47 replies to this topic

[Defalus]

I would like to know which mech is the hardest to pilot well?I assume its an assault?

[RickySpanish]

Probably the Locust because it's so worthless? As for Assaults, maybe the Awesome, but more because its so gimped rather than any kind of high skillcap.

[Carrioncrows]

Awesome.

The Awesome is the great equalizer in skill, massive hitboxes, low slung weapons, low engine cap on a mech that needs heatsinks like a fish needs water.

Hardest mech to do good in, Pretty Baby.

Edited by Carrioncrows, 20 October 2013 - 03:35 PM.

[RickySpanish]

I wouldnt say the PB is super hard to pilot because it doesat least have speed. Id argue the 9M and PB variants are the easiest ( short of an lrm 8r ) as they will get you out of a sticky situation fast

[NRP]

Of the Assaults, probably the toughest are the Atlas and the Awesome, but for very different reasons.

The Atlas is tough because it's slow, and is the enemy's primary focus. Everybody gangs up on an Atlas. If your team doesn't support you, you're basically screwed.

The Awesome on the other hand just doesn't pack enough firepower and is severely crippled by the ghost heat mechanic. Not to mention all damage (especially LRMs) goes directly to your CT. The Awesome can only survive by hiding until the game is well underway and everyone is damaged. It can't really be, you know . . . an Assault mech. In fact, the Victor, Battlemaster, and even the Thunderbolt show how truly awful the Awesome is.

[Carrioncrows]

RickySpanish, on 20 October 2013 - 03:38 PM, said:

I wouldnt say the PB is super hard to pilot because it doesat least have speed. Id argue the 9M and PB variants are the easiest ( short of an lrm 8r ) as they will get you out of a sticky situation fast

I haven't done well in a PB since the SRM nerf. I used to roll around with 3 med pulse, 3 Asrm6 and do well in it, now not so much

[Byzan]

without a doubt one any of the size 300 limited engine Awesome variants, the 9m is ok, better than the BP just struggles with having to rely totally on energy weapons and the bad Awesome chassis hit boxes.

They are a challenge simply because they are gimp, slow, easy to hit and hot as well. Twisting an awesome never seems to help as much as twisting does in other chassis. I think its because they are so flat and wide oposition mech can almost always hit CT front or CT rare - you have to use a perfect angle to take damage on the arms

[Deathlike]

Hello "Awesome is the worst mech" thread.

[FupDup]

Assaults: Awesome
Heavies: Dragon
Mediums: I dunno, Trebuchet?
Lights: Locust

Overall: Locust. The Awesome can at least output damage and can survive getting sneezed on.

Edited by FupDup, 20 October 2013 - 04:23 PM.

[Butane9000]

Hardest Assault chassis is indeed the Awesome.

Hardest in general is tough. Awesome is definitely a contender but so are the Dragon, Trebuchet and Commando. Those 3 are the top in their weight class for uselessness though the Locust might usurp the Commando. We'll see in a few weeks. Other notable choices are the Cicada, Blackjack and Hunchback (note: All mediums).

[Squid von Torgar]

I would say Awesome, but lets face it, its rather broken. That said, out of all mechs, I see badly piloted Atlai more than anything.

[Koniving]

Carrioncrows, on 20 October 2013 - 03:40 PM, said:

I haven't done well in a PB since the SRM nerf. I used to roll around with 3 med pulse, 3 Asrm6 and do well in it, now not so much

Well no wonder, you're brawling in a mech that generally doesn't excel without long range support mentalities.

On the plus side, throw a 385 minimum engine in it and go on Tourmaline Desert in Testing Grounds. Know those pillars NO ONE can climb? Guess who care can! The PB.

Grin wildly, bring some ER PPCs and LRMs, get up high and 'touch' some red-marked mechs.

(Freaking wrong word.)

--------

Edit: From "For the New Guys."

Koniving, on 08 October 2013 - 08:45 AM, said:

Movement.

• Throttle Decay allows you to stop when you release the key. Numpad 1 through 0 allows you to set cruise speeds. Tap W or S to stop.
  
• Throttle Decay off lets you tap W and S to set cruise speeds with more control than the numpad. X to stop.
  
• Climbing hills that are steeper than your mech can climb straight is possible. You need an understanding of the concepts of momentum and inertia, but essentially turn left at 45 degrees away along the slope, build up speed, direct the momentum toward the hill while turning right 90 degrees (45 degrees right of the starting facing) and build up speed. Using this method an Atlas can climb a 40 degree slope despite its 30-ish degree limit.
  
