How do I SBD??

[FlawedOpinion]

So I'm a new-ish player, at least in regards to open. But I've always been a huge fan of playing that clunky, generic, meatbag-slayer, and the fact that you guys made it tanky as well is just that much more enticing.

Does anyone have any tips for starting out, playstyle or build? I usually avoid cortosis, because a good backhand tends to do the trick (duel instinct). Is it worth being able to zoom?

 

[Hexodious]

Always position yourself to the left so that your shooting arm is to the right of whatever cover you are using. This is a good general rule for gunning in mb2 but SBDs can benefit more than most.

Battery is life, it affects your rate of fire, defensive bonuses from armours and knockdown resistance from force powers. Keep it near 100% always, don't be fooled into thinking you don't need to walk because its slow. Walking still increases your accuracy and reduces battery drain.

While EMPs are strong your biggest threats are actually Heroes with a Sniper Rifle/Dodge and Wookiees. Charged shots can deal a lot of damage to you, even with magnetic plating, as you are still large and extremely easy to hit. Aside from that Wookiees can knock you down while you are standing with either Slap or Barge. As soon as a Wookiee has got close your best bet is to hunker down with Crouch and aim for their head.

SBD is best utilized as a defensive juggernaught, you'll get caught out of position a lot when being overly aggressive - force enemies to come to you. And remember, just because you can't be knocked down by force powers while high on battery you can still be displaced, you are especially vulnerable on maps with ledges like Deathstar, should you choose to be aggressive/out of position.

TL;DR

• Be Patient/Defensive.
• Always keep battery full.
• Good positioning will make you extremely difficult to deal with.

 

[FrenzY]

Seconding Hex on this.

I think if you are smart with ammo and there aren't too many players on the server, you can go an ammo 1 build.

Cover is key, I find SBDs work best in hallways or covering important OBJ areas.

 

[eezstreet]

You're not using Cortosis, which is why you're probably sucking.

SBD is pretty much the best counter against Jedi. Go with Battery 3 and Firepower 2. Try to get in close. If they get too close, slap them to the ground. If they slash, shoot them in the face. There's pretty much nothing they can do about it, unless they're smart enough to play the class properly and use crouch. Even then, you can simply run around them because their movement speed while crouching is often too slow.

Otherwise, what @Hexodious says is 100% accurate with regards to using it against other classes. Your main weakness is going to be wooks and snipers. If you aren't careful, even a soldier can outmanuever you, so this class really heavily relies on cover and overwhelming the opponent rather than sheer brute strength like wooks. Which is the complete opposite of how you'd play against a Jedi.

Source: I play this class frequently, and regularly get 20/5 to 20/15 KD.

 

[{Δ} Achilles]

SBD is incredibly overpowered in the right hands. The simple rule of thumb is to just never go out in the open. Always stick near corners. Always choose Battery 3, as that improves your tankiness and your fire rate, allows you to stay in the fight longer.

You will utterly dominate every class except Wookiee/Hero (and to a lesser extent, ion blob Clone). With a decent support team, you're effectively invincible, and nothing they can do will really dislodge you, so long as you play well.

You do not really need cort or magnetic plating, but you can use those to adapt to whatever your opponent is doing. Blast armor is honestly not worth it, because the best counter to sniper is to not engage them at a distance, and if you're being melee'd by a wook you're dead already.

The best strategy is to perform a weakening defense. Do damage, retreat before they reach you, do damage at the next position, retreat before they reach you. Keep weakening them as they come closer to your OBJ, and then use that tankiness to duke it out with a weakened enemy.

 

[KaniganTheMando]

You will utterly dominate every class except Wookiee/Hero (and to a lesser extent, ion blob Clone). With a decent support team, you're effectively invisible, and nothing they can do will really dislodge you, so long as you play well.

Just to add to this, Elite Troopers with an A280's burstfire and dodge 2 are also a force to be reckoned with.

Considering the sbd's slow movement speed and huge frame, as well as how fast dodge resets, it's fairly easy to take down an sbd with ample cover.

