34 replies to this topic

[Sept Wolfke]

last time I had a mech come home with that kind of damage, it was honestly beautiful.. I could see my Warhammer, in my mind's eye, moving through the streets of the city's outskirts, a massive pillar of black smoke billowing out of what was left of the torso of the battlemech; the 'hammer stumbling drunkenly from the gyro hit it'd sustained, as it made it's way toward the battlemech salvage and recovery vehicle that was being kept safe by a Partisan tank and it's quad autocannons. The salvage vehicle's normal bodyguard, a lance of Goblin tanks had been forced, by the campaign's desperate conditions, to join an assault on my unit's objective, leaving the salvage and recovery vehicle exposed to the combat. A heavily upgunned Banshee assault mech broke off from the defender's forces and intercepted the seemingly doomed Warhammer but I'd ordered a pair of Pegasus hover tanks to break off from their flanking manoeuver and escort the Warhammer home - They raced in behind the Banshee, volleying rack after rack of SRMs into the assault mech's rear, punching it's thin rear armor and detonating the mech with a lucky hit to it's ammunition stores. A pillar of black smoke rose from the battlefield that day, and it wasn't from a burning building, it was from an old Warhammer that just refused to give it up.

How could I deny myself memories like this by taking an XL engine and losing my mechs before things got REALLY interesting? I just can't do it. Maybe I love to limp

[Damascas]

Sept Wolfke, on 15 July 2012 - 05:08 PM, said:

last time I had a mech come home with that kind of damage, it was honestly beautiful.. I could see my Warhammer, in my mind's eye, moving through the streets of the city's outskirts, a massive pillar of black smoke billowing out of what was left of the torso of the battlemech; the 'hammer stumbling drunkenly from the gyro hit it'd sustained, as it made it's way toward the battlemech salvage and recovery vehicle that was being kept safe by a Partisan tank and it's quad autocannons. The salvage vehicle's normal bodyguard, a lance of Goblin tanks had been forced, by the campaign's desperate conditions, to join an assault on my unit's objective, leaving the salvage and recovery vehicle exposed to the combat. A heavily upgunned Banshee assault mech broke off from the defender's forces and intercepted the seemingly doomed Warhammer but I'd ordered a pair of Pegasus hover tanks to break off from their flanking manoeuver and escort the Warhammer home - They raced in behind the Banshee, volleying rack after rack of SRMs into the assault mech's rear, punching it's thin rear armor and detonating the mech with a lucky hit to it's ammunition stores. A pillar of black smoke rose from the battlefield that day, and it wasn't from a burning building, it was from an old Warhammer that just refused to give it up.

How could I deny myself memories like this by taking an XL engine and losing my mechs before things got REALLY interesting? I just can't do it. Maybe I love to limp

Man, I remember those days, luck is just part of them game, mechs get shredded, and you have just try to get your *** home with the cockpit and CT still intact.

[xxx WreckinBallRaj xxx]

I'll probably slot the XL engine and double heatsinks on my Catapult immediately. The extra weight saved will give me more weapons, ammo, or armor. Without doing this you'll probably have rows of empty slots you can't fill due to the weight cap. But I definitely wouldn't do it on a Mech I intend to close range fight as.

[caramono]

I think that the drawback is bigger than the benefits in XLs. Even if you are on a catapult under cover, a jenner can take you from a side and have a lucky shot (or a very skilled one). Same goes to the 160km/h jenner. Skilled guys can hit you anyways, and some LRMs too.

[Rhyshaelkan]

I am a 'mech designing junkie. Since this game deals with costs more so than the TT version of BT* finally some of my economizing steps will shine. Your engine is the most expensive piece of equipment on your 'mech. An XL takes that times 4.

I am not saying, I will not use an XL. I will, it is only that I would use them spairingly. The fragility of XL engines only compunds the issue.


*Most engagements on TT revolve around balanced Battle Value than any sort of cbill costs.

[Shoklar]

Definitely XL. This isn't TT with random hits...and no one is going to intentionally target a side torso when you can go for the center and take out the mech regardless of engine type in maybe one more hit than going for the side torso. Anything close range is going to be coring, and LRM's are going to be random dmg from range.

