37 replies to this topic

[Keira RAVEN McKenna]

Buy a Timberwolf

Kill everyone

Kick the survivors in the face...

... then kill them too

[Void Angel]

Heh. The Timberwolf is definitely up for the nerf-bat.

As for the "wait and see" style of gameplay, which I like to describe as the Backwoods Moonshine Feud school of MWO, not every game ends up like that, though a significant portion still do. You may have to wait out the enemy sometimes, but don't assume that's always the case. It's more important to stay near the team, minimize your exposure to fires, and support whatever the team is doing while playing to your build's strengths. Sometimes this does require you to camp and hide snipe, but it's not a self-fulfilling formula.

One of the biggest changes since Beta is the 12-man format. It's not just the Starebears Dire Wolves, and the like - though Clan range does factor heavily - it's the fact that there's half again as many guys available to potentially shoot back at you as you were used to back in The Day. Play conservatively for now, and get a feel for the game; then you can be more aggressive as your skill level comes back on line.

[dragnier1]

You're getting 2 free mechs on 21 Oct actually. Atlas S and Centurion AH. That means you only need the Atlas DDC to complete your Atlas set so to speak. (3 mechs to clear mastery tier skills)
As mentioned, do upgrade your mechs. All of mine carry DHS (double heat sinks) at the very least.

@JC, don't forget all legendary owners (OP is one) gets another atlas. Too lazy to post link here

Edited by dragnier1, 10 October 2014 - 09:24 PM.

[Elizander]

Personally if you like a mech for the theme and are buying it for the theme then I don't see why you'd regret it. If you are buying a mech for performance then it'll be hard to match up for a theme.

Most of the time I buy mechs because I like the way they are designed. I'm sad that my Pretty Baby isn't really that great, especially with the deceleration nerf on it and missing one energy HP on the RT but I don't regret my purchase and I still take it out now and then. It's also one of the first mechs I ever mastered just because I like it.

[Turist0AT]

CapperDeluxe, on 10 October 2014 - 10:49 AM, said:

1) Cataphract

2) CATAPHRACT

3) Cataph...

4) RACT

This guys... he knows what monsters you can build on that chassie.

[Elizander]

CapperDeluxe, on 10 October 2014 - 10:49 AM, said:

1) Cataphract

2) CATAPHRACT

3) Cataph...

4) RACT

Turist0AT, on 11 October 2014 - 01:33 AM, said:

This guys... he knows what monsters you can build on that chassie.

To be honest I play my Ilya a ridiculous amount compared to my other mechs.

[Turist0AT]

Elizander, on 11 October 2014 - 01:38 AM, said:

To be honest I play my Ilya a ridiculous amount compared to my other mechs.

once you go phract you never go back

[JC Daxion]

dragnier1, on 10 October 2014 - 09:22 PM, said:

You're getting 2 free mechs on 21 Oct actually. Atlas S and Centurion AH. That means you only need the Atlas DDC to complete your Atlas set so to speak. (3 mechs to clear mastery tier skills)
As mentioned, do upgrade your mechs. All of mine carry DHS (double heat sinks) at the very least.

@JC, don't forget all legendary owners (OP is one) gets another atlas. Too lazy to post link here

I did not know that.. So yea,, you are right on by saying, Just by the DDC

[Sovery_Simple]

Free new atlas means you're ahead to buy the DDC, and work on the founders atlas also. They'll be a bit punishing (Let's face it, they're slow) but a DDC is pretty time tested all things considered. The DDC and the founders gives you two things to adjust and xp up while waiting for the 21st (assuming you don't play too heavily each day.) Though they'll be quite sluggish without their upgrades and skills.

It will last you though, no doubts about that. Don't stare at dire wolves directly with it until you know what you're doing (which would mean you know never stare at them regardless.)

Timberwolves will probably be stupidly strong for a long time still, but otherwise, probably sit on your MC and time until you feel like you need it.


Below are some "popular" choices, and generally approved of 'mechs. Figure let you pick what you want out of them, or get a bit adventurous if you want. Highlander is fine but a victor generally outdoes them afaik.

Good Assaults: Atlas, Victor, Dire Wolf (slowest, not for a newbie unless you want to learn the hard way)
Good Heavies: Jager, Cataphract, Timberwolf
Good Meds: Shadowhawk
Good Lights: Jenner, Ember (See a ton of these)

You'll "possibly" live longer in an assault or heavy, but you'll also be taking one of the valuable heavy hitter slots on your team. If you desire these mechs, it'll have to happen eventually, but figure I'd give you a fair warning if your team always feels weaker than the enemies, until you get a handle on them ~.^

[Orbit Rain]

Greetings Duncan!

