Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator |
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Chroma
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Post subject: Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator  Posted: Mon Feb 27, 2006 7:15 pm |
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| Quote (CyberShadow @ 27 Feb. 2006 (17:35)) | | It may be surprising, but I am marginally against this. I am sure that the big birds could come down from orbit, but I do think that they would do so away from the front line, and then flap in. (As a personal aside, I think that Planetfall is getting a little too common...) |
I think the whole reason to give them planetfall is forward compatibility. It will most likely never be used in the current "Subdual Phase" list, but it is in there for future lists, like a "Splinter Fleet Drop Swarm" and the like. Just like Daemon Princes have teleport in the Lost and Damned list, even though there is no way for them to use it.
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Chroma
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Post subject: Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator Posted: Mon Feb 27, 2006 9:18 pm |
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| Quote (Hena @ 27 Feb. 2006 (19:27)) | | IMO it is different. Demons are summoned from the warp. While the harridan and vitupertor should drop from orbit for planetfall. I'm just not buying that. |
I meant from a "it's never going to be used in the current list, but it's there for future lists" standpoint, not a "how does it work in the game world" viewpoint.
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ragnarok
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Post subject: Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator Posted: Mon Feb 27, 2006 11:10 pm |
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I think that there is more chance of Haridans doing Hot orbital drops than to some rear area supply are.
three reasons
A) The short story has them apear over the IG landing zone as soon as the air drop starts.
2) Nids do almost everything at the front line,a warrior beast not at the front line is using up valuable enegy getting to the front line.
iii) (No I don't know what consistancy is  ) if the Harridan screws up its drop or gets shot down. Better it does so over the enemy and takes some of them out when it goes SPLAT. At least this way it can make back some of the bio mass that went into building it.
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Jaldon
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Post subject: Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2006 1:22 am |
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I haven't confirmed this yet, but....................
The Harridans in the story line appear after the arrival of the spores, hence it is from whence they came.
That said I do have a problem with a Harridan or Vituperator attempting to stop from the high mach numbers planetfall would entail. The G-Forces would just rip their wings off.
A Myecetic Spore is genetically designed to survive the factors of speed, heat, and deceleration that planetfall would entail (Along with having the 'juice' inside to aid the cargo surviving the drop).
Now this is just my opinion but I think that the Tyranid Drop From Space army will entail the use of Myecetic Spores and Bio-Ships dropping from orbit to the surface. Up to this date that has been how the background fluff has gone.
Consider a Myecetic Spore as able to carry anything from Common Brood Creatures to Nid Tanks, and even small WEs, and you have got a very versital delivery system right there.
Again just my two cents and not confirmed fluff. But I am working on it..............
Jaldon
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ragnarok
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Post subject: Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2006 10:22 am |
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There Bio-ships use bioplasma and a multidirectional venting system, much like other races space craft (except the bio part). Since flapping wings in space doesn't do much. 
This is the initial invasion from the short story.
Wind-borne spores began to winnow down around them, burning flesh and thickening the air.
Caen ran to get below as the first of the atmospheric toxins began killing Mordian troops and navy personnel. Ship landing lights came on automatically as the natural light died, illuminating streams of pelting spores like a black blizzard.
Against the blackness high above, colossal shapes descended. Harridan brood-organisms, the Tyranid main dispersal form. Caen had read about them. But to see them, to see their size, smell their downwashed stink... it ruined his mind.
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From it it is hard to tell what comes first. True they notice the spore rain first, as it kills them. Then as they look up they notice the Haridans still high in the sky. All this happened in moments of the sky turning black (low orbit bioships?). So, in my opinion, the Harridans didn't drop somewhere else first then assault when the drop assault happened.
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ragnarok
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Post subject: Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2006 11:38 am |
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I think the problem is that we are extrapolating a small amount of data into covering the whole idea, just like marketing (but with less lying ). I surpose we could wait for forge worlds next IA book and their take on it. But who wants to do that.
So lets argue... er I mean debate.
You say it is just ones man take on it. I say he is the forces supreme commander so had tatical and strategic reports on most of the planet. They would of reported some lesser synpase nodes sprouting.
Also there was no report from the navy in orbit. So as soon as the nids dropped out of warp around the planet (crazy fools  ) they started an assault drop. This means the Haridans would of been dropped almost fully grown given the time frame of the assault.
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ragnarok
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Post subject: Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2006 3:44 pm |
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The only problem I have with a Haridan sitting in a tree drying its' wings like some giant Mothra, is that such an event is noticeable. Even a guardsman should notice the differance between it and a bird. Yet in this instance they appear almost at the same time as the spore rain.
Since the story is not done in the first person, we can assume that the timings in it are correct. As for the whole DC in a spore thing I always imaging flyers being larger per DC than their ground based equivilance, the whole giant wing span needed to lift the wee beast. Thus is less likely to fit into a pod.
Finally, a flight of fancy. The haridans are discribed as a dispersal form and arn't being hit by spores (which though they wont detonate will damage them by inertia if they were falling from above) and at high altitude. Oh to have this in epic with high altitude Haridan bombers.
True they arn't fast (about that of a WWII bomber), but they can fly really high up.
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ragnarok
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Post subject: Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator Posted: Wed Mar 01, 2006 11:56 am |
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Wings folded around them. Letting them dry in the sun. You are trying to make me convert a Mothra Haridan arn't you Hena. Well its working!
With their speed they can reach 200Km/H (recorded max) and cruise at about half that.
Now even if they are only a few Km up, then a steep dive could work like planetfall, or possible teleport.
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ragnarok
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Post subject: Ideas for Harridan and Vituperator Posted: Wed Mar 01, 2006 1:34 pm |
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Not quite yet. Though if we can reach an agreement on a similar ability that you can think of as a low altitude drop and I can think of as an orbital drop, then that will be enough.
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