compiled overview of the 30
ton Hermes 'Mech, from various
BattleTech novels and game sourcebooks:
The
Hermes was designed by
Irian BattleMechs Unlimited as a heavy scout for the
Star League Defense Forces. Commissioned in 2632, the
'Mech was delivered in record time. Though the design requirements were fulfilled to the letter, the
Quartermaster Command was
skeptical of the swift delivery. Line officers were not surprised, therefore, when many of the first
Hermes 'Mechs turned out to have
glitches making their targeting systems useless. When the source of the problem was discovered many months later, techs had to spend hours in field-repair time rewiring the electronic bays of the new
'Mechs. Once this glitch was corrected, the
Alexis Photon Target Acquisition System became a point of pride for
Irian.
The
Alexis paints the target with a low-intensity targeting laser before actually firing either
laser. If the
Alexis fails to lock onto a high-density target, such as an armored vehicle or
'Mech, the system suspends the order to fire. The fire order is held in a
buffer until the system acquires a valid target. If no target is achieved within two seconds, the order is canceled. While the heat buildup in the laser capacitor still has to be dissipated, the system saves
wear and tear on the laser focusing apparatus, thus reducing maintenance requirements. Like many pieces of
Star League lostech, most
Alexis systems are no longer functional and have been replaced with more readily available targeting systems.
The
Hermes design called for a
'Mech as fast as any then in service. The end product greatly exceeded initial expectations, but only at the cost of extremely weak firepower. The high cruising
speed was seen as desirable, but the lack of significant firepower made the
'Mech unpopular. Scout pilots could not get used to a 30-ton
'Mech with only two medium-range weapons. As a result, the
Hermes saw service for nineteen years, after which time the
'Mech was taken out of active service, put into storage and the manufacturing line shut down.
The hand
flamer of the
Hermes is an older design using a fuel mixture rather than tapping into the
fusion plant's
plasma field. When the weapon is triggered, the upper cylinder releases a
napalm gel. The gel is forced along pressure hoses toward the nozzle. Instead of exposing the
napalm to
open flame, the gel mixes with small amounts of
phosphorus suspended in
water. When the
phosphorus hits the air, it bursts into flame, igniting the napalm. The system is considered among the
safest devised, because the
napalm is stored far from the igniting agent. Only a small amount of phosphorus is
required to ignite the mixture, and so damage to the storage cylinder usually causes only minor damage to the limb. As a further safeguard,
ejection racks can jettison the storage cylinders away from the
'Mech.
When
Irian BattleMechs Unlimited shifted to production of the
Hermes II in the late twenty-eighth century, the original
Hermes became a dead design, existing only in blueprints. It was still a good light
'Mech design, but
Irian no longer had the ability to equip it with an
endo steel internal structure and
ferro-fibrous armor. With the unlocking of many
Star League-era technological secrets, the
Hermes has once again become a feasible design.
Reliable agents inside
Irian report that the
Hermes has begun
limited production as a specialty
'Mech. Three separate models have come off the line, all dispensing with the
flamer and incorporating
Myomer Accelerator Signal Circuitry. All three are task-specific
'Mechs employing the
MASC system as an emergency measure to get out of
harm's way.
The most common of the three carries the
Beagle active probe to enhance its reconnaissance capabilities. A single
Hermes so equipped is commonly assigned to a
battalion.
The other two models are more likely to be assigned to a
regimental headquarters unit. The first carries
Guardian ECM equipment, usually to screen the position of the headquarters. The other carries
target-acquisition gear to spot for
'Mechs and vehicles equipped with artillery. Few
'Mech units employ this weapon, and so the
Hermes variant equipped with
TAG is rare.
Note: Information used here was the domain of FASA before they split the rights between Wizkids LLC and Microsoft (table-top gaming and video games respectively). Copyright of the fluff text is in limbo, but names of persons, places, & things are without any doubt the property of Wizkids LLC. Use of any terms here related to the BattleTech trademark are not meant as a challenge to Wizkids LLC's rights.