Higher survivabilty to interceptors + raised base speeds + closer camera = Engineers will die in close range combat
I am totally cool with that.
But the new combat drone has little to no contribution to Engineers. Popup info reads good but on the field, it doesn’t do much. I used to get a Hands Free medal almost every other match. Last 2 days, I’ve only gotten 1 ?
If I’m parked beside another Engineer with drones on and we both get swarmed by 3 or more interceptors, it’s still only those 2 drones for defense? While Guards and their pulsars have no such limitations, locking down an area like they used to. Not to mention my drones have a habit of expiring at exactly the instant an interceptor comes in range before orbiting me. Happened so often I feel like these little critters aren’t worth the special module spot anymore.
Maybe swap the modules around even ?
So here’s a poll to check out your feelings on the new combat drone:
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You like the old one better
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You like the new one better
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Swap with Warp Gate, make Drones Active Engineer modules instead
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Swap with Mobile Barrier, make Drones Active Engineer modules instead
Drones have a very powerful anti-spec ops functionality. They spot people in active camo for you in 1500m meter range by firing at them.
And they do hurt a lot, especially if one of your escorts got a hit or two into the spec ops ship before he got on you.
With the weapon nerf to the engi, i think the drones need to be more powerful
If you buff the drones, you’ll see lazy frigate pilots rush in and score kills by flying in circles. Interceptors would simply die; it doesn’t matter if they are buffed or not, or whether they are piloted by skilled pilots or not.
I feel that the point is to let frigate pilots have some way to defend themselves using their main guns, not through some automated system (read: ‘aimbot’). Better camera angles and firing arcs would let skilled frigate pilots defend themselves against interceptors, while the poor ones have to pull up their socks instead of having an extra panic button.
Worth noting that if you currently attack an engineer frigate when your mods are on CD with a cover ops int, you have a good chance of dying to bot fire long before being able to dent it unless you fly at decent enough range to constantly strafe off a decent chunk of the incoming fire. The damage they do is quite significant. Luckily projectiles are fairly slow so they can be dodged if you put some range between them and yourself.
Engineer combat drones cant hit anything going faster than 350 or 400 m/s
Its great that they fire the camo’d ships, but they dont hit them at all.
I’d say put Drones back the way they were as this gives two important bits of functionality;
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The Engineer doesn’t need to wait 40 seconds for the damn things to switch on.
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If they lose a Drone (which seems to happen every other hit in PvE) they can immediately replace it by reactivating the module.
Even as an Inty pilot I don’t really like the idea of nerfing the Drones; they are one of the few ways an Engineer can actually threaten me, and even that functionality vanishes once you strip enough shields away.
Meh. I’d like to see them changed so we get 2 at spawn and then live with them for a bit.
The new drones are better. They don’t cost any energy, they maintain themselves, they do all their old .80 features, but now when I’m hiding behind a rock and notice a friend getting hit I can actually have a use for them when I sac one to heal instead of suicidally hoping something comes within range of them.
They’re better in every way, I don’t see why anyone would want the old ones back.
The only change id like is to have 2 when you spawn, instead of having to wait 40 seconds to get them both.
The only change id like is to have 2 when you spawn, instead of having to wait 40 seconds to get them both.
Yes, i second this, waiting 40 secs is a long time to wait…
Especially if your team sucks and your enemies are at spawn… lol
Just a little question: does anyone actually overload the drones to heal allies?
I frequently overload one if I have two up and I think it might be useful. I tend to chill behind a rock 3k back from the beacon scrums, so my drones don’t shoot much most of the time anyway, but keeping one up for early warning is useful. I also overload when attacked, because chances are they’re just going to get missiled anyway.
The range to heal with overload anyone other than yourself is stupidly small as well. I had another ship i was trying to heal at 1700M, and it didnt even hit them when i triggered it.
The range to heal with overload anyone other than yourself is stupidly small as well. I had another ship i was trying to heal at 1700M, and it didnt even hit them when i triggered it.
It clearly states on the mod tooltip that range of drones is 1500m.
I use the overheal when I can (beacon) and it *can* make a different, but rarely turns the tide of battle. I *have* had it successfully heal a captain sufficiently to survive.
I generally don’t have issues /w drones, but I often go in with a plasma arc to blow them up and deny the option to use the overheal (which my intie can’t outdmg w/o an active module).
Really? Where does it list them? It lists 1700m for firing, but nothing about the healing range.
Really? Where does it list them? It lists 1700m for firing, but nothing about the healing range.
It used to state 1500m range back when drones didn’t have any other functionality vanilla (before subfaction bonuses). I guess they bumped healing range to 1700m and kept firing range at 1500m.
Naw, they fire at 1700m, when they feel like it…
Ive noticed that drones tend to fire at what they feel like.
Their AI could be improved a bit… free fire if not locked onto a target within range… if locked onto a target within 1700M, it will fire at it instead.