BattleMech Technical Readout
Name/Model: Sherman SHR-M5
Designer: Redshirt
Source(s): Custom Mordel.Net Units
Technology: Inner Sphere
Technology Rating: E
Tonnage: 35
Role: Striker
Configuration: Biped BattleMech
Era/Year: Jihad / 3080
Rules (Current): Standard
Rules (Era): Standard
Rules (Year): Standard
Total Cost: 4,296,150 C-Bills
Battle Value: 987
Chassis: M3 Jumbo
Power Plant: Maryland 175 XL
Walking Speed: 54 kph
Maximum Speed: 86.4 kph
Jump Jets: None
Jump Capacity: None
Armor: Vulcan Type II with CASE
Armament:
1 Heavy PPC
1 MML 5
Manufacturer: Vulcan Mechworks
Primary Factory: Vulcan Orbital Foundry
Communications: Achernar Electronics HICS-50
Targeting & Tracking: 650 RND/Garret D2j
================================================================================================
Overview:
The Sherman is the first Battlemech produced by the ambitious Periphery manufacturer Vulcan
Mechworks.
Aside from the use of an XL Engine, VM was extremely conservative with the design, utilizing
standard Armor and Internal components. The Maryland 175 XL Engine itself was an in-house
product, its small size a result of the engineering team's caution. The chassis, while also
an in-house product, borrowed heavily from the UrbanMech. The weapons systems were
commercially available, easily acquired items. Nobody at VM wanted to take chances with the
design, and risk sinking the massive investment that Vulcan Mechworks' Founder had sunk into
the brand new Orbital Factory. The end result of all this trepidation is a slow, scrappy
Light Mech with substantial punching power for its size.
The SHR-platform is marketed as a "Compact Medium Mech", though it fits squarely into the
Light Mech category. Vulcan has leveraged its compact size and relatively low price to sell
the design in bulk, to be used in bulk on the battlefield. This sales strategy has found a
niche for the design, and allowed it to see battle across the Inner Sphere.
This Mech has the following Quirks: Compact, No/Minimal Arms, and Bad Reputation.
Capabilities:
Capable of moving 81kph at full throttle and clad in 7.5 tons of standard armor, the Sherman
does indeed act more like a Medium Mech than a Light. The stock SHR-M model is armed with a
Defiance 980 Heavy PPC and a Coventry Six SRM-6 launcher. The launcher is enhanced with
Artemis IV FCS, further improving the Sherman's ability to deal crippling damage. All models
of the Sherman feature the Compact and No/Minimal arms quirks, allowing the Sherman to be
easily transported by Dropship.
Unfortunately, those same quirks mean that the Sherman will struggle to right itself once
knocked down, especially in the hands of the novice pilots they are issued to. The Maryland
XL engine was also quite fragile, and could see the Mech knocked out of action with one or
two well-placed shots to the side torso. Worse yet, the SHR-M had no CASE for its SRM
ammunition, resulting in many catastrophic ammo explosions that killed pilots and damaged
the Sherman's Reputation.
VM would quickly release a modification kit that removed half a ton of armor to mount a CASE
system for the ammunition, but the damage to Vulcan's sales was already done. Between a
mixed reputation, and The RotS' new Military Materiel Redemption Program, the
Periphery-based manufacturer might have been finished, were it not for a spectacularly cheap
Lyran General and a stroke of good luck.
Deployment:
The first few batches of Sherman Mechs were sold to local Periphery powers, but the largest
early adopter of the SHR-platform was the neighboring Lyran Commonwealth. The Lyran state
found itself in desperate need of light BattleMechs as the ravages of the FedCom Civil War
and Jihad destroyed their front-line Light Mechs faster than could be replaced.
The Sherman's main proponent within the Lyran military was one Hauptman William Gerard.
placed in charge of a small Combat Zone along the Steiner-Marik border, Hauptman Gerard
would purchase a full Company of Sherman Mechs-and associated spare parts-to be deployed as
part of a newly formed Lyran Militia unit on Cavanaugh II. The new Cavanaugh Militia would
be tested in combat several times, repulsing raids from the neighboring Duchy of
Tamarind-Abbey through overwhelming numbers. Utilizing a Leopard dropship to ferry the
entire 12-Mech Company to the site of any landing. Hauptman Gerard himself would oversee
these engagements from the Command Console of a modified SHR-M. These short, flashy battles
between Elite Dutchy raiding parties and the "scrappy" Cavanaugh Militia caught the
attention of interplanetary News services. Vulcan Mechworks, already beginning to feel the
pinch as sales of the Sherman dried up, sized on the opportunity. VM dispatched a camera
crew to document the Militia's success and collect footage for a new advertising campaign.
