Camping: A Comprehensive History By Kenneth Hicks ID# 846092

Credits to:

Steven Vreeland ID# 355027, Richard Millich ID# 291875, Michael Telladira ID# 637975, and

German Pudilo ID# 685605


Hello everyone. Last week I did a piece on camping, as a sort of beginner’s introduction to the concept. Afterwards, I got thinking about how camping must have changed over the years to match changes within the game. Then I thought who would be the perfect group to talk with when it comes to talking about the origins of camping?


So, after much hunting and messaging, I’ve managed to get ahold of a few of the original Alpha Strikers of RND, Steven Vreeland, Michael Telladira, Richard Millich, and German Pudilo.

Welcome to The Galaxy Gathering Headquarters gentlemen.


I guess first and foremost is, how was the idea of camping developed?


Steven V: The idea was developed to acquire higher damage and more effective weapons without running out for your mechs. 


Michael T: Since I wasn't around during the development of camping I can only assume. If I had to guess; it was put into place to maximize formations before running out of resources. I'm sure we're all aware that resources get eaten up fairly fast when excessive leveling takes place.


German P: During my short stage in RND, not everyone developed a pure camp, while there were some players who I believe did it, the general concept was more like a so slow and comprehensive leveling.


When I joined RND, I was looking for some successful clan where I could become to reach the needs I had in order to grow in strength. By joining RND, I had to agree about level up slowly or I could be hurting the clan where I got designated, the 82ns Omicron Guard [RND], by pushing the average level so high as to make the clan join upper divisions where our odds may be worse.


But I had another reason to opt for a temporary frozen leveling: I needed time to build a stronger squad as to be allowed to compete in higher divisions. I was getting good Niodes through ANN and GG works and watching videos, so all I needed was time to build a better and more competitive force.


Richard M: The idea of Mecha Galaxy styled camping was originally a response to level 24. Back then, the Oggun was one of the premier Mecha, as higher tonnage Mecha did not exist for general use. When I hit level 24, it immediately became apparent that leveling naturally could very easily put the inexperienced player at a disadvantage against several waves of Ogguns. This forced me as a player to pull up, take stock, and assess the battlefield. Back then, I was not spending any Niodes at all, and it became evident that Crystal just wasn't meant to compete in general. I needed a Niode income to pull even with other KOTM participants. Now keep in mind that, back then, KOTMs were both free of XP gain, and Big Berthas, T9 Tsunamis, and Galaxy Eyes were the standard prizes, along with the Fist of Fury. All of them outstanding weapons, even today.


So it sounds that back in the beginning, if you didn’t have a way to earn niodes, you would inevitably get ground underfoot as you leveled. So in your words, why was camping put into place as an established chapter in the RND Guidelines for members to follow?


Steven V: It was put into place to dominate clan wars.


German P:  First, I would mention that the camping and its variant (slow leveling) are developed by many more players and clans than those non campers would expect. I know this since along many wars I have been tracking more than 100 clans across all the divisions and noticing their different tactics regarding leveling and allocation.


As the RND gang was made mostly with free players or low spenders, their chances to win against other hardcore players loading serious amounts of cash in game went through the camping strategy.


A "camper" (and I don't quite like this tag, sacrifices the top goal, to enjoy getting success in an intermediate division, where they can shine, as get stuff for higher levels.


Slow leveling, allows time to build your squad.

A balanced time between the experience you earn and the resources you acquire is the key of success that allow you to keep growing strong in your niche (strong is a quite relative word in this game, as a “strong” low level could or should get smashed by an enough high level player… Said this, I was allowed to defeat some squads with more than 100 levels above mine, and that was only possible because I cared to grew it instead keep a blind mad leveling with a hollow squad, unable to keep a correct upgrading and gear.


Richard M: The lack of XP meant that anybody who was anybody did the KOTMs. It was how you compared yourself to the field, because most of the players you'd face in Clan Wars were there every time.


The combination of KOTM competition and great prizes meant you could build a weapons advantage first, then earn the Mecha, which is the reverse of what it is today. Back then, the Chessmen required KOTM participation, as it enabled us to track both performance and keep our players engaged on an everyday basis. This way, we'd also be able to identify players who were drifting away from the game and release them before they became a Clan Wars no show.


All of this, combined with the clear weapon slot creep that occurred with leveling, turned our attention to weapon gathering first and foremost, with Clan Wars filling in the Mecha.

That, and the patience to avoid weapon slot creep allowed us to bring weapon loadouts across the board that no one had. Heck, I think Mel Bradley still has Galaxy Eyes for days, as I do. Ask her about it.

