I expect Armored Components are going to become far more popular than in the cannon timeline. The ability to soak additional crits without any effects is game changing when you have to deal with Petrusite weapons
Oh yea absolutely it will. Engines will likely become the piece of equipment that will be armored the most often as if that is destroyed the mech goes with it. Though Armoring XL engines will likely not be done when there used because of how much tonnage it eats up.
Yea XXL engines will likely be seen as to much of a risk thanks to there size. Even with hardened or lamellor armor a few lucky trough armor crits will reduce that engine to scrap. As for compact engines I think you right and they will be invented early.
Well they could make a deal with us seeing as we have shown our guys can be trusted and don't really want to deal with the inner sphere besides what is the bare necessary?
Well they could make a deal with us seeing as we have shown our guys can be trusted and don't really want to deal with the inner sphere besides what is the bare necessary?
Potentially though things like Ir Pet weapons, reactors and Shields are only being leased to them so they would have to make a new deal to get those which we will be unlikely to accept.
Potentially though things like Ir Pet weapons, reactors and Shields are only being leased to them so they would have to make a new deal to get those which we will be unlikely to accept.
It bears pointing out, the terms of the purchase didn't mention anything about a lease; we had to specify our sales to the LCN were lend-lease, for example.
We did also sell petrusite to the ComGuards, and the thing is, even if we did set limits and specify a lease system, it's very hard to tell if a petrusite warhead was expended in battle or disappeared into a Terran lab; the same goes to the main gun of a PTC-equipped tank, for example. Did the tank get rendered unsalvageable in battle, or did the tank get marked as that while being covertly shipped to a top secret laboratory in some ComStar facility?
Agreed comstar wouldn't want to let such good tech out of there hands, like shields are a game changer and that frankly they are most likely to treat petrusite with the respect it deserves of anyone in the inner sphere.
Oh yea absolutely it will. Engines will likely become the piece of equipment that will be armored the most often as if that is destroyed the mech goes with it. Though Armoring XL engines will likely not be done when there used because of how much tonnage it eats up.
Yea XXL engines will likely be seen as to much of a risk thanks to there size. Even with hardened or lamellor armor a few lucky trough armor crits will reduce that engine to scrap. As for compact engines I think you right and they will be invented early.
In a vaccuum maybe, but with Petrusite and Irradiated Petrusite engines being a thing other factions cannot really afford to turn down the extra tonnage those engines grant. Not as a blanket practice anyways.
Think petrusite is going to be a uncommon thing most mech warriors will have to deal with, like with any weapon it will get out and about eventually but can imagine it's quite expensive still since its more rare and very effective, so can imagine that the mercenaries or planet governments or whoever would keep it as a secret to bring out for tough missions or desperate situations.
Yea XXL engines will likely be seen as to much of a risk thanks to there size. Even with hardened or lamellor armor a few lucky trough armor crits will reduce that engine to scrap. As for compact engines I think you right and they will be invented early.
There's 2 more battles remaining with 2 victory points each, and Comstar is up by 2 points over the Clans. Right now, the Clans are in a pretty bad spot as they need to win both battles decisively to win the overall battle for Lyndon. Fortunately for them, the two battles they need are being fought by Clan Snow Raven and Clan Wolf, so there's good odds.
With that said, a draw would still be pretty bad for ComStar as it'd probably be resolved with a winner-takes-all battle that would inherently favour whichever Clan (or Clans) fights it.
To be honest, while a draw would be bad for ComStar, that's not necessarily the same thing as "good for the Clans".
If it's a vicious last stand, it would ravage whoever participated, per canon Tukayyid. Thus far most of the exchanges have been actually pretty standard for normal warfare, insofar as it wasn't fought with total warfare stakes in mind where every single city was defended with total suicidal zeal and both Clan and ComStar forces have been able to withdraw their troops without suffering utterly ruinous casualties (in all cases anyway, some were more chewed up and torn than others).
