I decided to write this guide because everyone talks about the soft spots on the armor in 2142...no one talks about how to actually get into position to take advantage of them, or how to kill armor if they're facing you dead-on. This guide, I hope, will give people new ideas on how to combat armor...and there's a lot more of it in 2142; look at Shuhia Taiba (conquest) and you'll see what I mean: I believe it's three (or four?!) tanks per side in the uncap bases; that's a lot of death and destruction...or is it?
So you've come from Battlefield 2, eh? You racked up 20,000 kills in the Tanks on Mashtuur City, Karkand, and Road to Jalalabad, and are still proud of your armor whoring? Guess what: welcome to a rude awakening.
Battlefield 2142's Armor is not what it used to be, as we all know; the mini-gun that used to be lined up with the main barrel in BF2 is now split into the gunner's position, a welcome change if any. I've seen many a player comment on the forums about combating tanks, but never an in-depth guide. This is where I come in, and cover various tactics that I may have mentioned in other posts, and from my almost 100+ hours combat experience on the future battlefield thus far; learn well from the pain I suffered...
...meh, enough drama: onto the tank killing, class-by-class. Keep in mind that some strategies require teamwork, and having a good squad with VOIP makes these tactics work even better. No one is a one-man army, but you can pass as one if you can remain hidden. Recon whores, you can start grinning now.
ASSAULT CLASS
So you've got a gun, eh? 7.62mm bullets don't do jack against armor; even the transports recon vehicles seem tough to kill; with the SCAR 11, it will take a few clips, in which case you will probably be dead by the time you see those licks of flames burning them alive. Never fear, you've got plenty of ways to deal with armor, or at least run away from them: First off, the smoke grenade.
Smoke grenades are a good tactical weapon; in a decent-sized squad, an Assault class can pop a few of these off right in front of the tank clouding his vision. From here, you have more options to deal with those twenty tons of metallic death hovering nearby; you can run away, which is probably the best idea if you're alone, or you can pop all of them off and keep the enemy blind, thus delaying your death by seconds. Or if you're in a squad, you can get even with him, and have your engineers pop off missiles into his flanks when he turns his attention to that wonderful smoker's paradise you just created. The smoke can also cover the engineers, but odds are the tank's just going to pop off a few random rounds in hopes of nailing them with the concussive blast. This strategy works well against all armor, walkers even if you have enough men to do it. Recon can also use the smoke and RDX the armor if they have Active Camo (AC).
Another tactic is to use the smoke for cover to revive your dead engineers or recon, and have them finish the job; please don't revive them if the tank is looking at you, that just makes the driver smile when he kills two of you with one shell.
Next up: the rifle rocket. This thing is the death of Light Recon Vehicles (LRV) if you're outside the 20 meter minimum distance radius. pop all three into the vehicle in rapid succession, and odds are you'll deal major damage, or if you manage to pop those rockets through the windshield, kill any infantry inside, best case scenario. Against Tanks and APCs and Walkers, rockets are useless and do 1-2 damage per shot, tops. You're better off running away. Frag grenades, for all classes, simply suck against All armor, based on the rate you can throw them and the damage they do, unless they're borderline-ready to catch on fire.
Assault is better off looking for the base defenses and using those to take out armor, while their more vehicle-unfriendly Engineers and Recon are busy taking the armor down in their own fashionable way. If you're truly desperate against a walker, and you're all alone, go out with a blaze of glory and try to take him out by shooting the Skywalker Vents, as they are now referred to (underside of walker, for newbies). Bottom line is, Assault serves as distractions for the armor while his buddies do the dirty work; remember, take one for the team if you think the tank will track you and not your rocket-happy buddy sitting on the tanks flank.
SUPPORT CLASS
So you've got the billion-bullets-a-minute Shuko, or the equally deadly Bianchi LMG? Again, just like the Assault class, you're boned if you face armor dead-on; the major difference is, Support can royally screw up any armor if they're working in a squad. First off, your LMG (or the Ganz, if you truly believe it's worth it) are good at making you a tank magnet if you decide to light him up with ineffective bullets; don't be dumb, you can't hurt him, and you make yourself a target. You might be better off trying to take out the Skywalker Vents on the walker with the higher rate of fire and magazine capacity, but alone you're still screwed...although the LMG's are very effective at taking out LRV's if you have a steady aim, and you can avoid being run over.
Another purpose for support: getting rid of those pesky infantry trying to take out your engineers in a squad. Shoot them full of holes and cover your squad; you've got a lot of bullets to throw around.
For the love of god, if you have ammo, dispense it: your Engineers need it for their rockets and mines, and your Recon guys need lots of sticky explosives. If you're in a close-quarters fight, avoid tossing the box: it shows up on everyone's HUD and observant enemies will kill you when they put two and two together. Hold it if possible, or if you have time and some distance, toss it and then pull out another one, reloading twice as fast. If your squad member screams for ammo on VOIP, rush to him if possible and make sure he has the ammo to do the job of killing that pain-in-the-ass walker ripping half your team apart on Berlin.
So I'll start with the EMP grenade, obviously one of my favorite options for this class; you start off with three EMP nades (or four if you got the +1 grenade) and that's enough to cause a ruckus for the driver in the tank, who finds his superior firepower pretty much a twenty ton paperweight when hit with one of these. If you have cover, throw down an ammo pack and proceed to spam the bastard so all he can do is sit and sweat it out. I have seen some drivers panic, thinking they're being lined up for an artillery strike in Conquest, and abandon the vehicle; (it's even more beautiful if, low and behold you're a Squad Leader, and the Commander actually does this based on your request; just don't stand too close). Reward him for his cowardice with a healthy helping of LMG lead when he does pop out. If you don't have cover from the start, spam the guy anyways with the grenades on-hand, and pray there is a base defense nearby. Or, in the case of a lone walker, EMP him and then spray at the Skywalker Vents; this works, if you've got balls and the guy is a complete idiot, who thinks his armor will protect him. Again though, this is a long shot.
