Post by TheGrandKababi on Oct 3, 2011 9:08:54 GMT -8
Group Strategy
All group techniques have essentially three goals: Speed, Stealth, and Support. Speed is vital in achieving mission objectives, in stunning single zombies, in fleeing zombie attacks, and in breaking sieges. Stealth is important to hunting zombies in early game, in obtaining intelligence on the hordes whereabouts, and in surviving the late game. Support is key for defending points, for breaking sieges, and in succeeding in missions. Yet, each of the three S's directly cuts away from the others.
Single-Man
Overview
A one man group, if performed well, is able to be both the fastest and stealthiest form of human unit. However, lack of support and synchronization with other humans means that every action must be executed perfectly. Don't check every cranny? You're dead. Run out of ammo at the wrong time? You're dead. Trip? You're dead. There is no support, no backup, and no safety at all. One human alone is primly vulnerable.
Proper Use
Considering the large disadvantages of Single-Man movement in regards to finding hidden zombies and openly combatting groups of zombies, single-man movement is only recommended for late-game survivalism. In early game lurking zombies are more likely to pick you off, and in mid game the lack of ability to combat zombie groups cripples both mission ability and survivability.
Equipment
Load outs for a lone human should almost always be of the Scout build. A light, quiet and high capacity blaster is key. Range and rate of fire can be sacrificed if need be. Barricades, Alpha troopers, Mavericks, and Recons are all highly recommended as primary weapons. With adequate modification Stampedes, longshots, raiders, and deploys may work for a one man group. Recommended mods are minimization, dead space foaming, clip system modification, plunger seal replacement, and brass barrelling. Other mods which may work include integration of other guns, plunger shortening, and spring and battery replacement may work. In particular, AR removal is a difficult choice. It may add significant range, but also increases the noise of firing. Padding the plunger head usually helps, but a fully silent blaster is impossible.
Encounters
Encounter strategy for a single human should be focused on avoiding as many fights as possible. The risk of death is massive, and each encounter increases this risk. Only encounters necessary to stay alive, maintain a daily routine and achieve vital missions should be actively engaged in.
Two to Five
Small group tactics consist of groups of two to five. Anything above that can be considered a large squad. The advantages and disadvantages of each size are notable, with two man groups providing a solid and less death prone stealth team, and five man groups being a more mobile and stealthy version of the standard combat squad. In addition, small groups are by far the most customizable groups. Numbers, load outs, tactical goals, and strategy can all be tailored to specific groups.
From a planning standpoint, it's a good idea to think of the two man group and the five man group for examples of how to strategize for small groups, and work from there. The two man group is similar to single man group with a few key differences, and a five man group is similar to a squad of smaller size and increased specialization.
Two Man
Overview
A two man group is a very useful group for silent spying operations, as well as ambushes on small zombie groups, and emergency achievement of objectives. In terms of useful application of a two man operation, the key is to understand that a two man group is quick and mobile, but by no means guarantees the success of any operation. With two men there are double the amount of eyes, and one person to cover the other during reloading, jams, hydration breaks, and any other incapacitation. Speed and Stealth aren't severely hampered assuming that both members of the group are relatively fast, but if one person fails, both fail.
Proper Use
For quick success in zombie heavy areas the two man group is a vital element, but survivability is low in this form of group. There is still significant risk of lone zombies attacking. As such, only targets of value should be intentionally encountered. Stealth is still key. Combat should only be engaged with significant likelihood of success.
Load Outs
Loadouts have a much greater potential for customization in a two man group. Considering that stealth and mobility must still be focused on, no fully Heavy Weapons or Ranger load out will be very effective. However, some increased firepower is still achievable. Consider packing additional clips and darts, and packing more powerful weaponry. Longshots, Stampedes, and Raiders may be used without very heavy modification without worrying about compromising safety, and dual wielding may be experimented in. That said, finding an ideal balance between speed, stealth, and firepower is vital. Using one man group weapons may be useful or using larger firepower. The Scout class is still highly recommended, but transitional classes like the Assault and Sharpshooter may also be useful.
