I posted this in the petition thread, but then I remembered a post from the devs that they don't like petition threads and often do not read them.  As such, I don't want these ideas to go unnoticed and have reposted this under it's own topic so that our correspondant, Garvin, and the devs may read this with an open mind.

As I stated earlier, commando is not just broken, it's design itself is fundamentaly flawed.  What is a commando in swg?  Currently, a commando is heavy weapons specialists with no real skills to offer in the game.  Why shoot a heavy weapon in the game for 160 some odd skill points, when you can spend half of that amount and fire at targets harder, faster, and with more defenses.  There are a rediculous amount of seperate skill modifiers.  Do riflemen have seperate modifiers for T-21's and jawas?  Do pisoleers have seperate modifiers for republic blasters and fwg's?  No, so why does the commando have seperate modifiers for the disposable heavy weapons (thus making sure that the heavy weapons with less skill modifiers will be utterly useless compared to the weapons with greater modifiers), or why do the flamethrower and HAR (devs, it's time you please come to an understanding that these weapons are of the same type) have seperate modifiers?  The only current combat profession that is less effective in ANY combat situation is pikeman.  Furthermore, if all commando is ever going to be is a heavy weapon class, then I suggest that the prerequisites should be soley limited to the 4th line of marksman.  I strongly suggest the developers don't go this route however, as in all honesty, this would be the "easy" solution, and would forever destroy what could potentially add so much to the game (note: not just commandos, but the game as a whole), and the suffering GCW in particular. 

What should the commando be then?  I propose, given the skill point investment involved, commando should be a hybrid profession.  In broad terms, it should be able to hold it's own as a normal elite combatant (such as pistoleer, carbineer, rifleman, tkm, etc.) but should also be able to play the part of combat support on a large scale (hence the nearly doubled investment in skill points).  Commandos shouldn't be about status effects or heavy defenses, they should be about raw damage (note: High DPS).  The commando won't be as graceful as a fencer or tka, specialized as a rifleman.  Rather a commando would just deliver brutal damage.  Nothing cute, no dizzy, no poison, no knockdown, just raw powerful damage. In short, the commando is the special forces, the highly trained soldier who is at home in a GCW environment. Below, I will offer a mock skill tree setup that would be more fitting of what a commando should be, as well as a list of concepts that would make more sense for a commando's role.

Step one would be the merging of the flamethrower and HAR trees.  I'm of the firm belief that the flamethrower (nor the HAR) was never meant to be the main weapon of the commando, rather a situational weapon that is used for up close combat support.  This new skill tree should be called personel heavy weapons support, or perhaps something like special heavy weapons support.  A new skill mod would be needed to replace the skill modifiers for both weapons.  Instead of seperate modifiers,  just create the skill modifiers special heavy weapons accuracy and special heavy weapons speed.  Base the modifiers off of the current flamethrower mods.  There still must be a few changes however.  One change desperately needed would be to add armor piercing to the HEAVY ACID RIFLE (on a comparable and reasonable level, ap2 would be needed to make up for the lack of a DOT on the HAR, otherwise, the dot of the flamethrower ensures that the HAR would never have a use, no matter the resist).   The next step would be harder to implement, however I think if possible, they would be interesting from a gameplay and tactical view.  When fighting in an indoor environment, there should be a significant accuracy modifier to both (the reason being, there would be no room to dodge, block or counterattack a spray weapon in such close quarters).  Furthermore, now that fire blankets have been introduced, the flame DOT applied from the flamethrower should be increased to pre-nerf levels, when the DOT is applied in an indoor evironment.  In an indoor environment, the heat would be much more intense without an open space to help disperse the intense heat.  These proposals would give a strategic use of these particular weapons and would give them a more defined role in game.

