Guide [Issue 29] The Ultimate Guide to Smoky

[Thekillerpenguin 1,731]

 

Smoky - for some, it's sitting at M0 in their garages, collecting dust. For others, it's an essential weapon in their arsenal. We've all seen players using the rather unimpressive M0 Smoky-Hunters at low ranks. Most of us have seen powerful M2 or M3 Smokies at high ranks. How do you use this turret effectively? This guide will tell you how.
 
The History of Smoky
 
In the early days of Tanki Online, before the rebalance and graphics updates, all players started with Smoky-Wasp. Smoky didn't have a critical hit at this time, and it was a Tier 1 turret along with Firebird and Twins. It wasn't supposed to be equal to the Fear Machine (a.k.a. Railgun) anyway. When the Tier 2 turrets came along later, Smoky was outclassed even more with the introduction of Thunder, Freeze, Ricochet, Isida, and later, Shaft.
 
Then the rebalance and graphics update came. Smoky was granted its trademark critical hit, its appearance was changed to the one today, and the stats were changed to be able to compete with the other turrets. Instead of Smoky-Wasp, players started with Smoky-Hunter. This version of Smoky is more similar to the current one than the very old one, but it had a key difference: critical hits with this version dealt an extraordinary amount of damage, far more than the one today. In addition, the critical hit probability was a fixed percentage; hitting a target multiple times did not increase the critical chance, but this meant that it was possible to get two or more critical hits in a row.
 
Later, Smoky was changed to the version seen today. The damage of critical hits was reduced by a large amount, but the critical chance was increased. The ramp-up characteristics were also added here; the more shots you land on an enemy, the higher the critical chance. When you do get a critical hit, the chance is reset to a negative number, and you'll have to land a few more hits on an enemy to get the possibility of a critical hit back. These changes made Smoky a much more reliable weapon, but it reduced its overall potential power by a lot.
 
Since then, Smoky hasn't changed much; the critical damage was buffed by a moderate amount in an update this summer, making it more effective.

 

Edit from 2/19/15: Smoky's impact force has been decreased slightly. It's noticeable, but all the tactics that I've written here will still work fine.
 
Basic Stats
 
Throughout M0-M3, Smoky retains some key characteristics:

• Fairly high rate of fire. While it's not as fast as Ricochet and Twins, it's certainly faster than Thunder, Railgun, and Shaft. The rate of fire increases significantly between M0 and M3.
• High impact force, or as many call it, knockback. It doesn't carry as much force per shot as Railgun or Shaft, but it's still high; a M0 Smoky has about the same amount of impact force as a M2 Thunder.
• Critical hit. Every time you hit a target with Smoky, there is a chance that your shot will be a critical hit. Critical hits deal between 2 and 3 times the damage of a normal shot. Every shot you land on a target will increase the critical chance. When you finally get a critical hit, the chance is set to a negative value, and you must land a few more hits before the probability is above zero and you can get critical hits again.
• Fairly high turning speed.

Smoky has noticeable recoil. While it's not as much as Railgun, Shaft, or Thunder, it's enough to warrant caution when using it on unstable hulls, like Hornet or Wasp.
 
Pros and Cons
 
Pros:

• Fast rate of fire allows you to engage multiple enemies fairly quickly.
• High impact force, combined with the rate of fire, allows you to mess up the aim of your target.
• Critical hits are powerful. If you have good luck, the damage per second is very high.
• No self damage like Thunder.
• Smoky's unpredictability can be a strength. A weapon like Thunder is quite predictable in terms of damage; you will be able to estimate how much time you have until the Thunder destroys you, which allows you to plan ahead more. An enemy fighting a Smoky has no idea whether the next shot will be a deadly critical hit or a weak normal shot, which may make it harder for them to respond effectively.

Cons:

• The frequency of critical hits is largely due to luck. If you aren't lucky, and don't get critical hits often, you will not be able to destroy enemies very effectively.
• Both damage and knockback diminish over range. Past medium range, Smoky is no longer an effective weapon.
• The knockback is not as noticeable against enemies with heavier hulls.

