The Crusader has had a long, successful production history, and numerous variants of the basic design served in the armed forces of the Star League. Designed by Kallon Industries as a medium close-range combat vehicle, the Crusader soon became the workhorse of the Star League, filling many roles and performing a wide variety of missions.
         The fall of the Star League did not end the design, like it did for so many others, though the loss of the Hawk SRMs and Phoenix LRMs that it used did make it less effective. Still, in an era of decline, the Crusader was one of those few truly effective BattleMechs that never fell out of use. The recovery of Star League technology heralded new variants of the design, and the Clan Invasion spurred yet more inventions. It was the Jihad though that many say resulted in the creation of the best Crusader ever made, and possibly the best one still used in the Human Sphere. Created by Brigadier Corporation of Oliver, they mass-produced the design for the armies of the League until the Sirian Concordance conquered the world during their assault on the crumbling nation. The Crusader has fought well for them since, from Terra to Tikonov and dozens of worlds between them.

         The Crusader has a well-deserved reputation as a reliable, versatile 'Mech. Commonly found in command and fire lances, the 'Mech is equally at home alongside Marauders and Thunderbolts in close-assault units. Some versions have even served as scout 'Mechs, but this is rare.
         The Sirian Multi-Shot Multi-Missile Launchers on the arms and hips allow the Crusader to fire as many as twenty Artemis-guided missiles at all ranges. While some point to previous designs that could generate salvos twice as thick, the Sirian Multi-Shots can fire almost every missile created over the centuries, from Clan-tech to the most stupid non-guided dumb-fire missiles the Crusader was forced to use in the darkest days of the Succession Wars. This versatility makes the Crusader prized by mercenaries and militias alike.
         The unique location of the launchers on the 'Mech's hips gives the Crusader both a stable firing platform and a good field of fire. The arm-mounted launchers on the shoulder are heavily armored to keep missile exhaust from penetrating into the arms' actuators and superstructure. Thick armored collars on the 'Mech's lower arms distribute the heat from the Intek lasers there, allowing their heat to dissipate into the air without stressing the arms. CASE in each torso keeps the BattleMech from exploding should a catastrophic ammunition explosion occur.
         Twin Zippo Flamers, the upper one often replaced with a C3 slave in Tikonov space, in the torso have proven themselves deadly against infantry, and a Yori Flyswatter Anti-Missile System protects it against incoming missile swarms. At 65 tons, the 'Mech is also a powerful hand-to-hand fighter. Its heavily armored legs are especially devastating when kicking, and the Leviathan Lifter jump jets have both the brute force and the fine finess required to make it proficient in the dreaded Death from Above attack.

         Some of these Crusaders still exist in the Free Worlds League, remnants of the Jihad. The Sirian Concordance uses and also sells the Crusaders to interested buyers, mainly the Tikonov Republican Guards and mercenaries. Various customers in the Free Worlds League do make repeated orders though, keeping the design alive in that region of space.