AC:FA parts discussion

[atdsutm]

takte nakakainggit talaga me mga ps3 (albeit the large eletric bill XP)

be like goaty.

saving cash for one.

[clonezero]

unfortunately in our household money is but on of the problems before a ps3 can be bought so >_> thats that I guess XD well for the moment at least XD

[Lord_Leperman]

SIRIUS laser cannon

Think of this as a beefed up version of the O300 laser cannon. It does more damage, and is slightly more accurate than its smaller cousin, but more importantly it carries more ammo and it fires a full second faster than the O300. However its extreme weight, which is more than twice that of the O300, and greater EN drain per shot limits the choice for other weapons or parts. It is worth it though IMO if you want a fairly powerful and accurate EN weapon. In hindsight, the SIRIUS looks like a competitor for the ACRUX. While the ACRUX weighs less, and its twin lasers do more damage than the SIRIUS, the latter fires significantly faster (for than one second faster, around 70 frames AFAIK) and has a higher total killpower and is significantly more accurate. Pound per pound though, the ACRUX seems to be an overall superior weapon, due to it being around 700 points lighter and draining roughly the same amount of energy while achieving a greater attack rating, but your mileage may vary so experiment between the two and see for yourself which best suits your taste.

SULTAN plasma cannon

Fast firing and damaging plasma cannon. While all plasma cannons in FA seem to perform poorly due to their poor accuracy, I’d like to give some merit to the SULTAN for having a high rate of fire (Only a 2 second reload per firing cycle) with enough accuracy to "probably" hit something, making it one of the highest potential damage dealers in FA. However, with only 910 muzzle velocity, it will be hard to nail fast opponents. I can see some merit for this weapon if fighting against heavier and slower units, but it will have a real hard time hitting faster enemies. Still, it seems better than the severely inaccurate grenade cannons, but that’s not saying a lot, at least the grenade cannons have blast damage with them. I rarely hit with these things equipped sadly with most of the fast units going around.

Weapon Arms

Weapon arms are considered just one weapon as in the previous AC games, the difference now is both arms can be linked with back weapons, thus increasing the overall firepower of the AC by technically using 3 weapons at the same time as opposed to just two at a time with normal designs.

OPS Laser rifle weapon arms

I find these the more useful set of weapon arms available to the player. They are accurate like other laser weaponry, but fire 2 shots at a time. The joy of using these weapons is in conjunction with other back weapons such as sniper cannons or missiles, where added into the mix, can lead to potentially damaging encounters. The problem is, they don’t seem to connect that often, and due to a lack of a listed melee ability or muzzle velocity stat, it is hard to qualify at what range this weapon will be effective in. From the looks of its performance, they have a better melee ability stat than most laser based weaponry, and more on par with assault rifles.

[maitreya]

This is kinda OT, but now that you're all getting a better understanding of the parts and game, how's the balancing as of reg 1.20? And how about AC diversity?

[atdsutm]

i think the game is a bit too fast as most weapons could barely get a hit and forces players to use higher accuracy weapons. but i haven't played the game thoroughly, so i can't make a consensus, although i already saw a lot of underrated parts that needs to be addresed. i'll state them later.

as for now:

Grenades/ plasma/ kojima could barely hit even mid-> heavies. (probably a slight velocity increase should help)

MGs, Pulse Cannons, Shotguns, and probably gatling cannons are inferiors due to the speed of the game and PA ( they should be categorized to be similar to rifles ranges around 400 average for MGs and 300 average for Shoguns while shot precision increase i proportion to the range change.)

[clonezero]

Nung naglaban kami ni fox gamit nyang next apat dalang gatling gun muntikan na ko kaya dun it chews armor like crazy XD but yeah the only way the heavier weapons can get a hit is with luck and a damn lot of patience @_@ as wat happened when I tried to hit cube and white glind with the oigami 1/10 hit ratio man T_T!!!