Anyway, with the weapon advantage, we started winning and winning big. That's what started our run, and camping became the RND strategy.


Okay, with that we’ll take our first break as we have several more questions for our panel coming up. Stay tuned for the second installment of this story.


<End Transmission>

My Pilot History By Pat Willis#224534

Current Status - Active Legendary Pilot since pre clan war III, in Baconary 3266.

Past Clan Allegiances - Skarn, AFF.
Current Clan - Brotherhood (Northwind Highlanders)

Faction Allegiance - Shogunate.

Past Galactic Standing - Neutral, Member of A.N.N.
Current Galactic Standing - Neutral, Creator and Editor In Chief of Galaxy Gathering.

Mecha of choice-  Frozen Dream (Frigis), Jabberwocky (Regis), Crossfire (Fext).

History- What we do know comes mostly from the Mecha Tournaments and the A.N.N.,as well as Galaxy Gathering. When he arrived on the scene he was a relatively untested pilot. His first mecha was a largely customized Keradon. Soon after purchasing this mecha he signed on with a clan named Skarn. While there he participated in a few tournaments and Clan Wars III.

While he was not the best pilot he did manage to bring home a few medals and some cash from the tournaments. While he was content with the steady security work and occasional muscle contracts, he soon became bored with his Clan. He made a clean break from Clan Skarn and left on rather good terms. He free-lanced for a while until he got a summons from the Death’s Collectors clan leader. He was reviewed, tested and soon brought into the clan. He stayed there for quite some time before becoming disillusioned with the clan and seeking other pastures. He wound up calling the Brotherhood home.

Since that time he has done away with his Keradon replacing it with mostly BMF mecha, as well as a few Heavies, and Huge. He does keep one Klarn/Novum mecha in his hanger as it is just so much fun to pilot and go whizzing about in. He also broke away from A.N.N. which he was a writer and editor for, to create Galaxy Gathering. Reasoning for this is a bit sketchy at this time. But what is known is that his news site G.G. is a prime source of entertainment, news, and reviews across the galaxy.

In his spare time he serves as Liaison for J&K Distributors, a mecha R&D lab housed inside Garhan station. It is an old orbital battle platform used by the Forerunners found deep within Shogunate space, bordering the frontier markers into wild space , and now home to the Brotherhood entire. The station has been given a new lease on life by way of the Forerunner construct Kellek, and the Niodemancer Johnathan Judas, who have transformed the deadly station into a weapons, and mecha creation lab. Although how long such an association stays profitable, as well as peaceful remains to be seen.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Frozen Star Weapon Review By Pat Willis#224534

Today we are looking back at a limited niode ice weapon for levels 8 and up. All pertinent information is in the image provided so we can get right to the stats comparison. Please note this weapon is no longer available we're just looking back at weapons of the past and measuring them up.

Well at level 5 there is a niode based laser the Force Ion Beam, but no ice weapon for niode comparison. The F.I.B. does a damage of 8, with a speed of 102, and has slow ability of 5. I think the Frozen Star takes this one in everything but speed. Then again ice throwers aren't the fastest weapon group out there, even with that for an ice weapon 99 is a decent speed.

Then at level 10 we again have no ice based weapon to compare to so the next in line is the Dual Gattling slug thrower. It features a damage of 14, a speed of 114, and 2x damage at 15%. Again Frozen Star takes the win in damage, looses out the superior speed of the Dual Gat, as well as having abilities at much lesser percentages.

Also there a niode missile weapon right at the level 8 accessibility level The Air Shock. It has a damage of 13, speed of 95, and a Splash ability at 8%. Frozen Star beats this one hands down across all categories.

So for the level it is available to it is a very solid weapon in straight damage, par for the course in ice weapon speed, and adds in two lesser percentage abilities. All around a good buy for your hard earned niodes. (Note this post and image were put in last night. The availability may have gone down from then or this weapon may be gone altogether.)

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Specialization List by Sgt Ron Frye and Ken Fuchs

During a chat thread earlier today, I came to the realization that while the FAQ is posted every war, and everyone knows about specialization, there is precious little in the way of LISTS out there on the subject. With this in mind I am submitting the following article for GGEW.


WAR TIME SPECIALIZATION OPTIONS


For those players who are considering specializing in an upcoming event, here is a list of most of the options available in any given war. This list is subject to the event's FAQ and may either include additional options not listed or not include some of those listed here; however this may prove a handy list to have when building your formations prior to joining in on a clan or faction war.


