The art of TRO::3063

The Art of TRO:3063

The following pages are a special section. They consist of artwork commissioned for our fan-made Technical Readout over the years but not used due to the sometimes-bumpy changes the TRO underwent during that time. Some were held back due to format changes. Others turned out to be not quite what we needed as the bar for art quality was raised time and again. Still others did not match the formal tone the TRO gradually acquired as time passed. When we got down to the serious work of presenting a product whose writing and format were more in line with the expectations of generations of BattleTech players, we realized the casual attitude wed started with was no longer appropriate. But the art was still there and while it has no place in a serious work, it still represents an appealing view of the BattleTech universe. We hope you enjoy it.

The art of TRO::3063

This is the Free Worlds League Black Knight in a lighter green color scheme. We went with a darker feel for the TRO, but this looks quite good. Art by David White Colors by Jim Lafferty

The art of TRO::3063

Lyran Alliance - Isometrus

Outworlds Alliance - Zephyrus

These are well-done pieces, but our needs for the section headers changed.

The art is by Eric Ou. Color is by Terrance Wong.

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The art of TRO::3063

This was an attempt to color the Draconis Combines Scorpion II. Christian M. Swanson did the coloring on Eric Ous lineart. Unfortunately, Christian was never able to complete this to his satisfaction - note his attempt to do away with the lines altogether on the left side - and it remains a might-have-been. We liked the camo scheme.

The art of TRO::3063

Another case of what might have been. This is a Mercenary Jenner JR7-X, art by Eric Ou and (partial) color by Christian M. Swanson. It never got any further due to time constraints (the artist was a student at the time), but showed quite a bit of promise

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The art of TRO::3063

Dawn Patrol

This was the very first commissioned piece for the TRO, a plate done by Alex Iglesias shortly before he began his more famous work for Catalyst Games. It was left over due to changes in the TRO layout (much can happen in four years) and a subsequent lack of need.

The art of TRO::3063

The Draconis Combines Tomahawk tank originally sported brighter colors. Terrence Wong did a good job coloring Eric Ous lineart, but we eventually shifted the overall tone of the TRO and needed something a bit darker. We miss the graffiti, however...

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The art of TRO::3063

Here is a perfect example of great art left behind as the tone of the TRO changed... This is one of six pieces done by David Razi Dryburgh specifically for the betweensection color plates. The subjects had to include machines from the TRO itself - in this case, the Merkava MkXVII. David has a wonderful ability to wring the most out of two or three shades of color.

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The art of TRO::3063

Here we see a Capellan Dao getting the better of an enemy Mech - no range is better than pointblank! Art by David Dryburgh

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The art of TRO::3063

An embattled Mercenary Argus fights the good fight against Clan invaders. The colors were altered somewhat to try making all the separate elements pop a bit more. Mixed results, but a bit better than the duo-chrome original. Art by David Dryburgh.

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The art of TRO::3063

A Federated Commonwealth Commando, practicing the better part of valor as it sensibly flees a Catapult. The remains of a Zeus to the right suggest this is a wise choice! Art by David Dryburgh.

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The art of TRO::3063

This is a Lyran Panther along with a Big Friend, caught in the sights of an aerospace fighter. Not pleasant, and this is the second pass - will that crewmember escape? Art by David Dryburgh

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The art of TRO::3063

Here is a Draconis Combine Gallowglas taking a hit from a Hatchetman. The nerve! Of course, the Glas outweighs his opponent by a good 25 tons, so this may be the HatchetMans swan song before the can of whoopass gets opened. Art by David Dryburgh.

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The art of TRO::3063

This Federated Commonwealth Praetorian is dishing out the hurt somewhere in the Outback. It has more air support than is usual for such assignments. On the other hand, it does have a nice souvenir in the right hand. Wonder who lost their head in the heat of battle? Art by David Dryburgh.

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The art of TRO::3063

Who says a tanker cant have a little fun in the midst of battle? This Zhukov II from the Free Worlds League is blasting away with twin UAC/10s even as it takes on some uneven terrain. Can you guess what the speed bump is? Crunchy good times.... Art by David Dryburgh

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The art of TRO::3063

Another example of Terrence Wongs coloring skills over Eric Ous lineart. We dropped this BattleMaster because the Section headers had changed.

