★ ★ ★ Tip of the Day #3: Sky Lining (And why you should avoid it) ★ ★ ★

[Scorpiany]

Ooh, hello you tasty morsel of an enemy... let me just aim in... and... WHAT??? Hacks! How was I killed?!?!

 

Whilst the above is a dilemma that mostly newer players face, often times I see said newer players making a very, very bad mistake. On maps such as Sand River, Serene Coast, etc they easily get spotted and are shot down within moments. Why? They were sky lining.

 

Sky lining is a term which means what the name says - lining your tank up with the sky. Usually this is by sitting on the highest bit of terrain available; often times terrain which is significantly higher up than the rest of the map. Since usually there is little cover in sky-lining zones, this makes your tank very visible to the enemy, and you become an extremely easy kill. Sitting on the highest Sand River dunes, or on the Railroad in Prohorovka / Fiery Salient, or Serene Coast puts your tank above everyone else; where there is no cover, and where you can be shot at from all sides. Try to avoid this.

 

 

Let's take this T-43 in the image below as an example.  See how his tank really, really, really stands out? Yeah... that's why you don't sky line. The enemy will easily spot you and shoot you.

 

T-43 asking to die: 

 

 

 

And what a surprise! He's dead. And if you look at the chat right before he died... he skylined intentionally as a suicide, since he wanted to get out of the match quickly (bad sportsmanship, but that's besides the point). Skylining ultimately is a suicide - whether it's intentional or accidental, sitting above everyone else is likely to get you killed.

 

What a surprise! He's dead. 

 

 

 

 

So - in general, try not to make your tank the first thing people see. Play smart. It's only logical that when your tank stands out more than anything else, and is easier to hit than anything else, people will shoot at you and you exclusively.

 

Are there any times when sky-lining is a good thing? Well, being on high ground can often times give you a tactical advantage - however, you want to make sure you have cover around you. Being high above over tanks can be good; just make sure that you're not making yourself an easy target. If you're spotted, you should not be an easy pool of XP for the enemy. There is a difference between being on high ground and sky lining. Sky lining is making yourself an easily visible, easy to hit target, without cover around you. Being on high ground for a tactical advantage should not do any of those 3 things to your tank.

 

Some people may argue that if you're in a scout tank with all of the enemies far enough away from you so that they can't spot you, then sky lining can help you spot and/or shoot them. Well... it's possible - however, if there's a tank moving along the bushes, or on very low ground, or simply an enemy is closer than you expected, then you will easily be spotted and shot at - sometimes without even seeing what's shooting you. Thus, unless you are 100% certain that it is absolutely safe (i.e. all remaining enemies are currently spotted, and you know they are all too far away to spot you), you should avoid skylining; or if you do it, it's only for a fraction of a second (i.e. peeking over a dune or hill and pulling back immediately to see if 6th sense goes off). In general though - don't sky line. It's very, very risky; and almost suicidal.

 

I hope this is useful for some players! If you'd prefer to see an example or additional information live, send me a P.M. and I'll take you to a Training Room and show you exactly what I'm talking about, how to avoid it, or how to do it safely as a test to see if you get spotted.

 

As always, I'm very open to feedback and looking to improve the quality of my posts. Good luck both on the battlefield and in real life, tankers.

[bart russell]

funny. I use sky lining all the time. here are some tips from a hardcore skyliner. 1.)  pick the right tank, i.e. ELC or E25.   2.) have a fully trained crew; 6th sense, BIA, camo,  having been fed chocolate or whatever for that country.   3.)  Install Vents, binocs, painted camo, and a camo net.  4.) get there first!   5.) once in position DONT move. not even your barrel. I swear to god just moving the barrel has got me spotted.      6.) hover your finger over the "W" or "S" key cause you only have a half second or less to get moving when it is time.     7.) always have an escape route. you may have to run a LONG LONG ways to get unspotted.  8.) and the one and ONLY  Golden Rule  for sky lining is: DONT SHOOT!!! u shoot u die. The easiest mission for me to get the StugIV was the 4k spotting with a LT, and it was ALL done with sky lining!

[Scorpiany]

funny. I use sky lining all the time. here are some tips from a hardcore skyliner. 1.)  pick the right tank, i.e. ELC or E25.   2.) have a fully trained crew; 6th sense, BIA, camo,  having been fed chocolate or whatever for that country.   3.)  Install Vents, binocs, painted camo, and a camo net.  4.) get there first!   5.) once in position DONT move. not even your barrel. I swear to god just moving the barrel has got me spotted.      6.) hover your finger over the "W" or "S" key cause you only have a half second or less to get moving when it is time.     7.) always have an escape route. you may have to run a LONG LONG ways to get unspotted.  8.) and the one and ONLY  Golden Rule  for sky lining is: DONT SHOOT!!! u shoot u die. The easiest mission for me to get the StugIV was the 4k spotting with a LT, and it was ALL done with sky lining!

 

Moving the barrel doesn't affect anything; as long as your hull doesn't move. Skylining will get you spotted very easily; and there are few situations where it's an appropriate tactic.

[bart russell]

think what you want, but there have been several instances where I wasn't spotted until I moved my barrel and BAM! SPOTTED. Maybe it has to do with the Visibility Checkpoints; Checkpoints 1, 2, or 3. (not to be confused with View Range Ports.)

 

I just had a 5k spotting round with my T49...mostly using skylining..so to each his own...all I know is I don't move my turret  anymore!..lol

[bart russell]

KV-5 Skylining  is the MOST fun of all!

[Scorpiany]

KV-5 Skylining  is the MOST fun of all!

 

Well, in that case you were out-side of spotting distance from the enemy, so you were fine. If you were close enough to be spotted, you'd be dead.

[bart russell]

That is EXACTLY what I am trying to do; get spotted!! There is always some scouts that like to hide along that middle ridge line and I like to try to get them lit up. Most of them cant resist shooting at such a nice juicy target, and the second I am spotted I plunge down into the  valley below and try to get arty to blind shoot at me :) (that is why I am parked backwards ... I have discovered that when I am startled I have a tendency to hit reverse!)

 

 

 

 

 

T28 Skylining. 1600 damage, just about to kill another one, and the battle still had a lot of potential for more damage. Just haven't figured out yet how to use the reverse pose with a T28 ... and yes I know, I broke my First Golden Rule !    >;)