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[Zookeeper Dan]

I love using ballistics and haven’t seen a guide to them so I thought I’d put one together.

I don’t have much experience with higher levels of competition, Clans, and Faction Warfare. If anyone has any comments or insights on ballistics in these settings please comment below!

The first part of the guide I’ll go through each weapon and give my thoughts on each. The second part I’ll give ballistic recommendations per weight class.

DPS Ballistics
These ballistics have relatively low damage per shot (alpha), but make up for it with a high rate of fire, making the cumulative Damage Per Second (DPS) high. These weapons require more time where you are directly facing opponents making it harder to spread damage.

Machine Guns
The low damage and short range of machine guns combined with the constant face time make these weapons only really suitable for light mechs, and then only if they can use at least 2 (preferably more) at the same time. They are best on fast lights that can zoom in, target damaged components for the additional crit ability, and then retreat.

AC/2, C-AC/2, C-LB2-X AC
These weapons have a high range but their low low damage and relatively high heat makes them pretty much useless. You are almost always better off finding the extra weight for an AC/5. The only time they should really be used is in multiples. Mediums with high ballistic mounts can run 3-4 and can be okay long range support. Heavies and assaults need at least 6 to make the face time worth it.

C-Ultra AC/2
These have the same problems as the other AC/2’s and are fine if fired at normal rate. However, to make use of the double fire rate they will jam which greatly reduces your DPS. It wasn’t uncommon for 3 out of 4 AC’s to be jammed at the same time on my quad UAC2 Hunchback IIC. Because of jamming your are probably better off with regular AC/2’s or LB2-X AC’s.

AC/5
The largest DPS autocannon these are much more useful than 2’s, especially in multiples. If only a single AC/5 is used you are better off upgrading to Ultra AC/5’s. Most IS mechs run multiples of the regular AC over the ultra for the weight savings and lack of jamming.

Ultra AC/5, C-Ultra AC/5
If you run a single DPS Autocannon this is what you should use. They have decent range, damage, and heat. Single Ultra AC/5’s make good harassment weapons for faster mechs that can get off a few shots and then reposition. Slower mechs that aren’t concerned about jam chance should run at least 3-4 and keep firing until you or your opponent are cored. Note that the clan version has ghost heat if you use 4+ and fires two quick 2.5 damage rounds.

C-AC/5, C-LB5-X AC
These are almost always inferior to the C-Ultra AC/5 and shouldn’t be used.

Alpha Shot Ballistics
Because of the lower firing rate but higher damage, these weapons are much better suited for peaking and withdrawing back into cover or for brawling so you can shoot and twist to spread damage.

AC/10
This weapon used to never be used because for two more tons you could carry an AC/20. With the increase ammo per ton the true weight of the AC/10 (weight plus ammo) has made it a viable option, especially for medium mechs or for heavies and assaults where the range lines up better with PPC’s and large lasers. Mechs that can run two may find them a better option than two AC/20’s due to the better range, cooldown, and lack of ghost heat.

LB10-X AC
This weapon has very limited use as a close range brawling autocannon. It’s spread makes it hard to get through armor, but it can absolutely wreck open components. The main benefit over the regular AC10 is the reduced weight and crit space. But generally you will be better off with a normal AC10.

C-Ultra AC/10
Like the IS AC/10 the main reason to use only one is as a complimentary weapon to lasers, but mostly you are better off upgrading to a single UAC/20 or Gauss Rifle. It is sometimes used in multiples instead of the AC/20 to avoid ghost heat. Note that the damage will spread more than the IS version because it fires three quick rounds.

C-AC/10, C-LB10-X AC
I’ve never seen them used, you should just use the Ultra version. In theory the only reason to run the LB10-X would be to run 3+ and avoid ghost heat. However that doesn’t make up for the damage spread.

AC/20
The grandaddy of all brawling weapons, this was THE weapon to fear when Battletech first came out. It’s use now is limited because it has to compete with the gauss rifle. Also, the ghost heat for firing two at once is brutal making running a pair difficult. Still, when you take a shot and need it to count, the AC/20 is the way to go. It excels as a single weapon on a medium striker or when complemented with SRM’s in brawling heavies and assaults.

C-Ultra AC/20
This weapon spreads damage more than its IS counterpart because it shoots four 5 damage rounds, but it makes up for that shortcoming to be rapid fired for double damage. Also like the IS version it it hard to use in multiples because of ghost heat. Still, most mechs can’t stand up very long to two quick UAC20 shots.

C-AC/20
Don’t use this, use the Ultra instead.

