I'll start by saying that I was taken by incredible surprise with this latest patch. I assume it has to do that there are a LOT of Cataphracts being used by the players at the moment. This is expected, as it's the newest mech and the current "flavor of the week". However, what I was not expecting was how fast I'm being dropped by AC fire (of all kinds).
I'm NOT claiming they need to be nerfed. Since I have been away from the game for almost a week, it's possible that my skills have atrophied, and it's simply a matter of me not playing effectively. However, I do have my opinions on the matter which I'd like to share here.
I feel that AC2's need to have their knock reduced. I felt they were too annoying even before the recent patch. Being hit by 2+ of these simultaneously makes returning fire difficult, if not impossible. 4 AC2's should have the same shuddering effect as 4 machine guns. Right now it feels like you're getting slammed by Gauss Rifles.
Personally, I liked the old unjamming mechanics MWO used for the Ultra AC5's. It felt more skill-based to require a pilot to manually do something to clear a jam, rather than just waiting a few seconds for magic gun gnomes to clear it for you. Removing the manual unjamming challenge of the UAC5 has made them incredibly ubiquitous on the battlefield. For a weapon that can repeatedly deliver 40 damage onto a target within 8 seconds, I think they need to introduce some kind of deterrent If they no longer require any effort to unjam (other than patience), I feel that they should have their automatic jam-clearing time increased to ~10 seconds. Or better yet, make the automated clearing process take a while (~15 seconds) and/or allow the pilot to manually clear the jam themselves, quicker, if they prefer.
So, that's my thoughts on the topic of AutoCannons currently in MWO. What are your experiences or thoughts on the topic?
Edited by ShadowVFX, 21 November 2012 - 09:17 AM.