BattleTech coming back via Kickstarter

[Harkonis]

You seem similar to where I'm at.

Panzyr is my next campaign mission.
I generally pick at least 2 priority salvage unless I really need the cash. I try and preserve enemy mechs when possible but am more focused on taking them down by any means possible to preserve my mechs & pilots. I have not had any of my mechwarriors killed, yet.

My mechs are;
Lights; Jenner, Firestarter, Panther, Spider
Mediums; Blackjack, Vindicator, Shadowhawk x2, Wolverine, Centurion
Heavy; Thunderbolt
Assault; None.

I am also at Panzyr, I have a Battlemaster, Highlander, Jagermech. Seems our weight/power levels are way off. quite odd

And you are both WAYYYY overpowered for Panzyr (and the following story mission). Advance the story kids!

I have to keep stopping to take money missions since my outflow is so high due to upgrades.

[IceBear]

I find it funny that I am 4 or 5 story missions past that and I have yet to see an Assault mech

[Paingod]

Everyone getting mechs way better than me. Are you 1) further along in the game? 2) Concentrating on salvage over contract price?

I almost always go for 2 selected salvage, 3 if they tell me I'll be up against a Heavy or it's an Assassination mission. I go for a pay out on missions where I'm expecting nothing but Mediums and Lights.

For anyone who's gone 4 or 5 missions into the storyline:

Spoiler:

When it came time to 'liberate' the ammo depot, did you accomplish the bonus goals - or did you use the ammo dumps as explosives to simplify the battle?

I went in with determination to complete every stated objective. Secure all 8 ammo depots, destroy both convoy vehicles, and defeat the 8 defenders. I went in with:

• Orion: Guts/Gunner 1x+++AC20, 2x++SRM6's
• Orion: Pilot/Gunner 2x++AC10, 2xML
• Thunderbolt: Tactics/Gunner 2x++LRM20
• Wolverine: Pilot/Tactics AC5, LRM5, ML

I hobbled out after three attempts with:

• Lost ++SRM6, +++AC20, ++AC10
• Pilot in hospital for 94 days. We thought she had died.
• 500,000+ C-Bills in repairs. The AC20 Orion needed 448,000 by itself. There was almost nothing left of it before it lost the last 4 CT structure.
• Completed every objective: 1.7M C-Bill payoff

If you did all the objectives, did you get hammered as hard as I did. If not, what method did you use?

[AWS260]

For anyone who's gone 4 or 5 missions into the storyline:

Spoiler:

I stayed up on the plateau where you enter and let the defending mechs come to me. As a result, I didn't stop the enemy convoys, but I didn't blow up the ammo dumps either. We got banged up, but not nearly as badly as your experience.

[$iljanus]

Everyone getting mechs way better than me. Are you 1) further along in the game? 2) Concentrating on salvage over contract price?

I almost always go for 2 selected salvage, 3 if they tell me I'll be up against a Heavy or it's an Assassination mission. I go for a pay out on missions where I'm expecting nothing but Mediums and Lights.

For anyone who's gone 4 or 5 missions into the storyline:

Spoiler:

When it came time to 'liberate' the ammo depot, did you accomplish the bonus goals - or did you use the ammo dumps as explosives to simplify the battle?

I went in with determination to complete every stated objective. Secure all 8 ammo depots, destroy both convoy vehicles, and defeat the 8 defenders. I went in with:

• Orion: Guts/Gunner 1x+++AC20, 2x++SRM6's
• Orion: Pilot/Gunner 2x++AC10, 2xML
• Thunderbolt: Tactics/Gunner 2x++LRM20
• Wolverine: Pilot/Tactics AC5, LRM5, ML

I hobbled out after three attempts with:

• Lost ++SRM6, +++AC20, ++AC10
• Pilot in hospital for 94 days. We thought she had died.
• 500,000+ C-Bills in repairs. The AC20 Orion needed 448,000 by itself. There was almost nothing left of it before it lost the last 4 CT structure.
• Completed every objective: 1.7M C-Bill payoff

If you did all the objectives, did you get hammered as hard as I did. If not, what method did you use?

