Give Cryptic credit, Shanty Town is a great ground PvP zone. The biggest problem is the lack of understanding how it works, but in many ways Cryptic often relies on players to tell other players how to play their game effectively. Shanty Town is no different.
In the several dozen Shanty Town matches I have been in, only a tiny few have been decided by kills alone. The winner is almost always the team attacking the other teams mainframe with viruses AND defending their mainframe from virus attacks. If your team isn't working on attacking AND defending mainframes, you will lose the Shanty Town match every time.
The mainframes are on the opposite side of the spawn location protected by your teams turrets. It is very much worth the effort to make your teams mainframe the hardest target in the match, whether with engineers laying minefields/fortifications/cover shields or players dedicated to the defense of the mainframe.
Too many people will spawn and stay in their spawn location instead of moving around their zone supported by ALL of the turrets on your side. There is enough cover that one can spawn, sprint over to your mainframe, and build your defenses there. There are more turrets to support a defense near your mainframe than there are near the spawn locations, so fighting from spawn locations is the easy way to die faster. Spawn camping in Shanty Town is a losing effort because not protecting ones own mainframe is a losing effort.
A lot of teams seek control of the high ground in the middle of Shanty Town. Ownership of this high ground does not make much difference in Shanty Town, ownership of the mainframes makes the difference.
It is very smart to have a player well suited for survival carry the virus for their team, and important to have a damage dealer with that person at all times to quickly burn down enemy turrets and force other players to back off (run away to survive). I've seen several successful tactics like:
Engineers with who can keep shields up, disable turrets with weapon malfunction, and have plenty of hypos work good for this. Engineers tend to get exposed more than other classes though, so that can be problematic. Science guys who can prevent themselves from being exposed and root others are also excellent to run the virus for their team, and tacticians with motion accelerator (which works properly now) are also very effective at moving the virus for their team. I do not know if the virus can be carried by someone with stealth.
In defense, engineers that can keep a cover shield protecting their own mainframe are very useful, but roots, holds, and stuns from Science and Tactics folks in the middle of allied turret crossfire are also very, very effective. The ability to deal massive damage from tacticians is important in Shanty Town, because getting a good shot against an enemy who has so much cover is difficult, and in many cases allied turrets are already dealing damage to everyone - thus making tacticians useful for getting in critical shots and beating back enemies quickly. Making each exploit shot count is important in Shanty Town, because cover allows exposes to be wasted easier than in other ground PvP maps.
Virus upload is the key to winning Shanty Town, because 2 uploads equals 14 kills from the other team. With so much cover and allied turret support, and because a lot of fighting away from the mainframes is at long range, it is very hard for one team to get quick kills unless the other team is doing some sort of suicide charge right into a kill zone.
Shanty Town is not like ground PvP in other others. It is a match of strategy and tactics, where the smarter team is almost always the better team. Engineers that Quick Fix turrets and keep crossfire kill zones and other defenses protecting their mainframe cannot be beaten unless the enemy takes a deliberate approach to overcoming the defenses. The "charge!" offensive is not effective in Shanty Town, because defenders have too much cover and on your teams side of the map, the defending group has a lot of supporting firepower. In the larger scenarios, a "charge" into the enemy lines can easily result in quick kills for your enemy. 5v1 often means quick death in ground PvP - and as it turns out - so does 10v3.
For those who have been waiting for a ground PvP match that isn't about root/hold/crush, Shanty Town is for you as long as your team is committed to attacking and defending the mainframes. It is a map that takes some practice though, best suited for folks who group 5 members before joining the PvP que (do Feds even do this like Klingons do?).
If you are simply there to kill some other player, you may not enjoy it as much since mainframes give much better points than kills do and the geography tends to support defense more than in any other ground PvP engagement map.
One last thing. Shanty Town is about teamwork against tough opponents. It is a very good way for fleets to practice ground teamwork for episodes like Infected and Cure.
Some good information in there, though surrounded by a lot of superfulous information. I couldn't figure out what the heck I was supposed to do my first few rounds, myself so I think it's good to start a thread on it.
1) No rewards are given for completion yet. Clearly a bug.
2) If match ends and your character still has the virus, you will still glow orange and make that annoying sound when match ends. Clearly a bug.
3) It is easy to grief Shanty Town. If someone on your team downloads the virus, they can hold onto it and not do anything with it. Unless they die to the enemies they are basically helping, your team cannot attack the others mainframe.
I don't think it is a bug that fighting continues after the match ends, but some do. It seems to work much like the Space Salvage matches where combat continues even upon mission completion.
There are three things about Shanty Town that have my attention for ground PvP.
One of the aspects of Shanty Town I like is that it adds AI to ground PvP with the turrets. This would suggest a Starbase Assault ground PvP mission could be added, with NPCs on both sides, for example. Potentially - bridge officers? That could make things interesting.
The second is that it finally adds defense to ground PvP. Ground PvP is overwhelmingly in favor of offense right now. A group that focuses debuffs and damage on a target will kill that target quickly, and no combination of kit skills exist that can make a difference in support of that teammate. The cooldowns for offensive kit abilities are faster than the cool down for defensive abilities, for example, meaning even if a team tried helping a teammate, the cool down for helping abilities would eventually catch up and that teammate will die. With turret support, Shanty Town adds defense, albeit with additional firepower.
