44 replies to this topic

[DONALD KERENSKY TRUMP]

I posted this in the new player sub forum but I am still not decided which one to buy

I mostly like to do medium range brawling

I have around 20Million Cbills and I would like to use that mech for a long time


can you help suggest?

[Mechfan909]

I suggest you start with a heavy mech, I prefer Marauder MAD-3R (served me well since i bought it) for IS side and if you want a clan I suggest the Timberwolf (very flexible mech and customizable thanks to the omnipod system).
Why heavies?? cause you still got decent speed while packing a good punch. Mediums would be good choices as well but a heavy mech may be more friendly to new players than medium mechs since mediums got thinner armor which may not help in the long run.

[Kanil]

Huntsman is pretty good in the medium weight, as it's highly flexible -- it's got missiles to work with your brawling playstyle, and if you want to try something different, it can mount just about anything else too. The torso mounts are fantastically high as well.

Obviously wouldn't recommend it if you hate mediums, but otherwise it's a pretty solid choice.

Edited by Kanil, 10 September 2017 - 04:36 AM.

[Exilyth]

If you haven't already, play all the trial mechs.

The mech academy also has a bunch of chassis you can try out.

Edited by Exilyth, 10 September 2017 - 12:01 PM.

[Appogee]

A Heavy Mech is likely to be your best starting point.

I suggest Ebon Jaguar as it offers superior Clan tech, can mount a variety* of loadouts thanks to interchangeable omnipods, and its form factor is new player friendly.

* If you want to go IS you will need to buy multiple separate chassis to try different kinds of weapons, as IS hardpoints are specific to each chassis.

Edited by Appogee, 10 September 2017 - 04:45 AM.

[El Bandito]

El Bandito, on 10 September 2017 - 04:57 AM, said:

Hellbringer is always a good choice for your first mech, as it is useful in most team composition.

[Ruar]

A lot is going to depend on how you prefer to play. Heavy or medium mechs are your best choice, assault and lights are better off in the hands of experience players.

I had good success with the Thunderbolt and Shadow Hawk early on while I was learning. Both are solid mechs. I've grown to love the Quickdraw. The Enforcer isn't bad, but it has limited build options.

[Zookeeper Dan]

Whatever you get, it will be YUGE!

Play all the trials and see what you like. I'd stay away from assaults or lights at first. Mediums and heavies are more forgiving.

ShadowHawk 2D2 is a great medium brawler with an AC10 and SRM's. You could make it more mid rage by swapping out the SRM's with MRM's.

For heavy brawling I'd go with a Timberwolf over an Ebon Jaguar. Still one of the best mechs in the game and it does almost everything well!

I'd also second the Hellbringer. ECM is amazing, you are just more limited in builds vs the Timberwolf.

Edited by Zookeeper Dan, 10 September 2017 - 05:10 AM.

[ThundrGod]

I vote Hellbringer. The ECM is amazing for easing you into the game. It will soften the learning curve considerably.

[Black Fish]

I would go for the Stormcrow - It's highly mobile which allows you to make up for positioning mistakes very easily and as others have said - omni-mechs are quite versatile so you can try many types of builds on it.
it's 2 main problems are

• It's legs and arms hitboxes are somewhat large so they tend to get stripped, however it also allows to spread damage.
  
• It's cockpit is a bit low so you can get shot at even though you thought you were behind cover (however there are other mechs which are far worse )

[DONALD KERENSKY TRUMP]

I opted to buy the hellbringer, damn when I looked at it you can configure different loadouts via omnipods. very very expensive but I think I will grind it back.

thanks a lot for all your inputs

[MadRover]

Ok OP. I will give you three choices (one of which I'm just not good in) that will get you started. They are the MAD-3R, HBR Prime, and the EBJ-C (the one with the most energy hardpoints and for some reason I can't play this mech game well). If you want a fourth choice then the Thunderbolt (again, the one with the most energy hardpoints).

