Skyfaller, on 26 April 2013 - 07:27 PM, said:
Look I know you put a lot of time into it but what you're proposing literally kills the versatility and thus the fun and longevity of the game.
Here's a much simpler solution:
Missiles:
Each mech already has a set # of launcher tubes as part of their model. Stalker 3H for example, is 2x 20 tube in arms and 6x tube in the torso sides.
So... just allow people to add up as many launchers as they can fit in the number of tubes. If you want to put 10 SSRMs in the 20 tube you can do it. If you want to put 2 LRM10s you can do it. The launchers cannot exceed the number of tubes however. That means you cannot put an LRM20 in the side torsos... max is either a 1x SRM6, 1x SRM4, 3x SRM2, 3x SSRM2 or 1x LRM5.
This enables 'boating' but is still limiting in tonnage, crit slots and heat.. but it prevents boating the largest launchers since the mech frame itself cannot support them.
The same principle can be used for the energy weapons and projectiles up to a certain point. Assign 'size' # to the weapons.
size 1 = small laser, mg, Tag, flamers
size 2 = medium lasers, AC2
Size 3 = large laser, ER large laser, ac5, lbx10m ac 10, ac20, gauss, PPCs
Thus, just like with the tube system, a player can load as many size X weapons into size X slots in the mech as long as it doesnt exceed the mech weapon slot size. Essentially you enable the mech's frame to play a role in the weapon loadout just like the launcher tubes do.
A stalker 3F for example would be something like this:
Arms: 10-tube launcher + 2 x size 3 energy slots
LT/RT: 6-tube launcher + 1 x size 2 energy slots
With this system, a short range combat 'boated' stalker could potentially load:
Arms: 10 SSRMs2 + 6 small lasers (total of both arms)
LT/RT: 6 SSRMs2 + 4 small lasers (total)
So yes, the SSRMs are set up to do the bulk of the damage with the small lasers backing it up at very close range. Deadly? Yes. Heavy? Not really. Different than a 6 PPC stalker? Nope. Heat would run at about the same and the damage output is close at 78 dmg per ssrm+small laser salvo. The difference is the point blank range.
Another setup could be
Arms: 4 LRM5s, 2 large lasers, 4 med lasers, 1 tag, 1 flamer (total both arms)
LT/RT: 2 medium lasers, 2 LRM5s, 2 narcs (total)
But its an example of the flexibility the system would give WITHOUT giving anything a super-OP advantage. I know, I cringe when I see 16-SSRM setup on the stalker but i remind myself: by boating those ssrms he has used up crit slots, tonnage and generates a good amount of heat only to do 48 damage per salvo.
The second build can potentially do a lot more damage from much farther away but its deliver is different. All in all both stalkers in these alternate builds are not signficantly more or less effective than they are now. The only thing is the mechs are obeying size limitations as set per their frame models..
There are some problems with this:
One, PGI is making modifications to the physical models dependent on the loadouts. So the number of physical ports depends on what is equipped.
The second is that your suggested system is really only different in how LRMs/SRMs can be equipped. And it is technically more complicated than my system because you have to implement a numbering system for each weapon instead of an enumerated quantifer (Large, Normal, LRM, SRM, Energy, or Ballistic).
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