Well first of all, recognize I am talking out of my rear end. This is all a make believe setting, one I don't even know the full depth of, but I can still make up random stuff that might sound like it is true. (In other words, don't take anything I say too seriously, I am being argumentative for the sake of being argumentative.) Second of all, yes PanO is the biggest arm manufacture/supplier. They also have the biggest most demanding customer . . . PanO. PanO has to equip more soldiers than anyone else in the sphere, because they have so many more soldiers to guard their greater amount of territory. If some bean counter determines that they can save .01% of their allocated budget by restricting the troops to basic ammunition only, someone higher up is going to use that savings to buy some other fancy toys (like an extra space weapon platform), or create a symbolic budget-cut to appease some politicians. I imagine some real world military folks can share some real horror stories about cost cutting in the field.
Pen-dragon is right. This is why I don't see PanO's tech as top-of-the-line like Aleph's or CA's is. It's rather "standarized tech level across the board as high as budget permits". Even so, it's purely fluff-based and doesn't translate well into current lineup. But we've discussed PanO shortcomings ad nauseam over the last few months. Enough for now, at least for me.
It's a good reason for Varuna to get the nice toys then. It's been described by CB as the Special Forces Sectorial, not just by PanO standards but by the standards of any force in Infinity. Seems like a good time to break out the cool toys. We're already seeing that with Red Furies and Marksman Rifles, so I think we're off to a good start. Echoing @eciu's point too, I think it's nice for PanO to be really double down on BS modifiers. Anyone remember when both Auxilia and their Auxbots were Forward Observers? That was a neat trick. Having easier ways to apply Targeted is very thematic for PanO.
+1 for more Targeted State stuff. The Targeted State is high-risk, Order Intensive, and frankly under-utilized - in part becuase there's only 2 (admittedly unreliable) ways to force an opponent into the Targeted State. I've had a long-term wish for NCA and Acorn to get some kind of Targeting Grenade or similar that doesn't grand Specialist, but allows Targeting of enemies or ground.
Damn, we're missing the obvious solution. Tracker Ammo, another non-lethal option for Multi Weapons, puts target into Targeted state. Alternatively let's introduce a Multi Pistol with Tracker mode... edit: (yup, Tracker Ammo sounds less confusing than Tag Ammo, thanks again, Section9) ;)
Thing is, it's made in small quantities (Alephs forces are nowhere near PanO's in terms of sheer size), and either paid for by O-12, or a part of PanO's contribution to it. Arming whole PanO forces with the best stuff would make the military expenses skyrocket. Aleph tech level is PanO pulling out all the stops. PanO's tech level is when they have to think about budget limit and cost-effectiveness.
Yup, and anyone in the military is fully aware that their equipment was provided by the lowest contracted bidder (excluding any personal equipment purchased by them outside the Qies). You don't get top-shelf gear from below the counter budgets.
All thats bulldust, mostly to justify shitty game design and a lack of creativity. We are told PanO has hte best tech, they are technophiles and that they use equipment over skills to solve problems. but because of the design of the faction we are not shown and that is the problem.
Look at the Echo Bravo's new Red Fury and tell me why PanO troops stick with combis. Every attempt at innovation puts a handle in front of a scope. I can only imagine what they'd do with a tactical bow.
The real-world reason is logistics. Logistics, man. OK, the US is probably the largest arms supplier in the world. The US military uses exactly one pistol caliber, and any submachineguns also use that caliber. Our 'Spitfire' (maybe Molotok, the Red Fury is basically the M27 Individual Automatic Rifle) uses exactly the same ammo as our basic rifles (would technically be an AP round in Infinity terms). Our machinegun uses a bigger bullet, but that's shared with about half of our sniper rifles and all the designated marksman rifles. The rest of our sniper rifles use one of 3 different calibers (.300 Winchester Magnum, .338 Lapua, or the mighty .50BMG) depending on who is using them, but that's not a strain on supply because they're few and far between. We have two different grenade-launcher ammo types, the one for the automatic GL has a longer case with more powder but the grenades themselves are the same (lots of different grenade types, though). The big vehicle-mounted MGs are all .50 caliber, but there are ... 4 or 5 different rounds for them (if we made a multiple feed system, the .50BMG would be my example for a MultiHMG, except for the lack of Stun ammo). All that said, however, I could see PanO having more access to ammo types among their combirifles. Breaker, AP, and Shock would be the obvious ones. DA would be questionable (I think DA ammo requires a bigger bullet than combis), but T2 would be a possibility. Not sure what else would be there. Also, I could see additional ammo types for PanO multiweapons. Probably Multi-Marksman Rifle, though it's not exactly unique to PanO. The JSA Daiyokai has one. Bought from PanO! Yeah, I think that would be good. I'd like that for YJ, too, but that's a different discussion. Yes, that would also be good. You mean Automatic Grenade Launcher (like the US Mark-19 automatic grenade launcher), but yeah. I think that's what a lot of TAGs should be packing as a secondary weapon, too, instead of the Heavy GL. Oh, and I'd like the AutoGL to be a weapon option for the Total Reaction bots, maybe in all factions. Yeah, that would be very cool. As @Stiopa showed, Togusa's tracker ammo: Nah, let's call that Tracker ammo, just to avoid TAG/Tag confusion. But otherwise? Hell yes! Yes, I'd really like a lot more things that just use the existing rules, without adding new rules to the game. FO Auxbots, Auxbot with Blitzen. Maybe a Multi-'Faust: Choice of AP+EXP, EM2, or Adhesive, still Disposable(2), though. My second submarine was completed by strikebreakers. We're talking things installed, welded in, upside down and backwards (not technically unsafe, but shows fucks not given). Bolts not installed in the tracks for the periscope, so the periscope didn't want to rise square, risking a leak. And that's just the shit I can talk about in public... If I ever meet one of those fucking 'scabs' that built her, I'm going to punch him right in the face for risking my life and the lives of everyone on that sub. Worse, she had an immense amount of maintenance deferred once it was announced that she was going from the East Coast to the West Coast (around the Horn). Missile subs spend about 9 out of every 12 months at sea, year after year, so they're used pretty hard compared to other ships in the Navy. She was 7 years younger than my first sub, only about 12 years old when I transferred on, and in much worse material condition. She was regularly taking an extra week or two in port for refit to fix shit that was deferred, and our refit periods were only a month long to begin with. 25-50% more work every single refit! She was still having maintenance issues when I got out of the Navy some 4 years after arrival on the West Coast.
Thats why PanO overpays throught he roof for Combi+LSG or Combi+Assault Pistol combos? Damn those lobbyst in PanO are really making a great work for their own corporations^^
