Matrix Games Forums

It seems there are lots of different top 5 weapons. This makes me happy as it shows the good balance. What are your three
weapons you won't add even if it means to go unarmed


Mine are these :

1. S.R.M. regardless of rack size. I don't know why. Low single hit damage at short range. No weapon for a REAL man.

2. Small lasrer. Again its too small to comfort me. As a last ditch weapon I would try to drop some armor and install a medium laser.

3. Pulse laser. Never really tried it. Its in between medium and large laser and I would prefer one of those.

Originally posted by LarkinVB
It seems there are lots of different top 5 weapons. This makes me happy as it shows the good balance. What are your three
weapons you won't add even if it means to go unarmed


Mine are these :

1. S.R.M. regardless of rack size. I don't know why. Low single hit damage at short range. No weapon for a REAL man.

2. Small lasrer. Again its too small to comfort me. As a last ditch weapon I would try to drop some armor and install a medium laser.

3. Pulse laser. Never really tried it. Its in between medium and large laser and I would prefer one of those.

Everyone's going to think I'm loony for saying this, (which is okay, since I probably am...) but my least favorite weapon of all is the machine gun. Sure, it's fast to reload and great for lack of heat, but the miniscule range and relatively high weight for its damage -Even if the gun only weighs half a ton, you have to add another ton of ammo - makes it a waste of space, in my view. If I've got enough free space and slots to put in an MG, I can probably fit an SRM 4 (Which I do like, despite Larkin's "No weapon for a REAL man" comment. ) or just throw on a bit more armor.

Second on my list is the pulse laser. I just think the heat's too high for the damage and range. I'd rather go with the medium or large, like Larkin said.

Finally, the GM 3 is my third least favorite. For one, it can be jammed by flares and ECM. Two, it takes up a bit too much space for the amount of damage it deals out, and three, the ammo is really limited.

Well, as I try not to be prejudiced against weapons and try to treat them all in the same spirit, there are a few that I use less than the others. I think that qualifies.

1) Smal Lasers. What are these things anyways? Too much heat for too little impact. Though I suppose they might be alright if you stuck a couple on a Cannon titan so you could light forrests and such if needed, but that's still almost a waste of space.

2) Light Messon Cannons. Again too much heat for too little result. And sure, critical hits are possible, but when you run into high level oponents and start shooting at the team mechanic you're really just wasting everybody's time. I prefer to use caled shots withl the heavies instead for a more precise result.

3) And for my third selection, I think it's a toss up between Pulse Lasers and Flame Throwers. Not, of course, that there is anything wrong with these, I just don't use them...unless I get stuck with them on a stock titan.

Lobsteve.

1) Flamers and napalm. The flamers are OK, but I just don't use them much. And the napalm is just too much hassle for too little result.

2) LRMs. I almost *never* battle at long range, and thus, these things are rather hard to use. Although I must admit, an entire volly of LRMs hitting the target is pretty spectacular.

3) BRG. Too much weight and heat for too little real effect. I mean, it's nice to deal 10 damage at a time, but they don't have much beyond that. (Besides that, the only tiem I ever use them is when they're stuck on the random titan the computer picks out for me.)

So many choices!

Worst (weapons I'll use when forced to with a neutron blaster to my head)

1) Small laser. Range + heat+ damage+ shield+ weight (.80? What's that all about?) +energy consumption = useless

2) Black ray gun. Slow to recharge, high hit penalty, only middling damage, short range.

3) Cold light gun. Mine never seem to hit, no matter how experienced the jock.

Runners-up: (Weapons I'll use, if I have to)

4) Autocannon 4. So little damage, but mitigated by the enormous range. I prefer mg's.

5) Power axe. Little damage, no range at all. But cool sound, and a to hit bonus to boot! Gimme a chainsaw any day.

6) Pulse laser. Between the heat and power use, I'd prefer a large laser (space permitting) or medium laser (for weight).

1) GMs (of any type) I never Ever use them.

2) MGs the last mod slowed them down (recyclewise) since then I've stopped putting them into my designs.

3) CLGs are too weak against shields to be of much use unless paired with a shield buster like a Tesla and when you do that you lose the heat benefits of the CLG.

Originally posted by GROND
1) GMs (of any type) I never Ever use them.

