TEXT: TM
  
  ©2015 The Topps Company Inc. All Rights Reserved. BattleTech Technical Readout: 3150, Classic BattleTech, 
  BattleTech, BattleMech, and ’Mech are registered trademarks and/or trademarks of The Topps Company Inc. in 
  the United States and/or other countries. Catalyst Game Labs and the Catalyst Game Labs logo are trademarks 
  of InMediaRes Productions, LLC. Printed in the U.S.A.
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  TECHNICAL READOUT
  31 50
  
  2
  INTRODUCTION  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 4
  How to Use This Technical Readout   .  .  .  .  .  . 5
  BATTLE ARMOR  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 6
  Constable Pacification Suit  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 6
  Sea Fox Amphibious Armor  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 8
  Spectre Stealth Battle Armor  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 10
  Gray Death Infiltrator Suit  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 12
  Leonidas Battle Armor  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 14
  Cuchulainn Support Armor  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 16
  Zou Heavy Battle Armor   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 18
  Fenrir II Assault Battle Armor  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 20
  Fusilier Battle Armor  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 22
  Xiphos Assault Battle Armor   .  .  .  .  .  .  . 24
  VEHICLES  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 26
  Kruger Combat Car  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 26
  Thang-Ta APC   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 28
  Marten Scout VTOL  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 30
  Nacon Armored Scout  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 32
  Winterhawk APC  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 34
  Anat APC  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 36
  DI Multipurpose VTOL  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 38
  JI2A1 Attack APC  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 40
  Red Kite Attack VTOL  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 42
  Garrot Superheavy Transport   .  .  .  .  .  . 44
  Kite Reconnaissance Vehicle  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 46
  Lamprey Transport Helicopter  .  .  .  .  .  . 48
  Strix Stealth VTOL .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 50
  Gun Trailers   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 52
  Nisos Attack WiGE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 54
  Saladin Mk II HCV  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 56
  Saracen Mk II HCV  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 58
  Skanda Light Tank  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 60
  Shillelagh Missile Tank  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 62
  Shun Transport VTOL  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 64
  Predator Tank Destroyer  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 66
  Sortek Assault Craft  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 68
  Swallow Attack WiGE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 70
  Hadur Fast Support Vehicle  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 72
  Partisan AA Vehicle  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 74
  Schildkröte Line Tank  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 76
  Sheriff Infantry Support Tank  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 78
  Zibler Fast Strike Tank  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 80
  Sekhmet Assault Vehicle  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 82
  Zahn Heavy Transport  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 84
  Bardiche Heavy Strike Tank  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 86
  Mamono IFV  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 88
  SM2 Heavy Artillery Vehicle  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 90
  Testudo Siege Tank  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 92
  Arrow IV Assault Vehicle   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 94
  Gurzil Support Tank  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 96
  Sniper Artillery  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 98
  Hexareme HQ Hovercraft  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 100
  NK-1C Narukami Heavy Tank  .  .  .  .  .  . 102
  Kelswa Assault Tank  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 104
  Gulltoppr OmniMonitor  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 106
  Destrier Siege Vehicle  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 108
  Bishop Transport VTOL  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 110
  Savior Repair Vehicle  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 112
  BATTLEMECHS  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 114
  Arion  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 114
  Boreas   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 116
  Harpagos  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 118
  PY-SR10 Prey Seeker  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 120
  RD-1R Roadrunner  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 122
  Koshi (Standard)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 124
  ABS-5Y Anubis   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 126
  BZK-D1 Hollander III  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 128
  Jaguar .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 130
  PXH-11K Phoenix Hawk L  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 132
  YHC-3E Yinghuochong  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 134
  CAL-1MAF Calliope  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 136
  RVN-5X Raven II  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 138
  UCU-F4 Scarecrow  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 140
  LK-3D Antlion  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 142
  Stalking Spider II .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 144
  AVL-1O Avalanche  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 146
  Black Hawk (Standard)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 148
  GDR-1D Gravedigger  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 150
  JL-1 Raider   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 152
  Wendigo  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 154
  Wendigo  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 155
  QSM-3D Quasimodo  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 156
  ZU-G60 Anzu  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 158
  Vulture Mk III  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 160
  DRG-11K Dragon II  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 162
  Loki Mk II  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 164
  CPLT-L7 Catapult II  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 166
  Thor II  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 168
  Cave Lion   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 170
  GTD-20S Götterdämmerung  .  .  .  .  .  . 172
  Jade Hawk   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 174
  HTM-30S Hatamoto-Suna  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 176
  HWK-4F HawkWolf  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 178
  LN-4B Lu Wei Bing  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 180
  TLR2-O Templar III  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 182
  JLN-5A Juliano .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 184
  Viking IIC  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 186
  KGC-009 King Crab  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 188
  Kodiak II  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 190
  Inquisitor II  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 192
  Hippogriff ProtoMech   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 194
  AEROSPACE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 196
  Saroyan Jump Bomber  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 196
  CSR-F100 Picaroon   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 198
  STM-O Sternensturm  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 200
  Y-2 Yùn  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 202
  AQA-1M Aquila  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 204
  RDL-01C Rondel  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 206
  SKR-4M Shikra  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 208
  Zhen Niao  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 210
  Oo-Suzumebachi  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 212
  NL-45 Gunboat  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 214
  Seleucus Infantry Transport  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 216
  Trutzburg  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 218
  castrum  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 220
  NEW TECH, NEW UPGRADES  .  . 222
  TABLE OF CONTENTS
  
  3
  CREDITS
  Writing 
   
  Herbert A. Beas II
   
  Aaron Cahall
   
  Keith Hann
   
  Jason Hansa
   
  Johannes Heidler
   
  Ken’ Horner
   
  Kevin Killiany
   
  Philip A. Lee
   
  Aaron Pollyea
   
  Christopher Purnell
   
  Craig A. Reed, Jr.
   
  Luke Robertson
   
  Ben H. Rome
   
  Jason Schmetzer
   
  Adam Sherwood
   
  Paul Sjardijn
   
  Joel Steverson
   
  Geoff Swift
   
  Mike Timbers
   
  Elliotte C. Want
   
  Patrick Wynne
   
  Andreas Zuber
  Product Development (3145) 
   
  Jason Schmetzer
  Development Assistance
   
  Herbert A. Beas II
  Product Development (3150) 
   
  Ray Arrastia
  Development Assistance
   
  Herbert A. Beas II
   
  Johannes Heidler
   
  Ben H. Rome
  Unit Stats
  Joel Bancroft-Connors, Herbert A. Beas II, Ian Campbell, Matthew Cross, 
  Craig Erne, Brent Evans, Brent Ezell, Joshua Franklin,  William Gauthier, Keith Hann, 
  John Haward, Johannes Heidler, Ken’ Horner, Daniel Isberner, Philip A. Lee, Chris 
  Marti, Jan Prowell, Luke Robertson, Lance Scarinci, Paul Sjardijn, Mike Timbers,  
  Chris Wheeler, Matt Wilsbacher, Patrick Wynne
  Proofers and Fact Checkers
  Joel Bancroft-Connors, Brian Bunch, Roy Carl, Rich Cencarik, Brent Ezell, 
  Stephan Frabartolo, Joshua Franklin, William Gauthier, Johann Haderer, Keith 
  Hann, Jason Hansa, Térence Harris, John Haward, Johannes Heidler, Ross Hines, 
  David A. Kerber, Iain Macleod,  Darrell Myers, Jason Paulley, Joshua C. Perian, Jan 
  Prowell, Christopher Purnell, Craig A. Reed, Jr., Luke Robertson, Andreas Rudolph, 
  Eric Salzman, Lance Scarinci, Sam Snell, Geoff Swift, Mike Timbers, Øystein Tvedten, 
  Elliotte C. Want, Chris Wheeler, Matt Wilsbacher, Patrick Wynne, Mark Yingling
  Special Thanks
  Special thanks from Ben: I’d like to thank every fan of this venerable game, 
  both past and present. It’s to the future we look now; this TRO is one more step 
  forward in that direction. Many thanks to the writers, factcheckers, playtesters, and 
  unit designers who spent valuable time wrangling both new and ‘repackaged’ units 
  into weapons of war for your tabletop games. As we enter a time of fallen capitals, 
  emerging empires, and shifting technologies, we at CGL love and appreciate ALL of 
  our fans; thank you for joining us all these years for giant stompy robot tomfoolery 
  and destruction! 
  Special thanks from Johannes: Technical Readout: 3150 is a sister volume 
  to Technical Readout: 3145—all heartfelt appreciation for that herculean effort is 
  applicable to this book, too. The quality of teamwork on these technical readouts 
  has been without parallel. Jason Schmetzer, the product developer of the initial 
  volume, deserves endless praise for overseeing the many contributions to this 
  collaborative project. As do all the participants of Technical Readout: 3145, be it 
  production team, writers, unit design team, proofers, or fact checkers.
  But an enormous amount of work was also invested into making this 
  Technical Readout: 3150. Ben H. Rome was responsible for guiding a brave team of 
  writers in telling the BattleTech story beyond 3145. Together, Ben, Herbert A. Beas, 
  Philip A. Lee, Geoff Swift, Elliotte Want, and Patrick Wynne have given us an exciting 
  glimpse of what is to come. Their efforts cannot be overstated and we owe them 
  a great debt of gratitude. Additionally, many thanks to the design team who once 
  again supported the Technical Readout with a perfect mixture of creativity and 
  moderation, and David A. Kerber for his layout assistance and constant willingness 
  to squeeze yet more out of the pages on hand.
  Any show of appreciation for a late Dark Age product needs to focus squarely 
  on Herbert A. Beas II. It was Herb who kept track of the big picture while many great 
  heads hashed out details of bridging the past 70 years of our fictional universe. 
  With unparalleled vision he bridged the gap between MechWarrior Dark Age and 
  BattleTech. The BattleTech universe as we know it is the result of his direction and 
  the book you hold in your hands the proof of his success .
  Finally, nobody is more deserving of “Special Thanks” than Ray Arrastia. He 
  is the most literal scholar and gentleman I know. His posts as product developer, 
  assistant art director, layout guru belie the true nature of his work. As voice of 
  reason and overall good fairy godmother, he is the point of synergy for all current 
  BattleTech projects and in no small measure responsible for everything published. 
  Thank you for the support and freedom in shaping this TRO!
  BattleTech Line Developer 
   
  Randall Bills
  Assistant Line Developer 
   
  Ben H. Rome
  Production Staff 
  Art Director 
   
  Brent Evans 
  Assistant Art Director 
   
  Ray Arrastia 
  Cover Art 
   
  Rudy Valle
  Cover Design
   
  Ray Arrastia 
  Layout
   
  Ray Arrastia
   
  David Allen Kerber 
  Illustrations 
   
  Chris Daranouvong 
   
  Stephen Huda 
   
  Alex Iglesias
   
  Seth Kurbound
   
  Chris Lewis
   
  Justin Nelson
   
  Matt Plog 
   
  Anthony Scroggins
   
  Rudy Valle
   
  David White
  ©2015 The Topps Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Technical Readout: 3150, Classic BattleTech, BattleTech, 
  ’Mech, BattleMech, MechWarrior and Topps logo are registered trademarks and/or trademarks of The Topps 
  Company, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in 
  a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of the 
  Copyright Owner, nor be otherwise circulated in any form other than that in which it is published. Catalyst 
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  Published by Catalyst Game Labs, an imprint of 
  InMediaRes Productions, LLC
  PMB 202 • 303 91st Ave NE • E502 
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  Find us online:
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  (e-mail address for any BattleTech questions)
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  (official BattleTech web pages)
  http://www.CatalystGameLabs.com
   
  (Catalyst web pages)
  http://www.battlecorps.com/catalog
   
  (online ordering)
  
  4
  To say we live in “interesting times” is woefully abusing the ancient proverb . While we inside the Fortress raced to build up our strength, war has swept across the Inner Sphere 
  like unchecked wildfires . Paladin Lakewood’s hopeful assessment of the situation at large, I fear, was perhaps colored by overconfidence in the walls that kept our enemies at bay, 
  and by the return of Devlin Stone . Or maybe she was merely demonstrating the deep faith the Knights of the Sphere always proclaim for the man who brought about the best ex-
  periment in sustained peace and technological innovation since the days of the original Star League .
  I, on the other hand, am no Paladin, and I have seen the machinery at work, and the man behind them . I have seen the dangers in blind faith and overconfidence . I cannot ignore 
  the fact that the universe has gone to hell, and I cannot pretend that any amount of good intentions will prevent us from joining it now that the walls have come down .
  As we speak, Clans Wolf and Jade Falcon are knocking on our very door, and it seems that Daoshen Liao—however cautiously—is eager to beat them to the punch . At the same 
  time, our allies in the Federated Suns are fighting for their very lives against the same Dragon that has also begun chipping away at what remains of our Republic . 
  And those who aren’t surging against us are likely only holding back because they have problems of their own . The Commonwealth is disintegrating, and the resurgent Free 
  Worlds League is still struggling just to get its own houses in order . Even the Periphery realms are finding themselves busy these days .
  As the Republic has perfected its technologies and rolled out newer and better ’Mechs, vehicles, battle armor, and aerospace craft for the coming fights, so too have the realms 
  all around us . These machines, previously discussed in other technical supplements, have already had their trials by fire in this new Dark Age of ours . This volume updates those 
  supplements with new information gleaned in the years since, including actions that have been reported since the walls came down . Our warriors and knights must all be ready, 
  and fully informed, of these latest examples in military equipment, as the time of our greatest trials fast approaches .
  We have the best tools and the best talent . Preparations have been made, traps have been set, deals have been struck . I do believe in Devlin Stone now, and I believe in the 
  dream of a Republic reborn, and a new age of lasting peace . 
  But as a scientist, I know better than to rely on positive thinking alone to carry the day . The time is coming—soon—for all practical solutions to be put to the final test .
  And, for all my cynicism…I find myself looking forward to the results .
  —Tucker Harwell
  21 January 3150
  INTRODUCTION
  
  5
  GAME NOTES 
  Technical Readout: 3150 covers a wide breadth of units and equipment . To understand how these various units plug into the core BattleTech rulebooks, it’s useful to cover how 
  the various rulebooks interact . 
  Standard Rules 
  The Total Warfare (TW) and TechManual (TM) rulebooks present the core game and construction rules for BattleTech (BT), otherwise referred to as the standard rules . In addition, 
  to reflect the advancement and proliferation of new technologies, several Advanced Rules items from Tactical Operations have been reclassified as Standard Rules items for games 
  set in the Dark Age era .
  Advanced Rules 
  Beyond the standard rules a legion of advanced rules exists, allowing players to expand their games in any direction they desire . In an effort to bring these rules to players in 
  the most logical form possible, the advanced rules are contained in three “staging” core rulebooks, each one staging up and building off of the previous rules set . 
  Tactical Operations (TO) is the first in the “staging” advanced rulebooks . Its focus is on special situations and advanced terrain during game play, and applies directly to a game 
  as it unfolds on a world in the BattleTech universe . 
  Strategic Operations (SO) is the second “staging” advanced rulebook . It stages a player up to the next logi cal area of play, focusing on “in a solar system” and multi-game play . 
  Interstellar Operations (IO) is the third and final “staging” advanced rulebook . Players are staged up to the final level of play, where they can assume the roles of a House lord 
  or Clan Khan and dominate the galaxy .
  HOW TO USE THIS TECHNICAL READOUT 
  Complete rules for using ’Mechs, vehicles, infantry, battle armor, fighters, and DropShips in BattleTech game play can be found in Total Warfare, while the rules for their construction can 
  be found in TechManual; some equipment is detailed in Tactical Operations . The rules for using JumpShips and WarShips, as well as their construction rules, can be found in Strategic Operations . 
  The following three definitions are used to clarify the various types of equipment that appear in Technical Readout: 3150  and are presented in the standard and advanced rulebooks .
  Standard: most of these work with Total Warfare rules only, but some Advanced rules items may be present, requiring Tactical Operations for full effect .
  Advanced: Any equipment mass produced “in universe”; must have Tactical Operations and/or Strategic Operations, in addition to Total Warfare, to use .
  Experimental Rules: Any equipment not mass produced “in universe” because it is prohibitively expensive, extraor dinarily sophisticated, exceedingly difficult to maintain or 
  simply deemed too unreliable or restrictive for widespread deployment; must have Tactical Operations and/or Strategic Operations, in addition to Total Warfare, to use . 
  Design Quirks
  Every unit described in Technical Readout: 3150 may have one or more listed positive and/or negative Design Quirks (see p . 193, SO and p . 204, TRO: Prototypes) . These quirks are 
  included to give each design a unique flavor . Use of these quirks is optional and should be agreed upon by all players before play begins .
  
  6
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  CONSTABLE PACIFICATION SUIT
  Over the past century, the Clans have grown 
  accustomed to putting down insurrections 
  among their civilian castes . Most Clans either 
  leave such distasteful pacification duties to their 
  paramilitary police or, in extreme cases, bring 
  down their full military might to neutralize the 
  threat before it can grow out of hand . However, 
  disturbances of the peace that require a heavier 
  touch than standard police forces can handle 
  often cause unacceptable levels of collateral 
  damage . Clans more interested in integrating 
  with their native Inner Sphere populations than 
  in subduing them sought a better solution .
  The Constable Pacification Suit fills that 
  need by offering more protection and firepower 
  than standard police equipment . Commissioned 
  by the Ghost Bear Dominion’s Watch to combat 
  the terrorist group Motstånd, the suit fills its 
  intended role well and offers the Watch several 
  options for dealing with such threats .
   
  CAPABILITIES
  Based on a lighter version of the Rogue 
  Bear battlesuit, the Constable provides great 
  mobility and strength, which allows officers 
  to reach trouble and clear wreckage or debris  
  faster than other available options . The suit 
  can be fitted with a wide variety of options for 
  both defensive and offensive deployment . The 
  dual grenade launchers can be used with gas, 
  smoke, or flash-bang grenades for nonlethal 
  takedown, or they can load standard grenades 
  for offensive punch . The Constable’s modular 
  weapon mount offers even more tactical 
  options, including increased firepower, anti-
  personnel weapons, electronic warfare, and 
  target detection .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Although initially developed for the 
  Dominion’s Watch, the Constable proved popu-
  lar enough that it became widely used by police 
  forces throughout the Clans’ occupation zones . 
  Some Clan militaries have also chosen to use 
  the suit in a military role by making extensive 
  use of its improved sensors and electronic war-
  fare capabilities .
  The Constable’s first deployment occurred 
  during the Hitomi Compound Siege in 3092 . A 
  single Point was dispatched to deal with over 
  100 heavily armed cultists, but the Constable 
  operators approached the situation with stan-
  dard battle armor tactics, which resulted in 
  unmitigated disaster . The Constables ultimately 
  needed to be extracted by conventional infan-
  try, which tainted the Dominion’s opinion of the 
  suit until the Watch saw other police and para-
  military forces use it with different tactics .
  Despite its preliminary stigma as being of 
  Dominion manufacture, the suit went on to see 
  service in the Draconis Combine with ISF agents 
  and the occasional Civilian Guidance Corps 
  emergency response team . In 3103, the ISF  
  investigated a potentially seditious religious 
  movement that had gone to ground in an 
  uninhabited part of Galtor III, and a squad 
  of Constables was able to sniff out their well-
  protected hiding place . The ISF agents em-
  ployed nonlethal pacification methods, but the 
  congregation fought back by collapsing the 
  only entrance into the hidden compound . The 
  Constables were able to quickly clear away the 
  rubble, eliminate all armed resistance, and 
  apprehend the leader of the movement .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Star Commander Declan: Formerly of the 
  Marik-Stewart Commonwealth, Declan was 
  a part of the Xiphos cavalry forces harassing 
  the Clan Wolf invaders . Captured and made a 
  bondsman, Declan eventually earned the right 
  to test into the Warrior caste . Succeeding with 
  two kills earned Declan his rank and a position 
  within a combat unit . Adjusting to life in the 
  Clan caste system is difficult for those forced 
  into the system and those tasked with enforc-
  ing the rules . Declan requested assignment to 
  a civil patrol unit in order to help both sides 
  adjust to the new circumstances . 
   
  Declan was assigned command of a Point 
  of Constable Pacification suits and tasked with 
  supervision of the worker housing sector for Irian 
  Technologies’ Washburn factory . When a new 
  group of workers began protesting the difficult 
  work schedule, the Elemental Star Commander 
  overseeing security ordered two Points of 
  Salamanders to end the protest . Disobeying an 
  order to stand down, Declan and his Pointmates 
  quickly dispersed the crowd with tear gas 
  grenades . When confronted, Declan challenged 
  his commander to Trial of Possession for 
  Command, stating that “if the Salamanders had 
  been free to carry out their orders, production 
  would have been put further behind schedule .” 
  Reloaded with explosive grenades and a light 
  machine gun, Declan used his battlesuit’s speed 
  to evade and eventually kill his commander .
  
  7
  CONSTABLE PACIFICATION SUIT
  Type: Constable
  Manufacturer: BA Facility Gamma
   
  Primary Factory: Mannedorf
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-E
  Tech Base: Clan
  Chassis Type: Humanoid
  Weight Class: Light
  Maximum Weight: 750 kg
  Battle Value: 
   
  25 [ECM]
   
  28 [LMG]
   
  35 [SRM]
   
  25 [Sensor]
   
  24 [TAG]
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: Yes/Yes/Yes/No
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to Maintain .
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  150 kg
  Motive System:  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  3 
   
  60 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  3 
   
  75 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  Battle Claw 
   
  15 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  Battle Claw 
   
  15 kg
  Armor: 
  Standard 
   
  125 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  5 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) 
  Mass
  Heavy Grenade Launcher (40) 
  RA 
  1 
  105 kg
  Cutting Torch 
  RA 
  1 
  5 kg
  Heavy Grenade Launcher (40) 
  LA 
  1 
  105 kg
  Cutting Torch 
  LA 
  1 
  5 kg
  Modular Weapon Mount 
  Body 
  1 (2) 
  10 kg
   
  ECM Suite 
  — 
  1 
  75 kg
   
  Light Machine Gun (50) 
  — 
  1 
  75 kg
   
  SRM 1 (4 shots) 
  — 
  2 
  75 kg
   
  Improved Sensors 
  — 
  1 
  45 kg
   
  Light TAG (60) 
  — 
  1 
  35 kg
  
  8
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  SEA FOX AMPHIBIOUS ARMOR
  It was an almost prescient decision for the 
  AFFS to focus for so long on defensive matters, 
  considering the invasions it has suffered in re-
  cent years . The Sea Fox amphibious battle armor 
  is a product of that defense doctrine, and in its 
  limited role it is among the finest specimens of 
  warfighting technology in the Inner Sphere . Its 
  specialized nature makes it ill-suited for general 
  deployment, but many Sea Fox platoons oper-
  ate as part of march militias and units detached 
  to local command .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Sea Fox is an ambush fighter, though 
  it functions very well as an infiltrator, espe-
  cially in urban areas with access to large water-
  ways . Stealthy, quiet, and fast as a snake under 
  the water, the sight of a Sea Fox rising from 
  the waves has been the last sight of many a 
  Combine and Confederation logistics worker in 
  the last two years .
  DEPLOYMENT
  When the Sixteenth Galedon Regulars at-
  tacked McGehee in 3144, the Fourth Robinson 
  Strikers were ready for them . Though the Strikers 
  would evacuate the world, they did heavy dam-
  age to the Sixteenth through a series of coordinat-
  ed strikes and careful defensive strategies, many 
  of them using the Sea Fox platoons attached to 
  the light combat team . Few Sea Fox platoons can 
  claim the battle honors of the 302nd Amphibious 
  Platoon, also known as the Red Tridents .
  During a skirmish near the city of Tonia, 
  one of the Strikers’ battalion command posts 
  was overrun and the command staff captured . 
  The Sixteenth immediately sent the cap-
  tives back for interrogation, but to get to the 
  Combine landing zone the column would have 
  to cross the Davis River . The Red Tridents were 
  tapped to extract the battalion staff before they 
  could be interrogated . Using confiscated hydro-
  foils, the Tridents moved downriver until they 
  were a kilometer above the crossing . Since the 
  AFFS had blown the bridges crossing the Davis, 
  the Galedon Regulars were forced to use three 
  boats—one prisoner transport and two skiffs 
  full of infantrymen for escort . Combine ’Mechs 
  waited on either side of the river as escort .
  When the three boats were a little more 
  than halfway across the river the Tridents at-
  tacked . The first notice the Combine attack-
  ers had were Sea Fox battlesuits rising just far 
  enough from the water on a series of sandbars 
  to fire their machine guns before disappearing . 
  The two escort skiffs were destroyed by short-
  range missile fire, and the captured officers 
  were able to gain control of their boat with the 
  Sea Foxes’ help . The ’Mechs, too far away to fire 
  accurately at the stealthy Sea Foxes, tried to 
  sink the boat but the river current helped the 
  staff escape to be evacuated with the rest of the 
  Fourth a short time later .
  Ryuken-roku captured a number of Sea Fox 
  suits on Rowe and have put them into service . 
  These suits have largely been used to counter 
  Davion riverine combat units, but from the 
  level of training being maintained, it appears 
  the Ryuken intend to field the Sea Foxes as of-
  fensive units as well . The officer in charge, Chu-i 
  Harold Mangon, has extensive experience with 
  waterborne combat, having previously com-
  manded a detachment of hydrofoil attack craft 
  on Gandy’s Luck . There are indications that the 
  DCMS intends to contract with Clan Sea Fox, 
  which also operates the eponymous battle 
  armor, for maintenance and supplies—which 
  the Foxes are sure to offer .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Chu-i Etsuo Nakamura: Chu-i Nakamura was 
  dispatched by the Ryuken-roku to Waunakee on 
  a seek-and-destroy mission . Spies had learned 
  that the Federated Suns had a secret base ac-
  cessible only via the shallows off the coast of 
  Madisonia . Nakamura led a Sea Fox squad into 
  the frigid seas . Two sleepless nights of search-
  ing located the disguised entrance . Nakamura’s 
  squad cut through the armored door, then did 
  the same to the submarines in the bays . They 
  sabotaged the lone exit on their way out, trap-
  ping the enemy within .
  Captain Lawrence “Lefty” McGraw: Captain 
  McGraw is a member of the Rabid Foxes sent 
  to evacuate members of Verde’s ruling family 
  left behind in earlier haste . Bodies swinging 
  from a makeshift scaffold before the Douglass 
  estate changed his mission . McGraw donned a 
  Sea Fox battlesuit, swam up the Vega River, and 
  concealed himself in the river flora to await 
  his moment . When Tai-sa Cicero Shostakovich 
  strode onto the veranda for his evening tea, 
  McGraw greeted him with a hail of lead . 
  McGraw then slipped away in the gentle current 
  to begin a guerrilla campaign .
  
  9
  SEA FOX AMPHIBIOUS ARMOR
  Type: Sea Fox
  Manufacturer: General Motors
   
  Primary Factory: Salem
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-E
  Tech Base: Mixed Inner Sphere
  Chassis Type: Humanoid
  Weight Class: Light
  Maximum Weight: 750 kg
  Battle Value: 
   
  25
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: No/Yes*/Yes/Yes
  Notes: *Leg Attacks only possible on ’Mechs in Depth One or deeper water .  
  Features the following Design Quirks: Accurate Weapon (Light MG),  
  Non-Standard Parts .
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  100 kg
  Motive System:  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  3 
   
  30 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  1 
   
  0 kg
   
  UMU MP (C): 
  3 
   
  135 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  Armored Glove 
   
  0 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  Armored Glove 
   
  0 kg
  Armor: 
  Basic Stealth 
  3 
  275 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  5 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) Tonnage
  Cutting Torch 
  RA 
  1 
  5 kg
  SRM 1 (OS) 
  LA 
  2 
  50 kg
  Light Machine Gun (50) 
  Body 
  1 
  75 kg
  Extended Life Support 
  Body 
  1 
  25 kg
  Mechanical Jump Booster 
  — 
  — 
  50 kg
  
  10
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  The Spectre battlesuit was developed and 
  fielded by Protectorate Arms Conglomerate in 
  remarkably fast time . Basing their product on 
  plans for various other battlesuits allowed them 
  to leapfrog many of the initial development 
  obstacles . It has proliferated throughout the 
  Periphery, reaching the Protectorate’s Filtvelt 
  allies and the Raven Alliance in large numbers . 
  Mercenaries have spread the Spectre through-
  out the rest of the Periphery and Inner Sphere .
  CAPABILITIES 
  The Spectre got its name from the excel-
  lent Calderon Shield stealth armor that pro-
  tects it from enemy sensors, though the thin 
  shell fares poorly under fire . The Spectre cov-
  ers ground quickly, but its mechanical jump 
  booster is not a true replacement for regular 
  jump jets . Magnetic clamps adapted from the 
  Fa Shih battlesuit allow the Spectre to be car-
  ried into battle, but while its armament gives it 
  better combat ability than some early stealth 
  suits, it cannot stand up to larger battle armor 
  like the Elemental or Kanazuchi .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Convention holds large-scale engage-
  ments of the Spectre incredibly rare, though 
  the Calderon Protectorate does not always 
  subscribe to convention . When the Taurian-
  sponsored Clean Kill mercenaries landed co-
  vertly Diik in 3105, they evaded detection 
  while carrying out raids for months . Captain 
  Jere MalDonaldo of the Protectorate military 
  built a regiment out of Spectre battlesuits 
  available from the factory . Even though most 
  of the troopers were inexperienced, once the 
  mercenaries were discovered MalDonaldo 
  chose not to fade into the shadows and wait for 
  the Second Taurian Pride to arrive . Instead, he 
  deployed his troopers throughout the merce-
  nary base . On his signal, they began an assault 
  from cover, slaughtering the command staff 
  and much of the support staff in the first fusil-
  lade . As the base defenses reacted, MalDonaldo 
  was killed by a Locust, and the death of their 
  charismatic leader broke the ad hoc regiment . 
  Scores were killed by Clean Kill BattleMechs be-
  fore the Taurian Pride arrived . The mercenaries 
  were put to flight, but the Spectres were almost 
  completely wiped out .
  Many battlesuit mercenary units have 
  formed and disappeared this century . The 
  mercenary Magen David is one that has en-
  dured, primarily because it does not limit it-
  self to any one type of battlesuit . Instead, they 
  purchase across the market . Their Spectre 
  Company led the reconnaissance of Second 
  Try in advance of the Capellan incursion . 
  Captain Xena Fonzarelli personally destroyed 
  Messhorn’s power plant by disabling the safe-
  ty interlocks before shutting off the cooling 
  water . The resulting reactor explosion caught 
  her before she could escape . Elsewhere on 
  Second Try, Lieutenant Andromache de 
  Carbondale captured the planetary governor 
  in a brilliant infiltration of the capitol, escap-
  ing the city with her prisoner before the reac-
  tor went critical .
  Wolf’s Dragoons’ Gamma Regiment used 
  their Spectre squad in textbook fashion as 
  advance scouts on Mauckport in the recent 
  Combine invasion of the Federated Suns . The 
  planetary militia was so poorly equipped that 
  the squad captured most of the infantry com-
  plement before the rest of Gamma arrived on-
  world . The conquest was quick once Gamma 
  made planetfall, allowing the scouts to move 
  ahead to Mansfield to gather intelligence for 
  the next step of the invasion .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Section Leader Luciano Marconi: Section 
  Leader Marconi was training with his squad in 
  their new Spectres at the Protectorate Arms fac-
  tory on Diik in June 3149 when a lance of the 
  Lying Tongue Company of the Abominari pirate 
  band attacked . The pirates dropped just outside 
  the assembly building, evading most of the de-
  fensive emplacements . Marconi never gave a 
  second thought to ordering his troops to attack . 
  It was a squad of Spectres against a lance of 
  light ’Mechs . Normally such a matchup would 
  be lopsided in the extreme, but the poorly-
  maintained ’Mechs had difficulty targeting the 
  stealthy battlesuits . First one, then another, of 
  the raiders went down with severed legs . The 
  other pair wasted little time in fleeing, believing 
  a full company of troopers was hidden in the 
  factory environs . Praise for Marconi came too 
  late, though, as he died when the second ’Mech 
  his squad downed landed atop him .
  SPECTRE STEALTH BATTLE ARMOR
  
  11
  Type: Spectre
  Manufacturer: Protectorate Arms Conglomerate
   
  Primary Factory: Diik
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-E
  Tech Base: Inner Sphere
  Chassis Type: Humanoid
  Weight Class: Light
  Maximum Weight: 750 kg
  Battle Value: 
   
  38
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: Yes/Yes/Yes/No
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved Communications .
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  100 kg
  Motive System:  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  4 
   
  60 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  1 
   
  0 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  Battle Claw (Vibro)  
  50 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  None 
   
  0 kg
  Armor: 
  Improved Stealth 5 
  360 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  6 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) Tonnage
  David Light Gauss Rifle (20) 
  LA 
  1 
  100 kg
  Magnetic Clamps 
  Body 
  2 
  30 kg
  Mechanical Jump Booster 
  — 
  — 
  50 kg
  SPECTRE STEALTH BATTLE ARMOR
  
  12
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  GRAY DEATH INFILTRATOR SUIT
  The long overdue replacement for the 
  Infiltrator Mk I, the Gray Death Infiltrator Suit is 
  a capable scout and skirmisher . Nicknamed the 
  Quokka, the suit is commonly found perform-
  ing airborne assaults and deep penetration 
  raids via orbital drop .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Gray Death Infiltrator suit retains 
  the stealthiness of the Waddle, but thanks to 
  its improved armor and larger chassis it pos-
  sesses greater performance . High mobility 
  and a modular payload allow the Gray Death 
  Infiltrator to fulfill a wider range of roles, in-
  cluding frontline combat . The use of a para-
  foil—copied from the Infiltrator Mk . II—allows 
  for more precise aerial drops .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The first deployment of Gray Death 
  Infiltrator suits was at the behest of Defiance 
  Industries . Embarrassed by the long criminal 
  use of Gray Death-series battlesuits, the manu-
  facturer lobbied for their latest product to end 
  the blight on their brand . The Thirty-second 
  Lyran Guards sent a company of battle armor 
  and transports to Australia, acting upon intel-
  ligence that a repeat of the infamous Briggs 
  Armored Car robbery was being planned . The 
  notorious Walker Gang, led by Billy and Paul 
  Walker, were known to possess a mix of Gray 
  Death suits, making them a priority target . 
  Hauptmann Johann Sadleir covertly deployed 
  a platoon of Infiltrator Suits along the armored 
  car’s route, setting up a series of ambush points .
  A trio of Walker Gang Gray Death 
  Standards backed by two Scouts sprung 
  their own ambush from the back of a heavy 
  hauler, but before they could force entry into 
  the armored car the nearest squad of Guards 
  struck . With one Scout destroyed and the 
  other fleeing, the remaining would-be rob-
  bers hunkered down, barely able to detect 
  their attackers . Assigning one squad to hunt 
  down Paul Walker’s suit, Hauptmann Sadleir 
  quickly moved his remaining troops to sur-
  round the three Standards, sniping at them 
  when the command to surrender was ignored . 
  The weight of numbers soon told; five min-
  utes later the firefight was over, allowing the 
  untouched Knox Armored Car to resume its 
  deliveries . Lauded by his family-owned media, 
  Hauptmann Sadleir’s company went on to sim-
  ilarly defeat numerous criminal gangs, much 
  to the satisfaction of Defiance’s public rela-
  tions department .
  A more conventional deployment found 
  the Infiltrator Suit pitted against a far more dan-
  gerous foe when the LCAF loaned units to the 
  Republic to assist against the encroachment of 
  the Jade Falcons . Troops from the Tenth Lyran 
  Regulars were required to perform a risky air-
  drop straight onto a Falcon strongpoint on 
  Glengarry . A mix of Ironholds and solahma in-
  fantry were occupying a factory complex in the 
  port of Ipswich, blocking a retreat by a lance 
  of Regulars ’Mechs . The Infiltrator suits landed 
  on the main factory roof and proceeded to 
  spread through the complex . The Falcon in-
  fantry rapidly fell when encountered, but the 
  Ironholds proved harder targets . Where pos-
  sible, the Regulars designated them for guided 
  Arrow IV artillery strikes, but all too often they 
  were forced to use their mobility to isolate an 
  Ironhold and assault en masse . The trapped 
  ’Mechs were able to bypass the complex, but 
  the cost was high . Only seven Infiltrator Suits 
  survived out of two platoons .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  First Leutnant William Compher: First 
  Leutnant Compher was part of a special 
  forces battalion training on Urjala when the 
  local government attempted to join Warlord 
  Diego Widmer’s breakaway Buena Collective . 
  Compher’s squad of Infiltrators was tasked 
  with capturing the planetary governor while 
  the rest of the capital was secured . Entering 
  under cover of darkness, the squad avoided 
  some infantry patrols, quickly eliminating the 
  rest with their Firedrake Needlers . The squad 
  captured the Governor and forced the surrender 
  of the rogue government
  
  13
  GRAY DEATH INFILTRATOR SUIT
  Type: GD Infiltrator
  Manufacturer: Defiance Industries
   
  Primary Factory: Furillo
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-E
  Tech Base: Inner Sphere
  Chassis Type: Humanoid
  Weight Class: Medium
  Maximum Weight: 1,000 kg
  Battle Value: 
   
  42 [Firedrake]
   
  39 [TAG]
   
  40 [Sensor]
   
  39 [Remote Sensors]
   
  45 [Mines]
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: Yes/Yes/Yes/No
  Notes: None .
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  175 kg
  Motive System:  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  3 
   
  80 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  3 
   
  150 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  Basic Manipulator  
  0 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  Basic Manipulator  
  0 kg
  Armor: 
  Basic Stealth 
  3 
  385 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  7 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) Tonnage
  David Light Gauss Rifle (15) 
  RA 
  1 
  100 kg
  Modular Weapon Mount 
  LA 
  1 (2) 
  10 kg
   
  Firedrake Support Needler (30) 
  — 
  1 
  50 kg
   
  Light TAG (60) 
  — 
  1 
  35 kg
   
  Improved Sensors 
  — 
  1 
  65 kg
   
  Remote Sensor Dispenser (6) 
  — 
  1 
  40 kg
   
  Mine Dispenser (2) 
  — 
  1 
  50 kg
  Parafoil 
  Body 
  1 
  35 kg
  
  14
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  LEONIDAS BATTLE ARMOR
  The Leonidas battle armor was developed 
  at the turn of the century to fill a gap in Oriente’s 
  military capabilities caused by a scarcity of the 
  Achileus stealth suit . It proved more than ad-
  equate to replace the older suit and was soon 
  exported widely across the Inner Sphere and 
  even nearby Periphery realms . The successes 
  achieved by soldiers armed with the Leonidas 
  suit are a testimony to its value as well as a 
  warning about neglecting proper reconnais-
  sance and screening elements .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Leonidas suit is ideal for battlefield 
  missions such as positional infiltration, am-
  bush, artillery spotting, and counterinsurgen-
  cy patrol . The modular weapons mount allows 
  the battlesuit to readily switch between sup-
  port, scouting, and attack roles for maximum 
  tactical flexibility .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Leonidas suit is deployed extensively 
  by FWLM forces . Decades of exports to the mer-
  cenary market, the Capellan Confederation, the 
  Magistracy, and even the Marian Hegemony 
  provided a strong production base for the suit . 
  Once the League was reformed production was 
  largely, but not entirely, rerouted to equipping 
  Oriente’s fellow provinces . Given the suit’s ca-
  pabilities, they are frequently reserved for more 
  experienced and better-trained infantry soldiers .
  One particularly successful use of the suit 
  was in early December 3142, during the Fourth 
  Battle of Tamarind . One week prior to the final 
  FWLM assault Duke Fontaine Marik established 
  a volunteer platoon to infiltrate his former capi-
  tal, Zanzibar . Calling themselves the Hombres 
  Locos after a Gibraltan street gang, the platoon 
  snuck through the ’Mech patrols around the 
  suburbs of Zanzibar and stole into the city in-
  terior under the cover of rubble . Native urban 
  guerrillas provided the Hombres with help evad-
  ing infantry patrols and locating a key com-
  mand post of the Eleventh Lyran Guards .
  H-Hour for the assault on Zanzibar came 
  before the dawn, and the Hombres assaulted 
  the command post mere minutes before . A 
  number of the suits had been smuggled into 
  a nearby building from the sewers below, and 
  blew out of the storefront as a complete sur-
  prise to the defenders . Lyran infantry proved 
  little match for the battlesuits, and in the space 
  of minutes the Hombres annihilated an infantry 
  regiment’s command staff .
  For several additional hours the Hombres 
  operated in Zanzibar, with TAG-equipped suits 
  designating targets for homing rounds fired by 
  Tamarind artillery . Sporadic clashes with con-
  ventional Lyran forces happened throughout, 
  but it was only during their exfiltration that the 
  Hombres were confronted by Lyran BattleMechs . 
  A lance of Guards ’Mechs, responding to an ad-
  vance by the First Tamarind Regulars, stumbled 
  over the platoon as they were making their way 
  out of a northern suburb . The Hombres com-
  mander and her first squad had enough warn-
  ing to set up an ambush, swarming and damag-
  ing a couple of the ’Mechs and buying time for 
  the remainder of the unit to escape .
  A less successful example of the Leonidas 
  in action dates from 3133, during an attempt-
  ed Capellan infiltration on Styk a few months 
  after the Blackout . The Capellan DropShip was 
  tracked and the planetary militia mobilized in 
  time to intercept the force in the wilderness 
  outside the capital of Lorelei . Unsurprisingly, 
  the Leonidas fared poorly when the freedom 
  to choose when and where the battle took 
  place was denied . By aggressively maintaining 
  contact the Republic militia destroyed the en-
  tire infiltration force, including the platoon of 
  Leonidas suits .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sang-wei Lisir Danton: Then-Sao-wei Danton 
  commanded a squad of marines in the force 
  assigned to pacify the New Syrtis system’s 
  recharge station . This station was protected by 
  tough FedSuns troops . Danton’s squad infiltrat-
  ed not via the airlocks like her comrades, as she 
  knew the defenders would expect attackers at 
  those points . Instead, she breached the facility 
  at a maintenance port for the docking system . 
  This path would not have been passable to any 
  larger battlesuit . Danton waded through the 
  surprised defenders to the command center . 
  It was quick work to eliminate the unarmored 
  troops, since the better-prepared defenders were 
  stationed at the more obvious entry points . The 
  station commander surrendered in short order, 
  and Danton was quickly promoted .
  
  15
  LEONIDAS BATTLE ARMOR
  Type: Leonidas
  Manufacturer: Etna Foundries
   
  Primary Factory: Oriente
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-E
  Tech Base: Inner Sphere
  Chassis Type: Humanoid
  Weight Class: Medium
  Maximum Weight: 1,000 kg
  Battle Value: 
   
  36 (David)
   
  33 (MG)
   
  28 (Firedrake)
   
  25 (TAG)
   
  27 (Sensor)
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: Yes/Yes/Yes/Yes
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  175 kg
  Motive System:  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  3 
   
  80 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  0 
   
  0 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  None 
   
  0 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  Heavy Battle Claw  
  20 kg
  Armor: 
  Standard Stealth 4 
  360 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  6 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) Tonnage
  Modular Weapon Mount 
  RA 
  1 (1) 
  10 kg
   
  David Light Gauss Rifle (15) 
  — 
  1 
  100 kg
   
  Machine Gun (50) 
  — 
  1 
  100 kg
   
  Firedrake Support Needler (30) 
  — 
  1 
  50 kg
   
  Light TAG (60) 
  — 
  1 
  35 kg
   
  Improved Sensors 
  — 
  1 
  65 kg
  Anti-Personnel Weapon Mount 
  RA 
  1 
  5 kg
  Angel ECM Suite 
  Body 
  3 
  250 kg
  
  16
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  CUCHULAINN SUPPORT ARMOR
  Named after the greatest hero of Irish 
  mythology, the Cuchulainn Support Armor 
  was a joint project of Clan Wolf-in-Exile and 
  the Kell Hounds put into production before 
  the Blackout . Both parties expected Clan Jade 
  Falcon to step up its attacks on the Lyran 
  Commonwealth and hoped to buttress their 
  armored infantry with the new heavy suit . The 
  Cuchulainn came into service and stood at the 
  forefront of Lyran resistance to the subsequent 
  Clan invasions .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Cuchulainn is intended for direct 
  support of other battle armor and so mounts 
  strong armored protection and a severely lim-
  ited movement profile . It shines in coopera-
  tion with lighter units such as the Gray Death 
  armor series . Improved stealth armor gives the 
  Cuchulainn an advantage attacking enemy 
  forces at the edge of the engagement envelope, 
  while the lighter suits can swarm enemies that 
  attempt to close in .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Cuchulainn support armor was made avail-
  able for general mercenary purchase early on, 
  though Arc-Royal prioritized delivery to units 
  in Lyran employ . The Kell Hounds fielded a 
  large number of suits before the disaster on 
  Timkovichi, and Wolf’s Dragoons retain a siz-
  able force . The armor has been deployed by 
  favored units of the LCAF and is generally avail-
  able within Clan Wolf-in-Exile . Clan Wolf seized a 
  number of the suits during their surprise assault 
  on the Commonwealth in 3140 and fields them 
  in scattered Elemental Trinaries .
  Operation HAMMERFALL saw the inva-
  sion of Kosciusko in 3137, during which a force 
  of Fourth Royal Guards Cuchulainn suits sup-
  ported by Fenrir IIs took position in the ridge-
  line opposite a vital road tunnel leading to the 
  capital of Warsaw . When Tamarind militia forces 
  attempted to retreat through the tunnel the 
  Cuchulainns attacked them, drawing the mili-
  tia into an ambush by hidden Fenrir II assault 
  battle armor that completely annihilated the 
  enemy . The action has subsequently been stud-
  ied across the Inner Sphere as a textbook small 
  unit action .
  Less adept use of the Cuchulainn featured 
  in the defense of Tropicana in the Tatyana island 
  chain on Tharkad during the Jade Falcon inva-
  sion in 3143 . The Twentieth Arcturan Guards 
  used their brand new platoon of Cuchulainns 
  in the metropolis despite the limited mobility 
  of the suits . An attempted ambush of the Jade 
  Falcon vanguard entering the city turned into 
  a disaster when the Falcons brought up a Star 
  of assault ’Mechs . The Turkinas and other heav-
  ily armored units were able to wade through 
  the fire of Cuchulainns; even after the platoon 
  abandoned their detachable weapons packs 
  they lacked the speed to escape .
  Wolf’s Dragoons’ use of the suit during 
  the invasion of the Federated Suns brought 
  the Cuchulainn into action on the other 
  side of the Inner Sphere . On Mauckport the 
  Dragoons’ Cuchulainns reaped a bloody toll 
  on a Davion battle armor company supported 
  by Hauberk suits as it attempted to drive the 
  invaders out of the city of Camden . Their ER 
  medium pulse lasers were simply more pow-
  erful and accurate than the Hauberks’ LRMs, 
  a factor that decided the battle . The Davion 
  infantry were forced to retreat, and were soon 
  caught up by a sweeping Dragoon counterat-
  tack that forced their surrender .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Kommandant Jayson Vettel: The fourth of 
  his family to serve the Grand Dukes of Arc-
  Royal, Jayson commanded the battle armor 
  contingent in Old Connaught and was right 
  in the thick of things during the brutal fight 
  for the city . Intercepting a Falcon Elemental 
  headhunter Star while attempting to link 
  up with Martin Kell’s personal guard, Vettel 
  watched his troopers give their lives one by 
  one to prevent the enemy from reaching the 
  ducal palace . As the last man standing, Vettel 
  disabled the safety interlocks on his weapon 
  and deliberately overloaded it, taking three 
  Elementals out with him .
  Mourning Spear: An unknown Cuchulainn 
  trooper standing amongst their fallen comrades 
  while firing skyward after a retreating DropShip 
  has become a symbol of anti-Falcon resistance 
  across Donegal Province . Dubbed “Mourning 
  Spear” by the correspondent who took the 
  holopic, the image won the Chekswa Media 
  Pinnacle Award for 3148 .
  
  17
  CUCHULAINN SUPPORT ARMOR
  Type: Cuchulainn
  Manufacturer: Arc-Royal MechWorks, WC Site 2
   
  Primary Factory: Arc-Royal
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-E
  Tech Base: Clan
  Chassis Type: Humanoid
  Weight Class: Heavy
  Maximum Weight: 1,500 kg
  Battle Value:
   
  119
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: No/No/Yes/No
  Notes: May only move at 1 Ground MP while carrying any detach able weapon packs, and returns 
  to 2 MP when all detachable weapon packs are dropped .
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  400 kg
  Motive System:  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  1 (2) 
   
  80 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  0 
   
  0 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  Basic Manipulator  
  0 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  Basic Manipulator  
  0 kg
  Armor: 
  Improved Stealth 5 
  420 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  12 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) 
  Mass
  Detachable Weapon Pack
   
  ER Medium Pulse Laser (11) 
  LA 
  1 
  600 kg
  
  18
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  ZOU HEAVY BATTLE ARMOR
  The Zou (elephant) is part of the Combine’s 
  third generation of battle armor . Built to fulfill 
  the High Command’s request for a command-
  and-control unit to assist with strategic coor-
  dination, the Zou has been a success since its 
  debut in 3113 .
  CAPABILITIES 
  The Zou was intended as the next assault 
  suit for DCMS garrison forces, a companion to 
  older Kanazuchis . New armor fabrication made 
  the suit’s wearer more likely to survive beam as-
  saults, a welcome development for veterans of 
  the Second Combine-Dominion War .
  The Zou came into its own when C3 tech-
  nology was adapted for the suit, giving the 
  DCMS a heavier ground unit for commanders to 
  utilize in effective combined-arms operations . 
  The heavy armor plates give staying power; 
  when combined with a hardened observation 
  post, the Zou is impossible to dig out as it calls 
  down artillery and long-range counter fire . 
  DEPLOYMENT 
  The Zou was not widely deployed in 
  the DCMS until the 3130s, when the High 
  Command began preparations for the assault 
  on the Republic . With the Kanazuchi in limited 
  supply, there was a gaping need in the DCMS 
  infantry . Zous soon replaced all heavy battle 
  armor units in the Sword of Light and the New 
  Samarkand Regulars regiments . 
  Operating as support units for lighter 
  squads of Kishis, Zous are now a common sight 
  along the Davion border . Their C3 capabilities 
  made them essential during the assault on 
  Palmyra . The Seventh New Samarkand Regulars 
  used a squad of Zous as a central observation 
  post, anchoring their left flank as they moved 
  through the Yorkville Pass in pursuit of the Fifth 
  Ceti Hussars . The Fifth attempted to split off 
  two companies in order to flank their pursu-
  ers . A mixed company utilizing a squad of Zous, 
  Pegasus hovertanks, Avatar OmniMechs, and a 
  Tai-sho spotted the Fifth’s maneuver . 
  The Avatars raced ahead and dropped the 
  Zous amid several outcroppings, then pulled 
  back out of sensor range . The Hussars raced 
  past the infantry position and found them-
  selves the victim of highly accurate long-range 
  fire from the Avatars . The resultant confusion 
  gave the infantry an opportunity to hammer 
  the rear of the Hussars formation, downing a 
  Champion and blowing the leg off a retreating 
  Dart . The Regulars pressed their range advan-
  tage, turning the Hussars flanking attempt and 
  cutting down four more ’Mechs as the Davions 
  retreated to their main body .
  VARIANTS
  The original Zou, mounting a deadly but 
  power-hungry laser, remains a staple among 
  regimental commands assigned to low-com-
  bat areas . Zous with C3 integration are the most 
  popular version found in the DCMS’ more ac-
  tive combat units, its high cost not a factor—
  an unusual situation for the cost-conscious 
  Procurement Department . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sao-wei Thaman Nilyavich: As a battle armor 
  platoon commander in the First Liao Guards, 
  Sao-wei Nilyavich worked beside DCMS coun-
  terparts during the invasion of Ingress—part 
  of the operations leading up to the recent 
  Capellan-Combine joint invasion of Republic 
  space . It was while battling remnant AFFS de-
  fenders there that his squad’s Canopian-made 
  Amazons suffered significant damage when he 
  boldly requested an artillery strike close to his 
  own position . That act took out a heavy missile  
  platform, which spared the lives of a DCMS 
  OmniMech lance moving through the area, 
  and the Oni-suited infantry riding with them . 
  In recognition of Nilyavich’s selfless sacrifice 
  (two of his squadmates died in the strike, and 
  Nilyavich suffered partial blindness in one eye), 
  the Combine rewarded the First Guards with a 
  full company of Zou battlesuits, on the condition 
  that one be assigned to Nilyavich personally . 
  Nilyavich has already returned to active 
  duty as head of his new Zou squad, which in 
  turn has been paired with a lance of C3-enabled 
  Omnis to make the most of their abilities as a 
  headhunter group . Presently, both Nilyavich 
  and his headhunters are believed to be operat-
  ing on Liberty, hunting the remains of the plan-
  etary defense command .
  
  19
  ZOU HEAVY BATTLE ARMOR
  Type: Zou
  Manufacturer: Ishikawajima-Harima Battle Armor Industries
   
  Primary Factory: Luthien
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-E
  Tech Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Chassis Type: Humanoid
  Weight Class: Heavy
  Maximum Weight: 1,500 kg
  Battle Value:
   
  73 (Standard)
   
  56 (C3) 
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: No/No/Yes/No
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to Pilot, Sensor Ghosts .
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  300 kg
  Motive System:  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  2 
   
  80 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  0 
   
  0 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  None 
   
  0 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  Battle Claw 
   
  15 kg
  Armor: 
  Reflective 
  7 
  605 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  11 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) 
  Mass
  Standard
  Medium Laser (30) 
  RA 
  3 
  500 kg
  C3
  Medium Recoilless Rifle (20) 
  RA 
  2 
  250 kg
  BA C3 System 
  Body 
  1 
  250 kg
  
  20
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  FENRIR II ASSAULT BATTLE ARMOR
  Since its introduction twenty-six years ago, 
  the Fenrir II has become one of the most popu-
  lar suits on the market, virtually replacing its 
  predecessor . The original prioritized speed and 
  firepower over armor, a decision that made it 
  a hit with the rear echelon but had pilots call-
  ing it the TTV (Ticket to Valhalla) . While slightly 
  slower, the Fenrir II has roughly three times the 
  armor and—thanks to Clan weaponry—virtu-
  ally the same firepower . Its superb performance 
  during the Wolf and Falcon attacks on Hesperus 
  II silenced any naysayers . 
  CAPABILITIES
  The Fenrir II was allegedly developed due 
  to a bet Archon Adam Steiner lost to the duke of 
  Hesperus II, Vedet Brewer . As a result, Brewer’s 
  vision of a “monstrous wolf straight from the 
  nightmares of our ancestors,” became a real-
  ity . TharHes engineers put extra effort into the 
  battle armor’s form, giving it a menacing and 
  imposing visage .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Fenrir IIs served with distinction during 
  the nineteenth battle for Hesperus II . The Jade 
  Falcons’ initial thrust followed the Defiance 
  Highway (built during the Word of Blake occu-
  pation) from the Morningstar Spaceport to the 
  factory complex . The bulk of House Steiner’s 
  defenders met them at the Marsden Tunnel . 
  Three and a half kilometers above sea level and 
  surrounded by steep peaks, the tunnel formed 
  a natural chokepoint . The only bypass was a 
  narrow, winding service road that climbed the 
  peaks to Calipee Pass . Elements of the Hesperus 
  Planetary Militia—consisting largely of Fenrir 
  IIs and DI Schmitt tanks—defended the pass 
  against a Trinary of Jade Falcons from the 
  Raptor Keshik .
  While the tanks established a defensive 
  line at the pass, Hauptmann Wagner led one 
  company of battle armor to harass the Jade 
  Falcons as they made the treacherous ascent . 
  A harsh sandstorm created near whiteout con-
  ditions and considerably slowed the Clan ad-
  vance . Using the ridgeline to hide their move-
  ment, Wagner’s force ambushed the Clanners 
  three kilometers from the pass and damaged 
  several ’Mechs in their opening volley . Before 
  the Falcons could return fire, the Fenrir IIs with-
  drew into the dead zone behind the ridgeline . 
  A Shadow Cat II leapt to the top of the ridge, but 
  landed badly and tumbled to the service road, 
  killing its MechWarrior .
  Wagner’s team retreated along the ridge-
  line, coming to the top long enough to fire a 
  volley at the Jade Falcons and then dropping 
  into hiding . After four exchanges, Wagner’s 
  group had lost two battlesuits and inflicted 
  moderate damage on half the Jade Falcon 
  ’Mechs . About one and half kilometers from the 
  defensive line, the terrain dropped more than 
  a dozen meters . Suspecting that the Falcons 
  would attempt to gain the ridgeline there, 
  Wagner pulled his troops back and waited . The 
  roar of jump jets soon confirmed his hunch as a 
  Summoner bounded to the saddle . The ensuing 
  fight was swift and fierce . When it was over, the 
  Summoner was a smoking ruin and Wagner had 
  lost a third of his force . 
  Fighting the Summoner gave the Jade 
  Falcons time to advance unmolested, and 
  when Wagner next sighted them, they were 
  already engaging the Militia’s tanks . Wagner 
  charged in with his remaining Fenrir IIs, catch-
  ing the Clan ’Mechs in crossfire . A Flamberge 
  and a Timber Wolf turned and engaged the 
  Fenrir IIs . The Militia ultimately destroyed or 
  disabled the entire Trinary while suffering 
  thirty-seven percent casualties—mostly 
  among Wagner’s company . The Third Royal 
  Guards intentionally failed to hold the Marsden 
  Tunnel, and the Falcon advance continued as 
  the Lyran units fled the planet .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Captain Gennady “Sniper” Severin: Captain 
  Severin commands Odin’s Fury, an elite First 
  Davion Guards battlesuit company . On New 
  Canton in January 3146, the Fury raided 
  multiple Home Guard supply depots . Severin 
  earned his nickname by delivering two pin-
  point laser shots to a Raven II’s cockpit, killing 
  the MechWarrior . When Severin was offered the 
  ’Mech as his own, he responded, “Why in holy 
  hell would I want to drive that thing when a 
  Fenrir can take it down so easily?
  
  21
  FENRIR II ASSAULT BATTLE ARMOR
  Type: Fenrir II
  Manufacturer: TharHes Industries
   
  Primary Factory: Tharkad
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-E
  Tech Base: Inner Sphere
  Chassis Type: Quad
  Weight Class: Assault
  Maximum Weight: 2,000 kg
  Battle Value:
   
  88 [ML]
   
  81 [MRR]
   
  89 [LRM]
   
  90 [SRM]
   
  66 [AI]
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: No/No/No/No
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Distracting .
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  550 kg
  Motive System:  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  3 
   
  160 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  0 
   
  0 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  NA 
   
  0 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  NA 
   
  0 kg
  Armor: 
  Advanced 
  5 
  680 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  17 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) 
  Mass
  Modular Turret Mount 
  Body 
  2 (6) 
  110 kg
   
  Medium Laser (30) 
  — 
  3 
  500 kg
   
  2 Medium
   
  Recoilless Rifles (20 x2) 
  — 
  4 
  500 kg
   
  LRM 4 (10 Shots) (C) 
  — 
  6 
  473 kg
   
  SRM 5 (6 Shots) (C) 
  — 
  5 
  475 kg
   
  2 Bearhunter Superheavy AC (20 x2) (C),
   
  2 Machine Guns (50 x2) 
  — 
  6 
  500 kg
  
  22
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  FUSILIER BATTLE ARMOR
  The Fusilier battle armor is a prime ex-
  ample of that most military of boondoggles, 
  the product that meets no glaring demand . 
  Introduced in the early 3120s, it was too heavy 
  and too slow but the AFFS Department of the 
  Quartermaster purchased it anyway . General 
  Motors produced it for a little more than a de-
  cade before finding an attractive upgrade op-
  tion, but the Fusilier remains an odd duck in 
  AFFS battle armor battalions .
  CAPABILITIES
  As a heavy combat suit the Fusilier is in-
  tended to stand in the line of battle with other 
  prominent AFFS battlesuits like the Grenadier 
  and the Hauberk, but where those armors have 
  distinguishing characteristics, the Fusilier has 
  none . It’s a bastardized weapon, incorporating 
  parts from the Grenadier and the Sea Fox, but 
  its construction is solid and its performance, 
  if not flashy, is even more solid . The upgrade, 
  deployed after the Blackout, trades the jump 
  booster and Magshot for a plasma rifle and re-
  flective armor .
  DEPLOYMENT
  A company of Fusiliers was on Demeter, 
  training with the planetary militia, when Warrior 
  House Ijori and the Third Tikonov Guards at-
  tacked in 3144 . Though the militia survived the 
  initial assault and went to ground, the Fusiliers 
  were too heavy and too slow to be useful to a 
  guerrilla campaign, so they remained behind 
  to protect the militia base at Dormant . Soon 
  a task group from the Tikonov Guards arrived 
  and demanded the fort’s surrender . Hoping to 
  give the militia more time to escape and estab-
  lish wilderness strong points, Captain Edgar 
  Provenance refused .
  Led by a pair of Gùn OmniMechs and 
  supported by two companies of infantry, the 
  Capellans attacked . The fort’s batteries succeed-
  ed in destroying all three of the CCAF’s support-
  ing Predator tank destroyers before they could 
  close, but the Gùns were too fast and slipped 
  over the fort’s walls . One, a Gùn A, destroyed 
  the turrets from behind, while the other, a Gùn 
  Prime, stalked the infantrymen inside the fort’s 
  walls . Captain Provenance’s men had spent their 
  time wisely, however, and were ready .
  Attacking from cover, one platoon of 
  Fusiliers slaughtered nearly a full company 
  of Liao infantry as they entered the fort . The 
  other two platoons played cat and mouse 
  with the Liao ’Mechs, firing their Magshots 
  but doing little damage . A lucky hit took out 
  the PPC of the Gùn A, but it had already killed 
  more than a squad of troopers . The arrival of 
  the rest of the infantry and Liao VTOLs sealed 
  the Fusiliers’ fate, but they had done their job . 
  The militia’s insurgency built a sound founda-
  tion during the lull .
  Older-model Fusiliers are often preferred 
  by Capellan March Militia units because of the 
  resilience of their stealth armor over the fragile 
  reflective armor, as proven by a raid conducted 
  by a detachment of the New Syrtis CMM in 
  3139 . Striking at a training site on Nihal, the 
  CMM detachment—two squads of Fusiliers rid-
  ing captured Capellan Shun Transport VTOLs—
  was composed of half advanced, half original 
  suits . When the team came under fire while 
  hiding in a building, the advanced Fusiliers’ 
  battlesuits crumpled beneath falling building 
  spars and damage suffered in the building’s 
  collapse . The second squad, with less advanced 
  but sturdier armor, was able to accomplish its 
  mission and escape .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Perceval’s Dragoons: The Dragoons are 
  three squads of upgraded Fusilier battlesuits 
  in a light strike company known as Perceval’s 
  Knights, as part of Operation PERCEVAL . Each 
  lance within the company consisted of a Fusilier 
  squad, a Prey Seeker, a JI2A1 Attack APC, and a 
  Cavalry Infiltrator . Each lance trained together, 
  but whenever it deployed, the whole company 
  attacked as one . The Prey Seekers primarily 
  carved up the heavily-armored units the DCMS 
  favors . This left the main assault to the Fusiliers, 
  while the VTOLs and APCs provided distracting 
  harassment feints . 
   
  Frequently air-dropped from the Cavalry, 
  the Fusiliers wrought havoc on enemy out-
  posts and headquarters . Most often they 
  encountered Zou battle armor, whose power-
  ful medium lasers faltered against the Fusiliers’ 
  reflective armor . While two squads of Fusiliers 
  tackled the enemy defenses, the third squad 
  scavenged enemy headquarters intelligence . 
  On two separate occasions, the JI2A1s were 
  required for a hot extraction with the Fusiliers 
  wildly firing at their attackers from the open 
  cargo bay as the APCs fled .
   
  The success of the Knights has garnered 
  the attention of more than a few generals . 
  Assuming no weaknesses are found during 
  further combat, these strategies will likely feature 
  heavily in the plans of the AFFS as they fight to 
  reclaim the nation from its enemies .
  
  23
  FUSILIER BATTLE ARMOR
  Type: Fusilier
  Manufacturer: GM
   
  Primary Factory: Salem
  Equipment Rating (Standard): X-X-X-D
  Equipment Rating (Upgrade): X-X-X-E
  Tech Base (Standard): Inner Sphere
  Tech Base (Upgrade): Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Chassis Type: Humanoid
  Weight Class: Assault
  Maximum Weight: 2,000 kg
  Battle Value: 
   
  67 (Standard)
   
  73 (Upgrade)
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: No/No/No/Yes
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Accurate Weapon (Light MG) .
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  550 kg
  Motive System (Standard):  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  1 
   
  0 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  2 
   
  250 kg
  Motive System (Upgrade): 
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  1 
   
  0 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  1 
   
  250 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  None 
   
  0 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  Armored Glove 
   
  0 kg
  Armor (Standard): 
  Basic Stealth 
  3 
  825 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  15 + 1 (Trooper)
  Armor (Upgrade): 
  Reflective 
  7 
  825 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  15 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) Tonnage
  Standard
  Magshot Gauss Rifle (10) 
  RA 
  3 
  175 kg
  Light Machine Gun (50) 
  Body 
  1 
  75 kg
  Jump Booster 
  Body 
  2 
  125 kg
  Upgrade
  Plasma Rifle (20) 
  RA 
  2 
  300 kg
  Light Machine Gun (50) 
  Body 
  1 
  75 kg
  
  24
  BATTLE 
  ARMOR
  XIPHOS ASSAULT BATTLE ARMOR
  The Xiphos (named after an ancient type 
  of Greek double-edged sword) was developed 
  by the Marik-Stewart Commonwealth to grant 
  their infantry troops advanced protection 
  against devastating artillery attacks .
  CAPABILITIES
  The main advantage of the Xiphos is its 
  armor, mitigating one of the greatest weakness-
  es of battle armor: vulnerability to artillery fire .
  With configurations ranging from raw fire-
  power to heat sensors, the Xiphos rarely needs 
  any outside assistance . The high powered com-
  munications system also allows commanders 
  to keep communications with their troops run-
  ning, even when electronic countermeasures 
  are deployed against them .
  DEPLOYMENT
  During a raid against Laureles in 3118 pi-
  rates jammed communications in and around 
  the city of Rork . Unable to communicate, the 
  planetary militia had contingency plans put 
  together a for an uncoordinated defense . 
  Having recently received a shipment of eight 
  Xiphos, they were surprised when their new 
  battlesuits were able to communicate inside 
  the ECM field . The militia quickly split their 
  Xiphos troops into pairs to accompany the 
  search parties . Not expecting a coordinated 
  defense, the pirates were slaughtered .
  In 3125 elements of the Eighth Free 
  Worlds Legionnaires traveled through the 
  Oriente Protectorate to assault the Capellan 
  Confederation on Corey—painted in the 
  colors of the Oriente Protectorate . Details 
  about this attack have only recently become 
  public knowledge, when the files were ac-
  cidentally released during the Marik-Stewart 
  Commonwealth’s dissolution . The Legionnaires 
  attacked Hollis Incorporated’s facilities, em-
  ploying rapid air drops . While ’Mechs dropped 
  around the facilities, battle armor, led by a pla-
  toon of Xiphoses, was dropped directly inside . 
  They quickly dispatched the defenders and 
  took tons of Catapult spare parts with them 
  when they disengaged and fled the system .
  The Xiphos was extensively used during 
  the invasion of the former Free Worlds League . 
  The Marik-Stewart Commonwealth used them 
  very successfully during the early months of 
  the invasion .
  Using the slow communication between 
  the different combat groups of the Wolves and 
  Lyrans to their advantage, the defenders em-
  ployed the same strategy over a long period of 
  time on multiple worlds . On Autumn Wind and 
  elsewhere, the defending troops used Cavalry 
  helicopters to transport Xiphoses a few hun-
  dred meters behind enemy lines and attack 
  their artillery support . With almost no time to 
  react, the Wolves bombarded the advancing 
  battle armors with missiles and direct fire artil-
  lery . By the time they realized that the Xiphoses 
  did not take the expected devastating damage, 
  it was already too late .
  On Washburn the Marik-Stewart 
  Commonwealth once more tried to use this 
  tactic, but with less success . The invaders 
  were prepared and had dozens of battle ar-
  mored troops in hiding behind their artillery 
  position, waiting for the eventual onslaught . 
  The defenders’ sudden appearance and arma-
  ment—lasers and inferno missiles—nullified 
  the advantages of the Xiphos’ reactive armor . 
  The Commonwealth troops were slaughtered 
  to the last man . The few Xiphoses not sent to 
  the front line fell back to the Irian Technologies 
  facilities, were they reinforced the defenses 
  and made their last stand .
  Recently the Wolf Empire has attacked 
  the Republic Remnant on Alhena . In what 
  seemed like a training exercise for newly mint-
  ed warriors, they copied the tactics used by the 
  Commonwealth during their invasion . Only the 
  lack of experience among the Wolf warriors pre-
  vented a major disaster for the Remnant .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Nova Commander Brent: The Wolf Empire 
  raided Alkes in January 3146, primarily to test 
  the skills of the new Novas in the Twenty-ninth 
  Garrison Cluster . It became a literal trial by fire . 
  The militia defenders, petrified by the unfound-
  ed rumors of atrocities being committed on 
  worlds conquered by the nascent Wolf Empire, 
  savaged the Nova with Inferno missiles . Half 
  the Nova’s OmniMechs were downed by the 
  intense heat, though some MechWarriors safely 
  ejected . The Elementals, however, suffered 75% 
  casualties . Only Brent’s quick-thinking saved his 
  fellow Elementals . He ordered the entire force 
  into the Monongasippi River, washing clean the 
  Inferno gel . The raid was aborted, but mercy 
  was in short supply when the Empire chose to 
  take the border world . Brent soon won a Trial 
  of Position to command the Nova, making him 
  the first Elemental in the Cluster to claim such 
  a post .
  
  25
  XIPHOS ASSAULT BATTLE ARMOR
  Type: Xiphos
  Manufacturer: Irian Technologies
   
  Primary Factory: Irian, Washburn
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-E
  Tech Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Chassis Type: Humanoid
  Weight Class: Assault
  Maximum Weight: 2,000 kg
  Battle Value:
   
  76 (Configuration A)
   
  69 (Configuration B)
   
  69 (Configuration C)
  Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: No/No/No/No
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved Communications .
  Equipment 
   
  Slots 
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  550 kg
  Motive System:  
   
   
  Ground MP:  
  2 
   
  160 kg
   
  Jump MP:  
  0 
   
  0 kg
  Manipulators:  
   
   
   
  Right Arm: 
  Basic Manipulator  
  0 kg
   
  Left Arm:  
  None 
   
  0 kg
  Armor: 
  Reactive 
  7 
  900 kg
   
  Armor Value:  
  15 + 1 (Trooper)
   
   
   
  Slots
  Weapons and Equipment 
  Location (Capacity) 
  Mass
  Modular Weapon Mount 
  RA 
  1 (2) 
  10 kg
   
  A) Light Recoilless Rifle (20) 
  — 
  2 
  175 kg
   
  B) SRM 1 (OS) 
  — 
  2 
  50 kg
   
  C) Heat Sensor 
  — 
  1 
  20 kg
  Modular Weapon Mount 
  LA 
  1 (3) 
  10 kg
   
  A) Magshot Gauss Rifle (10) 
  — 
  3 
  175 kg
   
  B) Plasma Rifle (20) 
  — 
  2 
  300 kg
   
  C) Heavy Flamer (10) 
  — 
  2 
  350 kg
  
  26
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  KRUGER COMBAT CAR
  Mass: 10 tons
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Power Plant: DAV 50 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph
  Armor: ProtecTech Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  2 Bright-Bloom Extended Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: Avalon Arms Company
   
  Primary Factories: New Avalon
  Communications System: Broadstar 
  Micro-Pulse
  Targeting and Tracking System: Broadstar 
  Pintel-Star
  It was quite a surprise to Davion militia 
  procurement officers when the Avalon Arms 
  Company offered for sale the Kruger Combat 
  Car in 3091 . Up to then, they had only seen 
  pictures and examples of the Kruger in military 
  museums—Krugers had fought during the Star 
  League and First Succession War eras . The new 
  Kruger built on the strengths of the original by 
  adding modern technology .
  CAPABILITIES
  Krugers are favored vehicles of scout 
  platoon commanders in urban environment 
  across the spinward half of the Inner Sphere 
  and nearby Periphery because of their excellent 
  communications and drive systems . Fast, well-
  armed enough for defense or sniping but lack-
  ing the armor to stand and fight, it reinforces for 
  junior officers the need to report information to 
  the rear—personally, if necessary .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Though Krugers are famed for their capa-
  bilities on paved roads, one Kruger made quite a 
  name for itself in the Harsefield Desert on Dahar 
  IV in early 3145 . Part of the armor contingent 
  of the Dahar Draconis March Militia, Corporal 
  Anderson Crowley, in his Kruger, was scouting 
  into the desert when he detected a small DCMS 
  reconnaissance force . Though Dahar IV hosted 
  both the DMM and the recuperating Fourth 
  Robinson Strikers, no one had noticed the small 
  Combine force land—except Crowley .
  Though he managed to keep from being 
  detected, Crowley knew he had to report back . 
  A radio broadcast would have been detected, 
  so he waited until night fell and then drove 100 
  kilometers back to a safe place to report . Aware 
  that no one else knew the Harsefield as well 
  as he did, Crowley ignored orders to withdraw 
  and returned each night to keep an eye on the 
  raiders’ position . For more than sixty hours he 
  repeated this maneuver—watch and sprint to 
  report—without sleep, until a company from 
  the Fourth Robinson arrived to drive the raid-
  ers off . He used his knowledge of the desert to 
  place the Strikers in a prime ambush location, 
  and during the battle moved around to the 
  DCMS’ rear to cut off their escape . He was cred-
  ited with killing two Raiden battlesuit troopers 
  single-handedly, despite his exhaustion .
  During the assault on New Demeter City on 
  Demeter in 3144 several Krugers gave excellent, 
  if ill-fated, service against Warrior House Ijori . 
  As the Ijoris and their Tikonov auxiliaries raced 
  into the city, the local militia commander threw 
  his Krugers out as scouts . Strong ECM and other 
  jamming made communications difficult, but 
  the Krugers’ ability to rapidly reverse out of dan-
  ger spots made them supreme couriers . Though 
  the city fell, most credit the Krugers’ scouting as a 
  factor in it holding out as long as it did .
  VARIANTS
  The original Kruger lacks the advanced 
  technology of the modern tank, with standard 
  armor and medium lasers . Avalon Arms offers it 
  for sale to users who lack the logistical diversity 
  to maintain the modern combat car .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Brevet Leftenant Leticia Herszmann: 
  Originally part of the Kell Hounds mercenary 
  force, Herszmann joined Julian Davion’s First 
  Davion Auxiliary just before the FedSuns leader 
  began his homeward journey from the Clan 
  front . The exact reasons for Herszmann’s depar-
  ture from the Hounds’ employ are unknown, 
  but she proved herself a capable scout on 
  numerous encounters since then, earning the 
  field rank of Brevet Leftenant while command-
  ing a mixed recon lance of ground vehicles and 
  VTOLs that she called “The Heralds .”
  Attached to Julian Davion ever since, 
  Herszmann’s Heralds played a significant role 
  in the 3147 recapture of New Syrtis, mostly by 
  aiding the Illician Lancers and Twelfth Vegan 
  Rangers . Unfortunately, in the course of the 
  heavy urban warfare that characterized that 
  three-month battle, only Herszmann and her 
  Kruger survived these recon missions . After 
  Capellan terrorists ravaged the planet again the 
  following year, Herszmann suffered a nervous 
  breakdown and became extremely withdrawn . 
  Her AFFS superiors were considering relieving 
  her from duty when the Capellans launched a 
  new assault the very next month . In the fight-
  ing near the capital city, she died ramming her 
  Kruger into a Ti Ts’ang that was trying to attack 
  Julian’s command lance . The suicide run crip-
  pled the enemy ’Mech, and possibly even saved 
  the Davion Prince’s life .
  
  27
  KRUGER COMBAT CAR
  Type: Kruger
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Tonnage: 10
  Battle Value: 429
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  1
  Engine:  
  50 
   
  2 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  7
   
  Flank MP:  
  11
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
   .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  69 
   
  3 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  16
   
  R/L Side 
  13/13
   
  Rear 
  14
   
  Turret 
  13
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Turret 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved 
  Communications, Power Reverse .
  
  28
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  THANG-TA APC
  Mass: 10 tons
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Power Plant: Magna 70 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 97 kph
  Maximum Speed: 151 kph
  Armor: Valiant Chainmail Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  2 Magna Mk IV Extended-Range  
   
  Small Lasers
  Manufacturer: Earthwerks-FWL, Incorporated
   
  Primary Factory: Tiber
  Communications System: Garret T21-C
  Targeting and Tracking System: Wasat 
  Watchdog W112
  Earthwerks quietly premiered the Thang-
  Ta before the Jihad . Simple and inexpensive 
  construction guaranteed it would become a 
  primary infantry carrier on the battlefields of 
  the sundered League after that conflict faded . 
  It took part in nearly every conflict involving the 
  splinter states until the League was reformed, 
  and it has continued to do so since Captain-
  General Jessica Marik oversaw the reformation .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Thang-Ta’s ferro-fibrous armor and in-
  creased speed compared to older APCs ensures 
  the infantry squad it carries arrives safely to the 
  battlefield . There are no creature comforts in 
  this vehicle, which aimed for practicality over 
  comfort . The full field of fire from the turret la-
  sers makes up slightly for their deficient range, 
  but only against lightly armored targets . Balky 
  linkages have plagued the turret; even weak 
  hits tend to freeze it in place, leaving the crew 
  only speed to rely on to survive .
  DEPLOYMENT
  When the Capellans counterattacked the 
  Anduriens in the Victoria War, the First Andurien 
  Rangers were overwhelmed and pushed off 
  Betelgeuse by Warrior House Imarra’s lightning 
  combined-arms assault . The Rangers retreated 
  to Sigma Mare, where their infantry had been 
  left to garrison, but House Imarra had not fin-
  ished with them .
  Imarra quickly claimed air superiority, keep-
  ing the Rangers and their DropShips grounded . A 
  combat drop of the entire Imarra force threw the 
  Rangers further into disarray . As the Anduriens 
  fought desperately to keep their DropShips from 
  being captured, the Rangers infantry regiment 
  was being rounded up from posts across the small 
  continent of Tropinado . A battalion of Thang-Tas 
  retrieved these troops from their deployments . 
  The repeated sorties brought the Thang-Tas under 
  considerable fire from the Imarra ’Mechs and 
  tanks, but the APCs were able to pierce enemy 
  lines time and again . The final breakthrough, 
  though, found the Imarras prepared . They tar-
  geted the APCs exclusively, despite punishing 
  covering fire by the rest of the Rangers . Speed 
  and thick armor were all that saved the troopers . 
  While eighty percent of the troopers made it to 
  the DropShips, only two platoons of the Thang-Ta 
  battalion lifted off Sigma Mare . The fighter am-
  bush en route to the Rangers’ JumpShips elimi-
  nated almost all of the troops the Thang-Tas had 
  sacrificed so much to save .
  Kallon Industries on Loyalty has been re-
  building the First Loyalty Defenders since the Wolf 
  invasion ended . When Mu Galaxy’s Nineteenth 
  Wolf Cavalry initiated a Trial of Possession for 
  Kallon’s production of June 3143, the Defenders 
  responded amazingly well . The First’s Thang-Tas 
  deployed troops to various hotspots . The infantry 
  was an annoyance at best, but they occupied the 
  attackers long enough for the rest of the First to 
  outmaneuver the Cavalry . The Mu warriors lost 
  their focus, and the battle degenerated into a 
  melee . A company of suicidally brave Thang-Ta 
  crews swept across the Cavalry’s lines and, de-
  spite their meager lasers, pushed the Cavalry into 
  retreat . The disgrace of being defeated by mere in-
  fantry transports led to two Stars of warriors being 
  consigned to the solahma .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Colonel Hubbard Hallowell: Colonel Hallowell 
  was promoted to command of the Protectorate 
  Militia Regiment on Franmalin on 12 August 
  3148, just two days before the Joyeux Corsaire 
  launched a heavy raid . The granary district 
  in Dante’s Hell was threatened with com-
  plete loss, as the pirates were making off with 
  every bit of grain . Hallowell’s complement was 
  poorly-equipped . He ordered his company of 
  Thang-Tas to charge into the pirates’ midst . 
  With their puny lasers blazing, the APCs did 
  just that, raising a terrible ruckus . They were 
  destroyed entirely by the contemptuous pirate 
  MechWarriors . However, Hallowell had ordered 
  his infantry not to ride in the APCs, but instead 
  to flank the enemy . He had them fire into the 
  very grain the people needed . Several gargan-
  tuan grain explosions later, the pirates fled in 
  disarray . Colonel Hallowell had won, but the 
  loss to the local agricultural industry bankrupted 
  six different farming collectives .
  
