Player-Versus-Player Strategy Guide

[Shiver]

The Mmrnmhrm Transformer



I present to you the most well-rounded combatant in Star Control. Mmrnmhrm is comprised of two different forms which it can alternate between. These two forms--a high speed missileboat and a point-blank brawler--fill in each other's gaps nicely. Being every bit as lethal as Androsynth, Mmrnmhrm has managed to find its way close to the top of the pile despite its 19 point cost. Mmrnmhrm will seem unwieldy to control to an inexperienced player, but it actually requires less player skill than most other ships to be useful.



The X-Wing



This is the form you will first see when Mmrnmhrm enters the arena. The X-Wing turns very fast yet has pitiful top speed. It wields a set of criss-crossing lasers that each inflict damage at the same rate as the VUX laser, or the same rate as the Chmmr laser when combined. This is a powerful yet somewhat limited short range weapon. Mmrnmhrm has a small battery that empties itself quickly when firing its twin lasers so it is best to strike most other ships in short intervals before breaking off. How does one accomplish this? See the section below. The X-Wing is also very good at tearing apart flanking ships while pillboxing.



Jousting

Want to close the gap with an opponent and rake them with your twin lasers? Approach as a Y-Wing, switch to X-Wing and fire as you glide past your opponent. You might need to nudge your direction of travel slightly once you switch to X-Wing, but be careful not to slow yourself down too much. Too much directional adjustment as an X-Wing will prevent you from catching the target or possibly leave you in an extended shootout at short range.



The Y-Wing



The Y-Wing is what you do most of the dirty work with. It has high speed and a slow turning rate. The weapon you get with it is a spammable twin missile launcher. Individual missiles inflict a single point of damage and don't track very well. Nevertheless, the long range of this weapon allows you to wear down many different enemies without them being able to hit back. Your direction of travel can have a large impact on the distance your missiles will reach before expiring. Travelling towards an opponent at maximum Y-Wing speed cuts the effectiveness of this weapon down dramatically. Don't do this. Facing towards your opponent while moving away from them will allow you to get the most out of your missile launcher, although that position can be difficult to set up and usually won't last very long before the other player escapes. Firing missiles from a relative halt is effective as well. Even when Mmrnmhrm is acting as a dedicated missile boat it may still need to switch into X-Wing form for the occasional sharp turn or brake.



Ideal Purpose

There is not any one particular ship which Mmrnmhrm is best held in reserve for. Here is the obligatory list of potential prey followed by a tactical run-down of the most enticing match-ups:

• Arilou
• Earthling
• Ilwrath
• Shofixti
• Slylandro
• Thraddash
• Umgah
• Ur-Quan
• Utwig
• VUX
• Zoq-Fot-Pik

Mmrnmhrm vs. Ur-Quan: Your maximum range exceeds theirs by a lot and Ur-Quan is not nearly fast enough to catch you. Slowly wear Ur-Quan down from far away with your Y-Wing missiles. Ur-Quan fighters are frustrating to shoot down with the X-Wing twin lasers, don't even try. Avoiding them is good enough. Take this fight slowly and carefully. You might manage to win without even sustaining a single crew loss.

Mmrnmhrm vs. Utwig: Utwig maneuvers like such a tub of lard that they can never hope to catch you. Their shield can only help delay the inevitable for a short while. Pick them apart with Y-Wing missiles.

Mmrnmhrm vs. Slylandro: If you happen to start this fight flying around in Y-Wing, switch to X-Wing and grind to a halt as fast as you can. Pillbox in X-Wing and blast them apart when they try to attack. Expect Slylandro to juke around and do anything they can think of to mess with you before beginning a flanking run. Connecting your lasers to their hull can be difficult, but Slylandro dies fast once your weapon hits its mark whereas the other player will need to execute many successful flanking runs to beat you.



Counters

Mmrnmhrm is one of those rare spacecraft that doesn't lose to anything cheaper than itself very frequently, making more expensive craft worth sending against it. Chmmr and Orz can both do a great job of putting Mmrnmhrm back in its place.

Chmmr vs. Mmrnmhrm: Don't use the tractor beam. Doing so will send the X-Wing careening around the arena and make it possible for the other player to inflict more damage on you before you take them out. Instead you should meander towards Mmrnmhrm the conventional way and attack. Chmmr's beam has a slightly longer range, but the ship is not maneuverable enough to hit Mmrnmhrm without them hitting you back.

Orz vs. Mmrnmhrm: Deploy marines from many different directions and try to stall for time. Attacking Mmrnmhrm head-on with the mortar is usually a bad idea given Orz's low crew count. Your ship is just barely agile enough to avoid Mmrnmhrm's Y-Wing and that is what you should focus your attention on. Mmrnmhrm's horribly gimped turning rate will lead to it being boarded by your marines sooner or later.

Not satisfied with those two? I will leave you some tips for a few of the better "grey area" match-ups which can be worth attempting if you're feeling dangerous...

Syreen vs. Mmrnmhrm: Steer clear of Y-Wing missiles and search for the planet. Once you find it, gravity whip onto the Mmrnmhrm's position. You will probably miss them and be forced to repeat this many times. Use your Siren's Song once you get close enough. The Mmrnmhrm may fly right by you as you do this, leaving you free to steal a few crew. Oftentimes the other player will anticipate what you're trying to do and switch into X-Wing. Try not to run straight into the X-Wing's twin lasers while you spam your Siren's Song. If the Mmrnmhrm player switches into X-Wing and positions their ship to protect floating crew then you should back away from them a bit and then take potshots at the X-Wing with your stupidshooter. Mmrnmhrm will be forced to switch back into Y-Wing to escape you, allowing you to steal their crew as they flee.

Supox vs. Mmrnmhrm: This fight strongly resembles Syreen vs. Mmrnmhrm. You will need to perform repeated gravity whips onto the Mmrnmhrm's position to attack in a similar fashion. The difference with this match-up is that Supox will inflict damage much less rapidly than Syreen, yet be virtually immune to the X-Wing's twin lasers thanks to its vectored thrust if you play correctly. Accelerate in reverse at just the right moment to prevent your ship from ever drawing close enough that twin lasers can hit you. Get as many shots in as you can after you close in on the Mmrnmhrm's position, then return to the planet to set yourself up for another run. Y-Wing missiles are the real threat here.

Druuge vs. Mmrnmhrm: This is a hard match-up to give advice for because it's so free form. The key here is that Mmrnmhrm can't turn very quickly as a Y-Wing. This leads to it following a rather predictable flight path which allows for easy hits. "Easy" being a relative term, unfortunately. You need to be very good at connecting those long shots with Druuge to win this fight. If you can't land those direct hits quickly you will be picked apart by a flurry of missiles.

[Scott_Irving]

Topic no longer to be update as per creator. Locked for future reference.