I agree leave the mass driver as is but it needs a little more ammo. Nothing a nanohive can't do but still. The flay lock pistol is pretty much useless due to the hit detection. The radius got screwed, and sometimes hits don't register. I tend to use the smg now, pretty much deleted my flay lock suits. I did agree it was op dmg wise but they over did the nerf with the radius

[P11] Shotgun


The shotgun is a weapon that suffers very ,very badly from the hit detection we have currently. At close range, itGÇÖs crucial landing that shotgun round, and itGÇÖs very frustrating (and stupid) when a shot that should have hit misses.


The shotgun also suffers from the failures of the light frame.


IGÇÖm not sure there are really any problems inherent with the weapon, and if there are I canGÇÖt really see them in the current build. If youGÇÖre a shotgunner please go ahead and chime in, but I think proper hit detection is whatGÇÖs really needed for the shotgun.
IGÇÖve heard from some that thereGÇÖs a range issue, but I havenGÇÖt really found that myself. Correct me if IGÇÖm wrong.


[P12] Nova Knives


Nova knives are always going to be a lol weapon really, unless theyGÇÖre hopelessly overpowered (somehow).
Due to the way they work, I think there simply isnGÇÖt much to be done. I know some people complain when their protosuit gets stabbed in the back and instakilled by charged proto nova knives, but frankly if you get killed like that you deserved it.


Nova knives need to be able to sprint while charged, though. IGÇÖm pretty sure thatGÇÖs not in yet.

This is coming from a former shotgun user and current Nova knife user.


the Shotty and NK only prob is hit detection, but it would be nice to lunge/charge sprinting.

The standard assault rifle variant is almost fine, in my opinion. The clip size is a bit too generous, and the recoil doesnGÇÖt work very well - I think that the recoil is laughable.
All the recoil and kick disappears the moment you stop holding down the trigger, so thereGÇÖs hardly any recoil if you burst it even occasionally. The recoil doesnGÇÖt do much even if you do hold down the trigger too much.


This leads to the weapon being too accurate. I think the recoil should be increased quite significantly, and the mechanic tweaked so that the effect doesnGÇÖt reset if you let go of the trigger for an instant.




The burst assault rifle is lacklustre. The sights on it zoom in a bit too much, and the green scope is quite restrictive. The currently poor hit detection means that the burst fire mode also feels quite restrictive. The burst comes out quite slowly, meaning that if youGÇÖre on target for the first shot the next couple of shots might well miss if the target is strafing.
The delay between bursts means that despite the higher base fire rate, because of the lower per bullet damage this variant tends to pull less dps than the automatic variant. Hit detection also affects this weapon significantly, as in CQC itGÇÖs harder to land a shot than with other weapons. The ammunition of this weapon is used up very quickly due to the higher fire rate and lower damage nature of the weapon.


To fix this, I would suggest changing the fire rate so that the GÇÿburstGÇÖ comes out very quickly, all at once, and having a momentGÇÖs delay between bursts. This is actually very similar to the state of the prototype variant right now - a flat fire rate between levels and only ramping up the damage would work better for this weapon. This would make the weapon more about landing a solid burst, and give it a more defined role than it has now. I would also suggest a change in the sights, as the high zoom sight isnGÇÖt great for the shorter range combat this rifle tends to find itself in. A slight buff to damage would also bring the damage output of this weapon up to par - alternatively, a marginal range increase would help this weapon a bit. A small increase to ammunition reserves would be worth considering as well.



The breach assault rifle isnGÇÖt in a very good place. A long time ago this weapon was king, but the nerfbat was swung too hard and itGÇÖs never really recovered.
The damage buff in Uprising was a welcome change, and it has helped the breach quite a bit. However, this weapon suffers from the lower rate of fire - while fixing hit detection will likely help this a bit, with two similar dps weapons itGÇÖs better to go for the one with higher fire rate because youGÇÖre likely to land more of your damage output on the target. The damage output of the breach is actually lower than the automatic variantGÇÖs.


