Railgun-a comprehensive review and guide

[Notchfan 616]

Railgun is, and has always been my favorite gun of all times.

 

High damage and ability to penetrate several tanks lined up are just a few characteristics that have made it one of the most dangerous weapons out in the battlefield. (My personal experience with railgun was, at my rank 3 shot is enough to kill just about everything, even at m1)

But strong recoil, firing delay and slow reloading and rotating rate also have made it a real challenge to master.

 

Now let's look at the pros and cons:

 

Pros:

• Very high damage
  
• Ability to penetrate multiple targets
  
• No damage reduction as distance increases
  

High damage is definitely something you want to take advantage of, with the ability to finish off your targets in a few shot you can deal enormous amount of damage without being exposed to the crossfire for too long or easily steal a kill.

Now here comes the tricky part, with the special ability of penetrating multiple targets you could kill two bird with one stone(once upon a time I've killed 3 camping shafts with an isida in silence, 4 in 1! *true story*). Sharpen your eyes and look for opportunities to line up your targets, or you could trick them into formation.(instance being, damage or make your teammates damage a tank that is close to an isida so you could kill both while the isida is healing him. Act fast though, as opportunities like this won't last!) Keep in mind that the amount of damage will be reduced by half for each tank it passes, so you might want to arrange them so the tank has most health receives most damage. Always keep track of your opponents so you can give a rough estimate of their health.

And a huge advantage over your thunder and smoky cousins, there's no damage reduction as distance increases. So at a distance that is long enough, you can still brutally damage your opponents while receiving minimal(or even almost negligible)damage from guns mentioned above.

 

Cons:

• Delayed firing
  
• Strong recoil
  
• Slow reloading rate
  
• Slow rotating rate
  
• Visible traces(rays)
  

Delayed firing is a major annoyance to overcome, it make you noticeable and one blow of a shell could make you miss. The delay last approximately a second, so you have to plan ahead when to shoot. Now to make you less noticeable and less vulnerable to blows, you will need a place to hide. Just wait when your gun is reloaded, press space just before your gun actually fires and reveal yourself... Timing is the key, and the only way to perfect your timing is practice practice practice(what makes perfect).

Strong recoil is not much of a problem unless you mounted it on a light tank. Sure it's fast and fun but unless you are highly skilled try to avoid this combination, as it will result in lying upside down or on your side. Either way will make you vulnerable and immobilized, despite that you can fire at the ground and flip upright.

Slow reloading rate is another major disadvantage of railgun, during reloading you will be vulnerable especially to rapid firing and close range weapons. To overcome this, either hide in a shelter or be on the move while reloading. Every shot counts, so try not to waste any. Just take your time so you can take an accurate shot without wasting your time and giving away your position due to missed shots. Treat your vantage points as your toothbrush, change it regularly and never share it as this will give away your position.

I view slow rotating rate of the turret as an advantage rather than a disadvantage, it allows you to take your time and aim precisely with ease. Except in case of being frozen, in this case you can turn your turret and tank for a faster turning speed.

Many junior railgun users don't realize the potential danger and threat it holds in the trace, or ray of the shot.(for this reason I felt railgun should be renamed raygun instead) It gives away your position as well as your stealth, so be on the move when you have fired a shot!

 

Verdict:

 

For some, railgun turns into a deadly instrument of destruction in their hands; but on the other side it's quite the opposite. Just relax and practice, it's something you can master. But keep in mind unlike twins and other fool proof weapons where all you have to do is hold space and "BOOM", railgun requires precise aiming and timing to a extreme degree. To me, railgun is the weapon that requires most skill and practice in this game; in turn it's one of the deadliest guns when used with such.

 

PS: took me an hour and a half to write, prove this is worth it if you like.

 

Video:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFL_fuDr_s4&feature=youtu.be

Edited March 5, 2013 by Notchfan

[MusicJam19 737]

Not bad but I hate railgun, unless I am parkouring

[wild001 786]

I like it, to add.

 

Railgun should only be used at a big distance from isada and freeze,

with double damage, you can one shot kill most tanks at M2, but if you failed at close distance, freeze and isada can surely kill rail.

Railgun is best on fast tank, as it take time to reload, so have to go fast on hiding.

Press space bar first. then show up behind wall, it give a sudden attach;

learning shooting while running, and learning running backward and shoot, with the delay time, it gives you 2 sec to aim while running, and make shaft hard to track.

especially when you carry a flag, running backward give your chance to clear chasing enemies,

running on faster make people hard to track you and give you better timing to shoot first, while it takes time to master aiming from side way

[Joonges 9]

nice guide :D

[Notchfan 616]

Not bad but I hate railgun, unless I am parkouring

You'll fall in love with it once you've learned how to overcome the cons listed above, it's something you can master :)

[splitterpoint 10,986]

Even when smoky has a cooldown (decreased damage with increased range.) there's always a change of a critical hit... and a critical hit is more powerfull and less random as the railgun damage.

