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I cant give advice on the centurion because i don't own one. I do know that they are very hard to kill when using a standard engine.
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If you get a K2, I recommend using Endo Steel Internal Structure and Double Heat Sinks. Don't use ferro fibrous armor because you will need that space for heatsinks.
You can easily use 2AC5 and 4MLas as a short-midrange brawler with a 300XL - and if you feel adventurous, you can try 2UltraAC5 and 4MLas - it is even better but the jamming can be frustrating until you get used to using them.
Tip when using this mech - the ballistics make almost no heat so if you are getting hot, use the ballistics only. If you shutdown when firing the mdlas you not only become a sitting duck, but you can no longer use your AC5s.
- AC5 - 5 damage 1 heat
- MDLAS - 5 damage 4 heat
If you use AC5s instead of ultras, you can even upgrade one of the medium lasers to large laser.
If you wnt to try longrange (i know you said you dont snipe much, but then again you also said you like to try different stuff) 2ERPPC and 2 Large Lasers can work well with an XL300 as long as you watch your heat (LL runs kinda cool so use that when in range as much as possible - ERPPC runs hot but you can snipe with them) If you use both at once you will overheat quickly, even with 19 DHS.
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Also, the catapult C1 can be used in a non missile role (or with just a few missiles)
It has 4 energy slots, although 2 are in the CT. Meaning that you can do 3 large lasers, or 2 large lasers and 2 medium lasers (but you cannot fit 4 large lasers). If you like to brawl, you can use something like that and then add on a few SRMs or SSRMs with the extra tonnage.
Torso mounted weapons mean that its hard to aim up or down and this can get you in trouble sometimes, but its not the hugest deal in the world. You can sometimes use the Jumpjets to help shoot targets above you, though the shake makes it difficult - you have to wait until you start to fall back down before you shoot.
As for the other catapults... you are pretty much stuck using a missile config of some sort.
General warning for catapults - they are less durable than some other mechs because the CT is easy to hit. On the plus side, the side torsos are small, making an XL an easy choice.
Also - the Jagermech Hero variant "Firebrand" is very similar to the K2 in terms of weapon loadouts. It has a smaller CT though, but very large and easy to destroy side torsos. This means that the K2 works great with an XL engine, and the Firebrand works great with a standard engine.
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Cataphracts are good mechs, but they are big targets. The 3D is commonly used as a jump-sniper. The 4x has 2 ballistic slots in each arm, which is interesting.... but there are 2 Jagermechs that can also do this. In my opinion, the jagermechs are better at it since the high mounted arms are less likely to shoot the terrain and more likely to hit the target.
The plus side of cataphracts is that they are a diverse bunch - meaning that you will atleast have 3 unique mechs once you purchase 3 mechs to get basic level on.
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Tip: If you like this game and play it a lot, you will eventually want to buy MC so that you can own more than 4 mechs at a time. Mech bays cost less than $2 each even if you buy the smallest MC bundles (worst deal)
I avoid buying regular mechs with MC - since you can just grind to get them. However, there are some hero variants that are cool (and if you decide you like the game, it is worth buying one or two)
Note that:
The Centurion has a hero variant - yen lo wang
The Cataphract has a hero variant - ilya muromets
The Catapult has a chamipon variant - CPLT-A1© which is the same as the A1 but if gives you an experience bonus, meaning that you wont have to grind it as long (good if you don't like using missiles - and even better if you find out that you do) Also note that the CPLT-A1© is cheaper than a hero mech since it is just a champion mech.
I mentioned the Jager because it is able to fill roles of both the CPLT-K2 (especially with the firebrand, kind of with the JM6-S) and also can fill the Cataphracts (kind of... no jagermechs can jump though)
Edited by Fire and Salt, 09 August 2013 - 01:34 PM.
