🟢R-97 Vortex Gimmick

Goofy tech that takes advantage of vortex bullet damage upcycling.

Same as Powershot Upcycling, vortex can also convert R-97 bullets to deal 140 damage per bullet, or 4,340 damage for the whole shield. With amped vortex making each bullet deal 189 damage, or 5,859 damage for full shield.

Why R-97, though? Well, it's the fastest-firing weapon in the game; it can easily fire those 31 bullets in a second. You can fill and fire the vortex like 4 times in a row before it runs out of energy due to its speed.

Distant Filling

The safe and good strategy is to fill from a distance as a pilot. Pilot hiding somewhere high or somewhere where Ion can face both the enemy titan and the pilot without risking taking damage. This strat is way safer for the pilot but also can be a lot harder to fill Ion when she's distracted by a titan.

“Insert Distant Filling Video”

Rodeo Filling

The even cooler part is, though, that you can fill the Ion while rodeoing. If the Ion looks up while vortexing and you fire upwards, you'll be able to fire directly into the shield. Filler on demand, but make sure to stand on a flat surface, or you won't be able to catch the bullets.

Auto-Scorch with assault chip and wildfire kit is recommended for this because he's the most dangerous auto-titan by far, especially in close range where enemies will try to get close to melee the pilot.

But yea, the strongest counter to this strat is an enemy Ion catching the bullets; it can easily backfire.

Rodeoing Pilot is Liable to the Following Things

• Enemy vortex reflecting the bullets.

• Titan / Pilot Melee.

• Any kind of explosive damage, including 40 mm tracker cannon.

• Walking into a tripwire will instantly kill the pilot.

• Ronin phasing into the Ion, killing the pilot.

Videos Showcasing the Gimmick in Practice