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At first you think they're just dropping bombs on people. Then you take a closer look.
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Jul 27, 2013 06:14
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The wrong way with 100-ton Urbanmechs. Beautiful.
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Jul 27, 2013 08:10
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PoptartsNinja posted:It means they can make orbital insertions Toasted Marshmellow mechs.
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Jul 27, 2013 09:45
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And when there aren't orbital insertions, always have Firestarter Mechs around.
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Jul 27, 2013 13:51
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I really like the idea that it's an idiot-proof sort of design, where the mediocre officers know all they have to do is sit tight in their ambush/area-denial location and wait for the enemy to be driven up to them, while the truly terrible officers try to give chase and are mercilessly shot to pieces - thus removing the inconvenient officer from the military.
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Jul 27, 2013 14:59
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Hmmm, this Suburban 'Mech seems like it would be a perfect fit for my lifestyle and appears to meet all my payload capacity needs. Additionally, it looks like it has a high safety rating for when I'm chaperoning the little ones to the battlefield. But I need to know more about its MPG. After all, in this downturned economy, I need to make sure I'm getting the most for my C-Bill.
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Jul 28, 2013 00:49
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mercenarynuker posted:Hmmm, this Suburban 'Mech seems like it would be a perfect fit for my lifestyle and appears to meet all my payload capacity needs. Additionally, it looks like it has a high safety rating for when I'm chaperoning the little ones to the battlefield. But I need to know more about its MPG. After all, in this downturned economy, I need to make sure I'm getting the most for my C-Bill. Battletech mechs are literally fueled by tap water.
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Jul 28, 2013 01:53
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AtomikKrab posted:Battletech mechs are literally fueled by tap water. Doesn't even have to be from a tap. You can use seawater if you want.
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Jul 28, 2013 03:07
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AtomikKrab posted:Battletech mechs are literally fueled by tap water. That can be expensive in the right/wrong context.
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Jul 28, 2013 04:19
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Defiance Industries posted:Doesn't even have to be from a tap. You can use seawater if you want. This has been puzzling me. Fusion engines still need fuel. So do Mechs carry tanks of hydrogen around (which could explain their tendency to explode)? Do pilots speak in a high voice if the engine is damaged and the helium is vented into the cockpit?
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Jul 28, 2013 09:59
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You're thinking about Battletech far too seriously. The hilarious degree in which the mechs are impractical is part of the charm.
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Jul 28, 2013 10:24
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My understanding via Mechcommander manual- magnetohydrothermaldynamics. In other words, it uses magnets and pure water (pure-pure, only H2O and nothing else) to utilize fusion. I was gonna say 'cold fusion', but since it generates a lot of waste heat in the process that's a lie.
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Jul 28, 2013 10:45
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Paingod556 posted:My understanding via Mechcommander manual- magnetohydrothermaldynamics. In other words, it uses magnets and pure water (pure-pure, only H2O and nothing else) to utilize fusion. I was gonna say 'cold fusion', but since it generates a lot of waste heat in the process that's a lie. Cheap fusion, they don't need exotic stuff, just water to pour into the system. And a mech can go for several weeks on a single fill up, and yes they carry big tanks of concentrated hydrogen fuel if they think they need it.
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Jul 28, 2013 11:51
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If you want to think even harder about it, they use the fusion energy to do hydrolysis and get hydrogen then fuse that for more power.
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Jul 28, 2013 14:49
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Arcturas posted:If you want to think even harder about it, they use the fusion energy to do hydrolysis and get hydrogen then fuse that for more power. And this is not actually perpetual-motion because the amount of electricity you need to do hydrolysis is a lot less than the amount of power you get from fusing hydrogen nuclei. A lot less. The handwaving, at least in terms of modern tech, is that they're evidently not using deuterium or tritium but plain old ordinary one-proton one-neutron hydrogen.
