Nightsky for Annex 3065

Overview:
The Nightsky has acquired a reputation as an infighter since its first appearance in 3053. Although not as mobile as Curtiss Militech’s Wraith, it is nevertheless popular with pilots due to reliability, minimal dependence from supply lines and, of course, the massive hatchet it bears on one arm. Several variants appeared in the years immediately following the introduction of the NGS-4S; some were intended for anti-Elemental duty, others as a combination of fire support and the usual one-on-one clashes in forbidding terrain. The best of the alternate designs was considered to be the 5T, with an ER PPC replacing the Large Pulse Laser. It gave the Nightsky some sorely-needed long-range capability. But this range came at a price.

The Nightsky has long been a candidate for an Endo Steel upgrade; while building this ‘Mech with a Standard chassis and Standard armor sped the machine to the front lines, it required Nightsky pilots to manage their heat carefully. No record exists of a Nightsky shutting down from excess heat, but it is not hard to imagine one sitting idle behind a copse of trees while its pilot literally sweats out a forced cool-down in the middle of combat.

Now that the pressure from the Clans has eased somewhat, engineers are going back to the drawing boards and giving ‘Mechs such as the Nightsky a second look, to see if they can wring just a bit more out of proven designs. With Endo Steel once again available on a production scale, the latest Nightsky to walk off the factory floor incorporates this feature, and takes full advantage of the savings in weight to improve on the original.

Capabilities:
The NGS-7S carries a full eleven tons of standard armor, the most a fifty-ton chassis can bear. It retains the original six Jump Jets and 300 XL Fusion engine, as well as the eleven Double Heat Sinks and arm-mounted hatchet for which this ‘Mech is well-known. However, the two Medium and one Small Pulse Laser have been removed and replaced with three Extended Range Medium Lasers. These are not as accurate and do not pack the punch of their predecessors, but have the advantage of reach, something even an infighter can use to good advantage.

The left-arm mounted Large Pulse Laser is also gone, replaced with a pre-production Heavy Particle Projection Cannon which generates fifty percent more heat, but deals 50% more damage at nearly twice the range. Again, some accuracy is lost, but increased range is something the Nightsky design has been lacking for ten years. Those in Our Order who think this is simply a modified 5T should think again. This is a carefully-crafted variant whose overlapping fire envelopes reduce the chance of overheating while it allows its pilot to approach an opponent at will.

The 7S Mechwarrior can pound an opponent with the equivalent of a Gauss rifle carrying unlimited ammunition and maintain full mobility - all without moving the heat scale. Once she comes inside the Heavy PPC’s minimum range of 90 meters, her ER Medium laser battery takes over – at short range – delivering the same damage while still capable of jumping a full 180 meters – again, without generating excess heat. This overlap yields impressive results against other, lighter ‘Mechs which share the Nightsky’s mobility but which do not carry as much armor. Needless to say, while working in physical combat range (the signature tactic for this design) the 7S pilot can follow up her withering barrage with a crippling blow from the Nightsky’s infamous hatchet – a closing move if ever there was one.

Battle History:
A single lance of this latest Nightsky is just now reaching the border world of Poulsbo. Admittedly, such a minor assignment will not have much impact on the total force strength of the Bangor Military District. However, recent events on that planet indicate things are heating up between the Lyran Alliance and the Free Worlds League, at least on a covert scale. This is as good a testing ground as any for a new variant of a proven design.

Notable 'Mechs & MechWarriors:

Jason ‘Daffy’ Gemmon

Mechwarrior Gemmon is the latest in a long line of pilots who entered the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces (LCAF) ‘flying’ the Nightsky and who fully intend to retire piloting the same. A former fission power plant operator with dreams of one day privately owning a refurbished ‘Mech, Gemmon was badgered by friends to try out a piloting rig at the Snyder County Fair. The Lieutenant in charge of the recruiting booth was excited, and Gemmon’s friends astounded, when the young man quickly adjusted to his neuro-kinisthetic helmet and scored higher than anyone else on the test rig – including the Lieutenant himself. When the sun set Gemmon was still at the controls, having the time of his life manipulating a tenth-scale BattleMech over the obstacle course again and again. He quit his power plant job the next day.

Less than a year later, Mechwarrior Gemmon graduated near the top of his class from an LCAF Academy, and immediately took to the controls of an NGS-4S fresh from the Hesperus II factory. His expertise in the cockpit is matched only by his flamboyant fighting style – Gemmon loves to ‘fly’, using his jump jets at every opportunity to confuse and distract opponents. A collector of animation cels dating back to pre-spaceflight Terra, he calls this erratic movement the ‘Daffy Maneuver’.

Few know exactly who or what ‘Daffy’ is, and Gemmon has long since tired of explaining the reference. But he seems determined to use the ‘DM’ (as he calls it) as often as he can. So far, this maneuver has proven reasonably effective, though it gave field commanders quite a shock the first time Gemmon tried it. While enemy pilots don’t quite know what to expect next from this Mechwarrior’s orange-and-black Nightsky, they do know that whatever it is, it will be unpleasant in the extreme.
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Type/Model: Nightsky NGS-7S
Mass: 50 tons
Equipment: Crits Mass

Internal Structure: 83 Pts Endo Steel 14 2.50
Endo Steel Locations: 4 LA, 4 RA, 3 LT, 3 RT
Engine: 300 XL Fusion 12 9.50
Walking MP: 6
Running MP: 9
Jumping MP: 6
Heat Sinks: 11 Double [22] 0 1.00
Gyro: 4 3.00
Cockpit, Life Support, Sensors: 5 3.00
Actuators: L: Sh+UA+LA, R: Sh+UA 16 0.00
Armor Factor: 169 Pts Standard 0 11.00
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Internal Armor
Structure Value
Head: 3 9
Center Torso: 16 25
Center Torso (Rear): 7
L/R Side Torso: 12 18/18
L/R Side Torso (Rear): 6/6
L/R Arm: 8 16/16
L/R Leg: 12 24/24
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Weapons & Equipment: Loc Heat Ammo Crits Mass
1 Heavy PPC LA 15 4 10.00
1 ER Medium Laser LT 5 1 1.00
1 ER Medium Laser RT 5 1 1.00
1 ER Medium Laser HD 5 1 1.00
1 Hatchet RH 0 4 4.00
6 Standard Jump Jets 6 3.00
(Jump Jet Loc: 2 CT, 2 LL, 2 RL)
TOTALS: 30 68 50.00
Crits & Tons Left: 10 0.00