In a squad, though, the EMP nade becomes an incredibly potent weapon; there's nothing more satisfying than watching your Support guy disable that Armor whore, and then smile to yourself when you put a rocket in the rear of his tank. Support should at all times try to remain hidden, throwing EMP's at the vehicle; the splash radius is fairly large, so keep in mind if any of your friendlies are nearby, you're going to mess up their vision, or worse, disable your own vehicles. This strategy works well with two support if possible, each alternating throwing/reloading EMP grenades and keep that driver wishing he'd brought some back-up. If you're incredibly lucky, the driver will bail and you are now +1 vehicles. Most of the time, they won't abandon, which is where your Recon buddies come in, and C4 him while he sits around, frantically moving his mouse in an attempt to target you. Or rockets, if you have engineers, or even other vehicles. Keep in mind, if your squad isn't close-by, you can buy the time they need to get into position and take out that tank swiftly. APC's are a bit tougher, since that grenade lobber is literal hell to deal with if he gets a shot off; deal with him first, he can arc those nades and kill your squad pretty damn quick. Walkers are next-highest priority, followed by tanks (in terms of firing rate and lethality) A slight variant, if you're in the right position: use EMP on LRV's and then spray the windshield with the amount of time you have; odds are you can take him out.
Next up, the Ion Shield. Nothing much to say, except it does NOT stop tank shells. My advice: if there's nothing between you and that tank but a pitiful little shield, kiss your ass goodbye.
Sentry guns: again, other than a distraction shooting 7.62mm bullets, not too good against tanks.
Pulse Sensor: this one actually detects tanks, or at least the drivers inside them: pulse it whenever you can, so your engineers can find him if they are...you know, blind or something.
Bottom line: EMP grenades are your best friend against Vehicles; you alone can't kill them, but your buddies can, in most cases. Your job is to make sure they get that window of opportunity they need to seal that drivers' fate. Oh, and if you feel like it, turn their hot-rod LRV into a Swiss cheese junk-heap.
RECON CLASS
Now we're getting to the good stuff: Recon class. You have a choice of sniper rifles, a carbine, and a wide array of cool gadgets to kill tanks. Keep in mind though, that you're not godlike if you die twenty times in a row because your sniper rifles doesn't dent their armor; the pigeon poo on their hull probably does more damage.
Against LRV's, Snipers are okay against. If the driver is solo and hops into the gunner position to hold and capture the flag, reward him for his stupidity to stand still and pop him in the face with a single well-placed shot; remember, the gunner will be on the right side of the vehicle, so you may want to position yourself to the right side if possible.
Next up, the carbine...yeah, those tiny bullets do even less to tanks as they laugh at you and then crush you; don't even try it against LRV's, it won't work unless you kill them inside the vehicle; by now you think "oh God Recon sucks" but fear not: they can be vehicle killers.
I'll start off with the APM mine, which is decent at killing LRV's; these won't dent armor, but are good at stopping the occasional vigilante racing around at break-neck speeds trying to ram you. Smile when he realizes you left a little present in front of his path; you can kill the gunner in the same way, but I'm not so sure about the third guy sitting in the back seat.
Next: we have RDX Demopaks. I remember my fun in Battlefield 2 where I'd plant two of those C-4 packs on a tank and laugh as he tried to bail out, dying in the massive fireball that was his vehicle. Much remains unchanged, the laughter ever-louder, but *gasp* what's this, a walker can take two packs and live? Blashphemy!
Yeah, it seems C4 got a bit weaker since BF2, but still a hell of a splash radius. If the tanks' back is towards you, or walker, or APC (gotta be careful with the last two), put two on the tank to kill him: recommended distance to survive is about 10 meters, or less if you've got health to spare, just watch out for teammates. Walkers seem to take more regardless of where you stick them, so put on three or four just to make sure that evil bastard dies in one go. APC's seem to take three (someone correct me if you find it takes less) packs, and generally speaking, RDX will kill these guys if you're fast. Ideal locations to C4 them are narrow streets where their field of fire is limited to forward and backwards, especially parts of Fall of Berlin, or Belgrade; Camp Gibraltar doesn't have a lot of armor, so this strategy is reduced. Watch for lateral movement if possible, because you can get crushed pretty easily at point blank. If your wonderful armored enemy has friends nearby, they will undoubtedly try to kill you, so be swift, and before they can warn them. One warning though: Nekomata tanks with good drivers will use their maneuverability to crush you if you get close, since they can move in any direction and you'll get almost no warning, unlike the EU tank. More so when they switch to external views.
This is where teamwork comes into play, so pay attention: if your support guy has him EMP'ed (grenades or in the engineers' case, mines), or the Assault class is busy taking tank rounds, rush forth and finish the job; the last thing they want to see is their life sacrificed in vain. Let your buddies know you want to RDX them (over VOIP if possible) and plan ahead. keep yourself out of sight until the last second, then rush in and give that tank or walker a nice RDX sandwich with a side of charred metal.
Okay, so that APC killed you with the nade launcher the last time you tried to stick him: he saw you, he shot you, you died. Try it again...but remain unseen, with the wonderful TI-33 Active Camouflage system! This goes hand-in-hand with RDX, if you use it wisely; at around 30 meters or so, with high-fog maps (such as Gibraltar or Belgrade) it'll be tough to spot you; any closer, and if they have decent eyesight they'll see you coming. If your Assault buddy has smoke down (this I hypothesize), the smoke will further distort you. Rush up preferably from the rear or the flank, and switch to RDX at the LAST SECOND; always, always do this, because when someone sees you walking around with a huge wad of explosives, they'll know what you're doing and try to stop you. If your active camo isn't available, stay in blind spots when possible, keep the carbine close; if it's an APC and the infantry bail out to stop you, you can still finish the job if you take them out quick. If you prefer a quiet kill, re-engage the active camo once you finish the job, and then go hide: if it's an APC and it's titan mode, laugh maniacally when you detonate the RDX just as they get to the Titan. Best case, you get six kills, and (if more lucky) you'll get a titan defend bonus for all six of them. w00t.
