Buffed Valkyrie feedback

I'm surprised no one is discussing the Valkyrie's changes. This is the second buff the cert pinata gets (the first a few days after the implementation).

Does it work better now? Does it fill any actual role on the battlefield? Any reccomendation about the weapons?

Personally I think the stability frame is now finally worth, it really makes much easier for the gunner to aim and it gives passengers more opportunities to use the Valkyrie as flying platform for infantry combat.

Resistance changes are welcome, in particular Composite Armor that can now negate damage from small firearms. For the first time it makes sense to use something else but Stealth.
I just wonder if these changes are enough for a vehicle that is basically forced to fly low on ground (since Squad Logistic System is optional, you might need to fly very low to give your passengers a chance to drop). The Valkyrie is in fact rather slow, it has no afterburner, and this makes is a very easy target for almost everything.
Yesterday evening a Vanguard hit me with a 150AP shell and it basically oneshotted me but it happened only once maybe I've just been unlucky.

My impression is that despite the buff 2 Vakyries will never be an alternative to 1 single Galaxy. But at least the old cert pinata is now definitely more viable as a fast drop vehicle. The only concern I have, as usual, is that transport vehicles are not really that useful in Planetside 2 because of the redeploy feature that kills the need for logistics.

Regarding the weapons I've tested them in the VR and I'm pretty confuse about which one to unlock. What would you recommend? The CAS, Pelter Rocket Pod, Helion or the guided missile?

I've noticed the changes. I really have. Yesterday a buddy was flying one and we had 3 scythes on us. We lasted enough to get to a friendly base and bail. Instead of being instagibbed.

As far as weapons.. not sure yet.

Still worthless only useable as ataxi vehicle.

Nothing has changed. Still can't find a reason to pull one rather than a Lib or Gal.

I thought the only weapons people used were CAS (aka banshee-v) and wyvern.

still needs big changes:
1. immunity to small arms,
2. ejection seats and squad spawn AS DEFAULT,

and i'd even say they should be able to transport a max, they'd have a use then,
admittedly that could be a bit OP, but the first 2 points definitely need to happen!.

Good only as cheap 6-man Galaxy (and you have to prey you don't meet any AA or ESF on your way to drop zone).

Squad Logistics need to be made a Built in/automatic/passive system.

The old CAS (prior to Thu patch) was atrocious.

The buffed CAS might be potentially somewhat effective though, haven't had a chance to test it.... but CAS was a joke, and it didn't get buffed that much really.

This happened? Why didn't I read this? So max level Composite Armor = small arms immunity?

I did some testing in the VR about the weapons (nothing serious) but the Pelter Rocket pods seemed like they still had crappy splash. I sometimes fired entire magazines at an infantries feet and didn't get a kill (and that's an unarmored dummy with no HA shield).

Pelter Rocket is an abomination we should never speak of again. And do you know what the best part is? 3,5 sec reload time. Zepher on Lib has 4 sec.

Pelters are supposedly an AV weapon lololol

From patch notes:
"The blast damage size on the Pelter is modeled after the banshee. Although it is not intended to be effective anti-personnel, this model is too harsh considering it also has a slow muzzle velocity and a smaller magazine. The blast damage is being remodeled to be part-way between an ESF rocket pod and the Banshee. This should add some versatility to the Pelter where it is more of a hybrid between the CAS-14 and Hellion."

According to patch notes they should be something in between CAS and Helion, so mainly a jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none but honestly I cannot decide which weapon to pick up. I'd like to focus mainly on anti-infantry and light vehicles since I don't think the Valkyrie will ever be a good tank buster (unless you carry 4 HA with lock-on rocket launchers of course).

If you Max Composite Armor now you are basically immune to small firearms.

It's still only viable as a taxi and I still can't see much use in any weapon other than the stock HMG.
I do however welcome the change to the hover stability airframe.

