Commando Tips and Tricks

[Errage]

With my main character, Errange, being a Commando, I thought I'd share some of the tips and tricks I've learned while playing.

First off, ABILITIES!

Of course the abilities you choose depends entirely upon the way you play, and your preferences, but here's what I would recommend:

FILL STEALTH UP ASAP, having a wide stealth range can screw you over, because when people hear your stealth because you got too close, or see you as you're traveling to your next sniping point, etc. YOU WILL BE TARGETTED. Commandos have the lowest health, making you the easiest kill to somebody who spots you by accident. Being sneaky can save your life, especially with a shorter cooldown time, Level 5 Stealth can make surviving a very easy task!

From there, you can put a point into either Troop Trap if you want to be annoying, deal some extra damage, and be able to get up on top of high places easily, or get Elixir for easier getaways for a knifer, or just to increase your overall survivability.

TROOP TRAP: This leaves a small beeping device attached to the surface it lands on (It doesn't take long to learn to aim dropping Troop Traps, but it takes a little bit of practice for precise dropping). Using these takes strategy in a fight, so if you've played World of Warcraft and had to learn the kiting technique, it will help here. You can kite enemies to your traps and finish them off with a knife, or stand back and snipe them after they've been blasted into the sky (Hopefully away from you) by your trap.

Of course, you don't need to kite to use Troop Traps, just get used to keeping an eye on where people travel, figure out where people are most likely to go around, and start placing your Troop Traps in common places (It's best to hide them, so for example, JUST around the corner of a doorway that people often go through, so they can't see and shoot the trap down before reaching it)

To get around with Troop Traps, I would recommend using a pistol, though they aren't needed to TT Jump, they make it much easier. Just stand as close as you can to the trap, and shoot at it to launch yourself up and over, hopefully onto a building or cliff you can use to your advantage! There's also always jump while facing down as much as possible, dropping the troop trap so it sticks to the wall/pole before you land on the ground from your jump, then jump again and shoot it, and launch yourself up MUCH higher in the sky! (Can be helped by a jetpack ofc, though you won't need it if you get the jump right)

ELIXIR: for this move, I would recommend only going as far as 1 point into it, but of course it's all up to personal preference and how you play, maybe you like having the longer time sprinting, but the shield, in general, is of little help, so don't max out Elixir just for the shield.


At this point, you'll be level 10 (Stealth starts off with 1 point in it already).

From here, you can either pick up the other one of the last two mentioned skills (So if you went for TT, get Elixir, and vice-versa) but of course, Troop Trap isn't for everybody, it's not needed, it can just be useful.

Mark Target is helpful for pulling enemy Commandos out of Stealth, and getting you extra points. One point is all you need in it, but more is up to you, if you want shorter cooldown/longer marked time (For maximum rage from enemy Commandos who are unable to return to Stealth because you keep marking them). The only problem with this ability, is that no matter how hard you try, IT CANNOT BE SPECIFICALLY AIMED. It picks a random target out of your field of view, so it can be 'tricked' into picking the target you want (For example, moving behind a wall so only one of the three enemies you saw is in view, use it, and it will hit that one person).


Poisoned Blade is entirely optional, I personally would not recommend it over any of the other abilities unless you're specifically trying to be an asshole Knifer, pissing everybody off (It's fun, but tricky without full Stealth)

The same goes for Piercing Shot, just like how Poisoned Blade affects ONLY the knife, PS affects ONLY the Sniper rifle, so if you're a Pistol 'mando, do not get this. Piercing Shot is more of a 'extra' ability, to pick up to increase your Headshot damage after you've got all the other abilities you want.



CHOOSING YOUR SNIPER:

I'll just touch lightly on this, because you should know which sniper suits you best already if you've been trying them out.

Just like with all other weapons, there's a "Short Range", "Medium Range" and "Long Range" version of the Sniper, except that the damage they deal isn't based off range, but headshots. The 'Medium Range' sniper is the default, so Oscar's Farshot (Royal) / The Gourmet (National) and isn't very good. It shoots decently fast, but even with constant Headshots, it'll take a few shots to get your target down.

The "Short Range" sniper (Roderick Rifle - Royals /The Groundbreaker - Nationals) has a much faster firing rate, a smaller recoil, but does less damage. I never use this sniper, because to me it is the worst of the three, but that's because I focus more on Headshots, so feel free to experiment with this Sniper, who knows, you may learn to dominate the battlefield with it

The "Long Range" sniper (Pipsqueak's Popper - Royals / Stefan's Sharpshooter - Nationals) has a slower firing rate, high recoil, and does much more damage (One shot anywhere on the body does about the same damage as a headshot with the Medium sniper) This sniper is for people like me, who focus on putting as many holes in the person's head as possible. A few accurate shots and the target is down. I favor this Sniper above all others for it's ability to take enemies down fast if you're quick to fixing the recoil's repositioning of your aimer.



