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Aero Yassavi
PIE Inc.
Praetoria Imperialis Excubitoris
2745
   |
Posted - 2013.10.12 12:08:00 -
[1] - Quote
Just made a fairly lengthy post in response to some guy asking about Commandos, and figured I would love for it to have a little more attention. There's not enough Commandos out there, it would be great if I could encourage even just one more guy to start using it.
I love the Commando suit. Yes it has flaws, but you can work around it. Before it released I was level 3 in Amarr Assault, after it released I skilled up the heavy frame just to use this suit. For awhile after I stopped using it and went back to Amarr Assault, but a while ago I really started figuring it out and now it is what I use 99% of the time. In fact, I got some boosters recently to help get my prototype Commando faster, which will be my first prototype suit (on this character). I am actually doing just as well with it now as I am with my assault. I will try to give you a general idea for how to use it, according to my perspective of course.
Core Skills
Your core skills are critical in making an efficient Commando fit. Armor Upgrades and Shield Upgrades both add 12.5 HP per level (the game does keep track of decimals in your HP, it just doesn't display them). What you want to do is alternate between shield upgrades and armor upgrades each level, with shield first (you'll see why later). When you get to level 4 on each you will be at 300 shield 300 armor base values, which is a great start!
Dropsuit Biotics is also a great place to dump skill points into, as making the Commando a little more mobile can save your life.
You'll find early on that the Commando is lacking in CPU and PG, so naturally Dropsuit Electronics and Dropsuit Engineering will be skills you should invest into quickly. However, it is also extremely important to invest into weapon proficiency. I know everyone loves using their best weapons, but for the Commando what you want to do is run standard weapons with high proficiency. Remember, you have two light weapons so you don't need the absolute best one to win, just a good combination. That leads us to the next topic.
Choosing Your Weapons
When you decide which weapons to roll out with on your Commando, consider how each weapon will compliment each other. Naturally a lot of people read this and think, "Well I'll use a shield oriented weapon and an armor oriented weapon." That could work, but I'm talking about compliments a little deeper than that. Think about what ranges the weapon is most efficient at, think about how people may try to counter one weapon and use your second weapon to counter that. There's a lot to it. Take your time, experiment, and find what works for you. It is also important to consider which weapons can benefit the most from the reload bonus.
Personally, I run the laser rifle and scrambler rifle. The laser rifle is the ultimate area-of-denial weapon, so I can follow behind my squad and melt everyone as we push our frontlines up inch by inch, or I can find a nice spot to defend and hold the area down. If someone gets in front of my laser's optimal range, I switch to the scrambler rifle and take him down. On one fit I use the assault scrambler, which helps when I'm trying to be a little more aggressive, but my favorite fit uses the standard scrambler rifle which I have made adequate for closer encounters by a lot of practice, and that leads to the next topic.
Understand Your Weapons
Once you have your weapon combo picked out, learn every nook-and-cranny about them. You aren't going to have the highest tier weapons, so knowing how to get the most out of your standard weapons is what will get your through. I have this opinion that Commanods (the few that are out there) know more about their weapons then anyone else.
For me, let's look at the laser rifle. You ask a lot of people, they will say you need to get at least an advanced laser rifle, put it on an Amarr Assault suit, get your proficiency up, and slap on complex damage mods to make it work. I don't do any of those things, I don't even have level 1 proficiency in it yet. But I don't need that. With a quick look at a battle situation, I can tell exactly where my target is in regards to my optimal range without looking at any of the numbers. I can tell how he is going to react once I put the laser on him before I even do, and adjust my position accordingly. I understand when the laser rifle is going to overheat with great precision just on a gut feeling, and I understand exactly how much damage output it is doing each fraction of a second of holding down the trigger. I know how fast reloading is and how much heat is cooled off during that time. All of that information is important.
I can list a bunch of other things in regards to the scrambler rifle, but you get the point. Whichever weapons you choose, you need to know every little thing about them. |
Aero Yassavi
PIE Inc.
Praetoria Imperialis Excubitoris
2745
|
Posted - 2013.10.12 12:10:00 -
[2] - Quote
Fitting Your Commando
When you get your standard Commando, you will notice that there are no high or low slots. Don't worry! It doesn't mean the suit is useless, because as you will see the slots only go towards adding more buffer anyways. That means the standard just has less HP, which is pretty much the case for all suits. You see, a Commando suit is a heavy frame, and as such you have the largest hit box out of all the infantry, so buffer is the single most important thing you can add! So your high slots will all go to shield extenders and your low slot (even at proto you only get one) will go to an armor plate. So how do you repair your armor?
You get an equipment slot! Yes, a heavy with an equipment slot! Put this towards a triage nanohive! That's how you repair your armor. If you are running with another Commando you could also both run armor repairers and heal each other, but how many times do you get to run with another fool who skilled into Commandos?
