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The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Alright so I've been thinking about a world in which the American Revolutionary War still occurred but there is a huge technology developmental time period around the 1600s and by the time the 1770s roll around, mechs have already been developed. Currently planning to have no flying (meaning no aircraft of any sort) but trains and steamboats exist. Electricity has been discovered and mechs are used as both weapons and labor tools. What I'm asking, is for mech ideas and designs because I'm a bit stumped.

Remember this is still the Revolutionary War, so ideas for mechs for specific countries (Colonies, Britain, France, Spain, Germany, etc.) or people (George Washington, Baron Von Steuben, Benedict Arnold, etc.) must be clarified. Of course, having ideas for general mechs is allowed and I'll find a place for it. Thank you for your time and ideas and I'll be sure to list your name down whenever I get a design I enjoy.

Also for clarification, the term "mech" to me means anything mechanical and is piloted by human or by AI. So basically something like the Power Rangers, Real Steel or Gundam, however you take it.

And for an example, my brother suggested a mech with only two legs, connected to the inner core or cockpit of the robot. The outer layer is a sphere layered in spikes that spins but since it is not connected to the cockpit, the pilot won't get dizzy. The mech is able to run and jump into other mechs, smashing them and sending them to their graves. There are cameras connected to the legs to help the pilot see and the robot is highly experimental.

Again, thank you for any submission ideas.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

What kinds of weapons are allowed? Guns? Laser swords?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I allow anything that is physical such as swords and actual bullets but no laser anything or star wars like. The technology is similar to ours so anything futuristic wouldn't make sense.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Okay then.

Dullahan: A frontline melee-type mech. Makes up for it's basic design with high customization: Multiple weapon types and subsystems allow for diversity and difference among different soldiers.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Hm... a generic soldier type mech? Makes sense for the colonists as they basically had nothing in this war. Although it's very basic and vague, the idea is there so I'm able to give it some love, thank you for the suggestion.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Leviathan: An aquatic mech, adept at sea transport and combat. Less humanoid, more serpentine. Fights by using fans and motors to manipulate water into a deadly weapon.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

This is a very good idea! Although most Patriots didn't fight in the sea, this would fit well with the French navy or British Navy. As a interceptor, this would ideal for blocking the passage of ships or destroying them.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Chevalier: A mobile cavalry-fighter. Fast, but fragile. Adept at blitzkrieg tactics, hit-and-runs, and basically anything that requires fast weapons and faster getaways.

Ignis: A smaller type, about 7 feet tall. Useful for labor, but can be adapted for combat.

Teneabrae: A stealth-focused model, with cloaking systems and adept sensors. Not to be used in a direct firefight. Better for scouts and spies.

Golem: A defensive melee fighter. Not very fast, but has hard armor.

Dragoon: An aerial fighter. Comes equipped with boosters and a lance.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Chevalier would be a wonderful asset as a guerrilla warfare style of fighting.

Ignis seems like it's be used as more of a decoy than fighting weapon. Maybe infiltrations or scouts. Probably best to place it as a labor mech more than a weaponized machine. As a last resort, this is would probably be one.

Teneabrae would be perfect for ambushes and stealing prisoners of war. Most likely going to use it as a colonist weapon. For example, Francis Marrion.

Golem would be a mech used mainly for defense. Most likely as the meat shield placed in front.

Dragoon most likely will be used toward the end or as an experimental mech because of me trying not to use as much flying or aerial machines as possible. Of course, it's possible to have a high jump, but endless flying is out of the question, but I'll still take the idea.

Overall, thank you for all the ideas, it is way more than I could have expected from one person.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Dragoon doesn't fly, it just hovers and occasionally does a boost-dash/boost-jump.

Salamander: An amphibious mech that is adept at fighting both on land and in water.

Rapier: An agile fighter-type mech. Uses a... rapier. Small, but fast.

Archer: A powerful ranged-type mech. Uses a long-ranged mechanical rifle.

Ranger: A mobile scout-type mech. More lupine, adept at tracking and pursuit.

