69th Virginia Expeditionary Force: Galatea -(3044)- Book 3 - *COMPLETE*

[Sigil]

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[Sigil]

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[Sigil]

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[Sigil]

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[Sigil]

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[Sigil]

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[snakespinner]

Nice story on the new engine.
Pity about Battlecorps, some of their decisions are a bit strange. O0

[Dave Talley]

tag

[ckosacranoid]

The colonel is going to have a fit about the money and sigen trashing acnew mech. Time to kit bash a assinasin and a clintbi thing just to save some costs and I dont think sigan is going to like that.

[Sigil]

Funny you should say that, I was thinking something similar myself... :)
A 7-11-7 Clint?  Ya, sound puuuurrrrfect!

[imperator]

I like all your stories so far.  What are the stats on the Vox?  Is it a XL with no side crits and an auto engine crit or a light engines with 2-3 extra heat?

[Sigil]

Just like a standard Light Engine, the "Merkel 280L" weighs 12 tons and takes up two additional critical slots in each the left and right torso.  However, there is an additional critical in the center torso representing the main mechanical cooling pump.  The first engine hit results in +7 heat, the second +15 heat, and of course the third shuts it down completely.  And last, since the engine is a Prototype, it is more susceptible to taking critical hits, center torso hits which result in a critical roll, need only a 7+ to critical it.

The things MechWarriors will do to save a few precious tons....

[BradGB]

 ;D ;D ;D don't leave Sigil out of sight, thats the lesson the leading officers of the 69th had to learn :))

[Merwyn]

Very nice story. I'd like to see a little more description, but your style certainly keeps the action moving at a quick pace. I wonder how the colonel will react when he returns and learns of all that lost money? Oh, and I would have liked to see just how Virote got accepted in the 69th. Was Sigil's recommendation enough to get her the position automatically, or did she have to undergo a selection process?

[Sigil]

~chuckle~  The Colonel's reaction is covered in the beginning of the Talisker saga, the first parts are up, and I am currently working on it.

As for Virote Isamu, I haven't written her back story, or fully fleshed her out in my writing, but here's the basic outline.  The Colonel did indeed interview her.  Her record in the Arena was well known, and showed her to be MechWarrior of talent.  What is only alluded to, however, was her former service in the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery, where, as a woman she was marginalized, ultimately driving her to leave the service of the Dragon and strike out on her own, ultimately ending up on the Mercenary Star.

In addition, Sigil owns a 10% stake in the 69th as a founding member, and there is a gentleman's agreement that allows the founding members to recruit, for the most part, as they see fit.  So, ultimately, the Colonel's interview was pro forma.

While I'm on the topic, I will also mention that Captain Weddle and Lt. Hamilton have a simmering dislike of her because of her heritage.  Having grown up fighting against the Combine, they are rather mystified that Sigil would recruit one, especially given the Dragon killed his older brother James. 

Sigil, however, feels responsible for dispossessing her when he destroyed Samba, her Vindicator, and almost killing her at the same time.  In his heart, he knows it could have, perhaps should have, been him instead. 

[Merwyn]

I know I've already commented on this story, but now there's another question that's popped up in my mind while I reread the last part. Is it safe for just one lone tech who's not a certified specialist to take out and modify, repair, and otherwise work on a 'Mech's engine? After all, those are nuclear-powered, so one major incident and suddenly your whole facility or DropShip could be full of deadly radiations. I recall reading in Wolves on the Border that Minobu Tetsuhara was quite impressed that Wolf's Dragoons were willing to take out and repair a 'Mech's engine on the battlefield given the risks.

[Sigil]

Given the hundreds of years fusion engines have been around at this point, I figure it's more akin to a skilled mechanic pulling out an ICE engine in the garage and rebuilding it.  Sure, he can't rebore the cylinders, well, actually he probably could if he had access to the right kind of tools and equipment, but it's a well known procedure at this point.  And, for the most part, he's really just changing out radiators.  He had to take it to a proper shop to get the actual radiation shielding worked on.

Part of Sigil's backstory is that he was on the BattleMech Technician track at Sanglamore.  I cover that, very briefly, in Prologue: Vega.  He's got a rare gift for engineering and jury-rigging, and is just a wizard at standard repairs and maintenance.  He's also a touch obsessive, meaning that, for the most part, he doesn't trust anybody's work other then his own :)