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each time I leave the barracks my ship carries sixty Xith pellets. these sixty pellets are all I have to complete the task ahead -- to sink the ship I'm up against. every single pellet fired takes me one shot closer to the choice of running, or dying with honor.
the rail itself is unforgiving. there is no autoaim to help a sloppy pilot, there is no extra shot to guide your target into position, there is no rapid reload to take advantage of the sudden pilot error. there is only the single shot for the single point in time. you either hit or you miss, and after that pellet has left the barrel, you prepare for the next volley.
there is on way to force your adversary to retreat from a set angle of attack. you dance your way through the spray of shots lighting up the darkness of space. and, once you fire, the attack continues, regardless of the shot itself being a hit or a miss. the only defense you have is the vastness of space, the thrust of your ship and the perception of being where your foe wishes you were not.
I have no leeway in these matters. these tings are the way they are. there is no forgiveness, no mercy, no luck. this is the way of the rail. this is why one equips the rail and sets out into the grey sectors of the universe. it is all up to you, nothing is given, nothing is free, nothing is luck.
the rail itself is unforgiving. there is no autoaim to help a sloppy pilot, there is no extra shot to guide your target into position, there is no rapid reload to take advantage of the sudden pilot error. there is only the single shot for the single point in time. you either hit or you miss, and after that pellet has left the barrel, you prepare for the next volley.
there is on way to force your adversary to retreat from a set angle of attack. you dance your way through the spray of shots lighting up the darkness of space. and, once you fire, the attack continues, regardless of the shot itself being a hit or a miss. the only defense you have is the vastness of space, the thrust of your ship and the perception of being where your foe wishes you were not.
I have no leeway in these matters. these tings are the way they are. there is no forgiveness, no mercy, no luck. this is the way of the rail. this is why one equips the rail and sets out into the grey sectors of the universe. it is all up to you, nothing is given, nothing is free, nothing is luck.
earlier today, I got ear that Graig was coming down to grey in a Valkyrie Rune. the pride and honor of Itan. I've sunk many a ship with the rail, but a Valkyrie? I had to try.
I politely ask for a duel and I'm honored by his acceptance. my first thought goes towards his weapon layout... three small weapon slots... two of them will probably contain Neutrons -- MkIII of course. that leaves one wild card. hm, I don't like surprises. Martin has showed me the force of a flare worked correctly, and Tramshed has many times shown me the way of the Gauss. yet, both of these will require energy, and the Rune is an infiboost ship -- meaning that Graig will bring a fast charge battery. so we're looking for something that doesn't take a lot of energy... which leaves things like missiles and another Neutron blaster. I'm fairly certain I don't like either of those choices.
we meet in Pelatus G2. a somewhat noisy battleground for my taste, but I'm not going to complain. we exchange pleasantries and declare our duel. I zone out. at this point in time, it is all very clear. I have one goal, one purpose and one single way of making it happen.
patience.
so I wait. I need to know what I'm up against and every pellet counts.
a storm of green bolts fill the void around my ship. Neutron blasters, MkIII from the velocity. a few hit me as I'm taken with surprise at the extra velocity. and then comes the missiles. geminis. of course. make me move, don't allow me to moonwalk in a set space to get my aim down. nice one Graig.
I broaden the dancefloor and take some more flak. the pace picks up as Graig sees my hull dropping to 75%. and then comes the fatal mistake against anyone following the way of the rail -- hubris. the Valkyrie comes close, too close. around 250 meters away the fast charge is about to go dry and the green storm is about to settle. I wait. and wait. and wait. a split-second later I hear the alarm going off again, missiles, again, keep me dancing. I mentally exorcise the missile warnings from my mind and concentrate on making the shot. 2800 hull points disappear in an instant from the Rune. it pauses for a second, letting me boost around the geminis and get the distance between us up again. I fire a few more rails into the void, letting the Rune know that there is more damage still available. Graig chooses to paint the sky green again, which I use to hide another pellet. he can't have seen that one coming at all -- even at 500 meters. I get a hit from a single Neutron blast, the Rune collects another pellet. each one eating well into the hull.
this pattern repeats itself a few times. I eventually to 39% hull from a gemini stunning me just long enough to let a cluster of Neutron bolts. but, I'm starting to get Graig now. I turn the tables. I let him lower the distance to around 250 meters, moving as little as possible to ensure a stable aim, just dancing through the green mist. I release another double volley and I hear the weapons systems registering two more hits.
