Common mistakes + cannon etiquette
Feb 28, 2021 19:36:45 GMT
Radeo, killerak41, and 2 more like this
Post by Scorchbeast on Feb 28, 2021 19:36:45 GMT
A lot of mains are struggling with forcing and duping right now, especially in funs. After seeing dozens of mains make the same mistakes, I thought I'd compile a short list of the most common mistakes I see.
Shrinking randomly or just before the last mob dies
In the new meta, it is vastly more important to time your stalls than before. Shrinking just before the last mob dies without knowing when the wave end check happens will cause a missed force a large majority of the time. So how do you time it? One very easy way is to use the Runelite call change timer.
Waves normally end on 6s intervals. So, you should memorize when they happen when using the timer. These checks happen when the timer says 0/30, 6, 12, 18, and 24. So, you should always use your stall BEFORE these times to carry the wave end check. That would be 1, 7, 13, 19, or 25 on the timer.
Example: youtu.be/AQlJ6YueE3A
Shrinking after everything is already dead
If everything is dead, this will only ever lose you time. Penance runners and healers are considered dead immediately upon hitting 0 health (or when runners say Urghhh!). Fighters and rangers are only considered dead after their death animation completes and they drop eggs. The only time shrinking after deaths may be useful is after a fighter/ranger hits 0 health, but before they drop eggs. For every other scenario, the better option is to just not shrink at all.
Not using prayers
In most cases, one shrink or cape is not long enough to stall until the end of the wave. In the old meta, all you had to do was click a prayer during the stall and it would chain into a force. Now it is a bit more difficult but still possible. What you do is click a prayer just before your stall ends, and then use that to chain into another stall. This lets you carry a wave end check through multiple shrinks or capes. The reason we use it at the end of the stall is because any deaths or cannon shots during the stall will clear out any queued prayers. By clicking at the end, this possibility is minimized.
As a general rule of thumb, you should ALWAYS click a prayer during your stall. If the last mob dies, it will automatically break the prayer anyway. If it doesn't, you still have the interface stall open to force when it eventually dies.
Example: youtu.be/C2gCs0pcGSI
Call change breaking force
Call changes will break any interface stall you have. Commonly, mains will leave a prayer up and wait for the last mob to die. When the call change happens, their interface is broken and the force drops. This is an easy problem to fix. When you notice the call change is about to happen, use any animation stall and click a prayer at the end of it. This will carry your force through the call change.
Example: youtu.be/FE6oHha7WXY
Standing directly on the cannon to dupe
This one is pretty simple. If you stand under your team while they're on the cannon, they won't be able to tell when you start caping. As a result, they'll be hesitant to shoot and you'll miss out on extra egg damage. Instead, stand to one of the sides or on the ramp before you start your cape.
Being in combat so you can't extend
To cape, you must be out of combat for up to 10 seconds. On some waves, most notably wave 8, not all of the fighters or rangers will be dead 10 seconds before the cape, causing you to get hit and be unable to cape in time.
The solution is to leave earlier if mobs aren't dying, and let your 2nd attacker finish them. Getting the cape off in time is more important than the 2nd attacker not getting to the cannon sooner. If you ran East and a mob is still targeting you, you should run onto the cannon or around the cannon to make sure they can't hit you. On wave 7, you can run to the defender's luring spot on the wall to avoid being hit
For the rest of the team, there are a few cannon etiquette rules you should follow so your main can more consistently force and dupe.
Do not shoot the cannon too close to the end of a cape
The main attacker may be using a prayer at the end of their cape to try to force end the wave. Stop shooting the cannon 1 to 2 seconds before the cape ends to ensure you do not break their prayer.
Do not load the cannon close to the end of the wave
For the same reason as above, you should never load the cannon if the wave ends a few seconds later. You may ruin their force, and lose your team time.
Do not shoot stray eggs close to the end of the wave
If the main is not caping and no one else is shooting the cannon, do not fire an egg at a healer or runner that is already about to die. Your main can't predict these random shots, so they will break the force.
