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*catches up after 60 some pages* Seems like I missed some things after being away from SA for over 2 months. This Pirate scenario looks to be great.
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Oct 18, 2014 21:53
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Orders in.
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Oct 18, 2014 22:03
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This talk about timing and order priorities just reminded me that Battletech's phase resolution system means that it's highly unlikely that three different players controlling three different units could pull off a Black Tri-Star Jet Stream Attack.PoptartsNinja posted:To be fair, the Jetstream Attack was pretty much "The two of us run around like idiots while that other guy gets stabbed!" Exactly. 
Runa fucked around with this message at 02:48 on Oct 19, 2014 |
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Oct 19, 2014 02:24
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To be fair, the Jetstream Attack was pretty much "The two of us run around like idiots while that other guy gets stabbed!"
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Oct 19, 2014 02:41
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Orders in, jumping to 1742 and laying into the nearby infantry and possibly any houses that get in the way.
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Oct 19, 2014 04:37
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You take CF divided by 10, and deal your tonnage/10 in damage to the building. Remember by even having a CF these buildings are fairly large, a 2014 2 story house of average size would just evaporate if a mech walked through it.
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Oct 19, 2014 04:56
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Just to make sure this is totally clear: you do not have to destroy the building in order to walk into its hex or through it. If you walk into the hex of a light building, you will crash through it (while shouting Oh YEAH!). The only questions are A) do you trip and fall over, B) how much damage do you take from girders and poo poo in the building, and C) do you do enough damage to the building to collapse it or do you merely leave a giant mech-shaped hole through the still-standing building. If I recall correctly, standing in a building gives you some measure of cover from incoming fire. Other than that, the only reason to walk through a building is if you have no jump jets and need to be in the next street over asap.
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Oct 19, 2014 08:53
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ArchangeI posted:I don't think 31st century warfare even has continuous lines and salients anymore, it usually reads as two small forces meeting in the field like the glorious knights they represent. Makes sense, really. You can only haul a relatively tiny amount of troops across space, so you want each trooper to pack as much punch as possible. Since you can drop these troops anywhere in the world it's very hard to defend strategic targets such as government, and arguably in a feudal system planetary governments don't much even care who their lord is as long as they're not overtly greedy or violent. In Star League days you didn't even need Mechs to fight wars. You'd claim victory in the space and drop ground forces to protect the new government against civilian unrest. Planetary defense forces could make Mech warfare pretty goddamn hard (after all, even a poor planet could wield thousands of tanks easily), but largely they just don't care enough to put up the effort. War is a hobby for the nobility and it doesn't concern the ordinary people.
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Oct 19, 2014 09:07
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Hob_Gadling posted:Makes sense, really. You can only haul a relatively tiny amount of troops across space, so you want each trooper to pack as much punch as possible. Since you can drop these troops anywhere in the world it's very hard to defend strategic targets such as government, and arguably in a feudal system planetary governments don't much even care who their lord is as long as they're not overtly greedy or violent. In Star League days you didn't even need Mechs to fight wars. You'd claim victory in the space and drop ground forces to protect the new government against civilian unrest. If that's true, how does that explain the Clans? The worlds they conquer get absorbed into their crazy caste-based society, that sounds like something a planet would fight against if they could rather than "here comes the new boss, same as the old boss," and they're even more dependent on small groups of elite warriors instead of massive conventional armies.
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Oct 19, 2014 09:24
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Dolash posted:If that's true, how does that explain the Clans? The worlds they conquer get absorbed into their crazy caste-based society, that sounds like something a planet would fight against if they could rather than "here comes the new boss, same as the old boss," and they're even more dependent on small groups of elite warriors instead of massive conventional armies. They actually don't get absorbed into the caste society, that's part of the incredible stupidity of the Clans. They think they can just show up and wave their ER dicks around and all the little people they usually don't have to think about will fall in line and become (even poorer) peasants, instead of setting bombs and knifing the mighty warriors in alleyway ambushes like they do. The Clans literally thought they could just shoot some people and plant a flag on Terra and all the great houses would instantly capitulate because clearly these supermen returning from beyond the rim are most suited to rule, and not a bunch of socially maladjusted twenty-somethings. Hell, they actually thought they would make it to Terra.
