132 replies to this topic

[JC Daxion]

Ok, so i won't claim to be any direwolf expert. I only started playing it post skill tree. But i have to say trying to play this thing has been hard/chore/next to impossible for me.

I will start by saying i don't play assaults a lot, Mainly i play stalkers. But post ST, i have played a bunch in my atlas, which i must say i thoroughly enjoy. It might be slow, but twists well, and can take some damage too.

I played my warhawk, and that did not tank like the atlas for sure, but with its movement it is in a pretty good spot IMO. I even had put time in victors which i think are in a better place from pre-ST.


But man the dire is rough. It's speed even with Max skill tree is only 52 KPH, If the team nascars you might as well just find a place to hide and shut down and hope no-one finds you till the next lap. I swear even my 55KPH atlas doesn't have the issues this thing does.

It also gets stuck alot. Places i know i just walk over in other mechs, even big slow ones i am getting stuck on. Tiny roots in Bog, Or small rocks on caustic for example. Places i know i can walk over in other mechs, even slow ones. (i should go take some screenies of what i am talking about)

With reduced agility, did they also reduce twist? Because man, this thing can barely even twist to the side. It feels like it twists less than the low twist stalkers.

I am almost max Survival and it barely has any boosts to armor/structure. Warhawk gets a nice boost, along with other assaults, but this thing has such low armor. It just gets shreeded in seconds and the ST is just gone, and not being able to even twist far enough it gets CT cored rather easily anyway.


Is it i just don't understand the dire, or does this mech have some issues?


My thoughts on some possible tweaks were..

A slight boost to top speed,

A slight increase to twist %, (Not even talking speed, just how far it can go)

A slight boost to armor/structure. I get this thing has more firepower than an atlas, so i'm not saying it needs +20.. But a small boost could help.



Maybe i was just having a horrible day, or need to play the mech more, but man this thing is rough. honestly feels like the worst assault I've ever played. (Victor, Stalker, Mauler, atlas, warhawk, Executioner, Direwolf).. Id even put pre-skill tree victor far above this mech now. Is it i just don't get it, or is there something wrong with this mech?



I put time in my atlas K for example, which is suppose to have the same move profile, and i have had none of these issues in that mech. It just feels like, if you are getting targeted at all, you are just dead. Come around a corner and see a medium and i feel like i'm dropping. I swear my adder fells like i can tank harder and that is sad.

Edited by JC Daxion, 01 June 2017 - 10:40 AM.

[Jackal Noble]

Not gonna happen.
Dire is a severe offender.
Of being able to carry a shite ton of guns.

And thus it is condemned to forever lie in the tar.

[Christophe Ivanov]

I play the DW more than any of my other mechs. Sadly, it's been borked severely since the last patch. And I understand it's been so bad now, it's unreal. I'll, post later some of my builds and skill trees that may or may not help out.

[Kaethir]

DWF was a hard mech to play to start with. Even more so than the other assaults, positioning will make or break you, and it seems to be even worse since the patch. Of course, maybe that's due to needing ST tweaking, but still.

[Angel of Annihilation]

JC Daxion, on 01 June 2017 - 10:39 AM, said:

Ok, so i won't claim to be any direwolf expert. I only started playing it post skill tree. But i have to say trying to play this thing has been hard/chore/next to impossible for me.

I will start by saying i don't play assaults a lot, Mainly i play stalkers. But post ST, i have played a bunch in my atlas, which i must say i thoroughly enjoy. It might be slow, but twists well, and can take some damage too.

I played my warhawk, and that did not tank like the atlas for sure, but with its movement it is in a pretty good spot IMO. I even had put time in victors which i think are in a better place from pre-ST.


But man the dire is rough. It's speed even with Max skill tree is only 52 KPH, If the team nascars you might as well just find a place to hide and shut down and hope no-one finds you till the next lap. I swear even my 55KPH atlas doesn't have the issues this thing does.

It also gets stuck alot. Places i know i just walk over in other mechs, even big slow ones i am getting stuck on. Tiny roots in Bog, Or small rocks on caustic for example. Places i know i can walk over in other mechs, even slow ones. (i should go take some screenies of what i am talking about)

With reduced agility, did they also reduce twist? Because man, this thing can barely even twist to the side. It feels like it twists less than the low twist stalkers.

I am almost max Survival and it barely has any boosts to armor/structure. Warhawk gets a nice boost, along with other assaults, but this thing has such low armor. It just gets shreeded in seconds and the ST is just gone, and not being able to even twist far enough it gets CT cored rather easily anyway.


Is it i just don't understand the dire, or does this mech have some issues?


My thoughts on some possible tweaks were..

A slight boost to top speed,

A slight increase to twist %, (Not even talking speed, just how far it can go)

A slight boost to armor/structure. I get this thing has more firepower than an atlas, so i'm not saying it needs +20.. But a small boost could help.



Maybe i was just having a horrible day, or need to play the mech more, but man this thing is rough. honestly feels like the worst assault I've ever played. (Victor, Stalker, Mauler, atlas, warhawk, Executioner, Direwolf).. Id even put pre-skill tree victor far above this mech now. Is it i just don't get it, or is there something wrong with this mech?



