Dateline: Exeter A spokesperson for BattleTechnology announced this week that a photograph of the long-awaited CTF- IX Cataphract heavy 'Mech had been received at the magazine's Editorial Offices on Exeter. The photo, if genuine, would be the public's first glimpse of this dramatic new House Liao BattleMech design. The elusive Cataphract, photographed on Tikonov. "The photo was taken by a long-range electronic imaging system and so it doesn't show much detail," said BattleTechnology's Barbara Morgan. "But it does suggest that the Cataphract must be almost ready for deployment." The photo was taken by freelance combat photographer Vincent St. Andrews in the vicinity of the Earthwerks plant on Tikonov. Critics have suggested that the controversial Cataphract photo is in fact the heavily-retouched image of a Marauder. Various intelligence estimates have suggested that the CTF-IX, when completed, would weigh 70 tons and be armed with an autocannon/10, a PPC, and four medium lasers. These sources report that the Cataphract could become the mainstay of elite Liao regiments, capable of holding its own even against heavy Davion 'Mechs such as the Zeus and the BattleMaster. House Liao sources have refused comment. BattleTechnology News Service Liao Weapons Maker Reveals System Problem Lyran Galahad Underway Wedding Preparations on Earth Friction Along the Kurita Frontier First Crucis Lancers Arrive on Mira for Celebrations Wolf's Dragoons Battle Draconis Regulars Candid Camera Captures Cataphract Special Combat Correspondent Killed Back to BattleTechnology 5 Table of Contents Back to BattleTechnology List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 1988 by Pacific Rim Publishing. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com