I was curious to know what is the role of an HMG Heavy; target practice?

The support HMG Heavies provide for their teams is minimal. When running in squads, they are often at the rear due to their slow movement speed. This leaves Heavies incapable of playing a support role because of their already distant positions and lack of range. In addition, the bullet dispersion renders the HMG useless if fired outside of its optimal range. However, even within its optimal range, the HMG is often outplayed by the speed of a Shotgun Scout, or more often, a TAR user.

After testing different approaches and strategies to become a decent HMG Heavy, I have made little progress because the class just does not fit in with the type of long range combat that is prevalent in most matches. I often find myself as the center of attention for the opposing side's gunfire and any attempts to retreat or fire back are useless.

Due to frustration, I decided to run with just my Flaylock for a few matches. I did better in these games than I did with my Boundless or Freedom. To experiment further, I dropped my proto and went into a standard fitting with a basic Forge Gun. With eight kills, three LAVs destroyed, five Blaster Installation Turrets and one Clone Reanimation Unit shot down, I have never felt so useful in my entire career of playing a Heavy.

So, my question still stands: what is the role of an HMG Heavy?

Point defense, if you want to be running gunning and leading the charge youll need to give up your health and HMG and go for a smaller weapon and an assault suit

I was curious to know what is the role of an HMG Heavy; target practice?

The support HMG Heavies provide for their teams is minimal. When running in squads, they are often at the rear due to their slow movement speed. This leaves Heavies incapable of playing a support role because of their already distant positions and lack of range. In addition, the bullet dispersion renders the HMG useless if fired outside of its optimal range. However, even within its optimal range, the HMG is often outplayed by the speed of a Shotgun Scout, or more often, a TAR user.

After testing different approaches and strategies to become a decent HMG Heavy, I have made little progress because the class just does not fit in with the type of long range combat that is prevalent in most matches. I often find myself as the center of attention for the opposing side's gunfire and any attempts to retreat or fire back are useless.

Due to frustration, I decided to run with just my Flaylock for a few matches. I did better in these games than I did with my Boundless or Freedom. To experiment further, I dropped my proto and went into a standard fitting with a basic Forge Gun. With eight kills, three LAVs destroyed, five Blaster Installation Turrets and one Clone Reanimation Unit shot down, I have never felt so useful in my entire career of playing a Heavy.

So, my question still stands: what is the role of an HMG Heavy?

Just cause trouble with your heavy. I use a few different fits and use him as an assault, rushing type. Most times if you see me behind a wall or box I am reloading or calling in an OB.

Standard Proto...2x Complex Damage Mods, 1 Complex Shield Regulator, 1 Complex Armor Repairer, 1 complex Catalyzer with Boundless for all terrain, Six Kin for close quarters and Freedom for open range and holding guys at bay. I have also been known to use a similiar fit with a Ishukone Forge Gun. Try the heavy with no armor or shields and increase your speed and mobility.

Try mixing it up a bit with a mix of Catalyzers and that stuff that allows you to sprint longer. lol..I forget the name of it..It is green.

My KDR is #@$@, but I do not worry about that. I am playing to have fun and hangout.

Good luck!

i already have some threads on the subject:

https://forums.dust514.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=81725&find=unread

https://forums.dust514.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=82270&find=unread


lance 2ballzstrong has a thread as well:

https://forums.dust514.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=73100&find=unread


mike pole a play i imagine similar to yourself had similar concerns:
https://forums.dust514.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=79438&find=unread



my main point with regards to the balance HMGs have to have against everything else is that balance is 2nd place to purpose. or rather, when balancing the purpose of whatever item your balancing must be considered. why?

because your approach to the balance must not make the item lose its purpose.

right now ARs out gun HMGs in just about every respect, the HMG isnt even balanced with or on par with the AR but for examples sake, lets say they were.... (HMG does less dps than a militia AR with half the accuracy and 2x the dispersion)

what is the purpose of an AR? multiple purpose weapon, jack of all trads master of none.
what is the purpose of an HMG? anti personell, supression, fire power

clearly the HMG should excel in the area of its purpose, its not supposed to be a versitle weapon, its supposed to have raw power through fire rate, dps, damage per shot, and ammo capacity.

when CCP tried to balance the HMG they made it pointless because you can do everything a HMG can do better with an AR, at 2x the range.


i recommend that the HMG gets a damage and range buff to about the same damage and range as a fully automatica AR of the same class (STD, ADV, PROTO). before you scream OP in girl shrills, remember, everything else about the HMG will remain the same, the reload, over heating, high dispersion and high recoil high damage drop off. so the standard hmg should do 31 hp per shot.

this way the HMG can proper supress the enemy. also, you must have weaponry lvl 5 and put extra points into alot of things for the HMG it must reflect the effort required to attain it.

inaddition, the heavy suit should get the following slight buffs: 15% increase in run and turning speed (still slower than eveeryone else, but fast enough to keep up with squad, and hit targets). 30%-45% resistance to small arms fire (this is in the description of the suit, and the heavy is a slow bullet sponge should be good at absorbing the bullets. this may take the form of a skill OR blanket amount per suit lvl i.e. STD HVY suit = 15%, ADV 25%, proto 45%... or a sprarte skill for heavies only for resistance to damage to shields and armor,, etc)

HMG can't do point defense because it has high dispersion, low damage, long reload
the suit has horrible scanners (can't detect another heavy on the map behind you), and turn speed is **** poor
you can't do CQC.


and think about this logical question:
"how can you defend when you can't successfully attack in the very same area?"
there is no way the HMG can excel in an area defending and in the very same area on offense do horribly.


i.e. if i attack enemies in a narrow corribor as a heavy i die, how can i defend this same corridor from attacking enemies if i can't do well in it on offense.

its illiogical.



the hmg does less damage per shot than the SMG with half as many advantages and about the same optimal range. its a joke.

that fit costs over 200,000 isk and a free blue print dragon fly suit with a toxin smg can end that as soon as it starts.

the forgun gets things done though. because CCP doesnt care about vehicles...lol

So basically you want to be able to "suppress" (kill) anything you see and only maybe possibly sometimes die to tanks who you can also forge into the ground?

no, i want to be able to keep up with the ARs that do just as much or more damage than militia tank blaster cannons. :)
(yes, if you do the calculations ARs can keep up to the dps and some of them damage per shot of a militia tank blaster cannon.

dnt BS me.

Point defense, if you want to be running gunning and leading the charge youll need to give up your health and HMG and go for a smaller weapon and an assault suit

Assaulting it means having to make through the corridor and defeat the enemies on the other side, simple enough
Defending it means repelling those attackers which is where the HMG shine, you see the defender has the advantage in terrain, they do not need to bottle neck

Seriously though, all this field and angle of fire stuff is FPS 101 stuff

, if you think a heavy can just trundle on into enemy fire

then you are playing it wrong, the HMG heavy is a moveable turret and your own skill as a player will need to carry you through its weak spots and find ways to compensate for them

Do people ever take clip size and reload speed into their calculations or is just "Sperg sperg sperg AR is OP cuz it killed me sperg sperg sperg"

Alright Im calling it now, you are just a bad player blaming your tools

ARs reload faster than most weapons in the game, without any skills put into them. about 2.5~3seconds.
full auto ARs have a clip size of 60 per clip, the militia variat can do 1860 damage per clip.

ARs without skill points in the skills have almost no recoil, making headshots too easy.
ARs never over heat (you neeed to fire more than 62 bullets without stopping to over heat, and no damage is take when it happens, recovery is less than a second)



normallt AR users spam things are OP when stuff kills them. i.e. the LAV ran me over, you could just get AV grenades which can destroy tanks, but instead they just yell OP

AR users think flaylocks are OP when really flaylocks are extremely niche and need to be used close range, (or if you stand completely still at midrange i can hit you with them). you only get 3 in a clip it only has a 2.om blast radius max and hit detection makes it so that its still a 50/50 even with proto flaylocks. gt at me

^^this is your rebuttal?

i have over 5million SP in heavy suits and HMGs. I am part of the 1armed bandits as a high ranking member. i have played against notable corps and made a name for myself. still if you want to see if im a bad player, add me as contact and play on my team, or we can get two squads, go to opposite sides of a merc battle and i can show you my skill. to be fair ill only use std heavy gear.


i dnt care whether you accept the invitation or not, but its there.

i am willing ready and capable of proving my point. the weapon is inferior. period. the suit is weak period.

Ill be in game in about 15 minutes though if you want to squad up and run a skirmish match or two