Carapace > regen or celerity for skulk and here's why:
Skulk without carapace -- 10 ap, 70hp, 90 effective hp vs normal. 10 lmg bullets, 6 shotgun pellets @w0. skulk with (new) carapace -- 50 ap, 70 hp, 170 effective hp vs normal. 18 lmg bullets, 10 shotgun pellets @w0. skulk with (old) carpace -- 30 ap, 70 hp, 130 effective hp vs normal. 14 lmg bullets, 8 shotgun pellets @w0.
Carapace adds 40 armor for the skulk. <b>Against normal damage, this is a gain of 80 effective hp, or 89% more health.</b> When considering LMG, it increases your health from 10 bullets to 18, a gain of 80%!
Carapace's benefit against shotguns is less apparent, but potentially more impactful. It takes one full shotgun shot hitting 10 out of 10 pellets to kill a carapace skulk in one shot compared to just 6 out of 10 pellets for a celerity or regen skulk. 6 out of 10 pellet requirement means you're going to frequently be one shot. 10 pellets is subject to RNG spread rotation and has to assume complete melee and perfect aim to 1 shot. Even with perfect aim, a shotgun will fail to one shot a carapace skulk more often than not. Thus, in most situations of perfect aim, carapace will double your survival time in melee range against a shotgunner; From 1 shot to 2 shots.
<!--quoteo(post=1955317:date=Jul 31 2012, 03:32 AM:name=GORGEous)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (GORGEous @ Jul 31 2012, 03:32 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1955317"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Thus, in most situations of perfect aim, carapace will double your survival time in melee range against a shotgunner; From 1 shot to 2 shots.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
This is also the reason Armor 1 was researched first in NS1. It changed survival from 2 bites + 1para to 3 bites. Which is HUGE.
fanaticThis post has been edited.Join Date: 2003-07-23Member: 18377Members, Constellation, Squad Five Blue
edited July 2012
Can't get it record without ######loads of lag. If somebody can tell me how to record a smooth video from an NS2 demo using fraps; please tell me, and I'll post a video of the exploit.
I think the devs already know about it though, so there isn't really a need for it anymore.
<!--quoteo(post=1955410:date=Jul 31 2012, 12:19 PM:name=fanatic)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (fanatic @ Jul 31 2012, 12:19 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1955410"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Can't get it record without ######loads of lag. If somebody can tell me how to record a smooth video from an NS2 demo using fraps; please tell me, and I'll post a video of the exploit.
I think the devs already know about it though, so there isn't really a need for it anymore.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> Use the tpu osd app. It has a pretty good game screen recorder. <a href="http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142436" target="_blank">http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142436</a> You can dictate how much cpu resources it uses.
<!--quoteo(post=1955129:date=Jul 30 2012, 01:11 PM:name=Mestaritonttu)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Mestaritonttu @ Jul 30 2012, 01:11 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1955129"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I guess I do have a protip to share though: Don't attack marines. TLDR: You don't always have to kill marines to kill extractors.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
That's a really interesting strategy: it assumes that aliens will play the long game, and save up enough resources to go to higher lifeforms where they can press the attack back to the marines.
Where this falls down however is that eventually the marines will press into alien-held territory, and start attacking harvesters. And in this case you must engage with marines, usually groups of them (if they're smart, 1-2 attacking harvester, 1-2 covering).
I agree that it does frustrate a marine advance to take out the extractors they have just placed, but if there isn't a solid attack strategy as well then you're just trading territory, and risking that marines will get somewhere, plant phase gates, and then really own the map.
<!--quoteo(post=1955429:date=Aug 1 2012, 01:00 AM:name=Cee Colon Slash)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Cee Colon Slash @ Aug 1 2012, 01:00 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1955429"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->That's a really interesting strategy: it assumes that aliens will play the long game, and save up enough resources to go to higher lifeforms where they can press the attack back to the marines.
Where this falls down however is that eventually the marines will press into alien-held territory, and start attacking harvesters. And in this case you must engage with marines, usually groups of them (if they're smart, 1-2 attacking harvester, 1-2 covering).
I agree that it does frustrate a marine advance to take out the extractors they have just placed, but if there isn't a solid attack strategy as well then you're just trading territory, and risking that marines will get somewhere, plant phase gates, and then really own the map.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I don't want to plummet into theorycrafting, but the concept is simply described this: You go fight the advancing marines, it's 50/50 - You die, you lose territory/rt's, or marines die, marines lose territory/rt's. But if you go around the marines to kill an rt, the result is a damaged rt, a fight with a marine (advantage to the marine) and if the marine wins he gains no territory because he just backtracked to kill you.
<!--quoteo(post=1955434:date=Jul 31 2012, 04:38 PM:name=Mestaritonttu)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Mestaritonttu @ Jul 31 2012, 04:38 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1955434"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I don't want to plummet into theorycrafting, but the concept is simply described this: You go fight the advancing marines, it's 50/50 - You die, you lose territory/rt's, or marines die, marines lose territory/rt's. But if you go around the marines to kill an rt, the result is a damaged rt, a fight with a marine (advantage to the marine) and if the marine wins he gains no territory because he just backtracked to kill you.
