43 replies to this topic

[Bede19002]

I’m being serious. What do you recommend?

also, how can I find a group that would be willing to tutor me?

Thanks

[w0qj]

If you're willing to watch YouTube videos, search for Baradul MWO and he has lots and lots of mech and builds, skill tree explanations, and 2-game to show you as well. Much recommended!

[Vlad Ward]

Step 1 is recognizing that most of your performance is determined before the game starts, in the MechLab.

This site has some pretty solid builds and commentary which I'd recommend reading through: https://grimmechs.isengrim.org/

From there it's mostly a matter of picking a build that you like and practicing until you get more comfortable with it. Learn which spots on maps work out well for you and which don't. Get comfortable with how the weapons behave and how to land shots with travel time and spread.

[martian]

Bede19002, on 27 December 2020 - 09:30 AM, said:

I’m being serious. What do you recommend?

also, how can I find a group that would be willing to tutor me?

Thanks

What 'Mechs do you own?

[Bede19002]

martian, on 27 December 2020 - 09:53 AM, said:

What 'Mechs do you own?

Only Phoenixhawk 1K.

Been saving my CBills to get a better sense of the game for the next purchase.

[martian]

Bede19002, on 27 December 2020 - 09:59 AM, said:

Only Phoenixhawk 1K.

Been saving my CBills to get a better sense of the game for the next purchase.

Tomorrow you are going to get the Phoenix Hawk and the UrbanMech for free, with some hefty C-Bill bonus and MC bonus on top of that. All you have to do is to play just one game and have 50+ match score.

Check this page:
Holiday Bonus Details

[Gagis]

Reduce your mouse sensitivity down to 0.1 and increase your Field of View up from the default 60. That makes the game much easier to control.

[Elizander]

You'll get better over time once you recognize the usual habits and patterns of behavior that your team and the enemy team will have on each map + time of day. If you look at the mini-map you'll eventually know if people want to nascar or just stand still or if your team is all over the place and it's gonna be a hard loss no matter what you do.

First thing you can do is to check your mini-map every 5-10 seconds to make sure you're not being left behind or if your team is pushing. You can also see if enemies are flanking or trying to chew the back line. Generally just be more aware of what's going on around you so you can reposition as needed or avoid overextending.

[martian]

Lockheed_, on 27 December 2020 - 10:51 AM, said:

yeah but the holiday PHawk is also the -K variant, so nothing new besides the Urbie

Sure, but at least he can try various loadouts on both 'Mechs.

[Bede19002]

martian, on 27 December 2020 - 10:10 AM, said:

Tomorrow you are going to get the Phoenix Hawk and the UrbanMech for free, with some hefty C-Bill bonus and MC bonus on top of that. All you have to do is to play just one game and have 50+ match score.

Check this page:
Holiday Bonus Details

yes, saw this. Thanks. Unfortunately the Phoenixhawk they’re giving away is the one I already have. My dumb luck!

[RickySpanish]

If you can, find a way to record your games. Being able to replay matches is invaluable to learn what went wrong and what went right.

[Vlad Ward]

Bede19002, on 27 December 2020 - 04:15 PM, said:

yes, saw this. Thanks. Unfortunately the Phoenixhawk they’re giving away is the one I already have. My dumb luck!

Don't you mean, how lucky is that?

You get to keep using the same Mech you're comfortable with, only now it has a 30% C-bill bonus.

[Trucker Wifey]

Start with your controls. Mouse sensitivity being number one. Then do your video to liking. Beyond that, what style of play do you want to have. Trading blows at range, rush in and charge into brawling range, Rush in regardless, sneaking around popping a shot here, a shot there? All of these will have relevance into what sort of mech to pick up.

[martian]

Bede19002, on 27 December 2020 - 04:15 PM, said:

yes, saw this. Thanks. Unfortunately the Phoenixhawk they’re giving away is the one I already have. My dumb luck!

So either use both 'Mechs with different loadouts or sell the standard 'Mech for C-Bills and keep the special version that you can use for earning C-Bills.

[Tarl Cabot]

And do not forget to check the Canada Day bonuses, also redeem your loot bags. Several different events happening.

On Trial mechs, Battlemaster and Kodiak, Enforcer and Stormcrow. Other trials are hit/misses. 2nd ranking would be Timberwolf, Shadowcat, Mist Lynx. Since ya started in Tier 5, do not worry about your ranking, seriously. MWO is not in the true intent a leveling up game, think of the Tiers in BT military terms, Elite, Veteran, Regular, Militia, and Green troops.

As for future purchases, lots of time to decide and everyone have preferences. Across two accounts I play a various weights but prefer mediums, such as the Huntsman (imho, clan version of Shadowhawks) and Shadowhawks and Wolverines.

Edited by Tarl Cabot, 28 December 2020 - 12:21 PM.

[Zordicron]

Bede19002, on 27 December 2020 - 09:30 AM, said:

I’m being serious. What do you recommend?

also, how can I find a group that would be willing to tutor me?

Thanks

Oh Ho! A new player? Excellent!
First, controls, as others have said.
Second, there are two main things about MWO to master and fortunately for you a medium mech is the best way to learn them.