Infact, smoky's critical hit always deals the same damage as shown in the garage.

[Joonges 9]

Even when smoky has a cooldown (decreased damage with increased range.) there's always a change of a critical hit... and a critical hit is more powerfull and less random as the railgun damage.

Infact, smoky's critical hit always deals the same damage as shown in the garage.

no, critical hit gives same damage as shown in garage, unless your target is out of range, then your damage will be less

and with smoky you are an easier target, because you have to shoot more often to kill then a railgun has to do

[splitterpoint 10,986]

no, critical hit gives same damage as shown in garage, unless your target is out of range, then your damage will be less

Smoky has unlimited range... and critical hits don't have a cooldown.

[CorvetteRacingLeMans 218]

Once upon a time, a weapon called the railgun dominated the battlefield. Then thunder came.

The end.

[dungu 25]

Once upon a time, a weapon called the railgun dominated the battlefield. Then thunder came.

The end.

CHAPTER 2

Just a bit later, the RB came bringing the Smokey along. The Smokey killed the Thunder. The end.

 

p.s. A very nice comprehensive review / guide !! Congrats!

[r_ELain_3S0 17]

Once upon a time, a weapon called the thunder dominated the battlefield. Then smoky came.

The end.

 

Edit: Ninja'd. Nice guide.

Edited February 28, 2013 by r_ELain_3S0

[dungu 25]

Once upon a time, a weapon called the thunder dominated the battlefield. Then smoky came.

The end.

 

Edit: Ninja'd. Nice guide.

hahaha ..I beat you! :P

[splitterpoint 10,986]

hahaha ..I beat you! :P

 

Thats more like it. :lol:

[canucks2 3]

Awesome job notchfan!!

 

Loved it

[Notchfan 616]

Once upon a time, a weapon called the railgun dominated the battlefield. Then thunder came.

The end.

Once upon a time there was a weapon called thunder.

Then the the thunder was scoped and 1 shot'ed by shaft

 

THE END.

[splitterpoint 10,986]

I smell a forum game in those posts! ^

Go ahead and make it... I'm to scared to start forum games; keep in mind that I was the ''spark'' if that thread gets made.

[r_redbadger0 8]

I have always used railgun / hornet combo.

before reblance it was a great gun and i mastered it very well.

now it is so so on many maps but i still have some good times on other maps.

small maps are not for rail.

i still remember taking flags very easy with my m3 railgun / m3 hornet.

now, freeze is to strong and has to long of an effect, thunder shoots to far and was ment to be close range weapon, and isida has to long of a reach also.

but i still play but not as much fun as before.

oh well everything changes and not always fro the better.

ps: you write up was very good i thought - congrats on that.

[r_redbadger0 8]

I have always used railgun / hornet combo.

before reblance it was a great gun and i mastered it very well.

now it is so so on many maps but i still have some good times on other maps.

small maps are not for rail.

i still remember taking flags very easy with my m3 railgun / m3 hornet.

now, freeze is to strong and has to long of an effect, thunder shoots to far and was ment to be close range weapon, and isida has to long of a reach also.

but i still play but not as much fun as before.

oh well everything changes and not always fro the better.

ps: you write up was very good i thought - congrats on that.

[Shadow_Error_X 50]

Railgun is very good. It does require a certain amount of skill and a mind of quick thinking - however that is something most have mastered over time. :)

 

And yes you did a fine job on your guide.

Edited March 1, 2013 by Shadow_Error_X

[rampagerhino 67]

Good guide, thanks for taking the time to make it ^_^

[r_Damn_Slow0 12,476]

[/size]

Smoky has unlimited range... and critical hits don't have a cooldown.

no, critical hit gives same damage as shown in garage, unless your target is out of range, then your damage will be less

and with smoky you are an easier target, because you have to shoot more often to kill then a railgun has to do

Okay can someone please clarify on these 2 Smoky claims , which one is right actually ??

[adil.pk 212]

the real charm you get from rail gun when you are master with the "Z" "X" "C" keys. :P

[RedBull123456789 3]

Player RedBull123456789 has been banned for a week. Reason: unreasonable, disrespectful criticism of the game and its authors, Owner; any activities that have an adverse effect on project development (Forum).р 2.14 Rules

Edited March 2, 2013 by SuperNick95

[GoldRock 6,165]

Nice guide :) Yes, Railgun definitely requires the most skill... Railgun FTW!

[r_Damn_Slow0 12,476]

Once upon a time, a weapon called the railgun dominated the battlefield. Then thunder came.

The end.

CHAPTER 2

Just a bit later, the RB came bringing the Smokey along. The Smokey killed the Thunder. The end.

Once upon a time there was a weapon called thunder.

Then the the thunder was scoped and 1 shot'ed by shaft

THE END.

I smell a forum game in those posts! ^

Go ahead and make it... I'm to scared to start forum games; keep in mind that I was the ''spark'' if that thread gets made.

Follow up to this story here -->[Forum Game] Writing Tanki History On The Fly