Mister Raccoon's Shiny Munitions Troller Guide

Discussion in 'Oracle’s Database (Guides)' started by Mister_Raccoon, Oct 5, 2015.

  1. Mister_Raccoon Well-Known Player

    Howdy folks.
    I'm just going to jump right in here so if you're looking for information on what makes a Troll tick and how to get the most out of the little nuances of the role, you won't find it here.

    Someone's already done a fabulous job of that already so check it out and show TheDark some love:
    TheDark's Troll Role Dissection

    With that out of the way there's a few things I need to point out before we begin with the loadout and rotation stuffs.
    The crowd control of the Munitions Troll is not, in it's current state, going to be nearly as effective as the folks in the Quantum/Gadgets/Mental camps. Don't get me wrong, there's a couple of real stand-out powers, but if your expectation is to hold a whole group of mobs in place for the same extended periods of time you're going to be disappointed.

    I'm very biased when it comes to exactly how to play Munitions effectively and my strategy varies greatly between it's two roles. So this build is unorthadox in that it is focused on how to do what needs to be done very quickly while creating as little stress as possible for the Tank by avoiding certain powers. It'll all be clear soon, I promise.

    The Loadout as taken entirely from the Glory Tree
    Laser Net Launcher - Power Over Time (PoT)
    Smoke Grenade Launcher - Defense Debuff
    Multi-Net Launcher - Healing Debuff OR Flak Cannon - Attack Debuff
    Reload - Power Dump
    Survival - Detaunt/Utility
    Active Protection System (APS) - Supercharge group shield/Strong PoT

    The reasons that I took Flak Cannon and Smoke Grenade Launcher as my stat debuffs may not seem obvious at first but, remember, the idea is to create less issues for the tank. The alternatives to those moves, found in the Guts Tree, are Mini-Nuke for attack and 5 Barrel Minigun for defense.

    I get a lot of questions about this because 5BMG provides decent crowd control when compared to Smoke Bomb. 5BMG is slow starting, easily interruptable by attacks, and takes a while to finish it's attack. So if I find myself in a situation like, let's say Desecrated Cathedral (Elite) against Raven, and that red skull pops up signalling that it's time to block or stop attacking lest I find myself quite dead, that extra time 5BMG takes to complete could cost my team dearly. Not to mention that sometimes you just have to be able to power dump at the drop of a hat if the healer finds themselves overwheled and if I'm still stuck firing off that minigun I might miss the window of time that I'm needed to restore power so that the healer can save us all.

    I hear a lot of trash talk about flak cannon too because, in addition to knockdown crowd control, it also knocks enemies back a bit. To me this was the lesser of two evils. Mini-Nuke has a larger AoE... but it's also notorious of knocking everything back from the point of impact in all different directions. With flak, it's really only one direction. And if you maneuver yourself just so, you can mitigate the knockback and make the tank's job suck a little less.

    Multi-Net Launcher is GREAT crowd control in addition to the debuff. But if you're not careful it'll also pull enemies toward you if you hit the range attack button. Unless that's what you want at the time, I guess. Beside the obvious strain it may put on your tank, it would really, really, really suck if you pulled in some heavy hitting adds at an inopportune time... so practice with this one a bit first.

    About Debuff Priority
    Typically when asked for debuffs, what they mean is defense. That's why smoke bomb should always be in your loadout. But in my experience if a hit is going to one-shot someone, it's going to do it whether the damage debuff is applied or not. This could really be said for all troll powers. So it's only use really is to take some of the sting out of what the tank is taking.

    On the flip side, very few mobs will ever require a healing debuff making it's utility very situational. But the crowd control effect of them nets is nothing to take lightly. So I'd recommend it over the attack debuff unless you haven't mastered how NOT to pull mobs toward you.

    Survival and YOU
    Survival seems like a wasted slot in a Controller loadout, eh? Not entirely so.
    Sometimes things get a little nuts. Sometimes you'll see your squadmates dropping around you for whatever reason. And sometimes the Controller is the only one removed from the heat of combat enough to react to this in a timely manner.

