How to kill tick bombers (if you play on Harbinger, this guide is for you!)

[DakhathKilrathi]

I'm fond of Charged Plating Quell. Run in, pop plating, start blasting him with HLC & a missile rotation. Helps to avoid the issue of enemy gunships sniping you to protect the tick.

 

Or you could use something effective. Like literally anything else. If you want to get in there with charged plating, use a T1 bomber so you can hold the node afterward. A T2 strike isn't going to hold up to... uh. Anything, really. It might work against a bad team, but in that situation anything you try is going to work.

Edited December 30, 2016 by DakhathKilrathi

[FlavivsAetivs]

Or you could use something effective. Like literally anything else. If you want to get in there with charged plating, use a T1 bomber so you can hold the node afterward. A T2 strike isn't going to hold up to... uh. Anything, really. It might work against a bad team, but in that situation anything you try is going to work.

 

This. T2 or T3 strike can work and do this, but it's like a one-trick pony, basically. You can eat mines and get the bomber off the sat, but not much else.

 

~ Eudoxia

[DakhathKilrathi]

This. T2 or T3 strike can work and do this, but it's like a one-trick pony, basically. You can eat mines and get the bomber off the sat, but not much else.

 

~ Eudoxia

 

 

Pretend you're giving advice to players who might actually struggle with a tick bomber. Then ask yourself if saying that a strike "can work" is okay.

[LilSaihah]

Or you could use something effective. Like literally anything else. If you want to get in there with charged plating, use a T1 bomber so you can hold the node afterward. A T2 strike isn't going to hold up to... uh. Anything, really. It might work against a bad team, but in that situation anything you try is going to work.

 

I mean I'm happy to keep playing on my Thermite Bloodmark but I think you might be being a little bit hyperbolic.

[Zennan]

I prefer BLC scout with pods and retros in this scenario (Quad + Pods work too but the lack of armor pen might be annoying against CP bombers. If you can afford the cartel scout having both builds are fine, but I would prefer BLC clusters PD on the second one. Basically I think that if you want quad + pods for this scenario using the T1 with LC + pods fulfills the same purpose). I blow TT and Wingman and then fly towards them. The pods usually clear the mines (definitely want to clear the seismics/concs/interdictions if they are there). If a seeker latches on burn DF. You want DF burned anyway since some bombers are going to fire back, and you expose yourself to peripheral fire (if those exist). By the time you're within 2km range you should have at least half their hp gone. If you need more fire time, or if you find yourself in proximity of more seekers (tick bombers rarely tick solo), retros and finish the idiot off.

 

As to order of operations:

 

1. Peripheral mines and drones blocking your entry to 2.

2. Defense turrets (these hurt a ton if they hit you, and you don't want to blow DF for them if they are seekers nearby).

3. Railgun drones (you can probably eat one shot and survive).

4. Interdiction drones & missile drones. Use retros to reposition if you have to as it has a shorter CD than DF and will possibly be up if you need a second time.

5. The tick and all of its pets. If you're around the sat and can strafe or move towards the tick and need to recharge your shields, use F2. Otherwise, fly off the sat and attack at the angle that's necessary.

 

Didn't realize this post was so old! I think Despon might be planning a "how to kill ticks" video as part of GSFSchool. We could probably do T1 scout/T2 scout/Ion gunship/CP bomber variants.

 

Also Krix's strategy is pretty novel and funny IMO. I would definitely try it some day just to test how many ticks will panic and start unticking. Although I still think ioning/scouting/cp bomber-ing are better options as those are more geared towards "how to unlodge a bomber from a sat" in general.

Edited December 30, 2016 by Zennan

[RickDagles]

IMO the problem with the quad/pod/retro approach is that you can't really do much to hold the SAT once you get it. If the other team has a decent BLC scout you're toast.

[FlavivsAetivs]

Pretend you're giving advice to players who might actually struggle with a tick bomber. Then ask yourself if saying that a strike "can work" is okay.

 

I always tell them to grab a Quarrel/Mangler and Ion spam the sat. Always too many Condor/Jurgorans in Dom matches on JC...

 

IMO the problem with the quad/pod/retro approach is that you can't really do much to hold the SAT once you get it. If the other team has a decent BLC scout you're toast.

 

I gotta agree with this. Yeah it can dislodge a tick bomber but a decent dogfighting battlescout, or a second bomber, or a gunship really, can pick you off. You need to get your own bomber and gunship support on a sat to hold it.

 

~ Eudoxia

Edited December 30, 2016 by FlavivsAetivs

[Zennan]

IMO the problem with the quad/pod/retro approach is that you can't really do much to hold the SAT once you get it. If the other team has a decent BLC scout you're toast.

 

I agree. I've also had problems with CP bombers since I cannot armor pierce them, and while I won't die immediately to the mines, being grounded as a scout is definitely a huge nono, and it's a matter of time until another ship comes along and I die from the area denial the bomber brings.