Wait for the main to cape before you shoot
Unless otherwise stated, the only person that should be shooting the cannon before the main capes is the collector. Everyone else should wait specifically until they see the main attacker cape. This also applies to cannon reloads. If your collector reloads the cannon early, just as the cape is ending, do not continue firing or you will use that egg.
Shrinking randomly or just before the last mob dies
In the new meta, it is vastly more important to time your stalls than before. Shrinking just before the last mob dies without knowing when the wave end check happens will cause a missed force a large majority of the time. So how do you time it? One very easy way is to use the Runelite call change timer.
Waves normally end on 6s intervals. So, you should memorize when they happen when using the timer. These checks happen when the timer says 0/30, 6, 12, 18, and 24. So, you should always use your stall BEFORE these times to carry the wave end check. That would be 1, 7, 13, 19, or 25 on the timer.
Example: youtu.be/AQlJ6YueE3A
Shrinking after everything is already dead
If everything is dead, this will only ever lose you time. Penance runners and healers are considered dead immediately upon hitting 0 health (or when runners say Urghhh!). Fighters and rangers are only considered dead after their death animation completes and they drop eggs. The only time shrinking after deaths may be useful is after a fighter/ranger hits 0 health, but before they drop eggs. For every other scenario, the better option is to just not shrink at all.
Not using prayers
In most cases, one shrink or cape is not long enough to stall until the end of the wave. In the old meta, all you had to do was click a prayer during the stall and it would chain into a force. Now it is a bit more difficult but still possible. What you do is click a prayer just before your stall ends, and then use that to chain into another stall. This lets you carry a wave end check through multiple shrinks or capes. The reason we use it at the end of the stall is because any deaths or cannon shots during the stall will clear out any queued prayers. By clicking at the end, this possibility is minimized.
As a general rule of thumb, you should ALWAYS click a prayer during your stall. If the last mob dies, it will automatically break the prayer anyway. If it doesn't, you still have the interface stall open to force when it eventually dies.
Example: youtu.be/C2gCs0pcGSI
Call change breaking force
Call changes will break any interface stall you have. Commonly, mains will leave a prayer up and wait for the last mob to die. When the call change happens, their interface is broken and the force drops. This is an easy problem to fix. When you notice the call change is about to happen, use any animation stall and click a prayer at the end of it. This will carry your force through the call change.
Example: youtu.be/FE6oHha7WXY
Standing directly on the cannon to dupe
This one is pretty simple. If you stand under your team while they're on the cannon, they won't be able to tell when you start caping. As a result, they'll be hesitant to shoot and you'll miss out on extra egg damage. Instead, stand to one of the sides or on the ramp before you start your cape.
Being in combat so you can't extend
To cape, you must be out of combat for up to 10 seconds. On some waves, most notably wave 8, not all of the fighters or rangers will be dead 10 seconds before the cape, causing you to get hit and be unable to cape in time.
The solution is to leave earlier if mobs aren't dying, and let your 2nd attacker finish them. Getting the cape off in time is more important than the 2nd attacker not getting to the cannon sooner. If you ran East and a mob is still targeting you, you should run onto the cannon or around the cannon to make sure they can't hit you. On wave 7, you can run to the defender's luring spot on the wall to avoid being hit
For the rest of the team, there are a few cannon etiquette rules you should follow so your main can more consistently force and dupe.
Do not shoot the cannon too close to the end of a cape
The main attacker may be using a prayer at the end of their cape to try to force end the wave. Stop shooting the cannon 1 to 2 seconds before the cape ends to ensure you do not break their prayer.
Do not load the cannon close to the end of the wave
For the same reason as above, you should never load the cannon if the wave ends a few seconds later. You may ruin their force, and lose your team time.
Do not shoot stray eggs close to the end of the wave
If the main is not caping and no one else is shooting the cannon, do not fire an egg at a healer or runner that is already about to die. Your main can't predict these random shots, so they will break the force.
Wait for the main to cape before you shoot
Unless otherwise stated, the only person that should be shooting the cannon before the main capes is the collector. Everyone else should wait specifically until they see the main attacker cape. This also applies to cannon reloads. If your collector reloads the cannon early, just as the cape is ending, do not continue firing or you will use that egg.