74 replies to this topic

[Archie4Strings]

Hey guys!
I recently saved a few C-Bills and i am thinking about to buy me an assault Omnimech.
So that has to be the warhawk or the direwolf. I already have an atlas and quite some problems with the low speed, so i guess the warhawk is the Mech for me. Already got a few matches in the trial prime and i like it.

But:
Is it worth all the c-bills?
the max loadout you can get is just around 33 tons. The Ilya has the same (!) with the same speed, just less armor and for sure no clan tech...
(btw i already checked out a few nice loadouts on smurfys)

So is it worth? Its sooo expensive... what are your experiences?
Is the warhawk strong enough to fullfill its role as an assault mech (doing tons of damage and taking lots of damage without going down instantly??)

Thank you guys!
Ps: I am german, sorry for mistakes!

[zudukai]

no, i do not suggest the warhawk as your first clan mech, they are slow to twist, with low weapon placements, have a glaring flaw carrying all it's weapons on one side and not being able to defend them, they make decent balls out brawlers, but generally that playstyle only works in groups, that being said, they are one of the best LRM-boats in the game.

the hard locked heat syncs also are a drawback because if you want to run any other build but energy you basically have wasted tonnage.

personally i suggest the Timber Wolf (first) or Hellbringer (second) or go all out for the very slow dire wolf. or wait longer until you hear how the executioner turns out, because the gargoyle is pretty bad too.

[Archie4Strings]

Ah its not my first omni mech, just my first assault omni mech.
I already mastered the timberwolf and i got 1 Hellbringer, 1 Summoner and 1 Kit Fox.

[SleekHusky]

I would say go for it if you already got experience and the extra mechbays/time.
I haven't piloted one myself but the things I have seen Warhawks do puts them on my bucket list of mechs to try some time.
I'd go for Direwolves first though. (also you probably should master those Hellbringers)

[Corbenik]

I like my Warhawks fine I do the love the speed they do not seem as slow as a Dwolf Obviously but also Warhawks are more pewpew and Direwolfs are more Dakka so pick your poison, Dakka or Pew? also Direwolf arent as slow once u get the speed tweak , still slow but faster than my Atlas that goes 40 something .

[zudukai]

still has low hardpoints and mediocre armor for an assault (it seems) it can carry good firepower at 70kph+ but it feels sluggish in every other sense, as my summary it could be way better with just a few quirks and it currently sits as my 5th choice for clan mechs.

it is certainly not nearly as tanky as i would want an assault, but it can take a few hits, however it is very easy to neuter, you can protect the RT, but it still cannot exchange reliably without decent pilots focusing that side off.
i think the dire wolf is leagues ahead of the warhawk, if you can run slow assaults, but i do not own them.

you may want to check out what the current trends are for them (if you have not already)

http://metamechs.com...guides/warhawk/

http://metamechs.com...ides/dire-wolf/

Edited by zudukai, 27 February 2015 - 01:43 AM.

[Archie4Strings]

Alright!
So it seems like the Warhawk is a decent brawler, sniper and LRM Boat right? Sure it got less firepower compared to a direwolf, but therefore it is faster right? That sounds fair to me!

Thing is, that when piloting the hellbringer oder the summoner, i feel much to vulnerable and i am far not tanky enough, to lead an attack. I like to do that, especially when my team is kind of... headless and dont know what to do.. then there gotta be somebody who shows them what to do, and i guess its better to do that in a warhawk instead of a hellbringer or a summoner.

I just wanted to make sure, that the warhawk is worth its money, cause i dont see them very often, compared to most assaults like victor, stalker, king crab, dire wolf, atlas.
So thank you guys! guess i'll go for it!!

[Nightshade24]

As most clan mechs, not really. However when quirks happen (maybe multiple passes needed...) it'll be great.

I enjoy it now atm but as all clan mechs I got I do not bring it to CW.

[Brizna]

I got them mastered and while it's not a waste of money there is certainly better stuff to spend your C-Bills on.

It's fast for an assault but it's easy to cripple and the loadouts available are very limited by silly design decisions, it also lacks arm actuators ... I suppose the agile clan assault mech being actually agile was deemed too overpowered ... all in all direwolf offers about 20 tons more of payload with little to no drawbacks in group queue, specially if you have a team covering your ass, for PUG queue warhawk might be better since it's hard to leave behind.

