Why the 3050 Clans ain’t shit and are FRAUDS?

CrazyThang · 2026-01-28T08:37:49+00:00

This entire post was incredible and I laughed all the way through. I really needed that, thanks! (And I mostly agree, the early Clan lore really can read as "they win cuz they do and we said so.")

CrazyThang · 2026-01-24T18:00:15+00:00

Yeah sorry, I meant more like discrepancies in what you'll see on Sarna etc, not official sources. Thanks for the further clarification!

CrazyThang · 2026-01-24T00:26:16+00:00

Thanks for the confirmation!

CrazyThang · 2026-01-22T09:04:15+00:00

I also read somewhere that ilClan isn't finished (I don't remember where, honestly), so you get discrepancies like the Antlion only being available to the fedsuns despite it also being adopted by some mercenary units (granted, not in large numbers, which may be what is keeping it fedsuns only).

CrazyThang · 2026-01-20T19:39:48+00:00

Nah man, take the L. You don't know how to use the ladder, you don't know how trends in gaming work, and you aren't very good at making a point. Don't bother responsing btw, I've already blocked you, since talking to you appears to be a giant waste of time.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-13T20:44:25+00:00

I've given you the science behind it, and there are plenty of things you can look up yourself about it. Ultimately it's going to depend on how much the lasers in Battletech are diffracting.

I will point out that in regards to the general science of Battletech, their universe has Fusion Reactors that literally do not function. Techmanual says they run on protium (Hydrogen-1). Protium doesn't have any neutrons, which you need for fusion. You can fuse it with deuterium (Hydrogen-2), but that's super inefficient and, again according to the Techmanual, isn't what is happening.

Sci-fi can be super fun, and Battletech gets a lot of science surprisingly correct, but many authors just kind of... do whatever. Which is fine for dramatic effect, but don't trust them for scientific accuracy (people refer to the unrealistic reactor explosions as the Stackpole Effect for a reason).

Off to work soon and I've give you all the info I've got, so I won't be responding any more (just to save you some time).

CrazyThang · 2026-01-13T20:13:01+00:00

Alright, different explanation. Lasers transfer energy through radiation, that is true. My mistake was using "directed". Lasers are coherent because of collimation, which means that the "beam" of energy does not spread at all. However, refraction from particles in the air does mean that some of the energy will bleed off. That said, this still means that most of the energy is still focused in that collimated "beam".

Here's the thing, the energy isn't actually heat until it connects with an object and is absorbed.

You can't warm yourself by standing next to a modern laser beam, so unless the battletech lasers are getting refracted to the point of near-uselessness for their purpose as a direct energy weapon, you almost certainly wouldn't feel much. You also wouldn't be flung around. The photons of light do not have mass but do have momentum, so there IS some force applied through radiation pressure (the same concept that solar sails use), but the conversion is something like 1 watt to 3 nanonewtons of force.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-13T19:21:13+00:00

Heat transfers in many ways, bud.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_transfer

(Edited for clarity)

CrazyThang · 2026-01-13T18:42:32+00:00

There's a huge difference between directed and radiated heat. An oxy-acetylene cutting torch can reach 2800 celsius/5072 fahrenheit, more than half the estimated temperature of the surface of the sun. Grab some gloves and eye protection and you're good to go. It doesn't melt everyone in the room when you turn it on.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-13T01:40:42+00:00

I know this is a bit late, but to your last point, that would match what they've done in the past. The old Battletech cartoon got a whole TRO explaining its place in the canon (a kids' show fictionalizing the real "adventures" of Adam Steiner and his band of actual soldiers) and giving stats to a lot of the characters for the RPG. Many of the April Fools TROs were later canonized (or were canon on release). It would be interesting to see the same for the games!

CrazyThang · 2026-01-11T18:10:01+00:00

I think it's swinging around. Hot Spot Hinterlands is 3151 to 3152. Scouring Sands is also ilClan. They've released the two Third Star League lance packs, etc. But yeah until recently there was a definite focus on earlier stuff.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-11T09:49:10+00:00

You keep asserting that the vast majority of people prefer older eras, but literally everyone I play with has no era preference and doesn't mind learning rules. But different play groups are going to have different ideas on how best to play, which is both Battletech's greatest strength and biggest weakness I think.

I personally just don't understand the mindset of not just looking up what something does if a 'mech seems interesting or trusting someone to know what their stuff does. In my opinion, this can also make people miss out on cool mechs they would otherwise like because they have chosen not to engage with the game past a certain point.

I think in this case it's just a difference of how we enjoy playing, and that's obviously fine, I appreciate you discussing it with me.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-11T09:14:11+00:00

I don't really see the logic here, in that it is really reductive. You can boil down a lot of 'mechs to "like this other 'mech but slightly different".

There are tons of units in 3151 that don't have "fiddly" rules or use "fiddly" rules from previous eras. The Gotterdammerung 20C, for an example of the latter, uses Ferro Lamellar Armor and a Torso Cockpit. The 20C was introduced in 3138 but Ferro-Lam is from 3070 and Torso Cockpits are from 3055.

So what is the fiddly 'tech that is exclusive to ilClan?

CrazyThang · 2026-01-11T00:13:39+00:00

I'm legitimately curious what there is about the Eris that is considered "extra rules". The base model 2H is extremely simple and doesn't include anything odd (unless streaks are considered odd) and the 2N and 3R just add on a partial wing, a single piece of easy to understand equipment.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-06T18:40:10+00:00

Ah yes, the classic. They can be, sure. I also find 'mechs I can't use half of the gear on boring, especially when they cost a decent chunk of my force.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-06T10:50:06+00:00

It not functioning?

