Guide [Issue 19] Analysis - What should I Micro-Upgrade?

[hogree 4,179]

Micro-Upgrades – definitely one of the most anticipated releases of all time. The Tanki developers have been planning and updating us about this potential update for many months, and now its been finally brought into the game. But with this release storming the battlefield, many players have been left clueless, wondering whether it is worth spending on these micro-upgrades, and if so, what to upgrade. My aim, through this analysis, is to make your mind clearer on what path you want to take if you are going to micro-upgrade or if you are not.

Introduction

The Micro-Upgrades update has just recently hit Tanki, and I'm sure many of us are still wondering about what route to take with it – that is, if we decide to even use our crystals on it at all. Isn't it better to have a variety of different weapons than doing small upgrades on one certain weapon? Or maybe it's more worth it if you concentrate on one pro weapon, rather than having a pile of mediocre weapons? It's surely a question that has been going through a lot of our heads.

Micro-Upgrades, or MU's for short, were introduced by the Tanki developers as a sort of “mini-platform” to upgrade your weapon/hull a short way to enhance particular features of your equipment. There are so many considerations needed, however, when thinking about micro-upgrading. All the different options lead to some serious thinking needing to be done when buying your Micro-Upgrades.

Some Very Helpful Information

Before I start the bulk of this article, I would like to link you to some very useful information for all you considering using micro-upgrades... A few players out there have created some useful guides/topics helping people in their decision to micro-upgrade – and trust me, you'll need as much information as possible to help you in your track to deciding the best thing to micro-upgrade.

Below are some of the most impressive and useful pieces of work that I found out there:

• ArchangeI's videos explaining the general idea of micro-upgrades and how to save crystals best with it.
• Brandybabyxx's forum topic displaying the highest possible M3 micro-upgrade parameters for hulls, tanks and some of the top paints. Adem_2011's topic comparing the Weapons and Tanks stats was also merged into this one, his post appearing below Brandybabyxx's. Check them both out.
• Yele's Micro-upgrade Tables showing each turret's small micro-upgrade parameter in detail and all it does at all each modification
• Another one of yele's incredible micro-upgrade tables, but this time for the hulls.

Going through all of those will help save you endless time in your quest to look at the best things to micro-upgrade. If you have done some work on helping people in their quest to find the best micro-upgrades, please share it here. I would be very interested to see. ;)

As we approach the main section of this article, I must admit that using a title which shows only one question is always a risky choice, since you often feel compelled to solely answer that one question. The title of this article does indeed show you one question. But there really are three important questions that can be drawn out of that one statement that must be asked to get a proper perspective on micro-upgrades. I will go through each of these in varying amount of detail, before finally closing with a bunch of my opinions on some Micro-Upgrade FAQs.

1. What Should I Micro-Upgrade?

Firstly, and most key to the issue of micro-upgrades, we greet the question: “Should I Micro-Upgrade”? A big question – demanding big answers. I want this article to be a concise, simple, explanatory article on Micro-Upgrades; and so I will hurry through the opinions on this section, before summing up my answer at the end.

Of course, Micro-Upgrades are optional. There is no rule stated in the law of the game that it is compulsory to buy micro-upgrades. However, we see the advantage this gives us in battles. But should we get them?

There are many valid reasons why not to get Micro-Upgrades. For many higher ranks, they have not bought micro-upgrades simply for the reason that they only play in Pro Battles with Micro Upgrades turned off. And thus, there is literally no point. Others have yet to get a combination they are satisfied with, and thus, are waiting to get new combinations before micro-upgrading. There are also other reasons such as simply saving up your cash for other valuable garage items.

I would like to draw a line here - this is my opinion on whether you should micro-upgrade or not. I will draw out a list for you all.

