Ravencon 2015: Tukayyid, Steel Vipers vs. Comstar

So, we got to play out the scenario. Here's the forces used, and all pilots were gunnery 3, piloting 4. I'll avoid the blow by blow, but the sum up was that Comstar won with both the Orion and Black Knight operational, and all Steel Vipers destroyed.

Steel Vipers (320 tons/16988 BV2)
Dragonfly (Viper) B
Black Hawk (Nova) Prime
Goshawk (Vapor Eagle)
Mad Cat (Timber Wolf) Prime
Daishi (Dire Wolf) Prime

Comstar (415 tons/13982 BV2)
Wyvern WVN-5N
Lancelot LNC25-01X
Warhammer WHM-7K
Black Knight BL-9-KNT
Orion ON2-M
Highlander HGN-732

Scenario
The victory conditions were simple. Steel Vipers had to hold the line and not allow Comstar units to pass, so retreat was not an option. Comstar had the objective to wipe out the second line Zeta Galaxy Steel Vipers.

Terrain
The terrain was balanced such that both sides had essentially the same terrain to work with. In accord with the scenario in the Devil's Bath, pools, granite towers/columns, and sparse trees. Comstar had to place their units on one end in the first full hex. Steel Vipers, as the defenders, could place their units up to half of their side of the board.

The Battle
Early on, Comstar was taking the worst of it. The loss of the Highlander and a lucky kill on the Lancelot left Comstar down two important 'mechs, including their assault 'mech. The Highlander and Dire Wolf slugged it out, with the Dire Wolf coming out on top, though much worse for the wear.

While it was looking bad early on, the sturdy, armored, albiet less armed Comstar units could continue to soak up damage and the Vipers were starting to get into their XL engines.

Eventually, the Dire Wolf succumbs to the combined fire from the Warhammer and Orion. The Black Hawk's pilot through pilot hits eventually is knocked unconscious, needing 10 to wake up. It doesn't happen before it is taken out. The Warhammer is critically damaged near the end, with virtually no armor or internal structure left, but it soldiers on through the last round making its presence known.

In the closing rounds, the Orion takes out the Dragonfly, leaving just the Timber Wolf, low on LRM ammunition and facing down a damaged Orion, a Warhammer on it's last legs (literally), and the Black Knight in reasonably good shape. Not surprisingly, the Timber Wolf can't hold its own surrounded, but as a last gasp, it downs the Warhammer.

In this last picture, we left the downed 'mechs on the field where they fell, leaving just the two surviving Comstar 'mechs on the field.

After Action

In spite of a 3000 BV2 difference, the game was very well balanced. While the superior firepower helped the Steel Vipers early on, once they started taking damage, they couldn't keep pace with the standard engine, upgraded, and heavily armored Comstar forces. The Chuck Battletech Encyclopedia mentioned that BV2 places perhaps too heavy a cost for fast moving units, which certainly appeared the case in this battle. As an example, the extra speed from the Dragonfly allowed it to stay in the fight longer, but it couldn't take the damage the Comstar units could.