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Nips

Reactor...online. Sensors...online. Weapons...online. All systems nominal.



Greetings potential pilot, and welcome to the Mark 4.1 Mechwarrior Online OP, now with 200% more WubWub and 5000% more hyphens and commas!
It has been reorganized, and in some spots rewritten, to provide more relevant and concise information for our growing roster of pilots.
If you have anything you would like to see added to the OP, or notice any errors, please contact @Nips and I'll do my best to update the post.

Remember pilots, this is Battletech. Around these parts, common sense is Lostech.

http://youtu.be/ea3spOtjLmI

UPCOMING EVENTS
Details and scheduling of the next Oosik Bash is pending.
Want to help form a practice squad for future official tournaments? Fill out your availability on this sheet, and @Nips will try to coordinate some scrimmages!
Interested in coordinating you drop lance with the other Oosiks for when Community Warfare is launched? Fill out your prospective drop decks on this sheet!

UP TO THE MOMENT NEWS
Next Expected Patch: December 2nd, 2014
The Viridian Bog launches with the second November patch, along with the Mist Lynx Clan light, the Hero Locust/Shadow Hawk pair, and bufixes. Nov-18
Dev Vlog 10 discusses the art design of the new Viridian Bog map, and gives sneak peaks of the next three mechs! Nov-15
The November 4th Patch dropped the Ice Ferret for Wave 2 purchasers, brings in the new IS Quirk Pass, a Champion Thunderbolt, and Laser balance tweaks!
Russ announced the November roadmap, which includes IS mech quirks, laser balance changes, a bucket of new mech variants, and more. Oct-30
Paul provided another update, with Q&A, on the progress of CW Phase 2. Oct-22
The Inner Sphere Resistance pack is live, and available for preorders. Oct-22
The October 21st patch brings Loyalty Rewards, in-game reward (C-bill/XP) tweaks, bugfixes, and more!
PGI announced their next mech pack, the Inner Sphere Resistance pack, featuring the Panther, Enforcer, Grasshopper, and Zeus. Oct-20
Paul provided an update on the progress of CW Phase 2 in his October update. Oct-08


NEWS ARCHIVE

A hotfix on Oct-08 rolled back the matchmaker changes, and fixed a crippling HUD IFF bug.
The October 7th patch introduces a slightly revamped Matchmaker system, a Champion Trebuchet, more Modules, and some tiny bugfixes.
The weekend of Oct-03 brings us the Worthy Adversaries 2 solo challenge! Opt in, and you have a chance to earn big C-bill bonuses.
Russ laid out the October development roadmap in his late-September Command Chair post. Sep-29
You can now activate banked Premium Time in 30-day chunks. Sep-29
The weekend of September 27th is Lance Challenge 2! Group up, and score some swag!
The Celebration Is Here! Double all the things with the sale happening the weekend of Sep-20!
PGI is celebrating the game's 1-Year anniversary with a TON of stuff. Check the link for details!
PGI is hosting a Kill the Devs challenge from Sep-12 to Sep-16. To celebrate, there's a sale on Premium, Cockpit Items, and COLORS.
The September 9th patch! Highlights include togglable AMS/ECM, All Chat in game OFF by default, and a Griffin Hero, "Sparky".
PGI buys out their stake in MWO from IGP, and is now wholly in control of the MWO properties.
The late-August patch dropped more Vindicators for MC, Unit Creation for CW, some bugfixes, and downside-free Weapon Modules
The Path to Victory challenge is on! Grind out solo matches for loot!
The Patch on August 19th dropped the Hero Vindicator, plus a slugs-worth of bugfixes.
Oosik Bash 4 was scheduled for August 9th, but was cancelled due to lack of attendance.
A Hot Fix on August 8th made changes to PPCs and Clan ER Large Lasers.
The August 5th Patch is here, with a new Hero Battlemaster, and Bitchin' Betty finds some more vocabulary.

The July 29th Patch, with fall damage tweaks, a revamped Module system, IS mech quirks, and more.

