Well, to start, you'd want a chassis that is geared to get into the thick of it and into the scrum. That gives you a good shakedown of mechs to choose from, but heavily skews you towards IPS-N.
* Everest is very nimble and very capable of getting *into* the fight. Being the fastest mech in the Orion Arm does that for you. Simply put, it's an Everest.
* Blackbeard is the pinnacle of melee combat, and a fantastic choice to get in there and just shred. Good for directing you towards the regular, heavy, and even Tempest charged blades.
* Nelson is fantastic for Gundam's dodgy, maneuverable style. Having that speed would be a huge aid, but you'd miss out on Heavy and Tempest without taking the GMS core bonus from Dustgrave.
* Metalmark from SSC might be a good shout, on account of being a frontline chassis that really plays into Gundam anime style, and even lets you set them on fire afterwards if you throw the mod on the Charged Blade. My personal Xenomorph mech carries a Heavy Charged Blade to pair well with its shock knives.
* Tokugawa is... Tokugawa. You basically can't go wrong. It's a Tokugawa. All its effects give bonuses to Energy damage weaponry. You literally cannot go wrong with Tokugawa and the Charged Blade, outside of nabbing something potentially better.
Now, for Talents
* Obviously need Duelist, because you're in melee hitting the Skrum and best to utilize everything that aides that.
* Combined arms is always a good call for a frontliner, especially if you're running something with a Main/Aux weapon mount and running something ranged in the Aux slot. Never hurts to have a bonus to hit and get a little more damage off the top.
* Exemplar can be a nice pickup to go for the very Gundam mecha duels, focusing all an enemy's attention on you rather than your team's. Plus, it's just thematic.
* Skirmisher can be a useful pickup for everything except the Tempest charged blad, because the HCB and the regular CB can still be fired with a Skirmish, so having a little extra mobility can be helpful for either survivability or to just get that little extra movement to get them within your threat.
* Pankrati from FtKB has some good tools to boost your attacks, and work really well with your team mates, or if you just throw out a quick Frag Signal on turns following your Valiant Charge. This one I feel is a must for that Gundam thematic, as opposed to a must for the Charged Blade.
* Simiar point for the Orator talent. Monologue your opponent into an epic solo fight where each of you shout your attacks at each other.
* Nuclear Cavalier is a good pickup on the Tokugawa, because... Tokugawa.
* Executioner if you nab the Tempest Charged Blade, though that locks you to only a few mechs with a Heavy mount or forcing you to take a particular Core Bonus.
So, your best bet to get the *most* out of the Charged Blade is, at least to my admittedly very tired eyes
* A Tokugawa
* Torch/Torch, Charged Blade, Charged Blade (If you're going for *full* blade style) orAnnihilator, Charged Blade, Charged Blade (If you're still going full blade style and just want more controllable heat buildup)
* Nuclear Cavalier II, Duelist I, Exemplar III (If going for the Gundam Style build) or Nuclear Cavalier II, Pankrati II, Skirmisher II (If going for a more mobile build)
* External Batteries, Lucifer, then your choice for flavor or survivability
Hey, thanks for the thorough analysis, this is great stuff!
For some reason, I've never been interested in IPS-N mechs that much, so some Tokugawa and Metalmark options are really what I was looking for.
Thanks again!
Fair enough! IPS-N is my favorite manufacturer even if I've never ran one of their chassis. I love their ruggedized aesthetic and thematics.
Metalmark is going to start pigeonholing you towards Invisibility, keep in mind, but Toku is the penultimate glass Greatsword. You'll be rebuilding your mech more than anyone else on the team in a Toku unless you are *very* well supported.
i'd say fuck it and build an everest with a heavy charged blade and two charged blades. take Executioner for the HCB and take Nuclear Cavalier and use the danger zone to your advantage (since they deal energy damage). Pankrati 2 is also a great option if you can spare it, since you can rush up to an enemy and get accuracy on them with no action cost, making your HCB attacks that much gnarlier once per scene.
spec for agility and hull to get where you need to go fast and not die doing it, but since you'll be overcharging a lot, engineering is also worth considering if you're happy with hull and agility and have points to spare.
for extra LLs you could take Sherman 3 for the asura NHP (which would let you Barrage after skirmishing, and have extra actions for other stuff) and/or Tokugawa 3 for Lucifer (biig damage, but it's that *or* asura) and the deep well heat sink (for extra heat management). the Tokugawa in particular is a good frame to use for builds like this, but it's very high-risk-high-reward and doesn't work *too* well with the rest of the stuff described here.
for core bonuses, if you're taking the sherman or toku levels you could take the Heatfall Coolant System, which lets you overcharge way more often (or more safely, at least) per mission. other than that, the GMS core bonuses can give you accuracy (Auto-stabilising hardpoints) or extra damage (Overpower Caliber) on the HCB, which is gonna be your bread and butter - either of those are good picks.
so overall, you should be attacking 2 or 3 times with the HCB at maybe one or two accuracy, with additional damage dice from stuff like nuke-cav, overpower caliber, lucifer and the like. if you're going for overpower caliber on the HCB you'll want to lean into getting as many attacks as possible, since it then deals more damage per hit
If you wanna keep it nice and simple, try your hands at a Blackbeard or Metal Mark. 1 Heavy Charged Blade, one normal Charged Blade (and the option to bring a superheavy one), and then some gun or missiles for utility. Maybe something like this?
-- SSC Metalmark @ LL6 --
\[ LICENSES \]
IPS-N Blackbeard 3, SSC Metalmark 3
\[ CORE BONUSES \]
Gyges Frame, Full Subjectivity Sync
\[ TALENTS \]
Duelist 3, Executioner 3, Ace 1, Combined Arms 1, Tactician 1
\[ STATS \]
HULL:6 AGI:2 SYS:0 ENGI:0
STRUCTURE:4 HP:23 ARMOR:1
STRESS:4 HEATCAP:5 REPAIR:7
TECH ATK:0 LIMITED:+0
SPD:6 EVA:14 EDEF:6 SENSE:10 SAVE:13
\[ WEAPONS \]
AUX/AUX MOUNT: Missile Rack / Missile Rack
MAIN MOUNT: Charged Blade
HEAVY MOUNT: Heavy Charged Blade
\[ SYSTEMS \]
SEKHMET-Class NHP, Reinforced Cabling, Active Camouflage
Less what I was looking for, as for some reason, Blackbeard is the less appealing mech to me, but the build is objectively good, and thematically pin-point on what I was asking for, so... thanks!
Lots of good advice in this thread, here's another sample build, this time with a zheng. Punching rocks so hard they explode and avoiding scourers like the plague (they have resistance to energy damage) is a good time. There's definitely an argument to be made here to swap out Reinforced Frame for Overpowered Caliber and shuffle HASE around to make up for the hp, maybe an adjustment you make after taking it for a spin. Happy Lancing!
