My suggestion towards upgrading the Marauder is to, first and foremost, yank out the AC/5 and attendant ammo reserve, slap in a large laser, add 3 tons of armour, and upgrade the 'sinks to double freezers. That basically revokes the three largest flaws of the Marauder. A: No more 'Marauder Flaw' with the only internal target in the left torso being the ammo for the cannon. More Marauders have been blown to bits because of that flaw than have been mobility killed, I swear.<br/><br/>B: 16 DHS = 32 heat dissipation; with 2 PPC, 2 Mlas, and a LL, you're looking at 34 heat per alpha, instead of the original iteration's 27 heat with 16 freezers. Blindingly obvious why that's a good idea.<br/><br/>C: 3 more tons of armour means the Marauder can serve double duty as both a 'Hammer' and an 'Anvil'; with 14.5 tons of armour it'll be at or near the maximum load its internal structure can support, instead of being nearly out-armoured by the 50-ton hunchback, which is kinda shameful when the Marauder is half again as heavy as the HBK.<br/><br/>A tertiary reason is that, with no ammo requirements, the 'Mech can go on deep-strike missions without needing to withdraw for resupply.