11 replies to this topic

[Salen Stormwing]

Hi, I'm Salen. I'm new to the game. Played quite a few matches last night, and even though I've managed to only blow up 1 mech to date, I feel I'm starting to finally get a hand on what I'm doing.

I know after 25 matches, the ECredits goes way down, but I should have about 8 million by the time that happens. What I'm trying to determine is what is one of the friendliest mechs for the new player to start in? I'm leaning towards Meds and Heavies, but with all the variants, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. I don't want to make a bad discission after all.

According to my stats, I seem to do well with the Stalker (the mech w/ my single kill), but I do like the Dragon too.

Should I just wait a few weeks, and wait for the next batch of trial mechs?

Just, feeling overwhelmed right now, so any suggestions are welcome. Thanks.

[Syllogy]

I find that the Catapult-K2 is a versatile mech that will allow you to run many variations and weapons. It's one of my Go-To mechs for many situations.

Edited by Syllogy, 12 March 2013 - 08:33 AM.

[El Death Smurf]

its really all about what types of wepons you want to use. some mechs do better with specific wepon types than others. Dragon's for example can not use very many missles since their missle ports are in their center torso, and there are only two available slots after you put in the engine. as far as missle and laser combos. the stalker is the best, but it is one hot turtle. relatively speaking energy wepons and missles run hot. im sure you noticed as much.
lots of people use Catapults (i suggest the C-1, it's basically a smaller stalker), and heavies and mediums give you a good mixture of speed and firepower. being in a slow mech makes the learning curve pretty steep. when you make a mistake, you have to live with it, as escape isnt an option.
mechs like the Trebuchet and catapult allow you to buy the different varrients and use different weapon load outs effectively, where as the Stalker's, Atlas, Dragon, Hunchback, Jenners, and Centurions tend to have only slight differences, and 1 or 2 optimal build possibilies.

[John MatriX82]

Usually it's widely proposed to go with the HBK 4SP. Few quirks and it becomes a dreadful machine.

This is how you buy it: HBK-4SP

If you want to go cheap, just buy the Double Heatsink Upgrade. Maximize CT armor, do that almost for the legs, move SRM ammo from the CT to the legs and then replace the Smlas in the head with a MLAS: HBK-4SP

I'd recommend to invest in a bigger engine and upgrade to ENDO STEEL too: HBK-4SP This will make you quicker, therefore you'll strike enemy mechs faster and fall back in cover with speed.

Your cadet bonus will be enough to do everything I'm listing, something you can't achieve if you go with other mechs, since their initial cost will be higher, you may need several upgrades or need to deal with a barely efficient mech until you grind up further money (and this will be hard!) to achieve the necessary upgrades.

I'd not recomend Dragons, although I love them. You need not only DHSs and ENDO upgrades, but you'll need also expensive and large XL engines. The same rule can be used for Catapults too, while stalkers can do good with the vanilla 255, but need a STD 280 or 300 for the best configs, therefore cost-wise (and considering the cash you'll be sitting on after those 25 matches) imho the HBK-4SP is the best choice.

Edited by John MatriX82, 12 March 2013 - 08:58 AM.

[Sinthrow]

If you like the stalker? You may want to take a hard look at it.. the nice thing you have going for you, is that you already have mech exp in it. and you can start using that exp to make it preforme better then the trial version. Or the C1,, with double Heat sinks endosteal 4ml and a srm6 ac5 set up. fun stuff.
Good luck and welcome.

[Tastian]

Some questions you might want to ask yourself is: 1) Which weapons do you seem to prefer? 2) Do you want to go SLOW or FAST?

If you prefer LRMS and SRMS, the Stalker and Catapults are good choices. And both have lasers which are always nice. The Dragon can go much faster but large XL engines and endo steel (which are a must on the Dragon) are incredibly expensive. If you like ballistics like ACs then know that the Stalkers have none.

[Salen Stormwing]

Well, might as answer a few of the questions folks have asked:

1. Weapons: I like the LRMs now that I figured out how to use them. It was a bit weird at first, but once I figured that out, I was like "Oooooooh." Haven't had a chance to mess with stuff like the PPGs though.

I haven't cared for the few ACs I've used so far, but I doubt AC/2s are the charming ACs folks like to use.

