Developer Diaries #3: Shop Revisions and Flashpoint Rewards

[Pewpew!]

Hey somebody has to be around when i go into cryptic mode and dont explain myself and unknowingly cause mass hysteria.

 

[Havamal]

It's a relay system we have set up.
Digital though. No baton.

 

[Packrat]

@Packrat I am NOT totally versed on all the lore(lol that's a huge understatement as I know enough to get in trouble talking about it) but why do you call the Catapult K2 an extinct mech in this time frame? According to Sarna the Catapult was a rare model after the 1st succession war and it wasn't till around 3033 that its production was restarted but that doesn't mean there couldn't have been examples around for us to fight and acquire. Lore wise I would personally say that as long as it was in production prior to 3025 when the game is set its fair game. I do agree with the criticism about the weapon being out of timeline but at the same time I can bend some in the name of fun gameplay. I would also point out that just cause it was shown doesn't mean we can actually get it with the expansion

Official canonical information on units is provided by the MUL, and the page for the CPLT-K2 is unambiguous.

To sum up what "extinct" means for BT: Victoria having a single example would be fitting, but finding them in the general opfor assignment is not.

It is impossible to exactly follow the lore, because the lore itself is inconsistant and highly retconned. Especially the older stuff.

I am not sure why anyone would lose any sleep over a little bending of the lore, as long as it doesn't get out of hand.

Retcons mean the old stuff no longer applies, so it's entirely possible to exactly follow lore by sticking to the newest info.

No one's losing sleep, but more accuracy is preferable to less accuracy, and then there's the problem that what qualifies as "out of hand" is different for everyone, so the easiest way to avoid problems is to just stick to lore, because pretty much everyone wants to ignore the parts of lore they don't like, and it's a huge can of worms that's best left unopened.

 

[Edmon]

Retcons mean the old stuff no longer applies, so it's entirely possible to exactly follow lore by sticking to the newest info.

I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree on this one. You see, I called "no takebacks" on my childhood. Sorry, no way around that one. It's a law.

If someone thought, even something silly like the Phantom Mech maneuver, was an awesome thing that made BattleTech for them (when Battletech was flirting with the idea of psyonics). Who is a rule lawyer and a team of history re-writers to tell him or her otherwise?

Artists always want to go back and fix their earlier work. But what is done is done, at least in my opinion.

Yes, even those awful 70's pilot suits that looked like they escaped from a bad porno.

Sorry.

 

[Packrat]

I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree on this one. You see, I called "no takebacks" on my childhood. Sorry, no way around that one. It's a law.

If someone thought, even something silly like the Phantom Mech maneuver, was an awesome thing that made BattleTech for them (when Battletech was flirting with the idea of psyonics). Who is a rule lawyer and a team of history re-writers to tell him or her otherwise?

Artists always want to go back and fix their earlier work. But what is done is done, at least in my opinion.

Yes, even those awful 70's pilot suits that looked like they escaped from a bad porno.

Sorry.

I understand, I really do, but things have been retconned, and what's done is done, as you said, so it seems rather unrealistic to expect new products to ignore current canon in favor of obsolete canon.

Also, I think the Phantom Mech thing is still in canon in the same sense the tetatae are in canon: it's officially there, but no longer addressed.

 

[Edmon]

I understand, I really do, but things have been retconned, and what's done is done, as you said, so it seems rather unrealistic to expect new products to ignore current canon in favor of obsolete canon.

Also, I think the Phantom Mech thing is still in canon in the same sense the tetatae are in canon: it's officially there, but no longer addressed.

But in the BattleTech Game canon, re-fitting a mech is actually pretty simple and does not require a factory.

There are plenty of Catapults that are not extinct during this period, that could be retrofitted to K2 configuration, if a basic mechlab was the only requirement (and not a Mech Factory).

That is the major canon change, that is required to make the game a good game, that dramatically changes the lore in reguards to mech configuration rarity.

Any configuration could be easily found, as long as the hull is available.

So a far more critical part of the lore has already been bent, the K2 actually fits if you accept that mech's can be (in much the same way as omnitech) easily re-fitted without the need for a production plant.

