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Best Light Sniper Mech


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#1 AokiKida

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Posted 18 November 2017 - 12:43 PM

Hi there,
Which light mech is the best for sniping with laser? Don`t want to play on med\heavy mechs.
Thanks.

#2 Rogue Jedi

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Posted 18 November 2017 - 02:45 PM

probably the Raven 3L (ECM) or 4X (Jumpjets)
both have 2 E hardpoints on an arm suitable for a pair or ER Large Lasers.

pretty much every Light Mech can do this, Jumpjets, high speed and ECM can all help.

other chassis which can do this well include, in no paticular order:
Spider
Jenner
Wolfhound
Locust
Panther
Arctic Cheetah
Myst Lynx
Urbanmech
Kit Fox
Adder

and while the below are technicaly Mediums ou can play them like Lights
Cicada
Viper
Shadow Cat (in my opinion probably the best choice for this sort of role)

#3 FallenShaw

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Posted 03 December 2017 - 10:27 AM

Once you play the 30 ton legendary urb they gave everyone... well Raven 3L is lack luster. sure its got 5 more tons, but... well.. Doesn't seem like it. I can squeeze more tonage out of an urby than i can a 5 ton heavier raven. I just won't run as fast. But I can take 3 to 4 times the hits easy just just as far, and mount the same if not more weapons. Plus its a smaller profile. Don't get me wrong I'm sure the narcing raven has its plus sides, but after the rescale its simply outclassed by plenty others. I'd snipe from a a shadow cat, medium before using a raven.

#4 Tereva

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Posted 03 December 2017 - 12:45 PM

Which urby exactly ?

#5 Koniving

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Posted 03 December 2017 - 01:29 PM

For those canonically implied to be snipers:

Clans: Adder. Kit Fox.

IS: Panther.

Many mechs can play the role. I find 30 to 35 tonners to be an ideal range for snipers. My current favorite is the Wolfhound hero... which I basically made into a Panther without jumpjets...because I can put on ECM and thus Stealth Armor. Damn good fun.

Firestarter also made a decent sniper with its ballistic-capable variants sporting a single Gauss Rifle or one to two AC/2s / LB2xs.

I also enjoy Jenners with PPCs, Ravens with PPCs.. And yes you can use ER Large Lasers to snipe too but the problem I find there is that the trail leading back to you is really obvious...making it very dangerous and foolish unless you know what you're doing and have the speed to do it.

I like my lights to be reasonable in speed but tanky as heck. Panther fits that bill well. Wolfhound and Firestarter do it pretty good with higher emphasis on speed. Ravens can tank exceptionally but their legs are easy to take out. Jenners have the opposite problem their legs aren't easy to hit but they are kinda so-so about abuse.

In the 30 ton range, Spiders have speed and can easily make sniper configurations. There's even an ECM variant (5D) that can sport stealth armor and a good sized PPC or large lasers. If speed and exceptional jumping ability isn't as important, the Urbanmech can still jump decently well and tanks like it isn't nobody's business. Just be warned that Urbanmechs can twist 360 degrees... and it is pretty easy to get disoriented. Keep the "F" key handy so that you can have legs turn to your torso's facing..

For the two Clan mechs I mentioned, Adder provides better firepower options, but beyond that the Kit Fox is superior in most every other way.

Some would probably convert the Arctic Cheetah into a sniper which you can. But to be honest despite the superior Clan advantage in range... "Sniper" builds are extremely uncommon among Clan Light Mech players now that I think about it.

#6 Koniving

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Posted 03 December 2017 - 01:34 PM

Like I haven't seen a sniper-oriented Clan Light in... damn, I don't think I've seen one since 2015? Maybe 2016. You'll see a lot of IS Lights as snipers. Hell I run them too. But myself I haven't done it with a Clan light since 2014 and it's been forever since I seen an enemy Clan Light.

For some "Large Laser" Snipers... see this video as the receiving end of them.

