Strategies: Difference between revisions

This page contains a list of strategies for use in-game. The page is split into Ship v. Ship combat, Fleets, Sieging, and Defense.

[[File:Untitled drawing (4).png|384px|right|Siege Plans]]

== Ship to ship combat ==

This section compiles a list of general combat strategies in PvP. See the second dropdown menu for more in-depth descriptions of various maneuvers.

===<u>General tips</u>===

* When you are in combat with a ship you are familiar with, try to get out of the turrets' line of sight. For example, when fighting a [[Stormbringer]] you would want to go underneath it, because it has no [[Turrets]] underneath it, so the Turrets on top can't hit you.

*Always check the diplomacy tab, never be caught off guard.

*Never mine in a war. Seriously don't.

===<u>Combat maneuvers</u>===

===='''Orbit'''====

The most basic flight maneuver is to orbit your opponent and fly in circles around each other, trying to get into a blind spot if possible. Also, sometimes only one player will orbit and the second one will be in the middle trying to turn in place and keep up with the orbit of the first one.

===='''Drifting'''====

Drifting is what usually sets the noobs apart from the pros. Drifting might take some time to learn and you won't always get a perfect drift every time. There are two ways to drift: Fixed velocity, or dynamic. Fixed drifting is more common and easier to do. To drift on a fixed velocity, start at a good speed and hold <kbd>W</kbd>. When you find the direction you want your ship to travel while you drift, hit either <kbd>Q</kbd> or <kbd>E</kbd> depending on which way you want to drift (<kbd>Q</kbd> to drift facing right, <kbd>E</kbd> to drift facing left.) While drifting, you are free to point wherever you want as long as you hold <kbd>W</kbd> and <kbd>Q</kbd> or <kbd>E</kbd>. Your ship will continue to drift in the direction you pointed to at the start of the drift. In order to drift dynamically, it's best to start at top speed and click, note click not drag, a certain point 90 degrees from your current velocity. Immediately after clicking, press and hold <kbd>Q</kbd> or <kbd>E</kbd>. What sets this apart from fixed velocity is you have the ability to orbit around your target. This is because unlike fixed velocity, when you drift dynamically, your direction is adjusted by your entire flight path changing to accommodate the new direction, keeping you always facing 90 degrees off your current path. To turn while drifting, continue holding q/e and click a new point of focus. If you don't understand that just try for yourself and it will eventually make sense.  

While drifting, two patterns usually arise from the fight-Orbiting and Sliding. Orbit occurs when both players are drifting in the same direction making them revolve around a certain point. Sliding occurs when both fighters slide in one collective direction in two parallel lines, this is usually easier to sustain than orbit because neither party needs to turn, meaning they cannot overdrift and collapse the distance in between them. Drifting is a very effective siege method if you are using a small fast ship with a decent hull hp because the orbital lasers will usually be the only thing able to hit you.

===='''Weaving'''====

Since most ships have all their turrets on top and no underside defense what usually happens is orbit will start followed by a downward weaving pattern where both players will slowly spiral downwards trying to get under each other. This is where turn speed becomes an important attribute as a high turn speed means your orbit will be tighter so you can lap your opponent and come up behind and below them and wreak havoc.

===='''Micro-Warping'''====

Mirco warping is usually employed during a dread 1v1 or in a fight where spinals are the biggest source of DPS. What it is, is warping 400-1k and turning around to try to get behind your opponent in an orbiting fight or turning to deliver a head-on spinal attack. What also might happen, is a warp and flip. What that means, is after you warp to gain a bit of distance, you turn upwards so that all your topside turrets can get a line of sight at the enemy behind you. Mirco warping can also be used when your opponent is drifting in a spinal based ship. By warping right behind or next to them, you force them to stop drifting and spare yourself from the spinal fire for a few seconds. Micro Warping hard counters drifting if you opponent is spinal based, and you are turret based.

===='''Other 1v1 Maneuvers'''====

* '''Counter Orbit:''' When you find that your opponent is running circles around you in an orbiting battle, stop, and start turning the other way. Hopefully, they have too much momentum to stop before being right in front of you ready to take spinal punishment.

