Paradox Mod Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Chameleon ZSU-44
IconZSU
Vietcong Chameleon
A Chameleon ZSU
Minor Faction VietcongLogoThumb Vietcong
Other Faction(s) None
Unit Type Tank
Designation Anti Air/Anti Ground
Production Building Tunnel Complex
Secondary Ability Ratchet Up
File:AbilityVCChameleon.png
Doubles rate of fire, Weapon Cooldown
Cost 800
Production Time 0:12
Heroic Upgrade Autoloader
• Infinite Clip Size)
Dev. Status Textured
Country of Origin  RussianSFSRthumb Russian SFSR
Trained at  BothVietnamsthumb The Vietnam DMZ
Key Features  » Twin 50mm flak cannons
 » Open top turret
 » Radar guided targeting system (non-functional)
 » Cramped driver compartment
 » Articulated track pods (x4)

"I am the true gunner!" "No, sweetie, I am!"

-ZSU Gunner(s)

Tactical Analysis[]

  • Fly catcher: The Chameleon is ideal for taking the ARVN's helicopter force down a notch, with its inaccurate but powerful 50mm Flak cannons, and a supply of airbursting shells that can easily swat thin skinned aircraft from the sky. The Chameleon does reasonably against surface targets as well.
  • Trouble with fast movers: The Chameleon does have problems with faster aircraft, though. The Flak cannons are rather inaccurate, which means that they tend to miss fighters, and also have problems with large numbers of aircraft, as they need to be reloaded every few bursts, although the splash damage of the shells does help deal with groups of aircraft.
  • Safeties off: By twisting off a restraining bolt, the guns can be put into mechanical overdrive, firing as fast as the bolt is knocked back until the heat build-up makes the gun unsafe to fire.
  • Keep swatting: Some crews have managed to jury rig autoloaders for their guns, allowing them to be fired continuously without having to reload, as well as removing the strain on the loader.

Background[]

VM VietcongChameleonZSU

Fanmodel of the Vietcong's Chameleon ZSU, made by V.Metalic.

VietcongChameleonZSU

A Vietcong ZSU in good escort

ZSU is the catch all acronym for anti-air gun vehicles in the Soviet Union. A huge variety of these vehicles, most with very short production runs, served during the Second World War alongside Pincer and Anvil tanks; the ZSU-44 was the most common, though one of the least capable. Sharing the double-barrelled design with its contemporaries, the ZSU-44's 50mm flak cannons were effective at seeing off helicopters but unreliable when used against faster fixed-wing planes and hopeless against jet fighters; by 1954, most commanders would leave them behind, relying on SAM emplacements, specially made wire-guided rockets in the pods of their Mammoths or disposable SAM launchers used by infantry. As a side effect, a rather large number of ZSU-44s survived the war while other variants were expended on the front lines, and after the war they were sold or given away to other communist nations.

The NVA initially attempted to field ZSUs en masse to protect their forces on the Ho Chi Ming Trail and the front lines. However, the open topped design made them vulnerable to simple airburst weapons or even just thrown grenades in the dense jungle, and the NVA lost hundreds of them over the course of the years. However, the damage was usually minor enough to see them recovered by the VC after the fact, who know them as Chameleons. Though the NVA has come to rely on towed SAM emplacements, the VC swear by their aging ZSUs, and have begun assembling their own knockoffs in their workshops.

Just the Stats[]

Chameleon ZSU
Amphibious, Move Through Cover, Camouflaged
Tank
Cost 800
Build Time 0:12
Health 75
Speed 60
Armour Type Medium Armour
50mm Flak Shells
Reload(12/3s), Inaccurate, Splash, Move and Fire
Flak
Range 350
RPS 2
Damage 15
Suppression N/A
DPS 30
50mm Solid Shells
Reload(12/3s), Spread, Pinning, Intimidating, Move and Fire
Autocannon
Range 350
RPS 2
Damage 15
Suppression 15
DPS 30


VietcongLogo
VietcongLogo
Vietcong Guerrillas

Paradox-Exclusive Mini-Faction.

Infantry Victor CharlieGuerrillaKrait Sniper
Vehicles Pincer ICVSupply TruckTiger Tank DestroyerChameleon ZSUMortar TruckMammoth Tank
Watercraft Motor Boat
Structures Tunnel ComplexDisappearing GunNVA SmelterVietcong SputnikSmuggler Tunnel
NVA Reinforcements NVA RegularNVA Pincer ICVRhino TankMiG Nine
Protocols Vietcong Protocols
Camo-NettingTunnel AmbushSaturation Fire
Detailed Information Vietnam WarNorth Vietnamese CharactersSmuggler Tunnel Upgrade
Advertisement