Frequently Used Tips and Tricks

Thread in 'MechWarrior Online' started by Excalibaard, Dec 20, 2013.

  1. The Verge

    The Verge Moderator Staff Member

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    woo!
     
  2. epikt

    epikt Benefactor

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    Agreed. I think it highly depends on the complete weapon system. This list should be about basic, simple and general tips, I think this kind of discussion is too specific.

    It comes from the patch-notes (which, I agree, are not to be trusted blindly) and smurfy's, and as far as I know nobody suggested it was incorrect.
    But it can be tested simply, I'll do it by the end of the week.


    It will depend on the complete build, but I still think Blagg's tip (2 tons per cannon minimum,, 3 tons being most of the time enough) correct and worthy to be included on the list.
    It's only about autocanons, not MGs.
     
  3. SAI Peregrinus

    SAI Peregrinus Advanced Member

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    There should be basic tips, but there should also be "traps" and "gotchas" like the ghost heat looping mechanic. Even though pretty much only AC/2 and possibly streaks regularly encounter that, it's still important to know, and so belongs in a tips/tricks document, but not in a basic tips section.
     
  4. Iron Beagle

    Iron Beagle New Member

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    What no secondary uses for things my favorite is using a LRM5 to find where enemy are.

    - LRM's fired indirectly are great way to find hidden enemy if they have Anti-Missile System(AMS). Ideally using an LRM5 to waste as little ammo as possible. Where ya expect enemy are but can't see any point down the path so missiles can arch up through it but not to high and shoot a volley. If enemy in range and they have AMS their AMS will automatically try to take out the missiles. Giving their hiding spots away.
     
  5. Excalibaard

    Excalibaard 101 010 Staff Member

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    Slightly updated. Will work on a Clan Mechs section soon.
     
  6. Midnite7175

    Midnite7175 Advanced Member

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    - Chainfiring similar weapons or assigning them to different wepongroups instead of alphastriking can counteract ghostheat to a certain level if timed right.
    (e.g. firing 4 ERPPCs simultanously is often a bad idea, pairing them 2x2 in two groups can save a lot of heat)
    - LRM Boats or Mechs with heavy LRM Support in general should have at least BAP attached.
     
  7. Excalibaard

    Excalibaard 101 010 Staff Member

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    Soon(TM) has arrived. Clan Mech section added. It is currently a bit empty so please post your suggestions for build tips. So that means no special lines about things such as 'You can't change the engine' or 'Both STs destroyed = death instead of just one', only tips that could affect how people would put a loadout on their mech.
     
  8. Falconium

    Falconium Administrator Staff Member

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    Something I've been focusing on alot lately, and realized alot of people don't really think about: DPH (damage per heat), otherwise referred to as DHR (damage/heat ratio). Essentially, a pro-tip particularly useful for Energy Weapons, though also applicable to Ballistics and Missiles: when in a hot fight, where you want to deal damage while at the same time avoiding overheating, always remember to use the weapon(s) that do the most damage per heat.

    This is also particularly important to remember with the recent Energy Weapon changes: Large Lasers are no longer the highest DPH Energy weapon; SPL are, with MPL and LPL close behind. So if you're running a combination of Energy weapons, and you're running hot, prioritize the Pulses, as they'll do the most damage per heat produced. The same goes for Clans: Pulses do alot more DPH than standard Lasers.

    And for Missiles: the bigger the better, across the different types. SRM6s have higher DPH than 4s and 2s; LRM20s have higher DPH than 15s, 10s, or 5s; Streaks-6s have higher DPH than 4s and 2s. It's always the larger Missile type that will do the greatest DPH.

    For Ballistics, the answer varies: Gauss and MGs are obviously the prime choices, as they have next to no heat (literally none for MGs). But for actual ACs, it goes like this:
    • 2s are always worse (always)
    • 5s are always best (always)
    • 10s and 20s are exactly the same (except for LB types)
    • LB 10s have an advantage, making them the same as 5s (but still not better)

    Anyway, this is a thought I've had the last week or so, and thought I'd share. Cheers!
     
    WhoopieMonster likes this.
  9. Excalibaard

    Excalibaard 101 010 Staff Member

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    I'll find a way on how to include that in the sheet, will have to trim down on information/examples though :p
     
    The Verge likes this.
  10. SAI Peregrinus

    SAI Peregrinus Advanced Member

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    So this is quite generic, not even specific to MWO, but it's useful.

    Get a mouse with adjustable DPI. Most such mice have several configurable DPI levels, so you can pick how sensitive it is quickly.

    To find appropriate DPIs for each level:
    Pick the range/zoom level you expect to use a weapon at (eg, cERLL at 800m & full normal zoom, or SPLas at 90m, no zoom) and circle around a target at that range. Keep your cursor exactly on the target. Adjust the DPI at that level until you can do this with a comfortable amount of hand movement. Repeat for each DPI level/weapon combination.

    Lower DPI means less cursor movement for a given hand movement; this makes you more accurate when sniping but causes difficulty torso twisting. Higher DPI is the opposite.