EDIT: I've completely left out another subtle yet effective tactic, placing the RDX packs around silos and/or flags. Stupid drivers will rush in and try to cap the moment they see the area is clear (and there's a lot of dumb people, trust me on this). Detonate when they get close enough; if you're lucky, any infantry buddies they have nearby will be cooked as well. Placing these around strategic choke-points is another good option (especially Berlin, Gibraltar, Cerebre Landing, and Belgrade to an extent) where armor is forced into one direction. The best place to stick these is walls, or in shadowed areas; everyone can see them if they're just lying on the ground. Think of what the enemy can see, and place them where they can't see them until it's too late, and you push that little detonator and send him packing back to the respawn point. Ambushes are good, because if they have no clue where you are, you may be able to pull this tactic off again on the next guy that rumbles through. Note: If that driver happens to be an engineer, and he bails out to try to defuse the RDX, blow him away; you might even get a chance to steal his vehicle and *grins* start raping their team in turn...but no uncap raping, that's all I ask.
One last strategy that I recently discovered is the ability to use the Zeller Advanced Sniper Rifle to blow apart all sorts of mines...including RDX packs. I tested a new theory of mine on an empty server, using my own RDX packs, backing off, and using the Zeller to target and blow them up. Low and behold, you can kill vehicles this way, after I put some packs on a walker, no detonator needed. You might ask, why would I even bother with this, if I have a detonator in hand? The answer is simple: if you RDX stick a walker, but are unable to finish the job and die, your RDX will remain for a little while; therefore, when you respawn, hunt down that vehicle, zoom in on those explosives and blow the guy to hell like you intended to the first time; if you've got three or four packs close together, the resulting explosion chain will seal his fate. This will probably take exceptional skill, especially a moving vehicle, and your odds of succeeding are, in this case, slim to nill. But, if you hit, you will be showered in glory by the rest of your team (I have no idea on scoring if it's someone else's RDX packs). Or, if your Recon buddy gets killed, make sure he gets the last laugh by blowing the RDX packs for him with a well-placed shot. One shot, one kill, indeed.
On titan mode, if you're a truly evil bastard, there's another strategy you can use when confronting APC's and Transports attacking the titans, which is to plant RDX packs on them when they're empty. The minute they spawn, thinking it's all-too-safe (the jet sound is a good indicator), prove them wrong with a blaze of glory, followed by their obscene cursing. This denies them fifteen seconds of respawn, and removes their mobile spawn point, two birds with one stone. This is about as bad as putting APM mines/RDX packs on the upper levels of the titan and blowing them up the minute they come through the top hatches...and yet, it feels so good. Explosives are your friend.
The stabilizer...well, yeah, useless against tanks, unless you plan on sniping un-detonated RDX packs; good luck with that. So that sums up the Recon class. Bottom line: you're a rush unit, ideal for close quarters tank-killing, so keep to those areas if possible. Grab the ground turrets if you find yourself at long range, you'll bite the dust before you can get close enough to RDX a tank. You have to work more with your team than anyone to guarantee a kill on an enemy armor unit. Now onto the final class...the Tank Killer/Healer himself...the engineer.
ENGINEER CLASS
You were born from the womb holding a rocket launcher, there's no doubt about it; the Engineer is every Tank's worst nightmare, more-so when the engineer has some of his friends pestering you in your twenty tons of metal and death. The engineer on large maps is indispensable when it comes to tank killing, he is the key to it all. So we start with the side-arm, the SMG.
The SMG is your only defense against infantry from short to medium-range; if you're alone, you'd better kill the enemy fast. This is your sidearm, your job is to kill enemy tanks and heal your friendlies; you wouldn't want to disappoint them. Point-blank, these can kill infantry in a LRV, but don't get your hopes up; use the launcher to make them into a smoking crater (1 shot does it, regardless of where you hit, and sets them on fire at full health).
The Launcher...oh where do I even begin. The basics: this is identical to the predecessors that came in Battlefield 2, a fly-by-wire rocket capable of dealing massive damage to tanks. Except, I find the rocket is more responsive, and somewhat less effective against infantry. When targeting a tank, lead the target if you find yourself at a distance of over say, 30 to 40 meters; you can correct your aim pretty easily and guarantee you hit the armor or LRV. LRV's are tougher since they are fast; try to hit him when he's coming right at you, or zooming past you; you can get a rocket right into his face, or his arse in that regards, this is the easiest way to hit them. Bait, anyone?
Position is everything when you’re an Engineer: if you have high ground, you’re harder to hit. Tanks can’t do jack against an elevated Engineer unless they have a gunner, especially building rooftops; generally speaking, you can target any vehicle (with the exception of the real soft spots of APCs) without hindering your ability to do maximum damage; unfortunately, said driver will probably radio your position and every enemy soldier around will come to hunt you down, so be fast in killing armor, then when his friends show up, be somewhere else.
Onto Vehicles: It takes three shots from the rockets to kill APCs in the front, four with Tanks, and *gulps* five direct shots to a walker's front or head area; the odds of you landing this many shots is pretty low, considering they will be doing their best to make you into a bloody smear. Considering that you have six rockets, this is hardly the best idea. Whenever possible, flank the enemy armor, using your squad/team as a distraction while you go for the kill: you're the best suited for the job, and you'll need anywhere from five seconds to about a full minute taking out a vehicle, depending on where you hit them. Tanks will go down with one hit if you're good: you'll launch a rocket at the rear of their tank, and arc the rocket into the rear section so they get the warning tone at the last second. If he puts up the Active Defense System (ADS), reload and aim for the rear; you won't miss a second time if he still has his back to you, and he'll die in a single hit (the rocket does 98 damage or so, so it's as close to a one shot kill as you can get). Watch out for the Nekomata tanks, their maneuverability can be a royal pain; if you can't hit the back, hit their flanks at least. If he activates ADS as soon as you lock on, hold fire; wait until it starts to fade, then fire; odds are you'll get him just as his defense fails. This applies to APC's and walkers too; and, if the tank happens to have a gunner, seek cover if you miss; ducking is far easier than a fifteen second respawn.
APC's take two in the flank/rear, regardless; aim for the back, on the lower angled surface that people have pointed out, and you can make sure you get a two shot kill, rather than setting him on fire and giving him time to bail. Fair warning, though: APC's can be deadlier because you know they'll survive the first hit, and they also have an ADS; it may take as many as three shots. Avoid being seen, that grenade launcher is hell and a half, and if it so much as glances you you're cooked. Ideally you should be in a high-elevated position looking down on the APC, away from any walls; it so much harder to hit you up there, even if they're facing you. APC's get medium priority because of the fact that they can fit six troops inside: that's always nice when you get six kills with a single shot; tanks and walkers still have top priority.
