Knives: More Than Shame - Balancing Suggestion + Weapon Mod

Knives exist in Insurgency as a weapon of shame: They serve no practical value, as they're slow to draw, have a long pause before followup swings, and normally take two or more hits to kill unless from behind. Shooting someone is the universally acknowledge easier and faster way to kill someone, and I don't intend to change that. Knife users are the Tachanka of Insurgency; the denotation of a complete noob or a player trying to meme.

I'd like to see knives become much more situational, as well as have a tad bit of variation

Balance Issue
Right now there's a little bit of dissonance between the knives issued to the factions.

Security forces receive a "Combat Knife" which appears to be some sort of bayonet. It is short, it is light weight, and realistically, could be stored anywhere on their rig or armor. In stark contrast, the Insurgents received a Nepalese Kukri, and let me tell you, a Kukri ain't a knife. It's the bastard child of an axe and a machete, and is typically the length of a forearm.

The dissonance issue here is that we're trying to balance a machete vs a knife, and end up with the worst of both worlds, so the idea is to have two knives for each team.

New Knives & Attachment
Combat Knife/Bayonet unmounted = Very fast draw & Attack speed; Slash changed to stab; OHK from behind; 2-3 HK from front; Allows use of Bayonet attachment on some weapons.

Tomahawk/Kukri = Slower Draw & Attack speed; Attack remains a slash; OHK all around; Cannot stick an axe on the front of your gun you dweeb. No bullet Halberds.

Weapon Attachment: The bayonet attachment is available for most ARs and Rifles with a few notable additions. The bayonet uses the same attachment slot as the laser for applicable weapons, and the same keybound to equip and remove (or fold away in the SKS' case)the bayonet. The mounted bayonet shares the same stats as the unmounted variant. The knife range is extended, and does not require switching weapons. It does however increase the length of weapons, and may expose you around corners, or obstruct your aim near walls. You also cannot pull out your knife if it's on a gun. Picking a gun up off the ground will result in losing your knife until you resupply if you didn't take it off.

SEC.

  • M4
  • M16A4/A2
  • L85A3
  • G3
  • 870 MCS
  • Mk14 EBR (?) [Edited to correct formatting]
    Security doesn't actually feature many weapons compatible with a bayonet, mostly because it's archaic. The G36K is too short to support one, as is the MP7. The SCAR H and M24 do not support bayonet lugs. While the M14 does support a bayonet, and the MK14 is just a modernized M14 with a shorter barrel, it may also. correct me if I'm wrong. I also don't believe the Mk18 SBR has a barrel long enough to fit a bayonet with a handle.

INS:

  • AK-74
  • AKM
  • FAL
  • SVD
  • Mosin
  • SKS (Does not require bayonet knife: Current SKS features a spike bayonet folded by default)
  • Uzi (Funnily enough, it exists)
    Overall, insurgents have more options for bayonets. I could not find a reference for a TOZ bayonet or the AKS-74U.

Addressing Concerns

  1. The bayonets may hopefully be added post release. That's a lot of extra animation and modeling work. With DOI as a reference, the groundwork is there, so it isn't impossible, but this is meant for later.

  2. Simply speeding up draw and attack speed for knives right now would probably suffice.

  3. With recent improvements to hitreg and nerfs to armor, killing people in CQB with guns is easier. If some fool manages to run all the way up to you with a tomahawk thwack you with it, you're to blame. If they pull a kukri out of their back pocket and whack you with it in front of you, it's your fault. If some dude is camping a corner with a knife, and you get jumped, it's again your fault for not tossing explosives or bringing buddies.

Knives are meant to punish the lone wolves, the unaware, and the straight up unlucky. With the current setup, COD panic toe-stabbing after face tanking bullets won't happen, as the suggested Bayonet won't OHK unless your back is turned. As for the machete, It's the same deal as a bomber in Coop. Listen for sprinting, look at the guy obviously not shooting you, and shoot him.

last edited by Goat Walrus

I remember that the first insurgency (the mod) didn't have knives until later. The melee weapons are looking a little pointless given that you can now just press middlemouse to use your gun barrel as a weapon.