6 replies to this topic

[PeeWrinkle]

I am trying to decide if it is worth leveling any of the Clan mechs past the basic skill level other than the prime variant for each one.

Since I have IS Mechs already mastered, I can just level all three to basic, then just level the prime to master. Seems too easy in a way, and also seems like a waste of time to play anything other than the prime variant.

My thought is that the prime variant gives you a C-Bill bonus of 30%, and all of them can be made to function just like any of the other variants. Also in my experience so far the XP gain and maneuverability bonuses you get with a complete omni set seem to be negligible.

With that said I do realize that four of the chassis (Nova, Timberwolf, Warhawk, and Direwolf) do not have all three identical varients. However those are not significantly different, only one has an added hard point in the CT per chassis (except the Timberwolf, which has two that are slightly different). They also all have the exact same equipment locked in, engines locked in, and upgrades locked in. Which also makes me question why there are three, and why do they have to be leveled differently when they are identical. With IS mechs this makes sense, there is something different about each one.

At any rate I have digressed. My question remains is there any competitive advantage for leveling anything other than the prime variant?
Especially for the following because they are the only ones which are not identical to the others:
Nova-S (AMS)
Timberwolf-S (None - Prime has Blasistic)
Timberwolf-C (Energy)
Warhawk-B (Missle)
Direwolf-B (Energy)

I am just not sure how valuable that extra hard point in the CT is on those variants.

Thanks!

[loopala]

i like to have one with Artemis and one with out other then that is nice to have a chassis waiting in the wings ready to go. but really not a big deal.

[Ultimax]

PeeWrinkle, on 04 August 2014 - 03:55 PM, said:

Especially for the following because they are the only ones which are not identical to the others:
Nova-S (AMS)
Timberwolf-S (None - Prime has Blasistic)
Timberwolf-C (Energy)
Warhawk-B (Missle)
Direwolf-B (Energy)

I am just not sure how valuable that extra hard point in the CT is on those variants.

Thanks!

1) NVA-S: This really depends on your build.
2) TBR-S: This torso lets you run 1 JJ without using any S variant torsos. This is useful because S variant torsos come with torso twist speed negative quirks (stacking -7.5% each).
3) TBR-C: This is very usable, can put cER MLAS or even cER LLAS in there, and it's very close to the other torso mounted hardpoints which are relatively high (compared to the arms).
4) WHK-B: Strictly if you want to go LRM heavy or if you really want a 3rd launcher but need a different LA.
5) DW-B: Could theoretically be useful for zombie mode, but in my experience most DW die in a blaze of violence. Zombie mod seems rare...

I'd say the two TBRs are definitely worth it, and it's a mech with enough variety that you can end up with 3 different builds.

The WHK-B depends on how much you like this mech and your penchant for missiles.

DW-B could be useful, can even fit a cERPPC there - but zombie mode doesn't seem to happen much.

FWIW, I leveled all of the variants listed to master in addition to the prime except for the NVA-S.

[PeeWrinkle]

That makes a lot of sense Ultimatum X, although since the JJ updates I am not sure running with 1 JJ is very useful anymore.

Also the point about the negative perks per ominipod was a good reminder that I was overlooking. I need to review those again, especially on the four chassis that appear to be identical (KitFox, Adder, Stormcrow, Summoner).

[OznerpaG]

if you bought a clan pak and you get the prime with the cbill bonus there is absolutely no reason why you need to level 3 variants of each clan mech when you only need 1 to do any config you want. if there was different quirks for each chassis then maybe, but the quirks are in the pods so the extra 2 chassis are both garbage and a waste of our cash

PGI should have sold 1 chassis + all the different pods in 1 package so you only need to level 1 chassis, but maybe double the XP/GXP needed to level it to make it similar to leveling 3 IS mechs

[Tremendous Upside]

I really, REALLY dislike grinding mechs up through the skill trees - and with clan mechs, there's so much versatility in the omnipods that it's all but impossible for me to justify grinding to master 3 times per chassis. I've put all my chassis through basics, but only bothered to master out the primes. I figure as they're released for c-bills, I'll simply sell the extra variants and buy seconds of the primes that I like to run in more than one config instead. For "me", the extra 30% c-bill bonus just means more than a single extra hardpoint in the CT...

[Vezm]

Banky, on 05 August 2014 - 06:42 PM, said:

I figure as they're released for c-bills, I'll simply sell the extra variants and buy seconds of the primes that I like to run in more than one config instead. For "me", the extra 30% c-bill bonus just means more than a single extra hardpoint in the CT...

AFAIK c-bill primes won't have a 30% c-bill bonus. And really the grind isn't that bad.