Type: Harasser Missile Platform Technology Base: Inner Sphere Movement Type: Hover Tonnage: 25
Battle Value: 413
Equipment Mass
Internal Structure: 2.5
Engine: 120 8
Type: ICE
Cruising MP: 10
Flank MP: 15
Heat Sinks: 0 0
Control Equipment: 1.5
Lift Equipment: 2.5
Power Amplifi er: 0
Turret: 1
Armor Factor: 24 1.5
Armor
Value
Front 5
R/L Side 5/5
Rear 4
Turret 5
Weapons and Ammo Location Tonnage
2 SRM 6 Turret 6
Ammo (SRM) 30 Body 2
J. EDGAR LIGHT HOVER TANK 30
Mass: 25 tons
Movement Type: Hover Power Plant: 145 Leenex Fusion Cruising Speed: 118 kph Flank Speed: 183 kph Armor: StarSlab/7 Armament:
1 Diverse Optics Type 18 Medium Laser 2 Harvester SRM 2 Missile Racks Manufacturer: Olivetti Weaponry,
Pinard Protectorates Limited Primary Factory: Sudeten (Olivetti), Perdition (Pinard)
Communications System: Alphard Original Two (Olivetti), Neil 5000 (Pinard)
Targeting and Tracking System: RCA Instatrac Mk. II (Olivetti), TracTex Alpha-1 (Pinard)
Overview
The J. Edgar is one of the few vehicles produced by the Alphard Trading Corporation. To expand its market and increase profi ts, ATC decided to make a number of both military and civilian vehicles to sell to any world, govern-ment, or person willing to buy them. Although the vehicles sold fairly well initially, the diversifi cation failed as the years passed, and ATC closed down all vehicle manufacturing fa-cilities in 2732.
The J. Edgar was the last military vehicle that the Alphard Trading Corporation produced. Designed as a cheap, fast, and eff ective fi ghter, the J. Edgar was only a marginal success during its ten-year production run. Many
expected the J. Edgar to quietly disappear, but Pinard Protectorates Ltd. licensed the design and began to manu-facture it for the Taurian Concordat in 2755. In 3006, the newly created Olivetti Weaponry also began to manufac-ture the vehicle, though they neglected to license the de-sign from ATC; that fact embroiled both parties in litigation that has dragged on for decades (later complicated by the Jade Falcon conquest of Sudeten).
Capabilities
The J. Edgar is a fast and sturdy lightweight hovercraft.
Thanks to the 145 Leenex power plant, it can reach an im-pressive 183 kph—a speed few ground vehicles can match.
This speed and the unlimited endurance bestowed by a fu-sion engine make the J. Edgar perfect for reconnaissance and raiding operations.
The Succession Wars have taken their toll on the J.
Edgar. Both Olivetti and Pinard Protectorates have replaced the original Diverse Optics Type 2 medium laser with the more readily available (but less accurate) Type 18 model.
The TracTex Alpha-1 Targeting and Tracking System in-stalled by ATC is obsolete, and replacement parts are dif-fi cult to dif-fi nd. The Neil 5000 has become the standard com-munications replacement unit.
Unlike the laser weaponry and targeting systems, the Harvester Corporation’s SRM 2 rack were part of the original specifi cations and remains a popular missile system. They are fairly eff ective against vehicles and infantry but pose little threat to a ’Mech.
Deployment
The J. Edgar was used extensively by the reconstituted Taurian Defense Force during the New Vandenburg Revolt.
The vehicle subsequently became a core unit in Taurian light armor formations.
The Draconis Combine bought many of ATC’s original run of production, but two centuries of attrition reduced their numbers signifi cantly. Increasingly diffi cult to main-tain, most of the survivors were relegated to armor units supporting the Legion of Vega and the Ghost Regiments.
Both commands used the speedy J. Edgar to great eff ect as swift raiders during the 3039 counter-off ensive against the Federated Suns.
Old J. Edgars still occasionally appear with planetary militia and mercenary commands. The Com Guards also fi eld a limited number drawn from their vast stockpiles of mothballed Star League-era equipment on Terra.
The Federated Suns gained access to new J. Edgars through the alliance with the Lyran Commonwealth that created the formidable Federated Commonwealth. While the Lyrans parcel out their vehicles piecemeal to fi ll gaps in their scout and light armor companies, the Davions prefer to concentrate the vehicle in companies attached to the Avalon Hussars and Deneb Light Cavalry.
Variants
The Alphard Trading Company never produced any variants, but a number of fi eld modifi cations have appeared.
Common variants of the J. Edgar replace the missile systems with quad machine guns or two vehicle fl amers.
During the Second and Third Succession Wars, fusion engines became increasingly diffi cult to acquire, and those that were available were usually reserved for BattleMechs.
Many J. Edgars that received engine damage were repaired using readily available internal combustion engines. This substitution resulted in a signifi cant degradation of per-formance, reducing the top speed to 129 kph. Structural modifi cations required to fi t the new power plant also ne-cessitated the removal of one ton of armor.
Notable Crews
Stan Finch and Al Bielaski: Finch and Bielaski are the crew of a venerable J. Edgar attached to the Seventeenth Armored Recon company of the elite Twenty-fi rst Centauri Lancers mercenary command. The pair made a name for themselves in operations along the Marik-Liao border after the Marik Civil War (also known as the Anton Revolt). They used the exceptional speed of their vehicle to run rings around the Capellan Reserves. Armed with the information gathered by the pair, Colonel Thaddeus Kusaka executed a string of devastating raids. With so many of its troops now pinned in position to guard against further attacks, the Confederation lost the opportunity to capitalize on the weakened condi-tion of the Free Worlds League military.
