Armor vs Pilum

[imported_Rafterman]

I've been playing the BF series since 42 and I remember that one of the biggest gripes guys have had over the years is that armor was so powerful and the anti-tank weapons so weak.

So I took about a year off from playing and picked up a copy of 2142 about a month ago. One of the most frustrating things initially was jumping into a tank, being dead not long after, and seeing Pilum as the weapon that did it.

WTF is a Pilum.

So I did a little research, watched some YouTube vids and learned that it is a one-shot kill (in certain spots that everyone seems to be able to hit!) anti-tank weapon.

Maybe I missed the discussion over the past few months, but why the huge departure from previous BF titles?

[Lolyn]

Re: Armor vs Pilum

The pilum is the upper-tier anti-vehicle unlock.... essentially does the same as the mitchell/sudnik but with a bit of a twist. It fires a faster projectile that cannot be guided during flight. If a mitchell or sudnik (stock engi guns) hits you in the rear when using the tank, it would have the same effect, it's just that generally... people like the pilum, so lots will use it.

Best way to counter it is by using your different vehicle cameras whilst you're in whatever you're driving (bar the FAV) - and bring up your shields when you pick up someone trying to nail you. Then squish them.

[iQue]

Re: Armor vs Pilum

The Pilum is actually extremely similar to the Panzerschreck in BF1942. It travels at the exact same speed, but is a lot more inaccurate when not scoped

For some reason DICE decided to nerf the tanks big time with 2142, so you have to stay more at a distance with them than in other BF games, but you also have the ability to zoom in with the tank, so it kinda evens out.

All the different rocket launchers except for the SAAW which is for Anti-Air only will kill a tank from behind with one shot. If the tank is at 100% health, it will burn for a few seconds before exploding, but most of the time it's a one-hit-one-kill so make sure no sneaky engineers come up behind you.

[WolfAlmighty]

Re: Armor vs Pilum

One reason I hate getting a top gunner in my tank (aside from the obvious 'hur hur imma shoot the top gun at other tanks so they kno we're commin hur hur'), is that whenever I get near a base I stay outside the confines of the base itself and use the tank for fire support (some would call it camping, and those are the people who get Pilumed in the arse ) while the infantry and walkers/APCs take the flag, whereas most gunners think that you're supposed to CHAERG! into a base no matter what, so they continue to spam the 'Go go go!' commo, thereby making me wish there was a 'STFU and GTFO!' commo with which to respond. Tanks are weak in the back and have zoom for a reason, or at least that's what I've made myself believe, so treating them like a BF2 tank which had neither of those 'features' is foolish. Tanks in this game are much like the Wespe/Priest in BF1942 in that they have weak armour and are very vulnerable to AT fire (and the latter could even be destroyed by plane MGs), so are meant for long-ranged artillery support-type fire, not front-line base-capturing equipment.

[Minmaster]

Re: Armor vs Pilum

i usually don't try to enter an area where i will be close to infantry. i keep my distance, and sometimes extreme distance. tank canon zooms in pretty far.

if i have to enter an area against infantry, i'll only do so with the neko tank. since i can spin it around quickly and dodge AV shots. the tiger tank is very vulnerable to the 1 hit AV shot but it's good at sniping. anyways if you're up against more than a couple infantry at once, then be ready to use the countermeasure when you feel like you might get hit in the butt.

[imported_Rafterman]

Re: Armor vs Pilum

I also get the feeling that the armor rounds are much more like BF42 than they are BF2. It seems that I have to lob them in much more than I was used to with BF2.

[WolfAlmighty]

Re: Armor vs Pilum

Actually I've found the arc to be mostly straight except for the more extreme ranges. Much more like BF2. I went back and played BF1942 a while ago and all of my tank shots were ending up well short of my target.

[Wizrdwarts]

Re: Armor vs Pilum

I think you're all forgetting the active defenses. A fast reaction time and having it bound to space really helps.

[imported_Field]

Re: Armor vs Pilum

The pilum is the upper-tier anti-vehicle unlock.... essentially does the same as the mitchell/sudnik but with a bit of a twist. It fires a faster projectile that cannot be guided during flight. If a mitchell or sudnik (stock engi guns) hits you in the rear when using the tank, it would have the same effect, it's just that generally... people like the pilum, so lots will use it.

Best way to counter it is by using your different vehicle cameras whilst you're in whatever you're driving (bar the FAV) - and bring up your shields when you pick up someone trying to nail you. Then squish them.

the only reason i will pick the pilum over the defaults is the ability to not alert vehicles to my presence when aiming at them. other than that the defaults are way superior imo.