Attention all Aussies: Ep 3 ICS/VS/novelization tommorow

Post by **Vympel** » 2005-04-01 06:15am

They hit stores tommorow, I hear- foolishly, I ordered them from Angus & Robertson, not knowing that they'd be in stores. Hopefully my order comes in. Except for the novelization, I'll go buy that myself. I'll finish it quick smart and give you my take on it, as well as add to my canon analysis page.

Post by **Vympel** » 2005-04-02 01:31am

I am now in possession of the ICS, VD, and novelization for Episode III. Stay tuned for canon analysis of the novelization as I read.

Stofsk · Post by **Stofsk** » 2005-04-02 01:34am

Vympel wrote:I am now in possession of the ICS, VD, and novelization for Episode III. Stay tuned for canon analysis of the novelization as I read.

I guess this means you won't be on IM anymore. Not that you were on that much to begin with!

I was going to go out to Borders to check it out, but then decided I'd rather stay home and do nothing. I think I regret my decision.

Any first impressions?

Post by **Vympel** » 2005-04-02 01:36am

Yeah- it rocks.

Canon reference to full-auto Clonetrooper blasters anyone?

Chris OFarrell · Post by **Chris OFarrell** » 2005-04-02 02:35am

Did anyone catch the nod to the 'Form I lightsabre style' in the start of the book? A slight nod to Bob Brown?

Post by **Vympel** » 2005-04-02 02:50am

I thought Form I was the EU thing Bob Brown hated.

Chris OFarrell · Post by **Chris OFarrell** » 2005-04-02 02:53am

Oh? Shows what I know. I thought he had lined up something like 6 Forms of lightsabre style, to seperate and define the various styles the Jedi used at different times.

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2005-04-02 03:19am

Chris OFarrell wrote:Oh? Shows what I know. I thought he had lined up something like 6 Forms of lightsabre style, to seperate and define the various styles the Jedi used at different times.

I don't think so. He just analysed how each person fought. I recall the quote "Darth Vader fights like a bulldozer," among that character's page, specifically.

Post by **Vympel** » 2005-04-02 04:19am

Chris OFarrell wrote:Oh? Shows what I know. I thought he had lined up something like 6 Forms of lightsabre style, to seperate and define the various styles the Jedi used at different times.

Nah, that was what drove Brown up the wall- he liked the Jedi fighting as Samurai with katanas, or something similar, which was justified looking at OT combat. Part of his reason for his disatisfaction with the prequels in its entirty.

Connor MacLeod · Post by **Connor MacLeod** » 2005-04-02 04:26am

Vympel wrote:
Chris OFarrell wrote:Oh? Shows what I know. I thought he had lined up something like 6 Forms of lightsabre style, to seperate and define the various styles the Jedi used at different times.
Nah, that was what drove Brown up the wall- he liked the Jedi fighting as Samurai with katanas, or something similar, which was justified looking at OT combat. Part of his reason for his disatisfaction with the prequels in its entirty.

I think he has kinda a point here.. watching the Arena battle in AOTC when those Jedi show up always makes me wince because of how.. dumb.. it looks. (seriously, you see those Jedi igniting sabers and waving their hands around in the most absurd and foolish-looking ways. And the fighting in the background looks.. ugh.)

JointStrikeFighter · Post by **JointStrikeFighter** » 2005-04-02 04:36am

Can somebody give me a link to his site, i havnt been able to find it in ages. [changed comp and lost my favourites]

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2005-04-02 04:38am

It's since gone down. I believe Vymp has access to it from the Wayback Machine.

Post by **Vympel** » 2005-04-02 07:59am

Just go to Web Archive and type in

"www.synicon.com.au/sw"

Bob Brown's site was good, but it was his attitude that pisses me off. It's true he has a point about PT vs OT combat- I would've preferred OT style too- just faster and with a bit more grace. The dodging blaster bolts in the PT was good though.

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2005-04-02 08:00am

Brown's real main flaw was that he let his personal opinion seep in too much with his analysis, so they often seemed more like rants.

Chris OFarrell · Post by **Chris OFarrell** » 2005-04-02 08:01am

After watching AOTC a million times, I still fail to see how the Jedi were able to deflect so many bolts. It just staggers the mind.

Post by **Vympel** » 2005-04-02 08:47am

Chris OFarrell wrote:After watching AOTC a million times, I still fail to see how the Jedi were able to deflect so many bolts. It just staggers the mind.

Yeah- I mean, you *see* the Super Battledroids blasting away, the Droidekas, etc- but stranglely, a lot less die than you'd think should.

Crazedwraith · Post by **Crazedwraith** » 2005-04-02 09:28am

Chris OFarrell wrote:After watching AOTC a million times, I still fail to see how the Jedi were able to deflect so many bolts. It just staggers the mind.

Most of them didn't. Thats why they went from having lots to about a dozen Jedi in a short period of time.

Companion Cube · Post by **Companion Cube** » 2005-04-02 01:50pm

I am now the proud owner of the ROTS ICS.

Initially, I was surprised at the Invisible Hand's weaponry, but it is a carrier/destroyer, after all.

Knife · Post by **Knife** » 2005-04-02 03:47pm

3rd Impact wrote:I am now the proud owner of the ROTS ICS. Initially, I was surprised at the Invisible Hand's weaponry, but it is a carrier/destroyer, after all.

I as well. I'm happy, though there are some curious things in there.

