44 replies to this topic

[Koniving]

Lupis Volk, on 07 January 2016 - 02:30 AM, said:

What'd be some builds for the X-5?

My long-term favorite has been an LRM 10 + ER PPC.
Shown here.

Or twin LRM-5s work too (version shown).

4 medium lasers and some streaks work well too.

Edited by Koniving, 07 January 2016 - 04:36 PM.

[Pineapple Salad]

Mazzyplz, on 05 January 2016 - 10:12 AM, said:

3m:
http://mwo.smurfy-ne...438f72ecbac3b22

2 erppc on the 3m is also popular and can be quite potent

At a glance that 3M build looks good. Then I realized that it's missing points of armor all around the mech. You'll want full armor everywhere except 3 points in arms. Otherwise that's my go-to build, I believe my best result in that build is around 1400 dmg.

The classic build used to be 2 regular ppcs and sometimes 2 small lasers as backup. PPC isn't what it used to be, I wouln't take them on the cicada anymore. And I definitely wouldn't take ERPPC:s, those things are way too hot to do anything useful.

[Mazzyplz]

Quote

You'll want full armor everywhere except

i shaved armor off the cockpit cause i don't really die from that in a cicada, and the a bit off the legs cause i tend to hide em behind a hill when i shoot large lasers.
the torsos, left right and center are very near full armor they are missing 2 points each. which is totally fine and the arms are not worth anything they have no weapons and they don't even cover enough to be effective as shield of any sort. i could drop a heatsink to get extra armor but no, i'll keep my armor values
it only bit me in the arse once when i turn a corner and i found an oxide lookin at me, but for the most part if i engage with other meds or lights at medium laser range then i am definitely piloting this build wrong
as long as i stick to poking and show my torso then i am good

Quote

The classic build used to be 2 regular ppcs

yeah i should have said 2 ppcs, and yeah it's an old build i haven't tried it at all in the past year.
but who knows there are some ppc buffs incoming

Edited by Mazzyplz, 08 January 2016 - 02:42 PM.

[Morggo]

Given the recent Challenge reward was a 2A(C)... I have already gotten that one basic'd... so I'm in the market for two others to elite next week when I am free.

SO, reading all these, am I correct in concluding that for an Oxide zoom and boom style play style the two variants I should be most happy/compatible with are the 2B and 3M?

Edited by Morggo, 19 January 2016 - 09:58 AM.

[Digital_Angel]

Morggo, on 19 January 2016 - 09:58 AM, said:

Given the recent Challenge reward was a 2A(C)... I have already gotten that one basic'd... so I'm in the market for two others to elite next week when I am free.

SO, reading all these, am I correct in concluding that for an Oxide zoom and boom style play style the two variants I should be most happy/compatible with are the 2B and 3M?

I did my Cicada's for a similar reason [after getting the 3F(L) as the anniversary reward]. I did the 2A, the 3M, and the 3F (which so far has been a reward only mech), and picked up the X-5 during the holiday half off sales for Champion and Hero mechs. I can't really speak to the 2B.

The 2A, as you have already seen, is in many ways similar to popular Jenner builds. It isn't quite as fast and is a slightly bigger target, but gets some extra tonnage to play around with and slightly higher max armor values, and can carry a ton of small/medium lasers.

The 3M is similar to the Raven 3L (minus the missile quirks, which most people rarely use except to NARC) what the 2A is to the Jenners. The CDA-3M has ECM, plenty of energy hard points as well as a ballistic hard point and quirks to make it nice with a UAC5 if you want something other than lasers. It makes a good ECM scout, or can make a pretty good skirmisher with a UAC5 build and some MLs/MPLs to round it out.

The 3F was a blast in that it can equip a ton of jump jets and a fairly large engine and just flies (literally) all over the map as a scout of poking with its energy hard points. Unfortunately it is not available for purchase and was a loyalty reward for purchasing MC last year during the anniversary event.

