Battle AI Equipment Review

The Battle AI is one of the best pieces of equipment for high level mecha pilots. It brings both a 2X and 3X at 3% damage respectively, which when combined mech and weapon bonuses, can wreak havoc on opposing mecha's. Throw in a big 12 precision rating which exceeds the best crystal equipment available at the same level, and then add them in mass to a mech such as the Torrent that comes with a base 2X and 3X base bonus, and watch the damage counter go amazing levels.

It's not uncommon for high level pilots to exceed 2k in damage with a single shot from a mech loaded with this piece of equipment. To summarize, the Battle AI is one of the best pieces of equipment a high level mecha pilot can have in his arsenal.










Submitted by Bob Schlomer ID# 355341

Mecha Review Warhorse

The little Warhorse is a light niode mecha. Its strengths are a GREAT freeze ability. At 40% freeze with ANY weapon and a truly state of the ART targeting systems (Gives a 24% chance for triple damage) This Mecha is a force to be reckoned with in a tiny package. Everyone whom is anyone starts with this Mecha in their stable and builds from there.

Because of its compact size, it doesn’t have the space needed to really outfit this little beast like you might want but it does carry a decent shield generator which will give you protection against most forms of damage. Being only 15 tons, its easily concealable because of its compact size Most are still in use today. I would rate this Mecha as average because of its abilities. I look forward to someone enlarging one of these so it could be outfitted with the prime equipment available. Doing this would truly make a force to be reckoned with and respected on the battlefield with today's larger Mecha.

Submitted by Scott Eggers ID# 785483

Mech Review Holmes

The specialist classes are a demanding lot aren't they? Those low tonnage categories really stretch the heavy boys to their limits, and with many having scrapped their little mechs off they are catching a lot of guys of guard.

The 35 ton class is a bit of a crossover class too, but DO NOT DESPAIR!
Introducing the HOLMES! This small green killing machine is a damned fine solution to many of the 35 ton issues.

Weighing in bang on the 35 ton limit it is a real beast to take out the enemy.
For those of level 16 and above it is a perfect base for those laser weapons, and we all love our crit-kill guns don't we?

This pint sized terror, resplendent in it's military green finish will set you back a cool  1575 in ferrite, 1050 in bioptics, and 70 cold crystals. So... does it perform? Well... YES! It comes loaded with some useful modifications that accumulate nicely as you level, including a tidy double damage incursion, a moderate speed plus and some SERIOUS laser damage bonus.

Fast enough to compete in it's class and strong enough to tolerate some rough flak it can man-up to the competition around it's field. Originally commissioned as a command mech for the lighter fighters, it's feet are firmly routed with our latest outings of class professionals.

Take note and invest. If you are focusing on a purchase of flavians, or have a KotM surplus of galaxy eyes, then these big boy's toys are your huckleberry. Well worth the flutter.

Submitted by Steve Ross#162076

Jadoon Queen

The nerve center of each traditional Jadoon hive is its queen. Much larger than her workers and soldiers, the Jadoon Queen is responsible for birthing natural Jadoon, thus her health is essential to the well being of wild colonies. Instead of Cheops Beams and a Particle Slate, the lowest power laser she rocks is the Hyper Amp.  Jadoon Queens, like other Jadoon are armed with a battery of Chemthrowers and Res Lasers but they also sport Heat Lasers, which pack much higher amperage.  No one is said to have piloted a Jadoon Queen and known to have lived.

Jadoon do not require air to breathe due to their having an inorganic physiology.  Colonies and examples have been found in such strange regions as asteroid fields of deep space and in the bottom of deep caverns.  They thrive on energy and feed on it.  Jadoon Queens birth their egg larva in the edges of nebulae where the growing babies have a steady supply of cosmic rays for sustenance.  It's the proximity to star factories that makes this possible (the actual nebulae, not the Mecha manufacturing megacorp!).

The Jadoon queens seem almost mythological since they are so seldom encountered.  However, enough Jadoon (even amongst the artificially cloned ones) retain a certain racial memory of there being a queen regardless of ever having served one or not that it would be rash to dismiss the possibility of there being at least one (since mecha galaxy is so big it would be even more likely that there could be more than one).

Submitted by Mycobacter#712744

Coleopteron The Jadoon, Bane Of Space Pirates

Biblically speaking, the largest land monster was Behemoth and the largest sea monster was Leviathan.  The largest air monster is Ziz.  A mecha which I encountered in deep space, Coleopteron was fearfully spoken about in fevered tones by drunk superstitious space pirates.  He is not one of these three fabled Biblical destroyers though. He is (merely) an enormous 90 ton beetle which would feed on ships unfortunate enough to wander into the asteroid field he'd chosen to reside in over the ages as well as your occasional stray mecha.

On each uppermost arm he's got a Black Widow Laser, and his body is studded with a bank of 8 Res Lasers that are capped by a Duboce Laser and Trident Beam.  The middle arms house three Chem Throwers each.  Six Heat Cycler engines ensure a smooth ride. Missiles are the Achilles heel of Jadoon so he has a Thiokol Delta shield as some insurance against them.  Arctic Delta mitigates the ice vulnerability created by his missile shield and stacked pair of Advanced Alloys in the Chassis.  Trample is not going to ruin our day either as Coleopteron is also equipped with Reinforced Plating among his shielding.

My preferred method of communicating with him is through interface via a Neural Recalibrator helmet (much less migraine inducing than the buzzing that is heard when using an aural implant alone).  Coleopteron uses his three Sensor Arrays to do sweeps and gather stimulus information which we then analyze.

In addition to the two Advanced Alloys in the Chassis, Coleopteron also has a Magnetic Aura generator and a set of Trilerian Sprockets to keep him nimble.

The last mecha I'd needed to reach Adept status in Beast Mastery, this ancient Jadoon adds some serious firepower at decent speed to my arsenal.  Now, to see if I can get him and my Beast mecha to be able to get along...

Submitted by Mycobacter#712744

Reinforced Plating Equipment Review

 Like most extremely heavy duty alternative shielding, we see the trade off of increased protection at the cost of a reduction in speed (-4). What distinguishes the reinforced plating amongst these is that it can be obtained for crystal, suffers no kickback and though the generic shield is low at 5, it gives you some nice anti-trample at 38%.

The way it works is many small shock absorbers using springs are sandwiched between numerous layers of plating, which behave like pusher plates, stabilizing your mecha structurally against the aftershocks of the sonic booms and quakes of trample damage. They are not intelligent computer guided ones like on the Riot Gear, but these dummy shocks do their job well enough.

It'll fit on mecha that weigh ranging from 70 to 90 tons and the price for one will run you 400 Ferrite, 333 Bioptics and 70 Crystal, which to me seems like quite a steal, considering how pricey equipment for the larger and larger mecha has a tendency to get.

Goes great on your kaijus and Jadoon to even the playing field now that there are dinosaur mecha running around that have their own anti-trample built in.









Submitted by Mycobacter#712744

Coleopteron's Resolve

I found myself called back out of retirement much sooner than I thought I would be. The newest addition to my formation, Coleopteron the Jadoon was a creature I'd encountered in the void of deep space.  Both a monster and philosopher, he'd been biding his time for entire epochs, trying to figure out his next move. I introduced my clan's leader to him.  Tensions had been somewhat high towards the holiday, and I had not left on good terms. 

Coleopteron told him he'd try to keep me in line since organization is not my strong suit. They had a bit of a laugh about that.  Quanta tells me that since she is half Nakshi but also half artificial intelligence, she does not think that working with a Jadoon will be that much a problem for her, as long as she has her computerized aspects overrule her bestial instincts.  Claymore and Giga Rex are somewhat more apprehensive, and I think Coleopteron will have to work a bit harder to win them over.  Perhaps when they all discover and realize having a shared love of splash damage that will be common ground?

These problems of team work and working together effectively, unlike being a logistical on paper problem to figure out as they are with fully automated mecha, when it comes to kaiju and beasts becomes something of a human resources issue. Except, these aren't humans. These are giant, for the most part intelligent, massive thinking and feeling 'machines'.  I will probably need to drill them in trust exercises. Geez.

Coleopteron remains somewhat enigmatic, but he agreed to help me and serve my clan.  I placed our decal on the plate above his eye.  The rest of his particular hive it seems he had been separated from for some time before I'd found him, so I believe part of what got this gigantic bug to agree to fight for me is a chance to see how much the universe has changed, in addition to his own agenda of seeking out any still remaining hive mates from his brood.

