Harebrained Schemes and Paradox released BATTLETECH on 24 April 2018. It is turn-based lance combat set in 3025, in a Periphery region called the Aurigan Reach, where you run a mercenary company for High Lady Kamea Arano against Director Santiago Espinosa's Aurigan Directorate. Four mechs drop per mission, five initiative phases resolve per round, and the MechLab makes you argue for every half ton. Three expansions followed: Flashpoint in 2018, Urban Warfare in 2019 and Heavy Metal later that year.
Your choice of equipment defines your damage output and playstyle. This guide ranks every major option, explains what makes each one strong, and tells you which builds they pair best with.
Equipment Rankings
| Equipment | Tier | Best For | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| AC/20 Autocannon | S | Called shots into a downed mech's head, and any brawler that can close to under 180 metres | The heaviest single-slug weapon available and the only one that reliably removes a medium mech's centre torso in one hit. |
| PPC | A | Long range heavy mechs with spare heat sinks that want damage and a to-hit debuff in the same shot | Does a bit of everything: solid focused damage, meaningful stability damage, long reach and an accuracy penalty applied to whatever it hits. |
| LRM 20 | A | Support mechs sitting behind the line, paired with a Light running Sensor Lock every round | Indirect fire that only performs against a spotted or sensor locked target, spreading damage across locations while piling on stability. |
| SRM 6 | B | Point blank brawlers finishing off mechs that have already lost armour in a location | Short range missiles trade reach for damage per ton and a high critical hit rate. |
| Medium Laser | B | Filling leftover tonnage on any chassis, and energy builds that never want to worry about ammunition explosions | One ton, no ammunition, decent damage, moderate heat. |
S-Tier: AC/20 Autocannon
The heaviest single-slug weapon available and the only one that reliably removes a medium mech's centre torso in one hit. It is heavy, it eats critical slots, it carries limited ammunition and it has short range, and none of that stops it being the strongest called-shot weapon in the game.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | S |
| Best For | Called shots into a downed mech's head, and any brawler that can close to under 180 metres |
| Key Mechanic | Five phase initiative order |
| Recommended Build | Light Mech scout |
How to get it: Available from mid-game onward. See our walkthrough for the exact progression point.
Best builds using AC/20 Autocannon: Pairs naturally with Light Mech scout thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
A-Tier: PPC
Does a bit of everything: solid focused damage, meaningful stability damage, long reach and an accuracy penalty applied to whatever it hits. The cost is heat, and the PPC is the least heat efficient energy weapon in the game, so two of them will shut down most chassis that are also moving.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | A |
| Best For | Long range heavy mechs with spare heat sinks that want damage and a to-hit debuff in the same shot |
| Key Mechanic | Evasion pips and Sensor Lock |
| Recommended Build | Medium Mech skirmisher |
How to get it: Accessible in the early-to-mid game. Check our maps guide for the location.
Best builds using PPC: Pairs naturally with Medium Mech skirmisher thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
A-Tier: LRM 20
Indirect fire that only performs against a spotted or sensor locked target, spreading damage across locations while piling on stability. LRMs rarely core a mech themselves; what they do is knock one over so something else can aim at the cockpit.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | A |
| Best For | Support mechs sitting behind the line, paired with a Light running Sensor Lock every round |
| Key Mechanic | Called shots on prone and shutdown targets |
| Recommended Build | Heavy Mech line fighter |
How to get it: Accessible in the early-to-mid game. Check our maps guide for the location.
Best builds using LRM 20: Pairs naturally with Heavy Mech line fighter thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
B-Tier: SRM 6
Short range missiles trade reach for damage per ton and a high critical hit rate. Six missiles into an already stripped side torso will find ammunition or a heat sink far more often than a single large slug, which is how SRM brawlers finish fights faster than their raw damage suggests.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | B |
| Best For | Point blank brawlers finishing off mechs that have already lost armour in a location |
| Key Mechanic | Heat and stability damage |
| Recommended Build | Assault Mech brawler |
How to get it: Found in later areas. Our walkthrough covers when you can access this.
Best builds using SRM 6: Pairs naturally with Assault Mech brawler thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
B-Tier: Medium Laser
One ton, no ammunition, decent damage, moderate heat. The Medium Laser is the tonnage filler that every build ends up carrying, and stacking five of them on a Grasshopper produces respectable alpha damage as long as you accept the heat that follows.
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tier | B |
| Best For | Filling leftover tonnage on any chassis, and energy builds that never want to worry about ammunition explosions |
| Key Mechanic | Contract negotiation and salvage shares |
| Recommended Build | Sensor Lock spotter |
How to get it: Found in later areas. Our walkthrough covers when you can access this.
Best builds using Medium Laser: Pairs naturally with Sensor Lock spotter thanks to how their stat scaling lines up.
Equipment Progression Path
The order you should acquire equipment as you progress:
- Starting gear → Enough to clear Coromodir
- PPC → Your first real upgrade, available early
- LRM 20 → Mid-game upgrade with good scaling
- AC/20 Autocannon → Best-in-slot, aim for this by late game
- Upgrade to max → The power spike from max upgrades is enormous
Equipment Tips
- Always upgrade your primary equipment before diversifying. One strong option beats three mediocre ones.
- Match your equipment to your build's stat priorities for maximum scaling.
- Negotiation sliders are not symmetrical in value. Early in a campaign, salvage is worth far more than C-bills because a salvaged Shadow Hawk is worth several contracts of payout, while money only buys repairs you could have avoided.
- Check our tier list for how equipment rankings affect overall build effectiveness.
More BATTLETECH Guides
- BATTLETECH BATTLETECH Overview
- BATTLETECH Best Builds
- BATTLETECH Tier List
- BATTLETECH Walkthrough
- BATTLETECH Beginner's Guide
- BATTLETECH Tips & Tricks
- BATTLETECH Combat Guide
- BATTLETECH Boss Guide
- BATTLETECH Maps & Locations
- BATTLETECH Crafting Guide
- BATTLETECH Classes & Characters
Similar Games
If you enjoy BATTLETECH, check out these related guides:
- Sid Meier's Civilization V Weapons Guide: strategy game with similar mechanics
- Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord Weapons Guide: strategy game with similar mechanics
- RimWorld Weapons Guide: strategy game with similar mechanics
