BATTLETECH: The Anvil
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- Опубликовано: 24 ноя 2023
- One of the more interesting concepts that came out of the #FreeWorldsLeague after the #ClanInvasion, was the idea of twinning two #Battlemechs together, and having them act as one.
This is easier said than done however, but the #Stingray, or at it was later called, the #Anvil, would be one half of this idea. Working with the #Hammer, these 2 represented a cul-de-sac of military ideas within the #InnerSphere, and one that largely came to an end, after the destruction of the #WordofBlake.
So, let's explore the Anvil, and why it didn't really make it to the #DarkAge and #Ilclan eras.
-Forgive me, there may be a small audio noise that's hard to notice over a few portions of the video, I didn't notice in the final edits, but my hearing is far from perfect.
The primary resources used to make this video, will be pinned in the top comment of the video, along with a link to the metal Anvil currently available.
#BATTLETECH #3055 #FWLM #HouseMarik #Marik
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Note: I am not associated with the Battletech / Mechwarrior IP, and create this under fair-use. Ownership of the Battletech IP resides with several companies at this time. I support all official releases. 
Игры
Resources:
Technical Readout 3055 (original): Unavailable
Technical Readout 3055 Upgrade: store.catalystgamelabs.com/products/battletech-technical-readout-3055-upgrade-pdf-1
The Anvil Miniature from Iron Wind Metals: www.ironwindmetals.com/index.php/product-listing/product/battletech-ar20-669/category_pathway-2
The Anvil is definitely a mech. This is undeniable.
One of the 'Mechs of all Battletech for sure.
Are you sure? It was kind of unclear...
War is 90% logistics and 10% actual combat. A Commander may win a battle but it is the quartermaster that wins the war.
...as russia unwillingly demonstrated two years ago at their start of the three day special operation.
I always feel like I have a fondness for the Anvil that is missing from the broader community.
Like... sure. The I.S. LPLs are kinda short of range... but on the other hand, it's an inexpensive (both cbill and bv) zombie trooper that interdicts C3 and you just need "okay" pilots to see a return on investment.
When the Purple Turkey hits on something smart, they absolutely *nail* it.
Red, going over the history of the mech: "It's such a shame this is never used or even hardly ever talked about."
Also Red, going over the specs (5 minutes later): "Yeah this thing fucking sucks."
(Paraphrased)
Here's the shit: Ostsol went out of production due factory damage AND Harmony Gold revoked artwork license. Replacement was needed, and that's Anvil. But who the Hell decided Anvil should be paired with Hammer instead Trebuchet? A marketing department?
probably actually yes
yeah a terbushet would work a better as a hammer. i never like that the hammer is a light mech. Hell give me a whitworth to pair with the anvil.
Really enjoy the past few videos as they deal with mechs I am not overly familiar with.
Glad you like them!
The ride of Sir Paul Masters in 3058. Glad that you're doing this one and curious to find out what you'll have to say about it. Also a little bit worried about the treatment the Venom will receive.
I like the Venom. I like it more than the Hammer and Anvil even lol
@@BigRed40TECH Don't see how as it's basically just a more expensive Spider with all the same problems.
@@KageRyuu6 I like the Spider.
@@KageRyuu6it has a ejection system that’s not a death sentence, so it’s ok.
@@BigRed40TECH spider stinks
it is one of the mechs of all time.
I was and am a big FWL fan...I was there when it was originally released. I am still not sure how the Hammer and Anvil are supposed to work together either as a pair or as part of a lance with 2 anvils, 2 hammers or 1 anvil 3 hammer's.
long time eagle here as well, I have always used the anvil as a bodyguard for 3 hammers. When I go on the offense, I hope to get a pair of hammers and a pair of trench buckets
I never saw the Hammer and Anvil as an ideal pair. To me, the Anvil and Apollo made way more sense together
Rumor is that some author saw both mech names on a list and put them together rather then it being part of the original lore.
@@axinite2545 honestly to me that would make a lot more sense
It's funny that the Ostsol survived the Anvil which essentially fulfilled the same role (though without jump jets-the Anvil's basically a jumping Ostsol)
The essential issue is with jump jets on a 60-ton 'Mech as they weigh 1 ton each, rather than the half-ton used by any lighter 'Mech. That's why the ANV-3R is good.
When the old warhorse Quickdraw jumps further, you have a mobility issue.
@@observationsfromthebunker9639plus the Quickdraw is a fire support 'Mech (at least in theory), so doctrinally it doesn't need nearly as much armor and benefits more from the mobility, especially if it uses indirect fire
@@scytheseven9173 Fire Supports with 1 LRM 10, 4 MLs, and 1 SRM 4... yeah, I'm not buying it.
