Tracer missile

[tsupra]

Hellow fellow mercenaries!Just got on my alt tracer missile and i am surprised to say that power shot still hits harder even if i have bad guns(lvl 14/15)!

The question is,does it even worth speccing into it(for target lock)or i am just wasting a talent point?

Tried all cylindres to see if some miracle may happen but the result is always the same!Damage is lower even after 2-3 tm and applying the armor debuff!

Is there something that i am missing here?how obsolete tm damage would become respect ps if i had decent weapons?

Please post your thoughts,i m quite confused since i was hearing such big words about tm

[Juicenewtonz]

While power shot does hit harder, once you have all the talents to boost it (tracer lock, light em up, it is definitely more dps overall, also you can only proc terminal velocity off of tracer missile, which makes your heat management much easier in the long run.

[tsupra]

I see!However i am planing to pvp on this merc and as far as i can understand from your reply tm is more of a pve spell?

Can immagine to be a decent gimp in the "short" fights you come across in warfronts

Edited January 5, 2012 by tsupra

[Kraggdog]

lol!

 

On our server, every other bounty hunter is just using nothing but Tracer Missile in PVP. Just as bad as lightning spam.

 

Gets to the point where if you distract the player, preventing them from casting it for 4 seconds, they just freak out and don't know what to do... literally standing there and waiting for the ability to become available. These are level 50s.

[Angryorc]

Once you have Tracer Missile, remove Power Shot from your hotbar.

It's useless apart from when you get interrupted while casting a tracer.

Power Shot has NO synergy from talents compared to Tracer Missile.

 

Nothing more to discuss here.

[alkyd]

For my mercenery, tracer missile hits much much harder than power shot. I don't know why it worked out for you the opposite way.

 

Edit: It might be possible that you havn't learned the higher rank of tracer missile from you trainer.

Edited January 5, 2012 by alkyd

[Sinsavz]

For my mercenery, tracer missile hits much much harder than power shot. I don't know why it worked out for you the opposite way.

 

Edit: It might be possible that you havn't learned the higher rank of tracer missile from you trainer.

There isn't a higher rank to buy, cus you get the skill through your talent tree, not a trainer.

 

But anyway, op you are just low level and have no where near realised the full potential of tracer. It blows power shot out of the water, trust us on that.

[tsupra]

Once you have Tracer Missile, remove Power Shot from your hotbar.

It's useless apart from when you get interrupted while casting a tracer.

Power Shot has NO synergy from talents compared to Tracer Missile.

 

Nothing more to discuss here.

 

Thats what i did at start,removed power shot!But as i said ,after extensive testing it hits way harder than tracer missile!So much harder that even with 5 stacks of target lock the extra damage doesnt makes up for the damage lost in the way!

 

Also power shot has a chance to "buff" unload the same way tm does!It wont vent heat and wont debuff the target thats all!The debuff is hardly noticing damage wise and heat vent can be done with other missiles while you moving(for pvp that is)!6% damage buff on rail shot isnt a gain since you loose more than 6% damage by casting tm

 

One thing that i cannot test yet is the scalling and if it happens to scale the same then tm is a waste of a talent point.(in pvp)

Edited January 5, 2012 by tsupra

[tsupra]

There isn't a higher rank to buy, cus you get the skill through your talent tree, not a trainer.

 

But anyway, op you are just low level and have no where near realised the full potential of tracer. It blows power shot out of the water, trust us on that.

 

Yes probably,guess i will have to do farther testing when i complete the tree,i am just very surprised by that first impression thats all!

 

Thanks everyone that took time to reply

Edited January 5, 2012 by tsupra

[Yazule]

i can cast more tm in a minute than ps tbh and you may be missing that part...

 

ts is our most used attack, pretty much universally agreed.

[tsupra]

i can cast more tm in a minute than ps tbh and you may be missing that part...

 

ts is our most used attack, pretty much universally agreed.

 

You are right on that but is not realistic that you will be chain casting for a minute in a pvp environment tho:P

 

Yes in long fights (operations,and various pve bosses) tm might come on top

[Yazule]

You are right on that but is not realistic that you will be chain casting for a minute in a pvp environment tho:P

 

Yes in long fights (operations,and various pve bosses) tm might come on top

 

i have been a "turret" for 3 to 4 minutes straight in some fights, has a lot to do with your team, their team, where you locate yourself etc... more casts per minute is also more casts per second, does not matter duration, faster shots with TM as both are channeled, faster is better. Honestly the money shot is unload, which tracer keeps resetting the cooldown for oh and the +25% damage to the next unload, oh and the reduction in armor on the target.....

 

but i digress.

[tsupra]

i have been a "turret" for 3 to 4 minutes straight in some fights, has a lot to do with your team, their team, where you locate yourself etc... more casts per minute is also more casts per second, does not matter duration, faster shots with TM as both are channeled, faster is better. Honestly the money shot is unload, which tracer keeps resetting the cooldown for oh and the +25% damage to the next unload, oh and the reduction in armor on the target.....

