3 replies to this topic

[Verkhne]

I am needing a bit of encouragement regarding Atlases right now. Barring the ECM DDC it seems that the Banshee can do it with more zombie potential and much more Dakka then the Atlas variants. I know when piloting the Atlas I am supposed to be in the most feared mech in the Inner sphere but...I am slow, poor arm positions and hardpoint restrictions gives me a hard time measuring up to many mechs and certainly the Banshee may be the premier non-JJ Assault. I get that with limited hardpoints Atlases may have to build bigger weapons, so for example 2LBX10's might??compensate for the 4 ballistic hardpoints of a BNC-3e, but this method relies on using weapons that may not be optimal..eg LPL or trying to use arm-mounted PPC's. I suppose the key may be the missile slots but SRMs are not working well and LRMs range limitations and reliance on TAG (Atlas-d-D) leave me wondering. I am not slagging the Atlas, I do find it challenging to pilot one of the most difficult mechs in the game, BUT , what are Atlas pilots doing to dominate Banshees. How do you run variants in this LRM happy world? (ironically the Atlas-K may have a place now!) Is the Atlas chassis where it should be in MWO, does it need tweaking? Should I not worry as Daishi's may render things moot? What builds are successful now? (How the hell do I get paragraph structure?)

[Commander Binz]

I would press ENTER more often.

In saying that, I have played my Stalkers more than my Atlai these days, apart from DDC its hard to find a good use for them.

My usual spec for DDC though is 2 ERPPC, AC20 and 3 SSRM. A good allrounder

[Cabusha]

My DDC has gone through A Lot of rebuilds over time as the meta has shifted. It's a difficult mech to pilot. You have a daunting amount of armor but it's finite and with the accuracy of pin point weapons, you can and will be torn apart of you push in too early.

On the phone so can't link smurfy, but my current build is something like:

325 Standard
2xPPC
AC-10 + 3 tons ammo
AC-5 + 3 tons ammo
3xssrm + 1 ton ammo
Ecm
AMS + 1 ton
Doubles and armor to taste

The point of this build is to be major mid-range threat. A 35pt shot at 450 meters is nothing to sneeze at. Fire PPCs and ACs combined until hot, then just the ACs until you cool back down. The 5 and 10 will naturally sync and dsync their shots, ensuring the target is always getting hammered in an unpredictable way. UAC5 is an option, but I found the jamming too unforgiving on a chassis that really needs to push targets back.

And that's ultimately the trick. You want to bite hard, punish anyone willing to trade shots with you. Slam AC rounds over and over into victims. You're Gandalf screaming You Shall Not Pass!!!

And ultimately hold a position. Pick terrain where you and peak around and fire, never up and over. You're an anchor for the team who will naturally hover around you. Just don't over eager and push too soon, soften targets and punch holes until they have to fall back, then move to your next defensible position.

[CheeseThief]

You play the Atlas because you want to play an Atlas, it is balanced in loadout and hitboxes, it has useful shield arms and it has decent hill climbing unlike the Banshee.

4 Medium lasers, 2 UAC5's and 2 SRM6+A's
ERPPCs, a Gauss Rifle and 30 LRM's
2 Medium lasers, an AC20 and 3 SRM+As.

The Atlas is a big gun carrier with a hardpoint enforced balanced loadout, If you want a more focused mech then look to the other assaults, but do know that they aren't nearly as stylish.