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Thomisannoyed
Versed in the lewd.
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To be fair, the last time was also life changing, but they kinda need this one for Pup.
Tavarokk
Pursuer of perversion
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Single shot is pure suffering, it's insanely constricting. Even for just ambush, something like a 3-5 shell drum/clip would be a colossal performance boost purely because it'd let pilot take chancy shots and to keep threatening the enemy after firing.
Edit. QQ/net connection wouldn't let me edit the post forever for some reason, but also bears mentioning that spiky armor is a thing IRL as a way to dilute impact, so fur-like armor might not even be impractical defensively.
Last edited:
lurkingkraken
Experienced.
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They couldn't afford the space. While more shots is a good thing, that still runs into the problem of not having the room to put in any more ammunition.
At least, not without skimping on the sensors some more, but the whole point of the mech is the sensors.
This isn't a weapon to take speculative shots with, it's a last resort. He should not be taking the chancy shot. The intent is to bark forth a cone of deterrence, drop a load of mines, then run away. As well, adding more rapid-fire capability would just encourage the pilots to go in and use it, and then likely get bodied by the actually combat-specced mechs they were going in on.
This is a force multiplier scout with a few defensive tricks more than it is an ambusher.
Tavarokk
Pursuer of perversion
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Then it wasn't worth it.
Speculative shots exist in every engagement, even last resort ones. No, *especially* last resort ones. Having one attempt when you have the initiative is fine, since you can pull back. Having one attempt when you're pushed is terrible, since you're facing a trade-off between a chance of shooting too early and missing and a chance of holding too long and not getting to shoot. Giving a pilot a defensive weapon he can't take chancy shots with means telling him he must make a perfect judgement call on the exact moment to fire while under pressure. Barking forth a cone of deterrence only works if the pilot can use it early for deterrence, not if shooting and missing makes them wide open.
Dunno if you play any vehicle shooters, but the setup described here is extremely painful and suffocating to use. CQC weapons need room for sloppy handling, if it has to be a one-shot wonder, then at least make it long-range to allow kiting.
Simonbob
Really? You don't say.
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"I'm already married, woman!"
M105
New
lost star
Connoisseur.
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Lilly didn't get the whole masterwork thing really. Cu Sith was a lovely mech to her eyes. That was it. Why the MTA went gaga over them was beyond her. She was more concerned about how it functioned, which meant that the testing was worth more than the suite of scans that Bolt was going over now. There would likely be complications later, but for now things were pretty standard.
"Venerable Lilly, I really don't think this is going to work." Pup's voice sounded nervous.
She rolled her eyes in response before slumping slightly in the cockpit seat. You'd think that ascending would have helped with the boy's confidence, but no. He was still pretty bad. If you didn't hit his triggers you wouldn't even notice he was an expert from the way he spoke. This was a bit unusual for experts, but ultimately just a mild annoyance and something that would hopefully fade with time. In the meantime she had to manage it properly.
"You need to learn your limits if you want to be the primary guard for our mountain." The woman said. "That means we're testing and then sparring."
"But, but." Pup whined before Lilly cut him off.
"Yes, you are weaker. You're young and weak for an expert. That's perfectly fine. Experts can grow, and we don't even need to throw you into battle all the time. You will just need to focus." The older expert emphasized the last word.
The mech in front of her shifted as his nerves started to transmit through the body language before Pup decided something internally. It was very visible when he did. The mech shifted its paws and lowered its head as if bracing itself for battle.
Lilly smiled and pulled on Morning Star. She then shifted her wings and readied herself. "First up, weapons check!" She lowered her wings.
With a crack Cu Sith 'barked.' The mouth erupted in fire and Lilly registered hits along her wings and all around her area. Very minor damage to the wings. Already being repaired. Not bad as a base deterrent considering the sheer area of the attack. If he actually exerted some effort into the attack it'd probably have actually damaged the wings enough to force her to withdraw them. It was more a cannon than a shotgun blast.
"Put some willpower into it next time." Lilly advised. "But good. Tail weapon?"
