60 replies to this topic

[IIXxXII]

Smooth idea of the day.

Buff standard engines with additional heatsink slots or higher speed proportional to engine size.

How can standard engines be improved?

[Jay Leon Hart]

- Structure, armour and/or reduced crit received buffs to make them the "tough" engine
- Cooling bonuses to compete with the tonnage bonus of XL/Light engines
- Agility buffs (accel, decel, twist, pitch, yaw etc.) to make them the "brawler" engine

Or something else?

[x Deathstrike x]

If anything STD engines could give a little more agility.
Aside from that PGI wont touch lore stuff such as HS in engine I guess.

Edited by x Deathstrike x, 04 July 2018 - 01:21 PM.

[Spheroid]

STD is fine. People seem to overlook the numerous downsides to LFE which I assure you are very evident. Balancing mechanisms are already present.

I still get a ton of use out the 280, 300, 320, 325, 340 and 350 STD.

Edited by Spheroid, 04 July 2018 - 01:28 PM.

[IIXxXII]

Spheroid, on 04 July 2018 - 01:19 PM, said:

People seem to overlook the numerous downsides to LFE which I assure you are very evident.

Need more details.



I would guess advantages of LFE outweigh disadvantages greater than 80% of the time.

When people purchase an inner sphere mech with a standard engine typically the second upgrade (after double sinks) is to toss the standard eng and upgrade to LFE or XL.

There aren't many scenarios where a person is happy to find their brand new mech has a standard engine equipped. Maybe because... standard engines suck & could use some love? Hmmm.

[Jay Leon Hart]

Spheroid, on 04 July 2018 - 01:19 PM, said:

STD is fine. People seem to overlook the numerous downsides to LFE which I assure you are very evident. Balancing mechanisms are already present.

So tell me, how many of your Clan BattleMechs run a STD engine?

[The Lighthouse]

Jay Leon Hart, on 04 July 2018 - 02:01 PM, said:

So tell me, how many of your Clan BattleMechs run a STD engine?

Ding Ding Ding!


I do have one though. MAC-IIC-C. Because of two Gauss Rifles on one side torso, only standard engine fits. Because of the ST hardpoint location, I found I do so much better in this mech than IIC-D with arm hardpoints.

And, while I don't use it, quad Gauss Kodiak exists. But pretty much these two are what you will ever going to see Clan using standard engine.


For buffing standard engine, just give equipped mech large amount of armor/structure bonus would be easiest answer or agility.

Edited by The Lighthouse, 04 July 2018 - 02:10 PM.

[FupDup]

Spheroid, on 04 July 2018 - 01:19 PM, said:

STD is fine. People seem to overlook the numerous downsides to LFE which I assure you are very evident. Balancing mechanisms are already present.

I still get a ton of use out the 280, 300, 320, 325, 340 and 350 STD.

STD is really only useful for stuff like Heavy Gauss and LB 20-X, or maybe double LGR/LB 10-X in a single side torso. For pretty much every other application LFE is better.

[Jay Leon Hart]

The Lighthouse, on 04 July 2018 - 02:09 PM, said:

I do have one though. MAC-IIC-C. Because of two Gauss Rifles on one side torso, only standard engine fits. Because of the ST hardpoint location, I found I do so much better in this mech than IIC-D with arm hardpoints.

And, while I don't use it, quad Gauss Kodiak exists. But pretty much these two are what you will ever going to see Clan using standard engine.

One of my SNV-1 laservomit loadouts uses a STD 325, but I think it's the only one. My only IS 'mechs that run STDs are either using HGauss or have a low engine cap and lots of Medium class lasers, so can't use the extra tonnage on more DHS or a larger engine.

[Prototelis]

Buff standard engines so that on loss of a side torso you have increased speed and agility.

[Nema Nabojiv]

No thanks, better remove IS XL penalty, no other buffs needed.

[AEgg]

I think the IS XL penalty should apply to ALL battlemechs, clan and IS. IS omnis (if we ever get any) should behave like current clan omnis.

ST death penalty is fine when you have a choice about it, and it naturally makes STD more viable. Further buffing structure on STD engines to make them even more appealing is not a bad idea, though.

[Jay Leon Hart]

AEgg, on 04 July 2018 - 03:00 PM, said:

I think the IS XL penalty should apply to ALL battlemechs, clan and IS. IS omnis (if we ever get any) should behave like current clan omnis.

Preach!

[FupDup]

AEgg, on 04 July 2018 - 03:00 PM, said:

I think the IS XL penalty should apply to ALL battlemechs, clan and IS. IS omnis (if we ever get any) should behave like current clan omnis.

ST death penalty is fine when you have a choice about it, and it naturally makes STD more viable. Further buffing structure on STD engines to make them even more appealing is not a bad idea, though.

That would basically kill off most Clan Battlemechs because they don't have a mid-tonnage compromise engine like the LFE. They'd have to go straight to STD to not die immediately (especially considering that nearly all Clan BM's lack durability quirks of any kind and often have low agility), which locks them out of a lot of loadouts (i.e. Hunch IIC is gonna have to boat purely ER Medium Lasers unless it wants to go super duper slow with that STD).

[Obiwayne]

Prototelis, on 04 July 2018 - 02:28 PM, said:

Buff standard engines so that on loss of a side torso you have increased speed and agility.

I'd go with this one

[LordNothing]

Jay Leon Hart, on 04 July 2018 - 02:01 PM, said:

So tell me, how many of your Clan BattleMechs run a STD engine?

2. a kodiak and a highlander iic. std engines are most useful on heavy and assault mechs that have a slot shortage, or anything so slow that it needs a bit more durability. stds work out great on atlases and other is assault mechs with big is upgrades and heavier weapons than what clan has, and so the std engine works out pretty well in some cases on the clan side. its like how the is xl is only useful in lights and mediums, and some fast assaults/heavies. i almost never use it at the heavy end except in a banshee and a couple battlemasters.

all engines have their niches even though in general the best clan engine is xl and the best is engine is lfe, at least until its not.

[stealthraccoon]

Give STD engines a heat dissipation bonus?

[Spheroid]

Jay Leon Hart, on 04 July 2018 - 02:01 PM, said:

So tell me, how many of your Clan BattleMechs run a STD engine?

Four. I run a STD in a triple PPC MAD-IIC and also for occasional quad gauss on KDK-3. The other two are laser vomit Supernovas.

Your question is not really relevant. As I am loyalist FRR I perhaps run clan mechs five percent of my total drops.

Would adding the Kingfisher sooth your smugness?

Edited by Spheroid, 04 July 2018 - 08:21 PM.

[Mechwarrior1441491]

can only run heavy gauss in side torsos with std engines.

[Abaddun]

Considering STD engines shield their reactor with a Tungstan Carbide shell whilst light and XL engines use an energy field, I'm fairly sure structure bonuses wouldn't be unreasonable to ask for.