Unfashionably late

more info here: http://www.theskjaldborg.com/index....lancer-abilities-equipment.10480/#post-257144

 

I mispoke earlier...

Tonnage and crits are vanilla, but I will try to lighten these if possible.

 

Hmm, so is the RSD what we have been discussing? You'd give me control of a 1 ton UAV?

 

The RSDs are much smaller and stationary; basically, your mech poops out a little beacon that can detect any hostiles in range. The UAV does the same thing, but is larger and can move about at your command. Both can be targeted and destroyed by hostiles.

The RSDs are better for lighter units as they can leave a "breadcrumb trail" of sensors while they scout ahead. The UAV is better for heavier units that need a scout to watch their back.

 

Ohhhh, okay, I get it now. I think I like the idea of pooping out remote sensors as I run. Would let me upgrade to an ER Flamer too, extra range on the burnintion.

The question is, is that worth the price over a Supercharger... that's more shiny and chrome. BUT, it'd be good to have eyes on enemy positions as I'm ducking through terrain. Would improve lifespan.

 

There will be room to customize your forces prior to a mission too.

I pretty much got dropship hangar limits down now. This will determine the max number of units you can take on a mission (There is no limit to the number you can store off-site).

You start with 4, but may upgrade to 6 or 8 after certain conditions are met. 50 ton (or less) vehicles use 50% of a hangar slot and with a drone efficiency upgrade to your dropship, all drones use an additional 50% less of their normal volume.

For example, with the maximum of 8 hangar slots, you could deploy 4 manned units (4 slots), 4 drone mechs (2 slots), and 8 drone vehicles (2 slots).

If you are looking to utilize more "zerg-like" tactics, you could deploy your Lancer (1 slot) along with as many as 28 fifty ton drone vehicles (7 slots)... expect a lot of casualties, though.

 

Will I be able to pop a Supercharger in and out in an OmniPod like in the rules or did that get changed to be an Overhaul component? Would the RSD and UAV be OmniPod capable?

 

If its omni-capable I see no reason to exclude it. I think making it not compatible with MASC is enough of a nerf for now. Subject to change, of course, but will allow you a full refund if needed. Cross that bridge when we get there.

That being said, you will still have to go through all the normal rules and costs of making a Omni-variant. Since superchargers are separate from the engine, treat them exactly like MASC (structural components require "Overhaul" upgrade).

For anyone who isn't aware of how Omni-variants are made, you basically make two separate designs where the only difference is you change the arm and leg equipment (or add/remove a supercharger in this case). If done correctly, you will be able to free switch between the two of them as needed depending on the mission.

 

Groove! Just for reference, here is the Supercharger
http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Supercharger

 

Actually, some bad news... current house rules are that omnipods are only mounted to the limbs (this is different from standard rules). Torso mounts cannot be swapped out and since the supercharger is torso mounted, it would fall under those rules.

The reason for this was that i didn't see how it was plausible to have three modular sections of a torso. It would be like having 3 modular parts of a turret. You can replace the turret or not, but you don't replace 2/3s of it. That's just silly. I figure by limiting Omnipods to the limbs, it makes them useful without necessarily being OP.

If you want to quickly swap torsos, it is far faster to simply get a second mech.

It may not help much in your case, but I will probably extend omnipod options to the Head section as well since they are pretty much self-contained. Would make sense to be able to swap out a head with different EW gear depending on your mission.

 

Oh, I never saw the OmniPods as replacements of the entire limb or torso, but boxes that you could pull out of modular cubbies in the section... In this case the OmniPod has access ports to the Fusion XL engine, whether there is a Supercharger or not. If a Pod gets slotted that has a SC, bonus! Otherwise, ya got weapons or ammo or whatever in that box

 

I understand. My biggest issue with Omnipods in the torso was when it came to matters of large caliber guns. According to standard rules, you can swap out an AC/20 or Heavy Gauss and replace it with anything... or you could drop the gun in the torso entirely to add more weapons in the arms. From a engineering standpoint, this doesn't make a lot of sense to me. It would be one thing to swap an AC/20 for a Gauss Rifle, but the standard rules allow for far more liberal changes than that.

Perhaps a simple compromise would be to allow for full Omnipod support (except CT), but give two different tiers of loadout changes. If you are between contracts, you have multiple days to swap out load outs as needed. However, if you are running a contract with sequential missions (which could be barely an hour apart), you would not have time to swap torso hardpoints. To be fair, the latter case will be less common as I doubt I have physical time to plan multi-mission contracts.

This would make things a bit more complicated in terms of the number of variants you would need to be fully prepared, but I really can't see any way to justify swapping torso hardpoints within a few hours in-game.

 

To be fair, the Supercharger hot swap is a super niche edge case. I wouldn't worry about it

 

Oh, side note. Are there any plans to add the Watchdog CEWS?
http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Watchdog_System

 

If it is in Megamek, I don't see any reason why not atm. Of course, everything is subject to revision if it proves to be terribly OP.

 

I ask because I didn't see it listed on the Alliance Industries tech list

 

Good eye... so it basically combines the standard Clan ECM and BAP into a single unit and you save .5 tons. Yeah, I see no reason to exclude that. It will likely unlock after getting the Angel ECM.

 

Magnus, you bastard. You weren't supposed to notice Superchargers were better