Howdy and welcome back to Mech Overviews. This week we are covering the Executioner, the last of the Omni-mechs from the Clan Invasion box. The Executioner is the platonic ideal of Clan design philosophy, and is probably the Clanniest Clan mech that ever Clanned. It is also two mechs, which is confusing, but we will get there.

Executioner Chassis

The Executioner (or Gladiator if you are an honourless blight on the stars that were once Star League) is a 95 ton Clan assault Omni-mech. As with all Omni-mechs, all variants share the same armor and structural components, with minor changes to movement and the main difference being what guns it is carrying. The base chassis is quite fast for a 95 tonner, moving 4/6(8)/4. That 8 hex sprint comes from a MASC system, giving it some surprising bursts of speed for something so large. That combines with the jump jets to make the Executioner distressingly mobile for such a massive mech. It does pay for this though.

It has a fairly small amount of pod space for an assault mech, pod space referring to the tonnage that is left over to jam guns into. It is around half the space of something like the Dire Wolf (Daishi), and is honestly only around the same level as some of the scarier Clan medium mechs. It also has fairly bad armor for an assault mech. It isn’t a terrible amount of armor, just incredibly weirdly distributed, being much heavier on the legs than it needs to be, having some distressingly thin frontal side torsos, weirdly thick rear armor, and most confusingly, the rear side torso armor is thicker than the rear center torso armor. It isn’t quite a Hellbringer, but it is still more brittle than it should be. Also MASC completely fucks this mech, as the BV multiplier from MASC makes it cost 700-ish BV more than it should, consistently.

The reason I called it the “Clanniest Clan mech that ever Clanned” up above is that it perfectly matches their general doctrine, and falls into basically all of their major design pitfalls in one variant or another. It is fast, carries a decent amount of guns, and is built for a good time, not a long time. The Executioner is arrogance made manifest, a towering, rattling monument to our sins, questioning the reason for it’s existence as the maddened and frantic Clan scientists decide that what a 95 ton mech really needs is to run faster than some medium mechs and be able to fucking fly. It showcases the Clan warrior mindset perfectly, a mindset that is unconcerned with coming back alive and views failure in battle as being a flaw in the pilot’s moral character.

Oh yeah, there is also the other one.

Executioner-B: Revengeance

So the Executioner is confusingly 2 mechs. There is a second Omni-mech chassis called the Executioner, generally referred to in and out of universe as the Executioner-B. Not to be confused with the Executioner B, or the Executioner-B B. I hate it here, this name is terrible, and I wish they had designated it the Headsman or something creative. In any case, the art for the two of these is identical and you can easily use the model for either mech, so lets go over it. The Executioner-B, hereafter referred to as Liquid Executioner, is a much more normal assault mech. Moving 3/5/2, it jumps not enough to really matter and is comparatively a sitting duck. It also has the same weirdly laid out and bad armor as Solid Executioner up above. So, what do you gain for trading off almost all of the speed and mobility?

Guns. Lots and lots of guns.

Liquid Executioner has nearly twice the space for guns compared to Solid Executioner, so if that is a trade off you are interested in, its explicit that most clans have both versions. Pick your poison. I’ll put its variants at the bottom, below the standard Executioner.

Executioner Variants

Now that that tangent is over, lets go over the various versions of this monument to the unbridled arrogance of the warrior caste.

Executioner Prime

The Prime variant costs 2749, about middle of the pack for a Clan assault mech. It carries a single gauss rifle, 2 ER large lasers, and a pair of machine guns. Uh, this is bad. This is outgunned by most 1500-2000 BV Inner Sphere HEAVY mechs. In addition, those mechs can come just as fast and just as mobile with jump jets and such. Its bad. The Executioner Prime is one of the few Omni-Mechs that I consider to be straight up terrible for the price, it will consistently disappoint you. It suffers badly from “Fast Sniper Syndrome”, costing way too goddamn much and not making great use of it’s speed. For around the same price you can get a Thunder Hawk, an Inner Sphere assault mech with 3 fucking gauss rifles. If speed is a concern, you can get two entire Dragon 7Ns for this price and double your gauss rifle while not risking kneecap explosions from the MASC system. If you just want a tough 4/6 assault mech with some potent damage, the Banshee 6S saves nearly 1000 BV and carries a heavy gauss rifle and a LBX/10 AC. Any imaginable thing you could want the Executioner Prime for you can get better and cheaper from literally thousands of other mech variants. F for sheer price. In a vacuum it isn’t the absolute worst mech, gauss is gauss, but its such a terrible way to get these weapons.

