Blog Update: Indefinite Hiatus

Well folks, as you may recall from my last status update, I was uncertain about the long term future of the blog. And as you can tell from the title, I've came to a decision.

It wasn't easy. On the one hand, I am largely doing better at self-care, but on the other it's December and I work in retail. Also, I'm currently working through some life/career matters that need some spare headspace. All this makes it less likely for me to do something creative, and I've ditched more than a few projects lately because I wasn't feeling it. So, rather than risk putting out sub-par work, and adding stress through an artficial target, I'm pressing pause. This blog is ultimately for me, not the other way around, and a break is probably good for me. I hope to return in the new year, but beyond that, I make no promises.

In the meantime, Merry Chrimbo! 

 

 

Plamo: The Chitocerium XXII-Tanio Alb (Good Smile Company)

You know what, let's just call this the nanokitty. Moving on...

So, I picked this up on a whim during a black friday event, on the simple reasoning of "kitteh!", rather than any familiarity with the line. Good Smile Company is a rival to gunpla's Bandai Visual, and I have no prior experience with their work. They seem to do a lot in the way of licensed anime figurines, with robot kits being just one thing they do. Their name sounds like a cyberpunk megacorp, but that's as far as my opinion goes.  is, in so far as I can figure out, a kit-first and artist-promoted enterprise where everything is a 1 to 1 representation of a “fragment”. I'm hitting a bit of a language barrier with this one, where the official English descriptions seem to be mechanically translated metaphysics. The vast majority of the line seems to be gothic and rather artesy dolls that store/sleep in hexagonal boxes, obviously edging into waifu territory, with nanokitty here being a low cost entry. It is, not to put too fine a point on it, fucking tiny. It came in a box smaller than some dvds, or letters for that matter. The completed kit is bite-sized. Nanokitty can perch inside a bottle top. Don't drop any of it, you won't find it again.

Actual construction is a simple if delicate affair. The merest application of glue is needed to secure the major ball joints, and the white plastic is quite forgiving with respects to nub marks. The black plastic is obviously less so, but you do get a selection of alternate tails and a spare head with closed eyes. There is also a display base, but this is less to support nanokitty, and more to stop it blowing away next time you cough near it. The articulation is for all intents and purposes, perfect. Uncanny, in fact. Nanokitty has a porcelain doll vibe going on, but it poses so easily. I cannot conceive of a more mobile quadruped at this size. I would adore for engineering like this to be applied to something bigger and less fiddly. Its that elegant.

I'm an easy mark for cats, and oddities, but I was unexpectedly blown away by this. Is it art? I dunno, but if it isn't, it's damn close. 

 

 

The Mecha Hack: Four More Chassis Things

Something I enjoy about the Mecha Hack is how easy it is to, well, Hack. I've been able to produce no end of material because of this, a lot being used in my RPG group. Today's article is much the same, based on concepts I brainstormed in preparation for a new campaign. I don't think I'll end up using these, as I'm currently favouring a different concept, but maybe you can get use out of them? What follows is a bunch of Gundam style grunts, designed to replace the stock 4 chassis, in a smaller scale conflict. Like Zeta...

The Cannoneer Chassis

Inspiration: RGC-83 GM Cannon II, GN-005 Gundam Virtue

The thing about the Titan chassis is that it's very defensive. That's not a complaint, just an observation. Sometimes though, you might want something more proactive, hence this. The Cannoneer is intended as a durable fire platform, stopping short of the Colossus and its transformation gimmick. It has a different gimmick instead, allowing a player to shed armour for agility. This makes it look like something of a good-all-rounder, but its more about long-range stuff.

CANNONEER CHASSIS

HIT DIE D10 DAMAGE DIE D6 REACTOR DIE D6

STARTING HP
1d10 + 5

WEAPONS AND ARMOUR
All weapons and armour.

LEVELLING UP
Roll your hit die to gain new hit points. Roll to see if attributes increase, rolling twice for Presence and System. At levels 3, 6, & 9, gain a new module.

STARTING EQUIPMENT
Comlink, Heavy Armour (5AP), Small Shield (2AP), Machete (Light Melee Weapon), and Assault Rifle (Light Ranged Weapon).

DESIGN FEATURES

TWIN SHOULDER CANNONS: As an attack action, test Power. If you succeed, deal 2d6 damage, divided as you choose between enemies at far or distant range. Roll your reactor die.

PURGE ARMOUR: As a use action, spend all/any remaining AP & discard your Twin Shoulder Cannons to gain a + 2 bonus to mobility. This lasts until the end of the combat, and the equipment is restored at the next full rest. 