For example: To date, nobody has really much documented a Jadoon Queen and they remain largely mythological, encounters being the spacefarer's equivalent to fisherman's tales or running into a Bigfoot on Old Earth.

Not to be confused with the race of exceptionally hairy creatures on Vupa 5 who also tend to be referred to as Bigfeet.

Submitted by Mycobacter#7127414

Coleopteron's Story

I related to the Giant insect my tale of shame in what had brought me searching for either salvation or demise equally in seeking its ilk out. It listened, remarkably well. Chittering and chirpings detectable to me through my aural implant but only in a supportive manner rather than to interrupt or commandeer the course of our extremely weird conversation.

Evidently the novelty of my purposefully seeking him out is what kept Coleopteron from devouring my life force.  Said something about it reminded him a little of his previous pilot. Coleopteron had accompanied me back to my drop ship.  The kaiju were upset by this but they know new mecha added to the team tends to equal a stronger force and that this overruled any lasting rivalries.

I stepped out of my Zadok.  A tendril-like antennae shot from Coleopteron's compound eye, piercing through me and causing images to flash through my head. Subsequent eons in general relief were compressed down so as to not overwhelm my smaller and inferior human hybrid senses. I will have to relate the rest later but in the time it took me to forcibly remove the appendage I'd absorbed in some of it, the most jarring being some answers to the long standing questions of a Jadoon's early life cycle.

These were Coleopteron being lain as an egg by a Jadoon Queen, in a star nebula where the rich cosmic rays of the star birthing factory nourish Larval Jadoon. They begin socializing then, and carry out social functions soon after reaching their first instar stage.  The next instar stages are where the Jadoon becomes larger and stronger, starts fighting.  This process it seems, unlike the artificially cloned Jadoon in which juvenile to adulthood progression is very rapid, for wild Jadoon takes much longer than a human lifespan.

Like most beetles, they go through a process of incomplete metamorphosis.  After hatching is the larval stage, followed by a number of instar stages between moultings.  Instead of a cocoon stage, they have a pupal stage after which they are a mature adult.  All stages past larval are to an extent capable of fighting but it is only at the adult stage the Jadoon becomes a fully capable war machine.

These cosmic beetles hitch rides on comets and meteors when no gates are available.  Subgating is a technique they have which allows a Jadoon to use a Niode Gate on its own.

I made Coleopteron promise not to do a direct interface with me again.
From now on we use a Neural Recalibrator as an intermediate.
Trying to think like a humongous inorganic insect is extremely intense and disorienting.
The Recalibrator's port fit the sensory antenna snugly.
"Okay, let's try this again"
I was back inside the guided tour of my Jadoon's memories. My Jadoon? I guess he was accepting me. Nice!

He'd skipped ahead to some of his later memories. Ingesting his first pilot due to frustration, forming some bonds with his second who was piloting him more than a century later as they fought battles together but outliving her.  His third pilot, though a forerunner being somewhat distractible, like me.  Eons passing of having no pilot, migrating to that forlorn pocket of space and devouring passing ships as a monster, sucking energy from the mecha which occasionally strayed too close.

Not an unthinking monster though. Or at least not so deep down.

Submitted by Mycobacter#712744

Battle 2

We charge out of the gate, looking for anything to shoot. We see dead or dying foliage. A small amount of frost. No large trees or hedges. The area surrounding the gate we just came through seems to be deserted, apart from us.

“I thought this was a desert planet?”

“There are snow deserts, dipstick.”

“If, Daine, you would take a moment to stop being an insufferable know-it-all, you would see that there are, in fact, PLANTS.”

“Shut the hell up.”

“Make me.”

“EVERYONE SHUT IT! Garron, scan for life and electronic signatures. And Daine, the brief said specifically a sand desert. That’s why our mechs are modified for sand.”

“I hate all of you.”

“I haven’t even done anything yet!”

“You haven’t done anything YET TODAY, Kardin.”

“Only things within range of my scanners are us, sir.”

“What the hell?”

Clanise contacts me on a private channel. “Sir, does this look at all familiar?”

“Kind of, but I can’t place it. Why?”

“Doesn’t this remind you of anywhere?”

“I just said that it does. What are you hinting at?”

“This is the gate we used to escape the Rook pilots on Zyto.”

“Crap.”

An explosion rattles the gate we just stepped off of. If we hadn’t moved to take up tactical positions, we would’ve been toast. I switch back to the main channel. “EVACUATE! NOW!”

A Rook mech erupts from the ground in front of us, guns primed. More are appearing around us. They must have had shielded bunkers or something.

“SURRENDER OR DIE.”

They open fire, as we gate out. We land on our clan’s home-world, fortunately. As soon as Jen’s iMech is on it’s feet, I ram it with my Keradon.

“WHAT THE HELL?”

“I WILL PERSONALLY COURT-MARSHALL YOU INTO OBLIVION!”

“It wasn’t me!”

“That’s bullsh-”

“I switched the gatekeys.”

“Daine?”

“I wanted to see how funny it was. It wasn’t.”

Jen cuts in: “Last time, they chased commander halfway around the planet.”

I’m still seething. “We are in the middle of a clan war. Do you have ANY idea of what this could have cost us?”
“…Right. We are.”

“Now. Where’s the right key?”

“Garron still has it.”

We look at Garron’s Holmes. Apparently some of the shots came back with us. We see Garron’s form detach from the smoking remains of his mech.


“How resilient are Niodes?”

Garron radios us from his headset: “Doesn’t matter. We easily left half of my mech behind, including the part with different gating niodes. We’re not going anywhere, until we get a new shipment from Central.”

“Everyone go and do target practice or something. We have no time for this incompetence. Do NOT even THINK about pulling this stunt again, understand?”

Submitted by Toby Easterbrook/844872

The Deal Chapter 12

Woody begins to wake up and says, “Woodman … you won’t believe the strange dream I had last night.” As Woody opens his eyes and adjusts to the light, he realizes he’s not at home and that it wasn’t a dream. “Hey bud … the shower’s over there. You might want to wash up first,” Woodman says to Woody. “Thanks man,” Woody replies as he moves off to the shower. As Woodman looks out the window, his nose catches a scent of something good coming from the kitchen. He goes to investigate. As he enters the kitchen, he sees a young beautiful native girl cooking.

 “Good morning! I’m Woodman.” The young woman only replies, “I was sent over by Tobar to take care of you. Sit and eat,” as she points to the table covered with food. “Thanks,” Woodman replies as he sits and begins to eat. Shortly after, Woody enters. “Warrior Woody – I have prepared your morning meal. Here … sit.” the young tribal girl says. “So what’s your name,” Woody says as he sits down. “I am Silverwing, youngest sister to chief Tobar.” “Well thank you – The food is delicious Silverwing,” Woody says. “Tobar will be here as soon as he is done at the pow wow with the other warriors,” Silverwing says. As the boys finish up their meal, Tobar returns.

“Greeting brothers,” Tobar says. “How are things going?” Woody asks. “My advisors tell me it will take several months to rebuild our village and Mechs,” Tobar replies. “Tobar … Allow us to help. I have an idea that will help you and your people,” Woody says. “Ok – Tell me of this idea.” Tobar says. “I was thinking, now that Exile knows that the other tribes are joining clans, they’re going to want your tribe to join them.” Tobar interrupts Woody, “You can be our tribe’s representative, brother. You are tribal. My people will accept this. You’ve fought by their side as a fellow warrior and fought with honor. I trust you and I know you will do what is best for our tribe,” Tobar says. “For MY tribe?” Woody questions. “Yes brother. You are an honored member of this tribe. It was voted on this morning. Everyone is excited to hear from our brother and hear stories of our ancestors,” Tobar concludes. “I am honored chief Tobar. With the help of Clan Exile, the tribe’s village and Mechs should be repaired in two weeks. I will also push for an early warning system to protect the tribe from another sneak attack and work on a direct communication system that will not allow communications to be blocked,” Woody explains.

 “Sounds good my friend,” Tobar says. Woody and Woodman leave the village to return to Exile’s base. They then seek out the Commander and broker an official deal between the clan and tribe. They return to the tribe and give the news to chief Tobar in person. The workers from Exile arrive at the village and begin to rebuild it. By evening the boys are exhausted and flake out for the night.