Ugh, that mission was a real pain in the ass and I didn't have close to the mechs and nice weaponry you had when I tackled it. Leaving it a little vague to not spoil things, let's just say that after a few unapologetic save reloads the revolution will just have to make due with a little less. After that mission I've been taking a break from the story line for a bit to grind out some easy space bucks. Now we have a kick ass entertainment system on the Argo!

Spoiler:

But saving 7 out of 8 crates wasn't too bad I thought. The one crate I did blow took out two turrets along with two mechs which allowed me to set up a wider kill zone for me to maneuver in. The transports got a free pass.

[Max Peck]

Everyone getting mechs way better than me. Are you 1) further along in the game? 2) Concentrating on salvage over contract price?

I almost always go for 2 selected salvage, 3 if they tell me I'll be up against a Heavy or it's an Assassination mission. I go for a pay out on missions where I'm expecting nothing but Mediums and Lights.

At a certain point, once I had built up a collection of partial mech chassis, I found that I could make a lot of cash by selling off salvaged components and rebuilt light/medium mech chassis. As long as I'm in a comfortable position vis-à-vis cash-in-hand, I'll often go all-in on salvage rights to see if I can luck out on completing one or more mechs. It's kind of like playing scratch-and-win cards.

[Rip]

Everyone getting mechs way better than me. Are you 1) further along in the game? 2) Concentrating on salvage over contract price?

I almost always go for 2 selected salvage, 3 if they tell me I'll be up against a Heavy or it's an Assassination mission. I go for a pay out on missions where I'm expecting nothing but Mediums and Lights.

For anyone who's gone 4 or 5 missions into the storyline:

Spoiler:

When it came time to 'liberate' the ammo depot, did you accomplish the bonus goals - or did you use the ammo dumps as explosives to simplify the battle?

I went in with determination to complete every stated objective. Secure all 8 ammo depots, destroy both convoy vehicles, and defeat the 8 defenders. I went in with:

• Orion: Guts/Gunner 1x+++AC20, 2x++SRM6's
• Orion: Pilot/Gunner 2x++AC10, 2xML
• Thunderbolt: Tactics/Gunner 2x++LRM20
• Wolverine: Pilot/Tactics AC5, LRM5, ML

I hobbled out after three attempts with:

• Lost ++SRM6, +++AC20, ++AC10
• Pilot in hospital for 94 days. We thought she had died.
• 500,000+ C-Bills in repairs. The AC20 Orion needed 448,000 by itself. There was almost nothing left of it before it lost the last 4 CT structure.
• Completed every objective: 1.7M C-Bill payoff

If you did all the objectives, did you get hammered as hard as I did. If not, what method did you use?

Spoiler:

I drove hard to the left and killed the turret and spider there right off the bat then lured the rest of the mechs into that alcove. Anytime there was a transport I would just send a Shadowhawk after it then come right back to that area. After the mechs were dead or mostly so I started taking out the rest of the turrets from range. Didn't even take any internal damage.

[Rip]

Everyone getting mechs way better than me. Are you 1) further along in the game? 2) Concentrating on salvage over contract price?

I almost always go for 2 selected salvage, 3 if they tell me I'll be up against a Heavy or it's an Assassination mission. I go for a pay out on missions where I'm expecting nothing but Mediums and Lights.

At a certain point, once I had built up a collection of partial mech chassis, I found that I could make a lot of cash by selling off salvaged components and rebuilt light/medium mech chassis. As long as I'm in a comfortable position vis-à-vis cash-in-hand, I'll often go all-in on salvage rights to see if I can luck out on completing one or more mechs. It's kind of like playing scratch-and-win cards.

This is very true. It helps to save them up and only sell stuff when in Arano territory for the superior pricing.

[NickAragua]

Everyone getting mechs way better than me. Are you 1) further along in the game? 2) Concentrating on salvage over contract price?

