29 replies to this topic

[Zerlice]

Hey everyone!

I was browsing the store for cheap 'Mechs. _{(I am a big newbie and after spending a lot on my first bot, a heavy, I am rather low on funds.)} And while looking for a possible light 'Mech I can across a few < 2mil Battlemechs. I was comparing them and the Urbanmech seemed the strangest...

The appearance was a bit less sleek and fast looking then the other ones, but the actual top speed interested me most. While the other lights go above 100 Km/h or very close to 100, the Urbanmech could only manage just over 30.

What exactly is the purpose of the Urbanmech? It lacks the speed that the other lights have on their side to keep out of harms way so I would expect to get killed pretty instantly in any match-up.

Edited by Zerlice, 25 July 2016 - 01:37 AM.

[Xoco]

You can change the engine out (which costs a fair bit, so don't get urbie until you have a bit more cash under your belt) for around 100 kph max speed-still slower than most light though.

The urbie is a bit of a joke mech, but I like it a lot. It has nearly infinite equip slot on each arm, allowing it to actualy use ac20 or gauss. It has high weapon hard point, so it can do some good hill sneaking shots. It also have JJ.
Basically if yo have tried Blackjack or those type of mech, urbie is a bit like their little cousin.

[Lhunara]

I own urbanmechs.

Two things can happen when you pilot one:

1) The enemy ignores you, thinking you are a joke. You punish them for their foolishness.

2) The enemy focuses on you, thinking you are an easy kill, you dance and weave, and hopefully your teammates punish them for their foolishness.

[Zerlice]

Ahhh, so if I get it right then the Urbanmech can be upgraded to go pretty quick too, and can fit bigger guns them most light 'Mechs? Wont the weight be a problem tough with big engines and guns?

Edited by Zerlice, 25 July 2016 - 05:28 AM.

[Lhunara]

Well, for me, I choose to be fast-ish (about 100kph) with a 180 XL engine... but carry lighter weapons (3 medium lasers, 1 AC5) (1 large pulse laser, 1 medium laser, machine guns).

Great for harassment and flanking. You can also use jump jets to attack from above, people generally don't expect that.



Some urbie pilots prefer to be slower but carry heavier firepower (AC 10s or 20s)...

Personal style and preference.


1 thing though, the urbie isn't meant to function like a normal light mech (not fast enough to get out of trouble if isolated).

It functions best when you support assault and heavy mechs.


Also, be mentally prepared for some negative remarks from your teammates at the match start... some people don't take kindly to urbies.

Edited by Lhunara, 25 July 2016 - 06:13 AM.

[Alex Morgaine]

It's a lore Mech, known as the literal garage home mech kit. Cheap, slow, but packing a weapons load comparable ( in 3025 table top era) to Mechs 10 tons heavier, it's the ultimate grunt Mech. Getting kills in it stock is a true achievement. Otherwise you could build it like a slower spider with no arms.

[Leone]

So, in lore, the Urbanmech, was designed, as the name might suggest, for urban combat. Close in fighting where speed wasn't as important. The urbie could jump jet over some buildings, shoot someone in the back with an Ac20, an then jump back to safety. Now in Mwo that doesn't work as well, but, I've managed to survive firing off two tonnes of ac20 rounds in CW matches because everyone shot the larger mechs.

~Leone.

[Chryckan]

As have mentioned there two things to remember about the Urbie.

1. It needs to be upgraded for it the be somewhat competitive.
2. It shouldn't be played as a light but as a medium mech.

Stay with the others and use your nimbleness and torso swivel to get flanking shots in.

To really get the best out of the Urbie you have to use the 360 torso swivel for optimum effect.
It makes URbie excel at poking for example because while other mechs have to slowly back their way into cover again, the Urbie can quickly accelerate forward into cover instead.

Another crazy fun thing is just to rush through a mob of foes in a straight line using the torso swivel to keep constant fire fire on a target. Until you run into an obstacle and get stuck allowing the mob to blow you to bits.

Still real Urbie pilots don't look were they are going. They can't because the enormous size of their balls blocks the view forward.

[jper4]

I prefer to try and stay as close to true urbie as I can so the biggest engine I have is a 125 in any of mine (ok I broke down and did the "meta" version with max engine and MPLs- unless it's been changed to ER LLs these days- but it doesn't feel like an urbie). so i'm in the slow urbie club

an upgrade to a 100 engine gets you to the 50s kph (125 engine gets you just under 70 which is enough to stick with the slower heavies) which is enough to stick with the assaults. I do have a couple ac5 versions, ac10 version, and ac20 version and an "anti-urbie" with lasers and MGs. the ac10 and 20 versions i have to be more careful in where i go because you can't really run away if things go bad (since they have the slower 100 rated engines in them). the good thing about the ac20 version is that you can stay with single heat sinks so that saves you the 1.5 million to upgrade to DHS.