Artorius: A powerful fighter-type mech. Decent armor, great attack power with its greatsword.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

How the fuck is a mech adept at tracking and pursuit. This is supposed to be steampunk, right?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

It's really tall and lanky, so it sees everything and takes big steps, obviously.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

It's fast and it has very good audiovisual sensors. Happy?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I'm assuming it'll be something like this;

Fast and not very heavily armored, slightly fragile compared to other mechs. Probably has a light, long-range style weapon, if it even has one. Possibly equipped with some audiovisual equipment, which may be slightly heavy which is why it can't carry that many people or weapons and armor.

This is all random bullshit xD

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Exactamundo.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

>Audiovisual sensors

>Steampunk

Yeah, sure, this is Steampunk with computers. Nevermind that steampunk with computers is practically regularpunk. Fuck it, right?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
That was going to be my next question, just what the heck 'audiovisual' even was in the context of the technology we're talking about.

A hearing horn and a spyglass, I guess.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Actually, a horn and spyglass would be both hilarious and steampunk. I now wholeheartedly approve of this scout idea.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I can imagine this...

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

It has to be pilotted by two of the sassiest troops. They both have to duck in and out of the mech with spyglasses and provide witty back-and-forth while searching for points of strategic importance.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Okay, I'm starting to warm up to this story idea now.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
But what sort of mechs do the Cherokee build? Everything depends on whether eric can tackle this in a culturally sensitive manner.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

The Indians have magical mechs that are transforming animals full of spiritual energies, and they all dress in brightly colored full-body spandex and wear animal-themed helmets. When people from six different tribes get together and dance around a fire, their mechs all come together and become a Super-Mecha, which they mostly use to fight whales, White Mechs, and other threats to their big cities.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
And since this means they're totally a threat now, their eradication is completely justified.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

But, you see, whenever one of the animal mechs gets shot down, they fall down in slow motion to sad music and one of their elders looks off into the distance with a look of righteous resignation and sheds a single tear.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Showing emotion? Gaaaaaay.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

BUT NATIVE AMERICAN POWER RANGERS ARE SO MAJESTIC AND CULTURALLY ENRICHING!

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Yet you have nothing to say about the mech that fights with a rapier?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

That fits with the aesthetic. Computer assisted perception doesn't fit into Steampunk all that well, though. It's supposed to be early technology exagerrated, not modern technology that looks like advanced technology.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Still though, it's taking the whole 'bringing a knife to a gun fight' thing to a ridiculous extreme. About as practical as mounting a broadsword to a WWII era tank and using it to ram other tanks.

A rapier is such a dinky and useless little choice of sword, too.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

It's fiction. Swords are cooler than guns. Deal with it.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Well, when all soldiers have a very real chance of not dying/being wounded from a single gunshot, and your guns are blackpowdery, potentially explosive, and take forever to reload, mech combat, especially if guns are a recent invention, would probably revive melee combat altogether.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
George Washington uproots a cherry tree with his bare hands and takes out the entire British army without a hair of his powdered wig falling out of place, and that's how the war is won. It's fiction, deal with it.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I still don't understand how a rapier can kill any other mech though >~>

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

It's a mech-sized rapier. 

In case you don't know, with a rapier you aim for chinks in the armor, like the shoulders or neck.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Yes, I understand what a rapier is. They're a cut-and-thrust sword...but you do realize rapiers are supposed to be for unarmored single-target combat, right?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

It's a big fucking rapier.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Rapiers are shit in this case.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Why are you attacking me for giving Eric ideas? I thought it sounded cool, so I wrote the idea down and gave it to him. Is there something wrong with that? With finding an idea cool and suggesting it?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

When the whole point of a story is that it's a historical event with new technology, the technology has to make sense, or else the whole thing is just bullshit.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Well tbf, the whole thing is pretty bullshit at its core no matter how you slice it.

This is what was bugging me from the beginning. Mechs are unquestionably cool, but can exist in all kinds of time periods or settings. The Revolutionary War is also cool, but there's only one and once you start changing things it's basically like Will said, all you've got left is powdered wigs.

