Line #66 YMMV/MechWarrior


1	* AbridgedArenaArray:
2	** TSA_Sandblasted in ''Living Legends''. In version 0.3.2, servers usually had 3 maps in their rotation: Sandblasted, Palisades, and Thunder Rift. All for 90 minute rounds. Later versions of the mod lessen Sandblasted's prominence, but server owners still get a hard-on for the map.
3	** One of the more popular servers, 'Huntress', was operated by the Clan Smoke Jaguar unit and ran [[ShiftingSandLand Sandblasted, Palisades, and Mirage]] almost back-to-back, leading to some players calling the unit "Clan Sand Jaguar". The new Huntress - with very few of the old guard - has much more varied maps.
4	* AdaptationDisplacement: Until the ''VideoGame/BattleTech'' video game launched in 2018, ''[=MechWarrior=]'' was a much more recognizable name than ''TabletopGame/BattleTech''. Case in point, ''[=MechWarrior=]: Tactics'' was given the [=MechWarrior=] title rather than the [=BattleTech=] title, despite being closer to the original board game than the main [=MechWarrior=] games.
5	* ArtificialStupidity: In ''[=MechWarrior=] 5'', enemy mechs operate on a fairly simple script: if a target, in their line of sight, is doing damage, they focus 100% on that. If your NPC buddies have the attention of the Op For, the human player (with guns silent) can then run right past the opposing mechs, and murder them one by one via backstabbing, without attracting any fire whatsoever. With a bit of care, it is possible to pilot one light mech through all three parts of a multi-mission contract.
6	* AuthorsSavingThrow: Some ''[=MechWarrior=] 5'' players found that the main campaign stretches disbelief, in that a single mercenary unit could [[spoiler:fight directly against [=ComStar=], controllers of the galactic communications network and a faction that even the great Successor States tread carefully around,]] without any apparent consequences. The subsequent ''The Dragon's Gambit'' DLC reveals that a certain [[spoiler:Anastasius Focht]] has in fact been keeping a careful eye on your outfit and implicitly shielding you from repercussions because his faction might have need of your talents -- something which you learn when said faction reaches out to make AnOfferYouCantRefuse to kick off the DLC's plot.
7	* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: [=MechWarrior=] 2 is full of this, and [=MechWarrior=] 4: Mercenaries starts playing heavy metal at the start of massive firefights.
8	** For example: [=MechWarrior=] 2 has [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuLzxMILrbo&hd=1 Labrea, Circle of Equals]]
9	** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iRgzS2XTyM "Control, I have a flare at Nav Beta."]] Sadly, it was the only time [=MechWarrior=] 4 used that song.
10	* BreatherLevel: Subverted. The geothermal plant in ''[=MechWarrior=] 3'' is only supposed to have some Elementals in it, which can be dispatched relatively easily with Battlemech-grade weaponry. Coming between a slugout at close range with two 100-ton ''Daishi'' 'Mechs and the FinalBattle, it seems like a moment to regroup. There's a trio of 90-ton Sunders in there.
11	* BrokenBase:
12	** Big one over the changes in ''Living Legends''
13	*** The lack of a mechlab - Some approve of the lack of mechlab (because players have to rely on more diverse layouts, [[MinMaxing instead of just boating weapons]]), while others dislike the lack of customization.
14	*** ArtisticLicense: Most of the designs are met with high approval, but the controversial Thor/Summoner design (which removes the offset arm, has thinner legs, and a boxier torso) has a significant hate base. Other changes, such as the weapons on mechs glowing has supporters arguing that it allows newbies to get into the game more easily (identifying their enemies), while others argue that it makes stealth harder and looks silly.
15	*** '''Combined arms''': The big one. Vets from previous games argue that a [=MechWarrior=] game should not have tanks and [[TabletopGame/BattleTech aircraft]]. Supporters argue that it makes a huge impact on gameplay and offers more variety, while others argue that mechwarrior should [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks not have things other than mechs]], period; though more coherent arguments are that some of the non-mech assets are [[GameBreaker unbalanced]].
16	** ''Mechwarrior Online'':
17	*** The changes to the original plans of [=MechWarrior Online=] haven't helped gain support from some fans. Stated deadlines were missed for some features to be introduced, such as Community Warfare. As such, players have begun forming their own gaming leagues to fill in the gap.
18	*** One particular nasty one is the [=ECM=] Suite. Tons of fans crying out about how it makes [=LRMs=] and Streak [=SRMs=] useless.
19	*** Then there's the whole issue of "heat scaling" (what the community knows better as "Ghost Heat"). In an attempt to help lengthen match durations by increasing mech's longevity, and as a way to reduced the ability to boat and Alpha strike, PGI added a heat penalty to firing multiples of the same weapon type at the same time as listed [[http://mwomercs.com/forums/topic/127904-heat-scale-the-maths/ here on the MWO forums]]. The fans blew up over this, with some praising the changes, and purists ranting about PGI trying to make the game "easy mode for casuals" (ignoring the irony of course that the whole purpose of boating is to make it "easy mode" to destroy enemy mechs).
20	*** An even nastier one for MWO happened with the pre-order of Clantech mechs. Prices of upwards of a hundred dollars for mech configurations has caused some issues among the fan base, even to some of the most die-hard pilot. The issue is caused by the following key reasons:
21	*** Collections provide the best over all deals, by throwing in 3 mechs for every tier (an additional $30 dollars per collection tier level, I.E. the 2nd tier $60 collection will get you 6 mechs) purchased, plus some extras like premium time or cockpit items. However, in a blatant attempt to convince players to buy higher cost pre-order packages, the Tiers are go in a Light, Medium, Heavy, Assault, Repeat order of purchase. Additionally, the ever popular Mad Cat / Timber Wolf was placed as the 7 out 8 in the tiers of collection, which cost $210.
