13 replies to this topic

[5LeafClover]

I'm looking for a third Black Jack. The first two (1DC & 1X) were obvious choices, due to being quirked to demi-god status. I've already had some seriously good fun from these simple mechs, especially 1X, which doesn't rely on ammo.

Problem is, the remaining two (BJ-1 & BJ-3) have fairly mild quirks and these are for weapons that are currently out of favour (AC2 & PPC).

I've ruled out Arrow as I'm outta MC and have spent far too much on MWO lately. Also, the AC20 quirk is meaningless for it.

What would you pick & why?

[Soul Tribunal]

Having owned all the Blackjacks (And sad because I want more of these cool mechs). Even though the BJ-1's quirks seem mild I find with the chassis in Master status I can crank out an astonishing amount of AC2 fire. Its giggle worthy most times.
I put the Max Engine (XL) that she can take, run a Trio of ML's and AC2's with as much ammo as I can carry.

Every since they quirked the Chassis, I've been loving being a support mech.

That being said, the BJ-3 Config I have is no slouch either. It just depends if you are more comfortable at the end of the day with Ballastics, or with Lasers.

-ST

[Crotch RockIt]

I still enjoy the BJ-1 with an AC/20 and 3 medium lasers. Even though it is quirked for AC/2's, the 7.5% general quirk for AC cooldown and heat gen is still useful.

The problem with he BJ-3, IMHO, is that it needs PPC heat generation quirk more than it needs the PPC range and velocity quirks that it has. A good fix would be to change the energy cooldown quirk to an energy heat gen quirk.

[5LeafClover]

I've gone bought the BJ-1!

It desperately needs DHS, but still runs cooler than the -3 would according to Smurfy. I like that it runs mixed weapon types and I miss running AC2s since the nerf so it's nice to have a reason to. I used to dual wield on a Cicada and it was an evil little blood sucker!

Other than heat, the main problem with BJ-1 is having to stare down opponents to maintain the rate of fire. But that's kind of offset by the trolling screen shake and stress effect from repeated "plinking" noises of shells impacting.

[PeekaBoo I C Ju]

does it matter?...Everyone loves BJ's.......

[Dawnstealer]

Yeah, the AC20 quirk on the Arrow was disappointing. MG range, energy cooldown, something, but AC20? Eh.

BJ-1 with the AC20 and 3MLs is pretty standard. The dual AC2 is kind of fun, but even if you're a good shot and seemingly mowing people down, the match will end and you'll find out you only did 130 damage or so. Kind of sad.

[5LeafClover]

Dawnstealer, on 31 December 2014 - 11:37 AM, said:

Yeah, the AC20 quirk on the Arrow was disappointing. MG range, energy cooldown, something, but AC20? Eh.

BJ-1 with the AC20 and 3MLs is pretty standard. The dual AC2 is kind of fun, but even if you're a good shot and seemingly mowing people down, the match will end and you'll find out you only did 130 damage or so. Kind of sad.

You're right, the damage does end up lower than for the other two, but I'm having so much fun playing whack-a-mole. Especially on peeky maps like caustic. Doesn't matter how heavy the mech, they always seem to duck for cover.

I don't think I'd get on with AC20 as the armour is just too thin to get up close & personal.

[TripleEhBeef]

I personally prefer the BJ-3, but the 1 was a lot of fun. You can drive people nuts by aiming for their cockpit and obscuring their vision with the explosion effect.

The 3 though puts the damage down a lot more, but I absolutely agree that the cooldown quirk should be swapped for a heat reduction quirk. That thing runs hot after a few volleys.

[BlackJackRaider]

The Arrow and the 1 both work really well with AC20s and 3 ML. I actually prefer the Arrow, as all the lasers are on the torsos, which means you can leave almost no armor on the spare arm. Both work great as short-range brawl support mechs. Stay near your assaults, and when they peak out behind a corner, you use your JJs to pop up over the cover (or the friendly mech) and snap off an AC20. I do much better (even before quirks) with that build than I've been able to do with AC2s post quirk.

The 3 is also a great choice. Heat generally isn't a problem for poptarting mechs, as you can simply fall back down into cover to cool down again. This actually helps keep you unpredictable, as you're not coming back up for followup shots at a regularized interval. I run 2 regular PPCs and 3 SPL to deal quick, pinpoint damage to lights when they get too close. Lights are actually my biggest problem in this mech. Like the AC20 BJ, you can also use your brawling assaults as cover to pop tart from behind them.

