Sonic Prestigeboom, part 3: Perks

Update 2-27-2012: So, it turns out that when Bringing the Boom says kills with secondary weapons, it means kills with equipment like grenades. So, forget synergizing with pistols.

 Extreme conditioning helps you go fast, but prestige slow.

I'm coming up on another prestige, so it's time for another installment of Sonic Prestigeboom! Most people know that perk challenges are a great source of exp., but I think it's worth breaking down just how beneficial they can be, as well as a few tricks I like to use to get some more mileage out of them.

Let's start with the basics: each perk has 6 challenges, worth 29,000 exp. in total. The last 10,000 point challenge is usually about as many whatever it's asking you to dos than the first 10,000 pointer, as well. With 15 perks, that's theoretically 435,000 exp.; unfortunately, maxing all of them out on a single prestige is not practical. On the plus side, all the perks have pro challenges worth another 29,000 each, and you're likely to get at least some of those points while you're going for the first 10,000 point challenge, and certainly if you decide to go for the second one. Now, to be clear about what a ridiculous amount of exp. that is, getting all the perk challenge exp. would, on its own, complete more than half a prestige.

So, let's think about the first tier perks, and specifically, what not to rely on: Extreme Conditioning. It took me 75 levels with it on every class, playing some of the most reckless run 'n gun I have ever played, to max it out. Now, that's still the full 29,000, but you need that slot to be free for the other blue perks. Blind Eye is another perk which is just way too slow to max; it took me most of a prestige to get its 250 killstreak destroys.

NO

 What are good in the first tier are Sleight of Hand and Scavenger. You were going to be shooting people anyway, and there are more than enough kills in a prestige to get the 750 with Sleight of Hand, 500 Scavenger resupplies, and 750 Scavenger Pro kills. For comparison, at level 75, with a lot of kills to go in this prestige, I have around 2300 kills, leaving me a nice 400 kill buffer of backpacks I didn't need to grab.

Now, Recon is a kind of funny animal, since 750 explosive paints is a LOT, probably more effort than they're worth. However, it's only 120 to unlock Recon Pro (9,000 on its own), and its 750 BULLET paints are even easier than the Sleight of Hand ones! You don't even need to kill the dudes (if you are playing with me, please do not forget to kill the dudes). To get the explosive paints, use concussion grenades (they count!) and the XM-25 in addition to your normal grenades; even without multi-hits, it's an extra 14 paints per life if you don't miss.

The second tier perks are the easiest to pro out; the worst is probably Overkill, and even that is just the standard, boilerplate 750 kills (870 to get the second Overkiller 10,000 challenge). Quickdraw only takes 580 for the normal and pro challenges (58,000 exp.!) if you use pistols, machine pistols, or launchers, and with Specialist, getting 500 Hardline rewards is a snap. Assassin and Blast Shield (100 uses each to max) can be maxed in just a few games, besides being insanely useful.

The third tier perks are probably the most difficult, depending on playstyle. Stalker and Steady Aim are just the standard 750 kills, but Dead Silence can be difficult if you don't like to get into people's faces. Marksman is another that can be difficult to max if your opponents don't run into your scope, and SitRep is practically impossible without resorting to gimmicks. Luckily, all three of the difficult perks have gimmicks which make them much easier to max: use pistols and shotguns for Dead Silence, and knife your own trophy system for the SitRep equipment destroys. For Marksman, it turns out that as long as you are in ADS, you can press the left stick like you would to hold your breath, even if the weapon you're using doesn't have the breath proficiency, or even a scope. So, if you can train your thumb to mash on that analog stick, even Marksman becomes simply an issue of shooting every chump you see.

So, what does that mean for builds? You start with Sleight of Hand and Recon; Sleight of Hand maxes with much less thinking, so let's start there. Blast Shield is best maxed with a Riot Shield, so start with Quickdraw. Finally, Stalker goes very well with these "just shoot them" perks. Use whatever you want until you've pro'd Quickdraw out, then start using the FMG9 or USP .45. By the time you've gotten your 10,000 for mastering each of them, you'll have the P99 and MP9. Maxing those four weapons will take about 250 kills, plus 120 with whatever you were using before getting Quickdraw Pro. We're more than 300 kills into all three perks, so we've reached the first 10,000 point milestone on each, giving us, counting kills but without any challenges besides the secondary weapons and perks, more than 134,000 experience. Counting match exp., odds are good you'll have hit level 27 and Assassin.

For another early build, go Riot Shield, Recon, Blast Shield, SitRep (Stalker Pro is okay, too; you can try to get some points for the "trip traps and live" challenge). Play a few rounds of domination, toss some concussion grenades, piss people off, and you will have your 100 explosions survived, plus a good chunk of damage absorbed by shield and explosions deflected by shield. Plus, you can get a few recon paints in while you're at it.

I think this one is going to have to be a two-parter, but hopefully this illustrates the idea - match perks and weapons up so you can complete challenges with many at once, and you'll be rolling in exp. before you know it.