20 replies to this topic

[AThousandD]

Hjelp!

I have four mech bays now, am looking at 55 t mediums. I don't want to go SH, because I don't like obvious choices.

My question: Wolverine or Griffin? Which 2 variants would you keep?

I am leaning towards Griffin to start with, seeing as they are currently on C-bill sale (yes?) and would help my C-bill budget go an extra mile. I am considering GRF-1N (SRMs and MLs) and GRF-3M (torso mounted E-weapon).

What about the Wolverine?

[CheeseThief]

3M is the best Griffin in my opinion because my Griffins lose arms quite regularly. I do like my Griffins but never do particularly well with them.

My opinion of the Wolverine is that I would rather be driving a Centurion.

[aniviron]

Wolverine pilot here! Don't buy one. They're bad. They are way more fragile than they should be, just bad hitboxes I guess. The weapon hardpoints are pretty anemic, and honestly I can't really think of much good I could say about them. Everything they can do can be done better on a Griffin or Shawk. The WVR is too fragile to brawl and its weapon hardpoints are mounted too low to snipe. Avoid it.

[Koniving]

AThousandD, on 09 August 2014 - 07:12 PM, said:

My question: Wolverine or Griffin? Which 2 variants would you keep?

Wolverine 7K and the ballistic one.
Griffin, 3M... that's literally the only Griffin I like.

Of the two, Griffin lends itself more to long range combat. The Wolverine is more up close and personal. It's also the smallest (shortest) of the 55 tonners.
(Griffins and Kintaros are exactly the same height. This gif shows a Kintaro and Wolverine).

Spoiler

Contrary to Aniviron's speech, Griffins and Wolverines have identical armor limits and of the two, Wolverines have a smaller surface area. Because of this however LRMs tend to wreck them.

In either case, a Wolverine or Griffin isn't worth having unless you have 5 to 7 jumpjets handy. Always have (for the Wolverine) armlock turned off and just 'shift' it when you need that anti light precision.

I personally have LRM/SRM combinations with lasers or ACs, XL 280 or standard 255.

[eFTy]

I like both Wolverines and Griffins. All except the WVR 6K, which has no jump jets. That one is stupid and the only reason to get it is mastering the other two. The 6R is cool with a 340XL, LB10X, SSRM4 & ML. The 7K is a nice medium range support mech like the griffins. Both chassis could use one or two more variants though...

[Gremlich Johns]

I prefer the wolverine 7K. nice fast SSRM or SRM brawler that I put an ERPPC on for the early meeting engagements.

[Sewman]

I just finished mastering my Griffins not too long ago and I've got to say that it's unique. I went through the same research to look for the best SRM striker and concluded that the SHD and Griffins were both really good chassis but the Griffins had better maneuverability (which equals fun!) and better visibility from the cockpit (because you don't have the cannons or lasers on the left side of your head like in the SHD).

Sorry, no input on the Wolverine but definitely a vote for the Griffin 1N (biggest risk and reward) and 3M (a bit more durable with 1 torso mounted laser). You have to learn the play style of a short range SRM brawler though. Play it like a light. Strike and hide. Look for backs. Be patient about when you choose to 'reveal'.

Sell the 1S as soon as you've mastered the chassis.
PS I know you said you don't want an SHD but I still have to say that it is an awesome chassis with the most variety of effective builds from competitive type min max builds to 'fun' builds for everyday pugging. Very versatile.

[pulupulu]

griffin 1s is my favorite one. 4 er large laser and load it up with heat sink and poke people HARD and FAR. Make sure opponent isnt looking toward ur direction, then give them a surprise, from the front, sides, or the back is perfectly fine. If you get into brawl, you can do 2-2 instead. All 4 lasers is for that special surprise.

You got a shield arm, and a weapon arm. If you know what you are doing, arm break like... 1 out of 10 matches after you done your damage. All laser being on a single arm with good speed (90kph+), you can create extremely small profile to shoot your opponent.

Edited by pulupulu, 12 August 2014 - 12:56 AM.

[Malleus011]

Both machines are good, in slightly different roles.

Griffin: A good mid-to-long range support 'mech, which can be built into a close-in murdering machine. The standard Griffins are built with PPC and LRM in mind, so they have energy and missile hard points. They tend to focus them all in a few locations, however. They're good, mobile 'mechs, reasonably XL friendly. If you dislike the mid/long support role, you can refit your Griffin with a mass of SRMs and lasers for close-in combat. They have good agility and torso twist, and EXCELLENT cockpit visibility.

Griffin 1N: The most general of the three variants; 3E and 3M, all in the RA/RT. Use the left side as a shield!
Griffin 1S: 4E in the RA; the 1S needs to protect that arm. The weakest of the variants, but excellent on Stock Mech Mondays.
Griffin 3M: The 'advanced tech' variant that comes with level 2 gear. Makes the best SRM boat due to more missile hard points, and at least some shifting of hard points.

