Profile of Vipper

I don't think the solution to balance is to add another convoluted layer of rules and subrules for each droppable item for a each unit. You'd end up with balance-hell and weird rules as seen in CoH1 with the targeting tables. And this massive amount of work would only be for specific moments within the game. It wouldn't even be fun to balance, or to play, and it'd be more of a step back.

"the layer of rules" you are referring to is already in the mod:


Conscripts:
Slot items
- Receive accuracy penalty of -43%
- This affects all slot items, including PPSH and PTRS

Ostruppen:
- Receive a permanent -50% penalty on all picked up items
- Accuracy bonus only applies to default rifles

Give us your changes (if any) for the forementioned units as a starting point, and we can talk.

Imo the changes to UKF infantry are not enough since they can still equip Bren and Vickers or Bren and Piat and are still powerful in cover and weak on the move.

It might be worth to try the following suggestions :
1) Change bren from LMG to an "assault rifle" allowing to fire on move.
That would also be historical more accurate, since in real life bren is closer to bar than an LMG-42.
Reason: better synergy with both tommies and R.eng and allowing to change the role of tommies to from static defensive unit to more mobile unit.

2) Cover bonuses and penalties now apply only to lee Enfields. (point blank DPS of Lee Enfeilds should probably go down a bit.)

3) Bren DPS curves makes it strong at mid/close weak at long range, doubled equipped is allowed price goes down to 30-40.

Basically buying brens reduces the units long range DPS in cover but increases the DPS on the move and out of cover allowing player to modify the behavior of the unit.

4)Vickers K remains an LMG with it live DPS but its available only doctrinal in the S.W.R. . In addition the Resupply truck ability is scrapped with vickers K available either from base or from Forward Assembly.


Heavy Sappers upgrade:
Has no movement penalty
gives +1 armor so sapper take less damage when repairing underfire
increase squad size +1 so that they can increase with better speed but at the cost of more pop
replaces stens with lee Enfield so they do not become too good as close range unit.

The ability acquires a target that succeeds in the requirements, and fires one shell from each howitzer. Due to our manipulations of the howitzers, one shot will be pinpoint accurate, and the other one will land somewhere close. Maybe the ability works enough as it is.

Now correct me if I am wrong but that means that if a sector is decaped the ability will ceases to work after firing 2 rounds. Imo it should continue to fire to sector that is being contested.

We've already set 25 pounder friendly fire damage to 100%, we just forgot to announce it

The other ninja that has slipped off our notes is that Artillery regiment off-map also always uses Airburst shells, regardless of whether Anvil has been teched or not.

Is the artillery of other factions lower? (cant remember now). I with the changes to Valentine/sexton (Valentine could see a cost reduction if radar become an upgrade limited to 1) you should adjust either cool-down or veterancy bonuses on Sexton because it can barrage continuously and gets allot of range at vet 3.

First of all I fully support this effort.

Any feedback and criticism is welcome!

What I have tried to provide is useful feedback as requested by MODERS so I don't really see why some people (other than MODERS) complain.

Given that the main factions we want the others to follow are the EFA, we began working on them first and resolving their issues to see how it affects the rest of the game before we work on WFA and Brits.
...

Fixing the EFA factions will also help us gain a better insight as to what “EFA-level” really means.

Should all units perform the same? NO, but they should be equally cost efficient unless they fall under the category faction design. (for instance Riflemen should be more cost efficient than other mainline infantry and their support less cost efficient due to faction design).

Establishing a base line and balancing other faction around baseline faction is one approach that might work but I don't really see being implement since most WFA units remain more cost efficient than that baseline.

Moving on.

...
Like, how much those units should cost, if we should also give 200 damage and 50 range to the Comet, etc, etc.

Imo (most) stock unit should not have 200 damage. They should only have damage bonus vs specific units (Heavies/Supper heavies). If one does not want to use target tables one could at an ability for the extra damage (passive or active that can only be aimed at the mentioned units).

For units with auras I would suggested that auras scale with veterancy. Most of this units could have start with a small passive buff like (+2.5% accuracy) and have the active part add 2.5%-5% DPS for ever vet level.


Perimeter overwatch
- Cost from 225MU to 150MU
- Duration from 240 seconds to 90 seconds
- (performance improved due to 25-pdr changes)
This ability does not seem to benefit from air-bust shells and it should imo.

In addition once it start firing it should not stop if the sector is decaped.

Finally since you seem to have buffed base artillery by allot you should also increase the friendly damage modifiers...

