Best dropships for BA?

[desaints]

I'm not sure if this should be in aerospace combat or ground combat so moderators feel free to move it.

I was looking into it and I realized there are few dropships with space actually intended for battle armor. So anyone have a particular design they would use? I'm trying to find something that can move a anything from company size (36-64) to battalion (108-256) sized BA units. Also I realize I could just load them on a Mule as cargo but I'm looking at for something that can drop them off in combat.

[Weirdo]

Given the rarity of dedicated BA carriers, my advice would be to take an infantry transport ship of the appropriate size. The troopers can use the bunks, store the suits in cargo, and since BA are infantry units, they don't need dedicated bay doors to jump out of. The only downside to this approach is that you won't get the dedicated maintenance facilities you'd find in a true BA bay. Anything with bays for more than a handful of conventional infantry platoons and a couple hundred tons of cargo will do the trick.

[desaints]

That's what I figured I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something, thanks. Its a shame there isn't some type of specific use dropship for them given the in-universe increase in their use. I wouldn't mind seeing a Condor with a dedicated BA carrying variant, but hey who knows what can happen.

[Minemech]

 The Buccaneer is not a bad choice if you do not mind using an aerodynamo dropship to land your troops. It should be a sizeably less expensive ship than the Mule and while not nearly as armored as a condor, it can allow you a common vessel to transport your troops.

[Fireangel]

A modified Fury should work well; thing normally carries four foot platoons and eight light vees.

[DaveMac]

A modified Vampire might be interesting  >:D

[Ian Sharpe]

How many could an Aurora handle?

[Istal_Devalis]

Very few units use large scale battlearmor formations all by their lonesome. They're usually used in conjuction with other units. Also, remember that the various bays used on a dropship are there so you can directly deploy troops 'hot' into combat. In most cases, people moving large numbers of infantry around are doing so as garrison movements or to established beach heads, in which case you move it as cargo.

That said, considering how small BA bays are ('Only' 2 tons per suit), I'm rather surprised more Combat dropships dont modify some cargo space to fit one in. 8-10 tons doesnt amount to much for anything but the smallest dropships. Unless you've hit the max number of doors, why not?

[Fireangel]

How many could an Aurora handle?

An aurora has four reconfigurable 150-ton bays. Each one of these bays could carry up to fifteen squads of BA.

I might consider using each bay to carry nine squads of BA (one company), one light vehicle and ten tons of cargo.

[snewsom2997]

A Nagumo, Fury, Intruder, requires some modification. There is a Nagumo variant in the Hunters book, that carries a BA equipped Rabid Fox/DEST team to seize a GB Clan Jumpship.

[Crimson Dynamo]

A Nagumo, Fury, Intruder, requires some modification. There is a Nagumo variant in the Hunters book, that carries a BA equipped Rabid Fox/DEST team to seize a GB Clan Jumpship.

That was actually a Combine Achilles using two Battle Taxis, IIC.

[Sir Chaos]

Very few units use large scale battlearmor formations all by their lonesome. They're usually used in conjuction with other units. Also, remember that the various bays used on a dropship are there so you can directly deploy troops 'hot' into combat. In most cases, people moving large numbers of infantry around are doing so as garrison movements or to established beach heads, in which case you move it as cargo.

That said, considering how small BA bays are ('Only' 2 tons per suit), I'm rather surprised more Combat dropships dont modify some cargo space to fit one in. 8-10 tons doesnt amount to much for anything but the smallest dropships. Unless you've hit the max number of doors, why not?

What I´m most surprised about is that the Clans, who pretty much invented battle armor, don´t field any dropship that can carry a mech/BA nova or supernova. They have a dedicated BA transport with the Sassanid, but that´s it.

[Jellico]

Unlike say 'Mechs there are multiple ways of carrying Battle Armor. For example as marines or in Bays. The difference being the ability to combat drop them.

