Sun Zhang Academy Chooses # 2 "Most Perfect Assault 'Mech" Overview Late in the Star League era, Rebel Industrial Technologies began experimenting with mounting artillery pieces on a BattleMech chassis. The Huntress is the most successful of those experiments. The Huntress was originally intended to be a lighter and more mobile 'Mech, but the size and weight of the Thumpers forced designers to use a 100 ton chassis. While not fast, the Huntress is far less restricted in terrain than other mobile artillery pieces. The Huntress can bring fire support virtually anywhere. The Huntresswas never produced in great numbers, but as it was builtf rorn highly reliable components, many of the 'Mechs still survive today. Approximately 30 to 40 functional 'Mechs are scattered about the Inner Sphere, most in the possession of Houses Steiner and Kurita. Capabilities: Two Thumper artillery pieces are the main weaponry of the Huntress, giving the 'Mech fair fire support capabilities. A large ammunition supply ensures that the Huntress can deliver a sustained artillery barrage. The Thumpers also make the Huntress an excellent anti-VTOL platform. Itwas, however, necessary to weaken the 'Mech's torsos slightly (removal of three internal structure boxes) in order to mount such big guns. While this has reduced the overall strength of the Huntress, there has been no noticeable effect on the 'Mech's performance. Other weaponry includes two Delta Dart LRM 10-racks and two Martell Medium Lasers. This makes the Huntress better armed and batter able to defend itself than any other mobile artillery platform. It is, however, somewhat undergunned for an assault 'Mech and best kept back from heavy fighting. HNT-1S Huntress Mass: 100 Tons Chassis: Reb Ll Power Plant: Vlar 300 Cruising Speed:32.4 kph Maximum Speed: 54.0 kph Jump Jets: None Jump Capacity: None Armor: StarSlab Armament: 2 Thumper Artillery Pieces 2 Delta Dart LRM 1 O-Racks 2 Martell Medium Lasers Manufacturer: Rebel Industrial Technologies Inc Communications System:ROMTECH 100 Targeting/Tracking System: ROMTECH125J Type: Tonnage HNT-1 S Huntress 100.0 Internal Structure: 10.0 Engine: Vlar 300 19.0 Walking MPs: 3 Running MPs: 5 Jumping MPs: 0 Heat Sinks 14 4.0 Gyro: 3.0 Cockpit: 3.0 Armor Factor: 240 15.0 Location: Internal Structure: Armor Value Head 3 9 Center Torso: 3140/15 Rt/Lt Torso: 1833/10 Rt/Lt Arm: 17 20 Rt/Lt Leg: 21 25 Weapons and Ammo: Location Critical Tons Thumper RT 15 15.0 Thumper LT 15 15.0 Ammo (Thumper) 40 CT 2 2.0 LRM 10 RA 2 5.0 LRM 10 LA 2 5.0 Ammo (LRM) 12 RA 1 1.0 Ammo (LRM) 12 LA 1 1.0 Medium Laser RA 1 1.0 Medium Laser LA 1 1.0 Battle History When the Star League Defense Forces invaded the Rim Worlds Republic world of Crellacor in late 2767, they easily defeated all the planetary defenders except for one regiment holed up in Fortress Green. Fortress Green was an attacker's night mare, invisible from the air, in the center of dense jungle impassable to all but 'Mechs and infantry, and with fortifications so impressive that the base was nearly impregnable. A token force would have been able to hold it indefinitely. This posed a serious problem for General Kerensky. He did not want to waste time in lengthy siege, nor did he want to leave an entire 'Mech regiment behind. The General also adamantly refused to resort to nuclear weapons to clear out the base. His solution to the dilemma was to bring a Huntress battalion to Crellacor. It took nearly a week for the 'Mechs to crash their way through the jungle until they were in firing range. The battalion then unleashed a tremendous artillery barrage on Fortress Green. More than 1400 shells rained down on the base, destroying the outer defenses. The Star League forces poured thought the breaches and quickly subdued the stunned Rim Worlders. Although it played a pivotal role in the battle, the Huntress battalion itself never came within sight of the enemy. Back to BattleTechnology 14 Table of Contents Back to BattleTechnology List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 1991 by Pacific Rim Publishing. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com