62 replies to this topic

[Oppresor]

This is an interesting one. I configure my Atlas for two modes:

1. Sniper - Long range, ER Large Laser & ERPPC
2. Desperation - Point blank anti -light role, LBX10 Scattershot & MG Array

The main reason I use the Atlas is because of its survivability and because of all the Mechs the Atlas looks the part. The only unit that I would consider as a replacement for the Atlas is the Omega and so far there are no plans to introduce this to my knowledge.

[Rebas Kradd]

I think dying is unpopular. Brawlers are prone to dying for the sake of the team.

[Psikez]

KingCobra, on 15 March 2013 - 11:01 AM, said:

I see a lot of both when I do play MWO but the matches last like 1-4 minutes tops which is most times a stupid lopsided mess. I was on http://www.gameranger.com/ playing MW4 Mercenaries last night played various maps mostly brawling and I timed my time in game all were between 5-15 minutes average. So to me MWO is a joke the mechs are like slow rolling butter cubes compared to MW4.You would have to play MW4 Mercenaries to really know how much better that game is compared to MWO overall. But MWO does have better graphics ill give it that but all else MWO is very shallow and lacking in comparison.

I remember mechwarrior 4 as a far uglier and much less satisfying mechwarrior 3

[Gaan Cathal]

Define brawler

[SnuggleBug]

Alpine really did change things up. I took the medium lasers off my 4sp, slapped a couple of er large lasers, kept the srm6's and dropped the biggest xl in it would hold. Kinda turned it into a hybrid scout/sniper/brawler. Tends to work well. Just have to let the lrm boats on your team soften them up first before you go in for the brawl. Also have to watch the heat with those er's.

[Stingz]

Major Scumbag, on 15 March 2013 - 02:16 PM, said:

No need for brawler with changes to Artemis and LRM boating. Why brawl when you can stay at max range and shoot missles with LOS.

Easier to aim at close range, more damage at close range, under 180m and LRMs are useless, ECM is stronger sub-180m.

[Major Scumbag]

Stingz, on 15 March 2013 - 03:33 PM, said:

Easier to aim at close range, more damage at close range, under 180m and LRMs are useless, ECM is stronger sub-180m.

I do mainly play a Brawler and found boating LRM to easy and very boring IMO. It is easier but you are taking damage and have to move during the skirmish. But LRM boat hangs back way behind and relies on protection from team. Holding a crosshair and firing off 40 missles and all you have to do is hold on target. Even if you dont have LOS. LRM can still be fired and land. With the addition to artemis. Even more damage and easier to bonuses for savior. LRM gets savior bonus off the brawler. I would love to see some kinda change to the worst dps per tonnage weapon systems. Ballistics are lacking big time. I am looking forward to the Jaegermech.

[MischiefSC]

Stingz, on 15 March 2013 - 03:33 PM, said:

Easier to aim at close range, more damage at close range, under 180m and LRMs are useless, ECM is stronger sub-180m.

You don't have to aim LRMs at all and statistically so far I'm killing well over 2 guys who want to close with me for everyone one that does - and killing some of those who do anyway.

LRMs are easier, make more money and XP and require less risk. That just is what it is.

[Monky]

Running around with absolutely 0 long or mid range weapons isn't viable in my opinion. I don't care if it's an LRM 5 or a single large laser or what. Something. Put SOMETHING on your mech in case the enemy has brains and doesn't surrender the open ground.

[WardenWolf]

Koujo, on 15 March 2013 - 10:45 AM, said:

I've noticed when playing my brawling mediums that quite often I'm just about the only brawler on the team. Sniping with gauss rifles and PPCs seems to be much more popular. As a lone brawler it makes it very difficult to decide when to close with the enemy. Do it too soon and you will incur the wrath of the entire enemy team and be taken out in seconds. The only other option is to stand behind cover and hope something comes to you before the match ends.

I guess it's just the plight of the lone wolf pugger. Either adapt your build to be more flexible and able to engage at multiple ranges or stand there all match hiding behind your LRM spewing missile boat ECM atlas. Anyone else experienced this?

