LRM frig spam counter? » Forum Post by -=XX=-Nephilim

Waiting for it to be addressed in a patch is a good counter, as is quitting games where people LRM spam.

There was an attempt to fix it in 1.03 which didn't really help, despite the claims that it would on the podcast thing.

Some will tell you flaks and carriers - the former just don't do well (tend to get tore up by a LRM fleet of equal size, you need 10+ more flaks than LRMs which is more expensive) and the latter just get chased down by anything the opponent sends in or the LRMs themselves before the relatively weak fighters destroy all the frigates.

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scouts are effective against LRM, they are cheap and have anti-light weapons. With the added bonus that you have have twices as many for the same number of fleet points.

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Fighters are the main counter to LRMs.

Of course any good LRM spammer has a support of 10 Flak frigates to counter your fighters, which are enough to deal with up to 20 squads of fighters(resource-heavy it seems), at least long enough to pwn you. IMHO get some LRMs of your own. Advent are at a severe disadvantage, as their Illuminator LRM doesnt have the same range, most people don't like them. Advent are pretty much stuck staying defensive for early game as I see it, though I could be wrong if someone would like to enlighten me.

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If you are looking for a way to defeat LRMs... dont just amass carriers.... they will hunt you down, get something to fight with the LRMs while you keep your carriers as far away as possible. If he can get 50 LRMs, you should be able to get 15-20 carriers, 10LRMs yourself, 2-3 healing ships (or healing platforms), just make sure you have fighters, and use tactics, the LRMs drop like flies. Micro your fighters and make them all complete a pass on an lrm. A full pass of 15-20 fighters will kill and LRM easy... might even be over kill, make 10 pass one and 10 pass another, keep your careers away, and while your LRMs and taking hits, and slowing getting healed, they will eventually die, but should give you plenty of time for your fighters to destroy the LRMs. If the LRM player has Frak, just focus your LRMs on his Flaks. The Empire tree is your best friend, use every ship you have to your advantage.

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Illums can be good, in close range, the LRM missles spin around your ship a few times before finally getting hit, while illums can get close and the three guns (front and one on each side) will definetly hit. So bring your illums in close range to the LRMs. try something like that, make your illums fly over the LRMs and the back again, they will spend all there time turning around while your side guns take them out.

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scouts are effective against LRM, they are cheap and have anti-light weapons. With the added bonus that you have have twices as many for the same number of fleet points.

No they aren't, they have freaking 3 damage. Stop talking about strategies you've never used.

A full pass of 15-20 fighters will kill and LRM easy

Yes, and the 50 LRMs will eat whatever you're distracting them with for breakfast, unless the guy isn't stupid and moves part of his LRM fleet to engage your carriers.

Too much theoretical nonsense around this topic.

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Hey guys!

Many thanks for your posts - keep them coming since my current impression is that game could be easily "killed" by this type(s) of spammage...

Please note: I am N.O.T. shouting here for the patch

So restrain yourself from posting something like "noob asking for nerf" All i am asking for is an answer for solid counter spam...

Now to reply to some things above

I know about fighters but by the time i get solid number of fighters spammer has got even more solid number of LRMs which he can use to push me back and destroy my infrastructure from retreated planets... Not to mention the fact that my capital ships quite literally melt under 50 or LRMs

And of course spammer doesnt come only with LRMs there is few extra toys there too which dont make life any easier...

In short - i hope that counter spam is not spam itself - i love the idea of "balanced fleet being able to counter ANY spam" which in this case it looks like its failing rather miserably...

But in any case - keep the posts coming andmany thanks to everyone who posted so far

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Illums can be good, in close range, the LRM missles spin around your ship a few times before finally getting hit, while illums can get close and the three guns (front and one on each side) will definetly hit. So bring your illums in close range to the LRMs. try something like that, make your illums fly over the LRMs and the back again, they will spend all there time turning around while your side guns take them out.

Illuminators only deal 75% damage to other LRMs, they are less cost efficient, and all their beams will not hit most of the time, meaning they'll operate at 33% or 66% efficiency most of the time.

