12 replies to this topic

[Jaguaar]

I am fairly new to MWO. (tried it when it first came out and didn't like it but started playing again 2 weeks ago and LOVE it now)
I am wondering what the benefit to joining a Clan (if I am saying it correctly) is?
I see many players with tags like guilds in GuildWars 2 when I run in QuickPlay. If someone could explain this for me it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks ahead of time for the information.

[Weyen]

Jaguaar, on 13 March 2016 - 03:12 PM, said:

I am wondering what the benefit to joining a Clan (if I am saying it correctly) is?

Usually people call them units in this game, "Clans" are usually a faction in Community Warfare (like Clan Wolf, Clan Ghost Bear, etc.) like the Great Houses.

As far as I know, the main benefit to joining a unit is just having a group of friends you can drop with. Especially for Community Warfare, there's a huge difference in play between dropping as a lone ("PUG") player and as a member of a coordinated group. I don't think you get extra money or experience or anything from it.

[p4r4g0n]

Units have no function in Quick Play other than as identifiers. In Faction Play aka Community Warfare, units will have their Unit Tag placed on a planet if its members members contributed the most to its conquest. Currently, that is about it although changes may be introduced later as Faction Play is still being refined.

Benefits:

1) Being able to find a regular group to play with consistently in Public Group Queue or Faction Play rather than having to hop around looking for random strangers
2) Help and advice on builds, strategies, piloting, etc that will significantly reduce the steep learning curve.
3) Extends longevity of game as it is usually the friends you make in-game that make you keep playing when you get bored while waiting for new content release

[Barkem Squirrel]

Now do you mean units or "clans"?

Sure if you drop into CW then you can only use Clan mechs.

Now if it is a unit, that is different and depends on the contracts you have with different factions in CW. There may be other benefits later with control of planets for the faction and individual units.

Also joining a unit you can drop with people that you know. Some times it is, lets leg #$%#, so everyone legs his mech and moves on razing him during his long slow march into battle. Over time it gets to the point you anticipate what certain members will do. That leads to doing less damage, but with a nice spread of damage from everyone and wining more efficiently.

[Jaguaar]

Thank you so much for the information everyone. And I guess I mean UNITS here although I see many players with FACTION names as well. I am loving coming back now that I understand more about tactics, etc.. and feel I do pretty well on average. (not greatest but not worst either) I am def. eager to learn more and survive a lot more now that I found comfort in a TBR-C(S) instead of the trial mechs.

[Roland09]

What advantages you gain by joining a unit ("Clan" would be prone to misunderstanding, since the factions invading the Inner Sphere from the Periphery are collectively known as Clans) depends entirely on the activities of the unit you join. There is no in-game content which you could not reach as a lone wolf player.

That said, the opportunities offered by many units are enormous:

- Many units run their own TS servers (in addition to the TS servers functioning as central hubs for the factions, such as housekurita.tserverhq.com). I find TS to be much preferable to in-game VOIP, which works only once a match has started.

- If blowing up enemy mechs is fun, chances are it will be even more fun if you can do it together with people you enjoy chatting with. Social interaction does wonders for long term motivation, as with all MMO games.

- The learning curve in MWO can be steep, many concepts are not exactly self-explanatory. Having team mates who can explain things and do a couple of training runs will significantly shorten your period of total noobness.

- Like it says in one of the tool tips: There is no force like a coordinated team (or something to that effect). You learn coordination by practicing, i. e. playing with the same people. It's much easier to do that in a unit.

...

[MechWarrior4023212]

Jaguaar, on 13 March 2016 - 03:55 PM, said:

Thank you so much for the information everyone. And I guess I mean UNITS here although I see many players with FACTION names as well. I am loving coming back now that I understand more about tactics, etc.. and feel I do pretty well on average. (not greatest but not worst either) I am def. eager to learn more and survive a lot more now that I found comfort in a TBR-C(S) instead of the trial mechs.

If you are using clan mechs make sure you only sign up to a clan faction in CW...otherwise you will not be able to drop your mechs into the fights

[Tarl Cabot]

In other BT/MW games, the word faction was rarely used.

Main Factions - Clans(descendants of the military that left the IS) vs Innersphere (Great Houses)
Minor Factions - Clan Wolf/Ghost Bear/etc or House Kurita(DCMS)/Steiner(LCAF)/etc

Non-canon units are player made units. In game, there is no distinction between merc units that do not call a House/Clan home and loyalist units who do claim a specific House or Clan as home, though from time to time they may do a tour of the CW map for mechbays.

There currently are no canon units in MWO, and it is unknown if there ever will be at the current build up of the CW.

