402 replies to this topic

[Strum Wealh]

Tayleron, on 01 August 2013 - 04:09 PM, said:

All the recent mechs have been too humanoid, it's starting to get difficult to tell what you're facing out there =/

I always preferred mech designs like the raven, catapult, jagermech, and such... I like to know what I'm facing at a glance rather than looking for a specific identifying feature such as the quickdraw's head antenna. I'm not saying it's all that hard now, but with even more samey looking mechs coming out it's only getting harder.

It'd be a real shame to mistake a quickdraw and an even worse shame to mistake a highlander for the kintaro...

Well, it just means that one is going to have to pay attention...

Also, there aren't a lot of non-humanoid choices left, especially in the Light and Medium categories.

Light 'Mechs
The UrbanMech is a non-starter, as the engine it needs for the variants is below the threshold of what PGI has implemented at this time.
The Hussar has the hunched-over body type (and seems to alternate between forward-knee and reverse-joint, depending on which particular drawings one is looking at) and a sufficient number of variants (HSR-200D, HSR-300D, and HSR-350D), but those variants are very limited in where their hardpoints are located (e.g. only one has weapons anywhere other than the CT) and two of the variants are actually too fast for the game in its current state (30-ton 'Mech that starts with a Std 270 Engine, with a top speed of ~151 kph).
As such, what's left is essentially the very-humanoid Thorn, Hermes, Javelin, Panther (omitted from the above-linked post, but gets its third variant shortly (in 3051)), and Firestarter, along with the faun-like Mongoose.

Medium 'Mechs
The 50-ton Crab could be an option, if the Devs are willing to implement a non-Royal Star League Era variant (specifically, the CRB-27sl) alongside the CRB-27 and CRB-20 in order to reach three variants (as the CRB-27b is unlikely to be implemented because it is the Royal variant, and PGI seems to have been avoiding implementing Royal variants for other 'Mechs).
The 40-ton Sentinel (with its STN-1S variant, STN-3K/3KA/3KB variants, STN-3L variant, and STN-3M variant) is another non-humanoid option; it ndoes use a forward-knee leg design, but has only one fully-actuated arm and uses the "headless pill-body" design.
Everything else (Assassin, Clint, Hermes II, Vulcan, Whitworth, Vindicator, Wyvern, Dervish, Griffin, and Wolverine) is very humanoid.

[ManDaisy]

Look for the kintaro to be the same size as the treb, however this is a godsend unlike some other unluckly scaled mechs.

[Odanan]

Sporklift, on 01 August 2013 - 05:26 PM, said:

Did you even look at the picture?

Besides, the uglier they are, the better Alex Iglesias draw them (see Cicada, Cataphract and Jagemech)

[El Bandito]

We asked for Dervish in the polls and we get Kintaro? PGI really doesn't want us to spend money.

[Devin Takkar]

Huh...I actually want to drive this. Weird.

[Renaissance]

Looks like some more flotsam washed up on this island I seem to be living on.

[TheKildar]

SteelPaladin, on 01 August 2013 - 05:25 PM, said:

The digital world is made up of polygons, which in turn are made up of straight lines. Simulating curves requires lots of tiny polygons, which in turn make models more resource intensive to create and to render on the client. Not to mention armored vehicles tend to use angular rather than curved armor for various reasons, not the least of which is the economics of having to produce fancy curved armor plates constantly in order to repair damage.

A significant portion of Battletech art is just bad. The mechs look silly and have very little of a "military" aspect about them. They're walking tanks, not blinged-out BMWs. Suspension of disbelief only goes so far (and Battletech burns A LOT of it on other aspects). Alex is doing a pretty good job of making the mechs look like they could actually belong on a battlefield instead of at a cosplay convention.

Yep, from a military and thus realistic standpoint sharply angled armor makes sense and has since WWII, angled armor not only helps with the deflection of ballistic weapons and shaped charges, but also, when attempting to penetrate armor at an angle, the armor is essentially made thicker as it increases the distance needed to be penetrated, so theoretically angled armor would be just as effective for increasing resistance to laser fire, without the chance of deflection but still.....

