22 replies to this topic

[M0rdresh]

Can someone elaborate on the difference between the IS factions, however not from a lore perspective but more from a gameplay perspective?

I've been reading up and hearing stories for example about House Devion having a lot of PUG's and few competitive players (and even bad reputation and whatnot), House of xxx has hardly any action due to this and that.

I'm looking for a breakdown if you will between the factions so I can make a more informed decision.
Not that I'm planning on to dive into CW, far from that and working on getting a decent four mechs, skills, etc and battlefield experience. But I already want to align.

[Rogue Jedi]

M0rdresh, on 21 December 2015 - 05:33 AM, said:

Can someone elaborate on the difference between the IS factions, however not from a lore perspective but more from a gameplay perspective?

I've been reading up and hearing stories for example about House Devion having a lot of PUG's and few competitive players (and even bad reputation and whatnot), House of xxx has hardly any action due to this and that.

I'm looking for a breakdown if you will between the factions so I can make a more informed decision.
Not that I'm planning on to dive into CW, far from that and working on getting a decent four mechs, skills, etc and battlefield experience. But I already want to align.

from a gameplay perspective there is no difference between the IS factions, except that Steiner, Free Rasslehague Republic and Kurita boarder Clan space.

at this time the only gameplay relevant difference between any faction is Clan or IS.

also I would advise against permanently joining a faction because each faction offers several free Mechbays, as well as other rewards, for gaining faction rank

[Not A Real RAbbi]

Rogue Jedi, on 21 December 2015 - 07:58 AM, said:

also I would advise against permanently joining a faction because each faction offers several free Mechbays, as well as other rewards, for gaining faction rank

^^^ SO much of THIS!

Just started dropping with Ghost Bear last week. I suck at MWO, and am really pretty new to FW/CW, and have already pulled a mech bay, a few hundred k CB, and some other stuff, just as CGB's little rewards for loyalty. I've gotten 3 or 4 mech bays so far for hitting rank 2 with different factions. It's pretty cool, really, how much free stuff (mech bays, CBills, cockpit items, GXP) they give you.

[M0rdresh]

Thanks, by gameplay I mostly mean practical benefits or drawbacks; such as Steiner seeing more action due to the clan boarder, amount of known units, what a more popular faction, which one is not, etc.

I'm thinking about indeed just merc'ing around, but the other hand I'm not afraid to pledge loyalty and find me a unit home.

[Not A Real RAbbi]

I'd say, if you're gonna wet your feet a little, then shop around. I found a nifty iPhone app for free, that shows you which planets are in the current phase, who's attacking and defending, etc. But you could just go ahead and pick one. Even the IS houses that don't have Clan borders right now, they're fighting between one another on their house borders. So pick one, take a one-week contract, drop as much as you like (and bring in the rewards), and then move on. OR, if you REALLY like that one, then stick it out until you're REALLY ranked-up with that house/Clan (rank 10 gives a free mech bay, as do ranks 2 and 6, with each and every one of the ten factions).

OR, find you a unit (as you suggested) and be loyal to whomever they are loyal. Or something.

Most of all, though, HAVE FUN!

[Rogue Jedi]

M0rdresh, on 21 December 2015 - 08:14 AM, said:

Thanks, by gameplay I mostly mean practical benefits or drawbacks; such as Steiner seeing more action due to the clan boarder, amount of known units, what a more popular faction, which one is not, etc.

I'm thinking about indeed just merc'ing around, but the other hand I'm not afraid to pledge loyalty and find me a unit home.

unfortunately the big units mostly take a contract with 1 faction then when that expires moves on to the next, keep an eye on the map and you will soon see which faction has lots of units, that will be the one taking lots of territory.

Ghost Bear and Smoke Jaguar tend to be the lowest population of the Clans, as Wolf and JAde Falcon are more popular

In past games Davion usualy was the "Hero" Faction many people join Davion just for that reason,
A significant portion of Steiner's population is German because that faction was always represented as a hybrid of the English and German traditions,
as for the IS factions, Liao almost always seems to be the lowest population, Steiner, Davion or Kurita are usualy the largest, with FRR often also having a significant slice of the population, I am not sure where Marek stands.

