149 replies to this topic

[Repasy Cooper]

I've analyzed all the leftover Clan mechs that fit the current timeline, and here is my subsequent prediction on when/what we will see.

First off, I predict we won't be seeing any non-omni Clan mech chassis for quite a while (yea, unfortunately this means no Kodiak, Conjurer, Stone Rhino & any of the TOTALLY AWESOME IIC mechs). I made this prediction based off two points.

The first point is that PGI's current trend is to only release a mech if there are three or more variants available in the timeline, and that would currently be the Clan Invasion (3050 - 3052). That makes all but six mechs invalid: Bowman, Incubus, Jenner IIC, Locust IIC, Trebuchet IIC, and Wolfhound IIC. There are four IIC mechs available in the timeline, but this leads to my second point, that PGI releases mechs in 4-paks containing one mech of each weight class. So three lights and one medium don't really fit into a 4-pak. We could possibly see these six mechs released as individuals, but seeing as six battlemechs won't make much of a splash compared to the 17 or so omnimechs available, it's safe to say that Clantech will be omni-exclusive for the foreseeable future.

Having taken care of that, here are the omnimech choices left:

20ton Fire Moth

25ton Fire Falcon (3052)

40ton Battle Cobra, Viper, Pouncer, Coyotl (outdated), Phantom (3052)

45ton Mongrel (3053)

50ton Huntsman

55ton Stooping Hawk, Black Lanner (3052)

60ton Lupus (outdated)

65ton Crossbow, Linebacker (3052)

75ton Woodsman (outdated), Night Gyr (3052)

80ton Naga (requires development of Arrow IV)

90ton Kingfisher

95ton Turkina (3052)

Taking into account these mech choices, their tonnage, weapons loadout, number of variants, popularity and whether or not they're outdated predecessors to existing mechs (ex. Timber Wolf is based off of the Woodsman, which only has Prime and A variants anyways), there is enough here to make two mech packs:

CLAN WAVE 4 MECH PAK:

20ton Fire Moth

40ton Viper

65ton Crossbow

90ton Kingfisher

(possible bonus) 50ton Huntsman

CLAN TUKAYYID UPDATE 3052:

25ton Fire Falcon

55ton Black Lanner

75ton Night Gyr

95ton Turkina

(possible bonus) 40ton Phantom

The remaining mechs (and unused bonus mechs) could be introduced individually, like some of the IS chassis were:

40ton Battle Cobra

55ton Stooping Hawk

80ton Naga (would require a joint IS/Clan release of Arrow IV missile system)

45ton Mongrel (3053: technically does not fit timeline but might come soon after)

40ton Pouncer and 65ton Linebacker (both make good alternate choices as bonus mechs for either of the mech packs above, or could be released together in a sub-pack, since they're rather similar in design and philosophy)

Mechs that won't make the list (probably):

40ton Coyotl: The original test-bed for omnitech, henceforth EXTREMELY important. Sadly, it only had a Prime and A variant, so we won't see this mech unless PGI decides to go MAX apocryphal.

60ton Lupus: This mech is the predecessor of the Mad Dog, and subsequently very similar. It even has the same tonnage, so including it might be rather redundant. However, there are three variants available. Still, very low chance of seeing this mech.

75ton Woodsman: This mech is the predecessor of the Timber Wolf but unlike the Lupus only has two variants. (excluding UK Frankenstein variants, which don't even have the same tonnage... dafu-)

That completes the list of near-future Clan mech contenders. Feel free to share your thoughts on whether you believe my mechpak choices are good or bad, your favourite mechs / mechpaks, or any other mechs that I may have excluded from the list.

Edited by Repasy, 23 May 2015 - 10:40 AM.

