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Thursday, September 27, 2012

Invid in Battletech Part 2: More Rides!

Following up here is part two of my Invid designs.

Now I had to REALLY stretch my conversion guidelines from the previous installment.  Palladium both has massive stats inflation (much of it to make it competitive with Rifts, a game infamous for making its already stupidly overpowered machinery in the core rules inferior to the neverending supplement mill..) and is presumably trying to fit into what hard info actually exists for Robotech.  Except when you have the Glaug Officer's Battlepod (what you BT fans know of as the Marauder) running close to 300 kph its just ridiculous and has to be eased up to fit into Battletech's closer to hard sci fi setting and tech levels.

Savvy BT mech designers will also take issue to my designs as most are NOT optimized.  This is both as in the campaign I will use these in the Invid are merely getting used to the idea of not only warfare, but mechanical warfare and my attempts to keep the designs as close to what is written down in the Palladium RPG without making them completely useless designs.



Invid Armored Scout  (First appearance: 3041)

Mass: 25 tons
Tech Base: Clan
Chassis Config: Biped
Rules Level: Tournament Legal
Era: Dark Ages
Tech Rating/Era Availability: X/X-X-D
Production Year: 3132
Cost: 2,619,583 C-Bills
Battle Value: 712

Chassis: Unknown Endo-Steel
Power Plant: Unknown 100 Fusion XL Engine
Walking Speed: 43.2 km/h
Maximum Speed: 64.8 km/h
Jump Jets: Unknown
    Jump Capacity: 180 meters
Armor: Unknown Ferro-Fibrous
Armament:
    2  Medium Pulse Lasers
    2  Retractable Blades
Manufacturer: Unknown
    Primary Factory: Unknown
Communications System: Unknown
Targeting and Tracking System: Unknown

================================================================================
Equipment           Type                         Rating                   Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Endo-Steel                    43 points                1.50
    Internal Locations: 1 HD, 1 LT, 1 RT, 2 LA, 2 RA
Engine:             XL Fusion Engine             100                       1.50
    Walking MP: 4
    Running MP: 6
    Jumping MP: 6 Improved
    Jump Jet Locations: 3 LT, 3 RT                                         6.00
Heat Sinks:         Single Heat Sink             10                        0.00
    Heat Sink Locations: 2 CT, 1 LT, 1 RT, 1 LL, 1 RL
Gyro:               Standard                                               1.00
Cockpit:            Standard                                               3.00
    Actuators:      L: SH+UA+LA+H    R: SH+UA+LA+H
Armor:              Ferro-Fibrous                AV -  76                  4.00
    Armor Locations: 1 LT, 1 RT, 2 LA, 1 RA, 1 LL, 1 RL

                                                      Internal       Armor    
                                                      Structure      Factor  
                                                Head     3            9      
                                        Center Torso     8            12      
                                 Center Torso (rear)                  3      
                                           L/R Torso     6            9      
                                    L/R Torso (rear)                  3      
                                             L/R Arm     4            7      
                                             L/R Leg     6            7      

================================================================================
Equipment                                 Location    Heat    Critical    Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Retractable Blade                            RA        -         3         2.00
Retractable Blade                            LA        -         3         2.00
Medium Pulse Laser                           RT        4         1         2.00
Medium Pulse Laser                           LT        4         1         2.00
                                            Free Critical Slots: 3

BattleForce Statistics
MV      S (+0)  M (+2)  L (+4)  E (+6)   Wt.   Ov   Armor:      3    Points: 7
4/6j       2       2       0       0      1     0   Structure:  1
Special Abilities: MEL, SAW, ENE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA

The Armored Scout is the primary combat unit of the Invid Mechanized Forces.  Seeing action in both Clan Space and the Inner Sphere this was the first Invid mech with ranged weapons.  Like the Scout, it uses Clan technology recovered during their initial "Invinid" combat forms.  While their bioweapon units had some success against the Clans, their mechs continued to push the Invid back in spite of the Lictor and Genestealer infiltration units.  The Armored Scout was the Invid's first unit to attempt to fight back.