  29
  THANG-TA APC
  Type: Thang-Ta
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Tonnage: 10
  Battle Value: 241 
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  1
  Engine:  
  70 
   
  3
   
  Type:  
  Fusion 
   
  Cruise MP:  
  9
   
  Flank MP:  
  14
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
   .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  53 
   
  3
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  15
   
  R/L Side 
  10/10
   
  Rear 
  10
   
  Turret 
  8
   
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 ER Small Lasers 
  Turret 
  1
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  1
  
  30
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  MARTEN SCOUT VTOL
  Mass: 15 tons
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Power Plant: Tyron 100 ICE
  Cruising Speed: 140 kph
  Maximum Speed: 216 kph
  Armor: ProtecTech Light
  Armament: 
   
  1 Federated SuperStreak SRM 2 Launcher
  Manufacturer: Cal-Boeing of Dorwinion
   
  Primary Factories: Belladonna
  Communications System: Achernar Standard
  Targeting and Tracking System: IsBM Lantirn
  Though never sold in large enough num-
  bers to satisfy its manufacturer, the Marten has 
  spread across the Inner Sphere and Periphery 
  and gained a reputation as a reliable, if unloved, 
  combat helicopter . It provides journeyman ser-
  vice as a scout deployment and special forces 
  insertion vehicle, but struggles in the attack 
  and interdiction roles many militias try to force 
  it into .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Marten is fast, simple, and—with the 
  exception of its balky muffling system—easy 
  to maintain . It carries just enough firepower to 
  make its presence known, just enough infan-
  try transport space to make it useful, and just 
  enough sensor payload to make it worthwhile, 
  but it does none of those things any better than 
  many other VTOLs .
  DEPLOYMENT
  In active service for more than a century, 
  the Marten struggles to stand out, though the 
  spate of combat that erupted since the Blackout 
  has given it plentiful opportunity . Perhaps the 
  most noteworthy Marten action took place on 
  Diefenbaker in 3137 when a company of Taurian 
  mercenaries raided across the border .
  Protected by its own militia and a battal-
  ion of the Islamabad Periphery March Militia 
  that was rotating through, Diefenbaker looked 
  like easy pickings for a ’Mech company . While 
  the PMM ’Mech lance went out to meet the 
  mercenaries, a platoon of DMM Infiltrator Mk 
  II battlesuit troopers collaborated with a com-
  pany of Martens to attack the mercenaries’ 
  grounded DropShip . Each of the Martens lifted 
  a single battle armor infantryman, while the last 
  squad accompanied a platoon of Musketeer ho-
  vertanks . They skirted the battle site and made 
  their way to the landing zone .
  First, the Musketeers and lone squad pre-
  tended to be a much larger force and got the 
  DropShip firing on them . While they were dis-
  tracted the Martens swept across the LZ from 
  the other direction and placed the twelve 
  Infiltrators directly atop of the Union-class ship . 
  Unable to fire on their own hull, the DropShip 
  fell quickly once the battlesuits got inside . 
  Though two of the Martens were destroyed as 
  they cleared the LZ, the remainder participated 
  in the final attack on the mercenary ’Mechs, 
  using inferno-loaded SRMs to force the remain-
  ing seven ’Mechs to surrender .
  Not all commanders understand the 
  Marten’s limitations, however . During the fall of 
  Robinson in 3144 a DMM battalion commander 
  called on his Martens to extract an infantry com-
  pany cut off by a battalion of the Eighth Sword 
  of Light . Though the Martens’ CO demurred, the 
  major insisted, and the helicopters attempted 
  to thread the Sword of Light’s lines . Four out of 
  sixteen Martens were destroyed penetrating to 
  pick up the infantrymen, but none of them sur-
  vived the attempt to get out . All of the Martens 
  were brought down by concentrated fire, kill-
  ing both their pilots and the embarked infan-
  trymen . The AFFS inspector-general’s office had 
  been considering charges against the major, 
  but he was killed during the withdrawal .
  VARIANTS
  The infantry transport model of the Marten 
  sacrifices the short-range missile launcher and 
  ammunition for greater infantry lift capacity .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Captain Marquis Melville: In December of 
  3145, Julian Davion’s Task Force Navarre hit 
  Menkalinan . The raid was designed to clean 
  out the Capellan supply depots, raid munitions 
  manufacturers, and destroy local factories . If 
  accomplished, the raid would severely hinder 
  the defensive efforts of the Menkalinan Home 
  Guard units, implying an invasion was on its 
  way, and thus forcing the CCAF to react . The 
  simultaneous attacks caught the Capellans by 
  surprise, quickly accomplishing their mission . 
   
  During the return, a force of Home Guard 
  units ambushed a lance of Davion ‘Mechs . 
  Captain Melville and his lance of Martens were 
  quickly on scene, but by that point Leftenant 
  Morton Briggs’ Griffin was destroyed with 
  smoke pouring out of its cockpit . With a Gùn 
  Prime among the attacking forces, sending 
  jump troopers after Leftenant Briggs’ body 
  would be suicide . Captain Melville’s lance used 
  their ample supply of smoke munitions to 
  provide cover for the rest of the lance to escape 
  to their DropShips .  
  
  31
  MARTEN SCOUT VTOL
  Type: Marten
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Tonnage: 15
  Battle Value: 179
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Engine:  
  100 
   
  6
   
  Type:  
  ICE
   
  Cruise MP:  
  13
   
  Flank MP:  
  20
  Heat Sinks:  
  0 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor: 
  24 
   
  1 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  8
   
  R/L Side 
  5/5
   
  Rear 
  4
   
  Rotor 
  2
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  SRM 2 
  Front 
  1
  Ammo (SRM) 50 
  Body 
  1
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  1
  Remote Sensor Dispenser 
  Rear 
   .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Difficult to 
  Maintain .
  
  32
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  NACON ARMORED SCOUT
  Mass: 20 tons
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Power Plant: Starfire 180 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 108 kph
  Maximum Speed: 162 kph
  Armor: Compound Alpha Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  1 System 4 ATM-6 Launcher
   
  2 Series 34NC Light Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: Trellshire Heavy Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Sudeten
  Communications System: Basix 200
  Targeting and Tracking System: OptiSight 12
  In anticipation of the extensive resources 
  needed for Clan’s eventual desant into the 
  Republic of the Sphere, the Jade Falcons de-
  veloped the Nacon Armored Scout to augment 
  scout and recon Stars . Swift enough to keep 
  pace with all but the fastest of BattleMechs, the 
  Nacon falls in line with the Falcons’ combat phi-
  losophies by performing fast strikes while act-
  ing as an inexpensive alternative to sacrificing 
  hard-to-replace Jade Falcon BattleMechs and 
  their pilots .
  The Nacon was named for a Mayan war 
  god, though the average crew deems the offi-
  cial Clan designation a bit of a stretch consider-
  ing the armored scout’s limited offensive poten-
  tial . Regardless of its name, the Nacon performs 
  the job it was designed for, and it performs far 
  beyond Trellshire’s expectations .
   
  CAPABILITIES
  Light and fast, the Nacon is intended to lo-
  cate suitable enemy targets, score a few hits, and 
  then step aside to allow its BattleMech comple-
  ment to deliver the killing blows . The scout car 
  sports more armor than most vehicles in its 
  weight class, which lets its crew withstand all but 
  the most concentrated frontal assaults; however, 
  when a Nacon begs off to allow its BattleMech 
  partners to engage, its light rear armor often 
  presents problems . Nacons perform best in in-
  fantry screening or bait-and-switch roles .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Nacon Armored Scout remains largely 
  in use by Clans Jade Falcon and Sea Fox, al-
  though the Sea Foxes have sold a considerable 
  number to mercenary groups .
  Nacons saw effective action during the 
  Falcons’ desant into Republic Prefectures VIII 
  and IX . The securing of Chaffee saw the armored 
  scout utilized largely against militia groups 
  protesting the Falcons’ presence . However, the 
  battle for Skye in mid-3134 showed the Nacon’s 
  true worth . Battles in the outskirts of Weston 
  Heights put several Nacons at the forefront of 
  reconnaissance units attempting to flush out 
  Republic troops . Nacons were often sent out 
  as decoys to draw fire . Troops that took the 
  bait were pounced upon by heavier Falcons 
  forces, and those that didn’t found themselves 
  pummeled by the Nacons until heavier sup-
  port could arrive . Although many of the scout 
  cars were destroyed in the fighting, the Falcons 
  noted their contribution to the battle .
  While Nacons form an important part of 
  reconnaissance units fielded against non-Clan 
  opponents, Clan engagements tend to fall dif-
  ferently . A 3135 raid on Zoetermeer by the Third 
  Falcon Swoop Cluster pitted a Binary of light 
  ’Mechs and Nacons against a garrison Star from 
  the Twentieth Wolf Regulars . The Nacon drivers 
  assumed the Wolves would ignore them in favor 
  of ’Mech targets, but reality proved the opposite . 
  The Wolves chose to focus their weapons on the 
  armored scouts and took most of them out be-
  fore the Falcon ’Mechs could offer support .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Star Captain Andrei: Prior to the Jade Falcon 
  assault on Arc-Royal in 3146, Khan Malvina 
  Hazen declared the Wolves-in-Exile dezgra tar-
  gets unworthy of honorable combat . Instead 
  of facing the Wolves as equals on the battle-
  field, the Falcons planned to use hit-and-run 
  tactics in the initial waves . The Falcon Clusters’ 
  first strikes intended to send a Star or Binary of 
  Nacons ahead of the ’Mechs . The Nacons were 
  to locate an Exiled Wolf ’Mech, hit it hard, and 
  scatter, leaving the enemy ’Mechs with too 
  many targets to focus on . Then the sledgeham-
  mer of the Falcon ’Mechs would follow up the 
  scalpel of the Nacon assault and finish off 
  the opposition .
  For Star Captain Andrei of the Sixth Falcon 
  Striker Cluster, things did not go as planned . 
  His Binary was assigned to lead the Sixth’s 
  initial charges into the fray, but due to a land-
  ing hotly contested by Exiled Wolf aerospace, 
  Andrei’s Binary was forced to paradrop into 
  the middle of the battle moments before their 
  Union-C was destroyed above them . Most 
  of the Binary reached the ground safely, but 
  Andrei was forced to scatter after coming 
  under heavy fire from the advance elements 
  of the First Wolf Legion . Andrei survived the 
  initial engagement and was among those 
  warriors chosen to lead the initial thrusts into 
  the battle for Old Connaught .
  
  33
  NACON ARMORED SCOUT
  Type: Nacon
  Technology Base: Clan
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Tonnage: 20
  Battle Value: 690
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  2
  Engine:  
  180 
   
  5 .5
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  10
   
  Flank MP:  
  15
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  96 
   
  5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  44
   
  R/L Side 
  21/21
   
  Rear 
  10
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  ATM 6 
  Front 
  3 .5
  Ammo (ATM) 20 
  Body 
  2
  2 Light Machine Guns 
  Front 
   .5
  Ammo (Light MG) 100 
  Body 
   .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to 
  Maintain .
  
  34
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  WINTERHAWK APC
  Mass: 20 tons
  Movement Type: Hover
  Power Plant: ScolTek 115 Fuel Cell
  Cruising Speed: 108 kph
  Maximum Speed: 162 kph
  Armor: ArcShield V
  Armament: 
   
  1 SureShot II SRM 2 Launcher
   
  1 Coventry Light Autogun
  Manufacturer: ScolTek Associates
   
  Primary Factories: Inarcs
  Communications System: Cyclops I
  Targeting and Tracking System: Tar Tec 
  Mini-Find
  The Winterhawk APC is an old unit that 
  came to new prominence in the modern Inner 
  Sphere . Originally produced in 3059, it was un-
  usual for the time in utilizing a fuel cell engine . 
  As such it was distrusted by the LAAF command 
  and relegated to backwater militias and corpo-
  rate forces . The Winterhawk performed accept-
  ably in such roles, and over the intervening de-
  cades fuel cells came to be commonly accepted 
  in military vehicles . The LCAF restarted produc-
  tion in 3119 to meet demand for a new infantry 
  transport .
  CAPABILITIES
  Winterhawks are designed to get infantry 
  soldiers into combat fast . Its speed is certainly 
  impressive at first glance, though the hovercraft 
  suffers from relatively poor acceleration . A fuel 
  cell engine substantially reduces the machine’s 
  logistical burden, making it popular with many 
  procurement officers . Infantry soldiers also love 
  the Winterhawk thanks to the attention design-
  ers paid to ergonomics in the passenger bay, 
  and for the standard fold-in cooler .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Planetary militias and mercenary units 
  were the most important customers for the 
  Winterhawk over the early period of its produc-
  tion . After the Jihad sales of the unit picked up, 
  as fuel cells became common technology for 
  military vehicles, and it proliferated in local ser-
  vice throughout the Commonwealth . When the 
  LCAF tendered a contract to ScolTek in 3119 it 
  drastically altered the status quo and displaced 
  those traditional markets . Now Winterhawks 
  are a common sight in LCAF infantry regiments, 
  with the High Command purchasing as many 
  of the units as can be produced to help rebuild 
  their battered army . 
  An example of the relatively low-key role of 
  the Winterhawk early in its career comes from 
  3090, on Pencader . Pirate forces of Blakist origin 
  operating out of the former Circinus Federation 
  had been conducting a raiding campaign 
  across the Lyran border, so the planetary gov-
  ernment purchased a company of Winterhawks 
  to bolster the militia’s elite Greenleg infantry 
  battalion . The Winterhawks were used to shuttle 
  the battalion between the capital of Pencader 
  City and the mining complexes of nearby 
  Carmarthenshire . When the Blakist pirates de-
  scended to raid the mines, Winterhawks were 
  used to deploy the Greenlegs to meet them .
  When the raid on the mines proved to be 
  a decoy for a second DropShip intent on sack-
  ing the capital, the Greenlegs were caught in 
  a dilemma that the Winterhawk solved . The 
  Winterhawks streaked in to shower the Blakists 
  in inferno SRM fire as they approached the 
  Carmanthenshire hills, using their speed to 
  conduct a hit-and-run battle that devastated 
  the support vehicles the pirates had brought 
  along . Then, taking the long way around the 
  main road back to Pencader City for deception, 
  the Winterhawks delivered the Greenlegs just 
  in time to conduct an ambush on the pirate 
  forces emerging from the capital spaceport . In 
  the end the pirates withdrew without sacking 
  either target .
  Another case of the Winterhawk being 
  successfully used came from the Fourth Battle 
  of Tamarind . A mercenary company called 
  Rocinha’s Caballeros made use of the trans-
  ports on the Harvison Flats to bedevil elements 
  of the Second Buena Guards . Winterhawks 
  would jet in to deploy the Caballeros infantry 
  in the rare natural strongpoints along the route 
  of the Guards’ retreat to Zanzibar . When the 
  conventional elements of the Guards deployed 
  to assault, the Winterhawks would return and 
  evacuate the mercenary troops . Such efforts 
  stalled the retreat of the Guards and allowed 
  the Eighth Tamarind Regulars to cut off part of 
  their conventional forces .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Staff Sergeant Michael Bolland: A lifelong 
  resident of Buena, Sergeant Bolland of the 
  First Buena Guards feared military action from 
  Archon Trillian Steiner would result from the 
  Margrave of Timbuktu Theater proclaiming 
  himself Warlord of the new Buena Collective . 
  The rechristened First Collective Guards took 
  the brunt of the LCAF’s preemptive strike 
  against Valloire in 3147 . During a firefight 
  against the Carlisle BPM near Valloire’s capital, 
  Bolland’s Winterhawk platoon was responsible 
  for evacuating planetary officials .
  
  35
  WINTERHAWK APC
  Type: Winterhawk
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Hover
  Tonnage: 20
  Battle Value: 204 
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  2
  Engine:  
  115 
   
  5
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  10
   
  Flank MP:  
  15
  Heat Sinks:  
  1 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  2
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor: 
  40 
   
  2 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  14
   
  R/L Side 
  7/7
   
  Rear 
  5
   
  Turret 
  7
   
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Machine Gun 
  Turret 
   .5
  Ammo (MG) 100 
  Body 
   .5
  SRM 2 
  Front 
  1
  Ammo (SRM) 50 
  Body 
  1
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  4
  
  36
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  ANAT APC
  Mass: 25 tons
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Power Plant: Fuel Cell 180
  Cruising Speed: 86 kph
  Maximum Speed: 129 kph
  Armor: “Magnum” Ferro-Fibrous Composite
  Armament: 
   
  2 Raid Micro Pulse Lasers
  Manufacturer: Swedenborg Heavy Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Kirchbach
  Communications System: Build 1685 Tacticom
  Targeting and Tracking System: Series VI 
  Integrated TTS
  The Anat APC was named for an ancient 
  Semitic goddess and has proliferated through-
  out the Inner Sphere and has made a mark on 
  many of the conflicts that followed Gray Monday .
   
  CAPABILITIES
  Speed and mobility were the obsessions of 
  the original Mongol doctrine, and the Anat pro-
  vides both . As a wheeled vehicle the Anat can 
  handle rougher terrain than a hover APC, and its 
  limited amphibious capability means that riv-
  ers are no formidable obstacle to it . It is thus an 
  ideal transport to keep attached infantry at the 
  forefront of combat under almost any circum-
  stances, though it requires escort from more 
  heavily armed vehicles to support that infantry .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Anats are found in nearly every garrison 
  and second-line Cluster of the Hell’s Horses, 
  and are deployed with frontline Clusters that 
  embraced the original, pre-Malvina Mongol 
  doctrine . They are also distributed around the 
  Inner Sphere with the Sea Foxes acting as mid-
  dlemen for Republic and mercenary purchas-
  ers . The Horses direct their own trade with the 
  Wolves-in-Exile, who have also procured Anats 
  for their Lyran hosts . The Capellan occupation of 
  much of the rimward Republic saw large num-
  bers of the APCs fall into their hands as well .
  Preliminary testing of the Anat was as-
  signed to Omega Galaxy over the course of 
  3094-3095 . On Botany Bay, the Horses stum-
  bled across a hidden base of the notorious buc-
  caneer Black Kat . Anats from the Fifth Rangers 
  Cluster were ordered to race infantry ahead to 
  seize the facility and prevent Kat’s escape . With 
  support provided by a Star of Eponas, the Anats 
  blew around the flanks of the pirate force on the 
  flatlands of the Solander peninsula .
  Defenses at the base were rudimentary, 
  since it had been established for concealment 
  of the pirates’ Union-class DropShip rather 
  than to hold off a Clan attack . The escorting 
  Eponas blew a hole through the outer works 
  of the base for the Anats, one of which raced 
  through a swarm of noncombatants kicked up 
  by the assault to deliver its infantry Star into 
  the loading bay of the Union . The Clan infantry 
  quickly seized control of the base from within, 
  only to find that a lance of Kat’s ’Mechs had 
  broken away from the fighting and were rac-
  ing for them . 
  The Anats formed up with the surviving 
  Eponas to charge into the pirate lance . One 
  Anat crashed itself into a Fire Moth, disabling 
  the ’Mech at the cost of the vehicle’s destruc-
  tion . The remaining Anats swarmed over Black 
  Kat’s own Cougar but were cut down by PPC 
  fire . The charge bought time for the Clan infan-
  try to prepare, and their resulting ambushes 
  destroyed the last of the lance as it attempted 
  to retake the base . The contribution of the 
  Anats to the battle impressed the Clan lead-
  ership sufficiently that they authorized full 
  production . 
  The Sea Foxes learned about the battle 
  shortly afterward and, after celebrating Kat’s 
  demise, issued a Trial over an Anat prototype to 
  evaluate its potential as an export to the Inner 
  Sphere . The Foxes won, narrowly, in a hard but 
  honorably fought combat in which two Anat 
  prototypes were claimed as isorla . Shortly after-
  ward the Fox merchant caste began negotiating 
  a commercial contract with the Horses .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  War Mule: Assigned to Clan Sea Fox’s Gamma 
  Aimag, this Anat infrequently saw combat; it 
  typically carried isorla or returning infantry 
  back to the unit’s DropShips . In May of 3146 on 
  Pleione that all changed . The Sea Foxes declared 
  proper batchalls before landing, but the Home 
  Guard garrison commander simply replied with 
  threats . The “War Mule” carried heavy Sea Fox 
  infantry into battle under fire, using its speed 
  to avoid Home Guard units, loaded up the isorla 
  while under covering fire from a nearby Point, 
  and returned unscathed .
  
  37
  ANAT APC
  Type: Anat
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Tonnage: 25
  Battle Value: 308
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Engine:  
  180 
   
  8 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  8
   
  Flank MP:  
  12
  Heat Sinks:  
  2 
   
  1
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
   .5
  Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  67 
   
  3 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  16
   
  R/L Side 
  14/14
   
  Rear 
  13
   
  Turret 
  10
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Micro Pulse Lasers 
  Turret 
  1
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  5
  Limited Amphibious Equipment — 
  1
  
  38
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  DI MULTIPURPOSE VTOL
  Mass: 25 tons
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Power Plant: Edasich 85 Light Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 97 kph
  Maximum Speed: 151 kph
  Armor: Durallex Guardian Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  1 Defiance 250 Light Particle  
   
  Projection Cannon
  Manufacturer: Defiance Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Furillo, Hesperus II
  Communications System: Xilex-2342
  Targeting and Tracking System: N&D 
  Pinpoint with TAG and Beagle  
   
  Active Probe
  When the LCAF Quartermaster Corps 
  requested a helicopter gunship, Defiance 
  Industries duly built and tested a prototype . 
  When the specifications changed, the Defiance 
  engineers shrugged and redesigned the craft . 
  After a stream of new requirements added 
  more functions, and it seemed like the feature 
  bloat would only continue, Defiance submit-
  ted new plans of their own . The redesigned 
  craft met all of the previous requirements—
  and more pointedly, a single multirole helicop-
  ter reduced costs . The Quartermaster Corps ac-
  cepted the VTOL, which Defiance aptly named 
  the Multipurpose VTOL .
  CAPABILITIES
  Truly a “jack-of-all-trades,” the Multipurpose 
  VTOL features aspects of a gunship, infantry car-
  rier and scout . The original gunship prototype 
  supplied the craft’s chin turret and heavy ferro-
  fibrous armor . Although the light PPC only deals 
  moderate damage, it does so at range, helping 
  to keep the VTOL out of harm’s way . The four-
  ton infantry compartment comes from the 
  planned infantry carrier, and is designed to be 
  easily reconfigurable to house foot troops or 
  battle armor . The seating can even be removed 
  to create a cargo bay . The requested scout 
  specs provided the TAG unit and active probe, 
  and Defiance added an advanced communica-
  tions system capable of burning through many 
  enemy jamming systems .
  DEPLOYMENT
  First deployed in 3097, the Multipurpose 
  VTOL has been sold widely across the Inner 
  Sphere and Periphery, much to the delight of 
  Defiance’s executives .
  Operation HAMMERFALL showcased 
  the helicopter’s strengths and weaknesses in 
  vivid detail . In 3137, Multipurpose VTOLs of 
  the Fourth Royal Guards RCT were employed 
  in both scouting and strike roles as the unit 
  secured beachheads on the critical Tamarind-
  Abbey worlds of Saltillo and Kosciusko . Later 
  that year on Tamarind itself, these helicopters 
  would help deploy the Fourth’s many Fenrir 
  squads prior to the world’s surrender . 
  Following the 3140 armistice between 
  the newly-reborn Free Worlds League and Clan 
  Wolf, the Wolves turned against their former al-
  lies, forcing a change of tactics on the Lyrans . 
  On Niihau, the Fifth Lyran Guards RCT was one 
  of the heaviest-hit formations, but managed to 
  survive by switching to planet-wide guerrilla 
  tactics . Their Multipurpose VTOLs allowed them 
  to move both men and materiel . Unfortunately 
  for the infantry and supporting Multipurpose 
  VTOLs of the Eleventh Lyran Regulars, the ele-
  ments of Delta Galaxy they faced had numerous 
  anti-air vehicles within their ranks, which deci-
  mated the helicopters as they tried to withdraw . 
  The Eleventh Lyran Guards and their VTOLs 
  fared far better, earning themselves the nick-
  name “Wolf Hammers” as they hunted down 
  and struck Wolf units to give their fellow Lyrans 
  time to pull back into the Commonwealth . 
  The Multipurpose VTOL also gives yeoman 
  service in Lyran militias . The Qanatir MTM, in par-
  ticular, utilizes the VTOL to the maximum of its 
  abilities, using it to ferry about the militia’s sizable 
  infantry formations as well as support their mea-
  ger ’Mech forces and spot for artillery batteries .
  VARIANTS
  Of the numerous proposed variants, only 
  the original gunship has actually seen produc-
  tion . This drops the electronics and infantry 
  compartment in favor of an MML 7 launcher, 
  whose versatility ideally suits the Multipurpose 
  VTOL’s nature .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Grave Mold: This pirate band began operat-
  ing within six months of Arc-Royal’s fall . To 
  date, they have yet to leave any live person-
  nel behind for interrogation . Thus, their origins 
  are a mystery . Their tactics and skill suggest 
  they may be survivors from Arc-Royal who 
  escaped the Falcons’ tender mercies . If true, it 
  would explain the factory-fresh company of DI 
  VTOLs used in the Grave Mold’s raids, and the 
  group’s exclusive targeting of Falcon worlds . A 
  lance of BattleMechs either eliminates or lures 
  away defenders, allowing the DIs to swoop in, 
  discharge troops to collect supplies or valuable 
  hostages, and flit away .
  
  39
  DI MULTIPURPOSE VTOL
  Type: DI Multipurpose
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Tonnage: 25
  Battle Value: 542
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Engine:  
  85 
   
  3
   
  Type:  
  Light Fusion 
   
  Cruise MP:  
  9
   
  Flank MP:  
  14
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  VTOL Chin Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  109 
   
  5 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  28
   
  R/L Side 
  22/22
   
  Rear 
  16
   
  Chin Turret 
  19
   
  Rotor 
  2
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Light PPC 
  Turret 
  3
  TAG 
  Front 
  1
  Beagle Active Probe 
  Body 
  1 .5
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  4
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved 
  Communications, VTOL Rotor Arrangement (Co-Axial) .
  
  40
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  JI2A1 ATTACK APC
  Mass: 25 tons
  Movement Type: Hover
  Power Plant: Fireheart 120 Fuel Cell
  Cruising Speed: 108 kph
  Maximum Speed: 162 kph
  Armor: Valiant Plate Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  2 Holly SRM 4 Launchers
  Manufacturer: Johnston Industries
   
  Primary Factories: New Syrtis
  Communications System: Johnston Q-Band
  Targeting and Tracking System: BlazeFire 
  Tracker with Range Check
  Introduced in time to make a reputation 
  during the short Victoria War, the JI2A1 armored 
  personnel carrier has spread across the rimward 
  Inner Sphere and earned a reputation as a fast, 
  resilient and reliable battle armor transport . 
  CAPABILITIES
  As fast as a Clan Dasher, the JI2A1’s usual 
  method of operation is to sprint into the midst 
  of an enemy position, unload its infantry, and 
  escape to become a harasser unit . Gunners 
  in JI2A1s often load their short-range missile 
  magazines with specialty ammunition tailored 
  to the likely combat environment .
  DEPLOYMENT
  A favorite APC in the Davion Light Guards’ 
  battle armor battalions, JI2A1s were instru-
  mental in the savaging the Guards gave to the 
  Combine’s Tenth and Eleventh Ghost regiments 
  on Brookeland . In the skirmishes around Meyer, 
  for instance, the APCs kept the conventional bat-
  talions of the Tenth Ghost believing they were 
  facing a far larger group of Davion defenders .
  Knowing that they couldn’t hope to keep up 
  with the Light Guards, the Tenth Ghost occupied 
  Meyer and settled into the tactical defensive, 
  content to let the Light Guards spend them-
  selves against fixed defenses . The Guards, how-
  ever, especially the battle armor battalion led by 
  Major Nathan Deladier, practiced assaults against 
  just these kinds of defenses . Careful observation 
  told them which strong points were held by 
  armor and which by infantry and, after a pause 
  to reload their JI2A1s, the battalion attacked .
  Supported by long-range fire from Light 
  Guards ’Mechs and tanks, the JI2A1s sped for-
  ward . As they closed the range, each of the 
  APCs fired their SRM racks . Where they faced 
  armor, the APC gunners had loaded tandem-
  charge warheads; where they faced infantry, 
  fragmentation warheads . The SRMs tore holes 
  far outside their proportion into the Ghost lines, 
  and heavy Grenadier battlesuits emerged from 
  the APCs to wreak heavy damage and then es-
  cape in the confusion .
  In the Capellan Confederation the CCAF 
  put their own JI2A1s, purchased before the 
  Blackout, to good use as training vehicles . 
  They used these vehicles to anticipate AFFS 
  mine-clearance tactics, firing mine-clearance 
  missiles from the APCs to see how the AFFS 
  would likely react to Thunder minefields . This 
  pre-planning stood them in good stead on 
  Almach and New Syrtis, where Davion officers 
  found their tactics nullified .
  A number of JI2A1s have fallen into the 
  hands of pirates, who load the SRM magazines 
  with fragmentation missiles and use them to at-
  tack crowds of people or concentrated infantry 
  formations . In a raid on Erod’s Escape in 3141, 
  an unidentified pirate band attacked an open-
  air market as cover for a resource raid, killing 
  more than 400 civilians . The pirates carried in 
  the infantry bay looted the dead bodies before 
  they withdrew, which is one of the reasons the 
  Calderon Protectorate has leveled a massive re-
  ward for their capture or death .
  VARIANTS
  Johnston offers a different turret mounting 
  a pair of multi-missile launchers as either a pro-
  duction model or an after-market modification .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Ammo Depot: One of the few JI2A1s in the 
  hands of Clan Wolf, “Ammo Depot” can be traced 
  through the Wolf Hunters, Steel Wolves, and 
  back to an early Republic militia unit . It earned 
  its nickname after then Galaxy Commander 
  Anastasia Kerensky frequently ordered it into 
  combat with spare ammunitions and a resupply 
  crew . Now saKhan, Kerensky has continued this 
  practice and acquired more JI2A1s to support 
  larger Wolf formations .
  Leftenant Freeman Garrett: Commander of 
  a lance in Perceval’s Knights, Garrett also over-
  sees training of the other two JI2A1s, known 
  as “Perceval’s Steeds .” All of Perceval’s Steeds 
  have been configured with the multi-missile 
  launcher variant, favoring the added flexibility 
  over the harder-hitting SRM variant . On two 
  recent occasions, while fleeing from enemy 
  forces, Garrett ordered the Fusilier battle armor 
  riding aboard to provide additional cover fire . 
  Shooting from the open-top cargo bay under 
  evasive maneuvers, the battle armor never 
  hit an enemy target . Nonetheless, the added 
  weapons fire appeared to slow down enemy 
  pursuit . Leftenant Garrett has been com-
  mended for his creative thinking and is being 
  watched more closely for fast-track career 
  advancement .
  
  41
  JI2A1 ATTACK APC
  Type: JI2A1
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Hover
  Tonnage: 25
  Battle Value: 435
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Engine:  
  120 
   
  5
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  10
   
  Flank MP:  
  15
  Heat Sinks:  
  1 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  79 
   
  4
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  20
   
  R/L Side 
  15/15
   
  Rear 
  14
   
  Turret 
  15
   
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 SRM 4 
  Turret 
  4
  Ammo (SRM) 25 
  Body 
  1
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  4
  
  42
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  RED KITE ATTACK VTOL
  Mass: 25 tons
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Power Plant: Imstar 135 Fuel Cell
  Cruising Speed: 118 kph
  Maximum Speed: 183 kph
  Armor: Imstar HL Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  6 Series 2CHM Medium Chemical Lasers
  Manufacturer: Imstar Aerospace
   
  Primary Factories: Amity, Marik
  Communications System: Irian E .A .R . 
  Targeting and Tracking System: IMB SYS 1540
  Imstar introduced the Red Kite in 3093, 
  where it quickly became a favorite among 
  reconnaissance forces in the Marik-Stewart 
  Commonwealth thanks to its low noise profile 
  and impressive armaments . When deployed 
  as a gunship, the Red Kite struggles to com-
  pete with contemporary offerings such as 
  Wakazashi’s Yasha or the venerable Yellow 
  Jacket gunship . Although comparable in mass 
  and armor, the Red Kite can out-accelerate 
  both, but it faces a significant range disadvan-
  tage over traditional gunships .
  CAPABILITIES 
  The Red Kite was originally designed for 
  an Imperator Napoleon Light AC/5, and an os-
  cillating turret was developed to reduce recoil 
  stress on the frame . During the latter stages of 
  development, Imstar was able to secure a con-
  tract for the Series 2CHM lasers . In the original 
  implementation, the loader cycled when the 
  turret recoiled . As the chemical lasers do not 
  recoil, the loader was modified to feed through 
  a fixed turret ring . Unfortunately, this system is 
  prone to jam if the loader cycles while the tur-
  ret is rotated more than sixty degrees off center . 
  DEPLOYMENT 
  In 3138 Clan Wolf and Lyran Commonwealth 
  forces invaded the sundered League . The Red 
  Kite featured prominently in several of the early 
  engagements, as the principal defending forces 
  were often planetary militia . On Autumn Wind, 
  the defending forces had been well schooled in 
  Clan rules of engagement . Expecting the Wolves 
  to adhere to some form of zellbrigen, the defend-
  ers were unprepared for the attackers’ ferocity . 
  Within thirty minutes, the defensive line broke 
  and the Wolves were advancing unhindered to-
  ward Galveston City, where the planetary leader-
  ship had gathered to weather the attack . 
  Three Red Kites escorted two Lexan 
  Oceanic Series IIs and a Soar VTOL that had 
  been conscripted for evacuation duty . The Wolf 
  force included three Dasher IIs captured from 
  the RAF a year earlier . They were dispatched 
  to clear Galveston City ahead of the main force 
  and proved a significant obstacle for the Red 
  Kites . Although limited to short range weapon-
  ry, the ’Mechs were nearly as fast as the VTOLs 
  and the Red Kite’s extraction vector meant they 
  would actually have to run past the Wolf ’Mechs 
  on their way out of the city . While the Red Kites 
  could easily shrug off the Dasher II’s micro la-
  sers, the VTOLs they were escorting could not . 
  As the VTOLs made their run, the Wolves 
  scored an early victory by downing the lead 
  Red Kite—and with it the mission commander . 
  Suddenly promoted, Lieutenant Holmes took 
  decisive action and withdrew into the city . 
  A twenty-six minute game of cat and mouse 
  ensued as the Wolf ’Mechs chased the VTOLs 
  through a veritable canyon of buildings in 
  the Two Rivers district and across the Panoply 
  Bridge into Hector Lombard Park . Designed for 
  passenger traffic, the bridge could not support 
  the combined weight of three forty-ton ’Mechs 
  and the central span collapsed . All three Dasher 
  IIs survived the fifteen-meter plunge into the 
  Felton River, but bogged down in the river bot-
  tom . It took them three hours to regain the 
  banks, by which time the Red Kites and their 
  civilian VIPs were long gone .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Bloodletter: The pilot of this Red Kite is un-
  known . The VTOL has been used multiple times 
  in audacious assassinations of Wolf Empire 
  officials on newly conquered Lyran worlds . The 
  first of these was on Solaris VII in February 3146, 
  when the Ninth Wolf Cavalry’s commander 
  Star Colonel Clifford Kerensky was killed in 
  “Bloodletter’s” staffing attack at the entrance 
  to O’Neil BattleMechs after an inspection .  
  “Bloodletter” was next seen attempting a similar 
  attack on the Forty-second Wolf Garrison 
  Cluster on Amity over a year later . This attack 
  missed Star Colonel Pablo, but killed a number 
  of lesser officers . “Bloodletter” is painted dull 
  bone white, with huge, crimson Greek letters 
  (matching those of the Wolf Empire’s many 
  Galaxies) over much of the fuselage and wings .
  
  43
  RED KITE ATTACK VTOL
  Type: Red Kite
  Technology Base: Mixed Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Tonnage: 25
  Battle Value: 835
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Engine:  
  135 
   
  5 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  11
   
  Flank MP:  
  17
  Heat Sinks:  
  1 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  VTOL Chin Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  62 
   
  3 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  16
   
  R/L Side 
  10/10
   
  Rear 
  8
   
  Turret 
  16
   
  Rotor 
  2
   
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  4 Medium Chemical Lasers (C) Turret 
  4
  2 Medium Chemical Lasers (C) Front 
  2
  Ammo (MCL) 90 
  Body 
  3
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: VTOL Rotor 
  Arrangement (Dual Rotor), Ammo Feed Problem .
  
  44
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  Mass: 30 tons
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Power Plant: Bulldog EcoBust 10 ICE
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Armor: Bulldog Lite Plate
  Armament: 
   
  2 Bulldog Light Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: Bulldog Enterprises
   
  Primary Factories: Proserpina
  Communications System: O/P R Janxiir
  Targeting and Tracking System: O/P 100 Basic
  The Garrot, a military conversion of 
  Bulldog Enterprises’ ubiquitous SkyStar Freight 
  Helicopter, was introduced in 3100 to meet a 
  requirement for a logistics support vehicle . It 
  served as a rear-area supply craft for over three 
  decades, ably filling a vital but unsung role for 
  the quartermaster corps . The breakdown in 
  order that followed the collapse of the HPG net-
  work saw large numbers of Garrots fall into the 
  hands of splinter factions and, later, the invad-
  ing Houses . The presence of SkyStars on dozens 
  of worlds throughout the Republic and beyond 
  provides yet another source of Garrots and en-
  sures that it will remain a fixture of warfare for 
  some time .
  CAPABILITIES
  With four lift-hoists, the Garrot can effi-
  ciently transport up to sixty tons . It was never 
  intended to do more than this . The Garrot’s 
  frame is armored with six and a half tons of 
  military-grade armor, sufficient to shrug off 
  small arms fire, but its slow top speed makes it 
  exceedingly vulnerable to enemy aircraft and 
  air defenses . It can transport a squad of infantry 
  in a cramped interior compartment and carries 
  two machine guns for self-defense, but those 
  are very much afterthoughts in its design .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Almost every Republic formation and plan-
  etary militia boasted a complement of Garrots 
  to see to their resupply needs . Sales to foreign 
  states and mercenaries were unrestricted, given 
  the extremely limited combat potential of the 
  VTOL . The SkyStar sold even more widely, and 
  there is little that prevents them from being 
  modified and pressed into service . Only the 
  armor and weapons really distinguish the two, 
  and parts commonality makes supporting the 
  Garrot very easy .
  Aside from the proper role supporting lo-
  gistics, the Garrot has been used in a number 
  of near-combat applications . One particularly 
  innovative and effective example comes from 
  3134, with the Dragon’s Fury splinter group op-
  erating on New Rhodes . The pro-Kurita rebels 
  brought along a number of Garrots to haul their 
  artillery to the top of the “colossi” mesas dotting 
  the desert along their advance to the capital at 
  Xerxes . From these vantage points the guns 
  provided incomparable support to the ground 
  forces, while the Garrots shifted the guns from 
  mesa to mesa to keep up with the front .
  Another example of a less-than-orthodox 
  use of the Garrot is from August 3133 during 
  the infamous Stormhammers raid on Towne . 
  Lohengrin agents assigned to Jasek Kelswa-
  Steiner modified Garrots seized from the Skye 
  militia to match the SkyStar civilian configura-
  tion in order to infiltrate Prince John Spaceport . 
  Air traffic control saw nothing amiss with the 
  arrival of a scheduled delivery for a merchant 
  DropShip, allowing the commandos to land 
  without being taken under fire . The subsequent 
  success of the Stormhammers raid owed much 
  to the rapid seizure of the facility, though the 
  raid may also have been responsible for the 
  subsequent destruction of scores of SkyStars in 
  the next decade .
  The vulnerabilities of the Garrot weigh 
  heavily against using it aggressively in the 
  field, however, as the Pleione militia discov-
  ered in 3134 when faced with Capellan inva-
  sion . Legate Weymuller hatched a plan to slow 
  the Capellan assault by using Garrots to drop a 
  portion of the militia’s petrol reserves into the 
  path of the Capellan advance and then to ig-
  nite it . Traitorous elements of the militia leaked 
  the plan to the Capellans, who used a flight of 
  conventional fighters to shoot down the entire 
  force of Garrots .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Angel of Mercy: Clan Sea Fox’s economic 
  sanctions against Regulus left a good many 
  Regulan citizens starving . However, through-
  out 3147 and 3148, a strange, all-black Garrot 
  began popping up on the Regulan worlds hit 
  hardest by the sanctions . This Garrot would 
  drop foodstuffs to civilians while avoiding mili-
  tary patrols, earning it the nickname “Angel of 
  Mercy .” The crew responsible for these drops has 
  not been identified, and it is unknown whether 
  the “Angel” is in fact one individual Garrot that 
  travels from world to world or several .
  GARROT SUPERHEAVY TRANSPORT
  
  45
  Type: Garrot
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Tonnage: 30
  Battle Value: 316
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3
  Engine:  
  10 
   
  1
  Type:  
  ICE
  Cruise MP:  
  5
  Flank MP:  
  8
  Heat Sinks:  
  0 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  3
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  VTOL Chin Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor: 
  104 
   
  6 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  30
   
  R/L Side 
  20/20
   
  Rear 
  14
   
  Chin Turret 
  18
   
  Rotor 
  2
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Light Machine Guns 
  Chin Turret 
  1
  Ammo (Light MG) 100 
  Body 
   .5
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  1
  4 Lift Hoists 
  Body 
  12
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to 
  Maintain .
  GARROT SUPERHEAVY TRANSPORT
  
  46
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  KITE RECONNAISSANCE VEHICLE
  Mass: 30 tons
  Movement Type: Hover
  Power Plant: Fuel Cell 140
  Cruising Speed: 97 kph
  Maximum Speed: 151 kph
  Armor: Forging AM15 Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  2 Pattern Alpha SRM 2 Launchers
   
  2 Tau-II Anti-personnel Gauss Rifle
  Manufacturer: Trellshire Heavy Industries, 
  Manufacturing Plants SFF-NG1 and SFF-SH2
   
  Primary Factories: Twycross, Ingersoll,  
   
  Shimonita
  Communications System: Neil 9000 Comm 
  System with Angel ECM Suite
  Targeting and Tracking System: RCA 
  Econotrac with Light TAG and Active Probe
  This whisper-quiet hovercraft is the Clan 
  Sea Fox alternative to the aging Odin scout 
  tank . It’s cheaper, easier to maintain, less ex-
  pensive to operate and, as the Hastati Sentinels 
  discovered in 3134, its sensor suite is excep-
  tional at rooting out hidden units and lighting 
  them up for Arrow IV salvos . The Foxes mar-
  ket the Kite as an all-in-one solution in place 
  of separate scout, ECM, and force-projection 
  units . Its impressive combat record backs up 
  the advertising .
  CAPABILITIES 
  The Kite is a purpose-built chassis capable 
  of tracking more than a Trinary of independent 
  targets with full telemetry for up to five priority 
  targets . It detects concealed units, on average, 
  often twenty percent faster than other Sea Fox 
  units . Paired with the active ECM/ECCM capa-
  bilities of the Neil 9000, the Kite is a sensor-de-
  pendent MechWarrior’s nightmare . 
  DEPLOYMENT
  In 3110, elements of the Sword of Light 
  led a mixed force in an attempt to recapture 
  Mualang (lost to the Rasalhague Dominion 
  during the Second Combine-Dominion War) . 
  Star Commander James led the Bears’ artillery 
  assets, which included a Point of Kites and sev-
  eral Arrow IV equipped units . Although the bulk 
  of James’ force remained behind the front lines, 
  he fearlessly piloted his Kite into the maelstrom . 
  Using the vehicle’s superior mobility, James 
  darted among the elite Combine forces desig-
  nating targets with near impunity and largely 
  neutralizing the Combine’s command ’Mech—a 
  Thunder Fox—until Tai-i Keriman made eliminat-
  ing James a priority . 
  Keriman commanded a Sword of Light 
  scout lance and piloted the force’s fastest 
  ’Mech—a Spider . Although equal in mass and 
  roughly equivalent in firepower, a Spider has 
  much less armor than the Kite . James peppered 
  the ’Mech with shots from his missile launch-
  ers and AP Gauss rifles, then turned and sped 
  through the Combine lines, pausing to light 
  up slower Combine ’Mechs for Arrow IV strikes 
  whenever possible . Although Keriman scored 
  hits whenever James was distracted by TAG op-
  eration, James’ Kite easily weathered the storm . 
  After nearly two hours of hit and run fighting, 
  James had exhausted his ammo and was respon-
  sible for the destruction of three Combine ’Mechs, 
  including Tai-i Keriman’s Spider. He remained in 
  the thick of fighting for another hour, only retreat-
  ing when his artillery Star ran out of ammo .
  The Kite also featured prominently in the 
  Jade Falcon’s conquest of Alphecca in 3144, 
  where they used three Points of Kites with deadly 
  efficiency . After pinpointing the Hastati Sentinels’ 
  positions, two Kites led a Star of Eldingar Hover 
  Sleds in a surgical strike against the Sentinels’ 
  mobile headquarters . The Kites disrupted the 
  Sentinels’ communications while the combined 
  vehicle and battle armor force made quick work 
  of the rear echelon units . Two more Kites directly 
  supported the Falcon’s main force . They pre-
  vented ambushes by ferreting out hidden units, 
  and guided barrages of Arrow IV homing missiles 
  that crippled or destroyed many of the Sentinels’ 
  ’Mechs . The final two Kites were paired with the 
  Falcon’s swiftest Arrow IV platforms and—sup-
  ported by three medium ’Mechs—formed a 
  hunter-killer unit that attacked targets of oppor-
  tunity throughout the campaign . The Falcons 
  drove the Sentinels off-world in just under two 
  weeks, largely due to the effective force projec-
  tion made possible by the Kites .
  VARIANTS
  A fusion-powered version of the Kite has 
  also been introduced recently, apparently in-
  tended to supply warriors with more powerful 
  weaponry . The engine supplies power to main 
  weaponry now consisting of medium pulse la-
  sers, but the added bulk of the engine’s shielding 
  comes at the expense of its advanced EW gear .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Cornet Benjamina Ware: Cornet Ware com-
  mands a recon company in the First Taurian 
  Armored Lancers . Mina pilots one of the up-
  graded Kites in the lead lance . In March 3148, 
  her company was part of a task force sent to 
  Mithron on anti-piracy duty . Her company was 
  scouting ahead when the Joyeux Corsaire pirate 
  band sprang an ambush . The AP Gauss rifles of 
  her other two lances were ineffective against 
  the Corsaire ’Mechs . The pirates casually de-
  stroyed several Kites until Ware led a slashing 
  attack, firing SRMs and pulse lasers with aban-
  don . The unexpected weaponry slowed the 
  pirates just long enough for Ware to salvage 
  half her command . She was commended in 
  public but reprimanded in private for her per-
  formance and was passed over for promotion 
  to subaltern .
  
  47
  KITE RECONNAISSANCE VEHICLE
  Type: Kite
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Hover
  Tonnage: 30
  Battle Value: 671
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3
  Engine:  
  140 
   
  6
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  9
   
  Flank MP:  
  14
  Heat Sinks:  
  1 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  3
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  105 
   
  5 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  25
   
  R/L Side 
  20/20
   
  Rear 
  20
   
  Turret 
  20
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Anti-Personnel Gauss Rifles Turret 
  1
  Ammo (AP Gauss) 40 
  Body 
  1
  Light TAG 
  Turret 
   .5
  2 SRM 2 
  Front 
  1
  Ammo (SRM) 50 
  Body 
  1
  Active Probe 
  Body 
  1
  Angel ECM Suite 
  Body 
  2
  Armored Motive System 
  — 
  3
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved 
  Sensors .
  
  48
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  Mass: 30 tons
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Power Plant: Vlar 130 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 97 kph
  Maximum Speed: 151 kph
  Armor: StarSlab/2
  Armament: 
   
  2 Harpoon 4 SRM 4 Launchers
   
  1 Scattergun Machine Gun
  Manufacturer: Vandenberg Mechanized 
  Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Pinard
  Communications System: O/P AIR 19
  Targeting and Tracking System: O/P 411
  The Lamprey is a model infantry transport 
  VTOL . Unparalleled reliability, easy maintenance, 
  and ruggedness have given it a good reputation, 
  but it’s what the Taurians did with two flights of 
  Lampreys on Brockway that’s driven sales . 
  CAPABILITIES
  No VTOL currently in service is more effec-
  tive at delivering ground-pounders to hot LZs 
  (or extracting them) than the Lamprey . Built to 
  take a pounding, the nimble transport boasts 
  deadly suppressing fire and powerful accel-
  eration . Seasoned veterans rave about the re-
  sponsive and delicate controls, but most of the 
  Lamprey’s accolades come from rookies, who 
  bring airframes home with half the rotor de-
  stroyed or shredded control surfaces . 
   
  DEPLOYMENT
  In 3119 elements of the Pleiades 
  Hussars were participating in war games on 
  Brockway—a resource-rich world near the 
  Taurian/Federated Suns border—when it was 
  raided . Pirates blew up a section of the twenty-
  kilometer Monterey-Lapland viaduct, strand-
  ing the bulk of the Hussars in the Lapland 
  Archipelago . Thinking the Hussars were out of 
  the fight, the pirates took their time plundering 
  the Monterey spaceport and failed to establish 
  a secure perimeter . Eight Lampreys overflew 
  the tarmac, hammering the pirates with con-
  centrated SRM volleys and combat-dropping 
  squads of battle armor . Ten minutes later, the 
  Hussars had captured the pirates’ DropShip and 
  turned its guns on them . 
  The raiders retreated west, hoping to find 
  shelter in the thickly-forested hills surround-
  ing Monterey . One flight of Lampreys harried 
  the retreating ’Mechs while the other airlifted 
  conventional infantry platoons . The pirates eas-
  ily bypassed the infantry positions and moved 
  deeper into the hills, but the Hussars used the 
  Lampreys to redeploy . Over the next two hours, 
  the Hussars’ airmobile infantry slowly herded 
  the pirates into a box canyon . The Hussars ul-
  timately salvaged a lance of pirate ’Mechs and 
  destroyed another . All eight Lampreys survived 
  the encounter . 
  The Lamprey saw notable action on the 
  Duchy of Andurien world of Shiro III in de-
  fense of the Grumman Amalgamated factory 
  in 3139, when elements of the resurrected 
  Free Worlds League raided . Lampreys were 
  pressed into service fighting a delaying ac-
  tion as Grumman forces established defensive 
  positions . Using the Lamprey’s speed to their 
  advantage, the pilots fired multiple SRM in-
  ferno salvos, setting fires at key choke points 
  and stalling the League advance . They then re-
  turned to the factory, where they rearmed and 
  picked up battle armor squads . The Lampreys 
  dropped the battlesuits into the League rear 
  and leapt into the thick of combat . Despite 
  suffering multiple PPC hits, both Lampreys re-
  mained over the battlefield, where they helped 
  down one Marik heavy ’Mech and forced an-
  other to retreat . 
  On Pompey in the Marian Hegemony, one 
  flight of Lampreys faced off against a deter-
  mined guerrilla foe in late 3141 . The Lampreys 
  spent two weeks overflying dense jungle, sup-
  porting a tedious sweep by conventional infan-
  try forces . When the guerrillas were finally cor-
  nered, they surprised the Marians with a pair of 
  modified IndustrialMechs . After a lengthy bat-
  tle, the Lampreys disabled a MiningMech and 
  sent the other MOD running for cover . 
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Point Commander Robert Bavros: Bavros was 
  a trueborn aerospace warrior from a Nova Cat 
  enclave in Republic space who might have been 
  a ristar when he won his Bloodname at the age 
  of twenty-eight . Unfortunately, that accomplish-
  ment represented the apex of his military career . 
  In the pre-Blackout Republic, he found little 
  opportunity for glorious combat or advancement . 
  After the HPGs went dark, he joined the Spirit Cats, 
  but as he was already in his late thirties, he quickly 
  found himself relegated to the role of a transport 
  chopper pilot in their second-line solahma force . 
  This apparently crushed his ego, and he became 
  so sullen and antisocial that many reports 
  compared his behavior to that of a robotic drone .
  As part of Star Colonel Rikkard’s task force 
  when it invaded Marik in 3136, Bavros and his 
  Lamprey were called into the fighting at the 
  city of Dormouth . There, he ferried troops and 
  supplies past the various roadblocks and other 
  reinforced positions, often evading enemy fire 
  by darting between buildings with scarcely 
  a meter to spare between his rotors and the  
  towering structures . Many of his passengers 
  proclaimed that this skill proved him to have 
  the steely nerves of a true warrior, but Bavros is 
  said to have flatly replied, “It is remarkable what 
  one can achieve when one stops caring .”
  LAMPREY TRANSPORT HELICOPTER
  
  49
  Type: Lamprey
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere 
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Tonnage: 30
  Battle Value: 478
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3
  Engine:  
  130 
   
  7
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  9
   
  Flank MP:  
  14
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  3
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor: 
  88 
   
  5 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  30
   
  R/L Side 
  20/20
   
  Rear 
  16
   
  Rotor 
  2
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 SRM 4 
  Front 
  4
  Ammo (SRM) 25 
  Body 
  1
  Machine Gun 
  Front 
   .5
  Ammo (MG) 100 
  Body 
   .5
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  4
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to Pilot .
  LAMPREY TRANSPORT HELICOPTER
  
  50
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  Mass: 30 tons
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Power Plant: Omni 70 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph, 151 kph with Jet 
  Boosters
  Armor: StarGuard Darknova Stealth
  Armament: 
   
  2 Series 1f ER Small Lasers
   
  1 Type 25 Class 2 Ultra Autocannon
  Manufacturer: StarCorps Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Terra
  Communications System: Build 1685/8 
  Tacticom
  Targeting and Tracking System: Build 4 CAT 
  TTS with Advanced Targeting Computer 
  and Watchdog CEWS
  Born of Nova Cat technical know-how 
  married to Republic industrial prowess, the Strix 
  has served as a standard scout VTOL for most 
  RAF units since its introduction . Its best home, 
  however, has always been in the RAF’s various 
  black ops outfits, such as Black Torrent or the 
  Republic Special Scouts .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Strix’s biggest strengths are its relatively 
  inexpensive cost, which allowed StarCorps of 
  Terra to pump out an enormous number of the 
  vehicles over the years, and the ease with which it 
  combines Inner Sphere with Clan technology . The 
  latter is a testament to the skill and motivation of 
  Shitara’s Nova Cat technicians, who began from an 
  artisanal approach that saw them assemble each 
  Strix manually and who later closely oversaw the 
  retooling of StarCorps’ facilities to produce output 
  of equal—or even greater—quality . The stealth 
  armor and VTOL jet boosters ensure that the Strix 
  can close rapidly and undetected and then retreat 
  just as quickly before the enemy can react .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Prior to the Blackout, the Republic main-
  tained strict export controls on the Strix, with 
  only the Federated Suns permitted by treaty 
  to purchase the vehicle . Post-crash, however, 
  this exclusivity was shattered as the RAF col-
  lapsed . With enemies both internal and external 
  snatching up RAF equipment, availability of the 
  Strix rapidly spread .
  Most surprising was the appearance of 
  Strixes among the forces that hit a number of 
  HPGs on Gray Monday . Investigators were at a 
  loss to explain where these unknown attack-
  ers acquired their equipment; research into 
  StarCorps’ records showed no discrepancies 
  in shipping manifests or in factory inventories 
  and no RAF units reported any missing Strixes . 
  As none of the attackers’ equipment was ever 
  recovered, the mystery of where they got these 
  VTOLs persisted until recently .
  Befitting the design’s origins, the Nova 
  Cats’ Shitara Galaxy fielded a large number of 
  Strixes . Among the Spheroid-native warriors 
  of the Galaxy’s Home Guard Cluster, there 
  was a sense of resentment about having been 
  dragged into a war they never wanted when 
  the Cats rebelled . A Strix commanded by Star 
  Captain Gisele Barbetti of Binary Gamma led 
  the way in breaking ranks with the rest of the 
  Cluster in October 3141 when it fled into the 
  hills around Hirotomi and began a campaign 
  of harassment against their former comrades . 
  Barbetti’s unit soon became the nucleus of a 
  growing civil war among the Home Guard .
  When the Combine retook Shitara the fol-
  lowing September, the Home Guard rebels were 
  not welcomed with open arms, being considered 
  untrustworthy and irredeemably tainted by their 
  previous association with the Cats . Sickened by 
  the methodical slaughter of even the civilian 
  Nova Cat population, they turned their efforts to 
  protecting the remaining Clan enclaves . Weeks 
  of being hunted by the Combine forces ensued 
  until only Barbetti and seven Strixes were left 
  operational . Cornered near the minor space-
  port city of Verlanta, Barbetti’s VTOL went down 
  under heavy fire but still managed to take out 
  two fully-loaded Mamono IFVs .
  VARIANTS
  The RAF never officially developed any 
  variants of the Strix, though abandoned experi-
  ments and even a few prototypes were some-
  what common in the three decades the VTOL 
  has been in service . DMI agents spread rumors 
  among the Republic’s neighbors that super-
  secret heavily armed variants were in use for 
  the blackest of our black ops, but that remains 
  merely misinformation .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Lamprey Company: The survivors of the 
  Freeman pirate band—made up of deserters 
  from the First Triarii Protectors, the Republic 
  Special Scouts and various Standing Guard 
  units—were run to ground on Ko in late 3137 by 
  forces of the Vega Protectorate . The last to fall 
  were the swift vehicles of Lamprey Company, 
  led by their commander, Captain Claudine 
  Everly . Relying in large part on their lance of 
  Strix VTOLs, they repeatedly struck at the Ghost 
  Bear encampment and melted away again 
  before the infuriated Clanners could retaliate . 
  The stealth capabilities and speed of the Strixes 
  kept the company two steps ahead of their 
  foe until the Bear commander brought in his 
  own pair of Strixes from Kessel . The seven-hour 
  battle between the two VTOL forces through 
  the forests of eastern Kyushu ended with the 
  pirates dead but the Vegan Strixes little more 
  than salvage themselves .
  STRIX STEALTH VTOL
  
  51
  Type: Strix
  Technology Base: Mixed Clan
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Tonnage: 30
  Battle Value: 688
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3
  Engine:  
  70 
   
  3
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  7
   
  Flank MP:  
  11 (14)
  Heat Sinks:  
  14 
   
  4
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  3
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  VTOL Chin Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Stealth): 
  64 
   
  4
   
   
  Armor 
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  18
   
  R/L Side 
  13/13
   
  Rear 
  10
   
  Chin Turret 
  8
   
  Rotor 
  2
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 ER Small Lasers 
  Chin Turret 
  1
  Ultra AC/2 
  Front 
  5
  Ammo (Ultra) 45 
  Body 
  1
  Watchdog CEWS 
  Body 
  1 .5
  Targeting Computer 
  Body 
  2
  VTOL Jet Booster 
  Body 
   .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: VTOL Rotor 
  Arrangement (Dual), Non-Standard Parts .
  STRIX STEALTH VTOL
  
  52
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  Armies and planetary militias are always 
  in dire need of cheap, easy to build, multi-role 
  combat systems to fill their ranks . Though the 
  CCAF was first to develop the Thumper gun 
  trailer, other militaries also saw the concept’s 
  potential . As a result, gun trailers have prolifer-
  ated widely throughout the Inner Sphere and 
  Clan space .
  CAPABILITIES
  Gun trailers represent a step forward in 
  conventional warfare . Armored, mobile and 
  mounting a variety of weapon systems—
  Thumpers, Snipers, Thunderbolt missiles, auto-
  cannons, ’Mech mortars and even the vaunted 
  Arrow IV system—gun trailers can rival even a 
  BattleMech’s firepower . They are used in a va-
  riety of roles and are typically fielded in forma-
  tions of four to twelve trailers with supporting 
  transports and infantry . 
  DEPLOYMENT
  In 3137, a mercenary unit contracted by 
  the Senate Alliance attempted to raid Kallon 
  Industries on Nanking . Thinking them an easy 
  target, Los Chupacabras grounded their Union 
  and Mule-class DropShips close to Kallon’s 
  main factory complex . As their recon com-
  pany crested the ridgeline overlooking the 
  storage yards, they came under heavy fire 
  from concealed Ultra AC/20 and LRM trailers . 
  A quarter of their ’Mechs died in the first two 
  volleys, and the rest were crippled soon after . 
  The mercenaries tried to withdraw but were 
  pinned between the dug-in gun trailers and a 
  late-arriving ’Mech company . 
  Unsure of what they faced, the 
  Chupacabras hesitated and were caught in 
  the open by barrage after barrage of accurate 
  artillery fired by Thumper gun trailers hidden 
  within Kallon’s main compound . They were 
  slaughtered and one of their DropShips suf-
  fered drive damage; it was later captured . 
  Gun trailers have also filled other roles . 
  In February 3107, terrorists captured an im-
  portant Republic trade delegation on Najha . 
  Walled-up with their hostages for twelve days 
  in a crumbling Star League-era outpost with 
  little chance of a peaceful resolution, the situ-
  ation deteriorated . Finally, acting on advice 
  from an unnamed source, DEST snipers and a 
  platoon of militia gun trailers simultaneously 
  opened fire at the terrorists . Using ’Mech mor-
  tars to lob shells over the walls, the militia suc-
  cessfully neutralized the terrorists . However, 
  the DEST assault team was late breaching the 
  compound and the delegation’s ranking nego-
  tiator was executed . 
   
  VARIANTS
  From Thumper artillery to Ultra AC/20 
  ’Mechbusters to dedicated anti-infantry and 
  anti-air platforms, gun trailers are as varied 
  as the militaries and corporations that use 
  them . Almost any weapons combination 
  is possible given the proper resources and 
  power amplifiers .
  NOTABLE UNITS
   
  Gunnery Sergeant Lenny Porphyry: Sergeant 
  Porphyry commanded a militia detachment 
  guarding the Able Hunting Arms factory on 
  Able’s Glory when Circinian Dread pirates at-
  tacked . The factory garrison included a lance 
  of Able’s Aces, which were driven back by the 
  company of pirate ’Mechs . Porphyry and his 
  fellow gunners stood their ground . The gun 
  trailers were concealed in prepared positions . 
  As the pirates closed on the warehoused 
  ’Mech weapons, Porphyry waited to fire until 
  the enemy were at point blank range . The 
  devastating barrage of four AC/20 gun trail-
  ers instantly downed two pirate ’Mechs . While 
  some panicked and fled, the rest calmly with-
  drew beyond effective range of the trailers and 
  pounded them to scrap . The delay in the raid 
  allowed the Aces to rally and launch a counter-
  attack, despite being outnumbered . The pirates 
  retreated off-world with empty holds . Gunnery 
  Sergeant Porphyry was killed while dragging 
  two wounded comrades from the wreckage 
  of their gun trailers and was posthumously 
  awarded the Ace of Hearts, the Rim Collection’s 
  highest award for valor .
  Si-ben-bing Maura Tan: No one knows how 
  the infiltrators bypassed the overlapping rings 
  of defensive fortifications and patrols, but their 
  intent was clear: to steal combat vehicles from 
  the Detroit Consolidated factory in Dearborn, 
  Detroit . The last line of defense was more vigi-
  lant than those the enemy bypassed . Se-ben-bing 
  Tan spotted the winter-camo-clad troops dash-
  ing between snowdrifts . Her calm order to open 
  fire was obeyed by the entire company of parked 
  gun trailers . Both anti-personnel and anti-’Mech 
  weaponry turned the invaders to paste, leaving 
  their origin unknown . Tan simply returned her 
  gaze to her assigned surveillance area .
  GUN TRAILERS
  
  53
  Type: Gun Trailer (Artillery/AAA)
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Wheeled (Trailer)
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 452
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  10 
   
  1
   
  Type:  
  ICE
   
  Cruise MP:  
  0
   
  Flank MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  0 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Armor Factor (Hardened): 
  48 
   
  6
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  8
   
  R/L Side 
  8/8
   
  Rear 
  12
   
  Turret 
  12
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Arrow IV Artillery 
  Turret 
  15
  Ammo (Arrow) 30 
  Body 
  6
  Trailer Hitch 
  Front 
  0
  GUN TRAILERS
  
  54
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  NISOS ATTACK WIGE
  Mass: 35 tons
  Movement Type: WiGE
  Power Plant: Nissan 200 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 97 kph
  Maximum Speed: 151 kph
  Armor: Hellespont Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  1 Ceres Arms Crusher Plasma Rifle
   
  1 Harpoon 6 SRM Launcher
  Manufacturer: Quikscell Company
   
  Primary Factories: Ares
  Communications System: Endicott Type  
  6G Maser
  Targeting and Tracking System: Dwyerson 
  Mark IV
  In classical mythology, Nisos drove the 
  sons of Metion out of Athens and put Aegeus 
  on the throne . On today’s battlefield, the WiGE 
  named for him is an interdictor bridging the 
  gap between scout and dragoon . It outper-
  forms comparable units and sets high standards 
  for reconnaissance, making it a favorite in scout 
  and cavalry battalions .
  CAPABILITIES
  Quikscell built the Nisos to win over ad-
  vanced recon forces . The commander’s station 
  is unusually spacious and comfortable, which 
  significantly reduces fatigue during long sor-
  ties . Both the driver and gunner have compre-
  hensive controls with ultramodern ergonomics . 
  All three stations feature personal storage com-
  partments and adjustable five-point restraints .
  Despite its ammo-dependent weaponry, 
  the Nisos is designed for extended field op-
  erations with minimal maintenance and sup-
  port . Modular weapons technology enables 
  reconfiguring between variants as if it were an 
  OmniVehicle, at a fraction of the cost .
  DEPLOYMENT
  In May 3134, elements of Warrior House 
  Dai Da Chi and McCarron’s Armored Cavalry 
  clashed with the Principes Guards on Palos . 
  After several days of fighting, the Capellan in-
  vasion was in trouble . The bulk of their force 
  was deployed south of the Grael River Delta, an 
  expansive bayou two hundred kilometers south 
  of the planetary capital, Xer . Two companies of 
  heavy and assault ’Mechs under the command 
  of Major Ruth Janson were tying up three times 
  their number and making the Capellans pay 
  dearly for every kilometer of ground gained .
  The Bayou was a labyrinth . Seasonal flood-
  ing changed the passable terrain on an almost 
  daily basis . Local fauna, quicksand, and hardy un-
  dergrowth hampered conventional infantry re-
  connaissance and days of heavy rain and strong 
  winds kept Capellan aerial recon units ground-
  ed . When the weather broke on 17 March, the 
  Capellans launched a costly gambit . A screening 
  force of six VTOLs supported by a flight of con-
  ventional fighters moved the bayou followed by 
  a battalion of CCAF ’Mechs . 
  The Guards deployed along the only pass-
  able stretch of terrain in the vicinity and wait-
  ed . They handed the Capellans nine casualties 
  in the first hour and only gave up two kilome-
  ters . The Guards’ aerospace fighters sortied 
  from Xer and easily scattered the Capellan air 
  support . When the Guards’ fighters withdrew 
  to refuel, the Capellans revealed their plans . 
  A platoon of Nisoses split from the main force 
  and made a flanking advance through the 
  marsh . The WiGEs were able to easily bypass 
  the bayou’s natural obstacles, and with the 
  defending aerial assets temporarily out of the 
  fight, quickly outmaneuvered the heavier de-
  fending forces . The Guards withdrew a lance 
  of their fastest ’Mechs to corral the WiGEs, but 
  they couldn’t keep pace . The Nisoses exploit-
  ed this advantage, striking at the defending 
  ’Mechs from behind and then melting back 
  into the swamp . 
  Within two hours, the Guards were in 
  disarray and less than half of the defending 
  ’Mechs were in a position to trade blows with 
  the Capellan forces . Major Janson ordered the 
  defending units to withdraw and regroup far-
  ther into the bayou . It was a critical mistake . 
  The Nisoses stopped their harassing actions 
  and raced towards the far side of the Bayou 
  and the Guards’ supply depot . Although the 
  Nisos were unlikely to defeat Janson’s sentry 
  forces, she couldn’t afford the risk . The with-
  drawal became a rout as the Guards raced to 
  protect their supplies .
  By the end of the day, the Capellans had 
  crossed the Bayou and gained unfettered ac-
  cess to the M7 Expressway . The Guards had 
  been forced to retreat 100 kilometers to the 
  planetary capital . The Capellans conquered 
  Palos three weeks later .
  VARIANTS
  The support model swaps the stan-
  dard weapon package for ELRMs and ER  
  medium lasers . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sang-wei Steven Hu: One of the few highlights 
  of the failed assault on Marlette, Hu’s platoon 
  used their turrets to devastating effectiveness . 
  Forming up one behind another and enfilading 
  their guns, the Nisoses circled an enemy, focus-
  ing their firepower to devastating effect . When 
  the side of one Nisos became too damaged, the 
  formation would shift and rotate in the other 
  direction, presenting an undamaged side . 
  
  55
  NISOS ATTACK WIGE
  Type: Nisos
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: WiGE
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 1,090
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  200 
   
  7
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  9
   
  Flank MP:  
  14
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  119 
   
  6
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  28
   
  R/L Side 
  22/22
   
  Rear 
  22
   
  Turret 
  25
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Plasma Rifle 
  Turret 
  6
  Ammo (Plasma) 20 
  Body 
  2
  SRM 6 
  Turret 
  3
  Ammo (SRM) 15 
  Body 
  1
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Modular 
  Weapons, Easy to Maintain .
  
  56
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SALADIN MK II HCV
  Mass: 35 tons
  Movement Type: Hover
  Power Plant: Omni 175 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 108 kph
  Maximum Speed: 162 kph
  Armor: ProtecTech 19 Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  1 Magna Flarestar Snub-Nose  
   
  Particle Projection Cannon
   
  1 Guided Technologies 2nd Generation  
   
  Streak SRM 4 Launcher
  Manufacturer: Scarborough Manufacturers
   
  Primary Factories: Al Na’ir, Algedi
  Communications System: Scarborough Talky 2
  Targeting and Tracking System: Scarborough 
  Tracky 2
  As the Combine’s military production went 
  into high gear during the successful campaign 
  to reclaim the lost worlds of the Dieron Military 
  District, many venerable vehicles went through 
  a complete redesign . The most successful were 
  those produced by Scarborough Manufacturers: 
  the Saladin, Saracen, and Scimitar hover com-
  bat vehicles . 
  CAPABILITIES 
  The new Saladin is better armed, armored, 
  and faster than its predecessor . Scarborough 
  crammed as much new technology in their 
  Mark II upgrade as possible . The result is a ca-
  pable harasser with staying power to conduct 
  multiple strike missions, sowing confusion 
  along the enemy’s flank . 
  DEPLOYMENT 
  The Saladin found instant success in the 
  Draconis Reach campaign . The DCMS shipped 
  the bulk of Scarborough’s initial production to 
  the Ryuken-go, with a portion given to Gamma 
  Regiment of Wolf’s Dragoons at under-market 
  prices . The Ryuken put their new Saladins to 
  immediate use on Marlowe’s Rift, using a full 
  company of the hovertank as a reaction force 
  against Davion guerrillas . A Federated Suns 
  patrol was not prepared for the small tank’s 
  speed, losing three medium ’Mechs in less 
  than five minutes .
  As the Draconis Reach campaign pro-
  gressed, Dragoon pilots became intrigued 
  with the boasting by Ryuken crews on their 
  battle successes . Fielding their own platoon 
  of Saladins—backed up with a platoon each 
  of Scimitars and Saracens—the Dragoons em-
  ployed similar harasser tactics on Thestria . The 
  Dragoons found, as the Ryuken had already 
  discovered, that these new upgraded tanks 
  were extremely valuable in pursuit and ha-
  rasser roles . 
  A joint raid in advance of the actual in-
  vasion on Wapakoneta had both harasser 
  companies assigned, and a friendly rivalry 
  developed . A contest that incorporated kills, 
  inflicted damage, average speeds, and time-
  to-target spurred the mercenaries and DCMS 
  crews to incredible success . Chu-sa Kercheval, 
  pleased with the progress on Wapakoneta, 
  reassigned the rest of his operational force to 
  other combat theaters .
  VARIANTS
  One variant has been introduced, incorpo-
  rating two ripple-fire rocket launchers and a C3 
  electronic suite . The command circuit technol-
  ogy turns this BC3 version into a deadly spotting 
  unit for C3-linked companies . The Eighth Sword 
  of Light has found great success using this ver-
  sion in its command company .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Futsunushi: “Futsunushi” draws its name from 
  an ancient Japanese god of conquest, and its 
  presence among the Ryuken-go has aided 
  the push into the Federated Suns on multiple 
  worlds . Its most significant action was on 
  New Ivaarsen . The Ryuken-go had advanced 
  so quickly they left behind many supporting 
  units . Not so for “Futsunushi,” though . When 
  a -go lance found itself ambushed by the 
  Second Robinson Rangers, it was “Futsunushi” 
  that savaged the defenders’ and prevented 
  disaster . A counterattack by a Second New 
  Ivaarsen Chasseurs company was aborted when 
  “Futsunushi” led a company of Saladins across 
  their flank and downed two ’Mechs in seconds . 
  “Futsunushi” bears many kill markers, though 
  the number would be greater if its own crews 
  were counted . Three times “Futsunushi’s” crew 
  has died in its confines, though the vehicle 
  survives . There is no shortage of crewmen willing 
  to join its legendary crusade .
  Unconquered: This Saladin was captured on 
  Marlowe’s Rift by FedSuns forces before their 
  retreat . It has since seen action on eight worlds 
  during the Combine’s invasion . On Deshler, a 
  company of Third Ceti Hussars escaped destruc-
  tion thanks to “Unconquered’s” cavalry charge, 
  while a lance of First Robinson Rangers was 
  saved on Royal by a seemingly reckless ramming 
  attack against a Fourth Ghost Victor that took its 
  leg and stalled the Combine advance .
  
  57
  SALADIN MK II HCV
  Type: Saladin Mk II
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Hover
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 862
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  175 
   
  10 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  10
   
  Flank MP:  
  15
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  109 
   
  5 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  45
   
  R/L Side 
  23/23
   
  Rear 
  18
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Snub-Nose PPC 
  Front 
  6
  Streak SRM 4 
  Front 
  3
  Ammo (Streak) 25 
  Body 
  1
  
  58
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SARACEN MK II HCV
  Mass: 35 tons
  Movement Type: Hover
  Power Plant: Omni 175 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 108 kph
  Maximum Speed: 162 kph
  Armor: ProtecTech 19 Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  1 Doombud 7-Tube Multi-Missile Launcher
   
  2 Diverse Optics Extended-Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: Scarborough Manufacturers
   
  Primary Factories: Al Na’ir, Algedi
  Communications System: Scarborough Talky 2
  Targeting and Tracking System: Scarborough 
  Tracky 2
  One of the trio of upgraded hovertanks 
  produced by Scarborough, the Saracen found 
  instant success and acclaim among the various 
  regiments of the Ryuken . With several battle-
  field successes behind it, the Saracen is quickly 
  becoming the premier support hovertank for 
  the Combine’s mixed recon companies .
  CAPABILITIES 
  Considered the missile support to the 
  Saladin’s harasser platform, the Saracen under-
  went a similar upgrade process . Heavier armor 
  provides enough protection for a few extra sec-
  onds on the battlefield, giving Saracen crews 
  time for one or two more volleys with its multi-
  mode launcher . These extra moments can spell 
  the difference between victory and defeat for 
  the Combine battle line .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  The Saracen made its debut during the 
  Draconis Reach campaign . Utilized by the 
  Ryuken-go and Wolf’s Dragoons, the Saracen 
  found positions amidst most recon platoons 
  and several infantry companies . A common 
  tactic was to position the tank behind a low hill 
  near a fixed observation post or forward patrol 
  line and wait for fellow Saladins and Scimitars 
  to engage the enemy . As the hovertanks raced 
  back, the Saracens would dart out and ham-
  mer the pursuers with missiles while attempt-
  ing a flanking maneuver . Using their variable 
  missile loads to effect, the Saracens distracted 
  the enemy long enough for their mates to turn 
  around and add their firepower to the fray . 
  The maneuver worked well against the poorly 
  trained Davion militia .
  The High Command was pleased with the 
  Saracens’ performance and reliability during the 
  campaign . Scarborough increased production 
  to meet the sudden demand and retooled their 
  Algedi facility to handle the overflow . Saracens 
  and Scimitars flooded the ranks of the rebuilt 
  Dieron Regulars regiments and several recon-
  naissance companies among the Ryuken, New 
  Samarkand and Galedon Regulars, and the 
  Arkab Legions . 
  VARIANTS
  Scarborough began producing a C3 vari-
  ant in 3140 at the DCMS’ request . Networked 
  Scarborough hovertanks are now a common 
  sight among the Combine task force overrun-
  ning the Federated Suns border .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sanban Platoon: A Saracen platoon from 
  Ryuken-hachi’s Armor Battalion, Sanban was 
  renowned for its crew’s noticeable tendency 
  to follow the spirit of an order rather than the 
  letter of it . Chu-i Maruchan personally defend-
  ed her stance to her superiors as the influence 
  of her platoon’s battlefield actions began to 
  creep into Ichiban and Niban Platoon . Under 
  normal circumstances, Maruchan would have 
  been court-martialed for her refusal to fol-
  low orders, but Kanrei Toranaga needed all 
  available hands for Task Force Tsujigiri . Tai-sa 
  Aguilar assigned Sanban to the Ryuken-hachi’s 
  support battalion attached to the task force, 
  in hopes that serving alongside Toranaga’s 
  Hikage regiment would have a positive influ-
  ence on the platoon’s discipline .
  Fortunately for the task force, the Hikage 
  made little difference on Maruchan’s command 
  style . On Remagen in 3148, Sanban Platoon was 
  positioned along with the rest of the support 
  battalion to guard the Hikage’s DropShips . True 
  to her nature, Chu-i Maruchan ranged further 
  afield while on patrol than her orders explicitly 
  allowed, but the tactic worked . Sanban inter-
  cepted the advance elements of a First Kestrel 
  Grenadiers company that was attempting to cut 
  off the Hikage’s FOB from their LZ . Maruchan’s 
  platoon led the harassment charge, losing only 
  one of their Saracen Mk IIs before pulling back 
  toward the DropShips . This advance warning 
  allowed the Hikage rearguard to pull back in 
  time and blunt the Grenadiers’ advance while 
  the rest of Sanban Platoon struck down targets 
  of opportunity .
  
  59
  SARACEN MK II HCV
  Type: Saracen Mk II
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Hover
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 837
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  175 
   
  10 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  10
   
  Flank MP:  
  15
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  119 
   
  6
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  28
   
  R/L Side 
  22/22
   
  Rear 
  21
   
  Turret 
  26
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  MML 7 
  Turret 
  4 .5
  Ammo (MML) 34/28 
  Body 
  2
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Turret 
  2
  
  60
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SKANDA LIGHT TANK
  Mass: 35 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: Standard 245 XL
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph
  Armor: Compound VM22 Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  2 Type 25 Ultra Autocannon 2
   
  2 Series 2b Extended Range Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: Quikscell Company
   
  Primary Factories: Pandora
  Communications System: K9 CommSys
  Targeting and Tracking System: Hunter (2) 
  Dedicated TTS
  Like the Skadi Swift Attack VTOL, the 
  Skanda proliferated throughout the Inner 
  Sphere while Pandora was in Lyran hands . 
  Mercenaries employ the tank as a poor man’s 
  artillery, with the twin autocannons keeping 
  enemies honest at range . The Jade Falcons, 
  since recovering the Pandora factory, have as-
  signed most Skandas to PGCs or solahma units . 
  Some, though, are found attached to frontline 
  Galaxies as shock elements or for flanking mo-
  bile enemies .
   
