9 replies to this topic

[VeeOt Dragon]

ok for context i do not care about meta and never will so meta try hard crybabies can go eslewere. i put together the following build as more of a lore type fun build to mess around with during the 2021 Holloween event (since there is no weapon type requirement challenges). at first i thought it would be one of those "ok it works but meh" sort of things. its also the first time i have ever put LRM on an assault because though i do enjoy the weapon system i find that it is perhaps a bit of a waste to put it on Assault mechs. i just thought "what the hell i run stalkers with LRM in HBS Battletech and MW:5 (in the formerthey are devastating weapons) so why not". so here is the build....


STK-3FB (2 ER-LL, 3 ML, 2 LRM-15 (4t ammo) running an LE-300, 8 DHS and of course ECM. armor is LFF (no endo) with full values all over (11pnts back each ST and 13pnts back CT) minus 1 pnt in the head


playing it for a few days now and i rarely ever get a match where i get less than 600dmg, 1 or 2 kills with a few KMDD and a solo tossed in. hell its funny when a light sees those missiles arc in runs up to kill the "easy Lurm boat target" only to get shot in the face with the Large and medium lasers. (this only happens because so few people ever press R to get that data sheet on the target). the ECM is helpful with enemy counter battery (for non military folks in this context thats taking return fire from other LRM boats) as well as switching the mode to deal with the odd stealth light that comes calling and revealing it to the team.

its not a meta build and as i said earlier i don't care, its fun.

now for the question. what do you folks think of the build and would you use it?

(i have thought of stripping a bit of armor from the legs and maybe a heat sink to fit in an AMS but the Stalk has lovely Thicc long legs that make great targets. she also tends to run a little hot when firing all out so the heat sink is sort of required.)

Edited by VeeOt Dragon, 26 October 2021 - 04:28 PM.

[ScrapIron Prime]

I run a nearly identical build in a Highlander 733P. Artemis, more ammo, a jump jet, no ECM. Some call it Potato, but its quite effective when played correctly. The trick is where and when you engage, as you don't have the firepower to just burn someone down, but fighting from 400m you never stop firing.

https://mwo.nav-alph...829ac1_HGN-733P

Seriously, if you can squeeze Artemis onto it you'll find your direct fire damage much improved.

Edited by ScrapIron Prime, 25 October 2021 - 12:17 PM.

[VeeOt Dragon]

i haven't used Artemis since they nerfed the **** out of it. just not worth the tonnage that could be used for more ammo/ bigger engine/ more DHS. same goes for Tag (remember it has a limited range in which it actually functions, now if tag was like 1/2t instead i might. at the ranges i usually engage in the mech it is useless.) actually i find i often run out of ammo a lot of the time. i take locks where i can get em, if that means IDF then i do IDF. hell most of the time i will get the lock then duck behind cover to shoot (the STK-3FB has a +1 sec target retention quirk, hence trying LRM on it)

Edited by VeeOt Dragon, 25 October 2021 - 03:30 PM.

[w0qj]

Artemis LRM is worth it IMHO, it does help in much faster line-of-sight locks against ECM foes (only direct sight), especially for those without TAG equipped. You generally get a slightly smaller weapon, in exchange for faster faster line-of-sight locks.

eg:
Archer: 2xLRM20, or
Archer: 2x artemis-LRM15 (I much prefer this one, more useful)

[ScrapIron Prime]

w0qj, on 25 October 2021 - 03:49 PM, said:

Artemis LRM is worth it IMHO, it does help in much faster line-of-sight locks against ECM foes (only direct sight), especially for those without TAG equipped. You generally get a slightly smaller weapon, in exchange for faster faster line-of-sight locks.

eg:
Archer: 2xLRM20, or
Archer: 2x artemis-LRM15 (I much prefer this one, more useful)

Agreed. Plus in a setup with 2 ML and 2 LL backing the Artemis lurms, you get locks quite quickly simply by blasting the target with your lazors first. As I said, this mixed armament build works best at 400m or less, getting your own locks, and Artemis really shines under those conditions. the indirect fire is just icing on the cake.

But hey, what do I know, yeah? IMHO. I only have... 1204 matches... in this particular build.

Edited by ScrapIron Prime, 25 October 2021 - 04:24 PM.

[Aidan Crenshaw]

w0qj, on 25 October 2021 - 03:49 PM, said:

Artemis LRM is worth it IMHO, it does help in much faster line-of-sight locks against ECM foes (only direct sight), especially for those without TAG equipped. You generally get a slightly smaller weapon, in exchange for faster faster line-of-sight locks.

eg:
Archer: 2xLRM20, or
Archer: 2x artemis-LRM15 (I much prefer this one, more useful)

Artemis does not shorten lock-on times. It only affects spread when in LOS. The reason you see shorter lock on times against ECM shielded targets is that they are in LOS, because ECM doesn't increase lock-on time when in LOS.

[AnAnachronismAlive]

VeeOt Dragon, on 25 October 2021 - 11:58 AM, said:

STK-3FB (2 ER-LL, 3 ML, 2 LRM-15 (4t ammo) running an LE-300, 8 DHS and of course ECM. armor is LFF (no endo) with full values all over (11pnts back each ST and 13pnts back CT) minus 1 pnt in the head

The ECM is helpful with enemy counter battery (for non military folks in this context thats taking return fire from other LRM boats) as well as switching the mode to deal with the odd stealth light that comes calling and revealing it to the team.

now for the question. what do you folks think of the build and would you use it?

