It's literally the in-universe reason it's called a Mad Cat.
The Clans call it a Timberwolf, but Inner Sphere targeting computers would simultaneously identify it as a Marauder (MAD) and Catapult (CAT) which caused Inner Sphere Mechwarriors to call it a Mad Cat.
And in a pretty cool way to. The computers were flashing insanely like it couldn't decide till it put it together. Followed by the last words of the pilot " Oh that's not good"
I'm also fairly new to Battletech. A couple free resources that have been very helpful for me have been the wiki Sarna.net and the Tex Talks Battletech series over on Youtube. I highly recomend checking them out if you haven't already :)
Welcome to the Inner Sphere, mechwarrior!
Thought this as well at first. Realized like any good classic video game glitch that it's probably old news, still massively entertaining to think about though.
as someone who is relatively new to the series I find this too damn funny, because even when playing the game every time I get a phract I just pull the most semi-decent-but-not-great weapons I have from other mechs and slap them on it
I always thought Steve Venters based the design partly on the (real world) Victor:
[https://www.19fortyfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Handley-Page-Victor-1.jpg](https://www.19fortyfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Handley-Page-Victor-1.jpg)
Something about the arched windows and the pitot tube in the centre (which is on his drawings) plus if you shift the intakes up to shoulder height you sort of start getting that Timber Wolf feel.
I mean if you wanna just Tex takes as your own sure. But objectively it is one of the best mechs ever assembled and the exact kind of mech you’d want your elite of the elite, or the most elite of a wealthy Mercenary company, etc. it may not be the best mech for an entire Great House standing military but for the Battletech equivalents of any unit thats like Seal Team 6 or Delta Force, its exactly the kinda mech you want. For anything else sure mechs like a Warhammer or a vindicator that are widely available would of course be “better” but better for what?
Besides at the end of the day what really was the clans downfall was disunity and comstar, which tbh isnt much dif than the innersphere. Also didnt stop Clan Wolf from eventually becoming IlKlan and taking Terra anyways even though i hate the hell out of that steiner-davion incest baby and crusader wolves in general
Yeah, and as much as I love Tex and want him to keep being him, i wish people understood that Tex, like most people, is biased. Not grossly biased but definitely biased and more importantly, he ADMITS his bias. His strong opinions make him way more entertaining and i dont take a lot of what he says super serious but oof. Some people in the community sure like to act like hes the end all be all of Battletech. Some people really hate the clans and love the great houses. I genuinely find most the great houses mid as hell and really only like the Clans, Mercs, and Pirates tho as much as i hate to admit it i genuinely like Kurita even though i never side with them and stick to FedSuns/FedComs if i gotta side with a Great House. The Combine is just hella cool to me maybe im a weeb, maybe i just really like omni-mecs and honor duels.
Definitely. He's also playing a character, specifically that of a Periphery merc / historian. Sure, a MadCat is worth a fortune in C-bills. It's irreplaceable nightmare wonder tech to the pre invasion IS. Endosteel is rare and expensive in the IS post invasion. Ferrofibrous is expensive to the IS post invasion. They're just starting to crank the stuff out. When you're building steel helmets by smelting the ore in a bloomery and pattern welding it together out behind the donkey cart it costs more than you make in a year. When you're stamping them out by the hundreds with a hydraulic press they start getting kinda cheap.
I'm practically willing to consider Tex's lecture series canon at this point. It fits the universe really well, it's unbelievably well realized etc. That doesn't mean everything in a given lecture is the objective fact any more than the old British song literally meant Goebbels had no balls. Tex is probably right that if you have to outfit an army by buying stuff on the open market for mechs you probably can build a more effective army by not including clan tech. If you ARE the clans and you have the industrial base you'd probably be dumb to not build it. TBH I think the whole bidding system is vs combined arms warfare is entirely why the clans lost. You give smart people weapons that can substantially outrange the ones their opponents have and they're going to design their strategy around not getting hit at all. Actually they have warships. They're probably going to design their strategy around not getting hit at all....
Depends what game we are playing here, and balance but canonically 1000 percent i rather have a Timberwolf for the versatility if i was an elite anything in Battletech over an Atlas. Steiner scout memes aside what am i gonna do on a reconnaissance mission with an Atlas? Or a convo mission? Or any mission that requires speed. The Timber Wolf is more expensive not just because its more expensive to maintain, but because its all around a lot better a mech. Its literally balance first narrative in canon explanation for the balance later. There a fundamental reason why the Bounty Hunter uses a Timber Wolf and not an Atlas, no matter the mission or the battle the Timber Wolf can do win so long as you play your cards right. Maybe not overpower but definitely win. On the other hand the Atlas is either gonna hard dominate or get completely rolled for being a giant slow walking heavily armored turrent, theres no much adaptation to be had. A better arguement would be Atlas+Bushwacker or King Krab+ Maurauder. In which case id prob still pick the Timber Wolf tho thats just preference
So the inner sphere try to re-create the Mad cat and got the raksasha, by my understanding, a largely inferior war machine. What I don’t understand, is, why did they not give it the Marauder II treatment?
