How To Ambush
jamespsx
Join Date: 2003-10-16 Member: 21708Members
Join Date: 2003-10-16 Member: 21708Members
<div class="IPBDescription">"AHH MEH FACE"</div> I used the search thingymajig and i found nothing about the classic skills of stealth and ambush, so im gona write how i usually do it (remember that these are suggestions, no orders lol)
first things first, u need ur target: try and hunt down a marine that is not too gud but not too thick headed so u can show off after u make him say "WTH HAX!" over chat... usually the guy whos got a average amount of kills... trying to ambush anyone who walks though a door is a puplic tactic that is greatly used but not greatly powerfull, but if ur going against the same person every time in the same room, he will catch on... FAST! usually go for 1 marine, as groups should be watching there backs and not just running into a room the comm has waypointed...
second, what do u do when u ambush?: the main point about ambushing is to take them by suprise and cause fear within their ranks. succes in doing this will give aliens the fear factor the dev team probebly really wants them to have... weather this means simply falling on his face, or waiting for comm to waste res by building that uncaped rt in the room, then u launch and not only slaughter a marine, but make the comm waste 15 res in the process while u gain 1-3 is one way of doing it well, and still hurt the marines economy...
third, when do i ambush?: time it, dont simply rush in like any average joe player can... allow marines to think the room is safe (i.e. lull them into a false sense of security) but always remember that ambushing isnt just about jumping ontop of the first person who walks into the room, its about waiting for the right, almost perfect moment then unleashing hell onto the unsespecting marine/s...
running infront of them aint working...so, how?: face-hugging is gud (i.e. jumping ontop of them from a ceiling or roof), but it makes a lot of noise if u miss the target, so always aim to get ontop of the marine, not behind him when u do this... waiting at corners is gud if u know marines will just rush by and totally miss u, allowing u to sneak up behind and attack... picking them off one by one is the best way, dont act like a normal skulk protecting hive (i.e. jumping around infront of marines and randomly biting...) aim ur attacks at areas that are hard to move easyily, or ones that have a large hitbox so once they do reliase there health bar is down to 11, it doesnt matter where or how they move cos u got the sweet spot on them, which is usually the pelvis or groin (no giggling at the back there...)
i know all of this now but, what do i use?: silence, cloaking and regen if have hard time dodging bullets... its that simple... silence is the greatest when taking out groups from behind, cos they have no idea whats going on away from main battle until they are dead and buried... if ur wondering about what kind of alien soecies to use, id say a skulk, or a fade on a high platform due to slightly higher speed and strength, but a cloaked silenced onos is always fun <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->
i hope it helped the newbies and even some vets, but now its ur turn... have i missed out a crucial factor? if so post what u want ppl to read and help a generation of kharaa stalkers be born! lol
first things first, u need ur target: try and hunt down a marine that is not too gud but not too thick headed so u can show off after u make him say "WTH HAX!" over chat... usually the guy whos got a average amount of kills... trying to ambush anyone who walks though a door is a puplic tactic that is greatly used but not greatly powerfull, but if ur going against the same person every time in the same room, he will catch on... FAST! usually go for 1 marine, as groups should be watching there backs and not just running into a room the comm has waypointed...
second, what do u do when u ambush?: the main point about ambushing is to take them by suprise and cause fear within their ranks. succes in doing this will give aliens the fear factor the dev team probebly really wants them to have... weather this means simply falling on his face, or waiting for comm to waste res by building that uncaped rt in the room, then u launch and not only slaughter a marine, but make the comm waste 15 res in the process while u gain 1-3 is one way of doing it well, and still hurt the marines economy...
third, when do i ambush?: time it, dont simply rush in like any average joe player can... allow marines to think the room is safe (i.e. lull them into a false sense of security) but always remember that ambushing isnt just about jumping ontop of the first person who walks into the room, its about waiting for the right, almost perfect moment then unleashing hell onto the unsespecting marine/s...