Executioner A

The A is better, though not better enough. It costs 3112 BV, carries 3 large pulse lasers, 4 ER medium lasers, and 2 machine guns. This is better, and it has enough heat sinks to sink all of the LPLs pretty cleanly with any jumping and the ability to sometimes mix in the mediums, which is nice. The issue is that the Rifleman IIC carries 4 LPLs, has armor that is only marginally thinner in practice, and costs only 2307. Extra movement is nice, but that much extra movement is not worth it for 800 more BV and less gun. D, but Clan LPLs are so strong that they can carry basically any mech into the barest, lowest level of playability, no matter how overpriced it is.

Solid Executioner B

The Executioner B, not to be confused with the Executioner-B, or the Executioner-B B, costs 2940 BV. It carries a UAC-20, an ER PPC, an ER medium laser, and an anti-missile system. UAC-20s activate my neurons and this is a decent enough caddy for one, the armor is just thick enough to get into close combat, it has a long ranged weapon to fire as it closes, and it can turn on the sprint on the final approach to get into range to land that big hit. Still way, way too expensive, but compared to a lot of UAC-20 mechs, it’ll get there a lot faster. This is the first variant that I would call somewhat usable? Yeah, you are 100% better off taking both a UAC mech and an ER PPC mech for around the same price, but if your group has unit count limits I can see a use case for this one where it won’t feel like a total waste of BV. Still far, far from good due to sheer price, but usable. D+.

Executioner C

Mama Mia this is a spicy one. The Executioner C is very similar to the B. It costs 2740 and carries a UAC-20, an LRM-20, and an ER Small Laser. Shaving 200 BV off just by taking a weaker long ranged weapon is already good in my eyes due to the UAC being the main draw, but the C decides to double down. It has a targeting computer for that UAC-20. That means it is potentially putting 2 20 damage groupings into a mech with a to-hit bonus. I love this. It is still expensive, but UAC-20s with T-Comps are rare for a reason, and this has the potential to do horrifying things if you can keep it behind terrain until it can jump/sprint into the enemy and start wrecking up the place. It is still somewhat BV inefficient, but this has a very strong use case and I am very fond of the theory behind it. C, its gonna have games where it gets shot to death before it does anything impressive, but it will occasionally just rip it with that UAC.

Executioner D

The D is a weird one. It carries one large pulse laser and just a huge list of smaller pulse lasers and SRMs. For 2698, it has a bit of a lack of big can opener type weapons or long range fire, and I really can’t recommend it. It has a very short range and while the Executioner is fast for its weight, it still isn’t really all that fast, and there are just scarier assault mechs out there for that price. D-.

Executioner E

The E costs 2988, and has some decent traits. It carries 2 ATM-9s, 2 ER large lasers, and some heavy lasers that don’t really matter because they will never manage to hit anything. I love ATMs, they have some really excellent flexibility and are just wonderfully efficient and user friendly weapons. The combo of ATMs and ER large lasers means that it ideally wants to stay at range, but is content to close in and use the HE profile on the ATMs. It costs way too much, there are better mechs for this price, but personally I am fond of it. D+ objectively, C+ for fun value because ATMs are such a satisfying weapon to use.

Executioner F

Lmao.

Ok so the Executioner F is getting an F, lets just start there. It costs 3606 BV, which is ~9 Wasps, ~5 Panthers, ~3 Thunderbolts, or ~2 Atlas’. For that staggering, Bezosian price, you get 2 LPLs, an ER PPC, a Targeting Computer, and a speed boost to 4/6(10)/4 from a super charger. Now, an assault mech running 10 hexes and nailing you with insanely accurate clan energy fire sounds awesome. But the extra speed is situational and can backfire, as both the supercharger and MASC system have a chance to fail and do damage to your mech. So you pay extra to have a chance to cripple your own mech. The MASC, Supercharger, and T-Comp all add a BV multiplier to the mech, and the math on how they stack does the F absolutely no favors. It is impressive in isolation but so overpriced as to be ridiculous to imagine taking. You can get 150 ton superheavies for cheaper than this.

