Gameplay: "We need a hacker!" - Give LA class the Rek

[kunzadar]

The reason an entire squad of engys and medics would be weak is lack of flexibility. The More types of squad members you have the more tactical situations you can respond to. maybe there will be some situations where medics are the only thing you need, but what if a MAX walks in.

Each class should fill a role and add to the squad, but what they do for their squad should be fun. Recon is fun, flanking is fun, shooting people is fun, actively supporting team mates is fun. But having to stay in the rear because your the hacker, then running up and staring at a wall? Personally that sounds quite boring.

[The Degenatron]

Originally Posted by kunzadar

I see a lot of talk about how LA needs more utility, but i don't think that fits.

The class is called light assault. There usefulness in a squad comes from their ability to flank and disrupt the enemy, and be lethal. If their to weak of a class then add things that let them do their job better, like more specialty grenades or weapons.

What i'm saying is that the engineers and medics are their for support. The other classes can and do have massive tactical value without adding more utility. Even if medics and engineers have all the gadgets you would never make a squad of all medics / engineers.

Light assault already get grenades and their weapon is on-par with Engineers. What I'm suggesting in no way stops anyone from playing LA in the way you describe. It simply adds a different way to play LA if a person desires it.

Originally Posted by kunzadar

Each class should fill a role and add to the squad, but what they do for their squad should be fun. Recon is fun, flanking is fun, shooting people is fun, actively supporting team mates is fun. But having to stay in the rear because your the hacker, then running up and staring at a wall? Personally that sounds quite boring.

You are entitled to you personal opinion, but it is a personal opinion. Just because you wouldn't play that way doesn't mean no one else would.

The idea is to give the LA alternate play-styles. If you don't want to be a run-and-gun LA, then don't. If you don't want to be a hacker, then don't. If you don't want to be a squad leader, then don't. But I think the LA should encompass all of these roles because it fits the mold.

[Karrade]

Originally Posted by kunzadar

The reason an entire squad of engys and medics would be weak is lack of flexibility. The More types of squad members you have the more tactical situations you can respond to. maybe there will be some situations where medics are the only thing you need, but what if a MAX walks in.

Each class should fill a role and add to the squad, but what they do for their squad should be fun. Recon is fun, flanking is fun, shooting people is fun, actively supporting team mates is fun. But having to stay in the rear because your the hacker, then running up and staring at a wall? Personally that sounds quite boring.

Personally it might, but outfits I play with, play to win. I have seen few engineers in this game sitting back very far

PS2 an engineer and a medic, from what we have seen, can cover for most roles? So an entire squad of them acting as a unit, enhances the entire scope of the game (almost) Max's excluded of course.

Fun of course. What I am speaking about, is the only perspective I know to give you, that is of the outfit player. I have always seen Max's + Repair + Medic dominating. If something looks flashy but has little practical use it just won't be used much by good outfits, that's it. LA on occasion for fun, or the occasional advantage, sure, then to a more practical class.

[VoodooJanus]

Originally Posted by The Degenatron

You are entitled to you personal opinion, but it is a personal opinion. Just because you wouldn't play that way doesn't mean no one else would.

The idea is to give the LA alternate play-styles. If you don't want to be a run-and-gun LA, then don't. If you don't want to be a hacker, then don't. If you don't want to be a squad leader, then don't. But I think the LA should encompass all of these roles because it fits the mold.

But isn't that YOUR personal opinion? It's not hard and fast facts.

If I was a military strategist, and I wanted to design a perfect advanced electronic warfare agent to whom I would give a hacking device, I would want it to be an infiltrator. That way, I could gain the flexibility of either rushing the base to hack it (not using the cloak) or sneaking in and sabotaging the base should a head-on assault be unwise. Why would you want to give a hacker a jetpack when his primary objective involves him sitting in one place for some time? Unless the point where he had to stand would be difficult to reach, there isn't much of one.

I understand the general concept of what you're saying, but It's not like these soldiers are the ones writing the code to hack into the base. That would take far too long. They don't need to be smart to use the pre-programmed buttons that say 'hack base' or 'deploy eCountermeasures.' They're not battlefield computer programmers, they're specialists.

I much prefer the concept of guerrilla warfare LA. Also, it has been said (somewhere, can't remember where) that the LA will have the shortest TTK out of all the classes. This means that your FMJ metaphor is more likely to have the FMJ character using the LA profile and whoever the other character is to use one of the support characters (engineer most likely.)

I think what would fit best as an alternate role would be turret/other engineer deployables disabler. The Jetpacks can get them to the walls quickest and they are likely to be the first into the fight, so playing a role as a counter-engineer would suit them really well.

[TAA]

Originally Posted by Ratstomper

EDIT: what about giving them the ability to paint targets for bombers, artillery, etc? give them a laze pointer like in PS1. I honestly think it would work better for LAs than infiltrators. Although, it could work for both...

I think this would be perfect.

IMO every class should have enough versatility to be useful in both open and closed areas.

HA - Rocket launcher and strong weapons make it useful against armor in the open or against troops in bases.
Engineer - turrets against troops, mines against tanks, ammo for everyone, repair support for all vehicles
Infiltrator - Sniper for open ground, sabotaging, etc.
Medic - useful wherever there are friendly troops.
LA - useful in areas where their jetpacks can vault them over obstacles. Not so useful on open ground.

Giving them the ability to select targets for artillery would give them an important role out in the field away from the bases.

Addendum: as an unrelated side thought, I think that if someone firing an artillery piece hits an area demarcated by a friendly unit and kills friendlies in the process, that the person doing the spotting should get the grief not the person firing the artillery.