The Stalker

I really don’t know where to start with the battlemech up for review today. It has the potential to be the baddest mech in the game, but it never lives up to the potential. It weighs 85tons. It is an IS Assault Class mech. The name? Stalker.

If any of you ever watched wrestling in your younger days, even though you knew it was fake, you watched it anyway. If you did you may recall a wrestler named Dick Murdock. This guy was portrayed to be a big, mean, ugly SOB that really didn’t give a crap about anything but winning the match. Whatever it took to win, Murdock would do it.

The Stalker reminds me of Dick Murdock. It’s big, it’s mean, and it’s slow and methodical. The Stalker just doesn’t stop hitting you until either you die or it does. Stock has 13tons of ferro armour but when full it holds 17tons. The stock weapons load is impossible to use for more than one or two alphas before shutting down even with the 24 heatsinks packed on. It has 2 Heavy Rocket Launchers, 2 Rocket Launchers and 2 assault lasers. Could we pack on anymore heat generators than that? Doubtful…

Load up the Stalker with ECM, LAMS and Advanced Gyro (all the electronics offered) and bump the stock speed 2 notches putting you at 63kph (still slow) and now you have 42.5tons left for weapons.

What can this walking dildo take for weapons? Well if you like missile boats, this mech is for you. The Stalker has 2 3-slot missile racks plus the side torsos also have a 2-slot missile on each. The Center torso holds a 4-slot ballistic, man that’s a hell of a chin rack, huh? Oh, I almost forgot the arms. They each have a 4-slot energy and a 2-slot ballistic.

Just looking at the slots, you could pack on 4-RAC2s and 2 PPCs with all the goodies. Another config is 1 HVAC20, 2 HVAC5s and 2 Large Lasers. 4 LLs and a HVAC20 is another config that will slap you around. For a Long Range config, the Stalker easily holds 3 Lt. Gauss rifles or 4 HVAC5s or 6 HVAC2s.

Brawler you ask? Well, sure why not? Load up 4 LBX102 or AC10s. The stock config makes a fine brawler as well, if you control the heat. Those Heavy Rocket Launchers are one of the nastiest weapons in the game. The knock is unbelievable. Couple 2 HRLs with 2 Assault lasers and somebody is gonna get hurt, hell, they may even disco from the server.

All right, we know the Stalker can dish out a pounding at any range. But, can the Stalker take a beating? The short answer is yes. The Stalker can absorb lots of punishment. I have seen some in open servers that I thought would never die.

So what’s the problem with the Stalker? The problem is its speed. This thing is very big and has a huge profile. It’s slow. Very Slow. It’s a big slow walking dick in the open and will take a lot of fire before it ever makes it to the battlefield. It is tough and can taking lots of hits, but it can’t protect itself if caught in open terrain. It drives like a school bus. It doesn’t turn well and it is slow to react. The CT is big, the chin rack is big and from the side, the profile is HUGE. It is a bullet magnet. Maybe its penis envy but opponents like to shoot the Stalker.

I have said in many reviews that each mech takes awhile to learn how to use it. This is one you have to spend some time with to be effective. Everyone knows it’s a missile boat that can put you away from afar, but it has very good slots and can take a powerful load out other than missiles.

Vettie’s View? Tough one to call, but I rate the Stalker at 3 ½ minutes. It’s hard to kill but it draws attention to itself even with the ECM package. If smaller mechs get close enough, the Stalker can’t turn fast enough to fight back. It can be a killer in the right hands, otherwise it’s just somebody’s dildo that got screwed.


The MP3 Stalker

This battlemech has a big following in MWL. Almost no one uses it in NBT. I don’t really see the attraction. Its big, its slow and it dies easy. It should be big and bad and tough to kill, but its really not. Lets look closer and see whats up with the Stalker.