  • Currently the most redeeming quality of the otherwise under-performing Awesome series is that the 9M can climb 50 degree slopes using this method. The Pretty Baby can climb a 60 degree slope. This means access to otherwise inaccessible positions to provide fire support. Even mechs with jumpjets cannot reach some of these areas!
    
  • The motion described above looks like this. (|) (\) (|) (/) (|) (\) (|) (/) (|) until climbing is completed.
• Despite knockdowns being turned off, colliding with another mech causes damage. The smaller you are, the more you take against a larger opponent. You can kill others and yourself by ramming!

Edited by Koniving, 20 October 2013 - 04:39 PM.

[Deathlike]

FupDup, on 20 October 2013 - 04:22 PM, said:

Assaults: Awesome
Heavies: Dragon
Mediums: I dunno, Trebuchet?
Lights: Locust

Overall: Locust. The Awesome can at least output damage and can survive getting sneezed on.

I dunno. If the Awesome farts and every other mech can smell it, is it already dead?

I know Locusts can be one shot, but it can cap. Awesomes are target practice and anyone failing to shoot an Awesome down should feel bad.

[D04S02B04]

Most of these guys are wrong with regards to the Assault class.

The hardest Assault mech to pilot is actually the Highlander.

The Awesome and Victor are both very vicious Assault Mechs because with their tonnage and size they are able to bring huge amount of firepower to the table. With their lighter 80 tons this means you move faster with the same engine and turn faster.

Survivability is determined by firstly mobility, then armour. An Awesome can easily engage and disengage, run from cover to cover, torso twist, present side profile (pretty slim), spreading damage evenly throughout his entire torso. A lot of Awesome mount majority of their weapons on their torso which means you lose very little fire power from losing your arms. The Victor has the benefits of a smaller profile and ballistic weaponry but requires good pinpoint accuracy and focused firing (AC20s, AC5 builds) which reduces your ability to torso twist to spread damage. The greater amount of hardpoints on the Awesome makes you a stronger burst damage Mech overall compared to Victor.

It may seem like an Awesome is subpar compared to an Atlas but I have downed many Atlas from the burst firepower/dps of the Awesome against an Atlas.

The Highlander is highly difficult because unlike the Atlas, it does not have the same amount of armour but it can carry a similar amount of weaponry but still suffers the Atlas' mobility issues. This puts you right in the middle of, slower mobility than awesome/victor and lesser armour than an Atlas. Some might call it best of both worlds but I see it as the worse of both worlds.

However the Highlander is exceedingly good in its role of moving faster than the Atlas and having the potential to have massive DPS in close quarters, making it suited for breaking through during the midgame, rapidly downing any mechs that offers resistance. The jumpjets while many players have exalted as good for assisting in turning against light mechs... I find is only good for obtaining better positions in maps like Canyon. No real immediate advantage unless you're a medium or light mech who can pack far more JJs and evade better.

EDIT: Moreover, the Highlander has very easily target-able shoulders. I've noticed my shoulders being blown away on many occasions (somehow they don't seem to shoot my centre torso as much) and this disables up to 75% of your firepower, depending on the side that is blown off and weapons loaded. Putting on an XL engine is a highly risky trade-off whereas it is advantageous for some variants of other Assault Mechs.

The Atlas is easy to play if you take the DDC model and simply support from long range or pick a front heavy Atlas and provide a shield/base of fire for the advance.

Edited by D04S02B04, 20 October 2013 - 05:40 PM.

[Byzan]

D04S02B04, on 20 October 2013 - 05:37 PM, said:

An Awesome can easily engage and disengage, run from cover to cover, torso twist, present side profile (pretty slim), spreading damage evenly throughout his entire torso.

fyi only 2 of the 6 Awesome varients - 1 non-hero varient can fit engines larger than 300

4 of them are bricks, and dont fit this description.

the other killer of being limited to a 300 engine is that it only has 2 extra heatsink mounts. these are hot mechs.

[D04S02B04]

Byzan, on 20 October 2013 - 06:21 PM, said:

fyi only 2 of the 6 Awesome varients - 1 non-hero varient can fit engines larger than 300

4 of them are bricks, and dont fit this description.

the other killer of being limited to a 300 engine is that it only has 2 extra heatsink mounts. these are hot mechs.

You being unable to unlock the potential of the Awesome has nothing to do with the capabilities of other players. I'll show you one of my best loadouts for Awesome-8V.

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...a28eed8e4db2ebb

If you look at what loadouts other players have made, they are all poorly optimised.

http://www.mechspecs....php?board=73.0

Poor heat problems resulting in inability to kill off mechs quickly, means taking more damage etc.


