23 replies to this topic

[MungFuSensei]

Note, I am not any kind of mechlab pro. These are things learned from piloting mechs, not building them.

Have more than one BFG. You always want to have at least one thing that the enemy won't want to get hit by. Large lasers, PPCs, Gauss Rifles, AC10/20, etc. You don't want to be left without such a weapon if your arm gets blown off. Try to squeeze in 2, in different locations. If you can't have 2 BFGs, have 1 BFG and a number of smaller weapons that will equate to similar damage. No one fears a small laser, but they might think twice about 10.

Spread out your weapons. If you have 3 med lasers for example, put one on each arm and one in the center. You don't want the enemy to focus fire your weapons away.

If your main weapons HAVE to be centralized, like in a Hunchback, armor the crap out of that area.

Bring a knife to a gun-fight. Yes, your LRM boat WILL get jumped. If building a long range mech, make sure to include direct fire weapons. Large Lasers, PPCs, and Gauss Rifles can be used up close. LRMs can not. Also, include multiple direct fire weapons. While you're waiting for your 1 PPC to recharge, you can be pecked to death. Having 2 in chain fire means you can keep up the pressure. This sounds kind of "duh" but you'd be surprised how many people don't take this into account.

Any other tips?

[daniel l siata]

DO pay attention to the amount of armour you've allocated to areas containing ammunition. This may seem obvious, but again, a lot of people miss this and then promptly explode when their ammunition goes up.

Also, pay attention to the heat firing your weapons will generate and install sinks accordingly. All of your fancy energy weapons are completely useless if you can't fire them without overheating.

[SideSt3p]

I tend to build my 'Mech under this philosophy:

2 Groups of Main Guns
3-4 Supporting Guns

For an exact demonstration of this I present my planned Cataphract CTF- 2X

Main Guns:
-ER PPC
-LB-10X AC (4 tons Ammo)

Support Guns:
-4 Medium Lasers
-Streak SRM 2

PPC and AC are most of my punch. But the Mediums and SRMs allow me to still do ok dmg.

[Dalfsson]

what you are describing is a cut rate banshee. the standard banshee 3S has a AC10, 2 PPCs 4 med lasers and a srm6 on a 95 ton mech.

the banshee 5S perfects it. gauss rifle, 2 ERppcs, 4 med lasers 2 smalls and a srm6. if it survives to get past the gauss and ppcs, the lasers and srm will finish it. i would drop one of the Mlasers or more likely, both the smalls for more gauss ammo though.

edited to correct mech model errors.

Edited by Dalfsson, 12 June 2012 - 06:29 AM.

[Murphy7]

Never, ever tap of a fully fueled Jump Jet assembly with a screwdriver - the Nedelin rule.

[Nairdowell]

Wonder if you can add jumpjets to mechs normally without them?

Gotta love these guessing games as none of us will know until we actually start playing.... lol

[InMidnightClad]

Use a Machine gun as a tracer for your big, long reload, weapons. Spray the MG and pull the trigger on your big guns once you start plinking armor. It's like a laser sight... but lasers are too important... so we use bullets now... to make sure your lasers hit... wow the future kinda went the other way with things didn't they?

[Spleenslitta]

Don't put weapons like an PPC into the same section of the mech where you store ammo.
It's bad enough if you have an ammunition explosion that leaves not only your mech damaged but also free of ammunition for one weapon.
If you were to lose another weapon too in the process it would be bad.

Sidest3p's mech had an almost exactly the same weapons loadout i used in my summoner in MW3. No Streak SRM2 though.
I chain fired the Mlas's to create a machinegun effect. Great for managing heat. Won't work well in MW:O since lasers are DoT weapons now.

Nairdowell, on 12 June 2012 - 06:38 AM, said:

Wonder if you can add jumpjets to mechs normally without them?

Gotta love these guessing games as none of us will know until we actually start playing.... lol

Sorry but it was answered in one of the recent ask the dev's threads. Only variants with jump jets from the start can mount them.

[Nairdowell]

Must have missed that one.... thanks!

[Redshift2k5]

Also as a new addition to MWO, arms and torso aim separately, so if you have the same weapon type in an arm and in a torso, they are not going to always line up and fire together. you CAN have medium lasers on arms and torso, of course, but be sure to group them effectively so you're not firing one pair on target and the other pair at nothing

[Elysion]

I really wish i knew how that arm/torso aiming separately thing worked.

Anyway, i dont know much about mech warrior, but what i do know from my min/maxing carrier in video games is that despite all the pretty balanced loadouts you see officially, the best practice is to load up on things which are all the same general range and play well enough to stay within that range.

[Dalfsson]

MGs are the shortest range weapon in battletech. if they are so close that you can hit with them, you let them get to close. and if you have to use them to aim your other weapons, well, your aim must TRUELY suck. a better weapon for something like what you are talking about might be the AC2. long range, fast recycle time, and low heat. unless they are in something like a pirahna, mGs are useless, just like small lasers. normaly if i have a mech with either of those in them, i remove them and put in more armor or ammo for my other weapons.

InMidnightClad, on 12 June 2012 - 06:46 AM, said:

Use a Machine gun as a tracer for your big, long reload, weapons. Spray the MG and pull the trigger on your big guns once you start plinking armor. It's like a laser sight... but lasers are too important... so we use bullets now... to make sure your lasers hit... wow the future kinda went the other way with things didn't they?

[Ishtar]

my mech is gonna be equipped with all heat sinks! >_>.....

[LordDeathStrike]

Nairdowell, on 12 June 2012 - 06:38 AM, said:

Wonder if you can add jumpjets to mechs normally without them?

Gotta love these guessing games as none of us will know until we actually start playing.... lol

no, we are using table top rules according to devs, so jumpjets are on jumping mechs only. no flying atlas no rocket powered stalkers no death leaping awesome.

Dalfsson, on 13 June 2012 - 03:16 AM, said:

MGs are the shortest range weapon in battletech. if they are so close that you can hit with them, you let them get to close. and if you have to use them to aim your other weapons, well, your aim must TRUELY suck. a better weapon for something like what you are talking about might be the AC2. long range, fast recycle time, and low heat. unless they are in something like a pirahna, mGs are useless, just like small lasers. normaly if i have a mech with either of those in them, i remove them and put in more armor or ammo for my other weapons.

the problem with small lasers in mwo, is they use the same hardpoint as med and large, and you have limited hard points. med lasers are gonna be our work horse weapons at release for energy slots. with large lasers and ppcs taking the points when we have the weight heat and crits to fit them.

[Gozer]

SHHH!! Stop telling people ways of making harder to kill Mechs! I need easy kills!

[Jibaru]

Never ever smoke when barrels of gunpowder or fuel is present , you might not just loose one mech but all of them depending how much weaponry is stockpiled ^^

[UncleKulikov]

Consider placing the ammunition in non-standard locations.
For example, in a scout mech, place it in the leg. If someone has shredded the outer armor to the leg, chances are things are over anyway.

In that vein, I place ammunition in my cockpit since headshots are so deadly anyway. Otherwise, go for the center torso's 2 slots.

[Travers]

Will CASE be available as a mechlab option? If the game is based off the 3050 TRO, it'll be a very important addition to those of us who love the ACs.

[Corsair114]

Never overload on heatsinks. Just enough, maybe a hair more, and that's it.

Armor up until it takes two shots to kill you from whatever happens to become the general level of firepower... only put more armor on if you can survive a third hit reliably because of said armor.

Never underestimate the usefulness of having an Alpha Strike so hot it shuts you down straight-off. It means that, usually, you can keep up a withering fusillade of death, and absolutely maul someone in a pinch.

Stripping locations of armor for bigger weapons or special equipment elsewhere can be an extremely effective design strategy, just so long as you know what you're getting into (also called: "You stripped your legs for guns, don't ***** at me because I've legged you five games running tonight).

If you're a 100 ton assault 'mech, don't go crazy with engine and armor. Yes, you need both (armor more than engine), but you have teamates to clean up anything you don't outright kill. It's your job to smash anything that enters your gunsights, so make sure you can!

Gauss Rifles and ER PPC's are a match made in heaven. Both have long range, both do great damage, both have no minimum range, both are not affected adversely by high heat levels, and both will have you harangued as a cheat and a coward if you hang back and headshot/leg with 'em. Oh, Gauss Rifles in the arms. If you need a snapshot, better to use the guns that generate very little heat, than the ones that can shut you down (plus, they explode, so keep them the hell away from your engine).

Secondary weapons... might be useful, depending on how minimum ranges work out. Just remember that in a premade team, you're better off maximizing for one range. Don't be a jack of all trades, master what you want to do, and fill out space and tonnage elsewhere when needed.

[pursang]

It's kind of premature and presumptuous to tell people what to do and what not do do in a (I'm assuming) game that you haven't even played yet, no?