Author Topic: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C  (Read 8024 times)

jymset

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MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« on: 21 April 2012, 05:09:35 »
Originally posted December 21st, 2008. Beyond a few slight editorial changes, the article has been updated with Operation KLONDIKE material. Please accept this as a substitute for the still-delayed Wolverine. Beyond being able to repost this mostly unchanged, a crazy MUL discussion as well as kotetsu's recent Annihilator mark this as a good moment for the Imp's return.

Today’s MotW article exactly marks the one year anniversary of my inaugural entry into this series. Back then, I had the privilege of contributing some details to garhkal’s Wolverine article. In that grand tradition, I asked garhkal for his take on the Imp, turning it into another collaboration to celebrate the event. This time he gets to be red! As my first real entry into an Inner Sphere design (apart from the apocryphal StarDate Pillager, which was more of a little real-life history lesson), I will keep this one a lot more personal and will also focus on the “fluff” context a little bit more, both in- and out-of-character.

The Imp: what a ‘Mech it is. With the dual poles of a seemingly silly look (that somehow still projects real menace) and a concurrent, tangible mystique conveyed both by very good statsTM and a mysterious back story, it immediately caught my attention when I discovered it. It was (and still is for the 3025 era) my bad-ass of choice and at the time it remained a relatively little known joker. Marking a stark contrast to another WD 100-tonner, the Annihilator which was my first ‘Mech, the Imp miniature was also my “unicorn” when I started gaming in the mid-90s: The miniature had been discontinued some years prior, but was re-released in 1997, promptly causing me to behave rather irrationally on one of my first dates with a special girl as we walked by the FLGS and I spotted it in the shop window!

Speaking of early personal fascination with the design – though I know I must have first looked at it in its abysmal 3050 form in that TRO, I may have first actually noted it due to its Trading Card. I mean, Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot, over? It has the coolest fluff-text ever: “Few MechWarriors live to tell of battles with this juggernaut.” – the picture should convey character, featuring the ‘Mech in a pitched battle. Ah, yes, uhm, the ‘Mech ….or should that be Humpty-Dumpty-doing-a-shuffle-hop?
Le sigh… But seriously, doesn’t that make you curious? I, for one, certainly became obsessed! Enough of my blathering. I’ll hand over to garhkal to pitch the introduction to the design proper:

The IMP-2E Imp first appeared on the scenes in the hands of the Wolf’s Dragoons.  With its heavy armor, weapon outlay and enough heat sinks to allow it to almost continually fire them, it was quickly taken note of.  Though at the time prior to the Clan invasions, very few had managed to copy it.  At 100 tons, it stands tall.  Sporting a 300 Strand engine, this behemoth can march at a max of 54kph.  Its weaponry is very impressive.  Paired Hellstar PPCs form its main line weaponry, backed up by a Mitchell LRM-15, this baby can put a serious hurting on mechs at a good distance. And for when those enemy mechs close in five Martell medium lasers lay in wait to hit them.

Yes, it is that good. It completely outmatches the Atlas in combat at 10+ hexes and fairly successfully matches the firepower of the Awesome (without doubt the most fearsome ranged combatant in 3025). It pulls off looking menacing at any range with the smart decision to include that bevy of medium lasers – still one of the most efficient weapons in the universe. At that stage, no canon design carried as many all pointing in one direction. To support the whole shebang, the Imp mounts a staggering 30 heat sinks, giving it a leeway in its firing patterns that is extremely unusual for its era. Considering that all locations mount maximum armour (apart from its gun-turret arms that only mount 1 ML and the LRM 15) as well as carrying only 1 ammo slot, this is also a zombie that has few equals in its era. I won’t go into my usual smart armour tirade here, but the atypically huge rear armour (CT 40/21!) is of interest; usually it would trigger dissatisfaction on my behalf, but the overall armour if the Imp is literally rock-solid.

