Here is a short guide on how to ECM (in tournament). This is based on Team Deathmatch/ Tournament play, and for breaking up guard frigballs. Please feel free to note on anything I’m doing wrong.
Shoutout to Halffast, our CEO.
Overview:
An ECM is the most naturally tanky interceptor. It can take many hits, still have a panic button, and can dish out tons of debuffs( 11.9 total seconds of disabling, 4.1 of which the enemy cannot move. However, the ECM was not build around damage. It has no damaging/damage buffing abilities (other than A1MA (multipurpose fake pulsar), but that can’t be used in T3 tournament). It is best used with other ships, works best with damage role ships (a.k.a. Cov Ops or Gunship, maybe LRF).
To ECM or Not to ECM:
The ECM is not always the best solution. Lag is deadly for ECMs, which rely on timing debuffs and other players. If you are running on a toaster like mine, don’t “ECM spam”. Instead, choose “Almost Always ECM But Sometimes Also Other Ships spam”. Other ECMs are also quite deadly. If the other team is squadding up with “ECM spam”, don’t “ECM spam”. Instead, choose another fast ship.
Active Modules (Just in case you haven’t figured them out yet. They’re pretty important.):
Metastable Energy Field Generator- This is the special module for the ECM. It is your panic button and your AoE paralyze. DO NOT USE WHILST/AFTER FLYING INTOXICATED.
Ion Diffuser- This is the bread and butter of the ECM. It is your most useful and spammable ability. This is first priority to upgrade.
Energy Absorber- This drains energy from your enemy which is absorbed by you. Note: this can be broken by putting a rock between you and your target.
Stasis Generator- Like the Ion Diffuser, except with an engine paralyze, a shorter CD and a shorter time effective.
Weapon System Inhibitor- It reduces the damage dealt to you by the target. I believe it doesn’t reduce damage dealt to others from target.
Shield Booster/Repair kit- At least have one of these. Particularly useful for, at the risk of being obvious, healing yourself. You won’t always be around an engie, especially if it’s dead.
Building the Perfect ECM:
First off: there’s no such thing as perfect.
People also build ECMs (or any ship in general) based on personal preference.
The End.
Building the “Perfect”/Standard ECM:
ECMs are tanky- build tankiness. I would avoid Galvanized Armor(unless you’re willing to give up an engine slot for verniers- I’m not). (I’m not going to talk about Submatters. This is about tournament play. Tournament is TIII, Submatter is TIV. And I haven’t gotten there. Yet.)
ECMs are interceptors- build speed and sometimes capacitor. It is possible to fly it with tetroxide injector (discuss why later on), but I use collision comps because my toaster lags my ECMs into walls. For capacitor, EB is your best friend and usually a must have (discussed later on). I wish its effects/cd stacked.
ECMs don’t do tons of damage- don’t try to build tons of damage. Pulse Discharger? NAH. Iridium Heatsink? Probably not. Shared Cooler? I’ll pass.
Weapons:
Kinetic Supercharger- The ECM special weapon, it is best against slow moving targets. This is your anti frigball weapon. Aim for groups of guards or Styxes who are camping. The weapon loses a great amount of effectiveness when used against fast moving targets. The most important thing to keep in mind while firing this weapon is that it also can kill you if you are sitting next to the target you are firing at (within 90m). Also, don’t fly into your own shrapnel clouds. Best used at middle-close to long ranges.
Other weapons- Please don’t ask me to explain these. Just try them if you want.
Playing ECM:
Don’t bubble/cocoon (for you n00bs out there who may be reading this, that’s Metastable Energy Field Generator) right as you’re fleeing from a fight with low health. Usually people will start firing their coils at you (everybody now has coils), and as soon as you un-cocoon/bubble, you get rekt because there are already projectiles in the air before the paralyze stops them.
However, if you are forced to cocoon/bubble, make sure, if you have enough energy left (if not, pop energy absorber [if you have it] on a random target), pop either shield booster or repair kit before you cocoon. It still repairs you when you are in the cocoon/bubble. If you don’t remember anything else from this guide, REMEMBER THIS.
Also, your special missiles affect you and your team, so be careful when you’re firing them.
Targeting in Tournaments:
Sort of Self-explanatory, but I’ll put it here just in case.
Target Priority (other than obvious things):
Person caught semi-out(disable engines, then tell your team to focus burst)>Person Not in Squad (less likely to be on ts with others in squad)>Person doing the most (healing or damage)(kinda obvious)>Person caught WAY out (look a line down)
Person caught WAY out is NOT FIRST PRIORITY FOR AN ECM! It’s dead anyways, so don’t waste your debuffs on it, unless you’re flying with seven tier skippers.
ECM Ships:
Since this is a tournament guide, I will be focusing on T3. As I have not flown all of these, I will answer to the best extent of my knowledge. The ships in T3 are:
Jericho Ships:
Stiletto AE- 10% crit bonus and energy-use reduction? SCORE! Energy Absorber is slightly less needed on this ship.
Kris- Sensor range 100% increase and ECM module 50% range increase make it a ship slightly more suited for longer range, and also allows you to use abilities farther from the action, allowing you to close in if you want.
Kris AE- Best suited for Kinetic Supercharger, with kinetic bonuses. Also good at medium-close range dogfighting/circling around groups of guards with Kinetic Supercharger, probably.
Spirit- This ship, in my mind, is the most suited for hit-and-debuff-then-run. It has damage boosts, a decent shield, and 2 engine slots. Also, a capacitor slot for EB (YAY!!!) and whatever else, whatever, it’s not EB…
Empire Ships:
Black Swarm- Not too sure, just gonna say it’s an all-rounder.
Grim- Sit still, disable ships while firing at them.
What an ECM should watch out for:
An ECM has no natural enemies, other than other ECMs and tons of enemies. Target ECMs if possible, following the “targeting guide” up there.
Thanks for hopefully reading this wall of text.