The footage gathered painted a picture of humble, low-born soldiers being thrown into a meat
grinder. a scarred MechWarrior taking a smoke break atop his ruined Sherman quickly filtered
into local pop-culture. The most significant result of this "documentary" was that it
revealed Hauptman Gerard as the scion of a wealthy house, one with a substantial stake in
the Factories on Hesperus II. The VM crew also bumped into a Lyran propaganda team, who
carelessly revealed that the Hauptman had hired them-at great expense-to record his
successes to then leak to the press. For the soldiers, the take-away was clear. Hauptman
Gerard found himself the cheapest possible Mechs to give to the Cavanaugh Militia, so he
could purchase a veritable army for himself and improve is standing amongst the Lyran
public, and the Social Elite.
The Cavanaugh Militia mutinied against the Hauptman, and struck out on their own as
Mercenaries. Rather than hide the footage they had collected to avoid alienating House
Steiner, Vulcan Mechworks correctly guessed which way the market was going, and released
their footage, edited and arranged to paint the Cavanaugh Militia, now Cavanaugh Marauders,
as heroes. The Sherman was, for the duration of the Republic's existence, marketed as the
Mech for up-and-coming Mercenaries, a Mech of the People. This move insured continued sales
of the SHR platform, saving Vulcan Mechworks from bankruptcy.
Variants:
The SHR-Mc3 was the first variant developed for the Sherman, a result of delays in shipments
of Heavy PPCs. The -Mc3 is armed with twin Large Lasers and 5 RL/15s. This makes the -Mc3
cheaper to buy and maintain than the -M model, as well as offering incredible firepower, if
only for a single salvo. Its also slightly cheaper than the SHR-M, which for many
Mercenaries and Periphery nations is a very attractive feature.
The SHR-Ma1 is a more recent development, using a Supercharger to push the Sherman to
100kp/h and replacing its weapons with a short-range loadout. Armed with twin Snub-Nose PPCs
and twin Small Pulse Lasers, this model is better suited to traditional Light Mech roles
such as flanking or anti-infantry duties. It still retains the heavy armor of the stock
model, and is no longer ammunition dependent. All this improvement comes at a cost. The -Ma1
is almost twice as expensive as the stock SHR-M.
Notable MechWarriors:
Commander Joseph Felix was the leader of the Cavanaugh Militia, and the man who led the
mutiny against Hauptman Gerard. Rather than confront the man directly, Commander Felix
spiked one of the Hauptman's drinks with a sedative. He then took footage of a burning
Sherman Mech and sent it to Gerard's family, convincing them he was dead and requesting
money to have the body sent home. Felix's gambit succeeded, and he had the money within
days. Once he did, he shoved the unconscious Gerard into a shipping crate, tossed in a Life
Support package to keep him alive, and shipped the crate out. While the Hauptman was
discovered and released well before his crate made planetfall, he was unable to return to
Cavanaugh II or send word back fast enough to stop Commander Felix from escaping with all
the Militia's remaining Sherman Mechs, the Leopard, and the money.
Renaming his unit the Cavanaugh Marauders, Joseph and his men became fairly successful
Mercenaries, selling thier services to the various states that emerged from the
Balkanization of the Free Worlds League. They would quickly acquire heavier, more effective
Mechs, but the Sherman never disappeared from the inventory of the Marauders. Joseph himself
would pilot a modified Sherman, a Command Mech with a Clan-Tech ER-PPC and twin MML-5
Launchers. Footage of the Cavanaugh Marauders, especially their daring raid on Oriente,
would continue to see use as sales material for the Sherman.
Thanks to said sales material, its difficult to know just how successful the Cavanaugh
Marauders truly were. In spite of their apparent success, no record of Commander Felix or
his unit exists after 3140, leading many to believe the unit has since been destroyed,
disbanded, or "disappeared" by a resurgent SAFE.
Igor "Ogre" Amit was a small-time Solaris Jockey that rose to prominence after Vulcan
Mechworks approached the "Ogre" and his team with a deal. VM wanted to showcase its new Mech
in the Solaris arenas, but it needed something flashier than the stock SHR-M. In return for
providing several Sherman chassis and a team of Techs to help modify and maintain them, Igor
and his team would "acquire" rare Clan technology for them to use.
