Using The Ventilation System To Get Around
Error404
Join Date: 2002-11-19 Member: 9353Members
Join Date: 2002-11-19 Member: 9353Members
<div class="IPBDescription">Not just for Kharaa</div> <b>Using the Ventilation System to Get Around</b>
<i>A Possible Strategy?</i>
One thing that bugs me about the marines, is that many marines don't use the vents to get around when they can. On many maps, the vents connect to the hives, and are a great way of <i>bypassing</i> Kharaa offensive chambers and the like.
If anything should be defended with turrets, it should be the entrances to these vents, not many kharaa (in the early game) would be bothered to take down turrets just to access the vents.
In the late game, vents, are sometimes the safest places for Marines if the Kharaa have secured 2 or 3 hives. The narrow confined spaces makes it difficult for Fades and particularly Onoses, and besides are a slow way for Kharaa to get around particularly when they have control of the map anyway.
I think that most Commanders (even good ones) don't understand the vents, perhaps because they haven't played Kharaa enough to know them.
<i>Jet Packs? You need Jet Packs to get into the vents!</i>
Yes, for high vents, you'll need jetpacks to reach them, but most vents can be accessed by a teammate boosting you into it... (they crouch, you jump on their back, then you both simultaneously jump to get extra height).
In some vents where theres standing height, and is visible from the command view, its possible to build a few structures, perhaps a phase gate? So if a Jet Packer can access a vent, he can maybe build a phase gate to get the rest of the team in there.
<i>Highway to the Hive</i>
Some vents lead straight to the hive, on some maps, the actual hive structure is visible from within the vent. Its great because its hard for kharaa to attack marines in vents! If you can keep the marines coming through the vents and shooting or grenading the hive, its possible to take out a hive without a seige.
Once again, for this to work, the Commander has to have a thorough understanding of the ventilation system on the map. A commander can help his team by building a turret factory beneath the vent entrance, then stacking a turret on top of the TF, to act as a ladder, but also stopping the kharaa from coming behind the marines.
Some vents open up into quite large spaces, I've never tried it, but they look like they could fit a small marine base inside them!! The only thing that might stop them, are lerks with umbra and spore cloud, <i>a few grenades will stop that quite easily</i>.
Although many might argue that crawling through a vent makes slow progress, sometimes it is faster than trying to get through walls of kharaa defensive structure, and in the early game, it is a safer way of moving through the map. Make sure that none of your teammates have been parasited, to be extra stealthy.
<i>Final Word</i>
The Kharaa use stealth, so why can't the Marines? Crawling through the vent, forces the Marines to be silent, no footsteps can be heard, it is the stealthiest way to get around a map. Its used in real life too, the special forces use ducts, vents, ceiling spaces to seize the enemy. Large open spaces are the easiest way to get killed by an ambush, so they are best avoided.
What do you think?
<i>A Possible Strategy?</i>
One thing that bugs me about the marines, is that many marines don't use the vents to get around when they can. On many maps, the vents connect to the hives, and are a great way of <i>bypassing</i> Kharaa offensive chambers and the like.
If anything should be defended with turrets, it should be the entrances to these vents, not many kharaa (in the early game) would be bothered to take down turrets just to access the vents.
In the late game, vents, are sometimes the safest places for Marines if the Kharaa have secured 2 or 3 hives. The narrow confined spaces makes it difficult for Fades and particularly Onoses, and besides are a slow way for Kharaa to get around particularly when they have control of the map anyway.
I think that most Commanders (even good ones) don't understand the vents, perhaps because they haven't played Kharaa enough to know them.
<i>Jet Packs? You need Jet Packs to get into the vents!</i>
Yes, for high vents, you'll need jetpacks to reach them, but most vents can be accessed by a teammate boosting you into it... (they crouch, you jump on their back, then you both simultaneously jump to get extra height).
In some vents where theres standing height, and is visible from the command view, its possible to build a few structures, perhaps a phase gate? So if a Jet Packer can access a vent, he can maybe build a phase gate to get the rest of the team in there.
<i>Highway to the Hive</i>
Some vents lead straight to the hive, on some maps, the actual hive structure is visible from within the vent. Its great because its hard for kharaa to attack marines in vents! If you can keep the marines coming through the vents and shooting or grenading the hive, its possible to take out a hive without a seige.
Once again, for this to work, the Commander has to have a thorough understanding of the ventilation system on the map. A commander can help his team by building a turret factory beneath the vent entrance, then stacking a turret on top of the TF, to act as a ladder, but also stopping the kharaa from coming behind the marines.
Some vents open up into quite large spaces, I've never tried it, but they look like they could fit a small marine base inside them!! The only thing that might stop them, are lerks with umbra and spore cloud, <i>a few grenades will stop that quite easily</i>.