* '''Tornado:''' The Tornado maneuver can easily take down a slow ship when used by a skilled pilot. It involves constantly running circles around the enemy ship, while still facing it so spinals can hit it, as well as getting some turret shots. Note this strategy should be used by ships like the [[Sixfold]] that have high [[Spinals|spinal]] firepower.

* '''Border Blocking:''' Border blocking strategy is depended the pvp you are in. If your opponents turrets are top mounted go down to the border and stay there. Hopefully their ship won't be able to turn fast enough and you will get the kill. This strategy is useful against ships like Apocalypse and Nemesis.

===<u>Retreating/Evasive Maneuvers</u>===

Galaxy is a game where not every scenario is winnable, and it is a sign of experience to know when to fight, and when to get the hell out before you are too low to save yourself. When retreating in a fleet be aware that if the enemy is not diving someone, the last person to warp will likely get the hell beaten out of them before leaving.

These maneuvers detail how to evade enemies. They are best used by ships of the [[:Category:Cruiser|Cruiser]] class and under (although some [[:Category:Battlecruiser|Battlecruisers]] like the [[Black Flare]] can use a handful of these methods)

===='''Duck and Dive'''====

This maneuver consists of flying up and down repetitively while still maintaining a particular heading. This up-down motion makes it much more difficult for enemy spinals and turrets to hit while still allowing you to reach your destination. This can only be done with a smaller, faster ship as large warships such as Dreadnoughts won't be able to move fast enough to do any good.

===='''Bob and Weave'''====

A method based more on luck than skill. Best used at close range, this maneuver consists of random slips, turns, dives, acceleration, and deceleration as to make it incredibly difficult for enemies to get into a good firing position. Pilots performing this maneuver may become lucky enough as to get behind the enemy, allowing for an excellent tactical position.

===='''Hull Skimming'''====

A maneuver used to hide from and confuse enemies. A pilot performing this maneuver would stay incredibly close along the hull of another ally ship or base and would continuously work to avoid enemies from gaining a tactical advantage and a good firing position by keeping themselves out of sight.

===<u>1v1s</u>===

Most 1v1s can be won if you know what your doing of you have a ship that counters your opponent. The thing is, if your opponent is more skilled or has, say, a [[Prowler]] vs your [[Cutlass]], you may want to get out ASAP. Class can make a difference but depending on skill a destroyer can kill a battleship so you need to know how good you are and have a general idea of how good your opponent is. '''Note: While score might not be an accurate representation of skill, it is wise to proceed with caution around high scores. Bounty on the other hand, is a sign of an experienced and careful fighter. '''

===<u>2v1s</u>===

Most 2v1s are a no-win situation, though there are exceptions. If your scenario is not on the following list, or you think that you are under the "enemy" category in a fleet of two, it would be smart to run.

'''When your enemies are using two much weaker vessels:''' This seems kind of intuitive, but a dread should usually be able to take out a pair of frigates despite its low accuracy. This also applies when your enemies have very low hp but high dps since you can kill them quickly before the damage starts to hurt.

==Fleets==

The term "fleet" is generally used to refer to large groups of player-coordinated ships. Fleets can be used for sieging, defense, economic blockades during war, and more. This section details the basics of fleets and fleet coordination.

===<u>Fleet Basics</u>===

Let us start with the basics; You are on a two faction server, 20v20 players, and on the map, you see a rather angry blob of triangles, which represent your opposing faction's most active area. In this situation, you want to stick as close as possible to the area the most of your team's ships are. If you are on your own in a relatively low DPS/support ship, and you are not covered by any [[Starbase]]s or are within easy reach of the [[Mega Base]], you are probably going to get spotted by a rather high DPS ship or group of rather high DPS ships and promptly dived on and destroyed within a minute of combat, or after a few jumps. You want to stay with your fleet, and only venture from it if you know:

# If you are sure you can get out of a fight if a large group of the enemy fleet splinters off to attack.

# If there is a good reason to, such as a freighter or smaller ship, which you can jump on, kill quickly, and regroup.

Next, while in the fleet, you need to realize a few important concepts: First, the concept of the '''Tank'''. The tank can be any ship, but it always is the ship which is focused or will be focused first. This could be a ship which a rather skilled player is in, and thus is a high priority target. This could be a vulnerable ship in your fleet, say an Avalon, which is either low health or already weak to begin with. This could be a ship with poor positioning and is right on top of where the enemy fleet warped in. The tank is the ship which is most likely to be targeted first by the greatest amount of people in a fleet, and if you can identify the tank in your fleet, you can play around that. If you are in a lighter ship, say a battlecruiser or smaller, you can let the fleet dive in on the poor tank, and pick off something in the backline, or perhaps if your fleet is focusing fire, on the ship with the most amount of DPS.

Finally, for fleet basics, you must understand another concept: Galaxy players, especially good ones, know when to back off or go all in, with the better the player, the sooner they get the hell out of dodge when their odds aren't looking too good. Some players, however, will react differently if the enemy team has a ship that is hulled and of value: they may dive it no matter what, even if it means warping closer to the enemy base. Most galaxy players '''will''' warp out of a fight if they are put onto hull, and this is where communication becomes vital. You need to figure out where the player which you hulled is warping to, what support they will have, and how quick they can despawn their ship or warp to a more advantageous position. Because you will rarely have the firepower to kill a hulled dreadnought before it can dock or warp away, you need friends to warp with you and do as much damage as possible. If you, do it right, and plan accordingly, you will be getting many kills, because fleet combat rarely plays out to where there are multiple casualties, full fleet combat is a way to isolate a target and get a kill.

===<u>Fleet Coordination</u>===

A fleet is a very desirable thing, for the sheer amount of firepower they can possess and pump out, for the amount of safety they tend to provide against wandering battleships and dreadnoughts, or even for the value and satisfaction of working as a team to complete a goal. However, to get one is difficult at the best of times, and impossible in others, simply due to the fact that you can't get everyone to agree on one given thing, especially if they don't know you. However, there is a way, or a few ways, to get coordination online in any given server.

#'''Use of External Services''' - This tends to be a more reliable way of communication. Simply hook up the team you are in with a hangout server for, say, Discord, and you suddenly have the speed and efficiency of a mic for use in organization. The only problem is, not many people have Discord, and it is slightly difficult to set up.

#'''Use of Groups Centered Around Galaxy''' - This is the absolute best way to get a fleet going. Simply join a Discord group, get a few people online, join a server and a mic channel, and have fun. Usually, other members of a group will treat each other well and follow good advice, just be prepared for the occasional misconception.

Next, there are a few things you must consider while in a fleet and while commanding a fleet:

# You must have a fallback plan. Have somewhere everyone knows where to warp to when crap inevitably hits the fan.

# Have a balanced fleet. Be sure to have shield breaking capabilities as well as hull breaking capabilities, with a healthy mix of ships which can dive.

If you keep your caravan of high-grade weapon transported in working order as specified, you will have a fun time. Try and be polite to one another while in fleet combat, curtsy is usually the best way to get an idea up and fast in a fast-paced situation. Any idea is usually better than inactivity.

==Sieges==

===<u>Sieging an Enemy Starbase</u>===

These strategies detail how to destroy an enemy [[Starbase]].

To find out what ships will be the most useful in your situation look at their Shapes, DPS, Health, Turret Placement, Alpha Damage, and Speed to see if it will help with your situation.

===='''Classic Siege'''====

The most common method of destroying an enemy [[Starbase]].

Uses a lot of Battleships, Battlecruisers, Cruisers, and Dreadnoughts. Heavier ships with [[Turrets|Railguns]] and [[Turrets|Heavy Lasers]] attack the Starbase and any heavy ships that retaliate, smaller, lighter ships provide evasive cover and make sure nothing gets close to the heavier ships. The main idea of this type of siege is to brute-force their way into destroying the enemy Starbase.

