118 replies to this topic

[Jody Von Jedi]

If anyone has read any of my posts before or seen me in game, you know I'm a dedicated Medium (and Quickdraws) mech pilot. I have been known to play a Victor, Ilya Mouromets or Ember on occasion. But fast medium jump brawlers (and Quickdraws) in particular have been my preferred play style. I did this once before, but with the Victors. They are a different animal from an Atlas though (well at least there was more of a difference until it was nerfed), so I don't really count them as "Assault".

In June PGI offered us the original 4 mechs in the game at 50% off C-Bill price. So I momentarily lost my mind and bought 3 Atlas (Atlai, Atalatal?, Atlases, plural form of Atlas has been beaten to death. I will use "Atlas" for both singular and plural henceforth). I chose the DDC, D, and K. These things are completely stock at the moment as I've been saving up C-Bills for either a Clan mech "Salvage" or to customize these Atlas. I've chosen the latter. Besides, I'm a Steiner and we all know how we "love" our Atlas.

I've started this thread to document my journey. So, in my best Benedict Cumberbatch impersonation: "Shall we begin......"


I'm going to start with the DDC for one obvious reason: ECM baby!

Until I unlock some efficiencies, I'm going to stay at range and play fire support. That slow torso twist is a killer. Therefore, I've come up with this build.

320 Std
ALRM10
2 x ALRM5
2 x AC5
PPC
ECM
BAP (I chose BAP over the CC for the weight savings)

I figure I can stay at range, but not too far out where the stupid little Spiders roam. I know isolation is the death of an Assault.

So, give me your thoughts.

Jody von Jedi

[Moonraven83]

Try this Build.

BAP loses most of its benefits when combined with ECM.
Artemis isn't really worth unless you go LRM-Boating, even less when using SRMs
http://mwomercs.com/...mis-comparison/
only 1 Volley less to kill an Atlas.

Edited by Moonraven83, 25 July 2014 - 06:01 AM.

[The Great Unwashed]

In my best Palpatine voice: "This feable Atlas is no match for my Adder"...

- BAP hardly adds anything when you already have ECM as ECM can be put in countermode and then is nearly a BAP. Plus ECM and BAP do not stack (IIRC). So, you're probably better off with a TAG laser and a radar range module if you like LRMs?
- With LRM and PPC (to a degree) it is indeed a long range mech, However, only 2,5 tons of AC5 ammo is a bit on the light side (and Palpatine does not like the light side at all).
- What I really enjoy about the Atlas is a facefull of SRM4 but it does turn a bit short-sighted...

AS7-D-DC

Edited by The Great Unwashed, 25 July 2014 - 06:10 AM.

[Sagedabluemage]

a lot of longe range. what do you do when they get within 240meters ?

its a nice build i tell ya that but are ya going in groups or solo que?

tho i prefer short to medium engagement in an atlas

sometimes i do

2 large laz or 2 medium laz
3 srms or ssrms or 1 lrm 15 and 2 srms
2 ac5s or an ac 10 or ac20

bap
ecm
ams

std 350

and i change the values of the armor front to a back a lil bit

but then again it depends on playstyle

if yer witha group i think its fine but it depends on how yer group is set up mostly

for solo que i dun know on how effective it will be if u catch people in the open this would be down right devastating but if yer caught in a close quarters match i would worry on kiting and timing

[BOWMANGR]

Jody Von Jedi, on 25 July 2014 - 05:44 AM, said:

I momentarily lost my mind and bought 3 Atlas (Atlai, Atalatal?, Atlases, plural form of Atlas has been beaten to death. I will use "Atlas" for both singular and plural henceforth).

Atlantes is your best bet.

because

Άτλας = Atlas
Άτλαντες = Atlantes

The name Atlas means "He who can endure anything". It's fitting for an 100 ton chassis.

Edited by BOWMANGR, 25 July 2014 - 07:10 AM.

[Jody Von Jedi]

Moonraven83, on 25 July 2014 - 05:57 AM, said:

Try this Build.

BAP loses most of its benefits when combined with ECM.
Artemis isn't really worth unless you go LRM-Boating, even less when using SRMs
http://mwomercs.com/...mis-comparison/
only 1 Volley less to kill an Atlas.

