Haven't done an S & T piece in a good long bit, and since everything else lately has been on the Blakist threat, let's examine another weapon in their arsenal - the SHP-X4 "Omega" Superheavy 'Mech. Note - the things I say here apply across all examples of this class, but are specifically geared towards this one in particular. The RotS tripod Superheavy class have some unique strengths and weaknesses as well.
So, the "Omega," what to say? Well, first off, it sucks solo. I mean that unequivocally. If you're playing an equal tonnage game, with one side fielding a 150 ton "Omega" and the other fielding, I dunno, a Thunderhawk and a Hunchback, the T-Back combo is going to win. At a movement profile of 2/3/0, the "Omega" is easily kept at a safe distance or flanked. Three 50 tonners, or a swarm of lighter units, will play "ring around the Superheavy" and crunch it down. Artillery loves anything ponderously slow.
What makes the "Omega" shine though, is putting together a mixed composition level II, utilizing C3i, which it has, and faster lights such as the Mercury or Mongoose II. This is where it wins out against something like, for instance, the Clan quad-gauss Annihilator. With three Gauss Rifles, and a pair of LB10-X ACs, the "Omega" can only do a maximum of 65 pts of damage in one turn, which is less than or equal to 'Mechs 50 tons or more lighter. As a part of a C3 network though, these 65 pts are much more accurate And armor? Oh, boy, that's where this gets fun. The "Omega" has 429 points of armor, or more than 25 tons of the stuff. That's right, this literally fields the equivalent of a light 'Mech's weight just in armor. And the head? A whopping 15 pts. Which means, including internal structure (which I believe is 5 pts, though I may be wrong), nothing less than an AC/20 or HGR can head cap this guy in one shot. It is a freakin' zombie on the battlefield. If you employ it in a solid defensive role, with adequate C3i support and a good firing position, prepare to rack up the kills. Operation: Nachtfalke especially - get your P/G numbers down to 2 or so, Weapon Specialist: Gauss Rifle and absolutely anything that will improve the movement (I believe there is a skill that will give you an extra point to running, which isn't much but 4 beats 3 if you need to close in) and this thing becomes a nightmare!
Now, as an added bonus - I actually have the pics from the last one of these I put together.
That's a lot of parts
Heyy, it's assembled!
An Archer for size comparison
And a Stone Rhino, the "Omega" is HUGE
Infantry look so dwarfed in comparison
The Peace of Blake be with you.
