’Mech of the Week 3145 Preview: LK-3D Antilion
LK-3D
Antlion, Technical Readout: 3145 (Federated Suns), p. 38
StarCorps’ far-flung manufacturing empire brought forth a bit of a curiosity from their Crofton facility toward the end of the 3110’s. Designed around a little utilized weapon, and importing the Sea Fox manufactured model no less, the LK-3D
Antlion exists solely to provide indirect, close-support fire with or without the luxury of spotters. The ‘Mech’s namesake is an interesting creature in its own right. The larval stage of some species buries itself in the center of sand pits hoping a clumsy lunch will tumble down the walls. The antlion even will lob sand at small victims attempting to flee. Able to make its own “pit” of remote sensors, the
Antlion’s ‘Mech Mortars can devastate infantry at distance as well as harass larger prey.
The ‘Mech itself is fairly durable with just a touch of fragility just to make things interesting. Nine and a half tons of light ferro-fibrous armor provide pretty durn close to the maximum amount this forty-five ton quad ‘Mech can carry. All front locations can easily withstand the increasingly common Clan-spec ER PPC. The center torso and legs are protected against even the largest Thunderbolt missile. The backside has adequate armor to stop the ubiquitous medium laser. Should the armor be breached, the reinforced chassis provides precious extra durability to the
Antlion. The ample munition bins are even protected by the CASE II system, mitigating the risk of an explosion. Admittedly the MechWarrior still isn’t going to enjoy it. GM’s Superfusion 225 XL engine powers this quad to speeds of 86 kph. While not fleet-footed, it does enable the
Antlion to readily reposition itself as a battle evolves. Of course this brings with it the well-established concerns associated with Inner Sphere extra-light fusion engines. An extra-light gyroscope is also installed, virtually guaranteeing breeches to the center torso are going to damage something important. A final sacrifice to weight-conscious engineers is a small cockpit. Thankfully the inherent stability of four legged ‘Mechs offsets the difficulty of piloting in such cramped conditions.
Taking a look at the equipment is when the
Antlion becomes … quirky. The space freed by the small cockpit is occupied with a pair of light machine guns. Effective against PBIs, should anything heavier actually get close enough that they’re a viable option, your best bet is to follow the example of Leftenant Goldman on Beuller; charge and kick your opponent into submission. The synergistic usage of the Bloodhound active probe and the remote sensors is potentially a bit more useful than the pop guns. Given the opportunity the
Antlion can seed an area with sensors then utilize the active probe to monitor them. (Can we all take a minute to appreciate the mental image of a quad ‘Mech “depositing” remote sensors?) Since the sensors can be monitored from up to two kilometers out they not only provide an early detection network, the sensors can be used as spotters for indirect fire. Speaking of indirect fire, that brings us to the
raison d’ête of the
Antlion, the twin ‘Mech Mortars.
Since the Type 4 ‘Mech Mortars mounted on the
Antlion are fairly uncommon it’s worth taking a bit of time to discuss the ins and outs of these weapon systems. As the name suggests the projectiles fired travel on a high arc. While they can be used in direct combat, the results are horribly inaccurate. A surprising benefit of this unique angle of attack is that modern anti-missile systems are designed to defeat lower trajectory projectiles and are effectively rendered useless. The standard armor-piercing projectiles have a similar damage profile and crit-seeking capability as SRM rounds though the ranges are functionally identical to LRMs. While ‘Mech Mortars have the unique capability to fire these long ranged SRMs indirectly without a spotter, having some eyes on the target is always best. Of course if those eyes also happen to have TAG handy it’s worth utilizing semi-guided munitions to better the chances of hitting the target. Two other munition types are certainly worth mentioning, air-burst and anti-personnel. Anti-personnel rounds, as the name might suggest, are devastating against infantry, even those sheltering in buildings. Useful in urban battlefields to say the least. The tradeoff is reduced damage against hardened targets. In my opinion though, airburst rounds are where ‘Mech Mortars can really wreak some havoc. Though the damage per shell is reduced against all target types, airburst munition’s area effect capability truly turns the ‘Mech Mortar into a poor man’s artillery piece. A successful salvo from both mortars installed on the
Antlion will put a serious hurt on most types of battle armor, even stripping half the protection off the infamous Ironhold (Fire). Both airburst and anti-personnel rounds benefit from the fact they’re aimed at a position, not a mobile target. Hence you can more readily hit and possibly immobilize flanking hovercraft or other tanks leaving them vulnerable to the rest of your forces. Thankfully, the
Antlion’s six ammunition bins allow plenty of flexibility in munition selection. And I would be remiss if I failed to note that flare and smoke rounds are also available for all your illumination and obfuscation needs.
So what is the sum of all these parts? It’s not a machine for direct combat and never will be. The
Antlion is a support ‘Mech and works best when kept well away from the actual fight. Take position behind hills or buildings and only moving to keep targets in range or executing a tactical withdraw when Murphy gets a strangle hold of the battle plan. Actual contact with an enemy tougher than foot infantry is best avoided. Thankfully due to the Bloodhound you’re not likely to have an enemy manage to sneak up on you. At least if the LK-3D isn’t fast enough to escape encroaching opposition it’s at least tough enough to take a few hits till support comes to your rescue. Spotters, especially of the TAG equipped infantry variety, are a welcome addition and should always be factored into force design whenever possible. The
Antlion will never be popular with those seeking personal glory and fame. It exists to eliminate the “lesser” parts of the modern combined arms force and the mop up those weakened by the main bulk of your forces. It should be no surprise that the machine is an unpopular assignment or that it’s failed to spread beyond the AFFS and a few mercenary companies. However, if you can work within the design’s limitations and get comfortable using the ‘Mech Mortars the
Antlion can serve you well.
DVD Extras: Behind the scenes of the Antlion.
The stats for the ‘Mech are based off concept art by Brett Evans, which can be found
here on his website. The final art by David White has evolved from the original but many of the essentials remain.
The name itself changed while TRO: 3145 was being put together. Originally dubbed the LK-3D
Lion, there was some concern voiced about the disconnect between what the name projected and the ‘Mech’s apparent role. Lions typically evoke thoughts of nobility, pride, and bravery. A machine intended to remain under cover and target the weak, not so much. So a scramble for something more apt ensued. The antlion was put forth along with descriptions of the critter which seemed to suit the ‘Mech to a T.
