Corona Battle Armor - Technical Readout 3075 page 123
The Corona is a Heavy Battle Armor design that maybe not quite evoking a love-hate relationship among players, does often seem to divide opinions. With Assault-level mobility, deceptively evil firepower, and armor that appears better suited to a Medium design, the Corona can be a real killer if used well and I personally rate it as one of my favorite Clan designs..
First appearing in Combat Equipment, within the universe the Corona was actually one of the earlier Clan designs to enter service post-Invasion, and only its late publication makes it appear to be younger than it actually is. Development began in just June 3050, when the Clans were still punching their way into the Inner Sphere, with production beginning in 3060, just four years after the Gnome and in the same year as the Sylph. As described in Combat Equipment, and in its later publication in Technical Readout 3075, the Corona is the result of an in-house study by Clan Star Adder to develop a new style of Battle Armor.
It's worthwhile considering just how progressive the Star Adders were in their thinking. Despite not being an Invasion Clan with the direct experience of the new styles of fighting that would entail, their Khan and other Warriors recognized that the times were changing, and that the centuries old traditions of Clan warfare weren't going to last. The Clans in general were still basking in the glow of their early victories against the Inner Sphere, having collectively suffered few critical losses by the time the Corona project was begun, making the Adders' perception even more remarkable given that it was years before any other Clan thought about an Elemental replacement.
Intended to meet the Adder’s need for Battle Armor capable of prolonged ranged engagements, the Clan's Warriors and Scientists came up with a concept that discarded much of the Elemental's long held paradigm. The changes weren't without cost though, most notably the increase in chassis size that makes the Corona incapable of Anti-'Mech attacks, together with the loss of jump capability and weapon modularity.
Also appearing in Combat Equipment were new ProtoMechs, a recently introduced unit type that the Corona could be considered as a direct counter, and as an alternative within the Star Adders' ranks. The ProtoMech was also under development during the 3050s and while not directly mentioned in the Corona's write up, within the universe it's perhaps possible that the Corona's extended gestation was due to the Star Adders making adjustments to the design based upon what they may of heard about the Smoke Jaguar's research. However, the Jaguars were being very close lipped, so it's perhaps more likely that the Adders just lucked out, even if from a game perspective the Corona was very likely to have been designed with ProtoMechs at least partially in mind.
jymset: The front cover of Combat Equipment not only shows an archetypal battle between a Corona and a Chrysaor, but it's also a personifcation of the rivalry between the Adders and the Blood Spirits, who were a major early adoptee of ProtoMechs in the early 3060s. The key feature of the Corona is its sole heavy armament, the incredibly impressive and equally incredibly heavy Medium Pulse Laser, which squats like a high-tech bazooka on the suit's right shoulder. Weighing in at no less than 800 kg, it means that the Corona devotes more than half its mass to killing its targets, leaving little remaining for other concerns. The laser is the heaviest weapon mounted on canon Battle Armor, and few other suits have spent so much mass to install just one weapon.
Despite the stunning imagery of the artwork - that shows a Corona proudly standing on a target that its laser has just turned into Swiss cheese - I've even found that some players view the design as under armed. The lack of a secondary 'Mech-scale weapon somehow short circuits their recognition of the threat imposed by the Medium Pulse Laser, particularly with the AP Gauss Rifle now available to set the standard, although a few pointed lessons on the receiving end of the Corona's firepower usually fixes that viewpoint. Quite simply, the combination of seven points of damage per hit, the -2 accuracy bonus and a twelve hex range is sheer murder, especially when compared to the other Battle Armor weapons available at the time.
In more recent years, while still obviously a powerful weapon, the Medium Pulse Laser's edge has indeed been eroded by the AP Gauss Rifle. Notably, the Ironhold (Fire) opted for four AP Gauss when it could have had the laser for the same total mass; such is the impact of the newer weapon. With only the right arm Anti-Personnel Weapon Mount as backup armament - typically loaded with a Mauser IIC by players using the actual stats of the mounted weapon - the standard Corona has perhaps lost some of its early impact, but it's a foolish player who discounts its effectiveness.
