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paragon1 posted:This is bumming me out way more than it has any right to be. I also hope the Clanners can kick the Comstar folks down without too much of a fuss. After that ramming-insult, they better. If I was taking part in the LP, I'd probably enjoy taking part even in the failed attempts if they're all this amusing, though. And here I was thinking I knew what a good mission in BT was.
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Jun 17, 2011 22:53
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What's this "SDS"?
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Jun 17, 2011 23:06
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ZeeToo posted:What's this "SDS"? Space Defense System. It's an automated defense system of space stations, satellites, automated warships, and other toys that the Star League used to defend Terra and other important systems.
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Jun 17, 2011 23:12
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jng2058 posted:Space Defense System. It's an automated defense system of space stations, satellites, automated warships, and other toys that the Star League used to defend Terra and other important systems. Here's the real kicker: In this alternate timeline - if Kerensky failed to take down Amaris on Terra - Comstar controls the Caspar I SDS and not the watered down Caspar II built by the Word of Blake. Although how the hell Comstar managed to seize Terra in the first place if Kerensky failed to sack Terra to kill the Usurper is the real question.
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Jun 17, 2011 23:46
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Boogle posted:Here's the real kicker: In this alternate timeline - if Kerensky failed to take down Amaris on Terra - Comstar controls the Caspar I SDS and not the watered down Caspar II built by the Word of Blake. I'm guessing that Blake and company were already planetside and staged a coup on site. After all, the SDS doesn't protect you from enemies who aren't coming from space in the first place...
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Jun 18, 2011 00:16
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OH hell I did not think of that, holy poo poo if they still got the Caspar they are near invincible.
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Jun 18, 2011 00:20
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AtomikKrab posted:OH hell I did not think of that, holy poo poo if they still got the Caspar they are near invincible. ...on DEFENSE. Clanners can still take every other world in the Inner Sphere...or at least blow up every HPG...and then just let ComStar wither on the vine. Granted, having an nearly unassiable fortress is a HUGE advantage for the ComGuards, but they can still lose the war.
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Jun 18, 2011 00:39
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Bah, any fortress can be taken. 
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Jun 18, 2011 00:57
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jng2058 posted:...on DEFENSE. Clanners can still take every other world in the Inner Sphere...or at least blow up every HPG...and then just let ComStar wither on the vine. Granted, having an nearly unassiable fortress is a HUGE advantage for the ComGuards, but they can still lose the war. Assuming the clans' plans still involve getting their hands on Terra for the glory of it (and taking a superfortress is glory out the rear end), they'll probably still smash their shiny armoured prows against the SDS as soon as somebody has a clear run on it. Honestly the smartest thing a House could do is feign acquiescence to help the Clans dash themselves against Terra as soon as possible.
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Jun 18, 2011 01:04
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Tarquinn posted:Bah, any fortress can be taken. That plan was hilariously simple and easy. If I ever need to defend myself from things in space, I'm going to need to remember to make the stations mobile. Tell me that the SDS is designed with that in mind.
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Jun 18, 2011 01:18
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jng2058 posted:...on DEFENSE. Clanners can still take every other world in the Inner Sphere...or at least blow up every HPG...and then just let ComStar wither on the vine. Granted, having an nearly unassiable fortress is a HUGE advantage for the ComGuards, but they can still lose the war. The Clan mindset doesn't allow them to lay siege to a system and starve the enemy out. There's no honor in killing your enemy that way. It's cowardly and weak. They'd run into the gaping maw of the SDS a hundred times in a row before they'd resort to that. Of course after 100 failures, there wouldn't be enough warriors left for it to matter. It'd basically be all bondsmen and laborers saying "gently caress this noise, we're leaving".
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Jun 18, 2011 01:19
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Veyrall posted:That plan was hilariously simple and easy. If I ever need to defend myself from things in space, I'm going to need to remember to make the stations mobile. It's a bunch of robot WarShips, so yeah
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Jun 18, 2011 01:38
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You know that Comstar big wig we are trying to save. What if she gives up secrets of the SDS?!
