The original plan for this week was the Scorpion. I'll be up front and say this is a hasty backup plan. The newer versions of that vehicle rely on the minesweeping LRM as their reason to exist, and I need mor etime to experiment with that stuff before I can give a real analysis. So... we'll go here for now as our throwback vehicle, and back to work on requests over the next couple of weeks. Cool? (Keep them coming, btw!)
A fast hovercraft with stereo SRM-6 racks isn't anything particularly unusual in Battletech's annals. The Harasser and Pegasus have been doing this for a very long time after all, while the recent JES carrier is... interesting... so the Plainsman that we cover today isn't anything wildly unusual. It's also not anything to be scoffed at- there's a reason this is a common concept, after all. So what stands out about the Plainsman? Not a whole lot, really- and that's its own intriguing quality. Let's take a closer look.
One thing that stands out here on the Plainsman is money. No expense was spared to make sure the tank is as cheap as possible. (Eh? EH? See what I did there? Wokka wokka!) The vehicle is a bargain for what it does, but manages to be a serious threat regardless. This makes it attractive to mercenary units, who always appreciate a bargain- and being able to strike fast and hard, which the Plainsman specializes in. Wolfs Dragoons are responsible for this machine's design as part of their 4th SW rebuilding program, and it's not hard to see why they were happy with the results.
At 35 tons, the Plainsman is a decent-sized chunk of hovercraft, the same size as its Pegasus cousin and ten tons larger than the Harasser. (I'll be referencing both of those vehicles for comparison often, so if you need a better look at them check TRO:3039, while the Plainsman is found in '58.) Slow hovercraft are a waste of time, a lesson JES would learn many years later, so if you're going to compete, be able to pick up those skirts and MOVE. The Plainsman utilizes a 140-rated ICE engine to do just that, screaming across the field at a very respectable 9/14 speed. While the smaller Harasser edges it at 10/15, it does beat out the Pegasus' 8/12 curve- not by much, but sometimes that slight advantage is what it takes to win the fight. While a fusion engine would obviously make this engine smaller, with this being a cheap tank the ICE engine fits nicely here.
If the Plainsman has a flaw, it's armor- but it's not alone in that regard. It's not exactly fragile by quick-strike hover standards, to be fair- it's far tougher than the notoriously fragile Harasser, after all, but the Pegasus' loss of speed is made up for with far better protection. On the Plainsman, we find five tons of plating spread fairly evenly, giving us eighteen points on the front and turret, sixteen on the sides, and a pretty respectable twelve points on the rear- enough to take a few solid hits before forcing the vehicle to withdraw- and really, with speed like this, it won't take many of those hits anyway if you use it right.
Where the three hovercraft meet is in the turret- all three have the same main weaponry in their flat, wide turrets. This consists of two SRM-6 racks, in the Plainsman's case made by Harvester. Two tons of ammunition feed the launchers, giving it plenty of battlefield endurance. Where the Pegasus adds a fore-mounted laser, and the Harasser adds the crew's fervent prayers, the Plainsman adds a handy Harvester SRM-2 as well. One ton of ammo gives this launcher plenty of endurance as well. This also means the Plainsman has a neat skill- the ability to fire the six-racks with standard rounds, while the twin rack launches inferno or flechette ammunition for other roles. It doesn't look like much at a glance, but that twin rack really adds to this machine in ways it wouldn't on most vehicles. If all are using standard ammunition, fourteen missiles per turn mean a lot of chances to find weakened areas on a target, tank treads, and the like. A quick-striking Plainsman is a dire threat to enemy armor, and can make for a nightmare in rear areas against a foes' supply lines.
An upgraded model appeared in '58 Upgrades, a simple swap of the SRM-6 systems for Streak SRM-4s. Since an SRM-6 hits on average with four missiles, the change really is nearly cosmetic- better ammo efficiency balanced by the loss of alternate ammo types. It's quite useable, of course, so if you like the original, give it a shot. Not much really to say here about it that wasn't already said about the original, really.
A scout model replaces the fore-mounted SRM-2 and its ammo with a Beagle probe, making for a fast, heavily armed scout tank. The spare half-ton remaining went into extra armor split across the vehicle, but again this isn't really a huge change to the original- probably more handy for many situations, but you get the basic idea.
Now, '85 gave us a version that makes some changes, to say the least. Intended for amphibious warfare and patrolling high-tide regions (because the Battletech universe apparently considers 'boats' to be lostech), this version keeps the same movement profile, but switches to a fuel cell engine. The weight saved goes into a floatation hull and environmental sealing (one assumes this means hull plating and barf buckets), making for a hovercraft that can take a beating from King Neptune in case you... need... that... Look I really don't know what this is intended to do. It isn't useless, but I can't fathom why I'd get these as opposed to an actual, you know, boat, or an aircraft. Replacing the SRM-2 with a torpedo system reinforces the "I'm on a boat!" mentality of this oddball.
Using a Plainsman is simple- keep moving, throw SRMs at anything that moves, and be ready to run when things get heavy. It's not a brawler- it's a vulture, great for zipping in at targets of opportunity like transport vehicles and wounded Battlemechs, but not really able to get in a tussle with the frontline units. By the same measure, if you fight Plainsmen, expect them to be a pain to hit- in the later eras pulse lasers are great for telling them where to stuff it, but in '39 you may simply have to get lucky shots- or just throw enough fire at them that something is BOUND to get through.
Thanks for joining me here for this! Next week I'm off (I'm out of town at a wedding), so I'll be back in two weeks with a 3145 unit by request!