I almost always go for 2 selected salvage, 3 if they tell me I'll be up against a Heavy or it's an Assassination mission. I go for a pay out on missions where I'm expecting nothing but Mediums and Lights.

For anyone who's gone 4 or 5 missions into the storyline:

Spoiler:

When it came time to 'liberate' the ammo depot, did you accomplish the bonus goals - or did you use the ammo dumps as explosives to simplify the battle?

I went in with determination to complete every stated objective. Secure all 8 ammo depots, destroy both convoy vehicles, and defeat the 8 defenders. I went in with:

• Orion: Guts/Gunner 1x+++AC20, 2x++SRM6's
• Orion: Pilot/Gunner 2x++AC10, 2xML
• Thunderbolt: Tactics/Gunner 2x++LRM20
• Wolverine: Pilot/Tactics AC5, LRM5, ML

I hobbled out after three attempts with:

• Lost ++SRM6, +++AC20, ++AC10
• Pilot in hospital for 94 days. We thought she had died.
• 500,000+ C-Bills in repairs. The AC20 Orion needed 448,000 by itself. There was almost nothing left of it before it lost the last 4 CT structure.
• Completed every objective: 1.7M C-Bill payoff

If you did all the objectives, did you get hammered as hard as I did. If not, what method did you use?

I believe that was where I lost my first mech, the AC/20 Centurion that got knocked down then dogpiled with called shots.

Spoiler:

I tried to intercept the trucks, but only had one turn to fire at each one, so they wound up escaping. I blew up two of the ammo depots, including the one that's next to two turrets, so I still got that bonus objective. The enemy mechs actually did a pretty good job of not all clustering up around a single one.

[coopasonic]

Everyone getting mechs way better than me. Are you 1) further along in the game? 2) Concentrating on salvage over contract price?

I almost always go for 2 selected salvage, 3 if they tell me I'll be up against a Heavy or it's an Assassination mission. I go for a pay out on missions where I'm expecting nothing but Mediums and Lights.

For anyone who's gone 4 or 5 missions into the storyline:

Spoiler:

When it came time to 'liberate' the ammo depot, did you accomplish the bonus goals - or did you use the ammo dumps as explosives to simplify the battle?

I went in with determination to complete every stated objective. Secure all 8 ammo depots, destroy both convoy vehicles, and defeat the 8 defenders. I went in with:

• Orion: Guts/Gunner 1x+++AC20, 2x++SRM6's
• Orion: Pilot/Gunner 2x++AC10, 2xML
• Thunderbolt: Tactics/Gunner 2x++LRM20
• Wolverine: Pilot/Tactics AC5, LRM5, ML

I hobbled out after three attempts with:

• Lost ++SRM6, +++AC20, ++AC10
• Pilot in hospital for 94 days. We thought she had died.
• 500,000+ C-Bills in repairs. The AC20 Orion needed 448,000 by itself. There was almost nothing left of it before it lost the last 4 CT structure.
• Completed every objective: 1.7M C-Bill payoff

If you did all the objectives, did you get hammered as hard as I did. If not, what method did you use?

Spoiler:

I drove hard to the left and killed the turret and spider there right off the bat then lured the rest of the mechs into that alcove. Anytime there was a transport I would just send a Shadowhawk after it then come right back to that area. After the mechs were dead or mostly so I started taking out the rest of the turrets from range. Didn't even take any internal damage.

It is comical that mission (Liberate: Smithon for the curious) is rated two skulls. I am still running with 1 heavy and 3 mediums and I save scummed my way back out of that after about three or four tries all with different strategies.

I'm almost done with a 2.5 skuller that may net me a second heavy. The freaking tanks on this mission are terrifying. Thank the gods for Behemoth's LRMs. 2xAC20 in one vehicle is just wrong!

[Paingod]

For anyone who's gone 4 or 5 missions into the storyline:

Spoiler:

When it came time to 'liberate' the ammo depot, did you accomplish the bonus goals - or did you use the ammo dumps as explosives to simplify the battle?

