Post by corrosion on Apr 24, 2009 21:33:15 GMT -5
I've got an idea for this. The creation of a guide to playing meltdown2 created by anyone who feels like contributing. It wouldn't have anything to do with the wiki, more like strategies to using armors, how to use weapons effectively, miscellaneous strategies and more.
By the end of it we would have a collection of individual mini strategies which newbies could use to get started and find their place. Unlike the wiki which tells the facts of the weapons this guide would be about using them effectively. And with that a section of random tips.
What do you guys think. If people like it we can start posting our mini strategies/mini-guides and I'll update this post with them.
The kind of mini-guides I'm talking about are things like:
-Mag Ion packs, when and how to use them.
-Battle Angel Overdrive, making the most of your 30 seconds.
- Star Hammer vs. Comet Cannon, which to use, when to use them and why.
-And other things like that.
Heck if we can get enough of them maybe we can get Keen to make a page on his site containing all of these
Guides
Assault armor - Choosing your assault loadout wisely.[/u] - Corrosion
Introduction
The assault armor is an odd class, almost as mobile as a scout in the right hand yet has the ability to wield much more firepower. If you learn how to use this armor it can become very deadly. This mini-guide is just to go over what you should use in your loadout. I may write a guide about using this armor effectively later though (depending on my laziness factor
). I'll go over this in slots.
Slot 1
This slot should almost always be a mitzi blast cannon. It is not only a good combat weapon but a multipurpose tool. You can mitzi boost your way halfway across the map, rain regular mitzi blasts down on enemies, or clear out a room of a base with a dense mitzi blast. This should always be in your loadout. There are plenty of other ways to use it but its up to you to find them.
Slot 2
This will be the weapon you will do the most damage with. It will be for nothing but for hitting hard and fast. And for the assault armor class nothing gets this done better then a plasma rifle. They are the lightest class to have access too the power bolt mode of this weapon, so use it as it does amazing damage and can set the enemy on fire. You will only get 20 shots of it (it uses 2 ammo a shot) so you should be a bit conservative with your ammo. Don't just hold down the trigger, fire when you have a good shot and you know you will at least hit them with splash damage, avoid trying to get MA shots sicne that just eats ammo too. You should enter combat with this gun a blazing because everyone knows nothing says good morning like shooting them in the face with plasma.
Slot 3
You can't just have the plasma rifle as your only main combat weapon. I like to think of this slot as a backup combat weapon. For this we have a few choices.
Phaser Rifle - Fast firing, self-charging weapon this makes a great way to finish any opponent off. Fires fast enough you could even go for MA shots. Since it self charges don't be afraid to use this at will as most likely by the time you meet your next opponent it will have already gone back up to full charge. You will need to have good aim as you get best results when you hit them or the ground next to them. This weapon is great for medium to long range fights.
Energy Rifle - You should almost always have this on spreadfire, the extra power makes it well worth it. Unlike the phaser rifle this has very limited ammo. 50 ammo means only 16 spreadfire shots to pick your shots very carefully. Best for medium range fights the random spreading means you will need a bit of luck. But if all three shots connect then you can knock away a light with ease. Don't try for MAs because of the random spreading but rather use it on enemies bound to the ground. Splash damage is great and with good leading you will almost always hit splash damage.
Proton - I wouldn't recommend it but its a decent multipurpose weapon. Use mode 1 against anything, mode 2 against base assets then switch to mode 1, or mode 3 when you feel like it. Only real problem with this is its weak so you need good aim to get as many shots to connect as possible. Bring it if you are going for base rape. Good for air battles, and medium to long range fights.
Slot 4
I will call this the oddball slot. It is very versatile so I will go over a few weapons quickly. Its just personal preference here. This slot will be used mostly for that perfect time to use the weapon here comes up.
Missile Launcher - Mag Ions or juggs getting on your nerves? Hurt them bad, EMP, or burn them with this. Good overall weapon but slow.
Plasma Cannon- Good overall weapon with good splash, range, damage, and speed. Doesn't need ammo so it is an energy eater. I recommend an e-pack with this. Great against anything on the ground. Best for short to medium range fights but watch that you don't get hit with your own shots splash.
Autocannon - Stick to mode 3 with this. Great for putting hurt on stationary targets or swatting Mag Ions. Only real disadvantage is the high ammo usage and lack of ammo. 3 ammo per shot and 100 ammo means only 33 reaver shots. Pick the time for this wisely.
Grenade Launcher - Use mode 2 to ground enemies then pummel them with mode 3. You may run low on ammo quick but this weapon hurts. Plus the EMP effect can set them up for an even more painful time.
Energy Projector Cannon - You should pack a synominium device with this, makes a great weapon for sniping on mode 3, or good damage on mode 2. Only real con is the charge time. Just make sure to activate the synominium device to get its effects!
Chaingun - Use mode 3 with this. Pull it out when they've used their healthkits and make sure you don't have any left when you die so the enemy can't heal up. Great for making sure enemies die one way or another. You can poison before or near the end of a fight and its very useful. Its a bit inaccurate so you'll need to get close and at 3 ammo a shot you will have just 50 ammo for this beast.
ELF Projector - If you love the super tractor or sucking enemies dry then go for it. A bit of a pain to use but nonetheless useful in some situations. Try it and use it in your 4th slot if you like it that much. Personally I don't use it since I'm already mobile enough.
(if I think of more I'll put them here)
Pack
An E-Pack is highly recommended at any time. It makes you almost as mobile as a scout and that will be your edge against anything and everything. You'll be able to keep up with scouts and be tougher then them, and you can stay out of harms way when it comes to big enemies. The extra energy for your CSL is a great benefit as well. This should be your first pack choice.
Synominium Device - Activate it! Don't forget, you get nothing if you don't. Its a good pack too, with some effect of an E-Pack, protection from EMP, and most importantly faster charge of capacitor weapons. This pack is a great multipurpose tool. Use it if you are using an Energy Projector Cannon.
Grenade Cannon - Use this with concussion grenades the knock enemies around. A fun pack to use but a bit tough to get used too. Useful overall but its best to use it when the environment suits it. If the whole field is over lava then this is great fun
.
(These are just the most useful in my opinion, If I believe others are useful enough I'll add them)
Grenade
Its mostly personal preference here, but a good grenade is the mortar grenade. Useful for clearing rooms it will help you rack up more kills. It will be one of the most destructive weapons in your arsenal. You should also use concussion grenades with the grenade cannon otherwise use what you want here.
Mines
Since most of the time people don't use all their mines before they die I'll just leave this to personal preference. Make sure to mine your base since they are team-friendly.
.
Grimmys Guide to Tarzan Madness. - grimgallionfox
Ever wonder why those juggs are so fast? Well your in luck.