Don't care for the Gauss rifle. I can't get used to the mechanic.
OK, I'll lose the BAP. Never run ECM before, so thanks for that bit of info.
I've always run Artemis, see that video. I may have to rethink my loyalty to Artemis.

The Great Unwashed, on 25 July 2014 - 05:59 AM, said:

In my best Palpatine voice: "This feable Atlas is no match for my Adder"...
- So, you're probably better off with a TAG laser and a radar range module if you like LRMs?
- With LRM and PPC (to a degree) it is indeed a long range mech, However, only 2,5 tons of AC5 ammo is a bit on the light side (and Palpatine does not like the light side at all).
- What I really enjoy about the Atlas is a facefull of SRM4 but it does turn a bit short-sighted...

AS7-D-DC

As Luke said to Palpatine: "Your overconfidence is your weakness." LOL

I really like the brawler loadouts with SRMs as I'm sure you're aware. I just wanted to try something different. I started out playing with LRMs like most new players and gradually moved to the fast medium jump brawler play style I mentioned in the OP.
I do like your build. It's well balanced.

Sagedabluemage, on 25 July 2014 - 06:01 AM, said:

a lot of longe range. what do you do when they get within 240meters ?

its a nice build i tell ya that but are ya going in groups or solo que?

tho i prefer short to medium engagement in an atlas

sometimes i do

2 large laz or 2 medium laz
3 srms or ssrms or 1 lrm 15 and 2 srms
2 ac5s or an ac 10 or ac20

bap
ecm
ams

std 350

and i change the values of the armor front to a back a lil bit

but then again it depends on playstyle

if yer witha group i think its fine but it depends on how yer group is set up mostly

for solo que i dun know on how effective it will be if u catch people in the open this would be down right devastating but if yer caught in a close quarters match i would worry on kiting and timing

Mostly solo queue. I do team up with 1 or 2 others on occasion, but less so since even small groups are in the group queue now.

So far I see most are suggesting more short ranged weapons. I agree. How about this ? I know most people don't like LRMs on Atlantes ( o7 Bowmangr), just wanted to try them again.

Once the skills are unlocked on these things, I'll go back to more brawler style weapons. The Long range is just until I get used to the slow saunter of the Atlas.

I'll still have the AC/5s for short range, dropped the Artemis, BAP and LRM10 and 5s. Added 2xSRM4, LRM15.

Better?

[The Great Unwashed]

Jody Von Jedi, on 25 July 2014 - 08:04 AM, said:

I really like the brawler loadouts with SRMs as I'm sure you're aware.

I have no recollection of that

I think this loadout is better, but it's the kind of mech that works well within a mech group I suppose, due to its mix of weapons.

- 3 tons of lrm ammo for 1 LRM15 might be a bit much (Never use the things but still)
- If you are confronted by mechs with ECM you cannot get a lock, unless they are within your ECM counter mode and then you have a minimum range of 180m. You do have a PPC to break the ECM for 4 seconds but I have no experience in getting a shot off in that very narrow window (sounds rather difficult to do!)
- With a mix of SRM and LRM I wonder how often you end up with a lot of unspent ammo of either?

Now, if you drop the SRMs and go to LRM10/5/5 and switch the PPC to the other side like so

AS7-D-DC

You have one assault side with focussed fire for the PPC/AC5 combo (this really helps to land hits I find) and one LRM spam side with a TAG to get quicker locks?

Not sure about the Artemis; it weights really heavy on the LRM5s and then you perhaps better end up with an LRM20 in burst fire....

Edited by The Great Unwashed, 25 July 2014 - 08:45 AM.

[Tiamat of the Sea]

I can't speak to the Atlas itself, but I can speak to the equipment choices.

Concerning Active Probe and ECM: ECM in counter mode is actually stronger than an Active Probe. Having an Active Probe lets you lock on to a target through one layer of ECM out to 180 meters (200 if you use a Sensor Range Module). Having ECM in counter mode flat out nullifies one layer of ECM out to 200 meters. I don't know if they stack to let you lock a target through two layers of ECM within range, but if you're only going to have one, the ECM is better- the only things that the Active Probe does that the ECM can't are 1) extend your maximum sensor range by 200 meters and 2) let you lock on to a shut down target within the Probe range.

