On Wed, 17 Apr 1996 James Rinehart wrote :  

  This assumes that Steel isn't from the Periphery, which have been
fighting the clans a bit earlier than that, perhaps extending it to
ten years.

    I think it would take the Clans about 3 months to rip through the 
Periphery rather than the three years you've estimated. Hell, IS  
could wipe 'em out in three years if there was anything worth taking.
 

  Unless you pull something sneaky, there's no way eight Inner
Sphere mechs will be able to fight eight Omnimechs.  I've beat two lances
with one star before.

   Depends.  This group and group of mechs I could probably agree with
your assessment.  But with a C3 designed lances and reliance
(ironically) on low tech engines, victory switches back to an even
contest.

    C3 is cute and very good, but an equaliser - NUP!! The better 
ranges and heat co-efficients on Clan weapons as well as the evil 
pulse lasers mean that the average Clan medium star will take down 
approximately twice its tonnage or numbers in battle. The star will 
go down to good old CBD eventually but at least two lances of IS mech 
are toast by then. For the C3 to work, some poor slob is going to 
have to close with the Clan mechs to get the range shortened for his 
teammates and this "scout" will get dropped on the spot.

And yes, I've done this.  It's a bit
tricky, but conceivably, it means on IS lance could take out two stars
of Omnis.

    
    Yep, if your opponant player is fairly bad and you're fairly 
good. I could take down a company or so of IS mechs with one 
Dragonfly if you really want to swap numbers. Realistically, one star 
of adequately piloted Clan Omnis will destroy one IS lance of equal 
tonnage and piloting ability at the loss of perhaps one omnimech or 
low CBD to all omnis.

Martin


Computers reduce the amount of guessing a man has to do. 
Then again, so does the bikini.

Unfortunately the remainder of this sig. file has been 
classified TOP SECRET. I mean, I could let you see it,
but then I'd have to kill you.