the 360 torso twist is very handy when some light decides to circle strafe you since you keep turning along with him and he can never get a shot at your back armor. also because of it an urbie can run in full retreat in one direction while you can keep shooting at the enemy by twisting 180 degrees in the opposite direction that you're moving which also keeps your front armor facing the enemy.

do I have matches where I die quickly? yup. do I have matches where i'm in the top third of the team in damage? yup. are they going to dominate a match- most likely not. will it feel extra good when you kill somethin in one compared to your other mechs? yup. is it the mech you have the least pressure piloting because everyone expects nothing from you? yup. will the tears of that king crab you snuck up behind and finished off sustain you? definite yup. also having the urbie warhorn and having a sacred urbie kill dance whenever you do kill something is a must

most kills I've gotten in one was 4 and my k/d is 279/278 in 434 matches (the U63 is my red headed stepchild urbie, 0.76 kdr- the other two variants are over 1.0) so you can hold your own in them. don't expect to solo the other team in one though- that's a design flaw in order to give the other mechs a chance in a match <nods>

[Spheroid]

Don't go down this route. Cheaping out on an Urbie won't save you any money. All need immediate XL upgrades to even function.

If you are broke I would recommend the Panther, Wolfhound, Blackjack, Crab, Centurion or Hunchbacks.

I have a variety of budget builds, you need only ask.

Edited by Spheroid, 26 July 2016 - 07:24 AM.

[Lolo van Trollinger]

there is two ways to drive Urbies. Expensive or Cheap. Leveling it the cheap way requires balls of steel and iron motivation, your payout will suck. I suggest getting a farming mech with the urbie. Any 6 Med Laser Blackjack or any Hunchback will fit the tactics.

expensive method: 170xl or 180xl and either 3 large lasers, 2 er-large lasers or 2 large pulse lasers/3mg+2large lasers depending on variant.

or you leave the AC20 one with endo and 3 small lasers, change the LB-X to abuse the quirks to a gauss rifle and somewhere around 3 tons of ammo (you dont need armour on that extra arm) and move a 120xl, uac5 and 4 small pulse into the remaining one.

paint them dark or standard color, stick close to buildings, never expose, use assaults and builings as cover and be a general pain in their arse. use R key a lot, exploit weanesses. you need to make every shot count, especially in the default configs. 20 shot AC20 only get you so far.
get main gun cool down, advanced seismic sensor and target info gathering if you can be bothered to master them and get the money to waste on these configs. you`ll be the laugh of the party, until they see the urbie did 600+ (happened in my 3 large laser 180xl one). you`ll be doing real good if your stock urbie does 200+, at 350 in a stock urbie you`re a hero no one will see… some matches you will have 0-60. thats why i run urbies on a second PC, so i can join another match waiting for the next game if i mess up.

important note though - get at least one other mech or your bored as hell soon.
(two fast LL Urbies, two Atlas with 340/350 engines and AC20/SRM6ArtIV+Med Laser Mix, e.g. DDC/RS are a nice drop deck for CW, or use the stock the King Crab champion for farming cash. just dont put LRMs into assaults. Thats not even worth doing with my Name, if you get the point. It`s a utter waste of tonnage, since any heavy can do the LRM Job better for less weight.)

you can off course paint them Urbies pink with a little more pinkish hat and stick them urbies behind the enemy lines, too - enemy attention guaranteed if you use "i`m coming from behind" and other not against the EULA wordings in that context… It`s called a red herring urbie.

if you not intend on staying close to urbie-stock, an ER-PPC and two med lasers do the same damage as a AC20 close range, have more then AC10 Range (just dont use the med lasers at that range) if your looking for cheap upgrades.

Edited by Lolo van Trollinger, 01 September 2016 - 03:41 PM.

[Aleksandr Sergeyevich Kerensky]

Leone, on 25 July 2016 - 11:33 PM, said:

So, in lore, the Urbanmech, was designed, as the name might suggest, for urban combat. Close in fighting where speed wasn't as important. The urbie could jump jet over some buildings, shoot someone in the back with an Ac20, an then jump back to safety. Now in Mwo that doesn't work as well, but, I've managed to survive firing off two tonnes of ac20 rounds in CW matches because everyone shot the larger mechs.

~Leone.

To add to this, because they are extremelly cheap to make, a house could easilly field a lance of them or more for garrison in cities they didnt care to much about. Any battlemech is usually enough to keep un-armed civilians from revolting against their new conqurers, so cheaper the better.

While locusts are cheaper to make, and also have a lot of anti-personel weaponry, they dont fair to well against invading enemy mechs, so the heavier loadout of the urbie makes it a more prime choice, especially since they can poptart ac10 rounds (hopefully against larger mechs that cannot navigate too well through a dense city).

Also, if the mech would be destroyed in combat, there is little the house to loose to the invading enemy. Which is less for the enemy to salavage and to use against them. Remember, they garrison cities well, but due to their low movement speed, it makes it a terrible form of localmotion when trying to blitzkrieg to the next military target.