 

but i digress.

 

Yes you digress since power shot does excactly the same except the armor reduction wich becomes noticeable after 3-4 stacks and therefore is very situational like the first example!You mean that in the server you play oponents let you cast for long time without los'ing,dying or atacking you?cool i m gonna roll there

And is not faster,is the same cast time!

And love ranged going away from their team to hide behind a wall or on a ramp,makes my scoundrel giggle

However happy tm spam ,gonna rank up and test the scalling hope it gets better

Edited January 5, 2012 by tsupra

[Nergrom]

power shot's damage tends to fluctuate alot though, maybe it has to do with offhand accuracy?

 

But yes, it can hit harder than tracer, but tracer specifically gives you a damage buff to your rails shot and heatseeker (which is by far your best burst ability). Also,the lower heat cost of tracer means that you can cast more skills before you hit 100 heat during a burn phase, be it a boss fight or trying to kill a huttball carrier.

[Yazule]

Yes you digress since power shot does excactly the same except the armor reduction wich becomes noticeable after 3-4 stacks and therefore is very situational like the first example!You mean that in the server you play oponents let you cast for long time without los'ing,dying or atacking you?cool i m gonna roll there

And is not faster,is the same cast time!

And love ranged going away from their team to hide behind a wall or on a ramp,makes my scoundrel giggle

However happy tm spam ,gonna rank up and test the scalling hope it gets better

 

i know it says the same time but when que'ing both i have found that sometimes when my timing is good TM runs faster than PS. I cant explain it, maybe it is just an animation thing but i it sure seems to be true

[Yazule]

power shot's damage tends to fluctuate alot though, maybe it has to do with offhand accuracy?

 

But yes, it can hit harder than tracer, but tracer specifically gives you a damage buff to your rails shot and heatseeker (which is by far your best burst ability). Also,the lower heat cost of tracer means that you can cast more skills before you hit 100 heat during a burn phase, be it a boss fight or trying to kill a huttball carrier.

 

omg i cant believe i left out heat seeker, good call!

 

and for heat mitigation the reset on unload CD helps a lot for prolonged times with no heat issues

[tsupra]

power shot's damage tends to fluctuate alot though, maybe it has to do with offhand accuracy?

 

But yes, it can hit harder than tracer, but tracer specifically gives you a damage buff to your rails shot and heatseeker (which is by far your best burst ability). Also,the lower heat cost of tracer means that you can cast more skills before you hit 100 heat during a burn phase, be it a boss fight or trying to kill a huttball carrier.

 

Thats what i want to test now!So far the 6% buff to rail shot doesnt makes up for the dmg lost due to casting tm over power shot(since each power shot does more than 6% damage respect to tm.more tm more buff but more dmg loosing on the way so it ends up a loss)!

If we include heatseeker it may come on top but personally i dont think so,it wiill eventually even it out(not having a way to track long fight numbers isnt cool)

 

In conclusion i try to guess and say that is the design wanted from bw!Tm for pve long term fights due to better heat management and ps for pvp!

 

Anyway guys,i really appreciate the input have to log now! Cheers

Edited January 5, 2012 by tsupra

[ChuckThePug]

Once you have Tracer Missile, remove Power Shot from your hotbar.

It's useless apart from when you get interrupted while casting a tracer.

Power Shot has NO synergy from talents compared to Tracer Missile.

 

Nothing more to discuss here.

 

 

What other abilities get trumped later on and removed from the toolbar? As a BH turret.

[Yazule]

Thats what i want to test now!So far the 6% buff to rail shot doesnt makes up for the dmg lost due to casting tm over power shot(since each power shot does more than 6% damage respect to tm.more tm more buff but more dmg loosing on the way so it ends up a loss)!

If we include heatseeker it may come on top but personally i dont think so,it wiill eventually even it out(not having a way to track long fight numbers isnt cool)

 

In conclusion i try to guess and say that is the design wanted from bw!Tm for pve long term fights due to better heat management and ps for pvp!

 

Anyway guys,i really appreciate the input have to log now! Cheers

 

 

I really think the biggest dps gain from TS is the reset on unload, I only spam TS to get unload up again, unload is probably the biggest strike we have (sometimes 3 1600's with a few 100's in there) and it is close to neutral on heat (you get heat back and another mark on the heat rate normally) ... if I can go TS TS UL, TS TS UL, TS TS UL i can go forever without heat issues and pumping out consistant damage, plust i think UL + TS is bigger burst because the UL starts hitting before the TS hits the target, but throwing in a heat seeker before using UL can be huge, but heat goes up faster that way.

[Dasthug]

power shot's damage tends to fluctuate alot though, maybe it has to do with offhand accuracy?

 

But yes, it can hit harder than tracer, but tracer specifically gives you a damage buff to your rails shot and heatseeker (which is by far your best burst ability). Also,the lower heat cost of tracer means that you can cast more skills before you hit 100 heat during a burn phase, be it a boss fight or trying to kill a huttball carrier.

