25 replies to this topic

[Samarra]

I purchased the founder pack and played during the beta but then I took a break and kind of forgot to come back . Anyway I just decided to start playing again and found I have 20,000mc to spend. I remember bouncing back and forth between my close range Jenner and a Lrm catapult before so I was thinking about buying a new light and maybe a heavy/assault. So far I'm thinking a raven l3 or a locust pb for the ecm. No clue on the big boys yet. Should I stick to a single mech type until I master one? Keep in mind I'm basically a newb at this point so any advice is welcome.

[Nightmare1]

Stick to a single Mech and horde that MC until you get a better feel for the changed game environment.

The Ravens are better Lights than the Locusts, although the Locusts are more fun (in my opinion) on account of how fast they move. Ravens also have better load-outs.

For Heavies, You might like the Thunderbolt. It's a very reliable chassis that has good quirks and diverse load-out options. The Cataphract is also a very good chassis as is the Jager. The Jager also has a variant that can be made into an LRM boat if you want to continue in that vein. LRMs are more difficult to use now due to the increased amount of ECM though, so you will want to make sure to equip a TAG laser.

For Assaults, the BattleMaster is probably the best IS Assault chassis in game. It has a lot of load-out options and can boat several different types of weapon systems or run very balanced buids. It has a lot of variants and good quirks. It's fast, Excel engine friendly, and is a lot of fun to play. If you like something more tanky, then the Atlas, Stalker, or Banshee might be more your style. The Atlas and Stalker have good LRM boats too.

To go from a Light to an Assault, or even from a Heavy to an Assault, is a big change that should not be made lightly. Use what you've got, get a cheaper, new-player-friendly weight class, and acclimate yourself to the game before going big with the Assaults. You'll have a better experience if you do this. I would also recommend avoiding Clan Tech for now, since Clan Mechs are expensive and a lot more difficult to pilot than IS Mechs.

Edited by Nightmare1, 04 June 2015 - 10:48 AM.

[Spleenslitta]

Stick with a mech type untill you master it i'd say. Lots of players will recommend that you get Firestarters because they are the best light mechs according to the Meta.
Personally i prefer the Kit Fox. A vast amount of players say it's too slow but my Kit Fox outperforms my Firestarter.
The Jump Jet / ECM combination can be lethal if you play it right. Best advice i can give you regardless of which mech you use is this-

- Shoot but do not get shot back. If you pop out of the same piece of cover over and over you will get hit by a full alpha very fast.
- If you snipe relocating often and far away pays off because you tend to live longer thus causing more damage over time.

- Sometimes seeing fewer enemies can be a good thing. Lets say you come out of cover and see 3 enemies.
Shoot a target that is out of the line of sight of the others so they do not know of your presence despite the damage you did to their buddy.
Then before the 1st target can respond scoot backwards far enough that you break line of sight with him.
But keep the others available to shoot your next salvo. After shooting once more relocate while out of line of sight from all 3 and repeat the process.

I got a bunch of other advice but it will be quicker to give you a link.
But keep in mind that while the tactics in this guide have stuff that can be used in the Meta with great success.
But also other stuff that goes completly against what the Meta says.
Non Meta Light Mech Tactics Guide.

[Mazzyplz]

get a premium time thingy and use the boost in cbills to master something - other advice here is solid

you don't need to spend much mc in my opinion, if i were you i'd buy a few mechbays and MAYBE 1 cammo pattern if you relly like it, otherwise the occasional booster for cbills

[Spleenslitta]

Nightmare1, on 04 June 2015 - 10:42 AM, said:

I would also recommend avoiding Clan Tech for now, since Clan Mechs are expensive and a lot more difficult to pilot than IS Mechs.

Clan light mechs are slower yes, but they could be cheaper to outfit since you do not have to change the engine.
IS XL engines with a high engine rating is expensive. 4-5 million C-bills.
But yeah you do have a point about them being somewhat weird getting used to because of the speed difference between Clan and IS light mechs.

Thanks for the tips about the Battlemaster since i'm looking to buy my first assault mech ever in MWO.

[IraqiWalker]

Here's advice on paints, and camos:

Buy the paints, they are worth it. There are a few that can be unlocked by C-Bills, but most are MC purchases. Paints are unlocked for ALL your mechs.

