22 replies to this topic

[Joe Kid]

Greetings MechWarrior's;

I am returning after a 4 year break, just after ghost heat and just before Clan invasion. What I am needing to know is what is the current META. All of my Mechs are IS, I have an assortment of both STD and XL engine's, as well as old Armament. I was a pretty good JR7 pilot however find that this is no longer the case. What my intention is to clear out a few variant's (Since you don't need 3 anymore) and focus on a few META builds for each weight class. I have yet to add any skill points wanting to focus on the better builds first. Here is what I have to work with.

• MC 7,515
  
• CB 15,324,747
  
• GCP 256,313

Assaults;

• AS7-D(F)
  
• AS7-D-DC
  
• AS7-S(L)
  
• AWS-9M
  
• AWS-PB
  
• BLR-1G(P)
  
• BLR-1S
  
• KGC-000(L)
  
• STK-3F
  
• STK-5S
  
• VTR-DS

Heavys;

• CTF-3D
  
• CPLT-A1
  
• CPLT-C1
  
• JM6-FB
  
• JM6-DD
  
• TDR-5S(P)
  
• TDR-5SS
  
• TDR-9SE

Mediums;

• CN9-A(C)
  
• CN9-AH(L)
  
• CDA-2A
  
• CDA-3C
  
• CDA-3M
  
• GRF-1S
  
• GRF-3M
  
• GRF-1N(P)
  
• HBK-4G(F)
  
• HBK-4P
  
• HBK-4SP
  
• SHD-2D2
  
• SHD-2H(P)
  
• SHD-5M
  
• TBT-3C
  
• TBT-7M
  
• WVR-6K
  
• WVR-6R(P)
  
• WVR-7K

Lights;

• FS9-A
  
• JR7-D(F)
  
• LCT-1V(P)
  
• LCT-3M
  
• LCT-3S
  
• SDR-5D
  
• SDR-5K

I used to like to close range quickly and hammer Mechs with SRMs, but am now finding it difficult to do that with so many more on the battlefield. Probably should stick to mid to long range until my pilot skills improve.

Thanks

[SilentFenris]

Joe Kid, on 10 August 2018 - 02:43 PM, said:

Greetings MechWarrior's;

I am returning after a 4 year break, just after ghost heat and just before Clan invasion. What I am needing to know is what is the current META. All of my Mechs are IS, I have an assortment of both STD and XL engine's, as well as old Armament. I was a pretty good JR7 pilot however find that this is no longer the case. What my intention is to clear out a few variant's (Since you don't need 3 anymore) and focus on a few META builds for each weight class.
...
I used to like to close range quickly and hammer Mechs with SRMs, but am now finding it difficult to do that with so many more on the battlefield. Probably should stick to mid to long range until my pilot skills improve.

Thanks

My favorite long/medium/short

Long Range: Jagermech DD with quad ultra AC2s

Midrange: Centurion AH running RAC5, 2xLMG and 2xMRM10

Your old playstyle: Shadowhawk with LB10 and 3xSRM4. Engine is XL320 for speed but runs little ammo, 2t LB, 3t of SRM.

**edit**

Strongly suggest you keep the old variants to test out Skill Tree Builds. While you can re-select old nodes for free, new node unlocks get expensive. Your old mechs each give you 91 Skill Points to play with, but if you ever sell the mech any existing unlocks are permenantly gone, unlike the old system which remembered how much XP and which unlocks you had.

Edited by SilentFenris, 10 August 2018 - 04:14 PM.

[Audacious Aubergine]

Light engines (generally shortened to LFE [light fusion engine]) will be your friend in any of your riskier XL builds. They're heavier than the XL but only take up 2 slots per side torso meaning you can lose one side without being insta-killed.
As far as dumping variants go, keep either your old best performers and/or any c-bill bonus variants.
Medium range missiles (MRMs) are now a thing, low-damage missiles in high-output launchers that can be used as a longer (well, sort of since the missile spread is insane) substitute for SRMs if you have the tonnage - the smallest launcher is an MRM10 that weighs the same as an SRM6.
All 35t lights are in a pretty bad place right now since there was a re-scale of all mechs a couple years back, meaning that the poor Firestarter is now the size of a Blackjack. But, played like an old-style Cicada maybe it can still be effective.
And last but not least, if you think you're doing badly because your team gets stomped game in game out, it might not be your fault

Edited by Audacious Aubergine, 10 August 2018 - 05:01 PM.

