So the Starmada Battle report released today showed some of the new hacking. Basic hacking seem to cheaper and now has Oblivion. While the new Isolated state is probably not going to be permanent, this seems like it will be a boon to hacking heavy armies. So great for Nomads, right?
I'll hold my final judgement till I have seen everything. Till now I am still sceptical. There are many things that have to be considered. Active Turn Hacking hasn't been widespread used in N3, I doubt it will in N4. Min-Maxing-Fireteam-Madness is continuing Every second profile gets DTW with +1B (sometimes even +2B) (and shotguns have B2 DTW-mode as well) Frenzy mechanics still unknown Still unknown if old profiles will only be translated or get a thorough revision. So ... I'll have to wait till end of september and some time later I can tell you if its great for Nomads.
Just the changes to Targeted and Spotlight from Code1 have me really excited to play Tunguska in N4. In the few test games I have played that were hybrid Code1 + N3 Targeted was a huge game changer.
Immobilized state from Carbonite (no more +3 MOD but available to basic HDs) stays indefinitely it looks like, it is pretty great as a counterplay against HIs and REMs
I'll wait and see (what else can I do) but I'm not so optimistic. Yes, it looks like Grenzers will be better quite a lot (4-4 mov, see through smoke, cheaper I hope) and will fit much better into a securitate link. After seeing the new sectorials and a glimpse of N4 It looks like the link team madness and wildcards will continue. Tunguska nad Bakunin will need quite a shake up to keep up. Well, in 6 weeks we'll find out.
I am excited about a few things: - 4-4 MOVE on MI will be a breath of fresh air into Grenzers and Wildcats, and their links. - If some of our good AHD now become regular HDs with a price discount, and can now also do support like buffing REMs, I suddenly like the Wildcat link a lot more! - MSV1 just being able to see into smoke is a huge deal for Grenzers and Riotts links, either to dodge or just shoot through it, using smoke to piece them out is no longer an option. - Dodge in active (that does not trigger Mines) brings a whole lot of new game into midfield skirmishers, which we have some of the very best in forms of Zero´s and Bandits. - Token-induced Suppresive Fire on a Moran sitting midfield? Yes please! Suddenly that access lane in the middle of the board packs Koalas, a Repeater (and spotlight in reactive!) and a Mimetic SF combi in cover.
I have a feeling hacking will become practically useless in N4. if every HD can have the same same impact as the AHD at no real cost then nothing that can be hackable will see much if any table time. This goes double for if they have also removed the KHD, because the lack of that predator will royally screw with the internal balance of hacking and give you no dedicated means to protect your more vulnerable list elements.
I don´t believe they have removed the KHD because it is a predator, as you say. I find difficulty finding the logic of "hacking will be useless, and people will not bring hackable things because they would be hacked." That is a contradiction or, better yet, a swinging of balancing forces in different metas (which to be honest IS a good thing, keeps the game interesting and engaging by offering counterbalances, etc). If all of the sudden HD becomes more prominent and nobody brings hackable things, then people in that meta stop using so much HDs and then HIs become more relevant again in the meta, and that becomes a cycle. In quite a few "living" games that is actually good, because the interest is caugh by a "equilibrium pendulum", let´s say, between two extreme positions, and the developers can induce new and exciting play patterns simply by introducing a small disturbance of the game balance to one side. That is the theory at least. If not, you have checkers.
In theory yes but in practice we didnt see many TAGs or much HI until relatively recently due to hacking vulnerability thanks to the AHD, but since the advent of the KHD the AHD has been more or less dead despite the heavy stuff slowly making a come back.
when it comes to hacking most other people seem to be incredibly risk adverse such that you dont see it beyond a KHD specialist and a buff hacker hiding out in back.
This would really make me laugh because I was slightly upset over the Wildcats changing from HD to AHD in N3 and now that I'm used to it I would be disappointed to change back.
Given that basic hacking devices seem to be gaining both Carbonite and Oblivion based on the batrep today, it wouldn't be that much of a loss for Wildcats to swtich back to a normal HD from the AHD. What remains to be seen, it seems, is whether AHDs (if they remain at all) give some kind of bonus to Carbonite and Oblivion.
we didnt see TAGs because some other problems than hacking (high cost-low orders, need of backup, and so). KHD work way better than AHD or HD, and are cheaper, and have it easier to deffend the TAG, but even with that, the low fielding of TAGs made CB to give them more rules (first specialists pilots, then fatality1 and lastly an extra irregular order, yet, their use raised not so much) hacking looks promising. If the malus to reset is cumulative depending on how much different negative effects have the miniature, then hacking in active might be usefull again, because reset will not be a "freedom for free". But if they are "separated", then reset in aro will still make hacking in active not worth. As a denial aro hacking might look scarier. That might make people to stop fielding HI, which might make hacking not worth because there will be not hackable dudes.... but the posibilities to spotlight in aro, and being cheaper can make it worth even against non-hackables IMO. But we will see. Maybe in the video they called the AHD just HD, but the AHD remains there, or is even the basic one and the normal HD gets a new name. There are too much things we don't know, so we cannot still valorate N4 hacking Also, maybe hacking devices become cheaper but repeaters become more expensive, so those options we have are less usefull or we have to field less of them Lastly, KHD will be there. If they are not, and hacking becomes so relevant, certain people claims will make CB bring KHD again (And say that it was planned), so don't worry.
the only mention that has been made in the hot / cold game thread on FB, it is that KHD will be revisited, but no one said it could be removed. Considering that, and what the demo video started to show about N4, I am positive that hacking will still be a thing.
in the fireteam list they have core. Seems to me the army has some issues with the "fireteam core" skills
Army seems to have a lot of fireteam options missing. When you compare army with the fireteam list there are a lot of discrepancies. I suspect there are other errors in army, which will get cleaned-up over the coming weeks.