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The art of TRO::3063

Art by David Dryburgh

The Game

A pickup game of football between two crews (Capellan and Free Worlds League) for whom the larger Game is over.

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The art of TRO::3063

Art by David Dryburgh

Chaperone

These Lyran girls are out for a shout. Gives a new meaning to head of the line privilege and shows how Battle Armor can be useful even when on peacekeeping duty.

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The art of TRO::3063

Art by Chris Sumner

Strafing Run

In the foreground we have the Outworlds Alliance Sounder, armed with triple RAC/5s. Assisting them in their close support mission is the Federated Commonwealths Machete, which has a single RAC/5 but is much, much faster. Both are bad news for ground forces as these fighters follow in the footsteps of the Thunderbolt II of a thousand years ago.

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The art of TRO::3063

The first of two Mechs with outstanding art that never made it to the book because we could not create a design that was enough of an improvement on the original. In this case, Eric Ou gave us his own take on the JagerMech, specifically the JM7-F. Unfortunately, we could not come up with anything that fit the visuals of this machine while being a significant improvement over the original. Funny thing is, it works just great as a proxy for the JM7-F, and is now available as a fan-produced miniature (under another name).

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The art of TRO::3063

This is Eric Ous take on the standard Wraith. Isnt she a beauty? We thought so, and said lets create a new machine, one that will improve on the original while fitting the visuals we have in this lovely picture. Well, we did it. We came up with a Wraith which featured a Marik chassis, Capellan Stealth armor and a Federated Commonwealth targeting computer. With only ten heat to play with, a decent warload was hard to imagine. We finally decided on a large laser, two medium lasers and a jump of 150 meters (standard was 210). It worked pretty well in playtesting, but you know... we just could not come up with a convincing reason for all of these highly proprietary technologies to come together in one machine never mind a full production run. We eventually dropped the idea as un-workable. This is wonderful art nonetheless.

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The art of TRO::3063

Getting Things Just Right - the Odyssey of the Draconis Combines White Knight

The original piece by Simple Jay

Vadims inspiration...

We needed more original work, so PRDarkfox tried...

Too stiff, so Lee Madison had a go...

We finally passed the job on to Stephen Huda, who seemed to have the right mix of action and detail for our purposes

...which was very good indeed... but even with details, too static.

The Final White Knight

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The art of TRO::3063

This was a valiant attempt by J. P. Sphagnum to illustrate the Blackjack. It was one of our first commissions and while he did a great job on the Thug and the Zhukov II, this one was just a bit too rough. As the years passed and artists like Huda, Iglesias and Ou began to appear, the art became a lot cleaner and sharper. It was not until late in 2011, however, that we decided the art had to be replaced. Keep in mind - we dragged our feet on each rejection. Every piece that was rejected was one for which we paid at least $2530. Sometimes more. In the case of the White Knight, thats $60 gone. But at least you get to see it here. Some of it is pretty good, other stuff... well, you can see why it was eventually retired. But at the time, we can honestly say we were happy with them.

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The art of TRO::3063

The original Thug (left) as done by JP Sphagnum is quite good, if a tiny bit rough. Many wont mind that; I certainly dont. It is full of action, but that is part of the problem - it does not match the look and feel of the remaining art, which is somewhere between a static pose and being caught in mid-stride. The replacement piece above by Chris Daranouvong is still under construction. It is one of the last to be done.

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The art of TRO::3063

The Combines original Katana - borrowed from Command and Conquer 3? Daniel Cherng takes a shot at it, but the result is a bit too organic...

Finally, Stephen Huda takes the commission and while keeping the basic styling cues intact, manages to create his own workable take on the concept.

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The art of TRO::3063

Art by Chris Seymour The Nemera was a drawn-out process, probably the most bothersome design we did and one that vexed our staff as well as the artist. He did his best, shooting the basic layouts to us and letting us cherry-pick the features we wanted. Not bad - but youve all heard that a camel is a horse designed by a committee? That was the case here. The artist really tried, but we ended up getting something from Eric Ou instead.

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The art of TRO::3063

The Lyran Alliances Nightsky was one of two pieces by Eric Ou that were re-done. In both cases, he did not like the first take and supplied a replacement for free. This one was in an awkward position that caused visual confusion around the right arm/torso location. It was also kinda static for a machine that normally spends most of its time jumping around and whacking at things with its hatchet.

