In the bleak corporate dystopia of Armored Core 6, a mech pilot is only as good as their parts, and that’s especially true early on in the game.
Although there are a truly staggering amount of parts to choose from, with more seeming to pour in after every sortie, in the early game your funds and your pool of mech parts are both limited, which makes choosing the right ones all the harder.
As is the case with a lot of FromSoft games, you’re given relative freedom with how you choose to play, but in AC6 more than most, your equipment still counts. With that in mind, there are a few parts available very early that you should check out and play around with to make sure you get—and keep—an edge on the competition.
Best parts for the first few hours in Armored Core 6
- Nachteiher frame or Melander frame
- BU-TT/A pulse blade
- Ransetsu-RF burst rifle
- VP-20s
As has been the trend with the entire Armored Core series, AC6 has a high focus on aggressiveness and mobility. Although you may be tempted by parts like the SU-Q5 pulse shield or heavy-duty TIAN-QIANG armor, a slow AC is one that gets ripped to shreds all the quicker. As Bloodborne, another FromSoft masterpiece, said: shields are nice, but not if they engender passivity.
Instead, look to the Nachtreiher frame as your first major AC overhaul. Its pieces are available in the very first round of Parts Shop unlocks, and will massively improve your battlefield mobility, allowing you to close the distance in a flash. This advantage does come with a slight knock to overall health compared to your starting AC frame, but the idea here is that you won’t stay still long enough for your enemies to get a hit on you.
The Melander frame is also decent as a middle ground between speed and durability, but you should be looking to specialize as soon as possible.
As far as weapons go, you’ll want to keep your enemies close and your BU-TT/A pulse blade closer. You start the game with this invaluable energy sword equipped to your left hand, and you want to keep it right there—as if proving its worth in the first boss fight wasn’t enough, it remains the best way to get through enemy shields and inflict impact damage, bar none, well into Chapter One.
In your other hand, you’ll want something versatile and decent at a variety of ranges to complement most builds, and the Ransetsu-RF burst rifle fits the bill, with a huge supply of ammunition and respectable attack power and impact values.
Of course, the heart of any AC is its generator, and you can’t go wrong with the VP-20S. Compared to your starting generator, it boasts a massively increased EN capacity (which serves as both your mech building budget and your stamina), and best of all, you can get it completely free if you complete the Intermediate Support 1: Assembling an AC training, so make sure to brush up on your skills when given the opportunity.
All of these parts should help you with the sometimes confusing practice of building your very own combat mech—but of course, the best overall early-game build in AC6 is a different matter entirely. Experimentation is key for any merc, and you’ll quickly learn to keep a stable of mechs depending on what the mission calls for, but with this guide you won’t be alone when you take your first steps onto Rubicon.
