Realism? (Part 1)

This you are about to venture is just a thought experiment, and is not a part of MWLL, thou it would be fun.

A question often raised when it comes to games as Mechwarrior (or games in general that involves heavy machinery), always draws the attention of, how realistic is it possible to get such machinery to function and how to implement a realistic feeling, wielding such “beauties/beasts”, and also how realistic a damage can be inflicted on the target (Mech, Vehicle, Building or even Personnel or Environmental details) against game-play/flow, of course?
And on that, in which way will the damage be distributed onto the target, as there is not only one kind of damage that will have its effect on the target (or more correctly the inflicted area)!

Examples of damage and its source must be presented (thou you already have discussed/thought of it too), and as best possible for now, I have included a sort of counter-measure from the damage source:

Heat damage¹
- Damages the external structure (Armor), as also both partially the internal structure (Skeleton) of the Mech and finally also the Mech pilots ability to function logically from built-up Heat in an overheating Mech unit.
- The counter-measure for such damage would be Heat Sinks and heat-absorbent armor-plating, and a very good way of dissipating heat from the unit.

Electrical damage²
- Damages the internal structure/circuitry of any onboard computer. (A very rapid Heat-Up and following Meltdown of any hardware installed may occur.)
- Shock absorbent armor or wire-ring for conducting any out-side-electrical-source away from core parts of the Mech.

Missile damage³
- Damages armor, and affected parts in the damaged area. (Any missile also in addition creates Heat in the affected area, and a temporally instability/manoeuvrability of the Mech.)
- Missile attacks are (obviously) countered by AMS, and also by direct firing upon from any Ballistic and Beam weaponry. Chains hanging on the side of a unit may also be used as deflection from Missile attacks.

Ballistic damage⁴
- Mainly damages the armor of the Mech, but also any exposed parts. (Any high-velocity projectile also in addition creates Heat in the effected area.)
- Counter by good Armor, and chains of deflection (see the Israeli Merkeva tank for study and use on small Mechs!).

Cold damage⁵
- Degreases the Mechs ability to function properly, or the joint-parts becomes (partially or completely) locked.
- Could damage is countered by a hot Mech? (:?).

Environmental damage⁶
- damages internal/external parts of the Mech. The Mech can be slowed down or even become in-operational due to mud in the joint or tear from corrosion of metal-parts.
- Environmental damage may be limited by proper maintenance of the unit.

¹ Damage from beam weaponry and flamethrowers, or even PPC that electricity generates heat.
² Damage from EPC and EMPL and PPC, ERPPC.
³ Damage from any missile weaponry.
⁴ Damage from any ballistic weaponry, machine-gun, rotary-gun, AC, ULTRA, LBX, Gauss rifle, etc.
⁵ Damage from the given Environment (None-weaponry damage).
⁶ Damage from the given Environment (None-weaponry damage).


Realism? (Part 2)

How Real is the Damage made to any object (Mech, Vehicle, Building, etc.) in MW:LL

It has been mentioned that the damage done to a Mech only should harm the inflicted area.
 ex. A Mech that is hit on the arm, should only be dealt damage on the targeted part, furthermore, that damage should have a certain amount of effect on the Mech, according to where and how the arm was dealt damage. So if the upper arm has been inflicted, its ability to move is degreased or entirely forfeited. Or in worst cases, the arm is cut off or hangs in pieces on the Mech, that could inflict more damage upon the Mech, in form of both internal circuitry failure and damage upon the armor.

What I am getting into here is obviously an immense amount of code (source of damage, impact zone/area, after-effect of impact, etc.) that has to be written¹ to implement such damage upon a Mech, but it certainly heightens the realism in game play.

Another problem is, how dos Beam weaponry inflict damage upon the various materials (stone, metals, plasics, etc.), and that is also of a more curious one.

When a laser hits any metalloid materials, dos it slowly or rapidly scratch/peel/burn a whole on the impact zone, and should it not also burn slower or faster due to the intensity of the given laser used.

Dos PPM only momentarily halts a Mechs ability to move (as in MW4 etc.), and is there any damage inflicted on the internal structures, print-boards, etc., due to any heat dissipated from the area hit?

Is there to be any form of EMP (Electro-Magnetic-Pulse) weaponry in the game, and if so, dos this not has a serious and hazardous effect on a Mechs Power source, as stated in the Battletech Compendium, The Rules of Warfare, p.29, that the Mech is using a fusion engine, en-capsuled in a “magnetic jar”, that when disrupted, inflicts a deadly amount of radiation to anyone/anything nearby.

