This game doesn't seem about getting better, unless you want to pay for it which is really F*&king stupid. In order to be competitive it seems you have to shell out money for a premium commander doctrine ability.
The problem with bottom part of coh2 UI is the big box in the middle that takes over half of it and gives no usefull information, just outdated unit description.
Really seems like the sort of thing that was designed for the campaign first and foremost. It includes way better descriptions there.
The multiplayer ones are half-assed in comparison.
I personally am a huge fan of a surprise 17lber in 1v1 where you put it down right around the time they think their pziv is invincible. Gotta put it in a good spot though.
Usually if you do it right it's a medium tank kill and zones him out on half the map.
Please, go into the game RIGHT now, and play 3 games as soviets, rush 3 t34s and make they at least do 100% efficiency damage and prove everyone wrong.
If only t34s costed only fuel... but they cost a puddington of manpower too, and they will be bff with engineers 90% of the time since anything bigger than a rifle can penetrate it.
You should try to use T-34-76s yourself for to understand, how difficult it is too keep alive T-34 tank groups in numbers more than 2, specially when you have against you Schrecks, Stugs and Panthers with Elephants.
I've literally posted replays where I do that. I regularly use them.
You are confusing cost effectiveness with actual cost.
Its FUEL cost is low. Its mp cost is not.
Its cost effectiveness is still low, despite the low cost. Think of tank version of M-42.
The Manpower cost is still lower than any other medium tank.
It's plenty good at killing things. If you use it properly it will kill stuff just as well as a PzIV, but you'll have 2-3 of them instead of just 1 pziv.
Someone forgot to add some fuel from M5 car from T3, cos you often need replacer on frontline and maybe 75-150 fuel for SU-76 for to keep enemy vechiles, cos you know what - USSR doesn't have panzerschrecks for those purpouses. So, while Ostheers and OKW can keep fuel for their tanks just spending ammo on shrecks, I have to spend fuel on tanks, cos I don't have any other effective AT. Specially, if I started with T1, not T2.
You're overinvesting in t3, of course t-34 is late.