The Epee is a rebuilt version of captured Kuritan Panthers produced for Draconis March Militia units by Robinson Standard Battleworks as part of a general program instituted by Duke Sandoval in October of 3053 to address what he claimed to be the "declining state of military readiness on this critical border and the apparent neglect exhibited by our leaders in New Avalon of the continuing Drac menace."
   Thus, the Epee program was born and it lasted 3 years until 3056, when production at Robinson Standard Battleworks was shifted to more modern designs. Some 100 old-model 9R Panthers were updated and given modern
technology.

   The old model Panthers that were taken under hand by Robinson Standard Battleworks were in many cases, one step from the scrap heap due to hard use and little if anything in the way of spare parts.
   The first thing that the designers decided that something had to be done was to improve on the mobility of the PNT. They managed, through some luck and a bit of computer hacking, find a consignment of a one-off production run of GM 210 XL engines that had been made by TharHes for a design that had failed actuator stress tests. RSW managed to get the engines at 2/3rds normal going rate and installed them into the Panther chassis, which took some doing.
   The McCloud Special Jump Jets were even easier to get, having been part of a production overrun at Kallon Industries on Talon.
   The weapons fit, however, would prove to be somewhat more problematic. First off, the only ER Large Laser that was available to the designers was the Exostar model, and nobody had ever tried to install that particular
model on a 'Mech. The software clashed with the Federated Hunter Mark II system and it took 8 months to correct the problem and a lot of re-writing of thousands of lines of code. Not only that, but the heat shunt had to be reshaped to fit a 'Mech coolant system, which by design, is different from that of an aerospace fighter.
     As for the Chiscomp lasers, they were somewhat easier, as there was a surplus of them and Archenar was desperate to move them.
   The real sticking point was with the Streak launchers. While there was also a surplus of them, the difficulty was that there was an AFFC order to the effect that all such launchers were to be shipped to units on the Clan front as soon as transport could be arranged. RSW paid through the nose and called in a few favors at T & R command to get enough launchers and
ammunition to complete the design.
   As for the armor, to quote a member of the design team, "The less said, the better."
So what did RSW turn out? They turned out a 'Mech that while it ran hotter than the old PNT, it was far better able to handle that heat, as well as a lot more nimble and with more firepower, especially at close range. Many saw the Epee's potential as a counter-recon vehicle and quite a few Epee's have drawn that role in their regiments.

So far, the Epee has seen little action, save an encounter between an unauthorized raid by Combine troops over the border into the Bryceland PDZ on the planet Latexo, where a company of the Bryceland DMM was conducting exercises with the local militia. Among the mechs that the company had, were two Epees.
   In the resultant fighting, the Epees acquitted themselves well. They downed between them 5 Kuritan light mechs, 2 Jenners, a Wasp and a Panther. The Panther pilot was rudely surprised when the "Panthers" he engaged didnot match the expected performance profile.

A common variant, often seen in the Epees with the 1st and 2nd Robinson Rangers, is the EPR-23D. The Streak launchers are removed and the Large Laser is replaced with an ER PPC. An Guardian ECM suite, perfect for defeating Kuritan C3 networks is also installed. An extra-half ton of armour is also added.

Corporal Jennifer Donally and "Skull Kraker".
     Corporal Donally seems to have taken to the Epee like a second skin. An unremarkable mech pilot in her old Stinger, she soon became ratheraccomplished in her Epee in exercises and was one of the two Epee pilots on Latexo. She downed the Panther and did so with a bit of flair, something that her average scores from the Conroe Training Battalion wouldn't suggest.

The Epee is found only in units hailing from the Draconis March, with the majority in the March Militias. Some have found their way into the 1st and 2nd Robinson Rangers, but other AFFS and LAAF units frown upon the design, calling it, "militia garbage".