Uziel

 (test)

Introduction

Uziel, sometimes transliterated as "Uriel," is a combination of the Hebrew words "az" and "el" which roughly translates into "God is my strength" or "strength of God." The name is, indeed, an apt one for this 50ton Medium-class InnerSphere BattleMech. Much taller than the 45ton Clan Shadow Cat, less protected than the 55ton InnerSphere Bushwhacker or Clan Ryoken, and possessed of a broad, "please shoot me!", upper-torso section, the Uziel, on a cursory inspection, doesn't appear to be a battle-worthy steed. However, a quick glance beneath the skin of the chassis reveals several extremely beneficial compensations for these admitted deficiencies.

Chassis Analysis

The Uziel is possessed of a hardpoint arrangement capable of mounting several hard-hitting combinations of weaponry appropriate to any environment: energy for colder maps, ballistic for warmer maps, short-range, long-range, and a medium-sized missile-rack for backup. Her engine is an XL (ExtraLight) model capable of a maximum top-speed of 107.06kph at a total cost of only 5tons beyond her lowest possible speed of 83.02kph.

Her internal skeleton is composed of EndoSteel, which is both a blessing and a curse at once; the lighter weight of EndoSteel leaves more tonnage free for weapons (big guns, and lots of 'em!), but takes up additional space and thus is more susceptible to damage-transfer and critical hits. She can mount a formidable array of electronics suites, including BAP for ferreting out her victims, jumpjets for boosting to out-of-the-way spots, and LAMS for partial-protection against the wide variety of missles available to MekTekers.

The Uziel's hardpoint layout, like most lighter 'Mechs, doesn't allow for effective "boating" of a single weapon-type in large numbers. What the hardpoints do allow you to do is mount literally a couple of high-damage weapons of your choice, with maybe a missile-rack, flamers, or a MXPL (Medium X-Pulse Laser) or two as backup, while keeping your armor thick and your feet winged. As you can see from looking at the mech’s weapon hardpoints, the Uziel has a single 3-slot Missile Hardpoint in its Special 1* section, a 2-slot Ballistic Hardpoint in each side torso, a 3-slot Energy Hardpoint in each arm, and a post-MP3 2-slot Energy Hardpoint in the ‘Beam Pod’ slung under the right arm. Herin lies one of the most attractive featues of the Uzi: for only 50tons, it is one of the most versatile medium mechs available to the MW4 Community.

With the recent release of the MekTek MP3 patch, the Uziel became a little more versatile on the battlefield. The addition of the 2-energy Beam Slot under the Right Arm lends this mech the ability to switch up its normal weapon array and throw an unexpected surprise at a victim. Also, the increase in the size from the MP2.x patch, from a 2-slot missile to a 3-slot missile, allows this mech to carry larger amounts of destruction. This slot upgrade arguably makes the Uziel one of the better Medium support mechs. Now, this workhorse of the Medium weight class can carry weapon systems such as MRM40s, Arrow IV Cluster or Thunderbolt, or Heavy Rockets…permitting this mech to rain death from afar while reducing the immediate danger to your armor levels.

One of the primary reasons for staying with longer ranged Uziel configs is due to the chassis’ armor count. An Uziel defaults to a stock total of 8 tons of Ferro Fibrous armor. Its max FF armor count is 10.1 tons and tops out at 15.1 tons for specialty armor. While this armor count is respectable for a 50ton mech and can protect it from mechs of similar displacement or armament, it is not enough to protect its wide cross-section from larger mechs and their more lethal weapons.

*The Specials on a given 'Mech's chassis (most have at least one, many have two) are separately-targetable locations that don't "belong" to a standard section of a 'Mech (i.e. the Left Leg, or the Rear Torso). When a Special is destroyed, some excess damage may bleed into the adjacent standard section, but the full-weight of the damage isn't applied directly to the standard section. On the Uziel, the Specials are the central Missile Hardpoint and the small box-like protuberance under the Right Arm that houses a 2-slot energy weapon hardpoint. 

Tactical Analysis

As has already been mentioned, the Uziel is a fairly large and, in relation to its size, fragile target on the battlefield. She has a broad chest that most players love to take potshots at, and not even enough armor on her Center Torso (the most heavily armored section of any 'Mech) to survive a 2erLGL+2CGR alpha strike from a typical Black Knight sniper without losing all 45 points of Ferro Fibrous armor and digging into the EndoSteel internal structure, which we've already seen is fragile compared to a Standard internal structure. We're not going to get bummed, though, because we've already seen that you can pack a disproportionately large Sunday Punch into the Uzi; the only thing left is to play intelligently so you can plant that punch right on your target's kisser.

The Uziel excels on longer ranged maps, though preferably with some cover. Uziel’s ability to mount and efficiently deploy large energy weapon systems makes this an accurate and lethal long range mech. With a total of 8 energy slots (2, 3, 3), 4 ballistic slots (2, 2), and a single 3-slot missile, there are dozens of variants and variations out there that equate themselves well on the battlefield.

The Uziel has always been noted and appreciated for its ability to mount heavy weaponry on a 50ton chassis. With the new Beam Pod addition, it can now mount an additional erLGL or Light PPC…giving this mech additional firepower to knock out its targets from extreme range. The ability to mount RACs, UAC2s, Heavy Rockets, or Arrow IVs also makes this mech a mean long range supporter capable of striping and knocking mechs much larger than itself. Also, it is quite typical to see a brawling Uziel armed with two Clan LBX10 Autocannons or two Clan Ultra Autocannon(cUAC) 10s as well as JumpJets. The jumpjets, of course, are unbeatable for offering tactical mobility.

A note of caution when employing this chassis: the Uziel has a slow Rate-of-Acceleration for a Medium-class 'Mech. Try extremely hard to avoid getting stuck on a building, ramming into another 'Mech, or running up a slope too steep for your 'Mech to crest, as you'll be the proverbial sitting duck for several seconds before the Uziel can work back up to her proper speed. 

Conclusion

It takes a certain mindset to pick a Medium-class 'Mech with a high target profile, arm it with weapons that may require leading to aim effectively, are extremely hot, and have a long recycle time, and then pilot it onto a field swarming with masses of mechs that want nothing more than to slag your ride. More often than not you won't score overly-high at the end of a 30-minute Team Attrition match. Quite often you'll find yourself struggling just to break even on your kill:death ratio. Every once in awhile, though, if you know the Uzi and love the Uzi as we at Knights Templar do, you'll catch a game where you ride a sort of MechWarrior zen wave, always skirting the crest but never tumbling off nor having the wave break beneath you, and it'll all be worth it. May this workhorse Medium Mech serve you well in your endeavors and remember, be patient because once you find those ideal configurations and learn to work with this nimble mech, you will reap the rewards.