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Shiver
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Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« on: August 09, 2008, 12:40:29 am »

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 another format. I am currently seeking input on this project.



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 some pointers before you try it out, here is a good place to start. This guide is also intended as a fix for anyone who is sick of being steamrolled by every 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




Credits

A huge thanks to my play-test opponents, Elvish Pillager and Gekko. I would also like to give credit to everyone who contributed to the content of this guide in some form or another. The list of minor contributors is as follows:

• Meep-Eep
• countchocula86
• Amiga Nut
• Lukipela
• Alephresh
• AngusThermopyle
• Death999
« Last Edit: September 07, 2008, 03:45:33 am by Shiver » Logged
Shiver
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #1 on: August 09, 2008, 12:41:18 am »

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



Star Control's combat AI is fundamentally different from any player you will go up against. The AI's main strength is that its reaction time exceeds human capabilities. This is especially obvious when it is turned up to the "awesome cyborg" setting and given control of a ship that rewards this, such as Pkunk. The many weaknesses of the AI vastly outweigh this strength, however. The AI does not distinguish between different enemy ship types so it doesn't try to exploit its opponent's weaknesses. With only a few rare exceptions, it will use one ship the exact same way in every given situation. This often leads to idiotic behavior such as aggressively chasing after Spathi. The AI will also select which ship it sends into battle at random rather than choosing the most effective counter to what their adversary has in the arena.

The AI is a good for training up to a certain point, but live opponents offer more variety, challenge and fun. No player will be able to match the computer's ridiculous reflexes when controlling Slylandro, but with practice they can get very close. Despite human limitations, an experienced player can become more dangerous even with those fast, dodgy ships simply by using them more intelligently. Reflexes are important in melee, but good tactics count for more.




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 generally the most powerful, 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 this interesting habit of leaving a long trail of death and destruction in its wake. At least that's what happens unless Androsynth shows up in the arena and slices right through it without even trying very hard. Androsynth costs a bit more than half the price of Orz, so if the other player has Orz in their fleet then you need to hold your Androsynth in reserve. Try 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. Conversely, mirroring a ship with full crew is not a wise course of action.



The Arena



This diagram is an approximate representation of the entire melee arena. The arena is the size of four in-game screens zoomed all the way back. 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 one player will begin searching for the planet immediately during a significant portion of ship-to-ship match-ups. You will find yourself doing this eventually if you have not gotten into the habit already. Even when the planet is not an objective for either player you should constantly be on the lookout for the planet to minimize the chance of crashing into it.



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 is 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 difficult to flank, for if it is not traveling 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 on an asteroid are rare, but there is one tactic you can use...



Covered Charge



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 shot, but sometimes one deflected shot is decisive. This is a tricky and highly situational technique that you won't get to perform very often, it's fun to win by using a stray space rock.



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. 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.
« Last Edit: September 01, 2008, 09:14:41 pm by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #2 on: August 09, 2008, 12:42:53 am »

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 dangerous 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. You really cannot go wrong with Androsynth.



Primary Function: Acid Bubbles



These adorable little hazards move slowly and erratically in the general direction of the enemy, inflicting two damage each upon contact. They are harmless to the Androsynth that has deployed them. Acid bubbles are insignificant by themselves, but quite lethal as a large cloud.



The Bubble Bath

While acid bubbles aren't used as frequently 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 speedy opponents that can easily thwart the Androsynth's comet form. These ships are: Arilou, Pkunk, Slylandro, Thraddash and Umgah.



The Bubble Trap

The acid bubble weapon can be used to force an opposing craft to abandon a particular position. If the other player is soaring around on a gravity whip and you want to make them to break off the maneuver, move into their path and drop a large heap of bubbles. This same trick is also a good way to force an opponent to cease pillboxing or orbiting for a time, as they will have to move away to avoid damage. The likelihood of your opponent sustaining damage from this technique is low if they know what they're doing. This is a utility move, not something you win battles with by itself.



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. Comet charges are best started when you have a full battery and finished far away from the opponent's position where the other player cannot retaliate while you recharge. 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 you should 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.



Ideal Purpose

Androsynth is the perfect Orz counter. If your opponent has an Orz in their fleet, hold your Androsynth in reserve until given the opportunity to counter and destroy it.

Androsynth vs. Orz: Your comet form is the perfect weapon for dispatching an otherwise dangerous vessel. Orz marines are killed instantly upon contact with your comet form and the ship itself is not nearly fast enough to evade you. Chase them down and ram into them a few times for an easy win.

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. Here is a list of ships that make good alternate targets for your Androsynth:

• Druuge
• Earthling
• Melnorme
• Spathi
• Supox
• Umgah
• Ur-Quan
• VUX
• Zoq-Fot-Pik




Counters

Slylandro vs. Androsynth: Chase Androsynth around their own bubble cloud and tear them up with your lightning weapon whenever you get within range. It may be difficult to find an opening, but Slylandro is fast enough that it can eventually catch Androsynth unprotected and wear them down. The Androsynth may attempt to comet charge you, but that should be trivial to avoid with your superior speed. You will need to be both aggressive and patient to come out on top.

Yehat vs. Androsynth: Bubbles are a joke against your shield and the comet form is not much better. Chase after the Androsynth and pepper them with your pulse cannons when given the opportunity. As is typical with Yehat, prioritize your shield over your weapon.

Kohr-Ah vs. Androsynth: Drop a few spinning blades nearby and try to time your flamewave ability for the moment the Androsynth's comet form is about to crash into you. Expect them to try and pull a fake-out or two to get you to waste your battery -- it's their only way around the devastating flamewave. If Androsynth does not go on the offensive, they are shooting themselves in the foot; Kohr-Ah excels at long range warfare. Before you send your Kohr-Ah out for this, you should consider your less expensive alternatives.

Chmmr vs. Androsynth: Chmmr can beat Androsynth consistently if you pilot it correctly. This involves flying directly away from the Androsynth at all times, and then turning back around to shred them with your laser once they comet charge you. If you're defensive enough, the Androsynth should never have an opportunity to inflict serious damage let alone wedge itself between the bow and wing of your ship. This counter works, but I don't recommend using it. There are better targets for Chmmr.
« Last Edit: August 09, 2008, 01:03:00 am by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #3 on: August 09, 2008, 12:44:20 am »

The Arilou Skiff



Being the first of several ships designed for flanking, the Arilou is built around the premise of being able to pick apart its enemies without taking any damage in return. With only six crew members, this craft does not allow its pilot any room for error. The ship's maximum velocity is not high enough for it to flank most other spacecraft the conventional way, so Arilou pilots must instead rely heavily upon a frustratingly random teleportation ability to get into attack position. In terms of cost-effectiveness, the Arilou falls short of its 16 point value.



Primary Function: Auto-Aiming Laser



This short range laser is always aimed at your opponent. The weapon stutters while firing, causing a point of damage every other frame. To look at it another way, that's half the rate of sustained firepower which you can expect from a VUX laser or a quarter of sustained firepower from a Chmmr laser. This comparison is hardly flattering for the Arilou, but the weapon's precision and ease of use mitigate this lack of impact somewhat. Be sure you do not exhaust your battery entirely when you unload on an opponent. Keep a small reserve of energy in case an emergency teleport becomes necessary.