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Jul 28, 2013 18:05
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Leperflesh posted:And this is not actually perpetual-motion because the amount of electricity you need to do hydrolysis is a lot less than the amount of power you get from fusing hydrogen nuclei. A lot less. You'd still need some energy to jumpstart the process before it becomes self-sufficient. A mech shut down in the wilderness either keeps using fuel or is not much more than a paperweight.
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Jul 28, 2013 18:29
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Leperflesh posted:And this is not actually perpetual-motion because the amount of electricity you need to do hydrolysis is a lot less than the amount of power you get from fusing hydrogen nuclei. A lot less. The most common isotope of hydrogen by far is a proton without any neutrons. You absolutely need deuterium (which is twice as big since it has a neutron) for fusion to be possible.
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Jul 28, 2013 18:43
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BattleMech engines never actually shut down. They have a low-power mode, but a true "cold start" can take days. They're also magic, and work because it's more awesome that way.
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Jul 28, 2013 18:46
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PoptartsNinja posted:They're also magic, and work because it's more awesome that way. This. Battletech is magic. Same way Jumpships are so rare on paper but the economy doesn't actually collapse inside of a year and leave billions to die upon worlds without supplies.
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Jul 28, 2013 19:43
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Shoeless posted:This. Battletech is magic. Same way Jumpships are so rare on paper but the economy doesn't actually collapse inside of a year and leave billions to die upon worlds without supplies. Maybe people just eat less in the future.
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Jul 28, 2013 19:56
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The only supplies any planets actually need for self-sufficiency is water. If you're stuck using jumpships to transport water, you're doing it wrong. ... although I am reminded of a scenario Catalyst was interested in having someone write wherein some pirates steal a single tanker full of water from a neighboring planet to keep their planet going for another three months.  I seriously considered writing that one since it sounded like Mad Max Battletech.
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Jul 28, 2013 19:58
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PoptartsNinja posted:The only supplies any planets actually need for self-sufficiency is water. If you're stuck using jumpships to transport water, you're doing it wrong. Presumably pirates would need that sort of thing, since they're not the types to do sustainable settlements or anything.
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Jul 28, 2013 20:25
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PoptartsNinja posted:The only supplies any planets actually need for self-sufficiency is water. If you're stuck using jumpships to transport water, you're doing it wrong. Not too implausible if they have some modern tech recycling. You need quite a bit of water to get started but you don't use it up very fast at all. For that matter, hydrogen-hydrogen fusion is possible too, though a long way off for us. There are plenty of other things that require facepalming about.
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Jul 28, 2013 20:32
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PoptartsNinja posted:The only supplies any planets actually need for self-sufficiency is water. If you're stuck using jumpships to transport water, you're doing it wrong. I thought water was still shipped primarily in ice form like it was in the days of the Ryan Cartel. Is that not a thing?
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Jul 28, 2013 20:47
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PoptartsNinja posted:... although I am reminded of a scenario Catalyst was interested in having someone write wherein some pirates steal a single tanker full of water from a neighboring planet to keep their planet going for another three months. Are talking tanker truck, ship, spacecraft? I mean, a cubic kilometre of pure water could probably keep a few tens of millions of people going for a few months without any recycling, but I'm pretty sure nothing in Battletech even comes close to that size.
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Jul 28, 2013 20:55
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goatface posted:tanker truck This one. As in, 18 wheeler.
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Jul 28, 2013 20:56
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Well that's just special. I hope they got away with it because nobody could be bothered to waste the ammo stopping them.
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Jul 28, 2013 21:05
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Defiance Industries posted:I thought water was still shipped primarily in ice form like it was in the days of the Ryan Cartel. Is that not a thing? I distinctly remember my least favorite set of missions in MW2 Mercs revolving around defending a massive ice chunk being shipped to a planet.
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Jul 28, 2013 21:15
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The Ryan Cartel is still a thing. Typically they just drop off a Dropship in a system and tell it to go haul comets from the Oort cloud for as long as the planet keeps sending them money. The danger of not paying is: the Dropship might get reassigned and who knows how long the waiting list for the next dropship might be? ... So you'd better pay triple our actual work cost. Because that's a nice planet you have there, and it'd be a shame if something happened to it.