"Comet/Cromwell smoke shell
To promote synergy within the faction’s doctrinal elite unit (commandos), we are letting smoke shells spawn yellow cover.

- Now also spawns yellow cover"
There is absolutely no reason for this both vehicles are more cost efficient than axis counterparts and infantry tank synergy should be limited to Churchill so that people might actually build them.

"Firefly
We are bringing the Firefly in-line with other tank destroyers, and are removing the high moving accuracy bonuses (which are meant to be a reimbursement for squishier USF tanks)

Changes to the Tulips will allow for more counterplay.

- Accuracy reduced to SU-85 levels
- Moving accuracy from 0.75 to 0.5
- Population cap from 14 to 15
- Vet3 damage bonus reduced from +80 to +40

Tulips
- Ready aim time changed from 0.125/0.5 to 0.5/1 for the two rockets
- Tulips now Blind and disable weapons for 5 seconds rather than stun the tank"

Units remain too accurate especially since commander gives an accuracy bonus. Vet 3 accuracy bonus is simply not needed.

Commandos
We are making multiple smaller changes to the Commandos to bring their performance closer to other infantry units. Changes to commando smoke grenade will allow Commandos to excell in the stealth-orientied game, which is supposed to be their main strength.

- Gammon bomb damage reduced to (EFA revamp) bundle grenade
- Gammon bomb timer Timer increased from 1 to 1.25
- Removed additional Received accuracy when in cover from Vet0
- Now receive a RA modifier of 0.85 at Vet3
- Ambush requirements reduced from 25 seconds off-combat to 15 seconds
- Non sten/Bren guns receive a +20% accuracy bonus (to bring Commandos in line with other infantry units)
- Popcap reduced to 9
- Reinforcement time reduced from 8.5 seconds to 7.25 seconds

Smoke grenade (Vet1 ability)
- Vet1 Smoke grenades now also obscure vision and prevent shots from coming through
- Using the smoke grenade no longer removes Commandos from stealth

The fact remains that the can very easily wipe from stealth with gammon grenades. Timer on gammon need to be bigger and I would even re comment that their stealth start from static and improve to moving with veterancy.

Infiltration Commandos
The changes to Infiltration Commandos will put them in-line with other infiltration units in the mod.

- Now spawn with Lee Enfields
- Cost from 440MP to 340MP
- Must purchase (free) Silenced Sten upgrade to get access to Stens and Light Gammon bomb
- At Vet1, they gain access to demo and a 5th man
(also affected by Commandos changes)
Unit is simply way to cost efficient compared to baseline infantry like PGs.

Airlanding officer
We are bringing the performance of the unit in line with other aura units.

- Recon pass cost increased from 30 to 50
- Reinforcement time/cost normalized to 37MP/7.25 seconds per model
- Gammon bomb and heroic charge now share cooldowns

Heroic charge
- Now shares cooldown with gammon bomb
- Accuracy bonus reduced from +40% to +20%
- Received accuracy bonus reduced from -75% to -20%
- Cost increased from 15MU to 40MU
- No longer affects allied units
Again unit simply way too cost efficient compared to baseline Ostheer Artillery Officer

Concentration Barrage (Artillery Doctrine)
- Can no longer be targeted in the Fog of War
With the new barrage from infantry this ability become rather pointless probably better replaces with lower CP smoke shells or some other sort of artillery (propaganda, WP...).

Command vehicle
We are readjusting some of the most extreme risk-reward elements of the ability to allow it to be integrated in more strategies. The live-version penalties make the command vehicle unsuitable for any role other than recon.

- Command Vehicle no longer affected by a speed penalty
- Command-vehicle AVRE reload by 2.5 times bigger reload time
- RA bonus from aura removed
- Command Vehicle recon cost added: 80MU
- Recon plane will now fly over the shorter distance (i.e, from friendly base)
Ability too cost efficient compared to base line ostheer Command PZIV. Might prove really problematic combined with Churchill smoke bonus for infantry.

Imo penalties should be adjusted to vehicle class (light medium heavy), for instance +100% received accuracy does little to Churchill but allot to ACE.

Valentine
With our changes we aim to make the synergy between Sextons and Valentines more “tight”

- Damage to 120
- Moving accuracy reduced from 0.75 to 0.5
- Human crush removed
- Population cost from 12 to 8
- Scan angle/range changed from 179/120 to 120/70
- Vet1 ability now bypasses Sexton cooldown
- Now receives shared veterancy from all on-field Sextons
Radar ability should become an upgrade and limited to 1