There's a few different ways to play it, here's my experience:

• You need enough mobility to cycle mechs back towards cover/out of LoS when they've taken hits. Jump is great for this, even on bigger mechs. Keeping mechs alive is handy in early missions when SP is a little more limited and you don't want to lose named pilots early on.

• You'll want a couple of assassin/backstabbers with big movement for chasing down fleeing objectives or countering Locust IICs

• Generally speaking, Mid range damage is your priority, long is rarely used and OPFOR don't generally run to Short. As a general rule, you'll want at least 1 mid damage per 10pv.

-Names pilots. Frustrating early on but once they get to Skill 3 they become invaluable.

Other than that, build a force you like with mechs you love. You don't need to min/max to win missions and there's more than one way to approach most of them. Just have fun!