[Weirdo]

Actually, no. Infantry units do not require proper bays to jump out of a transport, BA included. [legal]

[Jellico]

So, how do you drop them without doors?

[Weirdo]

StratOps, page 22: "A carrying aerospace unit can drop any number of infantry units."

My guess is that DropShips are assumed to have an indeterminate number of small doors throughout the ship that aren't necessarily the docking-capable bay or cargo doors, and infantry can jump out of those just fine.

[HavocTheWarDog]

What I´m most surprised about is that the Clans, who pretty much invented battle armor, don´t field any dropship that can carry a mech/BA nova or supernova. They have a dedicated BA transport with the Sassanid, but that´s it.

There is the outpost

[cawest]

how about moding a Leo?  take the mech bays our and have BA bays, you still keep the Aero bays for selfdefence.  that would let you keep for doors for combat drops.  if i remeber right two BA can exit each round so that would be 8 BA in a turn. 

[Weirdo]

As was stated earlier, BA do not need doors. Any number of them can exit each round. It's just a batter of walking to a convenient airlock, opening the door, and taking one step.

[Colt Ward]

I always wanted to see the Arcadia have a BA transport variant as well as a assault ship variant.

But yeah . . . I think we need to have a . . . uh, motorized?  BA transport.  Transporting the battle armor and the light vehicles needed to transport them and provide the direct & indirect fire support.  Toss in some artillery support . . . and it gets fun.

Hmm, it would be fun to see it come out as a new DroST version, after all they used to carry infantry and armor into combat.

[Welshman]

As was stated earlier, BA do not need doors. Any number of them can exit each round. It's just a batter of walking to a convenient airlock, opening the door, and taking one step.

And then remembering you just got promoted to a Hauberk squad and aren't in your Cavalier anymore.

It's not the falling that hurts...

[Weirdo]

And from a DropShip, ziplines are just George of Jungle jokes waiting to happen... ;D

[Colt Ward]

Thought there were also optional rules to add jump packs and 'chutes.

[Weirdo]

There are, but the idea of using a Hauberk suspended from a low-flying Claymore to knock down a redwood forest is much funnier.

[Cambo]

I don't know... how about a star or two of Kirghiz C's?  >:D  Built in fire support for your "air drop leaflet" campaigns ;)  10 Elementals per fighter, 10 fighters per star... There's your 100 Elementals deposited quite quickly on the battlefield and then the Kirghiz's have ERPPCs and UAC20's to back them up.

[Hellraiser]

I'm not sure if this should be in aerospace combat or ground combat so moderators feel free to move it.

I was looking into it and I realized there are few dropships with space actually intended for battle armor. So anyone have a particular design they would use? I'm trying to find something that can move a anything from company size (36-64) to battalion (108-256) sized BA units. Also I realize I could just load them on a Mule as cargo but I'm looking at for something that can drop them off in combat. 

Please open your TRO3075 to the Dropship section & look at what that Aurora is doing.
Then see the posts below.

How many could an Aurora handle? 

An aurora has four reconfigurable 150-ton bays. Each one of these bays could carry up to fifteen squads of BA.

I might consider using each bay to carry nine squads of BA (one company), one light vehicle and ten tons of cargo. 

We have the winners here !

I'm a huge fan of the Aurora's custom bays to the creation of infantry transports.
I don't need 4 more mechs,  I need something that packs a full Infantry Regiment or a full BA Battalion.


I went with 12 Squads & 30 tons of food for them.

Though I could see the idea of a single Light Vee bay I just don't see the usefullness of that 1 vee w/ all those BA.
Now, 2 Maxim-I's and 24 BA Troopers has an interesting feel to it.

[Colt Ward]

Hmm . . . I have to dig out the my Merc Sup with the entry, but . . .

