Mojo XXXIII
Abandoned Privilege
Top Men.
10
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Posted - 2014.04.22 12:34:00 -
[1] - Quote
True Adamance wrote:Zaaeed Massani wrote:True Adamance wrote:I really don't know that Wyrkomi's do. I had Marquess chase me around the map using Swarms on my Shield HAV and he was doing some very impressive damage per volley. There's nothing wrong wrong with the damage, nothing at all. The issue is that swarms are incredibly easy to avoid...and when you sink millions of skill points into something and are a dedicated AV'er (or at least use a dedicated build), it would be nice if the swarms actually hit the target from time to time. I really like the suggestion another poster had where aircraft pilots should have a bitching Betty that has a slow intermittent tone when you're being painted, a fast intermittent tone when you're locked on, and a solid tone when missile are in the air. Then there's no excuse when the missiles are as fast as they're meant to be and can't be outrun...because you'll have a 1.5-4 second head start depending on how far from the launcher the aircraft is...because then by the time the second and certainly third swarm is in the air, the pilot should be bugging out and evading. Since you don't actually aim the gun....... well look at it this way, those same swarms that are "so easy to avoid" will turn on a dime around corners to hit you in places you never thought was possible.... Not arguing, just giving my perspective.
But, you do have to "aim". With the reduced lock-on range, in order to fire Swarms, you need to maintain clear line of sight from pretty close range for a good 3-5 seconds (well within range of the tank's ability to kill you in 1-2 shots), all while completely vulnerable to enemy infantry while you wait for the lock-on (don't get me started on running around playing cat-and-mouse with Dropships, constantly looking at the sky while completely oblivious to everything around you on the ground).
Now add to that that you have to repeat this (while chasing the vehicle as it tries to evade) 10+ times just to put a dent in it's shields. And, once you've fired your first volley, you've also set up a very obvious homing beacon to any and all enemies in the area that says "Here I am, and I've got my Swarm Launcher out, so I can't defend myself!"
And "turn on a dime?", yeah, maybe they do, only to inevitably slam into any building, pipe, wall, or knee-high mound of dirt between them and their target, lol.
True story:
A couple of nights ago, I sat and fired a full inventory of standard Swarms (but with stacked Damage Mods) at a stationary Dropship, dropped a Nanohive, fully restocked, completely emptied my inventory again, while he just hovered directly in front of me and simply let me (probably laughing the whole time at my futility).
When I finally did run out of ammo, I was killed by an enemy tank (which simply followed the Swarm trail to my exact location), so I switched to my Proto Swarms (again, with stacked Damage Mods), and this time unloaded a full clip at the Dropship (before being killed by infantry while I was busy looking at the sky, lol) again, I barely made a scratch.
Once again, the Dropship pilot just sat there and let me fire away, and didn't even TRY do evade. He just didn't see me as a significant threat because, even with Proto Swarms and stacked Damage Mods, I was nothing more than a nuisance. Overall, I easily spent more than the cost of that Dropship in Dropsuits trying to make a dent, but I just couldn't do it. Even when two other teammates pulled out Swarms to help me, the best we could do is chase him away. The entire match wasted (and at least three of us taken out of the fight for the objectives) without even killing that one guy.
With my DEDICATED AV character (using Minmitar Commando for the Damage Bonus, nearly 10 million SP devoted specifically enhancing Swarm Missiles and increasing their damage, using Proto Swarms and stacked Damage Mods), and I was nothing more than an inconvenience to this Dropship. An insect to be swatted away.
I don't know exactly what the problem is, or how to fix it, but I do know that something is seriously wrong with that picture.
Tank guys want it to take a team effort of 2-3 dedicated AVers to take them out and I'm OK with that but, unfortunately, there's no real incentive to spec into dedicated AV, so there will rarely (if ever), be enough of us (ESPECIALLY in a pub match) to get the job done. You expect us to devote time and SP into making an AV weapon viable, so we can what, share a few kills and get a few damage points? Not worth it.
Sorry, but the potential payoff for speccing into DEDICATED AV is too small in relation to the commitment required.
Players shouldn't be expected to spend that kind of SP and ISK on a build just so that, every time they join a battle, they can hope that there are at least 2 or more other players on you team who happen to have made the same mistake (speccing AV), are willing to squad-up, and are capable of working together just so they can all share a kill or two.
It's just easier (and much more profitable) to spec Heavy, Scout, or Logi and just avoid the tanks altogether. |