    That's when having a detaunt that prevents crowd control against you for a moment is invaluable. Countless times this move has allowed me to creep right into the thick of mobs to revive a tank. You never really realize just how useful it is till you find yourself in this situation without it.

    APS - Your Oh S#!T Button
    This should be obvious but that APS is the bee's knees, friends. Provides a sturdy shield for the entire group while pumping out rock solid PoT. Perfect for just about any emergency situation and an absolute life saver for helping to keep up the power supply of groups who tend to burn through power quickly as it gives you a chance to breathe and get your weapon combo up for longer-term power regen.


    I feel like by now you should have a pretty good foundation from which to start your own experimentation, which is encouraged, of course.
    • Like x 1
  2. Nightling Active Player

    and for DPS ? please
    • Like x 1
  3. LT Schmitt Committed Player

    I needs some help in this also. I love Munitions for troll over others but the DPS is lacking (or I just suck)
    FYI Multi-Net Launcher is a must for crowd control.
  4. Roomba Dedicated Player

    Even though I still don't want my thread to be "the munitions guide", I'll post a link to this in it
  5. Mister_Raccoon Well-Known Player

    I'm still testing but it looks like flak cannon no longer does as much knock back, further easing the tanks load while you debuff.
  6. Please Stop Me Well-Known Player

  7. Mister_Raccoon Well-Known Player

    I'm back after a lengthy hiatus and will be actively playing up to late spring to early summer of 2019.
    That said, I'm gonna revise this guide to include any relevant changes as a result of all these updates I have to catch up to.
    Hoping @Roomba is still around to consult.

    Cheers!
  8. Schimaera Devoted Player

    For DPS spec I advise you guys check out ObsidianChills Munitions DPS.
    I played munitions before and agree with how he suggest the munition rotations.

    I would definitely refrain from using 0.50cal. It's a nice burst but only at the end of the cast. Play it save.

    ST of his guide is good too and you're indeed better off jump cancelling heat vision after two ticks. Just try it out and exercise it. I played munitions on an and and didn't have 160 artifacts or even the best gear - and I was easily out dps'ing people both on AoE and ST.

    If you don't wanna look it up, I can probably type something here. I would advise you to watch it if you really want to improve your mun performance
    • Like x 1
  9. Mister_Raccoon Well-Known Player


    Damn my whole loadout needs to change then. My last heyday was 2015-2016 so a lot of what I remember revolves around advanced mechanics which if I'm not mistaken don't exist anymore. But as I recall I was never ever a fan of 50cal to begin with. To me the whole purpose of using guns (i.e. munitions) is to play at maximum possible range and 50cal just wasn't worth the slot or the long startup time at long range when the bulk of the damage relied on closing that gap.

    Same reason I never ran 'splosion in DPS even though it had some real sexy potential.

    I think munitions really shines in the troll role and is kinda meh-ish on DPS due to the risk/reward factor of getting more damage at closer ranges and that being kinda antithetical to the point of using guns. Don't get me wrong munitions DPS is fun to play but other troll powers have better DPS play styles with considerably less risk.

    I'll give that guide a once over, thanks for the tip!
  10. Schimaera Devoted Player

    Just to clarify. Munitions is a really good power while being at max range - low risk, high reward. This also comes from the fact that Mini Gun has double ticks when the burning PI is applied. Though many still think it's totally busted and broken, it actually is one of the reasons why munitions is even competitive.

    And Munitions at close range is even better thanks to 'Splosion.
    Not as massively strong as Nature's Savage Growth, but it gets the job done.
    Most "challenging" part with munitions is to position yourself continuously to get the max damage possible with your cone AoE abilities ^^
    • Like x 1
  11. Mister_Raccoon Well-Known Player


    Oh good so there's been some changes in the last couple of years. I remember most of the powers were more effective at close range and so if that's different, even a little bit, I can't wait to sit down and try some new stuff out!
  12. Mister_Raccoon Well-Known Player

    Holy hell I just found a way to crank the DPS on munitions up a whole hell of a lot provided you have the patience (or cashish) to invest in maxing a specific artifact.

    Will post that and my updated troller guide soon.