I respectfully disagree with those definitions.
A Leader is a person who inspires their people or who sets the tone and gets people to do what they would not normally do through inspiration, respect, and/or fortitude.
A Commander is merely anyone who has the authority to make someone do something, or fear legal retribution if they do not.
Leader or Commander, both can be empty titles, Insaniac. We're talking
function here.
FUNCTIONALLY a Commander's weapon are his troops, not his personal gear. Anastasius Focht was a
Commander in function, he didn't strap an assault 'mech to his ass and run off to shoot at bad guys while distractedly barking orders he couldn't follow up on because the Targeting Reticle is full of bogies.
(this being how Victor "commands"-from a position where he doesn't know what's going on beyond direct line of sight. Lucky for the dwarf, most of his opponents also think this is a good way to command...and he has a mile of plot-armor protection and such to bend the reality so he can succeed.)
That +1 Initiative bonus will work wonders for that company of Urbanmechs operating in the open field. I'm sure the extra maneuvering advantage will be well utilized.
How about fielding a Mobile HQ and three Jeeps in a 500 BV fight? The initiative advantage should help the Jeeps survive on the field, more than another 300BV of actual fighting equipment, right?
As pointed out, the Mobile HQ is a force multiplier, applicable and highly valuable in many combat situations, but isn't necessarily worth its BV in all cases. The OP's question does not warrant a straight "yes" or "no" answer.
is 300 BV the right value? well the books say so, but it's highly situational-initiative bonus is more of a multiplier, rather than additive function. in a sense it's a bit like that C3 network (or C3i). It's worth zip if all you have are Urbies and Jeeps up against clantech forces or Manei Domini.
that's kinda true of ANY multiplier though. the initiative bonus can be absolutely worthless-in the wrong hands. Even with superior firepower, even with superior firepower ALSO augmented by a C3 network.
but we've had debates over asymmetrical forces and 'initiative banking' behaviours, and there's a reason for that that was clearly illustrated by the (now abandoned) efforts to impose the Force Size Multiplier (FSM) to BV-2. (When people will move a lone infantryman and save their best units for their last move in the initiative/move phase, that should suggest Initiative has a definite value in shaping the field!)
so maybe the question is not "Is it worth using?" but "Is it properly valued?"
is 300 BV enough? is it too much? that's a lot dependent on the rest of the force composition. a lance of Urbies supported by jeeps? maybe not so much. But, with relatively well-built forces of reasonable size?
maybe it's undervalued. Maybe 300 bv is too low, and what was published as an additive value should be a multiplier instead? you can do edge-cases either way.
for example, is a CP worth it if all you have are securitymechs and pitchfork infantry up against a bunch of mercs flush with clantech? probably not. at the same token, though, how overpowering would it be to have those clantech plus C3 plus a command post up against disorganized pirates in 20 ton bugmechs?
When both forces are roughly in parity, however, the initiative bonus can be a significant player. Likewise for a C3 network.
It almost should be re-evaluated as a multiplier for setting BV in a scenario. A 3025 balanced company with a CP versus a 3025 balanced company *(or even slightly heavier) has a pretty decent chance of winning the engagement if both players are of roughly equal skill. Better than 50% from start to finish.
it's only when you get into the really gross imbalances that either piece of equipment (C3, or CP) becomes either useless or overpowered.
