| “ | An intense debate started, and except for me, all of the present found the [model of the] "Maus" magnificent. It was promising to be exactly that, a "giant".
— Heinz Guderian
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The Panzer VIII Maus Heavy Tank was first proposed in 1942 and the first turretless prototype was built in 1943. A second turreted prototype was built in 1944, however, the Maus never saw action, being mechanically sabotaged by the Germans, and captured by the Russians, who eventually delivered it to the Kubinka Tank Museum. Had the Maus been built, however, it would have proven itself a formidable foe, with a proposed primary armament of 128mm gun (compared to the 88mm of the German Tiger tank), with a co-axial 75mm gun. The tank's armor reached 460mm at its thickest.
Battle vs. Object 279 (by SPARTAN 119)[]
Five Object 279 tanks rolled across an open plain somewhere in the USSR. Suddenly, they saw a flash of light in front of them, and five Panzer VII Maus tanks appeared, transported forward in time.
The lead Maus tank fired first, its 128mm main gun striking a weak point in the armor of the lead Object 279. The tank exploded in a ball of flames, destroying the vehicle. One of the Object 279 tanks returned fire, its 130mm main gun blowing through the turret armor of the lead Maus, blowing its turret clean off. (Maus: 4, Object 279: 2)
One of the Maus tanks maneuvered to hit the Soviet tanks from the side. 128mm round took out another Object 279, but the 75mm round it fired at another tank failed to penetrate. (Maus: 4, Object 279: 3)
An Object 279 tank used its superior speed to flank a Maus tank and hit it in the side with its main gun. The tank was destroyed as the round cut through its armor. Another Object 279 tank fired its gun at the frontal armor of the Maus, but it bounced off the 460mm armor. (Maus: 3, Object 279: 3)
Another Maus fell before the APDS round of the Object 279's main gun, taking out the German vehicle. The Soviet tank the took out the Maus, however, was knocked out by a 128mm from one of the German tanks. (Maus: 2, Object 279: 2)
The last two Object 279 tanks zeroed in on the last two Maus tank and opened fire with in seconds of each other, sending up both tanks in massive fireballs. (Maus:0, Object 279: 2)
WINNER: Object 279
Expert's Opinion[]
While the Panzer VII Maus had thicker armor, Object 279 had the more powerful gun. It fired a larger round and it was rifled. It could also fire APDS rounds, which were devastating against the Maus' armor.