Possible combinations
Now that we've gotten to know Smoky's stats better, let's see what hulls Smoky goes best on.

Overview:

High risk, high reward. This combo can zip around the battlefield at lightning speeds. It's the best hull for circle-strafing and guerrilla tactics. The only weakness is its low health. Since you won't last long by charging headfirst into battle, try taking side routes and attack enemies from the side or behind. This is also difficult to master, since if you want to take full advantage of Smoky's knockback, you need to aim very well, which is hard when you're driving very fast. Excellent for capturing flags and attacking, but the low health means it's not the best midfielder or defender.

 

How it does in different gametypes:

• CTFs: If you want to go for the flag in CTFs, look no further. Keep in mind you will have low health; unless you're using supplies or the enemy team isn't very good, you should make sure your teammates back you up.
• DMs: Probably not the best combo for DMs. In deathmatches, there is emphasis on survivability and firepower. While this combination doesn't lack in the firepower department, your survivability is not very good. If you can evade attacks, that's great, but in general this isn't the best.
• TDMs: Smoky-Wasp is good for TDMs. Since you have teammates, your survivability is less of a concern. You can focus using your speed and firepower to the best extent. Your speed will be less useful here, though, since there are no control points or flags to capture.
• CPs: Good if you need to get to a point fast, but not very good if you need to hold a point. Your high speed allows you to get to control points quickly, but if there's already quite a few people there, you might have issues. It'll work well on maps like Berlin, where there are many points and the enemy team can't defend all of them at once, but on maps like Polygon, where there is only one point, you likely won't get too far.

Special Notes:

Wasp is quite unstable and light. While this means that it's easy to align yourself to the ground using recoil when making jumps, this also means that the recoil will move you more. This can be a detriment if you drive up a ramp and shoot perpendicularly to the direction your Wasp is facing; you will flip or become extremely unstable. In general, you should only fire in directions other than straight forward when your Wasp is firmly on the ground.

Overview:

Not bad at all. Hornet has very good speed and more armor than Wasp, but it's not quite as maneuverable or fast. It's better than Smoky-Wasp for charging headlong into battle, but it's not as good for harassing enemies. Otherwise, use similarly to Smoky-Wasp.

 

How it does in different gametypes:

• CTFs: Good for flag capturing thanks to its high speed. It's not as fast as Wasp, so if you're aiming to capture a flag, Wasp might be more effective. It can sustain more punishment, however. If you're taking a beating as Wasp, switching to Hornet might be a good choice.
• DMs: Probably a better choice than Smoky-Wasp, but still not the best. My comments about Wasp in DMs apply here; it's not very durable.
• TDMs: Pretty similar to Smoky-Wasp in this regard. It's a good choice if you like mobility and the properties of Smoky.
• CPs: See my comments for Smoky-Wasp in CPs.

 

Special Notes:
 Hornet is unstable, but not the the extent of Wasp. It's still worth using caution when firing in mid-air.

 

Overview:

Balanced, versatile and powerful. This is the starting combination for a reason. Hunter has enough speed to keep up with most enemies and enough health to survive for quite a bit in heavy combat. Smoky-Hunter works best for either front-line combat or flanking; you're not going to get very far circle-strafing. Hunter's rounded stats allow this combination to be used in defense, midfielding, attacking, and capturing flags.

 

How it does in different gametypes:

• CTFs: Hunter is a jack-of-all trades tank, and it really shows up in CTFs. While you can capture flags, defend, midfield, and attack with this combination, it's not the best in either 4 positions. The versatility is a strength, however; you can quickly switch from one role to another if the battle demands it, something the other hulls can't do as well. You can't have a Mammoth go from sitting on your flag to capturing the enemy team's flag in a moment's notice, after all. Overall, a very good universal tank for CTFs.
• DMs: This is a good combination for deathmatches. Hunter has enough health to survive effectively and enough speed to avoid being a sitting duck.
• TDMs: Again, a good combination.
• CPs: Hunter's balanced stats really help out here. It can hold a control point quite effectively, thanks to its health, but it has enough speed to reach control points quite quickly. On maps with multiple points, Smoky-Hunter is very good. On maps like Polygon, which have a single control point, heavier hulls will be more effective.

