Piloting (Grinder Basics)
Weapons
Grinders (mechs)
Modules
Host and Game Modes
Piloting and Grinder Basics
The main campaign shows you some “ins” and “outs” of piloting your grinder and there’s training available as well. I highly recommend you do this and also join the Vox Machinae discord – [discord.com] . Everything I know I’ve learned from this helpful community so let me share some tips and secrets you may not know:
0:13 Fire Groups and Crosshair
There are 4 fire groups meaning that you have four buttons on your controllers that you can map to a weapon or MOD. When deciding on a loadout, simply choose your weapon and then press the button you want to map it to. Note that it’s not a good idea to put all weapons on one trigger since this will create a ton of heat and make it hard to aim weapons that are optimized for different ranges.
Weapons have infinite ammo but you’re limited by the heat gauge. Friendly fire is always on so note the colour of your crosshair: [Find Link Below]
Red is the enemy, Blue is a friendly, and Orangish-yellow is dead!
Also, see the indicators around the reticule? They help you understand if your weapon has a clear path to the enemy or if there’s something blocking the way!
0:49 Fuel and Flying Tips
Grinders are very floaty so try to ride with little tugs of fuel instead of long panicked pulls. Save about one bar for a safe landing but all Grinders have unique ways of flying; see what I mean in the Grinderssection.
You can see your speed not only by looking at the throttle but also the round odometer near your heat gauge!
[White Line is Current Speed Highlighted shapes are Speed Setting]
1:06 How and When to Eject
Eject is located between your legs. In Deathmatch, you give a point to the enemy if you eject after being hit by any enemy fire. But, it cuts your respawn time down so when you feel confident, you can try ramming an enemy with your blinking red body as you eject! Just try to fight it out as long as you can and remember that your mech is covered in armour. Attacking will destroy the coloured plates and expose the soft gooey dark chassis inside. If you’re being attacked and want to live longer, try turning your “strong” side toward enemy fire and even look away if your chest is busted; this way they waste all their heat attacking the armour shielding you.
Oh and sometimes you’ll lose limbs but that’s not the end of the world. As long as you have one leg you can still fight and you’re a little lighter and easier to fly when you’re missing limbs!
1:49 How to Communicate with Your Team (Walkie and Radar)
Another survival tip is to use the Walkie and communicate with your team. But be good on the comms, don’t spam. Use it to help your team or ask questions…It’s smart to use the cardinal directions (North, South, East, West) on your radar which you can swing into view along with the score screen.
Grinders marked as solid circles are humans, hollow circles are AI bots.
Larger grinders have a shorter radar range than smaller ones. If enemies are out of radar range the nearest one will show up a large white circle (or a circle with an arrow on it if it’s beyond your screen).
Advanced Tips!
2:18 Up Step and Down Step
Remember how I said Grinders are floaty, next time you’re walking try to notice the bob of your grinder as it walks. If you start flying as you’re moving up from a step it will actually save a lot of fuel on your journey but if you start flying on a downstep or while moving in a different direction, you end up using a ton more fuel just to get the same launch.
2:38 Map Secretes
If you’re near a Geyser on Cryptic Tundra, walk into it, it cools your weapons faster for a bit. And electric shocks on Topaz Twilight regenerates fuel faster for a short time.
2:47 Shutting Down Tips
Beside the walkie is the ignition key which allows you to shut down. This removes your radar signature and cools your weapons down faster as well. You can’t recharge fuel while shut down unless you have the Auxiliary Pump MOD installed. Another cool tip is that if you’re getting pelted with skyjackers in the air, shutting down will stop them from hurting you even if you’re flying fast (you can bind shutdown to a button)! Oh and you can still look through your zoom scope while shut down if you want to peek outside!
Helpful Links:
Modules – [vmcodex.net]
Grinders – [vmcodex.net]
Weapons – [vmcodex.net]
Game Modes – [vmcodex.net]
Crosshairs – [reddit.com]
Road Map for Vox – [trello.com]
Grinders (Mechs)
It will take a while to get good with all the Grinders. In this guide I’ll tell you some secrets the community shared with me.
0:12 Survival Tips
Grinders are covered in amour plates and only take lethal damage when hitting their black chassis or cockpit. Thus, always aim for these spots when fighting and try to turn your body and hide your own exposed parts. Also, although all Grinders fly differently, in general, save at least one bar of fuel for safe landings.
