Without giving any info about the plot of the game or any specific secrets, what unusual combat tactics have you used? Which ones worked and which ones didn't?
When fighting a certain agile super-leaping opponent in the early part of the game, I took shelter underneath a catwalk so he was forced to come down and go toe to toe against me.
In an underground fight with a lot of opponents wielding both guns and melee weapons, I found it useful to take up a sniper post hanging from a ladder, so the guys with melee weapons ended up uselessly swarming at the base of the ladder while I picked off the guys with guns first, then shot at them. Of course, my Gangrel isn't very good with guns, so this took a lot of ammunition, more than 100 bullets. Oh, and Fortitude. I don't think I could have handled all those guys shooting at me without Fortitude 3... maybe Fortitude would have been good enough.
In another scene with a lot of opponents, some really slow and stupid ones, I found a literal hole in the wall and crawled in there, picking off opponents with careful shots. I'm not sure how useful that was, given that there seemed to be an endless supply of those dudes.
Unusual Combat Tactics *No Spoilers*
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Rhydderch Hael
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There's one stage in the main quest, near a south0facing beach, where I was able to sneak between the guards keeping watch of the front door and make my way along a stony trail through the high rises that surround the target. Stealth kills cleared the few opponents that I came up behind on, and then I was able to secure, as any good military tactician would say, "the high ground"— the sniper's perch where I was able to engage the main host without fear of being swarmed by any of them at close range.
Oh, and there's a boulder that percariously perched on the nearby cliff that's braced by a single wood support. Shoot it if you want to make some bad guys go *squish*.
Oh, and there's a boulder that percariously perched on the nearby cliff that's braced by a single wood support. Shoot it if you want to make some bad guys go *squish*.
unconventional? The best fight is a fight avoided.
stealth 6+ and dominate 1.
at 6 stealth people won't see you anymore in the dark and minimal lighting conditions, even if you are crouching infront of them. It's really funny to see them dance around you trying to figure out where you are.
Use trance if you need to cross areas to well lighted or to get past auspex enhanced wannabee vampires.
I've got this screenshot where I'm using the baseball bat to hammer in a window while on the otherside I have a guard not noticing me (not playing nosferatu)
Stealth killing just seems better if you can do it. No people alerted by the fight, no risk of getting hit, no need for awesome fighting skills (str 1, 0 brawl or melee is enough).
stealth 6+ and dominate 1.
at 6 stealth people won't see you anymore in the dark and minimal lighting conditions, even if you are crouching infront of them. It's really funny to see them dance around you trying to figure out where you are.
Use trance if you need to cross areas to well lighted or to get past auspex enhanced wannabee vampires.
I've got this screenshot where I'm using the baseball bat to hammer in a window while on the otherside I have a guard not noticing me (not playing nosferatu)
Stealth killing just seems better if you can do it. No people alerted by the fight, no risk of getting hit, no need for awesome fighting skills (str 1, 0 brawl or melee is enough).
Obfuscate 5 is a wonderful and awesome discipline. It's especially fun when there are large groups of people and you stealth kill them right in front of one another. However, certain "little beasties" can make life difficult as they can see invisible people.
At Obfuscate 5, you recieve a triple damage modifier if you hit someone from invisibility, so: Hit them; run around a corner and go invisible; come back and hit again (often for 100+ damage!). It takes care of non-boss and non-super-evil-demon-things really quickly.
At Obfuscate 5, you recieve a triple damage modifier if you hit someone from invisibility, so: Hit them; run around a corner and go invisible; come back and hit again (often for 100+ damage!). It takes care of non-boss and non-super-evil-demon-things really quickly.
And the Cosmic AC said, "LET THERE BE LIGHT!"
frustrating
the briefcase mission can take a long time by stealth (my rather able female Ventrue did it rather quicker as an axe-wielding maniac buffed and showing fortitude) but it is strange being able to perform the silent kills on guards standing talking to others a few feet away - also in a very close to the end mission area with lots of SWAT guys - you can collect lots and lots of ammo by out stealthing the ninja-SWATs and getting steyr+ammo multiple times over with stealth kills. as somebody said, the mission near the south-facing beach has a lot of entertainment potential for different tacticians - I generally prefer stealth, but a tremere can make a bloody mess of it and still suck-seed.
the briefcase mission can take a long time by stealth (my rather able female Ventrue did it rather quicker as an axe-wielding maniac buffed and showing fortitude) but it is strange being able to perform the silent kills on guards standing talking to others a few feet away - also in a very close to the end mission area with lots of SWAT guys - you can collect lots and lots of ammo by out stealthing the ninja-SWATs and getting steyr+ammo multiple times over with stealth kills. as somebody said, the mission near the south-facing beach has a lot of entertainment potential for different tacticians - I generally prefer stealth, but a tremere can make a bloody mess of it and still suck-seed.
