Guide [Issue 47] Scrutinized: Railgun

[Contradiction 1,242]

 

Railgun is a popular turret in Tanki Online. It is extraordinarily powerful when in the right hands, and is notorious for the immensely skillful nature of the weapon. It is fairly accepted that Railgun is the most skillful turret in Tanki Online.  However, Railgun has always had a dual reputation: The first being that it is a powerful and dangerous turret, and the second being that it is an overrated, ineffective turret that is only used by egotistical tankers claiming that they are “pros”. I intend to prove the latter of these two statements as false. Railgun is a competent turret in a variety of maps and game modes, and is a useful tool for any team.  Anyone on any skill-level can learn to become an efficient Railgun user, and one does not need to be a “pro” to use Railgun. Railgun is actually a weapon that can be successful in regular, random battles—it just requires a bit more of an operator than other turrets. This analysis will delve into the strategies and tactics used by successful railgun operators, and give a few key tips to those looking to improve their skill with Railgun. Keep reading to find out more!

 

Understanding Railgun

 

Here is a list of useful facts to those wishing to understand the turret better. 

 

- If you are on your side, you can use your impact force to flip yourself back upright. However, every hull past Viking is too heavy for this strategy to work. Dictator and onward cannot get back upright by itself when on its side. 

- Here is a list of how many shots it takes to destroy hulls with varying modifications of Railgun against a hull of the same modification. Paints and micro-upgrades are not taken into consideration.  

- Using Railgun, it takes 1 – 2 shots to destroy a wasp of the same modification.

- It takes 2 shots to destroy a Hornet.

- It requires 2-3 shots to destroy a Hunter (usually two)

- 2-3 shots to destroy a Viking

- 2-3 shots to destroy a Dictator (usually three)

- 3-4 shots to destroy a Titan

- 3-4 shots to destroy a Mammoth

- The warmup time of a Railgun shot (directly after your press the spacebar) is just about 1.1 seconds, though the time does decrease slightly at higher modifications. 

- At M3, this turret reloads in just about six seconds. Excluding warm up times, it takes five seconds for this turret to charge. 

- Damage per minute: Railgun M3 outputs an average of 1,356.1 damage per minute, and fires just south of ten shots every sixty seconds.

 

Pros and Cons

 

Railgun is a fairly versatile turret, but it certainly doesn’t fare well in all situations. Railgun has some very clear strengths and weaknesses. If one can avoid these weaknesses, you will find that Railgun is a powerful turret. 

 

- Extremely high damage per shot

This is one of the turret’s biggest strengths. Railgun has a very low damage per minute output, but it has an incredibly high damage per shot, allowing it to destroy any hull in the game within a handful of shots. If you maximize this trait, you will find that you are a master at stealing kills as well as crippling enemies one shot at a time. If you want to best benefit your team, target enemies that are high on health- that way, your damage per shot is not wasted on tankers that are already extremely close to death. 

 

- Extremely powerful impact force

Another one of Railgun’s primary features, high impact force is generally an advantage. Especially when firing at another Railgun, you will frequently scramble an enemy’s aim. Players of XP-BP know this all too well. However, be careful when using lighter hulls; if one shoots to their side while in midair, one will usually flip.

 

- Infinite Range

Railgun is known as a “sniper” because of its infinite range and high damage at all distances. Railgun is indeed a very effective sniper, and should never be played as a close range weapon if you have an alternative turret other than Shaft. Railgun can hit and destroy enemies from all across the map, which is very useful for any team.

 

- Long reload time

This is one of Railgun’s main disadvantages. After a Railgun fires, it needs to wait at least six seconds to fire again. By this time, enemies may have charged at you or taken you down. Essentially, while Railgun is reloading, it is a sitting duck to opponents. A good user of Railgun will carefully time his shots to be sure that he is safe and out of the way of enemies.

