Cleaned-up concepts from earlier design docs. Most of the original framing was based on a misunderstanding of the heat system (flux as "throughput limit") — these are the salvageable parts.
A mecha at full combat load (all weapons, max speed, high-draw shields) should begin to overheat after 3 to 5 turns. This is enforced by sink capacity vs net heat accumulation.
| Type | Sink Cap | Combat Load | Rounds to Full |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scout | 50 | ~15/turn | ~3 |
| Heavy | 300 | ~20/turn | ~15 |
| Suicide | 100 | ~10/turn | ~10 |
Heat values aimed at a 0-100 range for most mecha. Small to Medium mechs target Total Flux of 30-50. Values above 100 represent critical instability.
If the fluxpool stays full for more than one turn:
- Movement speeds halved
- Computer systems crash, target locks lost
- Reactor auto-scram (total shutdown)
Damage to a coolant system directly reduces its Flux contribution. Example: a system with Flux 60 getting damaged may drop to 30.
Weapons with high burst heat per shot need specialized high-flux coolant, or they damage the mecha on every shot.
| Tech | Baseload | Flux (Avg) | Style |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base | Low (1-3) | 10-15 | Passive-heavy (sinks) |
| Low | Mid (5-8) | 20-30 | Balanced |
| Mid | High (10-15) | 40-60 | Active-heavy (vents) |
| High | Very High (20+) | 80+ | Extreme cooling |
Pilots choose which systems to cool first when flux is limited — keep the reactor stable or allow weapons to cool. This is resolved through the player-choice mechanic in heat phases 1 and 2.