The MWO team today also brought us a sneak peek at the first ‘hero’ ‘Mech they’ll be introducing to the game.
From what’s been said so far, Hero ‘Mechs will simply be the variant of a chassis piloted by a lore figure in the novels/sourcebooks. Â Here’s the image they posted:
I’m holding out for a hero ’till the end of the night
The ‘Mech seems to a Centurion…and there is only one famous Centurion  “Yen Lo Wang” piloted by Justin Xiang Allard (and Kai Allard Liao after him).  Justin removed the LRM launcher, and both medium lasers.. and replaced them with an AC/20.. that resulted in quite a surprise for the first opponent who came across that configuration.  In the novel, he actually added ‘nails’ to the Centurion’s good hand, to use as a surprise melee attack in that same match.
MWO doesn’t have melee, so I don’t think their version will have that added bonus.. Â we’ll have to wait for the official announcement to see how it comes spec’d.