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Ask The Devs 27 - Answers!


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#1 Garth Erlam

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 04:27 PM

Here's your answers!

Q: Could you please give us an announcement for the Conquest Mode - when it will be introduced ? [Glowhollow]
A: Later this year, which actually DOES mean soon! [Garth]

Q: Did you see my thread about a community-designed original hero mech? http://mwomercs.com/...gned-hero-mech/ [Redshift2k5]
A: Yes, and I think it's a great idea I am pushing up the chain. Hill. Command thing. [Garth]

Q: Noticing a lot of MMOs that have had strayed from previous rules and canon (i.e. Dungeons & Dragons Online, Star Trek Online, Star Wars, etc), are we going to see a lot of "new" content that has never been used during Table Top or previous MechWarrior video games? [Ryvucz]
A: Not for awhile, if much at all. There's so much from the existing universe we can use already. [Garth]

Q: Will there be larger maps? Or is the current size a technical limitation?
[Iocilocisu]
A: The next map will be much bigger than the ones we have now, though I honestly couldn't guesstimate how much bigger. 'Much'? [Garth]

Q: Also, when can we expect the Mechs vs. Dinosaurs expansion? (I've been telling everyone 2014.) [Thirdrail]
A: I think they invade in 3060 - I'll see if Paul can update us all later... [Garth]

Q: Can we please at least try DHS at 2.0? It doesn't seem like much of a boost to lights who usually benefit mostly from the engine heat sinks, but heavies and assaults that use big energy weapons need the boost. [Wolfways]
A: No. Prior to releasing the Dual Heatsink upgrade the forums were abuzz with whether or not they would be mandatory on all Mechs. With the numbers we've chosen, they aren't, so I'd say we answered those questions well. [Garth]

Q: Are we going to be seeing any of the more exotic weapons, such as the Arrow IV or Long Tom?[Least Action Jackson]
A: I assume so. Maybe not all of the exotic weapons (lolz chemical lasers), but many of them, yes. [Garth]

Q: What I'm asking is, were some variants simply designed to have less features than others on purpose, or was it a byproduct of faithfully reproducing the TT variants? Or do you feel that the difference in hardpoint configurations is enough to offset the increased number of bells and whistles on what appears to be more favoured variants? (I'm looking at you 3L) [Smeghead87]
A: It's generally a huge list of things: Engine rating, module slots, performance, weapon slots, etc. And as someone who uses a Raven 2X, I guess it works for me. [Garth]

Q: Are you going to concentrate on important questions or are you going to answer questions like "what brand of microwave do you own?" [Operant]
A: ... this feels like a trap. Is it a trap? If not, it's very 'meta.' [Garth]

Q: My question is, who won the pillow fight? Please provide photos showing the carnage around the office. "Screenshot or it didn't happen" so to speak. [Stonefalcon]
A: Everyone loses in war, whether pillow-related or not. [Garth]

Q: What can you say about the events currently occurring in and around the coreward periphery and how they will tie into MWO in a few months? [CarnifexMaximus]
A: Pirates being pirates? It's the periphery; so right now they are either stealing, looting, mugging, or in some other way taking advantage of their neighbours. Why do you ask? Do you think something big is brewing, some kind of Major Event that everyone would want to know about? [Garth]

Q: Not that it was lacking before, but the fun factor went way up after the last patch, good job and thanks PGI! Just one question from me...

When will analog turning be implemented? [Loc Nar]
A: You're welcome, and thanks for the comment! To answer your question, yes it will, but no I don't know when. It's proving difficult to impliment properly, so we're hacking away at it with axes and whatnot. [Garth]

Q: Could we see increased c-bill rewards for the 8 man queue? It might help a little to keep organized groups out of the 1-4 man matchmaking, even as a temporary measure before phase 3. I'm just worried about a lack of interest in 8v8 because a lot of people still just need to farm c-bills, rather than rack up repair bills against well-equipped enemies. [Mu]
A: Great idea, put it in the feedback/suggestions area and I'll forward the message around! [Garth]

Q: Will the names we name our mechs ever be displayed in-game? [ThePiemaker]
A: At some point I think they might just be. Although we'd have to more strictly filter names; I think you know why ;) [Garth]

Q: Instead of just appearing on the battlefield at the start of the match, have you guys ever considered showing a quick animation of a DropShip unloading your BattleMech and your allies' BattleMechs? [Maverick01]
A: Yes, yes we have. Something quite similar to what you said, but slightly different. [Garth]

Q: Whenever we report suiciders greifers etc we get a generic response saying you are working on it privately. Why not start swinging the ban hammer and making it public? [iminbagdad]
A: Privacy and whatnot. We also get a lot of 'false positive' reports, so we need to be very careful in what we say. [Garth]

