17 replies to this topic

[Roachbugg]

What the hell is this thing supposed to do? its and awkward turtle of a mech I cant find a single build for any of them that I like I wound up selling off my other two and if I could sell my Prime one I would If i can find a build for the Prime to redeem this thing in my eyes the Thunderbolt may one day return to my garage but until then i have blacklisted this thing.

the variants are goofy are these things XL safe? and what size engine should I run I just hate having half of my phoenix mechs right now feel like wasted money I love my shadowhawks and my battle masters except that atrocious missile one sold it to fund finally having a decent set of light mechs

So I hate the Tbolt and locust (though the poor locust just gets legged to easy not really its fault.)

Edited by Roachbugg, 12 February 2014 - 09:24 AM.

[Hex Pallett]

Interestingly T-bolts are my favourite chassis in the entire Phoenix package.

They're not brawling packages though, that's for sure.

Lemme show you a few leads how to build them:

5S midfield: http://mwo.smurfy-ne...3eee4f19e0a4c60
5SS laserboat: http://mwo.smurfy-ne...f92172bd81716fd
9SE mdifield: http://mwo.smurfy-ne...f4614d0f9f6dd97

[SpiralFace]

They are jack of all trades mechs. Always have been. XL's are not manditory like the Catapult, but they aren't "never put on" either like the Stalker. For the most part, its a very well balance hit box mech that can see you either live with them or without them depending on what you want to do with the mech.

The best way to run them is using "Bracketed" weapon solutions. You won't really be able to bring your entire arsenal to bear, but at the same time, you can be a nice "line filler" and do consistant damage at all ranges.

My 5S just simply puts in an XL of the same class and upgrades the MG's to AC 5's. You basically have LRM's, the LL, and AC's for mid - long range poking, AC's, and the tripple ML's for close range DPS, and the 3 ml's and LL for anti light duties. You aren't going to use them all at once, but if you can juggle the 4 weapons groups, it comes into its own.

5SS is a laser boat. I usually equip it with a large standard engine, endo steel, and as many heat sinks as I can carry before worrying about loadout. My current one runs with a LpL, 5 ML's, and an LRM 10.

9SE. This one is FUN to play with. Its got a ton of armor, can go at a decent speed, and it can JUMP! My current set up sees it use 2 arm mounted LL's, the tri laser, and an LRM 10. Very heat efficient, good speed, and can surprisingly dish out a ton of sustained damage because its fairly heat efficient.

[TheStrider]

TDR-5S - LBX10, LL, 2ML, SRM4+SRM6, XL300
Weapon Groups: 1 - Left Arm / 2 - Right Arm / 3 Torso Weapons
Use the long ranged weapons till they get within 280, then try to keep that range. Carries alot of damage for it's weight.

TDR-5SE - 5ML, 2xSRM6, 3xJJ, STD300
Two weapon groups - ML and SRMs.
This guy did quite well for me while leveling him. On JJ friendly maps this guy is a great hit and run bucket.

[MountainCopper]

I love the balance of this one.
TDR-5S - 1xLL, 1xAC5, 3xML, LRM15/A
Also possible to use a STD engine without Artemis and 2xLRM5s. Further on, LRM5s and SRM4s are interchangeable in terms of space and weight, so there is another option...

TDR-5SS - Difficult one. One working build is 2xLL, 5xML and a STD engine. I then prefer to put the 2xLL into the high hardpoints of the right torso instead of the arm.

What I've been using if somewhat different, which is 2xPPC, 2xML, 3xSPL
TDR-5SS - Again, using the high energy hardpoints for the PPCs. But in close combat, the PPCs have to be disregarded for the Small Pulse Lasers (Medium Lasers and Small Pulse Lasers can be swapped in any place in terms of space and weight).
It works, but has trouble in close combat since the main weapons can't be used.
It works... badly. The double PPCs are great, but the rest is not well suited for close range combat without the heavy weapons.


