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Topic: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide (Read 14422 times)
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Shiver
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This guide is a work in progress! For the time being, the PVP strategy guide will exist as a forum thread. The finished product will be uploaded elsewhere in a cleaner format. Net melee veterans (they know who they are) are encouraged to give me suggestions and corrections.
The Ur-Quan Masters Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide
For those of us who love Star Control but have already beaten the game and crushed the computer in Super Melee a thousand different ways, player-versus-player combat is the only way to go. Online melee became a reality on December 19th, 2006, when it was first implemented into The Ur-Quan Masters version 0.6.0. If you have no experience with net melee but want to try it out, this is a good place to start. This guide is also intended as a fix for anyone who is sick of being steamrolled by every other player they go up against.
Table of Contents
• Fundamentals
• Androsynth Guardian
• Arilou Skiff
• Chenjesu Broodhome
• Chmmr Avatar
• Druuge Mauler
• Earthling Cruiser
• Ilwrath Avenger
• Kohr-Ah Marauder
• Melnorme Trader
• Mmrnmhrm Transformer
• Mycon Podship
• Orz Nemesis
• Pkunk Fury
• Shofixti Scout
• Slylandro Probe
• Spathi Eluder
• Supox Blade
• Syreen Penetrator
• Thraddash Torch
• Umgah Drone
• Ur-Quan Dreadnought
• Utwig Jugger
• VUX Intruder
• Yehat Terminator
• Zoq-Fot-Pik Stinger
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« Last Edit: February 15, 2008, 02:50:40 am by Shiver »
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Shiver
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Fundamentals
Below is a compilation of useful information and tactics that apply during a wide range of different ship-to-ship confrontations.
Natural Intelligence vs Artificial Intelligence
To a player uninitiated in net melee, Star Control's "awesome cyborg" combat AI likely appears to be a competent pilot. The computer's main strength is that its reaction time exceeds human capabilities. This is especially obvious when it is given control of a ship that rewards this, such as Pkunk. The many weaknesses of the awesome cyborg vastly outweigh this strength, however. The computer cannot distinguish between different enemy ship types so it doesn't try to exploit its opponent's flaws. It will use one ship the exact same way in every given situation. Among other things, this leads to the AI aggressively chasing Spathi around the arena when a more cautious approach would be more effective. The computer will also decide which craft it sends into battle at random rather than choosing the most effective counter to what their adversary has in the arena.
By contrast, a live player can pick up all of these things very quickly. No person will be able to match the computer's ridiculous dodging ability with the Slylandro, but with practice they can get very close to it. And despite human limitations, an experienced player can become more dangerous even with those fast, dodgy ships by utilizing superior tactics. The most significant advantage a player has over the computer is that the player's abilities improve with every skirmish while the computer remains static forever. Play enough melee and that awesome cyborg will soon become a joke to you.
Initial Selection
When a melee match begins, both players must pick their first ship without knowledge of what the other player is using. The best approach is to use something cheap and crappy that you don't care about losing. If your opponent starts out with Chmmr and you only use Zoq-Fot-Pik, this is actually a good thing. You've only paid out 6 points and now your opponent has one of their best ships set up for you to counter. Gaining initiative is well worth the sacrifice of one weak ship. Zoq-Fot-Pik and Shofixti are the most commonly deployed starters for this reason. Use of slightly more expensive starters such as Syreen and VUX is also frequent, as they are just powerful enough to lay waste to the cheapest of ships without leaving you at a disadvantage afterwards.
Countering
Although the most expensive spacecraft are also typically the most effective, they each have a weakness to at least one ship which costs less. It's good to get in the habit of holding back certain ships until the other player deploys ideal prey. For instance, Orz has a tendency of leaving a long trail of death and destruction whenever it's deployed. That is to say, until Androsynth shows up in the arena with its comet form and slices right through it without even trying. Androsynth costs a little more than half the price of Orz, so if the other player has Orz in their fleet then you had better keep your Androsynth in reserve. Strive to hit every ship the other player uses with the most effective counter available.
