I am not certain if anyone said this specifically in an earlier page, but the bug with Artemis effecting Missile Spread, in particularly those on MRMs, ATMs and Rocket Launchers, is the same Artemis aim system "bug" that people have been complaining/talking about boosting STREAK missile systems since the summer of 2012. While it wasn't a "big deal" to some of us, and was generally referred to as a "feature" rather than a "bug", the use of Artemis allowed streak missiles to achieve lock faster. Unlike for normal SRMS, CSRMS, LRMS or CLRMS, it added no additional tonnage to streak launchers either, which logically people reasoned had already paid for their tracking/aiming in the .5, or 1 ton that Streaks weigh above standard launchers.
For a very long time, people would bring up this freebie, that those in the know would use... some would call it an exploit. Running a missile mech for inner sphere? Perhaps run it specifically with normal srms, like 4's for tighter groupings and efficiency - but decide on this same inner sphere mech to run the normally pretty useless streak 2's? Then add Artemis for the faster lock, beagle so you can target ECM mechs. This was standard. And when people who were annoyed/angered about it complained, it was stated to be an "artifact" of the way the lock on system is programmed in MWO. If a weapon used the lock on system, it used this "engine" and it could not be used without ARTEMIS's benefits being given, since both streaks and lrms were sharing the same targeting code. In essence, it seemed to be like black box programming, they didn't want to get into the base code to copy and make a variant targeting mechanic just for streaks that used all the same stuff, but that wouldn't give the Artemis boost to lock on time/strength.
Some people stated it was simple, that as soon as you see a mech that has Artemis on but that then equips a streak, turn off Artemis/remove it from the mech... but that is unacceptable, because you might well have a build like a catapult where you choose to have Artemis legitimately for the LRMS, but then load streak 2's to deal with close up harassment from lights, who try to tuck in close under the catapult's chin where they know the body weapons cannot target them. That ankle biter tactic is classic, see a catapult in your commando or locust, and if you some how get in too close, park under his chin and fire at his left leg then right, staying pressed against it, when he can't aim down. So streaks would help and the same mech would need to keep Artemis and still have streaks mounted. Sharing the same lock programming/targetting computer, the quicker lock really got shared between streaks and lrms too.
It may STILL be that they can't seperate out/copy and paste duplicate the aim systems, allowing two seperate systems of locks/targeting... but here it is proving problematic with them WANTING to remove it's effects on ATMs, Rocket Launchers and MRMS, because they have decided that a targeting system cannot effect these things, but all along they were not willing to address this with the streak missile systems which people also were claiming were a (minor) issue. Ultimately, this all goes back also to how they chose to implement SRMS into game early on, when they decided that they were dumb fire, Artemis targeting just causing them to have a tighter "spread". Fairly early in beta when things were still being worked out with TAG and Narc, TAG and Narc also were unintentionally causing SRMS to have a tighter spread too and this was considered unacceptable, once again because someone had impressed upon the developers that SRMS were non tracking dumbfire weapons - likely a "balance" to their higher damage and velocity. There even I think was a brief patch period where SRMS were tracking like streaks, IF and only IF you were using TAG, or NARC or Artemis (memory is a bit hazy on what combo made it happen, but it was gone quickly, fall 2012).
Likely they can do that exact same thing for MRMs, Rocket Launchers and ATMS, remove all tracking and spread benefits by defining things differently.
Edited by Mad Porthos, 01 July 2017 - 08:38 AM.