Raptor II

Description
The first BattleMech to utilize the advanced Void Signature System, Raptor II was a virtually invisible covert reconnaissance and search-and-destroy 'Mech used by both the Word of Blake and the Republic of the Sphere.

While reports of "invisible 'Mechs" had long been ignored as confusion for such Star League era stealth systems as the Null Signature System and Chameleon Light Polarization Shield, in the maelstrom of the Jihad the Word of Blake introduced the "Stealth Raptor" to deadly effect. Though the Blakists destroyed its factory during the invasion of Terra, Devlin Stone recognized the game-changing nature of its cloaking system and took extreme risks to ensure his forces captured every last scrap of information and salvage of the design, eventually succeeding in reverse engineering and manufacturing it exclusively for the elite special forces of Republic Armed Forces.

Directly integrated into the Raptor II's Endo Steel Chassis and seven tons of Light Ferro-Fibrous armor, the hybrid combination of the Null Signature System to shield the 'Mech from electronic detection and a scaled up version of the Purifier Adaptive's Mimetic Armor to cloak the 'Mech from visual detection, the Void system made the Raptor II utterly undetectable if motionless, making it an ideal ambush and recon unit. To increase its effectiveness when bursting from hiding, the Raptor II also mounted a Guardian ECM Suite and MASC to ensure maximum surprise. Equipped with ten Double Heat Sinks, another surprise is despite the use of a Small Cockpit, the Raptor II did not appear to have ever been fielded by or designed for the Blakist's fearsome Manei Domini.

Weapons and Equipment
Mounting a weapons array designed to take best advantage of ambush opportunities offered by its stealth systems, the Raptor II featured a single 'Mech-sized taser backed up by two Medium VSP Lasers. The effectiveness of the Void and MASC systems ensured the Raptor II closed to effective taser range in an instant.

Variants

 * RPT-2X1 : The second Blakist variant featured a more mundane array of weaponry, a mixture of ER lasers and Streak missile launchers, but was notable for carrying a prototype Bloodhound Probe, one of the few systems rumored to be able to pierce the Void systems' cloaking . BV (2.0) = 1,471


 * RPT-2X2 : This simple Dark Age refit of the 2X model replaces the 'Mech Taser with a TSEMP Cannon. BV (2.0) = 2,057


 * RPT-3X : The first of the Republic models, the 3X was armed with a Streak SRM-6 in each torso and an ER Medium Laser in each arm. Retaining the MASC of the Blakist models, along with the vital Guardian ECM Suite, an extra half ton of armor was carried thanks to the removal of the CASE. While a choice seemingly at odds with ensuring the survival of the pilot, the lack of CASE and removal of the ejection system was intended to ensure neither a Raptor II or it pilot would fall into enemy hands. BV (2.0) = 1,423


 * RPT-5X : A Republic variant intended purely for search-and-destroy missions, the RPT-5X swapped the right arm ER Medium for an ER Large Laser and replaced both Streak racks with a single MML-5. The removal of the MASC and a heat sink allowed the altered weapons array along with enough Jump Jets to give it a 150-meter jumping range . BV (2.0) = 1,393

Related BattleMechs

 * Raptor - Little related other than in name, the original Raptor was the first OmniMech designed by the Inner Sphere. The Raptor II borrowed the original's speed profile, but nearly everything else is different.