I went in with determination to complete every stated objective. Secure all 8 ammo depots, destroy both convoy vehicles, and defeat the 8 defenders. I went in with:

• Orion: Guts/Gunner 1x+++AC20, 2x++SRM6's
• Orion: Pilot/Gunner 2x++AC10, 2xML
• Thunderbolt: Tactics/Gunner 2x++LRM20
• Wolverine: Pilot/Tactics AC5, LRM5, ML

I hobbled out after three attempts with:

• Lost ++SRM6, +++AC20, ++AC10
• Pilot in hospital for 94 days. We thought she had died.
• 500,000+ C-Bills in repairs. The AC20 Orion needed 448,000 by itself. There was almost nothing left of it before it lost the last 4 CT structure.
• Completed every objective: 1.7M C-Bill payoff

If you did all the objectives, did you get hammered as hard as I did. If not, what method did you use?

Spoiler:

I drove hard to the left and killed the turret and spider there right off the bat then lured the rest of the mechs into that alcove. Anytime there was a transport I would just send a Shadowhawk after it then come right back to that area. After the mechs were dead or mostly so I started taking out the rest of the turrets from range. Didn't even take any internal damage.

I think you're playing a different game than I am.

Spoiler:

I tried -once- sending a Mech over the hill to deal with those ammo convoys that flee, and that Mech got ripped apart by LRM's, AC, and PPC fire from off-screen - knocked over, then killed. The second time I positioned my AC20 Orion on the hill with hard cover and still took a beating that resulted in death by the end of the mission, but the AC20 nuked the vehicles in one hit. My "successful" run involved doing exactly what you described, but the Spider was one of the last Mechs to die. In that one, I was simply getting good luck with Sensor Lock from my Medium Scout, and LRM40 fire from the Thunderbolt. A single, lucky volley of 2xLRM20 was enough to kill each one when it spawned; in the previous save (where someone died early), 2xLRM20's left internals exposed but didn't kill them.

My team had a helluva time hitting the Lights. At one point, I had three Lights and two Mediums in visual and just couldn't kill anything. My AC20 whiffed over and over and over. When it did hit, I'd cheer - but then quickly realized all I did was knock off an arm without weapons in it. The SRM6's were WAY more effective, but still missed 2/3 of the shots against the Lights.

In fact, after this debaucle, I scrapped my AC20 Orion and repurposed it to 2xAC10 like the other one. Love affair over.

My -hands down- most effective Mech was the Thunderbolt with it's 2xLRM20's. He hung in the back, well away from danger, and when the Dragon popped up, he did a CT Precision Shot that stripped off all the armor and a fair amount of internals. The Dragon spent the rest of the fight trying to avoid fighting. He repeatedly knocked over Mechs or left them so Unbalanced that they lost all Evade and were easy to knock over with an AC10 or AC5 hit. He was awesome crowd control.

During this mission, I also learned that a Mech can change direction without moving - useful for Bulwark pilots that get a defensive damage reduction bonus if they don't move.

[LordMortis]

I have to keep stopping to take money missions since my outflow is so high due to upgrades.

That's weird to me because before see how you guy progress, I kept the storyline advancing every time it became available, the moment it became available because that's where they money was. After save scrumming backwards, I'm given the luxury of collecting some salvage and expending my argo before advancing.

3 if they tell me I'll be up against a Heavy or it's an Assassination mission.

In my current state, that makes a lot of sense. I started the game always taking 4 salvage in hopes of I'd get that in a battle and a choice piece of equipment, if available. My money struggles were constant. After a reset my money is generally fine, choosing only choice piece of salvage. Paying closer attention and then adapting, I am sure is a much better way to proceed.

For anyone who's gone 4 or 5 missions into the storyline:

Spoiler:

I'm not that far yet, but in my first play though, I blew up one ammo dump to get kill the first escaping truck. Everything else took place on the fringe. Accomplishing all goals was cakewalk. However, I bet there would have been a bigger bonus for protecting all 8 and killing everyone rather than 7/8 and killing everyone. But I would have needed a much better cast to kill the first member of the convoy before it escaped, not blown up any ammo, and still do well with the whole, actual, you know, mission, which was jump around, kill mechs as they came at me, shoot turrets from distance, stomp on fleeing conveys as they try to flee left in the my zone of control.