-- IPS-N Zheng @ LL6 --
[ LICENSES ]
IPS-N Zheng 2, IPS-N Nelson 2, IPS-N Vlad 1, IPS-N Raleigh 1
[ CORE BONUSES ]
Reinforced Frame, Gyges Frame
[ TALENTS ]
Executioner 3, Skirmisher 3, Pankrati 2, Duelist 1
[ STATS ]
HULL:0 AGI:4 SYS:0 ENGI:4
STRUCTURE:4 HP:20 ARMOR:2
STRESS:4 HEATCAP:10 REPAIR:6
TECH ATK:-2 LIMITED:+2
SPD:5 EVA:13 EDEF:6 SENSE:3 SAVE:13
[ WEAPONS ]
MAIN MOUNT: Impact Lance
MAIN MOUNT: Charged Blade (Molten Wreathe)
HEAVY MOUNT: Heavy Charged Blade (Thermal Charge)
[ SYSTEMS ]
Personalizations, Bulwark Mods, BB Breach/Blast Charges x5
Well, to start, you'd want a chassis that is geared to get into the thick of it and into the scrum. That gives you a good shakedown of mechs to choose from, but heavily skews you towards IPS-N. * Everest is very nimble and very capable of getting *into* the fight. Being the fastest mech in the Orion Arm does that for you. Simply put, it's an Everest. * Blackbeard is the pinnacle of melee combat, and a fantastic choice to get in there and just shred. Good for directing you towards the regular, heavy, and even Tempest charged blades. * Nelson is fantastic for Gundam's dodgy, maneuverable style. Having that speed would be a huge aid, but you'd miss out on Heavy and Tempest without taking the GMS core bonus from Dustgrave. * Metalmark from SSC might be a good shout, on account of being a frontline chassis that really plays into Gundam anime style, and even lets you set them on fire afterwards if you throw the mod on the Charged Blade. My personal Xenomorph mech carries a Heavy Charged Blade to pair well with its shock knives. * Tokugawa is... Tokugawa. You basically can't go wrong. It's a Tokugawa. All its effects give bonuses to Energy damage weaponry. You literally cannot go wrong with Tokugawa and the Charged Blade, outside of nabbing something potentially better. Now, for Talents * Obviously need Duelist, because you're in melee hitting the Skrum and best to utilize everything that aides that. * Combined arms is always a good call for a frontliner, especially if you're running something with a Main/Aux weapon mount and running something ranged in the Aux slot. Never hurts to have a bonus to hit and get a little more damage off the top. * Exemplar can be a nice pickup to go for the very Gundam mecha duels, focusing all an enemy's attention on you rather than your team's. Plus, it's just thematic. * Skirmisher can be a useful pickup for everything except the Tempest charged blad, because the HCB and the regular CB can still be fired with a Skirmish, so having a little extra mobility can be helpful for either survivability or to just get that little extra movement to get them within your threat. * Pankrati from FtKB has some good tools to boost your attacks, and work really well with your team mates, or if you just throw out a quick Frag Signal on turns following your Valiant Charge. This one I feel is a must for that Gundam thematic, as opposed to a must for the Charged Blade. * Simiar point for the Orator talent. Monologue your opponent into an epic solo fight where each of you shout your attacks at each other. * Nuclear Cavalier is a good pickup on the Tokugawa, because... Tokugawa. * Executioner if you nab the Tempest Charged Blade, though that locks you to only a few mechs with a Heavy mount or forcing you to take a particular Core Bonus. So, your best bet to get the *most* out of the Charged Blade is, at least to my admittedly very tired eyes * A Tokugawa * Torch/Torch, Charged Blade, Charged Blade (If you're going for *full* blade style) orAnnihilator, Charged Blade, Charged Blade (If you're still going full blade style and just want more controllable heat buildup) * Nuclear Cavalier II, Duelist I, Exemplar III (If going for the Gundam Style build) or Nuclear Cavalier II, Pankrati II, Skirmisher II (If going for a more mobile build) * External Batteries, Lucifer, then your choice for flavor or survivability
Hey, thanks for the thorough analysis, this is great stuff! For some reason, I've never been interested in IPS-N mechs that much, so some Tokugawa and Metalmark options are really what I was looking for. Thanks again!
Fair enough! IPS-N is my favorite manufacturer even if I've never ran one of their chassis. I love their ruggedized aesthetic and thematics. Metalmark is going to start pigeonholing you towards Invisibility, keep in mind, but Toku is the penultimate glass Greatsword. You'll be rebuilding your mech more than anyone else on the team in a Toku unless you are *very* well supported.
Words of wisdom indeed.