Specialist Types:

10 Ton     No Mechs over 10 Tons (no min lvl)
20 Ton     No Mechs over 20 Tons (min lvl 15)
30 Ton     No Mechs over 30 Tons (min lvl 20)
40 Ton     No Mechs over 40 Tons (min lvl 32)
55 Ton     No Mechs over 55 Tons (min lvl 43)
65 Ton     No Mechs over 65 Tons (min lvl 51)
70 Ton     No Mechs over 70 Tons (min lvl 55)
80 Ton     No Mechs over 80 Tons (min lvl 85)
90 Ton     No Mechs over 90 Tons (min lvl 90)

GG Reminder - If you field a mech that is above your selected tonnage max it will not appear or fight on the battle screen


Laser           Lasers do 80% more damage (no min lvl)
Missile        Missiles do 80% more damage (no min lvl)
Cannon       Cannons do 80% more damage (no min lvl)
Fire             Fire does 80% more damage (no min lvl)
Ice               Ice does 80% more damage (no min lvl)

GG Reminder - The bonus to damage will not appear on the battle screen, however the bonus damage will be taken off targetted mechs. 


Single Rainbow      No more than 1 mech of any type (no min lvl)
Double Rainbow    No more than 2 mech of any type (no min lvl)
Triple Rainbow      No more than 3 mech of any type (no min lvl)

2600 Total             All mechs, total of 2600 tons max.  (no min lvl)
1200 Total             All mechs, total of 1200 tons max. (lvl range 74 +)
950 Total               All mechs, total of 950 tons max.(lvl range  50 - 73)
630 Total               All mechs, total of 630 tons max. (lvl range 35 - 49)
420 Total               All mechs, total of 420 tons max. (lvl range 25 - 34)
230 Total               All mechs, total of 230 tons max. (lvl range 18 - 24)
150 Total               All mechs, total of 150 tons max. (lvl range 12 - 17)

GG Reminder - For Rainbow and Total Tonnage formations mechs are counted front to back from the top of your formation working downwards. Therefore illegal mechs (extra's above your rainbow type or ones that take you above your tonnage allowance) will dissapear from the bottom of the formation, possibly leaving you with incomplete ranks.


Enjoy,

Sgt Ron Frye #879655

Special thanks to Ken Fuchs #348230 for his assistance.

Boxing Gloves Equipment Review by David McCallum #701548

Ooh! Freebies! Sign me up!


I've installed a big sign on the mailbox that says 'Circulars and Free Stuff Welcome'.


Do I care that this is blatant commercialism aimed at Axebot owners?


Of course not... but that doesn't mean I'm not going to delve into the actual ins and outs of it to see if you, our dear subscribers, should shell out for extras of this kit.

So, for a non-sale purchase price of 14 Niodes, 240 Bioptics and 217 Ferrite, you get a chassis item with a dodge rating of 11, straight shielding of 3 and a 30% trample shield. Love a shield.


Problem is that shielding generally belongs in the shielding slots, so while extra is always welcome, you need to make sure you aren't sacrificing something more important to get it.


Now as we all know (and some publications seem to have forgotten), Shield and Chassis are your defensive slots while Cockpit and Engines are more geared towards offense.


Since this item is chassis and contains dodge and two types of shields, at least it isn't confusing things by trying to go offense. We do however need to make sure it is worth it.


For pure dodge, we normally look to crystal gear. At the top end of the range we have Spinal Bracing with 12 dodge, so we are only loosing a single dodge point over that. Its better than Reinforced joints at the bottom end that only has a 10 dodge rating. In fact you need to invest in niode equipment in the form of Hip Actuators, Hip Hopper Hips or Improvised Jump Jets to get better dodge.


So its actually not looking so bad so far.


And for the little ones to get trample shielding, which lets face it is the big bonus of the Boxing Gloves, you need to get a Turtle Shell. And while the price may be comparable and you get a higher trample rating, you need to give up a fair swag of damage mitigation just to get it.


So in short, its certainly not the worst defensive item you could get your hands on. If you are looking at investing on lighter formations, or even to add a bit of staying power at the bottom end of your rainbows as you work up, its certainly the kind of item that can be slipped in at the back end of the sale budget.


Submitted by David McCallum #701548

Dragon's Breath Weapon Review By Pat Willis#224534

This was a limited edition niode fire thrower it was available for levels 20 and up.It would have cost you 480 Ferrite, 380 Bioptics, and 31 Niodes to buy one or there was  bulk buy with 5 for 124 niodes. This gets you 56 straight damage, 103 speed, a burn ability at 6%, and splash at 10%. No limits or restrictions were listed.

