34 replies to this topic

[Nabbis]

Looking for a mech on the medium/heavy chasis group that would be good for ballistic weaponry.. My mech usually have been a laser/half missile platfrorms
My centurions and my stalkers can't really do that many ballistic setups so what would be a good mech for these kind of weapons in the medium or heavy groups?

[jper4]

heavy- caraphrat and jagers (may be missing one or two because i don;t play heavies much)
medium- shadowhawk, blackjack also peeks it's head in for the conversation

[TheDevilsIncarnate]

• Jagers
  
• Cataphracts
  
• Highlanders
  
• Victors

Need I say more? Jagers are considered the best ballistics mech in the game, as the DD has 6 slots for ballistic style weapons. the 4X Cataphract has 4 Ballistic slots but is slow as dirt even with max engine, so the 3D is considered a better alternative with 2 ballistic slots. Both Highlanders and Victors have at least one, except for the 733P variant of the Highlander, and the 9S on the Victors has 3 ballistic slots. All are fantastic mechs, and I can personally vouch for the Cataphracts and Highlanders, but not the Victors or Jagers.


Edit: I forgot the ShadowHawk, and I did not read the exclusive Heavies and Mediums Only, So ignore half my post if you don't like the more sluggish assaults that pack lots of armor and firepower.

Edited by TheDevilsIncarnate, 20 February 2014 - 11:19 AM.

[Koniving]

Jager and Cataphract (4x, Muromets) for dedicated platforms. <--most recommended. Heavies.

For partial platforms, Victor and Highlander. <--highly recommended but are assaults.

For other partial platforms Mediums and heavies
(just for variety, some are far less recommended than others)
Shadowhawk, Hunchback 4G, Grid Iron, Centurion D, Treb 7K, Cataphract 3D, . <--To be different.

Partial platforms (lights) - Firestarter (the 2 ballistic) and Ember.

For an interesting platform... Locust 1V with an AC/5. <--Because nobody expects the Locust Inquisition! (It's a light.)

Edited by Koniving, 20 February 2014 - 11:26 AM.

[Redshift2k5]

Jägermech: slower, dangerous with an lx engine, can bring two big ballistics on high engine mounts(or more than 2 for some builds)
Shadowhawk is much more agile and faster, but much less weight to spend on heavy ballistics.

How fast do you want to go and what guns do you want to bring whn you get there?

[Turist0AT]

there is only one. CTF-4X, a complete murder machine. The only one who beats it, is CTF-ILYA Muromoets with 3xAC-10.

Edited by Turist0AT, 20 February 2014 - 01:05 PM.

[Smokeyjedi]

Shadow hawk(includes JJ) with 3 Ac2's and lots of ammo, is really, really, really fun!!!! mobile, powerful and when overlooked as lesser target is truly devastating. 2X ac2s 2X ERLL is even hotter but even better!

[Valdemaar]

I consider the Jagermech the definitive ballistic platform currently. The ballistics are in the arms for all the variants and are just slightly above cockpit level. This means that unlike other mechs with low arms if you can see it you don't have to worry about the shot hitting the dirt from uneven terrain. This also makes it the only mech I can think of that has high mounted ballistics that are not in the side torsos.

I've elited all three of the 'free' variants when they were released but I kept my JM6-DD and still pilot it regularly. Personally I find it the most fun because of the three ballistic slots in each arm make for some varied builds. It has the flexibility of sporting twin AC/20's to any other combination of ballistics such as quad AC/5, hex AC/2 (although admittedly horribly ineffectively), mixed calibers such as twin AC/5 and UAC/5 or AC/5 and AC/2. My personal favorites though are the Can Opener and the Pepper Grinder.

Edited by Valdemaar, 20 February 2014 - 01:28 PM.

[JigglyMoobs]

Yes, the Jager is a good ballistics platform

[Koniving]

I forgot Blackjack from my list. Twin UAC/5s on them work quite well at a reasonably low cost if you happen to have an XL 180 laying around.


Especially if you can get a triple shot bug. (Minor language.)

Edited by Koniving, 20 February 2014 - 05:13 PM.

[Daggett]

For me it's definitely the Jagermech.

I've sold my Cataphract 4X just because i really hate it's gorilla arms. While i'm still searching for a suitable firing position in the CTF, i've already killed 2 guys in a Jager. High mounted guns are incredibly powerful.

In a CTF you always have to totally sacrifice all cover to be able to shoot while in a Jager you can shoot at anything you want while protecting large parts of your mech. For me that's a huge difference worth way more than the 5 extra tons of the CTF.

The only exception is the 3D because it can compensate the gorilla arms with it's jump-jets. But with only 2 ballistic slots of which one is quite restricted due to lots of arm activators it's not as versatile and deadly as a Jager-S or DD when it comes to ballistic-focused builds.

