I started bringing the Spear on bot missions last night - and damn does it feel good. It fires fast, doesn't require precise aim, does a ton of damage, and has a manageable amount of ammo. Seems really strong compared to the Autocannon, EAT and Quasar.
Yeah the backpack filled up completely from a resupply drop. Made it really easy to manage ammo. Between random drops, resupplies, and worse case - just calling in a new Spear - ammo is almost a non-issue.
My buddy used AC on every mission and joined me last night in using the Spear. He's actually what inspired me to make this meme, because he said he was done with the AC now. So yeah, might want to try the Spear for yourself and see if you like it too.
I typically only use the guard dog on bugs, since I feel like it doesn't do a lot against the range of the bots. But I did usually bring a shield backpack, so I feel your pain on losing that slot.
Still, I viewed it as giving me an extra stratagem slot to play with. I noticed that the Gatling Sentry puts in a lot of work against smaller bots and allows you to use the Spear to concentrate more on the big boys.
The commando will be the same with the expendable anti-tank: Easier to use to kill factories and high armor targets and more shots per minute based on call in times.
Like the autocannon, less explosive damage for other situations, but it is better for the ones that anti-tank was used for.
A mix of explosive and high penetration weapons across a squad is the best though. Combined arms ftw!
I'm using it a lot lately and it pairs beautifully with an auto cannon or two on bot planets. It's really strong against cannon turrets and gunships (and fabricator buildings when needed), and handy with tanks. Auto cannon is still king against medium units and hulks IMO.
It refused to lock on almost since release. It can only be fired when locked on. Then they claimed to fix that but it crashed your game when there were multiple targets anywhere in the reticle. Some weeks ago they actually fixed it.