Finally, Shanty Town actually requires teamwork in ground PvP to win much like Salvage and Mine does in Space PvP. Even if one player does all the mainframe raiding, the rest of the team must keep the enemy players distracted in order for it to be accomplished.
I agree its a fun start but buggy. I find that so many people dont understand the Virus issue that someone downloads it and doesn't realise no one else can get it. A bit more information and making it easier to download the virus would help.
Personaly I dont play it much because no reward for winning.
1) No rewards are given for completion yet. Clearly a bug.
2) If match ends and your character still has the virus, you will still glow orange and make that annoying sound when match ends. Clearly a bug.
3) It is easy to grief Shanty Town. If someone on your team downloads the virus, they can hold onto it and not do anything with it. Unless they die to the enemies they are basically helping, your team cannot attack the others mainframe.
I don't think it is a bug that fighting continues after the match ends, but some do. It seems to work much like the Space Salvage matches where combat continues even upon mission completion.
There are three things about Shanty Town that have my attention for ground PvP.
One of the aspects of Shanty Town I like is that it adds AI to ground PvP with the turrets. This would suggest a Starbase Assault ground PvP mission could be added, with NPCs on both sides, for example. Potentially - bridge officers? That could make things interesting.
The second is that it finally adds defense to ground PvP. Ground PvP is overwhelmingly in favor of offense right now. A group that focuses debuffs and damage on a target will kill that target quickly, and no combination of kit skills exist that can make a difference in support of that teammate. The cooldowns for offensive kit abilities are faster than the cool down for defensive abilities, for example, meaning even if a team tried helping a teammate, the cool down for helping abilities would eventually catch up and that teammate will die. With turret support, Shanty Town adds defense, albeit with additional firepower.
Finally, Shanty Town actually requires teamwork in ground PvP to win much like Salvage and Mine does in Space PvP. Even if one player does all the mainframe raiding, the rest of the team must keep the enemy players distracted in order for it to be accomplished.
Great post. Sums up a lot of my opinions about the map. I really like it. But have also encountered the bugs and hope they get fixed. It's a good step forward. Just needs more work is all. And fixes.
Bumping this so more people become aware of the objectives.
I played a few more rounds yesterday, BG level, and I was suprised at how few people took advantage of the virus. In one round, Klingons were out numbered 5 to 3 and we still won by like a 40 point margin. I did not see a single fed try to upload a virus until they were down by about 30 points.
The following is some advice.
TAKE THE VIRUS TO THE ALLEY IN THE MIDDLE.
In the rounds that I did see feds actively trying to upload a virus, they were insistant on pushing to the Klingon base full of turrets and, not suprisingly, Klingons. As the feds were stuck fighting for the bridge on the roof, I was consistantly able to walk right underneath them, kill their turret in the alley, pop a smoke grenade and upload the virus. Right underneath them!!
The point is, unless you are steamrolling the enemy and keeping them locked in their spawn corner, there is almost no advantage to attempting to upload the virus at the base. There is 1 enemy light turret for each side protecting the terminal in the alley vs. 2 light, 1 medium and 1 heavy turret at the base, plus other turrets in close proximity that can tag you depending on where you're attacking from, most of which are spread out far enough that a smoke grenade and a split beam cannot target more than one at a time. The time it takes to run to the alley, kill one turret, upload and run back for another virus is a lot more practical than trying to kill 5 turrets on the other side of the map.
DON'T LET THE ENEMY UPLOAD A VIRUS.
Did you know that you can practically sneeze on an opponent to interupt the upload? Granted, the targeting mechanics in this game leave something to be desired, but I was able to upload the virus in the middle of a firefight without anybody even looking at me funny. A virus in the alley takes 3 points away. Thats like someone killing 3 guys just by pressing 'F'. Don't let that happen. If your team is uncoordinated, or if you are unlucky enough to have someone grab the virus and hold it because they don't know what to do and can't be bothered to listen, then try your damnedest to guard those terminals. If you see an enemy getting anywhere near a terminal, make sure you tag him as often as possible to prevent the upload.
TAKE ADVANTEGE OF THE TERRAIN.
It's possible to run completely around the buildings on the second level by walking on the ledges. Stuck in a shootout on the bridge? Swing around a ledge for some quick and easy flanking damage. The enemy is often so focused on taking that bridge that they won't even notice you pelting them in the side before you get a couple solid shots off.
I have had some moderate success in hopping from roof to roof to get into some interesting areas as well. This will for sure require a lot more testing, but I encourage you all to put on your parkour shoes and start that free running.
So there is some advice based on my initial observations of this map. I hope someone out there finds it of some use and in return we all enjoy a more challenging and fun match.
Thanks, Rob, that really helps. I have tried to upload the virus in the middle alley only to be continually interrupted by the turret. It never even dawned on me (duh) to kill the turret first. I cannot believe I didn't think of that - instead I kept thinking "I wish one of my teammates would get its attention so I can finish this upload."