===='''Torpedo Siege'''====

Uses a ship or two with extremely powerful [[Spinals]] and strong long-range capabilities, such as the [[Hasatan]], [[Avalon]], or the [[Ridgebreaker]], along with multiple other Dreadnoughts or Battleships that are capable of tanking and long-range attack, and at least one large ship optimized for PvP such as the [[Hawklight]]. This is an extremely effective siege strategy but it requires some timing and can fail miserably if messed up bad enough. This siege strategy goes for dealing massive damage at a long range, then finishing it off by pushing forward and focus-firing on the Starbase. Once the Starbase's shields are depleted, it deals significant hull damage.

===='''Outside the Box'''====

(This strategy works only for enemy [[Starbase]]s close to the edge of the map).

(Another Note: As of a recent update, the map was greatly expanded and it's now even less likely for a starbase to spawn within 7k distance of a boundary, further limiting the possibilities of the Outside the Box Strategy).

===='''Fighter Siege'''====

First, park any [[:Category:Carrier|Carrier]] outside the base range (9k-11k) alongside a sieging fleet. Use the [[:Category:Fighters|Fighters]] to distract base fire so your ships can stay within range and fire upon the Starbase. Make sure at least 3 guys are manning the fighters, and at least 2 [[:Category:Battleship|Battleships]]. In order to do this correctly have 1-2 people in [[Sixfold]]s or [[Cobra]]s to shoot down enemy fighters or ships. If you do this correctly, none of the ships in your fleet except for the Fighters will get damaged.

===='''Flash Fleet'''====

A tactic used to catch the enemy by surprise. (The enemy Starbase has to be somewhat close to the edge of the map).

This strategy is very similar to "Outside the Box" except instead of just a [[Hasatan]] there is a fleet, imagine a "Classic Seige" or a "Torpedo Siege" except off radar. How this strategy works is by having ships sneak out of the map (doesn't allow the radar to see you). A [[:Category:Carrier|Carrier]] would be good for this because it's just a single ship, but it can deploy a fleet. It can be suspicious if multiple ships go out of the map at the same time. Because of this, each ship will have to go out of the map every minute or so as to avoid detection. From there you can launch the attack, catch them all off guard, and destroy their Starbase.

===='''Drop Firing'''====

This tactic should be used along with the strategies for sieging. Doing this alone will result in low damage being done and a few dead ships if you're not careful.

Use small ships that have a lot of [[Spinals]]. Lowest amount is four small phasers or cannons. Ships such as the [[Viper]] are alright for damaging shields. [[Sixfold]] is good for hull destruction. [[Razor Wing]] Is also a good all-rounder since it has both [[Spinals|Cannons]] and [[Spinals|Phasers]]. Repeatedly do flybys of the base, damaging it each time. You can also bring in some [[Phantom|Phantom's]] to help kill shield because of the lasers on the bottom. Again, do NOT attempt to use this strategy alone. This is a strategy that is to be used with another.

===='''Alien Supporters'''====

This strategy is generally unreliable, but it could be useful. You need a [[Aliens|Punisher]] and group of [[Aliens|Swarmers]] for this to work. First, the Aliens need to attack the enemy Starbase. This step is challenging because it's hard to lead Aliens to a specific place. Once the Aliens are at the enemy's Starbase, the Aliens will attack whatever the [[Aliens|Punisher]] does, causing trouble for any players the Punisher's AI might target. After the Aliens have either retreated or died, the Starbase will most likely be low on health, or dead entirely. This strategy is generally one that isn't used since the Punisher might target one of your sieging ships, causing critical damage. If this strategy is used, its best to wait for all the Aliens to die, otherwise you are putting yourself in a risky position.

===='''Nuking'''====

Take any large ship like an M-class, Dreadnoughts, etc. and drive it straight at the enemy base. Get as close as you can to the base and let it destroy you. When your ship explodes, the explosion might take the enemy base down with you and will damage any nearby ships. Some good ships for nuking are Nyx, Galaxy, etc. However, using these ships are not recommended unless you are in arcade, since these ships are also generally immensely expensive in the regular version of the game.

===='''Long-Range Siege'''====

Take any ship that has a turret with a high range and a lot of damage like an [[Xenon]], [[Lazarus]], [[Andromeda]], Super Capital Ships, etc. and drive it 8000–6000 studs away from the enemy base, then attack the base.

