Fading
scaryface
Join Date: 2002-11-25 Member: 9918Members
Join Date: 2002-11-25 Member: 9918Members
Comments
Metabolize is your friend (2nd Hive ability). Use after blinking, it's awesome. If you want good practice, go Fade in a public ns_ game. You'll only have MC's with one hive, so get celerity, hope another Hive is going up, and get regeneration. Then you'll be unstoppable (especially because you have metabolize). Fading is harder with one Hive, but still very useful...
Why celerity? Easy. Celerity fades are harder to hit than adren/silence fades. The HL engine isn't the hottest thing since the big bang and at extreme speeds, like a celerity fade blinking, the hitbox and graphic don't always synch up. You get the same effect with celerity lerks. The counter argument is that adren fades can blink longer and more often, but when you learn to manage energy with a celerity fade, it's rarely a problem.
Why focus? Easy. The other two are far less useful and focus with fades makes armor upgrades irrelevant. Without focus, the progression in swipes is 2, 3, 3, 4. With focus it's 1, 2, 2, 2. Focus also plays into the fade strength of hit and run. You're not going to stick around for a long time, so you want to make each hit count and as powerful as you can get it.
Regen and carapace are largely a matter of taste and what the marines are doing. I personally like regen if I'm not facing w3 shotguns/HMGs. If they have those weapons, I use carapace for the extra survivability.
Tips I've found helpful:
-Use the Z-axis. Blinking straight up gives you a new dimension to work with and can confuse the heck out of marines. Blink up, blink down behind them and slash again.
-Learn to manage your energy. You should be able to blink around maps almost non-stop; with meta, dump the "almost." Make a server and just practice blinking around.
-Know how you're getting out of a room. Ideally, you should have at least two ways out of any room you go in.
-Don't shirk teamwork. Fades can operate alone, but they're far better off working with skulks and lerks. Lerks can strip armor like nobody's business, making it easier to drop those marines. Soft targets are good targets.
-It's better to blink out early and with plenty of health. 90% of the time I die as a fade, I can tell that it's because I got greedy and went for the kill rather than watch my own butt. Losing a fade is a potential game breaker.
-Get on a pub and practice attacking. Blink in, swipe once and blink out. Many times you won't even take damage, but that just means you're good to go that much sooner. The classic newbie mistake is thinking that because they're a fade, they can tank a group of marines.
-Take down RTs. Just because you specialize in tearing marines several new orafices doesn't mean you're too good to cripple the marine war chest. In fact, you're a requirement if those RTs are electrified.
-Harass the marine start. I don't know how many times I've seen fades harass MS into oblivion. Taking out a structure can be key. Drop that arms lab or obs or the gold trophy, the advanced armory.
-Get a microphone. I know, it's not a fade tip. That doesn't change the fact that good communication is vital to winning. Remember, there's no "I" in "aliens."
- Crouch when blinking, but not while turning. Crouching makes your hitbox smaller, making it easier to fit in places. However, when you're crouched, you have less air control - making it harder to bhop and turn in general.
- Keep in mind the stuck spots on maps, and avoid them. Getting stuck is a sure way of dying.
And speaking of armor, keep an eye on it when you're fighting. It's really more important to watch your armor than your hp, because when you hit 0-50 armor, it's time to get the heck out of wherever you are.
It's a sad, sad, day
One tip I thought I'd share: only attack marines. Don't hit rts. That sounds like an odd thing to bring up but you'd be surprised how much it matters.
edit:
<!--QuoteBegin--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Ive tried to improve myself in co but its hard to find a non-50lvl server. <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
this is exactly what people are talking about.
skulks kill rts, fades kill rines.
blink, alot. don't hold, tap.
50lvl or not.. combat is good for one reason.. practise against insane odds.
If you are a fade with only one DC up, one MC up and one SC up (or even less) and you fight rines who have more ups then the game original holds (plugins bah) you know youre good if you live it.
Practice short blinks.
Fades can withstand punishment but remember that you got to make a clean getaway, especially when you need to put up with more than two rines. <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
I'd say go for Adrenaline, Focus and Carapace or Redemption.
With focus, it is possible for fades to crack HAs (but you still need Skulkbuddies!)
When Fade, try to have a gorge nearby, too.
