1395 réponses à ce sujet

[Milkmaid79]

The thing is, most startship weaponry simple isn't potent enough to do any significant damage to a planetside target, let alone targeting and distance issues.

Weren't there several planets in ME2 that mentioned being formerly inhabited by spacefaring species that were wiped out by orbital bombardment?

[Milkmaid79]

Why didn't the Reapers simply drop a few asteroids on each planet instead of dropping endless numbers of husks? Surely most of the species weren't worthy of becoming new Reapers, so scour the homeworlds of life and do a quick mop-up on the outlying colonies.

[birefringent]

Every time EDI finds an anomaly in ME2 she then forces Shepard to do a manual scan to send a probe. Why doesn't EDI just do that automatically with her supercomputer quantum stuff and then inform Shepard that "Look there's something interesting over there. Wanna go check it out?"

 

All this great future-tech and we're back to slow moving elevators and manual controls for everything.

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

How does a volus poop? Do they have special pressurized environment toilet stalls for voli (I guess that could be plural).

[Iakus]

How does a volus poop? Do they have special pressurized environment toilet stalls for voli (I guess that could be plural).

A pressurized toilet sounds like a disaster waiting to happen.

 

Albeit a potentially really funny one 

[themikefest]

The destroyer on Rannoch

 

When its first fired on, it falls over. At that point I believe its destroyed. As soon as the player gains control of Shepard, the reaper is able to right itself. The first time Shepard paints the target, it gets hit with numerous rounds and doesn't fall over like the first time. Why? It happens again three more times. Finally when Shepard can get on her tiptoes and kiss the thing, it falls over. Of course Shepard should be dust at that point. The reaper has its moment to tell Shepard not being able to comprehend, then shuts down.

 

I guess the reason is Bioware wanted to have Shepard get up close and personal with the thing and then have that renegade or paragon interrupt dialogue. Of course it didn't amount to anything.

[Monica21]

Why is the Mako, which is not designed for any kind of space travel at all, able to survive getting shot through a mass relay without flying apart?

[Iakus]

The destroyer on Rannoch

 

When its first fired on, it falls over. At that point I believe its destroyed. As soon as the player gains control of Shepard, the reaper is able to right itself. The first time Shepard paints the target, it gets hit with numerous rounds and doesn't fall over like the first time. Why? It happens again three more times. Finally when Shepard can get on her tiptoes and kiss the thing, it falls over. Of course Shepard should be dust at that point. The reaper has its moment to tell Shepard not being able to comprehend, then shuts down.

 

I guess the reason is Bioware wanted to have Shepard get up close and personal with the thing and then have that renegade or paragon interrupt dialogue. Of course it didn't amount to anything.

Why do dozens of shots fired from orbit not completely frak Rannoch's ecology?

 

The Citadel Conventions prohibit the use of large kinetic impactors against habitable worlds. In a straight-on attack, any misses plough into the planet behind the defending fleet. If the defenders position themselves between the attackers and the planet, they can fire at will while the attacker risks hitting the planet.

Successful assaults on garden worlds hinge upon up-to-date intelligence. Attackers need to determine where the enemy's defenses are, so they may approach from an angle that allows them to fire with no collateral damage. Note this is not necessary for hostile worlds.

 

FOr that matter, how did Shepard survive being so close to so many kinetic impacts?

 

Oh, right.  The Shepard.

[Ahriman]

Why is the Mako, which is not designed for any kind of space travel at all, able to survive getting shot through a mass relay without flying apart?

Because a relay doesn't shoot anything, it creates space-time link, objects don't get any additional acceleration from it.

 

Why do dozens of shots fired from orbit not completely frak Rannoch's ecology?

 

The Citadel Conventions prohibit the use of large kinetic impactors against habitable worlds. In a straight-on attack, any misses plough into the planet behind the defending fleet. If the defenders position themselves between the attackers and the planet, they can fire at will while the attacker risks hitting the planet.

Successful assaults on garden worlds hinge upon up-to-date intelligence. Attackers need to determine where the enemy's defenses are, so they may approach from an angle that allows them to fire with no collateral damage. Note this is not necessary for hostile worlds.

 

FOr that matter, how did Shepard survive being so close to so many kinetic impacts?

 

Oh, right.  The Shepard.

Um, where the codex entry you've given tells that large kintic impactors should "frak planet's ecology"?

[Laughing_Man]

Um, where the codex entry you've given tells that large kintic impactors should "frak planet's ecology"?

 

Well, if enough kinetic energy is released, some nasty things can happen. The planet could crack, a super volcano can erupt, and who knows what else.

