Enforcer

Description
Since it first walked off of the production line, the Enforcer has been the iconic medium-weight workhorse of the Federated Suns' Succession Wars era military. This is in large part due to production of the Enforcer remaining largely undisturbed throughout the Succession Wars, despite the relative lack of industrialization that has long hampered the Federated Suns. With the autocannon-obsessed Armed Forces of the Federated Suns building up its BattleMech forces upon the collapse of the Star League, the discovery on Achernar of schematics for an unbuilt autocannon-carrying Star League 'Mech was a case of perfect timing. Modifying the design by swapping two medium lasers for a single larger one, Achernar BattleMechs rushed it through development and began production in Introduction Year::2777.

The Enforcer fulfilled the roles of a mobile barrage vehicle, laying down an intense hail of fire as a prelude to an offensive or to blunt an enemy's attack, and as a trooper 'Mech, using its thick frontal armor and good jumping distance of one hundred and twenty meters to effectively brawl with the enemy despite lacking hand actuators. The sturdy and inexpensive design's mobility also made it an ideal city fighter, especially when sniping the enemy during hit-and-run attacks. One of the design's problems was that, with most of its nine tons of armor concentrated forward, the amount of protection in its rear torso is less than on some light 'Mechs. The Enforcer's biggest flaw though was its limited ammunition stores, though when possible a truck-and-crane reloading system is used during less-mobile battles. Attempts were made to replace the small laser with another ton of ammunition, however there were complicated linkage problems in getting the ammo from the left torso to the right arm, increasing the rate of jamming or reducing the rate of fire to unacceptable levels. What's more the rounds had to be routed along the 'Mechs back where its armor was weakest.

As many of the secrets of Lostech were recovered by the NAIS, Achernar brought in many veteran Enforcer MechWarriors to help them design the newest model, the ENF-5D. This variant became the standard medium 'Mech for the Federated Commonwealth when it debuted in late 3050, and the Armed Forces of the Federated Commonwealth immediately contracted the entire Achernar line for a ten-year run. The AFFC distributed the new 'Mechs to key formations including the Davion Brigade of Guards, Royal Guards and FedCom Corps, and bought up Achernar's upgrade kits for other distinguished units. However demand for the new Enforcers during the Clan Invasion out-stripped Achernar's ability to supply them, requiring First Prince Hanse Davion to order that Kallon Industries be granted a license to produce Enforcers. Both companies would continue to produce Enforcers through the next twenty years until the Jihad, when Kallon Industries' plant on Talon, moon of Wernke, was destroyed in 3069.

Weapons and Equipment
The Enforcer's primary weapon is a Federated Autocannon, an excellent large-caliber model firing in bursts of ten rounds and whose cooling jacket doubles as a protective sleeve for engaging in hand-to-hand combat. While one ton of ammunition only allows for ten bursts total, the rounds are stored in an equivalent number of big clips which are easy to eject and reload. Complementing the autocannon is a ChisComp 43 Large Laser in the left arm, both giving the Enforcer respectable intermediate range firepower, while a ChisComp 32 Small Laser in the left torso provides for close range combat.

Variants

 * ENF-5D : First walking off the production line in late 3050, the 5D Enforcer is a major upgrade to the standard 'Mech, meeting many of its pilots' desire for something faster, better-protected and with more endurance. The Nissan 200 engine has been removed and replaced with a Magna 250 Extralight Engine, increasing the Enforcer's top speed to 86.4 km/h and the amount of space available for other additions. The armor has been stripped from the 'Mech and replaced with StarGuard CIV Ferro-Fibrous armor with CASE to protect against an ammunition explosion while the weapons payload has also been changed. Retaining the small laser both the Autocannon/10 and the Large Laser were replaced for a new Mydron Excel LB-X Autocannon/10, fed by two tons of ammunition, and a BlazeFire Sweetshot ER Large Laser.  Finally, an additional jump jet was added, increasing the jumping distance by thirty meters to keep up with the Enforcer's new speed profile. BV (1.0) = 1,093, BV (2.0)= 1,308

Custom Variants

 * ENF-4R Enforcer Daniel : The personal 'Mech of Fox's Teeth member Daniel Waylen, after his unit was selected to receive among the first experimental weapons developed from the Helm Memory Core by the New Avalon Institute of Science in the lead-up to the War of 3039, his Enforcer was chosen as the test bed for an experimental NAIS Mk. I Gauss Rifle prototype. To free up the mass required for this weapon and two tons of reloads, the NAIS engineers adopted the laser armament from the original design, mounting a pair of ChisComp 39 Medium Lasers in the left arm in place of the large laser.


 * ENF-5D Enforcer Daniel : While the body of his 'Mech was factory refitted to the 5D standard after the initial Clan Invasion, Waylen adopted a more modern version of its War of '39 weapons loadout, carrying a now refined Gauss Rifle, two ER Medium Lasers in the left arm and a single torso mounted ER Small Laser.

Apocryphal Variants
These variants were introduced in various apocryphal sources, and thus far have not appeared in any canonical media.

From MechWarrior Online:
 * ENF-4P : Only retaining the 4R's torso mounted Small Laser, the 4P instead mounts an AC/20 in the right arm and a pair of Medium Lasers in the left arm. Carrying three tons of autocannon ammunition and eleven Double Heat Sinks, the 4P is powered by 250-rated standard engine, saving weight through the use of Ferro-Fibrous armor and Endo-Steel internal structure.


 * ENF-5P : A departure from normal autocannon and laser Enforcer, the 5P mounts an Ultra AC/5 in each arm with two total tons of ammunition and a single Small Laser in the left torso. Two Jump Jets mounted in each side torso coupled with twelve total Double Heat Sinks round out its equipment, running off of a 250 Extralight engine housed by standard internal structure components and twelve tons of standard armor.


 * ENF-GH Ghillie : The MWO Hero 'Mech version of Daniel Waylen's personal Enforcer, the Ghillie enhances the sniper nature of his custom variant with the addition of a Guardian ECM Suite.

Design Quirks
The Enforcer has the following Design Quirks:
 * Barrel Fist (LA/RA)
 * Fast Reload (AC/10)
 * Improved Cooling Jacket (AC/10)
 * Ammunition Feed Problem (AC/10)

Related BattleMechs

 * Watchman - Derived from the Star League prototype for the classic ENF-4R, the lighter Watchman was designed as low-cost replacement of the END-5D for use as a training and garrison 'Mech for planetary and march militias. The Watchman possesses a Fusion Engine, and mounts a Large Laser, a pair of Medium Lasers, and a pair of Machine Guns. The large parts commonality between the Watchmen and 4R Enforcer ensures a ready supply of spares to maintain them in operation.


 * Sentry A revision of the Watchman, with superior anti-infantry capability and incorporating more advanced technology than its predecessor. It, too, was designed for maximum compatibility with the previous 'Mechs and distributed widely within the Federated Suns


 * Cuirass Another Watchman-derived 'Mech; the Cuirass is designed as a light skirmisher to complement the Legionnaire. It unfortunately struggles to make the best use of its mobility and weapons loadout due to its outdated heat sinks.


 * Enforcer III - Prince Victor Steiner-Davion ordered the rebuilding of a new Enforcer variant following the secession of the Lyran Alliance to reinforce Davion pride. The Enforcer III has a new look and is the basis of newer Enforcer variants.