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Boogle posted:ComStar keeping the plebs down with ROM, by assassinating scientists/technicians that get close to breakthroughs at recreating or rediscovering lostech. ROM spaceknight? 
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May 3, 2011 01:22
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An Infantryman’s Small Arms Primer: Battletech isn’t all about big stompy robots killing each other. So, what sort of small-arms does the average Battletech protagonist use? Well, approximately 99.9% of the time, they will field a pistol. In keeping with the futuristic setting, this is usually a Laser Pistol; but not always. So, without further adieu, here is a list of small-arms weapons fielded in Battletech. The most common and prevalent weapon in the Battletech universe is the good old-fashioned “Slugthrower”; AKA a normal gun, rifle, submachinegun, automatic rifle, etc. that fires a cased or caseless round at a target. Slugthrowers vary wildly by type and manufacturer and are the technology on which autocannons are based. I don’t have a lot to say about these, they’re pretty boring and honestly the only person who used them frequently and spends any time thinking about their capabilities is Cassie Suthorn; and that’s usually because she’s fighting DEST Ninjas and thinking about how hilariously-high-caliber weapons can punch through their magical DEST Ninja body armor and being suitably grateful that she is carrying weapons capable of doing just that and/or lamenting the gun she took from that dead DEST operative isn’t because they don’t want to accidentally kill each other and she’s out of hilariously-high-caliber ammunition for her own gun. Yeah, that’s right, Cassie runs out of ammo a lot. She has to, since nobody else ever does. The biggest man-portable slugthrower in the Battletech universe is the Zeus Heavy Sniper Rifle. The Zeus propels a .50 caliber round faster than the speed of sound and has an effective range of well over ten kilometers. Due to the extreme kick, the Zeus must be tripod-mounted in order to fire effectively; in most situations the recoil (without the aid of a tripod) would be sufficient to break the user’s bones. The second most common weapon in the Battletech universe is the Laser, which comes in pistol and rifle forms. A pistol-sized laser is incapable of causing any harm to a battlemech, but in numbers laser rifles can be dangerous. They’re also extremely accurate for Battletech weapons, which tend to have their effective ranges measured in “dozens of meters” rather than the hundreds you’d generally expect. Short of the statistical extreme presented by the Zeus, Laser weapons tend to be the longest-ranged small arms due to their inherent point-and-shoot accuracy. Additionally, rare LosTech laser pistols are one of the more common forms of old Star League technology that crops up; such as the handheld prototype small laser pistol carried by Jeremiah “I’M THE loving PROTAGONIST LOL” Rose. Still, barring Rose’s impossibly good hand-cannon, most lasers are fairly anemic in the hands of anyone who’s last name isn’t Allard or Kell (or Wolf or Ward or Kell again). Used nearly as often as lasers, and far more commonly used by protagonists than the “more common” Slugthrowers, Needlers don’t fire conventional ammunition. Instead, they use a block of ballistics plastic designed to shatter into thousands of inch-long plastic flechettes. As such, most needler wounds are surprisingly painless (when compared to having your tissue exploded by a laser); but have a tendency to turn an unarmored target into hamburger. Unlike other weapons, Needlers also have a massive drawback: While a wound from one is nearly always fatal without immediate medical attention, most needlers are incapable of penetrating even thin body armor. Needlers also have extremely limited ammunition (usually around 5 shots per block of ballistics plastic) and are also difficult to reload quickly due to their bulky, semi-fragile ammo. They also have a ludicrously limited effective range, which makes anything other than a needler pistol redundant and silly. Most ‘Mechwarriors who carry needlers do so because the weapon can in no-way be construed as a threat to an enemy battlemech. There are firms working on ways to improve needler armor penetration in some way, but no real advances occurred until 3062 (in the standard timeline) when a new type of ballistic plastic was created that not only flechettes but is incendiary and burns at nearly a thousand degrees for a few seconds after ignition. The least-common small arms weapon in the Battletech universe are Gyrojet Guns. Firing a stabilized, self-propelled round rather than a solid slug, Gyrojet and Gyroslug weapons have ranges comparable to ballistic rifles. Pistol-sized Gyrojet weapons are rare, due to the size of the ammunition; and Gyrojets have more limited accuracy due to a slow initial projectile speed. Gyrojet Rifles and Gyroslug