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Jun 18, 2011 02:52
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AtomikKrab posted:
I thought you were joking until I took a peek in Sarna.net and realized it was the proper name for a missile. Didn't stop me from picturing space battles with whales being used for ordnance though.
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Jun 18, 2011 02:52
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Zikan posted:You know that Comstar big wig we are trying to save. What if she gives up secrets of the SDS?! Only one way to make sure that doesn't happen...  On a slightly more serious note would the members of the First Circuit know the access codes for the SDS or would that just be knowledge limited to the Primus and maybe whoever is in charge of the ComGuard?
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Jun 18, 2011 03:08
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It's not like ComStar doesn't know she's gone. They may be insane sometimes, but they're not stupid enough to let a very high ranking officer get captured and then leave the access codes to their primary means of defending their entire source of power unchanged.
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Jun 18, 2011 03:37
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Boogle posted:Here's the real kicker: In this alternate timeline - if Kerensky failed to take down Amaris on Terra - Comstar controls the Caspar I SDS and not the watered down Caspar II built by the Word of Blake.
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Jun 18, 2011 03:40
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Zaodai posted:It's not like ComStar doesn't know she's gone. They may be insane sometimes, but they're not stupid enough to let a very high ranking officer get captured and then leave the access codes to their primary means of defending their entire source of power unchanged. That's true but at the same time I'm wondering if she would've even known the codes in the first place.
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Jun 18, 2011 03:47
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Tarquinn posted:Bah, any fortress can be taken. Somebody reads too much Known Space stuff. Not that that's a bad thing.
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Jun 18, 2011 04:53
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Seeing all this space stuff makes me yearn for that Battletech Homeworld 2 mod that never made it past modelling. Oh, to command a McKenna...
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Jun 18, 2011 07:51
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raverrn posted:Seeing all this space stuff makes me yearn for that Battletech Homeworld 2 mod that never made it past modelling. a tharkad class could take a mckenna
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Jun 18, 2011 09:41
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AtomikKrab posted:a tharkad class could take a mckenna well my dad could beat up your dad 
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Jun 18, 2011 09:49
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Affi posted:well my dad could beat up your dad this is true, my father is a wuss 
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Jun 18, 2011 09:53
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Affi posted:well my dad could beat up your dad You know, next half of the mission, one of the ComGuards ought to say this to the Clanners. Just fit that into the orders, "PTN: My orders are to stay put and say this line. Feel free to add a poo poo-eating grin in the fluff."
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Jun 18, 2011 10:15
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T.G. Xarbala posted:You know, next half of the mission, one of the ComGuards ought to say this to the Clanners. Just fit that into the orders, "PTN: My orders are to stay put and say this line. Feel free to add a poo poo-eating grin in the fluff." The Clanner response: "Nuh uh! My dad is a vat! He's made of, like, steel and stuff!"
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Jun 18, 2011 10:26
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If I may submit the following modifications:DivineCoffeeBinge posted:The Clanner response: "Neg! My dad is a canister! He is made of, like, steel and stuff! Quiaff Isorla Batchall etc." I hope I got it right. Still new to
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Jun 18, 2011 10:36
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Has anyone considered engaging in psychological warfare with the clans, in the form of mocking their practices as obviously silly? Get a whole battalion of mechs to fall over laughing when they learn their enemy is like 21. "Oh I'm sorry, we're fighting kids? Hold on will give you a minute to wipe your nose before you fight us. Maybe mommy can help with that - oh wait, you don't have a mommy. Orphan! Orphan!"
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Jun 18, 2011 12:19
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I doubt that would work when they already regard the IS and their practices as barbaric, barely human savages. It'd be like randomly running into a group of people from 1650 and having them say "Way to cure small pox, faggots. We're living like real men, here in our lovely uninsulated houses, with barely any food to eat!" Your reaction would be some variation of "Oh, isn't that cute. It thinks it's people!"
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Jun 18, 2011 12:26
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The Clans might look down on the IS for being practically medieval, but for a culture ostensibly designed to cut down on waste they seem awfully eager to ritually kill themselves off for petty reasons and cycle out more skilled and experienced warriors out of combat roles and into garrison duty. That said, I still maintain that it is the solemn duty of every Inner Sphere Mechwarrior commander to reply to every threat made by a Clanner with, "That's what your mom said last night." Along with various other taunts that basically amount to calling them Freebirths without actually saying so.
