2008-05-27, 20:16:25
I think that overall, the "switching" ability is weak and honestly contributes to the weapons not seeing play. I like your suggestion of making the AA Gun and Bombs switch from normal to specialized, I think that would alleviate the problems with those specific weapons. The switching ability of the Grenade Launcher I find to be pointless. Early on, the extra DPS I don't believe counter balances the need for a variety of strategies. A smart Heli will just go somewhere else, and then you spent money on a weapon that can't be upgraded while everyone else upgrades their Fireballs, Fans, Basic Magics, etc etc.
The Soulstone is really unneccesary. As is, no one really uses it, the marginally difference between it's creep-killing ability and say, Fear Magic, is almost never enough to justify it's cost considering it's inability to hit heroes, and that was BEFORE the .45 nerf of it. You say that by removing it I am declaring creep-killing to be an early game option only. I haven't declared that, the players have. I left Frost Magic in so that there is a late game creep killer (like, if you are pinned in your base by a Tinker massing factories, for example.), but there is no reason to keep the Soulstone when weapons are needed elsewhere.
The Plasma Fragment argument seems valid, but again, I think the switch ability hinders the weapon, not helps it. I also think the changes proposed will boost the use of less-played tanks. The Anti-Grav and Thunder Tank are both short-range tanks, and both rarely see play because of the lack of solid short range options. I think post-changes, starts like the Anti-Grav / new Grenade Launcher will be a strong counter to the Light Tank / Scout / Heli builds while weak to the Demolisher, which gives more variety to the starting options.
The Thunder Tank is probably one of the 3 least-seen tanks in my opinion, right down there with the Ghost Tank and the Guard. The Thunder Tank has a strong aura but rarely can get a solid suite of weapons that fire within the aura. The new rank of 600-666 range weapons fits perfectly with the 650 range of the TT aura, so that a Scout/Machine Gun could transfer early to a TT and become a strong early presence before the first Heavy Tanks hit the board.
The Soulstone is really unneccesary. As is, no one really uses it, the marginally difference between it's creep-killing ability and say, Fear Magic, is almost never enough to justify it's cost considering it's inability to hit heroes, and that was BEFORE the .45 nerf of it. You say that by removing it I am declaring creep-killing to be an early game option only. I haven't declared that, the players have. I left Frost Magic in so that there is a late game creep killer (like, if you are pinned in your base by a Tinker massing factories, for example.), but there is no reason to keep the Soulstone when weapons are needed elsewhere.
The Plasma Fragment argument seems valid, but again, I think the switch ability hinders the weapon, not helps it. I also think the changes proposed will boost the use of less-played tanks. The Anti-Grav and Thunder Tank are both short-range tanks, and both rarely see play because of the lack of solid short range options. I think post-changes, starts like the Anti-Grav / new Grenade Launcher will be a strong counter to the Light Tank / Scout / Heli builds while weak to the Demolisher, which gives more variety to the starting options.
The Thunder Tank is probably one of the 3 least-seen tanks in my opinion, right down there with the Ghost Tank and the Guard. The Thunder Tank has a strong aura but rarely can get a solid suite of weapons that fire within the aura. The new rank of 600-666 range weapons fits perfectly with the 650 range of the TT aura, so that a Scout/Machine Gun could transfer early to a TT and become a strong early presence before the first Heavy Tanks hit the board.