2S3 Acacia

Named after a tree. Will bury you in enough firepower to ensure you'll become fertilizer for a tree.

The 2S3 Akatsiya or "Acacia", in English, is a self-propelled howitzer used by the Soviet army which was designed to be a direct counter to the American M109 Paladin. The vehicle is still in-service today with many former-Soviet countries, and their allies.

It's main gun is a 152.4mm howitzer that has a traditional range of 18.5 kilometers. It also comes with a turret-mounted 7.62mm PKT machine gun for close defense.

In Team Yankee

Da Stats

Now the 2S3 might look like just another 2S1, in the same way that we Soviets have 3 different SAM tanks, but looks can be deceiving.

First off, the 2S3 is a lot less mobile than the 2S1 with an inferior cross rating of 4+ and is not amphibious, meaning that this thing is a dedicated backline support platform rather than an assault gun. This shouldn't really be a problem though as your 152mm Howizer has a range in excess of 7 feet, and the ARTILLERY template does not require Line of Sight so long as you have a spotting team with it (whether a dedicated spotter or a Unit Commander).

The best part of this machine is the Gun, as the armor is lackluster and the AA Machine gun is really just something to make you feel less fucked when infantry ambushes you or some NATO commander calls in a Counter Battery Airstrike. The 152 MM Howitzer's Firepower Rating of 2+ and Anit-Tank Rating of 4 makes it so basically anything that has the unfortunate luck of ending up underneath its template is most likely going to be wiped of the board, with the possible exception of MBTs. If anything gets close, or you really Really REALLY need to recreate those lovely memories of using an ISU-152 in Flames of War, you can switch to direct fire mode, in which the range drops off to only 16 inches, but the Anti-tank rating goes up to 14, you gain the HEAT, and Brutal special rules, and, most spectacularly, the Fire power increases from its already world beating 2+, to the staggering rating of 1+. That's right, you can instant kill things with this gun. Fortunately for NATO players, the Soviets are notoriously bad at calling in artillery with their 5+ skill (4+ with observers) which makes things a little easier for you.

And if all that wasn't enough, you have the option of taking the unique Krasnopol Projectiles. Similar to the Copperhead Rounds available to the Americans, the Krasnopol Projectile is a laser guided, indirect fire, anti-tank round. If you have an observer team with Line of Sight to a target, you may choose to fire a Krasnopol barrage rather than a standard fire mission. The Krasnopol projectile has all the benefits of firing an artillery barrage, disregard for line of sight and impacting on the relatively thin top armor of enemy vehicles, as well as the benefits of direct fire, i.e. the world-ending 1+ firepower. The downside is that you require an Observer team, like the BMP OP, to use the Krasnopol, as they have the dedicated laser targeting system. Also, you don't get a template, so you cannot wipe out a platoon of infantry in addition to wrecking the targeted tanks.

Only available to the Soviets Now also available to Volksarmee, the 2S3 comes in platoons of 3 for five points or 6 for ten points. Krasnopol (Soviet only) rounds must be purchased separately as an upgrade at 2 points per 3 guns. The Iranian version lacks Krasnopol rounds and should be interpreted as nothing more than a platoon of AT4 FP2+ guns that miss more than half the time.

Wait a second, did they just photoshop the DDR insignia on me?

IRL

*BEEP* *BEEP* BABUSHKA! Get out of road!

In 1968 the Soviets realized how completely out classed the 2S1 was by the M109 and began the process of developing something to rival it. The result of this was the 2S3 Acacia, of which around 2500 were produced.

The Acacia has been used in a variety of conflicts throughout history, from the Soviet War in Afghanistan, to the Syrian Civil war, to the War in Donbass, where Acacia's have been used by both the Ukranians and the Russian backed rebels.

East German Forces in Team Yankee
Tanks:	T-55 - T55AM2 - T-72M - T-72B
Transports:	BTR-60 - BMP-1 - BMP-2
Troops:	Mot-Schützen Kompanie - Hind Assault Landing Company
Artillery:	2S1 Carnation - BM-21 Hail - RM-70 - 2S3 Acacia
Anti-Aircraft:	ZSU 23-4 Shilka - SA-13 Gopher - SA9 Gaskin - SA-8 Gecko
Tank Hunters:	Spandrel
Recon:	BMP-1 OP - BRDM-2
Aircraft:	MI-24 Hind - SU-22 Fitter
Soviet Support:	SU-25 Frogfoot

Iraqi Forces in Team Yankee
Tanks:	T-55 - T-62 - T-72M
Transports:	BTR-60 - OT-64 - AMX-10P - BMP-1
Troops:	Motor Rifle Company
Artillery:	2S1 Carnation - 2S3 Acacia - AMX Auf1 - BM-21 Hail
Anti-Aircraft:	ZSU 23-4 Shilka - SA-13 Gopher - SA9 Gaskin - SA-8 Gecko - Roland AA
Tank Hunters:	Spandrel - VCR/TH
Recon:	BRDM-2 - BTR-60 OP
Aircraft:	MI-24 Hind - Gazelle HOT
US Support:	A-10 Warthog - AV-8 Harrier