The Mech Touch novel Chapter 121

Ves completely forgot about the Festive Cloud Generator. The QuickForge system he used in Leemar didn’t include the decorative component in its catalog. Even if it did, he didn’t want to waste any time trying to incorporate a component with next to zero combat application.

"Even if it’s useless, it still looks cool."

Local mech culture out here in the rim frowned upon a lack of professionalism. Mechs were vital weapons of war and their exterior should reflect their bloody purpose. That was why Vincent Ricklin’s codpiece-sporting mech had been so widely derided.

Somehow, his frequent use of the Festive Cloud Generator got a pass. In most mockups, his mechs were usually displayed with the generator turned off. This made his mechs appear more sober than they actually were. _{freewёbnoνel.com}

Only when a pilot bought the mech did they realize their mech emitted colored smoke from various parts of their mechs. Since the smoke only made them look cooler, hardly anyone complained.

Before he incorporated the generator, Ves first had to define his mech. An imaginary character called the Instructor acted as his inspiration. He thought about bestowing his variant with the same name.

"No, that won’t work." He shook his head. "It not only sounds boring, it will give my customers the mistaken impression that it is a mech meant to be piloted by teachers instead of students."

How could he come up with a name that reflected the Instructor’s values while making his mech attractive to the young?

The Instructor fed the flames of passion in his youth, using it to accomplish many feats. Though age has tempered the fire, it continued to kindle, ready to flare up when called to battle. The man was old in temperament but young in heart.

"Young Blood."

The name came out of nowhere, but it described the Instructor’s drive. Even after achieving immortality, he never stopped advancing his swordsmanship.

Besides conforming nicely with his mental image, the name should also appeal to the target segment. As a business owner, Ves knew the importance of a good name. Great marketing began with an attractive product.

Many potential customers might only ever encounter his products when they stumble upon their names. Having a great name made it a little more likely that they clicked on it in order to learn more. From there, Ves could employ many other methods in order to increase his sales.

By mentioning blood, Ves was obliged to incorporate its color to his mech. He did it in an understated way by coating the Young Blood in a plain metallic color which was traditional to knights. He merely sneaked in a subtle reflective sheen in red.

In order to break up the monotonous appearance, Ves added golden decorative streaks around the torso. He was careful not to overdo it. The only part he spent more effort on was the variant’s large, round shield. He painted a stylized lotus flower in yellow onto its surface.

Why a lotus? Ves imagined the Instructor loved to watch over the lotus flowers in the imperial palace’s gardens. The flower stood for serenity, which might be a strange thing to include onto a shield meant to bash enemy mechs. Ves merely wanted to add something that looked good. The meaning wasn’t important.

With this addition, Ves picked two different locations to include a Festive Cloud Generator. He attached a small-sized module to the shield. After rearranging its rim, Ves programmed the shield to emit a large quantity of yellow smoke whenever the Young Blood enhanced its shield bash.

By limiting the emission to the moment of impact, Ves was able to drastically reduce the size of the additional module. He did not want to go through another round of testing and simulation in order to properly integrate the generator.

He also installed a pair of cloud generators in the legs. Just like the shield, the generators only activated when the mech was about to perform a burst dash. He dyed the smoke in red this time in order to give his mech an impressive streak from behind.

After finishing the aesthetics of his design, Ves finally put down all of his work. "It’s time to face the piper. Go ahead, System. Hit me with your report."

[Design Evaluation: Young Blood.]

Variant name: HPL-100S Young Blood

Base model: Hoplite HPL-100P

Original Manufacturer: Lindholm Armament Company

Weight Classification: Medium-Heavy

Recommended Role: Knight

Armor: A

Carrying Capacity: C-

Aesthetics: B

Endurance: A-

Energy Efficiency: B-

Flexibility: C+

Firepower: D

Integrity: B

Mobility: D-

Spotting: E

X-Factor: C

Deviance: 70%

Performance improvement: 23%

Cost efficiency: +7%

Overall evaluation: The Young Blood is an affordable variant that retains much of its durability while benefiting from increased flexibility. A comprehensive rework of all of its systems has raised many of its parameters. A largely coherent thread of X-Factor suffuses the entire design. This is all the more impressive when the inspiration to the X-Factor consists of a single mech designer’s idle fantasy.

[You have received 100 Design Points for completing an original design with a performance improvement of over 10%.]

[You have received 500 Design Points for designing a mech with a moderate presence of X-Factor.]