Sherman Firefly

Sherman Firefly
A Sherman Firefly Medium Tank
Army	British
Role	Medium Tank
Unit Cost	450 450 100 100 10 10
Upkeep per Minute	-9 −9
Prereq.	A Cromwell Command Tank already on the field.
Produced By	Armor Command Truck
Primary armament	OQF 17 Pounder Anti-Tank Cannon
Secondary armament	1x M1919A4 Coaxial Machine-gun 1x M2 Browning .50 Machine-gun
Health	550 550
Armor	Medium
Max. Speed	5 m/s
Abilities (1) Hull Down Position Covers the tank in sandbags and extra plating, increasing its overall armor and defense. The unit is immobile while this ability is active. Requires the Hull down upgrade from the Royal Engineers Support. Costs nothing. Cooldown: 9 seconds.
Upgrades (1) Tank Crew Commander Increases the tank's sight-range by 10 meters. Costs 30 30 to install.

“Firefly buttoned up and ready to go!”

The Sherman Firefly is a Medium Tank fielded by the British Army in Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts. It is essentially an M4 Sherman tank with its main cannon replaced by a massive 17 Pounder Anti-Tank gun. With good armor and a powerful punch, this is the British army's primary anti-tank offensive weapon, counterpart to the defensive 17 Pounder AT Gun emplacements.

Overview

The last unit to become available to a British company is the Sherman Firefly. A tribute to British engineering, this is basically an American M4 Sherman tank, whose main 75mm cannon has been replaced with a massive 17 Pounder Anti-Tank gun. This is the same cannon that is installed in British 17 Pounder AT Gun emplacements. This turns a Sherman from a general-purpose medium tank into a very effective tank killer.

The Sherman Firefly is constructed from the Armor Command Truck for the cost of 450 450, 100 100, making it the most expensive British unit. It also consumes 10 10, a very large amount for a tank, meaning that only a few can be fielded simultaneously. To construct a Sherman Firefly, the British must first produce a Stuart Light Tank. The relationship between the Firefly and Command Tank is of paramount importance.

The Sherman Firefly carries as much armor as a regular American M4 Sherman. There are several small differences between these two tanks, but the primary difference is still the main cannon. An M4 Sherman, even when outfitted with the M1A1C 76mm Cannon, has nowhere near the penetrating power of the awesome 17-Pounder AT Gun. This cannon allows the Sherman Firefly to engage enemy tanks - frontally - or even snipe them off from an impressively long distance.

A team of Fireflies can surround and subdue such tanks with, at worst, acceptable losses.

Tactically, the Sherman Firefly provides the holding force for all British armored assaults: it engages the enemy head on, blasting it away and soaking up damage, while other units maneuver to outflank the enemy. Alternately, Sherman Fireflies can take advantage of their long firing range to snipe at enemy targets from afar, using other units as forward spotters. This allows them to act defensively as well as offensively, filling in for lost or threatened 17 Pounder AT Guns.

Weapons

The Sherman Firefly's primary weapon is the powerful 17 Pounder AT Gun. It packs a powerful punch, though is normally slow to reload.

Additionally, the tank has two Light Machine Guns installed: an M1919A4 coaxial Light Machine Gun, and a .50 Browning M2 Medium Machine Gun on the hull. These are used to suppress enemy troops and damage light vehicles.

17 Pounder AT Gun

Instead of the normal M3 75mm Cannon installed on a normal M4 Sherman, the Sherman Firefly has a 17 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun. This is by and large the same weapon you'll find in a British 17 Pounder AT Gun emplacement, with a few key differences.

The 17 Pounder AT Gun inflicts 125 points of damage, with superior Penetration against virtually all vehicle armor. It may even penetrate the front armor of a King Tiger, though some shots will still glance off. Nonetheless, it will inflict serious damage to any tank, and significantly more-so against side or rear armor. Unfortunately it is not as accurate as the emplacement's 17 Pounder, except against smaller vehicles. Due to a small explosion radius, it can kill Infantry only with well-placed shots.

The main drawback of the 17 Pounder is its slow reload time. Against targets within 35 meters (basic sight-range), the cannon reloads only once every 8.5 seconds, allowing enemies time to fire back or flee. This is reduced considerably (to about 5.5 seconds) against targets beyond sight-range.

This gun does have one significantly powerful advantage: its range. The weapon has a range of 55 meters. This is over 50% further than the tank's basic sight-range, and at least 7.5 meters further than any other tank gun's range (with the Panther coming second at 47.5 meters). Its range is, however, five meters shorter than that of the Panzer Elite's Marder III Tank Hunter, whose PaK 40 can hit targets as far as 60 meters away. It can essentially bombard far-away targets at leisure, when aided by an advance spotter or other type of reconnaissance.

Read more below about the special relationship between the Sherman Firefly and the Cromwell Command Tank to learn just how effective this tank can be...

. M1919A4 Light Machine Guns

The Sherman Firefly has two Light Machine Guns installed.

