41 replies to this topic

[ManDaisy]

to make ppc different then lasers , being hit with a ppc shot should temporarily mess up all you electronics equipement, since it is a bolt of lightning after all.

So if you have missle lock, that should broken,
you radar should also go do the fuzz dance,
should lose target lock as well,
its like a split second reboot to all your systems as they shut down and restart to protect their circuits from frying from the electron particles.

Sparks arching thru you dashboard would also be a neat effect.

Edited by ManDaisy, 27 November 2011 - 10:15 PM.

[Raeven]

I always hated that effect.

[Malavai Fletcher]

Also make PPC's so you have to lead them,you shouldn't be able to hit a target moving sideways at range with lasers and ppc in one shot.

[Raeven]

You're stuck on this idea that you have to lead weapons, particularly (see what I did there?) PPC's. Bleh.

[God of War]

i would like to see an effect on the target´s heat.
not just for PPCs but for all energy weapons. Would make the heat managment more intressting and

[Mattiator]

Personally I'd like to see PPC 'Screen shaking' have a slight area of effect, not a big one, but if there's two mechs kissing then both will have their screen messed up, but the one shot will take the damage.

[Tahawas Pitts]

Raeven, on 28 November 2011 - 01:31 AM, said:

You're stuck on this idea that you have to lead weapons, particularly (see what I did there?) PPC's. Bleh.

I have to agree with you about not leading targets, aside from the artillery nothing in BT/MW has a range of even a kilometer. At the same time the PPC has to do something to demonstrate the fact that it's a bunch of charged plasma hitting you and messed with the electronics for a brief moment makes the most sense.

Edited: because apparently the language filter is set for Thomas the Tank Engine level words.

Edited by Tahawas Pitts, 28 November 2011 - 06:16 AM.

[Kraegan]

Not certain if it matters, but from a gameplay standpoint perhaps given the way PPCs have been described, it could also act as a 'stun' of sorts.

[Halfinax]

This would be a neat, but horrible idea. It would just end up with everyone using PPCs stun locking their opponents. It would be very frustrating and imbalanced.

[ManDaisy]

Well if they balanced the ppc recycle time to its effect I could see this working pretty well. PPC do generate a lot of heat and also weigh a lot so spammers cant really abuse it. Also if were stuck with stock mechs that wont be a problem. and if we can customize, then.. well ppcs are already pretty popular and a main weapon on most long range mechs already. an awesome carries 3 ppcs and overheaats like a monster. Dont worry about boats.

Edited by ManDaisy, 28 November 2011 - 08:10 AM.

[ManDaisy]

God of War, on 28 November 2011 - 03:50 AM, said:

i would like to see an effect on the target´s heat.
not just for PPCs but for all energy weapons. Would make the heat managment more intressting and

I think you should suggest this in a seperate topic , I like the idea.

[Halfinax]

Actually it's the weapons preexisting popularity that is so much of the problem with the idea in a multi player environment. Being able to effectively shutdown a unit by focus fire would be game breakingly unbalanced, and you are talking about coupling this to a weapon with high damage output and long range. This concept would be fine in a single player experience, but in a game that is focused on MP and balance within that realm cannot give such an already powerful weapon even more power.

[feor]

I don't think a full stun would be appropriate, but the static burst, target lock killing, etc. that the OP suggests is perfectly legit, and while annoying hardly a game breaker.

Quote

Also make PPC's so you have to lead them,you shouldn't be able to hit a target moving sideways at range with lasers and ppc in one shot.

Why would you have to lead a target with a PPC? It's a lightning bolt, it moves at the speed of light. Unless we're playing at Aerotech ranges with 10,000+km ranges it will hit the target just as fast as a laser would. There will be a minute fraction of a second delay between when you pull the trigger and when the weapon actually fires, but that would have been calibrated into the targeting reticle already such that the weapon should essentially hit the exact spot your reticle was when you pulled the trigger. (of course, with your mech possibly being rocked by enemy fire and movement, that reticle might not be exactly where you wanted it to be) Even Gauss rifles will be essentially instantaneous travel over the ranges at which battletech happens. Modern Railguns have muzzle velocities of 5800m/s, assuming the Gauss Rifle (which admittedly, is a coilgun, which works on comparable principals) has similar performance it would take it about 1/5th of a second to cover its maximum range, which is faster than the average human reaction time (1/4 of a second).

Even Autocannons shouldn't have lead times, modern tank guns have muzzle velocities of 5500+m/s, and modern assault rifles run something like 4000m/s. At the <1km ranges that Battletech or Mechwarrior battles take place, the "lead time" needed for such weapons is again nearly non-existent, and can easily be hard coded into the targeting reticle.

[ManDaisy]

Half you raise an interesting point about focus fire, however I don't see the problem with this at all. Certainly well coordinated teams are deadly, these affects making them even more so deadly. But isn't that a right they have earned thru coordination? If facing an equally organized team the advantages and disadvantages would be shared by both sides.

Edited by ManDaisy, 28 November 2011 - 09:28 AM.

[Halfinax]

But how is it balanced? Having the ability to lock down your opponent by making a powerful weapon have a stun effect isn't balanced, and certainly removes an element of fun from the victim, and would eventually lead to the PPC being the only viable choice. It wouldn't require a high degree of coordination for a few people to lock down any 'Mech, and with the power of the PPC anyone unfortunate enough to get hit by it ends up a sitting duck that's being pounded on by more PPCs keeping them unable to fight back. It simply would not be balanced.

Giving an unfair advantage to a weapon by giving it additional properties that remove control from the targeted player isn't balanced.

[ManDaisy]

I never said anything about not being able to move if your hit with a ppc, if by locking down you mean shutting down from heat, then you would already have to be pretty hot. Also while you are assuming maybe 5 against 1 then what about the other 4 on the other team are they going to watch? The only time I can see you shut down from enemy ppc heat is
1) if you already at the limit
2) if 5 hit you at once, then your dead anyway from the damage heat or no heat.

For the record I am against any sort of stun effect. Heat yes/ target loss/yess stun no. The stun I am assuming people are talking about is from the pilot having to deal with sparks and electronics malfunction, but should the mech come to a dead stop when hit? Absolutely not.

Edited by ManDaisy, 28 November 2011 - 10:14 AM.

[Halfinax]

Unable to fight back is being a sitting duck.

[ManDaisy]

Halfinax, on 28 November 2011 - 10:12 AM, said:

Unable to fight back is being a sitting duck.

What I meant by target lock being broken was "Missile target lock" and "mech signature detection" you can always just aim it manual on visual id and fire back if you see the guy shooting you. Its not like the only people you can shoot ahve to be targeted first.

Edited by ManDaisy, 28 November 2011 - 10:17 AM.

[Halfinax]

So it should just completely make LRMs infeasible? I'm just not sure you've really thought out how this would effect game balance.

[ManDaisy]

what? you mean you cant relock once you lose target lock? Ummm...?