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On its own? Nothing. The Cyclops can't dedicate as much of its tonnage to firepower and has worse hardpoints. As a single 'Mech, it's one of the overall weakest assault 'Mechs in the game. As a force multiplier? The CP-10-Z is amazing (the other two variants are complete garbage). Just having a CP-10-Z on the field boosts the initiative of every allied 'Mech in play. I'll talk about it more once we get one, but the TLDR is: a Cyclops lets you completely control the entire engagement. It's an extremely powerful tool with a lot of shortcomings that make it difficult to use well. It's a bit like the Firestarter, where a lot of players completely overlook how powerful it is because it doesn't look all that great at a glance. In other words: it's the perfect 'Mech to show off in an LP!
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Sep 3, 2020 21:43
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Seraphic Neoman posted:What's so good about a cyclops that it replaces a warhammer? +1 Initiative for the whole lance that stacks with Master Tactician. e: What PoptartsNinja said^
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Sep 3, 2020 21:44
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Glad that this LP is still showing me thing I'm too dumb and bad to pull off myself! Excited to see if we can get the rest of the Cyclops parts in the near future.
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Sep 3, 2020 22:18
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I guarantee we'll be getting a Cyclops.
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Sep 3, 2020 22:21
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I think showing the recording always gives a morale boost. At least, I've done it every time and never seen a different result.
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Sep 3, 2020 22:40
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PoptartsNinja posted:I erase the recording. They’re fictional adults and I don’t give a poo poo. That nearly always improves morale. I will be honest I’ve never chosen the other option so I have no idea what it does, presumably it makes someone sad. Sorites posted:I think showing the recording always gives a morale boost. At least, I've done it every time and never seen a different result. Address the Crew. posted:Your voice echoes through the Argo.
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Sep 3, 2020 23:35
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Ardlen posted:It does. I don't have a screenshot, but: That's beautiful.
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Sep 3, 2020 23:37
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quote:Echoing down the hallways and through the vent shafts comes a single mortified voice. "Oh my God!" 
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Sep 4, 2020 09:14
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I think that event is almost guaranteed to pop fairly shortly after you complete the pool, so the +2 morale bonus listed for it is actually effectively a +4. Just in case anyone was wondering whether a different upgrade might be better. It is not. Plus, as Sumire points out, low-G swimming pool. There's really nothing you should need to add to that argument.
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Sep 4, 2020 15:40
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It's almost always 2-3 months after you get the pool, yeah. It's a nice bonus since Gamma pod is expensive and the average run doesn't have much use for gamma pod unless you're hiring a bunch of cheap pilots to
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Sep 4, 2020 15:50
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PoptartsNinja posted:hiring a bunch of cheap pilots to gotta have victims - I mean, uh, other players - for your crew to beat up in the sim pods
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Sep 4, 2020 19:48
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Getting paid and playing Video Games in my Video Game.
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Sep 5, 2020 03:20
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Let’s Play BattleTech: Career Mode – Flashpoint:  This is not my favorite Flashpoint. Blasphemy, I know! So before you get out the torches and pitchforks, it’s definitely in my Top 3. There’re just a couple of other flashpoints who have individual missions I find more fun, but in terms of overall experience? I’d say there is no flashpoint that makes me smile quite as much as this one does. Before we get there, we fork over 682,750 c-bills for a payday.   We have the lounge, so there’s no reason not to do this. It’s free morale. Sunshine is a pilot I picked up as a spare at some point, he’s a ComStar acolyte and started with Tactics… 5? I forget. The odds of him ever seeing combat are astronomically low. And, of course, because we’ve committed to another Flashpoint, the next part of the Dobrev flashpoint finally triggers.   As far as I’m aware, both options here do the same thing. So I chose Sumire’s.    Yeah… thanks. Remind me what we stand to gain by winning this thing?  