Now, let’s take a step back for one second and put its appearance into perspective. As garhkal has mentioned, this was introduced to the Inner Sphere by Wolf’s Dragoons. In the Wolf’s Dragoons Book, to be precise, in 1988, not too much time after TRO: 3025. And the immediate effect on the universe by the Dragoons’ appearance must have been obvious from the new ‘Mechs on offer alone:

  • a 20-tonner immediately rendering Wasp and Stinger border-line obsolete (Hornet)
  • Stackpole’s munchkin dream Medium-in-a-Light’s-body (Wolfhound)
  • a slow Light definitely packing a Medium’s punch (Firefly)
  • a jumping Stalker (Shogun)
  • a jumping 100-ton nightmare; under-gunned but capable of firing all week long and redefining the very definition of zombie even more so than the Imp (Marauder II)
  • the most over-gunned ‘Mech ever (Annihilator)
  • the Imp, suddenly put into perspective, see below

Ok, so the Flea and the Falcon weren’t too hot, but they’d been introduced through other publications previously to WD (StarDate 3/1 [= #1] and BattleTechnology 0101 [=1], respectively); that’s no real excuse, as the same could be said for the Wolfhound (BT 0204 [=6]) and as for the Hoplite, the less said the better.

This introduction puts the Imp into perspective in a dual fashion: it reinforces its elite status, yet disallows unique status as “most monstrous ‘Mech ever”. After all, the Marauder II was quickly defined as the most game-bending unit, while the Annihilator was clearly the most the most monstrous. :) I honestly feel that out of the three 100-tonners, the Imp actually aroused least interest in the public. This is despite the fact that Wolf’s Dragoons undoubtedly presented us with the very best picture of the Imp until this very day! [2012 insert: Originally, there was a link to the illustration in this place. In a clear reverence of the original source, this image is now preserved in RS: 3050Uu – IS and in the MUL, as linked above. Good deeds by CGL... 8) ]

There is yet one other very important point of notice: it was the only wholly original and as such enigmatic design. Here its original text, reproduced in full:

Quote from: Wolf Dragoons, FASA 1631, 1988, p. 108
Several of the Imp’s features were found in late Star League ‘Mechs, but there is no record of this precise design until the appearance of Wolf’s Dragoons, who have had great success with it. Heavily armed and armored, the Imp carries enough heat sinks to allow it to fire almost continuously without massive heat buildup. The Successor Houses have taken notice of the Imp’s success and are scrambling to copy it, but they have had little success.

All other WD designs were either new models manufactured in the Inner Sphere, old designs that became victims of the Succession Wars or merely had a low profile, or SL prototypes. The Imp was the one design reinforcing the point that the Dragoons could possibly be a more alien entity. TRO: 3050U, p. 110 describes its inclusion in Dragoon rosters “…as one of the few major missteps they made upon their arrival.” Fortunately, “the Dragoons allowed them to be seen and even sought the means to build more by entering into a business partnership with GM Blackwell…” Unfortunately, this meant that…

During the later years, before the Clan invasion, one new variant came onto the scene.  The IMP-3E, as introduced in TRO 3050.  This trades a little survivability for an increase in offensive capability; by changing its 300 SFE for a Hermes 300XL engine.  With the tonnage saved, the PPCs are improved to extended range variants.  Also, 3 of the medium lasers are yanked in favor of the hitting power of pulses.  The 3E sports a single large and 2 medium to that end.  The only 2 things that stayed the same, was the 30 heat sinks (all singles) and the LRM-15.  Had they opted to change out those singles for 18 freezers, they could have saved enough tonnage to go back to a SFE, add Artemis fire control to the LRM and a Guardian ECM unit.  But it still ranks up there as one of my favored variants of the Imp.

