Mechwarrior Online

[Ironwood]

Holy Shit Arthur.

 

[5150]

At this rate it will be several months before i can afford a new mech, at least the one i got is pretty newb friendly cause i suck at this.

With the recent Cadet bonus you should be raking in cash (~400K to start with even if you lose, moreso if you have a founder or hero mech) at the start. If you already played your 25 matches before they added the cadet bonus you should have ~8 mil given to you

So, in a moment of boredom last night, I totally reworked my Founder Hunchback.

2 Large Laser
1 Medium Laser
3 MACHINE GUNS!

Not the most effective build, but hilarious. I can only imagine what the pilots I'm coming against are thinking: "What the hell is that noise? Is this douchebag in the Hunchback using MGs?!?!? What a moron."

I'm tempted to swap out all the lasers for flamers for increased silliness!

It showed you as in game all last night, I tried to get you in the group... But really, Go

AC 20
2 Machine Gun
3 Flamer

So I don't have to Core you as you run to the battle ;)

GET SOME

My founder hunch is

1 Gauss
3x medium lasers

I messed with 3x small laser and 2x Ultra AC5 last night but I'm terrible with twitch balistics and quickly ran out of ammo (2T worth). I've previously tried a couple/three small AC's (2's I think) with 3 medium lasers but it didn't have enough punch, next I'll look at 2x large (maybe ER) lasers, 1 small laser and whatever balistics will fit after that.

I'd try PPCs but I hate minimum range so they'd have to be ER's

[Arthur_Parker]

For extra cbills sign up for the free day of premium time and use it whenever you have time for quite a few games to get the most out of it.

http://mwomercs.com/pennyarcade

[Threash]

With the recent Cadet bonus you should be raking in cash (~400K to start with even if you lose, moreso if you have a founder or hero mech) at the start. If you already played your 25 matches before they added the cadet bonus you should have ~8 mil given to you

I used the cadet bonus on my first mech, been about a week since then and I've made around 2 mil. 

[Falconeer]

Little derail (has to be done)... http://forums.f13.net/index.php?topic=22902.0

[Samprimary]

Be forewarned: ERPPC's are terrible.

[5150]

Be forewarned: ERPPC's are terrible.

In what respect?

[Merusk]

Not enough damage for the heat they generate.

[Zaljerem]

Fun times last night with Samprimary, Slayerik, and Segoris. When you know going in that at least half your group isn't totally clueless, it helps ... :)

[Slayerik]

Yeah, we're halfway to a full 8 man (where we can get crushed properly)! ;) Was fun steamrolling a few matches, that's for sure. When we went over that ridge, our first match, I don't think I've ever completely obliterated a team so badly. I targeted the ECM Atlas and gave him some dual Ultra AC5, dual AC 5  love, and I don't think it jammed once.

Sam, if you are around tonight I'll PM ya the mumble info. Segoris was able to get on right when I was leaving to play TL2 with mah lady.

[Lantyssa]

Can you PM me the mumble info, too, please?  Maybe I'll get over my headset shyness long enough to get on once or twice.

[Slayerik]

Sure thing! It basically ends up being me calling out targets that noone else but me can see, and then me switching targets to something else noone else can see but me. But it sure beats typing!

[Der Helm]

Ok, I am starting to like my little Jenner of Doom. I even managed to snag 3 Assault kills in a match. Big guys seem to underestimate the fire power of 6 medium lasers. 

Wondering what to get next. Been thinking of the 6 missile catapult. How are 6 LRM20s+Artemis for doing damage/making credits ?

[Arthur_Parker]

You can use "/" at the start of a match to open your missile bay doors, an indicator light turns green, this cuts the missile firing delay down on Catapults/Stalkers & Centurions.

Der Helm if you like mech building it's worth paying close attention to the weapon stats.

As an example, for LRM's.

A LRM 5 weighs 2 tons, generates 2 heat and uses 1 slot.

You'd expect a LRM20 to be 8 tons, 8 heat and 4 slots, but it's actually 10 tons, 6 heat, 5 slots.

A LRM 15 is 7 tons, 5 heat and 3 slots.

