Difference between revisions of "Shadowcat"

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Revision as of 18:36, 2 March 2018

Shadowcat
Shadowcat.jpg
Shadowcat.jpg
Class: Medium Mech
Faction: Clan
Ticket cost: 8 upon destruction
Tier: 4
Speed: 97 km/h (135 km/h with MASC)
Torso yaw: 258°
Torso pitch: -34° to +50° while standing
-34° to +60° while crouching
Variant Armament
Variant Weapons Equipment
Prime:
Price: 66 500 CBills
Total armor: 41 008
Engine Size:
A:
Price: 64 500 CBills
Total armor: 42 937
Engine Size:
B:
Price: 65 400 CBills
Total armor: 42 937
Engine Size:
C:
Price: 70 000 CBills
Total armor: 39 079
Engine Size:
D:
Price: 65 500 CBills
Total armor: 41 008
Engine Size:
E:
Price: 68 000 CBills
Total armor: 41 008
Engine Size:
F:
Price: 70 000 CBills
Total armor: 39 079
Engine Size:
G:
Price: 68 700 CBills
Total armor: 41 008
Engine Size:
Armor Points Distribution
BT
HD
LA
LL
LT
CT
RT
RA
RL
INT
3532
2760
3384
3384
4503
3826
5886
3826
3384
4503
2702

All stats current as of release 0.15.3

A Clan Medium Mech, the Shadowcat is an incredibly versatile platform with good speed, maneuverability, and firepower, making it worth every penny. It absolutely devastates Light Mechs, and can go toe to toe with many heavier Mechs if used intelligently. Possessing speed nearly on par with light Mechs, as well as some of the hardest hitting weapons available, the Shadowcat is an excellent multi-classer. The only dull points that blemish the Shadowcat's otherwise excellent capabilities are its limited ammo space and a lack of armor, significantly lower than other medium Mechs.

Shadowcat variants tend to carry their weapons almost exclusively in their arms, making them a prime target. The arms are also very lightly armored, if not always easy to hit. Protection of the arms is of paramount importance to Shadowcat pilots. The Mech's low profile makes aimed shots directed at a specific component extremely difficult, which is compounded by its high speed. As a result, Shadowcats usually have incoming damage spread throughout all of its components.

Roles and Gameplay Hints

Prime

The Shadowcat Prime is an agile sniper capable of dealing large amounts of damage at medium- to long-range. Armed with one CGauss and a pair of CERMBL's, aimed with the assistance of EOptics, the Shadowcat Prime is a grown-up Uller A, but with extra armor and maneuverability enhancing equipment. The MASC and Jumpjets, in their standard version, fixed to the chassis give it a mobility that most other snipers lack, but its single DHS, one more than the aforementioned Uller, helps it deal with the extra heat load. A free ton allows an extra reload for the CGauss, but the Shadowcat Prime must still make frequent return trips to rearm.

Variant A

The A variant is armed with one of the most powerful weapons in MWLL: the CUAC20. Fed by an extra ton of ammo, it has terrific damage potential for a medium Mech, and when coupled with its Improved Jumpjet-enhanced maneuverability and MASC system, the Shadowcat A makes for a terrifying hit-and-run brawler, a task for which half a ton of extra armor has been added. Three CERSBLs provide supplementary firepower capable of Anti-BA work, as well as finishing off units that manage to survive the UAC20 barrage. Despite this incredible killing power, the A variant futilely tries to manage its heat with but a single DHS, limiting its otherwise outstanding capabilities.

Variant B

The Shadowcat B is plays a similar role to the Shadowcat A, mounting a close-range, high-powered weapon and a bit of extra armor. Armed with one LBX20, an SRM6 and a solitary CERSBL, the B variant is all about close-range firepower. Utilizing MASC the Shadowcat B can close in quickly on enemy units before pummeling them with its powerful loadout. Improved Jump Jets allow the Shadowcat B to move along otherwise impassable elements of the battlefield, making it a mobile and very dangerous ambusher, especially in environments with lots of obstacles like urban theatres. Unfortunately, for all its firepower it lack efficiency. Left without any free tons to carry extra reloads and two ammo hungry weapons, pilots that aren't mindful of their munition levels will find themselves gimped in the midst of battle. A single DHS with all the heat the variant produces means pilots will have to be very strategic in their use of its equipment, giving it time to cool down before engaging and not using them in a fight unless it's absolutely necessary.