===<u>Defense Against Sieges</u>===

These strategies are used for defending against an enemy or countering some of the siege tactics listed above.

===='''Fleet in Being'''====

This tactic is aimed at showing off military power while not leaving the base.  Players will spawn in large [[Ships]] or combat vessels as to show off military power and make itself a threat while not actually engaging in combat unless absolutely forced to. These ships will simply be docked at either their own Starbase or at the [[Mega Base]]. Docking enough of these Ships at your own starbase might influence enemy decisions and can prevent sieges. This will also help prevent [[Pirating]] if done at [[Mega Base]].

===='''Dock Camping'''====

This strategy is highly effective when used in a situation where the enemy team has a clear advantage and you and your team are not willing to lose any ships but still want to defend your team. Your team will pick your most heavily armed base (Often the [[Mothership]] or a high-level planet) but a [[Starbase|Level 4 Starbase]] can work depending on your enemies strength) and dock your ships there. But can be used to defend any base just be ready to despawn if your ship's health runs too low. If it gets too damaged go to the strongest base and see if it is safe to spawn it and heal there but despawn it if enemies come by unless it is healed enough.

This strategy requires a loyal team willing to be very patient, and a number of ships/players similar to your enemies. This is commonly used and learned by players on their own but was added by Hamlet9219.

===='''What to Shoot'''====

This tactic is a very uncommon one. This requires a decent-sized team that has members willing to co-operate. You need a [[Starbase|Level-3 Starbase]] or a Carrier to apply this.

Another chance is that the reinforcements will arrive for the enemy team. Even if it happens, which is unlikely for their team members have seen what happened to the most powerful ones. The ships they will bring probably will be weak, So it's unlikely they will even get a chance to shoot at the base among the crowd of the small ships.

===='''Defensive Swarm'''====

Swarm involves everyone on the team using a ship that is fast and can deal a lot of damage, preferably a ship like the [[Sixfold]], or another Cruiser. All of the ships then will target one ship at a time, either scaring it off and forcing it to warp, or destroying it. It's typically good to make sure your team is out of the ships' lines of sight, or the Starbase is being shot at by them.

By doing this, you can either delay a siege or completely stop one. However, some drawbacks are your team won't want to coordinate or doesn't want to risk their small ships for defense.

===='''Ambush'''====

While having a few tanky capital ships defending the base from the attacks head-on, other players can teleport to different bases like the [[Mega Base]] or any other capped starbase (if any) and spawn ships from there.

If Capital ships aren't available, then spawn a fleet of non-capital but hard hitting ships, this includes [[Razor Wing]], [[Belvat]], [[Vansnova]], [[Absolution]], [[Dramiel]], [[Arthur]] and [[Sentinel]].

===='''Peekaboo'''====

A minimum of two bases (at least one being level 2) is required for this, preferably the [[Mothership]] and main starbase. Have one player go to the main starbase and spawn a cruiser/battlecruiser. The rest of the team will remain at the other base and WILL NOT spawn any ships. At this point, it is likely that the enemies will siege the main starbase because of its strategic importance and the opportunity for a kill. When the siege has begun, the team at the other base will spawn multiple battleships and a dreadnought if possible. Then this team will warp to the main starbase. This should happen very quickly, preferably in the timespan of 30 seconds. The siege team will be unprepared and will be destroyed easily. This strategy is largely based on chance, so it should only be used as a last resort.

===='''Revenge from the Grave'''====

Allow the enemy to siege your base with little resistance, and then pull off a heavily guarded 'Classic Siege' or 'Torpedo Siege' on theirs from another base. The enemies will retreat and attempt to destroy your fleet. Warp away as soon as the enemy warps near you. If they siege again, they will likely split their forces, leaving some ships at their base. Their forces are now stretched thin. Spawn a massive fleet at an obsolete level 2 base that is not being attacked, let's call this fleet A, and destroy the defending force on their side. Wait for the enemy siege team to return to the base and destroy them too. Siege their base with fleet A and now that you do not have to defend yourself anymore, you can spare more ships.

[[Category:Game Mechanics]]

[[Category:Getting Started]]