9 replies to this topic

[Chryckan]

First of I'm not really interested what mech to pick as that changes to frequently depending on the role of the deck, the type of the game and pilot skill and playstyle, etc.

I'm more interested in general truths.
Such as how to balance the weight limit so that you get a deck with four viable mechs?
Or if you should focus on a single weight class or get a mix or all?
Or should you build a deck geared towards one role or a deck that can fulfil different roles by switching mechs.

In other words what to think of beyond just the make and model of the mechs when building a deck for faction play.

[Tier5 Kerensky]

Well I don't know, but I think a deck of mediums and low weight heavies is less good, than group of two or three good heavies or assults and useless low weight light or two.

Specially when talking about randomly joined faction play game, not organized units fightng. On the first and second wave you would really need as much weight as possible, because many other players will grap some medicore medium or heavy, and the other side just pushes in with good assults. Most fights are desided the moment you see the enemy team.

[TooDumbToQuit]

I see two main ideas it seems. One is the one I started with. An Assault for the first drop, then a Heavy, a Medium, and a Light.

It is suggested by many including a lot of Units that your last Mech is fast enough to either run the enemy down or to make a last dash at Omega.

OR...3 heavys that you like plus one. For instance, I now bring 3 Hellbringers and a Stormcrow for Clan and 3 T-Bolts and a PHK for IS.

[Digital_Angel]

First thing to keep in mind is what mechs are you best in. Preferably use mechs that you have Mastered. You can use trials, but not having any skills on them hurts when playing against a field of full mastered, customized mechs.

If you are part of a unit dropping FW together, then maybe worry about roles to support the rest of the group. Solo dropping FW, forget about roles and just take what you can do best in overall. Without having any idea what other mechs (other than assuming a certain amount of whatever the current meta is) are on the battlefield, it is hard to plan what to take to support them.

You will also learn that your deck will tend to change up depending on whether you are Defending, Attacking, Recapturing, or Holding the base, as well as on the map. You will get to see all of that information while there is still a little time to change up your deck.

On the clan side, I usually drop 3 heavies and a medium. I usually go for some variety in the heavies, but not always depending on map and game mode. For me this is mostly just due to the fact that almost every clan mech that I do well in is a Heavy, so I focus on those as much as possible.

On IS contracts, sometimes the 3 heavies and a medium strategy works well for me, other times it's one of my KGCs and 3 mediums.

Generally avoid much investment in LRMs, although they can be useful in certain circumstances, mainly when your side is defending the base on the first drop where you have plenty of time to get a good firing solution on the gates to pound the enemy as they come through.

ECM or AMS is always useful, both to you and shielding your allies, but don't take a mech you don't do well in just to bring them.

[S 0 L E N Y A]

Hate to add other X factors, but you need to consider the game mode (ie- attacking attrition or gen rush), the map and what your team is bringing

[Chryckan]

This is really interesting and helpful.

So much of the focus when faction play is discussed is on which mech to take.
Would never have thought of having a quick mech as the last drop for example.

[Satan n stuff]

Chryckan, on 24 July 2016 - 04:53 AM, said:

First of I'm not really interested what mech to pick as that changes to frequently depending on the role of the deck, the type of the game and pilot skill and playstyle, etc.

I'm more interested in general truths.
Such as how to balance the weight limit so that you get a deck with four viable mechs?
Or if you should focus on a single weight class or get a mix or all?
Or should you build a deck geared towards one role or a deck that can fulfil different roles by switching mechs.

In other words what to think of beyond just the make and model of the mechs when building a deck for faction play.

You can do whatever combo you want, as long as you make sure each mech in the deck is actually good and you know how to use them. You don't want to bring a light mech just because you need the tonnage to play assaults for example.
The safe choice is 2 mediums and 2 heavies or 3 heavies and a medium or light.

To get the most bang for your tonnage make a list of all the viable mechs you own or might want to buy and group them by role and tonnage. Rank mechs for each role based on how well you think it performs and then just try to make a drop deck with the most high ranked mechs for the roles you want them to perform.

Some mechs are going to be vastly more weight efficient than others, for example you can go as low as 40 tons and still have an extremely dangerous sniper, but sniper mechs in general don't get much better once you go above 70 tons. Lower than 40 means you're more of a distraction than a real threat, higher than 70 means you'll spend more tonnage for smaller advantages. Specific builds can of course be an exception here, but the heaviest mechs tend to make big sacrifices that often mean they aren't worth their tonnage in FP.

[Chryckan]

Satan n stuff, on 25 July 2016 - 12:58 AM, said:

You can do whatever combo you want, as long as you make sure each mech in the deck is actually good and you know how to use them. You don't want to bring a light mech just because you need the tonnage to play assaults for example.
The safe choice is 2 mediums and 2 heavies or 3 heavies and a medium or light.

To get the most bang for your tonnage make a list of all the viable mechs you own or might want to buy and group them by role and tonnage. Rank mechs for each role based on how well you think it performs and then just try to make a drop deck with the most high ranked mechs for the roles you want them to perform.

Some mechs are going to be vastly more weight efficient than others, for example you can go as low as 40 tons and still have an extremely dangerous sniper, but sniper mechs in general don't get much better once you go above 70 tons. Lower than 40 means you're more of a distraction than a real threat, higher than 70 means you'll spend more tonnage for smaller advantages. Specific builds can of course be an exception here, but the heaviest mechs tend to make big sacrifices that often mean they aren't worth their tonnage in FP.

What about 3 mediums and an assault?
Kind of wish there was a nifty on-line tool to theorycrafting decks because using a calculator feels a bit clumsy. Or maybe it's just me that suck at math.

What should you think about when it comes to weapon ranges?
Been playing a couple faction games to see how it is and the larger maps made me realize that all my mechs have really short ranges. I thought I only had a couple of brawlers but apparently that's the optimal range for most the mechs I can bring to a deck.

[Satan n stuff]

Chryckan, on 25 July 2016 - 11:38 AM, said:

What about 3 mediums and an assault?
Kind of wish there was a nifty on-line tool to theorycrafting decks because using a calculator feels a bit clumsy. Or maybe it's just me that suck at math.

What should you think about when it comes to weapon ranges?
Been playing a couple faction games to see how it is and the larger maps made me realize that all my mechs have really short ranges. I thought I only had a couple of brawlers but apparently that's the optimal range for most the mechs I can bring to a deck.

Ideal range depends on the map and the team, short range can work on just about any map if your team is built for it, but if you're pugging you're going to want to have some range just because you can't rely on your team to actually move towards the enemy.
As for your theoretical 3 medium 1 assault deck, it's not generally optimal but if those are the mechs you can work with or those mechs happen to be especially good it does work. Each mech in your deck should be powerful enough to stand on it's own.

[S 0 L E N Y A]

Assault mechs IMHO are a bit of a gamble for faction play. If you know for a fact your team will coordinate with you and is generally competent, then a fatty or two in your drop deck can work with devastating results.

The big problem is usually once you commit there is no changing your mind. And if you lose an assault without doing much damage it is very unlikely that the rest of your deck will be able to make up for the lost tonnage.

That said, I prefer to take 3 heavies and a light/medium.