[Lord_Leperman]

I don't think it was From's primary goal to balance game mechanics through the use of regulation updates, but rather to introduce new ways of playing the game. Top tier mechanics as of 1.20 are skewed towards speed based gameplay, stuff you see back in the SL days really, where accurate and easy to use weapons (rifles with high muzzle velocities and melee abilities) rule the battlefield. It also doesn't help that much of the vs. maps are wide open combat areas, though some have small obstacles in between them, while others have giant structures, but for the most part the maps are pretty big with portions of wide open spaces.

TRESOR plasma cannon

Back mounted plasma cannon with higher damage per shot. It follows the principle of the O300 laser cannon but with a different implementation, as both are light enough to be carried by mid or light units and can deliver significant damages. If features, a high damage rating above 14K per shot and reloads just as fast as the SIRIUS. The problem is it only has 10 rounds of ammo, and its accuracy is a bit lacking at around 990, just 80 points higher than the SULTAN, still making it difficult to hit faster opponents, but on a slightly more manageable level. The combination low ammo count, high damage, and fairly quick reload make it suited as a fire-and-drop, close range weapon for lighter units, though a bit difficult to use due to its slightly poor accuracy.

CANOPUS hi laser rifle

AC4 and FA’ reincarnation of the KARASAWA with more ammo and significantly boosted damage. A true competitor to the laser bazooka, it has more than adequate ammo at 60 rounds, and decent accuracy comparable to that of a rifle bordering at 1100. Melee ability suffers just a bit at 80, but the biggest disadvantage is its reload rate marked at 120, a two full second firing cycle per shot.

I’m tempted to compare this to the E705 laser bazooka, as their stats are somewhat similar but their functions are remarkably different. The CANOPUS also wins in the damage and ammo department, but the E705 wins in the accuracy, rate of fire, and melee ability section. The E705 seems more suited for prolonged short range engagements, where damage rate and higher melee ability play a big role in determining a victor due to its ease of use at close quarters, because of its superior melee ability and reload rate. It also helps that the E705 drains significantly less than the CANOPUS in both EN per shot drain and equip drain, making it more forgiving to equip on some designs, and will have a fairly significant impact on one’s mobility. For endurance though, the CANOPUS wins due to its 60 rounds of ammo compared to the E705’s 32, and seems to be suited for hit and run engagements due to its long reload cycle. The choice then boils down if your AC is designed to stay up close for a certain amount of time, or try to use distance control and management. I for one would choose the E705 more often over the CANOPUS for most of my designs as a secondary close-range weapon, while the CANOPUS makes for a very good primary weapon for any situation.

051ANNR

The other BFF rifle that seems to outshine others, the 051ANNR enjoys the highest attack power of all the rifles at 1888 as well as being the 2nd most accurate next to its smaller cousin, the 063ANAR. Rate of fire has significantly been dumbed down to the mid 30’s, its magazine size shrank to a mere 30 in comparison to the 063ANAR’s 80, ammo reserves have been cut to half to 240, its melee ability drops to 90 from 136, and its weight shoots up to 1000+, making the 057ANNR a more balanced version of its borken cousin. The rifle itself still fairs pretty well in comparison to other rifles, and does well in a wide variety of situations. I’d prolly compare this to LR’s 93RL in terms of versatility in performance, while the I’d compare the 063ANAR to the RF-220 back in AC3.

There also exists another, lighter BFF rifle that roughly has the same accuracy as the ANNR with less damage, but enjoys a higher rate of fire at a much reduced weight penalty with the same amount of ammo. Your call on between the two rifles.


LABIATA

The AK of the AC:FA, it enjoys a decent damage rating and accuracy of a rifle while having a rate of fire bordering that of an assault rifle at around 25. Melee ability is at 100-ish making it comparable to Rosenthal rifles, but huge ammo reserves at 360 lend it longevity in battle at the price of 900 weight points. Overall it is a competitive choice against other rifles if it had a slightly faster bullet muzzle velocity, but otherwise, it is a good rifle on its own.

