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Well, I love the scout, and I kept hearing that the heat cannon was good, so I got it. I don't have that much play time with it (ten or eleven hours) and haven't been on the forums terribly long, but I've read in multiple threads to put stuff up, even if it's not top tier stuff, people still benefit. I myself have been looking for a heat scout guide since I started considering playing it. That aside, heatscout is fantastic if you can work it right.
I run with three dets and a blockade as well as air comp. and advanced armor fusor. I'm a little OCD, so armor fusor often prevents me from making unnecessary repairs. It may be more handy to have an Air 180 ability, but.. I do like the constant health regen when engaging multiple opponents from a distance, so long as teammates are killing the things I'm hitting, or I'm killing the things they're hitting.
Hope you enjoy this guide I made at 5 am. Goodnight.
Aim
Clearly it's important, and it takes some practice using two weapons that aren't instant. The scout is a close range mech, but with two explosives, and one on reserve (det) you can't get too close. So, the most important advice I can give you for aiming is- learn to dodge (also, practice your aim, but really, learn to dodge). Most of your time in a firefight is going to be spent finding cover, avoiding fire, and finding the perfect moment to shoot. You need to survive long enough to get your hits off.
The second most important advice I can give you is to lead your shots. Practice those non-hitscan weapons, try and recognize patterns and time your shots to be where your opponent is going to be at the time of impact
The zerker is probably your biggest threat in low to mid tier games. It's maneuverable and uses the air a lot, so unless you are pretty great with those rockets, you're going to need to maintain high health long enough for him to land.
Heat Cannon Mechanics
Unfortunately, but also fortunately due to the fact that Hawken is not a complete game, weapon mechanics change all the time. Since I cannot be trusted to update this thread every time there is an update, I will focus on the general mechanics and not go very far into the numbers.
One of the most important things to recognize is that the charged shot has both a higher damage, and a higher splash radius than an uncharged shot. Presently, the charged splash is about 150% of the uncharged splash, so if someone is behind a corner, that's what you want to use. (Aim at the ground past the wall, not the wall.) Damage is also higher for a charged shot, at roughly 120% of the uncharged.
It is worth noting that it is much more accurate than the TOW, and flies in a much straighter line. At long distance, your TOW will often hit the wall the enemy mech is behind while your heat will go just about exactly where you aimed it.
Furthermore, the speed of the charged projectile is orders of magnitude greater than that of the uncharged. It is practically instantaneous over short range, so it makes a great candidate to snipe players from the air when they're fighting you. In combo with a manually detonated TOW, this is your best defense against aerial attacks. But! If you have a blockade (or cover, always opt for cover) set it up and get close to it and use it to force your opponent to spend extra fuel on his attack, eventually forcing him to land. The reason why you want to do this, despite all the advantages of the charged heat cannon, and the fact that it's not very difficult to hit flying opponents with it, is that the dps for charged heat is terrible. It is strictly a burst weapon and unless you are absolutely fantastic at dodging, not going to win you a sustained 1v1 fight.
The damage per second of the charged heat cannon is roughly half that of the uncharged. So in order to be an effective player with it, you have to know when to use what. If you have ample cover to dart out from and back into, use the charged shots. You won't miss as much, and it's more damage per burst, but if you're forced into the open (which you should never allow), do your best to keep your opponent on the ground, or even below you (don't fly much, you will waste fuel. You are as effective dodging attacks on the ground as you are in the air.) and aim at his feet.
In either event, it is worth learning how to use uncharged shots effectively. Things aren't so clean on the battlefield, and you will find yourself losing a lot of battles if you rely strictly on charged shots. Charged is a burst weapon and a poke weapon. Uncharged is for sustained fights, or burst, if you need to finish your opponent off quickly.
Gameplay
Be like water. No. Really. Be like water that has a radar. He pushes, you step back a bit and dodge behind cover. You can't put up a sustained fight in the open with the scout unless you're hitting every shot and dodging all of his. He runs, pursue until you have a good line of sight, take him down, one, two. He survived_ Check your radar, make sure he's not running into a group of friends, and then, well, you're a fuzzy bunny scout. You don't take that running sh*t. You keep aware and get right after him, BUT ALWAY, ALWAYS, ALWAYS make sure you're not running into a trap. You will die. Fast.
For the most part, play heatscout like you would if you had a Flak, you just hit harder and slightly less often. You'll hear multiple reports on charging and not. It really depends on your opponent. If it's someone new, usually don't bother, and just go for the extra dps. If he's dodging all of them, duck, charge, shoot with TOW. Further mechanics are discussed above.
