A Look at the New Countermeasure Weapon
With the uproar about the changes to the Forsaken Mission, a shining little diamond has been overlooked - the Sprint Countermeasure.
This has been exacerbated a little because of the flavor text reference to the Trident. Likely because of this reference, most everyone has sort of shelved the Sprint as being a really heavy version of the Trident, discounting it without really looking it over much. This is a grave mistake.
I will grant you- it is a heavy piece of machinery. 550 tons to be exact, however, I think it might be a bit light for the power this thing houses. Yes, you read that right. The reason I say this is because my point of comparison is not the lowly Trident that was pulled out of obscurity during the preliminary testing of the Garrison raid targets. No, rather, my point of comparison is nothing less than the inestimable Phalanx IV, the stalwart and gold standard that we have in the game for 'one-shot' countermeasures. Why? I'm glad you asked....
The Sprint seems to have pulled most of the best parts from both the Trident and the Phal4 and is a devious piece of machinery. I'm actually rather worried about what is coming into the FM because of this blueprint and its apparent power. (I did sort of rant about the FM changes here already.) Let's peek under the hood...
- With a base range of 60 it is a little shy of the Trident but well above the Phal4.
- It has the projectile speed of the Trident, easily surpassing the Phal4.
- While much heavier than the Trident, it is significantly lighter than the Phal4.
- It has a better accuracy than either.
- It has the quickest reload time, which plays a significant role in the grand scheme of things.
Given that last one, let's look at an aspect that we have to account for in order to gain a better picture of the averaged time it takes to get projectiles in the air. This really isn't something we've looked at much before so let's take a gander now:
Taking into account the Projectile Time (dividing cycle time by projectiles to get an idea of an averaged time/proj), it seems that you lose very little in terms of projectiles in the air versus the gain you get in terms of accuracy and increased range. The increased range is also very important (in conjunction with the projectile speed) in that it also negates, in practice, some of the time disparity against the Phal4 comparison in terms of practical cycle time. The Sprint also offers another interesting option that can make it even more powerful - it s affected by Subaquatic Propellant. Who wants to do the math?
So, that's the quick and dirty write up for my preliminary observations on the Sprint. Now what do you think of the Sprint Countermeasure?
I guess it depends on the FM changes on how we will be using this one, or not. Trying to be optimistic.
ReplyDeleteyou didnt take into account the accuracy buffs that the phal 4 gets from countermeasure loaders 3 or 4 that the Sprint does not get.
ReplyDeleteThat is a VERY good point. For the accuracy, true. CML3/4 would bring Phal4 up to 100 accuracy. But the Phal4 can't shoot down rockets, which I think may be a very important consideration soon. It's all a puzzle but the main point of the article was to help make people aware that the Sprint is NOT a throw away weapon as many seemed to be treating it.
DeleteIn fact, it's such a good point, I just sent a query up the chain to see if there is any plans for an accuracy boost to be made available for countermeasure weapons class. When it was just the obscure Trident, it didn't seem to be an issue, however, now, it is becoming one.
DeleteI think pointing out a 'positive' after a rant such as the one you made shows you are stuck on the fence. So you rant about the bullshit but then give 'em a 'kudos'? Absurd man, totally absurd. No wonder Kix laughs at the players.
ReplyDeleteI think you mistook the point of the article. It isn't a 'positive' for Kix.
DeleteIt is hopefully giving players a heads up after most of the feedback I was getting about the weapon was focused around it being a really heavy Trident. The article was for the community, not for Kixeye.
Additionally, I try to always have a neutral stance when analyzing a situation, issue or item. I don't think it would behoove anyone if I were to purposefully not write this article out of spite because I was concerned or annoyed at something Kixeye was implementing. THAT is absurd. ;)
I don't understand. If you are mad about something, you have to be mad about everything? Or else you have no credibility? I think the opposite. Nobody listens to broken records.
DeleteI find this article very helpful. I'm sure those who didn't get Tridents when they were available and then became a staple will appreciate the heads-up need for this "throw-in". Stats aside, Kix don't just promote something once without being a future need. The Sprint may take same route as Trident. Get it while you can .
ReplyDeleteThanks George , well said .. From the a Blue collar worker ... lol
ReplyDeletethat was a great read .
ReplyDeletei didn't even notice that the CM special works on them
so i think this will serve to make the gridion mono a little bit better tank than since you have 6 slots so 1 slot for cm special and 1 for anti mort special . zelos on the other hand will have to replace evade probably
still the zelos would be better but you get 50% evade on grid vs 41% for zelos
so i guess thats something
i dont know i think its gonna make grid more viable i guess
How does this stack up against the zelos built in cm?
ReplyDeletejust noticed you lose the 15% pen defense from phalanx
ReplyDeleteif you dont have charged armor a mix might be better