Ash tips and tricks?

[Omnimorph]

Just got Ash.  I've normally preferred "caster" frames so far, and this is the first melee-oriented frame I've really enjoyed, mainly because of Teleport, which I think is a fantastic ability.  And of course Bladestorm, which I actually enjoy the "cinematic" quality of. 

I'm curious about using Teleport and finishers (with Karyst and CL) though - I seem to always teleport "behind" an enemy and have to turn myself around to execute them, and it's a bit iffy whether I do that or touch them, cancelling the stealth (i.e. sometimes I get the animation and a proper finisher, sometimes I have to just slaughter them normally in a few hits).  Is that right? It's just a bit fiddly.  If I had melee auto-target on in options, would I just automatically turn around to execute as soon as hitting left click?  Or do I just have to git gud at turning around and executing without bumping-into?

Any other tips and tricks would be appreciated. I play him sort of as both a Lt assassin (e.g. Bombards) with Teleport and finisher, and trash-finisher with Bladestorm, and I think his stealth side seems to be mainly oriented around using stealth to assassinate (rather than be "in stealth" for long periods of time, like Loki).  I do use Bladestorm, but I tend to enjoy the other parts of his toolkit just as much and use them frequently (e.g. Shurikens and Smoke Bomb), so I'm interested in any synergies and "neat tricks" that people have found.  Mainly, I'm thinking that the stun on Smoke Bomb should be used after Teleport and before Bladestorm.  i.e., Teleport to biggest bad in group, Assassinate, smoke bomb and Bladestorm.  What are the ins and outs of such an approach.  I mean it feels right thematically, but are there any real advantages and synergies to this flow (e.g. does the stun from Smoke Bomb actually "help" Bladestorm in any way?)

 

Edited April 19, 2016 by Omnimorph

[TyrannosauRayz]

Spoiler

Press 4 to win

 

[Trichouette]

Ash's problem : Any kind of gameplay you can try with 1 2 and 3 is irelevant because pressing 4 does all the job

That's sad

My tips : press 4

[DJ_Redwire]

Shuriken: When aiming for a target, it's important to note that a target within the effective range of Shuriken, the flight trajectory will by default have a steep arch to it, even if the target is in a straight line of sight from you. In large rooms in particular, when trying to hit a distant target, try aiming slightly up/away from the target. This will ensure that you're using the Shuriken's natural flight arch to your advantage. Like a lot of Warframe's first abilities, it just takes getting used to in order to get the most out of it.

Smoke Screen: Smoke Screen is one of those abilities that you either build for or you don't - not much more to say on it than that. If your build is using Fleeting Expertise and/or Transient Fortitude, it's important to note that when it's at it's shortest duration, Smoke Screen will not really have an effect because the stun and invisibility will last approximately the same duration as the casting animation. Thus you're exactly back where you started.

Teleport: The position and direction of the target you're teleporting to does actually matter when it comes to effectively executing finishers. Now I know you're probably already doing this, but always asses the enemy or group of enemies you're about to Teleport to. Assuming you're using a build that makes Teleport cheap to cast, I would recommend looking for a back up target in your line of sight. What you can then is, if you happen to teleport to a target and are on the wrong side of them, you can teleport to your back up target, and then teleport back to your original high priority target generally at a more favorable angle. This is a situational example, but what's important is that you try and get creative with your ability use in order to find what works best for you.

Bladestorm: There are a couple important notes about Bladestorm. There are two basic things to keep in mind when casting it on a group of enemies. The first is to remember how enemies are selected within Bladestorm's effective radius. Enemies are selected when the are in a certain radius from the TARGET enemy, not Ash. Also, Power Strength determines not only damage, but the number of enemies within that radius you can select at once, kind of like Vauban's Bastille. The second important note to keep in mind is how Bladestorm determines target priority. Generally, the target that you cast the ability on is the LAST enemy that will be killed in the animation cycle. So, if you're casting it on a group of say 5 Lancers and a Bombard, and you want to kill the Bombard first, it is advisable to target one of the Lancers instead in order to place the Bombard on a higher priority.