Warning: Loud. I was watching a youtube video and boredly supporting my friends with an LRM rig when our base got overrun and most of our team was killed, so I rushed to their aide, alt-tabbed over to start recording, alt-tabbed back and didn't get a chance to stop the youtube video I was watching so it is blasting over the audio as we become 3 guys against 7... 3 guys against 6... 2 against 6.. 2 against 5.. 2 against 4.. 1 against 4.. down to 1 against 1 for a final showdown.

Edited by Koniving, 03 December 2017 - 01:40 PM.


#7 Koniving

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Posted 03 December 2017 - 01:44 PM

View PostTereva, on 03 December 2017 - 12:45 PM, said:

Which urby exactly ?


Based on what he said...

View PostFallenShaw, on 03 December 2017 - 10:27 AM, said:

Once you play the 30 ton legendary urb they gave everyone... well Raven 3L is lack luster. sure its got 5 more tons, but... well.. Doesn't seem like it. I can squeeze more tonage out of an urby than i can a 5 ton heavier raven. I just won't run as fast. But I can take 3 to 4 times the hits easy just just as far, and mount the same if not more weapons. Plus its a smaller profile. Don't get me wrong I'm sure the narcing raven has its plus sides, but after the rescale its simply outclassed by plenty others. I'd snipe from a a shadow cat, medium before using a raven.


The Loyalty one.
Which not everyone got, just those that bought MC between sometime 2016 and November 14th 2017.
URB R68(L), available sometime next year as R68 for cbills.

#8 JigglyMoobs

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Posted 08 December 2017 - 03:27 AM

I don't think lights should be snipers. Light mechs are already down on firepower and heat capacity. Long range weapons strain those precious resources even further.

Occasionally you will see a 2xERLL sniper do a lot of damage, but they are mostly cleaning up on hurt mechs at the end. They are not making the difference when they are needed in the mid part of the match amidst the heavy fighting.

My favorite light right now is a Wolfhound with 5 med pulse. Think of it as a sniper that snipes from <300 m.

Edited by JigglyMoobs, 08 December 2017 - 03:35 AM.


#9 Exard3k

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Posted 08 December 2017 - 03:51 AM

On Clan side, Cougar and Adder should be the best snipers as they have lots of podspace and are fast enough for a mobile sniper. I recommend 2x PPC Adder Prime or Cougar with er- large lasers.

edit: I consider lights and mediums the best snipers...because of mobility you need as a sniper and the lack of armor sharing isn't that of a disadvantage for the team.

Edited by Exard3k, 08 December 2017 - 07:15 AM.


#10 pheeere

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Posted 11 December 2017 - 08:55 AM

I can recommend one of the Urbis, the UM-R60. It can be bought for C-Bills, very cheap as well. Best value for money you will ever see! Pack 2 ER Large Lasers and 3-4 Machine Guns, and have fun. It's my favourite mech

It has JJs, fairly high mounts, good mobility with max XL engine (~97 kph), 360° torso twist, tanks like a heavy, gets ignored mostly and is hard to hit. The MGs do their job really well late game. And it's a goddamn Urbi ;) What's not to love? Get one!

#11 Roughneck45

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Posted 11 December 2017 - 09:17 AM

If you are going to snipe with lasers, you need 3 to be a threat. 2 used to be good, but its lackluster with the amount of damage going out these days.

A stock Adder is honestly the best light sniper. 2 PPCs always work if you can land your shots, and the Adder is the smallest you can go without being too hot to handle.

#12 TercieI

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Posted 11 December 2017 - 09:48 AM

View PostRoughneck45, on 11 December 2017 - 09:17 AM, said:

If you are going to snipe with lasers, you need 3 to be a threat. 2 used to be good, but its lackluster with the amount of damage going out these days.

A stock Adder is honestly the best light sniper. 2 PPCs always work if you can land your shots, and the Adder is the smallest you can go without being too hot to handle.


