Winter Event Tips and Tricks 2016!

rattler2 · November 2016

Its coming up on that time of year again everyone! The annual Winter Event is coming! And with it, The Fastest Game on Ice and various other activities!

Last year in an effort to stave off some of the threads asking for help with certain activities (*cough*Fastest Game on Ice*cough*), I made a Tips and Tricks thread so that we veteran players can share our experience with others. I have decided to do so again. This will not be limited to only the Fastest Game on Ice daily, but will encompass ALL activities. Once the new activity is figured out, tips are more than welcome to be added to this thread for that as well.

And now to start off, I will share one of my personal tricks for Fastest Game on Ice!
Race%20track.jpg

Now with luck the track will be unaltered, as this is a shot from last year's map. But the tips will work even if it is altered. I have marked straight shots on this map for ease of use.

You do NOT need to run full out the entire time. You will be on Ice, and you will slip around. Full speed will make it harder to handle turns. So identify straightaways and run full out there. The rest of the time you can just jog. Also... jumping and letting go of any movement keys while in the air will bring you to an immediate stop if you're about to go Out of Bounds. You will lose some speed, but that can be made up if you're halfway through or near the end. Better than having to start from the beginning again. Another thing on the straight shots... time your stops accordingly to give you time to turn.

Another thing to remember is that the NPC is basically on a rail. It is NOT affected by the lower traction on ice like Players are.

If you're rusty or not confident in your abilities, then run a few practice laps around the track before actually running the daily. Get a feel for the track and the ice.

All veterans are welcome to contribute to this thread.

And if possible could we get a sticky for the duration as well from our CM or a Mod? I would greatly appreciate it.

Happy Holidays and I'll see you out in Q's Winter Wonderland!
have some Super Mario Sleigh Ride!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKMgleUxD9w

admrenlarreck · November 2016

@ambassadorkael#6946

Hey Mike please sticky this thread. Last year we had the 2015 version stickied and it helped a lot of people, This one is going to go the same way. So it would be great to get this one put up top.

tribbulater · November 2016

More tricks for the ice race:

-The double-tap roll can be used to instantly change your direction.
-You can get a little more traction on the roughly 1-metre wide snowy border of the track. This is helpful when cutting the inside corner of turns.
-You can start before the countdown completes (by a second or two, enough for a head start).
-You don't actually need to face forward all the time. You can spin your camera/direction so that even while moving/sliding north you are facing (and feet running), west, south, whatever. Even though this won't 'stop' your current direction/momentum it will alter it.

Hope that helps, happy racing!

chastity1337 · November 2016

tribbulater wrote: »

More tricks for the ice race:

-The double-tap roll can be used to instantly change your direction.
-You can get a little more traction on the roughly 1-metre wide snowy border of the track. This is helpful when cutting the inside corner of turns.
-You can start before the countdown completes (by a second or two, enough for a head start).
-You don't actually need to face forward all the time. You can spin your camera/direction so that even while moving/sliding north you are facing (and feet running), west, south, whatever. Even though this won't 'stop' your current direction/momentum it will alter it.

Hope that helps, happy racing!

For the PVP race, there are some things make you go faster -

These three I understand and know they work-
1) Traits from Terran rep (tier 1, Close Quarters Combatant), and Delta rep (tier 1, Physical Conditioning)
2) Counter-Command rep armor (+25% runspeed for 3 seconds after performing a roll)
3) [run] mod on ground weapons

This one I haven't actually tested -
4) Delta Alliance Elite ground set (two-piece bonus +5% Run Speed)

This I finally managed to decipher -
5) The Command Specialisation, (not Commando), Tier 1, top of the left tree, Forward March

This last one is highly controversial, your mileage may vary -
6) Once out of the last curve and headed down the final straight, I personally toggle ON my Frosty Boots.

(edited multiple times for clarity and additional info, because the STO servers are down, SWTOR is down for a big patch, and I have nothing else to do with my sad little life)

austinfan4life · November 2016

Here's a couple videos for all the updated games for last year's events. It should still all be relevant, minus the new games being added for this year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9gWQUYe6Hs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qU8uErSGV84

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nm6_3d4RTEw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66pYPjyYWlg

echatty · November 2016

The best tactic that worked for me EVERY time was the jump/release movement keys at sharp curves, then run like hell for the next curve, rinse, repeat.

Last year was the first time I'd ever tried the daily and I don't intend to change tactics from what worked last year. Good advice though, gives people different things to try to find what works for them.

legendarylycan · November 2016

chastity1337 wrote: »

This one I was told about, but have not been able to decipher -
5) "specialisation, leadership"

whoever said that probably meant command specialization, as there are a few passives in there that boost run speed

tacticalrook · November 2016

If you absolutely must halt your momentum, jumping has far fewer drawbacks than rolling. It takes considerably less time to get back to full speed from a jump than it does from a roll. Rolling also tends to be a bit less responsive than jumping, sometimes not even registering.