Submitted by Woodman1201#832644

The Sneak Attack Chapter 11

The boys run to the Mechs and power up. “WOW! Nice Mech!” Woodman says to Woody over the com. “K buddy … this is the real deal. Stick together and we might make it out of this in one piece.” “ Roger Coyote.” Just as they pull out, “What the heck is that Coyote?” “Oh my … it’s a Nifthel Roadrunner and look who’s inside … It’s Tobar!” Tobar says to the boys over the com, “Follow me.” The boys take up a wedge formation with Tobar as they come up from the bunker. Tobar quickly identifies the enemy as a mix of a rival tribe “The Death Eaters” and some unknown group. “The others are from Clan Highlanders. The Death Eaters must have joined up with them when they heard you were joining Clan Exile.” They will all die at our hands. Come.” Tobar says as he quickly targets the closest enemy and fires. Two bright beams shoot forth from Tobar’s Mech. This is the first time the boys see a cold weapon beam fired. They both quickly shoot at the same target and it blows up into pieces.

Tobar turns and fires again at a new target – The boys do the same and another Mech is destroyed. Tobar yells out, “They’re trying to kill our warriors before they can get to their Mechs. We must get between them so they have a chance. Tobar places himself so his warriors have a safe route to their Mechs. Woody yells, “Roadrunner! …Three o’clock!” just as he fires. Roadrunner sidesteps out of the fire of an enemy Holmes and fires back. Tobar finishes it off with a salvo of rockets. Roadrunner yells out, “Tobar! Ten o’clock!” as he fires. Woody fires as well and gets a lucky shot hitting its power supply. The Mech shuts down. Tobar quickly moves behind it, using it as a shield. Just then Tobar sees three Mechs moving in on his father’s position but before he can say anything, his father’s Mech ignites in flames. Tobar cries out, “FATHER!!!” then quickly shouts, “Keep fighting warriors until they’re all dead. “

As he fires at the lead Mech that destroyed his father’s Mech, the boys move into position to do the same. As both boys fire, they cripple the enemy Mech. Tobar fires a single shot – his second shot freezes the Mech and the boys finish the job. Just then at least a dozen Mechs emerge from one of the hangers. “Some of our warriors made it!” yells Tobar as they move up to support Tobar and the boys. Woody notices one of Tobar’s tribe Mechs that has just been sitting in one place and not firing. All of a sudden, it powers up and Woodman sees Makar in the pilot seat. It quickly points its weapons at Tobar. Woody instinctively yells to Tobar, “Six o’clock!” as he runs and jumps in front of the blast. As his Mech flies through the air, he hits the eject button – His cockpit flies up as his Mech explodes into pieces. “Woody!” yells Woodman as he unloads on the Mech. Makar’s Mech is completely disabled and on fire. Tobar yells, “Why brother???” “With both you and father alive I would never be chief so I made a deal with the Death Eaters.” Makar says. “You dishonor our family and so you will die with no honor,” Tobar says as he destroys his brother’s Mech. “I now claim the throne in honor of my ancestors and the right as eldest son!” Tobar yells out over the com for all to hear. More and more of the tribe’s warriors are able to get to their Mechs. ‘The tribe has many more than the twenty Mechs that Song was led to believe.’

Woody thinks to himself as he scrambles across the battlefield and back to the hangers. He finds himself another empty Holmes and gets back into the battle. “Hey Roadrunner! Miss me? I’m coming up on your six o’clock.” “Woody! You made it you tough son of a bitch!” Woodman yells. As Woody pulls back into formation the three with the other warriors push forward and after an hour of heavy fighting, the enemy begins to retreat. Tobar orders his warriors to pursue the cowards and the retreating Mechs are easily picked off. As Tobar and the boys return to camp, the women look for and treat the survivors. The warriors stand guard for several hours before returning to camp. Just to be sure there isn’t a second wave on the horizon, the surviving warriors begin to gather the dead. Woody and Woodman help as best they can. Shortly after the battle has ended, Clan Exile arrives to assist in defending and also to provide the injured badly needed medical assistance. The girls soon arrive and find the boys. “Oh my God! … you’re ok!” Kalli says to Woody as she hugs him. “Your helicopter pilot leaked the battle over the net hoping Exile would see it. They had someone jamming all the radio transmissions somewhere between the tribe and Exile’s base. It was quick thinking on his part – We got here as quickly as we could.” “Please tell our people to stay outside of the tribe’s camp. Only let the medical teams set up a medical field tent. You’ll have to go – I’ll explain later.” Woody says. “Oh ok,” Kalli replies. Minutes later Exile forces are on the outskirts of the tribe. After about ten minutes, the medical tent is up and running. The boys join Tobar and start assembling the ceremonial deathbeds.

 Woody explains to Woodman that these people are much like the native people of his planet. “I’m beginning to think that they were brought here long ago -There are many similarities. These beds are where the warriors are going to be cremated and released to the heavens to become one with the planet again.” Tobar looks at Woody and says, “You know much of our ways – Why is that?” “I think we were distant brothers my friend. Some of my ancestors were tribal warriors on my planet.” Woody explains. Tobar says, “The elders pass down a story of strange beings bringing our people here many generations ago – So long ago that it became an old myth the woman would tell the children when they did not listen.” After the warriors’ death ritual, Tobar invited the boys back to his home where they all rested. All three slept until the following morning.

Submitted by Woodman1201#832644

The Challenge Chapter 10

The next morning comes all too soon for the boys. They’re woken up by the sound of the door buzzer repeatedly sounding. Bzzzz Bzzzz Bzzzzzzzz…. “OK!!! OK!!! Keep your socks on!” Woody yells as he makes his way down the stairs to the door. As he opens the door, a pilot asks, “Are you Woody or Woodman?” “Yeah.” Woody answers. “Please sign here…thanks. By the way, good luck today sir. All of us guys in Communications are rooting for ya.” “Thanks man,” Woody replies as he closes the door. “What is it bud?” Woodman yells down. “Another hand delivered envelope is all,” Woody answers back. Woodman scrambles out of bed and down the stairs to Woody who is sitting on the couch. “Well open it up!” Woodman exclaims. “It says it’s from Tobar…” Woody says and begins reading it to Woodman.
To the warriors, Woody and Woodman: Please accept a personal invitation to our traditional Feast of Battle where we celebrate each other as fellow warriors. It allows us to face each other not as enemies but as brothers and it is a chance to honor one another as warriors. Songs will be sung about our coming battle and our names will forever be remembered. I guarantee your safety and we will not harm you – I give you my word.
Tobar
PS: Please be here for noon.

“Well… What do you think bud?” Woodman asks. “I think it’s a good idea – We can check them out and if we win we’ll have to get to know our people since we’ll become their new princes. We have to show them that we’re not weak or afraid.” Woody explains. “Agreed.” Woodman says. The boys get ready for the big day and make arrangements with the Commander to get a helicopter to fly them there and back. Later that morning, they board the helicopter with a Clan Song representative to ensure there was no sabotage involved from either side. It was a long two hour flight to the tribe’s base. There were three large airplane like hangers and several smaller ones.

There were approximately a hundred smaller buildings that looked like dwellings with a larger one in the middle. As the helicopter lands they see a large group of people ready to greet them. The boys step out and move towards the group. They come across a man wearing a bear-like head dress and fur – He greets them first. “Welcome warriors Woody and Woodman. I am chief Takooma and this is my eldest. Tobar.” A large fellow steps forward – he is almost as big as his father and is wearing a wolf-like fur over his shoulder. “Welcome warriors Woody and Woodman – It is an honor to meet you and thank you for joining us for this feast.” As he steps back the chief says “This is my youngest son, Makar.” A smaller fellow steps forward but they realize he isn’t wearing an animal hide. “Welcome warriors Woody and Woodman.” He steps back as well. Woody replies, “Thank you for the honor of battling such great warriors – We are thankful to sit at your table and share your feast.” The chief smiles and says ”This way to the great hall.” As they are led to the hall the chief has a table set up at the front of the hall in a stage-like area.