Thanks to his sketchy reputation and mixed performance in the arenas, Igor was one step away
from dead-ending his career. As such, he readily agreed to the deal. While it is not known
how exactly they managed to do so, Igor and his team acquired a large quantity of Clan Pulse
Lasers and ER Micro Lasers, along with experimental Laser Heat Sinks.
The Mech VM built for Igor, "Potemkin", was quite the spectacle in the Arena. Equipped with
a Supercharger and enough LHS to fire its weapons continuously, Igor quickly gained in
popularity on his showmanship alone. Other teams began to try and mimic Potemkin's signature
glow, resulting in a long trend of cosmetic light mods on Solaris. Many fans loved the look,
but many more disliked it. Of Igor and his Mech, Solaris announcer Duncan Fisher commented:
"This Mech is the source. the beginning. The start of the worst trend in Mech asthetics in
the history of the Sphere. Those lights are like a Stop Light. They say 'don't come any
closer, the pilot has no brain, and no taste!' The only glow I want to see from that thing
its its Supercharger blowing up."
================================================================================================
Equipment Mass
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internal Structure: Standard 3.50
Engine: 175 XL 3.50
Walking MP: 5
Running MP: 8
Jumping MP: 0
Heat Sinks (Double): 10 [20] 0.00
Gyro: Standard 2.00
Cockpit: Standard 3.00
Armor Factor: 119 7.50
Type: Standard
Internal Armor
Structure Value
Head: 3 9
Center Torso: 11 18
Center Torso (rear): 4
R/L Torso: 8 13
R/L Torso (rear): 3
R/L Arm: 6 12
R/L Leg: 8 16
================================================================================================
Weapons and Ammo Location Critical Tonnage
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CASE LT 1 0.50
MML 5 (Ammo 20) [SRM] LT 1 1.00
MML 5 (Ammo 24) [LRM] LT 1 1.00
Heavy PPC RA 4 10.00
MML 5 LA 3 3.00
================================================================================================
Alpha Strike Statistics
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point Value (PV): 24
TP: BM, SZ: 1, TMM: 2, MV: 10"
Damage: (S) 2 / (M) 2 / (L) 2, OV: 0
Armor (A): 4, Structure (S): 2
Specials: CASE, IF0*
Distribution
Name/Model: Sherman SHR-M5
Technology: Inner Sphere
Tonnage: 35
Configuration: Biped BattleMech
====================================================================================
Left ArmHeadRight Arm
1. Shoulder 1. Life Support 1. Shoulder
2. Upper Arm Actuator 2. Sensors 2. Upper Arm Actuator
3. Lower Arm Actuator 3. Cockpit 3. Lower Arm Actuator
4.MML 5 4. Roll Again 4.Heavy PPC
5.MML 5 5. Sensors 5.Heavy PPC
6.MML 5 6. Life Support 6.Heavy PPC
1. Roll Again 1.Heavy PPC
2. Roll Again 2. Roll Again
3. Roll Again 3. Roll Again
4. Roll Again 4. Roll Again
5. Roll Again 5. Roll Again
6. Roll Again 6. Roll Again
Left TorsoCenter TorsoRight Torso
1. XL Engine 1. XL Engine 1. XL Engine
2. XL Engine 2. XL Engine 2. XL Engine
3. XL Engine 3. XL Engine 3. XL Engine
4. MML 5 (Ammo 20) [SRM] 4. Gyro 4.Double Heat Sink
5. MML 5 (Ammo 24) [LRM] 5. Gyro 5.Double Heat Sink
6. CASE 6. Gyro 6.Double Heat Sink
1.Double Heat Sink 1. Gyro 1.Double Heat Sink
2.Double Heat Sink 2. XL Engine 2.Double Heat Sink
3.Double Heat Sink 3. XL Engine 3.Double Heat Sink
4. Roll Again 4. XL Engine 4. Roll Again
5. Roll Again 5. Roll Again 5. Roll Again
6. Roll Again 6. Roll Again 6. Roll Again
Left LegRight Leg
1. Hip 1. Hip
2. Upper Leg Actuator 2. Upper Leg Actuator
3. Lower Leg Actuator 3. Lower Leg Actuator
4. Foot Actuator 4. Foot Actuator
5. Roll Again 5. Roll Again
6. Roll Again 6. Roll Again
MML 5 4. Roll Again 4.
MML 5 5. Sensors 5.
MML 5 6. Life Support 6.
Write Review