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Post by frunobulax on Jul 27, 2020 4:54:17 GMT -5
Hmmm. I won 2 Cataclysms and a Ming, but haven't upgraded either very much (Ming at l28, Cataclysms at l8). Most PT went towards premium modules.
Get a Nodens for 1,000 PT and start over? But then I don't have any beta weapons other than Retaliators.
Would you replace a Cataclysm Ming with maybe 1500 PT invested for upgrades with a Retaliator Nodens? I don't have any healing in my hangar (except Mechanic), so the extra silver and HP would come in handy.
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Post by ᥣᵃᵛᵃʲᵃᵛᵃ on Jul 27, 2020 5:40:22 GMT -5
That's a tough call. I've only invested Pt in premium modules and beta wpns, as I always fancied the Nodens since it was announced. Extra healing is always a help in getting (O)XP. But my meagre reserve of 2k Pt would mean a Nodens and Lvl 11 on the three upgrade areas. Even if I were 1,5k into a Ming, I still think I'd still bail and go for the Noodles.
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Post by Browncoats4ever on Jul 27, 2020 5:50:14 GMT -5
Order yourself a bowl of Noodles. Mings are good for target practice. If you get Cyclones later, your Nodens is an OP killer. Even level one Retaliators and repair are a powerful combo.
1000Pt for a Cyclone?! Ouch! I'd like to get four, but I fear I won't be playing this game too much longer.
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Post by milty72 on Jul 27, 2020 5:53:11 GMT -5
I would wait until after the event and just keep going the titan chest. After the event if you want a Noodles then purchase.
You can then rotate your Titans every month to mix it up.
I'm tempted by the mechanic module now.
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Post by frunobulax on Jul 27, 2020 5:58:41 GMT -5
That's a tough call. I've only invested Pt in premium modules and beta wpns, as I always fancied the Nodens since it was announced. Extra healing is always a help in getting (O)XP. But my meagre reserve of 2k Pt would mean a Nodens and Lvl 11 on the three upgrade areas. Even if I were 1,5k into a Ming, I still think I'd still bail and go for the Noodles. I don't regret putting a bit of PT into the Cataclysms and Ming. It allows me to land the Ming and shoot over obstacles, and Cataclysms are great at picking off Ravanas and other fast/stealthy bots. I opened some titan chests and got the Ming and 3 Cataclysms, so I figured the path was chosen for me 
But I'm seriously considering the Nodens. I usually buy the operation pass, so I earn about 1800 PT a month. 2,9% healing for 1000 PT in upgrades... Hmmm. Might want to run a Nodens on the next test server, if it's available.
Unlike other polls I did in the past I'm completely undecided here. It would be a no brainer if I ran in big squads all the time. The trouble is that I'm often alone or in a duo against very strong titans. In a squad, a Nodens is a no brainer as I can support my teammates that have decent titans or bots. With randoms, I have to put my titan in the line of fire to get/defend beacons and kill enemy bots/titans. And while a low level Cataclysm Ming can do serious damage if behind cover, a Retaliator Nodens doesn't look too good against a fast level 150 plasma Ming. But OTOH a red Nodens is a primary target for me...
And as for the resources invested, I have about 1500 PT available as I'm waiting for the next discount. I spent about 2k PT on the modules (2 plated armors and 2 antimatters). 740 PT on the Ming, 400 on the Cataclysms. Pity about the wasted titan chests, but I might build that second hangar after all.
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Post by frunobulax on Jul 27, 2020 6:10:34 GMT -5
I would wait until after the event and just keep going the titan chest. After the event if you want a Noodles then purchase. You can then rotate your Titans every month to mix it up. I'm tempted by the mechanic module now. I'm not. In fact I went back to normal chests, in the hope to catch overdrives, cloaking units and perhaps a Scorpion (or part of it).