  CAPABILITIES
  The Skanda’s armor serves it well, as the 
  Falcons often send the tank on far-ranging 
  recon missions when aerial reconnaissance is 
  unfeasible . The lack of a turret limits the Skanda 
  and is a frequent complaint from crews who 
  find themselves taking fire from the flanks or 
  rear . Most crews rely on the extremely stable 
  weapon mounts to engage enemies at maxi-
  mum range .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Tai-i Sepeiro Saitou’s tank company in the 
  Nineteenth Pesht Regulars was deployed to se-
  cure a cluster of three refineries of the Deep Ores 
  Company on Bjarred in 3144 . Their primary task 
  in the event of an assault was to delay an enemy 
  long enough for the Nineteenth’s BattleMechs 
  to arrive . When the far-ranging Incinerators, 
  pirates from Santander V, were detected enter-
  ing orbit in January 3145, it was clear they were 
  headed toward Saitou’s area . Instead of remain-
  ing in place to secure the refinery center, he took 
  his Skanda platoon to meet the enemy . With the 
  slower two-thirds of his company remaining on 
  station, Saitou charged headlong toward the pi-
  rate landing zone .
  Saitou spotted an enemy lance emerg-
  ing from a beat-up Leopard-class DropShip . He 
  again split his force, with one pair taking up 
  positions among the forest approaches to am-
  bush the enemy . Saitou and his last tank sped 
  up the scenic Highland Overlook and began to 
  rain fire on the pirates . The minor damage he 
  inflicted accomplished his goal of enraging the 
  pirates, who sought to eliminate the annoyance 
  before continuing on to the refinery complex . 
  This led them past the hidden pair of Skandas, 
  who opened up at point-blank range .
  The Incinerators’ medium ’Mechs easily re-
  pelled the meager fire and destroyed the two 
  ambushers . Saitou used this distraction to order 
  his last Skanda back to the refinery while he 
  made a rash decision . The remaining defenders 
  might be able to hold off a light lance, but not 
  a medium one . He delayed them by charging 
  into their midst . His Skanda’s armor shrugged 
  off the enemy fire as he slammed into the shin 
  of an Incinerator Wolverine . The ’Mech fell, but 
  Saitou was killed instantly when its lancemates 
  concentrated fire on his Skanda . The limping 
  Wolverine made it to the refinery and was killed 
  by a Demolisher . The rest of the pirate lance 
  hunted down the defenders, but fled without 
  any loot when the Nineteenth’s BattleMechs 
  finally arrived .
  The Forty-first Wolf Guard Battle Cluster 
  raided Turinge in May 3145, engaging the elite 
  Fourth Donegal Armor Brigade . Both sides used 
  Skandas . Each command’s scouts spotted one 
  another at about the same time . The Brigade’s 
  gunners took advantage of the less experienced 
  Guards . The Guards were content to hold in 
  place and exchange ranged fire, but the Fourth 
  called in artillery and adjusted fire perfectly . The 
  Wolves were caught by the artillery walking up 
  from their rear and made a surprise decision: 
  they charged . The Fourth was caught some-
  what off-guard, but regrouped and held off 
  the Wolves . A flight of Forty-first fighters ended 
  the tank-on-tank battle, as the raiders chose to 
  withdraw back to Chukchi III .
  VARIANTS
  Some Skandas replace the Ultra auto-
  cannon with ProtoMech-scale versions and 
  swap the laser weaponry for a TSEMP Cannon . 
  Combined with a Skanda’s mobility, TSEMP can-
  nons can force unwary ’Mechs to shut down .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Point Commander Roland: During the 3148 
  Battle of Coventry, Point Command Roland ac-
  companied the First Falcon Striker Cluster to the 
  town of Whitting . A CPM company guarded the 
  Whitting Monument, and Roland’s autocannon 
  fired the first shots of the resulting slaughter .
  
  61
  SKANDA LIGHT TANK
  Type: Skanda
  Technology Base: Clan
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 1,078
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  245 
   
  9
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  7
   
  Flank MP:  
  11
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  124 
   
  6 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  45
   
  R/L Side 
  32/32
   
  Rear 
  15
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Ultra AC/2 
  Front 
  10
  Ammo (Ultra) 90 
  Body 
  2
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Front 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved 
  Targeting (Long Range) .
  
  62
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SHILLELAGH MISSILE TANK
  Mass: 40 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: Nissan 200 Fuel Cell
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Armor: StarSlab/2 
  Armament: 
   
  3 Shigunga 5-Tube Multi-Missile Launcher
   
  2 Sperry Browning Light Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: Buda Imperial Vehicles
   
  Primary Factories: Luthien
  Communications System: Sipher CommSys 2
  Targeting and Tracking System: Rat’s Eyes
  Originally prototyped during the Second 
  Succession War, the Shillelagh Missile Tank was 
  shelved after it flipped over while attempting to 
  cross an infantry trench . The tank was too top 
  heavy and failed to handle even moderate inclines 
  unless traveling in a straight line to the crest .
  CAPABILITIES 
  In acquiescence to Stone’s disarmament 
  plan, the Combine’s military manufacturing 
  industry scaled back production . Unwilling to 
  strip its already weakened military, the DCMS 
  quietly tasked several commercial industries 
  to produce cheap, light vehicles for its militia 
  garrisons . In turn, current militia equipment 
  would be reassigned to rebuilding regiments . 
  Production numbers would therefore look low 
  as the Combine inflated its military strength .
  To accomplish this, the DCMS pulled out 
  plans from failed ventures reaching back to the 
  days of the Star League . The Shillelagh proved 
  to be a cheap, cost-effective tank using surplus 
  electronics and weapons . Its weaknesses—stiff 
  control rods and suspension, older-generation tar-
  geting systems, and horrendous fuel economy—
  were ignored and the tank went into production 
  shortly after the Second Combine-Dominion War .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  Most Shillelaghs are assigned to planetary 
  militia regiments bordering the Periphery, 
  though crews are loath to give up their 
  Pegasuses, Condors, and other medium tanks .
  The Procurement Department has also 
  “misshipped” several platoons of the missile 
  tank to the Ghost regiments . The tankers of 
  these yakuza-staffed regiments have taken the 
  insult in stride and adapted to the Shillelagh’s 
  quirks . The tanks are used as anchoring units 
  for harasser teams, often moved into position 
  along anticipated enemy routes and hidden 
  in heavy forest, brush, or rocky terrain . The 
  Eleventh Ghost used their two platoons of 
  Shillelaghs to surprise a pursuing strike lance of 
  Davion Light Guards on Brookeland, peppering 
  the ’Mechs with waves of missiles from a flank 
  position . Laying down a heavy smoke screen, 
  the Shillelaghs maintained their fire as a pla-
  toon of Saladins sped into the fray from behind 
  their position . The Guards lost half their lance 
  in the ensuing melee, at the cost of all of the 
  Shillelaghs .
  VARIANTS
  The original Shillelagh prototypes mount-
  ed older missile and machine gun technology 
  with lighter armor distribution . Though touted 
  to be easy to maintain, its reliability was low 
  due to its long list of inadequacies and techno-
  logical inconsistencies . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Ichi, Ni, San, Yon: The four Shillelaghs of the 
  Fairfax Planetary Militia are referred to simply by 
  their assigned unit numbers: Shillelaghs Ichi, Ni, 
  San, and Yon . Like many planetary militias, these 
  crews are far from the cream of the crop . When 
  first assigned to the Fairfax Planetary Militia, the 
  unit only had enough trained vehicle crewmen 
  to crew Ichi . Taking the newest recruits from the 
  infantry ranks, they were put through a crash 
  course in vehicle combat, in order to properly 
  crew the remaining three tanks .
   
  Starting on an open plain, the recruits were 
  ordered to mimic Ichi . If Ichi turned left, they 
  turned left . If Ichi rotated its turret, they rotated 
  their turrets, and so on . Much like infantry forces 
  during the pre-space days of Man, the lance of 
  Shillelaghs moved and fought as one . The com-
  mander of the militia’s vehicle forces wasn’t 
  worried about accurate weapons fire . He knew 
  that with enough volume on a target, the hits 
  would come . Great accuracy required lots of live 
  ammunition on the firing range, something the 
  militia simply didn’t have .
   
  The only thing of value on Fairfax was the 
  munitions and spare parts occasionally stored 
  in the large distribution warehouses . A group 
  of pirates tried to raid the warehouses while all 
  four tanks were on guard duty . A pair of pirate 
  ‘Mechs evaded the main militia force only to 
  round the corner right in front of the Shillelaghs . 
  Each volley of massed SRM fire shredded a pi-
  rate ‘Mech, much to the surprise and merriment 
  of the crews .
  
  63
  SHILLELAGH MISSILE TANK
  Type: Shillelagh
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 40
  Battle Value: 669
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  4
  Engine:  
  200 
   
  10 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  5
   
  Flank MP:  
  8
  Heat Sinks:  
  1 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1
  Armor Factor: 
  128 
   
  8
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  30
   
  R/L Side 
  24/24
   
  Rear 
  15
   
  Turret 
  35
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  3 MML 5 
  Turret 
  9
  Ammo (MML) 96/80 
  Body 
  4
  2 Light Machine Guns 
  Front 
  1
  Ammo (Light MG) 100 
  Body 
   .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Accurate 
  Weapon (MML 5), Easy to Maintain, Rumble Seat, 
  Hard to Pilot, Sensor Ghosts .
  
  64
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SHUN TRANSPORT VTOL
  Mass: 40 tons
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Power Plant: GM 95 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph
  Armor: Hellespont Lite Stealth
  Armament: 
   
  2 Mydron Mini Magshot Gauss Rifles
  Manufacturer: Tengo Aerospace
   
  Primary Factories: Sarna
  Communications System: Endicott Type 11 
  Maser with Guardian ECM Suite
  Targeting and Tracking System: Dwyerson 
  Mark XX with TAG and Targeting Computer
  Named after the Chinese word for shield, 
  the Shun Transport VTOL is exactly the kind of 
  excellent transportation Confederation troops 
  have come to enjoy since the 3120s . Shrouded 
  in advanced stealth systems, the Shun is de-
  signed expressly for the rapid insertion and 
  support of battle armor . 
  CAPABILITIES
  The Shun’s blend of stealth capability, agil-
  ity and support systems makes it both deadly 
  and versatile . Unlike smaller transport VTOLs 
  like the ancient Ripper, the stealthy Shun is ca-
  pable of infiltrating enemy territory to deliver 
  up to three squads of battle armor . Able to ig-
  nore terrain that would stop lesser transports, 
  the Shun’s sophisticated technologies make 
  it the infantry transport of choice for many 
  Capellan commanders .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The border between the Republic and the 
  Confederation has never been peaceful . Even 
  after a concord was reached in the wake of the 
  Crusades, tensions continued to simmer just 
  below the surface . Raids were common, and 
  both sides employed mercenaries as proxies 
  to attack each another . In many of these raids, 
  the Shun proved to be a deciding factor in the 
  battlefield success of the Confederation, such as 
  on Corey in 3130 .
  Dispatched to Corey in retaliation for a 
  similar raid against Asuncion, a small Republic-
  sponsored mercenary unit struck the Hollis 
  Industries plant . Targeting warehouses full of 
  new equipment, the raiders stole what they 
  could and wrecked the rest before retreating to 
  their hidden transport . The Sixth Confederation 
  Reserve Cavalry scrambled a flight of Shuns to 
  slow the attackers so the regiment’s heavier 
  elements could mobilize and catch the flee-
  ing mercenaries . Flying just above the jungle 
  canopy, the Shuns made a daring run against 
  the raiders’ DropShip, dropping battle armor di-
  rectly onto the ship’s hull . The battlesuits swiftly 
  overpowered the surprised crew and secured 
  the vessel for the Confederation . The raiders 
  soon realized their fate was sealed . 
  Despite an excellent combat record, the 
  Shun is not invincible . During the CCAF inva-
  sion of Demeter in 3144, an overconfident Shun 
  flight leader from the Third Tikonov Guards or-
  dered his flight directly into the heavy defenses 
  protecting New Demeter City . Relying solely 
  on the VTOL’s stealth armor to safeguard them 
  from detection, the pair was promptly annihi-
  lated by accurate anti-aircraft fire . 
  VARIANTS
  Tengo offers a new support fire variant that 
  makes the most of the Shun’s targeting computer 
  by mating it with light PPCs . Unfortunately, the 
  energy weaponry effectively negates the use of 
  its stealth armor .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Commander Lizzie Stanton: Commander 
  Stanton’s Shun Squadron is a critical compo-
  nent of the First Highlanders Infantry Guard . 
  After a brazen raid by renegades operating from 
  the former Canopian world of Vixen, the First 
  Magistracy Highlanders carried out a reprisal 
  raid . Stanton’s Squadron played a key role . As 
  the Highlanders attacked the renegades from 
  the fore, it fell to Stanton to sweep around the 
  enemy flank and destroy their base . This would 
  have been easier in stealth-armored Shuns, but 
  Stanton took advantage of the energy weapons 
  on her squadron’s newer variant . After losing a 
  VTOL clearing the flank, she delighted in pour-
  ing fire into the enemy rear area, destroying 
  barracks, supplies, repair bays, and even nearby 
  farmland that fed the raiders .
  Swipe: This Shun caught the attention of the 
  INN after the third time it was observed pen-
  etrating enemy lines on contested FedSuns 
  worlds to capture the fleeing families of plan-
  etary rulers and various nobles . It is believed 
  that this tactic aided the Capellan conquest 
  by forcing the capitulation of various officials 
  to protect their families . This was certainly 
  true on Hobson, when Count Ronald McCray 
  was captured along with his family . His coerced 
  order for the militia to stand down was obeyed 
  by most of the local defenders . Those who 
  refused to surrender cost the count his two 
  youngest sons . 
  
  65
  SHUN TRANSPORT VTOL
  Type: Shun
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Tonnage: 40
  Battle Value: 499
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  8
  Engine:  
  95 
   
  2 .5
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  7
   
  Flank MP:  
  11
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  4
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor (Stealth): 
  96 
   
  6
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  24
   
  R/L Side 
  23/23
   
  Rear 
  24
   
  Rotor 
  2
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Magshot Gauss Rifles 
  Front 
  1
  Ammo (Magshot) 50 
  Body 
  1
  TAG 
  Front 
  1
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  Body 
  1 .5
  Targeting Computer 
  Body 
  1
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  12
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Variable 
  Range Targeting .
  
  66
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  PREDATOR TANK DESTROYER
  Mass: 45 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: Ceres Motors 270 Fuel Cell
  Cruising Speed: 64 kph
  Maximum Speed: 97 kph
  Armor: Hellespont Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  1 Mydron Devastator LB 20-X Autocannon
  Manufacturer: Ceres Metals Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Indicass
  Communications System: Magna-VOX KS2525
  Targeting and Tracking System: Magna-VOX 
  TTS4000
  The Predator was designed in the waning 
  days of the Second Succession War as House 
  Liao realized it could not match the BattleMech 
  production of its hostile neighbors . A slew of 
  cheap vehicles was introduced to bridge the 
  gap and fill the depleted ranks of the CCAF . 
  The Predator Tank Destroyer was well-received 
  until a disastrous showing on Spica, which re-
  sulted in further contracts going to Quikscell’s 
  cheaper Hetzer .
  The Predator was revisited when House 
  Liao needed to quickly bolster its collapsing 
  border with cheap units that still offered high 
  performance during the Victoria War . It was first 
  deployed on Victoria itself, where its effective 
  upgrades were a nasty surprise to the invaders .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Predator is a traditional low-slung 
  casemate tank destroyer with spectacular per-
  formance . Though its armor mass is light, its 
  glacis is very thick and a low vertical profile and 
  high speed make it a difficult target . An impor-
  tant improvement in the current incarnation 
  is swapping the Q-Beam autocannon with a 
  Devastator LB 20-X weapon that can easily in-
  capacitate enemy vehicles of any size .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The six-month meatgrinder on Victoria 
  in 3103 was the modern Predator’s baptism 
  of fire . It was disseminated to elite tank crews 
  who were tasked with targeting the command-
  ers of advancing formations . The Predator Tank 
  Destroyer quickly gained a fearsome reputa-
  tion . A standard tactic was to lay hidden, let-
  ting the enemy advance to point blank range, 
  where a single shot of the massive autocannon 
  was often enough to destroy the target . The 
  Predator would then disengage speedily .
  Incorrect deployment had initially caused 
  the vehicle’s discontinuation more than a cen-
  tury before . A skirmish on Spica in 2974 be-
  tween elements of the Fifth Syrtis Fusiliers and 
  defending militia illustrated the tank destroyer’s 
  limitations in open combat . When the Fusiliers 
  deployed Vedettes in support, the militia coun-
  tered with Predators . When the two sides met on 
  the Timbers Flats, the thin side armor and limit-
  ed traverse of the autocannon was exploited by 
  the turreted Vedettes . Though ostensibly better 
  armed, in a freewheeling long-range engage-
  ment, the Predators had no chance and were 
  mostly destroyed before a relief force arrived .
  The battle of Second Try during the 
  Capellan Crusades is famous for being Kai 
  Allard Liao’s last stand . It was also significant for 
  the first deployment of the Hanse main battle 
  tank with the Fifth Hastati Sentinels . Facing 
  what was essentially a super tank destroyer, 
  Capellan Predators needed to outmaneuver 
  their fearsome new foes . Hanse versus Predator 
  skirmishes became a cat and mouse game as it 
  was now the Predators attempting to flank their 
  opponents . Whenever they succeeded, they 
  were effective at immobilizing their targets . 
  The ability to do so repeatedly has cemented 
  the Predator’s status as mainstay of Capellan 
  anti-armor forces .
  VARIANTS
  The original Predator Tank Destroyer fea-
  tured a less effective internal combustion en-
  gine, weapon, and armor . Despite being slower 
  and having less mission endurance, it was es-
  sentially the same vehicle .
  Ceres has also created a new “elite com-
  mander’s” model, which spares no expense to 
  stay ahead in the interstellar arms race . This 
  version employs an XL engine to support a 
  giant improved heavy Gauss rifle that replaces 
  the Devastator autocannon . These exclusive 
  vehicles are assigned only to proven tank 
  commanders .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Si-ben-bing Lin-Fong Chang: Lin-Fong has 
  recently gained fame for her role in the 
  Home Guard ambush of Leftenant Briggs on 
  Menkalinan . As the Davion lance passed her 
  unit’s position the Capellan forces opened 
  fire . The Home Guard forces were hoping to at 
  least slow down some of the lance, and were 
  ecstatic when Lin-Fong’s Predator disabled 
  the hip of Briggs’ Griffin, knocking it down . As 
  the rest of the Davion lance turned to cover 
  its wounded comrade, Lin-Fong opened fire 
  again with cluster munitions, hitting an ammu-
  nition bin and cracking open the cockpit of 
  the downed BattleMech .
   
  Si-ben-bing Chang has recently been 
  upgraded to a new Predator variant with an 
  improved heavy gauss Rifle as reward for ex-
  emplary service . BattleROM footage of the am-
  bush is being used in Capellan recruiting and 
  morale efforts .
  
  67
  PREDATOR TANK DESTROYER
  Type: Predator
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 45
  Battle Value: 775
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  4 .5
  Engine:  
  270 
   
  17 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  6
   
  Flank MP:  
  9
  Heat Sinks:  
  1 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  89 
   
  4 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  45
   
  R/L Side 
  16/16
   
  Rear 
  12
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  LB 20-X AC 
  Front 
  14
  Ammo (LB-X) 10 
  Body 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to 
  Maintain, Narrow/Low Profile .
  
  68
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SORTEK ASSAULT CRAFT
  Mass: 45 tons
  Movement Type: Hover
  Power Plant: GM 170 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 97 kph
  Maximum Speed: 151 kph
  Armor: Valiant Lamellor Special Heavy 
  Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  2 Mydron Tempest Rotary  
   
  Class 2 Autocannons
   
  1 MainFire Point Defense Anti-Missile System
  Manufacturer: Corean Enterprises
   
  Primary Factories: New Avalon
  Communications System: Corean 
  Transband-J9
  Targeting and Tracking System: Corean C-Link 
  Corean Enterprises’ Musketeer hovertank 
  was one of the most successful creations the 
  company unveiled in the last century, and they 
  were anxious to do so again with the Sortek 
  Assault Craft . The speedy tank excels at the ha-
  rasser role, even if it is not the main combatant 
  that the Musketeer is .
  CAPABILITIES
  Fast and well-armored, the Sortek’s de-
  signed purpose is to skim and harass enemy 
  formations . Though there are longer-ranged 
  weapons that might serve better, the Sortek’s 
  paired rotary autocannons make it difficult to 
  ignore, and many Davion battalions have used 
  it to great success breaking up the line of battle .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Many of the longest-surviving units on 
  Palmyra were built around Sorteks . One, Tico’s 
  Company of the Crucis Lancers, was entirely 
  built of Sorteks, and this company used its speed 
  and firepower to draw off a number of Combine 
  probes toward consolidating Davion units . 
  Time and again Captain Tico and his three 
  platoons would discover an officer building a 
  small ad hoc unit out of the survivors of bro-
  ken regiments and combat teams . Each time, 
  a Combine column would be detected on its 
  way to crush this new pocket of survivors, and 
  Tico and his blowers would hurry out and draw 
  the Combine column off . Four times alone in 
  July 3144 this tactic allowed a provisional 
  company to assemble and counterattack, but 
  in the end the ravenous ammunition needs 
  of the Sorteks proved their undoing . Out of 
  anti-missile system ammunition and short 
  on cannon rounds, Tico and his eight remain-
  ing Sorteks charged a lance of the Benjamin 
  Regulars . Though they successfully lamed a 
  Combine Night Stalker, the rest of the lance 
  destroyed them, earning Captain Tico a post-
  humous Diamond Sunburst .
  Many armor officers familiar with the 
  Musketeer overestimate the Sortek’s offensive 
  capability, as was proven on Frazer in 3144 . 
  When the Capellans invaded, Major Sneed 
  of the Frazer militia ordered a platoon of 
  Sorteks to attack a small column of Liao logis-
  tical troops escorted by two Regulator tanks . 
  Despite the objections of the Sortek crews, 
  they attacked . Unlike the Musketeer, with 
  its larger Tornado autocannon, the Sortek’s 
  lighter rotaries couldn’t hope to overcome 
  the Regulators’ armor, and the return fire from 
  longer-ranged, harder-hitting Gauss rifles de-
  stroyed three of the four Sorteks before they 
  could break off .
  VARIANTS
  AFFS quartermasters urged Corean 
  to offer an electronic warfare model of the 
  Sortek, which uses an armored motive sys-
  tem to help keep it mobile while holding  
  tactical strongpoints .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sergeant Harmon Daly: Sergeant Daly was 
  always known as a daredevil, even by his 
  fellow Fifth Avalon Hussars . His flair for risky 
  maneuvers and unrelenting bravado was put 
  to the test during the Hikage’s deep strike on 
  Remagen in 3148 . The First Prince’s Champion, 
  Erik Sandoval, was unable to reach his ’Mech 
  in time to evacuate, so he hitched a ride on 
  Sergeant Daly’s Sortek . Daly’s maneuvers and 
  the heroic and sacrificial actions of the rest of 
  his platoon aided him in getting Sandoval to 
  the safety of the Fifth’s DropShips . By the time 
  Daly’s platoon arrived, only Daly’s Sortek re-
  mained, as the rest had thrown themselves in 
  harm’s way to ensure the Prince’s Champion 
  lived to fight another day . Sandoval saw that 
  Daly was awarded the Golden Sunburst Medal . 
  The members of Daly’s platoon were posthu-
  mously awarded the Diamond Sunburst Medal .
  Sergeant Talia Felton: Corporal Felton left a 
  desk job at Federated News Services and enlisted  
  in the AFFS when her home planet of New Syrtis 
  fell to the Capellan Confederation in 3145 . 
  Perceived as a mediocre recruit in basic train-
  ing, she went on to serve with distinction in the 
  Fifth Crucis Lancers during the campaign to re-
  claim her homeworld in 3147–48 . Her crew has 
  a notable distinction for being able to unjam 
  their Sortek’s rotary autocannon while on the 
  move, rather than having to stop in a vulner-
  able position to clear the jam . Other members 
  of her platoon have tried to duplicate this feat, 
  but thus far none have been successful, and 
  attempts have only resulted in serious injury . 
  Felton also excels at performing field repairs 
  on her Sortek, albeit not while it remains in 
  motion (yet) .
  
  69
  SORTEK ASSAULT CRAFT
  Type: Sortek
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Hover
  Tonnage: 45
  Battle Value: 937
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  4 .5
  Engine:  
  170 
   
  9
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  9
   
  Flank MP:  
  14
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  4 .5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  99 
   
  5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  30
   
  R/L Side 
  24/24
   
  Rear 
  21
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Rotary AC/2 
  Front 
  16
  Ammo (RAC) 90 
  Body 
  2
  Anti-Missile System 
  Front 
   .5
  Ammo (AMS) 12 
  Body 
  1
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Rumble 
  Seat .
  
  70
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SWALLOW ATTACK WIGE
  Mass: 45 tons
  Movement Type: WiGE
  Power Plant: Omni 200 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph
  Armor: ArcShield Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  1 Defiance Disintegrator LB 20-X  
   
  Autocannon
   
  2 BlazeFire Longshot Extended Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: Nashan Diversified
   
  Primary Factories: Furillo
  Communications System: Nashan Optichat
  Targeting and Tracking System: T-800 Series 7
  The WiGE has seen a veritable explosion 
  of military production in the last century as 
  producers scrambled to exploit the unique 
  aspects of the craft . The Swallow—often re-
  ferred to as the Schwalbe in its native Lyran 
  Commonwealth—is another entry in this bur-
  geoning market . Although critics have derided 
  it as merely being a more agile Hetzer, the 
  Swallow’s blend of speed and weaponry has 
  served it well for the last fifty years .
  CAPABILITIES
  Following the success of their jointly-
  produced Fensalir with Johnston Industries, 
  Nashan decided to reevaluate their original 
  WiGE project . Noting the Fensalir’s relatively 
  slow speed, they opted to redesign the con-
  cept as a faster support unit . Based upon the 
  Sturmvogel maritime patrol WiGE of the 3060s, 
  the Swallow now serves in the role of a close as-
  sault vehicle . Like all WiGEs it is at home in open 
  terrain, flying over ground-based obstacles, and 
  the Swallow’s flotation hull allows it to take off 
  and land on water .
  In an effort to reduce the Swallow’s logisti-
  cal tail it is built with many of the same compo-
  nents as the Fensalir .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Sold widely across the Inner Sphere 
  to every nation barring the Capellan 
  Confederation and Draconis Combine, the cur-
  rent version of the Swallow entered service in 
  3095 . The Furillo BPM has made the most of the 
  Swallow’s unusual abilities on Eidsfoss, a stra-
  tegically important world that Clan Wolf would 
  need to conquer prior to any full-scale invasion 
  of Furillo . The militia has set up a number of is-
  land and ship-based supply dumps across the 
  world . During training, their Swallows swoop 
  in to attack from the shorelines and then with-
  draw across the oceans to the dumps for rearm-
  ing and repair . Though still vulnerable to naval 
  and airborne assaults, these supply dumps are 
  safe from direct ground attacks, allowing the 
  militia to act with impunity .  
  Based on Furillo itself until recently, the 
  Twenty-third Arcturan Guards RCT has protect-
  ed the world’s various factories from raids by 
  the Clans . The Twenty-third uses its Swallows as 
  fast-strike craft, with multiple units often target-
  ing a single enemy in each pass .
  The Kestrel Grenadiers acquired many 
  Swallows and Fensalirs for their cavalry armor 
  and infantry regiments following their expan-
  sion to RCT size in 3100 . Most recently these 
  were used to great effect against the First 
  Liao Hussars in 3144, when they attempted a 
  McCarron-style deep-raid across the Capellan 
  March . Reaching as far as the factories of 
  Talcott, the Hussars were finally cornered 
  on Amiga, where the Grenadiers’ Swallows 
  were instrumental in helping to pin the them 
  down . Only a near-suicidal frontal attack by 
  the First Liao enabled it to punch through to 
  its DropShips, albeit at the cost of its entire 
  second battalion .
  VARIANTS
  The original Swallow debuted in 3092 
  and featured a rotary autocannon and snub-
  nose PPC, but failed to catch on with the Lyran 
  market . Following a redesign of the weaponry 
  for something more iconically Lyran, domestic 
  sales took off . The original variant is still pro-
  duced, particularly for export markets .
  A more radical version further augments 
  the Swallow’s mobility with the addition of 
  vehicular jump jets, and adds TAG for artillery-
  spotting . The heavy autocannon in this variant 
  is also replaced by a lighter model, mounted in 
  a dorsal turret .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Leutnant Ginnifer “Mourning Dove” Chase: 
  Leutnant Chase piloted one of the many 
  Swallows that were absorbed into the Buena 
  Collective Military . Chase earned her nickname 
  by showing incredible restraint during the 
  fighting on Valloire in 3147 . Rather than firing 
  indiscriminately at LCAF forces, Chase only took 
  shots that would have maximum impact while 
  minimizing the potential for collateral damage, 
  and she would often circle the battlefield two 
  or three times before firing on a target . This 
  kept her ammo stores high long after other 
  Swallows’ magazines had run dry .
  
  71
  SWALLOW ATTACK WIGE
  Type: Swallow
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: WiGE
  Tonnage: 45
  Battle Value: 1,283
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  4 .5
  Engine:  
  200 
   
  7
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  7
   
  Flank MP:  
  11
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  4 .5
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  148 
   
  7 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  50
   
  R/L Side 
  35/35
   
  Rear 
  28
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  LB 20-X AC 
  Front 
  14
  Ammo (LB-X) 15 
  Body 
  3
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Front 
  2
  Flotation Hull 
  — 
  0
  
  72
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  HADUR FAST SUPPORT VEHICLE
  Mass: 50 tons
  Movement Type: Hover
  Power Plant: Type 215 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 97 kph
  Maximum Speed: 151 kph
  Armor: Compound VM22 Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  1 Class 16 Arrow IV Heavy Launcher
   
  2 Series 2b Extended Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
   
  2 Tau-II Anti-personnel Gauss Rifles
  Manufacturer: Csesztreg Industriplex Beta
   
  Primary Factories: Csesztreg
  Communications System: Build 1750/4 Tacticom
  Targeting and Tracking System: Series VI TTS
  Surprising is the word most often associ-
  ated with the Hadur . Although it would have 
  been derided by most Clan tacticians a hun-
  dred years ago, the Hadur has seen remarkably 
  widespread deployment since its introduction 
  in 3102 . It performs admirably when used in its 
  intended role, but struggles without support 
  from spotters like the Asshur . Concerns that the 
  hover platform would be too unstable to allow 
  for accurate targeting of the Arrow IV system 
  have proved unfounded, though rumors to the 
  contrary continue to chase the Hadur .
   
  CAPABILITIES 
  Rather than four five-round ammunition 
  magazines, the Hadur has a single twenty-round 
  magazine . Although it’s technically possible to 
  load different types of missiles, the inability to 
  select a missile type makes this an impractical 
  solution . As a result, it’s almost exclusively outfit-
  ted with homing missiles . The Horses have pub-
  licized this limitation, and on a few occasions, 
  taken advantage of an enemy’s expectations and 
  surprised them with different munitions . 
  DEPLOYMENT
  One of the more noteworthy engage-
  ments involving the Hadur occurred on Feltre in 
  3137, where Clan Hell’s Horses fought a Trial of 
  Possession against elements of the Jade Falcon’s 
  Fifty-third Battle Cluster . The Clans bargained to 
  fight over three objectives, with the side con-
  trolling the majority at the end of the battle 
  gaining control of Feltre . A terrible misstep by 
  the Horses cost them their entire complement 
  of Asshur spotters early in the engagement . 
  After losing the first objective, the Horses 
  regrouped and headed for the second objec-
  tive . A Star of OmniVehicles supported by three 
  Points of Hadurs moved forward . As the lines 
  closed, the Hadurs volleyed their Arrow IVs . The 
  missiles struck along the Falcons’ line, missing 
  as often as they hit . Seeing the lack of TAG des-
  ignation, the Falcons believed the Hadurs were 
  equipped with standard missiles . The Falcons 
  closed ranks rapidly to make it difficult for the 
  Hadurs to engage without hitting friendly tar-
  gets, and stepped into the Horses’ trap . 
  Anticipating the Falcon reaction to Hadurs 
  armed with standard Arrow IV missiles, the 
  Horses loaded a single salvo of standard mu-
  nitions into the first slot and then filled the 
  remaining space with homing missiles . The 
  Horses’ battle armor detached from their ve-
  hicles and lit up the Falcon ’Mechs with light 
  TAG . The opening volley of homing missiles 
  destroyed three ’Mechs and sealed the Falcon’s 
  fate . Disengaging from the Horses’ armor Star 
  was no longer an option, but remaining in 
  close fighting, where the Horses could use their 
  homing missiles with impunity, was also a pre-
  scription for death . Dismayed, the Falcon com-
  mander chose to spare the lives of his warriors 
  and surrendered . The disgraced Falcons were 
  granted hegira when the Horses took Feltre .
  VARIANTS
  The Hadur currently has two alternate 
  configurations . The first replaces standard ferro-
  fibrous armor with reactive armor, and an up-
  dated magazine feed allows this variant to load 
  two types of Arrow IV ammunition .
  The second configuration replaces the 
  Arrow IV launcher with a pair of Artemis 
  V-enabled LRM 15s, a Light TAG system, a tar-
  geting computer, and reactive armor . Mixed 
  Stars that contain both the artillery configura-
  tions and the LRM configuration often work in 
  concert, with the LRM Hadurs acting as artillery 
  spotters for Arrow IV Hadurs .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  The Dominos: The Hell’s Horses’ lightning 
  fast assaults on New Oslo during the first 
  phase of Operation NOYAN showcased the 
  unique method used by the Twenty-second 
  Mechanized Assault Cluster’s artillery Star, 
  known as the Dominos . Each Point paired an 
  Arrow IV Hadur with an LRM variant, and these 
  pairs would arrange themselves in adjacent 
  diamond-shaped formations reminiscent of 
  pips on a domino tile . The LRM Hadurs desig-
  nated targets for their artillery companions, all 
  while firing on the move .
  
  73
  HADUR FAST SUPPORT VEHICLE
  Type: Hadur
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Hover
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 1,667
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  5
  Engine:  
  215 
   
  10
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  9
   
  Flank MP:  
  14
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Armor Factor: 
  96 
   
  6
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  22
   
  R/L Side 
  20/20
   
  Rear 
  16
   
  Turret 
  18
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Arrow IV Artillery 
  Turret 
  12
  Ammo (Arrow) 20 
  Body 
  4
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Front 
  2
  2 AP Gauss Rifles 
  Front 
  1
  Ammo (AP Gauss) 40 
  Body 
  1
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Static 
  Ammo Feed .
  
  74
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  PARTISAN AA VEHICLE
  Mass: 50 tons
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Power Plant: Nissan 230 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Armor: Kallon Unity Weave Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  2 Defiance Shredder LB 5-X Autocannons
  Manufacturer: Kallon Weapon Industries
   
  Primary Factory: Loyalty
  Communications System: JoLex Systems
  Targeting and Tracking System: AntiAir  
  Flak Systems-1
  The years after the end of the Jihad 
  and the rise of the Republic of the Sphere 
  saw many small weapons manufacturers 
  disappear . With fewer major conflicts, many 
  corporations were unable to maintain the 
  expansion brought on by the brief rear-
  mament after the Jihad or rebuild from its 
  destruction . Kallon Industries was not im-
  mune, but was better able to deal with the 
  changing military marketplace . Seeing the 
  focus military quartermasters across the 
  Inner Sphere were placing on inexpensive 
  alternatives to BattleMechs, Kallon decid-
  ed to re-engineer many of its vehicles . The 
  “Cheap and Replaceable” media campaign 
  that came along with the re-engineering ef-
  fort was a disaster, with many tank crews al-
  ready feeling that they played second string 
  to BattleMechs . Kallon was forced to rush the 
  release of the Partisan AA Vehicle to try and 
  mitigate the damage to its image in 3110 .
  CAPABILITIES
  Neither cheap nor easily replaceable, the 
  new lighter and faster Partisan no longer had to 
  rely on faster tanks and infantry for protection . 
  Dedicated antiaircraft targeting systems were 
  linked into a dedicated turret control, allowing 
  the Partisan’s weapons to quickly track airborne 
  targets and mitigate the motion of the tank at 
  high speeds .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Mass produced and sold at a discount in 
  bulk, Kallon ensured that the Partisan saw wide 
  spread use in the decades after its introduction . 
  The largest purchaser of the tank has been the 
  Magistracy of Canopus, followed closely by the 
  FWLM and the Duchy of Andurien . The expansion 
  of Canopian aerospace forces in recent decades 
  has forced the FWLM to strengthen its defensive 
  antiaircraft forces in both frontline formations 
  as well as militias, whereas the Magistracy uses 
  large numbers of Partisans in order to maintain 
  air superiority on the battlefield . 
  Recent engagements between forces 
  from the Magistracy and the Rim Commonality 
  have used sizable formations of the Partisan 
  on both sides with impressive results . One no-
  table battle on Astrokaszy on 4 March 3145 
  between the Magistracy Cavaliers and the Fifth 
  Rim Commonality Guards, known locally as the 
  Battle of Hillock Falls, saw the largest numbers 
  of Partisan vehicles deployed on a battlefield 
  and also resulted in the most kills in a single 
  battle, with Partisans from both sides being 
  credited with a total of thirty-nine kills .
  VARIANTS
  In 3134 Kallon offered an upgraded 
  Partisan, with longer-ranged hypervelocity au-
  tocannons and a targeting computer . The tank’s 
  close-in defenses were also improved .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sergeant Tameka Pryer: Despite having very 
  little combat training to speak of, Pryer was 
  determined not to disappoint Duchess Tara 
  Campbell when she was conscripted into her 
  Highlanders just after the Blackout . When 
  Katana Tormark’s Dragon’s Fury attacked 
  Addicks, she was a driver for a light AA vehicle 
  protecting a Highlanders ammo dump, and 
  refused to retreat even after strafing VTOLs took 
  out the vehicle’s commander and wounded its 
  gunner . Instead, she took over the weapons 
  control and fired blind, amazingly shooting 
  down two enemy aircraft before reinforcements 
  arrived . As a reward, she was given command of 
  a brand new Partisan AA vehicle, and made it a 
  point for all her crewmen to cross-train for each 
  other’s duties—though she remained reluctant 
  to man the gunner’s seat again .
  When Campbell united her command with 
  the Republic Remnant Knights led by Damien 
  Redburn, Pryer and her crew went with them . 
  It was with those forces that they found them-
  selves battling the Wolf Empire when Dubhe 
  was invaded in June of 3149 . As the Wolves 
  overran the Remnant defenses, Pryer’s Partisan 
  accounted for four Wolf aerofighter kills and 
  multiple battle armor kills while defending 
  their comrades’ retreat to the DropShips at the 
  city of Greenwich . 
  
  75
  PARTISAN AA VEHICLE
  Type: Partisan
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 597
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  5
  Engine:  
  230 
   
  16
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  5
   
  Flank MP:  
  8
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  2
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  98 
   
  5 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  24
   
  R/L Side 
  20/20
   
  Rear 
  16
   
  Turret 
  18
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 LB 5-X AC 
  Turret 
  16
  Ammo (LB-X) 60 
  Body 
  3
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Anti-Aircraft 
  Targeting .
  
  76
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SCHILDKRÖTE LINE TANK
  Mass: 50 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: GM 150 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph
  Armor: StarSlab/7 Heavy Ferro-Fibrous  
  with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  1 Defiance Shredder LB 10-X Autocannon
   
  1 Defiance 1002 Light Particle  
   
  Projection Cannon
   
  1 SureFire 444 Anti-Missile System
  Manufacturer: Blue Shot Weapons
   
  Primary Factories: Loxley
  Communications System: Tek BattleCom
  Targeting and Tracking System: Evil Eye 
  Block IX
  The Schildkröte was regarded as a bad joke 
  when it premiered . Its slow speed and heavy 
  armor slab ran counter to modern doctrine for 
  medium tanks . However, the tough tank proved 
  itself on more than one occasion in the recent 
  Clan invasions by protecting key personnel 
  from enemy fire . The tank’s initial disfavor led 
  to it featuring prominently in planetary militias .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Schildkröte devotes a great deal of 
  tonnage to the motive system to prevent the 
  crew from being caught in a crippled tank . The 
  armored system has largely been successful, 
  but the tank is still very slow—often serving 
  as a mobile defensive emplacement . Because 
  it cannot keep pace with a rapid advance, it’s 
  usually employed for base defense . The ranged 
  weapons keep enemies at a distance while 
  critical personnel are evacuated .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Graf Otto Bendler’s short-lived attempt in 
  3127 to carve out his own archonette led to a 
  fierce struggle for control of his homeworld, 
  Sappir . Several battles in the rebellion fea-
  tured the Schildkröte extensively . After Bendler 
  seized Sappir and began raiding its neighboring 
  worlds, newly-installed Archon Melissa Steiner 
  sent in the ’Mechs and tanks of the Twenty-fifth 
  Arcturan Guards .
  The Guards swarmed Sappir’s cities and 
  militia outposts in rapid succession . Time and 
  again, the graf’s field commanders escaped 
  thanks to the sacrifice of fanatical troops and 
  a vast surplus of Schildkrötes . Few of the tanks 
  survived the engagements, leaving their crews 
  to the tender mercies of the Guards . When 
  Graf Bendler launched a counterattack on the 
  Guards’ primary headquarters as they were oc-
  cupied elsewhere, it fell to the Twenty-fifth’s 
  own Schildkrötes to protect their DropShips . 
  The Guards’ DropShips were at risk as Bendler’s 
  ’Mechs obliterated the tanks with artillery and 
  light Gauss fire . However, even the overpower-
  ing attack did not render the tanks’ thick armor 
  irrelevant . The DropShip crews were able to 
  take off and relocate thanks to the delaying ef-
  forts of the Twenty-fifth’s Schildkrötes .
  The final battle of Sappir took place in the 
  capital, Bergman . The Guards had Bendler and 
  his last troops trapped, but they did not want to 
  risk civilian casualties . Instead, they demanded 
  Bendler leave the city and surrender . Soon after, 
  multiple posts reported individual Schildkrötes 
  moving out of Bergman, all of which were 
  broadcasting that Bendler was aboard . A dozen 
  small battles erupted as the tough tanks tried to 
  make their slow escape . After weathering pun-
  ishing fire the tanks were crippled or destroyed . 
  None of them had been carrying Bendler . The 
  search for him bore no fruit, and the Blackout 
  a few years later distracted the LIC, which be-
  lieves Bendler fled to the Periphery .
  When Hauptmann-General Stephen 
  Harper of the Fifth Lyran Regulars was wound-
  ed in the defense of Smolnik against Clan 
  Wolf’s Beta Galaxy, most of his conventional 
  forces had already been destroyed . His troops 
  resorted to a slow Schildkröte to evacuate him . 
  The tank shrugged off heavy fire from a Star of 
  the Thirteenth Wolf Guard Battle Cluster and 
  trudged its way to safety . Harper would live to 
  be promoted, and he made sure the brave tank 
  crew was, too .
  VARIANTS
  Initially, the only widespread variant of the 
  Schildkröte swaps the LB-10X autocannon and 
  light PPC for a heavy PPC, SRM 2, and five ad-
  ditional heat sinks .
  As the Schildkröte gained more accep-
  tance in front line forces, additional field vari-
  ants have appeared . The most popular replace 
  the main weaponry either with a plasma rifle 
  and MML launcher, or with a light Gauss rifle 
  and targeting computer .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Leutnant Karlos Fürst: Formerly of the Second 
  Collective Guards, Fürst’s Schildkröte platoon 
  joined up with Task Force Kingbreaker 
  under the banner of the newly formed First 
  Buena Volunteers battalion in 3148 . The 
  Commonwealth-loyal crews of Fürst’s platoon 
  maintained a steady advance toward Ciudad 
  del Mar on Buena, even in the face of aerospace 
  bombing runs .
  
  77
  SCHILDKRÖTE LINE TANK
  Type: Schildkröte
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 1,009
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  5
  Engine:  
  150 
   
  4 .5
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  3
   
  Flank MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  198 
   
  10
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  46
   
  R/L Side 
  40/40
   
  Rear 
  40
   
  Turret 
  32
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  LB 10-X AC 
  Turret 
  11
  Ammo (LB-X) 30 
  Body 
  3
  Light PPC 
  Turret 
  3
  Anti-Missile System 
  Turret 
   .5
  Ammo (AMS) 12 
  Body 
  1
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Armored Motive System 
  — 
  7 .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved 
  Targeting (Long Range) .
  
  78
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SHERIFF INFANTRY SUPPORT TANK
  Mass: 50 tons
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Power Plant: Magna 95 Fuel Cell
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Armor: StarSlab/7 Heavy Ferro-Fibrous with 
  CASE
  Armament: 
   
  2 Pontiac Ultralight Light Class 5 
   
   
  Autocannons
   
  4 Niu Tou B-Pods
  Manufacturer: Majesty Metals and 
  Manufacturing
   
  Primary Factories: Dunianshire
  Communications System: Duotech 65
  Targeting and Tracking System: O/P 911 
  Fifty years of proliferation have spread 
  the Sheriff among the Capellan Confederation 
  and its allies . It is a favorite among militia forces 
  as well as security forces attached to frontline 
  units . Despite its intended use as infantry sup-
  port, it often finds application far beyond those 
  meager ambitions .
  CAPABILITIES
  The heavily-armored Sheriff provides per-
  fect mobile cover for infantry advancing into 
  chokepoints . Enemy infantrymen are rarely 
  able to close on the speedy tank, but they 
  learn quickly to stay clear of parked Sheriffs, 
  lest the tank’s countermeasures liquefy them 
  with explosive charges . Experienced crews 
  alternate the ammo feeds to the paired au-
  tocannons, switching, for example, between 
  precision and armor piercing munitions as the 
  battle demands . 
  DEPLOYMENT
  Sheriffs played a key role in ending resistance 
  on New Syrtis, in February 3145 when guerrilla 
  forces harassed the Confederation invaders and 
  hindered the consolidation after the world fell . 
  The invaders deployed troops, including dozens 
  of Sheriffs, to the major population centers . Saso 
  became one of the final battlegrounds when rem-
  nants of the New Syrtis planetary militia launched 
  an assault on one of the Capellan prisons . A 
  company of Sheriffs sped toward the scene with 
  squads of battlesuits holding tight .
  Picket ’Mechs spotted the Sheriffs and 
  opened fire, forcing the tanks to find cover and de-
  ploy their troops . To distract the enemy ’Mechs, the 
  Sheriffs moved boldly on the Davion forces, dart-
  ing through the streets, shrugging off devastating 
  enemy fire . Cunning application of specialty am-
  munition paid off for the Sheriffs . A demi-company 
  of enemy ’Mechs fell to armor piercing rounds be-
  fore the battlesuit infantry completed their journey 
  through the intervening buildings . Barely a third of 
  the Davion force was able to retreat, while all the 
  imprisoned citizens remained interned .
  A pirate raid on Candiear in 3100 placed the 
  defense squarely on the civilian defenders . With 
  nothing else to throw at the raiders, the mayor of 
  Lornak ordered the constabulary to attack . Chief 
  Laramie Makkintyre did the unthinkable: he or-
  dered a frontal assault on the marauding light 
  ’Mech lance . Three Sheriffs provided covering fire 
  while the remaining five sped forward . With little 
  armor remaining after closing the distance, the 
  tanks stunned the MechWarriors by ramming the 
  legs of the ’Mechs . Two of the enemy evaded the 
  desperate tactics and fled, leaving their legless 
  comrades to an unpleasant fate .
  The disastrous effort to chase prisoners es-
  caping from Divinity Gulag on Ito in 3130 cost 
  two Sheriff crews their lives . The prisoners fled 
  into the Misty Fens during the monsoon season . 
  The pursuing Sheriffs slid off the road in the 
  driving rain and became mired in the marshy 
  terrain . As the crews emerged from their tanks, 
  the prisoners turned about and vented the frus-
  tration at years of imprisonment . The surprised 
  crews took some of the prisoners with them 
  thanks to the B-pods, but in the end all the 
  Sheriff crews were torn to pieces .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Centurion Cletus Downing: Centurion 
  Downing’s Imperator’s Glory century of the 
  Vigiles Urbani was called in to quell unrest on 
  Horatius during the June 3148 drought . The 
  five Sheriffs arrayed themselves around the 
  protesters, and sought to wall them off from 
  the officials passing out bread . But the effort 
  only pushed frayed tempers over the limit 
  and a riot broke out . Downing never gave the 
  order to fire, instead he simply mowed down 
  the citizens like grass . He was reprimanded 
  for the casual slaughter of the people, but no  
  one questioned the effectiveness of putting 
  down the riot . Downing and his subordinates 
  were transferred off Horatius to Blantleff, 
  where pirates are a more common target than  
  starving civilians .
  
  79
  SHERIFF INFANTRY SUPPORT TANK
  Type: Sheriff
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 810
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  5
  Engine:  
  95 
   
  13
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  5
   
  Flank MP:  
  8
  Heat Sinks:  
  1 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  198 
   
  10
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  42
   
  R/L Side 
  39/39
   
  Rear 
  39
   
  Turret 
  39
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Light AC/5 
  Turret 
  10
  Ammo (Light AC) 80 
  Body 
  4
  B-Pod 
  Front 
  1
  B-Pod 
  Right 
  1
  B-Pod 
  Left 
  1
  B-Pod 
  Rear 
  1
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy  
  to Maintain .
  
  80
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  ZIBLER FAST STRIKE TANK
  Mass: 50 tons
  Movement Type: Hover
  Power Plant: Strand 165 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 86 kph
  Maximum Speed: 129 kph
  Armor: Durallex Special Heavy Ferro-Fibrous 
  with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  18 tons of pod space available
  Manufacturer: StarCorps Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Crofton, Loburg, Terra
  Communications System: O/P 3200 COMSET 4
  Targeting and Tracking System: O/P 2570
  Few combat hovertanks exemplify the 
  model of lean, aggressive combined-arms 
  warfare as well as the Zibler Fast Strike Tank . 
  Fast, adaptable and available across the Inner 
  Sphere, it has proven itself one of the best 
  combat vehicles StarCorps Industries has ever 
  brought to market . Its combat honors, spread 
  across every realm, place it in some of the most 
  climactic battles of the thirty-second century .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Zibler keeps pace with almost any 
  modern hovertank and offers enough armor 
  and pod space for a varied and powerful weap-
  ons load . Its configurations are usually balanced 
  for either close-in or ranged combat, though 
  the D model is strictly a hammer .
  DEPLOYMENT
  In the nearly fifty years of its service Ziblers 
  have appeared in almost every confrontation . 
  They are a favorite of both the AFFS and the 
  pre-Blackout RAF, though they are by no means 
  underrepresented in other militaries . StarCorps’ 
  goal appears to be making the hovertank 
  as ubiquitous as the venerable Vedette and 
  Manticore tanks .
  During the Capellan Crusades the Zibler 
  made an early name for itself in the Republic 
  Standing Guard, where it was prized as a cavalry 
  unit . In 3112, during a raid on Acamar, a shadow 
  lance from House Liao diverted toward a stag-
  ing area . RAF Lieutenant Stephen Belleau and 
  his two platoons of Ziblers were sent out from 
  Firebase Howie, more than 100 kilometers away, 
  to intercept the lance . Knowing he’d have to 
  wear the Capellans down, he ordered his eight 
  Ziblers into three groups, each configured for a 
  different range of fighting .
  The first engagement between the two 
  forces was led by Belleau’s Force Able—two 
  Zibler As, firing armor-piercing round at range . 
  Belleau’s early hope—that the Capellans would 
  break off when they were discovered—was 
  dashed, and his gunners had trouble landing 
  shots against the Capellans’ stealth armor .
  Force Baker, three Zibler Ds, joined the 
  running battle . They sped in and out of range, 
  trusting their speed to protect them while they 
  slashed at the Capellans with their heavy PPCs 
  at ranges where the stealth armor was ineffec-
  tive . As the Capellan ’Mechs reeled from the 
  heavy blows, Force Charlie attacked—Belleau 
  himself with three Ziblers in their primary 
  configuration . Already hit hard by the PPCs, 
  and with their stealth armor overcome by the 
  Ziblers’ targeting computers, the Capellans tried 
  to fight but couldn’t hit the dashing hovertanks . 
  The Liao lance withdrew after the lance com-
  mander’s Cataphract was disabled .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sergeant Wendell Ramore: Axton native 
  Wendell Ramore, of the First Davion Auxiliary, 
  returned home in 3147 as part of Operation 
  CERBERUS . When the treachery of mercenary 
  company Tiger Hunt was discovered, the First 
  Auxiliary was assigned to track down the AWOL 
  mercs . Ramore used his extensive knowledge 
  of the planet’s terrain and his Zibler’s speed 
  and range to locate Tiger Hunt’s rearguard 
  before the First’s aerospace reconnaissance 
  could . Although ordered to capture the targets, 
  Ramore was ultimately court-martialed for 
  shooting one of the mercenaries .
  
  81
  ZIBLER FAST STRIKE TANK
  Type: Zibler
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Hover
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 1,205
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  5
  Engine:  
  165 
   
  10
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  8
   
  Flank MP:  
  12
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  2
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  138 
   
  7
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  30
   
  R/L Side 
  30/30
   
  Rear 
  20
   
  Turret 
  28
  Fixed Equipment 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Primary Configuration
  4 Medium Lasers 
  Turret 
  4
  3 Streak SRM 4 
  Turret 
  9
  Ammo (Streak) 25 
  Body 
  1
  2 Heat Sinks 
  Body 
  2
  Targeting Computer 
  Body 
  1
  C3 Slave Unit 
  Body 
  1
  Configuration A
  4 Light AC/2 
  Turret 
  16
  Ammo (Light AC) 90 
  Body 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 664
  Configuration B
  LB 10-X AC 
  Turret 
  11
  Ammo (LB-X) 20 
  Body 
  2
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Turret 
  2
  4 Light Machine Guns 
  Turret 
  2
  Machine Gun Array 
  Turret 
   .5
  Ammo (Light MG) 100 
  Body 
   .5
   
  Battle Value: 1,072
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Configuration C
  Snub-Nose PPC 
  Turret 
  6
  2 MML 7 
  Turret 
  9
  Ammo (MML) 34/28 
  Body 
  2
  C3 Slave Unit 
  Body 
  1
   
  Battle Value: 1,017
  Configuration D
  Heavy PPC 
  Turret 
  10
  5 Heat Sinks 
  Body 
  5
  Boosted C3 Slave Unit 
  Body 
  3
   
  Battle Value: 1,021
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Fast Reload .
  
  82
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SEKHMET ASSAULT VEHICLE
  Mass: 65 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: Consolidated 260 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Armor: Alpha Compound Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  2 Kolibri Delta Series Large Pulse Lasers
   
  2 Mk .22 Type III SRM 6 Launchers
   
  2 Tau-II Anti-Personnel Gauss Rifles
  Manufacturer: LAW Barcella-Beta
   
  Primary Factories: Irece
  Communications System: Build 1685/6 Tacticom
  Targeting and Tracking System: Series XXVIII 
  IWS 
  In the aftermath of the Second Combine-
  Dominion War the Nova Cats were forced 
  into cultural preservation districts in the Irece 
  Prefecture—little more than ghettos . This slight 
  to the Clan would grow to blossom in their rebel-
  lion against the Combine in 3141, and the seeds 
  of that discontent can be found in the Sekhmet 
  Assault Vehicle and its role in the Clan touman .
  CAPABILITIES
  Despite its name the Sekhmet is clearly 
  no assault vehicle . Most analysts believe the 
  name was intended to mislead the Combine’s 
  Internal Security Force as to the obviously de-
  fensive vehicle’s purpose . While its paired lasers 
  are powerful, its lack of turret-mounted second-
  ary weapons and its slow speed make it a poor 
  attack tank . During the Combine counterattacks 
  that erased the Nova Cats, however, the tank 
  showed its true colors .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Sekhmet appeared in almost every 
  Nova Cat garrison Cluster, though its creators 
  offered it for sale to any who would purchase 
  it . After thirty years of production, Sekhmets 
  made their way into almost every Inner Sphere 
  army and fought in almost every conflict since 
  the Blackout .
  During the Cats’ failed rebellion against the 
  Combine, a number of Sekhmets were given to 
  the forces of the Dieron Military District who 
  supported them . On Rukbat, where Warlord 
  Tormark’s forces stood against a Combine 
  counterattack, the tanks made a name for 
  themselves . All of the dozen Sekhmets sent to 
  Rukbat were deployed in a single company and 
  assigned to bulwark the Dieron defenses . Time 
  and again the tanks combined their laser fire 
  to savage assault DCMS ’Mech lances . It wasn’t 
  until the DCMS brought forward a lance of cap-
  tured Wendigos that the Sekhmets were over-
  come, unable to stand against the reflective-
  armored OmniMechs .
  During the invasion of the Federated Suns 
  the DCMS put the Sekhmet to good use . During 
  the conquest of Franklin by a mercenary bat-
  talion contracted to the DCMS, a company of 
  Sekhmets was sent along as part of the DCMS 
  pacification force . Several times while battling 
  the Franklin militia, the mercenaries maneuvered 
  the militia into attacking them, while they hid the 
  Sekhmets in hull-down revetments and chewed 
  the advancing militia forces . It wasn’t until militia 
  irregulars began targeting the Sekhmets for sab-
  otage missions that they were withdrawn, but by 
  then it was too late . Within a matter of weeks the 
  mercenaries had crushed the nascent insurgency 
  and secured the world for the Dragon .
  A large portion of the AFFS’ Sekhmets was 
  destroyed on Palmyra, though there are reports 
  that they took a great many DCMS tankers and 
  infantrymen with them . Requests for purchase 
  and new supply sources have been flying across 
  the Federated Suns as the desperate AFFS tries 
  to bolster its defensive ranks . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Star Captain Edwin Hazen: Impressed by the 
  combat records, the Jade Falcons acquired a 
  Trinary of Sekhmets and put them to use in 
  their failed assault on Hesperus II . The Sekhmets 
  performed well initially against Clan Wolf and 
  the abandoned mercenaries under the Star 
  Captain’s command . As the battle progressed, 
  Clan Wolf used more slashing attacks against 
  the Falcon Sekhmets, careful to stay out of arc 
  of the secondary weapons . They also used more 
  missile attacks to disable the tanks . The merce-
  naries targeted the slower tanks with artillery 
  barrages, which destroyed the few remaining 
  units and killed Edwin Hazen .
  Star Commander Maria Hazen: One of the 
  few willing to compete for Edwin Hazen’s 
  Bloodname, Maria easily won it and subsequent-
  ly the command of the few salvaged Sekhmets 
  from Hesperus . Despite their poor overall per-
  formance, the Falcons still appreciated the 
  vehicles’ potential, and modified the remain-
  ing units with Streak LRM launchers for better 
  ammo economy . Maria Hazen commanded a 
  full Star of Sekhmets in the conquest of Arc-
  Royal in the fall of 3146 . The upgraded reactive 
  armor helped the tanks weather the artillery 
  barrages of the Gulltoppr Omnimonitors and 
  the Streak LRMs in the turret provided a stron-
  ger punch in the assault .
  
  83
  SEKHMET ASSAULT VEHICLE
  Type: Sekhmet
  Technology Base: Clan
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 65
  Battle Value: 1,606
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  6 .5
  Engine:  
  260 
   
  10 .5
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  4
   
  Flank MP:  
  6
  Heat Sinks:  
  20 
   
  10
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  267 
   
  14
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  77
   
  R/L Side 
  50/50
   
  Rear 
  40
   
  Turret 
  50
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Large Pulse Lasers 
  Turret 
  12
  2 SRM 6 
  Front 
  3
  Ammo (SRM) 30 
  Body 
  2
  2 AP Gauss Rifles 
  Front 
  1
  Ammo (AP Gauss) 40 
  Body 
  1
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Power 
  Reverse, Bad Reputation .
  
  84
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  ZAHN HEAVY TRANSPORT
  Mass: 65 tons
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Power Plant: Ceres Motors 305 Fuel Cell
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Armor: Durallex Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  2 Ceres Fire Flower Conventional Flamers
   
  1 Doombud 7-Tube Multi-Missile Launcher
  Manufacturer: Ceres Metals Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Lockton, Menke
  Communications System: CeresCom Model 74-N
  Targeting and Tracking System: Ceres/
  Maladev 5 with TAG
  Nicknamed “wheeled devil” by RAF forces 
  during the Capellan Crusades for its low pro-
  file and fire-based weaponry, the Zahn heavy 
  transport has cemented its nefarious reputation 
  throughout the Inner Sphere . It has proliferated 
  widely within Confederation and its allies, nu-
  merous mercenary battalions, and even some 
  Republic formations . 
  CAPABILITIES
  The Zahn is the preferred transport of elite 
  Capellan and Magistracy regiments for its ability 
  to ferry a large complement of troops and ma-
  terials into combat comfortably . Its impressive 
  weapons array and thick armor make it ideal for 
  ambushes and fire support missions while its 
  speed gives it an impressive hit and run capabil-
  ity . Unfortunately, its use during the massacre 
  on Liao has given it a stigma among the forces 
  of the Republic and its allies .
  DEPLOYMENT
  In 3111, during the infamous Night of 
  Screams on Liao, Capellan troops secreted a 
  number of Zahn heavy transports onto dis-
  guised military DropShips . Once grounded, 
  the Zahns blew through defensive check-
  points, disgorged their troops, then joined 
  them as they savagely attacked the popu-
  lace . Using the Zahn’s paired flamers and in-
  ferno missiles, the invaders bathed building 
  after building in waves of flame . Survivors 
  recounted chilling tales of the wheeled dev-
  il’s eerily glowing eyes—the city’s flames 
  reflected in the Zahn’s cab windows—as 
  they belched gouts of flame onto crowds of  
  panicked civilians .
  Incensed at these heinous attacks, RAF 
  forces engaged in “devil hunting” throughout 
  the remainder of the conflict, searching out and 
  concentrating fire at any Zahn, often heedless 
  of other enemies . Capellan troops soon learned 
  to use this stigma to their advantage . Using 
  TAGs, they would call in flights of Arrow IV mis-
  siles and artillery from distant support batteries 
  reducing their attackers to scrap in moments . 
  Despite this tactic, many Knights amassed im-
  pressive tallies devil hunting .
  That same year, the First MAC sent a com-
  pany of Zahns to raid a large RAF supply depot 
  on New Canton . Using infantry to secure the 
  depot, the Zahns took positions along the 
  main supply route and waited . As RAF militia 
  approached the depot, the Zahns targeted 
  them with their TAGs . They then called in fire 
  from Sniper gun trailers they had left at the 
  depot . Thinking to close the distance, the mili-
  tia charged the Zahns, only to find themselves 
  nose to nose with a hidden complement of dis-
  guised AC/20 gun trailers . The combined missile 
  and autocannon fire routed the militia, leaving 
  the Capellans free to loot and salvage the mili-
  tia’s equipment at leisure . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sao-wei Yuxiao Wu: Sao-wei Wu commands 
  a Home Guard auxiliary detachment on New 
  Canton . When Julian Davion’s forces attacked, 
  few defenders offered true resistance . Not so 
  for Wu’s company of Zahns . Though his men 
  hated his constant drilling and surprise inspec-
  tions, their superior discipline saved their lives 
  and delivered a rare victory for the defense . 
  Wu’s orders were to protect Supply Station 
  14-S . When a company of Hasek MCVs rolled 
  up and disgorged troops, Wu ordered a charge . 
  The barrage of flames and missiles, plus three  
  ramming attacks by overzealous drivers, scat-
  tered the Haseks . Most of the exposed infantry 
  died in the flames, but some rallied and held off 
  Wu’s force long enough to retreat to the Haseks 
  for extraction . Wu lost half his men, but 14-S 
  was safe .
  Joyride: This Zahn’s name is painted brazenly 
  along its flanks . Though the transport once 
  belonged to the militia on Second Try, it now 
  belongs to Nox Flaxenhair . Flaxenhair was just 
  nineteen when he stole the transport on a 
  dare . One month after Flaxenhair’s theft, the 
  Pandora’s Box mercenary command performed 
  a recon raid on Second Try . Though the Home 
  Guard failed to locate and strike at the Box 
  landing zone, the returning mercenaries found 
  Flaxenhair parked just outside their DropShip’s 
  weapons range, casually smoking . He asked if 
  they needed an extra hand, and so he became a 
  mercenary . Now he supports the Box by joining 
  their raids, mostly to carry loot, but also as fire 
  support when necessary .
  
  85
  ZAHN HEAVY TRANSPORT
  Type: Zahn 
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Tonnage: 65
  Battle Value: 792
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  6 .5
  Engine:  
  305 
   
  23 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  5
   
  Flank MP:  
  8
  Heat Sinks:  
  1 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turrets: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  208 
   
  10 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  50
   
  R/L Side 
  40/40
   
  Rear 
  28
   
  Turret 1 
  25
   
  Turret 2 
  25
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Vehicle Flamers 
  Turret 1 
  1
  Ammo (Flamer) 40 
  Body 
  2
  MML 7 
  Turret 2 
  4 .5
  Ammo (MML) 51/42 
  Body 
  3
  TAG 
  Turret 2 
  1
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  8
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Narrow/
  Low-Profile .
  
  86
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  BARDICHE HEAVY STRIKE TANK
  Mass: 70 tons
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Power Plant: VOX 330 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Armor: Riese 400 Reactive
  Armament: 
   
  1 Octagon Siren iNarc Missile Beacon
   
  1 Holly 7-Tube Multi-Missile Launcher
   
  2 Fusigon Shorttooth Light Particle  
   
  Projection Cannons
   
  4 Corean Magshot Gauss Rifles
   
  2 Earthwerks Model 4 Mine Dispensers
  Manufacturer: Earthwerks-FWL, Incorporated
   
  Primary Factories: Calloway VI, Keystone
  Communications System: Neil 6000
  Targeting and Tracking System: Hartford 
  S2200T
  The Bardiche was once described as the 
  most expensive coffin ever purchased by the 
  Marik-Stewart Commonwealth . Although the 
  comparison was somewhat unfounded, it 
  stuck, and the vehicle has never been popu-
  lar . Too heavy and expensive for most infantry 
  support roles, and too under-gunned to be a 
  main battle tank, the Bardiche is still found in 
  many militias and some line regiments, primar-
  ily due to a number of highly-incentivized deals 
  Earthwerks-FWL offered in the 3120s .
  CAPABILITIES 
  Meant to be an infantry support vehicle, the 
  Bardiche fails with most other roles . Pushed into 
  direct combat with equivalent opponents, its 
  best feature is the Alice Z-20 transmission that 
  enables flank speed in reverse . Since its introduc-
  tion forty-four years ago the vehicle has received 
  much criticism for its poor handling of hostile en-
  vironments, and five separate field-serviceable 
  upgrades have failed to satisfactorily address the 
  problem . Earthwerks-FWL issued a service bul-
  letin in 3121 limiting its approved deployment 
  scenarios to breathable-atmosphere worlds only .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  In late 3139 Clan Wolf forces came to 
  Keystone . Always a high-profile target due to 
  its numerous factories, Keystone was particu-
  larly well-defended . The main action centered 
  around the Earthwerks-FWL ’Mech production 
  lines, however the Wolf forces sortied against 
  all military targets including the Breckwind 
  Combat Vehicle plant . The satellite facility was 
  a secret research and development location 
  during the Succession Wars, relegated to spare 
  parts manufacturing after being discovered by 
  Loki in 3001 . A century later it was retooled to 
  produce the Bardiche, along with parts for other 
  Earthwerks-FWL vehicles . 
  Clan Wolf dispatched two Supernova 
  Binaries to the Ries Mountains . Captain Brown 
  was in charge of the defense . A veteran of the 
  Victoria War, Brown was an amateur military his-
  torian with an almost obsessive interest in the 
  Battle of Thermopylae . Styling his defenders as the 
  300 Spartans, Brown was certain that they could 
  hold the narrow mountain roads against the at-
  tackers . He was dead within the first ten minutes 
  of fighting, and his mixed cadre of modified 
  MiningMechs and BattleMechs routed . Command 
  passed to Sergeant Major Brooks, the senior NCO 
  in the factory’s armor contingent . Brooks ordered 
  his complement of Bardiches to lay down a mine-
  field to slow the Wolf advance and then take up 
  hull down positions perpendicular to the expect-
  ed line of advance and wait . He gathered the few 
  remaining ’Mech forces in a ragged battle line to 
  draw the Wolves into the trap . 
  As Brooks had predicted, when the Wolves 
  encountered the minefield they didn’t bother to 
  slow down and clear it . Instead, they charged 
  pell-mell through it, intent on finishing off the 
  defending ’Mechs . When the Wolves reached 
  the center of the minefield, the Bardiches 
  opened up . Two Wolf Omnis went down in the 
  opening fusillade, along with two Points of bat-
  tle armor . The Wolves would have carried the 
  day if their commander had reorganized and 
  devoted his efforts to rooting out the Bardiches, 
  but the Wolves focused on the defending ’Mech 
  forces, leaving their flank vulnerable to enfilade 
  fire for the entire engagement . 
  Although Keystone still fell to the Wolves, 
  the Breckwind CVP was the only Earthwerks-
  FWL location to repulse the Clan Wolf invaders . 
  Despite the Clan Wolf conquest, Brooks received 
  a Defensive Operations Ribbon for successfully 
  defending Breckwind . 
  VARIANTS
  The Minesweeper variant drops both 
  Fusigon Shorttooths to install a minesweeper 
  and additional mine dispensers . A Lords Light 
  3 replaces the iNarc, and the Holly 7-Tube is 
  downgraded .
  The Minesweeper C variant incorporates 
  mostly Clan technology . This configuration 
  includes the following Clan weaponry: a Streak 
  SRM 6, four sponson-mounted AP Gauss Rifles, 
  and a pair of turret-mounted ’Mech Mortar 8s .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Point Commander Lien Shu: A freeborn na-
  tive of Marik, Shu serves the First Protectorate 
  Guardians and has participated in several Trials 
  of Possession on Angell II . Due to the Wolves’ 
  claim that minelayers violate the spirit of honor-
  able combat, most of Shu’s Star was destroyed 
  with impunity during the most recent challenge 
  from the Sixteenth Wolf Cavalry .
  
  87
  BARDICHE HEAVY STRIKE TANK
  Type: Bardiche
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Wheeled
  Tonnage: 70
  Battle Value: 1,305
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  7
  Engine:  
  330 
   
  19
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  5
   
  Flank MP:  
  8
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Sponson Turrets: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Reactive): 
  160 
   
  10
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  40
   
  R/L Side 
  30/30
   
  Rear 
  26
   
  Turret 
  34
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  iNarc Launcher 
  Turret 
  5
  Ammo (iNarc) 20 
  Body 
  5
  2 Light PPC 
  Turret 
  6
  MML 7 
  Front 
  4 .5
  Ammo (MML) 51/42 
  Body 
  3
  2 Magshot Gauss Rifles 
  Right Sponson 
  1
  2 Magshot Gauss Rifles 
  Left Sponson 
  1
  Ammo (Magshot) 100 
  Body 
  2
  2 Mine Dispensers 
  Rear 
  1
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Power 
  Reverse, Poor Sealing .
  
  88
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  MAMONO IFV
  Mass: 70 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: VOX 280 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Armor: StarGuard Aurora Reflective with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  1 Shigunga MRM 40 Launcher 
   
  1 Lord’s Light 5 Snub-Nose  
   
  Particle Projection Cannon
   
  1 Chosatsugai no Kunai  
   
  Anti-Missile System
   
  2 Sperry Browning Light Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: Pesht Motors
   
  Primary Factories: Unity
  Communications System: Neil 500
  Targeting and Tracking System: Cirxese 
  BallistaCheck and CirxeseRockeCheck 
  with Apollo FCS
  With its new emphasis on using battle 
  armor within its combined-arms regiments, the 
  DCMS suddenly found itself in need of a new 
  infantry carrier . While its Hiryo WiGE platforms 
  provide quick transportation, the Hiryo’s inabili-
  ty to penetrate into hardier combat zones made 
  it vulnerable to defensive fire . Pesht Motors of-
  fered an alternative with the Mamono IFV .
  CAPABILITIES 
  The Mamono is a rugged, tracked tank that 
  can bring a full squad of battle armor or an en-
  tire platoon of standard troops into a firefight . 
  The tank bears a striking resemblance to the 
  Goblins and Haseks commonly found among 
  the forces of the AFFS . The similarities end with 
  its appearance, as the Mamono mounts better 
  armor and a broader array of weapons . The tank 
  has received wild acclaim from DCMS infantry 
  regiments, but only moderate support from 
  battle armored troopers .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  In a raid on Pascagoula by the Fifth 
  Galedon Regulars, three Mamonos assisted in 
  a protracted assault on the outlying spaceport . 
  DCMS High Command had noted a large stock-
  pile of AFFS aerospace fighters on the planet . 
  Working quickly to neuter the threat, the kanrei 
  temporarily assigned the Lyceum militia to the 
  Fifth for the operation . 
  Using a mix of Hiryos and Mamonos, the 
  infantry were moved into position around 
  the depot . The AFFS garrison unit used their 
  strong defensive network to keep the Regulars 
  pinned in place as the Davions awaited rein-
  forcements . Three Mamonos, filled with eager 
  Combine troops, charged into the teeth of 
  the defensive bulwark . Showering the Davion 
  troops with missiles and PPC fire, the IFVs 
  seized a heavy bunker . The deployed platoons 
  established a beachhead as the Combine ex-
  ploited the breach . By the end of the day, a 
  Davion prototype and several tons of parts 
  and munitions were seized . After destroying 
  more than a wing of grounded AFFS aerospace 
  fighters, the Regulars withdrew . The AFFS was 
  forced to find a new staging area, leaving 
  Pascagoula as an easy mark for the Combine’s 
  upcoming campaign .
  On Cimeron during the Federated Suns in-
  vasion, the Mamonos of the Twenty-second New 
  Samarkand Regulars assisted in the takedown 
  of the planetary capital . Loaded with squads of 
  Oni and Kishi battle armor, the four Mamonos 
  of the Cold Dish—the Twenty-second’s tank bri-
  gade—captured the main bridge span over the 
  Calumet River . The armored troopers deployed 
  in and around the bridge’s abutments while the 
  platoon of IFVs formed a roadblock near the 
  southern end . As the AFFS approached the span 
  on their way to reinforcing Mondo Elegro, they 
  were shelled by the Mamonos . Davions who 
  managed to sneak under the MRM umbrella 
  found themselves pummeled and swarmed by 
  the waiting Combine battle armor . As ammuni-
  tion ran out, the Mamonos used their turreted 
  particle cannons to great effect, combining fire 
  on approaching BattleMechs and letting the 
  remaining infantry exploit the damage . Faced 
  with such stiff opposition, the AFFS couldn’t 
  reinforce the capital and Cimeron capitulated a 
  short time later .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Moeru Mizu: The terrorist known as Conner’s 
  Ghost had bedeviled the Combine occupiers of 
  Markab for months when the local garrison 
  assigned their sole Mamono IFV to root him out . 
  Led by Shujin Ahnlee Orozco, the crew spent 
  four weeks hunting for the Ghost in the capital 
  city’s most dangerous streets before running 
  him to ground in the port district . The ensuing 
  firefight razed three warehouses and destroyed 
  nine commercial shipping vessels, but the crew 
  got their man and earned an official unit name 
  from their garrison commander .
  Shujin Richard Bloore: Having survived a sur-
  prise Davion counterattack on Palmyra when 
  the rest of his battle armor unit did not, Bloore 
  considered suicide after his reassignment to a 
  rear unit . His depression began to lift due to his 
  work with a Mamono platoon pieced together 
  from other survivors, especially once they were 
  called up to the front . Though still haunted by 
  his experiences, his determination to make his 
  dead comrades proud has turned his new unit 
  into one of the most decorated battle armor 
  platoons in the Dragon’s Tongue .
  
  89
  MAMONO IFV
  Type: Mamono
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 70
  Battle Value: 1,422
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  7
  Engine:  
  280 
   
  12
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  4
   
  Flank MP:  
  6
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  2
  Armor Factor (Reflective): 
  160 
   
  10
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  40
   
  R/L Side 
  30/30
   
  Rear 
  30
   
  Turret 
  30
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  MRM 40 
  Turret 
  12
  Apollo FCS 
  Turret 
  1
  Ammo (MRM) 12 
  Body 
  2
  Snub-Nose PPC 
  Turret 
  6
  Anti-Missile System 
  Turret 
   .5
  Ammo (AMS) 12 
  Body 
  1
  Light Machine Gun 
  Right 
   .5
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Light Machine Gun 
  Left 
   .5
  Ammo (Light MG) 100 
  Body 
   .5
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  8
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Limited Amphibious Equipment — 
  3
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Poor 
  Performance .
  
  90
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SM2 HEAVY ARTILLERY VEHICLE
  Mass: 75 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: 225 ICE
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph
  Armor: Alpha Compound Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament: 
   
  1 Type S3 Sniper Artillery Piece
   
  3 Series XIV Heavy Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: Luthien Armor Works
   
  Primary Factories: Hyner
  Communications System: Sony ABC-14
  Targeting and Tracking System: Neko 
  Megane 9 
  With little experience manufacturing and 
  using tube artillery, the SM2 was Clan Nova 
  Cat’s first concentrated attempt at filling that 
  void . After the Second Combine-Dominion 
  War, the Combine removed the LAW-Barcella 
  factory from the Clan . The entire facility was 
  transferred to Hyner . New SM2s began rolling 
  off the assembly lines and were made available 
  to a wider market outside the Dragon’s borders .
  CAPABILITIES 
  A nondescript support tank, the SM2 pro-
  vided the Nova Cats with a mobile mid-range 
  artillery platform . It found a niche among 
  the Clan’s solahma Stars, usually fielded with 
  Elementals or Voids and Mamono IFVs . The 
  Sniper artillery piece was chosen as the primary 
  gun due to pressure from LAW, as the company 
  had significant spares in storage .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  Though built and fielded with the Clan 
  before the outbreak of the Second Combine-
  Dominion War, the SM2 was not widely used . 
  The Nova Cats, despite their presence in the 
  Inner Sphere for more than four decades, were 
  still uncomfortable using combined-arms tac-
  tics . Artillery support Stars were considered 
  anathema to the warrior aspect of the Clan . 
  Being assigned as crew of an SM2 was a pun-
  ishment reserved for those within the Clan who 
  had minimal talent for being a warrior .
  When the Combine claimed the LAW-
  Barcella facility, few within the Clan wept at 
  the loss of the SM2 . The military bureaucrats 
  within the Dragon felt differently, as the pro-
  duction facility was meticulously rebuilt within 
  twenty years of its dismantling . LAW-Hyner 
  began cranking out SM2s and selling them 
  across the Inner Sphere to all interested buy-
  ers . The tank’s Clan technology made it an in-
  stant and profitable hit .
  The most famous SM2s are those in service 
  with Anton’s Stompers, a mercenary unit operat-
  ing out of Fletcher . Major Bryce Anton added a 
  company of SM2s to his artillery battalion, giving 
  the mercenaries a fast-reaction force to support 
  his older generation Long Tom batteries . The 
  Stompers participated on a Capellan-sponsored 
  raid of Sonnia in 3136 . The SM2s proved invalu-
  able as they conducted a slow-paced move-and-
  fire operation around the main starport . The 
  constant barrage kept the inexperienced Davion 
  militia from intercepting the Seventh Capellan 
  Chargers as they destroyed a large stockpile of 
  munitions and equipment believed designated 
  for Tikonov . It was later discovered the ware-
  houses destroyed were filled with medicines and 
  foodstuffs earmarked for Basalt .
  VARIANTS
  The Combine experimented with a Long 
  Tom cannon version of the SM2, and produces a 
  limited quantity of the tank . Though having such 
  a powerful artillery piece on the SM2’s mobile 
  platform is considered beneficial, this variant is 
  known to have severe structural instability due 
  to poorly-placed shock rings . There have been in-
  stances of a LTC-equipped SM2 having the tube 
  rip through its mounts due to the tremendous 
  recoil . In typical Combine fashion, this version is 
  available at highly reduced costs to those in need 
  of a cheap and risky field artillery piece .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Point Commander Fiorina: The SM2 crewed 
  by Point Commander Fiorina is believed to be 
  the last SM2 of Nova Cat manufacture remain-
  ing in the Inner Sphere . Originally from the 
  destroyed Nova Cat Furies, Fiorina man-
  aged to survive the Furies’ disastrous defeat 
  on Kagoshima in 3143 and elude capture . In 
  early 3146, she and her SM2 appeared in Clan 
  Protectorate space, and she joined the First 
  Nova Cat Provisionals . No one knows how 
  Fiorina and her SM2 managed to make the 
  journey, and she refuses to speak of it .
  Shelley: This SM2 from Helmut’s Legion has 
  been modified so heavily with cobbled-together 
  parts and patchwork armor plating that its own 
  designers likely would not recognize it . To better 
  mesh with the Legion’s armor battalion’s hard-
  hitting tactics, “Shelley’s” most significant altera-
  tion replaced the Sniper tube with an Arrow IV 
  launcher . This allows “Shelley” to keep pace with 
  DI Morgan assault tanks and act as close-support 
  artillery rather than remain isolated far from the 
  front lines . “Shelley’s” effectiveness in weather-
  ing enemy fire and even outlasting other tanks 
  in its company has prompted battalion CO Major 
  Steffen to requisition and modify additional 
  SM2s . The second SM2 currently undergoing 
  modifications has been dubbed “Frank .”
  