 

- Difficult aiming

Other turrets, such as Ricochet, Twins, or Hammer, have large projectiles and fast reloads, so missing is not that big of a deal. Thunder has splash damage, Smoky has a very quick rate of fire, and Shaft has a scope. The close range turrets such as Firebird, Isida or Freeze are naturally fairly easy to aim. The only turret that does not have any easy way to aim is Railgun, which also happens to be the turret with the longest reload. For these reasons, it is difficult to master the art of aiming with Railgun. Railgun has a low auto-aim angle, so hitting enemies above or below can prove to be a challenge. Additionally, the width of Railgun’s beam is quite low, it has a slow rotation speed, and it has a one second delay before firing. However, a skilled Railgunnist will learn to predict his enemy’s moves and cope with this feature.

 

Choosing a Hull

 

Choosing a hull isn't all that difficult for a Railgun user. I definitely advocate using lighter, nimbler hulls rather than going for armor. Here are a few of my favorite hulls to use with Railgun:

 

- Wasp

Sorry GoldBrick, but I definitely prefer BP to XP. I do think you won the argument last issue, but I don't think that you were right. Wasp is an extremely quick hull, perfect for getting to the right places at the right time and getting out fast. Wasp is simply a perfect pair with Railgun. Wasp's light weight allows one to rock one's hull forward and backward in order to get higher and lower shots not possible solely with Railgun's autoaim. Also, Wasp's quick turning speed makes up for Railgun's slow rotation speed; in the amount of time it takes for your Railgun to warm-up, one can make a nearly a full 360 degree turn with Wasp M3.  

Wasp is also excellent at sheer maneuverability; it can circle enemies, throw off people's shots, and generally cause havoc everywhere it goes. 

 

- Dictator

Dictator is an unusual choice for Railgun users these days. However, I am still very fond of this combination. Dictator is a slow but heavily armored hull, and is surprisingly effective when mounted with Railgun. As we all know, Dictator is the tallest hull in the game. Because of this, when you hit enemies with Railgun, you will usually hit their turrets. This is a very good method of knocking off their aim. Also, Dictator's height allows it make shots over obstacles that other hulls are not able to do. Finally, Dictator is a good choice simply because of its health, weight, and power. Dictator is great at shoving enemies out of your way. It is a fairly heavy hull, so it is significantly more difficult to knock off its aim compared to lighter hulls such as Hornet. Dictator has a lot more health than XP or BP, and can generally survive three Railgun shots.

 

- Hornet

This is a good choice for Railgun for many of the same reasons as Wasp. Additionally, Hornet is a much stabler of a hull compared to Wasp- and stability is a very beneficial trait for Railgun. It is more difficult to flip or knock off a Hornet as opposed to a Wasp. Hornet may be seen as a more well rounded hull; it is definitely more effective in drug battles or many non-format battles. Finally, Hornet is a good choice because of XP battles. XP-BP battles are common, but not nearly as common as XP. If you want to be a player of XP or XP-BP battles, Hornet is a great choice. I can say that, hands down, I find XP/XP-BP battles to be exponentially more fun than other alternatives.

 

- Hunter

Hunter is another of my favorite combinations with Railgun. Hunter is probably my favorite hull, and it is a good jack-of-all-trades with a number of weapons. Hunter/Railgun was one of, if not the most, popular combination seen in Star Series, and for good reason. Hunter has similar mobility to Hornet, but when coupled with a fairly Railgun-protective paint, it can consistently survive three Railgun hits. In regular random battles, Hunter is probably my favorite hull to use with Railgun. Overall, it is a dependent hull that can perform well in a variety of situations.

 

- Titan or Mammoth: Don't use these!

I would not recommend using Titan or Mammoth with Railgun. These hulls' sluggish speed is extremely unproductive when combined with a slow-loading turret like Railgun. The only effective strategy one can do is to camp near your flag, and even then I would not advise this strategy. Using Titan or Mammoth may not always be disastrous, but I definitely think that almost any other hull will be a better choice when it comes to Railgun.

 

The Basics

 

Perhaps unlike other turrets, an effective user of Railgun must be aware and fluent of a few necessities while using the weapon. Without these, you will find yourself plummeting down the scoreboard and eventually leaving the turret to gather dust in the garage.

 

- You NEED to turn your turret. 

