Mines has been around in World of Tanks for a very long time and although it has undergone several changes the core strategy has remained the same. Mines is a small map and most of the fighting is concentrated on the central hill(mine) since it provides a great tactical point to not only attack but to defend. Since Mines is so small there are only three main avenues to attack down being the lighthouse, the hill, and the town. Each caters to a different type of tank which gives any kind of tank a chance of being relevant on this map.
Team one is represented by green on this map and starts in the southern base. On Mines team one has a slight advantage when it comes to defending the lighthouse side of the map while also having an easier time attacking on the town side. Both teams have an equal footing when it comes to the hill.
Looking around the base you will see that there are a few places for slower tanks to set up to provide support without needing to move to far from the base. As mentioned earlier team one has a slight advantage when it comes defending the lighthouse side and the K4 location is a key spot for team one. In K4 you can either fire(sometimes unseen) into the 1-3 lines) or you can set up to hit the hill if you are on the right side of K4. The locations marked in J6/J7 are not ideal since they only provide support if your team has already lost most of the map and thus are useless early on in the game. They are shown because they are good spots to fallback to if one flank completely fails.
The lighthouse side of the Mines gives you two options which both require a certain type of tank to pull off. Attacking down the 1 line route takes a mobile tank that should have decent armor on at least it’s frontal turret and attacking from G4 up through the 3 line should be done in a tank with heavier armor. It’s important that team one has at least one tank in either G4 or H1/H2 to spot incoming tanks for your tanks further back since if the enemy takes the 1-3 line it is difficult to hold onto the rest of the map.
One thing to keep in mind is that moving through the 1 line you can be hit from the hill and enemy base. Moving through the 3 line your primary enemy is the enemy tanks in the 1 line. This means that one does not work without the other since the 3 line cannot move without the 1 line, and the 1 line cannot move without having some help from the 3 line putting pressure on the enemy base.
Attacking the hill at the start of the match can either end in a quick defeat for your team or give you an early heads start to a victory. Light tanks and fast medium tanks can make it into E6 without taking to much fire aside from the enemy fast tanks. Not hesitating and getting to E6 and into cover is key since if you stop you will either die or be barred from getting on the hill. Slower tanks are still needed to secure the hill since following up behind and setting up at the entrance locations will stop any additional enemies. Having good gun depression and turret armor helps since you will be one of the primary targets if you set up in the E5/F5 area.
If your team gains the hill then you will want to spot and take smart shots from off of it. If the enemy pushes you can easily flank them and if they defend you can slowly chip away. On the other hand if your team loses the hill then you should pull back to safe locations in G4/G6/E7 to force the enemy to push into a well defended area. Continuing to fight for the hill if your team has suffered losses to begin with just ends up making things worse.
While you are not at a disadvantage in the town when compared to team two you do run into issues since team two usually has “campers” in A4 that can damage you in town. Setting up in E7 and G8 will give your team a formidable defense and allow your SPGs to hit any advancing enemies. If you decide to push then you either can hug the base of the hill(vulnerable to A4 shots) or swing around the outside of the map(vulnerable to hill shots) to attack through the town area. Remember that the enemy is safe from SPG fire and has good defensive locations the further you go in the town so having them outnumbered is needed.
Small maps are hard for SPGs but Mines provides just enough cover to keep you safe while giving you decent shots on tanks not paying attention. Starting off you can get a quick first hit on enemy tanks moving through E5 and all SPGs should be aiming there to help their team take the hill. After your first shot your primary set up locations are either in the back of the base(K8/K9) or on the edge of K4/K5. Personally I like K5 better since you have awesome shots into E5/D5 while still being able to help out the town.
Team two is represented by red on this map and starts out in the northern base. On Mines team two has a slight advantage when it comes to defending the town side of the map while also having an easier time attacking on the lighthouse side. Both teams have an equal footing when it comes to the hill.
Taking a look around the base team two has a few locations close that provide decent support for your teammates ahead of you. B2 allows you to support the 2/3 lines but the downside being that you cannot hit enemies that make it into the 1 line. The A4 area is a good spot for 1-2 tanks but any more since having two many here will hurt your team’s capability of maintaining map control. This area can provide fire for the hill and town.
The last spot in C4 gives shots into any of the main areas with a little re positioning but doesn’t have great cover.
While team one has an advantage on this side for defending, team two has an easier time attacking on this side if you are aggressive. Pushing down the 3 line starting from D3 can allow you to cut off any enemies entering the 1/2 lines and put the enemy on the defensive. Attacking through the 1/2 lines is dangerous only if you stay for to long. You should push hard if you have support(especially in the 3 line) and get to H1. From here it is easy to slowly continue to push to take out K4 as a team and to hit the hill enemies from behind.
If your team is unable to attack fast then trying to defend by having a few spotters positioned further back in B2/C4 is your best bet. Simply hold your ground and let the people in A4 to rain fire down on the enemies moving through the open.
Like team one the strategy for the hill is the same. Fast tanks should attack fast and try to get to the safe F5/F6 location. Hesitate and you are dead. Use the same tactics as team one for team two.
Defending the town is easier for team two due tot he A4 location that can hit any enemies that cross into the town and continue to push. If your team decides to put a lot of tanks into the town then you will need to attack, however defending with only a few tanks can be down against a larger enemy force. Setting up initially in D6 and moving along the edge to stop the enemy and then slowly pulling back around the D6 corner gives you good protection.
The longer route that skirts the outside of the town and ends in E0 should only be done if you have the enemy pinned into E7 and want to attack.
SPG set ups are a bit more varied for this side than team one, however quickly getting a shot off into E5/F5 to hit tanks pushing the hill still is critical for SPGs to do.
Setting up in A1/A2 or in B2(use the rock as your cover) will give you good shots at enemies in F5 near the hill and also the lighthouse side of the map. Attentively you can set up in A5/A6 if your team leaves the 1/3 lines wide open. One last spot is C1 which forces you to tuck up next to the cliff and edge of map. This location gives you better shots on enemies in F5/G6/E5 but puts you closer to enemies in the 1/3 line.
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