Double Bubble - A Second Look

I have read many threads on Double Bubble, which lead me to ask two questions

1. Why is Double Bubble viewed as potentially OP?
2. If there were no other buffs or nerfs, how could users adapt to counter their use?

Before I start, I will say that I am a Mk6 enforcer. I am used enforcer since it became available to me at Mk5 (pre buff). I am in Ace 1, with infamy about 3200. I have tried Double Bubble, but did not find it suited my play style, so instead I run overboost, TS and TB as my yellow items. Some of the observations I mention are only known through reading other posts on the forum or by watching YouTube videos of high level enforcer players. Others may disagree with the conclusions I’ve reached (and that’s ok, we’re all entitled to opinions), but here goes.

1 Why is Double Bubble viewed as potentially OP?
As I have said above, I tried running double TS in Ace 1, but found that my results were better when running only one TS. So that started me asking ‘why didn’t I find double TS as effective as others are reporting’?
a) Do all enforcers run double TS?
Obviously double bubble is not an issue for Mk4 enforcer or below, as they don’t have the necessary slots to run that. At Mk 5, to run double TS, enforcer can’t run any other yellow items, so it is a choice is not necessarily the meta. Users may be more familiar with other yellow items and so prefer to use those in addition to one TS. Only at Mk6 and above does Enforcer gain the slots to be able to run double TS without compromising on other yellow item usage.
b) What Does TS block, and what doesn’t it block?
TS stops sniper from critical hits. It blocks all other cannon fire. It blocks direct mortar hits. Any damage above the TS strength stuns the enforcer.
TS is ineffective against mines, torpedoes, splash damage from mortars, napalm (once napalm has hit ground), railgun
TS is also effective against flare gun, but that is a bug in the game, as FG should break the TS if it is higher than TS strength.
c) Could the meta of nightmare players be ‘playing into the hands’ of TS users?
Until recently the meta for Defenders was flare gun, 2*EC. Now if FG won’t break TS, defenders can’t easily take advantage of fire damage as it takes them one EC shot to break TS, and then need to quickly hit the Enforcer before the second shield is raised. Even if they do, they then have long cool downs before they can shoot again. Therefore this meta could be viewed as weak against double TS
Speeders also are similarly disadvantaged, but with their FG, EC and TB meta.
Only Shooters, with their 5 gun loadouts have the tools to be able to effectively take down the TS
Enforcers (due to their restriction to one slot weapons - which don’t have high cooldowns) can try to take down double TS, but can use their high turret speed to select easier targets instead.
Conclusion: I believe that the nightmare meta of FG plus cannons (EC, BC) for defender, speeder and enforcer does play into the hands of double TS users.
d) But why didn’t double TS work for me in Ace 1?
It could be a combination of:

• I’m not skilled enough?
• The meta for Ace 1 may not be as strongly focused on FG + EC? I believe that there are more mortar users in Ace 1, plus a higher proportion of shooters
• I may not be fast enough to avoid all of those mortars (my turbo is T4 rare)?
• Maybe Ace 1 players are less disciplined and will attack an enforcer regardless of whether they have a TS up or not?

e) Is Double TS a counter to items that many (just a few weeks ago] were saying we’re OP?
Yes - it counters the old meta for speeders and defenders, and also prevents sniper from critical hits. It counters many builds that others were saying were OP, It also inadvertently makes defenders weak at nightmare level.

2) If there were no other buffs or nerfs, how could other users adapt to counter double TS? (This is a bit more of a speculative section)

• There could a rise in torp use. Maybe even in conjunction with frost (if players can resist the urge to shoot frozen players)
• Potentially missiles use rise? If enough missiles hit, I hypothesise that it could break TS plus do some splash damage (is anyone able to confirm or deny this?)
• Use of mines could continue to rise
• Blast cannon use could rise (as its lower cooldown would mean that it is less affected than EC)
• More targeting/focusing fire on enforcers? Once you break the TS, they have less health than shooters.

Overall Conclusion - I am aware that changing the loadouts for ships takes a long time for F2P, but players should start to plan now how to counter double TS in the event that devs decide not to nerf TS. Devs may view TS (in their current form) a way to counter weapons such as SC/TB which were (until recently) subject to much discussion about whether they are OP, and indeed a way to increase diversity of weapons in the bay in nightmare league.

 

I had read in Jaws’s post on pg 3 of ‘Enforcers with Double Tesla Shield (exploit)’ that maxed out Epic FG should be able to break any TS but it doesn’t and that this is a bug known about by devs. I may have misinterpreted his point??? But to me it sounded like he was saying that FG (if higher than TS strength) should break TS, but doesn’t.

 

I’m pleased to see that some players really got what I was saying.

It is the ‘perfect storm’ of recent nerfs to other weapons, plus the nightmare FG+double cannon meta which makes Double TS appear so OP at nightmare level. If there was a shield that blocked all mortars perfectly (better than current TS does) it would appear OP at beginner level, but be redundant at nightmare level.

As I said at the very beginning of my post, I find in Ace 1, Double Bubble doesn’t work for me, and I think it’s because there is a greater variety of weapons used at that level. As the nightmare meta evolves, Double TS will naturally become less effective.