How do I get Nomad to work?

Gears 5
#1

Howdy, I’ve been trying to play Nomad in horde lately, but I cannot figure out this class.

Every match I play, I either end up feeling like the least useful member of my team, or I end up being completely useless.

I like playing with skillful teammates, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t like being utterly carried by team and left just feeling like some leech.

Yet, no matter what weapons I use, or what strategy I try to implement, I just end up accomplishing nothing, and have to be saved by my teammates over and over.

It’s absolutely infuriating, I don’t need to be the MVP or any such thing as that, but at the very least, I’d like to not be an outright detriment to my team.

So, could someone please tell me how I’m meant to use this class?

PS: Please let us use our Locust/Lambent skins in PvE TC.

**OP5**HORDE** -help with Classes Overview/ Guide by Hu1k Daddy
#2

You might have to change your cards depending on what other classes are in your lobby. Nomad class is best paired with a high-level veteran so you can take advantage of stim for your armored shot card. I would also use Consecutive shot card and that card that causes fear on critical shots.

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#3

I think broadly speaking, you may have to commit to a particular style of play. For the Nomad this means either:

(1) Sniper build

Or

(2) Execution and Fear build

It would be extremely hard to create a hybrid build using 5 skill cards. I don’t think you could do it justice to be honest.

A sniper build would probably consist of Consecutive Shot, Intimidation, Acceleration, Markza Mastery, and Lifeline. Concussive Rounds is useful too, but arguably better with the Execution build.

With an execution build, I’d suggest Faze, Execution Shield, Menace, Nomad Armor and Concussive Rounds, and to grab either a Lancer or Retro (or both). Be careful not to over commit when you chain executions and the Fear makes enemies run away.

For sniper builds linking up with a Veteran to piggyback off their ultimate helps as well. It’s all about chaining headshots to build up your damage. Longshots work too. Just don’t miss!

For the execution build it’s about chaining executions together. Faze allows you to inflict Fear into nearby enemies which stuns them for a couple of seconds and makes them run away (and not fire - affects everything except thr main bosses, so even affects mini-bosses like Wardens and Sentinels). This allows you to execute another enemy which reapplies Fear and allows you to keep chaining executions. As I said just don’t over commit as you can end up chasing enemies further away from your base which puts you at risk, and Fear has a radius so enemies far away won’t be affected and can still shoot.

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#4

Thank you both! This is some solid advice, I’ll see what I can do with this info.

#5

Nomad has a bit of a different playstyle than the other Assault classes. It is a CQC/Sniper hybrid class that specializes in using Fear as a crowd-control tool to stun enemies to deal big damage to them, and scare them away to take some pressure off the team. Think of the Fear Ultimate as a giant flashbang grenade with extra benefits. Best part is that there are multiple ways to trigger the Fear, typically revolving around the CQC/Sniper playstyles to do so.

So yeah, for Horde there are typically two primary builds, the aforementioned CQC Execution build and Ranged Headshot build. Hybrids can still work just fine (I use them too), but in Horde it is usually best to kinda just pick a role and go all in with it, so as not to overlap with what others on the team are doing too much. But it is still a versatile class.

There are many possible builds when it comes to card use, as Nomad is pretty good when it comes to how well most of the cards synergize with each other.

Here is a link to an earlier post I made recently that goes into more detail about what I use for my various builds and why, as well as how I use the class:

The thread discussion there about Nomad is overall a good read.

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The Nomad Class
#6

I like to get barriers down range so that I can group the enemies together. If you trap them between two barriers, it’s much easier to headshot/intimidation multiple enemies applying fear to them all. The range and time of intimidation is pretty poor, so you want them clustered as much as possible

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#7

Honestly I’ve tried to love this class, but I hate it for horde. Too fragile for my liking and the markza doesn’t hit hard enough. For escape I can see the beauty of him but other than that I’d just play Marksman to play a ranged game. I found him fun and will use him in dailies when headshot damage is boosted.
If I played at Elite or lower I could run him.

I don’t see the point of critical kills then making them run away when playing at range.

#8

It gets better at maxed levelled cards. Ranged is kind of advanced build, meanwhile execution is easier and maxed sooner. Execution build can be effective in Level 3-4 cards but not for ranged.

The point in fearing them from critical kills is that it stuns them for a second, where you could chain multi headshots if you’re fast enough and if your damage was high enough. If they are stuck on barriers, they run away slower. Anyways, it’s also double damage against them, even if shot in back. And another target that won’t aggro the team, making it easier to not get downed.

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#9

Yeah I’m completely defeated with him, I will get those cards up to 5 and re-evaluate him.

#10

This is also great for running the CQC build too. Things stuck in fences makes an easy target Retro Charging, and then they can’t run away as easily due to being stuck. Allowing for easier chains.

