Kintaro

Description
Introduced in Introduction Year::2587 for the SLDF, the Kintaro was designed with one sole mission: tagging enemy units with a Narc missile beacon. As such, it is a 'Mech that is intended to work in a team with a missile-heavy lance, and after it delivers its deadly package to the enemy, the Kintaro disengages and lets its lancemates do most of the work as their missiles track the signal from the beacon. The act of putting this into practice is far less simple; with a maximum speed of 86.4 km/h the Kintaro is not able to engage and disengage from enemy units as easily as its designers envisioned and because of this, if a pilot is not observant of their surroundings and the enemy, they can find themselves in a very dangerous situation.

Unfortunately, the Succession Wars saw the last known Narc factory destroyed in 2792, and the advances made during the Star League era became lostech. The loss of Narc beacons rendered the Kintaro ' s role unnecessary, and it became just another missile-armed 'Mech. By the Third Succession War the Kintaro was nearly extinct, but in the end was saved when General Dynamics rebuilt a Kintaro factory on Ozawa, though they could only produce the downgraded KTO-18 variant. ComStar, however, maintained a number of original Kintaros which they used to outfit their Com Guards. They also produced their own slightly-downgraded variant, the KTO-20, which they gifted to the Draconis Combine as part of Operation Rosebud. Concentrated among the Ghost Regiments and certain Sword of Light regiments, the superiority of these 'Mechs over their Federated Commonwealth cousins caused an overreaction during the War of 3039 as they were targeted for destruction more than necessary, leaving other units free to fight.

Weapons and Equipment
The Kintaro is designed primarily around its missile beacon and its weapons loadout reflects this. For long range sparring, and to provide some form of striking capability as it closes, the Kintaro carries a single Holly-5 LRM-5 launcher. When the Kintaro moves into range to actually hit the enemy with the Narc beacon, it has two HoverTec-6 SRM-6 launchers and two Magna medium lasers that come into play, making it a competent and deadly close combat 'Mech. However, the left-arm system, where the Holly-5 and one of the HoverTec-6 launchers are located, is extremely complex, requiring the entire arm to lock in place for three seconds while reloads stored in the torso cycle through. Sudden movements can cause the SRM system to jam, which usually requires an hour to clear before it is usable again, although jams for the LRM launcher are very rare. As yet the reason for this difference in performance between the two systems has not been determined.

Variants

 * KTO-18 : Put into production during the Third Succession War for the Federated Suns by General Dynamics of Ozawa, the downgraded KTO-18 Kintaro was manufactured using the Succession Wars era technology available at the time. As far as the weapons on the 'Mech, the then lostech Narc beacon was replaced with an additional SRM-6, giving the KTO-18 increased close range capabilities. The advanced ferro-fibrous plating was exchanged for 11 tons of standard armor, resulting in only a negligible loss of armor protection. This refit had the interesting effect of making the Kintaro somewhat more popular than the older model, particularly among Periphery worlds that could not always afford heavier missile attackers; while the design "ran hotter than hell's saunas", as one MechTech famously put it, the sheer power of three SRM-6 launchers mounted on a relatively fast frame with good armor made the KTO-18 an excellent hard-hitting strike and brawling unit. BV (1.0) = 864; BV (2.0) = 1,187


 * KTO-19b : The KTO-19b was an upgrade utilized by the Royal Brigades of the SLDF. It used an XL engine and double heat sinks to free up space to upgrade the KTO-19's LRM-5 launcher to a larger LRM-15 with two tons of CASE-protected ammunition. CASE was also added to the SRM ammo bins, with the leftover half ton devoted to more armor. BV (2.0) = 1,265


 * KTO-20 : The KTO-20, used to good effect in the War of 3039, was the slightly downgraded version of the KTO-19 given to the Draconis Combine by ComStar as part of Operation Rosebud. The KTO-20 was nearly identical to its Star League era cousin, the only real difference being the loss of the Narc missile beacon in exchange for a Magna Mk III large laser. It was equipped with double heat sinks. BV (1.0) = 1,081; BV (2.0) = 1,357


 * KTO-21 : Developed by both ComStar and the Word of Blake, the KTO-21 was the first 'Mech to utilize both the new improved Narc missile beacon and the improved C3 computer system. In order to utilize these new systems, the KTO-21 was refitted with an endo steel chassis and carried half a ton less armor than the KTO-19. Retaining only the two SRM-6 launchers, the LRM-5 launcher was dropped and the standard medium lasers were upgraded to more advanced ER medium lasers, enhanced by a switch to double heat sinks. BV (1.0) = 1,206 (C3: 111); BV (2.0) = 1,295


 * KTO-C : A variant of the Combine's KTO-20, the KTO-C was one of the testbed 'Mechs for the C3 slave unit, one of the medium lasers being removed in order to free up the necessary weight. BV (1.0) = 1,069 (C3: 117); BV (2.0) = 1,294


 * KTO-K : An upgrade to the KTO-C, the KTO-K removed the large laser and LRM-5 launcher to upgrade the short-range missiles to Streak SRM-6s. The medium lasers were upgraded to ER medium lasers, and a third was added, along with a C3 module. The most significant difference was the addition of jump jets to allow the unit to leap up to 150 meters. BV (2.0) = 1,571

Custom Variants

 * KTO-19 (Omar) : A Star League era 'Mech handed down via the Akbani family for generations, after suffering severe damage in the War of 3039 Tai-sa Omar Akbani of the Second Arkab Legion had its damaged LRM-5 and Narc missile beacon systems replaced with a recovered ER PPC and double heat sinks.

Apocryphal Variants
From MechWarrior 5: Call to Arms Expansion Pack:
 * KTO-18P : First coming into use in 3037 among pirates and Periphery states, the 18P drops the KTO-18's center torso-mounted SRM-6 launcher and moves the right arm's medium laser there. The LRM-5 launcher is also moved from the left arm to the right torso. Tapping into the rise of interest in melee weapons, the free right arm is then equipped with a medium hatchet.

From MechWarrior Online:
 * KTO-GB "Golden Boy" : The Kintaro Hero 'Mech, the "Golden Boy", mounts a 220-rated XL engine, near maximum armor, and 10 double heat sinks, supporting a primary weapons array consisting of two SRM-4 launchers in its center torso, an SRM-6 launcher in its right torso, and two more in the left arm, supplied with four tons of ammo. As backup there is a trio of medium pulse lasers, one mounted in the left arm and two in the right.

Design Quirks
The Kintaro is subject to the following Design Quirk:
 * Rugged (1)

Notable Pilots

 * See: Category:Notable Kintaro Pilots

Related 'Mechs

 * Hyena SalvageMech - Original design built from two salvaged Kintaros.


 * Naja - Clan Cloud Cobra created this medium BattleMech based on Kintaros found in their Brian Caches.