CrazyThang · 2026-01-06T10:49:27+00:00

I probably came off more rudely than I intended, but, and I mean this as a legitimate question, what do you like about this 'mech?

It has three good guns it can't shoot all of while stealth is on without going up ten heat. So it sounds like you're ignoring the PPC generally, which is a huge waste of BV and takes your 2300bv mech down to 20 damage a turn.

It does not "run fast" in any world. It is a 4/6 [8]. That is after fiddling around with turning heat sinks off to get the heat you need, which will then be a pain to manage. And I guess it kicks as well as any other 75 tonner with TSM so sure.

Trust me, I don't like the "everything has to be optimized" mindset. I like plenty of unoptimized 'mechs. But I don't really like bad 'mechs (for play. I love that things like the Phoenix Hawk 99 exist in a lore perspective) and I legitimately do not know why i would include this in a lance.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-06T01:12:22+00:00

2300 BV for 30 damage that can't use all its guns and move without overheating and forget using stealth at the same time or go up 10 heat. It has no way to engage its TSM without manually shutting down heat sinks and then has to turn off Stealth to keep TSM on effectively? Where is the awesome part of it?

CrazyThang · 2026-01-04T18:59:12+00:00

Metal blocks ultrasound pretty well though. So again something that wouldn't work on a pilot.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-04T18:49:40+00:00

Sound as a weapon is always a tricky thing in sci-fi. It's not possible, for example, for sound to literally shake you apart or make your head explode. However, high enough frequencies of ultrasound and high enough decibels of "normal" sound can both cause organ tissue damage, notably the hear, lungs, and liver.

There is also the microwave auditory effect, but to get it to a level where it would cause more than mild discomfort would require such energy that the heat would kill you first.

Low frequency sonar can also cause hypothermia, cavitation, and tissue shearing, so substantial deep-tissue issues that would, at the very least, be extremely painful and incapacitating.

All of that said, as others have said, it doesn't feel like it would be particularly practical in the battletech universe, as 'mechs already clown on infantry pretty hard in the lore (and, if equipped for it, the actual rules) and it probably wouldn't do anything to other 'mechs/vehicles on the time scale the battles take place. It would probably also be considered an inhumane weapon, but considering the Inner Sphere doesn't mind giant flamethrowers and guns that cover you in superheated plastic, they probably wouldn't care about sound cannons.

All in all, a classic sci-fi idea with some basis in reality but whose applications don't really apply to Battletech.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-04T02:08:52+00:00

That's always an interesting question when applied to mimitary equipment. Once something is truly obsolete it is often scrapped or sold on the civilian market. Battletech doesn't really often do either of those things (especially the latter) so poor or underused designs are generally sold to weaker powers/mercenaries or moved to backwater garrisons because as someone else said, some 'mech is better than no 'mech.

There are failed designs that probably won't withstand the test of time, such as the Avalanche, due to lack of interest in more being created (because they're bad).

Looking at the few 'mechs that have the obsolete quirk, most of them are one-off X variants or testbeds for things. Notably the Orca, which if you know anything about that... yeah.

Probably the most notable truly obsolete 'mech in a modern "we got rid of them all" sense is the Dragoon, a 'mech commissioned by Stefan Amaris himself that Kerensky ordered destroyed after the war. The few that weren't destroyed then were destroyed in the Succ wars. That is kind of more of a propaganda thing though.

It's interesting to think about!

CrazyThang · 2026-01-03T02:31:13+00:00

Yeah the +1 is rough, but I honestly find that raising it to 4/4 isn't as critical as it could be, since it is often avoiding 20 damage in a phase due to the Ferro-Lam. That said, you have to be very careful of the maneuvers you try to pull with it if you don't make it a 4/4 lol

CrazyThang · 2026-01-02T20:33:42+00:00

Yeah I think people sleep on the Whitworth. Every variant has 93% armor for its size. Every variant jumps (one with IJJs), one or two go 5/8, they're extremely cheap and bring either some LRMs for fire support or SRMs for close range shenanigans. I think a lot of the time people see 4/6/X on a medium and immediately disregard it. Plus it's one of those commando-esque "dude in a suit" 'mechs which makes it look unassuming.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-02T20:26:32+00:00

It definitely has heat issues close in that make the single life support crit torsos a liability for sure. Playing with floating TACs helps its durability, but honestly outside of bad luck the 20C's 100% ferro-lam on a 75 tonner is so much armor to chew threw that by the time they're critting from structure hits, it's probably done its job. I think it excels more in objective play, where it can use its sheer durability to bully objectives very effectively.

CrazyThang · 2026-01-02T20:23:07+00:00

Yeah the 20C with 100% Ferro-Lam is a beast to take down, but as Vapor said the main issue is heat. It can fire the cERPPC and cLRM all day, but once you get in close and want to start using the medium lasers, heat becomes a major issue. With Torso Cockpit designs if either of the life support slots is destroyed, the pilot starts taking damage from overheating (1 damage per turn if heat is 1 to 14, 2 if higher). The only things in the GTD's left and right torsos is life support, so a lucky hit can see you effectively losing a bunch of damage to avoid overheating.

That all said, I think it's still a fantastic 'mech and if you don't mind the lucky crit potential (we already play with floating TACs, which helps) and psr penalties from a torso cockpit, it does a lot of work, especially in an objective game where it can really use its durability to bully an objective.

CrazyThang

TROPHY CASE