Mech Commander Gold Showcase: A Firestarter beats a Mad Cat. Operation 1 Mission 3, Part 1 of 2

All videos put up, demonstrate completing the game at Hard Difficulty. I aim to train all the Green pilots' skills to maximum by using them a lot in the missions, so the fights tend to be harder as a result.

My "Showcase" videos demonstrate optimal results (good salvage, minimal damage to own forces) and strategies to complete the mission.

This mission sees the same loadout and pilots as per Operation 1 Mission 2 (see my earlier video), with Hunter coming along for the ride in a Firestarter-W kitted out with short-range weapons. Hes got the job of securing the right flank and dealing with the Mad Cat. Ill admit that I was hoping to take it out with a single artillery strike, but no...

Hunter races off right at the start, crossing the bridge just before it gets torched by the airstrike. He goes in close to the Saracen tank, which cant fire at point-blank range, and blows it up. Then he heads toward the bottom right corner of the map where the dreaded 75-ton Mad Cat (Armored variant) is waiting.

He stops at the T-junction, picks up the Mad Cat advancing on him (see video time 0:38), and runs off whilst I drop an artillery strike on the fuel tanks. I timed it a bit late; the Mad Cat is only scratched by the explosion and charges on. Left with no choice, I run Hunter's Firestarter up to it. Even so, no sane Mech Commander would expect a Firestarter to beat a Mad Cat without help, so I aim a Large airstrike at the Mad Cat.

I move Hunter in and have him dance and weave back and forth, forcing the Mad Cat to stop and start pacing. I drop the Large Artillery Strike on its head, and Hunter maintains the pressure with his weapons, knocking it over a couple of times until the countdown timer goes off and the airstrike lands. BOOM! The Mad Cat is still alive. My reaction is, 'oh, crap'.

However, the Mad Cat is clearly gutted and badly wounded; it gets off another salvo with its C/ER-PPCs' which, thankfully, miss. I'm sure I don't have to point out that a single solid hit with a C/ER-PPC can end the fight right there and then for the Firestarter. Hunter fires off a final missile barrage that destroys the last of the Mad Cat's main torso internal structure, and runs through the explosion as it topples over, half its weapons intact.

Hunter then cozens along the bottom right corner of the map, running in to capture the Turret Control for the small base fitted with autocannon turrets. Those turrets play a key role in the later part of the mission, as you'll see in Part 2.

(For those keen to salvage the Mad Cat the easy way, see my video on "Salvage a Mad Cat in Op1Mis3, the cheap-o way!)

Category:

Gaming

Tags:

• Mech
• Commander
• Gold
• Mad
• Cat
• Salvage
• Showcase
• Walkthrough

[AttilaKattila]

There's other ways of pulling this off. You could destroy the bridge and get the mad cat to reveal its position on the little island, if it wont reveal it just like that, fire at the crew barracks and it will. After that you just airstrike it.

Another way would be to get it to follow you, you enter the little field base up north, capture the turret control and go further north yourself. The mad cat chases you until it reaches the the southern turret and it will kill it and the t. control... cont

[Carsomyr80]

@AttilaKattila Just watch the vid titled "Salvage a Mad Cat in Op1Mis3, the cheap-o way!". You'll get all your answers there.

[AttilaKattila]

@Carsomyr80

Yea but you lost a mech doing it. ;)

Even if you actually didn't lose the mech for good you could have had additional firepower left for the duration of the mission. And since you also like to train your pilots in battle more 'leveling up'. ;)

[Carsomyr80]

@AttilaKattila Not lost for good. It showed up as salvage on the video (as you'll notice near the end). And as stated in the text for that vid, the video was put up as an answer to someone's question, not as an example of how I'd want to salvage the 'Cat.

[KiDxen]

you are one insane mech commander and i salute you for it =D

[Mamatime]

absolutely incredible. that madcat used to maul me, and If I used the fuel tanks to perfection I wouldn't get to salvage him so its a catch 22.

i'm surprised the ducking and weaving with hunter actually helped to avoid him. i gave up on it as I found some PPC's have the miraculous ability to curve in midair and hit the back of my mech's torso....lol

[AttilaKattila]

After that it will hold its position, giving you the opportunity to bombard it to death without the risk of getting shot again.

Also one way is to obviously get the mad cat near the gas tanks and blow them up. However, as far as i remember the tanks will usually just destroy the mech entirely, leaving nothing but the legs behind.

[Nightingale1986]

@linksword01

Try another difficulty level

[linksword01]

I beat the madcat with my team. it just takes time and tactics.

[Carsomyr80]

Not entirely accidental. The "Info" section already details how I reacted to a situation turned bad. Yes a bit of luck, but also tactics. The trick was to hold the range so the 'Cat wouldn't move out of the airstrike radius, which is what I was doing.

And beating the madcat with a lone Firestarter with ONLY weapons is not "Impressive", it's impossible (a rookie pilot in a Firestarter head-shooting a Mad Cat all the time whilst not getting killed in 1 or 2 hits? Please.). And definite suicide.

[JadeKlemp]

so you title is wrong, A firestarter doesn't beat a madcat, a large ART strike guts the madcat, and the firestarter gets a few lucky shots.

You know what'll be impressive? beating the madcat, with weapons fire only. Its insane, but only just as insane as the firestarter stunt here. Poor Hunter, he's probably never gonna get over what you put him through. lol

[JadeKlemp]

So basically, if you hadn't hit the madcat with the large artillery strike, and got lucky, by the madcat suddenly falling over for no apparent reason, because no weapons fire hit it the first time, the strike cut the madcats health from slightly damaged green to almost dead red, and your mech took a lucky shot after three failed attempts and hit the cockpit.

Seems more like accidental fluck, than tailored made situation. Ive beat the madcat, fluckily milions of times on hard, with good salvage.