2 replies to this topic

[Speedkermit]

I'm not really seeing what the differences are between the three types of ballistic weapons, pros & cons of each. Would be really grateful if anyone can give a run-down.

AC
U AC
LB-X AC

[GonaDie]

Clan standart ACs:no pros, only cons.They are completly inferior to UACs, as they were suppouse to be placeholders.
Clan Ultra ACs: Pros;double-tap.They have a huge damage potential.Cons: they fire multiple shells, which makes it harder to consentrate fire on components. They also have a jam chance if you double-tap
Clan LB-X: pros: better chances to crit, but that's trivial. cons: pellet spread limits it's effective range.LB-X ACs are considered to be pretty bad.

So your only viable option is UACs.

For IS, their LB-X is cosnidered to be useless, their UAC is pretty good, but I think it's kinda situational.But their standart AC are pretty decent, because they deal pin-point damage.They have shorter range and weight more than Clan counterparts.

Don't know what else I could add.If you have more questions, ask away.

Edited by GonaDie, 29 February 2016 - 10:07 AM.

[Tiamat of the Sea]

Here, I broke this down some time ago, though the thread has since fallen way into the old pages.

Quickdraw Crobat, on 10 April 2015 - 08:46 AM, said:

Gonna expand David's table. My additions in bold, his originals in normal type.

AC/2:

• Pros: Rapid fire, extreme range, very distracting to target, high travel speed.
  
• Cons: High heat, low damage when used for short bursts of fire, very tonnage/hardpoint expensive.

AC/5:

• Pros: Decent firing rate, not too hot, good range.
  
• Cons: Medium damage, very tonnage expensive, cannot fit more than two per arm or three per torso no matter what.

AC/10:

• Pros: Good firing rate for damage, not very hot, concentrated damage, good for peeking/single-shot.
  
• Cons: Heavy, slightly hard on critical hit slots (cannot fit multiple in one location no matter what).

AC/20:

• Pros: Highest damage of any AC, capable of knocking out enemy AC/20 with a single shot to internals at times, very strong for single-shot or peek-firing.
  
• Cons: Hot (for ballistics), big (Only one per location ever and doesn't fit in many arms), heavy, slow (both in projectile speed and refire rate), very unfriendly to using multiple at once (look up Ghost Heat).

Inner Sphere UAC/5:

• Pros: 5 damage per shot, rapid fire, relatively low heat, very good burst fire damage when you use the ability to shoot again before reload (~3-4 seconds of fire is optimal)
  
• Cons: Jams frequently and stops firing for a bit which makes it worse for extended fire than a standard AC/5.

C-AC/2:

• Pros: Light and easy to fit in singles, constant stream of shells for annoyance factor, decent damage for extended engagements, extreme range, fast shell travel.
  
• Cons: Slightly hot for ballistics due to refire rate, very space/tonnage expensive in multiples compared to other Clan weapons, weak damage when used for peeking/single-shot, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

C-AC/5:

• Pros: Very space-efficient even for Clan ballistics, low heat, good damage for extended engagements, long range, good shell travel.
  
• Cons: Slightly tonnage intensive in multiples compared to other Clan weapons, fires two 2.5 damage shells making concentrated damage difficult, hard to fit in some omni-pods, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

C-AC/10:

• Pros: Low heat, good middle-ground weapon for mixed use between peeking and extended combat.
  
• Cons: Fires three 3.33 damage shells making concentrated damage difficult, sometimes won't fit in components even when tonnage allows (dependent on 'mech), prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

C-AC/20:

• Pros: Good for very short engagements or peeking, high damage per trigger-pull.
  
• Cons: Very heavy, fires four 5-damage shells making concentrated damage difficult, very large (often won't fit in torsos), prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal), slow-firing, slow shell travel speed, short range.

Clan UAC/2:

• Pros: Very rapid maximum fire rate, less space-intensive than C-AC or C-LB-X equivalent, good for 2-3 seconds of burst fire, smallest individually significant Clan ballistic, very long range, fast shell travel.
  
• Cons: Hotter than other Clan 2-class ACs, consumes ammo very quickly, less damage over time than C-AC/2 after 2-3 seconds due to jamming (if Ultra refire is used), very hot at full fire rate, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

Clan UAC/5:

• Pros: Very space efficient, excellent for 3-4 seconds of burst fire, long range, good shell travel speed, smaller than other Clan 5-class ACs.
  
• Cons: Hotter than other Clan 5-class ACs, consumes ammo quickly, less damage over time than C-AC/5 after 3-4 seconds due to jamming (if Ultra refire is used), each 'shot' is two 2.5 damage shells so focused damage is difficult, tonnage-intensive in multiples, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

Clan UAC/10:

• Pros: Fairly space efficient for an autocannon, good heat/damage ratio, Ultra refire-with-jamchance lets you select between firing for burst damage or extended combat, smaller than other Clan 10-class ACs.
  
• Cons: Hotter than other Clan 10-class ACs, consumes ammo quickly when fired at Ultra speeds, very tonnage-intensive, each 'shot' is three 3.33 damage shells so focused damage is difficult, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

Clan UAC/20

• Pros: Ultra-firing makes this the single most damaging weapon in the game over short periods of time, Ultra-firing jam delay is small compared to base refire rate and therefore not as inconvenient, smaller than other Clan 20-class ACs.
  
