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)

Honestly?

I think keep the HMG as is, but remove the stupid heat built up mechanic.

In reality : rotary cannons exists because it keeps the barrel cold.

In game: It would allow heavies to have a role. Laying down an constant stream of suppressing fire.

Over 1000 dps at a range that can hit everything bar snipers? On a suit which has been buffed to nigh-invincibility except against other HMGs? And now doesn't even have a notable mobility penalty?

No.

Silence, interloper! Your opinion is invalid because the dispersion makes any range it has useless. you would know that if you actually used one. If you can't kill one, it's probably because you can't aim while strafing - any suit can out strafe a heavy's turn speed.

I also think they should reduce the range even though, again, the dispersion makes the range a complete non issue.

HMG should stay as it is. Its allready annoying enough that EON needs 12 heavys on their side to be remotely competetive. So a big no to a HMG buff.

Is it really so hard to comprehend that nearly doubling the damage of a weapon that's already widely used (because it's actually decent) would break the balance? In addition to giving massive buffs to everything else about it?

Cronos Alliance isn't allowed to field opinions on gameplay.

It's in the rules I made up just now.

Oh, yeah, the balance is so dead on right now, why risk it... derp...

Stop all the buff/nerf/QQ.
Every goddamn thing has been nerfed/raped so much that we don't even have time to adapt to it.

Honestly?

I think keep the HMG as is, but remove the stupid heat built up mechanic.

In reality : rotary cannons exists because it keeps the barrel cold.

In game: It would allow heavies to have a role. Laying down an constant stream of suppressing fire.

That's a bit too much damage - killing in our optimal isn't the problem - it's getting them in it without them getting tot close cause we can't turn to save our lives.

I have a hard time stomaching balance comments from people who can't do math.

The HMG does not have a DPS problem compared to the AR. It does 29% more damage per second than the AR. In a game where the difference between noob gear and pro gear is 10%, that is an enormous difference.

Catch them at close range, and the HMG is wonderfully effective against bunny-hopping proto fairies in its current state (HINT: your target cannot change direction when he's in midair). And it absolutely murders if you combine it with a well-placed flux grenade.

The problem with the HMG is damage at mid-range. It's maximum range was unnecessarily nerfed for Uprising. The dispersion balances HMG at range, and therefore its range should be restored to Chromosome levels.

Sharpshooter was why HMG pwned in Chromosome, and that is all. With the skill removed, the weapon was balanced. Give it the 3-5m of range back, and it will be just fine.

An HMG is also not nearly as versatile. It has it's place and that place is close range. It needs less range, faster heat build up, and more DPS.

Giving the HMG more range is like giving a drag racer a bigger gas tank.

Though I think your suggestion would not be overpowered, we already have a weapon filling that role: the shotgun.

If the HMG is intended to be used to for suppression, it still needs to sting at mid-range. If you were to chart a curve, it should do high DPS up close, flatten out to mid-damage levels quickly, and then taper off more slowly the farther you get.

Murder up close, sting at range. Given the current mechanics, the only real way to do that is to tweak both range and dispersion. (The HMG currently murders up close and lol at range.)

In an ideal world, bullets wouldn't magically stop at a certain distance. You'd give the HMG high damage, but make it kick like a motherf***er so that it's hard to keep a bead on a target at range. Then make the ADS big and boxey so that fine aiming at range is difficult with the kick. Using it at range would be possible if you were a highly skilled player, but that's it.

But I didn't design the game, so...

shotgun is the light weapon alternative, it's a hit and run weapon. The HMG is a sit and hold off enemies weapon.