 

The Corax Chassis

Inspiration: OZ-12SMS Taurus

Going slightly more specific for our first Gundam Wing reference of the day, the Corax is a Scout replacement. These are perhaps slightly toned down from the Taurus, these has the virtue of an easy flight mode, and a better damage die than the regular Scout. This means its more about speed than sneaking, but doesn't have to spend a whole turn on the wind-up for an attack. The AI function is intended to suggest a technically competent, but dumb as a sack of hammers robot brain, which is quite representative of the show.

CORAX CHASSIS

HIT DIE D6 DAMAGE DIE D8 REACTOR DIE D6

STARTING HP
1d6 + 3

WEAPONS AND ARMOUR
Light weapons, heavy ranged, & light armour.

LEVELLING UP
Roll your hit die to gain new hit points. Roll to see if attributes increase, rolling twice for Mobility and System. At levels 3, 6, & 9, gain a new module.

STARTING EQUIPMENT
Comlink, Light Armour (3AP) & Beam Rifle (Light Ranged Weapon).

DESIGN FEATURES

FLIGHT FORM: As a use action, transform. While transformed, you ignore difficult terrain, can move two range bands with one move action, but may not use melee weapons. Return to normal with a use action.

DRONE AI: Your machine can be programmed and/or instructed remotely to act in combat, as fully functional drone. While doing so your mecha has no pilot type, Power: 10, Mobility: 10, System: 5, Presence: 2, and the same HP/AP. Triggering or cancelling this ability requires a Use action.

The Mock Chassis

Inspiration: RMS-106 Hi-Zack 

OK, this is an example of an idea running away with me, and I'm not sure where to take it next. As I have commented before, the Hizack is something that makes no sense in context. It's a machine objectively worse than everything else the Federation had en-mass at the time, it looks like Zeon made it, and its operated by an organisation with "Fuck Zeon" tattoos. I first thought if it as a low cost grunt with thematic flaws, and then came the inspiration. Its an aggressor for war games. Its a false flag unit. A, wait for it, Mecha of Disguise. So, this chassis has the start of a subterfuge mechanic, that I never quite finished. I also added a damage die mechanic to represent the Hizacks power issues. This could actually benefit such a player's cover story, pulling a few punches and so on. Mechanically, this fills the role of a Striker, my logic being that a conman would need a good eye and fast mouth, and that sort of thing is System and Presence.

I realise that I may have put more thought into this than Sunrise did.

MOCK CHASSIS

HIT DIE D8 DAMAGE DIE D6* REACTOR DIE D6

STARTING HP
1d8 + 4

WEAPONS AND ARMOUR
All weapons and armour.

LEVELLING UP
Roll your hit die to gain new hit points. Roll to see if attributes increase, rolling twice for Presence and System. At levels 3, 6, & 9, gain a new module.

STARTING EQUIPMENT
Comlink, Light Armour (3AP), Small Shield (2AP), Heat Axe (Light Melee Weapon) and Autocannon (Light Ranged Weapon).

DESIGN FEATURES

REPURPOSED AGGRESSOR UNIT: You may reconfigure this machine so it resembles a different mecha with relative ease. You also reroll 20s when attempting to maintain that cover, infiltrate enemy installations and general subterfuge, assuming your disguise is credible.

OBSOLETE POWER CONDUITS: As a use action, change your damage die to one of the following 3 settings. A: your damage die is d8 for melee, but d4 for ranged. B: your damage for is d4 for melee, but d8 for ranged. C: reset your damage die to normal. This effect lasts until changed or the end of the battle.

The Trooper Chassis

Inspiration: The OZ-06MS Leo

As you may have observed, I kinda love the Leo. The poor, cannon fodder unit seemingly made from eggshell and dynamite. The only time this ever did well was when a big name piloted one, so I'm gonna use that as a justification to make this a Brawler analogue. Leos are very much my platonic ideal of a Grunt unit; it's entirely utilitarian in design, it comes in broadly sensible colours, and it's got a big selection of kit. As such, the focus here is adaptability and the stereotypically Russian approach to war materiel. Modules become easily swapped in the manner of missiles on jet fighters, or SEEDs various backpacks. You may wish to create a curated module list for that purpose. Meanwhile if, sorry, when these fall in combat, they can just get a new machine, no trouble.

TROOPER CHASSIS

HIT DIE D6 DAMAGE DIE D8 REACTOR DIE D6

STARTING HP
1d6 + 3

WEAPONS AND ARMOUR
All weapons and armour.

LEVELLING UP
Roll your hit die to gain new hit points. Roll to see if attributes increase, rolling twice for Power and Mobility. At levels 3, 6, & 9, gain a new module.