What is Mechwarrior Online?
Mechwarrior Online is a free-to-play, PC-based, online shooter produced by Piranha Games Interactive. MWO places you in the command seat of a heavily armed and armored walking battle machine that you pilot in team-based matches against other Mechwarriors. Your mech is very customizable and able to field a huge assortment of energy, ballistic, and missile weapons along with an array of modules and other utility items. At the end of each match you earn C-Bills, the in-game currency used to buy more items and mechs, and experience that is used to enhance the piloting abilities of your war machines. Between matches, you can customize your mech with a variety of engines, weapons, subsystem modules, and chassis enhancements until you have your chosen chassis tailored to your liking.

There are currently three game modes: Skirmish, Assault, and Conquest.

• In Skirmish, your team is pitted directly against the enemy team in a battle to the death! The team with the last mech standing wins.
• In Assault, you and your team attempt to capture the enemy team's base without losing your own, or eliminate the enemy team. But watch out for turrets that guard the bases on some maps!
• Conquest is a traditional domination mode where you and your team are attempting to control resource nodes that generate victory points. The first team to reach 750 victory points, or that eliminates the opposing force, wins.

In the future, Community Warfare will be introduced that will pit player-based Mercenary Corps and PGI operated Houses against each other for control of entire planets and territory throughout the Inner Sphere.

Sounds good, where do I start?
1.) Download the client at http://www.mwomercs.com and install it.
2.) Before launching the game, Visit the Training Grounds online. Watch those videos to get at least an initial grasp of what to expect. This game has a bit of a learning curve to it and while it's not super-steep, it's definitely not just a jump-in-and-click-things-until-you-win sort of game. Be sure to watch the Weapon Grouping video as it'll do the most to help keep you alive. Chain fire is your friend, learn to use it.
2a.) Penny Arcade also did some Pilot Safety Posters and while they're humorous, they do have some good information in them.
3.) When you start the game you will have access to four trial mechs that rotate out for new mechs every month or so. These are non-customizable mechs, designed by PGI and the community for ease-of-entry into learning the game (except for the Stalker; that thing's a newbie death trap). Select a mech, and use the in-game Tutorial and Training Grounds to get a feel for how the game controls. Move around. Shoot your guns. Try overheating, then remember that overheating is bad.
4.) Jump into real matches! After each match you will earn some C-Bills, Mech XP, and General XP. C-Bills are the in-game currency used to buy everything except cosmetic items. At the end of each of your first twenty-five matches, you'll earn a Cadet C-bill bonus that you can save up to purchase your first mech. You'll also earn Mech XP, which is specific to the mech you earned it on and is used to buy piloting enhancements like faster torso rotation or better heat mitigation. You'll also also earn General XP that can be used on any mech, and can also be used to unlock modules and module improvements.
5.) Mech Credits (MC) are the in-game currency that you purchase with real money in order to shortcut your way to a new mechs and equipment. MC is also used to purchase premium account status and cosmetic items for your mech like new paint jobs, and items to put in your cockpit like bobblehead dolls.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheOosiks
Our anthem.

We play on the Penny Arcade Ventrilo server; it's dangerous to go alone, so be sure to take this!
http://www.ventrilo.com/download.php
Host: vent15.gameservers.com
Port: 4384
Password: Ask one of the thread regulars!

The Origins of the Oosik Irregulars

CycloneRanger wrote:

The Oosik Irregulars formed when the 2nd Oosik Regulars, while deploying to protect a critical steelworks on Twycross, "mis-calculated" a set of jump coordinates and arrived instead in orbit of Talisker IV. Apparently not realizing the mistake, the Oosiks took up defensive positions--which would later prove fortunate, as the planet was subject to a surprise attack by a combined-arms force of 'mechs and infantry in an attempt to take control of its HPG uplink. In the ensuing battle, the HPG uplink was swiftly destroyed (allegedly due to friendly fire), but the Oosiks--now out of contact with their command structure--elected to remain on Talisker IV. They dug in around the capital city--incidentally home of the sector's only Class 3 brewery--and prepared to fight an extended siege. In the following weeks, the Oosiks earned a reputation as one of the most obdurate and immovable companies in the Inner Sphere. According to contemporary accounts, they could be dislodged neither by any quantity of enemy fire nor by the direct, angrily-shouted orders of their superiors.
In the aftermath of the conflict, the Oosik Irregulars became a mercenary unit, claiming Talisker IV as their base of operations henceforth.

