Author Topic: MotW: Celerity  (Read 29127 times)

Liam's Ghost

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #30 on: 25 February 2017, 22:15:42 »
Hey, how often does your ride drop you off inside your target?  O0

I think the Celerity itself doesn't actually take that much damage, so I suppose .....
Still, thinking about it, the Impact-Resistant armour is overdoing it with the cheese a bit.

On the contrary. I dare say that making a Celerity to crash it into things already jumped across that line, so why not see how far past it you can go? I'm of the opinion that once you've put millions of stones into your four legged kinetic impactor, not seeking every advantageous technology in furtherance of that goal is criminal negligence.

I kinda wish there was room for the third set of spikes on the center torso.
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #31 on: 25 February 2017, 22:32:48 »
Just looking at the artwork just now, am I the only one that sees a resemblance to the robot that went crazy in "Red Planet"?
I think of Decepticon Ravage really  :D

Liam's Ghost

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #32 on: 25 February 2017, 22:46:03 »
I think of Decepticon Ravage really  :D

Man, they need to hurry up and release the mini already. I'll paint a Lament (for the drone control unit) like soundwave to go with it.

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #33 on: 26 February 2017, 01:37:34 »
Try Big Dog.

On economics, how does it compare to a tank in the same role.

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #34 on: 26 February 2017, 04:03:59 »
Great article :) Always like reading them when they are set in universe :)
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idea weenie

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #35 on: 26 February 2017, 10:58:06 »
Man, they need to hurry up and release the mini already. I'll paint a Lament (for the drone control unit) like soundwave to go with it.

They have 16 GB Ravage USB drives if you don't want to wait.

Just make sure the Lament has a LRM launcher on the right shoulder, and a large weapon for the right arm.

And here is a video of some Celerities in action:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJt_FhM_HrE
« Last Edit: 25 March 2017, 17:00:13 by idea weenie »

Arkansas Warrior

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #36 on: 26 February 2017, 12:18:27 »
Try Big Dog.

On economics, how does it compare to a tank in the same role.
Well, the armor would go a lot farther on a tank.
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #37 on: 26 February 2017, 18:25:17 »
Also, the engine would be heavier. And it's less capable in rough terrain.
Then again, certain movement types could alleviate either problem. We already have a Hovertank with an XXL, might as well add a WiGE of half the mass. It'll reach impressive speed, that's for sure.
Regarding the ramming, I'm not in a position to try, so I'll postpone that reading a bit.
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #38 on: 26 February 2017, 18:47:23 »
So if I'm doing the math correctly, the 05-X can do...84 points of damage? That's...that's ****** unholy.

I have got to get me some of those.


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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #39 on: 26 February 2017, 20:26:38 »
Worst is, there's little you can do to stop it.  Unless you're in a Black Python or Sagatire type mech, or a hyper elite pilot (or both; they do sometimes go together), with a +6 TMM it will be hard to reliably kill one before it can do its damage.  If you find a mech with minimum ranges (imagine going after a Thunder Hawk) then even a 1/2 pilot might not get the job done (TN of 9 with the GRs even if the THawk stood still, if I did my math right).
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #40 on: 26 February 2017, 20:29:23 »
Assuming a perfect scenario where you move 40 hexes to end up in the target hex the damage works out as follows: 1.5 x 39 (since you don't count the target hex) = 58.5 rounding up to 59 + 4 for the two spikes for a final total of 63. Still "hand me my brown pants" damage levels.

I case anyone is curious the Alpha Strike charge damage is: 1 x 48 = 48 / 8 = 6 + 1 for MEL = 7. Thanks to having one armor and structure each it can only do that twice even with IRA. Or it can run around and do 2 damage from physical attacks thanks to the MEL special.

sadlerbw

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #41 on: 26 February 2017, 21:04:47 »
I now have this image in my head of an -05-X blasting clean through a Jenner and leaving noting behind but a couple of twitching legs. Time to fire up MegaMek!

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #42 on: 27 February 2017, 00:37:58 »
By contrast, I have an image of a lance trying that and running through a few patches of T-Augs, getting their legs blown clean off, and their torsos' inertia carrying them on at 300kph to skip hilariously across the ground. 
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #43 on: 27 February 2017, 01:27:59 »
Assuming a perfect scenario where you move 40 hexes to end up in the target hex the damage works out as follows: 1.5 x 39 (since you don't count the target hex) = 58.5 rounding up to 59 + 4 for the two spikes for a final total of 63. Still "hand me my brown pants" damage levels.

Ohhh, I thought the 1.5 rounded up to 2 and then you multiply by the number of hexes...


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sadlerbw

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #44 on: 27 February 2017, 10:41:44 »
So, I tried a couple games in MegaMek, which didn't seem entirely happy with Drones, using several -05-X's. A couple of observations after messing around:

The 'Bad':
- Getting more than about 30 hexes of forward movement on the ground is hard! There are always trees, hills, roads, etc. messing things up and eating your movement up.
- Since a mech can only be the target of a single Charge per turn, swarms aren't quite as amazing as they could be. There were several times where I really, really wanted to be able to dog-pile on to a single mech (pun intended) but couldn't. Stupid rules!
- These little guys pretty reliably survived a single charge, but the second one had a high chance of things getting broke in the process.
- Even with all the crazy movement mods, these things are STILL vulnerable to getting blasted to pieces before the charge lands. It only really takes one hit from just about anything, and they have a good chance of dropping to the ground before the charge is complete.
- If you aren't charging, go prone in some heavy woods. You do NOT want to even have the possibility of someone hitting you because, again, one hit is all it takes.
- Charges aren't all that easy to land without a good piloting skill. All the little mods that tend to add up in a charge make it tough to get them hitting reliably without a good base piloting skill. Combined with the only-one-charge-per-mech rule, it was difficult to focus and put down any given mech when I used average pilot skills of 5. spending the BV to up the pilot skill to 3 or 4 is absolutely worth it.

The 'Good':
- When they hit, these things hit like a bombing run. Landing 40 points is usually possible, and even in 5-point groups is poweful. However, it isn't usually a one-shot kill. I was finding three of four solid hits is what it took to put most mechs out of action. Some lights could be blasted in one or two, but generally the bigger, slower mechs were easier to hit.
- Vehicles...(EDIT: I don't know what I did, but I swear MegaMek was letting me charge vehicles. It isn't supposed to, but it did! I just updated to the latest release, and can't get it to happen anymore. Drones be crazy, yo. So, ignore this part!)
- If you can find a mech with Reflective Armor, smash it like a piece of fine china! I didn't even really think about it, but dropped a Wendigo in as one of the opfor mechs in one game. When I landed a charge against it, the poor thing shed virtually all of the armor on one side of the mech. The next charge blew a side torso and a leg off, and took away most of the remaining torso armor. When the poor thing finally managed to stand back up (with one leg), I blasted it again and blew the off the head AND blew out the CT. It was glorious.

So, it was cheesy for sure, but not world-ending.
« Last Edit: 27 February 2017, 21:03:19 by sadlerbw »

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #45 on: 27 February 2017, 11:12:27 »
Moral of this story: If you're facing the Republic, cover your flanks with mines, and your front with pulse lasers. AE works as well, as even catching your own guys in the blast radius is often preferable to letting them absorb a Celery Smash.
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Scotty

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #46 on: 27 February 2017, 13:35:50 »
Assuming a perfect scenario where you move 40 hexes to end up in the target hex the damage works out as follows: 1.5 x 39 (since you don't count the target hex) = 58.5 rounding up to 59 + 4 for the two spikes for a final total of 63. Still "hand me my brown pants" damage levels.

I case anyone is curious the Alpha Strike charge damage is: 1 x 48 = 48 / 8 = 6 + 1 for MEL = 7. Thanks to having one armor and structure each it can only do that twice even with IRA. Or it can run around and do 2 damage from physical attacks thanks to the MEL special.

Charging units only take damage if the target is Size 3 or higher.  They can go scout hunting for days at a time.
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #47 on: 27 February 2017, 13:40:57 »
Great Job on the Article, nice way giving us the briefing style.

Celerity is one unique animal, i take it's a hard beasty to control.  I would not like a pilot of 5 on this thing just avoid them from skidding out of existence.

A spotter and scout, it be great i think despite the cost of XXL.  I'm more concerned about upkeep of them for more campaign setting.  If their disposable, their too expensive to be that.  I know C-Bills wise is becoming thing of the past, but its still thing for if your running Campaign Ops rules.  The Chaos Campaign/Warchest system maybe easier to upkeep the Celerity in that case.

