160 replies to this topic

[spr1nterJam]

what alt?

[Pleasure_Mortar]

Just wanted to add that reducing mouse sensivity helped tremendoulsy.

Especially when trying to wipe out those pesky scouts and aerial zerkers.

[asipo]

Just wanted to add that reducing mouse sensivity helped tremendoulsy.

Especially when trying to wipe out those pesky scouts and aerial zerkers.

 

yea, i'm used with high sensitivity then realize i cant aim well when using sabot

but other than that I don't feel any different 

[Pleasure_Mortar]

Thank you all for the helpful comments.

Here's an update:

 

 

[FRX23]

Thank you all for the helpful comments.

Here's an update:

 

 

Nice, keep it up but don't take it too seriously, the fun must prevail.

 

Also i think you are underated.

[Pleasure_Mortar]

To be honest I think I'm overrated.

There are certain map/mech combos I'm good at but there are other maps where I just feel no mech I'm comfortable with is suiteable or I lack the strategy.

[coldform]

I just gonna put this here...

 

I have had the vast majority of TDM members tell me that they have made leaps and bounds in improving their skill since they joined the clan, and the improvement in skill level of these players is highly visible.  I have spent so much time simply reinforcing the various protips that I have come across with the clan that I wasn't taking the time to do the same with my skill level.  Our practices have recently made the transition from pure skill development to the inclusion of true gameplay.  I have since applied what we as a group have learned, and I have finally broken my own skillwall.

 

IMO, TDM has become the fastest growing clan in hawken, and not just in number of members, but in true player skill as well. and I mean fast.

 

the first part of this post isn't just a plug for my group, but a statement based on observations that I have made.  playing with an active clan seems to an effective way to improve your skill.

[Shoutaxeror]

Yeah, join KDR, sunday sessions are fun!

[Pleasure_Mortar]

Thanks for the offers, but I really don't fit in a clan.

[Shoutaxeror]

Why do you think so ?

[Pleasure_Mortar]

1. I don't use teamspeak. Hate talking while gaming.

2. I don't want any obligations. 

3. As spontaneous as I decide to play Hawken I quit. Sometimes even in the middle of a match if something more interesting crosses my mind.

[coldform]

1. I don't use teamspeak. Hate talking while gaming.
2. I don't want any obligations.
3. As spontaneous as I decide to play Hawken I quit. Sometimes even in the middle of a match if something more interesting crosses my mind.

1. You really don't have to talk, aside from verifying that you're a person with some level of decency. And that can be stretched a bit.
2. There are really no obligations - I can't speak for KDR, but TDM is easy.
3. Did you ever think that playing Hawken while bullshiting with friends might enrich your time that you play?
If it weren't for this, I wouldn't play anywhere near as often as I do.

[Pleasure_Mortar]

1. You really don't have to talk, aside from verifying that you're a person with some level of decency. And that can be stretched a bit.
2. There are really no obligations - I can't speak for KDR, but TDM is easy.
3. Did you ever think that playing Hawken while bullshiting with friends might enrich your time that you play?
If it weren't for this, I wouldn't play anywhere near as often as I do.

 

3. I know that this is not the case for me. I'm a total maverick.

[Shoutaxeror]

Well, you could come to one training session as a guest. You may love it!

[coldform]

Well, you could come to one training session as a guest. You may love it!

The same goes,for TDM.

[(P:B)Augmentia]

If you ever want to screw around in the NA servers, I am always welcome. If you want to do some 1v1s then we could get it on. You will probably even learn something xD

[Pleasure_Mortar]

Guys I'm touched. I'll think about it.

[MomOw]

fioulala I found my new way to improve : instead of sticking to sustained or burstained, I have to learn how to use T32 with my raider.

For now I miss way too many shots and it's veeeerrrrry frustrating

 

[DonCornelius]

I feel you there. I'm in the exact same boat, though, I fully acknowledge the main reason for that is because I refuse to git gud with burst mechs.

