Rattler

Rattler MKII anti-aerospace mobile fortress
Production information
Use	Anti-Aerospace
Chassis Type	Fortress
Motive Type	Ground
Technology Base	Inner Sphere
Cost
Introduced	3072
Technical specifications
Size (in hexes)	7
Length (meters/Hexes)	90 meters/3 Hexes
Width (meters/Hexes)	90 meters/3 Hexes
Height (meters/Levels)	42 meters/7 Levels
Power System	Fusion
Fuel	NA
Heat Sinks (total)	176
Construction Factor	150
Armor (per Hex)	150
Total Cargo (tons)	636
Doors (total)	6
Bays	4 Light Vehicle Bays 6 Jump Infantry Bays
Escape Pods	0
Crew	43 officers 42 crew 105 gunners 177 bay personnel
Armament	3x Sub-Capital Laser/3 10x Large Pulse Laser 16x Machine Gun 4x Light Machine Gun 14x Streak SRM 6 4x LRM 20 with Artemis IV 2x Heavy Gauss Rifle 2x Long Tom 2x Arrow IV
Equipment	14x Anti-missile systems 3x Barracuda launchers
Facilities	98 steerage quarters 24 crew quarters 1 MASH unit 10 tons communications equipment 2 field kitchens 4 lift hoists
BV (1.0)
BV (2.0)	14,495

Overview

The Rattler Mk II was a Word of Blake mobile structure intended to act as an anti-aerospace platform and was based on an earlier Star League design.

Description

The modern Rattler Mk II program began with the refurbishment of those SLDF Rattler Mk Is that had survived the Amaris Civil War shortly after the Word of Blake captured Terra in 3058, but soon expanded into the production of new platforms.

Capable of transporting 4 VTOLs and 2 companies of jump infantry, the Rattler is not particularly luxurious; the standard crew quarters are double occupancy, while the steerage quarters are intended to be triple occupancy. To support the crew, the Rattler is equipped with a full MASH, augmented by 2 additional operating theaters.

The Rattler Mk II has treads larger than the average assault 'Mech, and the complete platform stands more than forty meters tall; however, the Word of Blake went further than the SLDF did when it came to protecting the Rattler by modifying the various Castles Brian on Terra to allow the Rattlers to be stored underground until needed. The main Word of Blake headquarters on Terra, Hilton Head, had a regular garrison of 4 Rattlers, along with numerous sally ports to allow them to enter and exit underground.

The Rattler is a fearsome anti-aerospace platform; while the Barracuda launchers allow the Rattler to reach targets in orbit, it excels at engaging suborbital targets. Mounting three of the largest sub-capital lasers manufactured, the Rattler also mounts defensive turrets containing Long Tom and Arrow IV systems. Smaller weapon systems are dotted around the Rattler in blisters, making engaging them on land a difficult task.

Variants

• Rattler Mk I - The original SLDF Rattler mounted three additional Barracuda Launchers and had a larger cargo capacity when compared with the Mk II, but lacked the Sub-Capital Laser/3s of the modern Mk II. This gave the Mk I longer range than the modern Mk II, but at the price of increased ammunition dependency. Predating the invention of the Heavy Gauss Rifle, the Mk I mounted Heavy Autocannon instead. Only 12 Rattler Mk Is are known to have survived the Amaris Civil War, and all were upgraded by the Word of Blake to Mk IIs.

Notes

• The description for the Rattler indicates that the Rattler Mk I had five Barracuda launchers, and that the Word of Blake removed three of them to install the sub-capital laser/3s in place on the Mk II. That would leave two Barracuda launchers on the Mk II. However, the readout of the Rattler Mk II and the record sheet for the Rattler Mk II show three launchers. It is not currently known if the mention of five launchers on the Mk I is in error, and that the Mk I therefore had six, or if the reference to removing three launchers in the Mk II is in error, with only two instead being removed. No record sheet currently exists for the Rattler Mk I.

Bibliography

• Jihad Hot Spots: Terra