Your typical jugg loadout can be so varied i dont have the time to list and explain them all, but i can explain is how the CSL (Class Specific Targeting Laser) can be used with mines to help that jugg break the sound barrier.
First off when playing a jugg you must first understand. Be aware of your surroundings. Hills, mountains, bowls, and even buildings can be used to your advantage. The trick to fast juggy movement is always skiing. If your walking your doing it wrong!!! Walking is fine for a couple of meters but its better and faster if you sling those mines!
Secondly mine swinging. The trick to swinging mines is to hold your mine button down. The longer you hold it down the further it will go. When you think youve got the maximum amount of power, release that button and aim up while holding down your CSL trigger at the same time. This will not only give you the maximum effect but will increase the range that you can tarzan that mine. Also while doing so hold down your spacebar and ski ski ski and more ski...If you let loose that spacebar i will smack ya!!
Thirdly if you use a energy pack dont be afraid to use that pack boost. (Energy bar has to be full in order to use the energy pack booster.) Doing this in the air can save you from a ugly splatation death, or it can be used while on ground to give yourself a extra boost to get over those grandma titties we call mountains.
Fourthly if you dont get it the first time keep practicing. Mine slinging can be hard as hell on some maps...specially with foggy maps and or maps like Bridged, Katabatic (Cuz of the invisible walls), and many others. But once you master it, its a art form.
Grimmys guide to cloak and dagger[/u]. - grimgallionfox
The cloak pack is a great way to beat those nasty heavies that love to pummel your base with heavy bombardment. The cloak pack + shocklance is a great way to do some back stabbin.
You can pick a cloak + shocklance spawn loadout using your mod hud so you can get to work faster.
The shocklance achieves its full potential when using it on the back of any armor. It subjects the target to triple damage when a backstab is made. This damage is enough to kill every armor. The only exclusions from this one hit killer are Daishis (I think) and BA's with shield packs.
But first lets tackle how you get past the cloakers worst detriment. Running out of energy. Number 1 first and foremost mind your energy before you decide to get close to your prey. Nothing is wrong with parking behind a hill turning your cloak off and letting your energy recharge up to full. Its actually quite a good strategy when your going to be getting into the thick of it. That and it really sucks when you decloak because of no energy. Also try to skii as much as possible and never use your jets unless desperately needed.
Secondly another detriment of being a cloaker is the footprints that are left behind when you walk. These can be seen by even the most noobish of players. All it takes is a little bit of concentration and your ace in the hole just became your biggest fallback. The only way i know to combat this is staying still and waiting for your prey to look the other way. Also you can boost yourself away via the mitzi booster to put some distance between you and the prey. Once you think your clear move up again and try to keep an eye on the person your trying to backstab. Try your best to not alarm them while on your hunt. Because if they know your there they get pretty darn paranoid and will probably end in your death.
Thirdly the shocklance is a devastating weapon when used in mode 2. I cant remember the maximum range while in mode 2 but its very large. Play around with it to find out the maximum range and get comfortable judging the distance. Once that is done you will love the shocklance more than your own mother. Hit that backstab, then run like hell, regenerate your energy, cloak back up, and do it again.
Hope this helps you hunt your prey.
Until next time. Grimmy out!!
Grimmys Guide to Juggs. (not to be confused with chesty juggs.)[/u] - grimgallionfox
Juggs can be many things. They can be heavy frontline assault, quick hit and run guerrilla fighters, long range bombardment, and etc.
Juggs are unique with their ability to swiftly use the mine + CSL (or elf) combo to make them fast and deadly. Combined with a steady aim and the understanding of most of the guns in MD2 can equal a devastating combo.
First off you want to pick your loadout. But even before that you have to decide on what you want from your armor. Do you want to be a heavy hitter, a guerrilla fighter, or a jack of all trades master of none? All these things you have to put into consideration when making the loadout. I have made the mistake many times of getting one weapon to take out a specific person and then finding myself lacking the firepower or skill to take out a different armor type with the weapons i chosen.
Along with that i suggest that you try your best to at least use all the weapons that come with the jugg and find your niche. In some cases your niche may be your only ace in the hole in many situations. Nothing like a well placed anni huh guys? lol
Secondly...Watch your terrain. At all times in Tribes 2 the terrain can be used to your advantage. Dont think you cant trick a individual in coming over a hill only to be hit with a green mortar or grenade ready to explode when they flop over a mountain or hill. Try to see your enemy as they skii and sometimes go out of your sight range or behind terrain. Try to foresee how they will come out of a bowl or hill and pop em with a exploding disk or mortar. Never be afraid to try new things.
Thirdly...Watch your ammo. This can be a detriment to any class but the jugg can be worse off. Because of its speed and million things flying by you at once it can be extremely easy to loose track of ammo.
Fourthly...Watch your energy. Use your jets in short bursts to dodge, tarzan mines, and shoot your weapons. Be wary of the pbw although powerful its not best to be used in every situation specially when it uses all your energy.
Fifthly...If you decide to take advantage of the mine elfing. I strongly suggest to watch your mines too. Nothing sucks more than being stuck 1500m from your base and no way to get back but with only a mitzi booster and a prayer.
Although i doubt i have touched everything its a good start to anyone that is curious of the untapped potential of the jugg. It can be anything from a flying gun platform to a jack of all trades. The jugg is by far my fav armor, but along with all its pros it does have cons. This cons including: Its bigger and more easier to hit. Its slow as hell when outta mines to elf, and it cant use the shocklance. (DAMN YOU KEEN!!) However by far its a deadly armor type.
Also i would like to add. Some people will give you hell for using different weapons and such that kill them. These weapons however devastating are in the game and all can be used. Dont pay attention of childish kids (and adults sadly) that will bitch, cry, complain, and moan all because you killed em. Use every advantage and every dirty trick you can. (all within good reason of course. No admin powers. *Looks at Zap!*) Its a game and people should treat it like one.
Until next chapter. Grimmy out!
Basic Guide to sniping[/u] - JayZ
Most snipers are instant shot.(meaning once you shoot they hit the target) Some move 1000 meters/sec but close enough to instant.
Just because its instant doesn't mean you just shoot and hit them.(assuming your aiming at them and they aren't moving) There is a little lag between your shot and the target so it doesn't always go right where you want it to go. So do hit the target aim a little bit in front of the target and shoot. But you must take note of 3 things. 1. Look at your ping and observe how it acts with sniping.Such as how long does it take for you to actually fire your bullet after you click. 2. How fast is the bullet If it is instant you only have to aim a little bit in front of your target but if its slower than instant you have to aim a bit farther than that. 3. How far the target is. (same notes as 2.)