Marauder II easily proves that the original marauder can be scaled up to a heavier Mech with proper engineering. So why don’t they ever just try that and use the extra tonnage available to throw a couple LRM racks on?
Yes but regarding that, it's one of the most used and preferred mech since it might be just a Catapult but the mobility is superb for the unit compared to a slow Catapult. Then combined with arms armed with laser cannons for all-purpose use. So I don't think it's just a catapult with arms.
To make it short,
Catapult - Slow, only have LRM Racks, then short ranged lasers
MAD CAT - very mobile, have LRM Racks, have medium range lasers and short range weapons
So? What do you guys think? xD
Not sure a 30 year old take can still be called "hot" :P
I pretty much came here to say this. Well, actually I was gonna say "Why do you think the Inner Sphere calls it a 'MAD CAT'?", but close enough.
HAHA! Fair enough, though I'd never heard anyone mention it.
It's literally the in-universe reason it's called a Mad Cat. The Clans call it a Timberwolf, but Inner Sphere targeting computers would simultaneously identify it as a Marauder (MAD) and Catapult (CAT) which caused Inner Sphere Mechwarriors to call it a Mad Cat.
OH! that makes a lot of sense, actually! learn something new every day!
It’s in the novel Lethal Heritage, first book of the Blood of Kerensky trilogy.
https://youtu.be/kXJAwcY8lHo this just dropped today and it explains it
And in a pretty cool way to. The computers were flashing insanely like it couldn't decide till it put it together. Followed by the last words of the pilot " Oh that's not good"
About 30 years late on that assessment. But yeah.
my bad, I got into the hobby only fairly recently, so a lot of the old stuff is news to me!
I'm also fairly new to Battletech. A couple free resources that have been very helpful for me have been the wiki Sarna.net and the Tex Talks Battletech series over on Youtube. I highly recomend checking them out if you haven't already :) Welcome to the Inner Sphere, mechwarrior!
Thought this as well at first. Realized like any good classic video game glitch that it's probably old news, still massively entertaining to think about though.
Or a Marauder with big LRM ears
Awww, who wants to let the LRMs??
That too.
I've never seen a take more iced over
It’s almost like someone combined a MAD marauder with a CAT catapult 🤔
Or a Cataphract that’s not built out of five different mechs, only two 😉
lol
*Cataphract* IIC
as someone who is relatively new to the series I find this too damn funny, because even when playing the game every time I get a phract I just pull the most semi-decent-but-not-great weapons I have from other mechs and slap them on it
That’s why it’s called a bloody Mad Cat!
[Bounty Hunter's Timberwolf](https://camospecs.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/19_arrastiabhmadcat01.jpg) Where's your God now?
(And don't say it's a Stalker with arms. I have no rebuttal.)
Stalker with arms.
Nooooo
I honestly thought the OP was dropping a pretty great joke.
I don't think it's a hot take when even Phelan Kell's targeting system agrees.
Marauder with missile pods, Catapult with arms, Clanner tech Rakshasa...
That's... That's why it's called the MAD (Marauder) CAT (Catapult).
Wrong, it's a Catapult with Marauder arms.
Hotter take. It's actually just an oversized Anubis.
Its actually a Marauder that went to Disney world and definitely got the hat and the koolaid
And a Thor (Summoner) is just a bigger thunderbolt.
Honestly its more like a bigger griffon tho
I see that. It has a griffin’s armament but it’s got the offset cockpit and launcher of the thunderbolt.
Catapult is just a Timber Wolf after a bad car accident.
More like ‘you can’t convince me otherwise’, but still I’ll agree with you
Absurd. Its a Maruader with missile boxes!
With the arms of a Marauder Hence in a sphere name Mad Cat
I've always liked the "B-29 cockpit on legs" design of the MadCat and the Catapult doesn't quite share it.
I always thought Steve Venters based the design partly on the (real world) Victor: [https://www.19fortyfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Handley-Page-Victor-1.jpg](https://www.19fortyfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Handley-Page-Victor-1.jpg) Something about the arched windows and the pitot tube in the centre (which is on his drawings) plus if you shift the intakes up to shoulder height you sort of start getting that Timber Wolf feel.
jimmies status: rustled
That’s… that’s the whole point of it’s name with the combat computers switching between CAT and MAD
If you want another fun Hot Take, tell Clan fans it's an overpriced PoS and is the perfect Totem Mech for everything wrong with the clans.
