Tribes Ascend Doombringer Heavy on Flag Guide

Tribes Ascend Doombringer Heavy on Flag Guide by Grizzam

This is meant to be an open discussion/guide for those looking to play doombringer heavy-on-flag.

It is open to criticism and question, but here I hope we will help create useful HOF players and provide tips and tricks they can use so that people will rage more and claim ‘no skill’ all the time. Because it takes literally no skill to stand on a flag and hold down the left mouse button, RIGHT!?!

RIGHT!

SO – YOU WANNA BE A HEAVY ON FLAG?

Here is what I use. I have been having a bit of luck with this lately, it is very effective: and despite what some people claim, it does involve some skill.

What those claiming it doesn’t involve any skill are actually claiming, is that it doesn’t involve any skill to shoot THEM down. Remember that. There is a lot more to play DMB as HOF than simply standing in the way and trying to chaingun people down. I will delve into it a bit here, and hopefully give a little help to our aspiring HOFs!

NO MORE TAKING THE FLAG AT WILL PEOPLE!!

Here is your loadout:

Standard CG DMB – All maps but DRYDOCK! (why? Because I find HOF on drydock extremely difficult to manage, flags can be grabbed from an almost 360 degree plane and at high speeds by those who know what they’re doing – even those going UPHILL will manage to get away with enough speed. Further, the exposure you have limits your ability to keep mines, Force Fields, and tabs on them, while the vulnerability of the sensor means you are missing your early warning system. You are heavily exposed in DRYDOCK. I advise you to only apply this guide to DRYDOCK if you are confident in your team and their ability to help control your half of the map).
Main: Chaingun!
Secondary: (Sabre Launcher, meh – do you have a choice? Hopefully by the time you read this)
Belt: MINES!
Perks: Safety 3rd
Perks: Superheavy
Pack: ForceField

The Basic Tactics:

Your mission is to stop all flag runners at all costs. In doing so you need to utilize your trifecta-of-weapons (CG, Mines, Bodyblock) in a manner that allows maximum coverage of your flag. This is different in every map, and you must adjust to each map accordingly.

Do not fret or worry about slipping up in the beginning. You must learn the routes on a map-by-map basis, and you will occasionally be challenged by a creative flag runner or a perilous situation. Remember: your duty is always the flag, not the Jugg heading to your generator, and not the sniper on the hill harassing you/spamming spinfusors at your stand (you will learn to hate these guys, but they are distractions only and you must try not to be distracted when you cannot afford to be).

In setting up your initial flag defense, the first thing you want to do is choose a spot for your forcefield. I did NOT add the forcefield to the ‘trifecta of weapons’ list for several reasons: one is that they are not reliable at stopping the enemy, another is that they are easy to destroy, and last is that you cannot depend on them because of the first two. An experienced capper will weaken your FF and knock it down on their way in, and if you leave to get a new one, chances are you will see your flag dissapear right behind you!

THAT SAID – FF’s are important to use if you can afford to go get one! This means you should probably use just 1 in the beginning and as you get points, try to deploy a remote invo so that you can grab them readily. It is IMPERITIVE you try to get a remote invo out for several reasons: one, it allows you to restock on FF and mines, two: it instantly replenishes your energy letting you move quickly back to the stand, and three: it gives your defense the option to switch to tech/grab more turrets! Be warned that you will see these dissapear very quickly so if you call one, use it fast, it will probably be gone in the next few minutes.

So where do you put your FF? That is almost entirely up to preference. First you want to envisoin your flag stand with a 360 planar view, and then subtract anything from that circle where a capper cannot come in at speed to get your flag. In crossfire, we have fairly direct routes (for the most part… again: innovative cappers will challenge this) that go front-back and across the leingth of the ship/base. Pick one of these two directions and deploy your FF as close to the flag to block that direction as you can.

In Temple Ruinis, we have a number of directions a capper can come in. Personally I prefer to put the FF just on the ramp leading up, even though this route is less often traveled, the route is actually ABOVE YOU and your attention is better divided in a flat plane than considering what is directly overhead. On crossfire, I actually prefer to block the sideways path. In Sunstar, I try to put the FF on the opposite side as the turret is on to encourage people to come in and out of that direction so the base turret can assist me, if its up.

-Note – some players like to place their FF at the very last second to trap cappers. This is a good strategy but one where you need somebody on your flag as the flag stand itself repels FF’s from being placed near it, when you walk away to place your FF you are leaving your flag vulnerable. Don’t make it a habit unless you have somebody covering your flag/enough mines to be comfortable doing this.

Once you have your FF up, its time to deploy your mines! You have 3 mines, if you have saftey third, and while you might be tempted to put these on the flag, there are some better placement options and I’ll explain the art of mine-laying.

MINE LAYING RULES!
1) Two mines should not be capable of being blown up with the same spinfusor shot if that shot aims directly at a mine. The exception to this is when you have sufficient defense that your mines are protected (yes, protect your MINES!)

2) The FF entrance needs a mine, at least one, to be considered ‘safe’ – some people actually have methods to get past a FF and a mine. Typically speaking though, having both a FF and a mine along a route is enough to stop most flag runners, standing in the way should ensure they don’t get away or live through the pass.

3) TWO mines need to cover your non FF entrance. This is primarily so that you can afford not to look at a route when somebody comes through: and keep in mind infiltrators will be coming in at you invisible, so you need to try to defend against this invisible threat. It happens.

4) Saving a mine for the flag is a good idea! Once you see a capper coming in, its good to have one mine still on you so that you can slap it down and then MOVE IN FRONT OF IT to block! Don’t stray too far from your flag so that you leave it open, but put the mine in a place that you body block incoming fire from the flag runner by taking hits yourself and leaving your mine alive.

5) Don’t get confused if your mine pops by itself when you throw a new one out: you have a maximum you can deploy, and well… its pretty silly to watch a doombringer frantically throwing mines out to cover every entrance extra-well only to see they are always 1 mine short. Yeah. Go ahead and laugh at me.

When you have an ideal mine setup, direct hits with a spinfusor to you will only take out the mine on the flag but none around it (and sometimes its okay not to have the mine on the flag if you can’t get away to get more). With the right setup you can actually use yourself as a decoy so people trying to clear the flag will hit you, but leave the mines intact! When you familiarize yourself with mine layouts, you will use both your FF and yourself to protect mines, and you will frequently get ‘explosive spree’ accolades which is a notable achievement as your main weapon is a chaingun. You will also get kills when you aren’t even near your flag like you should be. Just remember to re-deploy !

ITS COMIN RIGHT FOR US!! – simple tips for the CG

The CG is a very good weapon, but it will encourage you to leave your position at times. Only you can decide if this is a good idea or not, and typically, it is NOT a good idea. The only exceptions I would say is if you are certain you can gun down the flag runner on their way out, then go for it. Suicide if they get away and you need to get back to your flag stand/need to set up your defense again.

Your best friend when using your CG, believe it or not, is the sensor. Yeah, that sensor is invaluable to a doombringer, especially when you get used to seeing people on their way in before you can even hit them. Rev up that CG and start gunning!

Your other ‘best friends’ are your base turrets. If you hear one popping off, it means somebody is nearby and you need to turn quickly to check and see if they are coming at you or not.

Your last chance warning system are tech turrets, I hope you have one near you. A tech turret literally squeals when an enemy is nearby, and this is your last warning you will ever get if you have your back turned or otherwise don’t see the capper coming. If you have by chance wandered from your flag, this squeal is a reminder you need to step back on the flag – if you haven’t spotted the incoming and you have a mine, it may be a good idea to step to the flag/deploy the mine and try to find the incoming all at once.

Most people will move in a very simple manner when coming at the flag: they move either in an arc, getting altitude and losing it, or they will attempt to dodge your bullets by going a little to the sides.

When you see somebody coming in for your flag, it isn’t a bad idea to take a step BACK and attempt to bodyblock them just as they touch the flag. This means you return it and you get the ammo/healthpack/another mine! Kudos for you! If they attempt to dodge side to side, resist the urge to move your gun side to side and instead take a step TO the side, keeping half of yourself on the flag and the other half moving towards the direction you anticipate. If the incoming attempts to move further to the side, they will end up missing your flag – and most likely hitting a mine – so resist the urge to match them completely and stay rooted to your flag. Simple strafing movements make you deadly accurate, its almost hax…

Last, when people are coming in and dodging side to side, or just coming and you aren’t able to stop them, try to recall where your mines are and move in a fashion that funnels them towards the mine while still bodyblocking. This is where playing HOF tests you and sees if you are skilled or just learning, knowing where your mines are, where to stand, and who to focus on as well as how to multitask targets while only being able to aim at one.

Despite what some people say, it really isnt’ as easy as they make it out to be. There will be plenty of easy kills, and lots of ‘oops….’ moments. When you start getting double kills and keeping your flag, the heat is being applied to your flag management skills and you’re doing a good job.

Stay focused, frequently sweep the area, listen for your turrets, and place your mines and you will get the hang of it! Eventually you will start bumping people into mines and picking up the flag/ammopacks in the same movements. Try not to get sidetracked chasing your flag, especially if somebody else is going to return it for you: get back to the stand or get to a remote invo/ammo pack for more deployables.

WHEN THEY MAD AND DON’T WANT YOU THERE ANYMORE

Lets face it, staying glued to your flag stand is not a job you’re going to live through all the time. Eventually, the enemy team will get fed up trying to get the flag and somebody, or multiple somebodies, are going to come after YOU and not your flag. They’re going to clear your forcefields, your mines, and you if they can: and having just a chaingun to work with, your movement and attack/defense methods are pretty easy to read and anticipate.

Fortunately for you, you can still defend your flag to some degree by giving them some space. Remember the ‘imagine 360s and every which way a capper can come in’ ? If you are under extreme pressure, you can attempt to cover one or two routes by moving off of hte flag. Try your best to address the threat without completely removing your view or position from a capping route – and certainly do not get upset if you die. You’re going to get sniped in your little HOF-box. You’re going to get mortared. Infiltrators are going to show up and throw stickies at you: its inevitable, try to balance defending your flag with defending your flag zone.

SUPPLEMENTING THE OFFENSE!

Once you get good at this, you’re going to end up with a small dilemma on your hands. Lots of points, but nothing to spend them on!

Lucky for you, there is indeed a way to spend those credits that helps your team to win the game: call in an orbital from ACROSS THE MAP! In Sunstar, you can aim for the pyramid tower right behind the flag stand – typically good if their gen has just gone down. Walk the laser down the pyramid at the last second to nudge the center of the orbital closer to the flag stand. This is a real hit-or-miss orbital strike call, it can hit 5 people, it can hit 0 people. The usefulness of it is that you can call it in from across the map and only give up your job on HOF for a few seconds to do so.

On Temple Ruins, aim for the top of one of the pillars that holds the overhang. This is a real hit-or-miss call again, but it CAN and DOES get kills from time to time and especially deployables. Once in awhile you can get the other team’s HOF with a lucky splash – this also seems to be useful when the other team gets away with your flag, as it covers much of the area around the flag and the platform on top, often bagging you kills of the flag carrier or people defending them.

Crossfire should be self explanatory for orbitals.

Well… that was a textwall and a half… any feedback? Input? Questions?