Lego Set 19 — Mackie

In BattleTech, the times right after the development of the Kearny-Fuchida drive were a period of discovery and colonization. Humanity escaped an overcrowded Earth to expand to the stars. But the hardships and difficulties encountered led to an extremely violent follow-up to this period of rapid colonization when the nascent star-bound nations engaged in campaigns of expansion to claim power and territory. The extremes of this Age of War forced humanity to dial down the rules of engagement, turning war into something almost akin to sport, distant from the irradiated hellscapes from before. In this new era, a new weapons system would be born to rule this new kind of war — the BattleMech.

Developed by the Terran Hegemony, the super-power that has existed in the center of the sphere of human expansion since the onset of the Age of War, the BattleMech was the result of decades of research and development. For most of this time, it wasn’t really obvious what these new technologies would lead to. However, the creation of the Ares Convention that reformulated warfare brought the opportunity to revolutionize ground combat, now that warships and WMDs weren’t really feasible.

In 2439 the Mackie was unveiled and displayed the awesome new capabilities the BattleMech brought onto the field of battle by crushing a bunch of standard main battle tanks under its metal boots. It was obvious that a fundamental change of paradigm was here to stay.

Massing 100 tons, the first BattleMech was originally equipped with an autocannon, a particle projection cannon, and two lasers. However, future developments would improve on this weaponry, even adding a second PPC and advanced electronics. By the 31st century, though, the Mackie was already ancient, even obsolescent - a slew of more advanced machines had been developed and deployed in the meanwhile. However, a few Mackies still functioned and even battled in desperate last-ditch efforts — a testament to their legacy. The first of many was still able to bite.

I’m really proud of this model. It is the most complex I have made for this blog, with more than 80 parts. Still, it does look amazing. The color scheme is based on the Star League Defense Force, the powerful military the Hegemony created when it managed to unify the Inner Sphere under its heel.

If you give this a try, let me know how it looks like.