GA rifle

The worst rifle in the game, simply because it is too heavy for its mediocre performance. The heaviest standard rifle in the game, while it does have a considerable high amount of ammo, all its other attributes such as rate of fire, melee ability, and muzzle velocity are outclassed by other rifles in the game, where it seems that all other lighter rifles just do something better than this gun. I’d use it if they bumped its rate of fire to the level of the ACACIA, got the accuracy of the R100R and got rid of the magazine reload while retaining all other attributes constant.


Now I have a somewhat clear picture on weapons, I guess its time to look at frame parts this time.


MOTORCOBRA

The heaviest handheld MG excluding gatling guns, the MOTORCOBRA boasts a high ammo reserve count, a high magazine capacity, the highest damage, and the best firing range of all MGs, again excluding any of the gatiling guns. As much as MGs have been given a bad rep due to FA’s speed based physics, my first impression of the weapon is that of a quick PA stripper and damage dealer at close range, and if paired up with an accurate weapon that does high damage with minimal PA penetration allows for some nice damage combinations. Typically, a close range specialist will try to distract an opponent with missiles, come into close range, activate Assault Armor to disable an opponent’s PA and targeting ability, and take advantage of the MG’s high melee ability, along with missiles at close range to deal significant damage while the opponent is busy trying to run away and recover their targeting systems. Overall the weapon is alright, but not easy to use due to requiring the AC to be constantly positioned at close range to realize the weapon’s true potential, where it can easily come under fire from an opponent’s weapons.

CANTUTA

A machinegun that looks like a real life AKMS with its stock folded. The CANTUTA boasts the fastest shot velocity of any of the hand held machineguns at the cost of a lower melee ability. ROF and damage are pretty average for a machinegun, and so as its ammo capacity. Use this if you want your spray and pray to be a bit more accurate, but as with all MGs, it still may have a problem hitting things outside close range.

MARVE

This weapon from AC4 is still quite useable in FA despite the existence of the 063ANAR. The damage rate on the MARVE can even be compared to MGs due to its melee ability, but still retaining the accuracy and ROF of an assault rifle. The problem with the MARVE is its low ammo capacity at 30 rounds per magazine, with only 150 including the reserves, and it weighs almost a ton at 900-ish weight points. This would have been a popular choice if only it were to carry an extra 30 round magazine, especially considering its current weight, but its damage rate, accuracy and melee ability make it a very useable weapon at close ranges. But considering the weapon’s previous regulation incarnations (had only 120 rounds of ammo), the current setup is already an improvement over the original. Overall a great close range weapon that can be used out of reach from other close ranged weapons like MGs and SGs.

700R Assault Rifle

A lighter and more forgiving version of the MARVE, the 0700 retains the rate of fire and melee ability of the MARVE at around 700 weight points, in addition it also carries an extra 30 rounds that the MARVE might need. This comes of course, with the price of a lower damage rating than the MARVE at around 1400 where the MARVE comes out at around 1600 per bullet. Preference will boil down to how one fights, but pound-per-pound I think the 0700 is superior to the MARVE. I think the MARVE and 0700 pair can be used to a great extent on tanks, where it can equip either of the two rifles and hanger the other one for a prolonged assault rifle offense/defense barrage.

PITONE hand railgun

Holds the record for being the most accurate weapon in the game with 2600-ish velocity. The PITONE and railguns in general can outperform sniper rifles. They offer higher melee abilities than their chemical ballistic counterparts, and a much improved accuracy rating over their sniper rifles. On the other hand, they pay with their enormous EN equip and usage drain and only have 15 rounds of ammunition in addition to their slow rate of fire. The only comparable weapon is the heavy sniper rifle, with adequate accuracy and a rate of fire to match the damage rate of the PITONE.