 

Special Notes:

Everybody starts out with M0 Smoky-Hunter because of the many roles this combination can serve in. However, at M0, it's not very powerful, since M0 Smoky is not a very good weapon in general. From M1 and up, this combination is very powerful.

 

Overview:

Also balanced and powerful. Viking has plenty of health, but has only medium speed. Similar to Smoky-Hunter and Smoky-Dictator in terms of use.
 

How it does in different gametypes:

• CTFs: Viking's medium speed is not very good for capturing flags. It's better than Smoky-Hunter for defending and midfielding, but it's not as versatile. You'll do well in defending and attacking enemies, but don't expect to get far with the flag.
• DMs: Viking's balanced stats with more of an emphasis on health lend it to do very well in deathmatches.
• TDMs: Again, a good combination. Smoky does well when mounted on any hull in TDMs, now that I think of it.
• CPs: Better than Hunter-Smoky for holding single points, but not as good for holding multiple points.  It'll do fine here.

 

Special Notes:

At the M2 level, this is one of the best combinations with Smoky you will find, mostly because M2 Viking is exceptionally powerful.

 

Overview:

Very powerful in the right hands. Dictator has a lot of health, and while the speed isn't anything to brag about, this is one of the best combinations for midfielding and storming enemy bases. Great for defense, midfielding, and attacking. It's not good for capturing flags. Long range weapons might pose a threat, however, since it's easy for them to stay out of your range due to Dictator's rather slow speed.

 

How it does in different gametypes:

• CTFs: Not good for capturing flags, since the speed is mediocre. Excellent defender and attacker.
• DMs: Dictator does not lack health, so this combination is very powerful in DMs. It does tend to attract quite a bit of attention, however, since it's large and somewhat slow. It's not quite a sitting duck, but keep an eye out for people going after you.
• TDMs: Again, good. It can hold its own without much teammate support thanks to its health.
• CPs: Not quite the best for maps with 1 control point, but still very effective nevertheless. It has enough health to stay alive in firefights around contested points, while still having some degree of speed. It's good for maps like Stadium, where the control points are relatively close to each other. The speed also comes in handy of you need to bail out of a control point that's being overrun; sometimes, getting out of there alive instead of holding it down to the last second can prove helpful.

Special Notes:

Dictator can be somewhat awkward to drive, since it has a rather unusual shape. If you want, you can drive backwards, with the turret pointed in the direction the camera is facing. This might make it easier to drive for some, and it does allow the turret to get closer to your target.

 

Overview:

One of the most feared combos at high ranks. While it's quite slow, it can take massive amounts of damage while dishing out a lot thanks to Smoky. It can steamroll through enemy bases with ease. Watch out for Shafts and Railguns taking advantage of your limited range. Excellent defender, and it'll do fine midfielding. You might have problems attacking if there are long range weapons around.

How it does in different gametypes:

• CTFs: You should forget about capturing flags, and focus on defending or assault. As a defender, it's great, since it can take a lot of punishment while still retaining a little bit of speed if you need to get just a little closer to your target to finish the job. As an attacker, it takes a while to reach your enemies, but if you can find your way into the enemy base, you can cause massive chaos.
• DMs: Excellent for DMs. You can crush almost anything in your way, but the low speed becomes a problem if Railguns and Shafts start targeting you from long range. You can deal with that by either using a good paint or playing on small maps.
• TDMs: Good, as always. There isn't as much emphasis on defending in TDMs, however, so you should just attack.
• CPs: You can hold down a single control point for a long, long time with this combination. Titan's extra speed compared to Mammoth can come in handy if you need to get to a crowded control point as quickly as possible. Not that good on maps with multiple control points due to your low speed.

Special Notes:

Excellent combination at the M2 level. Both M2 Smoky and M2 Titan are unlocked at Colonel, and both can last you well into the M3 ranks.

