MLN-OW Wizard
Overview
The attack on Outreach and the expulsion of complicit or questionable commands from the MRBC fractured the mercenary trade in 3067. While many ejected commands chose to resettle at Galatea or Solaris VII, by the end of the decade, mercenaries were operating from over a dozen worlds along the Lyran Commonwealth and Free Worlds League border.
These resource-rich worlds, like Giausar and Chertan, immediately received industrial funding and development from the Word of Blake, channeled through their new arrivals. Within a few years, they were developing new ‘Mechs like the Lookout and harboring new separatist movements which would lead to the formation of the Mercenaries’ Alliance.
The Wizard was the second of three new machines and is by far the most popular, seeing deployment in almost every mercenary command and most Successor States. It was based on a much older design, the Merlin, in much the same way as the Alliance’s other two native-built OmniMechs.
Capabilities
The original Merlin was a rugged, reliable machine designed to serve multiple battlefield roles. The addition of omni abilities has only expanded its flexibility. Its lack of advanced construction components keeps repair and maintenance of its omni components to a minimum.
The Wizard is mobile for its size, especially when a variant mounts jump jets, but its standard engines makes it far slower than most of the machines it would face on the modern battlefield.
Almost all loadouts carry support equipment to balance this drawback. Target acquisition gear and advanced command, control, and communications equipment are the most common, but NARC and electronics countermeasures systems have also been reported. Mercenaries’ Alliance units often use a Wizard as a forward unit to weather enemy fire while relaying targeting information back to its lance or level.
Battle History
The Wizard was front and center for efforts to quash the Domestic Mercenary Zone in 3083. Both Tharkad and Atreus had to scramble to redeploy units to the area after mercenary garrisons and many local militias sided with local governors.
The piecemeal military response, which required pulling units away from existential threats to both states, surrendered tempo to local defenders, who could rearm, repair, and retask more quickly. No unit in the nascent Alliance’s forces could do that faster than the Wizard.
Even damaged Wizards were worth fighting over. At least two engagements during the ‘83 Border War were over downed Wizards deemed salvageable.
At Mustafa’s Rake on Eilenburg, Tao’s Skilled Killers were decimated trying to repel a Lyran landing. A Black Knight severed the legs of Major Boris Brett’s Wizard and the Commonwealth battle line marched past the downed machine. The Major occasionally powered up his ravaged OmniMech, fired shots into the enemy line, then powered down again after receiving a return salvo. Satisfied that the Wizard had been finally destroyed, the line would move on until Brett powered up again.
When Brett crawled his Wizard-- affectionately named Hilux--back to allied forces, his battle ROMs contained enough intelligence to recreate most of the enemy TO&E.
The Wizard is so indelibly linked with the idea of being the first to work and the last to leave that a surprising number of younger MechWarriors believe the phrase originated with the Chertan Artisanal MechWorks ad campaign for it.
Variants
The Prime configuration is often referred to as the Merlin. It mimics its ancestor and often serves similar roles in combat..
The trio of long-range missile launchers on the A loadout are often used to lay mines. Four jump jets allow it to skirt around its own minefields. In combat, it uses a TAG on enemies while doing some damage with a trio of lasers.
The B loadout is designed for standoff fighting with accuracy supported by an improved C3 computer. It forgoes jump jets to afford additional heat sinks.
Light mech hunting is the role of the final configuration. Its primary weapon is a light autocannon, with enhanced accuracy from two tons of specialty ammunition and an improved C3 computer.
The Mercenaries’ Alliance has also issued upgrade kits for exiting Merlins. They feature a seven-shot mutli-missile launcher with Artemis IV and CASE in place of the long range missile rack. TAG replaces the right-hand medium laser. The upgrade makes handling heat more difficult, but integrates the ancient ‘mech with Alliance forces.
