'Mech Jump Jets
By harnessing the power of a 'Mech's fusion engine to superheat air or another suitable fluid,
Jump Jets allow a BattleMech to briefly overcome gravity and rocket short distances over the battlefield.
[edit] Operational Details
Jump jets work in a similar, albeit more limited, fashion to the fusion rockets installed on
Aerospace Fighters. Inside a magnetically shielded reaction chamber buried deep inside the 'Mech, an electron beam superheats a reaction mass and expels the expanding gases through nozzles located on the back of the 'Mech or in its legs. Reaction mass is commonly provided in the form of air forced into the reaction chamber by a system of turbo-compressors, but most 'Mechs have a small amount of alternate reaction mass, usually in the form of hydrogen, water or mercury, in order to facilitate operation in a vacuum and to reduce the wear on the jets from superheated oxygen when in an atmosphere that contains it
[2]. The reaction mass provided by an atmosphere is effectively infinite, but the supplementary reaction mass carried on-board is limited by the number of thruster assemblies installed unless additional tankage is added to the 'Mech
[3].
Because of the heat produced by jump jet activation and limited on-board fuel, jump jets can only maintain thrust for a few seconds. A far cry from flight, jump jets nevertheless allow a 'Mech to make short leaps sufficient enough to outmaneuver 'Mechs not similarly equipped or bypass obstacles and unfavorable terrain
[2][1]. Care must be taken when jumping, however, as jumping causes heat buildup with even the shortest jump generating more heat than running, and damage to a 'Mech's gyro or leg actuators and joints can cause a 'Mech to fumble upon landing
[4]. Owing to the inability of liquids to be compressed, submerged jump jets cannot be used lest the extreme pressure rupture the jet's casing
[2][4].
[edit] Attacks by a Jumping 'Mech
Jumping makes a 'Mech harder to hit, but the accuracy of weapons fitted to the jumping 'Mech is also adversely affected
[4]. In addition to standard weapons fire, a 'Mech with jump jets can perform a combat maneuver known as
Death from Above, which involves it jumping into the air and attempting to land on an opponent. A successful DFA has the potential to crush an opposing 'Mech's head, but the maneuver risks damage to one's own 'Mech even if the attack is successful
[5]. Another attack that has been known to be performed using jump jets nicknamed the "I Am Jade Falcon" maneuver uses the jets in a 'Mech's legs to torch an adjacent hostile
[6].
here is how jumpjets work. somethign to remember is that the battletech universe is not about perfect spacemagic robots like gundum or other goofy {Scrap}. its supposed to be flawed tech that has almost as many limitations as it does advantages(more so for the innersphere since most of their stuff is antiques).
Edited by Hellcat420, 29 November 2013 - 06:22 PM.
5
Joseph Mallan, on 29 November 2013 - 06:14 PM, said:
