33 replies to this topic

[martian]

BlueDevilspawn, on 13 June 2024 - 01:54 PM, said:

pretty much what was said... everything revealed or mentioned so far can be divined by analyzing the pictures. Patch notes tomorrow should have full details.

Thank you.

[VeeOt Dragon]

i honestly like the look of the new Catapult though as with all these i won't get it unless it comes out for MC. as for MAC/SC if i can strip them out i will and lower it to an light engine (the catapult is to easy to pick apart to be XL friendly. build ideas will depend on the quirks

[epikt]

Torkk, on 13 June 2024 - 04:57 PM, said:

How does the super charger work, does it just add top end speed or does it need to be activated?

It adds to top speed when mask is activated (on the Kasai it use the masc key and adds to top speed without adding to accel/decel). Just think of MASC+SC as a super MASC.

VeeOt Dragon, on 13 June 2024 - 09:32 PM, said:

as for MAC/SC if i can strip them out i will

You won't. On the picture the MASC+SC is grey: it's a fixed element.

[Gasboy]

Looks like armor quirks for now, and the Cat has 20% max speed. Didn't see a max engine rating.

[kalashnikity]

I'll just point out that I asked for a ballistics based catapult a couple of months ago, a request which was seconded quickly, although I asked for jump jets too and a ballistic in each side torso as well.

Close enough... I like it.


Nice +20% top speed bonus too, heck of an outlier quirk.

[1453 R]

I foresee a lot of "what is the smallest possible engine I can put in this Catapult..." builds trying to cram Quadocannons in those arms to make a sluggish hill peek build that uses MASCercharger to half-assed compensate for the lousy engine.

Fail. Reject meta, embrace Speed Force. Paint robit red, break out all your flame deckles. I wanna see Catapults running down Doomfish, Lolcusts, Skinkubi, Flees, the works. If melee was a proper thing in MWO I'd want to see Ferroblasts flying-dropkicking Arctic Cheetahs off cliffs. If you have a Ferroblast and it doesn't clear a hundred klicks before MASCercharger, you're a sad joyless person and I don't like your robit.

Become the meme, play Ferroblast the way God and Kerensky intended.

[Heat Skink]

kalashnikity, on 15 June 2024 - 03:44 PM, said:

I'll just point out that I asked for a ballistics based catapult a couple of months ago, a request which was seconded quickly, although I asked for jump jets too and a ballistic in each side torso as well.

Close enough... I like it.


Nice +20% top speed bonus too, heck of an outlier quirk.

K2

[Adalonzo]

1453 R, on 17 June 2024 - 06:29 AM, said:

I foresee a lot of "what is the smallest possible engine I can put in this Catapult..." builds trying to cram Quadocannons in those arms to make a sluggish hill peek build that uses MASCercharger to half-assed compensate for the lousy engine.

Fail. Reject meta, embrace Speed Force. Paint robit red, break out all your flame deckles. I wanna see Catapults running down Doomfish, Lolcusts, Skinkubi, Flees, the works. If melee was a proper thing in MWO I'd want to see Ferroblasts flying-dropkicking Arctic Cheetahs off cliffs. If you have a Ferroblast and it doesn't clear a hundred klicks before MASCercharger, you're a sad joyless person and I don't like your robit.

Become the meme, play Ferroblast the way God and Kerensky intended.

Eh, I agree with the sentiment but I feel like that WILL be the meta. The speed on this thing is too good not to use. Lighter weapons for a more hit and run skirmisher seems to be the key here imo.

[foamyesque]

1453 R, on 17 June 2024 - 06:29 AM, said:

I foresee a lot of "what is the smallest possible engine I can put in this Catapult..." builds trying to cram Quadocannons in those arms to make a sluggish hill peek build that uses MASCercharger to half-assed compensate for the lousy engine.

I doubt it, personally, though I suppose it depends on your definition of 'sluggish'. I don't expect even the slowest versions to be handling worse than the K2.

[Flyby215]

martian, on 13 June 2024 - 08:06 AM, said:

Even though this Catapult has some survivability quirks, I wonder how big its long-term viability will be in the game filled with assault 'Mechs with their massive alphas.

It does not survive. Not in my experience, anyway. I keep losing the arms, annoyingly, even with max armour + skill points. I'm really struggling to find something that works consistently.

Not giving up yet, but disappointed so far. Not the Catapult I was dreaming of.

[Bud Crue]

Adalonzo, on 17 June 2024 - 09:31 AM, said:

Eh, I agree with the sentiment but I feel like that WILL be the meta. The speed on this thing is too good not to use. Lighter weapons for a more hit and run skirmisher seems to be the key here imo.

When people complain about Fleas or Piranhas or the like being "OP" the good players regularly come in and tell us the solution is "to just shoot the light". So, if it is a simple matter for these folks to shoot a fairly small mech doing a 160Kph, I suspect they will have zero problems disassembling a 65 tonner (no matter how small the profile relative to other heavies) doing, say, 120-160 Kph (with mask).