And the CW, Community/Faction Warfare is where it makes the most difference which House or Clan you are part of. The primary reason is in CW section, Clans can only pilot Clan omni/battlemechs while IS pilots can only pilot IS mechs.

http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Main_Page

PS you can edit the title by clicking on edit then selecting use Full Editor.

PPS Clan mechs may appear to be more expensive than IS mechs but most Clan mechs already come pimped out whereas majority of IS mechs have to be heavily modified, pushing their total cost to that of comparative Clan mechs.

Edited by Tarl Cabot, 13 March 2016 - 07:26 PM.

[Leone]

You would want to join one of the Clans if you wanted to play with clan Mechs in CW. Conversely, if you wanna play with IS mechs, join one of the Inner Sphere houses.

Of course, if your aren't planning on playing CW anytime soon, it'll just give you a faction flag.

~Leone.

[Rogue Jedi]

what Mechs if any do you own?
units fall into 2 basic categories, loyalest or mercenary,

loyalest units work for a single faction, e.g. Clan Wolf or House Davion, so if you have both Clan and IS Mechs you will never be able to use some of them in faction play if you join a loyalest unit (but will be able to use them in quick play)

Merc units take 1-4 week contracts with different factions, and many will keep switching between IS and Clan, so you would probably be able to use all your Mechs in faction play.

to find a unit look in the relevant part of the CW forum
Please do some research before deciding on a unit because I have seen a lot of cases of people deciding a unit is not for them, ether due to incompatible schedules or different focus ^{(too competitive or too casual)} I recommend checking out a few units websites before making a decision, at minimum find out when the unit is online, weather the unit is competitive, casual or mixed and read the code of conduct assuming there is one.

if you are interested I am part of a large international merc unit who are happy to train up new players, and have both casual and competitive players, we take 2 week contracts Clan then IS, and contracts are up for vote by members.
there is a link to the unit website in my signature

Clan Mechs (cannot be used by the Inner Sphere factions in faction play)

Spoiler

Light
Mist Lynx, Arctic Cheetah, Kit Fox, Adder, Jenner-IIC

Medium
Ice Ferret, Shadow Cat, Hunchback-IIC, Nova, Stormcrow

Heavy
Mad Dog, Helbringer, Ebon Jaguar, Summoner, Orion-IIC, Timber Wolf

Assualt
Gargoyle, Warhawk, Executioner, Highlander-IIC, Dire Wolf (coming soon, Kodiak)

Inner Sphere Mechs (cannot be used by the Clan factions in faction play)

Spoiler

Light
Locust, Commando, Urbanmech, Spider, Firestarter, Jenner, Panther, Raven, Wolfhound

Medium
Cicada, Blackjack, Vindicator, Centurion, Crab, Enforcer, Hunchback, Trebuchet, Griffin, Kintaro, Shadow Hawk, Wolverine (coming soon, Phoenix Hawk)

Heavy
Dragon, Quickdraw, Rifleman, Catapult, Jagermech, Thunderbolt, Cataphract, Grasshopper, Warhammer, Black Knight, Marauder, Orion, (coming soon, Archer)

Assault
Awesome, Victor, Zeus, Battlemaster, Stalker, Highlander, Mauler, Banshee, Atlas, King Crab

Edited by Rogue Jedi, 14 March 2016 - 12:56 AM.

[p4r4g0n]

It is not mentioned much these days but depending on your available playing, etc, there is nothing wrong with just hooking up with any group of players who are regularly on during your play times and dropping in Public Group Queue. For ad hoc groups, you can try visiting Comstar NA, Comstar EU or NGNG public Teamspeak servers.

As far as finding a unit is concerned, it might be easier to find a suitable unit by visiting the various Faction, Unit, House Teamspeak servers, doing some drops with the various units till you find one you think you fit in with. At this juncture, there is really no critical reason to be in a Unit.

[Jaguaar]

This is all AWESOME information. I am so happy I looked here to ask the question. Thank you again everyone. I will do some looking around as you all suggested. Maybe I will see you all out there.

[crustydog]

I've mentioned this elsewhere and I'll do so again here, the greatest advantage to joining a unit is the speed with which you will advance your own game through exposure to the unit. You are going to learn more, and far faster, in the unit environment than you ever will by playing exclusively lone wolf.

All of that knowledge transfers into enhanced skills, better builds, smarter tactics, etc - but the real bottom line is far more money for far less grind. Believe me when I tell you, the grind is massive enough already, and if you can cut that in half through what you can gain from being in a unit, then on those grounds alone it is seriously worth it.

If you want to get to the upper levels of this game, it can take you years to achieve that. Getting in the unit environment, and then finding a unit that is the right fit for you, will save you many months of game play, simply by getting you going in the right direction. It puts you on the fast track.