Mirroring
This is another solution to difficult enemy craft. If someone has a ship out that you have no counters to use against, match them with the exact same ship yourself. If the other player's ship is already damaged, then the odds of winning are in your favor. If the other player's ship is at full crew capacity (or very close it), mirroring them is not a smart move.
The Arena
This diagram is a representation of the entire arena in melee. The arena is actually the size of four fully zoomed-out screens. Within the arena's confines there are always five asteroids and one planet. If an asteroid is destroyed, it will respawn off camera. Why is this information useful? Because during a significant portion of ship match-ups, one player will begin searching for the planet as soon as combat begins. Even when this is not the case, you should constantly be on the lookout for the planet so as to minimize your chances of crashing straight into it. Get in the habit of doing this and you'll find yourself ramming the planet much less often.
Blind Spots
A ship can only face 16 different directions. If you approach an enemy ship while hiding between their firing lines, they will be unable to hit you. Although this is usually not a major factor, blind spots exist on every ship in the game. If you find that your opponent is approaching along one of your blind spots, it's generally a good idea to reposition yourself so that you have some possibility of landing a hit on the other player. Weapons that fire in a wide spread or automatically home in on their target almost totally negate the presence of blind spots.
Braking
The above header is a bit misleading here; there are no actual brakes in Star Control. If you want to bring your ship to a stop, turn your ship exactly 180 degrees from the direction you're moving in and apply just enough thrust to negate your inertia. Due to differences in acceleration, top speed and ship mass, you'll find that the various warships each require a different amount of thrust to bring themselves to a stop.
Flanking
Flanking is a tactic in which an attacker maneuvers around their opponent's front and strikes them from the side or back where they cannot retaliate effectively. When piloting a fast and agile craft such as the Arilou Skiff, this the only way to fight. In some situations, a flanking ship can use an enemy's blind spot to help close the distance without being shot at.
Pillboxing
For vehicles with fast turning speed, Pillboxing is the best answer to a flanking adversary. To pillbox, simply bring your ship to a halt and then rotate in place so as to lead your opponent with your guns. A stationary craft is extremely difficult to flank, for if it is not travelling in any direction then there is no obvious opening to rush in from.
Asteroids
Asteroids are a minor factor, but never to the point where you can totally disregard their presence. Crashing into an asteroid inflicts no damage, but will bounce your ship away from it. Asteroids exist in Star Control melee to add a random element to combat. It is unusual for a player to win or lose a bout because of an asteroid, but it does happen. Situations where one can actively capitalize upon an asteroid are rare, but here's one tactic you can use:
Covered Charge
This is a fun one. If you happen to notice an asteroid directly approaching the enemy ship and you're close enough to it, you can hide behind the obstacle and advance under its shadow. An asteroid can only absorb one good shot, but sometimes one deflected shot is a huge advantage. This is a tricky and highly situational technique that you won't get to perform very often, but there's satisfaction in using a stray space rock to win.
The Planet
Behold the planet. The overlay you see around it shows the area upon which a planet exerts its gravitational pull. The approximate distance that this area extends across is three times the planet's diameter starting from the planet's outer edge. When your ship's center of mass crosses into this boundary, the effects of gravity begin to slowly drag your ship inward. A direct collision with the planet will kill either one fourth of your current crew, or a single crew member if your vessel has very few staff aboard.
Gravity Whip
The above figure demonstrates the ever popular Leyland Gravity Whip, a handy trick that will significantly boost the speed of most spacecraft. To perform this maneuver, accelerate straight through the planet's gravitational field. Once you've left the planet's immediate vicinity, stop accelerating. Using thrust beyond the planet's area of effect will rapidly bring your vessel back down to its default speed. Due to this limitation, a gravity whip can only be used to travel in a straight line. This maneuver has a wide range of applications within melee. The most obvious use of the gravity whip is to send spaceborne artillery such as the Earthling or Mycon careening so that they become much more difficult to engage up close.
Orbiting
Orbiting is a defensive technique with some similarities to pillboxing that allows the player using it to escape by gravity whip at any time, in any direction they want. As you can see from the diagram, orbiting involves placing your vessel in the planet's gravitational field in such a way that you automatically revolve around it. Lots of players seem to have trouble with this, but it's actually fairly easy to do. Remember how to brake? Simply repeat that procedure in close proximity to the planet. As you grind to a halt, your ship will begin to circle the planet on its own. You can adjust your orbit by accelerating very slightly in a given direction, and may need to do so to avoid colliding with the planet itself.