If the Clans did win that battle, sure it's possible the most bloodthirsty and glory hungry Clans would want to continue the invasion.
But all 11? What's the alternative? The other Clans that remained in the Clan Worlds join the fray? After 11 got chewed up and spat out and seek to lower the readiness of the people who didn't get prime invasion corridors in the bargain?
Who's to say what the next move would be. Now personally, I would think that the current il-Khan might face a Trial over how Lyndon was handled regardless, unless ComStar is decisively defeated in the final confrontation and the Clans don't take totally catastrophic casualties. Big sequence of "ifs, ands, buts, and maybes".
Or no treaty, but... also no movement from the Clans. Lots of back and forth skirmishing, but not enough to breach past the defensive lines already drawn.
Ooor, the Clans strike a treaty with each Great House relevant to their current invasion, along with the FRR, possibly with less than favorable terms than the one offered to ComStar.
Too many variables to guess how things would shake out in the event of a ComStar loss, unless the loss happened in the next two battles with no final battle to draw as much Clanner blood as possible.
In that scenario, I can't say what will happen. The IS won't allow the Clans to just walk into Terra and set up shop, but neither will the Clans simply give up.
In that scenario, I can't say what will happen. The IS won't allow the Clans to just walk into Terra and set up shop, but neither will the Clans simply give up.
It bears pointing out, the terms of the purchase didn't mention anything about a lease; we had to specify our sales to the LCN were lend-lease, for example.
I was specifically talking about when we learned about about the gamble at which time we could poor even more support into the Comguard. In that action I specifically mentioned we would lease Comstar our most advanced mechs which have shields and Ir Pet weapon and reactors (which weren't included in the sale). I highly doubt they would refuse those mechs for the gamble. It's these machines they would have to return which why I said they had to return most of the pet tech we lend them. We likely sold them more standard pet weapons over all but I was talking about different kinds of tech and with the lease we gave them more Ir Pet tech(shields, weapons and reactors) then normal Pet tech (just weapons).
Sorry for the confusion I could have worded my sentences better.
In a vaccuum maybe, but with Petrusite and Irradiated Petrusite engines being a thing other factions cannot really afford to turn down the extra tonnage those engines grant. Not as a blanket practice anyways.
I can see you're point though I do think however the XL engine won't be as common as canon with Pet weapons around there just so much more of a risk then a standard engine is. Edit: I think it's more likely for Endo-steel and Ferro-Fiberous to become the primary methods of weight saving even more then they were in canon especially with Endo-Steel being far easier to produce than in canon.
I was mostly talking about mechs but you do make a good argument for ASF. Though personally I think the price of a XXL engine is simply to high to justify lore wise.
I was specifically talking about when we learned about about the gamble at which time we could poor even more support into the Comguard. In that action I specifically mentioned we would lease Comstar our most advanced mechs which have shields and Ir Pet weapon and reactors (which weren't included in the sale). I highly doubt they would refuse those mechs for the gamble. It's these machines they would have to return which why I said they had to return most of the pet tech we lend them. We likely sold them more standard pet weapons over all but I was talking about different kinds of tech and with the lease we gave them more Ir Pet tech(shields, weapons and reactors) then normal Pet tech (just weapons).
Sorry for the confusion I could have worded my sentences better.
I can see you're point though I do think however the XL engine won't be as common as canon with Pet weapons around there just so much more of a risk then a standard engine is. Edit: I think it's more likely for Endo-steel and Ferro-Fiberous to become the primary methods of weight saving even more then they were in canon especially with Endo-Steel being far easier to produce than in canon.
I was mostly talking about mechs but you do make a good argument for ASF. Though personally I think the price of a XXL engine is simply to high to justify lore wise.
I mean, my point still stands: even if it was nominally leased, there's very little preventing them from marking a mech or two as "destroyed in battle, rendered unsalvageable" and covertly shipping the chassis to a black site; perhaps one on the Hidden Worlds, for example. That's just a price we had to pay in exchange for our attempt to maximize the chance of success of the trial.