"Damn you got a great shot" I hear over the radio as the Rune yet again retreats. now into orange hull levels. I look at my 39% hull integrity and count my rails -- I have 39 left. good. time to pick up the pace. it's time for Graig to dance.
from here on out the duel turns one way, I dance and fire take shots I'd hold back on if I was running low on ammunition. the hull of the pride of Itan falls into a deep crimson. on the ninth pellet the hull is breached and a fireball lights up the void at Pelatus G2 for a brief second. my ammunition is at exactly 50%, my hull fallen to 32%.
the way of the rail claims another vessel. I slowly get down from the adrenaline high and head towards base to refuel and refit.
I politely ask for a duel and I'm honored by his acceptance. my first thought goes towards his weapon layout... three small weapon slots... two of them will probably contain Neutrons -- MkIII of course. that leaves one wild card. hm, I don't like surprises. Martin has showed me the force of a flare worked correctly, and Tramshed has many times shown me the way of the Gauss. yet, both of these will require energy, and the Rune is an infiboost ship -- meaning that Graig will bring a fast charge battery. so we're looking for something that doesn't take a lot of energy... which leaves things like missiles and another Neutron blaster. I'm fairly certain I don't like either of those choices.
we meet in Pelatus G2. a somewhat noisy battleground for my taste, but I'm not going to complain. we exchange pleasantries and declare our duel. I zone out. at this point in time, it is all very clear. I have one goal, one purpose and one single way of making it happen.
patience.
so I wait. I need to know what I'm up against and every pellet counts.
a storm of green bolts fill the void around my ship. Neutron blasters, MkIII from the velocity. a few hit me as I'm taken with surprise at the extra velocity. and then comes the missiles. geminis. of course. make me move, don't allow me to moonwalk in a set space to get my aim down. nice one Graig.
I broaden the dancefloor and take some more flak. the pace picks up as Graig sees my hull dropping to 75%. and then comes the fatal mistake against anyone following the way of the rail -- hubris. the Valkyrie comes close, too close. around 250 meters away the fast charge is about to go dry and the green storm is about to settle. I wait. and wait. and wait. a split-second later I hear the alarm going off again, missiles, again, keep me dancing. I mentally exorcise the missile warnings from my mind and concentrate on making the shot. 2800 hull points disappear in an instant from the Rune. it pauses for a second, letting me boost around the geminis and get the distance between us up again. I fire a few more rails into the void, letting the Rune know that there is more damage still available. Graig chooses to paint the sky green again, which I use to hide another pellet. he can't have seen that one coming at all -- even at 500 meters. I get a hit from a single Neutron blast, the Rune collects another pellet. each one eating well into the hull.
this pattern repeats itself a few times. I eventually to 39% hull from a gemini stunning me just long enough to let a cluster of Neutron bolts. but, I'm starting to get Graig now. I turn the tables. I let him lower the distance to around 250 meters, moving as little as possible to ensure a stable aim, just dancing through the green mist. I release another double volley and I hear the weapons systems registering two more hits.
"Damn you got a great shot" I hear over the radio as the Rune yet again retreats. now into orange hull levels. I look at my 39% hull integrity and count my rails -- I have 39 left. good. time to pick up the pace. it's time for Graig to dance.
from here on out the duel turns one way, I dance and fire take shots I'd hold back on if I was running low on ammunition. the hull of the pride of Itan falls into a deep crimson. on the ninth pellet the hull is breached and a fireball lights up the void at Pelatus G2 for a brief second. my ammunition is at exactly 50%, my hull fallen to 32%.
the way of the rail claims another vessel. I slowly get down from the adrenaline high and head towards base to refuel and refit.
Nice story, and a good read :)
After our fights you got me using those things. Good fun, something about a rail kill it feels so invigorating.
I used to use rails, but then my aim started to suck. Remind me to duel you sometime.