22	*** A La Carte purchases allows you skip over the tiers to purchase any of the Prime Chassis and two variants, but at the cost of $55 for each, and comes with no additional bonuses beyond the mechs and their mech bays. So no warhorns, no bonus modules, no premium time, no cockpit items, etc.
23	*** The Gold collection, while it comes with the $240 top tier Maskari/Warhawk collection (which includes 24 mechs total alone, 6 of each weight class), but then tosses on a golden colored Prime Variant of any of the 8 Prime mechs, for an additional $260, for a total cost of $500. A lot of people are not happy at the high cost primarily for a Vanity item, which has led to complaints that it's "500 for one mech!". Not to mention, the gold colors can be similarly replicated with the much cheaper Kintaro-Golden Boy Hero Mech.
24	*** To top the whole issue off, PGI earned further ire from the players, when the announced recently that there was "Less than 50 Gold Timber Wolf 'mechs left", which has players asking the obvious: "How do you have run out of a completely digital item?" (PGI claims it's for exclusivity sake, something that can already, and is handled via the fact that it's a Pre-order only option right now). Many cynical players began snarking that there was "only 50 left, because there was only 51 to begin with".
25	*** And then regarding the addition of Clan Tech itself, is PGI's announcement saying they intend to balance/nerf some portions of Clan Tech in an attempt to avoid the tech conversion rush from Inner Sphere mechs, to Clan mechs as seen in previous games. Such mentioned ideas include the following:
26	*** Clan Lasers generating more heat scaling (aka ghost heat) and have longer "burn" time to inflict full damage.
27	*** [=StreakSRM=] 4s and 6s having a staggered launches of 2 missiles at a time to enable [=AMS=] a better chance of trying to shoot any down.
28	*** Clan [=LRMs=] which (while still weighing less than IS [=LRMs=]) will weigh a few tons more than their original [=BattleTech=] weights, and will have to reach the a certain distance to deal full damage via a ramp up damage mechanic for missiles that hit less than the normal 180 meter minimum range distance to avoid "[=StreakLRMs=]". The fanbase on the forums are completely shattered at this point between whether these are a good idea to keep things balanced and [=BattleTech=] purists who believe that PGI is completely missing the point that Clans are powerful at the beginning, and that the Inner Sphere catches up by getting unique equipment of their own such as Rotary Auto Cannons
29	*** Additionally Clan Omnimechs will have Engine, Armor, and Structure restrictions, in that Omni's can't switch between Standard and XL engines, Ferro-Fibrous and Standard armor, or Endo-Steel and normal structure, stuck with the types they start with. Also, for armor and structure options, they'll have fixed critical slots spread through out the mech, rather than Dynamic critical slots like on IS mechs. Detractors have begun claiming that that IS mechs are more Omnimech like than the Omnimechs themselves.
30	** Mean while ''[=MechWarrior Tactics=]'' has similar pay issues. It's advertised as "Free to Play!" but is currently in a Closed Beta state. How does one get access? A. Sign up, and hope you're given a Beta key, or B. Buy a Founders package for instant access, at $20, $50, or $120 dollars. With no announcements hinting at when Open Beta or the official launch is, and a closed beta that's been going on about a year or more now, people are starting to question whether the game is ever being launched, and if it's really an AllegedlyFreeGame
31	*** More info has came on this that reveals that after Blue Lizard Games development team that was working on it was fired, work pretty much stopped and eventually ''Tactics'' was allowed a slow death that was confirmed with IGP closing shop in November and selling off their assets. Even more infuriating is that apparently they have took the founder packages, and c-bill purchases that people payed real money for without ever completing the game and giving them the promised packages. Unless those who did used a pay service that allows for refunds, it means IGP took that money and effectively ran away with it without giving it back or giving proof that a real product would eventually come out and with IGP's 24 million Canadian dollars debt refunds are pretty much out of the question except for those who already done so when they could.
32	** Mechwarrior V managed to get some detractors criticizing the intro cinematic, comparing it unfavorably to the HBS 2018 {{VideoGame/Battletech}} game. Other detractors criticized the overly-simplified Basic View of the 'Mech Lab customization screen.
33	* CrazyIsCool: The "Heavy Metal" Hero 'Mech from ''[=MechWarrior Online=]''. It's the first Hero 'Mech to be released ''before'' the other variants of its chassis, as a ''Highlander'', it's a 90 ton assault 'Mech with [=JumpJets=], it has built-in speakers that play guitar riffs every time it scores a kill, and it's painted in ''[[RealMenWearPink pink]]''. The origin for mech, is based off of the Highlander used by [[http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Rhonda_Snord#Battlemechs Rhonda Snord]] of the Snord's Irregular and Wolf's Dragoons, where she used those speakers to play Elvis music.
34	** Also from ''Online'', we have the recently introduced Vindicator line of mechs, which launched with a hero mech variant, the "St.Ive's Blues". It's a friggin' 45 ton police mech sporting Black and white police colors, and a police star on the shoulders.
35	** Thanks to the introduction of the Clan Mechs, and their Omnipod systems, ''Online'' players can create their own Crazy Awesome mech! Dire Wolf with [[MoreDakka 6 LB-5X ACs]] [[ShotgunsAreJustBetter with Cluster munitions]] anyone?
36	* DemonicSpiders:
37	** The Vulture B in ''Living Legends'', which has 4 [[MacrossMissileMassacre Dual Short Ranged Missile-6 launchers]]. While the missiles are individually weak, the missiles can be fired almost constantly, they have huge explosion effects, smoke trails that obscure the mech firing them, and the the missiles can rock the target's pilot around so much that they simply ''cannot'' fight back.
