EDIT: A lot of what I wrote here is just my view on how I'd like/I could reasonably see things proceeding. I could be all kinds of wrong. I make plenty of assumptions, and as was pointed out to me I make conjectures based on the the RATs which are not dependable, and do not constitute a 100% accurate reflection of the equipment actually available to a faction.
do you think the Scorpions would update the -1N Rifleman and -1R Shadow hawk to be non-primitive tech right away? or just keep manufacturing the primitive models (perhaps with minor weapons refits to use the improved style weapons) while getting a full omnimech factory going?
This is a fantastic question. I'd also mention that Objectives Periphery mentions an upgrade facility being set up by a certain Mercantile Clan to create
Vulcan variants, yet
Vulcans don't show up in the RATs in ISP3.
I'd say that the biggest clue to what the Scorpions should do is in that ISP3 RAT. I bet they set out to be (
soley in terms of military equipment) The Soviet WWII Faction (yes, I know that is a highly overused fanboy trope!). Not the most advanced designs, but rugged and highly effective designs and doctrine. While those primitive RFL-1N and SHD-1R ARE common. They are not the THE most common Mediums and Heavies for Second Line Troops. Dice probability:
Dice Roll Probability in 2D6:
2 > 2.78 percent
3 > 5.56 percent
4 > 8.33 percent
5 >11.11 percent
6 > 13.89 percent
7 > 16.67 percent
8 > 13.89 percent
9 > 11.11 percent
10 > 8.33 percent
11 > 5.56 percent
12 > 2.78 percent
Given the above the five most common Second Line Mediums are:
5 HBK-4P Hunchback
6 TBT-5S Trebuchet
7 WVR-6R Wolverine
8 SHD-2H Shadow Hawk
9 PXH-1 Phoenix HawkThe five most common Second Line Heavies are:
5 CRD-3R Crusader
6 QKD-4G Quickdraw
7 RFL-3N Rifleman
8 WHM-6R Warhammer
9 GHR-5J GrasshopperSo, to me, there are plenty of 3025 tech mechs out there to upgrade.
I've taken a hand at trying to upgrade the SHD-1R with "improved tech". Much like the upgrade Marian Hegemony Centurion CN9-H, with a primitive engine and a LBX-10. ...and while you can probably make something out of the RFL-1N, the SHD-1R is resistant to real improvement. The best I could do was to use Improved LRMs to allow it to stay back.
On the other hand you can make fantastic mechs out of the 3025 mechs with the "Improved Tech"
I plan to slowly flesh out some variants (starting with Wolverines) here:
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=68196.0So that is all a long way to say that I think they would:
a) Stop the production at King Dumount Defense Facility and at the Pride of Granada Industries of the Primitive Rifleman and Shadow Hawk .
b) Put techs to work to upgrade the engine and structure facilities there to a 3025 base.
c) Use the assembly lines to create the equivalent of super muscular upgrade depots. Upgrading all the IS base mechs with better weapons and equipment, first from Industrial Dropships and stocks of equipment brought from Roche/ Waypoint 531, and latter from equipment being manufactured at the large Navarre Complex.
The Navarre Complex/other new production facilities probably have priorities/development paths that look a bit like this:
1. The production of first IS, then Clan Grade Double heat sinks.
2. The production of Improved and Enhanced weapons.
3. The production of sneaky ammunition types (Precision AC rounds) and equipment that makes weapons more accurate (Clan TarComps, Artemis IV and V), as well as enhanced imaging systems/Buffered VDMI (they have access to Blakist databases), to give their local pilots the occasional edge.
4. Given the mass of Garrison caste soldiers/equipment, the Scorps legacy of combined arms (e.g. the 24th Scorpion Cuirassiers (The Khan's Own) survived and are Combine Arms specialists), and the mentioning in the source material that certain Scorp warriors feel they needed to find their own path, the production of combined arms goodies (TAG, Narc, iNarc, Semi-Guided LRMs/Mortar rounds; Arrow/Fascam/TAG Guided Artillery rounds).
Maybe even some experimental C3/C3i/Nova ECW (Wars of Reaving and a few other sources highlights that the Scorps captured a lot of Society tech).
5. The production of first IS and then Star League era Components (first standard IS engines/cockpits/armor, and then IS grade Ferro/Endo/XL Engines).
6. Modular capability (
Mercury), and given how much the source material harps on it, I bet their exploration of RWR space leads to finding a Computer Core with detailed
Dragoon tech specs.
7.
Finally simple Clan Tech and Omnis like the
Coytl and
Lupus.
Why
first advanced equipment like TAG and then things like IS standard engines? Because Engines and Structural components require huge capital expenditures. A TAG unit is probably not munch harder to build than a small laser expect for some specialized microelectronics. They can make a few special micro components on Industrial Dropships, and then have them assembled on Navarre by semi-skilled workers.
No reason to build rush building mechs from scratchwhen you have a ton of IS standard mechs laying around that you can munt improved lasers and PPCs and TAG on... Meanwhile building even
ye old bad-ass IS standard Vlar 300 takes the creation of seriously expensive production line than will take time (which I think is the engine on the early
Lupus Omni).
Lastly, I remember reading somewhere that once the expensive R&D is done, Pharmaceutical/Biological labs to implement advances are comparatively cheap. So I bet you see things like Society grade pharmaceuticals and Viral gene therapy development programs exploding at the local Umayid and Castillain Universities. I bet Imperio Infantry proves to be surprisingly tough, strong, and smart. >:D