OBT Forum

WVR-7M Wolverine

When Kallon Industries looked to upgrade their production line for the Wolverine, they realized that despite the commercial might of the Free Worlds League that revenues were limited.  Wanting (and needing) to acquire as much of that limited revenue stream as possible, Kallon engineers decided against installing an extra-light fusion engine (which, while very efficient was also extremely costly and vulnerable to damage on the battlefield!).

Instead, Kallon took a page from the WVR-7H Wolverine II of the SLDF.  They incorporated an Endo-Steel II internal structure as the base chassis and replaced the Maximillian 60 armor plating with ten tons of Maximillian 70 Ferro-Fibrous armor.  This not only saved weight, but gave the WVR-7M superb armor protection.

The twelve standard heat sinks of the WVR-6R were reduced to eleven . . . but exchange for Double Strength Freezers--all of which were banked within the engine core, saving interior space eaten up by the endo-steel and ferro-fibrous.

The design team retained the Harpoon-6 SRM launcher (and its ton of ammunition), along with the head-mounted Magna Mk II Medium Laser . . . but added two additional Magna Mk IIs as well (one in the center torso and the second firing to the rear in the right torso).  A Sunglow Prism Optic Small Pulse Laser was added to the left arm for additional firepower (and limited anti-personnel capabilities).

Wanting a bit more punch than the traditional GM Whirlwind autocannon offered, Kallon replaced the AC-5 and ammunition with a Diverse Optics Sunbeam ER Large (similar to the WVR-6M variant used extensively by House Marik during the Succession Wars).

While the heat produced by these weapons exceeded what the heat sinks could dissipate, the excess overheat was minimal before movement and Kallon considered it to be within acceptable parameters.

With the remaining tonnage, Kallon decided to make the new WVR-7M into a command 'Mech. The design team added an Imstar Oracle Beagle Active Probe (left torso), a Garret-Guardian Interface 2B Guardian ECM Suite (left torso), and a Garret Mole TAG system (left arm) giving a lance, company, or battalion commander all manner of options on the battlefield.

Although the new Wolverine did not pack quite as much firepower as some other upgrades that incorporated the newly recovered extra-light fusion engine, it was much cheaper to acquire and maintain.  And its combination of firepower, armor protection, mobility, and electronics made it one of the best all-around medium-weight command 'Mechs available.

Authorized for full-scale production in 3052, by 3053 the WVR-7M was striding out of the factory on Thermopolis in large numbers.  Even so, the Free Worlds League needed more of them and authorized Free Worlds Defense Industries on Gibson to begin production as well.  The first new Wolverines are expected to emerge from the Gibson plant by the summer of 3054.

One flaw of the design has recently come to light, however.  Techs working on the WVR-7M find that the interior spaces of the 'Mech are tightly packed and it is difficult for Techs and Astechs to reach many of the internal components due to the very limited space.  This has increased the man-hours required for routine maintenance operations, as well as the repair of battle damage.  The very tight design also allows no room whatsoever for future upgrades without removing some of the existing equipment or completely redesigning the internal layout.  The FWLM considers these to be just "minor" problems and has no plans to correct them . . . which makes many Techs and Astechs wince whenever they receive a new WVR-7M for which they responsible.

Wolverine WVR-7M

Mass: 55 tons
Tech Base: Inner Sphere
Chassis Config: Biped
Rules Level: Tournament Legal
Era: Clan Invasion
Tech Rating/Era Availability: E/X-X-E-A
Production Year: 3053
Dry Cost: 6,102,557 C-Bills
Total Cost: 6,129,557 C-Bills
Battle Value: 1,581

Chassis: Crucis-B Endo-Steel
Power Plant: Core Tek 275 Fusion Engine
Walking Speed: 54.0 km/h
Maximum Speed: 86.4 km/h
Jump Jets: Northrup 12000
    Jump Capacity: 150 meters
Armor: Maximillian 70 Ferro-Fibrous
Armament:
    1 Diverse Optics Sunbeam ER Large Laser
    1 Harpoon-6 SRM-6
    3 Magna Mk II Medium Lasers
    1 Sunglow Prism Optic Small Pulse Laser
    1 Imstar Oracle Beagle Active Probe
    1 Garret-Guardian Interface 2B Guardian ECM Suite
    1 Garrett Mole TAG
Manufacturer: Kallon Industries, Free Worlds Defense Industries
    Primary Factory: Thermopolis, Gibson
Communications System: Garret T11-b
Targeting and Tracking System: Sync Tracker (39-42071)

================================================================================
Equipment           Type                         Rating                   Mass 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Endo-Steel                    91 points                3.00
    Internal Locations: 4 LT, 3 RT, 3 LA, 3 RA, 1 LL
Engine:             Fusion Engine                275                      15.50
    Walking MP: 5
    Running MP: 8
    Jumping MP: 5 Standard
    Jump Jet Locations: 1 CT, 1 LT, 1 RT, 1 LL, 1 RL                       2.50
Heat Sinks:         Double Heat Sink             11(22)                    1.00
Gyro:               Standard                                               3.00
Cockpit:            Standard                                               3.00
    Actuators:      L: SH+UA+LA+H    R: SH+UA+LA+H
Armor:              Ferro-Fibrous                AV - 179                 10.00
    Armor Locations: 4 LT, 3 RT, 3 LA, 3 RA, 1 RL

                                                      Internal       Armor     
                                                      Structure      Factor     
                                                Head     3            9         
                                        Center Torso     18           25       
                                 Center Torso (rear)                  7         
                                           L/R Torso     13           20       
                                    L/R Torso (rear)                  6         
                                             L/R Arm     9            18       
                                             L/R Leg     13           25       

================================================================================
Equipment                                 Location    Heat    Critical    Mass 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ER Large Laser                               RA        12        2         5.00
TAG                                          LA        0         1         1.00
Small Pulse Laser                            LA        2         1         1.00
Beagle Active Probe                          RT        0         2         1.50
Guardian ECM Suite                           RT        0         2         1.50
(R) Medium Laser                             RT        3         1         1.00
SRM-6                                        LT        4         2         3.00
Medium Laser                                 CT        3         1         1.00
Medium Laser                                 HD        3         1         1.00
@SRM-6 (15)                                  LT        -         1         1.00
                                            Free Critical Slots: 0

BattleForce Statistics
MV      S (+0)  M (+2)  L (+4)  E (+6)   Wt.   Ov   Armor:      6    Points: 16
5j         3       3       1       0      2     0   Structure:  5
Special Abilities: PRB, RCN, ECM, TAG, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA

Final day for entries folks!

Well that is that folks, this contest is over. Thanks for the entries.

Likely correct, I am hopefully we will get back on track after the New Year.