'Mech of the Week: HUR-WO-* Huron Warrior

[mrbooth]

My question about this mech has always been was it first a Fed Com mech and taken by the  CC? It is listed as being built on Corey in 3055 which is still a Fed Com world until 3057.

[Empyrus]

I would assume it was a writer screw-up. Either they originally intended the 'Mech to be a FedSuns one but rewrote is a Capellan one but didn't fix the manufacturing place, or they forgot Corey was FedSuns planet at the time.

As it is, it is Capellan 'Mech made on a FedSuns planet, go figure how that works.

[The Eagle]

I would assume it was a writer screw-up. Either they originally intended the 'Mech to be a FedSuns one but rewrote is a Capellan one but didn't fix the manufacturing place, or they forgot Corey was FedSuns planet at the time.

As it is, it is Capellan 'Mech made on a FedSuns planet, go figure how that works.

Cataphract.

[Empyrus]

The Cataphract was a Capellan design, built on Tikonov which the FedSuns then captured, and adopted the design as their own. It took a couple of decades for the Cappies to build new factories for the Cataphract elsewhere in the CapCon.

The Huron Warrior supposedly has been built on Corey from the beginning... and it was under FedSuns rule when the Huron Warrior was introduced. There are no indications the Huron Warrior was built elsewhere in the meantime.

Not similar situations.

[The Eagle]

Fair point.

[garhkal]

I was never too impressed with the Huron but it's solid mech. I guess the sensor array makes sense when you look at the Rifleman and such but talk about doubling your profile.

   

I could have sworn in one of the books, there was something about a hooded cowl, to add extra armor to the head.. and when i first saw the Hurron warrior that's what i thought it was..

[Tymers Realm]

I could have sworn in one of the books, there was something about a hooded cowl, to add extra armor to the head.. and when i first saw the Hurron warrior that's what i thought it was..

You're probably thinking about the Cyclops' fluff from TRO 3025.

Now honestly, I never really cared about the Huron Warrior.
While the R4L had good ground speed and solid armor, I could never get past the fact it couldn't even keep cool while firing the ER Lg Laser. And the CG-rendered art from TRO 3055 didn't really help it's appearance much. It just bugged my sensibilities I could never really care for it. Though I might of worked up something along the lines of the R4O...

[Empyrus]

The Huron Warrior is a bit of an "old-school" design really. That is, it is like TRO 3025/3039 'Mechs. It is fast and heavily armed at the same time (unlike introtech designs usually) but the heat management really makes comparable to introtech machines.
And it requires daring to work well, i think. It requires willingness to work with heat-induced penalties.
Walking and firing both long range weapons has net heat of +3. You can do this twice before gunnery penalty, thrice if you are fine with +1 to hit penalty. At that point, you skip over the ERLL and get rid of the waste heat; it actually works out perfectly, since you'll have +9 heat, and walking using the Gauss generates only 2 heat, allowing one to sink the extra generated by the ERLL over time.
Firing 23 damage up to 19 hexes for three turns is nothing to laugh at (coming from a 50-tonner) in a low-tech game (defined as mix of introductory and Star League-level tech). In practice, only introductory level medium designs capable of that are missile-armed ones and they're not reliable (for example the Trebuchet averages 18 damage only, and has poor endurance).

The early Huron Warrior is a fine 'Mech for those who are comfortable with hot running 'Mechs. Others will want to look for something else, certainly.

And it is not as bad case as some, like the 3050 Panther 10K. The Huron Warrior is workable despite poor cooling, the Panther is far more questionable since it has worse armor, low speed and lack of secondary long-range weapon. (That said, even the Panther 10K works, but is depended on environment where it can jump away from enemy LOS for cooling.)

[Iron Mongoose]

I might offer that its more like the 3050 mechs (given that it came out in 51, this is reasonable).  Its got some advanced tech, but it still isn't fully modernized and the designers don't seem to have fully grasped what was possible with the tools at their disposal.  This is in contrast to most 3055 mechs, which seem to have mostly embraced new tech, even if there are still a few lingering odd bits like OS SSRM2s.  I don't disagree that it has power and heat like a 3025 heavy (not to mention armor, since 25 era designs tended to be under armored at best) but it leaves them all in the dust for speed and out ranges them, giving it tactical flexibility that no 3025 mech ever imagined (and remarkably few 3050 designs realized).

