Did you know that, as a nomad you can build, repair and mine faster than any other unit in the game? The trick to doing this is to attack 3 times, then block for a split second. This is much faster than attacking in succession and will get a job done MUCH faster. This is also useful for attacking buildings.
This can also be used on Savages (did you know that a Savage can destroy a building faster than a Legionnaire can? 2 or 3 attacks followed by another split second block can achive this.
Also useful for legionnaires, although they are still slow as hell. 2 attacks followed by a block will get this done.
Beast Travel
As a beast player, you have access to the most useful ability in the game - the leap. You also have access to a nifty technique called the Bounce. The bounce allows you to travel through ground even faster! Leap, and the split second before you land, jump. This will create a kind of "subleap" that many players call a Bounce. This can be repeated as many times as you like with 1 leap, although its best to only do about 2 bounces per leap.
In addition to this, you should really avoid using sprint as a beast. The only time I can think you would need it is if you were travelling up a steep hill - that is where leap is as good as useless. Downhill is another matter though...
Stamina Bar
One of the most overlooked features of Savage - the stamina bar refills if it isn't full (tongue), although many players do not realise that they fill faster above a certain point. NEVER completely empty your stamina bar; unless in very awkward circumstances, you should never need to anyway. When your stamina bar is empty, it takes a very long time to refill, even with Rabid. Keep up the stamina!
Spires and Towers
Ok, you are approaching the entrance of the beast base with your fully-equipped Legionnaire, only to find that there are about 5 spires blocking your entrance. Not to worry! It is possible to block shots from spires like normal hits - just be sure to time it right.
If you have a friend near you, ask them to distract the defense structure by firing a shot of coil or tempest at it. If they are in cover, they will not get hit by the arrows while you sneak into the heart of their base, destroy their defences and let your friend in. Its easy when you know how!
Remember that Shield Towers and Heal Spires are going to wreck your thought-out plan of attack if you dont destroy them first. They are your main targets. Good commanders protect their "Shield" and Heal Spires very well.
Mist Shroud, Storm Shield, Sacrifice and Disrupters are key tools for destroying defensive structures: Here is a list of things you should use them on:
Normal Spire: Block Flame Spire: Disrupters Wind Spire: Disrupters (This also stops the misdirection effect) Heal Spire: Disrupters (This also stops the heal effect) Normal Tower: Mist Shroud (If no sensors are present), Sacrifice (If no Shield Tower is present) Mortar Tower: Storm Shield, Sacrifice Shield Tower: Sacrifice Shock Tower: Sacrifice (Not mist!)
Dont forget, distractions work against all defensive structures, so use them well.
Combat around a Non-Defensive Structure
This situation is usually good for the defender, but the attacker may have the edge depending on the items they are carrying. Land Mines and Fire Wards are useful as they impede and my even kill anyone who isnt cautious about the building they choose to attack.
Many Buildings have lips that can be used to hide around or hit through (the Arsenal is a good example of this), be aware of the shape of the building you are defending or attacking.
Dont be afraid to stop attacking a building if it means killing someone else, as you may cause more damage or even destroy the building in the long run.
Garrisons and Sublairs are very diffficult to destroy. If a Behemoth spawns at a sub you are attacking, dont panic! Work around it as the behe can only be in one place, they need to come to you. The same applies to all other siege units that may spawn to kill you. Attack Sublairs and Garrisons from the REAR (The box bit of the garrison and the door-like bit of the sublair); this way less players can surprise you as they spawn.
Look at the timer! If you are holding disrupters, throw one at the door so that it explodes each time it reads :45, :30, :15 or :00 as this is when most players respawn from their respawn times. Remember the disrupter has a 5 second fuse, so be sure to throw it about 4 seconds before they are to spawn to maximise the damage you can deal.
Unorthadox Weapons and Items
The Mortar is a bizzare weapon in that it deals more damage at face value than most tier 2 weaponry, but it has little ammo and requires skill to lead the targets - this puts most players off. With a little practice it is easy to master and suits those who have a compliment of melee skills, so that IF the beast decides to use their Storm Shield against you, you can counter their melee. Mortars can be used to shoot over some low props - Losthills is a great map to try this on!.
The Immobiliser is possibly the most underrated weapon in the game, despite its many uses. It stops saccers in their tracks. It almost always results in an insta-kill of a beast if they are outnumbered or outgunned. Its useful on siege units to slow down their advance. This is ridiculously cheap - $400 for one, but it comes with a price. It is very difficult to use effectively and, like the disrupter, requires skill in that area. These rules apply mostly to Snare as well, although it has less uses, costs $250 and can be carried in threes.
The Fireball is another weird weapon that does exactly what it says on the tin - Take your pick between one massive blast, suitable for towers and lone Legionnaires, or fire millions of small ones to disrupt your target while the larger units close in.