LANCEL legs

Currently my favorite leg set in the game. I’ve been a sucker for semi-boxy mid weight legs that have been on AC’s intros for AC1-MoA and AC3, NB, and LR (LN-101B, SNSK, 80S2 respectively, and finally its successor in FA, the LANCEL) so I feel good whenever these are equipped. For its merits, it is the lowest draining mid-weight leg set and one of the fastest turning second only to the WHITE GLINT legs. It is also one of the lightest mid weight legs in the game and is almost a counterpart to the HOGIRE legs. While people will say that the WHITE GLINT legs are superior, and they are right, so I’ll cover those at a different time, I still prefer the LANCEL for the greater weight cap and lower drain despite losing to the WHITE GLINT legs in turn rate, and weight… All because of a certain EN intensive playstyle I’ve been reviving/experimenting on.

BECRUX

Dual hi laser rifle with amazing attack power. I was skeptical about the capabilities of this weapon at first, as I view the CANOPUS as a superior weapon, but after trying it out, all I can say is this is a hand mounted version of the SIRIUS back laser cannon, which is only a good thing. The twin beams do at 13K EN damage at a much more reasonable weight compared to the SIRIUS in addition to extra ammo. However, it does fire a tad bit slower than the SIRIUS at around 200 frames and it is also a bit less accurate than the latter. Compared to the ACRUX however, the BECRUX has almost twice the amount of ammo and fires faster for roughly the same accuracy, though the ACRUX does more raw damage per shot and has a slightly better melee ability than its hand mounted cousin. I’d still say the CANOPUS is a better weapon due to the more manageable reload rate and melee ability, but if you’re going for a hit-and-run piloting style where single shot damage maters more than reload rate, the BECRUX might suit your taste better.

GAN01-SS-GC Gatling Cannon

The big gun that everyone was waiting for. The GA gatling cannon is absurdly big and heavy, but fires damaging bullets like nobody’s business and eats PA like a contestant on Survivor eating his first pizza. There hasn’t been a chaingun like this since AC3’s CNG-300, which is a welcome addition to FA’s arsenal. With 1000 rounds and 800 attack power, this is probably the one weapon that has a highest total killpower in the game, and it can spray that ammunition at a relatively fast rate. However performance is a mixed bag IMO, for one it has poor PA penetration meaning the initial actual damage going through is very minimal, after prolonged hits though it starts doing damage at an astronomical rate, assuming you are able to hold the lock and make most of the shots connect. Other than its advantages, they still seem pretty hard to hit with as the bullets scatter the farther the distance of an opponent. Surprisingly, I think this weapon does stun some opponents, but I think I’ll need to test that again.

M700 Scatter Missiles

I’ve been hearing good things about this missile set from other forums. They’re the equivalent of the KARURA micros from NX-LR. While their missile agility seems pretty low even for a scatter missile pack, they seem to make u-turns when opponents are in the air, but not sharp enough to it them if they’re constantly changing directions, but enough to hit opponents travelling in one general direction. Overall, I have mixed feelings about this, it may be useful if your opponent doesn’t know what you’re doing, but if its clearly visible, it can easily be dodged.

BISMUTH Kojima Missile

Heavy Kojima missile that does EN damage upon detonation. This hefty missile is very slow but very agile, it in fact, has the slowest missile acceleration in the game, but also has the highest agility of all missiles. While slow, its real value is easily destroying an enemy’s PA in an instant aside from the huge damage it deals. If an AC gets caught in the explosion, there is a good chance that his or her PA will be reduced to 0 in an instant. However, this works the way if you get caught in the explosion as well, so take care not to be in its blast radius when using this weapon. It is also the slowest missile in the game, meaning enemies can simply outrun this missile by going along a specific general direction. Also remember that this weapon can be shot down easily compared to faster missiles, so as much as possible launch the missiles while on the move, or when the opponent isn’t facing you. Works well with the DEARBORN03 to camouflage the salvo to help strip PA and contribute to damage.