Although many might argue that crawling through a vent makes slow progress, sometimes it is faster than trying to get through walls of kharaa defensive structure, and in the early game, it is a safer way of moving through the map. Make sure that none of your teammates have been parasited, to be extra stealthy.
<i>Final Word</i>
The Kharaa use stealth, so why can't the Marines? Crawling through the vent, forces the Marines to be silent, no footsteps can be heard, it is the stealthiest way to get around a map. Its used in real life too, the special forces use ducts, vents, ceiling spaces to seize the enemy. Large open spaces are the easiest way to get killed by an ambush, so they are best avoided.
What do you think?
Comments
Also, jetpacks can be used to move fast in them. Hold down jump, and you'll skim the roof, and move very fast, faster than a skulk!
also maps where there are alot of vets the aliens can build towers in there to heal them though the walls so watchg out for them as you go into some vents.
also on bast , you can use the vents to get to engin hive+ a position to seige feedwater hive with no aliens problem , then you can use the bridge to get to the refinery hive and can seige or just attck it , works very well <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
On the down side u cant run off to reload if u miss because theres no where to go except into his mouth. Can be a deathtrap.
Good for mid game to avoid OC's.
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If he comes straight at you, you shouldn't miss, period.
If he ducks in and out, trying to waste your ammo, reload every half-clip. He won't expect it, and hopefully will charge when he thinks you've run out.
If a lot of them come at you, pull out your knife and go down in style. You're dead anyway. <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='biggrin.gif'><!--endemo-->
Bast - between feedwater and atmospheric, above steam generator
Caged - not appropriate
Eclipse - under access corridors in center of map
Hera - not appropriate
Nancy - near port engine room (or outside the ship, if you want to be a llama)
Nothing - above viaduct; smaller space near ominous kismet
Tanith - all over the place: between research labs and waste handling, inside chemical transport room, small space between fusion reactor and sat com hives, and between cargo storage and waste handling hive
Hope that the com has upgraded your armor. Or that there's someone behind you to finish the job.
Can end up getting both of u.
works both ways i rekon
It was on ns_nothing, and was commanding. The aliens were stationed in viaduct, and we came to the conclusion that the best thing to do was move to Cargo bay and set up a new base there. We made the move without a hitch, and set up our comm chair and IPs.
We set up some defense, then began upgrading. Wasn't too long till we had jetpacks and level 3 everything. I equipped my entire team with jetpacks, and sent them out on a mission to destroy the hive. It finally hit me that we forgot to take power silo, so I rerouted them to head over there. They ran into defense right away.
I sighed, figuring fades would be pounding my base any second. I moved my view back to the base, then heard the explosion of the mines we had set in the vent in order to keep the skulks/lerks out. Not long after, a flood of fades entered my base, all going for the turrets, and not the TF for some reason. I realized that there was no way my men could take out the fades, so I began scanning the map for weaknesses.
I soon came across the large area in the vent behind viaduct, and realized it was the only place to hide. I ordered my men to go there without making a sound, not to shoot anything. They went to the waypoint I set without a problem. They entered the area and I set down a new comm chair. They built it, and then I placed an IP as well. An armory, TF, and then waiting ensued. I upgraded the TF, waited for the resources, then built a siege when I had enough. I sensor swept cargo and realized the aliens didn't even bother to build there, they figured since they had us on the run it would be just a matter of hunting us down. There was no time to lose. The moment the siege began firing, I dropped a welder to one of the marines and sent them out on strike on the power silo hive. They went, got behind the hive, and the welder-man fired up his welder. I laughed in triumph as the hives died within seconds of each other, and the auto-kill kicked in.
In conclusion, NEVER give up a battle. NEVER say the game is over. And ALWAYS use the vents to our advantage <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
We aliens spent at least a half hour trying to chew the marines out of that thing. Finally managed it when I skulked to boost my fade, Slappy, up there. Wow, was that ever a hard spot to get the 'rines out of!
The vents on that map lead right up to the Hive location, then go straight up and have an opening near the ceiling.
It was extremely successful because in the previous game (I had been commanding before), I had set up siege bases in the "standard" locations, and the aliens had a tough time breaking through, giving us enough time to take out the Hives.
The second time, they somehow found out I was commanding again, and assumed I was going to do the same thing. Suckers. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='smile.gif'><!--endemo-->
the main problem with relocating to a vent is that most of the time on public servers marines are stupid and dont remain stealthy, but even if your marines do stay stealthy, the fact that you lose your starting resource is a big blow. It is quite difficult to use this even as a last resort, as fades will run around and find any resources you have. And it is inevitable that a skulk will run around and discover the base. What will happen then? Will the base be turreted? I have done this once on bast as a stalling tactic, and our commander managed to (almost >_<) siege one hive before an idiot marine fired out of the vent next to our base, and suddenly the base was filed with bile bombs. ah... well besides the place behind great viaduct, is there another big place on another map that works?