Guns Of Icarus Online

Main => Gameplay => Topic started by: Gambrill on September 24, 2013, 08:26:07 am

Title: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Gambrill on September 24, 2013, 08:26:07 am
I've been trying a new flak spire combo. i was wondering if a few people could have a look see and tell me what they think.

Hades front
Artemis right
Heavy Flak
Carronade left

My ally was a Meta junker and was able to distract the captains to give me the range to effectively use the flak. (i was also hiding and popping in and out of the fight, as to not look like too much of a threat)

Enemies were a Hwacha Galleon & Meta Junker. We won 5-0 but i was hoping others would try this out and tell me your result and observations.

Thanks to all those who help.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Queso on September 24, 2013, 09:31:32 am
I'd actually probably say a field gun would serve you better. It takes out armor faster and is way easier to hit with at flak range.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Gambrill on September 24, 2013, 09:47:10 am
Hmm Thanks Queso i'll take that in mind. i think i prefer the Hades for extra arc etc.
Yeah straight forward i reckon you are right with the merc.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: geggis on September 24, 2013, 09:54:32 am
I can vouch for Queso's advice. The hades is harder to hit with at range, and for stripping armour at distance you need the sort of accuracy and clout a merc offers. Make sure you pack a good gunner for the flak too ;-) For the first time in a while I flew this build and I had a great flak gunner who popped 4 out the 7 kills in a 3v3 game on water hazard; it was glorious. Never quite sure what to do with the left lower deck slot but the carronade is a great close proximity panic weapon.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Alistair MacBain on September 24, 2013, 10:05:00 am
Would prob get a flare in that build just to be safe if they hide in clouds. And a well placed flare is actually a nice panic weapon.
And yes get the Hades switched with a merc. Better Armor strip.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Gambrill on September 24, 2013, 10:05:22 am
Geggis the carro is exactly what i was thinking xD
and i had someone using lochnagar on the flak and my word i got 4 out of the 5 kills haha xD with the aretmis on the right (but can just about reach the front) for the disable and EXTRA explosive damage :)
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Captain Smollett on September 24, 2013, 10:50:26 am
I've flown flak spires for a while and a flare is definitely what you want on the lower left.  Spotting an enemy in the clouds before they can see you can see you will usually spell doom for  your enemy with the power a flak Spire can bring to the table.

As for the top gun, technically a hades deals more armor damage if you can hit the majority of your shots so if you have the gunner for that, by all mean use the hades.  The mercury though as many have pointed out is a lot more forgiving
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Castus Crios on September 24, 2013, 11:27:56 am
I was running hades/gat on top and flak yesterday. Only works if you can reposition around your ally. I agree with the merc recommendation (I do this too) but hades gat flak trifecta is a force to be reckoned with, trust me. I also had my fellow sac's with me ;)

-CC

PS Short range ammo ftw
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: HamsterIV on September 24, 2013, 11:53:20 am
I have not run a flack spire in ages because I don't usually trust my ally captain to offer the kind of mid field interference to keep me safe. However I want to know what sort of ship pairs well with a flack spire?
Just some of my ideas:
Mantifish- disable the engines of anything charging so the spire can back peddle its way to victory.
2xGat Pyra - strips armor extra fast so the spire can get the kill quick, can chase down anything which goes after the spire.
Galleon - puts out so much fire power it is impossible to ignore
2x Gat Squid -  strips armor just as fast as he pyra but too squishy to tank
Meta Junker - puts up enough distraction to keep the enemy busy
2x fieldgun 2x gat Junker - strips armor at all ranges, but can't fight alone
Another Spire - and hope you can kill them faster than they can kill you.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Captain Smollett on September 24, 2013, 11:55:27 am
I can't remember the last time I tried it but I think blenderfish pair pretty well also since they add armor damage and the ability to knock out a ship from a fight.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Zenark on September 24, 2013, 12:14:20 pm
As I learned from the Baptism By Spire tournament, two Spires can be terrifying. If one has long range weaponry with a supplemental short range weapon and the other has short range weaponry with a supplemental long range weapon, they can both be effective at all ranges. It's super hard to approach this combo unless you can keep both ship's guns down, or sneak up behind them.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: James T. Kirk on September 24, 2013, 01:14:30 pm
As I learned from the Baptism By Spire tournament, two Spires can be terrifying. If one has long range weaponry with a supplemental short range weapon and the other has short range weaponry with a supplemental long range weapon, they can both be effective at all ranges. It's super hard to approach this combo unless you can keep both ship's guns down, or sneak up behind them.

But really. Zen and I were able to repel double pub metamidions on Duel at Dawn.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Crafeksterty on September 24, 2013, 06:50:55 pm
If you have someone good with the hadez gun, use that. But Get a mercury if you are up against a heavy weapon loaded ship instead.

