Cheaters removed from GOW2 Leaderboards

Confirmed cheaters had their scores removed from the GOW2 leaderboards. Also players who were playing in a game that had a cheater had that individual score removed as well, but there other scores were not removed. http://gearsofwar.xbox.com/Templates/Secondary.aspx?id=1822

Beat the horde on Pavillion

A random group and I beat all 50 horde waves on pavillion last night.  We had to restart a lot of times, but eventually beat all 50 waves.  We had to use two strategies to make it through all 50 waves.

Our main strategy was to stay in the hallway where the ammo spawns (in front of the room where the shield spawns).  Every wave we grabbed the shield that spawned and placed it in the doorway at the end of the hallway.  At the end of every wave 2 or 3 players would reset the shields.  One or two players would run for grenades in the halls on the side of the map.  The last player would run for the mulcher in the gazebo.  We would all take turns grabbing the ammo box as soon as it spawned to make sure we all had max ammo at all times.

We shot over the shields on both ends of the hall to keep the horde back.  When the horde got past the shields we would all focus on the side that was breached, eventually falling back in the shield room and defending the small hallway to that room.

We were all beaten at wave 40 and restarted at that level.  We did not have any shields.  We kept trying to defend the shield room, but the bloodmounts were too fast and that room was too small to beat wave 40.  Finally we tried a different strategy which was to go to the lowest part of the map (down the stairs on either side of the gazebo).  From there we spread out so it was harder for the bloodmounts to take us all out.  There is a small corridor between the two sides on the lower part of the map where the mortar spawns. We made sure to grab the mortar whenever it was available and kept firing rounds at the stairs to the lower areas (whether we saw an enemy or not). If a bloodmount did make it to the lower area, we would run through the corridor to the other side and fire back through the corridor at the bloodmounts who had a harder time making it through the narrow corridor.

We had to try that strategy a few times before beating wave 40. Once we beat that wave, we went back to our original strategy of defending the hall and we were able to do that without much trouble once we have a few waves to get our shield defenses built back up.

Beating Bloodmounts without Shields

Lately I have played in a few games where we forgot to replant key shields or they get knocked down and the bloodmounts are able to come at us without anything to stop them – and we make it through the wave.  I think this is due to a new strategy we have started using.   I like to call it – “Let the newb die”. 

I must admit not everyone I was playing with knew about this strategy, but it has been working.  When a bloodmount attacks the newbs try to go toe-to-toe with the bloodmount.  This is bad for them, but good for you.  This allows the rest of the team to fall back.  Everyone needs to shoot at the bloodmount (in the head!  always in the head!) and ignore the rider until the bloodmount is dead.  The newb might get knocked down before you kill the bloodmount, but the bloodmount will usually leave that player and come after the rest of the team (at least in the earlier waves 10, 20, 30).  By that time the bloodmount is pretty much ready to die and only makes it a few steps before it is downed.  Right when the bloodmount is ready to die, or when it dies, the rider falls off and it stunned for a little bit.  Use this time to run up on the rider and saw him down.  This saves your ammo to use on the next bloodmount.  One person can be sawing down the rider while the others revive the downed teammate.  Since you can only go down three times before you die, you might have to take turns going toe-to-toe with the bloodmounts.

I only recommend this strategy if you don’t have shields.  Also make sure you have plenty of room to back away from the bloodmount.  This strategy doesn’t work well if you can only back up a couple steps.  You need to have plenty of distance between you, the newb and the bloodmount.  You also need a team that works together to bring down the bloodmount by shooting it in the head.  If the newb can stand in a doorway while fighting the bloodmount toe-to-toe it also prevents other enemies from making it past them so you only have to fight one at a time.

Gears of War 2 on PC

Looks like GOW2 might be getting ported to the PC

http://gamer.blorge.com/2009/11/22/rumor-gears-of-war-2-finally-coming-to-pc/

Gears of War II is celebrating its first annivesary by providing players with triple experience from Nov 6 to Nov 16.

There will also be a new tactical mode where you have increased health while down but not out.  There will also be increased weapon damage in that mode.  Difficulty will default to Hardcore.

http://gearsofwar.xbox.com/Templates/Secondary.aspx?id=1816