Building a mech force for a petty lord

[Liam's Ghost]

The Situation: You are one of thirteen major landholding Barons on the mid periphery planet of Foxhaven. Like most of the population, your ancestors came to this world to escape the succession wars. Unlike most of the population, your ancestors brought battlemechs with them, leading to your family's current status as landed nobility. Your noble house is free to operate and rule its lands largely with autonomy as long as you contribute to planetary defense and don't threaten the Grand Duke's Peace.

Your personal forces consist of roughly a company of infantry (foot, motorized, or wheeled mechanized, limited to portable machineguns, recoilless rifles, LAWs/VLAWs, and grenades for support weapons), a collection of repurposed civilian vehicles, a small group of Guardian-B conventional fighters, your fortified castle (complete with gun emplacements and a couple sniper pieces), and the Battlemechs that justify your claim to power.

Your mission is to select the battlemechs you want to complement this group. Your total force may not mass more than 220 tons.

To clearly define the restrictions, you are limited to introductory tech mechs (as defined by the master unit list) available during the late succession war, that appear on the Inner Sphere General faction list. For reference, this link should take you to a master unit list unit search with all of those filters already applied.

In addition to these, you may also select the following LAMs: Stinger STG-A5 and A10, Wasp WSP-100, 100A, and 105, and Phoenix Hawk PHX-HK2. HOWEVER, each LAM counts for double its mass for purposes of your mass limit.

(There's also a Shadow Hawk LAM on planet, but that's part of the Grand Duke's private collection).

[Tai Dai Cultist]

Ooh, an old school force building thought exercise complete with a mass force balancing mechanic?  I'm in!

I'll assume the planet is sufficiently industrialized to allow for ammo replenishment, if ground vehicles, aircraft, and artillery is apparently available as well.

Warhammer
Wolverine (SW era -M Marik variant, if available)
Trebuchet
Phoenix Hawk

I was toying with an Awesome and Jenner in place of the Warhammer and Phoenix Hawk, but I like the list as is better.  Assault mechs really shine in battles larger than a single lance.  A 3/5 plodder is more likely to be a liability in anything other than a defensive stand.  Or in a parade meant to cow my peasants... and I honestly considered it all the same simply for that reason :D

A Warhammer will be 99.99% as intimidating to peasantry lined up on the curb of my city and forced to wave flags bearing my family's crest.  And on the upside it's able to do things besides simply kill enemy mechs, which is really the only thing an Awesome can do in actual battle.  Assuming it even makes it into one before it's already over. But also I figured that most combat these private mech forces will see is merrily romping through enemy infantry and light vehicles.  Machine guns on the Warhammer and Phoenix Hawk settled the choice for me.

[glitterboy2098]

My initial thoughts would be that Assaults are unlikely, though would certainly explain how he became a lord.

so i'd say.. WHM-6R Warhammer (70t) as the Warlord's personal ride, a Griffin GRF-1N (55t), a Dervish DV-6M (55t), and a pair of Stinger STG-3R's. (20t each), which amounts to 220 tons.

The Warhammer has a good punch, and is a good all-rounder. the Griffin has good long range firepower, as does the Dervish, while the Stingers are good recon and anti-infantry platforms.

[Decoy]

BLR-1G Battlemaster (85 tons) personal ride/ coordinating matters
CPLT-A1 Catapult (65 tons) Fire support
PXH-1 Phoenix Hawk  (45 tons) skirmsher/heavy scout
COM-2D Commando (25 tons) Vehicle killer

Is my initial thought. The Battlemaster is the visible sign of the noble's authority. Its job is to impress. The Catapult would probably be seen more often acting in support of the conventional elements during raids.  The Pheonix-Hawk and the Commando form a hunter killer pair on vehicles and light 'mechs. They're both pretty good against infantry as well. Heh. Load up the Commando with tear gas. that may stop a few riots.

However, I have another take on this. This is a noble unit. Maybe we should make considerations based on lines of succession here.

So, I'll try again.
Mech #1 ON1-K piloted by the Noble. Big, imposing, and heavily armored.
Mech #2 PXH-1 Phoenix Hawk piloted by the Noble's heir. Lots of on the job training can be done. It's also a good command 'mech, should things go badly.
Mech #3 TDR-5S Thunderbolt piloted by a trusted family member or a very closely associated family
Mech #4 PNT-9R Panther piloted by the heir to Mech #3.

