New player questions

Borderlands 2 Gameplay Discussion (Spoilers!)
#61

Yes, and then they’re good cover for a while, but periodically they vanish in a puff of steam. I think they then respawn in their active damaging mode and need to be shot again, but it’s been a while since I did that fight from the floor…

Those three beam turrets are pretty nasty. Re: minimap - do people generally hip-fire? I’m almost always aiming down the sights, and a lot of guns have scopes that hide the minimap. I nearly got killed when EXP loaders snuck up on me during the AA gun phase leading up to BNK3R for example.

I did not know what Roland’s turret actually did, thanks! From his voice comments it sounded like it was some sort of Phalanx Shield type of effect. But as you say, he tends to put it in awkward spots, and I didn’t see a whole lot of benefit from it when I did Control Core Angel from the floor before. I will definitely check that out when Krieg gets there, or when Maya does it in TVHM, whichever comes first.

#62

I tend to ADS myself a lot except with shotguns so it has to become a habit to scan for suicide psychos and exploders first. The pillars are active during the first few minutes of the fight and later the steam vents become active after the pillars go dead…

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#63

Quick update - the Good Touch has largely solved the dps issues I was having. :grinning: Now that I know how that works, I should always be able to have a nice fire SMG.

And the Lady Fist is coming up very soon now which should end all dps concerns until UVHM.

Excellent call on Longbow, thanks! I didn’t think I’d care much about placement, but it actually is very handy to warp it off on the far side of enemies. And this setup lets me use a better COM, tactician with +5 Preparation and +4 Battlefront.

So glad to be done with Sawtooth again. That map takes for-freakin-ever!

#64

Re: ADS versus hip-fire - it depends on the situation. It’s good to be able to do both, especially in mobbing situations. ADS slows both your aim (tracking) and movement speeds, leaving you more vulnerable. In mad situations, I might pull to ADS for easier crits, but I try not to stay ADS more than necessary. There’s a reason that Axton, Maya, and Salvador all have perks that increase movement speed! If you haven’t mastered the art of hip-firing while running sideways, it’s a good thing to learn.

#65

Plus in FFYL situations you have to use hip fire, so that’s another great reason to practice at it.

#66

Adjusting to UVHM - so far it’s going OK, but some of the second-order effects are a bit puzzling.

  1. What is the recommended approach to the fight after killing Boom Bewm? In NVHM and TVHM the cannon turret destroys everyone trivially, but in UVHM it barely dents them and just sends them flying all around the area. I eventually killed everyone after dismounting but it was a long fight… And dismounting means that one of the enemies will come take over the cannons, and since the player has about 1% the health of the enemies the cannons are still highly effective if they ever get a clear shot. Is there any better approach than what I did? Do those guys have a short enough tether distance that one could just run for it after using the cannons to scatter them, perhaps?

  2. Sniper rifles - I totally see the value of slag snipers now (sadly I don’t have one). But it looks like the era of one-shots ends in the mid-40s in this game, which is a bit disappointing. Are Dahl or Hyperion snipers worth another look in UVHM, since it takes even a Jakobs sniper 6+ headshots to kill a slagged enemy now? Vladof also seems like a fine option (I have occasionally used them before, though mostly Jakobs/Maliwan thus far). Or should I try to leave my usual sniper-centric playing style behind and just run up close enough to hose the target down with an SMG, since that seems to be quite a bit faster? (and more dangerous…) Note - I won’t have the Pimpernel until level 72, so that’s not the answer. :smiley:

  3. What else works very differently now? I know about slag and the increased importance of element matching, of course, and there’s item 1 above where a fight works totally differently. I also noticed that Captain Flynt can now climb up to the vending machine platform, which made that fight way more exciting than I’m used to. :stuck_out_tongue: Will other bosses do anything they didn’t do in NVHM/TVHM?

