Battletech: Legends and Mechs!
A Battletech-focused podcast, discussing the stories, lore, and universe of the Inner Sphere. For people who love listening to tales about big stompy 'Mechs and want to know more about all the amazing adventures that can happen anywhere from Terra to out on the far edge of the Deep Periphery!
Battletech: Legends and Mechs!
Arena Series Episode 06
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This week the Emerald Predators elected to a send a single MechWarrior to fight against two of the ACEs finest... but what a 'Mech they sent! This is the second-last exhibition match, and the return of our usual cohost, Drake "Grim" Fantome!
It looks like it's going to be a heckuva match!
Welcome to Battletech Legends and Max, a short story podcast telling tales from around the inner sphere and beyond. Good day, gladiatorial sports fans. It is a glorious day here on Slayer 7. The birds are singing, the PPCs are charged, and a third pizzeria has managed to reopen.
SPEAKER_01Oh, please will please tell me it's Papa Yojimbo's. Sorry, buddy, it's the Little Princess. Damn it! The Dabiens make a fine pizza, but I miss Yojimbo's shrimp and tofu. Those were the best.
SPEAKER_00My name is Marks, and as you can tell, today I am joined by my regular co-host, Drake Grimfantone. Welcome back to the bunker, Drake.
SPEAKER_01Good to be back. As dozens of you know, I was on a worldwide book signing tour through much of Solera City. That much fame threatened to go straight to my head, so I'm glad to be back in the recording bunker, where I can be appreciated for more than just my rugged good looks.
SPEAKER_00Sounds like you are exactly as humble as you ever were. This week's matchup is between the Oregon Coalition Experts and the Emerald Predators. I think we finally worked out some of the kinks in the matchup requirements, so we can finally present the full rules to our famous Lance Commander format.
SPEAKER_01Both teams will bring 3,600 battle value worth of mechs to the fight. We will accept any mech designed and built on or before 3052. Uh that's the end of the clan invasion, yes?
SPEAKER_00Correct. We'll be pushing into more contemporary times as the stables bring more of their fighting forces back online. But for now, 3052 gives us a nice array of deadly war machines to smash against each other without too much fragile or expensive tech to replace.
SPEAKER_01And that's it? No unit limits, no restrictions on Arrow 4 or pulse lasers or whatever?
SPEAKER_00Nope. Now, much like ancient Formula 1, we reserve the right to change the rules if any one tech or stable becomes too dominant. But since everyone here wants a good, fair fight, I doubt that will be a problem.
SPEAKER_01I also want to take a moment to remind our listeners that none of these matches are predetermined. We all have our favorite stables, and I suspect we all have our favorite mech warriors, but until the matches are fought, nobody knows where the missiles will fall.
SPEAKER_00Lastly, a quick apology for the loss of the interview chamber for the near future. While it was a fun challenge to do those pre-match interviews, they took forever to record and edit. Since we have a pretty brisk schedule to maintain uh to keep everything consistent, it just wasn't feasible for the constant element of the matches. We here at the list will do our best to keep them in when time permits, but this week we need to get back on track.
SPEAKER_01Hence why I'm here, eh? Good old, reliable, record of the last minute Drake.
SPEAKER_00Your words, not mine. Let's look at today's combatants. First down the ramp are the aces. I'd recognize those footfalls anywhere. That's a Griffin. Uh 1N, I'm guessing? You know, we do get all the spec sheets before the match, right? You expect me to do homework for my job? Absolutely not. Okay then. But you are correct, that is Vilma Parvardi Jaipur in her Griffin 1N. 55 tons, a Cortec 275 fusion engine, capable of cruising speeds of 57 kph, but a top speed of 86 kph for sprints, and five Rawlings 55 jump jets capable of 150 meter leaps over tall buildings.
SPEAKER_01All that to allow Parvati to bring the Fusie Gon PPC Delta Dart LRM 10s into play. The Griffin 1N may lack close range firepower, but as a sniper or scout mech, it's a classic.