  91
  SM2 HEAVY ARTILLERY VEHICLE
  Type: SM2
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 75
  Battle Value: 1,028
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  7 .5
  Engine:  
  225 
   
  20
   
  Type:  
  ICE
   
  Cruise MP:  
  3
   
  Flank MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  0 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  4
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  259 
   
  13 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  65
   
  R/L Side 
  65/65
   
  Rear 
  64
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Sniper Artillery 
  Front 
  20
  Ammo (Sniper) 50 
  Body 
  5
  Heavy Machine Gun 
  Right 
   .5
  Heavy Machine Gun 
  Left 
   .5
  Heavy Machine Gun 
  Rear 
   .5
  Ammo (Heavy MG) 50 
  Body 
   .5
  Limited Amphibious Equipment — 
  3
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Gas Hog, 
  Non-standard Parts, Improved Communications .
  
  92
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  Mass: 75 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: Omni 225 Fuel Cell
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph
  Armor: Lorica Progressia Ferro-Fibrous with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  1 Imperator Automatic Ultra Class 10 
   
   
  Autocannon
   
  1 Marian Arms Lithobolos Arrow IV 
   
   
  Artillery System
   
  2 SperryBrowning Light Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: Alphard Trading Corporation
   
  Primary Factories: Alphard
  Communications System: Garret T21-C
  Targeting and Tracking System: O/P GRD 059
  Faced with growing unrest in their infantry 
  ranks, the Marian Hegemony dug into the pockets 
  of symbolism and created the Testudo. Entering 
  service in 3131, this heavy tracked version of the 
  famous Roman battle formation immediately 
  boosted morale among combat troops .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Testudo Siege Tank is the epitome of its 
  namesake with an added bonus of devastating 
  long-range firepower . Testudos typically open 
  hostilities by weakening immobile defenses or 
  stationary units with Arrow IV barrages . Once 
  the main assault starts, the Testudos will then 
  shift into the front ranks to act as mobile cover 
  for advancing infantry, providing close fire sup-
  port when necessary .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Marian Hegemony Armed Forces 
  initially struggled with the caesar’s new toy . 
  Complaints abounded, ranging from lack of ac-
  curacy in artillery mode to quickly depleted am-
  munition when spearheading assaults . 
  Unsurprisingly, it fell to a non-Marian 
  military to fully demonstrate the capabili-
  ties of these tanks when properly deployed 
  as a part of a combined-arms unit . During 
  their taking of Ibstock in 3136, an Oriente 
  Protectorate infantry battalion cornered a 
  local militia regiment in a fortified base at the 
  end of Portsmouth Gorge . After two days of in-
  tense fighting the situation turned into a stale-
  mate . Neither side had the weaponry to break 
  through the enemy’s lines . Both commanders 
  called for reinforcements, the militia expect-
  ing a BattleMech lance and the Oriente forces 
  waiting for an armor company commanded by 
  Captain Teodore Janski . 
  Both relief groups were perfectly ca-
  pable of tipping the scales, but the ’Mech 
  lance had advantages in speed and terrain . 
  Overconfident, the ’Mech lance broke into 
  the pass in full run, not paying close atten-
  tion to the weak Oriente picket line . This 
  overconfidence was repaid when their lead 
  Catapult was struck down by simultaneous 
  hammer blows: three Arrow IV missiles, fired 
  from Janski’s approaching Testudos at the 
  other end of the valley . The next barrage lev-
  eled key structures in the fortifications below, 
  before missiles seven through nine attacked 
  the BattleMechs again . 
  The battle was over in less than an hour . 
  Oriente infantry swarmed the shocked de-
  fenders while arriving tanks made sure ev-
  erybody kept their heads down and the 
  BattleMechs turned tail . All three Testudos 
  slowly rolled onto the battlefield to cheers 
  and applause, mopping up fleeing militia 
  groups with their autocannons .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Legionnaire Titus Batiatus: In April of 3147, 
  elements of III Legio captured nearby Marik 
  worlds . Batiatus’ unit landed on Kendall where 
  only a small militia force and the factories’ 
  corporate guards stood in defense . More con-
  cerned with the Wolf Empire, the audacity and 
  might of the Marians had been underestimated . 
  When the invasion force jumped into the system 
  a courier JumpShip fled to get reinforcements . 
  At last report, Marik reinforcements had arrived, 
  bogging down into a stalemate . With battles in 
  and around the factory complexes, it is unclear 
  which factories will be useful to the victor .
  In the initial battles of the campaign, 
  Legionnaire Batiatus and his crew were com-
  mended for their superior 63% direct artillery 
  strike results . His performance has him on track 
  to earn the position of Aquilifer of his Cohort .
  Centurion Marcus Julius: Part of the III Legio 
  capture of Tormentine, Julius’ unit contended 
  with elements of the tougher 7th Tamarind 
  Regulars . Centurion Julius ordered his Century 
  of Testudos to shell the Marik fortifications 
  before the main assault began . Once inside the 
  city the Testudos provided advancing cover for 
  Marian infantry forces . Marik ‘Mechs attempted 
  to swarm the Testudos, but were surprised 
  when Centurion Julius’ Testudos opened fire at 
  close range with the few Arrow IV rounds they 
  had saved for such a surprise . The heavy, close-
  range strikes devastated the light and medium 
  Marik ‘Mechs . The Marian infantry attacked the 
  legs of the ‘Mechs with satchel charges, dis-
  abling the few that remained .
  TESTUDO SIEGE TANK
  
  93
  Type: Testudo
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 75
  Battle Value: 1,336
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  7 .5
  Engine:  
  225 
   
  12
   
  Type:  
  Fuel Cell
   
  Cruise MP:  
  3
   
  Flank MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  1 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  4
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  224 
   
  12 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  64
   
  R/L Side 
  40/40
   
  Rear 
  40
   
  Turret 
  40
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Ultra AC/10 
  Turret 
  13
  Ammo (Ultra) 30 
  Body 
  3
  Arrow IV Artillery 
  Turret 
  15
  Ammo (Arrow) 15 
  Body 
  3
  Light Machine Gun 
  Turret 
   .5
  Light Machine Gun 
  Front 
   .5
  Ammo (Light MG) 100 
  Body 
   .5
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Distracting .
  TESTUDO SIEGE TANK
  
  94
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  ARROW IV ASSAULT VEHICLE
  Mass: 80 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: GM 240 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph
  Armor: StarSlab/7 Heavy Ferro-Fibrous  
  with CASE
  Armament:
   
  1 Luxor I Arrow IV Artillery System
   
  2 Blankenburg Medium Variable-Speed 
   
   
  Pulse Lasers
   
  2 LFN Lindblad Shotgun Anti-Missile 
   
   
  Systems
  Manufacturer: Majesty Metals and 
  Manufacturing, Brooks Incorporated
   
  Primary Factories: Canopus IV (MMM), 
  Andurien (Brooks)
  Communications System: Communicator
  Targeting and Tracking System: FireScan 
  with IndirecTrack
  During Naomi Centralla’s drive to free 
  Canopus IV from the clutches of the Thirty-
  fourth Word of Blake Militia, Arrow IV-equipped 
  Demolishers of the Red Lancers played a vital 
  role in driving the Blakists from the Canopian 
  capital . This battle showed the MAF High 
  Command the full effectiveness of a properly 
  deployed Arrow IV force . The MAF was soon 
  buying Capellan Arrow IV Demolishers in large 
  numbers . In 3089, Majesty Metals capitalized on 
  the new Magistracy focus on Arrow IV artillery 
  by releasing the Arrow IV Assault Vehicle . 
  CAPABILITIES
  The Majesty Arrow IV Assault Vehicle 
  (AAV) gives up one launcher to the Demolisher 
  Arrow IV tank . This sacrifice allows it to mount 
  considerably more armor and defensive arma-
  ment, a noted weakness of the Demolisher 
  platform . In a move that harkens back to the 
  Long Tom artillery land trains, the AAV chas-
  sis is reinforced for towing, allowing it to haul 
  its own ammo trailers . The AAV’s launch racks 
  are designed to be modular, with all ammuni-
  tion stored in the racks, and CASE protects the 
  main chassis from explosions in the turret . This 
  allows the launchers to be quickly removed 
  and replaced with new racks, greatly speeding 
  up battlefield reloading .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Demand for the durable AAV soon out-
  stripped Majesty Metals’ ability to fulfill orders, 
  prompting it to sell manufacturing rights to 
  the Andurien branch of Brooks Incorporated 
  in 3101 . The AAV can be found across the Free 
  Worlds, the Taurian Concordat, in mercenary 
  commands and even as far afield as Lyran units 
  on the Jade Falcon border .
  The Arrow IV Artillery Vehicle’s durability 
  played a deciding factor in the Red Lancers’ re-
  cent 3145 savaging of the First Federated Suns 
  Armored Cavalry on Almach . Trying to use their 
  famed hit and run tactics, the Armored Cavalry 
  instead found itself being constantly herded by 
  Arrow IV barrages and forced into brutal short-
  range firefights with the heavier Red Lancer’s 
  BattleMechs . In an effort to silence the Arrow 
  IV launchers, General Andrea Chapman sent 
  a company of Fulcrum III hovertanks behind 
  Capellan lines to hunt down the Liao artillery .
  Expecting Demolisher Arrow IV tanks, the 
  Davion Fulcrums found their slashing missile 
  attacks foiled by the side-mounted anti-missile 
  batteries of the AAVs . The AAVs’ independently-
  turreted VSP lasers tracked the Fulcrums as they 
  closed, without any interruption to the Arrow IV 
  bombardment . Expecting to disable the motive 
  systems of the AAVs and then destroy them in 
  detail, the captain of the Fulcrum company in-
  stead found close to half of his tanks grounded 
  and the rest in quick retreat after destroying 
  only one AAV and crippling three others .
  The uninterrupted Arrow IV barrage kept 
  the First Armored Cavalry from disengaging from 
  the Red Lancers . By the time the Lancers’ ’Mechs 
  had finished mauling the Davion unit, barely a 
  quarter of the Armored Cavalry escaped off-
  world . Sang-shao Cao Culverton personally com-
  mended his artillery crews for their bravery and 
  contribution to the defeat of their hated enemy .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Corporal Lem “Flyswatter” Goldman: Corporal 
  Goldman of the Third Filtvelt Citizens Militia has 
  just one battle on his record . A pirate DropShip 
  was dropping ’Mechs into the fields outside 
  Dune City in April 3146 . Goldman’s platoon was 
  on maneuvers and had spent their ammunition . 
  Goldman had the only round left and tried an 
  ill-advised shot against the airborne DropShip . 
  His miraculous, accidental hit to the drive cones 
  stunned him as much as his comrades . The 
  DropShip crashed in flames and stranded the 
  pirates, who withdrew into the wilderness and 
  only reappeared to raid for provisions, having 
  eluded the Third ever since .
  Sergeant Blondie McSwitch: Sergeant 
  McSwitch’s militia company was redeploying 
  on Aylmer when the Circinian Dread attacked . 
  The lead vehicles, including McSwitch’s, were 
  knocked out immediately by the pirate ’Mechs . 
  But she was hauling a gun trailer and wasted no 
  time scrambling to it . She primed the cannon 
  and unloaded point-blank AC/20 rounds into the 
  lead pirate . Its sudden demise sent the bandits 
  scurrying to raid nearby settlements instead .
  
  95
  ARROW IV ASSAULT VEHICLE
  Type: Arrow IV Assault
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 80
  Battle Value: 1,404
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  8
  Engine:  
  240 
   
  17 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  3
   
  Flank MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  14 
   
  4
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  4
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turrets: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  267 
   
  13 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  45
   
  R/L Side 
  44/44
   
  Rear 
  50
   
  Turret 1 
  32
   
  Turret 2 
  52
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Medium VSP Lasers 
  Turret 1 
  8
  Arrow IV Artillery 
  Turret 2 
  15
  Ammo (Arrow) 20 
  Body 
  4
  Anti-Missile System 
  Right 
   .5
  Anti-Missile System 
  Left 
   .5
  Ammo (AMS) 24 
  Body 
  2
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Trailer Hitch 
  Rear 
  0
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Fast Reload .
  
  96
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  GURZIL SUPPORT TANK
  Mass: 80 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: Gorvachs 230 Fusion XL
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Armor: Composite Alpha-V1 Ferro-Lamellor
  Armament: 
   
  2 Type XV “Culverin” Streak LRM-15  
   
  Launchers
   
  2 Series 14a Medium Pulse Lasers
   
  2 Type VIII ‘Mech Mortar 8s
  Manufacturer: Trellshire Heavy Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Sudeten
  Communications System: TJ6 “Bell” Integrated
  Targeting and Tracking System: Series VI TTS
  The Gurzil is the Jade Falcons’ answer to 
  the JES II . A juxtaposition of two different sup-
  port styles, the Gurzil often finds itself doing 
  neither job well . Shrewd commanders deploy-
  ing the Gurzil as intended rave about its perfor-
  mance, but they are in the minority . Many find 
  the Gurzil a poor offering and choose single-
  role alternatives like the JES II or the Carnivore 
  Support Tank . 
   
  CAPABILITIES 
  The Series VI is the Sea Foxes’ best vehicu-
  lar target and tracking system, and the Falcons 
  paid heavily for its use . In addition to common 
  features like target prioritization, automated 
  threat assessment, and computerized eleva-
  tion and windage, the Series VI offers three pre-
  configured firing solutions . Optimized for three 
  range brackets, each firing solution boosts te-
  lemetry data for all targets within the selected 
  range bracket, tripling the data sample rate and 
  significantly boosting computer’s accuracy . The 
  enhanced data processing comes with a price, 
  though, as the sample rate for targets outside 
  the selected range bracket drops significantly .
  DEPLOYMENT
  In 3142, elements of the Peregrine Galaxy 
  invaded Arcturus . Although the world was 
  a major manufacturing center for the Lyran 
  Commonwealth, it was not well defended . The 
  Fifteenth Arcturan Guards were the only unit 
  to come to its aid . Hauptmann-General Ian 
  Chesterton divided his regiment into compa-
  nies and scattered them in order to strike at 
  multiple Falcon locations simultaneously . In 
  the Battle of Warnemünde, the Jade Falcons 
  deployed two Points of Gurzils and a Binary 
  Supernova to hold the Stein Garten bridge . The 
  bulk of the Falcon force deployed west of the 
  bridge, putting themselves between it and the 
  advancing Lyrans . The Gurzils remained in re-
  serve on the far side of the river . 
  What the Fifteenth lacked in strategy they 
  made up for in fearlessness . Alpha Company 
  charged straight at the entrenched Falcons . 
  With only five ’Mechs able to return fire, the 
  Fifteenth had little trouble reaching the bridge-
  head . As the Falcon ’Mechs fell back across 
  the bridge, the Lyrans discovered it also put 
  them soundly in range for the Gurzils . The 
  tanks opened up with volley after volley from 
  their LRMs and mortars . Two minutes after 
  gaining the bridgehead, the Fifteenth was re-
  treating out of the Gurzils’ effective range . The 
  Fifteenth’s second attempt to gain the bridge 
  involved splitting their force to use a pincer 
  attack that followed the riverbank . While the 
  approach did enfilade the Falcons, the already 
  damaged Fifteenth ’Mechs could not deliver 
  sufficient firepower to dislodge the Falcons . By 
  the time the Fifteenth made its third and final 
  push for the bridge, earlier blunders had re-
  duced them to fifty percent combat strength . 
  Two of the Fifteenth’s ’Mechs engaged the forc-
  es defending the bridge, while the remaining 
  four—all jump-capable—attempted to ford the 
  Stein Garten and flank the Gurzils . As with the 
  first two attempts, concentrated fire from the 
  Gurzils squashed their advance . 
  The Fifteenth experienced similar failures 
  elsewhere . Of the nine companies Chesterton 
  deployed, only two were able to secure their 
  objectives . Badly mauled by the Falcons, the 
  Fifteenth withdrew after two days of fighting . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Point Commander Reegan: Point Commander 
  Reegan was part of Clan Hell’s Horses’ Twelfth 
  Rangers Cluster when it hunted pirates oper-
  ating from the wastelands of Novo Cressidas 
  in the Star’s End system . A moderate warrior 
  with slight Mongol leanings, it rankled him 
  to see his superior officers negotiating for aid 
  from the locals in tracking down the bandits . 
  Evidently, spending four months wandering 
  the wastes and chasing false leads produced 
  by local tribesmen irritated him so much that, 
  when the raiders were eventually encoun-
  tered, he ordered his Point to saturate the base 
  structures with Inferno grenades between LRM 
  volleys . The resulting fires, and the resultant 
  explosions of the munitions and fuels they 
  stored at the base, not only killed hundreds 
  of pirates, but also the dozens of local tribes-
  women they had taken as slaves and hostages 
  in prior attacks—tribeswomen that Reegan’s 
  superiors had promised to rescue in exchange 
  for the information leading to the operation . 
  How Reegan survived his commander’s 
  Trial of Grievance for his unauthorized behavior 
  is anyone’s guess .
  
  97
  GURZIL SUPPORT TANK
  Type: Gurzil
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 80
  Battle Value: 1,765
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  8
  Engine:  
  320 
   
  17 .5
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  4
   
  Flank MP:  
  6
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  4
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  2
  Armor Factor (Lamellor): 
  175 
   
  12 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  41
   
  R/L Side 
  34/34
   
  Rear 
  32
   
  Turret 
  34
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Streak LRM 15 
  Turret 
  14
  Ammo (Streak) 24 
  Body 
  3
  2 Medium Pulse Lasers 
  Turret 
  4
  2 ‘Mech Mortar 8 
  Front 
  10
  Ammo (Mortar) 20 
  Body 
  5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Variable-
  Range Targeting .
  
  98
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  SNIPER ARTILLERY
  Mass: 80 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: GM 240 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph
  Armor: Durallex Standard with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  1 Armstrong Industries Sniper  
   
  Artillery Piece
   
  2 Diverse Optics Extended Range  
   
  Small Lasers
   
  2 Sperry Browning Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: Quikscell Company
   
  Primary Factories: Ares, Kalidasa, 
  Layover, Richvale
  Communications System: Kallon Secure Net
  Targeting and Tracking System: FireScan 
  with IndirecTrack
  The Sniper Artillery tank brings mobility 
  and durability to the Sniper-class medium ar-
  tillery weapon . First built for the AFFS’ second-
  line battalions, Quikscell’s early successes led it 
  to spread the vehicle across the Inner Sphere 
  and nearby Periphery . It is found most often in 
  platoon or company-sized groups, but savvy of-
  ficers use its adaptability to build powerful ad 
  hoc units around it .
  CAPABILITIES
  Not intended as a frontline combatant, 
  the Sniper nonetheless offers durable stability 
  for its artillery and comfortable command and 
  communications suites that allow it to double 
  as an ersatz mobile headquarters . Close-in se-
  curity is provided by lasers and machine guns, 
  though few Snipers go into the field without 
  escorts . In a rare instance of getting something 
  right, Quikscell built a limited amphibious capa-
  bility into the Sniper .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Artillery is a central part of AFFS—and 
  RAF—doctrine, which has given a number 
  of Sniper crews a chance to stand out as the 
  Capellan Confederation and Draconis Combine 
  invade . Few engagements equal the one given 
  by the crew of the Sniper known as Harbinger .
  Part of the AFFS contingent trapped on 
  Palmyra, Harbinger and its crew, along with a 
  small force of hovertanks and jump infantry, 
  had been detached as an aggressor force for 
  training exercises when the Combine assault 
  launched . Cut off, they took to the country-
  side around Sawle, finally locating a disused 
  railroad tunnel to hide Harbinger in . For the 
  next two weeks, while the hovertanks buzzed 
  around creating a distraction, the jump infantry 
  acted as spotters and called in pinpoint artillery 
  strikes on static DCMS positions . Though they 
  did little actual damage, the number of DCMS 
  troops involved in hunting them down far out-
  weighed their own involvement . Eventually 
  Harbinger ran out of ammunition and was de-
  stroyed by its crew, who went to ground with 
  the jump infantrymen .
  In the Free Worlds League, Snipers are pop-
  ular purchases among the small defense forces 
  of the unaligned worlds that still resist integra-
  tion with the reborn League . On Yanchep, the 
  locals purchased a full company of Snipers, with 
  each of the three platoons broken up to serve 
  as the command elements of a combined-arms 
  company . Their company commanders ride the 
  Snipers, using the communications equipment 
  as headquarters, while the largely cavalry-ori-
  ented companies maneuver . This planning was 
  put to good use when the pirate band known 
  as the Hand of Charlie struck in 3143 . Though 
  the Charlies counted six BattleMechs in their 
  force when they landed, Distaff Company of the 
  Yanchep Defense Force managed to locate the 
  pirates’ landing zone . While the other two com-
  panies dealt with the pirates, the Distaffs bom-
  barded the LZ, disabling the Charlies’ DropShip . 
  Their escape ruined, the pirates capitulated a 
  short while later .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Captain Kenneth Medchelke: Captain 
  Medchelke was a member of Wyld’s Jokers, a 
  subcommand of Bannson’s Raiders . He was 
  trapped behind the Wall when it went up . He 
  re-emerged, commanding an artillery company 
  attached to Julian Davion’s First Davion Guards, 
  in 3146 . His skills were particularly necessary 
  in the battle for New Syrtis . When the Twelfth 
  Vegan Rangers were caught between Warrior 
  House Hiritsu and the Dynasty Guard, it was 
  Medchelke’s company that delivered precision 
  fire to relieve the Rangers . Their destruction 
  of a company of Dynasty Guards enabled the 
  mercenaries to retreat, though the Vegans 
  sustained heavy casualties .
  Leftenant Antonio Breckenridge: Leftenant 
  Breckenridge was a MechWarrior in the Kathil 
  Capellan March Militia . He was shot out of his 
  Phoenix Hawk in a raid by the First MAC in 3138, 
  sustaining wounds that prevented him wearing 
  a neurohelmet again . With his MechWarrior 
  career over, he was reassigned to a support 
  unit, Breckenridge longs for the chance to exact 
  his revenge upon any and all Capellans he en-
  counters . His constant readiness has caught the 
  attention of his superiors, who have promised 
  him a combat assignment .
  
  99
  SNIPER ARTILLERY
  Type: Sniper
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 80
  Battle Value: 895
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  8
  Engine:  
  240 
   
  17 .5
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  3
   
  Flank MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  4
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor: 
  192 
   
  12
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  48
   
  R/L Side 
  40/40
   
  Rear 
  24
   
  Turret 
  40
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Machine Guns 
  Turret 
  1
  Ammo (MG) 200 
  Body 
  1
  Sniper Artillery 
  Front 
  20
  Ammo (Sniper) 70 
  Body 
  7
  2 ER Small Lasers 
  Front 
  1
  Communications Equipment Body 
  4
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Trailer Hitch 
  Rear 
  0
  Limited Amphibious Equipment — 
  3 .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Difficult to 
  Maintain .
  
  100
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  Mass: 90 tons
  Movement Type: Hover
  Power Plant: Michaelson 305 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph
  Armor: StarSlab/7 Heavy Ferro-Fibrous 
  with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  1 Lord’s Light 5 Snub-Nose Particle 
   
  Projector Cannon
   
  1 Armstrong Class-D LB 2-X Autocannon
   
  2 SperryBrowning Light Machine Guns
   
  2 Buzzsaw Anti-Missile Systems
  Manufacturer: Michaelson Heavy Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Ruchbah
  Communications System: Garret T10-Special 
  with Guardian ECM Suite
  Targeting and Tracking System: Garret E2b
  The Hexareme is a testament to the RAF’s 
  ability to think outside the box: a vehicle that 
  initially seemed to have no role is now pro-
  jected to excel in a multitude of roles .
  In the late thirty-first century, the success 
  of the very large Trireme Infantry Transport 
  played no small part in rescuing Michaelson 
  Heavy Industries from insolvency and return-
  ing it to the forefront of Republic vehicle man-
  ufacturers . A resulting interest in superheavy 
  vehicles spawned the Hexareme, originally 
  conceived as a hovering MBT . Before the craft 
  even left the drawing board, it became clear 
  that marrying sufficient armor and weaponry 
  to the motive system was impractical, but the 
  design’s large flotation hull was ideally suited 
  for a special operations vehicle . As a result, 
  it was redesigned to carry purely defensive 
  weaponry, a small command station, and an 
  infantry compartment .
  CAPABILITIES
  Faster than the Praetorian, tougher than 
  the Tribune, and better than the Quaestor: the 
  Hexareme is the last word in hovercraft HQ 
  technology . While useful as a tactical command 
  unit, its swiftness and size also allow it to di-
  rectly support reconnaissance and even spec 
  ops missions . The hovercraft is ideally suited 
  to long-range patrols and as a fast and well-
  protected tactical HQ . The Hexareme has al-
  ready entered service with the Republic in both 
  ground and wet navy formations .
  DEPLOYMENT
  On land, the Hexareme is much too sluggish 
  and vulnerable to serve as a traditional IFV, and 
  early proving ground missions were largely dis-
  appointing . The Hexareme eventually shaped up 
  as a niche vehicle for special operations, where 
  its unlimited range and good electronic array 
  serve well . As chance would have it, Michaelson’s 
  chief vehicle test commander, Captain Daffyde 
  Gwythe, had started his career in the wet navy 
  on Chara III (Pacifica) . He suggested that the 
  vessel was ideal for water engagements, where 
  it can either range ahead to supply larger ships’ 
  artillery with vector data or be used for classic 
  boarding actions . Clan warriors have also found 
  the Hexareme effective for deploying Undine 
  battle armor into underwater battle .
  The RAF employs the Hexareme sparingly 
  as HQ vessels in cavalry commands, though 
  various outfits of the SpecOps Command now 
  field it almost exclusively . Many line regiments 
  employ the hovercraft in coastal patrol duties, 
  with such notable examples as the Leander 
  IIs of Athenry, and the two Wyrms of Terra for-
  mations, each of which maintains a lance of 
  Hexaremes . But the most unlikely partner to the 
  Hexareme has been the Davions’ Sea Fox battle 
  armor . When matched up, they are a formidable 
  team for ship-to-shore assaults . Still, wet navy 
  offensive battles are infrequent, and this capa-
  bility once again places the Hexareme into a 
  niche role . Nevertheless, it is one that birthed 
  yet another trade agreement on limited scale .
  On Addicks in 3149, a Hexareme from the 
  Twelfth Hastati showcased the hovercraft’s flex-
  ible nature . The Fourth Dieron Regulars am-
  bushed a Twelfth Hastati battalion on maneu-
  vers along the coastline of Doubter’s Bay . Under 
  the command of Lieutenant Audrey Webber, 
  the Twelfth’s sole Hexareme and its battle armor 
  complement fought a holding action and then 
  retreated across the waters of the turbulent bay . 
  From there the crew coordinated a counterattack 
  with the elements of the Twelfth’s remaining bat-
  talions, all while from a position where the DCMS 
  ’Mechs could not easily reach . Reinforcements 
  arrived, and Lieutenant Webber’s crew relayed 
  tactical information to General McNamara until 
  the ambushers fell back .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Ahab: For several years this stark-white 
  Hexareme has been the scourge of coastal 
  settlements and maritime shipping on the 
  Covenant Worlds planet of Connaught . “Ahab” is 
  best known for stalking prey far larger than itself, 
  but the mistake is in believing the hovercraft 
  operates alone . This pirate vessel commonly 
  acts as bait to lure unassuming container ships 
  to lend aid . Once the prey takes the bait, “Ahab” 
  sends a coded message to its cadre of small hy-
  drofoils, which converge on the unsuspecting 
  ship and liberate it of all its valuables . Planetary 
  officials have offered substantial bounties for the 
  capture or confirmed destruction of “Ahab” and 
  its crew, or information leading to its hiding 
  place, but the pirate vessel is adept at outwitting 
  those who seek to find it .
  HEXAREME HQ HOVERCRAFT
  
  101
  Type: Hexareme
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Hover
  Tonnage: 90
  Battle Value: 1,408
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  18
  Engine:  
  305 
   
  18
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  7
   
  Flank MP:  
  11
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  4 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  9
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Sponson Turrets: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  238 
   
  12
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  40
   
  Front R/L Side 
  34/34
   
  Rear R/L Side 
  34/34
   
  Rear 
  30
   
  Turret 
  32
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Snub-Nose PPC 
  Turret 
  6
  LB 2-X AC 
  Turret 
  6
  Ammo (LB-X) 45 
  Body 
  1
  Light Machine Gun 
  Right Front Sponson 
   .5
  Anti-Missile System 
  Right Front Sponson 
   .5
  Light Machine Gun 
  Left Front Sponson 
   .5
  Anti-Missile System 
  Left Front Sponson 
   .5
  Ammo (Light MG) 100 
  Body 
   .5
  Ammo (AMS) 24 
  Body 
  2
  Communications Equipment Body 
  3
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  Body 
  1 .5
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  4
  Flotation Hull 
  — 
  0
  HEXAREME HQ HOVERCRAFT
  
  102
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  NK-1C NARUKAMI HEAVY TANK
  Mass: 90 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: GM 270 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph
  Armor: New Samarkand Teppeki Hardened 
  with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  1 Grizzard Model 200 Gauss Rifle
   
  2 Lord’s Light Particle Projection Cannons
   
  2 Chosatsugai no Kunai  
   
  Anti-Missile Systems
  Manufacturer: New Samarkand Metals
   
  Primary Factories: New Samarkand
  Communications System: Olmstead 3000
  Targeting and Tracking System: Omicron IX
  The simplicity of venerable tanks like the 
  Demolisher and the Schrek was the key to their 
  success . Armored vehicles are cheap enough 
  that they can be designed to do just one thing 
  well; close-range combat, as in the Demolisher’s 
  case, or line-of-battle interdiction, with the 
  Schrek . When the DCMS let bids for an upgrad-
  ed heavy combatant, New Samarkand Metals 
  responded with the Narukami .
  CAPABILITIES
  Narukamis are long-range fighters, intend-
  ed to strike first with their Gauss rifles and then 
  let an enemy wade into their PPC basket . They 
  are fast enough for defensive work or siege 
  work, but many pundits have labeled them un-
  derarmored for the modern battlefield .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Narukamis are common in both front-
  line and second-line DCMS armor regiments, 
  though attrition has made them more popu-
  lar in the New Samarkand Regulars and the 
  Legions of Vega . Two incidents in the last de-
  cade have reinforced the Narukami’s primacy .
  In early 3145 a company of the Ryuken-
  san performed a reconnaissance raid on the 
  Federated Suns world Sylvan . One of the worlds 
  on the edge of the Palmyra salient, Sylvan’s de-
  fenders were already on high alert and were 
  bolstered by two companies of mercenaries . 
  While the Ryuken moved to engage the merce-
  naries and the militia to test their defenses, two 
  platoons of Narukamis protected the bowl val-
  ley the DropShips had landed in . A company of 
  the militia, including two Warlord BattleMechs, 
  stumbled onto the landing zone and attacked .
  The Narukami commander had layered his 
  tanks in three tiers, with the final line of defense 
  within the LRM basket of the DropShips . As the 
  militia attacked, each tier of tanks fired two vol-
  leys and tracked backward, reinforcing the lines 
  behind them . Within two minutes the overea-
  ger militia had lost four VTOLs, three hovertanks 
  and one of the Warlords . When they halted and 
  began to retreat, the Narukamis charged for-
  ward en masse, holding the range long enough 
  to disable the other Warlord .
  In 3141, when Duke Corwin Sandoval’s 
  forces were in the initial months of their abor-
  tive invasion, a pair of Narukamis were deployed 
  on Barlow’s Folly with the Ryuken-ni . Facing the 
  Fourth Federated Suns Lancers, these two BC3 
  tanks destroyed a total of six AFFS BattleMechs 
  and a dozen hovertanks before being overrun 
  and swarmed by AFFS battlesuits . The tanks 
  had been left as a rearguard for the Ryuken 
  Tachi Company, whose commander, Tai-i Garron 
  Toshido, was carrying the dispossessed battal-
  ion commander in his cockpit . Though the chu-
  sa protested, Toshido refused to risk her, and 
  his armor crews agreed . They volunteered to 
  remain behind .
  VARIANTS
  The BC3 chassis mounts paired Gauss rifles 
  and offers boosted C3 support . With more lon-
  ger-ranged firepower and advanced targeting, 
  it’s intended for frontline sniping . The addition 
  of a second Gauss rifle offers it more power, 
  but the ammunition needs of the second rifle 
  also require a larger logistical investment, 
  which has come to hamper operations repeat-
  edly as the DCMS outruns its supply lines in the  
  Federated Suns .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Tai-i Leland Harrison: Part of Task Force Tsujigiri, 
  Harrison’s Narukami company from the Hikage 
  performed far beyond expectations during the 
  daring deep strike on Remagen in 3148 . As 
  former DEST operatives, Harrison and his com-
  pany were no strangers to high-risk, high-reward 
  maneuvers . In the initial assault on PERCEVAL’s 
  FOB, Harrison’s company performed a paradrop 
  maneuver, losing only one Narukami when 
  high-altitude winds made it drift too far onto 
  mountainous terrain . The remaining eleven 
  Narukamis maintained an inexorable advance 
  in direct support of the Hikage’s BattleMech 
  front . Harrison was gravely injured during the 
  Fifth Avalon Hussars’ sortie, but he was awarded 
  the Bushido Blade for his commendable actions .
  Chu-i Andrea Massaud: A once-promising grad-
  uate of the Sun Tzu School of Combat, Massaud 
  was seen as a bad luck charm after it was learned 
  that her mother had been a traitorous Nova Cat of 
  Republic extraction . Massaud was immediately re-
  assigned to an unglamorous garrison assignment 
  with the Fifth Ghost Regiment on Franklin . She re-
  ceived her chance to shine when the First Davion 
  guards struck the garrison’s supply depots in 3147 .
  
  103
  NK-1C NARUKAMI HEAVY TANK
  Type: Narukami
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 90
  Battle Value: 1,719
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  9
  Engine:  
  270 
   
  11 .5
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  3
   
  Flank MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  20 
   
  10
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  4 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Hardened): 
  140 
   
  17 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  38
   
  R/L Side 
  27/27
   
  Rear 
  21
   
  Turret 
  27
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Gauss Rifle 
  Turret 
  15
  Ammo (Gauss) 16 
  Body 
  2
  2 PPC 
  Turret 
  14
  Anti-Missile System 
  Turret 
   .5
  Anti-Missile System 
  Front 
   .5
  Ammo (AMS) 24 
  Body 
  2
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Low Profile, 
  Hard to Pilot, Fast Reload .
  
  104
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  KELSWA ASSAULT TANK
  Mass: 95 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: Pitban 285 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph
  Armor: ArcShield Heavy Ferro-Fibrous  
  with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  2 Grizzard Model 200 Gauss Rifles
   
  2 Defiance Model XII Extended Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
   
  2 Coventry Heavy Autogun
  Manufacturer: Arcturan Arms
   
  Primary Factories: Arcturus, Buena
  Communications System: Arc-Signal A75
  Targeting and Tracking System: Angst Clear 
  View 2A
  Kelswas appear across the Inner Sphere, 
  including in the toumans of two Clans, and in 
  every case they offer sterling service in shock 
  and garrison units . Prized for their hard-hitting 
  firepower and ease of maintenance, they are 
  often assigned to veteran NCOs or platoon 
  commanders, who rely on their resiliency to 
  protect them while they protect their mates .
  CAPABILITIES
  At ninety-five tons the Kelswa is heavy 
  enough to stand against almost any enemy on 
  the battlefield, but its limited weaponry denies 
  it the flexibility of more diversely-armed tanks . 
  Powerfully armed and armored, but somewhat 
  slow given modern standards, the Kelswa’s lon-
  gevity and widespread deployment can be laid 
  at its ability to fulfill its chosen roles well .
  DEPLOYMENT
  At Calipee Pass on Hesperus II in 3145, 
  a pair of Kelswas formed the bulwark of a 
  company of heavy tanks built mostly of DI 
  Schmitt tanks . The two Kelswas had been at-
  tached to the company only days before by mis-
  take—they had been intended for an all-Kelswa 
  company forming from militia reserves—and 
  were thrown into combat against a Clan Trinary 
  along with the rest of the company .
  As the hauptmann in charge placed his 
  tanks, the Kelswas were assigned to the center 
  echelon, behind the Schmitts, where they could 
  fire from cover . As the Trinary of the Raptor 
  Keshik approached, the hauptmann concen-
  trated on fighting the tanks he was familiar 
  with—the Schmitts—and ignored the pair of 
  Kelswas . As the Schmitts ground away at the 
  Falcons, supported by battle armor harassers, 
  First Leutnant Kilcracken opened fire .
  Four Gauss rifles made a powerful, if un-
  flashy, addition to the battle . While the Clansmen 
  were distracted by the deluge of autocannon fire 
  from the Schmitts’ rotary autocannon, the Kelswas 
  fired and fired and fired again . Gauss impact tore 
  great rents in the Falcons’ armor, damage which 
  the Schmitts exploited to deadly effect . Though 
  the company forced the Falcon Trinary to with-
  draw, both of Kilcracken’s Kelswas were disabled 
  once the Falcons discovered them and were aban-
  doned when the Lyrans fled Hesperus .
  Kelswas also serve in the ranks of the mer-
  cenary Halsten’s Brigade, an all-armor outfit 
  under contract to the planetary government of 
  Venaria . In mid-3142 a small force of unmarked 
  ’Mechs and battle armor attacked a militia 
  outpost in the Candrell badlands; a platoon of 
  Kelswas was stationed nearby and immediately 
  went to the militia outpost’s aid . Though they 
  were too late to stop the pirates from destroy-
  ing the militia defenders and looting the out-
  post, they did intercept the four ’Mechs and two 
  dozen battlesuits as they returned toward their 
  DropShip . The Kelswas attacked, certain that 
  the ’Mechs would escape . With only time for 
  three or four barrages, and lacking the speed 
  to keep up, every shot counted . The lieutenant 
  in command ordered concentrated fire . The first 
  salvo amputated an antiquated Marian-built 
  Centurion’s right leg . The second tore the arms 
  from an Enfield, while the third only managed 
  to damage the armor of a fast-moving Wraith . 
  None of the battlesuits were hit, but the ’Mechs’ 
  damage meant they lost most of the loot they 
  were carrying in strap-on nets .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Somerset Striker: Nicknamed by a Jade Falcon 
  garrison commander with a twisted sense of 
  humor, the “Somerset Striker” is a reliable old 
  Kelswa that has nevertheless seen better days . 
  Yet even with one of its Gauss rifles permanently 
  out of commission, it has still gotten the better 
  of many pirate raiders over the years . More 
  recently, the “Striker” was part of the defense 
  of Somerset against the same mysterious force 
  which hit several other Falcon worlds in the  
  region . The “Striker” scored a crippling hit against 
  the raiders’ apparent leader before itself suc-
  cumbing to damage to its motive system .
  Jojo McClintock: CO of Jojo’s Jesters, 
  McClintock commanded a Kelswa in the LCAF 
  before deserting when Clan Wolf assaulted 
  Hyde . Making his way to Galatea, he signed 
  on with a new merc unit that had acquired a 
  crewless Kelswa . He soon took over, renamed 
  the unit and signed on with the League for gar-
  rison duty . Learning the Lyrans had a price on 
  his head, he hired out to the Capellans and was 
  stationed on New Aragon two weeks before 
  Task Force Navarre came calling .
  
  105
  KELSWA ASSAULT TANK
  Type: Kelswa
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 95
  Battle Value: 1,748
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  9 .5
  Engine:  
  285 
   
  25
   
  Type:  
  Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  3
   
  Flank MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  238 
   
  12
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  70
   
  R/L Side 
  41/41
   
  Rear 
  41
   
  Turret 
  45
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  2 Gauss Rifles 
  Turret 
  30
  Ammo (Gauss) 40 
  Body 
  5
  2 Heavy Machine Guns   
  Turret 
  2
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Front  
  2
  Ammo (Heavy MG) 50 
  Body 
   .5
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  
  106
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  GULLTOPPR OMNIMONITOR
  Mass: 190 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: Edasich Motors 380 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 21 kph
  Maximum Speed: 32 kph
  Armor: Star Slab/3 with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  61 .5 tons of pod space (maximum of 30 
  tons in turret 1, and 25 tons in turret 2)
  Manufacturer: WC Site 4
   
  Primary Factories: Arc-Royal
  Communications System: K9 
  Communications System
  Targeting and Tracking System: Hunter (2) 
  Dedicated TTS
  First appearing after the turn of the cen-
  tury, the Gulltoppr OmniMonitor started as a 
  heavier version of Clan Wolf-in-Exile’s Heimdall 
  Ground Monitor Tank . Clocking in at twice the 
  Heimdall’s mass and constructed to utilize 
  modular weapon technology, the Gulltoppr is 
  a purely defensive unit capable of mounting 
  considerable weaponry . Typical OmniMonitor 
  hulls are shipped sans-armament to the even-
  tual duty station; upon arrival the hulls are as-
  sembled using whatever modular munitions 
  are locally available . This flexibility allows Clan 
  Wolf-in-Exile to manufacture as many empty 
  Gulltoppr chassis as possible while placing the 
  burden of armament on the buyer .
  CAPABILITIES
  Although the Gulltoppr lacks mobility its 
  large array of modular weaponry, the targeting 
  flexibility of dual turrets, and extensive armor 
  coverage more than make up for any speed def-
  icit by rendering each OmniMonitor a daunting, 
  fortress-like target . This makes the Gulltoppr 
  an ideal choice for important garrison assign-
  ments where speed and maneuverability are 
  lesser factors in mounting a successful defense . 
  In addition to the OmniMonitor’s intimidating 
  size, standard loadouts increase survivability by 
  incorporating ECM suites and often including a 
  pair of anti-missile systems .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Due to Clan Wolf-in-Exile’s relationship to 
  the Lyran Commonwealth’s neighbors and the 
  realities in manufacturing and arming the chas-
  sis, Gulltopprs serve mostly within the Clan, the 
  LCAF, and the Kell Hounds .
  The OmniMonitor has been in service for 
  more than forty years . One of its most recent 
  decisive engagements occurred on Porrima in 
  3144 . The remnants of the Kell Hounds were 
  hunting down all Falcon-allied Clan Hell’s 
  Horses Clusters attempting to invade the Lyran 
  Commonwealth and faced down the Second 
  Horde Cluster . In an effort to even the odds, 
  Star Colonel Dean Lassenerra sent a mixed 
  Binary to seize the Kell Hound DropShips and 
  lure the mercenaries into a vulnerable position . 
  Mistaking the defending platoon of Gulltopprs 
  for retooled Wolf-in-Exile Heimdalls, the Horses 
  disregarded them until the OmniMonitors tore 
  into the Clan warriors’ advance and sent the sur-
  vivors into retreat .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Leutnant Helen Xitobor: Leutnant Xitobor’s 
  Gulltoppr was in the maintenance bay on 
  Ludwigshafen when the Ninth Falcon Talon sent 
  a Trinary to test the Fifteenth Lyran Regulars’ 
  defenses in February 3146 . The conversion 
  from primary to A configuration was only par-
  tially complete, but she knew she could not 
  wait . She drove her half-armed Gulltoppr into 
  the forest surrounding Freiheit into a prepared 
  position and waited, like others did in strate-
  gic approaches around the city . Unfortunately, 
  the Falcons did not attack from the direction 
  she’d hoped . Enemy fire striking the rear of the 
  Gulltoppr was her first indication of trouble, 
  as the Falcon approach used the trees per-
  fectly to screen their approach from sensors . 
  Knowing she could never outrun the attackers, 
  she spun her turret and opened fire with her 
  Gauss rifles, the only weapons she possessed . 
  One OmniMech went down . Then another . Her 
  armor was taking terrific punishment, but she 
  continued pouring it on . After the third Falcon 
  ’Mech collapsed with a cored torso, the raiders 
  swarmed the tank and obliterated it with relent-
  less weapons fire and physical attacks . A fourth 
  OmniMech went down before Xitobor’s guns 
  were silenced forever . The Falcons retreated, 
  reporting that the defenders were fanatical, 
  sparing Ludwigshafen for a time .
  
  107
  GULLTOPPR OMNIMONITOR
  Type: Gulltoppr
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Tonnage: 190
  Battle Value: 3,151
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  38
  Engine:  
  380 
   
  31
   
  Type:  
  XL Fusion 
   
  Cruise MP:  
  2
   
  Flank MP:  
  3
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  9 .5
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret 1: 
   
   
  3
  Turret 2: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Armor Factor: 
  704 
   
  44
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  136
   
  FR/FL Side 
  104/104
   
  RR/RL Side 
  90/90
   
  Rear 
  64
   
  Turret 1 
  66
   
  Turret 2 
  50
  Fixed Equipment 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Primary Configuration—Advanced
  2 Gauss Rifles 
  Turret 1 
  30
  Ammo (Gauss) 32 
  Body 
  4
  Long Tom Cannon 
  Turret 2 
  20
  Ammo (Long Tom) 15 
  Body 
  3
  2 Anti-Missile Systems 
  Turret 2 
  1
  Ammo (AMS) 24 
  Body 
  2
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  Body 
  1 .5
  Configuration A—Mixed
  2 Gauss Rifles (C) 
  Turret 1 
  24
  Ammo (Gauss) 32 
  Body 
  4
  3 LRM 20 (C) 
  Turret 2 
  15
  3 Artemis V (C) 
  Turret 2 
  4 .5
  Ammo (LRM) 48 
  Body 
  8
  Targeting Computer (C) 
  Body 
  5
  ECM Suite (C) 
  Body 
  1
   
  Battle Value: 3,668
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage
  Configuration B—Advanced
  Long Tom Cannon 
  Turret 1 
  20
  Long Tom Cannon 
  Turret 2 
  20
  Ammo (Long Tom) 40 
  Body 
  8
  2 Boosted C3 Master Units 
  Body 
  12
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  Body 
  1 .5
   
  Battle Value: 2,861
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Battle Computer, Difficult to 
  Maintain, Non Standard parts, Oversized, Poor Performance .
  
  108
  COMBAT 
  VEHICLES
  DESTRIER SIEGE VEHICLE
  Mass: 200 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: GM SuperLoad 400 XL Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 22 kph
  Maximum Speed: 32 kph
  Armor: Johnston Bastion Plate 530 Hardened 
  with CASE
  Armament: 
   
  2 Mydron Model L Long Tom  
   
  Artillery Cannons
   
  2 Bright Blossom Extended Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
   
  6 GM Light Machine Guns
   
  4 MainFire Point Defense 
   
  Anti-Missile Systems
  Manufacturer: General Motors
   
  Primary Factories: Salem
  Communications System: Achernar 
  Electronics HICS-17 with C3 Slave and 
  Guardian ECM Suite
  Targeting and Tracking System: Federated 
  Bombard Mk . II
  Despite the formation of its light combat 
  teams and its public declarations of defensive 
  doctrine, the adoption of the Destrier Siege 
  Vehicle at the turn of the thirty-second century 
  proved that the AFFS hadn’t completely reject-
  ed offensive warfare . That it would shortly be 
  embroiled in the Victoria War—where it was the 
  aggressor—demonstrated to the Inner Sphere 
  that the Federated Suns had not forgotten all of 
  Hanse Davion’s lessons .
  CAPABILITIES
  Twice the mass of a conventional assault 
  tank, wrapped in almost forty tons of hardened 
  armor and armed with a pair of turreted Long 
  Tom assault cannons, the Destrier excels at re-
  ducing enemy fortifications to dust within min-
  utes of its arrival . Heavy defensive weaponry 
  and thick armor just barely compensate for its 
  slow speed, however .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Given the relative scarcity of AFFS inva-
  sions, the most notable engagement to fea-
  ture the Destrier came on Spica in 3104 . The 
  Eighth Avalon Hussars light combat team, the 
  world’s garrison, was attacked by the Third 
  McCarron’s Armored Cavalry . Unable to stand 
  against the Third directly, the Eighth planned 
  an ambush with the company of Destriers as-
  signed to it . Using her ’Mechs as bait and her 
  hovertanks as harassers, General Stasi Ivanova 
  led the Capellan vanguard into a valley and de-
  stroyed it with concentrated Long Tom fire . As 
  missile artillery began to fall from the Destriers’ 
  attached Ballista trailers, the Hussars ’Mechs 
  counterattacked and drove the Capellans  
  into retreat .
  Several times during the Kuritan inva-
  sion Destriers and their crews have been sac-
  rificed—voluntarily or not—as forlorn hopes 
  to let battered Davion units escape . Too slow 
  to retreat and too large to be easily evacu-
  ated, the Destriers make fine last-line hold-
  ers . On Barlow’s End, for instance, a platoon 
  of Destriers set itself outside the gates of the 
  Princess Melissa spaceport . As the DCMS ad-
  vanced, the Second New Ivaarsen Chasseurs 
  withdrew to their DropShips . A small group of 
  lottery-chosen VTOLs and hovertanks remained 
  to designate targets for the Ballistas’ Arrow IV 
  missiles, while the Destriers hid themselves 
  among the spaceport buildings . As the lead 
  ’Mechs of Ryuken-roku advanced, the Destriers 
  fired from cover, causing enough confusion 
  that the DropShips could escape . None of the 
  Destrier crews survived to be captured .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sergeant Sandeep Halsey: Sergeant Halsey 
  is the commander of a Destrier Tank attached 
  to the First Davion Guards, and worked closely 
  with them and their mercenary support during 
  the Federated Suns’ recapture of New Syrtis in 
  3147 . Originally, his vehicle and its lance oper-
  ated as defensive batteries for the task force’s 
  initial landings, but as the CCAF fell back to the 
  cities, forcing the Davion forces to dig them 
  out, his Destrier was reassigned to a forward 
  artillery support battalion . In the heavy fight-
  ing for the capital city, Halsey’s vehicle, using 
  spotting data provided by special scout groups 
  like Herzsmann’s Heralds (see Kruger Combat 
  Car entry, p . 26), accounted for the destruction 
  or disabling of nearly a company of Capellan 
  ’Mechs, and over two companies of combined 
  battle armor and conventional infantry . Halsey’s 
  most crucial contribution, however, came when 
  he used his Destrier and its attached missile 
  trailer to take out an Assault Triumph DropShip 
  in mid-air using a combination of artillery cluster 
  munitions and air-defense Arrow missiles . The 
  low-flying DropShip, still full of units preparing  
  to deploy outside the city of Charlotte, was 
  unable to cope with the surprise ground-to-air 
  artillery strike, and spun out of control . Its  
  destruction on impact robbed the CCAF of 
  more than a company’s worth of ’Mech and 
  vehicle support . 
  
  109
  DESTRIER SIEGE VEHICLE
  Type: Destrier Siege Vehicle
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Movement Type: Tracked 
  Mass: 200 tons
  Battle Value: 2,859
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  40
  Engine:  
  400 
   
  40
   
  Type: 
  XL Fusion
   
  Cruise MP:  
  2
   
  Flank MP:  
  3
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Control Equipment: 
   
   
  10
  Lift Equipment: 
   
   
  0
  Power Amplifier: 
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
  4 .5
  Sponson Turrets: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (Hardened):  
  296 
   
  37
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Front 
  60
   
  Front R/L Side 
  45/45
   
  Rear R/L Side 
  35/35
   
  Rear 
  35
   
  Turret 
  41
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Mass
  2 Long Tom Cannons 
  Turret 
  40
  Ammo (Long Tom) 40 
  Body 
  8
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Turret 
  2
  Anti-Missile System 
  Turret 
   .5
  Ammo (AMS) 48 
  Body 
  4
  Anti-Missile System 
  Right Sponson 
   .5
  2 Light Machine Guns 
  Right Sponson 
  1
  Anti-Missile System 
  Left Sponson 
   .5
  2 Light Machine Guns 
  Left Sponson 
  1
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Mass
  Ammo (Light MG) 200 
  Body 
  1
  Infantry Compartment 
  Body 
  4
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  Body 
  1 .5
  C3 Slave Unit 
  Body 
  1
  Communications Equipment Body 
  1
  CASE 
  Body 
   .5
  Anti-Missile System 
  Rear 
   .5
  2 Light Machine Guns 
  Rear 
  1
  Trailer Hitch 
  Rear 
  0
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved 
  Targeting-Long, Oversized, Poor Performance, Non-
  Standard Parts .
  
  110
  SUPPORT 
  VEHICLES
  BISHOP TRANSPORT VTOL
  Mass: 45 tons
  Movement Type: VTOL
  Power Plant: Michaelson Fuel Cell
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph
  Armor: StarSlab Civic 8
  Armament: 
   
  None
  Manufacturer: Michaelson Heavy Industries
   
  Primary Factories: Ruchbah, June
  Communications System: Garret 
  Supremesound
  Targeting and Tracking System: None
  Seen in service across the Inner Sphere, the 
  Bishop Transport VTOL is the unsung workhorse 
  of many modern militaries . The Bishop began 
  production in 3093 on the Republic world of 
  Ruchbah, and its success in the Republic Armed 
  Forces meant that demand outpaced produc-
  tion—so much so that in 3118 Michaelson 
  Heavy Industries (MHI) opened a second pro-
  duction line on the Federated Suns world of 
  June . Over fifty years from its debut, the Bishop 
  Transport VTOL remains highly sought after, 
  with a three-year backlog on orders .
  CAPABILITIES 
  The Bishop’s heavy lifting capabilities re-
  quired a sturdy propulsion system with mul-
  tiple redundancies . A set of four powerful and 
  self-contained pods using turbo-prop induction 
  fans are installed, two at the front and two over 
  the aft of the transport . These pods rotate in 
  any direction along the centerline of the trans-
  port, giving the Bishop a high cruising speed 
  and increased stability in difficult atmospheric 
  conditions . The efficiency of the fuel cell system 
  powering the Bishop allows for continual use of 
  the VTOL at top speeds for over six hours at a 
  time, meaning less downtime spent refueling 
  and more cargo being moved . One unique sell-
  ing point for the Bishop is an advanced cargo 
  grapple/harness system that allows the trans-
  port to securely lift cargo containers of many 
  different shapes and designs .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Bishop is found not only in the mili-
  taries of the Inner Sphere, but in large com-
  mercial shipping fleets and spaceports . One 
  of the most spectacular uses of the Bishop is 
  by Cephalopod Food Alternatives Ltd based 
  on Mermentau . Each planetary autumn speck-
  led-back prairie squid are wrangled into large 
  shipping containers placed in the middle of 
  the Alpena Plains . The hum from the Bishops’ 
  induction fans is used to drive the prairie 
  squid into the containers, which are sealed 
  and shipped by the same vehicles . While other 
  meat animal companies use the Bishop, the 
  annual harvest by CFA Ltd is the only event to 
  draw spectators and HV coverage, as prairie 
  squid have been known to grapple and drag 
  down Bishops flying too low .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  “Isesaki Shipping” Fleet: After the fall of 
  Franklin to the Draconis Combine in 3144, 
  the local Federated Suns planetary militia 
  was forced to go into hiding after a bombing 
  run destroyed its empty DropShip on the tar-
  mac . Though the militia possessed less than a 
  company of light ’Mechs, all of them vanished 
  without a trace, only to later cause grief for the 
  garrisoning Fifth Ghost Regiment . Over the 
  next few years, these ’Mechs would appear 
  unexpectedly, strike targets of opportunity, and 
  then disappear again .
  The Fifth Ghost attempted to track these 
  ’Mechs but met without success . Not until ele-
  ments of Operation PERCEVAL attempted to link 
  up with the planet’s underground resistance in 
  3147 did the truth emerge . A brave fleet of 
  civilian Bishop pilots had colluded with the  
  militia’s engineers to provide their ’Mechs a rapid 
  transit system that did not rely on DropShips . 
  Each militia ’Mech was partially disassembled, 
  which required detaching the limbs and remov-
  ing the fusion engine . Then each component 
  was placed into unmarked cargo containers 
  with forged manifests, and the Bishops that 
  flew these containers across extremely long 
  distances were painted and tagged as be-
  longing to Isesaki Shipping’s logistics fleet . The 
  Bishops would transport the piecemeal ’Mechs 
  hundreds of kilometers away from the original 
  strike, and the militia engineers would reas-
  semble the ’Mechs once all the parts reached 
  their destination .
  
  111
  BISHOP TRANSPORT VTOL
  Type: Bishop
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: VTOL (Large)
  Equipment Rating: X-X-X-D
  Mass: 45 tons
  Battle Value: 190
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  23
  Engine/Controls:  
  Fuel Cell 
   
  9
   
  Cruise MP:  
  7
   
  Flank MP:  
  11 
  Heat Sinks: 
  1 
   
  0
  Fuel:  
  740 km 
   
  1
  Turret: 
   
   
  0
  Armor Factor (BAR 8):  
  44 
   
  2
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Front 
  5 
  11
   
  R/L Side 
  5 
  10/10
   
  Rear 
  5 
  11
   
  Rotor 
  5 
  2
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Mass
  None 
  — 
  —
  Crew: 2 (2 enlisted/non-rated)
  Cargo: 
   
  1 Container (10 tons)
   
  Notes: Features Environmental Sealing Chassis 
  Modification . Features the following Design Quirks: 
  Easy to Pilot, VTOL Rotor Arrangement (Dual) .
  
  112
  SUPPORT 
  VEHICLES
  SAVIOR REPAIR VEHICLE
  Mass: 60 tons
  Movement Type: Tracked
  Power Plant: GM Medium Industrial Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Armor: Durallex Modified Heavy
  Armament: 
   
  1 Magna Mk I Small Laser
  Manufacturer: General Motors
   
  Primary Factories: Kathil, Salem
  Communications System: Garret 
  Supremesound
  Targeting and Tracking System: None
  Major repairs under field conditions have al-
  ways been risky, even under the best conditions . 
  Despite the availability of various salvage and 
  recovery vehicles to mitigate risk, these attempts 
  often failed or resulted in further complications . 
  This kept most military organizations tied to their 
  DropShips, repair depots and even factories for 
  major repairs and refits . The Savior Repair Vehicle, 
  and other vehicles like it, changed all that .
  CAPABILITIES
  First developed in 3059 to support Operation 
  Bulldog, the mobile field base (MFB) has become 
  ubiquitous . Though there are many models and 
  manufacturers, General Motors’ Savior Repair 
  Vehicle is by far the most prevalent . Able to con-
  duct salvage operations, recover and repair dis-
  abled ’Mechs and vehicles, or simply resupply 
  combat units in the field, few regiments willingly 
  deploy without at least one of their “saviors .” 
  DEPLOYMENT
  Many battles have been lost or won based 
  on the ability to get damaged ’Mechs back into 
  the fight faster than an opponent .  
  In 3103, an AFFS task force invaded the 
  Capellan world of Victoria . Arrayed against an 
  equally impressive Capellan force, the invasion 
  stagnated into a bloody siege that dragged on 
  for months . Repair crews worked night and day 
  repairing damaged ’Mechs and vehicles, only 
  to recover and repair the very same machines 
  hours later . Because the invaders fielded twice 
  as many repair vehicles as did the defenders, an 
  eventual Capellan defeat appeared certain .
  Acting on inspiration, Sao-shao Mike Alonzo 
  slipped a company of Fa Shih battle armor behind 
  AFFS lines . At dusk, his company attacked AFFS 
  field bases and mined resupply routes, destroying 
  or crippling dozens of Saviors and other MFBs . The 
  raid severely hindered AFFS combat operations, 
  protracting the campaign for months . 
  Saviors have also been used to great effect 
  as infantry and ammunition transports . 
  During Operation Showtime on Solaris 
  VII during the Jihad, the Solaris Home Defense 
  League (SHDL) faced significant hurdles to orga-
  nizing an effective resistance against the Word 
  of Blake . Chief among these problems was a 
  lack of weaponry, ammunition and, most im-
  portantly, transports to move them . What they 
  did have were several Savior Repair Vehicles 
  hidden throughout Solaris City and the Reaches 
  that they used to stage resistance operations .
  In June 3070, the SHDL attacked several 
  Blakist caches throughout the International Zone . 
  Using their Saviors’ infantry bays to transport 
  several platoons of infantry and Dispossessed 
  MechWarriors, they seized much needed ’Mechs, 
  ammunition and parts . As they returned to their 
  hidden bases they were ambushed by Blakist 
  infantry . Two of the Saviors, now packed with 
  ammunition, took missile hits to their fully-
  laden cargo compartments . Fortunately, the 
  CASE-lined compartments saved the crews and 
  their passengers, along with much of the critical 
  supplies . Both vehicles were later salvaged and 
  continued repair operations throughout the war .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Gutted Pig: The “Gutted Pig” is a staple of the 
  training videos shown to Savior crews, but not 
  until after the sale is final . The details of the 
  units involved has been lost to history, but the 
  last battle of the “Gutted Pig” occurred during 
  the Jihad . Two sides had been fighting a savage 
  battle with tons of abandoned salvage left all 
  over the battlefield . The scavenger crew of the 
  (at the time) “Happy Pig” moved in to see what 
  treasures had been left behind . In the middle 
  of loading the torso of one ‘Mech, the battle 
  returned to the area . With no affiliation to ei-
  ther force, the “Happy Pig” became the target 
  of both sides and paid the price . What little 
  remained was left to rot; neither side claimed 
  the destroyed salvage vehicle . Renamed the 
  “Gutted Pig” by the General Motors holovid, the 
  story tells a strong precautionary tale for inde-
  pendent salvage crews .
  Den Mother: “Den Mother” was one of the few 
  Kell Hounds forces that survived the fall of Arc 
  Royal . Working the back lines, it became ap-
  parent to “Den Mother’s” commander that the 
  battle was a lost cause . “Den Mother’s” crew 
  fled, loading up as many Kell Hounds depen-
  dents as it could . Safely extracting the civilians 
  to the departing DropShips allowed them to 
  join Callandre Kell’s retreating forces . Some hot-
  heads curse the crew for running from the fight, 
  but they know the safety of civilians was more 
  important than any personal honor .
  
  113
  SAVIOR REPAIR VEHICLE
  Type: Savior
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Movement Type: Tracked (Medium)
  Equipment Rating: X-X-E-D
  Mass: 60 tons
  Battle Value: 152
   
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Chassis: 
   
   
  13 .5
  Engine/Controls:  
  Fusion 
   
  16 
   
  Cruise MP:  
  4
   
  Flank MP:  
  6 
  Heat Sinks: 
  1 
   
  1
  Fuel:  
   
   
  0
  Turret: 
   
   
   .5
  Armor Factor (BAR 10):  
  23 
   
  1 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Front 
  6 
  6
   
  R/L Side 
  6 
  5/5
   
  Rear 
  6 
  2
   
  Turret 
  6 
  5
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Mass
  Small Laser 
  Turret 
   .5
  Crew: 10 (2 officers, 7 enlisted/non-rated, 1 gunner)
  Cargo: 
   
  3 .5 tons standard 
   
  1 Door (Rear)
   
  3 tons Infantry Compartment
  Notes: Features Tech D Chassis, Engine/Controls and 
  Armor, Armored Chassis Modification, mobile field 
  base (20 tons), CASE ( .5 tons) . Features the following 
  Design Quirks: Easy to Maintain .
  
  114
  QUADVEES
  ARION
  Mass: 35 tons
  Chassis: Csesztreg QuadVee 35 .2 Endo Steel 
  Power Plant: Light Force (Standard) 210
  Cruising Speed: 64 kph
  Maximum Speed: 97 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Compound H17 Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament:
   
  2 Type 1 Cross-Pattern SRM 4 Launchers
   
  1 Series 7K Extended Range Large Laser
  Manufacturer: Csesztreg Industriplex  
  Alpha Annex
   
  Primary Factory: Csesztreg
  Communications System: CH2 Series 
  Integrated
  Targeting & Tracking System: Version 
  Gamma-V TTS
  Where the Cyllaros was clearly a proof-of-
  concept machine, aimed at exploring the fea-
  sibility of the QuadVee, the Arion is an effort to 
  produce a machine that is faster and more effec-
  tive as a harasser . This model was present in the 
  first confirmed battle involving the Horses’ new 
  QuadVees (quadruped vehicles) on Derf in 3136 .
  Like the others of its kind, the Arion suffers 
  from limited space and tonnage to excel either 
  as a ’Mech or as a combat vehicle, but its en-
  hanced mobility and unified cockpit style dem-
  onstrates a certain maturity in this QuadVee 
  that is absent in the Cyllaros .
   
  CAPABILITIES
  As a quadruped ’Mech, the Arion can ne-
  gotiate terrain with ease, and the ability to ro-
  tate its entire upper body through 360 degrees 
  gives it a field of fire unmatched by conven-
  tional bipeds . Its dual-pilot cockpit system plays 
  to the Horses’ underlying belief in teamwork 
  between warriors of different skill sets, placing 
  MechWarriors and vehicular gunners in joint 
  command of a single machine . 
  Unfortunately, the limiting factors of its 
  conversion equipment, dual-pilot system, and 
  tracks left the Arion with precious little room 
  for weapons and engine power . The result is a 
  light ’Mech that can be outpaced by modern 
  mediums, and outgunned by vehicles lighter 
  than itself . 
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Arion, like all QuadVees, is exclu-
  sively used by Clan Hell’s Horses . The Jade 
  Falcons and the Wolves have shown no inter-
  est in this strange notion, and the Rasalhague 
  Dominion seems likewise unimpressed with its 
  performance . 
  There have been few confirmed combat ac-
  tions involving the Arion itself, but two cases—
  both involving the Ninety-first Mechanized 
  Assault Cluster—have seen this QuadVee in 
  action against the Rasalhague Dominion . The 
  first occurred on Weingarten in 3139, when el-
  ements of the Dominion’s Rasalhague Galaxy 
  raided the planet . The second came in 3143, 
  when the Ninety-first hit Gunzburg with a raid 
  of its own . 
  On Weingarten, the Horses successfully 
  defended against the Dominion’s Second Tyr 
  Assault Cluster, where a mixed Star of Arions 
  and Harpagoses played an effective support 
  role . With their long range firepower and 
  broad firing fields the QuadVees projected 
  damage in all directions so quickly that the 
  Second Tyr briefly thought it was facing two 
  supporting Stars instead of just one . Rendered 
  cautious, the attackers slowed their advance, 
  losing valuable momentum that the remaining 
  Horses easily exploited .
  The action on Gunzburg proved less than 
  stellar . There, the Second Freemen Cluster’s ar-
  tillery kept the Horses off balance, hammering 
  a vehicle Star that included a pair of Arions so 
  badly that the QuadVees had to prematurely 
  break ranks, abandoning their disabled breth-
  ren as the ’Mechs sought cover in a thick copse 
  of nearby woods . Ironically, this tactical blunder 
  demonstrated the advantages of the QuadVees 
  over vehicles—at the expense of no less than 
  six combat crews .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Star Commander Neville: Neville’s Star was 
  part of a Seventh Rangers Cluster Trinary sent 
  to eradicate a pirate band operating out of Last 
  Chance . Neville’s star of Arions disembarked 
  on their tracks, looking like some strange new  
  vehicle . The pirates focused on the two Stars 
  of fast OmniMechs closing on their mountain-
  ringed base . Neville’s Star moved quickly to flank 
  the pirates . The pirates, feeling secure from tanks, 
  were stunned when the QuadVees reappeared 
  almost in their midst, walking over the hindering 
  terrain . The stunned pirates were obliterated, 
  and Star Commander Neville commended for 
  demonstrating the QuadVee’s utility .
  Marvin: Marvin is a MechWarrior sibko wash-
  out . He wound up in an Arion after winning a 
  Trial of Refusal over becoming solahma . He is 
  a miserable wretch who only seeks a moment 
  of glory in a wasted life . His Arion Star’s transfer 
  to the Eighty-second Mechanized Cavalry has 
  given him hopes that a Jade Falcon reprisal raid 
  will allow him to redeem his existence .
  
  115
  ARION
  Type: Arion
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 849
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2
  QuadVee Conversion Eqpt: 
   
   
  4
  Engine:  
  210 
   
  9
   
  Walking MP:  
  6
   
  Running MP:  
  9
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
   
  Tracked Cruise MP: 
  6
   
  Tracked Flank MP: 
  9
  Heat Sinks (Laser):  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  4
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Armor Factor (Ferro):  
  48 
   
  2 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  3
   
  Center Torso 
  11 
  6
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  3
   
  R/L Torso 
  8 
  5
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  3
   
  R/L Front Legs 
  8 
  5
   
  R/L Rear Legs 
  8 
  5
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  SRM 4 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  ER Large Laser 
  CT 
  1 
  4
  SRM 4 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (SRM) 25 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Tracks 
  * 
  4 
  3 .5
  Notes: *Tracks take up 1 critical 
  slot in each leg . Features 
  the following Design Quirks: 
  Bad Reputation, No Ejection 
  System, Non-Standard Parts .
  
  116
  QUADVEES
  Mass: 60 tons
  Chassis: Csesztreg QuadVee 60 .X Template
  Power Plant: 240 Standard Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Royal-7 Standard
  Armament:
   
  12 tons of pod space available
  Manufacturer: Csesztreg Industriplex Alpha 
  Annex
   
  Primary Factory: Csesztreg
  Communications System: CH2 Series 
  Integrated
  Targeting and Tracking System: Version 
  Gamma-V TTS
  The Boreas originally emerged as a pro-
  totype for Clan Hell’s Horses new BattleMech-
  vehicle hybrid known as the QuadVee . While 
  it did not immediately reach the production 
  levels of the Arion, Cyllaros, and Harpagos mod-
  els covered in prior tech briefs, it appears that 
  the moderate success of the new combat unit 
  has spurred enough interest to justify upgrad-
  ing this model from a simple “test frame” to a 
  combat-ready field unit .
  The reason for this may be as simple as it is 
  obvious: Unlike the QuadVees that reached the 
  Horses touman initially, the Boreas uses modu-
  lar Omni-pod technology . This feature alone 
  makes the chassis far more versatile and adapt-
  able than its fixed-configuration counterparts—
  even if the machine itself still suffers from other 
  legacy problems of its early development .
  CAPABILITIES
  Like all other QuadVees seen to date, the 
  Boreas possesses a 360-degree swiveling tur-
  ret/torso amalgamation, and a reconfigurable 
  chassis that can switch back and forth be-
  tween quadrupedal ’Mech movement to that 
  of a low-profile tracked vehicle . I suppose one 
  could call it a ground-based analog to the 
  Land-Air ’Mech . 
  At sixty tons, the Boreas only barely out-
  weighs the Cyllaros that entered production 
  ahead of it, and uses a smaller engine to boot . 
  Yet the tonnage reserved for weaponry and 
  other mission equipment is only slightly great-
  er than the lighter machine . This is because the 
  Boreas mounts substantially more armor, giving 
  it greater survivability in a firefight .
  For whatever reason, the production 
  model version of the Boreas did not address the 
  divided cockpit configuration that was cited as a 
  weakness by crews of both the Cyllaros and the 
  prototype versions of this same chassis . Indeed, 
  the Boreas’ cockpit is so divided that the upper 
  gunnery position appears to be completely 
  severed from the lower pilot’s position by the 
  torso-turret rotation assembly . This, in truth, is 
  an artifact of the early prototype’s engineering; 
  in actuality, both positions are connected to the 
  same sensors, communications, and life support 
  systems—albeit via flexible cables and tubes 
  that run through the machine’s “waist .”
  DEPLOYMENT
  Clan Hell’s Horses only put the Boreas 
  into full production around 3145, prior to 
  which the only models seen at large were the 
  handful of prototypes built to demonstrate 
  the unit concept and train techs and poten-
  tial pilot candidates . The Horses’ manufactur-
  ing complex on Csesztreg, which remains the 
  only site building these QuadVees, outputs 
  perhaps one Boreas for every two of each 
  other model made . Most of these are finding 
  their way into defensive formations through-
  out the Horses’ Occupation Zone, with the 
  majority appearing on base worlds bordering 
  Clan Jade Falcon, thanks to rising tensions be-
  tween those Clans .
  There has been some recent speculation 
  that the reason for the anemic pace of the 
  Boreas’ deployment compared to its contem-
  poraries, is that the Clan is already looking into 
  refining the QuadVee concept further . Rumors 
  abound that the Boreas frame is being used 
  as a springboard toward a new QuadVee that 
  uses wheels instead of tracks, for greater per-
  formance in vehicle form . Even if this is true, it 
  remains unclear whether this would be consid-
  ered a Boreas variant or if the Horses are just 
  using the same Omni-QuadVee approach to 
  testing an all new model .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Broken Wind: This refurbished Boreas was 
  claimed as salvage by the Jade Falcons’ 
  Eighteenth Falcon Regulars during an engage-
  ment on Leskovik during Operation NOYAN . 
  The Boreas was initially so damaged that the 
  Eighteenth’s tech wanted to render it to scrap, 
  but Star Captain Arielle Chistu ordered them to 
  try repairing it as best they could, in hopes of 
  deciphering the technology behind this rare 
  QuadVee . Although Chistu’s techs returned 
  the Boreas to functioning order, its QuadVee 
  conversion system remained inoperable, and 
  none of the technicians could figure out how 
  to repair or replace the system . Now perma-
  nently stuck in tank mode, this Boreas earned 
  the name “Broken Wind” as an insult to its name-
  sake . Chistu, unwilling to pilot a tank into battle, 
  itches to trial for a Hell’s Horses tech capable of 
  fixing the problematic components, but Star 
  Colonel Von Jankmon has yet to acquiesce to 
  the Star Captain’s demands .
  BOREAS
  
  117
  Type: Boreas
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 60
  Battle Value: 1,583
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  6
  QuadVee Conversion Eqpt: 
   
   
  6
  Engine:  
  240 
   
  11 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
   
  Tracked Cruise MP: 
  4
   
  Tracked Flank MP: 
  6
  Heat Sinks (Laser):  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro:  
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  4
  Armor Factor:  
  184 
   
  11 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  8
   
  Center Torso 
  20 
  26
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  10
   
  R/L Torso 
  14 
  21
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  7
   
  R/L Front Legs 
  14 
  21
   
  R/L Rear Legs 
  14 
  21
  Weight and Space Allocation
  Location 
  Fixed 
  Spaces Remaining
  Head 
  QuadVee Cockpit 
  0
  Center Torso 
  None 
  2
  Right Torso 
  None 
  12
  Left Torso 
  Laser Heat Sink 
  10
  Right Front Leg 
  Conversion Equipment 
  0
   
   
  Tracks
  Left Front Leg 
  Conversion Equipment 
  0
   
   
  Tracks
  Right Rear Leg 
  Conversion Equipment 
  0
   
   
  Tracks
  Left Rear Leg 
  Conversion Equipment 
  0
   
   
  Tracks
  Notes: *Tracks take up 1 critical slot in each leg . Features the following 
  Design Quirks: No Ejection System, Non-Standard Parts .
  Fixed Equipment 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Tracks 
  * 
  4 
  6
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Primary Weapons Configuration
  ER PPC 
  RT 
  2 
  6
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  CT 
  1 
  2
  Streak SRM 6 
  LT 
  2 
  3
  Ammo (Streak) 15 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Alternate Configuration A
  HAG 20 
  RT 
  6 
  10
  Ammo (HAG) 12 
  RT 
  2 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 1,221
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Alternate Configuration B
  Streak LRM 20 
  RT 
  5 
  10
  Ammo (Streak) 12 
  RT 
  2 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 1,331
  Alternate Configuration C
  ATM 12 
  RT 
  5 
  7
  Ammo (ATM) 15 
  RT 
  3 
  3
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  LT 
  2 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 1,502
  Alternate Configuration D
  Heavy Large Laser 
  RT 
  3 
  4
  2 Laser Heat Sinks 
  RT 
  4 
  2
  Laser Heat Sink 
  CT 
  2 
  1
  Heavy Large Laser 
  LT 
  3 
  4
  Laser Heat Sink 
  LT 
  2 
  1
   
  Battle Value: 1,394
  BOREAS
  
  118
  QUADVEES
  HARPAGOS
  Mass: 75 tons
  Chassis: Csesztreg QuadVee 75 .1 Endo Steel 
  Power Plant: 300 Fusion Extralight
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Royal-7 Standard
  Armament:
   
  2 Type AA4 Gauss Rifles
  Manufacturer: Csesztreg Industriplex Alpha 
  Annex
   
  Primary Factory: Csesztreg
  Communications System: CH2 Series 
  Integrated
  Targeting & Tracking System: Version 
  Gamma-V TTS
  The Harpagos is the largest of the 
  QuadVees seeing limited use in the Hell’s Horses 
  touman, but its main battle tank design phi-
  losophy appears to predate that of the Cyllaros 
  despite the use of superior engine technology . 
  Coupled with the Arion, the simple combination 
  of payload and profile on this machine speaks 
  to a larger tactical plan that is almost as devious 
  as the notion of a convertible ’Mech itself .
   
  CAPABILITIES
  The Harpagos, like all of the QuadVees, 
  takes its name from mythological steeds and 
  half-steed creatures—in this case being one of 
  the immortal horses of the Dioscuri twins . But 
  where the myths described Harpagos as a swift 
  beast used for chariot racing, this QuadVee will 
  likely never win any medals for speed . Instead, 
  it boasts the heavy armor and a powerful—if 
  unimaginative—payload of twin Gauss rifles . 
  This basic movement and weapons pro-
  file, more consistent with the capabilities of a 
  standard battle tank, might have been a key el-
  ement in the Horses’ early concept of QuadVee 
  deployment: the stratagem of building units tai-
  lored to making any enemy underestimate them .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Horses have capitalized on their 
  neighbors’ lack of interest in the QuadVee by 
  increasingly adding these machines into their 
  tank forces while phasing out older combat 
  vehicles of Star League or early Clan design . 
  Even though a QuadVee is still a BattleMech, 
  this move is consistent with the Horses’ long 
  tradition of blurring the distinctions in its order 
  of battle . (A common “Horse trick,” for example, 
  is how they take advantage of other Clans’ in-
  formal treatment the Nova formation, by drop-
  ping the term “Nova” when bidding . This policy 
  often leads others to underestimate the Horses’ 
  real troop strengths, as over half of their Stars, 
  Binaries, and Trinaries tend to be Novas .)
  In the case of the new QuadVees, the 
  Horses are once again playing with Clan norms 
  and expectations by treating their new ma-
  chines as vehicles or ’Mechs interchangeably . 
  With two vehicles to a Point, versus one ’Mech 
  in a typical Clan Star, a few Hell’s Horses com-
  manders have been developing the shifty tac-
  tic of treating their QuadVees as vehicles dur-
  ing Trial bidding . In this way, a Star of QuadVees 
  might hit the battlefield as a ten-unit strong 
  group, rather than the five-member ’Mech 
  Star—a nasty surprise to any opponents who 
  will then find themselves facing a Binary of 
  ’Mechs .
  The Harpagos is well suited to this scheme, 
  and in fact its unremarkable configuration 
  might not even make a typical Clan opponent 
  think twice about leaving its destruction to less-
  er forces . A demonstration of this recently took 
  place, in fact, when the Ninety-first BattleMech 
  Cluster employed a “mixed vehicle Nova” in a 
  raid on Falcon enclaves on Somerset that in-
  cluded two of these QuadVees . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Star Commander Rodrigo Cobb: Rodrigo 
  Cobb was once a Star Colonel, commanding 
  the 71st Mechanized Cavalry Cluster . However, 
  Cobb never found a glorious death in battle 
  as so many warriors his age crave . Instead of 
  being relegated to sibko training or a Solahma 
  infantry unit, he volunteered to be retrained 
  for the QuadVee program . Cobb’s requests 
  were repeatedly denied, but each time he 
  won a Trial of Refusal, eventually convincing his 
  superiors to admit him into the program . Now 
  commanding a Star of QuadVees, Rodrigo and 
  his Star were sent to his former command as a 
  test to see if he could put the good of the Clan 
  before personal honor .
   
