Gameplay:Human Turret on a Tank

[Bobbunny]

Forewarning, I have no idea with Planetside and it's lore or how it's supposed to be really played.

This is also more oriented towards the heavy tank.

As with most games with tanks in multi-player, there is generally an extra spot to shoot people with, and that is the turret. Generally located up top, it gives you a 360 degree view, and a nice gun to go with it.

However, you are usually exposed directly to fire in some way.
TR, VS, NC have their own designs and names for the weapons below. They also have their own spec. turret.

Standard .50 HMG -
Hits hard, lots of ammo, decent rate of fire. A nice all around weapon for most services. Mow down men, weaken some armor, or suppress a base. These things have a little bullet shield on the front, so a lot of fire will be taken in if they shoot head on, not to say a bullet or two won't slip by.

Smoke Grenade Mortar -
Small magazine and a moderate range. Get hit by a grenade, and it will hurt. This thing will fire out smoke grenades for cover! No protection really granted besides the gun itself, but it can be very useful. You should not really shoot at someone you cannot see. Push smoke, and you push your army.

Grenade Launcher -
Larger magazine than for the smoke grenades, but still small. Fair rate of fire, and it launches the almighty grenade. Granted, the splash will be nerfed a little, as well as explosion radius, but it's practical. Nothing says hello like a face full of HE grenade.

Flamethrower -
The ultimate close range weapon. Short range, lots of ammo and damage. Not much else to say but a weapon of flaming death. Has a bullet shield like the .50. More linear spray though

Gameplay -

Additionally,as a spec/cert for a tank (Or probably just the Heavy Tank), it would free up a turret space (For where a usual .50 or other co-axial gun would sit would sit), and it's essentially just a big old hole.

A single person can chill there to fire at people, and then duck for cover.
Or a MAX unit.

The MAX unit case would be the upper body of the suit in view, and allows the suit to spin around in the turret space.

Usability IMO would be varied. Obviously, just having a guy there opens up a wide area of possibilities, given the large amount of customization. MAX units in particular should be stressed. People keep on blowing up your tank with C4? Get a MAX there with some flamethrowers or scatter guns. Need extra cover to progress? Smoke nades everywhere. Rockets coming from nowhere? Sniper.

Balance wise is where the MAX gets hit hardest. If the tank stops, they are the biggest, and easiest target ever. They may be big, but shooting a stationary tank is easier than a moving tank. They are also very exposed. A large part of their body is out there, hence lots of damage taken.

For the little guys, they will probably have a lesser effect when used. Obviously, a rocket launcher would help in a vehicle combat situation, but they too are exposed in the upper torso, and their ability to duck is their salvation.

Pro -
MAX unit on your tanks to do whatever (Flamethrower, Mortars, Scattergun, AA)
A buddy to roll in your tank taking pot shots at everyone or everything with viable cover. Rocket Launcher would be suitable IMO for an extra little punch.

Con -
Lose the .50 or other turret you have up there
Leaves your friend vulnerable to fire. More so with the MAX unit.

[Ductape]

Its interesting, but I don't see it being more effective than a specialized turret, and probably will be less effective. What you end up with is a more vulnerable turret. The turret can now be removed separate from the tank by enemy snipers/ enemy coax. Not to mention that the person manning it will likely be specializing anyways to deal with a particular threat, so why not just give the turret more specialization options?

The way i look at it, an un-specialized max chillin in the turret wont take out what it needs to, a specialized max may as well be a turret, and basic inf will just get mulched.

[Bobbunny]

Originally Posted by Ductape

Its interesting, but I don't see it being more effective than a specialized turret, and probably will be less effective. What you end up with is a more vulnerable turret. The turret can now be removed separate from the tank by enemy snipers/ enemy coax. Not to mention that the person manning it will likely be specializing anyways to deal with a particular threat, so why not just give the turret more specialization options?

The way i look at it, an un-specialized max chillin in the turret wont take out what it needs to, a specialized max may as well be a turret, and basic inf will just get mulched.

Well, none of the turret should provide real cover, so some regular infantry would have the bonus of being able to pop up and down. Plus, the ability to use sights, nades, and their wide choice of weaponary is subbed in for the effective ness of a standard turret.

MAX's add more to this given their heavy weapons. MAX with dual rocket launcher things = Tank buster, AA cannons would make it there too. Although they are not supposed to be transported by them, it would aid in the ability to protect a ground force without air superiority via MAXs being with the tanks and their flak cannons at the ready.

[Alderego]

I can see engineers hopping in that spot and keeping a constant repair-stream up on the tank with that.

Sorta like they do already in BF3 with the transport choppers: it turns them into very nasty things to take down quite quickly :/