Infiltrator Mk I Battle Armor - Technical Readout 3058U page 15
The Infiltrator Mk I is a work of art. Unfortunately, it's one of those works of art that leaves professional critics waxing poetic while the general public say something along the lines of "What the... ?" It's so ugly that the 3051 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary even had the entry "Ugly: Adjective. 1. See Infiltrator Mk I", and the legend of its unattractiveness echoes down the years, earning an in-universe comparison with that modern eyesore, the Ravager Assault Battle Armor. The bad news is that unlike some other war machines in military history where the eye-watering appearance is accompanied by superb combat performance - I'm looking at you Mr. A-10 and Mr. Apache - the Infiltrator Mk I isn't exactly renowned for its stellar battlefield prowess.
Tested in combat as early as June 3050, the Infiltrator Mk I was the first Battle Armor design developed by a Successor State according to the Master Unit List, and together with the Sloth it was the joint fourth Inner Sphere design to be published, after the Inner Sphere Standard and the first two Gray Death designs. Although we didn't know it at the time, since the current classes of Battle Armor had yet to be defined, the Infiltrator Mk I was also the first Light suit produced by the Inner Sphere, with the Gray Death Scout Suit being the first published. From the Infiltrator Mk I's initial appearance in the 1st Somerset Strikers sourcebook - where it was just called the Infiltrator Battle Armor - it was noted that the Federated Commonwealth had possessed much of the technology required to build the design for some time, except that it had never occurred to anybody to do so before encountering with Elemental. The sourcebook also stated that the Infiltrator Mk I was based in part upon Clan technology captured by the Strikers themselves early on in the invasion, with the Sloth entry making a similar claim. The developmental history of the Infiltrator Mk I remains consistent throughout later books up to the Technical Readout 3058U, although the Striker's involvement in the capture of the Elementals is only noted in the Sloth entry.
The use of Clan technology in the development of both designs does require that the Elementals were captured much earlier than stated in the 1st Somerset Strikers show, which placed the event on Twycross just a day or two after the Jade Falcons had finished their conquest of the world, with the first prototypes of the Infiltrator Mk I and Sloth arriving just prior to the Falcon's invasion of Waldorff V. According to the Clan Jade Falcon sourcebook, Twycross fell in June 3050 - specifically 23rd June according to Era Report 3052 - and Waldorff V was also conquered in the same month, so there simply wasn't enough time to get the Elementals back to a lab and for enough research to then be done to effect the development of the two Battle Armor designs. Technical Readout 3058U sidesteps the issue by not detailing the circumstances of the capture, although the Infiltrator Mk I entry does acknowledge its first combat deployment was on Waldorff V, confirming that event as still canon. Since the Somerset Strikers show is now recognized as a dramatized and not entirely factual in-universe entertainment broadcast, the Twycross origin can safely ignored without contradicting the "real" in-universe history.
Unless we accept that the Elementals were indeed captured much earlier and thus on a different planet, and that the show's depiction is entirely artistic license, the easiest way out of the dilemma is to interpret the reliance on Clan technology in the Infiltrator MK I's development as referring to the full-scale production model, while the initial prototypes were entirely Spheroid in origin. This would be akin to how the Houses were eventually capable of building Clantech weapons and other equipment but only in very small numbers and at a prohibitively high cost, so the concept wouldn't be entirely without precedent. A purely Inner Sphere origin for the meat of the design could also explain why neither the Infiltrator Mk I nor the Sloth have the wearer's legs extend into the suit's legs, contrary to the example of the Elemental, giving them both the appearance of miniature 'Mechs rather than powered armor.
However it came about, the Infiltrator Mk I has changed as the game has evolved, although the design has not endured anywhere near as much turmoil as the IS Standard. Initially described as weighing one ton, which would place it in the Medium Battle Armor category, the suit had half the armor of an Elemental, a grenade launcher that had only four shots, and was unable to make Anti-'Mech attacks or use Mechanized Battle Armor tactics; a less than amazing performance altogether, but perhaps not unexpected for the Inner Sphere's first attempt at Battle Armor. On the positive side it did have incredibly stealthy armor - the first Battle Armor to possess this trait - that meant that it was immune to detection by Active Probes when hidden, and more importantly inflicted a whopping +3 hit penalty at medium range, doubling to +6 at long, which meant that even with its slow speed and lack of jump capability the Infiltrator Mk I was a tough target to hit outside of short range. Temporarily designated the Infiltrator Stealth Armor in the BattleTech Master Rules, it was finally called the Infiltrator Mk I in Lostech, but the design's capabilities had remained unaltered up until this point, although the release of the Battle Armor construction rules in the Classic BattleTech Companion indicated that changes were a-coming. Technical Readout 3058U brought both good news and bad news: now classified as Light Battle Armor, the suit's grenade launcher now has unlimited shots on the BattleTech scale, but the armor is only a third as stealthy, while the ability to hide from Active Probes was lost thanks to Total War. The revised version of the Readout also adds Mechanized Battle Armor ability due to recent changes to Total War that grant that capability to any suit up to the Heavy class that have at least one Basic Manipulator.