0:29 Hopper
The Hopper is my favourite grinder and one of the best to learn the game with. It runs fast and has the best vertical jets! That means, as the name suggests, this thing can hop better than any other grinder making it swift and agile. It’s key to avoid fighting enemies face to face. Always try to attack the enemies from their blind spots. If you manage to gather enough speed you can even ram enemies with these clow things in the front! If you have an enemy lined up for a solid ram, resist the urge to attack, they may not know you’re coming, don’t fire until the last second, then unload and exact justice!
If this is your first time playing, try a Hopper with missile packs on all three hardpoints. Be sure to split them between at least 2 different triggers and try to fight enemies from a medium range.
1:09 Goldrush
The Goldrush is another Grinder with great ramming potential! See this cow catcher in the front? Well, the Goldrush happens to have the best forward thrust of all grinders so line up an enemy and try flying right into them!
You really shouldn’t play this Grinder as a one trick pony though. It does more than just ram enemies. Remember that this cow catcher also acts like tough armour meaning you can attack at range with the right loadout. Just try not to let the enemy get behind or above you!
1:33 Catalyst
The Catalyst cools down faster than any other Grinder! It’s kind of slow and has poor boosters so it often ends up being a defensive support unit. Note that your right arm has extra armour plates which can be used as a sort of shield if you turn your right side towards enemy fire. But beware of Hopper and Goldrush rams! Since the Catalyst has poor mobility, it tends to be a tasty target for body checks.
Lastly, the Cat can also fire most (all?) small weapons on its right arm without generating any heat due to its superior cooling. And equipping a skyjacker can be a critical anti-air weapon potentially saving you from all those flying hoppers and ramming Gold Rushes.
1:55 Rook
The Rook has these HUGE shoulders and it takes a lot of firepower to break through them. Always try to fight enemies with your shoulder facing them so that they waste heat trying to cut through your impressive shoulders. Also note that these bars make it really difficult to track enemies in the sky so it’s usually a good idea to fight a Rook while airborne and just aim for the cockpit while avoiding the shoulders.
The Rook also has the best strafing jets (flying left or right) and skilled players can even use their massive shoulders to body check foes.
You also get two large weapon slots which seem amazing but also contribute to heat problems. Don’t forget that shutting down your mech will remove heat faster than normal and make you invisible on the radar!
2:34 Dredge
The Dredge is the largest and heaviest class. They have the most weapon slots meaning they’re beefy and dangerous. When fighting a Dredge, take advantage of its slow movement speed and avoid fighting directly into its line of fire. The Dredge also has this Anti-Ramming armour protecting it from Grinder impacts. Although it is possible to kill a dredge with a ram, I often needed to wait until all the armour was melted off before I would even attempt to hit one.
It has the largest fuel tank but also recharges very slowly. Any jump you make will likely commit you to battle wherever you land.
Try blasting off vertically using about three bars then thrust in the direction you want with your final bar. You can use the fuel that starts to build up as you fly for a safe or fine tuned landing
3:04 Dill
The Drill is a little more advanced than the other Grinders and here’s why. It only has one large weapon mount but it also has a Drill which is actually an incredibly lethal weapon and useful tool. First off, drilling the ground or enemy grinders will replenish your fuel. Using the drill weapon also provides free downward jets that don’t use up any fuel meaning you can control your elevations by managing your drill weapon while in the air. Note that the indicator beside your right joystick will show your personal elevation from the ground.
Like the Hopper, you never really want to be taking any fire so do your best to sneak up on enemy blind spots and try to fly directly over top of them. If you get the physics just right and land on top of an enemy with the drill you can essentially one hit kill them. This is particularly effective against larger and slower grinders like the Dredge but I wouldn’t bother trying to drill another drill or even a hopper until you’ve really begun to master this Grinder’s movements. To assist with drilling, try the Air Break MOD; simply fly over the enemy until you’re just above them, then activate your Air Brakes and trigger your drill. With practice, it’s very effective! If you suspect that YOU are about to be drilled and have no clue where the enemy is coming from, try flying your grinder directly backwards. It might give you a chance to see the drill land where you were and give you ample opportunity to unload all your weapons on it as well!
