Been using the 2X for a few weeks now, very happy with it, though it's true that the large apparent hit boxes do make it easier for an enemy to repeatedly damage the same area. This just means you have to remain mobile and change attitude constantly.
It did well as a brawler, though admittedlly is more complex to pull off than the primary bralwers people refer to. But it's versatile...many build variations can be made around 2 missile mounts in the LA. I mostly used 2 SRM6-A or 2 SRM4-A, and with the salvoed fire due to only 4 tubes, the spread remained minimal. While without the massive smash of the SRM'pult's 36 missiles, it still acted as a primary damage mechanism adding to the 3 beams and 1 ballistic. For speed, the 280 or 300 were adequate, but took work to be agile; the 325 or 340 brought enhanced speed into the 80s, which feels quite good. One thing is for sure, you learn to maneuver, use cover, interrupt enemy OODA loops as much as possible (look it up
) etc. when trying to be a 2X brawler using a 280XL.
I'm now using the 2X for long-range direct fire-support (doing my Marauder imitation) with 2 PPCs and AC5, backed up by 2 Streaks and 1 MPLAS for close support, and I think this is its better calling.
Is the 'Pult better? Yes. But the 'Phract is an interesting challenge and good test-bed for concepts.
Edited by Elyam, 30 January 2013 - 10:03 AM.