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The art of TRO::3063

The other design was the Capellan Culverin. Something about this first version was too clunky and Eric volunteered to replace it on his own. The successor is much sexier and more dynamic looking even when it is standing still.

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The art of TRO::3063

Evolution of the BARS
The Bulldog Automatic Reloading System was intended to be an unmanned gun on a tank chassis, ideal for shoot and scoot operations. The original drawing to the left was lacking in detail and the shading was off. Vadim tried, but after the overall art quality began to rise, I took his work as the starting point for the look of his designs, which were quite good and comprise at least 70% of the TRO entries.

The version to the right is a prototype and was as far as Lee Madison got before he seemed to drop right off the planet. We would have been quite happy with this version - after all, there are only seven examples of Lees work in a TRO that has more than 110 entries. Stephen Huda did the final work and it is quite good... but as you can see, Lee was one of those artists who can make a tank look like a race car and an AFV at the same time.

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The art of TRO::3063

The Werefox Line - Group Art
The Werefox family of AFVs were the logical extension of a question we had heard a lot - do you *have* to use the OmniVehicle option for a shared platform? The payoff only comes when you play campaign-style games that strictly enforce finances. In return, you are often forced into using a substandard combination, as you cannot adjust any parameters outside of the weapon pods...

...so we created a series of AFVs that looked and weighed much the same, sharing components as often as possible but, unlike Omnis, could be tweaked for maximum performance in each configuration. The Identification Chart above was supposed to be inserted just before the Werefox entries in the TRO as an in-universe artifact. However, that idea was discarded (along with many others) when we performed a major format overhaul in early 2011. The illustrations to your left form the cover sheet for miniatures that were made available online (Shapeways)! The vehicles were gathered on this flyer as a handy way of showing what they looked like and their size relative to each other.

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The art of TRO::3063

This Lyran unit was dropped as a bad design. Dont misunderstand - the Zeus PE itself is a good machine - it was a BattleMech specifically designed to reinforce Periphery States so that the Lyran military could focus its attention towards fighting the growing Civil War. Equipped with a respectable warload, the PE (Periphery Export) was meant to carry the latest in firepower, especially weapons that used special ammo. The idea was to sell the PE at cost and keep the Periphery states in line by providing a steady - but exclusive - source of unique munitions and spare parts. The problem with the PE was this: in order to create a machine that was a step up from the standard Zeus, we had to use endo steel. And wouldnt you know it? No Zeus has EVER had an endo steel skeleton. So you couldnt step down to Mechs R Us and pick up a spare leg - you had to get it from the same people who sold you the original - and that was if THEY had it in stock. We just could not imagine a Periphery state or mercenary that would willingly tie itself so closely to a single manufacturer during a time of civil war with iffy logistics in the bargain - the Zeus was good, but not *that* good.

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The art of TRO::3063

Halberd (FC) AA Tank Art by Jim Lafferty

The Zeus was not the only machine dropped due to unsuitability. We dropped a vee or two as well. The FedComs Halberd Anti-Aircraft tank was pushed aside, mostly because there were already one AA design in the Werefox series. It was too fast for an AA unit, as we later discovered during a playtest of the Word of Blake Aurora with its battery of LB-5Xs. With a C3 link the Halberd would have been devastating. So we made the Werefox AAV II...

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The art of TRO::3063

The original art for the Sounder was quality work, done by Eric Ou. However, by the time we got the updated version, another commission had gone out. We like this one - it has a little Crusher Joe in it - but with the conventional cockpit and the thick fuselage, it doesnt scream sleek killer!!! like the version we eventually used.

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The art of TRO::3063

The Churchill Mk XX art was done by Anthony Scroggins. So many people were interested in the design and the look that Dorian Sherratt created a miniature for this tank. This is the instruction sheet made to accompany an order for the miniature online. Note the options available for the known variants...

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The art of TRO::3063

The Back and Forth of Art Commissions
Ian Stead was originally commissioned to do the Draconis Combine Tomahawk. He shot us an initial effort (right). (Ian works exclusively in digital format. The work you see in the TRO has had backgrounds added by another artist, either Lee Madison or Karl Olson).