Secondary Function: Teleport



For only three points of energy, the Arilou may instantly teleport to a random location within the arena. This ability is most frequently used as an escape mechanism. See a projectile flying your way? Teleport out of there before it connects. Teleportation has a catch to it: There is a minuscule chance of the Arilou spawning inside an asteroid or planet, destroying it instantly. The more you use Arilou, the more you will learn to hate this flaw in the ship's design.



Chain Teleportation

It is not immediately obvious, but teleportation also has offensive potential. To teleport offensively, use the secondary function repeatedly until your ship appears close to your opponent at an angle they are not able to stop you from flanking them. Between each teleport you should wait for your battery to recharge so that you are at your maximum capacity when the moment to strike finally presents itself. This tactic dramatically increases your chance of a fatal teleport, but is nevertheless worth it against many different ships which Arilou would otherwise not be able to beat.



Bonus Feature: Inertial Nullifier



Arilou is the only ship in the game which does not continue to coast in a direction after it turns off its thrusters, allowing it to come to a full stop in an instant. This gives you better handling of the ship, but isn't really decisive by itself. Arilou is also not affected by the planet's gravity, nor the Chmmr's tractor beam.



Ideal Purpose

Here are your most viable targets:

• Druuge
• Earthling
• Mycon
• Umgah
• VUX
• Zoq-Fot-Pik

Mycon is the best craft to go after, while Druuge is second best and VUX is third. Some other popular ships to send Arilou against seem to be Melnorme and Supox. These are normally easy prey for Arilou, but unfortunately both ships each have their own obscure anti-Arilou tactic which can give them an edge. Attack either ship with Arilou if you want, but understand the risk involved. With that in mind, I will now go over the three good targets:

Arilou vs. Mycon: The technique for this particular match-up is as simple as watching out for plasmoids while moving in for the kill. You shouldn't even need to teleport. This is the most basic flanking exercise in the game.

Arilou vs. Druuge: Chain teleport until you end up where you need to be, then fly in and blast away. It may take a couple attack runs depending on how much crew the Druuge has. Never stay in the Druuge's line of fire for more than a fraction of a second.

Arilou vs. VUX: This fight depends entirely on how well you can move up one of the other player's blind spots and flank them. Your ship's outline is small and the VUX's weapon is a thin line, so these blind spots are easy to take advantage of. Avoid limpets to the best of your ability as you fight, but do not obsess over avoiding every single one of them. The Arilou is affected by limpets less than most other vessels. Arilou is unique in that it can negate the VUX's first strike ability. If you're playing Arilou as a starter, teleport just as the match begins to get clear of a potential VUX ambush.




Counters

Ilwrath and Shofixti are ideal for destroying Arilou. You may or may not have the luxury of using a good counter against it.

Ilwrath vs. Arilou: Keep your cloaking device on. The Arilou's auto-aiming laser will not track you while you're cloaked, forcing them to face directly into you at short range to attack. Victory is not as simple as returning fire; Your effective range is shorter than theirs, and when you uncloak to attack the Arilou's laser can track you again. You will need to catch the Arilou by surprise while they fumble about trying to hit your cloaked form. I recommend playing this one cautiously.

Shofixti vs. Arilou: This is not the most reliable Arilou killer, but it's certainly the cheapest. The Arilou's effective weapon range is too short to hurt Shofixti without walking into the glory device's kill radius. Unfortunately, this leads to a long and frustrating series of feints from the Arilou in order to trick you into triggering the bomb at a bad time. Use your pipgun to put pressure on Arilou, but don't expect the other player to let you kill them with that.

Spathi vs. Arilou: Spathi performs well against Arilou, although it is not cost-effective and the match will be long and tedious to an extreme. Play defensively and keep plugging away with those torpedoes. Three torpedo hits or a bad teleport will take down that Arilou.

You can also use one of the tougher ships such as Androsynth, Slylandro or Mmrnmhrm if none of the proper counters are available to you, although none of these are ideal as you should have bigger fish to fry with them.
« Last Edit: August 31, 2008, 01:48:34 pm by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #4 on: August 09, 2008, 12:49:03 am »

The Chenjesu Broodhome



To say that Chenjesu is lacking in mobility would be an understatement. Due to its mediocre acceleration, abysmal turning rate and high ship mass, this ship lurches about during combat like an obese sea turtle. This ship will crash into the planet more frequently than anything else in the game, and due to Chenjesu's large crew capacity, even one crash will sting like a swift kick to the crotch. An expert player can minimize these collisions, but they are still going to occur. Despite this, Chenjesu is quite powerful. Its choice of armament is strong and versatile enough that this ship can put up a fight at all distances against just about everything in the game. It's a solid combatant, but not nearly worth the cost of 28 points.



Primary Function: Photon Shard



Photon shards can be launched all the way across the screen and continue traveling beyond the camera's boundaries and come back again on a wrap-around. While that is a neat demonstration of the weapon's infinite range, it's also a phenomenally stupid way to fight. Lots of players like to try and hit their opponent with a crazy wrap-around shot and I have no idea why anyone would think that's a good idea. That technique is not reliable in the least bit and wastes far too much time, so don't do it.

With that tangent out of the way, let's go over the specifics of this weapon. To fire a photon shard, hold down the primary attack button. The photon shard inflicts six damage on a direct collision with the enemy. If you release the primary attack button before the shard strikes an object, it will explode into eight little pieces of shrapnel that travel in different directions and inflict two damage each. You do not need to line up your shots perfectly to damage an enemy craft thanks to shrapnel. These smaller fragments are not very precise, but they do help.




Shrapnel Spamming



Rapidly tapping the primary attack button will unleash a flurry of ordinance nearby that can be devastating at short range. This technique is a good way to handle small enemy craft attempting to flank you, for it will cover your ship from almost every angle with weapons fire. Shrapnel spamming does leave two diagonal openings behind the Chenjesu itself that are not covered, so try to keep hostiles off your back as much as possible.



Secondary Function: De-Energizing Offensive Guided Interceptor



Using their entire battery, the Chenjesu can construct and deploy DOGIs during combat. DOGIs seek out the opposing craft and attempt to bump into them. A DOGI collision inflicts no damage, but rather drains ten points of battery power and knocks the other ship off course. Chenjesu can only maintain four DOGIs during combat at a time, though even one DOGI can potentially disable an opponent by keeping their battery empty. DOGIs have varying amounts of usefulness depending upon what the Chenjesu is up against. Even when you're in a match where DOGIs do not appear to be decisive, it's good to make one if you've got the energy to spare and the opposing ship is not an imminent threat. DOGIs are vulnerable to your own weapons so try not to shoot them down.