Setting ECM to counter does not de-cloak stealth, still helps to negate the effects of enemy ECM shutting your lock-on down though. TAG, PPC-hits or Eyeball MK1 do "counter" stealth on your side.

While the general idea of luring folks into a "dedicated LURM-boat" and surprise em with defensive weaponry can work out, I do not think that your current setup with the ERLs + MLs is the best solution in that regard. While em ERLs may offer some LongRange-Synergy with em LRM-Launchers, they ain't very suited (in terms of heat, cooldown and burntime) to fend off fast flankers / harassers - even in conjuncture with medium lasers. You likely won't be able to keep the burn on the components / uphold enough dps, to fend off one (especially not more) light or medium mechs that close in to "hug" you. When you are sitting alone in the backline / placing yourself kinda away from your team, ye likely gonna be free food for lights / fast mediums sooner or later anyway, no matter how many off-weapons you bring.

Furthermore yer back-armor values seem a little too high, since most damage ye get will be incoming from the front and/or hit the stalker's massive flanks. Situational awareness / staying with the main-body of your team despite being a lurm-boat usually pays more than having higher armor values then 5 on your back. Stay with the main-body and lop missiles non-stop and use TAG!

Stalkers usually allow for decent sniping with all ERLs (3 each side or 3 and 2) + some RL10s in the arms to get the missile-door damage-reduction, mebbe give that a try. Else keep the LRM-approach but boat MLs or even MPLs to defend yourself in short- and mid-range due to better heat and cooldown-synergy.

In the end, ye should do what fits you best / gets ye the most fun out of it though. Just stating my opinion on yer build here.

In the future it might be better to link the builds you wanna talk about in one of the browser mechlabs, easier to check on than reading text-builds.

https://mwo.nav-alph...306dc7f_STK-3FB

Edited by AnAnachronismAlive, 26 October 2021 - 01:18 AM.

[VeeOt Dragon]

i keep my back armor values higher than most meta players because i have taken too many shots to the back from players using my large *** as a shield to go less. the high back armor is more for anti team damage. i have lost count of the times i have had an entire side torso shot off because some idiot wasn't watching their fire. so i started keeping a bit more back armor. it has also saved me countless times from that easy lucky back shot from a light. i don't want a single lucky alpha from them to be able to take me out in one go. the Stalker isn't exactly the most maneuverable mech out there after all. at least i don't use stock values.

as for Artemis it actually used to decrease lock time if i remember right but they nerfed that aspect out of it. hence why i say its not really worth it. if Artemis did decrease lock time i would definitely be using it. i sometimes take longer than most to get a lock because of my hand tremors in combination with the ultra tiny lock area i still think they nerfed that to much, chaulk another one up to the LRM haters i guess.

i honestly don't care about meta or synergies or any of that over competitive crap. i say as long as i am doing my fair share its good enough (i usually do far more than my fair share in the build BTW). with my hand tremors i am rarely able to keep regular LLs on a single component for the entire aeration anyway hell even MLs half the time. i play for fun. don't get the wrong idea though i do take suggestions for improvement into consideration. (i think i still run Artemis on my dual LRM-20 x2 ML catapult but that build hasn't change in many many years.)

i m also rarely very far from the rest of my team hell more often than not i find myself in the front line for some reason so i don't need to sustain fire just a few alphas into that light is usually enough to get it to think about going after easier prey. i am a team player so sticking with the team is best.

(on a side note i could have sworn setting ECM to counter disrupted enemy ECM making stealth armor no longer work (since it requires functioning ECM to operate . that could have been something it use to do)

few of my mechs ever keep the same build long as i get bored and tend to switch it up or experiment. even more often than usual with all the new balance changes lately. if i remember my Stalker used to run a pair of large MRM launchers and 2 ER-LLs

-----not on other sites. --
its honestly easier for me and quicker to do it this way since i detest using outside sources for any game. if it isn't available in the in-game options or directly through the game's webpage (here) then i don't bother using it. don't have the time or patience for that sort of thing.

Edited by VeeOt Dragon, 26 October 2021 - 04:21 PM.

[Aidan Crenshaw]

VeeOt Dragon, on 26 October 2021 - 04:19 PM, said:

(on a side note i could have sworn setting ECM to counter disrupted enemy ECM making stealth armor no longer work (since it requires functioning ECM to operate . that could have been something it use to do)

Setting ECM to counter disables one enemy ECM near you, that's right. That doesn't apply to active stealth units, though.

[VeeOt Dragon]

figured i would give an update on my Stalker build. i think i have settle on what will be its loadout for a while.

STK-3FB- (2 LRM-15s (4t ammo), 2 ER LLs, 2 MLs, 1 L-AMS running an LE-300 with 6 DHS, Beagle Probe and LFF (only 1pnt of armor stripped from the head))

i think i have streamlined it well enough now. i find the Active Probe far more useful than the Artemis was and it let me slide in the L-AMS over the standard AMS with only 1/2t of ammo. i first debated a TC MK2 but settled on the Beagle instead. i think the only thing that might get shifted now is the going with the TC and standard AMS with the 1/2t ammo but other than that i have settled my build.

(thanks for input and clarifications.)