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<Habeas2> Hello, and--once again--welcome to the Catalyst game Labs' official BattleTech live IRC BattleChat, hosted by the BattleTech Line Developer (me).
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<Habeas2> Moderation will be terminated in a few moments, after these short repetitive announcements:
<Habeas2> 1) It remains the authority of the BattleTech Line Developer to refuse answer to, kick, or ban any user in these chats, if the user is found to be behaving in a disrespectful or abusive fashion.
<Habeas2> 2) Questions should be kept breif; the BattleTech Line Developer will attempt to answer each in turn, but these chats are scheduled to run a minimum of one hour, and that may not be enough time to eal with lengthy, complex questions.
<Habeas2> 3) At this time, all Davions should be aware that the future does not belong to them; it belongs to the BattleTech Line Developer.
<Habeas2> 4) Logging these chats is entirely up to you; The BattleTech Line Developer will not be logging these chats for official posterity.
<Habeas2> Moderation ends now.
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<J_Schmetzer> DAVIONS OWN ALL!
<J_Schmetzer> [giggle]
<Peter> How does one eal with lenghty, complex questions?
<Steve_Restless> Herb, are mechwarriors able to shut down and restart mechs, at will? or is the only way to get shut down to overheat and fail to stay active?
<Habeas2> Peter - By adding a "d"
<Kurt> so at what point does House Shraplen supplant the Davions?
<Habeas2> Steve_Restless - Yes, MechWarriors are able to shut down at will. Otherwise, parking these beasts would be difficult.
<J_Schmetzer> Did you use any of the LE endsheets for napkins?
<J_Schmetzer> Is there one with wing sauce on eBay right now?
<Habeas2> Kurt - When we say so and not a moment sooner.
<Habeas2> J_Schmetzer - Only when I spilled cofee.
<at4> When is TRO 3085 supplement going to be coming out?
<Habeas2> J_Schmetzer - That would be the page I used under the dog's dish.
<Habeas2> At4 - Soon
<J_Schmetzer> Exactly how fantastic does it feel to have AToW on its way across the pond and into stores? Is it better than Skittles? Is it better than STEAK!?
<at4> Thanks, any progress on RS3067?
<Trboturtle> J_Schmetzer -- I think you'd have to ask the cats -- they're the ones getting steak....
<ScottSR> For TRO3085 supplemental, is there any chance that might come out this month?
<Steve_Restless> Does the existence of the Savage Wolf as an omnimech in the DA/AOD era signify that the original timber wolf chassis is no longer produced? or is what i have heard about the Wolves in Exile producing it correct?
<Habeas2> J_Schmetzer - The project has been so long in coming, the only feeling I have now is numb.
<Habeas2> At4 - RS3067 will be handled in due course. At present "due course" means sometime in 2011.
<Habeas2> ScottSR - There is always a chance
<Trboturtle> Anything new on the BT novel front?
<Habeas2> Steve_Restless - Until a TRO comes out to detail that detail, we will not know for certain.
<Habeas2> Trboturtle - Yes. Nothing.
<Habeas2> 50 minutes remaining....
<Kurt> are there future plans for Era Reports already, or are you waiting to see the sales on 3052?
<Steve_Restless> Do you know if the kindle editions of BT fiction have been doing well? I'm so glad that theres been material released in kindle format
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<J_Schmetzer> *whistles innocently*
<Habeas2> Kurt - At least three more Era Reports books are being planned. One of these is actually being written. In theory.
<J_Schmetzer> *types last few words of Marcus GioAvanti's bio...*
<Kurt> and it's still too early days to reveal the period?
<ScottSR> Continuing on with release schedules, for FR3085 and JHS:final reckoning, is there a particular quarter of next year that you are currently planning on for those becoming available?
<Habeas2> Steve_Restless - I do not have sales data that I can share regarding Kindle editions of BattleTech fiction.
<MidnightSun> Is any of the Era Reports planned for the star league era?
<Habeas2> Kurt - The next one is slated to close out the Clan Invasion period.
<Kurt> very nice
<Trboturtle> Has there been any thought to more audio version of the BT novels?
<Habeas2> ScottSR - We do not generally share estimated release dates, even quarters, any more. It is too easy for schedules to slip this far out.
<at4> I notice in TRO 3085 there was no Mercenary Infantry, could there be some in the TRo 3085 supplement?
<Habeas2> MidnightSun - At this time, nope.
<Habeas2> Trboturtle - Nope.
<Habeas2> At4 - Yup.
<at4> Thanks
<MidnightSun> thanks
<Habeas2> At4, MidnightSun - You're welcome
<Habeas2> 45 minutes
<J_Schmetzer> Box set new?
<J_Schmetzer> er, news?
<J_Schmetzer> CGL Developer's Commemorative Calendar?
<Habeas2> The Box Set will hopefully arrive in time for Christmas.
<Kurt> I don't want this question to sound rude, but if there are grammatical errors in a book do you want people to submit these (Errata forum)?
<Habeas2> The CGL Developer's Commemorative Calendar project was cancelled when it became clear there were only so many days the world could be nuked in....
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<Habeas2> Kurt - No
<Trboturtle> It seems that a lot of placews won't stock BT products unless there's a box set. Are there any plans to promote other BT products with the box set?
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<Habeas2> Trboturtle - How promotions will be handled is not an area I have a say in.
<ScottSR> To what extent could Devlin Stone be seen as a cross between John Conner and Batman [and possibly other heros]? When whoever came up with the idea of Devlin Stone, to what extent did John Connor serve as a role model?
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<ScottSR> I'd like to point out that in last months battlechat you made a devlin stone-john connor comment ["who cares who [stone] was before he became john connor"]
<MidnightSun> will 2011 see any products based in the dark agen era?
<MidnightSun> age that is
<Mendrugo3> Are there any plans to factor planetary USIIR scores into any of the Interstellar Operations game mechanics?
<Habeas2> ScottSR - Stone was largely written into the plot by the folks at WizKids when they went about setting up the Dark Age line. The main comparison to John Connor simply stems from the fact that both heroes emerged from enemy prison camps to destroy the Big Bad.
<Kurt> are the days of hard numbers in sourcebooks totally dead?
<Habeas2> MighnightSun - No
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<Habeas2> Mendrugo3 - STill too early to say. The development process can take a book to strange places.
<Habeas2> Kurt - They're getting there. Hard numbers are bad, bad, BAD for fictional universes that are based on rather fantastic elements (such as large walking tanks that can't hit anything past half a kilometer)
<ScottSR> When developing metaplot, or the particular details of plot development, do you/writers often look to outside sources or references for inspiration. For example, famous books, movies, comic books, popular culture, maybe politics?
<Habeas2> Kurt - ...ANd, frankly, we're tired of getting beaten about the head and shoulders over hard numbers. It's not fun at that point.
<J_Schmetzer> I'll bring the knives.
<Kurt> that's what I thought
<Kurt> I like the approach in Wolf and Blake, define something at company level, and above that leave it abstract
<Steve_Restless> what of sourcebooks that are reliable information? it seems as if there has been a lot of questionable information, left to player interpretation in recent years.
<Habeas2> ScottSR - Nothing is created in vacuum. It is likely that outsie events inspire us, if only on subconscious levels, but for the most part, metaplots are built around what we want to sell.
<Habeas2> Kurt - All sourcebooks that are not hard rulebooks contain fluff generated by in-universe reporting agencies, and all reporting agencies--just as in real life--have bias. There is, therefore, no such thing as a truly omniscient source of data for the game universe beyond the core rulebooks (and even then, you should always be aware of what is being written "in-characetr" or from an in-universe PoV
<Habeas2> Correction. Last answer was for ScottSR, not Kurt
<Kurt> what scale will the Interstellar Ops campaign allow you to play at? will you be able to recreate a Succession War?
<Kurt> (within the space of an ordinary gaming session or two, that is)
<Habeas2> Kurt - Yes
<Habeas2> Kurt - And no. I seriously doubt anyone will be able to resolve a Succession War sclae battle in one session
<ScottSR> "Correction. Last answer was for ScottSR, not Kurt" I think you did mean that for Kurt, I didn't ask about canonicity of fluff in sourcebooks
<Habeas2> Kurt - ...After all, you're talking about a universe where wars can drag on for decades
<Steve_Restless> ScottSR - I think he actually meant me.
<clemash> So sat/sunday game then ;P
<Habeas2> Whoever. So many SRs here...
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<Restless> There. hopefully less confusing.
<Habeas2> 30 minutes remaining....
<Mendrugo3> Ardath Mayhar stated that she got a small folder of universe info when she started writing The Sword and the Dagger. What sort of background material is provided to novel authors these days, as background prep?
<ScottSR> When advancing plot, and filling in the details, how much time is spent on accounting/bookeeping? For example, what units are on what planets, who is turning traitor today, who just decided to either start liking or hating some other power, etc?
<Habeas2> Mendrugo3 - These days, a massive amount of PDFs, presuming we decide the author-applicant is worth the trouble.
<Kurt> I know there was mention of the XTRO series being delayed, has it now been rescheduled to run quarterly (or some other regular interval), or is this just a temporary delay and then back to monthly release?
<Habeas2> ScottSR - For the Jihad, tons. But in general, we prefer to describe the universe in broader strokes to avoid having to spend six years on pre-plot work.
<J_Schmetzer> I'm so not worth the trouble.
<Habeas2> Kurt - Nothing has been said about th XTRs going to a quarterly release.
