Messages

1

Q&A / Re: Piloting Consistency

« on: September 23, 2015, 04:34:52 pm »

Mindset is key. However there are multiple things that factor into this. I'll try to explain these as best as I can at this early hour... For instance, do you:

A. Play by the map you are flying on? E.g. Open spaces vs. close quarters, or something in between?
- Do you use terrain to flank?
- As cover?
- To manipulate your enemies arcs/approach so that you get the first shot...

B. Play by what the enemy team is taking and try to counter to the best of your abilities?
- What is the enemy good at? What are their weaknesses?
- If I do this, my enemy will do this... Therefore I will do this...
- How can I use this to my advantage?
- What is the enemy relying on to maximise their chances of winning?
- What tools and load outs does the enemy have? (2 buff kits? 1 buffkit and a gunner? Pilot hasn't taken any vertical tools. His arcs are this... Therefore I can do this...)

C. Your crews strengths coupled with your ship strengths?
- I am comfortable flying this ship on this map...
- My crew is capable of repairing and shooting these guns to this degree...

*Plus more that I am probably forgetting at this time...*

Usually I approach every battle with the aforementioned in mind, while adapting the following thought: "How can I minimise damage to myself and maximise the enemies pain?" 

Hope this helps!

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” Sun Tzu

2

Q&A / Re: Mine-laying Ships

« on: June 18, 2015, 03:35:48 am »

How crucial is lesmok on a Muid's engineer? Is it viable to just rush the range loss and make use of loch or incendiary. Or maybe just have the engineers swap to get 2 choices on the side gun.

Lesmok isn't necessarily crucial for a Muid, the range at which a Muid operates is determined by what the pilot is comfortable with. (This is usually decided by what you are fighting and the terrain surrounding the area) Most mines will be deployed at around a normal range. The only time a lesmok mine will be used is on the initial charge, if the pilot misjudges the distance, or the enemy has put themselves in an awkward spot with terrain. But having a back up ammo on the other engineer is always a good idea, providing they can swap quickly when needed. Hope that helps.

3

Q&A / Re: Mine-laying Ships

« on: June 18, 2015, 02:30:25 am »

For squid you don't want both front guns as mine launchers for a few reasons. Gunners are great on mines because they can use 4 ranges but engineers can only use 2. This forces you to engage at lesmok or regular range, not optimal for squid. One of the best defenses for squid is staying close to minimize enemy arcs. A good squid at close range can move to avoid arcs faster than the opponent can provide them. Staying at further ranges makes it much easier for them to get arcs and much harder for you to avoid. Having 2 mines increases your own chance of hitting mines which is deadly. Mines aren't guaranteed hits where other weapons are.

^ This is the general "food of thought" for most players however I believe this to be wrong from my own flying experiences, below I have listed some pointers which debunk this:

1. You have the fastest ship in the game, with also some great vertical movement.
2. Squids/Muids negate the range weakness of a Munker.
3. The effectiveness of mines rely on how well you can change/maintain certain distances.
4. With a gunner operating the front mine launcher you only need one mine to hit and the engagement is already in your favour providing you aren't flying poorly/badly positioned.
5. Having two mine launchers allows you to get two mines out at different ranges/places. I.e. one in front/above and one behind/below, etc. But also allows for defensive mines if needed. (Sometimes you may find yourself with 2 opponents bearing down on you)
6. When you use a bifecta on a squid you will begin to fly at a slight angle to the enemy ship that is being mined, ergo you are no longer in the flight path of deployed mines.
7. Normal ranged mines are surprisingly easy to get armed at short range when you know a couple of things...
8. Even if you don't hit the enemy they have to be careful where they move, because if they do hit a mine a few things will occur a. they will be knocked off arc to some degree, b. have to repair some damage (Changes with additional mine hits) c. allow you to reposition yourself accordingly, d. in this time you will have another 2-4 mines out.  (This is a snowball effect, and its all downhill from here)


Having said all this, I must reiterate that the "Muid" is much harder to fly than a munker initially. This is because it has an additional learning curve for both the pilot and the miners when compared to a munker/ or any other static/defensive mining ship. But is far more rewarding when mastered. HAIL PHOBOS!!!