Invid Trooper (First Appearance: 3041)

Mass: 40 tons
Tech Base: Clan
Chassis Config: Biped
Rules Level: Tournament Legal
Era: Dark Ages
Tech Rating/Era Availability: X/X-X-D
Production Year: 3132
Cost: 8,000,160 C-Bills
Battle Value: 729

Chassis: Unknown Standard
Power Plant: Unknown 240 Fusion XL Engine
Walking Speed: 64.8 km/h
Maximum Speed: 97.2 km/h
Jump Jets: Unknown
    Jump Capacity: 270 meters
Armor: Unknown Standard Armor
Armament:
    2  Retractable Blades
Manufacturer: Unknown
    Primary Factory: Unknown
Communications System: Unknown
Targeting and Tracking System: Unknown

================================================================================
Equipment           Type                         Rating                   Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Standard                      67 points                4.00
Engine:             XL Fusion Engine             240                       6.00
    Walking MP: 6
    Running MP: 9
    Jumping MP: 9 Improved
    Jump Jet Locations: 1 CT, 3 LT, 3 RT, 1 LL, 1 RL                       9.00
Heat Sinks:         Single Heat Sink             11                        1.00
    Heat Sink Locations: 1 LT, 1 RT
Gyro:               Standard                                               3.00
Cockpit:            Standard                                               3.00
    Actuators:      L: SH+UA+LA+H    R: SH+UA+LA+H
Armor:              Standard Armor               AV - 137                  9.00

                                                      Internal       Armor    
                                                      Structure      Factor  
                                                Head     3            9      
                                        Center Torso     12           18      
                                 Center Torso (rear)                  6      
                                           L/R Torso     10           15      
                                    L/R Torso (rear)                  5      
                                             L/R Arm     6            12      
                                             L/R Leg     10           20      

================================================================================
Equipment                                 Location    Heat    Critical    Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Retractable Blade                            RA        -         3         2.50
Retractable Blade                            LA        -         3         2.50
                                            Free Critical Slots: 17

BattleForce Statistics
MV      S (+0)  M (+2)  L (+4)  E (+6)   Wt.   Ov   Armor:      5    Points: 7
6/9j       0       0       0       0      2     0   Structure:  2
Special Abilities: MEL, SAW, ENE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA


The second Invid mech after the Scout, the Trooper was designed to be heavier and faster as to be more survivable than the Scout unit.  However much like the Scout, the lack of ranged weapons made the Trooper little more than a fast support unit to their Invinid conventional forces.



Invid Shock Trooper (First Appearance: 3042) 

Mass: 45 tons
Tech Base: Clan
Chassis Config: Biped
Rules Level: Tournament Legal
Era: Dark Ages
Tech Rating/Era Availability: X/X-X-D
Production Year: 3132
Cost: 9,242,590 C-Bills
Battle Value: 1,842

Chassis: Unknown Endo-Steel
Power Plant: Unknown 225 Fusion XL Engine
Walking Speed: 54.0 km/h
Maximum Speed: 86.4 km/h
Jump Jets: Unknown
    Jump Capacity: 240 meters
Armor: Unknown Ferro-Fibrous
Armament:
    2  ER Large Lasers
    1  ER Medium Laser
    2  Retractable Blades
Manufacturer: Unknown
    Primary Factory: Unknown
Communications System: Unknown
Targeting and Tracking System: Unknown

================================================================================
Equipment           Type                         Rating                   Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Endo-Steel                    75 points                2.50
    Internal Locations: 2 LT, 1 RT, 2 LA, 2 RA
Engine:             XL Fusion Engine             225                       5.00
    Walking MP: 5
    Running MP: 8
    Jumping MP: 8 Improved
    Jump Jet Locations: 1 CT, 3 LT, 2 RT, 1 LL, 1 RL                       8.00
Heat Sinks:         Double Heat Sink             10(20)                    0.00
    Heat Sink Locations: 1 RT
Gyro:               Standard                                               3.00
Cockpit:            Standard                                               3.00
    Actuators:      L: SH+UA+LA+H    R: SH+UA+LA+H
Armor:              Ferro-Fibrous                AV - 153                  8.00
    Armor Locations: 1 LT, 2 RT, 2 LA, 2 RA