[Pezzer]

I would argue that you should not go for a Warhawk if you want to lead the attack. I play my Warhawk as a sniper, a PPC/LRM boat, and a brawler, but the brawler needs someone to lead the charge. The Warhawk is fantastic firepower on speedy-ish legs, but it cannot take the brunt of a focused attack. It is great for 1v1 and to support another Assault, but remember that it's 85 tons. 90+ ton mechs need to lead the assault, or several Timberwolves, while you take a few hits yourself and hit the enemy with a lot of firepower.

If you are fine with playing 2nd in command during an assault, or as a heavyweight sniper, then go for it. But remember that the Warhawk is a Clan Tech Battlemaster, it cannot reliably charge into the enemy (have you ever seen a Battlemaster survive charging into the enemy? I have not).

Edited by Pezzer, 27 February 2015 - 05:08 AM.

[Brizna]

Pezzer I'd say warhawk's problems are greater than not being 90 tons. Warhawk has poor hitboxes, there are worst mechs in that department sure, but they are certainly on the weak side. Just compare to stalker another 85 toner that is arguably the toughest ******* to bring down in the game.

Edited by Brizna, 27 February 2015 - 05:16 AM.

[SethAbercromby]

Brizna, on 27 February 2015 - 05:15 AM, said:

Pezzer I'd say warhawk's problems are greater than not being 90 tons. Warhawk has poor hitboxes, there are worst mechs in that department sure, but they are certainly on the weak side. Just compare to stalker another 85 toner that is arguably the toughest ******* to bring down in the game.

I agree on that one, but the Warhawk can somewhat reliably put that XL340 to use, a feat lost on any Stalker (aside from only being allowed up to 315 anyways). Of course it immediately pays for that with pretty boring loadout options.

This might work in putting that speed to good use. 2 PPCs to sucker punch targets at range and the LB and SSRMs chew up enemies up close. As an added bonus, the LBX and PPCs are almost identical in speed (1.1k and 1.05k m/s respectively), which makes them perform well in doing additive pinpoint damage and since you don't need to worry too much about hitting with the streaks, your aim should be pretty stable.

This is of course from someone who has little experience with the Warhawk.

Edited by SethAbercromby, 27 February 2015 - 05:42 AM.

[WintermuteOmega]

Also, it looks too much like the Dire, so i always focus fire on the Warhawk, even if it's not nearly as deadly as a Dire :-P

[Pezzer]

WintermuteOmega, on 27 February 2015 - 05:42 AM, said:

Also, it looks too much like the Dire, so i always focus fire on the Warhawk, even if it's not nearly as deadly as a Dire :-P

This is the Warhawks #1 issue. It's almost the SAME EXACT SIZE as a 100 TON MECH. It suffers from Minor Awesome Syndrome just like the Thunderbolt, where it's definitely too big for its' tonnage but not so big that it's laughable.

[Enigmos]

Your survivability is situational whether you are in a Direwolf or a Locust. It depends on the targeting discipline of your opponents, where they are deployed when you are seen and what your teammates are piloting and where they are. No mech can long endure the massed fire of twelve opposing mechs, and any mech can endure sporadic fire if the opponents are out of position or focused on some other mech they deem a greater threat. If the opponent is a collection of twelve soloists more concerned with kill counts and the philosophy against the 'kill steal' (absurd in a team match) than with winning the match then no matter what you drive if your team is more coordinated you'll have a good and profitable match. If your team is hanging back sniping no matter what you do if you push you will be burned down quickly before you can do much of anything.

In consequence I'd say sure: Warhawk is a good mech to run and worth what you put into it. Just notice what your team is doing and play accordingly using some common sense.

If you are in a unit, I recommend checking in with your officers to learn whether your intended chassis and build will work well in their tactical playbook.

[Macksheen]

The general opinion of the Warhawk is low. That said, I did very well in them - they and the DWF were both beastly for me, but maybe I run different stuff than others.

DWF is easier to do well in, as it simply masses more firepower down-range on your crosshairs - but it is dreadfully slow in comparison.

If you're a clanner, the WHK isn't a horrid choice in my opinion. If you're not exclusively a clanner, buy Stalkers ;-)

[Summon3r]

Pezzer, on 27 February 2015 - 05:46 AM, said:

This is the Warhawks #1 issue. It's almost the SAME EXACT SIZE as a 100 TON MECH. It suffers from Minor Awesome Syndrome just like the Thunderbolt, where it's definitely too big for its' tonnage but not so big that it's laughable.