Never mind that, I want to know what he’s wearing. That is a seriously bold look, Professor. I don’t even know what I’m seeing here.  What you are seeing, Mr. Virtanen, is the hide of a Black Reaper. A savage beast, the apex predator of Yance I, and a killer of men. I put an end to this one myself—tracked it for days, stalked it, and lanced it through the heart with a single thrust. The hide is thick as rubber, yet soft as a lover’s caress. The fur is as luxuriant as it is fragrant. Indeed, this coat is absolutely pregnant with the beast’s indelible musk. I’m suddenly overjoyed that we aren’t speaking to you in person. Now, let’s get back to that prize purse. How big is it? One million C-Bills. Winner take all. Of course, that means that there will be no intermediary payouts. Eliminated competitors will walk away with nothing—assuming they walk away at all. Arena combat is rich with peril; it can easily swallow the unwary.  Peril doesn’t scare me. We can handle whatever you throw at us. So you say—for now. We’ll see if you sing a different tune when you’re scraping a prized MechWarrior out of a ruined cockpit. Red death and the arena floor are constant companions. …But if you speak truly, if you are a hunter of men, you will find much to love in my Tournament. For those bold enough to follow our rarefied path, risk is what gives life its flavor, its succulence. Do you salivate at the thought of victory, Commander? Does the prospect of taking all comers and breaking them make your heart hammer in your chest? drat right it does. I’ve got the best company in the Rimward Periphery, and I aim to prove it. From the safety of my desk, of course. And I will give you that chance. Wait…  What are the rules of this tourney of yours? Are there drop weight restrictions? Tonnage requirements? The Tournament of Champions has no need for such guidelines. In fact, your BattleMechs won’t be required at all. To ensure a level playing field, I insist that all competitors pilot hardware drawn from my own stable. Stock ‘mechs, bereft of embellishment or modification. And if we’d prefer to use our own ‘Mechs? Then you’ll be disappointed. I’m afraid that this rule is inviolable. Should you attempt to deploy your own BattleMechs while the Tournament is in session, your lives will be forfeit. My enforcer, the man-monster Calamar Gigante, will tear you apart. “Man-monster.” Wow. Anyone else get a little shiver just now? ‘Cause I did. Marry me, Yang.  I’m going to make you cry.  [Professor Horvat’s image disappears as the comm connection is cut.]  Well. That was… something. Was it just me, or did anyone else get the impression that the Professor had a romantic interest in his coat? It wasn’t just you. But if this contest is legit, we stand to win a lot of money. And because Horvat’s insisting on supplying the hardware, we won’t even have to put our own ‘Mechs on the line. In light of what we stand to gain, who cares if our host is a little eccentric? Nobody, I guess. I’ll get our MechWarriors ready. Let’s go win ourselves a tournament. Welcome to my Tournament, Commander. Here you will prove your mettle against the Periphery’s fiercest champions. Today, your MechWarriors will demonstrate their worth using only the simplest of tools: the UM-R60 UrbanMech. Like a huntsman’s spear, it is an instrument with a single purpose. Wield it skillfully and ascend into triumph. An Urbie is basically a walking dustbin with a mounted AC/10. That autocannon packs a hell of a punch, but it’s only got 8 shots. Keep an eye on those ammo counters, Ajax. Sliders: Payment N/A (0c) / Salvage N/A (1/5)  I don’t usually show off the pre-drop screen, but as you can see we really are limited to Urbies. Because of this, Thoth (whose initiative bullshit is less valuable) and Venom (who can’t make good advantage of her movement sorcery) both get benched in favor of our Breaching Shot and Coolant Vent pilots. Breaching shot isn’t hugely useful, but when you only have eight shots it’s nice to make sure all eight shots count. Tournament of Champions 1: Tournament of Champions (Commentary) OpForce Casualties: 5 Urbanmechs Allied Casualties: None Rewards & Interesting Salvage: 1 UM-R60 Part So far, so good, Boss. I think that we could win this tournament. “So far, so good”? Yang, this whole tournament is positively mental. Horvat and his cronies are throwing up more red flags than a Kuritan military parade. I mean, I’m preaching to the choir here, right? You do all get how ridiculous this is? No arguments here, Doc. Horvat’s a lunatic, and our fellow competitors aren’t much better. Speak fot he devil, we’re getting a secure call from inside Horvat’s castle. It’s Jackhammer—you remember the “I’m here to avenge my father!” Lady? The one that Gigante threw in a cell after the match? I’m surprised they let her have access toa comm system. Put her on the viewscreen. Let’s see what she has to say.   