185 replies to this topic

[Pht]

Alexsamson, on 25 May 2012 - 05:17 PM, said:

I really want to thank you for this. I knew nothing about this other then that people I knew at World of Tanks were excited about it, and this has helped me learn about it a lot

Asfaloth, on 28 May 2012 - 11:53 AM, said:

Good job compiling all that, now we just need someone to do the same for the backstory fluff. I've got a few friends that are finally coming around to Battletech and are having trouble keeping atop the story.

Probably your best bet is to show them the http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Timeline, find something they/you find interesting, and look to see if any of the novels (which I think are out in epub format now) cover those events.

The storyline is massive; so don't sweat trying to know "everything" ... NOBODY knows everything, not even randall. Pick something you like and get to know it!

[XV88 Broadside]

Pht, on 29 May 2012 - 10:14 AM, said:

Probably your best bet is to show them the http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Timeline, find something they/you find interesting, and look to see if any of the novels (which I think are out in epub format now) cover those events.

The storyline is massive; so don't sweat trying to know "everything" ... NOBODY knows everything, not even randall. Pick something you like and get to know it!

The Warrior trilogy, which covers the wedding of Melissa Steiner and Hanse Davion, amongst a horde of other things, is good for a quick prelude for the current MWO timeline. The Blood of Kerensky trilogy covers what's about to happen when the Clans wander in. Both are pretty well written.

Edited by XV88 Broadside, 30 May 2012 - 09:43 PM.

[Damien]

Thank you very much for the great info. I enjoyed it.

[Rodney28021]

Geist Null, on 22 February 2012 - 05:06 PM, said:

why would someone leave stuff stored in the back of the pit. how embarrassing is it to get KO'd by your ice chest in the middle of a fight...

i am sure all in the back of the cockpit is straped down secure during battle.
Great Intro.
Just remove the Stealth Armor reference, don't want the noobies to get ideas that they might get that armor.

Toilet comes standard in all mechs. Get over it. Make great trash can and shredder too.

[Southern Taxi]

Wow... just wow... you, sir, have won 10 internets.

I must have stolen an IS Mech, because my brain was fried with the information overload.

EDIT: What I'd like to know is which kinds of equipment will be available on MWO's time frame.

Up to now, I know that clan tech is a few years away, and clan based tech, more than I can wait (I.E.: Light engines, developed when the supplies of XLs was almost depleted should take over 50 years XD).

Edited by Southern Taxi, 12 June 2012 - 09:41 PM.

[GenWarhammer]

Bravo. Thanks for putting the time in for that post

[Striker1980]

*Claps hands* good post!

[Pht]

Southern Taxi, on 12 June 2012 - 09:38 PM, said:

Wow... just wow... you, sir, have won 10 internets.

I must have stolen an IS Mech, because my brain was fried with the information overload.

EDIT: What I'd like to know is which kinds of equipment will be available on MWO's time frame.

Up to now, I know that clan tech is a few years away, and clan based tech, more than I can wait (I.E.: Light engines, developed when the supplies of XLs was almost depleted should take over 50 years XD).

You might try downloading solaris skunk werk's mech builder, picking the appropriate year and telling SSW to limit availability by year, and than tabbing over to see what's available.

[Maxxinator]

I appreciate the amount of time and effort put into this *Bookmarks*

[Darksteps]

Dear God in Heaven or whatever your theological equivalent is... I remember when the first edition box came out and I needed an explanation of how something actually worked or what the details were as to why one of my mechs were rendered useless in combat. Back then the GM's response would normally be, "because I said so." But with all this info, that's no longer the case.

[Pht]

Darksteps, on 18 June 2012 - 09:08 AM, said:

Dear God in Heaven or whatever your theological equivalent is... I remember when the first edition box came out and I needed an explanation of how something actually worked or what the details were as to why one of my mechs were rendered useless in combat. Back then the GM's response would normally be, "because I said so." But with all this info, that's no longer the case.

This is pretty much the same reaction I had when I saw Cray's writeups in tech manual and the CBT companion. One wonders why the chunk of information that those two writeups represent hasn't been very nearly front and center in the BT lore since the start...

[ScientificMethod]

I'm looking into running my own mechwarrior rpg, this is exactly the level of information I need to stay one step ahead of my players. Thank you so much for getting this out here.

[Pht]

ScientificMethod, on 23 June 2012 - 10:57 PM, said:

I'm looking into running my own mechwarrior rpg, this is exactly the level of information I need to stay one step ahead of my players. Thank you so much for getting this out here.

If you need tech info on the battle armors and ships and stuff, there are fluff sections in TechManual that cover those too.

[Skyefox]

SO what we need is for someone to essentially copy the text from "A brief history of the Inner Sphere" onto a thread and get it pinned.....

[Seethe]

Thank you very much for posting all of this, Pht.

This was a great read while waiting patiently for my chance to climb into one of these giant stompy mechs...

[MuffinTop]

Geist Null, on 22 February 2012 - 05:06 PM, said:

why would someone leave stuff stored in the back of the pit. how embarrassing is it to get KO'd by your ice chest in the middle of a fight...

