NEST
Nest mode really comes down to speed and hunter teamwork. The idea is for the hunters to smash multiple eggs strewn around the map as well as any hatched minions. This means that the hunters can actually focus purely on the minion instead of the monster if it is the last one remaining, bringing it down to win the match instead of the main monster.
The monster on the other hand has to kill the hunter team (not defend the eggs), so picking them off one by one in stealth or ambushes while they move towards the eggs will allow you to weaken the team and claim the win at the end with your minion against the remaining hunter or two.
Hunter:
- No hunt, bad hunt: Do not treat this mode like hunt. The monster can delay and run away from hunters who just chase after it. It takes a fair amount of time to located and destroy all the eggs. Especially with an actively defending monster guarding them. Keep your mind on the job of hunting eggs and your eyes on the clock. Remember, if it reaches zero and there is still one egg, you lose.
- Hulk smash: The minions have very simple AI in this game, they run towards the nearest hunter and attack. When you see a minion indicator appear, keep in mind that it won't run away or divert, it will simply run at the group and attack. More experienced monster players will often take advantage of this and attack at the same time or use the opportunity to use stealth and pick off a hunter while they are distracted, so be aware of your surroundings during a minion attack.
- Focus fire: Most of the time, it is best to quickly bring down a minion when one is present with a monster at the same time. They have less health and can be killed quickly be a good team. Once the distraction is out of the way, the whole team can quickly turn the tide on a lone monster, especially with a few class abilities handy.
- Splitting up: There are two general approaches to the nest game type. Scatter: Pairs of hunters (or sometimes even lone hunters), head for different eggs in an attempt to quickly destroy them all before the monster can deal with the threats. When using this tactic, players not actively destroying eggs should distract and delay the monster as much as possible while the others continue destroying eggs. Stick together: Slower, but also a valid strategy. The hunters remain together and tackle each egg as a group, trying to break them as quickly as possible via focus fire. With four hunters piling on damage, the monster has less chances to attack and pick off weaker party members.
Monster:
- Constant vigilance (I've read way too much Harry Potter): As the monster, you can only lose if all the eggs and minions are destroyed or you die. So you're going to need to keep a close eye on the eggs and try to distract and hound the hunters as they move around. If the hunters do split up to try and break more than one egg at once, attempt to track down and eliminate the weaker party members to make the later encounters easier. Remember that each time you down a hunter, it makes the next time easier.
- Team up with minions: Don't just hatch an egg willy nilly. Instead, make sure you are close enough and in good enough condition (armour and cool-downs) to engage the hunters with it at the same time. The minion will attack nearby hunters immediately upon hatching, so using it as an additional damage source or distraction are both very viable strategies. Depending on your monster class, you may want to focus more on one approach than the other (ie: Wraith = distraction, Goliath = additional damage).
- Berserker rage: You will also want to switch up tactics to defending the minion if he is your last remaining "egg." Act like a really pissed off mother animal in a nature documentary when this happens and go to town in an all or nothing attack because if that final minion dies, you've lost.
- Find their tells: Like poker, watching other players and how they react in earlier skirmishes will tell you a lot about what to expect in the final showdown. Hunter players will sometimes switch up strategies. But if you see how they attack early on and watch for methods to exploit their tactics, such as deliberately tanking attacks meant for the minion so that it lasts longer to deal more damage, disrupting players trying to use their class abilities or more tricky moves such as revivals. A really good example revolves around a Goliath against a team using Lazarus's cloak. A Goliath can use fire breath to reveal cloaked players, dealing damage over time and making them visible for a beat-down from the monster. Effective ability counters and targeting certain classes can give the monster the edge in the fight.
- Be a dick: One of the most annoying things you can do as the monster is to deliberately hatch an egg the hunters are actively trying to destroy. This means a minion will emerge from it unscathed and immediately attack the hunters, allowing you to do the same. You will need to complete the hatching countdown by keeping the hunters disoriented or disrupted. Risky, but if you can pull it off, this means the hunters have wasted a chunk of time firing on the egg and they now have to deal with a double attack that they may not be prepared for.