General Video Game Thread
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@Lithium
That's what I thought given the intro video. So that's probably what it is. -
@Lithium said in General Video Game Thread:
But yes, Hairbrained is an awesome company, does good games. I'm waiting for the beta to come in March, I backed it at the 50$ level.
This is very true.
I fucking hated the Shadow Hawk. Worst fucking 'mech ever.
“It is better to live doing the things that you like. It is foolish to live within this dream of a world seeing unpleasantness and doing only things that you do not like.” -- Yamamoto Tsunetomo.
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@Ganymede said in General Video Game Thread:
@Lithium said in General Video Game Thread:
But yes, Hairbrained is an awesome company, does good games. I'm waiting for the beta to come in March, I backed it at the 50$ level.
This is very true.
I fucking hated the Shadow Hawk. Worst fucking 'mech ever.
Bold for emphasis...and the truth.
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@Jaded said in General Video Game Thread:
I fucking hated the Shadow Hawk. Worst fucking 'mech ever.
Bold for emphasis...and the truth.
Fuck yeah, right? 1 ton of ammo for an AC5? And then you want to load up piddling shit like an LRM-5 -- with one ton of ammo -- and an fucking SRM-2? The only good part about it is the Medium Laser. And, like you really need 12 Heat Sinks on that shit boat?
Instead of being capable at one or two roles, the fucking garbage scow is ineffective at everything. A pair of Locusts could rip the shit out of it.
“It is better to live doing the things that you like. It is foolish to live within this dream of a world seeing unpleasantness and doing only things that you do not like.” -- Yamamoto Tsunetomo.
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@Ganymede
I was going to say that it was outclassed by a Locust but I didn't want to derail the thread too much. But really...it could be outclassed by a Locust. It really does have the worst loadout for long range combat for a medium and the worst load out for short range for a medium. I mean fuck any medium with a large laser or a PPC is a better option - which means this is also outclassed by the single PPC Panther, another light. -
@Jaded said in General Video Game Thread:
I was going to say that it was outclassed by a Locust but I didn't want to derail the thread too much. But really...it could be outclassed by a Locust. It really does have the worst loadout for long range combat for a medium and the worst load out for short range for a medium. I mean fuck any medium with a large laser or a PPC is a better option - which means this is also outclassed by the single PPC Panther, another light.
Truth here. If you're going to get a 55-ton 'mech, go with the Griffin. Simple as that.
“It is better to live doing the things that you like. It is foolish to live within this dream of a world seeing unpleasantness and doing only things that you do not like.” -- Yamamoto Tsunetomo.
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@Ganymede
Griffin or the Wolverine. And if you're a fan of Capellan mechs you could even toss in the Vindicator. -
My favorite mech was always the 3055 (I think) version of the Phoenix Hawk, granted heat was a royal pain in the ass but you never had to worry about ammo cause everything was lasers, which tended to matter a lot because in our games we tended to do a lot of extended missions away from supply. My second favorite the Firestarter just for the sheer non-much vehicle killing ability. Since its main weapon added to heat and the way the rules dealt with excess heat for vehicles you had a 50/50 shot of popping any non-mech with each shot. I will never forget the joy of my 20 ton light mech scratching out an 80 ton tank in the opening round of combat.
Topic Note: I got about half way through writing that before realizing this was the video game thread and I was babbling about the table top mini version. I let my BattleTech enthusiasm get away from me. Sorry.
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This last week I've picked up the Prophesy of Pendor mod for Mount & Blade. It's good. So good that I swear I was just going to sit down and play a bit over my breakfast smoothie, and then all of a sudden it's three hours past dinner time and all I can hear is heroic music and people screaming, even after turning this game off. Good times, I think Caliph Hamid wants to marry me.
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@SG
There are a ton of great mods for Mount & Blade. I'm hoping the new game will be just as friendly to the mod community. -
There's a fair few poorly designed old style mech's, but the ShadowHawk isn't that bad...
Just Kidding, it has a fucking CRT television for a head.
It sucks.
The ShadowHawk does do one thing well though, it harasses at all ranges. The LRM and AC-5 have good range, while the medium laser and the SRM has short range.
The shadow Hawk looks like junk in a vacuum admittedly but on the game board it has good use due to it's mobility and ability to put damage downrange at any engagement range.
Not a lot of damage but some... which is better than none.
Against lights and other mediums it can be effective due to a lack of armor on it's enemies as well but...
Yeah that's a suck mech. It can be saved through customization however. Remove the SRM-2 and add 2 medium lasers and it gets much more powerful.
Hello! Long time listener, first time caller...
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@Lithium said in General Video Game Thread:
The ShadowHawk does do one thing well though, it harasses at all ranges. The LRM and AC-5 have good range, while the medium laser and the SRM has short range.
This is true. But it lacks the mobility to stay out of range of better 'Mechs with better weapons. Like Griffins and Wolverines. Even a Jenner would put the pounding on a Shadow Hawk: an SRM 2 and Medium Laser is nothing compared to an SRM 4 and /4/ Medium Lasers.
it's not just a suck 'Mech; it's a shit 'Mech. Period. Like, the Ostscout is at least good at what it was built for.
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@Lithium said in General Video Game Thread:
The ShadowHawk does do one thing well though, it harasses at all ranges. The LRM and AC-5 have good range, while the medium laser and the SRM has short range.