Ideal Purpose

While Chenjesu is too expensive to be used as a proper counter, it is also moderately effective against the entire line-up of ships within the game. You can use Chenjesu against almost anything and get some mileage out of it. The DOGIs make it particularly devastating against Utwig and Druuge, so those are often the best prey.

If you're being smacked around by a Syreen bloated full of extra crew, Chenjesu is a good candidate to put a stop to the rampage. Against Syreen, pillbox to minimize their ability to steal your crew.

Chenjesu is also a good choice against a Chmmr that has been beaten down to half its crew compliment or less. You should be able to wipe them out before they can unload their battery on you. Shrapnel is mostly useless against Chmmr, so try to land every shot.




Counters

Orz vs. Chenjesu: Orz is the most reliable Chenjesu-killer. Drop marines from many different directions so that your opponent cannot avoid them all. Do not engage the Chenjesu directly. The fight should win itself unless your marines grossly underperform.

Slylandro vs. Chenjesu: As with most matches that favor Slylandro, the right tactics can only take you so far. This match is almost entirely based on your reflexes. You want to hit Chenjesu from the sides and back while dodging photon shards and shrapnel. Stay clear of the Chenjesu's front unless they perform a gravity whip, in which case it's quite possible to move in front of them for a brief period and escape unharmed. Do not get too close to the Chenjesu during a flanking run, shrapnel can still get you while you're on their sides or back.

While not a serious counter, Earthling is a good way to finish off a Chenjesu that has lost at least half its crew. Run away from them, then turn back around and lob missiles until the Chenjesu is no more.

There are many ships that cost less than Chenjesu, but can go toe to toe with it when played well. Androsynth, Mmrnmhrm, Melnorme, Mycon and Yehat can all see success here.
« Last Edit: August 09, 2008, 08:07:55 pm by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #5 on: August 09, 2008, 12:49:59 am »

The Chmmr Avatar



Here we have the first of three 30 point heavyweights, and it's a doozy. The Chmmr is not very fast, but it has astronomical firepower and a solid defensive screen. Even casual use of this ship should make it clear to anyone that the Chmmr is an absolute murder machine. A melee newbie will likely think the ship is unbeatable -- not true. There is one definite hard counter, one soft counter and several weaker ships that can inflict respectable damage upon Chmmr. So is the ship still worth all the points? Very much so, especially if you learn how to win some of the trickier matches. At the same time, I wouldn't really call Chmmr a "must have" simply because multiple smaller craft can give you more flexibility.



Primary Function: Terawatt Laser



So long as you keep the beam on your target for more than an instant, this weapon's rate of damage is ridiculous. An Androsynth comet lodged into a ship does more damage per frame, but in general the Chmmr's laser inflicts the highest rate of sustainable damage. Watch those blind spots, however, for it's very easy to charge right into an opponent and then be unable to point your beam directly at them.



Secondary Function: Tractor Beam



This exerts a gravitational pull on the other ship, dragging it towards the Chmmr. Each ship in Star Control has their own ship mass, turning rate, acceleration and top speed so the effectiveness of the tractor beam will vary depending on what you're fighting against. Both the Terrawatt Laser and the Tractor Beam eat up considerable amounts of power. Use these abilities with restraint. At the very least, make a habit of never activating both at the same time. The tractor beam can screw up your opponent's gravity whip, pull them out of orbit or drag them smack into the planet itself. Because of this, the planet becomes particularly beneficial to Chmmr and an obstacle to anything fighting against it. Take full advantage of this. High level Chmmr play involves clever utilization of both the tractor beam and the planet.



Bonus Feature: Protective Satellite Array



These nifty little things intercept incoming projectiles and provide fire support at close range. They have 10 hitpoints. If the satellite ring is destroyed, Chmmr becomes vulnerable to many different ships it would otherwise be able to shrug off effortlessly.



Ideal Purpose

You can use Chmmr against almost anything and come out on top. My personal recommendation is to send your Chmmr to get rid of Mmrnmhrm or Slylandro. Both ships can be ridiculously hard to stop in the hands of a skilled player, but Chmmr steamrolls right over them.

Chmmr vs. Slylandro: Pillbox and shred Slylandro with your beam. This is a mindlessly easy fight, but not to the point where you can count on your satellites to do the work for you.

Chmmr vs. Mmrnmhrm: Don't use the tractor beam. Doing so will send the X-Form careening around the arena and make it possible for the other player to inflict more damage on you before you take them out. Instead you should slowly approach Mmrnmhrm and destroy them with your beam. You have a slightly longer range, but are not maneuverable enough to hit them without them hitting you back.




Counters

Utwig vs. Chmmr: The Chmmr's satellite ring works against itself by firing constantly and indiscriminately on Utwig whenever it moves within their range. This gives the Utwig endless battery refills, which in turn leads to almost total invulnerability against Chmmr. The Utwig guns have a longer reach than the Chmmr laser, so you should be able to sneak in some hits here and there. This is the most reliable Chmmr counter. I personally opt to save Utwig for something different, but deploying Utwig against Chmmr is not a bad decision in the least bit.

Druuge vs. Chmmr: A complicated match for both sides. See the Druuge section for a detailed explanation of how to play this right.

Orz vs. Chmmr: Orz can put up a fight against Chmmr, particularly if the other player isn't very experienced. The Orz cannon can shoot right past the Chmmr's satellite ring and has long enough reach to pummel them from a safe distance. Unfortunately, Chmmr is difficult to beat when it keeps the fight in the planet's orbit. This is not a smart counter, but it can see a degree of success.

A damaged Chmmr can be finished off by Chenjesu. Try to land direct hits, do not rely on shrapnel.

A heavily damaged Chmmr can be finished off by VUX. Try not to fly straight through the Chmmr's satellite ring after you kill it with your beam. They continue to fire for a brief period even after the Chmmr itself is destroyed.
« Last Edit: August 31, 2008, 01:51:14 pm by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #6 on: August 09, 2008, 12:50:35 am »

The Druuge Mauler



The Druuge's top speed is low, maneuverability below average and rate of energy recovery quite embarrassing. These faults make the Druuge difficult to use at first, but the ship's insane primary weapon makes up for all of them. This is the classic sharpshooter's vessel, so you will need to be able to aim well over long distances to get the most out of it. Once you master this ship you will find yourself including it in every fleet you use automatically. If you aren't at that point, the Druuge is still an easy win against many of the more frustrating vessels to play against.



Primary Function: Mass Driver



The Druuge cannon has obscenely long range, high velocity and respectable damage. Cannon shells also have a significant knockback effect to them, which helps maintain a good distance between Druuge and adversary. Even better than knockback is the cannon's recoil, which throws the Druuge backwards whenever it shoots. The two of these effects together allow the Druuge to succeed where other space-borne artillery fails; it can hold attackers back at a comfortable distance and destroy them. The one downside to this weapon is that it suffers from enormous blindspots.

Whenever you are flying around above your default top speed, the accelerate button functions as a brake. Druuge can very easily throw itself out of control with its cannon, so you will need to slow yourself down often. "Thrust = Brakes" may be the one of the dumbest things you've ever heard, but it's essential to remember this if you want to play Druuge in any useful capacity.