One of these is an M1919A4, which is mounted coaxially on the turret. Hence, will fire only at targets the main gun is pointing towards. The other is mounted on the front of the hull. It too will fire forward, but only in the direction the hull is pointing at.

Abilities

The Sherman Firefly lacks any innate abilities. However like any other British tank, it is capable of utilizing the Hull Down Position ability, which is acquired through the Royal Engineers Support Command Tree.

Hull Down Position

• Costs: Nothing
• Prerequisite: Royal Engineers Support: Hull Down
• Activation: Immediate
• Cooldown: 9 seconds (activate/deactivate)

Once the "Hull Down" ability has been purchased on the Royal Engineers Support Field Improvements chart, it becomes available for any Sherman Fireflies until the end of the mission.

To activate this ability, simply click it. The tank becomes immobile as sand bags barricades are erected all around it. The tank can continue firing while this is being accomplished.

Once the process is complete (9 seconds), the tank will have traded its mobility for increased defense. The tank's armor is increased by 25%, and it takes only 75% damage from any source.

To release the Sherman Firefly from Hull Down Position, simply click the button again. This is only possible once the tank has been fully entrenched - you cannot stop the entrenching process halfway through. As soon as the button is clicked, the tank is released immediately from the sandbags (which disappear) and may drive off at once.

Upgrades

Like most other British tanks, the Sherman Firefly may be upgraded with a Tank Crew Commander to increase its sight-range. This is a cheap and fast upgrade that can be installed at any time, and so should be installed when possible.

Tank Crew Commander

• Costs: 30 30
• Takes 10 seconds to install
• May be installed outside friendly territory

When this upgrade is complete, the top hatch of the Sherman Firefly will open, and a crewman will pop his head out to look around. This commander increases the sight-range of the tank to exactly 45 meters, from its original 35.

The sight-range increase effectively allows the tank to survey enemy troop positions without being detected (since most units and emplacements in the game have a sight-range of only 35 meters).

Since it barely costs anything, this upgrade should be installed on all tanks for added situational awareness. It also allows the Sherman Firefly to perform reconnaissance if required.

Note that the Sherman Firefly arguably benefits from this ability more than any other tank in the game, since its primary weapon can easily reach 45 meters. In fact, it can fire to 55 meters - and can actually be made to see that far thanks to the bonuses given by a Cromwell Command Tank. At that range, it can engage any enemy vehicle from outside their own range.

Cromwell Command Tank Support

The presence of a Cromwell Command Tank in the vicinity will increase the performance of all tanks in three ways: Increasing their sight-range, increasing the range of their main cannon, and decreasing the time required to reload the main cannon.

The Sherman Firefly is unique in this respect for three reasons:

1. The Firefly receives an additional reduction to its reload time, cutting it by 40% or more.
2. The Firefly's main weapon has a huge range already. Increasing it further allows the cannon to strike targets at amazing ranges - well beyond the range of most targets to actually fire back.
3. Thanks to this increased weapon range, increasing sight range as well means that the tank can autonomously detect and engage targets at a greater distance even without a forward spotter.

As a result, a nearby Cromwell Command Tank increases the Sherman Firefly's potential immensely. It can fire much faster, thus having a better damage output, and can engage targets that are so far away they can't possibly fire back. You can bombard enemy positions repeatedly to weaken them before driving in to secure the point.

Tactics

Although the Cromwell Tank serves as the primary component in the British armored strike force, it is the Sherman Firefly that delivers the anti-tank firepower required to contend with the heavily armed German panzers. The Cromwell's main 75mm Cannon may pierce through the rear armor of medium tanks, but it has little chance against a Panther or Tiger. This is where the Sherman Firefly's 17 Pounder AT Gun comes into play.

Sherman Fireflies are used in an assault to take out anything with even a little armor on it. Normally, they do not even need to flank the enemy, and can simply strike it repeatedly head-on. However, due to a relative lack of Anti-Infantry capabilities, an unsupported Sherman Firefly can quickly turn into a dead Sherman Firefly. For the most part, this support is provided both by Cromwell Tanks and Infantry if at all possible, and will always include a Cromwell Command Tank to supply massive bonuses to the Sherman Firefly's combat capabilities.

On the Offensive

A typically good British Armored Offensive will include at least two Cromwell Tanks, a Cromwell Command Tank, and at least one Sherman Firefly. The Shermans tend to stay a little behind the front of the assault, partly because their cannons have a massive range and can therefore hit targets well ahead of the advancing column.

Once the enemy position is reached, the Cromwell Tanks will generally move off to flank the target in either direction, using their Flank Speed ability to zoom past the enemy. At this point it's usually the Sherman Firefly's job to take over the center of the advance, and frontally engage the enemy and keep them busy. While it does so, the Firefly will rain death on any vehicle, emplacement or armored unit in sight, buying time for the Cromwells or even Infantry to outflank and destroy the remaining enemy units.