The Crossbow... a cruel, cruel weapon in the right hands. If fires in a straight line, but bears on a curve over time. The illusion of this weapon is that people often try to lead the target, thereby often missing - although the massive speed of this weapon after firing means that you shouldn't need to. The damage is quite low, but as I'm sure that if you've seen MED's auto-xbow video, this is no weapon to underestimate.
The Sensor is an item with a load of depth. Used primarily to detect gateways and the location of any hidden enemy units, one of these should be deployed in a heavily conjested area in which you fight. It is also wise to drop one in an open area, so your commander can find a gate should one happen to appear. My favorite use for these is a distraction - drop a sensor in the middle of a battlefield and laugh as every pred runs toward it, only to die on the landmine you laid under it. Using immobs on them while they attack it is a good plan so the listas can pick them all off one by one! You only can have 12 of these deployed at any one time, so only deploy them when they matter. As with firewards, landmines and relocators they can be deleted by the commander, replenishing the stock of them.
ZOMG WERE DID HE GO?!?! The relocator is an incredibly useful item; creating a warp point when dropped that allows you to warp toward it at any point that you have the recieveing end. Be sure to drop some landmines around your relocator patch, as any pred knows that killing a bunch of relocators usually means death for the hapless human who hasnt realised that it has been destroyed. You can also use them as a distraction with landmines if you have enough spare gold and a lot of nerve.
Landmines and Firewards are incredible pieces of kit if your team is high on gold. Drop landmines infront of spawn flags and subs for a cheap kill, ontop of sensors as a nice trap, ontop of your relocator... the possibilities are endless! Well, 25. As such, you should try to use them only in key locations where they will be trampled, stomped or otherwise manuevered over. Commanders can delete them as they choose - the pointless line of 5 firewards in the middle of nowhere could be used much more effectively somewhere else. Try placing them behind rocks, trees, small building gaps, near workers paths, infront of your own sub/garr, in enemy-infested areas, to create a barricade around your structure... anything! They can be dispelled by using Storm Shield or Disrupters. See those little cheap legionnaires blocking your firewards? Melee them, more often than not you will be able to kill them. Yes, you can be harmed by your own mines/wards so be careful when fighting around them.
Shaman Shield is a beam that reduces 50% of damage the target would recieve. PsychadelicShaman's Healer guide covers this in more detail. Use it on buildings, behemoths, even fellow shamen. Just concentrate with that beam and eventually you will get it to lock onto a target much like the flux gun. If you fire the beam at an enemy, it does absolutely nothing except how much you dont understand this weapon - show you know how to use it and use it!
Buffs
You probably know what buffs are/do, so here are a few nice tricks you may not have realised about them:
Firstly, every buff here (except heal) cancels all positive temporary buffs currently on you. This means that you cant use your flame shield with frenzy and your electrify with your... er... chaplain potion.
Buffs cannot be used on siege units... heal on a behe?
The heal makes the unit perfect - thats a full restoration of health, mana and stamina... not much else to say except with a 100 buffpool avalible, you can have 2 heals directly, whereas the other buffs would only grant 1.
The flame shield is one of the most useful buffs in the game, although sometimes it can be a major hindrance due to it's positive effect cancelling so it can't be coupled with frenzy, storm shield and other items that would make the buff have so many applications. As it stands, attack some buildings, attack a group of units, attack some cata... I think it's only problem is that you cant cook your nomads before you eat them with your carn...
Electrify is a nice one... depending whether you are on the recieving end of the battle axe. This adds a x4 (?) multiplier to the unit's melee attack - taking down buildings and close units with relative ease. The old "block-elec zomfg noob" situation is quite popular here. Also, if you see a nomad with an electrify, your pred can (usually) take a hit from one and live to tell the tale... barely.
Shield is a nice multi-purpose buff. It is not wise to use this vs a beast with a flame shield active as it doesnt reduce the damage very significantly as it is repeated damage. With this on, avoid players with surge and (to a lesser extent) blaze, as it is hard to deal with your health steadily decreasing over time. I think this buff reduces damage by a factor of 4 (?)... so is useful for dealing with defensive structures and hordes of units, as well as retrieving a spawn flag. Note: A demo charge can still kill you if you have the shield on and are at full health with a lego (I think its the same case with a behe, but not sure) so be sure to block when they go off.
Adrenaline is a fair buff that grants sprint-speed to anyone who needs it for the alloted time. If you are asking for one of these, to maximise its effectiveness its best to sprint until your bar is almost (!) empty, as your stamina replenshes while you are sprinting around. Holding shift with this on is not redundant. Using this with demo charges, and fighting around behes and buildings is a good plan. It can also be used to clear a fire ward field if you JUST enter the radius of each ward without blocking, making it somewhat more effective in this role than shield.