Scouting, riot duty, and the like? all done by other elements of the royal guard. When the nobles comes out, it means play time is over.

[Force of Nature]

Thunderbolt-5S (65tons) Leader
Catapult-K2 (65tons) Second in command
2x Wolfhound-1Bs (35tons x 2 = 70tons) Recon - These should not surprise you that they are in my unit selection... My fav light Mech.
Locust-1E (20tons) Fast Recon

[worktroll]

I'm going all common, all stock models, and primarily energy heavy.

Baron's personal ride: Marauder. PPCs and MLs can fire all day, and you don't need to expend the AC ammo except at great need. Plus the intimidation factor. (It's black, with red & gold flames, shark eyes & teeth.) Just edges out the Warhammer.

Rifleman. Okay, yes it's tin, but you can fight with just the LLs & MLs (carefully), and it's one of the better (in-universe) options for dealing with your opponent's conventionals (particularly if you allow it the AA quirk). Your academy-smart but bookish XO will support you with this. And if the worst comes to the worst, the enemy will try and bring him down as an easier target.

Panther: your policeman. PPCs fire for free, and you've got SRMs which could carry teargas, HE, or inferno rounds, depending on how you feel about the lower classes. Plus it's as rough & tough as they come at that size. Either your psycopathic bodyguard, or brawler buddy, will love this ride.

And for your scouting, the Phoenix Hawk. A weapon for every occasion, more than enough speed to outrun what it can't outfight, and tougher than a bug. Put your off-planet merc lover in this, and it's more likely you won't need to replace her (presumably her) as often. Lori Kalmar was tres lucky to survive in her Locust; show yours you think more of her ;)

[Giovanni Blasini]

UM-R60 UrbanMech
UM-R60 UrbanMech
WSP-1A Wasp
STG-3G Stinger
STG-A5 Stinger LAM
WSP-100 or WSP-100A Wasp LAM, depending on munitions availability.

The Urbies are civil defense units that, thanks to the AC/10s and solid armor, can hit harder than their 30 tons normally allows. Because they're better at providing heavy support for infantry than massacring infantry or civvies, they seemed like good anchor units.

The WSP-1A, especially when loaded with Infernos, makes a great vehicle hunter but, as Worktroll pointed out, SRMs are versatile enough if you ever need to use it for antipersonnel or crowd suppression, too.

Had the STG-3P been available, I would have been tempted to simply go with ten of those but, in its absence, the STG-3G seemed like a good choice for a bug 'Mech that has the armor and firepower to make itself a total pain in the ass and cause chaos above what its 20 tons normally permits. If you prefer, a LCT-1E would do similar, but share fewer parts in common with the Wasp. Unlike the STG-3R, its lack of machine guns shouldn't cause unholy terror amongst your subjects (yes, I'm going for the enlightened, benevolent despot here).

On to the LAMs: the STG-A5 was an obvious choice, since it hits hard, has decent armor, and lacks ammo-based weaponry.  It has a chance of being a not-awful fighter or BattleMech: I've got one in a MekHQ campaign in 2998 that, since MegaMek lacks LAM rules but has LAMs, acts like a Fire Javelin with a ton less armor, one less laser, and one less heat sink. It works surprisingly well, and even soloed an equal-skilled Enforcer in a duel. While it's equivalent to 60 tons, it can reinforce your Guardian-Bs while also reinforcing your BattleMechs.

I considered a second Stinger LAM for parts commonality, but the WSP-100 and WSP-100A Wasp LAMs offer capabilities that they don't. For the -100, you get a nice bomb truck that, because it can alternatively carry extra fuel, also serves as a long range aerospace patrol. If there are sufficient alt munitions available for that bomb bay, this can be a vicious choice when used carefully.

The WSP-100A, meanwhile, is a bit more conventional, but gives you something you would otherwise lack: LRM support, basically serving as a less-awesome Valkyrie, one that's missing a heat sink and two tons of armor.  This could still work out OK on tabletop, even with MegaMek where you lose out on being able to convert.

Amusingly, the whole kit and kaboodle of 'Mechs would easily fit into a Leopard, which is a nice bonus.  Alternatively, an Ares Mk I landing craft can carry 65 tons, allowing you to carry an Urbie and a BugMech in a single shuttle with 15 tons of supplies to spare: two shuttles escorted by your LAMs could've carried your whole force to your new homeworld.