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Jun 18, 2011 13:46
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Zaodai posted:I doubt that would work when they already regard the IS and their practices as barbaric, barely human savages. It'd be like randomly running into a group of people from 1650 and having them say "Way to cure small pox, faggots. We're living like real men, here in our lovely uninsulated houses, with barely any food to eat!" That Ponce de Leon was always such a mean kid.
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Jun 18, 2011 14:58
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Since the thread is kind of slow, does anyone recommend buying a subscription to BattleCorp to read any of the Battletech novels? I didn't really get into Battletech until I was older and by then all the novels had been taken off the shelves. The only one I actually have is The Hunters by Thomas Gressman and I've read it three times over the past month because I'm so bored.
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Jun 19, 2011 18:21
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Eh, I think most of the stuff that's original content is more interesting, but I find Victor and his team mind-bendingly obnoxious.
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Jun 20, 2011 02:01
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The Blood of Kerensky trilogy is a good read. Mary Sues aren't exactly uncommon in fiction, and the only truly bad character is Kai Allard-Liao. Star Lord is a fun, unoffensive read. The 17th recon trilogy is fun, but the first book is the best and the other two feel like the author's heart wasn't really in them. Wolves on the Border is great, but read the Blood of Kerensky first. Wolf Pack is ok (but forgettable), but read Wolves on the Border first. Roar of Honor is pretty good. Exodus Road, the first of the Twilight of the Clans books, is pretty great except for the Stackpoling. Binding Force was a great book with a Capellan protagonist who didn't feel like a fu manchu villain in disguise. The Northwind Highlander books were both good, even if Loren Jaffrey was a colossal mary sue (who may have been a quiet jab at Loren Coleman (who wrote Binding Force)). So yeah, honestly, I'd say at least half of the Battletech books were worth reading--so long as you avoid garbage like Malicious Intent and Assumption of Risk and Also, working on a map (and 'Mech lists) for the ground portion of the mission. Expect an update in the next day or so. I'm paying closer attention to balance this time around, since Part 1 was less balanced than I'd originally calculated.
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Jun 20, 2011 05:13
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I'd also say that if you can find it for something less than the price of a a couple of limbs, The Sword and the Dagger wasn't bad either, and sets up some things in the Warrior trilogy by Stackpole, which you should definitely read.
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Jun 20, 2011 05:27
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I'm sold, and on the hardcopies no less. Looks like I'll be spending quite a bit on Amazon this summer.
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Jun 20, 2011 06:00
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PoptartsNinja posted:I'm paying closer attention to balance this time around, since Part 1 was less balanced than I'd originally calculated. Wait. I thought that was intentional. 
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Jun 20, 2011 06:30
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T.G. Xarbala posted:Wait. I thought that was intentional. It was intentional. I was still expecting it to be a lot closer than the end result, and I can't exactly blame the players for the Elementals' surprising overperformance. 750 BV (3 points) of Elementals killed... 2857 BV(1) in player 'Mechs. Even in that envirnoment, that's a huge statistical anomaly.
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Jun 20, 2011 06:48
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To be fair, statistical anomalies are what makes Battletech fun.
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Jun 20, 2011 07:18
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Tarquinn posted:Bah, any fortress can be taken. Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein: the deadliest SOB tag-team in space!
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Jun 20, 2011 07:59
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Fraction Jackson posted:Well, theoretically functional, not actually functional; I don't think in canon it comes online again until after the WOB gets ahold of it, but I might be wrong. But yeah, there are entire classes of ships (like the Luxor) that don't exist anymore purely because of the old SDS networks during the Amaris coup. jng2058 posted:I'm guessing that Blake and company were already planetside and staged a coup on site. After all, the SDS doesn't protect you from enemies who aren't coming from space in the first place... b0lt posted:It's a bunch of robot WarShips, so yeah
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Jun 20, 2011 16:31
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