running infront of them aint working...so, how?: face-hugging is gud (i.e. jumping ontop of them from a ceiling or roof), but it makes a lot of noise if u miss the target, so always aim to get ontop of the marine, not behind him when u do this... waiting at corners is gud if u know marines will just rush by and totally miss u, allowing u to sneak up behind and attack... picking them off one by one is the best way, dont act like a normal skulk protecting hive (i.e. jumping around infront of marines and randomly biting...) aim ur attacks at areas that are hard to move easyily, or ones that have a large hitbox so once they do reliase there health bar is down to 11, it doesnt matter where or how they move cos u got the sweet spot on them, which is usually the pelvis or groin (no giggling at the back there...)
i know all of this now but, what do i use?: silence, cloaking and regen if have hard time dodging bullets... its that simple... silence is the greatest when taking out groups from behind, cos they have no idea whats going on away from main battle until they are dead and buried... if ur wondering about what kind of alien soecies to use, id say a skulk, or a fade on a high platform due to slightly higher speed and strength, but a cloaked silenced onos is always fun <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->
i hope it helped the newbies and even some vets, but now its ur turn... have i missed out a crucial factor? if so post what u want ppl to read and help a generation of kharaa stalkers be born! lol
Comments
Over.
And.
Over.
This will give you a grounding in the basics. Just alter your game to take into account NS health levels and weapon damage.
If you can't do the above, then pick CLOAKING and use a skulk. Practice hiding in smart places - good places for your average newb are above doors, between pipes, on the ceiling, halfway up a ladder to its left or right.... ANYWHERE that marines WON'T LOOK. Parking in the open will make you dead.
Once the marine PASSES you, dive on him. Marines on ladders can be nibbled on as they pass you. If you kill him, MOVE ON. As a newbie ambusher you don't want to face half a dozen marines.
Bear in mind that cloaking is NOT perfect. By hiding out of the way you are making yourself harder to spot, and there's less chance of the marine seeing your telltale visual discrepancy. Your hideout should put you CLOSE to the marine's route but somewhere where he WON'T look.
A good spot, for example, is in NS Caged, namely the sewer pipe near the leftmost hive. In it there's a high vertical shaft - you can drop from here and severely maul a marine. I've conducted several highly effective ambushes from there. Its also a good spot to hide before xenoing on top of a train.
In Bast there's the vertical ventilation shaft at dbl node.
On every map there's an abundance of ambush spots at RTs. Simply climb on the roof and wait for a rine to start building, then wax him. Easy peasy.
I'd say basic upgrades would have to be CLOAKING, right off. Either than or lurk near an exceptionally well hidden SC. You can wing it and take FOCUS instead, but that means a REAL hiding spot and acute knowledge of where you can run off and hide afterwards. Fades can get away with FOCUS because BLINK is an exceptional ability to have.
For DC, you're probably looking at REGEN, and late game possibly just CARAPACE. Regen is great if you plan to prowl an area and don't want to be stalled by a marine's lucky shot. Carapace will keep you alive sometimes when the marines get upgrades, but it DOES force you to keep near DCs or a hive.
MC would usually be SILENCE, and combo's well with CLOAK or FOCUS. You either go for one hit kills, or aim to stalk a marine before making the decisive attack. Which one you choose will depend on your play style. CELERITY is a close second because it allows an uncloaked ambusher to get in and out of an area very quickly.
If you're living in 2.0 then you can use the Lerk, since spiking is excellent sniper stuff. For the rest of us in beta 3 you'll probably want Skulk or Fade. Fades can blink to high vents and tricky ledges, skulks can wallrun to the very roof. Both are fast moving, and both can exploit the vent system.
Asshat ambushers may wish to pick an Onos and spam cloaked devour. This is a pretty stupid waste of your time as an Onos, so be prepared to be kicked from servers for this kind of thing.
Advanced ambushing tips include "leading" the target and "fishing".
