TRO 3145--Federated Suns

[Weirdo]

@Weirdo

Done. There is no reason why they shouldn´t have my money.

Welp, I've done my bit for CGL's bottom line today...time to go find something to mooch!

[Marwynn]

So you guys are cool if the Dragon carves out a New Avalon Military District?

Didja hear that TPTB? Let's do this!  O:-)

I also just tweet-stalk Mr. Bills and Ben Rome on twitter. I get the news before it becomes news!

[Welshman]

So you guys are cool if the Dragon carves out a New Avalon Military District?

As one of the writers who does a lot of the FedSuns writing, I think FM3145 was one of the most interesting pieces I've done in a long time. Adversity is so much more interesting. I'd probably have fallen asleep if I'd had to write the FedCom section of Twenty Year Update.

[Mecha-Anchovy]

I think it was the novel where they go to VSD's funeral? Sword of Sedition maybe? I haven't read those novels in a long time so it kinda hard to remember.

When the silence had run its course, Julian froze the map with Liao colors owning half of the Capellan March. Time elapsed: one year. “Regardless. If Daoshen turns his gaze from The Republic to threaten the Federated Suns...”
“We aren’t ready,” Harrison finished. He nodded. “So we trade Republican lives for our own. Perfect.” His voice suggested it was far from such.

On the whole, though, in that conversation the weaknesses they described were 1) overambitious and aggressive march lords unwilling to take direction from Avalon, 2) a smaller reserve force than neighbouring states; the Suns mothballed more than its neighbours, and 3) being behind the times rearming. The Capellans stole a march on everyone else in that regard.

Still, as Harrison Davion put it in that conversation, "The Federated Suns does not run from a fight. Ever." :)

On the whole, I don't think it's a technological problem. There's an officer problem, a strategic leadership problem, and a mobilisation problem, but the machines are good. Given another Paul Davion to reinvigorate the military, I think the Suns can recover and handle this.

My opinion, and strictly my opinion: If you are going to be a fan of a faction. You are a fan of them because of what they stand for. Not because they win or lose or even if they are annihilated. I believe that's why we've heard so little from the Nova Cat fans. The Cats went out standing up for what they believed in.

Well said.

It's all right if House Davion loses sometimes. It might even be all right if House Davion dies, though I truly hope it doesn't. What wouldn't be all right would be if Davion ceased to be Davion. The knights of the Inner Sphere and the Camelot of the stars, waving the banner for freedom and order, and never - never - compromising on that dream.

[ph423r]

On the Atlas III. On the crit table of the record sheet the cockpit is listed as O Cockpit. Is this an armoured cockpit, a new bit of tech or just a typo?

[Marwynn]

As one of the writers who does a lot of the FedSuns writing, I think FM3145 was one of the most interesting pieces I've done in a long time. Adversity is so much more interesting. I'd probably have fallen asleep if I'd had to write the FedCom section of Twenty Year Update.

I think most of the fans are intrigued because we're finally in unknown territory again. We look around and realize it's BattleTech again; no big-bad to worry about, just a collapsing power and a whole lot of wars.

Definitely looking forward to FM3145.

[MarauderD]

On the Atlas III. On the crit table of the record sheet the cockpit is listed as O Cockpit. Is this an armoured cockpit, a new bit of tech or just a typo?

If I recall correctly, all versions of the Atlas III feature armored cockpits.

[Neufeld]

And frankly while fans are bitching they do seem to get an unreasonable ammount of flak here. I've been here long enough to see that fans of virtually any faction bitches when things take a serious downturn, yet they didn't seem to get the ammount of flak for it the Fedsun fans that bitch do now.

I think that a lot of it has to do with the temper tantrum that a couple of FedSun fans had over TRO3085, and that people are still remembering that and projecting.
Really, it seems like there was more of a hissy fit over 3085 than anything in the Dark Age. I guess that those people got banned.