The thing is: I'm happy with my Ming as it is. That is, if I stick to the Ming. I prefer the higher cycle DPS of Cataclysms over Gendarmes, and lag and bot speed/Transcendence eliminates the Tsar for me. The Retaliators are a high-DPS weapon that I happen to use often from ~200m, hovering over Arthurs. If the enemy titans hang back, I land and shoot over cover, where the beta weapons are inconsequential.
So what is in the titan chest that I want? The self-fix unit is way too weak to be of consequence. It repairs 1.5k per second (maxed), as opposed to the 7.5k the Ming ability does at low level. I would take a speed module, and I would take a Nodens, but I don't need any weapons or other modules. And 100PT isn't that great a reward either, and has anyone ever won more PT? Anecdotally, maybe, but the chance seems to be very slim.
So even if the chances of all items are nearly equal (which they certainly aren't, I'm pretty sure that weapons are more likely than titans), it's 2 out of 10 or whatever to get something I want from a titan chest. OTOH the normal chests will at least replenish my green crack, and allow me to build a 4th Quarker for my Blitz perhaps.
And playing in champ against strong players, I will sink PT in exactly one titan that I use on squads. I might run another titan in a fun hangar for long distance or something, but that one will never be truly competetive.
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Post by OU812? on Jul 27, 2020 6:25:38 GMT -5
I would wait until after the event and just keep going the titan chest. After the event if you want a Noodles then purchase. You can then rotate your Titans every month to mix it up. I'm tempted by the mechanic module now. That’s what I’m going to do. 1000Pt is 200 Pt more than I was hoping to spend. I’ll continue to be patient. |
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Post by erik1 on Jul 27, 2020 6:26:34 GMT -5
I've never, ever used a Ming, but from what I understand, a Ming is better for offense, and a Nodens is a better support bot / team player. So it depends on your style. Me, personally, I like my Nodens because I love healing people (which is why I also have a Tyr). But I cannot simply "charge into battle" with a Nodens like a Ming or especially an Arthur can.
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Post by The VVatcher on Jul 27, 2020 6:30:06 GMT -5
I think you are deep in with the Ming. You will feel the Nodens weak at first without upgrades. So you have to spend even more.
If you solo much, Ming is better. Noden’s impact on your wins is dependent on the strength of your teammates, particularly their Titans. No amount of healing an underleveled Kid will save it from trying to face off against a good Ming. And you will find it difficult to go after beacons yourself when the onus falls on you because your teamates are idiots.
Nodens in a full squad however is strong. And having 2 out in the field in unison is powerful.
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Post by frunobulax on Jul 27, 2020 6:54:32 GMT -5
I've never, ever used a Ming, but from what I understand, a Ming is better for offense, and a Nodens is a better support bot / team player. So it depends on your style. Me, personally, I like my Nodens because I love healing people (which is why I also have a Tyr). But I cannot simply "charge into battle" with a Nodens like a Ming or especially an Arthur can. What would I heal with my Nodens, the Ming charging into battle and getting killed in 4 seconds in the crossfire of 4 red Plasma Mings, or the Hydra Spectre sitting in the back?
I guess I'll have to decide if I value my squad games more (=Nodens) or if I want to keep a swiss army knife (Ming). Or I could switch titans depending on whether I run solo or squad, but stop upgrading my Ming.
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Post by Munki on Jul 27, 2020 10:36:43 GMT -5
Got an Ao Ming, Arthur, and Nodens from the event chests on the last operations. Have each leveled between 21 and 31. I also have a two level 25 Alpha weapons and two level 25 Antimatter Reactors. This would suggest I stick with Ao Ming but you know what? The Nodens, TO ME, is the most fun to pilot. May not score the best as my beta weapons are at level 11 but for whatever reason, I like it best. Hope you can try it out on test server to see.
While Cataclysm can have more DPS than French Ming, at the extreme distance you typically will find yourself in Ming to Ming battles, the French Ming will take you out every time. You will be lucky to even get your target lock complete before falling from the sky. A fully leveled Titan Accelerator would help but you then need to remove one of the Plated Armor modules to make room for it in the Universal Slot. No decision is wrong though.