The chief and his sons as well as several elders gather and sit at the head table. The chief then turns and says “Come … join us as our guests of honor.” Woody and Woodman sit. The chief then stands and shouts out, “Let the feast begin!” It was soon observed that there were only men present at this event when all of a sudden women begin bringing large platters of food out and place them on the tables. “Wow … what a spread,” Woodman whispers to Woody. Once the food is placed on the tables, the chief stands again holding a cup in the air. He says, “To all the warriors that have come and gone before us – we drink to their victories. To my sons, I drink to your past and future victories. To our guest warriors, we celebrate your past victories.” As the chief drinks from his cup everyone else follows suit. The chief then yells out, “Enjoy and eat!” The whole place begins to eat and chatter amongst themselves and the boys indulge. They stuff themselves to the gills.

 A half hour into the feast, there is the sound of a large explosion and the ground shakes. Someone comes running out into the hall yelling, “We’re under attack!” Just then the far end of the building explodes sending bodies flying. The head table and everyone at it is thrown from the blast. Through the dust and debris the boys get up quickly checking themselves for injuries. “Woodman … you alright?” Woody asks. Woodman replies, “Yep – I’m good.” The boys notice that Song’s rep has a large piece of wood sticking out through his neck. The chief then yells out, “To your Mechs!” Many of the men at the far end of the hall are dead or dying and several others are injured. Tobar yells to the boys “This way! Come quickly!!!” The boys follow him through a door and down a long tunnel. After about five minutes of running down the tunnel, there is a junction. Tobar instructs, “Keep going this way! … It will lead you out of camp to safety.” Woody replies, “No thanks – you lost a lot of warriors and could use everyone you have. We fight with you.” “Ok then hurry!” as the boys follow Tobar to a bunker. He points to two Holmes. “You can use these,” he says. Woody smiles at Woodman and says, “This is why I joined – It’s the thrill of battle my friend. Let’s do this.”

Submitted by Woodman1201#832644

To Catch A Cosmic Beetle (Conclusion)

That was how I became acquainted with Coleopteron.  He is something of a philosopher.  I think, were he and Quanta, my Nakshi, to get over their ages old species rivalry, they might have quite a lot to talk about.  He agreed to join my formation in that it sounded a good deal more interesting than continuing to sit around in that asteroid field leeching energy from passing mecha and ships.

From what I understand Coleopteron has been piloted before, he explained to me that it was ages ago though, while he was still a pupa.  Like most beetles, Jadoon apparently undergo an incomplete metamorphosis. That is, they do not have a cocoon stage to transform from an adolescent to their adult form but rather moult instead, in several stages.  As has been noted before, Jadoon are a type of social insect.  His first pilot was a Forerunner.  This just keeps getting more interesting.

What were this Jadoon and his hive mates doing out in this asteroid field for entire epochs?  Apparently they hid from the extinction event where many Jadoon were purged during their conflicts with elite Beast Mecha.
Coleopteron, though not familiar with the concept of Beast Mastery took it on and caught up with it quickly.  He does think the idea of a human thinking he or she can CONTROL much larger and deadlier animals than him or herself to be somewhat silly, but also intriguing.  He explained to me being a larva while the dinosaurs still roamed Old Earth.  Just how ancient are Jadoon anyway?

Submitted by Mycobacter #712744

Catching A Cosmic Beetle: A Perilous Predicament

He'd felt I was a businessman playing at warrior. The leader of the clan I was in. It had been a long time since I had taken on something this directly dangerous, and on my own, without help.

There was a being speaking to me now.  A huge, 90 ton being BFM whose territory I had trespassed on, in a tiny and piddling 35 ton medium mecha, equipped as it was with two Black Ice, Potatoes and Bacon as well as some crystal lasers and projectiles.  Woefully inadequate.

This is it Myco, you didn't just let your whole clan down (again), as well as your friends... this time you're going to get your dumb ass handed to you, by a massive space bug.

My aural implant was causing my head to pound, the ringing changing its pitch. The beetle that was a wild Jadoon, this particular one black in color as opposed to the more accustomed red, was laughing a booming laugh.  I fired bacon at it. This made it laugh even harder.

YOU AMUSE ME.  NOT SINCE I WAS A TERTIARY INSTAR HAVE I BEEN THUSLY TREATED.
It gnawed on the piece of fire bacon with its mandibles. Or rather, siphoned the energy from it.

I AM CALLED COLEOPTERON.  MY COLORATION CONFUSES YOU?
He shifted to the customary shade of red.

I didn't know Jadoon could change color... this mecha is full of surprises.

Deadly, capable of spewing ignitable acid from jets on the end of nacelles at the tips of the legs.  Crystals arranged to form focusing lenses capable of producing offensive lasers also stud the mammoth insect.
Well, that it hadn't killed me outright, knowing full well that it could was something.  Not taming it, yet, but an initial good sign.










Submitted by Mycobacter #712744

Beast Mastery: To Catch A Cosmic Beetle

I had disgraced my battle brothers. My experiments tore me away from them during the heat of battle at a crucial raid for new tech and weapons then (CW XIX).  After that, my lack of strategy contributed in our losing the second round of CW XX to 82nd Omicron, a group we could easily enough have otherwise taken.  Three points that were my fault. An unacceptable and noobish error in judgment.

I've scrubbed the tell-tale kabuto decals from the hulls of my mecha and drop ship that identify me as a member of Samurai Mecha.  They no longer bear the grinning metallic faceplate with its coarse shocks of tufted beard and mustache.  I feel after having been dressed down by my leader that I do not deserve them. Not yet.

To quit or not to quit... Perhaps though, in all this exploring I will have opportunity to redeem myself though.  I have heard pirates tell of an asteroid field, wherein that rarity of rarities, a small hive of still free roaming wild Jadoon have downed smaller mecha whose pilots are foolish enough to wander over there in those few unfortunate convoys.  No one is willing to take me to it no matter how much I offer to pay.  They feel the sector is bad luck and that the sanest bet and guarantee toward having the longest life is to avoid the area altogether. I will have to ferry myself then.

Well, hey, I'm bad luck too. Maybe the two bad lucks will neutralize each other.  That part of me that is the explorer and the treasure hunter, it tells me that the secrets of this part of space may be quite useful to me as a pilot.  So, now to just find one of these wild Jadoon which they seem to be so afraid of.  And to tame it.  By myself.  Without the assistance of TcTt's aid or Drake's technological artifices as crutches.  Quanta warped me as close to the space island as she could stand, Zadok in tow.  During a space walk things are hauntingly too quiet.  That and the immense stretching void pinpricked with far off stars remind you how truly alone we really are, and that our conflicts, both personal and not, are truly small in comparison to the vastness of all the rest of this stuff in the cosmos.

Much more fundamentally so and in a simpler and more profound way than visiting another dimension or parallel universe. There are many things we still don't understand about our own universe.  In all of our exploration, we still don't know all there is to know about the Forerunners, for example.  Or the Triax.  Let alone what the beast mecha society of Giguses and Skriags was like all that much from before the Forebearers modified them into gigantic war machines.  We may never know too much about that one, which seems unfortunate.

It was then that suddenly a sort of buzzing hum went from being unheard to barely audible in my aural implant.  This was the signal I had been waiting for. The Scrub Grub, Multifuel Turbine and Turbine Engines pushed the Zadok along as I scrabbled it to traverse the rocky outcropping of this asteroid.

LITTLE ONE, YOU HAVE CHOSEN TO AUDACIOUSLY IMITATE US.

Oh, they meant my choice of an insect looking mecha.
<i>So what?</i>

YOU ARE EITHER VERY BRAVE OR VERY RECKLESS. COME CLOSER...

Well, I thought, things are about to get interesting. That or I'm about to get very dead...
To Be Continued.

]

Submitted by Mycobacter #712744

A Little Humility is Good

I thought I knew what I was doing, up until last Clan War.  The 19th one I realized, no... I don't. I'm an explorer more than a strategist. Lost battles to some way lower tonnage formations than mine.  There is a heckuva lot I still have to learn about optimizing formations.  Considering retiring from it after Clan Wars XX.  Feel like I may be holding the rest of the clan I'm in back from winning more, due to that weakness.  The best course of action may be to train in solo in order to iron out my weaknesses.

Inventors and explorers don't always make the best strategists.  Duels are different than battles. In battle, during wars, you have to keep your eyes on the long term and bigger picture, how parts operate together as a whole.

There is some danger that in trying to focus on cleaning up specific particular weak areas in defenses too much I could wind up entirely neglecting others, again.  It cost us a clan raid in XIX (trouble balancing double duties as inventor and a fighter), and may have been a determining factor in what cost us a silver medal this time breaking our recent gold streak.

