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Retribution on Wings
PURPOSE:
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This thread serves as the Bellato Harrier's Guide.
Here we will discuss the trials and challenges of being a "Sentinel."
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CONTENTS:
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SECTION I: Introduction to Harriers
-What is a Harrier?
-Path of the Sentinel
-Types of Harriers
-Variants of Harriers
-Fly High!
SECTION II: Harrier's Field Guide
-Retribution on Wings
-Tools of the Trade
-Free Flight
-Double the Offense
-No Borders
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:
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Special Thanks to the following for helping inspire this Guide:
-Pasadena
-axelle
-happygirl
-All the Bellato Harriers still proudly fighting for the Federation
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SECTION I: Introduction to Harriers
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What is a Harrier?
A Harrier is any of several species of Birds of Prey that can fly low in order to hunt.
A Harrier is also a Military Fighter Jet with the ability to take-off and land vertically, allowing it to dispatch from nearly any location and quickly move on to another.
In RFO-PH, the HARRIER is the alternate Job Class a Bellato Ranger can choose after reaching level 40 in either the Vigilante, or the Sharpshooter Trees.
The other available Jobs at level 40 are the SNIPER for Vigilantes, and the SABOTEUR for Sharpshooters.
The Harrier is accessible from both Ranger Trees because it offers the potential to augment the Proficiency of both the Vigilantes and the Sharpshooters. This allows for effectively reliable variants of the Ranger Class.
Path of the Sentinel
They used to be called Sentinels; now they're called Harriers.
To become a Harrier, a Ranger needs only to reach a level of 40 as either a VIGILANTE or a SHAPRSHOOTER. From these two Trees, Rangers will learn the basic skills needed to become an effective variant of a Harrier.
It is vitally important that a Ranger understands why they should become a Harrier. Although available to both Ranger Trees, the Harrier is a Job Class not to be taken lightly.
Just because you can easily choose to be a Harrier does not mean you can easily become a Harrier.
Types of Harriers
As a Ranger, the Harrier is one of the best partners in the field. Depending on which Variant of Harrier a Ranger chooses to be, they can still master any of the expertise allowed them by their initial Class:
Scout, Support, and Sidewinder.
-Scout
Knowledge is the key to Victory.
If you can find the enemy before they find you, you have the advantage.
If you can track the enemy while they remain clueless, you have the advantage.
If you can tell what the enemy had for lunch, you have the advantage.
If you can find an opening the enemy carelessly left behind, then you definitely have the advantage.
Before you can effectively strike at the Enemy, you must know where the Enemy is.
You need to know what they are doing, when they are doing it, why they want to do it, how many of them are going to do it, and who told them they should do it.
By answering these questions, you can relay the information back to the Race and it will be easier to determine when to attack, why to attack, how many should attack, and who to attack first.
You know somebody wants to give a Focus-Fire command on someone; you're just helping to decide who that poor sap will be.
Harriers are the most effective scouts in the Ranger Class simply because they are not tied-down to a specific task. Snipers are primarily Front-Liners, and Saboteurs are ideally Back-Stabbers; that leaves the center of the field wide open.
By rendering your services as a Federate Scout, you offer the Race the tactical advantage of live, and accurate, information. As the Eyes and Ears of battle, you are the one force that can prevent the Federate Army from walking into a trap, or from being flanked and attacked from a vulnerable side.
But there are times when a Scout may need to be a Sacrifice.
Not all Scouts go home alive, that's the painful truth. Sometimes you can run into the enemy's Scout and find yourself in direct combat. Half the time, you know you're going to end up dead.
When that happens, it's important to understand that before anything else, before a Scout and before a Ranger, you are a Bellato Soldier. You are Duty-Bound to serve the Federation and you must do so even at the cost of your own life.
Out there in the field you can Tag the enemy Archon. And helping the Race take down that sucker is an Honor worth dying for.
-Support
There is no I in Bellato.
You work with the Federation; you should live and die with the Federation. As a Ranger, you are vital in the fight against the Empire and the Alliance. If they didn't need a Ranger, then why would Eldon Carter have them trained? The Federation needs Rangers; the Federation needs YOU!
Look around.
Your Firearms shoot faster and further than anything in Novus. While the MAUs, Mystics, and Warriors swing their weapons around, the enemy can reach for potions and fight-back. By acting as the support to the heavy-hitters, you not only add to the damage, you also fill-in the gaps where there is no damage. You decrease the chances that the enemy can heal themselves, and you help shower the enemy with unrelenting attack.
Delivering a constant source of damage has its advantages out in the field.
First, when you spam a tough soldier with attacks, eventually their Defense Gauge will drop to fatal proportions. Not even the thickest armor in all of Novus can withstand constant chipping.