The breach has less damage and range than the automatic AR.
LetGÇÖs compare the standard breach and the standard automatic.
ItGÇÖs 34.1 HP at 750 RPM vs 51.0 HP at 400 RPM.
ThatGÇÖs 426.25 dps vs 340 dps - showing that the breach has quite a bit less dps than the automatic.


Overall, the breach assault rifle has lower dps than the AR, lower fire rate, and, crucially, lower range. The lower range is something that the breach really suffers from, and with no trade-off worth the range reduction this rifle is consigned to the GÇÿuseless weaponsGÇÖ pile.


To fix this, a number of things need to be done. I think keeping it as a CQC weapon is a good thing, and it carves out its own role as a variant.


This weapon needs to reward accuracy in CQC - I believe that was the original intention. Because of this, I suggest tweaking this and going with a higher fire rate. The TAR already fills the job of high damage low fire rate at range, so range canGÇÖt simply be buffed. It shouldnGÇÖt be too much of an increase, so the weapon can still reward accuracy in CQC, but if you increased the fire rate a bit more whilst leaving the damage the same youGÇÖd get a more powerful weapon at short range, which is fairer than the current state of the weapon..


If you went with a fire rate of 588.2 rpm, youGÇÖd end up with 75 more dps than the standard assault rifle, which is a fair trade for the range, and with a lower fire rate itGÇÖs a little more rewarding for accuracy.

That simple fix would do wonders for the breach AR - the range doesnGÇÖt necessarily need to be increased much, as long as itGÇÖs notably more effective in CQC than the other variants of the AR are.
This would suit the short range high damage philosophy of Gallente tech more.


The Tactical Assault Rifle was previously unquestionably overpowered. It was, luckily, nerfed.


I think this nerf has mostly worked. This is no longer a weapon which can wreck any suit in an instant. It remains very strong at range, but this is working as intending, and itGÇÖs weaker at CQC now. Perhaps itGÇÖs still quite accurate with hipfire, but I donGÇÖt think this is enough to warrant a tweak. The main reason that people use it right now is for its range - This is a good thing,as it fulfils its intended role, although ranges in general across all weapons could be a bit higher.

[P12] Nova Knives


Nova knives are always going to be a lol weapon really, unless theyGÇÖre hopelessly overpowered (somehow).
Due to the way they work, I think there simply isnGÇÖt much to be done. I know some people complain when their protosuit gets stabbed in the back and instakilled by charged proto nova knives, but frankly if you get killed like that you deserved it.


Nova knives need to be able to sprint while charged, though. IGÇÖm pretty sure thatGÇÖs not in yet.



[P13] Sniper Rifle


Sniper rifles have a bit of an issue with the risk vs reward paradigm, it would seem.
Being a super long ranged weapon, theyGÇÖre designed to stay away from combat, but with current mechanics this enables them to do a couple of things.


Chiefly, they can sit deep behind their redline where the only thing that can really kill them is a countersnipe. IGÇÖm not a fan of this - I understand that there is kind of a need for a redline, and itGÇÖs an ancient debate, but when you can sit back behind the redline with no risk to yourself except countersniping, I donGÇÖt think thatGÇÖs good balance.
ThereGÇÖs an ideal gameplay principle called GÇÿcounterplayGÇÖ, essentially where everything has a counter to it which isnGÇÖt itself, and thatGÇÖs somewhat lacking with redline snipers.


The upcoming TACNET changes could be quite bad for the sniperGÇÖs teamplay role - much of their utility for a squad is in tagging things onto the TACNET, and when thatGÇÖs gone theyGÇÖre not much more than K/DR padding tools.


So the main problems with this class arenGÇÖt with the weapon itself, theyGÇÖre with the role definition and dubious mechanics (the redline).


Something that IGÇÖd like to suggest would be that snipers should be able to tag players onto the TACNET for the entire team, and not just themselves. This gives them a unique ability and role definition as overwatch for the team.


Aside from these mechanical issues, there are a couple of balance problems within the class.