If you take note of those three things sniping should/will be easier.(in my case it helped me a zillion)
P.S If you want to pick off the person with your flag use the Pulse mode. (mode 2) It is rapid fire and it costs 20% energy but this way if you miss one shot you can try with all the others. Also you can fire about 7 shots using this before you have to wait for your energy to recharge.(you energy recharges as you shoot)
I hope you learned the basics to sniping. If not I hope you can find another guide on here. Assuming Grim is willing to spill his pride... ;D
Humans’ guide to better your sniping:[/b] - humans
Disclaimer: I don’ t pretend to be a great sniper, but what I write down here will definitely help you out, and maybe help you understand what other people are doing to you. I am going to list a bunch of tips that I have heard from pros and also what I have found to help immensely. In my opinion sniping in Tribes is much harder than other games, even if you have huge open fields to work with, so this is why I am adding to what JayZ wrote.
Tip 1, and maybe the most important, “never stop moving.” If you get a couple kills in a spot, even if you really like it, you need to move. The best snipers always have a new vantage point to keep their opponents guessing. And since your primary weapon is energy based, you can be a huge asset to the team the longer you are out there causing mayhem and confusion.
Tip 2, “strafing.” This builds off of the first one. Moving side to side while you snipe not only makes you harder to hit, it can also help a lot with aiming. If an enemy is moving to the right, strafe a little to the right, especially if you work with high sensitivity, this will let you smoothly lock onto your target.
Tip 3, “headshots.” Don’t Go For Them! Unless you have a very clear shot on a still target you WILL get more kills if you DON’T go for headshots.
Tip 4, “Air to air.” In meltdown it is possible to get very nice air to air shots thanks to ammo based sniper modes. Gauss, Poison, and 30.06 are great to keep your energy going and also give you some quick short – long range damage. Also, if you want to stay aerial and snipe a lot, mitzi booster lets you have the option of using the energy based laser modes.
Tip 5, “picking your targets.” That guy moving perpendicular to you at 200kmph is not the right target. Sometimes it is almost better to have the enemy chasing you so you have a straight on shot. Also, going directly after a full health BA is possible, but not always smart. Let him use up his repair kits then poison him.
Tip 6, “experiment.” Sniping takes a lot of time to get down, and even the best snipers miss A LOT, so experiment with different shots, check your ping often, use all of the modes, etc.
My next guide: Capping! Stay tuned =)
Zap's guide to Gnatting - Zap
So, you're sick and tired of everybody including yourself running around in big silly looking jug/BA armors. You want a way to kill them while annoying them and taking virtually no damage yourself. Maybe you want to fly over them pelting them with shots, assisting your teammates in their kills. Maybe you just want to be a fight-capable capper.
Say no more! You need to learn how to gnat. When gnatting, you will be airborne the entire time, using nothing but light weaponry to slowly wear the big guys to death, sometimes from very high altitudes. To gnat, you need either blastech or mag ion armor. Here's a quick comparison of the two:
Blastech
3 weapon slots
No unique weapons
Unique pack:
Bean+Bacon Megadisc, a vehicle-in-a-pack
CSL: ELF 1
Pros:
-Immune to "kinetic" and "explosive" damage (for our purposes, that means bullets and kabooms)
-Has a massive amount of energy, does not normally recharge
-Regains a bit of health and energy on every kill (hunt bots for more energy!)
-CAN CARRY MORTAR GRENADES
-Automatically recharges energy when standing near any generator (even enemy generators)
-Doesn't need flares terribly badly
-Laughs at silly things like large mines, satchel charges, missile turrets, mechrockets, mech miniguns, reavers, bomber runs, starhammers, the anni blast radius, and mortars. Would laugh at nukes as well, but is usually killed by the impact damage immediately from getting sent flying into the ground (but still not actually killed by the nuke!).
-Can easily deal with poorly-thought-out loadouts by standing in front of the person and ELFing them to death
Cons:
-Can easily accidentally suicide with a misaimed protron or phaser
-Can easily be owned by a well-aimed protron or phaser
-Crippled by EMP (due to no recharge)
-Considerably less agile than the Ion
-Will be ripped to shreds by AA turrets
-Least amount of available weapons of ALL armors
-Only armor with no sensor jammer available
-Starburst 2. Enough said.
-RAPED by almost any Ion
-Despite immunity to explosives, is still quite vulnerable to missile launcher settings 3 and 4, and it possess no way to know exactly what is locked onto them
-Megadisc is more novelty than anything else
Magnetic Ion
2 weapon slots
Unique weapon: Electro-rockets (or whatever they're called), essentially the basic rocket launcher, except it runs from your energy and deals energy damage
Unique packs:
Magnetic Ion Reactor, for MASSIVE energy recharge
Reactor/Jammer, the Ion's version of the sensor jammer
Reactor/Soulshield, the Ion's version of the soul shield
CSL: EMP blast, uses up entire energy bar to shoot a blast of energy that inflicts EMP upon any enemies, vehicles, or deployables that it hits
Pros:
-Electro-rockets rape things. They one-shot blastechs (and will get a heat lock on them!). Even a polarized BA will not enjoy a hit from it.
-All three packs increase energy recharge greatly (get hit by a conc grenade or press ctrl r, and you'll see you have almost no recharge), the basic reactor does it much more so, but ion still has the best recharge of any armor regardless of which pack it brings
-By far the most mobile of all the armors. Even when not flying, it can run much faster than any other armor, and will even outrun an overdrived BA with ease.
-CSL works wonders at ripping apart turret clusters when used with the reactor/jammer. Even if the Ion gets killed before it can destroy them, the turrets are still disabled.
-Due to its speed, it's generally the best capping armor
Cons:
-Even though it does have slightly more health than the blastech, it still gets one-shotted by almost everything. Will frequently drop healthkit due to going from full health to no health in one hit.
-DEMANDS possession of flare grenades
-Even with flares, it will frequently take considerable damage just from being close to the flare when the missile hit it
-If an opponent brings out a reaver, the ion gets to either run away or die
-Anybody who points a mech minigun at it can almost always hit it, and sometimes kill it, regardless of distance
-Two weapon slots, one of which will likely contain electrorockets, makes choosing equipment difficult
-Does not have access to any of the regular packs, just the three reactors
-VERY frequently takes fall damage
Looking at the two, the Blastech is obviously for those who don't care if they're being shot at, while the Ion is for those who want to be able to run away. Both are also good at getting behind the enemies and seeing their deployed equipment up close. The big problem both of them have, though, is how they're going to damage those big guys on the ground. While the blastech is actually slightly BETTER at this due to mortar grenades and pack options, both armors still need to figure out how they're going to gnat those big guys to death with just the basic light weaponry. A good gnat weapon has a good rate of fire and a blast radius. Here's an analysis of what I can remember the two having available, excluding electro-rockets:
Shocklance
Pros:
-Can one-shot anything smaller than a juggie
-Can one-shot anything when used from behind
Cons:
-Not a gnat weapon, for hilariously obvious reasons
Recommendation: AVOID USING FOR GNATTY PURPOSES
Blaster
Pros:
-Setting 1 is an excellent anti-deployable
-Setting 2 does good damage and will destroy daishis
-Setting 3 is a mini-sniper, great for when you land to take a breather
Cons:
-Uses up energy, which is a problem to those without massive energy stores
-Bouncy shots mean no blast radius
Recommendation: Avoid as Ion. Decent with blastech, though, because they'll actually have weapon slots left for situations the blaster won't work in.