Five Man
Overview
Five man groups are the most mobile group that is entirely combat ready for moderate-scale horde encounters. With well enough trained players it can reach close to the mobility of a two man group, and give sustained and reliable firepower. The key to speed is avoiding taking breaks as much as possible, but this may reduce effectiveness of individual players. Additionally, stealth is hurt by each man and more so by talking between players as a whole. That said, there is greatly reduced risk of total group wipe, and even with one or two player casualties a five man group is still able to achieve missions.
Proper Use
Long term survival and mission completion with high success in hotly contested areas relies almost entirely on a five man group. The combination of firepower, organization, and mobility allows this type of group to take out moderately sized hordes and still quickly complete goals. For as long as mission completion is feasible, five man groups will be vital to missions which require both mobility and combat reliability. Not to mention that well organized five-mans can combine and break on the fly, allowing for larger groups to be formed quickly. This makes large stand up battles and siege breaking much easier to organize.
Load Outs
Five man load outs can have massive variety. Heavies should almost always be present in a five man group, and Rangers or 'Naders provide useful services, especially in specific tactical situations. That said, every person should keep at least a mild Scout influence in their load out, both to increase mobility and to have increased one man survival in case of group failure.
Classes
Within human play, there are an infinite number of potential load outs. There are upwards of a hundred blasters, each with at least two mods and a very large amount of integration possibilities, not to mention the possibilities given by socks (and various sock delivery systems), poppers, blowguns and other custom equipment. Even without adding in modified tac-rail tools, and treating modification as a linear progression, there are still hundreds of thousands of two blaster load outs. Given the impossibility of listing every single load out, Classes are a tool used to understand and apply load outs to specialized roles with specific tactical goals. The four classes are Heavy, Ranger, Grenadier, and Scout. Heavies are specialists in high rate of fire blasters, generally used for large scale combat against hordes. Rangers are range and stealth focused players, they usually provide long range support against zombies and assassinate dangerous zombie targets. Scouts are fragile speedsters, usually with light weaponry focused more on mobility than damage. They are messengers, mission saviours, flankers, and excellent distractions. Grenadiers are a difficult class to pin down. They use a variety of specialized weapons, from socks, to throw packets of darts, to poppers, to shot gunned pneumatic blasters like the titan. In the simplest terms they are a class devoted to fighting the horde in innovative ways. What they lack in range and accuracy they make up for with firepower, mobility, and unorthodox tactics.
All group techniques have essentially three goals: Speed, Stealth, and Support. Speed is vital in achieving mission objectives, in stunning single zombies, in fleeing zombie attacks, and in breaking sieges. Stealth is important to hunting zombies in early game, in obtaining intelligence on the hordes whereabouts, and in surviving the late game. Support is key for defending points, for breaking sieges, and in succeeding in missions. Yet, each of the three S's directly cuts away from the others.
Single-Man
Overview
A one man group, if performed well, is able to be both the fastest and stealthiest form of human unit. However, lack of support and synchronization with other humans means that every action must be executed perfectly. Don't check every cranny? You're dead. Run out of ammo at the wrong time? You're dead. Trip? You're dead. There is no support, no backup, and no safety at all. One human alone is primly vulnerable.
Proper Use
Considering the large disadvantages of Single-Man movement in regards to finding hidden zombies and openly combatting groups of zombies, single-man movement is only recommended for late-game survivalism. In early game lurking zombies are more likely to pick you off, and in mid game the lack of ability to combat zombie groups cripples both mission ability and survivability.
Equipment
Load outs for a lone human should almost always be of the Scout build. A light, quiet and high capacity blaster is key. Range and rate of fire can be sacrificed if need be. Barricades, Alpha troopers, Mavericks, and Recons are all highly recommended as primary weapons. With adequate modification Stampedes, longshots, raiders, and deploys may work for a one man group. Recommended mods are minimization, dead space foaming, clip system modification, plunger seal replacement, and brass barrelling. Other mods which may work include integration of other guns, plunger shortening, and spring and battery replacement may work. In particular, AR removal is a difficult choice. It may add significant range, but also increases the noise of firing. Padding the plunger head usually helps, but a fully silent blaster is impossible.
Encounters
Encounter strategy for a single human should be focused on avoiding as many fights as possible. The risk of death is massive, and each encounter increases this risk. Only encounters necessary to stay alive, maintain a daily routine and achieve vital missions should be actively engaged in.
