Intelligent Weapon Discussion #3: Soldier's Primary

Which weapon do you prefer to use in the Soldier's Primary Slot?

  • Regular Rocket Launcher

    Points: 57 85.1%
  • Direct Hit

    Points: 10 14.9%

  • Total voters
    67

Dreadmaker

EGO Addict
Alright, for edition number three, we're moving away from situational sidearms and going straight into game-altering primaries. Today, we're here to discuss the Regular rocket launcher and the Direct Hit.

Quick overview of the DH's stats, just for the record:

  • +80 percent projectile speed
  • +25% damage
  • mini-crits airborne targets
  • -70% explosion radius


What do you think? I'll be reserving my thoughts for a little later.
 
I primarily use the standard rocket launcher, but if i'm trying to get rid of snipers or wrangled sentry's on 2fort i'll switch to direct hit.
 
With accuracy the Direct Hit allows you to do so much more, simple as that. Extra blast radius is too situational when you are giving up extra damage and speed.
 
I use a mixture of both, but i prefer the rocket launcher as I dont have really good aim :p But i just find it easier to use.
 
I use the rocket launcher simply because if things start getting intense my computer starts lagging really bad. If I relied on actually hitting during all of that, I wouldn't get any kills. I've been trying to start learning to use the DH to force myself into aiming, but every time I get into the thick of a fight my computer just can't keep up and I rely on that AoE to do what 9fps won't.
 
Mainly normal rocket launcher unless there is a pyro decent at airblasting, then Direct Hit makes it a little harder for them.
 
I use normal rocket launcher.
If there are a bunch of enemys together hits them all.
direct hit doesn't
Direct hit is good for situational use such as busting a sentry to bits.
other than that I always go with normal rocket launcher.
 
Rarely use the direct hit. I use the regular rocket launcher for its splash... when there's lots of targets close together, aiming in the middle can hit them all instead of one of them. If I wanted to go for one person I'd pull out the shotgun.
 
i rarely play solider but i stick with normal RPG over Dh but i use it situationally too for snipers and taking out sentries other wise the splash damage is worth it even though im a good shot, especially since the high rate of crits on solider rockets the splash damage can take out a whole group with a crit the DH might kill one...assuming you even hit anybody
 
I trained a lot on tr_walkway as a soldier, so now I have a pretty good accuracy with the DH and I got to say, it kills if you got the good accuracy to use it, because you can easily launch someone in the air then Direct Hit him so you get a mini crit, and repeat that until he's dead, which doesn't take too long.
 
With accuracy the Direct Hit allows you to do so much more, simple as that. Extra blast radius is too situational when you are giving up extra damage and speed.

I DISAGREE!

Having decided that sentry guns have rockets, and therefore I wouldn't be completely abandoning my favorite class by trying out Soldier, I've come to love the regular rocket launcher.

The Direct Hit is very, very situational... to a normal player. This is the type of weapon which isn't a game strategy changer, but IS a player strategy changer.

The thing is, you've gotta have a sniper's eye and a flux capacitor in your brain to be truly scary with the Direct Hit. Rockets aren't hitscan bullets; even with the speed boost they still have to fly. And with almost no discernable blast radius, you've gotta be able to make... direct hits. I've played against some truly devastating direct hitters, and it encouraged me to give it a try.

I can't play with the Direct Hit. My whole theory of Quantum Giblets breaks down when I have to be a precision shooter. When I play Soldier, I live for three things:

  1. Explosive Knockback
  2. Splash Damage
  3. Sparklerockets

1) Explosive Knockback is a function of explosive power, not damage. While a well placed direct hit will do more DIRECT damage to the player being hit, it does much less in the "completely screw with their plans" department. A well placed regular rocket can knock somebody completely off course. This is always a good thing.

2) Splash Damage is a function of being a hit and run jerkbag. When I'm playing Solider, I like to liberally spread damage about. I might not get a lot of primary kills, but that scout that "avoided" my rocket is now at half health, making it easier for my team to kill him. Against non-wrangled sentries while you are in lock range, the ability to peek out, send a rocket in the general direction, and peek back before you completely die is always a good thing. It might take more rockets, but it takes less dying.

3) Sparklerockets. Sparkle rockets are pretty. I like the blue ones. Sparklesplash damage is the best, though. You can turn multiple people into sparkly gibs. The splash reduction of the DH removes this.

The solider is called the "Shock and Awe" class for a reason. Your job is to go out there and blow people to bits, or at least convince them that they are about to become vaporized. You blow apart teams and buildings. And the best tool for THAT job is the regular Rocket Launcher.

AGAIN WITH THIS CAVEAT: If you have the eye of the Sniper and don't use rocketjumps like you have something against your feet, if you have the skills to plant a rocket on a pixel at 300 ft range, then the DH will do wonders for you. I just believe it's much more situational than most other sidegrades. The Scottish Resistance makes you more effective at multi-pronged defense while reducing your sheer firepower. The Huntsman allows you to move forward and enter the fray, but makes you pull back the bow and prepare to give your best shot while adding physics, turning the sniper from a point and click adventure emulator to a very powerful forward class, while losing the long distance "shield". The Direct Hit turns you into a sniper with a bit more health and slower bullets... it takes the strengths of the Soldier and reduces them for situational advantage.

That said, you'll see me with the DH if I'm rocket-sniping engineer nests, wrangled sentries, or dumb snipers who stand perfectly still. In all other cases, I'd rather have my Shock and Awe.
 
I don't know what Auto said but I skimmed a little and I think I agree with him. I make a formal request to Dread and AutoDMC to include tl;dr in every post they make.
 
All the time i've been using the Direct Hit it doesn't seem to have much of a difference for me. the only thing i like about it is well, how it is direct.
 
Mainly normal rocket launcher unless there is a pyro decent at airblasting, then Direct Hit makes it a little harder for them.

or just pull out your shot gun >.>


I prefer the RL cause of the potential to do damage to multiple targets. plus in comp, you want to protect to medic, so you need the splash damage. besides, you can kill pretty much anything outside a heavy with 2 rockets.

However, i have played against guys in pug that use the dh and they just do work.
 
I prefer normal rocket launcher because half the time I don't even HAVE a DH, and I usually am not entirely accurate.

also, I've gotten used to leading scouts and stuff from a cery far distance... if I had to relearn this stuff (with less blast radius and faster rockets) I'd basically be starting back at square one. with school starting soon I don't really have the time to relearn soldier, and even if I did I doubt I would be accurate enough to use the DH effectively.
 
Normal Rockets all the way, splash damage is what saves me alot of times and what makes engies run from death. Its way to easy to miss with the DH and most times 1 miss can cost you your life.
 
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