Class-Switching Mentality

[Ellipson]

Originally Posted by Palerion

In attempt to sum up my thoughts, here are the three main things I was trying to discuss, yet don't think I managed to clarify or adequately deliver by any stretch of the imagination:

The main problem for me is that you keep bouncing from the support class argument to the LA/Infiltrator thing... it's really hard for me to figure out what you want done, outside of "every class can't handle every situation, except sometimes they shouldn't be able to because teamplay is important and sometimes they should because support classes are weak 1v1" which is a confusing thesis. Let's try to figure it out.

1. I kind of want classes to have their own unique way to gain an edge in combat.

The Global Agenda anecdote aside (underrated game), this is your point, basically.

I don't think the gap between an HA's ability to kill things vs. anything else is as big as you're making it out to be. The weapons in the Carbine/AR class tend to have equal or slightly higher RPM compared to the LMG counterpart. The main difference is the shield, which depending on certs/et cetera, can result in the HA having at most 45% more health than you in the most ideal of situations (puts up full resist shield before they get hit, at full health/shield). In practice, this percentage is going to be a lot lower in "real" situations, not to mention the slightly higher DPS the other weapons are putting out.

HA shield numbers for reference here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/...xMUJHNXc#gid=3

2. I don't like dying or having to switch classes in order to handle a situation. Personally I don't like having the option. I feel like it's a bit cooler to have to survive an onslaught of tanks until some friendly AT soldiers come, or do some serious improvizing if I'm not prepared to handle that situation

Doesn't this go against your "unique edge in combat" idea from 1? The whole point of your Global Agenda anecdote was that you could do things on Robotics that Assaults could do, and... now you don't want to be able to?

It improves team reliance to need that teammate to take out a tank if my class is more anti-infantry focused, and can lead to some McGyver moments when you can't get help. Having two people in a squad that focus on two different kinds of killing makes you have to call on your buddy(ies) in order to handle a situation that your class wasn't designed for. It gives both classes a sense of importance and integrity.

This happens now though; Medics are needed most of the time to sustain offensive pushes, Engis are needed for ammo/repairs for the same reason, and both classes can provide these needed support capabilities while still being able to kill infantry efficiently. LA's are excellent for good spawn beacon placement/flanking/dropping MAXes. Having an Infiltrator to flip enemy vehicle terminals for AMS Sunderers is a huge deal. These classes can perform their utility functions while having a large percentage of the killing power of the HA.

Trade-offs are trade-offs. You could build poison medics in GA, but you gave up a ton of healing power to do so. In PS2, you can bring Medic for revives and heals, but you have to give up some of that killing power to do so.

3. The infiltrator and LA seemed too close together in role in my opinion. I really didn't want to jump to a conclusion that they should be merged. I just wanted to express that they felt like they were meant for the same job. My hope is that they will develop in the future to become more unique soldiers. And while I know many people feel that they already are, I don't find their differences to be apparent enough. And that is not in attempt to call you wrong: it's just my view. I could see the developers paving very different paths for these classes in the future, but for now it's just a concern of mine.

You managed to write an entire paragraph about the LA and the Infiltrator without explaining what you think their role is now.

LA's are incredibly fun flankers/harassers that can ambush MAXes, tear up infantry, place beacons in impossible to reach locations (except for other LA's). I'm biased because I consider myself a pretty decent LA, but they're in a decent spot right now; I'm way better at wasting infantry on my LA compared to my HA because Jump Jet + Carbine (and shotguns if you're a heathen) is so good. My only complaint is running out of ammo.

Infiltrators probably need some help. Having vehicle hacks back would be pretty cool. I really don't think it'd be overpowered in a metagame that revolves around LA's and Engi's dropping on vehicles via beacons/squad deploy to instagib them. A greater emphasis on radar darts (make it as good as vehicle radar?) would help too. That said, they're the only class that can snipe and the only class that can flip terminals for surprise AMS, which means you almost always want one around.

So after all that...

It sounds like you basically want all the classes to be able to do everything in a pinch, while also having classes with specified roles. Or maybe you just want HA shields nerfed. Not sure.