I want all the Mechs

[NewtSoup]

In a set of back to back missions I lost two double heat sinks. I have spent 20 million C-Bills traveling the Periphery and have not found replacements. That has to be close to the "historical" availability, but what a grind!
Good luck on your second try!

Thank you. I made several saves at various points just in case.
I have an improved outcome though still not ideal. I lost an LRM15+++ and an LRM5++ and 3 pilots injured.

Better than losing 2 HS(D) though.

Edit: I got to the picture below after typing the above - I was just a standard LRM15 and LRM5 I lost so not so bad after all.

 

[NewtSoup]

Previous mission - My pilots admire their handiwork:

 

[NewtSoup]

Soo where's the best places to repair some pirate rep? Ideally I want pirates VS local government missions.

 

[Harmon Ward]

Soo where's the best places to repair some pirate rep? Ideally I want pirates VS local government missions.

Here is a great thread on the subject. It works like a charm.

Is it possible to recover reputation after being loathed?

I've only done two campaign missions, Axylus and Weldry, and I'm already finding it impossible to find any half-skull contracts at all. This is a problem because I'm loathed by the pirates, and the only way to recover reputation is to take...

forum.paradoxplaza.com

 

[NewtSoup]

Here is a great thread on the subject. It works like a charm.

Is it possible to recover reputation after being loathed?

I've only done two campaign missions, Axylus and Weldry, and I'm already finding it impossible to find any half-skull contracts at all. This is a problem because I'm loathed by the pirates, and the only way to recover reputation is to take...

forum.paradoxplaza.com

Grazie mille! I will have a thorough read and follow your advice. I'm assuming that priority missions though labelled as priority, will in fact simply wait until you're ready to do them.

 

[Harmon Ward]

You are welcome! I was able to visit Rome last year for the first time!
The Priority Missions are critical to the story line. You can wait as long as you want to tackle those. All of them are challenging, and all of them introduce elements to the mission that you don't find in normal missions. Be ready for the unexpected, and take your time to review the options before you commit to a course of action.

 

[NewtSoup]

You are welcome! I was able to visit Rome last year for the first time!
The Priority Missions are critical to the story line. You can wait as long as you want to tackle those. All of them are challenging, and all of them introduce elements to the mission that you don't find in normal missions. Be ready for the unexpected, and take your time to review the options before you commit to a course of action.

I think I've got about 3 missions to go before I actually complete the campaign. I'm comfortable doing 4 skull missions. The pirates will offer me 2.5 skull missions and there are 3 systems on my map that offer 2.5 skull missions. So I guess I have to patrol those systems until I get what I want. They're in the periphery so I will do any mission that's against the planetary government.

 

[NewtSoup]

The thread you showed me looks good but it involves editing game files which I don't want to do unless I absolutely have to.

*edit* there is a post that manipulates difficulty levels though which I will do. Set the game to easy to find missions. Then when you find some save and exit and then bump the difficulty up. Though I don't need half skull missions as I say.

 

[Harmon Ward]

One detail that I missed early one was that you can move the sliders to get minimum reward and maximum reputation. That saves a lot of time.

I used that Difficulty Level also. It changes things somewhat but it is manageable. In my journey I was loading up to do a 5 skull mission with 3 NPCs to give them some experience. The AI did not upgrade their mechs. On poor guy had a Urban Mech and was ready to drop on a 5 skull mission. Darius put a stop to that!

 

[ntw]

I was using that Dragon as a heavier Griffin with 2ML and 2SRM6+++ and jumping it around to flank. Since I got the battlemaster and some arm mods I tend to put that into play now. BM is fit for mid to short range burst damage while it closes in to punch stuff. It's so funny watching it kick a Cicada in the unmentionables and seeing "Pilot Incapacitated". I will mothball the dragon and use it's SRMs on a different mech.

I've just acquired a Black Knight too ( not SLDF ) Any suggestions as to whether to put it in play or store it? I really favour weapons with stability damage. Though I could see the charm of overheating mechs too. To play that game I think I'd need a whole lance outfit to deliver as much heat as possible to the target. Perhaps I will try that at some point.

BK's are energy-boats, and energy weapons don't overheat your targets, only flamers and Inferno SRMs do that IIRC
However energy weapons don't suffer recoil and tend towards increased accuracy and lower weight (which is then used up by having to mount heatsinks for the increased heat generated). Depends what you like really - both are viable

 

[NewtSoup]

My bad, it made sense that energy weapons such as lasers would heat the target. Perhaps they do but only in a very specific spot which ablates armour but doesn't significantly heat the surrounding area.


I'm rather in love with missiles and autocannons. I particularly love my highlander which I've not changed from stock yet. Even the single LRM is often of benefit.

 

[NewtSoup]

so the non editing method to gain pirate rep is thus:

if your current Outfit is able to engage and withstand "hard" OpFor (i.e. if your Drop Weight is at least 0,5 skulls higher than contract's estimated difficulty), you should be ale to recover from Loathed by Pirates acting as follows (that is, this procedure has always worked for me, so far) :

1. While in game, click onto BATTLETECH’s right hand high corner Menu icon

2. Select “SETTINGS”

3. Select “DIFFICULTY”

4. Select “OPFOR STRENGTH” scroll-down menu and toggle it down to “EASY”

5. Save and back out to “NAVIGATION MAP”

6. Set route to Bellerophon, Detroit or Úr Cruinne and check of any 1-skull Pirates’ contract; then:

a. If you find none, then negotiate any number of available on-site only local government’s contracts against pirates (you’re already loathed by them, so there will be no love lost there), then set course to one of the other star systems I’ve mentioned above.​

​

b. If you find any 0.5-skull Pirates’ contract available, negotiate all of them for good faith only (i.e. all reputation only reward) and complete them right away.​

​

c. If you find any 1.0-skull Pirates’ contract available, go to SETTINGS/DIFFICULTY/OPFOR STRENGTH and toggle it up to “NORMAL”, save settings, back out to the CONTRACTS screen and negotiate all of them for good faith only (i.e. all reputation only reward) and complete them right away.​

​

d. If you find any 1.5-skull Pirates’ contract available, go to SETTINGS/DIFFICULTY/OPFOR STRENGTH and toggle it up to “HARD”, save settings, back out to the CONTRACTS screen and negotiate all of them for good faith only (i.e. all reputation only reward) and complete them right away.​

7. Rinse and repeat points 1 to 6 until your Pirate Reputation rises above -40, at which point you may start negotiating Pirates contracts as “Business as usual” (i.e. with either Cash or Priority Salvages’ reward).

looking at 6 a) that suggests that mission lists do not really refresh and the quickest way to get to new missions is to do the current ones. I've been to Úr Cruinne, Detroit and Bellerophon but only found what looks like the same travel contract to be executed in Alloway and it's for the Local Government against the Pirates. I really don't want another -7 points to pirate rep. The "you're loathed anyway" doesn't apply here.

Not sure what to do. I'm not going to do the Alloway mission whatever. I guess I will keep hopping around every system that is 2 to 2.5 skulls.

 

[ntw]

My bad, it made sense that energy weapons such as lasers would heat the target. Perhaps they do but only in a very specific spot which ablates armour but doesn't significantly heat the surrounding area.


I'm rather in love with missiles and autocannons. I particularly love my highlander which I've not changed from stock yet. Even the single LRM is often of benefit.

You're thinking with real-world logic, and not BT logic there

I quite like PPCs - I know they are not optimal, but the combo of high (focussed) damage, stability damage and never running out of ammo is nice! They just tend to run damn hot.

 

[NewtSoup]

You're thinking with real-world logic, and not BT logic there

I quite like PPCs - I know they are not optimal, but the combo of high (focussed) damage, stability damage and never running out of ammo is nice! They just tend to run damn hot.

I'm a programmer by training. I have a solid background in physics and engineering. As it turns out I'm also a good comic actor. Acting is the career I really want, I was pushed into sciences to have a "proper" career. Never had the "proper career" though.

I've been toying with the idea of the triple PPC Warhammer, I thought I had a whole one but I just have 2/3. I know I scored a head critical and got a whole one but I think that must have been on a mission I reloaded due to unacceptable damage to my Highlander.

 

[Harmon Ward]

Excellent. The weapons just get better as you progress, the PPC ++ is great. There are two paths to "Knockdown and Damage". It is best to adapt as you move through the timeline. You are correct to keep some indirect Fie capabilities. Some of the missions will use this against you in brutal ways, and your only defense is to be able to hit back with missiles, or withdraw.

 

[Doctor Machete]

Thank you. I made several saves at various points just in case.
I have an improved outcome though still not ideal. I lost an LRM15+++ and an LRM5++ and 3 pilots injured.

Better than losing 2 HS(D) though.

Edit: I got to the picture below after typing the above - I was just a standard LRM15 and LRM5 I lost so not so bad after all.

View attachment 588304

I think way before getting a lostech mech or DHS your absolute number one priority should be getting ++/+++ weaponry and for that you don't need the Black Market (although it helps). I'd rather have a well equipped medium mech that an Atlas II with regular weapons. In particular (but not exclusively) buy every single ML++ (dmg) you see, as they're useful in many many builds and the ++dmg variant makes a huge difference (from 25 to 35 dmg).

 

[NewtSoup]

I think way before getting a lostech mech or DHS your absolute number one priority should be getting ++/+++ weaponry and for that you don't need the Black Market (although it helps). I'd rather have a well equipped medium mech that an Atlas II with regular weapons. In particular (but not exclusively) buy every single ML++ (dmg) you see, as they're useful in many many builds and the ++dmg variant makes a huge difference (from 25 to 35 dmg).

I'm developing a collection of ++ and +++ weaponry. My LRM boat has +++ LRM5 and LRM15 on it. My Atlas has 2 AC20+++ and some ML+++, Another mech (can't remember which one ) has 2 SRM6+++ on them, I do so love the SRM6+++ weapons.

 

[Doctor Machete]

I'm developing a collection of ++ and +++ weaponry. My LRM boat has +++ LRM5 and LRM15 on it. My Atlas has 2 AC20+++ and some ML+++, Another mech (can't remember which one ) has 2 SRM6+++ on them, I do so love the SRM6+++ weapons.

Nope, not ML+++ but ML++ (dmg), those are the good ones. SRM6s and SRM4s with the +++ variant and for LRMs I think ++ (dmg) are much better too in the long run than the +++ variant. For some other weapons ++/+++ variants make a big difference but none are so ubiquitous as MLs, when you use them you usually are going to use many of them in the loadout, and several top tier mechs have plenty of energy hardpoints.

I replied before because it shocked me a bit you have an A-II and a Highlander but no ML++, when the weapons should come first imo.

 

[NewtSoup]

Fair enough always take +damage over crits and accuracy. I shall remember that. Makes sense. More sustained damage.

 

[Harmon Ward]

Agreed. You are usually outnumbered in the missions. Sometimes 4:12 or worse. You have to make a significant number of enemies suffer "loud and fatal" accidents as early as possible. Knocking out a weapon helps, but added damage removes the entire mech a lot faster, because damage transfers to the Center Torso.