38	** Aerospace Fighters in ''Living Legends'', to many players. The Aerospace fighters can damn-near instagib many mechs and tanks with their powerful bombs, and the pilot of the fighter can come in straight down at a ninety degree angle, preventing any of the people on the ground from firing back unless they're in an Anti-Air tank. Said anti-air tanks tend to be glacially slow and the first target of the fighters.
39	*** The [[FragileSpeedster Sparrowhawk]] scout plane in particular is a famous Demonic Spider, for aerospace. You '''cannot''' out-turn a Sparrowhawk, so your only hope to escape is to boost as fast as you can back to base before the [[FanNickname Shawk]] blows out your fuselage. If the Shawk pilot knows he cannot blast through your armor in time, he'll probably just smash you into a mountain by ''landing on you in midair''. Before the physics were adjusted, the Shawk was also incredibly effective at ruining the day of tanks on the ground, by [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EPAybB_CpQ smashing into them at max speed, causing them to go flying across the map spinning wildly]].
40	** [[PowerArmor BattleArmor]] in ''Living Legends''. Demonic spawns from the pits of hell, to Assault 'Mech pilots and tank drivers. They'll hop onto your head / turret, and start hacking off your limbs, rear armor, or in some cases, start blasting through the cockpit to kill the pilot directly. Attempting to bail out to kill them will only make things worse - they will hose you down with their bullet hose handheld Autocannon, or steal your 'mech to kill you and walk off. Players with BA on their heads have only one hope - their teammates, or mashing their face up against a wall and firing all their explosive weaponry to try and kill the battlearmor with splash damage - Doing this of course, requires you to reach the wall before the battlearmor damages you too much, otherwise you'll just end up blowing yourself up.
41	*** A good Battle Armor driver can do some serious damage in ''Mechwarrior 4'', as well. Just... [[GoingCritical don't stand too close if you actually]] ''[[GoingCritical kill]]'' [[GoingCritical something]].
42	** One mission in ''Ghost Bear's Legacy'' requires you to defend a dropship from enemy attack, which isn't so bad...until they start siccing kamikaze Battle Armor units (mechs at least half the size of the smallest playable mech in the game, and thus a huge pain in the ass to hit) rigged with lots of explosives on you. Thankfully, they can be easily one-hit killed by [[spoiler: Flamers or one of any Missile.]]
43	%%* EnsembleDarkHorse: Duncan Fisher in ''[=MechWarrior=] 4: Mercenaries''.
44	* EvenBetterSequel: In regards to balance, the games have gotten progressively better. However, in other regards, each game has its strong points.
45	** ''3'' - A complete train wreck of terrible balance decisions has caused a generation of scrubs to disregard certain tactics (such as legging) in later games. However, the game was very immersive and had an excellent singleplayer campaign.
46	** ''4'' - Much improved the balance, but the presence of slow jump jets, third person, and most maps having no objectives causes the game to revolve around turtling; players hide behind walls in jump capable Assault mechs, waiting for an enemy to pop up so that they can blast them with their 2 ERPPC 2 Gauss Rifle loadout. The ''Mercenaries'' standalone expansion pack added an awesome singleplayer campaign where you could choose your next mission, hire mercenaries, and so on.
47	*** Mektek's free release of ''Mechwarrior 4'' added the [[EnemyDetectingRadar Advanced Radar]] mode (line of sight radar only, rather than detecting enemies through buildings and terrain), which combined with the force first person view server option, effectively killed off "poptarting" (jumping up from behind cover in third person to snipe at people, then falling back down into cover) as a major tactic on servers that run Advanced Radar.
48	** ''Living Legends'' - Mech-on-mech action is fairly balanced without any significant gamebreakers, but since its combined arms, the balance between aerospace, battlearmor, tanks, and mechs is shifting on a nearly patch-by-patch basis.
49	** '' 5: Mercenaries'' - Unlike most of the previous games, where most (if not all) missions were hand-crafted encounters, 5 takes a much more sandbox approach, with most of your missions being negotiated, randomly generated contracts and dropped into randomly generated levels with random enemies, and limited to 5 separate types of objective (demolition, raid, assassinate, defense, and warzone). General consensus in reviews at launch was that the combat gameplay was good and the contract negotiation system was a huge step, but that the story, characters, and voice acting is... less than stellar.
50	* FanNickname:
51	** The Shiva E in ''Living Legends'' is nicknamed the BeatStick Shiva or Flying Beatstick, since it's basically a flying version of the Mad Cat MKII ''Beatstick''.
52	** The Harasser D (which carries 6 flamethrowers): Flamasser
53	** Vehicles with long, unpronounceable names tend to get renamed. The Huitzilopotchli is usually just called a "Huit", "Huey", or pronounced on voice chat as "Who-it". The Hephaestus is typically just "Heph" or "Hepatitis"
54	** In ''Online, the map Terra Therma is often called "[[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings Mordor or Mt.Doom]]" due to being a barren, volcanic waste land with a large volcano with walk ways inside of it in the middle. Occasionally there are jokes claiming a Light mech is carrying The One Ring, and players insisting it (as in the "Ring Bearer" Light mech entirely) be cast into the fires of Mt. Doom
55	** Mechwise, for ''Online'' for easy ID, players often call certain popular meta builds by various nicknames depending on loadout. Mechs mounting dual [=AC/20s=] are called "Boommechs" (I.E. on a Jaegermech, it get's called [=BoomJaegers=]). Dual Gauss Rifle mechs simarly replace the first half the mech's name with "Gauss" (I.E. a K-2 Catapult mounting dual Gauss becomes a Gausspult.)
56	** LRM boats get called "[=LuRMers=]".
57	** Mounting three or more Ultra Auto Cannons gets the nickname of a [[MoreDakka DakkaMech]].
58	** Thanks to the "Wub Wub Wub Wub Wub" sound Pulse lasers make, and the addition of the Sonic Boom Warhorn's[[note]]A cockpit item that plays a sound upon earning a Enemy Destroyed with your mech[[/note]] short {{Dubstep}} sound, a popular setup for some [=BattleMaster=] chassis variants, is to mount as many Pulse Lasers as reasonably possible with said warhorn equipped. They've been dubbed [=WubMasters=]
59	* GameBreaker:
60	** A number of players in Mechwarrior 4 and Mercenaries also complained about non-laser weaponry not actually inflicting damage upon their targets -- the so-called "No Damage Bug". However this was far from a universal occurrence, and some players never experienced it at all; or at least, not in a way that could be readily distinguished from ordinary lag. Regardless of its severity, though, the concept itself (and those who insist it remains a major factor) has contributed to the lingering popularity of laser-armed Mechs, even as the ER Large Laser's stats became somewhat less effective in later Mektek releases.
61	** "Boating", the game's term for {{Whoring}}, involves using a 'mech equipped with a single type of weapon. There are actually 'mechs that are designed for that specific tactic, such as the Longbow (missiles), Annihilator (ballistics), and Supernova (lasers). In "No heat, unlimited ammo" (NHUA) games, these configurations are more devastating. This is especially notable in the second game, where you can load up on [=LRMs=], and as long as you can keep your distance, you can eat things alive without ever getting touched.
62	** "Jump-sniping", also known as "poptarting" in the multiplayer community, involves hiding behind a ridge or obstacle, activating the jump jets, firing your weapons and dropping behind cover. This allows players to net easy kills while only being vulnerable for a few seconds. This tactic is so effective that many players employ this tactic every time, often turning a multiplayer match into a GiantMecha version of whack-a-mole. [[ObviousRulePatch Several game changes]] have been made to reduce the effectiveness of this tactic and encourage more varied gameplay.
63	** The [[MacrossMissileMassacre 4xELRM-20 Shiva]] aerospace fighter in ''Living Legends 0.3.2'' is capable of effectively instantly killing or crippling Assault mechs in one salvo, it flies at 300kph+, and it can laugh off damage from anything short of concentrated AA fire or a lucky blast from a LBX; except it can fly at such high altitude that the AA weapons do pitiful damage and the LBX can't even get a third of the way there before dissipating. Thankfully it was nerfed down to quad LRM-20s, which have 2/3 the range of a ELRM-20.
64	** The Shiva E assault jet fighter (Flying Beatstick, Beatstick Shiva), which has 2 LBX-20 shotguns and 2 LBX-10 shotguns, with advanced Bloodhound radar. A single salvo from both LBX-10s is enough to effectively instagib anything else flying in the sky, firing all the guns at once is enough to leg most mechs in a single hit. The Shiva E is also incredibly cheap (a mere 87K, less than most heavy mechs), and has enough armor to laugh off attacks from anything besides another Shiva E (which kills it in one hit). It was {{nerf}}ed ''hard'' in the final update.
65	** Legging (destroying a mech's leg) in ''[=MechWarrior=] 3'' resulted in a mech instantly being destroyed. Legs can be attacked from any angle, and aren't particularly hard to hit if you aim for the hip. The legging being so broken in ''[=MechWarrior=] 3'' caused a knee-jerk reaction to legging in the later games, causing people to [[{{Scrub}} curse you out when you leg them]], even after legging was nerfed to simply reducing your speed (in [=MW4=]) [[note]] Destroying a leg would prevent a mech from reversing, and slow them down significantly. Destroying both legs would destroy the mech[[/note]], or causing your mech to fall over but remain functional (in ''Living Legends'') [[note]] Destroying a leg causes the mech to fall over to the ground, but they remain completely functional - including their guns and jumpjets, so they can still shoot and flop about on the ground.[[/note]]
66	*** ''[=MechWarrior=] 3'' introduced a super-cheesy mech-build called the "Flame Boat" which was a Puma equipped with '''16 Flamers''' for running in and smothering an enemy Mech in a literal firestorm which is very infuriating for players on the receiving end as every part of their mech is being damaged at once and their engine gets overheated quickly which prevents them from escaping destruction. To top off how cheap this build was, using 16 Flamers at once would cause so much lag that a victim with a low-performance computer would suffer an in-game freeze or crash, sealing their fate.
67	** Tackling in ''Online''. You plow your mech into an enemy, and one of you (or both) falls over. In organized groups, one player is generally in a Jenner or something fast and well armored, and their only job is to plow into enemies to trip them up, while their allies can pump fire into them. The feature was so buggy (netcode would promptly break upon a mech trying to get up, causing mechs to twitch around and teleport) and game-breaking that it was removed entirely.
68	*** For a while in the ''Online'' pre-open beta, the Dragon had what seemed to be infinite mass. A Dragon could tackle almost any mech in the game (aside from the Atlas, which would fall over but the Dragon down with it) without falling over. Cue players dropping the largest engine possible in the Dragon to run at ~100kph (later nerfed) with as much armor possible, then running through enemy firing lines to trip every single mech. And then, they turn around and do it again. And again. And again.
