Reminder! Got some new builds to try out, then right back to the usual Stalker.

How about setting up some kind of game type scheme along the lines of alternating 1 assault/1 conquest, or 3 in a row and change etc. Something so we know what we're about to play.
I think I'll run something a little faster for the conquest games.

Maybe Kludger will demonstrate his ECM technique "go in circles and hard lock" maneuver.

I probably won't be on tonight. My body is very mean to me when you knuckleheads keep me awake too late.

Hahah Raw you saw how effective that circle maneuver was for the enemy team on Alpine... sure to troll all the kill stealers on the other team hehe.

I'll be on tonight and agree that controlling our gametype is an excellent idea, I will be bringing my new "ECM circle of death" Atlas D-DC



"just one more drop" Az/phd_doc

Oh now, this is the night we won't be up too late. At that hour it's back to being "early" again I think. LOL

Had to take a week off but I should be on a while every night this week. Maybe I should use some premium time :-)

You see? This is what I'm talking about.

As it is, I get on the TS and y'all say "Ok, I think this is the last game for me"...

And I'm all like

So I have to play for HOURS after all you knuckleheads log off just to TRY to stay relevant.

You see? It's all your fault.

I'll try and come on around 9:30 PDT. See you guys then!

PS - Very much looking forward to selecting the game type and choosing our mechs accordingly.

Well, usually I've got off Tuesdays but for some reason they decided to throw me a curve ball and have me come in this evening. No clue when I'll be done, but if anyone is still going to be on later in the night.... like maybe somewhere between 11 PM - 12 AM EST, I'll catch ya then.

For conquest I think I'll dust off my trusty hbk-4sp...I hope there is still an engine in it.

Have a couple things come up tonight, but will hopefully check in later on and play a few with the night owls.

Cheers!

Well preliminary results of last night tell me that I need to run my HBK-4sp more often. It also tells me that I am not doing as poorly in my 1x as it feels like. I just have to start the night remembering that it is not a frontline mech. Once I got that crazy thought out of my mind, I started doing better with it.

I saved up to buy the xl engine for my new commando...I do worse with it in :-(

I hate the idea of wasting all of those cbills. I will run it a little more to find out for sure.

S

Of course the reason could also be that as soon as I could go 116 kph I ran off like an idiot.

After 3 hours of warm up, I did a lot better. I need to either quit trying to use other mechs than my old stand by or dedicate a week to learning something different first. LOL
Good times as usual, and I did enjoy sticking to a known game type. Now if we could just pick the map too.

Yeah great fun as usual last night with you guys, really enjoyed my new D-DC when I wasn't doing stupid bumrushes with it hehe just a couple of mil c-bills away from buying my Atlas-RS, so I will be switching to that soon for a while to elite my Atlas chassis, but should have that done in plenty of time to return to the D-DC ECM next Tue or the new Jagermeister Jagermech that will be out on that day

Someone made a snarky (but I loved it) comment about me running Jenners in TS last night.

But that is all i can afford! I am poor =(

I have worked on teh basics for the D and F variant, just need the K now for elite.

Then I am going to move on to Centurions.

Light/med are probably what we're missing so badly to control the mosquito-like ravens.

It is because all y'all drive your heavy and assault mechs.

Remember, it isn't the size of your mech that counts, it's the motion of the ocean.



I think I mixed up my clever sayings.

Also, it's hard to hit anything going that fast.

I think that is why streaks are so hot right now. It is easier to grab a lock on a light at 200m than hitting said light with a ballistic round.

Add that to the whole "streaks are no skill weaps" and "omg nerf lrms" rants and you get a lot of grief in your typical match.

Heheh you're prob right, I actually plan to try out that light pilot thing, I've seen you do some great stuff with your light mechs when I've spectated you , after my Atlas-RS I plan to buy a Commando 2D with ECM and try learning the light pilot magic, if nothing else I'll focus on hunting 3Ls

One thing I noticed is I make a lot more money 100k-150k when I pilot the Atlas versus the heavies or mediums, I guess because of the more damage I cause, the more money I get... so piloting the lights probably means it's harder to make money.

It is possible to make good scratch piloting a light, but you have to be really on your game.

If I am able to land an attack on most of the enemy mechs (assists), get a few component kills, maybe get a mech kill, and help with the cap, I can get a decent CB/XP payoff.

Otherwise, a typical win nets me about 80k, maybe 40k for a loss.

Remember, my damage is rated right now at 27. And that is if all of my SRM6 hits.

LOL
I do like carrying firepower with enough heatsinks to shoot with abandon.
I'd like lights more if I had the dexterity to keep up piloting one. And I have to admit it would probably be an ECM Raven. I just love the look of those things. I have a couple of catapults that are fun to mess with now, that's my "light" class. LOL

My answer to the lights has been SRM's, but for variety I'm playing around with the 10LB "shotgun". More range than the SRM's and tighter grouping. It's not a killer like the UAC5's, but seems made for legging the lights or doing point blank damage without having to stay accurate and on the trigger. Plus I need to get a little variety in my builds.

