Hello,
So, while lying awake last night, contemplating products whose deadlines are so blown that I could reasonably expect to have my pay docked--while also contemplating how in Cat's earth I managed to fit enough furniture, boxes, files, terrain, and leftover computer equipment in my bedroom closet to fill my dining room (and how much fun it will inevitably be to move it again, now that I have to change apartments)--it occurred to me that I had the inkling of an idea for a fun research project the BattleTech fandom could help me on.
I call it the "Ripke-McInnes Book of Inner Sphere Records (3100)"
It goes a little something like this: In all of BattleTech lore, writers past and present have slid in minor references to this thing or that thing being "the most [something] (in known space)", be it the biggest predatory mammal, the largest BattleMech ever, the oldest still-operating factory, the oldest example of X-technology still in service, the first true aerospace fighter ever flown, the last attempt to try and build a transforming tank while simultaneously rubbing one's own belly and patting one's own head in perfect rhythm. Whatever "it" was, the author (or authors) felt they had a great idea to slip in something that would thenceforth become the absolute limit of then-current maximums and minimums.
Your mission is simple, and there are no polls to speak of, so it ain't multiple choice: Seek out canonical examples of THE MOST [SOMETHING] THINGS IN THE INNER SPHERE (and Clan Space), with a cut-off date of 3100.
Now, before I get deluged with snide replies like "dumbest move Victor Steiner-Davion ever made" or "corniest use of a Jump Jet to kill a major character" or "most obvious case of author fiat", know that--for starters--I will be deleting those out of hand. For your submission to apply, all of your examples MUST be in-universe, and must not break the fourth wall. You must also include a product and page reference for your submission, so it can be verified by our committee on THE MOST [SOMETHING] THINGS IN THE INNER SPHERE (and Clan Space).
All submissions have to be made in the thread indicated by the link below, which is on the official (and free-to-access) BattleTech forums. I don't like to hunt for this stuff. (It makes me cranky; nobody likes me when I'm cranky.) If you want some form of credit in any eventual product this may fuel (if any), I suggest providing your name with the post as well.
LINK! http://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.p ... 526.0.html
I'll be running this little survey for, oh, let's make it until 31 March. And, no, this isn't for April Fool's Day.
That's it, folks! Carry on, and have fun with it!
Thank you,