Second, when up against a Shield user, you can help lower their defenses. They can't block all the shots they take, so why not toss in shots for them to block?
By trading off a couple shots for the Shielder to block, you give a hard-hitter the chance to deliver a Hit. When that hit gets through and deals enough damage, then that Shield won't be doing squat for a corpse. By taking damage head-on, a Shield User is practically asking for his Def Gauge to be eaten up.
As a Support Ranger, you not only give physical assistance, you give emotional aid as well.
Support isn't just about killing the enemy, it's also about demoralizing them. It's about being right there with the Troops and lifting morale just by standing among your fellow soldiers. It's about making a stand and showing the enemy race that you're not afraid of them. It's telling the Federation without using words: "Let's do this job!"
Now imagine doing that job with Crit-Guns, Damage-Bows, and Fellow Bellato; Oh, my!
-Sidewinder
Prepare to Fly.
You're a Supporting Scout and you're a Scouting Support. As a Ranger, you can do both equally and impressively well. You can scout ahead, pick-off the victims, and lead the charge to their demise. Like your missile name-sake, you strike fast and you strike hard. You have a target and you know exactly what you want to do to it.
As a Harrier you can swoop in, do the deed, and fly away. Whether you're up against an Accretian Soldier or a Corite Mystic you have the arsenal to put up a good fight and make it memorable.
But be careful. There are times when attacking Head-on and doing Hit-and-Runs can determine whether you come back in one piece or not at all.
Being a Sidewinder isn't just about hitting the target, it's also about choosing which target to hit. Even in a vastly populated sector as Novus, Harriers aren't unlimited. When you fall, that gives the enemy lee-way against the Federation; when you pick the wrong target, you can potentially lead the Federation into a crushing defeat.
Everything you do must be a factor in any calculation that leads to the product of a Bellato Victory.
You may think that 1 single soldier falling isn't much to worry about, but that 1 soldier can easily become 2, that 2 can easily become 5, that 5 can easily become 10 or even hundreds... maybe thousands.
Everything starts with one soldier and that one soldier could be you.
Will you be the Sidewinder that flies high into the sky to help bring the Race its success? Or will you be the one that falls to the ground and gets left behind in the dirt?
Decide your fate and decide it fast. The enemy is right in front of you and they're not gonna wait for you to think it through.
Variants of Harriers
Because they are accessible from both the Vigilante and Sharpshooter Trees, the Harriers are divided into two main variants allowing them the advantage of their previous and current Classes. A third variant is formed from the need for the Harrier's skills alone:
The V-Harrier, the S-Harrier, and the T-Harrier.
V-Harrier
Born from a Vigilante.
V-Harriers are given the Class Skills of both the Harrier and the Vigilante. As such, they have access to the LR Buff Stretch which increases the damage they deal while using Long-Range Weapons.
This increase in damage output makes the V-Harrier the ideal Support-fire for practically any situation in the battlefield ranging from Dives, Holds, and Retreats. Just like the Sniper, they can dish out a respectable amount of pain.
S-Harrier
Born from a Sharpshooter.
S-Harriers have access to both Harrier and Sharpshooter Class Skills. This gives them the ability to Hide and plant Traps.
This ability to lurk in the shadows makes the S-Harrier a more effective Scout for enemy activity. Identical to the Saboteur, they can wreak havoc without risking immediate retaliation.
T-Harrier
Transitory, Temporary, Test...
T-Harriers can be any variant of V or S Harrier but has no intention of staying as either. Because of the Harrier Class Skills, some Rangers become a T-Harrier to quickly train their LR Buffs.
As soon as this is complete, the T-Harriers then re-define to either a Sniper or a Saboteur.
Fly High!
Whatever path of Harrier development you choose to take, you're still going to be a Harrier long enough to appreciate the Job. You'll see what a difference having, and being, a Harrier truly is.
Show them what you're made of! Let them see what a Harrier can really do.
You know you're a threat and the enemy can't stand it. Make your mark on the corpses of every fallen Accretian and downed Corite. Join your fellow Rangers in battle and wave the Federation flag as high and as proud as you can.
Spread those wings and prepare to soar!
When you start to take flight, nothing in all of Novus can stop you from reaching the limitless skies. Let the wind help you journey to anywhere you desire. Because, for a Harrier, nothing is out of reach.
Except Ether... you'll still need the Transport to get there.
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SECTION II: Harrier's Field Guide
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Retribution on Wings
Let the wind carry your purpose.
Having gotten through the 1st stages of Ranger Training, you have now been granted a new set of skills meant for the sole purpose of creating the one Ranger Job that can truly annoy the enemy.
-Scamper
Take-off!