That being said, heatscout is a great harassment device. Most people will see that you're a scout and once you've fired your TOW, they won't expect a follow up right where they're standing. You can pretty much snipe with the charged heat cannon, and if you see a group of enemies in the distance, fire away. If they come toward you more than one or two (two only if both are quite wounded and you're confident in your abilities) then you should run. You've broken up the pack and changed the direction of the game. Hopefully you have a team that can work with this. In any event, the charged heat cannon's splash damage is significant, and if you happen across a larger firefight, you can change the game before they even know you're there.
Play stealthy, and hit hard. Don't be afraid to walk, you've got a high walk speed, and if you're looking for a fight, most players are boosting for you anyway, so take the time to match things up on radar and time a det/tow/heat combo right as they round the corner. It is a fantastic thing to land that on someone who thinks they have the upper hand, only to have them turn tail and shoot them in the back with another combo.
Lastly, utilize your dodges. You can hold a charged heat cannon while dodging. It's a terrific way to get into position when you know an enemy is coming at you. If you know they're coming, first heat shot should always be charged, but be aware that your dodges show up on radar, so if you have the time, walk to the position that you intend to ambush them from.
Against C mechs
C mechs are generally your easiest targets. Slow boosters, easy to time your rockets. If you're close, take advantage of your maneuverability and get behind them if you can. If there's no cover around you DO NOT FLY AROUND THEM. I'm serious. You'll run out of fuel, and even with your reserves, there's a high chance they'll gun you down. If there is cover nearby, feel free, but use it. The exception is if you're really close and can literally just hop over them. Do it, and if you can 180 in mid air, immediately attack them from behind. If you can't, land, and do the same. C mechs, I've found are the easiest to engage in the open, as you can often take full advantage of your massive dps with the heat cannon. Just press and release, no charge. Big target, slow. No miss. Boom. Good.
[Edit] I wrote this guide more than four months ago. The meta has not changed significantly, but I currently realize that the guide I have written is primarily for low to mid tier play. As I currently sit in very high tier games, C classes become significantly more difficult to deal with. Their aim is better.
You do not want to get close, and that is the advantage of the heat cannon. Most C class mechs excel at close range play (except rocketeer, get close on that one). Fight mid range so you have more time to dodge, and learn to accurately hit your uncharged shots. At high tier engaging C classes with any A class becomes a chore, but utilize your cover, chase when they turn, retreat when they face you, and you can make it work. Just be aware of the fact that he has a team.
Your three biggest C class threats are the Brawler, Vanguard, and Incinerator. Brawler is shorter range than you with the heat cannon, but has an exorbitant amount of health, so unless you're careful, he'll advance on you. You need to be consistently aware of his positioning. Vanguard (especially with SMC) is a little more mid range than the Brawler, but you still wan't to engage around that point anyway. The grenade launcher travels slower than either of your weapons, and you're faster, so use those dodges to your advantage. If he turrets up, use your best judgement. You may want to try and get behind, though it's not recommended that you try and get over him at this point. High tier vanguard pilots are very deadly turreted at close range, and many use mini-flak, which will drop you like a fly. Incinerator is just lethal. Use your cover, stay far away from those SAARE shots, and hit from either further than Brawler or Vanguard, or very close, taking advantage of that turn cap. Good luck.
Against B mechs
Your limiting factor against anything but Cs is your proficiency with your weapons. High dps means anything is pretty easy to take down if you can hit it. The tactics don't vary much, but preferably, engage B mechs when they are distracted or have low health. Kind of a duh statement, but it goes double for scout and other light mechs. Check what you're shooting at. Rockets are easy to dodge, but harder in a B mech. Take advantage of this if you're facing down something with a TOW rocket. If it's a G2 assault... You may want to run. They can miss plenty of shots and still have more than enough damage to lay you out, air or ground. That being said, if you've got a fully rotatable cover (a pillar or box that is a pain to jump over) just outmaneuver them, charge your shots, hit them in a flurry, and use your det. It will create a short cloud of smoke that will make it seem like you popped out of nowhere and vanished just as fast. Wear them down as much as possible. Hope they run. Nothing outruns a good scout (except Blitzing Raider). If they don't, keep your burst/cover game up and keep an eye out for additional enemies.
