I'm a Python pilot, and Gallente tech wouldn't dream of putting 2 damage mods in their lows for fear of crippling their tank.

Yeah it's pretty bad that they include multiple types of tanking for dropsuits and vehicles, then make one clearly superior to the other in both instances.

What's the point of options if one option is so blatantly inferior to the other?

exactly.

In this game, armor tanking is kind of like hero tanking in EVE, so I kind of understand why they've made the armor modules a bit more powerful than the shield. We're tanking with the last resort of our HP.

Shield tanks need a slight buff to resistances on the module front. It works fine with HAVs, where they are supposed to be long range damage machines, using cover (where Gallente tanks are supposed to be front-line troop support and fully exposed to enemy fire).

This shield tanking flavor does not favor the Dropships, though, one must admit. It doesn't work very well to deploy squads in hostile areas if you can only rely on damage protection for a few seconds. Just some small tweaks are needed to set the vehicles straight.

I can fit a soma to beat all of my caldari fits for rail turrets. I have the enforce caldari HAV. so where are caldari HAVs meant to be at?

If you're using a Caldari Enforcer HAV with railguns, you're misusing its bonus. If you don't like missile launcher turrets then I would suggest you stick to the Gunnlogi as a railgun sniper. The Falchion should be utilizing the improved efficiency (15% range and damage bonus to missiles) of missiles to take full advantage of its role on the field (missiles give it an edge over armor tanks as well).

I'm assuming your complaint is in regards to the fact that the Gunnlogi has a 5/2 slot layout but the Madrugar gets a 2/5 slot layout? So you are going off of the idea that the Madrugar is capable of more damage if you slap a lot of damage/turret modifiers into all of its low slots? In which you'd be right, but what you'd have is a tank that's going to fall apart from a good Assault Dropship, a good Gunnlogi Railgun tank, a good Forge Gun operator, etc. The Madrugar, if fit to be a rail sniper, kind of doesn't get the option of "survivability".

Any Armor HAV that isn't slower than a shield HAV isn't properly tanked and should be easy pickings, so it's not anybody's fault if you couldn't kill it but yours. And Assault Dropships have the advantage over tanks (if the tank isn't sticking inside the red zone) because it can hover over the tank and avoid all fire.

And if armor tanked rail Somas were so much better than rail Gunnlogi, why is it that every time I call in a Sica and start pounding on an enemy rail Madrugar that they start hiding behind buildings and mountains? Why don't they just sit there with their superior tank, superior damage, and superior speed and finish me off in my poor, useless militia HAV?

you went from soma to madrugar plus you just mentioned a tactical upper hand-surprise wait till the get a bead on you, it becomes you shot him 8 times he shots you 3 times and you have to hide and he wait for you to pop out because he out tanked you while full tanked HAV and he went for damage mods. and repeat till someone else helps or someone gets a terrain advantage.

I went from Soma to Madrugar because if the Soma is so much better, than why am I scaring off Madrugars (which are the better version of Somas)? And it's not always a surprise advantage, either. At least, I'm assuming it's not a surprise that I'm shooting him when his turret is very clearly pointing in my direction?

Unless of course he's just, I don't know, off making a sandwich and just so happened to have his turret pointed away from, you know, all of the action. And do you honestly believe 8 railgun shots to a Soma aren't going to phase it, but 3 railgun shots to a Sica are going to cause it to cry for help?

If an armor tanked Rail Gunnlogi could beat a shield tanked rail Gunnlogi, you might have a point. But that's not how it works.

It's exactly how it works.

My Gunnlogi Railgun fit with 3998 Shields (2x damage mods) and a heavy shield repper is built for combat, I use it for redline and midrange combat, it's a versatile fit due to the repper. I come across Madrugars with around 6000 Armor and a heavy rep, they start pounding me, I have to fall back after they hit me 2-3 times, I rep myself and I'm only at half shields. The armor tank takes 4 shots, reps itself and is back up to full HP.

>Used to fly Python Dropships
>Respec'd into Gallante Dropships

(On my main)

The Gallante Dropship can run 2 armor plates and an armor repair with 1 shield harener a shield extender. Use 1 PG module and it all fits, Gallante Dropships can inherently run more health and survive longer, so really Gallante runs all in the vehicle department.

Shield HAV with Missile Turret > Armor HAV with Blasters
(especially if Shield tank bother to flank armor tank and shoot in his ***)

Shield HAV with Missile Turret > Armor HAV with Blasters
(especially if Shield tank bother to flank armor tank and shoot in his ***)

So you're saying that a shield tank that's specifically built to take on armour-fitted vehicles should be reasonably expected to flank and go for the weak points to (just barely) get better than an even-odds chance against a vehicle fitted with an ANTI-INFANTRY weapon?

You're right! That's totally balanced!

Except that blasters are better for anti infantry. Armor is getting it all at the moment.