DeadlyNerd, on 04 May 2013 - 10:42 AM, said:
So you're saying that a dual AC20 jager is far worse than a mech that can fire across the map? THE WHOLE MAP, and then some.
Of course a dual AC/20 Jager is more dangerous by itself, because it can function alone. The Arrow IV it is a weapon that cannot fire at all without a TAG and it cannot fire at targets beyond 750 m from the firer (max range of TAG) unless an independent spotter moves further away. That spotter is going to be completely vulnerable to any attacks, and the launcher is vulnerable as well. The Arrow IV also has a significant minimum range, making it just as unsuitable for close range combat as LRMs. It's a weapon with significant drawbacks, while the AC/20 is something you point and shoot.
Anyways, this argument over AC/20s seems to be a case of mistaken identity. You seem to be describing a
Thunderbolt 20, a large missile system with the same damage as an AC/20 and that can be fired just like LRMs. The Arrow IV cannot be guided towards a target unless someone keeps a TAG pointed at it. That does mean that a spotter and a launcher together could do quite a bit of damage, but that's the case in any engagement when two mechs fight one. I think that can be filed under the "teamwork is overpowered" heading.
DeadlyNerd, on 04 May 2013 - 10:42 AM, said:
Why take arrow over gauss? Maybe due to the fact that you don't have to compensate for projectile speed?
Are you all that familiar with Gausses and LRMs? The gauss projectile moves so fast that you hit the target within a moment, and it moves so fast that skilled Gauss users have high hit rates. LRMs take some time to sail over and should target lock be broken they become mostly harmless. By the time the missiles hit the Gauss pilot could have placed another shot
and moved to cover! That's not hyperbole - the gauss round moves
twelve times as fast as the LRM, and the rifle will be ready for another shot when the LRMs have only moved 400m.
The advantage of LRMs compared to PPCs and Gausses is
not that they home, but that they're comparatively light for the damage they do and that they can be used indirectly (to an extent). An LRM 20 has the potential in this game to do more than a Gauss rifle's damage per shot for only two thirds the weight! It also doesn't have damage falloff after 660m like the Gauss. However, its many disadvantages balance that.
The Arrow IV would be have all the disadvantages of LRMs and more. Your hypothetical poptart would fly over a building, fire, and as soon as it dropped out of LOS its TAG would be blocked and the missile would lose all tracking capability.
DeadlyNerd, on 04 May 2013 - 10:42 AM, said:
Although, your point is mute as arrow is a missile weapon, not a ballistic, or even energy.
My point would be "moot." Anyways, it isn't - hardpoints influence mech choice. If a pilot is pining for a missile that functions like the AC/20, he should petition for the
Thunderbolt 20 because with current missile weapons he isn't going to get it.
If he
really wants an AC/20, they'll pilot a mech that can use it instead. The Catapult K2 over the A1, the TBT-7K over the others, the Yen-Lo-Wang over other Centurions, etc. Since mechs have different variants, it is perfectly valid to compare different types of weapons as a pilot can choose between those variants (and if he's mastered it, he already owns three of them). You're trying to compare a Catapult A1 with an Arrow IV to one without, while the vaild comparison would be a Catapult A1 with an Arrow IV to a Catapult K2 with an AC/20. One on one, the A1 wouldn't have a chance. It wouldn't have a chance against a Streakcat or Splatcat either. If you're concerned about mechs using missile hardpoints to have powerful short ranged weapons like the AC/20, then it's the SRM and SSRM you should be complaining about.
DeadlyNerd, on 04 May 2013 - 10:42 AM, said:
Significant travel time? So you're going to say "**** you physics, I'm going to make a slow rocket, because it's balance."? It's bad enough that ballistics aren't near instant hit. ***** 16th century cannons.
Physics? This is a game. A game where Long Range Missiles (LRMs) move at 100 m/s (soon to be buffed to 120). That means that a target that is 1000m away has a whole ten seconds to avoid them, a significant amount of time. I see no reason to make the Arrow IV go much faster than that.
0