 

I don't want to start a new thread to ask this and i have done a bit of searching without success: Is there a GUIDE FOR BURST WEAPON use? 

[claisolais]

Get rekt

Don't quit fighting(for higher personal score)

Ask for help regarding specific things, for example how to aim breacher, like slug or like MIRV

Try, Try, Try, Try hard matches

Don't ever quit a match unless...unless your kitchen is on fire sort of things.

 

 

 

Hey ppl I stuck between 2450 to 2550, any help?

[Meraple]

Guys I'm touched. I'll think about it.

We had a great time in KDR's latest after-practice DM; I personally hadn't had such fun in a fairly long time.

Maybe you'll love it as well - you won't know untill you've tried.

 

 

Hey ppl I stuck between 2450 to 2550, any help?

Git gud bettah.

[PoopSlinger]

Donc, burst is like bringing an ax to a gun fight. Other people will shoot you and you just need to get close and scalp them.

[Texhnolyzing]

Go find better players to play with. Make friends with them. Convince them to 1v1 you. Die a lot.

 

Record yourself. Watch yourself fuzz up, try to figure out what you did wrong. Watch how your opponent killed you. How they positioned themselves. 

 

Play more mechs. I started with Predator and assumed I was the fuzzy bunny. I wasn't. It's a terrible mech to learn on. Play the Assault. Play Brawler. Hell, play the Reaper. Always consider your positioning. Always have or be positioning for a shot and always have a way out.

 

When was the last time you checked your radar? The answer should be right now and again when this sentence finishes. Learn corner play from this. If you get good with radar and environmental sounds you'll be able to kill people you never see. 

 

Learn to aim.

 

Hey someone else uses the same aiming website that I do!!!

 

On a side note I agree with every piece of advice on here,

 

But here's my own story/ personal experience and you can use it as advice if you want:

 

1900 MMR is a good spot to get to when you've played the game a lot I'll describe how I overcame it:

 

1. I did something everyone should already do but I didn't do, disabled all mouse acceleration on my PC, and then went out to buy a reliable mouse/mousepad/mechanical keyboard.

 

This step alone, set me back about 100 MMR for weeks, I had to change my mouses DPI and in game sensitivity, lowering everything until I felt I could shoot what I aimed at, once I got used to my new settings I instantly started to go above 1900 MMR into the 2000-2100 range.

 

I worked notoriously on aiming and accuracy, (I played a SS exclusively, positioning wasn't nearly as important if I stayed away from enemies). But accuracy on any mech means you can do reliable damage, damage means you can defend and kill people reliably, you also learn to gauge how long it takes to kill an opponent with X hp left.

 

But I soon hit another wall, this wall was me not being able to know where to position myself, and even getting fatigued during long game play almost stressed out by the matches with high level players. I couldn't recognize patterns or learn stuff as easy as I thought. People would surprise me, sneak up on me, or the stray rockets and bullets flying around would phase me, cause me to make bad decisions and not be able to make the right decisions on the fly.

 

I did something weird that may be superstitious but I swear it helped me become a better player:

 

2. I disabled all in game sound.

 

I basically removed one of my senses in order to increase the others. The game became a silent void. I couldn't hear people shooting at me from behind, I couldn't hear a predator sneaking up on me, or any other audio cues I don't even realize I'm missing anymore.

 

Once again I played like crap for weeks, but all of a sudden things started to click. I recognized certain players flank a lot in certain mechs. I noticed that these mechs have a set speed and after I kill them they will get back to my position at around the same time on average. I learned to check my flank out of intuition and more and more I would turn to see an infiltrator or predator moving in stealth behind me that I could take out.

 

I started to gain this positioning and natural intuition about the battlefield because I let go of sound and focused on visually watching radar, movement on screen.

 

I started to "feel" the battlefields flow.

 

Sounds ridiculous, but that's how I would describe it. 

 

Turning off sound also increased my accuracy while firing straight into enemy fire, their bullets and sounds don't phase me, and I also feel a lot less stressed and fatigued playing in a silent void of concentration.

