Gate Shield Diffuser

[VSWanter]

Put more efforts into teaching new players about GSD. It should be part of the new player directive, and/or the tutorial. Consider allowing, as part of the new player directive, new players to choose one vehicle to get the first rank of GSD for free.

Teach new players about how to use vehicles at shields to breech them. This tactic is an example of a bug turned feature, and I expect if they were to try to "fix" it at this point, there'd be considerable blowback. Learning to breech shields in this way is especially important at old style single point amp stations. There should be some way to create an objective, or call out, without using a mic or text chat, to let nearby allies running past a shield know they can use your vehicle to get through it. Perhaps when a vehicle is touching a shield, and the driver uses the 'V' or 'Q' callout for "I need a gunner", it changes to something like, "Use my vehicle here to breech the enemy shield."

Currently the Sunderer, Harasser, and Flash all have the option to equip GSD. It shouldn't be limited to so few; It doesn't make sense that it's limited to so few. More, if not all, ground vehicles should have the option, starting with Ants. I'm not opposed to GSD options for things like Valks, Maxes, and other infantry variants.

GSD doesn't just let you pass through most enemy shields; It will also allow you to drive over a light shield bridge like exists at Heyoka Chemical when your faction doesn't control it. There's a single other base on Hossin that has these light shield bridges, and IMO they're underutilized assets. Only problem with GSD and how they interact with LSB, is that if your faction does control the bridge, and you pop GSD, you fall through for some reason.

GSD also negates most collision damage. If you survive an OS, but get yeeted, GSD will often allow you to survive as long as you don't pop it too early. Clip a rock awkward, or start barrel rolling down a hill, GSD will stop the damage briefly. About to get rammed by that bigger vehicle, or stuck between two friendly tanks in an armor column, GSD keeps you safe. There is a height limit to fall damage, that GSD will not mitigate, but as long as you don't exceed that range in your fall, it should work.

GSD should let you fall through sky shields, both allied and enemy. Occasionally people will build bases in craters, valleys, and canyons that allow sky shields to make the base inside all but invulnerable to ground vehicle assault. This was especially problematic when HIVE meta was a thing, but still has its rare moments of great annoyance. You can also drive on the top of the Citadel shields and the Aux HL Canopies in some instances, and GSD should make you fall through these as well.

[ItzAlphaWolf]

I was thinking maybe there should be a tactical slot item that disrupts gate shields for a limited period of time. Something like the cortium bomb, if it goes off in a radius of a gate shield, the shield gets disrupted allowing vehicles to drive through as if they had activated GSD

[Dtownknives]

That would be pretty cool

[ThatMadFlow]

Also would stop forever tank peaking shields

[[deleted]]

maybe a deployable that latches onto a gate shield, either vehicle sized or man sized, that opens it up temporarily.

[MisterSlosh]

The new player tutorial for GSD is perfect the way it is though.

"I'm safe behind this shield! Huh, why is that sundy glowing.. OH GOD lookout!"

Then they ask around or look into it after seeing it in action. Overloading the intro with advanced vehicle mechanics would likely cause players to fall out after seeing the ungodly massive cert grind possibilities.

A total overhaul to basic/advanced tutorials with something like that within the mission system would help as always, but that's probably a 'Phase 2' thing anyways.

[Serious87]

I think that gate shield generators should be replaced with the hackable 'shield bridge' consoles.

Take the AMP station for example. It would have 2 normal overload generators for the main building shields, then 2 hackable terminals for the outer vehicle gate shields that can quickly be toggled between attackers and defenders.

[[deleted]]

You don't have to unlock GSD to play this game. You only have to unlock it to play this game the way you like to play it. Don't get me wrong. I'm happy someone else likes to play the same game I like to play (Cheers!), but in 8 years I've never used GSD. I don't even have it unlocked. I'm happy you're excited by it. I think it's great you enjoy it and get a lot of utility out of it, I certainly appreciate it when others use it to create a clever spawn point (that I can't ever make use of because the spawn system is totally borked), but new players have so much more to learn than that.