[Sniper09121986]

Viper and Crossbow seem too undergunned, so I would replace them with Battle Cobra and... Do not even know, since Linebacker also seems meh to me. Cobra and Crossbow have all weapons in arms, but Crossbow does not carry enough for its weight class, and Cobra with 40 tons and JJ in later configs should be harder to hit anyway due to being possibly smaller than Ice Ferret. Otherwise all very likely suggestions.

[Repasy Cooper]

True, the Viper is really interchangeable with the Battle Cobra and Pouncer for the Wave 4 medium slot. Pouncer is a less suitable candidate as it's basically a heavier Adder with jumpjets, and I thought the Viper would make a nice companion mech to the Ice Ferret.

Yea, the Crossbow is meh, although that B variant would play a lot like Stormcrow streak-meta. So, may be some hope for it.

[Helaton]

Its been proven all of these can be solved if necessary with tweaks. Take a look at the Dragon. I'm open to more variation on the battlefield.

[KHAN ATTAKHAN]

Next Clan wave or not the Turkina was meant to be available to the clans to fight Tukayyid, we in this alternate universe did not have this available and as such this should be the REWARD TO THE CLANS FOR WINNING TUKAYYID AT A MINOR COST WITH SPECIAL CAMO OF YOUR CLAN CHOICE. It would show us that there is customer appreciation from the bosses out there for our hard work and BIG dollars spent by us.

Edited by ATTAKHAN666, 01 May 2015 - 11:19 AM.

[CyclonerM]

To be honest, Russ has hinted at least twice during the last Town Halls about IICs being an awesome idea.. So my guess is that the next wave might actually be made of Clan BattleMechs. Considering that they will be busy making the Wave III and Resistance II 'Mechs for quite a while, they might actually have the time to consider a design for Clan BattleMechs after MASC is released. This could also give them a simple way to make Clan hero 'Mechs (Grinner must be the first!). I am going to write a post about how they could be implemented without complicating it with too many "fixes" à la PGI

Looking on Sarna, by the way, i think you are partially incorrect. Hunchback IIC, Orion IIC (ok, it should be exclusive of Clan Wolf, but maybe in our alternate universe one 'Mech or two have fallen , unfortunately, in other Clans' hands..) and Highlander IIC have all been produced since the 2800s, so we have at least 1 for each class available.

I would expect, as first pack, Jenner IIC, Hunchback IIC, Orion IIC and Highlander IIC, with Grinner (Wolfhound IIC) as preorder bonus and first Clan hero battlemech.

On the other hand, the big issue is that most of them have no variants or not enough of them. So either they make them up or they devise a system where 3 variants are not needed, but i see the former as much more likely.

[Repasy Cooper]

Honestly, I would LOVE to see IIC's more than the remaining omnimechs I outlined above. Like I said though, that requires PGI to either shoot the timeline forward (meaning no more Tukayyid tourneys), or dropping an A-bomb on lore (A stands for apocryphal.. lol...).

Namely, the Warhammer IIC... hehe

[Ridir Semii]

Griffin IIC and Incubus would be awesome, any others I wouldn't give too many shakes, but thats just my Griffin Nostalgia and the last Clan mech (not already released or soon to be) left... there are others like the Kodiak, but I don't care either way...

[Repasy Cooper]

Back to omnimechs, I'd really be excited to see the Phantom in the game. It's like the ultimate Clan scout/hunter-killer for the time period, I mean that speed! I have a feeling I would love to pilot one of them. They'd be great for zipping around, coring crippled mechs that are trying to escape combat, hehehe.

The Naga would be a great addition too! I think we could really deserve some Arrow IV in the game. The IS would finally get their CPLT-C3 too.

The Kingfisher is like the Fire Moth in that it's the only omnimech of its tonnage for the forseeable future (until we get the Blood Asp of course). For that reason I think it's very likely we could see this guy before the Turkina or the Naga. It's also the precursor to the Kodiak battlemech, which is super cool!