You can lead the target using chuckle and/or parasite. These are great for snuffing marine advances, as the marines inevitably scream for backup/ammo/meds/welders. Not only does this throw off the enemy comm, it also allows you to create a distraction. 5 marines hunting ghosts is 5 less marines doing more important stuff. By the time backup arrives you should be elsewhere doing more important stuff yourself - like raping MS, breaking lockdowns, or clearing nodes.
Fishing is a derivative of the above. Fishing is deliberately baiting marines with intent to kill. Xeno skulks or advanced fades can really clean up using this. Lure the marines with chuckles, or by "winging" a marine and then retreating while he calls for help. Then kill the help. Ideally do this somewhere far from your main attack - you don't want to lead the marines straight to your gorges or hidden chambers. Be smart.
So, lets sum up:
THE UPGRADES:
CLOAK/FOCUS, REGEN/CARA, SILENCE/CELER
THE LOCATION:
Vertical vents - NOT horizontal vents, marines will look down these and probably spot you. Or shoot a grenade down "just to be sure". If you choose to lurk in these vents then be very, very awake.
Shadows
Pipes
Doorways
The roof!
THE HIT:
Aim to dive from above and behind - get one attack in midair, and a second as you crouch on the ground.
Fades only - blink swipe in from any location.
THE ESCAPE:
Double time it back to your hidey hole.
IF IT ALL GOES WRONG:
Book it to a dark corner and wait for cloaking to kick in. Then slow-crawl back to your hidey hole.
Fades only - blink to another part of the map.
Should this be 'Sticky' for everyone who needs help on ambushing?
Hiding on the ceiling to ambush a marine doing anything else other than building a structure (especially Nodes. You have no idea how many kills I get from Aux Gen on ns_caged <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo--> ) is probably a bad idea if both you and your target don't have DSL or you're a crappy distance gauger. You really need to equate yourself with the distance between the floor and the ceiling for each specific room as well as how fast your target is moving. It's so, so, so easy to miss your drop for whatever reason. You could end up five feet infront of him, or so far behind him he has time to spin once hearing your landing sound, whip out his knife, and pop you. Also, if he does see you first.. you've got a long way to fall before you can even move or attack.
Parasite may also be a bad idea for ambushing. The marine is now aware of you and knows your general direction. If you plan on parasiting that marine in double then hiding above the doorway for him to come out.. 9 times out of 10 he's going to walk out, look up, and pop you. Wait for him in another room once his paranoia has subsided. How many times have I seen an easy kill maul a skulk because the idiot decided to give away his position with a parasite and then go? Too many.
Ambush from the unexpected expected location. What's this mean? Imagine a marine running from Overlook to Subsector on ns_veil. The Marine knows there is a skulk in the room between those locations. Where is he going to look first? The vent. Duh. It's the first place a skulk thinks, "If I hid there, they'd never expect me!" So of course they're going to expect you. If you can think it, they can (remember, they've played the Alien team, too.) So where should you be? Above the door, on the stairs to their left (going from Overlook to Sub-Sector) or behind the railing on the platform ready to jump over and have snacktime. Another bad place to hide in that place is above the doorway just before the upward stairs to Sub-Sector. C'mon, everyone hides there.
[EDIT] If you wonder why I edit my posts so much, it's because I make a million spelling mistakes that I notice after I make the post. [/EDIT]
If you have level 3 Cloaking or are in the radius of a Sensory Chamber, you don't need to be on the ceiling or behind a door
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Pretty dumb move, I don't use gamma hacks and my brightness isn't high, I've just played long enough to be able to see odd little glitches. In fact since I do a bit of work modelling and animating its in my best interests to spot visual discrepancies.
Second, if a marine bumps into you, you're dead. Doubly so if you're in front of him.
If you're above and behind then he will NOT see you. MT will not light you up, neither is he likely to get a good look at you. Also, you're in a good position for 2 hits before he has time to get a bead on you. 90% of the time this will equal a DEAD marine.