Secondary Function: Furnace



When running low on battery power, the Druuge can throw its own staff into a furnace which turns them into usable energy instantly. If you're fighting anything particularly difficult, you will have to make liberal use of this function so as to not be caught without ammunition. Don't be shy with the furnace unless you're up against something easy for Druuge to beat, such as Syreen.



The Blitzkrieg

While Druuge outclasses the other long range warships for various reasons, it tends to fall flat against those same ships. For this particular section, I am referring to Earthling, Mycon and Orz. If one of these comes after your Druuge, your best bet is to turn your ship away from the opposing craft and launch yourself right past them by firing off your cannon many times. You want to pass within a relatively short distance of the other ship, but do not set yourself on a direct collision course. As you go screaming past, you might be able to tag the other ship with a lucky shot. Continue to adjust your course and press the attack if you want to keep your Druuge alive. This aggressive style is useful against only the aforementioned handful of ships. Do not blitzkrieg against anything else, it will only make the game more difficult.



Ideal Purpose

Druuge is most often used as a Chmmr counter. It is not the most reliable at this task, but for most purposes Druuge is the first thing worth throwing into the lion's jaws. Because this is one of the most critical matches in PVP, I will attempt to cover it in depth in the section below. The great thing about Druuge is that even if your opponent brings no Chmmr along at all, you aren't at a disadvantage. Druuge is powerful in general and relatively cheap for what it does. Here are some other victims ripe for the killing, many of which are relatively simple to put down:

• Ilwrath
• Melnorme
• Shofixti
• Spathi
• Supox
• Syreen
• Thraddash
• Ur-Quan
• Utwig
• VUX
• Zoq-Fot-Pik




Druuge vs. Chmmr in detail

Above all, recoil and knockback from your primary weapon are your friends. The Chmmr itself is not fast, but that awful tractor beam artificially increases its effective speed significantly. By the simplest metric, Druuge destroys Chmmr every time. If a Chmmr flies straight into a Druuge with its tractor beam on, the Druuge can repel and destroy the Chmmr without sustaining direct damage by spamming its primary while recharging frequently with the secondary. This does not take into account asteroids, the planet, blind spots, screen crossing or point blank arrival into the arena, all of which work in the Chmmr's favor. When playing from the Druuge side, you are most definitely on defense. It's possible to eventually sneak in a hit on a Chmmr that doesn't want to commit to attacking, but for the most part you should focus on reacting to what the other player does and working in shots when the opportunity presents itself. Now that it's been established that Druuge against Chmmr is all about counterattacking, here are the four most threatening Chmmr tactics:

1) The Chmmr may try to run up one of your blind spots.

2) The Chmmr may cross the screen in a hurry, then bear down you as fast as possible while you aren't facing towards them with your cannon.

3) The Chmmr may perform a gravity whip in your direction.

4) The Chmmr may attempt to drag you into the planet with its tractor beam.

The solution to the first three approaches is exactly the same. Fire your primary weapon many times while facing roughly 90 degrees to the left or right away from the Chmmr. Shooting sideways like this is a great escape mechanism, much better than firing straight at the Chmmr when you are unable to hit it. As long as your back isn't pointing directly into them, you can potentially save yourself from an advancing Chmmr regardless of what they're doing. After you do this, judge the situation as best as you can and decide whether you should apply brakes, continue soaring, or launch yourself in a different direction. The fourth listed Chmmr tactic is not as immediately dangerous as the other three, and is usually done to throw you off so that the Chmmr can get the drop on you. If you can manage to avoid the planet without firing a shot, that's great, but it's better that you do waste some battery power shooting yourself away rather than crash into it.




Counters

As I mentioned previously, Druuge is most often deployed against Chmmr. If your Chmmr game is good enough, you may not need to counter Druuge at all. There isn't a sure-fire way to win as Chmmr against Druuge, you will simply have to practice against other players until you get a feel for it. If Druuge does win against your Chmmr, the Druuge has already accomplished its mission. You could kill it with a Zoq-Fot-Pik afterwards and it would not matter much. Regardless of whether the Druuge you're attacking was used against Chmmr or not, the best candidates for taking it down are Earthling, Androsynth and Arilou. For more specifics, keep reading...

Earthling vs. Druuge: Keep your narrow end facing the Druuge any time your Earthling is in their sights. If you give them even one good opportunity to fire on your broad side, that is usually enough to skew the match in the Druuge's favor. The best time to sling your nukes is when the Druuge is moving towards you, though you should be firing at all times rather than waiting for just the right moment.

Androsynth vs. Druuge: Your comet form has a very small outline, making you difficult to hit. Charge at the Druuge to force them to launch themselves backwards with recoil, then come around from the opposite direction and nail them. You don't absolutely need to force Druuge to throw themselves out of control to win the fight, but it helps.

Arilou vs. Druuge: Chain teleport until you end up where you need to be, then fly in and blast away. It may take a couple attack runs depending on how much crew the Druuge has. Never stay in the Druuge's line of fire for more than a fraction of a second.

More expensive ships that have an easy time with Druuge: Mycon, Orz, Chenjesu, Kohr-Ah. Try one of these if a cheap counter is not available.
« Last Edit: September 07, 2008, 03:03:51 pm by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #7 on: August 09, 2008, 12:51:04 am »

The Earthling Cruiser



Some of the crappiest ships in Star Control have managed to prove themselves useful in player-versus-player. Earthling is the poster child of this phenomenon. The ship sucks, I think it would be fair to say that it sucks out loud, but due to its low point value and long ranged homing attack it is the perfect candidate to finish off almost anything that is left standing in the arena with a low crew count. Earthling is not one of those ships which you absolutely must attach to your fleet every single game, but you will rarely be disappointed when you do.

Earthling has mediocre top speed and terrible acceleration, but in most match-ups you will need to use what you've got to run away from your opponent. The longer you can stall, the more damage you will inflict with your homing missiles. If you can make it to the planet, a gravity whip can help keep you alive longer.




Primary Function: Nuclear Missile Launcher



Missiles are one of the simplest weapons in the game to use properly. Turn the front of your ship towards the general direction of your opponent and fire off a nuke. It will rapidly home in on the other player's ship over a long distance, inflicting four damage when it reaches its destination. Missiles are low on maneuverability so they will sometimes miss their mark. Some of the more agile spacecraft will often be able to weave around them as well. It is also remotely possible for a missile to whirl back around and hit you while chasing the opposition, so you may have to use your point defense to protect yourself from one of these. This is a great weapon regardless of its limitations.



The Cornered Squirrel

If you find yourself under attack by a fast flanking ship, you're probably going to lose regardless but here's a little trick which can sometimes sneak in some damage: Reserve enough energy to fire at least one missile, then launch one right into the aggressor's front as they pull in to start firing on you. This is useful because most of the faster ships can easily dodge missiles if they have time to react to them. This tactic can fall flat sometimes; for instance, the Slylandro's lightning weapon will frequently destroy missiles that approach head-on.