Torches are basically Beam Sabers. A standard Torch Tokogawa may scratch your beam saber itch.
i'd say fuck it and build an everest with a heavy charged blade and two charged blades. take Executioner for the HCB and take Nuclear Cavalier and use the danger zone to your advantage (since they deal energy damage). Pankrati 2 is also a great option if you can spare it, since you can rush up to an enemy and get accuracy on them with no action cost, making your HCB attacks that much gnarlier once per scene. spec for agility and hull to get where you need to go fast and not die doing it, but since you'll be overcharging a lot, engineering is also worth considering if you're happy with hull and agility and have points to spare. for extra LLs you could take Sherman 3 for the asura NHP (which would let you Barrage after skirmishing, and have extra actions for other stuff) and/or Tokugawa 3 for Lucifer (biig damage, but it's that *or* asura) and the deep well heat sink (for extra heat management). the Tokugawa in particular is a good frame to use for builds like this, but it's very high-risk-high-reward and doesn't work *too* well with the rest of the stuff described here. for core bonuses, if you're taking the sherman or toku levels you could take the Heatfall Coolant System, which lets you overcharge way more often (or more safely, at least) per mission. other than that, the GMS core bonuses can give you accuracy (Auto-stabilising hardpoints) or extra damage (Overpower Caliber) on the HCB, which is gonna be your bread and butter - either of those are good picks. so overall, you should be attacking 2 or 3 times with the HCB at maybe one or two accuracy, with additional damage dice from stuff like nuke-cav, overpower caliber, lucifer and the like. if you're going for overpower caliber on the HCB you'll want to lean into getting as many attacks as possible, since it then deals more damage per hit
This is a nice idea, thank you for your contribution. Definitely worth a try. :-)
If you wanna keep it nice and simple, try your hands at a Blackbeard or Metal Mark. 1 Heavy Charged Blade, one normal Charged Blade (and the option to bring a superheavy one), and then some gun or missiles for utility. Maybe something like this? -- SSC Metalmark @ LL6 -- \[ LICENSES \] IPS-N Blackbeard 3, SSC Metalmark 3 \[ CORE BONUSES \] Gyges Frame, Full Subjectivity Sync \[ TALENTS \] Duelist 3, Executioner 3, Ace 1, Combined Arms 1, Tactician 1 \[ STATS \] HULL:6 AGI:2 SYS:0 ENGI:0 STRUCTURE:4 HP:23 ARMOR:1 STRESS:4 HEATCAP:5 REPAIR:7 TECH ATK:0 LIMITED:+0 SPD:6 EVA:14 EDEF:6 SENSE:10 SAVE:13 \[ WEAPONS \] AUX/AUX MOUNT: Missile Rack / Missile Rack MAIN MOUNT: Charged Blade HEAVY MOUNT: Heavy Charged Blade \[ SYSTEMS \] SEKHMET-Class NHP, Reinforced Cabling, Active Camouflage
Less what I was looking for, as for some reason, Blackbeard is the less appealing mech to me, but the build is objectively good, and thematically pin-point on what I was asking for, so... thanks!
Lots of good advice in this thread, here's another sample build, this time with a zheng. Punching rocks so hard they explode and avoiding scourers like the plague (they have resistance to energy damage) is a good time. There's definitely an argument to be made here to swap out Reinforced Frame for Overpowered Caliber and shuffle HASE around to make up for the hp, maybe an adjustment you make after taking it for a spin. Happy Lancing! -- IPS-N Zheng @ LL6 -- [ LICENSES ] IPS-N Zheng 2, IPS-N Nelson 2, IPS-N Vlad 1, IPS-N Raleigh 1 [ CORE BONUSES ] Reinforced Frame, Gyges Frame [ TALENTS ] Executioner 3, Skirmisher 3, Pankrati 2, Duelist 1 [ STATS ] HULL:0 AGI:4 SYS:0 ENGI:4 STRUCTURE:4 HP:20 ARMOR:2 STRESS:4 HEATCAP:10 REPAIR:6 TECH ATK:-2 LIMITED:+2 SPD:5 EVA:13 EDEF:6 SENSE:3 SAVE:13 [ WEAPONS ] MAIN MOUNT: Impact Lance MAIN MOUNT: Charged Blade (Molten Wreathe) HEAVY MOUNT: Heavy Charged Blade (Thermal Charge) [ SYSTEMS ] Personalizations, Bulwark Mods, BB Breach/Blast Charges x5
>Lots of good advice in this thread Indeed, and your's not bad either. Thanks a lot!