Raptor II

This article is about the 40-ton BattleMech. For other uses, see Raptor.

Raptor II
Production Information
Manufacturer(s)	Classified (Republic of the Sphere) Classified (Word of Blake)
Production Year	3084
Model	RPT-3X
Class	Medium
Cost	10,945,433 C-bills
Technical specifications
'Mech type	Inner Sphere BattleMech
Mass	40 tons
Chassis	Void Integrated MK III
Armor	Void Integrated Light Ferro-Fibrous
Engine	VOX 280 XL
Comms	Black Box Com 7 with Guardian ECM Suite
TTS	Night Fire 7
Heat Sinks	11 double
Speed	118 km/h (151 km/h with MASC)
Armament	2x Streak SRM 6 2x ER medium laser
B.V. (2.0)	1,304

Description

The invisible BattleMech, the Raptor II is synonymous with the advanced Void Signature System, and infamous as a choice platform for recon and search-and-destroy under the Word of Blake, and later the Republic of the Sphere.

Said to stalk the field as early as 3067 in the months preceding the Jihad, early reports of what could have been the Raptor II blend easily with tall tales dismissed as flights of fantasy. Long ignored tales of "invisible 'Mechs" were nothing new, and long forgotten were the Star League era stealth technologies such as the Null-Sig or the primitive mimicry of the Chameleon LPS. Always rare, essentially extinct, even among the Clans the technology had been left behind over their dishonorable nature - yet in 3058, the Word of Blake seized Terra from ComStar, and among the spoils was what would become Mimetic Armor. Debuting exclusively as a Battle Armor technology in 3061, it was initially regarded as a refinement of the Chameleon system that was too expensive and difficult to scale up to a full BattleMech.

This would be overturned come 3070, when ten years of Blakist development culminated in VoidSig, marrying the fidelity of Mimetic Armor, the scale of Chameleon, and the emission baffling of NullSig through the power of an onboard ECM suite. It is unclear exactly how long the Raptor II strode the Inner Sphere, but the RPT-2X and 2X1 are considered to have been formally introduced by 3073, with all known Blakist Raptors hailing from a classified factory somewhere on Terra. Although it would later be destroyed during the Coalition's Liberation of Terra, the development laboratory and specifications survived, allowing the Republic of the Sphere to restart production elsewhere with the RPT-3X as of 3084. The site of the Republic factory remains classified information with little being known about their manufacture, save for the specially-molded sensor-deflecting Light Ferro-Fibrous armor, which combined with the need to incorporate mimetic composites slows the production of new Raptors. However, the best of the Republic's Special Forces are said to be assigned these machines.

Devlin Stone is said to have quickly recognized the significance of VoidSig, and reportedly prioritized the acquisition of all salvaged Raptor IIs so as to prevent the reverse-engineering of the advanced stealth technology. A standing order to Republic Armed Forces officers included a directive to destroy any intact Raptor IIs before they can fall into foreign hands. More extreme was the decision to remove CASE during the design of the RPT-3X, a decision which coupled with the lack of an ejection system underlined the extreme measures the Republic was willing to take to ensure no Raptor fell into enemy hands.

Although the Republic believed that no other nation held Raptor IIs by 3085, in the 32nd century there were examples among foreign powers and even independent mercenaries that indicate the 'Mech slipped the Republic's fingers, with some even reportedly serving as family 'Mechs since the Jihad. Examples with functional Void Signature Systems appear to remain priority targets, however.

Weapons and Equipment

Built on endo steel bones and sheathed in specially-shaped light ferro-fibrous armor bonded with mimetic composites, practically every Raptor II is equipped with a Guardian ECM suite in order to operate the BattleMech's signature VoidSig capabilities, as well as small cockpits. No known production models deviate from this format, nor are they equipped with ejection systems. Anomalously, despite the use of a small cockpit the Raptor II did not appear to have ever been fielded by or designed for the Blakists' fearsome Manei Domini.

