16 replies to this topic

[Gtbuck]

Ok, aside from inuendo(although I'm sure there's some in the community that could come up with some clever one liners) and situations where the enemy could be 1 alpha shot killed what is the best way to handle a sneak attack?

1. Please respond to this from a PUG perspective, I understand that in team situations there are different strategies.

2. Would like to see what I should be doing in these scenarios. I know there's a lot of variables, but for the sake of this discussion let's assume the enemy is starting with 100% armor.

So far in general when I am alone and sneak up behind an enemy mech I alpha the rear ct. The problem here is that after the alpha shot the enemy turns around and unless a friendly comes to help that alpha shot was mostly wasted. In a 1 on 1 situation if I get the drop on them should I instead alpha an arm hoping to quicly reduce foes damage output early or before the duel begins.

If I aproach a friendly and a foe tangled up in a circle of doom I used to try to hit the enemy in the back armor, but quickly changed so that I now wait for the enemy to swoop around where he's facing me so I can attack the front armor. In this scenerio I'm no longer attacking the weak back armor, but I am adding my damage to my team mates damage on the front.

[ICEFANG13]

To clarify, am I the attacker or the defender?

If I attack, I hit the spot that does most damage. Slowest mechs with least support chance, center torso. Faster mechs who may run back to teammates or offer a fight, leg. Mechs with large weak weapons (A/C-20s, Gauss) I sometimes aim for that spot, but only if they are likely to fight back, and killing them by back armor isn't as likely.

Oh also, if the mech is engaged in combat with a friendly. If high on HP, and slow, I go for back, as I can start to damage the internals before my teammate can get through the front, and can just end it. If I can talk to the allied mech, I will say a leg, so we can both hit it well.

Edited by ICEFANG13, 10 January 2013 - 06:53 PM.

[80Bit]

Gtbuck, I have thought about this issue before. You are right, there are several situations where a rear center torso shot is pretty much wasted. The tactics I use are...

I go for the back if:
I have a huge Alpha (50+) so I know I will do plenty of internals damage.
I am much faster and think I can get more back shots in even after he starts fighting back.

I got for an arm if:
They have more than 50% of their firepower in their arm. If you alpha an arm you are going to be able to blow it off pretty quick and they lose their bite.

I got for a leg if:
I don't have a huge alpha, and they are a light mech. Leg a light and it's game over.

[LoboSG]

If it is an Atlas that doesn't move much. i.e it WILL turn but then stand still to slug with you, I will alpha the head. It is easily the most distinct 'head' to hit versus other mechs.

Had a PUG where there were 2-3 of them versus one of me... I keep hitting the atlas head (which cooperated fully by standing very still), and despite the numerical superiority, I managed to take 1 of them down with me.

[MagicHamsta]

Quote

YOU APPROACH AN ENEMY MECH FROM BEHIND, NOW WHAT...

There be only one answer....

[Kmieciu]

The appropriate one-liner would be "SNEAK ATTACK"!

To achieve maximum effectiveness you have to know your enemy. For example the popular trial CN9-D uses XL engine and stores ammo in his right torso. In only has 12 points of rear armor. 22 points of damage is enough to cause ammo explosion. 36 damage is a sure kill.

[BerryChunks]

alpha their leg, run off and laugh when they cant go help their team

[Gigastrike]

Use him as cover and fire at other enemies. His teammates will fire at you, but he will think they're firing at him and return friendly fire.

(probably wouldn't work 9 time out of 10, but worth trying for that 1 time.)

[Volume]

Depends on the 'Mech.

Check their configuration, and know their hardpoints. For example if you approach a HBK-4G or an Atlas, and they have a Gauss on them, you know it has to be in the RT, so alpha the rear RT - you should clear the armor, get some internal damage, possibly cause a crit, possibly crit the Gauss, possibly destroy the Gauss, thereby cooking their armor and doing ~20 points of internal damage from a destroyed Gauss.

If it's a light or medium, I usually alpha a leg - even if I don't finish it, I get it low and should be able to take away their major advantage over me if I'm in a heavy.

If it's an SRM cat I go for an ear.

Just basic stuff like that. Whatever will reduce the number of guns firing at you, or give you a tactical advantage. Turning rear CT armor to slag won't help you much if it's the only shot at their rear CT that you get.

[AimRobot]

Attack arm or leg if you arent faster than him.

[Gigastrike]

AimRobot, on 11 January 2013 - 08:49 AM, said:

Attack arm or leg if you arent faster than him.

Oh yeah. A leg would be a good idea. It would go down before he reacts, and you might blow up some ammo too.

[Zolthar]

Wait and see if your target is taking fire, if yes, engage him without being in his field of view, the time he understand he's taking some additional fire can give you a good advantage.

If he's not taking fire, alpha strike the back center torso as much as you can and bail out, enjoy your free damage without taking any and proceed as normal.

