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Hunter's Manual Vol. 1: Speeder

Discussion in 'Strategy Discussion' started by TheAntiSnipe, 18 Jan 2019.

  1. TheAntiSnipe

    TheAntiSnipe Moon's haunted

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    This is the first installment of my Hunter's Manual series that deals with fighting speeders, a super dangerous predatory class in Battle Bay.
    For other installments, go to the home page for the Hunter's Manual.


    Speeder is the fastest ship in the game. Many say that the finest pilots main speeder, though that's not entirely true. Speeder and enforcer are the two classes in the game requiring the fastest reaction times, however that's not all that makes a top-tier pilot. But I digress.

    Speeders, at least in Ranked, are piloted with people who have a lot of innate skill. One of those skills is "speeder sense", an instinct that comes with experience. This instinct allows speeders to "perceive" an incoming attack. It's actually a finetuned sense of enemy turret orientation. This gives good speeders the "elusive" part of their definition. Another skill that belongs to speeders more than any other class is making hyper accurate decisions in the clutch. Good speeders almost never choke, so you can definitely NOT count on Lady Luck when a speeder comes for you.
    Speeders are assassins. They specialize in taking key combat assets, or weak combat assets, out of the equation. They rarely initiate fights, they come over to end them, however.

    From these attributes, which define the strength of speeders, we can derive their weaknesses. The reason I followed this method when studying speeders as a target is that speeders, due to the repeated balancing dealt out to them on a regular basis, are always ready to purge any apparent weakness and thus, any weaknesses I talk about in this guide will be purged by the time you try to apply them in combat ;)

    So what are the weaknesses of the speeders?

    1. Since they go after weak targets and have speeder sense attuned to their particular target at any moment in time when they hunt, the best way to take down a speeder is to find a key combat asset/weak combat asset and use them as bait.

    2. To take down a speeder, you need to limit their advantages somehow. They are fast. Nullify that speed with mines or control weapons. They're agile, limit their possible movement vectors by limiting their exits. They take advantage of chaos. Command your team.

    I will proceed to go into specifics as to how to effectively hunt speeders. For this, we shall classify speeders into categories. There are three main classes of speeder, and one Rogue class that may be a hybrid of those three classes.

    Rangers
    The ranger speeder specializes in hunting their target at range. They use the elusive attribute of the speeder to its fullest. They also have the kind of long range aim that would make Hawkeye see stars ;) Rangers, above everything else, can be identified as the only class of speeder that consistently hits targets at range. They're also a class that sometimes initiates fights. But almost always, they love to kite enemies. Do NOT try to hit a Ranger at range unless you have a ranger-killer weapon like a sniper cannon. You'll miss, they'll get what they wanted: your attention and your firepower, albeit wasted.

    Assassins

    Assassins are takedown specialists. They have a tendency to hide in the shadows and only show up for kills. They will have heavy burst, they will have their entry/exit route planned out beforehand, and they will try to manipulate you into a trap just like every other speeder. Assassins choose their fights well, and a well-informed assassin with the entire enemy team in vision is basically the Pale Horseman in 99% of all cases.

    Duellists

    Duellists are large-and-loud assassins. Sure, they try to go for weak targets, but they are not the kind that picks on REALLY weak targets(in terms of HP), rather going for positional weak targets. Stragglers at full HP? No problem! Duellists are mostly considered pretty harmless because they spend a LONG time in the engagement, making them easy prey. But trust me when I say that a single duellist can tie down 80% of the enemy team if placed smartly, And come out alive.

    Rogues

    Rogues are the role that the most dangerous speeders play. Remember, the more rough-and-ready your opponent looks, the more dangerous they are in combat. Rogues know that, to identify as a speeder, they dont require a single style they have to stick to. Rogues CAN and WILL apply multiple schools of thought when fighting, which is what makes them more erratic and more dangerous than most styles in Battle Bay. When you see a Ranger be comfortable in a duel, you know they're totally capable of handling close engagements. Every Rogue is different on the surface, but predictable at their core. More on that later.

    (See next message)
     
  2. TheAntiSnipe

    TheAntiSnipe Moon's haunted

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    Now that we've talked about these classes, lets proceed to IDENTIFICATION.

    Rangers

    Rangers are easy to identify with their consistent long range aim and tactics.

    Assassins
    Assassins can be identified by the tendency to be in the shadows right until the moment of the kill, however that does not mean that they should be identified as such, because thats literally the WORST way to identify an assassin. You WILL lose a teammate if you try that method. No, the best way to identify an assassin is by their continued absence. Keep note of points on the map where your vision does not exist. Also, keep a note on obstacle-ridden side lanes. For example, the pillar sidelane on Destruct 9, or both sidelanes on Fighthouse.

    Duellists

    Duellists can be identified by their characteristic ability to end up on your rear flank. Fortunately, this happens to be a really good way to ID one in the start of the game, however, in the midgame, please treat them the same as youd treat an assassin.

