I initially posted all of these together with a to-do of adding example 'mechs made with those rules. I knew that including example 'mechs was important, but I didn't really play my hand that way. Each custom 'mech requires some discussion and review. Enough to make each rules system into its own post.
Primitive Omnimechs
When
the Inner Sphere encountered omnimechs in 3050, there had been very
little like them. Yes, omnitechnology was based on the Mercury, but the
Inner Sphere didn’t have anything like it. Even if they had, it wouldn’t
have been the system which allowed almost unrestricted swapping of
omnipods, drastically reduced repair costs, and free carry weight for
battle armor. Sure it costs more C-Bills which players (and now the
setting) barely use and it can’t mount actuators on a hand with a big
gun, but they’re a rare technology in Battletech that’s almost 100%
upside.
What if there were a different technology which granted
similar abilities? What if they were in early development before the
Clans invaded, but were shelved with the introduction of a strictly
better system? What if these primitive omnimechs–Everymechs–were more
distinctive and restricted? What if there was bad omnitech?
Hardpoints
A
core concept for these different omnimechs is the hardpoint. Hardpoints
are a collection of contiguous critical slots which have restrictions
on the pods which can be mounted in them.
Singular Equipment Limitation
Unless
otherwise stated, hardpoints can only carry one piece of equipment.
Ammunition for ammunition-fed weapons and assistive equipment (such as
Artemis IV systems and Targeting Computers) can share a hardpoint with
one of the pieces of equipment they assist, provided they otherwise meet
the restrictions of the hardpoint.
A hardpoint can be shared
across two or three adjacent locations for equipment, like AC/20s and
Engines, which can be shared across locations. A shared hardpoint can
still only carry one piece of equipment, which is still subject to
Singular Equipment Limitation and such weapons only fire in the most
restrictive arc.
Generally, if equipment can be pod-mounted on an
omnimech it can be pod-mounted in a hardpoint of one of the ‘mech types
below. Equipment which cannot be pod-mounted on an omnimech cannot be
pod-mounted in a hardpoint of one of the ‘mech types below. Repair and
replacement times are treated as though they’re omnimechs.
Panmech
You thought Multimechs are too complicated.
Not so.
Panmechs
load the heat, energy, structural, control, and ammunition feed needs
of their equipment onto the ‘mech. This means that equipment and
logistics chains for Panmechs are more efficient, with the rapid
replacement and versatility advantages of omnimechs.
At the price of system complexity.
Rules
Panmechs
pay an additional 25% of their C-Bill cost in Gyro, Structure, Cockpit,
and hardpoint-mounted equipment weapons. Their cockpits, gyro, and
structures are specific and required for Panmechs, but may be used by
other battlemechs.
Panmechs have hard-mounted equipment. The
remainder of their critical spaces can either be unused or dedicated to
hardpoints. The remainder of their tonnage is used for pod space.
Panmechs do not have Singular Equipment Limitations.
Panmechs
use a feedweight to limit hardpoints. Feedweight represents the needs
of equipment which are compartmentalized and held in a hardpoint.
Pod-mountable
equipment has a percentage of their weight–and sometimes crits–reduced,
as those components have been made universal and installed in the
Panmech.
By consulting the table of pod equipment below, you can
see how much of the feedweight for each hardpoint they use. A hardpoint
can only hold equipment which has a feedweight equal to or less than its
feedweight.
Special Equipment
Panmechs do not mount standard equipment. They are required to mount pod-capable equipment, noted with a “-P”.
Name Feed Weight Item Weight
Small Laser-P 0 0.5
Medium Laser-P 0.5 0.5
Large Laser-P 1 4
LRM 5-P 0.5 1.5
LRM 10-P 1 4
LRM 15-P 1.5 5.5
LRM 20-P 2 8
SRM 2-P 0.5 0.5
SRM 4-P 0.5 1.5
SRM 6-P 0.5 2.5
AC2-P 1 5
AC5-P 1 7
AC10-P 2 10
AC20-P 3 11
PPC-P 1.5 5.5
ERPPC-P 2 5
ECM-P 0.5 1
A Panmech is still limited to its gross pod tonnage, even if unused feed weight would allow it to mount additional equipment.
Example: Avatar
Avatar AVP-O
Mass: 70 tons
Tech Base: Inner Sphere
Chassis Config: Biped Omnimech
Rules Level: Tournament Legal
Era: Clan Invasion
Tech Rating/Era Availability: E/X-X-E-D
Production Year: 3059
Dry Cost: 15,103,792 C-Bills
Total Cost: 15,103,792 C-Bills
Battle Value: 896
Chassis: Unknown Standard
Power Plant: Unknown 280 Fusion XL Engine
Walking Speed: 43.2 km/h
Maximum Speed: 64.8 km/h
Jump Jets: Unknown
Jump Capacity: 0 meters
Armor: Unknown Standard Armor w/ CASE
Armament:
2 Medium Lasers
34.0 tons of pod space.