[Max Peck]

I've been holding off on the Liberate Smithon contract partly due to the war stories and partly because I wanted to hone tactics and build up my lance (I'm one of those rare birds who never played table-top BattleTech, so my practical knowledge started from scratch). I'm planning to run it today, so I look forward to discovering whether the mission is difficult to survive, or if it's simply difficult to pull off all the individual victory conditions.

[stimpy]

No previous BT knowledge, so I'm fumbling my way thru this game.
One area that has me befuddled is weapon and equipment loadout.
I have no way of knowing what the equipment I have (stock) does.
I also cant see a way to tell if the stuff I have in the mech bay is better or worse.
When I see you guys talking about different Mechs and which weapons and equipment works best with each one, I'm lost.
Any tips?

[wonderpug]

I have no way of knowing what the equipment I have (stock) does.

Are you not getting tooltip information when you hover your mouse over a weapon or part?

[NickAragua]

There's a lot of ground to cover, do you have any specific questions?

This is a combat guide put together by one of the devs and should pretty much be required reading.

[LordMortis]

No previous BT knowledge, so I'm fumbling my way thru this game.
One area that has me befuddled is weapon and equipment loadout.
I have no way of knowing what the equipment I have (stock) does.
I also cant see a way to tell if the stuff I have in the mech bay is better or worse.
When I see you guys talking about different Mechs and which weapons and equipment works best with each one, I'm lost.
Any tips?

Have the developers create a more friendly UI?
Some of the details presentation to me doesn't make sense, as they aren't doing a direct translation. If you aren't doing a direct translation, it seems like you should go to painful lengths to make the numbers easier to wrap your head around and the UI most definitely does not. I'm sure a comprehensive wiki will be along shortly in place of a good UI if you have two screens. Though that still won't help you on things like when go to the store and don't know how many of what you have when you are trying to figure out if you need more.
That said, I only judge harshly because I love, or something...

Edit from Nicks link for future knowledge... If only I had two screens when I play...

Spoiler:

Gunnery - all ranks: +2.5% base ranged weapon hit chance per point​

Rank 5: Multi-Target - Action: Fire weapons at up to three targets.
Rank 8: Breaching Shot - Passive: Attacks with a single weapon ignore Cover and Guarded on the target.


Piloting - all ranks: +2.5% base melee hit chance per point

Rank 4: +1 Unsteady Threshold
Rank 5: Evasive Movement - Passive: The unit generates an extra Evasive charge from movement actions.
Rank 6: +1 max Evasion
Rank 7: +20% sprint distance
Rank 8: Ace Pilot - Passive: This unit can move after shooting if it has not moved yet.
Rank 9: +1 Unsteady Threshold (+2 total)
Rank 10: +1 max Evasion (+2 total)


Guts - all ranks: +5% bonus on survival rolls. Incapacitated Death Chance (90% - 5%*Guts), Lethal Death Chance (140% - 5% * Guts).

Rank 4: +1 Health
Rank 5: -1 Recoil Penalty, Bulwark - Passive: Gain Guarded when remaining stationary. (you can still shoot)
Rank 6: +15 Overheat Threshold (redesigned, used to be 5 for every guts skill point)
Rank 7: +1 more Health (+2 total)
Rank 8: -1 Recoil Penalty, for a total of -2, Juggernaut - Passive: Successful Melee attacks knock your target back one Initiative Phase
Rank 9: +15 Overheat Threshold, for a total of +30
Rank 10: +1 more Health (+3 total)