Neat idea, Liam, and I think you just gave me my next MekHQ campaign.

[Natasha Kerensky]

The primary mission is planetary defense so there's not much need for recon.  You'll know the terrain and the invader's likely targets, and infantry pickets with binoculars can radio info on invading forces.

But I'd also avoid the other end of the spectrum and put too many eggs into slower assaults and heavies, especially with a 220-ton limit.  You'll need some mobility and numbers against the typical Periphery bandit raid.

And with such a small force, I'd avoid specialists like anti-infantry or fire support mechs.  Your infantry can handle enemy infantry, and you need the ability to take down typical Periphery bandits quickly, not pepper them with missiles with high to-hit numbers from long-range.

So I'd pair the ranged punch of an ENF-4R Enforcer with the mobile, close-in brawling of a WVR-6M Wolverine.  All jump-mobile, some speed in the Wolverine, some stopping power in the Enforcer, an AC/10 and two large lasers for rapid ranged hold-punching, and two medium lasers and six SRMs for follow-on critting up close.

And then I'd double that.  Two Enforcer/Wolverine bandit killing pairs.  210 tons total.

Then I'd think about mines and fortifications for targets and approaches, maybe with some fire support.

FWIW...

[Kovax]

I'd go with:

TDR-5S - 65t - Armored to the hilt, with a variety of weapons for every occasion.
TDR-5S - 65t - Good enough to warrant two of them.
PXH-1 - 45t - Powerful and fast enough to outrun anything it can't outgun.
LCT-1V - 20t - When speed is of the essence, this 'Mech shines.
STG-3R - 20T - Good anti-infantry and light vehicle 'Mech.

215 tons total.

The twin "Thuds" provide a "solid enough" line, with the armor to stand in the face of 220 tons of just about anything else while the other lighter units make rapid slash attacks to present a poorer target.  They sport LRMs for serious ranged work, and Large Lasers if/when ammo becomes a concern.  Up close and personal, they can carry Inferno SRMs, as well as triple Medium Lasers.  For infantry encounters, there are twin machineguns, as well as the Inferno SRMs.

The PXH-1 is fast, and relies mostly on energy weapons, except for the machineguns.  It's designed to engage and destroy anything of equal or lesser weight, and does so quite effectively if handled properly.

The Locust and Stinger provide "width", allowing for occasional 'Mech patrols with their improved sensor capabilities, to supplement the normal vehicle patrols.  Both are mainly reliant on an energy weapon, with machineguns for backup and anti-infantry work.  They also offer rapid response to more routine incidents with the versatility and firepower of a Battlemech, without tying up the heavy assets on relatively minor threats.  It's why 20th Century nations built way more Destroyers than Battleships, because in 90% of the cases, a Destroyer was sufficient, and yet they had the speed to disengage in the 10% of the cases where more firepower was needed.

Other than the T-bolts, which are mainly reserved for "serious" engagements, the rest of the force is based on energy weapons and machineguns (for which ammo is readily available on most worlds).  Even the two T-bolts have large and medium lasers, and are capable of "lower intensity" combat without reliance on expendables.

I had strongly considered dropping one TDR in favor of two FS-9s, which would be far more suitable for 90% of the engagements that the unit would likely see, but that didn't leave enough "bone" to strengthen the force if a serious enemy showed up.  The PXH and pair of "bugs" should be sufficient to deal with the smaller issues, and the TDRs pack decent anti-infantry weaponry if they do need to be brought into play.

[ Looking over the previous couple of posts, I'd be reliant on my vehicles to provide most of the non-lethal firepower, unless the MGs can be loaded with some sort of non-lethal pellets instead of armor-piercing slugs.  Thinking too much about defending the realm, not enough about keeping it under thumb.  I think that expanding my armor contingent would become a priority, even if I have to sell the Stinger to do so. ]

[snewsom2997]

Thunderbolt-6S 65 Tons
Shadow Hawk-2K 55 Tons
Wolverine-6M 55 Tons
Phoenix Hawk-1 45 Tons

I would figure a more medium Weight Force

All solid Defensive Mechs for 3025, Decent mobility, Jump Jets help in Cluttered Terrain. Enough Large Lasers and PPCs that Standing off is possible with all mechs. The PXH-1 is mobile enough to even get some spotting in for the Thud and it's LRM's

[Getz]

Grasshopper GRH-5H - The Lords personal ride.  It's mean, it's hard to kill and it can get him out of trouble if he bites off more than he can chew
Thunderbolt TDR-5S - I'm seeing a lot of love for the T-bolt here and I can't say I'm surprised, it covers so many bases.
Phoenix Hawk PHX-1 - Excellent mech is excellent.  Scout hunting and anti-infantry all in one package
Hermes II HER-2S - Something of a sniper specialist, but it supports the PHX really well.