Secondary Function: Point-Defense Laser



The point-defense laser is not a weapon, it's a tool. The main purpose of this tool is to break apart asteroids. It does this marvelously. Due to the Earthling's weak propulsion, an asteroid bump will either bounce you off into a bad direction or bring your ship to a near halt for an uncomfortable amount of time. This tool can also take out Ur-Quan fighters, VUX limpets and various other enemy projectiles. The laser will fire on everything in its range simultaneously, allowing you to wipe out a pair of Ur-Quan fighters at once among other things. The Cornered Squirrel tactic is better in most short range combat situations for actual damage, but the laser can still prove useful.

Leave your point-defense laser off whenever you activate your launcher. It does not play well with outgoing missiles.




Ideal Purpose

Although Earthling is both cheap and crappy, it is not a good starter. Under no circumstances should you ever play Earthling as your first ship of any match. Even VUX, normally easy prey for Earthling, will ravage you due to its point-blank arrival. As stated earlier, Earthling is the ideal choice to deliver a finishing volley to pretty much anything, and is also a natural counter to VUX and Druuge. Whether you hold your Earthling in reserve to deal with one of those in particular or throw it into the arena at the first wounded enemy you see is your decision. Both approaches have their merits.

Earthling vs. VUX: Run around lobbing nukes and watch them die. It really is that easy. VUX is too slow and clumsy to seriously threaten Earthling. The point-defense laser can stop limpets, but you probably won't need to worry about that.

Earthling vs. Druuge: Keep your narrow end facing the Druuge any time your cruiser is in their sights. If you give them even one good opportunity to fire on your broad side, that is usually enough to skew the match in the Druuge's favor. The best time to sling your nukes is when the Druuge is moving towards you, though you should be firing at all times rather than waiting for just the right moment.

If that weren't enough, Earthling can also inflict a respectable amount of punishment upon Ur-Quan, Chenjesu or Kohr-Ah by running around and firing off nukes. Don't expect to win, but if you can't find anything better to do with your Earthling then attacking one of these is a good way to go.




Counters

There is only one true counter to Earthling and that's Ilwrath. It is possible to win with Zoq-Fot-Pik as well, but that is not terribly reliable.

Ilwrath vs. Earthling: This can get a little bit tricky, but if you play it right there's no reason you should lose. Your first priority is to find the planet, so start looking. Turn your cloaking device on so that missiles do not follow you. The cloak does not need to be active all the time, just enough to prevent you from being hit. Try to gravity whip onto the Earthling, then use thrust to return to your default speed once you're close to them. Your top speed is a single integer higher than Earthling's; even if you fail to whip straight into your opponent, chasing the Earthling starting from a short distance away will eventually win you the match. Your flamethrower can shield your front from missiles to a limited degree, which is sometimes useful during an extended chase.

Zoq-Fot-Pik vs. Earthling: This counter is difficult to execute, but completely turns the table on the other player if you manage to pull it off. The Zoq-Fot-Pik is just barely quick enough to dodge missiles and close in on Earthling. You will need to hit them with your tongue attack once, then finish with either the scattergun or a second tongue hit. As you approach the Earthling, missiles can be shot down with the scattergun. Only do this if the Earthling fires straight into you at a medium distance, otherwise you're better off dodging. Zoq-Fot-Pik has a rather high amount of mass, so when it collides with Earthling during a tongue attack it will often send that ship careening off in the opposite direction. If this happens, or if the Earthling performs a gravity whip, stop chasing straight after them and instead prepare to intercept as they wrap around the screen.

Aside from the above two ships, all you can do is chuck something fancy at the stupid Earthling. This is bad in the long term, but you may not have a choice. Use whatever decent ship you can spare in this situation.
« Last Edit: August 09, 2008, 01:31:53 am by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #8 on: August 09, 2008, 12:51:44 am »

The Ilwrath Avenger



This craft has a lot working in its favor: low cost, significant damage-dealing capability, rapid acceleration, quick turning and high durability. And yet the Ilwrath's restrictive top speed and short weapon range negate these strong points almost completely. The damn thing has a very hard time getting within firing range of most adversaries. So Ilwrath is rather useless for most purposes, but its lethality against a small selection of ships make it nonetheless worthwhile to bring along. Whether Ilwrath pulls its weight or not depends upon what ships your opponent decides to use.



Primary Function: Hellfire Spout



When activated, this flamethrower spits out a fire puff once per frame which each inflict a point of damage. Confused? Another way of looking at the flamethrower is that it hits for the same amount as the VUX laser. The spout expands into a cone shape, so it can sometimes be useful for blocking incoming projectiles. The ship itself is very wide, so do not rely on this heavily. The Ilwrath's battery cannot sustain a full rate of fire for very long, but recovers quickly enough that holding down the primary button is all you really need to do once you reach point blank range of your opponent.



Secondary Function: Cloaking Device



In its current form, the Ilwrath cloaking device is best used to keep homing weapons of all types off your back. Nothing can track you while you're cloaked. That's really all this thing is good for. The game's camera still gives your general location away to the other player. Another drawback is that you cannot see yourself any better than your opponent can while cloaked, which makes it difficult to tell which direction you're facing as you turn. For best results, turn the cloak on just long enough to divert inbound homing weapons and not a moment longer. I offer this nugget of wisdom to those of you who insist upon remaining cloaked perpetually: You are not a shark, the "Jaws" theme does not play in the background for you.



Auto-Turn

If you use your Hellfire Spout while cloaked, you will automatically deactivate your cloak and point towards your opponent regardless of where you were facing previously. This is useful when fighting against opponents of the fast flanking variety.



Ilwrath in Orbit

You should already be familiar with orbiting if you've read the Fundamentals section, but it is worth pointing out how much Ilwrath in particular benefits from the tactic. As mentioned previously, Ilwrath's downfall is its low top speed. If Ilwrath fights from orbit, its top speed is artificially increased and Ilwrath will behave like one of the faster ships. This is key to defeating Zoq-Fot-Pik and Shofixti while also providing you with a fighting chance against many of the stronger ships in the game.



Ideal Purpose

I cannot recommend this ship as a starter. Anything more powerful than the bare minimum will rip you apart. Ilwrath is proficient at destroying Earthling and Arilou. When faced with a fleet that contains neither, the best thing to do is throw your Ilwrath against Androsynth, which appears in almost every fleet. To be more specific...

Ilwrath vs. Earthling: This can get a little bit tricky, but if you play it right there's no reason you should lose. Your first priority is to find the planet, so start looking. Turn your cloaking device on so that missiles do not follow you. The cloak does not need to be active all the time, just enough to prevent you from being hit. Try to gravity whip onto the Earthling, then use thrust to return to your default speed once you're close to them. Your top speed is a single integer higher than Earthling's; even if you fail to whip straight into your opponent, chasing the Earthling starting from a short distance away will eventually win you the match. Your flamethrower can shield your front from missiles to a limited degree, which is sometimes useful during an extended chase.

