Interesting approach. I find myself not hating this idea. It's not as if tanks worry about us firing rifles at them anyway so who cares if I fit a plasma rifle and a swarm launcher to my assault. Swarms can't lock on to infantry so they won't be negatively effected by this change.

If you want Swarms to be a Sidearm, use a Commando.

The best way to buff vehicles is to add capacitors. This will have several benefits. The first is they could remove the long cool downs and allow players the option of running modules when they want. This adds much-needed flexibility to the system. Secondly, they could buff tank survivability a bit (by either nerfing AV some or buffing tank HPs), since they would now be vulnerable to neuts. This adds depth and interest to vehicle play.

I'm not sure I agree that a swarms should be sidearm -- that would make them too prevalent. But I do think there should be a more effective AV sidearm than knives or a flaylock. Perhaps a mini swarm or a mini forge or something.

That said, I'm of the opinion that vehicle/AV is out of balance in the favor of AV, and something should be done to equalize this.

More clinically insane drooling from someone with an irrational fear and hatred for vehicles.

I'm fairly certain that most vehicle users don't want to be buffed into OP status, they just want to be useful again.

Tanks took a big hit when they removed everything to "balance" them. ADS took a big hit with the burner nerf / swarm buff.

I enjoy using a forge gun, even after the splash damage removal (which I didn't agree with, it should still have some even if it's 1.0M). I can bring it out when tanks become a pain and then still snipe people for the guaranteed OHK. I've had plenty of matches with 10 kills on infantry with the forge gun post nerf. Maybe give the swarms a dumb fire option to give it the same bit of a chance against infantry. How people hit anything with the plasma cannon, I'll never know.

The biggest complaint people have against vehicles is "god-mode". If there was a proper AV sidearm, tanks and ADSs might become viable again in their pre-nefr state (I really don't remember the numbers that far back anymore). It would, at least, make it so some of the vehicle variants can come back into play.... (Come on LOGI DS! I want to fly you)

Wanna buff vehicles? Reintroduce all variants, hull types and modules and then balance around current gameplay, not remove it all and try to balance on paper only to bring them back and find they're not balanced again. Hotfix/patch them in game just like the weapons, and slowly add racial variants. Also in other shooters, anti vehicle is a class unto itself just like the commando is here. Also...theres like, 1 scooter in destiny no reason to even bring that game up on discussion of av.

*flashbacks back to Replication build*

No please. If you think Scouts running around and tossing RE's all over the place, would you want to see them jumping all over the place shooting dumb swarms at you? Especially with the changes to MyoStims that would allow the user of MyoStims jump higher? Yeah, no.

*shivers*

One thing I don't get...

Infantry doesn't have to necessarily sacrifice survivability (HP mods) if they fit a sidearm and grenade.
.

I have to say that this is an incredibly loaded question, as no other FPS game that I'm aware of even allows vehicles to be a 'primary role',