Countering The Mine Rush

Cantide · April 2003

<div class="IPBDescription">Any ideas?</div> In the last few games I've played on public servers as an alien, our team has been subject to the dreaded mine rush. Basically what the commander did was place armories at key places around a map and then spammed mines to all the marines around it. He did this at both hives that we didn't have and they were secured by the marines in a matter of a minute. With skulks and lerks unable to trip mines without actually hitting them (at the single hive state), how do you guys clear out 20-25 mines from an area in the time it takes for the marines to come back to the mined area and secure it even more with phase gates and turret factories?

The only thing I can think of is having someone go gorge to spit on them and then go back to skulk when they are clear. Is this a viable solution?

eggmac · April 2003

Best thing to do in such a situation is try to attack their main base at all costs. The marines will be bound to their base without being able to expand quickly and the comm will be forced to spend much res on his own base. That will give the aliens some time to get rts/dcs up.
Just don't let them expand... (sounds stupid, I know)

Frogg2 · April 2003

gorge can trigger all mines with spit.

Ratfire · April 2003

Mines are 8 resources for 5 mines. Skulks are 0 resources for 1 skulk, don't worry about getting killed by a mine early in the game. Constant explosions freak marines out, proving the effectiveness of mines, and forcing the commander to utilize more resources to drop more. This means that while the marine expansion group is waiting for the 22 resources to build the next res tower, the comm is wasting that buildup to put more mines around main. Sure you won't get in, but it will slow down their expansion.

Also, most mines now, if they're placed well are on the floor. This means, if you're good, you can go airborne, and land ontop of a building. If you shift your weight around, it's more than likely you're going to set of a mine, but if you just attack from where ever you landed on a building, you have a good chance of killing it with no problems from the mines.

Ratfire

ElvenThief · April 2003

Before you go suiciding any mines, just remember that marines WILL take advantage of half a dead alien team.

K_e_r_b_e_r_o_s · April 2003

The dreaded mine rush? I've never seen this before. Just let them eat their own resources away while you rush their mines. Build behind their lines of mine emplacements and watch their groups break in both morale and organization. Its the least we can hope for.

ElvenThief · April 2003

When you see a mine rush done properly, you won't be happy with the results on the alien side. It requires a proper amount of planning and pre-emptive blocking by the marines.
I've combo'd armories in the field along with pre-emptive sieges and a scattering of mines in the thick of it. It is horrifically hard to stop as an alien, as the res for mines come quickly.
While your skulks are suiciding on mines, they're not taking out marine res nodes, and they're focusing on parts of the map that marines have already left to whatever fate they have (although a camping marine certainly increases the longevity of such areas). Timing is everything in this game and if you're not slowing the marines effectively, you're in trouble. Clearing out mine fields is something that can be left to gorge spit, or better yet a fade. Getting that fade will be the toughest part.
That and phase gates combo perfect with mines. Instead of teching up jp/hmg, you can pretty much seal the game quicker with a good offensive crew. If your marines aren't that good of shots, the mines are just the added kicker.

Sandrock · April 2003

As soon as you get level 3 carapace, you can detonate at least one mine without dying. Also in certain situations and only in certain places, you can actually run over mines and detonate them without taking any damage (Might be a map bug or a lag bug, not sure). In any case, the top of the armories usually aren't mined, so if you can drop on top and eat it, that will temporarily stop the flow of mines.

AIRinc_FaReZ · April 2003

Using your skulks as minesweepers would slow your team down more than it will slow the marine's. Dont do it.

Frogg2 · April 2003

Use the Gorge SPit!!!

lagger · April 2003

uhhh... i'm gonna have to agree with frogg on this one... gg gorg spit :/

N1ght · April 2003

i think perhaps the best plan would be to simply ignore it for the time being and hit their spawn, failing that group up and have one gorge spit on the mines, and skulks follow up, as suggested above.

deaths_hand · April 2003

or you could do something amazing and have a few skulks at at least 1 hive to defend it like they should be instead of pointlessly rushing <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/confused.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='confused.gif'>

besides IF they do manage to get to both hives and get an armoury up there will already be at elast 1-2 marines there and that phase is going to get up very quickly.

so either do your job and scout hives/RTs or just sit back and die.

gorge spit is an option but with marines shooting you at the tme it dont help.

Paq · April 2003

Or two/three of your team could go to gorge and rush in the hive and start to shoot those mines, while skulks are preparing to attack. All of those gorges might die, but they can manage to clear a hive well enough from mines so skulks can rush in with level 3 carapaces. Marines probaly has spended all their resources for armorys, mines and phase gates, so they don't have any weapon/armor upgrades, which makes that skulk rush even more powerfull... <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/confused.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='confused.gif'>

And when the hive is clear one of those skulks go to gorge, heals others, builds some defences and saves for hive.

Zanid · April 2003

I see mines and I go nuts... I'll show them to spend 8 res on a pack of bricks I can blow up with my face. Great opportunity to make the comm spend EVEN MORE trying to fix holes in mine grids.

d00d ]|------ me
d00d ]|------ me
d00d ]|------ me
d00d ]|------ me
d00d ]|------ me

(5 mine kills if you can't tell)

I just waisted 8 res and 3 of those mines will probably provide a hole in the grid anyway.

Cantide · April 2003

The problem with using skulks to clear up the mines is that they don't respawn fast enough at the one hive stage. I'd go gorge to clear em if I wouldn't get flamed by my team saying "OMG U N00B!!!111 U R WASTING R REZ!!!111OMG!!!111oneoneone"

That_Annoying_Kid · April 2003

gorge spit destoys mines, and gorges can heal other aliens.
no mines, and full health/armour aliens=kewl
<img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif'>
not to mention acid rockets/bile bombs destroy mines as well

Frogg2 · April 2003

Oh <a href='http://www.froggeh.com/downloads/gorgespit.zip' target='_blank'>here</a> is the demo I forgot to include.

AIRinc_FaReZ · April 2003

Woot demo. I repeat, using skulks as minesweepers is BAD. And SINCE its in a hive room, assuming you have Cara, the Gorge should be able to detonate (not spit detonate, but REAL detonate) at least 1 mine without dying, since hes being healed.

ZiGGY · April 2003

spit detonates better <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif'>

AIRinc_FaReZ · April 2003

IRON GORGE PWNZ JOO <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/pudgy.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='pudgy.gif'> man those fatt3hs with Cara are REALLY hard to break. Its like punching a cement filled bag. Of flesh.

Countering The Mine Rush

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