Carbines do have one advantage over every other, more conventional weapon: their ammunition is explosive. The largest Gyrojet weapon, the Heavy Gyrojet Gun, is more akin to an RPG than a typical handheld rifle. Still, these weapons are fairly flawed and were used in only a single Battletech book (“Star Lord”), which existed only to sell copies of the ‘Mechwarrior’ RPG (3rd edition) in which Gyrojet rifles were introduced. That “Star Lord” reads like someone’s D&D campaign should therefore be of no surprise to anyone. If anyone still uses Gyrojet weapons, I will eat my loving hat. The final type of small arms in the Battletech universe is the sword. What? Poptarts, that’s retarded! Yes, I agree, but swords crop up with amusing (almost irritating) regularity; and not JUST among members of the Draconis Combine. In addition to swords, I also include: - knives (combat and utility) - Katanas - DEST Vibro-Katanas (which are capable of piercing anything even vaguely resembling body armor without even a hint of resistance  )- those Shuriken that the Smoke Jaguars use to make their bidding process even more retarded than the normal - Jeremiah Rose’s - Anything else sharp that's gotten a confirmed Antagonist and/or Protagonist kill in Battletech - That I-Beam that Kai Allard-Liao fired out of a gauss rifle that one time, just because. Edit: And in case you're wondering, Gyrojet rifles are actually a thing. PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 01:28 on May 3, 2011 |
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May 3, 2011 01:23
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I found the Primer to be immensely funny. I am not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing.
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May 3, 2011 01:24
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goatface posted:So why aren't they building loving asteroid mining facilities and then constructing habitats out of the leftovers and all the other sensible things you do once orbital access is cheap? Because then you wouldn't be fighting with Battlemechs.
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May 3, 2011 01:28
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goatface posted:So why aren't they building loving asteroid mining facilities and then constructing habitats out of the leftovers and all the other sensible things you do once orbital access is cheap? They are, and do.
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May 3, 2011 01:30
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gently caress yeah you would. If Japan has taught us anything it's that you can't have orbital colonies without massive mobile suit battles.
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May 3, 2011 01:31
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PoptartsNinja posted:They are, and do. Then what the gently caress are they fighting over?
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May 3, 2011 01:34
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PoptartsNinja posted:- That I-Beam that Kai Allard-Liao fired out of a gauss rifle that one time, just because. Because BattleTech.  I'm actually kind of pissed that I managed to misplace my entire BT novel collection. It's been long enough since I read them that I've forgotten specifics until they get mentioned in the thread, so I wouldn't mind going back and doing another read-through. Blah.
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May 3, 2011 01:36
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PoptartsNinja posted:Battletech isn’t all about big stompy robots killing each other. You mentioned ComStar four times... You like ComStar, huh? quote:In addition to swords, I also include: Hey, don't knock the screwdriver. A prison shank well-placed by a strong guy with few or no qualms can acomplish goals that entire regiments of BattleMechs might fail to do. After all, who looks twice at one of the repair crew carrying a toolbox, huh? That said, yeah, vibrokatanas belong more in Star Wars than BattleTech..... Hmmmm... Hey, PTN, are there any legendary "Prison Worlds" in BTech?
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May 3, 2011 01:36
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Tiaret, Victor's jag bodyguard, uses a gyrojet carbine. She uses it like a pistol. Turns out if you are loving gigantic they become practical.
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May 3, 2011 01:37
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goatface posted:Then what the gently caress are they fighting over? Each other's asteroid mines and orbital BattleMech factories, of course. Also, they fight over "who gets to be the new First Lord of the Star League," and they also fight over "remember a hundred years ago when those <insert bastards here> went and tried to kill/killed everybody on <x planet nearby>? Let's go run over there and kill a whole bunch of people who weren't alive when that happened!"