I agree with Gany, I would say that besides mobility, its weapons are actually the other weakness of the Shadowhawk. The AC 5 and an LRM 5 is just not that good at harassing. And the SRM2 and the single Medium Laser makes it weak versus most other mediums and some 30 ton lights in the short-range brawl. There are better ways to invest the 15 tons (approx) for a better mix of weapons.
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@Jaded said in General Video Game Thread:
There are better ways to invest the 15 tons (approx) for a better mix of weapons.
17, if you pop out those Heat Sinks, which -- fuck, why the fuck would you add heat sinks when you generate all of 8 heat if you fire all of your fucking weapons?
Anyhow, with those 2 extra Heat Sinks, load up with a Large Laser, 2 SRM 4s w/ 2 tons of SRM ammo, 2 Flamers, and 2 MGs w/ 1 ton of ammo. You are devastating at short-medium (potential damage of 24 per round), will wreck vehicles, and tear through infantry. Heat shouldn't be too much of an issue. You have the advantage on many Light 'Mechs, because Large Lasers and PPCs are their bane and most have to close to short-medium to do damage, at which you will have more firepower and more armor. You still may have trouble against a Griffin (any non-Heavy 'Mech will), but if you can outlast the LRM-barrage, you've a fighting chance.
“It is better to live doing the things that you like. It is foolish to live within this dream of a world seeing unpleasantness and doing only things that you do not like.” -- Yamamoto Tsunetomo.
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@Ganymede
Flamers are a greatly undervalued and underused weapon of destruction in BT. -
@Jaded said in General Video Game Thread:
Flamers are a greatly undervalued and underused weapon of destruction in BT.
As are MGs against infantry. Or, heck, MGs if you don't mind sitting up nice and close.
“It is better to live doing the things that you like. It is foolish to live within this dream of a world seeing unpleasantness and doing only things that you do not like.” -- Yamamoto Tsunetomo.
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@Ganymede
This is true. And machine guns are a great way to exploit crits once armor has been stripped. -
Apparently my sarcasm was not detected even when I mentioned the TV head.
When the ShadowHawk came out though, in the original printing of the game it didn't do badly.
The original Jenner has shit armor and would actually be fucked up by a ShadowHawk, let alone getting in close enough for good medium laser range means that if the Jenner lost initiative it would be on the defensive and running from those 11 point kicks that would tear the Jenner's leg off.
For the original rules, 5/8/3 movement was not bad at all, and even if the jenner ran away (11 speed at a run) it couldn't outrun the shadowhawk's ac 5 or lrm's fast enough to not suffer significant damage.
So in the role of harasser and light hunter, it actually does pretty well.
The ShadowHawk doesn't hold up against anything bigger than it is though, at all. Even comparable mechs (Griffon's and Wolverines) are generally better armed and armored than the ShadowHawk and would take it down in the end.
Part of the allure of those original mech's though was that nothing was really built optimally. Everything had heat issues if you weren't careful, everything had strengths and weaknesses.
Not saying I like the ShadowHawk, I still feel it is a shit mech, but if played right and /not/ part of a vacuum it's weight can still be felt on the battle field.
BattleTech is very much team oriented and tactical in it's playstyle. As bad as it is, the ShadowHawk can still be useful... and it /sucks/.
Even the Griffin had a serious problem if you could get under it's guns, a standard PPC and LRM 10 are not good at extremely close range so it's even more bait to a light mech for example and it had heat issues if it popped off the PPC every turn and jumped or also fired the LRM's.
Also... Machine Guns are horrible in BattleTech, even half a ton of ammo and you are destroyed if it gets hit no matter where it's located pre-case. Flamers are also not good even if you use the heat transference rules because you generate more heat than you give.
Yes, they are nightmares against infantry but, honestly... it is rare that traditional infantry threatens a mech.
Also: Generating crits? Every weapon generates crits at the same rate in BT. If anything, missiles are even better for crit hunting due to amount of hits generated.
Hello! Long time listener, first time caller...
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@Lithium said in General Video Game Thread:
Not saying I like the ShadowHawk, I still feel it is a shit mech, but if played right and /not/ part of a vacuum it's weight can still be felt on the battle field.
Sure. The Shadow Hawk makes for an excellent flak absorber. It has good armor for its weight, and so it can absorb a few PPC shots before falling to bits. And in the original box, there was no Jenner, so I have to agree: put a Shadow Hawk against a couple of Wasps or Stingers, and you better put your money on the Shadow Hawk.
(I don't agree that the Jenner has any disadvantage against a Shadow Hawk, though, because a Jenner in a dead run gets a +4 modifier to hit and can out chase a Shadow Hawk easily enough, while still having sufficient movement to stay out of kick range. Plus, LRMs and ACs have minimum range penalties, which means that a Jenner at 2-3 hexes away -- who can maintain that distance easily with 7/11/5 -- has the advantage.)
I actually like that TV head, for whatever reason. Gives it character. Better than whatever the hell is sitting on the Wolverine. Or the Thunderbolt.
“It is better to live doing the things that you like. It is foolish to live within this dream of a world seeing unpleasantness and doing only things that you do not like.” -- Yamamoto Tsunetomo.
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@Auspice I started playing SWTOR because I found it for 15 bucks for a digital download and got pretty sucked into it.
I blame this mostly on @Miss-Demeanor because she couldn't stop talking about how great it is. So I got it and have been enjoying the hell out of it. I seem to suffer from peer pressure to keep throwing my wallet at my PC.
I always wondered if there was a game that wasn't called Mass Effect that could make me think "RP? MUs? What are those things?" Well, I found it.
