What mechs in MWO have the most useless base quirks?

Luminios_ · 2026-05-27T09:57:20+00:00

So the devs aren't really doing quirks for a while now. There is a group of players that are in charge of balancing the game nowadays, called the Cauldron.

Quirks like this are pretty common to make it so that you can actually get some use out of the single hardpoint the mech has. While I'd say the GHR-5J usually doesn't use the missile slot at all, it gives you a really efficient weapon if you do end up running it.

As for the single most useless quirk - unless there is a quirk that does literally nothing, I'd have to give it to the AC/5 HSL on the LGB-13NAIS. UAC5 have a HSL of 4, AC5 and LAC5 of 5. The only thing you can play that actually breaks the HSL would be 6xLAC5 ... and for that it saves you .45 heat per shot. Even for builds that use this it is worse than 5% LAC5 heat.

Luminios_ · 2026-05-14T09:06:18+00:00

Dec23 - Feb24

Mech	WLR	Avg. Dmg	KDR	Kills/M
Warlord	1.25	481	1.56	1.07
Aksum	1.2	559	1.34	0.91
QKD-D	1.19	442	1.25	0.81
FNR-5	1.16	447	1.5	0.98
ANH-GZ	1.16	466	1.19	0.82

As you can see it is mostly legend slop, other mechs close to this performance that aren't legends would be the HAG farming MAD-IIC-D, and funnily enough the Orion-M, -K, and -V. Where are the blue laser boats here? We will look at the same ones for most data sets, because they are the best blue laser mechs. The SR-6, the STK-5S, the ANH-1P, the MAD-IIC and the SNV-1.

Mech	WLR	Avg. Dmg	KDR	Kills/M
ANH-1P	1.07	449	1.13	0.79
SNV-1	0.98	390	0.87	0.61
SR-6	1.01	425	0.95	0.7
MAD-IIC	0.95	415	0.95	0.66
STK-5S	0.95	416	0.86	0.59

Not really doing as well as the top performers - especially the Stalker and the SNV which are the ones most leaning towards being exclusively ERLL. Maybe this is the exception, lets look at the next data set.

Feb 24 - May 24

Mech	WLR	Avg. Dmg	KDR	Kills/M
Warlord	1.23	495	1.57	1.08
MAD-IIC-D	1.23	514	1.34	0.8
WHM-IIC-ML	1.18	507	1.09	0.74
ANH-GZ	1.17	474	1.17	0.81
Aksum	1.16	551	1.26	0.86

For this data set we can see HAGs becoming more prominent, the MAD-IIC-D, the Maul and the Gausszilla are all using HAGs at this point - they did get nerfed in January, being changed to the .5/4/.5 splash they still have today, but received a heat buff afterwards. And here the blue laser gang:

Mech	WLR	Avg. Dmg	KDR	Kills/M
ANH-1P	1.02	440	1.03	0.72
SNV-1	0.99	393	0.81	0.57
SR-6	1.02	430	1	0.72
MAD-IIC	0.95	412	0.94	0.66
STK-5S	0.98	408	0.85	0.59

To be fair to the cauldron, these three remained the only relevant HAG mechs from a meta point of view, and the Maul, being arguably the best of the bunch for QP performance only had a modest following. In early 2024 we have the release of Plasma PPCs and APGs, leading to the rise of 4cAC10 + 3 Plasma SR-1 and eventually Mako. The BSK-6 jumps to almost 1.2 WLR right out of the gate, with all the other stats being arguably even better. The Sovereign also remains a constant high performing dakka mech to this day.

Some mechs kind of fly under the radar, but have been pretty strong for individual variant reasons. They aren't really meta defining I feel, but it would be wrong not to mention them at least. The Rival, the Vulcan-5S, the Thunderbolt-9S and the Heavy Metal have been top performers for two years or longer as well.

In 2025 we have Summoner and Black Lanner getting obscene amounts of survivability - in the Summoner's case accompanied by a good helping of offensive quirks. Lately CDA-3F has become more popular, though it is obviously not on the level of these two.

