35 replies to this topic

[xTrident]

Been wanting a light mech (would get three of course for mastering) for quite some time now but I'm torn on just what exactly to get. I have a buddy that runs around in a Firestarter and does pretty damn well with it. Then I see a lot of people running the Arctic Cheetah so naturally I think that's pretty good. And then there's everything in between.

I asked what people thought of Enforcers and/or what medium mech to go with in general and while many said Enforcers were solid I decided to go with the Crab mainly because it was on sale - of course that was recommended by many as well. Anyway, I was not disappointed in everyone's recommendation which is why I'm asking once again.

FYI I believe I could get decent at piloting a light mech. I say that because I've literally only piloted a light mech once or twice since I've been playing MWO. I'm pretty damn solid with the Crab. I like being able to move around, I like sneaking, I like playing peek-a-boo etc... That's my play style so I'm thinking I'd be alright with a light once I get the hang of it.

So what's the consensus of the best all around light mech?

Thank you all in advance.

[Lukoi Banacek]

Oxide (but sadly, you'll need two additional Jenners that don't rate as high as the Oxide or any of the ones immediately below this Ox on this list, in order to elite+ it)
ACH
FS9's
WLF

I enjoy playing the other Jenners, but recognize they aren't as strong as they used to be by any means. Ravens have more than one viable option now and the panther can be a tanky little jerk in the right hands...guessing it's a hitbox thing.

[Fox With A Shotgun]

Best Clan? ACH for everything. The others are just too slow, are undergunned or have bad hardpoint positions (or any combination of these).
Best IS? Oxide for SRM boating, Raven for poking, Firestarter for brawling.

But choice of mech should come last. Until you understand the nuances of being a light pilot with a big brass pair, you will not be at your most effective.

Pick up a Locust. Prepare to die and git gud. Then, next time you pick up a more durable light, you'll wreck more face than you could if you hadn't done so before.

[Metus regem]

Very much depends on what you are looking for, Firestarters and Arctic Cheetahs are very, very solid mechs, that are the ver definition of MWO lights. If you are looking for more of a pocket medium, then the Adder has that in spades, but if you are looking for something that is frustrating to learn to pilot, but once you get the personal skill for it, it can be very rewarding, the Locust could be good.

[Gyrok]

xTrident, on 29 March 2016 - 03:31 PM, said:

Been wanting a light mech (would get three of course for mastering) for quite some time now but I'm torn on just what exactly to get. I have a buddy that runs around in a Firestarter and does pretty damn well with it. Then I see a lot of people running the Arctic Cheetah so naturally I think that's pretty good. And then there's everything in between.

I asked what people thought of Enforcers and/or what medium mech to go with in general and while many said Enforcers were solid I decided to go with the Crab mainly because it was on sale - of course that was recommended by many as well. Anyway, I was not disappointed in everyone's recommendation which is why I'm asking once again.

FYI I believe I could get decent at piloting a light mech. I say that because I've literally only piloted a light mech once or twice since I've been playing MWO. I'm pretty damn solid with the Crab. I like being able to move around, I like sneaking, I like playing peek-a-boo etc... That's my play style so I'm thinking I'd be alright with a light once I get the hang of it.

So what's the consensus of the best all around light mech?

Thank you all in advance.

Ravens if you like ECM and sniping.

WLFs if you are looking for a tanky light and are more concerned with speed over jumping

FS9s if you want something that will basically be above average at everything

ACH if you want an ECM scout that can back hunt

JR7 if you are willing to get the oxide. Without the oxide Jenners are not much to see...the oxide is the best brawling light in the game though.

JR7-IIC if the idea of having the oxide, and other Jenners, with clan tech excites you...though the oxide is better outright, the clan Jenners are not far behind.

[ArcticPrism]

Fox With A Shotgun, on 29 March 2016 - 03:38 PM, said:

Best Clan? ACH for everything. The others are just too slow, are undergunned or have bad hardpoint positions (or any combination of these).
Best IS? Oxide for SRM boating, Raven for poking, Firestarter for brawling.

But choice of mech should come last. Until you understand the nuances of being a light pilot with a big brass pair, you will not be at your most effective.

Pick up a Locust. Prepare to die and git gud. Then, next time you pick up a more durable light, you'll wreck more face than you could if you hadn't done so before.

This is what I did. I bought a Locust with the mentality "This is pretty fast and good looking fire power on paper. This will be fun and good, right?"

I played the Locust for a while and it was surprisingly fun despite how incredible easy it exploded, especially when everyone was running dual gauss. A while later after I had stopped playing it and was playing the Stormcrow + Ebon Jaguar for a long time I got the Arctic Cheetah. Oh my god, so good and that was after they had stripped basically all of its quirks If I got to play when it had those ridiculous structure quirks I'd feel like I was cheating. I had learned how to play really sneaky with the Locust so when I got the Arctic Cheetah which was more durable, had basically just as much fire power AND had ECM? Delicious.