 

Tracer does not actually have a lower heat cost than Power Shot, they are identical at 25 base/16 with Muzzle Fluting. However, Tracer Missile benefits from the Terminal Velocity talent, which vents 8 heat on missile (and unload) crits. Since Power Shot does not, Tracer is a more heat-efficient choice overall.

 

To the OP: As has already been said, for anyone with 11 points or more in the Arsenal tree, you no longer use Power Shot except in specific circumstances like interrupts. Tracer completely replaces it.

[Crestlin]

Armor mitigates Kinetic and Physical damage.

 

Tracer Missile

 

Mandalorian Iron Warheads - 6% damage dealt with missiles

Muzzle Fluting - 9 heat cost reduction

Power Barrier - 10% damage taken reduction(5 stack power barrier)

Terminal Velocity - 100% chance to vent 8 heat with critical hits

Tracer Missile - 20% armor penetration(5 stack heat signature)

Tracer Lock - 25% damage dealt with Rail Shot(5 stack heat signature)

Barrage - 30% chance to reset Unload, 25% additional Unload damage

Heatseeking Missile - 25% additional damage dealt with Heatseaking Missile(5 stack heat signature)

 

Power Shot

 

Mandalorian Iron Warheads - 6% damage dealt with Power Shot

Muzzle Fluting - 9 heat cost reduction

Power Barrier - 10% damage taken reduction(5 stack power barrier)

Barrage - 30% chance to reset Unload, 25% additional Unload damage

 

Why in the world would you want to cast Power Shot again?

 

Edited: Apparently I'm dumb today.

Edited January 6, 2012 by Crestlin

[Dasthug]

Light'Em Up - 1 additional stack 4% armor penetration(6 stack heat signature)

Tracer Lock - 30% damage dealt with Rail Shot(6 stack heat signature)

Heatseeking Missile - 30% additional damage dealt with Heatseaking Missile(6 stack heat signature)

 

That's not how Light'em up works. It doesn't increase the maximum stack to 6, it just lets you get to a full stack of 5 from 3 missiles instead of 5.

[korhilathorn]

The question of which is better to use out of tracer missile or power shot is one the game answers for you.

 

The existance of a talent that increases the speed of which the heat signatures are applied hints that that is the key aspect of the skill so clearly we are supposed to stack 5.

 

However I believe we are then supposed to use power shot primarily as, once the 5 heat signatures are applied, it becomes a perfectly valid substitute for tracer missile until the debuff needs refreshing.

 

Ofcourse my opinions might not mean jack to people on this forum. I'm running pve with support gas cylinder. That way the quick heals and rapid shots i'm forced to use every now and again build up charges which, using supercharged gas, gives me 10 seconds of free Power Shots. Better heat management than relying on missile crits.

 

Ok i'm sure you all think losing the 35% armor penetration is huge but its really not. NPCs tend to not have much in the way of armor and when even heavy armor is only providing 20% or so damage reduction -35% of 20% isn't worth it. Once you open your mind to other cylinders you see there are alternatives. +3% crit from either of the other 2 is pretty sweet.

 

Thanks for reading.

Edited January 6, 2012 by korhilathorn

[Yazule]

The question of which is better to use out of tracer missile or power shot is one the game answers for you.

 

The existance of a talent that increases the speed of which the heat signatures are applied hints that that is the key aspect of the skill so clearly we are supposed to stack 5.

 

However I believe we are then supposed to use power shot primarily as, once the 5 heat signatures are applied, it becomes a perfectly valid substitute for tracer missile until the debuff needs refreshing.

 

Ofcourse my opinions might not mean jack to people on this forum. I'm running pve with support gas cylinder. That way the quick heals and rapid shots i'm forced to use every now and again build up charges which, using supercharged gas, gives me 10 seconds of free Power Shots. Better heat management than relying on missile crits.

 

Ok i'm sure you all think losing the 35% armor penetration is huge but its really not. NPCs tend to not have much in the way of armor and when even heavy armor is only providing 20% or so damage reduction -35% of 20% isn't worth it. Once you open your mind to other cylinders you see there are alternatives. +3% crit from either of the other 2 is pretty sweet.

 

Thanks for reading.

 

well you make a point for using PS every other attack after 5 stacks, you have to refresh the timer on the stacks with another tracer missle, but if unload is up that is better damage than PS, if you unload and then try to power shot before tracer you will be coming too close for comfort on keeping the stacks up.

 

I understand your point, and looking purely at each shot in a vacuum your argument is good, but when looking at the synergy of the attacks available the scales tip to TS. PS is still on my bar fyi, and I do use it, but not that often.

[elthenar]

Am I the only one that hates the tracer missile animation? You hunch over like you got some bad Taco Bell, shoot fire out of your backside and 1.5 seconds later, launch a missile.

 

I like Arsenal, but I can not stand looking at Tracer Missile.