Would you remove shotguns from NC max?

So you want factions to be even more copy and paste? I thought we all wanted asymmetrical balance and diversity between classes and/or factions.

Part of asymmetrical balance is having balance. In the past we had that because scatmaxes were better at close range than TR/VS maxes, even against infantry. But now TR/VS maxes perform BETTER at close range since they have virtually identical TTK as a scatmax but also singificantly more ammo. So it's no longer asymmetrically balanced, there is no downside for the TR/VS and no upside for the NC. So the only options are to nerf TR/VS damage in close range so that there's a very clear and obvious difference in TTK between TR/VS and NC at close range. Or we allow the NC to reliably get kills at range like the TR/VS.

Can't have asymmetrical balance without balance, y'know.

Well in order to appease to the VS and TR, we're probably going to get an underdeveloped weapon. SOE had a lot of time to develop 3 pistols and they still all need massive fixing. I don't think they'll be making your ideas come true considering they also got that Valkyrie, a rumored continent, nexus battle island, improved resource system, improved continents, and all the things they promised us a while back as well as Higby's ideas such as having all VS weapons have a charging function.

NC maxs still have the upper hand on TR and VS within 8 meters....

its a pretty good idea.....but itll never happen......i would have replaced the shotguns with other gauss cannons....even a jackhammer would have been just fine........right now, their shotguns rip though all enemies too easily...the TR and VS cant kill as fast as the scat max can.

only if I could Zoom-Scope and snipe with them....

...but I never got TWO shotguns to begin with. The stock loadout with that RPG thing on the right arm was enough for me.
I got plenty of direct hits with that thing. I'll never understand why some people needed two shotguns. That's like the guys in the earlier mechwarriors who'd run Dual LBX's or Flamer boats. It's never fun for anyone else. Why do that? Dual gauss always took way more skill to pull off (atleast until MWO found a way to **** that up too )

Ya'll already got slugs though. Is that not savage enough?!

I would love to see TR/VS getting equivalents of Hacksaw and Grinders and NC getting something like Blueshifts and Onslaughts. Higby, please?

They don't. This is the problem with these discussions, people always talk exclusively about max vs max. Yeah, at around 5 meters an NC max has an advantage over a TR/VS max, but we're not talking about exclusively max vs max, we're talking about max vs infantry in general. And against infantry the TR/VS maxes have virtually identical TTKs to a scatmax at around 5 meters. So against infantry the TR, VS, and NC maxes are all equal up until around 15 meters, after 15 meters the NC's maxes effectiveness drops like a rock while the TR/VS can keep on chugging. If the scatmax outperformed the TR/VS under 15 meters then an argument for asymmetrical balance could be made. But since it doesn't, since the TR/VS maxes perform as good or better at all ranges, that's not asymmetrical balance, that's just one unit being underpowered compared to the other two.

No, but I would like to add a railgun like the gun from Halo 4, with a crazy velocity and range and some minor blast radius, but need to be charged for half a second like the Railjack.

Yes without a doubt.

Not only would it be good for NC, it would remove one large set of shotguns that VS/TR have to deal with in this game.

I like the shotguns, if you want a gauss saw use the heavy, if you want dual then coordinate with a team mate.. Besides, weapons that the VS or TR use on their MAX units would be pretty OP cause NC MAX units are stupidly durable with the shield they use.

No I wouldn't want my strongest "Breach & Clear" option taken out, that would just take away the utility NC max units actually have. On top of that you lose a metric ton of killing potential, sure you may not hit me outside of 100m but I won't exactly be taking the point you happen to be guarding either.

Add more anti infantry options? Absolutely, in fact if I'm not mistake Higby talked about that on the stream a few days ago, but completely remove one of your if not the best defensive capability you have? Hell no.

Do I hate getting one shot by NC scat max? Of course but I don't exactly face check them either.

I just don't see the point of the 'variety' of shotguns we get on the MAX.

