NC HA CQC build

Discussion in 'Heavy Assault' started by AverageGuy, Jun 22, 2014.

  1. AverageGuy

    Any heavy experts here that can guide me on what a NC HA should do and don't do? What ability should I use for the shield and should I use nano weave or flak armor?

    I prefer medium to close quarter engagements. The problem is I don't know which LMG I should pick for these situations as a NC HA.

    Note: My main class are LA and Infiltrators (Flanking)
  2. TheBand1t

    LA1 Anchor

    ASC and Resist shield are pretty nice since it keeps your downtime to a minimum, and ASC is pretty cheap to cert up
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  3. lawn gnome

    i recommend a decimator for dealing with enemy MAX units. a rocket to the face tends to soften em up and make them reconsider their attack.
    i had considered that a time or two for my own bio lab heavy build, but i have a hard time giving up my grenade bandolier (i luvs me some explosions).

    i kinda feel sorry for NC heavies with the jackhammer. the lasher is amazing at suppression and great for dealing with large groups and the MCG seems to just have raw killing rage, but the jackhammer is just a kinda big shotgun.
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  4. vsae

    LA1 Anchor
    Resist 5
    ASC 5
    4 Med Kits
    Conc nade
    Decimator


    PS: Buuuurn RUDELORD!1
  5. SharkSpider

    Anchor's a no brainer in close quarters. It's the only NC LMG worth hipfiring and it keeps the highest damage output.

    In CQC I always recommend Adrenaline/Nanoweave over the more popular Resist/ASC you'll see on forums. You lose some uptime in sustained fights but in return you get a higher maximum hit point pool, the ability to regenerate when killing enemies, the ability to reflex pop your shield when taking damage, and a lower total time spent with the HA shield speed reduction. These benefits are particularly well-suited for close quarters because you need to stay mobile, you need the best EHP you can get in 1v2 and 1v3 situations (recovering when you kill someone makes taking on groups much easier), and you won't be able to play conservatively enough to anticipate all of your damage.

    The only mitigating factor is that your health isn't at its best until you buy the fifth rank in nanoweave and adrenaline shield. With Resist you're good to go after your first few certs.

    For the rest, conc grenade, decimator, and 4 medkits.
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  6. Moz

    If it has to be an LMG, Anchor.

    I actually find the NS7-PDW on OK (not great just OK) for those close to mid range fights.
    • Up x 1
  7. FishMcCool

    For CQC, i roll with Jackhammer, Shrike, NMG, Grenade Bandolier and AV nades.

    Used to be a fan of concussion nades before rushing rooms, but with the implant immunity these days, i'd rather just fill up the room with AV instead. They come in handy against MAX suits too. Shrike helps against MAX too, and is convenient to have if somehow you find yourself needing to run outside across a distance greater than Jackhammer range.
  8. AverageGuy

    Thanks for the response guys.

    I'll be getting these:
    • LA1 Anchor
    • Concussion Grenade
    • Decimator
    • Resist
    • ASC
    I can't aim with the Jackhammer when I put it on the 3 round-burst mode so I had to stick with the 1 round mode. It's still quite to use inside buildings.
  9. Mianera

    Right, thread says CQC but you also mention that you would like do function in medium range. Cuz in direct CQC lets face it, you just want a shotgun build.

    Primary: LA1 Anchor - Great Medium range weapon, very precice for medium/long with burst fire and even highly effective in direct QCQ, also comes with advanced laser attachment. Hipfire ain't too bad, not nearly as good as a SMG or Shotty, but a helluva lot better than the other LMG's. For Biolab fights however, I would still go with a Shotgun or SMG. Blitz GD-10 and Jackhammer are excellent choices. But again, high cert investments, so you can just go with the Mauler, it performs GREAT.

    Secondary: Underboss - Highest burst dps offhander for those "out of ammo" or "reload" situations.

    Ability: Nanite Mesh Generator - Although the resist shield does soak a good portion of damage, this one is still my preferred since it doesn't migrate/half the damage but stops it completely. Adrenalin shield works the same way, but requires a very aggressive, skillful play style and is a huge cert investment.

    Suit: Advanced shield capacitor - Why? Do you hate hiding in cover while waiting for your shield to recharge? Does it feel like it takes forever? This makes it recharge damn fast and gets you right back into action.

    Implant: Regeneration III - Because then you don't need medkits or go looking for that annoying medic who is never there when needed.

    Grenade: Concussion - Disorients everyone in the blast radius making them unable to turn and aim.

    Utility: C4 - Because this will instagib most vehicles and MAX's

    Rocket Launcher: NS Anihilator - Because you already have C4 for CQC vehicle encounters and being able to lock on to both ground and air units for medium and long range makes this far more superior than any other choice out there.
  10. AverageGuy

    Sorry about that.

    Anyway, currently, I got the Anti-Air Rocket (Hawk? I can't remember the name) Launcher for my heavy so I'll probably get the Annihilator once I unlock the Suit, Ability and Anchor. I already unlocked the Underboss when I bought the Jackhammer.