Don't expect to be able to quickly finish him, because in most case, he will turn facing you exposing some fresh armor and having his damaged back on the opposite side. You'll probably be close to over heating and not able to pursue the engagement efficiently against a cool enemy . Wait to cooldown and come back for a real fight, but with a little advantage over your foe.

Edited by Zolthar, 11 January 2013 - 11:31 AM.

[blood4blood]

Depends what you're in, what they're in, what they're doing. More than once I've snuck up behind a missile boat Atlas, Cat, or Stalker and just used my Raven or Jenner's lasers to the rear CT while they stood still and lobbed missiles out. A few laser hits later, they died because they never heard the sound of guns or got an "Incoming Missile" warning to alert them, and they didn't hear my lasers over the sound of their own missiles (and I assume they didn't notice their own wireframe showing damage). Other times you sneak up and the other mech is already turning or has an ECM friend you didn't know was there and you just have to bug out. It's too situational to say there is any one best course of action.

[_Rorschach_]

LoboSG, on 10 January 2013 - 10:53 PM, said:

If it is an Atlas that doesn't move much. i.e it WILL turn but then stand still to slug with you, I will alpha the head. It is easily the most distinct 'head' to hit versus other mechs.

Had a PUG where there were 2-3 of them versus one of me... I keep hitting the atlas head (which cooperated fully by standing very still), and despite the numerical superiority, I managed to take 1 of them down with me.

You DO know you cannot do damage to an Atlas cockpit from behind it? The hitbox for the cockpit is just the left eye, nothing more. The other 90% of the head are part of the CT.

[Dirus Nigh]

RUHA

When you get behind an unsuspecting mech always plan on getting only one alpha into the rear. Be ready to dash to either side depending on how they will turn. Make sure you target the right spot for that mech.

Center Torso.

This is a good spot to target on lights, mediums and some heavy mechs. The obvious reason is a quick coring. Some heavies equipped for brawling might have thicker rear armor than you would expect. An atlas has 28 points standard. If you think you can core a mech in 3 hits or less it is a good spot to go for.

Side Torso

Side torsos in many ways are the better target for rear shots. Rear side torso armor is usually thinner than the CT, and they have fewer internal structure points. This is another factor in why XL engines can be risky to use.The side torsos are wear most of the larger mechs keep their main weapons. Remember that gauss rifles explode when they get destroyed. Taking out a side torso also take out the arm on that side. Last ammunition probably mounted in that side torso.

Atlases keep their big guns in the right torso while their missiles are in the left. I usually go for the right side. By doing so I take out an AC20, or two AC2/5s, or a gauss rifle. Remember they explode. Then the right arm falls off. That takes out a medium/large laser or PPC. Two if it is an RS. The left has missiles. If I get a shot on a D-DC It will most likely have streaks, best to take them out first.

Huncbacks are obvious. Every variant except the 4SP has the majority of the weapons in the right torso. Hit the right rear you can quickly take out that whole side. Then you just have to face two medium lasers.

Dragons may have the main gun in the right arm but the torso is the key to knocking it out. Hit the rear you might hit it's ammo, the arm falls off any way. Remember the arm has more armor than the rear torso slot. Dragons usually run around with XLs too.

Cataphracts have an AC in the right torso. as with the hunch take it out quickly along with the arm weapons.

K2s, just pick a side torso that is easiest to hit at the time. If they have gauss they will pop really fast. They usually have XL engines in them.

Light mechs are different, just go for the center mass CT kill. You never know when that thing will start running around again. If they do move at least your shots have a chance of straying to the side torsos and that XL engine.

[Ursh]

A lot of mechs keep ammo in the legs as well, and the ECM cicada sometimes keeps their ECM in the leg.

[Elizander]

If it has a Gauss Rifle somewhere I'd probably alpha that part, though getting as much internal damage through the rear CT armor will catch up with him eventually later in the match.

If you plan on a hit and run just damage what part you can blow up later. Sometimes I can stay behind a heavier target and pilot my way to a second CT shot to core him (easy enough to do on Dragons and other fast mechs) or just blow out a side torso with lots of weapon hard points and hope to take out 20%-50% of his weaponry. A 1 Gauss K2 isn't really much of a threat so blowing out a side torso is literally killing half the mech in 1 shot.

If you want to circle strafe him for awhile you can consider leg or arm shots since you can still shoot those off from the front after doing an Alpha from behind. Catapults (non K2), Dragons, Centurions, Stalkers, Atlas RS will usually have good arm weapons so taking one out and running away isn't a bad thing. Legging high ammo mechs might work. It's a 50/50 if they're going for case + side torso armor or all ammo in legs (and less leg armor to boot). Like arms, you can blow these out from the front so you can finish the job when they turn around.

If you're confused and not sure, just shoot through the rear CT and it will come back to bite them later in the match if you can't finish the job right away.

Do consider though that Atlas and other big mechs might have 30 points or more in rear CT armor so if you want to hit some internals, consider your total Alpha damage. If it won't do that much a rear side torso shot might be better if you cannot follow up.