The X-5 is the hero Cicada, not the Oxide (It's Jenner if i remember correctly). The X-5 is the only Cicada that can run missile, and it's default load out is a little weird (for me at least, both the Streaks and SRMs on the same build threw me, so i stripped the Streaks for an additional SRM launcher). The X-5 makes a good scout/small LRM support or it works well closer to the default load out with SRMs and MLs in the play style that you describe liking.

Sometimes I run my X-5 with 2ML, 2MPL, and 2LRM5s with 1-2 tons of ammo to have some range capability on it and a slightly smaller engine than it came with. This lets me scout around and poke at the enemy from a distance at the start of a match and then get up close with my lasers once the rest of the team gets there. Other times I run it with 2 SRM 4-6 launchers and 4 lasers as an up close skirmisher; this pack s a bigger punch but has no long range capabilities.

[Morggo]

Good feedback and summary, thank you.

I believe I'm sold on the 3M so I'll pick that one up tonight and the time spent basic'ing her up will give me time to decide on the final third based on any other recommendations. (I like the sound of the X5, but prefer not to pay full price in MC at the moment so will focus on cbill varients... though doesn't mean I won't pick it up next sale.... )

Cheers

[Digital_Angel]

I've never piloted one, but the CDA-3C has several ballistic hard points if you want to run MGs or AC2s, but the Cicada really doesn't have the tonnage to be able to do much with ballistics.

Again have not personally piloted the 2B, but the main difference between the 2A and the 2B is that the 2A has 1 extra hard point, but the 2B has most of its hard points on the arms so they have a wider range they can aim at. Cicada's don't exactly lose their arms left and right, so that is a much smaller concern with the Cicada than most other mechs.

Personally if you like Cicadas the 3M and X-5 are great mechs. If you like the 2A, the 2B would be a very similar mech. If the 3F is ever available for sale GET IT; the thing is a blast, almost like crossing a CDA-2A with a Spider.

[Digital_Angel]

Morggo, the Cicadas including the X-5 are included in the new 35% off sale that started today. Time to stock up

[Pineapple Salad]

Mazzyplz, on 08 January 2016 - 02:33 PM, said:

i shaved armor off the cockpit cause i don't really die from that in a cicada, and the a bit off the legs cause i tend to hide em behind a hill when i shoot large lasers.
the torsos, left right and center are very near full armor they are missing 2 points each. which is totally fine and the arms are not worth anything they have no weapons and they don't even cover enough to be effective as shield of any sort. i could drop a heatsink to get extra armor but no, i'll keep my armor values
it only bit me in the arse once when i turn a corner and i found an oxide lookin at me, but for the most part if i engage with other meds or lights at medium laser range then i am definitely piloting this build wrong
as long as i stick to poking and show my torso then i am good




yeah i should have said 2 ppcs, and yeah it's an old build i haven't tried it at all in the past year.
but who knows there are some ppc buffs incoming

Having 0 armor in the arms is bad for a stealthy mech like CDA-3M because the moment someone scratches you with a laser, those arms start smoking like crazy, exposing your position to everyone.

Shaving armor off the cockpit exposes you to random arty headshots. Also CDA cockpit is right in the middle of the CT, so you can get hit there by other weapons as well, even if they weren't aiming for your head specifically.

Cutting leg armor in any fast light mech (and cda is for all intents and purposes a light, even if it is technically in the medium weight class) is a big no-no, because destroying the legs is usually the most effective way to take them out. And Cicada has freaking huge legs, so expect to get hit there often if you at all get caught in the open.

And all these disadvantages do not really warrant the miniscule heat efficiency gain that you get with that extra heat sink.