  One of four Stars bid in the battle for 
  Loskovik as part of Operation NOYAN, Cobb 
  became the senior commander when the com-
  mander’s DropShip was shot down by Jade 
  Falcon fighters during the landing . Short several 
  heavy and assault ‘Mechs, Cobb’s QuadVees 
  outweighed the remaining Horse ProtoMech 
  and Elemental Stars . Ultimately unsuccessful, 
  Cobb still proved his worth to the Clan, destroy-
  ing a Star’s worth of Jade Falcons before his 
  Harpagos’ meager ammunition supplies were 
  exhausted . The only black mark was the loss of 
  his unit’s Boreas to the Jade Falcons .
  
  119
  HARPAGOS
  Type: Harpagos
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 75
  Battle Value: 1,721
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  4
  QuadVee Conversion Eqpt: 
   
   
  8
  Engine:  
  300 XL 
   
  9 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
   
  Tracked Cruise MP: 
  4
   
  Tracked Flank MP: 
  6
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Heat Sinks (Laser):  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  4
  Armor Factor:  
  192 
   
  12
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  23 
  22
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  15
   
  R/L Torso 
  16 
  20
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  11
   
  R/L Front Legs 
  16 
  21
   
  R/L Rear Legs 
  16 
  21
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Gauss Rifle 
  RT 
  6 
  12
  Ammo (Gauss) 8 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (Gauss) 8 
  CT 
  1 
  1
  Gauss Rifle 
  LT 
  6 
  12
  Ammo (Gauss) 8 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Tracks 
  * 
  4 
  7 .5
  Notes: *Tracks take up 1 critical slot in each leg . Features 
  the following Design Quirks: Bad Reputation, No 
  Ejection System, Non-Standard Parts .
  
  120
  LIGHT 
  ’MECHS
  PY-SR10 PREY SEEKER
  Mass: 15 tons
  Chassis: A1 Type 22 Ultralight Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Magna 180 XXL
  Cruising Speed: 129 kph
  Maximum Speed: 194 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: StarGuard CIV
  Armament:
   
  2 ChisComp 73 Medium  
   
  Re-Engineered Lasers
  Manufacturer: Achernar BattleMechs
   
  Primary Factory: Cahokia
  Communications System: PCE-4X “Blaster“
  Targeting & Tracking System: Federated 
  Hunter Mk .VII
  Achernar BattleMechs’ Prey Seeker grew out 
  of a number of influences . Its off-putting arm 
  construction harkens back to the Clan Dasher’s 
  distinctive profile, as does its phenomenal 
  speed, but its role—old-fashioned BattleMech 
  scouting—speaks to a quiet dissatisfaction 
  amongst the AFFS’ MechWarriors who feel 
  increasingly marginalized by the rise of com-
  bined-arms warfare .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Prey Seeker is a speedy ultralight 
  BattleMech built to be a scout and a raider . 
  It’s faster than a Dasher or even a Fireball, and 
  while its two re-engineered lasers aren’t es-
  pecially powerful, they do offer advantages 
  against reflective-armored opponents . Critics, 
  however, are quick to point out the astronomi-
  cal cost of its extralight components—a criti-
  cism that is gaining more traction as more and 
  more worlds are gobbled up by the Dragon 
  and the Confederation .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Prey Seekers were rushed into combat de-
  ployments soon after Fortress Republic . Without 
  adequate time for testing and doctrine estab-
  lishments, many MechWarriors had to find and 
  define what successful—and failing—tactics 
  would be .
  One of the first deployments was to the 
  Tikonov garrison . An evaluation company of 
  twelve Prey Seekers was assigned to Tukwila 
  district, just before a Capellan raid . The garrison 
  commander, unsure of what the Prey Seekers 
  could do, broke them into three recon lances 
  and used them to supplement his VTOL and ho-
  vertank scouts . Fortunately for the Prey Seeker 
  MechWarriors, the main force of the raiding party 
  went in the other direction; had they been deci-
  sively engaged, it’s likely the troops’ inexperience 
  would have led them to fighting the ultralight 
  ’Mechs like regular light ’Mechs—an engage-
  ment they would have almost certainly lost .
  During Duke Sandoval’s doomed 
  Operation PELAYO in 3141, a number of Prey 
  Seekers were smuggled onto the targeted 
  worlds he intended to strike . These ’Mechs, op-
  erating solo or in pairs, made surprisingly excel-
  lent scouts . With the speed to evade everything 
  except the fastest hover or VTOL pursuers, and 
  lacking any easily-detected electronics like 
  active probes or ECM suites, the Prey Seekers 
  avoided detection . When the PELAYO forces 
  landed, the Prey Seekers rendezvoused and pro-
  vided timely intelligence updates .
  One role the Prey Seekers have proven to 
  excel at is the long raid . Despite their uncom-
  fortable cockpits, many AFFS commanders have 
  sent small bands of Prey Seekers on long paths 
  around enemy concentrations, as was done on 
  Fairfax . Faced with an overwhelming DCMS 
  force, the militia commander sent Subaltern 
  Jeremy Dodds and his lance 200 kilometers 
  around the Kuritans . Arriving in their soft rear 
  areas, the trio of Prey Seekers tore into the 
  Kuritans’ supply lines, destroying bridges and 
  civilian vehicles and terrorizing infantry security 
  patrols . The DCMS commander had to pull a full 
  company of ’Mechs off of the assault to track 
  them down, which delayed the conquest of the 
  world by at least three weeks .
  VARIANTS
  Prey Seekers are sometimes modified in the 
  field, where heavy advanced lasers are removed 
  and lighter weaponry is bolted to the arms to 
  take advantage of their field of fire . Common 
  variations sport ER medium lasers or a plethora 
  of machine guns, respectively mated to a target-
  ing computer or arrays .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Captain Cullen Henry: Captain Henry is the 
  company commander of Perceval’s Knights and 
  the commander of Perceval’s Steeds, the unit’s 
  trio of Prey Seekers . The Steeds are tasked with 
  scouting the target, tripping any ambushes or 
  traps, and keeping as many defenders occu-
  pied as possible . On their first raid as a part of 
  Operation PERCEVAL, Captain Henry and his 
  fellow Prey Seekers ran into a lance of DCMS 
  light and medium ‘Mechs, led by a Rokurokubi . 
   
  While the other two Prey Seekers led three 
  of the enemy on a winding tour of the coun-
  tryside, Captain Henry challenged the pilot of 
  the Rokurokubi to a duel . Through clever use of 
  intervening terrain, Cullen was able to whittle 
  down the hardened armor of his enemy . A lucky 
  shot destroyed the feed mechanism to the 
  Rokurokubi’s autocannon, sending the Combine 
  pilot into a rage . With almost double the speed 
  of his opponent, Captain Henry easily stayed 
  out of his enemy’s melee range . A shot to the 
  ammunition bin consumed the Rokurokubi .
  
  121
  PY-SR10 PREY SEEKER
  Type: Prey Seeker
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 15
  Battle Value: 549
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  1
  Engine:  
  180 XXL 
   
  2 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  12 
   
  Running MP:  
  18
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro (XL): 
   
   
  1
  Cockpit (Small): 
   
   
  2
  Armor Factor: 
  55 
   
  3 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  5 
  9
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  1
   
  R/L Torso 
  4 
  7
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  1
   
  R/L Arm 
  2 
  4
   
  R/L Leg 
  3 
  6
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Medium Re-engineered 
  RT 
  2 
  2 .5 
   Laser
  Medium Re-engineered 
  LT 
  2 
  2 .5 
   Laser
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Overhead 
  Arms, Exposed Actuators .
  
  122
  LIGHT 
  ’MECHS
  Mass: 15 tons
  Chassis: Triumph Dynamic Endo Steel
  Power Plant: LightForce (ExtraLight) 210
  Cruising Speed: 151 kph
  Maximum Speed: 226 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Advantage Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament:
   
  2 Conquest Extended Range Medium 
   
  Lasers
  Manufacturer: Eris Enterprises Design Group
   
  Primary Factory: Capolla
  Communications System: Angst Clear  
   
  Channel 5
  Targeting & Tracking System: O/P TA1240
  The Roadrunner is a tiny but blisteringly 
  fast scout ‘Mech and harasser, a key asset for the 
  RAF . It was the first pure ClanTech ‘Mech built 
  for regular use in the army of an Inner Sphere 
  military . Recently, it has been followed by the 
  more advanced Jackalope . One of the fastest in-
  production BattleMechs, it packs a punch most 
  Star League-era scouts would envy .
  DEPLOYMENT
  First designed and deployed by Clan 
  Jade Falcon during the Golden Century, the 
  Roadrunner was known as the Emerald Harrier . 
  The Emerald Harrier was out of production and 
  virtually unused among the Jade Falcons by 
  the time of the Clan invasion . Its design specs 
  resurfaced during negotiations between then-
  ovKhan Mori Hawker of Clan Sea Fox’s ilKhan-
  ate and Lieutenant General Dennis Avicenna 
  of the RAF Procurement Division . The two had 
  been discussing options for a pilot project, al-
  lowing the RAF to acquire ClanTech equipment 
  and the means to produce it in-house . An all-
  to-brief merchant alliance between Clans Jade 
  Falcon and Diamond Shark during Operation 
  REVIVAL included the technical sharing of the 
  Emerald Harrier .
  As the Clans progressed away from the 
  massed warfare of the Star League-era and 
  more towards the Circle of Equals, the need for 
  pure scouts like the Emerald Harrier faded from 
  use . Despite the soured relationship between 
  the Jade Falcons and the Sharks, the Emerald 
  Harrier was never optioned for reproduction 
  until Hawker’s deal with Avicenna .
  With its firepower, the Roadrunner can 
  function as a speedy harasser and flanker . 
  Under the right circumstances, it can even per-
  form headhunter missions . A lack of advanced 
  sensors, defensive electronics, and jump jets is 
  what hinders the Roadrunner from being a one-
  stop elite reconnaissance ‘Mech . 
  One of the more modern significant uses 
  of the Roadrunner was during the Senate 
  Rebellion on Terra . A pair of Roadrunners were 
  tasked with tracking any pro-Senate forces that 
  attempted to flee . A damaged Night Stalker was 
  found and one of the Roadrunners began pur-
  suit . Knowing that even a hit from one of the 
  Night Stalker’s small lasers could denude an en-
  tire section, the Roadrunner pilot maximized his 
  defensive coverage . Eventually the Roadrunner 
  landed a lucky shot on the rear torso, punching 
  through the armor and melting the gyro inside 
  to scrap metal . With the Night Stalker disabled, 
  the scout put two more laser shots into the 
  open wound . The engine exploded, killing the 
  pilot in the torso-mounted cockpit .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Beep-Beep: “Beep-Beep” is the nickname given 
  to a Roadrunner that was delivered to a RAF 
  training academy outside of Santa Fe on Terra . 
  The simple controls and limited weaponry 
  make it a superb training unit for novices .  This 
  particular Roadrunner was named after ancient 
  Terran cartoon featuring a roadrunner . Either 
  evading his attacker, or leading it into a trap, 
  the roadrunner in the cartoon always used his 
  speed as his main weapon and defense, critical 
  skills taught to novice pilots .
  Captain Sage Rivers: Pilot of the Roadrunner 
  that killed a rebel Night Stalker and its pilot, 
  Captain Rivers is the longest serving Roadrunner 
  pilot in the RAF . Although he’s been offered 
  other fast ‘Mechs with more firepower, he has 
  turned them down, having grown accustomed 
  to the speed of the ‘Mech; everything else 
  “felt too slow .” He began his time as a training 
  instructor and is regularly sent on temporary 
  assignments to train scouts .
  More recently, Captain Rivers has begun 
  spreading the idea of making the Roadrunner an 
  OmniMech . While the resource costs seem out of 
  line for a ‘Mech of limited use and survivability, 
  Rivers argues otherwise . Based on his experi-
  ences, an Omni version could have its weapons 
  changed for scouting and electronic warfare . 
  Instead of needing to track around certain ter-
  rain obstacles a few jump jets could be added . 
  Despite Rivers’ arguments, however, there are no 
  plans to follow through with his ideas .
  RD-1R ROADRUNNER
  
  123
  Type: Emerald Harrier
  Inner Sphere Designation: Roadrunner
  Technology Base: Clan
  Tonnage: 15
  Battle Value: 888
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  1
  Engine:  
  210 XL 
   
  4 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  14
   
  Running MP:  
  21
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Ferro):  
  28 
   
  1 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  3
   
  Center Torso 
  5 
  3
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  2
   
  R/L Torso 
  4 
  2
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  2
   
  R/L Arm 
  2 
  3
   
  R/L Leg 
  3 
  3
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  ER Medium Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirk: Easy to Pilot, 
  No/Minimal Arms, No Torso Twist .
  RD-1R ROADRUNNER
  
  124
  LIGHT 
  ’MECHS
  KOSHI (STANDARD)
  Mass: 25 tons
  Chassis: Type 2 Standard Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Type II 175 XL
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph
  Jump Jets: GrandThrust Mk I
   
  Jump Capacity: 180 meters
  Armor: Forging ZM7 Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament:
   
  4 Type I Cross Pattern SRM 4 Launchers
  Manufacturer: Manufacturing Plant SFF-IT3
   
  Primary Factory: CSF Poseidon Mobile 
  Production Facility 
  Communications System: Neil 9000
  Targeting & Tracking System: RCA Instatrac 
  Mk VI
  The non-OmniMech version of the Koshi 
  proliferated through the Inner Sphere quickly 
  after its introduction thanks to the wide mer-
  cantile reach of Clan Sea Fox . Mercenaries are 
  especially fond of the Koshi because of the easy 
  logistics for a ’Mech with only one weapon type .
  CAPABILITIES
  Mercenaries typically employ the Koshi 
  as a recon ’Mech, mainly because its arms and 
  legs lack sufficient armor to hang in a firefight . 
  Instead, MechWarriors charge through an area 
  and rely on the active probe to detect hidden 
  enemies . The Koshi’s launchers carry sufficient 
  ammunition to remain away from base for 
  some time, provided that time is spent evad-
  ing combat .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Mercenaries on both sides of the Victoria 
  War employed Koshis . Champion Battalion of 
  Holt’s Hilltoppers used their prior experience 
  serving the Capellans to great advantage for 
  the Federated Suns in the battle for Jacson . The 
  Hilltoppers sent their recon company, includ-
  ing a lance of Koshis, into the Perpetual Forest, 
  where Lethal Injection had withdrawn in the 
  face of the invaders . The immense boughs 
  wreaked havoc on the Koshis’ active probes, 
  and the two forces stumbled upon one another 
  suddenly . The Koshis’ high speed prevented the 
  battle from becoming a standup brawl . Instead, 
  both sides used their maneuverability to the ut-
  most in the confining terrain .
  Koshis flew through the upper limbs of 
  the giant trees, weapons flashing at one an-
  other from the top of their arcs . Fires broke 
  out, but the speedy Koshis quickly left the 
  smoke and flames behind . The battle dete-
  riorated into a furball, with units suffering 
  friendly fire and the fallen left behind . The 
  Hilltoppers’ numbers proved the deciding fac-
  tor . With their recon ability eliminated, Lethal 
  Injection pulled back and fled the world, 
  which soon fell to the AFFS .
  Koshis played a major part in repelling a 
  pirate raid on Wisconsin in 3140 . The Hateful 
  Survivors arrived in force, deploying a full bat-
  talion of BattleMechs to maraud through the 
  major cities . The world’s mercenary defend-
  ers, Pandora’s Box, were hard put against the 
  savage pirates . The Box deployed three lances 
  of Koshis to locate the pirate landing zone . 
  The Koshis first penetrated the pirates’ lines, 
  losing three of their number . Once they were 
  past the lead elements, one lance stumbled 
  upon the pirate command lance of heavy 
  and assault ’Mechs . Jammed communications 
  kept the Koshis from reporting, so Lieutenant 
  Sarafina Black ordered an attack . Slashing at-
  tacks and repeated hit-and-fade runs allowed 
  the Koshi lance to destroy three of the enemy, 
  including the pirate commander . Black was 
  killed in the exchange, never knowing the 
  other lances had located the pirate DropShips 
  and called in artillery . 
  VARIANTS
  The Koshi has two major variants . The first 
  swaps the SRM racks for a pair of Streak SRM 6 
  launchers, while the other replaces them with a 
  sextet of heavy small lasers, MASC, and a suite 
  of advanced electronic components, including 
  a targeting computer .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Sang-wei Flavio Rodriguez: Sang-wei 
  Rodriguez is legendary in the Second 
  McCarron’s Armored Cavalry for disregarding 
  regulations . His seniority and a lack of quali-
  fied officers led to his company command . 
  Rodriguez’ Layabouts is the regiment’s worst 
  company in terms of military discipline . 
  Rodriguez nevertheless boasts a respectable 
  winning record . The December 3144 conquest 
  of New Hessen was Rodriguez’ shining moment 
  as company commander . His recon company 
  routinely risked death at the hands of the fa-
  natical defenders to ferret out enemy positions 
  and direct allied fire .
  
  125
  KOSHI (STANDARD)
  Type: Koshi
  Technology Base: Clan
  Tonnage: 25
  Battle Value: 760
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  1 .5
  Engine:  
  175 XL 
   
  3 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  7
   
  Running MP:  
  11
   
  Jumping MP:  
  6
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  2
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Ferro):  
  67 
   
  3 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  8 
  10
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  6
   
  R/L Torso 
  6 
  7
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Arm 
  4 
  4
   
  R/L Leg 
  6 
  5
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  2 SRM 4 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (SRM) 50 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  Light TAG 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  Active Probe 
  H 
  1 
  1
  2 SRM 4 
  LA 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (SRM) 25 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  Jump Jets 
  RT 
  3 
  1 .5
  Jump Jets 
  LT 
  3 
  1 .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Modular 
  Weapons .
  
  126
  LIGHT 
  ’MECHS
  ABS-5Y ANUBIS
  Mass: 30 tons
  Chassis: Detroit Type II Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Ceres Motors 210 XL
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Hellespont Lite Stealth
  Armament:
   
  2 Ceres Arms Striker Light Particle 
   
   
  Projection Cannons
   
  2 Ceres/Sian Jaguar LRM 5 Launchers
  Manufacturer: Detroit Consolidated 
  MechWorks
   
  Primary Factory: Krimari
  Communications System: Ceres Metals 
  Model 666 with Guardian ECM Suite
  Targeting & Tracking System: Dynatec 990
  The Anubis has served the Magistracy of 
  Canopus for eight decades as a fast scout . The 
  present version sacrifices a bit of speed for 
  significant upgrades in weaponry . Anubises 
  are common scout ’Mechs in Canopian and 
  Capellan regiments, especially finding service in 
  long range search-and-destroy missions thanks 
  to their subtly upgraded sensors .
  CAPABILITIES
  Anubises combine speed and stealth to 
  excellent effect . A common refrain is that “the 
  only Anubis you see is the one that wants to be 
  seen .” When enemies spot the Anubis at all, it is 
  often part of its plan to lure enemies into the 
  Thunder minefields sown by its paired LRM 5s . 
  Long-range weaponry serves the MechWarrior 
  by encouraging any engagements to take place 
  at extreme ranges, where stealth armor can bet-
  ter protect the scout .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Fourth Andurien Cavalry inserted two 
  companies of fast ’Mechs, including two lances 
  of Anubises purchased from the Magistracy, for 
  a reconnaissance of Ruschegg in March 3145 . 
  The scout ’Mechs blazed through the cities 
  and countryside, finding a complete absence 
  of BattleMech defenders . The mission was 
  recon only, but the MechWarriors could not 
  pass up the temptation . Instead of returning to 
  their DropShips with their findings, the scouts 
  thought they could overwhelm the planetary 
  militia by themselves .
  The Anubises led the charge into Boniard 
  City, bypassing the defenders and seeking 
  to cut off potential avenues of retreat by lay-
  ing Thunder minefields . As the rest of the 
  scouts moved in, the defenders sprang their 
  trap . Well-concealed tank-hides split to reveal 
  heavy battle tanks that had been missed in 
  the recon sweeps . The attackers might have 
  been BattleMechs, but they were grossly out-
  numbered, outmassed and outgunned . The 
  Anubises had succeeded in denying fields of 
  escape, which now kept them from aiding their 
  comrades . Still, their extreme speed allowed 
  them to sweep about the city and attempt to 
  save their beset fellows .
  Pinpoint PPC fire gave the Anubises the 
  advantage of range . Crippling some of the 
  tanks relieved most of the scout ’Mechs so 
  they could escape, but the pullout from the 
  city was stymied by the arrival of a company of 
  hovertanks . The damaged scouts were cut off 
  once again, leaving the Anubis MechWarriors 
  with little choice but to abandon those com-
  rades who could not escape . Less than half the 
  recon force returned to their DropShips, most 
  of them Anubises .
  The Anubis has long been a favorite of 
  the Colonial Marshals . When the Glorious 
  Mayhem pirate band briefly left the Capellan 
  Confederation to raid the Fronc Reaches, they 
  met initial success by limiting their time in any 
  system . They arrived on Appian in 3127 . The 
  command marshal of Appian was Sudarshan 
  Ramanathan . Marshal Ramanathan assigned 
  the militia and one lance of Colonial Marshals 
  to defend the capital while he led a lance of 
  Anubises in an active defense . The pirates 
  were hard-put to hit the streaking Marshals 
  force, which maintained maximum speed and 
  stayed at range . When the pirates sought to re-
  treat, Ramanathan moved in and damaged the 
  enemy DropShip before he was killed by its re-
  turn fire . The pirates managed to flee—barely—
  leaving wreckage and lost loot behind . 
  VARIANTS
  The ABS-5Z replaces the weapons with ER 
  medium lasers and Streak SRM 4s, while adding 
  TAG and additional stealth armor .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Abasi Sadat: Sadat has suffered from delusions 
  of grandeur all his life . Working as a mercenary 
  laborer, infantryman, and tank crewman, he 
  eventually earned enough money to purchase 
  a wrecked Anubis . Now running his own mer-
  cenary unit, he prefers contracts on backwater 
  worlds where the sight of his ‘Mech and support 
  tanks cause the locals to treat him like the god 
  he believes he is .
  
  127
  ABS-5Y ANUBIS
  Type: Anubis
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 30
  Battle Value: 1,042
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  1 .5
  Engine:  
  210 XL 
   
  4 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  7
   
  Running MP:  
  11
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Stealth): 
  88 
   
  5 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  10 
  11
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Torso 
  7 
  9
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  3
   
  R/L Arm 
  5 
  8
   
  R/L Leg 
  7 
  12
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Light PPC 
  RA 
  2 
  3
  LRM 5 
  RT 
  1 
  2
  Ammo (LRM) 24 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  CT 
  2 
  1 .5
  LRM 5 
  LT 
  1 
  2
  Light PPC 
  LA 
  2 
  3
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved 
  Sensors .
  
  128
  LIGHT 
  ’MECHS
  BZK-D1 HOLLANDER III
  Mass: 35 tons
  Chassis: GM BZK-III Endo Steel
  Power Plant: GM 175 XL
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph, 108 kph  
  with Supercharger
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: StarGuard Reflec with CASE II
  Armament:
   
  1 GM Nova-10 Ultra Class 10 Autocannon
  Manufacturer: General Motors
   
  Primary Factory: Kathil
  Communications System: Dalban Micronics
  Targeting & Tracking System: Sync-Tracker 
  (55-42017)
  The original Hollander offered light ’Mech 
  pilots firepower far outside their weight class, 
  and the ’Mech was enthusiastically adopted 
  across the Inner Sphere . It spawned a heavier 
  upgrade, but in 3114 General Motors present-
  ed a new ’Mech in the light weight class to the 
  AFFS, who were quick to snap it up . It has since 
  spread to the Lyran Commonwealth and been a 
  popular choice in the mercenary market .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Hollander III returns to the successful 
  first model, with a single powerful main gun . It 
  exceeds the limitations of its progenitor, how-
  ever, by adding a supercharger to allow it quick 
  entrances and exits from combat .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Hollander IIIs are common in the Capellan 
  March, especially, and have been seen often 
  in the Periphery Guard regiments of the 
  Periphery March, where their firepower makes 
  them frequent ambushers for pirates coming 
  in from the Periphery .
  In 3138 an unidentified pirate band struck 
  at Bastille . Luckily for the planet’s citizens, a 
  company of the Sixth Periphery Guards was on-
  world for arctic combat training, including three 
  Hollander IIIs . Turning south, the combined-
  arms company stopped only long enough to 
  exchange its training ammunition for war shots 
  and then sped to intercept the pirates . They 
  were too late to stop the band from pillag-
  ing Garfield, a small town on the coast of the 
  Marseilles Sea, but they managed to get in the 
  pirates’ path back to their DropShip .
  Letting their four Ziblers lead the way, the 
  company attacked, trying to slow down the pi-
  rates and separate them from their stolen cargo 
  vehicles, which were heavily-laden with cap-
  tured booty and captives destined for Periphery 
  slavery . The pirate ’Mechs took the bait, follow-
  ing the Ziblers back into a series of hillocks 
  where the three Hollander IIIs waited in ambush . 
  Their first barrage took out the lead Brigand, 
  while their supercharged speed let them pur-
  sue the remaining Centurion and Blackjack back 
  toward the convoy . While the ’Mechs were fight-
  ing, the Periphery Guards’ APCs had dropped a 
  platoon of Cavalier battlesuits, which made 
  short work of the pirate infantry .
  Hollander IIIs also played a high-profile role 
  in the defeat of Holly’s Hollanders on Abruzzi in 
  early 3145 . Contracted to supplement the con-
  ventional planetary militia, the Hollanders were 
  caught when a task force from the Capellan 
  Hussars struck the world in a recon raid . The even 
  dozen Hollander IIIs of the mercenary unit were 
  tasked with acting as the militia’s anvil; the colo-
  nel in charge hoped his tanks would be enough 
  to force the Liaos into retreating . Unfortunately 
  for the Hollanders, he succeeded—only to dis-
  cover that a dozen thirty-five ton ’Mechs, even 
  firing from cover, cannot be an anvil for more 
  than two dozen medium and heavy Capellan 
  ’Mechs . The Hollanders were eradicated in a little 
  less than two minutes of combat .
  VARIANTS
  Interest from the LCAF drove GM to offer 
  the D2 Hollander, which changes out the auto-
  cannon for a Gauss rifle . Once export shipments 
  began, GM expanded to the mercenary market 
  with the D3, which uses a larger engine and 
  energy weapons to turn the Hollander III into a 
  credible harasser .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Marshal Ramanathan “Ram” Subramanian: 
  Marshal Subramanian’s father, also a Colonial 
  Marshal, was instrumental in stopping an as-
  sassination attempt against Governor George 
  Holt of Portland at the turn of the century . 
  Holt promised to reward his rescuer, but was 
  requested instead to provide for his savior’s 
  young son . Holt’s son kept that promise, and in 
  3120, purchased and presented a Hollander III 
  to the Marshalry Academy graduate . Ram loves 
  that his ’Mech is unique among the Marshals, 
  though it often presents logistical difficulties . 
  A recent battle knocked out his supercharger, 
  though he savaged the pirate lance in pay-
  ment . While he waits for replacement parts, he  
  continues his patrols on Portland, just far slower 
  than he would prefer .
  Lieutenant Jen Youngblood: Lieutenant 
  Youngblood was among the defenders on Arc-
  Royal in September 3146, when the world fell to 
  the Jade Falcons . Though her ’Mech was heavily 
  damaged, she managed to escape along with 
  a number of Kell Hounds dependents to join 
  Callandre Kell . Her D3 variant has proved useful 
  as the survivors raid various Falcon worlds en 
  route to the Periphery .
  
  129
  BZK-D1 HOLLANDER III
  Type: Hollander III
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 1,116
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2
  Engine:  
  175 XL 
   
  3 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  5 
   
  Running MP:  
  8 (10)
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro (Compact): 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Reflective): 
  96 
   
  6
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  11 
  15
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Torso 
  8 
  12
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  3
   
  R/L Arm 
  6 
  7
   
  R/L Leg 
  8 
  12
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Ultra AC/10 
  RT 
  7 
  13
  Supercharger 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  Ammo (Ultra) 30 
  CT 
  3 
  3
  CASE II 
  CT 
  1 
  1
  
  130
  LIGHT 
  ’MECHS
  JAGUAR
  Mass: 35 tons
  Chassis: Fortune VII Endo Steel (Quad)
  Power Plant: LightForce (ExtraLight) 280
  Cruising Speed: 86 kph
  Maximum Speed: 129 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Compound RSH5 Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament:
   
  1 Type 6 ATM 6 Launcher
   
  2 Hovertec Aethershot SRM 2 Launchers
   
  4 Series 2d Extended Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: Assault Tech Industries
   
  Primary Factory: Donegal
  Communications System: Assault Call Alpha
  Targeting & Tracking System: Assault 
  SureStrike
  Assault Tech Industries was founded two 
  decades ago, with aid from the Commonwealth, 
  as a means for Clan Wolf-in-Exile to compete with 
  Clan Sea Fox in selling to the general market . The 
  Jaguar was their first entry, a quadrupedal scout 
  with an impressive array of firepower for a light 
  ’Mech . It has been remarkably successful, prolif-
  erating widely via the mercenaries who ply their 
  trade in the Lyran Commonwealth .
  CAPABILITIES
  The speedy Jaguar mounts as much armor 
  as any ’Mech its mass can carry . In just over two 
  decades, the Jaguar has appeared along the 
  Lyran border with the Clans in roles from recon 
  and search-and-destroy to mobile fire support . 
  The excellent design of the legs has stymied 
  Elementals seeking to kneecap the Jaguar, 
  as the actuators are more rugged than such a 
  small ’Mech would usually employ .
  DEPLOYMENT
  When Clan Hell’s Horses invaded 
  Timkovichi in August 3142, their Mongol 
  Doctrine ran headlong into the Kell Hounds . 
  The Hounds had a number of Jaguars in their 
  force, and these almost single-handedly stalled 
  the Horses . The 666th Mechanized Assault 
  Cluster warriors were unable to capitalize after 
  successfully luring the speedy Jaguars into the 
  open when the Hounds simply charged the 
  Horses’ lines and began to wreak havoc in the 
  Clan’s rear areas . When the Hounds abandoned 
  Greywalk, the city where a battalion had been 
  housed, two lances of Jaguar 2s laid in wait . As 
  the Horses moved in and began to terrorize the 
  local populace with their bastardized Mongol 
  Doctrine, the Jaguars spotted for Arrow IV mis-
  siles before breaking cover . The defeat was so 
  complete that the Horses fled the region . This 
  was a Pyrrhic victory—it was one of the fac-
  tors that led Jade Falcon Khan Malvina Hazen 
  to bombard the Hounds from orbit, nearly an-
  nihilating them .
  The Jade Falcon invasion of Tharkad in 
  July 3143 caught the Queen’s Gambit mer-
  cenary company . The command had simply 
  been passing through to allow several of its 
  MechWarriors to visit family on the Lyran 
  capital when they were forced into the fight . 
  Captain Stephanie “Queen Steph” Rutherford 
  fearlessly led her meager company into the 
  midst of the Eleventh Falcon Velites . The 
  Jade Falcon recon Binary was led by Star 
  Commander Josephus . Josephus was hard-
  put—despite his heavier force—to engage the 
  Gambit’s streaking light ’Mechs,  and commit-
  ted the deadly sin of succumbing to target fix-
  ation . He identified the Gambit’s commander 
  in her Jaguar and pursued her to the exclusion 
  of all others . This failure caused him to stretch 
  out his Binary’s line and made his comrades 
  easy prey for a company of Tharkad militia .
  VARIANTS
  The Jaguar 2 replaces all the weapons save 
  two ER medium lasers with six machine guns, 
  two medium pulse lasers and an array of ad-
  vanced electronics .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  MechWarrior Alisar: While pursuing the re-
  treating Jade Falcons on Upano, Alisar leapt her 
  Jaguar 2 into a clump of enemy Elementals and 
  took them on singlehandedly . She chalked up 
  nine kills before a shot to her gyro dropped her 
  ‘Mech . She then eliminated three more Falcon 
  troopers from a prone position while awaiting 
  rescue by her Starmates . In recognition of her 
  prowess, Alisar has been flagged as a candidate 
  for the next open Carns Bloodname .
  Tivan Marsh: The sole survivor of the Trickster 
  Boys mercenary lance after their destruction by 
  the Falcons, Marsh was offered a spot in the Kell 
  Hounds and given a Jaguar that had recently  
  lost its pilot . Two months later he saved 
  Callandre Kell’s life during a raid on Jesenice 
  and earned a spot in her command lance . Marsh 
  presumably vanished along with the rest of 
  Callendre’s Hounds .
  
  131
  JAGUAR
  Type: Jaguar
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 1,791
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2
  Engine:  
  280 XL 
   
  8
   
  Walking MP:  
  8
   
  Running MP:  
  12
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Ferro):  
  127 
   
  7
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  11 
  17
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Torso 
  8 
  11
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Front Leg 
  8 
  16
   
  R/L Rear Leg 
  8 
  16
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  ATM 6* 
  RT 
  3 
  3 .5
  Quad Turret 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  Ammo (ATM) 20 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  SRM 2 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  SRM 2 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  Ammo (SRM) 50 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Notes: *This weapon is mounted in a Quad BattleMech 
  Turret . Features the following Design Quirks: 
  Protected Actuators .
  
  132
  LIGHT 
  ’MECHS
  PXH-11K PHOENIX HAWK L
  Mass: 35 tons
  Chassis: Foundation CMRFa12 Endo Steel
  Power Plant: GM 210 XL
  Cruising Speed: 64 kph
  Maximum Speed: 97 kph
  Jump Jets: Rawlings 55
   
  Jump Capacity: 180 meters
  Armor: Durallex Light with CASE
  Armament:
   
  1 Matabushi Stunner Tight-Stream  
   
  Electromagnetic Pulse Cannon
   
  1 Shigunga 3-Tube Multi-Missile Launcher
   
  1 Victory 23E Extended-Range Medium Laser
   
  3 Sperry Browning Heavy Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: Cosby BattleMech and 
  Myomer Research Firm
   
  Primary Factory: Kajikazawa
  Communications System: Sipher CommCon 
  SCU-4
  Targeting & Tracking System: Matabushi 
  Sentinel Insulated
  After the Second Combine-Dominion War, 
  the DCMS found itself in need of a new light 
  ’Mech platform that could replace its aging 
  Panther fleet . Cosby BMR submitted a proposal 
  that attempted to copy the success of the ven-
  erable Phoenix Hawk, but with a lighter chassis 
  and cheap, commonly available weapon kits .
  CAPABILITIES 
  Similar in appearance and weapon profiles 
  to the medium-class ’Mech of the same name, 
  the Phoenix Hawk L—also known among Kurita 
  purists as the Fenikkusu Taka—has been widely 
  accepted among the Regulars line regiments . 
  Its armament is well suited to anti-infantry and 
  urban operations . With a mobility curve and 
  ease of use superior to most of the Combine’s 
  Panthers, the Fenikkusu Taka is becoming a 
  popular addition to reconnaissance lances and 
  highly-mobile combined-arms companies .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  Phoenix Hawk Ls were instrumental in sev-
  eral engagements on Palmyra . During the Battle 
  of Fire Valley, three Takas from the Seventh New 
  Samarkand Regulars moved across the forested 
  slopes, preventing Davion infantry from fleeing . 
  One Taka tagged a Fourth Crucis Lancers Hanse 
  MBT with its TSEMP, freezing it in place long 
  enough for another Taka to hose it down with 
  missiles and machine gun fire . Few Lancers in-
  fantry and tanks escaped the carnage in the val-
  ley, preventing reinforcements from strength-
  ening the AFFS position at Fortuna, several 
  kilometers away .
  During the hunt for Prince Caleb Davion, 
  a strike lance from the Fifth Sword of Light 
  stumbled into a temporary firebase in 
  Twombly . The depot had been established 
  by the Twenty-seventh Avalon Hussars . The 
  Combine ’Mechs faced an assault lance and 
  two squads of battle armor . Choosing to 
  fight rather than withdraw, the Sworders 
  ranged the perimeter of the small village . 
  Busosenshi Egberdt Rollins was confronted 
  with a Hussars Templar III . Rollins used his 
  Taka’s mobility to dance around the Templar’s 
  superior firepower . Working into the Davion’s 
  rear, Rollins stabbed a TSEMP beam into the 
  Templar’s damaged leg, causing it to stumble . 
  The Dragon Taka pounced, planting all of its 
  weight squarely onto the head of the Hussars 
  ’Mech . The Davion infantry, witnesses to the 
  ground-shaking combat, surrendered en 
  masse when Rollins turned the Taka back to-
  ward their position . 
  VARIANTS
  One variant has been noted in recent 
  Combine operations on Sakhara V, Royal, and 
  Raman . This Phoenix Hawk L uses a snub-nose 
  PPC in place of its TSEMP system . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Tai-i Sok Hiramoto: Tai-i Hiramoto commands 
  a recon company in the Ryuken-hachi . When the 
  –hachi attacked Remagen in August 3148, his 
  company was crucial to securing the line of ad-
  vance for the new Hikage regiment . Hiramoto’s 
  command lance surprised a Kestrel Grenadiers 
  infantry battalion, hastily assembling defensive 
  positions along a road through the Rhineland 
  Hills as a backstop for the Grenadiers ’Mechs 
  which had charged ahead . Hiramoto opened 
  fire almost casually on the unarmored infantry, 
  his heavy machine guns shredding human  
  bodies to meat and froth . Those troops spared 
  this treatment fled into the hillside . Hiramoto’s 
  men made sport of hunting the enemy down 
  and exterminating them . The way clear, Hiramoto 
  returned to the battle lines and attacked the 
  Grenadier ’Mechs from behind, breaking the 
  defense and allowing the Hikage to attack the 
  Operation PERCEVAL base directly .
  Lieutenant Henna Unagi: Lieutenant Unagi’s 
  recon lance in the Crater Cobras mercenary com-
  mand found itself on the wrong end of a raid on 
  Yamarovka by the Eighth Bear Cuirassiers in May 
  of 3147, in response to a raid against their own 
  base on Mualang by unknown forces . Believing 
  these raiders to be the Cobras, the Bears sent a 
  Trinary to remind the Dragon of past lessons . 
  Unagi’s lance was one of three sent as a desper-
  ate screen against the advancing OmniMechs . 
  Her 11K2 variant’s snub-nose PPC allowed her to 
  strike accurately at range, but not as well as the 
  Bear OmniMechs . She scored several light hits, 
  but was not fast enough to evade the return fire . 
  She was one of three MechWarriors taken by the 
  Ghost Bears either as bondsmen or isorla, but no 
  one knows which .
  
  133
  PXH-11K PHOENIX HAWK L
  Type: Phoenix Hawk L
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 1,564
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2
  Engine:  
  210 XL 
   
  4 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  6
   
  Running MP:  
  9
   
  Jumping MP:  
  6
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro (XL): 
   
   
  1 .5
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor: 
  104 
   
  6 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  11 
  17
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Torso 
  8 
  11
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Arm 
  6 
  10
   
  R/L Leg 
  8 
  12
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  TSEMP 
  RA 
  5 
  6
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  Heavy Machine Gun 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (MML) 80/66 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (Heavy MG) 50 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  CASE 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  2 Heavy Machine Guns 
  LA 
  2 
  2
  MML 3 
  LA 
  2 
  1 .5
  Jump Jets 
  RT 
  3 
  1 .5
  Jump Jets 
  LT 
  3 
  1 .5
  Notes: Features Full-Head Ejection System . Features the 
  following Design Quirks: Accurate Weapon (TSEMP), 
  Poor Sealing .
  
  134
  LIGHT 
  ’MECHS
  YHC-3E YINGHUOCHONG
  Mass: 35 tons
  Chassis: Confederated 5 
  Power Plant: Hermes 210 XL
  Cruising Speed: 64 kph
  Maximum Speed: 97 kph
  Jump Jets: Anderson High Propulsion 12s
   
  Jump Capacity: 240 meters
  Armor: Hellespont Lite Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament:
   
  1 Type DDS “Kingston“ Extended-Range 
   
   
  Particle Projection Cannon
  Manufacturer: Hellespont ’Mech Works
   
  Primary Factory: Betelgeuse
  Communications System: Zenith Sqwak Box 7
  Targeting & Tracking System: Apple Churchill 
  2000 with TAG and Remote Sensor Dispenser
  The Yinghuochong is a reincarnation of the 
  Capellan Confederation’s first BattleMech—the 
  Firebee . Built on a heavily modified Firebee chas-
  sis, the Yinghuochong has become a symbol of 
  national pride for the Confederation . 
  CAPABILITIES
  The Yinghuochong is purpose-built to house 
  the Sea Fox-made Kingston particle cannon . 
  Serendipity smiled on the engineers who strug-
  gled to integrate the Clan weapon with Inner 
  Sphere technology . Thanks to an accidental (and 
  exceptionally brilliant) cooling jacket design, the 
  Yinghuochong’s PPC generates seven percent 
  less heat than traditional models yet still retains 
  its normal range and power output .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Yinghuochongs featured prominently 
  in the Capellan invasion of Cumberland in 
  3144 . A mixed unit of Yinghuochong and 
  Agroteras screened the Capellan force as they 
  moved through the Sarasota Flats . The Flats 
  is an expansive badland located 370 kilome-
  ters northeast of the Cerulean Waters fac-
  tory . With daytime temperatures exceeding 
  fifty-seven degrees and nights dropping as low as  
  negative nineteen, the Flats is a formidable 
  obstacle . Orbital reconnaissance put the Davion 
  defenders in the Flats but was unable to pin-
  point their position .
  Sao-shao Liko Shaiu commanded the 
  screening force . As he neared the Flats, he 
  discovered significant electromagnetic in-
  terference . A savvy tactician, he realized the 
  combination of scorching temperatures and 
  interference would hinder the AFFS far more 
  than his screening force and began a game of 
  cat and mouse that lasted for four days . 
  Shaiu used the superior mobility of his 
  units to ferret out the Davion positions and 
  delivered a series of hit-and-run raids target-
  ing their slowest and heaviest assets . Although 
  his entire lance weighed less than 200 tons, 
  they disabled three Davion heavy ’Mechs and 
  two assault ’Mechs . He entangled the AFFS 
  forces long enough for a detachment from the 
  Capellan force to bypass the Flats and capture 
  two Davion DropShips . 
  Yinghuochongs also participated in the in-
  vasion of New Syrtis . On the fifth day of fighting, 
  aerial reconnaissance pinpointed a Davion mobile 
  headquarters 600 kilometers from the front lines . 
  While the bulk of the Capellan force concentrated 
  near Brandon’s Crossroads, they dispatched a pair 
  of Yinghuochongs as a hunter-killer unit . 
  After five days behind enemy lines, the 
  Capellan ’Mechs encountered a lance of two 
  Wolfhounds and two Hatchetmans . Though sig-
  nificantly outgunned by the Davion ’Mechs, the 
  Yinghuochongs quickly disabled one Wolfhound 
  and heavily damaged the other before it could 
  close . Although both Capellan ’Mechs took hits, 
  they eventually dis abled the second Wolfhound, 
  before using their speed to pick apart the two 
  Hatchetmans at range . Realizing that their 
  ’Mechs would not stop the Yinghuochongs, 
  the Davions hastily relocated their mobile 
  head quarters, creating a disruption in their 
  command operations that gave the Capellans 
  the advantage they needed to win the battle of 
  Brandon’s Crossroads .
  VARIANTS
  Hellespont has been plagued by supply 
  difficulties with the Sea Fox-made ER PPC . The 
  3Y variant replaces the Sea Fox ER PPC with a 
  TSEMP . Although several other weapons were 
  considered, the TSEMP’s growing popularity 
  with the CCAF led to its selection .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sao-wei Pelipa Zenochka: Pelipa Zenochka 
  is a MechWarrior operating with the Capellan 
  Confederation’s Second Liao Guards, which 
  captured Hall in early 3049 . The appearance 
  of her Yinghuochong, a brand-new piece of 
  Confederation hardware, underscored the level 
  of warfare House Liao clearly anticipated as it 
  passed beyond the borders of the Fortress . It 
  therefore surprised Zenochka’s commanders 
  to find little more than local militia opposing 
  them, rather than the Hastati Sentinels they’d 
  expected . Convinced that RAF troops lay in wait 
  amid the rocky woodlands surrounding the 
  spaceport city of Choros, Zenochka was one of 
  several scouts called upon to venture into the 
  wilds and seed the area with remote sensors 
  while carefully sweeping the area for any signs 
  of hidden Republic bunkers and units—a task 
  that turned up nothing for over a week .
  Just as her superiors were ready to call an 
  end to her sorties, however, a lance of Hastati 
  armor burst from hiding when Zenochka wan-
  dered too close to their position . Caught alone in 
  a close-quarters battle with elite RAF tanks, she 
  made a fighting retreat, successfully disabling 
  two Jousts before she could fully disengage and 
  call for reinforcements . The subsequent Capellan 
  artillery and bombing strikes sparked wildfires 
  that continued to burn for the rest of the month .
  
  135
  YHC-3E YINGHUOCHONG
  Type: Yinghuochong
  Technology Base: Mixed Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 1,401 
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  210 XL 
   
  4 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  6
   
  Running MP:  
  9
   
  Jumping MP:  
  8
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro (XL): 
   
   
  1 .5
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Light Ferro): 
  118 
   
  7
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  11 
  16
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Torso 
  8 
  12
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Arm 
  6 
  12
   
  R/L Leg 
  8 
  16
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  TAG 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  Remote Sensor Dispenser H 
  1 
   .5
  ER PPC (C) 
  LA 
  2 
  6
  Improved Jump Jet 
  RL 
  2 
  1
  Improved Jump Jets 
  RT 
  6 
  3
  Improved Jump Jets 
  LT 
  6 
  3
  Improved Jump Jet 
  LL 
  2 
  1
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks:  Improved 
  Cooling Jacket (ER PPC (C)) .
  
  136
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  CAL-1MAF CALLIOPE
  Mass: 40 tons
  Chassis: Dynastic 40 Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Nissan 200
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Maximillian 42F Ferro-Fibrous with CASE
  Armament:
   
  1 Ceres Arms Plasma Rifle
   
  1 Spencer Selectable 9-Tube  
   
  Multi-Missile Launcher
  Manufacturer: Majesty Metals and 
  Manufacturing
   
  Primary Factory: Dunianshire
  Communications System: FoxxCom 79
  Targeting & Tracking System: FoxxFire 222
  Tasked to design a garrison BattleMech to 
  defeat both infantry and vehicles, Magistracy 
  engineers began initial work on the BattleMech 
  that would become the Calliope in 3124. 
  Focused on rugged reliability and ease of main-
  tenance, the Calliope was introduced in 3127 .
  CAPABILITIES
  With a similar speed and armor profile, 
  the Calliope has begun replacing the venerable 
  Snake BattleMech in anti-battle armor missions. 
  With a plasma rifle and MMLs as the primary and 
  secondary armaments, the Calliope is dependent 
  on ammunition to fight, but has proven lethal 
  against its chosen enemies . Often replacing the 
  Snake as one-for-one swap, the homegrown 
  Calliope is quickly becoming a source of pride 
  for the Magistracy units they serve in .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Named after the muse of poetry, the 
  Calliope was made available for purchase by 
  nations allied with the Magistracy: the Duchy 
  of Andurien and the Capellan Confederation . 
  The MAF took the majority of the initial pro-
  duction run, but Majesty Metals deliberately 
  held back a percentage for the mercenary 
  market, hoping that the Calliope would quick-
  ly see combat to spur sales among the state 
  buyers . This proved prescient, as a lance of 
  Calliopes was involved in action the follow-
  ing year . 
  Sold to a mercenary unit in the employ 
  of the Marian Hegemony, Calliopes were pres-
  ent during the invasion of Logan Prime . Held 
  in reserve by the Marian commander, they 
  were released to counter a Lothian counter-
  attack involving nearly of full battalion of 
  rifle infantry in APCs . The lance slaughtered 
  the infantry with their plasma rifles, most of 
  them still in their lightly-armored transports . 
  Those that managed to dismount to attack 
  the BattleMechs found themselves quickly 
  outranged by the BattleMech’s MML systems . 
  Though the overall campaign proved a disas-
  ter for the Hegemony, the battle was won by 
  the mercenaries—who also made a tidy profit 
  selling their battleROMs to Majesty Metals for 
  inclusion in sales pitches .
  The first known instance of a Calliope 
  fighting BattleMech opponents was in 3129, 
  on the world of Afarsin . Fighting in the equa-
  torial desert, a pair of Calliopes was able to 
  slow, and eventually defeat, two lances of 
  medium and light pirate BattleMechs by 
  using their plasma rifles to great effect . Using 
  them to overheat and slow their opponents, 
  the pair eventually caused a pirate Crusader’s 
  LRM ammunition to explode, turning the tide 
  of battle . Unfortunately, this subsequently 
  caused an uptick in destroyed Calliopes, as 
  MechWarriors on more temperate worlds en-
  gaged BattleMechs and found themselves 
  outmatched . The MAF quickly learned to team 
  green Calliope MechWarriors with more experi-
  enced lancemates to ensure they use the slow, 
  lightly armored BattleMech for its purpose—
  hunting infantry, not glory .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Commander Sonja Crowell: Commander 
  Crowell’s company of First Magistracy 
  Highlanders landed on Thraxa in February 3146 
  to deal with a suspected pirate band, only to  
  encounter a maniple of the Marian Hegemony’s 
  VI Legio instead . Both sides were seeking the 
  same target, but before communications were 
  established, fighting broke out . Each side was 
  down to half-strength when the pirates attacked 
  both sides . Crowell formed her surviving ’Mechs 
  to engage both enemies while ordering a with-
  drawal . She returned with just a lance remain-
  ing to her company . Only a hefty payout from 
  her family’s industrialist coffers preserved her 
  position, though an official reprimand remains 
  in her record .
  Sao-shao Herman Shelton: Sao-shao Shelton 
  of the First McCarron’s Armored Cavalry 
  committed one of many atrocities in the 
  Confederation’s attempt to hold New Syrtis 
  from Julian Davion’s counterattack . Shelton’s 
  lance was ordered to create a diversion so that 
  some of the Fourth MAC’s forces in the Cave 
  could escape the attackers . Shelton’s choice 
  was to set fire to an internment camp on the 
  outskirts of Saso, the planetary capital . Seven 
  thousand children, held hostage to force their 
  parents to capitulate to the occupation force, 
  were immolated in the blaze . A large bounty is 
  open for Shelton, dead or alive .
  
  137
  CAL-1MAF CALLIOPE
  Type: Calliope
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 40
  Battle Value: 1,125
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2
  Engine:  
  200 
   
  8 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  5
   
  Running MP:  
  8
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro (Compact): 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  125 
   
  7
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  12 
  19
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Torso 
  10 
  15
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Arm 
  6 
  11
   
  R/L Leg 
  10 
  15
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Plasma Rifle 
  RA 
  2 
  6
  Ammo (Plasma) 20 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  MML 9 
  LT 
  5 
  6
  Ammo (MML) 26/22 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  CASE 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to 
  Maintain . 
  
  138
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  RVN-5X RAVEN II
  Mass: 40 tons
  Chassis: Hellespont Type R2 Endo Steel
  Power Plant: VOX 280 XL
  Cruising Speed: 75 kph
  Maximum Speed: 118 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Hellespont Lite Stealth
  Armament:
   
  2 Firmir Improved Extended Range 
   
   
  Medium Lasers
   
  1 Doombud MML 5 Launcher
   
  1 Firmir Hypnos Tight-Stream 
   
   
  Electromagnetic Pulse Cannon
  Manufacturer: Hellespont ’Mech Works
   
  Primary Factory: Sian
  Communications System: Ceres Metals 
  Model 777 with Angel ECM Suite
  Targeting & Tracking System: Apple Churchill 
  3000 with Bloodhound Active Probe
  The Raven II is the latest version of the 
  Confederation’s iconic Raven BattleMech . Based 
  on the experimental Raven-3X, this BattleMech 
  carries on the mission of bringing highly-mobile 
  electronics warfare to the battlefield originated 
  by the Ravens of a century ago .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Raven II is heavier, faster, and more 
  armored than its predecessors . Only the 3X’s 
  electronics suites were kept when Hellespont 
  redesigned the BattleMech . The Hypnos TSEMP 
  cannon gives the Raven the ability to cripple 
  an enemy long enough for the crew to be cap-
  tured, though repeated firings will interfere 
  with the BattleMech’s electronics .
  DEPLOYMENT
  In 3125, during a campaign to raid former 
  Confederation worlds held by the Free Worlds 
  League since the Third Succession War, Raven 
  IIs were the key to winning the campaign on 
  Iknogoro . Raven IIs from several battalions were 
  deployed in augmented scouting lances, with 
  orders to locate and pin down as much of the 
  planetary militia as they could . The Raven IIs’ su-
  perior speed and electronics were instrumental 
  in discovering and eliminating several militia am-
  bushes before they could be sprung . After three 
  days of fighting, the Liao units had driven the 
  militia out of the capital and into the mountains .
  When the Capellans located the militia 
  field headquarters, several Raven IIs formed 
  the core of a headhunter strike unit . The head-
  hunters penetrated the militia lines and raced 
  for the headquarters . There, they found the 
  militia commander and her staff in a moun-
  tain gorge called Black Rock Pass, desper-
  ately trying to evacuate, while several militia 
  BattleMechs guarding the location raced to 
  intercept the headhunters .
  The headhunters attacked, relying on their 
  speed and heavy ECM coverage to give them 
  the edge . The Hypnos TSEMP cannon was a 
  complete surprise to the militia, and after sever-
  al of their BattleMechs were shut down, the rest 
  of the militia’s BattleMechs retreated in panic . 
  The Raven IIs chased down the headquarters 
  convoy and captured it . Without a command 
  structure, the militia defense collapsed .
  Operation CELESTIAL REWARD saw Raven 
  IIs play a strong role in the Dynasty Guard’s sei-
  zure of Avigait from the First Syrtis Fusiliers . The 
  Raven’s extra speed and stealth armor helped 
  them surprise and eliminate the Davion scouts 
  before they could fully report the Guards’ de-
  ployment . Once the battle began, the Raven II’s 
  superior ECM devastated the Fusiliers’ C3 net-
  works, while their TSEMP cannons shut down 
  several key Davion commanders, allowing the 
  Guards to shatter the LCT and drive the survi-
  vors into the Blackfield Forest .
  Before the Fusiliers could regroup, another 
  Raven II-led headhunter strike found and wiped 
  out the Fusiliers’ headquarters . The Guard spent 
  several days hunting down Davion survivors, 
  with the Raven IIs leading the way . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sao-wei Qing Jun Shao: Shao just received 
  his Raven II when Task Force Navarre hit 
  Menkalinan . The advanced electronics in his 
  ‘Mech played a key role in the limited success 
  of the Home Guard ambush . The Angel ECM 
  blocked the sensors on the fleeing Davion 
  forces . As the Davions approached, the 
  Bloodhound Active Probe provided more ac-
  curate sensor data, allowing the Home Guard  
  forces to spring their ambush at the best pos-
  sible time . When a Gunsmith turned and ran, 
  Shao pursued, attempting to shut it down 
  with his TSEMP Cannon . Shao’s first TSEMP 
  shot hit but failed to shut it down . This earned 
  Shao a flurry of X-Pulse laser blasts in return . 
  Shao ducked and weaved while the TSEMP 
  recharged, and when ready managed a point-
  blank strike that dropped the Gunsmith like a 
  fallen god .
  
  139
  RVN-5X RAVEN II
  Type: Raven II
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 40
  Battle Value: 1,858
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2
  Engine:  
  280 XL 
   
  8
   
  Walking MP:  
  7
   
  Running MP:  
  11
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Stealth): 
  112 
   
  7
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  12 
  17
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Torso 
  10 
  14
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Arm 
  6 
  10
   
  R/L Leg 
  10 
  13
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  Angel ECM Suite 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Bloodhound Active Probe RT 
  3 
  2
  MML 5 
  LT 
  3 
  3
  Ammo (MML) 48/40 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  TSEMP 
  LA 
  5 
  6
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Improved 
  Sensors .
  
  140
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  UCU-F4 SCARECROW
  Mass: 40 tons
  Chassis: Corean Model 000 Endo-Composite
  Power Plant: GM 200 XL
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: Rawlings 80
   
  Jump Capacity: 90 meters
  Armor: StarGuard III with CASE II
  Armament:
   
  3 ExoStar Pinnacle (Clantech)  
   
  Extended Range Medium Lasers
   
  2 Omicron 950 Medium Pulse Laser
   
  8 GM Ultralight (Clantech) Light  
   
  Machine Guns
   
  2 Corean Bulletstorm (Clantech)  
   
  Machine Gun Arrays
   
  2 Zippo Longtorch Extended  
   
  Range Flamers
   
  2 Federated Mantrap Anti-Battle  
   
  Armor Pods
  Manufacturer: Corean Enterprises
   
  Primary Factory: Augusta
  Communications System: Achernar 
  Electronics HID-13 Tight Channel
  Targeting & Tracking System: Federated 
  Stalker with Bloodhound Active Probe
  The Federated Suns, as a nation, has often 
  been labeled warlike . Its armies have, for cen-
  turies, been the meter-stick with which profes-
  sionalism among soldiers has been measured, 
  and its news media had never had much trou-
  ble painting the AFFS as the honorable soldier 
  fighting against the oppression of the Liaos or 
  the warmongering of the Kuritas . What most 
  disregard, however, is that the basic tenet of 
  warfare is killing the enemy—and even the so-
  called white-hats need dark alley weapons .
  The Scarecrow, a rare ’Mech officially dis-
  avowed until the 3140s, is such a weapon . 
  Specially designed and built, its sole purpose is 
  the eradication of enemy infantrymen .
  CAPABILITIES
  Specially constructed of advanced com-
  ponents and Clan weaponry, the Scarecrow 
  is aptly designed . Lasers and B-pods allow it 
  attack battle armored infantry, while two ar-
  rays of light machine guns make it suicide for 
  unarmored infantry to expose itself . Though 
  it is slow, it is faster than almost any infantry 
  combatant, and its armor is enough to pro-
  tect it from return fire, assuming enemies can 
  even detect it through its Chameleon light 
  polarization shield .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  The most notable, if not entirely con-
  firmed, action of the Scarecrow took place on 
  McComb, off and on, over a fifteen-year period . 
  DCMS infantrymen deployed to raid the world 
  across that time propagate the legend of the 
  Dragon of Gorman Heights, a spectral beast of 
  fire and steel that appears and kills entire pla-
  toons of foot soldiers . Though it has never been 
  verified, most analysts believe this legend has 
  been reinforced by repeated Scarecrow deploy-
  ments designed to attack the DCMS infantry on 
  a psychological scale .
  Since the official deployment of the ’Mech 
  in 3140 a number of humanitarian agencies have 
  attacked the AFFS for deploying such a machine, 
  but in the main the response has been to ignore 
  such complaints . The only confirmed Scarecrow 
  pilot, Captain Edgar Grantham, went on record 
  on Almach in 3141 to answer his detractors with 
  an eloquent speech . In it, he cited the venerable 
  Piranha ’Mech, or even ancient city-fighters like 
  the Stinger or Locust . “What difference does it 
  make,” he asked one reporter, “if a battalion of 
  Louie infantry is killed by 200 Syrtis infantry-
  men or one ’Mech? Does it make it all right if the 
  enemy is killed one at a time? Should we subject 
  more of our sons and daughters to the murder of 
  combat, or design weapons that lessen the cost 
  of war on our own citizens?”
  Few Scarecrows are known to exist, and 
  none have been seen outside the AFFS . Reports 
  place them more thickly along the Periphery 
  March border, as though the AFFS intends to 
  use them to dissuade pirate attacks, but given 
  the pressure of the Capellan and Combine in-
  vasions, it is likely only a matter of time before 
  they are publicly tested in combat .
  VARIANTS
  The so-called Hobbled Scarecrow peels 
  the Chameleon system out of the ’Mech and 
  replaces the machine guns with lasers . Though 
  this might appear to offer added anti-’Mech 
  capabilities, the thin armor and slow speed of 
  the Scarecrow makes it easy prey for all but the 
  lightest ’Mechs .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Captain Miyuki Crosby: Captain Crosby is 
  one of several elite Davion MechWarriors who 
  have been piloting Scarecrows in special 
  commando operations along the Federated 
  Suns’ fluid border with the Draconis Combine . 
  An accomplished stealth hunter, Crosby and his 
  lance—which pairs two Scarecrows up with two 
  Vulpeses—have taken part in strike missions 
  against command centers and supply depots 
  on a dozen worlds behind Kurita’s lines from 
  3147 through 3148 . Operating almost exclusively 
  at night, their combination of high-tech equip-
  ment and superior skills have enabled his 
  team to execute devastatingly effective raids 
  that have cost the DCMS thousands of tons in 
  advanced war material, and hundreds of spe-
  cialized infantry troops and tech support staff . 
  That they have done all of this without a single 
  loss—even when penetrating bases defended 
  by superior numbers—has prompted many of 
  their enemies to refer to the lance as the “Black 
  Onryō,” a reference to vengeful ghosts in ancient 
  Japanese lore .
  
  141
  UCU-F4 SCARECROW
  Type: Scarecrow
  Technology Base: Mixed Inner Sphere (Experimental)
  Tonnage: 40
  Battle Value: 1,514
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo-Composite 
   
  3
  Engine:  
  200 XL 
   
  4 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  5
   
  Running MP:  
  8
   
  Jumping MP:  
  3
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro (Compact): 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor: 
  128 
   
  8
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  12 
  18
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Torso 
  10 
  14
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Arm 
  6 
  11
   
  R/L Leg 
  10 
  18
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  ER Medium Laser (C) 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  2
  4 Light Machine Guns (C) RA 
  4 
  1
  Light Machine Gun Array (C) RA 
  1 
   .25
  Ammo (Light MG) 100 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  CASE II 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  ER Flamer 
  H 
  1 
  1
  ER Medium Laser (C) 
  CT 
  1 
  1
  ER Flamer 
  CT 
  1 
  1
  Bloodhound Active Probe LT 
  3 
  2
  ER Medium Laser (C) 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  2
  4 Light Machine Guns (C) LA 
  4 
  1
  Light Machine Gun Array (C) LA 
  1 
   .25
  B-Pod 
  RL 
  1 
  1
  B-Pod 
  LL 
  1 
  1
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Chameleon LPS 
  * 
  6 
  0
  Jump Jet 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  Notes: *Chameleon Light Polarization Shield occupies 
  1 critical slot in the RA, RT, RL, LL, LT and LA 
  locations . Features the following Design Quirks: Bad 
  Reputation, Difficult to Maintain, No/Minimal Arms .
  
  142
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  LK-3D ANTLION
  Mass: 45 tons
  Chassis: StarFrame Medium Reinforced
  Power Plant: GM SuperFusion 225 XL
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Valiant Ringmail Light Ferro-Fibrous 
  with CASE II
  Armament:
   
  2 Type 4 ’Mech Mortar
   
  2 Sperry Browning Light Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: StarCorps Industries
   
  Primary Factory: Crofton
  Communications System: O/P 3950 COMSET 
  M7
  Targeting & Tracking System: Martin-Quarry 
  Tarsys XLR 2 .7 with Bloodhound Active
  StarCorps’ Antlion is a unique ’Mech in the 
  AFFS—one purpose-built for tactical indirect 
  fire . The rise over the last sixty years of anti-mis-
  sile equipment—especially the proliferation of 
  the laser anti-missile system—has reduced the 
  efficiency of the LRM as a bombardment tool . 
  Though no other military and only a handful of 
  mercenary units have put this quad into service, 
  it remains in production .
  CAPABILITIES
  Slow and light, the Antlion is completely 
  outclassed by even the smallest ’Mech in direct 
  combat . Though its armor is adequate for its 
  mass, its only real defense is a MechWarrior’s 
  eye on its active probe . Practically nothing can 
  sneak with 240 meters of an Antlion, but with 
  only a pair of light machine guns, it can do little 
  more than inconvenience even an unarmored 
  infantry platoon .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Despite their weaknesses Antlions excel 
  in a narrow range of missions . With sufficient 
  terrain features—such as buildings—to put be-
  tween their mortars and the enemy, they can 
  lob powerful shells for as long as their ammuni-
  tion holds out .
  During the brutal city-fighting in Bueller, 
  the Antlions of the Robinson DMM earned their 
  battle honors . A reinforced lance of six mor-
  tar ’Mechs worked with a spotting platoon of 
  DMM battlesuits to ambush Combine recon el-
  ements as they penetrated the city . The battle 
  armor would designate targets and call for fire, 
  the Antlions would fire a barrage, and the group 
  would retreat deeper into the city, buying time 
  for the defenders to prepare .
  During one fire mission a Combine Venom 
  raced out of the ambush zone and, using its 
  jump jets, came down among the Antlions . 
  Ignoring the near-useless machine gun fire, it 
  turned its pulse lasers on the nearest mortar 
  ’Mech . As the battlesuits raced to come to the 
  Antlions’ aid, the lance commander took mat-
  ters into his own hands . Charging, he used his 
  quad ’Mech’s powerful legs to lame the Venom, 
  then literally kicked and stomped it to pieces 
  when it fell .
  Antlions also gave journeyman service 
  during the invasion of New Syrtis . There, the 
  Hasek defenders used them as mobile infan-
  try interdiction platforms, moving them into 
  position via drainage ditches and recessed 
  maglev draws to bombard infantry columns . 
  Their Bloodhounds let them stay ahead of the 
  inevitable counterattacks, and they took the 
  opportunity to sow the city with remote sen-
  sors that took the Capellans weeks to clean up 
  and deactivate .
  The Combine invasion has illustrated the 
  folly of allowing Antlions to stand in the line of 
  battle; more than forty have been destroyed 
  when their lances were overrun by swift 
  Combine striker lances, unable to defend them-
  selves from enemies who could move under 
  their mortar umbrella . Many AFFS officers have 
  urged StarCorps to develop a direct-fire escort 
  version of the ’Mech, but the company believes 
  its other ’Mechs fulfill that role adequately .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sergeant Steven T . Stephens: Though the 
  rest of his artillery lance lay dead, Sergeant 
  Stephens refused orders to retreat from a 
  Capellan charge on Cammal, remaining in 
  position to give the other ‘Mechs of his unit 
  covering fire for their own withdrawal . He was 
  captured by the enemy but later managed to 
  escape from a POW camp into the wilderness . 
  His current status is unknown .
  Sergeant Angela Iturbide: After two Antlions 
  were shot out from under her, Sergeant Iturbide 
  nearly panicked when she was assigned a 
  third . However her new ride, nicknamed “Dead 
  Meat,” has survived four engagements against 
  Combine forces over the past few years . On 
  Coloma she helped take down a Sword of 
  Light lance and earned a commendation from 
  Erik Sandoval himself . Now Iturbide presents 
  a cocky persona who extols the virtues of  
  artillery ‘Mechs every chance she gets . Her 
  lancemates fear they will bear the consequences 
  of her hubris .
  
  143
  LK-3D ANTLION
  Type: Antlion
  Technology Base: Mixed Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 45
  Battle Value: 878
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Reinforced 
   
  9
  Engine:  
  225 XL 
   
  5
   
  Walking MP:  
  5
   
  Running MP:  
  8
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro (XL): 
   
   
  1 .5
  Cockpit (Small): 
   
   
  2
  Armor Factor (Light Ferro): 
  161 
   
  9 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  14 
  22
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  6
   
  R/L Torso 
  11 
  17
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Front Leg 
  11 
  20
   
  R/L Rear Leg 
  11 
  20
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  ‘Mech Mortar/4 (C) 
  RT 
  2 
  3 .5
  Ammo (Mortar) 36 
  RT 
  6 
  6
  CASE II 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (Light MG) 100 
  RFL 
  1 
   .5
  2 Light Machine Guns 
  H 
  2 
  1
  ‘Mech Mortar/4 (C) 
  LT 
  2 
  3 .5
  Bloodhound Active Probe LT 
  3 
  2
  Remote Sensor Dispenser LT 
  1 
   .5
  
  144
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  STALKING SPIDER II
  Mass: 45 tons
  Chassis: Type QX745-50 Mod . III
  Power Plant: Fusion 225 Standard
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: Clan Standard 14X Series Standard
   
  Jump Capacity: 150 meters
  Armor: Forging ZK11 Standard
  Armament:
   
  1 Series 4D-2 Heavy Large Laser
   
  2 Type I Cross Pattern SRM 4 Launchers
   
  2 Series XIV Heavy Machine Guns
  Manufacturer: Manufacturing Plant SFF-TU1
   
  Primary Factory: Tukayyid
  Communications System: S9R Beta Series 
  Communications
  Targeting & Tracking System: Able-Seven 
  Sensor Suite
  Clan Sea Fox’s Stalking Spider II represents 
  an effort to introduce classic Clan equipment 
  to the Inner Sphere market . With the Cloud 
  Cobras and the rest of the Clan Homeworlds si-
  lent for decades, the Clan’s decision to redesign 
  and offer for sale a modified Stalking Spider has 
  brought them lucrative rewards . The Stalking 
  Spider II has been a popular purchase with 
  second-line and defensive battalions across the 
  Inner Sphere .
  CAPABILITIES
  One of the main advantages of the Stalking 
  Spider II is the turret, which grants a 360-degree 
  firing arc for its main weaponry . Problems with 
  the ammunition feeding mechanism of the mis-
  sile launchers have been noted, but fixing these 
  problems has proven difficult without removing 
  the turret . While the Sea Foxes have been un-
  willing to sacrifice the turret, some pilots have 
  opted to disable it .
  DEPLOYMENT
  In 3112 pirates suspected of being 
  Capellan military units in disguise attacked 
  Shiro III in the Duchy of Andurien . The main 
  part of the battle took place in Shimgata, the 
  planetary capital, and was meant to draw the 
  defenders into the city and away from the 
  ’Mech production facilities . Jump capability and 
  the ability to turn its weaponry in every direc-
  tion made the two Stalking Spider IIs deployed 
  by the Shimgata militia the most feared oppo-
  nents in this battle . They jumped between at-
  tackers, fired the most advantageous directions, 
  then jumped out before the pirates could get a 
  good shot in . Though the pirates withdrew with 
  some equipment from the production facility, 
  they left enough salvage to make good the mi-
  litia’s losses .
  In 3124 elements of the Forty-fourth 
  Benjamin Regulars raided the Rasalhague 
  Dominion world of Mannedorf . The defend-
  ers had recently excavated an underground 
  headquarters to coordinate their defenses . 
  When the Regulars found the headquarters, 
  they sent a Stalking Spider II supported by bat-
  tle armor to eliminate it . Its extreme firing arc 
  made the ’Mech the perfect choice to clear the 
  ’Mech and vehicle bays of the facility in short 
  order . With their central command gone, the 
  Rasalhagian defenders fell into disarray, allow-
  ing the Regulars to accomplish their raid with 
  minimal losses .
  During the battle for Tharkad in 3143, 
  the Lyrans used a full lance of Stalking Spider 
  IIs as a versatile response unit to cover fight-
  ing retreats, which they did perfectly . Two of 
  them stayed in front while the other two cov-
  ered the flanks to make sure no one slipped 
  past them . This tactic proved quite success-
  ful until the Stalking Spider II on the left flank 
  exploded from a malfunction in the ammuni-
  tion feed . With the Lyran flank suddenly open, 
  the Falcons attacked .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Knight Anthanassios Raptis: Raptis is a 
  member of an elite Knights of the Sphere 
  Command Lance who specialized in using his 
  exceptional gunnery skills to snipe at enemy 
  ’Mechs with the heavy laser of his Stalking 
  Spider II “Audrey .” His skills are so well honed 
  that he has been able to deliver killing blows 
  to opponents even when they have closed with 
  and engaged friendly units in physical combat, 
  and has even pulled off such difficult shots 
  while moving at a full run, thanks to his ’Mech’s 
  turret mount . This skill makes him ideal as both 
  a sharpshooter and as a bodyguard .
  Pai-zhang Tung Cho: As is common for mem-
  bers of the Capellan Confederation’s Warrior 
  House Orders, Pai-Zhang Tung Cho is a fanati-
  cal devotee of Chancellor Liao, and believes 
  that Daoshen has a divine mandate to rule 
  the Inner Sphere . Outside of the cockpit, Cho 
  presents the calm, intellectual demeanor of a 
  scholar-warrior, often quoting wisdom from the 
  great spiritual and military leaders of history . 
  But in combat, he and his Stalking Spider II 
  “Huo de Xin” (“Fireheart”) fight with almost 
  berserker fury, most recently evidenced when 
  his Warrior House, Dai Da Chi, took part in the 
  Confederation’s conquest of Tikonov .
  
  145
  STALKING SPIDER II
  Type: Stalking Spider II
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 45
  Battle Value: 1,362
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  4 .5
  Engine:  
  225 
   
  10
   
  Walking MP:  
  5
   
  Running MP:  
  8
   
  Jumping MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  13 [26] 
   
  3
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor:  
  152 
   
  9 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  14 
  20
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Torso 
  11 
  15
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Front Leg 
  11 
  20
   
  R/L Rear Leg 
  11 
  20
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Heavy Large Laser 
  RT* 
  3 
  4
  2 SRM 4 
  RT* 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (SRM) 25 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  BattleMech Turret (Quad) RT 
  1 
  1
  2 Heavy Machine Guns 
  LT 
  2 
  1
  Ammo (Heavy MG) 50 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  RFL 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  RRL 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  LFL 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  LRL 
  1 
   .5
  Notes: *These weapons are mounted in a Quad BattleMech 
  Turret . Features the following Design Quirks: 
  Ammunition Feed Problems (SRMs) .
  
  146
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  Mass: 50 tons
  Chassis: Luthien Class M Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Hermes 250
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: Icarus Standard
   
  Jump Capacity: 150 meters
  Armor: Mitchel Argon Standard 
  Armament:
   
  16 tons of pod space
  Manufacturer: Luthien Armor Works
   
  Primary Factory: Luthien
  Communications System: Sipher  
  CommCon SCU-9
  Targeting & Tracking System: Matabushi 
  Stalker
  The aftermath of the Second Combine-
  Dominion War left the military forces of Clan 
  Nova Cat in heavy disrepair . The DCMS gave 
  LAW carte blanche to work with the Clan to co-
  develop an OmniMech that would be easy to 
  produce using available resources . The result, 
  after three decades of false starts and reap-
  propriated funding, was the Avalanche . The 
  machine performed to DCMS standards during 
  testing, but failed to inspire the more meticu-
  lous Clan warrior caste .
  CAPABILITIES 
  LAW brought decades of experience mat-
  ing Clan weapon platforms to Inner Sphere 
  OmniMechs but continually failed to correct 
  the interface problems between the Stalker tar-
  geting system and Nova Cat-produced energy 
  weapons . After extended use, energy weapon 
  pods saw a sharp loss of alignment and accura-
  cy . The cascading problems gave the Avalanche 
  a poor reputation among Nova Cat warriors . 
  Many warriors fumed that the Clan elders al-
  lowed such an inferior ’Mech within their tou-
  man, ignorant of the fact that LAW’s bureau-
  cratic power forced the issue .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  Introduced shortly before the Combine’s 
  invasion of the Republic, the Avalanche was de-
  ployed with the Sword of Light and Benjamin 
  Regulars . A lance of Avalanches from the Sixth 
  Benjamin Regulars were hot-dropped onto 
  Shinonoi to secure the primary landing zone . The 
  lance engaged targets from long range, using 
  their Clan technology to great effect . With the 
  zone cleared in short order, the lance provided 
  supporting fire as the landing force settled down 
  and dispersed to their operational theaters . The 
  Avalanches then reconfigured and moved to se-
  cure the capital from Republic forces . 
  The DCMS has since deployed the 
  Avalanche across the rest of its regimental ’Mech 
  forces . Those acquired from the remains of Clan 
  Nova Cat were refurbished and sold on the mer-
  cenary market . LAW redistributed those origi-
  nally intended for the Clan to its export division, 
  where Clan Sea Fox, the Capellan Confederation, 
  and the Free Worlds League have expressed in-
  terest . A large number of Avalanches were pur-
  chased by the Confederation before their inva-
  sion of the Federated Suns . The warrior houses 
  are enamored with the solidly-built ’Mech and 
  have used it extensively in their conquest of 
  Capellan March worlds .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Si-ben-bing William Sai: Best known to his 
  comrades for the handwritten paper journal 
  he regularly keeps, his skills as a MechWarrior 
  earned him a place in Warrior House Tsang Xiao . 
  Outside of the cockpit, he is extremely laid back, 
  adopting a “go with the flow” attitude . Inside 
  the cockpit, however, William is decidedly anal, 
  being highly precise in all things .
   