4:18 Overhaul
Finally, the Overhaul comes with Hummingbird Drives which allow you to hover for free without using any fuel! This drive can be toggled on and off and can help in many ways, for example, if you’re in free fall, Hummingbird drive can help slow your descent close to the ground. And turning on the drive will give you free upthrust making it easier on your fuel tank if you want to jump up high.
The drive allows you to hover only a few meters off the ground and you can see this effect on its icon. The green represents how far high you are. Note that you don’t really need to be hovering all the time, it kinda makes you a sitting duck and potentially easier to spot. Instead, stay grounded and use your Hummingbird Drives to escape or relocate when needed.
The Absorbent Coating MOD can be useful depending on your loadout; it makes you invisible on radar when you’re stationary or moving really slowly. This pairs well with weapons like Hammers. Just find a nice hiding spot and continually launch these death missiles at your enemies. If you equip two hammers, make sure to only fire 1 hammer at a time so that you almost always have one at the ready.
Lastly, the Overhaul has thick armour. If you’re getting attacked make sure to constantly spin around so that the enemy wastes all their heat on all the armour you have.
Helpful Links:
Vox Machinae discord – [discord.com]
Modules – [vmcodex.net]
Grinders – [vmcodex.net]
Weapons – [vmcodex.net]
Game Modes – [vmcodex.net]
Crosshairs – [reddit.com]
Road Map for Vox – [trello.com]
Weapons
In this video I’ll explain all the weapons and share tips and advice on how and when to use them.
0:04 Minigun
The Minigun can hit enemies across a map making them great for harassing. They’re weak but they produce only a little bit of heat. Because the bullets spread out as they travel not many bullets will hit distant targets making them more effective at closer ranges.
0:17 Cannon
The Cannon is really heat efficient but it also fires slowly and can be difficult to aim at distant or fast moving targets but it travels far and can decimate enemies standing still. It also has a small exploding area of effect when it connects.
0:29 Laser
Lasers have a limited range and are best close up. They do less damage as the enemy moves farther and farther away. If you’re wondering how you’re supposed to know the range of weapons, check the links below for a guild on reading your crosshairs. Now lasers produce a lot of heat but apply damage for the duration of time they’re trained on an enemy. They can be amazing at destroying enemy limbs and sometimes chopping off an enemy’s best weapon can decide who wins the fight even when you’re overmatched.
0:52 Scattershot
The Scatter Shot is like a shotgun and is amazing at close range, so make sure your shots count!
0:57 Missile Pack
Missile Packs are great at close to medium range. They punch hard and can fire in clusters if they’re fully reloaded. They also have an exploding area of effect which is dangerous if you are attacking a grinder who is right up against you.
1:08 Pulsar
The Pulsar is considered the worst weapon in the game and rarely used. It does have a small area of effect damage when it connects though.
1:14 Railgun
The Railgun is a sniper and has penetrating damage meaning it can travel through enemy parts and armour. It generates a lot of heat as you hold down the trigger and you can’t fire until it is fully charged. To cancel a shot, just let go of the trigger.
1:26 Hammer
Hammers work best in conjunction with your zoom screen. Make sure you set your controller bindings to have the Hammer guided by either your controllers or your head. When a hammer is ready, hold the fire button down and aim where you want the missile to go with or without the zoom screen. You’ll see a timer of how long until the missile simply vanishes so find a target before that happens. Once you let go of the trigger, the missile will launch forward quickly in the direction of your crosshairs. A good tip is to try aiming at the ground where the enemy is walking or landing. Limbs are easily destroyed by the Hammer’s blast. Also, note that any weapon can shoot down a flying hammer but skyjackers are especially effective at countering them.
2:01 Skyjacker
The Skyjacker does damage based on how fast the enemy is moving. If you see the fireworks explosion then you’re doing damage. If there’s no blast, there is no damage.
[Note that Hoppers running at full speed also trigger skyjacker damage]
If you’re being hit by skyjackers while flying around, turn off your engine and they won’t be able to damage you anymore. Then turn the engine back on before hitting the ground to try for a safe landing.
Helpful Links:
Vox Machinae discord – [discord.com]
Modules – [vmcodex.net]
Grinders – [vmcodex.net]
Weapons – [vmcodex.net]
Game Modes – [vmcodex.net]
Crosshairs – [reddit.com]
Road Map for Vox – [trello.com]
Modules
MOD’s can feel a bit overwhelming. In this video I’ll explain how you can use MOD’s to get the most out of your Grinder!
