Why Do We Love The Vapor Eagle?
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- Опубликовано: 31 дек 2023
- Today, we take a look at the Vapor Eagle. It's one of the more notoriously good 2nd line Clan battlemechs.
Enjoy!
Vapor Eagle MF - Record Sheet - www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/l7ftit...
Sources: TRO: 3055, 3055 Revised, IlClan Rec Guide 09, Tykayyid 3rd Ed, Ghosts of Winter - By Stephen Kenson
Sistine Chapel Photo - Burkhard Mücke - Creative Commons Share and Share Alike. Wikimedia Commons.
Abduction of Proserpina - Personal Photo
Thank you to Dwane Loose, Anthony Scroggins, Matt Plog, Bishop Steiner, Alan Blackwell, Chris Lowry, Dale Eadeh, Harri Kallio, Loston Wallace, and all the other BattleTech artists that have brought the IP to life through their amazing work.
BattleTech imagery and mech info remains the property of Topps.
Some imagery/video from Pixabay
#BattleTech #Mechwarrior #CatalystGameLabs #lore 
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I adore this design so much, but I think it’s also very funny how often “a mech specialized for duels,” translates to “one of the best skirmishers and head-hunters a battlefield could have.” Very much an oddity of labels
"We accidentally created a mass murderer"
speaking as one who likes piloting them, i think its because duels are supposed to be quick, fast and very lethal. a skilled pilot can make use of the lesser durability to steer clear of the mechs it cant kill quickly enough, and it has the firepower to obliterate those that the pilot deems their prey.
they can often be glass cannons on a full battlefield, to be sure. but take care of it and finesse it right and its still a cannon
@@marsar1775 I enjoy them a lot also, my favorite machine is the Eris and my two favorite Clan machines are either the Shad-2C or Goshawk. “Skirmisher who packs a mean single-target wallop,” is the best kind of mech IMO
Same with the Incubus. Clanners: stop putting cool things on the second line.
Truth.
The new art for the Vapor Eagle is a rare case of the artist using the style of the Project Phoenix artwork rather than that of the original TRO: 3055 artwork. And in this case it works well, since the Vapor Eagle was one of those cases where the 'Reseen' artwork was able to improve on the original. That made it very cool to see the new artwork for the original configuration.
It works really well. I was always fine with the original TRO3055 art but it didn't grab me.
Vapor Eagle, a mech that I really enjoy the redesign of and love on the board. It's a clan duelist in pure form and it's great.
Try it out with twin UAC-10 and an ERPPC, all torso mounted, needs an xl255
Or the same but with LBx instead
@@Omniseed Are you trying to talk to me about MWO builds?
I don't play MWO, I just run classic on table.
Well said!
Gods I remember Razorfist's reading of "Ghost of Winter".
This thing went against a (albeit Pirate), Madcat and won with fighting knowledge of the location they fought on.
Genuinely feels like a a more traditional Phoenix Hawk IIC. You have that same movement profile, with a load of accurate weapons for light and medium hunting. Genuinely terrifying. My own mess around variant dropped a MPL and two machineguns. This dropped the TC to two tons instead. Upgraded the launchers to SSRM4s, added an extra heat sink and a half ton of armor so it's 3 points off max. Not fully optimized but still. You're right, making this thing "Better" is a hard ask
The Streak SRM-4s would be nice to have around.
I've said it many times before, but Vapor Eagle is everything the Phoenix Hawk can only dream to be. It's very fast for a non-omni, heavily armed, extremely mobile, ridiculously accurate at any range, offers amazing protection for it's weight class and has enough heat sinks to jump behind the opponent and fire most (a ludicrous number) of it's weapons into the enemy's soft back without overheating. It brutally murders light mechs, vehicles and infantry, brutalizes most mediums with ease and it's mere presence is enough to force heavies and assaults to constantly keep their backs against a wall or risk becoming a smoking wreck of an example what "punching above it's weight class" means in BT. And to top it all off, Vapor Eagle looks STUNNING.
My absolutely favorite medium of all time.
It's an excellent machine. Form and function.
The Vapor Eagle prime is my favorite clan mech. It makes a perfect medium mech that has such incredible maneuverability combined with awesome killing power. I primarily play AS, and it is a little costly, but the ability to get easy rear shots, OV at short and blast 7 damage that can easily kill most other mediums in 1 round and seriously scar or kill a heavy or assault makes it worth the points. I love its style and its lore and it is just so damn perfect!
