[201-400] THE MECH'S TOUCH

Chapter 244: Senior Management

Ves could spend as little or as much as he wanted to acquire the necessary component licenses.

If he wanted to splurge, he could blow a billion credits on the sensor systems alone, yet such an improvement hardly affected his design. "It's not about adding further improvements to my design, but retaining the strengths it already enjoys."

Desperate designers with an acute lack of money sometimes licensed outdated components offered by the MTA. They utilized technology that had been developed at least sixty years ago to plug a hole in their designs.

If Ves tried to do the same, he risked condemnation. As a premium design, his phoenix knight had to maintain a minimum level of performance across the board. He couldn't justify the 60 million credits price tag if he played fast and loose with his design.

He proceeded to splurge his entire budget on a number of generic licenses. Some components cost a little more than others, but Ves spent just enough to stray away from bargain bin territory.

Besides acquiring licenses for minor components that only die-hard enthusiasts cared about like gyroscopes or inertial compensators, Ves also made some big ticket purchases that played a vital role in the performance of his mech.

The sensor system cost an easy 100 million credits to pick up its license. At that price, Ves obtained the right to use a serviceable set of sensors that had specifically been designed to compliment knight mechs. It prioritized close-range detection over long-range detection and could take a beating as well.

"It's not like my knight will ever be used for a scout. It's enough if it can detect a sneaking mech up close."

The second major transaction consisted of a set of supplementary alloy formulas for the sword, shield and internal frame. Each part demanded different degrees of hardness, ductility, density and sharpness. The alloys that came with the Veltrex armor system only covered the exterior of the mech, and should not be used in other areas. Ves spent a total of 250 million credits to obtain all of these licenses.

The last major license consisted of the right to apply the Bright Republic's Modular Fitting Standard to his design. The Modular Fitting Standard or MFS was a relatively recent invention that aimed to standardize the dimensions of modular attachments for mechs.

Basically, the MFS ensured that every mech that used the same standard could share the same type of backpacks or other compatible devices.

For example, an MFS allowed a mech pilot to attach a standard energy pack from the Republic without worrying about compatibility issues. If he happened to come across an abandoned Vesian pack in the field, then he would have no luck, as the Vesian standard used a different set of dimensions. The plugs wouldn't fit in the sockets.

Before the proliferation of MFS, different companies and individual mech designers all employed their format. This led to a maze of confusing choices along with plenty of kludges as mech technicians tried to mate different modular standards together in the field.

Nowadays, each state or major faction stuck to a single standard to ease their logistics. The Mech Corps no longer had to keep track of fifty separate fittings.

Along with many other miscellaneous components such as transceivers and processors, Ves finally obtained all the necessary ingredients to design a mech.

"One billion credits down the drain. I only have around 400 million left in disposable cash."

The LMC still earned a decent amount of money out of routine transactions, so Ves didn't worry about running out of cash. Ves already reserved 100 million credits for an upcoming ad campaign, and he expected to spend a bit more to supplement the development of his phoenix knight.