518 replies to this topic

[Stormeris]

BattleFalcon, on 29 April 2012 - 12:39 AM, said:

Ow my eyes... the Ares is NOT LEGAL according to Classic BattleTech rules, which includes everything BattleTech except that god-awful Age of Destruction stuff. There are no Classic rules for five limbs, and there are no rules for >100-ton 'Mechs.

That being said, if the Tarantula gets included in this game, you'd need a very serious prybar to even attempt getting me out of one...

Never said i want it, just told the guy that they exist, besides it reaaaally doesnt fit the timeline, and i totally agree about the tarantula, my favorite light mech it is! HECK its my favorite overall mech

Edited by stormeris, 29 April 2012 - 02:17 AM.

[Youngblood]

I hate to break it to you, guy, but there already exists a Catalyst Game Labs BattleTech record sheet for Tripod 'Mechs. Granted, its current source is only in an April Fool's joke PDF, but it exists!

Anyways, Quad 'Mechs have been with BattleTech since very soon after the beginning, and the only reason why they haven't been done justice in MechWarrior is because game designers couldn't figure them out. Thankfully, the potentially infinite development cycle of MWO can allow for enough time for that to get done.

And yes, quads can be badass. See Field Manual 3085's depiction of a Trebaruna for reference. Don't see the Balius from TRO 3075 .

[SmackZ]

quads? lol just one more target to demolish on the battlefield...bring em on!

[Stormeris]

SmackZ, on 29 April 2012 - 05:11 AM, said:

quads? lol just one more target to demolish on the battlefield...bring em on!

If only all the haters would have your mindset: "Put them in, so i could destroy them"

I salute you

[SmackZ]

I am but a simple, but effective, instrument of war. "Scouts Out"

[Der BruzZzler von Wiesndoof]

stormeris, on 29 April 2012 - 02:17 AM, said:

i totally agree about the tarantula, my favorite light mech it is! HECK its my favorite overall mech

+1
The Tarantula is one of my favorite three mechs in the whole BattleTech universe. I really like quads, but the Tarantula is the only quad i would love to pilot, because of its awesome jump capabilities, speed and great maneuverability (360° torso). In my opinion, the Tarantula is a beautiful quad. Besides of a few quadrupedals most of the other quads are bulky and sluggish.

[Kasiagora]

Wow. Look at me being all late to the party.
If there was a Scorpion, I'd buy one up and even use it sometimes. I want to pilot mediums anyway, and a fast, well armored, ultra Panther sounds like a good idea to me. The fact that it's Unseen makes for a great reason to improve on the design and give it a turret, too.

Wanted to add in that in the Battletech lore they said the first mechs were farm equipment that later became more armed and armored as a kind of poor-man's tank used by militias. In some of the Grey Death Legion books they even strapped infantry squad machineguns and missile launchers to "aggro(agricultural)mechs" to assist in uprisings and greuilla warefare. I think the walking tanks are a great part of the BT universe that shouldn't be ignored.

Funny thing that they thought of that as a way to justfy the evoloution of mech-based combat leading to the BT we all know and love because a few years ago there was a Scandinavian (I'm pretty sure) company called Plustech that made a 6-legged lumber harvester prototype that was developed so that farmers could go into woods that would have fallen timber and collect up tree trunks without doing too much damage to the terrain, and without getting bogged down. It had numerous feet that could be put on to disperse weight more or less so it wouldn't sink into marshy ground as easily, or could dig into harder, more rock strewn hillsides for traction.
It's slow, but note that it can side-step and go hull-down.

http://video.google....379084715476228

[Stormeris]

Even if devs wont put them in, i really want to see FD do magic with the scorpion and goliath! for gods sake after FD treatment even commando looks awesome!

[Ron Sillas]

Well, I for one love Quad 'Mechs. They're my favorite all around from classic BT to the newer Mechwarrior incarnations - but as somebody already correctly stated: designers just didn't get them right before, unfortunately. The Thunder Fox is a particular recent favorite as well as the Ursa, which as far as I know is a tabletop game exclusive.

And a quick video for people's consideration:

Edited by Ron Sillas, 29 April 2012 - 11:08 AM.

[Watchit]

I would love to see a FlyingDebris remake of a scorpion. Here's the Boggart proto-quad mech from his DA account.

[Der BruzZzler von Wiesndoof]

stormeris, on 29 April 2012 - 10:59 AM, said:

Even if devs wont put them in, i really want to see FD do magic with the scorpion and goliath! for gods sake after FD treatment even commando looks awesome!

I completely agree!

Ron Sillas, on 29 April 2012 - 11:07 AM, said:

And a quick video for people's consideration:

The "Big Dog" video shows how much stable and effective QuadMechs could be.

