34 replies to this topic

[Appogee]

Spiders are the best frontline Mechs at this time :-)

[muskrat]

I have never been more than a fair pilot/gunner. My help to the team is I AM a fine wingman, I pilot Heavy mechs, and always try to set up at 7oclock off the Atlas or an Assult. My Cat C1(F) is set up to supress snipers (2 ERPPC) and Take on that light if he comes into the group on a straffing run (2 med laser 2 streak 2's Bap) My Frats (even my 3d) all carry a mixture of the same load out: 2 LL, AC10, Med Laser, I am designed to SUPPORT my assualt. I put the AC10 in Both my tics since it fires faster than My Large lasers, I can squeeze my 2 med lasers to 400 meter and hit my target with a Second AC10, granted I cant do this ALOT most my builds run 1.2+ heat. I carry Adv Sensor, Adv Tgting, Adv SIZEMIC.
I will sweep legs on lights with both my LL and ML even tho I waste the AC10 rounds
Sadly I will even follow my Assualt to my demise rather than let him take on 4 or 5 enemy alone, I pug probably 85 percent of the time. I see a lot of pilots in Atlas mechs that should be in heavy's and I see some heavy pilots that should be in Assults.
I once followed an Atlas around the corner only to run into a DDC/7D/Iyla then watched MY atlas fire off his 2 flamers (duh, I knew right away this would not end well)
I PREFER to follow the war plan, IF YOU MUST MEET AN ENEMY AFTER A JOURNEY, MAKE SURE IT WAS HIS JOURNEY.
In other words poke your head around the corner but BE sure you can retreat, Hopefully you will DRAW that other pilot into your team.

[-Muta-]

A Front Line Mech is the Mech that positions itself at the front of the lines.

[Lyoto Machida]

Tycho von Gagern, on 06 September 2013 - 09:35 AM, said:

Yeah, I'm working through the Cent skill tree right now, and it's really frustrating to be moving in-and-out of cover taking shots at the enemy, only to suddenly find I can't back into my cover because of the blue-triangle riding my *ss. Turning, I find a K-2, or a Stalker, or an Atlas. And they don't want to get out in front of me in my medium. They just sit there, either waiting for the enemy to engage on their terms, or -once we're down 4 mechs- realizing that sitting behind a rock while everyone else dies isn't a winning strategy (Congrats! You died last!) they finally start shooting at someone when it's too late to make a difference.

When I'm not working through the Cent skill tree, I'm driving my C-4, which I've mastered and fitted with LRMs as a primary system. I'm really really really tired of people telling the LRM drivers "You've got to get more aggressive and get up front," and at the same time telling the guy in the 100 ton Fatlas "Wait for the battle to join, then skirt the edges; only commit yourself once you find an opportunity in which the odds are in your favor," or some such guru hogwash.

I was playing a PUG in which we lost pretty bad, and at the end one of my teammates chatted, "Oh, well, when the Atlas pilot says they're going to find a good place to snipe from, you know you're skrewd."

Words to live by.

I play my LRMs from about 250-400m back from the front. Anything further is usually indirect and/or just not effective due to range/time to get in cover.

I'll even play right behind a couple brawlers as long as outside minimum LRM range. Plus, the further you are back from the main line, the easier it is for a light to pick you off (as an LRM mech or sniper).

[Void Angel]

Though usually well-meaning, this advice is frequently given in support of the SniparWarrior meta - which very often leads to toxic levels of timidity in-game. What they're telling you to do here is load up with long-range weapons that don't require you to close with your opponent - and that preferably deal damage in bursts, so you don't have to maintain line of sight for long either.

It's not always bad advice - but it underscores the role that player perceptions have in the establishment of the meta game.

Edited by Void Angel, 14 September 2013 - 10:47 PM.

[Satan n stuff]

Autobot9000, on 06 September 2013 - 07:41 AM, said:

On the other side I facepalm every single time I see LRM boating Atlases and Highlanders. These people simply don't understand, that they are killing their team. There is a tonnage matchup and if you're heaviest mechs are standing with their 600ish armor in the last line fireing LRMs, then guess who loses? Highlanders, Atlases and Stalkers belong in one single place and that's the "first line". Any other thing kills the team.

You do realize there are ways to use LRMs that don't involve standing 600M behind everyone shooting mechs you can't even see? I myself have several assaults with LRMs which I use quite effectively. LRM boating works best when you're close enough to hit a target before it can get into cover, and preferably with enough friendly direct fire near you that the enemy can't simply rush you. Combining LRMs and direct fire weapons can also be extremely effective especially on assault mechs as they have the tonnage to throw decently sized LRM volleys while still being able to carry some other big guns. The most important thing is to always bring a TAG and Artemis and preferably BAP as well or ECM for the D-DC, that way you can simply outgun most assault mechs and you won't have as much of a problem with enemy ECM. Ideally you'll want to be shooting at mechs you can see, and you should move accordingly, but providing fire support when you have no other targets is usually a good idea, just try not to waste ammo on mechs you're not going to hit anyway. If you're firing on targets in your line of sight you're going to get shot at, so that 500-600 armor won't be going to waste, but don't facetank because it's suicide regardless of your build. You shouldn't sit back and lob LRMs unless you have ( almost ) no other weapons, as that's only rarely effective if you don't have a good spotter.