 

[Packrat]

But in the BattleTech Game canon, re-fitting a mech is actually pretty simple and does not require a factory.

There are plenty of Catapults that are not extinct during this period, that could be retrofitted to K2 configuration, if a basic mechlab was the only requirement (and not a Mech Factory).

That is the major canon change, that is required to make the game a good game, that dramatically changes the lore in reguards to mech configuration rarity.

Any configuration could be easily found, as long as the hull is available.

So a far more critical part of the lore has already been bent, the K2 actually fits if you accept that mech's can be (in much the same way as omnitech) easily re-fitted without the need for a production plant.

They could have been, yes, but that variant being listed as extinct means they weren't, at least not in any noteworthy numbers. If the player could refit their Catapults to the CPLT-K2 standard, that would be one thing, but their presence in standard opfor assignments doesn't mesh.

But as I said, there were extenuating circumstances behind that mech's inclusion. Breaking canon because you're pushed into it is quite different than doing so just because you felt like it.

 

[JD Black]

Ah yes, remember Clicky-Tech, and the "Dark Age" of the TT game? WoB take over? Who did that again? Hmm...

Just like "some" people do not like the Disney Star Wars movies, some people do not like any changes to the lore here.

That is each persons own decision, and However, I think most people who are older players are just HAPPY to see "this" rebirth of a classic game on our PC's. Bend the lore a bit here or there, fine, so long as I'm able to play this wonderful game all these years latter. I can always ignore the stuff I may not like for the enjoyment of what I do have.

And with Moding...

 

[Prussian Havoc]

Ah yes, remember Clicky-Tech, and the "Dark Age" of the TT game? WoB take over? Who did that again? Hmm...

Just like "some" people do not like the Disney Star Wars movies, some people do not like any changes to the lore here.

That is each persons own decision, and However, I think most people who are older players are just HAPPY to see "this" rebirth of a classic game on our PC's. Bend the lore a bit here or there, fine, so long as I'm able to play this wonderful game all these years latter. I can always ignore the stuff I may not like for the enjoyment of what I do have.

And with Moding...

Excellent points, I agree. Seeing Jordan and Mitch at the helm of a Game Development Studio and all this Big Stompiness? Yeah, life is good. : )

 

[Pewpew!]

It's a relay system we have set up.
Digital though. No baton.

Too bad i liked those colored ones from elementary school.

 

[Mugdorna]

............Will Inner Sphere space still be locked away until after the story campaign ends in 1.3? It would be a shame if it was, it would rob this neat new system of some of its shine. I for one get bored quite quickly with post-story content - it just feels somehow sterile if I know I've already "completed" the game and am just dicking about.

I think this Flashpoint expansion is a good starting point. We can explore the new style of play before opening up the IS to a full snadbox campaign. I guess the mech rarity levels might be important to figur out before then?
I would love to see a 4th Succession War campaign for the 2nd expansion, allowing a full exploration of the Inner Sphere and the various factions.
('War of 39' perhaps after that and then the Clans are a long way off in the timeline)

Any chance of the odd access to faction specific mechs as rewards?

Kiva already gave the exmple of a Kurita flashpoint having "rare mech parts" as a reward. This could result in parts for Catapults, Kintaro or Black Knight.

If mechs seem too easy to get, I would recommend trying some of the expanded difficulty options. Requiring 5 pieces to complete a mech really slows down how quickly I was getting them. It also required me to fight heavier enemies more frequently. I found that I was regularly under weight.
Combine that with stingy salvage payouts and unequipped mechs for extra difficulty. ..............................

I ve done that for my current (3rd) playthrough. Definitely feels a lot more "struggling merc company" and Ive only done the Weldry mission. Im doing lots of 1.5-2 skull missions to try and build up my lance and train up pilots. (my 2nd campaign was a waltz as I maximised salvage and it was no problem to me) Im also finding myself buying weapons in the shops more than previously, in order to equip the mechs I do piece together.
I have to spend some time figuring out the shop rotation to try and find more + weapons.