Q: With being able to cause cockpit shake from being hit by larger weapons, will we at some point see things like an AC 20 not only shake an Atlas some what but even be able to (at times) take a light mech off its feet? [Yoseful Mallad]
A: Maybe not hurtling lights through the air, but we are planning to have bigger weapons have a more physical 'punch' behind them, the lovely AC 20 in particular ;) [Garth]

Q: Can you elaborate on exactly how AMS works? [Thontor]
A: I got Thomas to write out a quick explanation for it:

AMS fires on hostile missiles, with a priority for ones locked onto you. The distance DOES matter, as the further they start from you the more likely they'll be shot down. Each missile has a certain amount of health, and AMS does a certain amount of damage per second. AMS' DO work together, so stacking them means they will hit the same missiles, thus shooting them down faster. SRMs can be shot down, but usually aren't due to their close range when fired. [Garth/Thomas]

Q: Devs why can´t you just take a hour or two and answer all the Questions people have to this thread? or as many that you can or want answer at least? [Koningswulf]
A: That's pretty much what we do. I don't include a lot more people because answering 10-15 PAGES of questions wouldn't just take 'an hour or two' and also would take away valuable time they could be working on the game itself - particularly with these being weekly threads. [Garth]

Q: Can we see the option of bypassing the opening animation in the client and go directly to the login screen (either by hitting esc, or through setting an option in the client? The long opening can be rather annoying after a couple of times. [Farix]
A: *Cough pressspacebar cough* [Garth]

Q: Also, have you (devs) or the mods considered playing a drinking game in involving the starting of "nerf X" threads, or do you love your livers too much? [Critical Fumble]
A: We already did this, but had to stop because it was making DavidB distraught seeing all the threads. [Garth]

Q: Can I please have a Bunny Head sticker, similar to something a magazine of long standing might use, to put on my mechs? It seems fitting, don't you think? [TheFuzzyBunny]
A: If we can avoid litigation, I'll see what I can do ;) [Garth]

Q: Ammo cost. If we have to pay for ammo, then wont that making paying members able to roll out with builds that are not feasable for free to play members? [Thomas Covenant]
A: The idea we have is to make the cost viable for all players. If you feel it isn't please give that as feedback! ;) [Garth]

Q: How will mechs that have less than 3 variants achieve the elite and master tier levels of the mech trees? For example, the Highlander has been announced to only have 1 variant at launch (possible this has changed) [Tvae]
A: I only knew one variant at the time, saying something like "the only variant I know of is the HGN 732." The variants are: HGN-732, HGN-733, HGN-733C, HGN-733P.

Thanks for tuning in everyone, I hope you enjoyed this Q&A :ph34r:

Cheers,
The MechWarrior Online Team

#2 Solis Obscuri

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 04:40 PM

View PostGarth Erlam, on 03 December 2012 - 04:27 PM, said:

Q: How will mechs that have less than 3 variants achieve the elite and master tier levels of the mech trees? For example, the Highlander has been announced to only have 1 variant at launch (possible this has changed) [Tvae]
A: I only knew one variant at the time, saying something like "the only variant I know of is the HGN 732." The variants are: HGN-732, HGN-733, HGN-733C, HGN-733P.

Hmmm.. the -732 and -733 I know, and I'm speculating the -733C is:

Quote

HGN-732 Colleen - This version replaced the standard weaponry with an ER PPC, a prototype Streak SRM-6, twin Medium Pulse Lasers, and a pair of LRM-15 missile launchers. Fourteen double heat sinks keep everything cool. BV (2.0) = 2,127[16]


Anyone have any idea what the -733P is?

#3 BL00D RAVEN

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 04:41 PM

good job falling for the trap

when do we get the highlander?

#4 Garth Erlam

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 04:48 PM

3050 I'd guess. ;)

#5 BL00D RAVEN

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 04:51 PM

guess i'll wait 1038 years

Edited by BL00D RAVEN, 03 December 2012 - 04:56 PM.


#6 Tvae

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 04:59 PM

View PostSolis Obscuri, on 03 December 2012 - 04:40 PM, said:

Hmmm.. the -732 and -733 I know, and I'm speculating the -733C is:
Anyone have any idea what the -733P is?


http://www.mwowiki.o...lander_HGN-733C
http://www.mwowiki.o...lander_HGN-733P

(Admittedly, I don't know where that information comes from, as the MWO wiki tends to be not cited very well. So far as I can tell from the Master Unit List, though, the variants were listed in the 3039 TRO.)

Also, thank you for answering my question! Although admittedly, only the first part, which wasn't actually the main question. Still good to know the Highlander variants!

Well, since it will be a number of years until any popular mechs with less than 3 variants are around (such as the Uziel), I'll just assume that when it happens that you'll come up with some new variants (kind of the same way you're doing with Hero mechs).

Edited by Tvae, 03 December 2012 - 05:02 PM.