As you can see on the left, there were quite a few changes we required on the first draft. We just wrote the notes right on a copy of the original piece and sent it back. We never got further updates due to Ians schedule and thus, we went for one of Eric Ous excellent tanks ian-stead (pun intended).

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The art of TRO::3063

We did several back and forth sketches before this draft of The Game finally appeared. David Dryburgh based the color work on this.

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The art of TRO::3063

Capellan Jian MMTV

Note the rough sketches addressing different aspects of both the Jian and the support troops who will be in the final image. This is a good example of Lee Madisons technique.

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The art of TRO::3063

Free Worlds League Striker II

Another of Lee Madisons commissions, the Striker II went through similar exploratory sketches. There are quite a few very interesting ideas presented in these drafts, but we had to choose the look we wanted and let Lee do the rest.

Notice the young female soldier? She started out wearing a cutoff tank top! While we like the Brittany Spears look as much as anyone can, we had to ask a perplexed Lee to put some of the lassies clothes back on. Fanservice is certainly a BattleTech tradition, but it isnt usually found in a TRO.

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The art of TRO::3063

To the left is another view of the Free Worlds League Sarpedon tank. The blue circle is used to highlight an area that needs correction. In this case, the laser housing had to be fared into the turret.

To the right is one of the early attempts to re-draw the Outworlds Alliance Uragan. Bad communications doomed this commission, and it was eventually passed to Eric Ou.

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The art of TRO::3063

And then there were the unreal sources, such as a Photoshopped version of that Russian vehicle I found on the Web. I sent it off to one of the editors as a joke when he asked if we were nearly finished.

Some of the ideas came from real world machines, such as this prototype Russian self-propelled artillery, the inspiration for the Draconis Combines Sabra XIII.

As an exercise in game mechanics, I equipped it with six LB-5X autocannons. When the editor tested it out in a game, we quickly realized the potential of this joke... ...and we finalized it as the Aurora.

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Playtesting TRO::3063

In order to playtest our designs, we had to put them in a game, and that meant occasional kitbashing. Above right is the Vulcan VL-7M, with hands and an ER large laser. Upper left is a rear view of the Scorpion II and its Gauss rifle and dual AMS. Finally, the Mech at lower right is Shiloh Lassiters Lumberjack III, a variant of the Federated Commonwealths Durendal.

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Playtesting TRO::3063
Sounder Machete Stingray Feng-niao

Playtesting was not restricted to our local gaming groups. Quite by accident, I came into contact with two BattleTech players in England and through them, a regular club of gamers who did things on a scale Id never seen before. They used aerospace fighters and vehicles as easily as they did BattleMechs. After Dorian Sherratt created a Mech and tank miniature for me on Shapeways, I asked if he and his partner Helen Troy (the BattleQueen) would playtest a new aerospace design. The Sounder is only one of many contributions my friend Bill Burt has made to the hobby. This one was an attempt to create a true ground attack fighter for BattleTech in the spirit of the Thunderbolt II (aka Warthog). In Dorians hands it succeeded beyond our wildest expectations. The back cover of this TRO is the artistic rendering of his playtesting - a vicious orbital battle where several wings of Sounder and Machete fighters destroyed not one, but two Vincent-class WarShips stationed by the Word of Blake to eliminate Comstars incoming dropships. This is not the only design tested by the UK Crew. Helen and Dorian tested the Lyran Stingray to good effect, pointing out issues with the secondary armament. They took the Capellan Feng-niao for a spin; with as brilliant a display of tactical skill as I have ever seen, it became the key element of a successful frontal assault on a Word stronghold. As for the aerospace threat - well, we could not rest until we gave the Word of Blake something that would deal harshly with aerospace assets and even the playing field a bit. Neil Evans, Peter Chadfield and Mark Walsh (under the capable administration of Chris Rankin) had the thankless task of playing the Words OpFor (opposing forces). Theyd been having a hard time with those aeros - and so we sent them the last word in anti-aircraft platforms, the Aurora.

