War has come to Equestria. They've made a final push- but even with both Princesses, Discord, and the Elements of Harmony, they cannot vanquish a single enemy base. So, the Princesses send Discord into the beyond to find something that can.
What kind of weapon are they expecting? What kind of weapon will they get?
And what, exactly, is Discord looking for?
A rewrite of An Alloyed Hope.
Tags may be updated as the story progresses.
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Well I hope this story will be as good as An Alloyed Hope
Thought for a minute you were making a Star Wars reference with that title of yours....
I was wondering what that one was. HP, huh? I was thinking of Weber's Hell's Gate series, with the magic and tech fighting. Given all the other inspirations!
Note: The first two books of Hell's Gate are ALSO in the Baen Free Library (well, their CD collection, anyway). Amazon has now added DRM to all of their E-books by Tor, however, and I'm not sure that the others are safe. I suggest Kobo now if you plan to purchase book 3 or up, or the other series now. It tells you what sort of DRM -- or lack thereof -- at the bottom of the page.
He got quite the selection too. I would ALSO bugger out if I landed in Spongebob, though!
I'll say I didn't catch the Honorverse one, though... and apparently that's the name of a real ship, so I got Google-spammed.
9130697
9130736
That's all the res-pone-se I get?
9130744
Uh, Yes.
No really- that was kinda my point, describing the worlds as vaguely as I did.
I like back to the future
9131797
Me too. Discord considered it amusing, but didn't see anything there that he could use to save Equestria.
9131819
yes
Sorry to point this out, but
really needs some editing.
"Snapshot," while technically accurate, brings to mind images of a camera taking pictures. I think it's a context problem -- there isn't enough to suggest that it's a gun firing instead of him taking pictures of it. The use of "shot" again in the same sentence is also something you'd want to avoid because it seems unprofessional (there's a whole rule about not using the same word too often). After that, the word "power" is used far too many times in a few sentences, never mind multiple uses in each, causing the same issue. The line about the firepower of the Hellbores is also ambiguous -- does that refer to several hundred Hellbores of that size, or ONE Hellbore of hundreds of times larger -- aside from also having stilted wording.
Ouch. Could you have reserved some dignity for Pacific Rim? Sure, mecha are impractical and I too don't know why the sequel exists, but still! :D
Vaguely concerned about the fact that he can apparently hack spells, even if he DID somehow download all the specs to start with. I sense unnaturally fast plot progression and OP-ness. Once he learns the language. Oops. (See, this is why you prioritize. Surprised that a superhuman AI didn't do that...)
The fact that this isn't that serious so far, though, is a point in your favor for uniqueness. Admittedly, it's Discord, but there is something to being able to write the sort of stuff he does convincingly.
Did you steal some of my ideas again? :P I remember considering Prometheus as one of the names I might use, and I specifically remember mentioning that doesn't-need-a-commander idea. Admittedly, I scrapped the first and possibly the second to some degree, but they do seem familiar... *glares while trying not to smirk*
9132281
I stole nothing.
9132439
Is that in the same tone as that one character from Transylvania who devoured the whole cake in front of everyone and then denied it?
9132567
No. I really did steal nothing.
Things are getting interesting.
I suppose the data loss makes more sense. I'm not sure why that was really added, though -- if Discord hadn't buggered the spell, there would seemingly be no net loss in capabilities there. I suppose that would have prevented the Bolo from learning the few languages it can now speak, though. It just feels odd that all that was gained and then instantly lost, presumably for balancing ("Bolos are OP, pls nerf") :D
9159223
*cough cough*
That is why. I chose to limit the material the Bolo retained as a means to ensure it couldn't just remodulate a countergrav module into a thaumic controller... and use that to manufacture a perpetual motion machine, summon required powers, rebuild self & ammo, and go storming throughout Equestria retrieving the Elements with her main batteries cleaning up any opposition.
If I let that happen, we'd have a... What, four-chapter story? If that?
9159677
Aw damn, that was my fault?! I'll shut up next time. :D
I do wonder what that sort of story would look like. Probably some sort of crack-fic with lots of gunfire and one chapter.
9161204
Probably. And please don't "shut up" about things like that- it helps me improve the story.
