Battle Station Walkthroughs

Chibibi Thu Dec 30, 2010 12:12 pm

V. Walkthroughs
All builds are my personal recommendations. You may customize as you wish, but you’ll probably suck. Just kidding.

I will assume you will be able to afford weapons as they come, and that you will equip them without me necessarily telling you to. Also, if I say “consider,” they are optional.

Also, I will not repeat myself to death. Read the two Commander sections first if you have no idea what to do.

Va. The Early Levels
A time for experimentation? No. You're going to rigidly adhere or you'll be humiliated over and over again by the people who did listen to me.

AND BE SURE TO READ YOUR FUTURE BUILD AS WELL! If you mess up, restart early, as you level up every other hour.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross…

You begin with two Steam Cannons. Explore until level 8 while upgrading your ship’s weapons and parts. At level 10, switch to Albatross.

If your future build involves getting Nav, I recommend you go all Nav for the initial 10 levels. This allows you to use Subcannons on larger targets. At level 11, get a full set of 5 Inch Guns. At level 15, switch to 8 Inch Guns. Be sure to keep up with ship upgrades.

Otherwise, get Cannons.

At level 20, get Fireball Cannons (or Battering Rams). It is up to you whether or not to switch ships or continue upgrading your Albatross. Refer to your future build.

PvP basics:
-Always attack the largest target available before the next significant improvement in ships or weaponry.
-Always repair before attacking.
-If they win by luck, try again. If they win because they have a mountain of HP or damage, do not try again.
-Always keep your weapons as uniform as possible. Having two Rams and three Missiles is stupid because the Rams are useless until you are close to the enemy. By then, Missiles are useless. Mix only to meet weight requirements.

Other helpful advice:
-Action Points, or AP determine what actions you can perform. You receive 5 per hour, barring weekend events which elevate it to 8. There is a maximum cap of 360 APs.

-Golden rule of APs: Don’t bitch about not having enough. Waste less. Go have a life to distract yourself from the agony of waiting for more AP.

-If you are sunk, stay sunk until you mass nearly 360 APs, then salvage. This allows you to waste the least amount of AP for salvage, which is something you do a lot in MW:BS. Engineers automatically salvage every 48 hours (240 AP), so use your APs when this happens, then remove protection so you are sunk immediately to repeat this process.

-When grinding, never pay the full cost in APs for salvage. Pay one less. This wastes less AP per HP. Later on, you may just be paying gold to repair so you can grind more.

-When buying, buy from the auction, if only to avoid travel, which eats up APs. However, items that rarely appear in auction should be purchased on site. Try joining one of the newer clans, as they usually have newer members.

Vb. Offensive Commander
Commanders are (now) the newbie-class of BS. They have .5 more stats per level than the other classes…which is actually just Nav…at the cost of stat allocation freedom. Commanders render Traders obsolete statistically.

There are endless varieties of stat and ship combinations for Commanders, but one thing is for sure. You will be putting all your points into Gun and Craft. This build aims to make you a bulkier and faster Pirate.

Stats: 2 Gun.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross 1-7 -> Vanguard 2-10 -> Battle Royale 4-10

The 20s are just a rather short period of grinding. At level 20, switch to 4 Fireball Cannons. Stop upgrading your Albatross after the level 31 upgrade (4 weapon slots).

The 30s are just like the 20s, except with more and bigger guns. Missiles begin becoming viable weapons and Battering Rams are more easily equipped alongside Cannons in defense. At level 30, switch to 4 Imperial Cannons. At level 33, switch to Vanguard. If you need resources or gold, explore. At level 35, consider Aerial Mines; you can cut repair costs in half by coming in semi-slow with Missiles. Upgrading your Vanguard after the level 54 upgrade (5 weapon slots) is optional, though recommended; do not get a Battle Royale until you are 59 at least.

The 40s are a period of tactical change. It is during this period of time that dedicated fishers and pure ramships begin to become viable strategies. At level 40, switch to Impact Cannons. At level 45, begin defending with your speed gear on. This is because it is at level 40, people will have access to Giga Drill Breaker, which creates no-win situations if you’re anchored. Worse yet, Hammerheads will have 3 weapon slots. At level 46, Aegises begin to become much more dangerous fishers, as they will have 4 weapon slots. I recommend you begin recording the names of fishers.

