Mass Effect General Thread

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Sog Dog said:
I need to actually finish B5, but yeah clearly that's where they got the "humans are upstart newcomers that managed to win a war against one of the Galaxy's biggest powers" plot hook from.
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The Human-Turian war? Damn.
 
Prophetic Spirit said:
The Human-Turian war? Damn.
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It plays out a little differently, in B5 the Humans were very much getting their asses kicked and then miraculously won for unclear reasons that are revealed later as part of the show's plot, whereas in ME the Humans were winning initially because they actually understand combined arms warfare and the Turians are space-Chinamen who just throw bodies at a problem until it collapses, but Humanity would have lost eventually (because the Turians have a LOT of bodies to throw) if the Council (read: Asari) hadn't intervened. But you can clearly see where the inspiration came from.
 
Sog Dog said:
It plays out a little differently, in B5 the Humans were very much getting their asses kicked and then miraculously won for unclear reasons that are revealed later as part of the show's plot, whereas in ME the Humans were winning initially because they actually understand combined arms warfare and the Turians are space-Chinamen who just throw bodies at a problem until it collapses, but Humanity would have lost eventually (because the Turians have a LOT of bodies to throw) if the Council (read: Asari) hadn't intervened. But you can clearly see where the inspiration came from.
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Even a few hundred years from now our finest military tactics consist of throwing a ton of ordnance at the enemy's direction with drones and fire support and then just blazing through any gaps that open up at super-speed.
https://masseffect.fandom.com/wiki/..._Alliance#Systems_Alliance:_Military_Doctrine
The Alliance military is of great concern to the galaxy. At first contact with the turians, they were completely inexperienced. Turian disdain changed to respect after the relief of Shanxi, where the humans surprised them with novel technologies and tactics.

The human devotion to understanding and adapting to modern space warfare stunned the staid Council races. For hundreds of years, they had lived behind secure walls of long-proven technologies and tactics. The Council regards the Alliance as a 'sleeping giant'. Less than 3% of humans volunteer to serve in their military, a lower proportion than any other species.

While competent, Alliance soldiers are neither as professional as the turians nor as skilled as the asari. Their strengths lie in fire support, flexibility, and speed. They make up for lack of numbers with sophisticated technical support (VIs, drones, artillery, electronic warfare) and emphasis on mobility and individual initiative.

Their doctrine is not based on absorbing and dishing out heavy shocks like the turians and krogan. Rather, they bypass enemy strong points and launch deep into their rear, cutting supply lines and destroying headquarters and support units, leaving enemies to 'wither on the vine'.

On defense, the human military is a rapid reaction force that lives by Sun Tzu’s maxim, 'He who tries to defend everything defends nothing'. Garrisons are intended for scouting rather than combat, avoiding engagement to observe and report on invaders using drones.

The token garrisons of human colonies make it easy for alien powers to secure them, for which the Alliance media criticizes the military. However, the powerful fleets stationed at phase gate nexuses such as Arcturus are just a few hours or days from any colony within their sphere of responsibility. In the event of an attack, they respond with overwhelming force.
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The Mako having the firepower and armor of a main battle tank and the ability to pull off crazy moves that would shame the General Lee is a feature, not a bug.
 
Sog Dog said:
If it's good enough for General Patton, then it's good enough for you.
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Funnily enough there's at least one off-world settlement that owes allegiance to the United North American States (after the USA basically absorbed Canada and Mexico) as opposed to the Systems Alliance as a whole. Earth nations didn't magically go away after the First Contact War and still wield a great deal of influence and power over the Alliance proper thanks to its dependence on the place for materiel and manpower.

Hell, the Alliance was founded as a result of the big boys like the UNAS, Europe, and China, deciding to get together and go into space after the Prothean ruins were found on Mars, and they just up and told the rest of the place, "Eat shit, poorfags."
 
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Snekposter said:
Funnily enough there's at least one off-world settlement that owes allegiance to the United North American States (after the USA basically absorbed Canada and Mexico) as opposed to the Systems Alliance as a whole. Earth nations didn't magically go away after the First Contact War and still wield a great deal of influence and power over the Alliance proper thanks to its dependence on the place for materiel and manpower.

Hell, the Alliance was founded as a result of the big boys like the UNAS, Europe, and China, deciding to get together and go into space after the Prothean ruins were found on Mars, and they just up and told the rest of the place, "Eat shit, poorfags."
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One of the really annoying things about Mass Effect is the universe has a lot of potential and there's a lot of really fun lore in the background, but then the main story does absolutely nothing with it, other than maybe retcon it away if it's inconvenient to the bland ass story they are trying to tell. It's why a TV show that tells a smaller story unconnected to Shepard could actually be great if done well, but obviously that won't happen in modern Hollywood.
 
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