20 replies to this topic

[Smoke Banshee]

Many people have asked what wieght class Rasalhague players should choose. Others have said to play like Stieners or Kuritans, I say differently. Looking at average weights for those two factions I can say with some certainty that Rasalhague should be different to both.

First, the Lyran Commonwealth: [20-35 tons]-20%, [40-55 tons]-30%, [60-75 tons]-35%, [80-100 tons]-15%.
As we can see the Steiners prefer the heavist mechs they can get thier hands on.
Next the Draconis Combine: [20-35 tons]-40%, [40-55 tons]-20%, [60-75 tons]-30%, [80-100 tons]-10%.
The Kuritans prefer speed with fast heavies to break any gaps in their enemies formations, but they do have a bit of a dislike toward any mediums with their favorite being the Hunchback.

Finally we have the Free Rasalhague Republic: [20-35 tons]-30%, [40-55 tons]-25%, [60-75 tons]-32.5%, [80-100 tons]-12.5%.
Now these numbers came from adding together the Lyran Commonwealth & the Draconis Combine, as both factions trained Rasalhagians during the Ronin War. As we can see Rasalhagians would clearly prefer heavy mechs to any other.

In my mind Rasalhagians should have a combination of Steiner front-line mechs to attract attention away from Kuritan calvary mechs that can sweep around the flanks, and hit the enemies from behind as the front-liners charge fowards.

What are you guys thoughts on these weights for Rasalhagian mechs? I got them by combining the average for the two factions above then reducing it to 100%.

[Solis Obscuri]

Planetary Data

• Star Type: K4V (195 hours)
  
• Position in System: 6
  
• Time to Jump Point: 4.31 days
  
• Recharging Station: Zenith, Nadir
  
• Number of Satellites: 1 (Sigurd)
  
• Surface Gravity: 1.1
  
• Atmosphere Pressure: Standard (Breathable)
  
• Equatorial Temperature: 25°C (Temperate)
  
• Surface Water Coverage: 75 percent
  
• ComStar Facility Class: A
  
• Percentage and Level of Native Life: 35%, Mammal

On Rasalhague all 'mechs weight 10% more.

[Banshee Bullet]

Solis Obscuri, on 01 June 2012 - 05:34 PM, said:

On Rasalhague all 'mechs weight 10% more.

I feel that is something that has really not been properly addressed. The BT series occurs on many different worlds, very few of which will have the same gravity. Not even necisarily earth-like gravity. Why doesn't that effect mech production and use? How can an atlas function on a world with 2.5x earth's gravity? it ways 250 tons there. Or why can't an atlas move faster on a moon with 1/3 earth's gravity?

eh, whatever, just give me my beta key

[Smoke Banshee]

Solis Obscuri, on 01 June 2012 - 05:34 PM, said:

On Rasalhague all 'mechs weight 10% more.

I see I wasn't clear. The percentage is the percent out of 100% of a nations forces, I.E. out of 100 Lyran mechs 20 would be light mechs like the Commando.

[Kartr]

Banshee Bullet, on 01 June 2012 - 05:48 PM, said:

I feel that is something that has really not been properly addressed. The BT series occurs on many different worlds, very few of which will have the same gravity. Not even necisarily earth-like gravity. Why doesn't that effect mech production and use? How can an atlas function on a world with 2.5x earth's gravity? it ways 250 tons there. Or why can't an atlas move faster on a moon with 1/3 earth's gravity?

eh, whatever, just give me my beta key

No because the Atlas doesn't actually weigh 100 tons of any kind, (weight or mass). The Atlas and probably all 'Mechs weigh much more than 100 tons. Otherwise the Atlas wouldn't be dense enough to submerge more than a portion of its body in the water. The tonnage system is simply a convenient way to design and estimate 'Mech capabilities. Think of it like an in universe version of BV that publications like Jane would use to classify weapons and vehicles (including 'Mechs).

