legacy-Ictus
02-15-2005, 12:33 PM
Hey guys,
I've heard alot of people asking about melee strategy. Some people have made the assumption that the best way to win a melee fight is to mash the attack button in order to be the first to strike, or to just pounce over and over again. The fact is that there are a number of strategies you can adopt that will make you a better melee fighter.
There is no definitive way to use melee, so I can only explain to the best of my understanding. Other intepretations are welcome.
Here are the main things I will explain: reflect, shield, movement, timing, and when to use the various melee attacks.
Reflect is commonly known for its ability to reflect projectiles, but it is equally, if not MORE useful as a parry to melee attacks. Learn to recognize the various attacks so that you can master the timing of reflecting them.
Since you might not always be able to get a reflect, sometimes its more efficient to put up your shield to fend off a series of light attacks. There is always a delay between a character's light attacks, so a great tactic is to shield, take a few hits, then drop the shield and launch your own attack as your opponent finishes his/hers. Heavy attacks work well here.
While you are performing a light attack, you have full control of your characters movement. Take advantage of this by strafing in little circles and trying to be closest to the enemy only when your weapons will make contact. This way you can reduce the chance that their attack will hit you.
You need to know when to use light attack, when to use heavy attack, and when to pounce.
Light attacks are great for pecking at somebody or trying to get them to engage you.
Heavy attacks are extremely risky. You lose control of your characters movement for a few seconds, so it is a committed attack. It can be good to use this in two situations. 1) If you are first approaching an enemy and can time the heavy attack so that damage is dealt right as you make contact. 2) The other is to start a heavy attack immediately after an opponent has done theirs. They won't be able to strike for a few seconds after commiting a heavy attack. Poorly timed heavy attacks == you are dead. That is why I said above that sometimes the goal of a melee fight is to draw the enemy into a foolish heavy attack.
Pounce is great to use in many situations if you have the adrenaline (it takes 2 bars). This is a quick lunge forward that does a good amount of damage, kind of between a light and heavy attack. If you are locked on, pounce has some added movement tracking to help you hit. Pounce can work well while your opponent is flying through the air because of the movement tracking. Beware of pouncing into an in-progress melee attack; I can't count the number of times pounced straight into a heavy attack, and the person doing the heavy attack always wins that encounter :)
And above all, you should ALWAYS be locked on to your opponent in a melee fight. If you don't know, that means pressing the right thumstick down while you are aiming at them.
There are many styles of play using these techniques. If you have your own stylized melee strategy, this is the place to discuss it.
I've heard alot of people asking about melee strategy. Some people have made the assumption that the best way to win a melee fight is to mash the attack button in order to be the first to strike, or to just pounce over and over again. The fact is that there are a number of strategies you can adopt that will make you a better melee fighter.
There is no definitive way to use melee, so I can only explain to the best of my understanding. Other intepretations are welcome.
Here are the main things I will explain: reflect, shield, movement, timing, and when to use the various melee attacks.
Reflect is commonly known for its ability to reflect projectiles, but it is equally, if not MORE useful as a parry to melee attacks. Learn to recognize the various attacks so that you can master the timing of reflecting them.
Since you might not always be able to get a reflect, sometimes its more efficient to put up your shield to fend off a series of light attacks. There is always a delay between a character's light attacks, so a great tactic is to shield, take a few hits, then drop the shield and launch your own attack as your opponent finishes his/hers. Heavy attacks work well here.
While you are performing a light attack, you have full control of your characters movement. Take advantage of this by strafing in little circles and trying to be closest to the enemy only when your weapons will make contact. This way you can reduce the chance that their attack will hit you.
You need to know when to use light attack, when to use heavy attack, and when to pounce.
Light attacks are great for pecking at somebody or trying to get them to engage you.
Heavy attacks are extremely risky. You lose control of your characters movement for a few seconds, so it is a committed attack. It can be good to use this in two situations. 1) If you are first approaching an enemy and can time the heavy attack so that damage is dealt right as you make contact. 2) The other is to start a heavy attack immediately after an opponent has done theirs. They won't be able to strike for a few seconds after commiting a heavy attack. Poorly timed heavy attacks == you are dead. That is why I said above that sometimes the goal of a melee fight is to draw the enemy into a foolish heavy attack.
Pounce is great to use in many situations if you have the adrenaline (it takes 2 bars). This is a quick lunge forward that does a good amount of damage, kind of between a light and heavy attack. If you are locked on, pounce has some added movement tracking to help you hit. Pounce can work well while your opponent is flying through the air because of the movement tracking. Beware of pouncing into an in-progress melee attack; I can't count the number of times pounced straight into a heavy attack, and the person doing the heavy attack always wins that encounter :)
And above all, you should ALWAYS be locked on to your opponent in a melee fight. If you don't know, that means pressing the right thumstick down while you are aiming at them.
There are many styles of play using these techniques. If you have your own stylized melee strategy, this is the place to discuss it.