[Broseybrose]

This is now the first F2P game I've given money to. Bravo Hi-Rez.

Just wanted to second this emotion. I love this game so much that i gladly put $140 into Hi-Rez's pockets and joined my second ever clan.

[Danne-Danger]

Wait, so can or can't you get headshots with all bullet guns anymore? Felt like I got them all the time with the SMG before, then some patch came out and I just got another one after a couple of weeks. Thought that they had disabled them, and I've sprayed a lot of bullets since then so I find it unlikely that I'd get so few headshots.

[MatthewB92]

This game is amazing. I love speeding in to an enemies flag and capping it.

[dLMN8R]

It's just nice how much playstyle variety is. I've happily rotated between Brute and Technician, buying a few things for each. Paid the $30 months ago to get in the beta, and I've still used less than half of my GP.

Recommendations for which class I focus on next?

[Broseybrose]

It's just nice how much playstyle variety is. I've happily rotated between Brute and Technician, buying a few things for each. Paid the $30 months ago to get in the beta, and I've still used less than half of my GP. Recommendations for which class I focus on next?

Pathfinder ;)

[Zeliard]

Depends on what you want to do and what game type. Soldier is a nice class in general due to its versatility. Raider is strong at dueling and attacking bases, and with the plasma is beastly indoors. Sentinel is your classic sniper and great for spotting and finishing off flag carriers.

Doombringer generally guards the flag or generator; his chaingun and high HP also makes him a force when faced with individual opponents. The Juggernaut can bombard the enemy base or sit back on defense and disrupt attackers. Infiltrator does what his name suggests, sneaking in and harassing enemies and disrupting their defenses.

Pathfinder carries/chases flags and shoots people in the face with a shotgun.

[ProXimity]

Probably going to throw down $20 to boost up my Pathfinder and Brute.

[shintoki]

Pathfinder carries/chases flags and shoots people in the face with a shotgun.

Get the rifle. I use to prefer the Shotgun because it was easier to use. Rifle is a massive upgrade at everything a path has to do, on top of just not being a shit weapon. The range drop off on the shotgun is a joke.

If you like Tech, go with DMB. Another heavy defense class. You don't have to be good to help your team, just get Super Heavy perk and sit on the flag. So its not a bad class to play if you're still learning, but want to help the team.

With Brute, I'd tried Raider. More of a fast version of them with better weaponry I think.

If you want something different.

Pathfinder or Sent.

[dLMN8R]

I got into a groove of defending the flag/generator and doing some minor repairs to defenses as a Brute with heavy armor boosts today. Racked up points like crazy, and had tons of fun!

[Zeliard]

Get the rifle. I use to prefer the Shotgun because it was easier to use. Rifle is a massive upgrade at everything a path has to do, on top of just not being a shit weapon. The range drop off on the shotgun is a joke.

Yeah the rifle is likely more effective in more cases, but the shotty is fun to use for how absurdly powerful it is in close-range. It's a shotgun, so it should be (and should accordingly also be limited at a distance), but that thing is comically devastating against anyone in your vicinity.

[shintoki]

Yeah the rifle is likely more effective in more cases, but the shotty is fun to use for how absurdly powerful it is in close-range. It's a shotgun, so it should be (and should accordingly also be limited at a distance), but that thing is comically devastating against anyone in your vicinity.

I don't even think it does as much damage as a Direct hit with spinfusor. Its better off just keeping that equipped or your Bolt if they are near the ground or closed off space. In the air, it gets some purpose, but its range is ridiculously short. A Sent with Falcon will kill you before you land, with most other classes having their range auto. So either you got to land another disc on them or get close enough to finish.

If it one shotted light classes. I'd consider using it, but damage does make up for the lack of range.

[Zeliard]

I don't even think it does as much damage as a Direct hit with spinfusor. Its better off just keeping that equipped or your Bolt if they are near the ground or closed off space. In the air, it gets some purpose, but its range is ridiculously short. A Sent with Falcon will kill you before you land, with most other classes having their range auto. So either you got to land another disc on them or get close enough to finish. If it one shotted light classes. I'd consider using it, but damage does make up for the lack of range.

Well, the benefit to the shotty relative to the spinfusor or bolt in duels is that it's semi-automatic, so it shoots very quickly and can do a ton of damage in a short time. Its big weakness is range but if you can get up close to an enemy, it'll wipe them out in short order.

