Please bring me up to speed, since I haven't played since 1.6.

Back then I eventually settled on Caldari Assault. Ultimately, the "run and gun" style is what I do best, especially at close and medium range (aiming, situational awareness, reflexes). I like flanking with speed, but if I'm surrounded by a bunch of enemies I also want to have a fighting chance to deal with that situation. A shield tanked Caldari Assault with an assault rifle used to fit that bill perfectly.

So now I'm back to square one thanks to the re-spec for dropsuits. I still got proto AR so I will stick to that for now. Between the re-spec and passive SP I got 5 mil SP to spend, so I need to make some choices. My questions are simple:

Is there currently a rough loadout which is considered ideal for the run and gun style like the Caldari Assault used to be?

I am very tempted to run a scout since it sounds like they do well now, which of the scouts would you say is most focused on plain and simple gun game? My gut feeling says Gallente. Staying hidden sounds rather useful for this style, and armor tanking a scout sounds like it could be a good compromise between speed and survivability. Or is Caldari Assault still the best suit for this after all (FOTM aside)?

Also, which weapon would you recommend? I still got my SP in assault rifles so I will stick with it for now and I will try out the new weapons before I make a choice, but I'd still like to hear some opinions. I like versatility and range isn't a huge concern for me (usually I find it easier to outflank somebody on a distance than to go into a long-range shootout) so I expect that I will stick with the assault rifle.

Any other important things I need to be aware of (loadout related)?

I'll appreciate all serious replies, thank you! :)

Just a thought here, you are welcomed to challenge it, but would you say the lowered TTK has had an effect on the run and gun game?

But yea...welcome back to the war...

I don't know about 1.6, but TTK was increased from 1.7 to 1.8.

I don't know about 1.6, but TTK was increased from 1.7 to 1.8.

To be honest I was a little worried that this would happen eventually, when the weapons would become more "balanced". I actually like it when there is a "standard" weapon that most players play with, because then it's more about individual skill rather than the rock paper scissor element of tactical advantage and who's got the better fitting. But that probably puts me in a minority, so it seems that this might just not be the game for me anymore.

Please bring me up to speed, since I haven't played since 1.6.

Back then I eventually settled on Caldari Assault. Ultimately, the "run and gun" style is what I do best, especially at close and medium range (aiming, situational awareness, reflexes). I like flanking with speed, but if I'm surrounded by a bunch of enemies I also want to have a fighting chance to deal with that situation. A shield tanked Caldari Assault with an assault rifle used to fit that bill perfectly.

So now I'm back to square one thanks to the re-spec for dropsuits. I still got proto AR so I will stick to that for now. Between the re-spec and passive SP I got 5 mil SP to spend, so I need to make some choices. My questions are simple:

Is there currently a rough loadout which is considered ideal for the run and gun style like the Caldari Assault used to be?

I am very tempted to run a scout since it sounds like they do well now, which of the scouts would you say is most focused on plain and simple gun game? My gut feeling says Gallente. Staying hidden sounds rather useful for this style, and armor tanking a scout sounds like it could be a good compromise between speed and survivability. Or is Caldari Assault still the best suit for this after all (FOTM aside)?

Also, which weapon would you recommend? I still got my SP in assault rifles so I will stick with it for now and I will try out the new weapons before I make a choice, but I'd still like to hear some opinions. I like versatility and range isn't a huge concern for me (usually I find it easier to outflank somebody on a distance than to go into a long-range shootout) so I expect that I will stick with the assault rifle.

Any other important things I need to be aware of (loadout related)?

I'll appreciate all serious replies, thank you! :)

Why do you play a CCP game if you dont like rock paper scissors?

'Galdari scout' Lol.

Caldari scout. Trust me. Run some range amplifiers and precision enhancers with a combat rifle.. All the slayers are doing it.
It's like having the OP 360 scan at all times without having to actually scan. You'll have about 400ehp but you'll be able to see everyone and which way they're looking. You'll love it; and honestly 400 isn't that bad. I run 450 on my min scout with kincats.

It-¦s just that the gallente scout is better than the caldari scout.

I'll stick with the Gallente Scout for now, but what are typical loadouts? If it's kind of popular right now, then I guess there are some general ideas as to how it should be run? What are the most common weapons used with it? Would you say that the assault combat rifle is viable?

Thanks, that looks very useful. The ACR is growing on me, and I just realised that there is a proto version. The Six Kin looks like a beast. A bit of a shame about my AR skill points, and somehow I don't really see why both AR and ACR need to exist when they are so similar, but whatever... I guess one of them is always going to have the edge, so no harm in skilling both.

Why do you run precision enhancers on the proto but shields on the ADV? Just because the fitting requirements worked out better this way, or is there another reason?

What about active scanners, have they fallen out of fashion for solo play? When I stopped playing they were really useful in 1on1 fights and to pick out targets.

Run-and-gun is bad and you should feel bad.

I feel that there's more need for buffer on the ADV to make up for not dual plating it.

Active scanners are pretty much just bad now. The passive scanner is superior in just about every way if you mod it properly.

Ok, makes sense. I went all in on combat rifles now and spent my remaining SP on level 5 for it.

I'm still confused why the assault combat rifle is a better assault rifle than the assault rifle, but I guess in the long run it won't hurt to have some flexibility (as I understand it, the AR is _supposed_ to be better in closer encounters).

With this setup I've been having some fun again, I'm loving the cloak mechanic and hit and run tactics. It's quite different to what I'm used to, but that's to be expected.

Maybe I'm just out of practice, but I get the impression that it's harder to deal with the low framerates than it used to be with my old setup. At least I can somewhat reduce that problem by staying out of the cities, but I don't really get how the people do it who consistently perform well in cities or in blobs (which is one of the reasons I have had more fun playing solo so far).