Custom your Mechs as often you could. My first Customation (play the Campain) are:
a) Shadow Hawk: He will get your first LRM-Mech with light Close-Defense and max Armor he could have [you will need the Armorupgrade later, after the Argo-Rescue]:
- first Costum: get out the SRM 2-Rack incl. Ammo and the AC/5 incl. Ammo; instead get in your first LRM 10-Rack incl. second Ammo
- second Costum: get out the LRM 5-Rack and the medium Laser; instead get in a second LRM 10-Rack and a light Laser
- max Armor in the first Costum as high you can [full Back, Legs, Arms, Head as well as the Rest to Shoulder and Torso on the Front with the remaining weight points]
b) Spider / Locust (light weapons best are MG´s or Lasers) and max. Armor they could have [you will need it for them, without you will lose Pilots]:
- first Costum Locust: get out the medium Laser; instead upgrade the Armor as max. you can [full Back, Legs, Arms, Head as well as the Rest to Shoulder and Torso on the Front with the remaining weight points]
- first and only Costum on Spider: get out the medium Lasers; instead get in 2 small Lasers and upgrade the Armor as max. you could [like Locust]
Info: get better lighter Mechs asap. The Commandos, Jenners and Firestarter are very good in Scouting as well as Weaponvarity and have better fight capabilitys too. If you can, take the Commandos first. The other Alternative to get are Firestarters. Both Variants come very often.
Jenners are combined Locust / Spider-Mechs which are very good too. If you get more Jenners then the other 2 Variants take the Jenners first.
All have the same Advantage: Speed and Maneuverbility (Jenner, Commandos, Firestarter, Locust as well as Spider).
Don´t use the Panther or the Urban for this, they are both good Mechs for Attacks, Fire Support or Close Combat.
c) Vindicator / Blackjack (light changes in Weaponary) and max. Armor they could have [you will need the Armorupgrade later, after the Argo-Rescue]:
- first Costum Vindicator: get out the 1 or 2 of the heat exchanger, the light Laser and the LSR 5-Rack; instead get in a medium Laser and the SRM 2-Rack from Shadow Hawk incl. Ammo
- first Costum Blackjack get out 2 medium Lasers; instead get in 2 small Lasers
- Upgrade the Armor from both as max. you can [full Back, Legs, Arms, Head as well as the Rest to Shoulders and Torso on the Front with the remaining weight points]
d) the Centurion after you rescued the Argo:
- get in 1 more medium Laser, 1 light Laser, 1 AC/5 incl. Ammo and 1 SRM 4 incl. Ammo
- get in 3 Heat Exchanger and 4 Jump Jets
- max. Armor in the first Costum as high you can [full Back, Legs, Arms, Head as well as the Rest to Shoulder and Torso on the Front with the remaining weight points]
That´s my Costumisations of the Mechs, because Armor saves Live as well as the internals of the Mechs. So you save Money for the Repairs. And with that Configs (most of the Mechs can do very good Personal attacks) you win over 90 % of the fights.