Camo patterns on the other hand should be treated differently. When you purchase the Phranken camo for your Locust, it's unlocked ONLY for your Locusts.If you want Phranken for a different mech, you're gonna have to pay up again.

However, there is a way: One-time use camos. If you really like this one pattern, and want to use it on only one mech, then just buy the single use version it's 1/3rd the price (250 MC, or less). The name might make it seem like it's there for one battle, but no, it's there on that one single variant, until you decide to change it. When you make the change permanent, then it's gone.

I painted my COM-2D with the 1 time Phranken last year, slapped on red, and black paint, it still looks awesome with that red skeletal design, and I only spent 250 MC. (the paints I got from the phoenix pack, but before that I was using the basic blue, and basic red, both unlocked with C-Bills).

[Nightmare1]

Spleenslitta, on 04 June 2015 - 11:07 AM, said:

Clan light mechs are slower yes, but they could be cheaper to outfit since you do not have to change the engine.
IS XL engines with a high engine rating is expensive. 4-5 million C-bills.
But yeah you do have a point about them being somewhat weird getting used to because of the speed difference between Clan and IS light mechs.

Thanks for the tips about the Battlemaster since i'm looking to buy my first assault mech ever in MWO.

You're welcome!

I would still advise the OP away from Clan Tech though. Even if the Kit Fox or Mist Lynx is cheaper because you don't have to buy the engine, the difference in gameplay is huge as is the difference in heat management when you compare it to IS. I'd recommend the OP gets his feet back under him with respect to the IS before he goes Clanning.

That being said, Clans are fun. I dusted off my Daishi Prime last night and kicked butt with it again. I forgot how powerful it is!

[Nightmare1]

One more thought: Wait for sales before buying paints, camos, or Hero Mechs. Such sales occur reasonably frequently and will save you up to 50% on your purchase, making that MC stretch a lot farther!

[Spleenslitta]

Nightmare1, on 04 June 2015 - 11:18 AM, said:

I would still advise the OP away from Clan Tech though. Even if the Kit Fox or Mist Lynx is cheaper because you don't have to buy the engine, the difference in gameplay is huge as is the difference in heat management when you compare it to IS. I'd recommend the OP gets his feet back under him with respect to the IS before he goes Clanning.

Hmm...this is where OP's personality comes into play. If he is like me Clan might be a better choice precisely because heat management is tougher.
Setting the difficulty bar on heat management high from the start can teach him good habits regarding heat rationing right from the start.
Failure and making mistakes is a very good teacher afterall.
It's like that for me anyways....Samarra probably knows best what he will learn quicker from.

But then again what i say can be taken with a pinch of salt anyhow since i go against the Meta in almost everyway imaginable.
Yup....i'm one of MWO's supremes when it comes to using allout weird playstyle and taste in mech builds.

Edited by Spleenslitta, 04 June 2015 - 11:37 AM.

[Nightmare1]

Spleenslitta, on 04 June 2015 - 11:37 AM, said:

Hmm...this is where OP's personality comes into play. If he is like me Clan might be a better choice precisely because heat management is tougher.
Setting the difficulty bar on heat management high from the start can teach him good habits regarding heat rationing right from the start.
Failure and making mistakes is a very good teacher afterall.
It's like that for me anyways....Samarra probably knows best what he will learn quicker from.

But then again what i say can be taken with a pinch of salt anyhow since i go against the Meta in almost everyway imaginable.
Yup....i'm one of MWO's supremes when it comes to using allout weird playstyle and taste in mech builds.

Good point with regard to good habits. I'm just leery of pushing new pilots towards that though considering how steep the learning curve already is. That being said, if a new pilot managed to cut his teeth on Clan Tech without becoming disenfranchised with the game, then he would probably make a formidable player later.

[Samarra]

Hmm lots of good advice so far, thanks . Think I'll stick with IS for now. Is Firestarter better then the Raven? I was under the impression Ravens were kind of op do to hitbox issues and ecm looks like it would be really useful. Thinking about just buying a mastery pack and hoarding the rest like the first responder suggested.

