Of course it's done on purpose - if the devs cared about balance, we wouldn't have turrets that can hit you from behind walls or augments that can repeatedly disable your tank. It's always been this way too, though it's never been more obvious than now.

Yea that's because it's designed to. An enemy only has to actually see you for a fraction of the lock-on process to target you. You see, Scorpion is the second "special needs" turret in Tanki, essentially a Magnum for people who suck at aiming with it (as if Magnum wasn't cancerous enough already). The other is Gauss, which is just an auto-aiming Shaft for people too challenged to use the scope properly.

Yea the mods have been on a real tear as of late. My other account got nailed for six months recently without notice because of a single curse I used during a game. Ridiculous. And they do it for free!

I agree that shaft has been screwed for a while now. What you say here, however, only leads me to see Pony Tail as either picking favorites or just oblivious to how his game is really played. The likes of Magnum and Scorpion are far more cancerous when it comes to camping, as people using these turrets don't even have to expose themselves or have a direct line of sight to deal damage. Way too often is it on maps like Breast and Noise where someone with a Magnum will just sit still behind a far wall and aimlessly throw shells around for an entire match, completely untouchable. If any turrets should be removed under the charge of fostering camping, it's these two.

So you combined the two most obnoxious turrets in the game (magnum and striker) into one?

It is possible. I am fairly certain that any hours that were played on an account before profiles were introduced are not represented.

I've certainly done my share of complaining about MM and Overdrives, but recently, I would have to say status effects are the largest problem with the game. In particular, alts like EMP Twins or the Stunner Missiles are downright obnoxious to face. No, Tanki, getting frozen in place constantly isn't an enjoyable experience. I cannot think of another game that has become so eager to strip control away from the player. It's artificial difficulty that's completely unfair to players who don't want to burn money gambling with lootboxes.

I first started playing consistently in May 2013. My first map was probably Fort Knox, which was always popular for the noob ranks. The second turret I bought was most likely Twins, which I used with Hunter for a while before moving to Mammoth/Rail and then Mammoth/Shaft, which I used almost exclusively for years with this account. To this day Shaft is the only turret I main. I remember I didn't know how to use Shaft's scope when I first got it. I ended up mashing buttons for a while until I eventually discovered that holding the space bar was all I needed to do. I also remember really wanting to play on the maps Crash and Gallery -- they were removed almost exactly when I finally got the rank needed to make battles on them (Sargent Major). I only got to try Gallery once and I never got a chance to play on Crash. It was sad; I remember being pretty impressed with Gallery. The first gold I ever caught was on Moon Silence on the large ramp that leads into highest section of the blue team's base. I remember being pretty excited about it, since it was hard to collect anything in my slow-as-molasses M0 Mammy (all the hulls were a bit slower back then if I remember correctly).

New UI stuff looks nice. Definitely an aesthetic improvement over the drab gray that was everywhere previously. It is nice to see the stats of your tank on the higher levels of the garage page again, too. If I may offer a couple nitpicks: Some of the new icons aren't very descriptive. For example, it wasn't obvious to me that the six dots in the lower left was supposed to be my friends list. Having the chat button be on the opposite side of the screen from where the chat opens feels counter-intuitive. Other than that, looks good.

I'm probably alone in this sentiment, but I love getting and throwing back insults. The banter is half the fun of this game. *Cracks open Monster Ultra* Back in the day we used to enjoy greifing and throwing crap at each other all the time in online games. You kids...

Well that's a relief. The one in the test server was hideous.

So....if I am reading this right, is it as if Shaft now has a battery of sorts, where the 10 second reload only begins after all of the energy is depleted?

Don't forget: You're here forever.

Which is often negated by the abundance of Shaft protection modules and Defender drones out there. Booster used to be able to counter these, but not any more. Coupling a Booster with Shaft's former ability to quickscope in relatively close quarters gave me the most fun I've had with Tanki in years. Sorry, but I'm not interested in throwing unreliable arcade shots at people from across a map until I get lucky, and in terms of close range fighting, there are more effective turrets. Ironically, campers are still out there, too, more useless than ever. @At_Shincalls this new Shaft a realization of "mobile shafting," I say he's full of crap. No quickscoping = no mobile shaftng = no fun. Simple as.