0:09 Absorbent Coating
Let’s start with Absorbent Coating, a passive MOD that renders your ride invisible on the radar but only if you’re standing still or moving at a speed of “one” on the throttle. This is useful for snipers and hammer players. Note that using your jets will often make you too fast and reveal your position on radar, however, hovering in place with the Overhaul’s Hummingbird drive keeps you in stealth.
0:28 Target Recognition
Target Recognition is another passive MOD which allows you to identify the enemy Grinder on the radar without having to physically see them. This is great for recon and to help you decide which fights you want to get into. Note that this MOD won’t allow you to tell the difference between the solid dots and hollow dots (denoting human and AI opponents respectively).
0:38 Ram-Air Intake
Ram-Air Intake is a popular passive MOD for fast Grinders. This MOD cools down your heat the faster you’re moving. Since this MOD needs speed, forget about it on slow moving mechs. It synergizes very well with the Thermal Pump module which allows you to trade heat for fuel!
0:52 Thermal Pump
Right, the Thermal Pump MOD requires you to set a hotkey to toggle it on and off. When active, this module creates fuel by generating heat. This can be insanely useful to give you that mobility edge to escape danger or save yourself from falls or bumps. And I only use it to generate maybe a bar or two when I’m low on fuel; try not to overdo it or else you’ll be running so hot you can’t even fire any weapons.
1:12 Safety Override
Safety Override is another passive MOD which activates as soon as you die or eject.
It holds down the trigger from your dead body and initially fires where you were facing before your grinder rag-dolls to the floor. But be careful, the weapon fire can hit allies as well. Since this MOD only lasts for a short while after death, it’s wise to only try it with loadouts that dish out a lot of quick and sustained damage like lasers and missile packs for example.
1:36 Air Brakes
The Air Brake MOD must be set to a hotkey. Once used, it stops ALL lateral, forward, and backward movement; though you may continue to float up or down a little on the Z axis. One common use is flying quickly towards an enemy, looking like you’re about to overshoot them, then suddenly slamming on the air brake when you’re in their blind spot. As with Ram-Air Intake, this MOD is generally only useful with fast moving mechs. It can also save you if you’re being pelted by Skyjackers and can be used with the drill to help position yourself over an enemy as you try to drill down from above.
2:02 Power Venting
Power Venting needs to be set to a hotkey. It’s basically the opposite of Thermal Pump since it converts fuel into cooling. The trade isn’t all that efficient but can be useful on something like the Drill since you can drill the ground for infinite fuel while firing heat intensive weapons like the Railgun.
2:15 Auxiliary Pump
Auxiliary Pump is a passive MOD which allows your grinder to regenerate fuel while shut down; something you normally cannot do. You may be asking, why would you ever want to shut down? Well, turning off your engine makes you invisible on radar, cools your heat faster, and prevents skyjackers from doing any damage even if you’re careening through the air! I use this MOD on grinders that need to shut down often due to high heat production since I’m often taking a sec to shut down between fights and want my fuel to regenerate while I’m venting all that heat!
2:42 Backup Generator
Backup Generator is a MOD which allows you to use your weapons while shut down. To do this, bring down your zoom screen to aim at enemies. Sure your grinder cools down quickly and is invisible on the radar while shut down but it’s very easy for enemies to sneak up on you with this narrow field of view.
2:57 Coolant Flush
Finally, Coolant Flush is a hotkey MOD that shuts down your Grinder and removes heat quickly. The only problem is that you have to wait for it to run through its entire cycle, you can’t end the process early leaving you committed and vulnerable. Also, since this MOD actually “disables” the Grinder, you can’t use the Backup Generator or Auxiliary Pump MOD’s with it active.
Helpful Links:
Vox Machinae discord – [discord.com]
Modules – [vmcodex.net]
Grinders – [vmcodex.net]
Weapons – [vmcodex.net]
Game Modes – [vmcodex.net]
Crosshairs – [reddit.com]
Road Map for Vox – [trello.com]
Host and Game Modes
Host is an important job in Vox but all the options and game modes can be confusing at the start. In this video I’ll teach you everything you need to know about hosting and even show you how to mute and ban spammers!
