LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Some WiC Role Guides
Note: These were created by members of one of my former clans. If you don't want this posted here, one of the moderators can delete this. I got these sent to me via email.
Armor
SupportOriginally Posted by Created by D†G^McMurder
Tanks are an important role for your team. Not any more than the other 3 to choose from, but they provide some things that no other roles can.
Basic Play
Each map requires a different strategy for the tank role. Even between different styles of maps.Domination Maps
Your goal should be to be both offensive and defensive. Usually I start out with conservative game play with my units until I can figure out the best avenue of attack. For example: Space Needle: No matter which side I start on, I spawn the same units. 2 Heavy tanks, 2 Light tanks. The reason is two fold. Light tanks are fast, allowing you access to capping points quickly. Each side you spawn on has two close sets of control points. Send one light tank to each of the nearest of the two control points. Capping at both locations allows for maximum TA / points and spreads your units out. Just two minutes into the map you've got 14-16 TA from a little fortification and capping those two points.
The two heavy tanks I keep close to AA/Repairs until the teams ''force'' is assembled and try to capture the more contested ''middle ground'' points with these and any other recently dropped tanks while letting the other two fortify.
As a simple rule, always try to stick near AA/Repairs. You won't last long without them in a Domination map. Helicopter players are like wolves, they spot the sheep out of the flock and attack!Fortifying
Fortifications help keep command points. They provide damage to enemy units without any friendly units being around, hold the point in your favor, and provide an eye out on that part of the battlefield while your other forces are advancing. While fortifying, never keep all your units on the same point, and never use all of your units to fortify unless you own zero points and you need to get those defenses up ASAP. While sitting on these points or capturing new ones, don't ever sit in the middle. Sit off to the extreme side where you can't get tankbustered by a lucky shot through the middle. Also, never continue to sit on a point with valuable units after the enemy's helicopters have spied you out. Sometimes they're just over there for a quick glance so their team can throw appropriate TA down on you and capture the points.Tanks vs. Helicopters
By far a group of helicopters can take you out faster than anything else (excluding TA). As previously said, roll with AA/Repairs. But what if they get taken out? What if I'm not playing with lots of Support? To be successful in these situations takes a few tricks. 75% of all helicopter players do not use a Scout helo, this is to your advantage. Also is the fact that those same people do not use Force Fire. There's virtually nothing you can do if they have a Scout, temporarily they can see through their smoke. If not, use this trick. While playing with a group of more than one tank, do NOT smoke all of your tanks in unison. The smoke from one tank can cover two. Smoke up one tank and park the other very close. This requires a tad bit more time than smoking in unison but if you're on the lookout for enemy helos and keeping tabs on their movement, that trick works wonders. As your first tank runs out of smoke, smoke up the second after you've moved an inch or two on your screen to avoid any TA. Park the tank that's out of smoke next to the newly 'smoked up' one.Tanks and the tale of a soft ass
Little do most tank players realize, your butt is something to be watched. Knowing this can make the difference between your dead tanks, or your opponents. Other than AT infantry, tanks are the best ground units to kill other opposing tanks. Time is of the essence, we've only got 20 minutes a round.. so how can we get these pesky heavy tanks out of your way?? TA is a good option, but if you're conserving or just don't have any, do this. Tanks are strongest in front. Make sure while in a close tank battle that you're not being flanked, you want to be flanking your opponent. This is only possible to do when your enemy doesn't have many more tanks than you. Shoot your enemy in the side. He'll usually focus fire on your most damaged unit to get that out of the way first. Let him do this, make sure this tank is facing his group straight on. Use your AT missle (Light) or Heat shell (Heavy) on his side, even BETTER if you hit the rear of his tank this takes him out much faster than a face to face battle.Air Dropping
Light tanks are cheapest for you to drop. After capturing points, especially enemy points Air Drop some Lights on them. This increases your force/damage if your teams gets pushed, and provides TA for you. Just think of them as an investment. I can almost always count on having #1 on Command Points and Fortification if I use this method. It doesn't always work out to be the best, sometimes I wish I had saved the TA for an offensive strike. But most of the time it pays off well.
