30 replies to this topic

[Squiggy McPew]

So been having a blast with the flea20 and pirates bane lately and wondering if anyone else has been running any stealthy builds they find viable? I tried a stealth thanatos with dual gauss and it was kinda fun but inflexible and slow. The flea and pirate bane however are fast and tiny and though they don't have a huge alpha they tend to be completely ignored in a firefight and can target open components at leisure. Tried a bunch of different fits and settled on these two.

Flea20: 4x med lasers, ecm, 5x double sinks, xl170

The perfect flanker and hit and run specialist with its high speed and tiny size.

Have to shave a bit of armor off the head torsos and legs but only a few points to fit in the last sink but its needed to get enough resting cooldown to quickly shed heat without having to turn off stealth. Also needs max cool run and a good chunk of the heat gen nodes so not a fit for a fresh unskilled mech.

Pirates bane: 2x med lasers, 2x small lasers, 2x mg, 1 ton ammo, ecm, 3x double sinks, xl190

This is more of an up close assassin for when there are lots of damaged mechs with open components to farm. You can do a bit of flanking with the 2 meds though.

Another build that really needs a ton of skill nodes already done to be viable but not quite as much as the flea. I put no points in firepower and instead dropped those points into max armor buffs and speed tweak. 165kph hitbox glitching with the extra armor really ups its longevity.

What are your favorites?

Edited by Squiggy McPew, 16 November 2020 - 07:05 AM.

[Bud Crue]

Stealth Commando.

Flavor SRM load out to taste.

[martian]

Squiggy McPew, on 14 November 2020 - 08:24 AM, said:

What are your favorites?

Raven II and Tian-Zong.



Oh, you asked about MWO? Wolfhound, then.

[w0qj]

Sounds like you really ECM and light mechs, and prefer the IS side!
IS lights are mostly lasers and missiles, sometimes with machine guns.
(Ballastics are a tad heavy on the IS side, affecting lights).

On the Clan side, how about:
Shadow Cat? It's one of the few mechs that has JJ, ECM, and MASC! (No AMS though).

The Clan side also has a number of Lights that has OmniPods, meaning that you can mix/match.
A number of them (Kit Fox, Arctic Wolf, etc.) has ECM parts that you can swap in!

But I suspect that you are a diehard IS ECM light fan!
How about the Raven RVN-3L with ECM then?

[Squiggy McPew]

I prefer the IS ecm lights for the stealth armor since most tend to ignore you if you are not showing up with a targeting box. Hell I've ran up behind a line of mechs to drop an airstrike and they look around due to the sensor blur but never notice me right beside them. I do enjoy a few choice clan mechs and have a cougar ba with an ecm head I use with two heavy meds and two lrm20. Quite the support mech but not an agile flanker like the others. I also have the wolfhound and commando ecm variants with stealth fits and enjoy them too but not nearly as much as the flea and pb.

[VonBruinwald]

Squiggy McPew, on 14 November 2020 - 09:37 AM, said:

I prefer the IS ecm lights for the stealth armor since most tend to ignore you if you are not showing up with a targeting box. Hell I've ran up behind a line of mechs to drop an airstrike and they look around due to the sensor blur but never notice me right beside them.

If you want to get real brave.

Run up behind them when they're poking and block them as they try to backup into cover. The panic when they think they're stuck on a rock while your teammates shred them is hilarious.

Alternatively time your fire their teammates so they think their own team can't aim and are hitting them. Bonus points if you can keep it up until they turn on each other.

[Rex matador]

The Assassin-DD with Stealth and light gauss, it is amazingly nimble and fun mech.

Full disclosure, I totally copied the mech build and skill-tree that a Veteran player shared with me. I had died early and spent the rest of an entire match watching him torment the other team for 15 minutes while 4 of us spectating laughed and cheered him on. Just knew I needed to run one, and it turns out it was a really good mech to learn the game with.

I tried the Thanatos but is was really awkward and slow even with max engine and maxed JJ skills.

I wish the Clans had stealth armor, but I get it.

[martian]

Clannish Rail, on 14 November 2020 - 11:39 AM, said:

I wish the Clans had stealth armor, but I get it.

Currently MWO does not allow mixing of the ClanTech with the IS technology.

[Rex matador]

I wonder if that is because of balance, lore, or both because the clan's didn't use it very often when they finally started making versions of Nulsig.

But to be fair my Mishy, with enhanced ECM is pretty great and the extra slots are much appreciated.

[LordNothing]

martian, on 14 November 2020 - 12:02 PM, said:

Currently MWO does not allow mixing of the ClanTech with the IS technology.

i do wish the game had passive sensor mode though.

