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lilljonas posted:If you don't like elaborate depictions of dudes drinking tea, why are you even reading sci-fi space robot books?!?!  as gently caress.
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Jul 22, 2023 23:17
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lilljonas posted:If you don't like elaborate depictions of dudes drinking tea, why are you even reading sci-fi space robot books?!?! Accusing me of reading Stackpole books is pretty low.
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Jul 23, 2023 00:05
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PopTartsNinja posted:In order for the DC to be better they'd probably need at least one of the following to happen: I'm thinking the Star League invasion of the Draconis Combine is going to cause some sort of major change. You got Ravens and Bears invading, though not coordinated. My hope is the invasion is successful enough and puts the Combine on the ropes that Yori-Julian arraignment happens, which then triggers Erik Sandoval/Gavin Marik-Davion's revolt, leading to an internal civil war. Biggest hurdle to that union though is the Fed Suns is probably so furious at the Combine for the last ten years that they may not be able to see the benefits of the union, and see it as more capitulation. Perhaps Julian's PR people could spin it as a "final victory" even with all the ickiness of that implication. Sharkopath posted:I've been a long time DC fan mainly because the only black characters I knew in battletech were DC. That and the factions outside of tabletop that always saw the most airtime were also the most boring to me, so I always rooted for Liao and the Combine over Davion. Thankfully this is one direction CGL has been moving in where all the Successor States now have a very diverse cast except maybe... the CC (I don't think I remember seeing any non-Chinese or Russian biopics in anything recent for the Capellans). The Lyrans in the Dark Age had a lot of African-descent characters though, A Rending of Falcons had Von Texeria, and you also got Vedet Brewer with his own micro-state.
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Jul 24, 2023 18:55
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Representation is not diversity.
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Jul 24, 2023 19:52
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The Brewers have been black since the '80s, they just weren't important for a long time, despite owning the largest weapons manufacturer in existence.
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Jul 24, 2023 20:07
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So this may be a silly question, but what the gently caress do Clanners dress like? The descriptions of their outfits seem very contradictory to say the least: sometimes it sounds like they are wearing animal skins and are cosplaying as Steppe Tribes, other times they are portrayed in full on Star League uniforms that have been modified. Is there a canon answer or is the lore that contradictory about them?
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Jul 25, 2023 00:41
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This may surprise you but the average US Marine doesn't wear their dress blues into combat. Different uniforms for different occasions. The more ridiculous ones tend to be for the ceremonial bullshit; practical (if not exactly mundane uniforms for briefings and councils and whatnot that aren't happening in a field command tent.
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Jul 25, 2023 00:43
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Nah, they should always wear the bird suits. Either fully commit to the zoolatry, or admit you were just going through an adolescent phase and you really want to be a normal Spheroid again
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Jul 25, 2023 01:01
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Clans have both a dress uniform AND a ceremonial uniform, because they're actually a tremendously decadent civilization.
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Jul 25, 2023 01:15
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TulliusCicero posted:So this may be a silly question, but what the gently caress do Clanners dress like? The descriptions of their outfits seem very contradictory to say the least: sometimes it sounds like they are wearing animal skins and are cosplaying as Steppe Tribes, other times they are portrayed in full on Star League uniforms that have been modified. You've got Ceremonial Leathers with Animal Motif masks (For special ceremonies, warriors only) Dress Uniforms for official military occasions Standard jumpsuits (Which is 99% of the time what Clanners run around in).
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Jul 25, 2023 01:38
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You've also got shredded jumpsuits with random furs because that's apparently what everyone in Aidan Pryde's sibko wore.
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Jul 25, 2023 01:54
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"Worn out hand-me-down jumpsuits" for anyone who's not an active-duty warrior. Nice, new jumpsuits for warriors with preferred animal accents, and/or intentional damage like Joanna's perpetually AWOL sleeves. Dr. Venture would fit right into the Scientist Caste
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Jul 25, 2023 03:38
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Dressing like an edgy 90s Bad Teen is the Clanner equivalent of specops beards
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Jul 25, 2023 03:40
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PoptartsNinja posted:"Worn out hand-me-down jumpsuits" for anyone who's not an active-duty warrior. Nah, he knows the difference between different kinds of science, rather than lumping it into a single category that is equally applicable to all things.
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Jul 25, 2023 03:42
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I was reading the first book in the warrior trilogy but saw someone recommend wolves on the border before the warrior trilogy. After reading the gray death trilogy, then assumptions of risk and then those, charrette is so much better at this. Maybe the difference is there's more combat in gray death and wolves, but even the conversations read better in charrette's books. Chronologically it goes Gray death Wolves Warrior trilogy Blood of Kerensky?
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Jul 26, 2023 00:38
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ilmucche posted:I was reading the first book in the warrior trilogy but saw someone recommend wolves on the border before the warrior trilogy. Yep, if you can get "Heir to the Dragon" it would fit inbetween the two trilogies, and is another good Charette novel. Most of the BattleTech authors aren't very good with dialog, Charette was. Victor Milan was also pretty good at it.