I will say that the Ranged Nomad build is a very high-investment class. Like @Ektope said, it gets a lot better as you level up the cards. Having Markza Mastery, Consecutive Shot, and even Acceleration and Rain Down maxed really makes a difference in performance. That 5, 10, 15% increase from each card as you upgrade them really adds up over the course of firing multiple shots. Because then before you know it, you are dealing 40, 50% or so more damage on average than at lower levels of the cards, and then you are killing things in significantly less shots. This also means you aren’t exposed as much just to kill one thing, which means you don’t feel as squishy.

Be sure to upgrade all the perks you can in Horde too, as Nomad really needs them late game. Precision damage and Critical damage are essential to being able to keep up on damage, the health perk lets you take just a little more damage than say, the Marksman, and the Ammo capacity perk is handy for not burning through ammo too fast, allowing you to really keep pegging things.

This is more to take advantage of the double damage passive to Feared enemies. But like Ektope said, it still applies to back shots and enemies not shooting you mean they aren’t downing you, helping you stay alive. Also, if engaging with enemies at mid-range or closer, Nomad Armor can really help ease the pain of getting shot, if that is still a problem for you. Nomad has to be naturally a bit closer to enemies than Marksman, due to the shorter range of the weaker Markza. But it can really pop off at times.

Enemies running away is definitely annoying at times, but it is kinda like missing a sniper shot as Marksman and having to reload. Plus, Headshot scaring can still be fantastic in Escape’s tight corridors, especially to calm down a rushing swarm of Juvies.

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#11

Nomad is one of my fave classes…

Markza mastery, Acceleration, armored shot, execution shielf, and faze…

I grab a regular lancer, which i use to chainsaw and get stim, and keep popping active markza headshots… Max out the damage perks and ammo capacity and you are golden (i only play Master)…

The beat thing, sentinels… Grab stim, and wait until so.eone else knocks the shield down, you pump it full of active markza shots, and watch it bleed out…

Yes, with a veteral the class is super strong, but even without one, you are fine.

Plenty of enemies get close to chainsaw and get stim.

I usually leave the ultinate for emergencies, like a sentinel, boomer in base, or a team mate goes down away from the base, so run in cocer close to where they are down, hit ultimate, and run up to revive them…

I dont tend to use ultimate as a damage dealing mechanism… I tried once, i scared a scion, and kept pumping boomshots into it: wasnt very effective…

There are many ways to play this class, this is just one, one which works well for me… You pick your own…

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#12

If you have decent barriers set up, you can run intimidation and steamroll a pack of enemies with your markza.

I don’t run armored shot, as I find unreliable, but a combat medic can give you plenty of use with the card, especially against bosses.

Overall I would say that nomad is a bit weak compared to the other assault classes, but is still plenty useful with a good build. You can get cards easily too, since he’s a monster in escape.

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#13

With a regular lancer and faze/exec shield nomad is VERY USEFUL at the start, before fortifications push the enemies back…

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#14

I have a question in case someone from the people who are good at Nomad know… I am trying for the Executions style… And have cards for said style… However my main issue is that despite having Gnasher Mastery at level 5 (aimed at firing into Pouncers /DR1’s and Scions that cannot be executed with Retro Lancer) I am just not making enough damage lol.

Played at Blood drive, I was at the right side (where tabs sometimes appear) of the building and even if enemies were just downstairs, I wasn’t doing jack damage to them with my Gnasher lol. And if I used the Ultimate (to trigger 2x damage) they would run away before I could hit more than 2 times with the Gnasher. Running after them was not a good idea because I risked getting downed being shot by other enemies nearby…

Is the level 6 Gnasher card better? Or is it done only with Active reloads? What frustrated me the most was that it was the starting waves! My Gnasher with the card at 5 was firing spaghetti or something! And my Nomad was going down a lot despite having the Nomad armor or that card… JFC.

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#15

Most of the extra damage is with the Active.

I use the Gnasher only for big enemies such as Scions, DR-1s, Pouncers, etc. I execute everything else if possible.

Generally I always Active reload then Ult on the big enemies too prior to Gnasher-blasting them.

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#16

Thanks for all the help folks, I’ve been applying most of your advice and I’m already getting drastically better results, you all friggin rock! :smile:

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#17

The nomad card that lets you give fear with headshots is great, can turn the tide on smaller maps

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#18

I’ve been playing Nomad pretty much exclusively for the last few weeks and the way i like to play is as a frontline sniper, using Intimidation, Markza Mastery, and either accelleration, con shot or Armoured Shot depending on the map/mood.

The last two card slots are Faze and Execution Shield which are excellent at dealing with breaches and calming things down. You can also go on the offensive a little and spread fear throughout the map :slight_smile:

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