New weapon idea(s): Flamethrowers & more

Would be interesting...

But, it is a video game. I mean, we are piloting giant robots XD Mega flame throwers shouldn't be to far fetched

You can science it up an call it a plasma thrower or something but the important thing is that it has to be different to the already short range damage hose that is the Punisher (which isn't great anyway).

I had typed out a super detailed response on my tablet previously but forgot about it. When I went back, the page reloaded and it was all gone *cry*. I'll try to remember what I wrote.

You're mostly right,B30RLL , but underneath the metal skin and armour, the robot is controlled by computers, actuators, and other supporting circuitry. It's those components that are susceptible to excess heat. For example, if you overheat an actuator (the shiny silver cylinders you see on cranes, excavators, etc), some of the potential dangers are the rupturing of the oil lines, or the cylinder exploding from the increased pressure (oil expands when heated). Capacitors, resistors and other electronic components change their behaviour under different temperatures, and when subject to temperatures over their heat tolerance, will stop working or even explode. Skip the next few paragraphs if you just want the juicy bits about the proposed flamethrower.

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I'm going to make yet another Mechwarrior reference, but don't worry. I'll explain it all in detail, for the uninitiated who didn't have the opportunity to play that amazing game. Lasers didn't do direct damage. Rather they caused the target to heat up. As previously stated by other forum members, you could target specific parts of the bot, like a leg, and cripple a bot by causing that one leg to explode. The mech would then fall down, quite comically, and become a useless wreck.

Additionally, each bot had a specific number of equipment and weapon slots. Each item took up a set number of slots (1-3), could only be placed in compatible slots,  and contributed to the total weight of the mech. Mechs were classed by weight, and were given set limits such as 30 tons (Cossack equivalent fast and light jumping bot), 90 tons (Fury equivalent). Additional targetting or radar jamming ...(HEY, another borrowed idea!! RADAR JAMMING item that takes up a weapon slot? Prevents enemy missiles from locking on to you!!!! Awesome aphid/spiral/hydra counter! Then the new heavy spirals can still be introduced without breaking balance!?)  ...Sorry, I digress....

Augmented targeting (it was called "enhanced imaging"), radar jammers (ECUs - Electronic Countermeasure Units) and other associated equipment had to be placed in the torso; Specific mechs had "jump jet" slots in their legs, which could be fitted with jump jets or fitted with heat sinks (heat sinks could also be placed in the torso), which brings me back on topic for the second time: The number of heat sinks you equipped your mech with determined the number of energy shots you could fire or receive without overheating and (a) involuntarily shutting down for the length of time the heat takes to passively dissipate, or (b) if the heat exceeds your mech's capacity to dissipate it altogether, you'd explode. You could also voluntarily shut down your reactor, which would render you invisible to enemy radar...

[Well I'll be, yet ANOTHER POSSIBLE borrowed IDEA ->> shutdown to avoid showing up at all on your opponents screen, like a permanent "stealth" every bot can utilise. Shutdown/startup graphics and cooldown timers would have to be implemented of course.... You'd essentially be a statue though - can't move and can't shoot until your startup graphics finish. Also, unlike stealth, enemy bots can still target and damage you when you are in their line of sight. It's just your name and distance don't show up when you're not directly visible - I completed many Mechwarrior missions by equipping super long range weapons, and good targeting equipment, then sniping powered down mechs before I got within radar range.]

All these configurations needed to be planned for, managed, and equipped by the pilot before the mission, much like we configure our hangars. You were allowed to configure your mech overweight, or with no heat sinks too - giving you enough rope to hang yourself. Overweight mechs started missions with immediate leg damage (can't remember if this compounded over time), and if you didn't equip enough heat sinks and fired or got hit by too many energy weapons at once, one of the consequences stated in the last sentence of the 2nd last paragraph would result. I'm not suggesting all this be implemented in War Robots though! Just thought it might be helpful to those wondering what all the fussing over the Mechwarrior franchise is about.

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Back on topic for the final time. The way the Gekkos were originally intended to function was that the damage dealt increased/multiplied over the time you were hit by lasers. e.g. [Not accurate] If you got hit for 1 second, you might get 100 damage; 2 seconds - 300 damage; 3 seconds - 900 damage, and so on. Also, I don't remember if the damage continued to be dealt until you stopped glowing? However they removed this mechanism for some reason, I can't remember why, but damage dealt is now a flat constant rate over time. HOWEVER, they left the graphical consequences intact (and possibly the functional code for damage dealt?) Thus, we see that bots hit with lasers for longer times glow with increasing luminosity, originally indicating the level of damage dealt. So, it might not take much effort to program the damage dealing mechanism for flamethrowers in. Writing the algorithm for the graphical flame effect is a whole different ballgame though....

