The Mech Touch novel Chapter 1828

Chapter 1828 Larkinson Mech

After a lengthy argument, the swordsman mech proponents finally got the better end of the argument. They successfully convinced the other Larkinsons that the needs of swordsman mech specialists needed to be met with a configuration that suited their distinctive fighting style.

"There's a lot of variety in swordsmanship styles." Hager Larkinson pointed out. "There are duelists who rely on finesse, berserkers who like to hack their opponents with double swords—"

"—Let's not make this anymore complicated." Ves raised his hand. "Let's just settle for the most standard one-handed longsword as the starting weapon for this mech configuration. It might be possible to assign other kinds of swords to this configuration, but I'm not making promises at this point."

He already had his hands full trying to stuff three different melee configurations in a single platform! He didn't have the time or interest to expand the range of the swordsman mech configuration any further!

Perhaps he should throw this issue to Ketis. On second thought, that was a bad idea. The machine he envisioned was so complicated that it would definitely exceed her current capabilities!

In the end, they settled for four different configurations.

A general rifleman mech configuration.

A space knight configuration.

A swordman mech configuration.

A lancer mech configuration.

The four of them encompassed a broad swathe of possible spaceborn mech types and served the needs of most mech pilots.

Those who specialized in more obscure mech types such as light skirmishers, striker mechs and artillery mechs were out of luck. They had no choice but to adapt to the available configurations or stick with an existing mech model.

Fortunately, every Larkinson understood the difficulty of accommodating their needs. It was already a luxury for them to be able to have a say in the design of their own mech!

Ves clapped his hand. "Alright, I'll try to make these four configurations work. Combining four mech types in a single platform is a considerable challenge and I can't promise they will all perform equally as well."

"How extensively will we field this upcoming mech platform?" Magdalena asked. As the commander of the Living Sentinels, this was a very pertinent question! "From what we know so far, you intend to design a very expensive and very complicated mech. While it sounds fantastic to pilot a mech that is somewhat tailored to our specific needs, I'm concerned whether your budget can handle the expenditure of producing hundreds of mechs and associated parts for the different configurations!"

"There is no need for concern, commander. Money is not a problem to mech designers, and I've already secured an excellent supplier for rare exotics. Feel free to make demands. I'll see whether I can incorporate them into the platform or one of the configurations. As long as your suggestions strengthen the mech or facilitate the training of our mech pilots, I'll consider them seriously."

It took some time for the Larkinsons to be daring enough to pose some demands.

"Can you pair the space knight configuration with a round shield rather than a tower shield. The extra width is very useful in a number of situations. While this will make the mech more unwieldy, it is easier to form a shield wall with other space knights."

"Please make sure the swordsman mechs are fast and mobile enough. They can partially take over the functions covered by light mechs this way. In any case, swordsman mechs rarely need to strike heavy blows in spaceborn combat. Large and heavy weapons are too unwieldy to keep up with the rapid pace of battles in space."

"One of my biggest pet peeves about lancer mechs is the disproportionately high casualties they suffer at the moment of impact or the period that follows afterwards. Everyone is always raving about how deadly they are if they can get off their charge, but not a lot of people pay attention to the risks the lancer mech specialists incur."

All of this feedback and more gave Ves a lot of information.

Some of them consisted of general insights and best practices that he was mostly familiar with through his various studies and Mastery experiences.

The rest consisted of more specific demands, some of which Ves couldn't easily meet. He plainly voiced his opinion on whether he could incorporate a suggestion in his mech design or not. Over time, he formed a more specific list of requirements he should take into account when he embarked on his design project.

"What do you think so far, Ves?" Magdalena asked. "Are we asking too much? It shouldn't be easy to accommodate so many demands."

Ves offered his clan members a reassuring smile. "It's a challenge, but I'm up for the task. I wouldn't have chosen to design a modular mech platform otherwise. This is not only helpful to our clan, but also to my professional development. I'll let you know if I encounter any setbacks, but I don't expect to encounter one that's serious enough to block my progress. I'm not an average mech designer. I'm very confident in my skill!"

In terms of technical design skill, Ves might be a bit worse than Gloriana, but he had the benefit of a much broader knowledge base! He should have solutions for most technical problems as long as he worked on them long enough.

Of course, Ves preferred to leave these thorny puzzles to Gloriana, who possessed a talent for offering elegant solutions.

Both of them specialized in very different aspects of mech design. This was one of the main reasons why they fit so well as a professional couple.

This temporary separation from Gloriana really took a toll on his mood. He was starting to miss her more and more. He was already starting to yearn for her brilliant smiles, her unique perfumes and her loving hugs!

He regretted that he admitted his dislike towards the Hexadric Hegemony and its culture. He should have lied instead of coming clean. Why he did so at that moment was a complete mystery to Ves. He lied many times without feeling any guilt. Why couldn't he do the same to his girlfriend?