"All the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players"
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Maximillion
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Well all you guys use guns. I perfer to use my hands or katana in combat. When you have your melee skill at 6 and presence at 4 or even 5 you are basically unstopable. I got threw the final quest just using that tactic. And dominate is a very helpful thing in situations when there are lots badies comming at you.
I am here to build my Empire.
Forgot in my other message. Use the enviroment. If you do it correctly you do not even have to use disiplines (makes it more fun though )
Defending against a rush of soon to be dead opponents?
Find a natural choke point (doors are great for this). Preferably just around a corner so they can't get ranged support. No natural choke points? Anything that works as a wall should lower the amount of people that can get you. If you do it correctly you can even feed from a victim in mid-fight because either none of the others can hit you or can only hit your feed victim (good tactic to use on a target that is standing in a door).
Got to defend against one or more bosses?
Mobility is key. Generally not getting hit is quite high on your list of priorities (even with fortitude 5, presense 5, heavy+body armor and 11 defense some of those bosses still hurt).
But again the enviroment helps.
Got a ranged boss? Then look for everything that gives you cover while you crouch/run closer if you have a melee char, for a ranged char the cover is still handy to take the boss attack then shoot back.
Got a melee boss? Generally restricting how that the boss can get to you works. Fighting upwards in a stairwell is great. The boss misses a lot and cannot flank you, especially if you are slowly stepping back in a crouch (know when you hit the bottom of the stairs though and walk into the wall). And for ranged chars it stops bosses from dodging attacks.
)Defending against a rush of soon to be dead opponents?
Find a natural choke point (doors are great for this). Preferably just around a corner so they can't get ranged support. No natural choke points? Anything that works as a wall should lower the amount of people that can get you. If you do it correctly you can even feed from a victim in mid-fight because either none of the others can hit you or can only hit your feed victim (good tactic to use on a target that is standing in a door).
Got to defend against one or more bosses?
Mobility is key. Generally not getting hit is quite high on your list of priorities (even with fortitude 5, presense 5, heavy+body armor and 11 defense some of those bosses still hurt).
But again the enviroment helps.
Got a ranged boss? Then look for everything that gives you cover while you crouch/run closer if you have a melee char, for a ranged char the cover is still handy to take the boss attack then shoot back.
Got a melee boss? Generally restricting how that the boss can get to you works. Fighting upwards in a stairwell is great. The boss misses a lot and cannot flank you, especially if you are slowly stepping back in a crouch (know when you hit the bottom of the stairs though and walk into the wall). And for ranged chars it stops bosses from dodging attacks.
Don't forget, when using a gun you can occasionally sight tagets that show up as a bullseye and make fun things happen.
In the last mission before leaving Santa Monica you can fell a water tower and take out a few people with one bullet.
I also use under the catwalk for the above mentioned fast moving enemy.
I've also found that using a Malk and hitting powerful enemy with Vision of Death (or using a char with Dominate and using Suicide) before they have a chance to attack you will usually allow you to move in and finish them off without them having much, if any, chance of attacking you back.
In the last mission before leaving Santa Monica you can fell a water tower and take out a few people with one bullet.
I also use under the catwalk for the above mentioned fast moving enemy.
I've also found that using a Malk and hitting powerful enemy with Vision of Death (or using a char with Dominate and using Suicide) before they have a chance to attack you will usually allow you to move in and finish them off without them having much, if any, chance of attacking you back.
wise words
choke points are a must - what you may need to avoid is open space even though open space is useful in melee - problem is that you cannot use the body-shield feeding technique as well if you are attacked from more than one direction. doorways are good.
with ranged characters - don't forget that crouching improves your shot - the Brother Vick episode never gets me whacked because I use the terrain so that he can only shoot me from directly ahead and I crouch to shoot him with my anaconda - getting good damage each shot.
again - the FU syndicate - in the 'pit of death' with a SWAT team shooting at you, crouch behind one of the concrete barriers and carefully shoot the enemy one at a time. very little risk of losing. (I 'possessed' one of the SWATs yesterday which was fun!)
at first, I just crouched to hide and gave up otherwise, but there are some fights where a crouched character has better attacks than a standing one - even in melee. If I recall correctly head-runners don't like you being on their level.
the tanks in the fish-market explode with coolant and whenever such an interesting option is available, the sight turns to a red circle from cross-hairs.
usually somebody suffers big time when you can explode something.
choke points are a must - what you may need to avoid is open space even though open space is useful in melee - problem is that you cannot use the body-shield feeding technique as well if you are attacked from more than one direction. doorways are good.
with ranged characters - don't forget that crouching improves your shot - the Brother Vick episode never gets me whacked because I use the terrain so that he can only shoot me from directly ahead and I crouch to shoot him with my anaconda - getting good damage each shot.
again - the FU syndicate - in the 'pit of death' with a SWAT team shooting at you, crouch behind one of the concrete barriers and carefully shoot the enemy one at a time. very little risk of losing. (I 'possessed' one of the SWATs yesterday which was fun!)
at first, I just crouched to hide and gave up otherwise, but there are some fights where a crouched character has better attacks than a standing one - even in melee. If I recall correctly head-runners don't like you being on their level.
the tanks in the fish-market explode with coolant and whenever such an interesting option is available, the sight turns to a red circle from cross-hairs.
usually somebody suffers big time when you can explode something.
