Quote Originally Posted by chemzero View Post
It feels more balanced to other devices now. I get why it feels overpowered when one uses it, though. After getting used to the more lackluster devices of the other classes, finally having something on-par with the spec and recon abilities feels like a huge boost after playing with a handicap before. I tried more than once to run Heat and continually gave it up for Blitz. Now that call is a tough decision.
Except it's really not. Blitz is more fun by a long shot, and as someone who ran with blitz almost the entire beta phase, I want to make sure this next statement holds weight. After that last patch, I was attempting to use blitz as normal (as I had the entire phase) - but much to my dismay the shield now appears to be made of paper. I was continuously cut down within a second or two of leaving cover - whether this was due to the shield tweak, or the smg/lmg changes I don't know for certain, I can only say that it suddenly became unusable. At that point, I came to the forums and saw this thread, read about the buff - and since i was (as I'm sure everyone on the forum has noticed) talking trash about heat for a long time, and decided to give it a second chance.

Heat feels pretty strong now - but not in a good way. It's still not much fun to use, almost completely non interactive, and has possibly the stupidest binding link to zoom with it (next/previous weapon? REALLY? that seriously needs to be changed). Now that it lasts so long, you can actually kill people with it pretty easily - it still takes way too long to do so though - but at least it's not completely gimpy doing 40 dmg before it ends.

Attempts should still be made to make it a more fun ability to use and not just leave it as a 20 second duration lockdown.

Quote Originally Posted by chemzero View Post
Do I want the added protection to my back (since activating Blitz from anything other than a surprise flanking position usually means death for you) or do I want the suppression capability that heat offers?

That's a tough call now, whereas before the decision was clear.
If blitz was still as effective as it was pre-patch, then no, it would not be a difficult decision at all. Blitz is infinitely more fun (but it still needs work) than heat, and it lets you take out some guy who is cowering behind cover that heat won't touch - but it has a lot of warts too due to it's nature.

Also, you seem to be suggesting that blitz is useless unless you have already flanked the enemy (a sentiment I would agree with from the last changes I saw).... However that really doesn't sound very blitzy to me.

Considering the vulnerable position blitz puts the assault in when it's used and when it wears off, it needs to be far more effective in protecting the assault while it is engaged, and for the love of all the waffles on the planet, let blitz navigate over obstacles and through windows the same as every other ability. Super annoying to be chasing someone down only to have them jump over a 2 foot ledge and now they're free and laughing at you. I really wouldn't be opposed to blitz either doing a small amount of damage when it smacks someone, or cancelling active abilities (my preference) when it hits. If it cancelled active abilities, it would no longer be a terrible easter egg hunt when you manage to hit a cloaked recon - and the assault wouldn't have to stop to be the only one able to kill the spec who just popped aegis - plus it would be a decent counter for heat (I guess since heat doesn't effect it).

I think it only makes sense for the blitz shield when it hits someone to behave in this manner. Either way, it still needs to provide more protection.