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Post by mechtout on Jul 27, 2020 10:43:51 GMT -5
Well not dumping any more pt into the ao ming. Probably keep saving pt, and hope i hit a nodens in the titan chest. If i save enough pt to purchase and also upgrade, ill do that.
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Post by bunnyhoppingrailgun on Jul 27, 2020 14:27:45 GMT -5
what is the leveling schedule of the accelerator? 3 + 1 per level up to +28 kph?
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Post by Loganspawn on Jul 27, 2020 14:31:39 GMT -5
what is the leveling schedule of the accelerator? 3 + 1 per level up to +28 kph? nope it tops at 10 KPH. I have one maxed. |
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Post by bunnyhoppingrailgun on Jul 27, 2020 14:44:07 GMT -5
what is the leveling schedule of the accelerator? 3 + 1 per level up to +28 kph? nope it tops at 10 KPH. I have one maxed. gip. what is bonus at level 15? |
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dis
Destrier
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Post by dis on Jul 27, 2020 15:12:33 GMT -5
The accelerater starts at 3kmh level 1. As said goes up 0.25kmh each level so level 15 should be 6.5kmh extra speed.....i think ?
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Post by frunobulax on Jul 27, 2020 16:30:18 GMT -5
While Cataclysm can have more DPS than French Ming, at the extreme distance you typically will find yourself in Ming to Ming battles, the French Ming will take you out every time. You will be lucky to even get your target lock complete before falling from the sky. A fully leveled Titan Accelerator would help but you then need to remove one of the Plated Armor modules to make room for it in the Universal Slot. No decision is wrong though. OK, forget the Nodens for 5 minutes and let's talk Mings for now. Haven't done the math on Cataclysm vs. Plasma. But in practice, it works decently unless the game is very lopsided anyway. And here is why. If (IF!) I'm not up against a bunch of maxed titans. Remember, my Ming is level 28 with level 10 premium modules and level 8 weapons... I can hold my ground against titans up to level 100. After that it gets difficult.
The secret is to have a dedicated anti-titan Viper Ao Jun. With last stand, a cloaking device, foolhardy quartermaster and modules expert I have the option to sit at a spot for a long, long time, if I really want to. So I can get a beacon if needed, and still make up for a slightly botched landing spot (I fire at titans all the time, so I often fly/land blind). It also allows me to be agressive, I can peek out of cover and start firing. If the cloaking device fires, I get back into cover (with the help of phase shift if necessary). With luck, phase shift is restored when I need it next, giving me 2 fresh ones. If I upgrade my Last Stand and the cloaking device a bit, I might even land, get a beacon and take off without dying. 8 seconds on phase shift, currently 3.5 seconds on last stand, and 2 seconds on the cloaking device. But these modules are high on my upgrade list And I have a second Ao Jun (Avengers), both have Lee. Which gives me a LOT of late game options.
This setup came out of necessity, as I was away from the game for over a year and had two l12.1 AJs but only a l3 Kid as titan when I came back. So I basically played a 5-bot hangar without titan, and used the AJs in the late game. When I built the Ming, I realized that it opens up a wide range of tactical options.
As for titan duels, I try not to fight Ming vs. Ming unless I'm within 500m, where the Retaliators add decent damage (they are much superior in DPS to Plasma I think). A Viper Ao Jun can hurt mid-level Mings/Nodens while the Avenger Ao Jun is good against Arthurs. I might use one Ao Jun earlier in the game against Lokis/Nightinggales (say to defend a beacon in BR) or tanks, usually the Avenger one, but the Viper Jun is built and reserved as anti-titan weapon. And I usually get by with my 3 other bots until the Mings start flying, even if I suicide my first bot for a beacon in BR. So in most games I can use whatever Jun is appropriate, and still have the option to go Ao Jun (anti-Loki) or titan next.