When I see the stock load out I wonder what this mech was set up for. Its slow at 52kph and the heat efficiency is set at only 34. This would mean you have to be REAL careful when you fire the weapons or you have to be on a very cold map to use it. It does have ECM but the LAMs option and Advanced Gyro are not taken. 12 Heat sinks are installed but it is still in the red on the heat scale.

If we look at the stock weapons we see why the 34 rating on the heat scales. 1 HV20 with double ammo, 4 medium lasers, 2 standard rocket launchers and 2 heavy rocket launchers installed from the factory. All the heat comes from those 2 heavy rocket launchers. This is all packed on a standard structure frame with 13 tons of ferro armour.

The speed range on this assault class mech is set at 52kph. This is the lowest speed available. The range is from 52 to 98kph. A mere 3 tons gets the speed up to 63kph but it will cost you 6 tons (total) to get you to 68kph. Load up the ECM and LAMs packages (in my book the advanced Gyro is optional) and fill the armour so the it tops out at 17 tons. This leaves you 44 and ½ tons for weapons.

The weapons slots are interesting on this mech. The CT has a 4-slot ballistic while the side torsos have a 2-slot ballistic/missile only rack. Each arm houses a 4-slot beam rack. On top of each arm is a 3-slot missile rack. At first glance, before and even after stripping away the stock load out, this mech seems primed for missiles. Yes, it can take several missiles, but I have found that there are plenty of other ‘power configs’ that work better depending on what you want to do with the Stalker.

The Stalker can be loaded with 4 LtGauss Rifles although this takes lowering of the speed and shaving of armour. With minimal shaving or armour 5 mini gauss can be installed. A favourite config of mine is to set the speed at 68kph and install 2 CapPPCs and a Heavy Gauss with double ammo. IF you prefer range, load up the 2 CapPPCs and 2 Lt Gauss rifles. For medium range, I like the Heavy Gauss (double ammo) and 4 Large Laser version.

As a missile mech, the Longbow is a better option in my opinion. The weight is the same and the longbow is faster with a better missile payload. The Stalker can hold 2 ALRM20s and 2 ALRM10s as well as a LtGauss (or some other ballistic) or a beam weapon or two. IF you like a mixed bag of weapons how about 2 ALRM20s, 2 Large Laser and a Heavy Gauss Rifle? Another choice is 2 RACs2s, a HV5 and 2 PPCs.

The Stalker can pack some firepower, the CapPPC / Hvy Gauss Rifle version is one that sees some action but the problem is not one of firepower. The problem is incoming firepower. Even with full armour the Stalker appears to have big slots. The legs are big and easy targets because the mech moves relatively slow if it is loaded with a decent alpha factor. The CT and Side Torsos are also easy targets because of the ‘stubby’ arms and missile racks. All shots are naturally guided to either the legs or the CT. I have also noticed that the Stalker seems to fall more than other assault mechs. Maybe AG is an option that should be taken to prevent this. To hill hump, other than the missiles, the entire body of the mech has to be exposed. The cockpit is not set high on the CT, but rather lower and right in front just above the nose cannon. So, to be able to ‘see’ the mech must rise above the obstacle thus exposing the entire body of the mech.

Although it has plenty of missile slots, I see the Longbow or even the Archer (some 15 tons lighter) as better options for missiles. Perhaps its best use is a ground based long ranged sniper. It needs BAP to improve it. For no radar or team only it is a decent mid range mech offering some good fire power. I haven’t seen many used as brawlers and that may be because of the slow torso turn and limited torso turn. The accel and decel rates aren’t spectactular either.

The entire time The Blood Pearls were in NBT I never saw a Stalker grace the battlefield. In fact, I only saw 2 in our stay in MWL. I have seen them in the opens but not very often. Maybe others share my feelings about this mech. At 85 tons, there are better options.

My original rating of the Stalker was 3 and ½ minutes. I don’t like to downgrade mechs but in this case I have to. 3 Minutes for the MP3 Stalker. I appreciate your comments and I am sure many of you have configs that work well. Post them and lets discuss it.