202 replies to this topic

[Xaat Xuun]

Eddie Money, on 12 April 2017 - 09:54 AM, said:

I did try it on trial, and it did alright for me. I found I performed better in Assaults and Heavies, however.

I have found that I like how Dakka feels, though, repeatedly unloading rounds into a target.

then maybe start there, you feel comfortable, and it's a flavor you like

Edited by Xaat Xuun, 12 April 2017 - 10:30 AM.

[Eddie Money]

Well, for big, bulky brawlers, I tend to treat mobility as a luxury rather than anything terribly important. What matters most to me is the ability to take constant hits and not die - in WoT terms, I used mostly German and USSR heavies, noted for being exceptionally difficult to pen with proper angling and sidescraping tactics, though they didn't have quite as much raw brute force as some of the competition.

I suppose to put it in a ranking, I would have Survivability/Protection > Firepower >>> Mobility in terms of what I look for in a brawler.

I also have found I really enjoy Dakka, if that's any difference.

[Masochistic Trashcan Virtuoso]

IS Medium: Hunchback, Griffin, Shadowhawk (most versatile loadouts)
IS Heavie: Jaegermech, Catapult, Thunderbolt (see above)

check metamechs.com if you like to go to efficient builds right away.

oh... and if you got a few c-bills to spare, might wanna try a locust or urbie for the luls.
gotta love the ac20 urbie. endo, 2 small lasers, some ammo. gotta love it. unless your getting the rear.

[Koniving]

Eddie Money, on 12 April 2017 - 10:31 AM, said:

Well, for big, bulky brawlers, I tend to treat mobility as a luxury rather than anything terribly important. What matters most to me is the ability to take constant hits and not die - in WoT terms, I used mostly German and USSR heavies, noted for being exceptionally difficult to pen with proper angling and sidescraping tactics, though they didn't have quite as much raw brute force as some of the competition.

I suppose to put it in a ranking, I would have Survivability/Protection > Firepower >>> Mobility in terms of what I look for in a brawler.

I also have found I really enjoy Dakka, if that's any difference.

Kodiak 3.
Followed by Atlas and Stalker (survivability/protection) with the rest.
Sacrifice a little protection and all the mobility for raw firepower.. Dire Wolf (almost no mobility mind you).

A step down in protection but higher mobility with comparable firepower. Battlemaster, Warhawk, King Crab, Mauler, Banshee.

Step down sustainable firepower (you can carry a lot of firepower but it's hard to keep it up for a length of time) in exchange for mobility: Highlander (and IIC), Cyclops (all 90 tons). Executioner (95? or 90? Not sure).

As you go down in weight the speed increases but normally potential firepower decreases. Or in some cases other things decrease.

Browse the ingame store, look at some pictures and tell us what stands out as interesting and I can get more specific.

[Eddie Money]

I found that in driving the Kodiak KDK-3 in the trial mechs, I had issues surviving as long as I expected in a massive mech like that. Any idea why? Am I just not good enough at torso twisting?

[Xaat Xuun]

because that trial KDK-3 is a bad build, for torso twisting, it needs the 400.
was a good choice till the torso twist nerf, and then adding a smaller engine to make room for Lasers, not a good idea

[Eddie Money]

Wait, I was under the impression that Clan mechs have set engines that can't be swapped. Is that not true in the Kodiak?

[Koniving]

Eddie Money, on 12 April 2017 - 12:00 PM, said:

Wait, I was under the impression that Clan mechs have set engines that can't be swapped. Is that not true in the Kodiak?

"Omnimechs" have this issue.
Battlemechs do not.

(About 85% of the currently available Clan mechs are Omnimechs).

The Inner Sphere is about to have some Omnimechs as well.

The Kodiak is a Battlemech.
All IIC mechs are Battlemechs.
There's a couple more Battlemechs in the Clan roster as well that I can't think of at this second.

Short way to think of it without digging into lore.

Omnimechs: Change hardpoints by swapping body parts.
Battlemechs: Change everything EXCEPT hardpoints.

[Eddie Money]

At any rate, buying and fitting a Kodiak is a bit out of my price range as it stands. Like I said, I've got about 15 million C-bills.

[Koniving]

Eddie Money, on 12 April 2017 - 11:50 AM, said:

I found that in driving the Kodiak KDK-3 in the trial mechs, I had issues surviving as long as I expected in a massive mech like that. Any idea why? Am I just not good enough at torso twisting?

Not sure if implemented yet but soon engines will have no effect on torso twisting. If not in the game yet, then yeah it's the mech's fault more than yours due to the engine.