[Rogue Jedi]

for armor distribution on a Cicada the arms and head are definitely the places to strip it but I would never go 0 armor on any component, even without anything in the arms I would not go below half armor, as for the head most Lights can get away with 6 but for the CDA I keep it higher, usualy 12+ because I do tend to suffer head damage more in that than the other Lights

[Morggo]

LadyDanams, on 19 January 2016 - 06:24 PM, said:

Morggo, the Cicadas including the X-5 are included in the new 35% off sale that started today. Time to stock up

Thanks! I was pretty excited... I'm 3K from finishing basic already on the 3M. I like the little guy with the ECM.. but it's not *quite* my style. Peek & Poke with the ERLLx2 is interesting, and I'll admit a little bit of excitement in my gut as I played the Sneaky Git and even racked up some 500 dmg games in her.. but in the end I'm just a good old fashioned Zoom & Boomer... taking a look at the X5 to round out my trio tonight.....

Pineapple Salad, on 19 January 2016 - 11:30 PM, said:

Having 0 armor in the arms is bad for a stealthy mech like CDA-3M because the moment someone scratches you with a laser, those arms start smoking like crazy, exposing your position to everyone.

Shaving armor off the cockpit exposes you to random arty headshots.

Ironically, I got several warnings from cockpit Betty last night "Warning: Head Critical" or something like that. Never had that before, even in my Jenner....

Rogue Jedi, on 20 January 2016 - 01:31 AM, said:

for armor distribution on a Cicada the arms and head are definitely the places to strip it but I would never go 0 armor on any component, even without anything in the arms I would not go below half armor, as for the head most Lights can get away with 6 but for the CDA I keep it higher, usualy 12+ because I do tend to suffer head damage more in that than the other Lights

Exactly. Tempting as it was to cut the arms and go light on the head when I started the CDA, I left some armor for basic shielding and it's paid off tremendously so far.

[Morggo]

Done and done!

Basic'd the 2A(C) and stockpiling xp for elite
Basic'd the 3M and stockpiling xp for elite
Half way through basic'ing the X-5

Went with the majority recommendations. I'm addicted to modules so was tempted by the variant with the extra module slot but in the end think I'll be much happier with the X-5 rounding out the triad.
Can't wait to see how they run fully mastered. Fun little guys, not quite my Jenners, but loads of fun.

Thanks all, hope to ...ermmm... show you.... my new Cicadas on the field soon!

Edited by Morggo, 21 January 2016 - 05:34 AM.

[Digital_Angel]

Morggo, on 21 January 2016 - 05:33 AM, said:

Can't wait to see how they run fully mastered. Fun little guys, not quite my Jenners, but loads of fun.

Thanks all, hope to ...ermmm... show you.... my new Cicadas on the field soon!

Feel free to friend me in game and send a group request if you see me on some time. I'm on most nights for a few hours (Central US time zone, GMT-6) We can go have a Cicada party one night. One of the guys I drop with on a regular basis is almost a dedicated light/small medium pilot, drop a whole lance of Cicadas in a game together just for the hell of it.

[Morggo]

LadyDanams, on 21 January 2016 - 08:33 AM, said:

Feel free to friend me in game and send a group request if you see me on some time. I'm on most nights for a few hours (Central US time zone, GMT-6) We can go have a Cicada party one night. One of the guys I drop with on a regular basis is almost a dedicated light/small medium pilot, drop a whole lance of Cicadas in a game together just for the hell of it.

Will do! My other two buddies also have the Challenge 2A(C). We have been occasionally doing what we refer to as "cicada brothers" drops and the 3 of us have a blast.. so a full lance or more would be hilarious (and possibly fairly effective).

I'll friend you (I'll be doing some travel through Tuesday so this will unfortunately be a rare non-MWO weekend for me but I'll look you up when I get back to town!

Edited by Morggo, 21 January 2016 - 12:12 PM.

[mogs01gt]

Romual, on 04 January 2016 - 11:15 AM, said:

Hello there. I have barely any expirience in building my own mechs, so this is why I'm here - I can't find any fresh cicada builds. It seems just everybody ignores this mech. Why? Is it actualy this bad?

Well, yes its not really a good mech in MWO. Its sized too big, it doesnt have the firepwer of the FS9, ACH or Jenner and its more of a ERLL poke mech but the Raven does that better.

Options are either to ERLL poke with the 3m or ML brawl with the 3c.

