Crowd control: How to tame the Zerg in Planetside 2

[Rolfski]

Originally Posted by Beerbeer

The only way any of those strategies work is if you equal in numbers to the zerg, which means you're zerging, too.

I'm sure you've done this and felt good about yourself, but failed to realize you're zerging too as you tend to pay less attention to the swarm of friendlies around you then those enemies in front of you.

I have seen these strategies working with relatively small teams but I guess it depends on what you define as a Zerg numbers wise. In my definition, on a medium-high pop server: Anything below 25 people I don't consider it a Zerg, 25-50 is debatable and over 50 players is defenitely a Zerg.

Originally Posted by Sunrock

But any decent outfit with at least 25 members online can handle a zerg...

Not entirely true in my experience. Being outnumbered more than 3:1 by a Zerg can be bitch to handle, even for decent platoon level outfits. Especially when that Zerg has air superiority.

[Mriswith]

Originally Posted by Rolfski

I have seen these strategies working with relatively small teams but I guess it depends on what you define as a Zerg numbers wise. In my definition, on a medium-high pop server: Anything below 25 people I don't consider it a Zerg, 25-50 is debatable and over 50 players is defenitely a Zerg.



Not entirely true in my experience. Being outnumbered more than 3:1 by a Zerg can be bitch to handle, even for decent platoon level outfits. Especially when that Zerg has air superiority.

Agree but the large downside to a zerg is that it doesn't really stop, even if it runs into an organized defense they'll keep pushing, and if properly deployed several AA Max can quickly kill of / chase away most of the enemy air, at least if supported by a few friendly fliers.
And after that a simple 5-6 Liberators can make short work of their ground forces. (Zergs are pretty horrible at bringing their own G2A forces when they're on the attack as well)

The hardest fights to win is where one or two organized outfits supports a major zerg though, for example if there are 3-4 Gunships and 7-8 A2A ESFs supporting the zerg then it's pretty damn hard to stop (at least once they start focusing your AA Max)

[Rolfski]

Originally Posted by Mriswith

Agree but the large downside to a zerg is that it doesn't really stop, even if it runs into an organized defense they'll keep pushing, and if properly deployed several AA Max can quickly kill of / chase away most of the enemy air, at least if supported by a few friendly fliers.
And after that a simple 5-6 Liberators can make short work of their ground forces. (Zergs are pretty horrible at bringing their own G2A forces when they're on the attack as well)

The hardest fights to win is where one or two organized outfits supports a major zerg though, for example if there are 3-4 Gunships and 7-8 A2A ESFs supporting the zerg then it's pretty damn hard to stop (at least once they start focusing your AA Max)

Agree, there's often a persistent flow in these Zerg battles that have organized teams.

1. First phase is mostly escalating ground skirmishes until air becomes a real issue for the defenders.
2. This is the point where you see teams pulling out burster maxes to fend off the air thread from the Zerg.
3. Many times, this won't help and you'll get bombed into oblivion anyway and loose the base. Sometimes however, you can actually scare away enemy air and pull out libs of your own to try to stop a Zerg in its tracks.
4. Still no guarantee for success of course, as this will often result in organized teams within the Zerg to counter you with their AA.
5. But if you still manage to hold the base at this point, you're often getting to the phase where teams start pulling off tricks on each other and are going for their "Rain of Steel" or Max Crash tactics to force a breakthrough, instantly filling the sky with mass redeploying drop pots or jumping armor.
6. By this time your base will likely be surrounded and enemies start pouring in from multiple captured hard points, outposts, Sunderers and squad beacons.
7. If your still holding on so far in the defense of your base against a Zerg: congratulations. This battle will now be filed into your memory under "Epic Thermopylae/the Alamo"