Engineers The need to adjust dropoff on LR. Discuss

[Chongo]

The microgimballing that hitscan weapons provide, particularly at ranges beyond 3k - it's just unfair. The autoaim microgimbal is stupid beyond 3k. It's a one shot plant snipe. The guys running full LR5's rails... I mean, good grief. I think the solution is to adjust the dropoff on LR modifications. Cap LR5 at dropoff at 3-3.5k or something. These 6.8k LR5's hitting with full damage with a micro gimbal that becomes progressively easier at range on a plant... it's nuts. Or I guess you could review super pen further, I know there have been some comments on that being the problem. Thoughts?

 

[Para Handy]

Hitscan weapons? - Since when did Rail Guns get gimbals? Is this a mod, is this a special effect, is this a bad curry?

 

[Chongo]

Rails and fixed pulse/burst/beam have a microgimbal. As you increase your distance from them, the microgimbal is easier to gain a lock on modules.

 

[fus roh potato]

I think it would be a better argument to consider proper convergence mechanics, then rebalance if necessary. It would be a buff to wide hardpoint spreads while a nerf to long range module sniping at the same time.

 

[Chongo]

I think it would be a better argument to consider proper convergence mechanics, then rebalance if necessary. It would be a buff to wide hardpoint spreads while a nerf to long range module sniping at the same time.

Interesting, but sounds multiple department labor intensive.

 

[Alexander the Grape]

From my experience, long range lasers are easily countered by long-range multi cannons. However, I would agree that the microgimballing is a problem.

Given that lasers are generally underused and underpowered ATM, I think it would be best to look at the ease of targeting internals rather than raw DPS.

Maybe remove microgimballing altogether at certain ranges?

 

[Alexander the Grape]

Hitscan weapons? - Since when did Rail Guns get gimbals? Is this a mod, is this a special effect, is this a bad curry?

OP is referring to the slight "auto-aim" on fixed weapons that make them automatically snap to ships and modules.

Its a fine mechanic at short ranges, where aiming is hard, but is far too forgiving when considering the long range mods that increase range to 6km+ with no dropoff.

My suggestion would be to remove the auto-aim altogether for targets further away than about 2km

 

[Morbad]

The autosnap is annoying at close range and makes things pretty easy at long range.

I don't think it's particularly overpowered, but I think the game would be better off without it entirely. Maybe give fixed weapons another modest damage increase to compensate.

 

[AnotherVoice]

From my experience, long range lasers are easily countered by long-range multi cannons. However, I would agree that the microgimballing is a problem.

Given that lasers are generally underused and underpowered ATM, I think it would be best to look at the ease of targeting internals rather than raw DPS.

Maybe remove microgimballing altogether at certain ranges?

Didn't meet anyone running long range MC yet, interesting

 

[Alexander the Grape]

Didn't meet anyone running long range MC yet, interesting

Yeah, I've only seen one other person run it. They stack up very favourably to lasers and to gimballed OC, so long as you can aim

 

[Chongo]

The autosnap is annoying at close range and makes things pretty easy at long range.

I don't think it's particularly overpowered, but I think the game would be better off without it entirely. Maybe give fixed weapons another modest damage increase to compensate.

It's the super pens that are an honest issue. Just with LR3's I can snipe with full damage from 4500 and I have a significant margin of error on aiming movement because of the microgimbal locking in on the very distant module. I'm making this post having run almost exclusively rails this year. Big thing I noticed in the league is that all of us LR rail users are used to sitting at 3k-ish without any dropoff. Since the league was stock in this regard, you were forced into a much more difficult close game (in regard to module sniping). Rails were kinda naturally balanced by their dropoff. Having guys in my wing that I think can fire from 6.8k is it? It's just nuts. They should really look at it.

 

[Alexander the Grape]

It's pretty evident in the 2.1 balance changes and module/effect additions that FDev overreacted to the meta (as usual).

All the counters to hulltanks/silent running were, on their own, fair.

However, the combination of SR weapon heat, missile buff, emissive, super pens and scramble spectrum has proved completely over the top. The only problem with the 2.0 meta was rail guns being OP, but Frontier took all the ill-informed complaints (combined with a general lack of PvP understanding) to decide that shields needed a massive buff, hulltanks needed to be made unviable and silent running removed as a combat tactic

Luckily, things seem to be coming back round, with military slots, emissive changes and the like. However they couldn't bring themselves to cross the HD boosters Rubicon thanks to general forum panic, and so we never got the innovative hull hardness change for the big 3.

Hopefully as hulltanking gets more love they may readjust their approach to super pens and module damage in general