Strategy

**Strategy** is an essential component of victory. While your masterful tactics might win the battle, a good strategy will win you the war.

## Before Battle

Communicate with your teammates during ship selection. Everyone shouldn't grab a Gladiator and call it good. A balanced team will go a long way towards winning the match. Look for ships that mesh well together. Have teammates grabbing big slow ships like the Colossus, the Gladiator, or the Paragon? Grab a Superlifter and give them a speed boost as well as some healing. A Disruptor will also go a long way with its' powerful %Max HP healing drones. Have friendlies choosing Stealth craft like the Ghost or Black Widow? Select a front line fighter like the Brawler or Pioneer to hold the enemies' attention while your friendlies position for ambush.

## Starting the Battle

In the opening seconds after loading a battle you have time to jump to Alpha or Beta sectors. It may not seem like much but it can give you and your team a good idea of what kind of battlefield you're going to be fighting in. If you're in the Paragon you may be better off going into a zone thick with asteroids vs one with only a few rocks to hide behind.

## Basic tenets of surviving a battle

* Be aware how many teammates are active in your sector and what types of ships and weapons they have.
* Keep an eye on the pre-game lineup, kill reports and mini-map to get an idea which enemies are active in each sector.
* Track the health, upgrade status and position of the other ships and adjust your playstyle.
* Coordinate with your team: are you pushing for resources, going for the forward station or just holding the lane?
* If you are in a random pick-up game choose a buddy that fits well with your ship and work together.
* Have a plan for when Gamma reaches countdown. It is no use rushing for gamma in a damaged ship or arriving late in sector with the whole enemy team already inside the station.
* Don't get isolated from your teammates if you cannot make your escape. Slow defenders losing their lighter escorts and getting ganked by multiple enemies happens often.
* Don't abandon your teammates mid-battle; let them know if you pull back for repairs and upgrades.
* Concentrate fire with your team for maximum kill speed but don't hyperfocus on the first target to come in range; fast ships may rush your lines outside your viewport.
* Manage your energy level and utility timers to match the flow of battle. If you depend on Boost or Cloak to make a getaway it obviously needs to be ready to go.
* Use the three dimensional space to your ships advantage. Going high or low disorients the enemy, creates additional distance and limits certain weapons.
* Anticipate the enemies moving through the environment; ambush and evade. Work the sector with terrain that fits your ships playstyle.
* Work with range, speed and manoeuvrability; hit them while they can't hit you.
* Trying to be clever and doing stuff alone is a good way to get ganked. Trying to sneak a forward station alone while the fight is at Gamma? Expect the whole team to jump on you when they are done, kill you with focused fire and take back the station with zero gain for your team.
* Hanging around in the enemy home sectors pins defenders there even if your whole team is dead or elsewhere; so stay alive and don't suicide rush until more friends come back.
* Don't go one-on-one unless you can finish it quickly or you'll be left messed up as an easy target for the next enemy.
* .. but sometimes you are all that is left between your forward base and the enemy; camp inside the capture zone and give it all you got until help arrives.
* If captains get really desperate for that little bit more damage, they may ram their ship into the enemies' for additional damage. Also, when one's ship inevitably perish, the explosion damage can cause extra damage to the enemy ships caught in the radius, and might net lucky captains an unsuspecting prey prepping their jump drive or are on very low health. One must keep in mind that this will also make it easier for the enemies to shoot at one's ship and the extra damage might not be worth it. Use this situationally.