0:14 Game Modes
Hover Brawl
In Hover Brawl your job is to move a giant ball to YOUR goal using rams or firepower. Each weapon affects the ball differently and I found lasers and Hoppers really effective in this mode. It’s kinda like Vox Rocket League.
Bot Stomp
Next, Bot Stomp has 4 players take on waves of increasing numbers and difficulty. Look for and kill the commander, who respawns the enemy team.
Convoy
You can also opt for an escort mission, defending a Convoy as it moves around the map. Side missions randomly happen to add spice and challenge to this mode.
Salvage
This next game mode is fun but only if you know how to play. So let me explain Salvage: all focus should be on taking control of the salvage (or Decker) and defending it. Look on your radar: you should see a hollow circle, go there with a quick Grinder like a hopper, a goldrush, maybe drill…
Don’t get distracted by other grinders and try to find the giant column of light, that’s the salvage! Once there, shoot or run over 3 small vehicles around the Decker, then stand in and defend the circle until only your team’s colour remains. If you’re successful, the Decker will come alive, moving and attacking. Defend it for as long as you can and even use your body to block rams if you have to since you get points only by how long you controlled the Decker.
If you’re on the team that lost the salvage, your only focus is on killing the Decker and mostly ignoring everyone else. This attacking team has a shorter respawn time, just race to the Decker and throw everything you have at it! Once the Decker dies, you can eject and get a fresh Grinder; there’s no reason in keeping a damaged mech since respawning will likely bring you closer to the next salvage anyways.
Stockpile
Another crowd favourite is Stockpile which has you capturing 5 different points by standing in the circle around the base. More grinders on a point will capture it faster and each captured point has a unique buff for your team. Check them out here:
Radar Station: Enemy teams can no longer see you on their radar.
Coolant Plant: Your team cools down faster allowing you to shoot more.
Armor Foundry: Your team gains more armor.
Assembly Line:Your team’s respawn timer is shorter.
Fuel Depot:Your team regenerates fuel faster.
Deathmatch
But by far the most popular game mode is Deathmatch where you kill other Grinders and win based on time or points. If you eject after taking any enemy damage, you’ll give the other team a point. But before you’re ever hit, you’re free to eject if you need to change your loadout, Grinder, or spawn location.
2:02 Maps and Teams
All these game modes can be played on any map. Try them all since some even have cool buffs like these ones:
[Geysers on Cryptic Tundra cool your weapons faster]
[Electric shocks on Topaz Twilight regenerates fuel faster]
Under the Team button, the host can obviously specify the number of teams but also decide if they want free-for-all or to scramble teams. If you see the AI face, it means these characters are bots while all other icons are real people.
2:19 Remix Options (All Talk, Terpids/Worms, Fast Heat and Fuel)
Remix is where you can toggle All Talk and decide if you want Worms (or Terpids) which can be placed on any map. Note that the worms cannot be killed so just avoid them if you see them on map!
[Currently there’s a Halloween event in October with a worm killing game]
Remix also allows you to turn on Fast Heat and Fast Fuel which do exactly what you think they do. Might seem like a good idea but it messes with the delicate balance of all the grinders. Some mechs can exploit these buffs and become OP or annoying to deal with.
2:44 How to Block/Mute/Comrade
Finally, if you need to ban or mute a player, anyone can do this. Find out what button brings down this menu while in your Grinder. Press the interact button and then click on the person you want to deal with.
Block – cannot join your servers. Mute – you can’t hear them]
From here you can also set up your Comrade list. This is a little different from a friend list. For example, find a good player and comrade them so that you can see their logo on the radar. This menu is useful for the Host as well since some commands can only be accessed from within your grinder once the match has started. But if you plan to change a few things, find a shady corner and turn your mech off with the ignition key since this hides your grinder from the enemy radar.
Helpful Links:
Vox Machinae discord – [discord.com]
Modules – [vmcodex.net]
Grinders – [vmcodex.net]
Weapons – [vmcodex.net]
Game Modes – [vmcodex.net]
Crosshairs – [reddit.com]
Road Map for Vox – [trello.com]
Hope you enjoy the Guide about Vox Machinae – Gameplay Tutorial & Full Walkthrough, if you think we should add extra information or forget something, please let us know via comment below, and we will do our best to fix or update as soon as possible!
- All Vox Machinae Posts List
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