So I have been mulling over this idea and have even shared it in some of the threads on the forum recently. However, I think it is time I put it in its own thread and gauge the reaction and gather feedback. I ask that people please remain constructive if possible and please point out any unintended or problematic parts of the mechanic.
I am going to try to make this easy to read so people can find the parts they are interested in but I would really appreciate if you could give it a full read anyways.
The current issue with Pharah.
Currently Pharah is in a strange spot balance wise. She is weaker in higher ranks due to competent hitscan's but moderately balanced in the average to lower ranks. Making it difficult to adjust her for high ranks without making her to powerful below that.
Especially when she is teamed up with Mercy. Any buff's could potentially make this synergy to powerful. So in order to properly buff Pharah so that she is still balanced at average ranks and below we have to ensure that it does not buff Pharmercy but enables Pharah to work a little more independently from a pocket healer.
The (potential) solution.
Fuel Injection: When holding secondary fire (or toggle) Pharah will now dump fuel from her fuel reserves into her suit's defensive systems. Converting that fuel into temporary shields. (Numbers and limits are undecided. Would appreciate idea's on this front).
Reasoning behind the idea.
Several points for this ability.
It does not lend itself to Pharmercy in any significant way due to it being temporary shielding. Which cannot be healed.
Using the Fuel Injection ability would require good timing and would only increase in effectiveness as you got better at managing it. Using it at the wrong time could result in Pharah falling from the sky in the middle of an enemy team. Using it at the right time could result in higher Pharah self sustain. Essentially raising her skill ceiling and her sustain at higher ranks while leaving her mostly unaffected at average or below ranks
This ability could be used in conjunction with Barrage. Just as you are about to use your ultimate you could dump fuel for a little extra survival.
So? What do you all think? Please keep in mind I am not married to the idea as much as I want to see if this can be workable. I am not really going to address anyone who simply agree’s or disagree’s without feedback but I am very open to discussing in detail why you think it can or can’t work as I think it would.
I don’t think you understand my idea to be honest.
Temporary shields do not last very long at all and cannot be sustained by Mercy. Once in the air any attempt to use it would sacrifice air time when mismanaged.
I think you’ve assumed these shields will last until destroyed instead of decay.
Listen, if you do not have anything to back this up with I am not going to just take your word for it. Do you have something that would objectively prove that this would directly buff Pharmercy?
And then Pharmercy falls out of the air because of Pharah’s lack of fuel.
@OP
I enjoy the idea immensely. I’d be interested to see the working values implemented; as it is, she has the exact amount of fuel necessary to remain airborne indefinitely, so balancing this resource with fuel means she can’t just make herself an immortal sky goddess. I see it being used most often as a fuel dump whilst falling out of the sky to avoid hitscan, creating less healing downtime and more opportunities to reposition, and of course to complement her ult, which, as per what seems to be the general consensus, is in need of attention. Nothing necessarily aggressive unless she perches on high ground and can afford to burn the fuel (i.e. this seems to be a purely defensive ability that won’t allow her to run rampant amidst a team ala Doomfist).
My only concern, then, would be the amount of shields she can generate at once. At her current fuel recharge rate, using Jump Jet whilst empty will still generate enough fuel to keep her in the air until her next Jump Jet. The offensive strategy that comes to mind, then, is to Jump Jet (or just perch on high ground) above your target as to let your fuel fully recharge and use Fuel Injection all the way down to the ground as you free fall whilst spamming missiles at your target. As Pharah lands on the ground, she’ll be buffed with shields and in close proximity to her prey, allowing her to easily take the duel with splash damage and minimal projectile travel time. During this time, her fuel has been recharging, Jump Jet is likely halfway through its cooldown, and she probably still has Concussive Blast to formulate some means of escape. More optimally is if she engages the fight diving from high ground, thus still having Jump Jet to escape. This won’t work in grouped compositions, of course. It’ll be best used on isolated targets such as a Zen or Ana in the backline as she swoops down like a Peregrine Falcon with lethal accuracy and ducking back out before suffering significant harm.
I don’t play DPS often enough to say whether or not this would be too much of an offensive addition to Pharah (though let’s be honest, becoming a bird of prey sounds pretty effing sweet), but it’s just something to consider. I’m sure there’s some sweet spot in the fuel-to-shield ratio that would prevent her from running rampant as such whilst still giving her a healthy survivability buff. Really neat idea OP, thanks for the brain fuel.
The problem with Pharmercy isn’t the Pharah, its the Mercy. I’ve spent games trying to hunt Mercy down and it is pretty difficult. Her hitbox is tiny and she moves pretty fast when she’s locked on to a teammate.
I avoided trying to throw numbers in there as I noticed people tend to get hung up on those instead of considering the idea as a whole.
I also appreciate the fact that you noticed the interaction it would have with her fuel economy. Making it act as both a means of bailing more consistently but also something that would interrupt her flow enough that if she sacrifices fuel she would not stay in the air for long if she used it offensively instead of defensively.
Exactly! However you do have a point on her being a ground pharah and using her fuel to get shields pretty consistently.
This to is also a valid point all around.
Perhaps both of these issues could be addressed with a cooldown that works some what like D.va’s defense matrix cooldown?
How about we add this to Fuel Injections description: Once Fuel Injection has reached critical mass (max shield potential) it goes on a X second cooldown.
What do you think of this? Would it prevent the issue?
Another possibility is this though I am not certain how positive a change this would be: Once Fuel Injection has reached critical mass (max shield potential) her jets go into liquid cooling mode. Cutting her re-fueling rate by xx% for X seconds.
Which one do you like better? Do you think something else may work more?
