3 replies to this topic

[Yanlowen Cage]

So this is just a theory craft mental game of reworking battletech/mechwarrior. not to be applied to either game. Just for fun.

So if I were rebuilding these game to be more to MY flavor I would look into some of the following ideas to expand or change the game.

First off I am chasing the idea that the systems (weapons/armor/engines/ and all other mecha item) are based off a single concept and modded from there. Read the post and maybe it will make a little more sense. as I don't really have the vocabulary to explain what I mean.

Armor:
Armor would be based on standard armor and all optional armor upgrades would be added to the base armor.
Examples:
Glazing the armor reduces the damage done by laser based weapons. but add tonnage.
Reactive armor would help block missile based damage. but add tonnage
Hardening the armor would help block ballistic damage. but add tonnage
There would be no restriction on using these armors together but they would all cumulatively add more weight.
so I would just as a base say each upgrade adds .5 ton per option.
So if I had one ton of armor and wanted to harden it, make it laser reflective, and reactive my armor would now weight 2.5 tons for 1 ton of protection.
I am sure there are more ideas for armor. feel free to throw some out there.

Heat:
BYE BYE! read next.

Engine:
Engines by size would generate a certain amount of energy. All energy using systems would draw a certain amount of energy from the reactor. If the reactor is over stressed it would produce fluctuating power with penalties ranging from shut down to reduce systems effectiveness. The energy draw of a system would not be subtracted from the total power pool unless it was in use at the time.
Also as a side note to engines, energy storage points could be add to the mech at cost of weight and crit space. sorta like back up batteries that are per charged from the reator.
Feel free to add ideas to this as well

Structure:
This system could be based on a standard structure with upgrades.
hardened structure would take more damage before failing but cost weight and possibly crit space.
nimble structure could be added to allow for faster turned and more dexterous movement.

Computers and sensors:
There is a base computer with many various upgrades. I would think a certian number would be "free" to add to the base computer. say 5. upgrades could be as follows
Multi target locking
extended sensor range
night vision
thermal vision
seismic sensors
ecm
counter ecm
fast missile lock
predictive ballistic pathing. computer leads target based on speed and direction of movement.
This is just a few of the computer/sensor upgrade ideas. fell free to add your own

now for everyone's favorite
Weapons

Lasers:
All laser are based off of a single laser and upgrade by weight and and crit size. I would base it off of the small laser and upgrade from there.
upgrades.
More range:
A small laser fire 3 hexs or 90 meters. let's deal with hexes. if I want to double the range to 6 hexes I would up the weight and crit space. if I want to up it further I would up the weight and crit again. So I could have a small laser that fire 9 hexes or 270 meters while still doing small laser damage
More damage:
a small laser does 3 points of damage. for weight and crit space I can add a capacitor and up the damage. the more damage I want to do the heavier the capacitor. So I could have a small laser that fires 3 hexes that does 8 damage if I wished.
Pulse:I could make the laser more likely to hit by pulsing it. with added tonnage and crit space.
Now I could because I don't restrict systems from each other have a long range, high damage, and pulsed laser. But it would weigh a lot and take up a lot of space.
Feel free to add ideas

Ballistic:
rounds:
Armor piercing. effective at critting through armor but must be loaded in lots.
tracer. increases accuracy the longer it is fired at a single target. tracer help zero in on the target.
standard round. hey it's standard
actual weapon upgrades:
Long barrel: extended range
short barrel: short range less weight
fast reload: faster rate of fire

Missiles:
better tracking missiles:
heavier missiles: more damage
fast missiles: speed based
Counter ecm missiles: have the ability to cut through ecm and lock the target independent of the launch platform.

Now all that as you have noticed is based on better performance based on more weight and crit space invested in each individual system and the amount o f power it would use. so yeah you could have all the most upgraded stuff but you won't have a lot of it and your energy draw would be crazy high. But in this concept of mech construction two mechs of the chassis could be wildly different from one another. adding a tremendous amount of diversity to the game.

Now finally mechs with hands can pick stuff up. with this concept any mech with hands can carry a hand held weapon (with certain restrictions). The weapon carried most be able to power it's self and have it's required ammo carried in it. For example and atlas can carry 10 tons. so in my concept it would be able to carry in it's hand an AC 5 with 1 ton of ammo and 1 ton for misc systems used to fire the weapon. After the weapon has fired all it's round, it can be dropped.

Now I know there are huge gaping holes in this system and it's just a mental exercise. please feel free to add your ideas and thoughts. I am not a fast typist and I am getting tired so I am stopping for now.

[Mystere]

Why not just start your own IP? Who knows, you might even be more successful?

[Bombast]

Too complex for a TT game, an d too different from MW/BT to easily apply to the universe without bending the bejesus out of lore values.

Would making for an interesting new IP, though.

[Pyed]

Get rid of heat, it ain't Battletech.

New IP or nothing, I agree.