I'm pretty sure we'll have to wait for the other omnis before we get 3052 mechs, but whether or not we'll have to wait 2 years.. that's the question. Since they've announced their new "Season" idea w/ ComWar (with each season culminating in a Tukayyid-like tournament), I wonder if every tournament will take place on Tukayyid and reset the map. If this is the case, then we can view each season as a two-year period, stretching from the beginning of the invasion into the Inner Sphere (3050) to the Battle of Tukayyid (3052). That would mean PGI intends to discard their original idea, that every minute passing irl is a minute passing in the Inner Sphere, circa 3050.

Edited by Repasy, 02 May 2015 - 03:14 PM.

[LegOLess]

What about the Iron Cheetah?

[Odanan]

Repasy, on 01 May 2015 - 09:26 AM, said:

I've analyzed all the leftover Clan mechs that fit the current timeline, and here is my subsequent prediction on when/what we will see.

First off, I predict we won't be seeing any non-omni Clan mech chassis for quite a while (yea, unfortunately this means no Kodiak, Conjurer, Stone Rhino & any of the TOTALLY AWESOME IIC mechs). I made this prediction based off two points.

The first point is that PGI's current trend is to only release a mech if there are three or more variants available in the timeline, and that would currently be the Clan Invasion (3050 - 3052). That makes all but six mechs invalid: Bowman, Incubus, Jenner IIC, Locust IIC, Trebuchet IIC, and Wolfhound IIC. There are four IIC mechs available in the timeline, but this leads to my second point, that PGI releases mechs in 4-paks containing one mech of each weight class. So three lights and one medium don't really fit into a 4-pak. We could possibly see these six mechs released as individuals, but seeing as six battlemechs won't make much of a splash compared to the 17 or so omnimechs available, it's safe to say that Clantech will be omni-exclusive for the foreseeable future.

Having taken care of that, here are the omnimech choices left:

20ton Fire Moth

25ton Fire Falcon (3052)

40ton Battle Cobra, Viper, Pouncer, Coyotl (outdated), Phantom (3052)

45ton Mongrel (3053)

50ton Huntsman

55ton Stooping Hawk, Black Lanner (3052)

60ton Lupus (outdated)

65ton Crossbow, Linebacker (3052)

75ton Woodsman (outdated), Night Gyr (3052)

80ton Naga (requires development of Arrow IV)

90ton Kingfisher

95ton Turkina (3052)

Taking into account these mech choices, their tonnage, weapons loadout, number of variants, popularity and whether or not they're outdated predecessors to existing mechs (ex. Timber Wolf is based off of the Woodsman, which only has Prime and A variants anyways), there is enough here to make two mech packs:

CLAN WAVE 4 MECH PAK:

20ton Fire Moth

40ton Viper

65ton Crossbow

90ton Kingfisher

(possible bonus) 50ton Huntsman

CLAN TUKAYYID UPDATE 3052:

25ton Fire Falcon

55ton Black Lanner

75ton Night Gyr

95ton Turkina

(possible bonus) 40ton Phantom

The remaining mechs (and unused bonus mechs) could be introduced individually, like some of the IS chassis were:

40ton Battle Cobra

55ton Stooping Hawk

80ton Naga (would require a joint IS/Clan release of Arrow IV missile system)

45ton Mongrel (3053: technically does not fit timeline but might come soon after)

40ton Pouncer and 64ton Linebacker (both make good alternate choices as bonus mechs for either of the mech packs above, or could be released together in a sub-pack, since they're rather similar in design and philosophy)

Mechs that won't make the list (probably):

40ton Coyotl: The original test-bed for omnitech, henceforth EXTREMELY important. Sadly, it only had a Prime and A variant, so we won't see this mech unless PGI decides to go MAX apocryphal.

60ton Lupus: This mech is the predecessor of the Mad Dog, and subsequently very similar. It even has the same tonnage, so including it might be rather redundant. However, there are three variants available. Still, very low chance of seeing this mech.

