http://www.twitch.tv/planetside2/c/5395271 Gets real interesting at the 40 minute mark, like new content stuff.
Well, I can say that I for one probably won't be using the new PPA much if at all. It's not even because I think the new PPA sucks or anything. I just don't like the concept of it. It's supposed to be a close range anti-infantry weapon now, but I've always tried to avoid getting too close to infantry. I know that infantry can rek my Mag if I get close, so I learned to stay away. What use do I have for a close range anti-infantry weapon when I've learned to keep my distance from infantry? My mindset is exactly counter to what the new PPA is. I also prefer an AV role in the Magrider anyway, so that's just another reason for not using the PPA. I have a feeling there will be a lot less SHOOM on the battlefield.
I think the knee-jerk reaction of the Vanu players will be to stop using this weapon for a bit because it is not as easy to use as it used to be. The same thing happened after the ZOE correction. Over the past few months, I am starting to see more ZOEs in battles. I think that either the new players are picking it up or experienced players have realized that it is still a powerful tool for them to break out in certain situations. It won't take long for the better players to realize that they should still be using the new PPA in a lot of very common situations.
The ZoE is not ever worth using lol. The PPA is good at close quarters now, but so is the kobalt, plus the kobalt can aim almost straight up and has 150 round magazine. The kobalt is probably a slightly better weapon than the ppa now. yes the PPa can aoe, but takes 5 or so aoe hits to kill. And if a user is using nanoweave, forget about it.
Errrr... I'm not sure if you know, but the PPA isn't a laser. Most VS technology actually uses plasma, not lasers. For example, the in-game description of the PPA reads: Plasma is matter and has mass. Most likely it is magnetically contained and then propelled. As such because it is matter, it can and should experience "drop". Velocity of propelled contained plasma would actually likely be inferior to bullet or railgun speed. The Saron HRB (which I believe stands for "Heavy Rail Beam") is supposed to be a beam weapon, but the "rail" in the name might also suggest some sort of magnetic propulsion. Again, this explains why it doesn't exhibit the properties of light but instead of matter. The only possible laser weapons in the game are the Scythe's laser weapons which are actually called lasers. But who knows, maybe the VS screwed up on those too and they're not actually "lasers". At this point I'm seriously doubting the VS grasp on science and I'm pretty sure most of them just make stuff up.
I don't think that's the word you were looking for there. Either that or you mixed up "ZOE" and "Charge" in that first sentence there.
Before this patch you had no reason NOT to use the PPA. Too bad, I loved being blasted from hundreds of mts by a weapon that had high speed, huge splash radius, almost no recoil, no cone of fire and no bullet drop.
Wow. ZOE, really? Way to lose all credibility. The reason people use the ZOE now is because they literally do not know what it does. The ZOE is useless in literally every possible combat scenario. Anyone who claims the ZOE is useful for ANYTHING, is completely ignorant to what he ZOE actually does(n't do).
Two things contributed to the rise in PPA use. (It obviously wasn't any buff that it was given... since there was none) 1) Saron's AI was nerfed 2) VPC & PC's AI capability was nerfed Therefore... if you wanted to be effective at AI... you had to pick the PPA... and dedicate your topgun to be effective against infantry and pull either VPC (and totally **** yourself against vehicles) or pull FPC (and let the topgun mostly take infantry detail while you took vehicle detail) Also, directives meant that more PPA users were using it to get auraxium. Now... you'll see more Halberd's pulled from the #1 crowd... and still see plenty of PPA's from the #2 crowd (they may just pull less or look for more favorable situations).
New PPA is going to be scary as hell now up close and I'm more than glad to encourage whiners to abandon it entirely because now they must leave their 250m safe zone behind and work for kills and risk eating a rocket like the rest of us chumps have always had to. It was a relic bloodline whose kin have been purged with every patch since PU01 a year ago, the last of the line is dead now. There are no heirs. All hail King Higby hugs and kisses, Canister user since launch All AV secondaries and all HE/HEAT cannons got AI nerfs. The VS were in a better spot than everybody else before, now they're in the same spot. The PPA is going to be crazy good now but by all means please refuse to use it and bring the dumb Halberd instead. I'm sad that this means I may have to take a Magrider seriously in my Vanguard now though, I guess one can only feast on 1/2 HEAT/PPA Magriders for so long Listen to this guy, he's like the best Magrider jockey on the best server
What, there were reasons for using other weapons. PPA did 0 AV damage, and the 1/2 "AV mag" is woefully inadequate at the AV role. Saron HRB all the way!
They totally destroyed the PPA. I am really disgusted. This thing is now close to unusable on my Harraser. What about my invested certs ??
As someone who had a maxed PPA-H (sans spare ammo) but never really used it... It's just certs. No big deal.
You Vanu have nobody to blame but yourselves. You spammed the crap out of it and you deserve the nerf.
Just to answer some of the replies. I did not say PPA was a laser. I merely used it as an example to point out why VS 'laser' is not so different to your standard bullet. If they are going to be so similar, why bother? I never said that VS should have advantages over other factions because of lore. I merely wish that the faction itself would bear more resemblence to the lore.
You have a rapid firing plasma cannon designed to deal good damage to infantry at close ranges. It doesn't get more VS than lashers and disco crabs that.
Granted they all did, but VS was the only one with a viable long-range option to take up the slack. Honestly, VS is still in a better spot. If you put the Canister or the Maurader on a Magrider... it would still outperform due to the ability of the Magrider to dodge and maneuver for better shots against infantry, as well as its climbing ability to get more altitude and utilize any splash weaponry better. The Prowler's AI ability has always stemmed from the long-range maingun effectiveness... whereas the Magriders AI ability stems from the inherent traits of the Mag combined with an effective AI secondary. The maingun wasn't as good as the prowler at AI... it required a good secondary or a really good position in order to equal the 1/2 prowler AI ability. Since everything else has been the focus of a nerf-train... the Mag's AI is probably the one that took the least hit because it also was the platform with the most "good" options rather than relying on a single "great" option. The good drivers will adapt, the bad will complain... and the smart will point out its just another step in the ongoing theme of vehicles vs infantry being adjusted.