Unless you are a rich buyer or loaded with crystals that need to be spent, I say that you should NOT seriously Micro-Upgrade if one of the following features applies to you:

• 75% or more of the battles you play are PRO Battles with NO Micro-Upgrades
• You are dissatisfied with all the current combinations that you have
• You WANT to buy an extra weapon/hull and you currently only have a maximum of 2 weapons/hulls.

Those are my basic rules for whether people should seriously micro-upgrade. Once one of those rules does not apply to you, then you are free to do as you wish! :P

2. What should I micro-upgrade? [Vague]

There is a vague way to approach this question. What should I micro-upgrade first cuts down to the very first line that Tanki offers in gameplay - the weapons, the hulls and the paints.

Distinguishing between each of these comes down the roots, and remember, there is MUCH more variety in weapons than hulls. Weapons have a large amount of variety, and thus, it costs more to micro-upgrade all of them. On the other hand, hulls are simple, and many people only own one of them which makes them use it almost all the time. This results in Hulls being often MUCH more useful to micro-upgrade than Weapons. I would say prioritise the Hulls.

Meanwhile, with paints, I find them a rip-off. I think its much more useful to up the health of the tank than to just add minor percentages of protection for quite an expensive price. Even though health may cost more, it will be much more useful. I would not upgrade health, though others may differ in their opinion.

To sum it up, I would say: Hulls ---> Weapons ---> Paints

One key thing to remember here, especially for the high ranks, is that we are often addressing drug wars - since micro-upgrades is normally disabled in pro battles. Thus, it is ALWAYS wise to pick the combination you would use in supplies battles. Don't pick Railgun-Hornet to think about giving you power in XP battles before realising XP doesn't have micro-upgrades equipped. Remember - you will be fighting other micro-upgraded people in a micro-upgrade arena. It is a deadly important rule to follow.
3. What should I micro-upgrade? [Detailed]

There is a very detailed side to the question – one that probably you will all have hoped to see in this article. Micro-upgrading, of course, doesn't just run into the facts about whether to upgrade weapons, hulls or paints. Once you have decided what piece of equipment to upgrade, there are the deadly, and yet all-important parameters. If undecided on parameters, you leave yourself undecided on the most crucial part of upgrading.

In this section, I hope to be able to address each of the weapons and give you what is, in my opinion, the best parameter to concentrate on upgrading. I will also run over the hulls, and also give my opinions on the paints – even though you have already seen what I think about upgrading paints. Answering a question like this is always risky when you do not have experience with all the guns – but I hope, from my limited knowledge, that I can help you in your quest to find the perfect choices in micro-upgrading.



Smoky's high points focus around the critical hit, and thus, I would dead cert stick with critical hit here. Go for the critical chance, since critical damage is already so high - even though there's no harm in touching a few upgrades on these too. If the critical chance is very high, the likeliness of your critical hitting will fly sky-high, which would help you so much in battle.

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Critical Chance



Firebird very much depends on the game-style with it. I personally would stick mainstream and go damage with Firebird. However, having a quicker reload time can be super-useful considering the pain it takes to reload. This may cost, but it will certainly come in useful - especially if playing in drug wars, where the bar is needed - and quick!

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Damage/Reload Time



Twins is a serious weapon to be handled with, and with micro-upgrades, it gets even better. Range is a great thing to have with Twins, and that would be one of my picks... but then again, Impact force can be amazing if fully upgraded. With a Twins with powerful impact force, even Mammoths could be turtled! Even though damage is useful, I would overlook it for the above two in this case.

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Impact Force/Range



Railgun is very useful, and one of the most popular guns for skilled players. One thing that may be useful is the damage, but you have to remember that you will be playing other micro-upgraded players often. At a low rank, it may be wise to upgrade the damage, but at higher, I would avoid it. The impact force is already high but always useful - but rotating speed has to be the best imo. Its use can be crucial, especially for Railgun users with slower hulls. Penetrating power for those more skilled. ;)

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Rotating Speed



Isida has a pile of awesome stats here at M3, and you can just fear seeing it fully micro-upgraded at M3. However, there are certain parameters that are clearly better than others. In this, I reckon self-healing is normally enough, unless you play in lots of Silence drug wars, where you can come under a lot of attack at the same time.

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Damage



Thunder's rotation speed often lets it down - as well as its reload time. I find its damage enough already, but reload time lets it down in big situations. Though range wouldn't be an issue with me, I think its key to focus on reload, rotation and damage. Don't forget impact force with Thunder - as it does have power to turtle enemies and knock them off target. That may also be useful. Thunder has so many good parameters that I would find it hard to choose between the top four. However, it does come down to the pick of the parameters and if I had to pick....

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Reload Time



Freeze is the only one which has only four parameters. Freeze's parameters all contain some use - though I wouldn't find rotation Speed too useful with freeze, since it is generally used with fast hulls anyway. With Freeze, I would either pick range or damage. The minor seconds in reload time will not make that big a difference in battle, even though you may want to do a tiny bit of upgrading on them to help you be even more powerful.

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Range/Damage



Ricochet's parameters are all a bit lacklustre to be honest. The best, however, has to come down to the most useful in battles, and we have to think what would be the scenario of you using Ricochet. Once again, with Ricochet, concentrate on damage. Its one of those things that could cut down to a single shot.

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Damage



Shaft's damage in the arcade mode has reduced its point significantly since the new physics update. This is because of the new loading speeds, meaning it is far more useful to play the sniping game. So I think 100% with Shaft, its best to stick mainstream. If you choose Shaft as your weapon and want to micro-upgrade, damage in sniping mode all the way. However, this is also one of those things where rotation speed helps because of the turning. That may be useful to help your turning.

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Damage in Sniping Mode



Well, hulls. They differ, obviously. But I would say the key thing to consider with hulls is what you want in each of them. It's probably wise to stick with the mainstream side of your hull. And since you will more than likely be in a drug war, it is probably wiser to aim for protection rather than speed.

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Protection



And as for paints, finally, I don't think you should upgrade any. However, it all finally sprouts down to your decision on what is the most pesky weapon you find in battles. And keep remembering, you need to fit this into the weapons you find most in drug battles, and NOT Pro Battles!

Hog's Pick of Best Parameter: Well, it's down to you!

FAQ's about Micro-Upgrades

Q. Is it wiser to focus on upgrading 1 Parameter or to upgrade each one little by little?

A: In my opinion, absolutely 100% sure better to do little by little on small parameters. Obviously, there are things to focus on, as I have brought out above. However, I have seen some people with one full parameter and completely empty other ones, and I must admit that I think its pointless. As Tanki rightly say, it is cheap for the first few parameters - and far more worth it to do little updates on each of them. Even if you get a discount for the next parameter if you upgrade to full, it is still not worth wasting all your crystals just to get to the very top, unless you have the crystals to waste.

Q: Should I speed up time on my micro-upgrades? This upgrade is taking AGES!

A: There is a simple rule to answer this one. Do NOT, and I repeat NOT, speed up your micro-upgrades, unless you either have crystals to waste (which you shouldn't have) or a serious deadline to meet. I always say the best time to micro-upgrade is before bed. It may take up to 12 hours for a micro-upgrade to finish - and trust me, you often won't want to wait that long to play Tanki, especially if its your only decent weapon or tank! So, do your upgrades before sleeping - and do try your best not to speed up them. Crystals which can be used on micro-upgrading later will go unnecessarily down the drain.

Q: Is micro-upgrading only a high-rank thing?

A: No way Jose. Micro-Upgrading is darned useful at the low ranks, and not just because of its cheapness. Firstly, almost every battle at the lower ranks use micro-upgrades, they can't afford passes. And each little step costs a seriously cheap amount. I would go to say that Micro-Upgrading is better at the lower ranks. However, when you have M's, I would say don't feel compelled to finish a parameter. Even if you still pay full price next, its often just worth it to be able to pwn for that little time you are stronger than people. Also, in actual fact, the cost of fully upgrading a parameter can be more than the discount you will receive for doing it!