  4. Transfusion grenades - worth it or not? That’s my current flavor of slag grenade, but it seems a bit spotty at actually slagging (usually slags only one enemy, even if the submunitions appear to hit several). And using it for health seems far to slow - when I’ve tried I end up in FFYL with a wave of red crosses still rushing towards me.

How do the bullet-sponge bosses like Saturn, BNK3R, The Warrior, etc. even work in UVHM? Those were fairly long fights in TVHM, so if they scaled up like the rest of UVHM … yikes! And according to the wiki Saturn is unslaggable which would be a serious problem. (I’m not sure The Warrior is slaggable either - didn’t seem like my turret made a difference aside from activating Battlefront).

COMs at least are no longer an issue - apparently they become super-common at level 50. I found more blue commando COMs in Southern Shelf than in all of NVHM+TVHM combined.

Looking forward, my plan is to do the Torgue and Hammerlock DLCs since I’ve never done those before. The Quest Rewards Worth Farming thread indicates that the Kitten is pretty good, so I should avoid that quest in Torgue until reaching 72. Are there any other issues to keep in mind with those DLCs?

#67

There are many here who can (and have been) giving better advice, but I did recently clear UVHM main story solo for the first time, but with Maya so keep that in mind.
Honestly, with good prep based on what I’ve read here none of the bosses you mentioned were too hard.
I fought BNK3R cheesy style from the walkway where you enter the main area, Saturn can still be kited around the shack, and Warrior was the same as it ever was, just a bit longer.
Cloud Kill helped immensely which likely skewed my perception but mostly it was just being smart with weapons. I still used a lvl 48 slag pimp through the warrior; it was great for slagging which is all I needed, plus I found a good purple Dva Anarchist pistol and purple Dahl AR to match up with matching element weapons I acquired along the way.

For a good sniper you have some easy options as well. I found my TVHM slag Rubi (if you’re using one) carried me fine for slag/healing with Gaige through UVHM so consider grabbing a Sloth from Rakkahikics Anonymous or farm Gettle for a Lyuda once you’ve cleared the Good the Bad and the Mordecai. A good slag maliwan snider or something else worth using will drop eventually :slight_smile:

Bloodwing was kinda nasty, I used the overhang to last until she landed and tore her up with a Heartbreaker and I think a Lascaux for the fire phase.
It’s an adjustment but honestly it’s a lot more fun then TVHM for me now.

Take your time, find ways to manage the battlefield and dont be afraid to take quest rewards and reset later. if you’re having fun then running through again should be enjoyable, I even use dashboard farming as time to enjoy a beer

#68

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]Adjusting to UVHM[/quote]Welcome to the eastern front, soldier!

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]What is the recommended approach to the fight after killing Boom Bewm?[/quote]Just what you did - get off that turret and have a go at them on foot. Until you’re loaded for bear, that mob can be kind of intense. I take absolutely no shame in blasting that gate open, hopping out, jumping overboard, and running back to that nearby encampment where I can snipe at them from relative safety. Technically you don’t need to kill them to proceed, so if you can tank/run through them, that works too.

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]Sniper rifles - I totally see the value of slag snipers now (sadly I don’t have one). But it looks like the era of one-shots ends in the mid-40s in this game, which is a bit disappointing.[/quote]Oh no - one-shot sniping is alive and well in UVHM. If you get into the OP levels and want to one-shot without a Pimpernel and/or slag, then you start to need specialized builds on certain characters… you really have to earn them. Get yourself a good Jakobs Muckamuck and a slagged target, and you should be good. To be fair, Axton arguably has the fewest skills that lend themselves to traditional sniping (but a Pimpernel will take care of that).