[Sparks Murphey]

Banshee Bullet, on 01 June 2012 - 05:48 PM, said:

I feel that is something that has really not been properly addressed. The BT series occurs on many different worlds, very few of which will have the same gravity. Not even necisarily earth-like gravity. Why doesn't that effect mech production and use? How can an atlas function on a world with 2.5x earth's gravity? it ways 250 tons there. Or why can't an atlas move faster on a moon with 1/3 earth's gravity?

eh, whatever, just give me my beta key

The Maximum Tech source book for BT introduced rules that affected movement speeds based on differing gravities (along with a whole bunch of other environmental factors). On higher gravity worlds (such as Rasalhague and Solaris 7) they slow down, while on lower gravity worlds they go faster. Speed was partially limited by the stresses legs could take; an Atlas may be able to run three times as fast on a 0.3G world, but its legs aren't designed to take that kind of speed, and could break if you didn't pilot well. I'm pretty sure either TacOps or StratOps reiterated these rules.

Regarding FRR mech choices...[looks at his allegiance icon, shrugs and continues anyway]...I'd argue that as much as the FRR might have a tactical preference towards the heavy 'mechs, strategically they'd have more slow and well-armoured mediums ("pocket heavies" if you like). The FRR isn't well off, economically, and heavies and assaults are costly. Mediums are just that bit cheaper and (generally) more versatile on the battlefield. So you'd end up with mechs like the Centurion and the Hunchback that hit like heavies while being cheaper to operate and maintain.

[Smoke Banshee]

Sparks Murphey, on 01 June 2012 - 06:38 PM, said:

Regarding FRR mech choices...[looks at his allegiance icon, shrugs and continues anyway]...I'd argue that as much as the FRR might have a tactical preference towards the heavy 'mechs, strategically they'd have more slow and well-armoured mediums ("pocket heavies" if you like). The FRR isn't well off, economically, and heavies and assaults are costly. Mediums are just that bit cheaper and (generally) more versatile on the battlefield. So you'd end up with mechs like the Centurion and the Hunchback that hit like heavies while being cheaper to operate and maintain.

On the contrary, as bordered by the only factions to have little use for mediums they Rasalhagians might not even be able to acquire many mediums. Also, the cost of a mostly heavy force might explain why the Kungsarmee only has 15 regiments, of which 5 are classified as heavy or assault.

[Banshee Bullet]

Smoke Banshee, on 01 June 2012 - 06:00 PM, said:

I see I wasn't clear. The percentage is the percent out of 100% of a nations forces, I.E. out of 100 Lyran mechs 20 would be light mechs like the Commando.

OOoooohhh, my bad

Kartr, on 01 June 2012 - 06:09 PM, said:

No because the Atlas doesn't actually weigh 100 tons of any kind, (weight or mass). The Atlas and probably all 'Mechs weigh much more than 100 tons. Otherwise the Atlas wouldn't be dense enough to submerge more than a portion of its body in the water. The tonnage system is simply a convenient way to design and estimate 'Mech capabilities. Think of it like an in universe version of BV that publications like Jane would use to classify weapons and vehicles (including 'Mechs).

oh ok, I didn't know it was just a classification system. That makes sense though

[Solis Obscuri]

Kartr, on 01 June 2012 - 06:09 PM, said:

No because the Atlas doesn't actually weigh 100 tons of any kind, (weight or mass). The Atlas and probably all 'Mechs weigh much more than 100 tons. Otherwise the Atlas wouldn't be dense enough to submerge more than a portion of its body in the water. The tonnage system is simply a convenient way to design and estimate 'Mech capabilities. Think of it like an in universe version of BV that publications like Jane would use to classify weapons and vehicles (including 'Mechs).

'Mechs weigh what they weigh under standard gravity. They weigh differently under greater or lesser gravity.

As for the density issue, didn't we beat that horse to death months ago???

Sparks Murphey, on 01 June 2012 - 06:38 PM, said:

The Maximum Tech source book for BT introduced rules that affected movement speeds based on differing gravities (along with a whole bunch of other environmental factors). On higher gravity worlds (such as Rasalhague and Solaris 7) they slow down, while on lower gravity worlds they go faster. Speed was partially limited by the stresses legs could take; an Atlas may be able to run three times as fast on a 0.3G world, but its legs aren't designed to take that kind of speed, and could break if you didn't pilot well. I'm pretty sure either TacOps or StratOps reiterated these rules.