Remember too, that when you are a Fade, you are responsible for the pure rine killing. When your team says big inc somewhere, then it is you who has to get there and at least cause a killspam:D
I personally don't like going Fade because they are so bigand eeewwwwww they cant stick or climb walls :/
But as soon as somebody does /res, then they immediately flame me for being a res**** gaaah
(me is gorge/skulk player y'know)
Though Fades are needed for major offensive stuff, I don't think its a shame to be a defensive Fade. Staying alive and protecting gorges is likely honorable!
$parki <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
<3 pubs
Regen on a Fade is no good in games like this, so practice with Carapace. It doubles your longevity, as that +100 armor translates to 3 health. In situations where using Regen would get you killed just as you fled around the corner, Carapace will keep you alive. I recommend Adrenaline until you get the hang of Metabolizing and energy management (don't hold the Blink key, as others have said) and then switching over to Celerity when you are more confident. Fades are hit-and-run, not stay-and-fight. Regen isn't going to help you out in the short times you're in there and Celerity gets you to and from the action better.
Blink into the room, go up high. Most Marines are looking at the ground for Skulks. Once you're at the apex of your blink, look down, find a nice target who's reloading or running away.. Blink straight down at him and swipe. Wigglewalking to catch up to fleeing Marines who are just a few steps infront of you is also better than blinking over (if you're not getting shot at.) Another good tactic you should definately try is hopping over the Marine's head. It's frustrating as a Skulk when you have Marines doing this to you, and doubly so when you do it to them. You run in, get up close, hit them once.. then blink straight up, then straight down behind them. It works well because they're tracking you laterally, have to look up as you blink above them, then turn around as you fly over, then look down again as you land. It can really throw off their aim, especially when you do this a few times and they end up with no idea where you are.
Regen works good if you're going to camp a JP room with 3 guys on your tail, especially if you're going to wait for a siege door to open. How to evade:
1.blink randomly, don't be on the same level as the jetpackers are, or they will get a clearer shot.
2.Use metabolize to get your energy back and heal yourself in-between assaults.
3.Don't try to hit the jetpackers in mid-air. Most likely you'll miss. Instead hit them when they're running out of energy and are forced to hover down.
4.Hide as often as possible, and don't ever come out the way you went in.
5.TAP the blink, NEVER EVER hold it, or you will be sitting fade. <!--emo&::asrifle::--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/asrifle.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='asrifle.gif' /><!--endemo--> <!--emo&::fade::--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/fade.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='fade.gif' /><!--endemo-->
gg ns gg
<b>I</b> th<b>i</b>nk <b>I</b> saw an <b>I</b> <b>i</b>n al<b>i</b>ens!
<!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Adrenaline also makes a fade great as a support unit. Skulks can kill marines just as well as fades if they can get to the marines and have the time to bite them. If the marines are concentrating on me, then my skulk buddies can come and share the feast.
Adrenaline and celerity have their advantages, don't knock adrenaline.
Oh, and the most important piece of advice:
The fade that fights and runs away lives to fight another day. (Or in this case, second)
Adrenaline also makes a fade great as a support unit. Skulks can kill marines just as well as fades if they can get to the marines and have the time to bite them. If the marines are concentrating on me, then my skulk buddies can come and share the feast.
Adrenaline and celerity have their advantages, don't knock adrenaline.
Oh, and the most important piece of advice:
The fade that fights and runs away lives to fight another day. (Or in this case, second) <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
tracking adrenaline fades is one of the easiest things in the game, other than straight line skulks, even if they pancake and do other crazy ****
Comparisn:
No MT: Not prepared>semi-prepared marine
MT:Prepared for a lerk/skulk>prepared for a fade
I've seen terror fades use adren.
Most of the time when I celerity fade I get stuck on every worthless outcropping of wall ever haphazardly designed by a mapmaker. Adren gives you a lot of control.
I've seen terror fades use adren.
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I have seen terror heavy armor rush with no upgrades/ip. Just because they do it doesnt mean that its a good strategy.
1) set hud_fastswitch to 1. Just add it to your userconfig.cfg file.
2) Bind all the weapons/slots to a key. For example (before I got a 5-button mouse) I used:
Mwheelup: slot 1
mwheeldown: slot 2
q: slot 3
z: slot 4
This gives you access to all of your attacks in one keystroke - something I find essential for good fading.
bind "mwheeldown" "+attack"
flick the mousewheel once every time you land tbh
I don't recommend it for using this method to engage marines; I view this like bunnyhopping. It's good for getting around the map, but as far as attacking marines head-on, it's pretty sucktastic.