SPEAKER_00It'll be interesting to see how Parvardi handles the knife fight range of the arena with that loadout. The PPC is still deadly at close range, but it struggles to land meaningful hits.
SPEAKER_01I guess that will be the responsibility of the Ace's Lance Leader, Kyle Firestorm Kamal, to keep their enemies at bay. Here she comes now in her Warhammer 6R.
SPEAKER_00The Aces love their Warhammers. This is the second time that they fielded one in an exhibition match, but the last time was the 6K variant. This is the classic 6R, 70 tons of battle mech powered by a Vox 280 fusion reactor with 10 tons of armor.
SPEAKER_01Two more PPCs, this time a pair of R-mounted Donald PPCs, along with two Martell medium lasers and two Magna small lasers. Mounted over the shoulders is a Holly SRM 6 missile launcher, and lastly, a pair of spare Browning machine guns. Phew! That is a lot of weaponry.
SPEAKER_00True. But with only 18 single heatsinks, the WHM-6Rs have always struggled to keep even half their weapons firing for extended engagements. It should be noted as well that Firestorm has scored the highest out of any mech warrior for this season's tournament, landing solidly in the second tier for both gunnery and piloting. Her landsmate, Parvati, by comparison, is a basic rookie, a fourth-tier gunner, and a fifth tier pilot. What in the name of Victor Steiner Dad is that? That, my friend, is why you should read the pregame notes. The sound you are hearing is 100 tons of Emerald Predator Direwolf.
SPEAKER_01An assault mech and a direwolf no less. Where do the preds manage to find one of those?
SPEAKER_00Ours is not to question how, just appreciate the fights that come. Weighing in at a commanding 100 tons, and with a top speed of 54 kph, this monster is in the prime configuration and wielding. Oh boy, here we go. You got this, brother. Okay. Four Clantec ER Large Lasers, two Clantec Ultra HC5s, a Clantec LRM 10, and if anything survives all that, four Clantec medium pulse lasers.
SPEAKER_0122 double heat sinks to keep all that cool is definitely not enough. But can anything survive that kind of firepower long enough for the pilot to be worried? Speaking of which, the man in charge of all that boom is Jeremiah Wingspan Andrews, a veteran mech warrior with third-tier gunnery and fourth tier piloting skills.
SPEAKER_00And in another first for the lists, the predators have elected to only send a single mech warrior to the match. But what a mech they've sent. Do the aces try to close distance and bring more of their weapons to bear?
SPEAKER_01That is tricky, since both the Griffins and the Warhammer wield inner sphere PPCs that struggle at close range. And the closer they get to the direwolf, the more of its lasers it can bring to the party. If you've got to pick a single mech to face multiple opponents, the direwolf is a really good choice.
SPEAKER_00Even with the 25 ton weight advantage to the aces, I'm not sure they've brought enough. I guess we'll find out right after these messages. Hey, you there. Yes, you listening to this story right now, out there in the real world. I don't know who you are, I don't know what you're doing, but I hope you're having a great day. This podcast took a lot of work and time to put together. But if you're enjoying it, then it was all worth it. I'm doing this because I love Battletech, just like you, and I love the stories that have been told since I was a kid. So if you're enjoying these episodes, maybe toss a quick review on whatever podcasting app you're using. Thank you, and enjoy this week's episode. And we're back! A few last notes before we get the match started. This exhibition match is in our Lance Commander format, which means that the aces need to bring down that behemoth to win, but Wingspan and the Dow Wolf only needs to try Firestorm and her Warhammer in order to win.
SPEAKER_01Does Wingspan ignore the Griffin entirely try to focus on the heavy mech for the win? Or does he try to take Parvati and that Griffin out of the fight quickly to leave Firestorm isolated?
SPEAKER_00We are back in the Force Arena for this match. Three large hills located at 12 o'clock, four o'clock, and nine o'clock from the middle of the arena, as well as three small hills at two, five, and seven o'clock. Light forests cover much of the area, though there are plenty of elevated positions and a few big fire lanes in the 400 by 500 meter space.