Regardless, if flamethrowers are indeed implemented in some fashion, then I feel they should be:
1 - limited to medium hardpoints; and
2 - limited to a range of say 75-100m

The rational for reason 1 is that they would need to deal an incredible amount of damage in order for them to be viable and/or desirable. This also leads to limitation number 2, which I explain in the next, next paragraph.

A light hardpoint flamethrower would make a seriously OP flame-gep, flame stalker, flame Gareth, maybe even flame Jesse (now that the Jesse has gotten a speed boost). A heavy hardpoint would also do waaaay too much damage. Imagine a super fast light bot dealing almost instant death when it's right in your face, climbing up and onto your Rhino or Fury, which you can't turn fast enough to hit. Yeeeeaaaahhhh...no. On the other hand, imagine an orkan-flame-Lancelot....also ridiculous. Being a medium hardpoint weapon would force you to close the distance in a relatively slower bot like the Boa, Griff, Rhino, maybe Doc (but he's not built for knife-fighting, let's not kid ourselves). At the moment, all these bots have effective and well proven counters in DB splash or DB plasma setups, whereas a good light bot pilot can persistently survive for more than half the match, running around your ankles and over your head, in and out of cover, etc... while you can't even touch him. Ditto for a scenario involving a flame-orkan-lancelot. Furthermore, we wouldn't want to add yet another up-close-and-personal DB setup to the already very versatile and effective Carnage now, would we.

The rational for reason 2 is similar to the rational stated above - At the moment, you can counter the above medium bot setups before they get in range, even while that DB griffin is flying overheard (with skillful leading of the crosshairs). A 75-100m; or even 50m limit would force them to know how to close in on you skillfully, without being taken out first, therefore limiting it's OP-ness. It would also become and remain an effective counter to Thunder bots that do increasing amounts of damage the more in-your-face they get. Getting a face full of flame could be a powerful deterrent.

I seem to have rambled on for twice the length of my original response...can't remember if I meant to talk about anything else but I'll post another essay if I do.

[NovR]CrayCrayy OK you win. LOL

LOL, I didn't think about that one, heck yea! Vote, please!

TBH I was thinking along the lines of a long range projectile weapon for light slots. Maybe a bazooka, same properties as an AT spiral (no splash) but it will have the same range and bullet speed of a kwk. Reload should be 9 seconds and the damage should be around 4k per shot

Flamer? Nahhh...boring, but maybe a surprise tag gun! You put a dart/tag in that son-of-a-red-bot, a thingy that may have various (random) effects: once you stick a smoke flare on someone and he becomes a running smoke beacon asking for a punch...or a poison/acid tag - gives minus 100hp each second or so...or a freeze bite - guys gets immobilized/slows down for 5 or 6sec...or....sometimes even a benefit (heal, or a short off-radars buff, etc), that would make the use of such "gun" a rulette to both sides
There are many other nasty small things you could to a poor red bot.
Overall that could be an event "gun" to make the life in game a bit more, hmmm...interesting lol

Actually not a bad idea, could be a good counter to Trident or Treb Furies! Start a thread for it!?

Mi droog! I was just thinking about putting a link up to the gustav.  I do like to knife fight and I would love to see something like a recoiled rifle for ultra quick delivery!  en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Gustaf_recoilless_rifle

or barring that, an EFP on a light hardpoit with a 30-50m range I can use to bust a shield with. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Explosively_formed_penetrator

Highjack off.

Cool idea!! but might be really hard to develop into the game.

My idea was a grappling hook. 350m range launches out, catches a bot and drags them to you. But then you have to fight it at close range. Great for yanking someone off a beacon or getting one bot in a group. A knife fighters dream. I see the canyon map and I think if I had a grappling hook I could drag out the bots under the bridge. Or when it's 3v1 the hard way, you grab that Rhino or Lancelot to you. Make it a heavy weapon. That way the Leo's, Natashas, Golem and Lancelot could close in pound on the bots but also vice versa. Of course since it's a projectile, a shield deflects it. The Fujin and Carnage are protected. Great way for Pixo to make people buy gold for ancile shields too.