55 replies to this topic

[Commraid]

According to sarna (http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Battle_Armor) battle armor was only truly put to use in the 3050 clan invasion. We are in 3049 now so we at least have a year to wait before we ever see, let alone have a go in any of them. Still, I and possibly the devs would like to know what the general public thinks about introducing these guys into the game.

This is how I think they could be used:

1: If you die you can still help your team from a suit of battle armor. This could offer some consolation to those who have been unlucky to die in the first few minutes.

2: Of course any single BA unit on its own will only be trouble in very skilled hands. But by the end of a game nearly everyone will be in one, so several suits could come together and actually deal some damage (as is intended in the lore).

3: The speed and agility of a BA suit mean there will be new tactics in mind for players in mechs. For example more people can make use of MG's, small pulse lasers etc to deal with suits.

4: And lastly IMO a clan invasion just wont feel the same without elementals jumping around.

These are just my ideas, so there are no doubt more concrete ways to implement these units.

Edited by Commraid, 08 February 2012 - 01:54 PM.

[AdamBaines]

Well if your going to RPG Clan, then You could not have Mechwarrior identities running in around in Elemental suits. That is not clan-like. You would have to have specialized Elemental Characters.....at least that is what I would say. It would be interesting to see how they would be developed.

Edited by AdamBaines, 31 January 2012 - 01:50 PM.

[SquareSphere]

Give it one year and after the clans invade and you've been swarmed by elementals, lets talk again

[Strum Wealh]

AdamBaines, on 31 January 2012 - 01:49 PM, said:

Well if your going to RPG Clan, then You could not have Mechwarrior identities running in around in Elemental suits. That is not clan-like. You would have to have specialized Elemental Characters.....at least that is what I would say. It would be interesting to see how they would be developed.

Who says each B.A. unit has to represent a player?

Perhaps B.A. squads/platoons/companies/battalions - along with AeroSpace flights/squadrons/wings/regiments, infantry fire-teams/squads/platoons/companies/battalions, and vehicle lances/companies/battalions/regiments (and their respective Clan equivalents) - might (eventually?) be implemented as NPC support units to be summoned and directed by Commanders via the Battle Grid...?

Edited by Strum Wealh, 31 January 2012 - 02:33 PM.

[Commraid]

SquareSphere, on 31 January 2012 - 02:13 PM, said:

Give it one year and after the clans invade and you've been swarmed by elementals, lets talk again

Hey, its what the guys had to face at the time, so Im willing to play like that if it keeps it realistic.

Edited by Commraid, 31 January 2012 - 02:37 PM.

[The Count]

Major use of IS BA did not happen until clan armor was captured well into the invasion. So I don't want to see it.

[SquareSphere]

The Infiltrator was one of the 1st gen IS BA's that was introduced in 3050 and since we're in 3049 it wouldn't that long of a wait... though it was pretty crappy.

[Harrow]

The more depth the game has, the more appeal to the broadest market it will have, the longer we'll all get to play our in beloved universe with modern graphics and mechanics.

[The Count]

SquareSphere, on 31 January 2012 - 02:43 PM, said:

The Infiltrator was one of the 1st gen IS BA's that was introduced in 3050 and since we're in 3049 it wouldn't that long of a wait... though it was pretty crappy.

Wasn't used in large numbers though or by all factions...just saying

[The Count]

Harrow, on 31 January 2012 - 02:43 PM, said:

The more depth the game has, the more appeal to the broadest market it will have, the longer we'll all get to play our in beloved universe with modern graphics and mechanics.

So basically we should all sell out the universe so that we can enjoy graphics...no thanks man not interested...I think that game is called Shadowrun and its on Xbox 360....LMAO

[Durant Carlyle]

I voted no.

If battle armor is included, it shouldn't be directly player-controlled. When a MechWarrior ejects, all he's got on is a neurohelmet, a cooling vest, shorts, and shoes. No armor at all, as it would be too hot to wear. Some MechWarriors wore a sidearm, but many didn't -- so you may or may not have a gun.

MWLL's shtick about getting out of your 'Mech and being in battle armor is a travesty.

If they do implement battle armor as something that can be controlled via the command interface, there better be some way to shake them off your 'Mech. Otherwise it's a guaranteed kill as we won't have the control to swat them off or grab them ... or will we? Maybe PGI can introduce a key combo that attempts to grab/swat enemy battle armor...

