Greetings, Dan here!

Real quick before we get started it was asked if we intended to make BTE available on Roll20. I admit I've only sparingly used the service as I do most of my gaming at the table, but from the games I have played on there, I know you are able to create custom character sheets that can be accessed at large. In the very least I will be pursuing getting one of those up for players groups interested in running through Roll20. As for anything further I will need to do additional research.

Additionally, in regarding these Mech Construction showcases I know the next one I had planned after Escaflowne, but I will be sure to have to do a second one to commemorate the return of Armored Core on the 25th. For now, let's take a look at one of the preeminent fantasy mechs, Escaflowne. 

Unlike with the King Crab, this build was specifically done as a version of the Escaflowne as built during initial mech construction, with all the limitations in place during character creation. There are two versions of this mech, one more steampunk (show), and the other more biomech (movie). The only real difference being one or two additional traits/weapons featured in the movie over the show. For clarity, I built this with the show version of Escaflowne in mind.

For those unfamiliar, Escaflowne is the titular mech from Vision of Escaflowne, where it is the guymelef (mech) of the royal family of the Kingdom of Fanelia. Guymelef's are similar to steampunk, exosuits where they function as suits of armor for their pilots. Because of this, most of them carry giant versions of medieval weaponry and that's the extent of their capabilities as making the knights giant sized.  That said, some like the Escaflowne are of special make, which gives them some special traits in this case. This is reflected in the mech parts chosen.

Because of its impeccable design by the Ispano clan, the Escaflowne is very hardy, reflected here with a Blitz Tech Frame giving it 24 AP. When on foot, more on that later, it is no faster than your average guymelef, so we left it with the Caballero Corp boosters, giving it an Movement Rate of 1. Since, it comes with some special traits from its creators, it will require multiple utility systems, so we went with the Blitz Tech CPU, giving it two utilities. Lastly, since the Escaflowne's primary weapon is a royal long sword, the Caballero Corp Radiator with it's Heat Rating of 8 will do just fine.

Now as for the Escaflowne's two utilities, those of you who are fans of the franchise will already know where we're going, for the Ispano Clan designed the white armored guymelef to be able to transform into an armored dragon. This is mostly used for transportation purposes as most guymelefs are incapable of flight. To reflect this, we went with the Aerial Frame giving it the ability to apply its Movement Rate into the air, as well as the Mobility Mode Converter so when it transforms into the dragon mode, the Escaflowne will gain 2 MR allowing it to change up to three range types in a move action. The mech will be unable to use weapons while in this mode, but depending on the player's flexibility around their build, the Escaflowne here would technically be capable of flight even in humanoid form. Granted it would have some difficulty doing combat while in the air anyway, as it only carries a melee weapon.

Speaking of, the Escaflowne has one weapon system at start, that would be the Sword of Fanelia, an extending long sword bearing the crest of the kingdom's royal family. Since this is the guymelef's primary weapon, and it was designed as a close combatant, we were about to apply three HR toward damage, giving it a d8 damage die. While we needed the HR for other traits, the Rate of Fire was left at 1 using only a single HR, but by optimizing this portion of the weapon, we were able to increase the RoF to 2. For the ammo, two HR allowed it to have 6 full damage swings. After which the weapon would be reduced to unpowered melee damage (1 + Weapon Skill Bonus). For ranges, obviously, the sword was given melee, but since it does extend into a two handed longsword, two HR gave it a little reach, allowing it to hit targets at Close Range as well.

With this build, even at start, the player would have a mech that would feel like the Escaflowne in play. Of course, as the player earned credits through missions, additional equipment could be purchased to make the mech feel even more accurate to the franchise. Higher level CPUs would give the Escaflowne more utilities, and the first one that comes to mind is the Neural Interface that grants the pilot bonuses on attacks, but runs the chance of causing them harm as they take damage, something that occurs in the show as the pilot's bond with the guymelef grows. Additionally, in the movie, the mech was organic in nature, capable of going on a rampage if the pilot lost control, so perhaps the Bio Frame utility as well. Also in the movie, the Escaflowne was capable of shooting lasers from its shoulder crystals. Improving the radiator and constructing a range weapon could give the build some much appreciated versatility. If not, the pilot could always purchase Disposable Equipment to supplement the need for ranged attack options. Some might view a mech focused on melee as limiting, it should be noted that a single mech does not exist in a vacuum as players are but one member of a squadron. While one mech may focus on dropping onto the front line, and tanking, others could fill in range attack roles. 

This time we took a look at a mech that was themed after knights in heavy armor (granted one that could fly lol), but what about a player that was something more...primal in theme. Next time, we'll take a look at the fast moving, feline mech from the Zoids franchise, the Blade Liger.