[Morggo]

mogs01gt, on 21 January 2016 - 10:38 AM, said:

Well, yes its not really a good mech in MWO. ...(snip)

*sniff* *sniff* Our CDA's are unloved

Again, totally respect your opinion, everyone will have different experiences.

Flip side, I will go back to "there is no bad mech"... I've been a CDA pilot for a week, and in that time I'm finding in my (basic'd, not even elited) CDA's I'm into the 300 - 500 dmg and plenty of assists and the occasional kill. So my opinion is they are pretty solid little mechs and expect that performace to increase as I get a feel for her and master them. All comes down to play style and how you mesh with the mech I'd say.

Personal mileage will vary!

Edited by Morggo, 21 January 2016 - 12:18 PM.

[Cato Phoenix]

Romual, on 04 January 2016 - 11:15 AM, said:

Hello there. I have barely any expirience in building my own mechs, so this is why I'm here - I can't find any fresh cicada builds. It seems just everybody ignores this mech. Why? Is it actualy this bad?

And to the point - I'm thinking about 3 builds. I've done all of them, but am completly sure they're crap. So if you can correct me - please do so:

- M3 CQC Backstabber
CDA-3M

Not a lot of ammo - you'll have to get really close. An XL 265 won't be fast enough to allow you to backstab. I personally use a big engine, lots of heatsinks, straight up 4 MLAS and ECM. Pretty versatile.

Quote

- M3 Poke
CDA-3M

Again, not nearly enough ammo. If you are going to go with a ballistic medium I would suggest a blackjack - it's more suited. The cicada is a skirmisher.

Quote

- B2 Laser Vomit
CDA-2B

This is a good build but needs kinks worked out.

Optimize it by:

Move 2 heatsinks to the engine, 1 to each side torso. You then have .85 tons free - decrease head armor some (or scrape a bit off each arms) and put another DHS in your favorite non shield side torso.

[TercieI]

Cato Phoenix, on 21 January 2016 - 12:56 PM, said:

Not a lot of ammo - you'll have to get really close. An XL 265 won't be fast enough to allow you to backstab. I personally use a big engine, lots of heatsinks, straight up 4 MLAS and ECM. Pretty versatile.



Again, not nearly enough ammo. If you are going to go with a ballistic medium I would suggest a blackjack - it's more suited. The cicada is a skirmisher.



This is a good build but needs kinks worked out.

Optimize it by:

Move 2 heatsinks to the engine, 1 to each side torso. You then have .85 tons free - decrease head armor some (or scrape a bit off each arms) and put another DHS in your favorite non shield side torso.

Almost all of this advice is bad. 60 UAC shots is plenty, 40 LBX is more than plenty (that build is just rubbish though, too slow and short range, nevermind that LBX is just a junk gun). General rule is 2 tons of ammo per ballistic...less on the AC/10&LBX10 because they have inflated ammo counts.

And on the 2B, you're right about armor scraping for another DHS, but that one can go in the engine. The others crit pad the guns in the arms and are exactly where they should be.

Edited by TercieI, 21 January 2016 - 01:32 PM.

[Windscape]

been having fun w/ this

CDA-2A(C)

btw i have less arm armor on the actual mech. I could have added an extra heatsink, but wasnt in the mood for 0 head armor:P

[Dulahan]

Never let anyone tell you Cicadas are bad. The 2C, maybe. The rest? Solid. They're not Tier 1 Meta... with the exception of the 3M in Community Warfare being a VERY common mech to see (ECM, and 40 tons make it very drop deck friendly), but they're otherwise quite good.

Most good builds go 130kph, at least, which is fast. Some even more. All have good firepower for their size, and more importantly, they have some sick quirks in many cases, even now. Not as much as before (the 2B Wubcada was absolutely disgusting for a time - and it's still nothing to sneeze at). But yeah, solid mechs. If you aren't seeing a lot of them it's because you don't see a lot of much of anything that's not meta, or newer, due to how many of everything there is!