                                                      Internal       Armor    
                                                      Structure      Factor  
                                                Head     3            9      
                                        Center Torso     14           20      
                                 Center Torso (rear)                  8      
                                           L/R Torso     11           16      
                                    L/R Torso (rear)                  6      
                                             L/R Arm     7            14      
                                             L/R Leg     11           22      

================================================================================
Equipment                                 Location    Heat    Critical    Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Retractable Blade                            RA        -         4         3.00
Retractable Blade                            LA        -         4         3.00
ER Large Laser                               RT        12        1         4.00
ER Large Laser                               LT        12        1         4.00
ER Medium Laser                              HD        5         1         1.00
                                            Free Critical Slots: 0

BattleForce Statistics
MV      S (+0)  M (+2)  L (+4)  E (+6)   Wt.   Ov   Armor:      5    Points: 18
5/8j       2       2       2       0      2     1   Structure:  2
Special Abilities: MEL, SAW, ENE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA

The first effective combat mecha of the Invid forces, the Shock Trooper was able to effectively support the Invinid troops with its long range weapons.  Taking what they had learned from the Armored Scout, the Shock Trooper was heavier than its prototype Trooper, and had a more evolved pilot.  However it is also the first Invid unit to suffer from severe heat issues in spite of being slower than the Trooper.  In early actions Clan mechwarriors were able to pick off the Shock Troopers whenever they would overheat.  Later on the Shock Troopers managed to learn from early mistakes and had a rhythmic firing system to stay cool.



Invid Pincer (First Appearance: 3048)

Mass: 60 tons
Tech Base: Clan
Chassis Config: Biped
Rules Level: Tournament Legal
Era: Dark Ages
Tech Rating/Era Availability: F/X-X-D
Production Year: 3132
Cost: 14,677,760 C-Bills
Battle Value: 2,550

Chassis: Unknown Endo-Steel
Power Plant: Unknown 300 Fusion XL Engine
Walking Speed: 54.0 km/h
Maximum Speed: 86.4 km/h
Jump Jets: Unknown
    Jump Capacity: 240 meters
Armor: Unknown Ferro-Fibrous
Armament:
    2  ER PPCs
    2  ER Micro Lasers
Manufacturer: Unknown
    Primary Factory: Unknown
Communications System: Unknown
Targeting and Tracking System: Unknown

================================================================================
Equipment           Type                         Rating                   Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Endo-Steel                    99 points                3.00
    Internal Locations: 2 RT, 2 LA, 3 RA
Engine:             XL Fusion Engine             300                       9.50
    Walking MP: 5
    Running MP: 8
    Jumping MP: 8 Improved
    Jump Jet Locations: 3 LT, 3 RT, 1 LL, 1 RL                            16.00
Heat Sinks:         Double Heat Sink             13(26)                    3.00
    Heat Sink Locations: 1 LT
Gyro:               Standard                                               3.00
Cockpit:            Standard                                               3.00
    Actuators:      L: SH+UA+LA+H    R: SH+UA+LA+H
Armor:              Ferro-Fibrous                AV - 191                 10.00
    Armor Locations: 4 LA, 3 RA

                                                      Internal       Armor    
                                                      Structure      Factor  
                                                Head     3            9      
                                        Center Torso     20           28      
                                 Center Torso (rear)                  10      
                                           L/R Torso     14           20      
                                    L/R Torso (rear)                  8      
                                             L/R Arm     10           18      
                                             L/R Leg     14           26      

================================================================================
Equipment                                 Location    Heat    Critical    Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ER PPC                                       RT        15        2         6.00
ER PPC                                       LT        15        2         6.00
2 ER Micro Lasers                            CT        2         2         0.50
                                            Free Critical Slots: 5

BattleForce Statistics
MV      S (+0)  M (+2)  L (+4)  E (+6)   Wt.   Ov   Armor:      6    Points: 26
5/8j       3       3       3       0      3     0   Structure:  3
Special Abilities: ENE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA

An evolution of the Shock Trooper, the Pincer was both a smarter combatant and more effective at its primary role of infantry support.  With 2 ER PPCs it was seemingly an upgraded Shock Trooper, albeit one that removed the close combat equipment entirely, merely having a pair of ER Micro Lasers to fend off close attacks.  These units are still rare in the Inner Sphere and have not been sighted in Clan Space at all, being the first evidence that the Invid Regent and Regess both had different opinions of how to deal with humanity, but how they treated their own children.  




Invid Royal Commander Prototype (First Appearance: 3050)

Mass: 55 tons
Tech Base: Clan
Chassis Config: Biped
Rules Level: Tournament Legal
Era: Dark Ages
Tech Rating/Era Availability: F/X-D-D
Production Year: 3132
Cost: 13,303,211 C-Bills
Battle Value: 2,382

Chassis: Unknown Endo-Steel
Power Plant: Unknown 385 Fusion XL Engine
Walking Speed: 75.6 km/h
Maximum Speed: 118.8 km/h
Jump Jets: Unknown
    Jump Capacity: 150 meters
Armor: Unknown Ferro-Fibrous
Armament:
    6  ER Medium Lasers
    2  LRM-5s
    1  ER Small Laser
Manufacturer: Unknown
    Primary Factory: Unknown
Communications System: Unknown
Targeting and Tracking System: Unknown

================================================================================
Equipment           Type                         Rating                   Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Endo-Steel                    91 points                3.00
    Internal Locations: 1 CT, 1 LT, 1 RT, 1 LA, 1 RA, 1 LL, 1 RL
Engine:             XL Fusion Engine             385                      22.00
    Walking MP: 7
    Running MP: 11
    Jumping MP: 5 Standard
    Jump Jet Locations: 2 LT, 1 RT, 1 LL, 1 RL                             2.50
Heat Sinks:         Double Heat Sink             13(26)                    3.00
Gyro:               Standard                                               4.00
Cockpit:            Standard                                               3.00
    Actuators:      L: SH+UA+LA+H    R: SH+UA+LA+H
Armor:              Ferro-Fibrous                AV - 153                  8.00
    Armor Locations: 2 LT, 2 RT, 2 LA, 1 RA
    CASE Locations: CT                                                     0.00

                                                      Internal       Armor    
                                                      Structure      Factor  
                                                Head     3            9      
                                        Center Torso     18           20      
                                 Center Torso (rear)                  8      
                                           L/R Torso     13           18      
                                    L/R Torso (rear)                  8      
                                             L/R Arm     9            15      
                                             L/R Leg     13           17      

================================================================================
Equipment                                 Location    Heat    Critical    Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 ER Medium Lasers                           RA        15        3         3.00
3 ER Medium Lasers                           LA        15        3         3.00
LRM-5                                        RT        2         1         1.00
LRM-5                                        LT        2         1         1.00
ER Small Laser                               HD        2         1         0.50
@LRM-5 (24)                                  CT        -         1         1.00
                                            Free Critical Slots: 14

BattleForce Statistics
MV      S (+0)  M (+2)  L (+4)  E (+6)   Wt.   Ov   Armor:      5    Points: 24
7/3j       4       4       1       0      2     0   Structure:  3
Special Abilities: CASE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA, IF 1

Another of the Regess only units, the Royal Commander Prototypes continued to eschew close combat weaponry.  This was also the first unit to use missile weapons, this time a pair of LRM 5s with the ammunition in the main body.  Most surprising to the few units recovered mostly intact, the cockpit was no longer a biological soup with a sluglike Invid creature inside, but a proper cockpit with what looked like biological equivalents of proper Battlemech controls.  No pilots have ever been recovered however.  Given that previous Invid mecha had a creature that seemed to live in the cockpit and would die within minutes of removal, this became worrisome to intelligence units throughout the Inner Sphere.  The Invid showed repeated adaptation and evolution.  What were they evolving INTO?



