MechWarrior Online: Project Phoenix

It's been a week since Project Phoenix was announced. It was an out of the blue announcement to say the least and I lasted a whole two hours before plunking down $80 for the Overlord package. :D

The load outs and concept art of the four Phoenix mechs are viewable below, but go to the Project Phoenix page for a better view. Also, if you are thinking of purchasing one of the Project Phoenix packages, make sure to check out the Project Phoenix FAQ for more details.

Update (August 17, 2013):
PGI has updated the Project Phoenix page with the non-Phoenix mech variants (click on the mech images at the top of the page) and a "Phoenix Loyalty Rewards" progress bar. They don't give the actual weapon load outs of the mech variants, but you can dig up some info on them over at Sarna.net to get a rough idea what they will be like. The Loyalty Rewards (Phoenix Colors, Phoenix Cockpit Item, and Flame Pattern) are a nice touch, but there's not enough info on the page to say if we are going to get them no matter how many people buy into Project Phoenix. I suspect we will though.

I've never been a fan of the Locust (too small and too ugly), but I believe it is the only light mech from the the "Unseen" and "Reseen" mechs currently available to be used legally in MechWarrrior Online. The weapon hard points and lack of jump jets on the LCT-1V are going to make it very hard to come up with a viable build.

 The Shadow Hawk has been one of my favorite mechs,  right next to the Phoenix Hawk, since the first time I played Battletech back in the early 1980s. There's just something about a high flying (jumping) mech with a shoulder mounted cannon that appeals to my inner raptor. :D I think the SHD-2H variant might struggle some in MechWarrior Online because the hard points are somewhat lacking, but I will do my best to come up with a usable build. Now, I do think PGI has done a great job re-imagining the Shadow Hawk's look. It looks great and still resembles the basic look of the original Shadow Hawk.

 

Another mech I've never been a fan of is the Thunderbolt (the offset head is goofy looking), but it is in the same legal boat as the Locust. It is the only heavy mech from the "Unseen" and "Reseen" lists currently available to MechWarrior Online. Hopefully, they will eventually get access to some of the more famous heavy mechs like the Archer, Marauder, and Warhammer. In the meantime, we're stuck with the monstrosity that is the Thunderbolt. Although, the TDR-5S chassis has potential and, hopefully, I'll be able to come up with a good build to make this ugly heavy mech shine.

I have to admit I have always had a love-hate relationship with the Battlemaster. I hate it because it has always been a hideous looking beast, but I love it because there are a ton of variants to match pretty much any situation.  With the BLR-1G, you will be able to put a Gauss rifle in the right arm, an ERPPC in the left arm, and whatever combination of SIX energy weapons you can come up with to put in the side torsos. Yeah, it has a real good chance to take over the Atlas' spot as my favorite assault mech. Not only is the BLR-1G going to be a monster in MechWarrior Online combat, but it will look good blasting mechs into the dirt. This is by far the best looking Battlemaster I have seen.

That's it for now. I can't wait for October 15 when these Project Phoenix mechs are officially released. It should be a very fun day stripping them down and rebuilding them into the death machines I always thought they were. Well, except for the Locust, of course. :D