The Heavy needs a rework.

Fighting infrantry 1 on 1 is mostly what i meant

The advantage oof the light asualt is that you can sneak up on enemies by taking advantage of positions they cant reach and wont usually be paying attention to

For example

Youre at a tech plant and a shield generator being held by a small group with a bunch of infantry scattered around the base

As a light assault you can take to the roof and float to that shield gen for a flash bangkill and stabilize the generator assuming someone else doesnt then sneak up on you

Every other class would have much more time and risk involved with this aside from perhaps a stalker with an smg

Another

Acan data hub? Has a square building with an open space in the center

There are several branches where you can snipe out an enemy, drop and get a surprise attack, or C 4 fairy with

Both indar and hossin are riddled with these types of situations

And something more 1 V 1 oriented

Try using the drifters to circle around someone while shooting at them

Its extremely effective

If you want a simple fix, make it so that overshields don't negate headshot damage.

Do they really?

If so ive wasted alot of time aiming

PlanetSide 2 classes weren't born for reasons of differentiating those characteristics. That's far more traditional. Our primary distinctions are the special abilities that are divided amongst them - person shield, ally revival, repair, cloaking, and flying. They have secondary competencies that sometimes bleed over into other classes and almost all classes have a weapon competency (class-exclusive weapon categories, in practice). Light Assault is light in those latterfields, if you pardon the pun, because it keeps getting denied updates.

The headshot modifer still calculates but the damage is also still resisted. If you don't aim, you are only dealing ~0.6x of your base damage; with head aiming, you are dealing ~1.26x.

And in a lot of cases, refusing to learn simple grammar and punctuation as well. Quite telling.

Ya except I can nail a HA in the head with duel falcons on a max and it survives and kills the max before I can reload... Headshot means nothing if duel falcons to the head can't take an HA down...

I dont know if you know this but i actually write as a hobby and i dont take that lightly

When im online though theres no reason to use punctuation

You understand what im typing perfectly well

If you dont understand it then im not the problem. honestly thats just more mudslinging again without a point

How about someone actually talk in this thread about it instead of that?

Why? The other classes get other types of utilities that heavy doesn't get.

I don't think anyone is arguing about class utility. Benefits and drawbacks.

It's just that the heavy has huge benefits and utility with little drawbacks.

Come on now, HA is the king of planetside 2. You cannot deny it. It reigns over all other classes.

Class just needs a movement nerf. Carrying all that crap is heavy anyways.


You know what's funny is that I'm seeing more BR100s (who were decent, but non-stop HAs) trying light assault on a consistent basis and getting rolled up. Well, at least during the time I saw them. Names I'm familiar with that are either trying to prove a point or shamed out of HA.

Nobody is talking about utility.

HA has no utility for anybody but itself.
Weapons to engage any target thats not spacecraft or submarine.
And more importantly 70% more HP on demand. Regenerating HP.

LA also has no utility.
But his ability to fly has severe drawbacks. He cannot shoot accurately and also draws the eyes and fire of any enemy that can see him. It is of no use at all once the shooting starts.

The other classes (except for MAX, but that one is costly) have utility.
Engineer provides ammo and repair.
It IS notable that an engineer holding his repair tool to help someone else is helpless
Medics provide heal and revival. And possibly shield regeneration.
Like engineers, medics are helpless when doing their main job. Which is helping someone else.
Infiltrators provide motion detectors.
Often underestimated those are a big advantage.

I really cannot understand why medics can't accept that their ability helps someone else and leaves them defenseless, while the HAs ability gives him a 70% combat advantage with a slight disadvatage that immediately vanishes when the advantage does.
I mean its a game about combat!
The medic should just shut up and revive the real fighter, right?


Somebody already mentioned TF2.
You know why Heavy and Medic work so well in TF2?
Because the Heavy pays for his amazing advantages with similarly huge disadvantages. And thus he NEEDs the Medic.
He knows that Medic is his best friend in the wide world, and will put himself into harms way to protect him while the medic keeps him alive. Basically what MAXes and Engineers should do, but MAXes tend to prefer evading fire and letting it hit the engineer instead.

In PS2? The HA is simply a superior soldier. Thats it.
Other players are ignored until either ammunition or health/revival is required.
It is also a myth that HAs are the frontliners that take point.

In one sentence each I think the relation between HAs and their "supporters" in both games is like this.
TF2: "Join me doktor, we will be eenveenceeble"
PS2: "Revive me you stupid 0.8 K/D POS"
And I think this is a problem.
Having a fighting game and then having ONE class that is simply superior in it without any drawbacks to even it out and the sole argument being "its his job" is both ******** and bad design. It only furthers this mindset.