Chaingun
Pros:
-Insane rate of fire
-Rips apart scouts and engies
-Very difficult to totally dodge as any armor
-Setting 3 can be used to RAPE daishis and anybody without healthkits
Cons:
-Limited ammo, which is consumed VERY fast with setting 3
-No blast radius
-Useless against blastechs
-Very large spread makes long range a bad idea with this
Recommendation: Avoid
Protron
Pros:
-pewpewpewpewpewpewpewpewpew
-Insane rate of fire
-Capacitor weapon means ENDLESS AMMO, and it will recharge even while firing
-Setting 1 will do blast radius damage
-Setting 2 is a great way to wear down shields on equipment
-Setting 3 is a blue blaster that won't sap your energy
Cons:
-Not much damage per hit, means you need good aim to kill with form afar, leading to silly things like scoping while in mid-air
-Random people attempting to use setting 2 for actual combat may make you hate this weapon irrationally
Recommendation: USE USE USE. This is in the Ion loadout I have favorited (though mitzi sometimes replaces it). One of the two best gnat weapons, and the best choice against heavies.
Mitzi
Pros:
-Notoriously versatile in its uses
-Booster is excellent for any capper
Cons:
-Not actually that great of a gnatty weapon
-Mitzi 20 is a risky thing to use while airborne, as it is very easy to accidentally fly directly into after firing (and it will one-shot any ion or blastech that does this)
Recommendation: I don't actually like using this for combat as a gnat, but it's a must-have for any capper. Blastechs can find a spot to use it for combat, too.
Spinfusor
Pros:
-Regular spinfusor is notoriously anti-scout
-Turbo disc is very gnatty
-Rippers can be haphazardly tossed into a building and will sometimes hit something totally out of chance
-Limited ammo is offset by the fact that 99% of scouts will have spinfusors, and heavier people may be carrying multifusors for looting
Cons:
-You need to LAND to loot ammo from a corpse
-Ions and Blastechs cannot use the amazing Power Disk setting
-Useless against blastechs
Recommendation: Ions should avoid this. Blastechs might be able to find some use for it, as they don't need to worry about being mortared when they land to loot ammo.
Energy rifle
Pros:
-Good damage, sizable blast radius
-Lack of spread makes setting 1 a good precision weapon
-Setting 2 will spread damage over a MASSIVE area
Cons:
-Average rate of fire, at best
-It uses ammo
-Setting 2 in particular will make your ammo disappear very fast
Recommendation: I've honestly never liked this weapon, so I can't recommend it. If you've had good luck with it on another armor, though, then you may be able to make some use of it.
ELF
Pros:
-Setting 3 will let you spider-man from mines, equipment, vehicles, and players, and can be fun to cap with
-Next time Solo decides elf 1 should set people on fire with every hit, you can use it too
Cons:
-Neither gnat armor has use for setting 1 without solo's haxxing, since Ions cannot fit it in a loadout and blastechs get the same from their CSL
-Setting 4 is pathetic on a light armor
Recommendation: I have this on my blastech loadout by default, simply because spider-manning as a light is a very effective way to get around. This has zero utility for offensively gnatting (though it can help a blastech get the momentum they need). Avoid as Ion, consider maybe as blastech.
Grenade launcher
Pros:
-kaBOOM
-High damage
-Setting 2 has EMP
-Actually a decently gnatty weapon
Cons:
-Hilariously limited ammo
-Uncommon to find as loot from a corpse
-Useless against blastechs
-Generally better as an indoor weapon and not an outdoor weapon
Recommendation: Avoid
Phaser
Pros:
-Large spread and blast radius makes this difficult to dodge from any range
-Decent rate of fire
-Capacitor weapons are a gnat's best friend
-Very gnatty weapon
Cons:
-Not that great against juggies and heavier, as the combination of damage, spread, and rate of fire makes for a meh-ish rate of damage against stuff that isn't frantically dodging
-Low maximum capacity may make you run out of shots mid-attack and force you to switch to something else while it recharges
Recommendation: Inferior to the protron as a gnatty weapon, only due to its low max capacity. Ions can't find a spot for it due to the fact that they'll run out mid-attack and have no other anti-ground tools. Blastechs, however, should always have this. Great anti-light weapon thanks to its spread.
So, with that in mind, here's what I recommend for the armors in weapons (assuming you want combat and not capping):
Ions: Electrorockets, Protron
Blastech: Phaser, Protron, your choice (pick from ELF, Spinfusor, Blaster, or Mitzi)
For capping, Ions need the Mitzi, while Blastechs should grab the ELF for their last slot (preferred over mitzi, as blastechs need something to get their momentum going, and nothing does that quite like spidermanning from random base equipment). If you want to be a creative Ion, you can forgo the electrorocket, but the instant people realize you don't have your electrorocket, they'll start jetting, making them a lot harder to hit. However, capping Ions may not care about this, and can get away with a loadout of ELF and Mitzi because of this.
Now that the weapons are figured out, the rest of the loadout needs to be thought out. Mines are all personal taste, so I won't cover those, but everything else needs talking about. However, the armors have different options and different needs in their packs and grenades.
Ions need flares, without question. They have no other way of dealing with anybody who grabs a missile launcher, and they definitely need them if they're not using the reactor/jammer. For which reactor to use, the reactor/soulshield isn't too bad for a beginning gnat, but they should switch to the regular reactor once they're better at dodging attacks. If the enemy has lots of anti-air defenses set up, get a reactor/jammer, at least until you or somebody else can deal with those defenses. Reactor/jammer isn't bad for early capping runs, either.
I generally go with a very attack-based loadout on Blastech, with mortar grenades and a satchel charge (ask anybody who's played deathmatch with me lately, and they'll tell you the kind of death I've dealt with these). However, your personal choice of grenades (or flares for those worried about ions and rocket launcher 3 and 4) will work as well. Additional pack choices include the Synomium, which blastechs can activate to recharge their energy (and if it's used in mid-air, it'll actually let you hover there, but watch out for snipers), the Megadisc (its novelty makes it no less fun to use sometimes), or a soul shield (to make you even harder to kill).
Remember, gnats are easily swatted, but they make excellent distractions. You might not be able to kill that BA as a gnat, but you can distact them long enough for your teammate to nail them with a comet blast, a pbw shot, a rearshot shocklance, or any number of other precision weapons. If you try to get all the kills yourself as a gnat, somebody is going to take you down very quickly. Teamwork is the key.