The dog-mech flicked its tail and a sphere floated into the air between them. Lilly flicked a dagger at it after a second and was gratified to see it explode violently before leaving a cloud of fire and electricity that did not look pleasant. It wasn't a very useful offensive weapon, but she wouldn't want to follow a mech that could do that, which was the point. Pup was going to be a priority target by everyone based off his skillset. Deterring pursuit would be the largest point.
"Last bit. Howl." Lilly ordered.
Cu Sith raised its head and then stilled as its pilot hesitated. "Uh, sorry, trying to figure it out." The expert apologized sheepishly. "Not like the other weapons."
"Resonant stuff takes a push." Lilly advised.
"Got it I think." Pup said after a few seconds. "Thing is I needed to think of you as an enemy, and that's a bit hard to do."
"I'm flattered, but if it hinders the tests we can arrange something else. Let me know and we can do make some calls." The woman responded with a hint of a laugh.
Pup replied by re-setting his mech's feet and raising its muzzle up further. The howl that came from it next started haunting and grew terrifying as it continued. She was being hunted. She had been marked. THEY were aware of her! That was the feeling. Lilly pushed it off easily, and was fairly sure that even normal people would just feel a bit scared, but it was interesting to actually get that sort of feeling imposed on you. Even a little bit of forced emotion could have devastating effects.
"Venerable Lilly, I think your husband did something special again. That howl let us feel your location and what I think is your weak points." One of the men stationed nearby transmitted almost immediately.
Lilly felt herself taken aback by the statement. "Really now?" She asked. "Huh. We need a few target dummies out here asap then. This is more than expected."
A few minutes later a series of mech torsos on poles were brought out. They were simplistic things useful for target practice and verifying the damage some weapons could do. Lilly had two marked red and one marked green.
"Ok, call me your ally, and say the red are enemy." Lilly told her protégé.
Pup gave a nod of his mechs head, and then howled again. This time the howl wasn't scary at all. Lilly blinked and then closed her eyes as she realized something. She could literally see the dummies through her eyelids now. She just knew where the weak points without any sort of verbal statement at all! The information lasted about a minute before going away.
"You know, I was expecting something special and yet I'm still shocked." The woman said before speaking to the guards nearby. "Did you all feel that?"
"We did."
"It that good?" Pup asked in turn.
"Pup, that goes beyond good and into game changing. Let's test it before we make real statements though." Lilly said before starting to order a set of tests.
The range was, well as far as the howl could go, which didn't lend itself to quick measurements unfortunately. The only requirement seemed to be that the sound waves touch the target and that Pup knew there was an enemy. Something about it required a bit of awareness on his part. When Lilly had said there were two targets, but put three up, one of them hadn't been marked. That was less of a hinderance than one would think. Cu Sith's sensory abilities were second to none. All Pup needed was a scent, a blip on the radar, even just intuition, and then the howl would alert all allies that heard it. It was an ability that was literally game changing in certain circumstances. It alone had the potential to make Pup more dangerous than her.
Unfortunately the rest of the news was less promising. Sparring was downright discouraging. Pup had ascended young and weak. This was not a problem in itself. Experts could grow in time assuming they practiced and refined their willpower. It just made things difficult because the best way to hone an expert was to have them fight challenging foes. If Pup was on the weakside he'd be in a deadly situation against anything worthy of his time.
On the plus side, the designers had nailed Pup's natural desires with the design. Lilly would have said it was perfect if it didn't reinforce a few bad habits. Like the screaming.
"Ahhh!" Pup screamed as he leaped away from her.
She should have brought Dowry for this part. That one would have loved doing this. Morning Star found it sincerely annoying.
"Pup, control yourself!" Lilly demanded as she had to pause to avoid the mine left in her path. "Good placement, but your movement is too inefficient!"
"Say that again when you're on the other end! It's terrifying!!!" Pup responded and ducked a knife by almost accident before lobbing another glowing mine into the air.
