Venator Armor Set Guide
Trying to go for the Venator armor set for your Spartan? The task may seem very daunting considering you need 140 assassinations to complete the challenge (in total), but I assure you, it’s easier than you think and is quite satisfying in the end. This guide is a brief summary of how I got this armor. You may find a better, more efficient way to do it yourself, and if you do, please feel free to share as long as you’re not boosting. Otherwise you’re just lame :(.
The Setup
Oddball or Team Regicide
Assault Rifle – You’re looking to be close and personal, you may as well have an optimal close-range weapon. I find this particularly better than the Suppressor and the Storm Rifle simply because its hitscan rather than projectile-based. If you think you can get away with using the DMR, by all means. Personally I find that if I have a long-range weapon in my hands, I tend to forget that I’m trying to go for assassinations in the first place.
Boltshot or Magnum – On Oddball or TeamReg, theres going to be a lot of close quarters skirmishes. The boltshot really excels here. The magnum is a good alternative too when you need the range.
Plasma Grenade – Since you’re going to be closing the distance with your targets, sometimes they are just out of reach. The least you can do is tag them with your stickies.
Active Camo – Pretty self-explanatory when you’re trying to sneak up on people.
AA Efficiency – This Tactical Package is, in my opinion, the second most important thing in this setup. I’m not sure on what the exact numbers are, but this perk basically gives your active camo what seems to be almost double the recharge rate.
Stealth (Sensor if Stealth is not available yet) – If you have stealth, this will allow you nearly full invisibility if anyone is using Promethean Vision and your sprints will also be soundless. The most important part of this perk however, is that your assassination animations will be much faster. Assassinations typically take about 3 seconds to fully complete the animation before you can return to normal movement. This perk basically shaves off what looks to be about 1 second, helping you get back into cloak faster, assassinate the next target, or simply avoid having your kill stolen by teammates that are too trigger happy.
If you don’t have stealth, sensor gives you a nice little advantage in that you will often see your opponents coming before they see you on the radars. This gives you the opportunity to cloak early and perhaps let them run by, giving their back(s) to you.
Before we jump in:
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If you are worried about your K/D, just remember that as long as you’re playing an objective gametype, any kills or deaths will not go towards your K/D ratio.
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You will show up on the radar if you are running or sprinting. You do not show up on radar if you are moving while crouched. This is the same whether you are cloaked or not.
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Activating cloak also activates a sort of radar scrambler for you and the opposition which means your enemies will immediately know that a stealther is nearby. You may be relatively unseen but your opponents will be on the alert.
The Strategy
First, it should be said that achieving lots of assassinations per match is very dependent on the map you are playing on. Trying to go on a ganking-spree on a large map like Complex would be next to impossible as opposed to maps like Haven or Adrift which I’d consider the best for this challenge. Maps like Abandon are also not optimal since they have lots of verticality (more than 2 levels). It simply makes it too difficult to maneuver stealthily to your targets quickly and efficiently without being seen. You want maps that are very symmetrical, with lots of corridors where you can expect victims to run by. Always stay crouched and only run/sprint when the opposition is distracted by your team or when you are alone (most likely freshly respawned).
On maps like Haven, I like to stealth right under the little bridge gaps on the ground level, waiting for targets to jump down, trying to go for my ballholder/king. I’ve probably gotten 60% or more of my assassinations this way. If the battle is on the ground level, I like to position myself above and jump down when I see that I can get in behind the enemy team. Hiding around corners is also effective as long as you are aware of where your ballholder/king is located. This way you can place yourself to intercept any targets making their way to the objective. The area where the man-cannon drops players off is also an excellent place to setup shop if you know the other team is giving chase to your holder/king that’s on the top level.
On maps like Adrift, there is much less verticality, at least where the action is concerned. I like to stick to corners and behind the box covers in the corridors to gank the other team as they run by. Avoid the grav lift at the basement level unless you are sure the opposition isn’t waiting for anybody above. Otherwise, the grav lift is probably one of the best ways to traverse the map for flanking maneuvers. Speaking of the basement, it is one of the best places to be at in Oddball. There are always players that miss the jumps and fall to the ground at the bottom. Definitely one of the best places to stalk for victims.
Try to avoid flanking by going ALL the way around the map to get in behind the other team. Sometimes it is much easier to simply go through the middle by utilizing cloak.
Last but not least, patience is very important to assassinating and surviving. Don’t jump the gun. If you see multiple contacts on your radar, always wait until they’ve all passed and gank the slowest one in the rear of the group first. I’ve had games where I ganked almost the entire opposition consecutively. Sadly theres no medal for ganking-sprees.
This guide was definitely longer than I expected it to be. I hope it’s beneficial for those that are looking to get the Venator armor set. It’s definitely my favorite armor set by far (probably because you actually have to WORK to get it).
Good luck and good hunting Spartans.