Catalyst Packs

project_demon · March 2005

<div class="IPBDescription">How often do you use them?</div> I just would like to know how often do you use the catalyst pack in a round?
cause to be honest with you, i don't recall using it not even once in all the rounds that i've played...

LiLo_Big_Boss · March 2005

I use em all the time, their really good with a shotty coz u get to reload quicker and its easier to dodge coz you're faster

Innocuous · March 2005

almost never

monopolowa · March 2005

I use catpacks, but <b>only</b> if i'm swimming in res. Really, it doesnt occur to me to use them until I'm monitoring a major hive assault

I'm usually just worried about medpacks, because the boost a single marine gets from a catpack is negligible, and therefore not worth the res. However, a group of marines can benefit a lot more from catpacks

Manta · March 2005

When I command (rarely), I tend to use them if I remember to because I'm just like that; I like to make use of all resources in my possession. Also, I believe they do not make you reload faster, only shoot and move faster.

Isamil · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (LiLo Big Boss @ Mar 14 2005, 06:48 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> I use em all the time, their really good with a shotty coz u get to reload quicker and its easier to dodge coz you're faster  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
Cat packs don't make you reload faster.

d0omie · March 2005

I drop them for heavies if they are chasing an onos with a heavy in his belleh!

I normaly don't research them until we have 3/3 though.

LiLo_Big_Boss · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Isamil @ Mar 14 2005, 07:19 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> </div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (LiLo Big Boss @ Mar 14 2005, 06:48 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> I use em all the time, their really good with a shotty coz u get to reload quicker and its easier to dodge coz you're faster </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>
Cat packs don't make you reload faster.  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
from what i've seen it does

Traken · March 2005

AFAIK, catpacks are legal-speedhacks. This would mean they speed up your reloading process.

hotbaconsauce · March 2005

I'm pretty sure that cat-packs do not make you reload faster.

Edit: However, if you did reload faster... <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' />

theclam · March 2005

Catpacks are great for long games, because you can slaughter hives with a shotgun rush using W3 and catpacks.

GoDlol · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (LiLo Big Boss @ Mar 14 2005, 06:48 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> I use em all the time, their really good with a shotty coz u get to reload quicker and its easier to dodge coz you're faster  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
You dont reload faster, although you should, but your movement and bullets fire faster

xtcmen · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (GoDlol @ Mar 14 2005, 08:37 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> </div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (LiLo Big Boss @ Mar 14 2005, 06:48 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> I use em all the time, their really good with a shotty coz u get to reload quicker and its easier to dodge coz you're faster </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>
You dont reload faster, although you should, but your movement and bullets fire faster </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>
I'm sure if they made you reload faster it would be more useful and popular and worth the res it costs. Just imagine reloading an hmg 25% faster... ooo yeah. Anyway i am sure that someone else has probably suggested this idea. What was the outcome?

Zek · March 2005

Rarely, because catpacks are nothing more than a rich comm's luxury. It's cool when a group of catpack shotties takes down a hive in 2 seconds, but it rarely actually makes or breaks the rush, and most comms don't even think to research them.

Traken · March 2005

Well, they are good for getting rid of that 300 res you've accumlated.

I once got accused for "comm-hacking" for dropping 300 res worth of medpacks and catapacks...

Crackpacks: For those 1337 hax0r command0rs. <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' />

intensityrising · March 2005

Hardly ever but there was a odd time that the comm dropped them but we had to say "Ah thats the stuff" when we used them.

Traken · March 2005

Like..he refused to drop anything unless you did that? <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' />

SLizer · March 2005

I`d say that they are two-edged swords. You first need to research them and after that you carefully need to think when to place them. Now that they cost 3 they might be bit more useful.... generally they are disturbing your upgrades and researching something your marines wont even know how to use so it is at least 20res to flush and maybe fatal 1minute late in upgrades.

But I do say that killing pro fades with cats are easy, they just cant handle the speed you blast em, same goes for hives.

<img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/asrifle.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='asrifle.gif' /> ^catalyst +Sg::asrifle::^catalyst+Sg <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/fade.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='fade.gif' />=Dead. Simple isn`t it?

Nao · March 2005

I would use catpacks more often in competitive or organised play than I would on pubs. They can be used as anti-fade weapons since they boot Rate of Fire. It essentially turns a few sets of HMGs up to spit out a hurricane of bullets if you can bait the alien far enough from their hiding spots.

I use them rarely though. Quite costly.

ikir · March 2005

Never. Cat pack should cost 1 not 3 res.