2) MGs the last mod slowed them down (recyclewise) since then I've stopped putting them into my designs.

3) CLGs are too weak against shields to be of much use unless paired with a shield buster like a Tesla and when you do that you lose the heat benefits of the CLG.

Wow, someone else agrees with me on the MGs. Thank you, Hetz.

I agree with Larkin.

Small lasers were never and never will be good Seriously, their only advantage is being light, though the MG is much better IMO @ only +0.2t (ammo slots weight .5t, Michael). Lighting woods with a SL is a fairy tale, so its use is very limited. Backup weapon, when you don't have enough weight for a ML.

Pulse lasers, yes, though I do like them. Very good against static targets. But they just have too many small disadvantages compared to MLs that make me prefer the latter (namely lower range, which makes the ML more appealing in non-energy titans for liting woods).

SRMs just seem to be a mm away from being a good weapon. Make them streak? Make them have higher crit chances when hitting internals? Higher damage per missile (probably reducing rack size)?


About the other weapons listed here,

The MG is just another backup weapon, and as such it performs quite well IMO. Titans based on MGs are also possible, as the Piranha demonstrates.

GMHs have been improved in WS, but so have been the countermeasures

Mesons have also been improved in WS.

As for the BRG, the only problem I see with it is the range. Note that I don't think it should be increased. It's a great weapon, with good dam/heat ratio, plus special effects (note plural). Sure, its power is more notable against low level opponents, but it's still a good weapon. Lots of fun.

The CLG, well, what can I say, I've always thought I had terrible luck with this weapon, I keep missing with it. Now I see it isn't just me Other than that, a great weapon.

Everything else I read was personal taste, and that doesn't count.

Could there be a programming error in regards to CLG's? Something hidden, like an old penalty "to hit"?

I agree with Thorgrim: give SRM's some kind of bonus. Better damage, faster reload, something. They'd be real winners, then.

I'd even give all missile weapons with large payloads (i.e. SRM6 and LRM 12) a "to hit" bonus: more warheads=better hit probability; kinda like a shotgun.

Originally posted by jzpops
Could there be a programming error in regards to CLG's? Something hidden, like an old penalty "to hit"?

A programming error ? Me ?

Never !

No insult intended!!!!!! :p

My CLG's just don't seem to work very well, that's all, and I can't find a reason why.

My "worst three" list awards go to:

1) Small laser. Next to useless range, low damage, high heat, next to nonexistent chances for energy weapon special effects (steam and forest fires), energy consumption, shields.. All the penalties of several different weapons put together. Pathetic.

2) Power Axe. Marginally useful for recons & lights to boost their CC damage, but if you're going to make a CC titan, you'd better use Chain Saws instead. In other words, this weapon isn't bad by itself, it just has a MUCH better alternative. At least this should reload considerably faster than the CS (or bare hands for that matter) to make it useful.

3) Light Meson Gun. Way too much dependent on luck to justify the considerably poor statistics. If you're going to try to disable your adversaries with any sort of reliablity, use the HMG (or even Neutron Blaster) instead. However, both meson guns/NBs just rock in duels when a crit to heat reg/engine/gyro/jock (!) pretty much scores you a win. While it's propably not the most efficient way of killing your enemy, but at least the NB works wonders in keeping my evil and cruel side satisfied.

As for the weapons already mentioned, here's some comments on them.

SRMs have one major drawback, the reliance on the unguided missiles weapon skill. The jocks that have developed that skill usually end up being my devoted LRM jocks, and mixed designs with both LRMs and SRMs doesn't sound like a good idea to me. However, devoted SRM designs such as Needler and Short Decour (homemade Assault) kick serious booty when assisting other titans by killing all the equipment as soon as the corresponding body part turns red in the scanner display. Also, as long as the pure SRM titan is standing, no other titan (in that team) needs to worry about being shot at, making the SRM design rather suicidal by nature.

Pulse laser just happens to be my weapon of choise over the Medium Laser, mainly because of the +0 bonus to hit (instead of -5) and the heat to damage ratio is clearly superior to ML's. I do agree that the shorter range is a definitive drawback, though not a VERY serious one.

