18 replies to this topic

[Sparks Murphey]

Okay, I've been playing since closed Beta, and have lights, mediums and heavies I've played and enjoyed, but I've never really gotten into the stationary targ... I mean, assault class. It's probably about time I did something about that.

My preferred play style (for having fun, not for any kind of meta-abusing I-must-win focus) is using highly mobile damage, flanking or ambushing my targets, then departing before any of that troublesome return fire comes my way. Not always a winning strategy in the current meta, sure, but I find it fun, and that's what I'm aiming for. The Jenner, Firestarter, Griffin, Shadow Hawk, Wolverine, Trebuchet, Enforcer, Grasshopper and Quickdraw have all been favourites: faster machines with jumping that have good torso motion.

The only assaults I have are the three BattleMasters I got with my Phoenix pack, and the (L) Atlas and King Crab. The BattleMasters I've enjoyed at high speed, the others I've found too slow for my tastes.

I'm strongly considering the Victor, though the Highlander is also on the list for it's jumping capabilities, and the Awesome for it's potential speed and ability to double as a barn.

Does anyone with experience with these chassis have any insight into how they've found them?

[JC Daxion]

well i got some victors, but have yet to play with them much at all but fun non-the-less...But i went with a long range Gauss+LL's with SRM back ups, my sniper, , a full brawler with AC20+ SRM+MPL's, (self explainatory) and a dual ac5+ERPPC, with tripple streaks and bap to round um out, (the last is Kinda like a tanky dragon 1N with Light mech protection.)

What people told me if you wan't to run an XL, use victors, if you want a STD, go highlander. The are kinda mobile for an assault, and have decent speed, sorta like a thunder bolt with JJ's, or at least can be.
.

Edited by JC Daxion, 02 June 2015 - 11:15 PM.

[Bloodweaver]

If you want to get a Highlander due to its jumping potential, don't get a Highlander. Simply put, JJs in MWO are pretty terrible, and no 'Mech feels the pain of crappy JJs as much as the HGN does.

If you want agility, I'd recommend the Awesome and Banshee. Yeah, the Banshee. You get a lot of energy hardpoints and a large engine cap. Energy weapons = more free tonnage = bigger engine options. You just have to figure out that mobility in an assault is not and never will be the same as mobility in a medium. Positioning is still your primary concern - but you can, with "agile" assaults, combine positioning skills with movement skills. This helps out in corner peeking, ambushes, chases, and whatever else.

You already have the Battlemaster, which would have been my other recommendation as they too can mount large engines. Victors should be a good choice, like Highlanders but actually mobile, although I can't say that from personal experience as I never got into them myself. Should you choose to ever go Clan, get the Warhawk. It may seem sluggish at first but as you begin to unlock efficiencies it transforms into something else entirely.

Finally, I have yet to play the Zeus. I intend to soon, and am looking forward to it, just haven't had the opportunity yet. That being said, reports are that it is very tanky, and it too can mount large engines(up to 390). This may be another option for you to consider.

[XphR]

Highlander used to be a grand mech.. Now my three just await the day they have their jump jets returned to them. I have found Banshee to be far more fun than I ever expected but I also love my Crabs(it may just be the claw control {or the paint schemes}). I also found my Warhawks to somehow be more responsive to my wishes than the Direwolves, I had expected to like the Dires more and just took the Warhawks as they came.. Boy am I glad I gave them a go.

Having also enjoyed the Battlemasters I would say if you have the c-bills to throw around give a Banshee a go?

[Sparks Murphey]

I hadn't considered the Banshee for an agile 'Mech. I'd written it off as another painfully slow 95-tonner, but hadn't considered the huge engine cap. Less arm weapons on the faster models than I'd prefer, but I'll definitely put it back on my list. Maybe getting a Banshee for the 380 engine, then a Victor to put it in (though I guess the Victor probably wants more tonnage than a standard 380 allows).

[Leone]

Considering the Banshee, just Test drive the current trial. It's a good indicator of a decent assault speed. If you feel you need faster, try the Gargoyle trial, cuz it's the fastest assault out there.

~Leone, Raid Leader of the Crimson Hand.

Edited by Leone, 02 June 2015 - 11:19 PM.

[JC Daxion]

Just another FYI, those builds i told ya about run an XL-350, which with tweak is just a shade under 80KPH, that is pretty quick for an assault. But add a few jets, and they help get over logs, and rocks, and other smaller things in your way which basically makes you able to move at top speed a lot easier... they are not for jumping over small buildings in a single bound.. for that get a spider

To me they are one of those mechs, that don't really play in their weight class.. like a cicada is a fat light, or a Dragon, a medium that carries more fire power. Play it along those lines, a heavy with a bit of extra armor.. To me that's the best way i can describe it.

Edited by JC Daxion, 03 June 2015 - 12:25 AM.

[Rear Admiral Tier 6]

Highlander = midrange sniping and corner peeking,forget about brawling in this one.Variants to get:732,733C and when the 732B comes to c-bills,that. Use gauss + 3 erll and std engine in the 732,the old 2 uac 2 ppc-meta in the 733C.733 can be run with lrms,but its not really effective in that.I like them and still do decent in them.

