Ok to evaluation the BA like it should be evaluated, on its own rather than be compared to the MK II, so far it seems to sit in the well above average category, maybe even solidly into the very good category to be honest.
Overall I have found it to have higher than average tankiness and durability. The high mounts, number and amount of variation in the hard points available gives it plenty of usable firepower that can perform a peeking, hill humping and staring combat styles equally well making for an exceptionally well rounded mech. If I had anything negative to say about it so far it is that it is an omnimech which makes it somewhat difficult to build out efficiently. On many of my initial test builds I found that I either had too much excess tonnage left over or didn't have enough tonnage/slots available to cool the build adequately which has forced me to make some compromises I wouldn't have to make if it were a battlemech. I suspect that once the reinforcement omnipods because generally available, it will open up a few more options that may allow for some exceptional builds, especially using a combo of the 3 Ballistic Right Torso and the 4 Energy left torso but if you just have the standard pack like me, that is a ways away.
Overall I would give it an 8 out of 10 when considering it from the perspective of the game in general.
As to comparing it against the MkII, honestly the MkII is probably a slightly better mech just because of the fact it is a Battlemech which allows you to tweak your builds to the smallest detail. Generally speaking I run quite a few of my Mk IIs with a 350 XL which shaves off 2.5 tons for a loss of something like 2 kph. That 2.5 tons has been the make or break on several of my Mk II builds and I can already see that there are many build choices I would make quite a bit differently on the BA if I had these extra 2.5 tons available.
One thing I will say is that in the limited amount of matches I have had in the BA so far, it that it actually feels more durable than the MkII. I can't really identify why that is yet, maybe it is just unfamiliarity with the BA's hit boxes, but it just seems to be able to take more damage before it crumbles. Generally speaking I feel my MkIIs get cored very, very quickly and have felt that since day one. With the BA, I feel much more comfortable and confidant standing out in the opening in a staring contest or if I get caught out in the open in an LRM storm. This in and of itself might be a good reason to chose the BA over the MkII.
Edit: About its mobility. Yeah it is lacking. I think this is one area where I would like to see it slightly improved. Honestly I think the mech is much better than the Highlander IIC so I don't think it deserves Highlander IIC levels of mobility but an increase to maybe a base 13.00 acceleration and maybe 15.00 decel with maybe 40 turn rate would kind of be the finishing touches on this mech. Done and done at that point, no problem found.
Edited by Viktor Drake, 15 May 2018 - 03:48 PM.
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