By the end of it we would have a collection of individual mini strategies which newbies could use to get started and find their place. Unlike the wiki which tells the facts of the weapons this guide would be about using them effectively. And with that a section of random tips.
What do you guys think. If people like it we can start posting our mini strategies/mini-guides and I'll update this post with them.
The kind of mini-guides I'm talking about are things like:
-Mag Ion packs, when and how to use them.
-Battle Angel Overdrive, making the most of your 30 seconds.
- Star Hammer vs. Comet Cannon, which to use, when to use them and why.
-And other things like that.
Heck if we can get enough of them maybe we can get Keen to make a page on his site containing all of these
Guides
Assault armor - Choosing your assault loadout wisely.[/u] - Corrosion
Introduction
The assault armor is an odd class, almost as mobile as a scout in the right hand yet has the ability to wield much more firepower. If you learn how to use this armor it can become very deadly. This mini-guide is just to go over what you should use in your loadout. I may write a guide about using this armor effectively later though (depending on my laziness factor
). I'll go over this in slots.Slot 1
This slot should almost always be a mitzi blast cannon. It is not only a good combat weapon but a multipurpose tool. You can mitzi boost your way halfway across the map, rain regular mitzi blasts down on enemies, or clear out a room of a base with a dense mitzi blast. This should always be in your loadout. There are plenty of other ways to use it but its up to you to find them.
Slot 2
This will be the weapon you will do the most damage with. It will be for nothing but for hitting hard and fast. And for the assault armor class nothing gets this done better then a plasma rifle. They are the lightest class to have access too the power bolt mode of this weapon, so use it as it does amazing damage and can set the enemy on fire. You will only get 20 shots of it (it uses 2 ammo a shot) so you should be a bit conservative with your ammo. Don't just hold down the trigger, fire when you have a good shot and you know you will at least hit them with splash damage, avoid trying to get MA shots sicne that just eats ammo too. You should enter combat with this gun a blazing because everyone knows nothing says good morning like shooting them in the face with plasma.
Slot 3
You can't just have the plasma rifle as your only main combat weapon. I like to think of this slot as a backup combat weapon. For this we have a few choices.
Phaser Rifle - Fast firing, self-charging weapon this makes a great way to finish any opponent off. Fires fast enough you could even go for MA shots. Since it self charges don't be afraid to use this at will as most likely by the time you meet your next opponent it will have already gone back up to full charge. You will need to have good aim as you get best results when you hit them or the ground next to them. This weapon is great for medium to long range fights.
Energy Rifle - You should almost always have this on spreadfire, the extra power makes it well worth it. Unlike the phaser rifle this has very limited ammo. 50 ammo means only 16 spreadfire shots to pick your shots very carefully. Best for medium range fights the random spreading means you will need a bit of luck. But if all three shots connect then you can knock away a light with ease. Don't try for MAs because of the random spreading but rather use it on enemies bound to the ground. Splash damage is great and with good leading you will almost always hit splash damage.
Proton - I wouldn't recommend it but its a decent multipurpose weapon. Use mode 1 against anything, mode 2 against base assets then switch to mode 1, or mode 3 when you feel like it. Only real problem with this is its weak so you need good aim to get as many shots to connect as possible. Bring it if you are going for base rape. Good for air battles, and medium to long range fights.
Slot 4
I will call this the oddball slot. It is very versatile so I will go over a few weapons quickly. Its just personal preference here. This slot will be used mostly for that perfect time to use the weapon here comes up.
Missile Launcher - Mag Ions or juggs getting on your nerves? Hurt them bad, EMP, or burn them with this. Good overall weapon but slow.
Plasma Cannon- Good overall weapon with good splash, range, damage, and speed. Doesn't need ammo so it is an energy eater. I recommend an e-pack with this. Great against anything on the ground. Best for short to medium range fights but watch that you don't get hit with your own shots splash.
Autocannon - Stick to mode 3 with this. Great for putting hurt on stationary targets or swatting Mag Ions. Only real disadvantage is the high ammo usage and lack of ammo. 3 ammo per shot and 100 ammo means only 33 reaver shots. Pick the time for this wisely.
Grenade Launcher - Use mode 2 to ground enemies then pummel them with mode 3. You may run low on ammo quick but this weapon hurts. Plus the EMP effect can set them up for an even more painful time.
Energy Projector Cannon - You should pack a synominium device with this, makes a great weapon for sniping on mode 3, or good damage on mode 2. Only real con is the charge time. Just make sure to activate the synominium device to get its effects!
Chaingun - Use mode 3 with this. Pull it out when they've used their healthkits and make sure you don't have any left when you die so the enemy can't heal up. Great for making sure enemies die one way or another. You can poison before or near the end of a fight and its very useful. Its a bit inaccurate so you'll need to get close and at 3 ammo a shot you will have just 50 ammo for this beast.
ELF Projector - If you love the super tractor or sucking enemies dry then go for it. A bit of a pain to use but nonetheless useful in some situations. Try it and use it in your 4th slot if you like it that much. Personally I don't use it since I'm already mobile enough.
(if I think of more I'll put them here)
Pack
An E-Pack is highly recommended at any time. It makes you almost as mobile as a scout and that will be your edge against anything and everything. You'll be able to keep up with scouts and be tougher then them, and you can stay out of harms way when it comes to big enemies. The extra energy for your CSL is a great benefit as well. This should be your first pack choice.
Synominium Device - Activate it! Don't forget, you get nothing if you don't. Its a good pack too, with some effect of an E-Pack, protection from EMP, and most importantly faster charge of capacitor weapons. This pack is a great multipurpose tool. Use it if you are using an Energy Projector Cannon.
Grenade Cannon - Use this with concussion grenades the knock enemies around. A fun pack to use but a bit tough to get used too. Useful overall but its best to use it when the environment suits it. If the whole field is over lava then this is great fun
.(These are just the most useful in my opinion, If I believe others are useful enough I'll add them)
Grenade
Its mostly personal preference here, but a good grenade is the mortar grenade. Useful for clearing rooms it will help you rack up more kills. It will be one of the most destructive weapons in your arsenal. You should also use concussion grenades with the grenade cannon otherwise use what you want here.
Mines
Since most of the time people don't use all their mines before they die I'll just leave this to personal preference. Make sure to mine your base since they are team-friendly.
.
Grimmys Guide to Tarzan Madness. - grimgallionfox
Ever wonder why those juggs are so fast? Well your in luck.
Your typical jugg loadout can be so varied i dont have the time to list and explain them all, but i can explain is how the CSL (Class Specific Targeting Laser) can be used with mines to help that jugg break the sound barrier.