Invid Royal Commander (First Appearance: 3051)

Mass: 55 tons
Tech Base: Clan
Chassis Config: Biped
Rules Level: Tournament Legal
Era: Dark Ages
Tech Rating/Era Availability: F/X-D-D
Production Year: 3132
Cost: 12,980,811 C-Bills
Battle Value: 2,128

Chassis: Unknown Endo-Steel
Power Plant: Unknown 385 Fusion XL Engine
Walking Speed: 75.6 km/h
Maximum Speed: 118.8 km/h
Jump Jets: Unknown
    Jump Capacity: 150 meters
Armor: Unknown Ferro-Fibrous
Armament:
    3  Medium Pulse Lasers
    4  LRM-5s
    1  ER Small Laser
Manufacturer: Unknown
    Primary Factory: Unknown
Communications System: Unknown
Targeting and Tracking System: Unknown

================================================================================
Equipment           Type                         Rating                   Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Endo-Steel                    91 points                3.00
    Internal Locations: 1 LT, 1 RT, 1 LA, 2 RA, 1 LL, 1 RL
Engine:             XL Fusion Engine             385                      22.00
    Walking MP: 7
    Running MP: 11
    Jumping MP: 5 Standard
    Jump Jet Locations: 2 LT, 1 RT, 1 LL, 1 RL                             2.50
Heat Sinks:         Double Heat Sink             10(20)                    0.00
Gyro:               Standard                                               4.00
Cockpit:            Standard                                               3.00
    Actuators:      L: SH+UA+LA+H    R: SH+UA+LA+H
Armor:              Ferro-Fibrous                AV - 153                  8.00
    Armor Locations: 2 LT, 2 RT, 2 LA, 1 RA
    CASE Locations: LT, RT                                                 0.00

                                                      Internal       Armor    
                                                      Structure      Factor  
                                                Head     3            9      
                                        Center Torso     18           20      
                                 Center Torso (rear)                  8      
                                           L/R Torso     13           18      
                                    L/R Torso (rear)                  8      
                                             L/R Arm     9            15      
                                             L/R Leg     13           17      

================================================================================
Equipment                                 Location    Heat    Critical    Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 Medium Pulse Lasers                        RA        12        3         6.00
2 LRM-5s                                     RT        4         2         2.00
2 LRM-5s                                     LT        4         2         2.00
ER Small Laser                               HD        2         1         0.50
@LRM-5 (24)                                  RT        -         1         1.00
@LRM-5 (24)                                  LT        -         1         1.00
                                            Free Critical Slots: 14

BattleForce Statistics
MV      S (+0)  M (+2)  L (+4)  E (+6)   Wt.   Ov   Armor:      5    Points: 21
7/3j       3       3       0       0      2     0   Structure:  3
Special Abilities: CASE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA, LRM 1/1/1, IF 1

Exceedingly rare compared to the blue and white prototypes, these Royal Commanders removed one of the suites of arm Medium Lasers to turn the other's into a trio of Pulse Mediums.  The missile racks were doubled, and the ammunition was increased and put into the side torsos increasing the unit's pilot safety and durability.  Reports are still sporadic, but some (unreliable) eyewitness reports state these units are piloted by Humans with what looks like a normal cockpit with mechanical controls.  None of these units have ever been recovered, the machines either being removed from the battlefield by other Invid mecha, or self destructing.



