What bugs me about protobears is that they still run proto despite it being a poor way to get ISK. In pub matches, it's a lose-lose situation when someone brings out proto: the proto user doesn't profit as much as they might with cheaper gear, while the other team doesn't have fun.

I can understand using it in merc battles or PC, but using it in instant battles is just obnoxious.

Just wondering why there is such a big deal about players using proto in pub matches?
Surely the idea of the game is to grind skills, get proto gear and use it?

is it jealously from newbies who cant use it? vets who cant afford to use it? i dunno.
i have a ton of isk and the skills available. i've spent good money on boosters both passive and active and i've grinded week in week out since january to get into my proto gear and i'm sure others have so why is it the player base seem to have the need of shunning it to appear 'da leetestez'
in any other FPS game you work up the ranks to unlock the better guns and use them, i don't go getting hate mail on BF3 cos i'm using my L85A2. Just seems pretty dumb to me

I'm still pretty new, and i'm still getting a grasp on pretty much every single facet of Dust. I've gone back and forth on what the actual problem is/what to do about it in regards to the Proto issue pretty much since I first started/got my first true "welcome to Dust, give me your lunch money" @ss beating. At this point I have absolutely no idea what the solution is. Now, the general problem to some is the proliferation of Proto equipment (I've come to understand the factors that passive skills play, and i'm not getting into that side of this whole discussion), which creates a general problem on the new player retention front. Here is where i'm currently at thought wise, i'll give y'all an analogy (I love analogies)-

Imagine the NFL only played one game a year. The Chicago Bears (or any NFL team, doesn't matter) love to play football. They have worked long and hard to become about the best at what they do, and they want to play football whenever possible, and they want to use every trick they have, every play, and they want to play a full contact, no holds barred, full on game of NFL football, and they deserve/have the right to do so. But there is only one game a year so the Chicago Bears travel North America the rest of the year and beat the living dog sh!t out of PeeWee League football teams (for those who aren't aware, PeeWee= children around the ages of like 5 and 7 ish, at least here in Florida). There is no contest, no chance the Bears would lose, just a bunch of grown @ss men kicking a bunch of childrens teeth in.

Now apply this tale to Dust. Chicago Bears= Proto, children= noobs. Now I have no clue as to what goes on in PC or FW, but I know that's where I want to be, that's what i'm shooting for. I know I need some sweet @ss gear (along with proven ability) to start regularly taking part in these battles. I've gotten the general sense that there is not enough PC or FW going on to keep players at the higher levels occupied, and I've heard PC and FW battles are laggy as a ***** on a ***** boat, resulting in a large amount of high level players in Instant Battles. I don't know if that's fact or not, and i'm not suggesting any changes or recommending that someone needs to do something about it, but I would imagine that if I had Proto, if I made it that high up the never ending ladder of SP, I would leave Instant Battles in the Dust (hehehe). I know vets use Instant Battles to make some cash, and that's all fine and good. But it seems like there are a bunch of people who have no intent on partaking in PC or FW, and just wanna solo/exclusively play squad Instant Battle. Again, that's al fine and good (I personally don't understand that, but to each his own). I've seen suggestions for matchmaking, tiericide, and all kinds of other stuff. But I feel like the core of the issue is "why are there so many high powered players so consistently playing in the Instant Battles?" That's not a problem I have, just a general question. Is there really nothing else going on? Am I working so damn hard for all these fancy @ss weapons and suits to do the same bullsh!t i'm doing this very second, just with I higher KDR? I've gotten frustrated as all get out on numerous occasions, but A- I do have fun with the game, can't deny it, and B- I haven't hit 2 mil SP yet, but I feel myself getting better every match, so I know once I start getting better gear (and passive skills) things will get better. I'm not dogin' on anyone for how they get personal enjoyment out of a game, but as so many have said, if you wanna hold on to enough of these new players to keep the game alive, letting them get brutalized day in and day out for how ever many months it takes before your average Dust rookie is able to start turning the tables is probably not good for the game. I feel like this issue has a much farther reaching effect than has been acknowledged. The "squad up" argument isn't relevant when talking about Proto (or even just Vet) vs Rookie, cause it should be looked at as a one on one situation. I know that's not how it happens in the game, but to truly acknowledge the argument and try and make headway with it, you have to say "in a one on one scenario, if a 10mil SP dude runs into a 1mil SP dude, what happens? What tools are available to each, and in how many different possibilities are available to each player to win that engagement?" I for one am starting to feel like the gaps are probably far more responsible for things like perceived balance issues then they have been acknowledged to be. Anyway, i'm rambling, starting to drift off topic (sorry).

I'll just make my conclusion this- I don't know how to fix any issues in the game, and i'm still not even sure I understand what the issues are, but I feel that if you do something to make the Higher Ups want to play almost exclusively in a battle system that is largely unaccessible to newer players, if you do something that gives Higher Ups somewhere to play that is largely unaccessible to newer players, I would imagine the Proto/Pubstomp issues start to die down, and maybe claims of weapon and suit balance issues start to become somewhat of a thing of the past.

Sorry for the wall of text.

DISCLAIMER: I realize my newness, please don't mistake my 2 cents for anything more than what it is.

In other games, there is no "better" gun unless it's OP. In Dust, you have guns that are clearly better. That's the problem. And no, the purpose of this game is to get lots of ISK, and own some space. in essence, get your own little empire.

The main goal of Dust 514 is to bring the New Eden Universe to veteran shooter and console players through the eyes of an immortal soldier.

Just wondering why there is such a big deal about players using proto in pub matches?
Surely the idea of the game is to grind skills, get proto gear and use it?

is it jealously from newbies who cant use it? vets who cant afford to use it? i dunno.
i have a ton of isk and the skills available. i've spent good money on boosters both passive and active and i've grinded week in week out since january to get into my proto gear and i'm sure others have so why is it the player base seem to have the need of shunning it to appear 'da leetestez'
in any other FPS game you work up the ranks to unlock the better guns and use them, i don't go getting hate mail on BF3 cos i'm using my L85A2. Just seems pretty dumb to me

I've been playing Dust for over a year now, and the core idea of Dust, and Eve in general, is all about risk and reward. You risk something valuable in hopes that your skill with it yields you a better reward. It's not supposed to be profitable for everyone to run the best gear at all times, you might as well make everything free and remove currency altogether.

This game has always been about the choice: Do I run cheap stuff and risk dying a lot? Or do I run my expensive stuff and risk loosing my hard earned money? That's what makes this game special when compared to the majority of shooters out there, risk and reward above and beyond the almighty K/D stat.