Frankly I liked ColonelChingles suggestion to make the HA unable to sustain itself. This way his disadvantage would be that he NEEDs his teammates.
Although the counterargument that this would indirectly buff MAXes is true, this also is just another proof that the HA class is out of whack.

To reply to the person above who i completely agree with

I tend to play heal/support in games and planetsides medics are hilariously the only healers i play where im not yelling at how inept my team is since its not that important anyways

As for engineer though.......

STOP GOING OUT THERE MAX I CANT HEAL YOU SAFE- OH LOOK WE DIED SUPERMAN WHAT DID YOU THINK WAS GOING TO HAPPEN WHEN THERE ARE TWO PROWLERS THERE

^Me and my officer when he finally decided to try the dual falcons and fell in love with them today (We have fun together)

Back on topic


I suggested a slight change earlier that was ignored

A change of 500 shield with a bit faster recharge rate to help balance it out if its too lower a number

This is the lowest change i could think of that perhaps defenders of heavy shields might consider the idea

Heavy Assaults wear power armor, silly.

FINALLY

It took 3 years of "nerf" posts to finally run out of ideas and get to the one thing that actually needs looking at.

Technically, that's just a problem of engineering.
If they could efficiently build an aircraft carrier that could cruise at 200 knots, they'd probably do so.

I suppose the word "utility" I used was misplaced. I think what I meant to say was the heavy has what he has because the other classes have utility instead.

They can only carry so many medkits, and they consume resources. Maybe they should cost more resources to make them more valuable in turn making the medics more valuable?

LA can get in to high places that other classes cannot. They can carry C-4 and blow up vehicles easier with this advantage.

Except for the fact that the player they are healing/repairing is protecting them.

Sure, why not? It's a combined arms combat game correct? It's not like the medic doesn't have a gun he carries is it?

How are other players ignored? Doesn't other medics help to heal each other?
Why is it is myth that HAs are the frontliners that take point? Isn't that one of their main jobs since they have the shield?

I just don't get why people think HA needs to change I guess. And I don't see them changing significantly because people have invested certs in to the class and are used to playing it the way it is.

Thats not what I meant. The standard nanite mesh ability grants 700 HP, 70% of the combined 1000 points of shield and health combined that every class (except infiltrator) has.
Not only does he have those 700 HP more HP, but since the ability (like any other) refills over time its a regenerating advantage.
The medkits are especially annoying in combination with the resist shield though. If a HA at full health activates the resist shield he gains 40% damage resistance AFAIK. That means it takes 1666 points of damage to take him down.
Now, if he chugs a medkit in that time, he is healed by an apparently infinite amount, made invincible for a short time because of that "feature" and after the feature wears off and he has only 500 hp, it will still need 833 damage to kill him, since he has 40% resist.
Since medkit chugging HAs can't shoot back I don't really see the medkit as the big problem here (aside from that "feature")

That IS true. But as I said - he has to get there first, and he can barely defend himself while flying. Even if hes up there its still only a normal soldier in an advantageous position.

Yeah, dream on. When I heal people they take it as a cue to leave cover and shoot enemies, thus either forcing me to move with them in the open or wait for my timely demise when somebody looks for the source of that green beam....

Yes it is, or rather it should be. Combined arms means that you need other people who have access to other equipment to complement your abilities and really get **** done.
The HA doesn't need other people. He is the best class for any situation save one.
Fighting tanks? Take HA. Getting lolpodded? Take HA. Fighting Infantry in close quarters? HA! Medium distance? HA!
Long range? ... infiltrator sniper.
Yes IF gets killed or runs out of ammo he needs help. But thats the same as any other class. Listing this as a drawback to the HA is like listing "Needs to breathe" as weakness of Batman.
Hes not as good in what I call "havoc operations", things usually done alone or in small teams. Like going for an enemy spawn point. Thats usually done depending on the situation by LAs mostly, sometimes engineers, occasionally infiltrators.
But for direct combat? He can do EVERYTHING. Some things even EXCLUSIVELY. And be 70% better at it than other classes.
Thats not combined arms, thats Captain America and his supporting fanclub.

