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Master Dex

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  1. Master Dex
    When it comes to explaining why Q-Raus are not actually all that amazing, we can simply explain the reason of why almost all Zentradi mecha before SW1 are somewhat lackluster. Zentradi don't design their own stuff, they don't innovate, they don't even know how to repair. They use designs that the Factory Satellites are programmed to build that have been in service since the days of the early Protoculture wars, or at least by the end of the Supervision Army war before the Protoculture finally died out. So they are just re-using old designs which while well made, have basically not improved in over 500,000 years. This means all Zentradi success is based on their battle acumen, and use of superior numbers and firepower. The fact that certain Q-Raus are seen to look super powerful can only be because of their exceptional pilots. The fact is, until the UN Spacey got to redesigning and upgrading it later on, Zentradi tech was advanced, but it is also ancient and doesn't scale well with human design innovation which made improvements to designs as SW1 went on even. Don't get me wrong, humanity was still severely under-equipped to handle the Zentradi and never stood a chance really (the survival they got at all is really a stroke of extreme luck that culture shock made such an impact) but mostly due to Zentradi being forever warriors and also they had millions of ships each with tons of battle units at their disposal. It simply did not matter if their tech was old and clunky with those numbers. In a one of one though, Earth fighters generally fared pretty well each time, almost superbly. Hikaru wasn't much of an ace pilot really, he was a lucky guy. He did good enough but he was pretty new to it all compared to Focker with his years of experience. Hikaru still wiped up many Zentradi though. Max of course was newer but Max is also a genius and a natural so he doesn't really count.
  2. Master Dex
    Brera's poorly animated fight with the Hydra was actually in episode 10, during the shooting of the Birdman movie.
  3. Master Dex
    It isn't listed anywhere though, including MMM, so it might just be a speculation or hearsay.
  4. Master Dex
    Wilder might be more nostalgic than even NUNS are about video tapes (though let's be honest... Wilder owns that movie on video tape probably, perhaps even purchased from Gavil. THE BEAUTY OF OLD FILMS!!)
  5. Master Dex
    My entertainment on this forum is partly waiting for Seto to post anything in detail. It is always fun to see him get into the gritty details. Having self-translated archives of facts to back up his stuff is of course the boon to his ability to do this, and it is why I pretty much straight up ask him things now. This entire debate though, despite being able to be solved by facts as such, seems more or less about whether the VF-31 is actually an all around better fighter than other 5th generation models. Not counting the YF/VF-24 which is likely Superman compared to other 5th Gen's Captain America (yes I am comparing between DC and Marvel, get over it), and being considerate to remove YF-29 and YF-30 for their obvious advantages (and because neither can be mass produced as is), this really comes down to comparing the VF-25, VF-27, and VF-31 (side note, did anyone do anything with the number 28? I know Olympia fielded a YF-26 that lost to the YF-25, but I've heard nothing of any 28s) The VF-27 is so heavily specialized for a particular type, cyborg pilots almost exclusively are needed to fly it, that it also is technically not a fair assessment for general use. So really, for comparing 5th gen mass produced VFs we just have to decide if the VF-31 is better or on par with the VF-25. I personally find the design more aesthetically pleasing, and the YF-30 inspired transformation scheme seems more robust to me. I do not recall if VF-25 has any internal missiles without super parts or not. There is one questionable scene in Frontier ep.1 that implies it, but it is never really seen to fire any without extra parts. So the 31s light missile count does give that an advantage perhaps. I think I am more with Seto on the weapon load out placement choices. Arm cannons should be beam weapons since we know it works. A real question worth asking anymore is with the increasing ubiquity of smaller beam weapons and now heavy quantum beam gunpods, is there really much advantage to a projectile gun much anymore? Maybe as a backup? The 29 sure doesn't seem to be hampered much with only its hip guns (I know there is a slight curiosity on if the ES-25As are the hip guns same as on the 25 or if the 29 has some weird head guns, but I'm more inclined to think Chronicle made a typo there). And to credit the hip guns on the 25 can be either projectile ES-25A or the ROV-25 beam guns so the VF-25 can choose to go all beams save for its gunpod. (Branching off there, assuming the 29s hip guns are the ES-25A as makes sense, though it is not stated, it can probably mount the ROV-25s as well.) I can see uses for a traditional projectile gunpod still perhaps... and the modular weapons pack of the 31 does imply the option that a pack could exist that outfits it with a projectile gunpod instead of a beam gunpod. However, we have seen absolutely no other packs fielded by Xaos so we can't really confirm that yet to my knowledge. Personally, I'd just keep a dedicated gunpod of some time like the 25 has and then still use the modular pack however useful for a mission, whether with additional beam gun or otherwise (such a configuration would be closer to the YF-30's setup). So overall, the VF-31 has a great modular system that gives it flexibility, but the 31s used by Xaos seem to squander that flexibility, partly because their mission doesn't call for it (thus wasting the potential of the fighter), and because they probably don't have access to all the things that Brisingr NUNS would use once they adopt VF-31's (which hampers them just as much) again because their mission is different from the military. SMS on the other hand was sold as doing the military job without red tape and liability, so they got all the toys Frontier NUNS would also use and they used it all very eagerly and effectively (and they are also likely just a better run organization). So SMS may have had a less modular VF in the 25 but they utilized is way better than Xaos uses the 31. Pros and cons weighed, the 31 can be a better investment if used to its potential, it is currently not. At the same time, the 25 seems to have some smarter design choices on it. More Shinsei blood will do that though, Surya Aerospace is still new to the game after all.