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Oct 19, 2014 09:29
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wiegieman posted:They actually don't get absorbed into the caste society, that's part of the incredible stupidity of the Clans. They think they can just show up and wave their ER dicks around and all the little people they usually don't have to think about will fall in line and become (even poorer) peasants, instead of setting bombs and knifing the mighty warriors in alleyway ambushes like they do. Yeah they end up having a big giant resistance movement right up until the Smoke Jaegers just start glassing cities from orbit for trying to fight back. The Turtle Bay incident tends to be what is used to remind everyone of this.
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Oct 19, 2014 09:43
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Leperflesh posted:Just to make sure this is totally clear: you do not have to destroy the building in order to walk into its hex or through it. But this is the mission where using up your spare heat isn't a war crime. 
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Oct 19, 2014 12:11
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You gotta remember though guys, the Clans are also the same people who got pissed off at the Inner Sphere not knowing what a Batchall is, even though it's something they totally just made up for themselves long after they left the Sphere behind and thus the IS forces had no idea what the gently caress these wackos were talking about. So yeah, the Clans are all kinds of  Guess that's what happens when you put a bunch of meatheads in charge of your society.
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Oct 19, 2014 14:28
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Rorahusky posted:You gotta remember though guys, the Clans are also the same people who got pissed off at the Inner Sphere not knowing what a Batchall is, even though it's something they totally just made up for themselves long after they left the Sphere behind and thus the IS forces had no idea what the gently caress these wackos were talking about. In Clan society, the sibko member with the most aggressive, violent temperment is praised and receives special attention. These types are fast-tracked into leadership. The strongest fighters become the Khans of their clans. Not only do they get away with their aggression, but they eventually start setting the rules themselves. So yeah.
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Oct 19, 2014 14:38
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Rorahusky posted:You gotta remember though guys, the Clans are also the same people who got pissed off at the Inner Sphere not knowing what a Batchall is, even though it's something they totally just made up for themselves long after they left the Sphere behind and thus the IS forces had no idea what the gently caress these wackos were talking about. That's the one thing that really annoys me about the Clans. The assumption that everyone from the other part of the galaxy will magically know all about their society and how it works. I mean, they had the Dragoons spying on the IS so they know that they didn't socially 'evolve' into the clan system. Partly it comes across as the Clans being retarded, but mostly it smacks of lovely writing. And I do so dislike lovely writing. Yeah, I get it, they're hyper aggressive and their culture is pretty alien to the IS. And us, to be honest. But that's not "weird culture", that's "total lack of thought" and that is really just kind of boring.
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Oct 19, 2014 15:46
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They're honestly not even that alien or weird. Just really loving stupid. I was so pleased to find out from this thread that Ole Nicky K actually had brain damage. It explains so much.
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Oct 19, 2014 16:04
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The one thing that actually amuses me about the Clans is how after coming into contact with the Inner Sphere, their entire society started to slowly come apart at the seems. As long as it was isolated from the rest of the universe, Clan society functioned, but as soon as people started getting wise to the ways of the outside world, the Clans basically imploded in on themselves.
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Oct 19, 2014 16:50
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Yeah, I've gone from outright hating the Clans as a story element to still rooting against them and wanting them to lose but finding them hilarious and fun antagonists in this thread.
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Oct 19, 2014 17:00
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Rorahusky posted:The one thing that actually amuses me about the Clans is how after coming into contact with the Inner Sphere, their entire society started to slowly come apart at the seems. As long as it was isolated from the rest of the universe, Clan society functioned, but as soon as people started getting wise to the ways of the outside world, the Clans basically imploded in on themselves. Right, there's some quote in some sourcebook about some Comstar guy saying, "Couldn't you just claim you wanted X to happen and underbid your forces and lose on purpose because in reality you didn't want X to happen?" And the Clanner orders the Comstar guy to leave and never talk to Clanners again because he figured out the secret to corrupt the Clan bidding-based stupidity system. We're asked to believe either in a society so stupid that it didn't catch that or a society so poorly thought out that the writers didn't catch that or a fanbase considered so vapid that they wouldn't catch that. One of the things I really like about PTN's years-long let's play is that it's Battletech for smart and discerning people. It proves that if you thought about the universe more and tried harder, you could have told a more awesome story, and all the lovely plot holes and stupidity weren't necessary. I mean, you can't get away from the water hauling or the stompy robots with the effective combat range of a longbowman, but otherwise, PTN's universe is a significantly smarter place.