@@KageRyuu6 it was meant to replace the Rifleman
it did not do a good job of this
@@scytheseven9173 If I want a jumping firesupport heavy, I'll take a Catapult.
Amatuers study Tactics, Professionals study Logistics!
I find the Hammer and Anvil combo to be wholly underwhelming in concept, but have never played either, let alone the pair of them to test my kneejerk opinion. I do like the build concept of the Anvil as zombie mech that can stay operational in a fight with the 5M being the best variant for my style.
Pair Anvil with whatever you had together with Ostsol/Ostroc. Or just pair it with Trebuchet.
@@mattikuokkanenI’d say an archer to give you at least some power to work with, and potentially also some close range stopping power. The hammer is held back due to its lack of LRM’s leaving it somewhat worse off.
@@baker90338 If I have an Archer, I want to pair it with Thunderbolt. Still Anvil could play a role as a heavy recon and flanker the same as Ostsol, Shadow Hawk, Griffin, and Wolverine.
@@mattikuokkanen generally I keep 2 4/6’s, and 1-2 5/8’s, so that’s fine. I’d say stick in this lance composition a Kintaro maybe as an assistant with your pulse lasers, as a mix of a pair or trio of SRM’s in this are scary, and give you a decent composition to work with.
Given the campaign rules for modifying mechs, the Anvil makes for a wonderful starting point for customization. No XL engine, which is rare for its intro date and makes it more durable comparatively, optimal weight for a 5/8 standard engine gives maximum useable tonnage, Endo to squeeze even more potential tonnage out of the design while also reduce modification time and costs, and two full arm actuators. So much potential!
The Anvil is a solid brawler which works well with other 5/8 or faster units. It's especially good as being a C3 interdictor, and has to be blown apart to kill it. Later variants mounting more armor, more energy weapons, or an Arrow IV tie in well as a cheaper alternative to the Ostol 5M. The Hammer and Anvil pairing never works, and was more in universe fluff then an actual in game tactic. The Anvil also works well with the League's large amount of missile boats, especially the TAG version and semi-guided LRMs. Longbows definitely come to mind...
Feed that liquid lore straight into the fusion core that is my mind, you magnificent content creator you.
On a less weird note, another mech I wasn't aware of but do enjoy the idea of. Tex definitely had it right; in war, good enough is perfect. Because you rarely get the perfect situation, preparing to beat many challenges well enough is better than hoping for the ideal setup for a specific loadout.
When you need a Warhammer/IIC for your Anvil but your friend brings a Piko Piko Hammer instead
Remove Jumpjets, Switch the Armor to Ferro Fibrus Armor, Add 2 Double Heatsinks, Add 1 ton of FF Armor.
Cheesy as frak!
I dunno if its got the slots to put in Ferro, given it has Endo. But I'd have to math it out.
Good for ambushes in city fights & ravines; not much else. The jump-less, up-armored variant will probably outlast all others in a garrison, second-line unit, or the Arrow IV variant, since it will situated well away from the front-line action.
I've noticed replacing jump jets with added armor is almost always a decent choice. Look at the WVR-6K, it pretty much maxed its armor out and still had tonnage for heat sinks. I'd be pretty comfortable pitting a -6K against just about any 60-ton heavy there is.
I lucked out in the early 2000s. I game shop in nyc was clearing out stock and I got two of them for about $5.
So despite it’s name implying it would be a durable trooper mech like the T-bolt, they instead made it a skirmisher mech. What?
Also Salamander HYPE!
Only 'Mech TROs call "trooper" (what I have seen) is Enforcer in TRO3039. Anvils (all of them) are tougher nuts than that. Thunderbolts have more armor for sure, but they also have lighter engine, slower speed, and more weight. If Anvil encounters Thunderbolt, Anvil can just turn & run.
Excellent video. I've enjoyed playing the Anvil. It's fun to use in opfors and ad a personal ride in a campaign. I called mine fat hawk because it's an overweight shd with its jump jet or lack thereof
In theory a ‘capable but flawed mech’ is better than no mech at all. Unfortunately for the Anvil, it was introduced After the Succession Wars era and AFTER the FWL had rebuilt and upgraded It’s industry after the Helm Memory Core.
The Anvil is a mech 40-50 years too late.
It came out in 3055, fuck are you talking about? Literally couldn't have been made before that time frame unless you're talking Star League.
This mech might be better off migrating to Minecraft, as an Anvil trap on an SMP.
