Posted 04 November 2012 - 06:22 PM
Hehloes there, maybe I can shed some light on this.
While scouting for LRM boats with my Commando I tested both NARC and TAG rather extensively, so here is my opinion on them.
NARC in its current form is just garbage. Firstly it's dumb-fire missile, not a homing one, making it difficult to get onto a target. Then you (or someone else) has to still have vision of said target for the LRMs to be able to shoot at it. This means you have to hang around after deploying the beacon to keep an eye on the enemy.
Not to mention it comes at minimum weight of 4 tons (3 tons for NARC + 1 ton ammo) and that only includes 7 shots of NARC. This weight limitation makes it really unwieldy for light mechs. Also of note is that the NARC only lasts approx 30 seconds and then must be re-applied.
TAG on the other hand needs to be constantly aimed at the target, which can be a bit tricky when running around at 146kph (what my Commando goes at). But since I have to hang about to look at the target anyway even when using NARC, I find that using TAG is much easier on a light mech, especially the thing comes in 1ton weight package and can never run out of ammo.
The saving grace for NARC is that once you have fired it, as long as the target keeps getting spotted, you can go about your own business.
On the flip side I have been practising holding a TAG on different target than what I am shooting at, and while difficult to pull off, it is not impossible at all.
I can see the NARC being deployed by a brawler of some sort who can afford the weight (Hunchie or Cent as example) to help the LRM boats, and then go on their merry way to destroy the opposition. However this can be tricky to pull off in PUGs, so you do need a friend or two around for it to be really workable.
However putting the NARC on something who wants to fire LRMs from far away is not really feasible due to the dumb-fire nature of the missile.
Hopefully that answered some of your questions, and if not, feel free to ask specifics.