It would be nice to be able to trade/sell mechs to each other for the trade in price. I've got 3 atlas varieties and since I can't sell the founders, I may sell off the RS. Wish that would benefit someone else.

I now have the commando 2D. Haven't run it much but I can drive it pretty well...faster version of my 4sp. When Kludger buys his commando, I can run mine and doc with the jenner...conquest mode here we come.

I think one of the issues your having Doc is that none of your buddies (us) are running any LRM mechs. So instead of distracting them with the rain, the enemy can ignore us for the time being and focus on you as spotter.

Running a Jenner takes large man parts...no ecm, no lagshield anymore, and no ridiculous craven hit box.

S

Yeah I think that is part of the problem, no LRM support for Az, I might try running some LRMs with my new Atlas RS just for grins and see how it goes (sure to set off the "Atlas must lead the charge as meatshield" people).

Really good fun games last night (when not being splatcatted), that last round was awesome! somehow managed to turn the tables on 3 enemy mechs (STK, CPLT, CENT) who had my fatlas isolated, glad to end the night on such a high note but had a hard time calming down to fall asleep afterwards hehe.

Great games again last night and I managed to make enough for the RS elite atlas here I come.

It might even take 2 with LRM's, even if not a full on LRM boat, just to get enough missiles in the air at once. The other night the problem was how brief the locks were. By the time the second half of my missiles were launching, the lock was lost. It would be a HUGE help to have that module holding the lock to 2.75 seconds. Which I don't have, but should be next I guess.

The TAG helps, but I really don't think it's that good on the missile mech itself, since he needs to be OUT of line of sight or you get taken out by the snipers, or at least spotted and overrun. The best combo is a light that can TAG and a couple of guys immediately firing before the lock is lost. Or firing something that can put a lot of missiles in the air at once like a catapult, instead of having limited ports like the atlas firing sequentially. I might go with the C4 to compliment someone else running missiles, but not sure I could stand all LRMs all the time. A single LRM 20 with good ammo maybe.

edit:
I need a catpult anyway, so I figure I'll save up a bit more to buy/build this C4:
CPLT-C4

I just finished completing the basic pilot skills in my CPLT-C4, so I have some pretty fresh perspective on LRM use in the current state of the game. Here is the build I've been using:

http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/mechlab#i=24&l=3e2d01dcfdc2b366d32c76f092a302c477a33293

Except I've removed one of the MLAS and added a TAG. At first I wasn't sure if it was worth while, but at some point you'll find yourself on Alpine or in the water on Forest Colony with an ECM Atlas lumbering in the open. The TAG is crucial in these situations. Once I got used to using it, I found it useful all situations, either to speed up my lock, shoot at and ECM'd mech, or even get some tagging bonuses when my team mates fired as well.

If you're going to run an LRM boat, you'll either need to be in communication with someone who knows how to and will keep targets locked up for you (ie someone in a light). Or you can wait until the fight degrades into a brawl and guys usually stare each other in the face a little more. Just hang a few hundred meters back and rain LRMs. The third way to do it (which works best once you figure out how) is to maneuver to get LOS on your targets. It takes a lot of practice to learn how to move to where you can see but still keep your distance, but once you get it down, you can be deadly. This is where your TAG comes in handy as well. If you have the CB laying around (or can save up for it), I think the target decay module would be incredibly useful in an LRM boat. It's actually the first module I've thought about buying.

A CPLT-C1 will be my next buy. To be honest, I'd go with a C1 before a C4. I'd much rather have an extra pair of MLAS instead of the SRM4's or SRM6's.

Good info! If I can find a ton I'll put the TAG on there.
I've already got a K2 and C1, I just need a 3rd for the mech tree. Not crazy about an all missile mech, although people do seem to like them a lot.

Cool. I have the K2 and C4 - C1 is next so I can unlock Elite. What worked best on your C1? Here are the two I'm contemplating:

http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/mechlab#i=12&l=d725dfbf3f0915ad6969bf83362c111f306ad7cb

http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/mechlab#i=12&l=d47fee50e215d2a42a775d0ca09b2206e838a85d

Also, you have room for the TAG on there; just ditch a MLAS. To be honest, I don't know if I ever found myself in a situation where having 2 MLAS instead of 1 would have made a difference. By the time I was using MLAS, we were either kicking but and I was closing in to help finish guys off after I ran out of LRM, or we were getting our butts handed to us and masses of enemy mechs had closed within the minimum range for LRMs and certain death was imminent. On the other hand, there were plenty of times when the TAG made the difference between landing or not landing a volley of LRMs.

That first one, 2xSRM6, 2xLL, 2xML is exactly what I run with it, but with AMS. Seems about the only build I like on there. I don't care for having to open the missile bay doors, but I like the wait to launch even less if I don't. An effective build.

