Welcome back to the Alpha Strike ‘Mech of the Week. This week, we will tackle one the ‘mech that first drew me in to BattleTech so long ago, the Warhammer. The Warhammer, to me, defines the Brawler role. Just enough speed to be strategically “mobile”, but not enough to provide its own defense. The Warhammer moves because the position it is heading to is advantageous, either in cover or range, but not because the speed makes it difficult to hit. Standing still, once it gets in to position, is often a useful tactic.
For weaponry, it carries a mix of long range and short range. Capable of joining a longer range firing group, as it gets closer it can do even more damage. This makes it suitable as a “line ‘mech”, where it can work well with others to dominate a position, or advance on a position.
Of course, as we get in to variants, some may diverge from this standard..
Succession Wars
The Warhammer does not have a primitive version, having evolved from the BattleAxe and Hammerhands. So we go straight in to the WHM-6R as the original Warhammer. For its time, the long range damage of 2 is pretty effective, and it’s slight increase (plus possible overheat) at medium and short also being an effective standard for a heavy ‘mech of the Succession Wars.
The one drawback is its armor of 5. Not terrible, but when you have more structure than armor, you must realize that it could be better. The WHM-6R has no special abilities and is found in almost every House, mercenary or even pirates, especially in the Succession Wars era. All together, it’s an effective but pretty bland Brawler that is often a strong member of Battle and Command Lances. As a fairly effective long range combatant for this era, it's also useful in Fire Lances.
The Kuritan 6K’s differences mean nothing in Alpha Strike, it’s an exact copy of the 6R’s Alpha Strike card.
The Capellan Warhammer 6L switches to some flamers. They are not enough to qualify for the Heat special ability, but instead the 6L ends up with a higher overheat value (2) and lower medium range damage (the 6R’s 3 drops to a 2 for the 6L). This results in one less PV for the 6L. This variant generally earns a reputation of just being an inferior 6R that only a Capellan would love.
The last Succession Wars variant is the WHM-6D. Remember that one weakness of the 6R, its armor? The 6D trades some extra weapons (losing the OV1) to carry more armor. Three more armor, for a total of 7. This will become a standard for later Warhammers, but it definitely stands out among Succession Wars Warhammers. It also happens to drop the explosive ammo, meaning it gains the ENE special ability. This makes the 6D significantly tougher, and you pay an extra 4 PV (36 total) for the toughness. The real drawback is its availability, only the Federated Suns has access to this variant. This remains an excellent variant even in to later eras.
Lost Star League VariantsLost with the fall of the Star League, were two “Royal” variants that were intended for the Star League’s Royal regiments, and a Kuritan variant that only saw service at fall of the Star League. These are generally extinct post Star League era, though the Taurian Concordant refits older 6Rs to 6Rbs post 3075 and some of those make their way to mercenaries, pirates and the rest of the Periphery.
The Warhammer 6Rb is the oldest of these. Improving on the 6R, it switched to double heat sinks, allowing the Warhammer to utilize all its weaponry without overheating. It drops the OV1, and increases its medium range damage to 4 and its short range to 5. It also manages to carry one more armor. This variant is noticeably more expensive at 38 PV. While still labeled as a Brawler, you’re paying 6 extra PV primarily for the higher medium and short range damage. If you’re going to sit at long range (Fire Lance), you’re still paying for that medium and short range damage. But perhaps as a “bodyguard” for the rest of the Fire Lance members it’s still worth it to you.
The Warhammer 7A is a more extensive upgrade. Even more armor, CASE special ability and increased medium and short range damage, 4 of each, while keeping the OV1. But it’s also 40 PV. It’s better at everything the Warhammer does, except long range damage. Keep in mind that one exception when deciding which Warhammer to choose from.
The Warhammer 6Rk is our first big break from the “standard” Warhammer. Not that this unit was only available to Kurita, and only in the late Star League era. Perhaps it survived into the First Succession War, but was long gone by the Late Succession Wars. Featuring an XL engine, it is fast enough to change its role from Brawler to Skirmisher. Its weaponry remains fairly typical for Warhammers, but that XL engine halves its structure value. The 6Rk does manage to carry more armor (7 Armor) to cover that delicate structure. For 37 PV, you’re getting a much more mobile unit. When moving, the increased difficulty to hit and improved armor is definitely worth the decreased structure. But standing still is not going to be as useful an option with this model, one of the reasons for the change in role.
Early Clan InvasionWith access to rediscovered Star League technology, the Warhammer received several new variants, the WHM-7M, WHM-7S, WHM-7K. These are relatively “safe” upgrades, leaving the base 6R mostly intact. Unfortunately, this means most still have the armor weakness of the 6R.. The Early Clan Invasion Warhammers also suffer from the PPC to ER PPC Alpha Strike conversion. The PPC is already long range in Alpha Strike, so the ER PPC's greater range means nothing. Ironically, the ER PPC is actually an improved at short range, since it drops the minimum range of the PPC... But the important note for the Early Clan Invasion Warhammers, and even later eras, is that the Warhammer rarely improves on the 2 long range damage of the Succession Wars models. This makes the Warhammer a less capable "primary fire" unit, and more a pure Brawler. If only it had more armor...
The 7M is available to (almost?) everybody. Marik gave these away as door prizes. Double heat sinks moved the OV1 to the base short and medium damage (leaving it with OV0 and 4s for S and M). It also got the AMS special ability. And there’s a minor PV cost to pay for those improvements.
Unfortunately, it did nothing for the 6R’s armor, nor the long range damage. So while it’s still a Brawler, the 7M is definitely starting to skew more towards short/medium range, and within Fire Lances is looking more like a bodyguard that pitches in, rather than a primary Fire Lance member.
The 7S comes from Steiner and is available to its friends in the Federated Suns as well (and their mercs). It manages to increase S and M damage (5 and 4), and keep the OV1. Yay, weapons! No special abilities, and we still have that lackluster armor. And we pay several PV points for those damage upgrades (4). As with the 7M, we’re skewing toward closer ranges.
The 7K took a couple more years to reach production, and it was worth it. A Draconis Combine exclusive variant, the 7K increases the damage by converting OV to S and M, but it also adds armor (7). It also adds the TAG special ability, because why not? You pay for that damage and armor (39 PV), but it’s definitely an improvement on the old 6R.
Project PhoenixWith the Civil War era, we hit another wave of Warhammer variants. Part of the Project Phoenix “movement”, we finally leave the Unseens behind. The Warhammer 8D, 4L, 9D and 9S show the popularity of the Warhammer among many different armies. And we finally get better armor as a standard for Warhammers in this era.
The 8D took many of the Clan Invasion variants and put them together as a “best case”. We have the 4s for S and M range damage, and OV1 to show as improvements. Same old speed and long range damage. But we also get the improved armor (7), CASE, and new to the Warhammer, a C3 slave. Of course, since we’ve improved the Warhammer significantly, we also have a significant cost increase, with a PV of 42. Compared to the WHM-6D, we have 1 more damage at S and M, and the C3 slave and CASE. Is that worth the 6 extra PV? If you have C3 in the lance, I think most definitely. If you don’t have C3, which may be a tough sell. But not enough that I would avoid the 8D. And since Starcorps is selling the 8D to practically everybody, you can have it any time you want it. For many factions, this may be their only Project Phoenix Warhammer available.
The Steiner Warhammer 9S uses their new light fusion engines. This keeps 4 of the 6 Structure of older Warhammers, and increases the armor to the new standard of 7. It also reaches the new standard for S and M damage (4), and keeps the OV1. It protects against ammo explosions with CASE. Though that is slightly less useful with less structure. Overall, this is a pretty standard improved Warhammer. Without the 8D’s C3, it keeps its cost down to 38 PV, and that alone might be reason to choose the 9S over the 8D. Note that, in addition to Steiner’s associated mercenaries, the Word of Blake and Circinus Federation also have access to the 9S..
