Rifles and Other Broken Stuff
I sometimes leave the Infinity forums with no solid idea of how people really play Infinity. Some of the things people say confuse me, and even though they aren't outrageous, I find it hard to believe that some of them are true.
For instance, someone recently posted that Infinity is a game of throwing OP stuff at your opponent until he/she crumbles. While I believe that there are some disproportionately strong strategies in Infinity (deployment zone AD sweeps and GML armies, to name a few), I have never had the thought that Infinity is broken. If anything, a good critical hit can really mess with a player's plan.
This leads me to a claim I often throw around. Namely, I win games of Infinity with rifles. To contextualize: you should know that my first (and primary) faction is Ariadna, and it's been said that I don't capitalize on Ariadna's cache of heavy weapons as often as I should. As a result, I'm often just left with rifles and mobile units like Infiltrators and Para-Commandos to do the job. So how do I get along without spending all my SWC on big guns?
To be fair, Infiltration and AD contribute heavily to the success of my rifle game. After all, you can only go on rifle rampages if you're in the proper position. And let's not forget Camo, which gives my rifle-wielding maniacs the ability to strike without immediate retaliation.
Still, a rifle is a rifle; damage 13, burst 3, no fancy bells and whistles. This is especially true if it's a regular ol' rifle and not a combi. If a rifle is so below the notice of Infinity forumites who insist that games are throwdowns between HMGs, Spitfires, and Multi Sniper Rifles...how do they play when these weapons are lost? What do they do?
I wish I knew. But hey, the next time you sit down and plan your entire strategy around heavy weapons, remember the following: give a model an HMG, and - in a way - you let their equipment carry them. Give a model a rifle, and you mighht find out what kind of tactician you really are.
For instance, someone recently posted that Infinity is a game of throwing OP stuff at your opponent until he/she crumbles. While I believe that there are some disproportionately strong strategies in Infinity (deployment zone AD sweeps and GML armies, to name a few), I have never had the thought that Infinity is broken. If anything, a good critical hit can really mess with a player's plan.
This leads me to a claim I often throw around. Namely, I win games of Infinity with rifles. To contextualize: you should know that my first (and primary) faction is Ariadna, and it's been said that I don't capitalize on Ariadna's cache of heavy weapons as often as I should. As a result, I'm often just left with rifles and mobile units like Infiltrators and Para-Commandos to do the job. So how do I get along without spending all my SWC on big guns?
To be fair, Infiltration and AD contribute heavily to the success of my rifle game. After all, you can only go on rifle rampages if you're in the proper position. And let's not forget Camo, which gives my rifle-wielding maniacs the ability to strike without immediate retaliation.
Still, a rifle is a rifle; damage 13, burst 3, no fancy bells and whistles. This is especially true if it's a regular ol' rifle and not a combi. If a rifle is so below the notice of Infinity forumites who insist that games are throwdowns between HMGs, Spitfires, and Multi Sniper Rifles...how do they play when these weapons are lost? What do they do?
I wish I knew. But hey, the next time you sit down and plan your entire strategy around heavy weapons, remember the following: give a model an HMG, and - in a way - you let their equipment carry them. Give a model a rifle, and you mighht find out what kind of tactician you really are.
The only major advantage the special guns have over a Rifle (barring things like DA and EXP) is having better range. That's a big difference, but Burst 3 DAM 13 is not so much worse than Burst 4 DAM 14.
ReplyDeleteRifles will consistently kill models, as long as you can actually hit. It is much easier to hit with an HMG, though.
By extension, would that mean that players who experience difficulty killing things with Rifles have trouble moving into positions where hitting might be easier? I feel like heavy weapons create a bit of an "easy mode" sometimes, and that one has to work harder to make Rifles click on the battlefield.
ReplyDeleteThat's too black and white of a view. If the only models I'm fielding with Rifles are, aside from basic line infantry, 4-2 MOV or without any special deployment options, don't be expecting me to march out there with a Rifle.
ReplyDeleteIf a model has Infiltration or AD, of course it will use its Rifle.
If a model has 4-4 MOV and BS 13, it probably should use its Rifle.
Otherwise, there's no need to force the issue and use a Rifle over something else.
That's all very true. There still seems to be a psychological need for "big guns," at least for some, so I'm looking at the thinking rather than the reality. The prejudices behind "big gun fever," if you will.
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