[Nightmare1]

Samarra, on 04 June 2015 - 11:53 AM, said:

Hmm lots of good advice so far, thanks . Think I'll stick with IS for now. Is Firestarter better then the Raven? I was under the impression Ravens were kind of op do to hitbox issues and ecm looks like it would be really useful. Thinking about just buying a mastery pack and hoarding the rest like the first responder suggested.

I used to run Ravens and currently run Firestarters. It's really a matter of playstyle. Both have borked hitboxes, so they are both fairly survivable. Firestarters are more tanky and powerful whereas Ravens are better scouts and hit-and-run Mechs. The ECM is a nice bonus too.

Also, if you like troll builds, you can fit an AC/20 on a Raven along with JJs...

[Spleenslitta]

Nightmare1, on 04 June 2015 - 11:47 AM, said:

Good point with regard to good habits. I'm just leery of pushing new pilots towards that though considering how steep the learning curve already is. That being said, if a new pilot managed to cut his teeth on Clan Tech without becoming disenfranchised with the game, then he would probably make a formidable player later.

Yup.

Samarra, on 04 June 2015 - 11:53 AM, said:

Hmm lots of good advice so far, thanks . Think I'll stick with IS for now. Is Firestarter better then the Raven? I was under the impression Ravens were kind of op do to hitbox issues and ecm looks like it would be really useful. Thinking about just buying a mastery pack and hoarding the rest like the first responder suggested.

I haven't played the Raven but i've used the Firestarter enough to say it has these qualities that are superior to the Raven.
- Better hitboxes that keeps you alive longer.
- Because it has proper arms it's better at brawling.
- JJs in all variants lets it take shortcuts and come at the enemy from surprising angles. Roofjumping is a lot of fun.
- Good quirks too.

Raven has high weapon slots and 1 variant has ECM. Good sniper.

[SilentFenris]

Samarra, on 04 June 2015 - 11:53 AM, said:

Is Firestarter better then the Raven? I was under the impression Ravens were kind of op do to hitbox issues and ecm looks like it would be really useful.

I have worked through both the Firestarter and Raven mechs.
Firestarter:
- has better energy hardpoints, they are more numerous, and arms are fully mobile.
- all jump capable.
- typically need an XL engine to get both the speed and armament to be effective.
- torsos and arms are big targets. Some players think the hitboxes on the Firestarter need work (currently too favorable to the mech and some shots that should connect don't).

Raven:
- has variants that can use missiles, ballistics and energy weapons
- arms are stubs, you can aim up and down, but side to side relies on turning,
- has one ECM and one jump jet capable variant.
- can be run with or without an XL engine. Depends how "tanky" you want your light mech. Being legged, not loosing a side torso is the bigger threat to a Raven, so benefit to survival is less then the ability to carry more weapons or ammo.
- The hero mech "Huggin" is a brutal damage dealer due to the current Quirks system.

No matter which you pick, watch out for Streak 6 clan mechs which are popular right now. They can tear your mech apart in 1-2 volleys.

Edited by GrayFenris, 04 June 2015 - 12:14 PM.

[Void Angel]

Nightmare1, on 04 June 2015 - 10:42 AM, said:

For Assaults, the BattleMaster is probably the best IS Assault chassis in game. It has a lot of load-out options and can boat several different types of weapon systems or run very balanced buids. It has a lot of variants and good quirks. It's fast, Excel engine friendly, and is a lot of fun to play. If you like something more tanky, then the Atlas, Stalker, or Banshee might be more your style. The Atlas and Stalker have good LRM boats too.

There's some Stalker pilots at the door that would like a word with you - they have farm implements and torches. Despite the fact that I love my Battlemaster, I find that the Stalker is an extremely potent chassis. It's got comparable hardpoint numbers to the Battlemaster, but the superior placement of those hardpoints, and the extreme difficulty of killing it from the front, made the Stalker the mainstay Assault during Tukayyid by a mile, being used almost three times as much as the next-used Assault (which did happen to be the Battlemaster.)

Nightmare1, on 04 June 2015 - 11:47 AM, said:

Good point with regard to good habits. I'm just leery of pushing new pilots towards that though considering how steep the learning curve already is. That being said, if a new pilot managed to cut his teeth on Clan Tech without becoming disenfranchised with the game, then he would probably make a formidable player later.