69	** ''Online'' has the Gauss Rifle. Zero heat, huge damage, tons of ammo, fast reload, perfectly accurate, and its ammo doesn't explode when damaged. It makes [=PPCs=] worthless, [=LRMs=] mediocre at best, and large lasers irrelevant. The Catapult K2 with 2 Gauss Rifles (with its Gauss Rifles in the side torso, firing from machine gun ports) and a XL Engine curb-stomps almost anything in the game, including Atlases at close range. The only thing preventing a Gaussapult from being an unstoppable god of war is the game's questionable server-side authentication on shots, which causes a half-second to one-second delay on firing, making it hard to hit fast assets. Worse still, the Muramets Cataphract, a mech that can only be bought for [[AllegedlyFreeGame real money]] - it's not cheaper either, being around $20-30 - is capable of mounting ''three'' Gauss Rifles.
70	*** Worth mentioning that while Ilya Muromets ''can'' mount a trio of Gauss Rifles, it's not exactly a smart idea as their sheer weight will cause the 'mech to be lacking in either speed, armour or ammunition. Fiddling around on the [[http://mwo.smurfy-net.de/ Smurphy Mechlab]] site reveals that removing everything, including the engine, from a Muromets, adding Endo-Steel and then the three rifles leaves the 'mech with only 8 tons free for engine and ammunition (this is without touching the armour). And that's not even considering the fact that Gauss Rifles explode spectacularly when destroyed.
71	*** Gauss Rifles have also been modified so that they must be charged before firing. Holding the trigger down until they're charged and then releasing to fire requiring greater trigger discipline and target selection in order to avoid wasting shots. The Clan Invasion patch also added a restriction that only two Gauss Rifles can be charged at once, with any further ones needing to wait for the others to fire (or lose their charge) before being able to charge.
72	** Jenners were huge game breakers for ''Online'' for a ''very'' long time, especially next to the two other light classes. When compared with the Raven and Commando they had almost all of their strengths and none of their weaknesses. Three times the max. weapons slots, the ability to at least equal them in speed, jump jets, smaller hitboxes, hard to hit rear armour and cockpits. Worse still whereas the Commando and Raven were largely ignored, the Jenners were consistently upgraded with each patch meaning they could easily run rings around other lights and a skilled pilot could thoroughly demolish bigger and better armed mechs. Their only real weakness is to streak missiles, [[KickThemWhileTheyAreDown which the development team was going to remove by giving them access to ECM]] until [[http://mwomercs.com/forums/topic/78454-make-your-voice-heard-on-ecm-for-jenners/ a forum-wide poll suggested this would not be a popular move.]] They're generally overshadowed by the Ravens these days, those which did get ECM capability.
73	** The Direwolf (IS: Daishi) mech in ''Online''. Already in lore, a fearsome 100-ton Mech built with incredibly feasome amount of firepower, made even deadlier thanks to how Omnipods are handled in game. For starters, the Prime Variant has one of the best weapon set ups stock, and can be made more optimized. Simply "Downgrade" the Medium Pulse Lasers to ER Medium Lasers, and the LRM-15 to an LRM-10, and you've got spare room now for more ammo and heat sinks. Oh sure, if you can get up close, and run circles around them, you've got the advantage, but good luck getting there in the first place.
74	*** The A Variant is often used as either a heavy Energy boat with ER [=PPCs=], ER Large Lasers, and some Pulse Lasers and [=SRMs=], or a Short Ranged Brawler with loads of Medium Pulse Lasers, [=SRMs=], and an LBX.
75	*** The B variant is often set up with omnipods to give it 6 Ballistic hardpoints (2 in each side torso, 1 in each arm) to create either "[[MoreDakka [=DakkaDires=]]]"[[note]]mount 6 UAC5s which unleash a torrential storm of shells that can tear apart most mechs quickly[[/note]], a "[[ShotgunsAreJustBetter Shotgun Dire]]"[[note]]Dire's mounting either two LBX-20s and 4 Machine Guns, or 6 LBX-5s, which are devastating to any mech with exposed internal structure and parts, as even a non-lethal hit will probably critical hit and destroy equipment, or worse, set off an ammo explosion[[/note]], or "[=DireSnipers=]"[[note]]Mounts 2 Gauss Rifles, and occasionally ER [=PPCs=][[/note]]
76	** [[BearsAreBadNews Kodiak KDK-3]] is even worse. While this mech weighs as much as a Dire Wolf, it is faster and more agile and can be armed with four ballistic weapons. KDK-3 is a LightningBruiser incarnate.
77	** The ''Solaris Showdown'' [=DLC=] for ''[=MechWarrior=] 5: Mercenaries'' adds the [=PPC-X=]. Essentially a [=PPC=]-flavored [[ShotgunsAreJustBetter shotgun]], a single shot is capable of stripping most of the armor off of even heavy and assault mechs at surprising distances. This would already be very strong, but what sends it into GameBreaker territory is the fact that it has around twice the rate of fire and half the heat generation of a normal [=PPC=]. Light and medium mechs mounting at least one are more than capable of punching well above their weight, and a heavy or assault mech mounting two or three is nearly unstoppable anywhere inside 400 meters.
78	* GatewaySeries: ''[=MechWarrior 2=]'' probably introduced more fans into the [=BattleTech=] universe than any other [=BattleTech=] product.
79	* GoddamnedBats:
80	** The mission designers for ''Mechwarrior 4: Vengeance'' seemed to be inordinately fond of the Uziel[[note]]The 'mech you see on the game's cover; essentially the MascotMook.[[/note]], given how many of them you run into. Their InterfaceScrew-inducing [=PPCs=], long range, and surprising durability, combined with the fact you tend to encounter more than one in every single mission, will eventually drive pilots mad. The ''Black Knight'' expansion [[DemonicSpiders one-ups this]] with the even more annoying, even more powerful, even tougher to kill Mad Cat Mk. II - You will see more of these [[FridgeLogic Clan mechs used by your Inner Sphere enemies]] in the last op alone than you will see in Clan use ever in ''Mercenaries''.[[note]][[FridgeBrilliance It is worth noting that the Clan in question, Clan Jade Falcon, never purchased the Mad Cat MK II]], only winning some in trial combat. House Steiner presumably acquired a significantly larger number of them from Clan Diamond Shark, who were indeed selling the MK II to the Inner Sphere at the time.[[/note]]
81	** The Osiris and many Harrasser variants in ''Living Legends'' are [[JokeCharacter bad jokes]], but they're also ridiculously fast, are dirt cheap, and often have ''very annoying'' weapons such as [=PPCs=] or massed amounts of flamethrowers. They're not likely to kill you, but they will make you want to punch the guy over your TCP/IP port.
82	** ''[=MechWarrior=] 5: Mercenaries'' suffers from this due to every mission seeming to feature massive swarms of tanks and other treaded vehicles, VTOL aircraft, and on all missions but defense, dozens of turrets. They die pretty quickly, but unlike other games, they're spawned in dynamically, meaning that the territory you just walked through can suddenly be overrun by a dozen tanks shooting you in the rear armor.
83	*** ''[=MW5=]'' is quite partial to the Urbanmech, with one guaranteed to be found defending every firebase you come across, along with everything else that happened to spawn there. While sensible, as this is exactly what the Urbie is best at, their robust armor for their size means that while they won't last long overall, they'll endure long enough to get at least a couple shots in with their remarkably potent AC-10. And for extra fun, if you're fighting the Capellans, you'll be up against their custom UMR-60L variant and its AC-20. Even a few encounters in a mission will rapidly drive up your repair costs, and God help you if they target your lancemates, who will happily get components blown off by the angry little trashcans with alarming speed.
84	*** The ''Solaris Showdown'' [=DLC=] in 5 turns Crusaders into this. While they aren't any more common than other enemy mechs in the regular game, they are disproportionately common in any Arena match that allows Heavy mechs. The armament on most variants is nothing to write home about, but all of them have a massive amount of frontal armor that makes them very difficult to take down if you can't get a good flanking position, [[GangUpOnTheHuman something that's very difficult to do unless you have a coordinated co-op partner]]
85	* GoodBadBugs
86	** Sometimes in ''[=MechWarrior=] 2: Mercenaries'', the game can crash to DOS but sometimes the game will crash to DOS upon having your 'mech destroyed then recover, sending you to the mission complete screen without salvage but you still get your paycheck. This may be due to the fact that any of the ''[=MechWarrior=] 2'' games have separate executables for the in-game portion and the shell menus which DOS automatically swaps between when necessary.
87	** Early versions of ''Living Legends'' allowed mechs to enter any building so long as their feet lined up with the entrance and the entrance could fit an infantry player. What this basically meant, is an Atlas could walk through a 1 story tall warehouse (with the torso sticking straight through the building's roof) and come out on the other side to attack an enemy who thought he was safe.
88	** The Thor and Loki mechs in ''Living Legends'' have slightly broken skeletons on their legs. When they are destroyed or legged, they'll go catapulting through the air spinning around wildly before landing on the ground. Very rarely when they're legged, it'll be catapulted over a thousand meters away and fall off the level.
89	** In the third game the penultimate mission was played in a cavern above a lava lake. It was possible (at least on some patches) for one enemy to misstep and drop inside the lava - where he exploded with enough force to complete a couple of the objectives.
90	*** Or, [[{{Unwinnable}} destroy a bridge you needed to get out of the cavern]] but the bridge is only needed if you forgot to put jump jets on the 'Mech.
91	** The developers for ''Living Legends'' remark on the DummiedOut transport [=VTOLs=] causing a number of... interesting physics bugs when transporting stuff, such as when transporting a tank. The tank will spaz out, crushing anyone inside the VTOL, then explode inside the VTOL killing both at the same time. Some players suggested adding the [=VTOLs=] anyway because [[RuleOfFunny it would look hilarious]].
92	** There's a bug in the ''Mechwarrior 2'' Mech Lab that can cause your heatsinks to go negative. Abusing this provides effectively free weight, which makes possible things like super-armored hyperfast Firemoths that can blow up enemy Mechs in a single salvo of heavy autocannons - a weapon the normal version can't even ''mount'' due to its excessive weight. It does require cheating by disabling heat management, though.
93	** In ''Online'', the Ebon Jaguar / Cauldron-Born used to start [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWiwAbcf-GE breakdancing]] upon death. Sadly, this has been patched out.
94	* HilariousInHindsight: Depending on which Clan you select in ''Mechwarrior 2'', either campaign ends with Clan Wolf or Clan Jade Falcon standing on the Moon where their warriors look up at Terra. At the time both endings were non-canon since neither Clan had conquered Terra during that time frame. [[spoiler: However, the events of the ilClan story arc ended with Clan Wolf taking control of Terra thus changing their ending into a CallForward]].
95	* IAmNotShazam: For the uninitiated, [=MechWarriors=] are just the pilots. The 'Mechs themselves are called [=BattleMechs=].
96	* ItsTheSameNowItSucks: Fans of the changes ''Living Legends'' made to the ''Mechwarrior'' formula weren't pleased with ''Mechwarrior Online's'' overall gameplay, which wasn't far off from ''Mechwarrior 4's''.
97	* MemeticMutation:
98	** The hula girl bobble in ''[=MechWarrior=] Online''.[[note]]It was present in the cockpit in the 2009 trailer, and was advertised as a way to customize the inside of the cockpit. When ''Online'' was announced, players kept pestering Piranha to keep it in, which they did in the Atlas video trailer.[[/note]]
99	** '''[[{{Comicbook/Doom}} RIP AND TEAR]]''' - a popular description of what battlearmor do when presented with an enemy.
100	** '''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTlXw2qGB2w DIRESTAR]]''': A Direwolf outfitted with [[BeamSpam eleven ER [=PPCs=]]], no armor, and a single jumpjet. It will shutdown due to overheating after a single shot, [[ExplosiveOverclocking and self-destruct due to overheating after two shots...]] but those shots will [[OneHitKO instakill any mech they hit]].
101	* SugarWiki/MostWonderfulSound:
102	** "Reactor: Online. Sensors: Online. Weapons: Online. All systems nominal."
103	** The "Heavy Metal" variant of the ''Highlander'' in ''[=MechWarrior Online=]'' plays [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin heavy metal]] from its external speakers whenever it scores a kill.
104	*** And now with with "Warhorns" (Speakers mounted inside the cockpit of mechs, each with a unique sound), this applies to any mech equipped with one.
105	* {{Narm}}: The cinematics and voice acting in ''[=MechWarrior=] 4: Vengeance'' can veer into this sometimes
106	** NarmCharm: Even then it's not always a bad thing, [[InvokedTrope especially]] when it involves the planet's [[GeneralFailure buffoonish]] [[ArmchairMilitary Steiner]]-[[GeneralRipper appointed]] [[SmugSnake governor]].
107	* ObviousBeta: General consensus among Closed Beta Testers was that [=MechWarrior Online=] wasn't ready to officially launch when it did. Promised features like Community Warfare and more game modes (along with all of the revealed 'Mechs so far) were not yet implemented at the time.
108	* OneSceneWonder: Shepard, who serves as a guide in one mission of ''4: Vengeance'', is a Resistance Swiftwind driver. Her reaction to you and the mission events captures a little of what it must be like to witness 'Mech combat from a small vehicle or on foot, and just how small and helpless those people likely feel.
109	* PlayerPunch: ''[=MechWarrior=] 4: Black Knight'', ''Vengeance'''s expansion, eventually pits the player against [[spoiler: the original 4 members of Omega Lance, the protagonists from ''Vengeance'', who quite a few players have grown fond of over their playthroughs of said game]].' More than one player found that mission...''difficult'' to complete.
110	* PlayTheGameSkipTheStory: As mentioned above, ''[=Mechwarrior=] 5: Mercenaries'' from a gameplay standpoint is not only considered a good return to form, but it is also one of the best games in the series. But the story and characters leave a lot to be desired.
111	* PortingDisaster: The ''Titanium Collection'' of the ''[=MechWarrior=] 2'' trilogy is poorly received due to some bugs, the weird additions to the graphics and most particular, ''the inability to overheat'' (yes, even with heat management turned on), despite the fact it introduced Windows '95 compatibility, (though that means it's hard to run natively on modern Windows meaning) it's just preferable to get the original games and run them in UsefulNotes/DOSBox instead. The one special thing that makes the ''Titanium Collection'' version of ''Mercenaries'' worth playing is the dynamic salvage mechanic.
112	* RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap:
113	** The final version of ''Living Legends'' rescued almost all of the assets that were formerly considered useless:
114	*** The Osiris and Uller ''finally'' got the weapons and armor they deserves - after being unarmored pieces of junk since they were first released.
115	*** The Atlas's armor was massively beefed up to restore it to its [[SuperToughness proper place]], its armaments were pumped up, and after three years of waiting, players can finally drive classic the [=AS7-D=] loadout.
116	*** The Sparrowhawk can now actually carry some firepower, such as the [[GoddamnedBats incredibly obnoxious]] twin Thunderbolt-10 variant.
117	** from ''Online'', the 80 ton Awesome Assault mech chassis. Originally considered to be poor Energy and / or Missile boats, being a wide, large, easy to hit target, that relies on high heat [=(ER)PPCs=] or [=LRM=]-15s for damage output. Recent patches, have given Awesomes a series of quirks that are very much beneficial, such as having reduced Energy Weapon heat generation, and improved Heat removal, restoring it into a decent supporting sniper mech
118	* {{Scrub}}: Legging (destroy a mech's leg) is a major taboo in all games, after the train-wreck balance that was [=MechWarrior=] 3. To elaborate, in [=MechWarrior=] 3, if you destroyed a player's leg, he would instantly be killed; much faster than blasting out their torso (to be fair, legging held the best chances to salvage a 'Mech and most of its equipment short of a [[BoomHeadshot headshot]] in Single Player mode in ''Mech3''). Later MW games nerfed legging, hard. In [=MechWarrior=] 4, destroying a leg only slowed down a player; you had to pump huge amounts of ammo into their leg to kill them after "destroying" the leg. In ''Living Legends'', destroying a mech causes it to ragdoll; but the player still can aim the torso, and use jumpjets to flail around. Many servers outright baned legging in ''Living Legends'' until leg armor was buffed, and in other servers (or in [=MW4=]), doing it elsewhere will cause people to call you a "***ing legger".
119	** In ''Online'' it is a lot more acceptable (destroying a leg limits the 'Mech to half speed or 40 kph, whichever is slower; destroying ''both'' legs kills the 'Mech), especially where Light 'Mechs are concerned since Lights are so quick and nimble that their torsos are very hard to take out. Lights themselves often go for the legs on very large Assault 'Mechs (i.e. Stalker, Banshee, Atlas, Dire Wolf) as chewing through their massively armored torsos can take forever with the Lights' limited firepower, the legs are easy targets that can be fired at from any angle and tend to be the first place Assault pilots strip their armor off. They also often keep ammo in there, leading to juicy ammo explosions. Having a slow Dire Wolf limited to 27 kph also takes a lot of the sting out of him, as he basically becomes a half-immobile turret. Competitive teams will often just forgo torsos altogether and focus fire entirely on legs. It's still considered somewhat rude to leave a player stranded with one leg in the middle of nowhere but people will almost never call you out for going for legs.
120	* SequelDisplacement: From ''2'' onwards. Mostly a case of EvenBetterSequel.
121	* TearJerker: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGjCiE8ecYc The opening scene]] to 'Vengeance's' campaign, featuring [[PlayerCharacter Ian Dresari]] receiving a posthumous message from his father, the Duke of Kentares 4. Ian looks like he's fighting back tears just over a minute into the video, and he looks even worse after his uncle tells him that - with the exception of Ian's treacherous cousin William - the rest of their family is dead.
122	* ThatOneLevel: The mission ''Underwater Strike'' in ''[=MechWarrior=] 2: Ghost Bear's Legacy.'' With only an Executioner armed with [=PPCs=] (which are not the high-velocity type seen in later installments) and Torpedoes, the mission can easily go wrong (breached sections will flood and bypass internals which will cripple half the Mech, some foes will have Pulse Lasers which will rapidly eat your armor away, and you can get stuck on the walls at the objective, which will leave you vulnerable to said Pulses).
123	** The third trial of the Jade Falcon campaign in the [=MechWarrior=] 2 base game, in which you have to fight against a heavy and an assault mech (a Summoner and a Warhawk, specifically) in a Kit Fox, a 30-ton Light 'Mech that is slow for its weight class and has ''no torso twist'', and unlike the second trial's Nova, lacks jump jets to offset its garbage maneuverability. The fourth trial and final mission of the campaign in comparison, was at least merciful enough to give you a very fast and twist-capable 'mech in the form of the Fire Moth, and is less difficult as a result, despite pitting the lightest mech in the game (10 tons lighter than the Kit Fox) against two high end assaults, including a ''Dire Wolf''.
124	** The final mission of Ghost Bear's Legacy starts with the player having to jump jet into a tiny hole blown in an orbital platform before getting into a scuffle with four other mechs in a cramped room and then one more fight with a Stone Rhino. Good luck accomplishing that first part without slamming into everything and taking lots of unnecessary damage before the fight even starts.
125	** ''[=MechWarrior 3=]'' had "the train mission", Operation 4 Mission 1. The only mission in the game with a hard timer for an objective. Said timer is not displayed anywhere, and some previous supply disruption/destruction missions implied a timed component but didn't actually include one, leading some players to not even realize there ''was'' a deadline until their first mission failure. Even once you get to the train, there are multiple heavy [=OmniMechs=] to deal with at the depot, including a couple of Thors with [=UAC20s=] that can rip most mechs apart in short order. Just to add insult to a whole lot of injury, Operation 4 takes place in a warmer environment than Operation 3 did, making your mech overheat much more quickly than it did in the last few missions.
126	** ''Pirate's Moon'' included a bonus mission. You have an assault mech on a small island surrounded by a deadly chasm. You don't have jump jets or much of any room to maneuver. Susie Ryan is here to kill you, and she's brought friends. Lots of friends. Have fun!
127	*** ''Pirate's Moon'' in general tethers the overall difficulty to a weather balloon and lets it fly high into the stratosphere, to the point that comparing the whole expansion to VideoGame/DarkSouls or [[VideoGame/Halo2 Halo 2 on Legendary]] is a semi-reasonable and understandable claim.
128	** Terra Therma in ''Online'', a map set on a volcanic planet. Even a mech with a decent amount of heat sinks can be stuck with a base line heat of 7 to 12%. For Mechs which are energy focused, the map is a test in how well you can control your heat gain without shutting down. Also standing in the lava will increase your current heat, with having a heat of 90% or more causing damage to your mech's legs.
129	** {{Escort Mission}}s in all the games. Team Solaris Arena in ''Living Legends'' - Park behind a hill and wait for the enemy to pop out of their hill - [[SarcasmMode Fun!]]
130	* ThatOneSidequest: Rescuing Hammer Lance in the ''Styk: Reinforcement'' mission in ''4: Mercenaries'' on the higher difficulties can be a massive pain that requires skipping the intro almost immediately and hoping you get lucky by the time you reach what will most likely be the sole survivor of Hammer, and you will most likely be heavily damaged in the process of defending them and have to hope that your lance does most of the tanking for you when you get to the main objective of defending the base in that mission.
131	* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Fans of the second and third games, regarding the fourth.
132	** There is also a group of MW4 Players referred to as "Old Guard", regarding various (almost all) changes made by Mektek to the fourth game after the free release.
133	** Tanks, Aeros, [=VTOLs=], and Battlearmor actually be good in ''Living Legends'' caused the mod to have a lot of this when [=MW4=] vets started playing.
134	* WhatTheHellCostumingDepartment: All of the nations/Great Houses have unique colour schemes for their armed forces, and while most of them range from stylish to plain-but-inoffensive, the Free Worlds League (House Marik) definitely got the short end of the stick in ''5''. Their colours are painfully gaudy - a bright white base with eye-searing purple and green highlights. A FWL Awesome looks like nothing more than a cheap box of mint chocolates lumbering towards you.
135	* WinBackTheCrowd: PGI has slowly been accomplishing this with ''Online'' After a slow start, MWO has had some really major improvements to the game, and is improving its communication with the fan base.

Context YMMV / MechWarrior