  Laying LRM-deployed Thunder munition 
  minefields is his specialty; his superiors liken it 
  to an art form . Unfortunately for Warrior House 
  Tsang Xiao, William lacks the skills to teach 
  others his methods, at least in a way others can 
  understand and reproduce . Repeated attempts 
  to pass along his knowledge end in failure, 
  serving only to frustrate him and his superiors .
  AVL-1O AVALANCHE
  
  147
  Type: Avalanche
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 1,540
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2 .5
  Engine:  
  250 
   
  12 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  5
   
  Running MP:  
  8
   
  Jumping MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro:  
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor: 
  160 
   
  10
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  8
   
  Center Torso 
  16 
  24
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Torso 
  12 
  17
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  7
   
  R/L Arm 
  8 
  15
   
  R/L Leg 
  12 
  21
  Weight and Space Allocation
  Location 
  Fixed 
  Spaces Remaining
  Head 
  Endo Steel 
  0
  Center Torso 
  1 Jump Jet 
  0
   
   
  1 Endo Steel
  Right Torso 
  2 Jump Jet 
  8
   
   
  1 CASE 
   
   
  1 Endo Steel
  Left Torso 
  2 Jump Jet 
  7
   
   
  3 Endo Steel
  Right Arm 
  4 Endo Steel 
  4
  Left Arm 
  4 Endo Steel 
  4
  Right Leg 
  None 
  2
  Left Leg 
  None 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Bad Reputation .
  Fixed Equipment 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  CASE 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jets 
  RT 
  2 
  1
  Jump Jet 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jets 
  LT 
  2 
  1
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Primary Weapons Configuration
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  LRM 10 
  RT 
  2 
  5
  Ammo (LRM) 24 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  LRM 10 
  LT 
  2 
  5
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  LA 
  2 
  2
  Alternate Configuration A
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  SRM 6 
  RT 
  2 
  3
  Ammo (SRM 6) 15 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (SRM 4) 25 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  SRM 4 
  RL 
  1 
  2
  SRM 4 
  LL 
  1 
  2
  SRM 6 
  LT 
  2 
  3
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  LA 
  2 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 1,484
  Alternate Configuration B
  Light PPC 
  RA 
  2 
  3
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  Thunderbolt 5 
  RT 
  1 
  3
  Ammo (Thunderbolt) 24 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Thunderbolt 5 
  LT 
  1 
  3
  Light PPC 
  LA 
  2 
  3
  ER Medium Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  1
   
  Battle Value: 1,529
  Alternate Configuration C
  Light AC/5 
  RA 
  2 
  5
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  Small X-Pulse Laser 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (Light AC) 40 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Small X-Pulse Laser 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Light AC/5 
  LA 
  2 
  5
  ER Medium Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  1
   
  Battle Value: 1,341
  Alternate Configuration N—Mixed
  Light AC/5 
  RA 
  2 
  5
  Ammo (Light AC) 40 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Targeting Computer (C) 
  LT 
  3 
  3
  ER PPC (C) 
  LA 
  2 
  6
   
  Battle Value: 1,873
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Alternate Configuration R—Mixed
  2 ER Medium Lasers (C) 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  LRM 10 (C) 
  RT 
  1 
  2 .5
  Ammo (LRM) 24 (C) 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (ATM) 40 (C) 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  ATM 3 (C) 
  RL 
  2 
  1 .5
  ATM 3 (C) 
  LL 
  2 
  1 .5
  LRM 10 (C) 
  LT 
  1 
  2 .5
  2 ER Medium Lasers (C) 
  LA 
  2 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 2,043
  AVL-1O AVALANCHE
  
  148
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  BLACK HAWK (STANDARD)
  Mass: 50 tons
  Chassis: Type 3 Standard Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Fusion 250 XL
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: Grandthrust Mk 3
   
  Jump Capacity: 150 meters
  Armor: Standard YM17
  Armament:
   
  4 Pattern J4 Streak SRM 4 Launchers
   
  2 Series 7K Extended Range Large Lasers
  Manufacturer: Manufacturing Plant SFF-IT5, 
  Manufacturing Site #3
   
  Primary Factory: CSF Kraken Mobile
   
    
  Production Facility, New Oslo
  Communications System: Garret T11-A
  Targeting & Tracking System: Spar 3C Tight 
  Band
  Clan Hell’s Horses developed the Black 
  Hawk, a fixed-weapon variant of their ubiq-
  uitous Nova OmniMech, as a second-line 
  BattleMech that was both dependable and eas-
  ily produced with the limited facilities of their 
  occupation zone . Clan Sea Fox produces the 
  Black Hawk with older, less sophisticated, and 
  cheaper sensors, weapons, and communica-
  tions systems for the Inner Sphere market .
  CAPABILITIES
  A sturdy frame and ample armor let the 
  Black Hawk stand up to more punishment than 
  most Inner Sphere BattleMechs in its weight 
  class, while its low center of gravity makes it 
  both stable and maneuverable . Where most 
  BattleMechs have some type of specialization—
  recon, fire support, static defense—the Black 
  Hawk is a generalist . There may be faster scouts, 
  better long-range hitters, or tougher toe-to-toe 
  sluggers, but with its potent mix of short-range 
  missiles and extended-range large lasers, the 
  Black Hawk can hold its own in almost any com-
  bat situation . 
  DEPLOYMENT
  Rugged and inexpensive, the Black Hawk 
  is a medium BattleMech of choice for merce-
  nary commands and independent planetary 
  militias . One would be hard pressed to find 
  a military in the Inner Sphere that does not 
  field several of the machines . The Black Hawk 
  has even gained wide acceptance among the 
  Clans—particularly the Wolves-in-Exile, Hell’s 
  Horses, and Sea Foxes .
  VARIANTS
  In response to market demands, Clan Sea 
  Fox offers two variants of the standard Black 
  Hawk . The Black Hawk 2 replaces the four Streak 
  SRM 4s with two ATM 6 launchers, providing 
  greater range, accuracy and choice of muni-
  tions . The Black Hawk 3 mounts a total of six la-
  sers and enough additional heat sinks to keep 
  it viable in protracted firefights .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Knight Jodi Mazzanoble: Just before the 
  Blackout began, Mazzanoble was a newly-
  minted Knight-Errant with an unwavering sense 
  of duty and loyalty to the Republic—a veritable 
  poster boy for the ideals the Knights stood for . 
  When the HPGs fell silent, he proved this by 
  immediately throwing himself into the task of 
  reassuring the people of Seadalbari, helping 
  to contain panic and lawlessness there while 
  simultaneously trying to reestablish a connec-
  tion to Republic authorities . The chaos of the 
  years since tested his resolve many times over, 
  but Mazzanoble has persevered . Now a full 
  Knight of the Sphere, he and his Black Hawk 3, 
  “Ever-Faithful,” now stand on Terra, ready and 
  eager to defend the Republic’s heart and soul 
  to the bitter end . 
  Major Lori Kyle: A venerable MechWarrior in 
  the Eridani Light Horse, Major Kyle was admired 
  for her fanatical devotion to her Horsemen and 
  her preternatural skill at the helm of her Black 
  Hawk 3 “Kitasha .” By the time of the Blackout, 
  however, Kyle was in her sixties, and her skills 
  were starting to fade, but she refused retire-
  ment, swearing she would serve until the 
  day she died . Tragically, her vow came true in 
  January of 3145, when Kyle and “Kitasha” were 
  among the last of the Light Horse units cut 
  down by the Jade Falcons on Hesperus II . 
  
  149
  Type: Black Hawk
  Technology Base: Clan
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 2,183
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2 .5
  Engine:  
  250 XL 
   
  6 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  5
   
  Running MP:  
  8
   
  Jumping MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  14 [28] 
   
  4
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor:  
  136 
   
  8 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  16 
  19
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  6
   
  R/L Torso 
  12 
  14
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Arm 
  8 
  13
   
  R/L Leg 
  12 
  19
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  2 Streak SRM 4 
  RA 
  2 
  4
  Ammo (Streak) 50 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  ER Large Laser 
  RT 
  1 
  4
  ER Large Laser 
  LT 
  1 
  4
  Ammo (Streak) 50 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  2 Streak SRM 4 
  LA 
  2 
  4
  Jump Jets 
  RL 
  2 
  1
  Jump Jet 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jets 
  LL 
  2 
  1
  BLACK HAWK (STANDARD)
  
  150
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  GDR-1D GRAVEDIGGER
  Mass: 50 tons
  Chassis: Kallon Type VII Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Nissan 200 XL
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Compound 12A1 Standard
  Armament:
   
  1 Type OVR-X LB 5-X Autocannon
   
  1 Type XV “Culverin” Streak LRM-15  
   
  Launcher
   
  1 Type DDS “Kingston” Extended Range PPC
  Manufacturer: Odin Manufacturing
   
  Primary Factory: Orestes
  Communications System: Dash-2 with  
  Angel ECM
  Targeting & Tracking System: Blade 12 with 
  Active Probe
  The Gravedigger was a desperation prod-
  uct for Odin Manufacturing to recover from seri-
  ous damage sustained in the Second Combine-
  Dominion War . Remarkable sales saved the 
  company, as mercenaries snapped up the new 
  ’Mech as fast as Odin could turn it out . Sales 
  to non-Dominion entities were initially limited 
  to the non-Clan variant, though over time this 
  restriction was lifted as the Dominion’s touman 
  recovered from the war .
   
  CAPABILITIES
  Like the venerable Hunchback, the 
  Gravedigger is draped in a thick coat of armor . 
  Instead of relying on a single huge cannon, 
  the GDR-1D carries a suite of complementary 
  weapons . Some MechWarriors complain that 
  the missile launcher carries too few reloads, 
  but since it is a Streak system every shot finds 
  its target . Strangely, the Gravedigger also 
  mounts ECM and an active probe, capabilities 
  that make the ’Mech appealing to mercenar-
  ies of all stripes . Because of its slow speed, 
  the Gravedigger’s leg actuators are particularly 
  stout to resist infantry attacks .
  DEPLOYMENT
  In the opening stages of the Victoria War, 
  when Duchess Hasek’s forces were jumping 
  the border, the mercenary Pharaoh’s Arrows 
  brought their pair of new Gravediggers into the 
  war . With half the battalion-strength Arrows se-
  curing the capital’s HPG, the other half spread 
  through the city to hunt down the hiding mi-
  litia . The Gravediggers’ fire support lance re-
  sponded to an ambush on their company com-
  mand lance . As the lance charged in, a company 
  of battlesuit infantry launched another ambush . 
  The Gravediggers shrugged off the infantry’s leg 
  attacks, while their lancemates were crippled 
  and swarmed on the ground . Using their rotary 
  autocannons and lasers, though, they pushed 
  the battle armor force to the verge of retreat-
  ing when the militia’s ’Mech lance arrived . The 
  Gravediggers unleashed their full complement 
  of weapons, downing a Vindicator and shocking 
  the militia into retreat .
  When a Trinary of the Seventy-third Battle 
  Cluster of the Rasalhague Dominion’s Alpha 
  Galaxy raided Kanowit in February 3145, they 
  ran into a company of the First Sword of Light 
  drilling the planetary militia . Like a scene from 
  a holovid, both sides regarded one another 
  across the Sarawak Fields, an immense planta-
  tion in the northern hemisphere . The Trinary’s 
  commander, Star Captain Hershel Hall, stepped 
  forward and issued a challenge to the enemy 
  commander . Sho-sa Seth Granderssen accepted . 
  Hall’s Gravedigger fired as Granderssen’s No-
  Dachi charged through the planted rows . Hall’s 
  long-range weapons claimed a terrible toll 
  but did not slow the sword-wielding ’Mech . 
  Granderssen chose not to fire his weapons, 
  keeping his ’Mech’s arm tucked to the rear . As 
  he closed, the sword sprang to the fore and 
  chopped into Hall’s Gravedigger. Hall’s left arm 
  fell to the turf just before the right arm . With 
  his missiles exhausted, Hall could not salute his 
  victorious enemy before the sword lopped off 
  the Gravedigger’s head . The rest of Hall’s Trinary 
  honored his bargain and filed back to their 
  DropShip, leaving Hall and his ’Mech’s wreck-
  age behind .
  VARIANTS
  The older GDR-1C can be found through-
  out the Inner Sphere in much greater numbers 
  than the GDR-1D that replaced it . The GDR-1C 
  mounts Inner Sphere weapons instead of Clan 
  versions, including a RAC/5, LRM 15, and a large 
  laser . It also lacks the advanced electronics of 
  the GDR-1D .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Star Captain Maricela Villa: Having joined Clan 
  Wolf through the Solaris games “feeder” system, 
  Maricela Villa’s analytic nature has clashed with 
  the more impulsive Clan warriors but gained 
  her command of a binary within the Ninth Wolf 
  Cavalry . In a recent raid on Remulac, her tactical 
  acumen allowed her to outfight several heavier 
  and better armed opponents in her Gravedigger 
  “Iceberg .” The culmination of this feat was tak-
  ing out a Juliano without even touching her 
  missile or autocannon ammo .
  
  151
  GDR-1D GRAVEDIGGER
  Type: Gravedigger
  Technology Base: Mixed Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 1,707
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2 .5
  Engine:  
  200 XL 
   
  4 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  11 [22] 
   
  1
  Gyro: 
   
   
  2
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor: 
  169 
   
  11
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  16 
  25
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  7
   
  R/L Torso 
  12 
  19
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Arm 
  8 
  16
   
  R/L Leg 
  12 
  24
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  LB 5-X AC (C) 
  RA 
  4 
  7
  Streak LRM 15 (C) 
  RT 
  3 
  7
  Ammo (Streak) 8 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (LB-X) 20 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  CASE II 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Active Probe (C) 
  H 
  1 
  1
  Angel ECM Suite 
  CT 
  2 
  2
  ER PPC (C) 
  LA 
  2 
  6
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Protected 
  Actuators, Exposed Weapon Linkage (ER PPC) .
  
  152
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  Mass: 50 tons
  Chassis: BUU Standard Medium Chassis
  Power Plant: Bannson Spark 200 ICE
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph, 54 kph with TSM
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph, 86 kph with TSM
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Jet Capacity: None
  Armor: BUU MechStandard
  Armament: 
   
  2 BUU Quarrel-10 MRM launchers
   
  1 BUU SuperCutter Dual Saw
  Manufacturer: Bannson Universal Unlimited
  Primary Factory: Tybalt, St . Andre
  Communications System: BUU FarSweep 
  Comms
  Targeting and Tracking System: BUU 
  AccuTrack 3000
  Born of Jacob Bannson’s frustrations with 
  and shaped by The Republic’s restrictive eco-
  nomic policies, the Raider was an attempt to cre-
  ate a cheap yet reasonably effective BattleMech 
  using exclusive in-house equipment . The proj-
  ect was hampered from the get-go by Bannson 
  Universal’s inability to build military-grade fu-
  sion engines; though a game effort was made, 
  the technical team had to admit defeat and 
  instead delivered a machine that housed a low-
  tech internal combustion engine .
  Though Project Jacob’s Ladder ultimately 
  failed in its initial goals, the ’Mech it produced—
  christened the Raider by Bannson’s market-
  ing wonks—proved to be a success in both 
  Bannson’s own forces and on the open market .
  CAPABILITIES
  Despite the lack of a fusion engine, the 
  Raider is in almost every other respect a fully-
  functioning BattleMech rather than a souped-
  up IndustrialMech . However, this significant lack 
  placed limitations on the ’Mech’s equipment, 
  especially in its weapons loadout . Without the 
  ability to mount energy weapons, ammunition-
  based and physical weapons were the only 
  choices . Compromises in armor and movement 
  ability further reduced the effectiveness of the 
  Raider . By the final design, this ‘Mech delivered 
  just enough of the features Bannson had want-
  ed to satisfy the project plan but fell short of 
  supplying the quality he was looking for .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Raider and its Mk II variant saw service 
  throughout Jacob Bannson’s forces, though fewer 
  were found in the Scourge . Few of the warriors as-
  signed one of these ‘Mechs were happy about the 
  fact but it was important for his troops to show the 
  flag, as it were . In many lances, the newest recruit 
  was given a Raider to pilot until they could be as-
  sessed and a ‘Mech that better fit their skills would 
  be assigned . This had the unfortunate side effect 
  that the newest recruits were often the first to die 
  but the practice, especially among the cutthroats 
  of the Band of Five, continued . Other warriors, like 
  the notorious “Flamehands” Frank Calveccio, en-
  joyed the simplicity of the Raider and effectively 
  compensated for its shortcomings .
  Last year’s collapse of Bannson Universal 
  means that the Raider’s legacy is carried on by the 
  numerous other companies to whom Bannson 
  licensed the design specs . Simcox Industrials of 
  Mandalas used these plans to introduce their 
  own take and it has become quite popular among 
  smaller mercenary forces working the Coreward 
  Periphery realms . Bannson himself, whose disap-
  pearance over ten years ago remains unsolved, 
  would likely consider the modest proliferation of 
  his little not-quite-a-BattleMech to be a reason-
  able success and vindication of his vision .
  [Editor’s note: With the recent self-immola-
  tion of Ki-linn Liao on the steps of the Summer 
  Palace, the most plausible culprit for Bannson’s 
  disappearance has possibly taken the secret of his 
  fate to her own grave.]
  VARIANTS
  The Raider Mk II removes the two missile 
  launchers and downgrades the engine in favor 
  of increasing the armor and adding an ejectable 
  autocannon plus two tons of ammunition in the 
  right arm .
  The low cost of production and easy con-
  struction of the Raider chassis has led to numer-
  ous variants across the Inner Sphere . Tagged by 
  the DMI as JL-3A, -3B, and so forth, these variants 
  almost without exception remove the dual saw 
  and add double heat sinks, addressing two of the 
  ’Mech’s most blatant shortcomings . Ferro-fibrous 
  armor and even a power amplifier/energy weapon 
  combo are other frequently seen modifications . 
  NOTABLE PILOT
  “Flamehands” Frank: Famous for his bright red 
  tattoos of flames covering both arms from fin-
  gertips to elbow, Francis Calveccio led a lance of 
  the Band of Five for four years before that unit’s  
  destruction at the hands of Stone’s Lament . 
  During the Band’s last stand on Altair, Flamehands 
  deliberately attacked civilian targets with his 
  Raider’s weapons as a tactic to distract Republic 
  forces from their pursuit . After one volley dev-
  astated a hoverbus full of young children and 
  nuns, the Lament commander made it his per-
  sonal goal to kill Calveccio with extreme preju-
  dice . Though the unequal match between their 
  two ‘Mechs should have made it a quick contest, 
  Flamehands used the suburban surroundings 
  to hamper the RAF MechWarrior’s attacks . After 
  two hours of cat-and-mouse, the fight ended 
  with Flamehands immobile and the Lament 
  commander’s Prefect poised with its fist above 
  his foe’s cockpit . A second later, all that was left 
  of Flamehands Frank was a greasy smear and a 
  sickening memory .
  JL-1 RAIDER
  
  153
  Type: Raider
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 817
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  5
  Engine (ICE):  
  200 
   
  17
   
  Walking MP:  
  4 (5)
   
  Running MP:  
  6 (8)
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  2 
   
  2
  Gyro: 
   
   
  2
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor:  
  112 
   
  7
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  16 
  16
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Torso 
  12 
  14
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Arm 
  8 
  10
   
  R/L Leg 
  12 
  13
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  2 MRM 10 
  RT 
  4 
  6
  Ammo (MRM) 24 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Dual Saw 
  LA 
  7 
  7
  TSM 
  * 
  6 
  0
  Notes: *TSM occupies 1 critical slot each in LT, RT, LA, RA, 
  LL and RL locations . Features the following Design 
  Quirks: Searchlight .
  JL-1 RAIDER
  
  154
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  Mass: 50 tons
  Chassis: Mynx Type Medium Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Consolidated 300 XL
  Cruising Speed: 64 kph
  Maximum Speed: 97 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Gamma Special Reflective 
  Armament:
   
  19 .5 tons of pod space
  Manufacturer: LAW-Avon Alpha
   
  Primary Factory: Avon
  Communications System: Sipher  
  CommCon SCU-9
  Targeting & Tracking System: Build 5 CAT TTS
  Produced on the heels of the Avalanche, 
  the Wendigo was Clan Nova Cat’s attempt to 
  fix the perceived shortcomings of the Combine 
  OmniMech . Using the Avalanche as their tem-
  plate, Clan technicians and scientists attempted 
  to merge the desires of the warrior caste—still 
  battered from the Second Combine-Dominion 
  War—and the limited resources available to 
  them . The result was a more powerful Clan 
  OmniMech that excelled against its progenitor . 
  CAPABILITIES 
  The main difference between the Wendigo 
  and the Avalanche is the use of Clan technology 
  to build the base chassis . With lighter materials 
  and a firmer structure, the Wendigo can mount 
  almost twenty percent more in weapons and 
  equipment . Reflective armor and a more central 
  cockpit location provide extra layers of defense . 
  The Wendigo was immediately accepted by the 
  Clan’s warrior caste and numerous unique 
  configurations began appearing, catering to 
  various fighting styles .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  The Wendigo was deployed by Clan Nova 
  Cat during the Combine’s invasion of The 
  Republic . Every Clan Galaxy had several of the 
  versatile OmniMech deployed among its ranks . 
  When the First and Second Amphigean arrived 
  at Avon to crush the Nova Cat rebels, they 
  faced several Binaries and Novas of Gamma 
  Galaxy . Heavily laden with Wendigos—most 
  taken from storage at the nearby LAW-Avon 
  facility—Gamma moved quickly to contest 
  the DCMS landing . Galaxy Commander Liam 
  Nostra sought out Sho-sa Kyomi Arioch in an 
  attempt to establish a Trial of Possession for 
  Avon . The Combine officer refused Nostra’s 
  request, and his lance turned its guns on the 
  Clan commander . Using a combination of his 
  Wendigo’s jump jets, the nearby heavy forest, 
  and knowledge of a nearby underground river, 
  Nostra escaped the ambush .
  The Galaxy Commander emerged into 
  the midst of a brutal firefight as the First 
  Amphigean slammed into the bulk of Nostra’s 
  assault and striker Stars, who were awaiting his 
  return . Nostra vaulted to the top of a nearby 
  bunker and rallied his forces as he sniped the 
  approaching Combine ‘Mechs . He dropped 
  four heavy ’Mechs with well-placed salvos be-
  fore his position was saturated by a Combine 
  airstrike . Emboldened by their courageous 
  leader’s sacrifice, the bulk of Gamma pressed 
  into the teeth of the Dragon’s assault . Though 
  ultimately destroyed, the Nova Cats gutted 
  both light assault groups and partially demol-
  ished the LAW-Avon facility . 
  VARIANTS
  An early prototype of the Wendigo fea-
  tured more pod space and a smaller engine . The 
  ’Mech, initially favored by Mystic Kisho Nova 
  Cat, proved to be too slow and was riddled with 
  technical glitches . Sacrificing weapon space for 
  a more efficient and larger engine was deemed 
  an acceptable trade off, and the prototype 
  Wendigos were ultimately scrapped .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Nebula: While training in the backwaters of 
  Almunge in late 3147, local militia scouts 
  discovered a bizarre sight: a heavily damaged 
  Wendigo standing in the middle of an aban-
  doned village . With no recent military activity in 
  the region, the scouts had no ready explanation . 
  The serial number of the Wendigo had been  
  deliberately obscured and it took weeks before 
  its provenance could be established . Panic set 
  in when the ‘Mech was identified as belonging 
  to Mystic Kisho Nova Cat, who had vanished 
  with an unknown number of his Clansmen prior 
  to the end of their rebellion .
  ISF investigators swarmed Almunge looking 
  for clues to the missing Cats’ current whereabouts 
  but ultimately found nothing . The Wendigo’s 
  battleROMs had been pulled or wiped clean . 
  Evidence of BattleMech combat two kilometers 
  from the village led investigators to a hidden 
  yakuza supply depot that had been stripped of 
  anything useful . The village itself looked to have 
  been purposefully abandoned without any haste 
  or duress . Examination of the surrounding area 
  turned up signs that several DropShips had once 
  set down nearby, though from the amount of  
  regrowth it had been several years earlier .
  “Nebula” remains on Almunge, where the ISF 
  continues to pull it apart for clues to Kisho’s fate .
  WENDIGO
  
  155
  Type: Wendigo
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 2,122
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  2 .5
  Engine:  
  300 XL 
   
  9 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  6
   
  Running MP:  
  9
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  12 [24] 
   
  2
  Gyro:  
   
   
  3
  Cockpit (Torso-Mounted): 
   
   
  4
  Armor Factor (Reflective): 
  152 
   
  9 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  8
   
  Center Torso 
  16 
  22
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Torso 
  12 
  16
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  5
   
  R/L Arm 
  8 
  16
   
  R/L Leg 
  12 
  20
  Weight and Space Allocation
  Location 
  Fixed 
  Spaces Remaining
  Head 
  None 
  4
  Center Torso 
  1 Cockpit 
  0
   
   
  1 Life Support 
  Right Torso 
  2 XL Engine 
  6
   
   
  1 Life Support
   
   
  2 Endo Steel
   
   
  1 Reflective
  Left Torso 
  2 XL Engine 
  6
   
   
  1 Life Support
   
   
  2 Endo Steel
   
   
  1 Reflective
  Right Arm 
  3 Reflective 
  5
  Left Arm 
  3 Endo Steel 
  5
  Right Leg 
  None 
  2
  Left Leg 
  None 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Distracting .
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Primary Weapons Configuration
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  Ultra AC/2 
  RA 
  2 
  5
  Ammo (Ultra) 45 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  RL 
  2 
  1
  LRM 10 
  H 
  1 
  2 .5
  Ammo (LRM) 12 
  H 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  LL 
  2 
  1
  Ammo (Streak) 15 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  LA 
  2 
  2
  Streak SRM 6 
  LA 
  2 
  3
  Alternate Configuration A
  Large Pulse Laser 
  RA 
  2 
  6
  Double Heat Sink 
  RT 
  2 
  1
  LRM 15 
  H 
  2 
  3 .5
  Ammo (LRM) 16 
  H 
  2 
  2
  Large Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  2 
  6
  Double Heat Sink 
  LT 
  2 
  1
   
  Battle Value: 2,072
  Alternate Configuration B
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  ER Small Laser 
  RA 
  1 
   .5
  2 Double Heat Sinks 
  RA 
  4 
  2
  3 ER Small Lasers 
  H 
  3 
  1 .5
  ECM Suite 
  H 
  1 
  1
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  LA 
  2 
  2
  ER Small Laser 
  LA 
  1 
   .5
  2 Double Heat Sinks 
  LA 
  4 
  2
  Improved Jump Jet 
  RL 
  2 
  1
  Improved Jump Jets 
  RT 
  6 
  3
  Improved Jump Jets 
  LT 
  6 
  3
  Improved Jump Jet 
  LL 
  2 
  1
   
  Battle Value: 2,369
  Alternate Configuration C
  Improved Heavy Large Laser 
  RA 
  3 
  4
  Double Heat Sink 
  RT 
  2 
  1
  Supercharger 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  RL 
  2 
  1
  2 Improved Heavy Medium Lasers H 
  4 
  2
  Double Heat Sink 
  LL 
  2 
  1
  ER Small Laser 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  Ammo (Streak) 16 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Streak LRM 15 
  LA 
  3 
  7
   
  Battle Value: 2,623
  WENDIGO
  
  156
  MEDIUM 
  ’MECHS
  QSM-3D QUASIMODO
  Mass: 55 tons
  Chassis: Crucis Type V
  Power Plant: Hermes 275 XL
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph, 64 kph with TSM
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph, 97 kph with TSM
  Jump Jets: Rawlings 45
   
  Jump Capacity: 150 meters
  Armor: Durallex Tensile-4 with Kallon Nimbus 
  Blue Shield Particle Field Damper
  Armament:
   
  3 Diverse Optics Type 47V  
   
  Medium Variable-Speed Pulse Lasers
   
  2 Magna Mk . VI Extended-Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
   
  1 Magna Mk . IV Extended-Range  
   
  Small Laser
  Manufacturer: Kali Yama/Alphard Trading Corp .
   
  Primary Factory: Kendall
  Communications System: Omicron 4002 
  Networking Channel
  Targeting & Tracking System: TRSS Eagle Eye
  With countless Hunchbacks named 
  Quasimodo in the history of the Inner Sphere, 
  Kali Yama and the Alphard Trading Company 
  collaborated to rebuild a factory on the dam-
  aged world of Kendall that is producing the 
  next generation Hunchback, the Quasimodo .
  CAPABILITIES 
  Ten percent heavier than its predeces-
  sor, the Quasimodo is also twenty percent 
  faster and is reminiscent of the 4P variant of 
  the Hunchback, mounting solely laser weap-
  ons . Adding jump jets that aren’t unheard of 
  in a Hunchback improves the mobility of the 
  Quasimodo, but the powerful triple-strength 
  myomers and experimental blue shield help 
  make the Quasimodo stand out as a brawler 
  very different from its ancestor .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  The first appearance of the Quasimodo 
  wasn’t in a demonstration or tradeshow, but 
  rather in one of the biggest Solaris matches of 
  3140 . Yuki “Black Razor” Saysangkhi had burst 
  onto the Solaris scene earlier that year, showing 
  up out of nowhere with a pristine Hellstar and 
  obliterating nine straight opponents thanks to 
  the firepower of the Clan ’Mech . Seeing a po-
  tential marketing coup, Kali Yama offered Sarah 
  “Mortice” Ravenion a Quasimodo instead of her 
  usual Caesar .
  The match started off with Ravenion hid-
  ing behind cover as she advanced toward 
  Saysangkhi’s Hellstar . The combat seemed to be 
  short-lived as she cleared a grove of trees to find 
  the Hellstar directly in front of her, triggering all 
  four particle cannons . Three hit, including one 
  to the head of the Quasimodo . The momentum 
  quickly shifted when she kept coming, unleash-
  ing a full barrage of her lasers . The thick armor 
  of the assault ’Mech easily withstood that blast, 
  but she slipped behind Saysangkhi and mauled 
  his rear armor plating . He recovered and swung 
  his ’Mech around to unleash a full barrage on 
  her, but she leapt behind the tree line .
  Rather than play a game of cat-and-mouse, 
  Saysangkhi began systematically cutting down 
  trees with his PPCs . Ravenion came sprinting back 
  out, her armor breached in a few spots by her op-
  ponent, but a swift kick caved in the knee of the 
  Hellstar . It fell, but Saysangkhi quickly brought it 
  upright, only to have the Quasimodo use a combi-
  nation of lasers and fists to rip into the back of his 
  machine, shattering heat sinks, particle cannons 
  and engine shielding . Saysangkhi surrendered 
  to save his ’Mech, but his career never recovered . 
  Forced to rely upon Inner Sphere-grade replace-
  ments, his Hellstar wasn’t enough to overcome his 
  lack of piloting talent .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Captain Michael McTavish: Captain McTavish 
  was assigned to the First Andurien Rangers in 
  March of 3148 when the Duchy of Andurien 
  formally laid claim to many of the unaligned 
  worlds between it and Regulus . When Captain 
  McTavish’s company arrived on planet, ele-
  ments of the First Marik Protectors refused to 
  step down . When the Protectors commander 
  rode out to challenge the “invaders” in his 
  Awesome, Michael abandoned any hope of 
  peaceful negotiations . 
   
  Captain McTavish’s Quasimodo was one 
  of the heaviest units in the medium weight 
  company and the perfect choice to oppose the 
  enemy commander . Knowing his Blue Shield 
  Particle Field Dampener’s performance would 
  degrade over time, he rushed in close to try 
  and quickly win the fight . Once he got in close, 
  Michael’s lasers worked to great effectiveness, 
  shredding the Awesome’s armor . With their local 
  commander handily defeated, the remaining 
  Marik Protectors chose to stand down .
  Warrior Dorcelina: A solahma warrior facing 
  a less than desirable end to her fighting days, 
  Dorcelina volunteered to work with the Clan 
  Wolf Scientist Caste in studying the Quasimodo . 
  A Star Colonel was intrigued by the Blue Shield 
  Particle Dampener and directed his local 
  Scientist Caste to explore the possibilities of an 
  improved version . Dorcelina piloted a captured 
  Quasimodo against front-line warriors as the 
  Scientists analyzed the combat data . The old 
  warrior has survived three heavy test combat 
  fights and hopes to die in one soon, as she has 
  been diagnosed with liver cancer .
  
  157
  QSM-3D QUASIMODO
  Type: Quasimodo
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Experimental)
  Tonnage: 55
  Battle Value: 1,575
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  5 .5
  Engine:  
  275 XL 
   
  8
   
  Walking MP:  
  5 (6)
   
  Running MP:  
  8 (9)
   
  Jumping MP:  
  5
  Heat Sinks:  
  14 [28] 
   
  4
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor: 
  184 
   
  11 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  18 
  27
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Torso 
  13 
  20
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  6
   
  R/L Arm 
  9 
  18
   
  R/L Leg 
  13 
  26
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  3 Medium VSP Lasers 
  RT 
  6 
  12
  ER Small Laser 
  H 
  1 
   .5
  ER Medium Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  Triple-Strength Myomer RA/LA 
  3/3 
  0
  Blue Shield Particle  
   Field Damper 
  * 
  7 
  3
  Jump Jet 
  RL 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  Jump Jet 
  LL 
  1 
   .5
  Notes: *Blue Shield PFD occupies 1 critical in the RA, RT, 
  RL, CT, LL, LT, and LA locations . Features Full-Head 
  Ejection System .
  
  158
  HEAVY 
  ’MECHS
  ZU-G60 ANZU
  Mass: 60 tons
  Chassis: Earthwerks ZU Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Hermes 240 XL
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: Chilton 465
   
  Jump Capacity: 120 meters
  Armor: Starshield A with CASE II
  Armament:
   
  1 Imperator Automatic Ultra Class  
   
  10 Autocannon
   
  1 Zeus LRM 10 Launcher
   
  1 Fusigon Shorttooth Light Particle  
   
  Projection Cannon with Capacitor
   
  1 Diverse Optics Sunfire Extended-Range  
   
  Medium Laser
  Manufacturer: Earthwerks-FWL, Incorporated
   
  Primary Factory: Calloway VI
   
   
  Keystone (Destroyed 3138)
  Communications System: Irian Orator-5K
  Targeting & Tracking System: RCA Instatrac 
  Mark X with TAG 
  The embodiment of AMSC combat doc-
  trine, the Anzu has been widely adopted by the 
  reformed Free Worlds League . Named for a grif-
  fin that snatched the tablets of destiny from the 
  gods, the Anzu symbolizes the refusal of people 
  of the Free Worlds to allow others to dictate 
  their future .
  CAPABILITIES 
  Armed with a medium autocannon backed 
  up by a capacitor-linked PPC, the Anzu was de-
  signed by Earthwerks to fit the more direct, ag-
  gressive tactics developed by Marik-Stewart forc-
  es . Mechanically reliable and equipped with the 
  same proven life support systems as the Shadow 
  Hawk, the Anzu is well regarded by MechWarrior 
  and technician alike . The BattleMech’s power-
  ful mid-range firepower and well-protected 
  ammunition bins allow the Anzu to take the fight 
  directly to the enemy, but it is the ’Mech’s ability 
  to accurately engage multiple targets and desig-
  nate for indirect fire that makes it an indispens-
  able member of a fire lance . 
  DEPLOYMENT 
  In 3119 tensions among the Free Worlds 
  states boiled over into open warfare . With 
  battles raging up and down the Regulan bor-
  der, the AMSC ordered the Eleventh Atrean 
  Dragoons to seize the key factory world of 
  Harmony . The narrow, erratic streets and tightly 
  packed buildings of the world’s aging indus-
  trial city of Natus played to the strengths of 
  the Regulan defenders, and by the time the 
  Dragoons had disembarked the planet’s garri-
  son was already well entrenched . 
  Pushing forward, mixed lances of Marik 
  Anzus and Thunderbolts went head to head 
  with Regulan Patriots and Ostwars, pushing 
  the defenders deeper into the urban sprawl . 
  Baiting the Dragoons, the Regulan Hussars 
  split up and fell back, forcing the attackers 
  to spread out . Intending to ambush and de-
  feat the isolated invading lances, the defend-
  ers found their hopes quickly dashed . Rather 
  than falter in Regulan kill-zones, the Dragoons’ 
  Anzus turned the tables, leaping clear with 
  their jump jets and summoning a rain of semi-
  guided missiles down on the Hussars’ posi-
  tions . Throughout the battle, Anzu-led Marik 
  lances engaged the enemy at point-blank 
  range, all the while delivering indirect sup-
  port to nearby lances with no loss of accuracy . 
  Shockwaves and Griffins poured in support-
  ing fire from the flanks, running down Hussar 
  ’Mechs flushed out by the Anzus’ assault . The 
  unexpectedly rapid fall of Harmony forced 
  Regulus to suspend offensive operations 
  against the Commonwealth . It would be two 
  years of bitter fighting before the planet was 
  restored to Regulan control . 
  VARIANTS 
  Earthwerks developed the ZU-J70 to serve 
  as a lancemate for the baseline Anzu . Swapping 
  the class ten autocannon for a smaller rotary 
  model allowed the particle cannon to be up-
  graded to a snub-nosed Fusigon Smarttooth . 
  An MML-7 replaces the base version’s long-
  range missile rack .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Hauptmann Jessifer Niedermeyer: Hauptmann 
  Niedermeyer practically lives in her ZU-J70 . 
  She is one of a half-dozen guerilla fighters on 
  Hollabrunn after it fell to the Wolf Empire . Her 
  rotary autocannon and MML system have not 
  had ammo in over a year . The excellent accuracy 
  of her snub-nose PPC has made the difference 
  in a number of skirmishes with the occupiers, 
  though . Efforts to track down her force have 
  whittled them down from a demi-battalion to 
  their current demi-company . She hopes when 
  death comes, it will be preceded by many 
  Wolves at her hands .
  Star Commander Neal: Neal is a newly-minted 
  Star Commander in the Eleventh Wolf Garrison 
  Cluster . A factory-fresh Anzu replaced the Loki 
  II that was destroyed in his Trial of Position . 
  Despite being a freeborn warrior, Neal is con-
  sidered a ristar in the Cluster, thanks to his 
  exceptional natural MechWarrior ability and 
  relentless drive to excel . His savage pursuit of 
  fleeing First Protectorate Guardians raiders in 
  March 3146 showed the true heart of a Wolf .
  
  159
  ZU-G60 ANZU
  Type: Anzu
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 60
  Battle Value: 1,503
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  3
  Engine:  
  240 XL 
   
  6
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  4
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor: 
  176 
   
  11
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  20 
  26
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  7
   
  R/L Torso 
  14 
  22
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  6
   
  R/L Arm 
  10 
  17
   
  R/L Leg 
  14 
  22
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Light PPC 
  RA 
  2 
  3
  PPC Capacitor 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  TAG 
  H 
  1 
  1
  LRM 10 
  LT 
  2 
  5
  Ammo (LRM) 24 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (Ultra) 30 
  LT 
  3 
  3
  CASE II 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Ultra AC/10 
  LA 
  7 
  13
  Jump Jets 
  RL 
  2 
  2
  Jump Jets 
  LL 
  2 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Multi-Trac, 
  Improved Life Support .
  
  160
  HEAVY 
  ’MECHS
  VULTURE MK III
  Mass: 60 tons
  Chassis: Bergan Version 8 .3 Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Vlar 300 XL
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Compound 24B2 FF
  Armament:
   
  30 tons of pod space available
  Manufacturer: Alshain Weapons
   
  Primary Factory: Alshain
  Communications System: Dash-2 Optima
  Targeting & Tracking System: Hakkøn-Morris 
  LAP
  The Vulture Mk III descends directly from 
  the original OmniMech that featured so promi-
  nently in the Clan invasion of the Inner Sphere in 
  the middle of the last century . Now, as then, the 
  Vulture is a favorite of the Ghost Bears, but it also 
  appears in large numbers in the Raven Alliance . 
  The Mk III’s common configurations are focused 
  on support roles instead of frontline combat 
  since the Karhu has claimed that position .
   
  CAPABILITIES
  The Vulture Mk III carries more armor than its 
  ancestor, giving MechWarriors greater longevity . 
  The B configuration’s jump jets allow it to serve 
  as all-terrain fire support, while the quad mis-
  sile racks of the primary make it truly fearsome 
  from range . Configuration C is a short-range 
  nightmare, while Configuration A is a jack-of-all-
  trades . Configuration D is the rarest, intended for 
  long-term service without resupply . Regardless 
  of the payload, the Hakkøn-Morris LAP has 
  shown a tendency to prioritize target groups 
  regardless of the MechWarrior’s preference, oc-
  casionally sparing a vulnerable enemy .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Vacaville Slaughter took place in 
  November 3120 when a group of dissidents 
  fomented rebellion on Constance . The rebels 
  took over the capital and murdered most of the 
  city’s administrators, but not before a call for aid 
  went out . The Fifty-sixth Provisional Garrison 
  Cluster sent a Trinary to deal with the problem, 
  including a Vulture Nova, which chased the reb-
  els to the suburbs . The Trinary surrounded the 
  Vacaville subdivision and called all noncomba-
  tants to exit after their initial probes stalled . A 
  trickle of civilians were corralled by the Nova’s 
  Elementals, with Star Captain Jaymar conclud-
  ing the rest were complicit with the insurrec-
  tion . He ordered the Vultures, all in the primary 
  configuration, to bombard the town . A terrify-
  ing missile barrage swept the city and leveled 
  the southwest quarter without any response 
  from those within . A second barrage annihi-
  lated the northwest quarter, again with no 
  response . After reloading, the Vultures leveled 
  the rest of the district . As the Elementals picked 
  through the wreckage, they found warehouses 
  filled with chained civilians along with the reb-
  els, who had taken their own lives .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Leftenant Alice Vander: Having been on the 
  final transport off Tikonov, Alice Vander ached 
  to repay the Capellans for the death of Aaron 
  Sandoval . Reassigned to the Fifth Crucis Lancers, 
  she got her chance on Marlette facing off against 
  the Second MAC . In her Vulture, Vander nailed 
  enemy after enemy until she was forced to 
  retire due to near-crippling actuator damage . 
  While making her way back to the Fifth’s base-
  camp, the Ilsa Hyung’s barrage struck and she 
  was among the forces obliterated .
  Type: Mad Dog Mk III
  Inner Sphere Designation: Vulture Mk III
  Technology Base: Clan
  Tonnage: 60
  Battle Value: 2,729
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  3
  Engine:  
  300 XL 
   
  9 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  5
   
  Running MP:  
  8
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  12 [24] 
   
  2
  Gyro:  
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  182 
   
  9 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  20 
  30
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  9
   
  R/L Torso 
  14 
  20
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  7
   
  R/L Arm 
  10 
  16
   
  R/L Leg 
  14 
  24
  Weight and Space Allocation
   
   
   
  Spaces 
  Location 
  Fixed 
  Remaining
  Head 
  None 
  1
  Center Torso 
  None 
  2
  Right Torso 
  2 XL Engine 
  10
  Left Torso 
  2 XL Engine 
  10
  Right Arm 
  7 Ferro-Fibrous 
  1
  Left Arm 
  7 Endo Steel 
  1
  Right Leg 
  None 
  2
  Left Leg 
  None 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Stable, Variable 
  Range Targeting .
  
  161
  VULTURE MK III
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Primary Weapons Configuration
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  2 LRM 20 
  RT 
  8 
  10
  Ammo (LRM) 12 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  CT 
  2 
  2
  2 LRM 20 
  LT 
  8 
  10
  Ammo (LRM) 12 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  LA 
  2 
  2
  Alternate Configuration A
  Ultra AC/5 
  RA 
  3 
  7
  Ammo (Ultra) 20 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  2 SRM 6 
  RT 
  2 
  3
  Ammo (SRM) 15 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  RT 
  2 
  1
  2 Medium Pulse Lasers 
  CT 
  2 
  4
  2 SRM 6 
  LT 
  2 
  3
  Ammo (SRM) 15 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  LT 
  2 
  1
  Ammo (Ultra) 20 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Ultra AC/5 
  LA 
  3 
  7
   
  Battle Value: 1,880
  Alternate Configuration B
  ER Large Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  4
  LRM 20 
  RT 
  4 
  5
  Ammo (LRM) 12 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Double Heat Sink 
  RT 
  2 
  1
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  CT 
  2 
  2
  LRM 20 
  LT 
  4 
  5
  Ammo (LRM) 12 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Double Heat Sink 
  LT 
  2 
  1
  ER Large Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  4
  Jump Jets 
  RL 
  2 
  2
  Jump Jets 
  LL 
  2 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 2,572
  Alternate Configuration C
  Micro Pulse Laser 
  RA 
  1 
   .5
  4 Streak SRM 6 
  RT 
  8 
  12
  Ammo (Streak) 30 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  2 Micro Pulse Lasers 
  CT 
  2 
  1
  4 Streak SRM 6 
  LT 
  8 
  12
  Ammo (Streak) 30 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Micro Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  1 
   .5
   
  Battle Value: 2,299
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Alternate Configuration D
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  2
  Rotary AC/5 
  RT 
  8 
  10
  Ammo (RAC) 40 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (RAC) 40 
  CT 
  2 
  2
  Rotary AC/5 
  LT 
  8 
  10
  Ammo (RAC) 40 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 2,421
  
  162
  HEAVY 
  ’MECHS
  Mass: 65 tons
  Chassis: Nykvarn Type 58-66SH Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Magna 260
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Durallex Guardian II Light Ferro-
  Fibrous with CASE II
  Armament:
   
  1 Lord’s Light 2 Extended-Range  
   
  Particle Projection Cannon
   
  1 Shigunga Arrow IV Artillery System
   
  1 Diverse Optics Type 25PX  
   
  Medium X-Pulse Laser
  Manufacturer: Luthien Armor Works
   
  Primary Factory: Nykvarn
  Communications System: Sipher CommSys 3
  Targeting & Tracking System: Eagle Eye 
  SY10-10
  After the loss of a sizable portion of its 
  production capacity during the Jihad, Luthien 
  Armor Works looked to its engineering and re-
  search teams to sustain the company’s value . The 
  company’s military marketing division decided a 
  revamp of an iconic DCMS ’Mech was needed .
  CAPABILITIES 
  The DRG-11K is notable less for its weap-
  ons arrays and more for its all-native materials . 
  With renewed emphasis on the return to Urizen 
  II’s self-sufficiency mandates of the twenty-sev-
  enth century, no part of the ’Mech is manufac-
  tured outside of the Combine . The Dragon II is 
  considered a statement of the DCMS’ continued 
  reliance on the strength of the Combine citizen-
  ry and their efforts . LAW engineers crammed as 
  much advanced technology as they could into 
  the ’Mech’s frame to make it a powerful addi-
  tion on the battlefield .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  Dragon IIs began replacing standard Dragons 
  across the DCMS, beginning with those tagged 
  too old or with extensive repair histories . In many 
  cases, the first Dragon IIs that arrived at a regi-
  mental command were claimed by ISF observers 
  or political appointees . Veteran MechWarriors 
  derided such pilots, scoffing at their reliance on 
  technological doodads and tricks in order to keep 
  pace with hardcore samurai .
  Two Dragon IIs of the Seventh New 
  Samarkand were instrumental in blocking 
  a Davion counterattack outside Sawle on 
  Palmyra . Tai-sa Henrietta Margolis and her ad-
  jutant, Sho-sa Gerber Junco, had been split from 
  their command company during a brutal thun-
  derstorm . Taking refuge under a nearby rock 
  shelf, Margolis and Junco observed a silent col-
  umn of heavy AFFS tanks moving along a nar-
  row pass . The convoy, part of the First Federated 
  Suns Lancers, was using the turbulent weather 
  as a cover in an attempt to bypass the Ninth’s 
  position and slip into Sawle . 
  Outnumbered three to one, the two of-
  ficers waited for the convoy to pass . When the 
  tanks were at long range, the Dragon IIs moved 
  along the top of the ravine and dropped several 
  waves of Arrow IV missiles into the midst of the 
  enemy . As panic took hold of the Davion con-
  voy, Margolis used her PPC and laser to disable 
  the lead elements as Junco targeted the rear of 
  the line . With the enemy contained, the tai-sa 
  and her aide systematically cut down the rest 
  of the Lancer force, ending the Davion threat 
  to the city . 
  On Raman, the Dragon IIs of the Forty-fifth 
  Benjamin Regulars were used to shell enemy 
  gun positions as heavier tanks moved across 
  the bogs outside Buehlsville . With the bogs’ 
  unimpeded terrain and Combine tanks getting 
  stuck in the morass, the gunners of the Raman 
  DMM easily held off the Regulars approach . Two 
  lances of Dragon IIs coordinated with Combine 
  gunships and spotter planes, dropping hun-
  dreds of artillery missiles into the DMM posi-
  tions . The decimation gave the Regulars’ tank 
  companies time to move through the swamps 
  and claim Buehlsville—and its important fuel 
  reserves—for the Combine .
  VARIANTS
  The DGR-11R is a variant seen mostly in 
  the hands of nobles or politically-connected 
  officers of the DCMS . Upgraded with Clan 
  technology stores seized during the Nova 
  Cat rebellion, the -11R is slightly faster than 
  its counterpart . These Dragon IIs tend to be 
  used sparingly on the battlefield, officially be-
  cause of the higher maintenance costs due to 
  its advanced technology . Most line personnel 
  privately comment such rare use is due more 
  to the pilot’s patronage, which is compared 
  conversely to their bravery .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Chu-i Miriama Chhem: Young Miriama ex-
  ploited her father’s connections as planetary 
  chairman of Abiy Adi to finagle entry to the 
  Sun Tzu School of Combat and to secure a 
  frontline posting on Sakhara V after graduation . 
  Derisively described by her comrades as “the 
  bestest lil’ MechWarrior” for her diminutive 
  stature and gung-ho attitude, she struggled 
  to fit in . Assigned to escort duty for a touring 
  noble and temporarily given a Dragon II to pilot, 
  she was forced to singlehandedly defend her 
  charge from a surprise attack by pro-Davion 
  insurgents . Chhem held out long enough for 
  reinforcements to arrive . In gratitude, the noble 
  pulled some strings to get her assigned the 
  Dragon on a permanent basis .
  DRG-11K DRAGON II
  
  163
  Type: Dragon II
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 65
  Battle Value: 1,598
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  260 
   
  13 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro (Compact): 
   
   
  4 .5
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Light Ferro): 
  211 
   
  12 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  21 
  30
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  12
   
  R/L Torso 
  15 
  22
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Arm 
  10 
  20
   
  R/L Leg 
  15 
  30
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  ER PPC 
  RA 
  3 
  7
  Ammo (Arrow) 15 
  RT 
  3 
  3
  CASE II 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Arrow IV System 
  CT/LT 
  3/12 
  15
  Medium X-Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Stable, Poor 
  Cooling Jacket (ER PPC) .
  DRG-11K DRAGON II
  
  164
  HEAVY 
  ’MECHS
  LOKI MK II
  Mass: 65 tons
  Chassis: T-E H65 Omni
  Power Plant: Model SF-3 (XL)
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Compound H17 Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament:
   
  40 tons of pod space available
  Manufacturer: Olivetti Weaponry,  
  Csesztreg Industriplex Alpha
   
  Primary Factory: Sudeten (OW),  
   
  Csesztreg (Alpha)
  Communications System: CH2B Alpha-Com
  Targeting & Tracking System: Version Delta-II 
  TTS(A)
  The Loki Mk II was introduced several years 
  before the Blackout . In that time, it spread 
  throughout the Clans but is most common in 
  the Jade Falcon and the Hell’s Horses toumans .
   
  CAPABILITIES
  The Mk II sacrifices some of the Loki’s speed 
  in exchange for a staggering forty tons of pod 
  space and fifty percent more armor . The primary 
  configuration is built for long-range combat, 
  with only a mid-size missile rack for close-in 
  work . The A configuration has a more balanced 
  mix of anti-armor and anti-personnel weaponry, 
  often seen operating farther from supply lines 
  than the primary . The B configuration serves as 
  slow fire support, but its specialization greatly 
  limits its defensive capabilities .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Gamma Galaxy of the Jade Falcons was try-
  ing to bring the restive population of Sargasso 
  under heel in July 3142 . The Ninth Falcon 
  Talon Cluster outfitted their Loki Mk IIs to bom-
  bard Salicastrum on the western shore of the 
  southern continent of Perusalem . Star Captain 
  Henry’s Binary shelled the city from the Barrier 
  Heights, an ancient coral reef long since risen 
  due to tectonic activity . City block followed city 
  block into ruin as the Falcons awaited the sur-
  render of guerilla rebels within . Then the coun-
  terattacking Wolves-in-Exile arrived .
  A Nova of Exile Wolves dropped into the 
  midst of Henry’s Binary . As the Elementals 
  swarmed Henry’s second Star, medium and 
  heavy OmniMechs attacked his own . Henry dis-
  played excellent tactical sense when he ordered 
  his Star to target not the enemy, but the ground 
  underfoot . As the shells shattered the fossilized 
  coral, a rockslide began that swept up all the 
  combatants . Henry’s Mk IIs survived thanks to 
  their heavy armor, but their Long Toms were 
  rendered useless . The survivors slogged their 
  way through the Exile Wolves and returned to 
  friendly lines . After hasty repairs, Henry’s re-
  maining Star pounded the Wolves’ flanks and 
  helped prevent the world’s recapture .
  A 3144 Trial for Position in Clan Hell’s 
  Horses saw a Loki Mk II used to great effect 
  when ristar Owen killed all three of his oppo-
  nents . His Mk II layered fire right to left, alternat-
  ing arm fire . His first opponent, a Black Hawk, 
  fell to a well-placed Gauss round . His second 
  opponent, a Mad Cat, fought him for nearly an 
  hour . It finally succumbed to an ammunition 
  explosion after Owen’s SRMs breached its torso 
  armor . His final opponent, a Masakari, nearly 
  killed him outright with concentrated PPC fire . 
  Owen relied on his lasers once the battle began, 
  leading the other MechWarrior to believe his 
  Gauss rifles were empty . The confident warrior 
  sought to end the Trial quickly and maneuvered 
  for a clear shot . When he broke into the clear, 
  Owen fired his last Gauss rounds . The impact 
  knocked the Masakari over, and Owen closed 
  in . His lasers burned out the Masakari’s engine 
  and the Horses had their newest Star Captain .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Bounty Hunter: The current Bounty Hunter is 
  as mysterious as all those who have borne the 
  mantle . How and why the Bounty Hunter re-
  placed his ruined Marauder II with a Loki II is just 
  another mystery . Wise MechWarriors know to 
  avoid any green ’Mech sporting credit symbols 
  over its body .
  Type: Hel
  Inner Sphere Designation: Loki Mk II
  Technology Base: Clan
  Tonnage: 65
  Battle Value: 2,189
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  260 XL 
   
  7
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro:  
   
   
  3
  Cockpit (Small): 
   
   
  2
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  182 
   
  9 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  21 
  30
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  7
   
  R/L Torso 
  15 
  20
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  7
   
  R/L Arm 
  10 
  20
   
  R/L Leg 
  15 
  21
  
  165
  LOKI MK II
  Weight and Space Allocation
  Location 
  Fixed 
  Spaces Remaining
  Head 
  None 
  2
  Center Torso 
  None 
  2
  Right Torso 
  2 XL Engine 
  8
   
   
  1 Endo Steel
   
   
  1 Ferro-Fibrous
  Left Torso 
  2 XL Engine 
  8
   
   
  1 Endo Steel
   
   
  1 Ferro-Fibrous
  Right Arm 
  2 Endo Steel 
  5
   
   
  1 Ferro-Fibrous
  Left Arm 
  1 Endo Steel 
  5
   
   
  2 Ferro-Fibrous
  Right Leg 
  1 Endo Steel 
  0
   
   
  1 Ferro-Fibrous
  Left Leg 
  1 Endo Steel 
  0
   
   
  1 Ferro-Fibrous
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Multi-Trac .
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Primary Weapons Configuration
  Gauss Rifle 
  RA 
  6 
  12
  ER Large Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  4
  Streak SRM 4 
  RT 
  1 
  2
  Ammo (Streak) 25 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (Gauss) 8 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  H 
  2 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  CT 
  2 
  1
  Ammo (Gauss) 16 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Gauss Rifle 
  LA 
  6 
  12
  ER Large Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  4
  Alternate Configuration A
  ER PPC 
  RA 
  2 
  6
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  2
  2 Double Heat Sinks 
  RA 
  4 
  2
  2 Improved Heavy Medium Lasers RT 
  4 
  2
  2 AP Gauss Rifles 
  RT 
  2 
  1
  Angel ECM Suite 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Double Heat Sink 
  H 
  2 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  CT 
  2 
  1
  LB 10-X AC 
  LT 
  5 
  10
  Ammo (LB-X) 20 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (AP Gauss) 40 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  ER PPC 
  LA 
  2 
  6
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  2
  2 Double Heat Sinks 
  LA 
  4 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 2,249
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Alternate Configuration B—Advanced
  ER Large Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  4
  2 Medium Pulse Lasers 
  RA 
  2 
  4
  2 Double Heat Sinks 
  RA 
  4 
  2
  2 Medium Pulse Lasers 
  RT 
  2 
  4
  Ammo (Long Tom) 15 
  RT 
  3 
  3
  Double Heat Sink 
  RT 
  2 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  H 
  2 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  CT 
  2 
  1
  Long Tom Cannon 
  LT/LA 
  8/7 
  20
   
  Battle Value: 1,798
  
  166
  HEAVY 
  ’MECHS
  CPLT-L7 CATAPULT II
  Mass: 70 tons
  Chassis: Hollis Mk .II-Beta Endo Steel
  Power Plant: GM 280 XL
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: Anderson Propulsion 25
   
  Jump Capacity: 120 meters
  Armor: Ceres Heavy
  Armament:
   
  2 Holly “Ballista-20“ LRM-20 Launchers
   
  2 Firmir Hypnos Tight-Stream 
   
   
  Electromagnetic Pulse Cannon
   
  2 Diverse Optics Sunfire Extended Range
   
   
   Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: Hollis Incorporated
   
  Primary Factory: Corey
  Communications System: O/P COM-211
  Targeting & Tracking System: O/P 1078
  Colloquially known as the scorched coffin, 
  the Catapult II is scorned by most MechWarriors 
  due to its combination of weaponry and 
  heat management issues . Despite its reputa-
  tion, the Catapult II is highly effective when  
  deployed properly . 
  CAPABILITIES
  Designed as an indirect fire-support ’Mech 
  and TSEMP test platform, the Catapult II is re-
  markably similar to its predecessor . The highly 
  reliable Ballista launchers cycle faster than com-
  peting systems from domestic manufacturers 
  and the Diverse Optics lasers have a history of 
  solid performance . 
  The TSEMP has become popular with the 
  CCAF, appearing on many newer ’Mechs . After 
  prototypes showed stress fractures in the weap-
  on’s housings, the chassis was increased by five 
  tons to better support the weapons . Hollis 
  claims this reinforcement also extends the life 
  limit on the chassis by fifteen years . 
  DEPLOYMENT
  In 3145 elements of the Third McCarron’s 
  Armored Cavalry and Sung’s Rangers invaded 
  Taygeta . There, they faced determined resis-
  tance from members of the Ridgebrook Capellan 
  March Militia and Fifth Crucis Lancers . In the roll-
  ing hills outside of the capital city, two compa-
  nies of Capellan forces engaged a battalion of 
  Davion defenders . The Capellans approached 
  cautiously, using a lance of Catapult IIs and other 
  fire support ’Mechs to bombard the AFFS posi-
  tion before committing to the fight . Ammunition 
  consumption has always been a concern for the 
  Catapult, and the Catapult II designers addressed 
  this by equipping the ’Mech with fifty percent 
  more ammo and larger missile racks . Despite 
  these improvements, the Catapult IIs exhausted 
  their stores within twelve minutes . Undaunted, 
  Sang-wei Quon Yue formed his lance at the cen-
  ter of the Capellan line and, supported by a lance 
  of heavy ’Mechs, led the advance .
  Yue directed his lancemates to stagger 
  their shots so that two of the ’Mechs were fir-
  ing their TSEMPs while the other two were re-
  charging . The Catapults used their TSEMPs to 
  paralyze a defender and then their companions 
  destroyed it . The Davion commander ordered 
  his forces to withdraw to avoid falling victim to 
  the Capellan tactics . Unfortunately for the de-
  fenders, this provoked the Catapults into great 
  shows of bravado and they charged in, immo-
  bilizing Davion ’Mechs and pummeling them 
  with physical attacks . By the end of the battle, 
  the Capellans had suffered thirty percent casu-
  alties—including two of the Catapult IIs—while 
  the larger Davion force had been reduced by 
  nearly fifty percent, largely due to the Catapults . 
  The L7L variant participated in the attack 
  on New Syrtis, where it distinguished itself in an 
  urban brawl . The desperate Davion defenders 
  resorted to inferno munitions during the battle 
  for Brandon’s Crossroads, and while these weap-
  ons were particularly effective against ’Mechs 
  with stealth armor, the L7L’s heat-dissipating 
  armor worked flawlessly and allowed them to 
  maintain continuous fire with their MMLs . In an 
  hour of vicious street-to-street fighting three 
  L7Ls supported by a Lao Hu defeated a lance 
  of heavy Davion ’Mechs supported by multiple 
  squads of Cavalier battle armor .
  VARIANTS
  The CPLT-L7L features a more traditional 
  weapons load built around MML 9s and plasma 
  rifles and carries heat-dissipating armor . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Jonas Saunders: Saunders was a member of 
  the Swordsworn splinter group, who migrated 
  to Solaris VII after House Davion re-rallied its 
  troops a few years after the Blackout . He and his 
  Catapult II “Cynosure”—painted a bright com-
  bination of construction orange with metallic 
  red highlights—were caught on Solaris when 
  the Wolf Empire conquered the region . When 
  the Wolves miraculously allowed the Games to 
  continue—an act undoubtedly done to placate 
  the local populace and support the Empire’s 
  economy—few were more surprised than 
  gladiators like Saunders . That was until they 
  found themselves facing a wave of Wolf con-
  tenders, determined to “test the mettle” of these 
  “pseudo-warriors .”
  Thus, Saunders and “Cynosure” found 
  themselves squaring off against MechWarrior 
  Mariesa, a Wolf Empire MechWarrior piloting 
  a Warwolf Prime . The battle, which took place 
  in the Steiner Coliseum, put Saunders at a se-
  vere disadvantage; the tight quarters hobbled 
  his Inner Sphere-model LRMs more often than 
  his opponent’s, while the Warwolf’s laser AMS 
  and reactive armor foiled most of the missiles 
  that did lock on . Saunders still managed to pre-
  vail, however, thanks to several solid hits from 
  “Cynosure’s” TSEMPs, which shut down Mariesa’s 
  Warwolf long enough for him to cripple it perma-
  nently using his lasers and feet .
  
  167
  CPLT-L7 CATAPULT II
  Type: Catapult II
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 70
  Battle Value: 2,574
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  280 XL 
   
  8
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  4
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor: 
  168 
   
  10 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  22 
  26
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  11
   
  R/L Torso 
  15 
  20
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Arm 
  11 
  14
   
  R/L Leg 
  15 
  19
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  LRM 20 
  RA 
  5 
  10
  Ammo (LRM) 12 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  TSEMP 
  RT 
  5 
  6
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  CT 
  2 
  2
  TSEMP 
  LT 
  5 
  6
  Ammo (LRM) 12 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  LRM 20 
  LA 
  5 
  10
  Jump Jets 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Jump Jets 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Bad 
  Reputation .
  
  168
  HEAVY 
  ’MECHS
  THOR II
  Mass: 70 tons
  Chassis: Olivetti T4 Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Magna 350 XL
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Compound Beta FF
  Armament:
   
  30 .5 tons of pod space available
  Manufacturer: Eagle Craft Group
   
  Primary Factory: Erewhon
  Communications System: Model J-D 067
  Targeting & Tracking System: Hawkeye 58
  Lauded for its versatility and prized for its 
  communication suite, the Thor II began replac-
  ing the Thor in 3093 . While its predecessor was 
  the masthead for Clan Jade Falcon, the Thor II 
  quickly spread to all of the Inner Sphere Clans, 
  though the largest numbers are still found with 
  the Jade Falcons . A reliable OmniMech with 
  multiple supported pod configurations, the 
  ’Mech is a favorite among junior grade officers .
   
  CAPABILITIES 
  Although not intended to be a command 
  ’Mech, Thor IIs are frequently found in this role 
  thanks to the Model J-D 067 comm system . 
  Compared to competing products like the 
  Alpha-com, the 067 can support three times 
  the number of simultaneous connections . 
  Additionally, when operating in max power 
  mode, the 067 can cut through the interference 
  created by standard ECM suites .
  The Hawkeye 58 is a unique targeting and 
  tracking system that must be reconfigured 
  whenever the Omni’s pods are changed . While 
  the process is quick, it does briefly leave the 
  ’Mech unable to use its weapons .
  DEPLOYMENT
  When Swimmer Khanate’s Beta Aimag came 
  to Feltre in 3097, Clan Wolf Star Colonel Jess 
  Calvert challenged the Diamond Sharks to a Trial 
  of Possession for the entire aimag . Aggressive 
  bidding reduced each force to a Cluster . For the 
  Trial the Diamond Sharks selected a rugged patch 
  of terrain known as the Swordtooth Canyons, a 
  labyrinth of ravines and canyons, dead ends and 
  strong EM interference that fouled communica-
  tions and tracking systems . The fighting quickly 
  devolved into small-unit actions . 
  One of the Diamond Shark Stars, com-
  manded by Star Captain Erna, consisted entirely 
  of jump-capable ’Mechs including three Thor IIs . 
  Erna’s Star, having just mopped up a disorga-
  nized group of Wolves, was moderately dam-
  aged and low on ammo when they surprised 
  a Star of heavy Wolf OmniMechs . Erna jumped 
  her Thor into a flanking position while the re-
  mainder of her Star opened fire . Erna’s Star 
  quickly depleted their ammunition and were 
  forced to use secondary weaponry and physi-
  cal attacks to combat the Wolves . 
  The Wolf ’Mechs were just as badly dam-
  aged as Erna’s, and just as low on ammo . After 
  minutes of slugging it out with the Wolves, 
  Erna’s Star succeeded in pushing them into a 
  box canyon where she ultimately forced them 
  to surrender . It was then that Erna discovered 
  she’d just defeated Jess Calvert . 
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Reo Jones: Reo Jones is considered a failed 
  washout by the Knights of the Republic . What 
  they don’t know is that he’s actually a Ghost 
  Knight . Since the Wall went up, he has busied 
  himself putting down rebellions through-
  out Prefecture X . Rumors abound of a lone 
  Thor ambushing larger numbers of poorly-
  equipped pirates and thugs and leaving behind 
  broken ’Mechs and bodies . There is no doubt as 
  to his talents .
  Type: Grand Summoner
  Inner Sphere Designation: Thor II
  Technology Base: Clan
  Tonnage: 70
  Battle Value: 2,554
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  3 .5
  Engine:  
  350 XL 
   
  15
   
  Walking MP:  
  5
   
  Running MP:  
  8
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  14 [28] 
   
  4
  Gyro:  
   
   
  4
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Ferro): 
  192 
   
  10
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  22 
  31
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Torso 
  15 
  22
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  7
   
  R/L Arm 
  11 
  20
   
  R/L Leg 
  15 
  23
  Weight and Space Allocation
   
   
   
  Spaces
  Location 
  Fixed 
  Remaining
  Head 
  1 Ferro-Fibrous 
  0
  Center Torso 
  1 Endo Steel 
  1
  Right Torso 
  2 XL Engine 
  8
   
   
  2 Ferro-Fibrous
  Left Torso 
  2 XL Engine 
  10
  Right Arm 
  3 Endo Steel 
  3
   
   
  2 Ferro-Fibrous
  Left Arm 
  3 Endo Steel 
  3
   
   
  2 Ferro-Fibrous
  Right Leg 
  None 
  2
  Left Leg 
  None 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks:  Improved 
  Communications .
  
  169
  THOR II
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Primary Weapons Configuration
  Ultra AC/5 
  RA 
  3 
  7
  Ammo (Ultra) 20 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  ER Medium Laser 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  LRM 15 
  LT 
  2 
  3 .5
  ER Medium Laser 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (LRM) 16 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Ultra AC/5 
  LA 
  3 
  7
  Ammo (Ultra) 20 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  ER Medium Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  Jump Jets 
  RL 
  2 
  2
  Jump Jet 
  CT 
  1 
  1
  Jump Jets 
  LL 
  2 
  2
  Alternate Configuration A
  ER PPC 
  RA 
  2 
  6
  LRM 5 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (LRM 5) 24 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  LRM 15 
  LT 
  2 
  3 .5
  Ammo (LRM 15) 16 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (LB-X) 20 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  LB 10-X AC 
  LA 
  5 
  10
  Jump Jets 
  RL 
  2 
  2
  Jump Jet 
  CT 
  1 
  1
  Jump Jets 
  LL 
  2 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 2,473
  Alternate Configuration B
  LRM 15 
  RA 
  2 
  3 .5
  Ammo (LRM 15) 24 
  RA 
  3 
  3
  ER Small Laser 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  LRM 5 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (LRM 5) 24 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (ATM 9) 21 
  RT 
  3 
  3
  ER Small Laser 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  ATM 9 
  LT 
  4 
  5
  ATM 6 
  LT 
  3 
  3 .5
  LRM 5 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (ATM 6) 20 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  LRM 15 
  LA 
  2 
  3 .5
  Ammo (LRM 15) 24 
  LA 
  3 
  3
   
  Battle Value: 2,354
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Alternate Configuration C
  Large Pulse Laser 
  RA 
  2 
  6
  Streak SRM 4 
  RT 
  1 
  2
  Ammo (Streak) 25 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (Ultra) 5 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Flamer 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  Ultra AC/20 
  LT 
  8 
  12
  Ammo (Ultra) 10 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Large Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  2 
  6
   
  Battle Value: 2,351
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Alternate Configuration D
  ER Large Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  4
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  RA 
  2 
  1
  Targeting Computer 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  3 Double Heat Sinks 
  RT 
  6 
  3
  LRM 15 
  LT 
  2 
  3 .5
  Ammo (LRM) 16 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  3 Double Heat Sinks 
  LT 
  6 
  3
  ER Large Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  4
  ER Medium Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  LA 
  2 
  1
  Jump Jets 
  RL 
  2 
  2
  Jump Jet 
  CT 
  1 
  1
  Jump Jets 
  LL 
  2 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 2,878
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Alternate Configuration E
  ER PPC 
  RA 
  2 
  6
  Double Heat Sink 
  RA 
  2 
  1
  4 Improved Jump Jets 
  RT 
  8 
  8
  ER Small Laser 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  4 Improved Jump Jets 
  RT 
  8 
  8
  ER PPC 
  RA 
  2 
  6
  Double Heat Sink 
  RA 
  2 
  1
   
  Battle Value: 2,638
  
  170
  HEAVY 
  ’MECHS
  Mass: 75 tons
  Chassis: Sinha Endo Heavy Frame
  Power Plant: 375 XL
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: None
  Jump Jet Capacity: None
  Armor: Laser Reflective
  Armament: 
   
  2 Extended-Range  
   
  Particle Projector Cannons
   
  4 Medium Pulse Lasers
   
  1 Advanced Tactical Missile System 3-rack
  Manufacturer: Irece Alpha
  Primary Factory: New Barcella, Irece
  Communications System: Raldon R1
  Targeting and Tracking System: Dalban HiRez II
  Intended to inspire the warriors of Clan Nova 
  Cat, the Cave Lion was the first new BattleMech de-
  sign introduced by that Clan since the devastating 
  Second Dominion War . A partnership with the Sea 
  Foxes kept the Cats from having to depend on their 
  Combine hosts for assistance but saddled the de-
  sign with several shortcomings . Even so, the Cave 
  Lion quickly became a favorite of Cat warriors in all 
  units of the touman .
  CAPABILITIES
  Khan Jacali Nostra was determined that the 
  ‘Mech not be dependent on a fragile logistical 
  chain to resupply ammunition in the field and 
  chose an energy-based armament . Constrained by 
  the terms of the deal with the Sea Foxes, however, 
  she was forced to capitulate to the addition of an 
  Advanced Tactical Missile launcher as a showcase 
  for the merchant Clan’s products . Similarly, the ini-
  tial intent to utilize ferro-fibrous armor gave way to 
  new laser reflective plating . Nevertheless, the basic 
  spirit of the design remained and the Nova Cats 
  welcomed the newest addition to their touman .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Irece Alpha factory pumped out Cave 
  Lions as fast as possible and the new ‘Mechs 
  spread throughout the touman . Some war-
  riors adopted it wholeheartedly, embracing 
  the totemic aspects of the machine, while oth-
  ers found too many flaws in the design to be 
  comfortable using it . Though it was generally 
  a well-liked ‘Mech, it never quite caught on the 
  way the Clan leadership had hoped .
  As part of their deal, Tiburon Khanate re-
  ceived a percentage of each production run 
  beginning in 3131 and they offered it for sale 
  throughout their territory . Based on the previ-
  ous nine years of reactions and feedback from 
  Nova Cat warriors, the Sea Foxes had modest 
  sales goals for the Cave Lion . Their biggest cus-
  tomers were mid-sized mercenary units and 
  Nova Cat militia clusters within the Republic .
  Since the destruction of Clan Nova Cat, 
  Tiburon Khanate has become the sole holder of 
  production rights to the Cave Lion . Prohibited 
  per the original contract from introducing any 
  variants, they now have free rein to do as they 
  please . They are currently reevaluating the de-
  sign and addressing its worst flaws before rein-
  troducing it—perhaps rebranded and cosmeti-
  cally altered—for new markets .
  The Cave Lion has become a rare sight on 
  today’s battlefields, a sad reminder of the fall of 
  a once-great people . The Spirit Cats of the Clan 
  Protectorate field the largest concentration of 
  these ‘Mechs, having acquired them in a series 
  of trade deals through the intermediary of their 
  Spina Khanate allies .
  NOTABLE PILOTS
  Galaxy Commander Wolfgang West: Leading 
  the Rossei Keshik from the cockpit of his Cave Lion 
  “Atetenga,” Galaxy Commander West commanded 
  Nova Cat efforts in Dieron Prefecture in the early 
  days of their rebellion . As those efforts collapsed 
  in the face of a strong Combine counterattack, 
  he coordinated the pullback of the Clan’s forces 
  to Irece Prefecture and the protection of its civil-
  ian assets . Trapped on Paracale by the First Arkab 
  Legion, West and his Supernova fought through 
  enemy lines in a single-minded drive to reach the 
  Legion’s command staff while the rest of the Nova 
  Cat forces retreated off-planet . West was the only 
  warrior to reach Tai-sho Sharif’s position; despite 
  having almost no armor left, he challenged the 
  Arkab commander to single combat . Although 
  the outcome was a foregone conclusion, he came 
  uncomfortably close to succeeding . After his 
  death, Atetenga was reduced to scrap on the spot 
  by the victorious Azami warriors .
  Burkhard Schlömer: In the aftermath of the 
  failed Nova Cat rebellion, Silver Dragon Stables 
  on Solaris VII vowed to eradicate any gladiators 
  using Nova Cat equipment . Beginning with 
  Avanishi Khalsa and her Cave Lion “Rosse’s 
  Revenge,” they systematically worked their way 
  through the games with deadly determination . 
  Four more MechWarriors fell to the Dragons’ ven-
  detta until only Burkhard Schlömer remained . 
  Bribery of the gaming commissioners resulted 
  in Schlömer facing four Silver Dragon ‘Mechs 
  in the tunnels of Ishiyama . The match lasted 
  most of a single day and betting reached un-
  precedented levels, even among Solaris’ Clan 
  Wolf overlords, before Schlömer emerged 
  triumphant . His Cave Lion “Sturmgrief” was a 
  total loss but due to strategic betting before-
  hand, Schlömer walked away with a small fortune, 
  legions of admiring fans, and an unlimited tab 
  in any bar on the planet .
  CAVE LION
  
  171
  Type: Cave Lion
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 75
  Battle Value: 3,044
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  4
  Engine:  
  375 XL 
   
  19 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  5
   
  Running MP:  
  8
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  17 [34] 
   
  7
  Gyro: 
   
   
  4
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Reflective):  
  192 
   
  12
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  23 
  29
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Torso 
  16 
  25
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  6
   
  R/L Arm 
  12 
  18
   
  R/L Leg 
  16 
  24
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  2
  ER PPC 
  RT 
  2 
  6
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  RT 
  1 
  2
  Angel ECM Suite 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  ATM 3 
  CT 
  2 
  1 .5
  Ammo (ATM) 40 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  ER PPC 
  LT 
  2 
  6
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  LT 
  1 
  2
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Battlefists, 
  Distracting, Difficult to Maintain .
  CAVE LION
  
  172
  HEAVY 
  ’MECHS
  GTD-20S GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG
  Mass: 75 tons
  Chassis: Blackstone ETG Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Edasich 300 Compact
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: StarSlab/4 Heavy Ferro-Fibrous
  Armament:
   
  1 Defiance 1001 Extended Range  
   
  Particle Projection Cannon
   
  1 Coventry StarFire LRM 15 Launcher
   
  5 Defiance Model XII Extended Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: Blackstone BattleMechs, Ltd .
   
  Primary Factory: Inarcs
  Communications System: CommuTech High 
  Band 14
  Targeting & Tracking System: RCA Instatrac 
  Mark X
  Intended to replace the venerable 
  Thunderbolt, the Götterdämmerung is overde-
  signed and overly-complex .  Despite the me-
  dia’s mockery of the ’Mech, its survivability has 
  become legendary, making it a common sight 
  in a half dozen LCAF regiments .
  CAPABILITIES
  MechWarriors have a love/hate relation-
  ship with the Götterdämmerung’s torso-mount-
  ed cockpit . Ejection is impossible, and the 
  “quick-release” egress system is complicated . 
  First, the combat shroud must be retracted 
  by opening the emergency access panel and 
  pulling the lever . If the shroud fails to retract, 
  explosive retaining bolts will activate in ten 
  seconds . Next, the cockpit hatch explosive bolts 
  are armed by rotating the control dial counter-
  clockwise and activated by pushing in the dial . 
  If the ’Mech is upright, the escape slide may be 
  deployed by pulling the appropriate lever next 
  to the control dial .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Götterdämmerung demonstrated in-
  destructibility during the nineteenth battle 
  for Hesperus II . By the second day of fighting, 
  the LCAF had abandoned the world, leav-
  ing a ragtag bunch of mercenary commands 
  stranded outside the Defiance Industries fac-
  tory . Although the Wolves and Jade Falcons 
  were more interested in destroying each other, 
  both took time off to eliminate interlopers . The 
  Schachtebich Jägers found themselves in this 
  situation when they blundered into a Clan Wolf 
  Star from the Howl Keshik moments after they 
  had finished off a group of Jade Falcons east of 
  the Sulden Uplands in North Whitman .
  The Wolf unit included a Blood Reaper and a 
  Tundra Wolf, both of which took a pointed interest 
  in the Jägers Götterdämmerung, slagging its left 
  arm in the opening exchange . The Jägers fought 
  back valiantly . The Götterdämmerung assisted 
  in downing the Blood Reaper with a well-aimed 
  PPC shot that cooked off the ATM ammo in the 
  ’Mech’s right torso . The Jägers lost three ’Mechs, 
  reducing their number to six, but they destroyed 
  the Wolf Star . Intending to stay well out of combat, 
  the Jägers turned west . Two hours later they were 
  sighted by a reconnaissance Nova from the Howl 
  Keshik . Thinking the damaged Inner Sphere unit 
  ripe for picking, the Wolves attacked . 
  The Götterdämmerung downed a Nova, but 
  an ER PPC strike destroyed its head and Coventry 
  StarFire . Two Clanners escaped the carnage, but 
  only two of the Schachtebich Jägers survived; a 
  badly mauled Prefect and the Götterdämmerung, 
  now missing its head, left arm, left torso, and 
  three of its Defiance Model XIIs . 
  The Jägers attempted to go to ground, but 
  were set upon by the other half of the recon-
  naissance Nova: a Star of mixed battle armor . 
  With its offensive capability significantly ham-
  pered by the loss of its primary sensors, the 
  Götterdämmerung was at a significant disadvan-
  tage, but it still managed to eliminate a Point of 
  battle armor before a second Point swarmed it . 
  The ’Mech lost its right arm and right torso, but 
  didn’t go down until another Point joined in the 
  attack and took its left leg . Its MechWarrior was 
  uninjured . The Prefect also went down fighting, 
  though its pilot was not as fortunate .
  VARIANTS
  Blackstone also offers a short-range vari-
  ant—clearly inspired by Lyran Thunderbolt 
  variants—which uses short range missiles and 
  pulse lasers .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Warrior Eleanor: Although Clan Wolf took a 
  Götterdämmerung pilot as bondsman, repairing 
  the enemy ‘Mech was deemed an inefficient 
  use of resources . It, along with other salvage, 
  was traded to Clan Sea Fox . Reviewing the 
  recovered BattleROM, ovKhan Irwin Fowler of 
  Tiburon Khanate’s Delta Aimag was impressed 
  by how well it stood up to superior Clan weap-
  ons . He ordered the ‘Mech rebuilt using Clan 
  weapons and Ferro-Lamellor armor . In its first 
  test, Warrior Eleanor defeated four Clan light 
  and medium ‘Mechs, to the merchants’ ever-
  lasting glee .
   
  Tiburon Khanate has begun selling up-
  grade kits of this configuration to the Lyran 
  Commonwealth and any mercenary forces 
  that have the funds . Whispers in the Khanate 
  indicate a full factory model may be forthcoming .
  
  173
  GTD-20S GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG
  Type: Götterdämmerung
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 75
  Battle Value: 1,727
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  4
  Engine:  
  300 Compact 
   
  28 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  12 [24] 
   
  2
  Gyro (Compact): 
   
   
  4 .5
  Cockpit (Torso-Mounted): 
   
   
  4
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro): 
  231 
   
  12
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  23 
  36
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  10
   
  R/L Torso 
  16 
  24
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Arm 
  12 
  24
   
  R/L Leg 
  16 
  32
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  ER PPC 
  RA 
  3 
  7
  LRM 15 
  H 
  3 
  7
  Ammo (LRM) 8 
  H 
  1 
  1
  5 ER Medium Lasers 
  CT 
  5 
  5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Difficult 
  Ejection .
  