[MrFob]

It should be easy for the ships to specifically set the power of their weapons though, right? With a magnetic accelerator, you should be able to determine precisely how much you want to accelerate your slug and the strength of mass effect fields can also be controlled easily via setting the charge of the eezo core. So one could imagine a scenario where the fleet has calibrated their weapons (Garrus would have done this for the Normandy of course ) such that the kinetic energy is enough to hurt the reaper but not annihilate Shep and their team.

Additionally, if the ammo on ships works similar to hand guns, they can also determine the size, shape and composition of each slug that is fired. Theoretically, you could therefore compensate for the additional acceleration due to the planets gravity as well as the issue of friction during atmospheric entry as you bombard a ground target from orbit. With a good computer that determines the right parameters for each shot fired, it should be possible to deliver exactly the payload you want with exactly the kinetic energy you want to a (painted) target precisely and therefore, orbital fire support is not necessarily nonsensical in the ME universe.

[Iakus]

Well, if enough kinetic energy is released, some nasty things can happen. The planet could crack, a super volcano can erupt, and who knows what else.

Doesn't even have to destroy the planet.  Just ask the dinosaurs about that.  

 

As for codex entries:

 

Citadel Conventions 

These diplomatic talks occurred in the wake of the Krogan Rebellions, as a response to the destruction of the conflict and an attempt to distance the Council from the brutal krogan warfare.

The Conventions regulate the use of Weapons of Mass Destruction. A WMD causes environmental alteration to a world. A bomb that produces a large crater is not considered a WMD; a bomb that causes a "nuclear winter" is.

Use of WMD is forbidden on "garden" worlds like Earth, with ecospheres that can readily support a population. If a habitable world is destroyed, it will not be replaced for millions of years. The Conventions do not forbid the use of WMD on hostile worlds or in sealed space-station environments. Many militaries continue to develop and maintain stockpiles.

 

"Large kinetic impactors" are a considered Tier 1 WMD.  

[Iakus]

It should be easy for the ships to specifically set the power of their weapons though, right? With a magnetic accelerator, you should be able to determine precisely how much you want to accelerate your slug and the strength of mass effect fields can also be controlled easily via setting the charge of the eezo core. So one could imagine a scenario where the fleet has calibrated their weapons (Garrus would have done this for the Normandy of course ) such that the kinetic energy is enough to hurt the reaper but not annihilate Shep and their team.

Additionally, if the ammo on ships works similar to hand guns, they can also determine the size, shape and composition of each slug that is fired. Theoretically, you could therefore compensate for the additional acceleration due to the planets gravity as well as the issue of friction during atmospheric entry as you bombard a ground target from orbit. With a good computer that determines the right parameters for each shot fired, it should be possible to deliver exactly the payload you want with exactly the kinetic energy you want to a (painted) target precisely and therefore, orbital fire support is not necessarily nonsensical in the ME universe.

If they were firing on a truck, maybe.  Drop a rock on it, not too hard, and call it a day.  Heck the turians were doing that at Shanxi.

 

But this is a Reaper.   Pulling punches are not exactly an option, nor was there any discussion about doing so.  They had the bulk of the quarian fleet (hundreds of ships)  all firing down at it.  Multiple times.

[MrFob]

If they were firing on a truck, maybe.  Drop a rock on it, not too hard, and call it a day.  Heck the turians were doing that at Shanxi.

 

But this is a Reaper.   Pulling punches are not exactly an option, nor was there any discussion about doing so.  They had the bulk of the quarian fleet (hundreds of ships)  all firing down at it.  Multiple times.

 

What? No, their objective was to hit the reaper but not muck up their entire homeworld in the process (or kill the guy who enabled them to hit the target in the first place, i.e. Shep). It's not about pulling punches it's about sensible use of force. Yes, they had to hit it multiple times but in the end, they did kill it.

[Iakus]

What? No, their objective was to hit the reaper but not muck up their entire homeworld in the process (or kill the guy who enabled them to hit the target in the first place, i.e. Shep). It's not about pulling punches it's about sensible use of force. Yes, they had to hit it multiple times but in the end, they did kill it.

RIght, but they are hitting the Reaper with KE weapons.  A lot of them.  Each one the equivalent to a small nuke as far as energy release goes.

 

Hundreds (perhaps thousands) of these things impacting on a small area, even if it doesn't mess with the planet as a whole (big if) it's still rather silly that Shepard managed to survive, given his/her proximity

[MrFob]

Well, that's what my previous post was all about. I think it's conceivable that they can regulate the force of their weapons.

They are not dropping random asteroids, they are using their ship's weapons which can -for all we know - be precisely calibrated to deliver exactly the amount of destructive force that is needed and/or wanted in this situation.

