5 replies to this topic

[Solis Obscuri]

I've been playing around with the Awesome again this week, after largely abandoning it back in Closed Beta. It's not quite as bad as most people say it is (I'm particularly enjoying my AWS-8Q), but it seems very awkward and squishy for it's size. I realize that it's huge, flat torso is partly to blame for the first problem, but I honestly think that (even after shifting armor allocations to the front) a Catapult or Cataphract can easily tank more damage, a Stalker turns faster, and an Atlas doesn't turn any slower than this waddling monstrocity. It also seems to have pronounced problems getting it's feet hung up on low-lying obstructions - here I suspect the penguin shuffle may be the issue. But as a chassis, it could use some love. A few ideas:

• Let the AWS-8 Awesomes mount a 320 engine. It won't break the game, but it'll make them a little more serviceable.
  
• The Awesome has a really nice torso and arm twist range for it's weight class, but, unlike my beloved Hunchie, it can't really use the full extent of it's arm swing since the arm reticule leaves your view angle well before it hits full deflection! Fixing this would make it a little better chassis in close fighting.
  
• Too few hardpoints. The Awesome essentially has as few hardpoints as a Catapult (since you can't mount much in the head), while being slower and almost twice as big a target. The AWS-8V and AWS-8R variants are particularly screwed by not even being able to mount a second arm weapon. None are able to carry more than 2 modules as compensation for this deficiency, either (the AWS-9M even gets two more hardpoints without a reduction in module slots!) I'd advocate giving the AWS-8Q and AWS-8V each an additional arm energy hardpoint, giving the AWS-8R an additional arm energy hard point a third module slot, and the AWS-8T two torso missile slots at the cost of reducing its module slots by one.
  
• Consider reducing the size/hitboxes of the Awesome slightly. Its shape is already pretty easy to hit without being quite as much of a backstop for gunfire.

[GalaxyBluestar]

actually i'd give the rt and lt extra energy hard points as those barrels for the 9m 8q can't boat ppcs like a stalker can!? if no one sees the 6ppc stalker as ridiculous and op then why can't the mech purpose built for energy boating do it!?

[Solis Obscuri]

The 8Q actually can carry 6 PPCs.

[Dirus Nigh]

Man remember when people used seven med pulse laser boats?

I have not used the Awesome sense closed beta either. Mostly because the game is now live and I have a founder atlas to base my assault chassis off of. However the engine cap limit really hurt the mech in my opinion. Putting in a 320 engine was not over balanced. It gave the mech a very useful speed that could be used with great effect by any pilot that new how to cope with the cow like turning of the awesome. Changing the engine cap for heavier mechs is what is needed most.

Sense the atlas uses ECM people are grinding out that mech. One of the best variants for the awesome, at least for me, was the 4 missile hard point one. It could be a great LRM carrier for your team, and it could be devastating up closed with SRMs.

The majority on how pugs play the game, or how they perceive it must be played with ECM in the game, is causing people to over look the awesome. The stalker is another. It can boat energy and streaks at the same time. The awesome can load up six PPCs or large lasers as well, but the stalker has other variance that can put on five streaks with a battery of lasers to back it up when ECM hits. The only awesome that can even close to that is the 9M, and that falls rather short by having fewer missile hard points.

Maybe some of the awesome variants should have a module slot added. I say witch ones off hand because I do not currently have any.

I do think changing ECM so it is not a must have item is the best solution for attracting more players to the awesome, or any mech that does not have an ECM variant.

[MustrumRidcully]

The engine restrictions certainly make the Awesome very unattractive now. One of its main roles is fire support normally, that's why it should be fine with a slow engine. But unfortunately, its main fire support weapons - Large Lasers, ER Large Lasers and PPCs are not very viable. Large Lasers can somewhat work, but the truth is - you will have problems cooling more than 4 Large Lasers on any mech, and that means the number of hard points on some Awesomes isn't that interesting.

It's advantages over the Stalker are better torso twist and arm movement range. Unfortunately, you don't need that for direct-fire support, you need it for close range combat and brawling. But for brawling, the Awesome will be too lightly armored and too slow.
And if you want a missile boat - the Catapult and the Stalker do it as well or better.


Either the engine restrictions need to go (or be loosened), or the LLs, PPCs and ER LLs need to be produce less heat. Note, for the LL - it is relatively well balanced at its current damage and heat values, but it might be better if it produced a bit less damage (1 point less?) and less heat (2-3 points?) less. This would allow the Awesome to use more of its energy hard points onthe weapons without needing to add that many heat sinks. In turn, other mechs with energy hard points will now be "too cool" and could afford removing heat sinks - but they will need to add other weapons to their build if their energy hard poitns are used up already. So a 4 LL Atlas-RS might remove 6 heat sinks and add an LRM or SRM launcher and some ammo, because if he doesn't, he may run much cooler, but also lose a lot of damage potential.

[Theobald Hauser]

Try to make the game in a fov of 80. No more out-of-screen reticule, and the cockpits being so lovely designed, it's a shame not to see them more. When you need a smaller fov, you can just use the first level of zoom ingame.


AWS can do a lot of thing the CAT can't. Six big energy weapons for a start in the 8Q, or seven lighter ones that will fire a lot. The 8R is a really good TAG+LRM+ARTEMIS boat, that can fire single volleys of 60 missiles, vastly underestimated when seeing them because they're so condensed. SRM boating is also fun.
Don't overestimate the 9M, if you play its bigger advantage, it won't have a lot of tons left for weapons.

PPC's, ERL and LPL are said to be worked on about heat, but boosting a weapon to up a mech variant is a really bad gamedesign idea. You won't just up the Awesomes.