  174
  HEAVY 
  ’MECHS
  JADE HAWK
  Mass: 75 tons
  Chassis: Dynamic F14 Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Starfire 375 XL
  Cruising Speed: 54 kph
  Maximum Speed: 86 kph
  Jump Jets: Chilton 465 with Partial Wing
   
  Jump Capacity: 90 meters
  Armor: Jolassa 325
  Armament:
   
  4 Series 1g Extended Range Small Lasers
   
  4 Mk . 22 Type III SRM 6 Launchers
  Manufacturer: Dynamic Ordnance and 
  Ammunition Corp
   
  Primary Factory: Galatea
  Communications System: Angst Clear 
  Channel 6
  Targeting & Tracking System: Angst Accuracy
  The Jade Hawk debuted in early 3135 to 
  great interest . It seemed to be of Jade Falcon 
  origin, but it was built by Dynamic Ordnance 
  and Ammunition Corp (DOA) on Galatea and 
  marketed to mercenaries . RAF operatives quick-
  ly determined the source of the technological 
  know-how to be Clan Sea Fox .
  The Jade Hawk was developed by the Jade 
  Falcon technician caste under the urging of 
  then-Galaxy Commander Malvina Hazen . A tech 
  who despised the bloodthirsty warrior dupli-
  cated the plans and escaped to the Sea Foxes, 
  sharing the data on the stipulation that they not 
  be made available to other Clans . 
  CAPABILITIES
  A totemic descendant of the Flamberge, 
  the heavy Jade Hawk is both a military and sym-
  bolic asset . DOA capitalized on the BattleMech’s 
  strengths as an infighter by adding advanced 
  myomers, a supercharger, and upgrading the 
  ornamental claws . RAF combat reports con-
  demn the Jade Hawk due to a lack of ranged 
  weapons and suboptimal jump jets mated to 
  a fragile partial wing that depends on Sea Fox-
  delivered replacement parts . 
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Jade Hawk became a bestseller 
  among mercenaries almost immediately . The 
  prestige attached to piloting a heavy Clan 
  ’Mech offsets its limited focus in the eyes of 
  pilots . Freelancers can buy it without govern-
  mental sanctions, and it was simply perfect for 
  arena combat on Solaris VII .
  A Wolf’s Dragoons MechWarrior took his 
  new Jade Hawk into the arenas while on leave . 
  Defeating an Atlas in his first match by stun-
  ning its pilot with a full volley of short-range 
  missiles and then ripping off the Atlas’ head, 
  Sebastian Paschke ably demonstrated the Jade 
  Hawk’s potential .
  Mercenaries like the Ronin Group thor-
  oughly tested the Jade Hawk’s strengths . In a 
  clash with the Dragon’s Fury on Murchison in 
  August 3135, MechWarrior Aiko Ryohara used 
  her ’Mech’s astounding sprinting abilities to 
  rush the enemy commander while being cov-
  ered by LRM fire from her Flames Lance . This 
  straightforward attack caused the Fury’s re-
  treat, but relied on the element of surprise to 
  pull off what would otherwise have been tan-
  tamount to suicide . Feedback was relayed to 
  DOA after the battle’s conclusion that resulted 
  in the JHK-04 .
  A punitive raid led by then-Star Captain 
  Alaric of Clan Wolf on Koniz in October 
  3136 unveiled the Falcons’ own Jade Hawk . 
  Attacking upward on a plain outside of 
  Ogstrenburg, three Stars of light and me-
  dium Clan Wolf ’Mechs feinted a retreat, 
  luring pursuing Falcon units into the arms 
  of Alaric Wolf’s heavy Star, hidden in the 
  woods skirting the plain . Two Jade Hawks 
  jumped between the two forces in a futile 
  attempt to save the Falcons . Though both 
  Jade Hawks were lost, they took a heavy toll 
  on Wolf elements, destroying light ’Mechs in 
  single volleys and spreading fear with their  
  alien appearance .
   
  VARIANTS
  The Jade Hawk used by the Clans is simi-
  lar to the JHK-03, but features more advanced 
  weaponry while lacking physical combat 
  enhancements . Two further variants exist, 
  dropping the wings for missile upgrades or 
  even the jets for heavier lasers . DOA’s support 
  model, the JHK-04, also lacks jets and wings . 
  It fields imported Streak LRMs and drops the 
  advanced myomers, but retains the close com-
  bat claws .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Star Commander Sebastian Paschke: 
  Sebastian had turned his temporary stay on 
  Solaris VII into a permanent one until Clan Wolf 
  arrived . Seeking a greater challenge, Sebastian 
  joined Clan Wolf during an open call, defeating 
  two veteran warriors in the process . His time 
  as a mercenary fighting on Solaris, using a bla-
  tantly Jade Falcon ‘Mech design, are constant 
  sources of Trials of Grievance . These trials, along 
  with heavy ClanTech upgrades, have helped 
  Sebastian keep his skills razor sharp .
  
  175
  JADE HAWK
  Type: Jade Hawk JHK-03
  Technology Base: Mixed Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 75
  Battle Value: 2,099
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  4
  Engine:  
  375 XL 
   
  19 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  5 (6)
   
  Running MP:  
  8 (12)
   
  Jumping MP:  
  3*
  Heat Sinks:  
  12 [24]* 
   
  2
  Gyro: 
   
   
  4
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor:  
  216 
   
  13 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  23 
  34
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  11
   
  R/L Torso 
  16 
  22
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Arm 
  12 
  22
   
  R/L Leg 
  16 
  29
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  2 ER Small Lasers 
  RA 
  2 
  1
  Claw (IS) 
  RA 
  5 
  5
  2 SRM 6 
  RT 
  2 
  3
  Ammo (SRM) 15 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Supercharger 
  CT 
  1 
  2
  2 SRM 6 
  LT 
  2 
  3
  Ammo (SRM) 15 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  2 ER Small Lasers 
  LA 
  2 
  1
  Claw (IS) 
  LA 
  5 
  5
  Partial Wing 
  RT/LT 
  3/3 
  4
  Triple-Strength Myomer (IS) ** 
  6 
  0
  Jump Jet 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Jump Jet 
  CT 
  1 
  1
  Jump Jet 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Notes: *Partial Wing adds +1 Jump MP and –3 Heat per turn in Standard Atmosphere (see pp . 293 and 295, TO, for ad ditional rules) . ** Triple-Strength Myomer 
  occupies 1 critical slot each in the RA/LA, RL/LL, and RT/LT . Features the following Design Quirks: Distracting, Reinforced Legs, Non-Standard Parts .
  
  176
  ASSAULT 
  ’MECHS
  Mass: 80 tons
  Chassis: Earthwerks VOL
  Power Plant: GM 240
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Durallex Ballistic-Reinforced with CASE
  Armament:
   
  1 Imperator Dragon’s Fire Gauss Rifle
   
  2 Shigunga MRM 20 Launchers 
   
  1 Diverse Optics Type 20X  
   
  Extended-Range Medium Laser
  Manufacturer: Maltex Corporation
   
  Primary Factory: Unity
  Communications System: Colmax 90
  Targeting & Tracking System: Garret D2j with 
  Apollo FCS
  The cultural renaissance experienced 
  within the Combine military extended into the 
  DCMS’ most iconic BattleMech of the previous 
  century, the Hatamoto series . Not to be out-
  done by LAW, Maltex Corporation approached 
  the DCMS with a new-look version of the ’Mech, 
  incorporating innovative technologies that ap-
  pealed to many assault-class MechWarriors .
  CAPABILITIES 
  The most notable change to the Hatamoto 
  is the integration of heavier-grade ballistic armor . 
  The added protection gives the Hatamoto-suna a 
  few extra seconds against the heavier rapid-fire 
  cannons utilized by Davion forces .
  DEPLOYMENT 
  As the Combine’s Draconis Reach and 
  Republic campaigns wound down, the 
  Procurement Department used the new 
  Hatamoto-sunas as replacements for assault 
  losses . As the Shiro was designated by the kanrei 
  as an honor reward only, -sunas flowed quickly 
  to line regiments in need of assault ’Mechs . The 
  classic Japanese stylings were a welcome sight 
  to those regiments suffering materiel losses .
  The largest recipients of Hatamoto-sunas 
  are the reconstituted Dieron Regulars . Honored 
  by the presence of the Dragon’s most iconic 
  BattleMech, the samurai of the Regulars have 
  used them in grand displays of bushido . On 
  Helen, two assault lances comprised entirely of 
  new Hatamotos held the center of the Combine 
  line against a determined Forty-second Avalon 
  Hussars assault . The lances, tasked with defend-
  ing a major river crossing in front of the Regulars’ 
  secondary landing zone, did not cower behind 
  obstacles or terrain . Two Hatamotos, piloted by 
  brothers Ishi and Tashi Orinaga, stood side-by-
  side at the bridge entrance . Their reinforced 
  armor shrugged off continuous fire from a lance 
  of Davion Enforcers and Centurions, tying up a 
  portion of the Hussars advance .
  Two more Hatamotos maintained posi-
  tions near the center of the river, shunting four 
  separate attempts by Hussars hovercraft and a 
  heavy BattleMech lance to bypass the bridge . 
  The remaining four ranged along both river-
  banks, lending support as needed to their fel-
  low samurai . After more than ten hours of com-
  bat, only one Hatamoto had fallen . While the 
  rest of the Combine ’Mechs were damaged to 
  some degree, the river crossing remained un-
  breached and nearly two mixed companies of 
  Hussars were broken against them . 
  Several Hatamotos recently arrived at 
  Franklin to replace the Fifth Ghost’s losses on 
  Robinson . As the lance debarked, a mercenary 
  DropShip landed on the spaceport tarmac . 
  Disgorging a mixed company of vehicles and 
  light BattleMechs, the mercenaries attempted 
  to cow and steal a nearby Combine merchant 
  vessel . The technicians piloting the Hatamotos 
  turned into the fray . The raiders quickly retreated 
  after combined fire from two of the Hatamotos 
  felled their commander’s Malice . Combine aero-
  space captured the fleeing raider vessel a short 
  time later as it attempted to break orbit .
  VARIANTS
  The Hatamoto-godai is a rarity in mainline 
  Combine regiments . Packed with electronics, it 
  is a line commander’s BattleMech capable of co-
  ordinating a full company through its C3 suites . 
  Its dual lasers and extended missile rack make it 
  woefully underpowered .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Captain Del’Andre Mackisson: A fourth-gener-
  ation descendant of a Ryuken MechWarrior killed 
  on Misery in 3028, Del’Andre seemed an unusu-
  al choice for recruitment by Wolf’s Dragoons . 
  With the approval of his commanding officer 
  in Ryuken-ni, he applied for transfer to Gamma 
  Regiment after the Draconis Reach campaign 
  and was accepted on the strength of his perfor-
  mance on Glenmora . Fighting in a brand-new  
  Hatamoto-suna, Mackisson has embraced his new 
  unit with the fervor of a religious convert and 
  racked up numerous commendations during 
  campaigns in the Dragon’s Tongue .
  “Twitchy” Ramirez: This junior member of a 
  local yakuza gang on Kiamba was well-known 
  for the foolhardy stunts he would pull at the 
  smallest provocation . The stunt that got him 
  killed was attempting to steal a Hatamoto-suna 
  from a Sword of Light bivouac . To his credit, he 
  did manage five steps before the ‘Mech took a 
  header into the ground and his body was pulled 
  from the cockpit by angry soldiers .
  HTM-30S HATAMOTO-SUNA
  
  177
  Type: Hatamoto-Suna
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 80
  Battle Value: 2,086
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  8
  Engine:  
  240 
   
  11 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  3
   
  Running MP:  
  5
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro (XL): 
   
   
  1 .5
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Reinforced): 
  210 
   
  17 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  25 
  33
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  10
   
  R/L Torso 
  17 
  24
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Arm 
  13 
  22
   
  R/L Leg 
  17 
  25
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  MRM 20 
  RT 
  3 
  7
  Apollo FCS 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (MRM) 36 
  RT 
  3 
  3
  CASE 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  ER Medium Laser 
  H 
  1 
  1
  MRM 20 
  LT 
  3 
  7
  Apollo FCS 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (Gauss) 24 
  LT 
  3 
  3
  Gauss Rifle 
  LA 
  7 
  15
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Poor 
  Workmanship, Fast Reload .
  HTM-30S HATAMOTO-SUNA
  
  178
  ASSAULT 
  ’MECHS
  HWK-4F HAWKWOLF
  Mass: 80 tons
  Chassis: Advanced HWK
  Power Plant: Pitban 320
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Hope Shield with CASE
  Armament:
   
  2 Delta Dart LRM 15 Launchers
   
  2 Doombud 5-tube Multi-Missile 
   
   
  Launchers
  Manufacturer: Hope Industrial Works
   
  Primary Factory: Randis IV
  Communications System: Hope M13 Howler
  Targeting & Tracking System: Hope HawkEye
  The HWK-3F HawkWolf’s appearance dur-
  ing the Jihad was unnoticed except by the 
  Brotherhood of Randis’ enemies . Designed and 
  built by Hope Industrial Works (HIW) on Randis 
  IV, the HawkWolf was intended to strengthen 
  the Brotherhood’s forces and be sold as an ex-
  port . By 3095, HawkWolfs were part of several 
  nearby states’ militaries .
  CAPABILITIES 
  In 3100, Grand Knight William Dirac’s gov-
  ernment negotiated several economic and mili-
  tary pacts with both the Calderon Protectorate 
  and the Filtvelt Coalition, the Fiefdom of Randis’ 
  closest allies . With these agreements, HIW 
  began manufacturing modern armor plating for 
  its BattleMech lines . Now with modern armor, 
  the HawkWolf was also upgraded in other ways. 
  The -4F HawkWolf is faster, has better heat dissi-
  pation, more LRM ammo, and is easier to main-
  tain than the -3F .
  The HawkWolf’s role—medium to long-
  range fire support—is unchanged . A larger, 
  modern engine increases the HawkWolf’s top 
  speed by ten kph and one extra heat sink in-
  creases heat dissipation by seven percent . The 
  Delta Dart launchers and Doombud multiple 
  missile launchers allow the HawkWolf to send 
  forty long-range missiles downrange . Most 
  HawkWolf pilots reserve one ton of MML ammo 
  for SRMs, to discourage pursuit should they 
  have to retreat .
   
  DEPLOYMENT
  During Operation TRIDENT, a multiple-Pe-
  riphery state undertaking against the Tortuga 
  Pirates in 3129, the largest battle occurred on 
  New Port Royal . Alerted to the attacks on other 
  Dominion planets, the Port Royal pirates orga-
  nized and prepared to defend the planet . When 
  the TRIDENT force landed on Copper Ridge 
  Plateau, the pirates surrounded the site and 
  swarmed up the slopes .
  The TRIDENT force, consisting of the 
  Fiefdom of Randis’ First Battalion and a bat-
  talion each from the Second Taurian Pride 
  and Thumpers Assault Regiment, just man-
  aged to deploy before the pirates, estimated 
  at  eight battalions, attacked . Three hours 
  into the brutal battle, Grand Knight Dirac was 
  forced to deploy his last reserves: a lance of 
  Brotherhood HawkWolfs under the command 
  of Brother Carl Longstreet .
  Longstreet’s lance moved to where the de-
  fensive line was under the most pressure and, 
  using concentrated fire from all four HawkWolfs, 
  quickly destroyed three pirate ’Mechs . Once the 
  line was stable, Longstreet moved to another 
  threatened sector of the defense line . For the 
  next ten hours, Longstreet’s HawkWolfs were 
  in the thick of the fighting, retreating only to 
  reload . Several times, the HawkWolfs charged 
  into close combat, their MMLs and mass blunt-
  ing several pirate breakthroughs long enough 
  for the TRIDENT forces to rally and seal the gap .
  When the pirates finally retreated, more 
  than two-thirds of their force had been de-
  stroyed . Two of Longstreet’s HawkWolfs 
  were destroyed and the other two, including 
  Longstreet’s, were barely-mobile wrecks . In 
  return, the lance was credited with dozens of 
  pirate ’Mech and vehicle kills .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Brother Cleavon: A new member of a small 
  pirate band, Cleavon Horrocks turned on his 
  compadres after witnessing their slaughter 
  of innocents on Vackisujfalu . He was saved by 
  the arrival of Brother Turgon Breckner from 
  Randis . When Breckner fell after routing the 
  pirates, Cleavon vowed to honor his memory 
  and worked tirelessly to repair his damaged 
  HawkWolf and join the Brotherhood in penance .
  
  179
  HWK-4F HAWKWOLF
  Type: HawkWolf
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 80
  Battle Value: 1,428
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  8
  Engine:  
  320 
   
  22 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  14 
   
  4
  Gyro: 
   
   
  4
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor:  
  192 
   
  12
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  25 
  35
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  6
   
  R/L Torso 
  17 
  25
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  6
   
  R/L Arm 
  13 
  20
   
  R/L Leg 
  17 
  20
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  LRM 15 
  RA 
  3 
  7
  Ammo (LRM) 32 
  RT 
  4 
  4
  MML 5 
  RT 
  3 
  3
  Ammo (MML) 24/20 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  CASE 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  MML 5 
  LT 
  3 
  3
  LRM 15 
  LA 
  3 
  7
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy 
  to Maintain, Fast Reload, No/Minimal Arms, 
  Protected Actuators .
  
  180
  ASSAULT 
  ’MECHS
  LN-4B LU WEI BING
  Mass: 85 tons
  Chassis: HildCo Type VI-T Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Strand 340 Light
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: GM Jetstar
   
  Jump Capacity: 120 meters
  Armor: Starshield with CASE II
  Armament:
   
  1 Mydron Devastator LB 20-X Autocannon
   
  2 Ceres Arms Striker Light 
   
   
  Particle Projection Cannons
   
  1 Doombud MML 5 Launcher
  Manufacturer: Tao Mechworks
   
  Primary Factory: Sarmaxa
  Communications System: CeresCom Model 
  21-RS with Angel ECM Suite
  Targeting & Tracking System: C-Apple Churchill
  The loss of Victoria was a major blow to the 
  Capellan Confederation’s defense industry . The 
  work on an expansion to the facility on Sarmaxa 
  was accelerated and the first ’Mech to roll off 
  the lines was the new cornerstone of the CCAF’s 
  assault forces, the Lu Wei Bing, named in honor 
  of the revolutionaries that led the Green move-
  ment to overthrow the corrupt communist re-
  gime of twenty-first century China .
  CAPABILITIES
  Sometimes derided as an overgrown Victor, 
  the Lu Wei Bing combines durability and mobility 
  with a Mydron Devastator Autocannon . With little 
  other firepower, pilots have frequently, in private, 
  wished for a Gauss weapon for greater reach . 
  MechWarriors have a mixed bag when it comes 
  to protection: the armored cockpit can save them 
  from instant death, but the large amount of am-
  munition has left more than one MechWarrior in 
  a vegetative state after cascading explosions de-
  stroyed their cerebral cortexes with feedback .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The CCAF has dispersed the Lu Wei Bing to 
  most Capellan regiments, focusing on replacing 
  damaged assault ’Mechs and not favoring any 
  particular brigade . Generally it has been used to 
  replace other low-end ’Mechs but in some cases 
  used to free up a BattleMaster, Atlas or other 
  command ’Mech for an officer . Not only has Lu 
  Wei Bing production kept up with the attrition 
  rate of Victors and Strikers, it has allowed rare 
  Cyclopses to be spared frontline duty .
  The Lu Wei Bing played a prominent role in 
  the Battle of Red Clay Hills on Tikonov . The Fifth 
  Sian Dragoons had pushed far into the Republic’s 
  battle line and had stopped to consolidate their 
  gains . The Republic counterattack of two full 
  companies focused squarely on a small hill held 
  by a single Dragoon company . Unwilling to spar 
  at distance with the stealth-equipped Archers, 
  Cataphracts and Jinggaus, they advanced on the 
  Dragoon position only to be met by a lance of Lu 
  Wei Bings guarding the other two lances .
  Using their jump jets for mobility and the 
  sparse vegetation to shield themselves from the 
  entire unit, the Lu Wei Bings forced the Republic 
  forces on the defensive . Between the durability 
  of the Lu Wei Bings and their constant move-
  ment, the Republic was unable to dispatch 
  them nor were they able to find good shots 
  against the fire support units with their stealth 
  armor . Attempts to advance on the fire support 
  unit resulted in the Lu Wei Bing’s Devastators 
  brought to bear on the thin rear armor of the 
  Republic ’Mechs . The breaking point came 
  when Sao-wei Gryzlov’s Lu Wei Bing took a par-
  ticle cannon to the cockpit . The assault ’Mech 
  shook off the blow and returned fire, cockpit 
  structure showing through a gaping hole in the 
  armor, like a cyborg warrior finally revealed . The 
  Republic forces withdrew, five of their number 
  unable to pull back while only one Lu Wei Bing 
  was inoperable on the battlefield .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sang-shao Xian Kang: Sang-shao Kang of 
  the First Liao Guards was commanding a raid 
  of Deneb Kaitos at the same time the Fourth 
  Dieron Regulars sought to test the world’s de-
  fenses in May 3146 . Her ’Mechs were engaged 
  with the Third FedSuns Armored Cavalry when 
  the Regulars appeared on her sensors, ferreted 
  out from the distortion of combat thanks to 
  her Angel ECM . Instead of communicating, the 
  Regulars carved straight through her formation . 
  The stunned Kang opened fire on those she 
  thought to be allies against a common foe . As 
  the Regulars closed on her, she exhausted her 
  Mydron’s ammo . Her other weapons were in-
  sufficient, and her command company was de-
  stroyed . Her subordinates fled to their DropShips 
  and returned to Fletcher, bearing news that the 
  Combine did not intend to treat favorably even 
  when encountered fighting against the FedSuns .
  Captain Nico Schofield: Captain Schofield owns 
  Schofield’s Garrisoneers, a small-time mercenary 
  outfit . He counts himself lucky that the war en-
  gulfing seemingly the entirety of inhabited space 
  hasn’t reached his current contract posting of 
  Thadora’s Land . His company has a lance of Lu 
  Wei Bings, primarily because of the simplicity in 
  upkeep . All his other ’Mechs give the techs head-
  aches, but the Lu Wei Bings are always first from 
  the repair bay after fending off pirates .
  
  181
  LN-4B LU WEI BING
  Type: Lu Wei Bing
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 85
  Battle Value: 2,045
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  4 .5
  Engine:  
  340 Light 
   
  20 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  4
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  4
  Cockpit (Armored): 
   
   
  4
  Armor Factor: 
  256 
   
  16
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  27 
  39
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  12
   
  R/L Torso 
  18 
  26
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Arm 
  14 
  28
   
  R/L Leg 
  18 
  36
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  LB 20-X AC 
  RA/RT 
  10/1 
  14
  Ammo (LB-X) 20 
  RT 
  4 
  4
  Ammo (MML) 48/40 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  CASE II 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Angel ECM Suite 
  CT 
  2 
  2
  MML 5 
  LT 
  3 
  3
  2 Light PPC 
  LA 
  4 
  6
  Jump Jets 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Jump Jets 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to 
  Maintain .
  
  182
  ASSAULT 
  ’MECHS
  TLR2-O TEMPLAR III
  Mass: 85 tons
  Chassis: Kallon Type XX Endo Steel
  Power Plant: GM 340 Light
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: StarGuard CIV
  Armament:
   
  29 tons of pod space available
  Manufacturer: General Motors
   
  Primary Factory: New Valencia
  Communications System: Newberg Telescan 17
  Targeting & Tracking System: Spar 3C MegaTrak
  The Templar had been the Federated Suns’ 
  first OmniMech, intended to become one of 
  the AFFS’ flagship ’Mechs . The vaporization 
  of the Kallon Industries factory that built it 
  during the Jihad put those plans back several 
  decades, though General Motors wasted little 
  time in putting a new model into production 
  on New Valencia . The Templar III continues the 
  tradition begun by the original, updated with 
  modern technology .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Templar III offers everything an eighty-
  five ton assault ’Mech requires to be successful: 
  adequate speed, heavy armor and a weapons 
  configuration to do a number on any enemy . Of 
  particular note is the Templar III B, which com-
  bines a chain whip and a hatchet . Intended to 
  wade into the midst of the enemy, it is particu-
  larly brutal when used effectively .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Templar IIIs are popular ’Mechs for company 
  and battalion commanders, though they appear 
  in assault lances with some frequency . During 
  the Capellan invasion, one lance of three Templar 
  IIIs and a Salamander did considerable damage 
  to a Capellan company on Spica in late 3144 .
  Although they were unable to intercept 
  a lance of Vandal OmniMechs, Hartmann’s 
  Lance succeeded in blunting the advance 
  of a company of Capellan ’Mechs . With the 
  Salamander firing covering barrages of LRMs, 
  the three Templar IIIs used their ER PPCs and 
  targeting computers to deadly effect . The 
  Capellans, channeled into a narrow street 
  by minefields and battle armor hunter-killer 
  squads, had little choice but to advance in 
  column of twos toward the Davion lance . By 
  the time they reached 300 meters’ range, five 
  of the Capellan ’Mechs had been put out of 
  commission . With the Salamander dropping 
  Thunder minefields to close the path, the 
  lance withdrew to rearm .
  The next day all three Templars were 
  configured in the B configuration and moved 
  through the city independently, attacking the 
  Capellan ’Mechs attempting to sneak through 
  the Davion lines . With Davion VTOLs cover-
  ing the city with ECM noise, coordination was 
  nearly impossible, and the Templars dealt a fear-
  some culling . Six more Capellan ’Mechs died . It 
  wasn’t until the Liaos began a concerted two-
  company push through the city, street by street, 
  that the Templars were forced to withdraw .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Julian Davion: The “Arthur” was gifted to 
  Julian by Stone before Davion’s return to the 
  Federated Suns’ beleaguered battlefront in 
  3146 . MIIO took the OmniMech apart while 
  Julian met with Suns nobility on June in 3147, to 
  discuss the functionality of the government-in-
  exile . DMI remains convinced that the Republic 
  has tampered with the ‘Mech in some manner, 
  despite its flawless battle record .
  Captain Cacey Duncan: Captain Duncan as-
  sembled a company of like-minded Davion 
  haters among her Hansen’s Roughriders com-
  rades and went AWOL . She led them into 
  Capellan Confederation service to, as she put it, 
  “join in the fun of killing Davions before there’s 
  none left .” When the CCAF refused to hire 
  mutineers, she began small independent raids 
  on worlds the Capellans were already attack-
  ing . This cost her not just her ’Mech, but most 
  of her company, as the Second MAC took them 
  for pirate raiders . She salvaged a Templar III on 
  Menkalinan but has yet to put it to use .
  Type: Templar III
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 85
  Battle Value: 2,028
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  4 .5
  Engine:  
  340 Light 
   
  20 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4 
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  13 [26] 
   
  3
  Gyro (Heavy-Duty): 
   
   
  8
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor: 
  263 
   
  16 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  27 
  44
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  10
   
  R/L Torso 
  18 
  26
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  10
   
  R/L Arm 
  14 
  28
   
  R/L Leg 
  18 
  36
  
  183
  TLR2-O TEMPLAR III
  Weight and Space Allocation
  Location 
  Fixed 
  Spaces Remaining
  Head 
  1 Endo Steel 
  0
  Center Torso 
  None 
  2
  Right Torso 
  2 Engine 
  6
   
   
  1 CASE 
   
   
  3 Endo Steel
  Left Torso 
  2 Engine 
  7
   
   
  3 Endo Steel
  Right Arm 
  None 
  8
  Left Arm 
  3 Endo Steel 
  5
  Right Leg 
  2 Endo Steel 
  0
  Left Leg 
  2 Endo Steel 
  0
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Rumble Seat . 
  Fixed Equipment 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  CASE 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Primary Weapons Configuration
  ER PPC 
  RA 
  3 
  7
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  2 Double Heat Sinks 
  RA 
  6 
  2
  SRM 4 
  RT 
  1 
  2
  Ammo (SRM) 25 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  RT 
  3 
  1
  2 ER Small Lasers 
  CT 
  2 
  1
  Targeting Computer 
  LT 
  5 
  5
  ER PPC 
  LA 
  3 
  7
  ER Medium Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  Double Heat Sink 
  LA 
  3 
  1
  Configuration A
  Large Pulse Laser 
  RA 
  2 
  7
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  2
  MML 7 
  RT 
  4 
  4 .5
  Ammo (MML) 34/28 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  MML 7 
  LT 
  4 
  4 .5
  Large Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  2 
  7
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 1,677
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Configuration B (Advanced)
  Hatchet 
  RA 
  6 
  6
  4 Small X-Pulse Lasers 
  RT 
  4 
  4
  ER Small Laser 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  Supercharger 
  CT 
  1 
  2 .5
  2 Small X-Pulse Lasers 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  ER PPC 
  LT 
  3 
  7
  Chain Whip 
  LA 
  2 
  3
  Jump Jets 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Jump Jets 
  LT 
  2 
  2
   
  Battle Value: 1,919
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Critical 
  Tonnage
  Configuration C (Advanced)
  Rotary AC/5 
  RA 
  6 
  10
  Ammo (RAC) 60 
  RT 
  3 
  3
  ER Medium Laser 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (Streak) 15 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  ER Small Laser 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  Streak SRM 6 
  LT 
  2 
  4 .5
  ER Medium Laser 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Large Re-Engineered Laser 
  LA 
  5 
  8
   
  Battle Value: 1,968
  Configuration D (Mixed, Advanced)
  LB 10-X AC (C) 
  RA 
  5 
  10
  Ammo (LB-X) 30 
  RT 
  3 
  3
  Medium Re-Engineered Laser 
  RT 
  2 
  2 .5
  Medium Re-Engineered Laser 
  CT 
  2 
  2 .5
  2 Medium Re-Engineered Lasers 
  LT 
  4 
  5
  ER PPC (C) 
  LA 
  2 
  6
   
  Battle Value: 2,041
  
  184
  ASSAULT 
  ’MECHS
  JLN-5A JULIANO
  Mass: 90 tons
  Chassis: Irian Tonans Endo-Composite
  Power Plant: Hermes 360 XL
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Durallex Guardian II Light Ferro-
  Fibrous with CASE II
  Armament:
   
  3 Diverse Optics Sunbeam  
   
  Extended-Range Large Lasers
   
  3 Diverse Optics Sunfire Extended-Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
   
  4 Pattern J6 Streak-6 SRM Launchers
  Manufacturer: Irian BattleMechs Unlimited
   
  Primary Factory: Angell II 
  Communications System: Irian HMR 35s
  Targeting & Tracking System: Omicron Alert
  The Juliano was the culmination of the 
  Marik-Stewart Commonwealth’s longstanding 
  attempt to develop a new native assault ’Mech . 
  Named after the first captain-general of the 
  Free Worlds League, it enjoyed twenty years 
  of service in the AMSC and earned its place as 
  a signature ’Mech of the realm . Following the 
  fall of Marik-Stewart, the Juliano has become a 
  signature unit of the reborn FWLM, and is likely 
  to spearhead any effort to reclaim the worlds it 
  once defended .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Juliano has an excellent balance of 
  armor and firepower that makes it deadly on 
  the defensive or the offensive and retains suf-
  ficient mobility to react to opportunities . It can 
  thus fill almost any tactical niche that calls for 
  an assault ’Mech . Inexperienced pilots may 
  cause the Juliano to critically overheat by using 
  its laser batteries too aggressively . A special-
  ized heat management computer was installed 
  on the advice of the prototype’s pilots and has 
  helped to mitigate the issue in FWLM service .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Export of the Juliano had been forbid-
  den by Marik-Stewart, and remains forbidden 
  by the reformed Free Worlds League . By 3140 
  new-build Julianos were being assigned in large 
  numbers to the Tamarind Regulars to support 
  their efforts against the LCAF . The Juliano is now 
  rapidly becoming a mainstay of League assault 
  lances . Outside the League only Clan Wolf fields 
  substantial numbers of Julianos, assigning sal-
  vaged units from its invasion of Marik-Stewart 
  to second-line Clusters .
  The Eighth Tamarind Regulars benefited 
  from the new League’s largesse before their com-
  bat debut during the Fourth Battle of Tamarind 
  in 3142 . A number of the unit’s assault lances 
  were equipped with Julianos, usually paired with 
  Awesomes . Those lances were committed to the 
  Eighth’s drive through the Harvison Flats toward 
  the capital of Zanzibar . The largely open desert 
  terrain favored long-range skirmishing between 
  FWLM and Lyran assault ’Mechs while both sides 
  committed lighter units to flanking maneuvers .
  At first the Juliano disappointed . It had 
  difficulties inflicting serious damage on the 
  Banshees, Zeuses, and Atlases of the Eleventh 
  Lyran Guards at the combat ranges dictated 
  by the terrain . But as the first week of the cam-
  paign ended the ammunition efficiency of the 
  Juliano began to tell . As Lyran assault machines 
  withdrew from combat to rearm, the Juliano 
  remained fighting and could savage heavy and 
  medium ’Mechs left to their own devices .
  The fording of the Zanzibar River at Point 
  Bravo finally saw the Juliano truly shine . A 
  mixed assault lance of the Eighth Regulars 
  faced off against a Lyran Guards assault lance . 
  The Lyrans were withdrawing to the far side 
  of the river, trying to retreat to Zanzibar, when 
  the Regulars intercepted them . Having been 
  in sustained combat, the Lyran lance’s Banshee 
  was out of ammunition, while the commander’s 
  Hauptmann was on half-loads and the other 
  two ’Mechs lacked missile rounds . The Julianos 
  and their supporting Awesomes had no diffi-
  culty engaging them at long-range . Once the 
  Lyrans shot off most of their remaining ammu-
  nition the Julianos closed on the lance and tore 
  them apart in a flurry of laser and SRM fire .
  VARIANTS
  The 5B and 5C variants represent Irian 
  BattleMechs Unlimited’s current Juliano produc-
  tion models . The 5B replaces the Clan Streak 
  SRM6s in each arm with standard SRM6 launch-
  ers . The 5C configuration, based on the 5A, retains 
  the Streak SRM6s but upgrades all laser weaponry 
  with Clan-tech versions . In addition, medium 
  pulse lasers substitute the three ER medium lasers .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Star Captain Samantha Sender: During a lull 
  in 3148, the Red Keshik challenged the First Free 
  World Guards for JumpShip repair services at 
  the Illium Shipyards of Ionus . Though the small 
  trial was honorably fought, Star Captain Sender 
  crippled Major Alessio’s Juliano and claimed 
  the ’Mech as isorla . To this day, members of the 
  First are rankled by the knowledge that one of 
  the League’s signature ’Mechs remains in Wolf 
  Empire hands .
  
  185
  JLN-5A JULIANO
  Type: Juliano
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Mixed)
  Tonnage: 90
  Battle Value: 2,105
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo-Composite 
   
  7
  Engine:  
  360 XL 
   
  16 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  16 [32] 
   
  6
  Gyro: 
   
   
  4
  Cockpit (Armored): 
   
   
  4
  Armor Factor (Light Ferro): 
  279 
   
  16 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  29 
  47
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  11
   
  R/L Torso 
  19 
  30
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  8
   
  R/L Arm 
  15 
  30
   
  R/L Leg 
  19 
  38
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  2 Streak SRM 6 (C) 
  RA 
  4 
  6
  Ammo (Streak) 30 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  ER Medium Laser 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  CASE II 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  ER Large Laser 
  RT 
  2 
  5
  ER Medium Laser 
  H 
  1 
  1
  ER Large Laser 
  CT 
  2 
  5
  ER Large Laser 
  LT 
  2 
  5
  2 Streak SRM 6 (C) 
  LA 
  4 
  6
  Ammo (Streak) 30 
  LA 
  2 
  2
  ER Medium Laser 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  CASE II 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Combat 
  Computer .
  
  186
  ASSAULT 
  ’MECHS
  VIKING IIC
  Mass: 90 tons
  Chassis: GC Type 2C Endo Steel
  Power Plant: GM 270
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 43 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: GC Hardened Slab with CASE II
  Armament:
   
  2 Type XX “Great Bow” LRM-20 Launcher 
   
  2 Type XVI LRM-15 Launchers
   
  2 Mustang 4 .5 ER Micro Lasers
   
  4 Series IX Machine Gun
  Manufacturer: Arc-Royal MechWorks, 
  Grumium Creations
   
  Primary Factory: Arc-Royal (ARM),  
   
  Grumium (GC)
  Communications System: GC Wave 12B
  Targeting & Tracking System: GC MultiTrac 
  System Type 6 with Artemis V
  The original Viking was usually written off as 
  purely a fire support ’Mech incapable of defend-
  ing itself at close ranges . The Viking IIC refit, how-
  ever, uses Clan technology to turn the dedicated 
  fire support ’Mech into a more effective missile 
  platform that is incredibly difficult to take down . 
  Those that still malign the Viking IIC as just a fire 
  support ’Mech tend to change their story after 
  witnessing one in action on the battlefield .
  The Viking IIC refit project began as Grumium 
  Creations’ attempt to avoid bankruptcy . Once 
  Grumium refitted its on-hand supply of Vikings, 
  the specs were licensed to Arc-Royal MechWorks, 
  which chose to build the Viking IIC from the 
  ground up rather than refit preexisting Vikings .
  CAPABILITIES
  Unlike its predecessor, the Viking IIC per-
  mits the pilot to effectively engage foes at 
  any range due to the addition of Clan missile 
  launchers and advanced missile targeting sys-
  tems . Further upgrades, such as a CASE II sys-
  tem and the incorporation of hardened armor, 
  give the ’Mech more staying power . The model’s 
  main drawback remains its limited ammunition 
  reserves, which means it must still remain close 
  to supply lines or risk depleting its munitions at 
  a critical moment .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Before Grumium Creations shuttered its 
  ’Mech facilities, refitted Viking IICs proliferated 
  throughout the Rasalhague Dominion’s tou-
  man . Although Clan Wolf-in-Exile manufactures 
  the ’Mech, the Viking IIC’s low top speed does 
  not fit with the Clan’s battle philosophy, leading 
  to limited usage among their touman . Thus, the 
  LCAF procures most of Arc-Royal MechWorks’ 
  production runs . Also, the Republic has occa-
  sionally purchased a few .
  During the Second Combine-Dominion 
  War, the Thirteenth Sun Zhang Cadre took the 
  Dominion’s Fourteenth Provisional Garrison 
  Cluster by surprise on Thule . Two lances from 
  the Thirteenth dismissed the threat of a Star 
  of the PGC’s Viking IICs until the Dominion 
  warriors closed the distance and rained accu-
  rate fire down upon the Combine troops . The 
  Thirteenth focused on the Star, only to learn 
  the Viking IICs didn’t fall as easily as expected . 
  By then it was too late, and the Star’s back-
  up arrived to help finish off the retreating 
  Cadre ’Mechs before the Viking IICs depleted  
  their ammunition .
  The LCAF also used Viking IICs to great ef-
  fect during the defense of Tamarind in 3138 
  when the Unified Duchy Military Command 
  attempted to reclaim its capital . At first the 
  Fourth Royal Guards used its complement of 
  Viking IICs to defend the regiment’s DropShips, 
  but soon Hauptmann-General Green pressed 
  them into supplementing assault missions . An 
  engagement between the Fourth Guards and 
  the Eighth Tamarind Regulars resulted in a lance 
  of Viking IICs laying down a blanket of fire while 
  the second lance accompanied the company’s 
  command lance in a frontal assault . Under sus-
  tained fire, the Tamarind-Abbey troops were 
  forced to retreat and regroup .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sergeant Daphne van Gelder: Van Gelder has 
  spent most of her career assigned to a Viking 
  in the Eighth Lyran Regulars . This vintage ’Mech 
  nearly gave up the ghost during a fusion-reac-
  tor maintenance accident—or possible Free 
  Worlds League sabotage attempt, depending 
  on her company’s popular belief . Instead of 
  receiving a replacement, Van Gelder’s Viking 
  was repaired and updated with the Viking IIC 
  refit package . However, during training maneu-
  vers, an LRM feed suffered a malfunction that 
  touched off the entire magazine . The Eighth’s 
  techs blamed it on the refit package’s “shoddy 
  workmanship,” but Van Gelder still suspects a 
  League saboteur in her midst .
  Tai-i Faraj Nejem: Tai-i Nejem’s company of the 
  Second Arkab Legion defended a Dominion 
  raid by the Second Drakøn Cluster in 3146, but 
  a cost of victory was Nejem’s beloved Orochi . A 
  salvaged Viking IIC served as his replacement . 
  Although the ’Mech was slower than the Orochi, 
  it acquitted itself well during a Dominion raid 
  on the neighboring world of Shirotori six 
  months later . The Viking IIC formed the focal 
  point of the Legion’s defense, and Nejem’s com-
  pany now sees the ’Mech as a good luck charm .
  
  187
  VIKING IIC
  Type: Viking IIC
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 90
  Battle Value: 2,780
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  4 .5
  Engine:  
  270 
   
  14 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  3
   
  Running MP:  
  4
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  11 [22] 
   
  1
  Gyro: 
   
   
  3
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Hardened): 
  248 
   
  31
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  29 
  33
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  10
   
  R/L Torso 
  19 
  31
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  7
   
  R/L Arm 
  15 
  30
   
  R/L Leg 
  19 
  30
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  LRM 20 
  RA 
  4 
  5
  Artemis V FCS 
  RA 
  2 
  1 .5
  LRM 15 
  RT 
  2 
  3 .5
  Artemis V FCS 
  RT 
  2 
  1 .5
  ER Micro Laser 
  RT 
  1 
   .25
  Ammo (LRM 15) 8 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (LRM 20) 12 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (MG) 100 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  CASE II 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  LRM 15 
  LT 
  2 
  3 .5
  Artemis V FCS 
  LT 
  2 
  1 .5
  ER Micro Laser 
  LT 
  1 
   .25
  Ammo (LRM 15) 16 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (LRM 20) 12 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  CASE II 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  LRM 20 
  LA 
  4 
  5
  Artemis V FCS 
  LA 
  2 
  1 .5
  2 Machine Guns 
  RL 
  2 
   .5
  2 Machine Guns 
  LL 
  2 
   .5
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Difficult to 
  Maintain, Improved Targeting (Long), No/Minimal 
  Arms, Poor Targeting (Short) .
  
  188
  ASSAULT 
  ’MECHS
  KGC-009 KING CRAB
  Mass: 100 tons
  Chassis: StarFrame HII Endo Steel
  Power Plant: Vlar 300
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: ArcShield VII Mk .5 with CASE
  Armament:
   
  2 Defiance Novashot Model 2  
   
  Plasma Rifles
   
  2 SarLon MiniCannon Light Class 5  
   
  Autocannons
   
  2 Doombud 7-Tube Multi-Missile  
   
  Launchers
   
  2 Phototech 806c Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: StarCorps Industries
   
  Primary Factory: Loburg
  Communications System: Dalban Commline 
  with Guardian ECM Suite
  Targeting & Tracking System: Dalban HiRez-B
  Few ’Mechs inspire the dread that the King 
  Crab has held for opposing MechWarriors over 
  the last four centuries . After StarCorps relocated 
  their operations from Son Hoa, restarting pro-
  duction of the venerable assault ’Mech was a 
  company priority, though they used the oppor-
  tunity to update it for the modern battlefield . 
  The resulting variant debuted in 3104 and has 
  met with consistently insatiable demand from 
  the LCAF .
  CAPABILITIES
  The KGC-009 King Crab is notoriously dif-
  ficult to put down, thanks to heavy armor and 
  a reinforced gyro that can keep the machine 
  on its feet even when faced with withering fire . 
  Unfortunately the King Crab is unsuitable for 
  sustained operations and particularly vulner-
  able to being outmaneuvered, and so is best 
  utilized at the spearhead of critical assaults . 
  This reality rarely dissuades senior Lyran com-
  manders from appropriating King Crabs for their 
  personal use .
  DEPLOYMENT
  King Crabs are found throughout the LCAF 
  thanks to a longstanding initiative by the High 
  Command to retire and replace older assault 
  ’Mechs with updated models .  Losses taken in 
  the Clan invasions have only increased the in-
  satiable demand for the machine from House 
  Steiner . Officers with a record of public loyalty 
  to Archon Trillian Steiner have notably seen new 
  King Crabs delivered at a higher rate of priority .
  The KGC-009 model first came to promi-
  nence in 3104, when two of the prototypes 
  were deployed as part of Archon Adam Steiner’s 
  assault on the final Brotherhood of Cincinnatus 
  stronghold on Gacrux . Piloted by MechWarriors 
  from the First Royal Guards, the two machines 
  weathered fire from a heavy battery of auto-
  mated defenses along the forward approach 
  to the Brotherhood fortress and engaged the 
  responding traitor units in a bitter firefight . 
  The threat the prototypes posed distracted the 
  Brotherhood command from the real assault 
  coming via a hidden approach to their rear .
  Lyran King Crabs experienced some-
  what less success during the Fourth Battle of 
  Tamarind . The Eleventh Lyran Guards used 
  their scattered assault lances to cover their re-
  maining forces during clashes on the Harvison 
  Flats with the Tamarind Regulars . In theory 
  paired plasma rifles should have made the 
  King Crab highly effective against Tamarind 
  Julianos and Awesomes in the rearguard ac-
  tions . In practice, the Guard King Crabs were 
  outmaneuvered by the faster assault ’Mechs 
  and worn down by superior long-range fire . 
  The surviving King Crabs proved themselves 
  useful covering the retreat of the Guards 
  through the capital of Zanzibar, but at that 
  point the battle had already been lost .
  Accounts from the fighting in Tharkad City 
  in 3143 are mixed . The King Crabs fielded by 
  the Royal Guards were highly effective fighting 
  Wolf units of similar weight in the constricted 
  terrain of the capital . They were, however, vul-
  nerable to ambush by battle armor, with most 
  of the King Crabs lost in the battle taken down 
  by swarm attacks . The LCAF has since revised 
  doctrine to favor supporting the King Crab 
  with battle armor of its own when operating in 
  urban terrain .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Kommandant Samuel Rafel: Kommandant 
  Rafel is the step-grandson of Jihad-era hero 
  Thomas Hogarth . He grew up watching how po-
  larizing a figure his grandfather became . Unlike 
  Reiner Hogarth, Samuel’s relative, Samuel has 
  done his best to earn his own way and not 
  ride his grandfather’s name . A recipient of two 
  separate battlefield promotions, Samuel has 
  worked to adapt his grandfather’s philosophy 
  to military combat without the braggadocio 
  and prideful showmanship .
  Hauptmann Maximillian Marius: A graduate of 
  Nagelring, it is a testament to his skill and per-
  severance that this non-noble earned command 
  of a company in the Royal Guards . Marius’ King 
  Crab was badly damaged in the Third Battle for 
  Tharkad . With replacement parts in ill supply, the 
  ‘Mech was rebuilt with available Clan salvage . A 
  pair of hyper assault Gauss rifles replaced the 
  autocannons and missile racks, and Clan ER small 
  lasers replaced the mediums . The variant has 
  proven so successful in combat that StarCorps 
  has petitioned to make it a steady factory run .
  
  189
  KGC-009 KING CRAB
  Type: King Crab
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 100
  Battle Value: 2,260
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  5
  Engine:  
  300 
   
  19
   
  Walking MP:  
  3
   
  Running MP:  
  5
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  14 [28] 
   
  4
  Gyro (Heavy-Duty): 
   
   
  6
  Cockpit (Small): 
   
   
  2
  Armor Factor: 
  307 
   
  19 .5
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  31 
  46
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  16
   
  R/L Torso 
  21 
  32
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  10
   
  R/L Arm 
  17 
  34
   
  R/L Leg 
  21 
  42
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Light AC/5 
  RA 
  2 
  5
  Plasma Rifle 
  RA 
  2 
  6
  Ammo (Plasma) 20 
  RA 
  2 
  2
  Medium Laser 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  MML 7 
  RT 
  4 
  4 .5
  Ammo (MML) 34/28 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  Ammo (Light AC) 20 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  CASE 
  RT 
  1 
   .5
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  H 
  2 
  1 .5
  Medium Laser 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  MML 7 
  LT 
  4 
  4 .5
  Ammo (MML) 17/14 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (Light AC) 20 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  CASE 
  LT 
  1 
   .5
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Light AC/5 
  LA 
  2 
  5
  Plasma Rifle 
  LA 
  2 
  6
  Ammo (Plasma) 20 
  LA 
  2 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Difficult to 
  Maintain .
  
  190
  ASSAULT 
  ’MECHS
  KODIAK II
  Mass: 100 tons
  Chassis: Alshain LXL Endo Steel
  Power Plant: 400 Fusion XL
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
   
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Forging AD56 Standard
  Armament:
   
  2 Type XX “Great Bow” LRM-20 Launcher
   
  1 Type X “Short Bow” LRM-10
   
  1 Clan Mk . XVII ERPPC
   
  8 Series 1 Extended Range Small Lasers
  Manufacturer: Alshain Weapons
   
  Primary Factory: Alshain
  Communications System: Garret L20
  Targeting & Tracking System: RCA Instatrac 
  Mark IX with Artemis IV
  Based upon the Kodiak 4, the Kodiak II 
  entered production in 3095 and has become 
  the Rasalhague Dominion’s favored command 
  ’Mech . It is remarkably spacious and comfort-
  able, particularly for a Clan ’Mech . The enhanced 
  Garret L20 features twelve extra multifunction 
  displays and simultaneous audio and video 
  channels that provide commanding officers with 
  unparalleled information while allowing them to 
  remain in the thick of the action . 
  CAPABILITIES 
  The RCA Instatrac offers full-telemetry 
  tracking but when running close to capacity, the 
  system occasionally generates false-positives 
  for missile lock . Two malfunction scenarios have 
  been identified: unarmed fire and failure to fire . 
  Interestingly, a normal firing sequence may still 
  occur . Alshain Weapons issued a service bulletin 
  for this defect in 3105, but a significant number 
  of Kodiak IIs have not been updated .
  DEPLOYMENT
  In 3140 elements of the Jade Falcon’s Fifty-
  third Battle Cluster tussled with the Second 
  Bear Regulars on Jabuka . Star Colonel Anton 
  Hall commanded the Bear Regulars from his 
  Kodiak II. Using the ’Mech’s sophisticated com-
  mand capabilities, Star Colonel Hall was able to 
  coordinate actions for each Trinary from a for-
  ward position where he and his command Star 
  could also redeploy as needed .
  Fighting soon bogged down in the rug-
  ged terrain surrounding Squaw Bay . Colonel 
  Hall became preoccupied with coordinating 
  his forces and did not observe a pair of Jade 
  Falcon Nagas moving into range on the far side 
  of the bay . Moments later, explosions engulfed 
  his command Star as the Falcon artillery found 
  its mark . Star Colonel Hall’s Kodiak II weathered 
  the storm better than its companions, and the 
  entire Star survived the surprise strike . Having 
  no other forces in reserve, Star Colonel Hall 
  ordered his Star to action .
  While circumnavigating the bay, two of 
  Hall’s ’Mechs succumbed to artillery fire, but 
  the Star reached firing range . The Star Colonel 
  unleashed the full fury of his Star on the Jade 
  Falcon ’Mechs . Within five minutes the fighting 
  was over . 
  VARIANTS
  In addition to using an XXL engine and a 
  revolutionary HarJel III system, the Kodiak II 2 
  removes heat sinks and the Short Bow to up-
  grade the Long Bows to Long Bow Delta Series 
  Streak missile launchers, significantly improving 
  the ’Mech’s long range firepower despite the 
  reduction in missiles launched .
  Recently, Kodiak IIs in Omega Galaxy have 
  been observed that revive experiments once 
  made using the original Kodiaks . These hybrid 
  variants trade all weaponry for huge MRM 
  launchers in each arm, while the torso once 
  again contains a gargantuan LB 20-X autocan-
  non . Omega is hoping that the use of Inner 
  Sphere tech will provide a surprise advantage on 
  the battlefield--especially against Kuritan oppo-
  nents who might be unused to having weapons 
  of their own design turned against them .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Star Captain Geoff Bekker: Dismissed from the 
  nascent Wolf Hunters by Anastasia Kerensky, 
  Bekker drifted as a solo mercenary for sev-
  eral years before winning a spot in the Vega 
  Protectorate’s Omega Galaxy . Piloting “Black 
  Bear,” Bekker has earned a reputation as an 
  aggressive and almost supernaturally lucky 
  fighter whom many consider “more Ghost Bear 
  than human .”
  Lieutenant Rotem Fridberg: Born of Clan 
  and Lyran descent, and raised on Northwind, 
  Fridberg always saw himself as a Highlander 
  first and foremost . His Kodiak II “Lost Cub” start-
  ed its life as a Kodiak 4 in Stone’s Coalition and 
  has been part of the Highlanders’ roster since 
  the Jihad . Fridberg served faithfully with Tara 
  Campbell and the Remnant for two decades, 
  but met an ignominious end when he chose the 
  wrong side during the battle for Callison .
  
  191
  KODIAK II
  Type: Kodiak II
  Technology Base: Clan
  Tonnage: 100
  Battle Value: 3,066
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  Endo Steel 
   
  5
  Engine:  
  400 XL 
   
  26 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  20 [40] 
   
  10
  Gyro: 
   
   
  4
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor:  
  304 
   
  19
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  31 
  46
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  15
   
  R/L Torso 
  21 
  32
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  10
   
  R/L Arm 
  17 
  33
   
  R/L Rear Leg 
  21 
  42
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  LRM 20 
  RA 
  4 
  5
  Artemis IV FCS 
  RA 
  1 
  1
  4 ER Small Lasers 
  RA 
  4 
  2
  Ammo (LRM 20) 12 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  ER PPC 
  RT 
  2 
  6
  Targeting Computer 
  CT 
  2 
  2
  LRM 10 
  LT 
  1 
  2 .5
  Artemis IV FCS 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (LRM 10) 12 
  LT 
  1 
  1
  Ammo (LRM 20) 12 
  LT 
  2 
  2
  LRM 20 
  LA 
  4 
  5
  Artemis IV FCS 
  LA 
  1 
  1
  4 ER Small Lasers 
  LA 
  4 
  2
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Command BattleMech, Distracting .
  
  192
  INDUSTRIAL 
  ’MECHS
  Mass: 50 tons
  Chassis: ITW Heavy Industrial Chassis
  Power Plant: ITW 200 Fusion
  Cruising Speed: 43 kph
  Maximum Speed: 64 kph
  Jump Jets: None
  Jump Capacity: None
  Armor: Irian HardCase Heavy Industrial
  Equipment:
   
  1 Imperator Napoleon Light AC/5
   
  1 Irian Weapon Works Class 4 SRM System
   
  1 Wildfire Tight-Stream Electromagnetic  
   
  Pulse
  Manufacturer: Irian Technologies, Ltd . 
  (SecurityMech Division)
  Primary Factory: Irian
  Communications System: McCall Home-20 
  CommoRig
  Targeting and Tracking System: ITW 
  Targetech AFC
  When the RAF’s Department of Requisition 
  and Replacement developed the Tight-Stream 
  Electromagnetic Pulse weapon they needed a 
  testbed machine in which to install the proto-
  types . As Irian Technologies was already work-
  ing in conjunction with the DR&R on the new 
  weapon system, it only made sense to install it 
  on an IrTech design . In a concurrent though un-
  related project, IrTech had embarked on a rede-
  sign of their venerable Inquisitor SecurityMech 
  that would see it bulked up to the assault-equiv-
  alent weight class . The coincidence in timing 
  between the two projects was too fortuitous to 
  pass up and the Inquisitor II was repurposed as 
  a showcase ‘Mech for the new weapon .
  CAPABILITIES
  In developing the Inquisitor II, IrTech’s 
  designers used exactly the same armored 
  shell as the ubiquitous ITW-80 . Thus, the same 
  “monkish” cowl and shawl appearance of the 
  upper body was maintained, emphasizing the 
  continuity of the Inquisitor line . This also con-
  tinued the notoriously cramped cockpit and 
  poor ejection system of the ‘Mech, which have 
  long been a point of concern to its pilots . IrTech 
  designers, however, are apparently still willing 
  to trade off the comfort and survivability of the 
  company’s security personnel in favor of the 
  slight added protection the head enjoys .
  The ITW-80 earned itself a bad reputation 
  amongst pilots for its tendency towards cata-
  strophic ammunition explosions . The design 
  team addressed this issue in two ways . First, 
  the replacement of the double machine guns 
  in the right torso arm with a light autocannon 
  reduced the potential damage from an ammu-
  nition explosion by a third . The second method 
  involved the installation of a CASE II system into 
  the torso, though this necessitated the loss of 
  some space and a slight decrease in tonnage 
  available for other systems .
  Of course, the TSEMP mounted in the left 
  arm is the centerpiece of the design . Though 
  its use negatively impacts the electrical systems 
  of the ‘Mech every time it’s fired, especially 
  the delicate Active Probe, IrTech pilots have 
  become adept at managing their fire for maxi-
  mum effect .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The ITW-200 continues the long tradi-
  tion of Irian Technologies withholding their 
  Inquisitor design from the general market for 
  use in their own facilities . However, while every 
  IrTech factory and industrial complex has a 
  number of Inquisitors assigned to its security 
  contingent, only the most important receive 
  the Inquisitor II . Also unlike the original, which 
  was appropriated by the Word of Blake for 
  use in their Protectorate militias and TerraSec 
  forces, the Inquisitor II has not been deployed 
  by the nation to which Irian belongs . Numerous 
  Republic agencies have repeatedly expressed 
  interest in purchasing the newer model but the 
  company has rebuffed every offer, preferring to 
  keep the advanced SecurityMech solely for their 
  own use .
  VARIANTS
  The only known variant of the Inquisitor 
  II is the ITW-205 . That model removes the ad-
  vanced TSEMP weapon and the Beagle Active 
  Probe in favor of adding another light autocan-
  non, along with a ton of additional ammunition 
  and CASE II to protect it, and mounting explosive 
  anti-personnel pods on the legs .
  Given the prevalence of the Inquisitor (both 
  the original and the redesign) in their security 
  forces, though, it seems highly likely that IrTech 
  has developed a number of customized vari-
  ants with slightly tweaked specifications to fill 
  the different roles defending their corporate 
  empire might entail .
  NOTABLE PILOTS
  Arlo Funk: A graduate of the Northwind Military 
  Academy, Funk gave up a promising career in 
  the RAF to become head of security at IrTech’s 
  Dannevirke IndustrialMech factory . He person-
  ally reviewed the specs and history of every 
  SecurityMech deployed by the department be-
  fore selecting a twelve-year-old Inquisitor II he 
  dubbed “Wiggles .” During the Senate Alliance 
  assault on Irian, he led his security troops in 
  defending against a diversionary raid and even 
  earned the respect of the Wolf Hunter merce-
  naries assigned to the factory . He has since 
  been fast-tracked for promotion to regional 
  security coordinator for Hathor .
  INQUISITOR II
  
  193
  Type: Inquisitor II
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 50
  Battle Value: 1,186
  Equipment Rating: E/X-X-F
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
  IndustrialMech 
   
  10
  Engine:  
  200 (Fusion) 
   
  8 .5
   
  Walking MP:  
  4
   
  Running MP:  
  6
   
  Jumping MP:  
  0
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 
   
  0
  Gyro: 
   
   
  2
  Cockpit (Industrial): 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Heavy Industrial): 112 
   
  7
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  3 
  9
   
  Center Torso 
  16 
  17
   
  Center Torso (rear) 
   
  4
   
  R/L Torso 
  12 
  13
   
  R/L Torso (rear) 
   
  3
   
  R/L Arm 
  8 
  10
   
  R/L Leg 
  12 
  15
  Weapons and Ammo Location Critical 
  Tonnage
  Light AC/5 
  RA 
  2 
  5
  Ammo (LAC) 40 
  RT 
  2 
  2
  SRM 4 
  RT 
  1 
  2
  Ammo (SRM) 25 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  CASE II 
  RT 
  1 
  1
  Ejection Seat 
  H 
  1 
   .5
  Mounted Searchlight 
  CT 
  1 
   .5
  Beagle Active Probe 
  LT 
  2 
  1 .5
  TSEMP 
  LA 
  5 
  6
  Notes: Features Advanced Fire Control . Features the following Design Quirks: 
  Cowl,  Cramped Cockpit, Difficult Ejection, EM Interference (TSEMP) .
  INQUISITOR II
  
  194
  PROTOMECHS
  HIPPOGRIFF PROTOMECH
  Mass: 8 tons 
  Chassis: ProtoMech HIP 
  Power Plant: 40 Fusion 
  Cruising Speed: 32 kph 
  Maximum Speed: 54 kph 
  Jump Jets: Hraban MicroLeapers with Partial 
  Wing
  Jump Capacity: 150 meters
  Armor: ProtoMech Standard P-6Q 
  Armament: 
   
  2 Type II Compact LRM 2 Launchers 
  Manufacturer: Snow Raven Industrial 
  Complex Alpha
   
  Primary Factory: Dante 
  Communications System: Build 1919 Micro 
  Targeting and Tracking System: Proto-
  Enhanced, Model 8
  The Hippogriff is designed around partial 
  wing technology, making it one of the most 
  mobile ProtoMechs ever built . The Ravens’ 
  need for additional troops and the availability 
  of a dedicated DropShip, the Arcadia, drove 
  the decision to restart the ProtoMech pro-
  gram in the 3080s . Special care was invested 
  in the Hippogriff’s unique abilities as it was the 
  first entirely new ProtoMech developed by the 
  Raven Alliance .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Hippogriff joins a Raven ProtoMech 
  mainstay, the Gorgon, in the heavy 8-ton 
  weight bracket, and features similar weap-
  onry, but the similarities end there . Where the 
  Gorgon features a large weapon, the Hippogriff 
  relies on two very small launchers with atypi-
  cally deep ammunition bins . Its main features 
  are the improved jump jets and the feathered 
  partial wing that enables it to leap huge dis-
  tances . Coupled with solid armor, a Hippogriff 
  keeping its range to supply light but constant 
  covering fire is more likely to survive engage-
  ments than other ProtoMechs .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Even piloting a quasi-totem Hippogriff, 
  ProtoMech pilots mostly find themselves rel-
  egated to garrison duty, freeing up BattleMech 
  assets for more prestigious missions .
  Gamma Galaxy, traditionally the heaviest 
  ProtoMech user, was quick to experiment with 
  the Hippogriff upon its first delivery in 3110 . 
  They were pleased to receive a long-ranged 
  support unit that could keep up with dedi-
  cated infighters . Its first deployment was with 
  a detachment from the Third Raven Auxiliaries 
  guarding Milligan’s World against a reconnais-
  sance force of the ManMangler mercenary com-
  mand in the apparent employ of House Kurita . A 
  mixed company of hover APCs and light ’Mechs 
  was intercepted by a Binary of Rocs, Chrysaor 2s 
  and Hippogriffs on the Doone Plains . The Rocs 
  tied up the ’Mechs while the Hippogriffs bom-
  barded the APCs, forcing them to unload their 
  infantry, which was promptly pinned down by 
  the Chrysaors . The ProtoMechs outjumped the 
  ManManglers and forced their remnants into 
  retreat after losing most of their infantry and 
  two ’Mechs .
  Clan Hell’s Horses soon traded for a large 
  number of Hippogriffs, appreciating the equine 
  aspects to its avian design . It was deployed with 
  other heavy ProtoMechs when the Twenty-first 
  Mechanized Assault Cluster repelled a Clan 
  Wolf probing attack on Harvest in 3118 . Next to 
  heavily armed ProtoMechs, and pitched against 
  BattleMechs, it performed poorly . The Hippogriff 
  could not inflict enough damage on the advanc-
  ing BattleMechs and by the time the Horses real-
  ized their mistake, there was no time to redeploy . 
  The Hippogriff was rejected as an alternative to 
  the superheavy Svartalfa and was redeployed to 
  support Hell’s Horses solahma units .
  The Raven Alliance experienced its own 
  brief failure when attempting to use the 
  Hippogriff in S-Teams . The ProtoMech proved 
  sensationally incapable in engagements against 
  pirates in the void of space or airless moons . 
  With its partial wing useless, its jump capability 
  was reduced to average and its ground speed 
  remained sluggish . 
  Recently, the Hippogriff saw offensive de-
  ployment in Beta Galaxy’s campaign to cap-
  ture Sterlington and Kirbyville in May 3144 . 
  On Sterlington, the Ninth Raven Wing Cluster 
  deployed Elementals and Afreets against dug-
  in elements of the Third Periphery Guard . The 
  battle armor was supported only by Hippogriffs . 
  With their partial wings ensuring great flight 
  control, the ProtoMechs deployed at high al-
  titude . The Hippogriffs swooped down like 
  their namesake, creating panic and causing 
  the Guards to flee right into the arms of ’Mech 
  elements which had deployed in a second 
  wave . The extremely successful use as a shock 
  weapon has greatly elevated the prestige of the 
  Hippogriff in the Raven Alliance military .
  NOTABLE UNITS 
  Star Commander Tanith: Tanith’s Star was 
  training in the Alpine terrain of Rudolpho when 
  the Joyeux Corsaire pirate band slipped past the 
  Second Alliance Air Wing and launched a raid 
  on the apparently undefended, affluent White 
  Rock Ski Resort . Tanith responded immediately, 
  ordering her Star to leap from the heights into 
  the midst of the encroaching battlesuit-clad 
  pirates . The pirates panicked and fled, with 
  leaping Hippogriffs in pursuit .
  
  195
  HIPPOGRIFF PROTOMECH
  Type: Hippogriff
  Technology Base: Clan (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 8
  Battle Value: 231
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Internal Structure: 
   
   
  800 kg
  Engine:  
  40 
   1,000 kg
   
  Walking MP:  
  3
   
  Running MP:  
  5
   
  Jumping MP:  
  5* 
   1,000 kg
  Heat Sinks:  
  0 
   
  0 kg
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  500 kg
  Armor Factor:  
  30 
   1,500 kg
   
   
  Internal 
  Armor
   
   
  Structure 
  Value
   
  Head 
  2 
  2
   
  Torso 
  8 
  10
   
  R/L Arm 
  2/2 
  4/4
   
  Legs 
  5 
  10
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Mass
  LRM 2 
  RA 
  400 kg
  Ammo (LRM 2) 24 
  — 
  400 kg
  LRM 2 
  LA 
  400 kg
  Ammo (LRM 2) 24 
  — 
  400 kg
  ProtoMech Partial Wing 
  T 
  1,600 kg
  Notes: *Partial Wing adds +2 Jump MP per turn in Standard 
  atmosphere . See p . 295, TO, for additional rules . 
  Features the following Design Quirk: Distracting .
  
  196
  CONVENTIONAL 
  FIGHTER
  SAROYAN JUMP BOMBER
  Mass: 25 tons
  Chassis:  Mujika Aerospace Type M
  Power Plant: Rawlings 200 Fusion
  Armor: Hellespont Aerolite Stealth
  Armament:
   
  None
  Manufacturer: Saroyan Special Productions
   
  Primary Factory: Sian
  Communications System: Ceres MaserCom 8 
  with Guardian ECM Suite
  Targeting & Tracking System: Dwyerson 
  Mark XI with TAG
  Introduced just before the end of the last 
  century, the Saroyan Jump Bomber was in-
  tended as a cheap adjunct for Home Guard and 
  private militia use . The decades-long rebuilding 
  effort from the Jihad meant there wasn’t always 
  capital available to invest in true aerospace 
  fighters, and the market for cheap air forces 
  was ripe for a new airframe . Saroyan adapted a 
  number of the technologies that had matured 
  in the latter part of the thirty-first century and 
  offered the Jump Bomber for sale .
  Pilots, purchasers, and professional techni-
  cians have been complaining ever since .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Jump Bomber—on paper—excels at 
  the task it is built for, but in practice it usually 
  falls short . Though its bomb capacity is adequate 
  for a conventional fighter of its mass, not even 
  stealth armor can protect it from the weakest of 
  return fire, and the inclusion of built-in target ac-
  quisition gear encourages pilots to loiter over the 
  battlefield when they should escape .
  DEPLOYMENT
  During the short Victoria War, forces of the 
  Duchy of Andurien and the Oriente Protectorate 
  invaded the Capellan Confederation, believing 
  it to be distracted by the concurrent invasion of 
  the Federated Suns . While their invasion was cut 
  short by a counterattack, their forces did face 
  the Home Guard and militias of a number of 
  Capellan worlds .
  On Altorra in 3104 elements of the 
  Andurien Rangers faced a Home Guard battal-
  ion based in the fortified city Tepali . The Home 
  Guard was largely heavy armor and regular 
  infantry, though Tepali was also home to a 
  wing of Saroyan Jump Bombers . The Bombers 
  were held back from contesting the Andurien 
  landings, but once the ground forces moved 
  away from the landing zone, the Tepali  
  aircraft attacked .
  The first sortie, using conventional high ex-
  plosive and cluster bombs, succeeded in halting 
  the Andurien advance for a few hours . The sec-
  ond sortie, using the same munitions, did much 
  the same damage: nothing pivotal, merely the 
  annoyance of forcing the Anduriens to halt and 
  deal with their damage . Pleased with the Jump 
  Bombers’ ability to hold the attackers at bay, 
  and hoping to keep her own companies pre-
  served, the Home Guard commander asked for 
  more results .
  The third sortie attacked by squadrons, 
  rather than as a combined wing . The first squad-
  ron attacked with conventional weapons from 
  altitude, but the second and third squadrons 
  were carrying laser-guided bombs . The first 
  squadron, having dropped its ordnance, re-
  turned to mark targets using their TAG lasers . 
  The Anduriens, tired of being bombed, as-
  sembled their air-defense units and blasted the 
  designating squadron out of the sky . The fol-
  lowing squadrons, deprived of their spotters, 
  dropped their bombs ineffectually . Soon after, 
  the Anduriens laid siege to Tepali, only lifting 
  it when strong Capellan reinforcements landed 
  on-world .
  In several other engagements, espe-
  cially against the combined-arms AFFS, Jump 
  Bombers have succumbed to ground fire . 
  Their stealth armor is often misunderstood by 
  ground commanders, who mistake the tactical 
  systems for the common idea: a Jump Bomber, 
  radiating white noise from its Guardian ECM 
  suite, is more difficult to hit, yes—but is hardly 
  invisible . An enemy with experienced air de-
  fenses can make short work of the lightly-ar-
  mored aircraft .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sao-wei Yeva Sokoloff: During the Battle of 
  Marlette in 3146, the Third Tikonov Guards 
  knew they were outmatched, but they sought 
  to make good on their retreat by inflicting as 
  much damage on the Fifth Crucis Lancers as 
  possible . To this end, Kong-sao-shang Sevnik 
  of the Third Tikonov Orbital Guard proposed 
  an aerospace strike against the Fifth Lancers’ 
  prepared positions . It was a risky move, but 
  Sevnik knew just the trio of pilots that were 
  crazy enough to pull it off . The sortie called for 
  Sao-wei Sokoloff’s Saroyan triple to approach 
  the Fifth’s cantonment by flying at low altitude 
  through a winding canyon . Other Saroyan sor-
  ties had attempted to approach from the air, 
  but their stealth armor couldn’t protect them 
  from being physically spotted, and they were 
  shot down in short order . Sokoloff’s triple con-
  ducted the run in record time as the rest of the 
  Third Guards withdrew . The trio of Saroyans 
  narrowly pulled off the risky maneuver to pull 
  out of the canyon and deliver their payload .
  
  197
  SAROYAN JUMP BOMBER
  Type: Saroyan Jump Bomber
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 25
  Battle Value: 192
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Engine:  
  200 
   
  13
   
  Safe Thrust:  
  8
   
  Maximum Thrust:  
  12
  Structural Integrity:  
  8 
   
  VSTOL Equipment: 
   
   
  1 .5
  Heat Sinks: 
  10 
   
  0
  Fuel:  
  640 
   
  4
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  2 .5
  Armor Factor (Stealth):  
  24 
   
  1 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Nose 
  8
   
  Wings 
  6/6
   
  Aft 
  4
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Mass 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  TAG 
  Nose 
  1 
   
   
   
   
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  Aft 
  1 .5 
   
   
   
   
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Poor Workmanship .
  
  198
  AEROSPACE
  FIGHTER
  CSR-F100 PICAROON
  Mass: 35 tons
  Chassis:  P Standard
  Power Plant: Magna 210 XL
  Armor: Durallex Aviator Ferro-Aluminum
  Armament:
   
  1 Magna Supernova Heavy  
   
  Particle Projection Cannon
  Manufacturer: Gutierrez Aerospace
   
  Primary Factory: Ellsworth
  Communications System: Telestar H-9
  Targeting & Tracking System: SynComDEC
  The Regulan Fiefs’ first foray into fighter 
  design, the Picaroon was seemingly devel-
  oped specifically to counter the growing use 
  of Pocket WarShips . Fast, heavily armored and 
  sporting a single massive weapon, the Picaroon 
  is reminiscent of other purpose-built ship-kill-
  ing fighters like the legendary Hammerhead . 
  CAPABILITIES
  Despite its lack of secondary weapons, 
  the Picaroon’s nose-mounted heavy PPC is a 
  very powerful weapon with the ability to de-
  stroy most opponents with only a few blasts . 
  When employed as a proper pack hunter, there 
  are few vessels that can withstand the barrage 
  a group of Picaroons unleashes . As a result, 
  Picaroon pilots quickly become overconfident 
  with the fighter’s apparent invulnerability and 
  rely too much on the fighter’s heavy armor to 
  protect them . Smart opponents will lure indi-
  vidual Picaroons out of formation so that mul-
  tiple attackers can isolate and overwhelm them . 
  DEPLOYMENT
  A devastating example of the Picaroon in 
  action occurred early in the Victoria War, when 
  the First Andurien Cavalry invaded the world 
  of Fronde, defended by the Kraken Unleashed . 
  Mercenary Picaroons met the Andurien 
  DropShips head on, using their speed and heavy 
  armor to make sweeping attacks against the 
  invaders . Overwhelmed by the tenacious mer-
  cenaries, the Andurien Cavalry fighters were un-
  able to stop the Kraken Picaroons from eviscer-
  ating their transports . The Cavalry lost its entire 
  conventional complement before reaching orbit . 
  The first reported clash between two 
  Picaroons occurred in 3115, when a raid by the 
  Duchy of Tamarind-Abbey struck the Lyran world 
  of Finsterwalde . Known as the “Finsterwalde 
  Folly,” a Picaroon flight from the defunct Fifth 
  Tamarind Regulars faced off against an identical 
  fighter group from the Flying Tomkats merce-
  nary company . The Tomkats, a new mercenary 
  command hired by Finsterwalde to support 
  their planetary militia, met the Duchy forces dur-
  ing their transit to the planet . As the two groups 
  closed, both launched their Picaroons with or-
  ders to disable or destroy the other’s DropShip . 
  Ignoring each other to attack their assigned 
  target, both Picaroon flights were successful . 
  Unfortunately, the Tomkat and Duchy pilots be-
  came stranded in deep space without transport . 
  There were no survivors . 
   
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Major Shardae Nangwaya: Major Nangwaya 
  is the cold-as-space commander of the fighter 
  wing attached to the Regulan Fiefs’ Eighth 
  Regulan Hussars . An elite-grade pilot, she has 
  flown fighter craft of every weight class, and 
  counts among her kills over two dozen enemy 
  fighters, six small assault craft, and three 
  DropShips . She favors the Picaroon for its speed 
  and the focused power of its heavy PPC . While 
  capable of air-to-ground operations, Nangwaya 
  prefers her fighting in space, and came to see 
  the Sea Fox-led interdictions of the Regulan 
  Fiefs as an affront that could be best solved by 
  Regulan space power “and a lot of nukes .” 
  When the worsening of the economic 
  sanctions against the Regulans sparked the 
  assassination of Captain-General Jessica 
  Marik and a brief war between Oriente and 
  Regulus, Nangwaya thought her realm’s time 
  had finally come—especially when the RSMC 
  re-authorized the Eighth Hussars’ access to 
  tactical nuclear ordnance . Her hopes dashed 
  by the Regulan surrender in July of 3148, she 
  and much of her wing went rogue, taking their 
  fighters, a DropShip, and an unknown number 
  of Alamo-class atomic warheads . None of these 
  warriors have been seen since .
  
  199
  CSR-F100 PICAROON
  Type: Picaroon
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 35
  Battle Value: 1,290
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Engine:  
  210 XL 
   
  4 .5
   
  Safe Thrust:  
  8
   
  Maximum Thrust:  
  12
  Structural Integrity: 
  8
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Fuel:  
  400 
   
  5
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Ferro):  
  224 
   
  12 .5
   
   
  Armor 
   
   
  Value 
   
  Nose 
  75 
   
  Wings 
  52/52 
   
  Aft 
  45 
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  Heavy PPC 
  Nose 
  10 
  15 
  15 
  15 
  —  
  —
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to Maintain, Atmospheric Flight Instability .
  
  200
  AEROSPACE
  FIGHTER
  STM-O STERNENSTURM
  Mass: 40 tons
  Chassis: Lockheed/CBM 320
  Power Plant: Pitban 320 XL
  Armor: Donegal Omni-Sheath Heavy 
  Ferro-Aluminum
  Armament:
   
  10 tons of pod space
  Manufacturer: Lockheed/CBM
   
  Primary Factory: Tharkad
  Communications System: Lockheed/CBM 
  COMSET 300
  Targeting & Tracking System: Lockheed/CBM 
  TarSet 75
  In the wake of the Jihad, the LCAF needed 
  to cover its light aerospace fighter shortfalls, 
  and the Sternensturm was Lockheed/CBM’s 
  answer . Capable of outperforming contempo-
  raries like the Wildkatze, the Sternensturm was 
  intended to complement the Morgenstern, one 
  of Lockheed/CBM’s heavy OmniFighters .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Sternensturm can outfly all but the 
  lightest aerospace fighters, enabling the pilot 
  to conduct air superiority missions or quickly 
  provide air support where necessary . When the 
  pilot is engaged in dogfighting or taking ground 
  fire, the Sternensturm’s heavily armored airframe 
  lets the fighter absorb more damage than most 
  fighters in the same class . Coupled with its thrust, 
  the Sternensturm’s primary loadout facilitates a 
  short-range punch without placing the pilot in 
  undue jeopardy . The secondary configuration 
  offers greater range and accuracy at the tradeoff 
  of weapons flexibility, and the third brings elec-
  tronic warfare to the table .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Since its introduction the Sternensturm 
  hasn’t proliferated in large numbers beyond 
  the Lyran Commonwealth and the Kell Hounds, 
  although a few have found their way to other 
  Lyran-funded mercenary units .
  The Sternensturm’s battlefield debut oc-
  curred in 3099 when the Third Falcon Talon 
  Cluster undertook an exploratory raid on 
  Graus . The Second Donegal Guards scrambled 
  its aerospace, which largely consisted of new 
  Sternensturms . The Falcon Cluster had bid 
  away its aerospace assets before the battle, 
  so the Second’s aerofighters had open skies . 
  The Lyran ground forces managed to herd a 
  Star of Falcons into a canyon, and flights of 
  Sternensturms flew in for strafing runs to finish 
  off the Star . Due to the Sternensturm’s speed 
  and armor, only one of the fighters was lost 
  during the engagement, but its pilot managed 
  to eject with only minor injury .
  Another notable battle transpired in early 
  3138, just a few months after the LCAF claimed 
  Tamarind from the Duchy of Tamarind-Abbey . 
  A routine customs stop revealed a merchant 
  DropShip attempting to smuggle supplies to 
  partisan groups on Tamarind . Once the smug-
  gler’s cover was blown, another DropShip at-
  tached to the JumpShip disgorged two short 
  squadrons of Lancers, which attempted to de-
  stroy the LCAF DropShip . The LCAF launched a 
  squadron of Sternensturms in response . Within 
  minutes, the Sternensturms had eliminated or 
  disabled all of the heavier Lancer fighters, at the 
  cost of only two Sternensturms .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Leutnant Millicent Oda: In a Lyran 
  Commonwealth desperate for heroes, Leutnant 
  Oda has found herself reluctantly transformed 
  into an iconic figure to inspire young girls to 
  military service . She first came to the public’s 
  attention when she dove her Sternensturm 
  Prime into the midst of a Jade Falcon aerospace 
  formation above Adelaide, taking out two 
  fighters before the enemy even registered her 
  presence . Her subsequent actions in several 
  other engagements made her a local hero and 
  exactly the kind of warrior the LCAF’s public 
  relations wonks were looking for . To Oda’s 
  dismay, her image has been used to brand the 
  “Milly Gurrl” clothing line for tweens and mo-
  rale-boosting posters that dot the region . She 
  has continually expressed her discomfort to her 
  superiors, explaining that she has moral qualms 
  about “indoctrinating these girls barely out of 
  pigtails,” but the media campaign continues and 
  has expanded to Coventry Province . Leutnant 
  Oda distracts herself from her misgivings by 
  volunteering for extra flight assignments, which 
  ironically just makes her even more marketable 
  to the LCAF .
  