First off when playing a jugg you must first understand. Be aware of your surroundings. Hills, mountains, bowls, and even buildings can be used to your advantage. The trick to fast juggy movement is always skiing. If your walking your doing it wrong!!! Walking is fine for a couple of meters but its better and faster if you sling those mines!
Secondly mine swinging. The trick to swinging mines is to hold your mine button down. The longer you hold it down the further it will go. When you think youve got the maximum amount of power, release that button and aim up while holding down your CSL trigger at the same time. This will not only give you the maximum effect but will increase the range that you can tarzan that mine. Also while doing so hold down your spacebar and ski ski ski and more ski...If you let loose that spacebar i will smack ya!!
Thirdly if you use a energy pack dont be afraid to use that pack boost. (Energy bar has to be full in order to use the energy pack booster.) Doing this in the air can save you from a ugly splatation death, or it can be used while on ground to give yourself a extra boost to get over those grandma titties we call mountains.
Fourthly if you dont get it the first time keep practicing. Mine slinging can be hard as hell on some maps...specially with foggy maps and or maps like Bridged, Katabatic (Cuz of the invisible walls), and many others. But once you master it, its a art form.
Grimmys guide to cloak and dagger[/u]. - grimgallionfox
The cloak pack is a great way to beat those nasty heavies that love to pummel your base with heavy bombardment. The cloak pack + shocklance is a great way to do some back stabbin.
You can pick a cloak + shocklance spawn loadout using your mod hud so you can get to work faster.
The shocklance achieves its full potential when using it on the back of any armor. It subjects the target to triple damage when a backstab is made. This damage is enough to kill every armor. The only exclusions from this one hit killer are Daishis (I think) and BA's with shield packs.
But first lets tackle how you get past the cloakers worst detriment. Running out of energy. Number 1 first and foremost mind your energy before you decide to get close to your prey. Nothing is wrong with parking behind a hill turning your cloak off and letting your energy recharge up to full. Its actually quite a good strategy when your going to be getting into the thick of it. That and it really sucks when you decloak because of no energy. Also try to skii as much as possible and never use your jets unless desperately needed.
Secondly another detriment of being a cloaker is the footprints that are left behind when you walk. These can be seen by even the most noobish of players. All it takes is a little bit of concentration and your ace in the hole just became your biggest fallback. The only way i know to combat this is staying still and waiting for your prey to look the other way. Also you can boost yourself away via the mitzi booster to put some distance between you and the prey. Once you think your clear move up again and try to keep an eye on the person your trying to backstab. Try your best to not alarm them while on your hunt. Because if they know your there they get pretty darn paranoid and will probably end in your death.
Thirdly the shocklance is a devastating weapon when used in mode 2. I cant remember the maximum range while in mode 2 but its very large. Play around with it to find out the maximum range and get comfortable judging the distance. Once that is done you will love the shocklance more than your own mother.
Hit that backstab, then run like hell, regenerate your energy, cloak back up, and do it again.Hope this helps you hunt your prey.
Until next time. Grimmy out!!
Grimmys Guide to Juggs. (not to be confused with chesty juggs.)[/u] - grimgallionfox
Juggs can be many things. They can be heavy frontline assault, quick hit and run guerrilla fighters, long range bombardment, and etc.
Juggs are unique with their ability to swiftly use the mine + CSL (or elf) combo to make them fast and deadly. Combined with a steady aim and the understanding of most of the guns in MD2 can equal a devastating combo.
First off you want to pick your loadout. But even before that you have to decide on what you want from your armor. Do you want to be a heavy hitter, a guerrilla fighter, or a jack of all trades master of none? All these things you have to put into consideration when making the loadout. I have made the mistake many times of getting one weapon to take out a specific person and then finding myself lacking the firepower or skill to take out a different armor type with the weapons i chosen.
Along with that i suggest that you try your best to at least use all the weapons that come with the jugg and find your niche. In some cases your niche may be your only ace in the hole in many situations. Nothing like a well placed anni huh guys? lol
Secondly...Watch your terrain. At all times in Tribes 2 the terrain can be used to your advantage. Dont think you cant trick a individual in coming over a hill only to be hit with a green mortar or grenade ready to explode when they flop over a mountain or hill. Try to see your enemy as they skii and sometimes go out of your sight range or behind terrain. Try to foresee how they will come out of a bowl or hill and pop em with a exploding disk or mortar. Never be afraid to try new things.
Thirdly...Watch your ammo. This can be a detriment to any class but the jugg can be worse off. Because of its speed and million things flying by you at once it can be extremely easy to loose track of ammo.
Fourthly...Watch your energy. Use your jets in short bursts to dodge, tarzan mines, and shoot your weapons. Be wary of the pbw although powerful its not best to be used in every situation specially when it uses all your energy.
Fifthly...If you decide to take advantage of the mine elfing. I strongly suggest to watch your mines too. Nothing sucks more than being stuck 1500m from your base and no way to get back but with only a mitzi booster and a prayer.
Although i doubt i have touched everything its a good start to anyone that is curious of the untapped potential of the jugg. It can be anything from a flying gun platform to a jack of all trades. The jugg is by far my fav armor, but along with all its pros it does have cons. This cons including: Its bigger and more easier to hit. Its slow as hell when outta mines to elf, and it cant use the shocklance. (DAMN YOU KEEN!!) However by far its a deadly armor type.
Also i would like to add. Some people will give you hell for using different weapons and such that kill them. These weapons however devastating are in the game and all can be used. Dont pay attention of childish kids (and adults sadly) that will bitch, cry, complain, and moan all because you killed em. Use every advantage and every dirty trick you can. (all within good reason of course. No admin powers. *Looks at Zap!*) Its a game and people should treat it like one.
Until next chapter. Grimmy out!
Basic Guide to sniping[/u] - JayZ
Most snipers are instant shot.(meaning once you shoot they hit the target) Some move 1000 meters/sec but close enough to instant.
Just because its instant doesn't mean you just shoot and hit them.(assuming your aiming at them and they aren't moving) There is a little lag between your shot and the target so it doesn't always go right where you want it to go. So do hit the target aim a little bit in front of the target and shoot. But you must take note of 3 things. 1. Look at your ping and observe how it acts with sniping.Such as how long does it take for you to actually fire your bullet after you click. 2. How fast is the bullet If it is instant you only have to aim a little bit in front of your target but if its slower than instant you have to aim a bit farther than that. 3. How far the target is. (same notes as 2.)