[Saint]

Here's my picks from your Mul link.

3 x Centurion CN9-AL : Great trooper with good armor, weapons, and heat management . I put the Baron and two best pilots here, that way it will be harder to pick off the noble.

1 x Javelin JVN-10F : She will be my harasser, backstabber, and bug hunter.

2 x Locust LCT-1E : They are for recon and fast response to flankers.

Would the infantry play a role other than base defense? If so I may change it up a little bit.

LAMs would be out for me . Not only because of the double tonnage penalty, but because their conversion gear makes them harder to maintain.

[Giovanni Blasini]

Ok, again, sticking to the IS General, Succession Wars (Lostech) era on the MUL, but not choosing any LAMs this time:

2 x LCT-1E Locusts: 40 tons
2 x STG-3G Stingers: 40 tons
2 x WSP-1A Wasps: 40 tons
2 x CRB-20 Crabs: 100 tons

The Crabs are solid fighters that, paired, should be able to handle much bigger foes.  The Wasps serve anti-vehicle or anti-infantry or anti-'Mech, as the situation requires.  The Locusts and Stingers, meanwhile, are fast harassers that can tie up enemy 'Mechs bigger than them until the Crabs can deal with them, or simply wolf pack a larger 'Mech and take it down together.

[SCC]

Well apart from you using the words 'petty lord' and 'owns BattleMechs' together, from your description of my hodge podge forces should I assume that I have several heavy trucks carrying LRMs for indirect fire support and AC/2's for air defense along with a large number of civillian cars to scout for me?

Well if that's true I'll probably take a trio of Warhammers.

[Daryk]

Well, the IS General restriction kills my first instinct: 4 WVR-6Ms.

In lieu of that, I'd take two Griffins and two Wolverines to maximize parts commonality and provide a decent mix of firepower.

[truetanker]

Stinger-3G
Stinger-3G
Stinger-3R
Wyvern-6N
Wyvern-6N
Grasshopper-5H

220 and all jumpy.

TT

[worktroll]

So, LG, what appeals, and why?

[Colt Ward]

I must have read it a bit differently . . . but assaults seemed unlikely and so did heavies really- when it said the planetary ruler had a Shadow Hawk as part of their force it seemed a bit of a upper limit.

So, to support the duty of contributing a levy to the planet's defense as well as my own holdings . . .

Line Lance
Vindicator 1R
Panther 9R
Firestarter 9-M
Commando 2D

Sweep Lance
Stinger 3R
Stinger 3R
Locust 1M
Locust 1M

The line lance is there to slug it out and be supported by artillery and armor support.  Sweep is for flanking and threatening the rear of pirate formations- AKA dropship!  The pair of PPCs on the line force gives you the ranged 10 point hit to start opening holes up in targets the Commando & Firestarter can exploit.  The Sweep force has speed & some jumping ability to get into positions while the Locust particularly are able to lend some ranged fire support from where armor or infantry would need it.

The petty lord also has mechs to keep his territory peaceful . . . lots of MGs, flamers and infernos.  Logistics are cut down a bit by keeping to LRMs, SRMs, and MGs- which should also be run by the infantry and armor.  If the petty lord can start producing those, it should be a industry on the world that grants the family a bit more power than their peers.

[Giovanni Blasini]

I must have read it a bit differently . . . but assaults seemed unlikely and so did heavies really- when it said the planetary ruler had a Shadow Hawk as part of their force it seemed a bit of a upper limit.

Yeah, but it's a Shadow Hawk LAM, of which only 23 were built of two different models, and of those, at least two of the first model crashed.

[Liam's Ghost]

I must have read it a bit differently . . . but assaults seemed unlikely and so did heavies really- when it said the planetary ruler had a Shadow Hawk as part of their force it seemed a bit of a upper limit.