Ilwrath vs. Arilou: Keep your cloaking device on. The Arilou's auto-aiming laser will not track you while you're cloaked, forcing them to face directly into you at short range to attack. Victory is not as simple as returning fire; Your effective range is shorter than theirs, and when you uncloak to attack the Arilou's laser can track you again. You will need to catch the Arilou by surprise while they fumble about trying to hit your cloaked form. I recommend playing this one cautiously.

Ilwrath vs. Androsynth: Move away from the Androsynth at all times. Force them to chase you across the screen in their comet form. As they charge into you, cloak and then activate your weapon to auto-turn into them and blast away. Auto-turn is not perfect, so expect to do a lot of frantic manual rotating to try and catch the Androsynth as it attacks you. The odds of winning here are not that great. Hopefully your opponent's ship is damaged significantly going into this fight to make things easier on you.




Counters

Although Ilwrath will lose a head-to-head fight against almost every ship in the game, Umgah is the only proper Ilwrath counter. I will cover two more expensive pseudo-counters in addition to that.

Umgah vs. Ilwrath: Hopefully the Ilwrath is damaged somewhat going into this fight, but your odds of winning are reasonable even if that is not the case. Umgah and Ilwrath have the same rate of weapon damage and range, so how is Umgah supposed to win? The Antimatter Cone is better than the Hellfire Spout in two ways: it reaches its maximum range instantly upon activation and it has a limited ability to nullify flame puffs. To capitalize on this, nip the Ilwrath's front with your cone when it moves within range and then zip backwards a short distance. If you do this right, the Ilwrath will take damage and you will not. The Ilwrath pilot can make things tricky for you, but good timing with the reverse zip maneuver is enough to beat them.

VUX vs. Ilwrath: VUX beats Ilwrath quite handily with limpet spam. It will take a while to coat Ilwrath down in enough limpets, so be patient. Once the Ilwrath is coated, coast in and finish them with your laser. Ilwrath can Auto-Turn just as quickly while covered in limpets, so don't get too close. There are better things you can do with VUX, but I wouldn't dismiss this counter completely. It's also possible for the Ilwrath to try and ambush you right at the start when you warp in nearby. When that happens you should forget about using limpets and just hose the crap out of Ilwrath with your laser. You will take some damage but still win.

Syreen vs. Ilwrath: Chase down Ilwrath as quickly as possible so as to intercept them away from the planet. If you can do this, you should be able to kidnap a significant number of their crew members. This does not occur when the Ilwrath manages to get into the planet's orbit before you can get to them. Syreen will typically still beat the Ilwrath in this situation due to its high acceleration but it will not come out of the fight any stronger; the planet's gravity will drag stray crewmembers to their death. Your Siren's Call is still your best weapon, even in orbit. Finish them with the stupidshooter once the Ilwrath is down to its last crewman.

You may have to go after Ilwrath with a ship that is grossly overqualified for the job. That's exactly what the Ilwrath player wants you to do, but sometimes you have no choice.
« Last Edit: September 19, 2008, 06:46:58 pm by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #9 on: August 21, 2008, 05:24:27 am »

The Kohr-Ah Marauder



The second 30-point heavyweight is as terrifying as the first. While Kohr-Ah does possess serious firepower, it can't pile on the damage quite as rapidly as Chmmr. Due to its highly versatile weapon loadout it doesn't really need to. Instead, it can lob projectiles from the other side of the arena or lay down a field of traps to make itself unassailable. Although the Kohr-Ah's personality as well as the ship's name suggest a confrontational style of fighting, this vehicle performs better in most situations when piloted in a defensive, methodical manner. Think of it as more of a black widow than a rampaging deathmobile. Like most other ships, this one can be beaten consistently by another less expensive once. Most players are not skilled enough to put the proper Kohr-Ah counter technique into practice, so this ship is the most powerful among less experienced players. Kohr-Ah loses some of that sparkle when used against an opponent that can counter it consistently, but even then it remains a dangerous combatant.



Primary Function: Spinning Blade



These cruel, pointy things are controlled the same way as the Chenjesu photon shard; hold down the primary fire button for as long as you want your projectile to travel forward, then let go to drop it. When you release a disc, it will continue to spin in place rather than exploding. A stationary disc will slowly glide toward any opposing spacecraft if they move relatively close to it. These do not harm the controlling ship if it travels through them. A single Kohr-Ah is limited to having seven discs in the arena at once, which is quite a bit of litter. Spinning blades inflict only four damage, yet I would argue that they are the best armament in Star Control 2 out of sheer versatility. Most other ships can be torn apart by long distance harassment over an extended period of time. Discs are also decent for slugging it out at short range when launched in rapid succession. Additionally, they offer a good amount of protection from flanking enemies when they are formed into a protective ring around the Kohr-Ah.



Secondary Function: Fiery Ring of Inevitable and Eternal Destruction



The Kohr-Ah's secondary will unleash a cloud of superheated gas in every direction. This attack is too much of an energy hog for general use, but it can be quite powerful in certain situations. One characteristic unique to FRIED is that it inflicts 50 points of damage per frame against projectiles and objects. The only weapon capable of passing through a flamewave is the Melnorme confusion ray, and this has been known to fail against double flamewaves. FRIED may or may not serve as a good defensive measure depending on what you're up against. Spacecraft sustain three damage from each cloud they run into.



The Double Flamewave Swoop

The exact amount of damage a flamewave will deal to other ships is unpredictable. One certainty you can count on is that the impact is always higher when you fly past your victim rather than straight into them. This leads to the other player running their ship through many more clouds. A double flamewave will drain your battery from full to empty, but the potential for a decisive kill is sometimes worth the risk.



Ideal Purpose

Kohr-Ah will beat almost everything, so attack whatever you want. I personally prefer to send it out against Androsynth, Melnorme or Chenjesu. You don't need to be very tactical to beat any of these when playing against an amateur player. If the other player is particularly talented then the fight will become more involved. Here is how you win each match-up in some amount of detail:

Kohr-Ah vs. Androsynth: Drop a few spinning blades nearby and try to time your flamewave ability for the moment the Androsynth's comet form is about to crash into you. Expect them to try and pull a fake-out or two to get you to waste your battery -- it's their only way around the devastating flamewave. If Androsynth does not go on the offensive, they are shooting themselves in the foot; Kohr-Ah excels at long range warfare.

Kohr-Ah vs. Melnorme: While the Melnorme does not have a red pulse at the ready you should be launching discs at them constantly. Once that thing is up, start running away. Discs can still hit Melnorme from the sides or back so try to stall for time and slowly wear them down from a distance. It's possible to drop Melnorme from full crew to zero with a perfectly executed double flamewave swoop, and I recommend doing this when Melnorme closes the distance with a gravity whip. Melnorme is not very maneuverable, so once they hurl themselves towards you it is very hard for them to adjust their course. Think of the double flamewave as a last resort. This will prevent you from attempting it at the wrong time.

