Doomguy Plays: MechWarrior 3

Like my last playthrough with Final Fantasy 7, I decided to share with you all the things I do in another favorite game of mine.
MechWarrior 3 is a great classic but it's incredibly frustrating sometimes to make it work on a modern computer.
There is a variety of tricks to make it work. As for me, I got really lucky this time. Some of the major bugs haven't occurred to me yet. The Flying APC's and crazy jumping mechs. Also the CTD's when you bump into an enemy object, these things usually plague people but this time they haven't reared their ugly head.

Here are some of the tips I picked up to get around those issues in the past

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• Patch to 1.2. Do this at all times. I don't even think the game runs if you don't
• When you install the game, check all the options. Don't skimp out just to save a measly 200 MB. This is 2015 people. Your going to want to make sure the game installs the movie files (might make it worse but who knows?) and the graphic setting files (Worse comes to worse, software mode could bypass a few bugs)
• Consider going into your GPU settings (AMD, Intel, Nvidia) and toggle VSYNC and Triple Buffering for the Mechwarrior3.exe. I hear that would stop the bouncing APC stuff.
• This site has some methods used to make the game work. I already mentioned one, the other seems interesting and is something I've tried with Diablo II. It's the section talking about putting in dgVoodoo 2. That would be a wrapper for some old graphic cards (Who remembers Voodoo and the Glide stuff?). All you have to do is plug the file into the MW3 folder and it tricks the game into thinking you have an old video card. I know something like this worked great on Diablo II, it was even better then the modern card drivers.
• Not available in Windows 8, you can turn down the Windows Hardware Acceleration. This definitely fixed my problem in the third mission of the Invisible turret at the end of the mission that made is unbeatable. I used this a long time ago, I don't even know if newer computers even have an option like this anymore.
• Turn on software mode in the game's option menu. Will look like crap but will definitely change something that's going on in the game.
• Pray

Crazy I know. Don't ask me why current software suck for old games.

@BaconMan8910 you might be interested in this. That glider wrapper one would definitely seems like something that could bypass driver issues. Seems random for different people, you could get lucky with no issues, you could get some weird bugs, or you could get game crashing bugs. I'll leave this here. Finding information on how to make Mechwarrior 3 (MW3) work is hard enough as it is.

The game doesn't have a built in screenshot feature but the nifty Gadwin Printscreen program let's me take the screenshots with the Print Screen keyboard button and automatically save them. How am I doing that in the heat of battle? I have a 60$ Logitech gaming mouse with a bunch of buttons. Just set up one of the buttons to correspond with the keyboard button and I could screenshot with ease!

Anyway on to the playthrough!

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The intro movie never fails to grab me


That attention to detail, noticed the mech that had the leg damage? That's portrayed in the game as well, mess up a mech's leg and see it drag it around the battlefield. Aim shots at the cockpit for that extra damage, Use your team as bait to keep yourself out of harms way (What willing tools they are!). You could also blow off their arms. Fire overpowering PPC lasers at people to save your ammo. Oh yeah and step on them too like that guy at 2:18. Always makes me lol.

For an old game it really got the little things right. So let's check out the first mission. Before we dive in, a little backstory. We are on planet Tranquil, the location of the last remnants of one of the Clan groups that plague the Inner Sphere. We're a Lance leader of the Inner Sphere and we're here to wipe them out! Unfortanately the dropships got shot down and everyone was scattered.

Our mission is to link up with the other lances (4 mech groups) and join up to take out the Clan on this planet. So the first mission.

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We start off close to the shore so we make our way to the beach. This APC's actually think they could stop a 55 ton mech.

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You could try stepping on them but they're pretty quick. After dealing with them we move further inland and get our first real mech fight!

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BURN!

That guy didn't stand a chance. He's in a light mech while I'm in a medium. Size matters in this universe. The objective in this mission is to blow up the communication center so I do that.

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Mission Complete!

Not a hard mission, took me a while to set up the controls. Normally I play first person view but the screenshots look better in third person. I'm also playing on hard mode and my mouse controls the torso movement instead of the default arm movement. So many ways to play this game, pick a control scheme you feel comfortable with. Oh yeah, I had to turn on VSYNC outside the program in order to get the game to recognize the key presses.

At the end of the mission we get salvage, equipment that we rip from the battlefield to fuel our own war effort. It's pretty crappy this early in the game. I opt to remove the "ER Laser" and switch it to the "Large Laser". It losses range but is better in heat management. Our mech has a tendency to overheat which slows my rate of fire. I also add some more armor and speed after switching the armor scheme from "Standard" to "Endo Ferris".