Keep in mind that the Sherman Firefly is not a heavy tank. Its armor is the same as that of a M4 Sherman, so it can only take so much damage even to front armor before being destroyed - and its side and rear are significantly less armored. Make sure to use other units to protect the Fireflies. If you have the Hull Down Position ability available, this is a good time to use it, turning the Firefly into an anti-tank emplacement by protecting its sides from damage.

If player picks Royal Engineers doctrine, deploy some Churchill Crocodile for Anti-Infantry unit and place them on the killzone where your Firefly need protection against Infantry. While the Crocs are shooing the Infantry off with its flamethrower, the Firefly can aid the Crocs by taking out enemy tanks.

Tank Sniper

The Firefly has the longest-ranged tank-mounted cannon in the game, at 55 meters. With a nearby Cromwell Command Tank, this range is increased to a whopping 60 meters: almost twice the sight-range of a normal unit. In addition, the Tank Crew Commander upgrade as well as the bonuses from the Cromwell Command Tank can increase the Sherman Firefly's sight-range up to 55 meters. In addition, the near 100% penetration and very high damage the Sherman Firefly does to tanks allows it to kill most tanks in only a few shots. 2 Fireflies can easily kill any combination of axis tanks provided that they kite them and keep themselves at a respectable range.

Due to these combined abilities, the Sherman Firefly is sometimes referred to as the "Sniper Tank". It can perch in front of open terrain, and fire any target that moves within its line of sight. Enemies will not be able to see the Firefly until it fires, since their sight ranges will be considerably shorter. Additionally, since very few units are be able to fire back at the Firefly from this distance, it is often able to remain safely out-of-range even after firing reveals its position.

Since sitting still exposes the Firefly to artillery, many players will often patrol their defensive line with Sherman Fireflies accompanied by a Cromwell Command Tank. In this way, they are able to utilize the Firefly's long-range defensive capabilities while also remaining mobile enough to avoid artillery fire.

Weaknesses

Being built on a Sherman chassis, the Sherman Firefly is just a medium tank. Anti-Tank cannons can pierce its front armor quite easily, and its rear armor is even weaker than that. In a confrontation with a heavy tank, expect to lose at least one Firefly while other tanks finish the enemy off.

The only real way to prevent this is to put the Sherman Firefly into Hull Down Position (assuming it's available), strengthening its armor and sides. However it then becomes vulnerable to artillery.

Overall, the Sherman Firefly needs to kill enemies at a distance whenever it can, capitalizing on its superior range.

The biggest threat to the Sherman Firefly comes from Panzerschreck-wielding Infantry. They are virtually immune to the Firefly's main gun, while having the ability to kill a Firefly in just 4-5 shots. It's very important for the British player to ensure that he has units capable of dealing with those enemy Infantry units, especially since it's very common for Axis players to make large quantities of Panzerschreck-equipped Infantry.

Historical Data

During World War II, the United States agreed to lend-lease its mass-produced M4 Sherman tanks to its allies. The British Commonwealth was one of these allies and used these tanks extensively during the course of the conflict. British-sold Shermans were given new designations; they were given roman numbers headed by 'Mark' (Type) according to their original designations where the first variant would be Mark One, and so on. Here, the main British Sherman variants went from Mk. I (M4) to Mk. V (M4A4). The British preferred the M4A4 type.

As the Sherman was designed as an Infantry support tank and thus lacked the firepower necessary to engage the increasingly up-armored German tanks, the Sherman was up-gunned in 1944 with the Ordnance Quick Firing 17 Pounder, a very effective gun known to have a devastating effect on armor.

This configuration (officially known as Sherman IC or VC) was capable of penetrating the frontal armour of a Tiger I out to 2500m, and the front turret of the Tiger II at 1100m when firing Armour-Piercing Discarding Sabot (APDS) ammunition, a feat only matched by High Velocity Armour-Piercing (HVAP) ammunition fired from the 8.8cm KwK 43 mounted on the Tiger II, Jagdpanther, Elefant and Nashorn.

The larger shells of the new gun necessitated the removal of the bow machine gun and crewman for additional ammunition storage. Retaining that weapon is an inaccuracy in CoH.

The 'Firefly' nickname came from the bright muzzle flash of the 17 Pdr. when it was fired. The muzzle flash was so bright that it could temporarily blind the gunner and tank commander. Occasionally tanks equipped with 17 Pounders were called 'Mayfly' tanks, but were not as common as 'Firefly'.

Sherman Fireflies were extremely effective against German armor; they were also the only British (and Western-allied) tank at the time that can defeat the fearsome Tigers and Panthers at standard ranges.

Due to this danger, Fireflies became priority targets for German tankers and artillerymen and some Firefly crewmen even camouflaged their longer gun barrel by painting it to blend with the surroundings so as not to be singled out.

The M10 based 17pdr SP "Achilles" was sometimes also nicknamed "Firefly".

References

An article about this unit in real life can be found here.

Trivia

In real life, the firelfy did not have the hull mounted machine gun.

Gallery

A Sherman Firefly firing its hull-mounted M1919A4 MG

Three Fireflies launching an assault with a Cromwell Command Tank.

Sherman VC Firefly