#7 DirePhoenix

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 05:08 PM

View PostSolis Obscuri, on 03 December 2012 - 04:40 PM, said:

Anyone have any idea what the -733P is?


-733P(irahna Games variant)

#8 UPnADAM

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 05:21 PM

So garth are the 1.4DHS final, thats what i gathered from your response to a question someone asked about 2.0DHS?

#9 Mister Blastman

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 05:43 PM

Quote


Q: Can we please at least try DHS at 2.0? It doesn't seem like much of a boost to lights who usually benefit mostly from the engine heat sinks, but heavies and assaults that use big energy weapons need the boost. [Wolfways]
A: No. Prior to releasing the Dual Heatsink upgrade the forums were abuzz with whether or not they would be mandatory on all Mechs. With the numbers we've chosen, they aren't, so I'd say we answered those questions well. [Garth]


> : (

Garth and team: Learn how to make battlemechs. Then get back to us. Obviously you guys have no idea how to do it. If you did, you'd see DHS aren't always mandatory. Sometimes, singles make more sense to use.

2.0 or bust!

#10 Redshift2k5

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 05:57 PM

View PostGarth Erlam, on 03 December 2012 - 04:27 PM, said:


Q: Did you see my thread about a community-designed original hero mech? http://mwomercs.com/...gned-hero-mech/ [Redshift2k5]
A: Yes, and I think it's a great idea I am pushing up the chain. Hill. Command thing. [Garth]



Thanks Garth! Here is the, uh, not-broken link http://mwomercs.com/...gned-hero-mech/

#11 Hetfeng321

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 06:05 PM

10 to 15 questions, an hour or two hours... so... 6 to 8 minutes per question, 15 seconds per word (on average)? Unless you are missing many, many fingers, you should be able to address all the questions in well under two hours. Considering that feedback is the main point of a beta, 2 hours out of an 9 hour work day, 20% of your work time, is not an outrageous period to spend collaborating with your community, the community that gave you money, the community that you are building this game for.

Edited by Hetfeng321, 03 December 2012 - 06:07 PM.


#12 Watchit

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 06:09 PM

Great Q&A Garth! Got me pumped the upcoming content, especially everything that's gonna be going on next year! ;)

Also "Everyone loses in war, whether pillow-related or not." is the best quote ever.

#13 Sajuk Kar

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 06:10 PM

View PostGarth Erlam, on 03 December 2012 - 04:27 PM, said:

Q: Can we please at least try DHS at 2.0? It doesn't seem like much of a boost to lights who usually benefit mostly from the engine heat sinks, but heavies and assaults that use big energy weapons need the boost. [Wolfways]
A: No. Prior to releasing the Dual Heatsink upgrade the forums were abuzz with whether or not they would be mandatory on all Mechs. With the numbers we've chosen, they aren't, so I'd say we answered those questions well. [Garth]


Is this a joke? So this is a "beta" but we're not really beta testers, and we're not allowed to test features of the game, just accept whatever the devs tell us as truth. Like "I could core a fully armored Atlas from behind with my jenner in 3 seconds with DHS". Just believing what other tell you as fact without having any desire to verify the information yourself, that's a really great outlook to have in life.

#14 Hetfeng321

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 06:12 PM

View PostGarth Erlam, on 03 December 2012 - 04:27 PM, said:

Q: Are you going to concentrate on important questions or are you going to answer questions like "what brand of microwave do you own?" [Operant]
A: ... this feels like a trap. Is it a trap? If not, it's very 'meta.' [Garth]


It's funny that Garth thinks he was joking. It is just a matter of time before they start to take Ask The Devs seriously. We will have to wait for the majority of the community to look at the current patching frequency and think "So... is this beta dead or something?".

Edited by Hetfeng321, 03 December 2012 - 06:17 PM.


#15 Strum Wealh

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 06:17 PM

View PostSolis Obscuri, on 03 December 2012 - 04:40 PM, said:

Hmmm.. the -732 and -733 I know, and I'm speculating the -733C is:
[/sup]

Anyone have any idea what the -733P is?

View PostTvae, on 03 December 2012 - 04:59 PM, said:


http://www.mwowiki.o...lander_HGN-733C
http://www.mwowiki.o...lander_HGN-733P

(Admittedly, I don't know where that information comes from, as the MWO wiki tends to be not cited very well. So far as I can tell from the Master Unit List, though, the variants were listed in the 3039 TRO.)

Also, thank you for answering my question! Although admittedly, only the first part, which wasn't actually the main question. Still good to know the Highlander variants!

Well, since it will be a number of years until any popular mechs with less than 3 variants are around (such as the Uziel), I'll just assume that when it happens that you'll come up with some new variants (kind of the same way you're doing with Hero mechs).