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]Are Dahl or Hyperion snipers worth another look in UVHM, since it takes even a Jakobs sniper 6+ headshots to kill a slagged enemy now? Vladof also seems like a fine option (I have occasionally used them before, though mostly Jakobs/Maliwan thus far). Or should I try to leave my usual sniper-centric playing style behind and just run up close enough to hose the target down with an SMG, since that seems to be quite a bit faster? (and more dangerous…) Note - I won’t have the Pimpernel until level 72, so that’s not the answer. :smiley: [/quote]I think Dahl and Hyperion snipers are fine, but I also think the Landscaper is a pretty epic shotgun, so don’t take my word for it. When I think of these manufacturers’ sniper rifles, I’m usually thinking of their Unique (red texted) offerings. Dahl’s Sloth, for example, hits quite hard, but you have to be able to account for the slow bullet speed (and know how to back in and out of burst mode if you want to control the ammo consumption). Hyperion’s Longbow is insanely damaging, but you have to work around the arc of the “bullet”, the lack of a scope, plus it’s fire element only. Vladof’s Lyuda is a staple of a lot of players’ loadouts for sniping. Even if you can’t take advantage of the triple-pellet shots, it still hits pretty hard. Note: Hyperion sniper rifles will shed the inaccuracy of the first bullet the longer you are aimed down the sight. If you fire from the hip, they’ll behave like any other inverse-recoiled Hyperion weapon, but stay zoomed in for a moment, and that first shot won’t go wild.

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]I also noticed that Captain Flynt can now climb up to the vending machine platform, which made that fight way more exciting than I’m used to. :stuck_out_tongue:[/quote]That’s something I’ve never seen him do. Are you sure he didn’t get knocked off the upper deck to the gangway below and just walk up?

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]Will other bosses do anything they didn’t do in NVHM/TVHM?[/quote]Not that I know of (they shouldn’t regenerate health either, which is handy). Bloodwing will be hitting very hard though, so be prepared for that.

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]Transfusion grenades - worth it or not? That’s my current flavor of slag grenade, but it seems a bit spotty at actually slagging (usually slags only one enemy, even if the submunitions appear to hit several). And using it for health seems far to slow - when I’ve tried I end up in FFYL with a wave of red crosses still rushing towards me.[/quote]Transfusion grenades should be very reliable for slagging, and so-so for healing. The Leech (which unfortunately does not come in slag) is a Transfusion grenade made for healing; much higher health returns, and it’s instant (no waiting for transfusion streamers to reach you, so you can heal behind cover). The Leech isn’t easy to come by though… most of mine, frankly, have come from vending machines of all places (and you know how often those contain Legendary gear). Can you show a pic of your current slag Transfusion grenade?

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]How do the bullet-sponge bosses like Saturn, BNK3R, The Warrior, etc. even work in UVHM? Those were fairly long fights in TVHM, so if they scaled up like the rest of UVHM … yikes! And according to the wiki Saturn is unslaggable which would be a serious problem. (I’m not sure The Warrior is slaggable either - didn’t seem like my turret made a difference aside from activating Battlefront).[/quote]In UVHM, these bosses will certainly take more of a beating before their fall, but remember that you’re coming at them with a number of extra skill points, which has the potential to really help your damage output. As weird as this sounds, I find that the first jaunt into UVHM (where enemies are scaled to you, but you’re not at your maximum potential skill point allotment) is harder than when you settle into the end game at level 72 with a full allotment of skill points. If you wind up struggling with any of these, let us know. As long as you can keep from dying, it’s just a matter of whittling down their health.

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]COMs at least are no longer an issue - apparently they become super-common at level 50. I found more blue commando COMs in Southern Shelf than in all of NVHM+TVHM combined.[/quote]Now that you’re in UVHM, you’ll be treated to higher-quality drops (including, I belive, a higher chance of Tubby enemy spawns: tough nuts to crack, but they almost always drop legendary COMs, including the Legendary Soldier for Axton).