Tactics

Rank 4: -1 Indirect Fire Penalty
Rank 5: -45 Minimum Range, Sensor Lock - Action: Select a target within sensor range to reveal it until the end of the current round and remove two evasive charges. Consumes your firing action.
Rank 6: "Called Shot Bonus"
Rank 7: -1 more Indirect Fire Penalty (-2 total)
Rank 8: -45 Minimum Range, (-90 total), Master Tactician - Passive: Mechs piloted by this MechWarrior gain +1 Initiative, and remove one bar of Stability Damage when Reserving
Rank 9: "Called Shot Mastery"
Rank 10: Eliminates Indirect Fire Penalty

Further link to a further link to a weapons overview

https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/in ... w.1083542/

[raydude]

No previous BT knowledge, so I'm fumbling my way thru this game.
One area that has me befuddled is weapon and equipment loadout.
I have no way of knowing what the equipment I have (stock) does.
I also cant see a way to tell if the stuff I have in the mech bay is better or worse.
When I see you guys talking about different Mechs and which weapons and equipment works best with each one, I'm lost.
Any tips?

The weapons that have pluses "+, ++, +++" on them are better than the stock models. I would think the support modules like gyros that are for sale are better than stock, since it doesn't make sense to sell you something that should be on your mech by default.

Here's a nice video beginner's guide for mech customization and what to look for when customizing your mechs.

[LordMortis]

I would think the support modules like gyros that are for sale are better than stock, since it doesn't make sense to sell you something that should be on your mech by default.

I think the are enhancements. They take up space and may do other things. So when I get an enhancement to melee module, I treat it like getting a melee weapon. I haven't justified purchasing any other enhancements or seen any in salvage, yet.

[stimpy]

I have no way of knowing what the equipment I have (stock) does.

Are you not getting tooltip information when you hover your mouse over a weapon or part?

I am, but a lot of it might as well be written in Latin.

[stimpy]

There's a lot of ground to cover, do you have any specific questions?

This is a combat guide put together by one of the devs and should pretty much be required reading.

I think I just would like to know if whats for sale or in stock is better than what I have equipped or worse. And why.

[stimpy]

No previous BT knowledge, so I'm fumbling my way thru this game.
One area that has me befuddled is weapon and equipment loadout.
I have no way of knowing what the equipment I have (stock) does.
I also cant see a way to tell if the stuff I have in the mech bay is better or worse.
When I see you guys talking about different Mechs and which weapons and equipment works best with each one, I'm lost.
Any tips?

The weapons that have pluses "+, ++, +++" on them are better than the stock models. I would think the support modules like gyros that are for sale are better than stock, since it doesn't make sense to sell you something that should be on your mech by default.

Here's a nice video beginner's guide for mech customization and what to look for when customizing your mechs.

I'll have to look for the + signs. Haven't noticed anything like that. That would indeed be helpful.

[NickAragua]

Edit: If you're early enough in the campaign, you won't be seeing too many upgraded items. The baseline items are all identical to one another in functionality.

So far I've seen improved comms systems, which boost the morale gain, and various upgraded gyros, which boost ranged defence, melee accuracy and melee defence. Since those cost 0 tonnage, I mount them without reservation.

I also found a couple of 'TTS' modules, which improve energy, ballistic or missile accuracy.

Since I salvaged a Battlemaster last night, I took all the machine guns off of it and added an energy TTS plus an extra heat sink (the poor bastard waded into the middle of my lance, so I had clear shots at his back).

I don't think the heat sink will help, since it's a Battlemaster. But at least it's more likely to hit with the first salvo.

Also finished assembling from spare parts yesterday:
Catapult K2
Orion

I don't know whose bright idea it is to keep putting machine guns on heavy and assault mechs, but it's not worth the tonnage. Better to put more armor or heat sinks on. I appreciated melee with lights and mediums, but my guys don't really move fast enough any more. At this point, my go-to tactic is dogpile on one guy with multiple missile and autocannon mechs to knock him down, then go for the called shot to the center torso with the Highlander. It's more likely to hit and a lot quicker to take an enemy mech out of action. I'd like to say that I should try for more salvage but a) there's plenty of good stuff that comes up anyway and b) I find it more valuable to take mechs out of action and prevent damage to my guys.