The first is the charge sniper rifle. When sniping, alpha damage, the initial damage that you put down, is very important. If it takes multiple shots to down the target, it alerts them and gives them a chance to get to cover.


Consider, then, that the Ishukone sniper rifle damage is 229.9.
Then consider that the Charged sniper rifle damage is 321.9.


The Charged sniper rifle can hold its charge. This means that it can charge up whilst looking for a target - it doesnGÇÖt suffer from the charge time much when taking the initial shot, and it only needs to be on target for a moment. This front loaded damage effect makes the weapon very effective compared to others in its class, especially with damage mods. If you get a headshot with damage mods, you will almost certainly score an instant kill with this weapon. ThatGÇÖs very easy to do due to the nature of this weapon, only needing to be on target for a moment.


Thus, I think that the charge sniper rifle shouldnGÇÖt hold its charge. That way, it gives you a very high reward for keeping on target, and prevents such easy instant kills.


The second issue is the ThaleGÇÖs.
Yes, itGÇÖs an officerGÇÖs weapon. Yes, itGÇÖs salvage only and rare.
But itGÇÖs so far out of the league of the normal sniper rifles itGÇÖs ridiculous.


It has the same firing capabilities as the Ishukone - meaning that it fires shots instantly and doesnGÇÖt need to charge. It also has a decent RoF.
It has 355.3 damage.
ThatGÇÖs massive. ThatGÇÖs 50% higher than the Ishukone rifle, and it can one shot practically any suit with headshots, which it can snap off instantly.


ItGÇÖs an officerGÇÖs weapon, but itGÇÖs too far beyond the realms of normal weapons.
Could the damage for this be brought back in line a little bit?



[P14] Grenades


Grenades are another one of those ubiquitous weapons.
I think currently theyGÇÖre a little too ubiquitous.


Currently, you can carry three of them and they get restocked by portable items which you again can carry multiple of.
Consider that a Core Locus Grenade is practically a personal nuclear weapon and spamming these becomes a very dangerous prospect.


A Core Locus Grenade does 600 damage. This is easily enough to 1 hit most suits straight out, and the damage doesnGÇÖt reduce much over the large splash area of 7.2m. This is very powerful on its own. This is the outlier, of course, but 400 damage over 6m is still fearsome, and the sheer number of grenades available makes them spammable.


Right now, everyone has plenty of grenades and itGÇÖs easy to get more. When someone ducks into cover, nobody thinks of flanking him or tactically outwitting him, they think of throwing grenades in there to kill him straight off, because they have so many they can just chuck them repeatedly at anyone who does that.
And everyone has this same idea, because grenades are so plentiful.


Grenades are fine in terms of killing potential right now, but the sheer numbers are not fine at all. The grenade rain that happens any time someone is in cover isnGÇÖt fun for either side - especially as the alternative is tactics rich gameplay like flanking.


I think that carrying capacity for grenades should definitely be reduced - 3 grenades is far too many - 2 would be better, at least. Another suggestion I have would be to stop them being restocked from nanohives and limit them to being restocked at supply depots. This increases the strategic value of supply depots whilst simultaneously preventing standing in a nanohive spamming grenades at anything that moves.







This concludes the thread. Weaponry is a very debatable topic. What are your thoughts?

The standard AR has too large a magazine, is too accurate, caries too much ammo overall, and has too short a TTK to properly fill it's role as a generalist weapon. It is simply out shining too many weapons, and where niche weapons are actually better, there not better by a large enough amount.

pears the moment you stop holding down the trigger, so thereGÇÖs hardly any recoil if you burst it even occasionally. The recoil doesnGÇÖt do much even if you do hold down the




Thive. The burst comes out quite slowly, meaning that if youGÇÖre on target for the first shot the next couple of shots might well miss if the target is strafing.
The delay between bursts means that despite the higher base fire rate, because of the lower per bullet damage this variant tends to pull less dps than the automatic variant. Hit detection also affects this weapon significantly, as in CQC itGÇÖs harder to land a shot than with other weapons. The ammunition of this weapon is used up very quickly due to the higher fire rate and lower damage nature of the weapon.