Scamper is a Class Buff that boosts your Moving Speed for a limited duration of time. This, along with LR-Armors and a Wind weapon, will allow a Harrier to glide around the map faster than anything in Novus that doesn't have a Jetpack.
But there's a trade-off.
In exchange for the ability to run really-really-really fast, you lose the ability to avoid damage. Scamper not only increases your Moving Speed, it also decreases your Dodge. Basically... you run faster if you just look straight ahead and don't pay attention to what gets thrown at you.
The plus-side: you get to out-run the raiders who don't want to stand and fight you face-to-face. Add a couple shots here to keep them from porting... a bunch of Crits there so the other Federates can catch-up... and you have a potential kill in your hands.
If you're lucky, they're using an equivalent of Scamper to run away, so less dodge for them too. And who needs to dodge a runner, right?
What's that old saying? "...you'll only die Tired"
-Divine
Ah... refreshing.
Divine is a Skill. A Skill that Debuffs... A Debuff that works on you and you alone.
When a Harrier uses Divine it removes any, and all, effects on the Harrier. Whether it was your own Buffs, or that pesky Corite's Entangle, Divine cleans it off like soap on dirt.
Similar to a Force User's Refresh, and with a reasonable cooldown time, it becomes rather handy against Debuffs and Nets. Too bad you can't toss it at somebody else... but then again you're a Ranger, not a Mystic.
Divine also has uses outside of combat.
It is this skill that prompted the development of the T-Harrier Variant. Using Divine to clear out all LR Buffs, a Harrier can PT train them faster.
When all the necessary buffs have been properly leveled, the T-Harriers then redefine themselves to the Job that they originally had in mind; usually a Sniper or Saboteur. Only the Proud few stay-on as Harriers.
The only thing Divine can't wash-off are the specialty potions like Adrenaline, Bust, Composed... and etc. It also can't wash-off death.
-Mental Assault
Mind games are fun.
Mental Assault is the Anti-Mystic Debuff. For a pre-set duration of time, the victim of a Mental Assault will find using Force a tricky task indeed.
The effect of Mental Assault is a 2-step attack: It decreases the target's Maximum Force Pool, while at the same time doubling the cost of all Force Potion using Skills and Buffs.
Mental Assault can't always completely prevent the use of Force, but it can greatly reduce the number of times Force is used.
Paired with a trained Mystic, Mental Assault can easily prevent the enemy Force-User from fighting back, debuffing, or even defending themselves.
See that Strong Intense Hora Staff with 7 Keens on it? Yeah... That thing hits like a Flym when it can't use Force; the Flym you find just outside the Headquarters.
-Long Distance Spring
Drive the point home.
Want to toss something else into the mix? Wish you had just one more skill to hit the enemy with? Well looks like you just got what you’ve been asking for. Short Distance Firing is a Class Skill given to all the 2nd Ranger Jobs as an added arsenal to their already dangerous inventory.
This skill combines the aspects of both Fast Shot and Aimed Shot into a more focused and more accurate attack.
Perhaps it's most complimenting factor to the Ranger class is that this offensive attack can be used with all LR Weapons.
Tools of the Trade
As a Ranger, you have access to the best LR-Weapons in the land. It becomes imperative that you understand what each weapon offers to the table so you know when, why, and what to use at any given time.
-Firearms
Cool to hold, fun to shoot.
These bullet-firing weapons are the fastest shooters in all of Novus. Some variants use Laser-Ammunition, but they're still considered Firearms. In any situation, a faster attack will help turn the tide of battle.
Whether it's Damage or Crit, being able to dish out attacks in quick succession makes the Firearm the most common weapon in a Ranger's arsenal. You'll need to carry the right type of Bullets, of course.
All variants of the Harrier can benefit from the Firearms; the V-Harriers gaining the edge on Damage.
-Bows
Damage with style.
Melee weapons tend to have stronger damage than Ranged weapons since Warriors use their whole bodies to deliver the blow. On a Firearm, you just pull the trigger. So it would probably make sense that the Bows deal more damage than the Firearms simply because instead of just using a single finger, a Ranger uses their arms to pull the arrow back.
Bows are the favored Damage Weapons for any Ranger; the V-Harrier gaining the edge again. And just like the Firearms, they need the right type of Arrows.
-Throwing Knives
The Ranger Multi-tool.
What does a Throwing Knife have to offer? Well first off, it's a Ranged Weapon so that means you can use it anytime.
First consider the difference between a Melee Weapon as compared to a Throwing Knife. At the current state, Rangers can only train their Close Range Skills to allow them the use of level 40 CR Weapons and Armors. At the same time, Rangers have access to every level of LR Weapon including the Hora Throwing Knife.