If you are going to use Railgun, you need to know how to turn your turret. Without using your turret rotation, your productivity in the battlefield will be reduced dramatically. You will be one of the most useless players on your team. Railgun is all about precision aiming and timing. Without turning your turret, you will lose all of Railgun’s potential capability at making pin-point shots, shooting around corners and small gaps, and, perhaps most of all, awareness of the map (turning your turret rotates your camera position). 

 

If you do not turn your turret and do not know how to do so, I urge you to force yourself to use turret-rotation keys. Hand position is very important: If you use the arrow keys, put your left hand on the Z,X,C, and spacebar keys. Use your right hand to operate the arrow keys. 

 

- You must have a good understanding of game basics. 

If you are using Firebird or Smoky, you can hurdle around the map, shooting any enemy in your path. One can do this with Railgun as well, but you won’t be nearly as effective as other turrets. If you want to be a useful Railgun user, memorize how many shots it takes to kill each hull.

 

Remember which paints are especially protective against Railgun, and which turrets are especially hazardous to a Railgun. Strive to shoot at enemies that are at full health rather than are close to death; this will make best use of your damage per shot. Always pay attention to the battlefield, and remember routes that have worked best in the path. I’ll say this over and over again throughout this article: Timing, aiming, and observance are the key to success.

 

- Use the Q/E keys to adjust your camera angle.

This is a skill that I never mastered until last summer. It is extremely important to a Railgun user; it can drastically increase your map awareness. The Q/E keys are the most easily accessible, but the [ ] keys can also change your camera angle. If you did not already know, these keys lower or raise the position of the camera above your hull. 

 

Essentially, if you find yourself in a close range encounter, with enemies lying in wait behind buildings and walls, you will want to raise your camera angle in order to see your enemies. You will be able to see when they are moving out of cover or when they are reloading, which will give you a huge advantage compared to blindly guessing when your opponents will attack. 

If you are in a long range map and are planning on making pin-point shots at enemies in the distance, you need to lower your camera to see forward.  If you do not do this, you won’t be able to see all the way ahead of your hull. Also, if you are in an exposed position, it is good to lower your camera angle so as to see enemies that are shooting at you. 

A good Railgun user constantly adjusts his camera angle in all maps. It is a very useful tool, granting one a new level of adjustment and awareness. 

 

Tactics and Strategies

 

- The most basic of Railgun tactics: Peek-a-boom

This strategy is a fundamental piece of Railgun tactics. Most likely, all of us already have used or witnessed this strategy being used. It is quite simple: Hide behind a wall, press spacebar, and pop out just before your warmup ends and the shot is fired. The reason this is so effective is because it allows your opponents no chance to react. They can’t get out of the way or try to knock off your aim with a shot. It can be used in all kinds of different situations; whenever you are going to come out of cover to shoot an enemy, try to press spacebar before you are fully exposed. Even if you shoot a millisecond before your enemy, it will be more than worth it since the shot probably will have knocked off their aim. This strategy is constantly used by effective Railgun operators. It can be used in all kinds of situations. Be careful of miscalculating your enemies’ moves.  If you can learn to time it perfectly to waste as little time as possible on the warm up, you will be surprisingly more effective than you would guess. Once, I made a goal to time my Railgun shots perfectly: that the moment I left cover, my weapon would have already warmed up and would fire instantly. I practiced dozens of these kinds of peek-a-boom shots in empty Sandbox maps, and I became very proficient at it. To my surprise, firing almost un-measurably sooner made a big difference in my battle performance.

 

- Rocking your hull

Most of you should be familiar with this strategy. If not, you have a lot to learn. Railgun has a low auto-aim angle, fortunately this can be countered by rocking your hull forward and backward to fire your shot at a higher or lower angle (depending on the level of the enemy you are firing at). It sounds simple, but it is also very complex. If you wish to flip an enemy, then rocking your hull is a crucial piece of this strategy. Wasp is the best hull at rocking, but you can do it with just about anything. Rocking your hull is used constantly by effective Railgun operators, and is really an essential piece of Railgun strategy. 