The 50s are particularly brutal period of any player’s life. This is because of Prototype Cannons, the first common cannon with more than 1000 range. If a defender uses them with anchors, it is ensured that only one of the combatants will survive. At level 50, consider Prototypes; they will be replaced in 5 levels, but they are useful to kill fishers while anchored. At level 55, switch to Immolators. Immolators are strictly more powerful than Prototypes on offense if you can close with the enemy. In the late 50s, you will pretty much be sinking anything you can in PvP, or you will be exploring, as targets become scarcer.

The 60s are, at the time of the writing of this guide, the time when players get the short end of the stick. Damage by this point has totally outstripped HP, and ship strategies reflect this. You are either fast with Rams or Missiles, the prior’s goal being to sink the enemy before they can sink you, the latter’s goal being to stay as far away as possible; or you are slow and bulky to fish with any weapon mix possible; Commanders, who used to have 1 Gun and 1 Craft with 3 investable skill points, were once the only class that could afford to slug it out. At level 60, switch to Type-X Subcannons. At level 62, you must switch to Battle Royale. At level 65, switch to Avenger Autocannons.

Vc. Defensive Commander
Some Commanders prefer to have more bulk in their builds. Generally speaking, they achieve this with a bulkier ship rather than massing the stat Craft (which is what Engineers do). Unlike the Offensive Commander, Defensive Commanders are markedly inferior in defense to Slow Engineers due to their Nav, which is, in essence, a dead stat. Thus, a Defensive Commander is an Offensive Commander with more HP.

Stats: 1 Gun, 1 Craft. At level 50, 2 Gun.

Basically, get 1 Gun and 1 Craft until 50, then pump everything into Gun from then on.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross 1-7 -> Vanguard 2-5 -> Aegis 7-10 -> Obsidian Destroyer 6-10

Until level 45, this build is identical to the Offensive Commander.

The 40s are when a Defensive Commander becomes distinct from the Offensive Commander. At level 46, switch to an Aegis and upgrade it.

Use this loadout for fishing:
Black Skull Crest
Mass Anchor
Imperial Standard Plating
3x Bolter Cluster
1x Giga Drill Breaker

This is the maximum damage possible for a level 46. You will also have 16614 HP.

By level 50, you can upgrade the Bolter Clusters to Prototype Cannons by replacing the Imperial Standard Plating with Alloy Plating. When anchored down at 50 speed, Prototype Cannons are guaranteed hit the enemy (Although both ships appear to start 1000 units apart, the combat system does funny things). It is at level 50 also that you stop investing in Craft.

This brings me to another point. Should you use Harpoon Cannon or Siege Cannon? Is the trade-off of damage for range worth it? I say yes and no. Yes in that if you want to defend at 50 speed, these Cannons will stop them from anchoring down to kill you. No in that you might lose some of the battles you would have won with higher-damage Cannons and also because they are slightly more expensive.

By the time you are level 60, you should have 110 Craft and 130 Gun. It is at this point that you can begin attacking other non-Nav classes by using Shuriken Cannons and full speed gear (your natural Nav can be put to use then)… though it is important to point out you might be outgunned (you bulk may or may not make up for this). Exercise caution.

Vd. Standard Pirate
A Cannon Pirate, quite simply, is a Pirate that doesn’t invest into Nav. This means that they intend to slug it out, cannons to cannons.

Note that at the time of the writing of this guide, the prior build is more viable due to the imbalanced nature of damage growth versus HP growth.

Stats: 2.5 Gun, .5 Craft.

Get 1 Craft every other level. If you want more HP, I recommend 2 Gun and 1 Craft.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross 1-7 -> Vanguard 2-10 -> Battle Royale 4-10

So yes, you are nearly identical to Vb. Offensive Commander except for three key differences:
1) You have more Gun.
2) You have less Craft.
3) You have no Nav.

You will be using Cannons instead of Subcannons because of your lack of speed (I am assuming you will not be attacking targets weaker than you are; if you want to bottom-feed, use Subcannons).

