Map Strategy: Sand River

Sand River has been around in World of Tanks since nearly the beginning.  Over the years it has received several changes but the core of the map hasn’t changed much.  Sand River is just as it sounds. Sandy. Oh, and it has a River.  Most of the fighting will revolve around that center river area that really is more like a gully.  The outer areas no undoubtedly play a vital part in each match. Some more so than others.  This World of Tanks Sand River strategy guide goes over vital areas, key routes, and tactics to use on Sand River in random battles.  Knowing which areas to focus on in certain tanks will help you understand Sand River better than you ever have before.

World of Tanks Sand River Strategy | Video

World of Tanks Sand River Strategy

World of Tanks Sand River Strategy

Northeast Mountains

In the Northeastern part of the map are mountains that are mostly cut off from outside support.  Occasionally artillery may decide to assist but usually there are better and more numerous shots elsewhere.  In standard battles the NE mountains are great for lights, mediums, and faster heavy tanks.  With World of Tanks 1.2 Sand River received changes that made it more difficult to push through the southern areas of the map.  As a result the northern part of the map starts to look more promising since it largely is decided by tanks brawling one another.

For either team if you do find yourself up in the NE mountains access your opponents.  If you have the numbers then play fast and aggressively.  Keep in eye out when you dip within render range of the enemy base since campers will be waiting to pick you off.  If you find yourself outnumbered or outgunned then signal for help and hunker down as close to your base as possible.

The blue team has a slight advantage with playing the NE mountains since the initial route is shorter and safer for slower tanks.  Whereas the yellow team will struggle to get tanks traveling slower than 35 km/h up into the mountain area in a reasonable time.

Northern Dunes

The northern dunes are located just beneath the mountainous area on Sand River.  For standard battles post 1.2 they play a larger role in the overall battle.  Heavy tanks, super heavies, armored tank destroyers, and mediums can assist the mountain area.  Light tanks can also do early scout runs on the tall dune to spot enemy tanks for early SPG damage.  Compared to the mountain area you have significantly less cover from most enemy SPGs.  Keep this in mind if there are 2-3 enemy SPGs since trying to make any headway will result in a lot of focus being thrown your way.

Much like the NE mountains the blue team has a slight edge with a shorter route to get a wider array of tanks to the northern dunes.  Fast heavies, mediums, lights, etc. can make it from the yellow team early using the direct route with low risk of dying.  Slower tanks should take the indirect route through B5.  It is important for the yellow team to keep an eye on enemy SPG numbers since your initial routes are prone to being hit early.  Once into C6 you are slightly more protected from SPGs than the blue team is in D7.

Playing the Northern Dunes is fairly straight forward.  Assist your tanks fighting in the mountain area.  Stay safe from SPGs as much as possible.  And slowly push on any enemies and/or flank the mountains depending on how the fight is going.

Town/Gully/Ridge

The area that saw the most fighting pre 1.2 update is located in the center of the map.  It consists of a gully / sandy river, town, and small ridge.  Usually you would find a lot of tanks here in standard battles since it looks straightforward to fight at and armored tanks work well down in the gully.  One thing to always keep in mind is that you are always being sniped out by numerous tanks you cannot see.  Just because you are trying to fight 1-3 tanks near you, doesn’t mean that 4+ are hidden far away.  This is a mistake a lot of players make fighting here.  Trying to deduce where the enemy support is hiding and then pushing appropriately is what wins matches.

With 1.2 the yellow team had a base support location added in F1 with sight lines that cover the gully, ridge, town, and southern dunes.  Now both teams have great coverage to murder any tanks trying to push through the gully and ridge area.  Due to this it isn’t wise to put a ton of tanks into the gully since pushing from either side is difficult.  Heavies, super heavies, and armored tank destroyers still need to at least contest/hold the area.  But making pushes into G5 should be done when your team is advancing in the southern dunes.

Ridge & Town

For light tanks and fast mediums the ridge early on is very risky but can provide great spots for your team.  The dotted path isn’t safe unless you go at the start or later on in the match.  Try not to be caught out here until you know the general layout of the enemy team.  Where both teams usually end up meeting in G5 there is room to fight somewhat safely on the ridge.  The counter to this are tanks located around the edge of the map in G1/K8 and K3/K4.  The general rule of thumb with the ridge is that a quick early spot is ok.  But after that only utilize it if you are in the correct tank and/or know the enemy team placement.

