Rodeo / counter rodeo tips?

[wittyscorpion]

While I have some success to counter an enemy who is rodeoing my Titan, I have yet to effectively rodeo myself. Any bros have some good tips to share?

[Dissentia]

Approaching from behind/side is best, wallrunning into a rodeo is very easy as well. Satchel charges are the quickest way to kill a Titan via rodeo, and if you hear the hiss of the front hatch opening, you can throw a satchel down in front of the titan and detonate it for an easy pilot kill. Pick your spots, and try not to get seen on the approach if there are nearby enemies. Watch out for electric smoke and cluster missile backscratching.

[wittyscorpion]

Mar 18, 2014 16:17:52 GMT -5 Dissentia said:

Approaching from behind/side is best, wallrunning into a rodeo is very easy as well. Satchel charges are the quickest way to kill a Titan via rodeo, and if you hear the hiss of the front hatch opening, you can throw a satchel down in front of the titan and detonate it for an easy pilot kill. Pick your spots, and try not to get seen on the approach if there are nearby enemies. Watch out for electric smoke and cluster missile backscratching.

Great tips, thanks!

So far my failed attempts are mainly caused by pilot slipping out and shooting me back. Looks like I need to pay more attention to the "hiss" sound.

Satchel use recommendation is great. Hadn't thought of using it this way. Is it a guaranteed titan kill?

Question regarding electric smoke: would it definitely kill the pilot? In beta I used it but got inconsistent results. In the full game I got hit by it once and instantly killed.

Regarding Cluster Missile backscratching: I saw this mentioned in the in-game tips, how does it work? The missile goes to where your aim is, right? If yes, where to aim to perform back scratching?

[Dissentia]

It's not one satchel to kill, but two will *usually* do it after unloading a clip. They do 2300 damage each.

Electric smoke is very effective in many situations, not just when mounted, and provided the pilot does not dismount your titan, standing in the smoke for ~3 seconds will kill him/her.

As for the cluster missile, firing at a wall will suffice, but really any surface that triggers the explosion cluster near ground level will do the trick.

[Usagi]

Mar 18, 2014 17:02:06 GMT -5 wittyscorpion said:

So far my failed attempts are mainly caused by pilot slipping out and shooting me back. Looks like I need to pay more attention to the "hiss" sound.

The biggest tip off is when the Titan bends over really far. If that happens, jump off immediately and see if you can get a jump on the pilot.

Mar 18, 2014 17:02:06 GMT -5 wittyscorpion said:

Question regarding electric smoke: would it definitely kill the pilot? In beta I used it but got inconsistent results. In the full game I got hit by it once and instantly killed.

Electric Smoke damages in very fast ticks. It's not an instakill, but if the pilot rodeoing you is dumb enough to stay on, he will definitely die. If he is smart enough to jump off when you pop it, dash as far as you can away from your smoke so that the pilots can't get back on while your smoke is recharging. A very important thing to note, you can hear a pilot boarding your Titan a few seconds before the notification pops up on your HUD. You can take advantage of this and pop your smoke early.

Mar 18, 2014 17:02:06 GMT -5 wittyscorpion said:

Regarding Cluster Missile backscratching: I saw this mentioned in the in-game tips, how does it work? The missile goes to where your aim is, right? If yes, where to aim to perform back scratching?

What Dissentia said, shoot it at a wall close to you and then turn around and rub your back against it. A lot of the clusters should hit the rodeoing pilot. However, this will damage you significantly unlike smoke which is harmless to you. I consider it to be a last-ditch effort because nearly every other option is safer.

[theuser]

Electric Smoke: You will know when you take damage, so just jump off.
Pilot jumps out: You can easily tell if an enemy pilot exits his titan, so when he does you have a huge advantage if you jump off because his back will be turned towards you as he exits.

When you are in a titan, try moving around with other titans because they can easily just melee enemy pilots off you back.
Satchel charges are the best rodeo weapon, especially when you have three. You can do a lot of damage without spending much time on their backs leaving you vulnerable. I usually carry the autopistol around and when I rodeo, I can empty the autopistol first, throw the satchel charges, jump off, detonate and still have a topped up primary.

[Judge_St3vo]

Nothing much to add regarding rodeoing titans.

One counter-rodeo trick: Crouch down with your titan and look at the ground. This imitates the animation you make when exiting your Titan to shoot a pilot of your back. Sometimes the pilot is dumb enough to jump off.