As tonnage/slots/mounts are your main limiting factors the best bang for buck is the LRM15, though on a Catapult A1 you can fit 6 x LRM5 and just constantly spit missiles out, but the enemy will close to <180m to kill you, as it's really annoying.

Edit, meant to reply and edited this one instead, I'll just leave it, erased first post by accident.

[Slayerik]

Ok, I am starting to like my little Jenner of Doom. I even managed to snag 3 Assault kills in a match. Big guys seem to underestimate the fire power of 6 medium lasers. 

Wondering what to get next. Been thinking of the 6 missile catapult. How are 6 LRM20s+Artemis for doing damage/making credits ?

I like my 6 SRM cat...I literally ran up to a hunchback, and obliterated him in one salvo. It showed 6 component destroyed messages and the enemy destroyed one. That's happened twice now. It has taken some practice, though..and some maps are better than others.

[Ragnoros]

So as a total noob, I am now sitting on like 10 mil thanks to the noob bonus. If I want something big and stompy should I go with the Atlas D-DC for ECM or a Stalker (which seems quite popular around these parts)? For reference the trial stalker is not too bad having played it a bunch, but at like 45kph it is slow as all get out, so if I find myself out of position at all I am toast. I could see a heavy or medium being a nice middle of the road between firepower, speed, and survivability, but the Trial mechs have rather soured me on Mediums/Heavys as they were all so bad in one way or another.

I Bought a commando to try a fast mech, but it just seems to not really bring anything to the battle. I just run around in circles, shoot some Atlas in the butt for like 10 damage, and then die.

[Segoris]

Yeah, good times had by all last night. Easy cbills/xp

and some maps are better than others.

Winter City is   but Caustic...  

Ok, I am starting to like my little Jenner of Doom. I even managed to snag 3 Assault kills in a match. Big guys seem to underestimate the fire power of 6 medium lasers.  

Wondering what to get next. Been thinking of the 6 missile catapult. How are 6 LRM20s+Artemis for doing damage/making credits ?

With lights, yeah between lag shield and your speed being faster than they can even turn to hit you-  it's not about underestimating it's about you being able to kill them while not being seen a lot of times. Though, gj on the 3x assault kills.

If you're looking at Cats for your next mech set, it's fun. The pure LRM boat you were thinking about would be awful in pug play and an expensive and dead weight for anyone within 180m of you (I take my time killing LRM boats when I can afford to do so, just because they can't do a damn thing about it). Maybe better in premades, but the ones I run into are still toast as they're dead before their teammates can turn around at times. If going with some LRMs in a cat, I'd say go with a C4 or C1, 2x or 3x LRM15 (as AP pointed out they kind of are the best for heat/damage/weight/slots usually) and either a couple lasers with tag or one laser with tag. If you really want an A1 with LRM, that's fine but bring some srm4 or something like that for close quarters combat.

On Slay's point about 6xSRM6 cats - The SRM6 boats are cheesey as can be, but I do love mine. As far as these Cats go, the one I play runs really hot (since I run with a lot of ammo which I have gone through all of it before, and jump jets), but god damn can that thing tear it up at times. Learn where vulnerable areas are on mechs, get up close, and enjoy a 90dmg alpha. Don't make the mistake of not using jump jets though. While headshots to other Cats with the same build are pure bliss, this is even more true when you land it while using your jump jets as the target sits dumbfounded on the ground. Learning to use them can save your ass many times over in a tough match while you use your good armor side to take damage saving your weak sides as they assist your turning, or even by getting over buildings/ravines/whatever that others may have to go around for.

As for fun memories - best fight I've had was in the tunnel on Ice City and headshotting 2 6srm6 pals, then having their jenner (the original target I saw who ran behind 2 cats and an atlas) chase me out of the tunnel and blowing him up while both of us are mid-air heading off the ramp as the 4th enemy in the fight was too slow to keep up (killed 2 cats 1 jenner basically, their DDC atlas died later ;) ).