[Diplominator]

On the Atlas III. On the crit table of the record sheet the cockpit is listed as O Cockpit. Is this an armoured cockpit, a new bit of tech or just a typo?

The O is the bubble you fill in the first time the cockpit takes a hit.

Wow, I just realized that the guy in the description who died to an LB-X hit is just about the unluckiest guy ever. Almost anything is just going to destroy the head before critting out the cockpit. It's pretty much impossible except with cluster hits and even then they have to get lucky on crit rolls.

[Captain Jonah]

Wow. This is what happens when I take a long break from Lurking, the Dark Ages happens.

So things are very, erm, active. Still as they say it’s always darker before the storm.

Yes the Dracs are rolling up the Draconis march, not the first time that has happened. The caps are dancing on the streets of New Syrtis. They will pay for that in blood. The mad as a hatter Prince is dead, good riddance. The new Prince has given up chasing after some skirt and is on his way back with a powerful and more importantly highly mobile task force.

Remember he is fresh from tying two clans in knots raiding behind the lines, hitting supply and reserve bases and helping the Kell hounds raise all sorts of hell. If he can do that here we can bog down those advances from the front and chop them off from the rear.

Anyway speaking as a not so squishy ground pounder type. One good thing is we don’t have to go find cappies to kill, they are all on our side of the border, on our worlds, prancing up and down in our cities with their mechs. We know the area, we have stealth armour and we have a lot of SRMs.

It’s what we Grenadier troopers call a target rich environment.

On behalf of what is left of the Cappelan March militias.

Bring it on.......

[MadCapellan]

The caps are dancing on the streets of New Syrtis. They will pay for that in blood.

Seriously!  Do you know how icy the streets are in Saso?  I nearly broke my neck shaking my thing out there!  Spend some money on some road salt, ya damn Haseks!   ;D

[Lord Harlock]

I think you assumed the risks of New Syrtis when you conquered it and beheaded Duchess Hasek. Just don't touch the frozen tomb.

[Lord Harlock]

What wouldn't be all right would be if Davion ceased to be Davion. The knights of the Inner Sphere Federated Suns and the Camelot of the stars, waving the banner for freedom and order, and never - never - compromising on that dream.

Knights of the Inner Sphere were a Free Worlds League military organization that died during the Jihad. The Knights of the Federated Suns are a group of 100 individual at any one time which has included soldiers, economists, ministers, and other professions. It's an honor more than anything, but they were around before Thomas Marik. Grumble.

[Mecha-Anchovy]

Knights of the Inner Sphere were a Free Worlds League military organization that died during the Jihad. The Knights of the Federated Suns are a group of 100 individual at any one time which has included soldiers, economists, ministers, and other professions.

I am aware of both of those groups. ;)

You will notice that I did not capitalise 'knights'.

Besides, we all know Marik's bunch were pretenders anyway. :P

[Istal_Devalis]

My opinion, and strictly my opinion: If you are going to be a fan of a faction. You are a fan of them because of what they stand for. Not because they win or lose or even if they are annihilated. I believe that's why we've heard so little from the Nova Cat fans. The Cats went out standing up for what they believed in.

Oh there was a BUNCH of complaining on that end, beleive me. We just worked it out of our systems fairly quick. Honestly, I expect most of us sort of suspected it was going to head that way, and were just hoping for a last minute reprieve.

I still hope they backfill in some of the gaps, though. Getting killed off in one page of text still sorta rankles. Although I suppose the ELH fans had it worse. They were killed off in what...a sentence?

[Ryumyo]

Has the trailer for the Destrier been stated as I see a record sheet but no TRO write-up? If so, then please disregard my question.

[Alexander Knight]

Has the trailer for the Destrier been stated as I see a record sheet but no TRO write-up? If so, then please disregard my question.

The Ballista trailer in the record sheets is the Destrier's trailer.

[Weirdo]

Yeah, the record sheet is all we get for the Ballista. My guess is that it is always deployed with the Destrier, and since TRO writeups in the 3145 TROs focus on combat history instead of stats, there was no need for a separate entry for the trailer.

