I’ve been getting some experience with the game, feeling more comfortable in the early to mid game now, but having some trouble with late game. Just played a frustrating match of Shipmaster vs Kinsano. Started as a 2v2 but our team mates DC’d halfway through so it went to 1v1. We both had tons of supplies and plenty of leader powers already.
Unfortunately, nothing I did would have any effect. I had a vehicle army at first. I tried using locusts on a base while I attacked elsewhere. Switched into banshees with a scarab. Tried switching into hunters to counter the new vehicles he went with. Tried scarab with tons of engineers. Tried some defensive units while I hit his original base with 15 or so banshees. One inferno and 2-3 wolverines with maybe 2-3 turrets and almost all of them were dead in seconds. You get the idea, I tried several comps and I tried being creative with my leader power usage. Absolutely no success anywhere. Any time I took a big engagement away from my base he’d just hit me with his inferno and my entire army would be dead or at least half health instantly. Meanwhile I was able to use my cleansing beam to do negligible late game damage… aaaannd that’s it.
I didn’t seem to have any viable way of breaking the stall. Was I playing poorly or what here
While we are talking late game problems, how many reavers is realistically enough to handle an army of hornets/nightingales? They just seem to die on me too quick.
I mean, I was… besides, shipmaster has 3 leader powers dependent on stealth and one is a passive, but nightingales and hornets make those 3 useless. Cleansing beam falls off late game, especially against Kinsano’s heal and against vehicles. Banished raid doesn’t effect combat, and then you’re left with spirit support which falls off hard after mid game and 3 movement based/teleport abilities. One of which teleports your units back to your base. None of these are helpful in actual combat. Best I could hope for would be to draw his army to one side, use gateway to attack a different base, teleport my units out of the inferno ASAP, and relocate his army away. But that is incredibly micro intensive and a stretch for my units to survive long enough to still be able to do damage after all that.
Meanwhile, he could simply do a direct assault on my base and kill it if I don’t have an army guarding it.
I’m more asking how to handle the combat portion and what makes an effective banished late game army against superior UNSC forces.
Shipmaster is the best late game leader, and late game banished > late game unsc. You should have stuck with a vehicle army- versus full pop unsc air you will want about 6-7 reavers, 6-7 engineers and the rest marauders (once thick hide they essentially trade with air). Get pop up and then hit a base, displace his army as far away as possible (preferably behind another of his bases so pathing takes longer) and drop the base. Teleport and extraction can be used to escape if necessary or just to pounce on isolated groups of units. Make sure you always have an engineer shield up and use the cloaking ultimate ability whenever the possible- the siphon ability from it is very useful even if he has detect.
I had a very similar game as Shipy vs Kinsano. I had 4 bases and she just 2 but she turtled so well with Kodiaks and Sieges that i couldnt break a base of her until at the 2h mark i got pushed back and ultimately lost. Against someone like Kinsano using only Air and vehicles displacement is hardly usefull as they reappear after a few seconds thanks to RL2 and wolves instantly shutting down any engis and cloaking. The only thing you can do is to dodge her inferno by simply TP out of there.
Imo Shipy is a very strong leader late game but that kit of Kinsano with devastating offensive powers, unit drops and mobilty and buffs she is very well one of the strongest there
If you were Shipmaster, I’d suggest camping a load of counter units at your bases while you snipe bases with 7-8 Locusts. Use your mobility powers to keep them alive. I have a friend that uses that to great success
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> If you were Shipmaster, I’d suggest camping a load of counter units at your bases while you snipe bases with 7-8 Locusts. Use your mobility powers to keep them alive. I have a friend that uses that to great success
Adding onto this, Locust are one of the few units that are worth splitting.
Doing exactly what you mentioned, but sending 2-3 more Locust to a mini or undefended base, can also be worthwhile. This few Locust don’t have enough stopping power to drop a main base in the window of time you’ll have, but you should be able to snipe a couple structures.
Its also worth mentioning to not build Locust the moment you get to T2. Sometimes you can get away with it (lots of factors), but it’s usually best to play counter units until you have a second or third base up and running, and your eco is healthy. Locust are very expensive (and flimsy).
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> If you were Shipmaster, I’d suggest camping a load of counter units at your bases while you snipe bases with 7-8 Locusts. Use your mobility powers to keep them alive. I have a friend that uses that to great success
But with detect everywhere and Kodiaks + Siege turrets covering both bases they get melted in an instant. And since against Kinsano her units would be there long before you could hope to drop a base.
hmmm, interesting to know. I did attempt once sending 5 or so locusts to attack an undefended base with two marauders as escorts, but the base turrets murdered the crap out of them before they did any real damage. Perhaps that was poor micro as I was focused elsewhere, I didn’t expect the locusts to have so much trouble. Wish they still had shields.
You could always do the old classic, fly 1 engi over her army and displace it behind your shield gen/ cloaked base. You’ll always win the engagement then can pus directly after.
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> You could always do the old classic, fly 1 engi over her army and displace it behind your shield gen/ cloaked base. You’ll always win the engagement then can pus directly after.
that’s clever actually. Force an engagement at my base when they are maybe not ready
uhhh I know the feeling…
I got sucked into a 2hr stale mate, ands its frustrating when it feels like you cannot break ahead.
Sometimes I feel like the only way to win those long games is to drain their Economy, till they point where they can no longer keep up…
As ship master I think the best play would be to bring his unsuspecting army to your base, whip them out, and immediately teleport to one of his bases with whatever you have left. Even it its not a lot, hopefully you can tip the scales in your favor.