I am sorry, but garhkal speaks for himself on that occasion. I am more inclined to follow Matt McLaine’s opinion, who puts it firmly on the list of Worst ‘Mechs: “I pity the Dragoon pilot put in an ‘improved’ Imp.” Seriously, the IMP-3E is a hackneyed FUBAR-upgrade of the worst order. It commits the same sins as the AS7-K by upgrading to ER weaponry yet retaining single HS, all the while swapping the tough standard fusion engine for an XL engine but gaining very little. Actually, my opinion of the AS7-K has changed to become less critical, as that design actually does gain some performance options vs its 3025 original. The same cannot be said of the IMP-3E. The 300XL merely serves to upgrade 2 ML to MPL, while the arm-mounted Laser becomes a LPL – a very dubious choice at best, a devastatingly bad one when the unsuited heat dissipation system is taken into account. But it was all good, because…

In the year 3060 (aka RS Upgrades, FASA 1728), 2 additional versions were noted to be getting fielded by the Dragoons.  The first of them, the IMP-4E goes back to a SFE, but changes the heat sinks to 21 doubles.  The saved tonnage allows for the LRM to be increased to a 20 pack with Artemis IV.  Gone is the large pulse laser, but in its stead is a trio of both extended range medium laser and two extended range small lasers. 

Really, while the Imp has stopped being a powerhouse it was in 3025 – due to the overabundance of Gauss-toting monsters – this variant addresses all complaints of the IMP-3E. Gone is the XL engine, gone are the SHS. It is all good. :) A minor last note would be to mention that the armour has been increased by .5 tons which would be nothing of note had not the allocation been completely shuffled during this change. The rear armour was reduced to bring up the arms to near maximum and 1 point of armour from each leg was shifted to each side torso: clearly, the Imp was finally transformed into a more modern, but also more conventional assault ‘Mech.

The other variant, was long overdue by the time of its release: the Imp C. Later on, TRO:3050U confirmed that the Imp was a design created by Kerensky’s people shortly after the Exodus. [Since the article’s writing, Historical: Operation KLONDIKE has fully updated the early history of the Imp. I’ll delve into that below.]  As thus it becomes a design intrinsically linked to the Clans, making the Clan upgrade a logical conclusion. The Imp C most closely resembles the IMP-2E (now determined to be a deliberate downgrade). It mounts two ERPPC, one LRM20 with Artemis IV and lots of ammo, as well as 5 medium Pulse Lasers. If you take into account that it still retains 25 DHS and a standard engine, this suddenly skyrockets to take its place as a veritable god of slaughter. Its punch, rate of fire, accuracy and resilience (now with a full 19 tons of armour) combine into a truly insane package. Clan garrison units, rejoice! Star Adders, rejoice doubly, as your touman apparently fields the lion’s share of them. [At the time, based on the FM: Updates RATs. FM: 3085 preserves an honorary Imp C on Clan Wolf’s roster.]

Technical Readout: 3050 Upgrade revealed the real story of the Imp in minute detail. As such, there was no space to introduce a Total Warfare variant (which the Annihilator did receive, as did the Marauder II via Project Phoenix and TRO: 3085). This in itself is not a bad thing. After all, the four known Imps do cover a very broad spectrum: mini-maxed 3025 monster, 3050 FUBAR wreck, moderate retrofit that fixes said wreck, mini-maxed Clan 2nd-liner.



2012 insert: Yet, the story did go on in Operation KLONDIKE and the Imp was made legit as the successor to the vaunted Atlas not only in game history, but in universe history also. The Atlas was specified by Aleksandr Kerensky to intimidate the Star League’s enemies; the Imp was created on Nicholas Kerensky’s specification as a totem to the exiled SLDF on the Pentagon worlds.

Manufactured on Babylon and by Clan Wolf after the Pentagon Civil War, the original Imp was seen in no less than three different versions, every single one scary enough to put any other Star League assault ‘Mech to shame. All three carry the same armour, 19 tons in identical distribution to the IMP-2E original, with the added ton split among the arms. The IMP-1A fields 2 ERPPC, 1 LRM20 with Artemis IV (2 tons ammo in CASE), 5 MPL, a small laser and is cooled by 18 DHS and powered by a 300 standard engine. This is the primogenitor, the rock solid basis on which all others are built and whose legacy is preserved in most later units including the IMP-4E and C. The IMP-3E is furthest removed from this original, which is ironic considering that clunker was the first Imp we ever saw in a TRO.

The IMP-1B may be a mere sub-variant on paper but by swapping the MPL for ML, while changing back the SL to an MPL just to be confusing, while gaining ECM, a ton of ammo and a DHS, it plays on the design’s strengths. Star League designs really did not come any stronger than this without fielding gauss rifles. Which is the cue call for the IMP-1C, that promptly replaces the LRM 20 with the monstrous weapon, retaining the -1B’s ECM and changing the laser weapon to all-standard, six mediums and one small. What is there to say? Star League technology simply does not get better, deadlier, more tuned than this. Had this really been deployed in a true Star League setting or made a reappearance in the IS of the post-50s, it would have been a true game-changer.

It is this dichotomy of “what if” and “perfect stats” that automatically keep any analysis of the new variants very brief indeed. Of further note is the David White illustration in KLONDIKE – not online in the MUL as of this writing, but sure to be corrected in the future. It split public opinion more than most other designs of recent memory. Some thought the Imp was finally cool, some thought the illustration exacerbated the silly, some thought the entity was Mojo Jojo reborn.

What KLONDIKE undoubtedly achieved was a huge increase in public awareness of the design. And this is a very, very good thing.



The lack of a multitude of further canon configurations does mean that this MotW is fast coming to a close, despite my personal passion for the design (= relentless blathering) as a whole and for the 3025 variant specifically. The article will conclude with a “notable pilot” section will be posted below. I thank garhkal very much – for allowing me a start in this series a year ago; for joining me again on this one – and I thank you, the reader and board contributor, very much for putting up with me during the last year!


Leutnant Amber “Snuggles” Kaulback of Lyran loyalty - the notable pilot of 3050 Upgrade does not have a long history in the CBT universe. The most interesting fact about her, is that she is a Lyran defender of Tharkad – how she would end up with an IMP-4E is truly a mystery!

Back in 3025, however, any Imp pilot would have been a notable pilot based on the virtue of being one amongst a few. In honour of those who have fallen, I now however return to the Wolf’s Dragoons Book and the charnel house that was their conflict with House Kurita during the 4th Succession War. Any Imp pilot still breathing after October 3029 should have their share of glory.

For those who came in late: Wolf’s Dragoons, after having already served all of the other Great Houses, was in Kuritan employ from 3023 to 3028 (nominally). By late 3026, however, there was great discontent between employer and employee, mainly fuelled by the machinations of Warlord Grieg Samsonov, Warlord of the Galedon Prefecture. With his company store machinations, fabricated accusations, as well as an attack on the Dragoon dependents (one late Anton Marik already made that big mistake), the Dragoons and the Draconis Combine had entered a Cold War during 3027, culminating in Jaime Wolf’s challenge of Takashi in April 3028, for an honour duel of epic proportions on the world of Misery. Though I am tempted to recount the battle here, I will just refer you to the Wolf’s Dragoons Book and the most excellent novel Wolves on the Border by Bob Charette. In short order – the Wolf’s Dragoons had reached immortality but paid for it by up to 60% casualties.

After entering Davion employ once more, the remaining Dragoons were posted on Glenmora (Alpha Regiment), Wapakoneta (Beta and Delta Regiments) and Harrow’s Sun (Gamma and Epsilon) on the Kuritan border. When the 4th Succession War began, Takashi Kurita concentrated his war efforts almost exclusively on those planets. The result was twofold. House Kurita spent most of their war effort effectively fighting a private and personal war rather than making any strategic gain; the Wolf’s Dragoons were almost completely annihilated. After getting mauled, the remnants of the Dragoons met on Crossing in April 3029, where they were set upon, once again, in September. They beat off 4 Regiments of Galedon Regulars and an elite DEST unit, but “…their losses were massive and their survivors deplorably few…”, WD Book, p. 43.

