Here’s a quick guide to the ins-and-outs of marking enemy machines. If you’ve ever wondered how the game’s marking mechanics work and whether there are any synergies, this is for you. I personally found that the in-game descriptions were ambiguous at times and the information circulating online (forums, Discord, etc.) was often conflicting. So I tested it myself and this is what I’ve come up with.
SKILLS
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Enemy Marking
Description: allows marking machines with binoculars in Tech View
Levels: 2 (15 sec, 30 sec)
Note: doesn’t require Spotting Intel skill to enable Tech View mode. Unable to re-mark machines until the original marking timer has expired -
Designated Target
Description: increases damage dealt to machines marked using binoculars
Levels: 2 (+5%, +10%)
Note: only works with Enemy Marking skill and no other marking method. Particularly useful for multiplayer, as all players benefit from it (untested) -
Veteran Guerrilla
Description: increases XP earned from destroyed machines marked using binoculars
Levels: 2 (+20%, +40%)
Note: only works with Enemy Marking skill and no other marking method. Last time I tested this in multiplayer it seemed to only give bonus XP to the player who possessed this skill and only when they were credited with destroying a marked machine (results inconclusive, further testing required)
ATTENTION!
Neither of the following 2 augmentations have any impact beyond simply marking enemy machines. The companion’s Spotter Module does provide some additional bonuses, however it doesn’t benefit from any skills. If players intend to use the Enemy Marking, Designated Target and/or Veteran Guerrilla skill combo, I’d recommend not using any other marking methods, as they currently don’t synergise at all. Furthermore, since you have to wait until a mark expires before being able to mark again, these other marking methods will only serve to delay or prevent players from gaining their skills’ bonuses when using binoculars.
AUGMENTATIONS
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Scope Scout
Description: any machine that stays within the weapon scope’s field of view remains marked
Levels: 3 (1 sec, 2 sec, 3 sec)
Note: any machine that leaves the scope’s field of view will remain marked for a short duration (the only benefit to upgrading the augmentation to higher levels). Doesn’t provide any damage or XP bonus in itself, nor does it benefit from the Designated Target and Veteran Guerrilla skills -
Skilled Spotter
Description: marks machines when destroying a component
Levels: 3 (10 sec, 22 sec, 30 sec)
Note: doesn’t provide any damage or XP bonus in itself, nor does it benefit from the Designated Target and Veteran Guerrilla skills. Currently bugged as it doesn’t tally marking consistently. Check this bug report for more details.
COMPANION MODULE
Spotter Module
Description: allows companion to mark enemy machines that have engaged the player
Note: 15 sec mark duration. In my testing, the module provided the same damage bonus as LVL2 Designated Target, regardless of whether Designated Target was skilled or not, thus 10% damage bonus. It also provided a 7.5% XP increase that was unaffected by the Veteran Guerrilla skill whatsoever.
(EDIT 17/9/24) Similar to the Veteran Guerrilla skill, full XP is only granted when the player is credited with destroying marked machines.
CONCLUSION
Use either a skill combination or the companion’s Spotter Module for marking to receive damage and XP bonuses. Avoid using multiple marking methods. IMHO the augmentations are practically useless for anything other than spotting and tracking machines, so are best avoided if that’s not a priority.
TESTING METHOD
For consistency, the difficulty was set to Skirmish with Automatic Difficulty Scaling disabled. The game’s save file was backed up prior to testing and was restored before each test to allow repeatability. Damage values were recorded by firing upon a fresh Prototype Tank’s Concussion Actuator within 10m range using a 5C Pvg90 with standard FMJ rounds. XP values were recorded by ensuring that only the Prototype Tank was destroyed and that no other units were involved or alerted.
If you believe you’ve found an error in this guide, fire off a reply and I’ll look into it.