Who are the Oosik Irregulars?
We are a very loosely organized (and by loosely I mean not at all) mercenary corp that is open to anyone who wants to join. The Penny Arcade community frequently makes loose groups for new games just to make it easier to find people to play with, and while this started out as just another one of those it has grown into so much more. We formed under the banner of The Oosik Irregulars as a way to honor the great forumer @A Flock Of Walrus who brought us closed beta footage at the expense of his access to the game, and have since become a tightly-knit group of very active players.

We don't care about player skill levels or general MWO experience. Our primary goal is to have fun and help each other out, including brand new players. If this is your first time launching the game we'll happily drop alongside you. We have a lot of experienced community members more than willing to help you out and I can't think of a single person that would refuse to let you roll in a lance with them. If you're an experienced pilot already then you'll also find players looking to push themselves as hard as possible in this game, and who are constantly working to improve their game. There is something for everyone in the Oosiks Irregulars!

How do I join the Oosik Irregulars?
The good news is you already have! There is no application, no interview, no skill level check, or anything else involved. Just show up, start playing, and don't be shy in the thread. We mostly don't bite.

Do you guys stream matches at all?
We do at http://www.twitch.tv/theoosiks and while there is no set schedule for streaming, we will announce when we're going live via Twitter or in the thread.

Where can I get a sig from!?
PM @TOGSolid, @Kashaar, or @Nips

What's this I hear about Oosik swag? I'm an Oosik now, and I'm woefully swag-free.
Check out @Nips sig! He likes giving away freebies to underserved, swag-less Oosiks. Be sure to send him a PM, or he might not see your request!

The OBN Homepage: http://www.outreachnews.net
The OBN Mechlab: http://outreachnews.net/mechlab
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Outreach_News

Outreach Broadcast News is an offshoot of the Oosik Irregulars. Run by a dedicated group of Oosiks, it is pushing to become one of the premier fansites for Mechwarrior Online. Complete with its own Mechlab with features no other website has, articles about the game, and much more! We also have some very big things in store for when Community Warfare goes live that will be sure to excite everyone. One of the best parts about OBN is that it's open to the community to work on! If you have an idea for an article or wish to contribute you are absolutely welcome to! Just contact @Mvrck or @Kusmeroglu

The OBN Mechlab has several unique, powerful tools available to evaluate your potential mech builds. If you'd like to know how the heat scaling works, we have graphs for that! Want to see how your build will perform heat-wise with constant firing? We have a simulator for that! Want to know the cooldown rate for a Large Pulse Laser? We have charts and stats for that! Want to know the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow? Then you're a smartass! (though we're sure Petra will end up graphing that as well)

The OBN staff is very open to new ideas for the site and constructive criticism. This is a site for the fans, by the fans, and we want it to be the best it can be so don't be shy to speak up.

1.) Flanking is god.
If there is a primary battle line and you're not in a mech that needs to be holding that line then circle around and pounce the stragglers/high value targets like LRM boats. Jumping the LRM boats is an especially game-changing thing to do because once those LRMs stop flying PUG players get really emboldened and ballsy. Even if you die you will still be the big god-damn hero. Learning the maps is a huge part of this; use the terrain to your advantage to successfully jump and annihilate packs of targets.

2.) Learn your range bands and proper positioning.
If you are a brawler then that doesn't necessarily mean you need to get in ASAP. Allow the fight to evolve a bit and wait for targets of opportunity. Go off to the sides and see if you have open lines to approach on to catch your enemies unaware. Conversely, if you are sniper and can still freely shoot things then why move in if you don't have to? Obviously, if you need to reposition to take advantage of the changing battle lines then do so but moving in just to move in? Nah, don't do this. This also kinda applies to brawlers since this is how you end up with a giant clusterfuck of people all at 10 meters trying to get hits in.