And if she had elected to lose her secondary, then performed a few other maneuvers before taking a potentially lethal blow, she wouldn't have had to shed any of her parts. If she elected to lose her secondary and managed to shed all her guns before playing dead, Discord would have jumped her successfully to Equestria with all ammunition... and active fusion plants. In either case, she would have been in a much better situation in Equestria... though in the latter, convincing her to protect Equestria would be just a little tougher.
And the 'Taurs wouldn't stand a chance.
High explosives make everything better. Especially distractions.
9164335
Oh yes, they most certainly do!
And sometime
tomorrowtoday, it's just past midnight, I'll be posting the next chapter. YES, it's already ready!I just got an idea for another weapon that has ludicrously high potential for a bolo. Admittedly its in context probably only a soft (or un-armored) target weapon but still.
I present : the 50 cal. Rail gun.
The reason why I'm proposing this is simple. In most sci-fi universes and irl rail-guns are impractical do to their energy requirements. Or that they are 'to slow' for space combat. However. Given enough energy and good magnets (or gravity generators) the story looks a bit different.
To put it bluntly, if you dump enough energy in to such a weapon it can essentially turn in to solid particle weapon when the projectile disintegrates from acceleration. (Because reasons it will work :) )
Plus the fire rate in reality is depending on how fast the barrel can be recharged. So by the same logic, the fire rate is as fast as you can pump ammo in to it if the barrel stays constantly powered.
All in all a solid long range precession weapon for a bolo that has energy to spare. It also wont be useless on low energy since anything without armor or even with it, will be shredded by mach 16 fast projectiles.
Though I'm only proposing this because it looks like bolo's don't have many anti personal weapons for all I know.
9166487
So, something like Honorverse' 'pulser' handguns?
It so happens Bolos come fully equipped with anti-squishy weapons as well; as a matter of fact, that Howitzer might fall into that category with some kinds of ammunition. However, I do plan on using weapons like that here as well- say, hoofguns...
Thank you!
9166752
Don't know about the honorverse since I only read two books of it that havent mentioned them.
My thought process was more along the lines of a twin-mounted turret to provide covering fire/point defense.(like a railgun version of a tf2 sentry at lvl 2 or 3) But if the howitzer covers that than it would be redundant of course. Plus I just realized that most 'really small' weapons would be down from previous engagements and need repairs.
And I only mentioned it at all after I saw that our dear bolo seemingly got only four-ish kills in danger close engagements With nearby allies.
9166774
So, more like the dorsal pulse cannon on an Honorverse Navy Pinnace. (Same kind of gravity-and-projectile-based weapon, just upscaled. Twin-barrel, to boot.)
And yes, many of our Bolo's smaller weapons are toast as well- like the antipersonnel flak cannons normally used to shred insufficiently armored targets at moderate to close range.
It might be worth note that a Howitzer is similar to a mortar- as a high-trajectory cannon. With guided rounds, because this is high-tech Bolo and Howitzers are current technology.
Yes again, our Bolo has acquired four-ish kills- three ring penetrators, used here as a sniper... and four (if I remember correctly) Howitzer rounds. If we don't count the Minotaurs caught inside the destroyed buildings, smashed under her tracks, blown to smithereens by the Howitzer that targeted the Minotaur army, or simply incinerated by the closing Hellbore, then yes, she had a total of four kills (including the one the recon drone landed on). If we are counting those, she got all the kills. Or pretty close to that, at least- the guards were overwhelmed quickly. Yes, she would have saved more guards if she could (heh, more than none is still more), but lacked the antipersonnel weaponry (and ammo) to do so.
Good chapter.
9166791
Then i'm looking forward to what she can do with some repairs done. Because there is no better kill then overkill
9166932
Me too. *Squish*
9166487
Technically, that's what the Hellbore is. It's a railgun that magnetically fuses and contains plasma, and shoots it at fractional c. I don't know if making the particle mass a freakin' star improves the firepower, but it does increase the awesome levels. (Once you get to sufficient speeds, mere gas (note that this is semi-solid exploding plasma too) is a dangerous thing. A more easy-to-create alternative is a waterjet cutter. Those things are scary.)
Later books in the Boloverse mention a "Hellrail" which is probably even closer to what you mentioned. Although, both of those are main weaponry, and not point defense. For that...
