89 replies to this topic

[TercieI]

Koniving, on 09 February 2014 - 12:58 PM, said:

But more seriously.

Small optimization tweak:

Ferro and a Second Ton of MG Ammo

If you run 4MGs, you can run out of one ton pretty easily. That said, this is the only mech I ever gave up on. X-5 came on sale and I sold this and replaced it.

Edited by Terciel1976, 09 February 2014 - 01:22 PM.

[Dunning Kruger Effect]

I'm interested in buying the current trial mech (partly for the free XL340) ... but are their any non-Jenner fits a Ciciada 2A can do? I'm not terribly interested in 6 ML as I can do that on a Jenner (and fly!). Man, I wish the 3M was the "trial" one...

What about

2 x ERPPC?

2 x ERLL + various smaller lasers?

Are these practical?

[luxebo]

Dunning Kruger Effect, on 16 February 2014 - 10:34 PM, said:

I'm interested in buying the current trial mech (partly for the free XL340) ... but are their any non-Jenner fits a Ciciada 2A can do? I'm not terribly interested in 6 ML as I can do that on a Jenner (and fly!). Man, I wish the 3M was the "trial" one...

What about

2 x ERPPC?

2 x ERLL + various smaller lasers?

Are these practical?

There is the Firestarter (not quite out yet), and there is the LCT-3M, which is way harder to playthrough. ER LLs + ECM seems like the competitive build people say of. 2 ER PPC sounds hot.

[Magos Titanicus]

I would not miss my cicadas! Actually, i have every single one them in my garage. the slowest ones are pacing around with 133km/h and the fastest 147 with XL Engines >= 300. You can do a lot of different builds and a wolf pack of them can tear anything apart, but you need space to drive. The best feature is the torso twist with almost 180 degrees, which means you can run from a chasing player and still be able to hit him! Acceleration feels like you're firing up a nitro driven engine. But it is a pretty fragile chassis and you have to treat it very cautious! Don't try to strip of armor, no matter which part, you'll need it!! But if you're getting familiar with them, you gonna love it!

Take a look at my setups if you want.

X-5


CDA-2A


CDA-2B


CDA-3C


CDA-3M

Edited by Magos Titanicus, 17 February 2014 - 01:16 PM.

[Satan n stuff]

Koniving, on 09 February 2014 - 12:58 PM, said:

Totally not worth it. But now it is.

But more seriously.

Meh, ER PPC and a big ballistic is the way to go for a 3C in my opinion. You can still have machine guns with a lot of those combos. Alternatively you can take two ACs with machine guns and a medium laser for more dakka. Three ACs is possible but somewhat risky, even with AC/2s.

[Rando Slim]

Yes, the Cicada 3m is great because its the only thing between a Raven and an Atlas with ECM. I equip mine with 2 PPCs an XL 300 engine, and double heat sinks. My most satisfying match in 2800 drops was when I was the last man standing on my team and took out the remaining 5 guys by myself on HPG manifold, landing the last shot on a highlander with 6 seconds left, it was truly epic. It goes 134 kph which is plenty fast enough once you get used to the idea that you arent a Jenner, you can use the speed to get away from big things, or dictate engagement range against said big things. An oxide or an ember will ruin your day though. So you COULD go with a PPC and an ER PPC and use the ER when a light gets on you, but its kinda hard to manage the heat on hot maps like that. The X-5 is the other Cicada worth having and is excellent with 4mlas, BAP, and 2 streaks. You could go 4mplas, and 2 streaks but requires more sacrifice. For me my favorite x-5 build is an xl 330 engine, and 4 medium pulse lasers, and a couple extra heatsinks, skip the missiles altogether. 147 kph with max armor and 24 points of near pinpoint damage is nothin to sneeze at, when you get good with it its a very effective lighthunter and can puncture the big guys as well. My personal record of 7 kills was done with such a loadout! You could do this with the 2A of course but I like to get my 30 percent boost and then free up a mechbay by selling off the 2A. Another fun thing to do is team up with a couple other people and do a whole Lance of Cicadas comprised of 2 3Ms and 2 2As (the one with 6 energy hardpoints) and equip nothing but flamers (and a mac gun on the 3Ms). Use the ECM to sneak up on people or counter as needed. Then circle and roast them! 2 of you at a time go lock down a mech with ten flamers, or a single target with 20 flamers, they will be unable to do anything, its hilarious.

Edited by Scrotacus 42, 17 February 2014 - 06:48 AM.

[Molossian Dog]

Meta, Schmeta. The Cicada rocks.

Responsive, excellent profile (although bad hitboxes) good torso twist range and speed. By experience I find the 125,x kph treshold to be a neccessity. But other pilots are doing good in slower versions as well.

The only thing you can´t do with them is streak boating. Otherwise there are dozens of different loadouts possible. And with enough tonnage to actually make them work.

[IraqiWalker]

Molossian Dog, on 17 February 2014 - 07:04 AM, said:

Meta, Schmeta. The Cicada rocks.

Responsive, excellent profile (although bad hitboxes) good torso twist range and speed. By experience I find the 125,x kph treshold to be a neccessity. But other pilots are doing good in slower versions as well.

The only thing you can´t do with them is streak boating. Otherwise there are dozens of different loadouts possible. And with enough tonnage to actually make them work.

The "ears" help a lot with the hitboxes. I also like having them in a light lance, as it is a 40 ton light.