Executioner G

So remember how I said the Executioner was a monument to Clan arrogance? The Executioner G costs 3825 BV. At that price, it needs to be able to 1v2 other assault mechs consistently, or 1v3 heavy mechs. It doesn’t manage that. It carries an ER PPC, 6 ER medium lasers, a Streak LRM-15, and a targeting computer. This is not worth it. It isn’t even as fast as the F, this one only moves the normal speed for the Executioner. Something is going very weird with the math on the T-Comp. It also has a Watchdog CEWS, which will basically never come up. Its bad. Its really bad. I feel terrible spending more than 2000 BV on any single mech, and the Executioner G is coming really close to my pick for most overpriced mech in this game. F.

Executioner H

The H is another UAC-20 variant. It costs 3059, and supplements the UAC-20 with 2 ER medium lasers, a heavy large laser, and a targeting computer. I mean, it’s fine, but the C is much better. D.

Executioner I

God I hate the Executioner so much. The I costs 3399, and carries 2 improved heavy large lasers, a targeting computer, and a pair of Streak SRM-6s. It also has a supercharger, so it has that 4/6(10)/4 movement profile. It is bad for the same reasons as the F. It is inefficient, fragile, prone to damaging itself, and just so mediocre for the price of a superheavy. If a mech is costing 3000 or more BV, it needs to be able to carry a game on its own, and none of the Executioners so far have gotten there. F.

Executioner J

The Executioner J costs 2891 and sucks for that price. It carries a HAG-40, a weapon I personally loathe but a lot of people really like, and 3 SRM-6s. The HAG-40, or “Hyper Assault Gauss 40” has a pretty extreme range and high potential damage, but it’s damage is very random due to the cluster hits table and it will tend to sandblast the entire outside of the enemy mech. It is impressive, scary, does great DPS, and I would rather just have a normal gauss rifle. There are better HAG caddies in this game. The Battlemaster C comes to mind, being 100 odd BV more expensive but having much better backup weapons, a targeting computer, and a better armor layout. D-.

Executioner K

The Executioner K costs 3125 BV, and is very similar to the Prime. It has 2 ER large lasers, a HAG-20, and 3 ER medium lasers. I feel like I am a broken record at this point, but it is overpriced and mediocre. There are mechs a thousand BV cheaper that will put this mech in the ground, consistently. F.

Executioner L

The L is indeed a pretty big L. It costs 3132 BV, and has 2 ER large lasers and 2 Streak LRM-15s. Streak LRMs are cool and all, but they are not 3132 BV cool. F.

Executioner P

The Executioner P is bad. It costs 3052 BV, and carries a HAG 30, an LRM-10, 3 heavy medium lasers, and a plasma cannon. If you want a HAG-30, use a Battlemaster C, it’ll put this thing in the ground for around the same price. D.

Executioner T

Fuck man, at least it’s cheap. The Executioner T is 2558 BV, and carries 2 ER large pulse lasers, two machine guns, and a LBX-10 AC. ER LPLs hurt my soul because they are much worse than a normal LPL for the same price and I will die on this hill. It isn’t as overpriced as some Executioners, but it is just disappointing. D+.

Executioner TC

The Executioner TC costs 3363 BV, and honestly makes better use of it than most Executioners. It has an ER PPC, two LPLs, three ER small lasers, and a targeting computer. This at least has decently accurate and dangerous guns, but like, not 3363 BV dangerous. The Hellstar is cheaper than this and has 4 heat neutral ER PPCs. The speed isn’t worth it.

Solid Executioner Conclusion

The normal Executioner, or Solid Executioner if you will, is by and large terrible. Fast assault mechs are only good if they are cheap. The Banshee and Charger are two of my all time favorite mechs because, while they are very fast for their weights, they have the decency to be pretty cheap and spamable, and a good, nice, cheap source of armor for your list. The Executioner spends a lot on weapons, then decides to spend a lot on some of the worse laid out armor I have ever seen, then decides that it needs to be even faster and so it buys that. It wants to be every single role of mech at the same time, and it is very unwilling to sacrifice anything. In an effort to be the ultimate weapon, the master of all and destroyer of worlds, it ends up being mediocre at everything, and it charges you for the privilege. It struggles badly from the fact that it’s core chassis is a hyper-expensive mess that makes bad use of every ounce of BV you spend on it, and no spiky, cool, and inconsistent weapon loadout can fix that.

