As it stands, there is no NC LMG that can really compete toe-to-toe with the MSW-R, T9 CARV, or the ORION MS54 due to their low rates of fire. This is a massive drawback in close quarters combat and hinders the NC's capacity to deal with offensive pushes outside of using shotguns. The heavy assault is the bread and butter of any army in this game, and having such a handicap in CQC leaves the NC disadvantaged in one-on-one combat. I propose that the EM1's RoF gets a modest boost to approximately 700 RPM. It's a readily-accessible weapon that is available when a new player creates an account. It doesn't have to have 750 RPM, but something closer would be ideal for new players joining the faction. It has a long enough reload to compensate for the fire rate increase.
I was about to say use the JackHammer, then i remembered the price so ignore that... Well all people have shotguns so CQC is not a bad thing . But we need a good LMG for CQC. So far the best is the Anchor but is pretty expensive. The GD-22S is also a viable option all-around for a start (and its only 100 certs)
We just need something that is good in CQC. Modifying one of the two early LMGs seems like the best course of action.
First of all, there's nothing wrong with one team being worse at some things, in some ways, than another team, that's asymmetrical balance. You should play to your strengths as the NC. You've got the Jackhammer for close quarters, and your MAX suit is the unrivalled king of CQC. Not even AV MAXs can beat an NC AI MAX in close combat.
Anchor does CQ well enough, I actually like it more then Orion and MSW-R. If EM1 would be redone though I would prefer that it gets more NCfied rather then more TRified. We already have too many TRish weapons on the NC side.
While everyone gets access to shotguns, a majority of the NC LMGs are ponderously slow with their RoF. If there's anything they have going for them, it's their ballistics velocity, but that doesn't mean squat in a stand-up fight, as most fights are over contested points in tiny buildings.
