Periphery mercenaries and/or pirates - theoretical.

[Auman]

I'm interested in organizing a deep periphery mercenary group that is less than ethical. Pirates that accept paid gigs from sinister ne'er do-wells. I want to know how you would create such a force and rationalize your mech choices canonically. I have access to miniatures from 3025 to the Dark Age, I'd like to throw in a mix of complete garbage and high end, even clan, equipment. I have ideas for how to do that myself, but the input you guys could give through your own ideas would really help make these guys the best villains that could be fielded against my friends.

Tl;dr Unethical pirate-mercenary organization from the deep periphery with little to no physical limit on what 'Mechs they field, rationalized canonically and organized effectively.

Edit:

So I've organized my force around these lines. The Co-Prosperity Sphere of Auman, having secured a cache of hidden Battlemechs in their cluster of the deep periphery, created clandestine force simply known as Special Unit. Their duty is similar to that of the Wolf's Dragoons, because that's a pretty good idea and should be replicated. They will go into the Inner Sphere and collect information about their nearest neighbors, the Lyran Alliance. Other, less heavily armed, teams will of course travel to the Hanseatic League for the same purpose. Vascilia, being a well developed and independently wealthy, high tech, planet, never had Battlemech technology... The colony having been formed years before the advent of them.

I mean, I had a lot of ideas before Interstellar Expeditions came out that I thought were fairly unique. But when I read the book, I realized my ideas were already in the heads of the guys at Catalyst... Because we're smart guys. I could explain it in a long and drawn out way and reinvent the wheel, or I can just use canon examples and you guys will get it on your own. Vascilia is like the Axumite Providence, but they became aware of the Sphere on their own. They created a shady special forces team to act as an expeditionary command that can protect the planet's interests and gather intelligence, similar to Wolf's Dragoons. Auman, a nation of a couple hundred million, are also building relations with less well off systems in the local area and building alliances. Their short term goal is to acquire advanced technology, especially more working examples of K-F drives.

Tl;dr Small periphery realm with a healthy economy and a respectable level of technology is preparing to maintain their sovereignty. These are the mechs they have.

Special Unit 2:

Direct Action Team 1

-Orion.
-Talos.
-Toro.
-Phoenix.

Direct Action Team 2

-Hammerhands.
-Locust.
-Helepolis.
-Catapult.

With one Crab in reserve.

[Hawkeye Jim]

You need to decide what their origins are. The original equiptment would be leftovers from where they came from. Then decide where they're operating from. Captured equipment would be flavored by what's common in the area they raid.

For example, if they most often raid the LC, then Lyran designs would be most common to them.

[Auman]

Yeah, I already have my end figured out... Long lost periphery colony becomes aware of the Inner Sphere again, creates shady special ops group to go out and acquire intelligence and technology to create a bulwark against the civilization thought destroyed centuries before. But I'm just curious about how you guys would make your own pirates/unscrupulous mercenaries... Because, for starters, it's fun to talk about and secondly, I think we could all inspire each other's work through modest collaboration.

[Hawkeye Jim]

Most pirates start as a mercenary or house unit that went rogue. Your premise is different, but you still need a location. They should be outside one or another of the Houses, and what they obtain by their efforts should reflect that.

[Nav_Alpha]

Hmm, sounds like a good idea.  I'd suggest a base of primitive machines, like those found I TRO: 3075.
These are the machines that were new when they lost contact with the rest of the inner sphere.

Where would you be setting them?

[Auman]

They're located in the deep periphery, near to the Hanseatic League and the Lyran Alliance. I've got stuff like the Phoenix and the Helepolis... As well as the Timber Wolves and just tons of other things. I plan to take advantage of the busy scene out there to build my campaign, which is starting post FedCom civil war. But like I said, I really want to hear how you would do it, where and with what combat equipment.

I've been reading the historicals, I'm starting on Liberation of Terra now and have read all the others. I've read Interstellar Expeditions and the periphery source books..
 Mercenary supplemental I and II, the War of Reaving... It's safe to say I'm more or less up to date on the current fluff other than the Jihad, which is a big read.

Tl;dr I think I have all the information I need to do the deed... I just want to hear from others about how they would make their own pirates and or mercenaries.

[Hawkeye Jim]

Pirates aren't likely to have Clan tech. Their tech level and skill aren't up to taking it away by combat.

[Nav_Alpha]

Pirates aren't likely to have Clan tech. Their tech level and skill aren't up to taking it away by combat.

I think of at least two canon examples - pirates encountered in The Hunters by task force serpent and Hopper Morrison's timber wolf

[truetanker]

My AUverse has a colony that is like the Mercanary culture your looking for.

Mostly Age of War designs, healthy dose of conventionals, both Infantry and Vehicular. Light on mechs, mostly Mediums with Heavies used as Assualt-variants. Nothing heavier than 75 tons.

TT

[Dave Talley]

given the location and era you could easily fluff it as a unit running from
the FC civil war jumped in, the locals still have aerospace and captured the ships
then started using it to recon and raid while learning more about whats happened
in the last century or so since the last traders came thru

[Hawkeye Jim]

Clan tech couldn't be availiable until some years after the initial Clan invasion.

[Auman]

I've updated my original post with the addition of a little background and the organization scheme for my Pirate/Mercenary/Shady special forces teams.

[Hawkeye Jim]

If they secured a hidden cache of mechs, maybe it's a leftover from stuff Amaris was going to ship to one of the other Periphery Regimes, but it was overlooked and not delivered. Since his state was outside the LA, that's where a lot of his equipment originated.

In that case you could use designs he would have had, or even some older Star League equipment.

[Auman]

That's the idea. Secret army equipment that they didn't have room for on DropShips and stuff that was held back for administrative reasons.

[truetanker]

Needza mora TANKZA!

TT

[Hawkeye Jim]

If you're going with Rim Worlds mechs, you might look into the Jackrabbit, Shadow Hawk, Champion, Warhammer and Thorn mechs. They seem to be common in the Random Assignment tables for the RWR. Common mechs are the ones most likely to be shipped out to other secret forces.

[Auman]

True Tanker... This force will be supported by at least a company of GHQ M1A2 TUSKs and motorized infantry in the form of MRAPs. Also AH-1s because I appreciate classics. And of course, good old fashioned infantry. This force being an elite unit with no expenses spared. When it comes to the Mechs, I'm making due with what I have or what is currently in the mail.

[Snimm]

I might spin it as a Comstar Explorer Corps ship that got stranded in space but lucked out in finding a habitable planet and lived there for a generation or two.  That would mean they have some technology that isn't too primitive.

[Auman]

You could spin it the other way... A colony that launched in the 2250s that ended up on a world that was capable of supporting the hell out of life. The colony remained healthy and left to its own devices, developing a sustainable 3025 technology base for weaponry and a high quality of life.

Tl ; dr aloof for centuries, these people were spared the worst and are doing well for themselves.

[RunandFindOut]

http://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,21235.0.html
Is an older thread where I did a write-up for a disreputable mercenary unit.  Needless to say any unit with a mech named Napalm Sticks to Kids is operating under permissive Rules of Engagement and probably doesn't worry much about collateral damage.

I've got a partially written entry in my notebooks for another under the title "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap."  Which is even more politically incorrect and would probably have fit in well under the command of Genghis Khan or Tamerlane.

[Ajax_Wolf]

I've updated my original post with the addition of a little background and the organization scheme for my Pirate/Mercenary/Shady special forces teams.

Shady SF team, posing as shady merchants with shady merc bodyguards who turn pirate if need be?