Author Topic: How to engineer efficiently on different types of ships (Part 1).  (Read 18243 times)

Offline BufferOverflow

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I would like to mention that these setups are my opinion and that other people may have different ideas. Please know that I also respect their opinion.
So let’s say that this is the scenario.
You are a new member and you like playing as the engineer. You already know what tool does what, and you know what parts of the ship are more important than others to fix (example: Hull before guns).
You are looking for a good captain in a lobby and you find one. You see that this captain has a crew of all high experienced players and you feel as if you aren’t good enough to join to join them. Nonsense! Even if you are a new member, you can still be a great engineer but, being a great engineer isn't just about being able to beat things with the proper tool. It is also about being efficient with your repairing based on what ship you are on.

The Pyramidion
So, for the first round, let’s say that the captain has chosen a Pyramidion and you have a mallet and wrench. Because the two most important parts of the ship (Hull and Balloon) have been separated by quiet some distance, while taking heavy damage you will not have enough time to go running back and forth from the hull to the balloon. In an ideal situation, you would have one engineer on the bottom deck of the ship and one engineer at the top of the ship (where the two front guns are). The engineer at the bottom section of the ship is responsible mostly for the hull and three engines. The engineer at the top of the ship is responsible for the balloon and the two front guns whether it is repairing the guns or putting out the guns fire. It would also be a good idea if the engineer at the top of the deck would be on the left front gun because then, the balloon would practically be right behind him/her.
In a situation where you only have one engineer, that one engineer would stay on the bottom deck while the two gunners up top would have to manage the balloon and guns.

The Junker
Now because of your great engineering skills on the first round your team has won the game. Now the captain decides to switch ships and you must now engineer on the Junker. Unlike the Pyramidion, one engineer can manage most of the ship by himself if it is necessary, but ideally, it would be much better if you would have two engineers taking care of the ship.
Here is one of the two setups I will show you for the Junker. In my opinion, both work pretty well.
Setup 1: (A bit more fire power than setup 2)
One engineer will be in charge of the hull, balloon, and the two upper engines. This may seem like a lot, but once you have gotten used to it, it can be accomplished fairly easily because of the fact that the Junker's Hull, Balloon, and two engines are fairly close together. Occasionally this engineer might want to shoot a few rounds from the two side guns on the upper deck at a ship if not taking too much heavy fire.
The second engineer will be either at the front gun if a gunner has not occupied it, or at one of the two guns on the lower deck next to the main engine. This engineer will be responsible for taking care of the front gun, the two side guns on the lower level, and the main engine that is located near the two side guns on the lower level. This engineer will also help shoot at enemy ships with gunner. In this case if an enemy ship is at either the left or right side of the Junker, it is a better idea for the gunner to stay on the lower deck and the second engineer to go to the top deck and shoot from one of the two side guns at the ship. This way, the second engineer will be a lot close to the Hull and Balloon so that in a pinch, the second engineer can also help the first engineer repair the more important parts of the ship.

Setup 2 (Bit more safer than setup 1)
This time, lest say you want to take a bit more of a safer approach. Engineer 1 and 2, for the most part will be on the upper deck. Engineer 1 will be in charge of repairing the hull, engine, and may he/she occasionally want to use the guns if the ship is in good condition. Engineer 2 will be in charge of maintaining the hull and the two side guns while when in a safe condition, checking in on the main engine located at the bottom deck but not staying there. This leaves the gunner to take care of his own equipment and he will also not have someone else firing at the same ship but this setup is sure to get you out of sticky situations as bit more easily than setup 1.

The Galleon
Alright! You won the second game also. The crew is starting to enjoy playing with you but your captain switches the ship again to the mighty Galleon! For the Galleon especially because it is such a massive ship, you will almost always need at least 2 engineers although like all other ships, it can manage with one if necessary.
Engineer 1 will be on the top deck of the Galleon and he will be in charge of everything on the top deck but he will be repairing something’s more than others. The main focus if you are on the top deck is to keep an eye out for the hull and balloon as usual. It would also be a good idea to check in on the main engine located on the top deck even in a heavy fire fight. Galleons are slow so if you don't have your main engine up, you’re sitting ducks! Although you may want to keep an eye on the Upper Deck guns, when taking heavy fire, focus on the more important parts of the ship. Engineer 2 will be on the bottom deck. Because one of the Galleons perks is having massive fire power, it is important to keep those guns online. Engineer 2 will be repairing the guns and the two engines at the back while if not taking too much damage shooting one of the big guns. It would be a good idea though to take one of the guns closest to the engines so that you can be as quick as possible if you need to tap those engines a few times.

Thanks for reading! I'll be out with part 2 shortly.
« Last Edit: February 24, 2013, 01:17:55 pm by CrazyRihron »

Offline N-Sunderland

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Re: How to engineer efficiently on different types of ships (Part 1).
« Reply #1 on: February 24, 2013, 12:57:48 pm »
For the Junker, it's good to have an engineer on the front gun, since they can access the hull really quickly by hitting it from underneath. The other engineer can handle the side guns, the balloons and engines when necessary, and provide extra hull repairs if needed.

