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This is not a post to argue if something is "good" or "bad", or if balance got broke, or anything along those lines. This is just a statement of the current state of the game as I see it. So without further ado...
Flavor of the Month - April 2013: Ballistic and PPC boating.
The two patches for April(and some lingering changes from March) had some subtle, and some not so subtle, changes that significantly influenced weapon effectiveness in game. The short story is, Ballistic and PPC weapons are got better, and LRMs, SRMS, and SSRMs got worse.
Why are Ballistics and PPCs better?
The April 16th patch introduced "Host State Rewinding" into the game for Ballistic and PCC weapons. What this change does it more accurately place your shots in the game by factoring in lag, and also removes the slight fire delay that these weapons previously had. In the past, when you fired your AC/20 at a target, but you and/or your target had some moderate to sever latency, your shot may have missed because server side, your target was not where you were aiming. This was especially true with fast moving mechs. But with HSR in place, the server can now account for latency and check to see if the target was where you were aiming when you fired. This means that Ballistic and PPCs are now more accurate, especially on moving targets.
And to go along with the new improved Ballistics and PPCs, this month and last month saw the introduction of two great Ballistic/Energy toting mechs, the Jagermech and the Highlander. The Jagermech has the ability to mount twin AC/20s, twin Guass, or a mix of ballistics and PPCs. the Highlander has an AC/20 capable variant, a PPC boat capable variant, and the rest of them can do 1xGauss + 2PPC, all while sporting jumpjets.
Why are Missiles worse?
The patch at the end of March introduced a missile splash damage bug, and sparked "LRMageddon". The bug caused LRM, SRM, and SSRM missiles do to massively increased damage, and LRM boats were able to kill enemy mechs with just 2 or 3 salvos. PGI hotfixed this problem by changing the missile splash damage mechanic, and significantly lowering missile damage for LRMs, and moderately lowering it for SRMS/SSRMs. These changes are supposed to be temporarily but are still in place, and as a result missiles have become much less effective. LRMs in particular are so nerfed that very few people are using them. SRMS are still viable, but noticeably less dangerous than they used to be. SSRMs in particular have a lot less bite and light mechs are having a harder time scoring kills with them.
How has it changed the metagame?
The decline of Missiles, the boost to Ballistics, and the new mechs have made three significant changes to the game.
1) Ballistic PPC boats are reigning. Gauss+PPC Highlander pop-tarts are definitely the flavor of the month mech. There are also plenty of Dual AC/20 Jagermechs running around, as well as quad AC/5 Jagers and triple UAC/5 Muromets.
2) LRM and SRM boats are rare. LRM Stalkers, SRM Catapult A1s, and similar builds are not showing up very much in matches. Personal testing with my SRM boat A1 shows they can still be effective, but LRM boats are almost a total loss.
3) Light mechs are having a hard time. With the ability to get kills with SSRMs reduced, and the ability for Ballistic mechs to hit fast moving light mechs enhanced this is a bad time to be a scout. A dual AC/20 Jagger can now put an end to a Raven 3L's day very quickly.
PS: Consumables
The other major change over the last several patches was the introduction of consumables. Cool Shot is a one time use consumable module that lets your mech quickly drop some heat. Air Strike and Artillery Strike let your mech call in some area effect damage.
Air Strike and Artillery Strike are so inaccurate, hard to use, and low on damage, that at this they are practically never seen in game.
Cool Shot is seeing a lot more use, especially on the PPC boats. It gives you the ability to pull off one more Alpha before overheating, and in a lot of situations this can be the difference between a kill and a death for a PPC boat.
If I missed any major changes to the meta, please let me know, and like this post if you want to see a similar one next month.
Edited by 80Bit, 18 April 2013 - 10:30 AM.
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