@WarPsycho has a great idea for a Phantom change. It consists on scrapping Phantoms invisibility, awkward-to-use Katana and ridiculous pigtails.
Now, Phantom is not all bad. He has been the end of many a turret-hog. He has moments that made us feel like gods while we sat invisible on top of our C4 and stabbed to oblivion any mercenary foolish enough to try and disarm. Vassili’s and Redeye’s everywhere have cursed our names as we teabagged their downed corpses. Aura’s and Kira’s look over their shoulder, fearing that that shrill whine is not the wind, but a stealthed assassin thirsty for blood…
At least, that would be the case of many of our attempts at assassinations ended successfully. Let’s be honest here, Phantom is bland mercenary. I know, I know… his katana is cool and when done right his invisibility is a great way of hiding. It’s the reason many players got him in the first place, but it’s just not worth it anymore to bring a sword to a gun fight.
Any Rhino worth their credits can go 1v1 with a Phantom and win. Hell, there have been so many occasions where I fought a knife fight with an experienced Proxxy and lost.
But soapCzar, you might say, Dirty bomb is a game where every one must have a chance at succeeding, right?
And you would be absolutely right! Dirty Bomb is a fast paced FPS that rather than holding your hand will kick you into battle and wish you luck. Every one has a chance at succeeding. Here, I’ll make a list of pros and cons of each merc, leaving Phantom for last (this post will be VERY long…)
Aura: Pros, she has a deployable healing station which could boost her to near tank status if she stays withing reach of its healing. Cons, if she even strays away from that healing station, she is most likely going to die.
Bushwacker: Pros, the guy has a freaking sentry turret, which when used in combination of his smg can help him reach a godlike in less than 5 minutes. Cons, again, without his turret he is most likely going to die if he doesn’t kill the enemy merc on time.
Fletcher: Pros, he can throw sticky grenades that will instakill most mercenaries except for Fragger, Thunder and Rhino. Cons, he can only deploy 3 grenades.
Fragger: Pros, he can throw grenades that will explode after a timer, which can help clear rooms and secure planted C4’s. Cons, his grenades are not that strong and he can only throw 2.
Kira: Pros, anyone caught under her devastating pillar of laser will not only be downed, they will outright die. Cons, it takes a bit for her laser to cool down so when the pillar of celestial fire dies off, it’s goodbye.
Nader: Pros, her grenade launcher has 5 or 6 grenades in it, which reload in a fairly fast way, also, when she is downd, she can kill anyone around her with a last grenade. Cons, if caught alone with any player that knows how to bunny hop she will die quite fast.
Phoenix: Pros, having a area of effect heal wave is pretty useful when you are surrounded by your teammates, or by yourself, plus the ability to come back from the downed is pretty cool. Cons, once you are downed it takes 3 seconds to revive during which anyone can come and melee you, killing you for sure.
Proxy: Pros, she is a fast objective specialist that can deploy mines to defend her C4 or prevent anyone from planting C4. Cons, if you aren’t fast enough, the enemy team might actually blow up your mines from under you.
Redeye: Pros, the smoke screen and IR eyepatch is pretty sweet, allowing for some precise sniping if using either the Felix and PDP. Cons, the smoke can be cleared you by either a grenade, airstrike or artillery strike, leaving you with a smoke grenade on cooldown and a team of enemy mercs quite mad at you for trying to blind them.
Rhino: Pros, his minigun is very good from close to mid range, and at long range can be used to deal cover fire, and maybe get an assist. Cons, he is pretty slow, which allows for a sniper to take him out fast.
Sawbonez: Pros, his healing bags are the largest of the medic class, and the regeneration rate is fairly fast. Cons, if you are hit while regenerating, the healing will stop.
Skyhammer: Pros, his drone strike is a thing of beauty to behold when it favors you. Cons, it takes very long for it to reload, by which time you have most likely died at least once.
Stoker: Pros, his molotov grenade is a great area denial ordnance. Cons, the fire can be put out with a well placed smoke screen.
Sparks: Pros, her REVIVR gun can easily be the best reviving tool in the game, allowing you to bring back to life allies from both close and far. Cons, if it is primed for fire for too long, the battery dies and you have to wait for it to cool down.
Vassili: Pros, his heart sensor is a great way of spotting enemies from both close and far, depends on where you throw it. Cons, if the enemy team has a sniper, it’s risky work to try and get a headshot. Plus his heart beat sensor can be destroyed fairly easily, once it is spotted.
Thunder: Pros, his flashbang is one great way to disorient the enemy team, plus his machine gun makes it easy pickings to kill those blinded fools. Cons, by simply turning away from the flashbang, mercenaries wont be blinded and will be able to run away with ease.
Arty: Pros, his artillery strike takes a short time to activate, plus it deals insane damage. Cons, the artillery strike, like the drone strike, takes a bit to cooldown, which makes it likely that he will die and come back before it finishes cooldown.
Ad finally, Phantom: Pros, when standing still, his invisibility is damn near complete, making it difficult for enemy mercenaries to find him. His katana will also one hit kill most medical mercenaries if it has the chopper equipped. Cons, when moving he is very easy to spot while invisible. His katana does have a limited range, allowing some mercenaries to anticipate his strike and bunny hop to a safer distance.
Whew, there. Proof that Dirty Bomb does allow everyone to have a chance. The problem is that with Phantom, it’s hard to get that chance, just because of the way people want to play him. It’s also the way that makes sense to play him, the one that makes less effect on the enemy team.
Which is why I want @RazielWarmonic to see these posts on changing Phantom to Wraith. Go see warPsycho’s post. It does have stats changes that to me (after making the math) seem quite fair, in fact a little generous.
That might just be me talking though. Please, tell me what you think: Should Phantom be changed from a recon assassin, to a bloodthirsty assault merc? Discuss.