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Oct 19, 2014 17:18
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TildeATH posted:We're asked to believe either in a society so stupid that it didn't catch that or a society so poorly thought out that the writers didn't catch that or a fanbase considered so vapid that they wouldn't catch that. To be completely fair, prior to Battletech, I think FASA's biggest seller was the Masters of the Universe RPG - not exactly a lot of brain-work necessary. BT's success produced Shadowrun and Earthdawn, which at least showed significantly more mental wattage during their development.
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Oct 19, 2014 19:03
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TildeATH posted:Right, there's some quote in some sourcebook about some Comstar guy saying, "Couldn't you just claim you wanted X to happen and underbid your forces and lose on purpose because in reality you didn't want X to happen?" And the Clanner orders the Comstar guy to leave and never talk to Clanners again because he figured out the secret to corrupt the Clan bidding-based stupidity system. You could, but the Clan system is supposed to keep down people that think like that and elevate people like Asa Taney, who is incredibly stupid and literal in his thinking but is incredibly good at killing people. The part I find really unbelievable about Clan society is that they followed Nicholas Kerensky and let him basically make up an entirely new social order and just hopped right the gently caress on board with it. If you accept that makes sense nothing else about the system is particularly weird, because you've accepted that a brain-damaged dude who was made a General because his dad was a military dictator can make a whole society reshape itself because he says it does.
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Oct 19, 2014 19:13
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I'm just glad that many months ago, we successfully passed a vote to ask the clans what a Batchall actually was.
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Oct 19, 2014 19:13
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+ 
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Trundel posted:I'm just glad that many months ago, we successfully passed a vote to ask the clans what a Batchall actually was. Duncan Marik is a cool dude because he has recovered the most powerful LosTech of all - common sense.
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Oct 19, 2014 19:28
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Scintilla posted:Duncan Marik is a cool dude because he has recovered the most powerful LosTech of all - common sense. Yeah, those scenes basically made me want the Free Worlds League to do great and Duncan to continue being great.
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Oct 19, 2014 19:43
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Defiance Industries posted:If you accept that makes sense nothing else about the system is particularly weird, because you've accepted that a brain-damaged dude who was made a General because his dad was a military dictator can make a whole society reshape itself because he says it does. So Nikky Kerensky was Kim Jong-Il? Wow. That means by the time we get to Natasha.... the Clans are North Korea's attempt to genetically engineer Genghis Khan... from Dennis Rodman. Suddenly, they make a lot more sense.
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Oct 19, 2014 20:38
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So much wasted ammo.
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Oct 19, 2014 21:21
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PoptartsNinja posted:So much wasted ammo. It wasn't me this time!
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Oct 19, 2014 21:24
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Dolash posted:If that's true, how does that explain the Clans? They took it to the logical extreme, namely "not my problem". Arguably the warrior caste is so separated from real life that they don't even care about the planets they take; the real prize is taking from the other warrior. That's why it comes as a huge shock when people refuse to just do as they're told.
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Oct 19, 2014 21:29
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PoptartsNinja posted:So much wasted ammo. Somebody blocked my movement and I dumped all 20 mg rounds into the air at range >3 Alternatively the the infantry TAC'ed me in an ammo bin and we are using a slightly different definition of 'wasted'.
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Oct 19, 2014 21:42
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Voyager I posted:Somebody blocked my movement and I dumped all 20 mg rounds into the air at range >3 At least if you explode now you probably still deal enough damage to leave a crater, if PTN were using those rules. He is not, because he is not insane.
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Oct 19, 2014 22:33
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GenericServices posted:At least if you explode now you probably still deal enough damage to leave a crater, if PTN were using those rules. He is not, because he is not insane. Try cascading engine failures for maximum insanity. 
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Oct 19, 2014 22:42
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King of the Pirates: Tactical Update 3 “Wait, little Firestarter friend! I have gifts for you!” Werner Graunke’s lisp wasn’t pronounced enough to interfere with the comms, in spite of the massive knife wound that’d split open his face from chin to the left corner of his bottom lip. The old gash had been a deep one, the blow had scored bone and broken his lower left eyetooth and though it was long-healed it’d paralyzed his Werner’s lower lip and left him with a permanent grimace. He could still speak well enough, but he kept his horrific features covered with a bandana or scarf to avoid being humiliated by constant drool. A keen and vicious intelligence twinkled behind his dark, porcine eyes, but Werner chose an affectation of brutal stupidity. Redjack Ryan didn’t care one whit for the man’s reasons, but more than once he’d seen foes underestimate Werner seconds before they fell under fire from the man’s 203mm autocannons. Tricks like that hardly impressed Redjack—anyone who underestimated a foe with a BattleMech deserved everything that came to them. That was a lesson he’d tried to instill in his daughter from a young age—and she’d still nearly gotten herself killed trying to capture her current ride. The idiot girl would have a long way to go if she ever wanted Redjack to acknowledge her as anything more than a company commander. “You trying to buy me off, jerk?” “I pay?” Werner’s laughter was as boisterous as it was cruel. “You give up now you buy your life, I think. Only cost you arm. Maybe leg. Come talk to Slowpoke first, eh? I give you gift, help dull the pain.” “I’ve got gifts for you too, rear end in a top hat,” the enemy pirate—presumably the Firestarter’s pilot—countered. “Eight fifty-cals. I’ll even write your names on them.” “Keep your gift little friend!” Werner laughed again. “Is small thing. I don’t need. Slowpoke’s gift of much higher… caliber.” “Urgh,” Redjack’s involuntary utterance of disgust utterance carried over the comms as he rested his face in his scarred, bony hands.  [Please forgive me, the enemy movement overwrote this and I lost it] Combat Phase Charger (Player) - Torso-twists to threaten hex 1140! - Fires small laser at disreputable casino 1340: (4 base + 4 range + 2 movement - 4 enemy movement = 6): rolled 6, hit (7/10 CF remaining)! - Fires small laser at disreputable casino 1340: (4 base + 4 range + 2 movement - 4 enemy movement = 6): rolled 6, hit (4/10 CF remaining)! - Gains 4 heat, sinks 10! Warhammer (Player) - Fires ER PPC at disreputable casino 1340: (3 base + 0 range + 2 movement - 4 enemy movement = 1): automatically hit (0/10 CF remaining)! Building destroyed! - Fires ER PPC at Infantry 1539! No Line of Sight to target! - Gains 12 heat, sinks 34! JagerMech (Player) - Holds fire! - Gains 2 heat, sinks 12! Catapult (Player) - Holds Fire! - Gains 2 heat, sinks 28! Chameleon (Player) - Gains 2 heat, sinks ! Hunchback (Player) - Fires Small Laser at row house 1341 (4 base + 4 range + 2 movement - 4 enemy movement = 6): rolled 9, hit (7/10 CF remaining)! - Fires Medium Laser at row house 1341 (4 base + 0 range + 2 movement - 4 enemy movement = 2): automatically hit (2/10 CF remaining)! - Fires Medium Laser at row house 1341 (4 base + 0 range + 2 movement - 4 enemy movement = 2): automatically hit (0/10 CF remaining)! Building destroyed! - Gains 9 heat, sinks 13! Centurion (Player) - Holds fire! - Gains 2 heat, sinks 12! Blackjack (Player) - Fires Medium Laser at “gentleman’s club” 1741 (3 base + 0 range + 3 movement - 4 enemy movement = 2): automatically hit (5/10 CF remaining)! - Fires Medium Laser at “gentleman’s club” 1741 (3 base + 0 range + 3 movement - 4 enemy movement = 2): automatically hit (0/10 CF remaining)! Building destroyed! - Fires Medium Laser at “gentleman’s club” 1741 (3 base + 0 range + 3 movement - 4 enemy movement = 2): target already destroyed! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 7, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 7, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 10, hit exposed infantry for double damage (0/10 troopers remaining)! Squad destroyed! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 5, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 2, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 8, hit! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 9, hit! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 4, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 9, hit! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 7, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 7, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 6, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 12, hit! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 8, hit! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 9, hit! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 2, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 5, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 3, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 7, miss! - Fires Machine Gun at Motorized Infantry 1840 (3 base + 2 range + 3 movement + 0 enemy movement = 8): rolled 9, hit! - Gains 14 heat, sinks 13! Assassin (Player) - Holds fire! - Gains 2 heat, sinks 22! Battle Cobra (Player) - Holds fire! - Gains 2 heat, sinks 28! Clint (Player) - Fires ER PPC at Motorized Infantry 1840! No Line of Sight to target! - Gains 2 heat, sinks 16! Griffin - Fires PPC at Motorized Infantry 3111 (3 base + 0 range + 2 movement + 0 enemy movement = 5): rolled 6, hit exposed infantry for double damage (8/10 troopers remaining)! - Fires PPC at Motorized Infantry 3111 (3 base + 0 range + 2 movement + 0 enemy movement = 5): rolled 6, hit exposed infantry for double damage (6/10 troopers remaining)! Motorized Infantry 1840 - Fire ballistic rifles at Blackjack (4 base + 2 range + 3 enemy movement = 9): rolled 11, hit Right Torso (12/15 armor remaining)! Physical Combat Phase: Charger (Player) - Kicks “neighborhood theater” 1039: adjacent attacks always hit (0/10 structure remaining)! Building destroyed! Centurion (Player) - Attacks corner grocer 1942 with a wrecking ball for a boosted 31 damage: adjacent attacks always hit (0/15 CF remaining)! - - double CF, remaining damage transfers to 2041 (0/15 CF remaining)! Next Turn’s Movement Phase King Crab - Must pass a piloting test or fall (4 base - 1 entered depth 1 water = 3): rolled 8, succeeds!   Player Status:    Opposing Force Status:   Mission Objective: Defeat all enemies! Secondary Objectives: Individual Sub-Objectives Completed (0/11) Orders Due: Tuesday Night! PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 12:10 on Oct 20, 2014 |
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Oct 19, 2014 22:57
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You maybe didn't need to fire every machine gun at one squad of infantry, but hard to argue with results. And drat, the property damage is really starting to stack up. I know wrecking the place is half the fun, but won't Redjack want something left over to be pirate king of?
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Oct 19, 2014 23:17
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He just really, really doesn't like biker gangs.
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Oct 19, 2014 23:31
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Why is the enemy Griffin shooting the biker gangs? Are they looting while this is all going on? This is about to get even more metal isn't it?
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Oct 19, 2014 23:42
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That was a bit excessively enthusiastic, but remember that I can't tell how many squads are in any given infantry unit and I don't want to leave survivors so I've gotta shoot like there's 30 dudes there and contingencies like "shoot until dead" aren't generally permissible. Also apparently their weapons aren't what think they are so my  was for naught, guess it's just balls deep all the time. On the bright side, going with with a +0 to-hit will make it a lot easier to skimp on ammo.
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Oct 19, 2014 23:48
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Voyager I posted:Also apparently their weapons aren't what think they are so my What did you think they had, SRMs? Infantry Ballistic Rifles hit harder than Infantry SRMs, the SRM's advantage is a much longer range.
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Oct 19, 2014 23:54
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I'd recommend nobody but the ravenger attacks the squads hidded in -1 trenches. Its going to hurt. But they won't shoot the ravenger. The spot around 1224-1225-1335 is a great staging area. Cover. Some good firing lanes. Just need to demolish some buildings.
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Oct 20, 2014 00:05
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PoptartsNinja posted:What did you think they had, SRMs? I was basing my assumptions on the profile the quick start had for a motorized Machine Gun Platoon, which has the same range profile as my MGs. I don't have a copy of the rulebook and Sarna is pretty vague when it comes to infantry weapons (or starts linking to broken pages about weapons from the RPG), so I just sorta went with that. I guess if I was gonna turbosperg about it I should have at least checked out Megamek or something. EDIT: What effects will the -1 trenches have on their damage output / ability to not get murdered by 20 mgs?
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Oct 20, 2014 00:07
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| # ? Apr 28, 2024 10:40 |
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Catapult here. Looks like I could either go to 1340, shoot the truck and leave myself exposed to the infantry; or 0938, play it safe, maintain the left flank and see where the truck goes next turn. What do you lot think?
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Oct 20, 2014 00:59
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