 

But after a hundreds of hours I hit the 2300 MMR barrier.

 

This barrier is something that I brought on myself, I only play SS. If you play only one mech, you will be at a disadvantage when other teams notice and decide to counter you and your strategies. Your hope is either to A, change your mechs strategies/items/internals to increase your chance, B practice aiming and dodging and hope you never miss a shot and they miss a few. or C learn other mechs so you have more than 1 option to help your team.

 

I'm currently in the middle of doing all 3 of the above things, and maybe its helping me a little, but once again your MMR will fall as you try new things to get better.

 

More than anything it takes time, practice, and the ability to try new strategies and techniques in the real world and in the game.

 

Short summary:

1. Disable mouse acceleration everywhere.

2. Practice Accuracy

3, Buy new mouse/keyboard if you notice yours aren't cutting it.

4. Play a lot and learn your mechs the best you can.

5. Change things up to learn from different angles.

6. Make up your own strategies to improve your play style.

7. DO WHAT YOU CAN TO NOT GET STRESSED/FATIGUED BY THE GAME

 

If anyone wants any help, wants to discuss SS, discuss anything else,  or line up some practice matches let me know!

 

-Texhnolyzing

[HoneyBoomBoom]

 

 

2. Challenge. Make absolute sure that you are playing with top notch players whenever you can. I'm always open to teaching people about the game and helping them out. Shoot me a freind req in game @ kaiserschmarrn_ and I can show you the ropes of high tier play(mechs, playstyles, builds, movement, strategy and tips).

 

Totally this.  I have struggled to break that 1900 barrier, but finally did it!  Truth is, I've been playing for years now and have learned very little from playing in the pub matches.  Well, not counting those pub matches where all but two or three of us abandoned the match and one of the other players was willing to give me some coaching.  I did have to ask, but they were more than willing.  Maybe I was just lucky.  After the first bit of advice, I raised my mmr from 1550 to 1700.  

 

Then I joined the TDM clan.  I can't say that the clan activities themselves really did anything for me, but being able to listen in on conversations via TS about strategy was a help.  And just being part of the clan made contact with some of the really good players in the game more accessible than just scrubbing around in pubs.  With a lot of good advice and critique, I'm hovering right around 1900 with my sites on 2000 some day. :D  I just need to learn restraint, I think.  I have no patience for chokepoints and I chase too often.

 

But let me be clear on something... Kaiser is a meanie.  He just wants to DM and blow you up.  He does it to me all the time and his only advice is, "Git gud fuzzy bunny".  <3  (But seriously, take him up on it if he's offering!  I'm still learning a lot myself, obvs, but I'd be willing to 1v1 and get some practice in for both of us!)

[Pleasure_Mortar]

We had a great time in KDR's latest after-practice DM; I personally hadn't had such fun in a fairly long time.

Maybe you'll love it as well - you won't know untill you've tried.

 

 

Git gud bettah.

Maybe you're right. I think I'm gonna give it a shot.

[JackVandal]

Im personally curious as to what impact hardware has on ability, normally i think the skill is more important than the hardware, but a few weeks ago i tried nepa's plastic hawken and the 15 extra fps (now average 35-40) boosted my mmr up from 2000 ish to near 2150. i guess what im asking is does that 60 or 120 fps really make that big of a difference?

[DieselCat]

Jack I think it might if one's skill is pretty good to begin with. Adding that extra horse power could very well make a competent player a bit better. 

[angryhampster]

my skill is determined by my FPS.

 

in a dog fight, the winner is the one who doesn't lag.

[BaronSaturday]

I know this is old and I haven't been around for quite some time, however. Your movements need to not be random. They need to seem random. You're next move is more important than your current one. You have a one up on your opponent. They have no idea what you're going to do. That's assuming you do. If you don't then you guys are on the same page.