[Segoris]

So as a total noob, I am now sitting on like 10 mil thanks to the noob bonus. If I want something big and stompy should I go with the Atlas D-DC for ECM or a Stalker (which seems quite popular around these parts)? For reference the trial stalker is not too bad having played it a bunch, but at like 45kph it is slow as all get out, so if I find myself out of position at all I am toast. I could see a heavy or medium being a nice middle of the road between firepower, speed, and survivability, but the Trial mechs have rather soured me on Mediums/Heavys as they were all so bad in one way or another.

I Bought a commando to try a fast mech, but it just seems to not really bring anything to the battle. I just run around in circles, shoot some Atlas in the butt for like 10 damage, and then die.

Just getting to this - best choices currently (imo) if you want easy mode on a heavy or assault would be the Atlas DDC, Stalker 3F, Catapult A1 or K2, and ilya muromets or cataphract 3d/2x

[Lantyssa]

3D is super expensive, and I'm not sure the hardpoint options are conducive to a newbie.

[Segoris]

Eh, 2x gauss and jumpjets isn't too bad for a newbie and can do some damage once they learn to use ballistics

[ezrast]

If anyone is playing right now they should invite me to a thing and de-noobify me. I'm about to waste all my moneys on a hunchback! (edit: name is ezrast)

[ezrast]

Alright, I'm currently spending my time sniping from this Hunchback I've stripped down to fit 3 AC/5s and nothing else. It puts out okay damage when I'm left alone (until I run out of ammunition) and the one-button nature of it is good for my noob self but it doesn't handle adversity well so I'm trying to figure out what to save up for now that my noob stipend has run out.

This buld drops an AC/5 for three medium lasers giving me more short-range viability, though I'm tempted to forgo the head laser for a faster engine or something since it will never be pointed in the same direction as the other two during a turn fight anyway.

Or I could swap out the AC/5s for AC/2s and pick up AMS so I could get wrecked less by LRM boats. I don't know how good AMS or AC/2 are though and I'm not sure whether heat would be sustainable. (edit: fixed the link)

What I'd really like is to use large lasers or PPC's in combination with long-range ballistics but I don't think there's a way to do that without turning the mech into slag. Advice please.

[Arthur_Parker]

The Hunchback 4G is a pretty bad mech in comparison to other hunchbacks, you have no missile hardpoints and only 3 energy.  Ballistics are borderline for weight at 50 tons.  You could run an ac20 and not much else, you'd be faster with a Gauss rifle and 3 medium lasers.  Other than that, it's a couple of ppc's or large lasers and you're trapped not doing much damage and not being very fast, so you have to stick to the back of the pack.

I think this is the only founders mech that's not fun to drive.  Your best bet is to unlock the basic skills, keep it for elite skills later and buy a hunchback 4P and/or 4SP which are so much better.

AMS is good to reduce missile damage, but not being shot with missiles at all strongly beats taking less damage from missiles, it's nice to have but sticking close to cover weighs nothing and stops damage a lot better.  AC2's do great damage but you can't move and the enemy can't either, you are also stuck facing one direction so can't torso twist to spread incoming damage out.  So really AC2's are pretty terrible.

Edit, if you want to jump into something else, raven 3l, Atlas DD-C both have ecm which will make you popular and better than average, I like both the stalker 3f & 5m at the moment.

[5150]

ECM Atlas will make you primary A LOT! :-(

[Merusk]

ECM Atlas will make you primary A LOT! :-(

If only the guys who drove them weren't so universally terrible.   It feels like guys picking-up the ECM variants are doing so because they got owned too often and are expecting it to make them a solopwnmobile.   4 matches with ECM yesterday, 2 of them Atlases.    Both atlases ran off on their own, just like the lights, and got assploded as they ran in to the enemy group who was sticking together.

In other news, I have incredible luck getting sided with the group that 1) doesn't have ECM or 2) has it and simply won't stick together.  7 games yesterday, 6 losses.  The one game I won we killed their sole raven before our Atlas ran off to get assploded.

PUGs are going to kill me in this game.

[Ironwood]

Yes, some players are utterly dreadful.  Which is why I wish they'd put more love into the social tools so you could keep and retain a cadre of mates and good players.

