NationStates Jolt Archive

Forgive me if I sound like a noob, but I must know:

What exactly is a Doujin? I know its a ship, but what kind of ship? Who made it? Why is it so popular?

What is a Bolo? I know its a tank, but what kind of tank? Who made it? Why is it so feared?

I must ask as well. What are they?

A Bolo is a giant tank from the book "Bolo!" I'm not sure of the author, but its very, VERY big and FT. I think it mounts energy weapons about the strength of a nuke.

The Doujin was the first major super dreadnought, although the very first, I believe, was designed by someone else - I really don't remember who. Regardless, most of the Doujin was designed by Freethinkers, I think, and one time I saw that there were two different Doujin classes - so I have that pretty mixed up too. It also began a Super Dreadnought race, sparked by Doujin (the nation) and IDF.

I don't know what the Bolo is.

so... confused!

The Doujin is the first major superdreadnaught, as Macabees said. A superdreadnaught is a really, really, really, really, really big battleship that is really, really, really, really, really difficult to defeat unless you're an ace at naval strategy and tactics or you have a superdreadnaught of your own. That's this simple dumb guy's answer.

I know what a super dreadnaught is. What im confused about is the frustrating lack of detail!

I did a Borders search for Bolo!, and from the reviews (although they were positive), the story sounds stupid. Intelligent tanks with emotions? COME ON!

A Bolo is a giant tank from the book "Bolo!" I'm not sure of the author, but its very, VERY big and FT. I think it mounts energy weapons about the strength of a nuke.

Correct, it is a giant FT tank created by a man named Keith Laumer, who wrote a series of short-stories about the BOLOs and their Dinochrome Brigade, it is over 4 stories tall, in its most recent iteration it mounts 3 30cm Hellbores, micro-nclear weapons to the un-initiated, hundreds of various other weapons systems, Armor that can take hits from the weapons it bears and keep on coming, nearly unbeatable shielding, and about 700 tons of very deadly intelligence. That is a Bolo Mk XXVI

I know what a super dreadnaught is. What im confused about is the frustrating lack of detail!

I did a Borders search for Bolo!, and from the reviews (although they were positive), the story sounds stupid. Intelligent tanks with emotions? COME ON!

They have no emotions, they are however intelligent. I've read the books, they're pretty good. Get the new one by John Ringo, it's a very interesting moral dilemma, it's called "The Road To Damascus".

I'll give anbyone who gets the reference a free Bolo.

Biblical, isn't it? St. Paul (then Saul) was blinded by the light of Christ on the road to Damascus, and converted.

The Doujin (designed by a nation bearing the same name) was one of many largely successful attempts at designing a near modern tech weapon with dimensions and various systems far exceeding anything ever remotely designed in real life. This ship, although not the first type of its class, set the guidelines of all future superdreadnaught series due to an intense marketing campaign on behalf of Doujin, subsequent refinements as made by Freethinkers (Doujin Mk II), and its spread through the Organization of Maritime Powers (OMP), a leading group of NationStates' most influential naval powers and designers.

For any nation who wants or desires to produce one of these behemoths, the amount of time, research, resources, and skilled labor required to construct these artifices of technology involves Manhattan Project-esque feats of organization and capital. Generally, a superdreadnaught takes the normal concept of a battleship but amplifies its destructive power through main guns some 1.5 to 3 times larger than their nearest real life battleship counterparts (a "small yield" superdreadnaught might have guns approximately 18" - 25" in diameter while most will match or exceed 30" on average). In addition, most of these weapons platforms also employ a large array of modern (and in plenty of cases postmodern) weapons; guided missiles, automated CWIS variants, COIL / Rail - assisted main cannons, and even full scale aircraft are all part and parcel of an average SD's (Superdreadnaught) layout.

As such all of this requires an intense amount of crew and space, and this is where the main aspect of the Doujin became so popular to many nations across the world. The mere size of this craft, one of the first NationStates blue water naval vessels to meet or exceed a kilometer in length, instantly became a symbol of economic and technological prowess as well as a potent (if impractical by some people OOC'ly) projector of foreign and military policy for those who possess it. Often these weapons represent the top of the time in terms of offensive and defensive equipment, and their massive investments insure that they are only used either in serious one on one engagements or protected in a far larger series of defensive convoys.

Biblical, isn't it? St. Paul (then Saul) was blinded by the light of Christ on the road to Damascus, and converted.

Correct.

That is the exact reference made in the book. Enjoy your Mk XXVI.