<Kurt> I know, I just wondered it there'd been a decision to make a new regular schedule after mention of the delays
<Habeas2> J_schmetzer - Yes; you're mediocre at best.
<Trboturtle> So, it's up to the authors to fill in details?
<Trboturtle> (some of them, at least)
<Habeas2> Kurt - At present, that depends on the ability of authors, fact-checkers, and artists to restore something approximating our regular monthly schedule. There is the possibility that some XTRs will be released as close together as twice a month to restoire schedule integrity. But certain XTRs may have to be dropped from the lineup to make this happen.
<Mendrugo3> Can you share any stories about particularly entertaining/egregious continuity goofs that got caught before entering stories/sourcebooks?
<Habeas2> Trboturtle - And fact-checkers to keep them honest. And the Line Developer to approve the details.
<Habeas2> Mendrugo3 - Numerous attempts to make the Jihad seem pre-meditated had to be crushed early on.
<ScottSR> From a storyteller's perspective, does it kind of feel like copping out to destroy famous/historical units by orbital bombardment or WMD? Wolf's dragoons put up a big fight, and there was story fleshed out there, but say eridani light horse or kell hounds. Do the particular authors pick that fate, or is that in the metaplot?
<Habeas2> ScottSR - That's the metaplot. In some cases, the price of becomming too damned good is that nobody wants to fight you fair. As Captain Sparrow said when told he would get killed in a fair fight, "that doesn't leave me much incentive to fight fair, now does it?"
<Habeas2> ScottSR - ...So, no. It's not a cop out. It's the natural outcome of being too bad-ass in this universe.
<Habeas2> 23 minutes...
<Kurt> with advancing the timeline to catch up with the Dark Age will conflicts like the Combine/Dominion war get its own sourcebook?
<Habeas2> Kurt - Someday.
<clemash> or be in a new brush war book?
<Habeas2> Clemash, Kurt - A Historical is planned to cover the major conflicts of the Republic Era. The exact contents are yet to be determined, but there are at least three small wars for that period, including the Second Combine-Dominion War
<Restless> Just want to say that I'm eagerly waiting to see what the current powers make of the Dark Age and its precursors. I've been waiting for the bigger story to be told since the first announcements, and I'm sure you'll all do a great job. Not a question, no, just feedback. ^_^
<Kurt> hooray
<Habeas2> 19 minutes....
<Kurt> obligatory Hogarth question, when is he getting his own novel?
<Mendrugo3> Any chance that the ' micro-ton fusion grenades' used by Elias Liao in the 2300s will ever get AToW stats?
<ScottSR> For example, if the eridani light horse is meant to get almost annihilated, why not have the goliath scorpions be like " hah hah, we won't give you this medicine that you need to live on our nasty dangerous clan homeworlds"? Surely there are lots of other forces [ mercs, pirates, etc] who could provide a chance to go down fighting.
<Habeas2> Kurt - Possibly around the time the Chekswa School of Literature is rebuilt.
<Euphonium> Sorry I'm late!
<Euphonium> How much detail does CGL intend to put out for the portion of the Dark Age that WizKids covered? Are you planning on fleshing it out further, or speeding on to unpublished years?
<Habeas2> Mendrugo3 - No
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<J_Schmetzer> Think about a fusion grenade for a minute. Honestly. Come on.
<TMX> Ye old Taurian Lunchbox special?
<Euphonium> (thinks....) If you made it a Lithium-fusion grenade, could you use it twice?
<Mendrugo3> J_Schmetzer - Rick David Stewart thought they sounded cool back in 1987...
<Habeas2> ScottSR - We made all the decisions as to how each force gets annihilated either before launching Dawn of the Jihad, or during the development of the Plot Books since then. In some cases, we went for elaborate. In others, we went with incidental. This is a war that doesn't really coddle to fan service because, well, death happens.
<clemash> yup fusion backpacks are fine for your suicide bombing needs
<Habeas2> Euphorium - There are, at present, roughly four sourcebooks planned to cover the Dark Age period as we know it, plus several PDF-exclusives
<J_Schmetzer> And now you're thinking about things that sounded cool in THE EIGHTIES!?
<Mendrugo3> Velcro and calculator watches, too...
<Peter> Max Headroom...
<Habeas2> 15 mintes....
<Euphonium> <-- makes plans to order more book-cases
<J_Schmetzer> I'm going to have nightmares. I know it.
<clemash> max headroom is still cool
<Kurt> will mercs get a Field Report to finally determine who survived the Jihad?
<Trboturtle> That would be a small book.....
<Habeas2> Kurt - Of their own? No
<ScottSR> Out of curiosity, are you in charge of all metaplot development? some? The 6 year conferences paint broad brush strokes and then you start filling them in? Something else? Also, what role(s) does Randall still play in the BT universe?
<Euphonium> How is the MUL coming along? Any feel for if there will be a publishable version of it?