4

Q&A / Re: Mine-laying Ships

« on: June 17, 2015, 01:58:54 pm »

"Mines" and "Squid" are a harmonious couple made in heaven for daring crews and yet conjured from the enemies hell. I use the term "Muid" to represent such a magnificent pairing. Having said that a Muid is much harder to fly compared to a Munker but it also has additional advantages whilst negating many of the Munkers disadvantages although that's all very hush hush... (Shock and horror to those who thought Munkers were frustrating enough *evil laugh*). Albeit Muids are far more unforgiving of poor piloting and mistakes. So on one side we have difficult to master/fly effectively yet on the other we have possibly one of the most annoying/frustrating to fight ships ever flown... But you didn't hear anything from me. Happy flying! >.>

*Muid: A squid that has a front mine launcher and side mine launcher, it doesn't necessarily have a rear one. Just so you know what madness I speak of.*

5

Gameplay / Re: 1.4 Squid

« on: February 28, 2015, 01:07:31 am »

I'm all for the added acceleration the squid received, however I am against the hull buff like many others. The reason I'm against the hull buff is because it allows the squid to be misused. The squid isn't designed to ram, nor is it meant to be directly brawling with ships dedicated to such roles. (Pyramidion) It's meant to be used as a scalpel, with surgical strikes.

Having said that though, if it were possible I would like the extra hull strength in the buff to be transferred into the top two engines on the squid. The reason for this is that the squid effectively has 4 copy and pasted standard edition turning engines on it, despite being an "advanced" Chaladonian design... (Yes they built their own engines, it's just too bad they don't have any differences in design to other factions light engines...)

If the engines aren't to gain any added durability, then I'd be more than happy if the turning speed/acceleration was increased as seen in the Dev app prior to the update. (Or both... But that may be a stretch?)

6

General Discussion / Re: Ship Selection Phase Idea (Hephaestus Challenge Season 2)

« on: February 15, 2015, 02:13:12 pm »

As stated before this idea constitutes a blind pick, there is no real safe choice... You have no idea what you may be up against. Hence you observe what map you are on and choose what you are most comfortable with. If that ends up being a metamidion, then so be it. The problem here isn't a metamidion being chosen, but rather being hard countered. By locking ships along with loadouts you will only be bringing ships with loadouts you believe that will be effective on that set map.

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General Discussion / Re: Ship Selection Phase Idea (Hephaestus Challenge Season 2)

« on: February 15, 2015, 01:50:16 pm »

If a team knows the map they'll be on... Given that they have had enough time to plan their ships and tactics in advance, they shouldn't need to swap the loadouts they have sent to the event officials because they will be playing the map to their own strengths.

8

General Discussion / Re: Ship Selection Phase Idea (Hephaestus Challenge Season 2)

« on: February 15, 2015, 09:45:29 am »

The main issue with ship choice in the lobby stage is the prospect of being "hard countered" by the opposition. Hence I will suggest as others have in the past, the possibility of a "blind pick/set up" where ships are sent by the Teams Representatives to the nominated "officials" running the event.

Now the problem with the blind picking system which has been stated in the past is that: "Well if nobody knows what the enemy is taking, then most people will feel confined to the meta."

I believe that this could be addressed if Teams knew in advance what maps they would be fighting on. This way they will base their strategy on how they believe they can best play that map. As a result we are no longer playing the lobby "hard counter" game but instead the maps that are selected for the event to occur on.

The only question if this is to be implemented is "how much time do teams need to formulate a strategy for the map/s they'll be playing on?"

9

General Discussion / Re: AN OPEN LETTER TO THE SANDSTORM REPUBLIC (SREP)

« on: February 02, 2015, 11:37:29 pm »

As Tropo said, this needs to be locked and moved.

10

Community Events / Re: SAC HOLIDAY VIP Match Results!!!!!!!

« on: January 19, 2015, 04:51:47 am »

Clan: Clan Clan
Name: Ruairi
Event: New Years SAC Attack
Prize: Rose dye

Thanks again!

11

Feedback and Suggestions / Re: Feedback Debate

« on: November 26, 2014, 02:00:08 am »

Drogue chute can be used to steady a ship, this is particularly useful on a lumberfish. But it also works on other sniper ships.

