Why do you main Heavy Assault?

First of all, there is no moral high-ground. This isn't an argument of morality...it's a videogame. I get what you're saying...but come on..

Secondly, it doesn't matter if skilled players or non-skilled players use HA; it's still OP compared to all other classes. Let's not even talk about the fact that they get a concussion grenade...because they need more than a shield to beat you... But since you went there; most players who use the HA 1v1 me and lose when I have no shield. So no, it isn't populated by "skilled" players. Its populated by those who don't want to lose and take every precaution not to (even though they still will...go figure).

If you want to talk about what they should do to fix the game:
-Make bullets go through the shield
-Increase the shield HP to 3-4k
-Make the shield only defend against explosives or high caliber rounds (like MBT)

The HA should be the anti-vehicle kit. Not the anti-everything kit. Plus, making the shield defend better against explosives would give the HA a niche role of pushing corners and hallways that are usually lined with explosives and hand grenades.

Why main HA when you can main MAX?!

I used the wrong terminology, my bad. My opening statement was that you kinda came off as lording over those who need the shield to perform:

...and that we are better off blaming the system instead of those who take advantage of it (i.e. normal human behavior).

I agree. I just personally find it most problematic when a highly skilled player uses it to become nearly unbeatable in the right situations. It was in response to your assertion that "no person who is actually good at shooters mains the heavy class". My point is that anything that is a crutch for lesser players is a tool for skilled players to gain an extra edge.

This is not only anecdotal, but we seem to be arguing about why we agree that the HA is fundamentally overpowered. Let's move past that and problem solve, yeah?

That's an interesting approach. No direct gunfight advantage, but great for breaching or going toe-to-toe with vehicles. Could use some tweaking for the numbers and maybe have a non-interruptible delay, but I like it.

IMO - the way to preserve the HA class toughness, but eliminate the "I win shield" cheese that so many people seem to hate is simply add a second or two delay on the over-shield activation.

This would make the player use the shield tactically - activating it before charging into the action, rather than as it is used now as a reflex response to getting shot at.

I main heavy and only have 1 character. I play TR.

I always gravitate toward the big slow heavy armed and armored class in all games I play. WoW like games and such I'm always the tank of the group.
Here on PS2, my favorite thing is point defense. You can hold a point with near any class, but it just makes sense to me to do it with a heavy. I know that everyone ******* about the shield, but I don't see the big deal. I mostly use it to survive jumping from buildings.
I have several weapon load outs depending on the situation. MCG, Uppercut, Battle Rifle w grenade launcher, **** sometimes I run around with an Armistice just because it's funny.

I'm no MLG player but I don't suck either. The biggest issue I see for other players fighting me is when they don't understand their role and try to 1v1 me as a support class. My biggest fear on the battlefield is coming across an enemy LA that knows what they're doing. Even more so when I'm in my MAX.

I had issues with survivability at first but since I started carrying 2 med kits I've gone hours at a time without getting killed.

It's only number 3 of my most played classes. I main "Anti Vehicle".

Mainly it's survivability and utility. HA is a great power class for solo players to feel like they are making an impact. And having played so much HA, I know exactly how to beat them (here's a hint: flank, and aim for the head. HAs murder in direct, head-on scenarios).

Overshields, plus access to plenty of other survival tools (Assimilate and Medkits are great) allow you to go get out of situations most others couldn't.

LMGs have decent range and side-grade options for close and long range combat, so I can sit back and provide suppressing fire or get right in and push a point. Plus if those aren't your cup of tea, you also have access to multi-class weapon options, like SMGs and Shotguns.

Rocket Launchers are strong anti-vehicle support, and great for taking out pesky MAXes.

Basically, it boils down to the fact that I don't need to be in a squad to impact the battle. I played HA as my go-to long before I joined an outfit, and I haven't stopped, since the class grants so much independence.

I'm not sure I "main" the HA. I play the other classed combined a lot more. I do play it a higher percentage that any other single class. My answer....

Because who else is going to do the job?

You gonna rush the point with engineers? Do a zombie army of medics?

I play all the classes, but ultimately the game is about killing each other. All the strategy, tactics, and every variation of the meta is to capture territory, or stop someone from capturing territory. You do that by killing the guys on the point, or killing the guys coming for it.

Support classes are just that. They support. Who? The assault classes. LA and HA. I love playing me some LA and do frequently, but more frequently the HA is better suited.

I also don't subscribe to any of this "HA is overpowered" tripe. You play a support class and frequently get outgunned by an assault class? The river... cries it for me. When I play a support class this doesn't happen because I'm doing the job of that class, not trying to do the job of an assault.

If this game was say 1v1 deathmatch duel, single full base = the map, then I would choose LA over HA any day. Heck, I would choose infiltrator over HA in such a scenario. This isn't 1v1 deathmatch though. The HA is a powerful class when it's part of a group. Somebody has to do the job.

But please all you people that don't main HA, tell us what is wrong with it. /eyeroll.

As sure as the sun rises in the East and sets in the West, infantry is gonna ***** about air, air is gonna ***** about lockons, and every knucklehead that went toe-to-toe with an overshielded HA using ADS is gonna ***** about why it's all so unfair.

I suck at HA because I find I probably get killed most of all playing it.

LA gives you tactical advantage in most of the circumstances
Engineer allows you to setup spitfires and dance around it + fast regen shields
Medic, I don't know I don't play medic
Infiltrator , I play stalker primary and being able to remain in cloak + not having to worry about someone random spotting you is the best think I like about it.

HA used to be strong but with several rounds of nerfs + the lmg nerf I feel they have been overnerfed

I try to play HA as little as possible.

But when I do, it's for a simple reason: it's easy mode.

Your humblebrag is weak sir.