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May 3, 2011 01:38
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ShadowDragon8685 posted:
Brazen Heart, in the CC. The Clans have a disarmed WarShip, the Prinz Eugen, that serves the same purpose. Inarcs in the LC was a Star League prison world originally, but instead of a shithole the prisoners were accidentally sent to a garden world. They built a stable, law-abiding society and when SL ships came to check on them, they petitioned to have this colony construction they did count as community service and the world petitioned for LC membership. Defiance Industries fucked around with this message at 01:42 on May 3, 2011 |
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May 3, 2011 01:39
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goatface posted:Then what the gently caress are they fighting over? Asteroid mines and space stations don't matter because you can't have giant stompy robot fights in zero-G. Duh. (I know there was that one mission in MechWarrior 2, but I'm failing to remember any instances of a true zero-G battle in mechs in a book.)
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May 3, 2011 01:41
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WarLocke posted:Asteroid mines and space stations don't matter because you can't have giant stompy robot fights in zero-G. Duh. Yes you can. It's been done at least twice, first on the Styx asteroid colony in the Warrior trilogy, then in 'Impetus of War' by the Northwind Highlanders. Also, they did it in the cartoon in a hilariously stupid fashion (with 'Mechs that lacked jump jets). WarLocke posted:Because BattleTech. If you find Main Event or D.R.T., you should do a Let's Read of them (once we've introduced the [spoilers]<Redacted>[/spoilers]). Even counting Michael "I trust him as far as I can throw my [mech / dropship / planet I'm currently standing on] and if you don't get this reference count yourself lucky because he uses this expression at least once per book" Stackpole's usual Mary Sues, Jeremiah Rose is bad. I can honestly say, he's my second most hated Battletech protagonist (after Grayson "Jesus H Christ" Carlysle); and that's even including the protagonists you're supposed to hate. ... in fact, I have found my copy of Main Event (it wasn't hard, it's on the shelf RIGHT HERE) and I am now sorely tempted to read it for you so you can understand why I hate Jeremiah "I'm eight feet tall and can do no wrong" Rose so much.
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May 3, 2011 01:43
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WarLocke posted:Because BattleTech. Speaking of novels I've heard "Blood of Kerensky" mentioned. What other books would you recommend to start off on, oh esteemed mech warriors?
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May 3, 2011 01:45
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For those familiar with Warhammer 40k, Gyrojet weaponry is basically bolters with the one thing that makes sense as an upgrade over the real world version stripped back out - the initial firing of the round like a usual bullet to give it accuracy and eliminate the minimum range. So a bolter, but if you put your hand in front of the barrel, you'll stop the bullet completely.
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May 3, 2011 01:46
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PoptartsNinja posted:There are firms working on ways to improve needler armor penetration in some way, but no real advances occurred until 3062 (in the standard timeline) when a new type of ballistic plastic was created that not only flechettes but is incendiary and burns at nearly a thousand degrees for a few seconds after ignition. I will point out that I am still sad that the Firedrake needler is pretty much worthless for actual boardgame use because just in concept it sounds like such a god damned fun and awesome weapon.