Standard Pirates tend to do better against fishers, provided that they do not sink you by the second volley. Honestly, if a Pirate can’t kill someone in three rounds, they won’t be killed by anyone at your level at all. If they are anchored though, you can anchor up yourself.

In Clan Wars, Standard Pirates will be the mainstay PvP class. At the time of the writing of this guide, Commanders still have a 1 Gun and 1 Craft stat bonus with 3 investable stats, but when they are nerfed, I expect Pirates to fill the void.

Ve. Glass Pirate
The Glass Pirate is a novelty of sorts, but is extremely effective in Clan Wars. It sets itself apart from other classes. Rather than being wimpy Commanders, these Pirates are all-or-nothing, taking best advantage of their future skill, Gambit.

Stats: 2 Gun, .5 Craft, .5 Nav. Reset at 55 for 3 Gun or 2.5 Gun, .5 Nav.

Get 3 Nav every level until 10, then do 2 Gun, 1 Craft, then use your reset at 55, switch to Immolators.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross 1-7 -> Vanguard 2-10 -> Battle Royale 4-10
Surprise, surprise. Almost all Gun-based builds will be using the same ship progression.

Keep Nav only if you intend to defend with Missiles (I personally recommend it, as you will also be able to use Subcannons at level 55+ against non-bulky targets). Glass Pirates are great additions to fort defenses, as they can outrun most ships while guaranteeing one or two volleys (refer to section VI. Clan Wars); El Toro is needed for a full-Nav Explorer to catch up to one using full speed gear. If you’re worried about dying, then be a Standard Pirate.

Since this is the first build where you actually invest in Nav (if you choose to do so), get 3 Nav every level until 10, then investing all of the rest in Gun until level 60. During the early period, use Subcannons as recommended in Va. The Early Levels for Nav-based builds, as Gunnery has little to no effect on early weaponry.

Follow the Offensive Commander build until level 35. Do not attempt to defend anchored. Always use as much AP as possible in PvP. Being a Pirate means you won’t have to Explore very much at all. When you are level 35, Aerial Mines, the first effective Missile becomes available. Get a full set and begin fishing with your speed gear on.

Vf. Offensive Gun Engineer
Offensive Engineers are similar to Vc. Defensive Commanders and Standard Pirates, only differing because they have more HP. So why bother? Because Engineers have lower salvage costs.

Stats: 2.5 Gun, .5 Nav. Reset at 50 for 3 Gun (optional).

Funny how Glass Pirates have similar stats to Offensive Engineers. Anyways, I personally believe that one can rely on your natural Craft stat bonus to keep you alive.

As with all Nav builds, get 3 Nav every level until 10. Then pump the rest into Gun. You may use your reset at 50, unless you want to use Subcannons until level 70.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross 1-7 -> Vanguard 2-10 -> Battle Royale 4-10

You play exactly like a Vb. Offensive Commander. You will have slightly more HP, which allows you to defend better, and you have no Nav, meaning Subcannons aren’t as viable, but otherwise, little to no difference.

If you go with the Nav, then you can probably use Subcannons to a certain extent. As usual, exercise caution and try to attack non-Nav classes. I personally wouldn’t bother with Nav, though some Engineers like to use Subcannons with their immense bulk to overpower slower enemy ships (as they are markedly inferior to Commanders and Pirates in Gun and thus, in Cannons).

Vg. Defensive Gun Engineer
A cow of the sky, the entire purpose of this build is to have so much HP that an equivalent ship cannot kill you in three rounds. Meanwhile, you pound away with Cannons, hoping for a kill.

Stats: 3 Gun. Reset at 46 for 2 Gun 1 Craft.

The early Gun is to help you level faster. Play like a Vf. Offensive Gun Engineer. Switch at 46 when you begin fishing. Refer to IVaa.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross 1-7 -> Vanguard 2-5 -> Aegis 7-10 -> Obsidian Destroyer 6-10

I would like to say that this plays like a Vc. Defensive Commander, but it doesn’t. See, unlike the Defensive Commander, you have no Nav at all, so your offensive options will be sorely limited to Cannons. On defense though, feel free to mix and match Cannons, Subcannons, and Rams for maximum damage; I recommend you exercise some degree of uniformity.