I too am too awesome of a player to use easy mode. Sometimes the ladies want to see me in a loincloth though so I oblige. That's how I roll. No overshield. No LMG. Just a Devastator and a loin cloth.

Nice!

Seriously though, I play the other classes because they are more dynamic and fun. I play HA when I need to kill people quickly and efficiently because, as I mentioned, it's easy mode.
I'm sorry that that playstyle offends your delicate sensibilities.

I get where you are coming from. I'd prefer to play engie or medic way more. Problem is I find pub squads typically saturated with like engies and inflitrators. Nobody is there to do "the job". Thread seems to be a subtle complaint that too many people play HA. I would rather more people play HA (and LA).

If Im going to fight infantry and do so in a direct fashion then Im kinda forced to use the crutch shield or have it used against me.

I love playing support and all but sometimes you have to do the work yourself.

Like I said, spend enough time playing HA and you will learn all of the class's strengths and weaknesses.

HA isn't easy mode; heck they are far from being as invincible as you make them out to be. The class just so happens to dominate head-on fights at close to mid range, which happens to be the most frequent type of engagement you come across.

Let me list a few of the HA's weaknesses:

1) Range. A skilled Infil will drop HAs all of the time, while safely out of range of the HA's LMG.

2) Flanks. LAs, or any other class that gets the drop on an occupied HA gets a guaranteed kill.

3) High burst/High sustain damage. The HA's overshield is only very effective against small amounts of sustained damage. MAX weapons, tank cannons, MANA turrets, even a single grenade or two all effectively render the shield useless. EMP grenades are particularly devastating, especially if the recipient isn't using Carapace.

4) Cooldowns. The LMG and rocket launcher are painfully slow to reload. The only weapon you can effectively switch to on the fly is your secondary, but by the time you pull it out your attacker has probably killed you. Not to mention the Overshield recharges slowly if you aren't using modifiers.

"Let me list a few of infantry's weaknesses:
1)Range. A skilled infil will drop other classes all of the time, while safely out of range of their weaponry.

2) Flanks. LAs, or any other class that gets the drop on an occupied infantry gets a guaranteed kill.

3) High burst/High sustain damage. Infantry can only survive against small amounts of sustained damage. MAX weapons, tank cannons, MANA turrets, even a single grenade or two all effectively render them useless. EMP grenades are particularly devastating, especially if the recipient isn't using Carapace.

4) Cooldowns. Most infantry weapons are slow to reload. The only weapon they can effectively switch to on the fly is their secondary, but by the time they pull it out their attacker has probably killed them. Not to mention their shield recharges fairly slowly if they aren't using modifiers."

The fact that a tactic counters HA as well as every other infantry doesn't make it an HA counter, it makes it an infantry counter.
Most classes are about as screwed as HA if they run out of ammo in a firefight, and they don't have 100 round mags or 1.5x the time to pull their Commissioner/Pilot out. Flanking kills non-HA much faster than HA, snipers kill everyone for free after a certain range - not to mention that carbines have less range than an LMG - and burst damage is even worse when you don't have about 1500 HP. If you're arguing that it is because it takes out the overshield, any other class would be killed outright - and dying is a much harder counter than having an ability put on cooldown. There isn't any reason not to pull an HA, as long as your local forces have two medics, an engineer, MAYBE an infiltrator, and you have Catlike 5, or you're pulling a vehicle. Or if you want to cheese with Carapace Medic, I guess.

HA dominate infantry firefights up to ranges where only specialized ARs and Rifles operate, they can kill armor more effectively than any class without C4, probably have the best AI grenade in the game, and are the only infantry class that can swat ESFs at all - a LA mag-dumping 6 inaccurate rocklets at point blank into an ESF does less damage than an HA's lock-on missile, to say nothing of the unique RLs. I'd say that covers "all engagements except sniper duels," not just "most."

None of those weaknesses are specific to HA. In fact, HA arguably deals with those adverse situations the best because of its overshield.

^^ That still doesn't change the fact that HA weapons are the slowest to reload in the game. Not to mention they don't have the utility of the Medic or Engineer. Furthermore rocket launchers got nerfed, so most of them aren't OHKs anymore.

Plus you haven't taken into account the Engineer's AV-MANA, which is far more effective than most rocket launchers at range.

And please tell me how much time you guys actually have on HA. I'd love to know. Because something tells me you're all just salty you can't run in a straight line at one.

With long mag sizes, retreating to reload is at your convenience. An extra 2-3 seconds for reload is hardly a weakness given that.

The repeated "but it can't support!" justification holds no water. As long as killing infantry is the overwhelmingly central means to the end (territory capture), the class with more HP without downsides is fundamentally overpowered, even if other classes have useful tools.

Not having another class's distinction is not a weakness; it just doesn't have said distinction. To use this as a justification is cherrypicking without looking at the whole.

You can't actually fight an aware tank with a MANA turret past the first or second shot. You'll just die to the tank or a sniper.

A launcher can engage while staying mobile, and reload in cover.

This is hardly a comparison.

Something tells me you want to keep your artificial advantage. ...See? This kind of dialogue adds nothing to discussion.

Besides; no one's salty they can't "run in a straight line at one". They're salty that any stated "strategy" to counter the HA applies to all infantry, and is actually more effective on non-HAs. So "just flank them" or "get headshots" is not and never was a valid answer.

It's not okay to have one class be strictly better at all direct combat just because "it's the frontline class". It's not good to have a "this unit is more powerful, and everyone else is either there to be it or support it" kind of crappy system. Right now it's "be HA or be at a disadvantage", similar to the nanoweave situation.

I'll say it yet again:
I have to outplay a HA while they do not have to do the same for me, and they are not any easier to outplay than the other non-stealth/mobility classes. Reduced base movement speed would be a start at remedying this.