Most players have a reflex to use their titans as soon as they can. I don't, I prefer to use my AJs once the titans come out. One reason is that my Ming is still too weak to brawl. But there are other considerations. As I said previously, Juns are much better at threatening beacons, and great in defense if we're ahead in beacons. If we're down I'll go for a beacon and force the enemy Mings to chase me. Often I can force them to land, giving me more time at the beacon. And even if I don't get the beacon, it will improve the tactical situation if I respawn later in my Ming.
It all comes down to tactical play. I don't play FFA and very rarely TDM, so I care only about beacon games. There are a couple of basic situations. First the easy ones:
- If the game balance is such that the enemy mings go through all blue bots without resistance, it doesn't matter.
- If we're in desperate situations where we need a 4-cap or whatever, well, we'll push as hard as we can and hope for the best.
- If we're winning easily (hardly worth to include this as it never happens), I prefer to use my Juns.
- If we're down and the Ming is my last bot (so I don't have the option of an Ao Jun), I'm probably screwed so it doesn't matter. I usually know when to push and when to play careful, so I rarely mech out before the last seconds of the game or before my teammates mech. If I am on my last bot early, it's a bad, bad game.
Now the interesting ones. Close games.
- I will bring out a Ming early if (and only if) we have a chance to get control of the game (3 or even 4 beacons), especially if few enemy titans are on the field. Then I can pick off enemy bots, while my teammates grab beacons. But then Ming vs. Ming is not a big issue.
- If we're up in beacons, I'll bring the Ming and sit in cover until they try to get a beacon. Then I'll be within 500m when I take flight. Or I can even defend where I have cover in the air (like Dead City, the high structure on the right).
- If we're down and the Mings hang back, I will use the Viper Jun to ninja a beacon. (I don't use 60 PCs routinely though. Has to be a close game where I can reasonably hope to turn it around. ) I've got easily enough time to turn a beacon, often enough to dispose of an enemy bot first. (I have to add a few levels to that last stand and cloaking device though.) Also Mings tend to land if they're up against a pair of Vipers, often giving me more time. The only critical thing is to manage the clip of the Vipers and be aware of all enemy bots, because I want to fire at the Mings when I'm in the air and I don't want to be reloading if I land.
- If we're down and the enemy titans are sitting on all beacons, I can usually get within 500m so my Cataclysms and Retaliators do nice damage. Unless they are in cover, well, ?dookie? happens and then it takes teamplay anyway. If we need to turn the enemies (say Arthur(s), or Ming(s) in cover), I'll probably take the Jun and try to create crossfire. If they're more vulnerable (Mings/Nodens), I'll use my Ming because of the better firepower.
But of course the Plasma Mings win against me if they can hang back. Titans are stone-scissors-paper to some degree. Overall Arthur is better anti-titan, while Cataclysm Ming is better anti-bot. Plasma Ming excels when protecting a lead, but sucks at pushing. I'm more a brawler than a midranger, so I'll go with the Cataclysm Ming.
And that's why I haven't bought the Nodens yet. It doesn't give me all these tactical options. However, in a full squad I can rely on my teammates to think as I do, and then I could support them with a Nodens just as well or possibly better. And the more I think about it, the more I come to the solution to use both. Max modules and slap them on the titan that I use, use Ming for solo play or duo with a weaker teammate (more precisely, a teammate with a weak titan), and the Nodens for the rest.
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Post by RightOn on Jul 27, 2020 16:59:51 GMT -5
If you get Nodens, plan on needing at least 500 more PT, 200 for hull 8 and the rest to beef up core. The stock healing is sad. You want 2%/s at least. Most anybody can get to 3%/s at some point. That's for 7 seconds.
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Post by eluray on Jul 27, 2020 17:08:06 GMT -5
Accelerator Modul is great
Finally im no longer annoyed from my Arthur
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Post by shivaswrath on Jul 27, 2020 17:46:14 GMT -5
5000 pt...wow.
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Post by Browncoats4ever on Jul 27, 2020 22:52:23 GMT -5
I'm just hoping one day we can sell duplicate Titan gear for Pt. If I can sell both of my extra Nodens for half price, I'd be happy!
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Post by AVC on Jul 28, 2020 6:43:07 GMT -5
The Noodles is a busy bot.
You have targeting (the 4 stock retaliators can pack a punch but trying to duke it out with 600m Mings is impossible)
Then you have your healing, so you have to position your self carefully (NOT front line). Levelled up it can do a great deal of assist but not over 600m
PLUS you have Disposal (suppression). Which can basically suppress a Red (or Reds) 50% of the time.
Using all 3 three simultaneously is tricky, but effective.
If you don't mind all the multi tasking it's not bad
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Post by Oliver Kloesov on Jul 28, 2020 7:43:54 GMT -5
OK, forget the Nodens for 5 minutes and let's talk Mings for now. Nice write-up. Thanks for the time it took to put together. My two cents on Titans: Prioritze modules over weapons/Titans. If I ever convert to Nodens from my Arthur I have modules ready to move over. I still don't regret building an Arthur. |
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Post by The VVatcher on Jul 28, 2020 8:45:49 GMT -5
OK, forget the Nodens for 5 minutes and let's talk Mings for now. Nice write-up. Thanks for the time it took to put together. My two cents on Titans: Prioritze modules over weapons/Titans. If I ever convert to Nodens from my Arthur I have modules ready to move over. I still don't regret building an Arthur. Except for Nodens. The healing sucks at level 1. |
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Post by reconnecting on Jul 28, 2020 13:19:37 GMT -5
Ive been trying to decide on Arthur (have it) or the Nodens OR get a Ming. Bottom line is I will keep using my beefed up Arthur and beef it up some more. I could otherwise get either the Nodens(!) or the Ming. I see so many multiple red Ming situations that I thought I better get one. But then I realized that my team loses because I am the only Titan against 3 Mings usually. Whers are the fra**ing blue Titans??
Anyway I will look at my transferable modules on Titans, upgrade them or get more. Then look at shield and weapons. Main is that ray gun thing, which doesnt do well against other Arthurs shields. It rips up Mings pretty good tho.
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Post by frunobulax on Aug 4, 2020 2:06:06 GMT -5
Ive been trying to decide on Arthur (have it) or the Nodens OR get a Ming. Bottom line is I will keep using my beefed up Arthur and beef it up some more. I could otherwise get either the Nodens(!) or the Ming. I see so many multiple red Ming situations that I thought I better get one. But then I realized that my team loses because I am the only Titan against 3 Mings usually. Whers are the fra**ing blue Titans?? If I would have won an Arthur, I would have levelled it and be done with it.
But I won a Ming. And it often goes down in 3-4 seconds in many games, against maxed plasma Mings. And as long as this happens I'll toy with the idea of changing my titan, while I bring out my AJs when the enemies run their titans...
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Post by ironstar on Aug 4, 2020 2:53:45 GMT -5
I focused on weapons first, then premium modules before doing much work on my titan itself (Arthur). It stayed level ~25 until I had maxed the weapons and the four modules. That made a gigantic difference, especially getting the alpha to 25 (100% mitigation, ie full damage to leeches, titans) but also adding the additional 2x29% damage from the AMR modules. Now I'm just slowly upgrading the bot itself but that damage investment has made even maxed mings think twice after engaging. The shield is strong enough even at low level that you can survive the initial burst fire from a maxed plasma ming and dish heavy damage in return.
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Post by mechtout on Aug 5, 2020 0:39:03 GMT -5
Was finally able to qualify in every HP category for the first time. Not bad for a level 11 Nodens, although it does have level 12 retaliators and level 10 modules   |
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