Awesome-8V by D04S02B04, on Flickr

The above screenshot was done at a time before I unlocked all my efficiencies and when I was still a poorer player.

Played right, you will consistently achieve 500+ damage. The only weakness is it's focus on brawling which only works in a good pre-made lance or at lower MM levels. At the "higher" MM levels, people just sit and camp which is actually a stupid strategy as you cannot leverage your faster cooling and DPS capabilities to blow the enemy out of the water.

I went back to play a few games to see if I can get a few good ones to show you the current capabilities of the Awesome and why it isn't a hard mech to pilot.

This match was an excellent highlight of the Awesome's capability.



Awesome-8V Torso Gone by D04S02B04, on Flickr

After I downed two mechs, I was cored heavily in close quarters grnd level against multiple AC heavy mechs, a Thunderbolt and Shadowhawk as well as a Jenner harrassing running around.



Awesome-8V Game End by D04S02B04, on Flickr

This is at the end of the game, after I was fighting in close quarters in the city against a cheese Jaeger with 6 MGs which I engaged for about 10 seconds before he was finished off by my team mates after I let off 2 alphas on his torso.



Awesome-8V Score by D04S02B04, on Flickr

Score at game end. Note that I took out 5 mechs rapidly (Atlas, Thunderbolt, Shadowhawk & 2 others) because of my heavy alpha and DPS ability and assisted in another 3 kills. Granted they were 1 man down, but we had pretty useless team mates anyway.

[K0M3D14N]

Literally everything the guy above me said. If more prone in the community thought like he or she does this would be a much better game. Every 'Mech has upsides and downsides. It's how you pilot them that makes the difference. So many people are wrapped up in the almighty "meta" that they literally refuse to see other options.

For example, I've actually had people criticise me for piloting a COM-3A. Nevermind that my K/D ratio is pretty good, especially for a Light 'Mech. Nevermind that I average 300+ dmg per match. It's always the same. "But you'd be better in a Jenner!"

Not really because I suck at piloting Jenners.

Good on you, D04S. Continue to be Awesome.

[Felicitatem Parco]

I'd say the Awesome 8Q is the hardest Mech.

The "all-Energy Boats" are designed [in BattleTech] to function when firing rates are limited to 1 shot per 10 seconds to match the heat dissipation of heatsinks, whereas in MW:O weapons are allowed to fire faster than 1 per 10 seconds. The result is that Mechs that can use Missiles and Ballistics to provide low-heat firepower are always capable of generating more sustained damage than Mechs that can only use High-Heat weapons (energy weapons).

If Ballistics and Missile weapons were restricted to being fired once/10 seconds, then this point would be moot because a bearer of energy weapons would have 10 seconds to cool down between shots, just like everybody else. However, because Ballistics and Missile weapons can fire more than once per 10 seconds, the energy boats cannot cool themselves down fast enough to compensate for the increased RoF [and total firepower output] offered by ballistic and missile weapons.

This is compounded by the following caveats - Assault Mechs cannot physically mount enough double heatsinks to keep a single pair of PPCs cool at max allowable RoF, whereas 2 AC/10s can be fired at max RoF with many tons of ammo for a very long time; also external DHS are only 1.4x strength instead of 2x strength which further inhibits the functionality of Assault Energy Boats beyond the limitations they already experience.

[MeiSooHaityu]

Well, Locust 1V specifically is pretty hard to pilot well. I ONCE did about 450 damage, but most times it is about 120 damage and the occasionall 60 damage . The Locust 3M is FAR more forgiving and I tend to do much better in that chassis. I haven't tried the missile based one.

As for Assaults, almost ANY Assault for me is difficult because they are so slow and clumsy. It is easier for me to say which Assault is easy to pilot (for an Assault anyway), and that is the Victor. The Battlemaster isn't too bad, but I still say the Victor is pretty nice. It feels like a heavier Heavy then an Assault.

I think the Mediums and Heavies are fairly easy to pilot, but if I had to pick (from the mechs I have piloted), I would say...

Cataphract due to low slung weapons (still, not a bad mech, but tricky with rolling terrain).

Hunchback 4P "Swayback". I do not have many Mediums, but out of the ones I do, the Hunch 4P is tricky. It is mostly an issue due to its poor heat efficency. You have to be pretty good at heat management to put down the most damage possible without overheating and shutting down.

[MeiSooHaityu]

P.S. I change my mind for Heavy. The Catapult A1. LRMs are tricky to use effectively (if PUGing), and SSRMs don't inflict enough damage on the big mechs, are hard to use agains ECM mechs (even with BAP). Regular SRMs can be a crapshoot when it comes to putting the damage where you want it.

Yea, A1 is a tricky Heavy.