Forget giant robots, once you add in trains and steamboats and electricity and the infrastructure there's already very little recognizable about the setting. Pretty much every aspect of the war and civilian life and the culture itself has drastically changed from an agrarian one to post Industrial Revolution.

The Civil War at least started bringing in some of the stuff the whole steampunk aesthetic is usually based on. From there it's more a matter of exaggerating existing technology in cool ways, not simply ignoring/erasing it all.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Nnnnngghh, you criticized my idea, stop attacking me oh god why are you doing this how can you disagree that my idea is cool what's wrong with you why do you hate me uuuuungh I don't understand????

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Eric agreed with my earlier ideas.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
And? Why does that give you a right to attack Sent for expressing his?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Sort of tired of seeing Azure starting fights in multiple threads and generally derailing them at this point. 30 point penalty.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Tbh, it's really just been fun hypothetical discussion. I'm not sure how venomous he's been in other threads, but I'm not sure anything in here is wrist-slap-worthy.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Nah, he's been going around and attacking Mizal on a regular basis along with Steve at times (In their own threads even), though it looks like now he's been bringing it in here and generally being belligerent towards Seto and others as well.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I apologize, I have anger issues and problems with being passionate towards my own ideas.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

There's being passionate, and then there's being an asshole :(

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Man, you're the least logical aspie I've ever seen. Can't even be dysfunctional right. 

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
He involves himself in these discussions but can't actually back up any of the statements he makes without getting passive aggressive/ultra defensive and complaining about how he's being victimized or attacked or whatever. Then he receives a stern look and immediately collapses whimpering onto the floor.

Oh and then there's:

"You made fun of something I am doing. That's not very nice. I want people to be nice. Please be nice."

Actual quote.

I don't mind it that much, but now that the pattern has been established I have to wonder what he himself gets out of it.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Wtf? We are not attacking you. How the fuck is this attacking? >~>

We are challenging your ideas since they do not make sense - you know, something that is usually done to every story idea.

For example, if someone wrote something like; OMG NORMAL PISTOLS CAN SHOOT LIKE BAZOOKAS, would you challenge their idea?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

This is Eric's thread, not mine. I'll cool down and not reply for a while. Sorry, I just got a little... angry, for a bit.

Eric can decide yea or nay on the ideas. It's his thread, not mine.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I don't see why you'd get angry over something like this, to be honest. It's normal criticism. When seeing plot holes, the readers are supposed to ask the author to fill them in - and if they cannot be filled in, then something needs to be redone xD

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Mechs themselves are shit in this case. (Note that I'm still in agreement that rapiers are even more shit.) Not to go all Raven on you guys, but if you're building a ground-based, armored, weaponized shell for humans to pilot, you wind up with a PROUD AND GLORIOUS TANK. Anything tall or with arms and legs for complicated movement is comparatively easy to knock over and full of weak points.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Mmhm...but still doesn't mean it's original purpose would be nullified xD

I don't really like rapiers TBH. They're much too thin, with no edge. Easy to snap if not made right, I've actually snapped one or two, and bent the tip before. They're NOT made to be used against armored people, and generally if you try to hit someone with armor tougher than softmail like leather, you'll snap your sword. Even chain armor was enough to defend against rapiers.

And well...I'm not saying they can't be used to defend, but generally - I prefer a broadsword for defending more. 

Rapiers are also pretty specialized - a bit tougher to master than other swords, especially if you're used to something like a broadsword. As well as that - if anyone can get close enough, the effectively is completely neutralized and you won't be able to defend nor attack with your rapier.

If you want something that can find weak points in armor, I would say a smallsword is better. You aren't trying to DUEL anyone...

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

That's why it's lightly armored: It's not meant to take attacks head-on, it's meant to dodge. It's not meant to shred through heavy armor, it's meant to strike the points where it doesn't quite meet, where wires and machinery are exposed.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Yes, but even striking those points - a rapier would probably snap or break. Unless you're making them slightly thicker than a normal rapier?