What you need to do is stay focused. Pay attention and know what's around you. Know where you are on the map. Try to use your movement to take advantage of theirs. If they jump, start closing the gap. If they're moving side to side, find the pattern. There usually is. By being truly random you will follow a pattern. People like Merl, Omega, and Nept can see these patterns. By knowing what you're doing, you break these patterns.

[JackVandal]

I know this is old and I haven't been around for quite some time, however. Your movements need to not be random. They need to seem random. You're next move is more important than your current one. You have a one up on your opponent. They have no idea what you're going to do. That's assuming you do. If you don't then you guys are on the same page.

What you need to do is stay focused. Pay attention and know what's around you. Know where you are on the map. Try to use your movement to take advantage of theirs. If they jump, start closing the gap. If they're moving side to side, find the pattern. There usually is. By being truly random you will follow a pattern. People like Merl, Omega, and Nept can see these patterns. By knowing what you're doing, you break these patterns.

you must be unpredictably predictable. 

[TangledMantis]

I seem to float around 1800mmr and have for about 12 months now. Ive gotten pretty good at interpretation of radar and where high risk areas are throughout the maps. Ive gotten to a point where if i see you even for a second on the radar, I know exactly where you were going and stalk that location. Im right about 80% of the time. Ive also gotten a lot better at predicting other player's timing and behavior around a wall and can often accurately strike while radar blind. If im having a duel I can usually tell the players skill level by watching the first few decisions they make and adjust my strategy to compensate for that. Im very reliable for interception and first strike. 

 

My problem has always been landing shots. 

 

Something that helps aside from just playing a lot is to learn a certain set of strategic movements as instinct in a fight that can turn the tides fast. 

 

One example for class a's could that when you have an enemy airborne bearing down on you, dont dodge or try to shoot up - boost under them and then turn left or right and boost-dodge at the same time to spin around - raise your weapons and fire at their back/side - then dodge again away from the direction they are turning and fire again. 

 

Thats a great way to start a fight

[asipo]

Hey someone else uses the same aiming website that I do!!!

 

2. I disabled all in game sound.

 

I basically removed one of my senses in order to increase the others. The game became a silent void. I couldn't hear people shooting at me from behind, I couldn't hear a predator sneaking up on me, or any other audio cues I don't even realize I'm missing anymore.

 

Once again I played like crap for weeks, but all of a sudden things started to click. I recognized certain players flank a lot in certain mechs. I noticed that these mechs have a set speed and after I kill them they will get back to my position at around the same time on average. I learned to check my flank out of intuition and more and more I would turn to see an infiltrator or predator moving in stealth behind me that I could take out.

 

I started to gain this positioning and natural intuition about the battlefield because I let go of sound and focused on visually watching radar, movement on screen.

 

I started to "feel" the battlefields flow.

 

Sounds ridiculous, but that's how I would describe it. 

 

Turning off sound also increased my accuracy while firing straight into enemy fire, their bullets and sounds don't phase me, and I also feel a lot less stressed and fatigued playing in a silent void of concentration.

i will try this, lol

[Pleasure_Mortar]

I was listening to some music today that overpowered much of the game sounds and while playing Coop TDM it suddenly clicked with a specific mech: out maneuvering and dancing with the bots became incredibly easy. Then I tried it in a regular TDM. Still worked. Making the right decisions when and where to move, when to attack and when to retread felt so much more natural.

[Brother3J]

I was listening to some music today that overpowered much of the game sounds and while playing Coop TDM it suddenly clicked with a specific mech: out maneuvering and dancing with the bots became incredibly easy. Then I tried it in a regular TDM. Still worked. Making the right decisions when and where to move, when to attack and when to retread felt so much more natural.

This is what I call the Hawken Moment its fantastic.  Great Job!

[OmegaNull]

Playing with better players is something I always do. I also record while playing and review afterwards. Also, ask for tips or if you did something wrong. Ask them to point stuff out or show you something. :)

[CoshCaust]

Your hope is either to

A, change your mechs strategies/items/internals to increase your chance

B, practice aiming and dodging and hope you never miss a shot and they miss a few

C, learn other mechs so you have more than 1 option to help your team

To be honest I think I'm overrated.

