116 replies to this topic

[Red Line Pilot]

i concur, ballistics (inclidung ppcs) dont seem to hit reliably. I've fired hudreds of AC2 rounds on mechs that left with barely a scratch. And im pretty sure they were hitting!

Edited by Red Line Pilot, 04 October 2013 - 07:56 AM.

[Razornav]

Being a huge advocate of Medium Mechs it's good to see more people taking an interest in the class. The Blackjack in particular is a favorite of mine since it resembles a mini-Rifleman. Having mastered this class I've had some excellent results using the listed builds.

BJ-1: "Gunslinger"
- Fast, long-ranged, mixed weapons load out in an asymmetrical build. Built for hit-and-fade strikes or fast response fire support.

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...5224b9acfe5f0d7


BJ-3: "Ares"
- Fast, mobile and hard hitting energy based platform with a respectable 37 point alpha strike. Large pulse lasers are the equivalent of an ammo free AC20.

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...485385eac6aa745

BJ-1DC: "Jokers Wild "
- Another fast and mobile energy based platform with a strong emphasis on medium range combat. High sustained rate of fire backed by effective cooling is able to support a 38 point alpha strike. Strips armor quickly opening the way for machine guns to rip internals apart.

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...de3f5d56e52416d

All of these builds are definitely not on the inexpensive side due to the use of double heat sinks and XL engines but the combination of speed and firepower make for a very deadly mech in the right hands.

[Boomis]

My beloved BJ-1DC the "Donut of Doom"

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...df7a98fa6f02871

Ps. I don't know why donut, I just felt it's a good name.

[Ruccus]

I was trying (unsuccessfully) to create a useable dual LB10-X Blackjack build and I stumbled upon this build. With the dual LB10-X setup not working I thought 'what lighter weapon could I use instead?' and decided on the AC5. I've only used it in four matches, but I've got kills in all but one (turned a corner and was greeted by several mechs, including an Atlas and a Jagerbomb - barely had time to say 'whoops' before I was dead), and just finished coming from a 2 kill, 8 assist, 668 damage match on Tourmaline.

Its weakness is its lack of speed but in a brawl it can put out 70 damage in its first 5 seconds of sustained fire, and with the range of the AC5 it has the ability to harass mechs at a distance. The constant stream of damage during a brawl is satisfying and effective. It does seem to run hot even though it has decent cooling, but I attribute that to my heavy trigger finger.

[Heavenly Angel]

I have mixed feelings about the mixed ac / ppc builds. The overall damage scores are undeniably higher, but it's only because you have more opportunities to shoot. When you're playing it the damage output feels way lower. You just chip away at people for ages and I don't feel that it really utilizes the mech's main strength which is it's mobility. There are other mechs which do fire support much better.

Edited by Heavenly Angel, 08 October 2013 - 03:39 AM.

[Malsumis]

My BJ-1DC of choice. It can be modified to run an XL220 engine for a little more speed at the cost of 1 DHS. I do not own an XL220 so I run it as shown. Fast enough to get out of trouble and a punch that will surprise many enemies.

I've gotten a few 1 shot kills with this mech (from the back of course). Use the 5 mlas to melt a hole then blast the AC20. Also really good for popping light mechs.

Edited by Malsumis, 08 October 2013 - 04:40 AM.

[IllCaesar]

I just did 1 kill 4 kill assists 495 damage with this build on River City. Could've done a bit more if we didn't cap at the end rather than hunt down the last guy on the opposing team.

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...3a7f5b7be6d792a

Admittedly I have one ton more of AC2 ammo than I'm probably ever going to use, but I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. I prefer that extra ammo allowing me to fire more liberally over two extra jump jets or one heat sink. It also runs a lot cooler than appears. And, for me at least, its important to use 4x SLs over 2x MLs. Does more damage faster and with more heat efficiency if you get into a brawling scenario, which you're trying to avoid in the first place. You can smack that assault that just turned the corner on the nose until it turns tails, which gives you time to relocate,

I'm also going to admit that a Jagermech might fill this role better than a BJ-1, but this will certainly be an example of weight effectiveness when CW comes around and weight limits are instilled upon drops.

Heavenly Angel, on 08 October 2013 - 03:38 AM, said:

I have mixed feelings about the mixed ac / ppc builds. The overall damage scores are undeniably higher, but it's only because you have more opportunities to shoot. When you're playing it the damage output feels way lower. You just chip away at people
for ages and I don't feel that it really utilizes the mech's main strength which is it's mobility. There are other mechs which do fire support much better.

I can't think of one other than the Jagermech. The Blackjack has a profile that typically leaves it ignored in favour of bigger threats, which is something the Jager doesn't have. It also has highly placed arms which have pretty good mobility, better than that of the Cataphract. Not many mechs can shoot a ballistic weapon outside of their torso-twist capabilities. And quite frankly, when it comes to ACs, what weapon would you rather put on there, an MG? Two MGs on a Blackjack with poor brawling armour?

Three of four of them are too slow to scout, its too pitifully armoured to brawl or even skirmish, and none come with any missile hardpoints. Support really seems to be the best overall role for the Blackjack, with some decent capability to brawl against other medium mechs if outfitted as such.

[Heavenly Angel]

MarsAtlas, on 09 October 2013 - 08:17 AM, said:

I just did 1 kill 4 kill assists 495 damage with this build on River City. Could've done a bit more if we didn't cap at the end rather than hunt down the last guy on the opposing team.

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...3a7f5b7be6d792a

Admittedly I have one ton more of AC2 ammo than I'm probably ever going to use, but I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. I prefer that extra ammo allowing me to fire more liberally over two extra jump jets or one heat sink. It also runs a lot cooler than appears. And, for me at least, its important to use 4x SLs over 2x MLs. Does more damage faster and with more heat efficiency if you get into a brawling scenario, which you're trying to avoid in the first place. You can smack that assault that just turned the corner on the nose until it turns tails, which gives you time to relocate,

I'm also going to admit that a Jagermech might fill this role better than a BJ-1, but this will certainly be an example of weight effectiveness when CW comes around and weight limits are instilled upon drops.



I can't think of one other than the Jagermech. The Blackjack has a profile that typically leaves it ignored in favour of bigger threats, which is something the Jager doesn't have. It also has highly placed arms which have pretty good mobility, better than that of the Cataphract. Not many mechs can shoot a ballistic weapon outside of their torso-twist capabilities. And quite frankly, when it comes to ACs, what weapon would you rather put on there, an MG? Two MGs on a Blackjack with poor brawling armour?

Three of four of them are too slow to scout, its too pitifully armoured to brawl or even skirmish, and none come with any missile hardpoints. Support really seems to be the best overall role for the Blackjack, with some decent capability to brawl against other medium mechs if outfitted as such.

I was more talking about the ppc.

In my experience nobody has any respect for the bj at all and all players can be divided into two categories, those who think the bj is no threat and ignore it and those who think it's an easy kill and become obsessed with shooting it. Usually the latter unfortunately.

I wouldn't really recommend that anyone buy the chassis until the streak fix goes live though. Too frustrating.

[Inflatable Fish]

Heavenly Angel, on 10 October 2013 - 04:14 AM, said:

I was more talking about the ppc.

In my experience nobody has any respect for the bj at all and all players can be divided into two categories, those who think the bj is no threat and ignore it and those who think it's an easy kill and become obsessed with shooting it. Usually the latter unfortunately.

I wouldn't really recommend that anyone buy the chassis until the streak fix goes live though. Too frustrating.

streak boats, or streak using mechs are so few and far between that discouraging people from buying a BJ solely based on the existence of that bug is... unreasonable.

the Blackjack is a very solid mech, even if a bit demanding at times, that combines decent firepower with speed and a small profile. I can't see why anyone would not want one.

[Heavenly Angel]

Yeah it's my favourite mech, the first one I elited and the only one I've broken 900 damage on. It just sucks when you get cored by a kintaro in 6 seconds. I'd wait a week for the patch personally.

Edited by Heavenly Angel, 10 October 2013 - 05:11 PM.

[Enialis]

Stick with someone bigger/scarier than you as a "wingman" (decoy). The Blackjack is devastating when you can maneuver around a brawl and pick apart anyone who's too busy dealing with your Atlases/etc. I can't wait until proper weight matching is implemented, the amount of damage is can do for the tonnage is going to be a big advantage when the teams aren't just assault spam.

[xengk]

I think I found my prefect BJ3 build after the new heat penalty and PPC nerf.
It is surprisingly close to my original loadout but more amour, speed and better heat and reach.
Breadknife 3.0
Poke at distance with the ERLLaz, and go crazy with all laser when things get within 500m.
It packs enough DHS to avoid shutdown, unless in a heat map or alpha-ing all 3 LLaz constantly.

[Huranu Rothe]

My current BJ-3 build:

http://mechromancer....1,0,1,0,0,0,0,0

Packs a nice ranged punch and meds for closer targets, also pretty fast.

[DOMDOM]

Tried this mech, not a fan. I don't see anything it can do that my Quickdraw or Cataphract don't do better.

[IllCaesar]

DOMDOM, on 13 October 2013 - 04:47 PM, said:

Tried this mech, not a fan. I don't see anything it can do that my Quickdraw or Cataphract don't do better.

Notice how they're both Heavy mechs.

You'll see medium mechs receive an increase in popularity with weight limits on drops. The Blackjack-1 and 1-DC scream Mini-Jager, and the BJ-1X will be one of the most fearsome mechs, ton for ton. I understand your feelings now, and they're valid, but when weight limits hit, we'll be evaluating mechs on their effectiveness per ton, rather than overall.

Edited by MarsAtlas, 13 October 2013 - 04:59 PM.

[Otto Destructo]

BJ-1 Slamjack
This is what i have found to be the most effective build for my play style and it is hands down my favorite mech to play, when i have a good round i do about 350-500 damage, when i am on fire i have done 800+ damage with it.The jumpjets are critical to usig this mech, It's a Spedium its ment to range around slower allies and cover their flanks and kill the fsck out of anything it gets in its crosshairs. trust me the sheer joy of AC/20 head shotting an atlas or coring a spider mid jump can not be denied. as long as you don't let your self get caught alone this think just dishes out damage. its got enough mobility to stay away from almost anything other than a spider or a jenner and the JJ make it able to turn on a dime and attack from unexpected angles. I LOVE THIS MECH BUILD. Aggression is key to playing it well but knowing when to get the hell out of dodge is important too.

[Heavenly Angel]

Otto Destructo, on 13 October 2013 - 05:12 PM, said:

BJ-1 Slamjack

Same as mine except I shave left arm and leg armour to fit a 235xl and 4th jj. Jumpjets are everything to this little mech so I wouldn't even wipe my endosteel butt without all 4.

I get higher damage scores with my ac10 build, but in the end nothing is more fun than watching components explode and mechs drop dead every other time you right click.

Edited by Heavenly Angel, 14 October 2013 - 05:20 AM.

[Ruccus]

I think every BJ-1 owner has an AC20 build they haul out either as their main or from time to time for some fun. Mine is almost identical to Otto's build except I have two heatsinks and one jump jet, and put the AC20 in my left arm.

It's the only build that's given me a 6 kill match, though I still pine for my old Gauss Rifle (which was the only build that's gotten me over 1,000 damage in a match).

[627]

Ok, double xp weekend, all mechs in the bay mastered, phoenix mechs some days and... Maybe one or two beers too much... So i bought some blackjacks. Meanwhile i have all three elited.

Bj-1: No brainer, th ac20 jumper with 3 ml and 235xl. Actually, that was the reason to buy those mechs and damn this thing is fun.

1x: this was my second mech, mostly because of the big engine. I had a spare 275xl and packed that with 8ml an i think 19 dhs. To be true, i die alot with it and i die fast, getting a kill is very hard for me. I didn't really tried other buids (there's not much variety on this mech?) seems too slow or too hot but i'd really like more punch with it.

1dc: this was the third jack, took it because the 3 didn't really looked good in my eyes, yes jj, but after the dissapointing 1x i wanted those ballistic slots for variety.
My first builds were 2xML and 2xAC2 or 2xAC5 with an 225xl - pretty solid,good support mech, i would always prefer the ac5version, though.
And then i tried a gauss... 1 gauss and 4ml, 3tons ammo and that 225xl. Hell yeah! Best bj for me, even more entertaining than that flying ac20. I really like the new gauss mechanic and the speed buff. You can snipe pretty well and i dont know why, but this is especially effektive against lights.

At the end, the biggest threat for my blackjacks is me, gettin too confident after a kill or better a "near-kill" killed me off really often. Threat number two: streaks. Even with the patch tomorrow those kintaros will be hard to counter.
After all, a fun mech, not the most effective one but who cares. Still trying to find a good alternnate build for that laserboat...

[Heavenly Angel]

The 1x can be tough to survive in but in those games where nobody focuses you it's magical.

http://i.imgur.com/fTVK80Z.jpg

6mpl, 17 dhs