SPEAKER_01The Direwolf's ER large lasers can hit from anywhere in the zone as long as he can get a line of sight.
SPEAKER_00Wingspan has one initiative for the predators, and so the aces are moving on to the field first. Parvati has jumped into the forest on elevation on the east side of the map, and Firestorm has run straight up the middle and behind a hill to the south.
SPEAKER_01Wingspan has run into a light forest on the large hill to the north side. His position gives him a clean line to Parvati, but hidden from Firestorm. With the Mech Warriors in place, we are ready to rumble. Here we go! Parvati has jumped straight north into another light force on elevation.
SPEAKER_00I'll be curious if the rookie can line up any shots while we're jumping around. Firestorm has run her Warhammer straight north as well into some woods. They're obviously trying to overwhelm Winkspan as quickly as possible.
SPEAKER_01In response, Winkspan has run the direwolf behind the peak of that big hill, putting a fair amount of rock in two forests between him and the Griffin. But he's a big, slow target.
SPEAKER_00I'm not sure it'll be enough. Parvati is opening up with her LRM, electing to not fire the PPC despite being at medium range. Ah, but with a cover from the hills and trees, plus the fact that she jumped, she has almost no chances.
SPEAKER_01Sure enough, those missiles fly wide. Firestorm is NACE pilot, though, still at medium range and some cover from the hills. He's got about 50-50 shots with a PPC. First shot, hit. Big hit to the left torso, and the second PPC flies wide. Slightly worse odds to hit, but manages to land it. That's it to the left arm and leg, right torso, and the head.
SPEAKER_00Wow, Firestorf is out here showing us all how it's done. Looks like Wingspan has managed to stay awake and is opening fire on Parvati, trying to take that plucky rookie out of this fight as fast as possible. It's a tricky shot, lots of cover, and Parvati has a fast mover. First ER large laser flies wide. Second and third shots also miss. Last chance, no love.
SPEAKER_01The Ultra AC5s have the same bad odds, but Wingspan is pissed.
SPEAKER_00Ah, both missed by a hair. Parvati has jumped all over heat, but both of the Big Macs are moving a little slower as their heatsink struggle to keep up with the massive barrages they're putting downfield.
SPEAKER_01Ha, massive barrage is the name I used to dance under.
SPEAKER_00This is a family show, Drake. What? Anyone can dance, nothing wrong with that. Anyway, the aces have seized the initiative, which is good news for their fans. Firestorm has decided to move down the hill she was on into forests a few meters closer to Wingspan.
SPEAKER_01Wingspan is lumbering his dire wolf up the hill into a forest he was previously behind. Still a chunk of hill between him and Firestorm, but will it be enough?
SPEAKER_00Lastly, Parvati has jumped again, moving further to the northeast. She's behind a hill and at optimal range for her weapon. This is going to be a big round of shooting.
SPEAKER_01Wingspan continues to focus his fire on Parvati, which is an interesting call here, but some of his decision making might be affected by the blow to the head. First ER Large flies wide. He really shouldn't be missing these shots. He's at close range and Parvati didn't jump as far as the grippin is capable. He's got good odds for these.
SPEAKER_00Second ER Large Laser finally connects. Parvati has put some damage on his opponents, specifically a massive gash to the left torso. Third ER Large hits. Solid connection to the right leg, and Parvati is looking wobbly on her feet after all that damage. Looks like he's electing to not fire the last ER Large Laser, probably wise.
SPEAKER_01But the Direwolf isn't done yet. Here come the medium pulse laser, same mods to hit due to longer range, but compensated by the pulse laser's targeting advantages. First shot hits the right arm, second pulse laser hits the left leg. Third, blast into the right leg, and last shot into the center torso. Bad grouping, but massive amounts of damage nonetheless.
SPEAKER_00But he's still not done. The Ultra HP 5s are barking. First burst hits, one shot hitting the left torso, and the other goes eternal on the right leg, taking the upper and lower leg actuators. Second UAC 5 misses. Lastly, the LRM 10 misses as well. He was firing where Parvati was, not where she was going to be.
