==Overview:==
Introduced in 2845, the Jaguar Cavalry Combat Vehicle was one of the first new
designs authorized by the Taurian Defense Forces following the Fall of the
Star League. Drawing upon their history of mobile warfare during the Age of
War and the Reunification Wars, the TDF asked Taurus Territorial Industries to
design a fast-paced, rugged, and capable hover vehicle for use in the armored
cavalry role.
That role required a vehicle with the capacity to screen friendly forces from
hostiles, denying them any intelligence on the movement of friendlies, to
perform wide-ranging reconnaissance-in-force operations to find and fix
hostile forces, and to serve directly in combat as fast attack vehicles
directly supporting the main battle units.
Taurus Territorial rose to the challenge with their Jaguar class vehicles.
Able to perform all of the traditional cavalry missions, the Jaguar was
quickly placed in production on a dozen seperate worlds. Within three decades
it had virtually replaced all other hover tanks in TDF service.
==Capabilities:==
At 45-tons, the Jaguar is a heavy and robust vehicle, easily capable of
engaging hostile forces in a running gun-fight. Although not capable of the
extreme speeds of most hover vehicles, the Jaguar can nonetheless pace the LCT
series Locust BattleMech over open ground.
As technology was in the midst of the great decline, Taurus Territorial took
the unusual step of including an internal combustion engine in the Jaguar
instead of the (then) more common fusion engine. This proved to be a wise
decision, as the next decades would prove detrimental to the continued
production of fusion generators, at least on the scale that the TDF required
for its Armored Corps.
The Harrington 125 multi-fuel turbine was selected for the Jaguar, primarily
due to its high power-to-weight ratio and fuel efficiency. Able to operate on
ethanol, diesel, petroleum, methane, aviation fuel, or jet fuel, all with the
simple adjustment of the fuel intakes, the Jaguar eases the logistical burden
on colony garrisons in the hinterlands of the Concordat.
TTI decided against using power amplifiers to mount energy-base weaponry on
the design, a decision which saved mass and allowed the designers of Team
Jaguar to devote nearly the full output of the Harrington 125 into lift and
propulsion. This gives the Jaguar a maximum speed of 129.6 kilometers per
hour, while the four seperate and armored fuel tanks allow it a combat range
of almost 500 kilometers (using JP-style jet fuel; other fuel types reduce the
operating range significantly down to less than 330 kilometers when using
ethanol).
As a Cavalry Combat Vehicle, Taurus Territorial decided that the Jaguar needed
to be able to deploy infantry, both for assault against a dug-in foe as well
as to deploy recon-teams on a deep reconnaissance mission. Using the TDFs
unique maniple system to their advantage, TTI installed a one-ton infantry bay
in every Jaguar. Able to carry a five-man maniple of either foot or jump
infantry, the bay is accessed through a rear ramp. Space is quite cramped
when using jump-infantry, but foot infantry units have plenty of space for
additional weapons and equipment. Indeed, the bay is so spacious that a
number of Jaguars have been assigned as field ambulences, each able to carry a
medic and up to four wounded troopers out of harm's way. With six Jaguars
assigned in a single lance (three maniples of two vehicles each), this gives
each lance a full-strength Taurian infantry platoon of thirty troopers as
support.
Eight tons of Renault Composites 128 standard armor are fitted to the design,
with the heaviest layers upon the front facing and the turret. Both of these
locations can sustain three PPC strikes or medium-heavy autocannon bursts
before damage penetrates into the interior. The sides are less heavily
armored, but each can take two bursts from a heavy autocannon and a beam from
a medium laser before collapsing. The rear is the weakest point of the
design, even though it can withstand two pulses from a large laser.
Armament is fairly light, but is ample when the role of the Jaguar is
considered. The main weapons are concentrated in the turret for a 360-degree
arc of fire. The primary gun is a Hyades Weapons Consortium Reprisal Class 5
Autocannon with a 20-burst magazine. Mounted co-axial to the cannon is an
Aurora Missiliers Privet five-tube LRM launcher with a magazine containing 24
missile salvoes. A pair of Hyades Weapons Consortium Reaper machine-guns are
also mounted; one on an automated pintle mount on the commander's hatch of the
turret and the second on the front glacis of the forward armor. The second
Reaper is manned by the driver and has a very restricted field of fire.
