Hey guys,
Here are my thoughts on why making air dodging universal without changing how it works might be not as good an idea as some people seem to think.
(CQC = close quarters combat)
1. Some weapons will become obsolete
1.1 Hellfires
Dodging HFs unscathed on the ground is an advanced, hard-to-pull-off manoeuvre. This is due to their considerable splash radius and peculiar homing algorithm. Dodging HFs in the air, however, is an easy task, as you don't have to worry about the splash, and the homing is just not enough to cut it. For this reason, the time frame for dodging HFs in the air is almost double that on the ground. Thus, in my opinion, making air dodging universal will considerably weaken this weapon, to the point where people will be using it much less often.
1st: Not hard to pull off dodging HF's on the ground. Being in the air makes you the #1 target for HF missiles however... So any time people are in the air, they're an easier target for HF overall. Keep in mind, nobody can spam dodge. In a 1v1 situation, yes, you can easily dodge HF (but that's true in any situation). In the heat of battle where you have to focus on not getting hit by multiple enemies, you may or may not have a dodge at the ready. And even if you do, good chance you'll just wind up in LOS with another enemy.
1.2 EOC and EOC-P
Even high-tier players will find it hard to land a high percentage of their pucks on air-dodgers, let alone low- and mid-tier players. It might not be a huge problem in CQC, but in mid-range combat your pucks will likely miss half the time, or more. Making air dodging universal will make these two weapons weaker as well.
Nobody really emphasizes using this weapon vs air dodgers. While possible, it's certainly not optimal. Considering universal air dodge would not inherently increase the amount of time players spend in the air, the ez mode lay mine method will still be just as useful. Also, one can say everything you just said while vs a mech on the ground dodging... Most people don't utilize it as a direct fire weapon. So it's really a moot point in saying people will have a hard time hitting someone with it while they air dodge...
1.3. Heat Cannon
It is possible to land a decent percentage of Heat shots on air-dodgers, but that is only either with charged shots or in CQC. However, charged shots have lower dps, and CQC is not always an option (and it can be evaded by the air-dodger; more on that later). In addition, you won't be able to capitalize on the weapon's large splash radius, except when your opponent flies near a wall or some other map structure, which he can avoid doing.
"It is possible to land a decent percentage of Heat shots on ground-dodgers, but that is only either with charged shots or in CQC". Again, it's the same if the mech is on the ground. If one is aiming for direct hits, whether the target is in the air or on the ground doesn't matter. And again, air dodge wouldn't make the game revolve around aerial combat, so worrying about taking advantage of the weapon splash (which is stupidly high anyway) is moot as well. You'll still have most of the game to be a splash monkey :)
1.4 Rev-GL
Landing Rev grenades on an air-dodger takes a lot of skill even in CQC, but doing so consistently outside of point-blank combat is nearly impossible. In my opinion, this weapon will suffer the most from introducing universal air dodging.
Rev-GL isn't designed to counter this, so naturally it's not going to be optimal. Every game has weapons that aren't optimal for every situation. Rev-GL is amazing at being a splash monkey weapon in hallways and around corners. Not every weapon needs to be optimal in every situation. Also, if you are aiming at someone in the air, and they dodge, you have a fairly high ROF to trace your shots back on to target very quickly.
1.5 Redox
Low projectile speed + low damage = almost useless against an air-dodger. Although the tech shouldn't be an attacker in the first place, so it doesn't matter much >:)
Guess I don't need to counter this as you already did ;)
1.6 Grenade Launcher
Because grenades have a low projectile speed, an air-dodger, given a somewhat decent ping, can dodge away unscathed from an incoming grenade, starting at a certain distance that depends on your ping and reaction time. This is a huge problem outside of CQC, because you do have enough time to dodge away most of the time. In point-blank combat it is also a problem, because GL's minimum detonation time is longer than that of the TOW, which means your opponent will have a bit more time to dodge away from your shot or otherwise evade it. Now, the same applies for ground combat, but there is one difference: it is much more difficult to utilize the grenade's bounce against a flying air-dodger, and without the bounce, the Grenade Launcher, even with its large blast radius, is strictly worse than the TOW.
GL splash is so ridiculously huge, you should never have a shot in any situation that doesn't do at least some damage. I mean sure, if they're across the map, don't expect it to hit them, but in any close or mid range situation, you should be doing at least a little dmg. At close range, it's just as easy to use as TOW (but you get the added benefit of a stupidly large splash radius!)
As for bounce... that's just another added benefit for when you want to hit someone around a corner. Why would you even care about bounce if your target is in the air?
1.7 Corsair KLA
The grenade mode will suffer due to more flying going on in the game. Hitting flying targets with a KLA grenade is quite a challenge. And again, it will be much more difficult to take advantage of the weapon's large splash radius.
Yes it is a challenge! Finally, something that requires skill! No remote det! CQC: Probably shouldn't be in grenade mode. Mid range: if they in the air, don't use nade mode, or do and just wait until after they've dodged (just as you would were they on the ground). Long range: It's just another cover fire weapon anyway...
1.8 Seeker
Conversely, the Seeker will become stronger, because its cooldown is shorter than the dodge cooldown, meaning that you'll be able to dependably hit a good percentage of your seekers. The weapon is quite strong (a quite annoying, frankly) as it is, and making it stronger will make things worse.
