12 replies to this topic

[Falstoffe]

I was checking through old patch updates and didnt see anything, but my cataphracts die ridiculously easy. At some point a change must have been made. I never and i mean never lose a side torso my front torso always gets blown out and fast. The rest of my mech is undamaged. I'm a seasoned player, this is just ridiculous. anyone know what change they made or is it a bug or what?

[Deathlike]

Falstoffe, on 05 January 2014 - 11:29 AM, said:

I was checking through old patch updates and didnt see anything, but my cataphracts die ridiculously easy. At some point a change must have been made. I never and i mean never lose a side torso my front torso always gets blown out and fast. The rest of my mech is undamaged. I'm a seasoned player, this is just ridiculous. anyone know what change they made or is it a bug or what?

The Cataphract hitbox update will occur in Tuesday's patch (Jan 7). Nothing with its hitboxes has changed since its inception.

[Falstoffe]

there may not have been an official change but dont tell me there wasnt a change. I've been playing since it came out and the past 2 1/2 months in my cataphract have been lousy.

[Serevn]

I've never really had an issue with the Cataphract. Do you turn your torso in between firing? I still usually get 400+ damage with it. If you always die by center torso, you should try an XL engine. You say the rest of your mech is undamaged? Sorry to say this, but your doing something wrong then.

[Reitrix]

My experience is your reverse. People always focus out my shoulders. In my last 10 games with my 'Phract, where i die at all, its always a ST loss.

[Clit Beastwood]

Falstoffe, on 05 January 2014 - 11:48 AM, said:

there may not have been an official change but dont tell me there wasnt a change. I've been playing since it came out and the past 2 1/2 months in my cataphract have been lousy.

They have not changed. You might have bumped up in ELO a little bit so you're playing against people that can aim. CTF's are *very* easy to kill if the pilots are not turning to shield their torsos with their chunky lower arms. Try shoot/turn/shoot/turn so your arms absorb more damage that's meant for your chest.

[Levi Porphyrogenitus]

The Cataphract has a slightly protruding CT that makes it relatively easy to hit even from the side, which might be the source of your complaint.

[tayhimself]

Falstoffe, on 05 January 2014 - 11:48 AM, said:

there may not have been an official change but dont tell me there wasnt a change. I've been playing since it came out and the past 2 1/2 months in my cataphract have been lousy.

Did your loadout change? If you switched to multiple AC/5s instead of a lasers and a bigger AC, maybe you are not torso twisting because you want to hold on target with the AC/5s.

[Clit Beastwood]

tayhimself, on 06 January 2014 - 01:38 PM, said:

Did your loadout change? If you switched to multiple AC/5s instead of a lasers and a bigger AC, maybe you are not torso twisting because you want to hold on target with the AC/5s.

That's a pretty good point too

[DarthPeanut]

I have bad runs for sure with my phract getting killed quick, twist or not. I think the problem is the XL and the large ST, at least for me (in a CTF-3D with XL300). Depends on the team really, if people are communicating and supporting each other I do alright. I can keep in the supporting fire role and deal good damage. If they all split, I usually get surrounded and focus fired on.. phracts make good targets. If they can aim your ST's make big targets.

Honestly, I have never been able to reach the kill/ damage numbers in my phract that I can my XL280 Shadowhawk 2D2. I have had 3 and 4 kill matches with 600+ damage in the 2D2. My 3D phract, a good match is 2 kills and 400+ damage.

[Bodzan]

Learn to hold your aim rotating torso, and changing movement angles. Most young pilots die because they are charging multiple targets, then start backpedaling and all that without any thought of even slight maneuvering. CTF always`ve been a very fragile mech, even with STD, simply because It has large CT and ST. At medium and close distances is very easy to hit in a specific location.

Edited by Bodzan, 07 January 2014 - 06:00 AM.

[Kubernetes]

Fierostetz, on 06 January 2014 - 12:52 PM, said:

They have not changed. You might have bumped up in ELO a little bit so you're playing against people that can aim.

This.

I've seen the exact same thing as the OP (more CT damage, less ST). My theory is that in more competitive games you see a lot more Phracts running standard engines, so people aim for the CT more. It used to surprise me when a Phract survived a blown out shoulder, but I see it all the time now.

[Clit Beastwood]

Many users are presently at 500 or so damage per kill - this indicates that they can't hit the same place twice. Move up the foodchain and you'll find *many* players that are averaging 230 dmg/kill (or better) meaning that their shots are hitting the same place almost every time. You'll notice when playing on teamspeak (like at comstar, for example) - newer players will say "I'm shooting at the atlas" - a good shot will say "I'm removing the ECM from that atlas" and place every single shot into a small patch of the side torso until the torso is gone.

Note - to calculate your damage per kill, divide your total kills in a mech by the total damage accrued by that mech - the resulting number is the average of how much damage you have to put into an enemy to kill it.