That is possible trough armored components however it's very expensive tonnage wise. To armor a standard engine costs 3 tons while a XL engine costs 6 tons. That's quite the investment.
That is possible trough armored components however it's very expensive tonnage wise. To armor a standard engine costs 3 tons while a XL engine costs 6 tons. That's quite the investment.
Background
With the ComGuard leading the Clans 9-7 by 22 May and the Precentor-Martial redeploying units to bolter Lyndon's remaining conflict zones following the sorely needed victory against the Goliath Scorpions, the days following saw Khan Lynn McKenna of the Snow Ravens move with singular purpose against the planet's defenders. One of the first Clans to engage Inner Sphere forces in the invasion and more pragmatic than most—or more conniving, depending on who was asked—Snow Raven warriors and leaders knew what kind of fighting awaited them on the Bancroft Salt Flats. In addition, those same leaders were keenly aware of the number of casualties they could expect to see should they attempt to seize both victory points and how the ComGuard's strategy of redeploying units across the planet allowed them to present a killing edge to the attackers at all times.
As a result, it became apparent to Khan McKenna and SaKhan Bryn Cooper that a knockdown fight against the ComGuard would prove a bitter mistake regardless of the outcome. Currently one of the most successful Clans involved in Operation Revival, a traditional approach to warfare would see many of the Clan's best warriors killed and doubtlessly eject the Snow Ravens from what was a leading role among the invaders. Recognising that such an approach would lead only to a pyrrhic victory in the best case, Khan McKenna instead embodied the clever and cunning nature of her Clan's totemic animal—a particularly devious plan put into motion on 24 May by the Clan's Alpha and Gamma Galaxies.
Pitted against them and freshly reinforced with personnel and equipment following the painful defeats handed to them by Clans Nova Cat and Steel Viper, ComStar's Seventh and Eighth armies under Demi-Precentor Wambui-Košar were well entrenched in the region. Created through the evaporation of an inland sea forty thousand years ago, the near-featureless expanse of salt-covered land forming the Bancroft Salt Flats averages an altitude variation of less than one meter over its length. Keenly aware that the terrain favoured long-range engagements, rapid movement, and air power, the Seventh and Eighth armies were over-supplied with the relevant equipment, and a plan devised that would see Snow Raven ground forces engaged by high-speed low-drag hovercraft and Snow Raven OmniFighters overmatched by ComGuard AeroSpace Fighters—any shot down pilots or evacuated crews rescued by recovery hovercraft and returned to the fight in reserve vehicles.
Battle
At 08:00 on 24 May, more than 200 Snow Raven OmniFighters descended through the atmosphere above the salt flats' lightly defended Mirage Field victory point following a suborbital hop from the Clan's staging grounds a short distance away. Vastly outnumbering the ComGuard's fighters patrolling the sector, the supremely coordinated OmniFighter throng suffered only a handful of casualties in exchange for completely clearing the field ComGuard Aerospace assets, an air corridor established only a few minutes later. Moving swiftly to avoid giving Demi-Precentor Wambui-Košar a chance to organise a counter-attack to challenge their ariel supremacy, the OmniFighters—led by SaKhan Bryn Cooper—immediately engaged the ground forces defending the site using internally and externally mounted ordinance. Composed of Bjorn and Mace pattern automata, semi-automated static AAA emplacements, and a small but highly mobile unit of combat vehicles, the victory point's tripwire force was unable to resist the Snow Raven's overwhelming aerospace presence despite ample ground-to-air equipment: only a few OmniFighters shot down in exchange for the near-total annihilation of the defending units and much of their defensive works.