Invid Overlord (First Appearance: 3053)

Mass: 65 tons
Tech Base: Clan
Chassis Config: Biped
Rules Level: Tournament Legal
Era: Dark Ages
Tech Rating/Era Availability: F/X-D-D
Production Year: 3132
Cost: 14,806,660 C-Bills
Battle Value: 2,403

Chassis: Unknown Endo-Steel
Power Plant: Unknown 325 Fusion XL Engine
Walking Speed: 54.0 km/h
Maximum Speed: 86.4 km/h
Jump Jets: Unknown
    Jump Capacity: 150 meters
Armor: Unknown Ferro-Fibrous
Armament:
    2  ER Large Lasers
    2  ER Medium Lasers
    2  SRM-4s
Manufacturer: Unknown
    Primary Factory: Unknown
Communications System: Unknown
Targeting and Tracking System: Unknown

================================================================================
Equipment           Type                         Rating                   Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Endo-Steel                   104 points                3.50
    Internal Locations: 1 HD, 1 CT, 1 LT, 1 RT, 2 LA, 1 RA
Engine:             XL Fusion Engine             325                      12.00
    Walking MP: 5
    Running MP: 8
    Jumping MP: 5 Standard
    Jump Jet Locations: 1 CT, 2 LL, 2 RL                                   5.00
Heat Sinks:         Double Heat Sink             21(42)                   11.00
    Heat Sink Locations: 3 LT, 3 RT, 1 LA, 1 RA
Gyro:               Standard                                               4.00
Cockpit:            Standard                                               3.00
    Actuators:      L: SH+UA+LA+H    R: SH+UA+LA+H
Armor:              Ferro-Fibrous                AV - 211                 11.00
    Armor Locations: 3 LA, 4 RA
    CASE Locations: LT, RT                                                 0.00

                                                      Internal       Armor    
                                                      Structure      Factor  
                                                Head     3            9      
                                        Center Torso     21           28      
                                 Center Torso (rear)                  14      
                                           L/R Torso     15           20      
                                    L/R Torso (rear)                  10      
                                             L/R Arm     10           20      
                                             L/R Leg     15           30      

================================================================================
Equipment                                 Location    Heat    Critical    Mass
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ER Medium Laser                              RA        5         1         1.00
ER Medium Laser                              LA        5         1         1.00
ER Large Laser                               RT        12        1         4.00
SRM-4                                        RT        3         1         1.00
ER Large Laser                               LT        12        1         4.00
SRM-4                                        LT        3         1         1.00
@SRM-4 (25)                                  RT        -         1         1.00
@SRM-4 (25)                                  LT        -         1         1.00
                                            Free Critical Slots: 0

BattleForce Statistics
MV      S (+0)  M (+2)  L (+4)  E (+6)   Wt.   Ov   Armor:      7    Points: 24
5j         4       4       2       0      3     0   Structure:  4
Special Abilities: CASE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA, SRM 1/1/0

The current final evolution of Invid mech forces, the Overlord seems to be a unit that fights in tandem with the Royal Command mechs and like that unit seems more designed to fight mech on mech than to merely support the biological ground forces.  Much like the Royal Command mechs, no pilots have ever been recovered from these mecha, dead or alive.  In 3055 and later there were rumors of a LAM version of this mech weighing 5 tons more but if they do exist they are exceedingly rare.


Special Rules and Notes:  The Royal Commander Prototype only takes half the normal Invid damage for head hits, while the Royal Commander and Overlord work completely like normal mechs.

For folks with the Palladium Robotech RPG books you will note I had to seriously ignore listed ground speeds to even remotely make for useful mecha at all.  But as this is bringing the Invid into Battletech and not the other way around, some fudging was required.   While the Invid are canonically supposed to have Plasma weaponry I really don't like the BT Plasma rules and went with Laser weapons primarily.  I used Dark Ages tech levels so they could have some legal form of close combat weaponry in the earlier models to keep it as close to their anime designs as possible.  I wanted to give all beam weapon mechs Pulse but the weight restrictions would not always allow it if I wanted to keep the same number of weapon mounts as their originals.

I am not getting into deep explanations of the Invid and how they could fit into Battletech as my play group knows of my blog and I don't want to give away too much too soon.  But should we keep playing I will update with more background information and those mysterious Invinid biotrooper units...





1 comment:

Arquinsiel said...

Clan, Invid AND Tyranids?

What the christ?

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