36 replies to this topic

[Aleksandr Sergeyevich Kerensky]

Do Kills matter?? "absolutely! Of course they do!"

is it the end all be all stat? "No..."

taking an enemy out of the equation usually makes the match easier due to the snowball effect this game has.

While it doesn't have to be you doing the killing... enemy mechs that aren't destroyed still contribute towards them winning.

[Hunter Tseng]

Faellun Freeman, on 18 March 2017 - 09:58 PM, said:

....
If you take a torso then the arm comes with it but im not sure if that counts as two component destructions in a real match or if you have to remove each separately.

Yes, it counts as 2 components... in fact it even added to your dmg counter as well.
If you take off the side torso with a full health arm, the dmg count from the side torso including the full hp count of the arm is included in your damage counter.
So taking off enemy side torso is an easy way to farm damage actually

[Koniving]

Hunter Tseng, on 19 March 2017 - 01:54 AM, said:

If you take off the side torso with a full health arm, the dmg count from the side torso including the full hp count of the arm is included in your damage counter.

This part is still debated. I haven't been able to pull someone aside to test it either.
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DeloresAbernathy, on 16 March 2017 - 01:07 PM, said:

What are some of the tricks and tips for getting a lot of kills rather than just a lot of damage -- and please don't say just be a better pilot.

It's where you shoot.
There are several ways to kill.

Side Torso: IS XL engine.
Both Side Torsos: Clan XL Engine and upcoming IS LE.
Center Torso: Everyone.
Pelvis: Everyone (counts as CT.)
Both legs: Everyone.
Take up to 33 damage to the cockpit: Everyone.
Ammo Explosion: IS (if severe enough it doesn't matter where it happened) or Clan if in CT or Clan XL if in the only remaining ST.

Some notes:

*Most Clan mechs have HUGE cockpit hitboxes. Not as big as the cockpit windows but much larger than IS cockpit hitboxes.

*Any mech with a chicken walker forward-phallic design possesses a massively oversized front torso hitbox and a tiny rear torso hitbox. As such they have LOTS of armor channeled forward; hit them in the back. Blast a leg off first if you need to.

*Humanoid mechs have fairly large rear torso hitboxes and need a more balanced armor layout, but if their front seems 'too strong',it came at a cost. Hit 'em in the back and watch that defense drop.

*If mechs have very balanced, small, or otherwise difficult to register hitboxes for their torsos, chances are PGI made their leg hitboxes oversized to compensate. (Examples: Raven, Stormcrow.)

*For some mechs the most obvious place to hit them is actually the worst one to do. (Hunchback, right torso. It takes less effort to remove the left torso [killing it instantly if XL engine] or the CT [killing it regardless] than to destroy the right torso. In fact the most effective spot to shoot is the ammo drum on the other side, even if no one really puts ammo there anymore, at certain angles it's a straight shot to the rear torso from the front.)

*Continuing with above, the Stalker: Short of trial Stalkers due to XL engines, the worst place to shoot a Stalker is the torso. The STs are huge and can die quickly it is true, but then they reduce all your damage by 60% before it goes to the CT. The front CT is a very long, very narrow strip that is as thin or thinner than most forearms on medium mechs which is almost impossible to hit with anything but LRMs, especially if it is a defensive pilot that shakes that torso "No, no, no, no" at you. Its rear center torso is gigantic (and their turning ability is abysmal). There's also the leg option. (If you pursue killing a Stalker through the front torsos and it has a standard engine, you will have delivered approximately 165% of the damage required to kill a highly defensive, highly skilled Atlas pilot after destroying all 3 of the Atlas's torsos.)

Edited by Koniving, 19 March 2017 - 04:10 AM.

[Serpentine Shel Serpentine]

Thanks for all the advice. I have my mouse at very low sensitivity (0.1-0.2 I don't recall the exact number right now) and no smoothing, with a native DPI 1000 mouse. This is based on settings advice I've read on the internet and my aim is much better as a result . I'm not sure but I think that it might slow down my aim adjustment at short range where larger and quicker moves are needed .. it's one of those unavoidable trade offs I guess.

[Koniving]

DeloresAbernathy, on 19 March 2017 - 06:11 AM, said:

I'm not sure but I think that it might slow down my aim adjustment at short range where larger and quicker moves are needed .. it's one of those unavoidable trade offs I guess.