Bolos also literally bristle with smaller cannons and guns. I think they have several "Ion-Bolt" infinite repeaters, which are basically smaller Hellbores (early versions were "merely" main guns from normal tanks, firing physical ammo), and also have a ton of various mines, claymores, and guns for that personal touch. Heh. Talk about overengineered.
This one feels a bit OOC, or maybe she's in shock? Even with a war on, the guards all just died protecting her. I suspect that'll cause issues once it sinks in (yet another reason for me to avoid writing stuff like that in mine. I wouldn't know how to write that reaction!)
9167061
Sounds awesome but this is my 'first contact' with the bolo verese so to speak. So in all honestly all I know about them is that bolos are giant mobile fortresses with enough firepower to be considered a dreadnought plus in the other sci-fi universes I know of. (Or something that feels right at home in warhammer 40k were the only kill is overkill)
Right now im looking through other fan fiction sites as well and may have found some more stories of the bolo verse wich I will read once im done with my current reading material. Maybe that will clear up some confusion for me.
P.s. if there is an official story can I get a link to it?
9167286
I can recommend Bolo! by David Webber. That’s my (only) exposure to Keith Laumer’s Bolos... and an awesome one, at that. Note that our Bolo here is higher-mark than any official Bolo (max is 33, or XXXIII)- so, firmly into the fanmade/design-your-own territory...
In short, a Bolo is a giant, self-aware supertank. So yes, you’re about right.
9167155
Yes, I’m attributing her immediate non-reaction to a combination of shock and adrenaline. When it wore off, she collapsed... In what state, I didn’t specify- and won’t; the timegap between this & next chapter covers her recovery neatly.
WARNING: Technical infodump ahead!
9167061
Yes. Our Bolo here is equipped with Hellbore secondaries; somewhere down the line, she is also equipped with (currently trashed) ion bolt repeaters. These low-draw energy weapons have less firepower than even the smallest Hellbore- but they have machinegun-esque maximum fire rates, and enough punishing power to demolish mountainsides- or “medium” enemy armor... specifically, medium to a Bolo. These ion bolts actually do propel an “energy” bolt- of ions, of course, hence the name. I don’t think they’re ever scienced out in Laumen’s universe like the Hellbores are.
For point defense, she’s equipped with quite a few laser cannons- whoch, since they really can’t be used in the offensive role, she probably isn’t counting any of them that are still working as available weapons. They’re potentially kiloton-range laser weapons designed to wipe out incoming missiles.
For antipersonnel, she’s got mortars, howitzers, small missiles, snipe-suitable ring penetrators, flak cannons, and the standard drive-and-stomp that often doesn’t work against enemy armor. Possibly some more, I don’t know yet.
The Hellrail is basically a giant railgun, to propel a large hunk of metal (possibly plus explosives) at c-fractional velocities. Many times the mass of a Hellbore and, if engineered properly, it won’t fragment apart in flight- thence, less likely to scatter as it goes... and suitable for interstellar ranges, if necessary. Shoot a Hellbore at the moon, you might make a small radiation storm on the moon- even a 3-meter one like hers. Shoot a similar-sized Hellrail at the moon, and you suddenly have three or four moons of proportionately less mass. Since they are physical weapons rather than energy, ammo is far more limited- preventing a general shift.
Our Bolo’s main batteries... are my own invention. They’re power-hungry energy weapons with no name (yet), losely based on the Hellbore but many times as strong and most definitely not scienced out. They’re also 4-meter weapons, nevermind the largest official weapon- if I remember correctly- is a 330-cm Hellbore.
9167355
Thanks.
Also David Webber, I know a few of his books so this is bound to be good.
9167389
Agreed. I personally enjoy the Honorverse (haven’t read much else)- and kinda wish I was good enough to be worthy of writing an Honorverse FimFic
9167399
Well so far your doing a damn fine job with this story. So keep on going
(Its also way better than the train wrecks im working on, by a long shot.)
9167442
You know, that makes me curious.
Edit: Took a peek, it's not my kind of story (I tend to prefer FIM stories over EQG). Good premise, though.
On the topic of Honorverse fics... Sure, I might be ok, decent, good, or whatever, but Weber is on a whole 'nother level. I'm just not there yet.
