Xak Arji wrote:Hey Tebu, I really appreciate your analytical approach to this first off. I'm like you in that I really want to see dust balanced, and that I have quite a few months of vehicle experience. I like now how they finally changed the vehicles to being formidable, AKA a one man AV rambo tackling my Gunnlogi in 20 seconds flat was infuriating, BUT like you said it is still seriously lacking in balance.
My input is that I do not like the new over simplified modules. It provides next to no customization options. I.E. Next to all Rail Gunnlogies are going to be fit the same. I liked the old turret build with the option of things like the regulated Rail turret, which gave you a higher rotation speed to make sniping infantry easier. I also think that the "active" damage mods are stupid OP, and it also feeds into the over simplified module complaint. The old module echoed of EVE's own damage mods that were fit into low slots
Secondly, I am first and foremost an Assault Drop Ship Pilot, and it has drove me insane trying to enjoy what would be an awesome idea that would work in this game so well. Incredibly under balanced as usual. Before 1.7 a forge gun could 2 shot me before I even had the chance to react. Now it's gotten even worse, now that rail turrets have an active damage mod adding 30% damage, and the Python's HP cap somewhere around 2500 (my more balanced approach supporting a gunner around 2000) I go down in 1 shot more often then not. No warning at all.
Air to Air. There is next to no way to dog fight an equally well fitted/skilled ADS without any ramming involved (if you want to count that as a win). Dog fights often involve taking a few shots, then taking turns retreating into the red line. There isn't a way to trade my dumb fire missiles (or gunner positions) for an AA weapons involving a lock on feature. My personal opinion is that maybe we could get a module that trades all passenger and gunner slots for an AA gun or rocket launcher of some sort...
Any who I'm done ranting, I enjoyed your post! I would appreciate any and all feedback.
Dropships man, they are the reason I'm vehicle. Back after dust "Officially released" in May, I was trying to figure out what to do with my 3.5 mil of beta passive. I tried lots of things, and really liked the idea of dropships. I REALLY wanted to fly them, but at the time, cost and WP (mainly WP), kept me out of it. Plus back then, good dropship pilots were unheard of. I played with aur versions, but there was absolutely NO way to gain WP. Aside from gunners.
So being unable to get any SP with them I choose tanks. But I love dropships. They are STILL my favorite, and if I could manage to stay isk positive with them, I would roll them all the time. I could never fly the basic ones, always far too slow and sluggish, it just doesn't feel like a dropship. But once I got my hands on the ADS, I instantly fell in love. And suddenly, my flying skills made a huge leap.
Now, I can perform some crazy maneuvers and keep it alive most matches. Still nothing like some of the pros I've seen, but I can hold my own with them.
So **** tanks for a minute, let's talk dropships.
Like, what is the point to the standard dropships? And why such a slot limitation on the ADS over the standard?
Why don't we have actual dropship battles? You are right, it's best to ram them. No fun in that. But I wonder, why do the dropship and tank share modules? Why would you want to even try to balance tanks and dropships together???
With dropships, I would suggest separating the modules, so that you can focus on JUST BALANCING THE DROPSHIPS. Tanks and Dropships operate in two totally different ways. Everything is different between the two; the way they move, the way they fire rounds, the tactics involved, and most importantly, their roles on the battlefield. So why in the world are they not separated from tanks.
Everything is grouped up into one lump category, which actually works well for LAV's with respect to tanks due to the small HP they have. But a dropship is an aerial vehicle, it operates on different principles, and what a dropship needs may not be what a tank needs and vice versa.
What do you think of dropships having a separate choice of fits than the tanks. I think balance would be a lot easier to achieve, as you can focus on just tweaking the dropships in relation to tanks, rather than attempting both at the same time.