Huh?

Don't worry, you figure out the system soon enough.

This is a long post so I'll stop now. The next mission is much harder (and likely the point where you know if something is wrong with you game. It's here where most people simply can't proceed)

 

OP 1 Mission 2

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Mission starts with a pair of APC's and an Owen's light mech who unwisely shows his rear armor to me.

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For an old game this is extremely detailed, rear armor is weak while the center torso in the front is the strongest. There are only three ways to permanently destroy a mech, shoot off one of his legs (it's about as well armored as the torso), shoot up the center mass (made harder by the left and right torso armor), or shoot them straight into the cockpit (almost impossible unless the enemy doesn't see you and you have a good long range weapon). Rear armor is pretty weak even at the center mass.

Later on I take out a strider light mech guarding a building. That cost me a lot of my armor because he had a whole bunch of vehicles and a stationary turret backing him up. The turret is the main objective but it's across the lake and out of my radar range. I have to use my speed to circle the lake and sneak up behind it. First though I call up the mobile field base (MFB) for on the field repairs!

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Now I'm ready for more punishment! At top speed I was *barely* able to avoid the arty spam from the turret. That's why I increased my engine power in the mech lab before the mission start. A prepared mech is a winning mech!
I blow up some tanks guarding the turrets (took a while, those things take a beating) and sneak up behind one of the two turrets

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Shoot me now punk!

Don't worry, they can't shoot back if you get behind them. Also this is the part where sometimes the game doesn't spawn the turrets at all making the mission unbeatable. Refer to those tips and tricks to get the game running right. I once had a situation where the turrets didn't spawn until I got behind the structure that housed them. Don't know why that happened that time.

Mission complete!

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Op1 Mission 3

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Next mission could be tough. I made some slight changes to my mech loadout, I have some new heatsinks that I immediately added. I had to reverse the speed upgrades to fit them within the tonnage limit but anything to increase my rate of fire is worth it. Overheating in the middle of a battle will cause your mech to shutdown!

The mission starts with a sneaky Strider light mech that immediately attacks your position. The A.I in this game is very clever, maybe it's the hard mode setting but that guy did hit and run tactics on me. Once he took a pot shot at me he turned back and ran full speed to a whole group of tanks and APC's. Don't be stupid and chase him, sit up on top of the ridge and spam long range weapon fire on the short range vehicles. The mech bought the farm soon after his friends were dealt with. I repair for a tough fight coming up!

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My evil twin brother!

Oh no it's our mech the Bushwacker! Two equal mech chassis duke it out in the river! What's special about the river? The water acts as a huge buff to your heatsinks, you could spam high heat buildup weapons to your heart content!
That's not good, this guy even has more armor then me. I have to force this guy out of the river and shoot off his dangerous AC 10 auto cannon on his arm.

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Try to shoot me with no arms!

Knowing the specs of my own mech chassis, he only has the ER Laser equiped on his middle torso. The only problem is it's huge heat build up and the fact he's out of the river. So what happens to him? He shuts down in the middle of the battle. Lol noob.

After dealing with him I have to finish the objectives of blowing up the buildings and some turrets and long range. See this bridge?

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DO NOT DESTROY THIS BRIDGE!
You have to order the MFB's to make it to checkpoint Charlie. That bridge is the only way they can. Destroy that bridge and you can't complete this mission. Also DO NOT WALK UNDER BRIDGES!
I don't know if it's a bug or designed this way but walking into something shorter then you will cause your head to blow up (The cockpit). Guess it's like a double decker bus driving into a tunnel with a low clearance. Goodbye upper deck, hello gameover.

Destroy the support columns in the buildings on each side of the bridge and wait for the MFB's to make it to the checkpoint.
Mission Complete!

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Op1 Mission 4

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The missions really start to pick up in difficulty now, better prepare well. I shed the machine guns and the Large Laser. I added a whole bunch of Pulse Lasers, Medium Lasers, and a pair of Small lasers. The heat build up is intense for energy weapons so I added more ammo for my AC10, a very solid autocannon good against mechs. There's lot's of water in the next level and the boss fight at the end means I need to waste that guy with everything I got. All mechs come with a built in "Flush Coolant" ability that let's you rid your self of all heat build up for about 2 and a half tries. I'll use this to bypass the heat problems I get.

The mission starts and I see a new mech

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A Blackhawk (I think), and this guy comes with an Ultra AC 5. Basically a faster firing version of my AC10. It's weaker though, hence the 5. That mech doesn't have a rotatable torso though so it's easy to get around him and blast his oversized legs off. Somewhere close by I get a radio call from an ally, Dominic "Gunner" Pain. I link up with the friendly Shadowcat who comes equipped with the powerful Guess Rifle.

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Sup

We both destroy the objectives in the industry town and move on to destroy some light mechs that try to stop us. I then go to repair for the upcoming tough battle. You could also tell your new lancemate to repair and rearm as well. It's likely he's out of Guass Rifle ammo by now (I wish the A.I didn't spam ammo based weapons on targets that don't shoot back)

Don't go crossing any bridges, an Orion Heavy Mech is waiting for us at the mech factory on the island. That guy will chew us into pieces at long range. Instead go into the deep water and popup together with your new ally at close range and let him have it!

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Use your Lancemate to eat the shots from the enemy, that LRM 20 missle barrage hurts. Aim for one of his legs and take it out. I'm not a hundred percent sure but "legging" an enemy mech increases the chance you get to salvage it. Hell yeah we want that mech!

We thought this was a mech factory but the enemy put props up to fool us. You could see clearly the wooden structures. Destroy the big structure and the two sky pointing turrets to end this mission.

Mission Complete and Operational Area Complete!

So did we get a new mech...?

 

Cheers. I'll give this a try and see if I can finally get it running. I'll let you know how it goes.

Enjoy MW3, though. It's a brilliant game. Maybe we should do an LP, together, sometime? (Not necessarily of MW, but in general, I mean.)

 

I think I'll do a MW4 one after this. I'm having fun just making these little screen shot things

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I did not get the Orion mech! Curses!
OP2 Mission 1

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Operation 2 was supposed to be taken care of by another lance group but they were wiped out. The first mission is pretty cool, we have to fight in a drained lake. The Dam was destroyed and the area is pretty wet. This is shown by the fact that getting hit hard by a weapon knocks your mech down.

A group of hovercraft and tanks try to stop us. At some point someone is going to realize these guys are toys compared to mechs.

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Closer to the Dam a couple of light mechs intercept us. Deal with them but before proceeding into the dried lake make sure your ammo and armor is good to go with the MFB. Enter the lake and get harassed by a new enemy.

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Dominic calls them "Annoying little toads". I'm inclined to agree, these guys are annoying! Crush them and clear out the turrets. Watch out for mines that sunk into the ground. At some point a shuttle will lift off and the local commander makes his appearance.

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It's a Thor heavy mech, watch out this guy comes equipped with the Ultra AC 20! He blew my arms off! Keep moving, if that gun hits you center mass it will probably knock you off your feet. I aim for one of his legs to do the same to him.

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Kneel Before Me!

Haha! Take that! Almost lost there, you can't even see the insturment panel anymore that's how messed up my mech is.

Oh wait...

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He actually shot me several more times afterwards

DId not see that guy. He was at the far end of the lake and showed up after his friend went down. Toss in the fact that I can't even see my radar screen anymore...

I reset the level and beat it the second time.

Mission Complete! (one death)

OP 2 Mission 2

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I salvaged the Thor heavy mech! Now I have something far more powerful to take on these missions.
With my new mech I make a lot of changes in the configuration. I like my duel med lasers and pulse laser combo so I keep that. I opt to put in Streak SRM 6 missiles on the right torso. Streak SRM are basically short range missiles that work very well at...short range (duh). LRM is long range but they really suck at making sharp turns.

I also put TWO ER Large Lasers, and TWO AC 2 cannons. ER stands for "extended range" and they also build up a lot of heat. The autocanons are pretty weak caliber but prolonged fire does a pretty good job adding that "extra" damage.
With all the new weapons I also need to manage the heat build up. My new "Double Heat Sinks" will pretty much solve those problems the rest of the game. For this mech, four of them should be enough. Extreme heat build up mechs will need 6 but I have so many weapons I won't have to spam the lasers which contribute the most to the heat index.

You play around with the game long enough you get the feel what is good and what is excessive. Larger lasers contribute the most to heat, missiles come second, and ballistics barely register any heat.

I also cut down my speed a little, the Thor is very fast for a heavy mech. I sacrifice some speed for more ammo and armor. I'm getting tired of my arms getting blown off.

