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upgrades: endo-steel + DHS
head: AMS ammo mostly because I'm usually bringing up the rear, and the fewer missiles hit your fragile compatriots or the assaults, the better
Right Torso: AMS, 3xDHS
Left Torso: 4x DHS 'a bit much?' you may think- just wait for it
Centre Torso:2xmedium lasers, 250 standard engine
Right Arm: Medium laser and the role-defining ERPPC.
Originally I just the 250 engine to get the full 10 true double in-engine heatsinks, but with speed tweak that's a top speed of 89kph. That speed is great for redeploying, chasing off harassers and skirmishing in and out of cover should things get a little fiesty. The real pointer for making it effective is getting those shots at the start of the match off. You deal full damage all the way up to 810 metres (radar distance without boost is 800, mind you) and until deal >5 damage per shot to a single location all the way out to 1215metres. You should focus on shooting at these long distances - especially atlasses/atlai are reliable targets to hit early on, but missile boats should be your real focus. Don't be afraid to take potshots, it takes a long time to heat up and only a little while to cool down when it's just the ERPPC. No ammo concerns either, so just take the shot -any shot- while they can't retaliate. At shorter ranges, shoot carefully with the ERPPC, but don't leave it alone, your speed will usually allow you to disengage or briefly run around cover to cool down when you need to. at short range you can use the medium laser on the arm as a laser sight (quite literally) for high accuracy with the ERPPC, though beware you'll need to still slightly lead your targets on mechs with a large lateral velocity. Maxed out armour, fairly high speed and the ability to (mostly) choose your engagements can keep you in the fight long, which in turns greatly ups the chance to fully use the ammo-less nature of all-energy builds. Needless to say, if you lost the weapon arm and use the shield arm and twist about while going at speed, you can shoot those torso lasers pretty much all day long, though be acutely aware that enemies will look to core you out (and they will - you're still a medium mech when push comes to shove) if you don't know when to get out, or were to late in your realisation. Lastly, don't be afraid to engage lights (especially if they're on your missileboats or capping base), you're fast enough to give them a run for their money and pack enough firepower to make them think about what they're doing, even more so once you get enough practice and start landing those ERPPCs on them.
I'm not going to pretend it's the ultimate C9-AL build - but it's a good surpressor/sniper, and competent multi-tasker, albeit inferior compared to more specialised builds. Which should come as no surprise. It's almost as good as any centurio will ever get as a zombiemech, but you'll often find you never get to that stage. The most major downsides are that you're pretty much helpless to turn the tide if your main line gets steamrolled and you're very likely to lose out 1v1 against a full-on laserboat if it didn't sustain damage beforehand. The biggest satisfaction: killing a missileboat from beyond missile range. Knocking off a side torso in the same situation is a close second. The dual PPC build is undoubtedly superior as a pure sniper, but I like being multi-purpose and can't stand being without 2 chest lasers.
Edited by Orkimedes, 25 November 2012 - 06:52 AM.
