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Seto Kaiba

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  1. Seto Kaiba
    Effective against what? We've seen pretty conclusively that VFs are impossibly tough by modern armor standards from almost the very beginning of the original series... probably the most graphic demonstration was in Frontier, where Ozma used his barrier and Armored Pack's ECA to tank a hit from a weapon we see one-shotting cruiser-class warships and his fighter was still combatworthy afterwards. Reduced engine thrust. The thermonuclear reaction turbine engines produce thrust by bleeding heat and plasma that would otherwise go to the generation of electrical power to flash-heat intake air in place of burning hydrocarbons. The quantity of reactant being used is very small (very realistic too, according to NASA), so the losses in generator output incurred in providing the impressive amount of engine thrust the VFs produce are fairly severe. All that heat energy that's being bled off the reaction to heat intake air isn't going to the generator... and in space, the VF is consuming its fuel at a far greater rate and most of its generator output is going to the MHD ion thruster to provide the same levels of thrust the engine would produce in atmosphere. The VF-0's energy conversion armor only had performance roughly comparable to that of a main battle tank in Battroid mode... and that feat required 90% of the Battroid's generator output. The generator output of VFs powered by reaction engines is greater, yes, but so too is the engine thrust (more power lost to thrust) and the greater armor strength requirements consequentially demand an increase in power supply... to say nothing of other increases in demand on the power system like more powerful coaxial lasers, or built-in beam weaponry, high-powered RADAR, active stealth, and other notoriously energy-intensive technological toys. Because, on the whole, fighter mode is more agile... many fights start out as long-range missile duels or dogfights, before things go to close quarters where Battroids are suitable. If you sit still and try to tank everything, the damage you take will add up very VERY quickly. The cannon fodder VF-11's were up against fighters that were, in practical terms, AVF-equivalents... VF and VA-14s that had been enhanced with technology supplied by the Protodeviln. It's not surprising that their armaments would be more powerful than those the (economized model) VF-11's were carrying. Max and Gamlin were going up against them in fighters that were more on a level with the Varauta fighters (though even then there's a certain amount of plot armor involved).
  2. Seto Kaiba
    Thank you! Which toy's booklet is that from?
  3. Seto Kaiba
    Posting here, since I didn't think this appeal for help merited a new thread... Anyone out there who's got a YF-19 that includes this doodad... ... could you please post a photo/scan of the part of the toy's instruction booklet that identifies the parts by name? (Or just copy out the text, whatever's easiest for you.) We're trying to get a non-Master File ID this weapon (and its triangular, similarly-colored counterpart), which have appeared in promotional materials but never been identified by name in art books. It seems to come with a lot of the YF-19 toys, so I figured that was our best bet to get an alternate identification for it.
  4. Seto Kaiba
    Possibly... though since they apparently had ready access to multiple YF-19 and VF-19 kits, I'm inclined to suspect that it's meant to be something new for the VF-11. (Or if the SPP-8 really is a micro-missile pod, that it's a VF-11 version of same.) Well... the whole "missile with a gun instead of a warhead" thing isn't entirely unprecedented in Macross. It was a technology used by both humanity (circa 2037) and the Mardook (circa 2092) in the Macross II: Lovers Again parallel world continuity, though those used beam guns instead of solid projectiles (like Master File's LPP-12). The mass driver part... that's definitely out there. I'm gonna pop on over to the Toys section and ask if anyone can offer an ID on the part from the little instruction booklets. EDIT: It looks like the toys may be on the same page as Master File on this one... I got a reply to my inquiry in the toys section, saying it's identified as a "Self-propelled Physical Warhead Launcher Pod". Well... it'd make a certain amount of sense for under-wing micro-missile pods to be absent from the VF-19/VF-22, since those had internalized micro-missile capability to preserve passive stealth. Seems like the feature came right back courtesy of the VF-171 in the space of just a few years though.
  5. Seto Kaiba
    Went over the Macross the Ride Visual Books, and I'm pretty sure what you're referring to is this thing on Anthony Clemens' VF-11 Thunderbolt Interceptor: (Page 44 of Vol.2, in one of the modeler commentary sections, for those with copies.) You're right, it is labeled as a micro-missile launcher. It's got eight ports on a wedge-shaped front end like what Master File calls the SPP-8, though they're shaped and proportioned differently. Not sure they're actually the same thing, or meant to be. EDIT: We should probably ask a toy collector... I know the SPP-8 has come with a couple different YF-19s, maybe the instructions from those say what it is (if not a railgun pod)?
  6. Seto Kaiba
    No, I'm afraid not... the mechanic sheets for the YF-19 only talk about the equipment and features seen in the Macross Plus OVA/movie itself. (I haven't checked the OVA version of the TIA book, but the movie book for Plus is similarly mute on the subject... though Master File isn't THAT far out in left field.)
  7. Seto Kaiba
    Yep, per Macross Chronicle's VB-6 mechanic sheet, the Konig Monster can fire all of its weapons in Destroid mode. It supposedly uses its engines to stabilize itself. Humanity's discovery that the Zentradi possess countermeasures for gravity control systems might have played a role too... and they found that out fairly early in the first space war.
