Editing Draconis Combine (section)

==== Notable BattleMechs ====
* '''''Charger''''': An assault 'Mech with the firepower of a light 'Mech, the original CGR-1A1 model of the ''Charger'' is a commonly-cited contender for worst 'Mech in the whole setting. For some reason originally conceived as a heavily-armored scout, the ''Charger'' is an 80-ton 'Mech sporting the heaviest possible engine and by extension the highest top speed of any introtech 'Mech in its weight class. However, the sheer amount of tonnage dedicated to the engine leaves it with an utterly impotent weapons package consisting of five small lasers, meaning that it is outgunned by most medium 'Mechs and even some light 'Mechs. The Draconis Combine ended up stuck with the overwhelming majority of ''Chargers'' at the outset of the Succession Wars, and assignment to one was commonly used as a form of punishment within the Combine military. The 'Mech would be improved by the Capellan Confederation at the end of the Third Succession War by downgrading the engine and freeing up space for more firepower, and the ''Charger's'' frame would be repurposed for the development of the iconic ''Hatamoto-Chi'' during the War of 3039, but the ''Charger'' itself would not be redeemed in Combine service until the [[Clan Invasion]], where the rediscovery of extralight engines would allow for upgraded firepower without sacrificing the ''Charger's'' top speed.

* '''''[[Catapult]] K''''' - While the Catapult itself is ubiquitous throughout the Sphere, the K-series has never caught on outside the Combine.  This "novel" design ditches the Catapult's characteristic LRMs for a pair of PPCs, turning an aged but capable indirect fire support platform into an outdated direct fire glass cannon. 

* '''''Daboku''''' - A prototype 'Mech used as a testbed of Helm Memory Core techs. Due to the Kuritans using a Google Translate equivalent to understand its contents, the Daboku was horribly flawed in every way and a deathtrap for any MechWarrior assigned to one. Most infamously due to its flawed CASE, taking a hit in the lower torso would [[EPIC FAIL|eject the Daboku's pilot, either leaving him at the enemy's (lack of) mercy or exposing them to lethal planetary conditions]]. It was only used in the War of 3039 and was retired afterwards. The Steiner-Davions designated it as ''Mauler'', a name the Kuritas embraced for the Daboku's successor.

* '''''Dragon''''' - While the ''Hatamoto-Chi'' might be the most recognizable, the ''Dragon'' and its upgrade, the ''Grand Dragon'', were unquestionably some of the DCMS' favorite mechs. It's a fast, flexible, hard to knock over, capable of carrying huge guns, and generally ubiquitous part in any Combine regiment, and well-loved by its pilots. However, for a heavy 'Mech it's considered slightly undergunned due to the Combine's insistence on "light or heavy 'Mechs only" creating what many consider an oversized medium 'Mech for the same roles as a Medium would have, but few things in the early eras of BattleTech are as fast as the ''Dragon'' while also being as heavily armored and also still maintaining a reasonable weapons package. In the 31st century, the ''Grand Dragon'' began to replace regular ''Dragons'' due to a generally improved design as well as stronger weapons and cooling.

* '''''Gladiator''''' - The first Combine-designed BattleMech. Built under the Von Rohrs' rule, this line is most famous for their role in the first BattleMech VS BattleMech combat in history, the Battle of Nox of 2475. Although both sides were equally matched in numbers and the Gladiators were better-armed than the Fedrats' Commandos, [[FAIL|they lost badly to the latter due to their faster speed and maneuverability allowing them to quickly melt their torsos from behind, despite more than doubling them in weight and weaponry.]] The defeat at Nox was so humiliating and dishonorable the Gladiator's reputation was permanently tainted in the space Fish-heads' eyes, which led to them ceasing production in 2488 and the 'Mech line nearly going extinct, with Alex Keller's highly custom version being the only known survivor by the 31st century. Curiously, the Jihad led to the Gladiator's revival as part of an initiative to choke the Blakist forces on entire batallions of Age of War-era designs. 

* '''''Hatamoto-Chi''''' - The signature assault 'Mech of the Combine, which looks like a 'Mech designed in the image of [[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles|Super Shredder]]. Essentially two different 'Mech designs merged into one (namely the venerable ''Thug'' and the much-maligned ''Charger''), it's a formidable, tough-as-nails all-range assault 'Mech with the one minor flaw of generally being rather difficult to keep heat control on.

* '''''[[Jenner]]''''' - Their signature light 'Mech. A fast and light jump-capable design with respectable firepower, the Jenner is often considered one of the best Inner Sphere light 'Mechs in the early eras of the game, often seeing success by ganging up on larger 'Mechs and peppering them with some form of laser or heat-producing round, then letting their ''Panther'' partners swoop in to land the finishing blow.
 
* '''''Mauler''''': The finished monster that came out of the failed ''Daboku'' 'Mech prototype, the ''Mauler'' is a 90-ton extremely long-range fighter whose LRM-15s, AC/2s, and ER Large Lasers make it at the very least an exceptionally obnoxious armor chipper, or at worst a 'Mech sniper from hundreds of yards away. Thanks to its history as the reimagined ''Daboku'', it has an extremely inconsistent history, but that doesn't comfort anybody getting pelted with missiles and laserfire from four counties away. Anything that can get up close to it however has free game to add a ''Mauler'' to their kill total, as its payload suffers at close range.

* '''''Panther''''' - Their other signature light 'Mech. Only 35 tons, this thing can actually keep pace pretty well with others in it's class and is a massive pain in the rear with its Lord's Light Particle Projector Cannon being a shockingly powerful piece of tech. It runs hot ''very'' quickly, on the other hand, and the Clan Invasion-era "upgrade" of the ''Panther'' takes this to next level, switching out the PPC for a LosTech extended range model that outputs significantly more heat--without upgrading the 'Mech's cooling. [[FAIL|This means that the Clan Invasion-era PNT-10K cannot fire its main weapon without going at least 2 points over its heat-sinking threshold.]]

* '''''Thug''''' - An assault 'Mech built to be successor of the [[Warhammer (BattleTech)|Warhammer]] (the BattleMech). Initially fielded by the Star League, but the Succession Wars put its production to a halt. ComStar however were able to keep many of them in storage. When the technology became available the Combine resume production of the 'Mech. Its weaponry is a pair of PPCs, and a pair of SRM-6s, making it good at either long-range or short-range combat. The Combine would eventually fuse the ''Thug's'' weapons package with the ''Charger's'' frame (and a bunch of samurai cosplay) to produce the iconic ''Hatamoto-Chi''.

* '''''Von Rohrs/Hebi''''' - A short-lived 'Mech named after the usurper House Von Rohrs, originally built under the rule of Yama, the third Coordinator of that house. It was intended to replace the ''Gladiator'' after the 'Mech line became dishonored after the battle of Nox. After the Von Rohrs were killed off and the Kuritas returned to the throne, the 'Mech was renamed "Hebi" ("Snake". Snakes are often seen as a symbol of evil and cunning by Abrahmic--y'know, the Jews, the Christians and the Kebabs--religions) and McAllister forbade salvaging them, which led to the line going extinct in 2518, only 8 years after their namesake house. [[EPIC FAIL|Worse, the 'Mechs they were intended to replace, the Gladiators, ended up outliving them by over half a millennium.]]

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[[Category: BattleTech]]