Schmiedehammer - Front Towards Enemy

[Liam's Ghost]

No fluff this time, since this was kinda a spur of the moment idea. After getting a bunch of MWDA boosters off amazon to sacrifice to the Gods of the Hobby Saw, I ended up with a pair of Hanse tanks. After first cataloging all the parts I could use from them, it suddenly occurred to me that, as is, it makes a pretty convincing gigantic heavy gauss carrier.

Thus this thing, which has far more of an excuse for not having a turret than the canon Hanse does!

Also, no record sheet at the moment. The PDFs produced from megameklab and windows 10's print to pdf function are too large to attach (but only the ground vehicle sheets. Everything else works great).

Also, Schmiedehammer = Sledgehammer.


Schmiedehammer
IS advanced
100 tons 
BV: 2,156
Cost: 20,781,000 C-bills

Movement: 3/5 (Tracked)
Engine: 300 XL

Internal: 40
Armor: 277 (Heavy Ferro-Fibrous)
                     Internal    Armor
--------------------------------------
Front                      10      107
Right                      10       60
Left                       10       60
Rear                       10       50

Weapon                         Loc  Heat
----------------------------------------
Plasma Rifle                    FR    10
Improved Heavy Gauss Rifle      FR     2
Improved Heavy Gauss Rifle      FR     2
Light Machine Gun               RS     0
Light Machine Gun               RS     0
Light Machine Gun               LS     0
Light Machine Gun               LS     0

Ammo                           Loc Shots
----------------------------------------
Plasma Rifle Ammo               BD    10
Plasma Rifle Ammo               BD    10
Light Machine Gun Ammo          BD   200
Improved Heavy Gauss Ammo       BD     4
Improved Heavy Gauss Ammo       BD     4
Improved Heavy Gauss Ammo       BD     4
Improved Heavy Gauss Ammo       BD     4
Improved Heavy Gauss Ammo       BD     4

Equipment                      Loc
----------------------------------
CASE                            BD

[marauder648]

Owie! Thats a real nut puncher of a tank! Super Hetzer away!

[loki_gti]

Could the chassis be based on the Gürteltier? Same engine, same armor type and the big guns just scream "Defiance Industries".

Minor nitpick: Schmiedehammer = Blacksmith's Hammer. Sledgehammer would be 'Vorschlaghammer'.

[Cryhavok101]

Are those light machine guns in sponson turrets?

[Liam's Ghost]

Of course, just because I designed this isn't going to spare my DA hanses from the hobby saw...

Could the chassis be based on the Gürteltier? Same engine, same armor type and the big guns just scream "Defiance Industries".

Potentially. The hulls have a vaguely similar look if you squint.

Minor nitpick: Schmiedehammer = Blacksmith's Hammer. Sledgehammer would be 'Vorschlaghammer'.

Yay, computer translation!

Are those light machine guns in sponson turrets?

Nah. I thought about it, but decided not to. It's sometimes important to stay a hair below optimum with these things.

[Cryhavok101]

Nah. I thought about it, but decided not to. It's sometimes important to stay a hair below optimum with these things.

Yeah, I understand that, I just couldn't remember if MML's stat block actually says when they are or not.

[Col Toda]

Once Immobilized it is meat .  It breaks the idea of cheap disposable combat vehicles ( design criteria ) . I understand that is not everyone's  position . I tend to go the Fuel Cell engine route . So for that 20 million price tag you could make about 2 1/2 Fuel cell vehicles of the same tonnage that would ( Not ) be as nice but quantity is a quality all its own .  If you are going to invest in a tank armored drive chassis or hardened armor may be a better approach . Depending on ERA Armored Drive and Heat Resistant armor may be a better fit . The largest  problem is the Improved Heavy Gauss cannot be put in a turret and just a couple of large size missile volley hits will immobilize the tank and your fire arc will be abandoned . Standard Gauss ; LRMs with incendiary and other ammo types in a tank with a turret with armor like 90 f 75 R/L 90 Turret and 54 aft might serve better? Sure it would not have the same impact as 2 Heavy Gauss but you do not have to worry that the enemy would move out of it's firing arc if you lose initiative.

[Liam's Ghost]

"It would be better if it was a completely different tank" isn't much of a critique. :P

Also, most of the major powers in the Inner Sphere stopped caring about simple, practical low cost vehicles sometime around the 3050s. If the Lyrans can put a double XL engine on a manticore, they can certainly build an impressive looking but impractical giant assault gun.  :D

(As further precedent, the Republic is already building a bigger one)

[Col Toda]

The Fluff text seem to indicate otherwise the DiMorgan Combat Vehicle with 3 ER PPCs Cost a lot as well but in the text it states  the manufacturer HAD to do sweet financing deals AND the customer got somewhat burned if the vehicle died before the payments were done. Still you are correct that such vehicles were made. As for 3050 they spent half as much for the Shiltron Prime that has a C3 Master and 2 Arrow IV launchers . Absolute price may not be the be all and end all but value and utility for that price is taken into account when you lay it out a second time .
So how well does that vehicle play test and a typical planet ? In A Time of War states a typical planet has 60 million yearly budget on defense and how much of a whole any particular loss does to that militia's budget . You are correct that the major power concern themselves a  less than a planet does but their unit would only be on a planet with a high economic or strategic value and not everywhere. Those same resources could almost buy a more flexible 80 ton Assault omni mech . Still  if you choose the ground well your tank would do well .

[Liam's Ghost]

Clearly it's not meant for a typical* planet. It's meant to keep company with vehicles like the Gürteltier, Gultoppr, Alacorn, Challenger, Manticore II, Mantuffel, and other high end, expensive, arguably impractical but also undeniably popular vehicles for front line formations.

*On the subject of a "typical" planet, the A Time of War rules are meant to be playable, not as a statement of what is typical. In addition, I don't know where you're getting the 60,000,000 figure from, since the player character with a planet sized land grant receives 125 million a year, and according to the expanded information in the A Time of War Companion, that landhold has a default defense budget of 250 million on top of that.

Bottom line, the fact that it is expensive, impractical, and with notable tactical limitations that will require it to work in concert with other supporting units is clearly not a deal breaker among the houses, who already do the same thing (and once again, the Republic is canonically doing basically the same thing, only making it bigger and more expensive).

If you want something simple and basic, you've come to the wrong thread.

[Col Toda]

For a platform using iHG it is inarguably the best one . The fact it has multiple gunners and doesn't eat the multiple target penalties as well as not requiring pilot checks makes that obvious . As for my take what constitutes a typical planet in the universe is different than yours , I will review AToW compendium again . As this tank would easily be present on a world in the economic upper tier of such your numbers mesh better . My only point was for it to be seen anywhere else the manufacturer has to provide at least as good as the deal of the DiMorgan or perhaps a little better. If you lost the Plasma Rifle and Ammo could you put in a standard fusion engine ? I know it would be sub optimal tactically but then I could see it anywhere.