Are you really suggesting that an 3 man FG42 fall is some how weaker than 4 man LMG section at max range or weaker than a 4 man BAR rifle somehow???
I am not suggesting anything I am saying very clearly. 6 entities with concentrated DPS is bad design because they do not proportional lose DPS are they lose model. Even more so for Penal with "to the last man" ability
The upgrade is 2cp now and Penals don't have snares either. I'm not sure why you'd even bring that up.
And here is the difference. One can have an army of Penal, one can not have an army of Falls because the unit is not available before minute 1.
I don't really see how they can be superior rifle men. They don't have nades, no snares high reinforce cost and that weapon is gonna be adjusted for their higher vet bonuses so I don't really see a problem.
More EHP more DPS.
Their reinforcement cost is not high.
Finally the idea of squad that perform good at all range is bad because it reduces the effect of relative positioning and make squads that specialize in a certain range look pale by comparison.
Penal are more than fine in cost efficiency, they simply can not carry T1 on their own.