Lanka

[Xetni]

I was looking forward to trying a sniper rifle for the first time, and as I had this thing researched in the dojo, I thought why not, at least it will give some mastery.Well folks, I have to say I barely got myself to level this thing to 30 and chucked it as soon as I did. Why?

 

The whole time of using this weapon I thought: "This could be a good gun... but not in this game."

Now, sniper rifles are already pretty niche as it is. In a game where rushing, fast movement, AoE and multi-target weapons are the order of the day, weapons like this just don't see that much utility unless you can be pretty stationary and place your shots well. In my opinion, sniper rifles should be one of the hardest hitting weapons in the game, they are, after all, limited by their single-target, bolt action mechanics which lends it self to a type of play of "You don't hit often, but you hit hard." They could fill the role of precise headshots on heavy targets like gunners, bombards, etc. from safe distances.

 

Of course, since the fire rate of such weapons is already very low, then at least those shots should end up on target. And here is where I think the Lanka's worst problem is. It is awkward as hell to use.In my opinion, without even touching the damage, the Lanka would be a much better weapon if two things were done:

 

-The projectile speed increased, at least doubled

-The charge time removed

 

These two coupled together make this gun totally awkward to shoot with, it is slow, unpractical, and its range advantage is pretty much nonexistant.

 

As is, at medium ranges it is completely outclassed by bows, which are easier to hit with and they hit a lot harder.

At long ranges, I don't even bother because I know that due to the projectile speed whatever I just shot at (with how unpredictable AI movement is) will no longer be at the spot when the bullet hits.

 

And at short range, well, you don't need a sniper rifle, you might as well just use anything else.

 

With those two changes it would make the Lanka a far more competitive gun, because you could shoot faster, and more reliably. And the gun's mechanics would just feel better. Even if it still wouldn't touch bows damage wise, but it would be a step in the right direction.

[Scar.Heart]

The Lanka does not need any changes.

 

It's a gun that requires patience and timing.

In exchange, a Lanka can and will take out whole columns of enemies with its innate 5m punch through. It might be hard to level at first, due to the electricity element, but it pays off in the long run.

The Lanka is perfect for Void Defense, Mobile Defense, and Survival. Game types that have hordes of enemies rushing towards you.

 

It's fine where it is.

[VKhaun]

Yeah, sorry but you're dragging a niche weapon out of it's niche and claiming it's broken because it's not good anymore. Granted, it's a small Niche and I do think the Lanka needs another bump, but that doesn't mean the niche doesn't exist or that no one appreciates it.

[Xetni]

Yeah, sorry but you're dragging a niche weapon out of it's niche and claiming it's broken because it's not good anymore. Granted, it's a small Niche and I do think the Lanka needs another bump, but that doesn't mean the niche doesn't exist or that no one appreciates it.

 

By what means am I dragging it out of its niche? I acknowledged the fact that it's a sniper rifle and that its main advantage should be hard-hitting, long distance shots.

 

What I am saying is that it should be more effective at that role and that the current ballistics and usage mechanics are setting this weapon back. That is without even any mention of the damage . I hardly see anyone use it, even in defense missions.

[Warriorrogue]

By what means am I dragging it out of its niche? I acknowledged the fact that it's a sniper rifle and that its main advantage should be hard-hitting, long distance shots.

 

What I am saying is that it should be more effective at that role and that the current ballistics and usage mechanics are setting this weapon back. That is without even any mention of the damage . I hardly see anyone use it, even in defense missions.

If you practice, you can learn to land the long shots.

Last I checked, I have a 97% accuracy on it, and I go for quite long shots.

May be related to my tribes playing, though.

And the damage?

It deals the third highest damage in a single hit off all the rifles.

 

Finally, how often do you see anyone using any sniper rifles?

Edited March 22, 2014 by Warriorrogue

[Grulos]

The Lanka does not need any changes.

 

It's a gun that requires patience and timing.

In exchange, a Lanka can and will take out whole columns of enemies with its innate 5m punch through. It might be hard to level at first, due to the electricity element, but it pays off in the long run.

The Lanka is perfect for Void Defense, Mobile Defense, and Survival. Game types that have hordes of enemies rushing towards you.

 

It's fine where it is.

Everything the Lanka can do, bows can do better (Dread, Paris Prime).

The punch through does not work all the time on every wall or obstacle. The crit chance is much lower compared to the bows, as well as the crit damage. The base damage is pure electric. If it was higher (like 300 or 350) and/or higher crit chance and damage, then the Lanka would be viable again.

[Warriorrogue]

Everything the Lanka can do, bows can do better (Dread, Paris Prime).

