BATTLETECH: ATM and MML Tactica. The most FLEXIBLE weapons in the game. How do ATMs work?

[@baker90338]

MML’s: “want to make a deadfire LRM boat but not bullshit?” ATMs: “ya like long range bullshit?”

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

Lol ATMs are legitimately scary up close, but being one of the longest range weapons in the game definitely has its uses.(Especially when the other longest range weapons you are competing with is a freaking AC2.)

[@jamesc.7216]

Turkina Z is the ATM mech for me. 4 iATM 12 with 10 tons of ammo and ECM to make sure its target locks stick. Get within 9 squares and it threatens a modest 144 damage clap back or 120 damage if one of the launchers shoots EMP missles to give the target a 2 point penalty on everything. Also built in jump jets. I shall name her 'CTRL+ALT+DEL'.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

@@jamesc.7216 oh man ya. That is a nasty beast. So much utility...

[@WolfHreda]

Inner Sphere: "The Clans have a new missile type that is really good. Can we get that, please?" The Powers That Be: "Fuck you. Best I can do is a launcher that can fire both LRMs and SRMs. But it maxes out at a 9-pack." IS: "Why do you hate us?" TPTB: "You have MRMs, don't you?" IS: 🤨 "Are you for real?"

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

Lol tbh I actually prefer MMLs because of the utility ammos. Smoke and inferno are very good.

[@Dreadwolf3155]

i was once on the recieving end of 10 MRM40s. i still have anxiety thinking about that day. I think the lower end MRM's are under used.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

@@Dreadwolf3155 they are cheap on BV but are so innacurate lol.

[@ObiwanNekody]

I also prefer MML. Smoke OP and I like the flavor of the more cost-effective ammunition.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

@@ObiwanNekody MML is life. Such an incredibly efficient weapon system

[@EdmondHiggins]

The ATM are amazing and now in just about every faction in the IlClan era. There is also the iATM. They have streak and "Get the book?" special ammo.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

I do love ATMs. MMLs are a better weapon for the BV tho. The power of SRMs to crit seek cannot be understated haha.

[@LolixLP]

While the rule you referenced does say no Deadfire on MML, it is clarified elsewhere (IO p.193) that this is because Deadfire missiles were no longer in use by the time the MML was introduced. So i think in a game of Battletech where the year is set and the lore respected Deadfire on MML is not allowed, but i know enough players that just say "only stuff available before 3XXX" instead of setting it in a specific year.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

Ya a "cap" on the year or just choosing an era are standard ways to pick a time within to play from what Ive seen. That is interesting though! I wonder why anyone would ever get rid of such excellent cheap missiles hahaha.

[@LolixLP]

@@TheManyVoicesVA Profit, i suspect. I can't imagine that MRMs are much more expensive to produce and yet they cost a lot more. Maybe its just easier for a company to justify a large profit margin on some innovation in missile tech rather than a downgraded version of an already ubiquitous and cheap missile. Regardless, the factories that made Deadfire LRM later produced MRM. In universe considerations are also known to differ a lot from game balance.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

@@LolixLPAn interesting theory! I could totally see the factories being like "damn we are making a pittance on these deadfires. Let's focus on MRMs." And then nobody likes MRMs so they go under XD

[@dwwolf4636]

MMLs are damn versatile for small platforms. They give you the versatility of a fairly efficient close range blast with most of the firepower of equivalent LRM tonnage. A Valkyrie becomes alot more usefull inside 6 hexes with an MML setup. For heavier units I also see them as lifting a missile weapon out of the pure short range box for some versatility in dmg application. But you'd never use one as the main long range weapon.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

The longbow 13C has them as the main armament! It launches 42 LRMs or SRMs and has some small lasers for backup lol. Nasty mech.

[@WolfHreda]

@@dwwolf4636 it's also a huge improvement on the stock Assassin loadout, since an MML-5 with two tons of ammo weighs the exact same as an LRM-5, an SRM-2, and a ton of ammo each.

[@dwwolf4636]

I agree. Imagine valkyrie with 3 mml-÷s.

[@dwwolf4636]

Mml-3.

[@cracklingvoice]

Id argue that ATMs are better overall. There is an article online that discusses these, and the built-in Artemis along with the tonnage/crit efficiency of the ATMs makes them very efficient for their points, especially when there is an optimal ammo balance of ER and HE (leaving out STD entirely). If ECM isn't a factor, ATMs do more damage faster than MMLs. Also: the HE missiles for ATMs aren't about crit-seeking. They're there for raw damage, to just rip the biggest possible chunks out of whatever they hit.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

@@cracklingvoice These are valid points but ECM is all over the place past 3050. They are definitely good, but MMLs are really fantastic. Even with larger launchers they are almost just a straight upgrade to SRMs. Their versatility in campaign is insane. Smoke and inferno are amazing. So are Thunder rounds but then again, those are pricey(on BV and cbills.) They're both good weapons, I just prefer MMLs. ATMs are a little expensive, and the artemis is countered too easily IMO. I almost never bring Artemis on purpose unless an otherwise good unit has it incidentally.

[@cracklingvoice]

@TheManyVoicesVA Indeed. The versatility of MMLs makes them an excellent addition to any arsenal. I have a personal hope that we see upgraded versions of both in the coming IlClan Era. The loss of the Coyotes as the technical development Clan has hurt, but the Horses and Bears seem particularly well-established to develop new ClanTech while the resurgent CC has grown into a powerhouse in its own right as well.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

@@cracklingvoice ATMs actually alreay did! Improved ATMs are actually really powerful. They have some super nasty special ammo. Idk how u could upgrade MMLs tbh. U could let them fire MRMs I guess? They literally nerfed them so they cannot fire deadfire ammo, but tbh it's usually banned anyways because it removes the weakness of IS LRMs, 7 min range. (which MMLs do with SRMs anyways, so Idk why they arent allowed to take Deadfire ammo lol.)

[@cracklingvoice]

@TheManyVoicesVA There are indeed iATMs, but those were mainly the province of the Society and became vanishingly rare outside of the Kerensky Cluster. I mean crossing basic ATMs with Artemis-V FCS, and maybe adding new ammunition types now that the Spheroid Clans have to compete with the Great Houses. I'm less familiar with the technology base surrounding MMLs, but I'm sure there's something that can be done to increase their capabilities.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

@@cracklingvoice well you could attach Artemis 4 or 5 FCS to the MML launcher I suppose. Might be worth it on 7 or 9 size launchers.

[@Track_Tension]

Please lose the music bed. It makes it hard to hear you.

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

Noted. I try to keep the levels on the music low and my voice much higher. Thanks for the feedback!

[@rabebaer9536]

Melikes the music. Pretty epic. ❤

[@mathewkelly9968]

I honestly think the MML is better , the Cluster/5 on all ammo types on ATM lets them down .

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

Ya SRMs are really great. The raw damage of HE ATMs is pretty brutal tho. An ATM6 has a pretty good chance of dealing 18 damage... that is 4 cluster hits, and it *hurts.* For the BV tho I will take MMLs over ATMs.

[@jamesricker3997]

I think it would have been better if ATMs hit in 6 point clusters

[@TheManyVoicesVA]

@@jamesricker3997 that is interesting. Kinda annoying to remember though. Keeping it the same as LRMs reduces complication in an already complex wargame lol.