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If you're looking for a change of pace from the
regular, team oriented style of combat found in Tanarus, Force Wars might
be your cup of tea. If you like zany action that requires full situational
awareness, and a keen sense of alertness, then Force Wars is just the place
for you. Who knows, you just might become a Force Wars addict.
A leading misconception is that Force War arenas are more lagged; they
in fact are no more lagged than regular games, but due to the split second
timing that's often required to set up your kills, the latency is much
more pronounced. A good, fast connection means shots are easier to set
up, and entering recon stations is much quicker (which is true even for
the regular game). However, you'll still have to predict the latency of
the other players, which can vary widely. The key to Force Wars is timing
in setting up your shots, which is for the most part formulated by quickly
assessing your own latency versus the other players.
Setting Up the Shot
Timing, timing, timing. There's no other way to describe the one sole
tactic of Force Wars. There are dozens of set up shots in Force Wars,
and knowing where they are, when a setup is probable, and the timing of
it all will ensure maximum kills on your part. Below are some examples
of good setup shots.
Forward Velocity Shot
Shooting a tank towards its direction of travel results in that tank
getting to its intended destination (or overshooting it) much quicker.
The "Joust" Shot
It's like the old arcade game Joust, but in reverse. The person underneath
has the advantage of making their victim travel further from the impact
of a missile. Conversely, the person getting shot from above won't travel
as far. Use this lower altitude to your advantage.
Ramps
 
It's simple. See Tank A next to ramp. Shoot Tank A so that ramp is used
like a launch pad. Tank A flies across the screen thanks to the ramp.
Tank A dies from impact of fall. Thank ramp. Here's a sequence of two
pictures in case you don't get it.
The Ricochet
Remember those curbs we tried to hop with our bicycle when we were kids?
Remember those times when we didn't quite clear the curb, and we went
flying over our handle bars? That's the ricochet shot. Our bicycle (Tank
A) hits a curb (small section of ramp) at high velocity, flying through
the air. Brings back childhood memories, huh?
The Hail Mary
Force missiles travel far and fast, and can hit tanks far beyond your
visual range. Target an enemy and take a lucky shot. Who knows, you might
catch him while he's next to a ramp. Below is a screenshot of a great
hail mary situation. Just be careful (and we mean it) of teammates. Hail
Marys are not cool when you know teammates are down on the other end.
Know the Terrain
This is not groundbreaking news in the least. Fortunately, it's not
too difficult because the Force War arenas tend to be symmetrical. All
you basically have to learn is one half of the arena, since the other
half is mirrored the exact same way. And you must learn where all the
danger zones are, especially in the area of ramps.
Catwalks
The catwalks, as they're called, are the lower levels of the arena.
Most players avoid these areas, which usually makes them a safe place
to be, especially if you need to move from one part of the arena to another
without incident. However, the flip side of the coin is that some players
have fully mastered the art of killing people on catwalks. Since you're
able to target tanks far beyond what your radar or visual can cover, it's
quite easy to track someone creeping across the narrow walkways. The idea
is to acquire your target's moving reticle, and fire away with appropriate
angle of deflection. Admittedly, this takes a lot of practice, but you
should be able to get the timing down fairly quickly. But knowing how
to do this is not enough to be considered a master. The best players know
how to acquire their target WHILE navigating the precarious catwalks themselves.
It sounds textbook, but it's actually much more difficult than you might
think. Many players will sit still to acquire their target, opening themselves
up to retaliation from their intended victim (who's moving, while you're
not, giving them the advantage), or from someone else altogether. It's
a bad feeling to die because you sat still (remember, a big no-no period!),
and it's worse when you're about to get the perfect angle of deflection
shot off, and suddenly you go plummeting down to your death from someone
else's missile.
The best tip for navigating the catwalks is to watch your radar at all
costs. Force missiles travel fast … real fast. So you need to be on your
toes. When a missile starts coming your way, you better start thinking
about angle of deflection. Most players don't shoot straight at a target
moving across their view; they'll shoot at the point where the missile
and target will impact. It's advised to not travel at a constant top speed
in these cases, but to vary your forward velocity, even stopping altogether
to throw off the aim.
You also want to take care when someone fires a missile at the same
trajectory you're traveling. Although usually this is not fatal (you'll
be pushed forward along the catwalk), it could prove dangerous when approaching
the dogleg turn. The distance you're pushed in these cases depends on
how fast you're traveling. So be careful when approaching a turn with
a missile hot on your trail.
Recon Sitting
A valid tactic that's best described as rapidly going in and out of
recon stations to fire missiles and replenish. It also keeps you semi-invulnerable
to shots, because once you enter a recon station, you're basically immovable.
Have you ever shot someone sitting on a recon pad, only to be flung away
by his missile, and he sits perfectly still? He's recon sitting, and he
accomplishes it by firing his missile, and then quickly enters the recon
before your missile can impact. You take the full brunt of the missile,
and he sits perfectly still without so much as a scratch (plus he's replenished
his missile supply). Repeat the process. Players who have mastered Recon
Sitting are able to kill scores of hardheaded players before eventually
dying themselves. Incidentally, when it comes to Recon Sitting, the faster
your connection, the faster you'll enter the sanctuary of the recon station.
As you can probably imagine, the faster you can get in, the better.
To get rid of a Recon Sitter, you must first make sure you haven't set
yourself up for a shot. Since you'll have to peek your nose over to shoot
him in most cases, you'll want to ensure that when you actually do take
a hit, you don't ricochet off any ramps, or go plummeting over any ledges.
Absolutely do NOT rest on any inclines when taking a shot; always stay
on flat ground. It's also best to take out recon sitters with teammates
so that you can cover different sides. However, recon sitters who find
themselves in this type of multi-sided trouble will clam up in the recon
station and avoid coming out. Since there's not much you can do in these
cases, your best bet is to walk away before someone takes advantage of
your exposed rear, or wait silently for him to poke his head out. The
best visual cue as to when someone has left the recon station is to watch
their turret. If you see even so much as an inch of movement, he's out
of the recon station. Fire away.
Base Killers
The bane of many players, Base Killers are often accused of having "no
honor" (and that's just the nice stuff that's said). There is no such
thing as a safe place in Force Wars, so if you're dying to base killers,
you need to first ask yourself one question, "Am I that stupid?" Okay,
harshness aside, let me give you some tips on getting rid of the problem.
But before we do that, let's first explain a Base Killer.
Base Killers hang out near enemy base in the hopes of scoring fast,
easy kills against enemy tanks who must first travel a short distance
out of base across sketchy terrain. Base killers can rack up kills quickly,
especially from frustrated players who love punishment.
Don't come out of base if there are Base Killers out there.
Since Base Killers must hang out near your base, which means they're
hanging out near the very ledges they're shooting you off, call in other
enemy reinforcements. Everyone loves an easy kill, and Base Killers are
an easy kill when their back is against everyone else.
So we didn't give you a magic formula for getting rid of Base Killers.
But Base Killers are just as determined to stay alive as you are, so using
the above tips will make sure that every second they spend hanging out
at your base, is another second that goes by for someone to score a shot
off on them.
© 1997-2007 Sony Online Entertainment LLC. Tanarus, SOE and the SOE logo are registered trademarks of Sony Online Entertainment LLC. The software platform logo (™ and ©) IEMA 2004. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners. All rights reserved.
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