44 replies to this topic

[Bummer Ben]

I've been thinking about what kind of variants I could build in anticipation and it occurred to me that i'm not sure what the point of having missile racks (outside of LRMs) is. I mean, with energy weapons, the pro is that they have endless ammo, the con is heat. For projectile weapons, the opposite is true. But missiles generate heat AND have limited ammo. So, as the topic asks: what's the point?

[Steel Prophet]

When the first 40 missle come raining at you and you cannot even see the one who shot them at you... you'll know :-)

[Garth Erlam]

Such as SRMs? The insane damage-to-tonnage ratio comes to mind. An SRM-4 does the same damage as a Large Laser. An SRM-6 does more damage than a PPC.

[Orzorn]

An additional strength of SRMs that I have found in MWLL is, because they have a small area of effect, you can sometimes use them to hit enemies even behind cover by hitting the ground nearby.

[MaddMaxx]

SRM-6's are nasty. 15 flights (or 90 missiles/ton) with each doing 2 damage. Once inside of 250m they can tear stuff up something fierce.

Edited by MaddMaxx, 08 May 2012 - 11:10 AM.

[mekredd]

In BTech, SRMs and other cluster weapons (like LBX autocannons) are crit-seakers. Their role is to hit multiple sections of the target; hopefully one with no armor, so you can get a critical hit.

In MechWarrior games? What Garth said: good damage/weight ratio.

[Kudzu]

Best advantage, especially for SRM's, on the TT was using them as critical hit seekers. You use your PPC's, big AC's, and Large Lasers to open holes in armor, then use the SRM's to find those holes and hopefully cause crits (headshots and through armor critical hits are also nice).

[Prosperity Park]

Garth Erlam, on 08 May 2012 - 10:54 AM, said:

Such as SRMs? The insane damage-to-tonnage ratio comes to mind. An SRM-4 does the same damage as a Large Laser. An SRM-6 does more damage than a PPC.

Yup, Damage-output-per-second-per-Ton-per-heat ratio is favorable.

Energy weapons are nice for long engagements, they are accurate, but build-up heat and require weight of heatsinks to use the weapons at max damage output capacity.
Ballistics buildup little heat so you can use them continuously at max damage capacity, they are very accurate, but weigh very much and have limited ammo.
Unguided and poorly-guided missiles weigh little and crank-out lots of damage quickly with little-to-moderate heat, but they have limited ammo and are less likely to hit than well-placed ballistic and energy shots.

Edited by Prosperity Park, 08 May 2012 - 11:08 AM.

[Stormeris]

Whats the point of missiles? KILL PEOPLE, THEY KILL PEOPLE, PRETTY D*MN FAST, am i clear enough? how they kill it? *swoosh**BOOOOOM* <---text-sound effects xD

[Orzorn]

Kudzu, on 08 May 2012 - 11:06 AM, said:

Best advantage, especially for SRM's, on the TT was using them as critical hit seekers. You use your PPC's, big AC's, and Large Lasers to open holes in armor, then use the SRM's to find those holes and hopefully cause crits (headshots and through armor critical hits are also nice).

mekredd, on 08 May 2012 - 11:04 AM, said:

In BTech, SRMs and other cluster weapons (like LBX autocannons) are crit-seakers. Their role is to hit multiple sections of the target; hopefully one with no armor, so you can get a critical hit.

In MechWarrior games? What Garth said: good damage/weight ratio.

I don't think that their nature as crit seekers is necessarily null just because its a real time game now. Just watch the videos, its pretty hard to actually hit what you're aiming at due to the movement and the fact that you have two separate reticules that are affected by convergence. SRMs will still absolutely have a use as crit seekers.

[mekredd]

In this game that's especially true because you can crit ammo bins and other internals, like in the TT. But in past MW games that wasn't always the case.

[UncleKulikov]

If they have tracking, you can fire them with less aiming focus so you can combine them with other more precise weapons.

