Or the ability to get through fire & water obstacles . . . Prims can do that, right?
Yes, that's what I was counting on. Some sample missions for a CD Pathfinder:
1. Firefighting in high threat environments like chemical plants (via Fluid Gun).
2. Wilderness firefighting. Presence of hands allows Pathfinder to break down trees or dig primitive fire breaks, plus fluid gun.
3. Flood damage repair. Pulling trees and building parts out of reservoirs, cities, etc.
4. As 3, but for tornado/hurricane damage.
5. Search and Rescue of lost hikers. Probably want to keep the Beagle Probe for this one.
6. With the recent eruption on Hawaii, volcano defense preparation.
Dig ditches to divert lava flow, or act as a forward observer for other CD units. (On second thought, dedicated construction equipment would probably be better for the ditch digging.)
One area we didn't even talk about is supporting something like an Interstellar Expeditions operation or hostile environment exploration. A Pathfinder isn't cheap, but it's cheaper than a BattleMech. Covering a large amount of ground relatively quickly to find areas of interest is possible. And given that it's a Primitive design (and I'm removing the weapons), government agencies are probably going to give you less of a hassle bringing it on world. Maybe I could even equip it with a Remote Sensor Dispenser for scientific purposes.