Variant C

The C variant forgoes the comparably diverse loadouts of other Shadowcat variants in favor of extreme long-range firepower. Mounting one CERPPC and a Gauss Rifle, the Shadowcat C can deal huge amounts of damage at very long-range. When coupled with Jump Jets and Eoptics, the C variant is a deadly Jump Sniper, superior even to the Shadowcat Prime. One free ton allows a reload for the CGauss, giving the Shadowcat C moderate staying power. Losing the sole DHS of the Prime and gaining the blistering heat spike of the clan version of the particle projector cannon, along with the MASC standard to all shadowcats, makes this variant nice and toasty. Cramming all that load onto a Shadowcat meant that half of that free ton for reloads had to be stripped from its armor, making it one of the most fragile variants.

Variant D

The Shadowcat's agile chassis makes a natural choice for a NARC unit and the D variant fulfils such a role. Armed with a cNARC launcher it can use the equipment hard mounted on the chassis to stick a target designation beacon on a target before jumping back into cover. Its two backup weapons are two ATM launchers, one load with close range High Explosive munitions and one with far reaching Extended Range ones. The direct fire of its weapons doesn't make them too suited to take advantage of the variants own NARC beacons and with their ranges barely overlapping they can't be considered a reliable source of damage. Add to this the variant's lack of electronics and it's bound to stalk the battlefield in passive, turning on its radar mainly to get a lock for its beacons or possibly even dumb-firing them - a costly proposition but doable with two tons reloads. A single DHS is adequate for running the variant's equipment as it's not bound to raise its heat much through weapons fire.

Variant E

The Shadow Cat E is a heavy mid range damage over time mech. It does this job very well thanks to its one CHLL which can cause plenty of damage if the user can keep the beam steady on the enemy mech. Its 3 CMPLs help to exploit any weak areas that are created by the heavy laser. A great mech to take if you are looking to cut off enemy arms and more then one of these mechs can make the enemy's life rather difficult if the Shadow Cat closes range to fire. The mech hard mounts MASC and Improved Jumpjets as well which allows it make precise hit and run attacks on a target while its 6 Double Heat Sinks dissipate the heat from the Heavy Laser. Care must be taken not to fire the laser while using its equipment in straight on engagements as it can cause you to overheat, but heat conscious pilots can do some jump strikes with the use of cover. Any cockpit shake can also work against this Shadow Cat while its firing its laser and will cause its damage to spread out more.

Variant F

A cheap Anti-Air variant added following the Shadowcat's pitch buff, its viability took a hit after weapon tweaks in the latest patch. Armed with a trio of constantly firing UAC2 and a single pinpoint cERLBL, the Shadowcat F is an anti-air choice. Despite still needing an awfully long time to deal solid damage against land targets, it can make use of its high mobility and MASC and Standard Jumpjet equipment to increase its survivability despite being one of the less armored variants, and take advantage of its long to extreme weapons range. It runs cool enough for a Shadowcat that its total lack of DHS doesn't hurt it very much.

Variant G

A mid-range skirmisher, the Shadowcat G is reminiscent of the Cougar E. Armed with a single ATM9 and a trio of cERMBL, this variant sacrifices some firepower for a cooler weapons loadout. Assisted by an extra DHS compared to the aforementioned light, for a grand total of three, it has some extra leeway in simultaneously using its MASC and Improved Jumpjets to dictate engagement ranges and make use of cover to kite the vast majority of shorter ranged units. Still, true to being a Shadowcat, it can still run hot if careless. On the other hand, it can't deal with dedicated long range units as well, as it's likely to lose in sheer firepower and its own minimum range makes crowding them, while a possibility for all Shadowcats, a double edged knife for the G variant. A single free ton shortens its ability to operate individually of supply lines.


Canon

The Shadowcat was designed by Clan Nova Cat to replace the Ice Ferret/Fenris in their touman and was first spotted by Inner Sphere forces at the Battle of Luthien in 3052. The Prime variant of the MWLL Shadowcat lacks the Active Probe of the CBT Shadowcat, and hard-mounts Improved Jump Jets rather than standard ones.

BattleTech Reference