[Welshman]

Yeah, the record sheet is all we get for the Ballista. My guess is that it is always deployed with the Destrier, and since TRO writeups in the 3145 TROs focus on combat history instead of stats, there was no need for a separate entry for the trailer.

Correct. The Ballista is the symbiont of the Destrier. The Desty drops off the Ballista as it approaches its target to use the cannons.

[RyuWanderfalke]

since TRO writeups in the 3145 TROs focus on combat history instead of stats,

Which Is still find highly irritating. I liked the conventional style MUCH better. I hope CGL will eventually return to the way it always was after the 3145 era is finished.

[Welshman]

Which Is still find highly irritating. I liked the conventional style MUCH better. I hope CGL will eventually return to the way it always was after the 3145 era is finished.

TRO3145 is not a change of style. It is a return to the original TRO styles of 3025, 3026, 3050 and the like.

In the FCCW/Jihad era TROs were coming out with tech so new they didn't have combat histories. So they had a lot more wording on the construction and less on how the unit was used.

[RyuWanderfalke]

Yeah, well... FCCW was when I "joined" Battletech. :P
Never cared much for the era prior to that to be honest. Alright, maybe it's just me, but I highly prefer the style of TRO 3085, 3075 and the likes.

I mean, right now we rarely even know whether it's a "new" unit in 3145 or stemms from the 3130s or even before that (though the later is usually mentioned from what I could gather so far).

[SCC]

The Destrier needs another trailer, one loaded with LRM's and 'Mech Mortars to support it, it also needs TAG (Seriously, if you're lugging two Arrow IV with you all the time why aren't you equipped with TAG?)

[Alexander Knight]

The Destrier needs another trailer, one loaded with LRM's and 'Mech Mortars to support it, it also needs TAG (Seriously, if you're lugging two Arrow IV with you all the time why aren't you equipped with TAG?)

If you're relying on the Destrier to TAG something, you have made a series of extremely poor tactical choices.

[SCC]

Sorry, I was thinking in terms of those last stands it always seem to find itself in according to the fluff

[RyuWanderfalke]

If you're relying on the Destrier to TAG something, you have made a series of extremely poor tactical choices.

A TAG is... 1 (O-N-E) ton... :D

Why on earth would you NOT include at least a single TAG on the unit weighing 200 (!) tons towing the two Arrow IVs?

[Coldwyn]

A TAG is... 1 (O-N-E) ton... :D

Why on earth would you NOT include at least a single TAG on the unit weighing 200 (!) tons towing the two Arrow IVs?

Because you´ll move up to 20 hexes to your target building and stay there until that building is gone?

[glitterboy2098]

TAG has a range several times shorter than your main weapons. if the enemy gets close enough you need to tag for your own artillery, you've made a grave tactical error...

the point of the Destrier, AFAICT is to be the kind of heavily armored firebase that you'd park well behind your lines to be on call for TAG equipped units elsewhere.

[Alexander Knight]

A TAG is... 1 (O-N-E) ton... :D

Why on earth would you NOT include at least a single TAG on the unit weighing 200 (!) tons towing the two Arrow IVs?

By the time I'm in range to TAG someone, I'm in range to direct-fire my missiles at them anyway.

[sillybrit]

since TRO writeups in the 3145 TROs focus on combat history instead of stats

Which Is still find highly irritating. I liked the conventional style MUCH better. I hope CGL will eventually return to the way it always was after the 3145 era is finished.

The conventional style as you put it mainly just regurgitates the stats, but it's simple enough for the reader just to glance at the stats page to get those. OK, sometimes it can be of interest to read the thoughts behind the decision to chose one weapon over another, but is that really as exciting as reading how the unit turned a battle, or getting ideas for a scenario based upon a battle history example?

I like to design custom units that fit the canon style, and so I can see the interest in what you term the conventional style, but compared to the number of players who don't design and so don't have as much interest in the background behind a design, we're few and far between.