Edited by ArcticPrism, 29 March 2016 - 05:31 PM.

[MechWarrior5152251]

I was running a Firestarter in Tier 4 during the event. Holy piss that thing wrecked face with 5 mpls. I was even running a 295 engine, which costs you a heat sink. Go with the 280 or 285 for complete domination of heavier mechs. It is the other lights that usually take you out.

[man du]

Fox With A Shotgun, on 29 March 2016 - 03:38 PM, said:

But choice of mech should come last. Until you understand the nuances of being a light pilot with a big brass pair, you will not be at your most effective.

Pick up a Locust. Prepare to die and git gud. Then, next time you pick up a more durable light, you'll wreck more face than you could if you hadn't done so before.

QFT

[JediPanther]

The top three lights I see fielded are ach for clans,fhs and rvn 3ls. The wolfhound,esp the R variant makes a good light hunter-killer. As a light pilot I am very use to fighting and killing my own kind. For the peek a boo type I'd recomend either the ach or 3l as both have ecm. I find the best build for them if you want to go pure sniper is mount one or two er ppcs with xl 200 and the mandatory two heat sinks. Why ppcs? Less chance of being found as the tail of ppcs don't pin point back to your location like the two er laser build does which practicals screams here I am.

They also have great speed. For the raven side the two other chassis aren't bad. I find myself using the 4x far more than the 3l because I like mounting the ac 10/20 or guass on it and just doing a few for fun drops. The guass on it really is great for long distance but the very limited ammo will mean you have to hide and pick your targets carefully while avoiding other lights.

The achs all pretty much play the same way. Use small pulses to be that one ***** back stabing brawler or mount ppc and do like with the raven. I played the ach prime up to basic and got rid of it as I had mastered all the jenners, ravens and locusts so it was for me just more of the same. Locust are the hard core lights. Use them when you really want to master lights as you'll learn the maps,enemy hit boxes, and hyper wareness of the mini map. If it moves you'll notcie it. They are the most prone to being one-shotted and the most rewarding. Check out my link sig for how awesome they can be.

[Tristan Winter]

ACH, FS9 and Oxide are the consensus best light mechs. Oxide is OP, in my opinion. Jenner IIC is in the running, but it requires more skill, because it's so fragile.

The best mechs are the easiest mechs though. If you consider yourself a good pilot, why immediately go for the easiest route? You could consider the Raven, which is easily one of the best light mechs, but no one in their right mind would say that it's easy mode. Same goes for the Locust. The LCT-1E is a monster in good hands, but it does require more skill than the ACH or FS9, for sure.

Personally, I enjoy the extra challenge of not just piloting the best mech in each weight class

[Darian DelFord]

Gyrok, on 29 March 2016 - 03:47 PM, said:

Ravens if you like ECM and sniping.

WLFs if you are looking for a tanky light and are more concerned with speed over jumping

FS9s if you want something that will basically be above average at everything

ACH if you want an ECM scout that can back hunt

JR7 if you are willing to get the oxide. Without the oxide Jenners are not much to see...the oxide is the best brawling light in the game though.

JR7-IIC if the idea of having the oxide, and other Jenners, with clan tech excites you...though the oxide is better outright, the clan Jenners are not far behind.

As someone who plays almost exclusively in Jenners I agree with your assessment. However the Jenner D with 4 SPL's and 2 SRM 4's with 200 rounds is almost as deadly as the Oxide is and actually has a few advantages, not as ammo dependent and JJ"s. I actually brawl more with my D than I do with my Oxide. The Oxide is still King of Jenners, however the D is a close 2nd IMHO.

But you have to spend time to master the mech. Not just for the module, but truly master it.

Tristan Winter, on 29 March 2016 - 06:44 PM, said:

ACH, FS9 and Oxide are the consensus best light mechs. Oxide is OP, in my opinion. Jenner IIC is in the running, but it requires more skill, because it's so fragile.

I would not call the Oxide OP, but should be the standard for most lights. It is only strong as long as it has ammo. And quite frankly, hit reg with SRM's is going back to suckage and it still dies quite easily being forced into under 150 meter range for almost every shot.

People consider it OP, because it is a great Shoot and Scoot mech and they feel cheated that it just alpha'ed them and runs away so they have no retaliation.