In that case, it would become unbalanced and you might as well use a shortsword xD

Besides that, rapiers were made for single-combat, something you wouldn't see much on a battlefield.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
They're fast moving precision striking ninja robots, Seto. Because ninjas are cooler than physics.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

:( but..having them as a main weapon - especially against heavily armored mechs, is challenging all my knowledge of how swords work! D:

I may have to throw a tantrum or something.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Okay, then they're pussy little French mechs, Seto. They slap their opponent with a glove first. Does that help.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

No. Not shortsword. It would have to be a longsword to serve a similar purpose because not having to get close to your opponent is the whole reason to use a rapier. But because cutting metal with more or less the same metal is an obnoxious task that takes a lot of force, a lance or stabby sword is structurally much more reliable and force-conserving way to arm a robot.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Honestly it would be better to equip the mech arm with a big ass mace head to just smash shit.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

That too, but the mace head is a sort-of-solid force that can be deflected by well-shaped armor. It can be utterly befuckled by non armor-piercing things, especially when bodies can be designed/built any way that's tactical.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Sorry. I know. I don't know why I said shortsword. I was thinking of a katana TBH. 

TBH, best weapon against an armored thing would be an axe..

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Obviously Viking mechs would be a better premise.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

BUT A KATANA WOULD BE AN EVEN WORSE MECH THING! Aahhhh dammit Seto!

Granted, the whole solution to the "The Katanas that could cut through several bodies at once could only do that with an extra-long handle" thing would be easily solved, since it's a machine and the "handle" could be the entire arm, but still! Cutting with the force of the edge alone is a very, very bad tactic in a form of warfare where flesh and armor are made of virtually the same damn thing! And cutting is pretty much the ONLY thing a Katana does! A katana is very silly! And so are all the other swords that look like it, even though they're less ridiculously short-range! And so are most swords in general, but cutting swords are the worst!

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Idkkkk. I was thinking of armor swords and I was distracted by a match D:

Which we ended up winning by 5bil points, but still >~>

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

To be fair, any sword stretched to the point where it's big enough to be used as a mechasword would be unbalanced, bending under its own weight, fragile, and virtually useless. The Epee would probably be the only one that would work, since it's less of a sword in the traditional sense and more of a hunk of metal that tapers to a point really slowly.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

It'd actually be better if it were a smallsword or epee. At mech scale, it would be a big, pointy ram for jamming through armor and fucking through engines. Cutting wouldn't really do shit unless it were like an axe or a bladed mace, since it takes a lot of force for metal to cut through itself...

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

To be fair, if it's big enough, you could seriously damage/jam up some shit. And they did make some big rapiers, which did fuck up shit. Their practicality would probably be limitted to fighting against mechs with armor that couldn't be easily pierced at a distance, though.

EDIT: Fuck, I was thinking of Epees, not rapiers. What kind of HEMA-Pedant am I!?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Those were spearrrrrs >~>

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I know that, but, tbh, look at the design and application. Everyone knows the Ahlspiess is just a less useless version of an epee. It's the closest thing the world has to the 2hander version of a stabby sword.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
@PcGenie

Only you can save the thread! Sent is fucking it all up!

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

If it please ye, use the Iron Kingdoms artwork for inspiration.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Oh yes, that definitely please meh, too bad there wasn't any magic or goblins in the 1770s.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

That looks rad.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Thank you for the links, this will help me in placing the mechs and how I'll use them. Writing alternate history is very hard if you don't know the history you're basing it off of. So this is perfect for helping me in war scenarios.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

You could draw inspiration for your mechs from Code Geass.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
I guess my question is still, why the Revolutionary War? It'd make more sense to make this about a rebellion on Mars or something then to pick a specific RL event and then throw out everything recognizable about it.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Der Titan, or the Titan will be the absolute pride of the German Army, mein emperor. A massive mech, easily twice the size of what most other nations would qualify as a safe size for a mech, this machine has two wrist-mounted cannons easily able to pierce the armor of most other mechs, however, when facing against large numbers of infantry, the mech can switch the cannons to two rapid-fire machine guns to obliterate any such opposing force. However, should the need arise for this mech to fight in close quarters, it can always count on it's trusty sword placed on the hip and made to look like the cavalry swords of the regular. Lastly, should any of these weapons fail the mech and it's pilot, the extra thick armor on it's fists can be used as a highly effective bludgeoning weapon against other mechs, though it has little use again any infantry as they would be too small and too fast to kill properly.