Like some other early Source Books, the WD Book has a complete roster. Unlike most other rosters that span dozens of pages, the one in the WD Book is a really good read. That one gives us the following information on Imp pilots:

Hall’s Imp
  • Zedra Hall – Beta Regiment, Umaio’s Company – The Reapers, Command Lance – WIA on Misery, still in coma as of 3030, ‘Mech salvaged.
  • Julia Bonet – Beta Regiment, The Cavaliers, Command Lance of Able Battalion [1st Provisional Company, Command Lance] – an Atlas pilot who lost her ‘Mech on Misery, she took over Hall’s Imp and lost both life and ‘Mech on Wapakoneta.

Lieutenant Madelaine Dubrowski – Beta Regiment, Rondema’s Roughnecks, Command Lance – KIA on Misery.

Yoder’s Imp
  • Lieutenant Leslie Yoder – Gamma Regiment, Komachi’s Company, Command Lance – KIA on Misery, but the ‘Mech is salvaged. This ‘Mech should rightfully be notorious – read on…
  • Sergeant Theodora Del Floro – Gamma Regiment, Command Company, Medium Lance – this Phoenix Hawk pilot entered the field in Yoder’s old Imp on Harrow’s Sun. Again, the person was killed while the ‘Mech lived.
  • Sergeant Tedra McDonnell – Gamma Regiment, Komachi’s Company, Fire Lance [2nd Provisional Company, Assault Lance] – a pilot of a Marauder II which was destroyed on Harrow’s Sun, who pilots the above Imp on Crossing. That Imp finishes the campaign with a terrible track record, as once again its pilot was KIA while it itself was salvaged.

Jennifer Archoski – Epsilon Regiment, Command Company, Assault Lance [Regimental Command Lance] – KIA on Harrow’s Sun.

Lieutenant James Riker – Epsilon Regiment, Able Battalion, Command Lance [Regimental Command Lance] – WIA on Harrow’s Sun, he soldiers on; badly WIA on Crossing, his Imp is destroyed. He is the only surviving combatant in this group. Folks, I’d say we have our notable pilot!

Note that the Regimental Command Lance of Epsilon Regiment looked like the following for the battle of Harrow’s Sun:

Colonel Baxter Arbuthnot – Archer (deceased)
Sergeant John Marlowe – Zeus
Jennifer Archoski – Imp (deceased)
Lieutenant James Riker - Imp

8) – What a lance! They were sure to have been a fear-inspiring sight. WD Book, p. 81: “Colonel Arbuthnot’s lance was caught in an ambush on Harrow’s Sun, and the Colonel was killed.” – So maybe they should have had an Ostscout on duty. But it sure is a testament to the awesome might of that lance that both Marlowe and Riker were able to walk away from that debacle (note of interest – Marlowe survived all campaigns without losing life, health or ‘Mech – one of very, very few to retain all three).

Simon “Hickock” Maddox – Fire Support Group, Command Lance [WD Battle Group] – survives. I assume that joining the WD Battle Group would have seen deployment on Crossing, whereas the rest of the FSG joins the Home Guard to protect the dependents after Misery.

Lieutenant Jesse “Wedge” Connor – Zeta Battalion, Command Lance – killed on Misery (Jamison was the lance’s only survivor of that engagement).

Harold Albright – Zeta Battalion, Red Company, Assault Lance 1 – killed on Misery.

Sergeant Maia Kwong – Zeta Battalion, White Company, Command Lance – she survived both Misery and Crossing (where Zeta showed up as the late saviour).

Madeleine Jennings – Zeta Battalion, White Company, Assault Lance 1 – also survived the 4th SW

So there you have it. At the time of Misery, the Dragoons had a total of 10 Imps in their active rosters, 4 of them being part of Zeta Battalion. 3 were destroyed, one other lost pilots like flies. It is a testament that such a high percentage actually survived, surely one of the better survival rates amongst the Dragoons during those days.

And as a final footnote to add to the cool:

Khan Sandra Tseng of Clan Ghost Bear, as told by KLONDIKE. At least up to the Reavings the machine stood tall as a preserved monument in front of the Clan’s shrine in Svoboda Zemylya.