9167957
Funny enough I prefer anthro equstria as a setting. My current one is the only eqg I have come up with in almost four years of struggling for some solid ideas. Im also debating to publish some other stories that are on the backburner right now but i'm not sure if that is the right thing to do.
As for David Webber. From what I know about the 'big' authors with publisher and all that are out there, they tend to have several people to help them: professional proofreaders/editor's for example. Plus in some cases the publisher can veto certain parts of a story if they think it will ruin the sales.
We 'smaller' writers don't get that much support in most cases. So there is bound to be a difference at first.
But that doesn't mean we can't improve over time to get on equal footing with out idols.
9168090
Well of course.
I'm talking about the level of detail. The average Honor Harrington book has something like 50-100 characters- each with their own, consistent personality, name, rank, and so on. Each nation has its own maps, government, etc... Everything is just down to such detail and precision that, even when it's not specifically referred to, provides depth for the story. It's just his style, you know?
Nevermind that Honorverse superdreadnoughts & the like have a density on par with cigar smoke... and Nike in Bolo!- being a fairly well-known official Bolo- I calculated to have a density approximately 1/6th that of water. Small mistakes, yes... and the very reason I am so intentionally vague with size/weight of my Bolos. You'll notice I never specify.
Uh oh. Poor AJ is on the wrong end of one this time. Thank goodness for smart targeting!
It's ironic that they are talking about the same thing.
Interesting chapter *waits for more*
9182028
Seconded.
typo:and seem to be vacating the collapsing sections<-- evacuating?I'm informed it's correct as-is.I wonder where the enemy suddenly got a cannon? Someone over there's quite smart; either they invented it or they reverse-engineered it with little information and less time!
9185156
I’m putting it to them on the invention track; Equestrian science is more than advanced enough to produce a war cannon, they just haven’t needed it and haven’t invented it. The ‘Taurs probably needed/invented it as a way to hit pony-held forts (like Dash) from far enough away they couldn’t be effectively fended off. Plus, the whole thing with the pegasi flying above their maximum firing altitude to drop/fire on them could be... Tiring.
As for the Hellbore... they’re not even close.
And... That reads as intended (Vacating). Evacuation implies a different kind of motion.
9185282
Well, of course not the Hellbore, but I was wondering if they'd connect the dots: thing covered in large tubes + very effective ranged weapons fire = I wonder if we can make something like this.
They'd need to use a material projectile rather than plasma, but they could equate the two since magical blasts look similar already. Speaking of which, I'm guessing it's magic-fueled? Or did the 'taurs invent gunpowder, not that it's that complex?
Squish!
9185316
Yes, they probably invented gunpowder, or something similar. As per being Bolo-inspired...
At this point, the sum total of entities that have seen the Bolo in action and not died is Fluttershy, Applejack, the Sergeant, and the three Privates. Every enemy that saw it in action very shortly doed a very sudden death... so they haven’t a clue that the Hellbores are even related to weapons of mass destruction. The only high-tech weapon any surviving ‘Taurs know about was the hypersonic (and fairly non-replicatable with Equestrian/Taurian technology) missiles used in Applejack’s extraction.
So yes, it’s an independent development Discord didn’t know about when he left. Had he not sent the Bolo back, their new weapon would likely have (fairly quickly) forced Equestria’s unilateral surrender. Since the Bolo is here, she can build farms & stuffs to support the ponies living in the great shielded cities (like Canterlot) and therefore allow ponies to hold out indefinitely... while a giant war machine crisscrosses the land, hunting ‘Taurs and forcing their retreat.
Yes, that is not spoiler marked. That’s because I don’t believe it’s a spoiler; they might be able to do it, but I rather doubt that’s what’s actually going to happen. Such things as... Who says that’s the only new ‘Tauran weapon?
9185399
Oh absolutely! Just imagine...
Bolo leaps over the hill. Sniper rifle goes off, immediately followed by a quick burst of plasma fire, producing small explosions on its targets. Folllowed instantly by a giant blast, cratering the enemy army. Then the jump finishes, with the Bolo landong on top of the few survivors.
In my mind, it goes a little like this: hup... Pew!, boomboomboom, BOOM, CRASH!
So yes, squish very much.
9185782
Right... forgot about the "if it can see you, and you are still there to see it, you must be an ally" rule...