208 replies to this topic

[mad kat]

Big Tin Man, on 28 July 2014 - 09:31 AM, said:

Trying to narrow down a shopping list, but I've been playing my clans almost exclusively (still haven't elited everything yet...). Hell, I still have the plastic wrapping on my DDC that I bought on C-bill sale a couple weeks back.

Any advice on the following? Must have's or good value with a particular engine? I haven't started any of the following chassis except the Treb.

Oxide
X-5
Arrow (more of a curiosity, I've seen many and they seem to do bad)
Loup De G (my first mech was a trenchbucket and I mastered my 7M. Don't judge)
Jester
Firebrand
Dragon Slayer
Misery (kind of)

Own the following

Ember <3
Ilya--still love, but seems to be outclassed these days :'(
Huggin (mistakes were made)
Daishi pack

Seeing as i have a Huggin, Firebrand, Arrow i can say i don't regret getting any of them (the pretty baby and deaths knell on the other hand but i knew they would be comical builds).
The arrow benefits from 2xlpl, 6xmgs and a flamer, the firebrand can pack 2xlbx-10, 4xml and 2x flamers and the Huggin works really well with the ssrm2 swapped out for an lrm5. I really like the Huggin despite what people whinge about.

Handy hint with the arrow and to the same extent the Huggin, it's a late game mech which comes into it's own when a few holes start appearing. Use those LPl's and Lrm5's respectively early on then move in and hug them with machine guns, flamers and Srm's where appropriate. Both great vulture builds.

Edited by mad kat, 29 July 2014 - 01:14 AM.

[Y E O N N E]

Flyby215, on 28 July 2014 - 08:00 PM, said:

Just bought the YLW, Fang, and trying to work myself up into the hero Treb, Arrow, Firebrand, and Prettty Baby. I fully intend to utilize the lesser played mechs and make them work for me, no matter how challenging that may be

Buy the Arrow. Seriously. If any Hero 'Mech can legitimately be considered Pay-2-Win, it's that one. Yup, even over the Ember. There's no shortage of powerful builds you can use on it. SIx MG + assorted lasers, two AC/2+ four MG + assorted lasers, AC/5 + five MG + assorted lasers, LB-10X + five MG + lasers, two AC/5 + four MG + three Small Laser. You can cheese it up with twin LB-10X, even.

It's a regular 600-damage 'Mech. It can snipe, it can brawl, it can harass. It can easily swat lights and it can devastate an Assault's arsenal. It's fast enough to chase a Timberwolf using only a STD 225 engine, while being able to spit out 11 DPS almost indefinitely.

Oh, and it has jump jets.

[IraqiWalker]

Xeno Phalcon, on 28 July 2014 - 07:15 PM, said:

Build it up like a brawly atlas and go forth to woop ass: few medium lasers, ac20 and a couple of ASRM6s, let the pain floweth through all you see catch.

Oh I already have a setup like that on my ON1-K. I might go 2xPPC + AC20 on this one.

[Bill Lumbar]

Yeonne Greene, on 29 July 2014 - 01:13 AM, said:

Buy the Arrow. Seriously. If any Hero 'Mech can legitimately be considered Pay-2-Win, it's that one. Yup, even over the Ember. There's no shortage of powerful builds you can use on it. SIx MG + assorted lasers, two AC/2+ four MG + assorted lasers, AC/5 + five MG + assorted lasers, LB-10X + five MG + lasers, two AC/5 + four MG + three Small Laser. You can cheese it up with twin LB-10X, even.

It's a regular 600-damage 'Mech. It can snipe, it can brawl, it can harass. It can easily swat lights and it can devastate an Assault's arsenal. It's fast enough to chase a Timberwolf using only a STD 225 engine, while being able to spit out 11 DPS almost indefinitely.

Oh, and it has jump jets.

Lol... I just bought the Arrow last night. First five matches I lost in it right out the gate. Lucky if I broke 250 damage first five rounds. I have all the other Bj's mastered so lack of experience in them is not the problem. In my BJ-1 and BJX1 I have hit 900 damage matches several times... I don't know whats up, maybe other pilots see the sexy paint job on this one and target it likes it a gold mech?

Even with half off sale I think all of the mechs are over priced, period! It is a decent mech, The Arrow is not a pay to win mech IMO, lol. I am still working on mastering it with out pt of course, so maybe that is why it seems so slow and sluggish to me. Someone said that dropping the price's even further would not gain extra sales.... I do not agree. Dropping prices 50% making them normal prices... then have a 50% off sale and I would be impressed and more inclined to spend some hard earned cash on a lease for digital toys. lol.