[Victor Kincaid]

How about a clan that offers training in unit tactics? Or should I go merc at first.

[Not A Real RAbbi]

The clans themselves don't. But many MWO player units DO, or are WILLING to train their new recruits. I don't have the link handy, but there IS a recruiting forum if you're interested in teaming up. Also, check out the signatures under a lot of these forum posts, and you'll see info/links for units that are likely recruiting as well.

Good luck!

[Lupis Volk]

The main difference between Clan and IS is IS mechs are cheaper than Clan.

[RagingOyster]

Lupis Volk, on 21 December 2015 - 12:37 PM, said:

The main difference between Clan and IS is IS mechs are cheaper than Clan.

No, no not even close to correct...

There are HUGE differences between Clans and IS. There are threads about this elsewhere.

[Leone]

So, Differences in gameplay are going to come down to units and pugs. And folk may move around, so alotta my info may be dated. Not, I tend to play mostly during NA evenings, as trends may change during playtime.

Let's start with Davion. Lotta pugs here, not much cohesion noticed during drops, not many attacks offered. Can not comment on units as didn't get any playtime along side em, and don't have any memorable encounters with em. Was one of the harshest factions to solo pug, and I joined CW as FRR when everyone was picking on 'em.

Kurita: Strong defensive faction. Can't recall anything specific about pugs, and see more of their units about, but I found their defensive mindset to be a bit passive for me. Their the kinda faction that has units who camp in their own spawn during counter attack. Of course, they also have units like NS that's pull a full team Atlas rush during counter attack. Hilariously painful, mad props an all. All in all a strong faction, but I do not have the patience or discipline to fight the way they kept fighting when I dropped with em.

Liao: Small faction, but when there I often saw TCAF fighting to retake planets or defending their borders. Didn't see much else happening with em, but props to Tcaf for trying.

Marik; Never saw a single attack when I was with em. My stay was pretty short though, like Liao I found too little going on, so I got my mechbays and got out.

Rasalhague: I believe they are the most active faction right now, being as they are in most of the Clans' way. Some fun units to fight and often the stop of choice for clan mercs looking to take a break in the IS. Also known for being one of the most newbie friendly Team Speak servers, if not the most. in fact.... Check it Out!

Steiner: I had alotta fun here and took I think a whole month contract with em. They've some solid units and have been going up against Clan Jade Falcon non stop. I think recently however FRR and Kurita have had a better track record, but for some reason I enjoyed playing with Steiner more. Knowing my playstyle, that means the probably play a bit more aggressive, though obviously not agressive enough, since that's not a blue power fist you see under my name.

Hope it helps, and seriously, take a one week contract with each before settling down.

~Leone

Edited by Leone, 22 December 2015 - 10:11 AM.

[Satan n stuff]

M0rdresh, on 21 December 2015 - 08:14 AM, said:

Thanks, by gameplay I mostly mean practical benefits or drawbacks; such as Steiner seeing more action due to the clan boarder, amount of known units, what a more popular faction, which one is not, etc.

I'm thinking about indeed just merc'ing around, but the other hand I'm not afraid to pledge loyalty and find me a unit home.

All factions see basically the same amount of action, the difference is mostly in who you'll be fighting. If you're just starting out I'd suggest staying away from the factions on the clan front as they spend most of their time fighting clans, who have different strengths and weaknesses than the Inner Sphere factions due to their different technologies and that's a complication you can't use starting out.
If you are looking to join up with a faction permanently house Davion is always looking for mechwarriors and we have multiple units who are happy to train you in the art of stomping, but don't worry about that too much until you've got your mechbays.
The house Davion teamspeak server can be found at ts50.bargainvoice.com:7345
The only requirement for membership of most of our units is that you're willing to learn.

[Rogue Jedi]

Satan n stuff, on 22 December 2015 - 01:54 AM, said:

The only requirement for membership of most of our units is that you're willing to learn.