[quote=“Worblehat, post:66, topic:1155482”]Looking forward, my plan is to do the Torgue and Hammerlock DLCs since I’ve never done those before. The Quest Rewards Worth Farming thread indicates that the Kitten is pretty good, so I should avoid that quest in Torgue until reaching 72. Are there any other issues to keep in mind with those DLCs?
[/quote]The Torgue DLC includes a new currency called Torgue tokens that can be used in special Torgue vending machines in which the item of the day is always a Legendary Torgue weapon. Farming Torgue tokens isn’t the most difficult thing in the game, so you have a semi-easy way to “farm” for some good gear. Unkempt Harold? Nukem? Kerblaster? Flakker? All randomly for sale. To get the most enjoyment out of Hammerlock’s DLC, I think you want to go into it with the mind set of, as the DLC implies, a hunting trip; go into it with a sense of patience and a relaxed attitude, and do this one for fun (I think most of the game-changing gear to be had here is very hard to come across, so if you go into it hoping to come out better equipped than before may set you up for some disappointment). Like any good DLC, this one comes with some new enemy types that have the potential to be really nasty… let us know if you find one :wink:

#69

I just sit it out in the cannon. Yes, they do go flying, but they also take damage. The trick is to track them as they fly so they keep getting hit until they’re gone. The weaker ones take 2 or 3 hits. Keep an eye on the minimap, as they will go around behind you. They also like to take cover over towards the elevator into the enclosure. You’re pretty safe in the turret though, even though it does take damage and starts smoking.

#70

1: UVHM is notoriously difficult for Zero in the early levels. Just keep at it. It’s hard to give advice without seeing how you play. It gets easier as you level up.

2: as slag tools, Maliwan Snipers are the best. They have the highest chance and they test twice (since they have added splash)

3: Not that I know of.
Keeping your health up is harder and you should get familiar with the healthgate mechanic

4: Yes, for Zero, slag transfusions are a favorite of most top players.

#71

Sometimes it happens in NVHM and TVHM too, but it’s kinda rare. I don’t think he does it on purpose, though. Sometimes he shows up in the area underneath the ship while you’re still killing the enemies to make your way up to the entrance by the vending machines, so maybe that’s what happened and then he just walked up to the vending machines. I think you can trigger his spawn before reaching his area and sometimes he falls down to the area below. I don’t think he’s supposed to do that, though. It just happens sometimes.

All of those bosses have a “safe spot” from where you can shoot at them and not get hit by their attacks if you’re careful enough. It’s a cheap way to kill them, but sometimes it’s all you got. You can hide inside the shack that has a red chest on the roof against Saturn, fight BNK-3R from below the arena (in front of the entrance to Control Core) and you can hide under the rock formation to the far left side of the map against the Warrior, next to the ammo machine (you’ll be safe from the Warrior and from the lava in there). Those fights are gonna be a lot longer than you’re used to, so make sure you aim for crits and use a strong corrosive weapon against BNK-3R and Saturn.

#72

Never considered hiding inside the hut for Saturn - I usually just circle around it.

Bunker, I go up to the covered area at the top where the Hyperion chest and the waterfall are. You have to watch out for the mines and the occasional suicide bot, but you get used to the pattern of the attacks (plus Brick gives lots of callouts)

For the Warrior, my favourite spot is actually forward and to the right - there are two walls with a corridor between them where you can hide from the fire breath and slag attacks, and pop out to hit the Warrior in each of his locations. Again, you have to be a little careful, but if you recognise the signals you can avoid pretty much everything. If you die, just stay right back by the exit and snipe from there.

#73

That works too, and it’s a far less cheap and more active way to fight him. From inside the shack you only need to be mindful of the splash damage from his rockets and shock turrets. You’ll be shooting mostly at his feet, though.

Yup, that’s another good place to look for cover during the fight. I just think it’s easier to do it from underneath the arena. He always stops and hovers at the side openings to the left or right to try and hit you, making him an easy target. You get full protection from all of his attacks and it’s ridiculously easy to hit his crit spots from that position. You’ll need to be aware of loaders spawning next to you, though. Plus, you’re close to the vending machines if you need ammo (although that’s never been a problem for me). You only need to go up to the arena to deliver the final shot after he gets into position.