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« Last Edit: January 21, 2008, 05:32:10 am by Shiver »
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Cedric6014
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Shiver that is quite beautiful
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meep-eep
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Nicely done, so far.
A few comments.
"The approximate distance that this area extends across is three times the planet's diameter."
This is a bit confusing; if not for the image, I would think that this is three times the planet's diameter, counting from the centre of the planet, instead of three times beyond the planet's surface.
As for finding the planet, moving diagonally may increase the chance of you finding the planet without adjusting your direction, but it will also lengthen the time that it takes to make one round trip. And you may still miss the planet altogether, as the screen isn't always zoomed out all the way. The main advantage of moving diagonally, as I see it, is that you "sweep" with the diagonal of your screen, instead of with a (shorter) side.
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“When Juffo-Wup is complete
when at last there is no Void, no Non
when the Creators return
then we can finally rest.”
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Shiver
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"The approximate distance that this area extends across is three times the planet's diameter."
This is a bit confusing; if not for the image, I would think that this is three times the planet's diameter, counting from the centre of the planet, instead of three times beyond the planet's surface.
The distance is 3.5 from the planet's center, or 3 from the surface. I tested this out. Ledmeister's guide says almost 4 planet diameter lengths, but he's wrong as far as I can tell. Adjusting that paragraph now for clarity.
As for finding the planet, moving diagonally may increase the chance of you finding the planet without adjusting your direction, but it will also lengthen the time that it takes to make one round trip. And you may still miss the planet altogether, as the screen isn't always zoomed out all the way. The main advantage of moving diagonally, as I see it, is that you "sweep" with the diagonal of your screen, instead of with a (shorter) side.
Good point, except a person's opponent will be dancing around the screen as well, changing the camera's orientation. It would be very hard for a diagonal path to miss the planet over and over given this. I'll have to see about changing that section later.
I'd add, about gravity whips, "Ships with lower acceleration should may want to travel in a curved path around the planet, so as to maximize the time spent in its influence" - with an illustration of, say, a Chenjesu doing a gravity whip on the same panel as the Yehat. Also, it would be useful to show the planet-influence-circle there.
A curved gravity whip using a slow ship? Never even heard of that one. I think I'll snake that in there at some point. The Fundamentals page I had planned isn't quite done yet, I still need to cover countering and starter picks.
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« Last Edit: December 17, 2007, 07:25:12 pm by Shiver »
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Elvish Pillager
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Well, in general terms, the way to get the most time in the planet's circle for a gravity whip is to go as close to moving from the point where you enter the planet's circle to the point opposite that as is practical. That means cutting it close with the planet, preferably moving in somewhat of an arc around it. Ships with high acceleration, though, don't need to do that to get to max gravwhip speed.
Come to think of it, I'd also mention the idea of gravity whipping in a direct vertical or horizontal direction in order to come to the planet again soon, allowing you to change course or, in the case of very low-acceleration ships, get another go at the gravity whip to get up to the real maximum speed. (Diagonal might work too, but it'd be a lot harder to line it up so that you come near the planet without hitting it.)
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My team of four Androsynth and three Chmmr is the most unfair team ever! My mod |
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Shiver
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I've updated Fundamentals with three new sections at the top. "Planet Seeking" has been removed as it wasn't really that accurate.
Well, in general terms, the way to get the most time in the planet's circle for a gravity whip is to go as close to moving from the point where you enter the planet's circle to the point opposite that as is practical. That means cutting it close with the planet, preferably moving in somewhat of an arc around it. Ships with high acceleration, though, don't need to do that to get to max gravwhip speed.
Come to think of it, I'd also mention the idea of gravity whipping in a direct vertical or horizontal direction in order to come to the planet again soon, allowing you to change course or, in the case of very low-acceleration ships, get another go at the gravity whip to get up to the real maximum speed. (Diagonal might work too, but it'd be a lot harder to line it up so that you come near the planet without hitting it.)