 

- Multi-kills and lining up enemies

This is another big part of Railgun tactics. Because the railgun beam can penetrate through Tank armor, it can damage multiple enemies in one shot. The damage decreases after it has passed through a single tank, but it is still possible to kill dozens of tanks in one shot. At M0 and M1 modifications, the damage dealt by Railgun after it has already hit another enemy is minimal, but at M2 and M3, it can be very significant. In XP-BP, one should always attempt to line up his enemies in order to maximize his damage potential. Since all hulls are two shots in XP-BP, even if you hit someone through another tank, it still deals enough damage to make them one shot to whomever hits them next. Because of this, you can make double kills or even triple kills. However, lining up enemies correctly is surprisingly difficult- usually, both of your targets are moving. Timing must be near perfect, and this skill definitely takes concentration. I have found that it is easiest to make "double-shots" in Polygon CP XP-BP, because so many tanks are often confined to the area around the point. If you can consistently make shots damaging multiple enemies, it can practically double your damage output (especially in XP-BP).

 

- Flipping Enemies

Due to Railgun's extraordinary impact force, one can successfully flip enemy hulls with a well placed shot. Flipping enemies is actually pretty easy if you know when to shoot. Basically, if an enemy hull is jumping from one space to another (perhaps a ledge or a cliff), you can flip them. If they are jumping off a larger cliff, then simply hitting the middle of their hull will generally flip them over. If you are behind an enemy while he jumps off a smaller ledge, you can usually flip them by hitting the very back of their hull the moment they are falling. Rocking your hull upward while you shoot is beneficial, as you will hit the top of their hull as they fall. Another common situation to flip enemies is at ramps. If a light hull is charging up a ramp (perhaps with speed boost), a Railgun user can flip them if he is able to hit the side of their turret as they get airborne. 

 

- Knocking off opponents' aim

Once again, Railgun's high impact force is a very useful trait. Railgun can easily knock off light hulls' aim. This strategy is especially effective in XP-BP, if you manage to make the first shot. Frequently, encounters in XP-BP will result in one player firing a millisecond before another. Unfortunately, the first player will usually be the only one to make the shot, because the latter player will miss by being knocked off. If you can rock your hull upward and hit the turret of an enemy, their shot will fly above you, without any chance of actually making its mark. If you can just hit the side of their hull (preferable the corner) they will usually miss as well. 

 

- Using Railgun defensively 

Unlike almost any other turret, Railgun can actually be used as a form of protection rather than solely a weapon of destruction. Because of its high damage and impact force, people naturally tend to avoid being shot by Railgun. For this reason, a shot at the right time can actually help protect you from enemies. If you are running to cover and being chased by an enemy, after you go around a corner, you can fire your weapon to try to slow them down. If they are observant, they won't blindly follow you- they will wait until after you have fired to drive around the corner. If you are close enough to cover or an ally, this can save you just enough time to survive. This strategy is used a lot more actively in XP-BP formats, especially when you have the flag and are in an exposed area. 

 

- Prediction

Being able to correctly time and predict your enemies' movies is the basis for many Railgun tactics. But, I feel like it is a tactic in and of itself. If you can predict your enemies' moves before they can, you will be successful. It is all about speed- if you can guess when your enemy will pop out from cover to hit you, you can try to shoot before they do. If you can hit them before they hit you, (even if it is a fraction of a second earlier) then they will probably miss. If you are playing against another Railgun, you will also reload before they do and hit them first a second time. Additionally, if you can predict when they will take the flag, or when another ally will shoot at them, you will gain a huge advantage. Being able to guess each of their goals and moves will give you the ability to prevent their success.

 

- Navigating ramps and jumps

If you are on a ramp and are confronted by an enemy above, there are a few things you can try to do. If they try to come down onto the ramp to shoot at you, shoot the very front of their hull as they roll onto the ramp, and try to drive underneath their hull. If you are successful, it will be very difficult for them to hit you. They might be able to drop a mine if it is a supply battle, but this is still an avoidable threat. If the enemy at the top of the ramp is adamantly waiting until you expose yourself, drive to the top of the ramp, rock your hull forward, and fire. Usually, you will hit your target and only be exposed for a second or so. If an enemy is jumping from above, try to negotiate your hull into a position where they will land on top of you. If they are on top of you, they have no way of shooting at you, while you can shoot at them. 

 

Learning to play with Railgun

 

If you want to improve your Railgun skills, there are a few things I would recommend. 

