This is an ability I have had the idea of for a while. I think you’ll like it.
The Engineer Ability
This ability allows players to emit a small area-of-effect field which repairs mechanical devices around it - be that restoring the shields of allies, or repairing damaged vehicles and allies within the vehicle to full health. The ability has no effect on the user.
Range: To keep this balanced, a 3 meter radius seems sufficient. It allows for team restoration, but also makes the cluster a target for explosives and well-placed shots. Straddlers will also suffer. The vehicle repair will only work for the vehicle the Engineer is occupying. They can use this no matter their position in the vehicle.
Duration: A five second duration seems a fair amount. It allows players time to form up and regenerate while under fire, but is also not too long. In vehicles, it restores the health over time. Players in the vehicle will be healed in the same manner as on foot, but the vehicle will be repaired over the five-second period. Once the time is up, it is repaired by 50% (e.g. if activated when the vehicle has 15% health, after the five second heal time it would have 65% unless further damage was taken whilst repairing). Walking into the vehicle with it activated already will have no effect on the vehicle, but still heal allies.
Recharge: I’m still debating this. I think that a 30 second recharge seems reasonable, if not too short.
So what do you think of it?
Got any abilities of your own to share? Even if you’re not a fan of armour abilities, feel free to contribute with why you feel the abilities woouldn’t work.
For certain playlists, this would be excellent… but it probably wont be a main armor ability. I personally hope they do not bring back armor abilities and if they throw in equipment then they need to change up the selection, same with abilities i suppose to. What would your equipment want to be if they make a return?
I think that sprint and evade should be standard abilities everyone can do. jet pack and active camo should return too since they do not mess up halo’s game play like armor lock, but they should be pick ups.
You people have to be joking about these aa’s. Leave them in reach forever and never put them in another halo game. Why does everyone want halo to become closer to call of duty and battlefield? Halo is about teamwork, skill, good maps, weapons and a good ranking system. Why does everyone want to keep filling halo with more and more?
Perhaps those people who don’t like armour abilities (i.e. 90% of the people on this forum) could explain WHY it is they they don’t like them, rather than simply piling negative comment upon negative comment. I am genuinely curious as to why armour abilities and equipment are so disliked. Please enlighten me.
> Perhaps those people who don’t like armour abilities (i.e. 90% of the people on this forum) could explain WHY it is they they don’t like them, rather than simply piling negative comment upon negative comment. I am genuinely curious as to why armour abilities and equipment are so disliked. Please enlighten me.
Well first go play any trilogy game and realize the simplicity and beauty that halo used to be.
Sprint- slows the game down because people can run away when one shot.
armor lock- you probably know why
evade-same as sprint but just idiotic
starting with camo? are you kidding me?
hologram is just goofy
the worst is sprint in my opinion.
The dmr is also a very boring weapon and with bloom makes the game so slow and boring.
The trilogy was perfect and 343 should make suttle changes and not throw a bunch of crap into a new halo game to try and keep up with cod. I think bungie got scared and microsoft forced them to go over the top with halo. Halo is amazing without all the stupid additions.
So… you want Halo 4 to recapitulate the exact gameplay of previous titles? That doesn’t make much sense to me. Personally, what I like about equipment and armour abilities is that it not only adds another dimension to the fight whilst rewarding players who think creatively, but it can also tip the balance in favour of new players who would otherwise be powerless against the exponentially growing number of people who have turned playing Halo online into their full-time occupation. (I should state that I don’t consider myself to occupy either of those extremes.)
Simplicity is wonderful, but “point and shoot” only results in a finite number of possible firefights; with equipment or armour abilities, there is always an element of the unknown that creeps into the battle. It forces good players to be on their guard, and it gives new players a fighting chance. I applaud that sort of thinking.
I do, however, prefer equipment to armour abilities.