Makes a good point, the Maxim doesn't have to worry about rifle grenades insta-wiping the entire gun crew.
Such as all other HMGs. Again - that grenade range nerf affected ALL factions, not only those, which fight specificaly against USSR. So, it made Maxim less dangerous to use, surely, such as all other HMGs, that's not uniqe and doesn't make Maxim better, compared with all other HMGs.
And I'm not sure, that people really understand what I mean, when I say, that "Maxim sux".
Survivability is not an issue in that discussion, it's irrelevant for support weapons (for all of them), cos they are not units, which suppoused to "tank" and take damage - you usually use your core infantry for that or other combat units. And be sure - 4 or 6 men is not such big difference for artillery, mortars or other counters of support weapons, cos 2 additional men dying pretty fast. In fact (from my few year experience) - when you soviet *weaponteamname* crew becomes lesser than 4 - you must move it back for to reinforce. Otherwise - it will be wiped with 70-80% chanses by sudden indirect/grenade or will be wiped on retreat. For other factions teamcrews it's usualy "lesser than 3" rule, cos they somehow are more "survivable"...
In general my idea - more men doesn't equial to more survivable. It may work so for line infantry, but doesn't work with support weapons. 6 men Maxim dies under Stuka or PzWerfer barrage same instantly, as MG-42 under Calliope or Mattress.
And I don't really want Maxim spam to be in CoH 2, but... it's absolutely ONLY way to use it effectively, I don't understand how don't you see that! It designed so, that you MUST spam it for to use as effective crowd & territory control tool, since arc of fire is incredibly small and it doesn't supress infantry in big area, so you need more HMGs for to control flankers.
Fast setup time (which is not fast at all, with all animation bugs and such stuff), "high survivability"... All of those things CANNOT compensate absence of those parametrs, which HMG really needs - wide arc of fire (for more effective territory control) and big areal supression (for to control blobs and infantry in general more effectively by supression).
And I said in OP - idea of "making Maxim" more spammable is idea, which comes from original design of that unit. It absolutely designed to be spammed, cos USSR have no alternative for infantry crowd control (M5AA can't be called that alternative for real) and Maxim itself is absolutely ineffective in that role, cos Relic removed essential for HMG stats from that unit and gave others, which are ABSOLUTELY irrelevant - survivability, speed, whatever else. So, for to make that unit be effective - people spam it. Not because "it is OP" - because you HAVE to spam it, otherwise - it won't perform effective.
So, problem of "Maxim" must be solved, actually, not by making it spammable or other kinds of buffing that unit. Maxim needs total redesign, idea of "offensive support weapons" is ridiculous, it doesn't work right. Maybe people found, how to use it with profit, but it still leaves you without any deffensive crowd control platform, which is very needed for all factions.
Maxim must be same defesnive HMG, as all others. And it won't hurt God blessed "assymetrical balance", cos Vikkers (which designed in general like MG-42/34) didn't hurt it. And in vCoH all HMGs were defensive - nobody cried about it, everything worked well. Maxim MUST have way wider arc of fire, bigger areal supression. Of course for that it will have bigger setup time, maybe lesser survivability, but again - all of those "side-bonuses" are not that important, as those, which making unit do it original job well!
Or... maxim should be saved as that "offensive HMG", if Relic and community like that so much, but USSR must have (cheap) defensive alternative HMG, like USF have fireing positions or Ostheer have bunkers, which can replace expensive MG-42s at all stages of game. You just can't play without it - it makes you really vunerable to enemy infantry attacks, makes map control way harder or even totally impossible for you, cos right now for to effectively keep map under control you... must spam Maxims, cos you have absolutely no alternative, and you have to spend 260 MP + 6 (if I remember right) popcap, each time when you need to protect 1 point from infantry invasions (protect very ineffectively, since no areal supression). For same purpouses Ostheer/USF may dig MP-cheap position, equip with ammo costed HMG and don't spend popcap at all! Defensive gameplay of all other factions is not only more effective, it's also way cheaper! Is it normal for faction, whcih offensive gameplay is also not "top of the line"? Nope!
So - we either redesign Maxim for to make it defensive as all HMGs (DsHK may still be same offensive, it would add some diversity), or making for USSR defensive alternative - bunkers, new defensive stock HMG, whatever else... What we have today in USSR for to purpouses of crowd control is absolutely ineffective, it doesn't work right and doesn't do job... even bad. It must be fixed.
Relic Entertainment