To fix this, I would suggest changing the fire rate so that the GÇÿburstGÇÖ comes out very quickly, all at once, and having a momentGÇÖs delay between bursts. This is actually very similar to the state of the prototype variant right now - a flat fire rate between levels and only ramping up the damage would work better for this weapon. This would make the weapon more about landing a solid burst, and give it a more defined role than it has now. I would also suggest a change in the sights, as the high zoom sight isnGÇÖt great for the shorter range combat this rifle tends to find itself in. A slight buff to damage would also bring the damage output of this weapon up to par - alternatively, a marginal range increase would help this weapon a bit. A small increase to ammunition reserves would be worth considering as well.



The breach assault rifle isnGÇÖt in a very good place. A long time ago this weapon was king, but the nerfbat was swung too hard and itGÇÖs never really recovered.
The damage buff in Uprising was a welcome change, and it has helped the breach quite a bit. However, this weapon suffers from the lower rate of fire - while fixing hit detection will likely help this a bit, with two similar dps weapons itGÇÖs better to go for the one with higher fire rate because youGÇÖre likely to land more of your damage output on the target. The damage output of the breach is actually lower than the automatic variantGÇÖs.


The breach has less damage and range than the automatic AR.
LetGÇÖs compare the standard breach and the standard automatic.
ItGÇÖs 34.1 HP at 750 RPM vs 51.0 HP at 400 RPM.
ThatGÇÖs 426.25 dps vs 340 dps - showing that the breach has quite a bit less dps than the automatic.


Overall, the breach assault rifle has lower dps than the AR, lower fire rate, and, crucially, lower range. The lower range is something that the breach really suffers from, and with no trade-off worth the range reduction this rifle is consigned to the GÇÿuseless weaponsGÇÖ pile.


To fix this, a number of things need to be done. I think keeping it as a CQC weapon is a good thing, and it carves out its own role as a variant.


This weapon needs to reward accuracy in CQC - I believe that was the original intention. Because of this, I suggest tweaking this and going with a higher fire rate. The TAR already fills the job of high damage low fire rate at range, so range canGÇÖt simply be buffed. It shouldnGÇÖt be too much of an increase, so the weapon can still reward accuracy in CQC, but if you increased the fire rate a bit more whilst leaving the damage the same youGÇÖd get a more powerful weapon at short range, which is fairer than the current state of the weapon..


If you went with a fire rate of 588.2 rpm, youGÇÖd end up with 75 more dps than the standard assault rifle, which is a fair trade for the range, and with a lower fire rate itGÇÖs a little more rewarding for accuracy.

That simple fix would do wonders for the breach AR - the range doesnGÇÖt necessarily need to be increased much, as long as itGÇÖs notably more effective in CQC than the other variants of the AR are.
This would suit the short range high damage philosophy of Gallente tech more.


The Tactical Assault Rifle was previously unquestionably overpowered. It was, luckily, nerfed.


I think this nerf has mostly worked. This is no longer a weapon which can wreck any suit in an instant. It remains very strong at range, but this is working as intending, and itGÇÖs weaker at CQC now. Perhaps itGÇÖs still quite accurate with hipfire, but I donGÇÖt think this is enough to warrant a tweak. The main reason that people use it right now is for its range - This is a good thing,as it fulfils its intended role, although ranges in general across all weapons could be a bit higher.


The standard AR has too large a magazine, is too accurate, caries too much ammo overall, and has too short a TTK to properly fill it's role as a generalist weapon. It is simply out shining too many weapons, and where niche weapons are actually better, there not better by a large enough amount.

The Magazine carries enough ammo for 4 or 5 kills without reload if someone never missed. Now, of course people miss, but most weapons don't have that much depth in the magazine. It is true though, that the overall amount of ammo carried is a larger issue.

