Written by Allegro
Guns
1) Introduction
2) The
Force
2a) Light
Side
2b) Dark
Side
3) The
Guns
"Guns dont require any skill." I have heard this a great many times, and every time I want to strangle the person that said it. And so I fight them, as they wanted, in a saber only game on Battleground Jedi. They win, of course, because I dont happen to be good at the saber. Then the score limit (usually 50 or higher :) is reached, and we go to Nar Shadaa. Then, I start winning. After that, they accuse me of cheating, blame lag, or quit the game. And I laugh my head off.
Dont get me wrong. Saber only is extremely fun, especially with Force 3 or lower. I just find that lag interferes more with sabers (less of a problem in IP games) and I am often killed without knowing how he did it. Even so, I have gotten good enough to hold my own. I strongly recommend you read Phelon's text on sabers, he has some great tips. This text is not demeaning saber combat in any way, or saying gun combat is better. I am just teaching you my ways of winning at guns and giving you my argument about why guns are underrated. Besides, Id like to see one of the people mentioned above charge someone that has a concussion rifle, Force jump over his shots, look down and fire destruction at him, and then drop a sequencer on his head. I havent seen anyone do it to me yet.
Many of the things in this text may make you say "DUH! I already knew that! Its SO obvious!" If hey do, then ponder the fact that I almost never see most of these tricks executed. I have met one person, by the name of "G" that was as good as I. We went for 20 minutes without either one of us dying once. Now THAT was fun.
Guns without Force is useless. With the exception of the saber, which doesnt add much to gun combat, if there is no force you may as well play Quake, and its probably the better choice in such a case. The first two powers I would pick are Jump and Speed. The rest are just perks, or just another weapon. Mastering and combining these two can make you nearly invincible. 2 stars in Speed, 3 in Jump.
The biggest rule of guns is not to get hit. This, of course, means move very fast. This is where speed comes in. Use it constantly, and have autorun on. I rarely go anywhere without speed activated. Especially, never move in a straight line. Zig-zag, turn, reverse direction and generally make yourself be somewhere other than where you are at the moment.
Always keep in mind how an explosive weapon can be used against you. Look for walls near you, and dont be near them. They can set rail charges off against them and hit you. A common trick is to fire a Conc rifle at the ground near the player and not the player. This is what Force jump is for. If you are not near the ground, it is very hard to hit you. As mentioned above, use jump to go over enemy fire and then hit them on the head with something. This gets everyone by surprise. If you feel vulnerable in any way, Force jump. This saved my life many times. If you are blinded, use Jump to avoid death. Its also great for getting to upper levels (as in Canyon Oasis) where, in spite of the ease of getting there, you are rarely followed. Use Jump a lot. This paragraph barely covers its usefulness.
Light side is defensive, use it that way. Put 3 stars in healing, you wont need its full power often. If you want absorb, and I recommend it, make sure you use all 4 stars.
Dont turn on Persuasion and expect to be invincible. You wont. Its far too easy to counter. Use it as you are running away, like right after rounding a corner. If your opponent sees you disappear, then its useless. Use it when approaching an enemy. But never rely on it.
Use blinding liberally. Its probably the most useful of the light side powers. If you keep someone blinded for an extended period, they become very frustrated, and that can give you an edge.
Think of the Dark side as another weapon. Dont rely on it to do your killing for you. (Mind if I use an old clich‚?) Guns and the Dark Side are like a pair of shoes. You can go farther with both then you can with only one.
Throw is useless in muliplayer. Dont take it.
Lightning is neat. But dont use it too often; it uses too much mana for its worth. Use it when you have someone in your grip to accelerate the process, or use it at point blank range. Or use it with a Dark Surge, thats nice too.
Grip is cheap. Its the easiest way to kill someone. Its also why people "Force requires no skill." My solution, either live with it (if you dont like whats in the game, play a different game), agree to forbid its use, or restrict people to neutral powers. Then you still get all the fun of a total chaos deathmatch. Besides, it is not hard to counter. Shoot you opponent a few times, use force jump or absorb, or destruction works wonders, and your free. Because of this, it is best used to kill a weakened opponent, or weaken a healthy one. Never expect it to be an easy kill and sit back and relax. While they are clutching their throats, hit the with lightning, your gun or your saber.
Destruction is wicked. It has a huge area effect, and can easily push people off cliffs. It is not deadly though... at for stars it does about 80 damage. So dont expect death or obvious results. Hit someone, then hunt them down and grip them. Or vise versa. Force jumping over someone and hitting them with it is absolutely great.
Learn to use the weapons. Some may just be "point and shoot" but learn the nuances of each one.
Saber: run around with it most of the time. This way, someone cant pull your mighty railgun away from you while your not even using it.
Bryar: Absolute last resort.
Stormrooper Rifle: At close range, deadly. Especially useful at finishing off opponents. Again, a last resort however.
Detonators: Not much use. If you can hit with them, dangerous, but thats the trick, isnt it.
Autogun: The preferred non-explosive gun. Try using triple fire to defeat saber blocking.
Bowcaster: Packs a punch, but hard to hit with. Use it last.
Sequencers (Claymores): My personal favorite. Probably because it proves that I have the skill to get by someone using a much feared concussion rifle, avoid their shots, and get close enough to kill them with a weapon that requires you to be able to touch them. It just boosts my ego. Use the timed mode, not the proximity mode. When laying traps, lay 2 mines instead of one. And lay them at the top of ramps where they cant be seen from the bottom.
Railgun: Most powerful gun. Its slow, you may have to lead your target if he is moving. At close range, use the secondary mode then leave in a hurry.
Concussion Rifle: Hailed by many as the ultimate weapon. This, of course, depends on the skill of the wielder. Its high velocity makes evasion nearly impossible, and its close-range secondary is sometimes useful.
That about covers it. Remember, staying alive is your first priority. Learn to kill others afterwards. If you are being shot at with a railgun and you can see your attacker, two conclusions follow: 1) He is in a good position 2) You are not. Hit speed, force jump, and run until you wear through the soles of your boots.
You can contact me at [email protected], or my ICQ # is 12881026. My web site, the Peregrine Army home page, is www.jps.net/stefund