MLN-OW Wizard
Type/Model: Wizard MLN-OW
Tech: Inner Sphere / 3082
Config: Biped OmniMech
Manufactured: Mercenaries’ Alliance
Fielded:
Mercenaries’ Alliance (Common)
Dragoons Pact (Uncommon)
Lyran Commonwealth (Uncommon)
Free Worlds League-Captain (Uncommon)
Mass: 60 tons
Equipment: Crits Mass
Int. Struct.: 6.00
33 points
Engine:150 Fusion 6 11.50
Walking MP: 4
Running MP: 6
Jumping MP: 0
Heat Sinks: 10 Single 1 0.00
(Loc: 1 RT)
Gyro: 4 2.00
Cockpit: 5 3.00
Actuators: 12 0.00
L: Sh+UA R: Sh+UA
Armor Factor: 0 9.00
144 pts
Internal Structure Armor Value
Head: 3 9
Center Torso: 18 22
Center Torso (Rear): 5
L/R Side Torso: 13 13/13
L/R Side Torso (Rear): 5/5
L/R Arm: 9 13/13
L/R Leg: 13 17/17
Weapons and Equipment Loc Crits Tons
---------------------------------------
Primary Configuration
Jump Jets RL 2 2.00
Jump Jets LL 2 2.00
Heat Sink RT 2 2.00
Heat Sink LT 2 2.00
Heat Sink RA 2 2.00
Heat Sink LA 2 2.00
PPC RT 3 7.00
LRM-5 RT 1 2.00
Machine Gun LT 1 0.50
Flamer LT 1 1.00
Medium Laser RA 1 1.00
Medium Laser LA 1 1.00
@LRM-5 (24) CT 1 1.00
@MG (1/2) (100) CT 1 0.50
Lower Arm Actuator RA 1 0.00
Lower Arm Actuator LA 1 0.00
Crits & Tons Left: 26 0.0
A Configuration
Jump Jets RL 2 2.00
Jump Jets LL 2 2.00
Heat Sink RT 4 4.00
Heat Sink LA 2 2.00
CASE LT 1 0.50
Small Laser CT 1 0.50
Large Laser RT 2 5.00
3 LRM-5s LT 3 6.00
TAG RA 1 1.00
Medium Laser LA 1 1.00
@LRM-5 (Semi-G) (24) LT 1 1.00
@LRM-5 (Thunder) (12) LT 1 1.00
Lower Arm Actuator RA 1 0.00
Lower Arm Actuator LA 1 0.00
Crits & Tons Left: 27 0.0
B Configuration
Heat Sink RT 1 1.00
CASE RT 1 0.50
Heat Sink RA 3 3.00
Heat Sink LA 3 3.00
LRM-10 RT 2 5.00
Improved C3 Computer LT 2 2.50
Large Laser RA 2 5.00
Large Laser LA 2 5.00
@LRM-10 (Semi-G) (12) RT 1 1.00
Lower Arm Actuator RA 1 0.00
Lower Arm Actuator LA 1 0.00
Crits & Tons Left: 36 0.0
C Configuration
Jump Jets RL 2 2.00
Jump Jets LL 2 2.00
Heat Sink CT 1 1.00
Medium Laser CT 1 1.00
Autocannon/10 RT 7 12.00
CASE RT 1 0.50
Improved C3 Computer LT 2 2.50
TAG RA 1 1.00
Medium Laser LA 1 1.00
@AC/10 (Precision) (5) RT 1 1.00
@AC/10 (AP) (5) RT 1 1.00
@AC/10 (10) RT 1 1.00
Lower Arm Actuator RA 1 0.00
Lower Arm Actuator LA 1 0.00
Crits & Tons Left: 27 0.0
2 comments:
Hah, Tao's Skilled Killers, better than what I'd have come up with. You drop a lot of things like that into these entries?
Yeah. An in joke takes the fluff places that I wouldn't if I were just making "support 'mech fluff #47."
I think the Sheriff notable history is Die Hard. Finding the balance between "enough data points to create a reference" and "why are there so many irrelevant details in this write-up?" is a real bitch.
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