Author Topic: Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk  (Read 3974 times)

oldfart3025

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Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk
« on: 17 August 2012, 23:32:19 »

Welcome back, folks! It's time for another glorious installment of.....

*drum roll*

Protomech of the Month!!!


Tonight I'm going to talk about the Cloud Cobra designed Basilisk. However, this fan article will deal with the original, bipedal Proto. The quad unit bearing the name is more or less an entirely new design. So, a separate entry for that odd machine will be submitted in the future.


After the fall of the Smoked Kitties, the technology for this new concept spread amongst the Clans. The level of acceptance and deployment varied from Clan to Clan. It seems that not only resource-starved Clans fully embraced this radical new technology. Aerospace-oriented Clans, seeing the need for better ground forces, also jumped on the Proto-love bandwagon. Protomechs proved to be a "quickie" way of expanding the ground arm. And there were a ready supply of operators (failed aerospace fighter pilots who could test into the Protomech program). I guess that there was something of an urgency about this expansion, since the Aerospace-centric Clans finally figured out that air power alone cannot win wars. With things heating up in the Kerensky Cluster, such efforts would pay off.

The sky hugging Cloud Cobras were no exception to this. Thus, we come to their homegrown Protomech design: The Basilisk.


The chosen name follows traditional naming conventions for Protomechs, with emotive names being picked from ancient mythology and legend. The mythological basilisk was a serpent that was said to be highly venomous and could kill just by looking at it's victim. The creature also appeared in so-called "bestiaries", including a work by the famous Pliny the Elder. Pliny pointed out that the beast's weakness was the scent of a weasel.

The name is also used for a lizard in a family of reptiles in nature, known as Corytophanidae, which include both basilisks and iguanas. In fact, the head unit on this model of Proto is somewhat similar to that of the Guatemalan Helmeted Basilisk crossed with a Hernandez's Helmeted Basilisk. Though, some in my playgroup say that it's more reminiscent of a Cobra.


The Basilisk has some decent capabilities wrapped up in it's ugly seven ton reptoid chassis, enough to scare the hell out of David Icke. Lacking jump jets, this Proto is ground bound in the base model. But it's forty five ton rated reactor allows for an average, but still respectable, clip of 4/6. It's also protected by 1,900 kilograms of Protomech armor, offering 38 points of protection.

The armor spread is pretty solid, with the torso (14 points) and legs (8 points) being the best protected (which makes a large degree of sense). The head has five points, main gun three points, and both arms have four points each.

The next-to-final variable in the equation is the loadout. The main gun of this thing is a LRM-3 "gun pod", with enough reloads in the missile bay for two volleys. But fortunately, it also sports a potent Clantech ERML in the torso area. Despite the limited ammo, the LRM/ERML combo makes the base Basilisk a tough customer if used right. It's even better if certain factors, like terrain, are in the Basilisk's favor.


Note: In case anybody is wondering, the final variable is the pilot.


The primary variant's features tend to confirm the fluff write-up's point of it being designed as a support unit. But the single variant of the "classic" Basilisk is a completely different animal.

The so-called Basilisk 2 is a mean bastard, being geared more toward close-quarters combat and mobile operations in built-up areas/annoying terrain features. Jump jets are a welcome feature here, offering a 120 meter jump capability. Another change is the swap of the ERML and LRM-3 for an ER small laser, a couple of ER micro lasers, and a SRM-2 with ten volleys. The base model's allotment of heat sinks covers the Basilisk 2's energy weapons, so no extra tonnage was needed in that area.  There is a slight reduction in armor, losing a point per leg and a couple of points on the torso (according to my record sheets). But it's still a tough Proto. I'm a fan of using this variant in urban combat, especially when executing ambush tactics.


Technical Readout 3075 mentions rumors of variants operating in the Tanite Worlds. However, knowing what we know about the genocidal Wars of Reaving, and the rise of The Society, odds are that these rumors are based on vague reports of the new quad Basilisk operating with rouge elements, friendly to The Society.


Anyway, I hope you enjoy this second installment in the reborn Protomech series of articles. All constructive criticism and corrections, as always, are welcome.

Just my Protomech-lovin' two cents worth.






"That which I cannot crush with words alone, I shall crush with the tanks of the Imperial Guard!"~Lord Solar Macharius

Dragon Cat

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Re: Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk
« Reply #1 on: 18 August 2012, 00:50:38 »
Not a bad unit either way nice article
My three main Alternate Timeline with Thanks fan-fiction threads are in the links below. I'm always open to suggestions or additions to be incorporated so if you feel you wish to add something feel free. There's non-canon units, equipment, people, events, erm... Solar Systems spread throughout so please enjoy

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,20515.0.html - Part 1

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,52013.0.html - Part 2

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,79196.0.html - Part 3

SCC

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Re: Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk
« Reply #2 on: 18 August 2012, 01:08:21 »
WoR lists the Cloud Cobras as having ProtoMech Bloodlines, how large would their ProtoMech forces have been for this to happen and how long did it take for them to form?