I think that’s the same spot I’m talking about, but mirrored on the other side of the map.

#74

A lot of good advice already offered so I’ll just add this one tip- if you fight the Warrior from near the exit just make sure that you don’t accidentally actually exit the area- nothing quite so frustrating as having to have to run thru Hero’s Pass all over again while in the middle of a fight…

#75

Oh yes, I’m finding Maya ludicrously easy compared to Axton! :smiley: So far she hasn’t found TVHM perceptibly different from NVHM, very fast and smooth so far. I keep thinking I should respec out of the Cataclysm tree for a while, but on the other hand I really like Reaper, Ruin, and Chain Reaction so I never actually do respec…

Doing the Scarlett DLC in TVHM to pick up a slag Pimpernel is a good idea, thanks.

Ooh, right, Bloodwing will be pretty nasty too. I’m not sure I know about this overhang - the three times I’ve faced her have all been frantic runs all around the arena trying to avoid her attacks. The dive bombing run always hits me even when I run perpendicular to her course immediately when Mordecai calls it. If there’s a safe spot in there, or merely a less-dangerous spot, that would be really handy!

Well put!

Sniping - gun quality isn’t helping me (just upgraded from a white level 50 Calipeen to a white 51 fire Corinthian, for flesh targets - or I have a green 49 acid Corinthian for armored targets, or a green 50 shock Pooshka for shields). My preferred approach was to get one-shots to open a combat, so by definition there’s no way to have pre-existing slag in that scenario. I guess now it’s better to open with a turret launch, and try to get head shots while they’re backing and dodging around the turret (annoying how enemies won’t hold still when they know they’re under attack… :stuck_out_tongue:).

Re: Captain Flynt - sounds like I saw some unusual behavior. It was a perfectly normal fight until that point. I entered the arena, triggered the cutscene, ran off the deck while Flynt jumped down to the deck, circled around to the vending machine cheese spot and took out a few adds. Flynt lumbered over and we started the usual dance of me wearing him down while not giving him a clear shot back at me. Eventually he was right up at the wall and he jumped up, somehow landed on that opening where you drop down from, and phased through the piece of fence that should have blocked him since he’s a fair bit wider than the opening. That’s when I kinda freaked out. :smiley:

image
Seems like a pretty good one, easily the highest quality slag grenade I’ve found (second best would be a few blue bouncing betties at various lower levels). I suspect it’s the combination of that 0.9s fuse time and the fairly slow speed of the transfusion packets that results in the healing not quite arriving in time.

I’m definitely looking forward to those Torgue vending machines and this Unkempt Harold I’ve heard so much about!

I’m not sure I do know what people mean by that. Is there something more than “you can’t get one-shotted when health is >50%”? I’ve certainly noticed that part, and of course make every effort to get behind full cover if I do get reduced to low health. Willing, Pressure, Preparation, and Able tend to get me back into shape fairly quickly if I can get to cover, thankfully. Some of the threads I’ve seen seem to talk about healthgate as more of a proactive tactic somehow, which makes me suspect there’s more to it than what I know.

Boss safe spots - I know some (Boom Bewm, Flynt, Warrior) but not others. I’ve done BNK3R from up top by the waterfall and chest; I’ll have to try that lower spot next time. Saturn will really help, I nearly died in TVHM. Ended up doing most of that fight from the end of the street that goes by Dr. Zed’s old house, shooting Saturn’s side through a gap in the debris piles where the street curves before opening into the Saturn clearing. My Warrior spot is the one by the exit. Ammo was a problem in TVHM though - needed two runs for more assault rifle and pistol ammo (Scorpio to knock off a side scale, Lady Fist to crit once it was off).