Kohr-Ah vs. Chenjesu: This is an interesting fight. The Chenjesu has one advantage over Kohr-Ah and many disadvantages. The one advantage is that their photon shard can beat your disc. The photon shard does more damage and will deflect any disc it crashes into. A direct boxing match between Chenjesu and Kohr-Ah will leave Kohr-Ah very dead, so don't enter one. Short distances aren't necessarily a bad thing, though. If either ship dives into the other by gravity whip, Kohr-Ah's dreaded double flamewave will nullify everything the Chenjesu can throw while dealing ridiculous damage at the same time. Kohr-Ah is also better in a artillery war due to its more flexible primary weapon and better maneuverability. Stay at a distance and try to keep the pressure on the other player with constant disc harassment for most of the fight and you should win. If the Chenjesu uses DOGIs, remove them with a flamewave.



Counters

The best response to Kohr-Ah is the same ship that most easily kicks Chmmr off its pedestal as well: Utwig. There are many other half-baked counters that have seen sporadic success, but these will flop most of the time, especially against a Kohr-Ah pilot that knows what they're doing. Consider mirroring Kohr-Ah if you don't want to play Utwig against it.

Utwig vs. Kohr-Ah: This one's too important to cover in a brief paragraph. See the Utwig section for a detailed explanation of how to play this right.

Yehat vs. Kohr-Ah: Yehat and Utwig use a very similar set of tactics against Kohr-Ah. The Yehat variation is more difficult to succeed with, so it is inferior. See the Yehat section for a detailed explanation of how to play this right.

VUX and Earthing vs. Kohr-Ah: Earthling can potentially beat Kohr-Ah in a long distance artillery exchange with its spiffy homing weapon. When these two ships engage normally, Kohr-Ah can use its slightly better propulsion to close in on Earthling and steamroll them. However, when a Kohr-Ah has even one limpet stuck to its hull, it will be unable to chase down Earthling effectively. This counter relies on a VUX sacrificing itself to tag Kohr-Ah with as many limpets as possible. If the VUX succeeds, Earthling can go head to head with the Kohr-Ah and win. Kohr-Ah is quite capable of staying clear of the clumsy VUX completely, so it's a gambit really.

Chmmr vs. Kohr-Ah: This is the lazy, stupid way of getting rid of Kohr-Ah. You will lose all satellites and probably be reduced to low crew in the process. Kohr-Ah has significant mass so the tractor beam will not drag it very quickly. You will still need to use the tractor beam, but will have to struggle a bit to get within striking distance. While you struggle, be sure you do not let the Kohr-Ah swoop right past you with a flamewave. If Kohr-Ah accelerates towards you while their battery is topped off, that's a dead giveaway. You should either bump your ship's front straight into theirs or move out of the way completely. The fight is pretty much won once you reach striking distance and manage stay in it for a few seconds. For reference, the cyborg is very efficient at using the tractor beam as Chmmr against Kohr-Ah.
« Last Edit: September 26, 2008, 09:30:44 am by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #10 on: August 22, 2008, 07:27:23 pm »

FINE, I'll be the one to interfere with the continuous sequence of guide sections.

Yay, Ilwrath!
Yay, Kohr-Ah!

So about VUX vs. Ilwrath: doesn't the point-blank arrival let Ilwrath close in before VUX can slow it down? Also, putting aside the higher cost, how reliable is Ilwrath against ZFP and Shofixti?

By the way, the TOC says "Mmrnmhrm Transformer" -- didn't they change it to X-Form in SC2?
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #11 on: August 22, 2008, 10:14:17 pm »

Quote from: alephresh
So about VUX vs. Ilwrath: doesn't the point-blank arrival let Ilwrath close in before VUX can slow it down?

I could test that, but it sounds like the Ilwrath would get a hull full of limpets and nothing to show for it if it tried to ambush VUX at the start.


Quote from: alephresh
Also, putting aside the higher cost, how reliable is Ilwrath against ZFP and Shofixti?

Very. Most novice players hate Ilwrath because they get dominated by one of those two ships out in open space. That's just what happens, and it's why Ilwrath has to go into orbit and keep the fight there. Shofixti will be forced to use their suicide bomb, but Ilwrath has more than enough crew to tank that kind of abuse.


Quote from: alephresh
By the way, the TOC says "Mmrnmhrm Transformer" -- didn't they change it to X-Form in SC2?

No. X-Form is the one with the laser lance. Y-Form goes really fast and spams those godawful missiles. I don't care if this is canon or not because it's much easier to keep track what Mmrnmhrm is doing when you have names for its different forms.
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #12 on: August 22, 2008, 11:45:35 pm »

I could test that, but it sounds like the Ilwrath would get a hull full of limpets and nothing to show for it if it tried to ambush VUX at the start.

Well, we start off right next to each other, and the VUX is really clumsy. The cyborg manages to close the gap in an instant. I suppose it's easier to run away from it in PVP.


Quote
That's just what happens, and it's why Ilwrath has to go into orbit and keep the fight there.

I see. I'm a little confused about orbit tactics, though. Does fighting in orbit mean staying in orbit until the time is right to do a whip towards the enemy?


Quote
No. X-Form is the one with the laser lance. Y-Form goes really fast and spams those godawful missiles.

Well, the Ultronomicon calls these forms "X-Wing" and "Y-Wing", and the ship itself X-Form. That's why I brought it up. I have no idea if it's canon though.
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #13 on: August 23, 2008, 12:26:23 am »

Quote from: alephresh
Well, we start off right next to each other, and the VUX is really clumsy. The cyborg manages to close the gap in an instant. I suppose it's easier to run away from it in PVP.

Most players end combat in motion so a VUX warp-in will usually have a negligible result beyond that very first starting bout. The arena lurkers didn't respond to my request for some test bouts, but I tried several variations from both sides against the computer and the VUX still won. VUX > Ilwrath in a straight boxing match. I suppose I'll put a line in about that.


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I see. I'm a little confused about orbit tactics, though. Does fighting in orbit mean staying in orbit until the time is right to do a whip towards the enemy?

Fight in orbit = fight in orbit. A planetary speed boost is not a gravity whip unless you abandon the planet's area of effect for open space. That said, a player can gravity whip with Ilwrath against an approaching Zoq-Fot-Pik or Shofixti and see good results. The idea is to stay out of open space as much as possible, because that's where Ilwrath will get picked apart. Diving out of orbit to chase the other player down is more of a Chmmr orbit technique, really.


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No. X-Form is the one with the laser lance. Y-Form goes really fast and spams those godawful missiles.

Well, the Ultronomicon calls these forms "X-Wing" and "Y-Wing", and the ship itself X-Form. That's why I brought it up. I have no idea if it's canon though.

I'm not trying to adhere to canon 100%. The Syreen primary weapon will forever be known to be as "stupidshooter" and I won't let anyone tell me otherwise.