3.) Learn your mech.
Trying to get into a hill humping contest with a Stalker while you're in an Atlas? Bad idea. Your guns are low slung and you have to expose yourself a lot to use them. Doing it in a Jager? Brilliant. That mech's hardpoints are tailor-made for this sort of thing. This also means using these hardpoints to your advantage and putting appropriate weaponry in them. For instance, don't put your big guns in the lowest slung points on your mech. Keep em high and you'll be able to take advantage of any hills. Of course, this depends on your mech but this goes back to playing your chosen variant correctly. Don't use the Cataphract CTF-4X as a hill-humper because all the big guns are super low slung. DO use it to keep people suppressed when you can and as a heavy fire support mech. Similarly, don't try to use a Victor as a frontline mech. You hit hard but don't have Atlas grade armor to absorb hits with. DO use an Atlas for that because it's a purpose-built party crasher.

4.) Play medium mechs a lot, even though the meta would make you think they're bad.
Yes, really. The better armor and firepower of a heavy or assault Mech is no replacement for good situational awareness and positioning. Pick a mech with a specific role to flesh out your skills in that area, i.e. if you want to be a better brawler then run a HBK-4G. You will die a lot, you will get your ass kicked, and it will make you a better pilot.

5.) Patience can help a lot.
There are just as many times when hanging back and waiting for the right moment is just as advantageous as crashing the gates and going nuts. This is especially true in the current meta where a lot of stuff out there that can vaporize you if you get too ballsy.
That said, there is a time and a place for coordinated, balls-out gate crashing. Going in with your buddies all at once can do amazing things to break the enemy's lines but it has to be done carefully and at the right time, which goes back to that whole fickle patience thing.

6.) Let the pubbies go first.
They tend to follow anyone that looks even remotely competent. Seeing as how we tend to love flanking maneuvers and speed we end up with a tendency to have the pubbies follow us when we're counting on them to blob to their usual locations. Wait a little bit at the start of the match before you strike out to do horrible things to the enemy's butts.

7.) Want some great fundamentals training? Don't be shy about taking your mech onto the training grounds and just cruising around checking out the maps to learn it.
While you're doing that keep moving at high speeds as you shoot up the dummy mechs to learn to move and shoot fluidly. Circle around them while keeping your crosshair on the target via torso twisting until you don't have to think about it. Practice popping up behind a hill, acquiring your target, firing, and hiding as fast as possible until it becomes second nature. The more skills you commit to muscle memory, the better a pilot you'll be. Remember, you fight like you train so train like you fight.

8.) Want some great aim training?
Pick up a copy of Unreal Tournament 2004 and setup a bot deathmatch with lightning guns only and the game speed mutator set to 150% speed. From here, practice getting headshots on the move in the training grounds. It's a hard target to hit in most mechs and it will help you fine tune your aim with MWO's weapons.

9.) Call your targets to aid in focus firing and for Kerensky's sake, press R to lock on to your targets!
With 12 vs 12 and the recent UI upgrades, we have more phonetic alphabet letters to learn to aid in target calling! For your reference here's the full list:

1.) A lot of times when emailing support they will have you run the official MWO repair tool located here: http://mwomercs.com/forums/topic/115147-mwo-repair-tool-public-release/ Try this before going any more in depth with trying to fix things!
2.) A reinstall can do wonders if you're having problems with the bootstrap launcher (the patcher thing that pops up before you get the login window). Sometimes the uninstall goes wrong (because of course), so go here if it won't reinstall.
3.) Try manually deleting the shader cache (MWO should do this automatically, but sometimes fails and it gets corrupted). The post in the link also gives steps to set up a batch script to force the deletion each time MWO loads.
4.) This is a weird fix, but some people found that moving the install directory to another physical drive solves crashes. Literally cut/paste the directory and update shortcuts manually. Not sure if moving to another partition on the same drive helps.
5.) Force your video card to stop power-save throttling and disable ambient occlusion.
6.) Force multi-threading, in case the game isn't using all available cores.
Tips from @Cabezone!
7.) I recommend people run the repair tool even with a new installation. I've had crashing after a fresh install fixed by the tool.
8.) Setting my PC to high performance also fixed an issue I was having where Mechwarrior was set to some low powered mode and the video card wasn't able to run full out.