Your biggest threats are assault and predator in higher tier play. The heat scout is surprisingly good in most B class engagements. You also want to be aware of the raider, but you can usually get out of the MIRV range before the weapon resets, so even with half health, a decent scout can engage a raider pretty well.
The assault is a threat because, it's the assault, and it has a reasonable counter for everything you do. It can engage close range or mid range, the TOW has good burst capacity, and in the open, any of its primaries can be devastating. Take away his ability to use his primary effectively and play the push-kite-push game. (Push in, when he gets your pattern down, retreat and kite him, when he stops chasing, push again and repeat. You have the mobility advantage here, so make the most of it.)
The predator, as much as many people will say it's underpowered or whatnot, is not to be underestimated. It can take you out in one second flat, and you're going to have a hard time getting the first hit due to its invisibility and ability to see through walls. Once engaged, watch the ground. The predator can also shoot mines faster than you can dodge. Be careful. Take to the air. It is certainly harder to hit a scout in the air with those mines. If you run out of fuel, make that decision to use the ability to maintain flight or use it to get away, or if you just about have him, perhaps not at all. Most predators are non-issues, but for a competent pilot it is one of the most deadly mechs in the game. Do not underestimate.
Against A mechs
Again, your limiting factor is aim, but this time there's less health. You may find yourself using more charged shots at As than uncharged, and if that's working, then fine, but at close range you can time both your tow and an uncharged to hit them at the end of a dodge. If they're on the ground, aim for the feet, but still try and hit them. Remember, you can fire roughly twice as many uncharged heat shots as you can tow rockets (watch your heat generation if you're in a sustained dodging match) and you can use this to make a pretty simple L/R, L, L/R, L, L/R timing. If you've got a significant health advantage, but they're flying around, don't be afraid to fly right up close to them and hit them with something. You could eat your own rocket doing that, so don't say I didn't warn you. It's best if you can engage them at a longer range behind cover and work their health down with charged heat cannons (utilize that splash damage) until they run off to repair. Keep a tab on them on your radar, walk in the direction they're heading (without letting them get too far), and once it looks like they're repairing, boost right up and finish them with a combo of whatever you've got. This works for all mechs, but since As are particularly hard to hit, it's a particularly effective strategy.
Be cautious against any competent A class, though the berserker and fellow scouts in particular. The berserker can be very challenging to aim against, and in combo with its ability (run for cover in this event. You don't have the health to handle that damage) can really mess your day up. Use cover liberally when taking on a berserker. It relies on air mobility and a sustained weapon- which are both advantages in the open. Keep that in mind.
Heat scouts, well, we can't touch on that too much. Be creative, try and get them to slip up. You're already playing one. Flak scouts will try to get close-take note if it's a miniflak scout or a full flak scout. For miniflaks, cover is more important, and you're going to want to fight it much like a berserker. For flak scouts, keeping optimal range is most important, and you should try and kite him as much as possible. Be aware that he can run just as fast, so when he wants to retreat, your best bet is more than likely to nail him with a TOW and a charged heat cannon. Take your time and finish him off. For all A classes, one of the most important factors is being able to predict their movement, and shoot at the appropriate point at the appropriate time. This comes with practice. Don't get discouraged.
General Strategy
Just a few words of advice. Stick to the sidelines and don't draw much attention. Get a little wounded, when you see someone break off to chase you, cover really quick and repair if you can (however if you've got this time, and they are boosting, a more effective use of it might be to pepper them with rockets on the approach instead of prepping a three hit ambush), but maintain radar silence. Get in a good position and time your rockets for when they round the corner.
If someone is really low and at a distance, don't be afraid to hit them with your heat. This goes double if they've just gone around a corner and you think they're repairing. Charge a heat really quick and aim for the ground close to whatever wall they're behind. If the splash doesn't kill them, it'll often uproot them from repairing and now you've delayed the other team from gaining some of their health back.
Blind fire! If you don't know an enemy is or isn't there, and have some confidence, shoot around corners if you think someone could be repairing or just waiting for you. I've gotten plenty of hits doing just this, meaning not only do I knock that lurking predator out of stealth, but I have a small damage advantage going right into the fight.
Also, as Comic_Sans has pointed out, keep that LMB pressed down when you're not fighting.
Most General Strategy
Just think before you do things. You're in a tiny, fast mech, with the potential for really high burst damage. But you can die. Very fast. And what do we say to the god of death_ Not today.
Edited by ticklemyiguana, August 18 2014 - 07:33 AM.
