27 replies to this topic

[Xoco]

I've been wondering, is it possible it to stack your weapons on 1 arm/torso, then mass armor on one arm and use it as a shield for brawling? Are there any mech design in lore than features a shield?

[Ingga Raokai]

Centurions?

Edited by Ingga Raokai, 01 January 2015 - 07:54 AM.

[GonaDie]

Of course you can do that! Centurion was made for that. All variants have a shiald arm with no hardpoints and +10 armour.Banshee has big arms which are perfect for tanking.Griffin has it's weapons concentrated on one side.It also has big, tanky arms.There are many IS mechs which can do that. On the other hand, Clan mechs have their weapons spread all around the mech so they aren't that good at tanking and shielding.

[TripleEhBeef]

It depends on the hardpoint layout of your mech, but plenty of IS mechs have weaponless arms that can be used a shields. Great examples are the Centurion, Griffin, most Awesome variants, Raven 2X and the Trebuchet 7K.

[Xoco]

Oh, cool....
But dang, Centurions look kinda....horrible. I mean, it looks awesome in the concept art, but the in game model is...yipes...

But yeah, thank you. I guess I'll grab one soon.

Edited by Xoco, 01 January 2015 - 08:06 AM.

[GonaDie]

You could get a Griffin.They look cool, can bring a lot of SRMs and are very mobile.Good brawlers.

[L a S e R]

Wolverine has em too

[GonaDie]

Nah, Griffins are cooler

[Tylerchu]

Banshee

[Mobile Ordnance Platform]

since the AC20 evaporates way too easily ive been doing this with AS7-S, i offer them the entire right arm and right torso
on the protected left side there is 4xSRM6a and 2 large pulse lasers (or whatever)

people actively seek to focus AS7 right torso to easily remove the big gun by habit but using this method it does nothing to stop the AS7-S or reduce its damage output, have the entire right side and enjoy it !

when the right side is exhausted offer the left arm too while still pumping out SRM6 alphas all the while

[John1352]

GamerGirlGundam, on 01 January 2015 - 08:05 PM, said:

since the AC20 evaporates way too easily ive been doing this with AS7-S, i offer them the entire right arm and right torso
on the protected left side there is 4xSRM6a and 2 large pulse lasers (or whatever)

people actively seek to focus AS7 right torso to easily remove the big gun by habit but using this method it does nothing to stop the AS7-S or reduce its damage output, have the entire right side and enjoy it !

when the right side is exhausted offer the left arm too while still pumping out SRM6 alphas all the while

I sometimes use my DDC in a similar way, if the enemies shoot your arms, then side torso, the amount of damage absorbed is enormous. Most mechs with big, low slung arms can do this as well.

Don't discount clan mechs for torso twisting either. Especially ones that still have the firepower of an IS mech with one side left.

[zudukai]

yes, this is a good and proven strat.

[Gigastrike]

Shadowhawks do this as well. 2K even has 2 free arms.

[Thunder Child]

The Thunderbolt is another one. Half the variants have a shield left arm, and the other half, you just shield with the right, keeping your ballistics (if you use them) safe.

[Vermin]

I actually want a good video on exactly HOW to use a shield arm, and still shoot(I run an awesome, and have the free centurion)

and yeah, ive seen a pilot (jenniffer something) doing it, i just dont know how.

(i do know how to armour roll tho)



nvm

what i really mean is ive seen people using their shield arm on centurions while still using their AC weapons on the other arm. but from what i read the free centurion model doesnt have actuators to compensate...

Edited by Vermin, 03 January 2015 - 06:04 PM.

[mogs01gt]

Xoco, on 01 January 2015 - 07:45 AM, said:

I've been wondering, is it possible it to stack your weapons on 1 arm/torso, then mass armor on one arm and use it as a shield for brawling? Are there any mech design in lore than features a shield?

Yes you can but its dependent on the mech. Mechs with small arms and large ST's, its pointless.

[Tim East]

Vermin, on 03 January 2015 - 06:08 PM, said:

I actually want a good video on exactly HOW to use a shield arm, and still shoot(I run an awesome, and have the free centurion)

Well, as you said, the free Cent isn't great for this, but to move your arms while leaving your torso twisted, use LCTRL iirc.

[Tylerchu]

I would also like some tips as to HOW to shield with my arms. It seems that even when shielding against one enemy, they can usually hit the associated ST. I'm not sure how to angle myself to protect myself; I usually like to keep the enemy on the edge of my screen but it seems like that's still not enough to have my arm cover my ST. It would then be reasonable to conclude that I have to turn enough to get the enemy OFF my screen, but I'm not sure how far because they'll hit my rear torsos.

[Zelumbras]

Yes, in most mechs you have to turn close to around 90° angle to effectively shield which means that you will loose sight of them. Unlocking the basic torso twist speed efficiency (and especially the 2x basics you get when completing elite) greatly help with shielding.
With some practice, however, you will learn to anticipate their movement so turning away to shield some damage is not much of a problem if your torso twist is fast enough. What you will most often do is runing up towards an enemy (not straight but slightly to one side), shoot, turn to the side to let your shield arm soak up damage, turn to face them again when your weapons are ready again and so on.
Not all weapons are suited for that since you want something that can deliver its damage in a short time window so you don't expose yourself for too long when shooting. SRM, large caliber AC and Pulse Lasers are especially suited for that kind of brawling.

If you want to use your shield arm while firing at the same time, there are only a few mechs that can do this effectively like some of the Centurions. You won't be able to completely cover your torso but it will still make your profile much slimmer while the shield arm covers at least part of your side and center torso.

[Vivicide]

GonaDie, on 01 January 2015 - 07:55 AM, said:

Of course you can do that! Centurion was made for that. All variants have a shiald arm with no hardpoints and +10 armour.Banshee has big arms which are perfect for tanking.Griffin has it's weapons concentrated on one side.It also has big, tanky arms.There are many IS mechs which can do that. On the other hand, Clan mechs have their weapons spread all around the mech so they aren't that good at tanking and shielding.

WOAH WOAH WOAH. My Direwolf is stacked on his left arm and torso and shields with his entire right side.

even though he can't turn for anything

Edited by Vivicide, 22 January 2015 - 07:06 PM.