Guide [Issue 53] TKP and Grey(c)at's Guide to BT

[Thekillerpenguin 1,731]

yes, the wavy lines are poorly drawn on purpose.

 
The 'BT', or Wasp-Twins game mode is an extremely unpopular mode of gameplay. Despite this, on further investigation we determined that it offers great opportunities for those who partake. Even more so that XP/BP, BT is a highly skill-based format, requiring that players be quick on their feet (treads?), good at leading their shots, and more than a just a little crazy.
 
Most of you probably have never heard of, much less played in, a BT battle. We will try to educate you on the basics and nuances of this unique game mode based on our experience with it.
 
This guide will be split into sections, because why not. We are very pro at BT, but currently the sample size is 2, possibly 3 (depending on whether our overinflated egos can count as half a being), so whether that is actually true or not remains to be shown.
 

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Why?

 

"Wasp-Twins is a horrible combo," you cry. "It has no place on the battlefield! It's bad for attacking, bad for defending, and bad for everything in between! " Let's face it, Hornet-Railgun isn't a perfect combination either. We personally wouldn't use it for attacking and it wouldn't be a first choice for hardcore defense either. The beauty of format battles is that everyone has the same (or at the very least a very similar) combination. In XP battles, everybody uses Railgun on a light hull. If you want to attack, you have to use that. If you want to defend, you have to use that. And in a BT battle, if you want to do anything, you have to use Wasp-Twins. Simple as that. So why Wasp-Twins?
 
Why not?
 
It's a combination almost never seen on the battlefield above the M0 ranks, has few if any comprehensive strategies, and it's fun to use because of its sheer supposed ridiculousness. So if seeing one Wasp-Twins is funny...
 
...imagine seeing a whole battlefield of them.

 

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What?

 
So, the basics.
 
BT is the abbreviation of Wasp-Twins in Russian. As such, you should be using nothing other than Wasp-Twins. Yes, this means that Hornet-Twins is prohibited. No, you are not allowed to use Hunter and Viking. This is not an eSports match. And get that Hammer out of here, ruiner.
 
There are significant differences in the performance of each modification of Twins, so all the players in a BT battle should agree on using a certain modification of both Wasp and Twins when possible. If someone in a battle has a lesser modification, say, a M1 Wasp-Twins in a battle where other players are using M2 Wasp-Twins, they can use a small amount of protection to help even the odds. Otherwise, you should avoid protective paints when possible. There are no fixed rules for this because of the aforementioned very noticeable differences in performance between M1-M3 Twins- differences that are very difficult to overcome with skill. While M1 Railgun can destroy a M3 Wasp in the same number of hits as a M3 Railgun, the same does not apply to M1 and M3 Twins.
 
Wasp-Twins should be played on medium to small maps, since Twins is quite useless outside of medium range. Very small maps like Island are perhaps the most challenging to play on, since there is almost nowhere to hide, making battles precarious and fast paced. Small maps like Arena or Atra are probably the most beginner-friendly, and maps like Polygon have slower paced action but can still be chaotic. Playing on something like Lost Temple would be kind of sad. Although, Dusseldorf could make for interesting battles.
 
Here's some vitally important helpful dialogue and shorthand for BT battles:
 

waw - wow

mult - mult

nug - nug

нуб - noob

d3s - noob

noob - noob

haker, hax - noob

xaxaxa - hahaha

:c - :c

:3 - cat

( : > - penguin

NS - if you see this RUN RUN RUN YOU MAY YET SURVIVE

 
All communication in BT battles should be a combination of the above terms plus maybe a few other words if you're feeling generous. For example:
 
"waw Night-Sisters big mult нуб noob xaxaxaxa"
 
means "wow Night-Sisters big noob hahaha". As you can see, this allows for very deep and meaningful communication.
 

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Which?

 
BT battles are virtually nonexistent. You will probably not be able to search for them. To play them, you'll have to invite a bunch of friends since you can no longer rename battles (thanks Obama).
 
