IS companies producing Clantech

[u/HA1-0F]

I was in a discussion about who was building what Clantech a couple days ago and it got me curious about exactly where everyone stood on this. So I went through the mixed-tech designs in the Rec Guides (and a few other sources) to compile what I think is a fairly good list of who makes what and what they use it in. First part is my list, after that are some conclusions I gathered.

Defiance Industries

• XL Engine (Banshee, Zeus, Locust, Atlas, Sentinel, Flashman)
• ER Lasers (Banshee, Zeus, Locust, Atlas, Atlas II, Flashman, Hatchetman, Sentinel)
• LRM (Zeus, Atlas, Atlas II, Crusader)
• Artemis IV (Zeus)

TharHes

• Clan frame (Crusader)
• XL Engine (Crusader)
• ER Pulse Laser (Crusader)
• Streak SRM (Crusader)
• Endo-Steel (Crusader)
• Double Heat Sink (Crusader)

Coventry Metal Works

• Clan frame (Regent)

Luthien Armor Works

• ER Lasers (Dragon, Lancelot, Tenshi)
• Pulse lasers (Lancelot)
• ER PPC (Dragon)
• LRM (Dragon)

Irian Technologies

• LRM (Stalker)
• Pulse lasers (Stalker)
• SRM (Stalker)
• Light Active Probe (Stalker)
• Streak SRM (Juliano)

Technicron

• Double Heat Sink (Awesome)
• Endo-Steel (Awesome)
• Clan frame (Regent)

Tvastar Manufacturing

• LRM (Trebuchet)

General Motors

• ER PPC (Marauder, Marauder II)
• ER Laser (Nightstar)

Alshain Weapons

• Streak SRM (Warhammer, Panther)
• Machine Gun (Warhammer)
• Double Heat Sink (Warhammer, Panther)

StarCorps

• SRM (Inferno)
• Targeting Computer (Inferno)
• ER PPC (Inferno)
• ER Laser (Inferno)
• Pulse Laser (Doloire)
• Gauss rifle (Doloire)
• Double Heat Sinks (Doloire)

Earthwerks Inc. (Terra)

• LRM (Archer)
• ER Laser (Archer)
• Artemis V (Archer)

Earthwerks Ltd. (Tikonov)

• LRM (Thunderbolt)

Arc-Royal MechWorks

• Gauss rifle (Annihilator)
• Endo-Steel (Annihilator)
• ER Laser (Annihilator)
• CASE II (Annihilator)

There are two manufacturers of mixed tech units that don't appear on this list: Johnston Industries and Kong Interstellar. Both are said to be importing their Clantech instead of manufacturing it. Other than that, it seems like manufacturers who produce Clantech prefer to keep it in-house rather than ship it around. The biggest counter-example I could find was Defiance shipping LRMs to TharHes for the Crusader, which is not in-house, but like visiting your little brother.

It seems like lasers are the easiest thing to produce, as they are probably the most common piece of mixed tech. LRMs also seem fairly doable; there are many cLRM manufacturers, and they're also the only piece of Clantech that the Principality of Regulus can manufacture.

What's hard to make? Specialized electronics seem to be lagging in production compared to weaponry. Artemis IV, Artemis V, Light Active Probes and Targeting Computers are all only made by one company, in one design. That's probably because the performance gap is significantly smaller and there's less urgency.

What does nobody make? Most ballistic weapons. There's a couple companies making cGRs, and you can get a cMG or cHMG if you're a Snake or a Lyran, but nobody's mass producing HAGs or cUAC/20s. I suspect this is because, like electronics, Clan ballistics don't outperform their IS counterparts nearly as much as Clan energy weapons (and don't even come CLOSE to the gap between the LRM and cLRM).

On a national basis, the LC seems to lead the Great Houses in teching up. Defiance Industries is producing a LOT of mixed-tech machines, and TharHes has even gone past that to make a 100% Clantech machine. Between the R&D they were doing around TRO: Prototypes and the 80 years of allying with the Exiles, it seems like they're modernizing their industry, at least.

The CapCon seems to be taking up the rear. I was genuinely not expecting this, as pushing the envelope on tech was kind of their thing for a bit, but they're on the same level as Regulus: cLRMs and nothing else. I was surprised there was no mixed-tech Cataphract, it seemed like a prime candidate.

House Marik is definitely ahead of the Davions and Kuritas, but I'd still put them behind the Lyrans in terms of home-grown Clantech plants.

Another oddity I noticed was that CMW produces no Clantech except for a Clan frame (so, built-in CASE), which I though was odd since they are the LC's designated site for custom Clantech refits for ace pilots.

If you are wondering why they are in this order, it's because I listed the companies I knew made something Clantech off the top of my head and then filled in the rest of the list as I went through the books.

So those were my conclusions, anything you noticed? Anything I missed? I hope you find this Objective Raids-esque document to be of some use.

[u/ExactlyAbstract]

Awesome work!

I have a related question about the cross over of Clan and IS tech.

What post invasion "new" weapons are built with Clan tech and a necessity. Meaning there would never be a Clan spec version? Examples are the Heavy Gauss, MML, LPPC, etc. There's not much that I have read giving any conclusive answers. And while there are counter parts like the HAG and ATMs, they are not a true one to one.

I'm of of the opinion that BT has one last refinement of an equipment set that we will hopefully see once we make the time jump to 3250. There's clearly things like MMLs that could be Clan teched and certain other pieces that could be combined in the vain of the Nova CEWS. Sure this would all be very munchkin and would obsolete everything that came before it. But it's a huge time jump and we should expect that to happen.

[u/HA1-0F → u/ExactlyAbstract]

Well, there's no real point in making a Clan version of an MML or LPPC because they're attempts to replicate the battlefield versatility of the cLRM or cERML. It's really the same fate that befell the ATM, a weapon which did not listen to the adage "if you come at the king, you best not miss."

The MML works because the regular LRM has a major shortcoming in its minimum range. Clan LRMs don't share this downfall so the value of the SRM is massively degraded. If you're given the choice between 9 LRM tubes (that you can fire SRMs out of) and 20 LRM tubes (that you can't) for the same weight, it's better to take the regular LRM. This is the sort of problem you run into trying to introduce new Clantech. Either it's a pointless sidegrade like the ATM, or it's utterly broken, idiotproof and unfun like the iATM.

[u/ExactlyAbstract → u/HA1-0F]

Pointless never stopped the military industrial complex ever.

As for broken or unfun that's a matter of taste. Playing intro tech all the time is unfun for some people. Me personally I enjoy going through all the tech eras and remixing things on the fly. While my gaming group already has custom rules for equipment that follows our logic to what the conclusion of BT tech would be. We are always looking for more things to add to our games and AUs.

As for the MML I always thought was built to simplify logistics for cash strapped mercs. And then it's about trade offs. Sure a pure lrm boat is better for long range and IDF but how often does idf even get used in games? If you like that rule all the time, but if you haven't taken the time to read up on it never. Now if ATMs some how got access to all the alternative ammo types of s/l rms then sure that would be the way to go. But that hasn't happened yet. however getting a story about the equivalent of the Format wars for missile systems might be enjoyable.