Under the Republic of the Sphere, the standard RPT-3X mounts MASC, 7.5 tons of armor, and eleven double heat sinks for two ER medium lasers, and two Streak SRM-6 launchers fed by two tons of ammo. A conscious omission is the CASE previously installed in the Blakist-designed Raptors. While a choice seemingly at odds with ensuring the survival of the pilot, the removal of CASE and the ejection system was intended by the RAF to ensure neither a Raptor II nor its pilot would fall into enemy hands.

The result is, at a standstill, an utterly undetectable machine capable of striking hard, holding ground, and vanishing swiftly, a vicious Blakist bird of prey that can lurk within optimum range as easily as it can rush in and out of danger.

In keeping with the secrecy surrounding its manufacture, the brand(s) of the weapons is unknown.

Variants

• RPT-2X 

  The Word of Blake's original version carried a single BattleMech taser backed up by two medium variable speed pulse lasers. The effectiveness of the Void Signature and MASC systems ensured the Raptor II closed to effective taser range in an instant. One less heat sink and half a ton less armor were the price to carry the weapons load. BV (2.0) = 896

• RPT-2X1 

  The second Blakist variant featured a more mundane array of weaponry, carrying a combination of an ER large laser, ER medium laser, and ER small laser, and Streak SRM-6 launcher, but was notable for carrying a prototype Bloodhound active probe, one of the few systems rumored to be able to pierce the Void Signature Systems' cloaking. BV (2.0) = 1,274

• RPT-2X2 

  This simple Dark Age refit of the 2X model replaces the BattleMech taser with a TSEMP cannon. BV (2.0) = 1,868

• RPT-5X 

  A Republic variant intended purely for search-and-destroy missions, the RPT-5X swapped the right arm ER medium laser for an ER large laser and replaced both Streak SRM-6 racks with two MML-5 racks. The removal of the MASC and one double heat sink allowed the altered weapons array along with enough jump jets to give it a 150 meter jumping range. BV (2.0) = 1,124

Apocryphal Variants

Apocryphal Content Starts

The information after this notice comes from apocryphal sources; the canonicity of such information is uncertain.
Please view the reference page for information regarding their canonicity.

These variants were introduced in various apocryphal sources, and thus far have not appeared in any canonical media.

From MechAssault 2:

• Raptor 

  Armed with a right arm Autocannon, right torso Pulse Laser, and two Crossbow SRM launchers, this version of the Raptor II was also equipped with jump jets and what was referred to as a Null Signature System. In effect, however, NullSig was essentially identical to the Void Signature System.

• Stiletto 

  In contrast with the standard Raptor above, the Stiletto variant was built with Reactive Armor Shielding (whose described effect is akin to Ballistic-Reinforced Armor) instead of NullSig, and was armed with a right-arm Gauss Rifle and a right-torso Flamer, though retained the Crossbow SRM pods.

Apocryphal Content Ends

Design Quirks

The Raptor II is subject to the following Design Quirks:

• No/Minimal Arms
• No Ejection System

Related BattleMechs

• Raptor - Seemingly little related other than in name, the original Raptor was the first OmniMech designed by the Inner Sphere. The Raptor II bears the original's speed profile, but seems to bear little resemblance otherwise.

Notes

• The Raptor II was first seen in MechAssault 2, released in 2004.
• The Raptor II's model prefix on the MWDA miniatures began as RTX - that of the original Raptor - as opposed to 'RPT', which came about in 2008 with Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents.

Gallery

• 

  RPT-2X Raptor II

• 

  RPT-5X Raptor II

• 

  Unidentified Raptor II variant cycling it's Void Signature System

• 

  The Raptor II as seen in MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf

• 

  Raptor II miniature from MechWarrior: Domination set

• 

  Miniature of X-Axis, a damaged Raptor II piloted by Dave Rees from Xbox Magazine.

Bibliography

• Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents
• Mechwarrior: Age of Destruction
• Record Sheets: 3085 Unabridged - The Cutting Edge
• Record Sheets: 3145 New Tech, New Upgrades
• Technical Readout: 3085
• MechWarrior: Dark Age - Dossiers and Pilot Cards