Lilly growled and then slapped a wing down by instinct as she noticed something. Cu Sith pivoted on one paw and barked. The shotgun pellets slammed into her wing with all the force of an expert pilot's power before the dog shifted again and ran like she was going to discipline it with a stick. The ever-present mist obscured his form and Lilly stalled.
"Huh, that stealth is more powerful than I thought." The woman observed.
"It's mostly non-vision stuff so I figured the mist might help." Pup responded carefully as he shifted at the edges, barely visible. "Umm, should I come back?"
"I could probably chase you, but with the stealth, the vision, and the mines I literally cannot catch you in this mech." The expert said bluntly. "Which is good, but also kinda bad. The only way to hone yourself safely is like this, and your mech is not suited for it."
The answer seemed to stun the other expert. "Sims don't work?" He asked.
"Normal sims don't. Our sims? Once we've done some more fighting maybe. If they do, you will only tell me ok?" Lilly ordered. "In the meantime, come back and stay in vision range. You will need to practice fighting in limited areas anyway, and unless you want me to get Dowry this will have to do."
The woman had to turn down Pups volume for the rest of the match. The boy was getting better, but he seemed to think she was some sort of monster! She was, but that sort of thing could hurt a girl's feelings!
"Venerable Lilly, I really don't think this is going to work." Pup's voice sounded nervous.
She rolled her eyes in response before slumping slightly in the cockpit seat. You'd think that ascending would have helped with the boy's confidence, but no. He was still pretty bad. If you didn't hit his triggers you wouldn't even notice he was an expert from the way he spoke. This was a bit unusual for experts, but ultimately just a mild annoyance and something that would hopefully fade with time. In the meantime she had to manage it properly.
"You need to learn your limits if you want to be the primary guard for our mountain." The woman said. "That means we're testing and then sparring."
"But, but." Pup whined before Lilly cut him off.
"Yes, you are weaker. You're young and weak for an expert. That's perfectly fine. Experts can grow, and we don't even need to throw you into battle all the time. You will just need to focus." The older expert emphasized the last word.
The mech in front of her shifted as his nerves started to transmit through the body language before Pup decided something internally. It was very visible when he did. The mech shifted its paws and lowered its head as if bracing itself for battle.
Lilly smiled and pulled on Morning Star. She then shifted her wings and readied herself. "First up, weapons check!" She lowered her wings.
With a crack Cu Sith 'barked.' The mouth erupted in fire and Lilly registered hits along her wings and all around her area. Very minor damage to the wings. Already being repaired. Not bad as a base deterrent considering the sheer area of the attack. If he actually exerted some effort into the attack it'd probably have actually damaged the wings enough to force her to withdraw them. It was more a cannon than a shotgun blast.
"Put some willpower into it next time." Lilly advised. "But good. Tail weapon?"
The dog-mech flicked its tail and a sphere floated into the air between them. Lilly flicked a dagger at it after a second and was gratified to see it explode violently before leaving a cloud of fire and electricity that did not look pleasant. It wasn't a very useful offensive weapon, but she wouldn't want to follow a mech that could do that, which was the point. Pup was going to be a priority target by everyone based off his skillset. Deterring pursuit would be the largest point.
"Last bit. Howl." Lilly ordered.
Cu Sith raised its head and then stilled as its pilot hesitated. "Uh, sorry, trying to figure it out." The expert apologized sheepishly. "Not like the other weapons."
"Resonant stuff takes a push." Lilly advised.
"Got it I think." Pup said after a few seconds. "Thing is I needed to think of you as an enemy, and that's a bit hard to do."
"I'm flattered, but if it hinders the tests we can arrange something else. Let me know and we can do make some calls." The woman responded with a hint of a laugh.
Pup replied by re-setting his mech's feet and raising its muzzle up further. The howl that came from it next started haunting and grew terrifying as it continued. She was being hunted. She had been marked. THEY were aware of her! That was the feeling. Lilly pushed it off easily, and was fairly sure that even normal people would just feel a bit scared, but it was interesting to actually get that sort of feeling imposed on you. Even a little bit of forced emotion could have devastating effects.
"Venerable Lilly, I think your husband did something special again. That howl let us feel your location and what I think is your weak points." One of the men stationed nearby transmitted almost immediately.