BT is meant to be played for fun since you don't really need a lot of finesse to play. As such, you can toy around with the settings as you see fit. Want drugs? Sure, go ahead. Don't like Smart Cooldowns? Turn them off, we don't care. Supply boxes? Why not? The only thing you should turn off is micro-upgrades, since they can give an unfair advantage. Should  ever return... well, things would get a lot more fun...
 
We've discussed maps before. Any smallish or medium map  will do. Sandal, Arena, Pass, and even Polygon are fun maps to play BT battles on. If you want a bloodbath, pick a map with lots of close quarters- the aforementioned Pass is a good choice due to the narrow passageways and chokepoints. Island is good for 1v1s.
 
Team size is also up to you, but the largest possible size is recommended for maximum chaos. This means a 4 vs 4 on Sandbox or a 20 vs 20 on Dusseldorf.
 

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How?

 
Now that you know how to set up your very own BT battle, let's learn some basic strategy for fighting with Wasp-Twins and coordinating with your team. In memory of the late hog, let's make an acrostic, this time out of a time honored adage.
 
Balance - both in terms of teams and physically. To have fair teams, ensure that there is the same number of players of each team. More importantly, however, it's vital to stay on your tracks. Wasp has negligible stability while performing interesting activities, such as getting pummeled by a barrage of Twins. Hence, it is up to you to stay track-side down. Don't just park your tank and shoot - you'll end up upside down in no time. Rather, to avoid this hilarious unfortunate outcome, move! Back away, circle, do what ever it takes - just don't lose your balance.
 
Lead your shots - Twins isn't a hit-scan weapon - the charges take time to fly through the air. While facing a fast opponent such as an enemy BT, it is easy to miss your shots if you just shoot at where your enemy is - they most likely won't be there when your shots reach there. You have to aim slightly ahead of their current position in order to ensure hitting them. Remember, the further apart you and your opponent are, the greater the distance by which you have to lead your shots. Keep in mind, however, that Twins' damage falls with distance - a long range duel will likely take many years to conclude.
 
Anticipation - as with hog's guide, anticipation is key. Though Twins lacks a charging feature, being aware of your enemies' whereabouts and movements is vital. Given that Twins' rotation speed still has some to be desired, and Wasp's lack of health, if you're surprised from the behind, you'll likely be dead without getting off a single shot. How does one keep track of enemies? Why, with the camera, of course. Use the Q/E or Page up/Page down keys to change camera angles, and turn your turret or hull to pivot the camera. With these techniques, it'll be very hard to sneak up on you again.
 
Mult - if you used Wasp-Twins in a normal battle, you'd probably be called a mult. In a BT battle, everyone is a mult. Everyone is ridiculous. Don't be afraid to loosen up and have some mindless fun that would get you yelled at in ordinary situations.
 
EAT CHICKEN - so that your young Wasp may grow up to be a bigger stronger Wasp and crush all the enemies!!1!1
 
Turning your turret and hull together in the same direction lets you spin rapidly, useful for switching targets in the middle of a heated engagement. Activating or picking up a Speed Boost also helps. Just remember not to get too dizzy. If you do, spin in the opposite direction for a similar length of time- it'll go away quicker.¹
 
Have fun - [insert cliche.jpg] If you haven't managed to figure it out yet, here's a hint: BT isn't the most serious of battle modes. Actually, we would nominate it for second-most-silly battle mode 2k16 (after Mammoth-Isida/Irbis, of course). The point of this is to have fun with (mostly) friends. There's no point in getting uptight about some minor slight.
 
Elevation - contrary to experience garnered from other modes of battle, we find that, often, the player at the lower elevation has an advantage. Why is this? Keep in mind that BT, first and foremost, is a close-range battle mode. Nope, no fancy long range sniping here. More than that, with Twins, it's quite difficult to hit someone below you. If you end up on top of someone, your shots will sail harmlessly into the air while you're pummeled into scrap metal. Even without that unfortunate scenario, understand that Twins' high impact force will lift the front of your hull; doing so on a ramp could seal your demise.
 