I need to re-examine how I fight and work some of that out. I scored some pretty nice kit during my travels and some impressive mecha during those voyages.  The question is how to utilize it all most effectively...

I'm not a military man.  Winning battles through sheer dumb luck is okay when you are lower level, but I looked at the roster, and on reaching level 72 went, you know dammit, there's got to be a better way.  I'm a hobbyist, somebody who discovered mecha through leisure and business rather than necessity or out of some type of nationalist duty toward serving a space power.

Am I going to come out of retirement? Well yeah, at most it'll likely be only temporary.  Not sure for how long though. Looking for a sign. Going to have to go on a personal quest this time, to see if I've got what it takes to deserve to bear the standard and adorning identifications on my mecha hulls.

It's a big Mecha Galaxy out there.  I want to become a true beast master of kaiju and bug.  Speaking of bugs, just because I'll be briefly in retirement, doesn't mean I won't keep going with my exploration.  The next mecha to unlock is the Jadoon.  I've seen what a fully trained one can do. I've become... familiar of a few of their idiosyncrasies in personality from observing Patrick's Apocalyptor.  Rumor has it there may be some sleeping in an asteroid field. "wild" ones.  Quanta isn't going to like this much.  I may have to have her just warp me to some rock and do a spacewalk unaided in my Zadok... hope I can find one and it doesn't roast me to death with its Chem Throwers immediately before I get a chance to hail it... since I've not tried bug whispering before.

Submitted by Mycobacter #712744

Injection Beam Weapon Review

A lower level weapon the majority of us are very familiar with, this laser has a minimum level of 23 on it. The price for getting one from the shop is 345 Ferrite, 161 Bioptics, and 20 Niodes. A bulk buy of 5 will cost you 80 Niodes. It has straight damage of 36, with a speed of 100, and an ability of 3x damage at 12%.

As usual you can further augment this weapon with equipment load out and proper mech build specs. The speed is pretty average for a laser, the damage is decent for the level, and the ability is solid for the price. These should be familiar to many as they are given out a lot as prizes for various activities (KOTM, Wars, Raids) so they are pretty common. They are solid and reliable lasers that have seen use in many battles throughout Mecha Galaxy. You really can't go wrong with such an old standby.

.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Post Round 2 Interview Inside Zeon

Good day mecha fans the world over. This is Steve Ross#162076 bringing you a post-round 2 interview with Don Alligood#201365 from here inside the ZEON gates. How's it going Don?

Donald A Alligood - Its going pretty good.  just going over battles to see how I can improve.

Steve Ross - A shrewd policy to be sure. Round 3 is around the corner and match ups have been announced. I believe the ZEON camp has drawn the Slaughterhouse 5 boys. How do you guys feel about these as your possible barrier for silver?

Donald A Alligood - We'll slaughter them,  not even a decent pothole.

Steve Ross - lol Confidence over-flowing for certain there. It was not such a case in the second round however wouldn't you agree? There are those who have aired surprise at ZEON having being placed as highly as division 3, although you acquitted yourselves well in the first. With such a crushing defeat at the hands of the Red Comet would you suggest it points to your clan punching above their weight somewhat?

Donald A Alligood - MMI has an amazing clan.  looking forward to competing with them in the future.  They did a great job and made us look how we make most other clans look.

Steve Ross - Agreed, they did a splendid job and displayed fine form as is their reputation. They seemed to lean towards the 10 ton specialist class. Do you think this was the tactic that pretty much sealed the deal, or do you think there would have been similar results if the specialists weren't in play? Could ZEON have done anything different with the gift of hindsight to counter such a defeat?

Donald A Alligood - The 10 ton spec was an interesting concept, but I think the outcome would have been similar without the specialist.  They are good players, I think as they level differences between clans get closer, the closer the fights will become.  Both clans field excellent pilots and mech set ups

Steve Ross - As the fans have seen over the past wars. Now, ZEON is rolling on a lot of reputation and is a firm fan favorite within their divisions. How do you find the clan as a team when it comes to contests and tournaments? Is there a great deal of behind the scenes preparation for these events or, like some other clans, are the members just left to themselves to play things by ear?

Donald A Alligood - We dont attack each other without permision in kotms,  but generally we do a great job working together.  The feel in clan is more of close friend/family than anything.  We are always working to be prepared for any formation we may face and always testing out versus each other to see where we can improve.

Steve Ross - Sounds like the very model of all the best clans we have seen throughout the galaxy. It's always heartening to hear how well the clans work themselves. Now, we have a number of clans who appear to be part of much larger families. The AFF clans are possibly the biggest example of such a venture. Has ZEON any such designs in this system? Are we likely to see a mini-Zeon causing mayhem in the lower leagues any time soon? What's the family feel in this respect?

Donald A Alligood - I don't think T.J. wants to directly run more than just zeon, but there are clans some of us consider family/friends.

Steve Ross - I see. Keeping those cards close to your chests then. No problem. Well, with the third round upon as, as we have already indicated, do you yourself have any tips or shareable tactics you can throw out to our fan base? Anything you can give our viewers to whet their appetites before the eleventh hour?

Donald A Alligood - For example, I am very partial to the black star clans, especially considering my mom and dad are members of the lycan rangers and during the faction war a few of us went over to help them out, some went to the storm, some took a vacation.

Steve Ross - Indeed. I myself joined in on that one. A very enjoyable experience and a great bunch of guys too. Can you see a similar unification when the next Faction wars comes around? And lastly, before we wrap things up, can you give any advice to the aspiring new talents aiming for future glory in the galaxy?

Donald A Alligood - Well, just keep improving and working on the set ups. like most things success comes with effort and knowledge.  As far as round 3,  tonight we dine on slaughterhouse5  and I'm kinda hungry

Steve Ross - Hhahahaha! That confident beast raises it's head once more. Well, I'm sure the ZEON fans will be watching with unwavering interest. Thanks very much for your time today Don, and I'll see you in the hangers as we warm up the war machines. Good hunting brother.

Donald A Alligood - You too brother.

Submitted by Steve Ross/Donald Alligood #162076/#201365

Delta Dart Weapon Review

This Niode missile system is for minimum levels of 11. It will cost you 380 Ferrite, 290 Bioptics, and 18 Niodes. Bulk buy is an option also with 5 for 72 niodes, at the time of this writing there are 233 left of 250. It has a damage of 36, a speed of 99 and has the abilities of Crit-kill at 2% as well as Splash at 3%.

Given the Advanced Fury Rack is a level 15 weapon and only does 18 damage straight up this isn't too bad. The Niode fury rack also has a peed of 91 compared to this weapons 99, really the only advantage the Adv. Fury Rack has is Fork at 60%. As a comparison basis however there are 4 levels difference between the two weapons. but as this illustration shows  the lower level Niode weapon has the higher level one on everything but abilities. So is it worth it for straight damage, speed, nd abilities you can improve upon with build and proper equipment load out? You be the judge and give it a go.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Giga Rex The Gigus A Missile Flinging, Fire Throwing Berserker

I often, especially lately hear people once in awhile gripe about the low speed of a Gigus.  At +9, Giga Rex will never exactly be a speed demon but what he lacks in speed he makes up with in pure firepower.

Four Smelters, two Diablis Nozzles, a Rage Pulsar, two Plutocracy Missiles, twin Rupture Shots, five Death Heads, a Hornet's Nest, and two Arctic Gales make up his arsenal.

The particular equipment load out I've set him with provides the following stat bonuses:

Fire Damage + 50% <- This may not sound like alot as compared to some other, more expensive mecha that boast higher damage boosts but when combined with high output fire weapons is plenty deadly enough.

Missile Damage + 37% <- The secondary weapon employed by Giguses, missiles, receives an understandibly smaller boost than that of the primary weapon, but this is still nothing to sneeze at.

Laser Damage + 10% <- Just for kicks

Ice Damage + 10% <- No one expects a fire mecha to shoot ice beams.

Speed + 9

Fork 8% <- Not terrible but not exactly worth writing home about.

3X Damage 3%

Splash 14% <- This is decent.

Trample 20% <- Goes off 1/5 of the time, which isn't bad.

2X Damage 3%

Crit-Kill 6% <- the small double, triple damage chance increases and crit-kill % are pure gravy.

Precision (28) <- not terrible and it's higher than a buchis to be sure, but there are more precise builds and mecha out there.

