Why do people think the heavy assault is overpowered?

That was changed with PU2

Thats a long time given current TTKs. Add in latency ...

The idea is to nerf how quickly the shield is effective, its not going to be a buff.

I mean thats less time than it takes to ADS a rocket launcher so it isn't anything ridiculously unfair. If you get jumped, you get jumped. Every other class has to deal with that, so a ramp-up time certainly can't be considered a disadvantage. That would beg the question, a disadvantage for who?

No other class has an ability designed to be used in that exact situation, so why the heck should it be nerfed? Other classes have abilities that help them get the drop. The HA does not. So it its completely fair that the HA gets the class ability that it has been given.

Where is the evidence the class is OP? Certainly not from your class performance figures, that would suggest that the Engineer is the OP class and certainly not from mine, that would also suggest its the Engineer.

If its simply the fact that lots of people are playing HA, then that would be the worst logic.

Hello, I'm Average Joe.

In both my VS and NC character (the TR one has particular stats because it was the starting one and for one period I didn't have a subscription and the rig I got now) the most class (except for MAXes) with more SPM is the Engineer, then it comes the LA.
HA is 4th for SPM in my NC (a bit less than my infiltrator). While it's in the 3rd place in my VS toon just a bit above the CM.

In either case the HA is one of my most played class.
I don't see the insane SPM I can rake with other classes and anyway my best killstreaks were made as a SMG infiltrator.

I couldn't care less about HA shield, tbh. Even though I feel rather dirty each time I get flanked and get out of it with ease with the push of a button, feels really cheap for a FPS, but apparently this is ok and needed for many, so why not...
I'm more "angry" at the stupid OSK rocket launcher. Another uneeded crutch for people who cannot cope with the consequences of their choices.
As I see it, if I exagerate, this tools are there to make bad people feel less bad, but that's just me. I see the utility and gameplay elements in them, but that looks too much for zero cost to me. Non OSK (even though hurting a lot) rockets would be a better fix imho.

I'm going cold turkey on HA in preparation for this crippling nerf.

Medic is the new assault class. I have only a few hours in the class, but was able to manage this (along with about twenty revives in the same period, so I was still being an effective support class as well) in an active assault to retake/defend a cap point, with population parity, and no hiding in a spawn room:



The H-V45 is hands down better than the Orion at pretty much everything. Less recoil, half the hip fire spread, similar ADS accuracy, better ROF, same damage. It only lacks in magazine size and ammo pool, but I was still able to manage three or four kills with one mag no less than three times in the short time I played this afternoon. This is generally better than I am able to do with the Orion, even though I have more than ten times the total number of kills with the Orion.

I have to be slightly more careful not to be jumped as a medic, but the lower TTK of assault rifles and infinite free healing easily makes up for it in a direct combat role.

Planetside 2 LMGs are not general purpose. They are all round worse at almost everything, only achieving parity at long range and for suppressing fire.

PS2 assault rifles are general purpose.

It's a downgrade from the current situation, and unless the HA is packing a shotgun, it's going to put him/her at a disadvantage vs any other class. TTKs in CQC are on the order of one or two seconds, so if you get jumped and this new ramp up has any appreciable delay whatsoever, it's useless, and if you have an LMG, you are at a major disadvantage vs almost any other primary.

Thats a strange kind of half logic.

Any way, tonight felt like a trial run, since the lag on Woodman was such that my shield wasn't coming on half the time I pressed the button

I just read they're giving NC MAXes the ability to sprint with their shield up. This should be a terribly entertaining turn of events with no heavies around to rocket them.

If it puts you on the SAME footing as your enemy, it isn't a disadvantage.

Your advantage is merely delayed for a split second. There is no disadvantage.

@Hoki

There indeed is a disadvantage (or do you not play HA at all?) that being the movement reduction, which is quite severe and leads to many deaths when attempting to evade fire and turning a corner.

You don't even know what it is yet.. very drama, much hysteria, wow.

Equal footing is not disadvantaged. For the first time you'll be on equal footing until the ramp-up time, which we don't even know what it is yet.

Of all situations mentioned in this thread, getting jumped is the primary offender in which heavies are victorious by pressing a button.
That isn't balance, thats just a button reversing the situation. Anyone who reads the blurb from the dev can derive that they want heavies to be more disadvantaged when unprepared.

LMGs are perfectly good weapons.

If you stop playing heavy altogether, lol, well I guess thats a start. There are way too many heavies at any one time as it is.

I will continue to play HA when it makes sense to.. and I'm quite certain it will continue to be my highest SPM class.

It would be considered a disadvantage then, as for that split second the HA is on the same footing as the lighter class who didnt plan out his movement well. Run in front of a heavy, you should be punished for it. Same way i get punished by headshots when im running in straight lines, or buckshot in my back if i dont look up onec in a while. Why are we taking away the front line classes biggest advantage of using his defensive capability when he wants?

You don't even know the details yet. Stop assuming the worst.

If the shield doesn't kick in until 0.5 seconds after activation, the movement reduction may very well not kick in until then either.
Ditto with the glowy effect.

We just don't know, but you shouldn't assume it will be a horrendous delay with all of the downsides and none of the benefits.

HA is my highest SPM class.

I honestly hope I get a utility option to replace the shield one day, I find skill buttons to be incredibly boring.

Like a spawnable battlements that have tiny holes you can shoot small-arms through, similar to engineer turret but bigger.

Or a deployable shield canopy that covers your guys from above.

You dont see how a guy popping his sheild in the middle of being ambushed and then winning the 1v1 as being cheap?

You're aware that other classes have special abilities as well, right?

If you jump a heavy and you get stopped by a shield that soaks a few bullets a minute then you need to buy a dedicated close quarters weapon.

Aim for his head? If you are ambushing the guy, you should be making the fight as advantageous to yourself as possible, just like a heavy does when he pops his shield in a head on 1 v 1. Assuming he's using a non shotgun at close range he shouldnt be able to finish you off before you can finish him off, even if his shield is on. If he has resist which i pull he is ******, bthe other two will add some health but it wont do much if you are getting the hs multiplier, no to mention headshots cancel out nanoweave.

Aim for the smallest part on the body when he/she pops his/her sheild, starts strafing, and returns fire? You must have some faith in people's ability to aim. Oh and the oversheild covers the head in its protection, which kind of almost cancel out the headshot multiplier.

Ofcourae not every shot needs to hit the head, uze your weapons recoil to bring the shots up to the head, by that time he has already lost his shields and his resist shield is useless, hos nanomesh and adrenaline are getting chipped quickly and then he is quickly finished off. If you bring a damage weapon to the table 167it will be as frustrating for him as the high rpm low damage weps. When he strafesassuming he has enough health left to he will be hurt bdad and moving uch slower. The RS mitigates damage if i recall corrdectly,by thks time itll be useless and the other two add health which is already depleted.

Blatant exaggeration! You know it and your class KDRs know it too.

Some other classes get class abilities that aid them in getting the jump on other classes. One class has a class ability that helps when someone else jumps them. This is not unfair.