59 replies to this topic

[Spare Parts Bin]

My suggestion is Stalkers. They take well to ERPPC s, Laser Vomit,SRM Splat,and Lurms. One model has ECM, and the Misery has a ballistic slot for Gauss or AC-20. They can run 60+ kph and have great armour before skills.

[Koniving]

Spare Parts Bin, on 02 February 2018 - 03:57 PM, said:

My suggestion is Stalkers. They take well to ERPPC s, Laser Vomit,SRM Splat,and Lurms. One model has ECM, and the Misery has a ballistic slot for Gauss or AC-20. They can run 60+ kph and have great armour before skills.

Low mobility, high defense, high offense weapons platforms. Be wary of lights. Misery is one of my favorite hero mechs, though I consider wasting that slot on AC/20 or Gauss to be heresy. I personally use an AC/5 and have it compliment a pair of PPCs as they travel at relatively similar speeds.

Effectively making a long range Heavy Gauss with a modest heat tradeoff. Backed it with SLs and SPLs and an SRM-6. Tried and true for over 4 years.

[Leone]

Jonathan8883, on 01 February 2018 - 07:55 PM, said:

The Hunchback is sluggish. I wish I had not bought one as one of my first mechs.
Fast (80kph+) mechs with good maneuverability give a n00b the chance to back out and get away from bad positioning without dying.

That's the point though. Positioning is a huge part of the game that alotta folk gloss over. I've a friend with horrible aim, but great positioning, and even if we drop CW with my unit he can stay up front on the frontlines longer n' I can because he just seems to know how to move to avoid a counter push or spoil a flanking manouver. He just, you know, can't hit much.

Anyways, point is, by starting in a mech that'll showcase your own failures and reward your successes, you'll learn more and get better. Start with a good mech and you can get spoiled and develope bad habits. I've an Assault Guide that tries to go over positioning.

~Leone.

[Spare Parts Bin]

Leone, on 02 February 2018 - 04:23 PM, said:

That's the point though. Positioning is a huge part of the game that alotta folk gloss over. I've a friend with horrible aim, but great positioning, and even if we drop CW with my unit he can stay up front on the frontlines longer n' I can because he just seems to know how to move to avoid a counter push or spoil a flanking manouver. He just, you know, can't hit much.

Anyways, point is, by starting in a mech that'll showcase your own failures and reward your successes, you'll learn more and get better. Start with a good mech and you can get spoiled and develope bad habits. I've an Assault Guide that tries to go over positioning.

~Leone.

I feel the same way about Stalkers,Orions,the Skoll,and Direwolves.

[Spheroid]

Never recommend a Hunchback to anyone, ever. It is obsolete junk of by a bygone age. If you want a cheap starter heavy I would get something like a Rifleman or Thunderbolt.

[Exilyth]

If you friend likes the Ebon Jaguar and can deal with the wide arms and being a bit squishy, the EBJ is a solid choice.

Similarly solid choices for a clan heavy would be the Hellbringer or Timber Wolf, which are a bit less wide and pack some more armour.

Spheroid, on 02 February 2018 - 11:48 PM, said:

a Rifleman

Being second line glasscannons bringing more guns than armour, they're prone to getting focussed by enemies who know this. I would not recommend this mech to a beginner for that reason and would advise taking something like a Warhammer instead. Unless you played the Rifleman as a trial and could make it work, then go ahead.

[CFC Conky]

Hello all,

I realize the fellow in the OP's post likes heavy mechs but would recommend a Bushwacker. Mobile, a good mix of weapons hardpoints, and all chassis come with double heat sinks and either endo-stell structure or ferro-fibrous armor. You can also get away with running a xl engine on them.



Good hunting,
CFC Conky

Edited by CFC Conky, 03 February 2018 - 10:34 AM.

[Feezou]

CFC Conky, on 03 February 2018 - 10:32 AM, said:

Hello all,

I realize the fellow in the OP's post likes heavy mechs but would recommend a Bushwacker. Mobile, a good mix of weapons hardpoints, and all chassis come with double heat sinks and either endo-stell structure or ferro-fibrous armor. You can also get away with running a xl engine on them.



Good hunting,
CFC Conky

That's true, even though I'm not sure an XL is worth the risk. I think an LFE would be better.

[Koniving]

My personal preference is XL. LFE has its advantages, sure.

The penalties of losing an ST for the LFE is quite damning, where the knowledge of dying with an XL encourages you to play more cautiously and to better defend yourself, which also ties into good positioning. Do or die LFE gives this bad sense of security that you could live through a mistake, then the heat threshold changes, the cooling power cuts significantly and your speed drops significantly and before you know it you might as well be limping in front of 7 enemies more than happy to pick you apart.

This also means I have the weight to carry more firepower which more than makes up for the fragility of the engine.

[Metus regem]

Feezou, on 05 February 2018 - 08:16 AM, said:

That's true, even though I'm not sure an XL is worth the risk. I think an LFE would be better.

Any XL in a Bushy isn't a bad idea, as she spreads damage very well from the front, with small controlled wiggles of the mouse... the down side is, if you take those ST mounted missiles, you get a "Shoot me here!" box, this also exacerbates the wonky rear ST/CT hit boxes that can be hit from the front on the Bushwacker.

I tend to pilot a BSW-X2 when I do log in to MWO, and I must being doing something right, as she is maintain a 4.5 W/L ratio. As you can see with that build, I maintain the high versatility of the Bushwacker, it is able to escort, fire support, flank or ambush. Again though due to the quirks (and I don't mean the PGI added things to the chassis) of the Bushwacker family, I'm not sure I would call her "new player friendly" as she takes a bit of knowledge of basic game mechanics, strategy and situational awareness to capitalize one... also, if you set the FoV back enough that you can use the side windows, you can put your right arm on something behind you... A trick taught by the Dragon Chassis.