I too am of Scottish descent, and somehow (nominally) am the leader of a Highlander clan, Cameron's Highlanders. If you want to hop on our teamspeak sometime, we can be found at ts.cameronshighlanders.com:9998 (no password) I'd be more than happy to chat with you about the game and what's going on, the best way to "game" your progression. and so on.

If I'm not on, just poke someone and tell them I told you to go there for some help/advice. It'll be way more efficient to get on comms than the forum. There's been some great advice in this thread for the most part, but we all have our biases one way or another that may not match well with what your particular preferred playstyle ends up being.

[elismallz]

Lots of good responses here, but I'll add my 2 C-Bills.

If you've got founders, spend the time to buy 2 extra chassis for each. Save that MC for later. Get a feel for how each weight moves (Light, Medium, Heavy, Assault) while you grind Mech XP. You might feel more comfortable in, say, a light vs an heavy. Once you've got 3 of each of the founders chassis and have them upgraded, you'll have a good idea for what you like.

Tough learning curve, but the game is worth it.

[Nightmare1]

Duncan MacIntyre, on 10 October 2014 - 10:29 AM, said:

As a longtime fan of TT Battletech I purchased a Founder's Package and tried the game out a little bit in Beta. I wasn't a huge fan of it back then and managed to get hooked on a couple of other games. Now after burning out on those games, I finally decided to try MWO again. So far I am doing horrible. I mean BAD. I have only played about 15 games and have gotten some assists, but not even my first kill. I remember doing better back in Beta, but understand everyone was a noob like me at the time.

I have run most of my games so far in my Founder's Mechs (mostly the Hunchback), but a few in trial mechs. I have not made any modifications to any mechs yet and have a few questions of what I should do. The questions I have are somewhat connected so please read them all before responding (though I would greatly appreciate any help I can get).

1) I understand the basics of how the skill system works and therefore understand I really should focus on a specific chassis. What would be a good chassis for a complete noob to focus on to learn the basics of the game? At this point I am leaning towards a heavy or an assault mech though I have no clue what playstyle works for me.

2) I have a sizeable amount of MC from the Founder's Package and would be willing to buy one of the Mastery Bundles. Due to being of Scottish decent (username is not my real name though) and a former Drum Major of a bagpipe band, the Highlander package is screaming BUY ME. Would this be a good package for a complete noob.

or

3) Would buying one of the Clan Mech a la Carte packages with real money make more sense? Which one would be the most noob friendly?

4) If I buy either a Mastery Bundle or an a la Carte Clan Mech should I use the c-bills from the cadet bonus to upgrade these mechs or buy another mech?

I am sure I have more questions, but this post is more than long enough...

Okay, here's my 2-Cents:

Save your MC and RL money. I would also recommend steering clear of Heavies and Assaults for now. Lights and Mediums are the easiest Mechs for you to use to learn how to play. Once you have down the basics, then you can upgrade to a Heavy and then finally to an Assault. I've been playing this game avidly since Closed Beta. I started with Mediums, went to Lights, then Heavies, and now Assaults. Despite the duration in which I have been playing, I still am not a great Assault pilot. I've found that the biggest challenge for me, is that they are difficult to kit-out because of the costs involved, and that they are very slow, making any mistakes you may make all the more unforgiving since you probably will not be able to extract yourself from a situation gone bad.

So...all that being said, save your MC and RL dollars and use C-bills to buy a Hunchback or Centurion. Those are both great Mechs for beginners and are a lot of fun to pilot, even if they are not very competitive. Once you feel that you have a good understanding of the game, then you may want to consider using your MC or RL dollars to purchase a Mastery Pack or Clanners. However, since MC and dollars are both real and irredeemable once spent, I would really caution spending them until you're good and ready. Those C-bill Variants can always be resold later to recoup some of their costs once you've decided you are ready to move on.

Once you have a good mastery of the game, you can try something bigger. I would recommend holding off on Assaults until you feel that you have the hang of piloting slow Heavies like the Orion or Cataphract though.

Above all, wait on the Clans and don't spend your money on them. They are much harder to pilot than IS Mechs because of their lack of customization and significantly higher heat curves. Do not attempt them until you have a very solid understanding of the game from the IS side of the fence.