[marauder648]

The Huron is a good design, its got a respectable slap for a 50 tonner and the variants are okay, all in all its a very good mech, if not very 'Cappie' but then we're use to them slathering stealth armour on everything from office chairs to toasters by now and the Huron does not look, sound or feel Cappie. It feels like a Davion design.

[Kidd]

Done right it can be a breath of fresh air to Succ State stereotypes

[The Eagle]

The Huron is a good design, its got a respectable slap for a 50 tonner and the variants are okay, all in all its a very good mech, if not very 'Cappie' but then we're use to them slathering stealth armour on everything from office chairs to toasters by now and the Huron does not look, sound or feel Cappie. It feels like a Davion design.

Honestly, I always thought it felt more like a Marik design.  It's got that 5/8 movement curve the FWLM loves so much, and an ERLL (which they slapped two of on the WVR-7M).

[Kit deSummersville]

I used the missile version to great success, along with a Dervish and two Men Shen Fs. One of the Men Shen's was pretty likely to get a TAG and semi-guided missiles would light up the enemy from a distance, all while the lance could move 5/8 as a unit.

[DarkISI]

There is one notable custom Huron Warrior created in 3076. It was stolen circa 3084 from its owner, a Republic of the Sphere legate, by a minor criminal. This "HUR-WO-R4X" is equipped with a supercharger, ten tons of reactive armor, a Silver Bullet Gauss rifle (two tons of ammo) and a large X-pulse laser. There are other modifications (quirks) as well: The pulse laser has improved cooling jacket (not that the 'Mech has heat woes even without) and the 'Mech seems to incorporate equipment to make it a command 'Mech as suits a Republic Legate. Reportedly the 'Mech is also hard to pilot for reasons unknown.
Accurate and fast, this custom variant is more of a skirmisher than a sniper. In my opinion, it would make a good and interesting basis for a production-grade variant but its nature as a custom job makes this unlikely.

The thought behind the hard to pilot quirk was that it is caused by an extremely cramped cockpit, because of the command modifications Legate Singer had ordered.
I would have explained more in the fluff, but the goal with XTRO Most Wanted was to create fiction pieces more aimed at enabling players to create their own scenarios or campaings around the stories told in the book and less about the modifications of the units (which are showcased by the stats anyway).

[Empyrus]

Oh, very interesting. Makes a lot of sense. And i can see why it wouldn't be explained in the fluff. Which makes for some very interesting scenarios for sure.  O0

As much as i like the Mauler (and thus the Todesbote), the Huron Warrior fluff is probably my favorite from Most Wanted. Robbery-turned-'Mech rampage is just... well, something that could happen in a RPG, and thus rather funny.

[DarkISI]

Oh, very interesting. Makes a lot of sense. And i can see why it wouldn't be explained in the fluff. Which makes for some very interesting scenarios for sure.  O0

As much as i like the Mauler (and thus the Todesbote), the Huron Warrior fluff is probably my favorite from Most Wanted. Robbery-turned-'Mech rampage is just... well, something that could happen in a RPG, and thus rather funny.

Thank you :)
My favorite is the Master Thief BA. I was giggling wildly while writing the story. ;)

[ajcbm]

My question about this mech has always been was it first a Fed Com mech and taken by the  CC? It is listed as being built on Corey in 3055 which is still a Fed Com world until 3057.

It is a Capellan Mech.

Hollis Inc. built it in pieces on several minor factories in the CapCon and assembled it like a jigsaw puzzle someplace else. When Corey was captured in 3057, they just shipped all the minor factories and made everything on Corey.

Its in the Manufacturer description for Hollis, Inc in the Handbook: House Liao.

FYI... Hollis can make the Highlander too on their mini-factories.