Gauss is easily my favorite weapon ingame, so I used to mount one on my K2, but with all the pinpoint PPC damage everywhere nowadays, that seems like suicide. So, until they (hopefully) nerf PPCs a bit, I want to find something else to carry my Gauss Rifle. My criteria: [list type=decimal] [*]Arm-mounted Gauss [*]Faster than 70kph [*]Near max armor [*]Not totally useless if the Gauss is destroyed [*]Preferably kind of cheap, I don't have lots of CBills (Maybe use my XL300 to save on engine cost) [/LIST] Here's what I'm looking at so far: CATAPHRACT http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/mechlab#i=40&l=99b2933401840dffa79395e7804dddd5fda1d496 Advantages Jump Jets 3xLLas even without Gauss, is a pretty decent loadout Good range, and pretty good alpha strike at range Disadvantages Slower than I'd like Cataphracts seem a little fragile with an XL engine. (To be fair, with OP pinpoint damage, EVERYTHING is fragile at the moment.) It's expensive Brawler Arms mean no peeking over hills DRAGON http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/mechlab#i=11&l=c971e709dec80dd564fcf5599634a161468f6a44 Advantages Runs cool High speed Good alpha Dragons are relatively safe with an XL It's crazy cheap. All I'd have to buy is the 4.7mil 'Mech itself. Disadvantages Not the greatest CT armor, for as easy a target as the CT is. (Standard Dragon disadvantage.) Without Gauss, it's pretty short range (Not necessarily a disadvantage, just a change in tactics if you lose Gauss.) 4 Weapon groups. I still have a crappy old 3-button mouse... Only 1xGauss damage at range Brawler Arms mean no peeking over hills Options I could just go full 5N(c) with it and do 1xGauss, 2xLLas. Lose some Alpha, but still have a decent build. But if I'm going to do that, why not run the above 'Phract instead and get 3xLLas? JAGERMECH http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/mechlab#i=66&l=1c84bd544f2e7dde8b5622a17933ae294d3fdb92 Advatages Decent speed Sniper arms Decent alpha at range Capability to run dual sniper Gauss if I wanted Disadvantages Seems like it'd be a pretty easy target for Lights, more so than the other 'Mechs. (Where do you find the torso twist speed stats?) Options Replace the SRM6 with 2xSSRM2 to handle Lights. Right now, I'm leaning toward the Dragon. It's cheap, it looks solid, and I kind of like the Dragon anyway. Am I crazy? To me, the Jagermech looks like the worst option here. I like the sniper arms, but it just seems like the Jagermech is more of a large lumbering target, especially more so than the Dragon. Thoughts?
I would say it's a decision between the Cataphract and the Dragon. The Jager is essentially the same as the Cataphract but without the vertical mobility option (jumpjets). The Jager and the Cataphract also have the same firepower rating. Dragon = Faster than the cataphract but without vertical movement as an option. Hits a little harder. Cataphract = Vertical movement option (moving into sniper positions or poptarting) So, you need to ask yourself "Do I wanna move fast on the ground, and hit a LITTLE harder, or do I want to have 3 dimensions of movement available to me?"
The best with a Gauss right now is a Cataphract, and that's with 2 ER PPCs and Jump Jets backing it up. Although I think Highlanders might be even better poptarts, because I see more of them than 3Ds. As to best Mech with them...the Cataphract and Jager go into the Guass builds looking for power. If you were to take off the jump jets (or run a 4X/Ilya without JJ), you could do a dual-gauss with 3xML build, which is pretty hard to beat. Jager can do the same, but your choice there is sniper arms on the Jager (better for peek-a-boo) vs. brawler arms and more firepower at speed on the Cataphract. The phract will require a 280 XL to fit those on there, but it will still go 71.3 kph with tweak, which meets your requirements. Going dual guass + 3xML on a phract will put your alpha at 45; higher than that that of the Dragon and with more pinpoint damage. The Dragon is more like a medium mech. While the other two you sort of have to choose between brawling and sniping, the dragon is more of a skirmisher. It's a completely different playstyle. If you are going single Gauss, and not doing a Gauss+PPC build, I'd say the Dragon is probably the best, though.
This is my old 3d setup I used until I went default jump(tart) sniper: http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/mechlab#i=40&l=1e4e036ec4a59e641796206fbff7f23795b2c536 You can peek-a-boo snipe a bit, if you dare to show torso you have a ranged 25 point alpha, for light fighting you have 3 ml and the gauss (but placement of the ml sucks). Very cold too. You can easily drop 1 jj for more gauss ammo (or drop ams). Downside is, that a real (jump) sniper will demolish you and as the meta is full of those... My Jager is only used as dual gauss sniper (best one in game atm), or to scare people with ac20s (for the very short time it lives). All other setups didnt impressed me at all so far.
If you don't mind stripping a little bit of armor off (and downgrading your armor/ammo) this will work on the 1C just as well as it will in the FANG. This would give you a high-mounted sniper weapon. Fang Doppelganger http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/mechlab#i=55&l=9426464cf2effc307d6f739908971db0b64e5726
Aw man, you guys aren't making this easy... After Michael's post, I thought "Dragon, definitely Dragon. I've never been much good at JJ anyway." But then skribs puts the idea of dual-Gauss and 3-4xMLas into my head for the 'Phract... (Depending on Ilya or 3D) Even though it violates my no-gauss-in-the-torso rule on the 3D, it sure looks tempting. Fiewiel's ERPPC+Gauss looks good too. It seems like the 'Phract is the way to go for Gauss, honestly. The extra 10 tons over the Dragon make it easier to deal with such a heavy weapon. But I worry about the side torsos being too easy to hit. And I don't want to become a pop-tarter. "Cheapness" aside, that just looks boring. But I wouldn't mind the option of JJ, so at least I could learn to use them better. But then the speed of the Dragon (Especially when I drop in my XL340, a 101kph Gauss platform? Oooohhh yeah...) is tempting also. Thanks for all the feedback though, you guys have some great options. I think I just need to buy more 'Mech bays, and play more often so I have the CBills to burn.
Don't forget that the dual-Gauss jager, while less efficient use of tonnage than the phract, presents a very low profile while peeking over hills. I'm not making it easier, am I?
I've been trying to snipe by peeking over hills with my 2xERPPC, 2xLLas K2, since it has great sniper arms too, and it is pretty fun. But I can't seem to make a dual Gauss build on the Jagermech that I like at all, so I'm pretty sure the Jagermech is out. I have foiled your evil plan, skribs! Muahaha!
The nice thing about Dual Gauss over Dual PPC is that you generate less heat and deal more damage per alpha. A 2x Gauss 2xML build will deal more damage than yours at a lot less heat. It's also nice if you're trying to figure out what to do besides dual AC/20.
Yeah, I guess the dual Gauss Jager is probably also a little more accurate than the dual Gauss 'Phract, unless you arm lock the 'Phract. And it's not killed by both the Gauss Rifles exploding. It does have it's definite advantages. Yeah, I've seen enough dual AC/20 Jagers (Or K2s) die to know that's basically a gimmick build more that anything. Unless they sneak up on you, they're just sniper fodder.
