MEC Trooper (Long War)
Long War changes
The (M)echanized (E)xoskeletal (C)ybersuit troopers from XCOM Enemy Within, has been greatly expanded upon in Long War. They also cost significantly more resources to aquire. More research is required before the MEC trooper can be created and due to the item rebalancing, they show up much later in the Campaign compared to Vanilla Enemy Within and require a significant investment of both time and resources. To counter this, Long War has made significant changes to the S.H.I.V. While the MEC has been overhauled dramatically, to make up for its steeper cost. Many S.H.I.V. upgrades can also be used on MEC, allowing for broader customization of Individual MECS.
Like the S.H.I.V. In Long War, MEC Suits cannot take cover, however they have a high Damage reduction, making them quite difficult, for the enemy, to take down. Some MEC classes can increase this damage reduction even further, with MEC class specific perks.
Like Vanilla, MEC troopers are chosen from the Soldier Roster on the base. Only Soldiers with a rank of Specialist or above is eligible for MEC training, the higher the rank, the more abilities the MEC will start with.
As Long War has introduced new soldier classes, it also introduced new MEC classes, offering a Unique MEC class for each of the 8 classes featured in Long War. These changes allow the Mec to be customised in ways that can suit any playstyle and offer greater tactical freedom, when setting up squads for missions. Each MEC class "inherits" traits from the class that the soldier was prior to undergoing MEC training, this means that when creating a MEC it is wise to think what sort of role the MEC should fulfill.
MEC troopers cannot function without a MEC suit, meaning that any surplus of MEC troopers, will be useless unless given a MEC suit of their own. Unlike S.H.I.V.S Mec Troopers suffer from fatigue and need to rest after each mission, however, only the MEC trooper needs the rest, meaning that the suit can be given to another MEC operator effectively letting you have a MEC with you on every single mission, unless destroyed during a mission.
Variants
Like Vanilla, there are three different versions of MECs to be created, though unlike Vanilla, weapons and utility is not chosen for the MEC, instead it can be researched and equipped like regular equipment, giving them a higher degree of tactical flexibility, compared to their Vanilla counterparts.
The MEC-1 Warden:
Equipped with one weapon slot and three utility slots. This variant sports one weapon slot but makes up for it with three item slots, some of these can also be used by the S.H.I.V, essentially adding an extra layer of customizability to the MEC. It is also the first MEC suit that you can aquire.
The MEC-2 Sentinel:
Equipped with two weapon slots and two utility slots. This variant sacrifices one utility slot for an extra weapon slot, while also getting a maximum health boost
The MEC-3 Paladin:
Equipped with three weapon slots and one utility slot. This variant sacifices an additional utility slot for another weapon slot, aswell as a higher maximum health.
Note: The Alloy Belt increases its HP bonus the higher the tier of the MEC, meaning that a Paladin suit will gain a much larger health boost as opposed to the Warden suit.
The different variants each require an ever increasing amount of resources to build, aswell as a MEC of the previous version I.E: A MEC-3 Paladin would need a MEC-2 Sentinel chassis in order to be created, essentially converting the Sentinel into the Paladin.
General Usage
The usage of MECs can fall into two very broad categories, Offensive Support or Tanking.
Due to the MECS variety of weaponry, ranging from the powerful Kinetic module to the less damaging but equally useful Grenade launcher, the offensive capabilities of the MEC is great and offer alot of tactical variety. However they are less useful as frontline fighters as one might think, due to their rather low ammo capacity and inability to take cover. This means that they, more often than not, become relegated to an Offensive Support role akin to the Rocketeer, though with more armor and a cooler sounding voice.
With a high base HP and somewhat high damage reducton, MECS can take quite the beating, however they are not invincible. During the late game, especially in Long War, they are quickly killed by precise and hard hitting plasma fire from the Muton elites, Mechtoids or the ever annoying Sectopod. Their Maximum health can be boosted, by quite abit, with the Alloy belt upgrade, increasing its durability significantly. Classes, such as the Goliath also compliment the MEC's "Tank" role, by giving a higher base defense and also several abilities centering around damage and/or panic reduction.
MEC Classes
The Jaeger is created from the Sniper Class
The Pathfinder is created from the Scout Class
The Valkyrie is created from the Infantry Class
The Marauder is created from the Assault Class
The Goliath is created from the Gunner Class
The Archer is created from the Rocketeer Class
The Guardian is created from the Medic Class
The Saburai is created from the Engineer Class