[Will]

If you use the LMG with the slammer attachment, you kill their Titan from full health in a couple of seconds. Not even electric smoke can stop you, it's a guaranteed kill with that gun/attachment. All other guns require you to reload a few times. Though I've found (on the XB1 anyways), that 9 out of 10 players don't use electric smoke and won't exit their Titan to shoot me when I rodeo them, so I am even able to get the kill 90% of the time with slower guns that take 10+ seconds to take down the Titan.

I pretty much only play Last Titan Standing, and I almost exclusively play as a rodeo clown, leaving my Titan in auto mode. In each generation, once I hit the level to unlock the LMG, my scores start to double.

[Aphoristic]

Rodeo: LMG is best weapon to rodeo. Have Satchels. When you see the enemy exit the titan, toss a satchel in front of the titan and get that free kill. Finish off the titan.

Counter-Rodeo: Smoke is obviously the best. It forces them to get off or die. Otherwise, you can also use cluster missles. Fire at a wall you are next to. It will hurt you, so after the enemy dies, move. If you have teammates nearby, crouch and face away from them for them to shoot the enemy easier. If you can't do any of that, get out and hope to shoot him off before he jumps off to deal with you.

[Pegasus Actual]

I struggle with rodeo situations. I'm not willing to give up Vortex Shield, my go-to Titan class is all about smashing other Titans. I used to be able to get out and get into a fair fight when I someone hops on my back, but this satchel thing is making its way around. I need to get into the habit of backscratching. I always run cluster missile so why not?

[inu]

Mar 18, 2014 18:23:18 GMT -5 Usagi said:

A very important thing to note, you can hear a pilot boarding your Titan a few seconds before the notification pops up on your HUD. You can take advantage of this and pop your smoke early.

Just want to add that the sound the pilot makes boarding your titan is just some dull thumping around on metal. Learn to listen for it.

If you see a pilot approaching you from the front and you can't get a bead on him, wait till he closes the distance and then punch. If he's too far to rodeo but close enough for the melee auto-lock it should be a guaranteed kill. At least that's been my experience.

Playing mostly in a Stryder (which goes down very quickly to even weak rodeo attempts) I've learned to check the radar and the tops of buildings frequently and stay mobile to frustrate rodeo attempts before they start. Also keep an eye out for the tell-tale jet contrails cloaked pilots emit while double-jumping near you. If they have the stealth kit, however, these will be invisible as well.

As for securing rodeos, there's already a lot of good advice here about approaching from behind, dealing with the pilot, etc. Personally I try to mostly rodeo titans that are already distracted. Nothing like jumping onto the back of a titan dueling one of your teammates and stacking the odds.

[Will]

Also when you hear the thumping of someone mounting you, be sure to check your minimap before you pop your smoke. A friendly pilot mounting you makes the same noise, and you'd be able to see them on your map.

[n1gh7]

Mar 20, 2014 0:08:07 GMT -5 Will said:

Also when you hear the thumping of someone mounting you, be sure to check your minimap before you pop your smoke. A friendly pilot mounting you makes the same noise, and you'd be able to see them on your map.

Notification that it's a friendly pilot also is announced and appears on your hud faster.

[Deleted]

Mar 19, 2014 16:14:11 GMT -5 Aphoristic said:

Rodeo: LMG is best weapon to rodeo. Have Satchels. When you see the enemy exit the titan, toss a satchel in front of the titan and get that free kill. Finish off the titan.

I honestly have lost count of how many pilots I've killed by tossing satchels onto the back of their titan as they hop out to try and kill me.

[torrero]

At what point does the Red "enemy pilot" warning pop up on the screen? I always assumed it was at the point when the hatch was ripped open and they are able to start shooting, but I really dont have any way to test this theory easily.

[Aphoristic]

When they land for friendlies. When they can start shooting for enemies.

The noise starts before the landing for both though.

[Pegasus Actual]

Public service announcement: If you are in a titan and want out to deal with a rodeo clown... CROUCH before holding the exit button. You will get a much quicker animation.

[torrero]

Mar 21, 2014 16:03:56 GMT -5 Pegasus Actual said:

Public service announcement: If you are in a titan and want out to deal with a rodeo clown... CROUCH before holding the exit button. You will get a much quicker animation.

interesting, gonna have to try that tonight. Thanks for the tip

[bravo2zero]

Empty the primary into the Titan, switch to the auto pistol, then switch back to primary and reload.
This usually works for me.