One advantage the yellow team has is being able to get 1-2 tanks into the town in H5.  It helps to have armor since to take shots into the gully you’ll need perfect timing or enough armor to block shots.  The blue team isn’t able to push as well into the town since it gets town apart from J1 very easy.  Sitting down low in H5 is the only reliable spot from that side.

Southern Dunes

Depending on the team you are on the Southern Dunes plays significantly differently.  For both teams however it is a key flank that determines the success of the southern and center areas of Sand River.  There isn’t much hard cover in the Southern Dunes outside of staying hidden through distance or hiding behind small dunes.  Most artillery can still hit you fairly easy anywhere in this area if you are ever spotted.  So keep an eye in the sky.

Yellow Team

The yellow team has more area to work with in the Southern Dunes.  Any kind of tank outside of super heavies and extremely slow tanks can usually work here.  The first spot in G1 can get early shots into the gully in G5/G6 and also into the K5/K6 area.  Moving further down J1 helps support down the H/J/K lines.  Setting up here leaves you exposed unless your team has tanks ahead in K3/K5 or in the town.

For lights, mediums, or heavies with good gun depression moving up into the K line helps clinch the flank for your team.  The goal is to spot the enemy before they make it into K4/K5 and to give space for your tanks behind you.  Slowly move up by assisting taking tanks out in the J/K line and also towards the ridge/gully.  If you end up encountering a lot of enemy tanks camped near the base then pushing from J1 into the town is usually safer instead of using the K line.

Blue Team

From the blue side you don’t have as easy of a time playing the Southern Dunes.  That doesn’t mean that your team doesn’t need to take the flank…because it still is very important to contest.  Without getting some tanks into K4/K5 or potentially pushing further into J3 it is extremely difficult to hold from the F line south.  Fast heavy tanks, mediums, and lights can easily make it into K4 and then can decide whether to push or just hold.  The cover in K4 is well enough to provide decent artillery protection and enemies need to usually expose themselves to get good shots on you.

For tanks supporting the Southern Dunes you will want to set up in K8 just outside of view range.  You have great shots down the J/K lines and also into the town/gully from here.  Even from J9 you can pull off great shots to help your team.  It isn’t advised to push through H/J into the town unless your team has a lot of tanks already in the J/K dune areas.  You will want to be careful since enemy tanks in the gully have decent shots on you unless you have good frontal armor.

The main role of the southern area on Sand River is to provide spotting opportunities, assist the center gully/ridge/town, and to put pressure on enemy tanks camped further back.  Without any presence here your team usually struggles to hold anywhere outside of your initial base area.

Base Support

While base support on Sand River is an important role.  Often times teams will put too many tanks on base support and then your team doesn’t hold any map control.  At most 3-4 tanks should remain at the base for either team.  Unarmored tank destroyers, support mediums, and low tier tanks can work well.  For the yellow team the D2 location can give shots into the northern area but the new area added in 1.2 in F1 is the better location.  From here you can support everywhere from the ridge/gully to the town/southern dunes.

The blue side has the G9 ridge for assisting the north/center.  H8 for helping the gully/town/south.  And also H8 and K8 for assiting the gully/ridge/southern dunes.  Both teams need to utilize these locations to help their tanks pushing further out at the start of the battle.  However, once you start going heavy handed with over 4 tanks in these locations they become less useful since you won’t retain map control.

Artillery Placement

If you are playing artillery it is typically best to stick around the base area to begin with on Sand River.  Your shots aren’t changed much based on your position on the map.  As the match progresses you want to keep an eye on where the weak flank is.  Move between shots towards the side where your team is strongest to ensure you survive.  The other approach to finding a position for SPGs depends on your side.  The yellow team can sneak a fast arty into the Southern Dunes and be relatively safe if your team has 3+ tanks in the area.  The blue team can do the opposite by putting a SPG in C0 or E0.

For either side moving out to there areas can give you slightly different angles on enemies.  If you are the sole SPG then typically playing it safe closer to base is your best bet.  If your team has 2-3 artillery then you can try a location further out to land better shots.

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