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May 3, 2011 01:47
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Defiance Industries posted:Brazen Heart, in the CC. The Clans have a disarmed WarShip, the Prinz Eugen, that serves the same purpose. Heh. Now I'm thinking of what would happen if you crossed The Chronicles of Riddick with BattleTech and had good old Riddick doing what he does best; ultraviolence and mass murder in the pursuit of breaking out of prison. He's kind of like Kai in that if the Redacted know who he is, they'll bid their entire Point, fully augmented... And still not be confident of winning. quote:Inarcs in the LC was a Star League prison world originally, but instead of a shithole the prisoners were accidentally sent to a garden world. They built a stable, law-abiding society and when SL ships came to check on them, they petitioned to have this colony construction they did count as community service and the world petitioned for LC membership. Just goes to show that incarcerating people on shitholes gives you lovely people. Treating them quarter-way decently may have good results. Australia's a strange case, since it's a lethal shithole in most places, yet it came out mostly all right. More than a bit crazy, but all right. WarLocke posted:Asteroid mines and space stations don't matter because you can't have giant stompy robot fights in zero-G. Duh. There was one, actually. I don't recall the book, I read it when I was very young, but basically 'mechs have magnetic feet, 'cause you never know when you'll want to name the hull of a DropShip as a Trial location. Apparently, 'mechs are magnetized to the hull by their feet, and they're also attached by magnetic myomer grapple. The protagonist cheesed the duel in a much smaller 'mech by shooting the myomer rope manually, and then shooting missiles at the hull under the Assault 'mech to cause a pressure breach that knocked him off. De facto victory (forced the other guy out of the trial's bounds,) and made the other guys go and retrieve their 'mech.
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May 3, 2011 01:47
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Defiance Industries posted:Tiaret, Victor's jag bodyguard, uses a gyrojet carbine. She uses it like a pistol. Turns out if you are loving gigantic they become practical. She also carries a needler pistol as backup, which I guess is for when you need to take down unarmored people and blowing them to pieces isn't quite subtle enough.
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May 3, 2011 01:48
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PoptartsNinja posted:Jeremiah Rose is bad. I can honestly say, he's my second most hated Battletech protagonist (after Grayson "Jesus H Christ" Carlysle); and that's even including the protagonists you're supposed to hate. I remember when he's having the flashback to Tukayyid and the entire little story is that over the course of that entire 'battle' (it's called a battle but it was really more like a loving pocket war) his Shootist was hit exactly twice. Both times by large lasers (or was it PPCs?) which carved into his mech's chest in an X pattern. He lost the majority of his Level II (IIRC) but his own mech came through practically unscathed. I think I rolled my eyes so hard I gave myself a concussion.
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May 3, 2011 01:48
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PoptartsNinja posted:... in fact, I have found my copy of Main Event (it wasn't hard, it's on the shelf RIGHT HERE) and I am now sorely tempted to read it for you so you can understand why I hate Jeremiah "I'm eight feet tall and can do no wrong" Rose so much. The last time you gave us an LR, you gave us sex between the motormouth woman and a guy named Dongs, and Storm hitting on Captain Picard. And it was epic. Go for it. DatonKallandor posted:For those familiar with Warhammer 40k, Gyrojet weaponry is basically bolters with the one thing that makes sense as an upgrade over the real world version stripped back out - the initial firing of the round like a usual bullet to give it accuracy and eliminate the minimum range. Until your gun explodes because you've got a rocket engine going in a trapped space.
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May 3, 2011 01:50
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Zaodai posted:She also carries a needler pistol as backup, which I guess is for when you need to take down unarmored people and blowing them to pieces isn't quite subtle enough. Needlers are a small weapon by normal person standards. I feel like her trying to fire it would just result in her folding the gun in her giant meat claw.
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May 3, 2011 01:53
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WarLocke posted:I think I rolled my eyes so hard I gave myself a concussion. And then he beat a <Redacted> with a puddle of water and a screwdriver. ... and I still hate him less than than I hate Grayson Carlysle. Defiance Industries posted:Needlers are a small weapon by normal person standards. I feel like her trying to fire it would just result in her folding the gun in her giant meat claw. Oh, the other advantage of Needlers is that they're simple and cheap as gently caress. "Holdout" needlers (5 shots) can't be reloaded because the ballistic plastic is built in. They are, quite literally, a disposable weapon. PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 01:58 on May 3, 2011 |
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May 3, 2011 01:53
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PoptartsNinja posted:Main Event Oh god, I just remembered, this is the one where half the book is about Jeremiah and his sister putting together a mech company by fighting in Solaris. The cover's got Jeremiah's Shadow Hawk versus an Axeman and he should have died right there what the gently caress PoptartsNinja posted:And then he beat a <Redacted> with a puddle of water and a screwdriver. Puddle of water, an armor-stripping tool thingy for mechs, a screwdriver and a live wire or some poo poo.