It is an incredible machine. And I'm glad to hear it does really well in AS as well.
Vapor Eagle one of my favorite Clan mediums. The 7 variant is a BEAST in Alpha Strike.
Glad to hear the 7 does well.
Love using this mech in MWO and Tabletop. It just fits my niche of extremely fast and accurate light hunter mechs.
I'm happy to hear it does well in MWO. You're one of several people who pointed it out, so it must be true.
@MechanicalFrog definitely true. I set up mine as a gauss skirmisher to hit and fade. No jump jets, but MASC works a real treat, bringing my top speed above 130. If any assault wants to turn and face me, I'll be gone before I'm in his sights.
I always thought that the clans should have had more dueling mechs. Awesome as always
I started loving this Mech in BTAdvanced 3062 and then totally had to paint one for my Clan Sea Fox Spina Khanate force. Such a brilliant medium Mech. 🌊🦊
It would definitely be a great addition to any star/lance it's in.
BTAdvanced 3062 was where I first fell in love with this design, too. Was my first clan mech in that game and it immediately became my player character's signature 'mech. I paid an obscene amount to buy a replacement CDHS system and new clan XL engine every time it was cored, but it was worth it.
Such a fantastic mech, also the new artwork captures the sleek aggressive lines of a predatory hunting bird. The original loadout is the best IMO, effectively able to outgun anything it can't outrun.
Totally agreed. We lucked out that they went with the Phoenix version for the CGL re-envisioning.
I like the MF version.
Keep in mind that PW acts as 3 HS and saves on heat by the "free" 2 hexes jump distance.
It also allows you to get a critical extra +1 defensive THT mod.
Those 2 hexes can be the difference between the side and rear arc.
Vapor Eagle is my absolute favorite medium mech. Takes me back to one of my first major battles against an old friend of mine. His merc company of clan tech refitted IS mechs vs my binary of mostly clan second line mechs. I sent my Vapor Eagle flanking into his back field to murder his Archer. High risk, high reward glory kill. I was able to use the terrain and Eagle's jump jets to get to point blank range. Used the targetting comp to pinpoint the Archer's center torso. Took a wave of missles from the Archer's 4 cLRM 20s, that blasted half the armor on my Eagle in damn near every location. A few lucky piloting skill rolls, and initiative later, and the Eagle jumped behind the Archer and cored it out the next turn. It was a grand battle of much glory that day.
About a year ago, I reread Ghost of Winter, so this was the perfect opening for the Vapor Eagle, if you ask me.
I adore this mech, it takes a special kind of will for me to leave it at home when I play my Clans. The base load out is so perfect too 🙌
Vapor Eagle is one of those mechs that is so freaking good, I don't know why most clans dropped it for the Goshawk II in later eras. They aren't even similar mechs, you can have both guys.
Mistakes were made...
It could be as simple as the original being no longer available or no longer in production. A sort of “we want the original, but we’ll take what we can get” kind of thing.
I'm leaning towards a trio of Linebacker D, Black Lanner C and Goshawk (standard) to just run-and-gun
It would pair well with the Black Lanner. Just overwhelming fire...
The Vapor Eagle 7 seems like someone tried to make a fat Piranha, but with more pew and less dakka.
*frowning face*
I was like "what in Blake's name is a Vapor Eagle? OH a Goshawk!" 😂
I like the new artwork! And the new name 😉
Hah... Yeah sorry about that.
My perhaps unpopular theory on this mech: While it is good at dueling, it is low key an urban environment clearing death machine. Ideally suited to built up heavy terrain as found in a city environment, this thing has enough machine guns to clear any hidden infantry ambushes. Add it's mobility and high accuracy primary weapons and this thing can rapidly relocate and backstab the thin armor of a enemy mechs rear arc.
It's one of those things where making it a great dueling mech also made it a great at most other things mech too.
We all love this one because "Vapor Eagle" sounds like taking all the drugs is involved.
"There I was in my Centurion on patrol and suddenly then that Vapor Eagle got me."
"Sure Mitch how many beers did you have before you got so bad you crashed your mech into the building?"
"How many? all of them..."
