Hani Kawai has been a Dust Devil since the day he was born, and bears the distinction of being the first child to be delivered in the DDS Makani ʻino's medical bay to parents who remain active members of the ship's crew to this day.
MRBC Dossier - 3063[]
BattleMech[]
The Devils acquired Sandcat as mostly-intact salvage during the campaign to take Panzyr from the Aurigan Directorate. Its previous owner, a member of a cadet branch of the Espinosa family, was dispossessed of both BattleMech and life when the paired large lasers of Yagami Kenshin's Phoenix Hawk burned through the old PTR-9K Panther's cockpit. Both Chief Technician Virtanen and Commandant Leilani Kekoa had a soft spot for the design, if not a use for it, so it would be several years before the Devils' technicians revisited the chassis.
In the aftermath of the disaster on Kufstein and the settlement that resulted from their liaison's betrayal, the Devils found themselves in possession of an unexpectedly large quantity of "liberated" Clan technology. However, their losses had left the unit short on working BattleMechs, and Virtanen saw an opportunity to both fill a gap in their stable and breathe new life and capability into a favorite design.
In keeping with the Devils' overall philosophy of fielding familiar designs with unexpected capabilities, Virtanen's upgrades transformed Sandcat from a light street-fighter into a dedicated scout and effective Battle Armor killer, filling a gap the unit was suffering after having lost most of their recon pilots to the Wolves. Replacing the stock Hermes 140 power plant with an Omni 175 XL and the myomers with triple-strength versions gave the traditionally slow Panther maneuverability surpassing a Raven, while the addition of a half tonne of armor, an ECM suite, and CASE-protected ammunition bins helps to offset the increased vulnerability of the bulkier engine.
Sandcat's standard PPC and four-shot SRM have been replaced with a lighter, harder-hitting ClanTech ER PPC and a Streak SRM-4, respectively, while a ClanTech flamethrower was added to the left arm to deal with enemy infantry and infrastructure alike. The integration of an Active Probe into its sensor suite allows Sandcat to seek out the Devils' opponents wherever they hide, and the upgrade from single heat sinks to ClanTech double-strength versions proves a nasty surprise to opponents used to facing Panthers that have to carefully husband their shots to manage the model's notorious heat issues, as Sandcat's rate of outgoing punishment is limited only by the cycle speed of its armament.
Sandcat is painted in a base of the Devil's standard camel with granite leopard spots on limbs, torso, and head, with coral highlights on armor panel edges and the tips of the 'Mech's "ears". Kawaii's personal heraldry, a red dolphin leaping in the inside arc of a white crescent moon, is painted on Sandcat's center torso above the SRM rack.