8 replies to this topic

[CockneyNinja]

Hi, with the sale in force, I am looking to get another IS Assault.
Thinking about getting Zeus - partly due to their supposed tankiness and partly because I would need 80 tonners for CW eventually.

The question is which three variants should I go for from below?
5S - Great Quirks, Bit of everything, comes with DHS + Artemis upgrade
6S - Two ballistic slots
6T - Energy + 3 Missiles
9S - Laser Boat version?

Furthermore, could anyone confirm the rumour of Zeus being XL-friendly?
I am reluctant to stick XL on an assault but if it is as good as some people were saying on chat, I would be most tempted.

Cheers for your help.

[Bud Crue]

See thread:
http://mwomercs.com/...eus-what-is-it/

Yes Zeus is smallest profile assault with good hit boxes. XL is almost a necessity.

[Bud Crue]

As to variants:

I bought the 5S and the 6T when I received the 9SL2 variant.

The 5S I run a couple of ways: the meta build 3LPL an AC-10 with an xl325 (I think that's the engine). Or drop 2 of the LPLs and put in the fist of doom (3SRM6+A). Because a Zeus is supposed to have either the fist of doom or an LRM-15 in that missile arm...because.

6T is a dedicated Boreal Vault ERPPC boat (though it is just fine on Hoth and Alpine as well): 3ERPPCs an XL325, CCom and Beagle (I think AMS too). I know it is an odd build but I wanted to make sort of an ultimate ERPPC sniper and I had room to use the CCOM I took out of an Atlas. While a thunderbolt does the ERPPC build too, the T-bolt runs too hot for my taste to effectively run 3. This thing not only runs 3 well, but with the room for the CCOM (to make advanced zoom really effective for sniping specific parts of your enemy) and the beagle to boot. Still as a lore nerd the build does feel wrong whenever I see that empty missile arm.

[jonfett]

LOL...the empty missile arm looks like a giant suppository. "Hey come here mechs...come to your nice Dr Zeus and let me shove this up your backside."

Edited by jonfett, 20 March 2016 - 10:16 PM.

[TheLuc]

I think the 6S is the most flexible, it can be set up with a bit of everything or can be specialized. The 6S has enough slots of each weapon type and are in the good spots as well.

here is how I run my generalist 6S

http://mwo.smurfy-ne...0ca060873e37b18

[jss78]

ZEU-9S makes a very nice laser boat with 3xERLL in torso, 3xML in arm, big STD engine, lots of DHS, and a full shield side. Especially if you can maintain range, you can use the shield side to tank a lot of damage before going down. Works beautifully in long-range duels in Faction Play -- the best I've managed is 2312 damage with that one mech alone.

I'm not really sure about the others. I levelled up the ZEU-6S using a mixed long-range build (STD-320, 2xERLL , 2xAC/5, shield side) and the ZEU-6T with the fun "THUNDERFIST" build (STD-320, 3xASRM6, LPL, 2xML) but rarely play them.

[Repasy Cooper]

For the Zeus, I took a note out of the Battletech Technical Readouts. It's a light-assault that combines primarily long-range firepower with just enough speed to keep up with an attacking heavy lance, or to support the flanks of an assault lance (ie. this mech makes the best bodyguard for an Atlas imo - most people will try to focus the Atlas to strip off those heavy slabs of armor, which is why the Zeus can sacrifice some armor to give it the mobility and firepower it needs to keep a steady output on the Atlas's main target).

Many of the above loadouts work great to this degree, with the close-range SRM builds a viable alternative as well. I offer up my own option for a long-range brawler hybrid: ZEU-5S MOD1 (Long-Range Brawler). Some will not like the LRMs on this build and that's fine, but I find that having a varied arsenal improves consistency on the battlefield, plus with the armor sacrifices having some indirect firepower helps you continue the attack, even when you're pushing in line formation or cutting across terrain cover. A recommendation might be to switch to Artemis to take further advantage of missile spread perks, but I enjoy having more ammo for this build. I actually use this loadout on the ZEU-9S2(L), but I provide the build here for the 5S as not everyone has access to the limited chassis.

