Strategy for beginning Vanu - Advice needed

[c_rotius]

I have gone through several combinations, and have yet to find anythign effective for my Vanu. I went to the training area and trained to level 3. Through 12 hours of fighting, I finally made level 4. Ouch, that was tough. I have to think it should be easier to get your first level in the field.

Here are the templates that I tried:
-Med Weap and Reinforced agile
-Infiltrator and Wraith
-med weap and mag tank

None of these seemed particuarily effective. The terrans were pretty much able to mow through me, while I could unload on them and not seem to do much damage. I did learn that spitfire cannons are more easily taken out with armor piercers.

Is it just a matter of finding the right ammo? Or would someone recommend a particular skillset for a complete newb?

Please, advice NEEDED!

[Jarlo]

1) Join an outfit

2) Get in a decent squad

3) Get in your magrider with a dedicated gunner and unleash hell.

[gonnagetyou]

I'm not sure how you were playing, but my main advice is try and keep your distance when fighting TR or NC. The majority of their weapons are far more efficient at killing up close than Vanu weapons are. If you do need to be up close and if you can get at least the special assault cert then I highly recommend using the Thumper. I love that weapon outside or inside. With plasma grenades you can bring down even reinforced fairly quickly. It is my weapon of choice for base defense.

Use every ounce of cover and keep moving always. For the most part, this game really is all about skill and out thinking your opponent. Even low level guys can rule as long as they use each weapon as it was intended and at it's most effective range. Be smart and have fun.

[kerosene31]

Try going Max. When I was BR3 I went Med assault and anti-infantry Max. You will chew up other infantry, and when you get better you can take out other Maxs.

Make sure you switch back and forth from ap fire mode on the Vanu guns. Regular for infantry, ap for Maxs and everything else. Although you should not be bothering to shoot at vehicles with the AI Max unless you need a respawn. :)

The Vanu Max advantage is it's speed. Outside in the open, you can dance circles around others. When the battle moves indoors is when things get harder.

[Jarlo]

Oh one more thing, i advise engineer to go with magrider so you can patch yourself.

[AcidCat]

My favorite Vanu weapon is the Lancer, my advice would be to get reinforced, med assault and then AV when you have enough certs.

Once you get some practice with the Lancer it is deadly, especially against Max units. Although it can also be used against infantry, you'll want reinforced so you can have another weapon dedicated to antiinfantry, since you don't want to waste too much of that precious Lancer ammo on mere grunts.

[Nitsch]

Don't feel bad that you died often at the beginning... everyone does. Just stick with it... try different cert combos and you will find the one that works for you.

I almost quit when i first started the game because i sucked soo bad... till i found ninja combat engineering ;)

[HawkEye]

it took u 12 hours to reach BR4 wtf. i dont mean to be mean, but i reached that level fairly quick. same when i got to 5.:D

[c_rotius]

I admit, I am a bit slow. But it seems like I am getting crud exp. I only get 150xp max when killing other ppl (which is very infrequently) and I only get ~500 xp when taking a base. Most xp comes from others in my squad killing. seems like the typical amout of xp is about 50 for that.

At that pace, it just takes A LONG time. Am I doing something completely wrong?

[NightWalker XI]

This is what I did:

Made an outfit

Invited mature gamers

Make outfit squads everyday

Have Mag cert and Quasar cert

Unleash hell daily in Werner

[Lonehunter]

Originally posted by c_rotius
Strategy for being Vanu - Advice needed

Give up, your on a team of Barnies.

Seriously.

[Kaltagesta]

dont listen to him, the barnies kick arse. well.. they are the hardest to get into, but when u do its worth it.

[Lonehunter]

Listen to ME! The Barnies do suck arse!

[The President]

Dont be hatin'.

-The President:sniper:

[Streamline]

I posted once that i didn't feel like any of the fights i was in to be very good. Like i could actually say to the other guy /t GG. Then someone told me to try infiltrating. Infil suit is cheat too. 2certs worth every penny.

[Hertston]

Depends if you want the fun way or the easy way.

The fun way is to train up to BR3 then grab med ass and heavy assault from the off. Then go kill stuff.... with or without squad/outfit - despite what you will read (usually from those desperate to accumulate points for CR3 :D ) PS is quite playable solo, indeed as a heavy grunt you will score more alone IMHO as long as you are in the right place at the right time . When you have gained a few BR, you can begin to develop your character into what you really want.

The easy way is to train in whatever you like as long as it has wheels then be in the right place at the right time . In effect, that means "follow the Zerg".. or, to be accurate stay one step ahead of it. In other words, you want to be at the enemy base your onrushing Vanu hordes (although faction makes no difference to any of this) will be capturing next. Stay there until the hack, grab thousands of XP for doing naff all and move on. Never defend anything.. the XP system is so nerfed it's pretty much pointless..... I should point out this is not fun but if you really want to gain XP in a hurry, it's how a lot of players have. Especially those who whine about newbs a lot :D

[Kyler]

From what you wrote, i think i found your problem, my friend did the same thing.