Seeker is tard. But then, any weapon that guides is tard. What's the fun of having the game aim for you? Anyway, the disadvantages of seeker will still far outweigh the small increase in usefulness it would receieve based on your perception.
2. Hitscan/TOW meta
As you might have noticed, all of the aforementioned weapons are projectile. And all of them, save for the Seeker, will suffer from making air dodging universal. As I see it, air combat will become much more widespread (because there are so few drawbacks to going airborne; more on this later), and this will lead to players — especially low- and mid-tier ones — massively favor hitscan weapons and the fast-travelling, easy-to-use TOW. This will create an array of new balance problems.
Currently, A class is the biggest "problem" with aerial combat. Already people use all weapons in the game quite well against them. Allowing B and C class mechs to air dodge, isn't going to increase the difficulty, as they will never be harder to hit than what we've already experienced. So the balance is there already. Also keep in mind low and mid tier players are going to be bad regardless of any changes, and balance should not be based on their low skill play. When you balance a game around low skill, it leaves nothing to achieve, thus everyone just plateaus at a lower skill level. That makes for a boring game that doesn't keep players around long term.
Now you can say, "Okay, but you just pointed out that everything's fine in CQC for all these projectile weapons! Why not force CQC?"
And the answer is this:
1. Forcing CQC is often risky, because you have to boost towards your opponent (walking won't cut it), which makes you visible on the radar for the air-dodger's teammates. You can find yourself in a trap once you get into that CQC you strived for. In addition, forcing CQC takes precious seconds that the air-dodger spends pounding you with lead.
2. More often than not, the air-dodger can boost backwards mid-air to make forcing CQC more difficult. If his mech's air speed is low, he can air-dodge backwards. So at the point when you get into CQC, you already have too little armor to win the fight. Right now this is not so much a problem, because the Air Compressor occupies whopping 3 slots that you can use for something that makes you live longer, but it will become a problem should air-dodging become universal.
If everyone has air dodge, then everyone can use those 3 slots on something to help them live longer... Everything you just described can be dealt with in tactics... If the enemy can boost backwards mid air while firing at you, what is preventing your team from boosting forward mid air while firing at them? I can understand how one may consider this a "problem" if it weren't universal, but if it is universal, just counter it with the same tactic lol. And even now with it not universal, people really don't have problems hitting targets in the air...
3. Flying meta
There are really few drawbacks to flying when you can air-dodge. Here are some of the advantages:
1. With hitscan, you get immediate advantage against enemies with projectile weapons if you can force mid-range combat (which you will be able to most of the time) for the reasons mentioned above.
For my reason mentioned above, forcing mid range combat will still not be as easy as you seem to think.
2. A flying enemy has a better shooting angle against a ground enemy, so why be on the ground?
If they can do it, so you can! Ahhh, the benefits of universiality! Why be on the ground? Because adding a universal air dodge isn't going to make all mechs suddenly be able to fly around whimsically. Ground combat will still very much be the primary form of combat.
3. You don't care about splash damage of any sort.
This game has remote det! What of all those quake, UT, tribes players that DIDN'T have remote det, and STILL got direct hits with projectile splash weapons? You seem to think it impossible. Remote det makes this game incredibly forgiving. Laughable almost.
4. Spamming air-dodge against low-tier to mid-tier players or players with high ping works wonders.
Ping is not a factor. If someone has high ping, the solution is for more server regions, not balancing the game mechanics around it. Also, spamming anything against low and mid tier players works wonders lol. That's why they're low and mid tier players.
5. If you're piloting an SS or reaper, being in the air means you have a better reach to the enemy mechs, but without the drawbacks of flight if you can air-dodge. This is especially noticeable on Bunker.
At the ranges they'd generally be pop-tarting from, even w/o air dodge most people aren't going to hit them (unless they're really really bad and don't know how to press a strafe key). If they're closer range where people would generally hit them, just wait for them to dodge (kinda like that thing you do on the ground before you fire a projectile, wait to see where they're going...). Nobody is going to be able to spam dodge. It's still on a CD....
The only drawback I can think of is that by going airborne you make yourself more vulnerable to snipers. The fuel thing is not really problematic because a) fuel converter and b) you can continue dodging even after landing with no fuel left.
The majority of the game is close to mid range, ranges where most average players have little to no problem hitting players in the air. Currently, if you do not have AC, you're just stupid if you get airborne. If air dodge is universal, at least you have a little chance of avoiding ONE SHOT (only to get hit by a million more as you're still in the air, and your dodge is on CD). Being in the air would still be an incredible disadvantage. Making it universal would only serve to make it a little more useful.
4. Conclusion
So what will we get in the end? I think we'll get ourselves a Hawken where hitscan and the TOW heavily dominate the meta and everyone prefers going airborne.
I've seen more hitscan weaponry since starting playing again than I remember in the past, and I'm pretty sure that's due to a damage buff as opposed to the addition of AC. Even so, I still see all the other weapons used very frequently and to good effect, even when vs teams full of A class AC mechs. I highly doubt making air dodge universal would change that.
Keep in mind, high ROF hitscan weapons are often the go to weapons for low skill players as they are generally always the easiest to pick up on and use. That doesn't really have anything to do with whether a game has air dodge or not.
I will welcome your counterarguments and additional points I might have missed :)