Second, a Throwing Knife doesn't need Ammo of any sort. It's a cost-effective weapon for Rangers on a budget. Imagine all the Exploding Vulcan Magazines and Advanced Beam Cells you can save when using an Ammo-free Throwing Knife.
Finally, consider that the Throwing Knife is the only LR-Weapon that can use every tier of LR Attack Skills. That means, it can use Double-Shot, Aimed-Shot, and Destructive Shot.
Imagine how many Dalants you could've saved if you were a New Recruit using a Throwing Knife to train your Ranger Skills.
-Traps (S-Harriers Only)
An explosive experience.
As Sharpshooters, the S-Harriers have access to the Blasting Powders. These babies bury themselves on the ground and patiently wait for the next member of the enemy race to wake them up.
With the ability to set up to 10 Traps at any one time, S-Harriers can pick-off targets without having to actually be there to do the killing. What's best about the Blasting Powders is they attack the enemy's psyche.
Doesn't mater if you're a high level tough-guy, you'll stop when something goes BOOM at your feet. And although the Saboteurs are the only ones who have access to higher level Traps, it does not mean a Harrier can't toss their own little gifts into the mix.
Free Flight
You've seen a Jetpack; you know how it works.
They give the wearer the fastest moving speed around. But there is a catch. For the Jetpack to work, you can't be in combat. One hit from anything and the Jetpack powers down until you've calmed yourself. And Jetpacks cost a lot.
Scamper is Free.
It comes with your Harrier Class Skills and it works as long as it's buffed. Rain or shine, your Scamper will take you anywhere you need to be and take you there fast.
Best of all, Scamper is a buff so you can easily push it out with other buffs in case you need your Dodge back.
Perhaps the one advantage of a Jetpack is its ability to decrease the chances of you ending up in a Crit-Lock. But let's face it, all that money for a 'chance' to decrease a regularly occurring phenomenon in Novus? Half the time you'll already be dead hoping the 'chances' of something decreases.
But don't let that discourage you.
If you have the finances to acquire a Jetpack, feel free to grab one. Just keep in mind, that thing runs on SP so you may need to set aside some extra cash for those Stamina Potions. Take the time to properly consider all the factors on whether or not you should spend for a Jetpack.
While you're weighing the Pros and Cons you'll still have Scamper. Just be a Harrier, first.
Double the Offense
Because of their Class Skills, Harriers offer the Anti-Mystic Support lacking in both the Snipers and Saboteurs.
[quote=Pasadena]"Harriers {are} said to be Cora's worst enemy"[/quote]
Although Rangers have access to the basic Force Debuffs, the Harrier's still have the advantage in the Anti-Mystic department.
With the added support of Harriers in the field, practically any form of enemy can be countered by an army infused with all three Ranger Jobs. This makes the Harrier twice as Offensive.
First, they can be the Offensive support needed against thick skinned monsters and heavily armored Corites and Accretians.
The V-Harriers can deal respectable damage from the sides at a decent speed.
The S-Harriers can spam a barrage of Crit-Inducing attacks.
Another source of damage is always good.
And Second, Harriers can Offend the enemy by easily removing any debuff they can toss. S-Harriers can also take the fight to the one place the enemy doesn't like to be hit: from out of nowhere.
Nobody likes surprise attacks; and nobody likes it when they use a lot of Force to debuff you and you just do one skill to take it all away.
So whether you strike at their Armors, or you strike at their Egos, you give them what's coming to them: a beating for going against the Federation. Keep the pressure up and you'll get them in the Long-Run.
Good thing you have Scamper to make that run shorter.
No Borders
There are no limits.
It takes a truly great soldier to take in both the weaknesses and the strengths of the Ranger Class and Harriers do it without a sweat. You're the Ranger that shows the galaxy what Variety really means. Whether as a V-Harrier or as an S-Harrier, your contribution to the Federation is insurmountable by any known means.
What? You're "just" a T-Harrier? So?
You Are A Ranger. Just by standing out there in the field with the other Federates, you show the enemy that they can't push you around. Their large numbers only means that it takes more of them to take you down.
You're a Harrier. You're the one who gladly stands in front, behind, or side-to-side with the enemy and tell them to take a hike. They don't scare you; you scare them. They know you're a force that stands against them and they'll do whatever it takes to try and get rid of you.
Don't let them. As long as you know what you're capable of doing as a Harrier, what you choose to become will never erase the fact that you are part of the most reliable Ranger Class in Novus.
You are the wind, you are Retribution on Wings; you are the pesky insect they can never get rid of and it's driving them mad. You're the Underdog with a big bite. And with your fellow Rangers beside you, victory for the Federation is practically guaranteed.
Fly High, Harrier! Let nothing stop you.
This post has been edited by HariNgDuga: 19 January 2010 - 10:25 AM
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