75ton Woodsman: This mech is the predecessor of the Timber Wolf but unlike the Lupus only has two variants. (excluding UK Frankenstein variants, which don't even have the same tonnage... dafu-)

That completes the list of near-future Clan mech contenders. Feel free to share your thoughts on whether you believe my mechpak choices are good or bad, your favourite mechs / mechpaks, or any other mechs that I may have excluded from the list.

Crossbow, Battle Cobra, Lupus, Stooping Hawk, Woodsman and Kingfisher have Standard Engine. While it can be acceptable in a 90 tons mech with both ES and FF, it would be terrible for the other mechs.

Fire Moth can't be added unless they remove the MASC of it, because if breaks by far the game's engine speed barrier.

Sniper09121986, on 01 May 2015 - 10:52 AM, said:

Viper and Crossbow seem too undergunned (...)

Viper undergunned? It is a buffed Firestarter (and I wouldn't call that undergunned).

Why I long for the Viper:

Odanan, on 22 December 2014 - 05:36 AM, said:

Continuing the analysis of the next Clan omnimechs to be released:

Viper (IS name: Dragonfly)

40 tons
Endo Steel, Ferro Fibrous, 8 jumpjets, 129.6 km/h

-------
Primary

RA 2e
RT 2b
CT
H
LT 1ams
LA 1m

-------
Alt A

RA 1e
RT 2e
CT
H
LT 2e
LA 1m

-------
Alt B

RA 1e
RT 1e
CT
H
LT 1e
LA 1e

-------
Alt C

RA 2e
RT 2b
CT 1e
H
LT 2b
LA 2e

-------
Alt D

RA 2e
RT 1m
CT
H
LT 1e
LA 1m

Omni configurations for the game: Prime, A (or D) and C.
Very mobile, great weapon hardpoints, this would become a perfect fast striking or dog fighting mech. 5x ER Medium Lasers + 4x machineguns or 9x Small Pulse Lasers = super Firestarter.

[Repasy Cooper]

Odanan, on 02 May 2015 - 04:07 PM, said:

Crossbow, Battle Cobra, Lupus, Stooping Hawk, Woodsman and Kingfisher have Standard Engine. While it can be acceptable in a 90 tons mech with both ES and FF, it would be terrible for the other mechs.

Have to disagree with you there. Clan energy and missile weapons weigh considerably less than IS versions. Thus, the equipped Standard Engine just means that ballistics will not be a good option for traditional non-trial combat. The Crossbow, Battle Cobra, Stooping Hawk, and Kingfisher would all do well-enough without the XL. The Lupus and Woodsman are unlikely to be seen, they represent outdated precursors to the Mad Dog and Timber Wolf, so I would just disregard those anyways.

Stooping Hawk is like a slower Stormcrow with jumpjets. That's not terrible.
Crossbow is a cheap streak-boat. Also not terrible.
Battle Cobra is a low-tonnage, squirly laser-boat. Also not terrible.
Kingfisher is probably getting increased mobility quirks. That's more than acceptable.

Odanan, on 02 May 2015 - 04:07 PM, said:

Fire Moth can't be added unless they remove the MASC of it, because if breaks by far the game's engine speed barrier.

Unless they fix the game's engine speed barrier. They're planning to release the Flea at some point too, so why wouldn't they do this?

[The Mechromancer]

hope for the tuk instead of the kingfisher.

[Odanan]

Repasy, on 02 May 2015 - 04:45 PM, said:

Have to disagree with you there. Clan energy and missile weapons weigh considerably less than IS versions. Thus, the equipped Standard Engine just means that ballistics will not be a good option for traditional non-trial combat. The Crossbow, Battle Cobra, Stooping Hawk, and Kingfisher would all do well-enough without the XL. The Lupus and Woodsman are unlikely to be seen, they represent outdated precursors to the Mad Dog and Timber Wolf, so I would just disregard those anyways.

