: 5,45
Penetration: 268/400/68
Average damage: 440/440/530
Accuracy (100m): 0,36
Aim time: 2,7 sec
This gun is impressive. Its damage per shot is quite good, and it comes with somewhat good accuracy. It can effectively hit and run or scare lesser vehicles, make heavies think twice before attacking or finish off wounded enemies quite well. Unfortunately, the sorry excuse for gun depression really hampers the usage of the gun. Even small bumps on the road can be a big problem and not allow the 121 to even take the shot. This, combined with the not all that good aim time and accuracy on the move can cause some problems. Also, its rate of fire is quite slow for a tier 10 medium tank. Still, a good 121 platoon can effectively decimate even powerful targets as long as they stick to flat terrain and have crews good enough to minimize the aim time.
Premium ammo is HEAT which does not get the normalization bonus that APCR gets, but does not lose penetration with distance. With 400 penetration, it can shoot most vehicles and be quite certain of penetration, but there are still some things that should be avoided, like the E-100's upper plate and the IS-4's  turret.

Comparison with its peers:
121 vs BatChat
121 features much better armour than the Batchat. The Chines also has better damage per shot, but lacks the autoloader of the french machine.

121 vs E-50M
121 has similar hull armour compared to the E-50M, but with a tougher turret. The German tank is a lot more accurate but has less damage per shot.

121 vs FV4202
121 has similair hull armour but better turret armour when compared with its British counterpart. The Chinese loses badly in gun depression, is slightly less accurate, but has better damage per shot than the FV4202.

121 vs M48A1
The Chinese has superior hull and turret armour + better camouflage. It does also have better damage per shot, but loses in acceleration, gun depression and elevation, aim time, accuracy on the move and DPM.

121 vs T-62A
121 has superior hull armour and higher damager per shot. It is slightly slower  than the Soviet vehicle, has a slightly more vulnerable turret and worse gun depression and elevation.

Wiki page:
http://wiki.worldoftanks.com/121

Historical 121
Development began in 1962 on a new medium tank based on the Type 59. The new tank was expected to feature improvements in firepower and armor protection. However, the project was canceled shortly after. Some technical innovations were applied later, in the development of the Type 69 tank. All 121 tank prototypes were destroyed during Chinese nuclear weapon testing.




Originally written by Charcharo