[Joe Kid]

SilentFenris, on 10 August 2018 - 04:09 PM, said:

My favorite long/medium/short

Long Range: Jagermech DD with quad ultra AC2s

Midrange: Centurion AH running RAC5, 2xLMG and 2xMRM10

Your old playstyle: Shadowhawk with LB10 and 3xSRM4. Engine is XL320 for speed but runs little ammo, 2t LB, 3t of SRM.

**edit**

Strongly suggest you keep the old variants to test out Skill Tree Builds. While you can re-select old nodes for free, new node unlocks get expensive. Your old mechs each give you 91 Skill Points to play with, but if you ever sell the mech any existing unlocks are permenantly gone, unlike the old system which remembered how much XP and which unlocks you had.

Good advice. I always did like the jaggermech dd with ac 2.
And I guess I should hang on to the variants a bit longer. I still have a few empty mechbays.

Audacious Aubergine, on 10 August 2018 - 04:56 PM, said:

Light engines (generally shortened to LFE [light fusion engine]) will be your friend in any of your riskier XL builds. They're heavier than the XL but only take up 2 slots per side torso meaning you can lose one side without being insta-killed.
As far as dumping variants go, keep either your old best performers and/or any c-bill bonus variants.
Medium range missiles (MRMs) are now a thing, low-damage missiles in high-output launchers that can be used as a longer (well, sort of since the missile spread is insane) substitute for SRMs if you have the tonnage - the smallest launcher is an MRM10 that weighs the same as an SRM6.
All 35t lights are in a pretty bad place right now since there was a re-scale of all mechs a couple years back, meaning that the poor Firestarter is now the size of a Blackjack. But, played like an old-style Cicada maybe it can still be effective.
And last but not least, if you think you're doing badly because your team gets stomped game in game out, it might not be your fault

That's a shame about the lights. I loved running the fast ones.
I thought about throwing some MRM on my AS7-D-DC

[Napoleon_Blownapart]

there are new weapon systems and a new skill system, slow down check your mechs in the mechlab and hit skills on the left, in the upper right corner youll see a blue button add SP or something there you will see historic skillpoints for mastered mechs and maybe GSP for modules that dont exist in the game anymore.( on this website hit profile in the upper right then in the account details window select view skill tree refund ledger youll see what was refunded from the old system)a mech gets 91 skillpoints max, historic is locked to a mech chassis , use that 1st. the general skill points can be used to level new mechs instantly ( i had like 2700 havent leveled a mech since new skills came out)

the coolest newest feature is now in the game's store you can select a mech modify it in the mechlab and drop in testing grounds to test it out unskilled. another new feature, SilentFenris above is giving you build examples he could also export a file that you could import in the mechlab and copy his build instantly (you pay cbills for whats changed)or even the skills he has set for that build could be imported..I would even suggest b4 you mess with what you own test the new weapons in the store mechlab b4 you purchase them with real cbills since you have limited funds.

there is probably other changes since you left that dont occur to me.

and welcome back

Edited by Gorantir, 10 August 2018 - 07:16 PM.

[Steel Raven]

Joe Kid, on 10 August 2018 - 02:43 PM, said:

I used to like to close range quickly and hammer Mechs with SRMs, but am now finding it difficult to do that with so many more on the battlefield. Probably should stick to mid to long range until my pilot skills improve.

Welcome back

Brawling requires allot more patience with so many mid range weapons around now but it's still my favorite play style. The Atlas and Cataphract have nice armor quirks, once you max out the Survival Tree Skill set, they are damn near unkillable when sharing armor with a team.

[TheCaptainJZ]

Note on ECM, its not as overpowered as it once was but still useful if you have it. It slows down locking instead of preventing it entirely and the bubble is only 90 m. LRMs are the current meta as they were buffed recently and General Forum is all up in arms about them and balance right now. So at the moment, you should be sure to carry AMS.