About those LRMS: Using Artemis on a large number of small launchers is generally a terrible idea. LRM-5s barely benefit from Artemis to begin with, as they're such small missile clusters, but also the more missile racks you have, the more tonnage and space the Artemis system takes up. One LRM-10 with Artemis is effectively just as good an investment as two LRM-5s with Artemis, using the same tonnage and suffering a slightly larger missile spread and slightly slower refire rate in exchange for occupying one less CHS and generating a bit less heat- it'll be more likely to penetrate AMSes too. If you'd rather eat up AMS ammo, go with LRM-5s and ignore Artemis anyway because you don't want to spend extra tonnage on something that's partly just there to cut holes in the newspapers people hold over their heads. In this situation, I'd say to go with two LRM-15s with Artemis or three LRM-5s without Artemis, depending on the tonnage investment you want and whether you're more interested in bombarding large targets (LRM-15s) or consuming AMS ammo and not wasting missiles when shooting at small or cover-using targets (LRM-5s).

About the PPC: Atlas arms are really low. Like, below the waist low. And way off to the sides. Generally speaking, Atlas arm energy points are not a good place for a long-range weapon. It's harder to push them out from under cover, and you're more likely there than anywhere else to accidentally plug the shot into an ally's back. With your long-range predication, I'd strongly suggest using two medium lasers instead and turning that five tons saved towards something else.

About your cannon shoulder: I don't see any problems here, actually. I'd suggest using saved tonnage from the LRM racks, Active Probe, and PPC to improve these (maybe two LB10-X, maybe two AC/5U) or provide more ammo, but you're really hard on space in this build.

Were I to do a rebuild, it'd probably look like one of these:

LRM-5s

or

Artemis 15s

[Jody Von Jedi]

Thanks for the nice detailed posts. This evening I'll post up what my build ends up being.

Thanks for all the input!

Jody

[Jody Von Jedi]

OK, don't laugh too hard, but here is what I'm getting ready to try.

This here be Bubba

Jody

[Tiamat of the Sea]

The only thing I really would change about that build is the ammo placement.

Being it's a DDC, everyone and their kid brother is gonna gun for the left torso. Losing that loses your ECM, so the more ammo you store there, the more you're at risk of losing the ECM early to ammo explosion. This compounds a bit with the way shooting at an Atlas works- it's very, very rare that you will ever see an AS7 lose an arm directly. Instead, what happens is the torso goes and the arm falls off because of that.

Considering this, and the fact that Atlas legs are exceptionally safe places to store ammo, I would suggest the following:

Move the AC/5 ammo from the right leg into the right arm, and do the same with the AC/5 ammo from the left torso. Then shunt the LRM ammo in the left torso out to the right leg and left arm. Since Atlases rarely, if ever, get an arm or leg stripped and then shot, this moves your ammunition out of the priority locations that enemy pilots will target, thus reducing the chance of an ECM-shattering ammo explosion.

If you prefer, you could probably also find a way to slot CASE into that right torso- stepping the 320 up to a 325 would do nicely, letting you put that right torso DHS into the engine at the cost of a ton of LRM ammo and convert another ton of LRM ammo into a half ton plus CASE.

Ammo explosions transfer inwards, so having CASE in the left torso will still stop an ammo explosion in the left arm or left leg from destroying the CT of your 'mech- the explosion will hit the left torso and then stop after wrecking that.

Otherwise, this looks pretty good, presuming you keep in mind that those autocannon are part of your close-range firing suite as well (don't try to get by on just the two medium pulses, trust me).

Edited by Quickdraw Crobat, 25 July 2014 - 06:57 PM.

[CocoaJin]

Did I miss the hissy-fit?

[Sparks Murphey]

Just had the pleasure of spectating you in this very machine.

I'll note that I'm a light'n'medium pilot myself, with my forays into heavy 'mech territory being restricted to the XXXL Jenner known by some as the Quickdraw, so my comments can probably be taken with a grain of salt, but...

...from my experience of watching over your shoulder, and comparing that to other assault pilots I've spectated, it looks like your main problem is that, as a medium pilot, you're used to taking snap shots at targets of opportunity, rather than the carefully measured helpings of pain I've spectated other assaults delivering. I can't quite give you the right mindset to get into, since I'd probably be doing much the same thing, but I think that's a skill to start working on.