SPEAKER_01Parvati has managed to stay on her feet after all that and is returning fire on the direwolf with everything she has. Even at perfect range, her odds aren't good. The PvC shot duh misses. And the LRM hits! Eight missiles managed to find a home on the Direwolf, striking the right torso and left arm. That Big Mech's paint is still barely scratched.
SPEAKER_00Let's see if Firestorm can do more than scratch the paint. She's still at medium range, but she is a crack shot. About 50-50 on the combat prediction computer. First PVC, hit! Big hit to the right arm. Second shot, flies wide. She's firing her Holly SRM and land them. Missiles hitting the left leg and torso.
SPEAKER_01Lastly, are the medium lasers at long range. First hits! More damage to that battered left leg. Second shot, ah, flies wide.
SPEAKER_00Time to pay the piper for all that firepower. The dire wolf is at risk of an ammo explosion, skillfully avoided. And then the reactor shutdown, also avoided. But it's too hot to move, and the targeting computer must be going crazy in there.
SPEAKER_01Firestorm was careful not to risk an ammo explosion, but she needs to avoid fusion reactor shutdown. Just barely got it there. She theoretically is capable of moving, but since she's in the middle of a forest, I don't think she can actually go anywhere. Lastly, the griffin has slowed down a tiny amount due to heat, but otherwise it's fine. The aces are keeping up the pressure. The Warhammer is elected to stay put, which again, considering how slow it is right now, it wouldn't be able to go anywhere anyways.
SPEAKER_00In a surprise to nobody, the direwolf is also stuck in place. Too hot to move, even if Wingspan wanted to, which he actually probably does.
SPEAKER_01The Griffin is already at great range and doesn't have to worry too much about Wingspan shooting her at this moment, so Parvati is staying put and preparing to lay down some fire.
SPEAKER_00Maybe Parvati forgot that the Direwolf is an ungodly number of heat sinks and can still dump most of its heat while firing at least a couple of shots. Looks like Wingspan has elected to only fire his medium pulse lasers and his LRM 10. Those would be trivial shots, but with so much heat, it's actually about average chances. First pulse laser misses.
SPEAKER_01Second, oh that's a hit. Big hit to the left leg. Third pulse laser misses. Fourth hit! That's taken the last of the armor off the right arm, but still hasn't got internal. The LRM fires, slightly worse odds to hit, and does indeed miss.
SPEAKER_00First is the PPC, she literally could not line up a shot for this any better, but there's a small chance she'll miss. She lands it. Big hit to the right arm.
SPEAKER_01The LRM10 fires next, and ironically, she's a little too close for a perfect lock, but manages to wrangle the reticle over her target and lands it. Five missiles to the right torso and a single rocket on the left arm. The Barrage has given Parvati enough heat that her senses are going to start giving her some issues. The predators. If there's only one in the arena, is he still the predators or is he a single emerald predator? Predator, I guess? Unless that gets us in trouble with those old movie people. Well, whichever it is. Wingspan has taken the initiative back. Parvati jumps behind a large hill, completely out of mind sight to the Gyaral. She must be hoping that Firestorm can weather around a fire so the Griffin can get some back shots after she cools off.
SPEAKER_00Firestorm has moved directly towards Wingspan, a dangerous move, getting out from the forest and potentially within minimum range of her own PPCs. Not a problem Wingspan will need to contend with.
SPEAKER_01And sure enough, Wingspan has moved slightly closer to Firestorm. Was this an intentional play by the experienced Firestorm to bring her shortest range weapons to bear against the massive direwolf?
SPEAKER_00It appears so. Firestorm is firing everything except her PPCs, hoping for a death by a thousand cuts. The medium lasers almost can't miss, and sure enough, both do hit. One deep cut to each arm on the direwolf, and the armor plating is starting to look a little thin, especially on that right side.
SPEAKER_01The SRM6's next also lined up perfectly and with good tone, solid connection. Two missiles into each of the right arm and torso. Now for the little stuff.