That's how I see it, atleast.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> I agree with this. It is not an all or nothing situation. There are times for both, but usually the smarter choice is the above.
+1 guys, this is the kinda discussion I was looking for. Not do x, y, and z. Everyone knows to do x, y, and z.
Note that this isn't recommended to do all the time. Eventually, if the Marines are smart, they will gain and hold a forward position and force into the Hives. You will have to fight eventually.
However, if you can bog down the Marines in their forward position and they lose their other RTs, then you win. If they are disorganized and have to keep running around rebuilding/saving RTs, you win. And yes, eventually you will have to fight them and win. But as a Skulk sometimes throwing yourself into the meat grinder isn't the best use of your time.
The key though is you don't have to bum rush with your entire team their attacking force. A few Aliens running around sabotaging the exposed undefended RTs can provide astonishing results if done right. It's a glorious moment when the Marines' push falters and they have to fall back, only to realize they've also lost every other node on the map. Make them bet everything on a singular push, barely hold them, and take out their infrastructure from their feet.
Comments
Skulk without carapace -- 10 ap, 70hp, 90 effective hp vs normal. 10 lmg bullets, 6 shotgun pellets @w0.
skulk with (new) carapace -- 50 ap, 70 hp, 170 effective hp vs normal. 18 lmg bullets, 10 shotgun pellets @w0.
skulk with (old) carpace -- 30 ap, 70 hp, 130 effective hp vs normal. 14 lmg bullets, 8 shotgun pellets @w0.
Carapace adds 40 armor for the skulk. <b>Against normal damage, this is a gain of 80 effective hp, or 89% more health.</b> When considering LMG, it increases your health from 10 bullets to 18, a gain of 80%!
Carapace's benefit against shotguns is less apparent, but potentially more impactful. It takes one full shotgun shot hitting 10 out of 10 pellets to kill a carapace skulk in one shot compared to just 6 out of 10 pellets for a celerity or regen skulk. 6 out of 10 pellet requirement means you're going to frequently be one shot. 10 pellets is subject to RNG spread rotation and has to assume complete melee and perfect aim to 1 shot. Even with perfect aim, a shotgun will fail to one shot a carapace skulk more often than not. Thus, in most situations of perfect aim, carapace will double your survival time in melee range against a shotgunner; From 1 shot to 2 shots.
This is also the reason Armor 1 was researched first in NS1. It changed survival from 2 bites + 1para to 3 bites. Which is HUGE.
I think the devs already know about it though, so there isn't really a need for it anymore.
I think the devs already know about it though, so there isn't really a need for it anymore.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Use the tpu osd app. It has a pretty good game screen recorder. <a href="http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142436" target="_blank">http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142436</a>
You can dictate how much cpu resources it uses.
TLDR: You don't always have to kill marines to kill extractors.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
That's a really interesting strategy: it assumes that aliens will play the long game, and save up enough resources to go to higher lifeforms where they can press the attack back to the marines.
Where this falls down however is that eventually the marines will press into alien-held territory, and start attacking harvesters. And in this case you must engage with marines, usually groups of them (if they're smart, 1-2 attacking harvester, 1-2 covering).
I agree that it does frustrate a marine advance to take out the extractors they have just placed, but if there isn't a solid attack strategy as well then you're just trading territory, and risking that marines will get somewhere, plant phase gates, and then really own the map.
Where this falls down however is that eventually the marines will press into alien-held territory, and start attacking harvesters. And in this case you must engage with marines, usually groups of them (if they're smart, 1-2 attacking harvester, 1-2 covering).
I agree that it does frustrate a marine advance to take out the extractors they have just placed, but if there isn't a solid attack strategy as well then you're just trading territory, and risking that marines will get somewhere, plant phase gates, and then really own the map.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I don't want to plummet into theorycrafting, but the concept is simply described this: You go fight the advancing marines, it's 50/50 - You die, you lose territory/rt's, or marines die, marines lose territory/rt's. But if you go around the marines to kill an rt, the result is a damaged rt, a fight with a marine (advantage to the marine) and if the marine wins he gains no territory because he just backtracked to kill you.
That's how I see it, atleast.
That's how I see it, atleast.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I agree with this. It is not an all or nothing situation. There are times for both, but usually the smarter choice is the above.
+1 guys, this is the kinda discussion I was looking for. Not do x, y, and z. Everyone knows to do x, y, and z.
However, if you can bog down the Marines in their forward position and they lose their other RTs, then you win. If they are disorganized and have to keep running around rebuilding/saving RTs, you win. And yes, eventually you will have to fight them and win. But as a Skulk sometimes throwing yourself into the meat grinder isn't the best use of your time.
The key though is you don't have to bum rush with your entire team their attacking force. A few Aliens running around sabotaging the exposed undefended RTs can provide astonishing results if done right. It's a glorious moment when the Marines' push falters and they have to fall back, only to realize they've also lost every other node on the map. Make them bet everything on a singular push, barely hold them, and take out their infrastructure from their feet.