I don't ask for help often but...

Unknown

So in Magneto PvP I'm sitting around 800pts and I'm trying to push my way to 900.

I finish a match: Lose 50pts
I finish another match: Lose another 40pts
I retaliate: In the time it takes me to retaliate I lose yet another 32pts

So I guess my question is how can I break this 900pt barrier? Should I begin shield hopping at 800? If that's the case that means I would have to do at least 2 hops for 60pts each does that sound about right? Does anyone try to ever keep pushing without hopping when you're at 800pts?

I really do appreciate the help guys. It feels like I'm just spinning my wheels at this point...

Unknown

What's your team?

One key to higher scoring is when you play.

Due to the shield cooldowns, most people are on a very predictable play schedule.

11 hours, 8 hours and 3 hours are hot spots.

16 hours and 19 hours are also relatively hot spots as well.

Playing in between those times, it is relatively quiet.

But who your team is has a lot to do with it as well.

Unknown

It's all about your team. I've stopped doing the 1300+ point thing now I've gone casual, but for 1000 points my gameplan is usually:

- Get to 650-700 points using self-healers like Patch, Daken, Groot

- Have I got a high level featured character? (i.e. over lv200 boosted)
> If yes then switch to XF/Hood/Featued to 800pts, then XF/4Thor/Featured to 900ish then shield
> If not, then pick my scariest team and grind to 800-830 points and shield. Then do a 3-8-3 hop to 1000 points attacking 2-3 targets per hop depending on match length

- OK, have I suffered a setback and now running out of time? If so then roll out the boosts. 200 ISO per boost pack purchased is good value if it nets you a cover

Obviously it's a hell of a lot harder getting to 1000 if you look like a juicy target - and that means anything that isn't lv250+ XF and 4Thor. If you're in that situation then you might need to stick to 2 attack hops with boosts and plan shields accordingly.

Being in a strong alliance obviously helps. Quite a few people will 'help' with that final push to 1000 and co-ordination can make a big difference.

evil panda

Yes, if you can get to 800 you can get to 900. I usually start shield hopping at that "point of resistance" you describe, or if I've run out of health packs and am about to go to bed

Unknown

1. Climb to 800-850 then shield
2. Line up fat targets (watch your bracket's leaderboard to notice when people are unshielded, ask people in your alliance etc)
3. Shield hop your way to 1k. Enjoy!

franckynight

PhoenixDream wrote:

1. Climb to 800-850 then shield
2. Line up fat targets (watch your bracket's leaderboard to notice when people are unshielded, ask people in your alliance etc)
3. Shield hop your way to 1k. Enjoy!

bracket sniping is the safest way for you to be targeted by low snipers alliance mates of your leaderboard guy..and being on a"kill on sight" list is never a good thing..

GrumpySmurf1002

If you're like me and don't have the 270 twins (or even the 250 twins), then yes, you have to shield above 800 unless you're really lucky. I've been able to push to 900 without shield before, but it's rare. I took my first hit in last night's climb just as I thought I was crossing 850. For reference, my push team is 206 max XForce, and some combo of Deadpool/Loki/Hood/LCap/LThor.

Some things I've observed, your experience may vary:

1) When one hit comes in, more are coming. I almost always shield up the second I'm hit above 800. IIRC, only once did I not have at least 2-3 more hits come in within minutes.
2) Letting the shield breathe is key. I've had zero success trying to shield at 800+, then hop any time soon. It's somewhat of a corollary to the above, but once you're in queues, you're in danger. You have to let as many of those attacks (and retaliations) fall in as you can. It will save you later.
3) Timing is everything. There are safe times to push, and there are unsafe times. In my experience that seems to vary slice to slice, but there are windows where I feel I'm well more likely to have success with the initial surge, and with extended hops (my personal best with cooldowns is 6 matches/175 pts on one hop). I try to time my playing accordingly.
4) Panic, but don't panic. I rarely think "gee, I've been out a long time, I should shield up again." If you get through the matches you hopped unscathed, start scrambling for more targets. Take anything you can find that you feel is quickly beatable and worth 20+. If you've hopped for 80-90 pts (3 matches), getting hit for 30 while winning 20 isn't the end of the world, still a net of 70-80. This obviously has a chance to go really bad, but that leads to point 5...
5) You're going to fail sometimes. When you're playing with a handicap (which is the best way to describe competing against the twins), you can't always overcome it. Bad boards, bad timing are part of the game. Be conscious of what, when, and how you did what you did. If you find patterns, correct them. Eventually you'll find a rhythm that works (mostly) consistently.