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playtesting TRO::3063 Digital Kitbashing

A lot of the kitbashing we did for the TRO was not with existing miniatures. Dorian Sherratt, Shane Smith and Stephen Huda took a look at the new artwork and, as with many artists and gamers, decided some of the pieces would look great on the tabletop. Call it a sign of the times, but instead of pulling out the old bitz-box and getting to work with metal and epoxy, these gents sat down in front of a computer. Using the latest in Computeraided Design and Drafting, they crafted new miniatures for the game. Uploading the forms to an online 3-D prototypimg company (Shapeways), the electronic pictures quickly became actual plastic models you could order at will in any quantity. Naturally, this process was not easy. With one or two exceptions, the designers would submit their developing work to Bill and I for correction. We did our best to analyze the work in progress, comparing it to the original image and submitting any changes we felt were absolutely necessary. The digital work remains, however, an artists interpretation of the original TRO black and white drawing. They are not perfect, and there is much left to the draftsmans imagination (after all, if you can only see a Mech from the front, who is to say what it looks like from behind?). Of course, this is not always the case - Stephen Huda works with computer imaging software to create his excellent illustrations and as he has a 3-D model to start with, there were no problems with creating missing views. The end result is a miniature identical to the original art. The medium itself is somewhat flawed. Ordering a miniature in the material that gives the best detail is expensive. When it arrives, you have a bag of parts that has production artifacts (the printing process puts lines in the material that have to be sanded away) and is not very friendly to the most common assembly materials (the foundry uses plastics that do not take superglue very well, if at all). Despite these shortcomings, the hard work shows through, as you can see on the following pages. Congratulations and our deepest thanks go out to every one of our miniature designers. Theyve done a stand-up job in bringing a bit of TRO:3063 to the gaming table.

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Playtesting TRO::3063

The Churchill Mk XX, by Anthony Scroggins The digital version of the Churchill...

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The miniature as packaged... And the final mini as it really looks on a tabletop.

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playtesting TRO::3063
An upgrade pack available for those who want thinner launchers...

The JR7-X by Eric Ou

Digitally rendered

and how it looks on Shapeways

The Werefox DArtagnan by Stephen Huda...

Digital render by Dorian Sherratt...

...and the foundrys offering.

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playtesting TRO::3063

The Aurora by Stephen Huda

...Dorian Sherratts rendering...

...and the actual foundry offering.

Stephen Hudas White Knight

You can get it in one piece...

...and it looks like this!

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playtesting TRO::3063

Dorian Sherrats take

...and what it looks like at the foundry.

CPLT-7H by Eric Ou

Dorian creates a 3-D model and copies it... ...the result is a lance

The Feng-niao by Stephen Huda

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Playtesting TRO::3063
The Capellan Privateer

Original Art

CGI Render by Dorian

And some optional feet for flexibility in posing

The individual components as created by the foundry

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TRO::3063 mascot

And finally? Our mascot, the Draconis Combines Crinos I. We got this early in the project courtesy of Mike Sullivan and it became our blog header. I used it later as a tag on my signature when roaming the BattleTech forums. Its now on a coffee cup in the cupboard - I know, vanity and all that, but its one of the few concrete reminders of this project I will have after it is finished. Thanks for stopping by!