    I think I got the Mauler from the quiz event and use it for my LAwhen entering buildings. I had a blast with it, been thinking about getting the Slug ammunition for it and extended mags.

    As for the C4, I'll probably going to get it last.
  11. BeyondNInja


    Even the anchor's hipfire is only useful within knife range, so its not exactly a selling point, even if you take ALS.

    Resist/ASC is all about consistency. Adrenaline/Nanoweave maybe slightly better in 2v1s but as soon as your overshield and shield's are used up you're ****** when the next enemy comes around the corner (unless they're half asleep they'll easily put 3 bullets into you before you can kill them or even react, with the current server lag and hit detection issues - the best you can hope for is a trade).
    The mobility argument for adrenaline over resist might be valid for the Orion, SVA-88 or smgs, but for NC lmgs your mobility isn't enough of a selling point to trade off the consistency of resist/ASC.

    The core problem with Adrenaline shield that I never see anyone mentioning is that when you win a 1v1 but your shield is used up it gets automatically deactivated while taking fire. Then if you're used to using Resist shield or medic ability you tend to tap f again after all enemies are down. With adrenaline shield this often causes you to waste the bonus juice you got from making the kill (even with max rank), because f will toggle the shield back on instead of off. Hence the stupid mechanic of having one button for on/off undermines the niche of adrenaline shield.

    tl:dr Resist/ASC is more consistently useful if you can win 1v1s without relying on an NMG-style shield. Adrenaline/Nanoweave combo is not worth the extra 2k certs over Resist/ASC. (coming from someone who spent the certs, played with adrenaline for several months and recently switched back).
  12. lawn gnome

    the first charge is only 100 certs so you should at least invest in that.
  13. BeyondNInja


    I used the underboss for a while as my default secondary (I have the most kills with it of any of my pistols), and I honestly think its the worst choice for an LMG or shotgun heavy due to its terrible "kills to reload time" ratio.
    ie if you run out of ammo on your primary as a heavy you want something that can reliably kill more than one enemy without forcing a reload that's as long as your primary's (3.5s vs 4s for the underboss vs anchor). Commish maybe for versatility and reliable 2 or 3 kill potential, but better off with any other pistol than the underboss as a backup for the anchor.

    For a specifically CQC build the Annihilator makes no sense, as its worse than anything else for popping in and out to kill tanks/sundies in close range. Better off with Deci/Shrike for indoors CQC, or Hawk if versatility is really desired.

    Against MAXes, Conc-Deci-LMG or AV-Hawk/Shrike combos are going to be faster and more reliable than C4 due to the excessively long trigger time of C4. C4 heavy is only worth it for sundy-busting, and then you don't want an annihilator either.
  14. SharkSpider

    Most of what you're saying sums up the benefits of Resist/ASC, but the problem with your argument is that it only works if conditions favor you. I can't hope to cover all the numbers, but the gist of it is that there are only two ways for you to squeeze more HP out of Resist/ASC. One is waiting long enough for shield regen and the other is taking hit point damage that you immediately heal with a medkit or nearby medic. You have to play too conservatively to rely on the former, and for the latter you've got to cut it pretty close for the 45% additional medkit HP to outweigh the innate HP advantage Adrenaline users get. If you cut it too close you just die and the Adrenaline user stays up (which is what would actually happen in the example you gave). On a similar note, Resist/ASC is less effective overall at blocking damage because it forces you to move slowly in fights (meaning you take more hits) and it's not a guaranteed boost (which Adrenaline is if you've got low enough ping and decent reflexes). Poor players might lose some of their Adrenaline HP to accidentally tapping F, but that's an L2P issue. Finally, quick Adrenaline lets you recharge shields while taking small amounts of damage. That is, if you pop and only take a couple bullets or a bit of splash your shield recharge isn't interrupted.

    The takeaway from the above is that Adrenaline/Nanoweave almost always gives you more combat HP. For that not to be the case you must adopt an ultra-conservative playstyle, where your movement is restricted by the requirement that you be looking directly at any potential source of damage. You're slow, vulnerable to flanking, and unable to deal with enemy HAs who are as good or better than you unless you can attack and pull back at your leisure. You're worse against overpop, vehicles, and groups of enemies.The only things you're substantially better at are defending from within a medic shield bubble and killing support classes that are kind enough to attack one by one in intervals of about eight seconds. On the other hand Adrenaline users are faster, tougher against groups of enemies or all out pushes, and more likely to beat enemy HAs. They're much more capable of outright attacking positions and less reliant on sterile battlefield conditions to use all of their hit points.

    tl;dr Resist/ASC is good for TDM in a biolab, Adrenaline/Nanoweave is good for planetside 2. It's more than worth a few thousand cert upgrade, especially if you play a fast-paced game where your goal is uncompromisingly the destruction of as much enemy material as possible.