Edit: Your comments about terrain on that map are spot on - you can find some neato ambush spots to get some great flanking shots off which are often not immediately noticed. I really like that aspect of the map.
I played shanty town map for the first time last night with Surgery and K'tana and others. Great fun. I didn't really have much of a clue about the strategy of the map and was basically lead around by surgery who poked me until i followed them lol.
I played shanty town map for the first time last night with Surgery and K'tana and others. Great fun. I didn't really have much of a clue about the strategy of the map and was basically lead around by surgery who poked me until i followed them lol.
Comments
PS. I believe it's spelled "turret"
Believe you are correct...
Yea it is basic on purpose.
1) No rewards are given for completion yet. Clearly a bug.
2) If match ends and your character still has the virus, you will still glow orange and make that annoying sound when match ends. Clearly a bug.
3) It is easy to grief Shanty Town. If someone on your team downloads the virus, they can hold onto it and not do anything with it. Unless they die to the enemies they are basically helping, your team cannot attack the others mainframe.
I don't think it is a bug that fighting continues after the match ends, but some do. It seems to work much like the Space Salvage matches where combat continues even upon mission completion.
There are three things about Shanty Town that have my attention for ground PvP.
One of the aspects of Shanty Town I like is that it adds AI to ground PvP with the turrets. This would suggest a Starbase Assault ground PvP mission could be added, with NPCs on both sides, for example. Potentially - bridge officers? That could make things interesting.
The second is that it finally adds defense to ground PvP. Ground PvP is overwhelmingly in favor of offense right now. A group that focuses debuffs and damage on a target will kill that target quickly, and no combination of kit skills exist that can make a difference in support of that teammate. The cooldowns for offensive kit abilities are faster than the cool down for defensive abilities, for example, meaning even if a team tried helping a teammate, the cool down for helping abilities would eventually catch up and that teammate will die. With turret support, Shanty Town adds defense, albeit with additional firepower.
Finally, Shanty Town actually requires teamwork in ground PvP to win much like Salvage and Mine does in Space PvP. Even if one player does all the mainframe raiding, the rest of the team must keep the enemy players distracted in order for it to be accomplished.
Personaly I dont play it much because no reward for winning.
Great post. Sums up a lot of my opinions about the map. I really like it. But have also encountered the bugs and hope they get fixed. It's a good step forward. Just needs more work is all. And fixes.
I played a few more rounds yesterday, BG level, and I was suprised at how few people took advantage of the virus. In one round, Klingons were out numbered 5 to 3 and we still won by like a 40 point margin. I did not see a single fed try to upload a virus until they were down by about 30 points.
The following is some advice.
TAKE THE VIRUS TO THE ALLEY IN THE MIDDLE.
In the rounds that I did see feds actively trying to upload a virus, they were insistant on pushing to the Klingon base full of turrets and, not suprisingly, Klingons. As the feds were stuck fighting for the bridge on the roof, I was consistantly able to walk right underneath them, kill their turret in the alley, pop a smoke grenade and upload the virus. Right underneath them!!
The point is, unless you are steamrolling the enemy and keeping them locked in their spawn corner, there is almost no advantage to attempting to upload the virus at the base. There is 1 enemy light turret for each side protecting the terminal in the alley vs. 2 light, 1 medium and 1 heavy turret at the base, plus other turrets in close proximity that can tag you depending on where you're attacking from, most of which are spread out far enough that a smoke grenade and a split beam cannot target more than one at a time. The time it takes to run to the alley, kill one turret, upload and run back for another virus is a lot more practical than trying to kill 5 turrets on the other side of the map.
DON'T LET THE ENEMY UPLOAD A VIRUS.
Did you know that you can practically sneeze on an opponent to interupt the upload? Granted, the targeting mechanics in this game leave something to be desired, but I was able to upload the virus in the middle of a firefight without anybody even looking at me funny. A virus in the alley takes 3 points away. Thats like someone killing 3 guys just by pressing 'F'. Don't let that happen. If your team is uncoordinated, or if you are unlucky enough to have someone grab the virus and hold it because they don't know what to do and can't be bothered to listen, then try your damnedest to guard those terminals. If you see an enemy getting anywhere near a terminal, make sure you tag him as often as possible to prevent the upload.
TAKE ADVANTEGE OF THE TERRAIN.
It's possible to run completely around the buildings on the second level by walking on the ledges. Stuck in a shootout on the bridge? Swing around a ledge for some quick and easy flanking damage. The enemy is often so focused on taking that bridge that they won't even notice you pelting them in the side before you get a couple solid shots off.
I have had some moderate success in hopping from roof to roof to get into some interesting areas as well. This will for sure require a lot more testing, but I encourage you all to put on your parkour shoes and start that free running.
So there is some advice based on my initial observations of this map. I hope someone out there finds it of some use and in return we all enjoy a more challenging and fun match.
Edit: Your comments about terrain on that map are spot on - you can find some neato ambush spots to get some great flanking shots off which are often not immediately noticed. I really like that aspect of the map.
You did great. No worries.
-Semtuk