Kodiaks at stock (the trial is not stock) come with an XL 400 engine that is insanely fast for a mech of its size.
For something comparable from Atlases you'd have to use the Boar's Head hero.

Kodiak is a lot like a faster, beefier, harder to kill Mauler that runs like a boiler oven (too damn hot for my taste).

[Koniving]

Eddie Money, on 12 April 2017 - 12:04 PM, said:

At any rate, buying and fitting a Kodiak is a bit out of my price range as it stands. Like I said, I've got about 15 million C-bills.

Mauler 1P
King Crab 000 (3 0's, not 4.)
Jagermech JM6-DD (give double heatsinks)
Rifleman 3-C (for the ballistics; need to change engine and heatsink type though).
Marauder 3R (Heatsinks and XL though)
(Marauder IIC when it comes out for cbills)
Ebon Jager (any config; it's an Omni)
Night Gyr (any config, it's an Omni)

There's your best choices to fill first and second line roles with solid dakka on a budget of around 15 million. Many will leave you with money left over.

[Eddie Money]

Since I'm interested in Assault, then, do Mauler, King Crab, and Marauder IIC stand out as my best options? What's the differences among them?

[Koniving]

Most mobile would be the Jagermech and Rifleman.
Tankiest would be the Ebon Jaguar and Marauder.

Heaviest firepower would be the Mauler, Night Gyr and King Crab.

Night Gyr and Ebon Jaguar are probably the closest you'll get to "all 3."

[Koniving]

Eddie Money, on 12 April 2017 - 12:16 PM, said:

Since I'm interested in Assault, then, do Mauler, King Crab, and Marauder IIC stand out as my best options? What's the differences among them?

Mauler and King Crab would be very similar in terms of firepower. Mauler is taller and would be friendly in regards to hills though all three are terrible in that regard. It would also cap out at being the fastest possible. If you expand your player's skill set to include use of both crosshairs you could engage two targets simultaneously (something the King Crab cannot do). Between the two the Mauler has an easier time with lights.

This said, the Mauler's height draws attention and a light mech can easily be "right in front of you" and yet "invisible" because you are tall. This'll never happen to the other two due to their low cockpits.

King Crabs tank considerably better than Maulers but don't corner as well.

Marauder IIC on paper is the least survivable, in practice it suffers (benefits) from Stalker syndrome; the body shape and mechanics of destroyed side torsos means once you lose a side torso you'll be able to survive insane amounts of firepower (Marauder IIC is a Battlemech, as such run STD or Clan XL; both can take a lot more abuse than an IS XL) provided you deliberately take it into the destroyed side torso. Careful, Clan XLs are extremely punishing when destroyed and it will get hot as hell.

In terms of the other two departments, the Marauder IIC comes out to a solid middle ground.
Marauder IIC appears to still be behind a paywall for another month or two.

After which it'll release for cbills.

[Eddie Money]

Are you sure about the IIC being a while? I read somewhere that April 4th was the date for it (I haven't checked myself because I'm new and had no reason to).

Just to clarify, does that mean the Marauder IIC ends up being the most survivable provided you torso twist properly?

[Eddie Money]

And in a similar vein, is an Assault what I should be going for, or should I use a tough Heavy?

[Xaat Xuun]

which did you like the most ?
I will pretty much always suggest Medium or Heavy to start with, but if you feel you can contribute more to the team in a Assault, and wait more a match, go Assault

[Eddie Money]

Generally I get myself into the biggest sommabish I can find and lead assaults when I can, soaking up fire, so I guess Assault is more my speed. I just didn't know if there were any Heavies suited for the same role.

[chucklesMuch]

Eddie Money, on 12 April 2017 - 12:16 PM, said:

Since I'm interested in Assault, then, do Mauler, King Crab, and Marauder IIC stand out as my best options? What's the differences among them?

If you play in solo queue then Marauder iic; clan tech + battlemech + high engine cap. Fast enough to keep up with nascaring teammates. (It's an out and out good mech just avoid -B & 8 variants)

The mauler (mx90 especially) is still more than decent but generally slower... so teammates are more important to your mech survival as random pugs may leave you behind.

The king crab is suboptimal (too wide, slow; xl engine very risky, poor convergence, torsos are huge... ) likely to get left behind in solo queue. - players including myself, love finding lone king crabs....

Iic is out for cbills already...

[Xaat Xuun]

Eddie Money, on 12 April 2017 - 01:28 PM, said:

Generally I get myself into the biggest sommabish I can find and lead assaults when I can, soaking up fire, so I guess Assault is more my speed. I just didn't know if there were any Heavies suited for the same role.

sounds great . . but .. you may find yourself pushing alone, unless you find a like-minded unit to play with