Posted 05 May 2015 - 07:23 AM
I saw the first mech loadout and decided I'd say something before seeing any other mechs.
Although the idea behind is great, to help new players get into the game, placing less than 15 on their rear armor (especially on assaults) is asking for new players to be an awesome cookie for enemy light pilots.
I do understand the idea of having as much armor on the front as possible, but we need to remember the new players don't usually have any situational awareness and get flanked really easily, especially when they are zooming and focused on that enemy at 800 meters distance.
Also, in IS assault mechs, I'd leave the XL engine out of the equation and just fit them with STD (as you have in the BLR-3S).
Even VTRs can handle a XL engine pretty well, but I think it's best for a new player to last longer than to get destroyed while having more than 50% of the mech fully functional.
So, my initial thoughts to help to create builds for new players are set in 2 premisses:
1 - Enough back armor so they don't get killed from the back easilly
2 - No XL engines on Assaults, at all
Congrats on this idea and hope people chime in with some nice builds!