Battletech - Also known as Trannytech

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but they can still pass as a normal man or woman?
I'd accept that if it was another setting, but BattleTech doesn't strike me as the kind where you can get such extreme augmentation with out it being obvious.


like altering his outer appearnce from Caucasian to Asian to pass as a Combine crew member
That's also dumb, it's not like the Successor States are homogenous ethnic blocks, so they could easily source agents of the right race or ethnicity. Not that you would need to, outside of very specific circumstances. It's not like a black samurai is going to stand out among the Combine ranks.

It just feels like the authors are unnecessarily jumping through hoops that have no need to be there in the first place.
 
Which shouldn't even be necessary since ever state is a multi-ethnic one.
Fair point and I just realized that. I would have to look into the novel again, I might be misrepresenting this part. I mean even a say blue eyed, blonde Steiner might pass as a combine citizen if he or she says that they are from Rasalhague
 
My main complaint with the old Battletech novels is that I wish there was more content for the Free Worlds League. They're my personal favorite faction and are pretty much always sidelined. I have a soft spot for the only Marik-focused novel Ideal War even though it isn't the best written because I like Paul Masters and the Knights of the Inner Sphere and I like 'Nam stories.
 
My main complaint with the old Battletech novels is that I wish there was more content for the Free Worlds League. They're my personal favorite faction and are pretty much always sidelined. I have a soft spot for the only Marik-focused novel Ideal War even though it isn't the best written because I like Paul Masters and the Knights of the Inner Sphere and I like 'Nam stories.
The Knights of the Inner Sphere being a Marik unit rather than Davion always seemed a bit weird to me, considering Davion is supposed to have a more knightly chivalry vibe than other houses.
It's not like a black samurai is going to stand out among the Combine ranks.
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I love this cover
 
The Knights of the Inner Sphere being a Marik unit rather than Davion always seemed a bit weird to me, considering Davion is supposed to have a more knightly chivalry vibe than other houses.
I kinda like it because it characterizes Thomas Halas as the fake Thomas Marik a bit by showing his personal ideals, and I find it a bit fun because it's a weird fit for Marik. But yeah it probably would fit more thematically with the Federated Suns.
 
Fair point and I just realized that. I would have to look into the novel again, I might be misrepresenting this part. I mean even a say blue eyed, blonde Steiner might pass as a combine citizen if he or she says that they are from Rasalhague
If I recall correctly... as it's been over a decade since I read the Warrior Trilogy, but I remember Hanse's "rival" noble house, the Allards, as being described as Scottish redheads with epicanthic folds because they were from the Capellan March and had long mixed in.
 
If I recall correctly... as it's been over a decade since I read the Warrior Trilogy, but I remember Hanse's "rival" noble house, the Allards, as being described as Scottish redheads with epicanthic folds because they were from the Capellan March and had long mixed in.
I believe you are completely right except that his rivals are the Haseks, not the Allards. I believe specifically it is Michael Hasek who is Hanse's rival, and his son Morgan Hasek-Davion who is also relevant in the book as the backup heir in case Hanse and Melissa cannot conceive some heirs.
 
I believe you are completely right except that his rivals are the Haseks, not the Allards. I believe specifically it is Michael Hasek who is Hanse's rival, and his son Morgan Hasek-Davion who is also relevant in the book as the backup heir in case Hanse and Melissa cannot conceive some heirs.
Yeah, my bad, but hey, glad I remembered SOME details.

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He even has the Imperial rattail. Heh.
 
Which shouldn't even be necessary since ever state is a multi-ethnic one.
Loki doesn't like to take chances. If it will buy an operative maybe half a second extra to pull off their suicide mission, they'll do it. Remember, they're the guys who are so cuckoo and off the reservation that an entirely separate glowie organization exists specifically to violently rein them in whenever they get out of hand.
 
Yeah, my bad, but hey, glad I remembered SOME details.

View attachment 8021417

He even has the Imperial rattail. Heh.
The funny thing is that his son got more Davion genes then Hasek genes considering his hair colour (flaimng red) and overall body build

But it's k9inda funny flipping through the real old sourcebooks (those before the 4th SW) and seeing how "big" the military industry of each state was. For example House Kurita had, according to the sourcebook, only 2 or 3 Mech factories left while House Davion and House Steiner had almost double that (I mean House Steiner has the crown jewel of Mech factories outside of Terra with Hesperus II) so they should have an advantage in terms of produced Mechs but it is balanced with "social generals"
 
Archangel is pure sex

Where are my Celestials in plastic CGL

Where are they

Oh noo we need to make Battlefleet: Gothic instead, the public was screaming for us to do that instead of fulfilling Kickstarter promises, unfucking our logistics or filling up ENORMOUS holes in our plastic lineup for the post-3050 era


(there are some great .stl models for Celestials, also, it's bloody hilarious how mid they are in actual gameplay because they were kind of badly designed. The Archangel is an absolute zombie though, I've had it eat disgusting amounts of damage and still do its job several times)
 
Where are my Celestials in plastic CGL

Where are they

Oh noo we need to make Battlefleet: Gothic instead, the public was screaming for us to do that instead of fulfilling Kickstarter promises, unfucking our logistics or filling up ENORMOUS holes in our plastic lineup for the post-3050 era


(there are some great .stl models for Celestials, also, it's bloody hilarious how mid they are in actual gameplay because they were kind of badly designed. The Archangel is an absolute zombie though, I've had it eat disgusting amounts of damage and still do its job several times)
Looking at the Celestials I think I see why House Marik has their eternal shortage of PPCs.
 
Fought two games against the same person at battletech today. His Madcat crit my Night Gyr cockpit with a LP Laser, but was then destroyed by a Howler TAC crit hitting his SRM ammo while his second madcat ate everything my Thor II C could throw at him before crumbling. Second game was slower where I tried out an Iron Cheetah B and man that mech is just mean. Turn 1 it ripped off a Warhammers leg and then spent the rest of the game mauling everything that looked at it.
 
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The Camacho's Caballeros trilogy ended up being my favorite Battletech book series, though I've not read literally every book yet. It's a crying shame the author died a while ago; I think he had a lot more left in him that we'll never get to see now. I also encourage you to skip Ideal War in its entirety. Yes, the character and concepts it introduces get more important later, but it's so, so poorly written in service of the author's hamfisted Vietnam allegory.
 
I've always maintained Ideal War was worse than Far Country. At least the latter has the decency to occur 'off the map' and can even be relegated to a 'What If' or April Fool's scenario.

Main Event and D.R.T. (the Black Thorns novels) were not the strongest, but it always amused me in a dark way what happened to the unit; due to editorial oversight, they got left on Galedon V right around the time the planet got hit with a bioweapon and was then subsequently sterilized by nukes. Whoops...
 
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