Lilly felt herself taken aback by the statement. "Really now?" She asked. "Huh. We need a few target dummies out here asap then. This is more than expected."
A few minutes later a series of mech torsos on poles were brought out. They were simplistic things useful for target practice and verifying the damage some weapons could do. Lilly had two marked red and one marked green.
"Ok, call me your ally, and say the red are enemy." Lilly told her protégé.
Pup gave a nod of his mechs head, and then howled again. This time the howl wasn't scary at all. Lilly blinked and then closed her eyes as she realized something. She could literally see the dummies through her eyelids now. She just knew where the weak points without any sort of verbal statement at all! The information lasted about a minute before going away.
"You know, I was expecting something special and yet I'm still shocked." The woman said before speaking to the guards nearby. "Did you all feel that?"
"We did."
"It that good?" Pup asked in turn.
"Pup, that goes beyond good and into game changing. Let's test it before we make real statements though." Lilly said before starting to order a set of tests.
The range was, well as far as the howl could go, which didn't lend itself to quick measurements unfortunately. The only requirement seemed to be that the sound waves touch the target and that Pup knew there was an enemy. Something about it required a bit of awareness on his part. When Lilly had said there were two targets, but put three up, one of them hadn't been marked. That was less of a hinderance than one would think. Cu Sith's sensory abilities were second to none. All Pup needed was a scent, a blip on the radar, even just intuition, and then the howl would alert all allies that heard it. It was an ability that was literally game changing in certain circumstances. It alone had the potential to make Pup more dangerous than her.
Unfortunately the rest of the news was less promising. Sparring was downright discouraging. Pup had ascended young and weak. This was not a problem in itself. Experts could grow in time assuming they practiced and refined their willpower. It just made things difficult because the best way to hone an expert was to have them fight challenging foes. If Pup was on the weakside he'd be in a deadly situation against anything worthy of his time.
On the plus side, the designers had nailed Pup's natural desires with the design. Lilly would have said it was perfect if it didn't reinforce a few bad habits. Like the screaming.
"Ahhh!" Pup screamed as he leaped away from her.
She should have brought Dowry for this part. That one would have loved doing this. Morning Star found it sincerely annoying.
"Pup, control yourself!" Lilly demanded as she had to pause to avoid the mine left in her path. "Good placement, but your movement is too inefficient!"
"Say that again when you're on the other end! It's terrifying!!!" Pup responded and ducked a knife by almost accident before lobbing another glowing mine into the air.
Lilly growled and then slapped a wing down by instinct as she noticed something. Cu Sith pivoted on one paw and barked. The shotgun pellets slammed into her wing with all the force of an expert pilot's power before the dog shifted again and ran like she was going to discipline it with a stick. The ever-present mist obscured his form and Lilly stalled.
"Huh, that stealth is more powerful than I thought." The woman observed.
"It's mostly non-vision stuff so I figured the mist might help." Pup responded carefully as he shifted at the edges, barely visible. "Umm, should I come back?"
"I could probably chase you, but with the stealth, the vision, and the mines I literally cannot catch you in this mech." The expert said bluntly. "Which is good, but also kinda bad. The only way to hone yourself safely is like this, and your mech is not suited for it."
The answer seemed to stun the other expert. "Sims don't work?" He asked.
"Normal sims don't. Our sims? Once we've done some more fighting maybe. If they do, you will only tell me ok?" Lilly ordered. "In the meantime, come back and stay in vision range. You will need to practice fighting in limited areas anyway, and unless you want me to get Dowry this will have to do."
The woman had to turn down Pups volume for the rest of the match. The boy was getting better, but he seemed to think she was some sort of monster! She was, but that sort of thing could hurt a girl's feelings!
lurkingkraken
Experienced.
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2020
- Messages
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And yet the best way to beat him would be a mech-sized spray bottle.
Emptiness
That which encompasses reality
- Joined
- Sep 13, 2024
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Could a communication Expert cause "Baby Shark" to play in opponents heads as chaff?