23 replies to this topic

[Loose Cannon0]

I am currently very new to the Mechwarrior online game and i am looking to jump into my first Mech today, i want something that i can get to grips with and learn the game also something that i can provide a decent amount of firepower with ...... any suggestions?...thanks.

[Johnny Marek Summers]

There are some pretty good threads on this topic further in on the forum. However are you asking about the trial mechs or buying one?

[Booran]

TAke all the trial mechs for a spin or five to get a feel to what kind of playstyle you want to try out

[Loose Cannon0]

i am talking about buying one light mech aint really my style i prefer a good balance inbetween as the assault feels way too slow its a toss up between med and heavy... somthing that i can jump into right away after buying it.

[Kilroy]

K2 Catapult is a pretty decent Heavy that would be fairly easy to learn to play. Plenty of good builds for it. (2 Gauss Rifles 2 Medium Lasers or 2 Medium Lasers 2 Large Lasers 2 AC2s work well for me.) C1 Catapult is good for a simple Artillery role with 2 LRM 15s and 4 Medium Lasers.

The rest of the heavies tend to be a bit tougher to learn in my experience.



My personal favorite mediums are the Hunchbacks. The 9 Medium Laser 4P is pretty nice though takes a while to get used to managing its heat. The 4SP is great for a mix of missiles and lasers and fairly flexible (2 Missiles, 5 Lasers.) The most popular builds tend to be 2 SRM6s with 4 Medium Lasers. Lastly the 4G and 4H are tied. The 4H has 2 more laser hardpoints but has them on the same torso side as its big gun, making you more vulnerable to losing all your guns at once. These builds can mount AC20s, with can pack a very good punch, though you don't get much ammo and it generates plenty of heat.


I'd definitely stay away from Dragons, Trebuchets, and Blackjacks for now. Though fun, they simply try to do too much at once and can be hard to start off with.

A lot of people like the Cataphract 3D, but I find them too slow and unmaneuverable to do much good. Plus they have HUGE hitboxes, making them bullet sponges whether they can take it or not.

Quickdraws are Heavies that behave like Mediums. They can get going fast but their default armour is less than one would desire. They're mainly missile boats as they are very tall and wide, making them extremely easy to hit.

Edited by Kilroy, 02 August 2013 - 01:44 AM.

[Barrett]

Jaeger. Guns visible on either side help new players a lot. JM6-A has got all three hardpoints, so you can experiement with missiles, laser and cannons. Decent armor too. Standard configuration featues AC2, which will train you in regards to estimating where your shot will go over long range.

IMO.

[z3a1ot]

Like Kilroy said above for heavies Catapult K2 is a good place to start for that class. Also Catapracht 3D with jump jet capability is also a good choice.

For medium mech I recommend Centurion AL with biggest standard engine, 4 medium lasers and 2 srm6 launchers. Pretty fast and deadly especially if you decide to elite it so with speed tweak you can go almost 100 KPH. Hunchbacks are decent too, 4sp and 4p for a start.

Light mechs are tricky. If you want to pilot them then XL engine is a must have on them. Save weight and gain speed that way. XL engines are very expensive but worth every cbill for lights. For firs light I would say Jenner F the laser variant. Buy the biggest xl engine and cram up 6 medium lasers and 2-3 jump jets and see that thing fly . Also Raven 3L is good for starters, ECM and 3 medium lasers plus 2 ssrm2 deadly combo. Also XL engine for Raven is a must have.

Have fun out there!

EDIT: I forgot to mention about various upgrades like Endo-Steel that saves weight, so does Ferro armour. Also double heat sinks upgrade is a must have at present. So when you plan a build consider these costs for upgrades.

Here you can plan your builds without spending anything:
http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/mechlab

Edited by z3a1ot, 02 August 2013 - 02:52 AM.

[Raised]

start in a medium not to fast not to slow give you enougth speed to get in and out of danger and enougth fire power to do some damage. i would get a centurian or a hunchback just dont get a 4j

Edited by raisedbyflames, 02 August 2013 - 02:03 AM.

[Shiro Matsumoto]

My first was a K2 - Catapult (4 Energy / 2 Ballistic) though i would recommend a C1 (2 Missile / 4 Energy) if you like missiles.
Only negative point on a "Cat" is the comparatively large head zone, but the chassis is durable, and flexible, catering experimentation.

Edited by John McFianna, 02 August 2013 - 03:36 AM.

[Modo44]

Get a Dragon 1C. Once you learn to pilot that, you can pilot anything. Seriously, though, the Catapult (K2, C1, A1/C4) is one of the easiest mechs to pilot, and provides a lot of solid builds (i.e. will fit almost any playstyle).

Edited by Modo44, 02 August 2013 - 03:22 AM.

[Redshift2k5]

How fast do you want to go and what weapons do you want to bring when you get there?

The Hunchback 4sp is the 'classic' recommendation, but you can get more armor, more weapons, and more speed with any Heavy mech.

[Strayed]

A Hunchback or Centurion is a good first buy, mainly cause they can be effective without costing a lot to buy or outfit while offering a lot of experimentation potential.

[John MatriX82]

As Redshift says, the HBK 4SP is "brainless", with a few mods it becomes pretty effective and stays within the cadet bonus.

When you buy it it's like this HBK-4SP;
You then move the SRM ammos in one per each leg and raise armor in the CT to 54 by lowering 1 point each leg; then you upgrade to endo steel and Double heatsinks, substitute the small laser in the head with another medium laser and drop a brand new STD engine 250 like this: HBK-4SP

Sell away the 200 STD it's a bad rated engine and the next two HBKs will come each with one (you need two ore HBKs to master the chassis, consider 4P and 4H after the 4SP); 200 stds will oblige you to add two more external DHSs to make the mech working (mechs require 10 total to drop), but each double heatsink outside the engine will work at 1.4x cooling factor, while those in the engine work at 2.0.
By this getting a 250 is a good upgrade, you gather speed, 10 engine DHS (ever 25 of engine rating, you have 1 DHS), so you have a much better cooling than going around with the stock engine without endo and 18 DHSs total.

Another choice could be the Centurion (AL or A in particular); for now stay away from commandos, ravens, spiders, cicadas, trebs, blackjacks, dragons and Awesomes.
So if you want a light get a Jenner, mediums get a Cent or an HBK, heavies get a Cataphract (not the 4x!), Quickdraw, Jager or Catapult; for assaults Stalkers, Atlases highlanders.

Edited by John MatriX82, 02 August 2013 - 03:50 AM.

[mailin]

My recommendations for new players are always either the Hunchback 4SP or a Centurion. Either of these mechs are good choices for several reasons. 1) They are relatively inexpensive to equip properly. 2) They are both zombie mechs. Meaning that they can both contribute even when reduced to one leg, center torso and head. 3) They are reasonably quick, which will let you engage the enemy quickly, but also flee quickly if you get into trouble. 4) They have relatively simple weapon loadouts. No complicated groupings are needed. Two weapon groups should be sufficient, which can be customized for your control comfort. 5) Not strictly ammunition dependent. Ammo explosions can cause a world of hurt to your internal structure and takes some care in placement. 6) Teach pilots the basics of heat management. Shutting down can be deadly and these mechs tend to run in the middle of the road on the heat scale. It really gives you a feel for what happens when you shut down, and can help you learn to avoid it.

[Royalewithcheese]

I wouldn't go lighter than 65 tons, myself - game is dominated by the heavy stuff at the moment. I'd recommend Jagermech 6A, Cataphract 2X (both of these are flexible platforms that let you run every kind of weapon) or Victor (fast assault mech.)

Edited by Royalewithcheese, 02 August 2013 - 04:39 AM.

[jper4]

haven't played a cent but yeah Hunchy is a good first mech to start with. 4sp is my preferred mech still.4p is good but as was mentioned takes a little bit to get used to the heat issues. messed around with cats briefly but were kinda "nothing special" with me piloting them anyway. Jagers have worked out nicely but are going to cost more than the hunchy/cent. i tend to recommend mediums first because they don't cost as much if it turns out you don't like them and as long as you're not charging into the fight first they can last for a bit on the battlefield.

then by the time you unlock all your elites on the hunchies/cents you'll have that much extra cash to buy the next one you want to try if you want to go into heavies instead of having to grind longer for the extra cash to get that third heavy chassis because you ran out of cbills (i don;t use MC to buy mechs myself but that is an option too)

[scJazz]

Mailin and Redshift already covered it but I'm going to add to the supporters.

The Hunchback 4SP is a very forgiving first purchase.

[Grey Black]

The general consensus is that a good rookie mech is the Hunchback 4SP, as it packs good hardpoints and good speed that can be customized in a number of ways or used mostly stock, but it all really depends on what you want. Personally, my first Mech (other than my Catapult C1) was the Centurion 9-A. Faster than the Hunchback, better hardpoints, and highly customizable, it's a beautiful mech.

For a good heavy mech, much as I am loathe to admit it, the Quickdraw or the Catapult are really your best options, with preference given to the Catapult (Yes, I'm still bitter I don't have my Orion yet!), as the variants are absolutely amazing (The Catapult A1 is cheese and the K2 can be set up in any number of ways). In the end, take the trial mechs and figure out your play style, THEN devote yourself to a chassis.

[mailin]

I like the Catapult, but I think that a lot of new players have this idea that lrms are the way to go. This is really far from the truth for several reasons, mainly due to the potentially sporadic nature of friendlies holding locks and the availability of cover. If you decide to go with a Catapult I suggest either the K2 or using srms on the other variants. The other problem with lrms is that they don't really teach you much about mech combat other than how to push the flippin' button to fire.

[Johnny Marek Summers]

Actually, Netherdawn's (admittedly old) video on buying a first mech is pretty good to see. For a mech to learn on he actually suggests a Centurion, specifically a Centurion A as it can teach you a lot of things. One of the main things is that it should teach you the rather important skill of Torso Twist for defense. Since one of the arms has virtually nothing in it, it's rather easy to sacrifice in order to protect your center torso. This mech also has hardpoints for each weapon type. I believe he also said that it has good armor and speed.

However I must confess that I haven't actually played yet (my computer is unworthy) so all I can really go on are the videos on YouTube and stuff I've seen in the forums. Oh yeah and if you do watch Netherdawn's video he actually gives a lot more recommends than just the Centurion.