    EDIT

    Noticed your edit after you posted. The mobility argument doesn't care what gun you're using. If anything it's easier to compromise with Resist when your ADS speed won't be crippled by it. NC LMGs really need to have the shield off most of the time.

    Maybe you felt that Adrenaline/Nanoweave wasn't a good buy, but as someone who made the opposite switch and saw direct improvement to may gameplay, I disagree.
  15. Solidpew

    Shark has really good points as per usual. I like the Anchor + AS/NW for CQC because you aren't hindered by having to pop your resist shield every time you start a fight. The resist shield is good, don't get me wrong, but having mobility is extremely important. The Anchor rewards you for reacting fast because of its tight hipfire, and the adrenaline shield benefits by recharging in case the overshield is used. It's like peanut butter and jelly.

    (Also, resist shield isn't really CQC oriented imo. It's not fast enough, I preferred it when I wasn't stuck inside a building)
  16. Mianera


    I really think you missed the part where the OP mentions that he also wants to function in medium range.

    I primarily pilot vehicles/aircraft current, and believe me... it is NEVER the heavy with the decimator or random dumb-fire launcher that get's me. It's the one with the lock-on or C4 that kills me. I mean, you can just dodge those other rockets. The decimator wont do anything vs a flash, harasser, a vehicle on the move or any aircraft assuming those pilots at least have a little bit of skill.

    MAX's are pretty much useless at medium ranges and at long ranges they are 100% useless, so you have the LA1 for that range. And if you spot a MAX in a doorway in a Biolab just move up on the side of it and dumb C4 on it. Or even better, throw your concussion grenade at it and it's basically a free kill.

    Vehicles at medium range are constantly on the move and the decimator has the slowest projectile/rocket speed of them all. You'll never hit anything. No matter what, even if you look at stats, the Anihilator will always have a higher accuracy count than the Decimator.

    But obviously for biolabs or infantry only fights, go with a dumb-fire. But in all honestly, the standard one will do just fine for those situations and investing 1k certs for a tiny damage increase and loss of velocity on projectile is just a joke.
  17. Mianera


    The Mauler is incredible amazing and fun to use, got mine from the quiz as well. Great shotgun for CQC with a solid damage output.

    As for the slug ammo, I have to admit that I am not a fan. It's not that I don't find it useful or reliable I just keep thinking that a carbine or smg can do just as well or better.

    First things I would get is the LA1 Anchor and NS Anihilator. Because then you are combat ready vs EVERYTHING the game puts up against you :) The rest of the stuff is mostly just small advantages.

    Lastly, as for the Underboss it is true that it is not a solid choice vs multiple enemies but there is a reason why it falls into the catagory as a "Secondary" weapon and not primary. Should only be used to finish off that one enemy, that "crap reload" situation or returning fire while desperately getting into cover to reload the main weapon.
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  18. Nakar

    Sometimes when I'm feeling frisky I roll with a Cyclone instead of the Anchor. You have to be operating under the assumption that you won't be getting in too many 15-25m fights though because if you are then the Anchor is going to be doing a lot better. But when you aren't, the Cyclone gives you better DPS, better hipfire, 75% ADS movement, and a reasonably competitive damage throughput. People also seem to get salty about SMG Heavies for some reason.

    Alternatively, of course, there's the Jackhammer, but much like the Cyclone it will start losing badly to the Anchor at middling-medium distances. Or if you're a cheapskate you can get the GD-22S as a pseudo-Anchor for far fewer certs, but it doesn't have ALS and is a 577rpm weapon instead of a 600. Faster short reload though, so that's something, plus access to a 2x Reflex (it's more of a midranger designed for a Grip than a close-to-mid specialist like the Anchor is). The problem with the Anchor/Cyclone/Jackhammer is they're all pretty expensive to get, so that's why I point out the GD-22S since it's 100 certs.
  19. AverageGuy

    I see a lot of good points in your post.

    I bought it a couple months ago. The weapon feels kinda off when I use it, I always end up using the SAW or the EM1. I used to use thermal scopes on my weapons but I got tired of using it and went back on using iron sight which I notice that it's much easier to kill enemies (medium - long range) with it than reflex or other scopes.

    Anyway, I hardly get to play the game after Saturdays patch, ping was messed up after that patch. Hopefully it'll get fix by this week.
  20. BeyondNInja


    The anihilator is going to get you nothing but assists against tanks, is useless against parked sundies and for AA you can usually just temp switch to an AA lockon to scare ESFs off. I personally use the phoenix as my all-around launcher on my NC HA for the extra versatility at 100-200m, but I generally consider close-mid range combat as completely different to open-field combat.

    As for MAXes, when playing NC enemy MAXes are 'dangerous but not necessarily lethal' up to ~30m, hence that's where you want to be able to front-load damage. Not at 2m, where the TTK with lag is less than the trigger time for C4. Note: I didn't recommend the Deci in particular for an all-around mid-range build, I believe I said Deci/Shrike/Hawk.