Dating back to the early years of the Star League, the Balor heavy attack bird has quite the story to tell.
Balor SL-7K
Vessel Name/Class: Balor SL-7K
Technology Base: Inner Sphere - TW - 2580/3051
Vessel Classification: Aerospace Fighter
Vessel Hull: Starrunner IX
Mission Profile: Multirole
Mass: 85 Tons
Engine: 340XL Pitban MaxiFusion
Movement:
Safe Thrust: 6
Maximum Thrust: 9
Armour Type: New Samarkand Royal Ferro-Fibrous
Armament:
5 Lord's Light PPCs
Manufacturer: Wakazashi Enterprises
Location: Dover
Communications System: Sony MST-15
Targetting and Tracking System: Radcom TXX
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Overview:
The more things change the more they stay the same. This is probably the last thing
that anybody involved in the military sector could be expected to hear; the last two
decades have seemingly turned everything familiar into an unfamiliar nightmare.
Everything began to unravel with the arrival of Kerensky's belligerent descendants
and their advanced engines of war. Even after the Inner Sphere gained a hard-won
respite from the clans, peace remained elusive. Operation Guerrero and the collapse
of order in the Sarna March churned the political climate and set the stage for the
brutal civil war between certain members of the Steiner-Davion dynasty. Even with the
rebirth of the Star League failed to prevent a return to mankind's baser pastimes.
In light of this it should surprise no one to witness the return of the Balor
assault craft. Where there is war there is the Balor, it seems.
A product of the Reunification war, the SL-7K was the result of General Dangmar
Lee's order for better aerial support. The Taurians had consistently inflicted grievous
damage to SLDF units during initial suborbital deployments. In addition both the
Taurians and Canopians frequently targeted league supply depots, seriously hindering
operations. The Balor was the solution to inadequately protected flanks and long range
antishipping strikes. Built for robust endurance the fighter was embraced with open
arms by SLDF division commanders. Unfortunately, it was that same prowess that gave the
Balor its infamous reputation. General Amos Forlough, a name nearly equal to that of
Amaris in many parts of the Periphery, immediately saw and siezed upon the potential
of the craft in his thirst for victory. The chronicles of the SLDF's struggle to bring
the Periphery into the Star League are full of images of Forlough's use of the Balor
to scour entire cities. The nefarious reputation of the craft was so great that,
centuries later, the Rim World forces in the Terran Hegemony would frequently abandon
more tactically viable targets in order to eliminate all SL-7s in the area. Thanks to
the forces defending Stefan Amaris the fighter did not survive Kerensky's liberation,
and the design was essentially dead by the time Minoro Kurita declared himself the new
First Lord.
Proof that the universe is not without a sense of irony would come some three centuries
later with the return of General Kerensky's legacy. In the rush to stem the tide of clan
omnimechs and elementals the Aerospace sector, if anything, suffered worse than other
sectors due to the loss of shipyards. Wakazashi Enterprises was particularly hard hit by
the invasion. Nevertheless, the DCA needed fighters. Unable to invest the necessary capitol
for a new model of aerospace fighter the engineers did what has become common practice among
design firms of the Inner Sphere: they dusted off the old portfolios and submitted the already
existing design. Shortly thereafter, the Balor entered service against the remains of the
forces that had created it. This time, Kerensky's children would experience what their ancestors
had inflicted on the Periphery citizens.
Capabilities:
Designed first and foremost as a heavy attack craft the SL-7 is a result of the SLDF's
hardwon wisdom concerning extended deployments. Determined to take the fight to the bitter end,
the Balor dispenses with the ballistic weaponry that made the Rapier so deadly. Likewise, the
craft differs from the Ahab in avoiding the use of missiles so as to continue fighting as long
as possible. Five PPCs mounted in the nose give the Balor an epic punch that remains impressive
even in this era of the Blakist Jihad. Twenty five double strength heatsinks allow an impressive
cadence, which makes the craft quite useful in antishipping strikes as well as ground support. A
potential acceleration of nearly five Gs furthers the usefulness by making the fighter a competent
dogfighter, although pilots must take care due to a lack of aft weaponry.