C-LB20-X AC
While the Ultra is generally superior, I could see some builds where you would use the LBX instead. One is when paired with SRM6’s in a brawler build. Both weapons fire instantly and have a 4 second cooldown making them usable as one single weapon group. Also, the spread on the LBX is less than the spread of the SRM’s so the normal LBX issue weakness isn’t very prominent when used this way. The other time would be if you want to fire two (currently no mech can carry more than two) at the same time and avoid the ghost heat of the UAC20.

Gauss Rifle, C-Gauss Rifle
This used to be the go to heavy ballistic for clans. It generates almost no heat, has very fast projectile speed, a long range, and you can fire two at the same time. It is the premiere sniper weapon in the game, especially when two are fired together. Before they increased the cooldown it was almost as good of a brawling weapon as the AC/20, but has fallen out of favor with the increased cooldown. 5.5 seconds plus charge is long enough that players are using AC10’s and 20’s for brawlers again. The cooldown can take a little getting used to, but a trick is to set all your empty weapon bindings to the gauss so it’s firing status is more apparent in your HUD.

Gauss should never be used in the torso of an IS mech with an XL engine. Unlike the other ballistic weapons, the gauss itself explodes instead of the ammo. If the Gauss blows up in the same torso as an IS XL it is instant death that even CASE won’t prevent.

Ballistic Use by Mech Class
I tried to list the most common ballistic use by class. There may be some specific builds that go against what is said below (like the 6 mg Arrow or the LB10-X Enforcer 5D) but they are exceptions. Note: (U)AC2 means either the normal or ultra version of that weapon. Same with the 5’s, 10’s, and 20’s.

Lights
Ballistics are generally too heavy to be used by light mechs. The exception are machine guns, but they should only be used in mechs that can carry at least 2, preferably 3 or 4. The only other ballistic weapon that is somewhat viable is a single AC5 or Ultra-AC5. I have read recently that two (U)AC2’s can work in mechs like the Raven but have yet to see it in play.

Mediums
There are a lot of great ballistic medium mechs. Mechs with lower mounts work best with one (U)AC10 or (U)AC20 (sometimes UAC5) and should stay with heavier mechs providing additional firepower. Mechs with higher amounts can run multiple (U)AC5’s (sometimes (U)AC2’s) and should peek and lay down fire support until they are noticed, then retreat and reposition. High mounts can also work for a Gauss sniper, but they usually have to sacrifice too much speed or run with a torso gauss and XL engine.

Heavies
Heavy mechs have the room to run a heavier autocannon or gauss in addition to other weapons. Clan mechs especially would run one gauss in addition to lasers for a low heat backup weapon. Since the cooldown of the gauss increased, other AC’s, most notably the UAC10, can fill this role. If a heavy runs multiple DPS AC’s it should be at least three (U)AC5’s. Don’t run AC2’s in heavies, you can’t carry the numbers to be effective. Some heavies can possibly run two Gauss or (U)AC10’s.

Assaults
Like heavies, assaults usually run one single (U)AC10, (U)AC20, or Gauss in addition to other weapons. An (U)AC20 pairs well with SRM’s in a brawler, (U)AC10 or Gauss work best with lasers. Assaults can also boat high numbers of DPS autocannons, although I wouldn’t run less than six (U)AC2’s or four (U)AC5’s. Assaults can also run multiples of (U)AC10’s, (U)AC20’s, or Gauss. Although if you run multiple AC20’s they need to be fired independently because of the extreme ghost heat penalty. Dual Gauss used to be a feared part of the battlefield, but with the increased cooldown is has fallen out of favor.

[Wintersdark]

A couple notes.

The CUAC and CAC weapons do not have the same stats. The CAC2 has a longer range than the CUAC2, and as doubletapping actually lowers dps output on the '2 (unlike the 5, 10 and 20) it's in many cases a better option. However, it does take an additional slot.

The CAC10 is cooler than the CUAC10, at 2 instead of 3 heat. Still, the CAC10 is generally inferior to the CUAC10, as the ability to doubletap is much more valuable on the high-damage autocannons, and the CUAC10 sports a slightly faster cycle rate. It's worth understanding, though, that the CAC10 sports 5 damage per heat vs. 3.333 damage per heat on the CUAC10.

The CAC20 is also cooler than the CUAC20, though IMHO you'd be a lunatic to consider dropping doubletapping a 40 damage burst for that.

Edited by Wintersdark, 05 January 2016 - 06:20 PM.

[Euklides]

I would like to add that having face time weapons in actuated arms like the machine gun and ac2 and to some degree the ac5 can help with survivability as you then can twist and lead in different directions.
While having face-time ballistics in unactuated arms or torso will require you to 'facetank' any incoming damage.

Though plentiful ballistic hardpoints in fully actuated arms are hard to come by, especially in high positions.