The punch through does not work all the time on every wall or obstacle. The crit chance is much lower compared to the bows, as well as the crit damage. The base damage is pure electric. If it was higher (like 300 or 350) and/or higher crit chance and damage, then the Lanka would be viable again.

Or, you could look at it the other way

Bows have less puncture. Sure, less crit. And pure electric goes well to radiation, corrosive, and magnetic. 3 elements which you should take EVERYWHERE.

Edited March 22, 2014 by Warriorrogue

[Grulos]

Or, you could look at it the other way

Bows have less puncture. Sure, less crit. And pure electric goes well to radiation, corrosive, and magnetic. 3 elements which you should take EVERYWHERE.

For each faction, you need 2 elements to really be useful. Sure, the Lanka can take down Ancients, Bombards and Techs easily, but struggles with weaker enemies and few crits.

 

The Lanka was perfectly viable before bows got their buff.

 

 

Now it's time for Lanka's buff.

[Scar.Heart]

For each faction, you need 2 elements to really be useful. Sure, the Lanka can take down Ancients, Bombards and Techs easily, but struggles with weaker enemies and few crits.

 

The Lanka was perfectly viable before bows got their buff.

 

 

Now it's time for Lanka's buff.

Struggles with weaker enemies?

-looks at Lanka-

...I don't get it. Did you miss your shots or something?

 

Lanka does its job fine. If you think bows are better, use them instead.

 

You people keep asking to buff it, and I guaran-damn-tee you the only change it'll get is a nerf.

[Xetni]

Hah, nerf the Lanka of all things? And make another completely useless weapon? I'm sure there are things way higher on their nerf priority list...

 

The problem isn't even the damage. It's the horrible shot mechanics that I take issue with. Either way, I don't see it getting changed soon, or ever. So I will probably forego the sniper rifles altogether, unless the snipetrons make a comeback somehow.

[[DE]Momaw]

I pulled out my Lanka the other day, and .... it's kind of a sad panda nowadays.  Bows do a lot more damage thanks to their critical hit performance.  Lanka may have higher listed damage, but Dread and Paris Prime reliably do 4x more damage than is listed because of their guaranteed crits. And then there's the 5-digit bow headshots.  Lanka can do some nice crits, but it just doesn't build or work the same way because you can't get the crits to be reliable which is essential for a slow-firing single shot weapon.  The 5 meters of penetration is a waste because bows only have about 1 meter and still manage to kill multiple people between the punch-through and the flying bodies.  Even the gratuitously high zoom is a pain in the butt. This is not a long ranged game for the most part.

 

Meh.

[Methanoid]

i actually prefer bows over the lanka purely because i dislike the scope/zoom/overlay gfx on the lanka.

[dancingknight]

i actually prefer bows over the lanka purely because i dislike the scope/zoom/overlay gfx on the lanka.

I'm in the same boat. I stopped using my beloved Lanka after they introduced the scope. I just can't get over how much of a hindrance it is. Warframe is already a fast paced game and in my opinion, obscuring your vision further exacerbates how hard it is to use sniper rifles. 

[Eyeless]

Why is everyone so opposed to the Lanka getting the buff(s) it needs?

 

Is it a good weapon? Yeah. 

 

Does it work well late game? Yeah.

 

But does it fill its role that well?

 

Ehh...

 

Guys it's supposed to be a high powered sniper rifle. Even with taking the time to masterfully predict moronic AI movement it's still a pain in the &#! to do what this thing should excel at: Hitting far away targets at long range.

 

The kinda slow projectile speed doesn't make much sense, it might have better puncture than the bows but it's string-toting brethren can at least carry other enemies with their own arrows to kill even more enemies. The Lanka's puncture remains inconsistent on a good day.

 

Not to mention the charge mechanic for it turns it into something unnecessarily unwieldy. 

 

I'm not going to bring science into this and argue that a rail gun would go xTimes more faster than it currently does so thus it should fire faster, I'm going to say flat out;

 

This gun needs to have the speed of its projectiles either heavily buffed or made hit-scan so people in a bind can actually hit across the map targets

 

Its crit damage needs buffed

 

The charge mechanic...why is it necessary? Why? 

 

Just because you all above me are FINE with the Lanka that doesn't mean it couldn't be improved and less impractical! 

[ChaoticVice777]

Why is everyone so opposed to the Lanka getting the buff(s) it needs?

 

Is it a good weapon? Yeah. 

 

Does it work well late game? Yeah.

 

But does it fill its role that well?

 

Ehh...