Otherwise SRMs can act like a shotgun by pumping 12 damage points into a target at close range accross the front, an additional bonus if you've damaged the external armor.

[Orzorn]

mekredd, on 08 May 2012 - 11:22 AM, said:

In this game that's especially true because you can crit ammo bins and other internals, like in the TT. But in past MW games that wasn't always the case.

Part of the reason why Mechwarrior 4 was unbalanced...

[Tengo Kawana]

Battlemechs or, at least, a Battlemech lance is kind of like a Swiss Army knife. It's why they are the kings of the Battlefield. Direct energy weapons are great and all, but nothing brings down a limping foe like a rain of missles. SRMs are high damage and short range, meaning they are great for weakening multiple areas of armor to either seek crits or soften up and add some meaning to other weapons fire, regardless of what location they hit.

LRMs, on the other hand, I think are kind of a no brainer. With one of the longest ranges for conventional, pre-recovered/Clan tech, they are the closest thing a typical 'mech carries to artillery. It gives the ability for a 'mech to lend its firepower to a fight before it takes any damage at all via indirect fire and just plain range. Also, two LRM 20s or 15s means you will consistently shower 'mechs of any weight class with fire that will soften even the gargantuan assault chassis enough that the smaller builds calling in the shots can make a difference.

MRMs, when they come about are, in a way, less efficient. However, they are, in universe, cheap to produce and still put out a ridiculous volume of fire (MRM-40s?!), making them incredibly useful in short engagements.

[Aegis Kleais]

Bummer Ben, on 08 May 2012 - 10:51 AM, said:

I've been thinking about what kind of variants I could build in anticipation and it occurred to me that i'm not sure what the point of having missile racks (outside of LRMs) is. I mean, with energy weapons, the pro is that they have endless ammo, the con is heat. For projectile weapons, the opposite is true. But missiles generate heat AND have limited ammo. So, as the topic asks: what's the point?

Missiles are indirect fire weapons. They can use team-tracking abilities to lock on enemies that you don't have line of sight with.

[Whiskey 423]

I've seen an SRM smoke a mech in a single shot with a through-armor critical

Do not underestimate them

[CapperDeluxe]

the missile systems don't generate nearly as much heat as energy weapons, the SRM6 is only 4 heat and has the potential to do more damage than the PPC which is 10 heat. Perhaps its not as cool running as ballistics, but its not that far off relatively speaking.

[mekredd]

Whiskey 423, on 08 May 2012 - 11:32 AM, said:

I've seen an SRM smoke a mech in a single shot with a through-armor critical

Do not underestimate them

Well, yeah. Anything can TAC. I've seen an infantry platoons rifles TAC a mech's engine 3 times in one round for an instant kill. TACs aren't worth mentioning except in hate-fueled tirades, cursing FASAs name.

[CaveMan]

Do not underestimate Inferno SRMs either: an SRM-6 with Inferno rounds is pumping more heat into the target than firing a PPC, plus they can set the target on fire, set woods on fire, burn buildings down, and they straight up obliterate vehicles and infantry (maybe not such a big deal in MWO), so I'm really hoping we get the option for Infernos in MWO.

Cluster weapons are nasty.
The Gargoyle prime is one of the most under-rated 'Mechs in BT. On paper, with 2 LB-5X and 2 SRM-6 backed up by a piddly small laser, it looks pathetic.
Then one starts pumping LB-X submunitions into you and backing them up with SRMs and Inferno SRMs and suddenly your brand new 100-ton death machine is lying in the dirt with a smashed gyro and your whole left side is gone because ammo cooked off from overheating, and a couple missiles struck your cockpit and KO'd the mechwarrior.

[Saren21]

As posted by tengo and meny other people missles are just another useful tool in a mechwarrior or lance comanders tool box. so OP after reading all the posts ( i hope you did lots of good info) the real thing to ask is why not have missles ?