Manufacturer: Unknown
Primary Factory: Unknown
Communications System: Unknown
Targeting and Tracking System: Unknown
================================================================================
Equipment Type Rating Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Standard 107 points 7.00
Engine: XL Fusion Engine 280 8.00
Walking MP: 4
Running MP: 6
Jumping MP: 0
Heat Sinks: Double Heat Sink 10(20) 0.00
Gyro: Standard 3.00
Cockpit: Standard 3.00
Actuators: L: SH+UA R: SH+UA
Armor: Standard Armor AV - 192 12.00
Internal Armor
Structure Factor
Head 3 9
Center Torso 22 30
Center Torso (rear) 9
L/R Torso 15 22
L/R Torso (rear) 8
L/R Arm 11 16
L/R Leg 15 26
================================================================================
Equipment Location Heat Critical Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2 Medium Lasers CT 6 2 2.00
Hardpoint RA - 10 1.42
Hardpoint RT - 11 0.87
Hardpoint LT - 11 1.33
Hardpoint LA - 10 2.66
Free Critical Slots: 41
Podspace Remaining: 27.72
================================================================================
Loadout Name: Prime Cost: 17,300,479
Tech Rating/Era Availability: E/X-X-E-D BV2: 1,395
Equipment Type Rating Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CASE Locations: 1 LT, 1 RT 1.00
Actuators: L: SH+UA+LA R: SH+UA
Equipment Location Heat Critical Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LB 10-X AC RA 2 6 8.80
2 Medium Pulse Lasers LA 8 2 3.22
LRM-10 RT 4 2 4.30
Artemis IV FCS RT - 1 0.85
2 Machine Guns RT 0 2 0.93
LRM-10 LT 4 2 4.30
Artemis IV FCS LT - 1 0.85
2 Medium Lasers CT 6 2 2.00
@LRM-10 (Artemis) (24) RA - 2 1.70
@LRM-10 (Artemis) (12) LA - 1 0.85
@LB 10-X (Cluster) (10) RT - 1 0.85
@MG (200) RT - 1 0.94
@LB 10-X (Slug) (10) RT - 1 0.85
Free Critical Slots: 18
================================================================================
Loadout Name: A Cost: 17,073,729
Tech Rating/Era Availability: E/X-X-E-D BV2: 1,481
Equipment Type Rating Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jumping MP: 4 (Standard)
Jump Jet Locations: 2 LT, 2 RT 3.52
CASE Locations: 1 LT, 1 RT 1.00
Actuators: L: SH+UA+LA R: SH+UA
Equipment Location Heat Critical Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Autocannon/20 RA 7 10 11.34
ER Large Laser LA 12 2 3.85
SRM-6 RT 4 2 2.55
SRM-6 LT 4 2 2.55
2 Medium Lasers CT 6 2 2.00
@SRM-6 (15) RT - 1 0.91
@AC/20 (15) RT - 3 2.82
@SRM-6 (15) LT - 1 0.91
Free Critical Slots: 15
================================================================================
Loadout Name: B Cost: 17,497,417
Tech Rating/Era Availability: E/X-X-E-D BV2: 1,496
Equipment Type Rating Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CASE Locations: 1 LT, 1 RT 1.00
Actuators: L: SH+UA+LA R: SH+UA+LA
Equipment Location Heat Critical Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LRM-15 RA 5 3 5.85
Artemis IV FCS RA - 1 0.85
LRM-15 LA 5 3 5.85
Artemis IV FCS LA - 1 0.85
LRM-10 RT 4 2 4.30
Artemis IV FCS RT - 1 0.85
LRM-10 LT 4 2 4.30
Artemis IV FCS LT - 1 0.85
2 Medium Lasers CT 6 2 2.00
@LRM-10 (Artemis) (12) RA - 1 0.85
@LRM-15 (Artemis) (24) RA - 3 2.55
@LRM-10 (Artemis) (12) RT - 1 0.85
@LRM-15 (Artemis) (8) RT - 1 0.85
Free Critical Slots: 19
BattleForce Statistics
MV S (+0) M (+2) L (+4) E (+6) Wt. Ov Armor: 6 Points: 15
4 3 5 4 0 3 0 Structure: 3
Special Abilities: OMNI, CASE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA, IF 4
================================================================================
Loadout Name: C Cost: 19,635,292
Tech Rating/Era Availability: E/X-X-E-D BV2: 1,406
Equipment Type Rating Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CASE Locations: 1 LT, 1 RT 1.00
Actuators: L: SH+UA R: SH+UA
Equipment Location Heat Critical Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ultra AC/5 RA 1 5 7.31
LRM-10 RA 4 2 4.30
PPC LA 10 3 5.78
LRM-10 RT 4 2 4.30
C3 Computer (Master) LT 0 5 4.25
2 Medium Lasers CT 6 2 2.00
@Ultra AC/5 (20) RA - 1 0.85
@LRM-10 (24) RT - 2 1.82
Free Critical Slots: 21
================================================================================
Loadout Name: D Cost: 17,153,604
Tech Rating/Era Availability: E/X-X-E-D BV2: 1,475
Equipment Type Rating Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Heat Sinks: Double Heat Sink 12(24) 2.00
Heat Sink Locations: 1 LT, 1 RA
CASE Locations: 1 LT, 1 RT 1.00
Actuators: L: SH+UA+LA R: SH+UA
Equipment Location Heat Critical Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Light Gauss Rifle RA 1 5 9.72
MRM-20 LA 6 3 5.67
MRM-20 RT 6 3 5.67
2 ER Medium Lasers LT 10 2 1.62
C3 Computer (Slave) LT 0 1 0.85
2 Medium Lasers CT 6 2 2.00
@Light Gauss Rifle (16) RA - 1 0.85
@MRM-20 (12) LA - 1 0.91
@MRM-20 (12) LT - 1 0.91
Free Critical Slots: 17
Translating these 'mechs to this system implied minimizing feed weight. That meant I had to adjust equipment across all locations and moved a C3 Slave from the head and jump jets from the leg so all of the feed weight would be in four locations.
Then I had to shuffle ammo around like a poker player and for some reason Artemis IV ammo is rated "F"?
It got a bit absurd and I had to laugh a good way through at this. I maybe should have just punted and rounded, but I didn't want to. My affection for the complexity is probably more theoretical than actual. I'm a really big fan of anything I can cobble together with a spreadsheet. Spending a Saturday shifting weights around on canon 'mechs isn't so cool.
.
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