What happened to the ideas of Higby? Last year he said they want to turn the Valkyrie into a support unit (something like the Medivac from Starcraft 2), but they would need programmer time for that. I think that was a great idea.

We dont need another fighting aircraft, Libs and ESFs already fill that role.

They should've given the Valkyrie its own unique role to play. Maybe as a cloaking troop transport. Now it's probably too late.

They could still add a regen, repair, or ammo aura like the Sunderer has. Lower ESF and Galaxy ammo reserves to Liberator levels, then compensate by putting in Valkyrie mid-air ammo resupply. And so on.

It'll never be more than a 100-cert flying spawn system that blows up if you sneeze on it so long as even the best gun upgrades for it continue to have nothing splash and laughable damage, the armor and health are tissue paper, and it still flies like a sinking rock. If it wasn't for the spawn logistics system, it would just sit there in the flight terminal collecting spiderwebs and dust.

It's not a fighting aircraft. It's a transport vehicle and a flying platform for infantry combat. Main issues are:
1) No one needs transport vehicles in Planetside 2 (thank you redeployside, and thank you crappy resources system).
2) In order be effective as combat platform you need to fill it with Engineers and HA (possibly with lock-on rocket launchers). A vehicle relying on a specific combination of classes to be useful is pretty bad..

I consider the last patch like a bandage solution, something that had to be implemented like in late September 2014.
The Valkyrie still has potential, but the two issues above will prevent him from having a relevant role in our battles.

Pelters still suck for 1 major reason.... Velocity of a spitwad.

If anything is moving, you won't hit it.

The only buff they really need is some reasonable velocity. Just make them at least CLOSE to the speed of normal rocket pods.

I Valk a lot. I have the fortune of a group of friends that are down to try anything, and as long as we make some points and have a good laugh, we're 'winning'. I know most people don't have that luxury. I'm also aware most people didn't put +10K certs into their Valkyrie before this update, so take my post with a grain of salt. Obviously, what follows is my own personal opinion.

'Does it work better now?'
Yes, and no. The Hellion and CAS buffs are noticeable, the Pelters are still garbage. I'll disagree with RoniOni above, the Pelters biggest problem is actually ammo conservation. They're great against armored targets, (especially stationary, I won't lie and say I find them 'easy'), and they're abysmal against single infantry and air. The Hellion CoF and damage falloff is great, but it doesn't 2-clip Sunderers anymore at point blank range. This wasn't mentioned in the notes anywhere, and it kills off one of its best uses. The CAS was always our jack-of-all-trades weapon, and the damage boost has helped make it more effective at killing infantry. I'm also grateful to have ESF nosegun resistance built-in, but I still run Composite Armor most of the time, because my biggest enemy is HMG fire, surprisingly. The other defenses are far more situational/role specific.

'Does it fill any actual role on the battlefield?'
This one is a definite yes. Again, remembering bias, (I thought it was effective beforehand), but it's viable to a wider group of users now.

Things the Valkyrie is good at:
1) Short distance transport of infantry. I like to play Quartz Ridge and similar, taking people from Sunderers outside the base inside the walls, and dropping them on the rooftops. I dunno why anyone would choose it for long-range over the easier/cheaper options (Galaxy/REDEPLOY), but for 1 or 2 hex hops, it's great. Low Profile, quiet, disposable.

2) Baiting and infuriating pilots. Lumifiber and a horn were the best two purchases I've made for my Valkyrie. Every ESF sees you as free points, regardless of tag/camo or any other indicator of experience. As such, they tunnel vision, and you can lead them right to flak traps, friendly air, etc. If you can juke a Lib's first pass, you go from dead-meat to a 50-50, depending on your weapon and flying skill. I still prefer to avoid Galaxies, especially manned Battle Gals, unless we have some HA rumblers. The horn, though, they all hate the damn horn, haha.

2A) Filling it with HAs, baiting ESFs in, and demolishing them before they get a shot off. Finally, a good reason to play TR...

