74 replies to this topic

[Wildstreak]

You do not want to take damage but there are Mechs that can do some tanking.

The question is what role do you want? Do you WANT to take damage or maybe you need a different build?

[InspectorG]

Void Angel, on 05 August 2015 - 06:22 PM, said:

Yes there are. There's not a "tank" role, like in RPGs - but no one is thinking that there is.

I think a lot of the newbs do, going by the theme of the complaints.

[Void Angel]

No, they don't. There's no reason to suppose that they are confusing this with an MMORPG - rather, they are expecting that they have armor for a reason, and this is exactly the right place to start. Telling them that they should never take any damage will cripple them tactically, and some may never recover.

Instead, let's teach them when to accept damage, and how to minimize their exposure to unnecessary fire.

[Wintersdark]

Wildstreak, on 05 August 2015 - 07:09 PM, said:

You do not want to take damage but there are Mechs that can do some tanking.

The question is what role do you want? Do you WANT to take damage or maybe you need a different build?

You don't want to take damage needlessly, but once your team is getting stuck in you do want to take damage that doesn't hurt you. Better you catch some shots on your arms than a teammate taking those shots in the face.

Newbies being afraid to take damage is what leads to cowardly newbies who lose matches. If your teammates are in the open, you should be too. Maximize outgoing fire and provide target saturation for the enemy team to overwhelm and make focus firing difficult.

[Athousandson]

The Atlas can take quite a beating, and give out a good one too. I've taken down 3 mechs, a thunderbolt, banshee and timberwolf. I was taking fire from the thunderbolt first and I proceeded to kill him before the banshee engaged. Then I went on to attack a timberwolf that had its back turned to me. It didn't return fire so I killed him after two alphas. I then turned my attention to the banshee. By then he had put in quite a few hits into me and my rear armour was completely gone with CT dark orange. In the end I killed him too.

But the moral of the story? It really isn't all about the mech, it's about the player. The thunderbolt was making quite a lot of bad mistakes and somehow or another the banshee couldn't tear through my rear armour and CT fast enough to kill me, which is strange considering I only have 12 points of armour on my rear CT. And the timberwolf didn't even bother turning around to see what was hitting him. So it really was because they were pretty bad players that I could kill 3 of them like that with no help at all from my team mates, who were busy playing the poking game with the rest of the enemy team.

I have also seen a single stormcrow take down 2 assaults. Again, goes to show that the player has a high importance in the survivability of the mech.

[Euphoric1RW]

The one that is moving!

[Ascaloth]

Quote

If a Thunderbolt can make them pound half his 'mech to scrap (even at the cost of maximizing his own damage) instead of blowing the arm off his Dragon teammate, that's a win for the team.

I love you.

[Flak Kannon]

At this point, the new Arctic Cheetah is the toughest mech to kill.

It feels like most new mech designs get successively better and better, or tougher and tougher. to kill. They seem to be able to model better now then in the beginning... which kinda makes sense...
It had been the Storm Crow...


The Arctic Cheetah is just plain ridic to kill nowadays...

Edited by Flak Kannon, 07 August 2015 - 10:40 AM.

[Kjudoon]

one special note, some mechs are VERY suceptable to LRMs because of their indirect fire due to their overhead geometry is very broad and can catch a lot of missiles

King Crabs (the biggest overhead profile of all)
Stalkers (like shooting at a blimp)
Atlases (So big... SO BIIIG!!)
Catapults (They also strip off Air Conditioners easy)
Dragons (The 1974 Lincoln Continental of Mechwarrior)
Jenners (surprising but true)
Ravens (Just. Bad. Geometry)

and to some extent Dire Wolves (almost as big as the king crab)

I'd almost include Warhawks and Timberwolves their overhead geometry is bad, but their speed makes up for it... and they'[re all clan mechs, so... whatreyagonnado? :shrug:

When piloting an LRMboat, these are mechs I like to see because it means enhanced damage for me if I can get and keep locks, and not let them get close.

Edited by Kjudoon, 07 August 2015 - 10:55 AM.

[Void Angel]

Ascaloth, on 07 August 2015 - 10:32 AM, said:

I love you.

[Bloodweaver]

Flak Kannon, on 07 August 2015 - 10:38 AM, said:

At this point, the new Arctic Cheetah is the toughest mech to kill... The Arctic Cheetah is just plain ridic to kill nowadays...

I was finding them hard to kill too. Then I started going for their legs. They drop like flies, honestly. Just remember to aim for the legs, consistently, no distractions! They'll go down quick.

Kjudoon, on 07 August 2015 - 10:54 AM, said:

one special note, some mechs are VERY suceptable to LRMs because of their indirect fire due to their overhead geometry is very broad and can catch a lot of missiles

King Crabs (the biggest overhead profile of all)
Stalkers (like shooting at a blimp)
Atlases (So big... SO BIIIG!!)
Catapults (They also strip off Air Conditioners easy)
Dragons (The 1974 Lincoln Continental of Mechwarrior)
Jenners (surprising but true)
Ravens (Just. Bad. Geometry)

and to some extent Dire Wolves (almost as big as the king crab)

I'd almost include Warhawks and Timberwolves their overhead geometry is bad, but their speed makes up for it... and they'[re all clan mechs, so... whatreyagonnado? :shrug:

Ebon Jaguars. They are easily one of the most vulnerable 'Mechs in the game to LRMs - possibly more so than a KGC. Especially when they have those high torso-mounted weapon pods.