[WrathOfDeadguy]

Can't leave a thread like this on a post like that, now can we?

The Urbie has its own special brand of crazy. I recommend it heartily; I own six of them (two of each variant). They are surprisingly flexible, and their low top speed doesn't hurt nearly as much as you might think it would. You have all high mounts, great hitboxes, and a very small cross-section- a combination found in precisely zero other 'Mechs (normally you get one or two and get screwed on the third). Urbie is one of the best corner and ridge peekers in its class, thanks to that combination and the Urbie's 360-degree twist, which lets it face its chassis backwards for quicker escapes into cover.

All things considered, an Urbie doesn't require any more upgrading than any other 'Mech to be effective. As with most other 'Mechs, you're going to rip the stock engine out and replace it. You're a 30-tonner, but you're buying smaller engines than you'd stick in a Locust, so that's a point in your favor.

My two most effective configs are for the R63:

UAC5 + 3xML

LPL + 2xMPL + 3xMG

If you want to put some hair on your chest, though, run a big gun... like so:

UM-R60 Super Stock

UM-R60L Boomcan

High mounts also make PPCs viable...

ERPPC + 2xML (sub a PPC if you prefer)

Alternately, there are some viable STD configs... all laserboats, though, so depending on your feelings towards Urbies without ballistics you may want to take a pass:

LPL + 3xML

2xLL (or 2xERLL if you prefer)

LPL + 2xMPL

The Urbie does have good enough hitboxes to take advantage of the dead side, but YMMV on whether or not that's a big enough bonus to sacrifice the tonnage for. The point is that it can be done, for all three variants, and save you a ton of money.

As for tactics... the Urbie was designed to fight from cover, in urban environments. It's right there in the name. The hardpoint layout makes it a superb corner and ridge peeker, so use it for that. Hide behind stuff. Pop out, take a shot, get back in cover and move to a new location. Avoid brawling in the open with it, and under no circumstances go squirreling through the enemy team like a Cheetah. You have 360-degree torso twist... use it! If you're taking heavy fire, twist and don't stop twisting; it'll spread all the way around your torso, giving you more survivability than anybody expects out of a light (especially a slow one).

Are there better 'Mechs? Yeah, lots of them. That's not really the point. The Urbie exists to be the ultimate underdog. People either love the thing, or they hate it. You could wind up being treated as the team mascot, with other players throwing their lives away to "save Urbie!" or you might get TK'd at the start of the round. Both have happened to me. Enemies might ignore you completely, or they might go out of their way to kill you- either way, it's to your advantage; if they ignore you then you kill them, and if they hunt you then you distract them from the rest of your team.

Plus, it has probably the best cockpit of any 'Mech- refreshments on tap! Who doesn't love caffeine and laughing gas?

[Cold Cash]

I use the r63 for faction warfare, its super light so u can run 3 bruisers along side it and I outfit it with 2 erLL and as fast a xl as u can. Think of it as a cheap raven with no ecm lol. In faction warfare as long as you stay grouped up, they will never shoot you .

[juxstapo]

Lhunara, on 25 July 2016 - 05:36 AM, said:

Also, be mentally prepared for some negative remarks from your teammates at the match start... some people don't take kindly to urbies.

And we don't take kindly to folks that don't take kindly...


...sorry, yeah, I came in here just to say that. I... uh... leaving

[Fox With A Shotgun]

Urbie plays like this:

You're a cookie. And the enemy is either a cookie monster, or someone that doesn't like eating cookies.

Scenario 1: Enemy is a cookie monster:

Bait enemy, lead them around a corner to your waiting teammates. Banish cookie monster.

Scenario 2: Enemy doesn't like cookies:

Hang around your big sugar daddy assault, and shoot at the enemy while he doesn't care about you. You'll be surprised at the damage you can do when you're not being shot at.

[762 NATO]

Some time after tier 3 the game stops being fun for many folks. I am one. Somewhere in tier 2 I gave up on caring. The game is way more fun now. I have an urbie (maybe two now with free mechbay) and I run dual guass on whatever I can seeking headshots. The urbie is the most fun I have had in a light since the rescale. And an Adder. Sure my KDR tanked. Not caring!

Cheers!

[Slowth]

It was a joke mech for an April fools day. And people wanted it because it was a classic. It serves no purpose other than to troll people with.

[762 NATO]

Only IS light to pack 2 LPL with a max engine and near max armor? Trolling away, then!

[Angel of Annihilation]

Slowth, on 21 October 2016 - 08:29 PM, said:

It was a joke mech for an April fools day. And people wanted it because it was a classic. It serves no purpose other than to troll people with.

I have honestly been considering picking up a Urbie myself because every time I see one in battle, they actually seem to do fairly well and lets face it, it is a very unique mech. It is a bit slow for a light mech but its firepower isn't that bad and it is a tiny target.