 

Special Heavy Weapons Support IV

• spraysingle 2
• increase in special heavy weapons accuracy
• increase in special heavy weapons speed

Special Heavy Weapons Support III

• increase in special heavy weapons accuracy (the largest increase before master)
• increase in special heavy weapons speed (the largest increase before master)

Special Heavy Weapons Support II

• spraycone 1
• increase in special heavy weapons accuracy
• increase in special heavy weapons speed

Special Heavy Weapons Support I

• sparysingle 1
• increase in special heavy weapons accuracy
• increase in special heavy weapons speed

 

Now, with the merger of the two trees above, a new tree would go into replace this tree slot.  There are several choices here, however, whatever is placed here should be the "regular" weapon of the commando if you will.  This line should represent the "bread and butter", the "everyday" weapon of the commando.  Already in game is the launcher pistol, however, if this is the weapon to be used for this tree, it needs to recieve an ap rating of ap1.  This is a gun that fires several minature rockets and it has no armor piercing (Do I really need to explain how this makes no sense?).  There is a weapon in the star wars universe that is associated with commandos.  It's the DC-17 assault rifle that is to be featured in the upcoming lucas arts game, Republic Commando.  The devs could go with the launcher pistol, but the DC-17 makes much more sense.  Because all the lines in commando require heavy weapons xp, this one should grant heavy weapons xp as well (carbine would make more sense, but then again, the 4th line is already set up for heavy weapons xp, and this would also flow in the same sense that the launcher pistol grants heavy weapons xp).  However, it should be based on carbine mods (as the current lp is based of pistol mods) and be subject to ranged and carbine specials learned from master marksman.  The DC-17 should have an ap rating of at least 1 (if not 2) and should be comparable in stats somewhere between a slug carbine and a laser carbine.  The specials should not be status effect associated, but rather just a higher dps as one goes up the tree.  Have two specials (with a third at master, standard 4-5x dmg modifier of level 3 specials), each one dealing progressively greater damage and slightly lower speeds.  The carbine speed and accuracy mods should be comparable to what the Bounty Hunter recieves in their carbine tree.  Carbineers are specialists in the carbine.  They can put down status effects on entire groups as well as target a specific pool.  That is not what this line should be.  This should just be centered on non-pool specific, very high dps.

 

Assault IV

• rapidfire2
• increase in carbine accuracy
• increase in carbine speed

Assault III

• increase in carbine accuracy (the largest increase before master)
• increase in carbine speed (the largest increase before master)

Assault II

• rapidfire1
• increase in carbine accuracy
• increase in carbine speed

Assault I

• increase in carbine accuracy
• increase in carbine speed
• possible special for the launcher pistol
• possible small increase in pistol accuracy
• possible small increase in pistol speed

 

The Field tactics line is pretty good.  All of the grenades within are already assigned to a singular modifiers.  However, there is one glaring problem.  Have you ever heard the phrase, "close only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades"?  Well apparently not in this game.  Grenades do average damage when the do connect.  That is fine, however, the accuracy needs to be nearly doubled.  When thrown, these things should hit almost all the time (including almost everything in their blast radius), as they don't need to hit the target, just get close to do damage.  In the current system, one can throw a grenade into a large group of mobs, and quite disturbingly often, hit nobody but themselves.  This line is also where the defenses are, and they are pretty fair.  The only thing I might add is a decent defense vs. intimidate Logic being that a commando is a battle hardened soldier, with nothing left to intimidate him (perhaps stun for the same reasons, also, this would help justify the unarmed prereq).  I will not post a mock up of this line, as it is already logically set up, it just needs an major increase in the amount of thrown weapon accuracy given.

Now we come to the Heavy Weapons Support line.  These weapons need to have consolidated modifiers.  Convert the existing modifiers into heavy weapons accuracy and heavy weapons speed.  This would be a more streamlined mod system, would make all of the heavy weapons useful, and would allow for the existing heavy weapons skill tapes and attatchments to actually have a use in the game.  Also, the disposable acid stream could be removed all together, as it is redundant because commandos already have the Heavy Acid Rifle.  Certifications should be moved around a bit as well, as rockets should be certified higher in the skill tree, heavy particle beam at the lower end, and the heavy lightning cannon at novice commando. 