<TMX> Any chance for historicals set in the past, like the 1st/2nd/3rd Succession War or Age of War/Reunifcation/Early Star League etc etc?
<Kurt> small book is fine, I'm just curious to see which of my mercs got axed
<Kurt> both of my specific Combine regiments got axed, now I need to pick a post-Jihad paintscheme too
<Trboturtle> will there be a lot of new units in the DA era?
<Habeas2> ScottSR - AT this stage, most metaplots come through me, but a committee generally consisting of myself, Randall Bills, and core writers work on details used to further strengthen the plot and add key subplots. The summits we hold every 6-7 years are used to discuss and refine metaplots as we go along. Randall acts as Managing Developer for all of CGL, and generally handles some of the books in the BT line that he had a hand i
<Habeas2> Euphorium - There is as yet no publishable form of the MUL. The sheer size and scope of it means we still need to hold off on publication for the time being.
<Habeas2> TMX - There is always a chance.
<Euphonium> I wasn't exepcting it any time, soon, but I'd love to see it "one day." I've been trying to assemble my own on & off for the last 5 years or so...
<Habeas2> Trboturtle - By my count, were we to do a Dark Age Technical Readout, we would have 100 units to showcase in it.
<Habeas2> 8 minutes....
<ScottSR> Going back to schedules, can you say anything about how HTP: reunification war(s) is going?
<TMX> Nice. I
<Euphonium> Do you think there is a point at which you have to say "That's too many new 'mechs" ?
<Habeas2> ScottSR - There is no HTP: Reunification War project in the works.
<J_Schmetzer> LOL. 1998?
<Habeas2> Euphorium - What J_Schemtzer says.
<TMX> I'm glad to see BT is marching onward. Looking forward to the release of Time of War since getting stuff up here is always a pain.
<ScottSR> Was the hellstar mech [TRO3085] intended as a sort of replacement for the masakari?
<Habeas2> ScottSR - I'm sure someone thought so....
<J_Schmetzer> I love that 'Mech.
<J_Schmetzer> I lurve it.
<J_Schmetzer> It's the UltiMech.
<ScottSR> Oh, sorry, what was the next declared historical turning point then? rim worlds or something?
<Euphonium> Is that an absolute number, or a year?
<Habeas2> ScottSR - I may be wrong, but the next HTP I show is Towne.
<Habeas2> 3 minutes....
<Trboturtle> So, all is right in the BT Universe?
<Habeas2> Euphorium - That's a year. We have such a disgustingly high number of new units in tis game that it's a wonder why we bother with OmniMechs at all sometimes....
<ScottSR> ok, what about operational turning points? Man, I coulda swore there was some reunification/rim worlds something or other
<Mendrugo3> Is kumbayah (acoustic version) the official anthem of Stone's Republic?
<Habeas2> Trboturtle - Alays has been
<Restless> Is there any question you've been wishing we'd ask, and if so, what? (and if you've time, the answer)
<Habeas2> ScottSR - Next Operational Turning Point seems to be SOlaris VII, in the Jihad
<Euphonium> That's part of why I asked....
<Habeas2> Mendrugo3 - No
<Kurt> will there be "scenario packs" for Interstellar Ops?
<ScottSR> do you love us?
<Euphonium> Will there be a box set or slip-case to hold the full set of core books once they're all published?
<Habeas2> Restless - Sorry; I don't give hints like that.
<ScottSR> or just our credit cards?
<TMX> *hands over his wallet*
<Restless> No need to apologize, just wanted to give you the chance.
<Habeas2> Kurt - Scenario Packs have not done well for us, so I would wager.... no
<Kurt> Euphonium: I think you mean bookshelf
<Kurt> that slip case would cause hernias
<Habeas2> ScottSR - I love you guys AND your credit cards. Your cash is beautiful too.
<J_Schmetzer> Habeas2>: ScottSR - Next Operational Turning Point seems to be SOlaris VII, in the Jihad (actually not true--there's one before it)
<Habeas2> Euphorium - No such thing is being planned at this time
<Trboturtle> later!
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<Euphonium> Kurt, Already ordered some of those - ikea.co.uk is open in the other tab
<MidnightSun> Thanks for the update!
<Habeas2> J_Schmetzer - Oh, yes. I see that
<Kurt> will we ever see official CGL furniture to store our collections in?
<ScottSR> oh, historical reunification war!
<Habeas2> ScottSR - Congrats
<Habeas2> Kurt - No
<Euphonium> Not even when mech-grade armour becomes available?
<Habeas2> Thank you for participating in this Catalyst Game Labs BattleTech Line Developer-aided public relations activity.
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<TMX> Take care.
<Euphonium> Thanks for having us, Herb.
<Restless> Thank you for giving us the chance
<MidnightSun> Thanks for the updates.
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<at4> Thanks
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