29 replies to this topic

[Carrioncrows]

FupDup, on 16 July 2014 - 06:21 PM, said:

I'd classify MW3 Pulse Lasers as a sort of "Tractor Beam" rather than laser machine guns. MW4's Pulses could probably qualify, however.


One thing we could do is even have each pulse laser type have different mechanics. Maybe make IS regular pulse into "laser MGs" with higher DPS and lower HPS (at the downside of less frontloaded damage), cut down the duration on Clan regular pulse (to help them be good at longer ranges, which is their main advantage over IS pulses), and make future IS X-Pulse into the MW3-esque "tractor beams."

Clan ER pulse and IS Variable-Speed Pulse, I dunno what to do with.

Or as a handsome devil once suggested.

ofc the numbers are dated but you get the idea. Beam based, Duration based, charge based. Dealers choice.

Edited by Carrioncrows, 16 July 2014 - 08:17 PM.

[Pjwned]

Clan pulse lasers simply don't have enough benefit for what they trade off, make it worth using them with even less beam duration or something and then further tweaks can be discussed maybe.

Inner sphere pulse lasers are a little different since they do have some actual worthwhile benefits, but their effectiveness is still questionable.

• IS small pulse: Just like the small laser the range is garbage, it's hard to justify using them when you practically have to facehug every mech to use it properly and that's not always an option.
  
• IS medium pulse: They are too heavy to be worth using in a lot of builds and the heat is fairly substantial, I still find myself using them in 1 or 2 builds since they do decent damage and don't have terrible range now but I still feel they're a little lacking, though less so after relatively recent range & heat buffs
  
• IS large pulse: Out of all the pulse lasers (clan included) this one is probably in the best shape, it has respectable damage, not atrociously bad range anymore, and it still has a great beam duration. Similar to the MPL the extra 2 tons can be a bit of a problem (much less so though) and the range is not that great considering its tonnage and heat, but after the range (and heat?) buff(s) for the LPL it's in pretty good shape now, though it could be better maybe.

Edited by Pjwned, 16 July 2014 - 09:24 PM.

[SolasTau]

Sephlock, on 15 July 2014 - 09:31 PM, said:

No techno for you.

And honestly I really liked the take MW2 took on the various weapons. Actually, make that MW2: Mercs, with mods.

I'll see your Strongbad Techno and raise you THE dubstep gun.



Sound effects and fun aside... Yeah. I'm very disappointed with the pulse lasers overall. The mediums work well for my point defense on my Catapult, but it's nothing that standard lasers wouldn't accomplish well enough. The idea is to make people back off and go "OH HELL, THAT THING HAS GUNS!" In this regard, being as I'm mostly trying to swat lights away and make brawlers think twice, I'm using MPL's because they do their damage faster inside of a tight maneuvering situation. Even for ME, that's pretty seriously niche.

I tried to build a Gunapult (K2) around Large Pulses and it's really just a no go. The mech is just not... brawly enough for that. Or maybe I suck too much for that kind've brawling 'cuz I'm a noob. I'm trying to work some LPL's into a speedy Raven design, but I'm not sure even that will fly (other than apart at the seams when someone sees me).

I'll throw it out there at the risk of getting flamed, but I think the weight offset is enough penalty by itself. If the pulse lasers had the range as the normal lasers, they'd be a much more INTERESTING choice than where things stand.

[Kmieciu]

The easiest way to balance them is through DPS.

SPL and MPL are twice as heavy as SL/ML, therefore should give you twice the DPS.

2ML = 1 MPL. MPL has shorter range and shorter beam duration, but 2xML have more alpha strike potential.

MEDIUM LASER: 5 DAMAGE, 4 HEAT, COOLDOWN 3s BEAM 1s DPS 1.25 HPS 1.00

MED PULSE LASER 6.00 DAMAGE 5 HEAT COOLDOWN 1.8 BEAM 0.6 s DPS 2.5 HPS 2.1

2xMEDIUM LASER can deal 10 damage in 1 secon, while 1xMPL deals 6 damage in 0.6 seconds, but it will be able to fire a second shot before the Medium Lasers recharge.

That way, both weapons will be viable: MLs for alpha, MPL for speed and shorter beam duration (accuracy).

[SpiralRazor]

Carrioncrows, on 15 July 2014 - 09:29 PM, said:

Honestly,

I'm tired of fighting for changes.

Do you know how rare it is for them to change something due to public pressure?

I've only ever seen it twice so far. Mguns and hitboxes and those still are no where near where they need to be.

Umm...LRMS? and UACs? AC/2? ECM? Yeah man, they change a LOT of stuff cause of pressure.

[Sephlock]

SpiralRazor, on 17 July 2014 - 05:00 AM, said:

Umm...LRMS? and UACs? AC/2? ECM? Yeah man, they change a LOT of stuff cause of pressure.

the first ones got changed in dumb ways for the worst reasons, and the last went from an impenetrable Jesus shield to a semi permeable Jesus shield. Oh boy.

[Angel of Annihilation]

SpiralRazor, on 17 July 2014 - 05:00 AM, said:

Umm...LRMS? and UACs? AC/2? ECM? Yeah man, they change a LOT of stuff cause of pressure.

Yeah but generally they only NERF THE CRAP out of stuff rather than buff anything.

Honestly I have not seen one POSITIVE change made due to pressure. In fact they seem to go out of their way to make sure the only changes actually make the game less enjoyable usually because they are trying to fix an issue that only seems to effect the top 10% of the player base. The other 90% of us get screwed.

[Xeno Phalcon]

Yeah I would go with taking a page from MW4 and give them partial hitscan and then pulse them, with each pulse getting its own hitscan reading; essentially like a laser version of CLAN autocannons , where each pulse WILL damage the section it attached to but the fallowing pulses could end up sticking to other sections of a twisting mech.


Clans can pulse more, or slower giving greater spread compared to IS ones, so theres your balance too.

[BlackIronTarkus]

They need to fill the brawling role, with shorter CD, shorter range, a lot less heat.

[Ursh]

Clan large pulse laser is only good for shooting slow heavies and assaults, and semi-functional for shooting mediums moving less than 85kph. Occasionally you can find a shutdown light mech to shoot with them.