33 replies to this topic

[Stahlseele]

Yes and No.
FUSION REACTORS, are NOT Todays Fission as used in Atomic Reactors, if i understood that difference correctly.
Still, it's one hell of an energy being released. And if it's out of contraints, steam explosions will do the rest.

[feor]

Karyudo-ds, on 24 November 2011 - 10:01 AM, said:

And in Mechassault a reactor explosion killed everything right around it regardless of what it was.

Science however regrets to inform us that reactors of this type would NEVER "explode". Worst case there could maybe be some radiation. I wouldn't mind "realistic" for once. Some people claim this isn't Gundam...then mechs make giant Gundam explosions when they die so... Imagine if your car instead of breaking down just completely exploded instead.

The actually specifically cover this in the Techmanual. IIRC it's not that the reactor itself is exploding, but that if damage is done to it just right it basically flash vaporizes the engines shielding (and a good portion of the torso of the mech) and the "explosion" is the sudden and violent escape of the gases generated by this vaporization. Also what happened to Tharkkad at the start of the Jihad. The Blakists hit a major fusion reactor facility with an orbital bombardment with the intent of shutting down most power to the capitol, but no one had shoveled the roof that year, and several hundred metric tons of snow was dumped onto an unshielded but still running fusion reaction, generating an "explosion" big enough that the media assumed the Blakists had nuked the plant.

[Nowan123]

@post right above: that is basically physically right
@OP: yes, I like the MWLL way of doing it

[Moppelkotze]

Karyudo-ds, on 24 November 2011 - 10:01 AM, said:

Imagine if your car instead of breaking down just completely exploded instead.

In every movie you just have to look evil at a car and it WILL explode.

[Felicitatem Parco]

What about a Mech taking "critical" damage to the point where total shutdown (i.e. Mech death) is initiated, then all electrical and mechanical systems fail over the course of 3 or 5 seconds until you are properly dead-in-the-water. Then, if multiple high-damage hits are incurred by an unarmored portion of torso during this shutdown process, the fission reactor will explosively vent with a small blast radius. Sound good? I doubt this is canon, but I think it's slightly more realistic than myriad asploding robots.

Edited by Prosperity Park, 25 November 2011 - 09:14 AM.

[Alizabeth Aijou]

Quote

the fission reactor will explosively vent with a small blast radius. Sound good?

Except that I can't remember any 'Mech using a fission engine.
Just about all of them use either a fusion engine, or an ICE engine.

[Felicitatem Parco]

I meant fusion. Oops.

[Datum]

I actually like the MW2 mech death the best.
The gradual explosion with bits flying off as it dies slowly seems to have more grace to it than "FALL OVER AND BOOM", it seemed like a sinking ship to me, dignity and all.

[Xhaleon]

Prosperity Park, on 25 November 2011 - 09:14 AM, said:

What about a Mech taking "critical" damage to the point where total shutdown (i.e. Mech death) is initiated, then all electrical and mechanical systems fail over the course of 3 or 5 seconds until you are properly dead-in-the-water. Then, if multiple high-damage hits are incurred by an unarmored portion of torso during this shutdown process, the fission reactor will explosively vent with a small blast radius. Sound good? I doubt this is canon, but I think it's slightly more realistic than myriad asploding robots.

Sounds good. Its also pretty much how Stackpoles happen on the tabletop too, when you overkill a mech and usually not any time else. The TT relies on a dice roll, the realtime game relies on someone's discipline, although it sounds like you could actually use it to intentionally damage nearby enemies.

[Nik Van Rhijn]

Get an ammo heavy mech going up and it should do colateral damage - and look good.

[Tierloc]

I like seeing stuff blow up.

[Felicitatem Parco]

I do too.

I, however, do not like seeing 2 cars blow up after colliding with each other like you see in movies. It's just too fake... it makes me laugh at it, not with it.

I'd like to see Mechs die in MWO somewhere between the way Mechs die in the Armored Core series and the prior Mechwarrior series. In Armored Core, a dead Mech simply ceased to function, but you couldn't blow off weapons or body parts as damage is applied over time. In prior Mechwarrior games your Mech always goes nuclear upon death, even if it's just from legging. I think a happy medium can be found.

Edited by Prosperity Park, 26 November 2011 - 12:36 PM.

[pcunite]

If today's computers can handle it I want it all, MW2 + MW3 style enemy mech destruction plus leave the crumbled shells where they fell. It adds to the realism and sense of scale.

[Pht]

http://www.sarna.net...gine_explosions

Me, I don't care for the "stackpole" effect at all.

+1 to no silly over the top "kaboomeriey."