OBT Forum

Seriously.  Guys, I need to know a couple of things.  And I realize that neither answer is to be had in canon (I think), so this is really an opinion question.  Or questions, as the case may be.

First of all.  What would you consider the rate of attrition to be among the Clans for Aerospace and OmniFighters? 

Wait?  What?  What do you mean?

Yeah.  I'm talking about what percentage of the Touman's Aerospace Fighter/OmniFighter arm requires 100% replacement each and every year (due to crashes, excessive battle damage, structural fatigue, etc., etc.).

The reason I want to know your opinion is because I am looking at Handbook:  Clan Goliath Scorpion  and I want to figure out exactly how many OmniFighters the Clan needs to produce in a single year just to maintain their current force level.  That way I can extrapolate and calculate how many new OmniFighters need to be produced to (over time!!) replace older Aerospace Fighters and OmniFighters with the newly designed ones.

For example.  My Comanche (from the Black Skies thread in Aerospace Designs) debuts in 3011.  It probably enters production two years later in 3013.  Now.  If the Scorpions produce just 18 frames a year, then by 3068, they will have produced 990 new OmniFighters!

That is three fighters every two months.  Production might even be higher (although I doubt it is any more than double that; i.e., three fighters a month or 36 a year--which would result in a total of 1,980 being produced by 3068).

My second question is purely one of opinion.  What do you think of a Clan (Goliath Scorpion, duh!) choosing to adopt just ONE OmniFighter to replace all of its existing Aerospace Fighter and OmniFighter designs?

You see.  I was looking at what I've got plotted out, and I was planning on adding another three OmniFighter designs (60-tonner moving 8/12, 70-tonner moving 7/11, and 90-tonner moving 6/9).  But that really pushes the Scorpion's industrial base to the limit.  Especially with them building new OmniMechs.

And I got to thinking . . . and so I asked myself, is there really a reason that the Scorpions can't just make do with a single 50-ton design (my Comanche)?

Sure.  Heavier OmniFighters will have greater firepower.  But at 9/14 thrust, with 7 tons of fuel, 13 tons of armor, and 12 tons of pod-space, the Comanche strikes a great balance.  It has the thrust and maneuverability (and fuel!) to out-maneuver any heavier, better armed fighter and can tailor its attacks to avoid entering an opponents weapon arcs.  It has the armor protection to take quite a few hits (more armor than the Jagatai or Subatai or Visigoth!) and is resistant to threshold penetration from Clan ER Medium Lasers (and Medium Pulse Lasers) across the nose and wings.

Twelve tons of pod-space is light . . . but the Comanche is a scalpel, not a sledgehammer.

What I'm wondering though, is this:  could it work, in story, for this single OmniFighter design to wind up replacing ALL existing Aerospace Fighters and OmniFighters in the Scorpion Touman?

There are advantages to doing so, outside of game mechanics.  It simplifies training and maintenance and puts less strain on the Clan's logistics since EVERY fighter now shares the same parts (and frame and weapon pods!). 

But there are also disadvantages, primarily being that some might see this as boring.  Too much of the sameness.  Too little diversity.  Too few options.

So.  What do you think?  Can it be made to work?  Can the Scorpions survive without a heavy ASF/OF sledgehammer?  And instead rely (100%) on this precision rapier?  And does it make sense?

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

MA