You cant level of kills only, it's too damn slow.
Participate in base attacks and get some good XP to show for it 2-3K a pop. Depending on how active the defense is at that base, i have seen 5k at times and nothing at others.

Sure a solo kill can bring you 150xp, question is how many can you kill in the 15minutes it takes to cap a base?
Dont forget if someone else gets the killing blow to the target, he gets the xp...


Look some stats up for fome folks, some of them are BR 10+ with 300kills and less.... Base capture is where the XP is.

[Hertston]

Originally posted by Kyler

Look some stats up for fome folks, some of them are BR 10+ with 300kills and less.... Base capture is where the XP is.

In fairness, kills is only a measure if killing is what they do (or should be doing). One of the strengths of PS is that it does offer other possibilities. My own character on Werner for example is a BR12 with maybe 300 or so kills - but as his whole career has been as a medic/engineer/bus driver I don't think that's bad going.

[Knuckles]

c_rotius:

It could be that You simply haven't found a play style, or a role, that fits You. Why not take some time to try out different certs in order to find out what You like - what really is Your bag?

Grunt

I play a Vanu grunt on Werner and I do believe I have some valid input. First off - forget taking up the Pulsar. It's just not good enough. My current weapon combo is the Lancer/Sweper.

The Lancer is a decent AV weapon and a very good ranged weapon vs infantry. Crouch, aim and perhaps use zoom. Learn to lead moving targets - this will take quite an effort to master (and I am nowhere close to actually doing that :) ). But the Lancer is a damn nice gun - don't leave home without it.

Sweeper: close to mid range this is currently the best gun You can get for a measly 2 cert points. I actually get my most kills with this baby. (I switched back to it from having used the Lasher for a while. I just found the Lasher to be lacking, in most every department.)

You might want to try out the Special Assault weapons too. Some really like the Rocklet (aka poor mans Jackhammer). Some also like the Decimator - but I found it very hard to use, due to its slow moving projectile (but boy oh boy - does it ever pack a punch). The Thumper is very good for clearing out topwers and such - might be just Your thing.

A word on the Vanu specific weaponry: There's been post after post on the official boards complaining about the Vanu weapons - Knife, Beammer, Pulsar, lasher. (All except the lancer, which is one of the Vanus strong points.) The devs, Spork, has promised to have a look at it, and maybe they will try and balance said weapons a bit against the other factions.

One thing that I've found out, and that is that combat engineering is very fun. To mine the crap out of a tower and then watch the ensuing mayhem as the enemy attacks... If You are any good at setting up defenses, that tower will be extremely hard to get for You opponents. Learn to use the surroundings to Your advantage. Cover behind trees, rocks, slopes etc. Where will they come from?

"Pilot"

Why not try out the Reaver? This is a beast in the right hands. I don't think that You can get anywhere near this lethal just using 4 cert points. I'd recommend reading the following article posted by Tack:

http://boards.station.sony.com/ubb/planetside/Forum3/HTML/001306.html

Another vehicle I'd recommend trying out is the Magrider. Learn how to drive it, get a good gunner, know when to pull back in time in order to repair (because You must have Enginering if You plan on driving a tank) - and You have one helluva killing machine.


Infiltrator

Some just love sneaking around... (Bastards :) ). I'm not one of them, but I have seen some stuff that just put me in awe. If You have patience (and an especially devious mind, I'd add) this might just be the thing for You. You can create mayhem and chaos if You get any good at this. I'd recommend taking up advanced hacking and combat engineering... Hacking enemy vehicles (AMSs in particular), bases, towers, terminals - You name it - is a very powerful tool. Add to this that You can operate behind enemy lines (if You are careful and patient) and You can throw a whole enemy operation into chaos.

... or just go on a killing spree, taking out approaching enemies, snipers and what have Ya.


... There are so many roles that You can fill in PS. I really do recommend You taking some time to try different certs out. I am sure You'll find Your calling.

[wasupx]

get used to driving the magrider. Grab engineering cert. Learn terrain around bases, takes sometime to know what to look for, then place mag in spots and gun for yourself. 1 reaver hovering cant kill you before you kill it (i.e 24rockets in their clip isnt enough to kill you), its easy to hit them with practice. Position the mag ~200m from target, out of range of striker, but close enough that 1/4 shots will hit an infantry directly.

Why the magrider at low level?
heavy armored transportation
easy killing (running people over or preferrably gunning)
squad friendly
suppressor is almost as good as pulsar so dont worry bout medium assault


take the time to learn terrain and how to use it to conceal your magrider so u can gun for yourself if needed.

[Hertston]

Sweeper: close to mid range this is currently the best gun You can get for a measly 2 cert points. I actually get my most kills with this baby. (I switched back to it from having used the Lasher for a while. I just found the Lasher to be lacking, in most every department.)



Likewise... my weapon of choice in close. The sweeper is very effective, considering it's low cost. Effective range is about the same as the Lasher, it's slower firing but easier to hit and harder to dodge. Circle-strafing a stranded MAX to death with one of these babies is a true highlight of the game, IMHO.