The Highlander was designed to stand alone in defense of a city or other strongpoint or to provide support for a mixed-type attack. Soon after its introduction in 2592, the Highlander was assigned to nearly every Star League Army unit as an assault 'Mech.
         Though slow-moving on the ground, the Highlander has always been able to jump over most obstacles. In doing so, the 'Mech does cause considerable damage to the terrain around the lift-off point. Added to the jump capability was an excellent armor package and an impressive array of weapons built around the sophisticated Gauss Rifle. A multiple-purpose assault 'Mech with a variety of capabilities, the Highlander was deadly at any range.
         It fell victim to the technological decay of the Succession Wars though, and began to disappear from the battlefield. The return of high technology caused by the discovery of the memory core at Helm, began to bring them back in small numbers, but outside ComStar, those that existed in Lyran and Combine space, continued to be less capable than the Star League version.
         The Northwind Highlanders had long made a point of buying Highanders when they could find them, and had begun a series of garage industries building spare parts for them. In the 3060s, they even began building full Highlander frames by hand, each one taking the better part of a year to finish. When the Jihad struck, the Highlanders approached Cosara Weaponries with their reverse-engineered plans, and contracted the company to begin mass-producing them. Cosara made a simple modification to the plans, and the HGN-738 was born.

         Because of the battlefield tactic of Death from Above the Highlander sports impressively thick leg armor and strengthened interior skeleton in the feet and lower legs. This lets the BattleMech absorb the impact of landing on an unwilling target. The jump jets also allow a pilot to automatically redirect the force of his jets to compensate for landing on a moving foe. A "Highlander Burial" is one in which a light 'Mech is crushed and literally driven into the earth by the force of the Highlander's landing.
         The primary weapon of the Highlander is a Grizzard Gauss Rifle. An advanced field arm, the Gauss Rifle uses a series of magnets to propel the shell through the barrel toward the target. Though the system requires large amounts of power to magnetize the projectile coils, it produces very little heat since it is charged via a slow trickle of power while the gun is reloaded.
         Supporting the Gauss Rifle are a pair of Skyefire Multi-Missile Launchers that can easily engage a foe at extremely-long ranges to point-blank ranges, and a set of four Cyclops lasers. Opponents of the design point out that the Highlander requires almost constant ammo resupply and that in a prolonged battle, the lack of significant energy weapons severely hampers the 'Mech's ability to stay in the fight. Ammunition storage was deemed sufficient by the Star League Quartermaster Command, however, and centuries of use have shown the BattleMech to be effective despite those claims.
         The 'Mech is equipped with Glasgow Limited Primo Ferro-Fibrous Armor, and Cellular Ammunition Storage Equipment shields the weapons and ammo in the right and left torso. Very reliable, the CASE system is credited with saving countless 'Mechs and pilots across the Human Sphere.

         The HGN-738 fought the Word under the colors of almost every mercenary unit then in the Allied Mercenary Command. After the war ended, StarCorps Industries sued to stop Cosara from building the design, citing their sole contract for the Highlander. The Lyran Commonwealth court sided with StarCorps, though the Star League court sided with the Cosara. StarCorps refuses to accept the Star League verdict though, claiming that the court is biased, and continues to try to stop Cosara through extra-legal methods. Cosara has never ceased production though, and their Highlanders are seen throughout the Human Sphere, piloted by the vast majority of military units in the Allied Mercenary Command.