The Wolverine is equivalent to the Shadow Hawk and Griffin in most things, but is the most compact of the trio. The primary production Wolverine carries ballistics, which gives the family of 'mechs far more flexibility than the Griffins. The Wolverine also has more spread to the hard points, making the loss of an arm or torso half less of a blow. (Unless you're running an XL, and then, well, your hard point locations don't matter, do they?) They're nearly as agile as the Griffin and make good close-in brawlers.

Wolverine 6R: AC in the arm, missiles in the torso, laser in the head; can't carry an AC/20. A good all-rounder which can be configured for a variety of roles.
Wolverine 6K: Much like the Griffin 1S, the 6K can't afford to lose the RA. No JJ. The weakest variant, but very good in Stock Mech Mondays.
Wolverine 7K: All energy and missile hard points, much like the Griffins, but shorter. Makes a good energy/SRM brawler.

I've been playing mine a long time. I prefer the Griffin, slightly, but only because it took much longer to find good builds for the Wolverines. I prefer both to Shadow Hawks; the SHD is probably a better 'mech for hotboxes, but visibility and mobility are inferior.

[DONTOR]

Wolverines are very durable with great hitboxes you simply need to roll the damage and have good armor placement, not sure what the guy up top was saying about them being bad. I also run them with XLs only, but my favorite one is the 6K with a XL375 which goes 121 KPH with 16 tons left for weaponry. It is a beast.

[JC Daxion]

I never played the griffin, But i am leveling the wolverines now..

They all play different, but i am finding great enjoyment in them.. racked up 700-800 damage a few times.. Typical matches in the 200-400 range.

Lots of interesting load outs if you are thinking outside the box. They twist great, so well you can basically hit things behind you with just slight direction changes.. Even running an XL engine these things are pretty darn durable.. I run the non JJ version with a XL320, the ones with JJ's i drop to a XL-300 to compensate.

Mechs that are great fun!


the Version with our JJ's, i have been running 4MPL's with a LRM 10 launcher and tag in the head. Works great.. I will say, with LRM's if you loose that arm, and there are fast mechs around you are kinda screwed, but with twisting, you can keep that arm a long time. If ya do loose it, try to be around other mechs so you can still keep firing at range on someone till your demise.. though i did have a match just the other day, all i had left was my Tag in my head, and the last mech was an ECMer.. and i ruined his day... with my 20% armor as he was trying to kill me.. my buds took him down. Great fun!

Edited by JC Daxion, 15 August 2014 - 06:06 AM.

[ArmandTulsen]

OP, I'm having this exact same dilemma.

Can we get the final verdict between the Wolverine and the Griffin?

My gut tells me to lean towards the Griffin, but the Wolverine is one sexy mech.

[AThousandD]

I've bought the 3 Griffins first and one Wolvie, which I haven't used yet.

Of the 3 Griffins, haven't run the 3M (torso E slot) yet either, will be getting to it starting today. Between the Griffin 1N and 1S, both of which I've set up as SRM/ML close-range strikers, I much prefer the 1N and am getting better results. I may have mounted a slower XL engine on it, but the SRM setup I use has been yielding much better results (1xA-SRM6, 2xA-SRM4 vs 1S's 2xA-SRM6). Definitely loving the Griffin, reminds me of the SRM Cent-A, but with JJ.

Edit: Will try the Grffin 1S with a LL-focused setup, as suggested by pulupulu above, albeit I'm not a big fan of all LLs with no back-up weapons and definitely not ER-weapons in general.

Edited by AThousandD, 16 August 2014 - 02:44 AM.

[Tahribator]

Griffins pros:

• Much sleeker profile that helps a lot with survivability.
  
• Concentrated hardpoint placement.
  
• Excels at SRM brawling.

Griffin cons:

• Energy and missile hardpoints only, limited build options.
  
• Concentrated hardpoints mean massive loss of firepower when arm/ST gets destroyed.

Wolverine pros:

• Ballistic variant with great hardpoints.
  
• Tanks somewhat better with STD engines.
  
• Hardpoints are more spread out, especially missiles. Better redundancy.

Wolverine cons:

• It's bulkier which means it attracts more damage.
  
• Very prone to legging.
  
• Head E hardpoint is useless in most situations.

Both are very similar in responsiveness/hitboxes otherwise.

Edited by Tahribator, 16 August 2014 - 03:05 AM.

[AThousandD]

Tahribator, might it be I know you from TWI forums as Rak mayhaps?

[Tahribator]

Yeah, the good old bitter vet from Red Orchestra.

[bossclan]

I love the wolverine,but the griffon is probably the better of the 2 because its more survivable.
I like using griffons as srm brawlers and sometimes as a lrm boat.

[ArmandTulsen]

Committed the Griffins... and glad!

[Kensaisama]

Guess I'm the odd one out as I prefer the Wolverines over the Griffins.

[Spheroid]

You are not alone. I also prefer Wolverines.