They simply are. Granted, ignoring other players is hardly a trait exclusive to the HA, but it certainly stands out more.
If you start fortifying at A point in a building with 2 engineers, 2 medics and an infiltrator, I bet you 500 smedbucks that any HA stumbling over that is gonna run off toward the enemy spawnpoint instead of waiting for the inevitable counterattack.
And why would they not? It is the same reason why the hero in so many actionmovies is a maverick that only works together with others when he needs to. He knows he is superior to others and propably won't need help. Why hold an advantageous position when you carry your advantage in form of a button you can press when the need arises?

And regarding the "taking point" myth. Well its simply an observation I've made.
And just to clarify, when I say "taking point" I mean charging into a room full of enemies leading a charge.
A good chunk of HAs I see don't like taking point, they rather prefer taking cover and let the enemy come in their sights. If their comrades manage to push the enemy back they'll move up.
Hell I can't count how many bases we've lost thanks to that. When the last 10 seconds approach they usually suddenly start an attack leading to us capturing the point after the base flips.
They have realized a simple thing, although I doubt they did the math.
If being in cover soaks up half the enemy bullets your own health is effectively doubled. (This is an example, don't take me literally)
So if a non HA in cover has (500+500)*2 HP = 2000HP , a HA in cover has (500 + 500 + 700)*2 = 3400 HP. Why would I take point if I can stack another advantage on the one I already have - no easier way to farm K/D.
OR they dance in and out of doorways, firing some rounds through before taking cover again.
The actual leader of a charge is usually a MAX, LA or a suicidal infiltrator.
And to repeat, that is NOT to say HAs don't lead any charges at all. But they most certainly don't do it as often as their defenders claim. At least not on my server.

I think a lot of your strife comes from the fact that other players sometimes don't play their class correctly. An organized team (outfit) that practices these things and plays each class appropriately should resolve most of the issues you see. Or, if you are more of a solo player, learn to pick and choose which class is required for the situation you are in. Yes, HA is an all around good choice for solo players but there other classes that can get things done in other ways too.

A well played Infil will beat a HA in a 1v1 every single time.

That well played infil will beat other classes even easier since there are less hps to burn through.

What you're saying is not entirely wrong.
But that still leaves the fact that I am forced to either:
A. Rely on other players doing their job correctly.
or
B. Take considerable extra effort to gain an advantage to neutralize the advantage he gains by a button press.
or
C. Have considerably superior skills and overpower him by being better. But its not exactly a class than can only be chosen by noobs. Last I heard HA seems to be the favorite class of a lot of... MLG... players. And I don't have 4 hours a day to train my HS skills.
or
D. Take HA myself.

And seriously. Since I am playing for objectives and try to do my job instead of playing it safe my average K/D nowadays is about 1. In one word: Average.
I change to HA - It immediately jumps to 2.5 -3. Sometimes above. In defensive positions sometimes as much as 7.
(In EVEN pops)

Sure I'm all for the HA having some class specific advantage that other classes don't have.
But the way it is right now? His ability is useful in any and all situations. It has no meaningful drawbacks, especially since the minor drawback it has ends immediately when the ability ends.
The resist shield at least ain't as helpful when surprised.
Also is the only ability that gives a considerable advantage in combat, the main focus of the game.
In short, his ability is "better than you".
And lets not forget that aside from the shield making him the superior AI class hes also the primary AV and AA class thanks to the RL.

I think this is a serious problem - there is a reason why about 50% of the people not in vehicles or MAX units run aroundf as HAs.
People notice that HAs are better in a fight, so they pick HA - so there are more HAs that get noticed and more people change....
Most guys - me included most of the time - don't want to go look for an advantageous position for a minute.
We want to get to the point, fight and hopefully win. Forcing us to either only support and stay back and hope we get protected successfully or pick HA is simply annoying.
And 'lo and behold, people complain about the lack of medics. Wonder why that is.

But anyway I shouldn't get so worked up on it.
HA was an overpowerd crutch, is an overpowered crutch and will always be an overpowered crutch.
Just as the arguments why it isn't were, are, and will always be ********.
That I can kill a guy armed with an assault rifle if I hit and he doesn't or even a with a knife if I can get into an "advantageous position" doesn't prove that the assault rifle isn't the superior weapon.
And "thats how it should be" isn't even an argument. If it was tanks would be a threat instead of big boxes that apperently hurl rocks at me - and I consider them barely an annoyance if they don't show up in numbers.

I guess I'll just have to stick to solution D.
Since A is unreliable as ****, B has the disadvantage of additional effort and is unviable in the long term and C.... well I'm a bit above average, that means that every HA with average skill and above will wreck my ****.
If you can't beat them, join them.