Hello,
I am not Yourbuttocks, rather his eldest brother using his A&A login to set you misguided followers on the right path. What I speak here today is inarguable truths and any contradictions you make are incorrect unless your name is Jordan Wiesman, Randall Bills, Robert Thurston, or Loren Coleman. This is because I, unlike the majority of Battle Freaks, or any sort of fiction freak, can distance myself and my perceptions from the universe, I do not invariably make my own universe with similar mechanics but different dynamics like the SW freaks who complain about how un-SW like the new SW movies are.
The Clans although still potent, do not (and in the conceivable future) threaten the IS with the possibility of conquering most of it, or even taking Terra.
The problem lies in production and population of all things. The Clans will never be able to win in a drawn out conquest or battle of attrition over a span of generations because they simply are unable to train a sufficient number of troops and construct enough war machines to compete with the Inner Sphere in the long run.
This being the case however, the IS has turned against it self once again and with the Clan OZ (occupation Zone) still not brought up to it’s full potential, this trend may change.
As for mechs, my favorites are by general type, not specific variant (not that would concern you people) is Panther, Wolf Hound, Phoenix Hawk, Shadow Hawk and Griffin. The Shadow Cat and Wraith also factor in there, but are nominally held in lower esteem.
Thank you for your time.
And if you have any interest in Battletech, or CBT as the new edition of the game is being titled, go to http://www.classicbattletech.com/ for the official Battletech site and message board.