 

Overview:

Similar to Smoky-Titan in terms of role and use. Excellent for defending, but you're quite vulnerable to long range weapons. It should be obvious by now that you're not going to capture many flags with this combination.
How it does in different gametypes:

• CTFs: Sit on the flag and defend; that's the best you can do with this combo. It's a really good defender, perhaps the best out of all the hulls here, but that's the limit of its abilities. For attacking, it's really slow, to the point where long range weapons can take you out with ease.
• DMs: Great for DMs on small maps. On larger maps, you will be hit by long range weapons, which you can't retaliate against effectively.
• TDMs: Again, good. Just slow.
• CPs: If you need to hold down a point at all costs, look no further. If you can get to a point, it's going to stay with your team for a long time. Hence it's good for maps like Polygon.

Special notes:

Nothing to note about this combination. It's pretty simple; point and shoot.

___________
Overall, Smoky is one of those weapons where there is no right or wrong hull to mount it on. It's mostly up to personal preference. If you were to ask me, I'd recommend Smoky-Wasp, Smoky-Hunter, Smoky-Dictator, and Smoky-Titan.
 
Smoky Tactics
Smoky requires a lot of skill and tactics to use effectively. While you might be able to do pretty well with just point-and-shoot, you're not using the full potential of Smoky. Let's see what tactics or skills are effective with Smoky.
 
Circle-Strafing: This is quite simple, fun, and effective, but it requires a bit of practice to do right. In short, circle-strafing is driving around your target in circles while firing your weapon at them. You can do this with almost any turret, but it comes in handy with Smoky in particular. Circle-strafing, if performed correctly, allows you to evade damage for long periods of time, since it's hard for your enemy to turn fast enough to aim at you. You'll have a pretty big window of time for Smoky to get a critical hit. In addition, Smoky's knockback allows you to disorient your enemy even more. This tactic works best against medium and heavy hulls, and is best done with a light hull.
 
"Deflecting": Most people call this "messing up somebody's aim", but I think giving it a name would be better.  This tactic is vital for your success as a Smoky. It's hard to master, but once you do, you can become a serious threat to the enemy team. In short, fire your Smoky at the corner of your enemy right before you think they're going to shoot; they'll probably miss, since their aim will be shifted due to knockback. You want to fire at the corner of their tank because it's the furthest away from their center of mass; due to physics, their tank will be turned more by the force of the shot.
 
Deflecting works best against light hulls, since they're affected a lot by impact force. You can still pull it off against medium hulls; heavy hulls are very hard to deflect. This is the best counter to Railgun players, since it's very obvious when they're going to fire.
 
Guerrilla Tactics: This is a blanket term for various tactics that will help you a lot if you're using Smoky on a light or medium hull. The first one you should know is flanking; if your hull isn't particularly durable, you should try to take side routes and attack your enemies from the side or behind. It will take a moment for your enemies to turn around and figure out where your position is. You should also know how to pop in and out of cover to attack enemies; because Smoky shots have a reload, you can afford to hide in cover between shots while still putting a lot of damage on your enemies. Also, remember this: retreat from battles you know you're not going to win. For instance, if you're using Smoky-Wasp, and a Freeze-Wasp is going after you, don't run straight up to them and fight. You should run until you're in a better position to deal with them.
 
Assorted Tips:

• You'll find yourself delivering the killing blow on your targets with a critical hit often. Keep in mind that when this happens, your critical chance is now negative. You will not be able to get a critical hit on the next few hits, and if you immediately engage another enemy, it might be the difference between life and death. To remedy this, try using what I call "charging your crit chance". If you know for sure that your critical chance is negative, look for a few enemies at long range. When you find them (be careful if they're using Railgun or Shaft), fire a few shots at them. Your critical chance will increase to a positive number, giving you the upper hand the next time you engage an enemy. This works because your critical chance increases on hits to enemy targets; it doesn't matter how far away they are. Just don't fire too many, or you might waste a critical hit on somebody too far away to damage effectively.
• If you're engaging Railguns in combat, make sure you can time your deflections right. Deflecting works best if you can shoot them right before their shot fires; a skilled Railgun player might adjust their aim to hit you if you fire too early. Don't fire too late either, or you'll get hit. This takes some practice.
• While deflections can seriously mess up the aim of a scoped Shaft at close range, don't just stand in place if they're looking at you. There's enough of a pause between shots that a good Shaft can still snipe you. Move out of their line of sight.

