ParashBackgroundAfter moving into the Inner Sphere to escape the growing bloodshed in the Homeworld’s as well as the deteriorating resource situation Clan Hell’s Horses found themselves in a bit of a fix. Taking a small number of worlds and then getting caught up in the Jihad the Horses Tourman was battered and in poor shape by 3085. They had suffered extensive losses of all Mech’s and their Light Mech numbers were dangerously low so a replacement and new machine was needed to carry out scouting roles instead of relying on dwindling numbers of older machines.
It also seemingly became a secret that happily hid in plain sight. The resulting design produced on New Oslo is a standard Mech but one that breaks a few Clan rules. At 35 tonnes it’s a big light Mech but unlike older Omni’s or standard designs the Parash sets its sights firmly on its goal of being a scout and stays there instead of trying to be a jack of all trades. Apparently inspirited by designs like the SLDF’s Hussar and House Liao’s Raven, the Parash mounts a single weapon and is loaded to the gills with EW equipment.
Design.Surprisingly the designers only used an XL engine to help save weight, the 35 tonne machine is built on a standard skeleton and has standard armour protecting it, this makes it fairly cheap to produce and does not consume too many resources. The 245 rated XL engine can propel the Mech along at a respectable 112kph whilst a full array of standard jump jets allows it to vault 210 meters (7/11/7 in game terms). This gives it the speed and manoeuvrability to carry out its role of scouting out hostile forces or screening slower units with its ECM.
Shrouded in 7 tonnes of standard plate armour the design of the Parash at first glance and from a distance makes it look very very VERY much like a Proto-Mech and indeed it was mistaken for one when images were first seen of it. The design is very humanoid with its armour worked into very organic looking shapes and the Mech’s build is described as small and quite squat which lends credence to its misidentification as a Proto-Mech when first seen. The armour layout is effective and whilst not meant to take a heavy hit it can withstand enough to disengage with its speed and jumping ability.
The chest can take a Heavy Large Laser hit before going internal whilst the side torso’s can take an AC-10 round, the legs are well protected, capable of taking a Heavy large laser hit whilst the arms can take an AC-10 and then a single SRM before being stripped.
Variants
Parash I – The standard design and scout of the Hells Horses, the Parash I is armed with a Large Pulse Laser in its right arm, the rifle like assembly can be jettisoned if needs be but it REALLY looks like a Proto-Mech’s main gun for reasons you will see in the future. The large pulse is a fearsome weapon against the usual hunters of scouts, other light Mech’s and fast vehicles, its range and punch allows it to reach out and touch someone with lethal accuracy at long range. Everything else is devoted to the EW suite and its an extensive one. The Clans have clearly learned its better to have all your EW assets on a single machine rather than spreading them out across a Star. An Active Probe, ECM and TAG take what little space is left and give the Parash it’s main ‘weapon’ allowing it to spot for other Hells Horses units or call in artillery which the Horses employ without shame (much to everyone else’s concern).
Parash II – Seemingly a technology demonstrator and tester the Parash II swaps out the EW systems and weapons of the I with new or at the time experimental equipment. The Large Pulse Laser is replaced with an ER Large Pulse Laser for a longer ranged yet slightly less accurate punch and for short ranges an Improved Heavy Medium Laser rounds out the punch. The EW system is replaced with a copy (or salvaged) Watchdog CEWS and it is joined by a light TAG unit to round out the EW equipment, it’s unknown if the Horses are either producing the Watchdog or testing salvaged units on their machines prior to widespread production.
Parash 3 – The secret hiding in plain sight, the Parash 3 seems to be another tech demonstrator and possibly the whole point of the Mech from its inception. As mentioned the Parash when first seen was initially mistaken for a Proto-Mech due to its very humanoid looks and its small size, more akin to a scaled up Proto by all accounts. In 3086 a Parash was spotted but it seemed to be a new machine, it featured a new head and instead of the almost football player like helm of the standard design it had an alien looking faceplate and rather narrow head.
The machine moved with extreme grace and fluidity, not seen outside of Proto-Mech’s yet when it was hit hard, the machine staggered, holding the impact area as if hurt. It then dropped its weapon and disengaged at full speed.
This un-Clan like behaviour was somewhat confusing but not really questioned until the Republic ran into the terrifying ‘Skinwalker’ Ryoken and the equally horrific evidence that the Clans had developed a system similar to the Word of Blake’s Interface armour for its pilots. This helped explain how fluid the machine moved and how it had freed up the tonnage for its EW equipment.
Like the Parash I the 3 is armed with a single Large pulse laser and is loaded to the gills with EW equipment all be it of an advanced nature. An Angel ECM and Bloodhound Active Probe form the centrepiece of the Parash 3’s EW equipment and a standard TAG rides along in the left arm. To fit this the removal of the Mech’s 3 tonne gyro and the replacement of it with an Interface armoured pilot in the chest makes sense in light of the Skinwalker’s appearance. With the appearance of both the Parash 3 and Skinwalker it is worrying to say the least to see that the Clans have somehow developed or adopted the Interface armour system and are starting to field it. The success of these Mech’s will probably tell if the deployment of Interface Armour controlled machines remains limited or grows more widespread. It’s also amazing that the Clans were able to develop this system seemingly in secret and without anyone finding out about it until they met it in combat.
ThoughtsThe Parash is a capable scout by any standards and the simple but effective punch of its pulse laser makes it a threat to hostile machines trying to intercept it whilst its EW systems combine to make a potent mix that can do what’s needed without wasting space on a NARC system either. The II is a case of ‘oh that’s slightly different’ but its very much more of the same just with a short ranged TAG and a funky new gun and a bit more punch at short ranges but it’s the 3 where the design comes to life.
With all the advantages the Interface armour provides combined with the usual Clan Pilot advantages it makes it even more accurate as well as able to stay on its feet. We don’t know if the Clans system is like the Domini’s Buffered VDNI system but we can also assume they are working on developing it. Its enhanced ECM and probe allow it to cut through hostile jamming or block out other probes.
I’d still say that the big thing about the Parash 3 is that it’s a story maker, it along with the Skinwalker Ryoken clearly indicate that Interface armour has spread between two and possibly three Clans and you can bet your bottom dollar that the Falcons will adopt it in a heartbeat once they learn about it. This helps make the Clans seem like that strange alien culture again, yet this time even more horrific, especially if Interface Armour is combined with Elestar’s. It also does a lovely bit of foreshadowing, if the system is accepted by the Clans then it will be spread to new designs (assuming that it can’t be retrofitted into older machines without seriously reworking them so much as to be brand new, thus making new machines fitted with it makes more sense that way) and it could help bring back the tech advantage the Clans have generally lost grounds on since the widespread use of Clan Tech in House Mech’s.
As always thoughts are most welcome :)