It's going to be much better to go with the XL and either mount more weapons to core the other mech first, or go for more speed in an attempt to keep from getting cored yourself.

If the scouts are able to tell other mechs that an enemy is running XL, then there's a potential drawback there...but they're going to have some serious explaining to do on what type of sensor is going to be able to determine engine type. Thermals would be worthless due to the intensity of heat provided by a fusion reactor...it would overload the sensor, with just a big blob of white that would overrun the sensor's maximum values and thereby expand beyond it's actual size limit.

[Damascas]

Shoklar, on 15 July 2012 - 06:28 PM, said:

Definitely XL. This isn't TT with random hits...and no one is going to intentionally target a side torso when you can go for the center and take out the mech regardless of engine type in maybe one more hit than going for the side torso. Anything close range is going to be coring, and LRM's are going to be random dmg from range.

It's going to be much better to go with the XL and either mount more weapons to core the other mech first, or go for more speed in an attempt to keep from getting cored yourself.

If the scouts are able to tell other mechs that an enemy is running XL, then there's a potential drawback there...but they're going to have some serious explaining to do on what type of sensor is going to be able to determine engine type. Thermals would be worthless due to the intensity of heat provided by a fusion reactor...it would overload the sensor, with just a big blob of white that would overrun the sensor's maximum values and thereby expand beyond it's actual size limit.

I plan on aiming at side torsos since I do not plan on taking enemy mechs head and therefore will probably be firing somewhat from the side so the side torso is an easier hit and by taking out the side torso with it's inferior armor the CT the enemy mech is much easier as it is down an arm and torso section full of weapons.

[TheOneGunslinger]

Shoklar, on 15 July 2012 - 06:28 PM, said:

Definitely XL. This isn't TT with random hits...and no one is going to intentionally target a side torso when you can go for the center and take out the mech regardless of engine type in maybe one more hit than going for the side torso. Anything close range is going to be coring, and LRM's are going to be random dmg from range.

no but shot can go wide and people can just fire shots off with out fully aiming.
so it feel like it will be most the same as random hits.

[Hive Rat]

Any mech i throw an XL into will have maxed armor with the weight savings before anything else, just to put a little more armor between my engine and the rest of the world.

[Graphite]

Shoklar, on 15 July 2012 - 06:28 PM, said:

Definitely XL. This isn't TT with random hits...and no one is going to intentionally target a side torso when you can go for the center and take out the mech regardless of engine type in maybe one more hit than going for the side torso. Anything close range is going to be coring, and LRM's are going to be random dmg from range.

Yes this is going to be a very interesting difference between TT and MWO: how big are the side and centre torsos relative to each other?
This is completely in the hands of the devs, I wonder what it'll be like?

From memory, the side torso on the Hunchback in the mechlab video looks very large...

[ScrapIron Prime]

I'm waiting to hear whether taking out a side torso disables the arm or not like it does in TT. If so, there's even more reason to aim to the side... Even without an XL engine, savaging a mech's flank can take away the half of its armament that worries you most.

[Evinthal]

Thorn Hallis, on 15 July 2012 - 01:35 PM, said:

Depends on the 'Mech and its role. If I intend to stay away from the frontline and just snipe from the back an XL engine is cool. But I'd never put it into a brawler.

This is my thinking too. If you are a long range sniper 'mech or a fire support 'mech, feel free to use that XL engine and try not to get too close to the action or have some pesky little scout sneak up on you, but for Blake's sake if you are running in as a hunchback or something that has nothing but short ranged weapons keep that standard fusion engine. You want to be a damn zombie as a brawler.

[Felicitatem Parco]

I will try to use EndoSteel and FerroFibrous Armor instead of the XL engine if possible... death by side-torso-core would be quite frustrating.

[Graphite]

ScrapIron Prime, on 15 July 2012 - 08:46 PM, said:

I'm waiting to hear whether taking out a side torso disables the arm or not like it does in TT. If so, there's even more reason to aim to the side... Even without an XL engine, savaging a mech's flank can take away the half of its armament that worries you most.

Surely it will? How could it not?

[Terror Teddy]

Gauss sniper urbie with XL engine and stealth armor...and a ghillie suit if possible...and a bandana...