Only the best warriors for the best machine! Don’t tell me it should be the other way around. ;)



As a postscript, here's a little personal excursion on Wolf’s Dragoons, skip at own digression. I have a confession to make: I like Wolf’s Dragoons. I never really was much of a mercenary aficionado, not at all. I actively dislike the Northwind Highlanders, like the Kell Hounds but think them to be bland and hold both the Gray Death Legion and Eridani Light Horse in low regard for having been the munchkin troop that everyone says the Wolf’s Dragoons are. The mystique of the Big Mac, Hansen’s Roughriders (through MW2:Mercenaries) and Smithson’s Chinese Bandits did impress me, but not enough to actively seek out a lot of info on these units. Not so with Wolf’s Dragoons. Most of their detractors will cite their size, their status, their at times never-ending supplies and their almost condescending interaction with other parties as huge no-goes. So what do I like about them? They are the one unit who truly does ‘mysterious’ correctly. Not only with their origin, but also with their characters. They also act as a catalyst to many, many events in the BT universe of the last 70 or so years, from the Marik Civil War (yes, other houses had them, too) to the Jihad, revealing their Clan origin and their new loyalties along the way. Call me devoid of cynicism (please do!), but I would also like to attest the unit with a genuine wish for a freer and more peaceful Inner Sphere; at least they represent a sense of justice that I can relate to.

One thing that the Wolf’s Dragoons share with many other mercenary outfits, but definitely do best: Dying. I know some prominent units have died for good in the recent years, but if we look at the era before Operation Revival, there was no other unit who got mauled so badly, so repeatedly. Yes, Morgan Kell lost Patrick (but gained undying fame). Grayson Carlyle lost his father (but gained a love and a unit). The Northwind Highlanders lost their honour (but gained a home)… The Wolf’s Dragoons were the only unit who got beat up real badly over and over again and gained nothing – apart from the privilege to survive. And to arise from the ashes in new glory. I guess they also gained Outreach, but they really had to work for it. And how!
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glitterboy2098

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #1 on: 21 April 2012, 11:52:18 »
given the visual similarity to the often much maligned Urbanmech, i can just imagine that the Dragoon's first appearance on the battlefield caused some Warbook confusion similar to what happened when the clan Omni's showed up in 3049.
i can just imagine the thoughts of the Liao mechwarriors who wonder;

a) how their enemy got ahold of Capellan made Urbanmechs
b) why Urbanmechs were being deployed alongside Assualt mechs.

and eventually

c) what the hell was that?

though C of course occuring post-mortem as they await rebirth into their next cycle of life. hopefully the karma of underestimating an Imp was offset by the fact that they didn't know it existed.

monty

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #2 on: 21 April 2012, 12:40:19 »
given the visual similarity to the often much maligned Urbanmech, i can just imagine that the Dragoon's first appearance on the battlefield caused some Warbook confusion similar to what happened when the clan Omni's showed up in 3049.

Back End of Nowhere by David L. McCulloch in Total Warfare plays on that confusion. A bandit is wrecking havoc on a periphery world &n the locals identify his mech as an Imp from a childs printed technical readout. Later his mech is revealed to be a "mighty Urbanmech".

Qui desiderat pacem praeparet bellum.
Let him who desires peace prepare for war. (Vegetius)

jymset

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #3 on: 21 April 2012, 14:00:35 »
It drives home a harsh bottom line: the locals are preparing to take on an Imp and are banking on a fighting chance.

And an UrbanMech kills them all.

It is one of the ultimate stories in depicting the BattleMech's power.
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Nicest writing compliment ever: I know [redacted] doesn't like continuity porn, but I do, and you sir, write some great continuity porn! (MadCapellan)

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Nightstalker

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #4 on: 21 April 2012, 14:35:19 »
Stats-wise, I have always liked the Imp, but I have never been able to get over the way it looks (more like an over inflated Urbie than a combat vehicle).  Mojo Jojo is an apt description. 