[MarkFBD]

5LeafClover, on 31 December 2014 - 08:43 AM, said:

I'm looking for a third Black Jack. The first two (1DC & 1X) were obvious choices, due to being quirked to demi-god status. I've already had some seriously good fun from these simple mechs, especially 1X, which doesn't rely on ammo.

Problem is, the remaining two (BJ-1 & BJ-3) have fairly mild quirks and these are for weapons that are currently out of favour (AC2 & PPC).

I've ruled out Arrow as I'm outta MC and have spent far too much on MWO lately. Also, the AC20 quirk is meaningless for it.

What would you pick & why?

I'd go BJ3 with xl235, 2 PPC 2ML, PPC cool and or range module. I've had a good time with this setup. The PPC becomes usable with all quirks on.

[Nullmancer]

BJ-1 is my most played mech, I've ran either a modified stock build, BJ-1, or BJ-1, the second build was played before quirks and when the extended firing time of er large lasers wasn't implemented.

the modified stock build has been on my BJ-1 for a very long time and it's not half bad, it overheats easily though if you aren't careful with your med lasers. Gotta be a ninja sometimes and attack from unexpected angles, go hull down when able and let something else appear to be more dangerous then you and stuff, the usual advice.

The face-time argument isn't really one with the AC 2's, pop off a few shots, get in cover. Shoot 'em when they ain't looking at you. That dire wolf peeking at one of your teammates on that ledge?, rip into his cockpit with staggered fire and watch him back off real fast. Save your dudes with suppression fire. Also handy that autocannon rounds aren't as easy to track back to a source as lasers or missiles, so sometimes you can fire with impunity.

BJ-3 aint half bad, but can be too hot, i don't like using ppc's on it. I vastly prefer the bj-1 to the 3

Edited by Nullmancer, 08 February 2015 - 04:56 PM.

[Brizna]

Blackjack was my second mech I remember buying 1DC that was sold as soon as I had its basics since it was a dead weight at the time and kept BJ1 and BJ3 to this day since they both jumped.

BJ1 was my favourite BJ, it is the smallest mech that can carry comfortably an AC20, it is ridden with ammo and low endurance problems sure, but an agile AC20 is always a concern for any worthy enemy and it's fun to play. Sadly most mechs received better quirks than BJ1 which is bad in two ways, the obvious comparison with envy but also the fact that with an AC20 you are going to brawl in weak mech against quirked and improved mechs ==> bad stuff.

BJ3 was a decent mech until PGI nerfed the hell out of PPC projectile speed. I simply stopped using it by then and only revisited it with quirks for science's sake. Turns out that BJ3's quirks are mild but appropriate but also that PPC speed had been increased back (something I knew but that never made me go to BJ3, it was just mothballed in my mind) and played with it, this is what I found:
The 2 PPCs I carry are (again) a solid and reliable PPFL damage source you can spam, just don't keep the button pressed, aim and shot to not overheat.
With 4 jumpjets (2 tons) you get a very decent jump, it is in fact so good that it's not just useful to jump over obstacles but actually lets it pop tart perfectly fine, something very few mechs can do since the mega nerf to jump jet's thrust.
When you aren't pop tarting you are in a second line providing fire support and usually aren't focus fired which greatly alleviates its fragility.

All in all Black jack 3 is in my opinion one of the most underrated mechs in the game, contrary to the other Black Jacks that either don't jump or are too short ranged this mech is built to minimize this hull's weak points while making the most of its strong points, if you are a good shot and play it as an striker/scort you will find it is very effective at what it does: fire support, short range flanking and finishing off damaged enemy mechs. All in all I give it a Tier 2 classification, just bellow meta mechs. Use it mostly on PUG and small group queue and community warfare (defense mode).

Recommended build: XL235, 2MLaser, 2PPC, 4JJ, 13DHeatSinks, Endosteel, full armor -18)

[Nullmancer]

ya know, i'm tempted to go modified stock mode with my BJ-3, see if i can make it, or I, work. Been a bit bored lately, and have been avoiding skilling up new chassis in anticipation of the resistance mechs coming in a week... hmmm... mebbee


so i did, couple games, hung back, ppc some faces, got 4 kills in one with 198 damage, lucky i guess. Next one got 2 kills and forgot to check damage, wasn't tough games though. don't think it would do well in a close match. I'll keep the loadout in for now, let you guys now how it works out for me

Edited by Nullmancer, 10 February 2015 - 05:26 PM.

[zagibu]

The BJ-1 really suffers because AC/2 is such a bad weapon. I've put 2 AC/5 and 2 MLs on it, and it's already a lot better, although 2 AC/5 are a bit heavy for such a light mech.