If you want a good force for this game, you need consistency, not wild spikes and overly expensive wonder-mechs. Trust in autocannons, basic PPCs, pulse lasers, and cheap, efficient armor. Speed is fun and speed is great, but no amount of speed will save you from your opponent rolling 2 12s in a row and headshotting your 4000 BV Super Saiyan V Omnislayer 9000. Having 2 mechs though, that will prevent that. High TMMs are great until the enemy has Pulse and Precision ammo and simply has more armor, more mechs, and more tonnage than you, and will grind you into a pulp with consistent, steady damage. You might have a game where you rip it with some superspeed Clan abomination, but you are going to have 3 games where it fails to make it’s BV back while the player with the more consistent list stomps you flat.

The Executioner doesn’t even have the decency to have properly high TMMs. On most maps unless it is running in a straight line the best it can manage is a +2 TMM, +3 if it gets a perfectly straight move. Most other hyper expensive Clan mechs have improved jump jets and get a +4 or +5 TMM. So, TMM is an inconsistent defense, and the Executioner doesn’t even have it. I hate this thing so much.

Liquid Executioner Variants

So, lets look at the slow one. This will be brief, there are only a few of these.

Executioner-B Prime

We are off to a good start. Trading away all of that overpriced speed, the Liquid Executioner Prime costs 2721 BV, a pretty high price, but carries 2 LPLs, 2 UAC-2s, a UAC-20, and an ER PPC. This is a hell of a lot more gun, though with the slow speed the UAC-20 is more of a “Get off me!” tool than a meaningful threat. This is a lot cheaper and a lot better than any of the Solid Executioners, so this one clearly got all the dominant genes. B-.

Executioner-B A

I love it. The Liquid Executioner A costs a mere 2194 BV, the lowest price yet, and carries 2 UAC-10s and 2 LBX-10s. It also has a pair of ER small lasers, in case you want to try and blind enemy pilots with your tiny laser pointers. I love AC-10s very, very much, and this is a damn cheap way to get 4 of them. It has enough ammo to shoot all of its autocannons 10 times, which should be enough for a standard length game. I genuinely like this mech. The weird armor of the Executioner is still a problem here, and the slow speed isn’t fantastic, but this is basically a higher speed Annihilator, and that is a good thing to be. B+.

Executioner-B B

God is dead, we have hit levels of name confusion that are vaguely dumb, and the BB boy is here. Bling Bling Boy here costs 3157 BV and carries 2 gauss rifles, 2 ER large lasers, and 4 medium pulse lasers. This is decent, it has decent damage for the price, it can keep light mechs away with the pulse lasers, and it will be very happy sitting on a hill and sniping people. Still too expensive for my taste, I give it a C. Perfectly fine, you are probably better off with a Thunder Hawk, but it isn’t a complete disaster and I can see why you would prefer this to a Thunder Hawk.

Execuioner-B C

Its bad again! The Liquid Executioner C costs 2979 BV and carries 4 ER PPCs, 2 UAC-5s, and 2 very confusing SRM-2s. That sounds awesome, but this can only sink 40 heat. 4 ER PPCs generates 60 heat. 3 ER PPCs generate 45. It is an elaborate way to roast a pilot alive, and it isn’t good. The lack of regard for heat management would be bad, but funny and understandable if this was a “Siesta” style mech, where you shoot, shut down from heat, then wake up and shoot again, but it can’t manage that because it has ammunition. That ammo can blow up and kill it if it does that. It really is a return to form, being more like a normal Solid Executioner. By which I mean it is overpriced and bad. D-.

Liquid Executioner Conclusion

This is the better version of the mech. Use this one. If you have the model and like the model, run it as a -B Prime or a -B A. By becoming a normal Clan assault mech it does lose some of what makes it special, but it disregards uniqueness to become a usable mech. I will probably be using my Executioner model for this one going forwards.

Conclusion

Yeah the Executioner is a confusing shitshow of a mech. All you need to take away from this is to use an Executioner-B Prime or Executioner-B A. Those two variants will not disappoint you like the rest of them will. The -B B is ok, you could make an argument for it, but basically none of the basic Executioners are good. It is a shame to see an iconic Clan Invasion mech be in such a sorry state with so many bad variants, but such is life. At least there is something salvageable underneath it all. Cheers.

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