I took on a Hacksaw max 1v1 today with a heavy cycler and a mutilator. I Nearly killed it. Either the guy was a horrible shot, or the damage changes for the maxes, actually makes Max v. Max combat nearly balanced again. Anyone else noticed changes?
I mean folks I am not making a statement here, I am asking a question: Has anyone else noticed something similar? This could have been an especially bad max combatant for all I know.
Having anti-infantry MAXes able to take down other MAXes so easily is horrible anyway - MAXes are way too fragile in PS2 compared to the original Planetside, where they were a lot more resistant to small-arms/anti-infantry fire - direct hits from explosive weapons were the main way to take MAXes down quickly indoors there. That meant that in PS1 anti-vehicle MAXes were the anti-MAX MAX suit - that isn't the case in PS2 as an anti-infantry MAX does the job just as well, meaning that you see very few AV MAXes around at all. Making MAXes more resistant to normal ballistic (non-explosive) damage in PS2 would give AV MAXes a new lease of life, it would make HA dumbfire launchers more useful, and it would bring back the fear of MAXes that normal kits should have (if they don't have a launcher or C4) when this walking tank strides into the room - it might even make AV grenades worth having for HA! Plus most of the balance whining about anti-infantry MAX balance between the 3 empires would go away if MAX vs MAX fighting was mostly taken out of the equation for their anti-infantry weapons.
I noticed no changes, but I think I only fought a few MAXes - I didn't ask if they had certed Kinetic 5, either. Dual Hacksaws to the head won every time in <10m (I usually Charge in or away if I'm not that close). I'm not aware of any changes except to NC AV weapons, which now people seem capable of dodging to a degree.
Hacksaws went from 143x6 with 7(12) ammo(extended) to 134x6 with 6(10) ammo (also reduction in fire rate). That means it takes 12.4 shots to kill a stock max, and 16.6 to kill a kenetic max. That is with perfect acuracy and point blank. Hacksaws have a spread of 4, plus their CoF which is 2 point something. esentialy if he hasnt certed extend mags yet, all else being relitively equal you should win the vast majority of the time at point blank when using any non-NC AI max against an AI max, though if you hadnt certed kenetic you will be very hurt. If he has one extended mag he can win vs stock and lower level kenetic, and depending on kenetic level depends on how much he must pray to the RNG god that spread+CoF doesnt result in too many pellet misses. With two extended mags the NC max will generaly have enouph slop that that even without the favor of the RNG gods he will win unless its his aim that is off.
This. If you fight an NC MAX out of close range, or if they don't have two AI arms fully loaded with extended maps, you'll win every time. If it's point blank and they have full extended magazines, you'll lose every time. I wouldn't consider this balanced. If you always had an equal chance of killing an NC MAX at close range then it would be horribly unbalanced, since you're guaranteed to win at even a slightly further than close range encounter, even if you have a stock MAX.
2 things 1.) It's really easy to avoid a TR max. I hear people who are in Scattermaxes say all the time: Just avoid us. Well, While it's near impossible to avoid a max barreling down on you to fight you at fist range, it's easy to avoid someone who is 20-50m away from you. Just use the now more abundant coverrrr! 2.) It is balanced if two maxes with AI weapons can fight each other, and it takes considerable time to kill. AI. Anti-infantry. If the enemy max pulled falcons, and uses them to slaughter my max, that is a good thing.
