The EWAR system needs a rework to have a healthy dynamic - (snip)
This way you're incentivised to fit both damps and precision enhancers and even if you can be picked up at some point both will always have a use.

Like maybe having a piece of equipment the reduces your profile low enough to avoid scans, but only when active? I wonder what we should call it?.........

I do prefer your idea though.

Let me be frank about the whole situation. I am not one for QQ.

I am willing to try the proposed EWAR situation with my min scout.

Maybe the current scanner nerfs will prevent perma-active-scan.
Maybe I can live with being scanned by Cal scouts and just operate where they aren't around (~40-70m scan radius).
I can swap my dampener for a range amp (same fitting) as it will no longer help me.

If it does end up being total **** however, please CCP, either change it back, or do something like buff profile damps to -40% profile or something (number off the top of my head).

IMO, Tar needs more damage for it's low mag count/range/rate of fire. Anything the TAR does the Scrambler does dramatically better.

Before overheating you can fire more rounds with the scrambler rifle downrange, faster, than the TAR has in it's mag, at a longer range and with more damage to shields, with higher damage in general -AS WELL AS- the ability to charge it up.

TAR definitely needs to be more viable when compared to the Scrambler Rifle. Just my personal thoughts though.

Breach -definitely- needs some work, especially with the change to Gal Assault focusing on dispersion since it already has a great hipfire dispersion; just makes it laser accurate. Burst needs to be able to contend with the Combat Rifle in terms of performance without increasing it's rate of fire, so probably more damage.

In pubs the minscout is usable. But then, so is everything - I use a plasma cannon and ion pistol combo in pubs, sometimes. That doesn't mean they're balanced. I'd very much like to see as many dropsuits and fits as possible being viable on a competitive tier, and the Minscout simply won't be under these conditions.

Dear players,

we are back with most of the numbers that can be discussed. A few things are under technical evaluation but these are the stats we are proposing for Hotfix Alpha.

Here are the numbers Hotfix Alpha Numbers

Due to popular demand and community reasoning, we are making a few strategic changes.

1) We are not reducing Minmatar Commando speed at this time, it stays the same.
XXX 2) We are probably going to move the Gallente Scout repair rate over to the Amarr Scout. The "probably" is now "not"
3) We are going to change cloak dampening to be slightly above zero for Advanced and Prototype, albeit at lower rates

So, please review the list and give us feedback in this thread.

These concerns deserve special mention, as they were mentioned a lot.

• Scouts and EWAR - the intention was never to "fix" the EWAR meta with Hotfix Alpha. Just to force players to make a choice between being completely unscannable or scannable and invisible.
• Swarms as AV - We don't want to change too many things at the same time. Improving swarms to counter tanks, will affect dropships as well.
• Changing swarms from Explosive to Hybrid is not a direction we want to take, even if it would give Calmandos an AV edge. We are more looking at granting some sort of AV bonuses to all Commandos.

Again, thanks for the constructive and positive feedback,
CCP Rattati

Please consider tying cloaking device profile dampening to the cloaking device operation skill instead of just practically nixing it altogether otherwise you will just be screwing the meta again in terrible ways - cal scouts will scan everything and gallente scouts will still be invisible to everything.

Cal and min scouts as stated will have 0 answer to gallogi pro focused scans and in most cases won't even be able to fight other cal scout scans.

Make it an investment to get that dampening while cloaked!

Excellent idea.

Being scanned by scanning specialists is perfectly find and balance. I run double dampener on almost all of my Min Scout fits. Occasionally when I have to act as assault support I only use one. That being said, A few specialized fits used to detect me is perfectly balanced. Stop whining. It's fine.

And Cal and Min AND Amarr Scouts will have plenty of answers. If you get scanned, then you stick near the organized group and provide assault type support until the scan is gone and then get to scouting again. You also have to remember that the scans aren't 360 degrees.

Yes, I was a bit vague, because I haven't had time to look into it properly. I didn't even know until now that the Amarr Assault dropsuit has fewer slots than its counterparts. In the not so distant future, you can consider slots getting equalized across all comparable racial tiers. That is, when we slot those changes into the hotfix pipeline, and I can't promise that it will be in Hotfix Alpha.

The merc in position 1000 on the leaderboards has over twice your experience.

But being a cherry doesn't make you wrong.
Being wrong makes you wrong.

Move along.

Gallente Scout Repair rate-3hp/s
Amarr Scout Repair rate+3hp/s

That's cute. You believe you outrank me. I get it. You think that everyone should be unscannable if they are a scout. So sweet. Unfortunately, this isn't candy crush son...it's an adult game where sometimes things aren't your way but are still balanced.

Dropships are already basically invulnerable to Swarms as it is, sooooooo..... wtf. They can fly faster than the Swarms travel and outrun them, they can fly higher than a Swarm can ever hope to lock, and furthermore on the last point Swarms have such pathetic lock range that Dropships can basically just act like they don't exist.

@ Parak
Nothing on smart spawn. Stunlock is on the table.

@ Eko
Read the thread then get back to me on the Minmatar Scout. Guys like Moody are concerned with good reason.

How about, make armor reps % base? So sentinels don't need to stack 4 reps to not be pathetically slow? Glad you're buffing them but thought I'd toss it out there.

The % by your armor rep numbers gave me the idea.

Also if you're making a cloak dekay fix the cloak
Most maps or dark areas you glow like the 4th of july.

The TAR isn't so bad, but dat burst and breach...

Maybe a slightly larger mag on the breach?

@ Parak
Nothing on smart spawn. Stunlock is on the table.

@ Eko
Read the thread then get back to me on the Minmatar Scout. Guys like Moody are concerned with good reason.

Thank you for the reply. I would like to point out that not only do they have less slots, they start out with mostly high slots at lower tiers (militia basic medium frame, standard assault), and possess equal high and low slots at higher tiers; this does not make sense for an Armor-tanking race.
The Amarr logi at higher tiers suffer from a slot deficiency as well when compared to other racial logis of the same tier. Compare a proto Amarr logi to a proto logi from any race, and it will be apparant. Some would argue its a tradeoff for the sidearm, but that doesn't make sense; Amarr logi have less equipment as a tradeoff for the sidearm, but why do they also need less module slots?
There is also the issue of why do logis have more module slots at higher tier than assaults anyway? it allows them to more tan makeup for their lower base HP and be better slayers than assaults.
There is also the lesser known issue of how much logis suck at standard tier when you look at their module slots, and compare them to assaults.

I have an old thread [ > > THIS THREAD HERE < < ] on the subject of medium frames, assaults, and logistics that covers.

The Amarr slot layouts are not the only ones that don't racially make sense.

The module slot gap between tiers for medium frames; it is MUCH higher for mediums than any other frame size, especially for logistics; logis start out just horrible in module slots at standard tier, less than their assault counterparts (except Amarr logi), yet progress to have more module slots than assaults at higher tiers.

The module slot deficiency between Amarr mediums (NOT just assaults, basics, and logis as well) other race's medium dropsuits; for the logi, one could make the argument that less module slots (at higher tiers) than other logis is payment for sidearm, but the Amarr logi also sacrifices equipment slots compared to the Gallente and Minmatar logis.

The assaults at higher tiers are inferior to logistics a higher tiers because of difference in module slot count.

I would like a complete medium frame overhaul that will achieve the following:

All medium frames, including the logistics, will be viable at lower tiers.

All assaults will be preferable for the job of slaying at higher tiers when compared to logistics.

The first 2 points can be achieved by not only equalizing module slots between assaults and logis at all tiers, but also equalizing the specific slot layout as well.

Fixing the Amarr slot deficiency.

Racially consistent slot layouts.

The module slot gap between high and low tiers being consistent with other frame sizes; each tier increments module slots by 1, not 2 or more. This would if proto has 8 module slots, advanced has 7, and standard has 6. If instead proto instead has 7 module slots, then it would mean advanced has 6, and standard has 5.

Its kind of more complicated than that because of the craziness of the Caldari logi (starts out absolute worst standard tier both in modules and equipment, then gets a whopping 9 module slots at prototype, while other logis have 7 or 8), but its all covered in my thread. I strongly encourage you reading my thread, I put a lot of thought into it, and I tried to be as thorough as possible.

The end result of what I want is that assaults and logis of the same race and tier have the same module slot layout, and module slot count. At each higher tier, the module slots increment by 1; for example, if they start with 6 module slots at standard, then at advanced they will both have 7, and at prototype they will both have 8. The equal slots will allow the higher base HP of the assault to actually matter. Assaults are be more mobile, will have slightly higher HP ceiling (because of the currently higher base HP). The logistics have the 2-3 more equipment slots for higher utility.

Dear players,

we are back with most of the numbers that can be discussed. A few things are under technical evaluation but these are the stats we are proposing for Hotfix Alpha.

Here are the numbers Hotfix Alpha Numbers

Due to popular demand and community reasoning, we are making a few strategic changes.

1) We are not reducing Minmatar Commando speed at this time, it stays the same.
XXX 2) We are probably going to move the Gallente Scout repair rate over to the Amarr Scout. The "probably" is now "not"
3) We are going to change cloak dampening to be slightly above zero for Advanced and Prototype, albeit at lower rates

So, please review the list and give us feedback in this thread.

These concerns deserve special mention, as they were mentioned a lot.

• Scouts and EWAR - the intention was never to "fix" the EWAR meta with Hotfix Alpha. Just to force players to make a choice between being completely unscannable or scannable and invisible.
• Swarms as AV - We don't want to change too many things at the same time. Improving swarms to counter tanks, will affect dropships as well.
• Changing swarms from Explosive to Hybrid is not a direction we want to take, even if it would give Calmandos an AV edge. We are more looking at granting some sort of AV bonuses to all Commandos.

Again, thanks for the constructive and positive feedback,
CCP Rattati

As appealing as that sounds, that's such a bad idea. Starting with 2% it would give heavies a distict advantage over mediums. Anything lower would reduce the repair rate for mediums. At 5% a heavy could get 120 HP/s if he stacked 4 and had 600 HP. It would make logis obsolete.

I'm fine with a slight buff to repairers as proposed, but no %. He'll no.