Jaguar crews consist of three personnel: a track commander (even modern
hovercraft are still referred to as tracks, showing the ancient origins of the
tank), a gunner, and a driver, plus the maniple of infantry in the rear
compartment. The driver's position is located forward of the turret and is
set directly on the vehicle's center-line. When not in combat, the driver
will often open his hatch and drive with his head exposed. When conditions
become hazardous, he slides his reclining seat back into the hull of the
Jaguar and closes the hatch. In this posistion he uses a series of periscopes
and closed-circuit visual screens to assist him in maneuvering the 45-ton
vehicle.
To the left of the driver is a small hatch that leads to a tunnel skirting
around the turret and ending up in the rear infantry compartment. The tunnel
can be sealed on both ends, and in combat usually is. This access tunnel is
not a mere accident, nor is it present to give the driver a method to reach
his post under the cover of armor. The majority of the Jaguar's electronics
can be accessed through panels located within the tunnel, providing the crew
with the capability to conduct repairs in the field.
The turret contains the fighting stations for the track commander and the
gunner; the commander to the right and the gunner to left. Both men have
hatches above them on the roof of the turret, and there is an access hatch in
the turret well that opens into the infantry compartment as well.
The infantry compartment contains padded leather seats for up to five
troopers, with attachement points scattered across the sides and overhead for
gear, ammunition, and weapons. Additionally, medical supplies, food, and
water are stored here, both for the infantry and the vehicle crew.
On the outer surface of the Jaguar are a dozen intake ducts for the lift-fans:
four each along the side and a pair on the front and rear. The lift-fans
themselves are contained in armored nacelles protected within the armor and
skirts of the vehicle, while the ducts are covered with finely meshed thick
screens to prevent debris from damaging the fan-blades. Each lift-fan is
equipped with its own fire-prevention and extinguishing systems, as are the
engine and each of the three fighting compartments (driver, turret, and
infantry). Each extinguisher can be manually triggered or automatically
engages if one or more sensors detects a fire.
While TDF Armored Corps personnel (including their integral infantry)
recognize that it is their job to put themselves in harms way, they appreciate
the care that the Defense Force and the Protector take to make certain that
their lives are not just thrown away. Unlike the troopers of the Combine (or
the Lyrans, or the Capellans, etc., etc.), it is the men and women of the TDF
Armored Corps who are the first line of the Concordat's defense. And for
their service, the Concordat stands ever thankful and is willing to spend
extra funds to give them the best chance to carry out their missions and
survive.
==Variants:==
The Jaguar B is the close-combat variant of the Cavalry Combat Vehicle. This
model replaces the Aurora Missilers Privet five-tube LRM launcher with an
Aurora Missiliers Foxglove four-tube SRM launcher and a magazine containing 25
missile salvoes. Roughly one-in-three Jaguars in service are the B variant.
==Deployment==
A typical Taurian hover armor company (often called a cavalry troop) consists
of three lances of six vehicles each (two vehicles per maniple). For Jaguar
troops, typical composistion is four Jaguar As and a pair of Jaguar Bs, in
addition to the integral infantry platoon.
Normal doctrine is for a battalion to have one cavalry troop and two armored
companies of heavier ground-crawlers, plus an Air Lance of VTOLs. However,
there are some pure hover battalions in TDF service. These cavalry squadrons
(as they are called) consist of three troops of Jaguars and an air lance of
Shrike VTOLs (36 Jaguar As, 18 Jaguar Bs, 6 Shrikes, and 270 infantry
organized into 9 platoons of 30).
A handful of worlds (including New Vandenberg, Taurus, and a few more within
the Hyades itself) also use entire Cavalry Regiments of Jaguars, each with
three squadrons.
As with most of the Armored Corps, the hover cavalry troops, squadrons, and
regiments are not expected to engage in hostile actions against enemy worlds.
Instead, they are normally assigned to one specific colony and serve as the
regular defense, either in the place of or in a supporting role to the
BattleMech Force. Every Taurian world has a minimum of one Armored Corps
battalion of regulars permanently assigned to its defense. Many worlds have
entire regiments, while some of the most heavily populated and industrialized
Concordat worlds have multiple regiments (sometimes as many as three dozen!)
of Armored Corps defenders. Technically, the Armored Corps battalions and
regiments can be redeployed, but in practice this seldom occurs. While this
might reduce the effectiveness of a unit that has to redeploy, it also makes
these formations intimately familiar with the terrain of the worlds for which
they are ultimately responsible.
BattleTech Vehicle Technical Readout
VALIDATED
Type/Model: Jaguar A Cavalry Combat Vehicle
Tech: Inner Sphere / 2845
Config: Hovercraft
Rules: Level 1, Custom design
Mass: 45 tons
Power Plant: 125 Harrington 125 Multi-Fuel Turbine I.C.E.
