Not a bad contest at all folks as we had twenty entries in all by six different designers (3 by Irose, 2 by drakensis, 6 by Abele, 1 by masterarminas, 5 by Bradshaw and 3 entries by my own hand). I have ranked all the competitors and there are nine winners in total. Thank you all for your participation and I look forward to our next competition.
20. YLW-2J Yellowjacket (Takiro)
My fun look at this Wasp LAM conversion does not meet the original of criteria of this challenge and so must be placed last unfortunately. Plus, it is an incomplete idea at this time but this giant Wasp (10 ton heavier) with an ER Large and largest possible SRM rack will have a future. It just has to be determined as events of the Marik Civil War drag on.
19. BZ-2W Bug Zapper (Takiro)
Originally this Cicada Killer was just that designed by a developing Bolan March faction who updated the Super Wasp concept in response to the upgraded Marik Medium Scout Mech. However, as the design underwent development it changed to a light Wolf Dragoon sniper which I really like. Despite the Bug Zapper concept taking off with me it still does not meet the original design criteria and thus finishes here. Expect to see this one in the future though!
18. WSP-2S (Bradshaw)
While the need to have a TAG carrying Wasp is there for FedCom forces something is missing aside from the from the fluff. EndoSteel and Double Heat Sinks are great for a start and I don’t mind two Medium Lasers but two Small Lasers and no Ferro-Fibrous which the 1S has? With a Mech armed with point blank weaponry you should have added Ferro-Fibrous at least especially because it was on the last model.
17. WSP-2L (Bradshaw)
Despite having no fluff this is a very Liao Wasp variant which stays true to its canon roots by utilizing EndoSteel to free up a ton. An SRM-4 and Medium Laser are mounted as its arsenal which is all very nice but why only three tons of standard armor? Should have gone for at least Ferro-Fibrous here bud which according to my calculations would have improved your protection factor by 6 to 54 total. Not much of a difference but easily accomplished with a minimal of cost and difficulty.
16. WSP-2OA (Abele)
Not a bad idea and out of the box thinking here unfortunately the 2OA proved a poor in universe fit because of these differences. The 140 Fusion Engine taken from a Panther was a nice idea but didn’t work with the existing model I ultimately chose involving the Outworlds Alliance. Plenty of pop for sure with two Medium Lasers and a Streak SRM-2 thanks to no jump jets but alas my friend it just doesn’t work. Sorry.
15. WSP-2K (Bradshaw)
I like your lostech hard charging Kurita version of the Wasp despite it diverging from its canon Machine Gun roots. EndoSteel and a MASC combine with two Medium Lasers along with four tons of standard armor to create a pretty solid Wasp. Double Heat Sinks are a little bit of design overkill here as you really don’t need them as a jumping alpha strike produces 12 heat. You could do that action twice with ten single heat sinks before suffering any ill effects of overheating. Coupled with the fact that a MASC Alpha Strike would produce only 7 heat or a Running Alpha Strike produces 8 this design can cool itself pretty quickly. That and no fluff really hurt your case.
14. WSP-2T (Abele)
This was another good take on the Taurian Wasp which keeps jump jets for its short range arsenal which is a plus but I have to confess I like the dual missile launchers as opposed to two Medium Lasers if I have to choose. For those reasons I went with another Taurian design bud, sorry.
13. WSP-2D (Bradshaw)
This is another model I really liked which had everything except fluff but other designs ultimately proved too much. This long-range missile carrying Wasp was simple and effective but others were just better. Apologizes Bradshaw.
12. WSP-2M (drakensis)
A solid scout variant built upon Marik manufacturing and ComStar/Word of Blake expertise which is certainly a possibility given the current situation. Unfortunately, there was some pretty stiff competition from other competitors which just beat you out. Sorry drak.
11. WSP-2G (Abele)
This advanced Free Worlds League variant uses an XL Engine to really max out this 20-tonners capabilities just missed the cut losing out to other Marik variants which I thought were slightly better. Sorry Abele, just missed.
10. WSP-2FC (Abele)
Another very near miss was this Steiner model by Abele with an ER Large which makes for a very potent harasser especially when combined with a Triple Strength Myomer. Firing the ER Large and the Small Laser while jumping six activates this advanced musculature enabling faster movement (7/11). It is a good design but there were others which were narrowly better.
Winners
9. WSP-3N/ WSP-3P (Takiro)
This contest let me refine this light NARC carrier and its SRM-6 variant to a reasonable degree. I like the Silver Hawk’s upgrades including this one which builds on the Marik NARC philosophy. I am going to upgrade this to the 4N and 4P because of its use of an XL Engine which makes it one of the Four Series Wasps.
8. WSP-2A (Abele)
This Canopian lostech variant aimed at the greater mercenary marketplace uses EndoSteel and Ferro-Fibrous to upgrade the SRM-2 rack with a Streak system and the Medium Laser remains. Simple and effective this model gets my seal of approval as the WSP-3C Wasp produced on Canopus. Very nice Abele!