[LordMortis]

There's a lot of ground to cover, do you have any specific questions?

This is a combat guide put together by one of the devs and should pretty much be required reading.

I think I just would like to know if whats for sale or in stock is better than what I have equipped or worse. And why.

His link, went to another link that linked to an excel spreadsheet, ultimately going here https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/in ... sx.356697/ that has a full weapons detail lists. Now it's still up to you determine risk, weight tradeoffs, heat, and those + bonuses when it comes to choice but the (hopefully understandable) comparative stats are there.

[Max Peck]

So far I've seen improved comms systems, which boost the morale gain, and various upgraded gyros, which boost ranged defence, melee accuracy and melee defence. Since those cost 0 tonnage, I mount them without reservation.

I also found a couple of 'TTS' modules, which improve energy, ballistic or missile accuracy.

The best thing ever is the reinforced cockpit mod. It won't save a mechwarrior if the head armor is actually breached, but it does a great job at soaking the initial single-point pilot injuries that tend to keep my med bay in business.

[Freyland]

So, I refit one of my Spiders to have a PPC (sans jumpjets, medium lasers and a ton of armor). The major plus is that you can have a PPC just about where you want it, when you want it, and sometimes that location can be very compromising for the enemy. The downside is the potential for an easily damaged mech, as well as that you are using one of your 4 Lance spots that could have a heavier unit there, with more weapons. Being early in the campaign, I only have the three mediums you start with, so the latter point is not too much of an issue. I'm sure it will be as things progress. I try to mitigate the former concern by being very careful to use the PPC's long range to keep me away from badness, as well as use the terrain, speed and Vigilance to my advantage. And, of course, manipulating the Initiative system plays a big part in any light unit, whether they are short or long ranged. That all said, I think I have only had one battle using said unit, so I can't really comment too much on effectiveness, other than we won that battle handily. Any opinions, based on others' more extensive playtime?

[LordMortis]

Vigilance to my advantage. And, of course, manipulating the Initiative system plays a big part

Having yet to reach assault mech level and scratching heavy only with a crappy Quickdraw, this is most of my enjoyment of the game so far. These two things that are not part of the Battletech universe I play with are absolutely fantastic tactical dynamic game playing fun. Add jumping and the tactical use and depletion of evasion chevrons and I just want to sit in front of the screen until I get a headache and then pretend I don't have one.

[NickAragua]

So, I refit one of my Spiders to have a PPC (sans jumpjets, medium lasers and a ton of armor).

Gotta say that hadn't occurred to me. Heat should be manageable, and I like the improved range (so you don't have to screw around with getting close enough to fire medium lasers). Probably I'd get someone with a high piloting skill in there so that you can stack more evasion pips. The main issue is when you inevitably get bushwhacked by guys coming along your flank, at which point they'll happily drop a lot of ordnance on the Spider and take it out.

[Max Peck]

I haven't tried running a light mech with a PPC, but the problem I'd have with that is that if I have a LOS to fire the PPC, then the target probably has a LOS to me, so if I couldn't get a one-shot kill, I'd expect to see incoming missile fire from every available opforce LRM. Sooner or later, I'd expect to lose that mech, and probably lose it so fast that the pilot wouldn't be able to eject. I'm fond of my crew, so I don't see any of them as expendable.

[Paingod]

So, I refit one of my Spiders to have a PPC (sans jumpjets, medium lasers and a ton of armor).

I once tried a Cicadia with 4 ++Small Lasers - +5Dmg, +25% Crit. I gave it 7 Jump Jets and maxed out the armor. He was a crazy back-armor sniping guru that was hard to hit - but I had real serious issues with heat. This was the Mech that taught me all about JJ's creating more heat the further you jump.

Before I got a couple of heavies, though, I loved me a Light Scout with a PPC working the back lines.

[LordMortis]

I haven't tried running a light mech with a PPC, but the problem I'd have with that is that if I have a LOS to fire the PPC, then the target probably has a LOS to me, so if I couldn't get a one-shot kill, I'd expect to see incoming missile fire from every available opforce LRM. Sooner or later, I'd expect to lose that mech, and probably lose it so fast that the pilot wouldn't be able to eject. I'm fond of my crew, so I don't see any of them as expendable.

