16 replies to this topic

[Nik Kerensky]

So I've seen a lot of successful teams just focus fire on each enemy mech one by one till they win. Is there any way to beat this tactic apart from trying the same thing yourself?

To paraphrase, is this the one tactic that defeats all others?

[Glory in the Highest]

No. This isn't really a tactic so much as it is a fundamental. This particular thing is done in conjunction WITH tactics for maximum efficacy.

[Wizard Steve]

I've been having a lot of success with walking into their base unopposed and just standing there lately.

[Xenophontis]

In the current game mode, yes. Just like in any MOBA, FPS, or RTS engagement focus fire wins the fight. It always has been and always will be the best option in a head on battle. It's just common sense. Focus fire isn't really a tactic though, it's just something you should always do in any strategy. It's pretty basic.

To beat a tactic centered around crushing in a head on fights, you have to out maneuver them (just like a back door strategy in LoL or fake plant runs in CS).

Edited by Xenophontis, 09 December 2012 - 01:17 PM.

[Hesketh Vernon Hesketh Prichard]

Glory, on 09 December 2012 - 01:14 PM, said:

No. This isn't really a tactic so much as it is a fundamental. This particular thing is done in conjunction WITH tactics for maximum efficacy.

This, fact is the more damage you can lay down faster the better. YOu knock one of there mechs out thats A LOT less coming your way. This is why i laugh at awesomes & LRM boats these days, There cake walks with this idea in mind. ALways works. This is a fundimental problem why things dont 'balance' because this is pretty much the staple of how it works. Why my atlas often does 600+ damage even if i die quick on a pug team

[Wolfways]

Tiny map.
No objectives.
Two teams meet in the center of the map and fight = focus fire wins. So does boredom.

[JimTheRat]

Focus fire is a hard mechanic to avoid.

Essentially it's dominoes. The situation is, with 8 players firing on 8 players, it will take, say, eight minutes for each of the target 8 players to go down. (Not the case in MWO, but bear with me.) With 8 players firing on one player, it'll take one minute. So, by the time the 8 on 8 have gotten 1/8th through each of their enemy's armour, the other guys have killed one of the mechs hsooting at them.

There is one way to deal with this relatively effectively and that's to pull the guy who's getting shot at back out of the line of fire. But this becomes a kind of war of focus fire efficiency -- who can pull their guy getting shot at out of the line of fire and force the other team to focus fire somewhere else, etc.

There's also a fairly significant element of keeping formation -- to focus fire effectively, you have to have all your guys in the right area pointed at the target. If one team splits up, gains the enemy formation's attention, and wades in with brawlers to hit the enemy in the back, that might be able to equalize things.

Might.

I have a feeling that dedicated buddy pairs, or groups of four, who focus fire, rather than a whole team who focus fire, could be fairly effective too.There are a lot of missed opportunities to get in good hits that I see full on groups hitting each other missing.

Also? With full on 8v8 focus fire, a team bunched up with all its mechs in one spot to provide maximum focus fire inevitably leave their base undefended and open to getting capped.

[Vlad Ward]

How to beat focus fire?

In a nutshell, ensure that it's impossible for the entire enemy team to fire on you at the same time.

This means smart, effective utilization of cover and speed.

Ideally, you want more of your own team's guns pointing at one person than they are capable of pointing back at you at any given time.

[Dr B00t]

yep...mainly positioning tactics

Edited by Dr B00t, 09 December 2012 - 01:43 PM.

[James Warren]

Yeah, pull back if your armour is toast. Avoid getting caught out in the open.

Also if you see a teammate taking a beating and you've got stacks of armor, do him/her a favour and get in front.

Sometimes I think its better to cripple one enemy and then move on to another, rather than totally destroying one at a time. It really depends on what weapons they have in which sections. For example, if you know an enemy mech has the majority of its weapons in an arm, destroy that arm, then you can focus on something else without taking too much of a risk. Or if there is a one-legged mech with short range weapons a considerable distance away, its usually safe to turn your attention towards a more immediate threat.

[Rocket2Uranus]

smart PLAYERS will focus fire.
smart PLAYERS will take some shots for a overheated teammate.

when i play with friends/family on Skype. we call out mech names to focus.
when someone gets overheated and is taking fire, i'll move up and take some shots for them.

that 4-5 shots you take for your teammate can keep him in game and increase ur teams overall damage output and lead to a win.

on great strategy is to PUSH forward. when u see ur teammates taking fire at another part of the map, this should be ur signal to flank ur enemies. too many players don't look around and see what is going on in other parts of the map. putting pressure from all sides will prevent focus fire and scattering.

when most players see tons of enemies flooding into their area in greater numbers. their first reaction is to either run, or they will change their fire unto something else.

you will start to notice how opponents will respond to different situations. and you will start knowing what the best way to respond is gradually.

OH best tip... lol always move at an angle. never walk "straight" toward ur opponent.

before ECM was introduce, my favorite tactic was to flank the missile boats that was bombarding my teammates.

Edited by Rocket2Uranus, 09 December 2012 - 01:58 PM.

[Asmosis]

Nik Kerensky, on 09 December 2012 - 01:13 PM, said:

So I've seen a lot of successful teams just focus fire on each enemy mech one by one till they win. Is there any way to beat this tactic apart from trying the same thing yourself?

To paraphrase, is this the one tactic that defeats all others?

Sure, kill them in one headshot that way you dont need to focus fire.

Other than that, dont present yourselves one at a time to get focused on in the first place. use decoy tactics e.g. atlas pokes his head up long enough to draw attention, then retreats while being shot at so that you can flank and pick them off. Whatever time it takes them to choose a new primary is free shots for you.

If they bunch up one one square, flank them and create a kill box. That way if they try to primary someone, that guy takes cover and it takes a while to primary someone else.

Plenty of other stuff you can do, its all about out manuvering them before you get blasted.

Edited by Asmosis, 09 December 2012 - 03:52 PM.

[Broceratops]

Rocket2Uranus, on 09 December 2012 - 01:52 PM, said:

stuff

i enjoy your sig

[Funkin Disher]

The best counter to focus fire is to seperate the enemy team so they cannot focus fire you or focus fire better than them so there are less people focus firing you.

The former is more difficult and risky than the latter, because it means your team is split too and needs good communication to pull off.

[Kobold]

If you are outnumbered, you have to fight in places where it is harder to bring lots of firepower to bear at once. Narrow streets, caves, etc.

Pretend you're a Spartan.

[Smeghead87]

There is pretty much no substitute for removing an enemies weapons from the game. You could do 100 damage to each enemy mech, and chances are, most would still be able to fire back in some capacity, however doing 800 damage to one mech pretty much ensures his weapons are no longer functional and retaliating on your own team.

[FrostPaw]

Actually, the current implementation of ECM is useful at spreading confusion and uncertainty on what actually is the focus fire target. Many people used the target letter designation, i.e. A = Alpha, B = Bravo, C = Charlie etc to call a focus target, without the ability to lock on and see the target designation in the lock box, it becomes harder to distinguish who is who unless they are the only target.

It can still be done, but is less obvious depending on what you can see.