The Vapor Eagle along with the Conjurer are two fantastic designs that hold out through time in their standard loadout quite easily and I can get behind the MF variant with the partial wings on it... Imho these Mechs can be excellent in a multitude of situations
One heck of a duelist and the feature mech in the Ghosts of Winter where the protag wipes out a Timberwolf with it. Something that can happen if you are careful.
You definitely can't ignore it for long.
@@MechanicalFrog as easily dangerous as a storm crow for sure. Huge amount of respect for it.
This is my all-time favorite clan-spec 'mech. I have defeated sooooo many arrogant tube-brats with this baby who thought their Omni was invulnerable and hadn't done their homework. This machine is just DEADLY. And the mobility lets you go after bigger prey if you wish. The only tweak I've ever done to it is to pull the MGs and streaks for more medium pulse lasers. But honestly, I almost always run this one 'stock'. Its the most versatile striker I have and it pairs OH so well with P-hawk and Wasps. 🙂
It'll let you know you made a mistake if you ignore it. That's for sure.
Ah the Vapor Eagle, the other cursed design I love. Much like the beautiful T-bucket, this clan secondary ate up crits. I really wanted to make it work, so I kept it in storage till I had the guts to drive it again, but only after I jokingly paid a Shaman in the Shatter wastes to remove its curse during a role play session. Oddly enough, the plucky 55 hasn't had a crit since. It became my go too mech after my Pillagers dismemberment by a Mexican hat dance of zone gang lights. The Shaman is now a well paid team member.
I'm glad it ended up working out for you. Sometimes there's a mech that just never seems to perform for someone. No rhyme or reason.
One of my all time favorite mediums. Not just because of its visual similarities to another popular mecha franchise, but also because of how fun it's primary configuration is!
I fielded this in my first semi-compeditive event as part of a star. It teamed up with a horned owl to take down an Atlas.
Then it got its head vaporized by a Maskari in the first turn second round.
Win some, lose some.
Mechwarriors tend to live exciting, if short lives.
@@MechanicalFrog especially Clan Mechwarriors.
The Vapor Eagle is the whole package, from its excellent equipment, feel-good playability, as well as its absolutely gorgeous visual design. It is my favourite mech in Battletech.
I was pleasantly surprised when I found out its origins were with the Snow Ravens rather than Steel Viper, although that is almost certainly a more recent retcon.
It's one of the greats.
My favorite clan standard mech! With a name and design like that, I'm honestly surprised it didn't come from Jade Falcon.
It unfortunately suffers from "only the prime is good" disease like a few others. Luckily though, the prime is one of the meanest 55-tonners on the tabletop. A beast in BT as well as in MWO.
Hard to fix very good.
This isn't a Mech-specific comment, but it bears saying. I've truly grown to love the orange/blue camo you use enough that I feel I have to try and replicate it on my minis.
I like it a lot. I call it the MarikCamo.
The VE-6 sounds like someone wanted to see how annoyed opposing players would get with having to roll TAC every turn before calling quits...😅
Winning through attrition, but not the fun sort.
@@MechanicalFrog anyone bringing a sheet with that type of vapor eagle on it to a tournament should instantly be thrown out...
@@Primearch-GG It's all good, tournaments are played to win, not really for fun. My local tournaments have a good amount of prize money, so optimization is key. You have lightning-fast custom Clan mechs with nothing but TC-MPL/LPL, Savannah Master/VTOL spam, and a whole lot of artillery and Arrow IV. It really shows how best to push the Battletech system to its limits when properly incentivized.
@@aegisghost that's nice, hope your community doesn't get a diva player that complains about this stuff, tournament or not.
@@Primearch-GG It does get tough once money is involved, as with all things, but the owner does their best and hopefully we're here for a long time more!
We love the goshawk because it has an awesome head :-) loved painting this mech; great shape :-) cheers for the fun watch...I'm inner sphere forever but love the look of this medium fighter :-)
One of the bright sides of the IlClan era is that there are fewer and fewer barriers to mixing clan tech into your forces.
The only critique is that the UAC/2 version does have a targeting computer, but you are right, the other variants are either cheaper but then need to upgrade the pilot, making it more expensive then the original, or more expensive from the start, making it dezgra. This mech is my favorite medium mech in the game. I can imagine it almost dancing across the battlefield like its an invader from an anime, assassinating VTOLs, hovers, and light mechs. I purposely only have one of these in each faction i paint because of how powerful that agility + armor+ pulse + targeting computer mounting demon is. This mech is a beautiful friend killer.