Walkers...god I hate those things. They are hard to hit when moving because they are erratic as all sin. Alone, your only chance of taking one down is to aim for the middle section (torso, near the nuclear warning sign on the EU walker) from the rear: two shots will kill him, three if his ADS blocks one. Long-distance, you'll stand a better chance, because at point blank, he'll shred you. If he's facing and leering at you with hatred from his cockpit, aim for the legs; those are three-shot-kills, best case and you circumvent his ADS, and probably five shots if not (some of the drivers are exceptional at knowing when to put up their defense). It takes a bit of marksmanship at close range, because of their erratic movement, but if you're good, you'll prevail. Or dead.
As a squad, Walkers are infinitely easier to take down; remember to flank when possible, sit tight until you have a good shot; nothing worse than wasting a rocket, having him put up his ADS and radio back-up with you having blown your cover. Wait until he's EMP'ed, then take your time lining up the shots, his ADS can't activate in that condition. If you've got two or even three engineers in a squad, a walker will be cooked with the first furious volley and the enemy team suddenly stops smiling when they see their flagship go down in flames. Taking out armor on a tight map can often influence the tide of capturing points, if you take a look at Berlin, Belgrade or Gibraltar, or even Cerebre Landing.
That's just round one of the Engineer's wonderful goodies; he's got a case of whup-ass to unleash on vehicles, the first of which is EMP mines. These will disable the vehicle all-too-nicely. My advice is placing these on the crest of hills, so they can't see them until they're practically on top of them; Shuhia Taiba is a good place for this tactic. If they're stupid they'll trigger them, and if he's a hotshot lone-wolf, smile as you put a rocket into his rear If they've got external view, they'll know they're there, or worse, you're there, and they'll look for you. If that's the case, and they go around the mines, you've bought your team some time to come reinforce the point. Or, better yet, he'll turn around, allowing you to shoot him in the back. With APC's and walkers, you'd better run after the first shot, because they'll be pissed off at you. Place them at choke points when possible; stupid drivers make for easy kills when they can't move twenty tons of armor and that warning tone is blaring in their cockpit.
Next up is the NetBat helmet...not much to say, except that you can relay enemy vehicle positions to your squad, which can be incredibly useful. You can plan ahead and set up an ambush (narrow choke points, valleys are good places) and take down armor quickly. Spot vehicles first, infantry second, and aircraft last, in terms of threat level in primarily ground-based maps.
Motion Mines...these are where it's at. In the absence of Rockets, these are your next sure-shot kill, because the majority of Armor are point whores and will rush in blindly to cap a point. Reward them for their arrogance with about five of these placed behind the fences or other objects posted around the flag/silo, and smile when you see the damage indicator flash on your screen. These will affect airships too at close range, so keep that in mind. Some players, I've observed (and I've done it myself) bail from their armor if they've activated (but not detonated) the mines, which is where you come into play, steal their vehicle from your hiding spot, and smile as you blow them away with their own armor. Deterrence owns. Or, if they aren't stupid, have your fellow squad members ready to attack their flanks when they attempt to back up. Note: if you place EMP mines and then motion mines closer to the flag, odds are that any LRV's that would normally zoom past them will be brought to a halt by the EMP, then promptly blown up by the mines; this too, is quite satisfying. If placed around the silos (or in little nooks and corners) these can make for small sneak attacks too...or if you want to defend unoccupied armor, there’s another use too. Generally speaking, put these in choke-points so the enemy can't advance without taking serious or lethal damage. And if enemy Engineers bail out to defuse them, let them know the business end of your SMG.
Next up we have the PDS, the vehicle tracker. Place one of these in an area and it uploads Vehicle movement to the NetBat system. Spiffy, if you place it on your own vehicle and become a mobile recon center, giving vehicle formation locations to the rest of your squad. It can also warn you when a silo/flag is being attacked, giving you time to relay to the commander that he needs an orbital strike there, immediately.
Another discreet tactic, if you actually manage to get close enough, is to plant this on an enemy vehicle, and let it go join its comrades, unwittingly acting as a spy for you; again though, this opportunity seems slim, but the potential is interesting, allowing your squad to have that much more information about enemy movements.
Finally, we have the defuser...not much to say about this one, except that you can defuse enemy mines around a flag/silo, and then place your own in the same spot. When you cap the point, the guy who put it there may come running (or his teammates) and trip the mines he thinks are his. A clever tactic, if you can pull it off.
Next up: the Primary weapon unlocks, the Pilum H-AVR. I haven't used this much, but I will say this You'd better be prepared to lead targets with this bad boy, there's no adjusting your aim once you've fired, but all previous tactics apply with this weapon. Go one-hit-kill those armored punks.
EDIT: The pilum is extremely hard to use in my honest opinion; there seems to be a slight delay between firing and when the projectile fires through the air in a very linear path. Against a stationary walker pounding your team it's a good shot, or an idiot tank driver who's standing still trying to cap a flag/silo, but against anything agile and already on the move it's extremely difficult, however it does more damage than regular rockets. My advice is, use it at point-blank, in places where the rockets could miss. Best part, this thing is a silent kill; they get no warning tone when you fire, so it's useful in respect to the fact that if you have the element of surprise, odds are good your first shot will deal the killing blow to a tank, and critically damage a walker/apc. And, unlike the rockets, if they manage to stop the shot or survive it, there's no vapor trail left by the rocket leading back to your hiding spot.
The SAAW-86 is pretty much only useful on aircraft...which isn't armor. Aircraft are a pain, but they still aren't the same threat level as armor. So kinda useless in this article; maybe I'll make another one.
Bottom line: Engineers are born and bred (and bread and butter, lol) to kill tanks; your job is to make sure the enemy can't suppress your position with superior firepower. You hold a slightly elevated position above everyone else in that you can help your team the most by taking out the biggest threats on the battlefield, and do that job exceptionally well. Teamwork is the key here: alone an Engineer is good and has his own tactics, but with other members of a Squad (read: Support) they can deal with any Armor the enemy team can throw at you, even without your own armor. You can help win the war, and kudos to you. *salutes*
So there you have it, a comprehensive guide on how to kill tanks, walkers, LRV's and APC's in Battlefield 2142; I'm open to more suggestions if you guys have clever tactics of your own. If you disagree with my tactics, point it out and why, so we can all learn. Magius5.1 is one of my accounts on BF2142, but Drenar is my primary account. Have a blast!