[Tesunie]

Question: Do you NEED a reason?

I like how my Cicadas look. They are a fast bug to squish too. Sure, people will argue that the Jenner does the same things (and some will argue better), but it's a different skin/look/feel.

If you like the idea behind a Cicada, or it's looks, and like going fast, I'd suggest you give them a try. I love all my Cicadas personally. I also like my Jenners, Locusts, etc too.

To really answer your question, I think it might be a matter of taste, preference and what you are looking to get out of the mech. Overall, the Cicada is not a bad mech. I love it. Others might argue against it. In the end, only you can decide for yourself if you like the mech or not.

[xMEPHISTOx]

Dunning Kruger Effect, on 09 February 2014 - 02:34 AM, said:

I kinda like the "idea" of a Cicada but I can't see the value in it.

They are fun and can be plenty useful in pug battles, however they are not good/used for competitive drops.

[Wriath]

Dunning Kruger Effect, on 09 February 2014 - 02:34 AM, said:

I tried the "trial" version and it simply seems like a larger, less mobile Jenner. Without jump jets - which is a massive additional hit. Is there any time it is a better choice then a Jenner?

The Cicada 2a is a larger, more well armored, significantly more heat efficient jr7-f. It's capable of going into a brawl with heavier mechs and firing while staying cool where as a jenner is forced to make hit and fade attacks or carry less weaponry. It's also Superb at light hunting if you're a good shot with the mediums because you've got an armor advantage while still being fast enough to trail them.
Edit: They've also got a (slightly) less exposed center torso than jenners and better torso twisting.

Edited by Wriath, 17 February 2014 - 06:58 PM.

[White Panther]

xMEPHISTOx, on 17 February 2014 - 06:27 PM, said:

They are fun and can be plenty useful in pug battles, however they are not good/used for competitive drops.

You should watch the BSK vs. SwK latest match in game 5. Lots of cicadas used there, they can be really good for certain tactics and they are used in competition, not all that common but still used by certain teams.

[NRP]

You should only ever drive mechs that others say are the best. Seriously, I thought everyone knew this already?

You should never, ever, try a mech yourself and make up your own mind. Seriously, don't be that guy.

Edited by NRP, 17 February 2014 - 07:16 PM.

[Tesunie]

NRP, on 17 February 2014 - 07:16 PM, said:

You should only ever drive mechs that others say are the best. Seriously, I thought everyone knew this already?

You should never, ever, try a mech yourself and make up your own mind. Seriously, don't be that guy.

[Koniving]

On random reasons... I found this video. Turns out a Cicada single handedly killed a Muromets in less than 5 seconds with only 6 ML.

[OuttaAmmo NoWai]

Cicadas are great -

Long-range kiting: (provided you can aim)
Get the ECM chassis with 2xERPPC, 2xPPC, 2xERLLAS or a combination of the above, get the biggest XL engine you can fit and kite large mechs all day. You'll dominate anything medium-weight and heavier (just don't get caught by shortrange lights.) You can easily hit larger mechs from range, you have the speed to control the engagement, and your ECM keeps them from spotting you. Be sure to move every few shots or so so they don't get a bead on you.

(Hunter-killer, beat up on lights)
You could opt for the energy-heavy variant and play it like a beefier Jenner, you could get the Hero variant and load streaks and mediums, or you could go meds and a light ballistic weapon on the ECM chassis. Your speed allows you to keep up with enemy light mechs and your armor ensures a win in a 1-on-1 scenario, provided you land your shots. Just don't get in prolonged brawls with heavy tonnage enemies.

[Wriath]

^----- This man speaks only truth.

[Wildstreak]

Jenners?
JENNERS?

Cicadas are not Jenners, they are Locusts after a gym and steroid program. Look:
LVT-1V x2 tonnage = CDA-3C
LVT-3S x2 tonnage = X-5
LVT-3M x2 tonnage = CDA-2A/2B
CDA-3M = bonus for beefing up.

[Xiphias]

xMEPHISTOx, on 17 February 2014 - 06:27 PM, said:

They are fun and can be plenty useful in pug battles, however they are not good/used for competitive drops.

Au contraire: http://www.twitch.tv...e49/b/502662745

Skip to 2:17:00 for a great match and an example of the advantages of Cicadas.

@OP
The 3M is the best Cicada variant. It is best played as a ranged skirmisher. Stay at a distance, keep your head down, shoot heavies in the back, and avoid enemy light mechs. Ton for ton a well piloted Cicada is the most dangerous mech on the battlefield. A good Cicada or two can easily wipe out whatever is left of the enemy team at the end of a match. I've seen Cicadas easily pull off victories after being 1-2 v 3-6. Just kill the lights before you're the last one left.

Disclaimer though, it's not an easy mech to play. It takes a decent amount of piloting to be effective in. The PPC loadout also works best when run in groups. That way you can spread out to deal with lights. If a light gets on you alone you're dead with only PPCs.

Edited by Xiphias, 17 February 2014 - 08:43 PM.

[Heketon]

Modo44, on 09 February 2014 - 05:37 AM, said:

It is the lightest thing that can reasonably do the small mech with a big gun thing (for a heavy-hitting ballistic or energy setup). For Jenner-like things, stay with the Jenner. Sligthly more armor will not make up for Cicada's size and relative lack of mobility. If you want to go that route, the Trebuchet 3C is uniquely qualified.

*cough* spider *cough*