I been trying to use SOFLAM more since I haven't in the past and I am confused. Can my entire team see the lock or just my squad? It often seems I can have an enemy vehicle locked for a Looooooong time but no shots are being taken at it. There were plenty of soldiers in the general vicinity.Maybe I am assuming they have rockets but they do not, or the helicopters or plane just didn't notice. It just seems odd since anytime I get in a vehicle there's at least 5 rockets heading my way (I am embellishing somewhat)SOFLAM actually seems to work best simply to spot infantry.

@MackTKau you haven't mastered it if you think it's useless. it's quite possibly the most powerful gadget in the game. spend some more time with it before you write it off

@TTZ_Dipsy In the first weeks of the game I had myself and three friends and we tried running as a squad with a soflam guy, and three M5s with one of as Angel to reload.It was pointless.Any intelligent pilot would just turn and burn upward, and if you fire they magic flare and you miss and have the exact same problem you would have firing stingers. Only braindead players would stick around when they got locked on and you didn't need a soflam for them anyway.It was vaguely useful against ground vehicles but I never had much trouble hitting a vehicle from within the range of a soflam lock in the first place, and now that there's the Liz TGM I'd rather just use that for anti-vehicle shooting.For it to be useful it'd need to:* Be at least 600 meters range if not 800.* Other players stingers & M5's can lock on from 200 meters more than non soflam targets.* Improved guidance. Instead of typical trajectory, a soflam lock on missile will do a "Javeling" style extreme upward launch before coming down again, helping to avoid obstacles & terrain.

@mrtwotimes If they have rockets they still need line of sight to get lock. I believe the SOFLAM lights the enemy up on the mini map for the entire team and believe that soflamming can be very useful.

They work for the entire team. Part of the issue is that it takes quite a long time for a recoiless to lock onto your soflam lock as well. It is one of those where being in a squad over voip and calling it out is a big difference. Also, it benefits vehicles that have AGM/A2A weapons that can attack the other type if it is locked on.But yes, it works well for just spotting infantry too.

@mrtwotimes wrote:I been trying to use SOFLAM more since I haven't in the past and I am confused. Can my entire team see the lock or just my squad? It often seems I can have an enemy vehicle locked for a Looooooong time but no shots are being taken at it. There were plenty of soldiers in the general vicinity.Maybe I am assuming they have rockets but they do not, or the helicopters or plane just didn't notice. It just seems odd since anytime I get in a vehicle there's at least 5 rockets heading my way (I am embellishing somewhat)SOFLAM actually seems to work best simply to spot infantry.soflam on vehicles is great. your whole team can see the lock. the trick is when you start doing it you have to give your team time to notice it so they can change to a rocket launcher. don't just quit after a min. if you are going to run soflam keep locking up vehicles and the team will catch on and start launching rockets at them. also keep in mind that teamates may not have a good line of sight to the vehicle or could be out of range. if you plan on soflaming whole game, perhaps mention it in chat to give teammates a heads up that you will be doing it

SOFLAM Useful? | EA Forums

18 Replies

DCAT627
Seasoned Veteran
3 years ago
@mrtwotimes If they have rockets they still need line of sight to get lock. I believe the SOFLAM lights the enemy up on the mini map for the entire team and believe that soflamming can be very useful.
Anobix
Seasoned Ace
3 years ago
They work for the entire team. Part of the issue is that it takes quite a long time for a recoiless to lock onto your soflam lock as well. It is one of those where being in a squad over voip and calling it out is a big difference. Also, it benefits vehicles that have AGM/A2A weapons that can attack the other type if it is locked on.
But yes, it works well for just spotting infantry too.
Psubond
Legend
3 years ago
@mrtwotimes wrote:
I been trying to use SOFLAM more since I haven't in the past and I am confused. Can my entire team see the lock or just my squad? It often seems I can have an enemy vehicle locked for a Looooooong time but no shots are being taken at it. There were plenty of soldiers in the general vicinity.
Maybe I am assuming they have rockets but they do not, or the helicopters or plane just didn't notice. It just seems odd since anytime I get in a vehicle there's at least 5 rockets heading my way (I am embellishing somewhat)
SOFLAM actually seems to work best simply to spot infantry.
soflam on vehicles is great. your whole team can see the lock. the trick is when you start doing it you have to give your team time to notice it so they can change to a rocket launcher. don't just quit after a min. if you are going to run soflam keep locking up vehicles and the team will catch on and start launching rockets at them. also keep in mind that teamates may not have a good line of sight to the vehicle or could be out of range. if you plan on soflaming whole game, perhaps mention it in chat to give teammates a heads up that you will be doing it
Anobix
Seasoned Ace
3 years ago
@Psubond Forgot to mention that, but that's a huge part. Communicate with the team that you will be using soflam to mark vehicles so they at least know to look for the yellow boxes.
TTZ_Dipsy
Legend
3 years ago
The whole team does see it but, unfortunately, nobody seems to care in 2042. Man I remember when a single person could put the fear of God into an entire team in previous titles
MackTKau
Seasoned Ace
3 years ago
@TTZ_Dipsy In the first weeks of the game I had myself and three friends and we tried running as a squad with a soflam guy, and three M5s with one of as Angel to reload.

It was pointless.

Any intelligent pilot would just turn and burn upward, and if you fire they magic flare and you miss and have the exact same problem you would have firing stingers. Only braindead players would stick around when they got locked on and you didn't need a soflam for them anyway.

It was vaguely useful against ground vehicles but I never had much trouble hitting a vehicle from within the range of a soflam lock in the first place, and now that there's the Liz TGM I'd rather just use that for anti-vehicle shooting.

For it to be useful it'd need to:
* Be at least 600 meters range if not 800.
* Other players stingers & M5's can lock on from 200 meters more than non soflam targets.
* Improved guidance. Instead of typical trajectory, a soflam lock on missile will do a "Javeling" style extreme upward launch before coming down again, helping to avoid obstacles & terrain.
Psubond
Legend
3 years ago
@MackTKau you haven't mastered it if you think it's useless. it's quite possibly the most powerful gadget in the game. spend some more time with it before you write it off
MackTKau
Seasoned Ace
3 years ago
@Psubond In the time it takes for a soflam lock you could have locked & fired a stinger, or launched & guided a liz missile.

Maybe it'll have a comeback after the class rework but I don't think it's gonna happen. DICE can keep trying to make the soflam happen but it simply isn't useful enough by the test of actual gameplay.

Maybe if they changed it to a grenade slot option, and/or made it something you could throw down and it would lock things up automatically (especially with range improvements) that might be enough. Maybe.

The major issue is that no matter what, you're NOT taking your own rocket launcher in order to take a soflam, in order to give another player (or rarely, more than one) a slightly more versatile launcher. When they could have kept their M5, and you could have just taken an stinger instead. Then all you'd be missing is a guided anti-tank missile.

Which now exists in the game with Liz.
mrtwotimes
New Ace
3 years ago
I appreciate all the input.
UP_Hawxxeye
Legend
3 years ago
I believe that the "top-Down" flight paths like those of the laser locked javelin need to make a return