Most of that information is useful, but also very particular. There are many variations on gravity whipping and orbiting but it would be difficult to explain all of them to a new player. I've already said this to EP in the chat room and he seemed to agree. I'm responding again in the thread so that people aren't confused when I don't bother to add any of his suggestions above.
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Gekko
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I only started playing UGM this autumn, but I have already played the game very much on PvP too. I'd like to add one thing:
Planet rushing (Got better name ideas?):
When playing a ship which requires to be close to enemy vessel in order to attack efficently (Zoq-Fot-Pik, Umgah etc.), one tactic is to stay in the gravitation area of the planet, orbiting it very fast, making you very hard target to hit. When the enemy is near, bounce off the gravitation field and get to close ranged combat.
Pretty obvious, but it wasn't included yet.
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Shiver
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I only started playing UGM this autumn, but I have already played the game very much on PvP too. I'd like to add one thing:
Planet rushing (Got better name ideas?):
When playing a ship which requires to be close to enemy vessel in order to attack efficently (Zoq-Fot-Pik, Umgah etc.), one tactic is to stay in the gravitation area of the planet, orbiting it very fast, making you very hard target to hit. When the enemy is near, bounce off the gravitation field and get to close ranged combat.
Pretty obvious, but it wasn't included yet.
That's a variation of orbiting. If a player knows how to orbit, it isn't too difficult to figure out a few extra nuances of the same technique.
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Shiver
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The Androsynth Guardian
Androsynth is versatile and deadly enough to put up a decent fight against almost every ship in Star Control. It is also easily the most overpowered ship in the game when considering its low point value of 15. Androsynth is not the most effective combatant, but anything that can outperform it costs quite a bit more. You should always have one of these in your fleet for the purpose of getting the most bang for your buck.
Primary Function: Acid Bubbles
These adorable little hazards move slowly and erratically in the general direction of the enemy, inflicting two damage each on contact. Acid bubbles are insignificant by themselves, but quite lethal as a large cloud. While these aren't used as often as the ship's comet form, there are a few enemies which warrant a technique known as the "bubble bath". To perform a bubble bath, spam the bubble weapon whenever your opponent draws near and maneuver around to keep the bubbles between them and yourself. You would be surprised how many different ships are unable to break past this defense. Unfortunately, bubble bathing is also considered foul play in many situations because of its tendency to create long, boring stalemates. With that in mind, the bubble bath is best used against very fast opponents that can easily avoid the Androsynth's comet form.
Secondary Function: Comet Form
The Androsynth can compact into a tight little ball and launch itself like a battering ram at enemy craft. As questionable as that sounds, it's amazingly effective against a wide range of different enemy craft. A single bump against an enemy ship counts for three damage, but the comet will often crash against its victim's hull multiple times before bouncing off in another direction. Occasionally the Androsynth can even wedge itself into its opponent, destroying them almost instantly. The comet form can also be used when your battery is low to make a quick leap away from imminent danger. The turning rate of the comet is rather poor, so whenever you fly past or bounce off a target do not attempt to turn around for another attack run until you've bypassed them by a reasonable distance. Attempting to turn back around in close proximity to your opponent is a great way to get yourself shot up.
Ship-to-Ship Comparisons
[Androsynth]
Outlook: As with all mirror matches, the ship which arrives with full crew has a slight upper hand that will usually result in a win.
Tactics: Both weapons are effective here, although decisive damage to you and your opponent will likely come from head-on comet bashing. If you're mirroring your opponent and their ship has already sustained damage, you want this to occur as much as possible. This will inflict mutual damage, eventually destroying the other ship. On the other hand, if you're the one going into this fight at a disadvantage then it's best to avoid a frontal collision and instead carry out guerilla warfare using bubbles. In either case, it's good to force the other player to deplete their battery while conserving yours. If you find yourself with a full battery and the other player is drained, comet charge them and get in as much damage as possible. When placed in this position yourself, evade the other player using quick, low energy comet bursts.
[Arilou]
Outlook: Good. Androsynth should win, but it isn't a sure thing.