 

Guys it's supposed to be a high powered sniper rifle. Even with taking the time to masterfully predict moronic AI movement it's still a pain in the &#! to do what this thing should excel at: Hitting far away targets at long range.

 

The kinda slow projectile speed doesn't make much sense, it might have better puncture than the bows but it's string-toting brethren can at least carry other enemies with their own arrows to kill even more enemies. The Lanka's puncture remains inconsistent on a good day.

 

Not to mention the charge mechanic for it turns it into something unnecessarily unwieldy. 

 

I'm not going to bring science into this and argue that a rail gun would go xTimes more faster than it currently does so thus it should fire faster, I'm going to say flat out;

 

This gun needs to have the speed of its projectiles either heavily buffed or made hit-scan so people in a bind can actually hit across the map targets

 

Its crit damage needs buffed

 

The charge mechanic...why is it necessary? Why? 

 

Just because you all above me are FINE with the Lanka that doesn't mean it couldn't be improved and less impractical! 

 

You know, the ironic part about your complaint is that the Lanka's projectile travels much faster compared to the bows. I've Forma'd the Lanka five times, and I'm fairly sure that it can hit enemies across the map in the huge Corpus Defense missions.

 

The critical damage didn't need a buff...or rather, the bows got such huge buffs that our critical damage "feels" weak.

 

The charge mechanic? It's similar to bow mechanics, you got a problem with it?

[Psychosist]

The main arguments against Lanka buffs:

• It does high damage already / it's no worse than a bow / etc etc

 

-- That is NOT the point. The Lanka can be considered JUST as good as a bow, if not worse actually, and you keep defending this argument. The Lanka should not be equal to a bow, it should be BETTER. Like, Mastery 7 and 5 Fieldron and 1 Forma and no Polarities better. The requirements to make Lanka even remotely as effective as a bow does not reflect its high acquisition requirements. Yeah, a 5 Polarity Dread might be on par with a 5 Forma Lanka, but Lanka takes a hell of a lot more effort to get to that stage.

 

Lanka needs a buff to reflect its acquisition. It deserves more.

 

• They're just gonna nerf it

 

-- Pessimism will never get anything fixed.

[Eyeless]

You know, the ironic part about your complaint is that the Lanka's projectile travels much faster compared to the bows. I've Forma'd the Lanka five times, and I'm fairly sure that it can hit enemies across the map in the huge Corpus Defense missions.

 

The critical damage didn't need a buff...or rather, the bows got such huge buffs that our critical damage "feels" weak.

 

The charge mechanic? It's similar to bow mechanics, you got a problem with it?

 

It's faster but not fitting for a long range Sniper Rifle, which according to DE the Lanka is supposed to be.

 

Did I say it was bad at its job? No. I said it could be better and its projectile speed doesn't really feel fitting and many who like the gun have also voiced their discomfort with it on many a thread.

 

The charge mechanic is pretty much exactly like the bows, yet it's a sniper rifle. Not a bow. That's the problem I have with it. 

[ChaoticVice777]

It's faster but not fitting for a long range Sniper Rifle, which according to DE the Lanka is supposed to be.

 

Did I say it was bad at its job? No. I said it could be better and its projectile speed doesn't really feel fitting and many who like the gun have also voiced their discomfort with it on many a thread.

 

The charge mechanic is pretty much exactly like the bows, yet it's a sniper rifle. Not a bow. That's the problem I have with it. 

 

It's a long range Sniper Rifle. At the very least, its effective range is larger than that of the bows.

 

You know what people are uncomfortable about? Before the bow buffs, the major "complaint" was the charge time, not the projectile speed. The Lanka shares the "same" charge mechanics as other weapons like the Ogris, Miter, or even the charge-type melee weapons (albeit, no crosshairs). Besides, I like the charge time for two reasons: the potential of a balancing factor, and the fact that it takes time to charge for such high damage.

[Eyeless]

It's a long range Sniper Rifle. At the very least, its effective range is larger than that of the bows.

 

You know what people are uncomfortable about? Before the bow buffs, the major "complaint" was the charge time, not the projectile speed. The Lanka shares the "same" charge mechanics as other weapons like the Ogris, Miter, or even the charge-type melee weapons (albeit, no crosshairs). Besides, I like the charge time for two reasons: the potential of a balancing factor, and the fact that it takes time to charge for such high damage.

 

Fair enough on your points. Though I'm a bit...surprised people complained about a Bow having charge time. It's a bow... You pull the string back for longer for better shots ya know?

 

I agree, the Lanka does do better at long range than the Bows, being mainly mid-range tools. However the Dread and Paris Prime seem to output more damage much faster than the Lanka, so when you can land those far away shots with either the Lanka becomes somewhat redundant when it comes to ease of use and more convenient damage output. 

