Re: [Fallout Equestria] Setting discussions

[CamoBadger]

A good ol' RPG-7 rocket launcher.

That's not what he's thinking of, and it probably wouldn't do shit to one of those robots.

He's thinking of a shape charge - a nasty piece of technology that is basically a landmine that no armor made by humankind so far can stop.
From my understanding; specialized machinery carves a disk with a concave cone in it at a certain angle out of some metals (I think it's lead, but I'm probably wrong). You put an explosive under the disk with the reverse-cone facing out and then wait. When you detonate it, the metal disk turns into what is basically a 10 foot long spear of molten metal that can pierce any armor of any thickness, and the heat of the metal ends up superheating the air inside the vehicle. If it works perfectly, the vehicle goes to scrap and everyone inside may be cooked alive if there's no way for the heat to escape.

Like I said, nasty bit of tech. However, it would be amazing against zebra robots and even dragons if you could hit them when they landed.

[Harmony Ltd.]

RPG-7 have had shaped-charge ammunitions since at least the 80's :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PG-7VR (penetrate up to 750mm of Rolled Homogeneous Armor - let's assume 375 for conservatism's sake)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaped_charge => http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_explosive_anti-tank_warhead

[CamoBadger]

RPG-7 have had shaped-charge ammunitions since at least the 80's :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PG-7VR (penetrate up to 750mm of Rolled Homogeneous Armor - let's assume 375 for conservatism's sake)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaped_charge => http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_explosive_anti-tank_warhead

The one I described is a different kind of shape-charge that has just shown up in the last 5 or 10 years, and it makes previous versions look like baby toys. They've developed armor to counter the RPG version of a shape charge, the new version works differently altogether and cannot be countered yet because of how it works.
While the RPG round relies on explosive force to break through armor, the new shape charges border on being plasma, so they cut through any armor like a hot poker through butter.

[Harmony Ltd.]

Interesting. Do you have any links ?

[CamoBadger]

Actually, that page talks about them a little, look at the section on Explosively Formed Penetrator (EFP). They've gotten worse in recent years than they were at first, and they were already damn bad.

[Harmony Ltd.]

Yeah, I'll have a look at that.

Still, even I'll be the first to acknowledge that it's far from being the be-all, end-all of rocket launchers, I would expect an RPG-7 derivative to be good enough against +75% of what the wasteland has to offer ; if not on the first hit, then on the second or third. And if the weapon is cheap enough to make that you can equip most of your army with it, eh, so much the better. Quantity is a quality of its own. At least that would be my philosophy.

[CamoBadger]

Eh, I'd think the MWT could come up with something better than that, and certainly a hell of a lot more accurate.

[Harmony Ltd.]

I was thinking New Canterlot Republic produced weaponry there. Given they have less tooling and far less fancier tech (at first at least), it would stand to reason that they would design rustic / rugged designs.

[CamoBadger]

OHHH, yeah, that would make sense for them. There isn't exactly much in the way of armored enemies wandering around the Wasteland. Basically the only thing you couldn't take down with an RPG'ish weapon would be skytanks and I guess a battle tank if someone magically restored one outside Hoofington. (Not including massive things like Ursas and Raptors, that would just be silly)

[Harmony Ltd.]

I don't doubt the MWT and the MAS could come up with fancier tech - the Steel Ranger armor is proof enough of their capabilities in this regard.

The only thing is that it would probably be over-engineered in its conception, over-complex to build, and over-priced to use.

[CamoBadger]

I don't doubt the MWT and the MAS could come up with fancier tech - the Steel Ranger armor is proof enough of their capabilities in this regard.

The only thing is that it would probably be over-engineered in its conception, over-complex to build, and over-priced to use.

BAH!
How complex could a warhead that splits into 5 other warheads that all magically track to predetermined target(s) [up to 5] and place those targets in a magical stasis so they can't move in the last 2 seconds before impact? And the best part? It only costs 20 million bits to produce just one of these cluster warheads. (I was gonna say 2 million, but then I remembered that apparently it's normal for a single cherry to cost 1 bit)

[Harmony Ltd.]