Paramedics and firefighters will tell you this happens more often than you think. Next time you are driving, look whats in the back of that car, suv or truck. All those items are secondary missles in a collision. Stay safe, and buckle up and put your gear in back and if you can't secure it !

[Skyefox]

The military is also big on this. Everything has to be strapped down and secured, and I mean EVERYTHING. Rollovers are no joke, and I imagine that getting knocked off your feet in a Mech is like some heinous combination of a plane crash and a hurricane.

[cipher]

Pht, on 22 February 2012 - 05:02 PM, said:

5 The Neurohelmet

The neurohelmet's main job is to enable the MechWarrior to control the balance of the BattleMech. The MechWarrior uses the neurohelmet to tell a 'Mech when and in what direction it should be off balance, and also to help the 'Mech regain its bearings when its balance systems cannot compensate enough for the 'Mechs conditions. The neurohelmet is also used as a part of the security system of a 'Mech. First, a pilot must match the neurohelmet tuning profile, or they most likely will not be able to plot the 'mech. Second, if a pilot does pass the 'Mech's security tests, the 'Mech's computers can use the neurohelmet to scramble a would-be thief’s brains.

A typo: you mean "doesn't" pass.

But more importantly, a neurohelmet is more than just for "balance" of a mech. Balance is taken care of by the mech's gyros in combination with the neurohelmets.

From the first edition "Mechwarrior: The Battletech Role Playing Game" book from 1986, it states:

Quote

The key to piloting a Battlemech is correct use of a neurohelmet, which enhances impulses from the pilot's body to produce the desired action in the 'Mech.

It's actual control of the mech, not just for balance. Sticks and throttle control come into play, but for a mech to actually move its arms, pick up things with its hands (for mechs that have them), and punch and kick other mechs, all of that is controlled by the neurohelmet. Basic piloting and combat is still mostly stick/manual control-focused, but finer limb movement is all neurohelmet. If you didn't have a neurohelmet you'd need dozens and dozens of sticks to control each arm actuator, hands, etc.

Please update the OP.

[Pht]

cipher, on 28 June 2012 - 06:59 AM, said:

A typo: you mean "doesn't" pass.

Thanks. Missed that.

Quote

But more importantly, a neurohelmet is more than just for "balance" of a mech. Balance is taken care of by the mech's gyros in combination with the neurohelmets.

From the first edition "Mechwarrior: The Battletech Role Playing Game" book from 1986, it states:

I already discussed the other things the neurohelmet does; and the new source superscedes the old source (not my rule; that's the rule from the people that maintain the lore).

Quote

It's actual control of the mech, not just for balance. Sticks and throttle control come into play, but for a mech to actually move its arms, pick up things with its hands (for mechs that have them), and punch and kick other mechs, all of that is controlled by the neurohelmet. Basic piloting and combat is still mostly stick/manual control-focused, but finer limb movement is all neurohelmet. If you didn't have a neurohelmet you'd need dozens and dozens of sticks to control each arm actuator, hands, etc.

None of this is true. It is not possible to have this kind of fine control via a neurohelmet and specifically because of the limitations that the OP discusses about the interface. All of these assertions are contradicted by the newer source (techmanual) and the just previous to techmanual cbt:companion source.

I am not going to change the OP to say what the source not only does not say but actually contradicts. I would suggest you should drop cray a line over at the CBT forums and ask him about this stuff; he's the one that wrote the source, you can get it directly from the horse's mouth.

Edited by Pht, 04 July 2012 - 03:08 PM.

[cipher]

Pht, on 28 June 2012 - 08:01 AM, said:

None of this is true. It is not possible to have this kind of fine control via a neurohelmet and specifically because of the limitations that the OP discusses about the interface. All of these assertions are contradicted by the newer source (techmanual) and the more recent cbt:companion source.

So we magically move mech's arms and finer motor skills of the hands with the cockpit using one stick and a throttle control? Surely you jest. That's just impossible. A Mechwarrior cannot finely control a mech's arm and hand in the way shown throughout BattleTech and MechWarrior artwork if the artwork and canon only show a fairly simple cockpit design.

Most mecha sci-fi handles this with either a chair/suit to mimic the pilot's movements or through neurological means. MechWarrior originally chose the latter. No other explanation has been offered to properly supersede the notion that neurohelmets don't do much other than balance a mech because the controls in a cockpit can't cope with this.

Even from the Battletech wiki (Sarna)...

Quote

More advanced neurohelmets provide additional input and output beyond a sense of balance, though they never amount to "Direct Neural Interface" technology. A neurohelmet can provide the MechWarrior with a kinesthetic sense - a sense of how the 'Mech's limbs are positioned - and Star League aerospace fighter neurohelmets served to provide a weak virtual reality to the pilots. In return, MechWarriors can use neurohelmets to provide some clarification the simple commands they are supplying to a 'Mech through joysticks, triggers, and pedals.

It's not direct neural interface, but it provides feedback and sends signals to clarify/aid in the control of a mech's limbs, even though the sticks and other controls are the initial factor.

Edited by cipher, 28 June 2012 - 08:44 AM.