The Role of a Speeder

I don't know I feel like i'm doing something wrong... hopefully you guys can refresh my mind on the role of a speeder. When a match starts: I run ahead of my team(hold on let me explain). In the beginning I just try my best to locate the enemy team so my team can get some early shots in. Sometimes this gets me into trouble but for the most part I know when i need to get outta there. After that i look out for any lone ships preferably a fixer or maybe a low mk ship hanging out in the back... I engage if i feel i can take them out and leave without dying. But i dont get much damage done until late game when I have more health compared to the rest and can afford to be aggressive without being shut down by 5 unfriends. I see other speeders stay with the team mostly playing support but i don't like that personally if i did i would have kept playing shooter.

So can you guys give me like a check list or guide of things a speeder should do in the beginning, middle, and endgame of a battle

My Setup:

I would use something besides mines but i don't have a lot to work with and at my infamy they prove useful.


NOTE: looking through the forums i did see some tips for players but none went in depth with the role of the ships usually something like stay with ur team, dont rush which is why i made this thread.

 

That works sometimes, but when you get into higher infamy ranks a few shots from unfriendly will sink you before you can boogie out of there. My strategy is to stick with my team to let the battle develop. If I see a friendly getting flanked I rush over and help or if an unfriendly has low hp and is trying to flee I'll speed over to destroy them. There are many ways to play speeder, but the whole scouting idea to me is pointless. I will try to draw fire if my team has a line of sight so they can tag em while they are firing at me. If we have a fixer I stay close to assist them with my tesla against unfriendly speeders

 

A lot of the time im drawing fire my team doesnt give me enough supporting fire so the enemy just flank me without much punishment... and yes speeders are great for securing kills. But i thought that the speeder's mobility was meant to allow it to scout... also to draw the unfriend's attention but like you said at higher infamy speeders are easily killed by experienced players...

 

Hi, I am a fellow speeder of similar level. In terms of strategy I usually don't scout ahead at the start of match I usually stay behind my team and wait for other players to initiate first. However my build is more of an assassin build, your build is more balanced (apart from the mine)



For gear I would probably replace the mine with either a flare gun or a grenade. This would mean you can deal more consistent damage and it will help your blast cannon deal more damage with the burn multiplier. Apart from that your set up is okay.

I would also recommend you practice leading your shots especially with blast cannon as it has a slower projectile speed.

 

I like to kill fixers. Also, when your infamy goes much higher, you bear more responsibility... sometimes you may need to carry your team, as a speeder!!!

 

Thank you i do try to lead my shots its a little hard leading over a wave but i get lucky every now and then I'll take ur advice and use grenade launcher instead of mines... they do a lot of damage but its a struggle to get the unfriends to run into them.

 

Me too lol and i can't wait until that happens, it may be frustrating at times but thats the type of gameplay that led me to speeder

 

Sticking with my team

 

Hmm that Pleocoma guy just looks delectable

 

was actually one of the two people on the enemy team who survived... they won so i guess he got the last laugh

 

You should scout but not in the open near the enemy, use alley and don't use overboost until spoted and try to retreat.if u don't get shot ,keep perking with your long range weapon until you team gets close,if shot go hide Only engage after they start shooting your heavier teammate. In one on one, Try to focus on other speeder by lure them to your team if spotted by him . engage fixer and enforcer head on and sneakup on shooter so you can see if they pull out a cannon .

 

Just get in (in a safe way) and drop some mines out then dip. Use the blast cannon to chip damage away from peek shots or to chase down kills. When scouting make sure you do so at about a 90 degree angle from the enemy and make sure you have somewhere to get behind right after you think you'll spot them. Run distraction routes if your team has a fixer and your team is low health. Use stuns on those guys who are full health and your team isnt targeting so that you waste some of their time. A lot of the strategy is situational and map based, so you'll eventually get the feel! You're still only level 24 after all
Trying out flare gun especially if you can get your hands on some burn damage perks might not be a bad idea as well.

 

I don't have OB just tesla bolt and nitro, i use mines and blast... no long range weapons i do try to spot without getting hurt... i carry a bandage so i can repair damage if necessary and i engage fixers and speeders... i dont engage enforcers(not in 1v1 anyway) i usually ask my team to help me take them out

 

Level doesn't mean much its not like you get exp from battles, someone recommended grenade launcher but i don't think thats working for me so i might try the flare gun(after upgrading it).

 

I meant in that you're still fairly new to the game, at level 24 you probably have under 3k battles no?

 

You can go with the cannons combo imo. Use the sniper to support the team when opposite team is far away during the initial stages and the blast cannon for high damage in close quarters. As a speeder it will be easy for you to avoid mortars and torps. During the match always make sure you know where the team is and what they are doing. Don't charge alone or stay in one place too long. Keep on the move and keep up the support with the cannons.

For the loadout its okay to use a grenade launcher and cannon combo. I have seen a lot of speeders with grenades. For getting the target try to approach from the sides or behind the unfriend. For me it feels the same with a torp and grenade launcher. You have to try and attack from behind (pay attention to turret position). And leading your shots will come with practice. The more you try the easier it becomes. Also I see that you have a tesla bolt in the loadout. I'm not saying its a bad choice but people tend to break stuns as soon as you place them on someone. So if you are not having any issues like that then go with this setup. I'm using double overboost. It gives a consistent speed and mobility. To each his own.