My father is alive and well on Leamington. That whole “vengeance” schtick is just a cover story. The truth is, I’m an undercover operative with the MIIO, and I’m here to investigate Horvat’s crimes against Davion commercial interests. He’s a pirate, in case you hadn’t figured that out. Kraven, the Hunter of Men and Spiders-Men? A criminal?! I never would’ve guessed! He also wants to marry his fur coat. You got a reason why we should care? The Tournament of Champions is a sham. This whole circus is a sick joke that Horvat uses to sniff out highly skilled, morally flexible MechWarriors. He reveres strength and wants to surround himself with it, but his standards are impossibly high. The second round of the Tournament is a trap. If you’re good enough to push through and win anway, the Professor will shower you in blood money to buy your friendship. If he finds you wanting, he’ll kill you for sport. Will he use a spear? He’ll use whatever he drat well pleases. He’s a pirate; he doesn’t play by anyone’s rules—especially not his own. The Professor has been running this contest for years, and in all that time, the only actual winner has been Calamar Gigante. Everyone else—we’re talking hundreds of contestants here—has “mysteriously disappeared.” And if you let your MechWarriors compete again, he’ll make them “disappear,” too. Okay. So I’m getting that our options aren’t great. They really, really aren’t. But fortunately for you, I’m here, and I’ve been authorized to offer you an alternative. House Davion has granted me the authority to draft a kill order for Professor Mencius Horvat. I’d like your company to carry out the contract. I dunno. You could have drafted a legitimate kill order for Horvat at any time, at no risk to yourself. The only reason why you’re asking for our help now is because all of your other gambits have failed and you’re desperate. All money is blood money if you dig deeply enough. I kind of prefer the idea of fighting our way onto Horvat’s payroll. You don’t want to get in bed with Horvat. Even if you manage to beat him, it’s a bad deal. Working with pirates is a surefire way to get on the bad side of every Great House in the Inner Sphere. Seriously, you’ll wind up on everybody’s poo poo list if you go through with this. Everybody but the pirates, that is. And from what you’re telling us, going through with it will also earn us a whole lot of money. As mercenaries, that’s kind of relevant to our interests. You don’t get paid unless you win, and you won’t win. If you work for me, on the other hand, you probably will win, because I’ve seen you fight and you’re good. DavionLogic.txt Accept me offer, and you’ll take home a quarter million C-Bills. And the last time I checked, that’s a hell of a lot better than slinking off with a goose egg and a pair of dead MechWarriors. I thought MIIO’s operational budget was pretty good. That’s barely 30% of the standard contract rate for an assassination. I’ve made you a fair offer, Commander. For the good of every Davion merchant in the Rimward Periphery, you need to take Mencius Horvat down. I don’t know when we’re going to get another opportunity like this.  [Flashpoint Decision: Attempt to win over Horvat by beating him at his own game.] You’re making a mistake. It’s our mistake to make. Now I’d suggest that you clear the line, Agent Jones. Wouldn’t wanna risk Horvat catching you on that mic. No, I wouldn’t. You’re playing a dangerous game, Commander. I hope it doesn’t wind up biting you. You could even say… we’re playing The Most Dangerous Game  Welcome to the final round of my Tournament, Commander. Today, your two finest pilots will face off against the cream of the Frountier MechWarrior community. This will be a battle like no other, a clash between veritable gods. I wish your fighters luck, Commander—and I promise you, they will need it. Horvat’s going to stack the odds against us, just like Agent Jones said. If we’re going to do this, our MechWarriors will have to be ready.  Second verse, almost the same as the first. Except this time we’re bringing Venom. I didn’t want to risk her on the first outing, but we’re going to want her extra evasion this time out. Tournament of Champions 2: Tournament of Champions II (Commentary) OpForce Casualties: 2 Urbanmechs, 1 Blackjack Allied Casualties: None Rewards & Interesting Salvage: 1 UM-R60 Part, 1 BJ-1 Blackjack part  I’m just… so happy! I told you I’d make Calimar Gigante cry. JSON. JSON, JSON, JSON. Next outing, I’m naming my character ‘Hastur.’ You are more than a hunter, more than a MechWarrior. You and your company are veritable deities of war, and when trouble comes to my doorstep, I want you to fight by my side. Our friendship doesn’t come cheap, Professor. Nothing worth having does. Thankfully, I am a man of abundtant resources. Accept my friendship, and you will receive the million C-Bills you were promised. And you will also take an UrbanMech from my stable, of course! It wouldn’t be a proper victory withouta memento of your triumph. drat. That’s even more than he gave Calamar Gigante. Gigante is but one man. You are an entire company of mercenaries. I count only the best of the best among my friends, and they deserve the best. Let no one say that Professor Mencius Horvat undervalues his allies. In that case, let’s be pals. You don’t know how much it thrills me to hear you say that. Your payment will be forthcoming. And now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a terrible mess to clean up. Such