STARTING EQUIPMENT
Comlink, Light Armour (3AP), Round Shield (2AP), Beam Saber(Light Melee Weapon) and Drum Machinegun (Light Ranged Weapon).

DESIGN FEATURES

SURVIVABLE AND DISPOSABLE: If you are reduced to 0 HP, do not roll on the chart. Instead apply the "eject" result, and receive an identical replacement machine when there's a gap in the fighting.

FLEXIBLE MISSION HARDPOINTS: During Downtime, you may swap out any/all of your modules for the next mission, subject to GM approval. The module(s) listed on your character sheet are considered your default load-out.

If you do use these rules, do let me know how it turns out.

Transformers: FOC Optimus Prime Is Something That Exists

Optimus Prime is a character that needs no introduction. So, moving on.

The famous VGA trailer for Fall of Cybertron

While the Transformers brand has its ups & downs, the down circa 2012 was quite a bad one. This was a time where the Bay movies went from a juggernaut to something more mundane, Hasbro was doing the “Aligned” thing, and toy budgets got smaller. Having being previously flushed with money, the toy designers struggled to work within these new confines, and this effect was felt everywhere. It was perhaps most keenly felt with the tie-in toys for the Fall of Cybertron (FOC) video game. FOC has a reasonable claim to being in the top two Transformers games ever, building on the success of the preceding War for Cybertron (WFC). No, not that one, trademark retention is a thing. The tragedy here was that while WFC only got four moulds, not a full line, they were much better received than the much bigger FOC line. Maybe a bit finicky, but clearly benefiting from more plastic, and more time in the oven. The FOC toys were much simpler, often smaller, and of an overtly lesser quality. I say this not to “put the boot in”, I'm actually talking about an old favourite today, but more as a self-evident truth. Sometimes things just don't turn out well. The complex game designs were not well-suited to the new reality, so the fan response was mixed at best. 

A subject for much of the criticism was this toy, which suffered for having a direct FOC analogue in the same size class. There hasn't been a shortage of Optimus toys since about 2001, plus an expectation of him being a physically large character, so a deluxe iteration always has an air of redundancy about it. This one however was also a small deluxe, even by the standards of its day. The WFC version didn't have that problem, and was a more involved toy by most metrics, so right outta the gate, this toy had baggage. The size issue is most evident in its vehicle mode, which, IIRC, was designed to resemble a fist with wheels on it. It's a fairly squat and low to the ground vehicle, evoking the traditional cab, but the silhouette is rather different. Meanwhile, the alien greebling does make it interesting, with the front wheels sticking out further that the back two, although the back end does suffer for gaps and the exposed feet. The overall effect is to make it look smaller than it actually is, not that it's especially big to begin with. On the up side, the gun does feature an angled peg to plug into either of the feet, with two more 5mm ports near the back wheels, and two ports in the smokestacks. So, it's functional, but not setting the world alight.

The transformation and the actual robot is where we start to see the actual positives. Going into to robot does draw on the classical Optimus transformation, but this ends as a boon to the articulation. Prime poses nicely, with lots of unhindered swivels, with the only actual weakness being the shoulder area. He's very agile in the lower body though, and curls a good bicep. This toy has a no-bullshit transformation, a dramatic head reveal, and immediately lends itself to battle poses, which makes it a good deskbot toy. It's hand candy. Of note are the assorted 5mm ports, which by pure coincidence make the toy compatible with the Siege weaponizer play pattern. Seriously, he's got two ports per limb and one on his back. Far more than are actually needed, mind you, and there's a reason for that. 

 

While relatively brief, the FOC line went heavy on the retools, and can be considered a dry run for what Combiner Wars would do. Almost every deluxe got a new head + repaint, with similar ratios in the other size classes, and even a reshell with Sideswipe/Jazz. What made these retools more palatable was the presence of new accessories, usually a bigger gun. When Optimus inevitably became Ultra Magnus, that toy had something that Optimus probably needed in the first place: his sword from the final level of the game. A sword that could combine with his otherwise unremarkable firearm. If only that had been there from the get go, its just so fun. And you could have it stow on his back too. Or bolt it onto the side of the vehicle form. TBH, I kinda regret parting with that Magnus remould now.

The 2012 Fall Of Cybertron Ultra Magnus Toy

The 2010 Cybertronian Optimus Prime Toy, A.K.A WFC Prime

 

My point? Well, just that FOC Optimus Prime is something that exists. He's an above average toy from a fairly disappointing line, suffering in comparison to his immediate predecessor, and a superior retool. That having been said, sometimes restrictions can be a creative asset, and it's definitely true for tiny boi prime, here.