    When dead and spectating I often see people missing lots of shots because they're jerking the mouse all over the screen. That's a symptom of having too high a DPI. One can somewhat fix this by turning sensitivity down in game (or in Windows mouse settings) but software methods sometimes cause a bit of "jerkiness" due to rounding errors. It's also not possible to quickly switch the in-game sensitivity, whereas a mouse's built-in DPI control is designed to be switched on the fly.
     
  11. Falconium

    Falconium Administrator Staff Member

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    DPI adjustment is something I wish I had on this Logitech M500 . . . sadly, I love it too much to replace it JUST for that one feature. :rolleyes:
     
  12. Durandal

    Durandal Min-Max Maniac

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    It looks like someone decided to try and go in and delete everything on the doc, but I don't have editor access so I can't just undo the changes. :( Can still see it, it's just all crossed out, and things have been made to look a bit screwy. Thankfully you can still read it in "viewable". We can think whoever "Michael Barrs" is for that, according to the doc.
     
    Last edited: Jan 4, 2015
  13. Michael

    Michael Grand Poobah

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    My last name starts with a C so it isn't me lol you can always copy and paste into a new doc and relink it.

    Is there a way to restrict who can edit?
     
  14. The Verge

    The Verge Moderator Staff Member

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    They are just messing with the Suggestions, and those can be removed by the OP. The View key works well, and removes all of the Suggestions.
     
  15. Excalibaard

    Excalibaard 101 010 Staff Member

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    Michael accidentally removed everything as a suggestion after someone scribbled information that he didn't want to have shared as a suggestion. Since not everyone knows how to disable it, I am considering to remove the suggestion option. But, in that case it's probably best to post the current product.in the guides/resources section.
     
    The Verge likes this.
  16. brnoclub1947

    brnoclub1947 New Member

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    im new and im wondering if i should buy a fire starter
     
  17. The Verge

    The Verge Moderator Staff Member

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    Welcome to Mechspecs!

    It really depends on what you want to do as a mechwarrior, choosing your first mech to get and master. I personally went with Jenner as my first mech, as it was the only light mech at the time. Now, you have a huge selection, from IS to Clan mechs.

    If your goal is to go fast, and do a good amount of damage while having the armor to take a hit, with JJ to boot, the Firestarter is a great mech. They all use some sort of energy weapon, making it super easy to learn many strategies and tactics in the mech, which include Torso Twisting, Zig Zag, Zig Zag with JJ, JJ up hills, JJ onto enemy mechs, Stutter Stop, and of course, Aiming at a single component, and hitting that said component from nearly any angle, at any speed. You can also experiment with Arm lock or no arm lock on this mech.

    In a Jenner, for comparison, most have Missile and Energy hardpoints. It's harder to Torso Twist, and they don't carry as many JJ as the Firestarter. However, the Jenner F has 6x energy hardpoints in the arms, and it's a great mech, being able to do massive damage for it's size, while still going 150KPH. The Firestarters can carry more firepower, but it will cost some speed. That is why I like the Jenner more right now, is because of there amazing speed to firepower ratio.
     
  18. Durandal

    Durandal Min-Max Maniac

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    Also important to note is the relative sizes and quirks of each mech (you can find the full quirk list here: https://www.mechspecs.com/quirks/ ). The Jenner is classified as a "tiny" mech, while the Firestarter is classified as a "small" mech. This means that the FS9 is slightly taller, and can potentially get caught in a few spots that the Jenner and other light mechs could squeeze through (the easiest example is the spaces under the ramps in HPG Manifold). Both mechs are particularly powerful with specific builds; though the Firestarter A was nerfed a bit recently, its build using 8 small pulse lasers is still considered one of the most dangerous in the game if it gets close. The Jenner can be a bit more versatile (having the options for missiles in some variants), but both are strong mechs.

    Additionally, the Jenner can be more vulnerable in some ways; its center torso is more apt to take hits than other lights, whereas the biggest weak point of a Firestarter is in the legs. As with all light mechs, the key to operating either chassis is in getting it fully upgraded (double heat sinks, endo-steel, and ferro-fibrous armor) with the best engine possible (for Jenners, XL300, for Firestarters, XL295), which can be expensive. These mechs are not considered fully ready until they have unlocked all of their basic skills, and the Speed Tweak elite skill at the very least (which gives access to the true max speeds above 150 KPH).

    If you are new to lights in general, I would recommend playing both the trial Firestarter and Jenner F for a good number of matches, and making a decision as to whether those chassis are for you. Lights have a difficult learning curve since they are so easily killed by concentrated fire, and require complex tactics to dominate with. They are, however, very rewarding once learned.
     
    Falconium and PyckenZot like this.
  19. Gunnar23

    Gunnar23 New Member

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    Made a few additions, namely around clan ACs and torso twisting tactics. If anybody knows the specific number of bullets that each cAC shoots (like is the AC20 4X5dmg shots or 5X4dmg?) - I left a note in there where that info can be added. Great write-up!!
     
  20. epikt

    epikt Benefactor

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    I wasn't able to locate your note (can you erase it?) but I added the information under Clan mechs > weaponry :
    (all according to Smurfy's)
    By the way, is "submunition" the proper word? If not, can someone correct this, thank you.
     
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