Freeze 19% <- Not too shabby, considering this isn't really an ice nor a laser focused mecha.

Dodge (41) <- To be honest, I'd like to do something to increase this with further mods at later levels.

Slow (8) <- Slow is derided as not that useful compared to the other abilities like burn or freeze but it certainly doesn't hurt when the mecha with slow ability also is one that has low overall speed; Forcing an enemy mech to decelerate can potentially even the table.

Auto Repair (6) <- Takes a licking and keeps on ticking.

Shield (111) <- not too bad.

Fire Shield (20)

Proj. Shield 3% <- Pew pew! Ping ping! Secondary shielding is laughable at best most of the time but it can help in some instances

Ice Shield 26% <- Neither rain nor sleet,

Fire Shield 29% <-  nor rampaging inferno...

Missile Shield 33%  <- Yeah, you aren't going to make a substantial dent in his defenses by firing a rocket.

Laser Shield 4% <- More secondary minor shielding.

Cockpit: Neural Recalibrator, Hawkeye Marksman, Long Range Sensors and a Betrus Processor.  Just because the fire and missile weapons have a tendency to do Area of Effect damage when it comes to things like splash and fork doesn't mean you can't also be throwing them around with precision while doing so.

Chassis:  Coolant System, Magnetic Connectors, Shear Thickening Fluid, Magnetic Aura, Muon Junction and Trilerian Sprockets.  <- This is to provide significant Shielding and dodge boosts (You've got a huge equip bay chassis section on a Gigus, so you may as well take full advantage of this!).

Engines: Dark Matter Converter, Indefinite Singularity and Caged Singularity.  <- the trifecta of huge heavy duty engines.  It isn't about speed as much as it is about combat advantages, giving the Auto Repair and some further shield effects, plus damage effects.

Shielding: Three deltas: Caudata for protection against fire, Thiokol for protection against missiles, and Arctic for Protection against ice.










Submitted by Mycobacter #712744

Post Round 1 Interview Zeon

Ladies, Gentlemen and Galaxy wild ones; We're here in one of Novum's more delectable drinking haunts bringing you a post-round 1 clan wars interview. I'm Steve Ross# 162076 and with me I have Rick Hoffer#182594 of ZEON fame. Rick, thanks for your time today. How's things with you?

Rick Hoffer - Great mate thanks for the time

Steve Ross - No worries. Well, the divisions were announced and I think there was an air of trepidation with some of the opponents many clans were facing. How did you feel seeing such heavy competition in your division?

Rick Hoffer - Ya I was a little concerned but truth be told it has been like this for the last 3 Clan Wars we have been coming in under the radar but it has worked well for us for have to see defeat  against some great Mech pilots and groups.

Steve Ross - Good response. I for one felt a small knot in my stomach with the heavies in our div. Now, your first round was drawn against the BlackWatch branch of the Northwind Brotherhood. These guys have some serious renown and brought some very heavy hitters to bear against ZEON. Did you really expect a win, and moreso such a weighty one at that?

Rick Hoffer - Well as far the battle went I believe we stood a good chance but did not expect the numbers we posted..But all said done people will take notice we fight together and fight smart Mech pilots take heed we are disciplined make and leave all on battlefield in the midst of the chaos we are Zeon and a team in every sense of the word.

Steve Ross - 'Team' is fast becoming the apparent strong point of the ZEON camp. You guys appear to throw out surprises with every encounter and it is producing some outstanding results. I spoke with your clan leader T.J. just before the wars kicked off and quizzed him about the fact that ZEON has pulled in a lot of new talent of late. As one of the lower levels in the clan, do you think the new gear are slotting in nicely or would you suggest any hints of discord with the integration of fresh guns so close to these wars?

Rick Hoffer - Well I must say with the new guns in Zeon have fit in very well with us but even with some great Mech pilots that have joined its not just the skill on the battlefield they have been a great fit to the Clan in every sense of the word Mech pilots would need to see our logs we have Veterans with the New blood and looking outside you would be able to discern who they  are by the way we are together as Pilots in and out of the battlefield.

Steve Ross - Seeing the silver lining in the darkest cloud. Fantastic response to a situation that can, in many cases, cause concern. Well said Sir. Now, coming a bit closer to home and personal, how have you found prepping your own mecha and troops for such a monumental division hike? Have you had to majorly re-think a lot of what you, as an individual, do? or, being a regular specialist of your clan, do you find such preparations something of a formality? Your views on the 'specialist effects' as one yourself could really help the junior combatants coming up the ranks.

Rick Hoffer - Ok  so here is the question I have been waiting for in the last few wars my numbers have not been that high offensively as i face off against Mech pilots well above my level but my defensive wins due to the specialists class have been staggering.Tuning my Mechs to squeeze every inch of defensive and fire-power to maximise my combat is challenging but the Tactical side cant be left no your opponent watch the loggs if there heavy on laser power stack your mechs to compensate and ect ect  not mention the blazing Bagpipes screaming thru my Mechs sound system may throw them off a wee bit too lol

Steve Ross - Hahahaha! Brave Heart meets Gundam. Spoken like a real class act Rick. Love it. I'm sure the fans will appreciate every syllable there. I'd like if I may to touch a slightly raw and ongoing nerve with the competition now; There have been the usual post fight mutterings that the cash is dominant. ZEON is very clearly a high cash clan with some serious top end tech in their arsenal. Do you believe that money guarantees the victories. Is it so valid an argument that the richer fighters are quids in?

Rick Hoffer - Ya I look at  it this way some spend some don't were not the Donald Trumps of the Mecha Galaxy's thats for sure lol but money does not mean  victories you need to have the right set-ups I look at some of the real spenders out there from all groups and you no what I say thanks for you spent the money to find out works while it cost me less to see my Mechs far better at the less cost and at the end of the day it does not matter what u spend or how many players u stack or sheer numbers Its how you Fight as group is all that counts You can have the best weapons the best gear but if your not fighting side by side with your mates it amounts nothing does it not???

Steve Ross - A view I do share myself. If you can work a low cost squad well, and have the best support possible from your clan then the less expensive gear can knock out all cash no brains over and over. Totally agree.One final question before we wrap this up then; Do you have any personal predictions for the remainder of your division and what pearls of wisdom can you give us for the rising stars seeking to make it big in the Galaxy?

Rick Hoffer - Aye laddie pay close attention Zeon is on the rise and while we move up in Division are records speak for themselves for we do lose but we do win alot more and better yet when you see that Kilt wearing pilot  storming the battlefield take heed he will leave it all on the battlefield like the great Warrior Poets of old for it will not be for the thrill of Victory bit in the battle it self...  Mark well you will see Zeon soon.

Steve Ross - Philosopher, Pilot, Romanticist and Death Dealer. Ladies and Gents I give you a very good friend and long time colleague. Rick, thank you greatly for your time, patience and honesty. See you in the Mess for a few cold ones. Take care Rick.

Rick Hoffer - Aye lad it has been a pleasure mate for sure your buying the drinks btw lol.

Submitted by Steve Ross#162076 and Rick Hoffer#182594

The New Boss Fights Are A Joke

I just got done wrapping up Cogwerk Port, and the Dark Hawk Boss fight and let me tell you it was ridiculous. Nerios, Troopers, Imechs, Anzus, and WarHorses with the HP ranging from two and a half thousand to a little over nine and a half thousand. That isn't including the final boss fight which consisted of Luisons, Namtars, Megazomes, and a Sever with HP ranging in ten thousands to the Boss himself in a mecha that had twenty three thousand HP. Now all that in and of itself okay fine it is supposed to be a boss fight after all, you have to expect a certain advancement of difficulty.

What I did not expect was the majority of those low to mid grade troops having insanely high dodges, they hit just about every time or the fact that when they weren't blowing me up that majority of the fights actually timed out. In what world does a Nerio take down Torrents, Ignis, Dreadnoughts,and Regis mecha with consistency? Granted they poke you for minimal damage 18-20 something but every fifth poke like that will be a crit-kill, so you watch your finely groomed and tuned troops get destroyed by sub-par forces. Never mind you also have crit-kill weapons, your precision is in the high 70s or above, you just will not hit them, but be assured they will hit you and they will crit-kill you no matter how you are set up. If you do manage to make it through that, then you will most likely time out, and have to re-enter the fight to finish them off.

