BattleTechWiki:Glossary of BattleTech terms

See also: BattleTechWiki:Dictionary for terms related to this wiki.

A

Abtakha

A warrior captured but then accepted into his new Clan as a warrior.

Aff

Clan abbreviation of "Affirmative".

Archon

Political and military leader of the Lyran Commonwealth. For more information, please refer to the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces article.

B

BattleMech

A bipedal or quadrupedal war machine, typically powered by a fusion reactor and piloted by a single soldier (cf. MechWarrior), used on the battlefields of the 31st century in a fashion similar to modern tanks. See the BattleMech page for more information.

C

CBT 

Abbreviation of Classic BattleTech.

Chancellor 

The chief of state of the Capellan Confederation.

Cho-sho 

a commissioned army and naval rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of lieutenant.

Chu-i 

a commissioned naval rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of captain.

Chu-sa 

a commissioned army rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of lieutenant colonel.

Classic BattleTech 

The designated name for the 'relaunch' of the traditional tabletop board game of BattleTech. The distinction was made following FASA's demise and the release of the separate-but-related universe of MechWarrior: Dark Age.

Combat Loss Grouping 

The principle that a group of mechs engaged in combat will accumulate damage over time, leading to a point where several or all of the group will succumb to damage at the same time. Can also be used to describe the time a unit sustains enough losses that it is no longer a viable fighting force.

Commonality 

Large districts which originally consisted of the signatory-states forming the Capellan Confederation.

Company 

A military unit designation that, for BattleMech units, consists of three Lances. Companies are usually commanded by a Major or a Captain (or their equivalent).

Coordinator 

the Draconis Combine's chief of state; also, the head of the Kurita family.

D

Dai-i 

a commissioned naval rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of lieutenant commander.

F

First Prince 

the leader of the Federated Suns and is the commander in chief of the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns.

G

Gauss Rifle 

a weapon that uses electromagnets to accelerate a slug to extremely high speeds; capable of severing a 'Mech's limb with a lucky shot; usually mounted on 'Mechs and heavier vehicles.

H

Hauptmann 

a commissioned army rank within the Lyran Alliance Armed Forces; equivalent to that of captain. For more information, please refer to the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces article.

Hauptmann-General

a commissioned army rank within the Lyran Alliance Armed Forces; equivalent to a lieutenant general. For more information, please refer to the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces article.

Hauptmann-Kommandant

a commissioned army rank within the Lyran Alliance Armed Forces; equivalent to a lieutenant colonel. For more information, please refer to the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces article.

HeavyMetal Aero 

the official CBT software for the design of AeroSpace Fighters, DropShips, JumpShips, WarShips, space stations, monitors & conventional (combat) fighters.

HeavyMetal Battle Armor 

the official CBT software for the design of Battle Armor.

HeavyMetal Lite 

the official CBT software for ProtoMech design, as well as printouts for Battle Armor and infantry platoon designs.

HeavyMetal Plus 

a bundle of three official CBT software programs: HeavyMetal Pro, HeavyMetal Aero and HeavyMetal Vee.

HeavyMetal Pro 

the official CBT software for 'Mech design.

HeavyMetal Vee 

the official CBT software for designing combat vehicles.

High Council 

a group of both democratic, hereditary, and other officials chosen by the leadership of the member-worlds of the Federated Suns who officially governed the nation.

Hiritsu 

one of the Capellan Warrior House Orders, and arguably, the most well know.

House of Scions 

a gathering of the Capellan nobility.

I

ilKhan

A unique Clan title, denoting the overall commander of a multiple-Clan campaign. Last held by Lincoln Osis of the Smoke Jaguars before his Clan's destruction during Operation Bulldog/Serpent.

Inferno Missile 

A short-range missile with a proximity fuse that sprays burning white phosphorous or napalm-like fuel over a target, usually 'Mechs, in an attempt to increase their operating temperature and force a reactor shutdown. Rarely carried in 'Mech ammo bays as pilots generally are afraid that an ammo explosion will engulf their 'Mech in flames, shut down their reactor, and fry them in the cockpit. An inferno missile was used by Grayson Death Carlyle to force the surrender of Lori Kalmar in her Locust in the Battle of Sarghad on Planet Trell I during a raid by commandos from House Kurita. The fight for Trell I was depicted in William H. Keith, Jr.'s novel Decision at Thunder Rift.

