Going back to the fluff aspect of these rules:You'd have to be desperate AND suicidal to fight in those conditions. You're telling me that a battlemech, the premier engine of war and death for the last 500+ years, has a 1 in 6 chance of being destroyed from any CT damage whatsoever??? And internal components can't function without some kind of atmospheric pressure??? And nobody in half a millennium has thought that, just maybe, there's a design flaw that should be corrected in every mech going forward??
Because that's what the rules mean to the lore.
My initial reaction to the vacuum breaching rules was along the same lines. It seemed like too much that a whole section would fail like with water flooding. But I think I we aren’t really considering just how extreme of an environment vacuum really is. For instance, liquid lubricants will boil off. Seals that might work fine with a bit of atmospheric back pressure can start leaking, or just outright fail from the sudden change. Systems for bleeding heat from electronics no longer have a medium to work with. Stuff exists that can handle space (see NASA), but getting around the performance trade offs needed to get a Mech operating in as many environments as it does would be enough to give any engineer fits.
Granted, Battletech’s somewhat...tangential relationship with actual material science means any number of these issues can be hand-waved. But my own head canon runs something like this:
SLDF Program Officer: “How’s progress on the project to improve the survivability of our Mechs in vacuum?”
Engineer: “Excellent! With an extensive refit of redundant seals, nano manufactured self lubricating composites, and entirely redesigned cooling systems, we have made the internal systems completely impervious to vacuum!”
SLDF PO: “Any drawbacks?”
Engineer: “Well...Mass has increased by half a ton per critical slot.”
SLDF PO: “... How’s performance in atmosphere?”
Engineer: (proudly) “Exactly the same!”
SLDF PO: “... And how much does each refit cost?”
Engineer: “Err...”
SLDF PO: “This is so very canceled.”Conventional vehicles, which are there as a cheaper alternative to space-wizard tech would be right out. Suits would keep the crew alive, but without purpose built modifications it’s going to grind to a halt fast.
That’s how I reconcile the rules in my head, anyway. I think I like the fact that as written they radically change what makes for an effective unit. One more layer of variety that can be taken or left as desired.