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Jul 26, 2023 00:46
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I think heir to the dragon is in the humble pack. Sort of trying to read through in chronological order. Assumptions of risk and main event were not worth reading tbh. I don't think assumptions of risk was the Solaris vii novel I was thinking of. Maybe I'll find it again one day. Is it Wolves Heir Warrior? What time period is warrior trilogy? The marriage succession war ?
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Jul 26, 2023 00:50
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I'll be brutally honest, in my opinion the best Battletech literature I've read has been in PTN's Let's Plays 
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Jul 26, 2023 01:03
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ilmucche posted:f 3024-3028
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Jul 26, 2023 01:05
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Wolves on the Border kind of slots into the middle of the third Warrior Trilogy novel. I'd say read it before that, but then you split up a trilogy. Heir to the Dragon is weird because it kind of spans everything from being the earliest thing published at that point to the end of the War of 3039.
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Jul 26, 2023 01:09
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I think it wasn't long after that they did 20 Year Update. They could have played around in the 3030s with Andurien's rebellion, Davion trying to pacify what became the Chaos March, AFFS/LCAF integration headaches, Teddy K modernizing the DCMS, the Ronin War, the reveal of the Com Guards, Operation Flush, etc. But we had to get to VICTOR
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Jul 26, 2023 01:19
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ilmucche posted:Chronologically? Gray death Warrior trilogy Book 1&2 Wolves on the Border / Warrior Trilogy Book 3 / Heir to the Dragon Legend of the Jade Phoenix Book 1 & 2 (but probably skip LotJP book 2, it's bad) Blood of Kerensky Trilogy Legend of the Jade Phoenix Book 3 (See LotJP book 2) If you're ever not sure, you can check the start date at the top of the first real chapter (prologues don't count as they can vary wildly) to see what month/year the book starts in. Arquinsiel posted:Wolves on the Border kind of slots into the middle of the third Warrior Trilogy novel. I'd say read it before that, but then you split up a trilogy. Heir to the Dragon is weird because it kind of spans everything from being the earliest thing published at that point to the end of the War of 3039. Stackpole's trilogy enders tend to be big wet farts, so ending with Wolves on the Border works just fine since it's actually got a denouement. Likewise ending Blood of Kerensky with Legend of the Jade Phoenix 3 makes it somewhat better as well, since BoK 3 just kinda peters out. I just hesitate really suggesting this because Jade Phoenix 2 is so terrible. PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 02:04 on Jul 26, 2023 |
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Jul 26, 2023 01:53
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Bloody Pom posted:I'll be brutally honest, in my opinion the best Battletech literature I've read has been in PTN's Let's Plays Agreed 100%, I’d put Scintilla’s up there as well. It’s PTN’s fault that all I play on my new computer is Megamek (thank you). Gerblederp fucked around with this message at 02:28 on Jul 26, 2023 |
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Jul 26, 2023 02:24
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PoptartsNinja posted:Likewise ending Blood of Kerensky with Legend of the Jade Phoenix 3 makes it somewhat better as well, since BoK 3 just kinda peters out. I just hesitate really suggesting this because Jade Phoenix 2 is so terrible. I read all 3 of the Jade Phoenix books in a so I don't remember which parts are in which book. I liked the trilogy for the most part, so I'm wondering what makes part 2 so awful? Not trying to bait an argument, I'm genuinely curious.
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Jul 26, 2023 04:46
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FishFood posted:I read all 3 of the Jade Phoenix books in a so I don't remember which parts are in which book. I liked the trilogy for the most part, so I'm wondering what makes part 2 so awful? Not trying to bait an argument, I'm genuinely curious. iirc book 2 is where he's pretending to be freeborn and helps defend the one guy's genetic material, then declares he's really a criminal that deserves a bloodname and goes into the trial. 3 is all about tukayyid honestly I liked 2 more than 1 because it gives a better feel for the castes and how much the clans poo poo on freeborns
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Jul 26, 2023 05:00
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Book one really drives home just how incredibly broken the Jade Falcons are on every level.