The VS and TR get short, medium, and long range versions of their AI weapons. NC gets Short, Shorter, and InYoFace range weapons.

So I'd like to see some of the weapons converted with the weapons previously purchased refunded back to the purchasers so they can respend those certs on the same weapon or something else.

As for what we'd get, either a Gauss Saw-like weapon or Railgun type thing like...

http://www.sarna.net/wiki/King_David_Light_Gauss_Rifle_(battle_armor)
http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Tsunami_Heavy_Gauss_Rifle_(battle_armor)
http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Magshot_Gauss_Rifle_(battle_armor)

VS gets their Pew Pew
TR gets their Dakka

NC needs to get a hard hitting gauss cannon.

Just pick the most under performing of the four shotguns and make it into something else, and refund the purchase in certs.

Nope. I'd rather remove Ravens if I could

On a more serious note: You should know that w/o shotguns you will die more often to C4 heavies/medics/engies and LAs to an extent who are tossing it right around a corner while exposing themselves for only a second. W/ shotties you can pretty much gib them, w/o shotties however they have a good chance to escape and kill you bc the ttk is simply longer at point blank range compared to shotguns, especially if you miss some shots and you probably will miss a couple of shots.

Enemy MAXs would also no longer hesitate to challenge you to an argument because the close range TTKs come closer together which should make holding rooms significantly more difficult for the NC.

Next up what should happen to the Aegis shield seeing that it's supposed to give you a chance to close the gap and play your shotguns to their strengths?

I'd like to keep the shotguns. Nothing is more satisfying than filling a HA with Mattock fire.

Though to be fair some ranged weapons would be nice. The only reason people ***** about NC MAXes using shotguns is because all we have are shotguns, nothing else.

Those who use the AI shotguns typically use Charge for that. The only MAX I use Aegis for is a Burster Max to cover my face from dalton rounds while reloading.

Couple that with the fact that Aegis is bugged and you can still take damage through it from the front, they could pretty much remove it altogether and leave us with no ESA to use and I'd be fine with a medium to long range AI option.

This man speaks truth. The shield is a nice idea but it's execution leaves it unable to fulfill any other role than allowing a max to better camp a room with friendly infantry inside to support it. The enemy can back-peddle faster than you can charge them with your shield up so it's certainly not an offensive weapon. You can't use it as support either as friendlies behind you can't shoot over you, so the prospect of being mobile cover goes out the window.

As Taemien said, you could outright remove the shield and very little would change for the NC. If they made changes to it I could see it being useful but as it is currently it's about as useful as lockdown or zoe.

The problem is firstly that the NC AI MAXs now only have 2 effective weapons.

1. Grinders with pellets and extended mags.
&
2. Mattocks with slug and extended mags.


The Scattercannon is pretty much pointless and the Hacksaw is now so niche as to be more or less so.



As to whether the NC AI MAX should have some sort of LMG arm rather than shoguns...... the answer is maybe/probably, especially in the Mattock replacement sense (or the Mercy/Blueshift competitor sense).

But the other perfectly viable option would be choked modes or some sort of uber Mattock/current canister arm instead of (probably) Scattercannons.

Balance-wise though by far the easiest option would be LMG arms like TR/VS and direct copies NC-ised a bit.

I'm not sure that is actually true.... or at least if it is then something else causing issues, because NC AI MAX have always died a lot (more than VS/TR ones), they just tended to kill more too.

Honestly if TR/VS AI MAXs are expecting to engage NC AI MAXs they should be running KA5, it changes the balance completely (except for extended mag pellet grinders), or they just need to say at 8m+ range.

It looks great, but is rather flawed and it is difficult to see how to fix it without just making it more powerful (really the only option I can see it making it 100% surrounding, but much weaker like the PS1 NC AI MAX shield)....... athough frankly at the moment it would probably be unwise to do so given that Lockdown is great but highly situational and ZOE in now pretty weak.