It seems that the 'different templet' for clones is now set in stone. Add on top of that a reference to how Imperial pilots get their black jumpsuits. Fighter Corps. are filled with volunteers and the best of the best get the 'honor' of being a templet. Cool shit.

On the capships, they say in the blurbs that four to six Recusant destroyers are enough to go up against a Stardestroyer, wheather it be a Victory or a Venator.

But looking at the weapons load out, I don't see why unless either the shielding is way shittier than a SD or the yields and power out puts on the weapons are less.

Recusant-class light destroyer.

Armament:
1 prow heavy turbolaser cannon; 4 heavy turbolaser cannons; 6 heavy turbolaser turrets; 5 turbolaser cannons; 30 dual laser cannons; 12 dual light laser cannons, 60 point defense laser cannon.

Stacked against the Venator;

Armament:
8 heavy turbolaser turrets; 2 medium dual turbolaser cannons; 52 point-defense cannons; 4 proton torpedo tubes; 6 tractor beam projectos.

The Recusant has 5 emplaced HTL and 6 HTL turrets against the Venator's 8. So unless the Venator has a more powerful HTL, the Recusant actually outgun's it on HTL's. The Recusant also has a higher amount of medium guns and light guns.

The only advantage the Venator has in weapons load out is the proton torpedo tubes and the SPHAT cannon in the vental bay. So like I said, unless the HTL's of the Venator actually have a substansial higher output than the Sepertist HTL's, I dont' see why it would take 4-6 destoryers to take on a SD. Well, unless the shields suck on the Sepertist ships too.

The Venator page also say's that the SD escorts battlecruisers/battleships and the like too, yet I wonder if we'll get to see them unless the Imperator (yahooo) are those.

And I love the ARC 170's and the V-wings. Nice X-wing/ A-wing pair for the prequels. The fact that the V-wing doesn't have a hyperdrive shows an improvment of the A wing in the OT. It looks sleek and fast and I love the radiator/vanes on the side. Nice touch.

The Actis I don't know about. It makes a nice PT/OT thing for the TIE fighters, and I love the cockpit. But there is shit for volume in it, as the hull is mostly flat. They stuffed an R2 in there too, I wonder if it's a Naboo fighter fuck up as well. It overall looks like it's missing something.

Companion Cube · Post by **Companion Cube** » 2005-04-02 04:02pm

The oddness with regards to Venator/Recusant firepower, is, I think, explained by the details given for the reactors of each ship: The Venator is described as being able to annihilate 40,000 tons' worth of fuel per second (at "maximum firepower"), while the Recusant can only manage 8600. I'd assume most of that extra power on the VeSD is going towards the weaponry.

And yeah, I think the Actis is rubbish too.

Chris OFarrell · Post by **Chris OFarrell** » 2005-04-02 05:44pm

Crazedwraith wrote:
Chris OFarrell wrote:After watching AOTC a million times, I still fail to see how the Jedi were able to deflect so many bolts. It just staggers the mind.
Most of them didn't.

No they didn't.

Thats why they went from having lots to about a dozen Jedi in a short period of time.

No, plot was the reason they went from having more to having less. I am saying that they should have all been DEAD in about ten seconds flat. Look at the fire rate on the SBD when it smashes that older droid out of the way and blasts. A couple of those things firing at a Jedi together and the Jedi would be dead, not one Jedi has shown to move their lightsaber THAT fast. I didn't exactly see Jedi leaping around and dodging. Hell. Look at that air shot of the Jedi in a circle being slowly pushed together. If that ring was made up of SBD's firing at their higher fire rate, all those Jedi would have died in about two seconds.

Lucas doesn't care about such things though.

The Silence and I · Post by **The Silence and I** » 2005-04-02 06:35pm

Chris OFarrell wrote:If that ring was made up of SBD's firing at their higher fire rate, all those Jedi would have died in about two seconds.

My only explanation for that oddity seems to be the shear crappyness of the droids (for whatever reason this is I cannot say). Watch the SBDs firing in the movies (great example is when Windu has to jump into the arena due to SBDs firing on him) while supposedly they do aim at their targets the strange truth is that many of their shots go very, very wide. Either they can't hold their arms steady with their unusual shock absorption, or they can't really aim and just spray or perhaps they have crappy guns. The net result is a Jedi facing a SBD only has to block a few random shots that actually would have hit them. This problem is even more pronounced with standard BDs which fire much slower and seem to be just as or more aiming challenged.

Lone_Prodigy · Post by **Lone_Prodigy** » 2005-04-02 06:39pm

Wait a second, is it true that this ICS has no firepower numbers?

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2005-04-02 06:43pm

Its possible the driod AI was programmed in such a way that they where all concerned about friendly fire, that would be a rather huge issue with all sides of a circle firing inward, and thus they all fired very slowly. Heck in most shots most driod's aren't firing at all.

Eframepilot · Post by **Eframepilot** » 2005-04-02 06:56pm

Sea Skimmer wrote:Its possible the driod AI was programmed in such a way that they where all concerned about friendly fire, that would be a rather huge issue with all sides of a circle firing inward, and thus they all fired very slowly. Heck in most shots most driod's aren't firing at all.

(remembers Super Battle Droid smashing up a regular Battle Droid in its way) Somehow I doubt the droids' programming cares much about friendly fire. And the biggest mystery isn't how the Jedi weren't killed instantly, it's how Padme managed to survive the entire battle when so many Jedi didn't. And Anakin wasn't protecting her constantly, so that explanation doesn't work.