KNIFING

As you know, Commandos start off with a knife and sniper when starting out. Unfortunately, the default knife is utter crap in comparison to the Uber / Super knife, so I would not recommend going for all-out knifing until level 10 at least, until then, save the knife for moments where the enemy got too close for your sniper/pistol to shoot.

If you're going to be PRIMARILY a knifer, (Meaning using mostly your knife at all times) then the first thing I'm going to suggest is FILL UP STEALTH. When you're sneaking up on somebody, even if they don't see you coming up from behind, your low level stealth can give you away when they hear you approaching, giving them plenty of time to spin around and release a spray of bullets until they spot and shoot you, and the lower level your stealth, the sooner that happens. Full stealth will also make your getaway much easier, and reduce the amount of time you have to wait between going back in Stealth and going after your next target.

Since you're focusing on knifing, this is where I would recommend getting points into Poisoned Blade, after filling up stealth, because it is a helpful move for finishing off the stubborn gunner who just managed to get that last shotgun blast, or few rounds of Cheeser into your skull. It can 'steal your kill' sometimes (The Poisoned Blade will get the credit for the kill instead of your knife, though you still get credit, it doesn't count to your knife stats) so be wary I suppose.

At least one point should be put in Elixir, at what point is up to you, but Elixir can really be a lifesaver, it makes escape from the area after killing somebody so much easier if you get spotted.

CHOOSING YOUR TARGET:
When knifing, selecting the right target can make all the difference, especially as a deciding factor to whether you walk away from the kill or not. If you're running along and see a Royal turn a corner, don't charge up and start stabbing away, he could have friends. Take the time to do a quick check before striking, make sure nobody's following a little ways behind, or is standing back somewhere that they'd be able to see the moment you come out of stealth. If there's one or more people who would be able to see you kill your target (Excluding your target) then DON'T DO IT! Unless you don't mind taking a few bullets and possibly dying, but if you want to really enrage the enemy with your ridiculously high Kill/Death ratio, you'll need to be strategic.

What often happens is the enemy will often form 'pain trains'- A group of teammates who're working towards a common goal (Heading towards capturing the same base) but since the classes have varying speeds, they're stretched out in a nice convenient line. These are wonderful to find, because they almost ALWAYS have one straggler in the back who got stuck on something, or took the long way, or for whatever reason is just further behind the train than everybody else. Your target is obvious, just go for the guy way in the back, just be sure that you have an escape route, or some cover to hide behind so the enemy doesn't turn around and see you standing over a corpse waiting for your Stealth. (You can even find a good spot for cover, and pull out a Sniper/LR Pistol at this point and pick off the now-furthest back enemy of the train, just as long as they aren't too close to you, or another teammate.)

In summary, when picking your target as a knifer, go for the person who's by themself, and make sure they are before going for the kill!




MORE TO COME! I plan to edit and add to this guide, along with organizing it a little better as I go along, I just don't have the patience to sit here and write about a game without playing it, or doing something else :P

Planned additions:
-Ideal Sniping Locations
-Pistols and You
-Survival

Got any questions/comments? Want to know more about a specific topic I covered, or haven't yet? Feel free to post them in this thread! Soldier and Gunner threads will be around when I feel this guide is completed.

[Reflection]

I haven't played Heroes in quite some time but if I ever start again I'll be sure to keep this in mind!

[Errage]

IDEAL SNIPING LOCATIONS

This should be easy to do, but some people are more for the shooting than the surviving, so I'll try and give a few tips on how to pick a good spot when sniping. (The long range pistol works fine too, but keep in mind you can't zoom in with it, so be prepared for some fun strafing battles)

This part will include pictures, but due to the fact that I'm tabbing back and forth between BFH and Firefox, and don't want any interruptions, I'm only using the Tutorial map for this, meaning I'll only be able to use the map 'Seaside Skirmish' to take screenshots, but I'll still try to find the best examples I can.

The ideal location for sniping will provide you with at least two things: Cover to hide behind, and room to move. If you have both of these, survival will be MUCH easier when going against another sniper, or some Soldier with a long range gun, or generally anybody who tries to shoot you when you pop out of cover/stealth to pick off their teammates. Here's an example:


While standing here, not only do I have the cover of the short wall to the right (Which I can duck behind by crouching and pointing my camera down to make sure my head doesn't poke up over top), but also of the trees in front of me. Right now, the trees are an obstruction, and make it impossible for me to really see or do anything from here...