I put time in my atlas K for example, which is suppose to have the same move profile, and i have had none of these issues in that mech. It just feels like, if you are getting targeted at all, you are just dead. Come around a corner and see a medium and i feel like i'm dropping. I swear my adder fells like i can tank harder and that is sad.

Agree. I literally have stripped all my Dires and since they are just sitting in my mech bays as husks, I am strongly considering selling them off because they constitute a significant amount of C-bills I could use for other things like the new tech that will be coming out in July. I just absolutely can't stand to play them any more, GUNZ or NO GUNZ. They are just too slow and awkward to provide anything remotely like a fun experience.

[Metus regem]

Christophe Ivanov, on 01 June 2017 - 10:52 AM, said:

I play the DW more than any of my other mechs. Sadly, it's been borked severely since the last patch. And I understand it's been so bad now, it's unreal. I'll, post later some of my builds and skill trees that may or may not help out.

To be fair, it was the King of assault mechs right up until the release of the Kodiak....

[Strength Damage Cliff Racer]

I own just one direwolf, one from the steam packs, with that C-bill 30% boost and all… and while it's slow, you miss one thing - Dire can sacrifice 2 tons of weight to get himself a jump jet.
This jump jet enables good hill climbing, some degree of fall damage reduction and faster turn when you need one.
It's just like Timber wolf - these Jump jet omnipod turn rate reductions merely TRY to reduce the agility gained. And, since Direwolf is one of them quirkless mechs so it's not like he is losing +15 structure for this decision…

[Angel of Annihilation]

Metus regem, on 01 June 2017 - 11:06 AM, said:

To be fair, it was the King of assault mechs right up until the release of the Kodiak....

It never was king, even when it first released. It was always slow, sluggish and extremely vulnerable however like the KDK, too many potatoes liked to stand right in front of it and stick out their jaw daring it to shoot them and then went running back to the Forums to QQ that the mean old Direwolf pushed them down in the school yard.

However this patch just made it awful.

As far a Clan Assaults, none were worth a damn until the KDK came out and now that has been nerfed to oblivion as well leaving really only the Marauder IIC as the sole decent Clan Assault.....but wait....they are going to nerf that too so......yeah.

On the other hand, the EXE actually improved from crap to decent. I mean I still can't call it good overall but is agile for its size and with both MASC and JJs it can actually get around the battlefield fairly well. It is at least respectable enough that I am willing to drop into a match with it every one in a while.

[Puppy Monkey Baby]

Viktor Drake, on 01 June 2017 - 11:36 AM, said:

It never was king, even when it first released. It was always slow, sluggish and extremely vulnerable however like the KDK, too many potatoes liked to stand right in front of it and stick out their jaw daring it to shoot them and then went running back to the Forums to QQ that the mean old Direwolf pushed them down in the school yard.

However this patch just made it awful.

As far a Clan Assaults, none were worth a damn until the KDK came out and now that has been nerfed to oblivion as well leaving really only the Marauder IIC as the sole decent Clan Assault.....but wait....they are going to nerf that too so......yeah.

On the other hand, the EXE actually improved from crap to decent. I mean I still can't call it good overall but is agile for its size and with both MASC and JJs it can actually get around the battlefield fairly well. It is at least respectable enough that I am willing to drop into a match with it every one in a while.

I dunno, I put 6 ER PPCs and go to town occasionally.

Of course, the townspeople then get their pitchforks and torches and come burn me en masse, but eh. At least I didn't put LRMs on it.

[Quicksilver Aberration]

Metus regem, on 01 June 2017 - 11:06 AM, said:

To be fair, it was the King of assault mechs right up until the release of the Kodiak....

Actually it was before the rebalance that it was king, before the Kodiak but after the rebalance, the Mauler was king.

Viktor Drake, on 01 June 2017 - 11:36 AM, said:

It never was king, even when it first released.

It was king, the Space Whale dominated once people figured out, it just wasn't as dominant in solo queue because it was solo queue (slow things don't do as well there). During the Space Whale era, only 2 real assaults existed as far as group and comp went, the STK-4N, and the Space Whale.

For reference, the Space Whale

Edited by Quicksilver Kalasa, 01 June 2017 - 11:49 AM.

[Metus regem]

Viktor Drake, on 01 June 2017 - 11:36 AM, said:

Stuff

I know, and oh how I capitalized on that fact, I once ran a standard Shadowhawk Champion and killed two Dire Wolves in one match, by exploiting the lack of pitch, twist and turn speed found in them. That being said, even with the 6 x UAC/5 Dire was king (and I found it be very underwhelming) it could run a build like this:

DWF-B

As mine did when I would drop for CGBI, it was a very, very effective killer, if I got into the right position in time.

[Quicksilver Aberration]

Metus regem, on 01 June 2017 - 11:46 AM, said:

DWF-B

Rather brave stripping the head armor even a little bit. It may not have the Battlemaster cockpit but it was still fairly notorious for having an easier to hit head than most.