"All the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players"
The Fu syndicate swat team, get up there while the mandarin is still talking, wait infront of the door and start whacking them with a melee weapon. Silly buggers first want to run to their location THEN fire at you. If done right at least one is dead and then those pillars on that side can be used to hide behind an recover (if needed).
Another tactic that I used a lot in the early part of the game was draining human opponents dry. When my combat skills were low, it was easier to just grab somebody and drain them dry, rather than repeatedly shooting or striking at them. In fights with many human opponents, I got into a rhythm of draining every second or third opponent, sometimes even while others were still attacking me. That way, I often ended a big fight either full of blood or only slightly down.
Big Boss Camp
OK - everybody who has got through the game knows where I mean - the Ninja headquarters - (actually it is odd, the game's mixing up of Chinese and Japanese cultural items and combat techniques)
it is a bit of a Bruce Lee style challenge and my Ventrue lass had been doing rather well with melee - whether fists, blade or fire-axe. Anyhow, she gets in there and takes it a bit casual - but having about 4 ranged opponents as well as 2 sword-ninjaka and a few orange-clad knife wielding maniacs proved a bit tough at first.
However - Possession can even up the odds a bit - if you 'possess' one of the crossbowmen and one of the ninjaka, thatdistracts the enemy enough to get some feeding done. it feels very vampirish to use feed during combat.
...and there is one boss-fight that does become quite simple with a full flame-thrower - yesterday, said Ventrue lass had some barbecue fuel left over after roasting a very large chicken. I suggest that everybody should roast the fowl creature. to quote "Evangelical Manual of Vampire Hunting" 'standing in the light' protects you from the darkness brothers and sisters and from a position of righteousness, the creature of the night is powerless...
OK - everybody who has got through the game knows where I mean - the Ninja headquarters - (actually it is odd, the game's mixing up of Chinese and Japanese cultural items and combat techniques)
it is a bit of a Bruce Lee style challenge and my Ventrue lass had been doing rather well with melee - whether fists, blade or fire-axe. Anyhow, she gets in there and takes it a bit casual - but having about 4 ranged opponents as well as 2 sword-ninjaka and a few orange-clad knife wielding maniacs proved a bit tough at first.
However - Possession can even up the odds a bit - if you 'possess' one of the crossbowmen and one of the ninjaka, thatdistracts the enemy enough to get some feeding done. it feels very vampirish to use feed during combat.
...and there is one boss-fight that does become quite simple with a full flame-thrower - yesterday, said Ventrue lass had some barbecue fuel left over after roasting a very large chicken. I suggest that everybody should roast the fowl creature. to quote "Evangelical Manual of Vampire Hunting" 'standing in the light' protects you from the darkness brothers and sisters and from a position of righteousness, the creature of the night is powerless...
"All the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players"
Now I've started over playing a Tremere. In one of the early quests, involving a deranged surgeon, I took some time exploring the operating room before talking to the captured bounty hunter. While exploring, I found a loose piece of equipment. I placed it in front of that locked door on the opposite of the room. When Mr. G came after me, he fumbled a few times getting the door all the way open because of that equipment I moved there, and then he stumbled climbing over it. He never laid a hand on me, as I picked him off with three of those blood strike attacks. Heh.
I've been playing a Tremere. So far (I am in Chinatown at the moment) there has been nothing particularly hard. I've got almost nothing in physical stats, good Unarmed stats, and some sneak skill.
-With Sneak, Dominate (Trance), and Blood Buff, one of my favorite tactics to break up large groups is to trance one guy, stealth kill another, then hit blood buff, trance a third if necessary and feed on a fourth. By the time the guy I trance'd first is waking up, its already close to curtains for the fourth guy. The guy I am feeding on typically plays Bullet Shield if there is anyone else around. I've found that if an adversary is Trance'd and I have blood buff running, they are basically my walking blood pack. I can keep two people Trance'd at once if I time things right, deal with whoever is active if only one or two, then munch on the Trance'd folks.
-If a fight gets too hairy, I usually run away, Trance someone so that they block access (in a doorway, for instance) and start Sneaking away.