Speaking of armor I fit an "AMS" on the cockpit. Forgot what it stood for, anti missile system? It's really cool, it shoots down incoming missiles saving you from taking the full damage of a barrage. The more you have the stronger the effect. Put it on lancemates too! Stay together and watch hundreds of incoming missiles get automatically shot out of the sky!

Just don't forget some enemies have this too. Ammo limited.

So this mission... there's not much to tell. An underground level doesn't make for good screenshots. An Orion heavy mech and a Shadowcat medium attack you from the start but with my new overwhelming firepower I obliterate them.

Move on to take out some structures and a barracks HQ. The highlight of this level comes at the end, another Orion and Blackhawk are attempting to destroy a corrosive gas tank in order to kill you and themselves in a suicidal tactic. Clan Smoke Jaguar is getting desperate.
You have to stop them!

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Be careful! Don't shoot that green dome thing. Blowing that up is the gas and a game over. After dealing with the Orion the bastard Blackhawk ran away from the scene to shoot my MFB's! Careful it's a game over if all three get blown up. Scratch that, if even ONE blows up just reset the level. You lose salvage and salvage capacity otherwise.

With the threat gone, blow up the door and get out of here.

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Just don't miss and shoot the gas, I've done that once. Get close, shouldn't take much.

 

Oh boy I got hit hard by all sorts of issues this time. I recently updated my graphic drivers in order to prevent another game from contantly crashing on me. For some reason it caused this game to stop working. I decided to use my own advice and use one of those methods I pointed out above, that wrapper program.

It worked! Had a semi annoying watermark at the bottom right of the screen...whatever. Strangely enough my game ran SLOWER! Huh!? How? Then it get's weirder, I went to my GPU control panel and put the VSYNC option back on for this game. It ran fast and smooth again! That's impossible, Vsync doesn't increase FPS, it only locks it at your monitor refreash rate or at least somewhere close to it.

No sense at all. I play through the third mission and take my screenshots with my mouse as usual. After beating the level I check my folder out and...
Black screenshots. DOH! That's right, the wrapper even tricks my screen shot program. Realizing I can't continue my playthrough like this I begin to accept that I can't continue this walkthough anymore...

Until the very same drivers I updated in order to fix my other game failed anyway!

I reverted back to my old drivers (getting Windows 8 to cooparate is hell. Disconnect from internet, manually uninstall everything remotely close to NVIDIA, forcing install of "unrecongnized drivers", then telling Windows update to shut the hell up.) Oh yeah fun times.

So I redid the level with the old drivers and had the screenshots working again. Shame about my other game though.

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OP 2 Mission 3

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Flying mech edition!

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That looks cool, not a glitch btw he has "jump jets". It allows him to super jump like that. I wish your lance mates could do that to when you equip them with it but they don't.
When you start this mission destroy the building on your right and take out the weak mechs and vehicles that bother you. Move on and knock out a sole light mech who bravely tries to stop two heavies.

Dominic and I kill him at long range before he could get a shot. Weapon ranges matter in this game! As you can see someone agrees

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What is that? I introduce to you the most dangerous light mech in the game. These guys are more dangerous then some heavies

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Kill these guys fast! Some of them come equipped with duel ER PPCs! Possibly the most strongest energy based weapon in the game! The mechs themselves are glass cannons but just a couple shots from these is all it takes to knock you out!

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There's more around the mountain, they get a nasty jump on me and mess me up good..
Overhead air support tries to mess us up too.

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This was tough! Hard mode is no slouch. I died once in this sequence, I made the mistake of standing still at long range. You have to get close and personal and circle the mechs. Sounds strange that a heavy would do that to a light but keep in mind the PUMA mech doesn't have a rotatable torso.

After blowing up the headquarters and dealing with a lone heavy mech who has no help, make your way into the tunnel at the end of the level to win. Just don't go too far into the tunnel, it's game over for no good reason if you leave the mission area. Kind of like that Battlefield multiplayer feature if you leave the battle zone you die. Pretty bogus feature, I want to explore!

Mission Complete! (2 deaths, one of which was purposely trying to explore past the mission area)

OP 2 Mission 4

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Another underground level so the screenshots will be pretty dark. This mission is short and hard, there's a boss fight towards the end and we have to prepare well.