The quickest way to end one of these races is to run the entire time and avoid any momentum-resetting tactics like jumping or rolling. The only time jumping/rolling is necessary is when the player has failed to negotiate the turn properly. It would lead to far better results to simply learn how to properly take turns at full speed, and learning the slide timers and slide distances as you run in order to eliminate the need to use jumps or rolls to correct mistakes caused by failed maneuvers.

Habitually using crutches like jumping, rolling, and walking/jogging in order to get through races not only drastically increases the time it takes to grind the ship, but it leads to a mindset where mediocrity is encouraged and improvement is discouraged.

On a side note, the slide mechanics are used in other parts of the game (notably drifting/powersliding ships in space), so getting an instinctive understanding of them may be useful for more than just a dreadful yearly event grind.

edrogen · November 2016

Remember you are racing a timer and relax, the npc racing you is just a marker for how far along the timer is - it's not actually trying to win the race.
I would suggest never running 'practice' laps. Always run the real thing, if you win you are done, if you don't then that's a 'practice' run - (re)request the race from the breen and try again right away.

Relax with it - seriously.
I have all the winter ships and never 'jumped' along the track or 'rolled', no 'boosters' used, only walk and run.

Re: @tacticalrook I agree with that post nearly completely. But I just relax and win each time by run/walk/slide turns,
I don't actually try to win as fast as possible, just win. This is all that's needed since 1 char opens the ship for all.

chastity1337 · November 2016

Guys, please, let's skip the elitist condescension this year, OK?

nightken · November 2016

chastity1337 wrote: »

Guys, please, let's skip the elitist condescension this year, OK?

this is a mmo so thats unlikely... though personally never see any about the winter event.

taylor1701d · November 2016

Wouldn't recommend this for newbies, but if you get really good, you can do the FULL (daily) race with the frost boots on.

It requires skill though, and good drifting technique. Picking your lines well in advance of the turn helps as well.
Try it if you want a more challenging Daily race.

Only tip I'd offer is if you're really struggling with the race, and just can't do it... Get Q to turn you into a spider.
No slipping and a bit of extra speed.

austinfan4life · November 2016

Normally what I do, is use the drifting method, around corners. I'll run full speed, then use the less traction to my advantage, by making sharp turns, causing my character to drift around corners. Now granted, because of the less traction, you are more likely to go out of bounds, but if you have a good handle on it, which I believe I do, it's makes it more likely you'll be able to get through the race, without going out of bounds.

tacticalrook · November 2016

A handy maneuvering tactic is to turn 180-degrees and run in the opposite direction for a couple of seconds before hitting a turn, in order to let the slide timer count down without changing your course, then turn to face where you want to go just before the timer runs out. When the timer hits 0 you'll shoot off in that direction at full speed.

No point getting too close to the outer track, if it can be avoided.

taylor1701d · November 2016

austinfan4life wrote: »

Normally what I do, is use the drifting method, around corners. I'll run full speed, then use the less traction to my advantage, by making sharp turns, causing my character to drift around corners. Now granted, because of the less traction, you are more likely to go out of bounds, but if you have a good handle on it, which I believe I do, it's makes it more likely you'll be able to get through the race, without going out of bounds.

Frost boost make drifting the course easier in my experience. I've done with and without though.
Not sure why, perhaps more thrust/boost going into and out of turns, actually makes the arc of your path less obtuse, and more acute ?
Seems to me that while wearing them, you get a little more responsiveness when cutting/extending inertias around corners and making course corrections.

But again, this is more of an advanced trick. One would have to be fairly good at the race already to even attempt this.
Because if you TRIBBLE up, it's pretty much an automatic fail. You slide way, way, way out of bounds.

tacticalrook · November 2016

taylor1701d wrote: »

austinfan4life wrote: »

Normally what I do, is use the drifting method, around corners. I'll run full speed, then use the less traction to my advantage, by making sharp turns, causing my character to drift around corners. Now granted, because of the less traction, you are more likely to go out of bounds, but if you have a good handle on it, which I believe I do, it's makes it more likely you'll be able to get through the race, without going out of bounds.

Frost boost make drifting the course easier in my experience. I've done with and without though.
Not sure why, perhaps more thrust/boost going into and out of turns, actually makes the arc of your path less obtuse, and more acute ?
Seems to me that while wearing them, you get a little more responsiveness when cutting/extending inertias around corners and making course corrections.