Stooping Hawk is like a slower Stormcrow with jumpjets. That's not terrible.
Crossbow is a cheap streak-boat. Also not terrible.
Battle Cobra is a low-tonnage, squirly laser-boat. Also not terrible.
Kingfisher is probably getting increased mobility quirks. That's more than acceptable.



Unless they fix the game's engine speed barrier. They're planning to release the Flea at some point too, so why wouldn't they do this?

Because of the CW, the timeline just became blurred: we are between 3050 and 3053, so there will be plenty of BETTER options, no need to add the Std. Engine omnimechs.

Fire Falcon, Pouncer, Viper, Huntsman, Mongrel, Phantom, Black Lanner, Linebacker, Night Gyr and Turkina are all fair game now. We know the light and assault mechs for the Wave IV, the question is: which will be the medium (6 options); and for heavy, it will be Linebacker or Night Gyr?

The last statements are not good for the Flea. I remember Russ saying something like "nobody wants the Flea by now".
Well, I certainly don't want (it even looks like the Locust).

[MonkeyCheese]

I would love the incubus. Even if it is another humanoid mech.

[Repasy Cooper]

Odanan, on 02 May 2015 - 05:08 PM, said:

Because of the CW, the timeline just became blurred: we are between 3050 and 3053, so there will be plenty of BETTER options, no need to add the Std. Engine omnimechs.

Fire Falcon, Pouncer, Viper, Huntsman, Mongrel, Phantom, Black Lanner, Linebacker, Night Gyr and Turkina are all fair game now. We know the light and assault mechs for the Wave IV, the question is: which will be the medium (6 options); and for heavy, it will be Linebacker or Night Gyr?

The last statements are not good for the Flea. I remember Russ saying something like "nobody wants the Flea by now".
Well, I certainly don't want (it even looks like the Locust).

I'm betting on Night Gyr as the heavy, IF they only have one more Clan pack release. Having a second 75-ton option would be cool, not sure if we're gonna need a third 65-ton option. Though, the Linebacker's profile is pretty cool.

Honestly, I would love to see all the outlined mechs in MWO, even the not-so-great-on-paper mechs. A mech doesn't have to be meta to be useable in MWO. I actually used the Gargoyle for a majority of my games during the Tukayyid event, and I earned a considerable number of kills in the D variant.

EDIT:

Popularity's a large parameter in what mechs come out first. It has more of an effect on the Inner Sphere mechs because there are so many to choose from. The Clan omnimechs less so, but I'm sure that if a lot of people rave for the 3052 mechs first, it'll happen.

I suppose if there was a good reason for the Crossbow to not make an appearance, it would be that the early variants could only mount omnipods in the arms, and this probably would make it unpopular with most players. But hey, even the Gargoyle saw decent use during Tukayyid, as much as the Jenner for that matter.

:/ I reeeally wanna see the Kingfisher though. It's a favourite mech of mine!

Edited by Repasy, 02 May 2015 - 06:11 PM.

[Odanan]

Repasy, on 02 May 2015 - 06:03 PM, said:

I'm betting on Night Gyr as the heavy, IF they only have one more Clan pack release. Having a second 75-ton option would be cool, not sure if we're gonna need a third 65-ton option.

You can bet on that. Night Gyr shall prevail (and it will be a helluva mech).

[LastKhan]

Odanan, on 02 May 2015 - 06:37 PM, said:

You can bet on that. Night Gyr shall prevail (and it will be a helluva mech).

From Pariah's view point it will be mean out of the box. Itd be interesting for sure.

[Dino Might]

Firemoth. Do Want. Closest thing Clans have to a Locust.
And I've wanted something with monkey arms for a while, ever since someone shopped the "improved phract."

Edited by Dino Might, 02 May 2015 - 06:42 PM.

[Jaroth Corbett]

Hunchback IIC, we need it NOW!

Edited by Jaroth Corbett, 02 May 2015 - 11:30 PM.