I make some changes to my loadout. We got ER PPCs from those light mechs in the previous battle. Those things are awesome but they require excellent heat management. I ditch the ER Large Lasers and replace them with a pair of those. I also ditch the AC2's and equiped the devastating Ultra AC20! I only have 10 shots of this weapon but they pack a huge punch. I need it to quickly deal with close range enemies. Since this is an underground base the fighting will be close in.
In order to fit all of this I have to futher decrease my engine power. Speed won't be a factor at all in these close quarters. Armor, good aim, and a significant upgrade to my heat sinks. I upgrade those as well.

I get a weird game bug that has plagued me ever since I could remember playing this game. I can't select the weapon group that my ER PPCs are in. My right mouse button cycles through all the weapon groups but for whatever reason it skips the PPCs! I have to use the F2 keyboard key in order to select it, annoying to say the least.

The mission starts with a light mech guarding the tunnel. I kill him with two shots, a one two combo from the PPC and the med lasers. Nothing more satisfying. Inside the mining area a pair of Thors lurk the area. Careful one of them also has an Ultra AC20, I quickly dispatch of both of them, the battle was fierce. Destroy the laser that gaurds the entrance to the Mech factory.

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It's at the end of this conveyer belt. Don't be a dummy and destroy the path into the factory, you'll block your progress and be forced to restart. As you can see my right leg is pretty messed up. I call my MFB's and repair. Enter the factory, check out how dangerously close the ceiling is.

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Break down the door at the end and prepare yourself for the big dance

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"I'm dancing with an Annihilator over here!"

Save your new lance mate Epona Rei from sure destruction by the Annihilator assault mech. That guy WILL chew you up within 15 seconds if you let him get in front of you.

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Teamwork Baby!

Destroy the factory and win the mission! Enjoy the spoils, taking out a mech factory just gave us a huge stockpile of equipment including the Annihilator!

 

Game really opens up customizatoin options now. I will switch around my set up to prevent getting stale. I was never really into missle setups though. I tend to give those to my lancemates. Mechwarrior 4 limits the customization but in a way that makes sense. In this game I could put any weapon on any mech so long as it fits the tonnage limit. 4 adds weapon slots that determines what class of weapons a mech can use. More on that when I play that game.

OP 3 Mission 1

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Annihilator time baby! A 100 ton assault mech is now ready for use! First thing we have to do is retrofit it to our needs. One of the best parts of this game is customization of your battle mech.

The Annihilator stock configuration is a one trick pony. It only does ONE thing right. Chew up close range opponents with it's quadruple LBX-10 autocannons. The LBX series is basally the scatter shot version of the autocannon. It also has four medium pulse lasers. That's it. It barely has any armor and it's speed is atrociously bad.

First thing I do is strip it bare where only the stock chassis remains. I max out the armor, standard weighs 19 tons while Clan FF is about 16 but sacrifices weapon hard points. I stick with standard. I then start with the ballistic weapons, I opt to put in Twin AC-10s and Twin Ultra AC-5s. This combination is still incredibly deadly at close range.

I then mount a trio of ER Large Lasers for long range combat and 4 medium regular lasers. I didn't want to do the ER version for the meds because I was worried about heat build up from the large lasers. I put on some Double heat sinks and I'm forced to lower my speed just a bit to fit it all in. I'm not too sure on this configuration so expect some tinkering down the line.

The first mission on this operation has us destroying a training facility and rendezvousing at the tunnel at the end. This Orion see's first hand why you don't get close to Annihilators.

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Somehow Epona get's her mech destroyed. This is a recurring theme in all my play troughs in this game. I rearm and refit for the next section. Emerging from the first tunnel system I order the MFBs to meet at the final tunnel. It's here me and Dominic get intercepedt by a pair of long range heavy mechs, the Vulture and the Madcat!
The leader challenges me to a one on one duel! Don't have to worry about that, just kill these guys!

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In the end he gets his wish since the Vulture knocks out Dom anyway. Those LRM 20s are dangerous.

Order and wait for the MFBs at op point Charlie and end the mission. Amusingly the MFB guy tells Epona "You were talking about a dance?" In direct reference to the previous mission where she was dueling the enemy Annihilator. It's the little things that make me smile.

Mission complete!

OP 3 Mission 2

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One of the shortest missions in the game, we have to take out a fortress and meet up with an ally.
I need to make changes to my mech first. The heat build up from the trio of ER lasers was just too much for me to bear. I switch them all out for twin medium lasers and twin medium pulse lasers. I also replace the LBX AC to the regular AC so they mesh better with the Ultra series. With plenty of space to spare I crank up and upgrade my engine power. Speed is not that important in this level but really this mech was just too slow.