TDR-9SE - JumpJet brawler. 3xML, 1xLPL from the stock loadout isn't that bad, plus your choice of missiles. SRM8 to SRM12 for close ranges.
Or the aforementioned with 2xLRM5 to increase your long range, which then would be the optimized stock loadout.

Edited by GoldenFleece, 13 February 2014 - 03:41 PM.

[Residualshade]

Helmstif, on 12 February 2014 - 10:50 AM, said:

Interestingly T-bolts are my favourite chassis in the entire Phoenix package.

They're not brawling packages though, that's for sure.

Lemme show you a few leads how to build them:

5SS laserboat: http://mwo.smurfy-ne...f92172bd81716fd

GoldenFleece, on 13 February 2014 - 03:32 AM, said:

TDR-5SS - Difficult one. One working build is 2xLL, 5xML and a STD engine. I then prefer to put the 2xLL into the high hardpoints of the right torso instead of the arm.

i always put my long range weapons in the shoulder as it is in a great position to peak over things and snipe with. i run these builds except i take ER Large Lasers in the shoulder instead of large lasers. does amazing. little hot. with this build you can alpha all lasers twice without overheating and then you can almost constantly fire the ERLL without over heating. repeated use of MLs has to be managed a bit, but usually you only have to wait an extra second after the MLs recharge to use them without overheating.

[waterfowl]

I Just got the TDR-5S, having a blast with it. Hard to descibe it, but the range of motion for the arms makes blowing up light mechs a breeze. Currently using :

STD 260
AC/2 (150 rounds)
LBX-10 (45 rounds)
Large Laser
3x Medium Lasers

Weapon groups :
M1 : AC/2
M2 : LBX
Middle Mouse : Large Laser
Spacebar : Medium Lasers
Alt : Everything
6 : cycle mediums

Decided to forgo the missile slots entirely, all they do is make your side torso huge. As I said, it eats lights up. Has really nice long range capabilities. Has the pinpoint and speed of AC/2, and the "shoot something into that gap between buildings" LBX-10. I find they compliment each other quite well. With double heatsinks, this thing handles the heat 3 or so laser volleys well, and I'm only at basic skills. I can't decide if I enjoy the setup of how wide the torso is or not. But I'm having fun

Edited by waterfowl, 26 February 2014 - 11:29 PM.

[Sam Slade]

9SE is a beast.

Artemis LRM20, 3 Med Las, PPC, TAG, STD275, Full JJ(important), Full armor

This mech can dish out respectable damage from any location within 1000m of a target. The maxx JJ makes a big difference on urban maps. try it

[mogs01gt]

Im with the OP, I had a T-bolt and couldnt wait to get rid of it! Nothing really makes that mech worth it.

[rolly]

Buyer be ware. The stats were up well before you had a chance to buy it.

Blackstone BattleMechs Limited, Earthwerks Incorporated, Olivetti WeaponryTaurus Territorial Industriesare not responsible for misuse, mispiloting, or poor implementation of their products. Consult user manual, online forum or your local retailer for more details.

Edited by rolly, 27 February 2014 - 07:11 AM.

[1453 R]

The Thunder Hammer, my favorite Thunderbolt.

This thing has no business working but still somehow does, like a treat. The PPC in the chin mount (make SURE your PPC is in the mount right beneath your cockpit!) is the most point-and-click accurate weapon in MechWarrior Online, and it compliments the ALRM launchers surprisingly well. The arm-mounted TAG greatly extends the accurate firing arc of your LRM launchers as well, since MWO missiles are apparently capable of firing deeply off-bore. You can do fierce damage from a distance, while the combination of ERPPC and medium lasers gives you enough punch in close to (at least try to) defend yourself against wounded victims inside your launcher's range. Thunder Hammer makes no sense and breaks all the rules of good 'Mech design...but hell if it doesn't work miracles for me all the same.

The Thunder Saber, my second-favorite Thunderbolt.

