68 replies to this topic

[ChewBaka]

I was actually thinking of getting a Misery with the MC I earned from events (I have ~4k plus now from, and I didn't even spend a single cent for most of it) however now that I have been reminded of the Catapult re-scaling...hmm...

But the heavy queue is so saturated these days...

[Chados]

The Jester. It has been my favorite mech since I started the game, and it was the first heavy hero I got as part of the first mastery pack I got. My W/L (.79) and K/D (.30, up from .01 at one point) are awful with it because it is the first mech I ever mastered (the missile Catapults were elited first) and it is also the mech I learned how to use direct fire weapons with, and the one I learned jump jets on. It has 186 matches played-more than 40 more than my next most active mech; over 20 hours in the cockpit. I still remember my very first kill; on old Caustic, vs a Summoner Prime that came at me from across the lake. He had SSRMs and I chewed off his armor with my large lasers as he closed in and then we did the Circle of Death...and I finally got him. It was also the first kill I ever got with direct fire weapons.

And six months later, the Jester still is in stock configuration other than biasing armor a little more to the front.

I have the Top Dog also, and it lives in my CW dropdeck. It's still a 65 ton assault mech even with the armor nerfs it got in the last balance pass, because it got a structure buff . It's ugly but it is reliable.

Edited by Chados, 27 December 2015 - 08:38 PM.

[Gorgeous Randy Flamethrower]

LT. HARDCASE, on 27 December 2015 - 02:40 PM, said:

Firebrand can dual Goose, and dual AC40. I take that.

Can also play to quriks and use PPC's and AC/10

Jester (catapults in general) is going to be resized though....not sure when but soon ™.

Edited by RevisSortek, 28 December 2015 - 01:52 AM.

[TheCharlatan]

Jester, because it looks cooler.
Also it's the only one of the 3 i own.

[Sagamore]

I liked the Top Dog better when it had the overall armour/structure strength % buff. With the recent quirk pass, I'd probably go Jester since the Catapults got insane structure quirks on par or perhaps better than the supposed super-tough Top Dog. Lets compare:

Top Dog Quirks:

Energy Range +25%
Accel +40%
Decel +40%
Turn Rate +35%
Torso Angle Yaw +20
Torso Yaw Speed +30%
Add Struc CT +21
Add Struc L/R Torso +20
Add Struc L/R Leg +20

Jester Quirks

Energy Heat Gen -10%
Energy Range +15%
Laser Duration -10%
Accel +25%
Decel +25%
Turn Rate +15%
Torso Yaw Speed +25%
Add Struc CT +21
Add Struc L/R Torso +15
Add Struc L/R Arm +20
Add Armor L/R Arm +20
Add Struc L/R Leg +15

As you can see the Jester's structure bonuses (like all CPLTs) are huge and it has better offensive quirks as well with the Energy Heat Gen being the main one for an energy-based mech.

I have both but with the current quirk's I'd lean towards Jester.

Theoretically the Top Dog is a better brawler due to those accel/decel and turn rate quirks... however it would have made more sense to give it a Heat Gen quirk rather than range in that case. Who knows.

Edited by Sagamore, 28 December 2015 - 02:38 AM.

[MeiSooHaityu]

Alistair Winter, on 27 December 2015 - 02:33 PM, said:

The one that moves at 95.1 kph, carrying 6 energy weapons and jump jets.

Bingo!

The other mechs are great and all, but the Jester's speed and still reasonable firepower is very fun. Jester all the way IMO.

[Frytrixa]

1. Jester
2. TopDog
3. Firebrand

[Yosharian]

The Firebrand (similar to Shadowhawks) is one of those mechs that just got left behind in the Quirkening. PGI in its infinite wisdom decided that combined high ballistic/energy hardpoints was OP, and gave it **** all. Then all the other mechs overtook it, and now it's decidedly lackluster.

I run this:

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...075056b5b4f5d26

But I rarely take the FB out for a spin these days. It's just not meta enough.

Edited by Yosharian, 28 December 2015 - 05:29 AM.

[Lykaon]

5LeafClover, on 27 December 2015 - 02:30 PM, said:

Simple question: If you could only have one 65T hero, which would it be?

1. Jester
2. Firebrand
3. TopDog

What is your prefered combat style?

if it's close up and personal brawling then go with the Top Dog. It's torso weapon mounts are located mid torso to high torso so dod not lend themselves well to hill humping hidey peeky game play.

If you like mid to rear line fighting and not being up on the front line I like the Jester.It has high mounted arms that allow for elevating the guns high for supression and attacking enemy mechs that are attemting to snipe from a high possition.

If you are a hidey poky player who likes to hill hump the Firebrand has high mounted arms that contain the bulk of your weapons.

To sum it up.

Top Dog for up close and personal.Close range fighting

Jester for a mix of hill humping and brawling. Mid range fighting

Firebrand for Hill Humping. long range fighting

[Cylian]

The Jester is great. Running mine with a Standard Engine and Pulse Lasers instead of the normal ones (yes, still small, med and large ones). Only goes 75 kph, but it's quite tanky. And the dual AMS and Jump Jets are just the icing on the cake.
Wouldn't recommend an XL in a Catapult though.

The Firebrand is quite a nice Rifleman replacement. UAC5s, Large Lasers and an array of small lasers works nicely.

[MeiSooHaityu]

Cylian, on 28 December 2015 - 07:31 AM, said:

Wouldn't recommend an XL in a Catapult though.