The prosecution rest, your honor.

[Harmony Ltd.]

You know what's hard ?

When you write a short story and have to come up with a cutie mark for the two main protagonists.

Because given how special cutie marks are, you have to visualize clearly enough what the character's special talent might be.

Which is especially hard if you write about a character who was born and raised in the wasteland and is now an official of the NCR or one of its public servant, meaning that his / her cutie mark has potentially nothing to do with his / her current occupation. And then you have to imagine some skeleton of a backstory for them and it divert you from what you were trying to write and... GAAAAH


OR... I could just not mention their cutie marks at all... That'd be a solution.


Question, because I can't think quite straight right now : is it a problem in pony fiction if you leave the description of a pony vague enough as to not mention their cutie mark ?

[CamoBadger]

Not a problem at all. Especially in short stories, not describing the main POV character at all is very common, and often only brief descriptions of characters are given. In longer novels, more in depth descriptions make sense, but in short stories if you give a lengthy description it really bogs everything down for so little writing.


Summary: No, it is not a problem for a short story, I would actually encourage leaving descriptions minimal.

[Harmony Ltd.]

Oh, and names too. How hard is it to come up with a fucking pony name ?

Dang. If it was a human I could just launch of these generators...

...

GENERATORS ! Yes! I'm sure there's some on the web !

[Harmony Ltd.]

Example of dialog :

“So, do you have any idea of what we should expect ?” The earth pony mare looked at her companion on the other side of the cabin. “The Director has been pretty elusive about the scope of today's little show, and for him to have summoned half of the Congress and most of the military's staff, I can only hope for him it's going to be impressive.”

Letting his eyes leave the file he was reading to return her look, the unicorn stallion answered with a smile. “Well, if I go by what's written in this report, the latest works of the Institute have mobilized more than a hundred unicorns from the Manehatten University, so whatever it is, I can only assume there's going to be some literal magic at work.”.

“I see you don't let the stress get at your cheekiness, Sunny.”

“Stress ? What stress ? It's just going to be one of these parade to justify their funding and nothing more. I don't see why I should worry.”

“Then why have you been studying this report for the last few hours ?” she indicated, pointing at the file he was reading just a moment ago.

“Oh, that ? Well, I don't know. I suppose I'm just intrigued, that's all.”

“Intrigued ? There's intrigued and then there's worried. Don't try to hide it to me, you know you'll lose.”

“Okay, okay, I'll tell you. But after the visit.”

“Oh for the love of-”

“Listen, I'm not going to bother you with my crazy ideas until I'm certain they're not crazy. In part because, well, I don't want to be taken for crazy-”. At that the mare smirked, the stallion interrupting himself for a second to glare at her, and then continuing. “-and also because I hate being wrong.”

Should I add more narration ? Or remove some things ?

[Harmony Ltd.]

Is there already some canon or some side-stories which touch upon Stalliongrad ? I might have a few ideas involving that city, but I want to know who I'm going to contradict if I get to exploit them.

[Harmony Ltd.]

I found something for the stallion, but not yet for the mare :

Spoiler:

Edit : thanks you in advance for your help, yes.

[Harmony Ltd.]

Well, another problem I have with cutie marks, really, is that I have difficulty with the thematic concept that someone's destiny might be contained in their butt tattoo. And unconsciously, I tend to give ponies backstories which would tend to contradict their cutie marks.


Damn my brain for my my anarchist tendencies influencing my writing.

[Meleagridis]

I found something for the stallion, but not yet for the mare :

Spoiler:

Edit : thanks you in advance for your help, yes.

Okay, I need to start at the beginning to appreciate the significance of these characters, I suppose. But if you're going to be using the name Sunny Smiles in FO:E, they should really have a valley dog or sand dog named Cheyenne as an assistant. Or just have a normal dog named Cheyenne.

