How do I take down a missile boat fast?

[fatlazyhomer]

Ive played a few games on Marsh where it becomes a base-camping missile boat fest. I would get a light mech, turn of my radar, and go around to kill those suckers. But I only have a 10-20 second window at shooting a missile boat before help comes or other boats start targetting me. What weapon would be best suited for taking them out fast? Lasers? LBX?

Or i guess a better question would be: which mech/vehicle?

[Serafina]

The fastest way:

Get an aerospace fighter with bombs or thunderbolts and blow it up.

Otherwise, you can try fast vehicles and/or BA.

[CHHš Skunker]

Ive played a few games on Marsh where it becomes a base-camping missile boat fest. I would get a light mech, turn of my radar, and go around to kill those suckers. But I only have a 10-20 second window at shooting a missile boat before help comes or other boats start targetting me. What weapon would be best suited for taking them out fast? Lasers? LBX?

Or i guess a better question would be: which mech/vehicle?

This is an issue with marshes in my opinion. The lack of aerospace blowing missile boats to pieces tends to create a camping war.

I love the ground warfare on marshes, but the missile camping sometimes completely takes the fun out of the map.

That said, if you can get in close on a missile boat the vehicle or 'mech should be easy pickings. The problem is getting close. Some people have suggested NARCing which is an excellent idea if you find that the round has devolved into a missile boat war.

[Vanion2]

Your best weapon is your team mates.  Trying to take them down by yourself in a light mech is a good waste of C-bills.  When I roll in armor I support other mechs.  I don't front run unless I am "baiting" the enemy. 

If you really want to get them then go BA or get a mech appropriately equipped and Narc them for your team to light up.  You can Narc up to 800m with a mech I believe (never done it myself as I go BA most of the times) and then watch the fire works.  Plus you get points for damage if you do Narc them.  Win-win for you and your team.  Then the missile boaters go buy another tank and you have fresh targets to light up.   

[MasterOhh]

Get closer than 300 meters, hit the missle boat once and have a 70% chance that its pilot will bail immediately, kill the BA before hes getting even close to the ground, smile.....

[fatlazyhomer]

I would totally go top gun on them if I could, but its not an option on that map. Yes, I would imagine that a concerted push would be able to win, but getting a full team of pubbers to work together is impossible. You would be lucky to get half the team, but then when half the other team is missile boaters, and the other half is attacking (and blocking inadvertently) with a mech, its not going to work.

I tried flanking with a BA and tagging, but got lit up. I guess ill try Narcs.

[TorinAldred]

Mechs give them too much of a lock on profile.  Get a loaded BA suit with a PPC, Bear AC, and a harasser to give you more mobility.  You know where they are so run in without your radar, power down and hop out of the harasser.

Make sure that you stay out of their radar range and focus on hitting the turret more than the front armor.  This means that unless they have earned enough for a new boat they have to suicide or run tank with no weapons into your team and give you free points.

As a BA you should be able to disable 1-2 missile boats per minute easily with this tactic and you'll be too small for them to fire back forcing them to hop out at which point they become fodder for your AC.

[nordwars]

Exactly. If you don't mind perpetuating the missile boat problem (but this is also fun), take the NARC equipped raven and let your own boats do the rest. Same goes for any map actually, I find daring hit and run/escape tactics more fun than lumbering into battle in an assault mech at 40kph, getting a couple of kills, dying, rinse, repeat.

Alternatively and preferredly, the best hit and run mech I find for actual fighting is the Shadow Cat A - get in fast with radar off and you can 1-3 shot any of the LRM vehicles and many lighter mechs (or any softened up larger ones) with the PPC and UAC20 (well, pretty much the UAC20 really, it does 90% of the damage). Then beat a hasty retreat to your buddies using your MASC speed boost and JJs. The PPC is decent for killing BAs too, with its good splash damage.

If you can organise your team (I find this to be nearly always possible, you just have to be VERY mouthy and constantly giving out targets and grid references, asking for money and backup - people eventually give in), then this doesn't count as soloing, because you are getting in there and distracting the missiles, giving your team a chance to wade in and destroy.

I don't often get too many kills this way, but it sure is more fun. I miss out on the higher ranks, but don't need it anyway as my mech only costs 38500.

[fatlazyhomer]

You can shoot down those missile racks too? Cool...

[Shakes]

Take any of the MASC equipped lights or the MASC shadowcat. Be at max speed always. If you hear the missle warning and have a clue which direction theyre coming from, change your facing to be perpendicular to that direction, and make sure MASC is engaged. Youll likely not even get hit if you do it right.

Once you get to your target mech, circle him at max speed. He wont be able to hit you regardless due to being inside min range (tho dont get within 50m either, some guys know how to dumbfire lrms if you get too close). If youre fast enough and time your MASC well, even missles from other boats in the area wont hit you too much either.

Concentrate on keeping at max speed moreso than damaging the target mech, just take shots when you get a good chance. Remember that he cant hit you anyway if hes dedicated LRM.

Your main objective here is distraction - if you have a whole bank of LRM boats all concentrating on you, youll hopefully distract them long enough for your other forces to move up and engage from closer ranges. If you tell your team you're going to do this beforehand and give them some specific map co-ords, all the better. Just hope theyre not all in LRM boats themselves ;p

Lastly, have an escape route planned that features blocking terrain so they cant get a lock on you as you retreat. If they do, again take a hard 90 degrees left or right and kick in MASC.

DONT hit terrain obstacles!

[Comradejim]

I found on Marshes if you turn your radar off you can usually get close enough to the boats so they cannot fight back. It takes a lil time(staying out of sight means you have to do a long flanking maneuver), but once your close shoot them up or narc and run for it.

[fatlazyhomer]

Thanks shake, ill try that.

[Bowrrl]

Take any of the MASC equipped lights or the MASC shadowcat. Be at max speed always. If you hear the missle warning and have a clue which direction theyre coming from, change your facing to be perpendicular to that direction, and make sure MASC is engaged. Youll likely not even get hit if you do it right.

Once you get to your target mech, circle him at max speed. He wont be able to hit you regardless due to being inside min range (tho dont get within 50m either, some guys know how to dumbfire lrms if you get too close). If youre fast enough and time your MASC well, even missles from other boats in the area wont hit you too much either.

Concentrate on keeping at max speed moreso than damaging the target mech, just take shots when you get a good chance. Remember that he cant hit you anyway if hes dedicated LRM.

Your main objective here is distraction - if you have a whole bank of LRM boats all concentrating on you, youll hopefully distract them long enough for your other forces to move up and engage from closer ranges. If you tell your team you're going to do this beforehand and give them some specific map co-ords, all the better. Just hope theyre not all in LRM boats themselves ;p

Lastly, have an escape route planned that features blocking terrain so they cant get a lock on you as you retreat. If they do, again take a hard 90 degrees left or right and kick in MASC.

DONT hit terrain obstacles!

+ and if you have missiles incoming while circling a missileboater try and position yourself so they hit your target for maximum fun.

[Memnoch]

What? Nobody mentioned  BA with Tag laser? I prefer passive flank with AC20

[thedrunkennoob]

What? Nobody mentioned  BA with Tag laser? I prefer passive flank with AC20

I do a similar thing.  I run passive and take the twin gauss rifle Demolisher on the larger maps and the twin AC20 on the smaller maps like Marshes.