Really?? See, I always preferred an XL in a Catapult (it is one of the very few heavies that I do).

I know it has seen some hitbox adjustments lately and quirk buffing, but I can't imagine that it made the mech XL Un-friendly.

IDK, for me it is all about speed. It may lack the firepower a bit, but damage figures always look good and after 100 matches, it is still at 2KDR. I figure my other laser vomit heavies are slow, I might as well have a wicked fast one if the game lets me.
http://mwo.smurfy-ne...49c55d739b6205d

[Mothykins]

XL Jester with 3 LL. Then choose between extra heatsink or two small lasers.

Dual AMS with three tons ammo. Jump jets.

It's a really fat Jenner, so as a primarily light pilot, i may be biased.

[Ultimax]

Lykaon, on 28 December 2015 - 07:22 AM, said:

Top Dog for up close and personal.Close range fighting

Jester for a mix of hill humping and brawling. Mid range fighting

Firebrand for Hill Humping. long range fighting

The Top Dog has an easy to achieve five high energy mounts (and can get a 6th one but the builds get awkward) and with it's excellent Accel/Decel quirks it makes a superior hill humper than both the Jester and the Firebrand.


Neither the Jester nor the Firebrand can match that many high energy mounts and must expose more of themselves to fully alpha than the Top Dog does.

3x LPLs on a shoulder at almost 500m (496) range are fantastic for poking.

Or you can run 5x LLAS at just a bit over 600m.

Edited by Ultimatum X, 28 December 2015 - 10:32 AM.

[MeiSooHaityu]

Ultimatum X, on 28 December 2015 - 10:29 AM, said:

The Top Dog has an easy to achieve five high energy mounts (and can get a 6th one but the builds get awkward) and with it's excellent Accel/Decel quirks it makes a superior hill humper than both the Jester and the Firebrand.


Neither the Jester nor the Firebrand can match that many high energy mounts and must expose more of themselves to fully alpha than the Top Dog does.

3x LPLs on a shoulder at almost 500m (496) range are fantastic for poking.

The Jester is also a good hill humper. It may not have the number of high energy as the Top Dog, but if you run the XL355 engine, it changes directions very fast (like a medium). You can walk up a hill, fire (hitting with the entire duration) and back down the hill before the enemy can hit your torso (although you may often take grazing arm hits). I have a feeling the Top Dog is slower and may expose its torso (what little it needs to expose) for a longer period.

The Jesters speed isn't just for straight line. It can change directions (poke) very fast for its size.

[Felicitatem Parco]

The firebrand give the coolest firing options since it supports two Autocannons in high mounts. This let's it out-brawl many folks who think they can trade Lasers all day at point blanke...

The high damage/heat ratio of AC/5 and other autocannons give the FB some nice sustained firepower. I like running twin AC/5 and twin PPC for the long-range shoot and scoot, and use just the AC/5s when I get hot. You have the option to never stop firing.

[Ultimax]

MeiSooHaityu, on 28 December 2015 - 10:35 AM, said:

The Jester is also a good hill humper. It may not have the number of high energy as the Top Dog, but if you run the XL355 engine, it changes directions very fast (like a medium). You can walk up a hill, fire (hitting with the entire duration) and back down the hill before the enemy can hit your torso (although you may often take grazing arm hits). I have a feeling the Top Dog is slower and may expose its torso (what little it needs to expose) for a longer period.

The Jesters speed isn't just for straight line. It can change directions (poke) very fast for its size.

Everything is a trade off.

If you run a 355XL then you spent 7.5 extra tons on engine that will come from firepower.

The Top Dog also does not actually need its arms at all, the Jester if it wants to really be effective actually does - so it picks up a few extra tons there by shaving arms down (almost 2 tons).


So you're looking at an 80kph heavy mech with 35.5 tons for firepower vs. a 95kph heavy mech with only 25.5 tons of firepower (before shaving legs, but both of them can do that).

80kph is sufficient in the current game, and the larger quirks the Top Dog has for Accel/Decel/Turn Rate/Yaw Speed probably close the gap quite a bit vs. the larger engine.


The Jester can take a JJ, and while valuable, that's one more ton it needs to spend.


Personally, I'd rather have 35 tons of energy build. That lets my mech using heavier IS weapons compete on a bit more even footing vs. Clan mechs.

I tend to estimate clan tech weight savings generally working out to 5 to 10 tons, depending on the build, so 35.5 tons puts the Top Dog into a similar "firepower load" as an energy focused HBR/EBJ/TBR (who all have around 24-27T free, plus the DHS they come with built-in).

Edited by Ultimatum X, 29 December 2015 - 04:11 PM.

[MeiSooHaityu]

I can't really argue with that.

I still would pick a Jester though . Then again, I'm just crazy like that I suppose.

[Cion]

this thread is proof that the game variety/balance is better than it's ever been. Still a ways to go, but better than anytime before.

[STEF_]

Topdog.

25% range. OP.

and the more hardpoints, the better.

[Ultimax]

MeiSooHaityu, on 28 December 2015 - 11:07 AM, said:

I can't really argue with that.

I still would pick a Jester though . Then again, I'm just crazy like that I suppose.

Well, if Catapults get re-scaled soon I'll probably be upset I didn't grab the Jester during this sale.

I've actually always wanted the Jester, but I've just never wanted to level most of the other Catapults to make it worthwhile.

Edited by Ultimatum X, 28 December 2015 - 11:14 AM.