Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

AMERICA FUCK YEAH (Megabots MK II)

15 (18.3%)

GLORIOUS NIPPON (Kuratas)

21 (25.6%)

GIANT ROBOTS WOOOOOOOOOOOOO

46 (56.1%)

Total Members Voted: 81

[Jopax]

I still refuse to accept these as mechs. Mech shaped cars at best, but until they have them properly walking (however slowly or clumsily) they'll be nothing but glorified cars to me.

Also if you can make a proper mech that requires one guy to operate completely then you can easily make a tank that requires one (or none) guy to operate completely. The tech is the same honestly, plus you have the whole, spread the workload around and let the folks specialise so they can do their task better thing.

In any case, however cool mechs are and could be, we're still kinda far away from that, so in the mean time, I'll stick to tanks, those have had plenty of years to build a reputation for themselves.

[IcyTea31]

You can operate a tank with just one person. Simple open the entrance hatch and stand in it so that it's around your waist. Point your arm forward and yell "CHAAAAAARGE". If you did this correctly, the tank moves forward and fires at foes with perfect accuracy, while plot armour protects you from any weapons pointed at you. Fun fact: this technique is the same one they use to fly helicopters by humming Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries.

[Spehss _]

I still refuse to accept these as mechs. Mech shaped cars at best, but until they have them properly walking (however slowly or clumsily) they'll be nothing but glorified cars to me.

Megabots has mentioned working on a walker next. It's a start.

Another way mechs could stand out is their versatility. Yeah, you could use either a mech or a tank in warfare. could you use a tank in the labor force? Use a tank for lifting heavy objects? Make a mech that you can customize to fit the work required.

You can operate a tank with just one person. Simple open the entrance hatch and stand in it so that it's around your waist. Point your arm forward and yell "CHAAAAAARGE". If you did this correctly, the tank moves forward and fires at foes with perfect accuracy, while plot armour protects you from any weapons pointed at you. Fun fact: this technique is the same one they use to fly helicopters by humming Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries.

Make sure you have a sword, so you can drive the tank up next to the enemy so you can hit them with your sword.

[Jopax]

Actually, so far tank chassies have been used for the following things to my knowledge: agriculture, as crane bases, firefighting and runway clearing (the last two by using jet engines on top of them no less).

And again, the reason they're not used that much outside of warfare is because they've been built to be really really good at one thing and one thing only. And I bet that mechs would be the same, sure you could have it do a bunch of stuff but I don't think it'll be as good at any one thing as a dedicated platform would be. And a dedicated platform would also be cheaper and easier to maintain and operate.

Again, I'm not arguing against mechs being cool, they are, but all of that blows up in a puff of mech shaped smoke the moment you look past the cool factor. And that's okay, I don't really look for practicality of beliveability in my mech fiction (tho it's nice if they put in the effort to handwave it properly), but I will do that if somebody promises real world mechs.

[Spehss _]

I'm sure as the technology progresses people will find some use for mechs that makes it viable beyond purely being cool.

I want a future where giant robots are a common thing, darn it.

[Jopax]

You may want to look to space in that case. Low and zero G enviroments would actually make them somewhat viable for a number of things. But they'd probably just be a pilot cab with a bunch of limbs and thrusters attached to it, so not really mechs, more like space robot octopi or something.

[evilcherry]

You may want to look to space in that case. Low and zero G enviroments would actually make them somewhat viable for a number of things. But they'd probably just be a pilot cab with a bunch of limbs and thrusters attached to it, so not really mechs, more like space robot octopi or something.

To be fair Gundam sourcebooks states that the mobile suit is precisely made like that so it has weight to throw around and reorient itself.


Back to the topic, though. The longer I look at this the more I think it has more of a pro-wrestling vibe to it. Both sides will win one round, and both will claim victory happily.

[Loud Whispers]

Nothing can defeat gorillion folded nippon robits

[andrea]

Mech fighting IS an use for mechs, and it is one which requires nothing more than coolness.

[wierd]

The Hybrid Assisted Limb (another japanese product) is a prototypical device for a more useful giant mecha. It's basically a minimalist exosuit.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HAL_%28robot%29

At the very least, it is a prototypical product for power armors of various kinds. It has genuine applications.

The kind of giant mechas being built here? Not so much.

[Flying Dice]

Mech fighting IS an use for mechs, and it is one which requires nothing more than coolness.

This. The Battlebots of the future will be mech duels.

[Aklyon]

This...
GET ALL THE HYPE
ALL OF IT

More than the Xcom2 thread, even!

[Graknorke]

space robot octopi

You say that like it should be a disappointment.

[Loud Whispers]

space robot octopi

You say that like it should be a disappointment.

You say that like it's a good thing. I've seen enough space hentai to know where this is going.

[Graknorke]

IMO space hentai should qualify as a good thing yes. Even just by the side-effects, if you have tentacles that are dextrous enough that your hips are moving on their own(~~~) then think about what else they could do.