2 replies to this topic

[Rakura]

So I just recently downgraded from a 190 engine to a 145 engine in order to add more stuff. The thing is I went from 1.06 cooling to 1.21 cooling because I had to add 3 additional DHS so the engine would take it. I dont understand this? If I'm getting 40% more cooling shouldn't that go towards the # of HS that are required since 2 DHS's is like adding a 3rd HS?

I think the math should be adjusted on this one.

[PapaKilo]

The number of heat sinks is the important thing. The minimum number a 'Mech must have is ten. It doesn't matter whether they are singles or doubles.

[Mawai]

Yep - this is a requirement from the TT game ... an engine always PROVIDES 10 heat sinks. A mech can only carry one kind of heat sink. So if the mech is configured for double heat sinks they are all double - if it is configured for single heat sinks they are all single. An engine can actually HOLD its engine rating/25 heat sinks. So a 200 engine can contain 8 heat sinks inside its structure ... the other 2 heat sinks provided by the engine must be allocated space somewhere else on the mech (though the WEIGHT of these heat sinks has been factored into the engine weight).

The 10 heat sink provision has nothing to do with the actual heat dissipation requirements of the engine itself. If you want a pseudo science reasoning ... it could be that the engine cooling system is standardized and has the heat dissipation efficiency of 10 heat sinks (depending on the technology these may be more or less efficient) ... the cooling system is combined with various sized fusion reactors which are also in standardized containers. The space in the smaller containers (smaller engines) is not sufficient to fit all the components of the cooling system which then requires space elsewhere on the mech for the other parts of the engine cooling system. However, larger engines have space left over that can be fitted with additional heat sinks.

The BattleTech universe follows a different path of technological development ... in some senses they are just emerging from a "Dark Age" where they were losing the ability to construct advanced technology .. they discovered the "Helm memory core" a few decades ago which contained detailed knowledge on how to build many of the technologies that had been lost during the succession wars. The goal of mech factories is to churn out mechs for the battlefield as quickly as possible and they seem to lack the expertise to make revisions that we would consider obvious ... at least I think this is how the fiction in Battletech justifies some of the apparently ludicrous decisions in mech design and technology.