Drop the carronade, you wont use that gun as often as you think.

The artemis can proove very usefull but up against ships like the pyramidion for some reason the artemis is just not good. Ide say get a mine launcher or a Medium flak for the extra fire power just incase. Or another hadez.

You can trifecta 2 hadez and the heavy flak making it more dangerous than mercuries but it is incredibly difficult to use.


Other than having a good loadout, it is the gunners that HAVE to hit. If you arent hitting then itl take a bit longer and you may get hurt.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Gambrill on September 26, 2013, 07:21:08 am
I've been playing a few games before looking back at the forums and i have to say the carronade has barely been used so  i will be switching i t out for a flar gun :)

it was only used once on a passing junker and didn't even brak a thing before i was back with range for my flack haha. With people talking about trifecting a double hades and flak im thinking of putting a merc and hades on top and seeing if i can grab a trifector with that aswell. if not i'll try mines and if all else fails ill move back to the artemis. I'll keep you guys posted on how i get on. and obviously you guys might have better outcomes than me due to skill, luck and other things. ;)


Gambrill
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: HamsterIV on September 26, 2013, 12:01:32 pm
One time I was charging a Spire in a pyra, I was certain I would get an easy kill, because the spire hand not done serious hull damage before I got inside his arming range. Suddenly boom half my ship's components are offline, the hull armor is down and the ship is swerving left at the enemy any more. Apparently the spire had dropped a mine in my path. And I spent the next 5 minutes going evasive and avoiding battle to get my ship repaired. Nothing turns the tables on an engagement like a mine hit, especially on overly aggressive Pyramidions.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Zenark on September 26, 2013, 12:17:03 pm
That's what I use on my long range Spires <3 I just get off the helm and shoot a few mines while my gunners keep shooting. Yay, mines! \o/
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: HamsterIV on September 26, 2013, 12:45:56 pm
This thread has got me thinking about running a spire with merc, mine, flare, and heavy flack. The difference will be using the gunner on the mine launcher until all 5 mines are out, then jumping down to the flack. The merc will need some time to drop the hull, and setting up a nice sniper nest complete with blocked off accesses sounds good in theory.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Captain Smollett on September 26, 2013, 12:58:20 pm
Hamster, there's no need for that.  Top left gun is the pilots gun, position the ship in a relatively stable position and throw out some mines yourself.  Also the main engi  can slap out some mines when you're still at long range and quickly jump down the ladder to get back to the hull.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: HamsterIV on September 26, 2013, 01:06:51 pm
But the gunner can take lesmok and burst allowing him to make multi layer minefield goodness. Also the Parkour from the top deck to the gun deck is rather fast. My proposal is just an experiment I want to run one of these days.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: N-Sunderland on September 26, 2013, 03:54:07 pm
Also the main engi  can slap out some mines when you're still at long range and quickly jump down the ladder to get back to the hull.

Why take the ladder when there's a shortcut? ;)
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Captain Smollett on September 26, 2013, 04:08:15 pm
Yeah, I'm behind the times.  Squash just taught it to me, he was getting down to the hull almost instantly.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Alistair MacBain on September 26, 2013, 05:10:29 pm
wait i think i dont get sth there.
There is a way from topdeck of a spire to the hull faster than jumping down next to the ladder?
Or am i just wrong and understood sth wrong.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: N-Sunderland on September 26, 2013, 05:23:15 pm
wait i think i dont get sth there.
There is a way from topdeck of a spire to the hull faster than jumping down next to the ladder?
Or am i just wrong and understood sth wrong.

Nope, you're understanding it perfectly well.

http://youtu.be/TFeGPfpYc08

Of course, it's quicker for getting from the gun to the bottom, but not the top deck in general.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Zenark on September 27, 2013, 01:10:09 pm
I've found that I prefer a Hades in place of a Merc when using the LJ since the Field gun has like no downward arc. I haven't tried Hades with the Flak, but I plan on it.
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: TimTim LaBaguette on October 03, 2013, 01:03:00 am
I run hades/gat top, heavy Flak/flare bottom. Just shoot both the hades and the gat at the ship, lochnagar flak it when the hull is down, and have fun watching it explode :)
I even had a few ram kills with the spire, I love this new patch !
Title: Re: Flak Spire Combo Question
Post by: Gambrill on October 03, 2013, 11:48:07 am
running with the merc i've found to be alot better than the hades. Sacrificing the fire damage for the extra shatter damage has turned my spire into a long range disbler AND kill-ship :) only downside is close range, where i lose effectiveness of the flak but still get to disable and slowly kill (artemis explosive)

since playing the spire i now cannot pilot anything else. Not because i love it so much (however i bloody do) but because im so used to its playstyle that playing anything else i fail at.