-:sigma.SB
-:sigma.SB
@Borb, I still haven't gotten you with, have I? your roll and dance number still beat my patience and aim. although, at 4% I do recall a bit of surprise. and yes, rail kills are a great feeling. you got the Prom MkII I wanted, you meanie. :-)
@Solra, just let me know when and where. I've dueled everything in my dual rail Rev C now. I've even dueled N3-based Rev Cs in it. not overly successfully quite yet, but hey.
after using the rail for a while, the term "spamming" becomes weird. I mean, you feel like someone using Neuts is spamming, they're not _aiming_, they're just saturating enough space. heh. and don't start me on AGTs...
for me though, the rail has made PvP really fun. it is undoubtably a hard weapon to use, and I actually do better with it against good players than with anything else, I don't spray and pray, I try my damndest to get that hit and to make that kill. oh, yeah, and you get to dodge a bit too. dodging is underrated. seriously. the feeling of "just a little more, come on, slide into my aim... come on..." while AGT fire is filling your screen and jacks are flying everywhere. yummy!
@Solra, just let me know when and where. I've dueled everything in my dual rail Rev C now. I've even dueled N3-based Rev Cs in it. not overly successfully quite yet, but hey.
after using the rail for a while, the term "spamming" becomes weird. I mean, you feel like someone using Neuts is spamming, they're not _aiming_, they're just saturating enough space. heh. and don't start me on AGTs...
for me though, the rail has made PvP really fun. it is undoubtably a hard weapon to use, and I actually do better with it against good players than with anything else, I don't spray and pray, I try my damndest to get that hit and to make that kill. oh, yeah, and you get to dodge a bit too. dodging is underrated. seriously. the feeling of "just a little more, come on, slide into my aim... come on..." while AGT fire is filling your screen and jacks are flying everywhere. yummy!
Well you shuld have had me when I ran outta ammo. And I do think you got me in one of the many death runs I have made into b 8. :D
Oh, and on that prom he just wanted me more then you, making my killing him easyer. :p
Oh, and on that prom he just wanted me more then you, making my killing him easyer. :p
looks like i need a rail mentor :)
Blacklight, drop by anytime. I'd be more than happy to share some tips and pointers with regards to the rail.
oooh alright :)
right, some more rail usage finally came around the last few days. this led to some interesting findings:
1) rails, as most other things, live for 3 seconds after they're fired. this means that anything over 1200 meters requires a bit of effort to hit. one weapon that doesn't live for 3 seconds is rockets. they live for a good bit longer, 12 seconds or so at least. at a standstill I can hit things around 1000m away with rockets.
2) the autoaim the rails has (yes, it has a little bit of it) is a true pain now and then. it's usually a bit high or low, which means Vultures and even Centaurs at a distance are harder to hit with it on. it _does_ however make the Valks easier to hit. people who use rails should work their autoaim accordingly.
3) mr_spuck allowed me to experiment a bit, and my personal best so far is to hit a non-moving target at 1750m, I was going 230-240m/s at the time. this does require a lot of aligning to actually have any chance of success, and you _have_ to turn off autoaim.
4) the best I've done against a target with a steady course (NPCs, duck hunts) without aligning myself and without specifically going for distance hits is approximatly 1150 meters.
5) during the TGFT fight last night, the first hit on the Hornet in mid-combat while it was tracking Gavan was at almost 900m, he was not going in a steady direction, but he was turning hard. he didn't stop, but he was predictable enough to hit.
6) Vults flown well are the hardest targets to hit, just don't strafe up or down. :-)
7) anything less than 30 ammo is pointless to carry in a 1 vs 1 duel. the big ships need enough hits that you need the ammo anyway, the smaller ships are hard enough to hit that you'll need the "waste". I tried playing as if I had 15, 20 and 25 in ammo, and it became a lot harder to do. you can't really fire on 90% chances anymore and you start to starve yourself.
anyway, rails are still fun, but beware of agile ships carrying rockets. they want to get close, and the 1.6 second reload makes sure you'll be in a lot of pain if you play their game.
1) rails, as most other things, live for 3 seconds after they're fired. this means that anything over 1200 meters requires a bit of effort to hit. one weapon that doesn't live for 3 seconds is rockets. they live for a good bit longer, 12 seconds or so at least. at a standstill I can hit things around 1000m away with rockets.
2) the autoaim the rails has (yes, it has a little bit of it) is a true pain now and then. it's usually a bit high or low, which means Vultures and even Centaurs at a distance are harder to hit with it on. it _does_ however make the Valks easier to hit. people who use rails should work their autoaim accordingly.