PGI is not known at all for there ability to scale anything what so ever.... have you seen how massive the nova is lol.... not to mention every weapon system is a different depenidng on weight class of mech lol, i love how ppc's and ac's majically change size...

anyway back on topic i love my WHK's 4LPL end of story

[NUJRSYDEVIL]

I as well run a x4 LPL Warhawk. My main gripe about it is its armor, not enough of it. Your arms are your main weapons as I believe one ST in the Warhawk is actually useless.

It should be thought of as an oversized heavy. If you treat it as an assault you will die quickly, it is too big a target and can't protect itself as well as other assaults.

[Soul Tribunal]

zudukai, on 27 February 2015 - 01:00 AM, said:

no, i do not suggest the warhawk as your first clan mech, they are slow to twist, with low weapon placements, have a glaring flaw carrying all it's weapons on one side and not being able to defend them, they make decent balls out brawlers, but generally that playstyle only works in groups, that being said, they are one of the best LRM-boats in the game.

the hard locked heat syncs also are a drawback because if you want to run any other build but energy you basically have wasted tonnage.

personally i suggest the Timber Wolf (first) or Hellbringer (second) or go all out for the very slow dire wolf. or wait longer until you hear how the executioner turns out, because the gargoyle is pretty bad too.

Sorry, but I cannot agree with any of this.
My Warhawks have a balanced loadout of weapons on Both Arms, and CT/RT. Yes the LT I believe is useless because of the hard locked equipment but that doesn't make the mech itself useless at all.

The only flaw in the whole design is people mistake its shape in the distance for a DW so you tend to get focused quite a bit. That being said this is a very agile Mech mastered, with very respectable firepower for an 85 Tonner.

-ST

[Kain Demos]

I most certainly say it is worth it. It is in my "top 5" clan 'mechs: Dire Wolf, Warhawk, Timberwolf, Hellbringer, Stormcrow.

I really don't understand the bad rap that gets put on the Warhawk because it is a very good 'mech. I mean, I know WHY it comes up short vs a Dire Wolf but that does not mean "it sucks and is useless" like you see posted so often here.

A few MWO specific things to hurt it here:

1. LT being fully hard-locked
2. Limited number of hardpoints compared to Dire Wolf
3. Ghost Heat

2 and 3 kind of go together. You have 20 DHS MINIMUM, so boating energy weapons seems like the thing to do. However, unlike the TBR and DWF you do not have the number of hardpoints to mix large/medium lasers and put together a strong "vomit" build. You must boat large energy weapons but now ghost heat comes into play. "But, but, chainfire" is what people will say but this is a game about limiting your exposure time and punishing anyone that does poke/peek to the maximum amount possible in a short window. Ghost Heat really sucks for this if you are running the 4-5 CERLL/CLPL builds. It does not make them unusable but they are certainly not as effective as they should be especially when you compare them to other builds on other chassis.

However, the Warhawk moves pretty well and feels like a racecar after multiple Dire Wolf drops. It feels more like a Timberwolf than a Dire Wolf in the mobility department IMO and certainly has no shortage of pod space; the trick is using it all before running out of crit slots. My favorite Timberwolf build of all time (2 x C-ERPPC and a C-Gauss) can be replicated on the Warhawk as well but the Warhawk does it with 9 more DHS, a huge improvement. I would say the biggest problem the Warhawk has is being in between the Timberwolf and Dire Wolf in both speed and firepower. It is like the compromise between the two and most people will usually just gravitate to either the most guns at the cost of anything else (Dire Wolf) or the most speed and agility and thus survivability (Timberwolf) and ignore the middle ground (Warhawk). The WHK-C has been a great addition and I am currently running two that I love and when it comes out for c-bills I see it being the most popular WHK chassis. Here are my builds:

Prime:

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...74752c903192ae7

A:

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...1c44df9dbacee3b

C:

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...500f4e5b5a8149d

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...df5ab44652dace6

I am not really using my WHK-Bs any more. I have a nasty 2 x LPL 3 x CERML 4 x C-ASRM6 23 DHS build but do not run it often anymore because I do not really like way SRMs synergize with laser vomit builds.

Edited by Kain Thul, 27 February 2015 - 09:51 AM.