7. WSP-2M (Bradshaw)
This high tech Marik sniper is the only Bradshaw entry to feature an XL Engine together with
EndoSteel and Double Heat Sinks. Armed with an ER Large Laser this model is really high end and pretty well protected thanks to four ton of armor. While I could quibble with you on the armor distribution this is clearly one of your best. While there was no fluff it finished ahead of its other Marik competitors to become the 4M. It may be made on Gibson and Mars. Good stuff!
6. WSP-2L (Abele)
After correcting a wee bit of an error in his original fluff Abele’s 2L or Capellan Wasp went onto win a spot in this contest. Using EndoSteel, Ferro-Fibrous, Guardian ECM, Streak SRM-2, and two Small Lasers it is a solid design which beat out some competition from Bradshaw’s 2L. This will remain the 2L in the Salient Horizon universe, congratulations Abele!
5. WSP-2T (Irose)
Despite not having jump jets, and I do think of the Taurian asteroid fighters as always being jump capable or space mobile, I really liked this design. It just has a bunch of medium range firepower thanks to dual Streak SRM-2s and two Medium Lasers. Essentially doubling the firepower of the original without restoring to an XL Engine which may be beyond the Concordat at this point is a solid approach. Best of all is the one ton of ammo (50) shots is now split between two launchers for greater usage which somewhat mitigates against the dangers of massive ammo explosions. One launcher will never get through this much ammo but two stands a chance. Nice job on the 3T!
4. WSP-3S (Irose)
The winner of the Lyran Wasp variant sub-contest which had two other challengers was this variant proposed by Irose. Combining the 1A [the base model with a Medium Laser and SRM-2] and 1S [a recent lostech upgrade using EndoSteel, Ferro-Fibrous, Medium Pulse, Flamer, and two Small Lasers] thanks to a 120 XL Engine [fluffed away as a FedCom project] was a nice design. Plus, it will work well with the Davion model, good work on the 4S!
3. WSP-2K (drakensis)
Perhaps the best fluff or concept of this competition is this Outworlds produced Draconis war machine. I really feel that the Alliance would sign off on manufacturing war material for the InnerSphere especially in light of the Clan Invasion. This resource poor nation would be a good supplier for the DCMS on the verge of defeat needing desperate supplies in order to rebuild. Also addressed is the Federated Commowealth in this deal which I imagine would still have problems with the Robinson or Draconis March as a result. Supreb fit and because the 3K already exists in canon we will go with the 2K designation as presented by drakensis. Great work on this bronze medal finisher!
2. WSP-2W (masterarminas)
Perhaps it isn’t as good as it could be but the Wolf Dragoon Wasp certainly is one of my favorites to begin with as is this highly advanced variant from masterarminas. While the difficulty of creating a new 140XL Engine model would be impossible for some it does not include the Clan tech using Dragoons. A higher bar to get over is a new production facility on Outreach which is clearly outside canon. However, Blackwell Industries is a very plausible builder of this design especially after the discontinuation of the 3W by Achernar (see the next design). It makes sense on many levels and it is a very solid design with good fluff. This variant will be known as the 4W in the Salient Horizon universe, very nice job masterarminas! Silver medal here.
1. WSP-3D (Irose)
This model hit on a number of levels for me and really opened up the contest to XL Engines here in a big way. My vision of the Davion Wasp before the contest started was one that featured LRMs and Irose was really able to double down on it justifying the new variant as a Valkyrie Light. This stop gap lostech upgrade is solid all the way around and goes hand in hand with the Davion Locust variant as well. This variant will replace the 3W at Achernar BattleMechs on New Avalon and be known as the 4D. Top marks Irose!
Primary Manufacturing Sites [9 different complexes in 6 nations]
WSP-2K – Alpheratz (Alliance Defenders Limited) Outworlds Alliance
WSP-3T – Perdition (Pinard Protectorates Limited) Taurian Concordat
WSP-3T – Taurus (Taurus Territorial Industries) Taurian Concordat
WSP-2L – Sian (Hellespont ‘MechWorks) Capellan Confederation
WSP-3C – Canopus IV (Majesty Metals & Manufacturing) Magistracy of Canopus
WSP-4S – Furillo (Defiance Industries) Federated Commonwealth
WSP-4N – Kalidasa (Kali Yama Weapons Industries) Free Worlds League/ Silver Hawks
WSP-4M – Shiro III (Irian BattleMechs Unlimited) Free Worlds League/ Andurien
WSP-4D – New Avalon (Achernar BattleMechs) Federated Commonwealth
New Factories [2 new facilities coming online]
WSP-4M – Mars (General Mechanics) ComStar
WSP-4W – Outreach (Blackwell Industries) Wolf Dragoons