  6. Master Dex
    There are a lot of hints about the specs of the YF-24 from official sources that claim the pared down specs the emigrant fleets got was heavily reduced in capability. Thus the likely VF-24 Federal NUNS has produced by the time Frontier made the 25 is likely a total monster of power. NUNS traditionally uses the benchmark of being able to combat a Zentradi fleet (understandable considering history, they likely want to ensure Earth is the last world to face such a glassing), but it is possible that the discovery of the Vajra in the 40s spurred some of it too. The YF-29 which is the closest an emigrant fleet likely got to the 24's true level was designed precisely with Vajra in mind after all. The difference is, Federal NUNS can fund such a crazy fighter. I think the story says that Shinsei sold the YF-24 design on the ability of it being able to do short range folds (with a booster surely, unless that is another innovation that Federal NUNS has classified) straight into enemy fleets, wreck the place from the inside, and then fold out so the allied fleet can mop out with little resistance (or Macross cannon everything else since it can charge while the 24 is rampaging).
  7. Master Dex
    So what exactly is this then? A book with pretty pictures, info, or both?
  8. Master Dex
    What, you don't believe a ~400m transforming robot/ship can sky surf into a planet on a piece of debris in perfect sync with a musical number? Lol, admittedly, I was a bit taken aback by that part. The craziest thing there though is not that they do that.. but Wilder calls out Big Wednesday formation and all of the people, sans Cathy, react like "oh this thing" instead of looking shocked or freaked out. This gives the implication that these people HAVE DONE THIS BEFORE! When!? Why!?
  9. Master Dex
    I too am having trouble believing this can simply be 20-something episodes long.. but I also know it has happened.. which is kinda depressing the way they are pacing it. This pacing would be a lot more excusable for a 3 or 4 cour series.. but as is known right now... I'm left wondering how they decided on this.
  10. Master Dex
    Who knew the NUNG was so nostalgic? lol Or maybe it is just Gavil that prefers outdated formats. "The BEAUTY of scan lines!"
  11. Master Dex
    Macross is one of the only Sci-Fi franchises where "Punch it in the face with an aircraft carrier" is considered a sound military tactic, lol. Whilst singing of course.
  12. Master Dex
    It is true the Zentradi were directly created by the PC for a specific task, rather than the more whimsicle "let's screw with DNA of stuff here and see what happens" approach of other species. But Since Zentradi were just meant to be a warrior slave race.. not really heirs of anything... well one thing actually. They are the heirs of the Protoculture's biggest screw up.. since their standing orders are to find and eradicate Supervision Army ships and members, and apparently, some still exist out there.
  13. Master Dex
    Sheryl's earrings are definitely grandfathered in, as they are a family heirloom dating back to her great grandparents. In the blu-ray version of Macross Zero they edited the earrings into the shot where Mao Nome is looking at the small shrine to her and Sara's parents. It is likely the fold quartz for them was found on or near the Birdman's body originally and was created by the Protoculture rather than being of the naturally produced kind the Vajra make. Certainly, no one on Mayan had any idea what potential those stones had, and Mao kept them and passed them on until Sheryl got them. As for when fold quartz was identified for its properties, likely around the time the Vajra were first discovered in the 2040s, and Frontier and Galaxy were the first fleets to make effective use of it I bet.
  14. Master Dex
    Glad to see my can kicking was well placed. That was a wonderfully succinct answer. I remembered about half of it from before, heh. I guess then that super dimension space is basically seen as a pocket universe linked to ours. String and M-theory posit 10 or 11 dimensions total but with most of them (excluding the 3 spatial dimensions and time) being incredibly small, curled up, and not as noticeable to us in our reality. Some theoretical physicists have posited the idea there may be a sister universe to ours where the reverse is true and those dimensions are fully expanded, and perhaps their smallness here is due to bleed through, that could mean that super dimension space is something like that. Alas, like the rest of String and M-theory, while the math works out none of it can be physically tested with modern technology so we have no way to know for sure if any of it is true. I have alternatively considered the idea that it might be the Macross explanation for dark matter and dark energy, qualities we know to exist now in our universe but cannot yet quantify. Especially with dark matter appearing to have a lot of mass in the universe that affects us but having no form or interaction at all beyond that. Almost sounds a lot like that heavy quantum. Maybe most of what we call dark matter is just hiding 'somewhere else.' All conjecture of course, but I enjoy considering these ideas.
  15. Master Dex
    I could try to answer this one, and might do a half decent job... but I admit I am still piecing it all together from sources with more complete information than I've had. Suffice it to say, the answers are more often than not in supplementary materials to the show like Macross Chronicle, the various valkyrie Master Files, etc. I think there are better people that can give a good answer *kicks can down to Seto* I know fold energy is energy from Super Dimension Space, the realm ships fold through to travel faster than light, but I am not always entirely aware of what it is. Like any FTL in science fiction.. there is a bit of handwavium, unobtanium, and technobabble inherent. The better scifi tries to have more unobtanium (things that don't exist yet but don't entirely violate known physics and could exist) than the other two (handwavium being pure made up stuff for sake of plot, and technobabble being large complicated descriptions that often don't actually mean anything. Star Trek is fond of the latter, Star Wars thrives on the former). The ratio of the three is what determines when something is hard sci-fi (more realistic in a sense) or not. Macross tends to play jump rope with Mohs Scale of Sci-Fi Hardness in that at times it goes to amazing lengths with its supplementary information to be realistic. All the information of Valkyrie specs is done in amazing tasteful ways and uses numbers that make sense and mean things in real world terms. In a sense all Valkyries are unobtanium because if we could construction compact fusion engines similar to the reaction engines they use, such a vehicle would not be impossible to build given time, desire, and money (it is highly unlikely we would ever need to make such a thing or want to spare the expense from political and economic standpoints though. They exist in Macross because they are useful there. In our world they'd be superfluous). Super Dimension Space exists on the edge of handwavium though in that the details given make it more clear cut than simply 'magical hyperspace realm that does what we need it to do' but at the same time it is something which cannot be proven to exist in terms of physics so technically still counts as something made up for the plot. As a result, while a lot of Fold stuff is rather tastefully done and is often consistent which is good for the story but it means there might not be a clear answer as to what fold energy really is (and I could be wrong too hence my earlier can kicking). This is just my take on it.
  16. Master Dex
    It might not look as cool or make a unique enough toy to sell, lol.
  17. Master Dex
    Yeah, my first thought was "HG must have allowed this.. for some reason..." They still get money out of it. They are dicks, but not stupid, they know enough people want that.
  18. Master Dex
    27 so, starting to crust probably, lol.
  19. Master Dex
    They are 4th generation. The YF-29 (there is no VF-29, as no one is going to be able to afford such a thing as a production run of that except Federal NUNS.. and they basically already have something on that level), The 31, and 30 are all 5th generation. Of those 3 listed, the 31 is likely the lowest spec of them but even then they are newer than the 19 and 22 and use more up to date technology. In general, a 31 would probably outclass a 19 or 22, but there is a lot to consider still. The right pilot makes a difference. Isamu in his VF-19Advance likely could still give anyone in a VF-31 a run for their money, except maybe Messer flying the 31F with its fold wave system. And if we put Max in his VF-22.... I don't care what kind of plane you have... there is no winning that fight. That is essentially what the YF-29 is though. It is some smart people figuring out how to bring the simplified version of the YF-24 up to it's full potential (while also designing a fighter than can effectively solo Vajra). The reason the 29 is not produced, as stated above, is it costs the capital of a small nation to do probably... and most of the emigrant fleets are equivilant to a small nation. They still need some money left over for feeding people and buying concert tickets for pop idols.
  20. Master Dex
    We only have slim details on the YF-24's loadouts as it is, enough to know it at least probably matched the 25, but could be more. The VF-24 could be even more than that. VF-27 while being something of an over trimmed fighter in that only cyborgs can safely fly it is still based on the released YF-24 specs.. which means it likely still doesn't match the VF-24 the Feds would have. Proof of this could be the fact that the 27 struggled to keep up with the YF-29 which really is probably the best guess for how good a 24 can be. As for 30 to 31. We know the VF-31 is made by Surya Aerospace, which implies that the YF-30 data is out there freely. This seems to be legally mandated by NUNS even though the 30 was made for SMS initially as a tech demonstrator, but NUNS certainly knew about it and if they make something that exceeds an existing design (and NUNS Havamal already jumped on the YF-29 wagon by making the apparently improved 29B model so of course they care if they are being one upped) then NUNS probably is gonna make sure everyone is on equal footing at least (except the Feds.. who are still already above that). We do know the base 31A Kairos model is likely pretty slimmed down from the YF-30 capabilities. I am not sure the 31A even has any fold quartz in it. The Seigfrieds do of course, but they are a specialized variant. I'm just assuming now that the 31 in general does not match the 30 for performance because the 30 was all about pushing an envelope just to see if it could. A good question though is whether the design of the 24 is meant to use any fold quartz or not for a fold wave system. Or is it just that much better even without it? If so.. that implies an even scarier idea of a VF-24 variant with one installed that goes even further. I just imagine at this point Federal NUNS forces are looking at all these attempts like the 29 and 30 and chuckling in mild amusement at how cute the colony fleets are being right now, lol.
  21. Master Dex
    The SMS VF-25 was as full spec as a VF-25 is gonna get. NUNS just wanted it to be performance tested first before mass production started. The fact that it was already a production run, hence VF, means it was done. The YF-25 Prophecy was the prototype Shinsei/LAI produced that led to the VF-25 which NUNS decided to get some outside help with since it was such an advanced mech compared to the VF-171. The reason, as Seto has stated, that this is the case is because all emigrant fighters like the 25, 27, 29, 30, and 31 are derivatives from the shared YF-24 design data NUNS shared from Shinsei. The thing is, NUNS central either did not give out the data to build it to its full potential or more likely the full potential is something most emigrant fleets can't afford to mass produce so the all the derivatives are actually simpler cheaper variations on the basic 'stock' YF-24 design, rather than the proper full specification version. This is what Seto means when he refers to the emigrant fighters as 'monkey model.' Since the YF-29 is the closest any fleet has come to building a fighter that matches the full YF-24 (and by extension the VF-24 the feds likely made) and it was so prohibitively expensive and difficult to produce, that implies that a proper YF/VF-24 is something only the Federal NUNS has the capability of mass producing and while they could spread that around to all fleets, the decentralization means they don't do that anymore and more than likely they are just fine with that. Federal NUNS now knows for sure no outbound fleet is going to have anything quite matching them unless some Anti-UN espionage shenanigans is happening. It also serves as an amusing form of commentary that while all the fleet governments are now autonomous and not bent to the will of central NUNS like in the old days, the people at the top are still very much in charge, lol.
  22. Master Dex
    And thus suddenly Windermere's choice of resorting to Var mind control tactics becomes a lot more sensible, lol.
  23. Master Dex
    That just makes me extremely interested in seeing what a Federal Forces VF-24 can actually do if it is anywhere near comparable (or perhaps above) YF-29 stats. Considering all the effort to make this known background information, even if just as a minor tidbit, I am left feeling like a story, even if just a single movie or OVA, focusing on Federal NUNS and the kind of missions they actually do with such crazily powered fighters actually do. I'm picturing the need for the NMC ships and their giant guns to be secondary to a fighter with super powered ECA, reaction engines, weapons, etc that short folds into rogue Zentradi flagships and destroys them from within before the carrier can even charge its main gun. (This imagined scenario is based on what the supposed selling points of the YF-24 were, such as pin-point close range tactical folding).
  24. Master Dex
    That is something I'd be more into. A complete series set without all the extras. I just want the show with its official subs and not in 9 different purchases.
  25. Master Dex

    Bandai DX VF-31

    Master Dex replied to UN Spacy's topic in Toys

    So the August 1st preorder is for the 31J right? No word yet on the others?
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