I would definitely hesitate before bringing more than one into a fight with a buddy.
I'm on board with you on this one... it's VERY hard to improve on the original. personally I wouldn't even try as the VE-1 is right down my alley... I just wish it had more armor. so I'd drop the MG's and add that to the armor tonnage (if there is room).
An extra half ton would be nice.
I've run the Vapor Eagle/Goshawk in a number of Clan Stars and it hasn't disappointed
It is a quality producer.
Really enjoy second line clan mechs. And a background of panel blocks and prom zone is hilarious.
Good times had by all.
Have a happy New Year Frog!
I love the aesthetic of the Vapor Eagle, it cuts hard and in combat is the great TarComp and LPL combo from hell. Similarly the Republic of the Sphere version is equally unique in terms of looks.
It has a good mix of form and function in play.
I love this mech, and was super excited to pilot one in MWO when it became available.
My personal preference for its loadout is a mix of the 1 and 3 variants with a personal tweak.
Large pulse laser in the right arm, two ER medium lasers in the right torso, an SRM 4 with 1 ton of ammo (and case) in the LT and an ATM 3 in the left arm with two tons of ammo and case in one of the torso's (don't remember which 😅)
Kept the targeting computer, but I think i yanked a jump jet or two and I think it ran with base heat sink count.
I know that ATM's do not work quite the same way in MWO as they would with the tabletop game, but I find them quite fun to use.
Sounds like fun.
@@MechanicalFrog it is, it doesn't hit hard, but it has good endurance and doesn't suffer much from heat.
One of my favorite Clan mechs from 3055. Thanks MF!
Glad to do it! It's a great one.
Appreciate the bits from Ghost of Winter. - I always enjoyed the bizarre look of the old Ral Partha Vapor Eagle, but CGL artists knocked it out of the park with this redesign. The OG Vapor Eagle I would agree is hard to improve upon. Funny thought, I always envisioned one of these painted up as Samus Aran’s powersuit (from the Metroid Series, of which I love). I would need to come up with some lore about a orphaned girl being adopted by a “bird clan” or something and learning to use a Vapor Eagle (maybe Raven Alliance), and then becoming a “mercenary” of sorts, hunting down space pirates.
It would look good in those colors... which suit though?
I would either go with her classic gold/red look from Zero Mission, or the newer “Dread” powersuit with red/white/blue.
A WarCrow painted as either Grey Voice or Raven Beak would be funny too.
I love the vapor eagle! Ghost of winter was the first BT/MW novel i read. I bought a forcepack just to get one. Are yours printed? They look great
My VE are CGL official.
Last time I used the Goshawk I just the standard one and it was an incredibly reliable mech on the field. I had it bouncing from engagement to engagement and helping out other mechs, as well as tracking down fast light mechs while running hot itself. Truly a fantastic mech that can take a good beating and still keep going and working reliably. Would gladly take one of these into another battle, you just can't beat pulse lasers with a targeting computer
It's so good that it borders on being cheese. I'd definitely hesitate to bring more than one into a battle as I'd want my opponent to play with me again in the future after I crush them.
@@MechanicalFrog pretty much anything focusing around even a single large pulse laser is bordering on OP. Such amazingly reliable performance, one of the few weapons in the game I can comfortably let be the main gun on anything without stacking a ton of more weapons on top of it. Same reason I favor the Hammerhead
They're a serious bit of work, I kind of see were they headed with some of the variants and others tended to be a little bit odd. Like someone was always going to need 'big gun' and 'more missiles' even if it cost quite a bit to cram it all in there. I do like the idea of a partial wing system as well as throwing the SRM-2's in the bin and maybe sticking something in there like a probe and ecm suite to open up some other options on the approach.
I would have liked to keep one of the SRM-2s just for Infernos but, we can't have everything we want... :D
I love this Mech for its design and tonnage.
It is very very good at what it does.
The standard Goshawk is a monster, the cheese of putting a Clan LPL and Targetting computer together is spicey, and pungent, and really this is one of those things that you'd not bring many of to a table because they can be the Fun Police for lights and mediums and a Goshawk will outgun more than a few IS Heavies and only the generally heavier armour of a heavy is its saving grace if it gets ganked by a Goshawk.