Every auto in the game is going to be much more effective in dueling situations than almost any other weapon, but the Pathfinder and Brute shotguns can be quite powerful as well, and fun to use to switch things up. And of course, anyone just starting with the Pathfinder won't have the rifle unlocked, and it's pretty expensive as well both XP and gold-wise. The shotgun till then is a good alternative weapon to use, and a solid finisher.

[nan0]

If you like Tech, go with DMB. Another heavy defense class. You don't have to be good to help your team, just get Super Heavy perk and sit on the flag. So its not a bad class to play if you're still learning, but want to help the team.

But it can be frustrating as hell if your team isn't willing to help you. Also, the mines are very, very helpful. Most of the points I get as DMB is from mine kills. And you need points to have an Inventory Station nearby.

[Danne-Danger]

Tactic for 90% of Infils and Brutes:

Get close to the first enemy you see

Press every button at once

(Disco)Die

Repeat

[mkenyon]

For those interested, ZFZ/Area 51 (we combined teams) vs. Deadstop tonight at 6 PM PST for the NASL Semi-Finals. It's a bit of a grudge match as there is some long standing bad blood between the teams. Should be a helluva game.

[shintoki]

Not even 900 xp with VIP for 30 kills, 5 vehicles destroyed, 2 flags capture, 10+ kill streak, etc.

=[

[dLMN8R]

Huge changes coming up. Not sure how I feel about them, but I'm cautiously optimistic that it will mean good things in the end.

I like the idea now of being able to build up XP and immediately upgrade a new weapon. Having to use a weapon to upgrade it would slow that down, though they're still providing an option to "max it out" for XP. We'll see how expensive that is...

They do make a good argument though, that you'll be progressing on up to 7 items simultaneously. That'll be doubly helpful considering that they'll continue adding new weapons and other stuff, apparently.

It also continues to reward you with unlocks if you're switching classes frequently.

http://forum.hirezstudios.com/phpbb/...?f=234&t=73546

I wanted to update you on a couple important changes coming in the next patch to Tribes (tentatively planned for next week), as the changes might impact how you choose to spend your XP between now and the upgrade date. There are a number of things in the next patch, including our largest to date re-balancing of the weapons (driven based on feedback directly taken from a council of competitive players). We will also be introducing a large number of new weapons, which are essentially variants of existing weapons, giving people more options to find weapons that fit their exact preferred playstyle. And there are a couple new maps. Perhaps the biggest change, especially for newer players, is that we are introducing new ways to improve and speed player advancement (based on feedback from the community). With the next patch, you will no longer spend XP on weapon and armor upgrades. Each weapon, pack, perk, and armor class will progress automatically towards their upgrades as you play with them equipped. This is greatly to your advantage, as you can simultaneously progress many items in your loadout (up to 7), and save all of the XP you earn for unlocks such as new weapons and new perks. In general this will significantly increase how quickly you earn unlocks in the game. Think of it as each item having their own little progression bar, and as you play it fills up and gives you free unlocks, until you master a weapon. The progression on weapons is based on your ending match XP (think of it as duplicating that value to each weapon), so it is increased by performance, boosting, first win of the day, and badge earning. Some important things to consider: - Any upgrades you have purchased prior to the upgrade will remain purchased. **** EDITED **** - When the patch is live, how you acquire upgrades will change. For most users the smart path will be to simply play the weapon. As you do so, you will automatically upgrade. For those that have excess XP, there will be an option to immediately master the weapon at any point using XP. **** EDITED **** If there are upgrades you wish to have immediately unlocked, it's recommended you purchase them now. Otherwise, you will have to start progression toward your next unlock from the starting point for that unlock. Keep in mind, though, that you may wish to save all of your XP now with the knowledge that future unlocks will happen automatically on the weapons you wish to play with. We are excited about this change and are excited to hear your feedback and concerns. Thanks, Stew

[Jintor]

Booted the game up for the first time in months. Solid, loving it.

[shintoki]

As long as the Falcon and XM1 get nerfed. I'm fucking happy.

[shintoki]

So with the upcoming patch, I'm slightly confused. Should I spent my points on upgrading? Or not?

Also Xp being more if you play more classes? Can someone give a bit of clarity to it for me.

[MatthewB92]

Sweet new maps! This update seems neat.

[Jintor]

So what can detect infiltrators? These cavernous generator rooms aren't even safe for Juggernauts to try and get in with these little sneaky fucks lurking around.

[Danne-Danger]

So what can detect infiltrators? These cavernous generator rooms aren't even safe for Juggernauts to try and get in with these little sneaky fucks lurking around.

Motion sensors and explosives.

Also bullet spray!