Dragon Cat

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Re: Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk
« Reply #3 on: 18 August 2012, 01:37:19 »
WoR lists the Cloud Cobras as having ProtoMech Bloodlines, how large would their ProtoMech forces have been for this to happen and how long did it take for them to form?

Since Reaving was there first mention and the damage caused during that conflict was so vast I'd bet Reaving was the catalyst for it

With diminished aerospace units I'd think there forces could concievably be as large as they have resources/bloodhouses

The Cobras always were heavy aerospace so them adopting ProtoMechs as a fall back for failed warriors is a good fit same as the Blood Spirits used them because they were cheaper than Mechs was a good fit for there low resources

What surprises me is the Nova Cats never had more yes they are cut off from the Clans but they got he Technology in the wake of the Clan War with their large navy and often mentioned resource poor status the ProtoMech path may have been worthwhile but they are mentioned as having quite few
My three main Alternate Timeline with Thanks fan-fiction threads are in the links below. I'm always open to suggestions or additions to be incorporated so if you feel you wish to add something feel free. There's non-canon units, equipment, people, events, erm... Solar Systems spread throughout so please enjoy

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,20515.0.html - Part 1

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,52013.0.html - Part 2

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,79196.0.html - Part 3

Decoy

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Re: Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk
« Reply #4 on: 18 August 2012, 01:41:59 »
+1 for David Icke reference.

glitterboy2098

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Re: Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk
« Reply #5 on: 18 August 2012, 15:22:40 »
What surprises me is the Nova Cats never had more yes they are cut off from the Clans but they got he Technology in the wake of the Clan War with their large navy and often mentioned resource poor status the ProtoMech path may have been worthwhile but they are mentioned as having quite few
individual protomechs might be less resource intensive to build, but making the Factories to produce them probably isn't. the Nova Cats didn't bring much of any infrastructure with them when the left the homeworlds, and neither they nor the jag's had much to speak of in the OZ.
the nova cats could more easily refit Inner Sphere factories to produce clan grade weapons and materials, and build clan tech mechs, vehicles, and battlearmor.. but protomechs would require a completely new set of factories built from the ground up.

the homeworld clans and the invading clans both have the resources to build those new factories. (in fact, the homeworld's were being under utilized in terms of infrastructure, so it would have been as simple as just ordering the labor castes to build new factories). the Nava cats are tied into the DC's infrastructure, and are reliant on the DC's workforce, so they are more limited in what they can build.

there is also the fact that clan refitted factories for weapons, materials, and units give the DC an advantage as well, that being regular access to clan tech. Protomechs are something only the Novacats could make any real use of, so the DC probably puts them at a lower priority for cooperation on.
« Last Edit: 18 August 2012, 16:21:40 by glitterboy2098 »

wantec

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Re: Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk
« Reply #6 on: 18 August 2012, 15:41:29 »
WoR lists the Cloud Cobras as having ProtoMech Bloodlines, how large would their ProtoMech forces have been for this to happen and how long did it take for them to form?
The Spirits developed the Protomech Warrior phenotype which was spread to the other HW clans during the fall of the Spirits.
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Dragon Cat

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Re: Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk
« Reply #7 on: 18 August 2012, 16:32:35 »
Can't disagree there glitterboy I seem to remember the combine showing interest in protos which led to the cat proto in TRO prototypes maybe that could be catalyst for change
My three main Alternate Timeline with Thanks fan-fiction threads are in the links below. I'm always open to suggestions or additions to be incorporated so if you feel you wish to add something feel free. There's non-canon units, equipment, people, events, erm... Solar Systems spread throughout so please enjoy

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,20515.0.html - Part 1

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,52013.0.html - Part 2

https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,79196.0.html - Part 3

Prince of Darkness

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Re: Protomech of the Month: The Basilisk
« Reply #8 on: 22 August 2012, 19:23:24 »
It's an 'alright' article, truth be told.  The Joke about David Icke was really the only thing that kept it from being completely dry; the sentences didn't flow well and the overall lack of paragraphs made the reading somewhat stilted.  The biggest issue, however, was the information provided- It was deep to be sure, but it was more of a general look at the capabilities of the Proto than an actual in-depth discussion about it's strengths and weaknesses, which is one of the biggest reasons why the article was so short.  Adding insult to injury was no idea over how the 'machine should be properly used or any general idea of such, which really kept this article more at a sarna.net blurb.

My advice would be to really look at what makes other articles great in structure and material (like the Battle Armor of the Week articles provided by sillybrit) and really try to emulate it- don't try to "pad" it necessarily, but really try to keep the information provided relevant to the article to avoid that "scent of a ferret" line (of which could have been omitted from the whole thing entirely.)  Focusing on providing more fluency and tone while also giving some thoughts on it's use will make your articles all the better.

Cowdragon:
I'm going to type up your response, print it, fold it in half, and look at it like a I would a centerfold. THAT's how sexy your answer was.

 

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