How is the Covering Fire perk useful?

[Poindexter]

How is Covering Fire useful?

If an enemy moves, you don't need Covering Fire to get a reaction shot.

If an enemy shoots without moving (and you have him as a target), you could have shot at him on the previous turn, instead of activating Overwatch (and thereby have a crit chance, and avoid any aim penalty).

Okay, if you have Sentinel, I suppose you might get two shots "for the price of one" by Overwatching.

However, without Sentinel, under what circumstance is Covering Fire useful?

Are there any circumstances under which the following are all true:

A) You get a shot
B) You would not have gotten the shot without the Covering Fire perk.
C) You did not give up the opportunity to take a "regular" shot on the previous turn (to be on Overwatch).

Overwatch is very useful, because an enemy, at whom you have no shot, might move, granting you a shot.

I don't see how it's useful to take an Overwatch shot at an enemy who's firing, instead of just taking a (probably better) shot on the previous turn.

Am I missing something?

P.S. I suppose there's the situation in which you'd like to be ready for an enemy who moves, but would like to shoot at a firing enemy if that doesn't happen. Of course, you probably can't control which of those events happens; I suspect that the first qualifying event triggers your fire.

[Nostil]

if an enemy is outside your range, moves in to your range (but no enough to trigger a regular overwatch) and fires.

[P-47 Thunderbolt]

It has limited uses really. There are some situations where it comes into its own but for the most part I rarely take it as a perk. Sprinter is more useful more often.

[Poindexter]

Originally posted by NCC-1707 Captain James T. Kirk:

if an enemy is outside your range, moves in to your range (but no enough to trigger a regular overwatch) and fires.

Hmm. That would imply A) there is a maximum range at which movement allows an overwatch shot, and B) Covering Fire does not have this range limitation, when reacting to a fired shot.

Are you sure those are both true? Even if so, that's a rather limited scenario.

[Poindexter]

Originally posted by P-47 Thunderbolt:

It has limited uses really. There are some situations where it comes into its own but for the most part I rarely take it as a perk. Sprinter is more useful more often.

Sprinter is not the alternative, at least not in Long War, Enemy Within.

[Poindexter]

I'm looking at the Infantry class (Long War, Enemy Within). So many perks are related to Overwatch. However, these perks seem of limited value, or virtually ZERO value.

[Roderick]

I thought about it once like "Hey, there are often situations where an alien just moves to a corner and shoots at me (meanng from out of sight behind wall to the corner where we can see each other). If I have one of these guys on overwatch, at least one is firing back!"
But it happens not often. They can go on overwatch themself or do other things which don't trigger the covering fire. Even if they fire... the chance of hitting with covering fire are low enough in these moments since the enemy is in cover.
So yes, until now I think its a rather useless skill.

[Mulqueeny]

I can recall countless times a floater has flanked one of my soldiers just right so that it doesn't trigger normal overwatch, This perk saved many soldiers lives countless times.

[Mhblis]

In LW you don't take many perks in isolation it is much more a case of taking them in combination. A frontline Infantry built aorund overwatch can be pretty nasty. But if it is not your playstyle then no it is pointless.

[Quhzk]

If the aliens see you going overwatch, they won't move, therefore there are situations when you want one guy going overwatch just to stop them moving, and if he has covering fire he can still get a shot off while stopping the alien movement.

[red255]

Originally posted by Poindexter:

Am I missing something?

P.S. I suppose there's the situation in which you'd like to be ready for an enemy who moves, but would like to shoot at a firing enemy if that doesn't happen. Of course, you probably can't control which of those events happens; I suspect that the first qualifying event triggers your fire.

Yes.

first, When overwatching the guy steps out of cover and you get an EXPOSED shot with all its bonuses to accuracy but you can't crit without opportunity and its ony got 70% of your aim.

When an enemy goes to the edge of hard cover just peeking into your view he would not trigger your overwatch, and could fire meeting all your conditions. but if you have opportunist and can guarentee an overwatch shot it might be advantageous to take it.

also overwatch covering fire seems to trigger on various things like medkit usage and probably psionics

Covering fire gets your shot off before he shoots. and in long war it also gives you +3 to aim which is useful. I've had it be useful. but I'm giving examples out how its different and better than just taking the shot in a standoff.

But you are thinking of overwatch wrong, overwatch is a deterrent its not a source of damage, its to deter the aliens from flanking you while you flank them mostly.

[Mulqueeny]

Originally posted by red255:

Originally posted by Poindexter:

Am I missing something?

P.S. I suppose there's the situation in which you'd like to be ready for an enemy who moves, but would like to shoot at a firing enemy if that doesn't happen. Of course, you probably can't control which of those events happens; I suspect that the first qualifying event triggers your fire.

Yes.

first, When overwatching the guy steps out of cover and you get an EXPOSED shot with all its bonuses to accuracy but you can't crit without opportunity and its ony got 70% of your aim.

When an enemy goes to the edge of hard cover just peeking into your view he would not trigger your overwatch, and could fire meeting all your conditions. but if you have opportunist and can guarentee an overwatch shot it might be advantageous to take it.

also overwatch covering fire seems to trigger on various things like medkit usage and probably psionics

Covering fire gets your shot off before he shoots. and in long war it also gives you +3 to aim which is useful. I've had it be useful. but I'm giving examples out how its different and better than just taking the shot in a standoff.

But you are thinking of overwatch wrong, overwatch is a deterrent its not a source of damage, its to deter the aliens from flanking you while you flank them mostly.

I tend to use Overwatch as a retreat ambush tactic, I kite the enemy into following me toward my units who are out of sight and waiting on Overwatch, if done correctly you can whipe entire pods of enemies without ever taking a single hit. It's harder to do on some maps and easier on others.

[red255]

Do you miss alot of meld? I mean in a worst case scenario and you have alot of time and the enemies don't have grenades and nerfed AI I can see that working.

But usually I just kill them when I see them.

[Mhblis]

No the overwatch trap can work really well. Once activated if you pull your units out of sight the AI will send scout units to try and find you while the rest try and setup flanking.

If you prepare the field by blowing up cover first it can work even better. The only issue is if you have more than one target you might end up wasting all your shots on the first to move.

[red255]

My general policy is to play with them until I can get my squadsight guns to bear. occasionally flanking with my close in guys but mainly killing with long range rounds. It always surprises me when my other units get kills especially when they aren't flanking.

[Le Syd]

Not too shabby when you're an Opportunist Ready for Anything. ;)
Light 'em up dude!