We constantly whine about the lack of content and we want new weapons... but some people are actually saying that the Tac AR is too different from the Scrambler rifle to be a "mimic weapon"...

Wow, we have 2 different weapons and we do whine about it?

Scrambler rifle and Tac AR are my favorite weapons in the game, so I'm really frustrated when I hear people want to change one or both of them.

"So why does the Tac AR have better range than the weapon that is supposed to mimic?"

"To mimic" doesn't mean "to be a weaker version of". It just means that that particular weapon variant is meant to share some basic characteristics with the original weapon to allow a similar use on the battlefield.

You can't make a weapon "a weaker version of" another one, although this destroys the whole concept of weapon balance (and overall balance) in a game.

Weapon variants are more ISK and SP expensive and this is their downside. This kind of limitation is good design. To make a weapon weaker because it's "a copy" is bad design.

I enjoy both weapons for different reasons.

When people say that the Scrambler has less range then the Tac AR, they forget to say that the Scrambler has great hipfire accuracy, higher ROF, higher DPS, larger clip size, no recoil and Charge ability (and of course an overheating mechanic that prevent this weapon from being the most OP gun ever made).

They are different weapons.

I wouldn't mind a slight range buff for the scrambler at all, to be honest (of course I wouldn't, I use the weapon...), but what really bugs me is people who whine about the only actual advantage of the Tac AR over the Scrambler. If you want a better range for the Scrambler, well, fine! But reducing the Tac AR's range is not.

Also, the Tac AR has an actual scope. I expect some decent range with a scope. What's the purpose of having a damn scope if I can't hit from 60 meters away?
The scope is not always an advantage, as it does limit your sight. You can't control multiple targets at the same time effectively and it does limit your ability to switch to another target quickly.
The "reflex" sights of the Scrambler are much better for medium-close combat (not really for CQC, but the hipfire accuracy and the high ROF make the Scrambler pretty deadly in CQC as well), this has advantages as well.

All these characteristics let me assume they are completely different weapons and if CCP wanted the Tac AR to be a "Plasma Scrambler", they should have made it with the same sights and the same characteristics. And to be honest, that would be horrible.
If this is what CCP wanted to do, they made everything wrong and they should change the 2 weapons completely. But some players really love the 2 weapons as they are... (I have a huge picture of the Tac AR on the wall next to my bed).

What about a Scrambler with an actual scope and massive range (and maybe slightly less damage output) as answer to the Tac AR and what about a semi auto AR with Reflex sights, less range and higher ROF as answer to the Scrambler?

This is an idea. Nerfing the Tac AR's range because it's better than the Scrambler's is not a good idea, especially since the Scrambler has such great advantages over the Tac AR.

I think these new weapons variants really need to be added.

If it's necessary because the Tac AR is that different from the other rifles (I don't think so), split the AR Skill tree and make the Tac AR a unique weapon (rename if you want), but for the love of God, don't break this weapon.
There are other people in the Tac AR fan club other than me. Not many, probably, but we are part of the community and we don't want our weapon to be changed because "it has better range than another weapon".
No one is even saying it's OP (CCP unleashed the nerf hammer already), especially when the standard AR is so much better, no one is even saying it's unbalanced, all this QQ just because you compare it to the Scrambler?

No way!

And this is all... I guess.