The TIG-R1 Tiger was an old design that never left the
drawing boards. Being designed by the Federated
Commonwealth during the succession wars. Its twin Auto
Cannon were condemned as lacking in firepower and thus
the designing was halted. With the revival of lost
technology, the tiger's plans were pulled from storage and
remodeled into the TIG-R4 by Davion scientists.
Capabilities:
When the Rotary Autocannon was put into mass
production, someone who remembered the design realized
that the RAC/5 could solve the design's original fault.
With two tons of ammunition per cannon and a little bit of
luck, the Tiger can fire its cannons for extended periods of
time. Since house Davion's premier assault mech was
already the Devastator, they chose to build a lighter, more
easily produced and maintained mech. This is made
obvious by the standard engine and the relatively slow
speed. This also greatly increases the design's durability.
Aside from the arm mounted cannons, the Tiger sports a
torso mounted LRM 10 for extra long-range firepower and
a SRM 6 for increased short range effectiveness. A single
Magna Mark III Heavy Laser mounted in the center torso
gives the Tiger a decent punch at all different ranges.
Rounding out the mech's short range arsenal are the two
forward mounted medium lasers and a single token rear
mounted laser. In order to fit all the weaponry on the
mech, designers had to experiment with advanced
structures. Seeing as how the Tiger was built to be
inexpensive mech the designers opted to use Ferro
Fiberous armor rather than Endo steel, minimizing cost and
giving the mech a bulky exterior.
Deployment:
The Tiger first saw action ironically enough against the
very mech it had been designed to underclass. While still
in its test phase, it was being piloted by a elite test pilot
over rough terrain. Suddenly, one of the Devestators that
had been guarding the industrial complex turned and
attacked the Tiger. It was a fierce battle, with both pilots
displaying deadly aim. The RAC/5s proved their
usefulness as a lone shell found a soft spot in the
Devestator's left torso that had been previously exposed
by a direct hit from the large laser. With the Devestator's
Engine damaged, it lost its range advantage and soon fell
to another hail of autocannon shells. The Tiger, had been
severely damaged and was scrapped, however, the model
being tested was prototype, rather than the test model as
the traitor had assumed. Production was set back by only
a week.