‘Mech Bay
The most important resource you will own in NBT-Solaris is your ‘Mech. Without it, you cannot fight, earn money or fame. Without one you will be nothing more than a bench warmer, waiting for your shot at the big time. ‘Mechs require regular maintenance and must repaired after battles. You may also buy new ‘Mechs (depending on availability) and sell old ones.
A single character may own up to 3 ‘Mechs at any given time, regardless of Weight or Tech Class.
Acquiring a ‘Mech
There are a number of ways that ‘Mechs may be acquired in NBT-Solaris. The following sections describe each one.
- Acquired Through Character Creation
- Purchased with Personal Funds
- Purchased with a ComStar Loan
- Borrowed from Stable Members
‘Mechs Acquired Through Character Creation
The two traits that may allow a character access a ‘Mech in this way are Vehicle (‘Mech) and Owns Vehicle (‘Mech). Both are required to actually have ownership of a ‘Mech. Since the ‘Mech assigned is generally random, there is a good chance that you will have a ‘Mech that cannot actually be used in Solaris matches (the Tarantula is not a MW4 ‘Mech). When this occurs you will be given the option to sell your ‘Mech (using Immediate Sale) at a rate comparable to current ‘Mech prices. You may then use those funds to purchase a Solaris ‘Mech.
If your character only has the Vehicle (‘Mech) trait, this means that he has had access to a ‘Mech, but does not actually own it. Therefore he cannot currently use it in Solaris matches. An option will be given to purchase the ‘Mech outright though, at a 25% discount of list value (or comparable rate). This requires having the money on hand ((IE a Wealthy character). Otherwise the ‘Mech is considered available only for role-play purposes, and does not take part in Solaris matches.
- Vehicle (‘Mech) Purchase Discount - 25% reduction
Purchased with Personal Funds
Some characters come from well to do families or backgrounds and have the available funds to purchase a new ‘Mech for themselves right up front. Others will acquire these funds during the course of fighting Solaris matches. Finally still others borrow money, either from ComStar, or other less reputable means. Whatever the source, the character has the money to pay for a Solaris ‘Mech. There are 2 areas that a ‘Mech can be purchased from: Solaris ‘Mech Bay and Solaris Auction House.
- Solaris ‘Mech Bay - This is a brand new ‘Mech purchased from any of the ‘Mech dealers that operate in Solaris City. Pricing and availability of ‘Mechs vary during the course of the league.
- Solaris Auction House - Solaris pilots regularly place their ‘Mechs up for auction, hoping to make a profit on their sale. Sometimes this works, sometimes it doesn’t. The Auction House is an excellent place to find those rare or coveted chassis that never seem to be available from the ‘Mech Bay. You may bid on any current auction that you can afford. All bids are binding, and will be auto processed at the end of an auction.
Purchased with a ComStar Loan
Some characters come to Solaris VII with only the shirt on their back and a name. Some don’t even have that. But all have the dream of participating in Solaris battles. ComStar has ‘kindly’ setup a banking system that enables even the poorest character to get setup on Solaris VII and ready for combat. The specifics of ComStar Loans are covered under the Economics 101 rules.
Once you have acquired a ComStar Loan, you may purchase a ‘Mech as stated above, as if with personal funds. The difference is that until your loan is paid off, your ‘Mech is on the line (and possibly a kneecap or two).
Borrowed from Stable Members
Once you are a member of a Stable (see Stable Rules) you will gain access to all the ‘Mechs of your fellow stable members. You may use the ‘Mech as your own, but must split the winnings with the character your borrowed the ‘Mech from.
- ‘Mech Owner Reimbursement - 25% of winnings from match that ‘Mech was involved in
Maintaining Your ‘Mechs
There is more to owning a ‘Mech than just looking good in its cockpit. ‘Mechs, like a wife, require care, handling and maintenance. OK, a really needy wife. With a prenup. OK, these things are just plain expensive! But they are your livelihood and the doorway to tons of cash. So what’s a few c-bills here or there?
‘Mech Maintenance Fees
Each ‘Mech you own requires regular maintenance, regardless of use. This includes regular part replacement (Replace your Gyro every 10,000 hours!), changing your paint scheme for your next battle, ‘Mech storage fees and all the other bureaucratic nonsense that keeps a world like Solaris VII running. All of this has to come out of YOUR pocket. Various character skills and traits may reduce or increase this fee.
- Light Weekly Fee - 20,000 c-bills per week, per Light ‘Mech
- Medium Weekly Fee - 25,000 c-bills per week, per Medium ‘Mech
- Heavy Weekly Fee - 37,500 c-bills per week, per Heavy ‘Mech
- Assault Weekly Fee - 50,000 c-bills per week, per Assault ‘Mech
- Clan Tech Fee Modifier - x1.25 above fee for the Clan Tech ‘Mech
Repairing Damaged ‘Mechs
Unless you are very lucky (or just that good), each time you take part in a match some damage is going to be done to your beautiful expensive ‘Mech. In order for a ‘Mech to be used in any Solaris match it must be at 100%, and therefore must be repaired before being used again. Maybe you just had the paint scratched. Maybe the CT was cored and the engine is nothing but scrap. The cost of repair is based on the amount of damage your ‘Mech received in its last match. As usual, character skills, traits and Solaris Rank will play a role in the final cost charged.
Repair costs are auto-deducted at the end of a match as long as you have the funds available. If insufficient funds are available, your ‘Mech will no longer be usable in Solaris Matches until it has been repaired.
- Standard Repair Rate - 125-500 c-bills per point of damage
There is a 5% chance that a ‘Mech that has received over 75% damage may be considered as damaged beyond recovery. The only choice then is to sell it off as scrap.
Selling a ‘Mech
As the league progresses you will find it necessary to sell off one of your existing ‘Mechs, either for money, room for another ‘Mech or just because your current ‘Mech has proven to be the unluckiest ‘Mech this side of Terra. Whatever the reason, there are several routes available to you in order to accomplish this.
Immediate Sale
Need fast cash, with no questions asked? You can sell your ‘Mech immediately for cash reinbursement. You will take a loss on the current value of the ‘Mech though, only receiving 70% of the list price. Current damage, as well as overstocks can further reduce that amount.
- Base Sale Price - 70% of list price
- Value Reduction via Damage - 375 c-bills per point of damage
- Value Reduction via Overstock - From 5% to 25% depending on how many of the specific chassis are currently available
Auction Sale
If you are not in a hurry, and want to have a chance of making a pretty profit on your ‘Mech, you may auction it off to the league at large. Auction prices start at 50% of current value and work their way up based on bids over the next 2 weeks. Auctions must run their full 2-week course, and the final bid is binding on both parties. If no bids are made, the Auction is closed, and the ‘Mech returned to the owner. The Auction Fee is not reinbursed. ‘Mechs up for auction may still be used in combat, though unrepaired damage will result in lowering the ‘Mech value.
- Base Auction Price - 50% of list price
- Base Auction Fee - 5% of ‘Mech value or 5% of closing bid, whichever is higher; nonrefundable
- Value Reduction via Damage - 375 c-bills per point of damage
Selling for Scrap
Every now and then a ‘Mech will just become so damaged as it is considered irreparable. A ‘Mech has to have taken a massive amount of damage in battle for this to occur (75% of all armor destroyed). Even then the ‘Mech can generally be brought back online. Sometimes though, facts must be faced and the ‘Mech written off. You are still able to some money off of it though by selling the remains off for scraps and spare parts.
- Base Scrap Payment - 20% of ‘Mech value
