Himiko Kuronaga wrote:CCP Rattati wrote:There are many ways to fix some of the issues you mention, heavy being more resistant to small arms fire, or the heavy armor shields better from headshots, etc. I'll leave that to the designers but I assure you, we are always listening (and measuring) to what works in PC and what doesn't, so keep the feedback flowing.
A strong resistance skill would go a long way, but even if that gets put in it won't fix the HMG issue. It will just make the heavy suit the favorite suit for using a rifle.
There are a lot of ways to fix the HMG. Some people want more damage, some people want greatly decreased dispersion. Some people want a "stagger" effect when the HMG hits their target which slows them down and cripples their targets ability to aim. I could actually get on board with that one for the simple fact it would be a hilariously trolling tool and completely unique.
Heavies need a philosophy. Right now they resemble slow, tanked assault suits with no equipment. I've heard "point defense" before, but point defense isn't a philosophy.
My view is that heavies are for controlling the flow of battle. They can be used by field commanders to create walls and chokepoints, but lack the mobility to strike. You can rout your enemies toward your heavies, or you can simply block them off and shoot them down like fish in a barrel. This is why heavies work for point defense: they create a mobile wall in front of a point. But they're not just set-and-forget point defenders, they're actually critical components of any sophisticated battlefield tactics. They're the anvil to the assault's hammer.
From that standpoint, strengthening the suit against small arms fire and headshots would be great, but you do hit the nail on the head when it comes to the gun: in order for the heavy suit to be truly balanced, it should have drawbacks that mean it's rarely used except with a heavy weapon. That means the heavy weapons have to be powerful enough to counter drawbacks in the suit. They have to be fearsome enough to keep medium suits from standing out in front of heavies and shooting them down. A heavy should be able to engage three assaults--not to kill them in a 3-on-1 engagement, but a smart heavy should be able to hold them off for a decent amount of time. I think giving some kind of disruptive abilities to the heavy weapons could go a long way toward making that happen. The assaults should take cover, maybe throw some grenades and try to flank. A smart heavy controls the terms of engagement, prevents flanking and keeps enemies in front of him. Maybe heavies only get the headshot safety in the front?
All this has to be balanced by considering how the proposed heavy combo would play outside its role. A whole team of indestructible heavies is unquestionably a bad thing. I think this is already fairly well balanced by the heavy's mobility and range (a heavy out in the open will always be easy to drop), but it's something to watch.