SuomiWarder

I am generally a Clan Hater in BattleTech (except for Nova Cats. I kinda dig those tripping dudes) but considering the fact that many people want a MadCat / Timberwolf and that in general players want the best tech in the game and not the worst - perhaps they should have started back on the Clan worlds with the warden and crusader factions battling over politics and just had everyone be a Clanner.

Would have sidestepped the whole coming Clan tech and IS tech issue we have looming.

I volunteer to spend time helping new players understand and get better enjoyment from the game. Anyone looking for a Mentor Pilot to do some drops with can use the messeging system of these forums to drop me a line and we'll work out the timing.

I use Teamspeak 3 for comes and a channel on the No Gut No Galaxy server.

Although weight balancing has been promised to be phased into ELO in the next few weeks (if my memory serves), the general idea of a maximum team value is valid.

The matchmatker would gather players with prioeity to lights and mediums, then form groups. Perhaps in an 8v8 it would go to 6 v 8 if there are not enough lights (the 6 side having fewer mechs but the same total drop weight). In a 12 v 12 maybe 9 v 12 maximum adjustment.

People will start taking mediums and lights to get into games easier and to avoid being stuck on a team of heavies/assaults that is a few mechs down.

I see the "problem" as more one of the game modes and the terrain of the maps.

If the maps had tunnels that only mediums and light fit through, gaps only heavies and assaults could step over (and JJs of course), swampy bogs heavies could push through at full speed but light got slowed moving through, partial cover that some mechs could not see over and then actual base capture/defend games (onbe side defends the other attacks) or the current conquest mode was more like three bases along the middle that need to be continously captured for points (rather than push the counter to max and then leave) we would see more of a need for mix of mechs.

Actual escort missions would see heavies and assaults lumbering with the moving objective while lights and mediums fanned out to screen against ambush (while the enemy tried to set up LRM and PPC boats to fire on the objective at an ambush point and maybe used mediums and fast heavies to probe and try to draw of the defenders.

Right now we have essentially two very basic and brain dead game modes. Thus you get brain dead game playing where only one thing really matters. How many points of damage you can deliver. And at range, because being farther away than the enemy can reach is really the only viable defence.

I find the ability to reliably hit moving targets with ballistic weapons to be quite an improvement personally. And I don'y feel that minor damage value tweaks would really make much difference or be worth the hue and cry that would go up each time something was changed.