Sensory Counter
Kid-A
Join Date: 2002-12-17 Member: 10908Members
<div class="IPBDescription">We need one...</div> I've commed a few games (more that I'd like as 'comm fear' is back with a vengence - noone will comm). And I've won about 50%-75% of the games. But recently Khaara have started to use sensory really well and even MT doesn't help my poor marines getting munched.
Now Obs is supposedly 'the counter' to it, but how can I afford to spam weak 20 res structures all around the map? I tried it, pointless as soon as its left undefended for a second it was got, once even when it was with a TF and turrets. It's just too weak and such a res burden.
Does anyone have a counter to competent sensory useage?
Now Obs is supposedly 'the counter' to it, but how can I afford to spam weak 20 res structures all around the map? I tried it, pointless as soon as its left undefended for a second it was got, once even when it was with a TF and turrets. It's just too weak and such a res burden.
Does anyone have a counter to competent sensory useage?
Comments
I was aliens in another game, and the enemy comm had a well stocked dual RT minibase which we intended to take from him. I had sensories everywhere, and 7-8 fades/lerks/onos kept going in from nowhere. He just gathered his troops there, pinged, and then the troops flattened us. Took us an inordinate amount of time to take it, helped by our securing of all three hives.
Generally marines will shoot at likely Offensive/sensory hidey holes, and if more marine players equate invisible RT with a sensory, it would work out easier for the commander (handier to let them shoot all round and drop a few ammo packs on top).
Once a sensory is cleared its imperative to make sure nothing is hiding and rebuilding. Again, job for the marines if they shoot off a few rounds. You WILL lose tons of res if you scan everywhere, so only scan places you intend to hit or that you intend to hold *properly*.
Summary: Identification of magically appearing units
Massing of competent troops
Scanning/grenade fire
Lay the smack down
CONSOLIDATE after.
5 mins later he has a phase gate outside, a TF, 3 sentries and the anti structure sentry. As its a hive all the Kharaa start swarming in their droves. Marines finally get some GL but by that stage its too late, they're jammed in a corridor and onos keep stomp/devouring them on by one. Commander pings the hive room and reveals the hive but the marines are a corridor away where they can see the onos charging at them because cloak didn't extend that far.
Marines lost. Had they snafu'd the hive on discovery, rather than bash the RT, they'd probably have been able to keep the PG up.
I'd like to think it was partly "new map" problems but even still, the comm or soldiers didn't notice the telltale signs and ended up getting stomped <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif'><!--endemo-->
If you know the aliens have sensories, put Obs in any place you want to keep <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif'><!--endemo-->
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The other choice, of course, is to drop obs at all critical junctures... Cheap trick but: sink them with four marines around to build on the way down.
Youre lucky then, its easier to win as marines that way.
Sensory first is great fun, very effective etc for about five minutes. And then its rubbish.
Late game you miss your redemption/celerity as onos, or your carapace as fade.
Sensories = still the weakest first choice.
Youre just lucky they didnt put mcs down first.
You guys have pretty much hit it on the head, observatories strategically placed around the map is the way to go. Scanning no longer costs 3 res, every observatory has its own energy pool (max of 100, cost's 25 to scan) which slowly recharges.
The commander needs be aware of his marines movements and scan ahead where sensory towers may become a problem.
However, don't just place observatories randomly around the map without keeping them protected. If you can't afford a TF + turrets or its not viable, try placing one right next to an electrified RT for a bit of defense. Ideally, mine it up or get a TF.
killed about 3-4 TFs + farm and outpost after flanking it to where the turrets couldn't hit me, and wham, it was down faster than the marines could sneeze.
As Marines, about my 3rd or 4th game I started suggesting the com drop an Obs so we wouldn't lose it to cloakers.
One of my favorite Kharaa actions was on lost, i think, I sensory creeped on the one hive with the seige deck... They eventually realized what I was doing, but by then I'd gotten the hive all the way up, and put up a decent number of DCs...
Late game you miss your redemption/celerity as onos, or your carapace as fade."
Late game we have all three hives because in those first few minutes marines can't see squat. Mid game we have two hives and the second is virtually always DC. By that point sensories are all over the map and Comms can't ping us fast enough. And if hive 2 isn't up in 5 minutes you're losing the game anyway. Sensory first on pub servers is a way of life, and having playerd as marine IMHO not enough people know how to counter it or even to shoot a few rounds off to reveal cloaked defences. The only time sensory first becomes a liability is if the Marines keep shotty rushing before the gorges can build Off near the hives.
In one game I've seen aliens rush a 2 rt room over and over and over. The Comm kept pinging and once he ran out the room fell. No doubt he probably thought sensory was rubbish <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin.gif'><!--endemo-->
I.e the marines held a double res location and there was a sensory outside, so aliens kept rushing whilst cloaked?
Why didnt he just build an obs there?
Awareness
As a marine, being alert can go a long way in preventing ambushes. EVEN if a skulk is cloaked, as long as he is out of range of a SC, you can still see the pop-up-text-thing-that-tells-you-if-who-you're-aiming-at-is-an-enemy-or-not. Also, cloak isn't perfect. You can still see a VERY faint outline of the cloaked object. As was stated, your flashlight can highlight this dim outline.
Edit: Observatories help, but they run out of energy too fast, and it costs too much early game to have a small farm of them, as this is the time that sensories are most effective....before marines get many upgrades.
Because we kept piling into the room - his defences had left out 3 approaches because of bad placement, so his men had too much trouble trying to bounce us back and keep the turrets up rather than building an Obs.
By that stage he was down to 3 rts anyway (including those two) so I doubt he had much cash left since he seemed to have spent in on HAs which we promptly devoured up.
scanner uses energy now
Oops! I meant drop scanners everywhere. *embarassed*
Although the point applies equally to losing tons of energy which you can ill afford to lose defending an RT you can't possibly hold.