2. Speed: Not huge on going super fast. Every time I've been in a fast, light mech so far, I tend to get evaporated soon after. Lobbing big piles of missiles at folks before stomping in with lasers seems more my speed, if only to save me from dying cold and alone.

So yeah, I might try the Cat-C1, since it seems like it's a smaller Stalker. And I could toss the jets off it for more heatsinks. Perhaps...

[Duncan Longwood]

I have to say that the HBK-SP is a very good mech to start with. JohnMatriX82 is spot-on with his advice. Pick up a HBK-P for lazors and an HBK-H for ballistics and you will be on your way to maxing your first chassis and getting a feel for different weapon systems. Stick with the standard engine and HBK's can be really annoying zombies.

Speaking of zombies, the centurion can also be alot of fun as a starter mech, but the Cent-D drives up the total cost of maxing the chassis compared to the HBK.

I wouldn't recommend the dragon until you have alot of c-bills to blow as it is very expensive compared to how it performs. I also feel that the best chassis is the Flame and that costs real money.

I love the stalker, they are the mech I found easiest to level-up. Again, it will cost alot of c-bills to fully upgrade after you purchase 3 of them. One downside is that they are all some combo of energy and missle hardpoints, so most builds are limited to some variety of LRM/SRM and lasers, but no dakka-dakka.

I love all varieties of cataphract, a very versatile chassis.

Catapults are very powerful, but more limited in build diversity than I would like for a first mech.

I have 40 mechs and this is my opinion. Good Luck and Happy Hunting!

[Strykewolf]

I thoroughly enjoyed the Hunchback 4SP and am currently having a blast with a 4J in the medium slot.

Only heavy I've run is a Dragon N variant. It's been on the fun side of things, as well...though, not as much. Will be deciding on a Cat variant in the next day, or so, to try.

[KodiakGW]

Raven 3L with engine upgrade if you can afford it.

[Salen Stormwing]

Thanks folks. I'll take these thoughts under suggestion. At least right now, I feel a bit more confident in being able to make a more informed choice.

[Dirk Ralthar]

I have a couple of choices I like, some have some steeper drawbacks than others, I will list my 3 personal favorites:

Lancer (Catapult-A1) - Dedicated LRM Boat - Definitely my most powerful, also my slowest and worst armored. This baby comes fully loaded with 6 LRM15's, 7 tons of ammo (that's 14 salvos for those who are bad at math), an XL 200 engine, and for that added homey touch, an air freshener* (the smell of rocket fuel starts to get overpowering after the third or fourth salvo). 10 Double Heat Sinks, an Endo-Steel Frame, and a titanic 96 points of armor round out the build. You will be arguably the most dangerous thing on the battlefield (but also the slowest and weakest armored). Best for hanging back and supporting your allies with overpowering salvos of missiles (seriously, light mechs die in one shot if you land it). Be sure to watch your heat, it overheats fast and if you are not careful, your ammo racks will cook off and take you with it.
*Air Freshener not included

Praetorian (Centurion CN9-D) - Sniper/Skirmisher - This medium mech blends a decent amount of firepower with speed and armor (it was also my first mech out of the gate). I swapped the stock LB 10-X AC for a Gauss Rifle with 30 rounds of ammo. I dropped the Missiles and replaced the Med Lasers with Med Pulse Lasers. Upgrade to Endo-Steel and Ferro-Fibrous armor. You end up with 338 points of armor. This is a good all around mech, has long range, but the armor and speed for close quarters.

Assassin (Spider SDR-5D) - Scout/Skirmisher - If you want speed, enough armor to take a couple hits, and some good firepower in a small package, my custom Assassin variant Spider is what you want. This little baby breaks all the rules, 1 Large Pulse Laser and 1 Med Pulse Laser in the right arm. But if that doesn't tickle your fancy, the tag laser in the chest might. Just paint a target and let your friendly neighborhood missile boats go to town. This baby pulls a whopping 137.7 KPH with its XL 255 Engine and with the Ferro-Fibrous Armor and Endo-Steel Frame you get 210 points of armor. If you can master the speed, this is a rather potent mech in its own right. You also end up with a high Heat Efficiency with no extra heat sinks, this baby is hard to overheat in anything shy of full on combat.
*Black Widow Paint Scheme not standard.

Edited by Dirk Ralthar, 12 March 2013 - 05:58 PM.