That still workable? Hm. May have to skill up my Cinder. That was always good fun and I can almost shoot again. :)

@OP: the ERLL playstyle for lights isn't really good for much other than farming not-too-effective damage. Boating ERMLs is much more effective and still pretty "snipey." You have to think a lot more about positioning, but you help your team about100x more.

#13 Roughneck45

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Posted 11 December 2017 - 03:37 PM

View PostTercieI, on 11 December 2017 - 09:48 AM, said:

That still workable? Hm. May have to skill up my Cinder. That was always good fun and I can almost shoot again. Posted Image

I think so. I used the prime to get the majority of my 2500 light assists cause I suck in traditional lights. Put up a 1.81 win and 3.12 kdr over about 350 matches. Runs cooler than the Shadow cat IIRC.

#14 TercieI

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Posted 11 December 2017 - 06:42 PM

View PostRoughneck45, on 11 December 2017 - 03:37 PM, said:

I think so. I used the prime to get the majority of my 2500 light assists cause I suck in traditional lights. Put up a 1.81 win and 3.12 kdr over about 350 matches. Runs cooler than the Shadow cat IIRC.


I got bored of waiting for an answer and ran a match in it. Even without consumables, yeah, works. :)

#15 LEE H4RVEY

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Posted 11 December 2017 - 06:56 PM

What about using the Spider 5D with an erppc build? ECM ninja skills with good speed and jumpjets for vertical mobility.

#16 TercieI

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Posted 11 December 2017 - 09:02 PM

View PostLEE H4RVEY, on 11 December 2017 - 06:56 PM, said:

What about using the Spider 5D with an erppc build? ECM ninja skills with good speed and jumpjets for vertical mobility.


10 damage alpha. Awful. Stunt build, no more.

#17 LEE H4RVEY

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Posted 12 December 2017 - 06:44 PM

View PostTercieI, on 11 December 2017 - 09:02 PM, said:


10 damage alpha. Awful. Stunt build, no more.


True.

My 5V runs with a 10 alpha single LPL 99 percent of the time. Sometimes its downright grueling trying to peck away at an enemy. But most of the time... it's SOOOOO FREAKING FUN!

#18 GeekySauce

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Posted 30 October 2019 - 10:51 AM

I have been toying around with a couple of cougar builds. My favorite thus far is...
COU-Prime as the base, swap the right torso for COU-E for the additional energy mount. Swap the head for COU-H for the ecm mount. I set my armor values to max except for head (16) and legs (36) so it can afford to catch a few grazing shots. I mount either three er-large lasers or, my favorite, three C-hvy lasers. Four double heatsinks minimum. It can alpha strike to put heat at 97%. Usually, between ducking in cover, waiting for cooldown, and alternating fire between left/right side keeps heat manageable. This should leave 2.5 tons to play with. I run laser AMS as default, but sometimes double up with ECM. The final .5 ton goes to a probe. Depending on your personal tastes you can swap for more heat sinks or other equipment.
I have been toying with a variant that uses the jump jet model, but I have trouble making up for the jet tonnage.
EDIT: My mech skills are mostly related to heat gen reduction/heat capacity/etcetera

Anyways, old thread probably dead. Would still appreciate feedback on my pet project

Edited by Madcatinthehat, 30 October 2019 - 10:55 AM.


#19 Ignatius Audene

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Posted 30 October 2019 - 02:35 PM

Necro!!!

#20 Johny Rocket

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Posted 30 October 2019 - 03:32 PM

For a sniper ideally you would have jump jets. I snipe with a light gauss on an Assassin 26 which is technically a medium but plays like a light. Arctic Cheetah with a pair of Heavy Larges is a good choice as well. On the IS side with real lights the Firestarter A is not to bad having JJs and decent hardpoints.

Overall on sniping, this game isn't really great for it and you will only do great situationally and most of the time as soon as you pop a couple shots you get focused with lrms unless you bring ecm and stealth, but both eat tonnage and stealth cause overheat. Even if they can't target you for lurms people will whittle you down everytime you peek.





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