147 replies to this topic

[PFC Carsten]

Admit it, PGI. You've never ever actually playtested Long Tom in a real match.

[Navid A1]

Sometimes i feel that the long tom is stealing Cbills from me.

You know... in this game rewards are based on damage and damage alone! Nothing else matters. If you Damage, you get rewards. as simple as that.... but that is another story!

[Tuann]

Good thing it is being reworked. Still, the frequency is a bit over the top.

first of all, it is great that scouting actually has an influence on the battle. It is great fun to hear the messages pop up that Sensor sweep is active while being in a drop or hear it getting offline etc,... it enhances the emergence,.. you feel and know ingame that others are fighting and getting results while you are doing your job. I would like to hear more of that, like , 'sector won' if another game that was busy is won by another team, or lost..., it gives you the idea that you are part of an offensive on a whole planet and your team is 1 small wheel in the big clockwork.

on the long tom itself,... rather have the frequency reduced,... like max twice during a drop. That way it still is meaningful, but it is not over the top. Alternatively, have the effect of 90% intel be more diverse...
example :
1. Long tom, twice per match
2. Disable 25-50% of the enemy turrets if you are assaulting ( the scouting was so successfull that a virus was implanted on the data servers,...)
3. Pop 2 random minefields on an approach lane if defending ( or no active turrets) , effect = 2 regular arty strikes, detonate after x-seconds)
4. Both gate generators ( and their Turrets) will be disabled ) and therefor open) when assaulting
5. Each player on the team has 1 extra free of charge Arty strike consumable equipped on 1 mech only. ALpha lance on mech 1, Bravo lance on Mech 2, Charlielance on mech 3

there are a lot of things that can be done with the 90% intel cap that would make it worthwhile without being overpowered, so PGI, for once, use your imagination,...

by having multiple possible effects it would also always be a little surprise for both teams and it would add to the fun factor.

Edited by Tuann, 03 May 2016 - 12:49 AM.

[Rushin Roulette]

Tuann, on 03 May 2016 - 12:40 AM, said:

Good thing it is being reworked. Still, the frequency is a bit over the top.

first of all, it is great that scouting actually has an influence on the battle. It is great fun to hear the messages pop up that Sensor sweep is active while being in a drop or hear it getting offline etc,... it enhances the emergence,.. you feel and know ingame that others are fighting and getting results while you are doing your job. I would like to hear more of that, like , 'sector won' if another game that was busy is won by another team, or lost..., it gives you the idea that you are part of an offensive on a whole planet and your team is 1 small wheel in the big clockwork.

on the long tom itself,... rather have the frequency reduced,... like max twice during a drop. That way it still is meaningful, but it is not over the top. Alternatively, have the effect of 90% intel be more diverse...
example :
1. Long tom, twice per match - Long Tom now deals over 9000 damage spread over the entire map
2. Disable 25-50% of the enemy turrets if you are assaulting ( the scouting was so successfull that a virus was implanted on the data servers,...) - Turrets now shoot through their protective cover dealing normal damage but taking 90% less.
3. Pop 2 random minefields on an approach lane if defending ( or no active turrets) , effect = 2 regular arty strikes, detonate after x-seconds) - Minefields only activate if the defending team counterpushes
4. Both gate generators ( and their Turrets) will be disabled ) and therefor open) when assaulting - The faulty generators now spew dark smoke over the entire map giving everyone a maximum of 50 meters view. Heat view looks like on Terra Therma, night vision looks like on Frozen City day.
5. Each player on the team has 1 extra free of charge Arty strike consumable equipped on 1 mech only. ALpha lance on mech 1, Bravo lance on Mech 2, Charlielance on mech 3 - The C-Bill "free" Artystrikes turn out to be non-removable versions which carry over to each new map and deduct 15MC per pop until players realise they have run out of MC.

there are a lot of things that can be done with the 90% intel cap that would make it worthwhile without being overpowered, so PGI, for once, use your imagination,...

by having multiple possible effects it would also always be a little surprise for both teams and it would add to the fun factor.

We are talking about the coding prodigies of PGI here. I have bolded in the possible results above (slight tongue in cheek version)

[Mottfried]

Long Tom is the worst game mechanic ever - Please remove it!
Most of our Unit wont drop on LongTom planets!!!

A good idea in this thread was ammunition stations maybe for the defender and alternative drop points for the attacker - also the virus against defender turrets is nice. Or something or similar. But the solution should be a tactical useable element and not a automated thing that kills the enemy.

This is a competitive game and not a MMO!
We want to challenge human enemies not computer code!

Edited by Mottfried, 03 May 2016 - 02:51 AM.

[smokefield]

you know what else should be implemented ? a targeting system for LT.

imo :

1. LT should hit where the scan sweep hits, after 1 min.

or, more interesting :

2. Add a targeting system for LT that can be equipped on mechs. Like starcraft and its ghosts that were targeting the area where the nuke should land. This way we will have another interesting role on battlefield and it wil be actually an important one. Point the laser and keep it there for 30 sec to acquire the target. then LT drops there. Recharge every 4-5 min.

[Rushin Roulette]

yeeeaaaa... can you imagine that system in the hands of a pug group?

Shot 1
12 players targeting random opponents Long Tom system is overtaxed by the amount of different targets being highlighted that it decides to put a random shot somewhere on the map.
Shot 2
6 assault players valiantly charging after that one light mech they just saw and ending up running into their own Long Tom shot without realising it
Shot 3
All 12 players are unable to muster up the courage to get out of their own dropzone, because half the team blew themselves up with the Long Tom and the other half were murdered be the laughing opponents. Long Tom sees this and targets where they are all currently facing.. the wall 100 meters infront of them.. Long Tom kills all 12 of the team and one scout mech player from the opposing team who decided he wanted a good look at what was about to happen and is therefore unable to play the rest of the match with his remaining 3 mechs due to the fact that he cant stop laughing.

Edited by Rushin Roulette, 03 May 2016 - 04:12 AM.

[Void Angel]

Curccu, on 02 May 2016 - 10:02 PM, said:

Did ya read the whole post?

Didn't seem like it - but now he says he was just being paternalistically condescending. So he's not wrong, he says, he's just a jackass. Not worth the time. The Professionally Dissatisfied are always like this.

[Void Angel]

After all, because they have to wait for the patch to get the full coding fix, the problem isn't the overwhelming damage - it's the highly unlikely headshot chance, now! This isn't a real change any more, it's just a band-aid! And if the code had been hotfixed, too, they'd be moving the goalposts somewhere else. Just scroll up to the top of the page.

[Saint Scarlett Johan]

Is there going to be anything done to the coding so that it won't kill you if you're on the other side of a terrain feature.

Because being on the other side of a mesa, cliff, or building 200m from the Point of Impact is pretty stupid.

[Karl Streiger]

Saint Scarlett Johan, on 03 May 2016 - 04:51 AM, said:

Because being on the other side of a mesa, cliff, or building 200m from the Point of Impact is pretty stupid.

Nukes ignore terrain

[KrocodockleTheBooBoxLoader-GetIn]

https://youtu.be/bsB7UQ8BlE0

[Idealsuspect]

WHY only 700 damage ? 700 damage its basically all amounts structures and armors points of a 100tons also why 700 damage and not 7000 or 7000000 whatever?

Russ was right nobody know how balance this game better than PGI also why nerf longtom?
Maybe they use RNG science for balance MWO " - ok lets do try this value y instead of x "

[Karl Streiger]

Idealsuspect, on 03 May 2016 - 05:17 AM, said:

WHY only 700 damage ? 700 damage its basically all amounts structures and armors points of a 100tons also why 700 damage and not 7000 or 7000000 whatever?

hm - because droping 1.5 kT Nukes is ok - but 150MT nukes would remove the map or even the planet from FW

Edited by Karl Streiger, 03 May 2016 - 05:26 AM.

[Livewyr]

I don't think PGI was planning on the scouting being so lopsided...

[Idealsuspect]

Livewyr, on 03 May 2016 - 05:49 AM, said:

I don't think PGI was planning on the scouting being so lopsided...

Do you mean they dont know how powerful were the clans streaks ? NO IT CAN'T BE
Or you mean they don't know how 55 tons mech class is dominated by stormcrow and his clan XL engine or his capability to boat missile AND lasers is same time? NO IT CAN'T BE

Like russ said: nobody is better than PGI for balance or say what is good for MWO and he is right !
They exactly know what they are doing indeed.

[PFC Carsten]

Livewyr, on 03 May 2016 - 05:49 AM, said:

I don't think PGI was planning […]

Up until this point I wholeheartedly agree.

[ThatGuy539]

I don't mind the Long Tom, but....

As someone said above, it should be renamed to Orbital Bombardment. A long Tom is a missile system that is mounted on a mech.

Hitting the densest group of enemy every 2 minutes is a bit annoying, and does mess-up being able to play as a team. However, you could still have it recharge at a set interval, but have it so a mech with an expensive module installed would be required to target for it to use it. A scout could sneak in behind enemy lines and target for the Long Tom. (Might be best to have them have to hold a TAG-like beam on the spot for 2 or 3 seconds before the smoke gets dropped.)
This way it could be used strategically, wouldn't drop constantly, and could be defended against.
There would probably still be accidental TKs, but there is already with the Long Toms. At least there would be some more control over it. (Might need to remove or reduce the TK penalty for this, as that could be a problem. That or leave it as it is, and the people doing the targeting would just need to be careful and give their team some warning if required.)
And as with everything, if someone abuses it by TKing their own team on purpose, they can be reported via the in-game system. Plus anyone racking up the TKs would also be incurring big time penalties.


As for the Scouting...
The only thing I'd really change is how the drops work. The type of drop you get seems random. Sometimes you are attacking, sometimes defending. If the planet is one we are defending, then the scout missions should all be defense. If it's a planet we are attacking, it should all be attack scout missions.
On an attack mission I might want to take a light fast mech with ECM, so I can pick up as much intel as possible, avoid the enemy, and get out, or lead them away from the drop zone so a teammate can get there unmolested.
On defense I'd want something that packs a bigger punch, so I can hunt down the enemy and take them out.
As it is now I have to take a mech that is more middle of the road because I don't know which type of drop I'll be getting.

And I've seen some really skilled players, and some really bad players. But I haven't seen anyone giving anyone a hard time....other than the Dropship captain. He's kind of an ***.

[Nunatak73]

Let's see how the changes to the Long Tom play out.....not continue to whine and cry.
This isn't an on-demand world, (even though the whiners demand it to be) things take time to correct.

Let's stop whining about scouting matches where ignorant IS pilots haven't learned how to deal with Scrows.
I too was getting pounded by Scrows at first. Then I experimented, did some research, adapted.

[MrKvola]

You can not only defend on scouting - you would not be able to gather/recover intel and thus only lose points...