Edited by Daggett, 20 February 2014 - 06:32 PM.

[Ballimbo]

Valdemaar, on 20 February 2014 - 01:27 PM, said:

[...] This also makes it the only mech I can think of that has high mounted ballistics that are not in the side torsos. [...]

Like Koniving, you too forgot about the Blackjacks.
The BJ-1 and the BJ-1DC both have one ballistic in each arm, on cockpit level.
However they don't quite have the tonnage of the other mentioned chassis, so I don't know if the Blackjacks can be called ballistic-platforms...
(But they shine with one big ballistic and some lasers )

[xMEPHISTOx]

Ballistics platforms...Jager DD, Cata CTF4X and ofc the Ilya, if looking for pure ballistic r@ping but a lot of the other listed above are good for hybrids.

[Buckminster]

I'll throw another vote to the Jagers and Shadow Hawks.

The Jagers have those high high arm mounts, which are fantastic. The Cataphracts also have good ballistic layouts, and have the distinction of being able to carry three of the bigger ballistics, but those low slung gorilla arms mean that you need to expose a lot of yourself to use them all effectively. The Jager does a great 'hull down' - just peak above a ridge and let the shells fly.

I love the Shadow Hawk because it combines a very high shoulder mount with jump jets. It's very mobile, and that high shoulder mount means terrain is less of an issue. The Hunchback has the same high shoulder mount, but it is an easier target and the Hunch doesn't have jump jets.

[Tremendous Upside]

Bro.... 4 letters. Ilya. It's all you need to know

[Turist0AT]

Jäger is a good hillhumper but has low energy, high balistic hardpoints and low tonnage. Very frigile machine with no reason to torso twist(no protective arms).

CTF, has low balistic and high energy hardpoints. It has more tonnage to use for ammo(and stuff), a Jump jet variant and fully articulated arms.

Edited by Turist0AT, 21 February 2014 - 12:38 AM.

[Nabbis]

I hope there is gona be a either CTF or Jagger on the next free trial set I really wanna test them both before buying.
Thou the Jagger is on bit of a lead just because it has those Arms.
I really like my Cat K2 which also has "high" ears as its main guns. but would like to test the CTF in actions i guess the jagger is fairly similar to the K2 with the peeking gameplay from hills/covers.

[Turist0AT]

on Jäger you still need to stick your entire cockpit over the hill, cockpit is quite low on it, so enemy will still be able to return fire without mutch truble.

[Unnatural Growth]

Turist0AT, on 21 February 2014 - 03:44 AM, said:

on Jäger you still need to stick your entire cockpit over the hill, cockpit is quite low on it, so enemy will still be able to return fire without much trouble.

^^ THIS

I'm a big fan of dakka, and I'm a big fan of the 'phracts. I've just finished mastering my 4X, and now have 3 variants mastered. For a pure dakka build, the 4X is the way to go. 4 AC5's set to stagger on chainfire! Sweet, sweet dakka sound! I did originally sell mine because of the slow speed right after eliting it. It has the smallest engine capacity of the 3 with a 255 size limit. It is slow, but man will it put down the hurt. Far, far too much garbage being flung around about it's low arms. Yeah, they're lower than the cockpit...so what? The torso guns on the other variants are not. Ever hear of side stepping? Ever drop in town? River City? Crimson? Plenty of good vertical cover. You can also "side hill" and turn sideways to the slope of the hill. Basically you can fire one side's guns by just peeking your arm around the corner.

Instead of coming over the top of a hill, go around it to the side.

And I absolutely LOVE catching Jagers out in the open in my 'phracts! Unless they have friends with them, that's a dead Jager. For some reason it's "meta" in the Jagers to run them with no armor? Oh well, can't argue with a free meal. Bring me that paper tiger bro'. I like my Jagers with a little spicy mustard and a beer.

I have just recently tried Jagers myself... I know, I know, I've been a big critic of them. But running the stock engine, and MAX ARMOR, they're "ok". Not great, but "ok". So far I still prefer my 'phracts, but I'm giving the Jagers a good honest try. You DO have a bunch of your CT exposed above your cockpit in a Jager. So you "hull down" boys need to keep in mind that if you can see me, I can hit you too. I've realized that more so now that I'm piloting one. I guess that's the best way to really learn a mech's weaknesses is to drop in them.

So far, my vote is still 'phracts #1 for dakka builds.

[Buckminster]

Part of it also depends on your playstyle. Jagers lean towards hanging back and providing fire support, where Cataphracts (speculation here, since I don't own any) seem to work better at getting in an dirty.

The Jager's high and wide arms mean that it can use cover very well, and it's also very good at shooting over friendlies. It also has a very boxy torso, which makes it an easier target if you don't use that cover. The Cataphract is a bit more compact, which makes it a harder target.