Cruise Speed: 86.4 km/h
Maximum Speed: 129.6 km/h
Armor Type: Renault Composites 128 Standard
Armament:
1 Hyades Weapons Consortium Reprisal Autocannon/5
1 Aurora Missiliers Privet LRM 5
2 Hyades Weapons Consortium Reaper Machine Guns
Manufacturer: Taurus Territorial Industries
Location: Various
Communications System: Winstershaven Comm Mark VIII
Targeting & Tracking System: Bell & Sun Phalanx Bronze
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Type/Model: Jaguar A Cavalry Combat Vehicle
Mass: 45 tons
Equipment: Items Mass
Int. Struct.: 25 pts Standard 0 4.50
Engine: 125 I.C.E. 0 9.00
Cruise MP: 8
Flank MP: 12
Heat Sinks: 0 Single 0 .00
Cockpit & Controls: 0 2.50
Crew: 3 Members 0 .00
Lift Equipment: 0 4.50
Turret Equipment: 0 1.50
Armor Factor: 128 pts Standard 0 8.00
Internal Armor
Structure Value
Front: 5 30
Left / Right Sides: 5 26/26
Rear: 5 16
Turret: 5 30
Weapons and Equipment Loc Heat Ammo Items Mass
--------------------------------------------------------
1 Autocannon/5 Turret 0 20 2 9.00
1 LRM 5 Turret 0 24 2 3.00
1 Machine Gun Turret 0 100 2 1.00
1 Machine Gun Front 0 100 1 1.00
Infantry Bay Body 1 1.00
--------------------------------------------------------
TOTALS: 0 8 45.00
Items & Tons Left: 6 .00
Calculated Factors:
Total Cost: 1,029,325 C-Bills
Battle Value: 385
Cost per BV: 2,673.57
Weapon Value: 260 / 260 (Ratio = .68 / .68)
Damage Factors: SRDmg = 7; MRDmg = 5; LRDmg = 3
BattleForce2: MP: 8H, Armor/Structure: 0 / 5
Damage PB/M/L: 1/1/1, Overheat: 0
Class: GM; Point Value: 4
Specials: tran1
BattleTech Vehicle Technical Readout
VALIDATED
Type/Model: Jaguar B Cavalry Combat Vehicle
Tech: Inner Sphere / 2845
Config: Hovercraft
Rules: Level 1, Custom design
Mass: 45 tons
Power Plant: 125 Harrington 125 Multi-Fuel Turbine I.C.E.
Cruise Speed: 86.4 km/h
Maximum Speed: 129.6 km/h
Armor Type: Renault Composites 128 Standard
Armament:
1 Hyades Weapons Consortium Reprisal Autocannon/5
1 Aurora Missiliers Foxglove SRM 4
2 Hyades Weapons Consortium Reaper Machine Guns
Manufacturer: Taurus Territorial Industries
Location: Various
Communications System: Winstershaven Comm Mark VIII
Targeting & Tracking System: Bell & Sun Phalanx Bronze
--------------------------------------------------------
Type/Model: Jaguar B Cavalry Combat Vehicle
Mass: 45 tons
Equipment: Items Mass
Int. Struct.: 25 pts Standard 0 4.50
Engine: 125 I.C.E. 0 9.00
Cruise MP: 8
Flank MP: 12
Heat Sinks: 0 Single 0 .00
Cockpit & Controls: 0 2.50
Crew: 3 Members 0 .00
Lift Equipment: 0 4.50
Turret Equipment: 0 1.50
Armor Factor: 128 pts Standard 0 8.00
Internal Armor
Structure Value
Front: 5 30
Left / Right Sides: 5 26/26
Rear: 5 16
Turret: 5 30
Weapons and Equipment Loc Heat Ammo Items Mass
--------------------------------------------------------
1 Autocannon/5 Turret 0 20 2 9.00
1 SRM 4 Turret 0 25 2 3.00
1 Machine Gun Turret 0 100 2 1.00
1 Machine Gun Front 0 100 1 1.00
Infantry Bay Body 1 1.00
--------------------------------------------------------
TOTALS: 0 8 45.00
Items & Tons Left: 6 .00
Calculated Factors:
Total Cost: 1,080,625 C-Bills
Battle Value: 371
Cost per BV: 2,912.74
Weapon Value: 262 / 262 (Ratio = .71 / .71)
Damage Factors: SRDmg = 9; MRDmg = 4; LRDmg = 1
BattleForce2: MP: 8H, Armor/Structure: 0 / 5
Damage PB/M/L: 1/1/1, Overheat: 0
Class: GM; Point Value: 4
Specials: tran1