Q: Should I focus on Micro-Upgrading ONE Weapon/Tank, or get a variety of Weapons/Tanks?

A: As I mentioned before in this article, if you are satisfied with your combo, then it is very worth micro-upgrading it. Remember, weapons offer more variety, so hulls are more important to micro-upgrade. However, variety in weapons can be useful so normally, it would be wiser just to focus on hulls, until you are confident that you will be using one weapon a lot more than the others. This particularly applies to people who have only one combo that is worth using at their rank. It is worth micro-upgrading then, especially if all you are going to plan to do is save up for the next level of each of those weapons in a few ranks' time.

Thanks a lot for reading this article. I hope you found it useful. Remember, all these answers sprout from my opinions, and if you differ, please post below. Once again, feedback as always appreciated in the comments below!

Edited July 31, 2017 by Hexed

[Raphael2 3,263]

Epic article, thanks so much for clearing my mind :D

I'll definitely MU Thunder M3's reload speed and turning speed as well as damage once I have it!

[Meliora 1,652]

Have been waiting for this.

Thanks, hogree.

 

 

Edit: Aaargh hogree!!! You just killed me!!! Look where you put *shudder* "FAQ's" with an apostrophe!!!!! How could you?

Edited December 30, 2013 by Meliora

[r_GoldRock30 68]

Very useful article, and I'm glad to see it's pretty detailed. Though you didn't seem to consider reload speed with Railgun? To me personally, that'd be the stand-out factor for that weapon; there've been many occasions where I've been destroyed just as my weapon was charging up.

 

Though I can see why rotation speed would be useful, I would think it should only be MUed if you're an aggressive Rail player (i.e. someone who'll need to hit space whilst turning to face an enemy a lot). Even then, it might actually end up being worse - if you've got used to your current rotation speed whilst timing shots, you might end up over-shooting an enemy! In any case, the more aggressive Rail player will often use a light hull (and so turn both hull and turret simultaneuously when firing), so I don't think this is a parameter which really needs to be messed with.

[r_The-Player20 313]

I only microupgrade these:

M3 things, and 100k+ paints.

[hogree 4,179]

Thanks Gold. Understandable, had to seriously hurry this article (you know me....), so didn't manage to have the time to seriously consider everything.

 

Yeah, wish I could have done better with this, but hope it still was useful.

 

@Sel: Apostrophes be like !!! FAQs is just cheeeeeeeesy.

[r_GoldRock30 68]

Thanks Gold. Understandable, had to seriously hurry this article (you know me....), so didn't manage to have the time to seriously consider everything.

 

Yeah, wish I could have done better with this, but hope it still was useful.

Well, I wasn't faulting the integrity of this article - it was still an excellent read regardless, and definitely provided some useful info! I was just sharing a personal opinion is all :P

[r_comeandgetit0 5]

Although I liked the article, I must say that I disagree with two of the suggestions.

 

1) rail - If you don't mu damage, then do reload time so that 1 vs. 1 encounters in large games end in your favor. 

2) twins - impact force? range or damage or damage at max range first - they are all better. And I don't think you can flip a viking with twins, let alone mammoth, lol.

 

Thunder - good call with the reload time, best pick IMO.

[r_brandybabyxx0 737]

Very good article! Clearly you put a lot of work into this one and I'm sure it will help many who are wishing to know more about MU's. Good job. :)

[Bowzie 64]

Very good, I'm not getting MUs because it's a wase of my time to wait, and I couldn't go that long without freeze :P (and I'm poor)

[toomai51 55]

Thanks for that detailed article which explains a great deal on MU's

[djm5 1]

Just a quick question, does the look of the m1 weapon change to the look of the m2 if I fully upgrade its parameters?

