64 replies to this topic

[Dr Killinger]

In MWLL, when I get to the higher income brackets, I frequently buy the Novacat Prime (I'm not a dishonourable poptarter). I find that the Large Lasers get about 75% of the action: when you're fighting mechs with intelligent people at the stick, who weave and duck into cover, the lasers hit home more often.

Sure, when someone stands still, they'll get a pair of ERPPCS to the face, but the Lasers are the reliable weapons on that mech.

Also, in that game, medium lasers actually hurt!

[Name136774]

I hope the PPCs will have the effect as is shown on Pre-Vis videos - their are instant as Gauss Rifles, but they have a few seconds delay before they fire.

[Ranger207]

You wanna know what's really fun? Loading 6 CERPPC onto an Atlas in MechCommander. Plus a Zeus and a Cylcops with 5 apeice...

[Seabear]

Coming from a TT background more than anything elese, I prefer the LRM/ML combination of long range fire and mediun/short range effectivness. Four to six MLs is an effective close in combo. By the same token, I like the PPC/SRM combo of the Thug. I think mechs are going to need to be effective over all ranges in MWO.

Who carries a knife to a gunfigt? Anyone while a grain of sense carries both a gun and a knife. Gibbs' rule #9 -"Never go anywhere without a knife. " holds thrue in MW/BT as well s RL!

[Solis Obscuri]

William Petersen, on 27 March 2012 - 08:43 PM, said:

People forget we're not going to have the heat dissipation to handle a lot of PPC fire. Most 'Mechs of the 3049 era weren't designed to sustain fire with their PPC, it was meant to be fired a few rounds, then let your mech cool, or fired 'til you get in close and then use your other weapons. PPCs are good weapons with solid range, high damage, and ammo independence, but they generate a *lot* of heat. If PGI balances their heat to damage correctly, it won't be an issue.

EDIT: That said, I kind of find myself a little sad we're not starting a bit earlier than 3049, double heat sinks and zomgop ClanTech are just around the corner. >.<

I agree completely on both points.

Hakiyah, on 27 March 2012 - 09:00 PM, said:

If they're following table-top rules for damage values and so forth, I would expect medium lasers, AC5/10's and LRM's to be the kings here. MLAS's do great damage for their weight, and the others give you a bigger punch for while you're cooling.

PPC's, AC20's, and the other big guns look amazing, but they have too many drawbacks to be primary weapons. As mentioned above PPCs run too hot to be a main gun, and AC20's absolutely eat ammo.

Well... they're fine as primary weapons, but they require support weapons, which should limit how many of those big hitters you cram into a 'mech. Designs like the AWS-8Q or CLPT-C4 are great for grinding down enemies at range, but on the battlefield they end up needing a buddy in their lance to keep fast-movers from chewing them up in close. At that point, you end up with overall balance, since the specialized designs need to be supported by other 'mechs with more balanced loadouts.

William Petersen, on 27 March 2012 - 09:43 PM, said:

I'd kind of like to see 'really long' cycle times on all the weapons so that SRMs go back to being useful as crit-seekers. It would make weapon *volume* means something again.

Without, I can't really see a defined role for SRMs (or M.Guns, since there's no infantry), aside from a self-handicap by way of ammo explosion risk.

If SRMs have some degree of guidance, they'll be really good - and from the GDC videos, it looks like they might. As for MGs, AC/2s, Flamers and Slas, well, it's hard to find a good role for them in 'mech combat - they're designed to be useful against soft targets and infantry, which can otherwise ruin a mechwarrior's day on the battlefield. It looks like MWLL has added other types of units, which effectively "keeps people honest" about the need for these kind of weapons, but MWO doesn't look like they have any plans along those lines.

Nik Van Rhijn, on 28 March 2012 - 04:27 AM, said:

Why do people keep saying PPC's are slow, as far as I can see and certaily from the discussion that has take place so far, they should travel at a significant fraction of c?

Yep, pretty much. Lead shouldn't be a big issue with PPCs, or lasers, and gauss rifles (firing somewhere around, what, 10,500m/s?) shouldn't need very much either.

Sarriss, on 28 March 2012 - 04:51 AM, said:

PPCs are iconic. PPCs are effective. PPCs generate a lot of heat. Once people realize they can't spam it without exploding I think people will move on and find something else they can spam. Let's face it, people who understand what makes an effective mech loadout and have played enough to know how great some of the other weapons are, aren't going to be the people spamming PPCs and will likely mount 1 or 2 of them. It's people who want to hold down the fire button and watch things die that will try to spam them, fail and move on, and good riddance.

I won't lose any sleep over it.

Yep, so long as weapons are properly balanced, heat tracks properly, convergence works as planned, and there are no coolant flushes, I think a lot of problems will take care of themselves.

Seabear, on 28 March 2012 - 01:34 PM, said:

Coming from a TT background more than anything elese, I prefer the LRM/ML combination of long range fire and mediun/short range effectivness. Four to six MLs is an effective close in combo. By the same token, I like the PPC/SRM combo of the Thug. I think mechs are going to need to be effective over all ranges in MWO.

Who carries a knife to a gunfigt? Anyone while a grain of sense carries both a gun and a knife. Gibbs' rule #9 -"Never go anywhere without a knife. " holds thrue in MW/BT as well s RL!

Damn straight - and like I said above, otherwise you wind up needing a guy with a couple of knives following around the guy with only guns, at which point there is less of a marked advantage over the team who brought guns and knives.

And yeah, I like the Thug, too - really any combo of armor penetrators like PPCs, Gauss, LLas or AC/10s combined with crit seekers like SRMs or LRMs is ideal in my book!