Longsword, on 19 March 2012 - 01:22 AM, said:
I personally would build recon lances out of 3 lights and a medium- Two of the lights would be locusts or ravens or jenners or something similar, with as much speed and stealth as possible (along with narc beacons). They have one job- find the enemy and report his position, and preferably do so without getting spotted. Find a good hidey hole and spy on the enemy for as much as possible.
The other two mechs, likely a wolfhound and commando or a wolfhound/commando and a medium, would have the job of being anti-scouts- they are well armed but fast so can kill the enemy locusts/ravens/jenners and deny the enemy intel, as well as stopping the enemy scouts from scouting your scouts.
Now the people who want scouts with firepower- thats not scouting, thats called wolfpacking, where you use a fast harrassing force to outflank, outmaneuvre and destroy the enemy. That is perfectly viable but not a replacement for recon.
BINGO
Lets look at ome things real quick to help us make the decisions we need to make:
Roles- In MWO, role warefare is pretty clearly defined and fairly simple, Scout, Attack/defend, and Command. Each of these 4 will customize a mech slightly differently and use different modules. The important note is that any weight class mech can perform any role. Some may be better suited than others (better speed, armor, # of modules, but weight class alone will not determine the role. This is critical, and frankly something most people dont get yet.
Scouting game mechanics- Scouting in MWO is not like scouting in MW4, or probably any other game you have played. Yes ECM and BAP will be important. Yes TAG will be important. But that is not the be all end of of MWO. Why? Because you will need EYES ON TARGET to get more than location, and you will need repeated/continuous eyes on target to keep that info. Don't get me wrong, location is vital, the most important thing a scout can provide. But a good scout will give you more than just location. Things like chassis, damage, etc. That will require you to target the mech. Perhaps some electronics or modules will allow you to get around that and gather intel from behind a hill, but we have not seen anything like that yet.
With those is mind, here are some basics (paraphrased form the role warfare post)
NOTE: These sub-roles are very basic and there are exceptions to the desired attributes (a fast bralwer or a Fire suppoort mech without electronics)
NOTE: The attributes are up for discussion, but include Weapons, speed, armor, manuverability (various kinds), Electronics (various kinds), Command functions,
Scout
Primary attributes: speed, armor, maneuverability (JJ, good turn radius and torso twist), electronics (TAG, C3 slave)
Secondary attributes: Weapons (self defense), command functionality
Attack/Defense(Brawler):
Primary attributes: Weapons, Armor, maneuverability (Torso Twist)
Secondary Attributes: electronics (ability to avoid detection & assist in weapons fire), speed,
Attack/Defense (Ranged Direct Fire)
Primary attributes: Weapons, speed, limited electronics (avoid detection from range)
Secondary Attributes: electronics, maneuverability, Armor
Attack/Defense (Fire Support)
Primary attributes: Weapons, electronics (ability to quickly lock on and provide IDF)
Secondary Attributes: speed, maneuverability, Armor
Command
Primary attributes: Electronics(all), Armor
Secondary Attributes: weapons, speed, maneuverability
A scout lance should consist of 2 Scout role mechs and 2 attack role mechs.
The scout mechs are pretty self explanatory. They should avoid combat until the end of the engagement, and then should support the attack mechs (up to and including sacrificing their mechs by acting as a distraction./screen). NARC is a bad idea for scouts, you have to get way too close.
The attack mechs would consist of at least one harasser mech and one mech to act as an anti scout picket. These two mechs will eliminate enemy scouts and/or take pot shots at the enemy attack and command mechs. One light and one fast medium would probably be best, outfitted with long range weapons. Narc or TAG might be userful to allow the mech to act in a support role.