wreckage, such destruction! The mere sight of it is enough to make my spirits soar. You are welcome on Cluff’s Stand any time, JSON. Until our paths cross again! I bid you farewell. [Your viewscreen goes blank as professor Horvat cuts the line.] Well, we’re pirates now. Or at least, pirate-adjacent. It feels a little liberating, honestly. You don’t have to worry so much about who thinks what of whom when everyone hates you. Don’t be dramatic, Yang. I’m sure that our reputation with the Great Houses didn’t take that big a hit. House Davion is hardly going to admit they bungled an MIIO op out here, so nobody will think worse of us for admitting we successfully fought our way out of some crazy idiot’s dumb bullshit. Only one way to find out. C’mon, people. Let’s go find some more trouble to get ourselves into.   I included the reputation sidebar this time so you can see just how little anyone cares about this. Next Time: Natasha Kerensky PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 21:14 on Sep 10, 2020 |
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Sep 10, 2020 20:56
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That was beautiful. Urbies for miles!
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Sep 11, 2020 01:02
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put a smile on your face is right. This flashpoint is so absurd, I love it. Getting the R60L is just a nice bonus. The deadliest trash can, for about 3 seconds. Then it's out of ammo and a free target. but what a three second ride it is. if you don't like Urbanmechs ...for sone reason....? Taking the MIIO operative up on their offer just means you drop your mechs as you please and fight the Alleged Man Monster and unusual relationship with coat man, no big deal
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Sep 11, 2020 05:25
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You can't curb the urbie.
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Sep 11, 2020 11:18
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I forgot to mention it, but this flashpoint is one of the only places to get UrbanMech parts other than buying them in the shop. UrbanMechs are too dangerous to spawn in 1/2 and 1 skull missions, and too weak to spawn in harder missions so they're not on the standard drop tables. I believe there're a few other scripted missions where an UrbanMech can show up, but they can't spawn randomly at all.
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Sep 11, 2020 11:21
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I love fighting in urban environments. Enemy 'Mechs just love to hop up onto a building, and I just love shooting said building out from under their feet to a huge chunk of fall and stability damage. Sometimes the same 'Mech will not learn it's lesson and do the same next round, which is a free kill.
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Sep 11, 2020 15:09
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Rorahusky posted:I love fighting in urban environments. Enemy 'Mechs just love to hop up onto a building, and I just love shooting said building out from under their feet to a huge chunk of fall and stability damage. Sometimes the same 'Mech will not learn it's lesson and do the same next round, which is a free kill. I sometimes field an LRM boat with a multi-shot pilot just for this.
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Sep 11, 2020 15:43
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It's statistically unlikely, but your Mechwarriors can miss buildings. It always makes me laugh when it happens.
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Sep 11, 2020 16:30
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Some pilots just literally cannot hit the broadside of a barn.
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Sep 11, 2020 16:51
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Are we still able to make that next Flashpoint that triggered during the UrbieMech Thunderdome?
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Sep 11, 2020 22:26
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Yeah, the Dobrev chain doesn't expire. Even the ones that do give you a minimum of 300 days, if not longer.
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Sep 11, 2020 22:51
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PoptartsNinja posted:It's statistically unlikely, but your Mechwarriors can miss buildings. It always makes me laugh when it happens. At that point, it's less miss, and more you didn't hit anything structural and the shots passed through.
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Sep 12, 2020 01:10
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PoptartsNinja posted:I forgot to mention it, but this flashpoint is one of the only places to get UrbanMech parts other than buying them in the shop. UrbanMechs are too dangerous to spawn in 1/2 and 1 skull missions, and too weak to spawn in harder missions so they're not on the standard drop tables. drat, that sucks. It would be nice if they could show up as a boss mech on occasional 1 star missions, and as a random brawler type mech on 1 1/2 & 2 star missions.
