Flare is difficult to change:
Flares prevent to tech medic supply. Medic supply is necessary on all IS and it's one of the reason flare isn't used.
- Need either to have both of em be techable on a same IS OR to have the flare moved from IS to sapper so it doesn't prevent IS to have medic.
Pyrotechnics Supplies cost 40 ammo to unlock Coordinated Fire on 1 IS.
- Having it on only 1 IS limit its use, could be nice if it was techable in a Tier so any IS could use it ((like soviet Molotov/atnade).
Flare is very hard to balance cuz it got no clear function (or earlier alcohol and that clock saying it's 5.40 AM are failing me). Throw it at a Battlegroup Headquarters and it won't do anything (for 85 ammo we can't expect much anyway, if it did then it would be too cheap) so it's not made to deal with it. 85 ammo to help clear 1 garrison is ... you know. (I never tried to use it dat way cuz getting close to dat mg42 with dat ONE Pyrotechnics Supplies squad is impossible and stupid. If the purpose was to clear garrison then the range would be longer since tommies aren't meant to get close to anything (legend say some ppl pay 150MP/15F to make it so nothing ever get close to em
). Same for Aera denial: how to get dat one tommies martrix those fallshirmjagers and sneak behind mgs to throw dat flare on the pak wall? How are those dat red smoke & slow 25 pwnders supposed to do anything to avoid dis flanking pnzrgren to do his job ? For flare to be decent at something it need to have a bigger range OR to shot and land faster OR to deal extra damage against base building such as aggressiv (advanced) Battlegroup hq.
45 ammo is a grenade price, a weird price for 1 and then 2 25 pwnders to work. too expensive to just red smoke tommes feet but too cheap to do more than what a grenade could do.
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I mortar pit must be far enough from the front line to not get smashed but somewhat close to shot when fight arise somewhere (400 mp doing nothing kind of hurt). So I build it atleast so it can shoot at a MG42 securing middle VP. On big map it's kind of advanced, so it's exposed. UKF not having other non-doctrinal arty leave big responsibility to mortar pit, we need it do have the shit done. it's stronger on maps and weaker on others (with size). when its owned by a ieig or any long range arty is kind of saddening cuz it can't be helped (sayin it can be dealt with pretty easily). repairing while it's being shot at often lead to losing sapper. maybe if sapper could repair while inside it ? sound broken yet I don't see how to deal with ieig if i can't get it with infantry. Kinda lost my shit when I saw a ieig doing more kill dat my mortar pit (active for the same amount of time)(saying mortarpit is not op). when exposed it need to be protected and all. it's not such brain dead unit (it is if opponent do not try anything against). it may feels strong cuz it didn't need much direct micro but it cannot move so we can't let anything get close of it.
hard to balance such a thing. maybe reduce autoshoot range and make the barrage without cooldown, so it make the same thing it does but with micro ? they idea of having the crew die but the pit not destroyed too easily is nice (crew dead lose vet but mortar pit more durable). if so maybe lower stats but increase vet bonus so it's weaker when vet 0 but strong vets ? the sim-city commander make the balance harder impossible cuz what's not op without will be with.
dunno if I make sense, too tired to reread. don't throw rocks at me cuz I didn't play ukf in a while so some of my sayin could be outdated. (was like ukf grade 87 or smth)
You made some sense, you started to slur towards the end there though.
The 25 pdrs have many roles, it's almost like the GPMG of artillery. It does a lot, just doesn't excel in anything. Area denial, garrison clearing, supporting an attack, attacking OKW base buildings. It's good at attacking base buildings, especially if they're clumped together. I once killed 2 OKW trucks with the 25pdrs and 2 Sextons firing on them. Since one was a medic HQ, I was able to get some infantry as well. I don't get a lot of the gripes with putting a Tommie squad in danger, surely you need to put them in danger anyway in order to get LOS for a normal barrage? Of course, this puts them in less danger then putting them in grenade throw range. So maybe the throw range could be increased to at least half the squads LOS? And the throw range increases with Vet. I considered making the flare like the medical supplies, you buy once, the use is free. However, that might require a longer cool down.
Looking through all the weapon stats on stats.coh2, it turns out lots of stats exist for the 25pdr, such as creeping barrages, smoke barrages, a flare barrage, and AT shells. Whether these are just from CoH remains to be seen, however, some of these would increase the use of the howitzers greatly, like the smoke barrages and maybe the creeping barrage. Plus, remember that the sniper can get the flares too, and they can throw much further than IS. I think maybe not change how you get the upgrade (Flares or medkit) (I only give the medkit to 1 IS because he can heal everyone around him if needed.)
@ Pluralitas, yeah, a smoke barrage would be nice. Stats do exist for them, so it is a possibility. The IS would need two flares though with a shared cooldown. I unfortunately can't see what you're suggesting being implemented, because that means the 25pdrs will be the most effective as they fire the most shells over the largest area, while other guns like the LeFH don't as much. Unless you made the 25pdrs unique in that regard, which may be an awkward idea. I'm unsure about the forward observer officer, maybe it could get a commander of it's own, rather than removing the conc. barrage from the Royal Artillery, since it can fire in the fog of war and is one of best uses of those howitzers.
Maybe it could be like: either Reconnaissance Regiment or Royal Horse Artillery Regiment.
1-2cp: Infantry Sections Mills Bombs get replaced by a rifle-grenade-like 2 inch mortar, that gives increased range and is able to launch over obstacles.
3-4cp: Forward observer Officer: Functions like the wehrmacht artillery officer, armed with Lee-Enfields.
4-5cp: Valentine light tank: not unlike the Royal Artillery one, comes armed with a HE mortar as well as a smoke mortar (stats for the that actually exist)
6cp: Stand fast: emplacements repair themselves
10cp: Either artillery barrage or an AVRE.
Though I would like to point out that I'd rather see the 25 pdrs improved as they are rather then getting another commander.
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