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #5 on: 21 April 2012, 15:56:46 »
The proportions of the original illustration in the Wolf's Dragoon's sourcebook does much more for it's image.  It seems less Urbanmech and more walking skull.  If a resculpt were done based off of that image, I would be very happy.

Sabelkatten

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #6 on: 21 April 2012, 16:19:52 »
One detail I've never understood is the little note in the old TRO3050 fluff: "...LRM15, up from a LRM5."

But as I understand it there hasn't been any Imp with a LRM5? It's kind of funny, thought. The design works perfectly (IMHO better than the -2E) with a LRM5 in place of the LRM15 and a LL in place of the arm ML - gets the armor up to 19 tons as well.

Arkansas Warrior

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #7 on: 21 April 2012, 21:06:06 »
I've always been a fan of the Imp.  Where I can reasonably do so, I take it over pretty much any omnimech in the game.  here's a link to my most commonly used set of personal tweaks (ATMs instead of LRMs, jump jets, a tarcomp...)
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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #8 on: 22 April 2012, 10:35:09 »
I had a friend who was a big fan on the Imp, and he put it to very good use.  The 2E was such a wild mech because, save for the Marauder II, nothing had heatsinks like that.  On the one hand, you look and by defualt it must have ten tons fewer weapons than something like an Atlas or King Crab (which it does) but it can put them into almost unrestricted action.

The modern 3E is highly problematic and exceptionaly inefficant, but its not unusable, because despite only having SHS it still has so impossibly many that it can get by, if only just bairly.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #9 on: 24 April 2012, 05:47:06 »
dislike "modernized" mechs that doint utilize DHS, i mean, if i was any nation that would be the FIRST thing i add, second would be CASE, id figure everything els after those 2 are good n out. always boggles my mind when i see ANY "modern" mech with SHS, its so dame CHEAP to use them, and it cant be THAT much of a technical hurdle to be able to make the things, specialy now that u have working models to use or revers ingineer

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #10 on: 24 April 2012, 11:22:03 »
One thing that the Wolf’s Dragoons share with many other mercenary outfits, but definitely do best: Dying. I know some prominent units have died for good in the recent years, but if we look at the era before Operation Revival, there was no other unit who got mauled so badly, so repeatedly. Yes, Morgan Kell lost Patrick (but gained undying fame). Grayson Carlyle lost his father (but gained a love and a unit). The Northwind Highlanders lost their honour (but gained a home)… The Wolf’s Dragoons were the only unit who got beat up real badly over and over again and gained nothing – apart from the privilege to survive. And to arise from the ashes in new glory. I guess they also gained Outreach, but they really had to work for it. And how!
12th Star Guard has been in decline throughout the Succession Wars: from original 7 regiments down to 4 by end of 3025. IIRC, lost couple regiments against DCMS in early 3000's becouse of some scam. Not really mysterious outfit, but does plenty of dying and losing, yet manages to survive much like WD... maybe in little less glorious manner. How is 12th nowadays?
You know what they say, don't you? About how us MechWarriors are the modern knights errant, how warfare has become civilized now that we have to abide by conventions and rules of war. Don't believe it.

Prince of Darkness

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #11 on: 24 April 2012, 12:44:07 »
12th Star Guard has been in decline throughout the Succession Wars: from original 7 regiments down to 4 by end of 3025. IIRC, lost couple regiments against DCMS in early 3000's becouse of some scam. Not really mysterious outfit, but does plenty of dying and losing, yet manages to survive much like WD... maybe in little less glorious manner. How is 12th nowadays?

Destroyed during the Clan invasion, I believe.
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Arkansas Warrior

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Re: MotW repost: Imp IMP-** & C
« Reply #12 on: 24 April 2012, 13:13:30 »
Indeed.  Some remnants formed Thor's Hammers, a mercenary combined arms artillery battalion, but other than that they seem to be dead as a doornail.
Sunrise is Coming.

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