[Xaat Xuun]

TheCaptainJZ, on 11 August 2018 - 03:53 AM, said:

Note on ECM, its not as overpowered as it once was but still useful if you have it. It slows down locking instead of preventing it entirely and the bubble is only 90 m. LRMs are the current meta as they were buffed recently and General Forum is all up in arms about them and balance right now. So at the moment, you should be sure to carry AMS.

my understanding is ECM is pretty much useless, unless you get the ECM skills. without the skills might as well not add ECM

[Jaeger Hunter]

ECM is definitely not worthless but not what it once was is my understanding, great for pop tarting but don't rely on it to stroll through open ground.

[Joe Kid]

All good advice. I have noticed ECM is less a factor now as it was. I only have lights that are capable I think so may wait to play around with those.
A question on Faction play. I saw a video a while back that mentioned you can win Mechbays. Is there a post or an ideal way to go about that for a person that is not yet aligned?

[Steel Raven]

Once you get a certain rank, you get a mechbay for your loyalty (which is cool) Standard Faction Play/Invasion is still brutal if your not part of a team but I have allot of fun in Scouting, the 4 man teams are much more PUG friendly. Scouting doesn't get you as many loyalty points or C-Bills but matches are shorter so it's easier to play back to back matches if Match Making isn't having a fit.

[Xaat Xuun]

some players had done and still do, Faction tours.
Meaning, they play each faction enough to get the first Mech Bay reward, takes about 12-14 matches to get your first mech bay (10 Probation matches plus 2-4 games), there is no penalty any more for dropping Faction, so now these tours are even easier to return to your favorite faction

[TheCaptainJZ]

I believe a mechbay is the reward for all level 2s for any faction. Check the achievements section. Most of them are pretty underwhelming. That's achievements in general.

[Joe Kid]

Ok. A few more quick questions.
1. In QP, what pays more dmg or kills? I am hurting for CB with so much cool stuff to buy. I have a couple LRM boats I could deploy for dmg.
2. I really want to jump into Faction Play and grab some mech bays, scouting looks super fun. However, everything I have read tells me that you should wait until I have reached tier 3-4. I loose 50-50 QP matches and can't seem to get out of tier 5. Is this still the case?
3. When it's time, is joining a faction and then leaving or signing a Merc contract the way to go?

Thx

[Joe Kid]

OH and also,

I have an AS7-D-DC with 91 SP ready to spend. Since it has ECM is it worth investing in the Sensory tree? What's you skill tree look like?

[SilentScreamer]

Joe Kid, on 12 August 2018 - 06:53 PM, said:

Ok. A few more quick questions.
1. In QP, what pays more dmg or kills? I am hurting for CB with so much cool stuff to buy. I have a couple LRM boats I could deploy for dmg.
2. I really want to jump into Faction Play and grab some mech bays, scouting looks super fun. However, everything I have read tells me that you should wait until I have reached tier 3-4. I loose 50-50 QP matches and can't seem to get out of tier 5. Is this still the case?
3. When it's time, is joining a faction and then leaving or signing a Merc contract the way to go?

Thx

1. If you want C-Bills go for the Win first. If that is unattainable go for Damage and Kill Assists. Strangely, Kill Assist 3,500 C-Bill is actually a larger reward than Kill 3,000 C-Bill (but not Solo Kill which is 10,000 C-Bill Bonus on top of Kill and Most Damage Dealt rewards).

2) Joining Faction Play when you are ready for a steep learning-curve. If you are a natural, or willing to get beaten badly many times, you could try early. But generally you want at least 2 good dropdecks (that's 8 mechs) fully equiped with full Skill unlocks. Also, many builds that perform well in Quick Play are completely useless in Faction Play modes.

3) I'd sign loyalist first. More likely to get you familar with the big units and people to offer tips. Avoid flip-flopping between IS and Clan factions. You need to learn how to play one side well, then try the other.

