6 replies to this topic

[Ionise]

Hi all, lore-noob here,

Just wanted to ask what the significant differences are in 'mech design and deployment between the clans and Inner Sphere, specifically during the clan invasion of Inner Sphere space.

I've read a bit here and there already. In my head it's pretty analogous with WWII, in that IS 'mechs are inferior in 'mech vs 'mech combat, and favour the use of mediums and lights in tandem with infantry and tanks to attack troops and static positions, using air support and artillery, etc. to destroy clan 'mechs. Meanwhile the clans use expensive and powerful heavies to hunt 'mechs, favouring long ranges and ambush attacks.

Thanks for any replies

[martian]

Ionise, on 16 December 2016 - 05:33 AM, said:

Hi all, lore-noob here,

Just wanted to ask what the significant differences are in 'mech design and deployment between the clans and Inner Sphere, specifically during the clan invasion of Inner Sphere space.

I've read a bit here and there already. In my head it's pretty analogous with WWII, in that IS 'mechs are inferior in 'mech vs 'mech combat, and favour the use of mediums and lights in tandem with infantry and tanks to attack troops and static positions, using air support and artillery, etc. to destroy clan 'mechs. Meanwhile the clans use expensive and powerful heavies to hunt 'mechs, favouring long ranges and ambush attacks.

Thanks for any replies

The majority of what you wrote is true.

However, you have missed the greatest difference between the Clans and the Inner Sphere: Clan OmniMechs and their versatility. The ability to change the loadout of their 'Mechs practically overnight gave them a big advantage.

During the early years of the Clan Invasion, the Inner Sphere had nothing comparable. And after the initial contact the IS needed years to deploy their own OmniMechs - and even the majority of those OmniMechs was mediocre (and often outright bad).

And of course, there were two additional important Clan advantages:
1) more advanced Clan technology and weapons (however, significant part of it has been retconed later)
2) Clan battle armor trooper - Elementals

[Metus regem]

Not exactly accurate....


Clans use a ritualized form of combat, where a battle for an entire world can be decided between two mechs, the out come of that engagement is binding in Clan society. It starts with two commanders standing across from each other bidding fewer and fewer troops to try and out do the other. Also the Clans generally speaking do not do ambush tactics, as they announce the forces they are going to use and announce where they are going to be. The Clans also do not really do "full scale" warfare, they don't generally do planetary bombardment, except in a few extremely rare cases, nor do they use WMD's (weapons of mass destruction (nukes, mass drivers, bio-weapons, ect....).

IS On the other hand, use combined arms (infantry, armour, mech, artillery and aerospace assets), are trained for "full scale" warfare, fight using diversions, ambushes, raids as well as shock and awe tactics.

The main reason the IS was getting their asses handed to them in the beginning is due to troop placements, troop quality, bad leadership and a tech disparity. Once the IS forces had gotten their veteran forces with good leadership and top end equipment in place to blunt the Clan blitz through the IS, the IS forces started to turn the tide against the Clans, when the IS went "Full Scale Warfare" against the Clans, they wiped out Clan Smoke Jaguar, in Operation Bulldog and Task force Serpent. Like complete annihilation of that Clan, with enough brutality shown that it made the other Clans stop and think about what happened.

[Ionise]

That clears it up - thanks very much

[Felix von Buelow]

Just to add a little more:

In a battle clan pilots would rather duel 1on1 with an enemy while no other pilot can interfere in their honorable fight. On the other hand, as already mentioned, IS pilots would fight on a total warfare scale, assisting each other and so on.

[Karl Streiger]

Somebody should mention that the average foe Clan Wolf had to face during the invasion was a single tank bataillon (at best)
A lot of planets changed ownership without even a fight.

Another point might be maintenance.
Where Omni Tech never got very successful within the IS - reasons might be that the modular rigging of equipment was hard to keep working under field conditions.
Look a Clan Mech was build to be used in short battles - even when it was full scaled like in MW2 the end of each battle was terminated.

Something like this was not true for the SDLF and the succession army's as well - a Mech need to work over days it might have been possible to build light weight lasers or LRMs but maybe you need to change parts after a dozen usages.
Given the role of a Battlemech for IS troops the worst possible outcome would have been to pull your units back as soon as a breach was created in enemy lines.
Take for example the stereotype Cavalry Mech the Dragon - huge ammunition stock piles fast with good protection in the rear - this mech was created to break through and use his explosive ammunition to destroy rearward installations - would work much better vs buildings and unarmored humans when compared with a Ppc.
Unfortunately such behavior is not reflected much in the TT combat rules, or might even be cannon - just logical thinking

Virtually Clans were superior in TT games because players played tests not full scale warfare there was always an end.

[Metus regem]

Karl Streiger, on 21 December 2016 - 12:04 AM, said:

Somebody should mention that the average foe Clan Wolf had to face during the invasion was a single tank bataillon (at best)
A lot of planets changed ownership without even a fight.

Just to expand upoon that, one of my favourit things about the Clan invasion happend on:

Sheliak, in December of 3051.

The planet was won for Clan Ghost Bear by playing a game of American Football.

From the Sarna.net entry:

Clan Invasion

Situated deep within the Draconis Combine, Sheliak was a minor planet with few resources. In fact, it was of such little military value that even during the Clan Invasion, when Sheliak suddenly found itself near the front lines, the DCMS did not assign any troops to defend it. Thus in December 3051, when Clan Ghost Bear invasion forces appeared over Sheliak, the planetary government was in a state of panic and agreed to a desperate plan proposed by football commissioner Jimmy "Straight Jim" Lorne.
Confident that the Clans knew nothing of the game of football, a challenge was issued by Sheliak's government. If the Ghost Bears won a game against the Sheliak Professional Football League, they would claim the planet; if they lost, then Sheliak would remain free. Unfortunately for both Sheliak's population and their football players, the Bears not only knew the rules of the game, but deployed a team of eight-foot-tall Elementals from the 68th Striker Cluster's 78th Elemental Support Binary. During the match at Kurita Stadium, the Sheliak All-Star team was utterly smashed and lost the game, 84 to 3. During the post-game show the planetary government formally ceded control of Sheliak to the Ghost Bear Clan.



http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Sheliak

Now the part that I find ever so amusing is that the defenders actually managed to get 3 points on the board against a team of Elementals!