?The armor of the Titan befits its name as it has been made extra thick to prevent it from being incapacitated by any lesser machine or weapon, and it has been carefully made by the toughest materials available to the Reich(German Empire) to prevent the fall of such a glorious machine.

?However, nothing is without it's flaws, not even the Reich's machines. First of all, the size of this glorious mech and the thickness if it's armor makes it extra slow both when waking and in combat, however, the armor should protect both the pilot and the mech's core from the weapons of any lesser machine.

?Its second flaw is that very few of these machines can be deployed due to the expensive nature of their making, as such, it must be backed either by large numbers of infantry, or by a compact number of smaller but still as effective Reich mechs.

?Lastly, since the core of the mech is based on the ones of the smaller versions of the German mechs it should be known that this mech must refuel once every half a day of heavy fighting.

?Mein Emperor, I need to remind you that this is merely a sketch of what I have planned for this, the true thing will be most fearsome and very effective on the battlefield and not only will crush everyone under their metal heels, but they will bring about a new glorious era for the German Empire!

?With the utmost respect, the Head of the Mech Development, Heinrich Gustaf.

?P.S: This letter should have arrived with a few rough sketches that will show what I truly have in mind for this mech.

?This may have been a bit weird, but I felt it a bit necessary to present a new mech idea as if a war-time engineer proposed plans for a new weapon to a leader quite fitting considering what you asked of us. Sorry for any mistakes that may be present in this, I am currently writing this on my mobile phone.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
e: Nevermind, nothing wrong with the actual design. I'm still just not clear on the scope of the historical changes planned will be (so far it's apparently, literally everything) or again, why this specific war.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

First things first, I love the fact you posted in a war design plan format, makes it charming to read and quite organized as well. But German forces on the battlefield were limited mostly to Hessians, mercenaries hired by the British. So of course, any relation to the German leader would be a general on the battlefield rather than if they were fighting for their home country, which they aren't.

For the actual design? Very well described and using cannons would be a huge strength when taking down other mechs. However, because I recently banned automatic guns, I wouldn't be able to implement machine guns but instead using something explosive would probably give it more of an edge on the battlefield. Also a sword? The appropriate sword size would be of great sword length and probably very thick to compensate for its size and heavy hitting damage. Also those fists would probably hurt a lot actually.

Now, getting onto its size. I'm imagining this thing to be a behemoth of a machine, legs and lower torso being massive and round for complete stability. Being extremely slow in transportation would be a huge disadvantage as if you were to go capture territory, this Titan would have to make a large trek. But of course, the extra defense is a huge advantage in battle and would be a good mech for either support in the back or full on offense with its melee.

For the small details, refueling and small numbers, this would make complete sense and probably limit how many are given to each leader and its small army. These Titans would probably be like mini bosses and large influences on the field. Also for morale, this would be a really good asset. Overall thanks for the idea, I love your enthusiasm for presenting it and the idea is very well developed.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
@Will11 As the resident history expert, can we have your thoughts on what the impact of widespread use of electricity and also giant robots would have on life and war in the 1770s?

Advanced cameras are apparently also a thing.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Well it wouldn't be the 1770's, it would be now or future now :) Just keep everything you love from the 1770's like powdered wigs, old timey language ("have at thee you damned rascal dastards!") and syphilis and transport it with nowadays technology. I'm thinking of the Key and Peele skech where a guy with a machine gun goes back in time to kill all the founding fathers before they can sign the second amendment and one of the guys says "I say, look at the size of his musket." Stuff like that :)

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
LOL, sounds about right.