I must admit that my first glance at the Corona just took in the sub-par armor and I was not impressed, but then I looked again and then again. My verbal reaction at this point is unprintable and while I still wish that the design could receive a modern facelift to soften its jagged edges, within the first game it was quickly apparent that the Corona was a beast in combat, particularly against other Battle Armor.
Sadly for the Battle Armor fans, those early results just as quickly earmarked Corona units as key targets themselves and so their overall performance tended to follow peaks and troughs in my experience. When they're good, they're very, very good, but when they're bad, they're very, very bad. In the right terrain, or with the right support to distract the enemy, a well run Star of Coronas can easily turn a battle just by themselves, but when the fates are not kind or the opponent is just evil or paranoid, then you might as well have just fielded body bags.
Interestingly, I've been told that some players have just found the Corona to be too good, even leading to it being banned from campaigns. While my own groups never quite went that far, we did sometimes feel the need to compensate for what we considered an exploit that allowed all Heavy and Assault Battle Armor to get incredible Gunnery skills for a low total BV cost. The combination of super-Elite Gunnery and the Medium Pulse Laser can be stupidly overpowering, allowing Coronas to achieve ludicrous levels of accuracy against even the most swift and/or well concealed targets.
In purely Total War-based or very traditional Clan campaigns in particular, Coronas can again be what some might consider too effective, with Tactical Operations and relatively un-Clanlike units and tactics being needed to enable the introduction of some of the more effective counters. In Tournament-rules scenarios involving just 'Mechs, Battle Armor and optionally Aerospace Fighters - the traditional troop types for the majority of Clans - then well coordinated Coronas could indeed be overpowering.
As noted above, the Corona can be particularly lethal against other Battle Armor, something that can be a surprise to the inexperienced. The relatively low mobility and protection presents the image of an easy kill for other suits, such as the commonplace Elemental, while even the range advantage seems too small against Battle Armor armed with AP Gauss Rifles, SRMs and other nine hex range weapons. The Corona's big advantages in this area are their pulse accuracy bonus plus the seven-point damage that allows it to one- or two-hit many designs, which means a Point is more likely to get kills rather than just damaging multiple suits. So while the opponent may achieve hits on the Coronas, the latter are typically going to hit more often and will more quickly get killing shots rather than just wounding their foe. Most importantly for suits thinking about engaging the Corona, if you don't have at least seven points of armor, then you need to stay well away or you've effectively just committed suicide; so Light Battle Armor need not apply.
When fighting heavier opponents, like many suits the key to running Coronas well is getting them into position, and for that I'm glad that they're a Heavy Battle Armor design, even if they could have greatly improved stats by going up a weight class. As the Adders themselves found, being able to hitch a ride on a friendly Omni makes it much easier to drop them just where they're needed, whether it be backdooring an already engaged enemy or holding a vital location. I'd sometimes drive the 'Mech players on my teams to distraction with near constant requests and demands for a taxi, but the effort was almost always well worth it once those lasers started burning down the foe. That right there is likely to be the experience that has led some to ban or otherwise restrict the deployment of Coronas within their scenarios.
Without a readily available taxi service, life gets a lot more awkward for the Corona. Its lack of jump jets is crippling in many environments, whether due to its inability to traverse certain terrain or its slow pace and lack of Target Movement Modifier leaving it extremely vulnerable as it heads to the sounds of the guns. The Target Movement Modifier issue also comes up when its actually in combat, exacerbated even more by the relative lack of armor, a mere eight points, that means that it's both easier to hit than an Elemental and also easier to kill once hit. This issue is probably the biggest deal breaker for many players who might have otherwise been tempted by the Corona, with the knockout punch and glass jaw presenting a similar dilemma to that facing Suns players and the Grenadier Assault Battle Armor.
The Corona's extra ground Movement Point does give it above average mobility within buildings, thus making it a superb urban fighter and even more of a reason for Mechwarriors to consider cities to be wretched hives of scum and villainy. When not pounding on the prissy 'Mech jockeys and their treadhead sidekicks, infantrymen and Battle Armor troopers are still arguing as to who are the scum and who are the villains. Just like the aforementioned Grenadier, a Point of Coronas can be the worst - and perhaps the last - sight for a Mechwarrior as they walk through the wrong neighborhood. Many Corona players have their stories of downing such mighty prey as an Atlas or a Dire Wolf, although to be fair to the guys in the silly hats and stompy robots, that typically takes more than one turn.
