When do large lasers make sense?

[Pherdnut]

I can never seem to figure out when they'd make sense when re-configuring a mech. Heat/tonnage just doesn't seem like a good trade for the damage. Is it what you drop in when you can't quite fit a PPC?

[devilindupriest]

Any brawler heavy/assault with not enough energy hardpoints for as much laser vomit as you want, with the bonus of being able to reach out and tap some things as you waddle into brawl range. Can consider them literally a bigger laser, that's how I look at it. "Can I fit more firepower elsewhere? No. Can I afford the extra 4 tons and the heat at least often enough to even out with a mlas firing constantly? if Yes then Answer=More alpha damage."

[jedi72]

One LL on my AC sniping Jagermech (for using on icy planets).

For my taste it's a pretty allpha for taking down a targeted CT in one shot, and still having good heat for a second trigger later....

[Pookie The Krogan]

large lasers really only have the range going for them compared to well med lasers (still pissed that small lasers arnt "lasers")

[Bike Knight]

They're nice for close range melee/SRM boat that need a longer range option if they can't spare 2 tons for a PPC. If you already have long range options then medium lasers are much more efficient.

[Muskrat]

It’s all about the role you want the mech to play.

Take the stock BJ-1 you start with. It has 2 ac/2 for long range, and 4 MLas close in work. However it’s relatively light on the armor, and can get beat up at close range - where it’s more effective. It’s two weapons system are mutually exclusive in range also.

There is an official variant you can build called the BJ-1DB that replaces the ac/2’s and 2 MLas with 2 LLas and 6 heat sinks. You now have much better damage capaility at range, and all your weapons can be effective close in (because LLas don’t have min range). Alpha strikes do run hot however, so you have to manage around that. Makes a good med scout mech.

PPC’s are nice, but they aren’t the end all be all. There is opportunity cost to mounting them, which means you have to balance that with what you want the mech to do.

[DasaKamov]

Originally posted by Pookie The Krogan:

(still pissed that small lasers arnt "lasers")

I still get a kick when my mechs wind-up for a haymaker punch, ripping off the enemy's arms, causing the torso to explode and have the enemy collapse in 40 tons of mangled metal, and then...

"Oh by the way, eff you."
*Pew pew pew*

[Neneley]

It's your decision ...you need to weight the advantages vs the disadvantages ...

I prefer for the most part a setup with several medium lasers as they deliver moderate damage with relative low weight and moderate heat generation.

Large laser have the advantage of almost double the damage and greater range while wheighting 5 times as much and generating 3 times the heat ...so they make sense when you have lots of free tonnage left but limited mounts for laser ...

PPCs weight even more ...like 7 times as much as medium laser with exactly double the damage than 1 med laser at even greater distance than the large laser while generating 4 times the heat as 1 med laser.

Also you have to know that laser have an inherent accuracy bonus while the ppc doesnt.

So in my book medium laser are my way to go if i can fit enough of them on a mech because i can get the same or higher base damage with them tonnagewise and can still fit Heat Sinks too ...but at limited range. If you only wish to choose between ppc and large laser then id still prefer the large laser again because of heat generation again ...i could fit 1 ppc or 1 large laser and 2 heat sinks for the same tonnage.

[jfoytek]

Originally posted by Pherdnut:

I can never seem to figure out when they'd make sense when re-configuring a mech. Heat/tonnage just doesn't seem like a good trade for the damage. Is it what you drop in when you can't quite fit a PPC?

PPC should never be an option...
It weigh's for too much for too little damage...
You could put a Medium laser in its place and max out your mech's armor....
Large Lasers are situational.... I would use them when you limited on Laser Hard points...
but if you have plenty of laser hard points the Medium's are a far better buy....

[Jaasrg]

Originally posted by jfoytek:

PPC should never be an option...

(Early on) vehicles.

[DasaKamov]

Originally posted by jfoytek:

PPC should never be an option...
It weigh's for too much for too little damage...

Except PPCs have an additional effect rather than *only* causing damage. Sadly, I've only seen this information pop-up in a random loading screen tip, so I can't remember exactly what it was -- somthing like units hit with a PPC suffer a -5% to-hit penalty because their targeting sensors suffer an electronic overload, or something like that.

[Jaasrg]

Originally posted by DasaKamov:

Originally posted by jfoytek:

PPC should never be an option...
It weigh's for too much for too little damage...

Except PPCs have an additional effect rather than *only* causing damage. Sadly, I've only seen this information pop-up in a random loading screen tip, so I can't remember exactly what it was -- somthing like units hit with a PPC suffer a -5% to-hit penalty because their targeting sensors suffer an electronic overload, or something like that.

It's in the tooltip of the PPC.
Likewise the laser aim bonus.
But of course doesn't give you any numbers because they're scary.

[MinenSpecht]

I think with a TTS+++: lasers the LL becomes a viable option for instant headshots. But you need at least 2 of them.

Will try 4LL+++ (+6 acc) stalker with that module later.

[DasaKamov]

Originally posted by Jaasrr:

It's in the tooltip of the PPC.
Likewise the laser aim bonus.
But of course doesn't give you any numbers because they're scary.

Ah, thanks. I always forget to mouse-over weapons.

One other advantage of the PPC over the L-Laser I forgot to mention: it cause kinetic damage as well, so it can de-stabilize or knock over an enemy mech.

[Muu]

Laser vomit is op

[Bike Knight]

Originally posted by DasaKamov:

Originally posted by jfoytek:

PPC should never be an option...
It weigh's for too much for too little damage...

Except PPCs have an additional effect rather than *only* causing damage. Sadly, I've only seen this information pop-up in a random loading screen tip, so I can't remember exactly what it was -- somthing like units hit with a PPC suffer a -5% to-hit penalty because their targeting sensors suffer an electronic overload, or something like that.

-10% to hit, and remember +++ versions exist that crack open armor like an AC10 with nearly half the tonnage and no ammo.