Matrix Games Forums

Being an old MechForce veteran, I learned that the biggest titans usually provided the most bang for the buck, so to speak.

Now with TOS, the situation seems quite a bit more balanced. Assaults naturally are THE option when you don't want to make compromises in your designs, but quite surprisingly, as Wolfpack recons have shown, titan tonnage certainly doesn't equal its destructive prowess.

Especially on energy titans, a medium is really all you need to rack up the max firepower. Adding tonnage only slightly boosts your electronics and some armor, but having two mediums instead will yield much better results.

Heavy AC titans do require large frames, but their destructive power is clearly unparalleled at short ranges. Pure CC titans, OTOH, require very little in terms of tonnage to be of real nuisance. A Flamer-based titan needs speed above armor, so I'd recommend lights or even recons for that task. Supports would be assumed to stay behind the lines, but due to airdrop possibility, they must be quite large to sport both the required long range firepower and armor to tackle invaders.

So, what do others think? What are the optimal tonnages for each 'theme' of titans?

Just NEVER have a large engine because it is too heavy. Even lower it by one class can give you returns in many equippments.

What I consider enough is Engine 3 (7PU) for two NBs, a scanner and ECM. All other cases are similar.

What about running, dodging, sheilds, recharging weapons quicker, charges, jump jets, etc.
Havin an inadequate engine will kill you more often than inadequate scanner or ECM.

My attitude towards tonnage is as follows:

Maximum armor first. I then reduce the armor slot by slot justifying every addition of weaponry/electronics vs the loss of armor in accordance with how I envision the titan to work. I then determine how much energy is required and give it a heat reg that will be effective. This is just an overall strategy. In solo play, a lot of this depends on the skills of the pilot it is being designed for as well as its purpose in the team.

Most common mistake I see in designs:

Overloading with weapons at the price of armor.

one exception to this rule are NM titans. They can usually keep the enemy heat high enough that they can't fire back effectively or often. The more NM's they have the more effective this technique becomes though they would still be relatively weak in the Polar regions.