Following this mass bombing campaign, Alpha and Gamma Galaxy reconnaissance elements deployed onto the Mirage Field via drop pod. While nearly 30% of the force scattered around the objective and a handful failed to land intact, two Trinaries worth of mechs landed within the victory point's bounds and captured it for their Clan. Equipped to engage rapidly moving foes—Raven leadership having successfully judged the tactical situation as similar to that of the Bellemeade Wetlands—these Trinaries adopted a defensive formation and waited. After securing a foothold and establishing an air corridor, Raven dropships began deploying additional forces in and around the point. The 1st Raven Phalanx was the first Cluster to arrive at 09:11.
However, at 09:15, as Demi-Precentor Wambui-Košar was assembling a response to the Snow Raven's initial attack, Khan McKenna made a profoundly unanticipated move.
Reaching out to her opposite less than an hour and a half after the battle had begun, the Snow Raven Khan requested a face-to-face meeting to negotiate an early end to the engagement; a temporary ceasefire offered to make the meeting possible. Though leery of perfidy given the Ravens' less-than-stellar reputation among the other Clans, the Demi-Precentor accepted both offers. In part agreeing to buy time for the Seventh and Eighth armies to assemble a hammer to crush the Clans unmolested and to determine the Khan's goal, the pair met with only minimal escorts at a point equidistant between the ComGuard and Snow Raven holdings.
Much to the Demi-Precentor's surprise, it quickly became clear that the Snow Raven Khan was genuine in her desire to secure a negotiated ceasefire between her Clan and Comstar. Citing the Ravens' reputation for pragmatism and the by-now well-understood degree of casualties that both sides could expect should they engage in earnest combat, Khan Lynn McKenna offered to end the battle in a draw then and there with all bodies, POWs, and captured equipment returned to their respective sides as soon as feasibly possible. Caught off-guard by the woman's proposal, doubly so given the Clans' obsession with honourable combat as a means of determining merit, the Demi-Precentor engaged McKenna in a series of minor back-and-forths to buy time for ComStar intelligence analysts and the Precentor-Martial himself to explore the Khan's personality profile and the potential logic behind the deal. Shocking few, ComStar analysts soon determined—or guessed—that the logic driving the offer was rooted in broader affairs than those occurring on Lyndon alone.
Known among Clanners as a canny political operator, Khan Lynn McKenna was known to typify the Snow Raven ideal: the woman persevering and overcoming adversity by any means while also being adept at negotiating the choppy waters of inter-clan relations to advance her Clan's fortunes. Enjoying a prominent position among the other Invading Clans thanks to their success in battle and relative lack of casualties following early engagements against the Outer Rim Defence Initiative, ComStar analysts had long ago determined that the casualties taken from seriously challenging the ComGuard over the Salt Flats would cost Clan Snow Raven many of its best warriors and equipment. As with the other clans, this loss would, in turn, deal substantial long-term damage to the Snow Raven's war-making ability and was a driving force behind the decision to risk everything on Lyndon. However, this same potentiality has since become apparent to Khan McKenna, and she is eager to pursue a more favourable outcome for her Clan.
Paradoxically, the temporary peace offered by a ComStar victory on Lyndon would enshrine Clan Snow Raven's superiority over the other Clans for a time. Meanwhile, an overall draw or a Wolf-led victory would only be to the Ravens' detriment. By securing a negotiated draw following the capture of a victory point, the Snow Raven Khan would simultaneously limit the harm her Clan would suffer from the Battle of Lyndon and let her Clan's greatest threats wound themselves on the ComGuards' blades. Moreover, a draw at the salt flats would make it impossible for the Wolves themselves to win the Battle for Lyndon outside of a tie-breaker battle and prevent them from gaining the prestige of securing overall victory for the Clans following a series of losses—killing two birds with one stone in a way that limits blowback from her peers.
Informed of this analysis, Precentor-Martial Focht reluctantly ordered his representative on the salt flats to accept the Khan's offer almost as presented—some minor demands made to maintain Clan equipment lost over ComGuard lines to save face. A little more than two hours after the battle for the Bancroft Salt Flats began, it officially ended with a draw between the ComGuard and Snow Ravens and the nearly unharmed Seventh and Eight armies moved to redeploy against the Wolves.
