82 replies to this topic

[Mark Yore]

Thanks everyone.

I think I'll wait until the patch and grind a bit more. Most of my skills at the moment are in Weapons, so I might try and invest in some Mobility skills.

[cougurt]

Mark Yore, on 30 May 2021 - 12:51 AM, said:

Thanks everyone.

I think I'll wait until the patch and grind a bit more. Most of my skills at the moment are in Weapons, so I might try and invest in some Mobility skills.

you're better off maximizing its strengths rather than trying to cover its weaknesses. the dire wolf is a big, slow box, and the extra ~4 KPH you get from speed tweak does very little to help that. the best thing you can do is take a scary loadout and work on your positioning. it is a very unforgiving mech, but it can be incredibly strong when played properly. unless you absolutely need the mechbay, i would hold onto it and try to ease your way into playing slower mechs.

[martian]

Mark Yore, on 30 May 2021 - 12:51 AM, said:

I think I'll wait until the patch and grind a bit more. Most of my skills at the moment are in Weapons, so I might try and invest in some Mobility skills.

If I may say something: Do not invest into Mobility, at least until you see how the upcoming change affects the 'Mech. You are not going to dodge enemy bullets anyway. Improve your 'Mech's firepower and durability.

[Khobai]

the direwolf is just a way worse kodiak in most cases.

the kodiak-3 can do many of the same builds while being more agile and faster and generally better because it can take endosteel and isnt subject to the limitations of omnimechs. the kodiak basically gets to be a 105 ton mech because of endosteel.

plus the heatsink heat capacity nerf made it so the direwolf cant effectively use all its extra energy hardpoints anymore. its a bummer that it can have like 16-18 hardpoints but cant really use them anymore because heat capacity was lowered significantly.

I dont think the direwolf should be as agile as the kodiak though so instead the direwolf should get armor buffs to its CT and STs for it to be on par with the kodiak in a different way. a blanket heat reduction buff would make a lot of sense for the direwolf too to help it use more of its hardpoints. its supposed to be an offensive powerhouse but the lowered heat capacity stunted its offensive potential severely.

Fixing the spawn points is also crucial to helping the direwolf. Because direwolves spawning in the farthest corners of the map is BS. the slowest mechs should always spawn closest to the center of the map.

They also need to fix the damn game so its not punishment to play a slow mech. Fix the maps and spawn points so people stop nascaring around the map ditching the assaults only to realize the enemy is behind them anyway and they let all their assaults die for nothing. Until that happens the dire wolf will always be crap.

Edited by Khobai, 30 May 2021 - 05:16 AM.

[MrTBSC]

... why keep the Direwolf? ... pretty simple: firepower, dump in all the cannons .. i got me the prime, put all the nonhero ballistic omnipods in it and turned it into various gunboats ... straight forward

Edited by MrTBSC, 30 May 2021 - 04:53 AM.

[Khobai]

MrTBSC, on 30 May 2021 - 04:40 AM, said:

... why keep the Direwolf? ... pretty simple: firepower, dump in all the cannons .. i got me the prime, put all the nonhero ballistic omnipods in it and turned it into various gunboats ... straight forward

or just play a kodiak-3 instead. you can basically do the same thing on a much faster and more agile mech.

theres little reason to play the direwolf right now. its too damn slow. and PGI does absolutely nothing to help remedy the situation for slow mechs. they dont fix the maps, gamemodes, or spawn points. they do nothing to discourage lights from rushing slow assaults that spawn in bad locations. and the existence of slower mechs actually contributes to the whole nascar mentality because the mechs get separated out by speed until the slow assault get left behind and both teams know that the team that laps the other team the fastest can catch the stragglers.

on a lot of maps, playing a direwolf basically means youre playing solo without support and youre likely going to die alone probably in a 1v3 situation where your team offers no assistance at all despite you asking for help. and if youre lucky you get 1-2 kills before you get taken down. then the rest of your team loses the game. some maps like solaris city are okay for direwolves though. why does solaris city work? because its a map with lots of chokepoints and cover which slows both teams down so the direwolves lack of speed isnt as big of a problem. we need more maps like that.

If PGI has no intention of fixing things for slower mechs, I think the direwolf makes a good case for why we should be able to pick mechs after we know the map. because the direwolf is unplayable on a lot of maps.

Edited by Khobai, 30 May 2021 - 05:32 AM.

[Gas Guzzler]

The Dire Wolf can do several builds the KDK-3 cannot, and soon will add JJs and ECM to the mix. That said, it can still be balanced through proper quirks,

The KDK-3 can’t do more than 4 ballistics or ballistics across 4 different components, and it can’t do massive dual gauss vomit either (with -10% heat gen).