K

kaKhan (also Khan) 

the leader of a Clan in times of war.

Kommandant 

a commissioned army rank within the Lyran Alliance Armed Forces; equivalent to a major. For more information, please refer to the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces article.

Kommandant-General 

a commissioned army rank within the Lyran Alliance Armed Forces; equivalent to a major general. For more information, please refer to the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces article.

L

Lance

Designation given to the smallest organizational collection of BattleMechs, Aerospace Fighters, or armor units. It is the equivalent of a Squad of infantry. 'Mech lances consist of four BattleMechs and are categorized based upon the average weight of the 'Mechs that comprise it (Light, Medium, Heavy, Assault). Aerospace lances consist of two aerospace fighters and are similarly categorized on weight.

M

MechWarrior

(1) The pilot of a BattleMech.

(2) A series of computer games produced by FASA Interactive, initially through Activision and, later, Microsoft.

MechWarrior - Age of Destruction 

A collectible miniatures game that takes place several decades after the Word of Blake Jihad. Several new factions are introduced, and all the BattleTech factions except for the Free Worlds League are playable.

N

Neg

Clan abbreviation of "Negative".

Nova 

a Clan military formation consisting of two Mixed Stars (a mixture of different types of points, a.k.a. two BattleMechs, two V.T.O.L.S., five Elementals, and two tanks.)

P

PBI 

A MechWarrior's acronym for "Poor Bloody Infantry", those forced to fight without a 'Mech or other vehicle. Often crushed underfoot, toasted with Flamers, or riddled with Machine Gun bullets by amused pilots; PBI's fight back with shoulder-launched SRMs, Inferno missiles, hand Flamers, and satchel charges.

Point 

The smallest Clan millitary formation, consisting either of one BattleMech, two Land Vehicles or Aerospace Fighters, five Battle Armored Infantry or ProtoMechs, or twenty - five conventional infantry. Commanded by a Point Commander.

Point Commander 

A Clan rank, given to the commander of a Point.

Prefectorate 

officially, the law-making body of the Capellan Confederation; made up of the six leaders of the Capellan member-states, which generally includes the current Chancellor.

Prefecture 

in the Capellan Confederation, small collections of planets within a commonality, each ruled by an appointed administrator.

Privy Council 

group of the highest advisors to the First Prince of the Federated Suns that is extremely important in the running of the day-to-day affairs of the state.

R

recharge station 

a space station, generally located at a zenith or nadir point within a solar system, where JumpShips and WarShips can recharge their jump drives.

RPG 

acronym for Role Playing Game.

Rules Expansion

a secondary line of rulesets, usually intended to develop upon the primary rulesets for one or more Classic BattleTech games (ex: Combat Operations).

S

Sho-i 

a commissioned naval rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of ensign.

Sho-sa 

a commissioned army or naval rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of major or commander, respectively.

Sho-so 

a commissioned army rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of brigadier general.

Star 

a Clan millitary formation consisting of five points.

Star Captain 

a clan rank, given to the commander of a Binary, Trinary, Nova, or Supernova.

Streak Missile 

a missile that has electronic guiding equipment onboard. The advantage of streak missiles is that they can be fired at targets that are hiding in terrain; they are often simply referred to as "streaks."

Supernova 

a Clan millitary formation consisting of three Mixed Stars (a mixture of different types of points, a.k.a. two BattleMechs, two V.T.O.L.S., five Elementals, and two tanks.)

T

Tai-i 

a commissioned army rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of captain.

Tai-sa 

a commissioned army and naval rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of colonel or captain, respectively.

Tai-sho 

a commissioned army and naval rank within the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery; equivalent to that of general or admiral, respectively.

W

Warrior House Order 

the most elite warriors of the Capellan Confederation. They are a seperate command from the CCAF, and follow strong philosophical ideologies.