14 replies to this topic

[Burned_Follower]

I wasn't sure where to post this question so i put it in the off topics section just to be safe. I remember playing a demo version of MechCommander2 back in the day and i remember having some kind of asset where some tank looking vehicle would come out to the battlefield and repair my Mechs, instead of having to find some repair facility in MW4.

Who here would think it could be cool to have that kind of feature in MWO? i have already read that if you are playing a Commander Role that you might be able to call in air-strikes and artillery suppport...so why not repair support that was used in MechCommander2?

[fallonsky]

lol that would be nice to have. expesualy if there are people that jest leg you and run away. sucks for them since you can jest repair your leg then. i have to say though that that can be overused. like if there is a starting base or somthing people can call in the repair trucks and jest camp in that base because if they got shot well there are some repair trucks right there.

insted of that i think that we should have some kind of equipment that lets us repair ourselfs. not to the point of bran new but from red to orange/yellow. or from orange to yellow but you would need time to do it like 30 seconds of being not as fast or not being able to fire or haveing to shut down. though if that was implemented you will probobly not be able to fix distroyed parts. like if your arm was blown off you cant get it back.
also it would be good if there was "amo" for it so you cant jest do it every time but you only got like 3 repairs and if you want more you need to use up more tons.

[keydet]

The unit you are referring to was the Mobile Field Base or simply MFB. It both repaired your mech and replenished your ammunition. Personally I could see commanders being able to deploy one in MWO, although I'm certain that as soon as the enemy discovered it they would call in artillery/air strike/orbital bombardment on it, if not just rush up and blow it apart while someone's mech is inside it.

I believe they were also in MW3 and 4. Although you did have to shut down your mech while it was being repaired.

Edited by keydet, 22 January 2012 - 03:41 PM.

[Kenyon Burguess]

never liked the idea of a mech walking into a bay and X minutes later moving out 100% repaired and fully loaded. i dont mind players having 2nd line mechs they are willing to use but the instant repairs shouldnt be allowed

[Longinus Leichenberg]

Geist Null, on 22 January 2012 - 04:00 PM, said:

never liked the idea of a mech walking into a bay and X minutes later moving out 100% repaired and fully loaded. i dont mind players having 2nd line mechs they are willing to use but the instant repairs shouldnt be allowed

I think reloading a mech in an MFB is pretty easy, just a change of a few wardrobe-sized clips. Also, the hull could be changed easily on the fly, but not the gyros and equipment – that would require full diagnostics and taking the whole 'mech apart, and there's no time for that on the battlefield. Also, MFB's are pretty small compared to a 'mech so they have a very limited storage capacity, maybe 6-8 ammo-only refills or 4-6 armor panel changes.

I would heavily rely on MFB support when using light 'mechs. Regarding concerns with the vulnerability of MFB's, it's pretty obvious that the terrain design should be responsible to provide loads of hiding spots for 'mech ambush and sheltering MFB's. I'd be pretty interested to see some sort of "random city layout" resembling i.e. Diablo II. You know, just loading a random asset over the same spot or something. It would make the location layout still learnable, but also providing a new challenge and a chance to give some room for tactics beside strategy. (Buh, I'm on a mindspree again, so I'll stop before I derail the whole topic.)

[Bud Johnson]

Longinus Leichenberg, on 22 January 2012 - 04:58 PM, said:

I think reloading a mech in an MFB is pretty easy, just a change of a few wardrobe-sized clips. Also, the hull could be changed easily on the fly, but not the gyros and equipment – that would require full diagnostics and taking the whole 'mech apart, and there's no time for that on the battlefield. Also, MFB's are pretty small compared to a 'mech so they have a very limited storage capacity, maybe 6-8 ammo-only refills or 4-6 armor panel changes.

I would heavily rely on MFB support when using light 'mechs. Regarding concerns with the vulnerability of MFB's, it's pretty obvious that the terrain design should be responsible to provide loads of hiding spots for 'mech ambush and sheltering MFB's. I'd be pretty interested to see some sort of "random city layout" resembling i.e. Diablo II. You know, just loading a random asset over the same spot or something. It would make the location layout still learnable, but also providing a new challenge and a chance to give some room for tactics beside strategy. (Buh, I'm on a mindspree again, so I'll stop before I derail the whole topic.)

In mw3 they could carry 100 tons each and had to be loaded with the materials you needed(correct armor/ammo types).
I don't know how that would play in an mmo though.

[hardMetal]

Some good ideas have been put out there for the MFG.... I think they should implement it in, but not in a way that would offer too much of an advantage.. Like a limited number of uses for ammo resupply, armor repair etc...

[Pinkydinky]

I think having to defend an MFB at the rear would add an interesting dynamic. Make it a commander ability that requires a certain oppurtunity cost in terms of airstrikes, artillary too. Maybe you could even have a MFB Mk II that comes with say 2 Calliope turrets to ward off a light mech sneak attack or a ECM jammer/stealth canopy that allows it to escape UAV detection. It's loadout could be a generic thing like in MechCommander where the repair truck slowly loses it's efficiency the more it's used. But it would also be like in MW4 where you can repair damage and rearm your ammo-based weapons but not replace entirely missing limbs or destroyed weapons. It could be balanced by allowing say repairs up till 70% hull integrity so it allows you some longevity without letting players coming back out as if they've got a brand new mech.

Also adds another use for fast mechs. Would be a pain to leave your flank open and let a Jenner come through and blow up your MFB. Would be interesting too to see it deploy from space like structures do in Warhammer 40K but I think that's not part of the BT canon. I guess it could just roll up from outside of the mission zone.

Edited by Pinkydinky, 22 January 2012 - 06:02 PM.

[ClaySniper]

just an idea,
the MFB should be commanded by someone,
like a team/fraction leader when they are on the field.

[AmazingBilldo]

I never did like the inclusion of MFB's to the video games. The value of a mech was lost with the 'instant repair' option. The worst thing that could happen to a mech warrior was losing his mech, as replacements were hard to come by, as well as repair parts. Fusion engines were scrapped from vehicles to keep mechs running(they are more plentiful now), and a gyro was worth its weight in platinum because the know how to produce them was lost (regained now in mwo game time). why put that stuff on the battlefield? it is an asset your enemy would be happy to take or deprive you of.

All this being said, re-arming and replenishing coolant are totally cool with me. the machine needs repair because armor is getting wasted? time to withdraw it from the battle.

Edited by AmazingBilldo, 22 January 2012 - 06:28 PM.

[osito]

I am not so sure on the repairs. maybe light armor work only. I wouldn't mind being able to reload during game though. some mechs have small ammo supply. like what if you are in a trench bucket, a fast fire support mech. it only has like 1 ton of ammo each launcher. would be nice to get some reloads.

[Yogibear24]

Maybe, repair vehicles?

[Longinus Leichenberg]

Bud Johnson, on 22 January 2012 - 05:34 PM, said:

In mw3 they could carry 100 tons each and had to be loaded with the materials you needed(correct armor/ammo types).
I don't know how that would play in an mmo though.

Two words: Live salvaging. MFB's could send out special units to dismantle scrap and return usable material on the battlefield. It would be something like hoarding resources in an RTS game.

EDIT:
Also, as others pointed out, these are ideal targets for the enemy, so they need to be well camouflaged/hidden from hostiles. It would be also a leader's responsibility to call in the MFB's which were previously bought by him (or her). There could be ways of stationing MFB's outside of the operation area, but returning to them for a repair could take even several hours at the "timeout corner".

Edited by Longinus Leichenberg, 23 January 2012 - 02:01 PM.

[Alaskan Viking]

Please no in game repair, part of Mech warrior is being damaged and limping around, please don't turn MWO into gears of war...

[MW Blizzard]

It was mentioned above, that if an MFB is put in to have somebody run/ captain it. Think like a medic role in other games, versus assault, scout, etc.
Could get some xp pts for each point of damage repaired or per ton of ammor replenished.

Todays main battle tanks are replenished with ammo, fuel with specialized treaded units.

Maybe the MFB could mount ECM and AMS, but no offensive weaps of course, so to balance the repair advantage is it takes a mech or two to defend it.

Kind of like the mechs, have a trial version or buy an mfb to customize w/ engines, armor.