ZINC Vertical Launch Kojima Missile

Vertically launched Kojima Missile that creates a huge kojima explosion on impact. Similar to the BISMUTH except it launches its projectiles vertically and has twice the missile acceleration than its direct fire counterpart, meaning that the missile can actually catch up to an opponent. Great for a high damage, off angle attack against slow opponents or careless ones. Like the BISMUTH, it can easily reduce an opponent’s PA to 0 quickly, however the missile only begins to track after a certain altitude, which can be taken in a good or bad way depending on your playstyle. Prepare to make some extra sacrifices when equipping the ZINC as it is heavier and drainer than its direct fire counterpart. Heavy missiles have never been as useful since PP’s Large missile, and I’m glad they made this weapon. Great when paired up with the OSAGE03 for a vert salvo to divide the attention away from the Kojima missile.

BIGSIOUX Large Missile

Large explosive missile with excellent homing but slow speed. While the damage is good, it does little PA damage compared to its Kojima variant, making the BIGSIOUX less useful. It is easier to equip and less drainy though, but its poor speed, damage, and equip weight make it a less attractive choice compared to other missiles

047ANNR

A light weight BFF rifle that’s a cross between the 063ANAR and the 051ANNR. The 047ANNR features 1.6K damage rating per shot, which is in between the 51ANNR’s 1888 and the ANAR’s 1250, but still retains the same accuracy and a rate of fire in between the two rifles. It is also the lightest of the BFF rifles, making it an attractive choice as compromise if the ANAR is too borken, or if the heavy weight of the 51ANNR is prohibitive for a design.

R100

Standard light Rosenthal rifle that does everything nicely. No real drawbacks, but nothing really that makes this weapon shine. It is a very light rifle though, a very basic choice despite the slightly lower ammunition count compared to other rifles. Overall, nothing remarkable, but nothing bad about it either.

R100R

High attack power Rosenthal rifle comparable to the 051ANNR. Lacks the high shot velocity of the BFF rifle, but has higher melee ability and fires a bit faster. A good rifle intended for shorter ranges compared to the 051ANNR and its lighter to boot. A good upgrade from the R100 if you need a rifle with more stopping power while still retaining its melee ability.

E200 laser rifle

Arm mounted laser rifle that looks like you can poke an eye out with it. With a lower muzzle velocity and damage than standard laser rifles, its lighter weight, higher melee ability, ammo count, and efficient usage drain make it more suited for closer range combat. Damage is considerably less than other laser rifles, but they have more ammo to play with. Overall a good alternative to some assault rifles for ACs that need an EN punch in their arsenal, or for already drainy designs in need of EN weaponry and track better than standard models.

GAMERA pulse cannon

I see pulse weapons in FA as EN machineguns, and the GENBU I will classify as an EN chaingun because of its damage stat, rate of fire, and accuracy. While it fires slower than its shell based counter part, it does more damage and is significantly more accurate and it is significantly lighter. It still uses energy, so be weary when using while on the move.

OIGAMI

Large dual back mounted grenade launcher that boasts the highest single attack power in the game. Unfortunately, it takes along time to unfold, making it useless as a backup weapon at close ranges. Also, it doesn’t really make sense to equip the OIGAMI when 2 SAPLAs or 2 TRAVERS’ can do the same job as the OIGAMI for a lesser weight. The only difference is the OIGAMI is the most accurate GC at 960, however it may still not be accurate enough to hit fast moving targets for a single shot weapon. Maybe if they gave it rifle like accuracy at around 1150, extra 5 rounds of ammo, and greatly improved PA penetration, then it might be worth it.

[Mjting]

http://translate.google.com/translate?hl...l=ja&tl=en

1.3 regulation

[atdsutm]

the PHACT got nerfed and has 24 rounds (WTF just what i just proposed)

SOBRERO got nerfed.

overall speed is toned down and a faster version of AC4.

(change our designs)

bad news = only for xbox 360, ps3 in "JAPAN" as of now.


comments from a player


- First off, the speed is right where it should be now. Seems just a little faster than AC4. No more of this Zone of the Enders bullshit.
- Cover games are back, almost ala AC4 style. Almost, but not quite. Still better than 1.1 or 1.2 though.
- CQC is back! You see a lot of people running Motocobra because at first look, it's the King of Machineguns again. Machineguns work, and how!
- The game is becoming VERY design-intensive, but not like 1.1, the next-gen version of Ninebreaker, was design-intensive. You gotta design with a strategy in mind to make an AC that works well.
- On that note, THANK YOU FROM for increasing the gen weights! Whoever said there's only a couple usable generators is dead wrong. Generators have become VERY design-specific now. Each generator has its own advantages and drawbacks, and what really balances them out is the weight!
- AA is very situational now, mainly just a PA breaker and nothing more, not really even worth running unless you design an entire model around it. It takes quite some time for your PA to recharge after an AA.
- I tested out a defense-gouge heavy, and heavies don't appear to be broken at first glance. Having a repeat of GAN01 frames of doom was one of my biggest worries, but it seems like they're pretty well balanced, especially since they can't take on massive loads anymore.
- Lights are pretty balanced out too, for that matter. Most of what I played against tonight were light bipeds, and while they could dodge a lot, they weren't overwhelming by any means.
- Quads still rock, despite being balanced out with really low AP and lower DEF stats. Just means you need to be hit less.
- RJ's are just dirty.
- Rifles are really balanced. Marve looks awesome, but so does Labiata. 063ANAR finally got nerfed. The biggest note is range. The top range for a rifle now is in the 600 area, and most rifles are in the 500 area. Assault rifles are ranged more around 400 now.
- Missiles are pretty much balanced and take a lot more timing to use. The days of spam-and-go are pretty much gone. I didn't run into much spread/scatter, just a lot of Vermillion/DR guys. Hi-acts are pretty reliable, but need to be used at farthest mid-range to be effective. Jury's still out on spreads - I didn't use them enough. They seem to be reliable, but they also don't seem overpowered.
- PHACT is pretty balanced and isn't auto-hit/auto-win. I haven't tried railguns yet, but they're still low ammo.
- Snipers are pretty balanced, but also pretty nice. Same goes for EN rifles, which seem to hit better than shell weapons.
- Hi-lasers hit pretty well.
- Brocken doesn't seem to hit well at close range or mid-range. Could just be the low velocity of the weapon, though.
- Nades seem to work well.
- Blade tracking is back down to AC4 status.
- I haven't tried out shotguns, gatlings, or chainguns yet. Gatlings got a range reduction to 400, most CQC weapons got range increases to 300-400.
- ECM shoulders seem to work. You might end up seeing a lot of plasma weapons and ECM's soon. Radars from FCS's aren't what they used to be. Average refresh is now 90...
- Addict shoulders take a few seconds before they activate, although I haven't been able to test this with anything besides after doing an AA.

[clonezero]

wats addict shoudlers?

and oh yeah any more specifics on the nades?

[Lord_Leperman]

Wow, I'm really happy reading the changes they made with 1.3.

063ANAR got a nerf to 300 rounds of ammo and a muzzle velocity of 1275! Hooray!

Clone: Oh the ADDICT is a PA recharger, think of it as the JIREN of AC:FA.

[clonezero]

ty on that boss rick

[Lord_Leperman]

I think I'll hold off playing FA till I can get 1.30. It just sounds like my cup of tea. Expect weapon reviews as soon as I get hold of it.

[Doom Trigger]

Tried playing/trading schema with cabs last night, aparently many of the main functions don't work while playing 1.2 VS 1.3 reg users. Mainly we could'nt trade, 1.2 users cant join 1.3 reg rooms, and the partnership dos'nt work at all .. Sana magkaron n ng 1.3 b4 27.

[cabs]

Tried playing/trading schema with cabs last night, aparently many of the main functions don't work while playing 1.2 VS 1.3 reg users. Mainly we could'nt trade, 1.2 users cant join 1.3 reg rooms, and the partnership dos'nt work at all .. Sana magkaron n ng 1.3 b4 27.

If not, I would be forced to put all my designs on paper...... medokusai na! >_<