Unlock arms and use arms to attack lights (they move MUCH faster than the torso can) OR... hit about 30% reverse speed while turning in the opposite direction than the lights are circling you and keep blasting them.

Edited by Koniving, 19 March 2017 - 06:15 AM.

[Serpentine Shel Serpentine]

Koniving, on 19 March 2017 - 03:41 AM, said:

This part is still debated. I haven't been able to pull someone aside to test it either.
------------------

It's where you shoot.
There are several ways to kill.

Side Torso: IS XL engine.
Both Side Torsos: Clan XL Engine and upcoming IS LE.
Center Torso: Everyone.
Pelvis: Everyone (counts as CT.)
Both legs: Everyone.
Take up to 33 damage to the cockpit: Everyone.
Ammo Explosion: IS (if severe enough it doesn't matter where it happened) or Clan if in CT or Clan XL if in the only remaining ST.

Thanks for all this great detailed advice, newb quesiton: how do I know if my target has XL engines? Just knowledge of the usual mech load outs, or is there a HUD or visual indicator? Thanks.

[Koniving]

DeloresAbernathy, on 19 March 2017 - 06:16 AM, said:

Thanks for all this great detailed advice, newb quesiton: how do I know if my target has XL engines? Just knowledge of the usual mech load outs, or is there a HUD or visual indicator? Thanks.

No indicator. 99% of the time Clans will have XL engines.

If IS mech carry a lot of big missiles or autocannons... XL. Heavy weaponry yet quite fast? XL. Though MOW isn't as great at Battletech about tradeoffs, you have to give up something to have high anything. Whether the sacrifice is armor, speed, engine fragility, ammo/cooling or weapons... Eventually you can deduce what was sacrificed in the heat of battle.

Always probe arms, legs and the body.... Many people sacrifice armor on arms and legs to get that extra bit of tonnage.
By probe, I mean "scan" it with the business end of a laser or even a machine gun. If that tiny morsel of damage turns it anything other than a bright yellow... there's been some armor skirting (ditching) going on and you shouldn't let them have time to have a talk with their technicians about getting inferior armor protection.

Edited by Koniving, 19 March 2017 - 08:09 AM.

[G4LV4TR0N]

If you are sure that IS enemy has XL engine and can safely circle him, try to blast ST from behind. Chances are, they will have all their armor upfront to defend XL.

[Rogue Jedi]

G4LV4TR0N, on 19 March 2017 - 06:56 AM, said:

If you are sure that IS enemy has XL engine and can safely circle him, try to blast ST from behind. Chances are, they will have all their armor upfront to defend XL.

if you can get behind and you are not sure go for the CT, as killing the rear CT will maybe take 1 more shot, often not even that, but is a guarenteed kill rathar than just a chance of the kill.

Edited by Rogue Jedi, 19 March 2017 - 08:12 AM.

[G4LV4TR0N]

Well, I said if you are sure of it.

[G4LV4TR0N]

Rogue Jedi, on 18 March 2017 - 04:48 AM, said:

years ago when there was still a 12 player group only queue and ECM still had a 180m radius I had a few games where I was tasked with providing ECM cover with my Cicada.

never have I worked harder in a match, keeping 12 Mechs under ECM is while advancing and/or poking from cover required a lot of concentration and coordination, including advising players to speed up or slow down so I could keep them in range, 1 game we won 12-0, I ended the match with 0 damage, no kills or assists, I did not locate any enemies I literaly just spent the match keeping everyone under ECM and I was judged to have been a significant factor in our win but under the current rewards system, and indeed the rewards system at the time, that would have very low rewards.

unfortunately there are plenty of non combat things you can do to significantly improve your teams chances but they are often high risk low reward for the individual player

One game on warm map I had light mech with flamers mainly, I ran with our 4 assault mechs and they were all long range, including one 100% LRM Atlas. By accident we ran directly at their 3 assaults and 3 heavies grouped together who were hiding behind corner. Enemy team was mainly strong brawlers, I do remember well that they had one GAR 12xC-SPL, and one MDD full C-SRM6A and one IS mech with 4x PPC. Now normally this would end 0-5 in their favor, but I have managed to shut down GAR and MDD, then I managed to shut down PPC mech and we won 6-1. I ended being cored and without half of my mech but few flamers used against their overheating builds won us game. I have dealt 67 damage total and got lowest score in game even lower than our dead enemies. So I'm just saying that winning does not equal farming game points.