The MAD-3R runs best as an AC5 chainsaw with 3AC5s and 4isMLs (or if you want to run hotter use isERMLs) and you need to protect that right torso.

Both the EBJ and the HBR should be laser vomit. Until you get a good grasp on how Clan mechs work, use the old Clan laser vomit builds (x2cLPLs and x4 or x5cERMLs) and then you can graduate to the heavy large lasers. You can also run brawler builds in them but they are primarily a second line (and your cup of tea) mechs.

The Thunderbolt you should be running is either the new IS laser vomit (x2isLPLs x4isERMLs) or x3LPLs (I heard it's good). That's it. Ignore the PPCs because they're not good for that mech.

Now when it comes to engines for Inner Sphere, you should be running LFE unless you have to use a standard (MAD-3R chainsaw build) because you get the all important weight savings that can be used for DHS (double heat sinks) and you should be using endo steel. Ferro Fibrous on IS mechs is generally not good. Inner Sphere tend to have very niche mechs while Clan have some versatility. Also, if you choose a Clan mech, you'll normally will not be able to change the engines out. However you can change your omnipods so if you buy one, you've technically bought them all. Clan battlemechs are an exception since you can change the engine out on those but not the pods.

Good luck

Edited by MadRover, 10 September 2017 - 07:33 AM.

[CFC Conky]

Do you use a macro for the ac5's MadRover? I don't use macros myself but the build is a lot of fun.

Good hunting,
CFC Conky

[Beaching Betty]

CENTURION.

[BrunoSSace]

If you want a medium I will offer you 3 Clan mechs. Hunchback iic, huntsman and stormcrow. For the Inner Sphere I will offer 4 mechs. The Shadow hawk, bushwacker, Hunchback and Griffin. But you asked what mech? I just told you mech Chassis. You told me that you like to brawl. You have a few ways to brawl in this game. Medium pulse lasor, srms, AC20. Clans can change their parts and do ether of the builds. Inner Sphere on the other hand only certain mechs can do certain builds. Hunchback 4P for full energy, 4Sp for srm and lasors as back up. As sad as it is you will probably get more value out of a clan mech since you can change its parts and its fit to your liking while inner Sphere mech is stuck with one build really and if you want a different weapon system you need a new mech. As an Inner Sphere pilot, if you need more help picking a certain mech just ask.

[Admiral-Dan]

DONALD KERENSKY TRUMP, on 10 September 2017 - 04:19 AM, said:

I mostly like to do medium range brawling

You should test a few Trial-Mechs which fits your preferences and decide for a side (IS or Clans) before you buy mechs.

[MadRover]

CFC Conky, on 10 September 2017 - 08:07 AM, said:

Do you use a macro for the ac5's MadRover? I don't use macros myself but the build is a lot of fun.

Good hunting,
CFC Conky

No. I just fire them all at once for 15 pinpoint per. Speaking of which, I did change it to what I think is the new tech version which is changing the engine to an LFE and use 2 ultra 5s and replacing the isMLs to isERMLs but the old one is still good and fun to use. RAC5s is the more face time version. That mech is just so much to play.

Edited by MadRover, 11 September 2017 - 07:00 AM.

[CFC Conky]

MadRover, on 11 September 2017 - 06:59 AM, said:

No. I just fire them all at once for 15 pinpoint per. Speaking of which, I did change it to what I think is the new tech version which is changing the engine to an LFE and use 2 ultra 5s and replacing the isMLs to isERMLs but the old one is still good and fun to use. RAC5s is the more face time version. That mech is just so much to play.

Ok thanks.

Edited by CFC Conky, 11 September 2017 - 07:32 AM.

[panzer1b]

There is really only one mech that i can honently say you cannot go wrong with as a newer player, the hellbringer.