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Bonus Entry:: Erlang Shen

Mass: 55 tons Movement Type: Tracked Power Plant: Ceres 165 Extra-Light Fusion Cruising Speed: 32.4 km/h Flank Speed: 54.0 km/h Armor: Hellespont Lite Ferro-Fibrous with CASE Armament: 3 Myrdron Excel LB5-X ACs Manufacturer: Hellespont Industrials Primary Factory: Sian Communications: Garret T11b Targeting / Tracking: Garret D2j Overview In 3058, the Capellan Chancellor rewarded Hellespont Industrials for its loyalty with a lucrative challenge: create a true tactical AA vehicle. The design would mass approximately fifty tons, and a lance of the new unit had to outperform a company of Vedettes in a series of practical tests. The Confederations tight-fisted procurement officials offered up an unusually generous R&D budget, as success would put entire companies of diverted stopgap vehicles back on the front lines. Capabilities The Erlang Shen is named after a mythical 3-eyed warrior of ancient China. This tanks eyes are a trio of the new Mydron LB5-XSG , initially used on the Assassin. A rapid-traverse turret mount helps the guns track the VTOLs and scout fighters that are their natural prey. Combining its Garret tracking array with cluster ammunition, the Erlang Shen can take down targets that cannot even be acquired by missile-based AA systems. Its Ceres 165 extra-light engine (a pirated GM design) offers a 25 kph advantage over a conventional engine of the same rating. This marginal speed advantage lets the Erlang Shen keep pace with command assets, yet carry enough armor to survive a bombing run. Hellesponts engineers believed the tanks improved survival rate justified the staggering cost; field trials in 3061 quickly bore them out. While the engines price tag was the Capellan quartermasters chief complaint, its crews criticize the tanks utter lack of secondary weapons. This, taken with the autocannons 90 meter minimum range and miserly two tons of ammo, leaves the vehicle exposed to infantry assaults. Current doctrine assigns a platoon of infantry and an IFV to each lance of the Erlang Shen; where this support is unavailable the tanks deploy in staggered formations for covering fire. Deployment The tank became a fast favorite among elite, highmobility forces like the Warrior Houses. On long-range missions, it requires relatively little cargo space and fits neatly into large tactical transport aircraft. Conventional unit commanders lucky enough to receive the Erlang report increases of up to 15% in effective combat strength even as they dissolve their ad-hoc AA units. Hellespont also sells the Erlang Shen at a significant discount to Canopian and Taurian forces. Its exacting maintenance requirements and relatively new technology, however, keep it on only the best-developed worlds. There, the vehicle is a constant reminder of the Trinity Alliances protection. It has, however, had its detractors. In 3062, the periodical Magistracy Today ran an expose, titled Erlang Shen: Eagle or Albatross? Their analysts had uncovered proof that Capellan-supplied driveline parts for this vehicle almost always failed before reaching their official wear cycle as given by Hellespont. Officials interpreted the data as more proof that their repair facilities were under-equipped and their technicians inexperienced with XL engines, and immediately called for more funding. But it fuels a smoldering suspicion among many Alliance citizens, who fear that deliberately inferior parts or technical training are the catch to the generous mutual-defense program. Variants A low-tech export version, developed alongside the Alliance model, is nearly as effective as its parent design but barely a quarter the cost. The chassis, turret and armor remain basically the same. The warload, however, was shifted to a trio of standard Class-5 autocannons that allow the use of special ammunition (including flak rounds). This expands the Erlang EXs potential mission profile, but the outdated guns still cost it reach and accuracy. Fitting it with a standard fusion engine saved a staggering 3 million C-bills - but the design retained its speed and firepower only by shedding thirty percent of its armor and its integral CASE protection. Despite these drawbacks, the EX is surprisingly effective. The Capellans aggressively market it within the Chaos March, hoping to curry favor among the various factions there. So far, the EX is most often used as a cheap convoy defense for mercenary unit MFBs and supply crawlers. A proposed second refit would exploit the variants unused heat sinks while stretching its combat endurance. This model swaps the third cannon for a large laser and boosts the armor by twenty percent. Unfortunately, the turret and ammo feeds would require complete reworking for a production run; Hellespont has neither the funds nor the room on its assembly lines to develop this prototype. Notable Crews Liu Bei, Zhang Fei, Guan Yu Early-run Erlang Shens were deployed with House Hiritsu during the St. Ives conflict. In keeping with the spirit of Xin Sheng, each vehicle was named after one of the Three Brothers of Shu, heroes of the Warring States period. Shortly before the Concordat joined the Alliance, the three crews recreated the brothers famous Peach Garden oath. This emotional, intricately staged ceremony was broadcast throughout Capellan space. Its symbolism - three great warriors pledging loyalty to death and beyond - was not lost on the citizens of the Alliance.

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Medium Vehicle

Type: Erlang Shen Technology Base: Inner Sphere / 3061 Movement Type: Tracked Tonnage: 55 Battle Value: BV2 (972) Equipment Internal Structure: Engine: 165 XL Shielding and Transmission: Cruising MP: 3 Flank MP: 5 Heat Sinks: 10 Control Equipment: Crew: 4 Turret: Armor Factor: 232 Internal Structure 6 6 6 6 Mass 5.5 3 1.5 0 3 0 2.5 13 Armor Value 60 40 32 60 Tonnage 24 2 .5

Front: R/L Side: Rear: Turret

Weapons and Ammo 3 LB5-X Autocannons Ammo (LB-X) 40 CASE

Location Turret Body Body

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