This ^^^

Sparks Murphey, on 01 June 2012 - 06:38 PM, said:

Regarding FRR mech choices...[looks at his allegiance icon, shrugs and continues anyway]...I'd argue that as much as the FRR might have a tactical preference towards the heavy 'mechs, strategically they'd have more slow and well-armoured mediums ("pocket heavies" if you like). The FRR isn't well off, economically, and heavies and assaults are costly. Mediums are just that bit cheaper and (generally) more versatile on the battlefield. So you'd end up with mechs like the Centurion and the Hunchback that hit like heavies while being cheaper to operate and maintain.

I know that the FRR produces their own Archer variant at the very least (ARC-5R = best Archer variant ever), and also Panthers and Lyran heavy tank designs, as well as possibly the Phoenix Hawk, but they don't have production on the scale of most of the other Successor States. Units also have lots of leftover stuff from the DCMS, and access to all the I.S. general tech. Theoretically, they should follow similar composition patterns to the other great houses (RATS assumes this, but isn't a source material.)

[Soviet Alex]

The Free Rasalhague Republic will have its weight distribution decided by what mechs you pilot, not some Battletech background. With all mechs being available to all players, you could all ride in Ravens & Cataphracts. Check out this thread for an idea of possible player weight distribution:
http://mwomercs.com/...rolefactionect/

[Ingram Olofsson]

Regarding the weights, the wiki entry about the Kungsarme offers a rough guideline in the regiment list.

1 Assault Regiment
4 Heavy Regiments
3 Medium Regiments
3 Mixed Medium and Light Regiments
4 Light Regiments

So roughly:

36% Light
30% Medium
27% Heavy
7% Assault

Also, I have been going through various resources trying to determine which mechs would be most likely used by the KungsArme. A lot of information is conflicting, so I just made a general guideline for myself relating to the 11 battlemechs that have been revealed so far.

Light Mechs: The FRR wouldn't have any Ravens. It's a brand-new Capellan design that isn't exported, and the FRR doesn't border them, so no salvage from conflicts. Of the other two, the Jenner would probably be more common than the Commando.

Medium Mechs: The Hunchback would probably be the most common, as it's a Star League-era design that's been produced for ages by Steiner, and is widely exported. Second would be the Cicada, as it's also a widely exported old design from the Terran Hegemony. The Centurion would be the least common as its main factory was destroyed in 2845. Existing Centurions were kept running by spare parts from secondary sites, but no new ones were being produced. Eventually new factories were opened in 3012 and 3047, but those have both been producing Centurions specifically for House Davion.

Heavy Mechs: Rasalhague would probably not have any Cataphracts. They were first produced in 3025 by the Capellans, then the factory was captured by the Federated Suns. All in all the design is probably not old enough to have spread around much, especially not to factions not in conflict with House Liao or House Davion. The Catapult C1 is also Capellan, but it's been exported in limited qualities. Still, it would be very rare in the KungsArme as the locally produced Archer battlemech would probably be used for the same role. However, the Catapult K2 variant would probably be common among the KungsArme, as this version is produced in Kurita space. The Dragon would also be common for the same reason.

Assault Mechs: No Assault mech would be terribly common since there's only one Assault regiment in the KungsArme. The Atlas and the Awesome would probably be close to equal in number. Both have been in production and widely exported for ages.

Edited by Ingram Olofsson, 02 June 2012 - 06:40 AM.

[Tadakuma]

The KungsArme draws it's mechs from the Stiener and Kurita sources.

At this time they have one mech factory (New Oslo) and that produces Panthers and Pheonix Hawks.The rest of their inventory is made up of left overs from the Original Militia Forces there and hand me downs from Kurita and Steiner.