Ninja skills are semi-optional. Sure, there's always the part about keeping track of your opponent, but that doesn't mean you can't do a little sneaking yourself. If they aren't the best of players, this'll help you quite a bit. Hide behind walls on larger maps, and if faced with close-combat, circle and strafe, circle and strafe. Just keep in mind that if your enemy is in range, so are you. You won't be able to hide behind a wall immediately after firing (well, you could, but good luck killing anything that way) like you can with Railgun, so once your cover is blown (by yourself or an enemy), commit to combat and don't try to play cat-and-mouse like you would in a XP battle. If you try that, you'll probably end up dead.
 
Sabotage² (sometimes known as wrestling) can be fun. Maps with ramps or precarious surfaces like Novel, Arena, and Year 2042 are good places to wrestle, but ramps are simpler. To do this, you and your opponent should be on the same team, and should stay on the ramp. A third player will be a referee, and can be armed with a Shaft or a Hammer. Once the referee says go, you and your opponent can start driving and shooting. The objective is to either flip your opponent over or knock them off the edge of the ramp (off a cliff or something like that) with careful maneuvering and firing. You are allowed to stray a little bit off of the ramp onto solid and level ground if the wrestling deviates there, but if you go too far, the ref is allowed to shoot you. If you lose, either by getting Sparta-kicked or flipped upside-down, the ref executes you and gives your opponent a point, and vice versa. First player to 3 points wins and gets to kill the ref. (yes you can team up and kill the ref beforehand but what fun is that? (ok it's fairly fun the first few times we'll give you that))
 
¹​Or you may simply suffer an epileptic seizure and die. The authors of this guide are in no way responsible for any such occurrences, including but not limited to seizures, vomiting, death, and carpal tunnel syndrome.
 
²DISCLAIMER TO THE ABOVE. IF YOU ATTEMPT THIS IN AN ACTUAL BATTLE YOU WILL GET BANNED/BLOCKED AND SUFFER. WE ARE IN NO WAY RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS AND ANY OTHER OUTCOMES RESULTING FROM BT BATTLES.
 

 

That's it for this guide. We hope you learned some new things by reading this. Like, for example, what a BT battle is. Or how to get dizzy. Or un-dizzify yourself. Whether these new things are actually going to be useful for you or not is less clear. Go out, get a bunch of friends, and play some BT. Or any other format that you think is interesting. Playing XP all the time gets a little boring, no?

 

Did you enjoy this article? Check out the rest of Issue 53 right here!

Edited July 20, 2017 by Hexed

[Hex 11,520]

:huh:

[ethanisme 1,115]

Rofl anyone wanna try this with me?

[fordmustang12345 3,910]

Rofl anyone wanna try this with me?

sure . You have M0 twinss right :D

[ethanisme 1,115]

sure . You have M0 twinss right :D

Xd 

[Quarks 2,255]

I got m1,m0, and not skillz. This helped me become a proz.

[arnav0506 2,777]

BT -,- LITERALLY?!! omg..

[thunderousrailgunner 1,934]

I Tried it with Grey Cat :P

[asifmehmood 1,576]

Lol xaxaxa = hahahah

[Zenyth 6,494]

rofl

[DragonOfStorms 2,706]

Rofl anyone wanna try this with me?

You are ON!

 

 

M0+M2 vs. M2 + M1 - I suppose you can use a paint

 

[KillerGnat 3,135]

waw thenks for dis pro guide people. it is like so pro i go 'so cool' now i know ho2 play pro with these combo!1!11!1!!1!!

[pk1215 0]

The eating chicken reference made my day.

[Quarks 2,255]

The eating chicken reference made my day.

I guess you have never read the paper before...

[pk1215 0]

I guess you have never read the paper before...

Seriously bruh? I have read every single article in the paper since Issue 1. I just enjoy a little chicken once in a while in my life. Problem?

[donaldo9000 1,342]

:lol:

[Tp0d 3]

Rofl anyone wanna try this with me?

sure

[bryanchua 33]

OMG, how dare u say that XP is not good.

[Royalworld 1,269]

No one noticed "BLAME THE NS"?

[Quarks 2,255]

No one noticed "BLAME THE NS"?

I did

[DarkOperative 5,580]

"Blame the NS" :lol: