Pilot Only
For players who want to level up weapons or those who wish to have a more challenging experience on frontier defense may choose to never use or even call down their titan fall. If you wish to do pilot only on frontier defense this guide will tell you everything you need to know about it.
Auto Titan
To begin, when doing pilot only you will have a powerful asset: auto Titan. For the pilots who wish to use their auto titan they should always equip Assault Chip in the Titan kit so your auto titan can use more abilities and perform better. Always deploy your auto titan to make up for any dps loss. Your auto Titan will be a meat shield. A reminder for those that don’t know, you can control titan A.I by pressing V, follow mode or defense mode. Follow mode will cause it to follow you wherever you go. Defender mode will make it stay still attacking anything in sight. Follow mode is the default command until changed. For pilot only specifically you will generally want it on guard mode once you find a good location for your auto titan.
Loadout
Players who are going pilot only should pick a good loadout. Make a Loadout that will be useful for the whole match. For the loadout it is recommended that you Equip satchels, grenade launchers, and a tactical like a-wall, on master or insane it is very important to get the most damaging build as those difficulties are very challenging. If you want it level weapons like the r-201 then make sure your team is prepared for your dps loss as non grenade launchers don’t do much dmg to titans. Keep in mind that anti Titan ammo is limited on master and insane. Now for the lower difficulties which are easy, normal and hard, the anti titan weapons have infinite ammo so you can use those the entire time while using a normal gun primary. The lower difficulties are generally much easier for pilot only. Furthermore the best loadout I recommend if you want the most optimal damage is to Use Sidewinder SMR (EPG is 2nd best for damaging single titans, of course softball is good too), Satchels, any anti titan weapon and A-wall. The pilot kits and tactical are dependent on your play style and preferences. Cloak and stim are perfect options. Cloak works well for those who want to farm batteries or use nuke rodeo. For the most damage A wall is the best choice since it affects ordinances as well as guns. Note that A wall won’t stack with amped weapons from the armory. If you want more detailed information about specific weapons and kits look for them in other guides.
Survivability and Awareness
With the loadout taken care of this next part is about pilot survivability and awareness. Being a pilot makes you very easy and vulnerable to a huge number of threats. Positioning is a must to prevent death. Pilots must use distance and fast movement to avoid enemy attacks. Rooftops or inside buildings are safer. Using ranged weapons from a distance is the safest way to do pilot only, just be aware of any enemy northstar titans as they will hit you if you stay still from a distance. If you are on a map that has ticks you must use wall riding and distance to deal with them. Tick explosion radius is far and unforgiving so don’t even try to get close with those. If you are feeling like seeing action up close, using a nuke rodeo is a good way to do just that. On maps with ceilings It is recommended to use phase shift to prevent pilot death. Reaper rockets will kill you fast so avoid them with speed. Watch out for Ion laser shots as they will instantly kill you. On master and insane the aim of enemy titans is enhanced, they will hit crazy shots on you. Enemies will try to focus you if you are seen, therefore giving opportunities for your allies to do damage. Even with all preparation and skill you will die suddenly and without warning sometimes. The environment for pilots is unforgiving.
Armory/Titanfall kit/other
Always buy amped weapons when you are a pilot for a huge damage increase just for 100$, the SMR gets the biggest buff with it dealing huge damage to titans. For your titanfall kit, warp fall and dome shield both serve a purpose. Warp fall being faster makes titanfall kills easier, while dome shield will block a huge area of the map causing a blockage to titans on route to harvester if placed properly. Another reminder: If you are going pilot only, make sure to do it with a competent team or else a loss is likely(master or insane). As a pilot you must be persistent with damage to makeup for not using a titan. Search and destroy enemy’s and be fast. Hard or below will be much easier for pilots only. Skill will be tested on master or insane since the difficulty spike is huge. Pilot only will take getting used to but you will see yourself getting your Titan incredibly easily in normal play. You will also find wave 1s to be easier as well.
Summary
To summarize, practice and playing will make you better, this guide covers the majority of what you need to know for pilot only, game sense will come later. Pilot-only is a good way to put in hours into playing as a pilot making the gameplay of wave 1 or obtaining titan meter easier and efficient when playing normally. Good luck on your future endeavors.