Positioning: YES! this takes time to master, but not too long to become aware of. Your medium mech will give you ability to respond to positioning errors if you notice them before the enemy notices you! There are a couple stages to master in this particular area of the game-
First, mastering your position relative to your team. Start out with easier things, like hanging out with mechs bigger then you. Don;t walk around the corner in front of them. Don;t block them. Slightly behind, and to the side, provide support fire when an enemy presents. two mechs shooting one enemy is always better then finding your own targets. Eventually if you get good at this, you can start to float around the fringes of your team and help locate enemies. Just remember, support fire, you are not a weapons powerhouse in a medium mech. you aren't a scouter either, but once the enemy closes range helping keep tabs on enemy positions by pressing R is helpful to the team and your fat assault pals.
Once you have team support figured pretty well, focus more on enemy team position. you will start to notice movements more, help prevent your team from getting flanked by calling out positions(even pressing R is useful! Always press R!) And in general, this will start to train you both to keep fine tuned positions by your team, and know when to move in response to the enemy.
Finally, and this will take you a long time, mastering map awareness and just battlefield awareness in general. When you get very, very in tune(a lot of players never do) you will know where enemies are even when they are not on your radar by knowing the maps, seeing where they are for a moment(UAV, team mates R's) and their direction of motion, and you will be able to predict it, and move premptively, not reactively. Further, this will develop into knowing when a push is needed as the enemy has started to move but not all the players have caught on yet, and that moment is when you pick a few off the tail end or catch them out of position. if you never get here, it's ok, if you manage the first two, you will have a leg up on a lot of players already.

The second thing that is key(after positioning) is finding a loadout(for your medium) that has a range that fits your play, and an engine rating for mobility that fits your play. Engines..... are expensive as F. people here can tell you which sizes will be useful for numerous mechs. keep in mind the "25" rule, where you get a slot for an internal engine heat sink every 25 tons. Don't buy a 270, pick up that 275, for instance. many loadouts that spot for a DHS is critical to keep enough free slot space.
As for loadouts, initially if you are sticking close to a fatty assault for support, super short range is probably not ideal, but neighter is super long range. my gut tells me with your laser favoring medium you have, ERML are a good blend. As you learn, you might find you favor faster, shorter range loadouts, or maybe longer range loadouts. I actually recommend against jump jets initially, although your particular medium is sort of iconic for them.

Positioning, mech loadout and mobility for your playstyle(tbd with experimentation)
other minor tips:
DON'T Freeking play PEEK A BOO. Sure, you know that enemy is just over the hill. but he will see your head before you clear the hill high enough to fire. So will all his pals. you will get spanked, every time. You may see other players doing this. They are either being stupid and paying for their sillyness by getting thrashed, OR they have developed their positioning into those last bits I mention above and they are succeeding because they know whatever is over there is outgunned or near death or whatever, so it is worth the return fire to be aggressive.
Don;t sit in a low spot and hide, and camp. One of the most annoying things in the game(to me) is watching my pug team march into the pit in the middle of Canyon network and camp. it is the only killbox on the map, there are no fireing lanes, you can't escape without exposure. don;t be that guy that marches down there because it feels "safe" with all the walls around for cover. Cover is your best friend. But you need to know, parting is such sweet sorrow, and you use and abuse that cover like a one night stand- take cover, evaluate the positions of your team and enemy and motion of both, choose the next cover and say cya later and move.

This is getting too long, I will stop. But those few skills will take you a long way in this game, and they allow you to play a variety of mechs later also.
One final warning, do NOT play assaults. yeah, they are tanky and strongk. They are a whole 'nother level of positioning awareness. Move to a faster heavy if you want more loadout space for ballistics or something after your medium. Lights will teach you maps well in the positioning puzzle. Assaults will get you killed, and score a solid spanking loss for your team if you are not ready. I can dive into that in more detail if you want later, but for now, know a medium is the best beginning weight class there is.

[Zordicron]

Oh I forgot!
IGNORE the up and down arrows on your match end screen. WATCH your personal match score. Looking at how you did, within your own team, on match score at the end can be useful in knowing how you did. Keep in mind how the match went when doing so, if you had 3 team mates go chase a squirrel and get killed with 200 dmg each, and your team lost in a stomp, your meh match score should not get you down! Also keep in mind damage is king for match scores, and if you have a support medium with a fair to middlin' damage potential, your match score will not come out like that guy in his 75 tonner that did 900 dmg, so don;t expect it to. Damage is not the be all end all of winning a match, especially if that is not the roll you play on the team(yes, you should do damage and contribute. Teams with 100 damage mediums don;t win that often, no matter how much scouting bonuses you got!)

[GARION26]

Also a vote for watching Baradul's videos.
Definitely some help on mech building but also helpful to watch and hear as he talks about his thought processes particularly on when to push, where to keep an eye out for peeking enemies on certain maps etc.

[Ted Wayz]

The kid asked for the most important thing and no one is helping.

Team up is the best thing you can do to survive and learn. There is a forum section where groups recruit, try there. Maybe do a little research to see how active they are and what sort of play they prefer before asking to join.

Baradul videos are good but keep in mind they are "curated" and his results are due to skill, having the mechs fully skilled, and he is teamed up. Also listen to when he uses comms. Second best thing you can do is listen during matches. Not to the trolls but to the ones providing relevant directions.

Enjoy!

[Gagis]

Baradul also uses a lot of objectively bad loadouts since he probably made videos of the actually good ways to build a mech years ago and exchausted them all.

Someone adviced against playing peek-a-boo. This is not good advice. Trading damage from cover can be extremely effective as long as you are able to ensure your alpha strike deals more damage to enemies than you take in return fire.