Apologies for any misconceptions. I noted the Shadow Hawk LAM as a novelty rather than to establish an upper limit. The largest mech in the Grand Dukes personal forces is actually an Awesome, and he has a number of heavy mechs as well. Even then, that shouldn't be considered a hard limit.

To further clarify, the world is moderately industrialized (or highly industrialized for its region). They can manufacture or get their hands on most parts (though the more complex ones like fusion engines take a bit of time), and they hope to start building Wasps in the next decade or so. The planet is ruled as a weird hybrid of a constitutional monarchy and a feudal state. Within his own personal holdings, the Grand Duke has to answer to an elected parliament. The Barons are in turn subject to him, but free to govern their own territories as they wish as long as they don't disrupt things.

The Grand Duke also has enough forces to generally put down one or two uppity Barons, but is outnumbered by them overall, so there's some give and take. Also there's a civil war brewing between factions within the Grand Duke's court, and each side is trying to draw Barons in to support them.

So, LG, what appeals, and why?

Hard to say. I think all of them might be pretty useful.

[Colt Ward]

Lol, he picks the best 13 to hand out as sides on the Civil War!

Griffin 1N
Ostol 4D
Hunchback 4P
Centurion 9-A

Commander in the Griffin for mobility and firing at range.  Ostol 4D would be the retainer who is the brusier.  Hunchback 4P will wipe out anything that gets close to the commander or the other fire support design- the Centurion, which I will agree with someone else is the heir.

[Spinosapper]

All stock variants:

Grasshopper
Panther
Panther
Whitworth

Locust
Locust

The 4/6/4 lance sticks together to bring a good mix of firepower with the Grasshopper as the point man. 

The Locusts use the buddy system when going on patrols, "firefighting", etc.

Edited for details

[Giovanni Blasini]

For some reason, perhaps because I am insane, I'm also tempted to go with four SCP-1N Scorpions.

[Kidd]

WHM-6R Warhammer (70) - CO/Noble/Me
WHM-6R Warhammer (70) - XO
BJ-1 Blackjack (45) - Retainer
FS9-H Firestarter (35) - Retainer

When you only have 220 tons to deploy, forget trying to counter-attack pirate Dropships* - even a Leopard should bring enough passengers to make your life hard, and should shrug off Bug Mechs. So my lance/squad is designed to fight from inside my little holding**. Mine and my XO's Warhammers will be the main combatants, and with (teargas) SRMs and (rubber) MGs cover any riot scenarios. A BJ-1 Blackjack can start plinking at range and contribute a fistful of lasers once the fighting gets close. An FS9-H Firestarter is strictly a support Mech; flames are good for eliminating infantry and attempting to shut down the enemy's heavies so my XO and I can punch 'em out.

*if the opportunity arises however, with sturdy armour and long-range guns, the 'hammers can indeed snipe the DS from range while the 2 smaller Mechs cover our backs.

**suitably prepared with firing positions for the Warhammers to cover approaches to the city, and blind alleys where ambushers can pour medium laser and flames from close range into passing targets.

Lol, he picks the best 13 to hand out as sides on the Civil War!

Kind of assumed as much  ;D

[Ice Hellion]

Let's make the Golden Horde, the one designed to win the strategic game if properly used  }:)

3 Locust LCT-1V
4 Wasp WSP-1A
2 Stinger STG-3G
2 Stinger STG-3R

At 20 tons each, this makes 11*20 = 220 tons.

[truetanker]

I went with having hands on mine!

TT

[glitterboy2098]

Let's make the Golden Horde, the one designed to win the strategic game if properly used  }:)

3 Locust LCT-1V
4 Wasp WSP-1A
2 Stinger STG-3G
2 Stinger STG-3R

At 20 tons each, this makes 11*20 = 220 tons.

Mercer Ravannion would be proud!  ::)

[ckosacranoid]

how about a bunch of quiest matial mechs.... cheap and easy to get in any era.

[Giovanni Blasini]

Quasits are great if you can't get ahold of real BattleMechs, but since we're restricted by mass instead, a Phoenix Hawk is a better choice than am equal-mass Quasit.

[Scotty]

Two Locusts LCT-1V
One Firestarter FS9-H
One Phoenix Hawk PXH-1
Two Centurion CN9-A