 

- Choosing a map

I recommend playing in Sandbox if you are learning to play with Railgun, or already like to use the turret. Sandbox is an excellent map- its long, straight corridors are perfect for Railgun. One who plays in Sandbox will soon realize that there is a lot more to it than meets the eye. There are a variety of shots that you can learn, and I feel like this map is a good teacher for those using Railgun. It is also the most common map in the game, and sometimes it seems as if half of all XP-BP battles are in Sandbox.

 

Another great map is Barda. Barda is one of, if not my favorite, map. It simply has a multitude of firing angles and good positions. Barda is a fairly common map (especially at low ranks), and I really enjoy its CTF gameplay. In fact, here is a little video I made of some of the shots possible in Barda (I made it when I was a Master Sergeant :3)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UEbP4oKr_c 

 

Other than these two maps, just about any large map will do well with Railgun. Rio, Osa, Skyscrapers, Serpuchow, and Red Alert are all good choices. Additionally, I would decidedly not recommend playing in Polygon CP with Railgun. This is simply a bad choice, as almost any other turret (besides Shaft) will outperform Railgun in this map. 

 

- Play in 1 v 1s

I spent a lot of my time in 1 vs 1s while I was a low-ranker. I found that 1 vs 1s really do improve your skills significantly, especially when you are playing against tankers of a similar skill level. I've heard it said that 1 vs 1s don't say anything about a tanker's skill. I disagree with this to some extent. I definitely feel like a good Railgun duelist is a fairly skilled player.

 

- The Mindset

If I believe that there is a certain frame of mind that will help exemplify your skill. If you are going to play with Railgun, don't just go through the motions. Every moment is important, and if you are truly concentrating, you can do well. When you are spawning, pay attention to the map. While drifting through the air, you actually have a very strategic view from above. Don't join maps to play- join to win. Be mindful of all aspects of the game, such as where the flags are located. Observance is a really important piece of the game. 

---

 

This concludes my guide to Railgun. Like Ricochet, this is an extremely powerful but also demanding turret. Because of this, it is one of the most exhilarating turrets in the game. While using Railgun, be aware of everything around you, and don't stop thinking. Good luck!

Edited July 24, 2017 by Hexed

[Rico_Viking_9000 942]

I find that way too many people never turn their gun, and it is very annoying no matter what team I am on.

is being a rebel in the picture. Lol.  :P

Edited January 22, 2016 by Rico_Viking_9000

[Rohit_1997 456]

Twins has splash damage?

[DragonOfStorms 2,706]

Very good article. I appreciate it a lot - keep up the good work, Contradiction!

[Lord-of-the-Snipers 1,620]

Long read, but definitely worth it. Impressive!

[Quarks 2,255]

If you do not turn your turret and do not know how to do so, I urge you to force yourself to use turret-rotation keys. Hand position is very important: If you use the arrow keys, put your left hand on the Z,X,C, and spacebar keys. Use your right hand to operate the arrow keys. 

The enlarged key is useless after a while. Having to center your turret is useful at lower ranks, but as of right now, as a major, it is pointless and useless. That is probably my only critic of this. Well written, per usual.              

[bomber1989 31]

Nice artical! Keep it up! ☺

[Lord-of-the-Snipers 1,620]

The enlarged key is useless after a while. Having to center your turret is useful at lower ranks, but as of right now, as a major, it is pointless and useless. That is probably my only critic of this. Well written, per usual.              

Your right, I 'm pretty sure that @Contradiction doesn 't use that centerkey himself either. (or when WASD: only use < and > )

 

TO should better remove this key entirely in my opinion.

By doing that Tankers have to learn to rotate their turret right from the start.

 

Now you still can, though rare, even meet Generalissimo 's that have a fixed turret. :wacko:

Edited January 22, 2016 by Lord-of-the-Snipers

[Podey_the_Buster 87]

Nice article, I've always had problems using Railgun, I'll try to use those tactics, it might help.

[Hex 11,520]

Never play in a Polygon CP? Dude c'mon... PCX or Polygon CP XP/BP is the only battle I can see... There are Railguns everywhere...

