BattleMaster

A Battlemaster. When you see one, you know someone paid a lot of C-Bills just to make sure you die.

Sitting at a svelte 85-tons, bristling with weapons, and a favorite of pretty much any person who can afford it, the BLR-1G BattleMaster is one of the premiere Assault-Class BattleMechs in the BattleTech universe, and arguably the official Mech of higher-ups in Inner Sphere armies.

Overview

Hollis Industries first began manufacture of the BattleMaster in 2633 for the Star League's Defense Force, ensuring that the best and brightest army in human history got the biggest, bestest, most powerful Mech that could comfortably be created at the time, and the BattleMaster met the advertising and then some, being one of the very best of it's class, only outdone in other areas by Mechs that sacrificed reliability for guns and firepower for armor. It has served several armies throughout the Inner Sphere with distinction, and thanks to much of it's advanced electronics and older models having dedicated software for it, are a delightful Command Mech.

It only really has two downsides that are unreleated to the 'Mech's performance: It's expensive, and it's boutique. At a whopping 8 million C-Bills, you gotta really want a BattleMaster in order to get one, and even if you have the C-Bills, the factories for these things reliably could be counted on one hand. Several companies can produce it, but have to dedicate single factories entirely to their production due to the sheer size of it (exact measurements aren't given but it's frequently described as being among the taller and wider Mechs in the setting), leading to them becoming exceptionally rare even when they were first produced. And you have to make good and goddamn sure nobody knows that thing is on it's way to you when you send your payment, because everyone, and I mean everyone...wants a BattleMaster.

Armaments

The BattleMaster lives up to it's name: carrying a Donal-produced PPC on it's right arm, Six Medium lasers in a Four-In-Front, Two-Behind configuration, an SRM-6 with two tons of ammo, and two machine guns to keep infantry off it's back, all wrapped up in 14 tons of armor. Oh, and if you thought you were smart trying to disable the PPC or could get into range to try and brawl with it, the PPC can be disengaged from the Mech so you get to feel Assault-Mech level punches coming down on you.

Variants

Further increasing its versatility, several variants of the Battlemaster exist with various different roles in mind.

• BLR-1C - A rare Star League-era version of the Battlemaster that leans into the "commander's BattleMech" archetype associated with the standard 'Mech. Integrates a Command Console and swaps the machine guns for the ability to upgrade to Double Heat Sinks, which introduces a drawback of being more vulnerable to infantry.
• BLR-1D - A basic modification made by House Davion in 2867 meant to increase survivability in the face of a lack of production capability. It removes the SRM-6 and rear Medium Lasers in exchange for 6 more heat sinks and an additional ton of armor.
• BRL-1Gb - The SLDF Royal variant of the BattleMaster, the 1Gb is upgraded to use an Endo Steel chassis and Double Heat Sinks. The rear medium lasers were removed to upgrade the six frontal ones to ER Medium Lasers and to add a torso-mounted Large Pulse Laser to the package.
• BRL-1Gbc - A mix between the 1Gb it is based on and the 1C, this 'Mech installs a Command Console at the cost of removing three heat sinks.
• BRL-1Gc - Technically just a designation for 1Cs produced after the Helm brought back all the LosTech. Seriously, it's the exact same.
• BRL-1Gd - Star League-era Federated Suns variant. It only has sixteen heat sinks and ditches the machine guns, but said sinks are all Double and the six frontal lasers are upgraded to Medium Pulse Lasers.
• BRL-1S - The missile-flinger BattleMaster, commissioned by House Steiner and produced by Red Devil Industries. Swaps the PPC and SRM-6 for an LRM-15, an LRM-5, and two SRM-2s. It also adds two more heat sinks for a total of 20.
• BRL-2C - Another command-leaning variant, this one from 2925 and held onto by ComStar. Features a second cockpit with a Command Console and uses a Nirasaki Inciteful Vision targeting system. The machine guns are traded for a SureFire Defender anti-missile system on the left arm (which is droppable like the PPC so robot boxing is still an option).
• BRL-3M - Created in 3049 by Earthwerks Incorporated for the Free Worlds League. Utilizing rediscovered Star League technology, the 3M upgrades to Double Heat Sinks and directly upgrades the PPC to be a Fusigon Longtooth ER PPC. One of the machine guns is also removed in order to make room for CASE ammo explosion protection.
• BRL-3M-DC - Obligatory command variant of the 3M, which ditches the rear lasers for a Command Console.
• BRL-3S - A modification made using LosTech for the Federated Commonwealth in 3050. Removes a half-ton of armor, a machine gun, and two of the forward-facing Medium Lasers in exchange for upgrading to an Edasich Motors 340 XL engine. It also swaps its PPC for a FarFire LRM-20 launcher and the remaining Medium Lasers are upgraded to be Defiance P5M Medium Pulse Lasers.
• BLR-4L - A Capellan Confederation version of the BattleMaster first put into service in 3081. This variant goes for a more stealthy and mobile approach, utilizing Stealth Armor to shield from electronic detection and a Guardian ECM Suite for further electronic warfare countermeasures alongside the addition of three Jump Jets that give it a 90-meter jump range. Weapons-wise, its main weapon is now a Light Gauss Rifle with the secondary weapon being replaced with an MML-7 and the torso now sporting a Light PPC and an ER Medium Laser. Power is now provided by a Light Fusion Engine, further leaning into mobility at the cost of less energy being available overall.
• BLR-4S - Made by a collaboration between Red Devil Industries and J.B. BattleMechs in 3062, the 4S is less a variant and more an overhaul of the BattleMaster. This new take is constructed upon a StarFrame Heavy chassis, powered by a 340 VOX Light Fusion Engine, and protected by 13.5 tons of ArcShield Maxi X Ferro-fibrous Armor. The right arm-mounted main weapon is now a Zeus Slingshot Gauss Rifle supplied with 3 tons of ammo that is stored within the right side of the torso, while the SRM-6 remains, only now the TharHes Maxi SRM-6 variant with Artemis IV fire control in the left torso. The six frontal lasers are now split 2-4 for close- and medium-range respectively, with 2 Defiance B3M medium lasers and 4 RAMTech 1500Z ER medium lasers. Anti-infantry, due to lack of space in the torso, is now supplied by two Defiance P5S Small Pulse Lasers mounted on the left arm. All munitions are protected by CASE, communication is provided by an O/P 3000 COMSET, and targeting is done by a Cyclops Multi-Tasker 10 T&T system. This redesign is most commonly used by the Lyran Commonwealth since the days it was the Lyran Alliance post-FedCom Civil War.
• BLR-5M
• BLR-6C
• BLR-6G
• BLR-6M
• BLR-6R
• BLR-6X
• BLR-10S
• BLR-10S2
• BLR-CM
• BLR-K3
• BLR-K4
• BLR-M3
• Dual Cockpit refits - A catch-all for modifications made by the Federated Suns and Federated Commonwealth to add a second cockpit in exchange for removing a heat sink. Most commonly done on the 1G and 3M.
• BattleMaster C
• BattleMaster C 2
• BattleMaster C 3