[Y E O N N E]

Lack of experience could still be the problem, though I can't really say without knowing what you put on it.

I can tell you that while it is capable of sniping, doing so is the absolute worst way to play this 'Mech at all because you are wasting so much potential. If you are sniping with ERLL, by the time the enemy is close enough to use the MGs you won't have enough armor left to contribute much.

Best builds I've found to work exceedingly well so far are:
STD 225, 1x LPL, 2x MPL, 6x MG, and 3 tons of ammo.
STD 225, 1x AC/5, 3x ML, 5x MG, 3 tons AC ammo, 1.5 tons MG ammo (alternatively, swapping ML for SL works well, too)
STD 225, 1x LB-10X, 5x MG, 3x SL, 2 tons LB ammo, 1.5 tons MG ammo
XL 225, 1x LB-10X, 5x MG, 3x ML, 3 tons LB ammo, 2 tons MG ammo, 1x JJ

The Arrow is not a shoot-and-scoot 'Mech like the other Blackjack variants; it requires lots of face-time with the enemy. You need to know how to game the engagement so that the enemy over-extends himself. In a team fight, it's a very capable brawler, especially in those last three trims.

An average match is about 450-500 damage. A good match is 550-700 damage. My record in it is 1068 damage.

[5th Fedcom Rat]

Shuruga, on 29 July 2014 - 12:09 AM, said:

In terms of fun factor, I would recommend any of the following: Oxide, Arrow, Firebrand, Protector. They each have potential for very powerful builds.

Oxide is an exercise in complete frustration. Undergunned, with all the wonkiness and vulnerability of missiles, limited ammo, and no jjs. Jester is also pretty terrible now that Clan mechs make for much superior laser boats. Huggins and to a lesser extent X5 and Arrow are equally lukewarm at best. Protector is meh like all the Orions.

My favourite hero in terms of loadout is probably still Ilya Cataphract. Ember and Misery are top shelf too, of course.

Edited by 5th Fedcom Rat, 29 July 2014 - 02:18 AM.

[Bill Lumbar]

Yeonne Greene, on 29 July 2014 - 02:04 AM, said:

Lack of experience could still be the problem, though I can't really say without knowing what you put on it.

I can tell you that while it is capable of sniping, doing so is the absolute worst way to play this 'Mech at all because you are wasting so much potential. If you are sniping with ERLL, by the time the enemy is close enough to use the MGs you won't have enough armor left to contribute much.

Best builds I've found to work exceedingly well so far are:
STD 225, 1x LPL, 2x MPL, 6x MG, and 3 tons of ammo.
STD 225, 1x AC/5, 3x ML, 5x MG, 3 tons AC ammo, 1.5 tons MG ammo (alternatively, swapping ML for SL works well, too)
STD 225, 1x LB-10X, 5x MG, 3x SL, 2 tons LB ammo, 1.5 tons MG ammo
XL 225, 1x LB-10X, 5x MG, 3x ML, 3 tons LB ammo, 2 tons MG ammo, 1x JJ

The Arrow is not a shoot-and-scoot 'Mech like the other Blackjack variants; it requires lots of face-time with the enemy. You need to know how to game the engagement so that the enemy over-extends himself. In a team fight, it's a very capable brawler, especially in those last three trims.

An average match is about 450-500 damage. A good match is 550-700 damage. My record in it is 1068 damage.

I don't do much sniping.... if any at all. Not a pop tart kinda player. Thanks for the tips, looks like my load outs and what I have tried. So far I like the 5mg AC/10 load out 2 mL, lx engine. Maybe that is part of it, using the Standard engine will help out. I don't mind getting face to face time :-)

I will say one thing for sure.... not having the Arrow mastered like my other BJs makes a huge difference for sure!

[IraqiWalker]

5th Fedcom Rat, on 29 July 2014 - 02:17 AM, said:

Oxide is an exercise in complete frustration. Undergunned, with all the wonkiness and vulnerability of missiles, limited ammo, and no jjs. Jester is also pretty terrible now that Clan mechs make for much superior laser boats. Huggins and to a lesser extent X5 and Arrow are equally lukewarm at best. Protector is meh like all the Orions.

My favourite hero in terms of loadout is probably still Ilya Cataphract. Ember and Misery are top shelf too, of course.

Try strapping all streaks onto the Oxide. It melts things pretty darn quickly. On chain fire you can go ahead and duel heavies.