Now I know the game is skewed towards niode gear for advantages so I equipped accordingly. Most of my troops being niode mecha with niode weapon load outs and equipment to some degree. At worst half niode and half crystal, at best full niode everything on niode mecha. That got me the timing out fights.  Seriously? I go in packing the stuff that clearly is designed to give an advantage and I get to time out the fight? Now there has been discussion upon discussion of this on the players page, and people were told this whole thing will be looked at and readdressed at some point in January. Which is fine, but that does little to nothing now for the people trying to slug their way through this mess. I am a level 92, on the second mission zone, and  I had a hell of a time getting through this. Can you imagine what the higher zones are like for players who are lower leveled or even higher level who have slaughtered these mini bosses multiple times? It's got to be a nightmare.

Even though the difficulty has jumped tremendously on these bosses/mini-bosses the rewards and pay outs still are pretty crappy. It is still low level  gear that at best is sold off for niodes at a much reduced price. If you are going to augment the difficulty to such a degree at least make the pay outs worth while according to level, or the ridiculous jump in difficulty.  As is right now the missions are not really worth doing, at best you get higher and higher fights for minimal niodes, at worst you get a headache trying to kill bosses who are very obviously skewed towards making you time out, if not set to straight up obliterate you, with you landing only a handful of shots at best before they crit-kill you. That kind of fight for minimal rewards we are used to seeing in after CW raids, dare I say it almost expected and pretty well known. But for mission bosses, gimme a break. Oh but hey, they added a new background to Cogwerk for the fights so at least you can look at something new as frustration mounts.

Suggested fixes have been cap the mini-bosses/bosses at a certain point, increase the pay out according to difficulty/level, make drop rates higher according to level/difficulty, turn the fights back to how they were and go about your day, or just stop doing the missions after a certain point. We shall see if anything gets taken into consideration or how "fixed" this gets in January.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Advanced Alloys Equipment Review

A crystal piece of chassis equipment for higher tonnage mechs (Min tons of 80 to Max tons of 95). It will cost you 1,832 Ferrite, 431 Bioptics, and 53 Crystals. It provides Dodge of (4), Laser Shield at 5%, Ice Vulnerable of 5%, and Speed of +4. It's a pretty cheap piece of chassis equipment for the heavier ton machines, also the additional speed boost is nice, as we all know heavier mecha don't move too fast.

The ice vulnerability is negligible given the shielding available. The dodge isn't much but combined with other equipment pieces it could develop into something worth while. The Laser shield is nice but not very high, then again this is crystal equipment so you really can't expect much. Really the only decent bonus to this is the speed the rest is just kind of there and either requires further boosting from other equipment or better shields to compliment it. But hey it's cheap.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Story Time Part 7 Clan Wars Edition

We reach the gate around ten minutes before the advance guard (My squad and one other) were supposed to attack. We should have been there half an hour ago. We had no idea how our allies were doing, as they were using a different gate, to try a pincer maneuver.

“I want a break”

“Shut the hell up Kardin. We haven’t even done anything useful yet, and we’re STILL 30 minutes behind schedule. No thanks to YOU changing all the clocks in our hanger.”

“I said I was sorry.”

“Which explains why my clock is currently displaying 25:93.”

“I didn’t do that.”

“We will discuss this later. Garron, do you have the right gate key? We don’t want another Zyto to happen.”

“I triple-checked before we even considered getting ready to head out.”

There is a mumbling over the channel, What was that?”

“I said I though Zyto was funny.”

“Jen, you’re the only one who does.”

“What was Zyto?”

“Before your time, Daine. Jen switched the gatekeys for a routine pirate hunt, and sent us to a small planet called Zyto. We discovered that Zyto was colonized by a small group of Rook pilots who didn’t like outsiders. That was not fun. Now, everyone get in the gate, before you discover how unfriendly friendly fire can be.”

Finally, we gate to the planet. We come out surrounded by low level mechs, "WALKING SCAP! CHARGE!”

“Wait, Kardin-”

“FOLLOW HIM!”

“No, guys, wait-”

“DEATH TO OUR ENEMIES!”

Despite my protests, we decimate a bunch of small, unprepared squads. After the battle, my team are still jumpy from adrenaline.

“Let’s go find more stuff to kill!”

“How about no.”

“Buzzkill.”

“Pardon, Raleigh?”

“Buzzkill. You.”

“That’s not the response I was gunning for.”

“I know.”

“I’ll take out communications.”

“Clanise, not aga-”

A very loud siren sounds, “YOU IDIOT! YOU DID THIS IN THE LAST WAR TOO!”

“How was I supposed to know that it had an alarm?”

“Because, I don’t know, it’s exactly the same station as the LAST one you destroyed, and OUR long-range Comm stations?”

“We’ll take them all on!”

“Would you like to know WHY we’ve been running weird missions across the galaxy against random people? We’ve been testing out our potential opponents. These squads were all we could defeat. Now, anyone else that comes from their side is able to take us down easily.”

“Sir, transmission from the other captain on advance guard.”

“That’s not a message, that’s a recording.”

“What?”

“Our long-range mechs are programmed to tell the other squad if we’re forced back through the gate we came through. If we don’t retreat now, we may not live to see sunrise.”

As if on cue, a missile explodes in the center of our squad, “Run. Now. That is an order.”

We are forced back. We return to our hanger, to repair, and rest. We receive a transmission from our leader telling us that despite his best efforts, our army is losing.










Submitted by Toby Easterbrook#844872

Veridian Beam Weapon Review

Another weapon we previewed yesterday and that went on sale last night. This Laser is for levels 36 and up. It will run you 540 Ferrite, 432 Bioptics, and 15 Crystal. Or bulk buy 5 for 60 crystals with no limits. This laser features damage at 34, speed at 102, and the ability of Slow at (4)

Granted the ability isn't very much but consider this, it is on par speed wise with the Cherenkov Ray, both coming in at 102 speed. The damage falls between the Snavrum Laser and the Galaxy Eye, so it fills a gap there of levels and damage. All in all it is a pretty solid weapon stat wise for the low-mid level pilots, chances are we will see more of these being fielded, as they are reliable, and inexpensive.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Old Gold Gun Weapon Review

We previewed this weapon yesterday, and last night it was released. For levels 39 and up this slug thrower will set you back 750 Ferrite, 600 Bioptics, and a mere 17 Crystals. As always bulk buy 5 for 68 crystal no limits. Featuring a damage of 36, and a speed of 104 with no abilities this is a rather solid gun.

The speed is real nice as it is actually faster than the higher level M2Z Assault cannon which is available for level 49 and up, and only sports a speed of 100. It also fills the gaps as the Rail Gun is available for levels 32 and up, Ferrite Storm the niode gun is for levels 36 and up, and before this weapon the next jump was to the Rail Cannon at levels 42 and up. So this weapon fills the level gap rather nicely. It is also comparable with the Rail Cannon damage wise as both are no ability weapons but pack a straight 39 damage. So a lower level weapon is on par with a higher level weapon, and only a couple points slower as the Rail Cannon which comes in at 106 for speed. So definitely worth it and pretty cheap considering the bang for your buck on this one.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Member Of The Craftsmen Guild Blames North Korea

During the last half of the first hour of the two hour KOTM tournament tonight the scoreboards crashed, mechas lagged out, and access to the battle field was limited.  Speculation ran wild as to why this was happening, and on the eve before Clan Wars at that! Was it a Forerunner trick? Was it a new clan/guild trying to show superiority by taking over the tournaments? Did Zeon drop a colony on major power plants and bring the entire grid down?

The answer to what happened came from our esteemed Craftsmen Guild spokesperson, Nick Shapiro. He was quoted as saying, "Yes, I blame North Korea." Apparently the old earth communist nation had some fanatics on the orbiting station Nimbus-5. In a extreme show of force they took control of the station and all related KOTM transmissions. During the fight with station security they threatened to use Plasma phase grenades to detonate the control signal broadcast tower. Eventually security rushed them only to find they held  just Ferrite pipes and were banging them on the control consoles to disrupt communications. Order was quickly restored and plans for the continuation of the latest CW got under way.

Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Big Drummer Boy Weapon Review

A new slug thrower coming your way friends requiring a minimum level of 31 to own and operate. It will cost you 777 Ferrite, 300 Bioptics, and 36 Niodes. Or simply buy in bulk of 5 for 144 niodes. at the time of this writing there are 253 left out of 350. This beauty has a Damage of 63, a Speed of 107, and the abilities of 3x Damage at 4%, as well as 2x Damage at 4%.