Definitely a battlemech, I think
The Anvil is mostly let down by the extremely short range of the weapons that make up its main armament.
Shame really, because optically i like the Anvil. However a mere 300 meters (or 10 hexes) is damn short. Needs upgrade to X-Pulses.
Or, even better, Clan Large Pulse Lasers, but good luck of getting your hand on those before the Dark Age era.
All that aside, the Anvil is one of those mechs that, in my opinion, deserve an artwork retouching soon.
The Anvil certainly is a battlemech of all time.
The Salamander will be a lot more exciting.
For a planet regulus probably could have just conquered it seems wasteful to have killed Gibson. The industry there surely would be of great help and value in the modern era. Of course that's what happens when you give control of several warships and a lot of nukes to a dude who decided that revenge on the grand and genocidal scale was more important than good policy.
I'm a simple man
I see the Glory of the Purple Eagle, I click
The Hammer and Anvil seem like a good concept for mechs... on paper... during the succession wars.
I love flawed mechs that flopped. There's just something more characterful about these flawed machines than "this is the best in its class and has served for hundreds of years".
While i can complain about it being undergunned and under-armored, its not as much of a problem in theory because the vast majority of clan forces were not using their cutting-edge omnimechs, and second-line garrison mechs used by the clans were considered "outdated" by clanners.
The uh, problem is that an outdated clan mech still hits harder, moves faster, and takes more punishment than an outdated IS mech. There is a niche for mechs that are designed to fight clan garrison clusters, but they have to be fast raiders and guerilla fighters rather than "cheap but decent frontline mechs".
Honestly I'd love to see more of the "grunt work" battles in BT where it's a bunch of nobodies going up against a bunch of nobodies.
In base form, I'd trade the jump jets for more armor or a heatsink and more armor. Oh, that's what they did that in it's first modification. 😂
Because the snark must flow.... The Hammer and Anvil concept was great in theory. Unfortunately, the concept didn't get a big enough budget and FWL got stuck with the budget version. It kind of surprises me a little because Comstar had an excellent stable of 'mechs to provide inspiration. For all its 60 tons, the Anvil comes across like a 50-ton or 55-ton Medium. Sort of like turning an Enforcer, Wolverine, or Shadow Hawk into a pulse laser boat. Or like turning an Ostsol into a pulse laser boat, but that's better since an upgraded Ostsol would still be cheaper in both C-bills and BPV, and it would have a more solid Brawler role. Rats, the comparisons aren't helping. ANYWAYS, the Anvil will still do well once it gets into effective range, which it can do, providing it doesn't get chewed up first getting there. The -3R is the "best of a bad situation" variation, snd might get stolen by the Dracs since it fits in well with their operational doctrine. The -5M is an overly expensive Wolverine-M. The-8M is a good upgrade to an artillery 'mech, but the -6M is a highly mobile mini-Banshee. Give the -8M a couple of Scouts equipped with TAG or NARC, and it can do its job effectively. Hey, sometimes the original model is not the one that's the best.
I checked it on MegaMek. Pulse laser boat Ostsol OTL-5M cost twice as much as ANV-3M. 11M against 5,8M. XL engine makes a significant difference, for survivability too.
@@mattikuokkanen Score one for the Anvil, then!
This mech is just... sad. For an update for the Il-Clan age, pull out all the equipment AND the engine, give it an 260 engine (for a 4/6 movement speed), five more double heat sinks, four more tons of armor, AN Angel ECM Suite, and three Clan ER large lasers (for 30 damage). This SHOULD be able to walk and shoot without overheating, and have more range and do the same damage as the ANV-3M without overheating. It's not as fast, but better armored.
...The Anvil is definitely a case of a Mech intended to be working alongside another, rather than alone. That I think was its greatest shortcoming. That said, I once fielded one of these Mechs while our unit was working in the Draconis Combine (ended up being the Liason Officer's paperwork serf for over a month, but a Merc's gotta do, what a Merc's gotta do!). Though successful, it remained a one-time model.
...This variant would replace the Large Pulse Lasers with standard PPCs---using the reliable & proven Lord's Light model employed on the venerable Panther (so readily available). It also removes 2 of its Double Heat Sinks, to add a pair of Zippo Flamers. The radical elements include replacing the Medium Lasers with IS ER Small Lasers (paired with the Flamers, it was good as removing opposing Infantry), & dropping the Guardian ECM suite (this being donated to the DCMS earned us much 'appreciation'). With the tonnage freed up, 2 additional Jump Jets were added to max out its mobility. The greatest mod was the incorporation of Triple Strength Myomer, not simply allowing it to cope with high heat, but also letting it brawl above its weight (with double damage from punch/kick, one hit to an opposing Mech's head ends the fight in short order). It survived several missions against both Clan & Periphery opponents. (Commander= "Your Mech's running hot!", Me= "That's a problem?")