SPEAKER_00First small laser, uh, misses. And the second, oh it connects. Finally putting a little damage on the Direwolf center torso. The machine guns open fire, both hit. Some plink damage to the left arm and a few more scratches to that center.
SPEAKER_01Looks like Wingspan has been smacked around enough that he's shaky on his feet, but he's opening fire on the Warhammer. Looks like everything besides the two ER large lasers, and if he can take Firestorm out here, that'll be a win for the predator. Predators, a win for the green team.
SPEAKER_00Despite perfect range for all his weapons, Firestorm did manage to get a covered position and is moving just barely fast enough to give Wingspan some minor difficulty in connecting. Will it be enough? First ER large laser fires and hits! This doesn't bode well for the aces. Deep gouge to the right leg there. Second ER large laser flies into the dirt. Four pulse lasers would like to have one Firestorm.
SPEAKER_01Let's see if they can connect.
SPEAKER_00Three solid connections, but one still manages to miss. Hits to the torso, arm and leg on the right side. The Ultra AC5's fire hits! Just one shell in the burst connects, landing on the right torso, but two impact second ultra AC5, hitting the left and right arms.
SPEAKER_01Both pilots have maintained their footing. I think Direwolf is slightly worse for wear from that exchange, but has also gained a fair bit of heat. Both the Warhammer and Griffin have managed to dump everything.
SPEAKER_00The aces have taken back the initiative. Wingspan has thrown the Direwolf into full reverse, taking a position behind a cops of trees that might protect him from the Griffin, blocking Parvati's targeting computers from that side of the field.
SPEAKER_01In response, Firestorm jams the joysticks all the way forward, getting even closer to the Direwolf. Parvati runs up to the top of the hill that will just barely give Relina to see the Wingspan. Wingspan has switched his priority back to Parvati. He really doesn't like that Griffin. All four ER Large lasers are firing as well as both UAC5s and the LRM. It will take a miracle for Parvati to survive this.
SPEAKER_00The ERs are at great range, good tone. First shot connects. Through the armor, takes out the hip actuator on the left leg. Second shot hits. Takes the left leg clean off. Parvati is meeting the ground even if she manages to survive this attack. Third ER Large misses, but the last shot connects center of mass. The first Ultra AC5 hits two rounds impacting against Parvati. First hits the pristine right torso, but the second hits center torso and goes internal. Doesn't hit anything critical though.
SPEAKER_01Second UAC 5 hits, one bolt landing and taking at the last of the armor on the left torso. Lastly the LRM10. Oh, and it misses. Wow, if Parvati survives the fall, she might still be in this fight. She manages to fire back before she meets the ground, but is obviously rattled since both the PVC and missiles fly just barely wide.
SPEAKER_00Tragic. Would have made a good story if she survives to tell anyone. Firestorm is going to make the most of her opportunity here, though. She's firing everything at wingspan. Those PVCs are too close, but a skilled pilot can sometimes compensate PVC's hit. She made it look easy. Big hit to the right arm and leg. That's got internal in the arm, no critical hit. For those unaware, 90% of the weapons on the direwolf are on the arms. Basically, one more solid connection to that right arm, and the Big Mac will lose half of its weapons.
SPEAKER_01Both medium lasers are firing. First flies wide. How did she hit with the PvCs and then miss with a laser? Second shot connects.
SPEAKER_00Scratch on the left leg, but there's still plenty of armor there. The SRM 6 hits half the volley, hitting the direwolf on the left arm and leg. Both small lasers find a home as well, hits to the center and left torso. Lastly, the machine guns open fire. One lands a couple of bullets in the center of the direwolf, still barely scratching the paint here.
SPEAKER_01Looks like Parvati has managed to keep from hurting herself as she fell, but her griffin is officially crippled. It took a big hit to the left torso from the fall. But technically, she can just get back out.
