1 reply to this topic

[Jim thorne]

Ok so the guides page I don't see a lot of help on how to make a successful jack of all trades build. there is also no guides on how to run one. I am looking for help making one so I need some input from the community. once I get enough info from everyone I will make a guide from it.

rules first

• this not about what role is better or worse
  
• keep builds to a minimum and focus on why you are running theses weapon

[Tim East]

I don't typically make a jack of all trades build, at least not in the sense that no mech can truly do everything. You're not going to find a build that can go toe-to-toe with the enemy, roll more than 100KPH, engage foes at all ranges, and support your allies with ECM/AMS.

What you might consider, however, is making a build that does at least two of these things. For instance, it is reasonably plausible to make an Atlas DDC build that can engage at all ranges, eat damage without breaking instantly, and support nearby allies. For such a jack of trades build, you'd probably want to use weapons that are individually good at any range like ER LLasers or AC 2, as opposed to utilizing weapons of several different limited ranges, like PPCs or SRMs.

The other thing worthy of consideration is that your mech will usually lose if it encounters a mech specialized for what it is doing at any given moment. That is to say for example, if you are running said Atlas with lasers and AC, and you run into a sniper whom you engage at long range, he'll probably out-DPS you and negate your armor advantage. Likewise, if you are acting in the front line and round a corner, an SRM brawler or SPL skirmisher can really ruin your day.

In my opinion, the jack of trades mech has a place in pug combat since you are guaranteed to have some of any needed role, but in any sort of play where players may coordinate their mech designs to complement one another it will probably fall by the wayside due to the advantages that synergistic specialization can bring to bear.