GOOD HUNTING, MECHWARRIORS.

A big thanks to @TOGSolid‌ for the last OP, upon which this one is heavily based. Thanks Tog!

Eat it You Nasty Pig.

is the new datacenter at a different location, or is this just a hardware upgrade or something? I guess it's probably not worth hoping they move somewhere closer to the west coast

Nips

Eat it You Nasty Pig. wrote: »

is the new datacenter at a different location, or is this just a hardware upgrade or something? I guess it's probably not worth hoping they move somewhere closer to the west coast

I don't know the exact location, but from words on the Twitters and Internets, the move to the new datacenter is supposed to improve connections for basically any non-US based players.

So, probably, closer to where the Fat Internet Pipes(tm) exist. Which is probably anywhere but Canada.

Konphujun

Thought I'd bring my post from the previous thread over since it was the last thing posted.

Konphujun wrote: »

I'd like to echo what Hydro and jjae have said regarding the timber wolf package. Honestly, at this point, given that all of the hero mechs are IS and the clans being flat out superior in every aspect, I wouldn't advise hero mechs anymore. If you're going to drop cash and are concerned about getting the most value for your dollar, clans are the way to go, 100%.

Buttcleft

Different location.

Also I wish PGI would enable us to buy mechbays for cbills, I mean sure they should be drastically priced, like 10mil or something, to encourage purchases with MC. But there are people out there that'll never buy MC, and enabling them to expand their lineup even at a high cost would better the game for all and put more players out there for the big spenders to fight against and spend money against.

Or hell, just get rid of mechbays and let people have as many mechs as they want.

DaMoonRulz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saheVNMp7qQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lR3lHWm36Uw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7tEzQFIBQQ

We should be doing this!

HydroSqueegee

Montreal is where the servers moved to from what ive read. They were in toronto.

HydroSqueegee

Hey, was it @TOGSolid‌ that had a friend make that sweet custom art for us? Where can i get my grubby mits on it?

DaMoonRulz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgK78plSBgI

Mazzyx

I was going to play tonight.

Then I remembered server migration.

DaMoonRulz

Mazzyx wrote: »

I was going to play tonight.

Then I remembered serve migration.

@mazzyx This is actually the perfect time because on the Test Server you can buy any much you want including clans. I think you were wanting the Summoner but I may have been misremembering

Mazzyx

DaMoonRulz wrote: »

Mazzyx wrote: »

I was going to play tonight.

Then I remembered serve migration.

mazzyx This is actually the perfect time because on the Test Server you can buy any much you want including clans. I think you were wanting the Summoner but I may have been misremembering

Don't have a test client installed.

DaMoonRulz

Mazzyx wrote: »

DaMoonRulz wrote: »

Mazzyx wrote: »

I was going to play tonight.

Then I remembered serve migration.

mazzyx This is actually the perfect time because on the Test Server you can buy any much you want including clans. I think you were wanting the Summoner but I may have been misremembering

Don't have a test client installed.

It doesn't take long.
http://patcher.mwomercs.com/installer/PublicTest/MechWarriorOnlineInstaller.exe

Eat it You Nasty Pig.

do they still give everybody a big pile of bills/exp on test? I might fire it up and screw around with storm crows later

Mazzyx

I have it going.

It not super fast.

At least not like 5 hours long.

Maybe.

Looking like an hour.

I might be going to bed before this is done.

HydroSqueegee

Ill hop on and play on test for a while. Gonna see how many gauss rifles i can shove i a dire wolf.

DaMoonRulz

@Eat it You Nasty Pig.‌ 50m cbills and 30k MC or so

Orick

Trust me guys. You don't want a low ping. You don't get any lag armour with low ping. My 7 ms ping is better than y'all put together but I am the lowest of the oosiks. I fully expect to be 10 times as effective once they move server and my ping is 70 ms.

imperialparadox

OK, the Stormcrow is pretty hilarious as a LRMboat, and it works as an SRMboat. I need this mech. Sigh, waiting for CBill versions...