Because a 10-second reload for a single scope shot is ludicrous and completely sucks the enjoyment out of using the weapon, that's why.

Still no Shaft buff.

They've really done Shaft dirty with this one; after a few matches I'm not impressed. I can definitely agree that Shaft was OP before this update, but I don't get why the solution is to essentially remove what made Shaft what it was. I'd be okay with a longer reload time if it was a function of how long the scope was charged, kinda like how Shaft used to be in the olden days (at least, that's how I think it was. It's been too long.). That would at least still punish the noob Titan/Shaft campers while rewarding those with good timing, since the former group is the one that has no idea how to set up shots properly. And as for the pretentious wankery surrounding this Mobile Shafters (TM) nonsense, quickscoping used to be a delight with Shaft. This is now, of course, impossible. So this hallmark of sniping while mobile is gone, and yet you still want to claim this playstyle is being enhanced or even encouraged? You're not sniping while mobile, you're just spamming arcade shots--it's as if you don't even have a sniper weapon with you. Have fun with your 6 at most scope shots per minute, I guess.

Welp, there goes my 16k damage output....

The whole bar was a dark green, but new additions to it would glow a brighter green for a couple moments before dimming to the same color as the rest of it.

Jammed?

After playing through a few battles, it doesn't seem like there is any difference in the numbers I've been getting with scoped shots. If they have changed, they certainly haven't been reduced by 50%.

Hmm. I use the same setup on an alt account and haven't noticed any decrease in damage output. Are you sure you didn't just hit someone with a 50% module or double armor?

I don't understand why this "critical damage" mechanic has been extended to every turret. Why not just give alts like the EMP salvo or the railgun stun shots a random chance of applying their status effects and leave everything else be? I feel like this "let's just give it to everything" approach that has been taken on some of these recent updates has just made things needlessly convoluted. The simplest solution is always the best, Tanki.

Nope. Medium hulls, too, are one-shotable with even with these conditions. I've done it. You may be able to charge slightly faster, but needing two well-charged hits to kill a good plurality of your opponents is a real detriment to me. I'll bet you that I can fully-charge and reload my weapon in the time it'll take you to kill a heavyish enemy, and in your case, you have to hope that enemy didn't have a repair kit handy or find cover in between hits. Often, you cannot afford to give your opponents the chance of survival if you have to make yourself vulnerable to beat them in the first place, or if you only have a small window to attack them through. So even if I can't kill every single opponent out there in one hit, I still want to pack as much damage as I possibly can to deal with everyone else (that's the vast majority of players, mind you) quickly and effortlessly. Most of my kills can still be earned in two seconds or less, but it's nice to have the option to charge a little further if necessary. I'll give you that Viking doesn't take impacts well, and it's the one major gripe I do have with it. As for ODs, I couldn't care less. Most of the counters for the various ODs are at short-range, anyway, and I naturally prefer to keep my distance. I'll typically score a couple of ODs per match on my alt and only deploy them if someone gets too close to me. I don't find myself using this feature too often, even when I do have it ready. It's a combination of both these reasons, really. I perform the latter for my own amusement, but that isn't to say I ignore other Shafts with heavier hulls or high priority targets (e.g. someone with a flag), either. I suppose I could have phrased what I said earlier better.

Yeah, but with that ~6000 more damage, I can destroy anything pretty much anything with a fully charged shot, even a maxed-out heavy hull with double armor and a 50% module. This is significant since you only get one boosted shot per double power use. It has to count. I've had a lot of success with a Viking/Shaft combo on my alt, 'jhonnykakes.' I love the hull's low profile and it can take a decent beating while allowing for a mobility I've never been able to enjoy on this account. However, while I like the increased mobility, I don't think highly of using light hulls with Shaft. I single out guys who use those combos and usually hunt them relentlessly. For the record, I've had both of these accounts for eight years, and Shaft is practically the only weapon I've ever used.