[Garuss Acine]

I am torn on how battle armor should be involved in the game, be it just a NPC support unit for the Clanners, or a player running a whole point on his own.

I personally find the idea of being a foot slogger appealing, more so if I have command of a Point of Elementals , jumping around and lurking in cover for those sweet SRM back shots, or jumping up and swarming a mech to rip it to shreds then jump off and do it again.


(Flying Debris Art)

Edited by Garuss Acine, 01 February 2012 - 11:35 AM.

[KingCobra]

The reason i say no=MW4mercsMektek even though mektek put all the elementals in there mod and i have played them off and on over the last year to me there just not fun.There very slow even compared to a assault in battle and they get killed so dang easy.then there is the question of they overpowered there weapons.Also in a TB=team battle they gave a extreme unfair advantage in scoring just like some lights and mediums with machine guns and small lasers.We called them popcorn poppers.To be fair the only time elementals were fun was in BA only fights.IF you want you can come on GameRanger and play the elementals with the mektek mod.

Edited by KingCobra, 31 January 2012 - 04:23 PM.

[Gremlich Johns]

Come over to MW:LL and play against some BAs and see what you think.

WRT a player as a BA, once your mech is dead, I do not believe the pilot should be allowed to continue as a BA.

[Strum Wealh]

KingCobra, on 31 January 2012 - 04:22 PM, said:

The reason i say no=MW4mercsMektek even though mektek put all the elementals in there mod and i have played them off and on over the last year to me there just not fun.There very slow even compared to a assault in battle and they get killed so dang easy.then there is the question of they overpowered there weapons.

On speed:
They're men and women in suits of armor.
Myomer-enhanced, fuel cell powered suits of armor worn by genetically-engineered giants-among-men... but suits of armor being worn by human beings, nonetheless.

Average human walking speed is approximately 5kph/3.1mph.
The highest sustained speed if an unencumbered human being is ~15mph/24.2kph
The fastest modern unencumbered humans can sprint at approximately 44.72kph/27.79mph.

An Elemental's being able to sustain a speed of 32.4kph/20.1mph while wearing a 1000kg (2204 lbs/one metric ton) suit of armor is actually a fairly impressive feat (even if the armor is helping).

On armor/durability:
It's a person in a 1000kg (1 ton) powered armor suit. Going up against a 20-100 ton, nuclear-powered, vaguely humanoid walking tank/robot thing with enough firepower to level several city blocks.
The former is not capable of (or intended to) getting into head-to-head, one-on-one slugging matches with the latter and expecting to emerge victorious (or survive) with any regularity.

On weapon power in MW4:
That's probably a combination of the limits of the MW4 game engine as well as balance issues.
The canon damage values on infantry weapons and the support weapons carried by B.A. units are indeed rather low by comparison to 'Mech-caliber weapons.

KingCobra, on 31 January 2012 - 04:22 PM, said:

Also in a TB=team battle they gave a extreme unfair advantage in scoring just like some lights and mediums with machine guns and small lasers.We called them popcorn poppers.To be fair the only time elementals were fun was in BA only fights.IF you want you can come on GameRanger and play the elementals with the mektek mod.

Again, that sounds like a limitation of the game itself, and probably not something Mektek can fix easily (if at all) and balance properly without spending enough effort on it to have been as-well or better off starting from scratch...

Edited by Strum Wealh, 31 January 2012 - 07:06 PM.

[Strum Wealh]

Gremlich Johns, on 31 January 2012 - 04:27 PM, said:

WRT a player as a BA, once your mech is dead, I do not believe the pilot should be allowed to continue as a BA.

Agreed...

[Fresh Meat]

wow that artwork is amazing

[Spinner]

Something else to think about, BA for the inner sphere does not come about until the Grey Death Legeon distributes the Lostech data core they found in 3047. The IS:BA were used as early as 3053-55 by the grey death legeon. So while it would be kewl to fight with a full squad of them as players, not going to happen any time soon.

[Hayden]

Eh, it shouldn't be usable by players. Maybe as an AI unit?

[TheRulesLawyer]

BA would be cool, but I don't know how you'd implement it without AI and I though PGI was trying to stay out of the AI business for this game.