So you've come from Battlefield 2, eh? You racked up 20,000 kills in the Tanks on Mashtuur City, Karkand, and Road to Jalalabad, and are still proud of your armor whoring? Guess what: welcome to a rude awakening.
Battlefield 2142's Armor is not what it used to be, as we all know; the mini-gun that used to be lined up with the main barrel in BF2 is now split into the gunner's position, a welcome change if any. I've seen many a player comment on the forums about combating tanks, but never an in-depth guide. This is where I come in, and cover various tactics that I may have mentioned in other posts, and from my almost 100+ hours combat experience on the future battlefield thus far; learn well from the pain I suffered...
...meh, enough drama: onto the tank killing, class-by-class. Keep in mind that some strategies require teamwork, and having a good squad with VOIP makes these tactics work even better. No one is a one-man army, but you can pass as one if you can remain hidden. Recon whores, you can start grinning now.
ASSAULT CLASS
So you've got a gun, eh? 7.62mm bullets don't do jack against armor; even the transports recon vehicles seem tough to kill; with the SCAR 11, it will take a few clips, in which case you will probably be dead by the time you see those licks of flames burning them alive. Never fear, you've got plenty of ways to deal with armor, or at least run away from them: First off, the smoke grenade.
Smoke grenades are a good tactical weapon; in a decent-sized squad, an Assault class can pop a few of these off right in front of the tank clouding his vision. From here, you have more options to deal with those twenty tons of metallic death hovering nearby; you can run away, which is probably the best idea if you're alone, or you can pop all of them off and keep the enemy blind, thus delaying your death by seconds. Or if you're in a squad, you can get even with him, and have your engineers pop off missiles into his flanks when he turns his attention to that wonderful smoker's paradise you just created. The smoke can also cover the engineers, but odds are the tank's just going to pop off a few random rounds in hopes of nailing them with the concussive blast. This strategy works well against all armor, walkers even if you have enough men to do it. Recon can also use the smoke and RDX the armor if they have Active Camo (AC).
Another tactic is to use the smoke for cover to revive your dead engineers or recon, and have them finish the job; please don't revive them if the tank is looking at you, that just makes the driver smile when he kills two of you with one shell.
Next up: the rifle rocket. This thing is the death of Light Recon Vehicles (LRV) if you're outside the 20 meter minimum distance radius. pop all three into the vehicle in rapid succession, and odds are you'll deal major damage, or if you manage to pop those rockets through the windshield, kill any infantry inside, best case scenario. Against Tanks and APCs and Walkers, rockets are useless and do 1-2 damage per shot, tops. You're better off running away. Frag grenades, for all classes, simply suck against All armor, based on the rate you can throw them and the damage they do, unless they're borderline-ready to catch on fire.
Assault is better off looking for the base defenses and using those to take out armor, while their more vehicle-unfriendly Engineers and Recon are busy taking the armor down in their own fashionable way. If you're truly desperate against a walker, and you're all alone, go out with a blaze of glory and try to take him out by shooting the Skywalker Vents, as they are now referred to (underside of walker, for newbies). Bottom line is, Assault serves as distractions for the armor while his buddies do the dirty work; remember, take one for the team if you think the tank will track you and not your rocket-happy buddy sitting on the tanks flank.
SUPPORT CLASS
So you've got the billion-bullets-a-minute Shuko, or the equally deadly Bianchi LMG? Again, just like the Assault class, you're boned if you face armor dead-on; the major difference is, Support can royally screw up any armor if they're working in a squad. First off, your LMG (or the Ganz, if you truly believe it's worth it) are good at making you a tank magnet if you decide to light him up with ineffective bullets; don't be dumb, you can't hurt him, and you make yourself a target. You might be better off trying to take out the Skywalker Vents on the walker with the higher rate of fire and magazine capacity, but alone you're still screwed...although the LMG's are very effective at taking out LRV's if you have a steady aim, and you can avoid being run over.
Another purpose for support: getting rid of those pesky infantry trying to take out your engineers in a squad. Shoot them full of holes and cover your squad; you've got a lot of bullets to throw around.
For the love of god, if you have ammo, dispense it: your Engineers need it for their rockets and mines, and your Recon guys need lots of sticky explosives. If you're in a close-quarters fight, avoid tossing the box: it shows up on everyone's HUD and observant enemies will kill you when they put two and two together. Hold it if possible, or if you have time and some distance, toss it and then pull out another one, reloading twice as fast. If your squad member screams for ammo on VOIP, rush to him if possible and make sure he has the ammo to do the job of killing that pain-in-the-ass walker ripping half your team apart on Berlin.
So I'll start with the EMP grenade, obviously one of my favorite options for this class; you start off with three EMP nades (or four if you got the +1 grenade) and that's enough to cause a ruckus for the driver in the tank, who finds his superior firepower pretty much a twenty ton paperweight when hit with one of these. If you have cover, throw down an ammo pack and proceed to spam the bastard so all he can do is sit and sweat it out. I have seen some drivers panic, thinking they're being lined up for an artillery strike in Conquest, and abandon the vehicle; (it's even more beautiful if, low and behold you're a Squad Leader, and the Commander actually does this based on your request; just don't stand too close). Reward him for his cowardice with a healthy helping of LMG lead when he does pop out. If you don't have cover from the start, spam the guy anyways with the grenades on-hand, and pray there is a base defense nearby. Or, in the case of a lone walker, EMP him and then spray at the Skywalker Vents; this works, if you've got balls and the guy is a complete idiot, who thinks his armor will protect him. Again though, this is a long shot.