[AVPen]

After Thessia falls and Liara is being all mopey in her office, if Shepard takes the paragon interrupt while talking to her then Shepard will utter the following line:

"You've been warning your people for four years, Liara. There's not a damn thing you should feel guilty about."

 

Four years....

 

So you mean to tell me, Mr Mac Waters, you who wrote Liara and her dialogue with Shepard..... that sole little Liara has been trying to warn the asari people about the grave threat of the impending Reapers A FULL F***ING YEAR BEFORE SHE EVEN MET SHEPARD AND LEARNED ABOUT THE EXISTENCE OF THE F***ING REAPERS IN THE FIRST PLACE?!?!!

   

[MrFob]

After Thessia falls and Liara is being all mopey in her office, if Shepard takes the paragon interrupt while talking to her then Shepard will utter the following line:

"You've been warning your people for four years, Liara. There's not a damn thing you should feel guilty about."

 

Four years....

 

So you mean to tell me, Mr Mac Waters, you who wrote Liara and her dialogue with Shepard..... that sole little Liara has been trying to warn the asari people about the grave threat of the impending Reapers A FULL F***ING YEAR BEFORE SHE EVEN MET SHEPARD AND LEARNED ABOUT THE EXISTENCE OF THE F***ING REAPERS IN THE FIRST PLACE?!?!!

   

 

Gotta jump into the breach here again I'm afraid.

Because to be fair, Liara did try to propagate the notion that the galaxy was built on a cycle of extinction for quite some time before she met Shepard indeed. It's a bit of a stretch to say that she tried to warn them that something like this might happen to us as well but we don't really know what she did say back then.

Besides, She knows about the reapers since 2183. Now it's 2186, so she was probbly trying to warn them in earnest for at least 2 and a half years, which already justifies the plural.

[Iakus]

Well, that's what my previous post was all about. I think it's conceivable that they can regulate the force of their weapons.

They are not dropping random asteroids, they are using their ship's weapons which can -for all we know - be precisely calibrated to deliver exactly the amount of destructive force that is needed and/or wanted in this situation.

Except the ship weapons appear to be metal slugs.  Maybe they can mess with the speed with which they are launched, but that's about all they can do as far as the force of the weapons.  They do not carry explosive payloads.

[Iakus]

After Thessia falls and Liara is being all mopey in her office, if Shepard takes the paragon interrupt while talking to her then Shepard will utter the following line:

"You've been warning your people for four years, Liara. There's not a damn thing you should feel guilty about."

 

Four years....

 

So you mean to tell me, Mr Mac Waters, you who wrote Liara and her dialogue with Shepard..... that sole little Liara has been trying to warn the asari people about the grave threat of the impending Reapers A FULL F***ING YEAR BEFORE SHE EVEN MET SHEPARD AND LEARNED ABOUT THE EXISTENCE OF THE F***ING REAPERS IN THE FIRST PLACE?!?!!

   

Gotta admit, by this point of the game the entire series of events over the trilogy is tangled up in a Timey-Wimey Ball

[themikefest]

"You've been warning your people for four years, Liara. There's not a damn thing you should feel guilty about."

Did she actually warn her people? I find it hard to believe if she did since she and the rest of the ME1 characters made no effort to find a way to stop the reapers after the SR1 was destroyed

[MrFob]

Except the ship weapons appear to be metal slugs.  Maybe they can mess with the speed with which they are launched, but that's about all they can do as far as the force of the weapons.  They do not carry explosive payloads.

 

And as I said, you can just as well mess with the composition and the shape of the slug, so that you can control how much of it actually reaches the ground and how much of it will burn up during atmospheric entry, thereby determining what amount of kinetic energy is transferred. It wouldn't be very hard to calculate for a physicist even today. If - with their sophisticated weapons - there is the possibility to have precise ground bombardment, the strength of which you can determine according to your needs, I am not surprised that such technology is implemented.

Just because they can deliver slugs that will severely mess up a planet doesn't mean that it's the only thing they can do.

[Vazgen]

Why do dozens of shots fired from orbit not completely frak Rannoch's ecology?

The dust would settle. And you've already got the suits

 

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

Did she actually warn her people? I find it hard to believe if she did since she and the rest of the ME1 characters made no effort to find a way to stop the reapers after the SR1 was destroyed

 

The idea was for the entire galaxy to be carrying the idiot ball and do nothing... well, not that doing anything would have mattered anyway since they actually did believe Shepard and Liara - the cycles of extinction brought on by the Reapers, and after seeing Sovereign realized the Reapers could not be defeated... but wait! They did do something! Something that Shepard wasn't aware of! They said "Fukitol!" They formed ARKCON. A top secret project designed to save the remnants of galactic civilization when the Reapers did invade.