LIGHT VEHICLES
31
J. EDGAR LIGHT HOVER TANK
Equipment Mass
Armor Factor: 104 6.5
Armor
Value
Front 30
R/L Side 19/19
Rear 12
Turret 24
Weapons and Ammo Location Tonnage
Medium Laser Turret 1
2 SRM 2 Turret 2
Ammo (SRM) 50 Body 1
Type: J. Edgar Light Hover Tank Technology Base: Inner Sphere Movement Type: Hover Tonnage: 25
Battle Value: 546
Equipment Mass
Internal Structure: 2.5
Engine: 145 7.5
Type: Fusion
Cruising MP: 11
Flank MP: 17
Heat Sinks: 10 0
Control Equipment: 1.5
Lift Equipment: 2.5
Power Amplifi er: 0
Turret: .5
MOBILE HQ 32
Mass: 25 tons
Movement Type: Wheeled Power Plant: Omni 130 Fusion Cruising Speed: 64 kph Flank Speed: 97 kph Armor: StarSlab/4 Armament:
1 Defi ance B3M Medium Laser
Manufacturer: Star League Defense Industries Primary Factory: Mars (destroyed 2767) Communications System: TharHes HQ CommSet Targeting and Tracking System: Diplan-IX SideSweeper
Overview
Mobile headquarters have been the nerve center of large-scale planetary operations since man stepped into space. They gather information from the various partici-pants and then use sophisticated command-and-control computer systems to present data to the commander for analysis.
The standard Mobile HQ has changed little since its introduction into the Star League Defense Force; while the cosmetic look may vary from military to military, the core systems on the inside remain the same, save for minor upgrades in technology—or, after the ravages of the Succession Wars, the failure of technology due to poor maintenance and lack of available repair methods.
Capabilities
A typical Mobile HQ is divided into two parts—the communications room and the control cab. The main com-munications room can seat up to six people and has room for up to twelve standing. Dominating the center of the fl oor is a TriHolo table, capable of showing the surround-ing terrain and individual troop members, includsurround-ing known enemy positions. The sophisticated battle computer can also display various projections of the battle’s future and possible avenues to follow based on whatever variables the commander entered into the system.
Three communications stations allow a commander and his staff of seven commtechs to maintain constant contact with their forces. The powerful transmitters are capable of piercing most jamming systems and can even connect to distant JumpShips using the collapsible main array on the roof. The interior of the communications room is kept stable by a complex and dynamic suspension sys-tem that allows normal activity within despite the speed of the truck.
Deployment
Once a common sight among most House forces, the Mobile HQ has slowly vanished from general use due to two factors: the highly technical electronics and battle computers are beyond the current know-how of most repair technicians today, and the HQs have become a le-gitimate target for headhunting missions ever since the Succession Wars. Those Mobile HQs still in service are usu-ally assigned to larger, prestigious units such as the Sword of Light regiments in the Combine or the Lyran Guard in the Commonwealth. While still in service, however, most of these units are only partially functional—some no lon-ger have working computers or TriHolo tables, others have lost the use of their multi-functional communication suites.
Still, many commanders make do and have used the trucks to some success.
Variants
Variants are minor, consisting mainly of diff erent tur-ret weapons. Combine and Confederation forces typically mounted a long-range system, such as a large laser or LRM 10 rack, which usually required a redesign of the crew cab.
These modifi cations are often made to those trucks that are already partially disabled due to disrepair. Most other militaries prefer to leave the medium laser.
Finding a Mobile HQ in a mercenary unit is a rare thing indeed; if one is present, a House will usually consider the Mobile HQ to be a strong mark in favor of hiring. These mercenary Mobile HQ trucks usually have an ICE engine in-stalled for the missing fusion engine (usually stripped and sold for weapons or light BattleMechs). Such a radical sal-vage job requires power amplifi ers for the laser system and extra generators to handle the capacity necessary for the communications and computer systems. During the early part of the 31st century, only Wolf’s Dragoons possessed fusion-powered Mobile HQ units, though recovered tech-nology has helped the Mobile HQs proliferate once more.
Notable Crews
Battle Wagon Deuce: One of the original fi ve Wolf’s Dragoons Mobile HQ trucks in service, the Deuce became a sort of “holy grail” for the First Chisholm Raiders when they hit Thestria during the last year of the Third Succession War. Realizing that such a prize was a major lynchpin in the Dragoons defense, the Raiders spent the better part of a week tracking down the Deuce through severe terrain and managed to locate it only when a random air patrol caught it in the open attempting to ford the McConnell River. Despite only having a light escort of a lone Griffi n and three Pegasus scout tanks, the Deuce and its entou-rage held out against two medium lances of Raiders until Dragoon reinforcements arrived. A lucky shot by a Raider Quickdraw snapped the front axle in half, immobilizing it, though the Dragoon command staff still managed to es-cape the Raider’s grasp. The Deuce is still in service and is maintained in as pristine condition as possible—a point of pride for the unit all these years later.
LIGHT VEHICLES
33
MOBILE HQ
Weapons and Ammo Location Tonnage
Medium Laser Turret 1
Communications Equipment Body 7
Cargo Body 0.5
Type: Mobile HQ
Technology Base: Inner Sphere Movement Type: Wheeled Tonnage: 25
Battle Value: N/A
Equipment Mass
Internal Structure: 2.5
Engine: 130 7
Type: Fusion
Cruising MP: 6
Flank MP: 9
Heat Sinks: 10 0
Control Equipment: 1.5
Lift Equipment: 0
Power Amplifi er: 0
Turret: .5
Armor Factor: 80 5
Armor
Value
Front 16
R/L Side 19/19
Rear 16
Turret 10