This thing has surprised me greatly in its ability to both take and dish colossal beatings. I'm normally an XL-exclusive pilot, but this machine honestly makes much better use of the STD engine than it could any weight of XL. Firing the Quadruple Amputator armament in pairs in mandatory...or not. There are times I've fired a four-beam alpha for that one crucial shot against a critical enemy. You have enough heat efficiency to do just that twice on most maps - make it count. The right-torso large lasers are extremely high-mounted and make for fantastic ridgepeeker weapons - I've hit targets without exposing anything other than my right frickin' shoulder to them and blocked half a team's counterfire with my friendly hill-buddy. It's awesome. In the meantime, the arm-mounted lasers are more mobile and have a wider field of fire, helpful for chasing down lights or shooting up/down inclines. And frankly, it feels tankier and more durable than any of the assault 'mechs I've piloted.

I haven't quite settled on a configuration for the 9SE yet. The jump jets are awesome and I miss them dearly on the Hammer and Saber, but the hardpoints on the 9SE just aren't conducive to strongly focused armaments. I can't really turn it into a jumping Thunder Hammer, and its LT energy hardpoints aren't nearly as perfectly situated for beam coverage as the Saber. One of these days the proper use of the 9SE will explode in my mind like a supernova, the way the Thunder Hammer did, but until then I can't recommend any configurations for it. Sorry, mang.

[Jon Gotham]

I've used this on the SE, maybe people think it's rubbish but my word has it worked for me:
http://mwo.smurfy-ne...70df72d7b559128

I also have this for when I get bored of LRMs....:
http://mwo.smurfy-ne...182fb89b5df42d9

Both may appear awful-but both have worked for me VERY well.

[Sug]

There's no place for generalist mechs.

[Golrar]

I have been running my 5S(P) htis way since release. Was the fastest mech to master for me. I sit back and plonk with LRMs then wade in to finish with the 4xML. On maps like Tourmaline and Mordor you have to chain the MLs, but I still do respectable damage on every drop. Mech has the armor and decent hitboxes to wade in with just 4 ML. Better than the Quickdraw 5K with 6xML IMO.

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...09b78dde7499793

Edited by Golrar, 16 March 2014 - 11:58 AM.

[Glxy Cmdr Jason Tseng]

This is my build for the Pheonix variant.

TDR-5S

Runs cool enough that if you chain the MLs you can keep constant damage on target. The LPL and MLs open em up then the MGs crit seek to take out weapons and heatsinks to put the target down. I've had tons of success with this on hot maps like Tourmaline just due to how it manages the heat.

[Malcolm Vordermark]

They're a tough mech to use. The real trouble spot is the left torso. On the 5S and 9SE losing the left torso removes a lot of really powerful hardpoints. Because of this try to spread the fire power as much as you can and avoid XL engines. Lacking the tonnage or hard points to really utilize large ballistics does not help.

I've been working on my Thunderbolts lately. They feel like side kicks. You run around and take care of your assault buddy. As such I kinda like to fit some streaks in there. Here are some of the builds I'm working with:

TDR-5S - Adaptable to most situations but most of the firepower goes with the left torso.
TDR-5S - A more balanced build but nothing amazing and less ability to fend off lights.
TDR-5SS - Laser boat, runs hot but does good damage if you can keep the beams on target.
TDR-9SE - Most of the firepower is in the left torso again. Decent cooling.
TDR-9SE - More balanced weapon load. Streaks to help fend off lights.

Note: I have left the torso armor alone but I usually shift almost all my armor forward.

Edited by Rouken, 17 March 2014 - 03:19 PM.

[tm10067]

2xERPPC horror, surprisingly cheap to make:
TDR-5SS

[TuntematonSika]

Sam Slade, on 26 February 2014 - 11:53 PM, said:

9SE is a beast.

Artemis LRM20, 3 Med Las, PPC, TAG, STD275, Full JJ(important), Full armor

This mech can dish out respectable damage from any location within 1000m of a target. The maxx JJ makes a big difference on urban maps. try it

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