It's the fucking shite you see after you've been killed and are back-seat driving these mechs.  Watching the fucking assclown who fires 6 banks of LRMs at range <100.  The chap who can't fucking shoot straight.  The guy who's having an epileptic fit while trying to pilot his mech under a bridge.  The chap who has ECM but doesn't have it on.  The weird builds.  The wrong builds.  The 18 PPC's attached to his head that overheats him and blows him up in one shoot.  The Pantomime player, so called because every other cunt is shouting 'HE'S BEHIND YOU' on chat.  Oh, no he isn't.  Oh, yes he is.

Seriously, get a laugh track and some Benny Hill music and you've got yourself a show.  Americas Stupidest Mech Drivers.

[ezrast]

Hey! We have feelings too!

[Ironwood]

I'm no l33t Mech Pilot myself, as anyone who's played with me knows, but seriously some of these chaps are just terribad.

Which is why I actually think a Newbie area or dividing 'learning' thing would be a good idea.  The mechanics of that are utterly beyond me, of course, but it would be a nice addition to the game.

[Slayerik]

SO I bit the bullet and bought my first ECM boat, the Cicada (ouch, 7 mil+)! First thing I tried was an Ultra AC5 with like 4 small lasers. Didn't like it much, I'm just going to fucking fast to utilize the AC properly. I realized next match that I needed to purchase the Guardian ECM module...that sure helped! I proceeded to strip the ballistics off it completely, add Endosteel and FF armor, and run 4 x Medium Pulses. Yeah, it's pretty beastly now that I'm getting my twitch skills going.

For the record, I actually do circles around my team to stay in ECM range the entire way to the fight (while making sure in fights that I am decently close to my friends via the map). I find myself really worrying less about my damage score and more about survival and counter ECMing. The Cicada can really last a long time if you pump it's armor up. I'm pretty impressed.

Also, concerning the pulses, I love them on fast mechs. I find it too hard to keep the full duration of normal Mediums on the exact spot im trying for...the pulses I can really focus my damage nicely, and against any other laser lights/mediums I seem to dominate them.

[Lantyssa]

In other news, I have incredible luck getting sided with the group that 1) doesn't have ECM or 2) has it and simply won't stick together.  7 games yesterday, 6 losses.  The one game I won we killed their sole raven before our Atlas ran off to get assploded.

I really wish there was a "Only PUG" drop option.  I seem to have similar luck.

Sure I'm a little aggressive, but I can't be the sole reason my team loses match after match.  I try to stick with others, I try to focus.  I pick up AMS or ECM in all builds.  I keep an eye out for flankers.  But my Win/Loss and Kill/Death ratios are abysmal.  It's like the matchmaker purposeful puts me with the worst players possible again mini-pre-mades, that are themselves grouped.

[Segoris]

What I'd really like is to use large lasers or PPC's in combination with long-range ballistics but I don't think there's a way to do that without turning the mech into slag. Advice please.

If trying to use ballistics on a HBK4g, I'd either go Gauss or AC/20 with 2-3 med lasers (1 head, 1 left arm). Bring atleast a standard 245 engine, and as much armor as you can. Don't buy the armor upgrade for a hunchback, it's not worth it in almost any case, and avoid XL engines like the plague. If you're set on an ac/5 build I'd do it with only bringing 2 of them and 2tons of ammo, an std250 engine, 2mlas (head and left arm imo, as the right torso being blown off would remove it from the right arm as well, which is more normal than using aleft arm even when you're pretty good about using it as a "shield" piece), double heatsinks (1 in left torso), endo-steel, and 256 armor (put some in the arms or those will go REALLY quick, exposing your torso which is your livelihood on a 4g and 4p.

For large/ppc and ballistics together, it's too much weight for an HBK. However, 2 llas (one in each arm), 1 Mlas (head), ac/2 and 1ton of ammo in right torso, double heatsinks (1 in RT, LT, LA), std250 engine, and 256 armor again could be decent. Could always drop one heatsink for another ton of ac/2 ammo if you find that you're going through it too fast.

Though, I'm still not a fan of PPC for most mechs/builds, fwiw.