If only this were the Civil War, he could use that Will Smith movie for research...

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Ok so after literally being gone for one day, literally everything explodes in this thread. So for the reason behind the American Revolutionary War; I just think the idea of being the war for starting one of the most influential countries is a good start to what could be a good story. But yes, I do realize that technology would probably completely destroy some points of this time period but I'm just going to paraphrase an argument I had with my friend about this topic.

He told me that if technology similar to ours existed back then, there would be no Revolutionary War because of how the world would basically already be torn apart. Since back then, it was more about claiming each other's land than anything else. So he said this idea was entirely impractical but what my Russian friend told me was that "It's just the Revolutionary War but with robots, who cares about what would had actually happened." Which is quite similar to Will's statement about just throwing in something futuristic but still keeping the same esthetic. Of course, there are going to be some slight changes because of these giant fighting machines, such as certain key events taking a drastic turn and fighting formations being completely redistributed. But overall, just trying to keep the main points and ideas alive is what I'm trying to do. Also robots are cool.

And for those confused on technology restrictions and all that, I didn't clearly define it enough and that might of caused a lot of confusion. So let me redefine them again, (I'm still trying to set my own boundary on this, so anything that doesn't seem plausible or needs change, feel free to say) There are no planes or anything that is able to fly short or long distances, as this hasn't been realized. And I'm guessing that I painted the technology as more of a steampunk theme and that's perfectly fine but I do accept anything that is electronic. Because I wanted it to be more like it was happening in our time. (Except without planes) And I do know automatic weapons would probably completely destroy the premise of the time period so I'll put a ban on that. Let's just say that any weapons are limited to non automatic guns and anything melee that isn't a giant chainsaw or anything like that. Also about the camera thing, I'll keep it as something very basic. But any small boosters are allowed.

Also about the rapier thing. This is my take on it. Rapiers were used mostly for cutting the throats of people and stabbing. As a quick and nimble weapon, it was used for quick duels and quick kills. But in the scene of mechs? So depending on the thickness of armor and joint weakness, it could be a complete flop or deadly weapon. And about it cutting through metal? Unless it's titanium or on a similar caliber, it wouldn't be doing much. Longswords in general would basically be weak because of the mechs being thick armored. (Unless you're calculating power and durability of the weapon.)

My personal weapon choices? Guns are perfect for long range and getting through thick armor, especially for disabling mechs. But if we take out automatic, these guns would be useless at short range and close combat. For melee, giant maces or hammers would be the ideal choice for crushing your foes like soda cans. But their heaviness would be a huge factor in deciding who gets the first hit. Swords and scythes are quick but hard to inflict heavy damage. They can chip armor and block easily but their usage for heavy hitting is a no. And bombs, so far, no one has mentioned bombs. I'm allowing bombs. No nukes, but stick grenades and the such are allowed.

Now if I didn't clear up something, please tell me, because I should have been more clear on what the time period was and its limits. For now, I'll accept any ideas that fit those guidelines.

P.S. The Native thing? That was beautiful. I'll definitely make the mechs animal like in nature for them.

P.S.S. Yeah they could be easily knocked over if they had legs and arms, which is why I envision most of my mechs as with tank treads and very large legs for stability. And arms would be slow moving but easily open for joint destruction. For faster moving mechs, smaller body with boosters for speed and virtually no arms but instead guns on the side. Also cannons are cool.

P.S.S.S For those who still want swords and the such, just put a short explosive or booster on the blade to propel it so the force is enough to inflict heavy damage. Of course, this would probably be highly dangerous for the mech user and useless if it doesnt hit, it's one solution.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

*claps*

Anyway, thoughts on the latest batch of my mechs?

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Latest batch?

The Salamander would be something used near the coastlines of the Atlantic Ocean or as a weapon to send out when arriving on mainland. It would probably be used for battles on ships or between ships in the water. It would be a basic fighting machine with water and land mechanics.

