Ironman+Career Mode=World of PAIN!

[HBS_TheBaron]

Personally, I prefer playing with:

• Career Mode
• Ironman
• 3-Part 'Mech Completion
• Empty 'Mechs
• Lethality + CT Destruction

With these settings, I can assemble 'Mechs quickly, which makes victories feel rewarding, BUT I need them to be because the cost of failure can be appallingly high. The combo of CT Destruction + Lethality requires me to play really, really carefully; if I get a 'Mech cored out, I'm permanently down one 'Mech and one pilot. As a result, I find myself running a constant calculation of when to pull back with damaged units, how much incoming fire I need to worry about, and when I need to proactively eject one of my MechWarriors. YMMV, of course, but for me, this hits the sweet spot of risk vs. reward.

 

[Shake Appeal]

We're discussing it.

Awesome. I know "players who care about the consistency of scoring in career mode" are probably a minuscule fraction of the player base, but those players probably overlap solidly with those who like masochistic difficulty.

 

[Shake Appeal]

Personally, I prefer playing with:

• Career Mode
• Ironman
• 3-Part 'Mech Completion
• Empty 'Mechs
• Lethality + CT Destruction

This is what I'm playing with currently in Career, and it feels good. Before 1.3/Flashpoint, I found Kiva's settings+Lethality+CT Destruction just about perfect, but the combo of that with a weaker starting lance and weaker starting pilots seemed a bit much, especially without scoring incentive to do it.

 

[Marc_Hicks]

Well, my Mercenary Career continues to have its ups & downs......but my Company has remained solvent, with enough C-bills for 4 months, but still no more than Light Mechs to my name.

As previously occured, though, I had another 2 missions that were sufficiently easy to make me cocky, followed by one that was tougher than anticipated.

I succeeded at a base defense, in spite of a Martian Biome, only having 3 Mechs on the field & an enemy Firestarter that decided my Jenner was fair game . That experience finally forced me to reconsider the loadout for that Mech.

I next took on an Assassination mission-again with only 3 mechs available-& took down an enemy Wolverine.....with only very modest damage to my own mechs.

Then came a second base defense. Tundra, 4 Mechs in my Lance, & turrets on the base.....I felt sure of victory this time. Well, I was victorious, but apparently the OpFor forgot their mission was to "destroy the Taurian Base" & thought it was instead "destroy Commander Karpinsky". Seriously, the entire OpFor ignored the base, the turrets & even the other Mechs.....& instead chose to focus all their fire on my Vindicator.

Well, sadly I mis-timed when to eject (all the other Mechs got to go before me) & my Vindicator got cored out & destroyed. Luckily "plot armour" saved the Commander, but she is still sidelined for a whole 3 months . I had enough salvage to build a Panther, so luckily I can still field a full Lance.

I do hope better days are around the corner......perhaps I should seek out greener pastures? Though the Taurians almost like me, so maybe not.

House Davion is getting increasingly miffed with me, though .

 

[Edmon]

Awesome. I know "players who care about the consistency of scoring in career mode" are probably a minuscule fraction of the player base, but those players probably overlap solidly with those who like masochistic difficulty.

It's not masochistic, it's fun, you'll learn to enjoy it if you just try it...

Note: This only happened to me once, in one particular game, when I was younger. I got so frustrated by my own inability I actually nearly cried about it.

I went back a decade later and crushed it. Never lowered the difficulty .

 

[Prussian Havoc]

If I am fighting 4 v 8, I have done something wrong. Fighting 4 v 4 then another 4 is much better.

I agree with you, Good Sir. :bow:

But fortunately Team HBS got this one right, “The Enemy gets a Vote.”

That is a lessone I learned early during my Military Career.


Come to think of it, I learned early during my actual career in the Army and then was rather forcibly reminded it of by BATTLETECH AI when I too was sandwiched between two admittedly Lighter Lances on a recent Contract.

My “Solution Set” to the AI’s proffered “Problem Set” was to Max Jump and Sprint toward my Left Flank, deal with one Lance (taking all to many Right Torso and then eventually Rear Torso shots as the AI pursued) before turning toward the AI on my Right Flank and a destroying that damnable LRM Carrier sitting in the Fog of War!

I swear it must have run out of ammo on that last turn... grumble, grumble, £€|>\£~!|£|!-Carriers!!!



Anyhow, @Marc_Hicks I’ve withdrawn from only a single Contract so far and it too was very early on.

It was not a case of Medium Mechs sparking fear in my BattleTech Soul.

It was a case of having put paid to a Mixed Lance of Light Mechs and Vehicles when an AI Medium Lance shows up, reaches out and Red-CT’s one of my two Jenners!

Even before I had even more than scrarched either the AI Hunchback-4P or AI Enforcer leading the Reinfocement Lance I was in deep, deep trouble.. (THANKS DARIUS!) - just kidding, Darius and his IMPERFECT INTEL is part of what so endears BATTLETECH (and now FLASHPOINT) to me. : )


Luckily I’ve been able to rotate Armor among my Scout, Assault Element and Fire Support Mech during the course of especially long or difficult matches.

Also the technique or Precision Firing an AI Medium or Heavy Mech (who has already moved this Turn!!!) into the third or second Phase of NEXT TURN, has let me reliably maim or kill any number of Prime Salvage AI Mechs when I move the remainder of my Mechs this turn and the next turn before that particular AI Mech ever gets to move again.


Anyhow, good luck to you and I look forward to reading more about your Aventures in Career Mode.

 

[scJazz]

I think that's in the default settings? Anyway yes, you need that to make the slower pace of career mode work with the pilot progression.

From the stream it should have been but was not.

 

[scJazz]

Personally, I prefer playing with:

• Career Mode
• Ironman
• 3-Part 'Mech Completion
• Empty 'Mechs
• Lethality + CT Destruction

With these settings, I can assemble 'Mechs quickly, which makes victories feel rewarding, BUT I need them to be because the cost of failure can be appallingly high. The combo of CT Destruction + Lethality requires me to play really, really carefully; if I get a 'Mech cored out, I'm permanently down one 'Mech and one pilot. As a result, I find myself running a constant calculation of when to pull back with damaged units, how much incoming fire I need to worry about, and when I need to proactively eject one of my MechWarriors. YMMV, of course, but for me, this hits the sweet spot of risk vs. reward.

Meh... who is this Baron? Some kind of Royalty?!?
I would prefer the opinion of the Bringer of Death

 

[stjobe]

I think that's in the default settings? Anyway yes, you need that to make the slower pace of career mode work with the pilot progression.

Default settings right now is normal progression, hence why I asked if you'd forgotten to mention setting it to slow.

 

[Edmon]

@HBS_Kiva @HBS_TheBaron

How about some new lance choices?

 

[Masoz]

Personally, I prefer playing with:

• Career Mode
• Ironman
• 3-Part 'Mech Completion
• Empty 'Mechs
• Lethality + CT Destruction

With these settings, I can assemble 'Mechs quickly, which makes victories feel rewarding, BUT I need them to be because the cost of failure can be appallingly high. The combo of CT Destruction + Lethality requires me to play really, really carefully; if I get a 'Mech cored out, I'm permanently down one 'Mech and one pilot. As a result, I find myself running a constant calculation of when to pull back with damaged units, how much incoming fire I need to worry about, and when I need to proactively eject one of my MechWarriors. YMMV, of course, but for me, this hits the sweet spot of risk vs. reward.

These are my preferred settings as well, though I would also raise the salvage parts needed higher if salvage were more dynamic. IMO, headcapping a 'Mech should give you all the parts you need, and the price of the parts should scale to the number of parts you need.

I know "Kiva mode" is popular 'round these parts, but I think it's okay to allow yourself to get lucky every once in awhile. I had the good fortune to get a Panther, Jenner, and Locust completed in a single mission recently thanks to a lucky headshot, and let me tell you, I've never been so excited to get what I'd normally consider "complete trash."

 

[Marc_Hicks]

So, for the record, my only settings are:

• Career Mode
• Ironman
• 3-part 'Mech Completion
• Empty 'Mechs
• CT Destruction

So, almost identical to TheBaron's own settings. Only 1 piece away from getting my first Hatchetman, which hopefully will be my "turning point". Perhaps I need to move away from the 0.5 to 1.5 Skull Missions, & try out the 2 to 2.5 Skull missions instead?

 

[scJazz]

@HBS_Kiva @HBS_TheBaron

How about some new lance choices?

This might be the best BATTLETECH pic meme ever!

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Meh... who is this Baron? Some kind of Royalty?!?
I would prefer the opinion of the Bringer of Death

@HBS_TheBaron, aka Andrew of Team HBS, is the Maker of Aurigan Legends, the Man behind House Espinosa’s Grab for Power, HBS Grand Master Story Teller of Shadowrun tales both near and far...

Plus he played one of my favorite characters on later Season DFA episodes. (Which as I hear is coming back form Zombie Orpheus Entertainment for Season 4 in January 2019.... @Kereminde, AmIRight? )


Andrew’s plots and treacherous, heroes and heroines have served Team HBS well. I look forward to his “take” on BATTLETECH CLANS... in due course and at the appropriate time of course. :bow:


“Seyla ...”

 

[Kereminde]

(Which as I hear is coming back form Zombie Orpheus Entertainment for Season 4 in January 2019.... AmIRight? )

I don't know, I heard there was an announcement to be made "soon". Other than that, your guess is as good as mine. I wish them well with their endeavors.

 

[Mcwynne]

I have really been enjoying playing with the Kiva settings I finally got a Shadowhawk and a Trebuchet, and on their trial run I also managed to finish a Hatchetman. There have been some ejections (but no deaths) and even a bad faith withdrawal (on a run where I managed to kill the pilot of a Crab, would only have given me 4/5 peaces but still). Things are starting to look up.

 

[Prussian Havoc]

I don't know, I heard there was an announcement to be made "soon". Other than that, your guess is as good as mine. I wish them well with their endeavors.

The announcement has been made on ZOE Discord. And is reflected here: https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?threads/dfa-returns-this-january.1131707/

Matt added the:

 

[Havamal]

@HBS_Kiva @HBS_TheBaron

How about some new lance choices?

I vote 4x Locust start.

That way the Cicada is an upgrade.

 

[Edmon]

I vote 4x Locust start.

That way the Cicada is an upgrade.

Is it though?

 

[Confector Tyrannis]

That should tell you all you need to know. I definitely need to refine my tactics though!

Try your best, after id'ing one enemy (when they first appear as red unknown etc) to NOT rush forward, actually try pulling back or flanking left or right, let THEM come to you.

The idea being, if you don't spot em and they haven't spotted you... the other mobs won't be attacking you all at once. Dice up the opfor into manageable chunks, zerg rush doesn't do any favors in the long run