Tactics: Maintain a bubble bath to the best of your ability. Arilou can only withstand three bubbles total and may sometimes teleport directly into them. The Arilou doesn't have enough top speed to catch you very often. Don't use your comet form except as a low battery escape mechanism to make a quick hop from one side of your bubble cloud to the other.
[Chenjesu]
Outlook: Uncertain. The match is fairly even between equally skilled players, with results varying quite a bit.
Tactics: Hurl yourself at the Chenjesu, but do not attempt to ram its front. The sides and back of your opponent are much more vulnerable. When the comet form uses up most of your battery power, get far away from the Chenjesu so you may recover energy in relative peace. If Chenjesu performs a gravity whip, stop trying to bash them with your comet and instead drop a full load of acid bubbles directly into their flight path. This will either destroy them or force them to abandon their gravity whip.
[Chmmr]
Outlook: Bad. This is Chmmr's fight, but there is a slight chance that you will destroy them with a lucky wedge.
Tactics: Try to wedge your comet form in the space between the Chmmr's bow and wing. If you don't achieve a perfect wedge, you won't deal damage fast enough to bring the Chmmr down before it kills you. A smart Chmmr will move directly away from you and maneuver around so as to make it very difficult to approach them without walking into their terawatt laser. If possible, move your ship around so that you aren't chasing directly after Chmmr when you activate your comet form.
[Druuge]
Outlook: Good. The Androsynth's comet form is too small of a target for the Druuge's cannon to hit reliably.
Tactics: Launch yourself at the Druuge and do your best to keep between its firing arcs. Do not turn away the first time it fires at you. You want to force Druuge to throw itself backwards hard with its cannon's recoil, which takes 3-5 shots. Once it is travelling fast enough, reverse direction and attempt to ram it as it sails in from the opposite direction. Never stay in the Druuge's firing line for more than an instant. This should be an easy fight if you play it correctly.
[Earthling]
Outlook: Excellent. Androsynth should win, but the amount of crew it will survive with varies by quite a bit.
Tactics: Go into comet form immediately and run the Earthling down. Missiles are fairly easy to dodge past and the point defense laser simply doesn't hit hard enough to stop you unless you bumble within the Earthling's range for an extended period without hitting them. If the Earthling manages to reach the planet and perform a gravity whip, the fight will become much more difficult so try to kill it before it gets there.
[Ilwrath]
Outlook: Good. These two ships fight on an even playing field, or at least they would if Androsynth didn't have a chance of instantly destroying Ilwrath with a wedge every time it collides with any part of the Ilwrath's front. That skews things often enough to call this Androsynth's match.
Tactics: A cloaked Ilwrath can avoid acid bubbles indefinitely so you'll have to kill it with the comet form. Whether you win or lose comes down entirely to how well you can aim and control the comet. Wedging into the gap in either of the Ilwrath's wings will destroy them instantly, but that is easier said than done. Try not to fly directly into the Ilwrath's fire spout.
[Kohr-Ah]
Outlook: Terrible. You're screwed, but it's not unheard of to squeeze out a win here.
Tactics: If the Kohr-Ah sets up a wall of blades around themself, force them to move out of their defensive perimeter with acid bubbles. Otherwise just charge straight at the Kohr-Ah in comet form. Kohr-Ah's flamewall can put you out of commission very fast, so try and fake them out by veering away before you collide with their hull. Only when the Kohr-Ah empties its battery is it truly vulnerable, and at that point you definitely want to try and crash into one of their sides. Kohr-Ah players will be expecting you to perform feints, so hitting them straight on might sometimes work. Watch out for stray blades.
[Melnorme]
Outlook: Good. Androsynth's small outline in comet form works to your advantage here.
Tactics: You want to be as aggressive with your comet as possible whenever the Melnorme is not carrying a full red charge. If it is, play more conservatively and try to find a good opening. You can harass Melnorme with acid bubbles until it loses its red charge to a stray asteroid, but that shouldn't be necessary.
[Mmrnmhrm]
Outlook: Uncertain. The odds are pretty much 50/50 here. It's a very fun and dynamic fight, so do yourself a favor and give this match a whirl.