Edit - Cloaked onos is pointless and stupid. You should not be hiding 100 res of Kharaa just to LOL at marines. You should be doing more useful team based things.
Lets just consider that a cloaked, silenced onos has no idea where the enemy is coming from, and lacks the speed to outrun a pack of marines out for blood. Second, where the hell do you intend to hide your onos? In the open?<!--emo&???--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/confused.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='confused.gif' /><!--endemo--> Easily most marines will spot your telltale visual effect, and that means your dead. Pointless waste of sometimes up to 130 res.
[EDIT] The onos is 75 res. [/EDIT]
Ok, your flaming me here and i'm not liking that.
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Thats your problem, and I'm not flaming you.
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But, when the onos did that, he had Scent of Fear and a Sensory had him cloaked in a dark spot.
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ITS A FRIGGING ONOS!!
Its not meant to be hiding in dark corners with SoF, its meant to be RAPING MARINES. Skulks can benefit more from the cheap res that marine ambushes give you.... an Onos NEEDS NO RES, he's there to barge forward and put a hole in the marine defence, not LOL it up in some backwater sensory nest.
I see now that its "someone else" who was being the onos........ well to be quite honest more fool you, sounds like a woeful game if the aliens could afford players who went onos and hid in dark corners.
Honestly, you wonder why people get sick of pubs..
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Excuse me, what business do you have bumping into marines without biting them?
anyways, if u ever play a seige map where the corridors are long and dull, if u get an onos with cloak and celerity with redeem u can litterally own anybody who comes down hallway... sure comm can scan u, then again thats what the cele is for lol
off-topic but slightly educational to the newb's:
i saw some crazy s*** when i got cloaking as a fade today... i managed to walk through a solid wall into seige room with cloaking on... the door werent open and marines had tf w/ turrets outside (but no ob or scanner so i got though that easy <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->) the rest of team who could get past tryed it and couldnt get though... the map was seige007 and it was still 2 mins until door opened (marines got a scare when they opened door! oc's plus cloaked onos <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->)... i was wondering weather this was a very rare bug that happens sometimes happens. (it was kinda like no-clip hax but i dont know any hax's, let alone use them lol)
Excuse me, what business do you have bumping into marines without biting them?
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Actually I am referring to the rare occasion where a player will sit perfectly still, cloaked, and let marines walk into him. I've seen it happen, specifically when a marine runs into a cloaked skulk because the skulk was on the floor trying to sneak up for a clean bite. Dead skulk.
Its also happened to me, when I was sitting in the wrong spot and a marine bumped into me from out of my field of vision. Dakka dakka, dead skulk.
Hence I prefer the roof approach - NO marine will be able to bump into you, not unless he's got a jetpack and a buggered mouse/keyboard.
btw using spaces where the comm and marine cant c u after scanner sweep is very lethal... it makes them think the room is clear, thus easy kill/s...
Just so you know, and don't wonder why that just didn't work, aliens show up on the map to the commander and marine when you use scanner sweep. It doesnt matter if you are hiding somewhere in the dark or something, you WILL show up on the minimap. It knows all.
Cloak : Walking
Works for ME all the time...
If not, wait over a doorway for a lone marine to come through and bite his **** off...
Over.
And.
Over.
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<!--emo&::nerdy::--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/nerd.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='nerd.gif' /><!--endemo--> I played avp2 a lot...i dun ambush i just pounce at my op over and over again
thing is, comm and probebly marine will be looking for u on the main screen, not mini-map. + if comm has time to do this anyway then he has done a booboo for his team <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif' /><!--endemo-->
poor gorges... spending their res to get YOU res/upgrades, then you ask "hey, go spit at that squad of 5 marines for me!" <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Over.
And.
Over.
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<!--emo&::nerdy::--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/nerd.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='nerd.gif' /><!--endemo--> I played avp2 a lot...i dun ambush i just pounce at my op over and over again <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Haha, yeah, what a joke. You ambushed in avp2?
...