Battlemaster = hill humping and laserboating,has also 1S which is a excellent missile boat.3M.1S and 1D are the variants to get.

[Void Angel]

Sparks Murphey, on 02 June 2015 - 09:00 PM, said:

Okay, I've been playing since closed Beta, and have lights, mediums and heavies I've played and enjoyed, but I've never really gotten into the stationary targ... I mean, assault class. It's probably about time I did something about that.

My preferred play style (for having fun, not for any kind of meta-abusing I-must-win focus) is using highly mobile damage, flanking or ambushing my targets, then departing before any of that troublesome return fire comes my way. Not always a winning strategy in the current meta, sure, but I find it fun, and that's what I'm aiming for. The Jenner, Firestarter, Griffin, Shadow Hawk, Wolverine, Trebuchet, Enforcer, Grasshopper and Quickdraw have all been favourites: faster machines with jumping that have good torso motion.

The only assaults I have are the three BattleMasters I got with my Phoenix pack, and the (L) Atlas and King Crab. The BattleMasters I've enjoyed at high speed, the others I've found too slow for my tastes.

I'm strongly considering the Victor, though the Highlander is also on the list for it's jumping capabilities, and the Awesome for it's potential speed and ability to double as a barn.

Does anyone with experience with these chassis have any insight into how they've found them?

Do not take the Highlander.

The Atlas D-DC is still the best damage-soaking brawler in the game - but because it's only good at that, it'll take some practice with it to get it to work well. Same with other Atlases.

Do not take the Highlander.

The Battlemasters can support a wide variety of builds, although the 1G's 25% twist range reduction from the base chassis makes it harder to brawl with than it really needs to be - but a solid build.

Do not take the Highlander.

I don't have any Victors (I took Highlanders instead, just before they got nerfed,) so I can't really give you much on them. They seem like a good fit for the high-mobility Assault you're wanting to play, but I can't speak for their effectiveness, save to note that you don't see them much.

Do not take the Highlander.

On the other hand, the Banshees are pretty good; a very versatile chassis, and the King Crabs can do nifty things, but have very wide convergence and wide profiles.

Do not take the Highlander. =)

[STEF_]

Look, I've been a long time light and medium pilot, and, more or less, 1 year ago I ran a similar thread asking for advices about assault.

After 1 year I can tell you that the battlemaster is a good option, but have hitboxes issue, you cannot mount an xl, of course, so a viable and fun mech could be something like this:
http://mwo.smurfy-ne...c853c82e0f92b7a

But if your playstyle is using an "highly mobile damage, flanking or ambushing targets, then departing before any of that troublesome", I think that 66.7-73.4 kph is kinda slow.

So what about this?
http://mwo.smurfy-ne...70b354e346d681b
More speed, better hitboxes, very maneuvrable.

Stay away from Victor, they move like mummies
Stay away from Banshees, unless you want to build the wubshee, or similar builts (Banshees are damn good, but I think they are not made for your playstyle)
Stay away from highlander (previous posters were kidding? NO, so don't take an hilander)
Stay away from Awesome too, because of thier super giant torso-thing.

Byeeeeeeeeeee

Edited by Stefka Kerensky, 03 June 2015 - 10:39 PM.

[Nightmare1]

I'm really liking my Victors and recommend them highly! You have to play them like a Heavy, but, fortunately, that's not too hard to do.

Edit: Video of a recent, un-Elited Victor match:

Edited by Nightmare1, 04 June 2015 - 08:19 AM.

[AdamBaines]

Sparks Murphey, on 02 June 2015 - 09:00 PM, said:

........and the Awesome for it's potential speed and ability to double as a barn.

I love my Awesomes, but be warned, just because they say Assault Class, don't play them that way. Play them like a mid Range Heavy and you will succeed. And with the PPC Quirk I love the 8Q. Still love my Pretty Baby as well.

[Fobhopper]

If you are looking for a fast assault, the only answer is the Boar's Head hero Atlas, comes with an XL400 engine, and with speed tweak reaches 71.3 kph, but its loadout potential is not great. I run mine with 2 MPL on each arm, an AC10 in the right torso and an LRM 15 in the left torso so I can do something while trying to close the distance. Its not a great mech, but it can be fun to play.

As for any other assaults (I primarily play assaults and heavies) I love the king crab. I would have sex with it if I could thats how much I love them. I have 2 000(L)'s (one with dual ac20's, the other with dual gauss), a 000B with quad ac5's, and a 0000 that I have thrown all kinds of different idea's on, but my favorite just for shear shenanigans was running 3 LRM 10's, 2 machine guns and a couple MPL's. Stacking nearly 2k missiles on it allows you to just make it rain all day long, its an absurd build that fills all chat with rage and tears.
I also own the hero battlemaster and I run that with 4 medium lasers in the chest and a large laser in both arms. Not the highest damage assault, but its fun to play around with every once in awhile and is pretty decent in clan wars.