• Cons: Hotter than other Clan 20-class ACs, ultra refire-with-jamchance that triggers before firing the second shot severely cripples the burst you planned, each 'shot' is four 5-damage shells so focused damage is difficult, very hot in multiples, slow base refire rate, slow shell travel speed, short range, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

LB-X ACs





LB-10X (Inner Sphere)

• Pros: Very high critical rate for destroying equipment and dealing extra damage to exposed internals, very extended maximum range, lighter, very cool-firing, small enough to fit two in a side torso, spreading 'shotgun' effect ensures hits against small targets, fast targets, and small locations on distant targets.
  
• Cons: LB-X reputation, never does full damage at extended range due to shot spreading, easily misused.

C-LB-2X

• Pros: Ludicrous range, fast fire rate, high shot travel speed.
  
• Cons: LB-X reputation, fires a 'spread' of two 1-damage pellets (rendering its incredible range as much of a liability as an advantage), very poor at burst-fire or single-shot peeking, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

C-LB-5X

• Pros: Extreme range, good fire rate, good shot travel speed.
  
• Cons: LB-X reputation, 'spread' of five 1-damage pellets is poor damage at extended ranges, poor at single-shot peeking, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

C-LB-10X

• Pros: Long range.
  
• Cons: LB-X reputation, 'spread' of ten 1-damage pellets is less effective at longer ranges, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

C-LB-20X

• Pros: High damage per shot, good for 'peeking' or other single-shot situations, for much of its range the 'shotgun' spread doesn't have significant effect.
  
• Cons: LB-X reputation, even worse at its range extremes than a C-AC/20 due to 'shotgun' spread, poor shot travel speed, poor refire rate, prevents use of Lower Arm/Hand actuators in omni arms (thus removing arm horizontal).

I would like to also highlight what I have labeled as 'LB-X reputation'.



Frankly speaking, the LB-X autocannon are a completely different weapons system than standard or Ultra autocannon and should be treated as such. They usually are not- many players want to directly substitute them as though they had the same function, which they do not. This has generated the poor reputation of the LB-X autocannon, as players attempting to use the LB-10X in particular as though it were a direct equivalent to an AC/10 have had poor experiences.

This is comparable to trying to use a claw hammer and a monkey wrench as perfect equivalents. They may both be used for fastening and unfastening things, and they may have similar weights, and they may both be one-handed tools. This does not make them tools for the exact same situations as each other, though, and anyone trying to use them as though this was the case will find themselves quickly frustrated.

LB-X autocannon are specifically good for three situations that standard autocannon are less effective for.

• A fast light 'mech when you can't draw a bead on it properly. Hitting a light 'mech that's moving quickly with a standard or ultra autocannon can be an exercise in frustration if the light pilot is able to juke and hop well- their movement becomes unpredictable as well as fast and trying to hit them with a single shell or a brief burst of shells is then as much a matter of luck as skill. LB-X autocannon sacrifice the chance of all the damage in one spot for a spread of pellets that vastly increases your chance of connecting with at least a little damage.
  
• A distant target that you don't have time to aim carefully at. Some players are good enough at snap fire that this isn't an issue, but a lot of us can't aim as quickly as we would like to. In these cases, as long as the target is actually still in range of the LB-X pellet spread, this will allow some damage to be scored where no damage would otherwise have been dealt. This is very situational and somewhat autocannon-dependent- the LB-2X doesn't have enough pellets in a spread to guarantee that damage, and the LB-20X doesn't reach far enough to be worth using in this fashion most of the time, but the LB-10X is perfect for this and the LB-5X isn't too bad at it.
  
• A nearby target with the armor stripped off a location that you don't think you can destroy completely in time. With the structure boosts to various 'mechs- most emphatically the Hunchback's shoulders, the Dragon's center torso, and the Awesome's center AND side torsos- it may not be possible to completely destroy a damaged component of a 'mech either before it can shoot you again or before it finishes ducking behind cover. In these situations, an LB-X autocannon is better than a shell-firing cannon- it inflicts more critical hit damage per shot on average and also more base damage on average to an exposed location than a standard or ultra autocannon. You can take a long shot and hope with the other autocannon, or be virtually certain of ruining weapons and other equipment with an LB-X autocannon. This can be, but is not always, vital to preventing you or your allies from taking more damage from your target, and if you're lucky, it can abruptly destroy them by causing a fatal ammunition explosion (or at least cripple them by removing the component if they have CASE installed).

The one other advantage is that LB-X autocannon run significantly cooler than their Standard and Ultra companions- although this effect is obviated for the Clans, whose 'standard' autocannon are actually LB-X autocannon using standard autocannon ammunition (stupid mean cheatyfaces).





Basically, this means that if you are going to run an LB-X autocannon, you either plan on applying it in those three situations, you plan on taking advantage of the lower heat per shot, or you plan to set up situations where the advantages of the LB-X are useful to you. If you can't do that, won't do that, or don't know how to do that, then a standard or Ultra autocannon is going to always be a better choice.

Most players either can't do, won't do, or don't know how to do. This is where the blanket declaration that LB-X autocannon are bad comes from.

I know this post is a bit long-winded, but you need to have that information before you make your decision or you may feel misled.

So now you know.

And knowing is a significant portion of the armed conflict.

-QKD-CR0

To reiterate in different terms-

An LB-X autocannon is a secondary weapon. Most pilots are not willing to use ballistics as secondary armament rather than primary, and many 'mechs cannot afford to use ballistics as secondary armament rather than primary. Used properly, as secondary weapons, LB-10 and 20 X autocannon work just fine. LB-5X are a little harder to use even as secondary weapons (but still reasonable in the right situation), and the LB-2X is essentially never worth it in comparison to even a standard AC/2, since the extended range is beyond reasonable firing distances and the spread effect ruins what efficiency the lightest autocannon has anyways.

Edited by Quickdraw Crobat, 29 February 2016 - 11:24 AM.