3) Anti-Armor. Good maneuverability + AV weapons + engi/HA rumble seats. Our current favorite is sitting directly above Vanguards and raining VLGs onto them. Blind-spot + Guided Rockets = laffs.

4) Boring your engineers to tears. They will make a pile of certs staring at the edge of your aircraft and watching their rep-tool heat gauge fill up.

Things it's still not good at: Being a gunship. To that I say, 'good', it's not a Liberator.

'Any recommendations about the weapons?'
I spent a long time testing them when it first came out. Most of my initial impressions still hold true.

The Wyvern is hands-down the best all-around weapon. It's the only one I can easily solo with, the reload is quick, it has a decent punch/ammo reserve balance. I cert mine for reload, use low-level zoom, and am generally pleased. If we have a medium group (~4 players), we usually go Wyvern for flexibility in role.

The Pelter, as I said above, is niche, but it's decent at that niche. My real gripe with this is how fast you go through ALL of the ammo if you cert magazine size. 10-rnd Pelter = Resupply every 3 minutes.

The CAS is finally decent at AI, and we actually used it plenty before, since it holds tons of ammo and lets you spray and spray at heavier targets, sometimes stealing kills. The AV/AA damage isn't good, but with some reps, you can actually stay in fights and keep scoring points.

The Hellion is my personal favorite, and the first weapon we decided to unlock. It's an air-mounted Vulcan-parallel, decent at AV (long magazine dump time requires decent piloting), ok at AI (get in the rumble seat and throw grenades, lol), and it scares the crap out of air if you can get some good strings in. Couple this with a decent ammo reserve, and this is the weapon we pull the most. Recommend reload certs.

The VLG is a black&white weapon. You either love it or hate it. If you're pilot/gunner combo has good comms and trust each other, it's hilarious. If you're taking pubs, trying to play a 2-man gunship, or planning to do short-range transport, this is the weapon you DO NOT take. I want to go on record saying that certing deep into reload on this is one of the best investments I've made in the game, so far. The rank 4 / 5 reload timer is HILARIOUS, and you will drive armor nuts. We've finally gotten better at killing ESFs with it, but it's all about playing as close as you can and getting the timing right (see above about trust + comms).

TL|DR: If you got just one, I'd probably still choose the Hellion first. The buffs only made it better (see above exception about Sunderer TTK). It's versatile, has decent ammo economy, and it looks and sounds mean to boot. The Pelter is a good low-investment AV weapon, but if you're group can usually field 4 players, and you have certs to burn, you're actually better with the VLG, currently. Finally, the CAS is the only AI-Focused weapon, so it has it's niche, and the suppressive fire you can lay on a base is solid. It just wouldn't be my first buy.

With the Hover Frame, do you find that when you catch fire, you still plummet to the ground? This was the original reason I never bothered with it, I hated how hard the fight was to keep it airborne while your engies try to get your engine back up. If that is finally fixed, I may try it again.

I disagree. If you have 4+ people willing to use it, it's a very effective fighting platform. The trick is to find enough people willing to earn mediocre points, because it's definitely not lucrative. Likewise, finding 6 guys with AA locks or rank5+ rep tools is challenging for some groups, and they will think everything I wrote above is complete BS, lol.

I also just checked both in-game and the patch notes: nothing has changed concerning small arms resistance. It's the vehicle mounted HMGs that were the issue, and CompArmor still mitigates most of that.

Final note, (who wants to read anymore, lol), the old Pelters took direct hits, essentially, and you almost never got a kill. The current ones will actually let you splash their feet, but it still won't get AI kills, haha.

Lastly, I take randoms for rides, and anyone who wants to ride a ****** Valkyrie just has to add me on friends and catch me online, lol. dstock, on Emerald TR. vstock on Emerald VS also has a stealth wyvern setup, but only my TR has fully-certed toys.