From the beginning it was obvious that the Infiltrator Mk I was not a frontline combat design. Its combination of stealth, extra sensors, weak armor and pitiful weaponry better suited it to scout duties, although its slow speed and lack of jump capability limit its performance in that role as well. Nicknamed the "Waddle" by its frustrated operators due to its ungainly gait, the Infiltrator Mk I unfortunately found itself struggling as inexperienced commanders tried to use it for missions that ill-suited its capabilities, a situation that continued even after the IS Standard became available. In later years, the Infiltrator Mk I would continue service in units unable to procure the much improved Infiltrator Mk II, in particular operating with the various covert and special operations units within the LAAF and AFFS, where its ability to sneak up on the enemy and quietly observe them was much more important than simple combat performance. Unlike the Suns, who switched production to the Infiltrator Mk II, the Lyrans never continued development of stealthy Battle Armor and so they have no replacement, putting them at a severe disadvantage in Battle Armor special operations when compared to every other House, including the Republic. The LAAF did eventually acquire the Gray Death Scout Suit despite its lack of stealth, presumably using it for scout duties in line units while the Infiltrator Mk I continues its covert operations roles, but it still leaves them with a shortcoming in their forces. Somewhat amusingly, by the time of the Dark Age the Waddle had also shuffled into Republic service, while continuing to operate with the Suns and Lyran armed forces. Anybody who ever says the Davions and Steiners didn't make the Republic pay for the worlds they took obviously didn't take into account the RAF having to use the Infiltrator Mk I.
The suit is a simple unit to use in the game, just get it to some cover where it can observe enemy movement and then call in the heavy fire support. The grenade launcher doesn't give the Infiltrator Mk I much ability to fight back if enemy Battle Armor, 'Mechs or tanks come looking to mark its dance card, but it is perhaps enough to give some conventional infantry types food for thought, however some of the more capable infantry introduced in Technical Readout 3085 have little to fear from the Waddle unless they are foolish enough to get too close. Attempts to use the Infiltrator Mk I offensively or without significant friendlies to provide support are just going to result in frustration and body bags. Personally, when spotting for fire support, I'd rather take a pair of Tornado PA(L) squads than a single Infiltrator Mk I squad; they're just as stealthy, have the same total BV cost, and while they individually might die a little quicker, having two means that I can keep more terrain under observation or have one hidden in reserve (plus they look better).
A single variant of the Infiltrator Mk I has been developed by special operations groups belonging to both former Federated Commonwealth partners that downgrades the all but pointless armament to add additional sensors. This variant appears to be more like a field refit rather than factory-built model, given the modest nature of the changes that do nothing to address the design's major flaws. Swapping the fixed grenade launcher for an Anti-Personnel Weapon Mount freed up the mass to add the extra equipment. The new improved sensors act as a shorter ranged Active Probe, while the remote sensor dispenser provides some intriguing possibilities for the sneakier-minded player when using some of the advanced rules and equipment from Tactical Operations. By laying down remote sensors around the battlefield, any friendly unit within 67-hexes that is equipped with an Active Probe, C3 Master Computer, Improved C3 Computer, Command Console Cockpit or Communications Equipment, plus certain specialist infantry, can monitor the sensor output and use it to spot for artillery or indirect LRM fire. In addition, when using double-blind rules, such a sensor network can provide an invaluable advantage, allowing you to more easily track the enemy, and even if they eventually destroy the sensors you will at least have a datum point for the location of the attacking unit. Although no other Infiltrator Mk I variant is known to exist, I have to wonder about the inspiration for the visual appearance of the Ravager Assault Battle Armor. As jymset pointed out to me, the similarity of aesthetic design between the two radically different suits is striking.
Despite all the doom and gloom on the BattleTech battlefield, the Infiltrator Mk I is actually usable within the RPG. Sure, it's not as good as other suits, but it's an acceptable option at the more individual scale found during role-playing sessions, that also better match its covert operations role. The Special Ops variant of the Infiltrator Mk I shines particularly well here with its extra sensor equipment and ability to mount a variety of small arms, which can make it a fearsome sniper or fire support for a spec ops team. I would still rather take a suit with armored gloves, but I wouldn't be averse to using the Infiltrator Mk I in this case.
Unfortunately there's not much that can be said to make the Infiltrator Mk I any better than what it actually is. As Technical Readout 3058U says, it was developed before its time, pressed into service out of desperation but then left to stagnate while the Battle Armor world moved on to bigger and better designs. Even its one and only variant simply improves its capabilities within its limits, without doing anything to expand those limits. The Infiltrator Mk I isn't alone in that regard, the general theme of Battle Armor design for both the Clans and Inner Sphere tends to be to create a new and superior suit rather than just fix what you already have, unlike 'Mechs, vehicles and fighters that can all show examples of progressive enhancements to an individual design. Yes, the Infiltrator Mk II is described as being the continued refinement of the original, but when comparing the two side by side there's little to show that from the stats, while their appearances are drastically different. So the Infiltrator Mk I remains what it is and all that it will ever be: it's the prototype that was rushed to the battlefront, used and sometimes abused by its operators, and the ugly duckling that never gets to be a swan.
Next up:
- GD Scout
- GD Standard
- Raiden
- Kage
- Kanazuchi
- Gnome