Now for the all important question, is it worth it? Well for a level 31 minimum I would say just based on straight damage and speed alone yes. Granted the x2 and x3 abilities aren't that high but we all know if you equip right and you watch your build stats these numbers can climb rather fast. Given it is a limited release weapon I would say this is priced to move, and designed for effectiveness. Yes you can find bigger, badder and faster cannons out there but you will only be able to drool over them at best for now due to level requirements to own them. this is quick, hard hitting and if done right has the potential for so much more. So why are you still reading? Go buy some now, before they are gone!

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Submitted by Pat Willis#224534

Zeon Pre-War Interview With Mick Coxon

Good day Ladies, Gents and Mech fans. This is Steve Ross#162076 with another behind the lines interview from here in the Zeon compound. With me today, I have ensign Mick Coxon#657279. How's it going Mick?

Mick Coxon - Well thanks, eager to see who we have in CW.

Steve Ross - Indeed. We're on the brink of the twentieth such contest. This will be hotly fought over. Do you think ZEON can produce another crushing performance?

Mick Coxon - Judging by interview posts we have seen from other clans, everyone is expecting it. We even have others re-arranging their clans to take us on. Myself I'm looking forward to trying out my new front line.

Steve Ross - A new front line eh? Some enhanced goodies for the enemy to play with. I'm sure we'll all be looking forward to that. Now, as a relatively new comer to the ZEON family how are you finding it fitting in with such a prestigious and hard hitting fan favorite as ZEON?

Mick Coxon - Hey it's awe inspiring to watch this team. Everything from advice on set-ups to minute changes to formations. It's pretty daunting being a "crystalizer" in this clan but everyone is always eager to help improve the teams statistics.

Steve Ross - It always helps to have close support in a clan, I agree. As you say, you are a crystal player foremost. Do you find this hinders you in any way along side some clearly very heavily nioded colleagues, or do you think that the clan as a whole is bending the specialist classes to cover such issues?

Mick Coxon - Utilising the Specialist role in my particular circumstances is largely an equaliser for our clan. The Boss uses it to entice D wins as it's pretty much one shot kills with 10 ton special at our level.

Steve Ross - Very true, and a tactic I daresay is exploited by many. The last wars displayed some surprise defensive wins from many who might have been ruled out. It must have been something of a trial by fire for yourself would you agree?

Mick Coxon - With Zeons advice, on my set up, I clearly had a few lucky wins but that's the gamble and any help that I can return back is helpful.

Steve Ross - Yeah, ZEON do have some seriously seasoned talent to offer words of wisdom.
Of late there have been some serious clan based lockouts in the top end of division 3 KotM's. Do you feel that energy extends into the clan wars rounds?

Mick Coxon - Absolutely, the clan are like dogs after a bone when going after those wins. Difference in this clan, as opposed to my last, is that everything has been tested against each other numerous times before the best formations get used in CW. Critique is acted upon to the benefit of the clan members. Several of our members collate the data received into spreadsheets so that performance can be improved and passed on to us all. There is a real vibe going on in Zeon that's infectious.

Steve Ross - Outstanding angle there Mick. It's always great to hear of clans pulling together like a well oiled machine.Before we wind this chat up I think it's time to prod the tiger slightly; Are there any opponents you fear/admire and any that give you concern when you see their names pitted against you guys?

Mick Coxon - I would love to get revenge on some of those higher levels that "farm" me but it's all part of the game and I'm still developing. I admire many, chat with those that get their two daily nibbles in against me but fear none. Although there may well be a little tremour of delight if AFF get pitted against us.

Steve Ross - Indeed. T.J. seemed to be chomping at the bit over the friendly rivalry with the AFF boys and girls. Okay, finally, can you give any advice to our up and coming crystal heavy players perhaps seeking to gain a place with the bigger fan favorite clans?

Mick Coxon - There is some great advice out there so take all that can be gained. Don't chase levels as the bioptics and crystals come with some heavy exp to upgrade. Never sell spare mecha as they all come in useful now that the rise of the specialist has been instigated, indeed I'm now re-buying them to fill Specialist roles for CW.

Steve Ross -Wonderful words and as blunt and honest as any good wrecking ball. Well, thank you for your time Mick, I daresay we'll swap tips and tricks over a beer in the officers mess before Friday's drop zone comes around. Thanks once again Mick. Good hunting and take care brother.

Mick Coxon - Go forth and wreck Mecha my friend.

Submitted by Steve Ross #162076 and Mick Coxon #657279

Interview With Clint Blackburn OF Clan Bacon Addicts

Joel - Everyone please welcome Clint Blackburn (Sgt. Major) #364132 of Bacon Addicts here with us tonight for an in depth perspective from clan wars & raids. Thank you for taking the time for all of us Clint, I’m sure your experience could be informative for many.

Clint  - Thank you for allowing me to be here Joel.

Joel - Great to have you here Clint. So with Bacon clans & pilot’s moving from strength to strength lately how have you ladies & gents been finding this last Clan Wars compared to your recent wars?

Clint - Last Clan Wars... was the best I have seen as far as turn out. There were so many new Clans and bigger Clan numbers in Divisions, it was going to be a monster mash from the start. I liked how the old favorites for each div didn't get the fights when they wanted, added some good confusion and kept us on our toes...

Joel - Indeed Clint! Turn outs have been impressive & I too hope it's a sign of things to come & I must also agree it was exciting to watch some clans get a well earned gold & hard fought silvers. Many including myself had a share of betting upsets. With the competition among lower divisions becoming greater I'm sure Bacon's mark is yet to be truly felt. How are you finding the addition of specialists to the recent wars? For most clans it can pose a challenge.

Clint - Just playing the game with a team of friends that respect each other and really work well together, it is always more about the team than the individual. There is no way a single player can get into the top 10% without a good Clan. Specialists are something that you don't want to just play around with, I think there is a reason for them being called that. I know there has been a lot of negative feedback from them, but with time I'm sure most players will start to understand them.

Joel - Playing with close friends in a solid clan or factional group is by far in my opinion one of the most impacting factors when it comes to clan & player effectiveness for sure. Team work is #1 throughout the galaxy & we've both seen it earn gold. There does seem to be a gap with some specialist understanding with some players & clans, I think it's nice to see who's working at all the angles possible while keeping track of changing formations & staying on our toes. It's added fun so long as you know what you’re doing & although it can take a lot of time & resources to meet a specialist requirement I hope too that in time things will improve as player understanding grows. With betting as a factor now I think it opens up much more potential for a player that wasn’t available before. I hope you've been having luck with your bets if any. We had a few changes in prizes offered this Clan Wars in some divisions. Did you notice anything surprising on your end?

Clint - The potential for players to increase in the game has gone up tenfold since I first started. Even though the game has gone through many changes, with rewards and experience being gained per fight it is still a challenge. I noticed one thing that stands out more than anything, bigger mechs being given out on all levels... that really makes the balance you know...

Clint - Those raids have paid off for a lot of junior players. Makes the fight worth the fight man!

Joel - Yeah for sure it does make a big difference & it seems that maybe a balance has been found with raids & experience gathered from mecha kills. In many aspects Mecha Galaxy is far from the same game either of us started playing & it does keep things challenging & interesting for everyone. How do Bacon clans deal with their raids? I hear many players struggle when they hit walls of mechs with thousands more armor points.

Clint - There really isn't a balance... most raids have a wall around the 60% stage that requires heavy hitters to bust through......

Joel - Lately I've noticed many raids interspersing the harder waves. It makes for some interesting cooperative dynamics. Is there anything else you'd like to add or are expecting for this upcoming Clan Wars 20 Clint?

Clint - I am looking forward to CW 20, I believe that the Clans are really going to tighten up and come out swinging for the fence this time. We had some serious opposition during last war in the final round, so I'm expecting a few changes and a harder fight for sure...

Joel – For sure Clint clans are tightening up already & it’s sure to be a fight for the finish as always. Thanks so much for your time & thoughts Clint I know there is a party with some bacon waiting for you so I won’t keep you waiting any longer. Good luck to you & all of Bacon come December Clan Wars!

Clint - Thanks again, it was fun. Cheers man!

Submitted by Joel Parras/KiloToneRecoil #637457