[MrTBSC]

Khobai, on 30 May 2021 - 05:13 AM, said:

or just play a kodiak-3 instead. you can basically do the same thing on a much faster and more agile mech.

theres little reason to play the direwolf right now. its too damn slow. and PGI does absolutely nothing to help remedy the situation for slow mechs. they dont fix the maps, gamemodes, or spawn points. they do nothing to discourage lights from rushing slow assaults that spawn in bad locations. and the existence of slower mechs actually contributes to the whole nascar mentality because the mechs get separated out by speed until the slow assault get left behind and both teams know that the team that laps the other team the fastest can catch the stragglers.

on a lot of maps, playing a direwolf basically means youre playing solo without support and youre likely going to die alone probably in a 1v3 situation where your team offers no assistance at all despite you asking for help. and if youre lucky you get 1-2 kills before you get taken down. then the rest of your team loses the game. some maps like solaris city are okay for direwolves though. why does solaris city work? because its a map with lots of chokepoints and cover which slows both teams down so the direwolves lack of speed isnt as big of a problem. we need more maps like that.

If PGI has no intention of fixing things for slower mechs, I think the direwolf makes a good case for why we should be able to pick mechs after we know the map. because the direwolf is unplayable on a lot of maps.

kodiak 3 doesn´t allow triple uac 20, i play what i like, not what is meta, the rest is a matter of the team playing with you or you knowing how to possition yourself .. i don´t know if it´s a tier matter but i experienced what you say rather little with being left alone

heck on my first try of the triple uac 20 direwulf i got into polar highlands of all places .. match became a firingline vs firingline battle with a bit of peek a boo and little to no nascar .. i myself got some 700 to 800 damage with at least 2 kills

i´m still against chosing mechs after the map because that would screw with matchmaking even more and potentionaly make it unfair for which player gets to chose what mech first, so it should stay pick mech before the map, you yourself have to know with what you are going to drop, no matter the map ... if i drop into solaris with a LRM archer or Gauss Asp then so be it ..

also PGI just recently brought in a Mapdesigner and adjusting maps takes time,
mobilitychanges are set for the coming month aswell so we´ll see what the direwulf eventualy gets

[MrTBSC]

Gas Guzzler, on 30 May 2021 - 02:37 PM, said:

The Dire Wolf can do several builds the KDK-3 cannot, and soon will add JJs and ECM to the mix. That said, it can still be balanced through proper quirks,

The KDK-3 can’t do more than 4 ballistics or ballistics across 4 different components, and it can’t do massive dual gauss vomit either (with -10% heat gen).

while it wouldn´t be able to use its full speed
AE8D4:f1|jb|TR|TRp>1|hB|hBq>1|hB|hBr41s41t41|TR|TRu41|TR|TRv<0|TRw606060

it can do a full on quad gaussbuild no problem

or with a bit more ammo and less armor

AE8D4:f1|jb|TR|TRp>1|hB|hBq>1|hB|hBrY0|TRsY0|TRth0|TR|TRuh0|TR|TRv=0|TRw606060
KDK-3(C)

Edited by MrTBSC, 30 May 2021 - 03:05 PM.

[Gas Guzzler]

MrTBSC, on 30 May 2021 - 03:00 PM, said:

while it wouldn´t be able to use its full speed
AE8D4:f1|jb|TR|TRp>1|hB|hBq>1|hB|hBr41s41t41|TR|TRu41|TR|TRv<0|TRw606060

it can do a full on quad gaussbuild no problem

or with a bit more ammo and less armor

AE8D4:f1|jb|TR|TRp>1|hB|hBq>1|hB|hBrY0|TRsY0|TRth0|TR|TRuh0|TR|TRv=0|TRw606060
KDK-3(C)

I mean quad gauss isn't really what I meant. That's cool, but I meant huge laser alpha with dual gauss.

You also can't do something crazy like 2 UAC5, 2 UAC10, UAC20 on the KDK

[Moldur]

The dire wolf is pretty much a meme mech. It's a platform for fun dakka builds to me. If you're trying to achieve anything other than boating dakka, there is an assault better suited for you, be it speed, brawling, survivability, etc. the Dire is more or less a mobile turret / force multiplier. It's got poor twist and easy components to hit. Its durability as an assault is only noticed when you're at like 900m and one guy keeps trying to face all your UAC-2s or 5s.

[LordNothing]

four words:

ultraviolet omnipods
ecm variant

Edited by LordNothing, 30 May 2021 - 05:40 PM.

[PocketYoda]

I have a few Dire whales.. I agree with most here about placement is key, more in these slow ones than any others.. Speed tweak is needed imo.