 

I'm not by any means asking for the Dread and Paris Prime to get nerfed, I use them both and am quite happy with them and yeah, other weapons also share these charge mechanics. 

 

On a rocket launcher it makes sense to have that charge phase because it feels more intuitive than forcing a non-negotiable cool-down phase after every shot and if the player could unload the entire clip in seconds then that'd be grossly over powered.

 

The Miter isn't in the best shape at the moment from what I've read and heard from friends, but having never used it I'm not in the best shape to comment on it so I'll leave that weapon alone.

 

My main point here though...I guess is this:

 

The bows are more convenient to use at all ranges, the Lanka not quite as much, not enough to warrant the projectile speed with its charge time. It feels too much like simply an alternative arguably more expensive to make bow that comes with half the versatility a bow has while sacrificing more of its long range capabilities it could have had to carry the gimmick. 

 

ie Arrows will carry ragdolls that can kill lines of enemies, seems to be enhanced by Shred, tap fire on the bows allows for consistent crit damage up close if they're all headshots while the Lanka takes longer to get its half damage shot off so it's harder to use when in a jam at close range. Punch-through assisted by Shred seems to more often than not work better on the Bows than the Lanka as well.

 

TL;DR

I'm not saying the Lanka is bad. I've used it a lot, it packs a mean punch. But the Dread/Paris Prime are easier to use (for me), carry more versatility as long range weapons, and can keep the damage more consistent than the Lanka when I use and compare them; which makes me feel the Lanka is held back by its bow-like mechanics.

[ChaoticVice777]

Fair enough on your points. Though I'm a bit...surprised people complained about a Bow having charge time. It's a bow... You pull the string back for longer for better shots ya know?

 

I agree, the Lanka does do better at long range than the Bows, being mainly mid-range tools. However the Dread and Paris Prime seem to output more damage much faster than the Lanka, so when you can land those far away shots with either the Lanka becomes somewhat redundant when it comes to ease of use and more convenient damage output. 

 

I'm not by any means asking for the Dread and Paris Prime to get nerfed, I use them both and am quite happy with them and yeah, other weapons also share these charge mechanics. 

 

On a rocket launcher it makes sense to have that charge phase because it feels more intuitive than forcing a non-negotiable cool-down phase after every shot and if the player could unload the entire clip in seconds then that'd be grossly over powered.

 

The Miter isn't in the best shape at the moment from what I've read and heard from friends, but having never used it I'm not in the best shape to comment on it so I'll leave that weapon alone.

 

My main point here though...I guess is this:

 

The bows are more convenient to use at all ranges, the Lanka not quite as much, not enough to warrant the projectile speed with its charge time. It feels too much like simply an alternative arguably more expensive to make bow that comes with half the versatility a bow has while sacrificing more of its long range capabilities it could have had to carry the gimmick. 

 

ie Arrows will carry ragdolls that can kill lines of enemies, seems to be enhanced by Shred, tap fire on the bows allows for consistent crit damage up close if they're all headshots while the Lanka takes longer to get its half damage shot off so it's harder to use when in a jam at close range. Punch-through assisted by Shred seems to more often than not work better on the Bows than the Lanka as well.

 

TL;DR

I'm not saying the Lanka is bad. I've used it a lot, it packs a mean punch. But the Dread/Paris Prime are easier to use (for me), carry more versatility as long range weapons, and can keep the damage more consistent than the Lanka when I use and compare them; which makes me feel the Lanka is held back by its bow-like mechanics.

 

It's mainly the fact that the Lanka, as with most sniping weapons, simply can't take advantage of range in Warframe. Too many maps are small, not enough are big. There's a significant difference between across the map and on top of a container sniping at enemies.

 

The Dread and Paris Prime, before the buff, were not dealing more damage than the Lanka. Currently, I even think bows are currently overbuffed. 

 

The versatility factor should have been reduced thanks to the fact that you can interrupt and fire the Lanka before it's fully charged (though I'm unsure how the damage equation works there, it's not base versus fully charged).

 

Arrows are hardly enhanced by Shred when they have innate Punch Through when fully charged. Tap fire on the bows is wasteful and isn't helpful because you always need to charge the bow all the way for the damage. It's just that the Lanka has a base charge time longer than that of the bows.

 

Once again, I blame the buff on the bows. It was simply too much to give high critical stats and 100% consistent criticals. The most I'm willing to give to the Lanka is a reduced base charge time (1 second?) and perhaps 50% more damage.