Edited by Bloodweaver, 07 August 2015 - 04:19 PM.

[Elizander]

It also depends on the skill of the enemies. I managed to tank two direwolves and some mediums with just my Centurion because well, they didn't aim for my legs. The two other mechs behind me managed to get a lot of shots off and I still got out 200+ damage while being the primary focus before going down.

There are some mechs that are really bad (personally I feel I can't survive in a Catapult if anything looks at me because of how it's shaped) but most mechs survive on mobility (twisting/moving). If outnumbered or outgunned, I like fighting on slopes and zigzagging up and down. Shots fly over my head or hit my legs instead of my CT which greatly increases my survivability.

[Rear Admiral Tier 6]

for ton per ton,nothing beats a properly piloted centurion

[Nightshade24]

Spider with 12 jumpjets.

it can get to areas you didn't even know exist or have had a hitbox. (and half the time it doesn't have a propper hitbox). That spider is the only mech I can think of that can be virtually impossible to kill.

-you can't say it isn't hard to kill... I know, most people looking for assaults/ heavies and I just pulled up the joker card. But hey... it's valid information

Edited by Nightshade24, 11 August 2015 - 09:18 PM.

[Omaha]

The Flying Gecko, on 01 August 2015 - 02:46 PM, said:

The one with the best pilot.

And don't forget the best mechanic!

[Not A Real RAbbi]

Omaha, on 11 August 2015 - 09:20 PM, said:

And don't forget the best mechanic!

I love you for this comment, and I'm not afraid to say it in front of the whole forum.

Back on topic...

Seriously. I've got a teammate that SWEARS by HBKs. They've got those big, squishy shoulders. Their arms don't shield for crap. They're one of the most easily head-shot mechs in the game. And he WRECKS with his Hunchies.

You have to kind of fall in love with your chassis, and that may take a while. Love don't come easy. (There's an 80's pop-rock song in there, I know it!) If you're good in a mech, and you can last longer in it, then it doesn't matter what model it is, if it's properly meta-built, etc. Finding 'the one' may take a LONG time, though.

Look, run the trial mechs. See what you like. Try different tactics, and see what you do best. Let THAT help narrow down the choices for you. Then find a mech in that role or playstyle, or one that can be built to it, and then find another, and another. And run them back-to-back. Your answer will reveal itself to you in time.

You'll probably notice, in time, that those mechs listed above as hardest to kill, you'll sometimes kill fairly easily. That means that, while they're good mechs, their pilots just weren't that into them. And some of the ones listed as being bad ideas, will wipe the floor with your face. Their pilots were settled in, matching his-and-hers towels and all.

Find your towel-mate mech...

[Chocowolf Sradac]

I would say fast light mechs mostly due to the Hit registration PGI keeps breaking every patch....

[Chados]

This.

I love the Catapult. But I'm also realistic. It's fragile and lots of other mechs can do the role I do...close support...better. But I love the quirks, I love the look, and they're more flexible and tougher than they look. They force you to learn cover and movement from firing position to,firing position. They have good in-cockpit visibility and a noob-friendly hardpoint layout. But they are susceptible to LRMs, as I've learned to my cost...and as I've done unto others in counterbattery duels.

And our Rabbi hits the nail right on the head...find your mech soulmate and master it in all its forms. It isn't cheap to do that, in Cbills or sometimes in real world cash, but it makes the game so much more rewarding.

Kjudoon, on 07 August 2015 - 10:54 AM, said:

one special note, some mechs are VERY suceptable to LRMs because of their indirect fire due to their overhead geometry is very broad and can catch a lot of missiles

King Crabs (the biggest overhead profile of all)
Stalkers (like shooting at a blimp)
Atlases (So big... SO BIIIG!!)
Catapults (They also strip off Air Conditioners easy)
Dragons (The 1974 Lincoln Continental of Mechwarrior)
Jenners (surprising but true)
Ravens (Just. Bad. Geometry)

and to some extent Dire Wolves (almost as big as the king crab)

I'd almost include Warhawks and Timberwolves their overhead geometry is bad, but their speed makes up for it... and they'[re all clan mechs, so... whatreyagonnado? :shrug:

When piloting an LRMboat, these are mechs I like to see because it means enhanced damage for me if I can get and keep locks, and not let them get close.

Edited by Chados, 15 August 2015 - 04:19 AM.

[Vlad Striker]

Only way to defeat Stalker is to shoot off it's arms. ST is as strong as 1.5 Atlas' CT. How can it be without quirks - don't know. May be some secret CT quirk.

[WANTED]

Victor is crap now. I elited them and I hardly use them. I almost want to sell them off now cause their quirks and durability are terrible for assaults.

Firestarter I bought just other night is better and last longer.

Edited by WANTED, 15 August 2015 - 04:36 AM.