A quick scan of TRO 3039 explicitly mentions that Commandos, Jenners, Dragons and Zeuses are well represented in the KungsArme. So I think we can safely say that those five designs make up the bulk of the mechs.

Based on that I suspect that you should be piloting mainly Commandos, Jenners and Dragons.

If my wish comes true and we see the Zeus as mech 12 then that will give you your 3rd mech (along with Steiner's 3rd mech as well) For what it's woth I think that's one of the better mech line ups in the game.

(Beaten only by the Awesome, Hunchback & Cicada combo that Marik has going on)

[Kobold]

I expect to be a Jenner and Dragon kind of guy. I wanted a fast light striker, and the Jenner is the only legitimate option. I don't want the SRMs or electronics of the Commando or Raven, respectively. I also wanted a heavy cavalry mech, so the Dragon is my only real choice (but that AC15 has GOT to GO).

But I'll never bow to the dragon, so FRR was my only choice.

[Dayuhan]

Tadakuma, on 02 June 2012 - 07:18 AM, said:

The KungsArme draws it's mechs from the Stiener and Kurita sources.

At this time they have one mech factory (New Oslo) and that produces Panthers and Pheonix Hawks.The rest of their inventory is made up of left overs from the Original Militia Forces there and hand me downs from Kurita and Steiner.

A quick scan of TRO 3039 explicitly mentions that Commandos, Jenners, Dragons and Zeuses are well represented in the KungsArme. So I think we can safely say that those five designs make up the bulk of the mechs.

Based on that I suspect that you should be piloting mainly Commandos, Jenners and Dragons.

If my wish comes true and we see the Zeus as mech 12 then that will give you your 3rd mech (along with Steiner's 3rd mech as well) For what it's woth I think that's one of the better mech line ups in the game.

(Beaten only by the Awesome, Hunchback & Cicada combo that Marik has going on)

New Oslo builds the Panther and Archer - Source: 20 Year Update.

Edited by Dayuhan, 05 June 2012 - 01:11 PM.

[Soviet Alex]

It doesn't matter what the Battletech wiki says. In MW-O those limits don't apply. You'll individually choose the mechs you want, and that will define what the the Free Rasalhague Republic's forces look like. We aren't reading history any more, we're making it.

[Shivus]

Soviet Alex, on 05 June 2012 - 02:34 PM, said:

It doesn't matter what the Battletech wiki says. In MW-O those limits don't apply. You'll individually choose the mechs you want, and that will define what the the Free Rasalhague Republic's forces look like. We aren't reading history any more, we're making it.

Yeah but it's still fun to roleplay to a point.

I can see myself using one of the "canon" Rasalhagian mechs until I can justify buying a cataphract because I "salvaged" it after a battle.

[Ogryn]

http://www.sarna.net...lic_BattleMechs

I've been using this as a guildine for mechs to look at. Also. Crab. All of my want, all of it.

Also, Flashman, Hitman, Crab, Talon? A large amount of all energy mechs. Strange, actually. I always thought that they were into the heavy cannons.

[Solis Obscuri]

You're thinking of the Davions.

[Smoke Banshee]

Solis Obscuri, on 08 June 2012 - 10:38 AM, said:

You're thinking of the Davions.

Really? I didn't think I was talking about racist illiterate fascists who have their own brand of mechs and don't have to steal from their neighbors to make a well-rounded force that favors mediums above all. But I guess if you say so.

I almost forgot to mention, I'm talking about the racist viking democrats I.E the Free Rasalhague Republic.

Edited by Smoke Banshee, 08 June 2012 - 03:06 PM.

[Haakon Valravn]

I would imagine that given that FRR trade is unrestrained with the FWL, CC, and possibly the FS that there could be a substantial number of Mediums from those states. Obviously, they'd be fighting an uphill battle against the quantity of 'Mechs inherited from the Dracs and Lyrans, and captured from ronin, but still. A certain number of these CC/FWL/FS machines might have been provided by the Lyrans during their false-liberation to Rasalhagian separatists in an effort to establish plausible deniability (like how the US gave Egyptian AKs to Afghan mujahideen).