Leave it to the Capellans to make a different Warhammer. First, though they did upgrade the S and M damage to 4, like many upgraded Warhammers, they had to have OV2. They love it hot. But that heat is also coming from its Stealth special ability. Along with CASE and ECM, this Warhammer is loaded with fun special abilities. And they got the armor right, with the now common 7 armor. But it had to pay to mount all those upgrades, and did so with an XL engine, halving its structure to 3. And it matches the 8D’s PV of 42. The 4L is a bit of a mismatch. The Stealth works great at long range, and does nothing at short. The 4L is merely OK at long range damage though, making me wonder if STL is really a good fit for it. But Stealth does help at medium range and it gets its full damage potential at medium range, so it’s not bad. Just makes you wondering if it could be done better..
The 9D, unlike the 8D, is the Davion only Warhammer. And they saved a rather different Warhammer for themselves. We’ve no longer got a Brawler, but a Sniper (and it could well have been a Skirmisher). We have the improved armor (7), and improved S and M range damage that has become the new standard for the Warhammer. It even gets the ENE special ability to sneak in there. Where this model stands out, is the increased movement (10”/6”j) and the improved long range damage (finally getting a 3). This is fire support for the “armored cavalry” of the AFFS. How did it get that speed and long range damage? Another XL engine to leave it with only 3 structure. Not quite as costly as the 4L or 8D, but in the same ballpark (40 PV). With the ability to choose a standard Brawler Warhammer (8D) or a mobile fire support (9D), Davion has some good Warhammer choices.
Jihad and BeyondThe Jihad brought another wave of new technology, and a new wave of Warhammers came with it. The 8M, 10T, 8K, 5L, 11T, 8D2 and the offbeat “Lich” and WHD-10CT show that the Warhammer remains popular throughout the Inner Sphere. By this era, Warhammers have really started to branch out, and we really don't have a standard to compare all these variants with. In particular, movement options and even having a mix of long and short range weaponry are now something that varies dramatically in different Warhammer variants. The good news? They've all got more armor than the 6R.
The Marik 8M moves to a Sniper. One look at the damage values show the improved long range damage of 3, with no increase of damage at short and medium range (also 3s). It does have an OV1 that it can add to short and medium range, but it’s not something to rely on. No change in speed, but it manages to have the improved armor (7), while keeping the full structure (6) and adding CASE. So it’s pretty tough for a Warhammer. That long range damage lets it fill out a number of spots as long range support, either in a full lance of long range (Fire Lance), or as part of a Command, Assault or Battle Lance.
The Taurian Concordant manages its own new variant in the Jihad, and it was worth the wait. We have another change in role, with the 10T becoming a Skirmisher. And yep, that means more movement. 10” and….14”j? That’s something you expect from a medium/light Striker! And if has improved armor (7). This thing will be a pain in your rear. But it’s only got 2s for S, M and L range damage. It does have OV1, in case you really need that extra damage this turn. And it needed an XL engine to reach that speed, with the resulting decrease in structure (3). The ENE isn’t of much use as protection with only 3 structure, but you can save on campaign costs. And it’s a relatively cheap 35 PV.
The 8K is one of my favorites, and unfortunately the MUL says only available to Kurita. This is a better 8D. The C3, improved armor, and tough structure (and CASE) are paired with an increase in long range damage (3). Your opponent will hate how often the 8K’s paired heavy ppcs are hitting him at long range. It does have a high cost to go with it, 42 PV, but that matches the 8D. Because of that long range damage, the 8K got tagged as a Sniper. But the 8K still works well in the standard Brawler role as well. It's tough and hits hard at any range.
With our Warhammers not diverging from the common ancestor, Capellans had to go and show they really are crazier than anybody else, and introduced the 5L. Drop the long range completely (to 0!), and this one waddles like a penguin (6” MV?). That’s a horrible combination. But what is this? 10”j? And 4 damage at S and M. Ok, we’re starting to have a plan here. We get up close, buzz around the opponent and make his life miserable. Yeah, we need a change of role, and we’ve got one. Skirmisher. The Capellans went halfway on improving the armor (6), but then managed to keep a standard engine and the full 6 structure, also adding CASE. But the real fun is the Heat special ability of 1/1/-. Not many units have HT beyond short range, and the 5L is the first Warhammer to get a HT ability at all. Did I mention this 5L is really annoying to fight against? The 40 PV reflects the high TMM with the 10”j movement and good medium range damage.