[Leone]

Fobhopper, on 04 June 2015 - 09:22 AM, said:

If you are looking for a fast assault, the only answer is the Boar's Head hero Atlas, comes with an XL400 engine, and with speed tweak reaches 71.3 kph, but its loadout potential is not great.

Ummm, no. Not to be rude, but you are incorrect. The Atlas is a 100 ton mech, which means that running a 400 rated engine makes it a 4/6. Now, a Goyle, running the same engine moves at a 5/8 speed, so obviously, your assualt, while having speed, yes, is not the fastest.

~Leone, Raid Leader of the Crimson Hand.

[DustySkunk]

A lot of great advice in this thread, so I won't reiterate what has been said. Just going to throw in my support in the Zeus camp and add that the geometry is similar to a Battlemaster (which you already have experience with) so no surprises there, but has the advantage of being a touch smaller. Add it the fact that it's relatively spritely for an assault and you have the makings of a good hit-and-fade assault chassis.

Stefka's build (listed above) is great, and gives you an entire shield side to eat damage with. Plus, you can zombie with it! I've had a lot of success with a similar build.

[Rahul Roy]

Bloodweaver, on 02 June 2015 - 10:37 PM, said:

<good info>

Energy weapons = more free tonnage = bigger engine options.

<good info>

This is an incredibly important point. In one sentence explains why Battlemasters and Banshees will be a good fit for what you are looking for and everything else (including sadly the Victor) will not.

[Fobhopper]

Leone, on 04 June 2015 - 02:01 PM, said:

Ummm, no. Not to be rude, but you are incorrect. The Atlas is a 100 ton mech, which means that running a 400 rated engine makes it a 4/6. Now, a Goyle, running the same engine moves at a 5/8 speed, so obviously, your assualt, while having speed, yes, is not the fastest.

~Leone, Raid Leader of the Crimson Hand.

Clan mechs are kind of cheating when it comes to speed with their superior XL engines. But since the user was talking about IS mechs, the boars head IS the fastest IS assault mech and my sentence is still completely factual.

[Bloodweaver]

Fobhopper, on 05 June 2015 - 09:21 AM, said:

Clan mechs are kind of cheating when it comes to speed with their superior XL engines. But since the user was talking about IS mechs, the boars head IS the fastest IS assault mech and my sentence is still completely factual.

No, it is not the fastest and your sentence is still completely false.

The Boar's Head, using a 400-rated engine. will go 64.8kph, 71.3 with Speed Tweak unlocked. This is the maximum engine size it can carry, and in fact, is the biggest possible 'Mech engine in BT period. So, that's its max.

One Awesome variant, one Victor variant, all Battlemaster variants, and three out of the four Banshee variants can carry the same exact engine. Same engine size on a smaller chassis = higher speed. With a 400-rated engine, the mentioned 'Mechs go:

Awesome and Victor: 81kph / 89.1kph with Speed Tweak
Battlemaster: 76.2kph / 83.9kph
Banshee: 68.2kph / 75kph

All faster than the Boar's Head. Furthermore, because the Boar's Head is 100 tons, other 'Mechs (including assaults) can reach its same speed using smaller engines. For the following tonnages, you only need the given engine size to reach the Boar's Head's speed:

80 tons(Awesome, Victor, Zeus): 320
85 tons(Battlemaster): 340
90 tons has no options in MWO that can go that speed, but if it did they'd require an engine rated: 360
95 tons(Banshee): 380

As such, even though only one Victor can mount a 400, they can ALL go just as fast, or faster, than the Boar's Head. Two Awesomes can go faster. All Battlemasters and all Zeus' can go faster. The only Inner Sphere assaults that are forced to be slower than the Boar's Head at stock speed, are Stalkers, Highlanders, four of the Awesomes, one of the Banshees, and eventually, Maulers.

Edited by Bloodweaver, 05 June 2015 - 01:39 PM.

[Levi Porphyrogenitus]

Re. Awesomes:

I ran them back in CB, but didn't pick them up again after the wipe until the very first Awesome quirk iteration (with the proto-quirk heat generation buffs and such). I really enjoy the three I bought, but the 8Q is my favorite by a wide margin. I suggest a 2xPPC / 5x MPL build.

As for fast assaults generally, you tend to run into a few issues:

1 - High engine ratings are terribly inefficient, and to go fast in an assault you need a very high engine rating. This includes XLs over the 300 magic number, but the weight efficiency really takes a dive past 350.

2 - To get any kind of payload with a very high engine rating, you need an XL. It's always risky to run an XL on an assault, but moreso for King Crabs and Atlases (I don't recommend it on Awesomes, either, given how wide they are). For many assaults, an XL essentially defeats the purpose of the chassis in the first place.

3 - To run a fast, XL-friendly assault, the Battlemaster is an okay starting place, as is the Victor, and to a lesser extent the Zeus. The Highlander can get away with it. I don't have any experience with Banshees, though to get the most out of their payload and engine rating cap you probably need an XL. Don't XL your Atlas or King Crab.