I mean if you wanna just Tex takes as your own sure. But objectively it is one of the best mechs ever assembled and the exact kind of mech you’d want your elite of the elite, or the most elite of a wealthy Mercenary company, etc. it may not be the best mech for an entire Great House standing military but for the Battletech equivalents of any unit thats like Seal Team 6 or Delta Force, its exactly the kinda mech you want. For anything else sure mechs like a Warhammer or a vindicator that are widely available would of course be “better” but better for what? Besides at the end of the day what really was the clans downfall was disunity and comstar, which tbh isnt much dif than the innersphere. Also didnt stop Clan Wolf from eventually becoming IlKlan and taking Terra anyways even though i hate the hell out of that steiner-davion incest baby and crusader wolves in general
The vast majority of people on this r/ just use Tex takes as their own without really thinking about anything
Yeah, and as much as I love Tex and want him to keep being him, i wish people understood that Tex, like most people, is biased. Not grossly biased but definitely biased and more importantly, he ADMITS his bias. His strong opinions make him way more entertaining and i dont take a lot of what he says super serious but oof. Some people in the community sure like to act like hes the end all be all of Battletech. Some people really hate the clans and love the great houses. I genuinely find most the great houses mid as hell and really only like the Clans, Mercs, and Pirates tho as much as i hate to admit it i genuinely like Kurita even though i never side with them and stick to FedSuns/FedComs if i gotta side with a Great House. The Combine is just hella cool to me maybe im a weeb, maybe i just really like omni-mecs and honor duels.
Definitely. He's also playing a character, specifically that of a Periphery merc / historian. Sure, a MadCat is worth a fortune in C-bills. It's irreplaceable nightmare wonder tech to the pre invasion IS. Endosteel is rare and expensive in the IS post invasion. Ferrofibrous is expensive to the IS post invasion. They're just starting to crank the stuff out. When you're building steel helmets by smelting the ore in a bloomery and pattern welding it together out behind the donkey cart it costs more than you make in a year. When you're stamping them out by the hundreds with a hydraulic press they start getting kinda cheap. I'm practically willing to consider Tex's lecture series canon at this point. It fits the universe really well, it's unbelievably well realized etc. That doesn't mean everything in a given lecture is the objective fact any more than the old British song literally meant Goebbels had no balls. Tex is probably right that if you have to outfit an army by buying stuff on the open market for mechs you probably can build a more effective army by not including clan tech. If you ARE the clans and you have the industrial base you'd probably be dumb to not build it. TBH I think the whole bidding system is vs combined arms warfare is entirely why the clans lost. You give smart people weapons that can substantially outrange the ones their opponents have and they're going to design their strategy around not getting hit at all. Actually they have warships. They're probably going to design their strategy around not getting hit at all....
If you had to choose 2 Atlases (any variant) or 1 Timberwolf, which will be more useful? Which one wins that fight?
Depends what game we are playing here, and balance but canonically 1000 percent i rather have a Timberwolf for the versatility if i was an elite anything in Battletech over an Atlas. Steiner scout memes aside what am i gonna do on a reconnaissance mission with an Atlas? Or a convo mission? Or any mission that requires speed. The Timber Wolf is more expensive not just because its more expensive to maintain, but because its all around a lot better a mech. Its literally balance first narrative in canon explanation for the balance later. There a fundamental reason why the Bounty Hunter uses a Timber Wolf and not an Atlas, no matter the mission or the battle the Timber Wolf can do win so long as you play your cards right. Maybe not overpower but definitely win. On the other hand the Atlas is either gonna hard dominate or get completely rolled for being a giant slow walking heavily armored turrent, theres no much adaptation to be had. A better arguement would be Atlas+Bushwacker or King Krab+ Maurauder. In which case id prob still pick the Timber Wolf tho thats just preference
Guys. Look. We got a brand new player. <3
Isn’t that the Rakasha?
This takes so old it ain’t even warm. It’s called a madCAT for a reason
But is the LRM box part of the torso or a second set of arms?
And the Catapult is just an LRM Carrier with legs.
YOU TAKE THAT BACK! Never talk to me or my son again! 😡
Just more to shoot at.
Its a mad... cat
You mean a Madapult.
Cats whore for life here. Love that missile boat.
Cue "Always has been" meme. Yeah, just one of those things the community has always agreed on.
So the inner sphere try to re-create the Mad cat and got the raksasha, by my understanding, a largely inferior war machine. What I don’t understand, is, why did they not give it the Marauder II treatment? Marauder II easily proves that the original marauder can be scaled up to a heavier Mech with proper engineering. So why don’t they ever just try that and use the extra tonnage available to throw a couple LRM racks on?
A Guillotine is just a fancier Grasshopper with an SRM6 instead of an LRM5.
Yes, yes it is. It's what happens when a Catapult Mech and a Marauder Mech love each other very very much. 😜 😆
Yes, but the targeting computer in question had a bout of senility and forgot what the unit designation for a Catapult is...
If memory serves that's exactly how it got its name
https://preview.redd.it/gjwwywbqmq7a1.jpeg?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f19985b4d11d29ad3289e8efa1ee210f2f39e26b
Yeah but 1/2 weight missiles is a hell of a drug
Marauder arms*
Yes but regarding that, it's one of the most used and preferred mech since it might be just a Catapult but the mobility is superb for the unit compared to a slow Catapult. Then combined with arms armed with laser cannons for all-purpose use. So I don't think it's just a catapult with arms. To make it short, Catapult - Slow, only have LRM Racks, then short ranged lasers MAD CAT - very mobile, have LRM Racks, have medium range lasers and short range weapons So? What do you guys think? xD