My opinion - ECM is almost worthless unless you unlock BOTH the upgrade nodes in the Sensor skill tree. I don't run an Atlas DDC, but I do run the ECM Cataphract 0X. It's built to be tanky, Survival for Armor/Crit Reduction, Mobility for Twist to spread damage, and Sensor Tree for ECM. You can load the skill tree in your MWO with the code below:
Skill Tree Loadout - a0000000000000000b06bbedfc7711c36ff7f0000e8e77d51bfe69ca22000

[TheCaptainJZ]

Joe Kid, on 12 August 2018 - 06:53 PM, said:

Ok. A few more quick questions.
1. In QP, what pays more dmg or kills? I am hurting for CB with so much cool stuff to buy. I have a couple LRM boats I could deploy for dmg.
2. I really want to jump into Faction Play and grab some mech bays, scouting looks super fun. However, everything I have read tells me that you should wait until I have reached tier 3-4. I loose 50-50 QP matches and can't seem to get out of tier 5. Is this still the case?
3. When it's time, is joining a faction and then leaving or signing a Merc contract the way to go?

Thx

For cbills, vote for conquest every time as the resources collected add cbills to everyone's score, moreso if you win. Play a mech that consistently performs well in any match. Don't use consumables. Don't change the equipment on your mech unless you already own that equipment. Don't swap FF armor and standard or switch between Artemis or not except once to get your build in place.

Also consider buying Premium time or using a Hero mech if you have one (not Champion).

[Marmot Warrior]

Hello,

I am in the very same situation than OP.
Playing at the beginning, playing when the clans went out and stop after that. Consequently, I am a bit confused...

Here my garage :

MC : 1050
CB : 16 847 767
GXP : 67 820

Assaults :

AS7-S
AS7-BH
AS7-RSC
AS7-D-DC
STK-M
STK-3FC
STK-5M

Heavies :
CPLT-C1-FOUNDER

Mediums :
CN9-AH
CN9-D
CN9-AL

So many old IS chassis, with lot of old weapons...

I am very interesting in this statement in the first post :

Quote

What my intention is to clear out a few variant's (Since you don't need 3 anymore) and focus on a few META builds for each weight class.

In my memories, you should have to maximise a lot of variants of the same Mech in order to get some sort of skills, but it is not the case anymore with the skill tree ?
Is there any points of keeping all these Atlas versions for example ?

This paragraph is not very clear for me too :

Quote

Strongly suggest you keep the old variants to test out Skill Tree Builds. While you can re-select old nodes for free, new node unlocks get expensive. Your old mechs each give you 91 Skill Points to play with, but if you ever sell the mech any existing unlocks are permenantly gone, unlike the old system which remembered how much XP and which unlocks you had.

Antoher thing, waiting queue seems much longer than in my memories, do you confirm ?

[SilentFenris]

Marmot Warrior, on 13 August 2018 - 11:22 PM, said:

Hello,

I am in the very same situation than OP.
Playing at the beginning, playing when the clans went out and stop after that. Consequently, I am a bit confused...

...

I am very interesting in this statement in the first post :

In my memories, you should have to maximise a lot of variants of the same Mech in order to get some sort of skills, but it is not the case anymore with the skill tree ?
Is there any points of keeping all these Atlas versions for example ?

Another Player's Guide to Skil Tree
https://mwomercs.com...the-skill-tree/
Quick Summary:
- new skill tree has over 200 nodes you can unlock, only 91 can be active at any time
- nodes take 800 XP and 40,000 c-bills to unlock.
- XP & nodes are specific to each mech. If you have 2 CN9-A models you must earn XP and unlock nodes seperately. Plus side is no need to buy multiple variants, you can go all the way with one mech
- if mech is sold the XP and nodes are lost forever

Regarding you old mechs, Skills and XP
- Patch Notes Regarding New Skil Tree
https://mwomercs.com...14115-16may2017
Short:
- you get a Historic XP pool for each variant. This XP can be transfer to a specific mech of that model
- you get free Skill Points based on your previous Skill level: Basic=30, Expert=60, Master=91 for each copy of a specific variant. If you mastered the Atlas-7K and own 3 copies, you get 3×91=273 points to divide as you choose.

Edited by SilentFenris, 14 August 2018 - 07:45 AM.

[Marmot Warrior]

Thank you very much, really. This is was I was looking for.

No need to keep useless variants so .