12 replies to this topic

[Mustang_11b35d]

I'm an old MW4 player, drawn back in by the promise of MW5. I went through the various training, and thought I could hold my own (I used to kill a lot of Heavys and even some Assault mechs with light mechs though good maneuver.) In my first 8 or 9 attempts at Solaris 1 on 1, my life expectancy is running sub-minute, sometimes no more than a few seconds. I tried this because I thought it would be a good way to get some live practice without inconveniencing teammates. But I feel like I'm learning nothing. Am I set up all wrong? What the heck are these mech's carrying that I don't have time to do any significant damage, even with full armor and a pretty tricked out mech?

[Xeno Phalcon]

Solaris is and has always been a crap show - especially if your mech is in the cheese divisions, there is a reason its not popular - people either use the lamest cheapest meta build available or get destroyed repeatedly probably by the same guy.

[MechaBattler]

It's not newbie friendly. That's for sure. Generally each division is dominated by specific meta mechs and their meta builds. You'll be hard pressed to beat veteran players in their meta mechs.

[justcallme A S H]

Xeno Phalcon, on 17 April 2019 - 01:06 PM, said:

Solaris is and has always been a crap show - especially if your mech is in the cheese divisions, there is a reason its not popular - people either use the lamest cheapest meta build available or get destroyed repeatedly probably by the same guy.

Well someone clearly got beaten a few times.


Anyway is Solaris for new players? Definately not, outside of events. The queue numbers outside events are low and the match maker will struggle to find appropriate level opponents. During events it's much better.

1v1 takes far more skill than a random 12v12 QP match. You need to run decent builds that have a lot of thought and synergy in them. Also fully skilled mechs as that makes a massive difference in 1v1 scenarios.

The Divisions are not as "cheesy" as low-skill players make it out. I've run a bit of off-META stuff and done very well as sometimes catching out the opponent with something different works well. I've seen many others do the same. You just have to know what you are playing, how it is strong and where it is weak.

Builds wise it centres around Ballistic/SRMs because of pinpoint and high DPS. And IS mechs becuase of better survival and mobilty (granted not always the case). Also generally the higher tonnage lasers (Large Pulse, ERL, LL etc) don't work as well as for their tonnage they are not efficient in a 1v1 scenario. I say generally as there absolutely are exceptions, but that's too much to go into here for a simple-ish reply.

Main thing if you are new to 1v1 - prepare to lose, a lot. The META and builds are very much different to that of QP games. Bringing your favourite LORE/Bracket/QP build and mech simply isn't gonna work there.

Edited by justcallme A S H, 17 April 2019 - 04:04 PM.

[Mustang_11b35d]

Thanks guys. My impression, from my first dozen or so disastrous appearances, I came away with the impression that Solaris is now 90% about the machinery, and maybe 10% about pilot skill. I harbor no false delusions that I can stand toe-to-toe with the best after taking a decade off, but I knew I wasn't as bad as the outcomes seemed to indicate. So, if Solaris isn't where a newbie should go for experience, where should I go? How do I gain experience (and C-Bills)?

[Steel Raven]

The grind is hard going in Quick Play (PUG) can get frustrating until you start skiling your mech but it's the most direct. Milking the events with get you the most rewards for your time.

If you have any friends active in Faction Play, it can make things easier. FP is a different animal I wouldn't recommend going solo, random teams are often like more than punching bags for large group working together. Good news is most FP teams are always looking for new players, bad news is you also run into guys who take this game way too seriously (I ether laugh or bit my tough every time I have had the opportunity to drop with a R. Lee Ermey wannabe barking orders at pugs) A good team will help get you more C-Bills and XP than QP alone so it's very much worth considering.

[Ruccus]

G2brew, on 17 April 2019 - 06:37 PM, said:

Thanks guys. My impression, from my first dozen or so disastrous appearances, I came away with the impression that Solaris is now 90% about the machinery, and maybe 10% about pilot skill. I harbor no false delusions that I can stand toe-to-toe with the best after taking a decade off, but I knew I wasn't as bad as the outcomes seemed to indicate. So, if Solaris isn't where a newbie should go for experience, where should I go? How do I gain experience (and C-Bills)?