Guided Missiles are actually pretty formidable weapons as such, but it really comes short in being able to hit anything reliably due to the abundance of titan designs with ECMs/Flares installed. That's why I prefer LRMs over GMs any day. They require yet another weapons skill to be developed plus the skill uses Intelligence/Instinct statistics as the base, whileas most other weapon types rely on Reaction/Dexterity, making the GM weapon skill a rather exclusive one!

Flamers and Napalm Missiles are an odd bunch in that you really need to have many of them to make a difference or you might just as well leave them home altogether. Flamers do add quite a nice touch to pure CC titans in that they definitely help in keeping your target NOT shoot that much at you in return, or even keep it immobile via forced shutdowns. Even if you're not aiming to make the whole titan explode due to heat overload, it certainly helps to make all the ammunition in your enemy's titans to explode..

And finally the BRG. If you look at the statistics, the heat/damage ratio is almost the same as with Large Laser, the weapon is just a whole lot bigger. However, since I've learned the power of CC titans just recently, having someone to help them with keeping the enemies grounded at all times is exactly what the BRG was designed for. *evil grin*

Disagree on the PX. 2 secs reload might be an eternity in close combat. With dual PXs, well. And the PX is slightly better for called shots.

As for the LMG, be creative Critical hits aren't everything.

The UGM skill is *not* a disadvantage in SRMs, on the contrary. LRMs have a min range, so what better weapon for defense in LRM supports than the SRM? Like having MGs or LMGs as close support in GC titans. Or GMEs in GMH supports. Or MLs/PLs (and SLs if you will ) in PG titans.

I agree with Iceman about SRMs and LRMs. I find my LRM/SRM combo titans do quite well, since the jock only needs a single weapon skill to be effective at any range.

To Thorgrim:

Okay, I'm all out of ideas.. What did you have in mind when you told me to get creative with LMGs if I'm not considering their chance for criticals? Why wouldn't I use MG/2ML/PL/LL instead, then? 2 pts of damage plus a CHANCE to do another 2 pts internals isn't exactly what I'd call good damage..

I still don't get the idea of putting both LRMs and SRMs into same design. Okay, you'll get (very little) short-range firepower, but you'll have to sacrifice from the main role, that of a support. Maybe in duels, but definitely not in team play!

And before anyone manages to say "Air drops", I promptly reply with a "Medium-range Support titans" with armament such as AC7 or Large Lasers, protecting those real supports as necessary and otherwise raining death in the actual field of battle from the comfort of their rather longish range.

IOW, the role of the support is SUPPOSED to be rather helpless against CC titans - its role is to make sure that those titans don't get in range in the first place.

I dislike Small lasers and Light Meson Guns. If I want a small cannon, I use AC4.

Originally posted by Sir Rechet
To Thorgrim:

Okay, I'm all out of ideas.. What did you have in mind when you told me to get creative with LMGs if I'm not considering their chance for criticals? Why wouldn't I use MG/2ML/PL/LL instead, then? 2 pts of damage plus a CHANCE to do another 2 pts internals isn't exactly what I'd call good damage..

Firstly because you're wrong about the working of the LMG (and mesons in general it seems). It does 2 pts external *plus* 2 internal, solid. There is no chance for internal damage, it's a given. It gives you a chance for internal *component* damage, which is different.
When I said get creative, I meant what I've been telling everyone all along, chew chew chew! Disintegrate limbs from within. Call shots at a bodypart, and even if it has strong armor, it'll fall off when all internals are gone. No need for crits.
As to your weapon comparison, I don't see the point. What are you comparing the LMG to? The MG? The ML? The PG? The LL?

Originally posted by Sir Rechet
I still don't get the idea of putting both LRMs and SRMs into same design. Okay, you'll get (very little) short-range firepower, but you'll have to sacrifice from the main role, that of a support. Maybe in duels, but definitely not in team play!

Of course not. You won't sacrifice LRM pod space. *If* you have some spare space where LRMs don't fit, and SRMs do, put it to good use. Just like with any other weapon type. I ain't trading a GC for a MG just to have short range firepower... ?!!

Originally posted by Thorgrim
Of course not. You won't sacrifice LRM pod space. *If* you have some spare space where LRMs don't fit, and SRMs do, put it to good use. Just like with any other weapon type. I ain't trading a GC for a MG just to have short range firepower... ?!!

Exactly! Why not use the extra space by putting in a weapon that uses the same skill, rather than forcing your jock to work on two skills at the same time?