[Zeliard]

Patch seems interesting. Here's the nerf on autos:

- Increased damage fall-off on all SMGS. (That's a Nerf, damage is falling off faster).
- On all automatics, the final upgrade that reduces reload time by 30% being reduced to 15%.
- On all automatics, a minor decrease in clip size, varied depending on the weapon and slot.
- On a few select automatics, a minor damage reduction (mainly around the Raider's Automatics as compared to Soldier's AR.)

Still, the nature of autos versus explosive weapons gives them a natural advantage in a duel that can't really be overcome, outside of the Plasma Gun. This nerf may make a difference in various situations, but it the hands of players with good aim, I imagine autos will still be devastating as every fight will still be air-based.

[Jubbly]

Patch Preview video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfsmv8qizzE

Tribes PK announcement video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9I7xPcftqo

Hi-Rez Studios, independent developer of AAA free-to-play online games, announced a significant update coming to Tribes: Ascend this week. The June update, titled Accelerate, will dramatically speed up the process by which players unlock weapon upgrades and earn new items. In a video to the community Hi-Rez Studios describes the new weapon upgrade system, and reveals that the update will also include twenty-seven new weapon variants, 2 new Capture and Hold maps, and significant balance adjustments.

[Fireye]

I like that they're adding in weapon variants, it'll really allow the expansion of some classes into a niche role. Anyone know where the full patch notes are?

[dLMN8R]

Not out yet - they'll probably be released closer to the actual patch.

[shintoki]

Major Highlights

The system for upgrading weapons has been modified. Players will now automatically receive weapon upgrades as they play a particular weapon, without having to spend XP on the upgrade (allowing you to save your XP for other items). A progress bar on the weapon’s menu page will provide information as to when the next automatic upgrade occurs. If you are impatient and have excess XP, an option is still provided to immediately master an item using XP. Note that previously purchased upgrades are still owned.
27 new weapons have been added to the game, 3 for each class (details below).
Two new Capture & Hold maps have been added (Tartarus and Sulfer).


Weapon/Balance Items

27 New Weapon Variants have been added across all classes. Weapon Variants have new skins and slight statistical trade offs for the weapon they are a variant of. One weapon variant has been added for each free Primary, Secondary, and Belt item that comes with a class. Weapon variants are all unlocked between 4800xp - 18000xp.
Exception: The Titan Launcher (a variant of the Saber Launcher) is a good bit more than a statistical change.
NEW SLOT 2 PERK: The perk Lightweight has been added. Lightweight reduces your mass by 30%, creating stronger disk jumps, but more than triples the delay before health regeneration takes effect. This perk is intended for advanced chasers.
Automatics, SMGs, and Pistols:
Reduced reload time reduction upgrade from 30% to 15% on:
Soldier’s Assault Rifle
Pathfinder’s Light Assault Rifle
Technician’s TCN4
Infiltrator’s Rhino
Raider’s NJ4 SMG
Raider’s NJ5 SMG
Sentinel’s Falcon Auto-Pistol
Increased damage fall off by 5% and brought closer the range at which falloff starts on:
Infiltrator’s Rhino SMG
Technician’s TCN4 SMG
Raider’s NJ4 SMG
Raider’s NJ5 SMG
Increased damage fall off on Sentinel’s Falcon Auto-Pistol by 5%.
Reduced clip size by 2 on Sentinel’s Falcon Auto-Pistol. Adjusted starting ammo pool.
Reduced clip size by 3 on Pathfinder’s Light Assault Rifle. Adjusted starting ammo pool.
Reduced clip size by 4 on Soldier’s Assault Rifle. Adjusted starting ammo pool.
Reduced clip size by 6 on Infiltrator’s Rhino SMG. Adjusted starting ammo pool.
Reduced clip size by 8 on Raider’s NJ4 SMG. Adjusted starting ammo.
Reduced clip size by 6 on Raider’s NJ5 SMG. Adjusted starting ammo.
Reduced damage by roughly 6% on Juggernaut’s X1 LMG.
Reduced damage by roughly 7% on Infiltrator’s Rhino SMG.
Reduced damage by roughly 6% on Raider’s NJ4 SMG.
Reduced damage by roughly 7% on Sentinel’s Falcon Auto-Pistol.
Decreased effectiveness of Raider’s Shield Pack. More energy is required to absorb each point of damage taken.
Decreased detonation time by 26% and increased radius by 3% on Brute’s Gladiator.
Increased falloff by 20% on Sentinel’s BXT1 Rifle (a nerf).
If you die as the Sentinel class, you will now incur a 5s longer respawn time, regardless of what you are respawning as. This is a fix we are still actively working on, and is intended to be improved upon over time.
Reduced the number of credits awarded for Generator Defense to 200.
Increased credit reward for killing Shrikes to 700.
Increased reward for emergency flag grabs to 500.
Increased reward for flag defense to 300.
Reduced damage on Raider’s EMP grenade by roughly 45%. Increased energy drain by roughly 113% (more than double).
Mass reduction while enraged on the Rage Perk has been reduced from 35% to 10%. Heath granted at the start of Rage increased from 25% to 50%. Note that Rage, a slot 1 perk, can stack with the new Lightweight perk.
Fixed an issue that was allowing players to flat impact walls at high speed, and instantly move 180 degrees in the opposite direction with no speed loss or damage taken. This allowed for some game breaking front-to-front routes, and created a number of other gameplay related issues.
This fix will have a heavy effect on rock-bouncing, a skill and strategy emerging from competitive games. We built in some tolerances to this fix that allow free bouncing at certain angles, and bleed less speed depending on the angle of impact. We will continue to adjust as needed. Rock bouncing is a feature we love, but the bug needed to be fixed for other extreme cases that were not to the benefit of the game.
Reduced inactive reload time from 5 to 3 seconds. Inactive reload time is how long it takes for a weapon to reload automatically when not in hand.
Slightly increased the default pickup radius for all flags.
Decreased by 20% the pickup radius bonus provided by the Reach Perk.
Reduced the grace area for the spotting command. You now have to aim closer to the intended target to trigger spot.