The mission starts and an enemy Annihilator approaches!

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Keep your distance! I almost realize the error of my load out when I don't have a good long range weapon. My autocannons can reach him and hit him good from here, but just barely. I have to aim pretty damn good. His low armor and speed makes it easier. He spams his scatter shot LBX but it does little damage from that range.

After taking out the defenders of the fort (A shadow cat with a guass cannon nearly takes my back armor off), another wave of mechs appear. This time we get help by a friendly Sunder assualt mech. Get over there and help him help you!

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Death...Death Everywhere

Total carnage, they had Thors with Ultra AC20s and ER PPCs flying everywhere. To no ones great surprise Epona get's her mech destroyed again. Seriously every time I play this game she's dead weight, Dom kills everybody, and Alan (in the Sunder) does absolutely nothing while suffering from no damage.

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Reunited! (Minus Epona)

Mission Complete!

OP 3 Mission 3

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Alan gives us the location of the crashed dropship. We have to find it before the clan gets to it. We need those supplies!
I need to make changes to my load out again. This time I give my mech a large engine boost and swap out most of the ballistic weapons. I decide to have a little fun and go for a LBX-10\Machine gun spam loadout. 8 machine guns should not be taken lightly. I fit in two large pulse lasers that also happen to be long range. Let's see how this load out works...

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Strider disapproves

A bunch of hills in this level, you have to keep moving to prevent the enemy from using the terrain against you. I slaughter the light mechs at point blank range.
Eventually we learn from intercepted transmissions that the enemy has found the dropship. They already made off with some of the stuff, we have to get there to get the rest! I order the MFBs to move into position at the dropship. By the time I get there I need to be reamed and reloaded for the enemy counter attack.

This guy thinks he can use enemy MFBs

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Seriously funny he died in the exact spot I need to stand on for repairs

I repair (thankfully not the enemy) and the counterstrike is on the way. Three heavies attack the spot where my team is bunched up. However I excel in corridor shootouts and lay waste to the enemy. I had to get pretty close though so I can effectively use my machineguns. Those things in groups of 8's are devastating.

Mission Complete!

 

It's nice to know that after all this time my Lancemates still await my orders

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OP 3 Mission 4

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This is a tough level, so some extra armor isn't a bad idea. You also get the chance to use the TAG spotting laser. Just point the beam and a friendly missle barrage will fire at the target. Pretty useless at moving targets but their is a gate at the end we could use it on.

The mission starts off with an Annihilator charging down the fortress walls

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Pick on him at long range, the damage he does is minuscule at this range. Afterwards mop up the rest of the forces and clean out the nav point behind you. I do take some damage so after the fight I repair because the next part is hard. I'm required to take out some buildings at the heart of some industrial city. As you can see this Puma learns what happens when a big mech turns the corner on you.

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How you like them PPC's now!?

Of course that's not the hard part, guarding the buildings is an Annihilator and Avatar heavy mech. At these close quarters I was chewed to pieces so I hid led behind my lancemates.

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Go! Fight my minions!

It took some prodding to make them go out there. The A.I pathing in this city is wonky at best (or maybe they just didn't want to get shot by four LBX-10's at point blank range!)

As you can see I have no armor left but the battle is not yet over! By the time you reach this point the enemy counterattack by positioning another Avatar and a Vulture outside the city. They are right at the edge of my radar range which means going out there would get me hit with a missile barrage. Instead I once again told my lancemates to charge the nearest mech so they can cover me while I repair. This part the A.I took care of the enemy. All that's left was the corridor leading to that gate I was talking about. Unfortunately I couldn't use the TAG laser on the mech (another Annihilator!) because that would take me stupidly close to him. Instead I killed him at max range and then called the missile strike on the gate.

Mission complete!

OP3 Mission 5

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I love this little mission! We have to capture the spaceport and the shuttle that's their in order to get off this planet. Before charging off I make a small tweak to my mech layout. I removed the TAG equipment and downgraded the medium lasers to small lasers. The reason? MASC! What is MASC? I actually never tried it but wanted an excuse this time around. Supposedly it is supposed to increase your speed at the cost of heat management. As an assault mech it might be useless but I kind of wanted to try it out.

WHAT THE HELL HAVE I BEEN MISSING OUT ON!? This MASC thing boosted my speed by 20 freaking KPH! I was going 70 KPH in an Annihilator! I'm faster then medium mechs!

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70 KPH in an assault mech is broken!