And, as promised, here's your grain of salt.

[SethAbercromby]

Considering BAP and ECM. Unless they added the problem of BAP suffering from the ECMs electronical interfierence, it would still be very useful. The increased sensor range is always a boon, especially with long-range builds and if you don't benefit from the 25% increased info gathering, someone else might (especially when combined with first to mark an enemy outside of that someone else's sensor reach). Counter ECM would of course be a bit overpowered, but for a lot of people that is usually the second or third reason to install a BAP.

The other thing is that you're carrying ammo for a total of 54 full salvos. I think it's save to claim that you will have a hard time eating through that much ammo, unless you intend to fire missiles at anything someone else is getting an indirect lock on. So I shifted some weight around, dropped a Ton of ammo and the heat sink for a BAP and haf a ton of extra AC5 ammo. You've still got enough heat dissipation to fire both ACs plus the LRM10 heat neutral, so you can savely hold down the trigger whenever you get something into your crosshiars without having too much to worry about ammo for the first 5 or so minutes of combat.

Here it is.

It is extermely unlikely to get an ammo explosion before your RT is lost, so I didn't worry too much about CASE. Otherwise, I didn't touch any more than nessecary, because I'm lazy.

[Jay Z]

The One True Atlas

[Cuddlytron]

Jay Z, on 25 July 2014 - 07:42 PM, said:

The One True Atlas

I am of a mind with Jay Z, except I forgo Artemis and drop the engine to STD325 to fit Large Lasers in the arms. Absolute mother f'ing beast of a machine. Unless the battle moves too fast for you, that is. Which happens a lot these days, actually...

AS7-D-DC

[Cuddlytron]

To the OP's point about builds that focus on fire support rather than brawling...

I've also tried similar builds built around AC5s and a rack or two of LRMs, but I never felt like a super face melter in those builds like the Atlas can be. I finally settled on the classic close range face melter, because the Atlas really shines whilst wrecking face inside the 200m bubble of its ECM radar disruption.

[Jody Von Jedi]

Jay Z, on 25 July 2014 - 07:42 PM, said:

The One True Atlas

Cuddlytron, on 25 July 2014 - 07:56 PM, said:

I am of a mind with Jay Z, except I forgo Artemis and drop the engine to STD325 to fit Large Lasers in the arms. Absolute mother f'ing beast of a machine. Unless the battle moves too fast for you, that is. Which happens a lot these days, actually...

AS7-D-DC

Oh, I do intend on this build eventually because I'm a brawler pilot for the most part. But not until all my effiiciencies are unlocked. Cant stand that slow twist rate in a brawling loadout.

Jody

[Jody Von Jedi]

Sparks Murphey, on 25 July 2014 - 07:06 PM, said:

Just had the pleasure of spectating you in this very machine.

I'll note that I'm a light'n'medium pilot myself, with my forays into heavy 'mech territory being restricted to the XXXL Jenner known by some as the Quickdraw, so my comments can probably be taken with a grain of salt, but...

...from my experience of watching over your shoulder, and comparing that to other assault pilots I've spectated, it looks like your main problem is that, as a medium pilot, you're used to taking snap shots at targets of opportunity, rather than the carefully measured helpings of pain I've spectated other assaults delivering. I can't quite give you the right mindset to get into, since I'd probably be doing much the same thing, but I think that's a skill to start working on.

Thanks for the encouragement. I'll have to be much more patient with these things and pay more attention to terrain and cover. Strange those Ballistic slots are so low on the chassis. I've been shooting terrain all night.

I did much better a couple matches later. So far this is my best match.

[Jody Von Jedi]

Quickdraw Crobat, on 25 July 2014 - 06:46 PM, said:

The only thing I really would change about that build is the ammo placement.

Being it's a DDC, everyone and their kid brother is gonna gun for the left torso. Losing that loses your ECM, so the more ammo you store there, the more you're at risk of losing the ECM early to ammo explosion. This compounds a bit with the way shooting at an Atlas works- it's very, very rare that you will ever see an AS7 lose an arm directly. Instead, what happens is the torso goes and the arm falls off because of that.

This has happened several times to me already. Lost my left torso and then I just feel apart. Good advice. Ammo moved from the left torso now.

Thanks!