My suggestion for a new player is to find a 50 to 55 ton mech they like and follow around an assault mech in Quick Play. Just fire at what they're firing at, and scare away light mechs that come to harass them. Your job is to keep that assault alive for as long as possible so it can put some serious hurt on the enemy team while you add your firepower to it.

Something like the Huntsman, Bushwacker, Stormcrow, Nova, Crab, (and Vapor Eagle when it's released next month for c-bills) should be a nice platform to help out; there are others that should do fine too. Build it to run 80 to 95kph and have a decent punch without running hot and it should work well. Put 5 points of armour on the back and max out the front armour on the RT, LT, and CT. If you need to shave a bit of armour for weight, take it from the head, legs, and any arm that doesn't have any weapons in it.

[Mustang_11b35d]

Ruccus, on 17 April 2019 - 10:27 PM, said:

My suggestion for a new player is to find a 50 to 55 ton mech they like and follow around an assault mech in Quick Play. Just fire at what they're firing at, and scare away light mechs that come to harass them. Your job is to keep that assault alive for as long as possible so it can put some serious hurt on the enemy team while you add your firepower to it.

Something like the Huntsman, Bushwacker, Stormcrow, Nova, Crab, (and Vapor Eagle when it's released next month for c-bills) should be a nice platform to help out; there are others that should do fine too. Build it to run 80 to 95kph and have a decent punch without running hot and it should work well. Put 5 points of armour on the back and max out the front armour on the RT, LT, and CT. If you need to shave a bit of armour for weight, take it from the head, legs, and any arm that doesn't have any weapons in it.

That all sounds like great advice. I just acquired a Stormcrow, so I'll set it up and get to work. Thanks again for the great info, everyone.

[Mustang_11b35d]

Update, took all advice and had a blast in some quick games (pun intended.) Got a bunch of kills, and even a few attaboys. SOO much better than Solaris. To any fellow newbies reading this, follow the advice of those who've been around. At least give it a try.

All that said, the stubborn streak in me made me buy a Daishi and trick it out. I went back to Solaris and got two kills. Now I'm done with it, and can concentrate on building my team skills and joining a unit.

[CFC Conky]

Mustang_11b35d, on 19 April 2019 - 10:54 AM, said:

Update, took all advice and had a blast in some quick games (pun intended.) Got a bunch of kills, and even a few attaboys. SOO much better than Solaris. To any fellow newbies reading this, follow the advice of those who've been around. At least give it a try.

All that said, the stubborn streak in me made me buy a Daishi and trick it out. I went back to Solaris and got two kills. Now I'm done with it, and can concentrate on building my team skills and joining a unit.

Welcome to MWO!

[CFC Conky]

By the way, the current Solaris 7 event is imo the fastest way to earn 1,000,000 c-bills and 50mc. Seven matches takes very little time in Solaris.

Good hunting,
CFC Conky

Edited by CFC Conky, 24 April 2019 - 05:41 PM.

[John McClintock]

I'm no pro, but I lost a bunch of matches tuning my loadouts until I finally learned what works.

Keep your DPS high, and your heat low, (in QP i like ~1.3 heat management, for solaris, it needs to be more like 1.4-1.5)

Don't pack excess ammo.

SRMs are pretty good fodder, but they spread their damage quite a bit, you can easily get beaten badly even though you did way more damage.

I prefer a mix of lasers and missiles, using lasers for pinpoint damage and removing specific components.

Be sure to max your skills (especially mobility and survival) and max your armor, I put about 4 on the back, placing the rest in front.

A lot of the opponents will be dedicated gladiators, and are darn good at targeting your components, so it's a crap shoot.

[Horseman]

So much this. Solaris has a pretty brutal learning curve, but if you persist and adapt you will find yourself with some NASTY brawling skills that remain applicable in other modes.