You say a lot of speeders are always playing support for their team. Well its a good thing to do as your low hit points as compared to your team make you the easy target unfriends are looking for. So as soon as you get too far from your team you are the target. Stay close to your team doesn't necessarily mean you have to stay in a group. Just be close enough to help out whenever possible or get out of fire and let them cover for you. If you like playing offensive then imo the best time to start is with mk5 speeder. Mk4 is just not that powerful. You get 3 yellow slots for mk5 so you can experiment with different setups. Until then it is like any other boat. You have to develop team work skills before you start going solo. That may be why we get to start with mk1. In higher infamy battles team work and communication are the key to winning. The better the team work the better are your chances of winning. This is a team play game right?

Scouting for you team is good. It gives tactical advantage and reveals the unfriend position early to avoid getting flanked. You want to scout, you can. Make sure you are fast enough and your team is close enough to step in to support. If you have almost full health by midway through the battle, you are doing fine.

For the final moments if your team has a clear advantage, check where your team players are the weakest. Your top priority is to help out the team mates that can be taken down in 1v1 battle. Also if you see couple of unfriends ganging up on a fellow team mate point it out to your team and charge in to help. Make sure you get the attention but also make sure you know how to get out. The most difficult part for a player is to know when to get out. Sometimes you have to run and sometimes you have to fight. You figure that out and you are all good.

If your team has a fixer and the unfriends don't, stick with the team. Unfriends will have a clear advantage with the firepower. Try to make your team focus on the weakest or the closest players first and take at least one ship out asap to even the damage output. Do not attack upfront. Keep circling just withing their range and try to stay alive. Your objective is to force one or two of unfriends to follow you. Once they are singled out call out the targets and take them out with your team. Strategies change when you climb higher in infamy, you battle more experience players. So try and learn from watching some ace or nightmare league battles. It will give you some idea what to do on different maps.

If your team has two or more speeders, support them but make sure they don't go too far. Take the lead if you have to. If they call out an attack support every way you can and make sure they don't get themselves killed which includes you as well. If you feel your team mate is taking too much damage, run a distraction and allow him to escape and follow suit. If they don't follow, well losing one ship is better than losing two. Sometimes its better to cut your losses and try to help the rest of the team.

I'm attaching a screenshot of my loadout. Right now I'm using a torp (practice runs) but usually i go with explosive cannon in its place.

 

Yes i am below 3k

 

hi @Rinse & Repeat

in my opinion, speeders have 3 roles in general: scout, assault and support...

scout speeders - get ahead of everybody at the start and quickly find the enemy then a) distract them long enough to give ur team a good opening, b) report back to your group and provide whatever support they need (stunning, mine field). max turbo, overboost and/or nitro is needed here with at least 1 long range weapon (35 distance or more). Scouts should be able to provide support from afar as well as draw attention from the enemy so as to divide their focus. it's best to separate from the group and pick an angle of attack that will divide the enemies' attention. (Trigun fills this role perfectly) This is my preferred role when i play speeder (since i suck at close quarter combat). my most reliable setup has sniper/missiles for weapons, T.bolt, OB and nitro for yellow items, then bandage, bigshield and turbo for my blue items.

assault speeders - these are the badass speeders who can directly engage 2-3 boats and come out alive. in the company of capable shooters, assault speeders primary role is to seek out the low HP players and finish them off quickly OR engage the top yellow boats on the other side. in the absence of good shooters/defenders, assault speeders should be able to carry the team and be the primary damage dealers and finishers. (Orpheus and Bdziryan (in double grenade mode) are top of mind in this category)

Support speeders - not strong enough for direct engagements, not fast enough for scouting purposes. best to stay with the group and focus fire on whoever is being marked, keep the fast boats from getting too close to your damage dealers (Twistedmetal is one of the best in supporting his team, he uses a BC and a mine)

with the setup you showed, its more for a support role specially with the mines. you can do a little scouting at the start but if you see a fast speeder, get back to your team ASAP or else you'll get chased down pretty fast. i think you can most effective laying mines around your team's formation and if the opportunity presents itself, lay mine in the middle of the unfriends' formation.

Hope this helps... others may have a different opinion on this matter but this is my take...

Cheers!

 

_devill

I thought about sniper but the obvious problem is the crew training interferes with my blast cannon so what would you suggest. Also unfortunately I have no OB I think I had a rare one but scrapped it for parts when I was a noob(a BIGGER noob) I tried grenade launcher i didn't really like it its hard to lead my opponents with... so instead im going to use my flare gun to work with my blast cannon, I am glad that you too feel scouting is advantageous so I will do my best without dying. A little sad that i'll have to wait til mk5 to start really having fun but if thats when I should wait... I agree that communication is key, many people don't use it but communication and organization can win battles so I try my best to direct my team but many times they do not listen... that shooter zooming into the enemy team im desperately pressing "negative, negative, together!" To no avail and I tag targets mostly fixers, ships with low health or enemy ships coming towards us solo. It is fun to dodge mortars and it makes the unfriends livid and likely to make a misplay. My team takes the stun off sometimes so I usually hit ships they aren't targeting and if one of my buddies are being taken out I try to stun the unfriends to give them a chance to escape. Oh and nice loadout

 

I did that with a mk5 unfriend defender, and shot my grenade.
I should have gotten a double crit!