The weakness of the XL engine in the Bushwacker is that if you get caught out of position (IE ambushed / flanked) you are going to die in short order, as from the side they are all more or less ST.

[Jonathan8883]

I swapped my Bushwhacker engine out for a LFE early on. A new pilot is not going to have 4M c-bills sitting around for engine upgrades.

A Crab CRB-27B is my suggestion for a good starter mech. You don't need to spend big bucks on an upgraded engine, as it's perfectly viable with a STD, lasers, and extra heat sinks. I run 5 ERMed, 1 ERLL, and 8 DHS and am very happy with it. It is forgiving thanks to its high survivability, fast enough to teach movement, and doesn't run super-baking-hot despite being energy-based.

[CFC Conky]

Jonathan8883, on 05 February 2018 - 09:26 AM, said:

I swapped my Bushwhacker engine out for a LFE early on. A new pilot is not going to have 4M c-bills sitting around for engine upgrades.

A Crab CRB-27B is my suggestion for a good starter mech. You don't need to spend big bucks on an upgraded engine, as it's perfectly viable with a STD, lasers, and extra heat sinks. I run 5 ERMed, 1 ERLL, and 8 DHS and am very happy with it. It is forgiving thanks to its high survivability, fast enough to teach movement, and doesn't run super-baking-hot despite being energy-based.

Yup, that mech is another good choice.

Good hunting,
CFC Conky

[justcallme A S H]

XL on a bushie is a bad idea, generally.

Usually as you have ammo either in the legs or the torso... Someone takes out a leg and you get ammo explosion, you then die from it... So be mindful of this, especially in scouting.

LFE is preferred for the BSW for that reason IMO.

[Spare Parts Bin]

I am installing LE engines in all my IS Mechs. I have died too many times because of XL engines.

[Metus regem]

Spare Parts Bin, on 05 February 2018 - 02:15 PM, said:

I am installing LE engines in all my IS Mechs. I have died too many times because of XL engines.

It really depends on the mech....

Outside of highly specialized builds (HGR/LB-20X) you should always use a LFE over SFE (Standard Engine). That being said, some mechs are more than capable of running XL engines just fine, but it varies between chassis in MWO.

My general rule of thumb for IS mechs:

Lights:

XL always

Medium:

Most chassis are better off with an XL

Heavy:

Some are better off with XL

Assault:

Most are better off with LFE

[Horseman]

Metus regem, on 05 February 2018 - 02:56 PM, said:

Outside of highly specialized builds (HGR/LB-20X) you should always use a LFE over SFE (Standard Engine).

Unless your build runs fairly hot by default - losing a side torso can cripple such mechs completely.

[CFC Conky]

justcallme A S H, on 05 February 2018 - 01:02 PM, said:

XL on a bushie is a bad idea, generally.

Usually as you have ammo either in the legs or the torso... Someone takes out a leg and you get ammo explosion, you then die from it... So be mindful of this, especially in scouting.

LFE is preferred for the BSW for that reason IMO.

Indeed A S H, running an xl comes with risks. That said, a 300xl in a bushie gives it good mobility, which can sometimes be as good as armor. Depending on the build, I put lfe mills in them but sometimes the only way to go is with an xl.

Good hunting,
CFC Conky

[Metus regem]

Horseman, on 05 February 2018 - 03:01 PM, said:

Unless your build runs fairly hot by default - losing a side torso can cripple such mechs completely.

It's rare for me to run builds with a Smurfy cooling efficiency greater than 33%... I over come this issue by trigger discipline mostly.

But again, tell me how a mech like Hunchback 4G isn't better with a LFE over a standard engine... or how a Warhammer 6R isn't better off with a LEF over SFE? How about an Atlas, again outside of highly specialized builds....

[Spare Parts Bin]

Horseman, on 05 February 2018 - 03:01 PM, said:

Unless your build runs fairly hot by default - losing a side torso can cripple such mechs completely.

Metus regem, on 05 February 2018 - 03:08 PM, said:

It's rare for me to run builds with a Smurfy cooling efficiency greater than 33%... I over come this issue by trigger discipline mostly.

But again, tell me how a mech like Hunchback 4G isn't better with a LFE over a standard engine... or how a Warhammer 6R isn't better off with a LEF over SFE? How about an Atlas, again outside of highly specialized builds....

I don't know what to say standard engines are too heavy. XL engines lose weight but you die if you lose a torso. So how can you not use LFEs?

[Horseman]

Metus regem, on 05 February 2018 - 03:08 PM, said:

It's rare for me to run builds with a Smurfy cooling efficiency greater than 33%... I over come this issue by trigger discipline mostly.

Good for you, but I wasn't talking about cooling efficiency alone. Remember that losing a side torso with a LFE costs you 40% of your engine heat sinks - mechs that do not boat multiple extra heat sinks will feel that as a substantial firepower reduction.

Quote

But again, tell me how a mech like Hunchback 4G isn't better with a LFE over a standard engine... or how a Warhammer 6R isn't better off with a LEF over SFE?

You're building a strawman. In all cases it will depend on your build. Counter-examples... Warhammer 6D, Awesome 8Q, Roughneck 3A.

Quote

How about an Atlas, again outside of highly specialized builds....

Losing 20% top speed when your top speed is at most 60 KPH? Yeah. Plus, Atlases generally don't have much space for additional cooling if you want to take advantage of their hardpoints and tonnage.

Edited by Horseman, 05 February 2018 - 11:19 PM.