SPEAKER_00Firestorm manages to avoid shutdown. Wingspan has kept his feet pointing in the right direction, and this fight has just taken a big swing away from the aces. Parvati stands up very carefully, hoping to draw a bit more fire away from Firestorm. And Firestorm steps up to point blank range with Wingspan, who is too hot to move anyways. Ooh, I feel some kicks coming on. Somebody is going down. I think you're right. Wingspan is splitting his fire, two ER large lasers, and the LRM at Parvati, and all four medium pulse lasers at Firestorm. First ER large at the Griffin, hits. Dead center torso. That's Ding the Fusion Reactor and taking out a heat sink.
SPEAKER_01Second ER Large hits. That's on the right torso. One of the only places Parvati has any armor remaining. Last is the LRM, and it hits! Four missiles impacting on the right torso, but it no longer has any armor there.
SPEAKER_00He's switching tires to Firestorm, hoping that the pulse lasers can compensate for the difficulty in splitting his fire. First pulse laser hits center torso. Second shot, hits. That's got internal on the right torso, but didn't hit anything important. Third shot, oh, hits the head. Firestorm is hearing alarm bells ringing, no question there. Fire opens up with everything except the PPCs. She's hot, so these aren't trivial shots. As proven when both medium lasers fail to find their mark.
SPEAKER_01The Holly SRM hits though. Four impacts, one on the left leg and one to each torso. Small laser, first shot, misses. Second shot, hits. That small laser just loves scratching at the center torso. Lastly, both machine guns hit, left arm and right torso. Parvati's trying to fire on the direwolf.
SPEAKER_00The PVC hits. Oh no. That's not good. Friends, I I don't know what to say. That PVC head has taken the head of the direwolf clean off. There's no way that Wingsman survived that hit.
SPEAKER_01We have medics on the way now, but The earlier hit to the head from Firestorm, that tiny chip of damage from the SRM was just enough to make it so the PvC blast from Parvati was enough. Is that is that our first confirmed casualty of the season? I mean, it's it's not technically confirmed yet, but Come on, the cockpit is gone. Jeremiah Wingspan Andrews has gone to meet his ancestors. They will tell of his bravery in the halls of remembrance.
SPEAKER_00I don't think the halls of remembrance are a thing. But regardless, with that, the match has officially come to a close with a victory for the aces. I'm I'm at a bit of a loss. It's it's been so long since we've lost one of our pilots.
SPEAKER_01Oh man. It's a tragedy, sure, but Wingspan knew what he was signing up for. This is what the Solaris games are all about. He'll be missed, but we'll be back in two weeks with uh is it the last exhibition match?
SPEAKER_00Uh uh uh yeah, yeah, sorry, yes. Uh next match is the final exhibition match for the season: the Great Hunters vs. The Sandria City Blues. With this, every team has played every other team once, and we can start the next official tournament bracket. There you go, buddy. Focus on the work. I'm sure Wingspan didn't feel a thing. Thank you to everyone for listening to this week's episode. Tragic or otherwise. I'd like to take a moment to thank Catalyst Game Labs for doing such outstanding work with Battletech IP, and a big thank you to everyone out there who's writing stories, creating arts, playing games, or recording podcasts. I just managed to finish reading Air to the Dragon after tracking down the copy at my local library, so I've been catching up with Of Mechs and Men, with Caden Hill, Aaron, and Brent, and they continue to be hilarious. I've also started listening to Bungle Tech, made by a couple of fellow Canadians. Nice.
SPEAKER_01Big thank you to Joel Morelli for the music and to Pixabay for many of the sound effects that our editors mangled into much more mech-like effects. We appreciate it.
SPEAKER_00A reminder that no element of Battletech Legends and Machs uses AI, partially because AI is the worst, but also partially because the only good robot are big stompy ones. And lastly, if you have a moment to leave a review on your podcast driven choice, please do. Oh, and of course, if you have any comments, questions, requests, whatever, fire off a low-cost HPG message to marks.battletech at gmail.com. That's marx.battletech at gmail.com. Thank you to Plant SeaFox for getting the HPG network back up and running. On that note, thanks for listening, and we will see you next time on the Battle Bowser.