I think that is the same for the vast majority of units in the game,
I know it is the case with my unit, with the caveat that you must log into the unit website at least one a month, or let us know if you are going to be away for longer than that, if you do not you be removed from the unit (but you will be welcome to rejoin)

[Satan n stuff]

Rogue Jedi, on 22 December 2015 - 03:18 AM, said:

I think that is the same for the vast majority of units in the game,
I know it is the case with my unit, with the caveat that you must log into the unit website at least one a month, or let us know if you are going to be away for longer than that, if you do not you be removed from the unit (but you will be welcome to rejoin)

There's a fair number of units who have very strict membership requirements. Also you guys are working for us now? I rather liked fighting you, there aren't very many competent units available for us to fight most of the time.

[Not A Real RAbbi]

^^^ Same here. There ARE some that only recruit top-tier talent. There are some that seek to recruit the best out of other units. But for the most part, teams out there will be happy to bring on another player, even fresh out of Steam and still in the cadet bonus, so long as they're willing to learn and can be around on a more-or-less regular basis.

IF one is so interested, then pay attention to the other players you see in any given match. If someone has a unit tag next to his/her name and has been particularly helpful or skillful, you might consider asking him/her about the team.

ESPECIALLY if one is in a CW drop with a number of players (say a four or six player premade gets in your drop with you) from the same team, you'll have plenty of time to talk basics and see if their play style feels like a potential match for you.

(QQ Ragequit Mercenary Corps tends to be around on Thursday evenings, Eastern US time, doing group and FW drops ;-) )

[Rogue Jedi]

Satan n stuff, on 22 December 2015 - 03:37 AM, said:

There's a fair number of units who have very strict membership requirements. Also you guys are working for us now? I rather liked fighting you, there aren't very many competent units available for us to fight most of the time.

PL moves around a lot, but our home is with Davion, also following the map reset out leadership decided we need our tag back on St Ives.
standing orders include do not attack Davion without authorization from the units leadership council

[HelBound]

Anyone looking to join a faction or CW Id recommend downloading the 3rd party Team Speak program. This program allows you to talk in real time with other players and is far more useful then in game comm's due to its organizing structure. Through TS you may also join a hub (such as the Steiner Hub) and drop along side a number of Steiner units for CW or QuickPlay. You can do so for most major factions, each having their own TS server.

Feel free to drop by the Steiner Hub, talk with numerous members and get a feel for what its like dropping with us. Then do the same for a few of the other factions. For me, dropping with an organized team will 100% improve game play. We commonly mix units on the Steiner hub but have a excellent bunch of drop commanders.

Team Speak server: ts1.housesteiner.com
*FYI the 5th Regimental Combat Team is recruiting, jump on TS and flag down anyone with a 5thRCT tag or track down Dawnstealer on the forums.

The more populated a faction the more units to play with, the more skilled players you will find. Joining a MERC unit you can tour through each faction as contracts expire and are renewed. Or you can take a short term contract with any house. If you want to tour via MERC unit the benefits include; training, dropping with friendlies, common tactics

*for TS servers for other IS houses or clan factions check out their specific forum here on the MWO forums under Community Warfare.

Edited by HelBound, 22 December 2015 - 07:25 AM.

[Scyther]

As others have said, don't take permanent contracts to start. Take a 7-day contract with each IS faction in turn. You will get some hands-on experience with the faction, but perhaps more importantly you will pick up a handful of C-Bill bonuses and MECHBAYS, free from each faction for hitting the first few loyalty goals.

I have enough 'mechs to do both IS and Clan drop decks, so for variety, I do an IS 7-day, then a Clan 7-day. Rinse, repeat as necessary.

[Husker Dude]

Yeah, Teamspeak is pretty vital for playing CW.
The best way to start is to hop onto the TS channel for your faction's hub, and try to fill out an existing group; both Steiner and FRR are definitely very good at having central hubs where most members play, and I'm pretty sure Jade Falcon had this, too.

[Sonny Black]

M0rdresh, on 21 December 2015 - 08:14 AM, said:

Thanks, by gameplay I mostly mean practical benefits or drawbacks; such as Steiner seeing more action due to the clan boarder, amount of known units, what a more popular faction, which one is not, etc.

I'm thinking about indeed just merc'ing around, but the other hand I'm not afraid to pledge loyalty and find me a unit home.

Being a merc is a good way to start. If I may Praetorian Legion is a good place to start. we move around to all the great houses and clans.