[DAEDALOS513]

Appogee, on 26 July 2014 - 06:13 AM, said:

Finally I can afford the PRETTY BABY I have always wanted! Yes, I am joking.

I've seen good pilots work wonders with the Pretty Baby.

[Xeno Phalcon]

DAEDALOS513, on 29 July 2014 - 06:12 AM, said:

I've seen good pilots work wonders with the Pretty Baby.

Yeah well picasso could do amazing things with a paint brush but to me its still a itty bitty broom, give me a spraycan and a thats another story.

[Flyby215]

Yeonne Greene, on 29 July 2014 - 01:13 AM, said:

Buy the Arrow. Seriously. If any Hero 'Mech can legitimately be considered Pay-2-Win, it's that one. Yup, even over the Ember. There's no shortage of powerful builds you can use on it. SIx MG + assorted lasers, two AC/2+ four MG + assorted lasers, AC/5 + five MG + assorted lasers, LB-10X + five MG + lasers, two AC/5 + four MG + three Small Laser. You can cheese it up with twin LB-10X, even.

It's a regular 600-damage 'Mech. It can snipe, it can brawl, it can harass. It can easily swat lights and it can devastate an Assault's arsenal. It's fast enough to chase a Timberwolf using only a STD 225 engine, while being able to spit out 11 DPS almost indefinitely.

Oh, and it has jump jets.

Okay guy, you talked me into it! Just bought the Arrow.

Now I just need two more BJ's... I wonder what the going rate is on the street. (phrasing boom!)

[Little Details]

Flyby215, on 29 July 2014 - 07:11 AM, said:

Okay guy, you talked me into it! Just bought the Arrow.

Now I just need two more BJ's... I wonder what the going rate is on the street. (phrasing boom!)

Might I suggest...BJ-1X: 8ML, ams, xl295 and BJ-1: AC20, 3ML, 3JJ, ams, xl200

Edited by LT Satisfactory, 29 July 2014 - 07:43 AM.

[DAEDALOS513]

Aleski, on 26 July 2014 - 12:50 PM, said:

I will made this instead, if i use the same engine : http://mwo.smurfy-ne...b7c9cbf6b88a524 =)

Much, MUCH better build. Good job!

[Appogee]

DAEDALOS513, on 29 July 2014 - 06:12 AM, said:

I've seen good pilots work wonders with the Pretty Baby.

Can't wait to see the videos.

[Aleski]

DAEDALOS513, on 29 July 2014 - 07:46 AM, said:

Much, MUCH better build. Good job!

For the moment, i run this one on my PB :
http://mwo.smurfy-ne...218c1c151c74e2e

The speed with the XL380 is just very cool =)
This mech can pack a lot of power...

5th Fedcom Rat, on 29 July 2014 - 02:17 AM, said:

Oxide is an exercise in complete frustration. Undergunned, with all the wonkiness and vulnerability of missiles, limited ammo, and no jjs. Jester is also pretty terrible now that Clan mechs make for much superior laser boats. Huggins and to a lesser extent X5 and Arrow are equally lukewarm at best. Protector is meh like all the Orions.

My favourite hero in terms of loadout is probably still Ilya Cataphract. Ember and Misery are top shelf too, of course.

You're just not very good with this Jenner variant?
With my Oxyde, build like this : http://mwo.smurfy-ne...0dbbb8d1541ee5f I murder assault mech very quickly. I die often, because of the Jenner hitboxes, and i take a lot of risk. But i often made 600+ damages with that mech. With 100% accuracy, you can do 967.5 damages. With SRM it's impossible but with that amount of ammunitions, you can do several damages. Just don't shoot at 280 meters, shoot at your ennemies at 50-100 meters and you can beat anything. It's the better duelist versus bigger and less agile mech.

And bonus : other lights mech fear you and run away because they all think that you have 4xSSRM2 (wich is a good build too). Lack of JJ is a weakness compare to the other Jenner, but with the new JJ changes, having one or two JJ on a lights is very useless, it's only good for passing some asperities on the field, but that's all. If you know the map well, JJ aren't mandatory... =)

Edited by Aleski, 29 July 2014 - 08:37 AM.

[DAEDALOS513]

Koniving, on 28 July 2014 - 01:07 PM, said:

The Hunchback 4P champion's default build?
Tell that to the Hunchback that I stopped shooting at and offered to help out because he was having trouble.
Only for, a minute or two later, him to kill himself in trying to kill me. If it lasted any longer I would have gotten out some popcorn.

