Invisible, Not Invincible
Jun 29, 2017 22:23:25 GMT -5
via mobile
Thunderkiss, psyflex, and 1 more like this
Post by mijapi300 on Jun 29, 2017 22:23:25 GMT -5
Going to make a quick little tip thread (by my standards, at least). This is going to be specifically about the Stalker's stealth ability, and the fact that it's not invulnerability.
When you have stealth mode enabled, enemies cannot lock on to you. That is it. That is as far as the benefit extends. This does not mean they cannot hit you, and I will give some examples of situations that allow them to hit you even with stealth enabled. Hopefully reading through this will help you use your stealth more effectively, and avoid any of those "「whiskey tango foxtrot」" deaths while using your amazing ability.
An important thing to keep in mind when engaging your stealth is what kind of weapons you're protecting yourself against. What I mean, is that most of the time you're using your stealth, it's because you have a specific threat engaging you that you want safety from. So - what do they have? Plasma? Kinetic(bullets)? Rockets? This is the first thing you need to pay attention to in order to best decide how to use your stealth.
We'll touch on bullets and plasma first(Taran/magnum). Bullets and plasma, when not locked on, will fire straight. Meaning they fire directly horizontal at the height of where they are mounted. The Stalker has a low profile. That is important to keep in mind. The body of your bot, also known as the thing your enemy needs to hit, is lower than most other bots. More specifically, is lower than most weapon mounts. So bullets and magnum/Taran fire go over your head when not locked in. The only thing you need to do to make sure you're taking advantage of your stealth is to stay at or below level with your opponent. This will ensure their fire goes over your head. There are some exceptions, such as the magnum of a Gareth. It can hit you from level ground. A good rule of thumb is, if you can be on lower ground than your opponent, you should.
Next is rockets/splash. It's much easier to get in trouble when facing these. Not only do you have to follow the same advice as above to make sure you don't get hit directly, you have to watch out for structures. Too many Stalkers stay near buildings while in stealth mode - likely because they want to be able to get to cover quickly when their ability is up. But being too close to a building, structure or even a hill, will leave you exposed to splash damage. I was able to kill a Stalker in stealth mode on Dead City earlier, because he was on top of the hill around the center. I was able to line myself up with the hill and just unload on it, knowing that enough of the splash would hit him to finish him off. This was a game on my new account, which I'll be writing an update story on this weekend - and my opinion on the strategy has already shifted (oooooOooOooOoo!!) So! With rockets, you still want to stay below your enemy if possible, but also you want to avoid being too close to anything an opponent can aim at within splash distance.
Thunders. What the frick frack do you do with those? Well, there's one common trait about most Thunders. They're mounted very high. They also have a very wide spray. So.. the further away from the Thunder you are, the higher, wider, and lower the spray is going to cover. See where this is going yet? Very counterintuitive. Stealth mode against Thunders is really just prolonging your life, and what you need to do depends on how much health you have left. Even part of the spray from a thunder carnage can melt you quickly. And the only place you're 100% safe from them when they can't lock on is right against that Carnage, so they're literally firing over your head. This also means that if you can get around a corner before your stealth turns off, you're dead as soon as it turns off. If your health is low and you're about to die anything. Get up in there and deal some damage before you die. If you can get up in there and then get around a corner and get to more cover, go for it. Dealing with Thunders is very situational, and it's a very dangerous, high risk move, but the only safe place against Thunders is directly under them.
Hopefully you got something out of this that you didn't already know. And hopefully it gives some prospective Stalker pilots some good ideas to work on right out of the gates. As always, feel free to point out anything I got wrong, and leave your own comments!
When you have stealth mode enabled, enemies cannot lock on to you. That is it. That is as far as the benefit extends. This does not mean they cannot hit you, and I will give some examples of situations that allow them to hit you even with stealth enabled. Hopefully reading through this will help you use your stealth more effectively, and avoid any of those "「whiskey tango foxtrot」" deaths while using your amazing ability.
An important thing to keep in mind when engaging your stealth is what kind of weapons you're protecting yourself against. What I mean, is that most of the time you're using your stealth, it's because you have a specific threat engaging you that you want safety from. So - what do they have? Plasma? Kinetic(bullets)? Rockets? This is the first thing you need to pay attention to in order to best decide how to use your stealth.
We'll touch on bullets and plasma first(Taran/magnum). Bullets and plasma, when not locked on, will fire straight. Meaning they fire directly horizontal at the height of where they are mounted. The Stalker has a low profile. That is important to keep in mind. The body of your bot, also known as the thing your enemy needs to hit, is lower than most other bots. More specifically, is lower than most weapon mounts. So bullets and magnum/Taran fire go over your head when not locked in. The only thing you need to do to make sure you're taking advantage of your stealth is to stay at or below level with your opponent. This will ensure their fire goes over your head. There are some exceptions, such as the magnum of a Gareth. It can hit you from level ground. A good rule of thumb is, if you can be on lower ground than your opponent, you should.
Next is rockets/splash. It's much easier to get in trouble when facing these. Not only do you have to follow the same advice as above to make sure you don't get hit directly, you have to watch out for structures. Too many Stalkers stay near buildings while in stealth mode - likely because they want to be able to get to cover quickly when their ability is up. But being too close to a building, structure or even a hill, will leave you exposed to splash damage. I was able to kill a Stalker in stealth mode on Dead City earlier, because he was on top of the hill around the center. I was able to line myself up with the hill and just unload on it, knowing that enough of the splash would hit him to finish him off. This was a game on my new account, which I'll be writing an update story on this weekend - and my opinion on the strategy has already shifted (oooooOooOooOoo!!) So! With rockets, you still want to stay below your enemy if possible, but also you want to avoid being too close to anything an opponent can aim at within splash distance.
Thunders. What the frick frack do you do with those? Well, there's one common trait about most Thunders. They're mounted very high. They also have a very wide spray. So.. the further away from the Thunder you are, the higher, wider, and lower the spray is going to cover. See where this is going yet? Very counterintuitive. Stealth mode against Thunders is really just prolonging your life, and what you need to do depends on how much health you have left. Even part of the spray from a thunder carnage can melt you quickly. And the only place you're 100% safe from them when they can't lock on is right against that Carnage, so they're literally firing over your head. This also means that if you can get around a corner before your stealth turns off, you're dead as soon as it turns off. If your health is low and you're about to die anything. Get up in there and deal some damage before you die. If you can get up in there and then get around a corner and get to more cover, go for it. Dealing with Thunders is very situational, and it's a very dangerous, high risk move, but the only safe place against Thunders is directly under them.
Hopefully you got something out of this that you didn't already know. And hopefully it gives some prospective Stalker pilots some good ideas to work on right out of the gates. As always, feel free to point out anything I got wrong, and leave your own comments!