Thursday, November 1, 2018

Draconian Mega Convoy Breakdown

The 2018 Assault Class raid cycle map targets are upon us!


By: The_Vengeful_One


These are Assault targets, so, you will want to use Assault class ships to tackle them. The Manticore is currently the top hull in the Assault class and is what these targets were designed for. The Caedes was a strong contender in the 80 level targets, but was locked out of the 100 level targets. This has changed with the map targets. The Caedes can engage all of the map targets Charged armor is not very helpful this go round as there are some ships that will drain your charge pool instantly. As Assault targets go, they are mostly comprised of ships. There are turret based weapons found on individual ships though, so Turret Resistance is still a good idea.

SHIPS :

Interceptor



  • Can be out ranged using missiles.
  • Has a speed up mechanic similar to the Apollo, so much easier to kill when they first start moving.
  • Weapons
  • Missiles with about 96 or 97 range. Can be countered with Phalanx or Switchblades.
  • A short range scattergun, somewhere around 85, so easy to out range, but hurt when they hit.


Prototype Interceptor



  • Same as regular Interceptor, except that it has a prototype missile that cannot be countered, but can be out ranged by missiles.
  • Prototype weapons are more damaging then the regular missiles, so try to avoid them.
  • Prototype weapons are limited in supply, but can be refilled by the ammo carrier.
  • The yellowish bar on the bottom is the prototype ammo supply the ship has remaining.


Kodiak



  • Can be out ranged using missiles.
  • They have more missiles than the Interceptors, so I tend to prioritize them over the Interceptors.
  • Has a speed up mechanic similar to the Apollo, so much easier to kill when they first start moving.
  • Weapons are the same as the Interceptor. Only difference is the Kodiak seems to have more missiles.


Prototype Kodiak



  • Same as regular Kodiak in regards to weapons, except that it has a prototype missile that cannot be countered that out ranges your fleet.
  • Its Prototype weapons deal splash damage, but are not as damaging as its regular missiles. I would guess its range is about 110-115.
  • Prototype weapons are limited in supply, but can be refilled by the ammo carrier.
  • The blue bar on the bottom is the prototype ammo supply the ship has remaining.
  • They use a couple different tactics. 
  • In some targets they try to circle you and keep you at their max range, which is helpful for Missile Manticore drivers as that is near your max range. Every now and then they will reverse direction and try to circle the other way. Fairly easy to tackle one of them, but as with most things, more than one can cause problems as they will try and surround you with one circling clockwise while the other goes counter-clockwise.
  • In other targets they have a set path that they follow and will charge straight at you after the complete that path.
  • This is the first ship I would recommend taking out as it is capable of damaging your entire fleet while out ranging you. 



Draconian Turret Carrier



  • The missile turrets out range both fleets. I would put them around 150 range. Sprints seem to be best at shooting these down (pre-CM changes)
  • Both scattergun and missiles fleets can out range the scattergun turrets.
  • The ship itself has the same short range scattergun found on every other ship in the target and can be out ranged by both fleets.
  • The ship itself cannot be targeted until all of the turrets on it .
  • Turret defense specials, such as Siege Battery or preferably Assault Battery MK-COM, are recommended to combat these turrets.



Draconian Ammo Carrier



  • Has a low range scattergun that can be out ranged by both fleets. No other weapons.
  • Refills the prototype weapons on the prototype hulls.
  • There are two versions of this ship, one with a ring and one without. The version without the ring can refill any proto ship on the map, while the one with the ring is limited to ships in the ring.
  • Has a speed up mechanic similar to the Apollo, so much easier to kill when they first start moving.


MISC :

Bad Clouds



  • These are the same thing we saw during the last few previous cycles.
  • The clouds do not move and are visible the entire fight. There are some targets that have pop up clouds.
  • They are an area of effect damage. STAY OUT OF THEM!!! Or do your best to stay out of them
  • The clouds do not trigger charged armor flashes this time around. It does not appear that you can mitigate the field damage.
  • And if it was not clear enough by the last point.... STAY OUT OF THEM IF AT ALL POSSIBLE!!!

Personally, it looks like it is mostly hazardous to the Caedes. They are spaced far enough apart that Manticores and other normal fleets can move about unhindered and stay out of range just fine. The lack of control of the Caedes drones means they wander into it on occasion and evaporate pretty quickly when they do. Thus far, in the 95's it looks like you can auto most (but NOT all) of the time without running into the clouds with the Caedes, but just like the 85's you can run into damage, so watch the battles.

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