My Life Story, Philosophy of Design, Colonization Patterns, and other trivia, was Re: DS: Walkers

--- Brian Bilderback <greywanderer987@yahoo.com>
wrote:

> > My favorite was a personal design--50 tons, 1
> gauss
> > rifle, couple tons of ammo, 6/9 movement (I think,
> > it's been a long time) and the rest in armor.  
> 
> Elegant.

That's one of the highest compliments I've had in a
long time.  There was a Mk 2 that added a pair of MGs
and a 1/2 ton of ammo.	:)
 
> > There's a fine line to walk here.  I enjoy
> designing
> > vehicles.  Even more do I enjoy working out the
> > interrelations between various vehicle designs,
> > where
> > vehicles fit on the MTOE, what their battlefield
> > role
> > is, and what doctrine they would need.
> 
> As do I, though I suspect you're much better at it
> than I (given our different levels of real life and
> gaming experience, that is to be expected).

Nah. . . it's upbringing.  I grew up on the old US
Army FMs on the Soviet Army.  Most interesting books
in the house.  My Dad gave me an old map-and-chit SPI
game called Mechwar '77.  Each marker was a platoon. 
I'd play solitaire games by putting together a Russian
attack (MRR, typically) and running the attack by the
book.  I'd run a US BN and try to stop it.  Eventually
got pretty decent.  I started this when I was 8-9(?). 
Spend 16 years on anything and you get good.

RL Army experience. . . just is the difference between
classroom theory and practical exercises.  I just get
to do my PEs down at the Stargrunt level and below. 
:)

> take a walker.  Fighting on the Olympic peninsula of
> Washington?  Walkers backed by VTOL.	*shrug* just a

Maybe--although I still like Grav.

> possible variation on the theme.  Tomb and I had a
> talk about this, and how a smart army's going to
> have
> several different types of vehicles up it's sleeve -
> even the highest tech force around won't run pure
> grav.

Unless. . . My perception of GZGverse is that you have
relatively small professional armies.  A division or
at most a Corps will defend a planet.  Maybe a
regiment.  Therefor they need to be versatile and
operate all over the planet.  What good is the 14th
Mechanized Mountain Batallion (Combat Walker) if the
plan is to secure an area the size and terrain variety
of Europe with a brigade?  Armies are going to have to
focus on high-payoff targets, and most of 'em aren't
in crap terrain that these walkers are theoretically
good at.  Even if they are, what good does it do to
hold onto your absurdium mines in the mountains of
Ratholeistan if I have secured all the food-producing
areas?	
 
Now, the argument might be for securing urban areas. 
My thoughts on the urbanization of space:

1)Most colonies, having unlimited space and limited
heavy construction assets, will build out rather than
up.  2-3 story buildings at most, not 10-20.
2)Large urban areas depend on good food distribution
networks, which won't really be practical until
colonies mature somewhat.  Obviously some have.  
3)Given the limited nature of ground combat (imposed
by shipping requirements) no one has the assets to
take a defended city.  That's resource intensive--a
militia brigade could tie up a division or more for
weeks.
4)Urban areas will represent difficult-to-replace
transportation hubs, probably the main spaceports, and
what limited heavy manufacturing assets exist
on-planet.  As such they are going to be practically
irreplacable and High Command will NOT take lightly
the sack of a city--and any attack on a defended city
will resemble a medieval sack in devastation if not
intent.

This is simillar to the discussions I've had re:
orbital bombardment.  In short, I consider it likely
that colonies fall into a few categories:

1)Too heavily developed to take easily, and hence
rarely the targets of offensives (ie, Neu Salzburg,
Nova Moskva, New Avalon, New Constantinople).
2)Valuable prizes fought over in a style of warfare
reminiscent of medieval condotta--very careful not to
damage the prize, fairly civilized rules of warfare.
3)Crappy dirtballs inhabited by the unwanted of Earth,
fought over in dirty little wars like Epsilon Ceti.

As such, mass high-tech armies just aren't in the
picture, which rules out the need for specialized
formations with complex gear only good for a handful
of places and times.  

John

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