Battletech - Cave Bear Assault Mech.

By equipping front line Mech’s like the Karhu with a melee weapon, the Dominion was officially catering to the Spheroid members of its Tourman.  The Kungsarmee had a history of embracing melee combat and designs like the Karhu were seen as an official sanction of this heritage.  Whilst Clan pilots preferred the longer ranged Karhu A, the Prime was almost always the ‘ride’ of a Freeborn. 

Sensing an opportunity, the designers at Alshain Weapons sought to design a heavy assault and command unit for the predominatly Spheroid Clusters of Omega Galaxy and its associated formations.  This in turn would mean that the Kodiak and Kodiak II could in turn be given to the Trueborn Warriors to keep them happy. 

The design was just reaching a prototype phase and awaiting approval when the Khan was killed by unknown attackers along with many of the Bloodnamed.  During the period of mourning there was a huge surge in production that slowed construction of the prototypes but five where complete and formed up for testing by the time the Liberation of Vega was launched.

The result was a 100-ton assault Mech based on the Kodiak chassis but intended for bruising close quarter action unlike the more recent Kodiak II. 

There were structural changes to the Mech and whilst it retained the same base skeleton as the Kodiak family as well as the huge 400 rated XL-engine the design was still renamed so not to offend Trueborn Warriors and instead would be designated as the Cave Bear after a long extinct Terran bear species. 

Similar to the standard Kodiak the Cave Bear uses a mixture of medium lasers supported by an ER PPC as its long-range weapon.  A heavy bore LB-20 autocannon fed by a somewhat limited 2 tons of ammunition provides heavy firepower at shorter ranges but firepower is not the Mech’s primary strength. 
The Mech's real purpose and strength comes when it at point blank range.  Capable of bursts of speed of 108kph, the Cave Bear can close the distance where it can bring its massive claws to bare on a target. And with its TSM active a single hit could devastate all but the sturdiest of Mech's and two would almost guarentee its destruction.

Clan Warriors and Officers aware of the programme decried it as a waste of resources and that facilities used to create it should be put to better use, but the Scientists and Engineers argued from a point of Rasalhague nationalism, which would be at a peak following the apparent assassination of their popular Khan and Prince. 
Under the stipulation that the Mech’s future depended on its performance in the coming offensive, and that it would only be issued to Freeborn Commanders who would recognise the respect and honour they were being granted by being allowed to command a Mech that was blatantly a totem, the five were deployed with Omega Galaxy prior to Operation MONSTER.


Drawn by the AMAZING - mattplog.deviantart.com/