Why just 12 squads?  It has 164 integral cargo aside from the 4 150t bays.  I did the first 2 bays as BA squad bays, which gets a total of 30 squads.  Which basically turns into a BA battalion with a command platoon . . . throw in 3 light veh bays in #3 (and yes, I would say go with the Maxim I for transport- which means a company can be mechanized, 2 if one of the companies are Fa Shih or Longinus mag clamps) for their own transport.  Finally, Bay #4 has 3 Foot platoons and 135t of cargo space . . . this could be for towed artillery in support of the BA strike force.

I mean, sounds pretty good to me . . .

Then again, I would not mind seeing a DroST IIa refit that turned into a BA assault transport- especially for those units that will not get assigned something new and nifty like the Aurora.  I mean, with the fluff and the way its set up you could just do lots of mean things to people with a new Drost laid out in that way.

[Fireangel]

Though I could see the idea of a single Light Vee bay I just don't see the usefullness of that 1 vee w/ all those BA.
Now, 2 Maxim-I's and 24 BA Troopers has an interesting feel to it.

I am shocked... SHOCKED... that you don't see the usefulness of an omni APC to take advantage of the mechanized BA rules and give some heavy fire support to the BA company.

We have four such companies, four such APCs and 40 tons of dedicated company supplies cargo...

BTW> 9 squads = 3 platoons of three squads each (or two 4-squad platoons plus a command squad)

[Jellico]

I like the idea of a bunch of essentially immobile infantry. I don't like the idea of people coming up at night and killing me in my unguarded bed.

[Hellraiser]

Why just 12 squads? 

That is 12 Squads,  PER BOX.  A total of 48 Squads for the entire ship.

It has 164 integral cargo aside from the 4 150t bays. 

Take a look at what happens to that 164 internal when you have to load up on food for all that infantry.  That is why I left 30 tons extra in each box.

I mean, sounds pretty good to me . . . 

Its not bad, but again, you'll use up a huge amount of that cargo in food for the trip.

I am shocked... SHOCKED... that you don't see the usefulness of an omni APC to take advantage of the mechanized BA rules and give some heavy fire support to the BA company.

We have four such companies, four such APCs and 40 tons of dedicated company supplies cargo...

BTW> 9 squads = 3 platoons of three squads each (or two 4-squad platoons plus a command squad)

9 Squads is a DC or Merc company, but its only about 1/2 a FS/LA/FWL Company.
Which isn't a problem IMHO.  Just pointing out not everyone uses the same sized forces.
That said, my issue was that I wanted MORE APCs.
I don't like the idea of mobilizing just 2 of my 9 squads in your suggested scenario.
Maybe 3 max if its Bandits w/ Extra space for a 3rd squad.
Max of 4 w/ Maxim-I's and MagClamp BA.
Or Max 5 w/ Maxim-II's and Magclamp BA.

I like the idea of a bunch of essentially immobile infantry. I don't like the idea of people coming up at night and killing me in my unguarded bed.

Don't you just hate it when that happens..........
     So there I was, sleeping peacefully, dreaming of the powder puff girls, when some 2000lb metal monstrosity crashed through my 3rd Story window & woke me up.  I was about to complain about how rude some people are when it picked me up by my Ankle in a grip that felt like I stepped in a metal bear trap set out by some backwoods Missouri pig defiler, & tossed me right back out the hole he'd smashed in my window frame.  I imagine he thought I was dead for sure, good thing for me he was so uncivilized & in a rush to go rampaging through the barracks or he might have noticed that there was a large 2.5 ton truck parked below with about a dozen boxes of that retched excuse for toilet paper waiting to be unloaded.  I'll have to remember to not reprimand the boys for knocking off early that day & failing to finish unloading the supply trucks.  At least we found a use for that otherwise useless paper & now I have a reason to skip the Colonel's morning PT runs.


* This story is best read in a voice with an uppity British accent.
** We sincerely hope we have not insulted anyone from Missouri, England, Pig Defilers of any locale, or the Powder Puff Girls.
*** No Military Equipment or Toilet Paper was wasted in the telling of this story.