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Jul 26, 2023 05:43
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FishFood posted:I read all 3 of the Jade Phoenix books in a so I don't remember which parts are in which book. I liked the trilogy for the most part, so I'm wondering what makes part 2 so awful? Not trying to bait an argument, I'm genuinely curious. Book 1 really shows exactly how terrible the Clans are. They grow and indoctrincate children who literally do not know better or know any other way to be. Despite this, Aidan is bright and perceptive and questions the 'why' of the system until the system finally beats him down physically (via Joanna), emotionally (via Marthe, and Joanna again), intellectually (through rote classroom indoctrination), and spiritually (via the ritual that sees him 'reborn' as a (freeborn) member of the Warrior Caste). Aidan starts as a human being and ends transformed into a killer who's more concerned with his own glory than anything else. Book 1 also shows just how fragile and broken the Way of the Clans really is: Clanners with actual authority will break their own rules at the drop of a hat for the shallowest of reasons. Tir Roshak doesn't know Aidan is the gene-son of his old beloved commander, but he suspects it and that's enough for Aidan to get a second chance. The Clan system, monstrous as it is, was designed to weed out people like Aidan and was functioning as intended when he failed out of his final trial for biting off way more than he could chew. Most of the looks we get at other Clan castes are actually in Book 1, and it also does a good job establishing how poo poo it is to be a Freeborn (even a Freeborn Warrior) because they're literal living targets for the Trueborn sibkos to murder. Book 2 is all about how Aidan Pryde is luckier than he is good. He kicks multiple own-goals and pretty much only survives by the dumbest of dumb luck. The entire book can be summarized in three words: "Aidan Wins Bloodname." Done. Book 3 isn't great either, Aidan Pryde has sunk into the role of a middle manager and casually commits warcrimes. He strategically wastes a bunch of resources getting the Jade Falcons strung out and when the column behind him gets beaten he gets to have a heroic last stand because he was out of position. Kael Pershaw deserves just as much credit for the "success" of Aidan's last stand considering Aidan was blind and following directions for about half of it. He is, of course, now renowned as a tactical genius. The list of BattleTech protagonists who aren't tactical geniuses is very short: Cassie Suthorn, Minobu Tetsuhara, Brian Cameron, Duncan Kalma. An aside but, canonically, Aidan was finally killed by a Stinger. He was "killed" in a Stinger in his Trueborn warrior training when Horse managed to plant a sachel charge on him. PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 05:50 on Jul 26, 2023 |
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Jul 26, 2023 05:47
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Book 2 does give us one of the best looks at how both a major Trial of Refusal and Bloodright work, and at least tries to answer how Clans wage trials larger than a couple Stars each (the answer to all three is "in the most horrifically wasteful way possible")
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Jul 26, 2023 05:54
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Yeah, but it still sucks. At least the filler was in the middle of LotJP trilogy rather than at the end of it like most Stackpole trilogies. Stackpole isn't great at writing actual endings; which is why I do feel Jade Phoenix 3 is a good capstone to follow up the Blood of Kerensky trilogy. And Book 1 is a good book to read first. The Wolf sibkos aren't as hosed up as the Jade Falcon ones (Clan Wolf doesn't keep actual blood-related people in the same sibko) but it really helps you understand why Phelan is such an out-of-context problem for Vlad, Ranna, and their sibkin Carew and Evantha. The early Clan Invasion novels are very much about Nature (training and opportunity) vs. Nurture (native skill) with the conclusion being: Nurture is better. They just sort-of muddy the waters a lot on accident with dumb incidental facts like: Phelan was grown in one of Wolf's Dragoons first iron wombs as a favor to Morgan Kell and Salome Ward, so he's basically a Trueborn.
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Jul 26, 2023 06:09
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PoptartsNinja posted:Yeah, but it still sucks. I'm sorry he was what? I feel like I missed that part.
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Jul 26, 2023 08:00
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The details are fuzzy in the novel but Salome got injured in such a way that the Dragoons had to help out with her having a kid. Whether this was intended to be 20th century lostech IVF or full "babby in a tank" was not specified in the story because it hadn't quite been decided how the Clans actually did it then.
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Jul 26, 2023 11:28
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I completely missed that part but whenever Clan Wolf or the Kell Hounds are on the page I am struggling not to have my eyes roll back into my head. And thanks for the rundown of the LotJP trilogy, I'll have to reread them at some point soon. I definitely feel like the strongest parts of the trilogy are frontloaded and that the best parts are the characters and setting rather than the plot.
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Jul 26, 2023 15:51
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I do enjoy seeing Tukayid from the Jade Falcon's perspective because they are 100% bewildered by what's going on.
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Jul 27, 2023 02:32
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I want to read a story about the ride home from Tukayyid.
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Jul 27, 2023 02:44
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PoptartsNinja posted:"Worn out hand-me-down jumpsuits" for anyone who's not an active-duty warrior. "It's called a speedsuit"
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Jul 27, 2023 04:59
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finished my shanty town from The Lazy Forger  some tiny details i enjoyed painting:           
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Jul 27, 2023 16:35
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Good lord, those Coke cans. You should be a neurosurgeon.
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Jul 27, 2023 16:53
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Holy Toledo that's impressive. Fantastic work, I love your use of bright colors along with the grimy, rusty shacks.
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Jul 27, 2023 17:31
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GD_American posted:I want to read a story about the ride home from Tukayyid. One of the Shrapnels had that exact POV for the Steel Vipers. Star Colonel Brent Andrews starts encouraging warriors to think it was cowardly traitors in their midst who caused the defeat. The warriors kill their commanding officer and try to turn the dropship around. Brent Andrews, their Star Colonel, forgives the action.
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Jul 27, 2023 18:07
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That is some next level painting. I am extremely envious of your skills.
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Jul 27, 2023 18:54
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