Ok, so I already discussed this above, but the Rapier would most likely be an early design but upgraded or scrapped due to its flawed and weak attack power. It would be the start of melee mechs for whatever country I put it in.

The Archer, I don't want to change the original design too much but if you're going to name something "Archer", then use arrows or bolts. The only change I would make is that instead of a long rifle, a large crossbow with huge barbed arrows. Putting a glass scope on the crossbow would help for lining up targets.

The Ranger, being more wolf like is a nice change but as discussed above (and in the arguments), the technology for tracking and pursuit, will most likely be not a radar, but a spyglass. I just like the idea of the simple tool.

Last, but not least, the Artorius. This mech would probably be big in order to stabilize itself with its greatsword. Also boosters on the arms might help with power increase and strong attacks. Of course, the mech would be easily open to attack from other mechs because of its decreased attack speed while swinging, but direct hits would cause a very painful dent.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Well I'm not exactly certain why anyone has even tried to bring science into this, because science clearly does not belong in this thread. There's a degree of "Fuck Science, this is kickass!" that exists in a lot of fiction. I mean, look at Pacific Rim. That was just "Fuck, I want giant robots vs giant monsters", and that was great fun. Look at For Honor, which was just "Fuck, I want Vikings vs Knights vs Samurai", and that was also pretty fun.

However, those both benefit from the visual element, which seeing that shit is definitely far superior to reading about it, but unlike those this idea is kind of all over the place. It's steampunk, except with electricity and cameras, which just kind of kills the setting. Plus, Native Americans having mechs is just even more retarded and damages the setting. The Native Americans were hugely disadvantaged technologically, they should be using only looted mechs from the enemy, and their fighting should be focused on activity like ambushes and traps through non-mech forces, like Ewoks vs Chicken Walkers.

All in all, I dislike the general setting, and don't see much of what value there is to the aesthetic is this setting. I mean, you're getting rid of the horse-riding and the wagons, you're getting rid of the entire low-tech setting, and I don't really get what you want to take from this setting.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Well, yeah. Kickass has to feel somewhat earned in order for it to mean something. Visual shit has the ability to establish this with shit like gameplay and cool stunts. Writing can't really do that, so it uses rulesets to get around that. Clever use of the rules of the universe makes things badass. That's why people love Tyrion so much despite the idea of a non-magical nerd in a party of adventurers being a pretty lame escort mission in most fantasy scenarios.

When something you're doing makes sense from the point of view of that world, it makes it worth something and it's very badass. Science has a very important place in this thread, because without it, it's just bullshit that you can't really get attached to. If it doesn't need science, it needs something that keeps it consistent and gives adversity actual meaning. After all, a Badass is someone who overcomes ridiculous challenges in interesting ways, but the challenges have to have some sort of meaning, and the solution has to make sense. 

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

What? You interchange science and rules of the universe in that.  I mean, the two examples I just mentioned completely disregard science. I'd wager that a huge chunk, if not the majority of fiction doesn't give a shit for breaking science. Sure, it has internal rules and logic, but that means fuck all in regards to actual science because if anyone gave a shit about that, mech shit just wouldn't exist because it's, quite frankly, absurd in real life. Science and internal consistency and logic are far from the same thing.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I guess you're right.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Well about the Natives, that's what I was going to implement but I didn't really state that in my response. Of course, before the Revolutionary War, the Natives stole or traded for the new technology to benefit themselves. Although I see them using it very poorly than actually being useful. But the Natives would probably still use actual animals such as horses as well as net traps and spears. Yes, they are easily overpowered but their strategies and knowledge of the land gives them a distinct advantage over the technology users.

And about the technology in general? I've been thinking about how to do it but so far, I think I would have to just convert it to something just steampunk or something entirely different because clearly this mix of technology boundaries is making people upset. I'll come up with an actual technology guideline soon that makes sense and actually would fit with the esthetic.

