6 replies to this topic

[Iacov]

hey guys

didn't know if this better fits the outreach subforum...but guess it's a more general BT question

what are the (common as well as uncommon) channels through which mercs obtain their mechs?

do they purchase them from the manufacturers? do they get them by raiding? salvage? black market?

i'm asking especially because of the catapult K2...would there be any chance by 3051 that mercs could have get their hands on a catapult k2? if so, how? if not by canon, what would be a possibility?

cheers!

[Steven McWayne]

Stealing, Looting, Buying

[Egomane]

Iacov, on 16 March 2014 - 12:55 AM, said:

do they purchase them from the manufacturers? do they get them by raiding? salvage? black market?

All of these really, except raiding! They are mercenaries, not pirates. Unless they are hired for the raid and the captured mechs are part of the payment.

• Some mercenaries purchase from the manufacturers. The Wolf Dragoons even manufacture some themself.
  
• Some buy them on worlds like Outreach or Solaris. Remember that a whole lot of mechs are privatly owned by the mechwarrior who pilots it. Sometimes as far back as several generations of mechwarriors. Some of those sell them, to gain some money fast.
  
• Some mercs salvage disabled mechs from the battlefield an repair them. It depends on their contract, how much salvage they can keep and if they get to select first.
  
• The black market is also always an option. If you need a mech fast, no questions asked, with no attachment you care of, it's the place to go to. Most of the time it is only a secondary source, as mechs are rather freely traded.
  
• Also some merc units get special access to purchase mechs from their contractee, recieve them as part of the payment or as gifts for exceptional service.

In the case of the Cat-K2, for example, it could be salvaged during a contract on the draconis boarder. It's not unussual at all to see special house variants of mechs in the ranks of some merc unit.

[Tyrnea Smurf]

It would depend on era, as in the Star League days mercs could buy direct from manufactures (although with limits on what could be purchased) while in the Succession Wars era merc would have been limited to secondary markets, black markets, salvage and cashes recovery as what factories produced largely was earmarked for House militaries use.

Although after the 4th Succession war with the recovery of Star League era production standards we know it became possible to order and have built battlemechs - as Davis McCall from the Grey Death Legion used his savings from his decades in the Legion to have built a Star League spec Highlander built in the 3040's.

[CCC Dober]

From what I've read in the novels, there are a couple of ways, how Mechs ended up in the hands of a Mechwarrior.

1. inheritance
2. "parting gift" from a unit
3. going AWOL/theft
4. battlefield salvage
5. tournament price
6. prototype testing
7. black market item
8. bought/built legally on Solaris 7, Outreach etc.

As far as mercenaries go, there are some among them that gravitate more towards the shadier side of the business. While exemplary units like Wolf's Dragoons for example have their own factories (a unique situation) and a reputation to lose.

If you really need a Mech that is really hard to get, I guess "liberating" it from the clutches of Comstar is always an option. Easier said than done though heh.

[Nathan Foxbane]

Depends on if the merc (as an individual) is a lone operator or part of a unit too. Lone operators get them in all of the above mentioned ways. Mercs in units may also have their 'Mech issued to them just like in regular militaries. In this case they do not own the 'Mech, the unit does. The 'Mech will likely stay with the unit if the merc changes units.

[9erRed]

Greetings all,

Keep in mind that during this time period there were ongoing active "search's" for any "hidden" old Star League base's or storage locations. Many of these found locations yielded lostech materials, including Mech's. The Merc Company's were always on the hunt for any details of "lost" locations when ever they were active in different Factions locations.

As stated above, all these options for possessing a Mech were available to the Merc Pilot and Units.
Once the Mech was "tuned" to the individual pilot it needed a complete "wipe" if a different pilot was assigned. Necessitating training of both the pilot and Mech to fine tune them both for battlefield operation. Simply jumping into any Mech was not done as the security protocols for the neurohelmet could kill the pilot, (or thief) but there were some covert methods that could "get around these".

Once we get CW into this game it will be interesting to see how the different Merc Companies will "pay" there Pilots. From the earlier notes it was stated that the Merc Company Commander could set the % each pilot will receive after each battle, and how much "tax" goes to the Merc Company. (required to Pay for the Jumpships transport and Planetary defences upgrades.)

9erRed