Vel0city and the C0nference Call

Borderlands 2 Zer0 the Assassin
#1

So something’s been racking my brain since dinging 71 and taking out my 71 Conference Call out for a spin. Perhaps I should have expected this but the CC has range with both Precisi0n (5/5, 10/5 from the Legendary Sniper) and Vel0city (4/5, 9/5). But it did get me wondering… is Vel0city really one of the things that make the Conference Call wonky or am I just imagining things?

#2

Haven’t really tested it but most likely yes. I assume the game counts it as bullet split and bullet splits are based on time on air rather than distance travelled, so the split would occur farther the faster the bullet.

#3

Testing time!

But really, the bullets split on impact , not distance. So no - anything you are experiencing should be due to Precision - not Velocity.

2 Likes
#4

Are you sure? Although I’m never entirely comfortable citing it, the wiki says “Each projectile generates additional projectiles upon impact or after sufficient distance.” I think testing is definitely in order!

1 Like
#5

I may be able to get on this very soon - stand by!

#6

I’m with @VaultHunter101 here… I’m pretty sure the downwind shot sprays horizontal shot regardless of impact (and Vel0city should space those horizontal shot occurrences out, but that’s something I’d want to test too).

#7

Seems like there might be some rooms in Southpaw S&P or Bloodshot Stronghold that could be tested in?

#8

I just arrived home, so I can probably do that.
I would think however that testing would require me to re-spec. Which I don’t have much of an issue with but I do kinda want confirmation that it may be necessary.

#9

I would personally try an open map like Dust, Tundra.

Unspec to find the latent split distance. Then spec 5/5 in Velocity only ( not Precision just in case ) and check. Then add the COM and check.

It might be enough to test with/without the COM though to avoid the respec part.

#10

So I went to check and it does in fact seem like Vel0city is not affecting the CC at all. Latent split distance seems to be roughly the same un-specced, with Vel0city at 5/5, and maxed at 10/5. So it did turn out to be Precisi0n affecting it.

Doesn’t seem like an inherent bad thing though, but distance between Zer0 and target would have to be more minded than usual.

Side note, it did get me thinking on whether to use Vel0city as my third skill vs. 0S0K. Since I don’t use a lot of slow-projectile-speed guns anyways, 0S0K does seem to be the better option.

1 Like
#11

If you have one or two spare points burning a hole in your pocket, it’s still worth putting them into Velocity. One point goes a long way.

#12

Testing done! Confirmed!

A while back, I also tested how Accelerate affected the CC, and I was then able to see that the intervalls increased when Accelerate was in effect. What I didn’t pick up on back then, was the fact that it seems like it is the first salvo that creates the first split. The second salvo splits at the second intervall, and the third salvo… You get the idea! This is when you don’t hit anything in front of you, and when you fire several shots in a row. If you shoot at an enemy, the split won’t travel past the enemy.

2 Likes
#13

Wait - so it does affect split distance? Do you have this recorded Ronnie?

Also, I’m not quite getting what you mean by first, second, third salvo. Do you mean the split distance can change?

Edit : I think I see what you mean about the split point shifting @Ronnie_Rayburn ( you can sort of see it at 0:57 in the vid). That’s pretty weird.

This was very interesting - I actually didn’t know the CC has multiple splits. Velocity at 10/5 has a relatively minor impact on split (and least compared to other bullet-splitting guns).

#14

Nope, but it’s really easy to test. Just stand in a corridor or passage of some sort. Something with a wall on the side. Then fire along it. You will be able to see the difference. Haven’t tried it with Velocity, but my guess is that it will be the same as with Accelerate.

Sorry! Wasn’t quite clear there. What I meant with a “salvo” is the shots fired until you release the trigger. Like… a one-shot salvo or a two-shot salvo or a three-shot salvo. I hope that makes more sense. It looked like each shot in the salvo had a set split distance. Like a multiplier. It’s kinda hard to see it when you’re alone, but in a Co-op game, it should be easier to see. I may be totally off, but that’s what it looked like to me.

I had to fire 1-shots, 2-shots and 3-shots to be able to see it. If I hadn’t done that, I’d never have detected it.

Yeah, since they definetly split upon impact, it doesn’t matter. I’ve never had any trouble when using the CC with either Accelerate or Velocity.

1 Like
#15

If they don’t impact anything, they shoot out shot laterally as the regular forward shot travels downwind… does impact cause them to, er, add another lateral shot at the point of impact? I might be missing some function of this weapon.

1 Like
#16

From what I understand, the Conference Call fires out parent projectiles which upon impact, spawns the child projectiles which travel laterally to the initial impact.

The child projectiles display a different behavior from the parent projectile and after a fixed period of time, will produce an additional projectile and so on. This is why the CC is broken on large enemies like Craw, Terra and Warrior.

While Velocity will have little effect on the parent projectile because its behavior is impact based, it will affect the behavior of the child projectiles. A greater projectile speed means you get less splits for the same distance, which reduces the efficacy of the weapon.

If you are just gonna use the weapon for mobbing, the split isn’t really that important, and velocity won’t have a significant effect on the performance of the gun. I would expect its potency to be reduced on bosses however. I personally use the CC for bossing, so will not spec into Vel0city if using it.

2 Likes
#17

They definitely spawn the lateral projectiles with no impact required… if there is a different behavior when they hit a target, what is that? Even more lateral child projectiles?

edit - wiki says both, but I’ll also be testing impact behavior when I get back.

#18

When the initial salvo is fired, it will travel downwind and split in regular intervalls. If the initial salvo hits a target, it will cause a split, and stop the initial salvo from traveling further downwind. I can’t say what happens if some projectiles hit a target and some miss. It’s possible that those that miss will continue with splits.

#19

The way I have my build mapped out and the way I attack maps with Zer0, shotguns and pistols are strictly mobbing weapons. I withhold my pair of Snipers for Badass/Boss battles.

Right now since I can’t find a blue-rarity Hyperion Sniper, or get the Invader to drop, and I’ve been holding off on Contract #873 so the Morningstar can be max level, I’ve been using a blue-rarity Incendiary Droog (as both a CA stacker and a CA killer) and the second Sniper Rifle has literally been plug-and-play (for when I decide to use it and have ample stacks of CA).

#20

Ok, that’s about what my experience was.