Remember that at level 50, a 50 speed defender using Cannons will always be in range of his target.

I recommend you play like a Vd. Standard Pirate.

Vh. Nav Engineer
This is the all-Nav Engineer that I personally use. First and foremost: you are not an Explorer. This was built before the creation of the El Toro Crest, which has made its concept obsolete. There was once upon a time when speed gear was so powerful that people could not catch targets that are not anchored on the first volley. Hence, ramming ships had bulk to survive two volleys rather than one.

That being said, this is usually used for defensive purposes these days. The Engineer’s decreased salvage optimizes fishing. I tend to play when my ship auto-salvages or my AP is about to hit the cap.

Stats: 3 Gun. Reset at 54 for 3 Nav.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross 1-7 -> Vanguard 2-5 -> Merchant O'War 8-10 -> Obsidian Destroyer 6-10

Here is the item build for level 54:

2x Giga Drill Breaker
1x Ramming Piston
1x Battering Ram
Armored Expansion
Mass Anchor

Switch the Battering Ram for a Giga Drill Breaker by level 60 and add a Guardian Totem. You cannot attack until level 60, if you insist on trying to. Here is the build at level 60:

3x Giga Drill Breaker
1x Type-X Subcannon
Black Skull Crest
Stealth Sheath
Advanced Sail
Base Propellers MK1
Imperial Ship Drive

Just a word of warning, you will probably not be able to catch anything with Nav that is using level 60 gear. And try not to hunt excessively bulky targets.

By level 63, you will be switching to Obsidian Destroyer. Here are the items:

3x Giga Drill Breaker
1x Type-X Subcannon
Guardian Totem
Armored Expansion
Mass Anchor

Every three levels henceforth, you will be switching a Giga Drill Breaker with a Pile Driver. It will be expensive, but meh.

Vi. Nav Explorer
At the time of the writing of this guide, this is possibly the most imbalanced build past level 60. New Rams increase this style of play’s viability to rival Cannons. When Chainsaw Blades become public, it might be even scarier!

Stats: 2 Gun 1 Craft. Reset at 60 for 3 Nav.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross 1-7 -> Vanguard 2-10 -> Cargo Dirigible 5-10.

You will be using Cannons in the beginning due to weight and speed constraints. You will not invest in any Nav due to the natural stat growth of Explorers. Refer to Vb. Offensive Commander for playing style.

At level 60, Cargo Dirigibles have enough capacity to carry 3 Pistons and all of the speed gear at that level. Avoid Giga Drill Breakers. They have problems being recycled. By level 66, you should switch entirely to Pile Drivers.

Vj. Gun Explorer
Gun Explorers are good only for exploring... Refer to Ve. Glass Pirate if you want to use Missiles. Good for a multi.

Stats: 3 Gun.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-8 -> Albatross 1-7 -> Vanguard 2-10 -> Battle Royale 4-10

Basically, you won’t need much Craft since you’re trying to PvE without being hit. You can skimp on speed gear, just load as many Rams and Subcannons as possible onto your ship.

Vk. Nav Trader

Refer to Vi. Nav Explorer if you want an offensive ramming build. It is the exact same build. The only advantage of being a Trader is the additional HP and the ability to trade (refer to IVd. Trading). No small disadvantage, as rammer gear is usually very expensive.

Refer to Vh. Nav Engineer if you want a defensive ramming build. The stat build is revised to match the Engineer’s though; 1 Craft, 2 Nav; you can stop investing in Craft by level 54. The only advantage of Vh. Nav Engineer is the decreased salvage and repair costs that optimize its fishing ability. The advantage of using a Trader the ability to trade and the flexibility to change your stats as needed.

Vl. Gun Trader
Gun Traders are good only for gold-farming. Refer to Vb. Offensive Commander or Ve. Glass Pirate. Good for a multi.

Stats: 2 Gun, 1 Craft.

Ship Progression: Windrider 1-10 -> Enterprise 1-10 -> Cargo Dirigible 1-10

Trade your way to 20! Trade, trade, and trade! Buy lots of resources and dump it all onto the market!