If someone never missed but because gun fights in this game are about making your opponent miss then it is necessary to have a large clip. If the strafing speed were slowed down, and ADS strafe speeds were severely slowed down then a clip reduction would be fine. Also if the clip for the AR is to large what about the clip for the ASCR?

I'm not as familiar with the ASCR, so I wouldn't want to make recommendations to that weapon without more knowledge.

Maybe the clip size shouldn't be changed, but the AR does, compared to the other weapons that I know well, carry more lethality in the magazine, and more lethality overall.

Maybe it's be fine with just a reduction of damage per shot and an increase in dispersion.


Personally, I think it shoots too far for a blaster weapon as well.

Again I think its just best to wait for all rifle variants to be released then have them fall into their proper place.

I'm not as familiar with the ASCR, so I wouldn't want to make recommendations to that weapon without more knowledge.

Maybe the clip size shouldn't be changed, but the AR does, compared to the other weapons that I know well, carry more lethality in the magazine, and more lethality overall.

Maybe it's be fine with just a reduction of damage per shot and an increase in dispersion.


Personally, I think it shoots too far for a blaster weapon as well.

With respect, adding more rifles isn't going to make the current AR any less OP vs the weapons that exist now.

CCP has been nerfing other weapons left and right to balance them vs the current crop of weapons. I see no reason why the AR should be immune, especially given the glaring issues.

The standard AR is far from UP. They are being used to kill at 10 times the rate of scrambler rifles.

The fact that it's the most used doesn't say ****.
Assault scrambler rifle is EXACTLY the same as the AR.
Range, DPS, accuracy, etc'
Only has a larger clip and a slightly tighter hipfire.
Does anyone complain about it?
No.
Why?
Because people hate what kills them most.

The fact that it's the most used doesn't say ****.
Assault scrambler rifle is EXACTLY the same as the AR.
Range, DPS, accuracy, etc'
Only has a larger clip and a slightly tighter hipfire.
Does anyone complain about it?
No.
Why?
Because people hate what kills them most.

It is about the same in every stat as the assault rifle but the recoi is to high you have to burst fire which doesn't allow you to get the full potential of the dps as the ar. If the recoil was reduced it will even be more powerfull cause everybody uses shield.

It says volumes. There's a reason that they're most used, and it's name is OP.

OR
1. They're the starter weapons
2. There are 3 blueprints of those
3. Everyone invested into AR's without checking out scrambler rifles

They kill almost as much as 11 of the available 14 weapons in the game, combined.
I think there's more to it than blueprints and lack of exploration.

Trust me, there isn't.
It's easy to use, but that's about it.
It's not spectacular at anything.

No, I think I'll still be pointing out that killing the diversity of the game is actually a problem.

The players are killing the diversity, nothing else.
It's the eaiest to use, people will stop using it only if it was nerfed to uselessness.
Also, the assault scrambler rifle is the same and yet it's less used, to make people move there you will have to make the assault rifle worse.

The players are killing the diversity, nothing else.
It's the eaiest to use, people will stop using it only if it was nerfed to uselessness.
Also, the assault scrambler rifle is the same and yet it's less used, to make people move there you will have to make the assault rifle worse.

I think one of the reasons you don't see as many AScR is the fact that they appear so deep into the skill. Level I, occasionally II unlocks all variants for most everything, where it takes level IV to get the assault scrambler. In fact, the only reason I knew of its existence, was hearing the weapon fire and not knowing what it was, then attempting to get killed specifically by that player so I could see what he was using.

If they were available sooner, There'd probably be more of them around.

The weapons in this game should be balanced to the point that no matter what you decide to use, you'll find a way to have fun with it. The AR can be that entry level weapon, but when all the racial types come out, there needs to be some serious re-balancing or we're just going to be back here again saying the Plasma Carbine, Plasma Blaster, or whatever the hell CCP is going to call it is still overpowered compared to all the other racial weapons.
I'm fine with full auto rifles being the entry level weapon, every game needs an entry level game mechanic, but it needs to have some downsides.

I think they got it backwards and should have made the AScR available at lvl 1 and the ScR at 2 or 3.