Furthermore, and this is the most intriguing and difficult part of the proposal, the E-web tripod blaster would be placed in this line.  This is what commandos are all about.  This entire line is dedicated to combat support, and the ultimate representation of this skill should be the E-web (non disposable).  The E-web should be a stationary weapon, capable of very hard, and very fast AP3 fire.  It would require many resources to make (master weaponsmight cert), energy based, and the skill mods should use the heavy weapon skill mods.  It should take the commando a considerable amount of time to set up (something like 30 - 50 seconds), and should not be able to be set up while under fire (similar to how tka meditation works, if a tk is engaged in combat while meditating, meditation is aborted).   Once set up and manned, the commando essentially becomes a manned turret.  Right off the bat, I can see TH about to turn red and say "you all just want to be uber", before taking a moment to realize that a powerful weapon like that has several inherent weaknesses.  A commando manning an E-web would only have a firing arch of somewhere around 140 degrees, open to be flanked or attacked from the rear.  Furthermore, a weapon like this could only be effective in a group scenario, thus making commandos entirely reliant on other forces to keep from being outflanked, while the group would benefit from MASSIVE support fire.  The E-web should be certfied at heavy weapons support IV, using its default attack (which again should be fast and hard), gaining an AOE special attack (similar cone effect to riflemen strafeshot2) at master commando.  The E-web alone could enrich the GCW on many levels.  It would actually provide somewhat of a "position" or "battle line" held by forces, instead of the random flowing chaotic mob that currently makes up most GCW engagements.  There would actually be tactical elements related to positioning in GCW fights.  Finally, this would just be damn cool to help take down a postion against an enemy E-web, or help provide massive fire support to fellow group members while manning an E-web.  I understand that something like this would probably require motion capture work and lots and lots of programming, but seeing as the slate is full right now, motion capture could easily be done sometime in the next few months, while the programmers are working on the Jedi path patches (a commando revamp should hit with the GCW revamp, as the two go hand in hand more than any other profession). 

 

Heavy Weapons Support IV

• E-web certification
• increase in heavy weapons accuracy
• increase in heavy weapons speed

Heavy Weapons Support III

• increase in heavy weapons accuracy (largest increase before master)
• increase in heavy weapons speed (largest increase before master)

Heavy Weapons Support II

• Rocket Launcher certification
• increase in heavy weapons accuracy
• increase in heavy weapons speed

Heavy Weapons Support I

• Heavy Particle Beam Cannon certification
• increase in heavy weapons accuracy
• increase in heavy weapons speed

 

Master Commando

• proton grenade certification
• areashot (E-web cone shot)
• spraycone2 (special heavy weapons)
• rapidfire3 (DC-17 highest dps shot)
• increase in heavy weapons accuracy
• increase in heavy weapons speed
• increase in special heavy weapons accuracy
• increase in special heavy weapons speed
• increase in thrown weapon accuracy (very large increase)
• increase in thrown weapon speed (sizable increase)
• increase in carbine accuracy
• increase in carbine speed
• slight increase in pistol accuracy (if launcher pistol is kept)
• slight increase in pistol speed (if launcher pistol is kept)

 

Well, this is one man's lengthy opinion, on a possible commando revamp that would both make commando a viable and interesting combat profession and help to enrich the GCW at the same time.   I only hope and pray that the devs will read this with an open mind, and give these ideas real thought, instead of instant dismisal as too much work or too hard to impliment.

Jered Nighthelm of the Keepers of a New Hope

wow alot of work there

 

dont have time to read it all right now  (hiting the sak) but looks like you put alot of time into it  

 

 ill criteec it tomarow  

2 Thumbs up.

 

Dont know how the devs say they dont listen to petitions. There was a petition to remove 1% decay  that had , what, 70 pages? I stoped counting....

Yes, YEs, YES!

 

 That is pretty much exactly what we need, my one problem is this-a red flag went up with me with the DC-17 Carbine, which is as follows- if we got the  DC-17 we have to wonder about weither it will be effectd by carbineer tree line, if this carbine was stacked with those mods, then it could get ugly (like the launcher pistol with pistoleer specials)

Wait, Should this be stickied? IMO it needs to be

Good stuff Nighthelm. Garvin will probably be reading this soon and hopefully forward some of the thoughts to the DEVs.

Ster Nemor... The last of the Mononokians
Master Commando
Master TKA
Pistoleer 0030

Garvin Lansdowne
Retired Commando Correspondent - Current Blue Glowie
Master Commando / TKM || Architect / Shipwright / Master Droidsmith
ShadowStyrkeGuild.com: A WoW Guild Website

"Do what must be done. Do not hesistate; show no mercy."

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Artoc Lero, Soldier - Starsider - Master Rifleman, Master Doctor - On Hiatus

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