Okay, this is what I've come up with in the way of a guide...Fire came up with most of the actual points earlier, I just went in and detailed them and stuff.
- Keep track of your turns!
Probably the most important thing. Check to see what turn the fight's on, then check to see if your turn number matches. If it doesn't, you have turns to make up. DON'T WASTE THEM! Seriously. Doesn't seem like that bit a deal, but when you've got three-four characters that not notice it and then lose the turns...well, that can make a hell of a difference in a big fight.
- If you have guns and CofC, use it while fighting mooks!
Mooks are very dangerous in groups. You need to thin them out quickly. CofC allows two attacks on mooks per turn. This is a good thing. Tapping it allows you to attack FOUR mooks that turn. This is a VERY good thing if you need to get rid of them immediately. Use it.
- If you're not good at MA, don't get trapped in a melee!
This is very simple. If your MA score is crap, avoid getting into a close combat fight at all means.
- Concentrate your attacks!
Also simple. Unless you're using something like PM or DF that allows you to attack mutiple (non-mook) targets, concentrate your attacks on a single target instead of spreading them out. You'll take down your targets quicker.
- If you are a gunner, worry about mooks!
This is what gunners excel in - mook-killing. So do it. Take out the mooks as quickly as you can; make that your first priority. THEN help out the fighters in sniping at named characters.
- If you're a fighter, worry about named characters!
Fighters are better built to handle named characters than mooks - yes, they can take on mooks, but unless you have PM or tap DF, gunners will be able to kill them faster.
- If you're using guns to fight, use cover!
Standing out in the open while shooting people is asking to be turned into a shotgun pancake. Get behind cover and shoot from back there - you will take much less damage.
- Keep track of what defenses you have!
This is especially important if you are fighting in close combat as you don't have the option of cover. Keep track of what defenses you have out. Storm Turtle for gun attacks, Clever Fox for someone attacking with a melee weapon, Passive Wings/King on the Water/Defensive Master for all general attacks, Life's Armor for making you take less damage when you're hit. Obviously it's not really practical to have more than two active at a time (unless you're a Natural All-Rounder and can have 6 things in your cache), but keep track of what you have and switch accordingly.
- If you're a Natural, tap your powers!
Seriously, Naturals can refresh a lot. A Natural Gunner/Fighter can untap 1 active and 2 inactive powers; a Natural All-Rounder can untap 2 active and 3 inactive powers. That's five powers at a time! If you're a Natural and you're not tapping powers, then you're wasting the advantages of your template; may as well be a Hacker with less pool.
- Pay attention to who's fighting what target!
This is important especially in clearing out large groups of mooks. If more than one person is attacking the same mook, it's simply a waste. Only team up on enemies if they're named characters, otherwise it's not needed and a waste of an attack.
- Pick your targets based on your skill!
Basically, it comes down to this. Some mooks are harder to kill than others; some have armor. If there's multiple groups of mooks (say regular cops and then SWATs, which are armored), pick your target wisely. If you have low pool and no powers like Eagle Eye, Dim-Mak or Piercing Claw, which allow you to ignore armor, do not be fighting armored mooks. It will take much longer for you to kill them. Likewise, if you have a high pool and powers that let you pierce armor, you SHOULD be taking on armored mooks, as this will allow you to take them out quickly.
- Pick your powers (and weapons) based on your template and skill!
Knives are completely useless unless you have a high pool, as they are a very low damage weapon and do not pierce armor. Unless you're a Hacker, don't even bother with them, you won't be able to do enough damage with them; go with katars instead. Swords are a good all-round weapon, and are especially effective with high pool because of the base damage they have. A Natural sword-fighter will be less than stellar, though, because the tap of JE isn't that great.
Same with guns. If you have a lower pool, you're best off using two machine pistols with BB. The burst fire bonus coupled with firing both guns at once will help offset the low amount of pool you have. If you're a Gunner and have a high pool, though, the burst fire bonus is less important and you're better off going with a gun that does heavier damage.
And then last tip for this bit - if you're going to take a weapon, make sure you have the power that goes with it. They can be used without the corresponding powers, but they won't be as good, so what's the point?
- Be VERY careful in fighting an Agent!
Agents are evil, stupid, annoying bastards and they WILL kill you. They're very easy to piss off - all you need to do to get one mad at you is to fight well against it. Everyone who played the first game should remember this as we all found it out the hard way. Well, it's much easier to land damage on them now, but they still get just as mad and thus nasty - and I'm saying this from experience. Don't fight an Agent to try and defeat it. Fight it ONLY until you get an opening to escape. First chance you have to run, take it. Else, you stand no chance.
- Be careful in getting into a close-combat fight!
If you're in close combat and want to retreat...well, unless you have a power that allows you to do so, you can't do so safely. So be careful and know that when you're going into a fight that unless you have a power that allows you to throw your opponent or retreat (taps of PW, VG, and LB allow this), you're stuck until you've defeated your opponent.
- Use the Operators!
This is something that everyone seems to forget to do. Ariadne and Finn can do a lot, and get us a lot of information. Want to know what's up ahead? Find something or someone suspicious you want an eye kept on? Give them a call and it can be done.
- Listen to orders!
This one is simple. We have two officers this game, Mors and San. The two of us will likely be making a lot of decisions, and I can certainly say that I do put quite a bit of thought into advice and orders I give. If you want to go against something or break the plan, you'd better have a good reason for doing so and explain it. Everyone who's played with me before can vouch for the fact that I get very unhappy when I tell someone to do something (or not do something), and it goes wrong because it's ignored.
On the flip side, if you have an idea or think that something could be done better another way, say so and explain your reasoning. Plans rarely stay the same, and everyone should help come up with them.