[Frost Lord]

Alex Coldt, on 01 August 2013 - 01:00 PM, said:

I get tired of having nothing but giant metal people with guns to choose from. Seriously, I want a medium that doesn't look like a human with some bits attached.

the thing is they still need to base it on the original art and most of them are humanoid. looking at the 55 T mechs you have a few bi peds and two chicken legged mechs that fit the time the osprey has a mml which isn't in the game. so that leaves the hoplite


tho the shadow hawk will be 55T so i guess it didn't need to fill that gap

Edited by Frost Lord, 01 August 2013 - 05:56 PM.

[MisterFiveSeven]

Odanan, on 01 August 2013 - 05:23 PM, said:

I would prefer the Falcon over the Spider...

The CCG falcon (while an obtuse shot) looks sexy.

Also, I trust Alex.

Edited by MisterFiveSeven, 01 August 2013 - 05:55 PM.

[Frost Lord]

POWR, on 01 August 2013 - 01:29 PM, said:

I don't get why anyone would want the mechs that are generally represented at Sarna. The way they look, it's incredible to me that Battletech ever took off.

POWR, on 01 August 2013 - 01:29 PM, said:

I don't get why anyone would want the mechs that are generally represented at Sarna. The way they look, it's incredible to me that Battletech ever took off.

back then it probably looked awesome.

[Odanan]

MisterFiveSeven, on 01 August 2013 - 05:55 PM, said:

The CCG falcon (while an obtuse shot) looks sexy.

Also, I trust Alex.

In Alex we trust.

Edited by Odanan, 01 August 2013 - 06:14 PM.

[Johnny Two Legs]

Tezcatli, on 01 August 2013 - 12:58 PM, said:

Good point about the polygons. That makes sense from a practical stand point. And the military point makes sense in universe.

You can still make a more rounded mech design/silhouette without using a lot of round/sperical surfaces.
Just look at the Cataphract. It's not as rounded as the tabletop design but it certainly appears more rounded than other mechs.

I like this artists style but i do fear that many of the mechs look too similar.

j2l

[Justy Starflare]

Kewl looking art work but its no kintaro. I'd rather have seen a Dervish or Enforcer or a woltrap. With the kintaro are we gonna see some com guard versions or just the Drac versions? Even a panther or vindicator would've calmed the natives.

Edited by Justy Starflare, 01 August 2013 - 06:30 PM.

[StandingCow]

The mech itself looks great... only problem is it looks too similar to other mechs. I would like to see something way different.

[Lonestar1771]

Xie Belvoule, on 01 August 2013 - 01:59 PM, said:

Wheres the Orion?

Are you seriously giving us this baboonass of a mech instead of the Orion. Come the **** on PGI....

LOL

[Mister Blastman]

That's not a Kintaro, THIS is a Kintaro!

[MonkeyCheese]

Sporklift, on 01 August 2013 - 05:08 PM, said:

Light mech pilots need to keep quiet or else they might get the Falcon.

At this point ill take anything in the light category... =(

[Wired]

Similarities are going to happen. I was concerned for their choice but then I realized that SRMs arent considered cheesy at the moment, so it was a safe bet.

[Sug]

Wired, on 01 August 2013 - 06:36 PM, said:

Similarities are going to happen. I was concerned for their choice but then I realized that SRMs arent considered cheesy at the moment, so it was a safe bet.

Hard not to have similarities when mechs are basically walking groups of almost omni hardpoints.


It's pretty much a heavier Trebuchet with no jumpjets.

[Tragos]

Problem about Urbie and Panther should be the engine size.
Somewhere in the forums was a calculation, that the game right now simply can't handle stuff like the Rating 60! engine of an Urbie, because following their standards, it would have negative weight or something like this.