Also, keep in mind that you will need three variants of each Mech chassis in order to obtain the Elite skill sets. Eliting Mechs improves their fighting capabilities dramatically, but you can't do it without the three variants! You may wish to purchase two more 'Pults so that you can Elite that Founder's 'Pult, and then sell off those extra two variants when you're done.

Finally, I'm also Scottish and think that the Highlanders are flat-out cool. However, they are under performing Mechs, currently, and I would advise against purchasing them. The few times I have piloted them, I have greatly disliked them.

Hope this helps!

[mad kat]

If you want to develop your mechs quicker i find it easier to get going with the game in a medium mech. For me the blackjack, centurion, hunchback and wolverine are all good mechs. The upgrades come sooner as things like endo steel cost in relation to the mechs weight.

While they may not have hand of doom fire-power figures it doesn't mean their not capable of it. They have a great blend of speed, agility, manoeuvrability armour and fire-power and can be adapted to a variety of tactics and roles.

The centurion is a superb mech for taking punishment, can boat missiles if you like that sort of thing, can be fast or slow, have a shield arm, two variants can carry an AC20 (if you've bought MC by now). Can zombie all day long and are ridiculously hard to take down in the right hands. They look badass and are equally at home spreading large lasers in the al, raining lrms in the A or face hugging in the A also with large caliber ballistic or srm volleys or if you fancy chasing lights and rolling with the scouts plump some cash on the D.

Hunchback delivers a good punch and us good for ballistic, missile and energy and is flexible on range loadouts. The 4sp is an ideal starter hunchie with asrm6 x2

The blackjack is a Marmite mech you either love it or hate it. At its best totting long range direct fire weapons like ppc's and ac2/5's also seems to do al-right with an xl but its also highly manoeuvrable. Really benefits from dhs.

The wolverine is another tough mech but its hard points can be a bit awkward. I find best loaded with srm6's and close range fighting. Doesn't work too well at long range except for the 6r with a pair of ac2's in the right arm.

The griffin is an odd one if you want to put some mc in the 3m is well worth a punt but to skill it up is annoying as the other two variants are more or less the same and can't do anything better than the 3m.

Edited by mad kat, 15 October 2014 - 03:20 AM.

[Ace Selin]

Perseverance is key and try to Elite whatever chassis you like to constantly play. Ensure you mod your mechs to suite your play style too. Don't be afraid to play fun, non meta (non top of the line mechs), fun is where its at.

With your MC buy whatever you feel you will have fun with in the game, so if you like Highlanders get the Highlander mastery pack.

Edited by Ace Selin, 15 October 2014 - 03:10 AM.

[SnagaDance]

Loads of good advice already, I'll just throw in that to help with the grind you should try on getting the daily x2 xp bonus of the mechs you are grinding, it's like you're playing double the number of games experience wise! Take it from me, I know, after a few free mechs in the first half of this year and some ridonculous C-bill mech sales I found myself with 14 (!!!) mechs that still needed to get to Master level (as opposed to 13 that I had already Mastered). I'm still busy doing that, only 8 left to finish, though I'm getting that free Centurion on the 21st.....

[Duncan MacIntyre]

Thank you all for all the suggestions/tips. I haven't had any chance to log on to MWO since I posted this due to recently buying/selling our new/old house. Hopefully I will get some time in the near future...

[Dorion]

Hello Duncan,

I'm just like you. I started a couple months ago with my founders hunchback. I started horrible and am adjusting slowly.

I am recommending that you start with a lite mech that can carry large lasers. I recommend this for two reasons:

1. Since I'm learning I found I could escape trouble faster in a light mech.
2. Large lasers lets you strike for further away. Keeping you out of danger until you are more confident to get involved in brawling and the finer points of fighting in this game.

I bought a Commando Death Knell and Highlander Heavy Metal as my first two mechs. I do much much better in the Death Knell. Have my best games in it. (very fast with nice alpha) I am terrible in the highlander. (to slow for my skill level). I think I will definatly improve in the Highlander once my learning curve for the game flattens a bit. But for now I am doing much better in the light mechs. Also, I got them both for 1/2 off during a sale wahoo!!!

Wanted to give you my opinion since our situations seemed similar. Hope it helps. Good luck and have fun!

[Krivvan]

The best beginner mech at the moment is probably the Shadow Hawk. It also teaches the best habits: understanding of cover and hill and corner peeking, exposing as little of the body as possible, possible usage of ballistics, lasers, and SRMs, etc.