Additional Items

The starting points in Team Deathmatch has been raised from 100 to 125.
Fixed an issue in which Custom Servers were not sorting correctly in some cases..
/speclist (run from chat window) will list all spectators in a match (can be run by anyone).
Music is auto-disabled when the in-game browser is open, and reenabled at the previous volume when it closes.
Variety of map cleanups and bug fixes.
Fixed an issue where the Rage perk overlay effect would not play if the player began regenerating health.

[Jintor]

The support for this game is overwhelming. Fixing bugs but still trying to figure out how to allow for competitive strategies like rock bouncing? Mad.

[Gez]

27 New Weapon Variants have been added across all classes. Weapon Variants have new skins and slight statistical trade offs for the weapon they are a variant of. One weapon variant has been added for each free Primary, Secondary, and Belt item that comes with a class. Weapon variants are all unlocked between 4800xp - 18000xp.

Amazing, they are cheap too. Best thing about the update. Maps sound excellent as-well.

[nan0]

If you die as the Sentinel class, you will now incur a 5s longer respawn time, regardless of what you are respawning as. This is a fix we are still actively working on, and is intended to be improved upon over time.

Eh, huh? I see that a lot of players where annoyed by good Sentinels, but what is the use of that? That SENs can't almost instantly respawn and get back to sniping?

[derFeef]

I love those guys, this game is fantastic.

[Danne-Danger]

Eh, huh? I see that a lot of players where annoyed by good Sentinels, but what is the use of that? That SENs can't almost instantly respawn and get back to sniping?

The way it was, if you got someone down to low health around your base and died, you could almost instantly pop back in and finish the person off with one shot since he wouldn't have time to regenerate and you'd know his exact location. I've done so myself and it must've been extremely annoying.

[elfinke]

I'm really curious to try out the secondary weapons though... I mean repairing is nice and pointy, but since I usually lead in kills on the stat screen I'm thinking that I'd be more useful with the pistol or the shotty (picking up a tool when needed). Problem is I don't know which one I need the most since the SMG is good at range and close up and I'm not sure how the pistol behaves... I'm already using Quick Draw as my secondary perk (because it's great!) and having another weapon there would make the game more fun I think.

I created a load out with no repair weapon, but always wuss out and never choose it when in game! I've never actually followed through and tried it, but I think you could well be onto something, especially in those games where there are 2 or 3 techs in the team, not all of them need to be packing upgraded repair guns.

[Broseybrose]

Ive already added everyone (US East) who added themselves to the list.

Add me in-game and Ill add you: Brose

And add yourself to the list!

[Tesseract]

still fucking love this amazing fucking game. god it's so good. never change, hi-rez.

[Ikuu]

Anyone ever had an issue with their download getting 'stuck', haven't played in a few weeks and one of the updates is stuck at 55% and the patcher is doing nothing.

[Fireye]

Reduced damage on Raider’s EMP grenade by roughly 45%. Increased energy drain by roughly 113% (more than double).

Extremely happy about this change. I was getting murder-lated by EMP nades, when in my mind, their main use should be energy draining.

Can't wait to get home and try out the new patch!

[Danne-Danger]

Beh, the tech got crappy guns. :<

Really don't see the need for a longer repair range. The standard range is enough to make attackers choose between hitting you or the thing you're repairing since the splash won't take both, longer range isn't really needed. Unless someone is mortar spamming, in which case you won't be repairing anything anyway. Plus the lower repair rate makes it even more pointless than the standard in that scenario.

The new SMG could be nice though, if a bit dull.

[nan0]

The new TCN SMG is totally awesome. You absolutely murder any Lights that come near you. The slower RoF is noticeable, but the additional damage outweights it by a lot.

[derFeef]

I have no idea what the motion sensor does... can anyone explain it to me?
Does it just send out a warning on the map?

[Fireye]

I have no idea what the motion sensor does... can anyone explain it to me? Does it just send out a warning on the map?

It also saps enemies energy, and tosses them around a bit. I use it in cap&hold immediately before a hold point, and right on the hold point. That way, a fast incoming enemy is likely to bounce right over the cap point.

http://www.tribesascendwiki.com/Motion_Sensor

[derFeef]

It also saps enemies energy, and tosses them around a bit. I use it in cap&hold immediately before a hold point, and right on the hold point. That way, a fast incoming enemy is likely to bounce right over the cap point. http://www.tribesascendwiki.com/Motion_Sensor

Oh cool thanks, sounds fun. Maybe worth an unlock :)

I also maxed out the thumper for my tcn, I love this thing so much.

[Fireye]

Thumper is lots of fun, but it can be troublesome in more open maps. I'm going to try out the new, slower TCNG rifle. Keep in mind that if you place it on a Flag in CTF, experienced flag runners will likely spinfuzor your mine in an attempt to clear the flag for pickup. Also, when it detonates, if you're close enough it'll do damage to you as well.

[Zeliard]

The new TCN SMG is totally awesome. You absolutely murder any Lights that come near you. The slower RoF is noticeable, but the additional damage outweights it by a lot.

Yeah it's nice against heavies too, since they're such big slow targets regardless.

I'm intrigued by the new Raider SMG and its faster rate of fire. NJ4 isn't exactly slow so the new one must be quite spiffy.

So far I've only tried the new TCN SMG and the Pathfinder's Dueling Spinfusor, the latter of which I like a lot. Gives Blue Plates that extra spark and should be particularly fun to use in Arena. I was surprised the Soldier didn't get a new fusor variant.

The auto nerf is pretty amusing though since they seem to have also added in newer, better auto weapons.

And the extended fractal grenade is just lol. Guess what the new hot weapon is at point A on Outskirts in C&H?

[Fireye]

Yeah it's nice against heavies too, since they're such big slow targets regardless. I'm intrigued by the new Raider SMG and its faster rate of fire. NJ4 isn't exactly slow so the new one must be quite spiffy. So far I've only tried the new TCN SMG and the Pathfinder's Dueling Spinfusor, the latter of which I like a lot. Gives Blue Plates that extra spark and should be particularly fun to use in Arena. I was surprised the Soldier didn't get a new fusor variant. The auto nerf is pretty amusing though since they seem to have also added in newer, better auto weapons. And the extended fractal grenade is just lol. Guess what the new hot weapon is at point A on Outskirts in C&H?

Oh god, they added an EXTENDED fractal grenade? F'ing thing was insane for C&H, especially defending the two bases in Raindance. What's the tradeoff? If it's shorter duration, then I could accept it, maybe.

[Zeliard]

Oh god, they added an EXTENDED fractal grenade? F'ing thing was insane for C&H, especially defending the two bases in Raindance. What's the tradeoff? If it's shorter duration, then I could accept it, maybe.

Haha no, the "extended" part refers to the fact that the duration is actually longer. The "trade-off" is trivially less damage.

[shintoki]

The way it was, if you got someone down to low health around your base and died, you could almost instantly pop back in and finish the person off with one shot since he wouldn't have time to regenerate and you'd know his exact location. I've done so myself and it must've been extremely annoying.

Its not just that. I've had Snipers kill themselves while I'm shooting them, just to get a new spot quickly and sniper our Carrier. And that new spot would be completely on the other side, away from me.

I think this is a Temp solution, till an eventual forced spawn in base or something like that.

[Einbroch]

This game is so good.

[daedalius]

So what is the best way for me to unlock this 3shot burst rifle?

That is ALOT of xp to get... surely there is a faster way other than buying gold?