Also, on the Galleon, "don't mind the upper deck guns" isn't the best piece of advice to give. The light gun on the side (preferably a merc) is very important for helping to weaken the target, and shouldn't be left until the ship starts taking serious hull and balloon damage.

Offline BufferOverflow

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Re: How to engineer efficiently on different types of ships (Part 1).
« Reply #2 on: February 24, 2013, 01:15:15 pm »
Sorry about that Galleon part your right. I was trying to express how important it was to keep an eye on the hull and balloon more than the guns to the new players. I see a lot of new comers ignoring the Hull and Balloon when they shouldn't be but I guess you shouldn't completely ingore the guns either. Sorry, that was my bad :p I'll change it. Thanks for the feed back though!

Offline N-Sunderland

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Re: How to engineer efficiently on different types of ships (Part 1).
« Reply #3 on: February 24, 2013, 01:20:48 pm »
It's definitely good that you're emphasizing a focus on repairs. There's nothing more annoying than a new engineer who's more interested in shooting than keeping the ship together.

Offline BufferOverflow

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Re: How to engineer efficiently on different types of ships (Part 1).
« Reply #4 on: February 24, 2013, 04:21:56 pm »
Haha, thanks. But your right too, attacking is also important. Without attacking your just kind of a punching ship xD

Offline Lord Dick Tim

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Re: How to engineer efficiently on different types of ships (Part 1).
« Reply #5 on: February 25, 2013, 01:13:19 am »
You deserve a salute for this post sir, thanks for putting it together!

Offline BufferOverflow

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Re: How to engineer efficiently on different types of ships (Part 1).
« Reply #6 on: February 25, 2013, 11:14:30 am »
Hey thanks man! It's really nice when you can share knowledge with other people and they appreciate it. I'm working on part 2 right now and it'll be ready in maybe a day or two.
Thanks for the feed back!

Offline Pickle

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Re: How to engineer efficiently on different types of ships (Part 1).
« Reply #7 on: February 26, 2013, 12:48:44 pm »
A slight variation on the Junker when used in the long-range support role (sniper platform), and remembering the other crew members can also contribute to repairs..

Pilot - brings Drogue Chute, this really takes the pressure off balloon repairs and keeps two guns firing as long as possible.  The Pilot can also hit the balloon for repairs without moving from the helm.  It's not unknown for the Pilot to also use the rear gun mount in the sniping role (usually a Mercury on the rear sniper-side mount).  Because the Pilot can make easy repairs to the baloon, the penalties for Hydrogen and Chute Vent aren't so severe - and the Junker isn't going to ourun a fight, so up and down maneuvering is useful.

Engineer 1 - mans the rear sniper weapon (if the Pilot isn't) or nips up to juggle the helm if the ship drifts (if the pilot is sniping), mans the rear CQB weapon (on the other side) if an enemy closes and the ship rotates to face it.  Attends to the balloon in direst emergency (but see point about Drogue Shoot above).  When the situation is less combat-focussed this Engineer runs around bringing everything up to full strength.  This Engineer is responsible for emergency repairs to maneouvering engines when the Pilot needs them (the Pilot should maintain situational awareness and call the Engineer from the gun when needed).

Engineer 2 - camps the hull during combat, may make a dash to the balloon or the rear weapons mounts during cool-down pauses but never strays too far from the hull.  The Engineers can end up swapping roles during a match depending on where they find themselves after emergency repairs when a target presents itself.  It's possible to organise the Engineers to swap rolles between sniping and CQB broadside, but this requires good communication and coordination - most games I play the Engineer in this role never shoots.

Gunner - has responsibilty for shooting and repairing the lower deck and forward guns during combat when they are needed.  All Gunners should bring Heatsink to cope with Banshee and flamers - it takes the pressure off the Engineers in CQB.  The Engineer also makes emergency repairs to the main engine if the Engineer's are in crisis mode on the upper deck.  Attempts by the Engineer to repair the hull from below take a lot of skill and seem to be hit-or-miss.

Offline BufferOverflow

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Re: How to engineer efficiently on different types of ships (Part 1).
« Reply #8 on: February 26, 2013, 01:53:22 pm »
Haha, thanks for that sniper setup, the Junkers kind of a hard one to get good setups on unless your doing a particular set up like the sniper rifle. I like the fact that you also put the entire crew.
I also know what you mean by other crew members can help repair too. I was just trying to focus in on the engineers though.
Thanks for posting, really like your idea and us engineers could always use a little extra help from the crew like you said xD
Best of Luck in the skies!
-CrazyRihron
« Last Edit: February 26, 2013, 01:55:26 pm by CrazyRihron »