Game Balance

[Vastin]

That's because you're an omniweapon junkie. The IM90 does not perform at all well compared to the high level positron and plasma weapons, or even the ares lightning turret. I consider it an inferior weapon already.

I've equipped and upgraded the positrons, but they did not impress me - I far prefer the plasma cannon as a direct fire weapon, and the starcannon/fusionfire will easily carry me long enough to get one.

Both fully upgraded, the plasma cannon burns down the Iocrym faster than the IM90, but the IM90 will do the job in a similar period as long as you keep it close enough for all 3 bolts to strike - and it makes your maneuvering a hell of a lot easier. On the flip side, the plasma cannon is a LOT cheaper to upgrade if I recall correctly (+Fast)? I also seem to remember one of the two being better for burning its shields, and the other its hull...

As for the Ares turret? The recharge delay cripples its overall DPS delivery, and if I recall correctly it's charge isn't usually big enough to kill a cap ship in a single pass, particularly the way armor segments work (I still don't fully grok that). I do use them a lot - but ONLY because I have nothing better to put in the 3rd weapon slot after the IM90 and the Plasma Cannon.

In any case, given how many of your enemies are swarmers, I greatly prefer the multi-target and continuous fire capacity of the IM90. There is no target in the game it cannot kill - most within seconds, including cap ships if you maneuver such that all shots bear on it. <shrug>

[digdug]

but ONLY because I have nothing better to put in the 3rd weapon slot after the IM90 and the Plasma Cannon.

Considering that you already have the two most powerful weapons of the game (excluding uniques), in the 3rd slot you can put a support weapon for increasing damage/time, like a launcher.
I recently rediscovered the Kytryn launcher, i found a single ammo missile in a Teraton, then I duplicated it in large quantities.

The other item that you want to keep in that slot is a mining laser
High level ore (etherium or similar high level stuff) is highly needed for running the Teraton Pit.

[Aury]

eww. a mining laser? those are miserably slow. get a ferian one. still a bore fest, just slightly less of one.

[Atarlost]

For fighting the Iocrym range is paramount. If you can outrange everything but the quantumsphere you don't need to dodge.

As to the Ares turret the key is to switch weapons. If you do nothing while it recharges your overall DPS is going to be kind of lame, but if you switch to a positron weapon while it recharges, and back to the turret when your shields are getting thin so you can dodge you get full DPS out of it as if it weren't a capacitor weapon. It's also useful if you're going to dodge in and out of range anyways. It's also longer ranged than the IM90. Never underestimate the utility of an extra 20 light seconds of distance.

[Vastin]

For fighting the Iocrym range is paramount. If you can outrange everything but the quantumsphere you don't need to dodge.

As to the Ares turret the key is to switch weapons. If you do nothing while it recharges your overall DPS is going to be kind of lame, but if you switch to a positron weapon while it recharges, and back to the turret when your shields are getting thin so you can dodge you get full DPS out of it as if it weren't a capacitor weapon. It's also useful if you're going to dodge in and out of range anyways. It's also longer ranged than the IM90. Never underestimate the utility of an extra 20 light seconds of distance.

Ah, I think I see why you do not favor the IM90 now. I mostly play the wolfen, and I fight most cap ships at very close range where the IM90 does excellent damage (all 3 bolts). Because I am focusing entirely on evasion - not aiming - in a high agility ship, I don't have to worry over-much about taking sustained fire.

I fight the Iocrym this way as well. There is a range band (fairly close) where the IM90 will hit with all shots (and guaranteed shoot down the spheres), but you are still out of range of the Iocrym's short range weaponry. Again, because I can focus on maneuvering rather than aiming, it is rather easy to maintain this range - though of course once I've got my vector set up and the Iocrym runs out of spheres, I'll switch to the plasma cannon and burn him the rest of the way down.

Of course, the IM90 is painfully expensive, and I do end up having to do quite a bit of farming to buy it most of the time - but I prefer that to generating ammo in the teraton pits, which is similarly time consuming.

One of these days I have to finish a play through in the freighter... It would really force me to change up my strategy. I just get sooo frustrated with the long travel times.

[asam3]

Longzhu spheres are strong and imbalanced, just cause it has so many uses that it's like the best thing to have at any point in the game.

[digdug]

necro, locked

[Aury]

That is known, a nerf to them is planned.