If you take note of those three things sniping should/will be easier.(in my case it helped me a zillion)
P.S If you want to pick off the person with your flag use the Pulse mode. (mode 2) It is rapid fire and it costs 20% energy but this way if you miss one shot you can try with all the others. Also you can fire about 7 shots using this before you have to wait for your energy to recharge.(you energy recharges as you shoot)
I hope you learned the basics to sniping. If not I hope you can find another guide on here. Assuming Grim is willing to spill his pride... ;D
Humans’ guide to better your sniping:[/b] - humans
Disclaimer: I don’ t pretend to be a great sniper, but what I write down here will definitely help you out, and maybe help you understand what other people are doing to you. I am going to list a bunch of tips that I have heard from pros and also what I have found to help immensely. In my opinion sniping in Tribes is much harder than other games, even if you have huge open fields to work with, so this is why I am adding to what JayZ wrote.
Tip 1, and maybe the most important, “never stop moving.” If you get a couple kills in a spot, even if you really like it, you need to move. The best snipers always have a new vantage point to keep their opponents guessing. And since your primary weapon is energy based, you can be a huge asset to the team the longer you are out there causing mayhem and confusion.
Tip 2, “strafing.” This builds off of the first one. Moving side to side while you snipe not only makes you harder to hit, it can also help a lot with aiming. If an enemy is moving to the right, strafe a little to the right, especially if you work with high sensitivity, this will let you smoothly lock onto your target.
Tip 3, “headshots.” Don’t Go For Them! Unless you have a very clear shot on a still target you WILL get more kills if you DON’T go for headshots.
Tip 4, “Air to air.” In meltdown it is possible to get very nice air to air shots thanks to ammo based sniper modes. Gauss, Poison, and 30.06 are great to keep your energy going and also give you some quick short – long range damage. Also, if you want to stay aerial and snipe a lot, mitzi booster lets you have the option of using the energy based laser modes.
Tip 5, “picking your targets.” That guy moving perpendicular to you at 200kmph is not the right target. Sometimes it is almost better to have the enemy chasing you so you have a straight on shot. Also, going directly after a full health BA is possible, but not always smart. Let him use up his repair kits then poison him.
Tip 6, “experiment.” Sniping takes a lot of time to get down, and even the best snipers miss A LOT, so experiment with different shots, check your ping often, use all of the modes, etc.
My next guide: Capping! Stay tuned =)
Zap's guide to Gnatting - Zap
So, you're sick and tired of everybody including yourself running around in big silly looking jug/BA armors. You want a way to kill them while annoying them and taking virtually no damage yourself. Maybe you want to fly over them pelting them with shots, assisting your teammates in their kills. Maybe you just want to be a fight-capable capper.
Say no more! You need to learn how to gnat. When gnatting, you will be airborne the entire time, using nothing but light weaponry to slowly wear the big guys to death, sometimes from very high altitudes. To gnat, you need either blastech or mag ion armor. Here's a quick comparison of the two:
Blastech
3 weapon slots
No unique weapons
Unique pack:
Bean+Bacon Megadisc, a vehicle-in-a-pack
CSL: ELF 1
Pros:
-Immune to "kinetic" and "explosive" damage (for our purposes, that means bullets and kabooms)
-Has a massive amount of energy, does not normally recharge
-Regains a bit of health and energy on every kill (hunt bots for more energy!)
-CAN CARRY MORTAR GRENADES
-Automatically recharges energy when standing near any generator (even enemy generators)
-Doesn't need flares terribly badly
-Laughs at silly things like large mines, satchel charges, missile turrets, mechrockets, mech miniguns, reavers, bomber runs, starhammers, the anni blast radius, and mortars. Would laugh at nukes as well, but is usually killed by the impact damage immediately from getting sent flying into the ground (but still not actually killed by the nuke!).
-Can easily deal with poorly-thought-out loadouts by standing in front of the person and ELFing them to death
Cons:
-Can easily accidentally suicide with a misaimed protron or phaser
-Can easily be owned by a well-aimed protron or phaser
-Crippled by EMP (due to no recharge)
-Considerably less agile than the Ion
-Will be ripped to shreds by AA turrets
-Least amount of available weapons of ALL armors
-Only armor with no sensor jammer available
-Starburst 2. Enough said.
-RAPED by almost any Ion
-Despite immunity to explosives, is still quite vulnerable to missile launcher settings 3 and 4, and it possess no way to know exactly what is locked onto them
-Megadisc is more novelty than anything else
Magnetic Ion
2 weapon slots
Unique weapon: Electro-rockets (or whatever they're called), essentially the basic rocket launcher, except it runs from your energy and deals energy damage
Unique packs:
Magnetic Ion Reactor, for MASSIVE energy recharge
Reactor/Jammer, the Ion's version of the sensor jammer
Reactor/Soulshield, the Ion's version of the soul shield
CSL: EMP blast, uses up entire energy bar to shoot a blast of energy that inflicts EMP upon any enemies, vehicles, or deployables that it hits
Pros:
-Electro-rockets rape things. They one-shot blastechs (and will get a heat lock on them!). Even a polarized BA will not enjoy a hit from it.
-All three packs increase energy recharge greatly (get hit by a conc grenade or press ctrl r, and you'll see you have almost no recharge), the basic reactor does it much more so, but ion still has the best recharge of any armor regardless of which pack it brings
-By far the most mobile of all the armors. Even when not flying, it can run much faster than any other armor, and will even outrun an overdrived BA with ease.
-CSL works wonders at ripping apart turret clusters when used with the reactor/jammer. Even if the Ion gets killed before it can destroy them, the turrets are still disabled.
-Due to its speed, it's generally the best capping armor
Cons:
-Even though it does have slightly more health than the blastech, it still gets one-shotted by almost everything. Will frequently drop healthkit due to going from full health to no health in one hit.
-DEMANDS possession of flare grenades
-Even with flares, it will frequently take considerable damage just from being close to the flare when the missile hit it
-If an opponent brings out a reaver, the ion gets to either run away or die
-Anybody who points a mech minigun at it can almost always hit it, and sometimes kill it, regardless of distance
-Two weapon slots, one of which will likely contain electrorockets, makes choosing equipment difficult
-Does not have access to any of the regular packs, just the three reactors
-VERY frequently takes fall damage
Looking at the two, the Blastech is obviously for those who don't care if they're being shot at, while the Ion is for those who want to be able to run away. Both are also good at getting behind the enemies and seeing their deployed equipment up close. The big problem both of them have, though, is how they're going to damage those big guys on the ground. While the blastech is actually slightly BETTER at this due to mortar grenades and pack options, both armors still need to figure out how they're going to gnat those big guys to death with just the basic light weaponry. A good gnat weapon has a good rate of fire and a blast radius. Here's an analysis of what I can remember the two having available, excluding electro-rockets:
Shocklance
Pros:
-Can one-shot anything smaller than a juggie
-Can one-shot anything when used from behind
Cons:
-Not a gnat weapon, for hilariously obvious reasons
Recommendation: AVOID USING FOR GNATTY PURPOSES
Blaster
Pros:
-Setting 1 is an excellent anti-deployable
-Setting 2 does good damage and will destroy daishis
-Setting 3 is a mini-sniper, great for when you land to take a breather
Cons:
-Uses up energy, which is a problem to those without massive energy stores
-Bouncy shots mean no blast radius
Recommendation: Avoid as Ion. Decent with blastech, though, because they'll actually have weapon slots left for situations the blaster won't work in.