-To conserve Blood, I usually trigger Blood Shield right before a Feed attempt if it isn't already up and I am in a combat zone.
EDIT:
Adding . . .
-When dealing with opponents who prefer Ranged attacks and are difficult of dangerous to close with in Melee, I usually find a place with decent cover, crouch, then Blood Strike them to death. It's slow, but I don't need much of a target to use Blood Strike, and Ranged attacks don't usually hit me.
edit x2 for clarity.
-With Sneak, Dominate (Trance), and Blood Buff, one of my favorite tactics to break up large groups is to trance one guy, stealth kill another, then hit blood buff, trance a third if necessary and feed on a fourth. By the time the guy I trance'd first is waking up, its already close to curtains for the fourth guy. The guy I am feeding on typically plays Bullet Shield if there is anyone else around. I've found that if an adversary is Trance'd and I have blood buff running, they are basically my walking blood pack. I can keep two people Trance'd at once if I time things right, deal with whoever is active if only one or two, then munch on the Trance'd folks.
-If a fight gets too hairy, I usually run away, Trance someone so that they block access (in a doorway, for instance) and start Sneaking away.
-To conserve Blood, I usually trigger Blood Shield right before a Feed attempt if it isn't already up and I am in a combat zone.
EDIT:
Adding . . .
-When dealing with opponents who prefer Ranged attacks and are difficult of dangerous to close with in Melee, I usually find a place with decent cover, crouch, then Blood Strike them to death. It's slow, but I don't need much of a target to use Blood Strike, and Ranged attacks don't usually hit me.
edit x2 for clarity.
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yrthwyndandfyre
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Alluded to already, but not really clarified. In melee combat with multiple armed opponents, it is sometimes useful to pick the point man (the one in front), put him between you and everybody else, and then feed on him. He becomes a shield. If you get knocked off, just jump right back on again. Usually the health recovery is more than worth the effort, even if you're getting hit.
Sic gorgiamos allos subjectatos nunc
(The Addams family motto: Gladly we feast on those who would subdue us)
Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are crunchy, and good with Ketchup.
(The Addams family motto: Gladly we feast on those who would subdue us)
Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are crunchy, and good with Ketchup.
Stealth kills are my fav to perform, depending on the weapon used has some pretty cool little sequences. So far the Katana, baseball bat and that rod with the hooked blade on the end (I forget the name) are my favs. I played through as Tremere the first time and had a lot of fun. The beach house where you go for the Explosives and the money, I talked the first guy into letting me past, I then walked in the front door, stealth killed the guy watching tv. Then made my way into the kitchen and Mass Suicide disciplined the two sitting at the table. From there made my way into the room where I threatoned the guy's balls but he decided to shot me anyway... heh. So I positioned myself between the two men so most of their shots hit eachother while I melee attacked them. Then I took the explosives, the money and walked out the front door and feed/killed the guy by the gate and left.
I've got another.
As a Tremere, whenever you have large packs of baddies after you, use Blood Boil on the guy in the front from Sneak. Trancing another guy is good too to block the crowd. Then you stand up and give them a target to shoot at, which they do for a few seconds.
A few seconds later, they all go BOOM.
As a Tremere, whenever you have large packs of baddies after you, use Blood Boil on the guy in the front from Sneak. Trancing another guy is good too to block the crowd. Then you stand up and give them a target to shoot at, which they do for a few seconds.
A few seconds later, they all go BOOM.
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cyberpaddy66
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[QUOTE=Teodor]I've got another.
As a Tremere, whenever you have large packs of baddies after you, use Blood Boil on the guy in the front from Sneak. Trancing another guy is good too to block the crowd. Then you stand up and give them a target to shoot at, which they do for a few seconds.
A few seconds later, they all go BOOM.[/QUOTE]
I totally agree, I managed to clear out 'Fat Larry's' garage quest with only 3 Blood boils, I just run down past the 1st level and then cast a blood boil on the 1st guy I saw, by that time the upper and lower levels have charged into me. Then you simply tap your foor three times and take the blows from knife weilding idiots and then shower in all that glorious warm redness:laugh:
As a Tremere, whenever you have large packs of baddies after you, use Blood Boil on the guy in the front from Sneak. Trancing another guy is good too to block the crowd. Then you stand up and give them a target to shoot at, which they do for a few seconds.
A few seconds later, they all go BOOM.[/QUOTE]
I totally agree, I managed to clear out 'Fat Larry's' garage quest with only 3 Blood boils, I just run down past the 1st level and then cast a blood boil on the 1st guy I saw, by that time the upper and lower levels have charged into me. Then you simply tap your foor three times and take the blows from knife weilding idiots and then shower in all that glorious warm redness:laugh: