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As I predicted in my post "The facts about LRMs yesterday, today, and tomorrow" , the hotfix, which pretty much turned off splash damage while leaving damage per missile intact, has put LRMs back into an under-powered state.
The Problem
This became very clear as I played matches this weekend on my Trebuchet 5N and Trebuchet 5J.
My TBT-5N runs 2xLRM15, Artemis, TAG, 5 tons of ammo, and a medium laser. I have to use an XL engine to fit this.
My TBT-5J runs 5 Medium Lasers, 1xSSRM2, 5 Jump Jets, and a lot of heatsinks. This all fits with a standard 270 engine.
In match after match, I found that a "perfect" game with my 5N, that is, one in which I go out of ammo landing as many missiles as can be expected, would leave me at 300-400 damage. But just an "ok" game in my 5J would leave me at a similar damage number, with great 5J games putting me over 500 damage with more kills and assists.
I thought to myself "what the hell!" My 5N, back in the day, was a great performer with 2xLRM15s, but now could not hold a candle to a simple 5 medium laser build. So I took a look at the numbers to see what the issue is.
The Numbers
Two LRM 15s now do a total of 27 damage per salvo. With 5 tons of ammo, you can fire 30 salvos, which takes 127.5 seconds to do. That's 810 potential damage. But the reality of LRMs is that you never get close to that potential damage number. My LRM accuracy is around 45%. Most players are closer to 30%. But for argument sake, I will use the very generous number of 50%. For even the best players, this is as good as it gets, because AMS, cover, and lost locks will always eat a large number of your missiles.
2xLRM15 + Artemis + 5 tons Ammo + TAG = 22 Tons
30 Salvos of 27 Damage over 127.5 seconds X 50% accuracy = 405 damage at 3.2 DPS.
There it is, my TBT-5N needs 22 tons to do 405 damage, at 3.2 DPS, in a "perfect" game. Kind of crappy really. Yes I could lower my speed to get more ammo, or more backup lasers, but that would reduce my survival chances quite a bit, and this is a fine tuned build that was great back in the pre-broke LRM days.
So what about the TBT-5J?
5xMedium Lasers + 8 DHS Heatsinks = 13 Tons
127 seconds of 5 x ML fire is 1050 damage X 80% accuracy = 840 damage at 6.6 DPS.
Now yes, you can't fire the 5xMLs non-stop, and the shorter range is hazardous, so I don't hit that 840 damage number often. But this comparison clearly shows where the major disparity is coming from in my 5N and 5J builds.
The Big But
"BUT 80Bit, Medium Lasers are close range and LRMS are long range OMGWTFBBQ!" Yes I know, and using medium lasers is a whole different game than using LRMS. But the fact remains that there is a huge performance disparity between LRMs at other weapons, in this case, energy weapons. I am a better long range support player than I am a brawler, but try as I might I can't make my 5N perform post hotfix. It does not have to be medium mechs, this disparity exists when you look at Stalkers and Atlases too, and compare the LRMs to ballistic or large energy weapons.
TLRD; A.K.A: The Point
My point is, LRM damage is to low in its current state, period. They will either need to increase the per missile damage, or overhaul the splash mechanic.
Edited by 80Bit, 26 May 2013 - 10:40 AM.