...In simulation results were mixed. While I had good results with it, others did not: it all came down to fighting style. I found it worked quite well when paired with a variant of the Hammer that swapped the LRM-5 racks for SRM-4s. The twin PPCs inflict 20pts of damage, forcing a piloting check from the opponent: over time that can wear an opponent down, in keeping with its namesake; the Flamers can also wear some opponents down by making an area literally too hot for them. Being a more effective brawler with greater mobility was also a bonus!
Another nice video... Now, let me see if I can fix this bad boy to make it so it actually... Does its job.
Looking at the base Anvil; few things in Battletech make my eye twitch more than a mech with an uneven number of jump jets compared to its movement. It's easily my least favourite aspect of the base 2H Shadow Hawk, which is otherwise a mech I have a lot of fondness for.
As for the Anvil itself, it's...not *bad*, but there's just so many better options, even amongst its fellow 60-tonners.
Should've taken a few notes from the Snakes when they made the Daimyo. 60-tonners are in the same boat as 40-tonners, where you need to approach everything with an eye for maximizing effectiveness. Jump jets are too heavy an investment for a supposed "anvil" upon which to crush your foes.
Amateurs talk tactics. Professionals talk logistics.
~The Chieftain.
~ Omar Bradley
Ahh yes the disco ball of doom.
"Definitely a Mech" 😂
Neat
The Anvil could stand to.use say a pair of either autocannons or LBX's and two pasers, as opposed to 4 large pule. Or if 4 pulse lasers, 2 large, 2 medium. This way, you don't over tax the heat sinks, too much. And also add some armor and an additional jump jet.
The Hammer to me seems more like it would be a better bodyguard for awesomes and longbows and the like than anything else. Albeit a bit more armor to do that would be a good idea
I love the Purple Bird, but Eris aside, they make some odd/meh mechs.
I do like the Eris and the Hammer though.
Drop the speed by one hex, max the jump jets, boost the armor, and add more heat sinks. I think it then gains the ability to be an actual anvil, both soaking hits (and playing zombie really well with the center-line lasers and standard engine) and keeping the enemy pinned (with its terrain-agnostic mobility). You can even add another medium laser to the center torso (assuming you push the torso jump jet to one side to balance the added jet) without pushing your heat too badly. Of course, you'd probably need to rework the Hammer entirely to make the pairing really work the way it's intended. It doesn't matter how long you can hold the enemy when your hammer is so... anemic.
The AVN-3M: when you should have just used a CRB-27sl
When you look at tech readout 3050 and you see the separate mechs… neither one looks attractive… it is Only when paired together that you can see a good use… although you can pair many different mechs to do the same thing
I have always liked the Anvil, but this may be due to the fact i am biased towards the Free Worlds League.
Oh yea, I love Purple Bird. But losing 2 of 3 aspects of the armoured triangle is just difficult.
Any mech that requires a specific partner mech to work is probably not a good idea.
For Anvil, that's just marketing talk to sell Hammer. I firmly believe one can replace Ostsol with Anvil and it wouldn't make a significant difference to lance dynamics.
If you showed me the stats and said it was designed for hammer and anvil style duo teams, I'd think this was the hammer.
This thing would do better as a 55 ton machine.
Anvil and longbow
Longbow is slower and can't keep up with Anvil's speed. Trebuchet makes for a better companion. Hammer marketed as Anvil's companion may as well be just marketing at work to sell a competitor against Trebuchet.
If the Anvil does its job speed doesn't matter
@@morganmcconal4785 I'd rather pair Longbow with Thunderbolt, Victor, Awesome, or Stalker (depending on variant & speed of Longbow). I suppose Anvil could serve as a recon asset.
Some seem to think Ostsol OTL-5M is better 'Mech than Anvil. I don't see the logic. Are medium pulse lasers with their range (or lack thereof) really better than "normal" lasers and jump jets? Is it worth of having XL engine (OTL-5M) over standard engine (Anvil)?
I've always liked the Anvil, so long as you are talking about the blindingly obvious 3R refit. You can mess up c3 and mediocre pilots get a lot out of it for a pretty modest BV investment. Add in the fact that you've got a durable brawler and it is a great bodyguard mech or sidekick to a Hunchback. It's no war-winner, by any means, but it is relatively simple and easy to operate.