  201
  STM-O STERNENSTURM
  Type: STM-O Sternensturm
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 40
  Battle Value: 1,405
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Engine:  
  320 XL 
   
  11 .5
   
  Safe Thrust:  
  10
   
  Maximum Thrust:  
  15
  Structural Integrity:  
  10 
   
  Heat Sinks: 
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Fuel:  
  320 
   
  4
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro):  
  228 
   
  11 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Nose 
  76
   
  Wings 
  57/57
   
  Aft 
  38
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Mass 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  Primary Configuration
  3 ER Medium Lasers 
  Nose 
  3 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  — 
  —
  Streak SRM 4 
  RW 
  3 
  3 
  8 
  — 
  — 
  —
  Streak SRM 4 
  LW 
  3 
  3 
  8 
  — 
  — 
  —
  Ammo (Streak) 25 
  — 
  1 
   
   
   
   
  Configuration A
  ER PPC + Capacitor 
  Nose 
  8 
  15/20 
  10/15 
  10/15 
  10/15 
  —
  Targeting Computer 
  — 
  2 
   
   
   
   
   
  Battle Value: 1,693
  Configuration B
  Beagle Active Probe 
  Nose 
  1 .5 
   
   
   
   
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  RW 
  2 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  — 
  —
  2 Anti-Missile Systems 
  RW 
  1 
  1 
   
   
   
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  LW 
  2 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  — 
  —
  2 Anti-Missile Systems 
  LW 
  1 
  1 
   
   
   
  Ammo (AMS) 12 
  — 
  1 
   
   
   
   
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  Aft 
  1 .5 
   
   
   
   
   
  Battle Value: 1,512
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirk: Easy to Pilot .
  
  202
  AEROSPACE
  FIGHTER
  Y-2 YÙN
  Mass: 40 tons
  Chassis:  Mujika Aerospace Type 16
  Power Plant: Rawlings 120
  Armor: Hellespont Aerolite Stealth
  Armament:
   
  1 Ceres Arms Extended Range 
   
   
  Medium Laser
   
  2 Sian/Ceres Stalking Cougar Streak 
   
   
  SRM 6 Launchers
  Manufacturer: Mujika Aerospace 
  Technologies
   
  Primary Factory: St . Ives
  Communications System: Endicott Type 32 
  Maser with Guardian ECM Suite
  Targeting & Tracking System: Dwyerson 
  Mark XI 
  Cloaked in sophisticated stealth systems, 
  the first sign of a Yùn attack is often infantry 
  raining down on the target . Sluggish and frag-
  ile in orbit, the Capellan aerospace fighter be-
  comes a shadowy assault craft upon entering 
  the atmosphere . Designed specifically for the 
  combat insertion of battle armor, the Yùn is 
  widely feared but rarely seen .
  CAPABILITIES
  Mujika’s fighter builds upon the concept 
  of air-deployed infantry pioneered by the 
  Troika. Unlike its predecessor, the stealthy Yùn 
  is capable of penetrating enemy airspace while 
  delivering a squad of battle armor to any tar-
  get point . While outwardly sophisticated, the 
  craft’s internal systems are all simple, time-test-
  ed components . A well-balanced airframe and 
  well-articulated vernier thrusters make the Yùn 
  a dream to fly .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Hundreds of successful sorties flown by Yùns 
  have left many a soldier looking over their shoul-
  der fearing a Capellan surprise attack . On many 
  occasions, the fighter is never successfully target-
  ed in the process of delivering its payload, but if 
  necessary it has proven to be an effective ground 
  attack unit, as it did at the Battle of New Syrtis .
  As the CCAF struggled to breach the net-
  work of fortifications ringing Saso, heavy snow-
  fall slowed the movement of ground assets to 
  a crawl . A chain of gun batteries protecting 
  the city’s southern approach prevented the 
  Capellans’ VTOLs and BattleMechs equipped 
  with jump jets from closing with the defend-
  ers . Unwilling to merely sit back and trade long 
  range fire with the Hasek defenders, House 
  Hiritsu Master Xun Kuang ordered his infantry 
  to seize the Davion guns . Two squadrons of 
  Yùns attached to the Hiritsu infantry took off 
  just before dawn, flying meters from the frozen 
  surface to avoid detection . Unnoticed until sec-
  onds before they reached the city, Hiritsu’s Yùns 
  buzzed over the gun emplacements, disgorg-
  ing the elite warrior house infantry directly on 
  top of the bunkers . Air defense batteries were 
  targeted first, allowing the Yùns to circle back 
  and provide close air support to the troopers 
  rapidly overpowering the unprepared Davion 
  forces . Arrow IV missiles and semi-guided LRMs 
  poured down on the defenders’ positions, guid-
  ed by the fighters’ under-wing TAG systems . The 
  guns silenced, Capellan forces rushed the pe-
  rimeter and pushed into the city . When Hasek 
  reserves desperately tried to plug the breach, 
  the Yùn squadrons circled around, immobilizing 
  their vehicles with SRM strikes . By the time the 
  fighters withdrew to refuel, Capellan forces had 
  already driven deep into the city .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Sao-wei Chen Xun Mah: On Cammal during 
  the Capellan Confederation’s invasion of the 
  Capellan March in 3146, the Third Capellan 
  Chargers failed to capitalize on a thrust toward 
  the Fifth Avalon Hussars’ lines and were forced 
  to regroup . During the fallback maneuver, 
  a platoon of Trinity battle armor found itself 
  stranded far behind enemy lines . The lead 
  Trinity squad had obtained crucial intelligence 
  on the Fifth’s movements and strategies, so a 
  plan was made to extract them . Sao-wei Mah 
  volunteered to attempt the rescue . His triple 
  flew in under cover of night and made an emer-
  gency landing on a roadway the Trinity platoon 
  had cleared of traffic . While under fire, the battle 
  armor squads loaded up, and Mah and his two 
  wingmen took off with their cargo . Once out of 
  visual range, the Fifth Hussars lost track of the 
  stealth-armored fighters .
  Able Flight: Several flights of Yùn-2s found 
  their way into the hands of the mercenary out-
  fit Markson’s Marauders, and Colonel Markson 
  has deployed them to great effect during a 
  continuing, Canopian-led harassment cam-
  paign directed against the Rim Commonality . 
  Able Flight has performed several noteworthy 
  strikes against Astrokaszy, which consisted of 
  flying in unseen, dropping battle armor, and 
  taking out targets of opportunity while the 
  infantry steal supplies and disrupt operations 
  for on-planet defenders . Able Flight would then 
  fly off while ground forces arranged a platoon 
  of APCs to pick up the infantry and stolen sup-
  plies . Because this effective tactic has sent local 
  arms dealers into fits, Astrokaszy officials have 
  lobbied for Markson’s Marauders to be labeled 
  pirates rather than legitimate mercenaries .
  
  203
  Y-2 YÙN
  Type: Yùn
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 40
  Battle Value: 953
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Engine:  
  120  
   
  4
   
  Safe Thrust:  
  5
   
  Maximum Thrust:  
  8
  Structural Integrity:  
  5 
   
  Heat Sinks: 
  12 [24] 
   
  2
  Fuel:  
  400 
   
  5
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Stealth):  
  136 
   
  8 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Nose 
  43
   
  Wings 
  34/34
   
  Aft 
  25
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Mass 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  ER Medium Laser 
  Nose 
  1 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  — 
  —
  2 Streak SRM 6 
  Nose 
  9 
  4 
  12 
  — 
  — 
  —
  Ammo (Streak) 30 
  — 
  2 
   
   
   
   
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  Aft 
  1 .5 
   
   
   
   
  Infantry Compartment 
  — 
  4 
   
   
   
   
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to Pilot .
  
  204
  AEROSPACE
  FIGHTER
  AQA-1M AQUILA
  Mass: 55 tons
  Chassis:  Nimakachi Model IC
  Power Plant: Hermes 275 XL
  Armor: ArcShield IX AO Ferro-Aluminum
  Armament:
   
  2 Oriente MagCoil Model E Light  
   
  Gauss Rifles
   
  2 Diverse Optics Extended-Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: Nimakachi Fusion Products Ltd .
   
  Primary Factory: Dalton
  Communications System: Lassitor-5A
  Targeting & Tracking System: Garret S6g
  The Aquila was rushed into service for the 
  Victoria War, where the fighter exceeded ex-
  pectations and has proliferated for forty years 
  without modification . 
  CAPABILITIES
  This joint venture of the Rim Commonality 
  and Oriente Protectorate combines speed, agil-
  ity, and excellent long-range accuracy to great 
  effect . A lack of rear-firing weaponry is a con-
  cern to some pilots, but it’s a rare circumstance 
  when the speedy Aquila cannot evade or out-
  run an enemy on its six . The Aquila excels in 
  both space and atmospheric operations, terror-
  izing ground units or slow moving DropShips 
  without fighter escorts . The Aquila is renowned 
  as a sniper, using its speed and maneuverability 
  to get behind enemy fighters and take out their 
  engines .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Ipswich has been the scene of many en-
  gagements where the Aquila faced CCAF invad-
  ers . The first was in the Victoria War, when the Red 
  Lancers and Roman’s Mounted Fusiliers arrived 
  after taking Shuen Wan from the Protectorate . 
  The First and Sixth Oriente Hussars mounted 
  a desperate defense, including a squadron of 
  Aquilas . The unknown fighter surprised the CCAF 
  attackers with precise fire at tremendous range, 
  departing the area before return fire could clear 
  them from the skies . Despite the fighter’s capa-
  bilities, only one of the pilots survived the as-
  sault . Captain Sergio Melendez joined the chase 
  as the Capellans retreated, claiming the final kill 
  of the battle as he shot down an enemy Poignard 
  escorting the enemy DropShips .
  The elite Ducal Guard Air Wing was on 
  training maneuvers in the Ipswich system in 
  3141 when the First Capellan Defense Force 
  attempted to raid the border world . The First 
  CDF Aerospace Wing was commanded by 
  Kong-zhong-shao Mik Zheming . Zheming’s es-
  cort formation was scattered when the Guards 
  slashed through at nearly right angles midway 
  between the Capellan JumpShip and the plan-
  et . Aquilas led the attack, firing on the enemy 
  at extreme range with their paired light Gauss 
  rifles . The First’s light fighters withered under 
  the concentrated fire, and their pilots were left 
  drifting in wreckage trailing the assault force . 
  The Guard eliminated most of the escort be-
  fore dogfighting distracted them long enough 
  for the raiders to reach the surface . The nimble 
  Aquilas pursued the enemy and engaged in 
  ground attacks . The First’s ’Mechs were unable 
  to target the speedy fighters while also en-
  gaging the Eighth Oriente Hussars and Thirty-
  second Oriente Heavy Armor . When the Eighth 
  Hussars Aerospace Wing added their fighters 
  to the repulsion effort, the raiders withdrew . 
  The Hussars and Guard Aquilas pursued the 
  Capellans all the way back to their JumpShips, 
  disabling two Unions which were captured 
  only after a difficult boarding operation three 
  days later . Zheming was among those killed in 
  the engagement, leaving command to his XO, 
  Kong-sang-wei Tak Cheung Sin .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Principes Gaius Quitus Valorum: Principes 
  Valorum commands a maniple in the III Caelum 
  Wing . In 3148, his maniple was on patrol out-
  side the atmosphere, when a raiding force from 
  Lahti was spotted en route to Landfall . Valorum 
  led his maniple on multiple attack runs against 
  the DropShips, ignoring the slow, heavy fighters 
  flying escort . Superior weapon range and excel-
  lent gunnery skill allowed Valorum to cripple 
  one DropShip in space, and heavily damage 
  another, leading to an easy capture on the 
  surface . Valorum was commended, but he did 
  not get the command of the III Caelum as he 
  desires .
  Lieutenant Janis Diamond: Lieutenant 
  Diamond is the youngest of Nelson’s Longbows 
  new fighter pilots . As part of the command’s 
  first squadron of fighters, she has accomplished 
  many firsts for the Longbows . She had the first 
  recorded kill of an incoming fighter over New St . 
  Andrews, and she made the first successful kill 
  via a strafe attack against pirates raiding Crecy 
  City . Major Nelson quickly promoted her to 
  command of the squadron in November 3149, 
  and cashiered the incompetent Lieutenant 
  Randy Stark, who swore revenge on the 
  Longbows . Diamond renamed the squadron 
  Crecy Strike after assuming command . Morale 
  has skyrocketed with the “Hero of Crecy”  
  leading them .
  
  205
  AQA-1M AQUILA
  Type: Aquila 
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 55
  Battle Value: 1,489
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Engine:  
  275 XL 
   
  8
   
  Safe Thrust:  
  7
   
  Maximum Thrust:  
  11
  Structural Integrity: 
  7
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Fuel:  
  320 
   
  4
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Ferro):  
  197 
   
  11
   
   
  Armor 
   
   
  Value 
   
  Nose 
  60 
   
  Wings 
  48/48 
   
  Aft 
  41 
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  2 Light Gauss Rifles 
  Nose 
  24 
  1 
  8 
  8 
  8 
  8
  Ammo (Light Gauss) 48 
  — 
  3 
   
   
   
   
  ER Medium Laser 
  RW 
  1 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  —  
  —
  ER Medium Laser 
  LW 
  1 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  —  
  —
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Accurate Weapons (Light Gauss Rifles) .
  
  206
  AEROSPACE
  FIGHTER
  RDL-01C RONDEL
  Mass: 55 tons
  Chassis:  Greenock Ltd . Model 3
  Power Plant: VOX 330 XL
  Armor: Wangker Solarion Reflective
  Armament:
   
  1 Mydron Tornado Rotary Class 5  
   
  Autocannon
   
  6 Diverse Optics Extended Range  
   
  Medium Lasers
  Manufacturer: Greenock Aero  
  Manufacturing, Ltd .
   
  Primary Factory: Firgrove
  Communications System: Rander 100B
  Targeting & Tracking System: Jalastar 
  TargiTrack 777
  Introduced a little more than a decade be-
  fore the Victoria War, the Rondel slowly built a 
  reputation as a workhorse middleweight aero-
  space fighter . Low production kept it from sup-
  planting more common airframes like the Corsair 
  or the Lightning, but in the Capellan March espe-
  cially, pilots assigned to Rondels often attempted 
  to keep them their entire careers .
  CAPABILITIES
  The Rondel performs equally well in space 
  or in the atmosphere . Its wing-mounted lasers 
  provide powerful strafing capabilities, while its 
  acceleration allows it a heavy bomb load . As 
  an interceptor the Rondel competes favorably 
  with its nearest competitors, but the Tornado 
  cannon lacks the knockout punch of a heavier 
  fighter’s main weapon .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Greenock’s relative obscurity meant that 
  the Rondel’s early sales were to mainly merce-
  nary and planetary militia wings, but an initial 
  order by the Capellan March Militia in 3112 
  brought increased production and prominence . 
  Its prominence in the Capellan March meant 
  that Rondels factored in many aerospace ac-
  tions of the Capellan invasion .
  In late 3144 the Capellan Dynasty Guards 
  struck at Avigait, intent on destroying the First 
  Syrtis Fusiliers . Supporting the Fusiliers was 
  a mercenary aerospace wing called Halsey’s 
  White Hammers . The White Hammers spe-
  cialized in ground attack missions, with two 
  squadrons of Rondels covered by an inter-
  ceptor squadron of Stingrays . As the Dynasty 
  Guards attacked, both attack squadrons flew 
  sortie after sortie against the Capellan ad-
  vance, heavily-laden with bombs . After the 
  third strike the Rondels lingered to strafe with 
  their lasers, hoping to identify the Capellan 
  subunit commanders . 
  The Capellan air defense ’Mechs were 
  frustrated when their PPCs and plasma weap-
  ons failed to bring down the Rondels, and the 
  White Hammers were well-trained to avoid the 
  emissions of autocannon-armed Partisan tanks . 
  By the time LRM-equipped ’Mechs joined the 
  fray, the Rondels had extended and escaped to 
  reload their bomb bays . One more bomb run 
  was enough to convince Major Halsey his fight-
  ers were outmatched, and the White Hammers 
  moved to harassing the Guards’ rear .
  During the retreat from Avigait the White 
  Hammers were forced to defend their own 
  carriers, a trio of hired Leopard CV DropShips . 
  While the Guards’ aerospace contingent pur-
  sued them, the Stingray squadron flew in-
  terdiction missions, trying to keep Capellan 
  fighters away from the DropShips . The two 
  Rondel squadrons, with little training in air-to-
  air missions, attacked the pursuing DropShips . 
  Using simple mass-fire tactics, eleven of twelve 
  Rondels jammed their Tornados with maxi-
  mum-rate barrages against a Capellan Union . 
  Forced to fight their way back through the 
  screen with only their medium lasers, four of 
  the Rondels were lost before the Guards fight-
  ers turned back for Avigait .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Rondel Murder: The fighter wing of the Second 
  Periphery Guard LCT’s aerospace brigade paints 
  its fighters flat black, save for the LCT insignia 
  on the tail . The paint scheme and the wing’s 
  combat savagery led to “Murder” being used 
  in place of “Squadron .” Rondel Murder is com-
  posed entirely of Rondels . After the Second was 
  deployed to Winfield in 3145, Rondel Murder 
  was sent to Sterlington to announce the arrival  
  of replacements for the destroyed Third 
  Periphery Guard . Rondel Murder engaged the 
  Raven fighters patrolling the system . With each 
  Raven fighter drawing fire from two or more 
  Rondels at a time, they were brutalized in a clear 
  message that the Ninth Raven Wing Cluster 
  now had sterner foes to face .
  Leftenant Krieg Manson: Leftenant Manson 
  was a militia pilot on Remagen when the 
  Draconis Combine attacked the world in August 
  3148 . The defenders were caught by surprise . 
  Manson was among the pilots sent to stall the 
  Combine force before it made planet-fall . His 
  Rondel was the only fighter from the impromptu 
  force to land safely . In his first battle, he became 
  an ace, but the attackers were barely slowed .
  
  207
  RDL-01C RONDEL
  Type: Rondel
  Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Tonnage: 55
  Battle Value: 2,274
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Engine:  
  330 XL 
   
  12 .5
   
  Safe Thrust:  
  8
   
  Maximum Thrust:  
  12
  Structural Integrity:  
  8 
   
  Heat Sinks: 
  11 [22] 
   
  1
  Fuel:  
  400 
   
  5
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Reflec):  
  232 
   
  14 .5
   
   
  Armor
   
   
  Value
   
  Nose 
  71
   
  Wings 
  54/54
   
  Aft 
  53
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Mass 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  Rotary AC/5 
  Nose 
  10 
  6 
  20 
  20 
  — 
  —
  Ammo (RAC) 60 
  — 
  3
  3 ER Medium Lasers 
  RW 
  3 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  — 
  —
  3 ER Medium Lasers 
  LW 
  3 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  — 
  —
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Easy to Maintain .
  
  208
  AEROSPACE
  FIGHTER
  SKR-4M SHIKRA
  Mass: 90 tons
  Chassis:  AA Heavy Raptor 3
  Power Plant: Pitban 360 XL
  Armor: Andurien Composition 5 Heavy 
  Ferro-Aluminum
  Armament:
   
  1 Kali Yama Weapons Industries  
   
  Grand Slam Gauss Rifle
   
  2 Type 9 Ultra Class 10 Autocannons
   
  1 Intek Medium Pulse Laser
   
  2 Wasat Dazzle Chaff Pods
  Manufacturer: Andurien AeroTech
   
  Primary Factory: Westover
  Communications System: Lassitor-6SQ
  Targeting & Tracking System: Wasat Snipe 
  Type 2
  Andurien Aerotech built the Shikra for 
  years while Westover was an unaffiliated world . 
  They profited greatly selling the fighter to all 
  buyers, from the former League states to free-
  booting mercenaries . Since Westover became 
  part of the reformed League, availability on the 
  open market has dropped off . The factory’s pro-
  duction is now funneled directly to the FWLM 
  as part of the rebuilding effort following the 
  Lyran and Wolf invasions .
  CAPABILITIES
  For a heavy fighter, the Shikra has con-
  siderable acceleration . The thick slab of armor 
  garnered it a reputation as a flying brick early 
  on, but engineering refinements improved the 
  fighter’s handling in all environments . Anemic 
  rear weaponry goes far to motivate pilots not 
  to allow enemies into their six . The powerful 
  fore-mounted ballistic weaponry is a threat 
  to most fighters and a number of DropShips, 
  especially when Shikras are massed in forma-
  tion . Only when its pilot loses awareness of his 
  surroundings does the Shikra suffer in combat . 
  Many have been lost to careless pilots suffering 
  target fixation .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Alpha Galaxy’s invasion of Gannett was a 
  mismatch in all ways . Elements of the Ninth Wolf 
  Battle Cluster and the 328th Wolf Assault Cluster 
  rolled over the defenders in all ways but one . The 
  Gannett Planetary Defense League had a squad-
  ron of Shikras piloted by Atrean Hussars retirees . 
  The fighters had only one allied base for refuel-
  ing and rearming, but their sorties against the 
  invaders quickly garnered them attention .
  The Ninth’s warriors outbid the 328th’s for 
  the privilege of destroying the brave defenders . 
  A trio of Wolf fighters pursued and engaged the 
  six Gannett Shikras in the skies over their cam-
  ouflaged airbase . Despite the advantages in 
  weapons range, the Clan pilots were hard-put 
  to overcome the speed and thick armor of the 
  Shikras . When two of her pilots were downed 
  for only three of the Shikras, Star Captain Amber 
  Lankenau called in the rest of her bid to avoid 
  defeat . With the Shikras now outnumbered 
  four to three, Star Captain Lankenau expected 
  a quick surrender . Instead, she watched two 
  more of her pilots die before the final Shikra was 
  sent burning into the ground . In anger, she and 
  her last wingman destroyed the enemy airbase 
  before returning to their staging area .
  The Cumberland Missiliers formed the core 
  of their homeworld’s defense against the invad-
  ing Fourth McCarron’s Armored Cavalry in March 
  3145 . The Missiliers had grown to a combined-
  arms regiment since the Jihad ended, but most 
  of that strength was spent futilely attempting 
  to stem the McCarron tide . The Missilier fighters 
  included a pair of Shikras, which demonstrated 
  the fighter’s durability . The pair made dozens of 
  passes over the McCarron staging areas, destroy-
  ing several formations on the ground and count-
  less supply depots . They finally drew the attention 
  of the entire Eclipse Wing . As the enemy fighters 
  picked them apart, the surviving Missiliers used 
  the diversion to evacuate their families and over 
  100 planetary officials, and withdrew to Wernke . 
  The brave Shikras both went down to enemy fire . 
  Captain Jebediah “Surefire” Cooper survived and is 
  currently leading a resistance cell from the wilds .
  VARIANTS
  Despite Clan Sea Fox joining the new Free 
  Worlds League, spare parts and skilled mainte-
  nance crews for the Clan made autocannons 
  hard to come by at an acceptable cost . With 
  the loss of so much territory to the Wolf Empire, 
  Andurien Aerotech made the decision to offer a 
  cheaper, less ammo-dependent model, trading 
  the autocannons for a heavy PPC in each wing .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Lieutenant Caroline Scott: Lieutenant Scott 
  commands a group of fighters assigned to 
  courier JumpShip security . On a recent patrol 
  near the periphery, Scott’s JumpShip stum-
  bled across a mass of pirate fighters who were 
  setting their own blockade . Lieutenant Scott’s 
  Shikra SKR-4N and her wingman had already 
  deployed, but the other two fighters remained 
  stuck on board the DropShip after the bay door 
  jammed . The pirate fighters, while numerous, 
  were older, underarmored, light fighters in poor 
  states of repair . The last few pirate fighters were 
  shot down long after both Shikras had emp-
  tied their Gauss rifle bins .
  
  209
  SKR-4M SHIKRA
  Type: Shikra
  Technology Base: Mixed Inner Sphere
  Tonnage: 90
  Battle Value: 2,649
  Equipment 
   
   
  Mass
  Engine:  
  360 XL 
   
  16 .5
   
  Safe Thrust:  
  6
   
  Maximum Thrust:  
  9
  Structural Integrity: 
  9
  Heat Sinks:  
  10 [20] 
   
  0
  Fuel:  
  400 
   
  5
  Cockpit: 
   
   
  3
  Armor Factor (Heavy Ferro):  
  347 
   
  17 .5
   
   
  Armor 
   
   
  Value 
   
  Nose 
  111 
   
  Wings 
  83/83 
   
  Aft 
  70 
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  Gauss Rifle 
  Nose 
  15 
  1 
  15 
  15 
  15 
  —
  Ammo (Gauss) 24 
  — 
  3 
   
   
   
   
  Ultra AC/10 (C) 
  RW 
  10 
  6 
  15 
  15 
  — 
  —
  Ammo (Ultra) 30 
  — 
  3 
   
   
   
   
  Ultra AC/10 (C) 
  LW 
  10 
  6 
  15 
  15 
  — 
  —
  Ammo (Ultra) 30 
  — 
  3 
   
   
   
   
  Medium Pulse Laser 
  Aft 
  2 
  4 
  6 
  — 
  — 
  —
  2 Chaff Pods 
  Aft 
  2 
  0 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  —
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: Difficult to Maintain, Non-Standard Parts .
  
  210
  SMALL 
  CRAFT
  ZHEN NIAO
  The CCAF has long been recognized for 
  adopting innovative weapons and tactics much 
  more quickly than other nations might, but in 
  the specialized Zhen Niao—poisonfeather 
  bird—it might have overstepped even its own 
  doctrine . Intended an electronic warfare and 
  interdiction vessel, the small craft has quickly 
  become one of the most targeted of Capellan 
  space vessels .
  CAPABILITIES
  Despite carrying lasers for defense, the 
  Zhen Niao is a noncombatant . Its purpose is to 
  act as a mobile observation satellite, carrying its 
  electronics in random powered orbits to throw 
  off the usual satellite-hunting tactics of enemy 
  aerospace fighters . Because assigning it escorts 
  would mark it as a military target, most Zhen 
  Niaos endeavor to fly like commercial intrasys-
  tem craft .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Zhen Niao is commonly assigned to 
  both overt and covert missions, though its pi-
  lots prefer to function near CCAF support, for 
  obvious reasons . Its fuel is only really useful for 
  orbital missions near a larger tender or ground 
  base, and its electronic warfare capabilities 
  make it a prime target .
  During the invasion of the Federated Suns, 
  two Zhen Niaos assigned to work with the First 
  Liao Hussars were assigned overwatch duties 
  while the Hussars attacked on the ground . The 
  craft performed admirably in their first two 
  campaigns, using their imaging equipment to 
  downlink realtime intelligence to the Hussars’ 
  mobile headquarters . It wasn’t until the third 
  campaign that the Davion defenders were 
  ready for them . 
  The pair of Zhen Niaos deployed from a 
  Capellan DropShip and entered competing 
  orbits to get first-scans of the planet’s sur-
  face . As they completed their ball-of-twine 
  orbits, Davion aerospace fighters rose to meet 
  them . Their cover blown, the two Zhen Niaos 
  fled, using their space mine dispensers to lay 
  minefields behind them and counting on their 
  Guardian ECM suites to protect them . Only one 
  of the small craft escaped .
  In hindsight, RAF intelligence has been 
  able to identify a number of Zhen Niao craft op-
  erating covertly from Capellan merchant vessels 
  prior to their assault into the Republic in 3112 
  during the so-called Warrior House Offensive . 
  These vessels undoubtedly surveyed a num-
  ber of planets from orbit in advance of the of-
  fensive, offering the Capellan warrior houses 
  the edge they needed to cut so great a swath 
  through Republic lines .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Eagle 479: “Eagle 479” is the call sign of a 
  Zhen Niao assault craft believed to be oper-
  ating inside Republic space at this time . The 
  craft is believed to be conducting missions in 
  support of the Death Commandos and/or the 
  Maskirovka, missions that are well detached 
  from the present invasions taking place in our 
  rimward quadrant . The IFF transponder and 
  colors used by “Eagle 479” appear to vary from 
  mission site to mission site, making it nearly  
  impossible to track its position, and we believe 
  it has actually used military, mercenary, and 
  even civilian courier JumpShips to transit 
  between systems . What is known is that this 
  craft’s call sign has been intercepted in radio 
  chatter at several systems associated with re-
  cent acts of espionage by lightly armored com-
  mando operatives . 
  Most of these black ops missions appear 
  to focus on data gathering, but a worrying few 
  have been aimed at breaking into high-tech 
  industrial sites and either destroying valuable 
  equipment or raiding the local data stores . 
  This suggests that House Liao is attempting 
  to unravel not only the RAF’s overall defense 
  strategy, but also its greatest technological 
  secrets . Locating, capturing, and/or destroying 
  this craft and its associated operatives is thus 
  a top priority for RAF security .
  
  211
  ZHEN NIAO
  Type: Military Aerodyne
  Use: Assault Craft
  Tech: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Introduced: 3092
  Mass: 140 tons
  Battle Value: 1,148
  Dimensions
   
  Length: 21 meters
   
  Width: 19 meters
  Fuel: 24 tons (1,920 points)
  Safe Thrust: 5
  Maximum Thrust: 8
  Heat Sinks: 5 (10)
  Structural Integrity: 8
  Armor
   
  Nose: 84
   
  Wings: 61
   
  Aft: 41
  Cargo
   
  Bay 1: Cargo (3 tons) 
  1 Door 
   
  Crew: 1 officer, 2 enlisted/non-rated,  
  1 gunner
  Notes: Equipped with 12 tons of Ferro-
  aluminum armor . All crew quarters 
  assigned as Steerage-class (5 tons 
  per crewman) . Features the fol-
  lowing Design Quirks: Improved 
  Communications .
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  Beagle Active Probe 
  Nose 
  1 .5 
   
   
   
   
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Aft 
  2 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  — 
  —
  Hyperspectral Imager 
  Aft 
  7 .5 
   
   
   
   
  Guardian ECM Suite 
  Aft 
  1 .5 
   
   
   
   
  Space Mine Dispenser 
  Aft 
  10 
   
   
  
  212
  SMALL 
  CRAFT
  OO-SUZUMEBACHI
  In the Combine the airborne insertion 
  of battle armor is best achieved by its Oo-
  Suzumebachi small craft, an advanced vehicle 
  that more than earns its name: giant hornet . 
  Purpose-built after the Second Combine-
  Dominion War, the first prototype cleared tri-
  als at Dover in 3117, and production models 
  quickly became the preferred choice of small-
  unit battlesuit commanders and their planners .
  CAPABILITIES
  Unlike many modern vehicles, the Oo-
  Suzumebachi—often shorted to the Ooze—
  doesn’t try to distinguish itself with cutting-
  edge technology . Instead, it earns respect with 
  powerful brute-force elements, such as heavy 
  armor, thick antimissile defenses and a power-
  ful, landing-zone clearing main weapon .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Twenty-second New Samarkand 
  Regulars’ aerospace assets took a serious 
  pounding just prior to their conquest of 
  Cimeron in 3144, where they faced the Fifth 
  Robinson Strikers light combat team . The LCT’s 
  powerful aerospace element took a fearsome 
  toll on the Regulars’ advance, and while the re-
  maining Regulars aerospace fighters did what 
  they could, the regiment’s infantry command-
  ers brought forward and launched an auda-
  cious plan .
  The Robinson Strikers’ aerospace fight-
  ers were staging from a ground base, which 
  the New Samarkand fighters were too weak 
  to reach . The Regulars’ infantry sent forward a 
  company of battlesuit assault infantry on four 
  Oozes and planned a daring assault . Using 
  two of the Regulars’ DropShips and all of their 
  remaining fighters, the New Samarkands 
  feinted toward a Fifth Robinson garrison post 
  in the Merron Mountains . Meanwhile, the Oo-
  Suzumebachis and their infantry teased every 
  bit of performance from the small craft and 
  flew nap-of-the-earth to the aerodrome . The 
  base fell almost immediately, and the infantry 
  settled in to wait .
  Soon enough the LCT squadrons returned 
  from the fighting and landed to be repaired 
  and rearmed . Unbeknownst to them, a squad 
  of New Samarkand battle armor was hidden 
  in their armored hangars and slaughtered the 
  pilots when they exited . Though fast-response 
  Davion infantry and armor arrived within twen-
  ty minutes, the damage had already been done . 
  The loss of their pilots forced the Davions to 
  destroy their own fighters rather than see them 
  captured when the Fifth withdrew off-world .
  During the conquest of the Draconis 
  Reach in 3139, several Oozes operated with the 
  Ryuken-go . Though that regiment as a whole 
  saw limited action, detachments served across 
  the zone, often preparing the way for Dragoon 
  striker battalions to attack Davion installations . 
  One such action saw four Oo-Suzumebachis bat-
  tle their way through fixed defenses to keep a 
  Davion counterattack from catching a Dragoon 
  column in ambush on Wapakoneta . 
  A bridgehead across a critical river was 
  defended by a small fort protected mainly by 
  LRM batteries . Though they detected the Oozes 
  coming, the LRMs were unable to penetrate 
  the near-cloud of anti-missile system fire the 
  Ryuken craft threw out, which allowed the pi-
  lots to drop their battle armor squads directly 
  over the turrets . The company held the outpost 
  long enough to stop a Davion relief column 
  from attacking from the Dragoons’ flank, then 
  escaped on captured VTOLs before evacuating 
  the world with the Dragoons .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  AeroMarshal Richard Fillion: AeroMarshal 
  Richard Fillion pilots the lone Ooze in the 
  Colonial Marshals . The DragonMarshal was pre-
  sented along with a company of Kishi and Zou 
  battlesuits to former President Carver Trondel 
  by the Coordinator in 3119 . It is part of the 
  Marshalry’s small quick reaction force . When 
  the Brigands attacked Independence in 3124 
  and occupied the town of Salinas, the QRF 
  responded . While the QRF’s ’Mechs disem-
  barked from their DropShips, Fillion flew CAP to 
  monitor the enemy and prepare to drop Kishi 
  and Zou squads onto the pirates directly . When 
  the pirates surprised everyone with a hidden 
  company of tanks, Fillion dropped the troopers, 
  then did what all Marshals do: he went beyond 
  the call of duty . Fillion repeatedly flew nape of 
  the earth over the pirates, pounding them with 
  MRMs until his ammo ran dry . When his com-
  rades remained in dire straits, Fillion made one 
  last close approach, dumping his remaining fuel 
  as he overflew . He came in for a rough landing 
  that grounded the DragonMarshal for twelve 
  weeks and hospitalized Fillion for seventeen . 
  But the conflagration that erupted behind the 
  Ooze destroyed half the enemy force and al-
  lowed the QRF to push the enemy out of Salinas 
  and off Independence .
  
  213
  OO-SUZUMEBACHI
  Type: Military Aerodyne
  Use: Assault Craft
  Tech: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Introduced: 3117
  Mass: 170 tons
  Battle Value: 1,750
  Dimensions
   
  Length: 24 meters
   
  Width: 18 meters
  Fuel: 10 tons (800)
  Safe Thrust: 6
  Maximum Thrust: 9
  Heat Sinks: 8 (16)
  Structural Integrity: 9
  Armor
   
  Nose: 131
   
  Sides: 95
   
  Aft: 64
  Cargo
   
  Bay 1: Battle Armor 
   
  3 Doors
   
   
  Compartment (3 Squads)
   
  Bay 2: Cargo (1 ton) 
   
  1 Door
   
  Crew: 1 Officer, 2 enlisted/non-rated, 1 gunner
  Notes: Equipped with 19 .5 tons of ferro-aluminum 
  armor . All crew quarters assigned as Steerage-class 
  (5 tons per crewman) . Features the following Design 
  Quirks: Atmospheric Flyer, Fragile Fuel Tank .
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  MRM 40 + Apollo FCS  
  Nose 
  13 
  12 
  24 
  24 
  — 
  —
  Ammo (MRM) 12  
  — 
  2
  3 Anti-Missile Systems 
  RW 
  1 .5 
  1 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  —
  3 Anti-Missile Systems 
  LW 
  1 .5 
  1 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  —
  Ammo (AMS) 48  
  — 
  4
  2 ER Medium Lasers 
  Aft 
  2 
  5 
  5 
  5 
  — 
  —
  
  214
  SMALL 
  CRAFT
  NL-45 GUNBOAT
  The tradition begun with the Star League 
  NL-series military transports continues with the 
  NL-45 Gunboat . Built at United Outworlders 
  Corporation’s Ramora factory, the NL-45 is a 
  combat picket ship, a role UOC’s civilian craft 
  were unable to fill . 
  Since its debut, the NL-45 has proven a 
  valuable money earner for the Raven Alliance 
  as the default platform for any Clan needing a 
  small craft to patrol near space or provide a de-
  ploy boarding parties to armed vessels .
  CAPABILITIES 
  A quarter of the NL-45’s mass is devoted 
  to combat systems . An already superior elec-
  tronic warfare suite has been enhanced, mak-
  ing the NL-45 twenty percent harder to hit than 
  an unaugmented aerospace fighter . The NL-45 
  carries a battle armor bay sufficient to transport 
  a Point of battle armor . The bay provides supe-
  rior accommodations and allows orbital com-
  bat drops, which is the only real attraction for 
  crews . Outside the battle armor bay the NL-45’s 
  space is cramped, its range is average and the 
  cargo bay is small, all factors that limit extended 
  patrols .
  DEPLOYMENT
  NL-45s played a major part in the Raven 
  Alliance’s invasion of Kirbyville . Almost every 
  manned satellite received a visit by an NL-45 
  and its marines as Beta Galaxy set about secur-
  ing the system . Several attempts at resistance 
  ended with a burst of autocannon fire into a 
  satellite’s life support systems .
  The Third Periphery Guard, Kirbyville’s 
  garrison, did not engage until the Fifth Raven 
  Stoop reached orbit . Waiting until the Ravens 
  were committed to atmospheric entry, the 
  Third sent its full aerospace strength to bring 
  down the approaching DropShips . The fight-
  ers of the Third were already outnumbered, 
  but the presence of the NL-45s’ ECM meant 
  that the defenders had to close to short range 
  while the Ravens were free to engage targets 
  300 kilometers away . With aerospace superi-
  ority secured, a second wave of NL-45s went 
  in alongside the Arcadia-class DropShips, 
  combat-dropping battle armor onto se-
  lect targets in Kirbyville’s capital while the 
  Arcadias delivered their payload directly 
  against the Third . 
  NL-45s have also been a bane of Lyran 
  combat operations against the Golden Ordun . 
  Malvina Hazen has been all too willing to un-
  leash her WarShips on dug-in defenders, which 
  has made them a primary target for Lyran aero-
  space units . With the Falcon fleet dominated by 
  vintage Star League cruisers, there are plenty of 
  bays available for NL-45s and they form a formi-
  dable barrier against attacks . The Lyrans’ attack 
  at Wrociaw was typical .
   After the fate of the Kell Hounds on 
  Timkovichi, the Lyrans expected White Aerie 
  to enter orbit and bombard the defenders . 
  Springing a trap, the outnumbered Lyrans 
  managed to evade the Falcons’ fighters and 
  make an end-run on White Aerie, launching 
  five nuclear weapons . An electronics screen 
  formed by a pair of NL-45s spoofed three 
  nukes off target . The remaining two were de-
  stroyed by a third NL-45 lurking close to White 
  Aerie . No Lyran fighters survived, and this re-
  mains the closest the Lyrans have come to 
  destroying a Falcon WarShip since the Golden 
  Ordun invaded .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Stalker of the Deep: Stalker of the Deep was 
  part of Spina Khanate’s blockade of the Regulan 
  Fiefs . Assigned to Alpha Aimag and stationed 
  aboard CSF Silentshark, Stalker was providing 
  overwatch for the inspection of a JumpShip 
  when the Regulans launched a surprise attack . 
  Pocket WarShips swarmed the Silentshark, tar-
  geting its engines and maneuvering systems . 
  The gunboat moved in close to provide ECM 
  coverage while targeting the attackers . With 
  skilled piloting, Stalker maneuvered behind 
  a Leopard Pocket WarShip and quickly cut 
  through the weaker aft armor . 
   
  Clan Sea Fox emerged victorious, but CSF 
  Silentshark suffered damage to its maneuvering 
  thrusters . Stuck at the zenith jump point, it is 
  up to Stalker of the Deep and her sister ships to 
  continue the blockade and protect Silentshark 
  from any further attacks .
  
  215
  NL-45 GUNBOAT
  Type: Military Spheroid
  Use: Assault Craft
  Tech: Clan
  Introduced: 3094
  Mass: 190 tons
  Battle Value: 4,343
  Dimensions
   
  Length: 18 meters
   
  Width: 15 meters
  Fuel: 10 tons (800 points)
  Safe Thrust: 5
  Maximum Thrust: 8
  Heat Sinks: 21 (42)
  Structural Integrity: 8
  Armor
   
  Nose: 160
   
  Sides: 140
   
  Aft: 120
  Cargo
   
  Bay 1: Battle Armor Bay (1 Point) 
  1 Door
   
  Bay 2: Cargo ( .5 tons) 
   
  1 Door 
  Crew: 1 officer, 2 enlisted/non-rated, 1 gunner, 6 bay 
  personnel
  Notes: Equipped with 22 tons of Ferro-aluminum armor . 
  All crew quarters assigned as Steerage-class (5 tons 
  per crewman) . Features the following Design Quirks: 
  Combat Computer, Atmospheric Flight Instability .
  Weapons and Ammo 
  Location 
  Tonnage 
  Heat 
  SRV 
  MRV 
  LRV 
  ERV
  2 Rotary AC/5 
  Nose 
  20 
  6 
  20 
  20 
  20 
  —
  Ammo (RAC) 120  
  — 
  6 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  —
  2 ER PPC 
  Nose 
  12 
  15 
  15 
  15 
  15 
  —
  Active Probe 
  Nose 
  1 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  —
  2 Anti-Missile Systems 
  FR 
  1 
  1 
  3 
  — 
  — 
  —
  2 Anti-Missile Systems 
  FL 
  1 
  1 
  3 
  — 
  — 
  —
  Ammo (AMS) 48  
  — 
  2 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  —
  2 ER Large Lasers 
  Aft 
  8 
  12 
  10 
  10 
  10 
  10
  ECM Suite 
  Aft 
  1 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  —
  
  216
  DROPSHIPS
  SELEUCUS INFANTRY TRANSPORT
  The Seleucus is one of the few dedicated 
  battle armor transports in the Inner Sphere . As 
  such, it has become a major money earner for 
  Kallon Weapon Industries . The Marik-Stewart 
  Commonwealth authorized the Seleucus’ sale 
  to any non-hostile party, making it a popular 
  choice for anyone looking to take battle armor 
  into a combat zone .
  CAPABILITIES 
  Other than poorly arranged variants of 
  existing transports, the only option available 
  for battlesuit transport was combined-arms 
  platforms like the Assault Triumph . The Seleucus 
  changed the equation by being small and spe-
  cifically designed for battle armor . The only 
  real competition at its size is the Aurora, with 
  its cramped cargo pods . Instead the Seleucus 
  offers a Free Worlds-size company of battle 
  armor, a full company of transport assets and 
  more cargo space to keep them fighting . 
  DEPLOYMENT 
  In the 3120s raiding was all the rage be-
  tween the states of the Free Worlds League . 
  A Seleucus as payment was all that was need-
  ed to convince Hector’s Hooligans to raid 
  Brigadier Corporation on Mackenzie . Certain 
  that Brigadier’s orbital facilities lacked fighter 
  cover, the Hooligans burned in with their new 
  Seleucus and a Leopard CV . At the last moment 
  the Seleucus reversed thrust and deployed the 
  Hooligans’ battle armor in an extravehicular 
  boarding attempt . That was when Brigadier’s 
  fighters arrived . 
  The Hooligans’ Leopard only managed to 
  launch four fighters before it was sent spinning 
  into the atmosphere . The Seleucus and fighters 
  fought for their lives against the squadron of 
  defenders, while the mercenaries’ battle armor 
  fought to seal off Brigadier’s construction yard . 
  With its heavy armor the Seleucus served as an 
  anvil the Hooligans’ fighters could smash the de-
  fenders on . With aerospace superiority achieved, 
  the Hooligans stole two brand new Behemoths 
  and retreated back to their JumpShip .
  After the collapse of the Marik-Stewart 
  Commonwealth, the nation’s remnants began 
  looking for a new protector . With the Wolves 
  howling on the border and the Regulan Fiefs 
  already seizing worlds, Jessica Marik’s alliance 
  seemed their only hope . With the Commonwealth 
  troops pinned down fighting the Wolves and 
  Lyrans, the Commonwealth’s aerospace assets 
  were free to join Jessica Marik’s growing armada . 
  When Operation HOMECOMING was launched in 
  April 3139, Seleucuses were at the heart of the 
  assault on Atreus . 
  Coming in behind Clan Sea Fox’s assault 
  assets, the four Seleucuses of the Silver Hawk 
  Irregulars combat-dropped two companies 
  of battle armor on the Atreus City spaceport . 
  After orbiting Atreus while the spaceport 
  was secured, the four ships grounded and 
  deployed their remaining battle armor and 
  transport assets . The Silver Hawk’s battle armor 
  would rely on the Seleucuses to keep them 
  fighting as they liberated the city and the 
  Imperator Auto Weapons plant from the First 
  Regulan Hussars . This included repairing and 
  rearming damaged suits and providing safe 
  lodgings for the soldiers . It wouldn’t be until a 
  week later that it was deemed safe enough for 
  the supply ships to land .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  Outrider: During the Andurien assault on 
  the Oriente Protectorate in 3146, the Second 
  Andurien Rangers used several Seleucuses 
  to great effect in pacifying invaded cities on 
  Mosiro . The foremost of these was the Outrider, 
  which dropped battle armor and light patrol 
  vehicles directly in the middle of population 
  centers, allowing ground forces to claim key 
  positions in the city in advance of ’Mech and 
  armor forces .
  Rum Runner: A heavily modified Seleucus has 
  been seen engaging in piracy and smuggling 
  on several worlds in the anti-spinward border 
  of the Duchy of Tamarind-Abbey, particularly 
  on the Southwest Trinity Worlds, although 
  rumor indicates it has operated in the core-
  ward parts of the Timbuktu Theater as well . 
  This DropShip is commonly used to drop battle 
  armor and fast vehicles near a valuable target . 
  The pirates then steal cargo and quickly load it 
  on the DropShip to smuggle to another planet . 
  This pirate crew seems to be taking advantage 
  of the unrest between Tamarind-Abbey and the 
  Lyran Commonwealth . The origins of this so-
  called Rum Runner is a mystery . Tamarind-Abbey 
  believes it is a creation of the Lyrans, while the 
  Lyrans chalk it up to a League deception . Still, 
  others claim it originated from the long-dead 
  Circinus Federation .
  
  217
  SELEUCUS INFANTRY TRANSPORT
  Type: Military Aerodyne
  Use: Troop Transport
  Tech: Inner Sphere 
  Introduced: 3113
  Mass: 2,600 tons
  Battle Value: 7,306
  Dimensions
   
  Length: 69 meters 
   
  Width: 45 meters 
   
  Height: 42 meters
  Fuel: 150 tons (6,000 points)
  Tons/Burn-day: 1 .84
  Safe Thrust: 4
  Maximum Thrust: 6
  Heat Sinks: 102 (204)
  Structural Integrity: 12
  Armor 
   
  Nose: 251
   
  Wings: 230
   
  Aft: 201
  Cargo
   
  Bay 1: Battle Armor Cubicles 
  5 Doors
   
   
  (20 Squads [80 troops])
   
  Bay 2: Light Vehicle Cubicles (12) 1 Door
   
  Bay 3: Cargo (217 tons) 
   
  1 Door
  Life Boats: 4
  Escape Pods: 4
  Crew: 5 officers, 10 enlisted/non-rated, 6 gunners, 180 
  bay personnel 
  Notes: Equipped with 54 tons of standard armor . 
  Weapons: Capital Attack Values (Standard)
  Arc (Heat) Type 
   
  Short Medium Long Extreme Class
  Nose (68 Heat)
   2 ER PPC  
   
  2 (20) 
  2 (20) 
  2 (20) 
  — 
  PPC
   4 Light Gauss Rifles  
  3 (32) 
  3 (32) 
  3 (32) 
  3 (32) Autocannon
    
   (64 rounds)
   2 ER Large Lasers  
   
  3 (26) 
  2 (26) 
  2 (16) 
  — 
  Laser
    
  2 ER Medium Lasers
  RW/LW (82 Heat)
   1 ER PPC   
   
  1 (10) 
  1 (10) 
  1 (10) 
  — 
  PPC
   2 ELRM 20 (32 rounds) 
  2 (24) 
  2 (24) 
  2 (24) 
  2 (24) 
  LRM
   2 ER Large Lasers  
   
  4 (36) 
  4 (36) 
  2 (16) 
  — 
  Laser
    
  4 ER Medium Lasers
   3 AMS (72 rounds)  
  1 (9)† 
  — 
  — 
  — Point Defense
  Weapons: Capital Attack Values (Standard)
  Arc (Heat) Type 
   
  Short Medium Long Extreme Class
  RW/LW Aft (3 Heat)
   3 AMS (72 rounds)  
  1 (9)† 
  — 
  — 
  — Point Defense
  Aft (46 Heat) 
   2 LRM 20 + Artemis IV 
  3 (32) 
  3 (32) 
  3 (32) 
  — 
  LRM
    
  (30 rounds)
   2 ER Large Lasers  
   
  3 (26) 
  2 (26) 
  2 (16) 
  — 
  Laser
    
  2 ER Medium Lasers
  Notes: Features the following Design Quirks: 
  Atmospheric Flyer, Difficult to Maintain, Non-
  Standard Parts .
  
  218
  DROPSHIPS
  TRUTZBURG
  Named for the German term for a cas-
  tle built to besiege an enemy fortress, the 
  Trutzburg-class DropShip is designed to accom-
  plish the goal of its namesake . In the post-Jihad 
  climate, the dwindling numbers of Auroras, 
  Unions, and Overlords in service with the LCAF 
  created cause for concern, since the Isle of Skye’s 
  defection to the Republic of the Sphere left the 
  Lyran Commonwealth without any domestic 
  means to replace these ’Mech transports . This 
  forced the LCAF to either import foreign models 
  or commission a new DropShip to supplement 
  the existing DropShip fleet . Tharkad Aerospace 
  Group’s Trutzburg attempts to fill that role by 
  finding a versatile middle ground between the 
  venerable Union and Overlord while remaining 
  capable of providing more protection than ei-
  ther model .
  CAPABILITIES
  Taking cues from the obsolete Fortress-class 
  DropShip, the Trutzburg can transport and sup-
  port a BattleMech company and its attached 
  aerospace squadron and battle armor comple-
  ment . Considerable armor protection permits 
  the DropShip to keep the troops and crew safe 
  during naval maneuvers, planetfall, and the dura-
  tion of ground campaigns . Taking the Fortress’s 
  artillery a step further, the Trutzburg’s trio of ord-
  nance launchers allows the crew to effectively 
  aid in ground campaigns by being able to blan-
  ket a larger area than a single launcher can .
  DEPLOYMENT
  Since its introduction, Trutzburgs have 
  propagated throughout the Inner Sphere, with 
  only the Capellan Confederation, Draconis 
  Combine, and the Clans forgoing its use .
  The Trutzburg has since proven itself in 
  numerous encounters . During the Operation 
  HAMMERFALL assault of Tamarind in 3137, sev-
  eral Trutzburgs from the Fourth Royal Guards 
  attempted to support Lyran troops that had 
  already landed . With the battalion’s original 
  planned landing zone overrun by the Duchy’s 
  troops, three of the Fourth’s DropShips re-
  mained hovering while attempting to find a 
  safe spot to land . In order to clear the LZ, the 
  battalion’s Trutzburgs launched fighters, and 
  the DropShips’ batteries attempted to coordi-
  nate artillery barrages while the ships were still 
  airborne . The Hail Mary tactic worked, and only 
  one of the battalion’s DropShips suffered any 
  serious damage upon landing .
  The DropShip also showed its worth dur-
  ing the Jade Falcon and Hell’s Horses push 
  into the Coventry and Donegal Provinces . 
  Throughout the conflict, the overall survival 
  rate in LCAF retreats from Malvina Hazen’s 
  Golden Ordun forces ranked much higher for 
  ’Mech companies and aerospace squadrons at-
  tached to Trutzburgs than to those attached to 
  other DropShip classes . Analyst largely attribute 
  this survival rate to the Trutzburg’s considerable 
  armor coverage .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  LCS Necessity: The LCS Necessity was a 
  Trutzburg-class DropShip that served with the 
  LCAF forces defending Coventry when Clan 
  Jade Falcon attacked it in early 3148 . Though 
  she was initially part of the orbital defenses, 
  it became clear as the Falcons blew past the 
  outer fighter screens that the ship would better 
  serve the ground battle as an artillery platform 
  and mobile command center . Landing near the 
  capital city of Port St . William, the Necessity 
  provided devastating fire support for the 
  Commonwealth troops holding back the Clan 
  advance nearby . Using telemetry fed to her 
  by her own attached fighter squadrons, she 
  was able to zero in on several key positions 
  on the Falcon battle line, before pummeling 
  them with a mix of high-explosive, incendiary, 
  and FASCAM munitions . These attacks slowed 
  the Clan attackers, buying the Lyrans time to  
  maneuver reinforcements as needed . When 
  the Falcons tried to counter the artillery with 
  aerospace assets, Necessity switched one of her 
  Long Toms to cluster munitions, using the flak 
  to discourage the Clan aerofighters while her 
  extended-range LRMs homed in on invaders 
  both in the air and on the ground .
  Although Necessity did eventually succumb 
  to the relentless assault—her guns ultimately  
  silenced by a boarding party of Elementals 
  delivered by fast-moving hovercraft—the 
  Trutzburg’s actions and those of her fighter 
  squadron helped hold the Falcons back long 
  enough for Roderick Steiner’s assault group to 
  reach the area and save the capital city .
  
  219
  TRUTZBURG
  Type: Military Spheroid
  Use: Transport
  Tech: Inner Sphere (Advanced)
  Introduced: 3100
  Mass: 6,000 tons
  Battle Value: 11,180
  Dimensions
   
  Length: 110 meters 
   
  Width: 110 meters 
   
  Height: 93 meters
  Fuel: 400 tons (12,000 points)
  Tons/Burn-day: 1 .84
  Safe Thrust: 3
  Maximum Thrust: 5
  Heat Sinks: 131 (262)
  Structural Integrity: 15
  Armor 
   
  Nose: 321
   
  Sides: 270
   
  Aft: 250
  Cargo
   
  Bay 1: Fighter Cubicles (6)  
  3 Doors
   
  Bay 2: BattleMech Cubicles (12) 
  2 Doors
   
  Bay 3: IS Battle Armor Cubicles 
  1 Door
   
   
  (4 Squads)
   
  Bay 4: Cargo (432 tons) 
   
  1 Door
  Life Boats: 4
  Escape Pods: 5
  Crew: 7 officers, 20 enlisted/non-rated, 10 gunners, 60 
  bay personnel 
  Notes: Equipped with 53 tons of Heavy Ferro-aluminum 
  armor . Features the following Design Quirk: Difficult 
  to Maintain .
  Weapons: Capital Attack Values (Standard)
  Arc (Heat) Type 
   
  Short Medium Long Extreme Class
  Nose (128 Heat)
   2 ER PPC  
   
  2 (20) 
  2 (20) 
  2 (20) 
  — 
  PPC
   2 Improved Heavy Gauss 4 (44) 
  4 (44) 
  4 (44) 
  — Autocannon
    
  Rifles (40 rounds)
   2 ER Large Lasers 
   
  3 (26) 
  3 (26) 
  2 (16) 
  — 
  Laser
    
  2 ER Medium Lasers
   3 Long Tom Artillery  
  * 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  Artillery
    
  (300 rounds)
  FR/FL (86 Heat) 
   1 ER PPC  
   
  1 (10) 
  1 (10) 
  1 (10) 
  — 
  PPC
   2 ELRM 20 (32 rounds) 
  2 (24) 
  2 (24)  
  2 (24) 
  2 (24) 
  LRM
   2 ER Large Lasers 
   
  4 (36) 
  4 (36) 
  2 (16) 
  — 
  Laser
    
  4 ER Medium Lasers
   3 Anti-Missile Systems 
  1 (9)† 
  — 
  — 
  — Point Defense
    
  (72 rounds)
  Weapons: Capital Attack Values (Standard)
  Arc (Heat) Type 
   
  Short Medium Long Extreme Class
  AR/AL (44 Heat) 
   1 ER PPC  
   
  1 (10) 
  1 (10) 
  1 (10) 
  — 
  PPC
   2 Improved Heavy Gauss 4 (44) 
  4 (44) 
  4 (44) 
  — Autocannon
    
  Rifles (40 rounds)
   2 LRM 20 + Artemis IV 
  3 (32) 
  3 (32) 
  3 (32) 
  — 
  LRM
    
  (30 rounds)
   2 ER Medium Lasers  
  1 (10) 
  1 (10) 
  — 
  — 
  Laser
   3 Anti-Missile Systems 
  1 (9)† 
  — 
  — 
  — Point Defense
    
  (72 rounds)
  Aft (36 Heat)
   1 Improved Heavy Gauss 2 (22) 
  2 (22) 
  2 (22) 
  — Autocannon
    
  Rifle (20 rounds)
   2 ER Large Lasers 
   
  3 (26) 
  3 (26) 
  2 (16) 
  — 
  Laser
    
  2 ER Medium Lasers
  
  220
  DROPSHIPS
  The Castrum is the largest combat 
  DropShip ever built . A “Pocket WarShip” in the 
  truest sense, it is one of the Republic Navy’s best 
  deterrents against any outside predations .
  The Castrum project was immediately 
  put into motion after the establishment of the 
  Republic . With its small fleet of three WarShips 
  concentrated in an independent command, 
  and WarShip manufacturing across the Inner 
  Sphere in ruins, it was clear that the Republic 
  Navy would need to rely on Pocket WarShips for 
  the bulk of its defense forces . The activation of 
  three Word-designed assault DropShips formed 
  a solid core superior to that of the Great Houses, 
  but these ships were initially assigned to sup-
  port ground forces . The Border Fleet’s scarcity 
  in cutting edge equipment was exacerbated by 
  the lack of truly large vessels, especially with 
  Prefectures V and VI facing the persistent threat 
  of WarShip-backed Liao incursions .
  Vice Admiral Christoff Brennan Wright was 
  not content with this situation . New Earth’s facili-
  ties were refit for military production in the late 
  3070s and featured enough spare production 
  capacity to begin R&D on a truly titanic vessel . 
  CAPABILITIES
  Projected at a maximum mass of 100,000 
  tons, the giant craft was planned as a purely 
  space-faring ship from the outset . Like the civil-
  ian Behemoth, the Castrum’s size meant that it 
  would require dual docking collars to be trans-
  ported on JumpShips . 
  Its powerful, long-range weaponry is ar-
  ranged in traditional WarShip fashion, allowing 
  for bracket-firing and even orbital bombard-
  ment—though this latter option is categorically 
  off-limits in the Republic Navy . The Castrum is 
  also equipped to serve as the central anchor 
  to the Border Fleets’ naval C3 networks and the 
  effectiveness of their mutual support recently 
  saw Interdictors and Tiamats being similarly 
  equipped as well .
  DEPLOYMENT
  The Castrum’s main strategic role of a 
  peacemaker was tested early in its service life, 
  during the Second Combine-Dominion War . 
  The Republic investigation teams sent into the 
  Irece Prefecture in early 3101 were accompanied 
  by a special fleet presence, invited by the Nova 
  Cats—a fully recognized sovereign people in a 
  time prior to their compliance to Draconis gover-
  nance . Under pressure from the Dominion’s own 
  people, there were actually fewer protests from 
  the Clan aggressors than the DCA . By the time 
  that public opinion was turned against the Black 
  Dragons, it was the Castrums stationed over 
  Labrea and Irece that caused Khan Kabrinski not 
  to pursue her madness . These Castrums rejoined 
  the WarShip Command in mid-3103 after the of-
  ficial peace had lasted for a year, all without ever 
  needing to fire a single shot .
  They have not had to do so . In the Capellan 
  Crusades, the Castrums of the Fifth and Sixth 
  Border Fleets proved their worth as a deterrent—
  as the scourge of the Confederation’s Feng Huang 
  was not seen on their watch . Still, in the interests 
  of avoiding escalation on a naval scale, the Fleets 
  held back these most powerful assets from many 
  engagements, and all battles were generally only 
  accompanied by fighter skirmishes .
  Prior to the implementation of Fortress 
  Republic, Castrums of the Border Fleets were 
  discreetly recalled to Prefecture X, ostensibly 
  for maintenance . Had Clarion Call not worked 
  as well as it did, the Castrums would have been 
  the Republic’s last line of defense .
  NOTABLE UNITS
  RSS San Diego: As part of the combat escort 
  fleet assigned to our operations along the 
  Davion-Kurita front, the RSS San Diego has seen 
  action in several systems from Dieron to Ozawa . 
  But her most dramatic contribution to date took 
  place in the Quentin system mere weeks after 
  the mission began . Unbeknownst to the RAF 
  attack force, Tai-shu Kambei Okamoto, warlord 
  of the Dieron Prefecture, was on-planet, inspect-
  ing recent renovations to the Independence 
  Weapons factory site . When word of the 
  Republic attack reached him, Okamoto’s secu-
  rity detail whisked him aboard an outbound 
  Nekohono’o-class DropShip, the Burradi Mōkin . 
  As the warlord’s vessel and fighter escort 
  ascended, the RAF attack group led by San Diego 
  was powering its way through the Combine pick-
  et craft . San Diego promptly fired her capital mis-
  siles at the Mōkin, which responded with screen 
  launchers and tele-operated Krakens while its 
  fighters desperately converged on the attacking 
  Castrum . When the DCMS scrambled a second 
  squadron and additional DropShips from the 
  planet surface, San Diego’s captain realized the 
  significance of the enemy’s frenzy, and focused 
  all capital and sub-capital fire on the Nekohono’o, 
  crippling the Kurita DropShip before she could use 
  her superior acceleration to escape . Okamoto’s 
  death during the subsequent boarding operation 
  deprived the Dieron Prefecture of his leadership .  
  Type: Military Spheroid
  Use: Assault DropShip
  Tech: Inner Sphere (Experimental)
  Introduced: 3097
  Mass: 100,000 tons
  Battle Value: 67,223
  Dimensions
   
  Length: 114 meters 
   
  Width: 124 meters 
   
  Height: 321 meters
  Fuel: 1,000 tons (10,000 points)
  Tons/Burn-day: 1 .84
  Safe Thrust: 3
  Maximum Thrust: 5
  Heat Sinks: 600 (1,200)
  Structural Integrity: 150
  CASTRUM
  
  221
  Armor 
   
  Nose: 1,305
   
  Sides: 1,153
   
  Aft: 1,003
  Cargo
   
  Bay 1: Small Craft Cubicle (18) 
   
  6 Doors
   
  Bay 2: Battle Armor Bay (12 Squads) 
  1 Door
   
  Bay 3: Cargo (9,242 .5 tons)  
   
  2 Doors
   
   
  Life Boats: 50
  Escape Pods: 0
  Crew: 20 officers, 20 enlisted/non-rated, 70 gunners, 162 
  bay personnel 
  Notes: Equipped with 540 tons of heavy ferro-aluminum 
  armor and Naval C3 (2,741 .5 tons) . Features the fol-
  lowing Design Quirks: Improved Targeting/Long, 
  Large DropShip, Un-streamlined .
   
  Weapons:  
   Capital Attack Values (Standard)
  Arc (Heat) Type 
   
  Short Medium Long Extreme Class
  Nose (144 Heat)
   6 Light Sub-Capital Cannons 
  12 
  12 
  12 
  — 
  Capital AC
    
  (120 rounds)
   6 Light Sub-Capital Cannons 
  12 
  12 
  12 
  — 
  Capital AC
    
  (120 rounds)
  FR/FL (389 Heat) 
   4 AR/10 (20 KW, 20 WS, 40 B) 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  Capital Missile
   4 AR/10 (20 KW, 20 WS, 40 B) 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  Capital Missile
   4 Medium Sub-Capital Cannons 
  20 
  20 
  — 
  — 
  Capital AC
    
  (60 rounds)
   6 Improved Heavy Gauss Rifles 
  13 (132) 13 (132) 13 (132) 
  — 
  Autocannon
    
  (120 rounds)
   6 Improved Heavy Gauss Rifles 
  13 (132) 13 (132) 13 (132) 
  — 
  Autocannon
    
  (120 rounds)
   1 Screen Launcher  
  — 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  Screen
    
  (20 rounds)
   5 AMS (180 rounds)  
  2 (15)† 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  AMS
  Weapons:  
   Capital Attack Values (Standard)
  Arc (Heat) Type 
   
  Short Medium Long Extreme Class
  AR/AL (144 Heat)
   6 Light Sub-Capital Cannons 
  12 
  12 
  12 
  — 
  Capital AC
    
  (120 rounds)
   6 Light Sub-Capital Cannons 
  12 
  12 
  12 
  — 
  Capital AC
    
  (120 rounds)
  Aft (29 Heat)
   6 Improved Heavy Gauss Rifles 
  13 (132) 13 (132) 13 (132) 
  — 
  Autocannon
    
  (120 rounds)
   6 Improved Heavy Gauss Rifles 
  13 (132) 13 (132) 13 (132) 
  — 
  Autocannon
    
  (120 rounds)
   1 Screen Launcher  
  — 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  Screen
    
  (20 rounds)
   5 AMS (180 rounds)  
  2 (15)† 
  — 
  — 
  — 
  AMS
  CASTRUM
  
  222
  BATTLE ARMOR
  Cavalier II: To counter Capellan Amazons, the Cavalier II features the Grenadier II’s 
  Clan-spec stealth armor, enhanced jump mobility, and an anti-personnel weapon mount .
  Inner Sphere Standard “Baka”/“Fa Sure”: Too reliable to phase out, the venerable 
  IS Standard suit has seen a number of recent refits . Combine versions strip the jump jets 
  for dual SRM 2s (the HUD flashes “Baka” at any trooper attempting to jump, to remind the 
  trooper of his foolishness) . Meanwhile, the Anduriens’ “Fa Sure” replicates the Fa Shih at 
  the expense of modular weapon mass .
  Longinus C: The Longinus is built in two factories for the Wolf Empire . Though a 
  Clan-made advanced SRM-4 provides superior firepower, its lack of HarJel and limited 
  jump capacity confine this suit to second-line commands .
  Kanazuchi (Support): The Combine’s Kanazuchi has not aged gracefully when com-
  pared to current-generation suits like the Zou . Advanced armor turns this variant into a 
  walking missile battery, mounting a total of ten SRM tubes .
  VEHICLES
  Pandion (3135 Upgrade)/(3140 Upgrade): In the chaos following the Blackout, the 
  Pandion’s survivability was increased by mounting vehicular jump jets for a radical new 
  maneuverability profile . It was so effective that other WiGE models followed suit within 
  a decade . Recently, a slower Pandion variant has appeared on the Combine front, which 
  features medium re-engineered lasers, shielded by laser insulators .
  Galleon GAL-105: Well armed but lacking in armor, the GAL-105 features sponson-
  mounted ER medium lasers and a Thumper artillery cannon . It is deployed as fire support 
  for light armor units .
  Bellona (XL): The Laser Bellona was massively upgraded with an XL engine, armored 
  motive system, Streak LRMs, and a targeting computer . This update gives Support Cizins 
  a run for their money .
  Padilla (AMS): A common variation of the Thumper Padilla replaces the vehicle’s 
  pulse lasers with anti-missile systems, and also swaps the MMLs out for SRM launchers . 
  Pilum (ELRM): With boosted C3 and extended long range missiles, the Pilum contin-
  ues to provide formidable fire support in the thirty-second century . Its deep ammo bins 
  are protected by CASE .
  Fensalir (3132 Upgrade)/(3137 Upgrade)/(Stealth): Inspired by the Schildkröte, 
  the Fensalir gave up missile and infantry capacities for an armored motive system . After 
  the Pandion’s success, jump jets were added in a 3137 upgrade, while also adopting the 
  Schildkröte’s weaponry . Recently, a new stealth armor variant drops these gains, while 
  also mounting an improved heavy Gauss rifle with improved targeting .
  Huitzilopochtli (LRM)/(Streak): The Jade Falcons have refit several of their surplus 
  Hueys as support units, using either Artemis V or Streak technology . Hardened armor 
  reinforces its notoriously thin shell .
  Mobile Long Tom LT-MOB-95: Just before the turn of the century, House Davion 
  replaced the wagon-train LT-MOB-25 with a model that combines sufficient ammo, elec-
  tronics, and armor into a single chassis .
  Devastator II: Aldis of Terra adopted the nickname of its original fusion-powered 
  Demolisher for their superheavy upgrade . The monstrosity mounts two improved heavy 
  Gauss rifles in a turret-like superstructure with limited firing arc . Point defense weapons 
  dot its armored hull and faux turret .
  NEW TECH, NEW UPGRADES
  Once more, the proliferation of new technologies has united with the most recent arms race to produce upgraded variants for older model machines . The following is a 
  rundown of prominent examples of such “new tech” variants, many of which are hitting the field in limited numbers as a result of after-market refit kits or short-run special orders 
  from the factories .
  
  223
  BATTLEMECHS
  Vixen 6: Initially employed by Hell’s Horses Mongols, the Vixen 6 utilizes an XXL engine 
  to free space for an ER PPC and vicious close-range weaponry that includes talons .
  Hollander BZK-G2: Taking a cue from the Hollander III, a few surviving original-
  model BZK-G1s have replaced their weaponry with a light Gauss rifle and a supercharger .
  Venom SDR-9KE: Focusing on deep insertion scout missions, this Venom employs 
  its partial wing to move like greased lightning, leaving sensors and mines all over the 
  place while starting fires with its ER flamer for distraction purposes . With a single ER me-
  dium laser as its main offensive weapon, it is ill-equipped for regular combat .
  Icarus II ICR-2R: The Republic has replaced the Icarus II’s autocannon with two AES-
  enhanced TSEMPs . Eschewing significant backup weaponry for a TAG system, some have 
  called this effort “colossally foolish .”
  Watchman WTC-4DM2: Fielded in the desperate struggle against the Draconis in-
  vaders and their specialty armor composites, the Watchman’s completely refitted arma-
  ment is built around a large re-engineered laser and coaxial ER Flamers, with a pair of 
  Magshots on the opposite arm .
  Goshawk II 4: After the Sea Foxes acquired rights to produce the Goshawk II, they fit-
  ted an XXL engine for maximum profit, increasing weaponry . The Republic has deployed 
  some to the Capellan front, but the ’Mech runs much too hot to be popular .
  Hatchetman HTC-7D: Another Johnston product, the HTC-7D focuses on resilience, 
  giving up both weaponry and—practically unprecedented in a Hatchetman—jump jets 
  for internal component armoring .
  Bombard BMB-016: Stolen Hornet engines with compact heat sinks have turned up 
  on Solaris VII Bombards . Who is responsible for this remains a mystery, as Solaris Arms is 
  long defunct . With light Gauss rifles and a Chameleon LPS, the ’Mech seems more geared 
  towards support stealth than arena combat . 
  Enforcer III ENF-6R: A long time coming, the Enforcer III was finally upgraded with 
  a rotary autocannon in the early thirty-second century . 
  Hunchback HBK-6P: A light fire support offshoot of the venerable HBK-5S, the 6P 
  relies on a modern radical heat sink system to manage its banks of light PPCs . 
  Huron Warrior HUR-WO-R5L: This thirty-second century upgrade to the Huron 
  Warrior takes advantage of XL gyro technology to grant stealth protection and a PPC 
  capacitor for the potential to strike well above its weight .
  Lineholder KW2-LH10: Desperate to check adversarial encroachment, the humble 
  Lineholder was radically upgraded with advanced pulse lasers, MMLs and a plasma rifle 
  in the early 3130s . The new model also sports a C3 emergency master and has become a 
  common ’Mech to shore up command lines .
  Brahma BRM-6T: Inspired by the rumored advantages of the Hell’s Horses’ QuadVees 
  and modified MiningMechs, the Taurians rebuilt the Brahma’s frame in endo steel to allow 
  for the installation of tracks in the ’Mech’s legs . This required the removal of both jump 
  jets and CASE, but a standard PPC gives this variant some needed punch .
  Helios HEL-7L: Seen almost exclusively in the company of Vandals, this Helios BC3 
  variant backs up its Gauss rifle with light PPCs and an MML that enables it to supply long 
  range fire support .
  Tempest TMP-4M/C:  Seen as a difficult design to top, it took until the 3130s for a 
  formal Tempest variant to debut, exchanging its SRM and laser for improved jump jets and 
  a snub-nosed PPC . Even the Wolves were impressed—while Angel II’s Guillotine line was 
  upgraded to IIC standards, the TMP-3M received only minor weapon upgrades .
  Caesar CES-5D: A very rare variant of the Caesar, the CES-5D is equipped with hard-
  ened armor, Clan spec weaponry, and triple-strength myomer to enhance its talons . It 
  was to have been built on New Avalon with Sea Fox assistance, but plans are on the table 
  to begin production on New Syrtis instead .
  Hercules HRC-LS-9003/-9004: These variants began as a refit that up-gunned the 
  standard Hercules with an Ultra autocannon, with a fragile composite frame used to free 
  mass . Tertiary weapons were dropped for CASE II and an Angel ECM suite . The latter was 
  dropped in the second variant, however, when the Quasimodo’s development made in-
  clusion of Blue Shield technology possible .
  Orion C: When the Wolves took Kalidasa, they resurrected the original Orion as a 
  worthy successor to the Orion IIC . Though there is technically an ON2-M hidden under the 
  thick ferro-lamellor hide, its Streak LRMs and ER pulse lasers make it clear that the Orion 
  C uses today’s cutting edge Clan tech .
  Penetrator PTR-7D: When Kallon Industries reintroduced the Penetrator, they uti-
  lized endo steel and reflective armor, allowing the arm weapons to be upgraded to snub-
  nosed PPCs aimed with enhanced actuators .
  Awesome AWS-11V: A byproduct of the AWS-11R, the 11V focuses on direct-fire 
  weaponry at the expense of mine-laying capabilities .
  
  224
  Hatamoto-Kaze HTM-27V2: Less elaborate than other Hatamoto factory refits, the 
  HTM-27V2 only adds a conventional C3 slave to the mix, and replaces its older missile 
  systems with MMLs .
  Striker STC-2L: Extremely easy to maintain, repair, and rebuild, the ancient Striker 
  will always serve House Liao . This new incendiary variant packs plasma rifles and features 
  heat-dissipating armor .
  BattleMaster BLR-6M/C 2: The Keystone BattleMaster factory supplemented its 5M 
  line with a command variant utilizing a Thunderbolt launcher and heavy PPC . The Wolves 
  now use the plant to produce their own command unit with Clan weapons, which paral-
  lels the custom BattleMaster used by the “Red Corsair” of the 3050s .
  Shogun SHG-3E/C 2: Once on the brink of extinction, Wolf’s Dragoons contracted 
  Clan Sea Fox shortly after the Jihad to revive their old standby in its Clan configuration . 
  An IS-tech version with CASE II became a prime seller among mercenaries, but the Foxes 
  recently introduced a Clan tech variant mounting the same ferro-lamellor armor found 
  on their Mk IV Omnis .
  Orochi OR-3K: After the retaking of Marduk, the Kuritans quickly refit Orochis with 
  Silver Bullet Gauss rifles . These supplied valuable flak defense during Davion’s failed at-
  tempt to seize the planet once again .
  Yu Huang Y-H12GC: In order to field an assault ’Mech with boosted C3, the 
  Capellans created a new variant of the Yu Huang . A Clan Kingston ER PPC (ordered en 
  masse for the Yinghuochong) adds to the long range power of the ’Mech’s Zhi-tong-yao 
  Gauss rifle .
  Cerberus MR-7K: In the 3020s, LexaTech finally upgraded the MR-V2 with endo 
  steel and new ABA armor . The tertiary ballistic weapons were dropped and the pulse 
  lasers were upgraded .
  Pendragon PDG-3R: The 3R provides direct fire support and is equipped with light 
  rotary autocannons while combining the 1R’s torso-mounted weaponry with the 2R’s 
  master C³computer .
  Devastator DVS-10: Developed from the MUSE EARTH experimental prototype, 
  Corean installed a cheaper XL engine and added a battery of re-engineered lasers to 
  counter advanced DCMS armors .
  Omega SHP-5R: During the Orca project at the turn of the century, unfinished 
  Omega hulls at Skobel’s badly damaged facility were completed for the RAF . Lacking 
  superheavy endo steel and replacing Gauss rifles with heavy PPCs, Republic Omegas are 
  considered inferior to the original .
  PROTOMECHS
  Cecerops 5: Apparently constructed for expendable warriors on the threshold of 
  EI-induced insanity, the Raven Alliance’s Cecerops 5 gives up most of its speed to mount 
  magnetic clamps, turning it into little more than a portable AP Gauss turret for transport-
  ing OmniMechs .
  Roc 5: Intended as an escort for Raven Hippogriffs, the Roc 5 uses a chemical laser 
  and an extended jump jet system to attain similar mobility .
  Gorgon 5/6: Next to the Roc, the Gorgon is the Raven Alliance’s ProtoMech mainstay . 
  Two newer models have appeared, one using magnetic clamps and Streak missiles, the 
  other focusing on electronic warfare at the cost of most weaponry .
  Svartalfa 3: The Horses have supplemented their generalist and missile boat 
  Svartalfas with a close-combat variant dropping the Streak missiles to mount more 
  chemical lasers . Accordingly, it is slightly less sluggish once airborne .
  AEROSPACE
  Defender II C: Desperate for air support, Clan Wolf has taken to rearming Imstar’s 
  Defender IIs with three medium chemical lasers and four anti-personnel Gauss rifles .
  Seydlitz C: Capturing Skye’s Shipil lines has given the Falcons access to the Seydlitz 
  interceptor . Despite considering it an inferior craft, the Clan nevertheless upgraded 
  the SYD-Z4 model with a capacitor-enhanced Clan ER PPC and reflective armor, at the 
  expense of fuel capacity .
  Cheetah IIC: Apparently inspired by plans of the Thrush “Nanook,” the Wolf Empire re-
  designed Imstar AeroSpace’s Cheetahs with reflective armor, a light active probe, and four 
  improved heavy lasers, saving weight through the use of an XXL engine and a small cockpit .
  Thrush TR-9: The long-planned XL engine upgrade of the Thrush finally appeared in 
  time for Operation CELESTIAL REWARD . It mounts reflective armor, as well as two additional 
  medium re-engineered lasers over three ER models, to deal with enemy fighters likewise 
  equipped with such production .
  Lucifer III C: Before taking Shipil’s Lucifer III into service, the Falcons replaced its weapons 
  with a capacitor-enhanced ER PPC, two ATM 9s, and a medium pulse laser . Its armor was up-
  graded to ferro-lamellor, allowing this flying brick to act as an anvil to the Persepolis’ hammer .
  Vampire III: A straightforward upgrade of the venerable Vampire design, the new 
  Vampire III features battle armor bays, heavy ferro-aluminum armor, double-strength heat 
  sinks, and advanced laser and missile technology . Its designation is viewed as confirmation 
  the larger Vampire II’s existence, rumored to be in service with the Rabid Foxes .
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/BattleTech [multi]/Record Sheets & TRO/TRO 3150.pdf