Chaingun
Pros:
-Insane rate of fire
-Rips apart scouts and engies
-Very difficult to totally dodge as any armor
-Setting 3 can be used to RAPE daishis and anybody without healthkits
Cons:
-Limited ammo, which is consumed VERY fast with setting 3
-No blast radius
-Useless against blastechs
-Very large spread makes long range a bad idea with this
Recommendation: Avoid
Protron
Pros:
-pewpewpewpewpewpewpewpewpew
-Insane rate of fire
-Capacitor weapon means ENDLESS AMMO, and it will recharge even while firing
-Setting 1 will do blast radius damage
-Setting 2 is a great way to wear down shields on equipment
-Setting 3 is a blue blaster that won't sap your energy
Cons:
-Not much damage per hit, means you need good aim to kill with form afar, leading to silly things like scoping while in mid-air
-Random people attempting to use setting 2 for actual combat may make you hate this weapon irrationally
Recommendation: USE USE USE. This is in the Ion loadout I have favorited (though mitzi sometimes replaces it). One of the two best gnat weapons, and the best choice against heavies.
Mitzi
Pros:
-Notoriously versatile in its uses
-Booster is excellent for any capper
Cons:
-Not actually that great of a gnatty weapon
-Mitzi 20 is a risky thing to use while airborne, as it is very easy to accidentally fly directly into after firing (and it will one-shot any ion or blastech that does this)
Recommendation: I don't actually like using this for combat as a gnat, but it's a must-have for any capper. Blastechs can find a spot to use it for combat, too.
Spinfusor
Pros:
-Regular spinfusor is notoriously anti-scout
-Turbo disc is very gnatty
-Rippers can be haphazardly tossed into a building and will sometimes hit something totally out of chance
-Limited ammo is offset by the fact that 99% of scouts will have spinfusors, and heavier people may be carrying multifusors for looting
Cons:
-You need to LAND to loot ammo from a corpse
-Ions and Blastechs cannot use the amazing Power Disk setting
-Useless against blastechs
Recommendation: Ions should avoid this. Blastechs might be able to find some use for it, as they don't need to worry about being mortared when they land to loot ammo.
Energy rifle
Pros:
-Good damage, sizable blast radius
-Lack of spread makes setting 1 a good precision weapon
-Setting 2 will spread damage over a MASSIVE area
Cons:
-Average rate of fire, at best
-It uses ammo
-Setting 2 in particular will make your ammo disappear very fast
Recommendation: I've honestly never liked this weapon, so I can't recommend it. If you've had good luck with it on another armor, though, then you may be able to make some use of it.
ELF
Pros:
-Setting 3 will let you spider-man from mines, equipment, vehicles, and players, and can be fun to cap with
-Next time Solo decides elf 1 should set people on fire with every hit, you can use it too
Cons:
-Neither gnat armor has use for setting 1 without solo's haxxing, since Ions cannot fit it in a loadout and blastechs get the same from their CSL
-Setting 4 is pathetic on a light armor
Recommendation: I have this on my blastech loadout by default, simply because spider-manning as a light is a very effective way to get around. This has zero utility for offensively gnatting (though it can help a blastech get the momentum they need). Avoid as Ion, consider maybe as blastech.
Grenade launcher
Pros:
-kaBOOM
-High damage
-Setting 2 has EMP
-Actually a decently gnatty weapon
Cons:
-Hilariously limited ammo
-Uncommon to find as loot from a corpse
-Useless against blastechs
-Generally better as an indoor weapon and not an outdoor weapon
Recommendation: Avoid
Phaser
Pros:
-Large spread and blast radius makes this difficult to dodge from any range
-Decent rate of fire
-Capacitor weapons are a gnat's best friend
-Very gnatty weapon
Cons:
-Not that great against juggies and heavier, as the combination of damage, spread, and rate of fire makes for a meh-ish rate of damage against stuff that isn't frantically dodging
-Low maximum capacity may make you run out of shots mid-attack and force you to switch to something else while it recharges
Recommendation: Inferior to the protron as a gnatty weapon, only due to its low max capacity. Ions can't find a spot for it due to the fact that they'll run out mid-attack and have no other anti-ground tools. Blastechs, however, should always have this. Great anti-light weapon thanks to its spread.
So, with that in mind, here's what I recommend for the armors in weapons (assuming you want combat and not capping):
Ions: Electrorockets, Protron
Blastech: Phaser, Protron, your choice (pick from ELF, Spinfusor, Blaster, or Mitzi)
For capping, Ions need the Mitzi, while Blastechs should grab the ELF for their last slot (preferred over mitzi, as blastechs need something to get their momentum going, and nothing does that quite like spidermanning from random base equipment). If you want to be a creative Ion, you can forgo the electrorocket, but the instant people realize you don't have your electrorocket, they'll start jetting, making them a lot harder to hit. However, capping Ions may not care about this, and can get away with a loadout of ELF and Mitzi because of this.
Now that the weapons are figured out, the rest of the loadout needs to be thought out. Mines are all personal taste, so I won't cover those, but everything else needs talking about. However, the armors have different options and different needs in their packs and grenades.
Ions need flares, without question. They have no other way of dealing with anybody who grabs a missile launcher, and they definitely need them if they're not using the reactor/jammer. For which reactor to use, the reactor/soulshield isn't too bad for a beginning gnat, but they should switch to the regular reactor once they're better at dodging attacks. If the enemy has lots of anti-air defenses set up, get a reactor/jammer, at least until you or somebody else can deal with those defenses. Reactor/jammer isn't bad for early capping runs, either.
I generally go with a very attack-based loadout on Blastech, with mortar grenades and a satchel charge (ask anybody who's played deathmatch with me lately, and they'll tell you the kind of death I've dealt with these). However, your personal choice of grenades (or flares for those worried about ions and rocket launcher 3 and 4) will work as well. Additional pack choices include the Synomium, which blastechs can activate to recharge their energy (and if it's used in mid-air, it'll actually let you hover there, but watch out for snipers), the Megadisc (its novelty makes it no less fun to use sometimes), or a soul shield (to make you even harder to kill).
Remember, gnats are easily swatted, but they make excellent distractions. You might not be able to kill that BA as a gnat, but you can distact them long enough for your teammate to nail them with a comet blast, a pbw shot, a rearshot shocklance, or any number of other precision weapons. If you try to get all the kills yourself as a gnat, somebody is going to take you down very quickly. Teamwork is the key.
