New Merc: "Io" (or "Iona")

(Dr_Plantboss) #21

[quote=“Dr_Plantboss;214708”][quote=“civilRoad;214704”]

However, yes, a device in someones hand can contact a satellite and tell it to beam somewhere, but it would take like 3-4 minutes for the laser to reach here.
[/quote]

It takes light from the sun (93,000,000 miles away) 8 minutes to get to us. It takes about 40 seconds to get through the atmosphere. A laser would be the same as this, probably about 40 seconds. Still a long delay to be sure, but not on the scale that you are talking about.

[quote=“civilRoad;214705”]
Anyway, my beginning point was that a skinny merc with a giant laser cannon isn’t practical.[/quote]

I quote myself for this one:

[quote=“Dr_Plantboss;214450”]
I never said that it had a huge AOE. It’s a concentrated beam that is probably about the same amount of spread as the MK46.[/quote]

This means that it probably is on a device about the size of an MK46. A 100 hp merc may be a stretch for this, but it’s not completely out of reach. We see Aura lugging around a health station and a shotgun all the time, and she doesn’t seem to be exactly slow.[/quote]

I also said that this is an “Ion cannon.” it shoots high energy particles, not lasers.

(Fyrix) #22

@civilRoad you’re assuming the size of a cannon. Cannons are stereotypically large, but cannons can differ in size.

(civilRoad) #23

Pardon me, but it sounded to me like you were making an Italian female lug around a particle cannon that could wipe out an entire team. Italian women are known for not weighing a lot and not gaining weight easily, their average weight is about 120-130 pounds for a full-grown italian human female. So compared to that kind of small frame, with the kind of speed ratio 100 hp would give you, I didn’t think it would be practical to give her a cannon that could kill an entire team.

If now what you’re saying is that you want to give her an AR-sized rifle that fires piercing rounds, that makes more sense. At first it sounded like you were trying to give her a laser cannon. I.e. this is what it sounded like:http://img3.mmo.mmo4arab.com/news/2014/12/11/tera_new_class12.jpg
But now it’s starting to sound more like this:
https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5225/5725581171_27d0be8b4e_b.jpg
Which is far more practical for that kind of small frame. Still seems strange that you worded it as “Wipe out an entire team”.

(Dr_Plantboss) #24

@civilRoad This is because let’s say that there’s 6 people (a small team, but still potentially a whole one) in that alley in front of the generator on bridge.

She can fire at 50 DPS for 8 seconds
this is 400 damage
with a piercing attack

It will most likely kill at least 3, more or less based on the average HP of those 6.

(Naonna) #25

If you’re going to have a high-damage pinpoint attack, a decent way of balancing it is reducing the speed at which the attack can be redirected. Reducing the merc’s turning radius while aiming or firing the weapon makes it good for holding down a single choke, but leaves his or her flank extremely vulnerable, as it’s total area of effect becomes quite limited.

This would require careful testing and planning before I could see it being implemented. It also would be seen as very strong in maps like underground or chapel, but near useless in maps such as dome or terminal.

(Dr_Plantboss) #26

[quote=“Naonna;c-222258”]If you’re going to have a high-damage pinpoint attack, a decent way of balancing it is reducing the speed at which the attack can be redirected. Reducing the merc’s turning radius while aiming or firing the weapon makes it good for holding down a single choke, but leaves his or her flank extremely vulnerable, as it’s total area of effect becomes quite limited.

This would require careful testing and planning before I could see it being implemented. It also would be seen as very strong in maps like underground or chapel, but near useless in maps such as dome or terminal.[/quote]

Thank you for your input, although this thread is kinda dead…

Added “Turn speed limited to 33% while firing” to the Ion Cannon’s stats.

(Naonna) #27

I’m going through every single one since I left a few months ago. Nothing personal.