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Jul 28, 2013 21:35
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PoptartsNinja posted:The Ryan Cartel is still a thing. Typically they just drop off a Dropship in a system and tell it to go haul comets from the Oort cloud for as long as the planet keeps sending them money. The danger of not paying is: the Dropship might get reassigned and who knows how long the waiting list for the next dropship might be? And if you go late on the payment, we might just forget to slow that comet down before it hits your planet...
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Jul 28, 2013 21:57
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ArchangeI posted:And if you go late on the payment, we might just forget to slow that comet down before it hits your planet... That's less "shady businessmen" and more "cartoonish super-villains".
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Jul 28, 2013 23:38
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Is there really a difference in BT?
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Jul 28, 2013 23:43
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paragon1 posted:That's less "shady businessmen" and more "cartoonish super-villains". I demand one million helicopters and one cbill!
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Jul 29, 2013 00:31
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ArchangeI posted:I demand one million helicopters and one cbill! You say that, but if the Lyrans had one million Yellowjackets they'd be dancing on the Pentagon Worlds right now. Edit: Alright, leaving for my flight now. I intend to make time to do a political update while I'm on vacation (it may be several mini-updates with their own votes, I don't know yet), but I won't have means to get to a combat theater vote. Take your time with them! PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 11:44 on Jul 29, 2013 |
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Jul 29, 2013 00:48
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Bobbin Threadbare posted:The most common isotope of hydrogen by far is a proton without any neutrons. You absolutely need deuterium (which is twice as big since it has a neutron) for fusion to be possible. Hydrogen-Hydrogen Fusion is definitely possible and is the main fusion process happening in the Sun. It isn't considered for RL fusion reactors because the heat/temperature requirements for H1-H1 fusion are even more insane than those for the various H2, H3, He3 chains so the reaction isn't particularly efficient. On top of that the product of H1-H1 is H2, which will promptly react with either H1 or other H2 to form three new products which will immediately decay/react with the rest of your reactor soup to form a whole pile of new poo poo, which reacts itself with ..., you get the idea. Most of these reactions aren't even energetically efficient and are actively reducing the output of your reactor, which now contains every possible breed of Hydrogen, Helium, Lithium and Beryllium, some of which won't react further and need to be filtered out so they don't gum up your reactor. Oh, and on top of that, massive radiation problem.
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Jul 29, 2013 11:49
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PoptartsNinja posted:The Ryan Cartel is still a thing. Typically they just drop off a Dropship in a system and tell it to go haul comets from the Oort cloud for as long as the planet keeps sending them money. The danger of not paying is: the Dropship might get reassigned and who knows how long the waiting list for the next dropship might be? Can we play as or against the Ryan Cartel? That'd be cool.
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Jul 29, 2013 17:42
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Domattee posted:...physics...
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Jul 29, 2013 19:27
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Endomorphic posted:Just out of interest, on what page of this thread did the phrase "physics is Lostech" first appear?
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Jul 29, 2013 19:36
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Endomorphic posted:Just out of interest, on what page of this thread did the phrase "physics is Lostech" first appear? Here ya go: e: beaten
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Jul 29, 2013 19:53
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Domattee posted:Hydrogen-Hydrogen Fusion is definitely possible and is the main fusion process happening in the Sun. It isn't considered for RL fusion reactors because the heat/temperature requirements for H1-H1 fusion are even more insane than those for the various H2, H3, He3 chains so the reaction isn't particularly efficient. On top of that the product of H1-H1 is H2, which will promptly react with either H1 or other H2 to form three new products which will immediately decay/react with the rest of your reactor soup to form a whole pile of new poo poo, which reacts itself with ..., you get the idea.  I knew the sun was Hydrogen-Hydrogen but I didn't know any of this extra stuff. It's really fascinating.
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Jul 29, 2013 20:10
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