[xTrident]

Rather than reply each of you individually I'm going to try and do a broad reply to everyone. I won't lie - I have really liked what I've seen out of the Jenner whether it be one outfitted with just SRM's or the four SPL dual SRM's. I've also seen some use just a SPL build pretty well. My thought was to buy some MC and go with a mastery pack for a light. Which would work with the Jenner because it includes the Oxide.

While I realize the SRM builds of the Jenners work really well I'm more the type of player that would prefer using lasers. Again, luckily you can use lasers with the Jenner. I also like the speed the Jenners as well.

Touching on the Raven I've watched some Youtube videos of someone using the Raven and they did quite well with it. I don't even mind the way in which he had to play which was strictly sneaking around staying in cover and doing everything possible not to be seen. My problem watching him play is every little hit he took dropped him nearly 5% or more. Some of these hits looked simply like just a scratch from a medium laser. I can tell you all right now I'm not that good of a pilot. Not at all.

I think the Jenner will be challenge enough for me honestly. With that all being said and knowing that everyone pretty much thinks the Arctic Cheetah as well as the Spider are solid choices I think I'm going to start with the Jenner and then get something else from there. More than likely a Spider only because I prefer IS mechs.

I appreciate everyone's input and I want you all to know that it was not a waste as I truly was not considering getting the Jenner even though I like it. Thank you.

[MeiSooHaityu]

OP, I know you asked about light mechs, but if you really like laser vomit and the speed and manuverability that comes with a light mech (for the peek-a-boo fighting style), you might want to consider a Cicada if you haven't already.

It is a 40 ton medium that has high hardpoints, can go about 140kph, and the 2A variant can mount 6 energy (great for MLasers) and the 2B has 5 energy (great for MPLasers). Even the 3M is solid with ERLLasers or 4 MLasers and an Ultra 5 (it even has ECM).

I was never a HUGE fan of the Cicada in the past, but it really does the fast hit-and-fade laser thing well. Plus as a medium, it has a tiny bit more armor than a light without much more physical mass.

Just a bit of food for thought.

[process]

Firestarters and Arctic Cheetahs are basically IS/Clan equivalents, with similar geometry, hardpoint locations, and play style.

I prefer Wolfhounds to Firestarters due to their hardpoint locations and my perception that the hitboxes are better. Most other IS lights simply don't have the energy hardpoints to compete.

On the Clan side, the AC is hands down the best light. I would suggest the Jenner IIC if you want to do more than energy boat.

[xTrident]

MeiSooHaityu, on 30 March 2016 - 06:55 AM, said:

OP, I know you asked about light mechs, but if you really like laser vomit and the speed and manuverability that comes with a light mech (for the peek-a-boo fighting style), you might want to consider a Cicada if you haven't already.

It is a 40 ton medium that has high hardpoints, can go about 140kph, and the 2A variant can mount 6 energy (great for MLasers) and the 2B has 5 energy (great for MPLasers). Even the 3M is solid with ERLLasers or 4 MLasers and an Ultra 5 (it even has ECM).

I was never a HUGE fan of the Cicada in the past, but it really does the fast hit-and-fade laser thing well. Plus as a medium, it has a tiny bit more armor than a light without much more physical mass.

Just a bit of food for thought.

I actually have a couple Cicadas and have enough experience on both that once I get my third and basic/elite I'll be able to do the same with those other two.

I got my original Cicada through the challenge event a couple months ago or so. When I first tried using it I hated it. Couldn't do anything with it. Well I finally tried a two large laser/two medium laser build and I was finally able to start doing something with it. Decided I'd stick with the Cicada and got the 3M to which even having ECM I'm not nearly as good with. The problem I have with the Cicada is it feels extremely weak to me and my build, especially the 3M with the ECM simply isn't fast enough. I do need to revamp it some that's for sure. But really... I'd rather just use my Crab than the Cicada when it comes to a medium.

I did just buy the Jenner Mastery bundle. Here's to hoping for some good things. With the MC I had left over I bought some more mechbays... which was good because I was out. So it wasn't a bad buy either way granted I like the Jenners alright. I really didn't do much in the way of altering the builds so that's a plus.

process, on 30 March 2016 - 07:03 AM, said:

Firestarters and Arctic Cheetahs are basically IS/Clan equivalents, with similar geometry, hardpoint locations, and play style.

I prefer Wolfhounds to Firestarters due to their hardpoint locations and my perception that the hitboxes are better. Most other IS lights simply don't have the energy hardpoints to compete.

On the Clan side, the AC is hands down the best light. I would suggest the Jenner IIC if you want to do more than energy boat.

And I would seriously consider the Wolfhounds because of the energy hard points. Getting the 6,500 MC pack should have netted me with an Arctic Cheetah as well. So I might be able to mess around with it as well.