I enjoy Clantech; it's just a range-centric technology set, with a few obvious exceptions.

[Samarra]

I went ahead and bought the firestarter pack, Thanks for all the input .

[Nightmare1]

Void Angel, on 04 June 2015 - 12:08 PM, said:

There's some Stalker pilots at the door that would like a word with you - they have farm implements and torches. Despite the fact that I love my Battlemaster, I find that the Stalker is an extremely potent chassis. It's got comparable hardpoint numbers to the Battlemaster, but the superior placement of those hardpoints, and the extreme difficulty of killing it from the front, made the Stalker the mainstay Assault during Tukayyid by a mile, being used almost three times as much as the next-used Assault (which did happen to be the Battlemaster.)

Stalker pilots brought farm implements and torches to a gun fight?

That's why they've been so easy to kill!

Seriously though, it comes down to preference. The Stalker makes a better ranged Mech, certainly, but the BLR has more speed and maneuverability. I know that I've personally caved in an entire Clan flank with a single BLR, scoring six kills in the process (got the vid). I don't think a Stalker could have done that, although it probably could outfight me at range.

Since the OP is basically just starting, I think the BLR is the better Mech for him. It's increased speed and agility over the Stalker will help him transition into Assaults a bit more easily. Also, the BLR is more general purpose, doing equally well in the normal pug and group queues as well as in CW. The Stalker mainly shines in CW now while having what appears to be a small presence in the normal queues.

For what it's worth though, I did recommend the Stalker to him as a possible alternative.

[Spleenslitta]

Oh....let me throw in some more weird advice.The majority of the players think MG's are useless.
Try loading a mech with 3-4 MGs and go to the testing grounds. Strip armor of a target mech with lasers or some other weapon and use only MG's on the exposed internals.
Watch the targets weapons becoming red reaaally fast. An exposed AC20 in an exposed spot is destroyed as soon as the MG's touch it.

Here is one of my weirdo builds so you can understand what kind of a madman i truly am.
It's not a trollbuild either...i really use it with sincerity.

Kit Fox 1 ER laser of every size(small, medium and large), ECM, 6JJs and 4 MGs with 2 tons of ammo.
In the later part of a match 3-4 MGs is just plain.....lethal.

Edited by Spleenslitta, 04 June 2015 - 12:20 PM.

[Void Angel]

Samarra, on 04 June 2015 - 11:53 AM, said:

Hmm lots of good advice so far, thanks . Think I'll stick with IS for now. Is Firestarter better then the Raven? I was under the impression Ravens were kind of op do to hitbox issues and ecm looks like it would be really useful. Thinking about just buying a mastery pack and hoarding the rest like the first responder suggested.

ECM is very useful, particularly for a light. The firestarter, however, can sport an insane array of weaponry for its size - Firestarters have more hardpoints than many Assaults, allowing them to stack many small guns for amazing close-range burst. A common Firestarter S build, for example, sports a 30-point pulse laser alpha, with 20% reduced heat. And this is after a major nerf. Despite many loud tantrums and bitter tears shed when this occurred, the Firestarter is still a popular choice for backstabbing larger 'mechs and fighting other lights. The Raven, on the other hand, is a bit more flexible, despite its ECM variant having no jump jets, and is still quite strong (the chassis' hitboxes are no longer broken, but it still spreads damage well.) Personally, I love Locusts right now, particularly the Pirate's Bane, but they are an advanced pilot chassis, and often nearly useless in Community Warfare due to Clan Streakboats and active probes.

Check Here for an overview of the chassis and weapons for 'mechs currently in the game, and use Smurfy's for a list of quirks - or just go to the store in-game and hover your mouse over the 'mechs.

[Void Angel]

Samarra, on 04 June 2015 - 12:15 PM, said:

I went ahead and bought the firestarter pack, Thanks for all the input .

Oh! Er, well - congratulations! Your overquirked monstrosities will not disappoint.

My only advice at this point is to make sure you have your Throttle Decay - and Arm Lock - turned on. Many players will turn these off (I used to do so myself) but you cannot get the most out of your 'mech's acceleration and deceleration unless you have decay on - and it's more ergonomic to point all of your guns pointed at one spot and just use the keybinding to free your arms if you need to.