The real cheese is if you put a Clan pilot in one, yes that spikes the points cost up considerably, but you're then looking at a -4 to hit and that's monstrous.
As you said its very hard to improve upon perfection and the other variants are a bit of a scattershot which are either flavours of the standard version or weird kissing cousins who've been taking illegal things and are basically a mess (looking at the UAC-2 variant here).
I like your MF version, yes you loose some of the accuracy, but that mobility, especially with that level of still accurate firepower is still very nasty, as you'll be able to dance with the lights with that kind of jumping distance. The original art was different but the new design and art is a case of "Yes I would do the sex." it is one of the best looking 'Mechs in the setting now, along with the Black Python which takes the cheddar of the goshawk, adds a whole load of smelly French cheese, boils it, and then dumps it on your screaming face, but dear god does it look good whilst doing so!
It's definitely one of those mechs where if you bring a star of them, people won't want to play with you any longer.
pefect timing mate
i was just looking for something to watch thanks mate
and happy new year mate
still waiting for that discord link oh my NEC mechs are coming along
massa black hawk KU king crab avatar and a thor to round it out
have a good one frog
In MWO, it's my favorite Clan Mech to run. In a fit of irony, unlike all the Omnimechs, the Vapor Eagle is a true wild card that can be configured however you want since you can change out its internals as well as its weaponry, armor, and auxillary equipment. And it has enough diverse hardpoints between its many variants to where it can cover ANY role reasonably well when subject to modification.
Consequently, the list of Vapor Eagle configs I've acquired over the years is legion.
It's also on a short list of mechs I wholeheartedly recommend to new players when starting MWO because it doesn't have any major weaknesses apart from being under-powered in Mech-Quirks, but full access to Clan-Spec weaponry and internals.
Beyond MWO, it's an amazingly practical design set right at the Magic Tonnage range for where you're maximizing the value of a lot of things per capita of tonnage, and you really can't go wrong fielding one if you're lucky enough to win one as salvage.
I'm glad it does well in MWO. It should.
As someone newish to MWO,I should probably get one. My heart belongs to the IS but I do pick up a clan mech every now and again and paint it up as a captured mech.
@@elchjol2777 It's basically the best of both worlds. Clan-spec weaponry but IS spec hard point layout, and no fixed Omnimech silliness.
Way to start the new year, Frog¡ Happy New Year¡
Wanted to start it with a great mech. Happy New Year!
MF - great video on a great mech! Just one of those mechs that always made me wonder why the Clans would build anything else. Really like the MF variant as well!
Imagine the horror from a Trinary of these little buggers.
The Vapor Eagle, because using a Firestarter is for Scavenger Lords. Thanks for the video
Heh... Bring both!
Good video.
It really is hard to improve upon the original for this one.
The only things I might change are removing the MGs and
SRM-2s to mount small pulse or micro pulse
( depending on when the mech is made) and putting any remaining
full ton lots into heat sinks. Any fractional remains go to armor.
This just removes ammo from the mech while keeping it a
conventional infantry killer.
Like I've said before, this is one of my favorite Clan 2nd-line 'Mechs. Although really that only applies to the main variant - and your MF variant. As always, I've created my own; though I'm ashamed I didn't think to do a partial-wing for it. The Vapor Eagle ISM replaces all but the Streak SRM-2 launchers of the standard, though it only has one ton split between the two launchers, with an additional half-ton of armor. Replacing the Large Pulse Laser is an IS Plasma Rifle with 2 tons of ammo, while the 4 MGs and their ammo is replaced by 4 Micro Pulse Lasers (3 in the left arm, 1 in the left torso). Unfortunately, I had to sidegrade the Medium Pulse Lasers into ER Medium Lasers, but I did retain the 11 DHS, 6 Jump Jets, and the Targeting Computer. I'm thinking of doing another ISM variant with the partial-wing, and maybe some Re-Engineered Lasers.
Okay, no longer thinking about it, I'm gonna do it.
The plasma rifle is always a strong temptation.
I’d always admired its sleek good looks but I didn’t know it was originally a Snow Raven design! Now I want one. It’s got good stats in AlphaStrike too!👍
Form and function.