    Rogues

    Rogues, as I said before, may LOOK unpredictable on the surface, but are actually not that hard to find and counter. If a speeder shows the characteristics of two or THREE of the above classes, he's a Rogue with the properties of said classes, and you can make up your mind on which class of antispeeder trap you'll be going for. TRAPSETTER rogues can be identified in the same way as assassins, and Ranger Trapsetters simply lack the hard burst needed to be a threatening subclass(though I intend to try making a build for that)

    Once identified, heres a list of COUNTERS:-

    Bait(Effective against assassins and rogues):

    Identify the weak link on your team and use them as the core of a trap. Approximate the people who have a line of vision on you, approximate the assassins position and entry/exit path from your map knowledge. For example, if youre on D9 hiding behind the pillar while your bait is out in the open facing a hole in the wall, its best to hide yourself on the side where the enemy spawn is, because the assassin will most likely try to enter from their spawn to which YOU have the vision for. The hole in their plans is often enough to make an assassin retreat.

    Rangetrap (Effective against rangers):

    The rangetrap involves the use of a teammate to pull off an illusion that makes the ranger go for said teammate(for example, a tempting target at range will attract Rangers like nothing else). In the meantime, you can come in from the ranger's blindspot. For example, flanking from behind the iceberg in subzero.

    The faked weak-at-close-range(Effective against duellists)
    This tactic makes a duellist think that you are weak at close range, I personally call it a honeytrap. The duellist will see a person who uses an LRM or a sniper cannon or a railgun who is away from his team, a great target to go for. However, what he'll have no idea about is the sheer burst guns hiding behind the surface. The illusion must be perfect, however.

    (See next message)
     
  3. TheAntiSnipe

    TheAntiSnipe Moon's haunted

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    Next, we'll take a look at the most common speeder builds and how they can be countered.

    "The Flash"- Binitro OB/Binitro TS/Trinitro

    This build is an incredibly agile build used by duellists and assassins. It is commonly not used by rangers due to its inability to perform flow moves that are easy with OB, as well as the fact that the just-right position for firing at range just cannot be acquired with the coarse control of the nitrocentric build. However, don't let its slow normal speed fool you; These speeders are super, SUPER dangerous, and at the endgame, they are capable of constantly chaining nitros. The best counter to this type of speeder is GCD manipulation.

    "Berserker"- TS nitro OB/TS Binitro

    Berserkers are pretty much a super common build run by almost every speeder type. The berserker build is pretty well-rounded and uses all available slots on the speeder. Strength in numbers, people. That's how you beat one of those.

    "Controller"- TS TB nitro/TB nitro OB

    Controllers are invincible in a 1v1, I kid you not. They are almost impossible to take down even in a 1v2 if they use TS TB nitro. They are pretty damn unbalanced, but I'm not here to talk balance. We need a long paragraph on this one.

    There is an entire formation for this sort of target, the "1v3 co-op attack". Three people. A "bait", a juicy target for the controller. A "brawler" ready to ambush. A "chaser" ready to attack, usually a yellow boat. Only the bait needs to be in vision range, and the brawler and the chaser need to be fleeted and in on the whole deal.

    Sequence:
    ***
    Brawler forces controller to use stun after controller tries to engage bait.
    Bait tries to run, chaser is waiting around that corner.
    Controller now has stun on CD and is forced to use TS.
    Brawler breaks shield and inflicts debuff/carro slow.
    Chaser engages controller.
    ***
    Chaser having a TB will be ideal here, you HAVE to tie the target down. Extremely difficult, but not impossible.


    "Torpslinger/Mortar speeder"- FB nitro OB/FL nitro OB/FL-FB Binitro

    Super annoying targets to deal with, the best way to engage them is to be aware of your surroundings while closing in on them. Be careful, because trapsetters are common amongst these speeders, and so are carro users. Be careful if you use TSes, torp users have a tendency to hide their torps behind the TS veil.

    "Disabler"- FB TB Nitro
    This subclass specializes in disabling a single target, literally nailing them to the floor. Try not to 1v1 this type. Use the baiting technique for best effects.


    Well, that's it for the counterspeeder's manual, Anti out!
     
  4. Mad_Bulls_007

    Mad_Bulls_007 Well-Known Member

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  5. Nikkie!

    Nikkie! Well-Known Member

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    22CD79EF-B87F-423F-80A8-80B716A14F10.gif
    Sooo....
    I’m curious how long it took you to write this xD
    Side note: It are very much more than 10 000 characters... (Translate has a limit of 5 000 characters :D)

    A very interesting tekst... Although I’m not sure or I will remember anything else of this than Translate saying at the point you wrote: “I kid you not” -> “I don’t love you” xD

    Good job spending your time to help others:)
     
  6. TheAntiSnipe

    TheAntiSnipe Moon's haunted

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    Still formatting it piece by piece xD
    And dreading the fact that I have to do it about 6 more times :D
     
  7. Nikkie!

    Nikkie! Well-Known Member

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    Oh, want me to delete that message so you can claim 6 messages?