Mazzyx

imperialparadox wrote: »

OK, the Stormcrow is pretty hilarious as a LRMboat, and it works as an SRMboat. I need this mech. Sigh, waiting for CBill versions...

Ugliest mech ever.

Seriously though they are so dorky looking.

DaMoonRulz

https://twitter.com/HerbuRola/status/505173538299342850

Nips

Mazzyx wrote: »

imperialparadox wrote: »

OK, the Stormcrow is pretty hilarious as a LRMboat, and it works as an SRMboat. I need this mech. Sigh, waiting for CBill versions...

Ugliest mech ever.

Seriously though they are so dorky looking.

Dems fightin words, son.

LuuuurmCrows4life!

Tigliss

Gentlespacevikings - I bring useful information from a wretched hive of scum and villainy.

Hit boxes so that your aim may be true!

3lwap0

Thanks for the advice all. I'm hoping to rebuild the champion Kintaro too - as a LRM boat, I enjoyed it a fair bit, and also made good money in it. The BlackJack was really for lols. Killing mechs way out of your weight class by playing smart, and applying AC/20 does wonders for enjoyment.

I'll have to play with you guys on Vent sometime soon, if you can forgive my noobness.

Buttcleft

AC/20 is the great equalizer.

3lwap0

Buttcleft wrote: »

AC/20 is the great equalizer.

It really is.

Saw a Cicada with dual AC/20's slowly plodding along in a game. It eventually made it to combat, and for one glorious moment, annihilated a mech.

Buttcleft

Cicada can mount dual ac20s? Christ.

3lwap0

Buttcleft wrote: »

Cicada can mount dual ac20s? Christ.

If you put a slow engine in it, and no armor worth mentioning, yes, you can.

Buttcleft

3lwap0 wrote: »

Buttcleft wrote: »

Cicada can mount dual ac20s? Christ.

If you put a slow engine in it, and no armor worth mentioning, yes, you can.

Oh my god, it has to be done with a Standard 100 engine. it moves at 40km/h. Its slower than an assault

3lwap0

Skip to 29:15, and see the Cicada in action. It was worth a hearty laugh.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQC5eBCGaqY&list=UUxBNPImDTYuq3BY_WfMJ9cA

Buttcleft

That is the best cicada ever.

DaMoonRulz

Buttcleft wrote: »

That is the best cicada ever.

Especially if you're fighting against it.

Ninja Snarl P

DaMoonRulz wrote: »

Buttcleft wrote: »

That is the best cicada ever.

Especially if you're fighting against it.

How do you even get mad at it? Even if it kills you, it's an AC40 Cicada. You can't be mad at that.

HydroSqueegee

servers are up. chillin in vent for the next hour or so pugging.

Nips

HydroSqueegee wrote: »

servers are up. chillin in vent for the next hour or so pugging.

How's everything seem? Flaky? Stable? Smooth as buttah?

imperialparadox

Mazzyx wrote: »

imperialparadox wrote: »

OK, the Stormcrow is pretty hilarious as a LRMboat, and it works as an SRMboat. I need this mech. Sigh, waiting for CBill versions...

Ugliest mech ever.

Seriously though they are so dorky looking.

Yeah it's ugly, but that's ok. It can do the lolLRM thing that the Kintaro can do.

HydroSqueegee

i wasnt even trying and i almost broke 1k

HydroSqueegee

Nips wrote: »

HydroSqueegee wrote: »

servers are up. chillin in vent for the next hour or so pugging.

How's everything seem? Flaky? Stable? Smooth as buttah?

seems good so far. but ive always had a good connection.

HydroSqueegee

i guess im only allowed 1 win a day in the pug queue...

HydroSqueegee

yea. it doesnt matter how i perform, 1000 damage or 100, we still lose.

HydroSqueegee

fuck it. i give up. the pugs are unusually terrible today.