Take command of your own mercenary outfit of ‘Mechs and the MechWarriors that pilot them, struggling to stay afloat as you find yourself drawn into a brutal interstellar civil war.
Battletech Tips and Tricks
Focus Fire – The more of your Mechs that can range and fire on a single enemy unit,
the quicker you are likely to take it and its Weapon Systems out of the Match. The
use of terrain is essential to both maximizing your ability to Focus your fire a
gainst enemy Mechs while at the same time limiting your opponents opportunities to
Focus Fire against your most vulnerable/damaged Mechs.
Target enemies which have already activated this round to ensure maximum opportunity
for Stability Damage (possibly even achieving a Knockdown) before the enemy has an
opportunity to activate that Mech and lessen/eliminate its Stability Damage. The same
principle applies to removing evasive pips.
Crit Seeking – The sequencing of attacks can pay high tactical dividends. High Damage
Attacks can punch holes in Enemy Armor, permitting low damage, multiple hit location
attacks from Support Weapons and Missiles to then “Crit Seek.” Crit Seeking is made
possible by attacks that damage Internal Structure.The first successful Crit damages
the component, while a second successful Crit destroys the component. Machine Guns
are especially effective since they roll 5 separate locations and have a bonus to
crit chance.
Line of Sight – Use Line of Sight to your advantage. If you use terrain and other
obstacles to block LOS to your units, you restrict the enemy’s options. If they don’t
have LRMs, they won’t be able to shoot at you. If they do have LRMs, they will be able
to use Indirect Fire to target you at a penalty. A popular tactic is to use Sensor
Lock to reveal a unit, and then use your long range units to engage before the enemy
can see you.
Defensive Positioning – Offer your front to the enemy until one side is more damaged
than the other. Then turn the other cheek and show your undamaged side to him.
Alternately a Mech can be built with no weapons or components in an Arm or an Arm/
Torso-Side. From the very beginning of the match this side can be presented toward
the Enemy, soaking Damage and serving effectively as a Shield. Whenever employing
Defensive Positioning, care must be shown toward that side’s Leg or risk its loss.
Also be mindful of quicker enemies that may be able to move fast enough to get a
rear shot.
Wingman / Mutual Support – Try to position your Mechs so their Rear Armor can’t be
exploited. And if your opponent does maneuver to achieve Rear shots, try to make
them pay for it as they have likely overextended their own lines and are themselves
vulnerable to Melee or Ranged Attacks.
Lance Composition – Take advantage of useful Combat Roles when choosing Mechs for
your Lance. A fast Light Scout Mech can permit you to make the most of Indirect
Fires from any LRMs your remaining three Mechs may carry. A dedicated LRM Mech may
permit you to sacrifice some Armor or other Weapon Systems from this Mech with the
understanding it would need to be safeguarded while in combat. A Brawler Mech may
max out its Armor and focus on short range weapons (AC20, SRMs, etc) in order to
Tank and deal as much damage as possible.
A Scout, 2 Brawlers and a dedicated LRM Mech can make for a very well rounded Lance
Composition. Alternately, risk can be assumed and all 4 Mechs may be of a single type,
for example four Brawling Hunchback-4G’s (AC/20) with the player looking toward
Sprint and Brace to best close the distance to Enemy Mechs before pummeling them to
scrap. Of course, if the Enemy manages to keep out of AC/20 range, it is going to be
a lost effort.
Location, Location, Location – While planning to move, you can see your hit chances
before confirming your move’s facing by mousing over enemies. Sometimes even moving
a single dot closer to or further away (and out of Minimum Range) from a target can
bring a significant amount of firepower to bare. Taking the time to plan for the best
Move/Fire combination can realize decisive tactical advantage.
Gameplay Tips
- Critical hits are two-stage – the first crit damages the weapon and makes it less accurate, the second destroys it. Orange for damaged, red for destroyed.
- You never, never, EVER put ammo in the CT (Center Torso). A crit blowing up your ammo will destroy the location the ammo is stored in. If this is an arm, a leg or a side torso, your mech lives on. If the ammo blows in your CT, your mech is dead.
- Lighter mechs get to move first so use Initiative to your advantage. Reserve while safe then shoot when he gets to move last. You can then move back into a safe spot.
- Multi-target and Breaching Shot – if you attack three targets with only one
weapon each, Breaching Shot will trigger for each attack. - Use Missiles first to remove Evasion as they’re more likely to do actual damage
thanks to each Missile having an individual roll. - Vehicles will die if any one section loses its structure.
- Mechs will die if: both legs are taken out, head, or the CT.
- The main character can’t die.
- If a friendly pilot is incapacitated the chances of death are as follows:
90% – (Guts * 5%) or if the cockpit is destroyed 140% – (Guts * 5%). - Focus fire. As the enemy mechs are identified, look at their loadouts, their armor placement, their ammo placement. What is their optimal range, can you exploit that somehow? Identify the greatest threat and eliminate it. Also worth shooting at the ammo locations as you get more BANG for your buck. Once incapacitated, move onto the next biggest threat.
- Knocking mechs down gives you automatic called shots (unless you multi-target) which provides same a similar effect as Precise Shot without using morale/knocking the enemy down an initiative phase. Knock-downed mechs always land on their backs. Combine this with a manoeuvre to get a side shot to focus fire into the section you desire to be, no more.
- Remember this isn’t X-Com! The game play is a lot different and you will need to use many different tactics for the situation.
Tips In the Battlefield:
1.Focus Fire on a single enemy mech.
2.If you will most certainly miss or are too far, don’t waste your turn with a
single LRM5 attack, sprint or jump to get to a better position first.
3.If you’re at a good spot and have Bulwark. Don’t move then attack, just stay put.
4.Reserve will keep your defensive buffs from the previous turn, if you have 6
Evasion Charges or you braced last turn, it’s better to let your enemy move first.
5.Covers are your friends, always try to get to them then stay put. Cover + Bulwark
will make your mech shrug off most attacks. Especially if you jumped to cover then
braced.