There are plenty of Dropship and HAV people out there (in fact, that seems to be about it, vehicle-wise), but is anybody showing the LAV some love? I'm trying to, but not only is it hard to spec for LAVs and not get owned by other infantry, but they just don't seem to be very useful other than quickly getting around the battlefield- so long as it's open- and the occasional crush.

I recall people talking about the usefulness of the Logi LAVs, but honestly, I'm not very interested in following a HAV around the entire match. Has anybody gotten good at using the LAV offensively?

I love my LAV I have it loaded up with armor it takes a pretty good pounding. My main use for the vehicle is to use it to get around the map quickly because I am a heavy. But what I really find it great for is to hunt down solo players or small groups. I roll up on them, they think its a militia LAV and start firing at it, I hop out with my HMG and mow them down. I then hop back in and find the next poor merc to be away from the pack and do the same, if I watch out for tanks I can make my LAV last most of the game, except for an accidental head on with any tank at speed that is instant death for some reason.

It is strange but it also blows up with a head on collision with your own friendly teams tank, I wonder if that is intentional or a bug?

And you are an expert? Be careful the assumptions you make about people. I have been playing with friendly fire for many many hours of gaming. And please don't tell me what kind of thinking to have. And don't worry about me I have plenty of isk to use anyway way I want. Don't you represent a clan that is recruiting?

I'll get serious about LAV's when they have a model with a roof.

I've maxed out the tank in them, I've squeezed a Mobile CRU in them, put prototype small launchers on them with damage mods, but in the end when you can be sniped out of your 100k++ LAV by a lucky AR shot, it doesn't matter how many hitpoints or capabilities it has.

The assault buggies are fun to zoom around on and run-n-gun with a gunner, but there's no way I'll follow a tank into a hotzone with one trying to play logistics. I'd be more likely to do it as a ground-skating Eryx pilot than in an LAV.

That said, I see the potential and do recognize them as great ways of getting a bunch of fatties to an objective quickly. But that doesn't require more than a free militia vehicle.

LAV's don't reward tanking, piloting and turret skills nearly as much as Dropships or HAV's do.

Hopefully that will change in upcoming models. Give me an armored Hummvee or a Stryker and I'll be a big LAV fan.

Heck, a protective roof for the driver would make me happy.

That's fine, substitute cheapest possible LAV to train and fit for a Militia vehicle. ;) I don't see how it affects much. LAV's are still too exposed to for most people to invest real isk and SP into. I'm open to hear arguments against this though.

I can see this if dropships are really prohibitively expensive, but I regularly do this with my dropship in my type 2 scout suit w/ uplinks and nanos, and it lets me put uplinks at places that infantry can't easily get to. The platform by C for example.

But, like you said, it's really up to the pilot/driver and the corp on how they want to do things.

i'm still going to request more passenger and especially pilot protection for an added LAV vehicle. ;)

LAV's are good.. just need some love to be really practical.