Edited by G4LV4TR0N, 19 March 2017 - 08:41 AM.

[wargnome]

idk about your strategic/tactical background, but this little comic here explains very clearly basic tactics used in mwo:

https://mwomercs.com...ics-101-comics/

keep this in mind and you will be more deadly on the battlefield.

Edited by wargnome, 19 March 2017 - 10:06 AM.

[justcallme A S H]

G4LV4TR0N, on 18 March 2017 - 04:17 AM, said:

Match score does not count how many mechs you core without killing them. It does not count how much damage you take while pushing and tanking for rest of your team. It does not count how many enemies are you distracting alone while allied mechs take cheap shots at them. Yet all such actions contribute to victory more than getting high score after game.

But that is not what I said.

I was telling you, that component kills etc contribute to match score - which they do.

Roland09, on 18 March 2017 - 10:13 PM, said:

It does count as two components destroyed.

Exactly hence taking a torso almost guarantee's a KMDD

[G4LV4TR0N]

You've been telling that match score matters. It does, when you "farm" C-Bills.

[justcallme A S H]

Farm or, play better.

View however you want. Generally it's the people doing poorly, with low match scores that position badly, can't shoot accurately and thus...Low match score.

[G4LV4TR0N]

I know what you mean, but out there are also players who just "farm" C-Bills by dismembering weaponless mechs, running TAG on everything possible, putting one ERLarge laser just to get as many assists as possible, etc.

Edited by G4LV4TR0N, 19 March 2017 - 07:53 PM.

[Cato Phoenix]

Some areas to prioritize on different medium + mechs:

Cicadas:
Generally run XL engines, can whack their legs too.

Novas:
If I'm trying to disable them I shoot for the arms - which are big targets. Most of the 8-12 laser builds will be rolling up to 6 in each arm, sometimes scattered in the torso. Drops their firepower a lot.

Hunchback / HBK IIC:
Torsos (right torso is a big target) or CT. Their arms are low yield rarely have more than 1 laser hardpoint, and the IICs you can often seen dual-shouldering big weapons with shield arms. Grid Irons with gauss generally run XL, so if you can crit it from the right torso it'll give you a weapon explosion kill.

Enforcers:
Often running XLs, they usually have their big gun in the right arm. The 3LLAS/2MLAS 4R will almost be neutered if you pop its 3 large laser left arm off.

Crabs:
Very tanky - if they are fast you can XL check them.

Centurions:
Don't shoot at the left arm, it is a dedicated shield without any valuable components. The right arm will be carrying any heavy ballistic carried (Yen Lo, AH, CN-D and the lasers in the AL). Any CN9-A running around with 3xSRM and 2MLAS is almost assuredly a standard-running zombie - your best bet is to leg or CT them, however, if you peel the left torso off you take away their heavy hitting power.

Trebs/Blackjacks/Vindis/Kintaros/:
Often XL, can shoot for the torsos.

Shadow cats:
Can always go for legs. The common 2ERPPC and 2ERLPLAS builds can be tricky, as they could be left/right sided, torso'd or arms. If the arm guns look big you can gut their firepower quick that way.



Heavies:

Hellbringers:
More often than not, left-side holds ECM and the weapons, and they dead-side with the right, so aim for that LT.

Timbers/Ebons:
Double tap torsos or focus fire CT. Your preference. EBJ often run under-armored legs.

Mad Dog:
Torsos are squishy and hold many of the big weapons. All the missile boats will have torso-only hardpoints, so you can eschew the arms.

Cataphracts:
A lot of XL builds if they have big guns - torso check them.

Dragons:
Big gun usually in right arm, so shoot for the right torso and XL check them, and if not dead you'll have them pretty broken.

Marauders:
Right torso for the AC boating builds.

Thunderbolt:
Left torso will usually be carrying a 3xbig weapon pack.

Catapults:
You can easily take their 'ears' from any direction on the missile variants.