I recommend talking to your team. Announce what you are - I especially do this if I am in my LRM boat - and people can adjust to help you. If you really don't have any brawlers to work with, consider hanging back and screening the long-range mechs; many such designs are not able to fend for themselves well at closer ranges. If they soften enemies up, and then you finish them off at close-range, it can be an excellent partnership

[Lykaon]

This seems odd to me since I am pretty sure that it is mandatory for 90% of all matches to include at least 1 splattercat.
I see with alarming frequency brawler optimized mechs like zombiecents and splattercats and yesterday I saw several Blattcats (twin AC20 K2s)

Long range sniping does seem to be more popular with certain premade groups and house units and merc corps tend to develope internal cultures and tactics that lean heavily towards particular group styles.
This could lead to a perception of particular techniques being more frequently used overall since in individual matches these groups make up 50% of the opposing force.

[Adrian Steel]

Taemien, on 15 March 2013 - 01:46 PM, said:

There's two type of brawling: The Grand Melee, or a Focused Effort.

It really doesn't matter what configs there are in a grand melee. It just comes down to focus fire and its random because there's little to no coordination in the heat of the fight.

The configs are just as important as focus firing. If all hostiles are in a brawl, are you targeting their snipers or their brawlers first?

Taemien, on 15 March 2013 - 01:46 PM, said:

Some players love it, but I think most of that is they have the best chances of winning there, since strategy isn't something they've learned yet.

Yes, I love it. Apparently that also makes me devoid of strategic knowledge.

Taemien, on 15 March 2013 - 01:46 PM, said:

I urge everyone to steer clear of this. It doesn't teach you the needed tenents of MechWarrior.

You don't really learn the maximum potential of your weapons as you're usually not anywhere near the maximum ranges.
You don't learn positioning because everyone is all around you.
You don't learn heat management since you're just blazing till you or your target is dead*
You don't learn maneuvering because there is little reason to do so.

I learned maneuver so I can push your team into a Grand Melee.
I learned use heat management so I have more capacity when I get into a Grand Melee.
I learned to position so I can get into a Grand Melee.
I learned to use close range weapons when I force Grand Melees.
I learned how to hit "shutdown override" and turn my mech into a toaster during Grand Melees.
I learned to map hostile locations in my head while moving around them in a Grand Melee.
I learned to use objects for cover while in a Grand Melee.
I learned how to feather the throttle in Grand Melees.

Taemien, on 15 March 2013 - 01:46 PM, said:

*A mistake many make is making a config that can keep firing longer in a grand melee. Meaning they have less weapons than they could normally.

One man's mistake is another man's genius?

[Serapth]

The biggest problem is the matchmaker is broken... so if you take a hunchback, and the opposing team takes an Atlas... so be it. Without weight matching, there are very few reasons to take a medium brawler.

Mediums are frankly just sh.it right now as a result. You can still be successful, but if you are equally talented at bigger mechs, you are just handicapping yourself.

Edited by Serapth, 15 March 2013 - 04:23 PM.

[TehSBGX]

Rebas Kradd, on 15 March 2013 - 03:15 PM, said:

I think dying is unpopular. Brawlers are prone to dying for the sake of the team.

Agreed. I love me some brawling, and I accept that odds are I'm gonna die doing my job. Other people don't seem to go "It's okay to go down helping your team".

[Hedonism Robot]

Adrian Steel, on 15 March 2013 - 04:17 PM, said:

I learned maneuver so I can push your team into a Grand Melee.
I learned use heat management so I have more capacity when I get into a Grand Melee.
I learned to position so I can get into a Grand Melee.
I learned to use close range weapons when I force Grand Melees.
I learned how to hit "shutdown override" and turn my mech into a toaster during Grand Melees.
I learned to map hostile locations in my head while moving around them in a Grand Melee.
I learned to use objects for cover while in a Grand Melee.
I learned how to feather the throttle in Grand Melees.

Amen! The fact is brawlers initiate the fight for their teams making their decision when to brawl entirely strategic. The start the fight and use cover, torso twist and maneuvering speed to absorb damage while squishier builds stand back. If a brawler doesn't think ahead and just runs straight into the other team they will die really fast.

[aniviron]

I'm with the 4SP pilots who hate alpine. The advice I've been seeing is to "provide ams/ecm cover" until you can brawl. AMS is worthless, and shoots down 0-8 missiles per volley, which is not a big help given that usually around 50-60 are coming at a time- even when it's just 30, taking out on average four of them is not even remotely worth the weight, you're still getting wrecked. And the ECM idea would be great, if I could mount it.

It's just so tempting to alt-f4 and retry when I get matched into Alpine as a hunch. All the suggestions I've seen so far don't work against teams that have a single brain between the eight of them. I get a lot of "Well, you should just drop some PPCs or LRMs onto your hunch." Yeah, that sounds viable on a 50 ton brawler, I have the tonnage and heat for an extra few PPCs. Right now about 90%+ of drops are on maps that, while there is some longer range, most fights take place between 600-150m. Not sure why I would optimize my limited tonnage for 800m+ engagements when it just gets me killed on most maps. All I'm saying is that there's a reason you never see the HBK-4J, as cool as it looks.

SnuggleBug, on 15 March 2013 - 03:20 PM, said:

Alpine really did change things up. I took the medium lasers off my 4sp, slapped a couple of er large lasers, kept the srm6's and dropped the biggest xl in it would hold. Kinda turned it into a hybrid scout/sniper/brawler. Tends to work well. Just have to let the lrm boats on your team soften them up first before you go in for the brawl. Also have to watch the heat with those er's.

I'm surprised you can run an XL engine reliably on a 4SP. HBK has decent armor for a medium, but even with maxed armor that thing sheds side torsos like a dandelion sheds the little white fluffy things.

[Khobai]

Brawling isnt as effective as Sniping. Sniping = doing damage, often without getting damaged in return. Brawling = you both take the full brunt of eachother's damage. Sniping is preferable most of the time.

[SnuggleBug]

aniviron, on 15 March 2013 - 04:27 PM, said:

I'm surprised you can run an XL engine reliably on a 4SP. HBK has decent armor for a medium, but even with maxed armor that thing sheds side torsos like a dandelion sheds the little white fluffy things.

Ya thats why you have to wait it out for a bit on your lrm boats. It is like rock em sock em robot on those side torso's. I also tend to snuggle up to the biggest baddest assault on the team to take the heat off of me.

[Taemien]

Adrian Steel, on 15 March 2013 - 04:17 PM, said:

The configs are just as important as focus firing. If all hostiles are in a brawl, are you targeting their snipers or their brawlers first?



Yes, I love it. Apparently that also makes me devoid of strategic knowledge.



I learned maneuver so I can push your team into a Grand Melee.
I learned use heat management so I have more capacity when I get into a Grand Melee.
I learned to position so I can get into a Grand Melee.
I learned to use close range weapons when I force Grand Melees.
I learned how to hit "shutdown override" and turn my mech into a toaster during Grand Melees.
I learned to map hostile locations in my head while moving around them in a Grand Melee.
I learned to use objects for cover while in a Grand Melee.
I learned how to feather the throttle in Grand Melees.



One man's mistake is another man's genius?

And then Alpine (or other future maps) comes up on the rotation. That 'genius' becomes a grave error. Grand Melee is fun on the short range maps where it inevitably happens. But not so much when the long range maps come up and such strategies aren't as useful against snipers and the like.

[Grey Ghost]

I used to have fun in MWO. I'm no good at ballistic/ppc sniping, and I feel LRMs are the most boring weapon ever. So I don't fit in this current trend going on. My impatience with waiting for everyone to be done with their peekaboo session keeps getting me slaughtered. Skirmishing the enemy lines in my Jenner is still possible, but it feels fairly pointless since no one is pushing to take advantage of the confusion. I should probably just stop playing for awhile, because I'm suddenly feeling a lot of resentment towards the game overall.