Kludger and Feetwet/Kelen wrapping up a nice round on Alpine last night. Wish I had more footage, I'll try to capture more often when I die. That's usually pretty early in a round. LOL

Hah cool, you captured my lucky gauss shot on that Trebuchet lol, I'm sure you did your share of damage before becoming spectator...

Nice video, you got my kill in there as well. On that map you got to epsilon quite a while before we got there AND faced there fire for longer. I would like them to add stats on hit locations as well. I'm curious to know if my shot cored him or smashed his cockpit.

S

Good gaming last night fella's. Swapping my 1X over to a cataguass seemed to work pretty well. I am still a little green with envy to have an Atlas with ECM...

As a whole, I think we are starting to get better with our coordination. We have increasingly been calling out targeting information and updating each other on our positions.

Also saw a bug report about missiles doing more damage than they are supposed to. Comes down to the splash dmg calculations. Devs are working it.

So...
* In general we need to continue improving our comms. Unfortunately, with ECM its a little hard at times because our targets flash in and out so quickly
* I need to improve on my SA. I do a real good job of keeping up with enemy movements but a poor one keeping up with my teams. Several times last night I found myself out front in my SLOW cataguass (my fault)...dead.
* I need to remember with slow mechs to always (if possible) be a couple of steps away from cover and set up to move there quickly. My bane last night was LRMs and it is entirely because I found myself in the open with nowhere to run in my slow mech.

As always, a fun night...I need to get more sleep...
S

Things I learned from last nights game:

- You all need to watch The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters

This was Kludger last night:



Just replace "kill screen" with AC20.

And some context for the above vid:

Good times! (pops a caffeine pill)
We also learned that Tues is probably the toughest night for us to have our group game night since we roll well the other 6 days of the week. LOL
Running a full set of Atlases with ECM countering and disrupting would be pretty sweet. Long range weapons are getting more and more important with the new map and upcoming map, so the more we can bring the better.

LOL Az! thanks for the context, I was definitely "that guy" shouting AC20! once I got punched with the surprise and wanted to sound the alarm to avoid my buds falling for that trap at Theta

Hey did you hear? there's a sneaky AC20 at Theta!

Great games last night with you guys, my experiments being a LRM Atlas instead of ECM Atlas were not very fun, but I only have 10k more XP to go for this RS so I can elite and get back to being the designated ECM Atlas with the boom

Looking forward to playing some more tonight and over the weekend to make enough to buy the new Jaggermech on Tue, that will be great with that new large map and the heatvision and nightvision.

I played a little more after you all logged. Bought a CN9-A.

Stock, it is a bit slow, so I will use smurfy to plan a build. Still haven't purchased an XL

Is it just me, or are the heat values on smurfy way off?

I think I might buy some MC this weekend and pick up a Hero chassis for the c-bill boost.

Too bad the Yen-Lo doesn't come stock with an XL.

I'm on my second energy drink, and it isn't even lunch time yet!

Nice buy on that CN9-A, that one is on my buy list soon to run 3xSRM6 + energy build, should pack some punch with a half-splatcat load.

Yep, you westies are keeping me up way past my bedtime. 4 hours of sleep on 3 straight nights is brutal. I gotta make a ton of dough this weekend.

It is too bad the energy is all in the CT, so you only get 2 critical slots for 2 hardpoints.

2 x MPL (2 crit, 4 tons, 12 damage) would probably be the best punch for the crit space and tonnage. Runs hot though. (I run 2ML and 2MPL on my jenners now)

A LL is 2 crits but at 5 tons(9 damage), and a LPL is 7 tons(10 damage). Can't fit a PPC in there.

With that type of loadout, sounds like you will forego your ballistic hardpoint? Even a token MG will take 1.5 tons. Almost better to spend that on a CASE and an extra ton of SRM or a heat sink. Or upgrade with a AMS.

Nah, that is what weekend naps are for So you can play with your bros at ungodly hours of the night!

Yeah I would forgo the ballistics and rely on the SRM6s for the punch.

Here is the build I have saved in my Smurfy Mechbay for this, basically it is a fast ~90kph half-splatcat with zombie lasers in the torso:
C9-A STD270 3xSRM6 2xML FF/DHS/ES

I've run up against this build a few times with my Atlas and it puts a hurtin on you with those SRMs and can whittle away with the 2ML zombie style in the CT even if you shoot off the missile torso (I've gotten kills with the 2ML CT torso in my Wang once the arm is lost).

I'm not sure what they do there for the heat? I just wrote down some figures on the builds I've copied back and forth and refer to that as a target:

45% = 1.36
37% = 1.30
35% = 1.28

So I shoot for 45%.





That looks nice. Practically what I had on a catapult, 1 SRM short, but more heat efficient and a lot faster.