Technical readout 2866 Rise of the Scavengers

ST-8Ax Shootist
History:
When the Star League Defense Force wanted to
commission a command ‘Mech for use in their vaunted
“Royal” divisions, Mitchell Vehicles was an obvious
choice. An unwaveringly loyal company, they traced
their roots back to the merger of the “Big Three” North
American automakers in 2108. Having faithfully served
the Terran Hegemony since its inception and having
always maintained their numerous factories within the
traditional borders of the Hegemony, Mitchell Vehicles
was simply given the contract, bypassing the normal
procurement procedures.
Prioritizing protection and communications capability
foremost, the engineers at Mitchell designed the 70-ton
ST-8A Shootist, delivering the first unit 2621. Carrying
12 tons of MV Ferro-Fibrous armor, the Shootist carries
99% of the absolute maximum amount of armor its
Dennenbach-Mitchell Mark IV chassis can
accommodate, making it as heavily armored as the 85-
ton assault class Stalker.
For communications, Mitchell created the Domman Echo
II command, control, and communications suite. Far
more advanced than its closest rival, the Tek BattleCom,
and rivaling the capabilities of a full battle computer,
such as the Tacticon B-2000 found on the Cyclops, or
the Krupp KBC battle computer on the Lancelot, the
Echo II could not only coordinate battalion level
communications, but was also integrated with the Wayne
Marksman allowing it to share targeting and tracking
information at the lance and even company level.
Furthermore, both the Echo II and Marksman supported
numerous expansion modules, including electronic
counter measures, active probes, aerospace targeting,
anti-missile integration, Artemis IV compatibility, auto
mapping, ground-to-space communication, and polar
artillery plotting.
Eschewing the vulnerable and fragile Extralight fusion
engine in exchange for maximum survivability, the
Shootist isn’t as heavily armed as most other “Royal”
BattleMech variants. The main ranged weapon it carries
is the Blankenburg Extended-Range large laser. This
weapon has an astounding range of close to 600 meters,
approaching that of traditional long-range missiles.
But its close range weaponry is where the BattleMech
truly shines. Carrying a massive, and aptly named,
Deathgiver Class 20 autocannon, the largest ever
produced, few BattleMechs dare to close with a Shootist,
and of those who do, almost none survive the encounter.
This potent close range weapon is backed up by a pair of
Blankenburg medium pulse lasers and single head
mounted Dinatech Mk III small laser ensuring those few
‘Mechs that manage to survive the Deathgiver won’t
survive much longer.
Unfortunately for Mitchell Vehicles, in 2633 Hollis
Industries took the wrapping off its 85-ton Battlemaster
assault ‘Mech. After serving as the premier command
‘Mech for the SLDF “Royal” units for just over a decade,
the Battlemaster quickly eclipsed the 70-ton Shootist,
taking over its place as the ‘Mech of choice among
commanders.
Still, the heavy armor and devastating short range
firepower of the Shootist ensured it continued to serve on
the front-lines. Instead of being a command ‘Mech,
however, it was most often used as a bodyguard for the
‘Mech serving the role once intended to be its. Mitchell
Vehicles last factory on Graham IV was destroyed in
2775 just as the First Succession War began. It has
since become all but extinct.
Notable ‘Mechs and MechWarriors:
Captain Deegan “Roach” O’Riley
Stationed on Concord, on the border between House
Steiner and House Marik, Fuchida’s Fusiliers have
watched the planet Amity swing back and forth between
the two Great Houses at least a dozen times.
During their most recent attempt to retake the planet in
conjunction with units from the Marik Milita, the Fusiliers
faced off against the Second Donegal Guards. Among
the units fielded by the Second Donegal was a rare
Shootist. Staying well clear of it, Captain O’Riley
ordered his Archers and Crusaders to concentrate their
LRM fire on the 70-ton ‘Mech.
True to its reputation, the Shootist absorbed a stunning
number of volleys from the two fire support ‘Mechs,
forcing Captain O’Riley to engage it in his Wolverine. No
sooner had he closed with the 70-ton ‘Mech, cutting off
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its attempt to close with his fire support lance, than the
entire right side of his Wolverine was obliterated by its
assault autocannon.
Lucky for him, the damage had already been done, and
with the time Captain O’Riley had bought them with his
Wolverine, the two missile boats were finally able to
bring the Shootist down, although it also succeeded in
heavily damaging one of the Fusliler Archer as well.
After the battle, Captain O’Riley claimed the Shootist as
salvage, ordering it repaired to replace his lost
Wolverine. Using battlefield salvage, the Fusilier
technicians repaired the Shootists’ Vox 280 using
shielding from the unit stockpiles originally intended for
repairing the units Archers and Warhammers.
The Deathgiver autocannon was replaced by a Pontiac
100 from a scrapped Victor, and both the large laser and
medium lasers were replaced using plentiful salvage
from multiple Donegal Guard Zeus’ that were destroyed
in the fighting. The only original weapon remaining on
the Captain’s rebuilt Shootist, was the Dinatech small
laser, but technicians were forced to remove it due to
damage. The armor was also replaced with Riese-500,
stockpiled for the unit’s Crusaders.
Even though the Fusilier’s won the battle, they ultimate
lost the war, and Amity currently remains in Lyran hands.
Alpha Strike Statistics
TP: BM SZ: 3 TMM: +1
MV: 8” Role: Brawler
Damage S: 4 M: 4 L: 0
OV: 0
Armor: O O O O O
Sructure: O O O O O
Special: AC 2/2/-