UPDATE: I added several things to the Kohr-Ah article. You may see two similar looking graphics in it. This is not an error in the article. Refresh your browser to solve the problem.
« Last Edit: August 25, 2008, 02:57:04 am by Shiver » Logged
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Re: Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide v0.2.5
« Reply #14 on: August 25, 2008, 09:03:03 am »

The Melnorme Trader



Melnorme is one of the most skill intensive ships within Star Control. Like Druuge, it is made for sharpshooters. Melnorme can potentially inflict massive damage over long distances, but is impaired by mediocre turning, slow energy recovery and a wind-up delay on its weapon. The ship's thrusters are quite strong, allowing it to maintain distance between itself and most hostile spacecraft despite its clumsiness. There are several counters to this one, but it's worth mentioning that Melnorme can potentially beat anything in the game. On the other hand, Melnorme has a habit of dying in all sorts of stupid ways too. Despite a tendency for mixed performances, the final verdict on Melnorme is that it is one of the most cost-effective ships in the game. It's quite versatile, so even if you're not a sharpshooter you should be able to do something useful with it.



Primary Function: Variable Power Blaster



Hold down the primary weapon button to charge up the variable power blaster. As you do this, a ball of energy will collect in front your ship. The longer you allow it to charge, the more powerful it becomes. A green pulse does two damage. Blue does four. Purple does eight. Red does sixteen, and that's where it caps. Always try to get a red pulse ready before going on the offensive. It can sometimes be a good idea to spam green pulses, whether it's to quickly finish off an enemy that has been crippled by a red pulse or to act as flak against one of those difficult-to-hit flanking ships. This weapon has long range and high velocity. Most enemies are best dealt with from a comfortable distance away, but that is not always the case.

As Melnorme you should always be vigilant of your worst enemy. I'm talking about asteroids. Asteroids are the bane of a Melnorme's existence. If an asteroid crashes into a charging pulse, both the pulse and the asteroid will cancel each other out and usually leave you in a precarious position afterward. Melnorme will lose more battles due to a rogue space rock than any other ship in Star Control. It's just one of those things you have to work around. Kohr-Ah FRIED clouds, Orz Marines and Chenjesu DOGIs will also cancel out a red pulse.




The Barrier

A red pulse will overpower most other objects and projectiles it runs into while hurling through space, destroying them and continuing its course. This will also occur while Melnorme is holding a red pulse in front of itself. Using the red pulse as protection, Melnorme can perform a frontal assault. This will often work out very well. In addition to the threat of asteroids, another problem with using the red pulse as a barrier is that the Melnorme vessel is slightly wider than the red pulse itself, so it is possible to sustain damage even from the front. Expect to get significant use out of this tactic in spite of its flaws, especially against Earthling, Mycon and Druuge.



Secondary Function: Confusion Ray



When a confusion pulse hits the other player's ship, that ship will lose the use of its secondary function and begin to turn either left or right for a duration of approximately 17 seconds. Confusion pulses can be fired while carrying a blaster pulse and they will pass straight through asteroids, planets and most projectiles. Successful confusion of an enemy craft can get you quite far, but it doesn't always precede a killing blow nor would I recommend using this weapon against everything. The confusion ray would be the perfect support weapon were it not for a few flaws. The most obvious problem with the confusion ray is that it is quite the energy hog. Additionally, confusion pulses travel at a noticeably lower velocity than blaster pulses, making them more difficult to score hits with over significant distances. This weapon is essential to defeating Utwig and Yehat, the two ships protected by powerful shields.



Ideal Purpose

Melnorme fits the role of "spare tire" perfectly. It's good against so many different ships that I can't recommend throwing it at the first potential target. Not if you have something else that can do the job, especially if that something else is cheap. For example, Ilwrath is lethal towards very few ships while Melnorme works great almost everywhere. If you pass up a good chance to use Ilwrath, you may not find anything useful for it to do for the rest of the battle. Here's another way of looking at it: Melnorme is fat. He's happy. Look at him, he'll clearly eat anything on the menu. You should stop worrying about your good buddy Melnorme and figure out what to feed your picky children. Do you get me? Good. Here's what's available for lunch today:

• Earthling
• Ilwrath
• Mycon
• Shofixti
• Spathi
• Supox
• Syreen
• Thraddash
• Umgah
• Ur-Quan
• Utwig
• VUX
• Yehat
• Zoq-Fot-Pik




Counters

So other than asteroids, what is Melnorme weak to? Slylandro, Chmmr, Kohr-Ah, Druuge and Androsynth. Melnorme is a tough ship, so let's go over every option:

Slylandro vs. Melnorme: One red pulse will kill you. If the Melnorme does not have one up yet, rush in before they finish charging. If they are carrying a red pulse, juke back and forth around the limits of the Melnorme's weapon range or between their blindspots to try and goad them into wasting their shot. Asteroids will show up periodically while your opponent steers to get a clear shot of you. Given enough time, one will either crash into the red pulse or force Melnorme to face a direction that allows you to approach and strike. The best way to flank Melnorme once you're in close proximity is to fly in an arc around them, then reverse and travel back the other way before you appear in front of them.

Androsynth vs. Melnorme: Your comet form is so small that the Melnorme player will give themself an aneurysm trying to hit you. Approach them from the front and weave around to avoid incoming fire. As you get close, veer away from the target and then realign yourself with them so as to hit them in the back or side. When your battery runs low while in comet form, move as far away as possible to find a safe place to recover energy. Repeat these attack runs until the fight is over.

Chmmr vs. Melnorme: This is one of those rare matches that rewards single-minded aggression. Accelerate into Melnorme as soon as you enter the arena and pull hard with the tractor beam. This alone will win it for you most of the time. The faster you close in, the harder it becomes for them to tag you with a confusion pulse before it's too late. Melnorme has much better odds of winning when you're skittish. Occasionally Melnorme will get lucky and hit you with a confusion pulse from far enough away that you don't slam right into them afterward. When this happens they are very likely going to nail you with a red pulse, then begin charging up for another combo with both of their weapons. If your ship get confused, do your best to guide your Chmmr away from the Melnorme. You will be back in the same situation as the start of the fight once the confusion fades off.

Kohr-Ah vs. Melnorme: While the Melnorme does not have a red pulse at the ready you should be launching discs at them constantly. Once that thing is up, start running away. Discs can still hit Melnorme from the sides or back so try to stall for time and slowly wear them down from a distance. It's possible to drop Melnorme from full crew to zero with a perfectly executed double flamewave swoop, and I recommend doing this when Melnorme closes the distance with a gravity whip. Melnorme is not very maneuverable, so once they hurl themselves towards you it is very hard for them to adjust their course. Think of the double flamewave as a last resort. This will prevent you from attempting it at the wrong time.

Druuge vs. Melnorme: Your maximum range is longer than theirs. Shell them from far away. The Melnorme will attempt to close in on you with a red pulse as protection, but there's nothing they can do to overcome the recoil of your cannon. Most of your shots will be blocked by that red pulse, but occasionally you'll see one will graze their side. Constantly adjust the direction you fire from to raise your chance of scoring a hit. Take this fight as slowly as possible to give your battery more time to recharge.
« Last Edit: September 21, 2008, 07:32:06 am by Shiver » Logged
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