20 replies to this topic

[Mumuharra]

I did not plan to do the stupid challange but by some stroke of luck I had a tremendious flow and now I have a Raven 3L(C).
And oh boy, this mech is a hell of a fun to play (without the challenge in my neck).
Now my questions:

If I buy a Raven 3L (without (C), does it count as one of the three I need to master?
And if not, is the Raven worth to master (which 2 to buy?).

Thanks and good luck with the challange

[627]

3L and 3L(C) share the same tree, so you need the 2 of the other 3 (2x, 4x, Hugginn).

the free mechs are a pain to master, the hugginn is SRM4 machinegun fun, but hero mech.

[Brody319]

Champions do not count as a new variant so no you cannot buy say 1 Raven 3L and one other variant and master them. you have to buy 2 other variants like the 2X and 4X

Ravens are a lot of fun to master and since you ownt he champion you can just swap that engine around and save money.

[Scyther]

I can't speak to whether it is 'worth it' for you, but like you, I got the 3L(C) an hour or two ago and find it one of the best lights I have ever piloted (even before being basic'd). I'm not a light pilot pro by any means but do have Jenners, Firestarters, Spiders, to compare with. Also the Panther (non-basic'd) and the elited mighty Mist Lynx which isn't really even in the running here...

The 3L has long been considered one of the top rated IS lights. The hero Huginn is the one with the ridiculous SRM4 fire rate IIRC.

Unless you get the Huginn, you need both of the other chassis to master it (2X and 4X). I will likely buy those at some point, basic them then sell them off.

[ArchMage Sparrowhawk]

UAC5 Raven 4X Dakka escort for an Assault or a worthy lance support for a medium.

Slap a PPC and some SRMS and Mlas on a RVN 2X, or buy a Huginn. Ravens are fun, sleek, and if you cover them in armor and keep moving, they can take a couple of hits too. Just don't try to solo in one unless you know what you're doing.

[Aiden Skye]

I think the raven is pretty nice and versatile. Great harasser / sniper using dual ER-Large lasers. Its also the best LRM spotter light IMO, and has a couple decent close range builds. Just don't expect it to be easy mode like the firestarters.

[Cyborne Elemental]

Definitely worth it.

ECM alone is worth the grind, the Raven is a great harasser and scout.

The 4x is a pretty nice mech now too since quirks, with energy range boosted it fulfills the same role that the 3L did, just without ECM, and its way easier to get around when you have JJ's.

[wanderer]

The -3L is one of the best ECM packages for the Inner Sphere. The Raven tree's other best 'Mech is sadly a Hero (but it's one of the best Heroes, so there you go) in the form of the Huginn, which is an SRM-4 beast. No, really. Ditch the MGs, SRM 4's, all the ammo you can pack around whatever engine you prefer.

At that point, you've got one great support light, one great offensive light, and you pick the -2X or -4X depending on whether you want energy or a jumper with a single ballistic hardpoint, but will likely keep the -3L and Huginn around for most of your robot-killing desires. Being ECM sneaky, you can also make the 3L into a NARC spotter, though the most common configs are dual ERLL for maximum sneaky poking.

[BellatorMonk]

Short answer is no. It's fine w/o mastering.

[Bigbacon]

3L is an awesome support platform. one of the best.

[Deathlike]

Do you want to be "credit to team"? The answer should be obvious (YES).

[zagibu]

The 2xERLL build really profits from double cooling efficiencies, if you want to go fast with it as well.

[Macster16]

My thoughts:

The 3L is, of course, a "staple" mech and will always have a place on the battlefield. Support your team with ECM or harass with ERLLs, it'll always be an asset.

The 2X is great and is probably my favourite one (even though it's probably eclipsed by the 3L in usefullness). I use it with 2 LLs + 2 MLs and the 30% burn reduction means it shoots lasers insanely quick (pretty much same burn time as a pulse) which makes it a great poker/harasser. It also has generous range quirks which is even better. Lots of fun.

The 4X I'm struggling with however and can't find a build I can warm up to. Any tips here from some of you Raven connoisseurs? Only 2 energy HPs kills it for me and all you can put in those ballistic HPs are MGs and 2 MGs is hardly threatening. I also don't like getting up close and dirty with my lights for SRMs to be effective. I'm thinking of just using my bank of GXP to skill it up so I can elite my 3L and 2X.

[Hydrocarbon]

I will just leave this here...





I saved the stories (post half way down): https://www.mechspec...b-of-1000.5541/

[El Bandito]

Macster16, on 22 February 2015 - 08:17 PM, said:

The 4X I'm struggling with however and can't find a build I can warm up to. Any tips here from some of you Raven connoisseurs? Only 2 energy HPs kills it for me and all you can put in those ballistic HPs are MGs and 2 MGs is hardly threatening. I also don't like getting up close and dirty with my lights for SRMs to be effective. I'm thinking of just using my bank of GXP to skill it up so I can elite my 3L and 2X.

Dual ERLLasers for 4X. Poke from over a kilometer out and the enemy can't do **** to you back.

Or just go ham and equip LRM15 with TAG and a lot of ammo.

Edited by El Bandito, 22 February 2015 - 11:19 PM.

[Hydrocarbon]

ERLL's can earn a lot of EXP from getting all the flanking/hit&run/assists you can get. You won't always get crazy damage, esp on hot maps or short matches, but the fact they have such long range combined with the Raven's mobility means you're nearly always doing full damage per shot. My 2x 1100 dmg matches were with 2xERLL's, granted they were on large cold maps during rather long matches.

If you don't like that sort of play, the other variants are still terribly fun AND effective with short-medium range loadouts. I used short-med range builds on the other 2 Ravens I had & they're both nearly my highest K/D & W/L mechs per the stats page. Also very fun & versatile. Check mechspecs.com for details.

[Mumuharra]

I am very close to buy the other two Ravens (no Hero because I don't like SRMs).
Had a couple of games with my 3L today and still love it (but only without this challenge in my neck).
I play it as sniper and ECM supporter for the assaults (1 ERLL, 2 ML, ECM, AMS).
Big fun and great gameplay.

[MeiSooHaityu]

It's hard to say if it is worth it for you to master.

On one side, if you are using it as a sniper, you probably don't need Speed Tweak as much. It helps, but it isn't ad critical I think.

On the other side, a mastered chassis gives you x2 basics. Having that superior heat management is nice. Also, you will be popping in and out of cover so the x2 hard brake and acceleration would be nice too.

Its hard to say if its worth the C-Bills for those bonuses. I suppose it depends on if you will like to keep playing the mech, or if you think this is a one time fling.

[Eider]

I would say yes, its a solid light with ecm.

[Ryllen Kriel]

Damn...nice score there Hydrocarbon. I mastered the Ravens awhile back so getting my Raven 3L(C) was more just fun than anything else. I always try to keep one or two around and this replaced my old non-champion 3L.

I hadn't taken my 3L out for awhile so I took the challenge mech out for a spin after winning it and got three kills. I forgot how much fun they can be.