SLizer · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (ikir @ Mar 15 2005, 08:22 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Never. Cat pack should cost 1 not 3 res. </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'>
And by that we would see 90% 2sec fades or how long it takes to empty 5 catted sgs/hmg

Alkiller · March 2005

</div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Innocuous @ Mar 14 2005, 06:52 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> almost never  </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> 
I'm never giving you a catpack again :<

Snidely · March 2005

Maybe if researching them didn't take up valuable time and resources that could be given to a more useful, permanent effect such as armour upgrades. Especially with no-cost-chamber-upgrades, there's no time to waste on frivolities.

Olmy · March 2005

I can't think of a good reason for its continued inclusion. Make it useful and higher lifeforms will fall even faster, which isn't cool, and at the moment its useless. *cut* i say <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' />.

Cerebral · March 2005

Feel free to ignore me if this has been mentioned before but i think i have a better solution for cats. It seems to me that they would work better if they were upgraded the same as they are currently but they worked more like hand grenades do than meds/ammo. Each marine would get one when he spawned and he could self-activate it whenever he chooses. To counter this advantage, I would like to see them slowly drain health while activated simliar to a berserk type ability from some games. That way you could still get meds from the comm while your health is being drained but he won't be responsible for dropping a wasteful crapload of overpriced cats.

Slink · March 2005

So, in other words, make them EXACTLY like Stim-Paks?

Freddeh · March 2005

catpack knifes are lerk killers...ask saltz and dirm...ive catpacked them both to lerk knife kills...its so much fun to even watch them as a comm <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' />

SaltzBad · March 2005

Only when the Lerks are being bleeding morons unfortunately - not to mention Lerk juggling is out now. The real problem with catpacks isn't there cost, but the low duration and limited situation effectiveness - you have to be near a fight, you have to have a full or almost at least significantly loaded clip, and they're only half as useful with a Shotgun. And you can only bhop with them if you throw away at least one gun <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad-fix.gif' />

Swift · March 2005

I only use them until after dmg lvl3 and armor lvl3. Reading this post, I will try a new strategy tonight, rushing catpacks, and see how it goes...

Swift_Idiot · March 2005

Not enough potential use out of the cost benefit decision to even bother with catpacks.

Catpacks and handgrenades are the two silliest things in NS. It's not that they are stupid, they are just worthless to bother with as they stand, so having them in the game doesn't make much sense really. Hey if the devs want to cram in useless **** and never improve it though, that's their perogative.

Nao · March 2005

I think the reason for giving the Aliens a boost to streamline the way they work was because those aspects of the Marines were being ignored entirely.

I can still see winning the game without Cat Packs, but Scans (No real res cost anyway), and Grenades (They'd be a good way to function as GLs if you A: Couldn't afford a GL or B: Don't have Adv. Armory. Problem is, you'd have to drop two Armories if you wanted to research both. HvyWeapons/Nades and once you get HvyWeapons, Nades become somewhat obsolete.)
Edit: Are some of the commonly ignored aspects of the Marine team. Yes, instead of using grenades on vent-stalking aliens, you could build a Mine-Ladder.. but then you'd present yourself to danger and the Marines thrive on Squad-based ranged combat. On, pubs, the 'waste of res' argument works well because you need to equip everyone with a gun to compensate for missed shots, but if you have a team that thoroughly understands the game and can aim well enough, then using Catpacks *tactically* (not spamming them as though they were meds) becomes a possibility. They also allow you to split up Marines into smaller squads since Catpacks boost strength. An attack team who gets Catpacks and serves to distract aliens from the Infrastructure team, which goes around re-capping nodes to keep the Economy aloft.
Please NOTE: This is not a solid thought because it's obvious enough that NS's climates rapidly shift and sometimes the need for every marine in an Attack team is necessary, etc, etc. It just all depends. That was just an example of how they may be used.

Cat Packs are really for Commanders who pay close attention and have a very good understanding with a certain squad of Marines, so that they'll always be under Catalyst Power when necessary.

Giving a marine the option to use their Cat Pack instead of having it be activated by running over a Commander-deployed item seems like a good idea. The only problem is that encourages Ramboism. JP+Catpack+HMG and you'll have Pub Rambos everywhere. So, while it would make it easier to use Catpacks effectively, it would definitely dumb down Marine tactics.
Edit2: Or worse and more-likely, your 'Rines will use the Catpacks when they're unecessary and have to wait for a resupply or recharge.

Catalyst Packs

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