  8. Seto Kaiba
    No, the bit I'm talking about is about 40 seconds after that part... the Konig Monster drifts off in Heavy GERWALK mode, and the next time we see it (circa 19:15), it's in Destroid mode, firing away with the forearm guns while Island-1 descends in the background: In actual fact, the VF-1 had a pair of verniers specifically for deceleration on the outside of its intakes... Well... according to Master File, there's already a GIC system inside every thermonuclear reaction turbine engine, which is both the means by which the reaction is catalyzed and controlled and the method by which the resulting plasma stream is manipulated. If I had to guess, I'd say that the reason nobody's tried to put an artificial gravity system on a VF is that there's too much potential to have something go badly awry... like what happened with the original ISC prototype, where it MAGNIFIED the g-forces on the pilot's body instead of reducing them, or having them somehow interfere with the GIC inside the reaction turbines. Using an AG field to simulate planetary gravity or provide deceleration forces wouldn't actually dampen g-forces from lateral motion either...
  9. Seto Kaiba
    Yep... Guld was not a military pilot, he was a civilian test pilot (and specialist in neurology) with a special pilot's license who was supplied by General Galaxy.
  10. Seto Kaiba
    Yep. In this case, it was a theoretical/preliminary analysis done for NASA by MSE Technology Applications in Butte, MT. Not entirely true... the United Nations (before the Unified Government was established) did announce the existence of aliens in 2000 in Macross. They just kept the details (like their giant stature) to themselves.
  11. Seto Kaiba
    Here's one that often gets left out... from the old Sky Angels book: The logo of OTEC, who did a lot of the early shipbuilding and research in Macross:
  12. Seto Kaiba
    Most of the time it's more like an X-shape in Macross (two dorsal, two ventral). I think the stabilizers on the VF-4, VF-14, VF-171, etc. work just as well despite being inward-canted instead of outward... sort of an inverted V-tail, when you think about it.
  13. Seto Kaiba
    NASA/CR-2005-213749 Advanced Energetics for Aeronautical Applications: Volume II... a published report from the NASA STI Program office.
  14. Seto Kaiba
    Dubbed, you say? The only Macross dubs in English (excluding fandubs) are the original Super Dimension Fortress Macross series (via ADV Films), Macross II, and Macross Plus... and DYRL? if we count the borderline gag dub that was Clash of the Bionoids. I've been ordering my DVDs and Blu-Rays from HMV Japan, mostly.
  15. Seto Kaiba
    From the look of the diagram in Master File, the VF-1 may have double slotted fowler flaps to play with... possibly to make up for its relatively small wing. It does, but only in the final episode... after it gets its leg blown off and crashes on the Battle Galaxy. The answer to your other question is "raw thrust". The engines are in the lower legs.
  16. Seto Kaiba
    Oh. Well, that explains that then. I learned something new today. Pretty sure the Konig Monster wouldn't be a candidate for an active aeroelastic wing there, on the grounds that it's more or less a lifting body aircraft...
  17. Seto Kaiba
    Well... you've got the ailerons for roll control, and then the outward-canted stabilizers ("ruddervators") and thrust vectoring for pitch. Beyond that, you've got the BLC, VFC, and verniers if you're in the mood to cheat a little. As far as low-speed landings go... you really can't beat GERWALK mode vertical landing, but there's always leading edge and slotted fowler flaps to work with, in conjunction with the BLC.
  18. Seto Kaiba
    Nope... officially, the only aircraft in Macross which have been mentioned as having anything along those lines are the YF-21/VF-22 and VF-19ACTIVE. From everything I've been able to find on the X-53 program, it sounds like the same problem was solved using different methods on VFs... specifically, a more rigid wing courtesy of overtechnology materials, and drag manipulation using vortex flow and boundary layer control. Um... why would the actuator need to be aerodynamic? It's INSIDE the airframe in Bomber mode - when aerodynamics actually matter - and is only exposed for a couple seconds during transformation, tops. That's kind of the thing... I'm not really seeing the benefit of the active aeroelastic wing vs. what the VFs already have in terms of airflow manipulation and control surfaces.
  19. Seto Kaiba
    Personally, I'm not so sure... from Master File, the attempts to upgrade the VF-1 seem to be concerned with improving the wing rigidity and frequency response, and I'm not seeing anything like it mentioned in connection with any aircraft except the YF-21/VF-22 and VF-19ACTIVE. (Possibly it's because of the VF's other role as a ground warfare unit, where armor endurance is paramount.) They seem to favor methods that alter the airflow over the airframe... like boundary layer control, vortex flow control, variable-cant stabilizers, etc.
  20. Seto Kaiba
    Technically, it has TWO... at least, according to Variable Fighter Master File. They first appeared in Macross the Ride (2058), and a custom one called VF-19ADVANCE appeared in Macross Frontier: Sayonara no Tsubasa (2059). Goodness gracious... I didn't realize your tastes ran in that direction. No, I'm afraid not... just some colored, and rather small, schematic views of fighter mode for the YF-19-3, VF-19F, VF-171EX and VF-25. I like the VF-19A/C's wing arrangement... the short, stubby wings on the F/S bug the hell out of me for reasons I honestly can't quite grasp. Oh, a "Monkey Model" is a sort of deliberately (and significantly) reduced capacity version of an existing piece of military hardware intended for export. The term has its origins in Cold War Soviet export policies for military hardware. The New UN Government of the 2050s was quite fed up with coup d'etat attempts and rebellions and so on, so they were a little on the reluctant side to permit emigrant fleets and planets to produce military hardware on the same level as the gear used by the core New UN Forces. That's also why they submitted a partially redacted set of specs for the YF-24 to the emigrant fleets and told them to make do instead of just GIVING them the YF-24. As far as the purpose of the Caliburn... I suppose you could say that it was, in part, intended to evaluate hardware for the next-gen AVFs (like EX-Gear or the GU-17A) in practical operations. They were used by both SMS and the Frontier's "Round Table" NUNS Special Forces unit. Chelsea Scarlett and Isamu Dyson had custom ones with various extensive modifications (the VF-19ACTIVE and VF-19ADVANCE respectively).
  21. Seto Kaiba
    Is it now? Behold the VF-19EF.
  22. Seto Kaiba
    Similar in the most basic sense... but what the YF-21 did is on a whole other level. Well... actually, it's a little from Column A and a little from Column B there. Several VFs (incl. VF-19 and VF-25) do use Vortex Flow Control for attitude control via negative pressure.1 On the other hand, most VFs have Boundary Layer Control implementations... usually involving a sub-intake in the front fuselage just above the main intake... which is used for attitude control. It's an air suction system, and extends into the leading and trailing edges of the wings (and on the VF-25, apparently into the wing glove and as far back as the stabilizers). 1. See page 49 of Variable Fighter Master File: VF-19 Excalibur and page 30 of Variable Fighter Master File: VF-25 Messiah for helpful infographics and explanations.
  23. Seto Kaiba
    Nah, it's just a technology that requires an incredible amount of energy to achieve the results it does, and has to contend with lots of other critical functions for the power it needs. The armor on a VF is fairly thin stuff... and while the material itself is extraordinarily tough, the energy conversion armor is drawing an awful lot of power to beef up that material to levels that let it shrug off weapons fire orders of magnitude deadlier than what our modern armed forces have. The VF-0's energy conversion armor needed 90% of the battroid's generator output to beef its armor strength up to the level of a main battle tank. Part of the problem is that while the thermonuclear reaction engines that VFs use to get around use the heat and plasma from the reaction to either heat intake air as propellant (in atmosphere) or use the reaction's plasma stream as propellant in space... which ultimately means that a LOT of potential power is lost generating thrust. So as technology advanced, generator output increased, but so too did engine thrust requirements and the number and severity of "accessory loads" on the power system thanks to more (and more powerful) sensor and stealth systems, integrated energy weapons, computers, communications systems, etc. Barrier systems are also famously energy-thirsty devices, so that probably isn't helping matters any. It wasn't until the VF-25's generation (the 5th?) that engine reactor output finally outpaced engine and accessory power demand to the point that light energy conversion armor could be employed around vital areas like the cockpit and engines in fighter mode. To fully utilize energy conversion armor in all modes, a fold wave system or fold dimension resonance system is necessary, which lets the YF-29 and YF-30 cheat up their generator outputs by pulling energy directly from super dimension space. Considering what is said/shown in Macross the Ride, the VF-27 probably needs at least 3 engines to produce enough surplus power to run its gun pod on top of everything else, so when the gun pod is not in use it can use the excess output for its stated ability to use its barriers and energy conversion armor to compensate for the friction heating of the airframe while flying above Mach 5 at around 10km. Actually, both the CG model from the animation and the art in Variable Fighter Master File: VF-25 Messiah show verniers on the VF-25's wingtips. You can seem them quite clearly in this image. Of course, there is another reason to leave the wings out with the Super Packs on... as seen in Master File, you can still use the 2 outer pylons on each wing for ordinance. (There's a really good picture of this on pages 076 and 077, which show VF-25's using their pylons for AMM-101 and RMS-7 missiles with their Super Packs attached.) Just because it's optimized for space doesn't mean it can only be used there... they used VF-19F's in atmosphere during Operation Stargazer in the Macross 7 TV series. All told, the YF-21's active wing technology is described as being extremely difficult/complicated to control properly without using a cheat like a BDI system or implant technology, to the extent that a conventional FCS capable of controlling it is still WIP in 2058. (This is part of the description of the VF-19ACTIVE "Nothung" from Macross the Ride.) To a certain extent, they're using boundary layer control for this... and have been since the original VF-1... but the existing stabilizers (which are variable cant on many later designs) and thrust-vectoring carry a big part of this burden.
  24. Seto Kaiba
    It wouldn't be the first time someone stuck canards onto the F/S variant...*points to Basara's VF-19 Custom, which Chronicle suggests (on Mechanic Sheet ALL 02) was customized from a VF-19F, and to the VF-19EF.*
  25. Seto Kaiba
    Probably not a huge concern for the VF-19F/S type, after all... that version of the Excalibur was optimized for usage in space.
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