In a squad, though, the EMP nade becomes an incredibly potent weapon; there's nothing more satisfying than watching your Support guy disable that Armor whore, and then smile to yourself when you put a rocket in the rear of his tank. Support should at all times try to remain hidden, throwing EMP's at the vehicle; the splash radius is fairly large, so keep in mind if any of your friendlies are nearby, you're going to mess up their vision, or worse, disable your own vehicles. This strategy works well with two support if possible, each alternating throwing/reloading EMP grenades and keep that driver wishing he'd brought some back-up. If you're incredibly lucky, the driver will bail and you are now +1 vehicles. Most of the time, they won't abandon, which is where your Recon buddies come in, and C4 him while he sits around, frantically moving his mouse in an attempt to target you. Or rockets, if you have engineers, or even other vehicles. Keep in mind, if your squad isn't close-by, you can buy the time they need to get into position and take out that tank swiftly. APC's are a bit tougher, since that grenade lobber is literal hell to deal with if he gets a shot off; deal with him first, he can arc those nades and kill your squad pretty damn quick. Walkers are next-highest priority, followed by tanks (in terms of firing rate and lethality) A slight variant, if you're in the right position: use EMP on LRV's and then spray the windshield with the amount of time you have; odds are you can take him out.
Next up, the Ion Shield. Nothing much to say, except it does NOT stop tank shells. My advice: if there's nothing between you and that tank but a pitiful little shield, kiss your ass goodbye.
Sentry guns: again, other than a distraction shooting 7.62mm bullets, not too good against tanks.
Pulse Sensor: this one actually detects tanks, or at least the drivers inside them: pulse it whenever you can, so your engineers can find him if they are...you know, blind or something.
Bottom line: EMP grenades are your best friend against Vehicles; you alone can't kill them, but your buddies can, in most cases. Your job is to make sure they get that window of opportunity they need to seal that drivers' fate. Oh, and if you feel like it, turn their hot-rod LRV into a Swiss cheese junk-heap.
RECON CLASS
Now we're getting to the good stuff: Recon class. You have a choice of sniper rifles, a carbine, and a wide array of cool gadgets to kill tanks. Keep in mind though, that you're not godlike if you die twenty times in a row because your sniper rifles doesn't dent their armor; the pigeon poo on their hull probably does more damage.
Against LRV's, Snipers are okay against. If the driver is solo and hops into the gunner position to hold and capture the flag, reward him for his stupidity to stand still and pop him in the face with a single well-placed shot; remember, the gunner will be on the right side of the vehicle, so you may want to position yourself to the right side if possible.
Next up, the carbine...yeah, those tiny bullets do even less to tanks as they laugh at you and then crush you; don't even try it against LRV's, it won't work unless you kill them inside the vehicle; by now you think "oh God Recon sucks" but fear not: they can be vehicle killers.
I'll start off with the APM mine, which is decent at killing LRV's; these won't dent armor, but are good at stopping the occasional vigilante racing around at break-neck speeds trying to ram you. Smile when he realizes you left a little present in front of his path; you can kill the gunner in the same way, but I'm not so sure about the third guy sitting in the back seat.
Next: we have RDX Demopaks. I remember my fun in Battlefield 2 where I'd plant two of those C-4 packs on a tank and laugh as he tried to bail out, dying in the massive fireball that was his vehicle. Much remains unchanged, the laughter ever-louder, but *gasp* what's this, a walker can take two packs and live? Blashphemy!
Yeah, it seems C4 got a bit weaker since BF2, but still a hell of a splash radius. If the tanks' back is towards you, or walker, or APC (gotta be careful with the last two), put two on the tank to kill him: recommended distance to survive is about 10 meters, or less if you've got health to spare, just watch out for teammates. Walkers seem to take more regardless of where you stick them, so put on three or four just to make sure that evil bastard dies in one go. APC's seem to take three (someone correct me if you find it takes less) packs, and generally speaking, RDX will kill these guys if you're fast. Ideal locations to C4 them are narrow streets where their field of fire is limited to forward and backwards, especially parts of Fall of Berlin, or Belgrade; Camp Gibraltar doesn't have a lot of armor, so this strategy is reduced. Watch for lateral movement if possible, because you can get crushed pretty easily at point blank. If your wonderful armored enemy has friends nearby, they will undoubtedly try to kill you, so be swift, and before they can warn them. One warning though: Nekomata tanks with good drivers will use their maneuverability to crush you if you get close, since they can move in any direction and you'll get almost no warning, unlike the EU tank. More so when they switch to external views.
This is where teamwork comes into play, so pay attention: if your support guy has him EMP'ed (grenades or in the engineers' case, mines), or the Assault class is busy taking tank rounds, rush forth and finish the job; the last thing they want to see is their life sacrificed in vain. Let your buddies know you want to RDX them (over VOIP if possible) and plan ahead. keep yourself out of sight until the last second, then rush in and give that tank or walker a nice RDX sandwich with a side of charred metal.
Okay, so that APC killed you with the nade launcher the last time you tried to stick him: he saw you, he shot you, you died. Try it again...but remain unseen, with the wonderful TI-33 Active Camouflage system! This goes hand-in-hand with RDX, if you use it wisely; at around 30 meters or so, with high-fog maps (such as Gibraltar or Belgrade) it'll be tough to spot you; any closer, and if they have decent eyesight they'll see you coming. If your Assault buddy has smoke down (this I hypothesize), the smoke will further distort you. Rush up preferably from the rear or the flank, and switch to RDX at the LAST SECOND; always, always do this, because when someone sees you walking around with a huge wad of explosives, they'll know what you're doing and try to stop you. If your active camo isn't available, stay in blind spots when possible, keep the carbine close; if it's an APC and the infantry bail out to stop you, you can still finish the job if you take them out quick. If you prefer a quiet kill, re-engage the active camo once you finish the job, and then go hide: if it's an APC and it's titan mode, laugh maniacally when you detonate the RDX just as they get to the Titan. Best case, you get six kills, and (if more lucky) you'll get a titan defend bonus for all six of them. w00t.
EDIT: I've completely left out another subtle yet effective tactic, placing the RDX packs around silos and/or flags. Stupid drivers will rush in and try to cap the moment they see the area is clear (and there's a lot of dumb people, trust me on this). Detonate when they get close enough; if you're lucky, any infantry buddies they have nearby will be cooked as well. Placing these around strategic choke-points is another good option (especially Berlin, Gibraltar, Cerebre Landing, and Belgrade to an extent) where armor is forced into one direction. The best place to stick these is walls, or in shadowed areas; everyone can see them if they're just lying on the ground. Think of what the enemy can see, and place them where they can't see them until it's too late, and you push that little detonator and send him packing back to the respawn point. Ambushes are good, because if they have no clue where you are, you may be able to pull this tactic off again on the next guy that rumbles through. Note: If that driver happens to be an engineer, and he bails out to try to defuse the RDX, blow him away; you might even get a chance to steal his vehicle and *grins* start raping their team in turn...but no uncap raping, that's all I ask.
One last strategy that I recently discovered is the ability to use the Zeller Advanced Sniper Rifle to blow apart all sorts of mines...including RDX packs. I tested a new theory of mine on an empty server, using my own RDX packs, backing off, and using the Zeller to target and blow them up. Low and behold, you can kill vehicles this way, after I put some packs on a walker, no detonator needed. You might ask, why would I even bother with this, if I have a detonator in hand? The answer is simple: if you RDX stick a walker, but are unable to finish the job and die, your RDX will remain for a little while; therefore, when you respawn, hunt down that vehicle, zoom in on those explosives and blow the guy to hell like you intended to the first time; if you've got three or four packs close together, the resulting explosion chain will seal his fate. This will probably take exceptional skill, especially a moving vehicle, and your odds of succeeding are, in this case, slim to nill. But, if you hit, you will be showered in glory by the rest of your team (I have no idea on scoring if it's someone else's RDX packs). Or, if your Recon buddy gets killed, make sure he gets the last laugh by blowing the RDX packs for him with a well-placed shot. One shot, one kill, indeed.
On titan mode, if you're a truly evil bastard, there's another strategy you can use when confronting APC's and Transports attacking the titans, which is to plant RDX packs on them when they're empty. The minute they spawn, thinking it's all-too-safe (the jet sound is a good indicator), prove them wrong with a blaze of glory, followed by their obscene cursing. This denies them fifteen seconds of respawn, and removes their mobile spawn point, two birds with one stone. This is about as bad as putting APM mines/RDX packs on the upper levels of the titan and blowing them up the minute they come through the top hatches...and yet, it feels so good. Explosives are your friend.
The stabilizer...well, yeah, useless against tanks, unless you plan on sniping un-detonated RDX packs; good luck with that. So that sums up the Recon class. Bottom line: you're a rush unit, ideal for close quarters tank-killing, so keep to those areas if possible. Grab the ground turrets if you find yourself at long range, you'll bite the dust before you can get close enough to RDX a tank. You have to work more with your team than anyone to guarantee a kill on an enemy armor unit. Now onto the final class...the Tank Killer/Healer himself...the engineer.
ENGINEER CLASS
You were born from the womb holding a rocket launcher, there's no doubt about it; the Engineer is every Tank's worst nightmare, more-so when the engineer has some of his friends pestering you in your twenty tons of metal and death. The engineer on large maps is indispensable when it comes to tank killing, he is the key to it all. So we start with the side-arm, the SMG.
The SMG is your only defense against infantry from short to medium-range; if you're alone, you'd better kill the enemy fast. This is your sidearm, your job is to kill enemy tanks and heal your friendlies; you wouldn't want to disappoint them. Point-blank, these can kill infantry in a LRV, but don't get your hopes up; use the launcher to make them into a smoking crater (1 shot does it, regardless of where you hit, and sets them on fire at full health).
The Launcher...oh where do I even begin. The basics: this is identical to the predecessors that came in Battlefield 2, a fly-by-wire rocket capable of dealing massive damage to tanks. Except, I find the rocket is more responsive, and somewhat less effective against infantry. When targeting a tank, lead the target if you find yourself at a distance of over say, 30 to 40 meters; you can correct your aim pretty easily and guarantee you hit the armor or LRV. LRV's are tougher since they are fast; try to hit him when he's coming right at you, or zooming past you; you can get a rocket right into his face, or his arse in that regards, this is the easiest way to hit them. Bait, anyone?
Position is everything when you’re an Engineer: if you have high ground, you’re harder to hit. Tanks can’t do jack against an elevated Engineer unless they have a gunner, especially building rooftops; generally speaking, you can target any vehicle (with the exception of the real soft spots of APCs) without hindering your ability to do maximum damage; unfortunately, said driver will probably radio your position and every enemy soldier around will come to hunt you down, so be fast in killing armor, then when his friends show up, be somewhere else.
Onto Vehicles: It takes three shots from the rockets to kill APCs in the front, four with Tanks, and *gulps* five direct shots to a walker's front or head area; the odds of you landing this many shots is pretty low, considering they will be doing their best to make you into a bloody smear. Considering that you have six rockets, this is hardly the best idea. Whenever possible, flank the enemy armor, using your squad/team as a distraction while you go for the kill: you're the best suited for the job, and you'll need anywhere from five seconds to about a full minute taking out a vehicle, depending on where you hit them. Tanks will go down with one hit if you're good: you'll launch a rocket at the rear of their tank, and arc the rocket into the rear section so they get the warning tone at the last second. If he puts up the Active Defense System (ADS), reload and aim for the rear; you won't miss a second time if he still has his back to you, and he'll die in a single hit (the rocket does 98 damage or so, so it's as close to a one shot kill as you can get). Watch out for the Nekomata tanks, their maneuverability can be a royal pain; if you can't hit the back, hit their flanks at least. If he activates ADS as soon as you lock on, hold fire; wait until it starts to fade, then fire; odds are you'll get him just as his defense fails. This applies to APC's and walkers too; and, if the tank happens to have a gunner, seek cover if you miss; ducking is far easier than a fifteen second respawn.
APC's take two in the flank/rear, regardless; aim for the back, on the lower angled surface that people have pointed out, and you can make sure you get a two shot kill, rather than setting him on fire and giving him time to bail. Fair warning, though: APC's can be deadlier because you know they'll survive the first hit, and they also have an ADS; it may take as many as three shots. Avoid being seen, that grenade launcher is hell and a half, and if it so much as glances you you're cooked. Ideally you should be in a high-elevated position looking down on the APC, away from any walls; it so much harder to hit you up there, even if they're facing you. APC's get medium priority because of the fact that they can fit six troops inside: that's always nice when you get six kills with a single shot; tanks and walkers still have top priority.
