1. MG Echelon Superiority Theory
Right now many players online have the understanding that the MG SG echelon is the ultimate echelon that will beat everything that AW can throw at you. This idea originated mostly from older server like CN and KR, where MG echelon did have an impact, and came to EN as is. Also due to a large gap in event schedule from Operation Cube to AW, some EN veterans had 5 months to prepare and finally gets to flex their echelons that have been collecting dust. This MG superiority fuels various rumors:
- “You MUST have a MG echelon to finish AW campaign.”
- Lots of users are afraid that difficulty ramp in Chapter 3 necessitates MG SG echelon. While a MG SG echelon does make campaign lot easier [less kiting micro], entire campaign could be beaten with well-organized AR SMG echelons and RF HG echelons. Considering that MG SG echelons burn through resources fastest among all types, even veterans who are considering the EN’s tightly-scheduled 2019 season would be careful to use it freely.
- “You can’t compete in Ranking without 10 MG SG echelon.”
- If you do not know exactly what you are doing, 10 MG SG will do more harm than good. When fighting against waves of enemies with different compositions, MG SG will not be best suited for all types. Against Bosses? Your SG will melt under low evasion and high FP of each shot they dish out at you, leaving your MGs in the back vulnerable while they reload. Well-balanced echelons of each type will be key to high-scoring Ranking run.
- Lastly, let’s quickly do a math for 10 MG SG supply usage. [Assuming player fields 1SG,2HG, 2MG] Each echelon will be on estimate consume 86 Ammo, and 76 per combat and additional 76 ration per turn. With the conservative estimate, 10 MG SG echelon can spend over 14k in ammo, and up to 23k in Rations over 20 turns. Including gunboats formation and 3MG variation to your mix? You can expect the consumption to go higher than this.
- “You can’t rank high with no MG dupes.”
- Recently for rescue event, we have seen some players who declared they will farm dupes and said this will be the meta for ranking high on AW. While many veterans have preached the power of “Big 4” MGs and how others are inferior, this is not the case at all. Most recent evidence against this claim is the latest Ranking event in foreign server that ended with a player who did not have a single duplicate T-doll in 10 echelons in 2nd place. Girls’ Frontline is game that rewards good understanding of game mechanics and understanding which composition works best against the enemy units. Know this and you will be better off not worrying about spending days and hours just to farm duplicates T-dolls.
- “RF is useless in Ranking.”
- I really have no idea where this rumor started. RFHG echelon has weakness against few enemy types [mainly large number of mobs]… but that’s it. A well-raised RF HG echelon is capable of dealing with Bosses, armor units and regular units with no issue. You just can’t park it next to enemy helipad like MG SG echelons. They are useful to have and they will shine even greater in future Ranking maps down the road. Don’t be discouraged by others who say RF HG is bad for Ranking.
- “MG guarantees High Ranking position.”
- As mentioned above, MG echelons may be sturdy, but it’s not best against all types. Brutes and Boss units will give you hard time along with high-evasion units like Scouts. I can’t stress how important it is to understanding using the right echelon composition versus your enemy. On top of that, Ranking will challenge you in other ways such as resource management and action point management.
- “MG can skip AW Boss pattern.”
- AKA gunboat, this formation is designed to burst down a boss unit before it can go into invulnerable phase and wreck your team. While this formation is useful, it is useful if you understand why it works and how it works. Just casually slapping conventional MGSG echelon together and running into Boss will have dire consequences. Make sure to fully understand both why and how before trying it out since it usually takes specific set up that some players might not be able to achieve.
2. FNC PTSD Meme & Banzai Run Superiority Theory
This meme started in Korean back when AW was freshly introduced and due to its shocking doctrine it spread like wildfire in social media sites even with Mica employees gasping at atrocities committed in the name of efficiency. While most of KR players knew it was meme, apparently this doesn’t seems to be the case for EN server where it fuels following statements:
- “FNC is a must for AW.”
- “Banzai Run can run through ANY Jupiter Cannons.”
I would like to just go ahead and give simple answers to both: No. FNC is a great 3-star AR with stats that can rub against most of 4-star ARs, so you should raise her because she is core-friendly and you can use her for long time. Don’t bully her. Mica even stated that they are changing the Red Envelope farming method. You might not have to run dolls into their death so you can farm an envelope. Plus I would not recommend running FNC in chapter 3 to break through Jupiter Cannon. Cannons will increase in health and power as you progress through the AW campaign. Only sad endings await those who try.
3. “You need 3 Echelons at level 90 and 5x links to beat AW?!! Why should I even bother then?”
This one, as guide maker, I’m most concerned about. Due to current situations in EN, with recent service expansion to other countries, there are new players who are coming in right at the time of AW launch. There are many veterans who are getting kick out of teasing them with all the scary looking information, and some are sadly giving up on it without considering it. Truth is, even new players still can earn all the important rewards like 5-star SG by beating Chapter 1 only, and you just need some good attitude and echelon that is level 70 with 4x links. Plus you have a whole month!
I hope that as a community, we are there to help those who are new, get them through the tough time they are about to face, and make sure to give them help with offering them a slot on your friend list so that they learn how great Girls’ Frontline is. And for us here at GFC, we will be launching our full guide to AW soon, and be ready to help out with players in Official Discord Channel of Girls’ Frontline.
Special Thanks to: DMesse in GFL Official Discord Channel. 