While some might see urban combat as a little unClanlike, the ever pragmatic Star Adders apparently have no such qualms given the direction they've taken the Corona in the form of its sole variant. Dubbed the SRM Variant in recognition of its main weapon system, on the surface it does seem a strange about-face given that the original reasoning for the Corona was to overcome the endurance limitations of missiles as the main ranged armament for Battle Armor. Whatever their reasons for the change, the Corona (SRM) is one of those brutal little designs that somehow often gets overlooked by many players.
First seen within the universe in 3073 being used against Burrock troops disguised as Hell's Horses forces, and in Technical Readout 3075 as far as players are concerned, the SRM variant can be an even more dangerous close quarters combatant than the standard model. It loses some range and penetration, but in exchange it gains more firepower, including massively improved anti-infantry performance, plus more flexibility. The missiles can be used with standard warheads or Infernos, and the latter makes the Corona (SRM) an even more fearsome foe for other Battle Armor, while the additional weapons allow for multiple targets to be attacked effectively.
Dropping the Medium Pulse Laser, the variant adds no less than five SRM tubes mounted in a single launcher, although sadly these are fed by just three salvos. The latter can be uncomfortably low for large fights, and while the remaining armament is impressive, it doesn't match the capability of the laser. Fitted alongside the Anti-Personnel Weapon Mount is a Flamer, a longtime favorite for Clan armored infantryman, but it's the left arm weapon that's of the most interest in my opinion. The Heavy Recoilless Rifle can perhaps be considered a curiously old-fashioned choice for the high tech Clans, and compared to other possible choices it's not very efficient, but it is effective. Personally, in purely stat terms I would have preferred the Medium model, to allow more missiles to be loaded, but its inclusion is a refreshing change given how rarely the weapon appears.
The Corona (SRM) makes the comparison to the Grenadier even more striking, particularly the Hunter-Killer variant. While the Corona lacks the stealth capability of the Inner Sphere suit due to the cultural preferences of the Clan Warrior caste, it's a testament to the superiority of Clan technology that such similar performance has been achieved on a chassis three-quarters the size. Able to whomp a target with a hefty sixteen points of damage per suit including the anti-personnel weapon, if the dice gods are kind, that can mean an astounding eighty points of damage spread across thirty-eight hits - death by a thousand cuts, indeed.
Sadly, the Corona has yet to see any further upgrades to incorporate the new systems and weapons that have been developed in the quarter century since it was first fielded. I do wonder whether that at least in part is due to its origin with a Homeworld Clan, given that the game universe is mostly Inner Sphere centric. Although mostly found within the Adders' Touman, where they built up large numbers before allowing the design to slip beyond their control, the standard Corona is now considered a general Clan design, however I don't expect that will have any impact.
The Corona is not being built by any of the Clans currently left in the Inner Sphere, and is notably missing from their RATs in Field Manual 3085, despite being rated with a Clan general distribution. Thus there's little hope that the more varied experiences they encounter will lead to yet more models of the Corona, and the Homeworlds are something of an afterthought to the main story line, so I doubt we'll see anything from that direction either.
jymset: While RATs aren't completely reliable that way, there's a very good reason why there's not a single Corona on the FM85 tables. It's absolutely Dodo in the Inner Sphere, with nothing signficant seen of it, ever. It's effectively dead for the Inner Sphere-centric universe. The Corona doesn't suit every player's taste and playing style, and given that experienced opponents will both know how to counter it and often make it a priority target, it can sometimes be a frustrating suit to use even for those who favor it. Like with many designs that come with caveats, whether Battle Armor or other unit types, it's best used in moderation. If you're going to be playing a game that suits its strengths, then field it to your heart's content, but otherwise pick it as an occasional unit or only make it a fraction of your selection. Capable of awesome feats, but all too often so very vulnerable, the Corona truly is a star that burns brightly.
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