Just a few thoughts about how I'm treating Mekton lately.

Firstly, I've been gravitating more towards the way basic Mekton II does things of late, rather than the way Mekton Z Plus does.  It isn't because of any distaste for MZ+, or any confusion on my part.  It's mainly because of the simplicity of M2.

My current Mekton buddy and I have never really liked using MV (Maneuver Value) as a modifier to pilot rolls.  The reason is that ultimately all mech designs end up with roughly the same MV regardless of their weight.  It's mostly a non-issue and we've finally decided to drop it.

I've long complained about Powerplants.  In M2 they are a separately bought system which does nothing for the construction process.  In MZ+ they are skipped over, but the extraneous fuel load calculation system accounts for the same thing.  Since we're using M2 now, and since in M2 powerplant explosions are so rare as to never happen, we've decided to ignore Powerplants altogether and assume they're are integrated into the existing mecha Torso for no extra cost.  G-Factor rolls on the torso will more than cover the special effect of a powerplant destruction.

Then there's weight.  We'll still calculate it, but it's mostly meaningless.

As for flight systems, both of us realized we prefer the lower movement speeds of flight in M2.  It just felt better than things with MAs of 58 zipping around.  Plus, we also prefer the idea of simple speed classes as in Dream Park (Fast, Super Fast, Ultra Fast, etc).  It keeps us out of arguements of the exact air speed velocity of an unladen swallow.  So flight systems are paid for in the old M2 way instead of the more math intensive MZ+ way.

Space Efficiency will go the way of the dodo.  We will simply assume that if we build a weapon, we can find a place to stick it on the mech.  Of course, the old space rules will serve as a guideline to keep us honest.  But overall space efficiency was just an extra step which can be dispensed with for us.

As for how we'll build weapons and stuff, we're hotly debating that.  I find the weapon construction methods and options presented in the MZ+ book to be preferable.  My buddy likes the older Advanced Technical Manual more.  In any event, we have things simplified down to the point where we're comfortable.

I never played, own, or even read Mekton II, but I like some of the things you're saying about it.

You just summed up some of the reasons I prefer SilCore: manuever ratings are the same for every unit in the same weight class, weight is meaningless, space restrictions get ignored. So I usually use a system that does away with all of that in the first place.

Don't get me wrong, I loves me some Mekton Zeta. Just for nearly the opposite reasons I like SilCore.

I almost forgot something...one way to do movement rates is to have a combat and non-combat speed. So you have a flying unit with MA 12 in combat, and just hand-wave that it can go Mach 2 out of combat.

Quote from: WilYou just summed up some of the reasons I prefer SilCore: manuever ratings are the same for every unit in the same weight class, weight is meaningless, space restrictions get ignored. So I usually use a system that does away with all of that in the first place.

Don't get me wrong, I loves me some Mekton Zeta. Just for nearly the opposite reasons I like SilCore.

I almost forgot something...one way to do movement rates is to have a combat and non-combat speed. So you have a flying unit with MA 12 in combat, and just hand-wave that it can go Mach 2 out of combat.

The thing I like about Mekton is that extra information is there if I want it.  It's mostly easily ignored if I don't need it.

Another key element I believe makes Mekton superior is that hit locations are supported.  I find the way the machines are statted in Silouette to be much too abstract.

Regarding movement, that's exactly my thought.  It turns the matter of the flight system into: can it fly? and how much damage can it take to the flight system before it can't fly?  and I buy flight points accordingly, instead of worrying exactly how fast a MA of 14 is.

Quote from: GabrielThe thing I like about Mekton is that extra information is there if I want it.  It's mostly easily ignored if I don't need it.

Another key element I believe makes Mekton superior is that hit locations are supported.  I find the way the machines are statted in Silouette to be much too abstract.

It's a spectrum - Mekton has a whole host of problems, all of which pretty much stem from the fact that it is a mecha design system, and not a vehicle design system. If I really wanted crunch I'd go with the CORPS VDS, which occupies a place somewhere between SilCore and GURPS Vehicles in terms of complexity.

The one thing to remember about SilCore, too, is that the VCS has its roots as a way of expressing statistics for a wargame. What looks to you as "abstract" is actually a system that has some degree of subtlety - the decision whether to give a weapon +1 ACC or not, or where to set the Armor Rating, or which perks to give the design, can impact the design's survivability on the battlefield more than you might expect.