 

Hope that helps, happy assassinating! 

[GinKenshin]

well, BS gets dmg from the melee multiplier, so before BSing, land some hits with your melee (preferably it has body count mod) and you can increase your BS dmg. try to keep your melee timers as long as possible basically 

[Exploderizer]

Unfortunately, Ash is not a very nuanced frame. His 3 is not great, as it sometimes leaves you in a bad spot and always does that stupid goddamned flip, which can leave you open, and break stealth. His 1 is alright, but doesn't really do extreme amounts of damage, nor is it easy to focus, as it will auto aim, and you're gonna have a hard time hitting a certain enemy you want if they're in a group. His invis is very short compared to Loki's, and staggers enemies within range. This presents a problem, as the stumble can alert enemies, meaning you're better off casting far from them, but casting far from them also leaves you open to the possibility that the invis will run out at a bad time, since it's so short.

Really, Ash is basically a 4 frame, as it kills enemies very easily due to ignoring armor, and causing armor-ignoring slash procs, which will take down most any enemy. It's boring, but that's how he is until he gets a rework.

Ash has no CC, it only exists in the form of his Smoke Screen's small stagger. The augs are nice but very circumstantial. His 1 aug is good for soloing heavily armored bosses, as you can strip a boss of 100% of their armor with it, for a period of time. His 2 requires all teammates to be in range, which is very short and unaffected by range mods, making it hard to plan out when to pop it for maximum usefulness if you're in the middle of battle and don't have time to type, or don't have good mic comms.  

[ashrah]

get good meele with big range....take augment for blade storm.. and just meele....also body count will help u a lot to keep combo up...wen u see u will be sarmed... use bs....

[ADirtyMonk]

When you say ability syngergies I assume you mean like Saryn? Ash doesnt have that as far as I am aware, his kit is quite old and has not been touched in a long time.

Most people play ash as a melee themed caster, i.e. ult spammer, and I don't blame them. His bladestorm just completely overshadows his other abilities with the invincibility, finisher damage, guaranteed slash proc, and scaling off of the combo multiplier. Aside from spy missions where you would build a duration Ash or just use Loki/Ivara/Limbo there is pretty much no situation where using your ult is worse than using one of your other abilities. Once you can hit 170-175 efficiency, ~180-200% range each time you ult you will clear everything in a 40-50m radius of whatever you initially targeted and if there's still enemies left you just ult again.

If you are still at the point where bladestorm costs over 30 energy/cast, I think you are playing him just fine as you are. 

Triggering finishers can be quite fiddly in Warframe not to mention some enemies just flat out cannot have finishers used on them. I would just try again. Teleporting to an enemy should open them up for a finisher whether you bump into them or not.

[The_Mustachio]

You just have to remember not to cast Bladestorm when you health is too low. I was playing with a guy yesterday in a T3D, kept getting himself killed. Fun match though, we got a lot of cores :p

[_Raiklar_]

i've found that i get the most damage from BS when my melee is equipped and i'm channeling.

[Manyc]

50 minutes ago, Omnimorph said:

Any other tips and tricks would be appreciated. (...)  I mean it feels right thematically, but are there any real advantages and synergies to this flow (e.g. does the stun from Smoke Bomb actually "help" Bladestorm in any way?)

Smoke Bomb opens enemies for finishers, Blade Storm has nothing to do with that, it just simply deals Finisher Damage. No need to open promps for finisher. So there's no synergy.

There is an often used tactic that people that don't exactly want to keep using BS over and over. Invest in duration, some strength (you need a minimum of 143%) and efficiency if you want. Mostly used on Void Survival but any other can do if you want. This is based on the Shuriken Augment, with 143% or higher it strips 100% of the armor. Then all you need is a gun heavy on slash with viral and it's much easier as armor is the biggest problem.

[Omnimorph]

Thanks folks!