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Sep 12, 2020 04:47
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Hahaha, this loving Flashpoint. "ALL OF THE INNER SPHERE WILL HATE YOU." Reputation Loss: Federated Suns, -3
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Sep 12, 2020 05:56
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PMush Perfect posted:Hahaha, this loving Flashpoint. The FS are poorly educated enough to think they're the whole inner sphere, so that scans.
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Sep 12, 2020 05:57
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"Hate" apparently stands for "you're not getting invited to my sportsball party this year."
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Sep 12, 2020 18:23
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It's ok, we'll rescue Hanse Davion's Space Yacht later and it'll be water under the bridge.
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Sep 12, 2020 18:43
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I finally got caught up with this LP, and it's been fantastically entertaining, makes me want to start another run. I know it hasn't updated for a while- I hope you're well, Poptarts.
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Jan 15, 2021 10:47
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Unfortunately, I lost all my footage when my hard drive failed. I've replaced the drive since, but unfortunately everything on it was lost. I've been considering restarting things when my time allows. PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 12:57 on Jan 15, 2021 |
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Jan 15, 2021 12:05
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Is it possible you have the saves up on Steam Cloud? Either way, I'll follow along with whatever you decide to do. Sucks about your hard drive though 
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Jan 16, 2021 04:47
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fennesz posted:Is it possible you have the saves up on Steam Cloud? It was an Iron Man game with cloud saves disabled (because BattleTech has a problem with saves tanking performance, Iron Man and disabling cloud saves cuts down on that). I'll probably restart the LP with a few mods, like the PPC fix and SLDF Incoming which adds SLDF chassis as rare enemy spawns, and maybe a few others besides. Unfortunately my own custom mod, which added slightly worse version of the Heavy Metal quirk gear as purchasable equipment for a tonnage cost, was lost; but it's high on my list for a remake. A lot of doors open up when you can cram the Vulcan's CQC equipment into a Spider ok, that's not really true. PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 19:15 on Jan 16, 2021 |
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Jan 16, 2021 19:12
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Count me as one who's like it if you relaunched this.
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Jan 17, 2021 00:09
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Play Roguetech instead*  *don't
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Jan 17, 2021 03:41
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No thank you. I already lost one hard drive.
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Jan 17, 2021 03:44
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Here’s a vote for would follow if you restarted!
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Jan 17, 2021 08:16
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Right, so I'm gearing up for a second go at this. We're going to play slightly modded this time out with a few surprises including a personal mod I'm (re)making on that nerfs the Marauder's called shot bonus and adds some (usually toned-down) versions of most of the DLC equipment as non-Black Market rare shop equipment. I'll be starting a new thread for it, so as a last act of the old thread I'm going to give you the option of choosing how I suffer: 1) L'étranger, a mysterious mercenary from the deep periphery Starting 'Mechs: are four custom Locusts and a surprise. The catch: I can't deploy anything that isn't a Locust until one of the Locusts explodes. I can temporarily use other machines if they get damaged but they have top priority for repairs, otherwise it's all Locusts all the time. 2) Johnny Fiveaces, a mysterious mercenary from Seattle Starting 'Mechs: 100% random. The catch: I could get three Atlases, a King Crab, and an SLDF Phoenix Hawk sure but I could also get five Spiders. A lot of stock 'Mechs are really bad so this could be a short campaign. Chances are I'll get 1-2 ok 'Mechs and three tire fires. 3) Zheng Liao, a not-so mysterious mercenary from the Capellan Confederation. Starting 'Mechs: Thread choice. Shout out your favorite piece of trash garbage you want to see me struggle to use (if we don't get five votes the default picks will be a Flea, an UrbanMech, a Raven, a Vindicator, and a Crab which I will replace at random with thread choice) The catch: Any time a pro-Capellan option comes up in a flashpoint I have to take it (even if it sucks), and I have to ally with the Capellan Confederation as early as possible (which also sucks because everyone hates them and it will probably lock me out of the black market) 4) Clown on story mode instead The catch: Dekker gets a Spider and I have to keep him alive to the end. If I successfully accomplish this I have to DFA the final boss with Dekker's Spider. PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 22:30 on Mar 7, 2021 |
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Mar 7, 2021 22:19
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How could we pass on Johnny five aces?
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Mar 7, 2021 22:29
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Flush with cash from his job on Solo Nobre, Johnny Fiveaces decides to expand his mercenary business.
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Mar 7, 2021 22:31
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