There are certain map/mech combos I'm good at but there are other maps where I just feel no mech I'm comfortable with is suiteable or I lack the strategy.

You have to pick your battles, the above points are accurate- though it comes down to either git-ing gud with different mechs, or adapting in the one(s) you know.

I don't have a lot of time, and 80% of the [free] time I do have is spent with other human beings doing noob things like...socializing, and romance

Everyone who knows my name knows all I do is play Scout, pretty much. I started in the Infiltrator, and I do use other mechs [especially on my practice/alt account], but I've decided focusing nearly all my time in Hawken on the Scout is more suited for my life, in its current state. It's true that it's important to learn other mechs - and it will make you a better player overall, inherently, but also in the other mechs you were already comfortable in - but don't let yourself believe you've hit a mech's skill ceiling.

Nobody has hit a mech's skill ceiling.

I've heard talented players imply they have (or similarly), and I assure you, there is not enough players in Hawken for anyone to have found themselves close to the skill ceiling of any mech. You always have room to grow. Remember, some growth happens slower / is more difficult.

 

I don't want to start a new thread to ask this and i have done a bit of searching without success: Is there a GUIDE FOR BURST WEAPON use? 

Your enemy is now half of your brain- you know his/her every movement. Evaluating this, you stay behind cover at all times other than moments of opportunity in which you show yourself in just enough time to release burst. Repeat.

I'd be happy to talk more about this, but your interest is clearly broad and I'm not going to type the guide right here :P

 

Im personally curious as to what impact hardware has on ability, normally i think the skill is more important than the hardware, but a few weeks ago i tried nepa's plastic hawken and the 15 extra fps (now average 35-40) boosted my mmr up from 2000 ish to near 2150. i guess what im asking is does that 60 or 120 fps really make that big of a difference?

One time - after allowing a friend to watch me via Steam's stream - my FPS suddenly locked down to 60 [as opposed to my usual 120], and I legitimately felt...mentally impaired. Drunk, or something.

Walking around IRL, I often notice lights which are strobing as opposed to producing constant light- which I�ve discovered is a bit unusual. My friend plays competitive CS:GO in a moderately big way [on a 60hz monitor], and when I commented on how I was subtle-ly annoyed by the strobing of his keyboard lights, he didn't know what I was talking about. He had never, and still didn't notice that it wasn't producing constant light like an average light bulb.

You get used to, and utilize every frame. Diminishing returns certainly, but returns none the less.

 

General post:

<obligatory_mmr_is_fuzzbun_comment>

https://community.pl...care-about-mmr/

(I still need to update this with more information I've realized too)

Please guys, as your MMR increases, do not let it tell you how well you're doing. At 25~~ MMR, one match will feel rough, like you did less than you could have and were lower on the board than you should have been, and your MMR will go up 8 points; the next match will feel great and you'll feel proud, and your MMR will drop 16 points (this exact example happened to me a couple days ago). It's just unreliable.

That being said of MMR, my input as to how to break through a high MMR wall you have found yourself at is to become an omniscient clairvoyant.

Okay jokes, but really, prediction/knowledge is everything- macroscopically (game sense) and microscopically (1v1s).

Edited by CoshCaust, 19 February 2016 - 05:50 PM.

[Call_Me_Ishmael]

all I do is play Scout
Scout is more suited for my life

Scout mit uns!

[Garx]

Way back when, this used to be a thing.

Garx asked me one day why my MMR was so high when I sucked so bad?

It was at 2150 because I camped on the AA and ran EU.

There was no way that justified my presence in some of those matches.

I think we're better off just basing it on score/min not XP/min. I mean, he was right, I really DID suck.

huh? i never asked you about your mmr @_@

[Call_Me_Ishmael]

huh? i never asked you about your mmr @_@

Yah you did.  About 3.25 yrs ago...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My MMR was high due to points paid for being in AA circle during ship flight.  That was the only reason I was scoring back then.

[Darktim300]