Shocktrain, One Piece At A Time

Fellow Pilots,

Components are hard to come by, and many players will acquire premium items one at a time.  We've been thinking about how to bring the new toys to battle without waiting for the second or third set of 10,000 "shards" (Pix's term) to be gathered.  While "mixed weapon" configurations are aesthetically offensive and heretical to many players, we've been singing the praises of versatility and creativity for a long time.  So go beyond range and think about the other salient characteristics of your weapons. You'll be glad you did!

Some things to consider:

• Reloading mechanics
• Targeting/Accuracy
• Lock time
• Range - both for contact and for damage
• Shield behavior
• Damage radius 

Shocktrain 

The weapon everyone loves to hate has a 500 meter range, does all its damage on first contact, penetrates energy shields, and then needs some time to recharge.  Therefore, we think it partners well with Pins and Talumbas.  They can splash around corners, provide continuous reloading, and should be used from cover where possible.  The Russian Death Button Griffin makes a perfect gunboat for your first shocker, as would a Kumiho or Rogatka.

Alternative: if I was running Shocktrain on a Gareth, I might pair it with a Piñata, picking at people from distance until I was close enough to drop the big hit!

Scourge 

In contrast to Shocktrain, the newly buffed Scourge needs some time to work.  It has a 600m range, scales up in damage as you get closer, and penetrates energy shields.  We like Punishers as a complement to Scourge, as they have similar range (500m) and do more damage up close.  They wreck physical shields too.  Scourge is pretty common on Lancelot these days, but anywhere you can rock Punishers works for us (go ahead, Rhino pilots!).  In the U's lab, we used our old friend the Griffin.  Everybody has at least one, and it's incredibly versatile.  We also put Shocktrain and Scourge on a Doc with Talumbas and Punisher T.





Alternative: Dr. Zoso is shocking and scourging from a Hover with Arbalest.  He's hitting from long range (1100m), and then using the medium weapons on enemies who approach.  Again, weapon behavior matters - Shocktrain and Scourge don't fire without a target lock, so you won't inadvertently waste ammo.  Fire away.

Here's an example video featuring the Griffin and Doc with single component items.  Note: you can't win consistently with an all-support hangar.  You need some muscular brawlers in your group, or you will get overrun.

Tempest

At press time, pilots are earning Tempest components in the Battle Rewards chests, so we focused on it too.  You are undoubtedly familiar with the Molot/Tempest Lancelot, so we tried Tempest on a Trebuchet/Gekko Natasha and a Thunder Carnage.  Both can be deadly.  With Trebuchet, Tempest allows you to hurt opponents who think you are spent after firing.  With Thunder, you are continuously reloading and more deadly as you get close.  We also think that Trident and Tempest pair well.





Here's an example video of game play with these strange configurations, and it features a crazy come-from-behind win by the blue team:

Moral of the story: even if your hangar is assembled piecemeal and for free, like the Cadillac in the old Johnny Cash song "One Piece at a Time," you can make it work with some patience and ingenuity.  Please comment with any ideas you have, and we will be happy to steal share them!

Your humble servant,
Dr. Yat

Faculty Notes

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