Drunk on my new speed powers I charge the space port. I take a beating but at least I'm not on the ground getting shot at like this guy

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There's mechs all over the field behind me but I leave it to my lancemates to wrap up the job. Meanwhile destroy space port thingy. It's the inside you have to shoot at.

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Once you do an enemy Supernova challenges us. It's Osis, the clan leader who ordered us destroyed by gas inside the mines a few levels back. I realize at this point I'm not in great shape for another suicidal charge so I wait for my lancemates to mop up so they go first.

Spoiler

Amusingly the Supernova tends to overheat because it's based on an all laser configuration. Osis shuts down in the middle of the fight guarantee his quick demise. Speaking of overheating this MASC thing does affect the heat output. I'm going to have to adjust.

The shuttle that was supposed to be here was the bargaining chip in the duel against Osis. However defeating him did not yield us our promised reward. The clanners are a bunch of liars.

Mission complete!

 

I loved this game when I was a kid. My favorites then were Thor and Supernova. Thor because of the looks, Supernova because all weapons caused it to self destruct ( I really liked explosions and fling pieces). I liked blowing off the legs of my victims and watching them drop. Now, I think my favorite is Daishi.

 

I'm back!!!
Okay this post is actually going to be the last one. With my new computer and new OS (Win 7), the screenshot stuff didn't work too good. Not to mention the game became very buggy again. Instead of banging my head and trying to solve it again I'll run you down on the remaining missions. There's not many left anyway.

So after defeating Oasis at the space port we start the final operation missions. These are the most varied of the missions you've seen so far.

Op 4 Mission 1

Spoiler

SPEED! This map has a time limit! It doesn't actually tell you how much time you have but you are on the clock at the start of the battle. You have to destroy a train and it's depot at the northern most point of the map. That is literally on the other side of the mission. Unfortunately due to poor lancemate A.I, your teammates will struggle to keep up with you. This is especially true for the heavy and slow mechs of your lance. Ignore them! Not only them, Ignore the medium mechs you'll encounter along the way to the depot! What I always do is order my lancemates (F11 key) to pick off the more serious threats along the way. By the time you get to the depot you be jumped by a Thor. This guy and his lancemate have to be killed solely by you because chances are your entire lance is left behind. This is easy, just waste them with everything you got. Focus on the Thor first, he uses a heavy autocannon. After blowing up the depot you can take a breath and take your time. Just back track and blow up the rest of the mission objectives.

This map is big but play it like you want to go solo. The enemies are much weaker then you and are scattered. Don't equip too much ammo related weapons either. Chances are your MFB's are going to be left way behind.

Op 4 Mission 2

Spoiler

Another large level however this one is tough! The most important thing is to stay together in this mission. Opposite of the previous mission, I suggest a more "tank" approach. Outfit heavy weapons because you'll be going up against some enemies who will waste no time draining your armor. I never take the brige to the right at this level, for one I don't trust those bridges and for another it's just asking for getting attacked from the three points of the map. Instead I take the slow route directly ahead of you. This way you'll only be flanked from one side (and if your careful the central area won't even attack if you keep your distance). The first group is and Orion and a two other mechs I forgot. They love to spam long range missiles alongside every other enemy in this level. Close the distance quickly! Be careful not to draw attention of the base nearby.

One the first group is dealt with (and possibly the late arriving reinforcements from the central area), prepare to take over the base next to you. It's guarded by a Supernova and some heavy laser turrets. For the most part they stay stationary so pick them off one by one, using your long range abilities. If that's not an option then take out the turrets first as they are glass cannons. Supernova's always get overheat issues so don't worry to much.

Mission is not over yet!
Now the hard part, take over the landing pad at the end of the map. If you haven't already you MUST destroy the enemies at the central area. NO IF"S OR BUTS. You are going against an Annihilator (maybe two, I forgot). You can't do this if your getting shot from the side my LRM 20's. I tried it, I lose every time. Just trigger the middle guys if you have to. They always wake up when you get close to the central island or the final area.

Also be careful not to get to distracted by the Elementals. When you see them brace yourself for the big daddy Annihilators.

Op 4 Mission 3

Spoiler

Fast and Furious. This is a tiny level and packed with action from the start. As soon as the level opens up you'll be jumped by an Annihilator and his lance. You know that's bad because even your MFB will warn you about this as the mission is underway. Stay together and turtle up, if you strike out to early then the enemy will focus fire on you. Let your meatshields lancemates get the first contact. Chances are they will pop over the hill directly over you. Don't worry about ammo, waste em! At least the worst part is the start of the battle so failure isn't frustrating.