Specifically i suggest getting the HBR-PRIME model as it comes with almost all useful omnipods and only the PRIME comes with useable set-8 quirks that you can build something competitive around to my knowledge. Its very mobile for a heavy and will not be left behind by an agressive team and doesnt even absolutely require speed tweak to be effective. Its got favorable hitboxes as long as you dont stare at the enemy the entire time with reasonable armor levels allowing you to take a nasty hit or 2 before you are in serious danger of dying. Finally, it has ECM which may not be essential, but its very helpful to newer players just so that the enemy doesnt focus you as hard and lets you do a bit of stealth flanking once you learn where and when to do it for free damage and backstab kills.

Another advantage of the chassis is that with the correct omnipods, it can do every single possible combat archetype from laser sniper all the way to srm brawler, even though its obviously more suited for laser boating due to the abundance of energy hardpoints, it will let you try out every playstyle you can think of to some extent.

Anyways, as for builds id reccomend:

The best most versatile and easiest to use one ive found is 6ERML with 1HLL or 1ERLL (HLL is generally flat out better if you are ok with the burn time and asynchronous reload). The reason i suggest this build though is that it combines the best of everything with good range (you can do solid damage up to ~600m with the ability to harass up to ~800m), good alfa strike (you can outtrade most conventional builds that arent super short range brawlers), and good sustained DPS with reasonable heat eff (it remains effective on any map even the really really hot ones and shouldnt be too difficult to manage the heat with a bit of patience).

Another one that requires a bit more skill to use well is 1 ballistic with 5 ERML (you can do 4ERML and 1HLL but that gets a little toasty so not for beginners) using all stock HBR-PRIME omnipods so that you get the 10% energy heat quirk. Gauss is probably the best ballistic, but you are free to experiment with any other ballistic from 2 uac-2 to 1 uac-20 depending on the range you like. Gauss and 5 ERML gives you much better DPS then the above pure laser build, with 10 less alfa strike, so if you manage to get a hang of it, itll probably work better, but it takes alot more skill to hit the gauss and then the same thing with lasers in as short a time as possible.

As for brawling, you got 2 real options that ive found work well. The first is 6 MPLs, which is probably the best brawling HBR since it can stay just outside of SRM range while doing full damage, has insane sustained and burst DPS, and while 42 alfa isnt much, it fires so quickly that it adds up fast. The other option is 6 ERML with 2 SRM-6. Its got the advantage of those 6 ERMLs for situations where its not a good idea to get up close, and its got a 24 damage rocket punch when you do brawl. The mech may not be the best brawler, but honestly anything clan side that isnt a orion2c sorta sucks at brawling due to no armor quirks (most clan mechs are just utterly screwed if you try to brawl, but hey its technically possible if you really want to.

Also, while i dont have as many IS mechs as clan (and thus cant give you a perfect opinion on this), one mech i do strongly reccomend is the MAD3R. Its insanely tanky (armor quirks combined with some of the best facetanking hitboxes around (just takes alot of ST damage from teh side), and it can carry some brutal firepower with dual ballistcis and 4 energys as backup. My personal fav build is gauss with 2LPL and 2ERML, since its got a very good laser punch that fires really fast, and may as well be PPFLD since its burn time is so low on LPLs, and you get a heat-free ballistic to complement or harass at long range. If you want to brawl though, swap the gauss out for a AC-20 (do NOT use UAC-20, it jams all the time, and spreads damage like clan trash). You can rely on the AC-20 to do 20 PPFLD every 4 seconds, and supplement with energy when you have the heat for that.

Anyways, when in doubt, get a HBR, itll probably serve you the best at least early on when learning how everything plays, and as i mentioned before, it can do ANY playstyle you can possible want to play even if it may not do it quite as well as some other mechs.

[Brain Cancer]

Quote

I opted to buy the hellbringer, damn when I looked at it you can configure different loadouts via omnipods. very very expensive but I think I will grind it back.

Clan robots tend to be more expensive, but that's because they also tend to come already equipped with the upgrades needed.

Hellbringers are very energy-friendly. Heavy larges + ERMLs + ECM can take you a long way....just remember to get the ECM skill nodes if you do, as it really has to have them to make best use of ECM. It can let you play with other stuff, but laservomit is it's drug of choice.