Bwhahahahaha
Motion tracking and pred vision made ambushing IMPOSSIBLE as aliens, in over 40+ clanmatches in that game i've never seen an alien team of ambushers, it was pounce, get naded, spawn, repeat
... sorry, slightly off-topic but i had to get that out of my system.
as for NS ambushing, i hardly ever make sound in areas that marines are bound to pass, and hide above a doorway or something when i hear footsteps. Only about 1/8 marines will check it because he didnt hear you.
The same techniques translate to NS, only this time the pouncer can CLOAK too, hehe.
c, this is what makes a true sneaky foe... would u cheak the doorway outside marine start unless u heard something?... i rest my case... <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif' /><!--endemo-->
btw u ever try that on me ull loose cos i cheak everything before i run unknowingly into a room...
btw, today i played as a assasin fade (regen, silence, cloaking) and it worked wonders!!! i killed at least 30 marines in 3 different rooms in 1 go... i got my res bak very quickly <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Your body is longer than it is tall, and the way you face determines the way your body sits.
I can't tell you the number of times as a marine I'm able to see the front half of a skulk who thinks he's being sneaky by hanging at the edge of doorway or hall. I pop under and blast him away before he gets a chance to react and he's like "WTH? You have MT?" So if you're going to hang by a doorway, or wall, or anything with a narrow hiding spot, remember that you're longer than you are tall and try and align yourself with the wall or ceiling so that you're not sticking out and don't know it. Sometimes this means you can't see if the marines have walked in. Use your ears. Even walking marines make some noise.
Play as marine. Try to take note of where you look at you run from place to place. When you play as a skulk, look over those areas again. Often you'll be able to pick out an area that looks as though it might be in plain sight, but if marines never look there, it's as good as your darkest corner up in the ceiling.
Remember what you look like. You're a tan/greenish lump as a skulk. Many times marines will miss you entirely if you've chosen your background well. Pick bumpy surfaces with busier patterns, preferably in your colors if you can find them. Watch the lighting.. sometimes a strongly colored light will make you stand out, but other times it will make you blend in. (eg, that one map in combat with the hive in red light. Ever notice how hard it is to see a marine or skulk in that even though it's wide open?) Try getting a fellow skulk into your ambush spot to see how visible it is.
Speaking of which, don't rely on darkness or cloaking. Some graphic cards don't do cloaking, some (a fair number) of people play with ridiculous gamma settings, so what's black to you may just be dim to them.
Silence is your friend. Seriously, until MT is up, silence is better than cloak for ambushes. You can move fast, if you happen to miss that first attack you get a second chance, and what's more, in the heat of combat, the marine can't orient on you by sound.
Oh, and MT is *motion* tracking. Any sort of motion. Running. Walking. <i>Turning.</i> Anything. If you hope to ambush while MT is up you'll have to pick your ambush spot well before the marines are there, and then literally pull your hand off the mouse so you don't accidentally light yourself up. Though nothing beats a successful ambush once they have MT. It's beautiful.
A good marine will often check ceilings and corners, however this can work to your advantage. If a marine trys to take a peek into a room, don't just sit there and wait for him to pass by, hoping you go unnoticed. (It's scary how often I see this happen.) When he tries to sneak a peek, drop down on his face.
The best approach to ambushing is to be where you aren't expected. While good marines will often throughly scan corners. They usually don't check behind them unless they hear the telltale sound of an approaching alien. Getting behind a marine/ group of marines is likely to earn you at least one kill.
Learning the ventilation systems of each ns map is key to properly ambushing marines. These vents allow many great chances to eliminate marines, they aren't just for looks.
(Ex: ns_origin): Origin has a great vent system for ambushing marines. The interlinking system of vents allow many advantageous ambush zones. A vent opening between MS and Computer Lab/ Double Res allows aliens to easily get behind marines moving to these locations. It has a twin on the other side of the MS which allows an opportunity to ambush marines moving to Laser Drilling.