Opinions on the Sentry

[Slaor]

You don't mate, just drive ya chainscout.

[Huscar]

What's wrong with 3 guns, less health (2/3), greater regeneration speed and detect range (both engage range and that other thing)? I retried them with all those changes and they look perfectly balanced now (useless when attacking alone or in small groups, turrets would blast them away)
Besides, not even mentioning that making sentries stealthy would be in contrast with the story-line as I said above, the GT will maibe first destroy a sentry but then target your harder units, doesn't seem to have much use as a distraction in late game this way. And if you want them to be a distraction you should make scouts, cheap, detectable, useless.

BTW does anybody know how it could have happened that the sentry .xsi I remade with new HPs didn't show the main-body frame in game? Is there a frame limit or something? It looks much like a wrong lod

Something else strange: in 1st person view I see only 2 laser pointers on my sentry even though it shoots 3 ion bullets as it should, the 3rd laser is located high above me in front, what happened here???

[Speedy]

I think I remember once seeing in the maps/mod board that you can only have 2 hardpoints at one time.

IMO, Sentries should be able to outrange turrets.

[Der Vampyr Engel]

Hmmm I think why bother then? Either stealth it or add a rocket piont to it and remove it from  the Factory, rename it   Scout and leave it at that because, as it is it really is nothing at the moment, just an extra unit to fill up the numbers

Anyway, I don't think it is OTT I totally disagree and I do accept, indeed condone extra rocket hardpoints and extra guns

still how about this

2 guns
1 rocket
1 special
1 mine


Yeah, useful configuration to equal the ISDF scout, add some speed to it as well

Oh Yeah Ice, and what essence does the Sentry have, getting its arse kicked?

I will except's Tempest's Suggestion though, if it is left the same as it is then when it morphes it becomes stealtheir then OK but , if it becomes stealthier then it should go faster, not slower, i.e: normal mode, fast, stealth mode: even faster

[Huscar]

I can't agree with you, it would change the sentry to much. 3 guns work very nice, but the main body dissapears.

[Dirty Rooster]

A real 'sentry' guards things ...
for AI behaviour Sentries should have a large engagerange.

For human use, I'd support very low radar signature
and give it prox mines as default or improve seekers.
3 guns would be abused if it even worked, such a huge
advantage in IonII or gauss modes.

Everything engel says strikes me as stupid.
Just my opinion by the way..

[Huscar]

If you make it weaker (health) it won't be overpowered with 3 guns, the rest is already suggested. How did you want to make the difference between human and comp use? Just give it a better radar.

[technoid]

IMO, Sentries should be able to outrange turrets.

Well, they do, when you change to IonGun II.  

Per Pandemic, the Sentry is a support unit during open field combat. They're supposed to be fast, agile, turning on a dime (or biometal blob) to draw enemy fire away.  If I were to tweak this bugger, make it throttle a little bit faster than it is now.  It's big body/butterflywings/collisionbox compared to a TBolt should balance out hitting it better to compensate for its new quickness.  Ya know, "Fly like a butterfly, sting like a bee."

EDIT: And yeah, I agree, make the seeker a little more useful.  

[PhoeniX-FlamE]

giving them starting jax can be better...

but err i find scout to do the sentry job better... at least ATM

draw enemy fire - scout is small.. more agile then a sentry and faster

support in battle:
1.u get targets from a scouts
2. he got stronger wepons (arc cannon, quill/fang, sonic blast [for light def units])
and 3. they cost less

[Huscar]

That's the whole point in changing the parameters. Besides, how usefull will jax be when used by the AI? This is something to keep in mind, I think I'll stick with the 3 guns and changed parameters to make it an escort vehicle (but a better mine is also a really good idea).

[MowerMan]

Well I always though the Sentry should have been like a "stealth" unit.  I think everything about it is fine (armement wise), and I would just make it not show up on radar, unless targeted by a scout.

[Commando]

I think there is a way to dampen its signature.  This would make it invisible on radar unless you have a clear line of sight.  It would act like a deployed turret.  Check the bottom of the changelog for more information.  This was one of the last changes made before 1.3 was publically released.

[Huscar]

Wasn't that already mentioned?

[MowerMan]

It may have been Huscar, so much garbage messing up this place, that I sometimes just scan over posts (and I mean garbage from both sides of every debate that goes on around here).

I noticed the Archers are like this now too.  The Sentry I think would be a more useful unit if it's only "special" characteristic was that it was radar damped.

[BZZERKER]

IceWendigo is working on this guys.  Both he and I will most likely testing out a modified Sentry this coming weekend (I hope).

At this point, I would like to quote the BZ2 Strat Guide regarding the Sentry

Sentries possess more armor plating and speed than does the ISDF Thunderbolt Scout. In fact, the Senrty is one of the fastest units in the Battlezone ll universe. Ideal for early rush attacks and hit-and-run strikes, a swarm of Sentries are excellent tools for taking out Scavengers, Thunderbolts, and APC's. Upgrade one or two Sentries with Lockdown gun. Next, fly toward the enemy base, using the new tool to prevent powerful ISDF units like the Atilla and Gun Tower from firing back. Bring in heavy-hitting vehicles to take out the " paralyzed" ISDF units.