The standard AR has too large a magazine, is too accurate, caries too much ammo overall, and has too short a TTK to properly fill it's role as a generalist weapon. It is simply out shining too many weapons, and where niche weapons are actually better, there not better by a large enough amount.

The standard assault rifle variant is okayish, in my opinion. However, the clip size is too generous, and the recoil doesnGÇÖt work very well - I think that the recoil is laughable.
All the recoil and kick disappears the moment you stop holding down the trigger, so thereGÇÖs hardly any recoil if you burst it even occasionally. The recoil doesnGÇÖt do much even if you do hold down the trigger too much.


This leads to the weapon being too accurate. I think the recoil should be increased quite significantly, and the mechanic tweaked so that the effect doesnGÇÖt reset if you let go of the trigger for an instant.
Also, the clip size should be reduced a bit. 60 rounds is unnecessary and leads to far too much spraying 'and praying'.




The burst assault rifle is lacklustre. The sights on it zoom in a bit too much, and the green scope is quite restrictive. The currently poor hit detection means that the burst fire mode also feels quite restrictive. The burst comes out quite slowly, meaning that if youGÇÖre on target for the first shot the next couple of shots might well miss if the target is strafing.
The delay between bursts means that despite the higher base fire rate, because of the lower per bullet damage this variant tends to pull less dps than the automatic variant. Hit detection also affects this weapon significantly, as in CQC itGÇÖs harder to land a shot than with other weapons. The ammunition of this weapon is used up very quickly due to the higher fire rate and lower damage nature of the weapon.


To fix this, I would suggest changing the fire rate so that the GÇÿburstGÇÖ comes out very quickly, all at once, and having a momentGÇÖs delay between bursts. This is actually very similar to the state of the prototype variant right now - a flat fire rate between levels and only ramping up the damage would work better for this weapon. This would make the weapon more about landing a solid burst, and give it a more defined role than it has now. I would also suggest a change in the sights, as the high zoom sight isnGÇÖt great for the shorter range combat this rifle tends to find itself in. A slight buff to damage would also bring the damage output of this weapon up to par - alternatively, a marginal range increase would help this weapon a bit. A small increase to ammunition reserves would be worth considering as well.



The breach assault rifle isnGÇÖt in a very good place. A long time ago this weapon was king, but the nerfbat was swung too hard and itGÇÖs never really recovered.
The damage buff in Uprising was a welcome change, and it has helped the breach quite a bit. However, this weapon suffers from the lower rate of fire - while fixing hit detection will likely help this a bit, with two similar dps weapons itGÇÖs better to go for the one with higher fire rate because youGÇÖre likely to land more of your damage output on the target. The damage output of the breach is actually lower than the automatic variantGÇÖs.


The breach has less damage and range than the automatic AR.
LetGÇÖs compare the standard breach and the standard automatic.
ItGÇÖs 34.1 HP at 750 RPM vs 51.0 HP at 400 RPM.
ThatGÇÖs 426.25 dps vs 340 dps - showing that the breach has quite a bit less dps than the automatic.


Overall, the breach assault rifle has lower dps than the AR, lower fire rate, and, crucially, lower range. The lower range is something that the breach really suffers from, and with no trade-off worth the range reduction this rifle is consigned to the GÇÿuseless weaponsGÇÖ pile.


To fix this, a number of things need to be done. I think keeping it as a CQC weapon is a good thing, and it carves out its own role as a variant.


This weapon needs to reward accuracy in CQC - I believe that was the original intention. Because of this, I suggest tweaking this and going with a higher fire rate. The TAR already fills the job of high damage low fire rate at range, so range canGÇÖt simply be buffed. It shouldnGÇÖt be too much of an increase, so the weapon can still reward accuracy in CQC, but if you increased the fire rate a bit more whilst leaving the damage the same youGÇÖd get a more powerful weapon at short range, which is fairer than the current state of the weapon..