Edited by Quicksilver Kalasa, 01 June 2017 - 11:49 AM.

[Andi Nagasia]

DWF hasnt been good for some time, Clan weapons have taken a huge hit since the OP DWF days,
although the DWF can mount more weapons than it knows what to do with, it cant use all of them,
this means its inefficient at being a Gun Boat, because of its turn angle it can be a Turret,
and because of its speed its hard to position it self where it can do the most good,

think of the DWF as a Goliath Grouper,

in the right position its a force to be reckoned with,

but any other time,

yup your a Sitting Duck, well Grouper, which is why they are now Protected,

Edited by Andi Nagasia, 01 June 2017 - 11:52 AM.

[Metus regem]

Quicksilver Kalasa, on 01 June 2017 - 11:47 AM, said:

Rather brave stripping the head armor even a little bit. It may not have the Battlemaster cockpit but it was still fairly notorious for having an easier to hit head than most.

Honestly the amount of times I've died to head shots I can count on one hand over the course of three years. Most times I die to ST/CT/Leg loss... usually ST Loss since I tend to run a lot of XL IS mechs lately.

[Xmith]

The DWF use to be my go to assault before the KDK. I have not dropped with the DWF yet since the last patch. I'm still working on balancing the skill points. So far it seems to handle better than the KDK. Perhaps it's just my imagination. Twisting and anchor turn feels better than I expected without any mobility sp yet. I have not dropped in it in a long time. The top speed is the main issue. I am encouraged about how it will do once I give it the green light.

I also decided to try laser vomit, no dakka. Lets see how long that will last.

[Quicksilver Aberration]

Metus regem, on 01 June 2017 - 11:53 AM, said:

Honestly the amount of times I've died to head shots I can count on one hand over the course of three years.

I suppose so for solo queue and maybe group queue, but the moment you start seeing/playing against better shots it starts becoming a serious concern.

[Moebius Pi]

Grab all the Torso Speed and Yaw nodes that you can (though you still won't be twisting at a 90 degree angle, for some every little bit helps), as well as a hefty amount of Kinetic Burst and Hard Brake. Doesn't feel any worse than before to me then, it actually feels more responsive for torso twisting at that point when getting most or all of the Torso Speed nodes, but it's still a feast or famine mobile turret no matter what you do with the thing.

It's been in a bad spot for a long, long time now (Once the Maulers came out and the rebalance as prior poster stated). Folks just aren't putting enough into the Mobility Tree for a mech that is in dire need of it, skimping out, then complaining how much worse it got. Don't cheapskate out on Mobility nodes on blimps. Seriously.

[Quicksilver Aberration]

Moebius Pi, on 01 June 2017 - 12:14 PM, said:

Folks just aren't putting enough into the Mobility Tree for a mech that is in dire need of it, skimping out, then complaining how much worse it got. Don't cheapskate out on Mobility nodes on blimps. Seriously.

That doesn't fix the issues because it means you are skipping out on things that other (more agile) mechs benefit from. All 100 tonners were set too low agility wise, the Whale included. Mechs that make you tempted to take mobility nodes over the more important firepower/durability/aux trees generally indicate that it is not agile enough (several lights fall into this category sadly).

[Wraith31]

Metus regem, on 01 June 2017 - 11:06 AM, said:

To be fair, it was the King of assault mechs right up until the release of the Kodiak....

That seems unlikely.

Quicksilver Kalasa, on 01 June 2017 - 12:27 PM, said:

That doesn't fix the issues because it means you are skipping out on things that other (more agile) mechs benefit from. All 100 tonners were set too low agility wise, the Whale included. Mechs that make you tempted to take mobility nodes over the more important firepower/durability/aux trees generally indicate that it is not agile enough (several lights fall into this category sadly).

I agree with this 100%

Quicksilver Kalasa, on 01 June 2017 - 11:44 AM, said:

Actually it was before the rebalance that it was king, before the Kodiak but after the rebalance, the Mauler was king.


It was king, the Space Whale dominated once people figured out, it just wasn't as dominant in solo queue because it was solo queue (slow things don't do as well there). During the Space Whale era, only 2 real assaults existed as far as group and comp went, the STK-4N, and the Space Whale.

For reference, the Space Whale

The mighty certainly fell in this case.

[Metus regem]

Wraith31, on 01 June 2017 - 12:47 PM, said:

That seems unlikely.



I agree with this 100%



The mighty certainly fell in this case.

According to your profile you've been a member since September 2013, I started in 2014 and there was a long streach where the Dire Wolf was the king of the assault mechs... maybe you were not playing the game then, but I assure you, for atleast a year it was top dog.

Quicksilver Kalasa, on 01 June 2017 - 12:12 PM, said:

I suppose so for solo queue and maybe group queue, but the moment you start seeing/playing against better shots it starts becoming a serious concern.

/shrug

I used to play in group que against the 228th, EMP, CSJ and their like when I was part of CGBI, I was a filler pilot during group drops and comp games between 2014 and mid 2015... now I just play for fun and run builds I like with out a care in the world.