As you can see on the left, the trees make it impossible to see what's beyond them. Luckily, I'm a Sniper commando, and when I get close enough and zoom in, I can see right through the trees!

Now not only do I have cover on the right to duck behind, but the trees to make it harder for any of my victims to see where exactly I am, they'll just see the sniper trails and a red name, and might get a few lucky shots off on me, but with the use of the cover and the trees, I can pick them off before they get much damage on me.



Of course, not all places for sniping have to have the conditions above, sometimes it can be something simple, for example, a group of trees. As long as one side (The side you're on) is facing YOUR base, and the other side the enemy, you're set. Strafing side to side between the trees, ducking behind them right after firing, etc. will keep the enemies bullets out of your face, so do it often!

A final note on choosing a sniping location:

KEEP MOVING.

As a sniper, you should constantly be moving between many different locations on the map. If you stay in one spot for the entire game, people are going to start watching your sniper trails more closely until they pinpoint your location, and then they will HUNT YOU DOWN, you're a Commando, you've pissed off a lot of people. Take a few shots, take out the visible targets, whatever limit you set for yourself, but DON'T SIT THERE WAITING FOR THEM TO SPAWN AND COME BACK TO THAT SPOT, that's how you get yourself found. Remember, when you kill somebody, they see what you see in Face Cam for 5 seconds, which is generally enough for them to figure out where you are alone, the sniper trails just help. As soon as you're done with your limit (For example, killed 2 of the 5 Royals running around by the Light House, 3 of them got behind cover before you could kill them) STEALTH!

If you don't stealth and head to your next location, well... That's honestly just stupid, because you're showing everybody where you're going. Keep a jeep handy if possible for easy transportation between sniping spots on Vehicle maps, but DO NOT PARK THE JEEP, GET OUT, AND START SNIPING. When you open your map, you can see the location of ALL unmanned (Haven't had the map open at a time to see if it tracks full vehicles) vehicles on the map. This can be a dead giveaway, and screw you over, so leave the jeep somewhere off to the side in the most inconspicuous place possible, somewhere that would make sense for say, a gunner to hop out and leave it there. (Leaving a jeep at the foot of a cliff you're on top of = bad. Leaving the jeep next to a entrance to a base closest to the cliff you're on = good, though it may get stolen, so be careful how populated the places you leave it are)

When you get the ideal locations and rotation down, you'll be one of the worst enemies the other team has ever faced, and I can guarantee, they are going to be PIIIIISSED. Which leads me to my next topic:


TAUNTING

The finishing blow. The part that really seals the deal.

Taunting isn't just some useless and childish thing to do after knocking off the last 3 health of somebody who just got out of a fight, and happened to kill you earlier. Taunting can be used in a "strategic" way.

If the enemy's already pissed off enough at your amazing sniping/knifing skills, it's going to be easier and easier to make them even MORE angry, and unlike Bruce Banner, you WILL like them when they're angry, but why?

When people are angry, they make bad decisions, and in general, their playing ability declines in their intent to find and kill you at all costs, so the idea is to benefit from this. If you've pissed somebody off to the point of having them constantly trying to kill you, to the point of ignoring your teammates shooting at them just so they can get a few bullets off in your direction, you're doing good, but you can make them even more angry in the simplest of ways:

Pressing 'Q' (Default emote button) and waving. When you taunt somebody, you're making fun of them, and some people just CAN'T STAND IT! Use their rage against them, taunt and make them play worse and worse!

[[Blaze]]

Good tutorial, I might download this game soon.

[Mr.Jebus Christ]

Errage: For teh lols I clicked ur link cause a while back there must of been a char wipe

[Errage]

Weren't any character wipes that I've heard of, some people lost their accounts or characters in a bug, but you can get them back by contacting customer support.

But clicking my link is good, if you get to level 7, we both get a reward (I don't remember what they are, I know I get VP, but not how many) - If you also buy Battlefunds on top of getting to level 7, we both get even BETTER rewards! YAY!

Updates to the guide should hopefully come soon, have some stuff to deal with IRL, but I should have plenty of free time coming up, assuming moving doesn't take up every bit of spare time I have left >_>

[Errage]

GUIDE UPDATED IN MY SECOND POST

This post, and the post before it, are both possible edit victims for further lengthening of the guide.