[VonBruinwald]

Clannish Rail, on 14 November 2020 - 12:08 PM, said:

I wonder if that is because of balance, lore, or both because the clan's didn't use it very often when they finally started making versions of Nulsig.

Lore:

For clanners, it is dishonorable to hide from an enemy and not declare your intent to attack.

Stealth is an embodiment of those dishonorable practices.

[InvictusLee]

Wolf hound, but also Stilleto.

[martian]

LordNothing, on 14 November 2020 - 12:22 PM, said:

i do wish the game had passive sensor mode though.

You can find this sensor mode in MechWarrior 3 and MechWarrior 4.

[Rex matador]

VonBruinwald, on 14 November 2020 - 12:24 PM, said:

Lore:

For clanners, it is dishonorable to hide from an enemy and not declare your intent to attack.

Stealth is an embodiment of those dishonorable practices.

That's a retcon notion, or maybe something in the MWO 'universe'. But in Battletech which this game is based on, the clans had developed Nulsig by 3060. They merely fielded it less often.

[LordNothing]

martian, on 14 November 2020 - 01:13 PM, said:

You can find this sensor mode in MechWarrior 3 and MechWarrior 4.

i think the mwll did it best.

https://wiki.mechliv...ctronic_Warfare
https://wiki.mechliv...php?title=Radar

the best part is that they have a wiki that explains how it works.

Edited by LordNothing, 14 November 2020 - 01:50 PM.

[VonBruinwald]

Clannish Rail, on 14 November 2020 - 01:31 PM, said:

That's a retcon notion, or maybe something in the MWO 'universe'. But in Battletech which this game is based on, the clans had developed Nulsig by 3060. They merely fielded it less often.

NulSig was around before the Exodus. The clans never developed it, rather the Inner Sphere lost it when they nuked themselves back to the stoneage. The Clans stopped using it because it fell foul to their new code of conduct.

[Rex matador]

VonBruinwald, on 14 November 2020 - 01:43 PM, said:

NulSig was around before the Exodus. The clans never developed it, rather the Inner Sphere lost it when they nuked themselves back to the stoneage. The Clans stopped using it because it fell foul to their new code of conduct.

No. Nulsig is merely a description akin to 'Aspirin' for stealth capable armor, which the Clans developed as well.

https://www.sarna.ne...i/Stealth_Armor

Feel free to argue with yourself going forward because you can't with me.

[VonBruinwald]

Clannish Rail, on 14 November 2020 - 01:53 PM, said:

No. Nulsig is merely a description akin to 'Aspirin' for stealth capable armor, which the Clans developed as well.

Sarna.net - Stealth Armor said:

Developed in 3063 by the Capellan Confederation, Stealth Armor is a modern day equivalent of the Star League era Null Signature System.

Sarna.net - Null Signature System said:

The finest achievement in stealth systems developed in 2630 by the Terran Hegemony, the Null Signature System...

Like many pieces of advanced technology, the Null Signature System and the 'Mechs that carried it became LosTech during the maelstrom of the early Succession Wars.

While the Clans retained the peak of the Terran Hegemony's military technology, the tenets of Clan honor find such stealth systems dishonorable and ceased research and production of the Null Signature System.

I'm not sure what's to argue.

[martian]

Clannish Rail, on 14 November 2020 - 01:31 PM, said:

That's a retcon notion, or maybe something in the MWO 'universe'. But in Battletech which this game is based on, the clans had developed Nulsig by 3060. They merely fielded it less often.

Clannish Rail, on 14 November 2020 - 01:53 PM, said:

No. Nulsig is merely a description akin to 'Aspirin' for stealth capable armor, which the Clans developed as well.

https://www.sarna.ne...i/Stealth_Armor

Feel free to argue with yourself going forward because you can't with me.

Null-Signature System and Stealth Armor are two different things (although both are attempts to solve the same problem - to make a BattleMech more difficult to hit)

1. Null Signature System originates in the 27th century. It is a Star League technology. (Tactical Operations, p. 336)

2. Stealth Armor is a Capellan technology from the 31st century (introduced in 3063 to be exact). Thus there is no possibility of a Clan 'Mech being equipped with Stealth Armor in 3060. This technology is different from the NullSig System. (BattleTech TechManual, p. 206)

Edited by martian, 14 November 2020 - 02:53 PM.

[Rex matador]

The cappellan's were the closest to recreating Nullsig at first, then came the Fed suns, than the Lyrans, then widespread dissemination including the Clans. Technical readout 3075.

Edited by Clannish Rail, 14 November 2020 - 03:05 PM.