The Warhammer 8D2 is a minor variant of the 8D, dropping an SRM launcher for a thunderbolt-5 and boosting the C3 slave. The boosted c3 slave is pretty simple, it makes it harder to jam (immune to standard ECM). The swap of the SRM for a thunderbolt-5 has a very interesting effect on the damage values though. Suddenly we have the 3 for long range, and we drop to 3 for short range. This is the only (first?) Warhammer to have a damage reduction at short range. This could very well be a Sniper, rather than a Brawler (though it officially retains the Brawler role of the 8D). That long range of 3 and the c3 slave are a great combination for any c3 network. The 8D2 also gets IF1, but giving up on 3/4 damage in order to deal IF1 doesn't seem of much use to me. Keep the 8D2 at range, use the c3 to make this thing hit at will, and watch the enemy curse in rage.
The MUL does not have availability for the 8D2 yet, but the 8D was sold to everybody. And the 8D2 is a pretty simple refit. Access to boosted c3 networks is the major hinderance to who might be fielding the 8D2. If you've got no other boosted c3 variants available (and a boosted c3 master in particular), then the 8D2 isn't much good to you.
The Taurian Concordant came out with the WHM-11T. The weapons load was completely changed (from the old WHM-6* series the Taurians had been building), and yet the Alpha Strike conversion came out...almost exactly the same. The rather common 3/3/2, with OV1. It does have IF0*, but we don't really care. The armor of 6 is pretty normal, not good, but not the worse for a Warhammer.
But then it's weird. Only 3 structure behind that mediocre armor, and makes the CASE less than useful (you're going to die soon anyway if you didn't already). So why would you want this? Presumably because of the 8"/10"j. The 10"j gives it a +3 TMM when jumping, pretty sweet. You do have to pay that +2 jumping to-hit modifier on your own attacks though, or not use the jumping movement. That steep jumping modifier means you're likely going to want to use this in close, hopping around making yourself hard to pin down or hit. If you don't want to jump, this variant isn't for you.
It is only 34 PV. But if you're not going to jump, or you want it to contribute at long range, take an old fashioned WHM-6* variant. If you want something to be in a furball, take a look at the 11T.
But only if you've got a Taurian (or Canopian) force. Nobody else gets them.
Finally, we have the original “Lich” and it’s production variant, the WHD-10CT.
The Lich is a unique Solaris variant. It’s got a pretty boring speed of 8”, and mediocre damage at S and M (3s). No long range damage is reflective of its use in usually confined arenas. It’s armor is improved to 7, but it’s structure shows the effects of a light engine (4). It does have both CASE and ARM (armored components to ignore first critical effect), but with only 4 structure they aren’t as useful as they could be. The real oddball is the OV of 3. Wait for a good to-hit roll before unleashing that alpha strike though! With all the drawbacks of this model (relatively slow, low structure and no long range), the Lich is cheap at 34 PV. If you really wanted a Warhammer to get up close, this is a cheap option. I’m not so sure it fits as a good Brawler though, with no long range at all. Not by this time period at least.
he production WHD-10CT is pretty similar to its forebearer. It moves 1 from OV to S and M (always a good move), and it switches the rarely useful ARM special ability for a C3 slave. Which, if you are building a C3 lance, it always useful. If you’re not, then you know this isn’t likely to be an optimum choice. Unfortunately, the 10CT is no longer as cheap, costing 39 PV.
So there we have it. A bunch of good brawlers/snipers, followed by better brawlers, before descending into anarchy :). We also have the Clan Warhammers (the C and the IICs), which I have decided to save for a separate article.
Good luck, and don’t get caught in the plasma!