If you went with a fire rate of 588.2 rpm, youGÇÖd end up with 75 more dps than the standard assault rifle, which is a fair trade for the range, and with a lower fire rate itGÇÖs a little more rewarding for accuracy.

That simple fix would do wonders for the breach AR - the range doesnGÇÖt necessarily need to be increased much, as long as itGÇÖs notably more effective in CQC than the other variants of the AR are.
This would suit the short range high damage philosophy of Gallente tech more.


The Tactical Assault Rifle was previously unquestionably overpowered. It was, luckily, nerfed.


I think this nerf has mostly worked. This is no longer a weapon which can wreck any suit in an instant. It remains very strong at range, but this is working as intending, and itGÇÖs weaker at CQC now. Perhaps itGÇÖs still quite accurate with hipfire, but I donGÇÖt think this is enough to warrant a tweak. The main reason that people use it right now is for its range - This is a good thing,as it fulfils its intended role, although ranges in general across all weapons could be a bit higher.

I agree with the size of the magazine and the accuracy (in that there isn't enough recoil) but I don't agree with the TTK. The damage output would be fine if you couldn't maintain it for ages and if it wasn't all applied due to the accuracy.

Here's another little compilation of player feedback on the AR

The players are killing the diversity, nothing else.
It's the eaiest to use, people will stop using it only if it was nerfed to uselessness.
Also, the assault scrambler rifle is the same and yet it's less used, to make people move there you will have to make the assault rifle worse.

Clip size is fine, shots are bound to miss and this is a strafing game, not a twitch shooter.

As a Scout, I have an easier time dodging SCR fire than AR fire. Probably due to the scope as RoF seems to be neglibible in this comparison.
SCR has an overheat mechanic
SCR gives away it's owner's position when fired to a greater degree, (bright beams of light)
Built-in Scope makes it slightly tougher to use in all situations

So, while it's not a perfect balance, it's still better balanced than auto AR's. Auto AR's still rule the day as it has none of the above downsides in comparison.

It is also not due to exposure and what someone has already skilled into. I can own with a militia fit using the frontline with 0 sp invested. Moreso than I can with a SG with level 5 on everything but ammo capacity, even in CQC.
Thats just the basic (since tradeoff should be SG is better at CQC, it's really not consistently better even with an SP variance of a coupla million).
Also, what about end game? Proto Duvolle is meta level 9, Proto SG is meta 7. This is accurate as the Shotgun costs more in both fitting requirements and isk, (even with skills into SG), but has less stats in every single category.

Try killing 3 people with an SG without reloading. Even if you score every single hit, (and you wont), you cannot do it. Try the same thing with the AR, I bet you do it once a game. This is even without the requirement of scoring each hit, which is actually easier to do with the damn AR, although I blame that on the lack of SG love.

Sigh...
ASSAULT SCR!
ASSAULT!
THERE IS A HUGE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO! -_-

I agree with most the OP posted .

Except:
on PLASMA CANNONS:
''1. An increase in direct damage so that it actually performs its AV role.''

Im okay with all the other buffs requested by the op, but the damage should stay the same.
If you increase the damage of the Plasma cannon, you nerf the forge gun.
The forgegun damage is a mere 1320 (or so) at standard level only 300 more than a plasma cannon at the cost of having to use the slowest piece of **** suit in the game.
Sure , plasmas should fire faster rounds , with more splash damage and have faster reload speed. I do agree on that.
But the damage should be reserved for the ones that sacrifice speed to get it.

On SMG's:
''2.The assault and normal variants of this weapon donGÇÖt really have any differences, apart from ones which make the assault variant marginally superior.''

I use Proto SMG's as main weapon ever since the Shotgun became unusable for me.
I will tell you whats the difference between ISHI Assault SMG and Six Kin SMG. About 20000+K.
And the difference on preformance is nearly NONE. So i obviously stayed with Six Kin SMG.
The assault variant need or either some kind of buff ( a nice Range buff would be nice) or either a price drop.

I do agree to that Breach SMG is a piece of ****.

Thats all. Great post overall.