Clan duelist mech. Nasty.
It's a wild one.
This is an interesting 'mech
I like your variant too
Good use of the partial wing
It seemed the only logical path forward to improve it.
Let’s go! Starting the new year out strong! I painted mine as a jade falcon such a cool mech!
Sweet! Green bird strong!
AWESOME vid, Frog!!! With the exception of the Dire Wolf, Warhawk, Timber Wolf and Mad Dog, why do I find myself loving the second-line mechs and 2C versions MORE than most of the Omni mechs?! Maybe simple aesthetics...?
I'm quite fond of the original load-out. Like the Horned Owl, I don't see much use for the variants. I think the only change I would make would be to swap the MGs out for small Pulse laser and an extra .5 tons of armor.
A counter-argument to the pulse and T.C. setup is that you can't do aimed shots with pulse. Swapping the LPL for an ERPPC is a valid argument for those times you need the precision shot, while keeping the nasty, low modified hit rolls for when jumping into a target's rear arc and unloading with the medium pulses.
A fair point, though I cannot remember the last time I attempted an aimed shot.
I do think the Partial Wing on the VE-MF does improve the mech. Adds additional cooling and increased jump distance, something this mech wants as it mainly energy weapons and wants to move around quickly.
I think it's the best possible upgrade to an already solid design.
I tried a Shadow Hawk IIC and Vapor Eagle IIC as a pair within my star in my last game. They were brutal and the Shadow Hawk lived to see victory at the end since the Vapor Eagle was such a fire magnet.
Thanks for the video!
You're right that most of the variants are just... bad compared to the Prime, which is a bit hot but otherwise quite powerful. The partial wing on the MF variant is a great call, i love it!
A few are... ok. but... hard to do better than the OG.
The Vapor Eagle feels like a mix between the Phoenix Hawk and the Assassin (if the Assassin didn't suck). Possibly one of the best medium mechs out there.
It's a solid one for sure. Definitely more than just a 2nd liner.
I like this physical redesign as opposed to the original. A truly nasty scalpel to cut out enemy units. As far as load outs, I agree with you. The original is a great one.
The original design is a bit too gundam'y for my tastes.
Great dueling mech , and pretty rugged for being one . Thank god it's not 7/11/7 and I'm saying that as someone who likes to squeeze a Vapor Eagle in . It's definitely in consideration
*slaps mech foot* We are going to chase down so many lights in this thing...
Used one of these guys during a game set during the Battle of Huntress. It positively dunked on IS heavies and assaults, and practically commanded a full lance's attention before dying a hero's death.
It is 55 tons of pure, unadulterated hatred that exists only to kick you in the teeth and wiz in your Cheerios. The Clans relegating this to secondline duty is more idiotic than sentient bird-people.
I'm sure the Smoke Jaguars could have used an extra trinary or two of them.
Wait, you're not a broken holovid?
~fiddles around with playback controls~
Ah, that's what the "loop" button does!
Error...error....error...
Sure my consumption of BT material is much more video game oriented than table top, but I still enjoy those videos, watched a few so far and I'm a fan of the simple and concise delivery.
Coincidentally I'm also a big fan of the Veegle, the first mech I was able to really enjoy and play well on MWO, tho it was the unloved vgl-4 ^^; With stock loadout it is trash but in MWO it was possible to make it a very fun atm platform.
Glad to hear you enjoy them. Be it for OG BT or for MWO.
Im writing this comment as i go
Ghosts of winter was my first battletech book. i listened to it in audiobook form again a while ago on youtube. Personally, i think its ok. its not a genre defining best seller but its a good story
Imma stick with Gosshawk. It makes more sense to me haha
yeah i gotta agree on variant 4. the manuverability is what made it so lethal i think
2 UAC/2? what am i supposes to do, annoy a mech to death? your right, that is an awful variant. especially for my agressive "pick on heavier mechs" style
the 7 is nuckinfuts. i have to try it asap! i want to see somebody melt under an absurd amount of microlasers
a mf variant with no plasma? im suprised! ill have to give this variant a go as well. I know your just bein silly but the comment ""for the southpaws" made me smile. is nice to feel acknowleged, even with mechs. you are a big part of this small community being so nice! I think the partial wing is good personally, but i havent tried it yet
Standard variant takes the cake. Love your inclusion of a partial wing into the MF variant :)
Sometimes frogs just need to fly.