[Sporklift]

Having read most of this, I can conclude five things:

Canonicity- As ineffective and unpopular as they are perceived, quadmechs do exist in the Battletech/Mechwarrior universe. Any arguments to them being not being so have been thoroughly debunked. The unseen can be remade.

Time/Difficulty to Model/Implement- This underestimates game designers and artists. I think when they look at a quad design they probably think 'put in a bendy bit here, articulate that bit and it will hug the terrain nicely.' Have a bit of faith. If they implement a quad design it will probably look nice, and creepy.

How Bad They Are- quadmechs have less space for weapons and equipment. This is known. They normally cannot torso twist unless given a turret in advanced rules, though by design not even all bipedal mechs can torso twist (Blackhawk). But, they carry more armor on all 4 legs (they being actual 'legs' rather than repositioned arms) They can also lateral-shift, go hull down, and retain most of their mobility when a leg gets blown off. They can be potent defensive city-fighters, scouts, and fire-support platforms.

The Tripod Monstrosity From the Dark Age- I have no idea why people get stuck on this thing. Its a WizKids garbage pile that was poorly painted and made from linoleum. It was primarily implemented to sell product and to renew interest. Move along. (A 105+ 'mech probably should be limited to industrial/salvage applications)

The Detractors Are Scared of Spiders- I think the people who don't want them in the game are imprinting their fears of spiders on quadmechs. Most of them are quite small and aren't dangerous. Except for the quad pilots, they can kill you.

[William Petersen]

Ron Sillas, on 29 April 2012 - 11:07 AM, said:

And a quick video for people's consideration:

That is incredible! o.o

[Karyudo ds]

Ron Sillas, on 29 April 2012 - 11:07 AM, said:

Well, I for one love Quad 'Mechs. They're my favorite all around from classic BT to the newer Mechwarrior incarnations - but as somebody already correctly stated: designers just didn't get them right before, unfortunately. The Thunder Fox is a particular recent favorite as well as the Ursa, which as far as I know is a tabletop game exclusive.

It's not hard, but they would operate a bit differently and when considering bang-for-buck there isn't even very many of them unless you created new ones. Fox and Ursa aren't 100% exclusive, they were designed for the clix game originally. Do love the Thunder Fox though to bad it wouldn't fit into the timeline right now. In fact I don't really like the ones that do so far...but a slight redesign away and they'd probably be perfect.

Ron Sillas, on 29 April 2012 - 11:07 AM, said:

And a quick video for people's consideration:

Yeah the big dog is creepy how realistically it's able to move...put wheels and a cannon on that thing and we have a winner.

I'd love to see quads, but we might have to take liberties for there to be enough to make it worth it. I wouldn't mind that one bit though!

[Vodkavaiator]

Why not, four legged mechs are just as good as two legged mechs.

[SmackZ]

can we stomp on em?

[Donegals]

I WANT MY SCORPION.

I love ambushing people and for me the scorpion is perfect. I want to see pilot's faces when i pop up from behind a rock, snipe with my ppc then scuttle off sideways. ^^ I love me a bit of quading

[Stormeris]

Donegals, on 29 April 2012 - 11:05 PM, said:

I WANT MY SCORPION.

I love ambushing people and for me the scorpion is perfect. I want to see pilot's faces when i pop up from behind a rock, snipe with my ppc then scuttle off sideways. ^^ I love me a bit of quading

thats exactly what im planning on doing if i get my scorpion!

Edited by stormeris, 29 April 2012 - 11:32 PM.

[Der BruzZzler von Wiesndoof]

Donegals, on 29 April 2012 - 11:05 PM, said:

I WANT MY SCORPION.

I love ambushing people and for me the scorpion is perfect. I want to see pilot's faces when i pop up from behind a rock, snipe with my ppc then scuttle off sideways. ^^ I love me a bit of quading

Yeah, that sounds good!
If you would pilot a Tarantula, you could jump 240 meters to safety after your ambush attack, or you run away with a max speed of 130kp/h . You just have to wait five years ...

Edited by The_Birdeater, 30 April 2012 - 06:21 PM.

[ZnSeventeen]

Now, I am a big urbie fan, mostly because my reaction times are practically nonexistant. So, all you detractors, I want you to imagine, you are in a scorpion, hidden behind a wall or small hill, and a noob in an urbanmech comes flying over, unawares you are there, because you are hull down. Then, you get to chuckle with glee as you hammer the urbie's back with PPC fire while he tries to recover from the jump and disorientation. It will be good stuff.

In any case, I plan on running scout often, and being able to spot, then sidestep is a scouting dream. "Ope, theres an Atlas everyone. Yay! Now he can't see me cause I am behind this wall, hull down. Now I can see him again! Ope, back down." (I imagine this conversation will actually occur while playing.)