The Commando

The Commando

Weighing in at just 25 tons, the Inner Sphere Commando is up for a run thru today. A great looking little mech, reminds me of a Storm Trooper from Star Wars. This mech is about speed and agility. This particular mech is one of my favourite of the light mechs.

Before I get into the specifics of the Commando, I would like to talk a little about Mission Play. The NBT Sunder Server is a Puretech No Respawn Mission Play server set up for waves. There are 2 teams and one team has to defend an ‘objective’ like a Head Quarters building and a Communications Array (usually). The other team has to attack the objectives. One of the all time favourite mission play maps is named Royal Guard. Sunder is run so that the weather and radar are random as well as the maps.

One thing I just don’t like about Sunder, or rather, the play in Sunder, is when a no radar map comes up with some level of fog AND the attacking team takes ‘base rapers’. Sure it’s a mission play server and part of this type of play is based on killing the objectives. I know this and I accept this. What I don’t like is for a team to take 2 to 4 Tenchi’s or a couple of Avatars loaded with arty strikes or even Hellspawns loaded with Heavy Rocket Launchers or Arty Strikes and head out without attempting to fight anyone right for the objectives. Most of these mission play maps were made before some of these mechs and weapons were introduced and they simply aren’t set up for this type of attack. The round will be over before many, if any kills are registered. Nothing ruins it for me more than to be in the middle of a good fire fight with an enemy mech (regardless if I am defending or attacking) and the round end because some one (or more) took a fast base raper and destroyed the objectives.

IF you want to do that, that is fine. Do it when the radar is on or do it with light to no fog level in the day time. The Blood Pearls have a little fun every now and then on mission play maps. We have done it on Broken Sky, Griffon Base, Arctic Wasteland and Royal Guard. We ALWAYS do it in day time scenarios with the radar on and default visibility or clear visibility. We will use 2 to 3 Commandos loaded with speed and regular rocket launchers. The Commando is easy to kill and regular Rocket launchers take many shots to kill the objectives and they heat up the little Commando very quickly. We have been successful using these and killing objectives, but we have also been killed many times too. Its fun and the enemy team has a very good shot at killing us before we even reach the objectives. A BAP / ECM loaded defender can pick us up at 600 meters even if we are passive and a Commando will die fast form 1 or 2 good alphas.

So on with the Commando. IT comes loaded with only IFF and a speed of 121kph. The Commando offers Jump Jets, LAMs, IFF and Advanced Gyro. The Speed range is from 90 to 129kph. The weapons load out is 1 Large Laser, 1 Medium Laser, 2 Small Lasers and a Rocket Launcher. The Armour is Ferro Fibrous, a full 6 tons is packed on a standard frame.

In the Right and Left Torso are 2-slot Missile Racks. The Head houses a 1 slot Beam Rack and each Arm holds a 2 slot Heat Generating Rack. This type of slot holds either beam weapons or missiles.

Let me tell you if you add Jump Jets and Advanced Gyro while leaving the speed at 121kph you will only have 6 tons left to work with for weaponry. That’s not very much. You could load up 3 SRM2s or 2 SRM4s or a NARC with extra ammo or an Arty Beacon with extra ammo or a couple of Rocket Launchers. IT will also hold 5 medium lasers or a couple of medium pulse lasers or medium x-pulse lasers or a few small lasers or small pulse lasers. You can get creative and lower the speed and armour and load up 2 large lasers or 2 large beam lasers even. But, one thing for certain, this mech is no offensive power house.

Then again, it was not meant to be a power house. The basic job of a commando is that of a scout or harasser or objective killer. The mech is weak and goes down fast under any type of real firepower and it doesn’t have ECM so regardless of its size, it has a big radar signature unless it runs passive.

I told you I like this mech. I like the way it looks and I like the way it handles. No other mech in the game will start or stop as fast. No other mech will turn as quickly, it handles almost too well. It has a great twist ability and a decent heat capacity. The Commando climbs like a mountain goat and has jump jets for those places it cant climb too. It has speed and agility. You do have to keep moving once in range of the enemy or you wont be in the battle long.

I don’t often suggest that anyone NOT take LAMs, but this is one mech where you really don’t need them. If you keep moving and darting about like a drunk on a bicycle, you can avoid most missiles fired from range. It is possible to rack ups some kills of larger mechs if you move quickly and get in behind them. Missiles, Rockets or firing of lasers will eat away at their armour until you eventually kill them. You just have to keep from being legged or taking heavy alphas. Keep moving so that they do not get a good shot on you.

In a weight restricted environment, the Commando can be a useful mech. It can carry some nice laser loads or even some missiles. It is fast enough to find the enemy and run away from them. If Camos are used on the map, using the IFF and running passive makes this mech very hard to see at a distance because it is so small. Against other lights and most mediums, the Commando can actually hold its own ground for a little bit.

Well its time to put a rating on the Commando. I like the mech and I like the way it handles. I don’t like the lack of ECM or BAP, but it makes up for some of that with speed. The Command is a good scout mech and a fun objective killer. Its not much more than that. It doesn’t pack much armour and its offensive prowess is not very much. IT has to go fast to live. I rate the Commando 2 to 2 ½ minutes. Weak. It’s a fun mech to drive and play with but its really not a very serious threat.