The 4P is an awesome variant.
The champion build, though, is a flawed design.

I didn't know you were talking about default builds. Most default builds suck and need tweaking.

Deathlike, on 28 July 2014 - 04:01 PM, said:

Ghost heat killed the "practical"/Champion build. It's better off trying to field a LL or a PPC somewhere in the build nowadays (trading off from the 3 or more med lasers [from the "stock 9"] that would have to be shaved off due to ghost heat).

Nah, you gotta build to the mechs strengths and pilot accordingly.. or else all your mechs will start looking alike and then, what's the point? This mechs' strengths are all his laser points. You just have to alpha selectively and dodge.

Xeno Phalcon, on 28 July 2014 - 04:10 PM, said:

La Douche I think.

Whenever someone puts down the Treb I know they can't pilot worth squat. Bahahaha

Edited by DAEDALOS513, 29 July 2014 - 12:45 PM.

[DAEDALOS513]

Yeonne Greene, on 29 July 2014 - 01:13 AM, said:

Buy the Arrow. Seriously. If any Hero 'Mech can legitimately be considered Pay-2-Win, it's that one. Yup, even over the Ember. There's no shortage of powerful builds you can use on it. SIx MG + assorted lasers, two AC/2+ four MG + assorted lasers, AC/5 + five MG + assorted lasers, LB-10X + five MG + lasers, two AC/5 + four MG + three Small Laser. You can cheese it up with twin LB-10X, even.

It's a regular 600-damage 'Mech. It can snipe, it can brawl, it can harass. It can easily swat lights and it can devastate an Assault's arsenal. It's fast enough to chase a Timberwolf using only a STD 225 engine, while being able to spit out 11 DPS almost indefinitely.

Oh, and it has jump jets.

Personally I believe MG's belong on faster mechs. You simply don't have the armor to sit there and shoot beebee's while being blasted. You might have a good game here and there, but it's not consistent enough to be viable.

[Y E O N N E]

Who said anything about standing around while shooting?

I consistently have good games with my Arrow. Its K/D is 2.27 with an average damage of 342 spread out across 194 matches. It got hurt when the clans came out and that's because I was using an XL build for awhile. Stick with STD engine builds these days, it does just fine.

Flyby215, on 29 July 2014 - 07:11 AM, said:

Okay guy, you talked me into it! Just bought the Arrow.

Now I just need two more BJ's... I wonder what the going rate is on the street. (phrasing boom!)

I recommend the BJ-1X next. I run mine with a STD 280 and 6 ML for my main battery. I also have two small lasers that allow me to continue doing damage while I cool off. It's actually rather robust. I use the STD 280 over the STD 295 not because I don't have the tonnage, but because I get better heat efficiency. You trade 8 kph for way more heatsinks.

The other Blackjack I play often is the BJ-1DC. I use the STD 225 in it and flip-flop between AC/2 + 6 SL or 2 ERLL + 2 ML + 2 SL + 2 MG. I wish they'd return AC/2 rate of fire values, though.

[Crotch RockIt]

IraqiWalker, on 29 July 2014 - 03:53 AM, said:

Try strapping all streaks onto the Oxide. It melts things pretty darn quickly. On chain fire you can go ahead and duel heavies.

It's not quite as good since they nerfed streaks from 2.5 damage down to 2.0, though.

[DAEDALOS513]

5th Fedcom Rat, on 29 July 2014 - 02:17 AM, said:

Oxide is an exercise in complete frustration. Undergunned, with all the wonkiness and vulnerability of missiles, limited ammo, and no jjs. Jester is also pretty terrible now that Clan mechs make for much superior laser boats. Huggins and to a lesser extent X5 and Arrow are equally lukewarm at best. Protector is meh like all the Orions.

Have you actually bought and elited the Oxide? It is a great mech, even against Clanners. I run it with 4srm4, or 3srm4 and 1srm2 with max engine.

Fun as hell, even without jets.

IraqiWalker, on 29 July 2014 - 03:53 AM, said:

Try strapping all streaks onto the Oxide. It melts things pretty darn quickly. On chain fire you can go ahead and duel heavies.

Nah streaks are weak against clanners.. use srm's if you want to do serious damage.

Xeno Phalcon, on 29 July 2014 - 06:43 AM, said:

Yeah well picasso could do amazing things with a paint brush but to me its still a itty bitty broom, give me a spraycan and a thats another story.

The latest patch just gave you the spray can.. NO more excuses bro.

Edited by DAEDALOS513, 29 July 2014 - 01:37 PM.