Now something people will argue is why the shield extenders? The Commando only has a shield recharge rate of 10, so why not some rechargers or energizers? Or why not damage mods, since the shield extenders hardly add anything? Well I'll tell you why in two simple points. 1) You do not have any passive armor repair, so every bit of buffer to prevent the enemy from tapping into your armor is crucial. 2) Your shield recharge rate is low, and adding a percentage to a low number isn't adding much. Basically, no matter what you do you are going to have a slow shield recharge. Meanwhile, if you add a little bit of buffer then you can help prevent your shields from getting depleted. Your shield delay if your shields are depleted is 10 seconds, your shield delay if you still have a little shields left is 7 seconds. That is big.
How to Play Commando
You are not a frontline soldier, if you wanted to be that then you should stick with Assault. You are a support killer. You stay back and provide suppression just behind the frontlines. You defend an objective with the most versatility. Assault players argue they can do these things as well, but not nearly as proficiently as I believe a Commando can.
Lay down your triage hive preemptively. Just like how you need to know everything about your weapons, know everything about battle situations. When you have a gut feeling you're going to need some armor repair, don't wait until you need it to put down the hive. Also refresh your suit at a supply depot for more hives whenever you can. Having a logi player in the squads helps tremendously, but it is a bonus, not a necessity.
Also consider skilling a little into LAVs, or at least buying some militia ones. Having an LAV will help get you from place to place, because you are a slow heavy, and will also allow you to quickly do a supply depot run whenever you are out of hives.
And don't forget you have a very high melee damage.
Aero Yassavi's Fit
Amarr Commando A/1-Series
Basic Shield Extender
Enhanced Armor Plate
Laser Rifle
Scrambler Rifle
K17/D Nanohive (R)
CPU: 163/178
PG: 37/37
Shield: 325
Armor: 424
Stamina: 156
Movement Speed: 3.83
Sprint Speed: 5.58
Melee Damage: 240
I'm hoping to eventually fit the Wiyrkomi Triage Nanohives on my fit, but I'll need quite a bit more Dropsuit Electronics and Dropsuit Engineering upgrades, or of course the prototype suit.
What to Rage About
Thought this would be a fun section to focus on what the Commando suit really needs and eliminate all the little complaints.
1) More armor and shield. This is a heavy suit with a heavy hit box, we could use just a little more. All I am suggesting is a buff from 250/250 base value to 300/300.
2) Amarr Racial Bonus needs to change. It is efficacy of armor and shield modules, however Amarr usually has the least modules of all races and the Commando already has few module slots. This is a wasted bonus in my opinion. It needs to change to something that can benefit Amarr. Considering the Commando is all about weapons and Amarr is all about lasers, something like the Amarr Assault bonus (reduced heat build up) or the Sentinel bonus (reduced feedback damage) would make sense. Heck, what about reduced seize-fire duration after overheating? That would be better than what the bonus is now.
3) At prototype, the slot layout is 2 high 1 low. This is an Amarr suit, this should be flipped. 1 high 2 low at prototype. I am fine with everything else. Standard with no slots, advanced with 1 high 1 low. That is fine.
Channel
Join the following channel to meet up with me and other Commandos,
Commando Squadron |
Aero Yassavi
PIE Inc.
Praetoria Imperialis Excubitoris
2748
|
Posted - 2013.10.12 12:54:00 -
[3] - Quote
Fire of Prometheus wrote:I have taken a liking to the commando suit and have quite liked it.
However I see it more as a situational "ranged" fighter.
With that being said it can also be a CQC powerhouse with a CRD-09 & MD combo
I've been finding it can be used as an every-life suit, but definitely favoring more of a ranged approach. |
Aero Yassavi
PIE Inc.
Praetoria Imperialis Excubitoris
2748
|
Posted - 2013.10.12 13:10:00 -
[4] - Quote
Arkena Wyrnspire wrote:Aero Yassavi wrote:
I'm hoping to eventually fit the Wiyrkomi Triage Nanohives on my fit, but I'll need quite a bit more Dropsuit Electronics and Dropsuit Engineering upgrades, or of course the prototype suit.
Why Wiyrkomis over Alloteks? Alloteks restore ammo as well, though they do repair at a lesser rate.
70 armor repair rate is beastly. Run out of armor a lot more than I run out of ammo. |
Aero Yassavi
PIE Inc.
Praetoria Imperialis Excubitoris
2750
|
Posted - 2013.10.12 13:45:00 -
[5] - Quote
Nirwanda Vaughns wrote:I have it on a heavy alt which i'm working towards proto on atm and i really enjoy it, just running dual recruit rifle bpos on it while i build skills up but its a greta suit. only reason i'm not skillign into them on my main is because i'm waiting for the other race suits to come out cos i want the Gallente or Minmatar one
Imagine the Gallente Heavy from Fan Fest with the Commando red highlights. That thing is going to look crazy! Though lucky for me I favor Amarr so I already have the one I want. |
Aero Yassavi
PIE Inc.
Praetoria Imperialis Excubitoris
2759
|
Posted - 2013.10.12 17:50:00 -
[6] - Quote
Chunky Munkey wrote:Now all it needs is more slots, more CPU, more PG, more health, better shield stats, a lower price and a racial bonus that isn't trolling us & the turd polishing will be complete.
I could go with all of that, but I honestly think the slots are fine. If anything, the prototype needs to change from 2H 1L to 1H 2L. |
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