Being a Long-Range Brawler takes practice, but it can be a viable strategy in many situations. It calls for a mix of sniping expertise while remaining highly mobile, always ranging your opponents. Choosing close-range focused opponents is the key to success, albeit quite frustrating for the enemy. It takes some practice with arm unlock, as consistent Gauss aim at long range can be tough unless stationary. This focus on mobility is also why the LRMs are so important - in between Gauss shots, you can fire the LRMs without having to focus on the accuracy of your reticle.

The ER Large Laser placement is best in the side torso I believe. The only time you really need your big lasers in center torso is if you plan on fighting as a zombie, and that's not possible without a STD Engine, which wrecks this build entirely. It also helps with peeking, since the Gauss and Laser are both on the left side of the mech.

Early game you want to focus on getting as many LRM shots in as possible, as in the later game you will use the right side of the mech like a Centurion's shield arm to protect the fragile Gauss Rifle. This is another reason why some people would rather equip Artemis LRMs. You can also just cut down on the LRM ammo in place of an auxiliary Medium Laser / Pulse Laser. I avoid this as I find having mid-short range weaponry on this build just gives me less of a reason to focus on ranging my target. In any case, you can still downgrade LRM reliance for a second ER Large Laser, a la ZEU-5S MOD2 (0.5 Tons Leftover), and it would still work well. I just like having that low heat output though, makes the build's performance on hot maps stellar. Particularly the wide open areas of Caustic Valley & Tourmaline Desert. Maybe even Sulfurous Rift, though I have not played this build in CW so I can't honestly back that up.

Edited by Repasy Cooper, 21 March 2016 - 01:49 AM.

[Shadey99]

Personally when I finally got variants to pair with my 9S2, I bought the 9S and 6S.

I'm not in game so I can't say much to the details of my builds, but... My 9S2 runs 2xLPL+3xSRM6+a pair of MGs as a last resort (or to help with a opened armor mech). My 6S runs a pair of AC5s, 3xLL, and a medium laser. And the 9S runs 3xLPL+3xMPL. Sadly at ~65 kph none are what I call fast (when my wubmaster can rival a timbie anyways), but less weapons makes it feel ineffective.

Ironically since they 'fixed' SRMs the 9S2 is probably my most effective, though all to often I lose my right arm in the blink of an eye when I come under fire. Just today I took it out for a spin and ended up on HPG and had friendly fire take off half my arm armor before we'd gone 20 meters when a guy hit the wrong key. A 4xUAC2 Hunchie IIC finished the arm sniping me from half way across the map as we tried to get organized. I did live through the match, but I never got to use my missiles. I still did around 400 damage with just a pair of LPLs and MGs though.

Rather sad after a round in my 9S where I did ~750 damage including taking out another Zeus on River City.

[Chados]

It plays so much like a 75-ton heavy that I've really gotten to like the Zeus, enough to own all five variants. The assault queue in solo is so jammed that I wanted a light assault to run in the heavier queue. When the Kodiak comes out and the assault queue is jammed I'll go back to Marauders and Riflemen, I think.

There's a Zeus for every mood. I tried making an assault LRM boat out of the 6T and it works great with 3xALRM10. But being a LRMer is just too stressful. You can rack ridiculous damage, though, I had several +1000 games with it. You can spam LRM10 like other mechs spam LRM5. But it is much more fun to run with a mixed build and take advantage of the PPC velocity quirk, so I only run one ALRM15 for harassment and general support purposes for when the punters insist on running in front of me.

The 6S is a fun brawler with two AC5. The 9S2 can do the same, only with an AC10 and two large lasers. The 5S is a good mid-ranger with the uAC5, and the 9S is an energy boat with six E hardpoints, and I am trying to roll with four ML, two LPL, and a SRM6 for close in grappling.

I don't like XL engines because I work in too close and it makes them very fragile. And they are all awful mechs until you get them through speed tweak and fast-fire in elites. Unbasiced, they are just terrible and you have to grit your teeth and plunge ahead. Halfway through elites they wake up and become decent mechs. I like all five, honestly. They are very flexible.