Shar Wolf, on 08 May 2014 - 01:13 PM, said:
Actually, now that I think about it - playing a Locust is almost exactly like playing an Atlas
Both of them rely a lot more on positioning and teammates than anything else.
Surprisingly true. Though the Atlas will most likely draw attention as soon as it arrives while the Locust should try to avoid drawing any attention at all.
Spheroid, on 08 May 2014 - 06:56 PM, said:
I would use the 1V as a support platform since its module slots are useless for normal weapons.
170kph can get you to the front lines extremely quickly. Get there first, watch for seismic and deploy UAVs to help your team.
You can also act as a squirrel decoy on water maps where you can avoid a lot of incoming fire by submerging.
You must, must wait until the last third of the match before engaging or you will get killed. There are exceptions of course. Isolated mechs or stragglers are valid targets on large maps like alpine or therma.
While true, I got the feeling that while piloting a Locust you should never ever arrive anywhere first - it only gets you killed faster
. Try to arrive late, when all others are distracted and armor is at least gone a few parts, so that your MG's can have a lil fun.
The Locust is a terrible scout and a terrible capper if on it's own, because it's inferior to every other light, even a Spider and so vulnerable to one shots. It's a niche 'mech in the current meta, a carrion bird. Feed on the leftovers of a brawl, stay invisible, your speed can get you into trouble fast and you don't have the armor to get out again. This is partially what Shar meant is similar to playing an Atlas... fast enough to get you into trouble, but not fast enough to get you out of it again.
Speed is an aggro magnet and MG's are even more. Thanks to the Ember and Spider 5K everyone knows how devastating 4 MG's can be, so expect to get some attention as soon as you open fire. Thanks to the fact that the Locust is a one hit wonder, it's also a welcoming target, so stay low and sneaky. And don't brawl with BoomJagers, Streaktaros or some such...
I really like to play my lights offensive, that's why it took me some time to adapt to the Locust. It's the epitome of a hit and run 'mech. Some very good pilots can do some crazy stuff in Locusts, but the usual pilot will most likely do best in going in from behind, unload and get the hell out of there.
That said, prepare your strikes. Read the enemy movement and positioning. Focus on lone stragglers. If you get attention, try to isolate the enemy and drag them to your team. If you see something like SSRM2 on your target, switch and look for something else - don't even think of getting it's attention. Try to avoid circle fights with other lights.
TL;DR: As long as there is no role-warfare, it's hard talking about specific roles. The Locust is a challenge and nothing more that this (other than fun that is
). It gets outperformed in every regard, it's not the fastest, it's not the most armored, it's not the most powerful, it's just the lightest and that is not even an advantage. Getting kills in Locusts is really entertaining and most demoralizing on your enemy
. And the Locust is a sexy lil bug.