A different exercise...

[Cannonshop]

this is one for the compulsively orderly.

Build a company sized force that is fairly well balanced and effective...

except that all units must share the same introduction year.  not a range of years, the same year.

Like, for example, you choose 3055.  All the units in your force need to have begun production in 3055.  (this is ONLY an example)  Not one year earlier, or one year later. 

So, Pick a year from the Battletech Timeline, and build yourself a viable, even effective, force to the best combination of flexibility, battle-value, and so on, but you have to equip everything in that force with equipment that began production in that year, and no later.

and no later variants, either.

[Failure16]

The year is 2816. A dark age is beginning to sweep over Mankind.

I choose a company of WVR-6M Wolverines to stave off the night.

[Giovanni Blasini]

Well, if you want to have any firm of infantry and 'Mechs at the same time...q

2720
4 STG-3Gb Stinger
4 RFL-3N-2 Rifleman II
4 Lightning Attack Hovercraft (Royal)
12 Nighthawk PA(L) Mk. XXI
6 Medium Strike Fighter Steinadler (Golden Eagle)

Trojan Blockade Runner for space lift.
If you're feeling ambitious, an M-9 Pavise station at each standard jump point.

2830
4 MON-67 Mongoose
4 STN-3KB Sentinels
4 WHM-6K Warhammers
4 Padilla Heavy Artillery Tank (LRM)

But your only infantry option is Bridge-builder Engineers Take the Time III-chi, 48th Division, and you lose out on aerospace fighters.

2905
12 MAD-3L Marauders
12 Tornado PA(L)P22 Hurricane suits (at minimum - I'd like more)
6 CSR-V12M Corsair ASF
Intruder (Liao) for assault DropShip support
No vehicles available.

[Speedbump]

I wanted to see how early I could go and still get something worth using. Things start to get patchy the earlier you go, but here's a couple of options:

2453
Black Eagle (Standard) Dropship
12 x Orion ON1-C

I think this is the earliest you can get a usable dropship to line up with a combat unit it can carry. I'm not the greatest fan of over engined primitives like this Orion, but in an era when deploying mech model companies hasn't gone out of fashion yet it's the kind of force that would be pretty standard.


2600
Model 96 'Elephant' Mark 1 Dropship
8 x Vali Artillery Vehicle (Standard)
4 x Karnov UR Transport (Standard) - Shoved into the small craft bays because no actual aerospace units are available
4 x Anti-'Mech Jump Infantry Third Ueda Infantry
12 x Ostscout OTT-7Jb

So an Artillery battery, spotters and infantry support. Definitely a specialist force, but I like how well the combination of units fits together. If you're unhappy with the Karnovs in the small craft bay you can drop it to 4 Valis.

[Giovanni Blasini]

I wanted to see how early I could go and still get something worth using. Things start to get patchy the earlier you go, but here's a couple of options:

2453
Black Eagle (Standard) Dropship
12 x Orion ON1-C

I think this is the earliest you can get a usable dropship to line up with a combat unit it can carry. I'm not the greatest fan of over engined primitives like this Orion, but in an era when deploying mech model companies hasn't gone out of fashion yet it's the kind of force that would be pretty standard.

It's not the beatstick of the ON-1H, but the ON1-C is a perfectly suitable 'Mech if you think of it as a medium trooper, like a SHD-1R, that just lacks jump jets and has extra-powerful physical attacks.  I actually really like the ON1-C, and that's not a bad choice above.

2600
Model 96 'Elephant' Mark 1 Dropship
8 x Vali Artillery Vehicle (Standard)
4 x Karnov UR Transport (Standard) - Shoved into the small craft bays because no actual aerospace units are available
4 x Anti-'Mech Jump Infantry Third Ueda Infantry
12 x Ostscout OTT-7Jb

So an Artillery battery, spotters and infantry support. Definitely a specialist force, but I like how well the combination of units fits together. If you're unhappy with the Karnovs in the small craft bay you can drop it to 4 Valis.

That's...neat.

[ckosacranoid]

One unit of foot infantry. Any time, any place.

[Hellraiser]

Its cheating if do this with Homogenous Lances/Company, LOL.

Here in the year of our lord Civil War, 3062, I give the this company of battlemechs.

Command Lance
Templar-O
Gunslinger-2ERD
Thanatos-4T
Jagermech-7F

Attack Lance
Guillotine-8D
Argus-2D
Enforcer-6T
Hatchetman-6D

Raider Lance
Centurion-9D5
Hellspawn-7D
Stealth-2D2
Javelin-11D


Oh, and for transport needs,  a Trio of Aurora class Dropships.