#76

This shows the location of the safe spot for the Bloodwing fight, it was posted in another thread by @Adabiviak

It’ll keep you safe from the dive attacks but I think you’re still vulnerable to her breath attacks and obviously when she lands it won’t help either.

It’s not cheating, ITS TACTICS!!!

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#77

Just a couple of things to add. Remember all enemy scale during UVHM, so if at any time you want a boost for some bigger fights, try and get another updated Unkempt Harold from Savage Lee. Also, for later in the game, KING MONG is one of the best sources of updating gear. Usually drops some good stuff, and chance of a Badaboom which can be a life saver if it drops with explosive or corrosive for later game enemy. Another thing to keep in thought is a Bee shield. Might not be for general game play (depending on class) but it can add some much needed damage boosts for the fight with Saturn and The Warrior.

#78

Doesn’t the dive bomb result in a Nova? ISTR that running and then jumping was the key.

Also, I hadn’t realised that standing on the large trap doors was considered a “safe” spot! I usually end up there because that’s where Mordecai drops the health and ammo resupplies (although they get stuck in the odd surface mapping so you can’t auto-pick most of them).

Try and pick up a decent plasma caster and shotgun for that fight.

#79

[quote=“Worblehat, post:75, topic:1155482”]My preferred approach was to get one-shots to open a combat, so by definition there’s no way to have pre-existing slag in that scenario.[/quote]This is one of the reasons I put Axton lower on the list of capable snipers. You can do this with some other characters:

  • Zer0: Throw that slag transfusion far enough away from an enemy that the initial grenade explosion won’t hit them, but the child orbs will still be able to find them. Before the child grenades make contact, go into Decepti0n. The enemies will be slagged, but will not go aggro. Bonus points if you tossed your hologram somewhere they can’t see, and are at a distance; if you one-shot them, they still won’t go aggro, and you can pick them off at leisure by repeating this process successfully. The longer the fuse on the grenade, the easier it is to choreograph this. You can also do this with e-tech slag darts, but the timing is tighter (especially if you have points in Vel0city), but if you get into Decepti0n before the darts pop, same deal. Alternately, you can toss Kunai, and hope that a) one of them hits from an appreciable distance and b) that it slags the target, but those are some lousy dice. If you’re sneaking up to enemies at almost point blank range to use, for example, the Elephant Gun, and can reliably get all the Kunai to hit, the odds of one of them slagging the target are much higher.

  • Maya: Get Scorn and toss it so it doesn’t directly hit enemies, but passes close by such that the slag beams paint them bu the final detonation doesn’t. They won’t go aggro from this, and you can lay into them as you see fit. If you toss it right, more than one will be slagged when you start, but they’ll go aggro once you hit one. Alternately, just Phaselock one with Ruin, and snipe your now immobilized target.

  • Gaige: Get a COM that boosts Interspersed Outburst such that the slag chance is as close to 100% as you like, and that first shot will get “free” slag. Enemies will be aggro after that, but you’ll have a fresh kill to open the combat. Alternately, you can pretty reliably open combat with One Two Boom (which I haven’t yet played with since Gaige’s recent shock buffs, but I imagine it’s only gotten better). It won’t slag, but it can kill (but dealing with One Two Boom during combat is not for the squeamish).

  • Axton: If you have a point in Double Up, Nuke, and Longbow (which sort of defines your build right off the bat), you can sort of do this. Toss your turret by an enemy such that Nuke knocks them somewhere strategic (into a corner, against a wall, off a cliff (although that won’t lend itself to sniping) or out from behind cover). Nuke stuns them pretty good for a moment, and it will begin slagging the nearest target. While that target is stunned and slagged, you’ve got a moment for a free shot at them, but they are, as you say, already aggro by this point.

Krieg and Salvador? I’m not familiar with Krieg’s sniping abilities, and while Salvador can actually make a surprisingly effective sniper, I’m not aware of a way to get a target slagged prior to combat with them.

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#80

Salvador doesn’t slag before… He slags during combat.