Editing BattleMech (section)

=== Other ===
Beyond weight and combat specialty, there are a few other specialized types of BattleMech, each with their own strengths and drawbacks.

* '''Bipedal''': A mech with two legs, most common type; broken down into three separate subcategories such as '''Humanoid''', '''Reverse Joint''', and '''Digitigrade''', however performance between the three is negligible as all three have both standout variants and regrettable variants alike.
*'''Tripodal''': An experimental three-legged variant that's only rarely been used, even when the design idea gained traction in the 32nd century, only four mechs in the entire canon have ever used this variant. What does make them stand out though is their ability to constantly move in any direction without braking and their proven ability to be built as Super-Heavy tonnage.
*'''Quadropedal''': A mech which has four legs instead of two. They have something of a bad reputation for allegedly requiring more crew and less armor, but on the other hand can loose a leg and still be in the fight. Are far less common than Bipedal Mechs, but are still fairly common as mobile fire-boats. Another transformable variant is "Quadvees" among Clan Hell's Horses that can change back and forth into tanks. While they can still fight if the gyro is damaged in tank form, the extra limbs and servos for transforming gives them the same weaknesses of being stuck in one mode after being damaged as their LAM relatives.
*'''SecurityMech''': Sometimes referred to as MilitiaMechs, PoliceMechs, or (if they’re field-modified off existing IndustrialMech chassis) MOD’s, these are basically up-armored and armed IndustrialMechs. Often used for internal policing, quelling riots, fending off giant wildlife, and anti-piracy deterrence, they're usually used for guarding critical infrastructure or facilities that are far from the front lines. Due to their less robust construction, lighter weapon load-out, and less energy intensive engine, they're marginally better than combat vehicles for front line combat. On the other hand, they’re cheap enough that any backwater planet can buy them if atmospheric aircraft and tank use for security isn’t enough and they’re good enough for preventing covert sabotage, banditry, and insurgent activity. Like mainstream BattleMechs, they have their own weight classes:  Light (10-15 tons), Medium (20-25 tons), Heavy (30-35 tons), and Assault (40-50 tons).
*'''FrankenMech''': more formally called HybridMechs, they're basically any [[Looted|ad hoc]] and [[Mekboy|non-standardized]] Mech created by cobbling together any spare parts from a dozen other BattleMechs that a mad engineer or desperate pirate can scrounge from their basement without any corporate support or standardized template. Deep in the Periphery, they're also called Corsairs. 
*'''[[Robotech|Land Air Mech]]''': sometimes called LAM's. Basically a light mech that can transform from an Aerospace Fighter into a regular mech. They got invented during the Star League as experimental reconnaissance units, but got phased out due to being more fragile than regular fighters and mechs while requiring way more maintenance (as well as needing pilots with both BattleMech and Aerospace skills). Out of universe, BattleTech developers decided it was too much effort to keep without lawsuits from Harmony Gold (as seen with the infamous "Unseen/Reseen" mech artwork from other IP's), so [[Robotech|Max]] ended up keeping his Veritech all to himself. 
*'''[[OmniMech]]''': the Lego/Swiss Army Knife variant of a regular Mech. Can change their loadouts as quickly as swapping ammo magazines, and can do other nifty things, like carrying [[Clan Elemental|armored infantry]] in battle. The flip side to all this awesomeness? They're way more expensive: One Mad Cat is roughly the same cost as three early-model Awesomes. That said, Three Awesomes to a single Mad Cat is weirdly comparable as a match-up. Clan tech is a wee bit overpowered.
*'''ProtoMech''': spanning the gap between Battle Armor that maxes out at 2 metric tons and UltraLight BattleMechs below 20 tons, ProtoMechs were created by Clan Smoke Jaguar to make the most out of their shrinking resource base after the Second Star League drove them out of the Inner Sphere. While the Clan ultimately died out in the end at the Great Refusal, the ProtoMech Concept remained in use by the Clans for some time. Instead of using a traditional cockpit, a embedded circuitry system grafted under the skin of the pilot (used by some Clan Warriors for traditional Mechs) enabled pilots to use a ProtoMechs’ limbs like their own in a fancy version of augmented reality hooked to mechanical limbs. Additionally, the smaller size and direct interface with a pilot's senses removed the need for a bulky gyro . However, such interfaces still shortened users’ lives and made them feel the loss of limbs as painfully as if it were their own being sheared off. Naturally, outside the Blakists incorporating the interface tech into their Manei Domini cyborgs, no Inner Sphere faction tried to reverse engineer them due to technical issues and ethical concerns. Thus, they remain an obscure niche within some Clans.