Once the opening attack is repelled you're good to go. Take out the supply area by leveling every building. Then follow the river up to some turrets. You may encounter a Diashi Assault mech alongside a Supernova. However the both of them are always pretty stupid in my game and you could take them out at long range. Mission Complete!

Op 4 Mission 4

Spoiler

REMOVE ALL HEAT SINKS!
Huh? Well you see this mission takes place in a snow field. The weather nullifies the negative effects of heat buildup. At last you have a reason to load all 12 ER PPC lasers on your loadout. GO CRAZY! (Note: Don't link everything together as one shot. You'll still explode like a nuke if the heat build up in one shot exceeds the mechs threshold.) What only changes is the time it takes to cool your mech. It's almost zero seconds in this weather.

I highly suggest an all energy loadout. The snow is treacherous terrain and the MFB's aren't going to be following you so well. The only reason you should even see them in this mission is if you do poorly and have to repair.

Your objective is the conquer the fortress in this large map. There's a lot of stiff resistance and yes, they waste no time pouring their heat free laser weapons into you. The one's who would give you the most problems are probably the mechs camping on the top of the Fortress. Be careful not to fall into the water surrounding the Fortress because it's a pain to get out while getting shot at. Once you eliminate the enemy around the fortress you got two options here depending on how brave you are.

You can go back to repair at the MFB for this final and hard spot or take your chance and deal with the final challenge of the mission.
Namely a pair of Diashis who are blocking the rear entrance to the fort. The only way inside is the drop down into this "arena" area and do battle AT POINT BLANK RANGE.
Worse still, due to the very strange terrain, it's impossible to ask your lancemates to jump down there. They won't and probably would get themselves killed. It's actually possible to kill them without actually jumping down and at the same time be safe from return fire. It's pretty tricky. One false move and you have to deal with them on their terms.
Dying here would really suck.

Op 4 Mission 5

Spoiler

PUT IT BACK! PUT ALL HEAT SINKS AND MORE BACK!
The total opposite of the previous level, now you are in some kind of furnace. Heat buildup is extremely dangerous now. Also this is a SOLO mission. No lancemates for this one. No MFB either. I suggest some light laser weapons like pulses are med lasers. Avoid the heavy stuff. A goto heavy ballistic weapon would be wise. However make sure to stuff it with ammo since no MFB's. Your mission is the destroy the generator things, it some glowing orange pilar. You'll have to deal with annoying Elementals and a couple of heavy mechs. You can take them out if you use good ammo management. At this point in the game you should have a favored ballistic weapon right? AC10, Guaess Rifles, LBX 10? Whatever.

One last thing, don't fall in the lava (but laugh if you see the enemy do that)

Op 4 Mission 6

Spoiler

The last mission! You fight Corbitt and the last remnants of Clan Smoke Jaguer. Don't hold back, equip your lancemates and you with the very best stuff you have. This mission is basically a small arena style level and a classic deathmatch. When the mission starts immediately tell all your lancemates to move on ahead of you and attack one of the closing mechs. You don't want the main fight to occur next to the MFB's and the shuttle.

It's important your lancemates get the first shots in because you don't want to be the focus of the enemy lance. You should have no problem dealing with these guys if you USE YOUR TEAM. Pick them off one by one and leave Corbit for last for pure role playing fun. Then Alpha Strike the living hell out of him.

That's it! Game complete!

And here's the ending movie


The clanners have been defeated, and the star league is victorious! The warrior caste of the clans couldn't match up to the free people of the star league. Even though we were unsuppoted we were able to stop them on this planet and the rest of our forces were able to do the same.

Mechwarrior 3 is a really fun game and I think it's pretty unique. Unfortunately problems with modern systems have never been addressed. This game is followed by MechWarrior 4, which adds a more story driven campaign which is actually pretty good. The mechanics of the gameplay have been tweaked to make more sense (and nerf some broken stuff). Graphics have improved as well and the amount of spoken dialoge increased. It's all really good and is worth of being known as a Mechwarrior game. No knowledge of previous games required as it takes place somewhere else. I might do a play through of that one day but for now...

GAME COMPLETE!

 

Nice LP @Doomguy. Your writing always entertains me to no end. Keep up the good work

 

Nice work @Doomguy Man, I love this game.

 

Thanks! Too bad I keep botching the playthroughs though. Whatever next game I pick I'll get it right this time!