I love running this guy with a uac20 in BTA3062, with all the evasion and armor money allows.
That's a big punch.
@@MechanicalFrog I neglected to mention it's companion is another Vapor Eagle with a couple ATM6 to fill those holes
Often, I feel like the OG Goshawk is the logical evolution of the M Wolverine, which for good reason is considered pound for pound one of the best machines you can have in introtech. The 1-2-3 punch of large and med lasers and SRMs on top, the sweet spot between mobility and toughness, it's all there, just better. Hard not to love it, and yeah exchanging the mgs for something more valuable to the rest of the design feels like the best move to improve on it.
The Vapor 6 is also know as the anti MechFrog variant, seriously I love this medium with my preferred loadout is a Lg Pulse, 2 Medium pulse, 4 small pulse and a targeting computer , all Clan tech with the leftover weight going to heat sinks ( double) and some more armor
That six... man... oof.
Great mech to start the year off with! Balius next?
You are tenacious... No, not next.
Heck yeah new year new video
Also liked this story
Heck yeah! Happy New year!
Ghosts of Winter is one of my favourite BattleTech stories. The Vapour Eagle has been on my "to-buy" list for some time, and it looks damn interesting.
Only the original looks to be any good to my untrained & educated eye in Mech loadouts. I'd drop the MG in the torso, but otherwise its a perfectly fine machine. The rest are a bit rubbish to varying degrees. Much like the Hellhound, the base model is perfectly adequate. While the rest are trying to fulfil mission profiles the machine isn't designed or intended to fulfil.
I would be open to hearing the argument, but in 99% of cases, the OG loadout is going to be my pick.
The vapor eagle is my dads favorite mech and always includes one in any star he makes he always uses it to bully my little light mechs
Don't bully the little mechs! They're adorable!
Good Lord, I captured or salvaged so many of these through my groups play through of the Hegira war...
They're a nice pick up.
I do see what you did with yours, and the difficulty, and for my bias which is missile spam is for the weak who cannot aim, I would go with the standard core, swap the machine guns for something LBX. If needed, I would pull the SRMs for weight and ammo, maybe even armor, which never hurts. The crit values of the shotgun LBX is some of my favorite, and some versions the damage goes up the closer you go too(MW3-4 I believe), meaning short range is covered. I might go sometimes PPC for the large pulse, but mostly who needs to spent more crit space on case II for srrm 2s? Once for an lbx in the left, big enregy in the right, sniper mode is ppc, lancer front line is large pulse. Sure that is 2-4 load outs, but is still has all or more armor, jumps, and possibly spare for that partial wing thing maybe. I don't know it to say.
How about a HAG?
One of the few clan mech I like.
Must be pretty good then.
I feel your pain on the redesign. No real wiggle room before you ruin it wind up asking 'why not Phoenix Hawk' instead of a custom Vapor Eagle. Even the mgs consistently feel worthwhile to me.
It felt bad pulling them.
Hey I think this is the mech from Ghost of Winter... Man I love Razorfist so much, I need more audio books from him.
It is from Ghosts of Winter, yes.
The Vapor Eagle/Goshawk is a near perfect design that is difficult to improve upon. Best I can do is remove the Streak-2s, and the 4 MGs and ammo, and place a trio of AP Gauss Rifles with one ton of ammo in the left arm and add two more double heat sinks. It keeps the improved accuracy and improves cooling while getting an anti-personal weapon with greater range. Thought about putting in SRM-2s like the 3, but felt the improved cooling for the other weapons was worth it.
I did briefly consider the AP Gauss route...
The Vapor Eagle is a cool design, i don´t like its first artwork but the current one is just SWEET, and the mech in general is basically a Phoenix Hawk after a steroid enema.
I also like the Project Phoenix artwork, but i won´t deny just how much better the new one is. Still, clearly an improvement over the very first iteration.
Giving the MF variant Partial Wings is an interesting idea, in my opinion they are too heavy for the advantages they give but they are definitely a bonus.
The OG art didn't really grab me but the Phoenix Art was fun and I'm glad that CGL used it as the inspiration for their re-envisioning.
@@MechanicalFrog Agreed, it´s like the natural evolution of the Project Phoenix take, adding more details and pushing the overall style more in the direction MWO has made popular.