Two to Five
Small group tactics consist of groups of two to five. Anything above that can be considered a large squad. The advantages and disadvantages of each size are notable, with two man groups providing a solid and less death prone stealth team, and five man groups being a more mobile and stealthy version of the standard combat squad. In addition, small groups are by far the most customizable groups. Numbers, load outs, tactical goals, and strategy can all be tailored to specific groups.
From a planning standpoint, it's a good idea to think of the two man group and the five man group for examples of how to strategize for small groups, and work from there. The two man group is similar to single man group with a few key differences, and a five man group is similar to a squad of smaller size and increased specialization.
Two Man
Overview
A two man group is a very useful group for silent spying operations, as well as ambushes on small zombie groups, and emergency achievement of objectives. In terms of useful application of a two man operation, the key is to understand that a two man group is quick and mobile, but by no means guarantees the success of any operation. With two men there are double the amount of eyes, and one person to cover the other during reloading, jams, hydration breaks, and any other incapacitation. Speed and Stealth aren't severely hampered assuming that both members of the group are relatively fast, but if one person fails, both fail.
Proper Use
For quick success in zombie heavy areas the two man group is a vital element, but survivability is low in this form of group. There is still significant risk of lone zombies attacking. As such, only targets of value should be intentionally encountered. Stealth is still key. Combat should only be engaged with significant likelihood of success.
Load Outs
Loadouts have a much greater potential for customization in a two man group. Considering that stealth and mobility must still be focused on, no fully Heavy Weapons or Ranger load out will be very effective. However, some increased firepower is still achievable. Consider packing additional clips and darts, and packing more powerful weaponry. Longshots, Stampedes, and Raiders may be used without very heavy modification without worrying about compromising safety, and dual wielding may be experimented in. That said, finding an ideal balance between speed, stealth, and firepower is vital. Using one man group weapons may be useful or using larger firepower. The Scout class is still highly recommended, but transitional classes like the Assault and Sharpshooter may also be useful.
Five Man
Overview
Five man groups are the most mobile group that is entirely combat ready for moderate-scale horde encounters. With well enough trained players it can reach close to the mobility of a two man group, and give sustained and reliable firepower. The key to speed is avoiding taking breaks as much as possible, but this may reduce effectiveness of individual players. Additionally, stealth is hurt by each man and more so by talking between players as a whole. That said, there is greatly reduced risk of total group wipe, and even with one or two player casualties a five man group is still able to achieve missions.
Proper Use
Long term survival and mission completion with high success in hotly contested areas relies almost entirely on a five man group. The combination of firepower, organization, and mobility allows this type of group to take out moderately sized hordes and still quickly complete goals. For as long as mission completion is feasible, five man groups will be vital to missions which require both mobility and combat reliability. Not to mention that well organized five-mans can combine and break on the fly, allowing for larger groups to be formed quickly. This makes large stand up battles and siege breaking much easier to organize.
Load Outs
Five man load outs can have massive variety. Heavies should almost always be present in a five man group, and Rangers or 'Naders provide useful services, especially in specific tactical situations. That said, every person should keep at least a mild Scout influence in their load out, both to increase mobility and to have increased one man survival in case of group failure.
Classes
Within human play, there are an infinite number of potential load outs. There are upwards of a hundred blasters, each with at least two mods and a very large amount of integration possibilities, not to mention the possibilities given by socks (and various sock delivery systems), poppers, blowguns and other custom equipment. Even without adding in modified tac-rail tools, and treating modification as a linear progression, there are still hundreds of thousands of two blaster load outs. Given the impossibility of listing every single load out, Classes are a tool used to understand and apply load outs to specialized roles with specific tactical goals. The four classes are Heavy, Ranger, Grenadier, and Scout. Heavies are specialists in high rate of fire blasters, generally used for large scale combat against hordes. Rangers are range and stealth focused players, they usually provide long range support against zombies and assassinate dangerous zombie targets. Scouts are fragile speedsters, usually with light weaponry focused more on mobility than damage. They are messengers, mission saviours, flankers, and excellent distractions. Grenadiers are a difficult class to pin down. They use a variety of specialized weapons, from socks, to throw packets of darts, to poppers, to shot gunned pneumatic blasters like the titan. In the simplest terms they are a class devoted to fighting the horde in innovative ways. What they lack in range and accuracy they make up for with firepower, mobility, and unorthodox tactics.