31 replies to this topic

[Mudhutwarrior]

Karl Streiger, on 18 June 2013 - 04:21 AM, said:

I know what you mean: But head hunting tactics are based on light mechs going for the heavy or assault commandin BattleMech.
And it is really pain full to fight off only a single light mech with a Atlas (i drive them on my own)
But the only way to kill that buggers is a fast medium or another light:

But when you have a Jenner escorted your Atlas - they will call him a Noob - but actually he does the right thing. I can remember the hell of a fight were a little Raven almost scrapped my Atlas - and a single light mech was responding - he came fired and killed the ******....

Agreed, Had a spider do that the other day and I never thanked him. Between us we killed three enemy lites and an assult. Its rare to find such a skilled lite pilot who scouts and keeps a sharp eye on his team and how the fight is going. He would illuminate the target and I would streak them one at a time. Just awesome to be part of. The fact that in the end we won and we were the last two standing was icing on the cake. One in a thousand matches to say the least. Not one word spoken either. Mostly you get lite pilots who tell you to scout yourself or hide behind the assaults the whole match doing little or nothing till it gets hot then they run. Then the cap hounds too who ride the edges of the map just to go cap. Useless and you cant tell them otherwise.

[Borengar629]

I rather think of a lance of mechs as a battle group. The assault in that case would be like the aircraft carrier and the heavys and mediums would be the destroyer. The lights in the other hand would be the actual airplanes that fly out to scout or to strike.
A battle group does not function properly with not every piece in it's place. A carrier could not fight of enemy airplanes. He has to launch his own fighters and trust his fellow destroyers.
You can pretty much transfer that thought on a mech lance. Assaults fight other assaults or take the fire to cover their fellow smaller mechs. Mediums and heavys are there to fight everything and lights are there so scout and pretty much especially to kill assaults.
Their advantage is their maneuverability. But that does not work that good against mediums for example that are pretty fast themselfs.
I see that a lot round here in the forum and sadly in the game as well. It does not matter that much, what a single mech can do as -aside from scouting- situations that seperates one mech from it's group should be avoided at all costs. Battle mechs are pack animals and no loners

P.s.: But please get back to the ATLAS HERO MECH topic. That's what this topic is about.

Edited by Trickshot, 18 June 2013 - 04:42 AM.

[Scromboid]

Put in a poll so I can vote yes.

[Gaan Cathal]

It's been floating around for a while that mechs with Founders versions will be the last to have Heros iterated on. It seems at the moment that PGI are going back and overhauling/updating/Heroing older mechs as and when time allows, every new mech coming with a Hero more or less out of the box. I'd guess when you see an older mech sporting proper deformable hardpoints (the ones that arrived with the Jaeger) you can expect a Hero not that far behind.

[Garth Erlam]

It'll happen, it'll happen... You just have to be patient

[Syllogy]

Garth Erlam, on 18 June 2013 - 12:13 PM, said:

It'll happen, it'll happen... You just have to be patient

Oooh! Can it haz 50 ballistic slots so I can mount 25 tons of machine guns?! It'll be like Mechwarrior 2 all over again!

[WardenWolf]

Syllogy, on 18 June 2013 - 01:39 PM, said:

Oooh! Can it haz 50 ballistic slots so I can mount 25 tons of machine guns?! It'll be like Mechwarrior 2 all over again!

There are two great candidate Atlases in BT canon they could use. Quoting from Sarna:

AS7-WGS Atlas Samsonov - The personal ‘Mech of Galedon Military District commander Warlord Grieg Samsonov during the DCMS's Third Succession War invasion of Galtor III, only the massiveautocannon remains, with the rest of the standard weaponry replaced with a PPC mounted in each arm. The remaining weight and space is devoted to six additional heat sinks.

This would leave PGI a lot of room to customize it to suit their own taste. No missiles - but maybe some extra energy / ballistic hardpoints? Or very restricted hardpoints, but maybe give it more maneuverability (higher engine option, faster / wider twist, etc)?

Or, my personal preference (being a Dragoon):

AS7-D Atlas Danielle - Piloted by Wolf's Dragoons Captain Danielle Rondema, this modified Atlas carried three medium lasers in each arm, trading away the SRM rack to do so. The additional heat was dissipated by two additional heat sinks that replaced the rear-firing medium lasers.

This would be 3 energy hardpoints in each arm, and only one ballistic and one missile in the torsos. The problem is that it would pretty much be a better -RS in most respects, so that might not be doable. It would be pretty amazing to have six large lasers on an Atlas, though - that works well on some Stalker builds, and the extra tonnage could help with added heatsinks and armor. I have to say, though, that a custom, hero Wolfs Dragoons style paintjob would ROCK.

[Strum Wealh]

Whose Atlas would it be, though?

Both Greig Samsonov and Danielle Rondema are both long-dead in-universe (since 3030 and 3028, respectively), and the next canonical named Atlas variant with its own record sheet doesn't come along until the WoB J***d.
By contrast, each of the Hero 'Mech characters that PGI has employed thus far would still be alive in-universe (or, at least, there is no known canonical documentation of their deaths having yet occurred in-universe).

If PGI is doing only "currently living" heroes, then Rondema and Samsonov (along with Vasily Cherenkoff (died in 3034), Ian Davion (died in 3013), and Aaron DeChavilier (died in 2801)) might also be out of the running.

As far as canonical known Atlas pilots...

• Rodney Van Kleven (TRO 3025, pg. 122) - a member of the 6th Syrtis Fusiliers (as of 3025) and pilot of the Atlas named "Boar's Head"; an aristocrat and generally personable sort that rushes into combat ("uses his Atlas like a 100-ton scout" and "stomps all over the field, creating general terror in the enemy lines") and has a very poor sense of heat management
  
• Kathleen Heany (TRO 3039, pg. 168) - a Hauptmann-General in the Lyran side of the AFFC (as of 3050) and "a proponent of the 'old school' of Lyran warfare" who "routinely rejects the advice of the AFFS officers under her command and ignores any of the tactical innovations that the alliance with House Davion has brought to the LCAF".

Or, PGI could make up a character, as they did for the Ilya Muromets...?

[Karl Streiger]

Garth Erlam, on 18 June 2013 - 12:13 PM, said:

It'll happen, it'll happen... You just have to be patient

Oh until now - i was highly successful not to buy any premium mech above 5000 C-Bills - but I'm sure that i will fight a hard fight that is going to loose when a Atlas shows up....ok, when Zeus or Banshee shows up before - that could change however

[SgtKinCaiD]

Garth Erlam, on 18 June 2013 - 12:13 PM, said:

It'll happen, it'll happen... You just have to be patient

Thanks for the reply !

PS : do that more often, the community is waiting for a lot of things and showing some consideration is greatly appreciated.

[Gaan Cathal]

SgtKinCaiD, on 18 June 2013 - 11:21 PM, said:

Thanks for the reply !

PS : do that more often, the community is waiting for a lot of things and showing some consideration is greatly appreciated.

This. And more of the "actually explaining why we're temporarily nerfing the LPL even though we know it's not overpowered" style of communication too please. Actual communication with the playerbase of that sort goes a long way towards keeping 'public opinion' good.

[Borengar629]

Garth Erlam, on 18 June 2013 - 12:13 PM, said:

It'll happen, it'll happen... You just have to be patient

I can't wait for it. But this may sound a little dickish now, but I wouldn't like it to be just a hero-version of the founders mech, as there would be no point in buyin it for me and the other founders who either picked it or bought all four of them. I don't want to **** someone off by saying that but it would feel very... unthankful would be a very strong word, but I think you got the point.
I would be really disappointed anyway.

Edited by Trickshot, 19 June 2013 - 01:17 AM.