Hmm. I'd have to later check on my computer if it would work heat, space and otherwise, but... I do wanna try out a version with two LPL's, six AP-Gaussrifles, at least six JJ's or three IJJ's and the traditional TC. Probably needs a lower XL-engine rating to go with it's endosteel and ferrofibrous armor.
Slower groundspeed, less alphastrike damage, but twice the accurate long range damage and still very deadly (with better range than MG's) against infantry and able to later go for some critical hits when enemy armor has been peeled of. A more boring version than the original though. Only two different weapon types to play around with, making it very simple comparably...
I fear no man. But that thing, it scares me. 😂
Great mech in every aspect imho.
It's a nasty killer, for sure.
I love this mech.
Little editing error; on the MF variant you said 4 med. pulse lasers but the graphic says three. Love your videos in any case!
aff, it should be 4.
Keep those videos coming, you'll always get a view and like from me 👍
I might have to try the MechFrog variant, but most of the time the official variants are just lackluster compared to the base loadout, but then my favorite weapons are pulse lasers and Gauss Rifles, so I might be a bit biased against the rest of the weapons on the list.
Huh, didn't know about the "Nimble Jumper" quirk, and I'm surprised I don't hear about it more with partial wing Jade Falcon designs.
Though even without that trait, this thing would have been terrifying in the invasion era. For all the talk of dueling, this thing would be pretty nasty in combined arms and asymmetrical fighting. Especially if they replaced the twin SSRM2 with a pair of conventional clan SRM launchers (twin 2 or twin 4) and more ammo for flexibility/endurance Or maybe throw in some electronics package over ammo with the tonnage saved by replacing launchers... Yeah, some ECM and active probe could make this thing plain nasty for hit and run. Maybe even a TAG.
I dig the 5 for my personal tastes. 7 is interesting, but needs to try to do one less thing.
I was considering the Partial Wing too. It's fitting as this is a progenitor of that tech, and it has a quirk tied into jumping. I underestimated the opportunity cost though. That's a lot of shucked systems to only have 1.5 tons left. I do like the results though. Really lives up to the names.
I could dig a stealthy version of the VE.
@@MechanicalFrog The streaks were basically the only system I could see changing without committing to a more specialized role like sniping or fire support.
Because it's BROKEN. :P
More seriously, this is IMO the ultimate evolution of the fast medium 'mech paradigm epitomised by the Phoenix Hawk. It's fast, fearsomely armed, and decently armoured. It's a killer, and there's good reason it's got a BV equal to some IS Assault 'mechs.
All those bells and whistles come with that BV that rivals an Atlas.
I quite dig your MF variant but a part of me misses those streaks and machine guns from the original. Just something about its loadout feels s purpose built and I totally agree with you about how perfect the original is. If anything else tho, your variant could make for a really cool conversion with those partial wings!
It did hurt a little bit to pull the SRMs and MGs...
Vapor Eagle would be a great name for an 80s hair metal band
True.
The Vapor Eagle is one of my favorite mechs, though i have to admit that's mostly for aesthetics.
a partial wing is nearly *always* worth it, if only because its not something seen every day
We all just want to fly...
Happy New Year and quit spying on me. Just finished a star anchored by a Vapor Eagle. Add this to the War Crow, Valkyrie, Wasp, and Ostroc and you’re making me very uncomfortable.
Happy New Year! I wonder what you're working on next... *taking notes*
@@MechanicalFrog How about the Pulverizer/Kingfisher? Goes with your recent CSR theme and the link to Clan Wolverine (yup, I said it) is always good for a few clicks!
The vapor eagle is.one of my go tos in alpha strike.
I hear it is pretty gnarly in AS
@@MechanicalFrog do you have videos on more dueling mechs
one of the nastiest clan mech you don't want to run into...on occasion I run a partial start with a Goshawk, Peregrine, and Viper and watch the fun unfold
Absolutely. That would be quite horrifying.
@@MechanicalFrog it rather was. if you need a suggestion for a mech to do...Champion perhaps?..lol
Say you're kicking off the new year big without saying you're kicking off the new year big 😄
Off to the races. The nonsense must flow.
I'm genuinely sad that Ghost of winter never got a sequel especially since Kintaro was imo way more relatable than a lot of other major BT characters.