Scouts

Doesn't work. Scouts are only statistically superior to LRMs because they have more health for the same cost, they both have the same DPS for cost, but LRMs can kill anything while scouts can only kill LRMs.
The LRMs will fly past your scouts, kill your Cap Ships, Research Centers, Light Frigates, etc. The scouts will manage to wipe out the LRMs as the LRM wail on your econ.
A few minute later you get attacked by a wave of Light Frigates, Carriers and Flaks, and your fleet cap is still filled with scouts. You lost the game.

Flak Frigates

They are like the scouts, but with an even more magnified problem. Lower DPS but much higher health than LRM. The LRMs will ignore the flaks and wail on your Caps & Econ. The next wave will be Cobalts. You lost the game.

Carrier Cruisers

Carrier Cruisers with all fighters are only 15% more efficient at killing LRMs than LRMs are efficient at killing Carrier Cruisers. Carrier Cruisers are slow to build, and once built they need to build their fighters (2.5 minutes for Advent).

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LOL...

I am becoming pessimistic here...

Are we really talking about "must patch asap" situation here or is there indeed solid working anti-LRM spam measure!?!?!

Thanks for your post Phoebus!

Anyone else!?!?!?

Any genius out there!?!?!

Perhaps a dev!?!?!

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Yes, please let us know. I'd like to know a good counter. I just got pwned by LRM rushes within 20 minutes of the game starting (my third multiplayer game ever, but the first where someone actually used it).

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LRM's are a tough beast to crack.

-They have range 11000 (increased in the patch from 8500).
-They do anti-medium damage (at least 75% effective against all targets, except fighters)
-As far as I know, there are no reliable area effect weapons in the game would heavily damage a group of lightly armored units.
-They cannot be countered by static defenses (as they are designed to themselves destroy defenses.

Thus, they are a unit which is designed to effectively kill frigates, cruisers, capital ships, static defenses, with their weakness being 'low' hitpoints and light armor. The only anti-light weapons that can reliably get in range of them are fighters, as flaks will take heavy damage as they try to close to range 3000 (though, flaks have 'heavy' armor, LRM's still do 75% damage to heavy armor).

Capital ships all have damage type 'capital', which does 75% damage back to the LRM's. Capital ships (as far as I know) tend to focus on only one ship at a time, while lots of LRM's will focus on the one capital. It seems like lots of LRM's would overpower the capital ship before the capital ship could even cut down a small number of them.

There are no ships which have strength enough to overpower a large amount of lrm frigates, which makes LRM's good in just about all situations.

I'd build a lot of them. I don't really see any ships or abilities an enemy could have which would make building lots of LRM's a *weakness*.

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Illums can be good, in close range, the LRM missles spin around your ship a few times before finally getting hit, while illums can get close and the three guns (front and one on each side) will definetly hit. So bring your illums in close range to the LRMs. try something like that, make your illums fly over the LRMs and the back again, they will spend all there time turning around while your side guns take them out.Illuminators only deal 75% damage to other LRMs, they are less cost efficient, and all their beams will not hit most of the time, meaning they'll operate at 33% or 66% efficiency most of the time.ScoutsDoesn't work. Scouts are only statistically superior to LRMs because they have more health for the same cost, they both have the same DPS for cost, but LRMs can kill anything while scouts can only kill LRMs.The LRMs will fly past your scouts, kill your Cap Ships, Research Centers, Light Frigates, etc. The scouts will manage to wipe out the LRMs as the LRM wail on your econ.A few minute later you get attacked by a wave of Light Frigates, Carriers and Flaks, and your fleet cap is still filled with scouts. You lost the game.Flak FrigatesThey are like the scouts, but with an even more magnified problem. Lower DPS but much higher health than LRM. The LRMs will ignore the flaks and wail on your Caps & Econ. The next wave will be Cobalts. You lost the game.Carrier CruisersCarrier Cruisers with all fighters are only 15% more efficient at killing LRMs than LRMs are efficient at killing Carrier Cruisers. Carrier Cruisers are slow to build, and once built they need to build their fighters (2.5 minutes for Advent).

1v1, tec vs tec, you go your little LRM spam and we'll see who wins my friend. I've got an hour or you can play me some other time.

Well you could be vasari or advent, but it'd just be even more in my favor.

Flak dominate LRMs quickly enough, and "Oh well the next wave will just be Cobalts" well my next wave will by LRMs, and my flak are going to tank a lot more damage. Significantly more.

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