[Alpha087]

It's just the nature of the game now that we're up to 12 vs 12. It is complete suicide to rush out into the open in a heavy or assault mech when there's 6 to 8 people ready to burn you down from cover. This is a game that's a lot more focused on tactics rather than running and gunning.

[Faithsfall]

When i'm in my highlander i use this as a frontline mech, if i see a team m8 that is recieving alot of dmg then i try to push up to soak up some myself, this will help either both to pull back or push forward depending on the placement of the enemy.

[NRP]

I can promise my teammates this: if you charge, I'll go with you, guns blazing. I don't give a {Scrap}. I want to mix it up, not hide like a pansy until the right moment to maximize my precious K/D ratio.

[Bront]

NRP, on 14 September 2013 - 05:42 PM, said:

I can promise my teammates this: if you charge, I'll go with you, guns blazing. I don't give a {Scrap}. I want to mix it up, not hide like a pansy until the right moment to maximize my precious K/D ratio.

This is the biggest problem with PUGs and Frontline mechs. A front line charge can be effective, but you often can't trust your PUG Teammates to come along, leaving you looking like Leroy Jenkins rather than Braveheart. Try nudging them on a bit, as that sometimes helps.

K/D ratio means nothing. Is it cool to have high? Yeah. Will it win you anything? Not in the long run.

To this day, I'll never forget some guy in a stalker who hid and shut down in Terra Therma when he was all alone against 5 other mechs (and he was fairly untouched) crying "I played well, I don't deserve to die". That's not helping anyone. Don't be stupid about charging in, but it's a game. The worst thing that happens is you die quickly, you tip your cap to your enemy, and you drop again.

[Kjudoon]

To me, I've been learning quickly to play the mech and play your loadout.

My favorite combo so far is a fast heavy with moderate armor like a Dragon. I run a mix of LRMs with a LB10 X and SL or ML as a backup. Yes, backup. Everything's set to chain fire as well. I sit back and soften up the mechs without AMS with a steady barrage from even LRM5s, and I carry a lot. When out of ammo, I come out and start sniping till I'm out of ammo on the big LB10 and then when that's gone, I go capping. More than a few times have the enemy done a push thinking to find a medium or light mech harrassing them with LRM5's and run right into a passel of trouble as I hammer their stripped armor off with the big gun. If I have nothing near me (my favorite) I sit behind a hill and rain support fire in on the enemy from targets from others and then maneouver to fire from a new spot or flank them and keep up indirect pressure.

Cowardly? Maybe. Not always the most successful if your team doesn't target, which often ends up in them getting killed because I'm not going to just charge in as I'm not a brawler, nor heavily enough armored to sit and snipe in the open like an Atlas.

The Dragon COULD be a frontline mech with the proper loadout as a brawler, slow with heavy armor. I prefer a different method as a 'second tier' fighter. If there's a tactical withdrawl, I can cover from behind the hill. If they overrun the ridge, I blast away once LOS is had.


"Artillery adds dignity to what would otherwise be an ugly brawl." Napoleon

So play your type and loadout and never let ego or bravado of others willing to throw their atlas away cause you to be stupid too.

[Kjudoon]

Bront, on 15 September 2013 - 07:39 AM, said:

This is the biggest problem with PUGs and Frontline mechs. A front line charge can be effective, but you often can't trust your PUG Teammates to come along, leaving you looking like Leroy Jenkins rather than Braveheart. Try nudging them on a bit, as that sometimes helps.

K/D ratio means nothing. Is it cool to have high? Yeah. Will it win you anything? Not in the long run.

To this day, I'll never forget some guy in a stalker who hid and shut down in Terra Therma when he was all alone against 5 other mechs (and he was fairly untouched) crying "I played well, I don't deserve to die". That's not helping anyone. Don't be stupid about charging in, but it's a game. The worst thing that happens is you die quickly, you tip your cap to your enemy, and you drop again.

I'd like to add that the push has it's place, but shouldn't be the first thing you do. It should be the second after a little time sniping and raining fire on the enemy.

[Bront]

Kjudoon, on 30 September 2013 - 12:15 PM, said:

I'd like to add that the push has it's place, but shouldn't be the first thing you do. It should be the second after a little time sniping and raining fire on the enemy.

Unless your side can't snipe and/or rain fire well...

[Kjudoon]

Bront, on 01 October 2013 - 06:56 AM, said:

Unless your side can't snipe and/or rain fire well...

There is that little chestnut as well.

[Tiamat of the Sea]

A lack of unifying concept of what constitutes a 'frontline 'mech' doesn't help with this. My general advice would be to ignore people who say 'don't use it as a frontline 'mech' about any given frame, because a: there are better words to describe 'mech roles than 'frontline', and b: any 'mech can serve most of the possible battlefield purposes depending entirely on what you put into the thing in terms of equipment.