[MeiSooHaityu]

xTrident, on 30 March 2016 - 07:12 AM, said:

I actually have a couple Cicadas and have enough experience on both that once I get my third and basic/elite I'll be able to do the same with those other two.

I got my original Cicada through the challenge event a couple months ago or so. When I first tried using it I hated it. Couldn't do anything with it. Well I finally tried a two large laser/two medium laser build and I was finally able to start doing something with it. Decided I'd stick with the Cicada and got the 3M to which even having ECM I'm not nearly as good with. The problem I have with the Cicada is it feels extremely weak to me and my build, especially the 3M with the ECM simply isn't fast enough. I do need to revamp it some that's for sure. But really... I'd rather just use my Crab than the Cicada when it comes to a medium.

I did just buy the Jenner Mastery bundle. Here's to hoping for some good things. With the MC I had left over I bought some more mechbays... which was good because I was out. So it wasn't a bad buy either way granted I like the Jenners alright. I really didn't do much in the way of altering the builds so that's a plus.



And I would seriously consider the Wolfhounds because of the energy hard points. Getting the 6,500 MC pack should have netted me with an Arctic Cheetah as well. So I might be able to mess around with it as well.

Ok, just thought I'd mention it. The Cicada sounded like something that would work well for you. I agree the 3M is too slow. The 2A is my favorite and I love it in Champion build (6 MLasers).

I do run Crabs too, but not as frequent. The 27B has been a great MPLaser boat for me and the 27SL does ZOK for me as an ERLLaser jump sniper.

Anyway, good luck with the Jenners. I personally never had great luck with them, but I have seen them do well in the right hands.

[xTrident]

MeiSooHaityu, on 30 March 2016 - 07:16 AM, said:

Ok, just thought I'd mention it. The Cicada sounded like something that would work well for you. I agree the 3M is too slow. The 2A is my favorite and I love it in Champion build (6 MLasers).

I do run Crabs too, but not as frequent. The 27B has been a great MPLaser boat for me and the 27SL does ZOK for me as an ERLLaser jump sniper.

Anyway, good luck with the Jenners. I personally never had great luck with them, but I have seen them do well in the right hands.

The Cicada-2AC is the one we all had the chance at winning and that's the one I do decent with. I'd go medium laser heavy on a lot of these light mechs but I like the range. Talking about the 3M the problem I have with getting in close with that particular variant is I wouldn't be able to run away. That's what I'm hoping for with the Jenners because the builds I have are just exactly what everyone has mentioned so far and they all require me to be up close. We'll see what happens, if they don't work, they don't work. No big deal. At least I know they can work considering what I've seen others do with them.

The Crab 27B I actually run three large pulse lasers on and do remarkably well. Now competition aside the damage/assists/kills I get every match would have some people thinking I was a pretty good player. That's how well I do with that thing. It's to the point that if I haven't done 400 damage with it I consider it a downer match. And I've had three matches in the 1K+ range. Two with Atlas and one with the Crab.

[Tordin]

I advocate the Wolfhound if you want some solid survivability as a light. That thing can thank and be quite fast even with STD engine and at the same time have good firepower. With its torso focused hardpoints you get some excellent convergence of you lasers and the right hand gives you some flexibility against moving targets.

And yeah its xl friendly or so I have heard. It will be more frail once the armor is gone, but risk and reward right? The only downside are NO jumpjets.

Besides the Wolfhound I advocate the Raven which is an excellent sniper and heavy/ assault guard. It got ecm on a variant and most can mound nice weapons along with bap, tag and the narc becon suits its role as well. At least role warfare.

The Panther and Jenner are also good choices. The Panther is quite the opposite of the Wolfhound ( lore bit, the Wolfhound were made to hunt down Panthers) Its slow so get better engines, it got jumpjets which makes it a nice pop tarter (jump, shoot and duck). The Jenner is truly a hit and run light. Hit hard and run away like crazy. Sure its torsos got reworked and are muchbetter not, it still have its center torso teasing trigger happy victims.

[S 0 L E N Y A]

I slightly, and I mean SLIGHTLY prefer the JennerIIC to the ACH.
Mostly due to not having to deal with fixed equipment. The total customization is quite fun.

The ACH wins for hit boxes and ECM though.

[JC Daxion]

My favorite light is Death's Kneel.. though i do enjoy the missile variants as well. I also like my LRM+ 4ML raven 2X, and my SRM+ML 3L, and huggin is fun for pure missile blasting fatties and finishing them off with ratatatat machine guns!

I own others you mentioned, but i spend far more time in the ones i listed. Still need to put way mroe time in my firestarters, spider, and arc's.. But i can't stop playing the ones i love enough to do it.

Edited by JC Daxion, 30 March 2016 - 10:49 AM.