The fluff about the Hammer never made any sense to me, those paired LRM-5s just aren't sufficient to weaken anything other than light forces and I've never been able to think of a way that you could really use the two as a good unit.
Logistics Logistics Logistics
I don´t know man. Not overly sad that this is dying out. Sure, it could be an amazing bully alongside quickdraws or most of the 55 ton mechs. But if that´s all you want, why not stick with the ready made solutions? Building a doctrine arround something only two specific weapons can accomplish in tandem is building your own mausoleum. Id still buy it for a merc company though
Purple Bird captured by ComStar?
Thomas Marik and Thomas Halas were blakists.
What is the song in the opening part of the video?
It seems to me like it was meant to be an anvil when attacking light mechs
Hmm... I would say it isn't a mech for me. I would take the Tempest over this one easily. It has kinda cool art though.
Tempest is MUCH better.
If you gave the thing Battlefists, it actually might be a nice mech for the more aggressive MechWarrior, but alas, Melee must be far too genteel for the Free Worlds League...
Without consulting the construction rules, it sounds like the Anvil would have been better served to have been 5 or even 10t lighter. And why is your hammer a light? Maybe if it is something like a Hollander, but even then.
16:33 Just a quick bit to note that you have the line about the 8M/6M pairing line kinda repeat.
But an interesting look at "a battlemech" that I wasn't familiar with.
Small errors can happen.
The Anvil never really appealed to me, just seemed to vanilla
Anvil/Hammer sounds kind of meh. I'll stick with the Black Lanner/Fire Falcon.
The Anvil is quite underwhelming. It is intended to be a brawler but has a critical lack of armor in the legs. 15 points is a bad joke for a heavy Mech in a brawl.
The firepower is short ranged and lackluster. The 2 LPL are ok to hunt light to medium Mechs but are insufficient to trade with heavier opponents.
The lacking heat management is an additonal liability for a brawler.
If I had to make this chassis work, I would replace the LPLs with PPCs and turn it in to a cavalry / skirmischer type Mech.
This way it could fight at longer distances, make use of cover and would gain surviability.
Twin PPCs have the added benefit of forcing PSRs on the target if they both connect.
BTW: I was never able to figure out how the Hammer and Anvil combo was supposed to work at all...
Man people sleep on inner sphere large pulse laser. And this mechs uses them properly.
It tries to anyway XD
The concept behind the Hammer and Anvil are good. The execution is bad. The Anvil is a lightly armed, lightly armored heavy mech that moves at the speed of a Clan heavy, but performs like a Dragon. The Hammers are light class trooper mechs that match the Anvil's speed. When you are looking for the advantages you get out of light mechs, moving at trooper speeds isn't one of them. if this entire configuration was intended for garrison forces and second line troops it would be relegated to being the Urbanmech for a new generation. But this was suppose to be fielded by the main forces of the FWL.
The whole concept would of been better if the Hammers were slightly faster and more mobile. Focus more on being survivable and irritating rather than having good firepower. Then give them a force multiplier capability. In 3055 that would be a TAG system. This means the Anvil intended to accompany this Hammer would be a LRM boat, or even have an Arrow IV system on board. This Anvil could afford to be lightly armored and significantly slower than its counterparts. The job of this Anvil is to hide behind cover and draw the enemy towards it. The Hammers would act as a swarm of buzzing nats that attempt to make the enemy waste time swatting them as the Anvil continues to push out salvo after salvo guided by its faster, more nimble counterpart. This could be further strengthened by assigning LRM Carriers and other indirect fire tanks to supplement the lance in a true combined arms force.
Going forward to the Word of Blake era C3 units could of been incorporated instead of TAG. A reinforced company of 6 light mechs with C-3 slave units with 2 heavy command mechs equipped with C-3 command units and LRMs to take advantage of the network, all backed by a HQ vehicle that connects the 2 lances of mechs to a lance of Tanks equipped with Arrow IV launchers and LRMs.
I just finished looking at these mechs, the base version of the Hammer and Anvil suck hard......
And I don't think any of them are really any good at all, atleast compared to any other mech, or even pair, to work together.
Tbh, red, i think you would've been better off combining both mech in a single video, but it's just my opinion.
Honestly I was thinking the same thing.
Just not how the videos are done. The Hammer and Anvil might be "meant" to work together, but they are still individual machines.
@@BigRed40TECH like i said, just my opinion.
Not to mention they are terrible looking mechs
8m is stupid if i wanted arrows id get a pair of chaporals with lower bv than the mech and have 2 arrows