I've had much success with 2xCUAC10 and 2x UAC5 combinations ( can even try AC variants or even LBX) can even fit a few mediums lasers on them if you want.
Another combination is Dual Gauss and heavy mediums. Works well for me.

Edited by MechaGnome, 30 May 2021 - 05:46 PM.

[Khobai]

MechaGnome, on 30 May 2021 - 05:44 PM, said:

I have a few Dire whales.. I agree with most here about placement is key, more in these slow ones than any others.. Speed tweak is needed imo.

I've had much success with 2xCUAC10 and 2x UAC5 combinations ( can even try AC variants or even LBX) can even fit a few mediums lasers on them if you want.
Another combination is Dual Gauss and heavy mediums. Works well for me.

speed tweak is definitely not good on a direwolf

you have to give up too much out of the other trees to get speed tweak

again just play a kodiak

Quote

ultraviolet omnipods
ecm variant

neither of those addresses the direwolfs biggest problem though. the problem is its too slow.

there are ways of addressing it to an extent like fixing the spawn points and fixing the maps so they dont encourage nascaring. and thats what PGI needs to do.

Edited by Khobai, 30 May 2021 - 06:03 PM.

[Narcoleptes]

Khobai, on 30 May 2021 - 05:54 PM, said:

neither of those addresses the direwolfs biggest problem though. the problem is its too slow.

there are ways of addressing it to an extent like fixing the spawn points and fixing the maps so they dont encourage nascaring. and thats what PGI needs to do.

Fafnir and Annihilator would suggest that the speed is not the problem.

MechaGnome, on 30 May 2021 - 05:44 PM, said:

Another combination is Dual Gauss and heavy mediums. Works well for me.

Suggest Dual Gauss, 3 ERLL, 6 ERML. Prime side torsos.

[Valdarion Silarius]

Maybe post your build OP. Sometime it's not the mech itself but the build. I was thinking about picking up an Ultra Violet for the sheer amount of cAC2's that thing can stack.

[Khobai]

Narcoleptes, on 30 May 2021 - 08:08 PM, said:

Fafnir and Annihilator would suggest that the speed is not the problem.

the fafnir and annihilator also have issues because of their speed. except they get better armor quirks and heat reduction quirks than the direwolf. which are the exact two things I said the direwolf needs.

all slow mechs could benefit from spawn changes and map changes that discourage nascaring though.


my most recent direwolf build which is purely a fun build not a serious build is this brawling monster:

x2 LBX20, x3 SRM6 (will be x4 SRM soon), x4 Light Machine Guns

it crushes it on maps like solaris city where I can get within 270m without getting damaged


the direwolf can certainly do well when circumstances align in your favor. the problem is thats out of your control a lot of the time.

Edited by Khobai, 30 May 2021 - 09:40 PM.

[Teenage Mutant Ninja Urbie]

in T5 the lack of speed/movement isn't the problem on the Dire; things that I'd suggest:

-learn the maps and what ppl generally do on them. then you'll see plenty of opportunity to use a dire.

-whenever you go out to alpha somebody off the board, make sure you hit what you want - the training grounds of the academy help with that a lot. I know, since I used them A LOT in the beginning. especially for gauss-loadingtimes and projectile speeds.

-a quite simple yet good build is 2x gauss, 2x LPL, 5-6erM (depending how far you skilled it). alternatively 2UAC10 instead of the Gauss. works like a charm and DELETES stuff.
do 1 weapongroup for the ballistics, 1 for the lasers - and ideally 1more for armmounted lasers only (the solution to pesky lights). also learn to live with the maxheat/heat of this, and you're golden.

[RickySpanish]

You could sell it OP, but keep in mind your return is just half the price you paid so fiscally, it makes sense to keep it. I would definitely recommend leaving Assaults alone for now, because their slow top speed makes them unforgiving to position.

[Dauntless Blint]

Sometimes, sitting "in reserve" and letting a rotation go or setting up at a distance and avoiding drawing any Light attention are good methods of at least staying alive longer in Quick Play instead of falling to your team's own maneuvers.
My personal view is you are the least tanky mech on the field (assaults in general) as you are near impossible to miss and can't move worth a damn. Can't even peak really. So medium to long range sustained dakka used to pay off, these days ballistic's aren't quite as cool as they used to be. Try and set up an ambush were you can, try and hide your position as long as you can until the other classes have locked down the firing lines. Solo Assaults can be quite punishing to the point of hating lights more than LRM death although I have noticed the scales tilt recently. Just trust the gulag for now and wait for updates.
6xUAC5's still work on that thing.

On a side note, I'm probably the only person who would like to see the IS UAC5 get a small buff, it's 75% less than what it used to be during the pre'skill-tree days. Maybe it could be buffed by 25% in the cooldown/jam area?