 

 

 

Maybe you're right.

 

 

Maybe not

 

 

:ph34r:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other than that, a huge +1.

Edited January 24, 2016 by Hexed

[marc.jp_44 20,837]

Brilliant. All that I can say lol. +1.

[KillerGnat 3,135]

Didn't read, lol.

Jk, I read the entire thing. It's phenomenal.

 

[Lord-of-the-Snipers 1,620]

Never play in a Polygon CP? Dude c'mon... PCX or Polygon CP XP/BP is the only battle I can see... There are Railguns everywhere...

 

Other than that, a huge +1.

quote from the article: "Additionally, I would decidedly not recommend playing in Polygon CP with Railgun.

This is simply a bad choice, as almost any other turret (besides Shaft) will outperform Railgun in this map."

 

The author is only talking about using Railgun in regular polygon CP 's where it is outperformed by other weapons.

 

Ofcourse this is a different story in a Polygon CP XP/BP because as you say: "there are Railguns everywhere"...

and no other kind of weapons that can outperform it can enter. 

[Roadrunner15 47]

Reread the Difficult Aiming paragraph. You have some typos to fix... Other wise I like the content :)

[fightermalikio20115 374]

nice work

[marc.jp_44 20,837]

Reread the Difficult Aiming paragraph. You have some typos to fix... Other wise I like the content :)

I don't think there are any. I'd just say Railgunner instead of Railgunnist.

[Hex 11,520]

quote from the article: "Additionally, I would decidedly not recommend playing in Polygon CP with Railgun.

This is simply a bad choice, as almost any other turret (besides Shaft) will outperform Railgun in this map."

 

The author is only talking about using Railgun in regular polygon CP 's where it is outperformed by other weapons.

 

Ofcourse this is a different story in a Polygon CP XP/BP because as you say: "there are Railguns everywhere"...

and no other kind of weapons that can outperform it can enter. 

Even in Polygon CP's no format, there are always 2-3 Railguns in everywhere battle I joined. Eventually, I resorted to XB\BP.

 

We can use Railgun though: (tried it myself before saying this, so no doubts.)

Pair up Wasp + Rail in Poly CP, and be a Supporter. Make snipes from the top or the grassy area. You can stil lead the leaderboard.

[Hex 11,520]

^ Ignoring that, this is an impressive series, written beautifully by a middle ranked tanker - Contra ;)

Scrutinize Thunder or Hammer next Contra  :wub:

 

 

:ph34r:

 

 

Edited January 24, 2016 by Hexed

[Lord-of-the-Snipers 1,620]

Even in Polygon CP's no format, there are always 2-3 Railguns in everywhere battle I joined. Eventually, I resorted to XB\BP.

 

We can use Railgun though: (tried it myself before saying this, so no doubts.)

Pair up Wasp + Rail in Poly CP, and be a Supporter. Make snipes from the top or the grassy area. You can stil lead the leaderboard.

True, if someone has well developed skills, you can be a great asset to the team in this supporting role.

Though I believe there are better weapons than Railgun to be used in this supporting role.

 

Unfortunately if you have a couple of players in a team who all try to only support like this but fail: the battle is lost.

In most cases you much better have players who are constantly trying to capture the point.

[slycleaversmart 1,154]

I use only rail I am a BP player and always will be XD

[Superlative 500]

Refreshing.. I also found it very well written. Please write articles like these but please reduce the length as much as possible next time. 

[anuclearbomb 220]

 Additionally, I would decidedly not recommend playing in Polygon CP with Railgun. This is simply a bad choice, as almost any other turret (besides Shaft) will outperform Railgun in this map. 

Hey!! i'd like to see you win vs me in a polygon CP

Great article... i'll put the whole shaft thing to the side.(still open for challengers) 

[AN_602 280]

Railgun is THE gun! :D though i do feel like i've been cheating on it with Twins in Polygon CP :P

[Supernatural 2,053]

The feeling when a Major know stuff better than 99% of Generalissimos. Hats off!

[Nathan1100 3]

just an afterthought, on the section of turning your turret, can you mention the alternate keys(<, >, and ? keys) for turret turning as well? the alternative keys are more comfortable for some people.