The design section and tournament rules are the types of things you will find in the actual book. Vehicles like the tanks a little later but at least one within the first 40 stock numbers I believe. In games like Battletech, however, those lumbering beasts all but own the battlefield. In the history of the galaxy the CAV serves the purpose of being a cost efficient frontline unit designed for a battlefield where you don't control the orbit or atmosphere. They also serve as a cost effective way to protect assets not worthy of large fleets and countless orbiting defensive systems.
Earth is a moderate planet with heavy erosion from atmospheric activity.
The average CAV is 9.95. One way to look at it is to compare them to our fantasy line. The current cost of a new release single 25mm fig is 2.95. The average CAV contains 5 pieces. In direct comparison that would make a CAV 15.00 but most pieces of a CAV is not as much metal as a 25mm fig.