Defensively, the Sl-7 relies on a stout shell of Ferro-aluminum armor plating for protection, and
compares favorably to other craft of that era. The craft achieves this performance through the use
of an extralight powerplant. Initially, the Hegemony engineers were unable to resolve the center-of-
gravity issues that plagued extralight engines of the period. As a result, the original Balor used a
standard fusion powerplant. This made the craft somewhat sluggish, but cost roughly one-third of the
projected price. Thus the first models were what captured the imagination of the public. A few years
later, when the COG problems had been settled, the SLDF mandated strict adherence to policy and sent
the upgraded models to Royal units. Wakazashi Enterprises is currently studying the possibility of
launching the older model for cash-strapped units.
Deployment:
In the first traumatic period of the clan invasion the goal of Wakazashi Enterprises was simply to
get units on the battlefield as quickly as possible. After the calm of the Tukayyid truce had fallen
the firm began a more methodical deployment. The majority of DCMS units on the clan border field the
SL-7K, although no unit has more than a couple of dozen due to the desire of the DCA for omnifighters.
The "mini-McKenna," as the craft is frequently referred to by its pilots, may cease production in favor
of omnifighters such as the Sai.
Battle History:
During the reunification campaigns in the Periphery the Balor played a prominent role in all four
nations. Intimately linked to the figure of General Forlough, it was he who showed the Periphery nations
the true horror of war. Using the Balor, the general frequently used scorched earth tactics to break the
resolve of defenders. A typical example of this was the razing of Cerberus in early 2583. Using the newly-
deployed Balor, general Forlough made heavy use of his air wings. The 22nd AAR- officially the Altair Air
Reserve, but known throughout the Periphery as the Aerial Atrocity Regiment- is infamous to this day for
its use of repeated strafing runs to raze several cities to the ground. Forlough took the 22nd with him to
his new command in the Concordat campaign. There, the horror that led to the cry of "Cerberus Lives" on
Tellman IV was repeated on Warren and Caldwell in less than eighteen months after the battle of Cerberus.
In the modern era, the Combine has worked hard to capture the spirit of that fight in order to motivate the
DCA pilots. Although the clans are not so easily intimidated, the dark history of the Balor combines with the
ghosts of Kentares into a potent psychological weapon.
Variants:
As mentioned, the early models lacked the -7K's extralight fusion engine. The craft was designated SL-3K
and served until the end of the reunification war. After the end of that conflict, the majority were upgraded
to the -7K specifications and deployed in the Royal units. The model differs only in the use of a Strand 255
motor and an extra half-ton of armor across the wings. In fact, even most military pundits were unaware of the
existence of the -7K model until the discovery of the Helm library core. Wakazashi Enterprises plans to commence
production of the -3K model for direct export in the next fiscal quarter. Several mercenary units have expressed
interest in purchases.
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-- DETAILED REPORT --
Class/Model: Balor SL-7K
Power Plant: 340XL 13.50
Safe Thrust : 6 MP
Max Thrust : 9 MP
Structural Integrity: 8 0.00
Heat Sinks: 25 Double 15.00
Fuel and Pumps: 5.00
Cockpit: 3.00
Crew: 1 0.00
Armour Type : 241 points Ferro-Fibrous 13.50
-Standard Scale-
Location:
Front: 83
Left / Right: 56/56
Aft: 46
Standard Weapons and Equipment:
Item Loc Ammo Heat SRV MRV LRV ERV Mass
5 PPC Nose * 50 50 50 - - 35.00
Tonnage Left 0.00
Vessel Cost: SL-7K- 14,212,261 C-Bills
SL-3K- 5,303,636 C-Bills
Vessel BV: SL-7K- 2062
SL-3K- 1975