[mdit108 121]

Just a quick question, does the look of the m1 weapon change to the look of the m2 if I fully upgrade its parameters?

no dude, it remains the same.. and even if u upgrade the parameters fully still those r less than m2. If you upgrade all parameters fully u get a discount on the next modification.

[ChuckNorris2090 102]

Nice!

[michael20028 7]

I disagree with you when you said not to fully upgrade a parameter. Take in consideration if you have M1/M2 you'd earn a discount on the next modification.

 

But I really do agree with you to Upgrade before bed time. I never thought in doing this. I can do Reload Time for some weapons in less than two weeks. :o

 

For short, nice and useful article.

[Moraine 5,877]

No point of making an article without a table with FULL micro-upgrades. We wish to know how will some hulls/turrets look like fully upgraded, and how much will it all cost - I can see an empty table for myself,  in my own garage, thank you very much... 

Edited January 22, 2014 by Moraine

[r_BazookaJoe2 48]

No point of making an article without a table with FULL micro-upgrades. We wish to know how will some hulls/turrets look like fully upgraded, and how much will it all cost - I can see an empty table for myself,  in my own garage, thank you very much... 

Well this article was written 6 days before we got the full lists of the micro upgrades. So be nice to him, he did good with the information he had.

 

You can find everything here:

Micro-upgrades of paints - all tables

 

Micro-upgrades of turrets - all tables

 

Micro-upgrades of hulls - all tables

Edited January 22, 2014 by r_BazookaJoe2

[Moraine 5,877]

Thanks for the update, didn't know it was posted on the forum... 

[hogree 4,179]

No point of making an article without a table with FULL micro-upgrades. We wish to know how will some hulls/turrets look like fully upgraded, and how much will it all cost - I can see an empty table for myself,  in my own garage, thank you very much... 

Completely understand what you mean - however, I don't know if you noticed, but in the "Helpful Information" section, I linked to Yele's Turret&Hull Micro-Upgrade Tables. I didn't really see the point in doubling up on an already perfect information source written, and wasting my time doing something that would probably be less helpful, rather than just posting the links. As for paints, I was unable to put that in since it had not been published.

 

As for the empty table, it was there simply to show each parameter that can be upgraded with each weapon, rather than the cost. 

 

Once again, I would have liked to do a bit more work on this article, but I was pushed for time, so I was only able to produce a limited amount of information. Hope you understand.

[Moraine 5,877]

Sure. Dingus explained, after all, and I know how it can be sometimes, deadlines and all... 

However, if I can make a suggestion for your future articles - put the most informative parts of the article and/or links in the front, somewhere easily noticeable (perhaps even as a huge quote or an ad hoc mid-section), so that whoever reads it can spot it easily!
This is a big article, with lots of pictures, so your "Helpful information" section went completely unnoticed in my case. I know that this is just a forum and not a printed media so your options are limited, but do try.


Anyway, keep up the good work, sorry if I've been too harsh on you. Been waiting for full tables since MU appeared... 

[r_brandybabyxx0 737]

No point of making an article without a table with FULL micro-upgrades. We wish to know how will some hulls/turrets look like fully upgraded, and how much will it all cost - I can see an empty table for myself,  in my own garage, thank you very much... 

I believe you are looking for this. Also... look at the below post date... where have you been? :p

 

http://en.tankiforum.com/index.php?showtopic=186942&p=3315066

Edited January 24, 2014 by r_brandybabyxx0

[Moraine 5,877]

Studying  :D

[Uliuliu 637]

I thought there would be a table displaying what discount every fully upgraded parameter would give

[epickiller546 241]

Very nice but i disagree on railgun i think you should mu your reload time sometimes that 1 second faster reload comes in handy!

[GG_reg 1,521]

Some harsh comments but I notice you've worked hard. Here's one thought though, if there's a 50% discount and you have 80k for micro upgrades on M3 Ricochet, do you speed up the micros? Great article though! :)