Be smart with this use of TA. If you're only temporarily capping a point because they're bare of fortification and or a great enemy force is coming towards you, it's not worth spending 16 TA to drop something that will be taken out easily. In a hotly contested battle I will drop on naked enemy points to stop that flag from pushing further in the enemy's favor, use your discretion.Shooting Positions
Some maps like Dome are pretty flat. Your view and fire range are at maximum, everything is at your advantage. But when playing maps like Quarry, or Riviera you need to find out the high ground. While a single unit is selected, press the "Alt" key. This reveals your tanks view/fire distance. Hills are great for maximizing this. Such as the hill on Riviera or the edge of the quarry, on Quarry.Selecting Targets
When the game is being played correctly your tank/AA/repair force should be met with another tank/AA/repair force. Most tank players direct fire on the enemy tanks first, this is a mistake. The tanks seem like the biggest threat but they're not. Choppers do the best damage on tanks, so if your opponent takes out your AA first, he can call in his choppers and you're done for. Do this to him first. Scare this shit out of his AA player, use Heat shells to do great damage. The tanks will be out in the open once his AA is scared shit less. You call in your choppers and advance. Always make sure you're not being flanked while doing this. Send one tank out to deal with his AA at the start. This is usually enough to get him running for the hills. Also, you get 3 TA for each AA killed!
Tanks and SupportA tank player is only as good as his support. Without support you are asking to be cut down by heavy attack helicopters. You should try to stay ahead of your support and cover him as necessary. When taking command points tanks should take the point closest to the enemy and support should cap the one closet to your spawn. If you support player is being attacked help him out by getting in front of him and smoking up if you can. Also when you are being repaired it is also a good idea to use you smoke so that the repair tank is harder to target and your tanks will live longer.Ranking Up
The most effective tanks on the battlefield are tanks that rank up and are constantly in a position to be firing on the enemy. Do not try to take on a force that is superior to yours. Pick your battles and try to use your tanks to snipe the enemy. Remember that tanks have a long fire range but not a long line of sight. Try to use other units to see further down field so that your tanks can keep firing. When your tanks are getting heavily damaged try to smoke them up and move them back. If you are working closely with a support get a repair tank to get you ready for the next battle. As you rank your tank up it will fire faster, be more accurate and travel faster. Remember that capturing points will give experience toward ranking your tank up.Positioning and Reverse
One of the more advanced tank tactics is to use the reverse. Default keys are ctrl+N but that is cumbersome (i have mine changed to C so that I can easily reverse). While hitting c click on the ground behind your tank and he will reverse. You can still fire at the enemy and move backwards so as to not expose your tender tank butt. Also if you just click to move the tank slightly behind where it is it will also reverse the tank. Also to keep your front aimed at the enemy right click on the ground and hold it and use the mouse to aim the pointer at the enemy (it will reposition your tank).Tanks vs. Infantry
This is a hard one, Infantry can hide everywhere. Stay away from forests that are known to contain infantry. Try to drive on the extreme right side of your avenue if they're on the forest to your left. Your infantry player should be in the woods too, also so should his drops. Use these to spot advancing infantry forces and use light artillery. Most infantry group their forces and move in a straight line. Infantry in buildings are hard to take care of and should be a team concern. Use gas or a tank buster (if the building is close to dead) or napalm. While playing maps laden with buildings laden with buildings like Seaside or Hometown it may be best for your team to use a Fuel Air / Daisy Cutter Bomb on their buildings. This denies their infantry any cover in town and they must resort to the outlying forests or standing in the open, where it's easy to run them over or use TA on them.Using TA
Conserve, conserve, conserve. Some situations viewed as immediate threats actually could be dealt with by your team without using your TA. Sometimes a Heavy Air Strike, Carpet Bombing, Fuel Air or Nuke can turn the tide of a game when placed well. These ''expensive'' TA strikes can only be gotten by conserving or pooling. I'm not saying "Don't use tank busters, light arty or air strikes". These can be great uses of TA. Just judge the way you need to play given the situation and given your opponent. As previously said, air dropping is a great tool also.
Also remember that some TA options can be cheaper per role. If your bridge is out, ask your Support player if he has the points to fix it. It's cheaper for him, if not pass him the points the requires or help him get them ASAP. Passing 10 might save you 2.Communication
No matter what kind of map, or even if it's a clan or pub match you're playing communication is very important. Using the request menu is a great tool when playing with teammates that respond to these. While playing tanks, take out their AA and request heavy choppers. When playing with players who don't respond to role requests other tools are useful to draw their attention to the target or your needs. Using your microphone, especially to communicate with your Helo or Support teammates. Sometimes it's not immediately obvious to your Helo player that you need his/her help. When needing a Support player to get with you, put an attention marker over his head, then a 'Need AA" and or "Need Repair" marker over you. Usually they get the drift and follow you. Constant communication is the difference between good and great teams. Even down to the simple alerts to your team like "We've got some infantry in this forest" or "Heavy choppers to our right" give your team a heads up so you can adjust to the enemy's movements.Capturing Command Points
It's always best to work as a team. Get as many of your teammates on one of two or three points before the other is captured. Doing this gives your whole team TA.