[CamoBadger]

Well, another problem I have with cutie marks, really, is that I have difficulty with the thematic concept that someone's destiny might be contained in their butt tattoo. And unconsciously, I tend to give ponies backstories which would tend to contradict their cutie marks.


Damn my brain for my my anarchist tendencies influencing my writing.

Technically it doesn't decide their future.
Rarity is the best example: Her talent is finding gems, but she works as a seamstress. Yes, she uses those gems in her work, but sewing is not her talent. Ponies still have the choice to do something else, but for the most part their talents end up being related to something they enjoy anyways.

[Stringtheory]

After quickly skimming the thread, I have this meager bit to add:

@Harmony Ltd.:
"1/ The "Bitters" (name provisional until I find something better)

I just came up with "Tramplers," because trample is more of a horse thing than bitting, 'bitters' make them sound like a nuisance at best (perhaps used as an insult?) or perhaps "Burners", because of Operation Cauterize.

[O. Hinds]

After quickly skimming the thread, I have this meager bit to add:

@Harmony Ltd.:
"1/ The "Bitters" (name provisional until I find something better)

I just came up with "Tramplers," because trample is more of a horse thing than bitting, 'bitters' make them sound like a nuisance at best (perhaps used as an insult?) or perhaps "Burners", because of Operation Cauterize.

No, "bitter", as in "Gee, they sure are bitter about the fall of their country", not "biter" as in "thing that bites".

I kind of like "Burners", though...

[Stringtheory]

After quickly skimming the thread, I have this meager bit to add:

@Harmony Ltd.:
"1/ The "Bitters" (name provisional until I find something better)

I just came up with "Tramplers," because trample is more of a horse thing than bitting, 'bitters' make them sound like a nuisance at best (perhaps used as an insult?) or perhaps "Burners", because of Operation Cauterize.

No, "bitter", as in "Gee, they sure are bitter about the fall of their country", not "biter" as in "thing that bites".

I kind of like "Burners", though...

Whoops, sorry. Even still it doesn't sound like something used internally, or even by allies in front of them because it just sounds petty to me at least (for me being bitter is a pretty mid emotion, so in my mind it would be as a taunt/behind-their-back term), you could use "Fighters" but that just sounds generic, also came up with "Holdouts", though that could fit the Isolationists better, "Redeemers", and "Re-takers" though these would either be used internally or by allies given the rather positive nature of them

I'm so creative when I'm sleep deprived!

[Ironmonger]

There's something that's crossed my mind lately: Wingblades. How effective do you gentlemen think they would be in a fight?

Let's take this odd concept a little farther, shall we? Imagine a set of wingblades made of starmetal. They never break, and they slice through seemingly everything.
Guns slice cleanly in two, ponies become decapitated with frightening ease, and suddenly the impenetrable armor has a breach. How plausible is this?

...I'm not sure why I'm sounding so 'professional' today. My thinking has been surprisingly clear, if easily distracted.

[CamoBadger]

I've never really been a fan of wingblades because they don't really make sense in combination with flying. Wings need to flex and twist almost constantly for proper flight, so I don't really see a way blades could be attached without cutting mobility into nothing.
It's the same reason enclave armor can't armor the wings.

[Ironmonger]

I'm inclined to agree. Now that you mention the effects of the blades on the wings themselves, the metal would probably also hinder the flow of air over the feathers and the limbs.

[StoneSlinger88]

Wing blades might be effective if they could make them flexible enough, which would mean metal is probably out the window, unless it's a mesh with a hacksaw-like interlaced pattern that allows for freedom of movement. That may seriously cut down on the slicing ability, but would still be handy in a fight.

And when I heard "wing blades" I immediately thought of this.

Spoiler:

[Ironmonger]

The starmetal wing-blades concept came from the character Lust in Starlight. However, here's the thing; her blades are actually a part of her wings, as in connected to the bone. How they actually work is yet to be explained, but it would have to be rather complex considering she is the fastest and most agile flyer in the setting.

[Cptadder]

Must read this entire thread and post a 5000 manifesto

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