Vehicle of the Week: Chevalier Light Tank(The original article is no longer available.)Originally built for the Star League by Millennium Industries in sub-Saharan Africa on Terra, the Chevalier (meaning "knight" or "horseman" in French, depending on context) is a light tank used both for scouting and light combat duties and was originally introduced in Explorer Corps, but later compiled into TRO3060. These handy little tanks eventually declined almost to extinction among the Successor States (which implies there's a Succession Wars variant that lacks the Star League technologies). ComStar and the Word of Blake, through a combination of Millennium production runs and legacy hardware, maintain the largest stock of Chevaliers, although it's implied that Millennium may have made some sales to the Federated Commonwealth and the Draconis Combine. Unlike the Odin I covered earlier, the Chevalier isn't actually lying through its teeth when it calls itself a tank. Built off of a 35 ton wheeled chassis, the Chevalier has room to carry what it needs to do the job, although different variants will naturally do different things. It also uses that 1.5 ton weight savings effectively, although some people are still going to prefer tracks due to the movement restrictions. It's noted that these tanks aren't popular with their crews due to being cramped, although it seems to be a bit better than the Schreck or Rhino were.
The baseline Chevalier is an excellent, balanced little tank. In his original article covering the Chevalier, GWA took a bit of exception with the use of an ERLL, but it's a half-ton lighter in the turret and lacks the PPC's minimum range, so it's a reasonable choice, especially if you're trying to differentiate the tank from the slightly larger Myrmidon. To back that laser up, a pair of Streak SRM 2s (the only Streak launcher available in the Star League, and for a time to the Successor States) can be found on the front of the tank, a good mix of reliability, firepower, and ammo use. The armor spread is 26/20/16/22, which does leave the tail vulnerable to a 20 point hit, and I second GWA's recommendation to reallocate it, but overall, the armor is of considerable use.
(Historical digression: Under at least one version of the rules (long before my time), those Streak launchers could carry Infernos, which must have made the Chevalier into an extremely annoying little tank under the right circumstances, not to mention absolutely murderous against vehicles. Remember, under the BMR, any vehicle hit with so much as one Inferno round got to roll 2d6; on a roll of 8 or less, it was dead right there, and they spiked heat further, too.)
The first variant mentioned in TRO3060 is the speedier version, which is subject to errata per communications with Jymset during the preparation of this article. As was pointed out during the discussion about the Chevalier in response to GWA's article, the ERLL
should be there, but the errata slipped through the cracks with everything else going on in the preparation of RS3060U. However, the Streak SRM 2 is forward-mounted, not in the turret (the HMV file is incorrect on that as well). With an armor spread of 18/14/10/16, the armor is thinner than I'd like, but this is definitely more of a scout than the original's secondary role of skirmisher, so it may be acceptable for some people. Personally, I'll stick with the baseline variant, but with the ERLL back in its rightful place in the turret, this model is much less of a red-headed stepchild.
The other one is used by the Explorer Corps, removing two and a half tons of armor for a Beagle Active Probe (for fluff purposes and long-range detection) and a forward-mounted machine gun. As a pure battlefield unit, this is one I'd give a pass, but as GWA pointed out in his own article, the Explorer Corps variant isn't a main combatant. It's intended to support the Explorer Corps in their operations retracing Kerensky's steps, not the battlefield scouting and skirmishing duties the primary variant handles. In that environment, enhanced detection and sensors along with a machine gun to deal with the sort of irregular militia that might show up on marginal colonies make sense, even if they come with too high a price for some people's taste on the battlefield. (If you're looking for a more combat-oriented version, I'd be inclined to strip the Streaks for four machine guns and a Beagle probe.)
The final variant is from RS3060U, apparently a Word of Blake special. First, the armor is removed entirely in favor of HFF, freeing up a ton (I'll get to that) even as the armor is thickened out to 26/20/20/23. The other major change is the removal of the Streaks for an MML 5, fed from two tons of ammo (which is where that extra ton went - an MML 5 uses the same tonnage as two Streak 2s). All in all, this is an excellent example of a mild upgrade, leveraging improved technology for a nice, mild performance increase without doing anything extreme. Better yet, skilled technicians can do the work in a transport bay without much trouble. The fluff indicates the ComGuards are uncertain whether this variant is a refit or a manufacturer option.
Two relatively simple variants suggest themselves to me. The first is to modify the "speed" variant again, pulling the Streaks entirely in favor of a Beagle Active Probe and piling a ton of armor back on to push it back toward the original's value. Since this is intended more as a reconnaissance than a combat unit, the reduced firepower shouldn't be an issue in light of the improved ability to detect targets at range (under TacOps detection rules), while the armor makes it harder for some enterprising fellow to blind you by punching out your scouting assets The other is a pure Succession Wars model, downgrading to an LL while replacing the Streaks with twin SRM 4s fed by two tons of ammo. That isn't to maintain the somewhat prodigious ammo load from the Streaks, though. Oh no. It's for versatility, especially for loading Inferno rounds.
Overall, these tanks are quick, decently tough, have a reasonable armament, and are otherwise a nice, flexible wheeled tank option. Some might prefer their tanks a bit faster, others might want some special options, but the Chevalier is a solid piece of hardware for use as a skirmisher or heavy scout. Given their place in the Word of Blake's forces, I expect that the Chevalier and the Myrmidon have squared off a fair number of times in the Chaos March. To stop them, rough terrain, woods, or simply critting it a few times to slow it down (and therefore turn it into an easier target) are all valid options. Chevaliers need to operate with friends against serious opponents, although they can make a good show of themselves against light or medium 'Mechs. In the sort of environment the ComGuards were originally founded in (you know, the end of the Succession Wars, as opposed to the anti-Clan/anti-WoB role they've mainly operated in), I think the Chevalier would have made more of an impact than it probably has overall. That said, I expect they turned in a solid, reliable performance on Turkayyid as part of the heavy element of ComStar's reconnaissance units or as skirmishers.
But enough about what I think. What do you guys think?
References: The
Master Unit List is my usual first recommendation. CamoSpecs has a single example in the colors of the
2nd Night Stalkers, although the Chevalier in question is probably deceased by the end of the Jihad.