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Feedback and Suggestions / Re: Feedback Debate

« on: November 21, 2014, 01:15:04 pm »

There is no such thing as "the most powerful ship." A ships effectiveness is determined by the pilot, its crew, its ally ship, what ships the enemy is flying and finally the map and the strategy behind what needs to be accomplished in order to win.

13

General Discussion / Re: what do you think of the new spotting UI?

« on: November 19, 2014, 01:01:34 am »

Considering how unreliable current spotting mechanics are, and how little sense they can make sometimes... I'm against this new outline, it provides too much information and could result in some balancing issues especially for the bigger squishier ships. (Looking at you spire, you poor fragile thing. )

14

Feedback and Suggestions / Re: Problems with matchmaking

« on: October 28, 2014, 10:38:39 pm »

Let's be honest there are many problems with matchmaking, ranging from the simple such as the double gunner, to the more complex such as creating a balanced match.

In regards to the simple problem of the double gunner/pilot it is amazing how long this has gone unresolved. In the previous patch/hotfix for whatever reason the gunner and engineer icons have been merged together. Insinuating that there is an equal need for "gunners" as there is for engineers when in truth the gunner is a binary number... 1 or 0. (By the way can someone please explain to me why the A.I. gunner still exists?) Now in regards to the second pilot I don't even know how this is a thing...? Other's have suggested in the past that by blocking anyone that isn't in the captain position from using the pilot class this could be resolved. This is a step in the right direction, however I would add that the only positions available on a ship are the recommended load outs chosen by the captain of that particular ship. In addition to this I would also add that in lobby, a person cannot change to a second gunner without the first gunner acknowledging this change and being swapped to engineer as a result.

In regards to balance, I don't believe this can really be achieved as long as the "rematch" option is a feature. This is because it limits the player pool available, hence veterans are spread out over various matches often crushing less experienced players on "stacked" teams. I would also like to add there are numerous ways in which this community could be improved very easily. Such as creating an icon new players could display showing that they are willing to learn from Veterans willing to divulge information on the game. Team Fortress 2 allows players to receive a coach if they wish... But in a game that thrives on teamwork, there is little done to help new players develop so that they may achieve/see endgame... This could also explain why GoI player activity fluctuates so aggressively...

In all honesty I believe there is a large community of players invested in this game who want to see it prosper. However with the number of solutions and ideas that are posted that fail to see implementation or even acknowledgement, I'd wager the future of this game is surely threatened... Especially with Veteran players slowly being BURNT out :/

15

Q&A / Re: How to approach a Galleon

« on: October 24, 2014, 12:53:41 am »

The Galleon can be a very powerful ship when it is flown and positioned well. However it also has its weaknesses, these include:

Blind spots: Above, below, front, behind.

Ship Design: Heavy weapons don't have the best arcs. Easily disabled. Long rebuild time. 2/4 have arming times so when you're close they become ineffective. Balloon is very large, along with the hull. Lastly ship components are fairly spread out and can make it difficult to keep operational under fire. 

With approaching a galleon, there are two mindsets. a. Do I want to use close range to kill it? Or b. Do I want to out range it?

If a. Observe the map and see what clouds/terrain you can use to get close. Next pick a blind spot, this will force the pilot to move his ship accordingly. Most of the time you'll be able to manipulate the galleon into doing what you want if you try and stick to the blind spots. E.g. If dealing with a galleon sitting at the height ceiling I'll try to remain hidden on the approach. Once close I'll attack from underneath most likely at the rear where the turning engines are. This will force the galleon to turn/move because he wants to kill me. From here I readjust my ship position to stay in the blind spots, this can be done in various ways. The most important part is you must apply pressure. E.g. Shooting out turning engines then pounding away, popping the balloon repeatedly.

If b. There are many ships that can effectively engage a galleon from long range and either kill it or disable it effectively. Having said that this can take some time but it's generally the safest option. Just make sure to maintain a high situational awareness for his team mate, in case you need to change targets. 

In your context of a CP match, I assume it was Labyrinth you were playing on. In which case you may be able to use a height advantage to approach. Or perhaps with your ally bait him into changing his gun arcs then focus him down from different angles, forcing him to reposition constantly. (Just make sure these angles aren't broadsides. )