Dos heat or more generally heat-damage make the myomers ability to work degreased or slowed down?

Dos electrical damage make the myomers to contract, and dos extensive damage of this kind make it contract infinitively until repaired?

And not to mention the various kinds of damage that can be made from both Ballistic and Missile weaponry. That both weaponry classes are similar (in shape) they differ only in size and form of damage inflicted upon a target, and also the rate/speed that damage can be dealt to a target from such sources.

Ballistic´s tends to punch upon the material until it gives away, thou newer armament on the (heads of) shells used, as of today, have exposed a more hazardous effect on the area hit, i.e. projectiles with explosive heads and even sonic-explosives that generates a vacuum that in turn creates the blast itself, neutralizing any soft parties behind the impact zone. (Dos newer missile-types include such damage too?)

Missile´s mainly damages the armor of the target, and also creates a period of instability of any Vehicle or Mech inflicted by such damage. Thou it also generates an amount of heat on the area hit (from multiple hits), and anything able to catch fire dos so, if no environmental (heavy rain) or counter-measures (extinguisher) are against it.

Can a Mech implemented with a mirror-like armor be of any use, that it can reflect any beam weapon, but its effectiveness as a real armor is absolutely nil.

¹ I know that such damage is not an objective for the devs, and yes this is only a thought experiment!
 For measuring damage, or more specifically, heat damage from built-up heat on a Mech or other object in the game; should it be done by designating each of the parts that make up the object (Mech etc.) and let each part/poly (or group of poly´s), with a health value and a maximum heat value. When hit by a weapon the poly gains a heat-counter (and deducted a health point) according to source of damage, this represents the built-up heat signature on the object². All objects are in excess already born with a specified maximum heat number, before the material gives away and is disintegrated or loses health points.
² Built-Up heat is counter by cooling-equipment of any sort, and further, the material/poly has a specified cool-down number measured in xxx seconds or minutes before the material becomes stabile (again), and functional, thou some materials actually works at their best at high level of heat.

--

And finally, a question from the real world! How long can a BattleMech that is being dealt real damage last in a battle? ... presumably not long.

I´m not sure it can (at the moment) concerning the damage distribution on each individual poly in game and the collateral damage that should be dealt to any poly in its (the damages/target) visinity.

The engine can handle different types of damage types, piercability, and component damage (arms, leg, etc.)  I don't know how easy it would be to create our own damage types.  I'm also not sure if there could be different effects (say damage to targeting computer makes it harder to aim) aside from normal damage.  However it is possible to have damage to the engine and cause it to move slower or erraticlly.  In theory I would think we could have special components that when damaged would have certain effects the same way.  For example if component "computer" takes damage then play run specific effect.

no kamikaze allowed in game (as far as I know) ...
... and on the damage (In my optics) a Mech (or any unit in game) will be (partly damaged when hit/pushed/bumped/etc by another source (ally/enemy) ... ex. a Mech "scarping" the side of a building would be given (very) minor damage to the Armor!

Actually, all trees are breakable in DX10.

EEEEE! Holy wall of text!

I'll come back to this one later 

I should REALLY be sleeping, since i have class in...3 hours.... 

I fail at life again ><

I think it is really nice idea... And Atlas with this will be just great!

Appendix to Realism (in Gameplay)
The Basics of Damage
1. Each unit is made up of (or designed by) a series of boxes.
2. Each box functions as a container of a specified number of polygons.
3. Each box has a predefined health value, this value determines the boxes own density/mass, each box also has a heat value, that when hit is adjusted accordingly to heat exposure from the weaponry used (Lasers builds-up greater heat in a small area, but Ballistic/Missile builds-up less heat in a wider area, etc.).
4. Additional to this, each box has a secondary set of numbers that functions as (a) resistance (value) against (a given type of) damage, namely these values; heat-resistance, physical-resistance and electrical-resistance. (There can easily be applied numerous more sources of damage, only the imagination may limit this.)
5. When and if a box is hit the damage-type reacts and deals either of the damage-types (according to source).
6. This damage is then countered by the box own resistance value, and only any damage not absorbed in this way is (directed, or) dealt directly to the health value of the box itself.
7. If there is no value present on the box (target), of the damage dealt (source), the box is not dealt any damage, at all. 
 [This of course will never occur on any vehicles, that tear of any kind will have its effect on any Unit in Game.]

A note on the damage dealt. Any unit able to be dealt damage, can only be dealt damage if it has a resistance value to absorb it, yes it may sound odd, but my point here is, that if no resistance value (of 1 or above) is present no damage can be dealt to the target.

Thanks for reading this topic! :pirate: