One Rabid Fox changes the Succession Wars [A Battletech Isekai]

[Bofors40mm]

nice to see the longsword added to the story.
also occurs to me the big benefits of the improved cooling jackets is that the longsword can shoot both its PPCs and run for 2 turns, walk for 4 or jump for 1 without any heat problems, or fire its medium lasers and a PPC and walk without heat problems for a turn.

 

[HunterxReader]

Kek, just more things to pile up on Yvonne's headache. At this point, there's probably a permanent team of DMI attached to Henry just so the golden goose keeps laying those sweet, sweet golden eggs. Heh, the Rabid Fox (Henry) in his Rabid Fox (Mech) guarded by his Rabid Foxes (His Clusters) and watched over by the Davion Rabid Foxes (MI6). Though I suppose the Stealthy Foxes (MI4) would be more appropriate.

With Henry at the forefront of progress with his nonchalance about designs and production, his support staff are getting by without getting any undue attention. While the source of the designs and the units are mostly from Henry and the Essence, his tech being SLDF and Clan means they can design and construct on their own, and are likely doing so when using MegaMek is too blatant, but with him throwing funding and mechs all around, their very vital skills are going under the radar, or at the very least isn't seen as extraordinary compared to their lord. Heh, if and when NAIS gets going, the look on their faces when the RAC techs comes around will be priceless.

Hanse/Yvonne: "Hey Henry, mind passing by NAIS to give some advice on how to mech design?"

The Rabid Fox: "Sorry, I'm going to be busy making a few more shipyards and factories. I can loan some of my techs for a few lessons though."

The techs: Lays out Royal and Clan tech.

NAIS: "Wut?"

Huh, I would've thought heavies like the Cataphract and the Longsword would be licensed to others like Archernar, rather than go all in on Corean. While Corean by itself isn't a bad choice, choosing other companies would spread out his influence, as well as supporting more domestic companies. Then again, considering he wants mass production and his focus on logistics, I suppose it'd be easier to establish more lines when and where he wants to with his rapport and their current ventures with Corean.

 

[Imperator Pax]

Huh, I would've thought heavies like the Cataphract and the Longsword would be licensed to others like Archernar, rather than go all in on Corean. While Corean by itself isn't a bad choice, choosing other companies would spread out his influence, as well as supporting more domestic companies. Then again, considering he wants mass production and his focus on logistics, I suppose it'd be easier to establish more lines when and where he wants to with his rapport and their current ventures with Corean.

Click to shrink...

Corean has just (relatively speaking) finished setting up a new mech factory on New Avalong in order to bolster the Centurion design with the AFFS thats why they're going with Corean, if Archernar had just built a new mech factory in the last decade or so Henry would probably be going with them because its a heavy mech (and in comparison to GWW where Gene when he gets to the Landhold stage of having an industrial partnership to build factories in the post SW3 years there is a reason he goes to a heavy battlemech firm)

For the longsword and cataphract Henry needs to prove that those new designs work, after that its a case 'hey you already make parts for this' but for right now these are 'hand fitted' mechs rather than full production. We're just not there yet.

 

[HunterxReader]

Corean has just (relatively speaking) finished setting up a new mech factory on New Avalong in order to bolster the Centurion design with the AFFS thats why they're going with Corean, if Archernar had just built a new mech factory in the last decade or so Henry would probably be going with them because its a heavy mech (and in comparison to GWW where Gene when he gets to the Landhold stage of having an industrial partnership to build factories in the post SW3 years there is a reason he goes to a heavy battlemech firm)

For the longsword and cataphract Henry needs to prove that those new designs work, after that its a case 'hey you already make parts for this' but for right now these are 'hand fitted' mechs rather than full production. We're just not there yet.

Click to shrink...

True, it does seem easier to make someone already moving to do a bit more of what they're already doing (Edit: With the very real factor of already having the personnel and equipment to do more), compared to someone who might think doing more would be risky when the status quo still benefits them. Also, I suppose it's also a kick in the ass that helps set the precedent of supporting those who take the initiative to develop themselves. It would light a fire under Archernar specifically, considering they're already competing with Corean on the medium mech front, and their first heavy mech (and first FS mech overall) being repurposed and supplanted yet again.

Ah, so he's letting the designs build up a reputation first, to see if and when people would bite. I suppose it would be risky for any company to accept just any mech proposal that comes their way, with the very expensive tooling and infrastructure needed to support the production, and battle-tested designs would be necessary for upper management to even consider. At least he'll have an in with Corean when the Sakhara site gets up and running, and they can just expand on the Centurion factory for the space of other lines.

 

[Imperator Pax]

So this is not definitive, in either case, but what I'm leaning towards for this and for Aurigan is integrating fanmade TROs (beyond the Clan Fox stuff)

Tentatively besides the Clan Fox stuff for this, I'm looking at Project Zhukov. [and I hope that link works]

& for Aurigan

https://1drv.ms/b/s!AjdKrlT1nk_CgbF-DQ3WV4-IN1fMLw?e=VgPNgh

--
Obviously I think you can probably guess who gets the Zhukov equipment to begin with, but these will eventually make appearances with the DMM, and later with other people who have the misfortune of sharing a neighborhood with the Combine. Thats tentative this would, in the 3020s and may well not occur at all or at least not until well after the Fed Com accords are signed.

 

[HunterxReader]

So this is not definitive, in either case, but what I'm leaning towards for this and for Aurigan is integrating fanmade TROs (beyond the Clan Fox stuff)

Tentatively besides the Clan Fox stuff for this, I'm looking at Project Zhukov. [and I hope that link works]

& for Aurigan

https://1drv.ms/b/s!AjdKrlT1nk_CgbF-DQ3WV4-IN1fMLw?e=VgPNgh

--
Obviously I think you can probably guess who gets the Zhukov equipment to begin with, but these will eventually make appearances with the DMM, and later with other people who have the misfortune of sharing a neighborhood with the Combine. Thats tentative this would, in the 3020s and may well not occur at all or at least not until well after the Fed Com accords are signed.

Click to shrink...

The soul of Yana Fletcher lives on! Nice, those are some sweet designs to use for the RAC, and not just tanks at that from what I remember. And I've never read Project Legion, so that's another book to consume, thanks. I still get a chuckle in every time the Smoke Jaguars are mentioned in the Armoury, considering it normally consists of some combination of scoffing at the tanks, getting their asses kicked by them or turning the vehicles into anti-insurgency models (I'm sure the DC will love those). If it wasn't likely you're going to be one of his peers due to your shipyards, Duke Sandoval would certainly have promoted you himself in the future, probably along with offering one of his daughter's hands.

Edit: The Hell's Horses has become one of my favorites, up there with the Ghost Bears (though the Bears are being edged out by the Sharks the more I read about them), since I've done some reading on Clan histories. Their culture (even their insane Mad Stampede), being one of the few to emphasize combined arms, along with their R&D that made them the source of Elemental infantry along with the Nova and their BA-carrying components, it's a shame they didn't get to be a part of the Clan Invasion. Oh, and fuck Malvina Hazen and her version of their Mongol Doctrine too.

Edit 2: Man, how will the Clan react to reports of post-Zhukov (assuming that they aren't prevalent enough during the Dragoon's last resupply so they only hear of them when the Outbound Light-equivalent arrives or they start REVIVAL) RAC? Will they be pissed that seeming defectors/copycats are using their colors and shinier rides that they've spread access the Sphere, or inspired enough to start their own program?

 

[Imperator Pax]

Sakhara 2.6​

Alexandria looked at the machine, "I want to elaborate here before anyone gets too excited." Henry was saying to the class as most of them crowded in. "This is a prototype. It is a one off machine put together not by an organized factory line, but rather as an individual machine. Take parts put it together, and have the techs go over it to make sure everything works like its supposed to." The cadets at the assembly were a variety of years ... not just her and the others that would be graduating in the summer, and most weren't actually concerned about it being a one off, just that it was big and new. "You're all of you are officer cadets. You all of you have some sort of political responsibility waiting for you back home, that may be small, it may be great. War is not won by one off prototypes, this," He gestured back to the machine, "This machine is a one off, now the lessons we learn from this machine, that's different, but its principle advantage over a warhammer is that its less complicated. Logistics wins wars. Those of you who will be graduating soon the new curriculum will mean less," Unless one was going on to the Training Cadre to serve their first tour of duty after commissioning, "The class of 3018," The current second years, "Will be eased into the program on a partial basis. This is not an advanced track or special operations course. It is a course designed to familiarize its participants operating in unison along the lines of Star League era formations, and that will begin next year. The class of 3019 and 3020 will be under a more integrated curriculum, but covering the same principles aimed at meeting Sakhara's lofty standards for competent well rounded officers capable of meeting and surviving the challenges of the modern battlefield."

Her class was supposed to be dividing up with the other years for exercises, but even then most of the attention was occupied by the heavy battlemech rather than the sheets of paper with their group assignments. She double checked her paper as a matter of form. It looked like from the pilot profiles for the younger cadets. Sakhara's cadets were supposed to be the future leaders of the armed forces... of course part of that was school provincialism and tradition it wasn't quite that clear cut, but in theory every graduate of Sakhara was supposed to be a potential leader.

One could have made the argument that was true of any military academy, but people compared Sakhara to Albion, and the Nagelring in the Lyran Commonwealth not... the swarms of cadets who graduated Sun Zhang in the Combine.

Her group were comprised of generalist mechs. Cadets whose machines were equipped with a mix of weapons like her Orion was. Other cadets, looking around, had been paired with her classmates who had similar weapon loadouts. This wasn't new. She'd seen group sortings like this before, though normally there was a preference for forming a well rounded lance.

Fifty feet away Henry was allocating a collection of students who had mechs he was familiar with. Some of them had Centurions, others Trebuchets, a few more had riflemen and archers. It would have been a formation of mechs found with Regulan Hussars and it was so far as he was concerned a reasonable enough spread of mechs to build a company sized element off of. Admittedly it was also pulling cadets from across all four years but there was no helping that... and that was kind of the point of today.

He could have done without the needling though.

Twenty tons lighter than Alexandria's Orion, the Wolverine Medium BattleMech was a quintessential trooper mech right down to its common enough engine, and a nominal price tag under five million C-Bills. "You frankly brought it on yourself Bard." He remarked, the Ranger major should have known better than to get caught in between two heavy battlemechs. He looked down at the notification, "anyway this is really about trying to make sure the graduating cadets share what they've learned in a positive fashion with the years below them." And in theory it was bout operational rapport... the e spirit de corp. "Anyway are you ready?"

"Sure whenever, but when are you going to tell them how long this is going to last?"

He hmmed in response, "At dinner maybe?" Henry replied contemplatively. "Besides they're not actually going to have to pitch their own tents."

--
Yvonne Davion watched as the saturday excercise continued. The Longsword really did bear more resemblance to the Warhammer than it did Clay's Rabid Fox. The other seventy ton machine, the 'Cataphract' did have some shared resemblance to the Marauder thus the three mechs resembled each other below the waist so to speak. The Rabid Fox, and the classic Marauder were still different enough from the Cataphract, and each other.

She gestured for one of her guards officers, who leaned inward, "What can you tell me about the Merlin?"

"Ma'am. It is by all indications a purely conventional BattleMech." He replied. "As has already been mentioned ma'am it does run off a 240 series Fusion Engine." Which of course they already had established that Clay had lines producing.

Clay himself was currently supervising a group of first and second years piloting Rifleman series sixty tonners and the slower of the two Cataphract machines. That made sense given the Cataphract had been built using the same model autocannon as the Rifleman. She didn't need reminding that the Rifleman as well utilized the Pitban 240 engine.


That was a reminder that she was going to have an argument when they did reach New Avalon. Those fusion engines, the production of, could easily bolster the Draconis March Militia. Fusion Engines were lighter than ICE counterparts for the necessary energy density, and required less upkeep and fuel. A lighter engine meant not only an easier time powering energy weapons, but also ... well as the Demolisher MkIII demonstrated more weapons, or more conventionally more armor.

The cost and shortage of fusion engines beside meant most people wouldn't have bothered. The duke of Robinson though had been a tanker during his intial term of service... worse he'd been an enlisted tanker. Clay also likely due to his retainers also seemed to be preferential to his armor contingents and that made the 240 series Fusion Engines a desirable commodity.

As DMI2, she would have preferred that Captain Haakon had remained on station longer, but he was a merchant, and JumpShips were vital to the economy. A part of her did recognize that they probably wouldn't have been able to gather more information than what they'd already recorded... besides Haakon had left a force behind on planet's surface. At a mass of 12000 tons and two hundred and fifty meters in length the hammer head esque aerodyne dropships were by themselves frightfully better armed than the two thousand ton lighter Vengeance ASF.

That was apparently a trade off, that heavier armament of these 'Titans' meant that DropShips 'only' carried thirty aircraft each. They knew that for sure as the air wing had deployed. A part of her wondered if that more aimed at the idea of some descendant of Stefan Amaris attacking Sakhara rather than being done as a precaution against the Combine. She hadn't asked, but it was a detail she was having to keep fresh in her mind. It was a detail that had appeared, and it better explained the bolstering of Sakhara's defenses... and it potentially explained why those household troops, what the ferrying Jarnsfolk had called huskarl, were only now arriving to the landhold.

Henry had demonstrated he considered these apparent Amaris threat equal to whatever threat the Combine might make... and she didn't particularly like the notion of the Combine learning that detail. Clay had after all shown off most of a Combine regiment, admittedly across two planetary battlefields, of the Sword of Light more or less alone.

Then there was the implication that the force present was part not the sum. Most likely the RAC's battlemech forces were still out there somewhere looking at some unknown periphery conflict. That concerned her. As DMI2 that concerned her a great deal because it was someone who had an idea of the combine's capabilities looking out at a periphery threat, and effectively commenting that they were at least as much of a threat as one of the great houses.

From his wheel chair the Duke of Robinson watched he young people drill. Officially it was the young people who were being tested here. They were being supported by more experienced soldiers, and mechwarriors but this was about lessons older cadets could impart on their juniors. Aaron Sandoval would have liked to have been content with that experience.

Sakhara was not the RBA, the institution his family and he himself had revitalized, its armor corp of cadets was less necessary to the school. The cadets though of the school were being supervised just the same by the mass of heavy armor that formed the RAC. It was these forces he was more interested in watching, but that was in no small part due to his Rangers presently participating in the Mech exercises. It was uncommon for young men to give the humble tanks its due, it was even more rare to see that combined arms in motion.

The lesson here probably wouldn't fully take, but it was always impressive to see it done well. At eighty tons even the lower tech version of the Demolisher was a potentially lethal and certainly unpleasant surprise to a mechwarrior on the battlefield supported at long range by their PPC carrying relations and in turn supporting Medium BattleMech units there was a full spectrum of coverage when added to the air power.

"Is it to your liking?" The other field marshal asked.

"I have no complaints." He replied, which was true, but Aaron Sandoval also didn't appreciate anything that might cut into expanding the forces under his command, and more importantly enriching House Sandoval in the long run. House Sandoval was not an especially wealthy house and there were a number of noble houses within the Draconis March with greater liquid wealth, perhaps best demonstrated by Clay's ability to seriously propose being to finance what he had suggested. It was in House Sandoval's best interest to expand its alliances especially if it promised to add domestic battlemech production to Robinson.
--
Notes: this is shorter than originally planned but it does touch on the Duke of Robinson starting to respond to Yvonne's more FedSuns (federal) first policy versus the canonical regional marcher lords preference for having investment in their own realms, and this is realistic to a feudal system.

 

[HunterxReader]

You know, if you make it a habit of handing over a "one-off" to Sakhara for testing every time you want to introduce a design for future production, in a decade or so when people starts catching on, that academy is going to be as much a magnet for raids as NAIS facilities would be.


It would be glorious if the Black Widows hit there instead of Hoff this time around and come face to face with the Sakhara cadets and instructors in a lot of heavy mechs (as generously donated for training) and some never-before-seen designs and the RAC is there as well. Then the two groups kick their asses with classic SLDF tactics. I presume that's the point where the Dragoons start asking questions.

Though if we're treating the Breaks Sword teaser as future canon, then it's going to be yet another SOL units that gets to have that misfortune.

Edit: Any plans to add Main Cast-level expies for your inner circle? Your Kells, Kerenskys or Allards for Ace pilots/commanders and spymasters, an Uncle Chandy as a steward or a Hanse as an advisor, and so on.

 

[Bofors40mm]

Honestly I can't blame Aaron for wanting better tanks. Between the 200 and 240 and 180/175 most decent tanks in the IS that aren't hovercraft or maybe wheeled are covered. Meanwhile with mechs.....not so much

 

[Imperator Pax]

You know, if you make it a habit of handing over a "one-off" to Sakhara for testing every time you want to introduce a design for future production, in a decade or so when people starts catching on, that academy is going to be as much a magnet for raids as NAIS facilities would be.


It would be glorious if the Black Widows hit there instead of Hoff this time around and come face to face with the Sakhara cadets and instructors in a lot of heavy mechs (as generously donated for training) and some never-before-seen designs and the RAC is there as well. Then the two groups kick their asses with classic SLDF tactics. I presume that's the point where the Dragoons start asking questions.

Though if we're treating the Breaks Sword teaser as future canon, then it's going to be yet another SOL units that gets to have that misfortune.

Edit: Any plans to add Main Cast-level expies for your inner circle? Your Kells, Kerenskys or Allards for Ace pilots/commanders and spymasters, an Uncle Chandy as a steward or a Hanse as an advisor, and so on.

Click to shrink...

The reason in the leaser its the sword of light is because Henry killed Yorinaga at Halstead, and finished off the 2nd SoL while Takashi was present on Mallory's world attacking Sakhara by combine vendetta rules has to more or less done by either the SoL or by the Otomo there just aren't many 'equivalent' honor units, hence why its not the dragoons showing up during their tenure.


As for expies of modern characters no. I like Chandy but not planned.

There is going to come a point though where the Dragoon leadership do start asking questions and for good reason, it doesn't help that the two Titans currently on Sakhara have ravens painted on them, or that on even earlier on Halstead Station the Zoryas were in Clan Hells Horse colors in the open engaging Kuritan forces. [and if youre the Clans looking at what you're told of Halstead station it looks like a mixed (that is combined arms) Star more or less murdered an Elite Inner Sphere Battalion on open ground]

 

[Bofors40mm]

Might be a good idea to repaint those titans and the like. And arguably gene should have gone with the stock 18 bird sldf era titans.
Either way them and their birds are stupidly useful for the academy since it will let them branch out into aerospace and dropship training if wanted

 

[HunterxReader]

The reason in the leaser its the sword of light is because Henry killed Yorinaga at Halstead, and finished off the 2nd SoL while Takashi was present on Mallory's world attacking Sakhara by combine vendetta rules has to more or less done by either the SoL or by the Otomo there just aren't many 'equivalent' honor units, hence why its not the dragoons showing up during their tenure.


As for expies of modern characters no. I like Chandy but not planned.

There is going to come a point though where the Dragoon leadership do start asking questions and for good reason, it doesn't help that the two Titans currently on Sakhara have ravens painted on them, or that on even earlier on Halstead Station the Zoryas were in Clan Hells Horse colors in the open engaging Kuritan forces. [and if youre the Clans looking at what you're told of Halstead station it looks like a mixed (that is combined arms) Star more or less murdered an Elite Inner Sphere Battalion on open ground]

Click to shrink...

Ah, understandable. I suppose there's also the risk of some units going ronin for revenge and/or glory to take a crack at the Rabid Fox on their own.

Oh, ok. I was mostly thinking about expies because the Essence allows you to have a basis for the people spawned, so when it comes to spawned elite agents, I think of using canon characters/units as a template for simpler generation (though I suppose it's also quick to set them as "generic person/s from this background with these traits and maxed out level on these skills"). And for the most badass for their fields in BT canon, those people are the ones that come to mind for me, and the Kell brothers' Phantom Mech are just too tempting to not to make entire units of.

Huh, I'm surprised there's video evidence left for the Dracs for that considering it was a total wipeout on the SOL. But I guess there's also the other units' battleROMs and after-action reports on both sides.

 

[Imperator Pax]

Might be a good idea to repaint those titans and the like. And arguably gene should have gone with the stock 18 bird sldf era titans.
Either way them and their birds are stupidly useful for the academy since it will let them branch out into aerospace and dropship training if wanted

Click to shrink...

What will happen with those titans is that titan production in the FedSuns will begin soon, initially as SLDF pattern configurations before we get into later were indigenous production begins with their better armed more capable clan versions

That being said the raven iconography is in Norse style ribbon artwork, so its not explicitly Snow Raven but the clans see what they see when they want to see something

Ah, understandable. I suppose there's also the risk of some units going ronin for revenge and/or glory to take a crack at the Rabid Fox on their own.

Oh, ok. I was mostly thinking about expies because the Essence allows you to have a basis for the people spawned, so when it comes to spawned elite agents, I think of using canon characters/units as a template for simpler generation (though I suppose it's also quick to set them as "generic person/s from this background with these traits and maxed out level on these skills"). And for the most badass for their fields in BT canon, those people are the ones that come to mind for me, and the Kell brothers' Phantom Mech are just too tempting to not to make entire units of.

Huh, I'm surprised there's video evidence left for the Dracs for that considering it was a total wipeout on the SOL. But I guess there's also the other units' battleROMs and after-action reports on both sides.

Click to shrink...

With the way I'm treating pilot generation, here there will be officers and mechwarriors who show up with PM that has a XP cost but i'm not going to have entire units of it, as for Video evidence, there were multiple regiments in play on Mallory's world, it is a combine [world] and that in part the FedSuns were all to happy to publicize Roms footage from Robinson Rangers so the Combine has some idea what happened

of course the Combine also is exaggerating what the Davions had on planet, hence in their fictinal face saving account Henry has a Nightstar rather than his seventy ton Rabid Fox but thats also the Rabid Fox is a completely unknown (if apparently Royal) mech design that looks related to the Marauder

for unit generation, in EWSG Odin has his Otomo equivalent as well as his own Black Watch equivalent (and admittedly thats because that story draws from a previous fic using space heir where the Space heir is a cadet Steiner-Kurita descendant).

 

[Bofors40mm]

honestly probably be easier to restart vengance production over layover before titans.
also the math of the vengance being just 1000 tons doesn't work. under the current rules they're like 11400 tons from what i recall

 

[Imperator Pax]

honestly probably be easier to restart vengance production over layover before titans.
also the math of the vengance being just 1000 tons doesn't work. under the current rules they're like 11400 tons from what i recall

Click to shrink...

I believe that is what they are in Megamek I don't know why or how that changed but I was going off sarna as for Layover, that goes to the problems with Salvatore as an industrial firm and needing political horse wrangling

 

[Bofors40mm]

I believe that is what they are in Megamek I don't know why or how that changed but I was going off sarna as for Layover, that goes to the problems with Salvatore as an industrial firm and needing political horse wrangling

Click to shrink...

Given their stupidity and possible treason I suspect nationalization is possible. If nothing else it happened to challenge systems in this era for semi similar reasons on the production side of things

 

[HunterxReader]

What will happen with those titans is that titan production in the FedSuns will begin soon, initially as SLDF pattern configurations before we get into later were indigenous production begins with their better armed more capable clan versions

That being said the raven iconography is in Norse style ribbon artwork, so its not explicitly Snow Raven but the clans see what they see when they want to see something

With the way I'm treating pilot generation, here there will be officers and mechwarriors who show up with PM that has a XP cost but i'm not going to have entire units of it, as for Video evidence, there were multiple regiments in play on Mallory's world, it is a combine [world] and that in part the FedSuns were all to happy to publicize Roms footage from Robinson Rangers so the Combine has some idea what happened

of course the Combine also is exaggerating what the Davions had on planet, hence in their fictinal face saving account Henry has a Nightstar rather than his seventy ton Rabid Fox but thats also the Rabid Fox is a completely unknown (if apparently Royal) mech design that looks related to the Marauder

for unit generation, in EWSG Odin has his Otomo equivalent as well as his own Black Watch equivalent (and admittedly thats because that story draws from a previous fic using space heir where the Space heir is a cadet Steiner-Kurita descendant).

Click to shrink...

Ah, EWSG, I remember that. Reading that fic a few months ago was where I was introduced to the Essence, and I think what motivated me to look up then download MegaMek itself, so many thanks for that!

 

[Imperator Pax]

Ah, EWSG, I remember that. Reading that fic a few months ago was where I was introduced to the Essence, and I think what motivated me to look up then download MegaMek itself, so many thanks for that!

Click to shrink...

I will eventually update EWSG and also hopefully not allow Aurigan Renaissance to fall that far behind in terms of when I updated last.

 

[HunterxReader]

I will eventually update EWSG and also hopefully not allow Aurigan Renaissance to fall that far behind in terms of when I updated last.

Click to shrink...

Nice! I'm always up for more BT content, especially ones with supernatural advantages and how they change the timeline (which is why I like Essence of MML fics, Throw a Stone and China Shop I suppose).

Heh, when Henry hears about them talking about the Nightstar, do you think he'll add one to his incoming units just to show the difference? Maybe even claim it was the basis of the Rabid Fox. And for other canon designs to introduce the Devastator can be found on Hoff if I remember correctly, and the Warlord was based on the Battlemaster, though you can also claim the Thug/Charger chassis as a basis for an Introtech one, but I suppose the PPC+ML combo has already been used by the Longsword and can easily be refitted by removing the JJs. Oh, how about apocryphal designs like the Omega and the Huntress? A 100-ton laser Urbanmech and a dual-artillery carrier.

 

[Imperator Pax]

Nice! I'm always up for more BT content, especially ones with supernatural advantages and how they change the timeline (which is why I like Essence of MML fics, Throw a Stone and China Shop I suppose).

Heh, when Henry hears about them talking about the Nightstar, do you think he'll add one to his incoming units just to show the difference? Maybe even claim it was the basis of the Rabid Fox. And for other canon designs to introduce the Devastator can be found on Hoff if I remember correctly, and the Warlord was based on the Battlemaster, though you can also claim the Thug/Charger chassis as a basis for an Introtech one, but I suppose the PPC+ML combo has already been used by the Longsword and can easily be refitted by removing the JJs. Oh, how about apocryphal designs like the Omega and the Huntress? A 100-ton laser Urbanmech and a dual-artillery carrier.

Click to shrink...

In no particular order

Henry will eventually field Nightstars in support of his forces, this is later, part of this is because both Gene and Heron (heron already has his first Nighstar) use Nightstars, Odin produces Nightstars as well but thats also because he makes or has a hand in making alll the things by that point rather than directly piloting things, but yeah Hoff and the Devastator will make an appearance after Bristol. The Rabix Fox, and theother clan Fox mechs will show up eventually but largley be overshadowed by Star League era mechs

Because of those, the Warlord will probably not show up any time soon (in favor of the Thug cause I like the Thug)

The Huntress if it appears may show up either first with HOuse Kurita or House Steiner [in Aurigan, and in GWW the Bullshark will show up, as well the Terran mech with the thumper in limitted numbers, and the Huntress might get mentioned in reference to the war with Amaris] the Omega is the forebearer design to the Imp (by Nikky Kerensky) here and in my stories in general.

 

[Bofors40mm]

For the essence of social general there is a flaw I spotted in the last chapter. The lyrans also make the Crusader on tharkad

 

[HunterxReader]

For the essence of social general there is a flaw I spotted in the last chapter. The lyrans also make the Crusader on tharkad

Click to shrink...

Heh, I just read this and wondered: what would an Essence of a Lyran Social General would look like? And it resulted in this:

Essence of the Lyran Social General
Upon drinking this vial and absorbing this Essence you become the embodiment of the memetic Lyran military stereotype akin to Thomas, HOGARTH(!!):
- You now possess extreme political, economic and business acumen, to the point that you can read the flow of the economy and predict the rise and fall of industries, or start with a handful of Kroner and have an interstellar company in a few years, and the ability to thrive in and dominate court intrigue on an international level.
- You may also start as a noble in the state of your choice, possessing vast personal wealth, including landholds and businesses both civilian and military.
- You are now greatly lacking tactical and strategic military prowess, akin to an ignoranf armchair general. Anything larger in scale than personal combat, and you are likely to do more harm than good in command, with your more successful plans that doesn't rely on luck are about as complex as throwing bodies and metal at a problem.
- However, you now also possess unparalleled luck, in and out of the battlefield, almost like you could reroll the dice of fates many times an encounter. Assassination attempts are likely to make blunders, evidence against you whether real or fake might get lost or be deniable enough to slip through, and plans against you may be unintentionally sabotaged by bad luck or third parties. You could get routed and separated from your unit, then stumble onto the enemy headquarters for a "perfect" decapitation strike.You could walk through or drive your mech through a field being riddled with artillery or peppered with mines, and come out if not unscathed, then at least operational. Though this doesn't make you invincible, so truly meticulous planning or a true grid square or the ground itself being virtually as much explosives as it is earth could still kill you, though with your luck you might just get mortally wound and have a chance to be evacced out, and drinking a lethal poison knowingly will gift you an end you so tempted.

 

[Imperator Pax]

Sakhara 2.7​

By the time Monday morning had rolled around she was exhausted. She wasn't the only one it was clear most of the school had been run ragged by the exercises as they had been put through their paces. Star Colonel Robinson was currently looming beside the desk as Henry finished distributing the last of the papers.

They were theoretically back to their normal classes... one wouldn't have known that from how the vice Chancellor had looked at last night's dinner, or even this morning. Coleridge had looked like the proverbial cat who had caught the canary... of course Coleridge hadn't been out in the sweat and the sand.

"So obviously in an ideal situation we'd be," Henry had started talking without signaling to the class he was going to, "Doing more in cross arms drills. Coordination with aviation needs work, but that is a weakness that can be worked around, in six months all of you will have left Sakhara for your first posting so we simply to recognize that's a potential weakness." There was some grumbling about the cadets as part of the flight school. Clay ignored the background chatter, "The purpose of the exercise to see how you fared with people in your age group and not totally divorced from your skill level. The cadets in the classes under you can learn from you, beating an OpFor is an accomplishment, but there is always room to improve. So we're going to take this week to focus on the basics of lance fire and maneuver, and next week we'll be acting at a company level modelled on fighting a typical combine opponent. What we will be doing before hand is you will elucidate on paper your expectations, and strategies, you'll put them in this box, and next week you'll write up your after action reports, and we'll compare and contrast, expectation and reality."

She didn't like the sound of it... and it didn't help she was tired, and that he expected them to sit down and think about it without any reference material... but she could see the reasoning behind testing them on what they could recall while tired. There was grumbling from some of the other cadets, but she refrained.

Henry chugged down the tea from his thermos and looked out over the palm trees and the manicured oasis of a bit of campus greenery. He had called time and let them put the papers up but this wasn't really for a great, he just wanted to compare and contrast what they expected. Some of the students probably expected to be pitted again elite combine troops like the sword of light, others were probably expecting swarms of light mechs... well they had some time.

The real problem wasn't this experiment, it was what was coming after. The duke of Robinson couldn't be expected to just hang around, and the Field Marshal of the Draconis March and its chief minister kipping off to New Avalon was one of the things people complained about his counterpart from the Capellan March had been doing since inheriting the patrimony of House Hasek to go along with existing positions at court under Ian.

That was the problem, because from the sound of it... the duchess of Victoria wanted to curb Hasek influence at court, but there were worlds in the capellan march. It was enlightening to watch the two elder statesmen disagree... and see their motivations, their ambitions for regional for national levels of the realm and how ambitions competed with personal sentiment.

When he'd been introduced to the who was who of the Federated Suns upper crust it had been a hasty matter of Ian dragging him around. It wasn't helped that Ian who wasn't much to stand on ceremony had been drunk at his brother's wedding and so ... well great impressions and a grasp of expectations weren't exactly high. Michael Hasek-Davion, and Henry really didn't understand how that was supposed to work except as an honorific ... and yet that nagged at him more so than any other impression of the man during that fleeting evening on New Avalon... and the bigger problem was Michael Hasek-Davion was now the minister of the Capellan March having succeeded to his family's hereditary position with the passing of the family's previous patriarch.

He didn't notice Alexandria's presence until she cleared her throat to draw attention, and she glanced to the side, "You mentioned," She bit her lip, "inquired whether I could be spared to visit New Avalon when you leave with the duchess of Victoria."

"And, Lord Aaron is coming." He remarked absentmindedly shuffling his own papers as he moved away from the window, as her expression creased, "The original plan was just to discuss battlemech factory lines, but," Henry trailed off, "I can only let you know the full scope of things if you're sure-"

"I'm sure." Alexandria found herself saying. As heiress to Kestrel it hadn't been entirely out of the realm of possibility, but never mind.
--
Alexandria stood somewhat star struck a few hours later watching the holographic display, the map projected into the center of the room. A command circuit, or jumpship circuit was a historical legacy, a time from before the HPG network had been built by the star league and when JumpShips had been more common than in the era after the Star League's fall.

There had been talk but the idea that the circuit established from New Avalon meant she could feasibly board a jumpship at Sakhara and be home in a week. "When did you have time?"

"About a month ago." He remarked as the icon representing a Star Lord jumpship, the last in the chain, winked from Koloma to New Avalon, "It will standardize once the Jarnfolk are in the rotation ," A series of icons glowed which would add to the number JumpShips creating a reserve moving back and forth, "If we were able to get things off the ground I wanted the material for the Mechs as soon as possible. The engineers and their experience is important."

There was a tired sigh from the Duchess of Victoria. "No, Lord Henry, that is not what its important,"

There was a grumbling, he clicked a couple of keys on the tiny palm sized keyboard in one hand, "This is a pressurized shipyard, its rated at 350K," Thousand, "Tons." Henry's focus internally was the sheer inexpensive nature of a large pressurized yard through his essence, and that was part of the benefit as he viewed things. The habitat were about one and a half the cost of the Star Lords he had been defaulting to originally, "The advantage of pressurized yards is that it allows techs to service my Star Lords without the need of cumbersome space suits. That includes," he clicked again, and the image changed, "These are the precursor part fabrication units to manufacture new parts, and indeed the assembly segments of new Star Lords."

A short animation followed as representations of parts in the form of labelled blocks flowed up a pyramidal shaped chart until they reached the end stage of components moved to the yard which then finished out a completed Star Lord.

Alexandria started to say something, but the Duke of Robinson had also decided to speak, "So a single Star Lord a year?"

"For the breaking in process, yeah probably just a replacement for the one we had to scrap," Alexandria felt a bit faint at the comment, "After that once we're sure about tolerances, and handling," He waved his hand, "Two to three with sufficient Germanium for the core. Since unlike WarShips, JumpShips are fairly static the JumpDrive is the main limiting facet of technological production. The hull is assembled from separate segments and joined together that's-"

"You understand that at present the Draconis Combine can only produce a single Star Lord a year?"

He shrugged at the observation from the Field Marshal, "As I said JumpDrive production, the K-F drive's integrity is the limitting factor. A Star Lord has six DropShip collars and thus represents a not insignificant commercial capability in terms of ferrying dry bulk cargo, or also people. Does it instantly correct the deficet in merchant shipping tonnage that stymies the economy, no. There has been a shipping crunch for two hundred years that isn't going to disappear with just one shipyard. Which is of course why I would prefer a shipyard at Bristol, further inside the borders of the Federated Suns and away from the front."

Sakhara was only two jumps from the Combine planet of Misery. Not that Bristol was very deep inside the territory of the Federated Suns given that Tikonov, of the Capellan Confederation, was only four jumps away... but that was still double the number of jumps. He clicked the palm pilot slash mouse thing in his hands, he was playing up the emphasis of his relationship with the JarnFolk under Haakon and the need for Sakhara to have the facilities to produce spare parts and serve as a port of call for the Jarnfolk, but that was only partly an exaggeration. He wanted Sakhara to serve as a hub of JumpShip and DropShip parts from what he understood there was a legitimate shortage of spare parts and maintenance... and well Sakhara and the Draconis March would need more air cover even beyond what he already had here.
--
Notes: Alright I'm going to DnD, but here is today's update, I'll read and make

 

[Rakos]

"You understand that at present the Draconis Combine can only produce a single Star League a year?"

Click to shrink...

I'm sorry but they can W H A T

 

[BlueRanger O-Doom]

Yea…FASA kinda failed horribly in economies of scale when they wrote up overall Jumpship production.

Someone much more knowledgeable (a grognard who I trust to know more than me) on another thread stated that the Jumpship numbers given in the FASA write ups need to AT LEAST be multiplied by five, if not by ten just to be at all sustainable given the limited number of collars available.

 

[Fragment of Serenity]

I'm sorry but they can W H A T

Click to shrink...

I mean, they have enough ego for one, that's for sure.

 

[HunterxReader]

Sakhara 2.7​

By the time Monday morning had rolled around she was exhausted. She wasn't the only one it was clear most of the school had been run ragged by the exercises as they had been put through their paces. Star Colonel Robinson was currently looming beside the desk as Henry finished distributing the last of the papers.

They were theoretically back to their normal classes... one wouldn't have known that from how the vice Chancellor had looked at last night's dinner, or even this morning. Coleridge had looked like the proverbial cat who had caught the canary... of course Coleridge hadn't been out in the sweat and the sand.

"So obviously in an ideal situation we'd be," Henry had started talking without signaling to the class he was going to, "Doing more in cross arms drills. Coordination with aviation needs work, but that is a weakness that can be worked around, in six months all of you will have left Sakhara for your first posting so we simply to recognize that's a potential weakness." There was some grumbling about the cadets as part of the flight school. Clay ignored the background chatter, "The purpose of the exercise to see how you fared with people in your age group and not totally divorced from your skill level. The cadets in the classes under you can learn from you, beating an OpFor is an accomplishment, but there is always room to improve. So we're going to take this week to focus on the basics of lance fire and maneuver, and next week we'll be acting at a company level modelled on fighting a typical combine opponent. What we will be doing before hand is you will elucidate on paper your expectations, and strategies, you'll put them in this box, and next week you'll write up your after action reports, and we'll compare and contrast, expectation and reality."

She didn't like the sound of it... and it didn't help she was tired, and that he expected them to sit down and think about it without any reference material... but she could see the reasoning behind testing them on what they could recall while tired. There was grumbling from some of the other cadets, but she refrained.

Henry chugged down the tea from his thermos and looked out over the palm trees and the manicured oasis of a bit of campus greenery. He had called time and let them put the papers up but this wasn't really for a great, he just wanted to compare and contrast what they expected. Some of the students probably expected to be pitted again elite combine troops like the sword of light, others were probably expecting swarms of light mechs... well they had some time.

Click to shrink...

You hear that Alexandria, that's the sound of at least one more ass-kicking before you graduate. At least you can take comfort in that you're sharing the love with the rest of the years. Heh, I wonder what set of units is he going to unveil next, because the only thing I see matching the Combine's mobile warfare in Henry's current TOE is the Trebuchet, though I suppose some of those newly delivered Merlins would fit.

Edit: It's also possible to refit the Trebuchet as a 50-ton Quickdraw if need be (seriously, without weight saving components, they could be the same mech with only a weight difference). Would be better one as well with the Trebuchet's Fast Reload and Easy to Maintain quirks (if you're willing to sacrifice Hyper-Extending Actuators). To tweak the nose of the Dracs a bit more you could revive the Gladiator and, if you really want to be a magnet for trouble, the Von Rohrs (which might as well be a heavier Grand Dragon).

He didn't notice Alexandria's presence until she cleared her throat to draw attention, and she glanced to the side, "You mentioned," She bit her lip, "inquired whether I could be spared to visit New Avalon when you leave with the duchess of Victoria."

"And, Lord Aaron is coming." He remarked absentmindedly shuffling his own papers as he moved away from the window, as her expression creased, "The original plan was just to discuss battlemech factory lines, but," Henry trailed off, "I can only let you know the full scope of things if you're sure-"

"I'm sure." Alexandria found herself saying. As heiress to Kestrel it hadn't been entirely out of the realm of possibility, but never mind.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, getting front row seats on negotiations of this high of a level would be quite the privilege, and allow her to network as well. I'd say she's quite grateful, but this does also expose her to the larger scale Henry's brand of bullcrap. Eh, as a future aid to Yvonne, it's only proper to share her headaches.

Alexandria stood somewhat star struck a few hours later watching the holographic display, the map projected into the center of the room. A command circuit, or jumpship circuit was a historical legacy, a time from before the HPG network had been built by the star league and when JumpShips had been more common than in the era after the Star League's fall.

There had been talk but the idea that the circuit established from New Avalon meant she could feasibly board a jumpship at Sakhara and be home in a week. "When did you have time?"

"About a month ago." He remarked as the icon representing a Star Lord jumpship, the last in the chain, winked from Koloma to New Avalon, "It will standardize once the Jarnfolk are in the rotation ," A series of icons glowed which would add to the number JumpShips creating a reserve moving back and forth, "If we were able to get things off the ground I wanted the material for the Mechs as soon as possible. The engineers and their experience is important."

There was a tired sigh from the Duchess of Victoria. "No, Lord Henry, that is not what its important,"

There was a grumbling, he clicked a couple of keys on the tiny palm sized keyboard in one hand, "This is a pressurized shipyard, its rated at 350K," Thousand, "Tons." Henry's focus internally was the sheer inexpensive nature of a large pressurized yard through his essence, and that was part of the benefit as he viewed things. The habitat were about one and a half the cost of the Star Lords he had been defaulting to originally, "The advantage of pressurized yards is that it allows techs to service my Star Lords without the need of cumbersome space suits. That includes," he clicked again, and the image changed, "These are the precursor part fabrication units to manufacture new parts, and indeed the assembly segments of new Star Lords."

A short animation followed as representations of parts in the form of labelled blocks flowed up a pyramidal shaped chart until they reached the end stage of components moved to the yard which then finished out a completed Star Lord.

Alexandria started to say something, but the Duke of Robinson had also decided to speak, "So a single Star Lord a year?"

"For the breaking in process, yeah probably just a replacement for the one we had to scrap," Alexandria felt a bit faint at the comment, "After that once we're sure about tolerances, and handling," He waved his hand, "Two to three with sufficient Germanium for the core. Since unlike WarShips, JumpShips are fairly static the JumpDrive is the main limiting facet of technological production. The hull is assembled from separate segments and joined together that's-"

"You understand that at present the Draconis Combine can only produce a single Star League a year?"

He shrugged at the observation from the Field Marshal, "As I said JumpDrive production, the K-F drive's integrity is the limitting factor. A Star Lord has six DropShip collars and thus represents a not insignificant commercial capability in terms of ferrying dry bulk cargo, or also people. Does it instantly correct the deficet in merchant shipping tonnage that stymies the economy, no. There has been a shipping crunch for two hundred years that isn't going to disappear with just one shipyard. Which is of course why I would prefer a shipyard at Bristol, further inside the borders of the Federated Suns and away from the front."

Sakhara was only two jumps from the Combine planet of Misery. Not that Bristol was very deep inside the territory of the Federated Suns given that Tikonov, of the Capellan Confederation, was only four jumps away... but that was still double the number of jumps. He clicked the palm pilot slash mouse thing in his hands, he was playing up the emphasis of his relationship with the JarnFolk under Haakon and the need for Sakhara to have the facilities to produce spare parts and serve as a port of call for the Jarnfolk, but that was only partly an exaggeration. He wanted Sakhara to serve as a hub of JumpShip and DropShip parts from what he understood there was a legitimate shortage of spare parts and maintenance... and well Sakhara and the Draconis March would need more air cover even beyond what he already had here.
--
Notes: Alright I'm going to DnD, but here is today's update, I'll read and make

Click to shrink...

Heh. Henry, they weren't complaining you could only 'barely' surpass the Star Lord production power of the Combine's less than optimal economy, they were pointing out the absurdity of you being able to double or triple it!

Considering Henry's already introducing some mech designs early, I wonder what can be done for equipment, namely weapons. Something like the Light/Heavy PPC would be a hard sell since the closest thing the Inner Sphere has right now is the Blazer and I don't know how long it would take to transform LRMs to MRMs, but Rocket Launchers and Multi-Missile Launchers seem viable.

The primitive version of the former predates the Terran Hegemony, and the latter was simple enough that a mercenary outfit invented it (albeit by a unit known for its technicians, though with your track record it wouldn't be unbelievable).

Light ACs would appeal to the Davion stereotype, but considering a LAC is more expensive than their standard counterpart, I assume it makes use of materials/processes similar to LB-X ACs. Protomech ACs might as well be Clantech LACs, but those and Chemical Lasers do show up on some Zhukov designs, so that's something to look forward.

 

[Imperator Pax]

I'm sorry but they can W H A T

Click to shrink...

Whoops.

 

[HunterxReader]

I'm sorry but they can W H A T

Click to shrink...

I mean, they have enough ego for one, that's for sure.

Click to shrink...

Whoops.

Click to shrink...

Heh, if it was the FWL I would understand, considering they might as well be the SL in miniature, with multiple states and cultures that tolerate each other and the Director/Captain-General that has to govern this mess. Who knows, maybe some of the bigger systems make their own SL-like treaties. Star League-ception.

 

[Bofors40mm]

uhhh shouldn't you at least have the clanners going by IS ranks?


also the von rhors sucks as a design unless modified to be a thunderbolt expy or give lostech. the FE 325 just masses too much