I guess my point/what I am wondering,is what is the real value of a mech this big that can go that fast? Is it the repositioning value? Folks peak and poke just fine with mechs doing half these sort of speeds (or even slower). Rushing the circle, playing the mode in conquest? Smaller fast mechs do that just fine too. Skirmishing, too, there are plenty of mechs that excel at this, which will have comparable (better) alphas, can go as fast, and have smaller profiles. I'm just not seeing the meta (for lack of a better word) value of this sort of extreme speed on a heavy these days (at least in QP).

That being said, this will probably be a Legend that I won't be able to wait for c-bills on, because from what I've seen in game, it looks fun as hell. I'm thinking of it like an IS Linebacker or Black Lanner, it'll be fun, but but won't be a game changer or even a very good mech overall.

[Samara 6J]

Bud Crue, on 23 June 2024 - 05:57 AM, said:

When people complain about Fleas or Piranhas or the like being "OP" the good players regularly come in and tell us the solution is "to just shoot the light". So, if it is a simple matter for these folks to shoot a fairly small mech doing a 160Kph, I suspect they will have zero problems disassembling a 65 tonner (no matter how small the profile relative to other heavies) doing, say, 120-160 Kph (with mask).

I guess my point/what I am wondering,is what is the real value of a mech this big that can go that fast? Is it the repositioning value? Folks peak and poke just fine with mechs doing half these sort of speeds (or even slower). Rushing the circle, playing the mode in conquest? Smaller fast mechs do that just fine too. Skirmishing, too, there are plenty of mechs that excel at this, which will have comparable (better) alphas, can go as fast, and have smaller profiles. I'm just not seeing the meta (for lack of a better word) value of this sort of extreme speed on a heavy these days (at least in QP).

That being said, this will probably be a Legend that I won't be able to wait for c-bills on, because from what I've seen in game, it looks fun as hell. I'm thinking of it like an IS Linebacker or Black Lanner, it'll be fun, but but won't be a game changer or even a very good mech overall.

They seem to be pretty fearsome light hunters - they're too heavily armored for lights to fight toe to toe against, they're hard to dance around and pick apart because they mount PPFLD setups, you can't MG crit their weapons out from behind or jump jet juke them because their entire arsenal is arm-mounted, and if you try to disengage they run you down.

[Gasboy]

Bud Crue, on 23 June 2024 - 05:57 AM, said:

When people complain about Fleas or Piranhas or the like being "OP" the good players regularly come in and tell us the solution is "to just shoot the light". So, if it is a simple matter for these folks to shoot a fairly small mech doing a 160Kph, I suspect they will have zero problems disassembling a 65 tonner (no matter how small the profile relative to other heavies) doing, say, 120-160 Kph (with mask).

I guess my point/what I am wondering,is what is the real value of a mech this big that can go that fast? Is it the repositioning value? Folks peak and poke just fine with mechs doing half these sort of speeds (or even slower). Rushing the circle, playing the mode in conquest? Smaller fast mechs do that just fine too. Skirmishing, too, there are plenty of mechs that excel at this, which will have comparable (better) alphas, can go as fast, and have smaller profiles. I'm just not seeing the meta (for lack of a better word) value of this sort of extreme speed on a heavy these days (at least in QP).

That being said, this will probably be a Legend that I won't be able to wait for c-bills on, because from what I've seen in game, it looks fun as hell. I'm thinking of it like an IS Linebacker or Black Lanner, it'll be fun, but but won't be a game changer or even a very good mech overall.

It's value is mainly being a heavy that can be in places a heavy is not expected to be in a given time period.

If lights doing light things find a heavy when they're expecting only lights, that forces them to immediately change their tactics. Same for any of the lead elements of the red team.

A heavy that goes that fast can clutch cap a conquest or base point.

And being able to reposition in a hurry is also very useful.

[Bud Crue]

Gasboy, on 24 June 2024 - 07:00 AM, said:

It's value is mainly being a heavy that can be in places a heavy is not expected to be in a given time period.

If lights doing light things find a heavy when they're expecting only lights, that forces them to immediately change their tactics. Same for any of the lead elements of the red team.

A heavy that goes that fast can clutch cap a conquest or base point.

And being able to reposition in a hurry is also very useful.

I see your angle, but I think that the same could be said of existing fast heavies like the Linebacker and Hellfire, and certainly even more similarly styled mechs like the Black Lanner (albeit a medium), yet these mechs are not particularly impressive/effective/common at the roles/actions mentioned. Yes, the CAT-FB can go faster that those mechs, but I still don't see that speed being particularly game changing or even useful in the typical QP match (fun? hell yes, but not especially effective or "meta"). I suspect that after the novelty wears off the CAT-FB's real value is going to be in 4-mans running them as back stabbers, but beyond that it will only be prized by those of us with an irrational need for speed.