Best War Thunder Mods

Summary

• Mods in War Thunder enhance gameplay with personalized content, like skins, sounds, and tanks - no gameplay mods allowed.
• Popular cosmetic mods like tank skins and faction designs add historical accuracy and immersion to the game.
• Tools like GF Skin Installer and WTExtractor help players create their custom vehicle skins, expanding the game's style.

A fixture of the PC gaming community, mods allow fans of a game to integrate new, original content into an established world. Sometimes it's as simple as adding a new weapon or creating a new skin for a vehicle. Other times, mods can be a complete overhaul of the original game, reimagining the original IP into something far beyond what the developers had initially designed.

In Gaijin Entertainment's 2012 combat-sim War Thunder, players can seamlessly integrate numerous mods into the game, allowing for a truly personalized experience when competing in online multiplayer. Among these mods, this list outlines some of the best.

Updated November 7, 2024 by Benjamin Joe: War Thunder continues to be a very popular battle game among countless fans all over the world. With it being an online game, players shouldn't use any mods that give them an unfair advantage over others.

Instead, if the player wants to use mods, they should stick to ones that are cosmetic only. Now is a great time to give this article an update with some of the latest popular cosmetic mods for War Thunder.

How To Install Most Mods:

Before starting, players will have to take note that gameplay mods are usually not allowed. War Thunder is a competitive online-only game, meaning anything that alters the gameplay or even some parts of the user interface can be considered cheating. Hence, most mods that players are allowed to install are skins and cosmetics. Follow these steps:

1. Download the mod.
2. Open the mod pack using WinRar or other extraction apps.
3. Extract the contents folder or the contents of the.zip or.rar file to the War Thunder installation directory. This directory is usually located in Program Files.
4. If the mod doesn't come in a.zip or.rar file, simply copy and paste the folder to the install directory.

22 12 Tank Skins For All Tanks

Lots Of Great And Unique-Looking Tank Skins

• Author: Talon6713
• Link To Mod: 12 Tank Skins For All Tanks
• Release Date: June 6, 2014

There's no need to go through the trouble of picking several different varieties of tank skins. This mod has a healthy collection. It contains 12 designs, most of which are different shades and colors of camouflage for tanks. It's also compatible with all tanks from the crude man-mincers of WWII to modern-age beasts. This mod is ideal for those who like to change things up and take on other players in style. Each design is expertly crafted that fit the game's overall aesthetic very well.

21 Basics Roundels

Inject Some Real-World Signals Into The Game

• Author: Alaire
• Link To Mod: Basics Roundels
• Release Date: July 5, 2014

One of the joys of playing War Thunder is getting to pick a favorite faction. Each of them has its own motif and theme that signals its approach and also acts as its precedent.

War Thunder does seem to suffer from a shortage of faction-themed designs, which is why this mod was created. It adds a great deal to the textures and styles of each vehicle of war. The roundels are also well-researched and historically accurate, with Wikipedia being the primary source.

20 T-34 1940 Hazard Camouflage

A Standout Skin That's Bound To Strike Fear Into Nearby Enemies

• Author: Nyte Skye
• Link To Mod: T-34 1940 Hazard Camouflage
• Release Date: January 29, 2015

The legendary T-34 is one of the most famous tanks in WWII, particularly on the Eastern Front. In War Thunder, it's also a solid choice as the main tank in low- to mid-tier battles. Sadly, the game's usual skins for the T-34 don't let players appreciate the tank enough. As such, the T-34 1940 Hazard Camouflage is there for the rescue. It's a peculiar and tactically unsound style for the tank, but it's enough to strike fear into the hearts of one's enemies.

19 Pr26.Kirov.1941

A Must-Have Mod For Warship Aficionados

• Author: Killer_Duke
• Link To Mod: Pr26.Kirov 1941
• Release Date: May 27, 2022

All these tank and plane reskin mods; where's the love for ships? Well, here's one of the few mods for War Thunder that focuses on beautifying ships. In this case, the ship is the PR26 Kirov 1941, which is Soviet war hardware. It's apparently one of the more popular ships in the game due to the number of downloads on the skin. Plus, the name is pretty iconic in the gaming community.

In any case, this brings the Kirov's historical camouflage and decals into the game. They have better gray tones now and a brighter maroon deck. Beyond that, the mod doesn't really do much, but it's a simple way of including some love for War Thunder's warships.

18 World War II Countries Paints

A Historically Accurate Paint Mod

• Author: Himmelsgott
• Link To Mod: World War II Countries Paints
• Release Date: March 21, 2014

Most of the time, War Thunder has to sacrifice some historical accuracy to make gameplay more fun. Additionally, some censorship concerns are ever-present regarding certain notorious symbols. But if games find themselves craving for a more historically accurate representation of their favorite factions, then World War II Countries Paints does a good job. It's a collection of 12 faction paints that the author feels best constitutes the elements of known history. This mod is ideal for those who want to immerse themselves in a more realistic environment.

17 he51c1 Red Baron

A Truly Unforgettable Plane Skin

• Author: Alaire
• Link To Mod: he51c1 Red Baron
• Release Date: June 6, 2014

Speaking of historical accuracy and striking fear using nothing but style, the Red Baron is another scourge of war history whose aesthetics are tried and tested. He finally made his way into War Thunder thanks to the he51c1 Red Baron mod. It replaces the texture and skin of a certain biplane with a crimson German Air Force design back in World War I. It's not only great for roleplaying but also some serious ranked matches. This hard-hitting design is something that will strike fear into all nearby enemies.

16 GF Skin Installer

Create Your Own Skins

• Author: Tiger_IV
• Link To Mod: GF Skin Installer
• Release Date: May 23, 2014

A useful tool for any aspiring modder, the GF Skin Installer gives players everything they need to start developing their own vehicle skins in War Thunder. Included are step-by-step guides on how to apply a designed skin and to which vehicle. Included in the download are also a few skins developed by the author, giving the player a few ideas to work with, as well as free custom content from the get-go. Being able to design their skins is a feature that players will thoroughly enjoy.

15 WTExtractor

A Simple Extractor Mod With A Lot Of Functionality

• Author: CynicRus
• Link To Mod: WTExtractor
• Release Date: September 8, 2014

Perhaps slightly more technically minded than the GF Skin Installer, the WTExtractor is another tool aimed at helping modders implement their content into the game. Specifically, it serves as an extractor for vromfs.bin and dpx.bin resources in the game files. Simply put, this allows players access to War Thunder's textures and all the fun that goes along with it. It's a simple mod that gives the player countless options that really expand the game's overall feel, functionality, and style.

14 B-25J-20 Night Bomber

Great For A Stealthy Approach

• Author: Mexicanmuscel
• Link To Mod: B-25J-20 Night Bomber
• Release Date: April 29, 2014

The B-25J-20 Night Bomber mod brings something new to the table, as it is specifically designed to not be seen. The all-black camouflage is well suited for its nighttime operations, and the detailed shark face decal on the nose of the plane adds to the overall intimidation factor for anyone unlucky enough to get close. This mod gives the player the ability to sneak up on unsuspecting enemies and unleash a barrage of bullets from above.

13 Tank Crew Sound Mods

Brings In Character Voices From Company Of Heroes 2

• Author: TDSEB
• Link To Mod: Tank Crew Sound Mods
• Release Dates: February 8, 2019 – April 20, 2020

While technically a collection of several smaller mods, the tank crew sound mods made by author TDSEB integrate character voices from Relic Entertainment's Company of Heroes 2 and offer fans of the franchise a chance to hear some of their favorite character voices from the RTS title. Integrating these tank crew mods into War Thunder fleshes out the overall experience and makes for much more lively combat dialogue. This mod works best for players using a high-quality headset as the additional sounds increase the player's immersion.