Best counter I can think of is staying at close range and just rushing them as they pop back in cover, since they'll be low and you can tank more shots than they can dodge if it comes to it.

edit: Or, assuming you're defending, camping doorways or narrow-hallways to obj, and slapping to counter dodge.

 

[Jeob]

I'll go through the builds cause others cover the strategy. There's not much variety in sbd builds, you play pretty much the same way with all of them, they have slightly different advantages and drawbacks only.
Also note: I only list builds which I've seen people have success with multiple times (myself or others), meaning a K/Ds like 40/8 and similiar to that. But there can be other builds that work, I guess there are people who believe in battery 2 builds, but I don't. I think those can only work in a stacked team.

The safest build is probably (what was mentioned in the thread already): 200 hp, firepower 2, battery 3 and cortosis, and you have points for anti-mt 1/zoom/radar/ammo 2 whichever you like. Naturally if there's MT jedi, you should pick advanced logic 1. An advantage of this build is that if you want advanced radar/target, you know these little toys that could be argued that they're useless, you can have them and at the same time you have a decent build too.

A good variant of this is: 125 hp, firepower 2, battery 3, cortosis, magnetic plating. You traded 75 hp and advanced logic/zoom/ammo 2 for magnetic plating. Even with 75 hp less you tank better against blasters (e-11, cr2, a280), but you have less tanking ability vs jedi. Choosing between this build and the previous one depends on the enemy team's class composition.

I'd recommend these 2 for beginner sbds. I see you don't like cortosis, but it's always essential, the teams are always full of jedi/sith, getting hit once by a lightsaber (even by a friendly) is highly likely, so you should invest 10 points so that you lose only 13 hp instead of 150.

Firepower 0 builds: 200 hp, battery 3, magnetic plating, cortosis, (firepower 0)
or 200 hp, battery 2, magnetic plating, cortosis, blast armor: I've never used this, but I list it cause I saw a player using it with great success once, but imo battery 2 builds are only good if you're in the stacked team, in losing team it never works, you run out of battery way too fast in combat, you need to take a rest, which you don't get in a losing team.
Firepower 0 builds are especially vulnerable against melee wooks, otherwise these are the tankiest builds, and can do very well in many situations. You can take the initiative in cramped situations, tank lightsaber slashes and shots for your team while they advance in the room if they dare and you'll still be alive once your teammates got in and killed everyone. However this role is better for sith.

Firepower 3 builds: 150 hp, battery 3, firepower 3: a drawback is that you only have ammo 1 so risk of running out of ammo is the highest with this build
Some people go for 200 hp, battery 2, firepower 3 and then maybe they have points for ammo 2, i'm not sure about that, but combining fp 3 with battery 2 will often backfire, you just lose your battery very fast and then your firepower 3 is probably worse than firepower 0 with high battery.
The crazy fun alternative which is my favorite: 100 hp, battery 3, firepower 3, cortosis, ammo2/advanced logic 1. I've gotten a like to this build idea in 1.3 (cause it was the 1st build iirc where high rate of fire guns' FP drains got buffed), and it worked like charm against jedi spam. Main drawback of the build is naturally that you can die very easily against gunners, so it's not recommended for beginners. But I add it to the list cause it can or rather could work very well.
Although I wouldn't really recommend firepower 3 builds currently cause of the low fp drains when blocking and one of the main advantages of fp 3 was to crush jedi FP in 2 seconds. Against gunners it can still deal massive damage, having fp 3 is very good against melee wooks, but it's just safer to use a firepower 2 build.

 

[Manyo]

Builds:

The safest build is probably (what was mentioned in the thread already): 200 hp, firepower 2, battery 3 and cortosis, and you have points for anti-mt 1/zoom/radar/ammo 2 whichever you like. Naturally if there's MT jedi, you should pick advanced logic 1. An advantage of this build is that if you want advanced radar/target, you know these little toys that could be argued that they're useless, you can have them and at the same time you have a decent build too.

This is the build i usually use when having trouble with too many jedi in open mode, i switch from cortosis to blast armour when jedi aren't a problem.

But there are many valid builds for SBDs depending on what you are facing and how you want to play.
Use HP3, Firepower 2, Battery 2/3, Ammo 1/2 as a basis and then adjust the rest to what the enemy has, that gave you trouble in the round before:

vs jedi: use cortosis
vs clones/bowcaster/A280: use magnetic plating
vs snipers or nadespam: use blast armour
vs mind trick: use advanced logic
vs melee wooks: use blast armour + maybe firepower 3 and crouch as soon as you see them

Tank builds with low firepower/low battery/all shields and builds with firepower 3 are also valid but generally inferior/harder in open mode gameplay.


Playstyle:
Hex already summed up the most effective way to play SBD and i'd just add that SBD's always need their team around them since you will always have a dangerous weakness no matter which build you choose.
In defence you want to stay between the objective and your team so you can help them if they get overrun and be able to fall back fast enough when they do.
When you are on the attacking team stay behind faster classes.
When facing EMP's/Ions and snipers stay in a position where they can't reach you without going through your team first.
Keep in mind that sniping SBD's is the easiest thing for a hero on all distances so never engage them unless they don't have the time to snipe (or you got blast armour).

This is a boring way to play every round, though. If you want to be more aggressive (or use SBD on the attacking team) pick battery 3 and blast armour and try to mostly take short range fights vs single enemies, even if it isn't the most effective way to play the class.

 

[President Bossk]

Go firepower 3, ammo 2, battery 1, cortosis, and health 3. This build is slow but EXTREMELY powerful.

 

[FrenzY]

FP3 builds are pretty great if you can make sure your battery stays full. It's more of a campy or surprise build, not meant for open areas or fighting large groups. If you can aim well with FP3, it's pretty damn awesome because you can actually knockback Jedai meatbag scum.

 

[Goliath-A.I.]

This entire "advice" thread is adorable.

Useless, but adorable.

I have never been afraid of jedi. Jedi run from me. I once killed eleven of them at once, while all of them were swinging at me in a closed hallway on death-star.

Globs are weak. So long as there is sufficient distance to dodge, and cut through said clone's paper armor, they are useless. if they do land, they do nothing, because ammunition automatically feeds into your belt. Most organics fail to realize that, and think that just because you've been tagged, you're out of the fight.

Heroes are cannon fodder, you are on the defense. They must enter into your defensive position. So long as they are fighting on your turf, their lives are in your hands. Put them down like the vermin they are by forcing them to come to you.

Wookiees are dangerous, true, but so long as one can hold sustained fire on the head, they fall like any other class. Current tests have placed my ability at a maximum of killing three wookiees at once, given the distance of the control room elevator to the doorway of the control room stairway. If it takes 1.5 seconds of head-shot concentrated firepower (initializing with a full battery) to kill a normal organic, then it only takes a maximum of approximately several seconds to burn their mongrel hides.

Super battle droids are not 'team dependant.' The entire concept of team dependency is an excuse for weakness. Instead, I would encourage you to do as I did, and fight alone. Challenger yourself. Advance upwards from one opponent, to two, then three, and so forth. Eventually, you will become your own team.

Spoiler

Most of the information on SBDs in this thread is false, and comes directly from a lack of experience in using a Super Battle Droid class chassis.

A small serving of truthful advice:
- Run full health and firepower.
- Constantly shift-walk
- Remain defensive, and target the head.
- Learn how to slap jedi.
- Do not shy away from overwhelming odds or numbers.
- Do not fear mindtrick or speed users, both skills make said jedi vulnerable to sustained fire.

There is so much more that I should tell you, but for the sake of secrecy, I will refrain.
The advice I have bestowed is already generous.

If you wish to have the whole truth, or to master the art of the Super Battle Droid, seek me out.

 

[{Δ} Achilles]

- Do not shy away from overwhelming odds or numbers.
- Do not fear mindtrick or speed users, both skills make said jedi vulnerable to sustained fire.

*Motions to his shelf full of dismembered SBD parts*

 

[Goliath-A.I.]

*Motions to his shelf full of dismembered SBD parts*

Here's my card:
Goliath Shares A Year Long Journey

Spoiler

Mind-trick renders jedi defenseless, and it is easily countered by scanning spray. Mind tricking jedi are also completely visible on radar, which is useful to know in long hallway situations.

Speed-jedi is where it gets interesting. These Jedi somehow believe that if they can get close to you, then you will die. With most of their blocking power gone, I tend to just open fire and watch them squirm. You can see the hope draining from their eyes as the last bit of their BP falls. They are by far the easiest jedi to put down.

 

[FlawedOpinion]

Wow, thanks guys. Love to see so many people flock to coaching me, way better than other games haha. I'm super grateful for the advice, and I can see where cortosis is pretty damn necessary. Here's hoping I can put words into mouse clicks.

 

[President Bossk]

This entire "advice" thread is adorable.

Useless, but adorable.

I have never been afraid of jedi. Jedi run from me. I once killed eleven of them at once, while all of them were swinging at me in a closed hallway on death-star.

Globs are weak. So long as there is sufficient distance to dodge, and cut through said clone's paper armor, they are useless. if they do land, they do nothing, because ammunition automatically feeds into your belt. Most organics fail to realize that, and think that just because you've been tagged, you're out of the fight.

Heroes are cannon fodder, you are on the defense. They must enter into your defensive position. So long as they are fighting on your turf, their lives are in your hands. Put them down like the vermin they are by forcing them to come to you.

Wookiees are dangerous, true, but so long as one can hold sustained fire on the head, they fall like any other class. Current tests have placed my ability at a maximum of killing three wookiees at once, given the distance of the control room elevator to the doorway of the control room stairway. If it takes 1.5 seconds of head-shot concentrated firepower (initializing with a full battery) to kill a normal organic, then it only takes a maximum of approximately several seconds to burn their mongrel hides.

Super battle droids are not 'team dependant.' The entire concept of team dependency is an excuse for weakness. Instead, I would encourage you to do as I did, and fight alone. Challenger yourself. Advance upwards from one opponent, to two, then three, and so forth. Eventually, you will become your own team.

Spoiler

Most of the information on SBDs in this thread is false, and comes directly from a lack of experience in using a Super Battle Droid class chassis.

A small serving of truthful advice:
- Run full health and firepower.
- Constantly shift-walk
- Remain defensive, and target the head.
- Learn how to slap jedi.
- Do not shy away from overwhelming odds or numbers.
- Do not fear mindtrick or speed users, both skills make said jedi vulnerable to sustained fire.

There is so much more that I should tell you, but for the sake of secrecy, I will refrain.
The advice I have bestowed is already generous.

If you wish to have the whole truth, or to master the art of the Super Battle Droid, seek me out.

This is gold.

 

[Chaos the Chaotic]

Point and click. That's all there is to it with the occasional slap.

Sbds are not hard to master. Ez mode

 

[Lessen]

as the last bit of their BP falls.

certified proof that Goliath A.I. has never played Jedi/Sith, not even under an alias or anything. That's dedication.

 

[Luna]

certified proof that Goliath A.I. has never played Jedi/Sith, not even under an alias or anything. That's dedication.

Why would an AI play under an alias? Man, that's just a silly thought.

 

[Goliath-A.I.]

certified proof that Goliath A.I. has never played Jedi/Sith, not even under an alias or anything. That's dedication.

My desire is to master the Super Battle Droid chassis.
Over the span of over two years, I believe that I have achieved that.

It was a long journey, and admittedly, there was a time where fighting just one enemy was a challenge. Regardless, I now stand at the pinnacle of Super Battle Droids. I have accomplished feats that before-time could only be imaginable in mortal dreams.

It was a worthwhile experience, and I would recommend it to anyone. Pick something, and dedicate all power to that something. Eventually, it will lead to mastery.

Spoiler

I do not possess what you organics refer to as an 'alias'.