This is an all around good weapon for the level it is being offered at. Usually you'd have to wait until level 65 to buy a Chemthrower which does 57 dam (a point more), a speed of 104( a point less), and a burn ability at 9% (three more points). The catch aside from the level requirement is the Chemthrower is a crystal weapon and will take a  few thousand in resources between Ferrite, and Bioptics. So being available at level 20 for something you usually have to wait till level 65 to have, or have an approximation of is a hell of a good deal.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

The ALT Purge Of 2016 By Damien Valentine#885659

The facts are these: The existence of alternate accounts ("alts") in *Mecha Galaxy* ("MG") has been controversial since the game was released in 2012. Kongregate and Facebook specifically forbid multiple accounts in their Terms-of-Service ("TOS"), but the rule is weakly enforced, and MG has no separate TOS of its own. Hundreds of players took this situation as license to create alts -- up to a dozen per player -- which obscured the actual size of the player base, and skewed player-vs.-player ("PVP") interactions. This state of affairs was obviously unsustainable, for reasons best summarized on this blog by Kenneth Hicks in his article "Alts and How They Effect Business".

Beginning in August 2016, Game Craftsmen ("GC") began deleting these alts, without making any announcements in advance. The purge is still incomplete -- as evidenced by the number of identically-named alts in daily PVP events -- but at its current pace, it cannot possibly be completed before this month's biggest PVP event, the Clan War. In addition, the methods of prioritizing alts for deletion, and the reasons why GC waited four years to address the problem, have never been openly discussed.

So much for the facts. Now, inevitably, for the rumors and opinions. Some of the affected players claim that during the purge, GC personnel told them their alts were unacceptably powerful for their level, and risked "breaking the game". This is a plausible claim, given the close player-developer relationship that GC strives for. However, it raises the question of how GC determines "unacceptable power", and whether GC -- even subconsciously -- favors some players over others. There are also claims that in the game's first year, GC actively encouraged the creation of alts in order to test various aspects of the game, and then targeted those very same alts during the purge. It seems unlikely that GC would risk losing access to both its host sites by violating their TOS, but GC's silence means it cannot yet be ruled out. Finally, a large fraction of the affected players have publicly "flounced" out of MG and its associated social media groups. As of this writing, it remains to be seen how sincere these players were, and whether GC can attract new players to replace them. However, there is considerable anger being expressed on both Facebook and Kongregate, and this is likely to dissuade new players from investing heavily in MG for the next several months.

Submitted by Damien Valentine (ID# 885659)

Dragon's United Member Logo By Kenneth Hicks ID# 846092

Ever since Mecha Galaxy offered the ability to use a specialized avatar separate from your Facebook, Kongregate, SyFy ones, I've seen some really really bad ones. People put up photos that don't have the correct sizing, have bit of code embedded, or photos that might have possible copyright issues.

I've created this for any members of the Dragon clans to use. It's sized so that it wont cause user interface issues, and it's original art work. If anyone else wants a logo designed for there account, either message me in game, or on Facebook.

Camping By Kenneth Hicks Player ID# 846092

Northern Gale Weapon Review By Pat Willis#224534

This was a limited edition weapon available in the shop. No longer available unless they bring it back. It was for levels 20 and above. It would have cost you 490 Ferrite, 330 Bioptics, and 31 Niodes. Bulk purchasing was also an option here with 5 for 124 Niodes. It has a straight damage of 54, a speed of 100, and packs Crit-Kill at 3%, as well as Slow [4].

A great weapon damage wise for low to mid tier players looking to get a leg up on the competition. The Crit-Kill is a small percentage yes but couple that with other equipment, as well as the build bonus for your mechas and it could turn into something rather substantial. Needless to say it would best serve you on an ice mecha, to benefit from the damage bonuses from such. As always skill point allotment, mecha build stats, and equipment load out will make all the difference in the world as to how this performs for you.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Double Peppergun Weapon Review By Pat Willis#224534

This was a limited edition weapon available in the shop. No longer available unless they bring it back. It is a Niode projectile weapon for levels 20 and up. To buy one you needed 480 Ferrite, 380 Bioptics, and 31 Niodes. Bulk buy was an option here with 5 for 124 Niodes. It has a straight damage of 54, a speed of 104, and the abilities of 2X Damage at 7%, and Trample at 4%.

It goes without saying that projectile based builds will benefit the most from this weapon. It can be used across the board of course, but a projectile based build will offer more bonuses to damage. Also most mecha worth while will offer 2X and even 3X damage potential so that ability is capitalized here also. Could the 2X and Trample abilities be at a higher percentage? Of course they could but seeing as the opening level for this is 20, I think folks are afraid the rookies will blow off their own mechas feet if they were. All in all a solid weapon, decent stats, and appropriate for the levels they are offered to.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534