This sure heck is hell of a Battle Armor taxi, but you'd need alot of the Celerity to keep your squads mobile thou.  It's interesting thinking of it as a Battle Armor Support Unit.  They don't have to wait for the ponderous BattleMech to show up and maybe used the BA Squad as armor.  ;D

Using as a land missile be last choice i think, aside from the costs of individual unit.  Riding thing and actually hitting is hard going especially being used in general combat.  If it were being used as a assassin weapon, to take out a enemy commander unexpectedly, that would maybe worth the cost.

I remembered a old Scifi Novel called SnowCrash, they had cybernetically enhanced dogs who's body's were remade into powerful (nuclear-powered) security Robotic dogs.  Now this is bit over top in comparison, but those RatThings as they were used to ram a private jet like super sonic missile (which it could go that fast...)
« Last Edit: 27 February 2017, 13:44:59 by Wrangler »
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #48 on: 27 February 2017, 15:32:49 »
Charging units only take damage if the target is Size 3 or higher.  They can go scout hunting for days at a time.
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 It also goes to show how often charges come up in my AS games.  :P

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #49 on: 27 February 2017, 16:58:05 »
And probably tells you a fair bit about how often they come up in mine. ;D

Just Thursday we had a Centurion charge into the back of a Manteuffel so hard they both exploded. :D
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #50 on: 27 February 2017, 17:43:08 »
OMG, Wrangler, you're right, it's a RatThing.
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #51 on: 27 February 2017, 18:09:15 »
Scotty - Still good to know before running an RAF lance containing an Ostsol -9M with melee master SPA.

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #52 on: 27 February 2017, 19:23:25 »
Will Melee attacks in TMM still factor in TMM?
Or can the celerity rush around tapping other mechs on the butt with nary a worry?
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #53 on: 27 February 2017, 19:43:32 »
The thing about the Celerity is that is has 40" of movement, and that in Alpha Strike turning is free.  A target must have moved in order to be the target of a charge, so you wait for a target to move, than you charge it and plot the most circuitous route you have to in order to end up in base contact in their rear.  Extra damage, plus they can't respond at all, plus you get full TMM if you moved an inch (which you did).  Since you can move to and fro as you wish, every charge is a maximum damage charge.

Charging and DFAs are one of maybe two places that Alpha Strike gets really weird.
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #54 on: 27 February 2017, 19:48:44 »

Which type of mine field will be most effective against them?
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #55 on: 27 February 2017, 19:51:18 »
Which type of mine field will be most effective against them?

T-Augs. They can't jump and their armor is paper-thin, so the damage reduction won't really matter as much as sheer coverage will.


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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #56 on: 27 February 2017, 21:09:37 »
I remembered a old Scifi Novel called SnowCrash, they had cybernetically enhanced dogs who's body's were remade into powerful (nuclear-powered) security Robotic dogs.  Now this is bit over top in comparison, but those RatThings as they were used to ram a private jet like super sonic missile (which it could go that fast...)

This is EXACTLY what I thought of the first time I saw the Celerity in a TRO!

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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #57 on: 27 February 2017, 22:33:20 »
T-Augs. They can't jump and their armor is paper-thin, so the damage reduction won't really matter as much as sheer coverage will.


My thought as well.  With that much movement, they can circumvent nearly any terrain chokepoints that might trip up a normal fast mech like a Locust or Fire Moth, that fears spending five or six MP on hills or woods and dropping to a +3 or less mod, so a one hex field won't do much.  But, if you can cut down their options enough, force them to avoid your LRM/GR/HL and etc mechs and funnel them towards your pulse machines...
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #58 on: 28 February 2017, 01:09:15 »
Can thermobaric munitions work horizontially? Or will we have to apply the Herbert Beas solution to Celerity Cruise Missiles?
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Re: MotW: Celerity
« Reply #59 on: 28 February 2017, 07:26:09 »
If they weren't so big/small(?), i'd say they could add Cosmetic components to make them look like Clydesdale Horses or some other big animal to fool people into what they were seeing.  Solaris Mechs use Cosmetic  components like false turrets, weapons barrels etc.
« Last Edit: 20 September 2018, 09:47:50 by Wrangler »
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