Smoky against other turrets:
 
This will tell you what to do if you're engaging other turrets in combat.
 
Against Firebird:

Firebird is a close-range powerhouse; its damage per second will turn anything in its way into burning wrecks. As a Smoky, you generally won't have the damage potential to run straight up to a Firebird and win. Firebirds are no problem to engage at medium range, but don't ever let them get close, or you'll find yourself being melted down very quickly.
 
Against Freeze:

Freeze is also a powerful close-range weapon. The main threat Freeze poses to a Smoky user is the freezing effect; you won't be able to land hits on a skilled Freeze if you're frozen. So again, don't let them get close to you. Otherwise, you should be alright.
 
Against Isida:

Isida isn't as powerful in terms of raw damage as its other close range brethren, but it's still not to be underestimated. Isida's self healing is the major issue here; most of the damage you put onto them will be undone if the Isida has a full charge. Compared to Firebird and Freeze, Isidas are less dangerous but more durable targets to deal with.
 
Against Twins:

Twins is for close to medium range combat, just like Smoky. For the most part, you should hang behind cover and pop out to shoot, since it's hard for Twins users to deal much damage if you're not in their line of sight for very long. If they get too close for comfort, you should retreat.
 
Against Ricochet:

Ricochet is well known for its very high damage output. You won't win the damage race against a Ricochet user at close range. In general, deal with Ricochets like Twins users; duck behind cover and move out only to fire. Keep in mind that Ricochet's bouncing effect can hit you if you're not careful. Luckily, Ricochet has a limited supply of energy; if their ammunition supply is depleted or close to depleted, they will not be able to deal much damage to you. A Ricochet with no ammo is easy prey for Smoky.

 

Against Smoky:

Once in a while, you'll have to fight other Smokies. Smoky vs. Smoky combat generally boils down to luck and health. You can try deflecting their shots, but it's more difficult when both of you are trying to do that at the same time. In general, you should get up close and personal, since popping out of cover to fire isn't very effective if the other Smoky is reasonably skilled.

 

Against Thunder:

If you're reasonably lucky, Smoky's damage per second is higher than Thunder's at close range. To deal with these common medium-range turrets, get up close and personal. If you have a durable hull, you should win, unless the Thunder self-destructs. If your hull is not very durable, you should either attack them when they're distracted or stay in cover and take potshots. Watch out for splash damage; a skilled Thunder can hit you even if you're not in their line of sight.
 
Against Railgun:

Railgun is one of the most loved (or hated, depending on who you ask) weapons in the game. If you can master Smoky's knockback, Railgun users will become trivial at close range. It's commonly seen on light hulls (like Hornet), so most Railguns are easy to deflect. The charge up time before a shot certainly makes it easier to mess up their aim as well. Hammer them with as many shots as you can when they're reloading.

 

Keep in mind that your Railgun-slaying abilities will only extend out to about medium range; at long ranges, Railguns will have the upper hand.
 
Against Shaft:

Shaft is awesome when you're using it and evil when you're on the receiving end of those high-powered sniper rounds. As a Smoky, Shafts will probably hand your posterior back to you at long ranges, since your damage and knockback get very weak. You start to become a true threat when you close in on them; Smoky's knockback can prevent a Shaft from even getting their crosshairs near you. Shaft has a limited supply of energy, so ideally, you should start attacking them once they fire off a scope shot. It'll take a while for them to be able to shoot at you again.
 
________________________
Anyway, I hope this guide helped you out. Even if you don't use Smoky, knowing Smoky's properties better can help you if you're going up against one (or several!). If you've found any inaccuracies in the article, please reply and let me know. Thanks for reading!

 

Picture credits:

Credit to Remaine for the title picture.

Credit to Hogree for the pictures of each combination.

 

Edited July 30, 2017 by Hexed

[hogree 4,179]

Fantastic guide. Not a Smoky fan, but really got me thinking. Especially liked the tips. GJ

[Phoenix-Warbird 1,329]

Fantastic guide. Not a Smoky fan, but really got me thinking. Especially liked the tips. GJ

Totally.

