I need a bit of help working on a fanfic I came up with earlier today - a
crossover mecha tournament. (If this has been done before, I don't know
about it. :)

There are two mecha combat games, one an arena-based mecha simulator
called Battledrome (part of Sierra/Dynamix's MetalTech series, which also
includes the EarthSiege games) and Sega's arcade fighting game Virtual On:
Cyber Troopers, which I enjoy playing. While I was walking around
downtown, I wondered "What if a Battledrome HERC went up against one of
the Cyber Troopers mecha?" and went from there to "What if there were some
matchups against other anime mecha?" and came up with this.
	The problem is that while I consider myself a fan of mecha anime,
I don't know a whole lot about the mecha series that are out there -
particularly some of the mecha that I'd really like to include in this. So
I need people to 'nominate' mecha to be included in the tournament.

Most of the mecha involved should come from anime (or manga), although
I'll permit relatively clearly-defined mecha from computer/video games.
However, no original creations are permitted. (You can put away the Mekton
Z books. Heavy Gear too. Sorry guys.) Mecha customizations must also be
limited to weapons and/or internal systems, within the confines of the
source material (anime, manga, or game).

The following information *MUST* be included for each nominated mecha:

- Series of origin
- Name of mecha
- Name of pilot
- All available technical information:
	Power source
	Movement capabilities
	Available weaponry (with any available specs/limitations)
	Defensive systems and capabilities
	Any special weaknesses/vulnerabilities

Note about pilots: EVERY mecha entered in the tournament *MUST* have a
pilot. (See rules below) If a mecha (a Patrol Labor, for instance) doesn't
have a single pilot, it may be piloted by any appropriate character from
that series. If you're nominating a mecha from a game which doesn't have
any pilot characters, *then and only then* may an original character be
used for the pilot.

I'd like nominations to be as complete and detailed as you can make them,
because I'm going to be using this information to write the matches
(whatever method I use for determining the outcome).

Rules for the tournament:

1 - All entered mecha must meet the following qualifications:
	a - No autopilot systems are allowed; all mecha must be piloted by
a living sentient being. (Sufficiently advanced androids are permissible.)
The pilot must be located within his or her mecha during the match;
ejection from the mecha counts as an automatic forfeit. (Pilots will be
rescued in the event of their mecha's destruction.)
	b - Pure vehicle mecha and vehicle-form conversions are not
permitted; any non-humanoid mecha should at least resemble an animal.
	c - No combined-form mecha are permitted, although their component
mecha may be entered individually.

2 - One of the competitors will be "host" for any given match, provided
that the match area is not intrinsically hostile to the opponent. The
"visitor" mecha may have a support system of some sort available at the
match.

3 - Matches proceed until one of the competing mecha is destroyed,
immobilized, or otherwise incapacitated. Repair facilities will be made
available for all damaged mecha.

(Elimination rules have not yet been determined, but the tournament will
be either single- or double-elimination.)

That about wraps it up. Expect a follow-up post containing more specific
information and examples, along with series I'm looking for nominations
from. :)

				Tim Miller
					trmiller@mail.bcpl.lib.md.us