15 replies to this topic

[Fred013]

AFAIK Tag:

• Detects ECM-cloaked mechs when firing from outside the 180m radius.
  
• The bonus and the little crosshair indicating the bonus lasts 2 seconds (Must be held on target)
  
• Speeds up the lock on time of LRMs and SSRMs
  
• Tightens missile spread? (confirm)
  
• Weighs 1t
  
• Occupies 1 energy hardpoint
  
• Has a range of 750m, previously 450m
  
• Requires no ammo
  
• Generates no heat
  
• Can be fired continuously
  
• Makes a little 'pew' noise that when spammed sounds cool

AFAIK Narc:

• The bonus and the little crosshair indicating the bonus lasts 20 seconds (previously 15)
  
• Speeds up the lock on time of LRMs and SSRMs
  
• Tightens missile spread? (confirm)
  
• Is useless inside a ECM bubble (180m radius)
  
• Weighs 3t
  
• Occupies 1 missile hardpoint
  
• Has a range of 270m like any SRM
  
• Requires ammo (6pts/t)
  
• Generates no heat
  
• Reloads

If anything here is incorrect, or I have missed some effects/problems/bonuses/requirements of any of these two 'weapons', please lt me know. I want to evaluate how useful these are in-game. Tag seems useful for LRM's and to counter ECM, but there must be more to NARC than the above.

Also, AFAIK these do not affect regular dumbfired SRMs. Is this true?

Edited by Fred013, 01 January 2013 - 01:38 AM.

[Red squirrel]

It's easy:

NARC: Takes up a missle hardpoint and weight - and does nothing
TAG: uses a energy hardpoint and 1ton - does almost nothing

In the end NARC is just a waste of crit space/tonnage/time
TAG barely works. You might get a few LRM volleys on target (if it is a really stuoid target) but still without Artemis bonus
and in the end just rather use own ECM mechs to counter ECM or do not run an LRM build.

[Thorqemada]

SRM be affected by Artemis which is negated by ECM.
NARC and TAG do nothing for SRM.

Edited by Thorqemada, 01 January 2013 - 02:19 AM.

[Leetskeet]

NARC does absolutely nothing
TAG tricks people into thinking it does something by making that ECM mech flicker on your HUD a couple times before it's gone

[Agent 0 Fortune]

I know that TAG does not allow me to target enemy mechs. Not sure why, but if I TAG a mech at 200+ meters, I cannot target the mech. Not just get lock but actually target. I have a Medium mech with TAG an no missiles, and I was told that TAG is the counter to ECM, it is not.

[King Arthur IV]

tag needs line of sight and must be held on target and it is the ONLY one you should use of the two.

narc is fire and forget for 20seconds but at the cost of 3~tonns and 2 slots that only provide 6 short range slow a$$ missile that will probably miss and can get destroyed with ecm. narc doesnt even speed up lock on time or increase missile convergence. the indicator is also not obvious. so even if you land one, no one may fire missiles incase they can not keep lock. there are many more reason why narc suck but really not worth your time or mine.

Agent 0 Fortune, on 01 January 2013 - 02:49 AM, said:

I know that TAG does not allow me to target enemy mechs. Not sure why, but if I TAG a mech at 200+ meters, I cannot target the mech. Not just get lock but actually target. I have a Medium mech with TAG an no missiles, and I was told that TAG is the counter to ECM, it is not.

only a counter outside of 180m ecm range. 200m is cutting it close and all it takes is ecm bubble to graze you to end the effect.

Edited by King Arthur IV, 01 January 2013 - 06:11 AM.

[Red squirrel]

Leetskeet, on 01 January 2013 - 02:30 AM, said:

NARC does absolutely nothing
TAG tricks people into thinking it does something by making that ECM mech flicker on your HUD a couple times before it's gone

exactly

[Kaspirikay]

A lot of things need better descriptions and flavor text.

[Fred013]

Red squirrel, on 01 January 2013 - 01:44 AM, said:

NARC: Takes up a missle hardpoint and weight - and does nothing

Leetskeet, on 01 January 2013 - 02:30 AM, said:

NARC does absolutely nothing

King Arthur IV, on 01 January 2013 - 06:10 AM, said:

narc doesnt even speed up lock on time or increase missile convergence. .

So does NARC actually do anything... whatsoever? Or does it just effectively do nothing with the ammo, weight and range?
Are you guys saying that NARC doesn't provide any of the bonuses that TAG does? That it doesn't work yet?

Edited by Fred013, 01 January 2013 - 02:05 PM.

[Leetskeet]

Fred013, on 01 January 2013 - 02:05 PM, said:

So does NARC actually do anything... whatsoever? Or does it just effectively do nothing with the ammo, weight and range?
Are you guys saying that NARC doesn't provide any of the bonuses that TAG does? That it doesn't work yet?

It's so damn horrible that you might as well act like it doesn't exist. Like MG's, Flamers, LBX-10, SPL, etc.

It is functional. It's just a better idea to drop into the match with unused tonnage than to use a NARC.

[FrostPaw]

I doubt TAG has any effect on missile spread, that would step on the toes of Artemis, whose sole use is to create tighter missile salvos.

[Taizan]

I made similar thread in the player support, so far not much has been cleared on how TAG / BAP / ECM / Sensor module interact.


BAP / TAG / ECM / SENSOR MODULE ETC. HOW DOES IT ALL BUFF OUT?

[hammerreborn]

TAG allows you to blind teammates and enemies when you shine it into their cockpit. It also acts as an amazing tracker, if you keep tag on a target and the reticle glows red, your lasers will all hit. It also helps with missile spread, but I don't think TAG + Artemis stack, if they have LoS, artemis takes control for spread, if not, TAG does.

NARC is useless.

[Agent 0 Fortune]

King Arthur IV, on 01 January 2013 - 06:10 AM, said:

only a counter outside of 180m ecm range. 200m is cutting it close and all it takes is ecm bubble to graze you to end the effect.

This is not the case. If I TAG an enemy 500m away, I still cannot target them, I see them with a little red TAG icon on them and an hollow red triangle, but those are the only visual indicators I receive, and I cannot hit "R" and target them, nor do they get a call sign (A, B, C, etc), so as soon as they move out of my TAG laser, they are invisible again.

The only explanation I can think of is if I were being ECM disrupted at my location, however I did not see a "low signal" message that would indicate my sensors were compromised.

[GODzillaGSPB]

I bet claiming that TAG does nothing makes it much more convenient for you guys not to use it, doesn't it?

I use it in 4 of my 5 mechs and only one of them actually needs it for its own weapon systems. I have seen teammates - puggers - to focus fire on enemy mechs I kept painted with TAG. I've seen enemy teams use it on our mechs. And I've used it to great effectivity in order to highlights mechs that try to sneak up over the flanks or behind us. Because even if they're only on the HUD for a short time, the team still realized where the enemy is where before they knew nothing.

But hey...ECM is OP and there is NOTHING you can about it, right? The more you say the more OP it becomes I guess.

[Lupin]

Being a scout I can say for sure TAG at the moment does:

Shows up on radar if aimed at Mech outside 200m (Tested spotting Atlas with ECM to show team where group was on map)
Will allow lock of LRM & SSRM outside 200m (Harder to do with SSRM as 70m harder to judge)

Unable to confirm if TAG and better at grouping with LRM vs. LRM+Artemis (Which requires line of sight) after last patch.