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May 3, 2011 01:55
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Defiance Industries posted:Needlers are a small weapon by normal person standards. I feel like her trying to fire it would just result in her folding the gun in her giant meat claw. I seem to recall it being a specially made needler pistol. Though my memory of it is vague. She got it at the Big and Tall shop.
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May 3, 2011 02:00
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Zaodai posted:I seem to recall it being a specially made needler pistol. Though my memory of it is vague. Needle Cannon
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May 3, 2011 02:02
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WarLocke posted:Needle Cannon I knew it, she was Needle Man all along!
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May 3, 2011 02:07
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WarLocke posted:Needle Cannon Man-pack Needle Pistol
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May 3, 2011 02:08
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raverrn posted:Man-pack Needle Pistol Stick another couple barrels up top and make this fire needles and I think you've got it: 
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May 3, 2011 02:11
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Waiting for a quick clarification from the Commando. If I don't hear anything soon, I'm just going to pick the option that VVV I can try. The problem is, most of them are very nebulously defined and usually boil down to "Marik" vs "Marik with a Moustache" vs "Girl Marik" vs "Duchess of Andurian" (AKA: the FWL's Michael Hasek-Davion) PoptartsNinja fucked around with this message at 03:21 on May 3, 2011 |
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May 3, 2011 02:29
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For your next info dump could you go into detail on the different "factions" or divisions within the Free Worlds League?
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May 3, 2011 03:15
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I also wouldn't mind a quick going over of the differences between holoscreens and holotanks.
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May 3, 2011 03:19
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Xmas Future posted:For your next info dump could you go into detail on the different "factions" or divisions within the Free Worlds League? Speaking as the Lyran Commonwealth, I really only respect Regulus. Those guys take no poo poo. The 1st Regulan Hussars are like the FWL knockoff of the 2nd Donegal: the hardest-drinking, hardest-fighting bunch of badasses anywhere. You cross the Steel Hussars and one of the two of you leaves in a bucket.
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May 3, 2011 03:38
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I will continue to randomly deploy my copious real world engineering knowledge in situations where it will not ignite a Real World Versus Battletech debate for general edification. Even if everyone keeps ignoring it. 
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May 3, 2011 03:38
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I must say, people have once again seriously underestimated the threat of the Warrior Attack Helo. That is all.
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May 3, 2011 03:41
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PoptartsNinja posted:I must say, people have once again seriously underestimated the threat of the Warrior Attack Helo. That is all. They're not crazy enough to have the Warrior spotting for artillery, are they? Even LOKI isn't crazy enough to drop artillery shells into downtown Thrakad. Right?
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May 3, 2011 03:52
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PoptartsNinja posted:I must say, people have once again seriously underestimated the threat of the Warrior Attack Helo. That is all. POPTARTSNINJAAAAA!!! Goddammit.  Looks like it might be another hilariously bad round.TACs, anyone?
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May 3, 2011 03:52
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Did our Commando pilot at least get his orders in?
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May 3, 2011 03:56
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W.T. Fits posted:Did our Commando pilot at least get his orders in? Doesn't matter, Warrior-spotted artillery took off his head. 
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May 3, 2011 03:58
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Tempest_56 posted:They're not crazy enough to have the Warrior spotting for artillery, are they? TildeATH posted:I'd like to say "no, of course not," but all indications are that "Yes, yes they are." Remember, these are the lunatics who brought BattleMechs and tanks to guard a goddamned night-club. Clearly you can see why it is imperative to (1) shoot down that loving helicopter, and (2) kill these bastards so we can rescue the Archon, stand Lestrade up against a wall, and have every member of Loki hunted down like a dog.
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May 3, 2011 04:04
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