It's super helpful for me since I'm new to it having just bought M2 recently

[rotten404 6]

Thank you very much for the tips. I do use Smoky M2 at the moment.

[blackopspaul 753]

Awesome guide killer, I haven't bought Somky yet, I'm getting m2 at Christmas, hopefully, You forgot the old Somky XT, One powerful thunder,

[trombone_ftw 734]

O_O Wow. I haven't read it yet, but just scrolling through, I can see the professionalism. You impressed me even before I read it...

[Promissory 569]

Impact force and knockback are different things. Knockback is the impact on YOU, and impact force is the impact ON THE OPPONENT.

[r_JCar0 289]

A good guide indeed. I'm a devoted smoky addict and am wicked with it. Smoky rules!!

[Thekillerpenguin 1,731]

Impact force and knockback are different things. Knockback is the impact on YOU, and impact force is the impact ON THE OPPONENT.

The wiki refers to the "impact on YOU" as recoil, and I do the same in the article.

 

In the other games I've played, impact force and knockback are used interchangeably, so I've done that here as well.

Edited December 1, 2014 by Thekillerpenguin

[donut70 97]

darn it, now I'm going to have to come up with a different name for my planned ultimate guide to smoky (for experts). FYI I intend to release it when I reach the generalissimo rank.

 

Great job on the article overall. It truly is the best smoky guide I have seen yet, and, (as a smoky specialist who has repeatedly looked up any useful post about smoky)  believe me when I say I have some authority behind that compliment. My overall complaint would be that you didn't go in depth as much as you could, but what you have done is still more then the other smoky guides I have seen.

 

I will get to specific inconsistencies/mistakes you made another time, but for now I need to go to sleep.

Edited December 2, 2014 by donut70

[greyat 2,972]

Wonderful!

 

My two cents: count your shots; with say, M2 Smoky, you can expect a maximum of 6 shots without a critical. Thus you can use this knowledge to "save" a critical for a fresh enemy, or until you get a DP on...

Also note that if you do get caught by a close range gun or Rico/Twins, it would be best to strafe back and forth; it seems a disproportionately high number of Rico and Isida users cannot turn their turrets, even at higher ranks; strafing:

(1) may make Isida users break their lock on you, if you are at enough of an angle to their gun

(2) may make Rico rounds miss

Edited December 2, 2014 by greyat

[deciderking 57]

Good guide line and smoky is really dangerous with double and critical hits. i like smoky with hornet. 

[redfrostgragon 4]

Love iT!!!!!!!!!

[splitterpoint 10,986]

Awesome guide man, good job.

[andrius2525 5]

When you will do a thunder guide??? :angry:

[andreaNEW 108]

 

 

Smoky - for some, it's sitting at M0 in their garages, collecting dust. 

 

 

hehehe, it's me ! actually I don't like smoky . But I like your giude, well done.

+1 for you

[anuclearbomb 220]

nice guide, thanks for alerting me to the possible tactics that smokeis might use against me, also, for the" what to do when you encounter shaft" bit,  a skilled shaft can and would just tapshot, does more damage than smokey and has simalar reload speed so.. but yeah, nice guide.

[r_FrozenGold0 26]

haha you are making my guide look like a baby made it.  Excellent guide with a good description on the past, as well as detailed info on the hulls and 1v1 battles.

Overall a great guide keep up the good work! +1

[Daniel898 327]

Yeah, I'm the guy that has the M0 smoky collecting dust in their garage.

[doughnut2100 763]

Good job! Got me more interested since I might be getting m1-m2.

[McMacklemore 39]

Nice Article. I'm a Smoky lover, and with this i might be able to enhance my Smoky skills!

Edited December 3, 2014 by McMacklemore

[r_Just_T0 11]

now how about a guide to thunder?

[Pedoskullz 6]

Is smoky m2 good? Cos i need to save up desperately if i wanna get it this christmas, and i don't know whether its worth it. Some people say it sucks, some people say it rocks. I'm so confused-.-

[Pedoskullz 6]

Halp meh

[r_PC-JACK0 91]

Good job man ts a real good guide. :):)