Finding myself running out of Ammo way to fast in some situtions....need help!

[SabreNova]

Well recently on my 23 Shield Specc'd Vanguard I've found myself running low on Ammo. This usually happens especially in Warzones, Heroics, or FPs. I can usually prevent it in regular PvE, but sometimes it happens there if there's to many enemies. What can I do to fix this? Still pretty new to this Vanguard, so any help would be great!

 

Thanks!

[Citizen-Snips]

teach yourself to weave in hammer shots occasionally.

 

its hard to get used to but keeping your ammo above 6 is tough at times. eventually you will have two powers to help but at the low levels you have to make sure you are filling some holes with your free ability

[AndyRWager]

teach yourself to weave in hammer shots occasionally.

 

its hard to get used to but keeping your ammo above 6 is tough at times. eventually you will have two powers to help but at the low levels you have to make sure you are filling some holes with your free ability

 

You actually want to keep your ammo at 8 or above, 6 and 7 are a .36/sec regeneration rate. But to the OP he's right. As a trooper(doesn't matter what AC you are), you need to weave in hammer shots every now in then. If I see my ammo drop to 8, I use a hammer shot, or two. Trust me, you'll see a much bigger jump in DPS if you learn how to do that, and aggro. In ion cell, even just using hammer shot on an add to the side generates enough threat to keep it off your healer. And in pvp, you don't have to attack everything.

[SabreNova]

Alright i'll try that out thats probably the issue i try to weave in some hammer shots but usually takes a backseat to my other abilities...thanks guys i'll try that out!

[Philosomanic]

Yeah, the golden rule of Ammo management is to never drop below 8 ammo. If Recharge Cells is available, you can allow yourself to drop down if you need burst. Once you hit 2 or 3 ammo, use Recharge Cells -> Hammer Shot -> Hammer Shot to get back up to 8+ ammo. However, without Recharge Cells, dropping below 8 ammo will significantly hurt your DPS.

 

For PvE, this is a golden rule that should almost never be broken. For PvP, there are occasional exceptions. If you're in a v1 with both of you at 30% health, don't use Hammer Shots to conserve ammo. Blast that ****er with everything you have, and worry about regenerating later. You shouldn't burn ammo willy-nilly, but it's okay to get low if you're smart about it. You just have to be aware of the fact that dropping to 2 ammo to kill one enemy means you'll be an incredibly easy kill if another enemy can attack you before you regenerate. It's almost always best just to stay above 8 and not have to worry about that.

[Citizen-Snips]

You actually want to keep your ammo at 8 or above, 6 and 7 are a .36/sec regeneration rate. But to the OP he's right. As a trooper(doesn't matter what AC you are), you need to weave in hammer shots every now in then. If I see my ammo drop to 8, I use a hammer shot, or two. Trust me, you'll see a much bigger jump in DPS if you learn how to do that, and aggro. In ion cell, even just using hammer shot on an add to the side generates enough threat to keep it off your healer. And in pvp, you don't have to attack everything.

 

ya, i meant 8. im not sure what i was thinking but that is what i meant. chalk it up to me not proof-reading lol

[ahnog]

Another thing to think about is dropping some of your abilities that use too much for the dps they return. Auto is one, and (can't remember its name, but it uses 3 ammo per shot and knocks regular guys on their butt). With those two out of your rotation managing your ammo is much easier.

[Philosomanic]

Another thing to think about is dropping some of your abilities that use too much for the dps they return. Auto is one, and (can't remember its name, but it uses 3 ammo per shot and knocks regular guys on their butt). With those two out of your rotation managing your ammo is much easier.

 

Actually, full Auto is incredibly ammo-efficient. It costs 2 ammo, and takes 3s to channel. You regenerate 1.8 ammo over three seconds (assuming you're at max regen rate), meaning it's basically free. But yes, Explosive round should be used for the rate cap interrupt only, and nothing else.

[ahnog]

I drop full auto because it is interrupted so easily.