Tactics: You can force a pillboxing Mmrnmhrm in X form to move from its defensive position by dropping acid bubbles outside of its range. For the most part though, you'll be using comet form to ram them to death while they do their best to rip you apart with their laser lance at close range. If Mmrnmhrm makes the mistake of switching to Y form in close proximity to you, attack immediately. Mmrnmhrm Y form has a slow recharge rate and it is often possible for you to close the gap and bash the other ship before it has the energy to shift back to X form.
[Mycon]
Outlook: Uncertain. This is a tricky fight from both sides.
Tactics: Charge Mycon right from the onset. If it makes it to a planet before you ram it to death, you're very likely not going to win. Never ram Mycon's front unless it's running on an empty battery. If you can lead one of the plasmoids it fires at you back into the ship itself, that will make the fight much easier.
[Orz]
Outlook: Excellent. This match is so one-sided it's considered the definitive textbook example of one ship destroying another more expensive one.
Tactics: Seek and destroy with your comet form. It's really that easy. Orz isn't fast enough to avoid you unless it gravity whips, and even that doesn't do much to turn the fight around. Orz marines die if they touch your comet form and the Orz cannon isn't accurate or powerful enough to stop you. Be aggressive; an indecisive Androsynth is less difficult for Orz to stand up to.
[Pkunk]
Outlook: Uncertain. Assuming the Pkunk never revives after its first destruction, you've got the upper hand. But even one revive is enough for a skilled Pkunk pilot to become a serious threat.
Tactics: Maintain a bubble bath as best as you can. Don't use your comet form except as a low battery escape mechanism to make a quick hop from one side of your bubble cloud to the other.
[Shofixti]
Outlook: Good. Androsynth will virtually never be killed by Shofixti. It also has a decent chance of walking away from a Shofixti suicide charge unscathed.
Tactics: Stay as far away from the planet as possible. If the Shofixti gravity whips, move clear out of its path. When Shofixti closes in on you using its default speed, drop some bubbles and move away. If you're feeling daring, comet at the Shofixti and turn away just as you enter its Glory Device radius -- if you do this right, your opponent will detonate without damaging you very much.
[Slylandro]
Outlook: Bad. Sorry buddy, you're going to lose unless the other player slips up. Slylandro is well designed to pick Androsynth apart.
Tactics: Bubble bath and hope you get lucky. Consider making a surprise attack on the other player with comet form; it's not really a good idea, but you're probably not going to win anyway and you might catch them by surprise.
[Spathi]
Outlook: Excellent. The Spathi's weapons prove clumsy and ineffective against a blazing comet and the ship itself isn't fast enough to keep away from an attacking Androsynth. Spathi's bizarre shape is very easy to wedge a comet into, which often proves fatal.
Tactics: Turn on your comet form and go after the Spathi. As you get close, you'll have to dodge some torpedoes and the Spathi is probably going to prance around a lot to make themself difficult to hit. Despite this, Spathi is a wide and vulnerable target which you will find quite easy to collide with.
[Supox]
Outlook: Excellent. Androsynth is fast and powerful enough to overwhelm Supox.
Tactics: Once again, take the direct approach. Avoid the Supox's shots when possible, but don't be shy about attacking.
[Syreen]
Outlook: Uncertain. This match favors Androsynth, but when Syreen wins it usually comes out stronger due to crew stealing. Avoid it unless you have no viable alternative.
Tactics: If you see the Syreen orbiting the planet, dump bubbles at them from a distance until they are forced to abandon the area in favor of open space. You do not want to attempt a comet charge against a Syreen next to a planet. No self-respecting Syreen is going to follow you into a bubble trap, so you'll have to use the comet. I hope your aim is good! Once the Syreen is destroyed, pick up your stray crew members from space to the best of your ability.
[Thraddash]
Outlook: Uncertain. This match is so slowly paced that it will bore you to tears. Avoid it unless you have no viable alternative.
Tactics: Stall the Thraddash with bubble clouds, but try and get the drop on them with your comet form every so often. The Thraddash's flame trail can kill Androsynth very quickly, but if you ram into Thraddash straight from the front there's not much danger of falling into this. You will lose this fight if you aren't patient.