3) mr_spuck allowed me to experiment a bit, and my personal best so far is to hit a non-moving target at 1750m, I was going 230-240m/s at the time. this does require a lot of aligning to actually have any chance of success, and you _have_ to turn off autoaim.
4) the best I've done against a target with a steady course (NPCs, duck hunts) without aligning myself and without specifically going for distance hits is approximatly 1150 meters.
5) during the TGFT fight last night, the first hit on the Hornet in mid-combat while it was tracking Gavan was at almost 900m, he was not going in a steady direction, but he was turning hard. he didn't stop, but he was predictable enough to hit.
6) Vults flown well are the hardest targets to hit, just don't strafe up or down. :-)
7) anything less than 30 ammo is pointless to carry in a 1 vs 1 duel. the big ships need enough hits that you need the ammo anyway, the smaller ships are hard enough to hit that you'll need the "waste". I tried playing as if I had 15, 20 and 25 in ammo, and it became a lot harder to do. you can't really fire on 90% chances anymore and you start to starve yourself.
anyway, rails are still fun, but beware of agile ships carrying rockets. they want to get close, and the 1.6 second reload makes sure you'll be in a lot of pain if you play their game.
I'll just drop a post here from my old experience. (I hope to be back in the summer)
The furthest i ever killed someone in real PvP was 12xx meters. As a rule, rails last a bit longer that though.
You need full ammo. Even with full ammo you may not hint.
As a person that fought against vults with rails, I can give you some great insight on how to use physics to your advantage against vultures:
Strafe up or down, and adjust your aim accordingly, then shoot. You will actually hit the vulture on the bottom or top, respectively, allowing for you to compensate for the vults super flatness. Naturally you'll have several other directions at the same time, but I'm just giving you the basic gist of it.
Good luck terjekv, hope to have a good railer around when i return!
The furthest i ever killed someone in real PvP was 12xx meters. As a rule, rails last a bit longer that though.
You need full ammo. Even with full ammo you may not hint.
As a person that fought against vults with rails, I can give you some great insight on how to use physics to your advantage against vultures:
Strafe up or down, and adjust your aim accordingly, then shoot. You will actually hit the vulture on the bottom or top, respectively, allowing for you to compensate for the vults super flatness. Naturally you'll have several other directions at the same time, but I'm just giving you the basic gist of it.
Good luck terjekv, hope to have a good railer around when i return!
I know how to hit Vultures, it's more that the autoaim is really annoying when he charges you with rockets, and you miss him even when he's dead in the middle of your aim. turn _off_ autoaim, and the same shot hits. the general hint for Vults is of course to make it slide vertically into your shots, I was more amazed to see the autoaim screw your shot. I have killed a few Vults with rails, it just requires some patience -- and from now on, to turn autoaim off.
but, believe me, the shots don't go 12xx meters anymore. they go 1175m before they hit. I tested against a Centaur and a Behemoth. both standing still, as was I. rails just don't go 1200m anymore, they last just under three seconds.
but, believe me, the shots don't go 12xx meters anymore. they go 1175m before they hit. I tested against a Centaur and a Behemoth. both standing still, as was I. rails just don't go 1200m anymore, they last just under three seconds.
Well, I guess I'm just saying 12xx because how often are you standing still?
relative to the target +/- 5 m/s, fairly often. for some reason, keeping a steady distance is pretty comfortable with rails. then again, at 1200m, yeah, we don't exactly play there for too long.
;-)
;-)
One of the funnest thing is to go max speed when charging at the enemy and releasing at the closest distance possible if you aim at them. Those rails are scary as hell to dodge.
And yes, I concur, rails are made for keeping a safe distance.
And yes, I concur, rails are made for keeping a safe distance.
today the way of the rail took me to my 500th kill. as of such, the nations of the universe granted me the right to purchase the advanced rails. 10 shots is enough. it is a very finely balanced weapon of great thrill to use.
the day came. it finally did.
(for the record, my estimate is that around 380 of my first 500 PKs are with rails.)
the day came. it finally did.
(for the record, my estimate is that around 380 of my first 500 PKs are with rails.)
Quad adv rails are scary. Full stop.
required reading for all students of the rail gun.
wow aint seen this thread in AGES, the story in the 2nd post is in my opinion superbly written.