The -733C and -733P were common refits to the common HGN-733 that replaced the AC/10 (and ammo) with an AC/20 (and ammo) and a PPC (and Heat Sinks), respectively.
HGN-733C (AC/20 model) specifications
HGN-733P (PPC model) specifications

The standard HGN-732 is the LosTech version equipped with a Gauss Rifle, Ferro-Fibrous armor, and CASE.

The HGN-732 "Colleen" is what MWO would call a Hero 'Mech, that replaces the LRM-20 (and ammo) with a LRM-15 (and ammo), replaces the Gauss Rifle with an ER-PPC, replaces the Medium Lasers with Medium Pulse Lasers, replaces the SRM-6 (and ammo) with a Streak SRM-6 (and ammo), and replaces the -732's Standard Heat Sinks with Double Heat Sinks.
It was piloted by (and named after) Colleen Schmitt, a SLDF officer and founding Khan of Clan Blood Spirit, during Operation Klondike.

Edited by Strum Wealh, 03 December 2012 - 10:02 PM.


#16 Tuoweit

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 06:28 PM

View PostHetfeng321, on 03 December 2012 - 06:05 PM, said:

10 to 15 questions, an hour or two hours... so... 6 to 8 minutes per question, 15 seconds per word (on average)?


You're not including the time it takes to research the answer and make sure it's correct (because I'm sure you can imagine the melodramatic shitstorm on the forums if Garth answered a question with mistaken information...). It's not like Garth has the answer to everything at his fingertips, he's got to go interrupt some other PGI employee's work to get many of the answers. The fluff ones he can answer without interrupting anyone, while waiting for other answers, so that's why there's always a few of those answered each time. That, and I imagine it's nice to actually interact like a human being on occasion rather than a corporate PR robot ;)

#17 Onyx Rain

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 06:40 PM

View PostMister Blastman, on 03 December 2012 - 05:43 PM, said:

> : (

Garth and team: Learn how to make battlemechs. Then get back to us. Obviously you guys have no idea how to do it. If you did, you'd see DHS aren't always mandatory. Sometimes, singles make more sense to use.

2.0 or bust!


Little harsh, but I do think the current heat system is a little harsh too. The large energy weapons are still barely teetering on viability IMO. PPC/erPPC are still crappy niche weapons, where min range kills the ppc and crazy heat kills the erppc. Large pulse usually isn't a great choice either (shorter beam duration please? like a restricted range ppc/erppc hit), ErLarge still to hot to be worth using usually (And you people who do are usually gimping yourself/build, even if you do make it work ok). Small pulse are pointless...almost always better to go with a mix of small/medium lasers. Large lasers are about the only decent big energy weapon, and those could probably use a shorter beam duration too....Hard to tell with the crappy netcode/hitbox issues and mechs shedding laser damage like they've got rainX applied to them.

Loving the game though....confident most issues will be worked out.........eventually ;)

Sad I didn't get any of my questions answered :P

Edited by Onyx Rain, 03 December 2012 - 06:43 PM.


#18 Bubba Wilkins

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 06:56 PM

View PostGarth Erlam, on 03 December 2012 - 04:27 PM, said:

Here's your answers!

Q: Can we please at least try DHS at 2.0? It doesn't seem like much of a boost to lights who usually benefit mostly from the engine heat sinks, but heavies and assaults that use big energy weapons need the boost. [Wolfways]
A: No. Prior to releasing the Dual Heatsink upgrade the forums were abuzz with whether or not they would be mandatory on all Mechs. With the numbers we've chosen, they aren't, so I'd say we answered those questions well. [Garth]



Meaning what exactly?

That 2.0 DHS in Engines and 1.4's outside?

or

1.4's Throughout? (which will kill a lot of builds right now)

or

1.8 DHS average throughout? (approximately where we are now depending on Mech/Build)

Given the buzz on the forums and the posts made in the last month, I'd say you haven't actually answered the question at all.

#19 Thomas Covenant

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 07:13 PM

Q: Instead of just appearing on the battlefield at the start of the match, have you guys ever considered showing a quick animation of a DropShip unloading your BattleMech and your allies' BattleMechs? [Maverick01]
A: Yes, yes we have. Something quite similar to what you said, but slightly different. [Garth]

+1

#20 EmperorMyrf

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Posted 03 December 2012 - 07:19 PM

View PostMister Blastman, on 03 December 2012 - 05:43 PM, said:

> : (

Garth and team: Learn how to make battlemechs. Then get back to us. Obviously you guys have no idea how to do it. If you did, you'd see DHS aren't always mandatory. Sometimes, singles make more sense to use.

2.0 or bust!


That's the point. That's exactly what he was trying to say. DHS isn't always mandatory, meaning both SHS and DHS builds are both viable. Increasing it to 2.0 DHS will make it to where SHS builds simply cannot keep up with the DHS builds.

Bout to get flamed, but I think it was a smart move.





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