The Mech Touch novel Chapter 4287

"Our Maiden of Adversity is performing well in this battle." Gloriana's projection preened. "I told you the Hexers would love it. Just look at how eagerly their mech pilots are making use of its different functions. Our new design looks so beautiful as well. Sara Voiken has done an excellent job at making the Battle Skirt System both stylish and useful."

"Why do I have the idea that you pay more attention to style than utility?" Ves asked.

"That's because the Hexers refuse to pilot ugly or overly masculine mechs!" Gloriana explained. "Do you know how difficult it is to convince Hexers to pilot heavier and more cumbersome machines? Piloting a fat and ugly mech is considered a punishment in Hexer society! This is why this responsibility is usually left for male mech pilots."

"I see…"

The Battle Skirt System was exactly what its name implied. It was the defining feature of the Maiden of Adversity and spiced up what would otherwise come across as a relatively boring hero mech model.

Ves had initially designed the Maiden of Adversity as an evolution of the hero mechs he designed in the past.

With the experiences he gained and the lessons he learned from designing the Transcendent Messenger, the Ouroboros and most notably the Everchanger, Ves attempted to develop a hero mech that was economic enough to be mass produced but powerful enough to add real value to a mech roster.

It was the invention of the Battle Skirt System that truly turned the Maiden of Adversity into a successful model!

By default, it was arranged in a skirt that covered the legs and part of the torso in order to make it look good while at the same time keeping the redundant armor plating out of the way when they weren't needed.

When the Maiden of Adversity was not under heavy attack, it was able to wield its weapons faster and more flexibly because its arms and upper torso weren't weighed down by a lot of armor plating.

However, the reason why the mech was called this way was that whenever it encountered any form of adversity, it could break up its battle skirts and reposition the modular armor plating in different configurations.

The brilliant part about the Battle Skirt System was that it not only came with a bunch of pre-programmed configurations, but also allowed the mech pilot or other clever people to dynamically program their own layouts!

For example, one configuration could turn the mech into a space knight complete with tower shield.

Another configuration could reposition most of the modular plating to form a shield at the rear in order to protect the flight system and prevent the Maiden of Adversity from getting shot down during a retreat.

The modular armor plating could even be stacked on top of each other to prevent a powerful attack from inflicting a fatal blow to the mech!

"The concept of the Battle Skirt System is simple but incredibly useful if properly used." Sara Voiken explained during a meeting on the design project. "The main problem with armoring mechs is that they are vulnerable in every direction, but cannot carry as much armor as needed. Whether it is cost or capacity limitations, there is only so much armor that you can apply to a mech."

Gloriana nodded in understanding. "If this wasn't the case, then all of us would be designing heavy mechs for a living."

"Over the years, mech designers have experimented with many different rules, philosophies and standards." Sara continued. "Eventually, the mech industry has agreed on a general standard. The torso and especially the upper part of it must offer the best protection. The front side of a mech must also be covered by thicker armor plating than the rear side. Mechs that follow this standard always perform better than ones that deviate from it. This is not a surprise since mechs often end up in battle situations that cause them to receive most attacks on the front torso."

"There are exceptions, though." Ves remarked.

"That is true, sir. That is also one of the dilemmas that mech designers are struggling with. There is a spectrum between applying armor plating as evenly as possible across a mech frame and putting the greatest possible protection at the sections that are more critical and more often get targeted."

Gloriana crossed her arms. "The problem with the former approach is that they go down faster in the most prevalent battle scenarios. The problem with the latter approach is that the mechs are incredibly weak if they get outflanked. These are both undesirable outcomes, but given that mechs often deploy in greater numbers, it is generally better to lean towards the latter approach and hope that friendly mechs can cover each other's rears."

Sara Voiken grinned. "What if that isn't strictly necessary anymore? This design project is a great opportunity for us to explore a less common arrangement that no longer forces a mech to stick to one or the other approach. By adopting a modular auxiliary armor system that allows the mech to dynamically reposition a part of its own armor plating in different ways will mean that the mech pilot can always adopt the right armor configuration for the right situation!"

Ves' eyes lit up. He loved this idea!

It also happened to be extremely suitable for hero mechs, which were already known and desired for their versatility.

He already imagined many different ways the Battle Skirt System could offer tremendous help to the hero mechs.

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