SMAX - New Weapons/Armor

[Yxklyx]

I'm kind of underwhelmed by the new weapons and armor in SMAX. That +25% bonus seems weak especially since there's a special which gives +50%. Am I missing something here? Also, is the Plasma armor just plain obsolete now?

[Fitz]

The bonus from the armor stacks with the bonus from the special abilities.

So if you have a plain jane morale unit with Res-3 and Trance, it gets to defend at 2*1.5*1.25=3.75 instead of 2*1.5 = 3 for a trance only with Plasma. Since the base attack value in Psi combat is 3, instead of 1 to 1 odds, it is 12 to 15 in favor of the defender. That +25% becomes even more powerful with other bonuses added in. Elite 3-Res Trance with the Nueral Amplifier Secret Project near a friendly sensor array is 2*1.5*1.25*1.5*1.25=7.03 defense.

Plasma armor is not obsolete, because it costs less to use. Cheaper units = building them faster.

Does anyone use Pulse armor? I never do, and I'm not actually sure what weapons it works against. All of them except Psi?

[mark13]

Pulse armor works well against rovers - a bit like the ECM ability. I've only ever once used it actively in an SP situation, and that was in the SMACdown scenario not so long back - and it would be an extremely useful addition in MP if it was closer to any of the main beelines. But as the AI very rarely uses rovers, it's not a lot of use at all in regular SP play...

[Method]

plus the r-laser and r-bolt are useful with pops. POP and there's 13 mature boils 3 spore launchers and 2 locusts! well this looks like a job for the empath r-bolt artillery rovers and choppers you built.

[big_canuk]

Re: SMAX - New Weapons/Armor

Originally posted by Yxklyx
That +25% bonus seems weak especially since there's a special which gives +50%. Am I missing something here? Also, is the Plasma armor just plain obsolete now?

I guess you are comparing nerve gas to sporific gas. It isn't really 50% vs 25%. The 25% of sporific gas acts on defense, thus being equivilent to a 33.3% bonus on attack (Markup vs Markon). So 33% with no atrocity penalties (trade and ecodamage) isn't so bad. And if the charter is repealed, you are in a bind, or just for fun, try them both!

The problem again is that sporific gas is kind of off the normal beeline path.

[mark13]

Big C - I believe Yxklyx is comparing 3r and 3p armour to your run-of-the-mill trance and ECM special abilities.