    And good luck writing them :eek:
     
  8. Su-57

    Su-57 Well-Known Member

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  9. Su-57

    Su-57 Well-Known Member

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    My friend ' NeverEver ' is a speeder . he used to do Penta kills on regular bases .
     
  10. TheAntiSnipe

    TheAntiSnipe Moon's haunted

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    Nah, this is a speeder-only thread. I'll add them separately.
     
  11. Nikkie!

    Nikkie! Well-Known Member

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    Okayyy

    Speeder only...
    Am I welcome too? :p
     
  12. TheAntiSnipe

    TheAntiSnipe Moon's haunted

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    Lol ofc. What I meant was that this thread was purely for anti-speeder tactics, and that I'd publish the other ships(shooter, defender...) In dedicated threads.
     
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  13. ViscountSniffit

    ViscountSniffit Well-Known Member

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    LOL! :D

    At this stage I think it’s just paranoia: that feeling that someone, maybe someone behind you, is currently aiming their Sniper — time to Nitro!

    That feeling is never wrong! There is always someone behind you aiming a Sniper, ALWAYS! :eek:
     
  14. TheAntiSnipe

    TheAntiSnipe Moon's haunted

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    So true lol.
    I always say, "Trust your fear, there's a good reason for it. Just don't let it guide your actions."
     
  15. JoshW

    JoshW Well-Known Member

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    I've been waiting for this one!! Amazing as usual +1

    My rogue sytle is as follows:
    Early game ---> Ranger
    Mid game ---> Duelist
    End game ---> Assassin
    This is situational of course and I'll switch back if necessary.
     
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  16. Redneck Messiah

    Redneck Messiah Well-Known Member

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    Thanks for giving away my secrets, you colossal douchelord. ;)

    Any ill will aside, though... Nice guide! I would say which loadouts and subclasses I tend to run, but... I don't want to be COMPLETELY vulnerable.

    at least I'll always have speeder sense

    If I may... do enforcer next. They're probably the hardest solo boat to kill after speeders.
     
  17. Skirra08

    Skirra08 Well-Known Member

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    I'm a speeder main TB/Nitro/Nitro and while I think some of this is helpful I think much of it requires a levle of cooperation that I rarely see. My advice would be somewhat different and focused on what you can do as a single ship.

    First, if the speeder is running flare + cannon (blast or ex), which seems to be most popular current setup, ignore them on their initial run flare by itself isn't that painful they're just trying to set you on fire to activate perks on their cannon. So it's the second run you have to worry about. For this you need to punch them in the nose to make sure they know it's not worth it. Your own blast or ex cannon will do this as will railgun if you can pick them up at the start of their second run. Mines are also good to prevent those runs if you can clog up the obvious attack lanes. Return to ignoring them during flare attack runs. This type of speeder and most others will dance around at the edge of your range trying to draw your fire, don't fall for it. Stick to the plan and wait for them to come to you. If it's a ranged speeder this may not work but those are pretty rare in my experience.

    Second, you should almost never chase a speeder. I know I will hear from some of you but what if... Don't do it. If you chase me I will kill you and you probably won't get any damage on me unless I've determined it's worth the risk and by that point I've already decided how you're gonna die.

    Third is a branch of don't chase. Many speeders like to get behind the action particularly at the start of a battle. If they do orotry to dance around in front of you then you have 30-45 seconds to kill them. If you and your teammates don't get the job done in that window do not continue to engage. Go back to the tactics in the first step.

    And remember to stay together if you get separated your either an easy target to be hunted and killed or stunned and taken out of the battle until your team is in a hole.

    Finally if it gets to 1v1. Turn, change directions, be as unpredictable as you can. Double down on not chasing. If you follow in a straight line it basically hands the speeder free shots cause they can still outpace you while avoiding straight lines. These don't have to be big turns just little ones, preferably designed to take advantage of waves (for speed) or obstacles (for cover). And obviously if you're 2v1 on a speeder stay together, even if you're sure your teammate is a moron stay together you can use the as bait or maybe they'll get in a lucky shot.

    P.S. I didn't give away my current weapon set but I'm regularly posting bigger damage numbers than shooters on my team and I attributes it to 2 things one is the weapons I use obviously but the second is that I see so many shooters and defenders give chase that I can control the action from the start. In instances where they don't chase I focus on the target my teammates are engaging instead. This means that I'm not the primary target during my attack run. I haven't figured out an effective strategy against this other than the old standby of stay together.
     
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  18. Skirra08

    Skirra08 Well-Known Member

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    Oh and for the record I'd classify myself as an extremely agressive assassin. Almost to the point of being rogue but I don't believe in dueling, a speeder imho never sticks around for a fair fight. I used to be more ranged but I prefer to get up close more now.
     
    Last edited: 23 Jan 2019
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  19. R4Z0R

    R4Z0R Well-Known Member

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    why do u wanna know?
    I'll just let you all continue thinking you can actually touch me.
    its simple. you never will.
    U2cbxvP.gif
    :p
     

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