But again, this is more of an advanced trick. One would have to be fairly good at the race already to even attempt this.
Because if you **** up, it's pretty much an automatic fail. You slide way, way, way out of bounds.

Frosted boots have a longer slide timer than regular running. Speed is the same, though.

Shorter slide time is preferable since it makes maneuvers easier to calculate on the fly and makes recovery a lot easier. The probability of miscalculating a turn and needing to use an emergency jump to reset momentum is much higher with frosted boots.

taylor1701d · November 2016

tacticalrook wrote: »

taylor1701d wrote: »

austinfan4life wrote: »

Normally what I do, is use the drifting method, around corners. I'll run full speed, then use the less traction to my advantage, by making sharp turns, causing my character to drift around corners. Now granted, because of the less traction, you are more likely to go out of bounds, but if you have a good handle on it, which I believe I do, it's makes it more likely you'll be able to get through the race, without going out of bounds.

Frost boost make drifting the course easier in my experience. I've done with and without though.
Not sure why, perhaps more thrust/boost going into and out of turns, actually makes the arc of your path less obtuse, and more acute ?
Seems to me that while wearing them, you get a little more responsiveness when cutting/extending inertias around corners and making course corrections.

But again, this is more of an advanced trick. One would have to be fairly good at the race already to even attempt this.
Because if you **** up, it's pretty much an automatic fail. You slide way, way, way out of bounds.

Frosted boots have a longer slide timer than regular running. Speed is the same, though.

Shorter slide time is preferable since it makes maneuvers easier to calculate on the fly and makes recovery a lot easier. The probability of miscalculating a turn and needing to use an emergency jump to reset momentum is much higher with frosted boots.

That's part of the fun !

I agree with you in theory (and in most peoples cases), but in practice something about them makes it easier (for me).
You're right though, the chance of catastrophic failure greatly increases when you use the boots.
The slightest error is usually the end - Out of Bounds.

But once you've got it down to an art. You can drift the s%$# out of it. And it's pretty impressive.

cidjack · November 2016

Cidjack tips for less stress to get the winter ship:

Use your lobi and get it on the first day, saving you countless hours of running the daily for a month.

Sit back and enjoy the rest of the winter event.

tacticalrook · November 2016

The boots may make it look fancier, but after a while I'm sure the fancy wears off and folks are just left with the fact that their races are taking a bit longer to complete due to the wider turns and longer effective distance that is being run. I understand folks do a lot of silly things in the quest for "fun", so I can understand that this boots thing or the habitual jumping thing would be appealing, even after they've been informed it's a sub-par way to go about it.

Personally, I don't do these races for "fun", they're a requirement for obtaining the inputs needed to get the ship and the sooner the run ends, the sooner I can get back to doing what I actually want to be doing.

tacticalrook · November 2016

cidjack wrote: »

Cidjack tips for less stress to get the winter ship:

Use your lobi and get it on the first day, saving you countless hours of running the daily for a month.

Sit back and enjoy the rest of the winter event.

Sounds like a solution for gamblers, yeah. I'm fine with this, I have plenty of keys and promo packs to sell them when they need more lobis.

rattler2 · November 2016

@ambassadorkael#6946
Could you sticky this thread for the duration of the Winter Event please?

ambassadorkael · November 2016

admrenlarreck wrote: »

@ambassadorkael#6946

Hey Mike please sticky this thread. Last year we had the 2015 version stickied and it helped a lot of people, This one is going to go the same way. So it would be great to get this one put up top.

Sure, seems like a good idea.

rattler2 · November 2016

Thanks.

theotherscotty · November 2016

Excellent, rattler2. Thank you for posting this!

rattler2 · November 2016

@theotherscotty#9105
You're welcome. Every little bit helps, and... we always get swamped with threads about Fastest Game on Ice.

rezking · December 2016

Is that cheat fixed where you log out at the finish line of a Fast and the Flurrious race with Toon A (without claiming a flag), log in with Toon B, start the next FatF race, log back in with Toon A and claim 1st place in the current race?

Or is this one of those things we have to confirm for ourselves?

Unknown · December 2016

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Unknown · December 2016

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thekristen · December 2016

Do we still need the 1000 vouchers on main toon and 40 on alts to claim ship? TIA

rattler2 · December 2016

thekristen wrote: »

Do we still need the 1000 vouchers on main toon and 40 on alts to claim ship? TIA

No. You claim it on one character, and it becomes an ACCOUNT unlock, allowing you to claim it on alts through the Dilithium Store > Special items if I remember correctly as I am not currently in game to verify location.

zedbrightlander1 · December 2016

Thanks for doing this again, rattler. You're an

I noticed a few people already posting that they were having trouble so I gave them a link this thread.

Winter Event Tips and Tricks 2016!

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