Walkers...god I hate those things. They are hard to hit when moving because they are erratic as all sin. Alone, your only chance of taking one down is to aim for the middle section (torso, near the nuclear warning sign on the EU walker) from the rear: two shots will kill him, three if his ADS blocks one. Long-distance, you'll stand a better chance, because at point blank, he'll shred you. If he's facing and leering at you with hatred from his cockpit, aim for the legs; those are three-shot-kills, best case and you circumvent his ADS, and probably five shots if not (some of the drivers are exceptional at knowing when to put up their defense). It takes a bit of marksmanship at close range, because of their erratic movement, but if you're good, you'll prevail. Or dead.
As a squad, Walkers are infinitely easier to take down; remember to flank when possible, sit tight until you have a good shot; nothing worse than wasting a rocket, having him put up his ADS and radio back-up with you having blown your cover. Wait until he's EMP'ed, then take your time lining up the shots, his ADS can't activate in that condition. If you've got two or even three engineers in a squad, a walker will be cooked with the first furious volley and the enemy team suddenly stops smiling when they see their flagship go down in flames. Taking out armor on a tight map can often influence the tide of capturing points, if you take a look at Berlin, Belgrade or Gibraltar, or even Cerebre Landing.
That's just round one of the Engineer's wonderful goodies; he's got a case of whup-ass to unleash on vehicles, the first of which is EMP mines. These will disable the vehicle all-too-nicely. My advice is placing these on the crest of hills, so they can't see them until they're practically on top of them; Shuhia Taiba is a good place for this tactic. If they're stupid they'll trigger them, and if he's a hotshot lone-wolf, smile as you put a rocket into his rear If they've got external view, they'll know they're there, or worse, you're there, and they'll look for you. If that's the case, and they go around the mines, you've bought your team some time to come reinforce the point. Or, better yet, he'll turn around, allowing you to shoot him in the back. With APC's and walkers, you'd better run after the first shot, because they'll be pissed off at you. Place them at choke points when possible; stupid drivers make for easy kills when they can't move twenty tons of armor and that warning tone is blaring in their cockpit.
Next up is the NetBat helmet...not much to say, except that you can relay enemy vehicle positions to your squad, which can be incredibly useful. You can plan ahead and set up an ambush (narrow choke points, valleys are good places) and take down armor quickly. Spot vehicles first, infantry second, and aircraft last, in terms of threat level in primarily ground-based maps.
Motion Mines...these are where it's at. In the absence of Rockets, these are your next sure-shot kill, because the majority of Armor are point whores and will rush in blindly to cap a point. Reward them for their arrogance with about five of these placed behind the fences or other objects posted around the flag/silo, and smile when you see the damage indicator flash on your screen. These will affect airships too at close range, so keep that in mind. Some players, I've observed (and I've done it myself) bail from their armor if they've activated (but not detonated) the mines, which is where you come into play, steal their vehicle from your hiding spot, and smile as you blow them away with their own armor. Deterrence owns. Or, if they aren't stupid, have your fellow squad members ready to attack their flanks when they attempt to back up. Note: if you place EMP mines and then motion mines closer to the flag, odds are that any LRV's that would normally zoom past them will be brought to a halt by the EMP, then promptly blown up by the mines; this too, is quite satisfying. If placed around the silos (or in little nooks and corners) these can make for small sneak attacks too...or if you want to defend unoccupied armor, there’s another use too. Generally speaking, put these in choke-points so the enemy can't advance without taking serious or lethal damage. And if enemy Engineers bail out to defuse them, let them know the business end of your SMG.
Next up we have the PDS, the vehicle tracker. Place one of these in an area and it uploads Vehicle movement to the NetBat system. Spiffy, if you place it on your own vehicle and become a mobile recon center, giving vehicle formation locations to the rest of your squad. It can also warn you when a silo/flag is being attacked, giving you time to relay to the commander that he needs an orbital strike there, immediately.
Another discreet tactic, if you actually manage to get close enough, is to plant this on an enemy vehicle, and let it go join its comrades, unwittingly acting as a spy for you; again though, this opportunity seems slim, but the potential is interesting, allowing your squad to have that much more information about enemy movements.
Finally, we have the defuser...not much to say about this one, except that you can defuse enemy mines around a flag/silo, and then place your own in the same spot. When you cap the point, the guy who put it there may come running (or his teammates) and trip the mines he thinks are his. A clever tactic, if you can pull it off.
Next up: the Primary weapon unlocks, the Pilum H-AVR. I haven't used this much, but I will say this You'd better be prepared to lead targets with this bad boy, there's no adjusting your aim once you've fired, but all previous tactics apply with this weapon. Go one-hit-kill those armored punks.
EDIT: The pilum is extremely hard to use in my honest opinion; there seems to be a slight delay between firing and when the projectile fires through the air in a very linear path. Against a stationary walker pounding your team it's a good shot, or an idiot tank driver who's standing still trying to cap a flag/silo, but against anything agile and already on the move it's extremely difficult, however it does more damage than regular rockets. My advice is, use it at point-blank, in places where the rockets could miss. Best part, this thing is a silent kill; they get no warning tone when you fire, so it's useful in respect to the fact that if you have the element of surprise, odds are good your first shot will deal the killing blow to a tank, and critically damage a walker/apc. And, unlike the rockets, if they manage to stop the shot or survive it, there's no vapor trail left by the rocket leading back to your hiding spot.
The SAAW-86 is pretty much only useful on aircraft...which isn't armor. Aircraft are a pain, but they still aren't the same threat level as armor. So kinda useless in this article; maybe I'll make another one.
Bottom line: Engineers are born and bred (and bread and butter, lol) to kill tanks; your job is to make sure the enemy can't suppress your position with superior firepower. You hold a slightly elevated position above everyone else in that you can help your team the most by taking out the biggest threats on the battlefield, and do that job exceptionally well. Teamwork is the key here: alone an Engineer is good and has his own tactics, but with other members of a Squad (read: Support) they can deal with any Armor the enemy team can throw at you, even without your own armor. You can help win the war, and kudos to you. *salutes*
So there you have it, a comprehensive guide on how to kill tanks, walkers, LRV's and APC's in Battlefield 2142; I'm open to more suggestions if you guys have clever tactics of your own. If you disagree with my tactics, point it out and why, so we can all learn. Magius5.1 is one of my accounts on BF2142, but Drenar is my primary account. Have a blast!
Last edited by Magius5.0 (2006-11-11 10:37:17)