4
I think there are some tweaks we can make to the consumable that will still keep it an important feature, but also make it a little more forgiving to be on the receiving end.
1. Increase the Global Cooldown. Right now there is a 10 second cooldown, but it starts the moment you lay smoke. If you only notice it after the first one hits, that means you only have 5 seconds to react before the next one is laid down. I think a 20 second cooldown would make it a little more reasonable and reduce the ability to hit a single group multiple times before they can spread.
2. Do something about the Headshots. It appears that certain mech designs are more susceptible to getting headshotted by artillery than others. I'm not sure if there is some way to reduce the damage incurred on cockpits, but it would go a long way toward reducing the angst these consumables cause.
Either way, I think it's crucial that artillery and airstrike remain credible threats against stationary deathballs. It's particularly important because we now have Skirmish mode that would otherwise reward teams for holing up in a narrow defensible position. It's also important to remember that we're talking about a 40,000 cbill consumable.
Edit:
3. Make the Smoke visible in all 3 vision modes. I think artillery/airstrike are too strong to make the red smoke invisible in thermal/night vision mode. I believe this is an occasion where we need equal opportunity to spot it and move.
4. BillyM made an interesting suggestion:
BillyM, on 30 January 2014 - 01:31 PM, said:
Shoot the smoke canister from the mech in a large arc, smoking as it goes. Make dropping smoke a skillful action vs "point-cursor, press button, magic smoke". This would also promote sneaky light backdoor smoke dropping vs poptart clicked 1m behind you.
--billyM
--billyM
5. Another idea
Jman5, on 01 February 2014 - 10:20 AM, said:
Got another idea, but it's a bit pie-in-the-sky.
Make the Artillery and and airplane bomber physical objects in the world. They would hang out by their base and would need to be defended. When players launch their artillery smoke you would see the artillery actually fire their guns or you would see the plane take off and head toward the airstrike signal.
You could put the new turret system around them to give them defensive capability and players would need to protect them from raiding lights. Destroying the artillery/airstrike placement would disable artillery for that team.
Make the Artillery and and airplane bomber physical objects in the world. They would hang out by their base and would need to be defended. When players launch their artillery smoke you would see the artillery actually fire their guns or you would see the plane take off and head toward the airstrike signal.
You could put the new turret system around them to give them defensive capability and players would need to protect them from raiding lights. Destroying the artillery/airstrike placement would disable artillery for that team.
Edited by Jman5, 01 February 2014 - 11:12 AM.