[Umgah]
Outlook: Excellent. Umgah can't stand up to Androsynth's acid bubbles.
Tactics: Umgah's cone and backwards zip ability are not friendly to your comet form, so don't stick your neck out. The answer is "bubble bath".
[Ur-Quan]
Outlook: Good. Ur-Quan is powerful, but clumsy. If you're a good enough pilot you should have this in the bag.
Tactics: Turn on your comet form and attempt to flank the Ur-Quan. You'll find after some practice that this is actually not all that difficult to do. Whenever you see fighters, break off your attack immediately and get to a safe place. Acid bubbles are decent at killing fighter craft, but even that isn't really necessary. Ur-Quan fighters crash into asteroids and expire in space often enough that simply avoiding them will slowly wear the Ur-Quan down. Do not attempt to ram an Ur-Quan that is traveling on a gravity whip speed boost. Drop acid bubbles in its flight path to force it to abandon the gravity whip, then resume comet charging as normal.
[Utwig]
Outlook: Uncertain. This is another slugfest which can go either way.
Tactics: No Utwig player is going to chase you, so a bubble bath isn't an option. You'll have to ram them and hope for the best. It's possible to wear the Utwig down if your aim with the comet form is precise. There's also a faint possibility of achieving a wedge, but don't depend on that.
[VUX]
Outlook: Good. VUX limpets have no effect on Androsynth's comet form, leaving the VUX with very little leverage against a superior craft.
Tactics: You're probably skittish around VUX limpets, but in this case it's perfectly safe to run into them. If you can avoid incoming limpets then that's great, but never let them stop you from ramming the VUX in the sides or back. Even the VUX's front is a viable route of attack if its battery is low enough.
[Yehat]
Outlook: Bad. Yehat's spammable shield makes it well-suited for destroying Androsynth.
Tactics: There's no nice way to do this. The Yehat's shield makes it virtually immune to bubbles. Ramming the Yehat from the sides or back will easily be negated as well. You're going to have to hit them head on and hope for a lucky wedge. After crashing into their front, you have an opportunity to bump the Yehat's sides or back for a little extra damage after they've unloaded their battery on you.
[Zoq-Fot-Pik]
Outlook: Excellent. Zoq-Fot-Pik's weapon systems are hopelessly ineffective against Androsynth.
Tactics: Comet charge at them, but make sure you never hit the front of the Zoq-Fot-Pik square in the center. Their tongue weapon inflicts tremendous damage, but is too narrow to catch you. The Zoq-Fot-Pik scattergun can definitely hit you, but its damage is laughable.
Ideal Purpose
If your opponent has an Orz in their fleet, hold your Androsynth in reserve until given the opportunity to counter and destroy it. That Orz will do horrible things to you if you deploy your Androsynth prematurely. When faced with an opponent that has no Orz, think of your Androsynth as a "spare" that can be used to take out almost anything which you have no specific counter to use against.
Reprisal
If you absolutely, positively have to crush an Androsynth into scrap metal right this instant then use Kohr-Ah. But before you do that you should consider your less expensive alternatives. If the other player's Androsynth is damaged all the way down to half its crew capacity or less, Ilwrath is a more economical solution. Slylandro is also an effective Androsynth killer regardless of the target's crew, but you'll need good reflexes for that.
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« Last Edit: January 21, 2008, 05:38:23 am by Shiver »
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Shiver
Guest
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For Androsynth vs Chmmr, I'd advise to fly around the enemy and tear up its zap-sats rather than go for the unlikely wedge.
Unless you can remove all three satellites, this seems like a bad idea. We'll have to test that out later and see how it goes.
For Androsynth vs VUX, the fact is that the limpets have no effect whatsoever on the comet form. I'd say something like: "It's impossible to do damage to the VUX without taking on limpets, but that isn't terrible for the Androsynth since its comet form is unaffected. After being disabled by the first limpet, additional limpets will have hardly any effect even on the normal form."
Oh, thanks. I've fixed that part now.
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Gekko
*Many bubbles*
Offline
Gender:
Posts: 199
Arena regular
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Really nice stuff! It is fun to read that and notice how much I have played with it or how much I have played differently. Keep up the good work!
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