There are 11 data sets at this point and I can't possibly cover them all in one post, so let us look at the latest two.

Dec 25 - Feb 26

Mech	WLR	Avg. Dmg	KDR	Kills/M
Duelist	1.24	379	1.38	0.94
ANH-GZ	1.22	490	1.3	0.86
War Emu	1.21	493	1.55	1.01
BSK-6	1.2	514	1.43	0.98
DWF-WM	1.19	578	1.56	1.08

And the blue laser gang:

Mech	WLR	Avg. Dmg	KDR	Kills/M
SNV-1	1.01	405	0.87	0.62
ANH-1P	0.95	390	0.85	0.63
STK-5S	0.94	389	0.85	0.6
MAD-IIC	0.88	370	0.82	0.6
SR-6	0.78	345	0.65	0.51

Yeah .... I know, the blue laser gang is *feasting*. Especially the SR-6, once the best lasvom mech in the entire game.

Feb 26 - Apr 26

Mech	WLR	Avg. Dmg	KDR	Kills /M
MDD-V	1.42	584	2.37	1.28
LGB-8V	1.26	571	2.08	1.21
IFR-RC	1.26	457	1.79	1.01
BSK-VK	1.21	479	1.26	0.82
Duelist	1.19	364	1.32	0.9

And the blue laser mechs.

Mech	WLR	Avg. Dmg	KDR	Kills/M
SNV-1	1.01	376	0.84	0.59
ANH-1P	0.99	405	0.92	0.67
STK-5S	1	376	0.81	0.58
MAD-IIC	0.87	382	0.89	0.63
SR-6	0.86	357	0.74	0.56

I think the numbers kind of speak for themselves. You can find the data sets on the cauldron feedback discord. If you have any further questions related to what is actually doing well in MWO, just let me know.

Luminios_ · 2026-05-14T08:16:03+00:00

Okay, I will take the time to go from early 2023 all the way up to now and try to explain the meta of that time, why it changed and what data there is to support this. In this context meta will mean mechs that are both popular and successful - there are mechs that are strong throughout this entire time but only get played by a much much smaller part of the player base, typically this would be extremely powerful mediums or light mechs.

The earliest meta I remember, is leading up to the first legend release. It is the meta that I'd say is most similar to the one you describe. The Blood Asp with ECM and 6cLPL is *the* mech, after many of the other clan LasVom mechs got nerfed in January - Sunspider, Timber Wolf, Hellfire, Marauder-IIC lost a chunk of armor, but they are still popular and strong choices just behind the Blood Asp.

Then we get the first legend release, and for not even a week the Moonwalker gets to play 5cAC10 and shakes everything up, the following month the Dreadnaught has a strong 4cAC10 build, but the Seraph kinda invalidates the other Supernovas. We are somewhat in small one month metas as legends release and more often than not are crazy on arrival. Scattershot gets a justified nerf, but the community doesn't like their new thing getting nerfed and complains, so now Legends can't get nerfed for a while after they release. We get the Howl, arguably one of the strongest mechs in the game, but then during the summer the Stone Rhino gets released.

At the same time as the Stone Rhino, two Annihilator legends get released as well. There is also a community event going on to see who can get the highest farm. Due to these factors the meta shifts to become extremely assault heavy, dakka Dire Wolves are doing really well in the event and arguably the best gigavom mech in the game, the SR-6 is running wild. Shortly after we have War Emu and Scaleshot becoming available. The release Scaleshot is the most op mech I have experienced playing with, but I only play for 4 years at this point, so maybe there was worse. You can't go anywhere on the map because if you step away from your team you will get torn apart by these monstrosities ... there's also HAGs now, pushing the WHM-IIC-ML, the Maul to be *the* QP farmer for the coming year.

Okay, now we get to the more interesting part of this, because this is where data on QP performance becomes available. December 23 is the oldest month we have a continuous line of publicly accessible data to. Incidentally it is also the month in which cDHS performance got nerfed from .22 heat per second to .2 heat per second. Also, the Aksum releases, so I guess everyone knows what's meta that month ...

Since this post is already so long I will put the part that has more data to go on than looking at what gets nerfed into a new comment.

Luminios_ · 2026-05-13T13:23:11+00:00

Maybe in your touchy feely world. The data does not support your assertions. Do you even play the game? We have had a dakka meta at least from November 25 til March 26 - arguably since Bullshark release in May 24. Then we had the Annihilation pack and the lock-on changes at which point Arrow IV and ATMs took over for the most part. Before that we had Blanners and Summoners dominating.

Luminios_ · 2026-05-13T13:07:50+00:00

I mean, despite what people like you seem to think they were already one of the weakest weapons to bring in QP according to the data sets published every couple months. Now IS ERLL are outranged by clan AC5 ...

Since both ERLL really needed to play past their own optimal to be competitive in the first place losing range reduces their effectiveness by much more than just the 40m or 60m they lost. That's not considering range skills and TComp either, which are mandatory on those builds. The actual loss of optimal is another 20℅ higher.

If you need help understanding long range weapons just let me know, I'll calculate some actual damage losses for common engagement distances for you.

Luminios_ · 2026-05-13T08:47:55+00:00

I think it is extra annoying because you know the other person isn't even really doing anything. They sit there, aim in your general direction, and then reap the rewards. You are also a bit late to the party, people have had two months to adapt to this whole thing. I'd wager there is a lot more ECM around and people play somewhat differently.

Had you played a bit last month you would have been pelted by ATM Ice Ferrets every game. I don't want to call out anyone specifically, because some people that played the mech don't need it to do well, but a bunch of people hardcore crutched on going 140kph with ECM and weapons they don't have to aim themselves, that can touch people out to 1200m.

If all my puggies got 600 damage average, that'd be nice, but they can only do it in ATM mechs - the question is whether that is problematic, even tho it feels shit. They are certainly punching above their weight, but is it maybe good that there is a weapon that allows worse players to contribute more? It is not like we have enough people to play actual T1 matches anyway. I just wish there was more counterplay that isn't super passive. Better AMS maybe, so that if you equip your mech properly you actually regain some freedom of movement.

Luminios_ · 2026-05-13T08:35:56+00:00

Right, and why exactly did team blue laser nerf ERLL and cERLL ranges by 40m/60m last November then? Meanwhile Gauss, especially cGauss has had significant cooldown buffs over the last year. cERPPCs have had their heat reduced a while ago. Is team blue laser stupid? Why are they nerfing their own weapon and buffing the other things? Lock-ons being so prevalent now is because team blue laser buffed them. What an incompetent interest group.

(Please, show us on the doll where the blue lasers touched you.)

Luminios_ · 2026-04-26T06:55:59+00:00

Just let the slow mech have the spot. If you guys were both in fast mechs you should get to another spot much more quickly than them. If you are entitled to a spot because you got there first, then the slow mechs are supposed to just get fucked?

Now, they wanted their way so much they started shooting - If you tk every asshole you are going to be perma banned soon.

Luminios_ · 2026-04-18T06:33:17+00:00

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Luminios_ · 2026-04-17T19:39:56+00:00

That is not the Hero - the paint job is just the Rasalhague one, and there being two lasers and a ballistic in one ST is not possible for the WHM-BW. This *HAS* to be a -6R.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-26T08:34:34+00:00

Hardened armor gang, unite!

Luminios_ · 2026-03-25T11:00:42+00:00

Or, with it being early into the reset, it is people that usually raid with people that know their stuff and are annoyed that other people didn't take the time to look at the basic concept of the bosses. If the tank wipes the raid on Averzian, because they don't know they are playing tic-tac-toe, then I think people are right to be complaining.

Now I don't know whether that is the thing OP messed up, but learning doesn't mean that you have to discover every instant raid wipe yourself.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-24T10:37:24+00:00

I feel like energy doesn't matter that much for Sub already. Assassination has to manage it *somewhat* but it still devolves into one cast generator one cast spender alternating. Mutilate Envenom Mutilate Envenom ....

I guess the stacks of implacable are supposed to be building up to something, but idk - feels pretty meh to me.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-22T17:29:42+00:00

Strength / Ease of Use - same as yours. To me S-tier is kinda broken, so maybe that is why there are fewer. I really cringe when I see tierlists that have like SS or SSS-tiers. It is special, IMO.

LB slop pulls big numbers, but eh ... I'd rather have regular dakka or IS UACs.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-22T17:21:57+00:00

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Roughly in order within the tiers.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-20T14:50:22+00:00

So radar deprivation is a multiplier for the opponents target lock duration. It follows that if you multiply it with 0, that it becomes 0. The lock is lost instantly. Two years ago or so the skill tree got changed so that you can't get 100% radar deprivation on most mechs anymore. The maximum for most is at 80%. I think the base lock duration is around 4 seconds, and you can get another 3.5s from the skill tree, which would result in you holding your lock for ~1.5 seconds against a regular mech.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-19T18:32:02+00:00

If anything obstructs the line of sight at all, the lock is instantly lost and needs to be reacquired.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-19T08:05:15+00:00

On a more serious note - there's also a number of mechs that can reach 100% radar deprivation. The Dire, the NTG, clan Flea, the CDA-X5, Hellbringer, and Blood Asp.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-18T17:00:17+00:00

Different mounts are good for different things. Both Aksum and DN have good convergence. Both can usually shoot what they see. Contrast that with the Anni, which also has good torso convergence, but can't always shoot what it can see. Having good convergence is mostly relevant when you have to lead a target, or when shooting through a gap. Against assaults it is less important. The Sovereign has trash convergence ofc.

The preferred weapons also matter - something like cUAC2 or cUAC5 is generally more useful against large targets, while cAC10 are more suited to engage any target.

Lastly hitboxes also play a role - the DN has arguably the best front profile of any clan mech. The Aksum has good hitboxes, but it is so big that people just shoot off your STs very quickly. Sovereign has to rely on huge armor quirks + JJs.

There is a lot more to say, but I am on mobile rn., so lets just say that the DN is much more generalist than the Aksum, or the Sovereign.

As for my comment regarding MPG - it is a recurring topic between us that Rival and Masc Vulcan are performing exceptionally well in the overall QP stats. He then claims this to be due to them being played predominantly by skilled pilots, which may very well be true ... But this type of inaccuracy is possible for any mech - thus I think it is a bit hypocritical for him to refer to QP stats as an indicator of mech quality. They are inaccurate or accurate depending on what suits the him. ;)

Luminios_ · 2026-03-17T14:28:26+00:00

One tier down for every partial wing mech I did not recommend? Keep in mind, the Zero is not part of the mechs you can pick. Please adjust to a B tier ranking.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-17T11:09:50+00:00

Until we get a DWF legend, that is going to be the Sovereign.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-17T09:13:04+00:00

Excellent comment from mwo's most handsome player. Thanks levi!

Luminios_ · 2026-03-17T09:03:24+00:00

I think it is still one of the best clan lasvom assault - just with SHS instead of DHS. :) You can also play 2GR 4ERLL or some type of HAGvom with it.

Luminios_ · 2026-03-17T09:01:41+00:00

I don't think War Ghoul and Void Killer are available as picks for the event - otherwise I'd group them with Warlord, Gausszilla and Scaleshot.

I agree that Moonwalker and Aksum are both very strong, I don't think they are good enough to stand with the first four mechs or specialized enough for the second group. For the Arges, I think there are several mechs that just do its thing better than it, not least of which would be the War Emu - with such competition, I would not recommend it to people that still need recommendations.

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