Also for getting rid of what made that setting awesome in its own right does seem entirely ridiculous but there is a reason for alternate history. Basically changing the setting and making it another setting of its own while still relying on the same ideals of the past is what I'm trying to aim for. It's hard to say why and what would be taken out of the setting I laid out so far, but it's just experimental right now and finding out the ideal environment is what I'm trying for right now.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberpunk_derivatives#Postcyberpunk

So here is a page on Wiki about different versions of technology other than steampunk. And if anyone sees anything interesting or would fit with the original idea, tell me.

Or I'll make my own versions of technology derivatives and see if it would work along with your opinions.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

To be honest, I would rather have this maintain the steampunk idea, not due to the fact that the other genre's are bad, but due to the fact the era the game is set in. The steampunk would work by itself just fine as is right now and it would actually be quite fitting(except... you know, the mechs) if you ask me.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Yeah, I like the steampunk idea.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

You suggested the audiovisiual sensors you watery tart

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Well, consider that idea rescinded. And watch your manners!

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

We've already established that the audiovisual sensors were two sassy noncontributors with spyglasses and earhorns! This is the most important part of the story, we can't just take all that potential away!

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I'll make sure to put that spyglass thing down.

And for now, Steampunk it is, I just got to do some tuning on some previous designs then it'll be all good for now.

And strictly keeping it to Steampunk like how Jules Verne did it with limited computer systems and more machines run on steam.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Ok so I've been thinking about the visual aspect of this and I was wondering if there are any artists on CYS that would be willing to help sketch out some of the designs that were mentioned. I would do it myself but due to time and actually focusing on the story itself, it would be a long time coming. Again it's a sketch not a super detailed masterpiece.

But I'll also be drawing my own designs just as a reference for myself.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I guess get the guy who drew the artwork for this boardgame. Your whole concept was sort of reminding me of it (even if the story was still set in further in the past than this game)

https://boardgamegeek.com/image/2323719/scythe?size=large

https://boardgamegeek.com/image/2342493/scythe?size=large

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

That really does look like what I'm picturing except for the fact that it's civil war? Although contacting them would be difficult and getting them to sketch my ideas  might be a hassle but I'll look into it. The art does give me ideas though.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I could certainly help you out! I'm what we in the business call a "Artiste in Concept"! My work has been described by its many esteemed critics as "Technically Groundbreaking", "Somehow improved" and even "Autistic in quality".

Morgan and MHD are probably going to be much more diligent (and provide higher quality) if they agree to help you out, though.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

I've been called,"Less Talented Than My 8Yr Old Son Who Is Has Asperger's Syndrome and Has No Hands and Paints With His Legs", "Slightly Better Than That Elephant", and "This Is Slightly Disturbing to Look At, Actually.."

I'm not sure if that's praise or not ^_^

I know a few people on Deviantart you may want to contact to help you with the drawing part of this.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Oi, self-deprecation by way of making fun of disabled people is my thing! I did it first!

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

B-but these are praises I've received :(

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Well my praises are roughly the same, dammit!

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

*grumbles quietly* do you have a copyright on self-deprecating praises? >~> 

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

No, but we most certainly could settle who does with an ANTI-ART Duel!

We can co-host a thread similar to this, and assuming the rebellious edgy youths of CYS don't heed our warnings,then we can provide them with the punishment of their own prompting! Whichever picture they felt punished them the most adequately for their heinous disobedience will be the one that wins self-deprecation rights.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Hmmm...

We could.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Well then, it's official! I challenge you to an anti-duel! Consider yourself artistically challenged!... Wait, scratch that, I'm the artistically challenged one. That's why I'm undoubtedly winning. Consider yourself challenged to an anti-art-duel!

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Alright, thanks Penguin and Seto, if any of the suggested people are willing to help that would be appreciated.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

This sounds kind of interesting.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
Usually when I say I hope people get cancer I'm exaggerating, but no, I really, really do hope there is an inoperable tumor growing in your brain, right at this very moment.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Well then, that's a bit rude but alright.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago
It's Bluesabere. Keep up.

The Revolutionary War.. BUT WITH MECHS!!

7 years ago

Ok, now I've kept up.