I would use it in the same way I use light mechs to make physical or rear armor attacks. Reserve an action until initiative one to get in with max evasion and take your shot. Get out the next round on initiative five (four? I think you five is reserved for Morale boosts and light mechs with extra initiative.) Really, the same way I use all light mechs for the most part. For the most part... I do use them ironically for attack bait. Five Chevrons in the forest? Reserve. You took chevron off from attack? meh to your full frontal LRM damage! They've got a sensor lock. Abort! Abort! No more reservations! Get the hell out of there Sergeant!

[Paingod]

I haven't tried running a light mech with a PPC, but the problem I'd have with that is that if I have a LOS to fire the PPC, then the target probably has a LOS to me, so if I couldn't get a one-shot kill, I'd expect to see incoming missile fire from every available opforce LRM.

I'd only use that Light when there was something else for enemies to shoot at.

A Light that moves 7-8 tiles whacks a huge ToHit penalty on shots. I see it in opposition sometimes - if something has 5 Evasion ranks, I start with a 30% chance to hit and each miss increases that by 15% or so until I'm back to 85-95% chance ToHit with zero evasion.

If you move your Light PPC scout until it has max Evasion on it and enemies can see a Medium with 0-3 Evasion, they'll try for the easier shot every time - or close to it. Just don't put the Light in melee range, which seems to ignore Evasion buildup.

I could be wrong, but I think - think - that +1 Accuracy on things adds around 15% chance ToHit, effectively removing a notch of Evasion. If anyone really knows, please share.

[NickAragua]

Sensor Lock? What's that, some new kind of battlemech?

[wonderpug]

Here's a nice video beginner's guide for mech customization and what to look for when customizing your mechs.

Weapons get an accuracy bonus if mounted on arms?! Is that ever mentioned anywhere in-game?

[IceBear]

Yes. If you highlight a weapon before you fire it you'll see a list of bonuses and penalties that are being applied. You'll see something like Arm Mounted -1

Other than that I don't think anyone comes out and says that but then I didn't read all the detailed tutorial in the mechlab as it might be mentioned there

[LordMortis]

Here's a nice video beginner's guide for mech customization and what to look for when customizing your mechs.

Weapons get an accuracy bonus if mounted on arms?! Is that ever mentioned anywhere in-game?

They do? Do I have to watch that now?

Edit:

Yes. If you highlight a weapon before you fire it you'll see a list of bonuses and penalties that are being applied. You'll see something like Arm Mounted -1

You do? How can so much of info be available and I have exactly no idea?

[IceBear]

Here's a nice video beginner's guide for mech customization and what to look for when customizing your mechs.

Weapons get an accuracy bonus if mounted on arms?! Is that ever mentioned anywhere in-game?

They do? Do I have to watch that now?

Yes...it's a 15% bonus

A lot of info pops up if you leave your cursor on it for a few seconds.

[Paingod]

Here's a nice video beginner's guide for mech customization and what to look for when customizing your mechs.

Weapons get an accuracy bonus if mounted on arms?! Is that ever mentioned anywhere in-game?

They do? Do I have to watch that now?

Yes...it's a 15% bonus

A lot of info pops up if you leave your cursor on it for a few seconds.

That's awesome. So the weapon is more precariously mounted, but more accurate. Dammit...

I haven't seen this anywhere. I hover over a lot of things. Just not everything, apparently. Where would the tooltip pop up about this one?

[IceBear]

The list of weapons that you can turn off and on and where it shows you your percentage chance to hit. Hover over the percentage chance and you should get a breakdown of how it came to that.

I want to say in some of the newer tabletop rulesets they added that bonus to shooting for arm mounted weapons

[Cylus Maxii]

The bonus for arm mounted weapons is mentioned in the tutorial discussion you can have with the tech in the mech bay.