I'm going to share with you... a dirty trick. And no, it's not your Mom!! This works well on Assault maps, but also works for Domination maps. All ground unit roles can do this. But because of your tank's strength you can do this more often than others. While defending it's easiest to keep/hold the point closest to your team's spawn. This means the other point is constantly being captured, then if your team is doing well.. you wipe them off the point. When it turns back to white, you recapture it for more TA/points. Yeah, that's widely known. But most teams hold onto the furthest point so both stay green. Stay off the furthest point so they may capture it, shoot at them as the approach but let a few units on the point. THEN recapture it, you gain mass TA/points by doing this. Again, if you have time make sure every available player on your team is on the other captured point before you capture the second.... providing extra points and TA.Special Abilities
Each option you have for tanks provides a different special ability. Some shoot helicopters (Amphibious Trans), some infantry (White Phosphorous/Mediums) or explosive projectiles (Lights/Heavies). Learn to use these conservatively and effectively. Shooting units on the side and rear is a good rule of thumb to maximize damage. Use your units different speed / abilities to help you in a pinch.
The support role is the glue that holds a successful clan/team together. It is a direct counter to air and infantry units and can nullify the damage done by the opposing force. Support players will not be doing the most damage but are a key component of any sustained offensive. Because your support will be needed across the battlefield you have to become good at micromanagement and cover as much ground as you can.
Support Units
Heavy Anti-Air (AA)The bane of all air players, the AA units can make short work of any unsuspecting air units. AA units are most effective when they are close enough to support an armor player but hopefully out the range of the enemy’s armor. You want to try to keep close to cover (whether it is behind a building or trees). If you sit in one place out in the open for too long you will either get hit by TA or be easy prey for a good air player. It is a good idea to smoke up your AA's as soon as you see any air headed close to you or whenever you are being hit by the enemy’s armor or infantry. Air players love to use their missiles to make quick work of a single AA unit so you need your smoke quick so they will be forced to retreat and hopefully not hit you or only take a couple of shots at you. Do not keep all of your AA units in the same place. Think of the AA unit as an area of denial for the opposing air player. You should try to place your AA where they can cover important parts of the map (chokepoints, any offensive your team is preparing, and outlying command points). If you can master some of these techniques you will be well on your way to curbing the effectiveness of the enemy’s air player and your armor player will love you for it.The Repair Tank
The repair tank is one of the most useful units in WIC. You can quickly repair any damage to all units (except for infantry) which allows your team to rank up their units and be more effective in a fight. Use your special ability as often as you can to quickly get a unit back at the front lines. Your first priority is to keep as many units as you can alive so switch to another unit if it is about to die. If you are repairing an armor player stay directly behind him and ask him to smoke up (because you are the first to be targeted). You can also use your special ability on your own tank so you can keep yourself alive. If you have more than one repair they can repair each other, use their special ability on each other and heal themselves (you are buying time for someone else to come save your butt). You get TA points for repairing (also repairing yourself) and you will help your team push effectively. Also, keep your own AA units alive.Medium Arty (Med Arty)
The Med Arty is the preferred artillery piece of the support player. They are mobile and your shots are not as visible (you are not pointing an arrow for the enemy air to say come kill me). Try to fire ahead of an enemy infantry to where you think they will be and also on command points where the enemy is most likely fortifying. Use your special ability to burn out forests where the enemy infantry is most likely to drop on you and set up ambushes. If you can eliminate enemy cover it makes it easier for the rest of your team to advance. Try to coordinate with your air player’s scout to find enemy infantry and burn them. If you can, keep your Med Arty moving after one to two volleys as to not get TA called down on your position. Try to space these units apart so you don’t lose them all at once.Unit Choice
I like to start my first drop with 2 AA, 1 repair, and 1 Med Arty because it allows me to respond to almost any situation. If you find that you need more or less of a unit you can also pick them on your next drop. A side note on drops, I like to try to keep my units balanced on the field (call in an AA and a repair so I can keep it alive longer). In some cases I will swap out the Med Arty for 2 Med AA and use them to capture and fortify command points. You have to play it by ear and sometimes it helps to guess what the enemy will be fielding against you.Command Points
Coordinate your efforts with your teammates to maximize the amount of TA your team is getting. Everyone who is on a command point when it is taken will receive TA. Also you will fortify faster is you have another teammate in the command point with you (as opposed to just having two of your own units). You will not be front and center of any attack (and if you are you won’t be for long) so you have to work closely with your air and armor.Working With Your Team
Just remember that a tank player will be raped by air if you are not there to support him. Also, you will be raped if you do not have the support of your team’s armor and air. Call out any unsupported enemy tanks for your air player to dispatch. Don’t push anywhere by yourself and don’t let your team push without you.
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks