Preferential matchmaking
A narrower battle-tier spread on some vehicles, so they never meet opponents two tiers above them.
Also known as pref mm, preferential mm, limited matchmaking.
A handful of vehicles, nearly all of them premium, see only one tier above their own. A Tier VIII with preferential matchmaking meets Tier VIII and IX, never X.
It is a real advantage and a real trade: those vehicles are usually weaker than their peers precisely because the narrower spread was priced in.
Related terms
Battle tierThe tier bracket a battle is fought at, which is what decides who a vehicle meets rather than its own tier alone.MatchmakingThe system that builds the two teams of a random battle, balancing them by battle tier, vehicle class and platoons rather than by player skill.Premium tankA vehicle bought rather than researched, which earns extra credits and trains any crew of its nation without penalty.Bottom tierBeing two tiers below the top of the battle, which is where seven of every fifteen vehicles start.