Unknown

DrUnpleasant wrote:

It's all about your team. I've stopped doing the 1300+ point thing now I've gone casual, but for 1000 points my gameplan is usually:

- Get to 650-700 points using self-healers like Patch, Daken, Groot

- Have I got a high level featured character? (i.e. over lv200 boosted)
> If yes then switch to XF/Hood/Featued to 800pts, then XF/4Thor/Featured to 900ish then shield
> If not, then pick my scariest team and grind to 800-830 points and shield. Then do a 3-8-3 hop to 1000 points attacking 2-3 targets per hop depending on match length

- OK, have I suffered a setback and now running out of time? If so then roll out the boosts. 200 ISO per boost pack purchased is good value if it nets you a cover

Obviously it's a hell of a lot harder getting to 1000 if you look like a juicy target - and that means anything that isn't lv250+ XF and 4Thor. If you're in that situation then you might need to stick to 2 attack hops with boosts and plan shields accordingly.

Being in a strong alliance obviously helps. Quite a few people will 'help' with that final push to 1000 and co-ordination can make a big difference.

I am in a strong alliance but we don't coordinate much on who to attack. My Thoress and XF just get crushed on defense and my Thoress is almost maxed

Unknown

GrumpySmurf1002 wrote:

If you're like me and don't have the 270 twins (or even the 250 twins), then yes, you have to shield above 800 unless you're really lucky. I've been able to push to 900 without shield before, but it's rare. I took my first hit in last night's climb just as I thought I was crossing 850. For reference, my push team is 206 max XForce, and some combo of Deadpool/Loki/Hood/LCap/LThor.

Some things I've observed, your experience may vary:

1) When one hit comes in, more are coming. I almost always shield up the second I'm hit above 800. IIRC, only once did I not have at least 2-3 more hits come in within minutes.
2) Letting the shield breathe is key. I've had zero success trying to shield at 800+, then hop any time soon. It's somewhat of a corollary to the above, but once you're in queues, you're in danger. You have to let as many of those attacks (and retaliations) fall in as you can. It will save you later.
3) Timing is everything. There are safe times to push, and there are unsafe times. In my experience that seems to vary slice to slice, but there are windows where I feel I'm well more likely to have success with the initial surge, and with extended hops (my personal best with cooldowns is 6 matches/175 pts on one hop). I try to time my playing accordingly.
4) Panic, but don't panic. I rarely think "gee, I've been out a long time, I should shield up again." If you get through the matches you hopped unscathed, start scrambling for more targets. Take anything you can find that you feel is quickly beatable and worth 20+. If you've hopped for 80-90 pts (3 matches), getting hit for 30 while winning 20 isn't the end of the world, still a net of 70-80. This obviously has a chance to go really bad, but that leads to point 5...
5) You're going to fail sometimes. When you're playing with a handicap (which is the best way to describe competing against the twins), you can't always overcome it. Bad boards, bad timing are part of the game. Be conscious of what, when, and how you did what you did. If you find patterns, correct them. Eventually you'll find a rhythm that works (mostly) consistently.

That was a h*ll of a response Why do I feel so confident all of a sudden? lol

Wonko33

I am a big proponent of not over reaching - Know your limits - time your play and shield. When you over reach you get often get hit, fall below your normal target and waste HP and boosts.

If you rarely hit 900 when hopping then that HP would have been better used buying the 3* cover than wasting it on unsuccessful hops.

Like people said before, experiment and find quiet times that match with your schedule. Recently I found a good spot for me on Wednesday and can reach 1000 with only ~300 HP in shields, that's a great value when you can get a 4* for that low. And my xforce/ 4thor are only level 200. (I'm afraid of scaling my PvE too much, I get top 5 all the time and those 3 covers are worth a lot to me for new characters)

I make profuse use of boosts that cost only ISO, they are cheap and I can make ISO in no time with LRs

Good luck

OneenO

onimus wrote:

What's your team?

One key to higher scoring is when you play.

Due to the shield cooldowns, most people are on a very predictable play schedule.

11 hours, 8 hours and 3 hours are hot spots.

16 hours and 19 hours are also relatively hot spots as well.

Playing in between those times, it is relatively quiet.

But who your team is has a lot to do with it as well.

This! Its all about timing. Finding quit times is the key.

Playing during quiet times ive gone from 850 to 1000. With 240 xf/166 lazy thor or 166 deadpool. I find 13/7/5 hours to be pretty quit for the most part. Good luck and happy hunting!

Unknown

This chart may also help you find better times to join your bracket.
http://steamcharts.com/app/234330

LXSandman

daibar wrote:

This chart may also help you find better times to join your bracket.
http://steamcharts.com/app/234330

Wow.... I guess I never really realized how not popular this game is on steam lol.

Ranked 169th in the current list of steam games being played right now.

I'm also surprised that the peak # of players is around 1k ... Seems low

LXSandman