ECM Atlas will make you primary A LOT! :-(

If only the guys who drove them weren't so universally terrible. 

^This. I've been running a DDC atlas quite a bit over the weekend, never really had an issue even when I was solo and up against some premades. Smart driving prevails.

[Samprimary]

Not enough damage for the heat they generate.

Yah

there's no excuse given the current heat system; they're just way, way, way too hot and they reduce your sustainable damage output. A lot.

Right now the junk weapon list is, in order of uselessness:

flamer
machine gun
ER large laser
ERPPC
SRM 2
LRM 5
small pulse laser
AC2
LB10X

[Samprimary]

Yes, some players are utterly dreadful.  Which is why I wish they'd put more love into the social tools so you could keep and retain a cadre of mates and good players.

It's the fucking shite you see after you've been killed and are back-seat driving these mechs.  Watching the fucking assclown who fires 6 banks of LRMs at range <100.  The chap who can't fucking shoot straight.  The guy who's having an epileptic fit while trying to pilot his mech under a bridge.  The chap who has ECM but doesn't have it on.  The weird builds.  The wrong builds.  The 18 PPC's attached to his head that overheats him and blows him up in one shoot.  The Pantomime player, so called because every other cunt is shouting 'HE'S BEHIND YOU' on chat.  Oh, no he isn't.  Oh, yes he is.

Seriously, get a laugh track and some Benny Hill music and you've got yourself a show.  Americas Stupidest Mech Drivers.

This is the absolute most painful thing to have to watch ever in the history of gaming. You die due to puddingfist's malfeasance towards all teamplaykind and are transported bodily to watch behind his eyes, Being John Malkovich style, as he dutifully novas ppc's and lrm's at close range enemies while stumbling into rock faces.

[Arthur_Parker]

Yah

there's no excuse given the current heat system; they're just way, way, way too hot and they reduce your sustainable damage output. A lot.

Right now the junk weapon list is, in order of uselessness:

flamer
machine gun
ER large laser
ERPPC
SRM 2
LRM 5
small pulse laser
AC2
LB10X

I don't see much wrong with the SRM 2 & LRM 5, they weigh less and function the same, they aren't used much because of limited mount points.  The AC2 has longer range and faster cycle, it's just something that needs to stay on target and people move.

It's patch day so we might see some changes for the others.

PGI Quote

Large PULSE Laser and ER-Large Lasers seem to be generating too much heat. I've found some new numbers that work fairly well and we'll be putting this into test after the holidays.

The PPC and ER-PPCs also seem to be generating a bit too much heat and like above, I've found new numbers that seem to work and have those going into test as well.

Because this is a very sensitive subject with you all, I am expecting these changes to appear early to mid January because I want to make sure that numerous Mech builds are thoroughly tested before releasing it to the Live servers.

PGI Quote

Due to an ambitious programmer, the critical hit system has been addressed in terms of new functionality. This allows me to properly tune the effects of both the Machine Gun and the Flamer. Where does it currently sit? It's on my lap and I'm looking into it to see if it's working as intended.

Intended being:

IMPORTANT: Crits do not work like normal MMO type games.

The crit system in both BT and MWO take a percentage per shot of that shot hitting one of the items mounted on the component that has been targeted. There is also a percentage chance that that shot can crit 1,2 or 3 times the amount of damage the weapon deals normally.

For example, the current Machine Gun does 0.04 damage per bullet. IF the Machine Gun crits, it has the potential of doing 0.04, 0.08 or 0.12 damage to an internal item. Obviously that's not a lot of damage. Hence the new system implemented allows me to add a multiplier to this damage model.

What does that mean to you? After I've completed my first pass at multiplier numbers and after it goes through testing, you will notice that the Machine Gun will become a formidable weapon when used against a component that has no armor. Basically it will start to shred items that are mounted on the targeted component.

The same will go for the Flamer.

[Ironwood]

Well, that's an interesting idea and change, but I still think given the hardpoint system, no-one's going to be running around sanding down half dead mechs with machine guns.

Though I did have a machine gun on both my Dragon and Centurion.  It helped me aim and made a nice noise.