Scott Martin
SOC-13
For you folks who want a mixed tech grav tank - the low tech solution to the Star Viking (the 'H Beam Piper" Variety) "We'll just take over this TL-7 world with our G-Carrier" rallying cry.
This is a chunk of hardware currently in my PBEM game here:
http://www.guildportal.com/Guild.aspx?GuildID=213934&TabID=1804610
And we're looking for new players as we ramp back up for fall - going on 2 years now starting from Far Trader's "30th Anniversary game"
I'll probably post the Shrike interceptor as well, another mixed tech hybrid which is a TL 12 design built with (mostly) TL-7 components.
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One Shot (Enclave Mobile Fortification)
The name "One Shot" was coined by Republic troops engaging these platforms with helicopter gunships at the battle of Clement's pass. The fortifications had not been deployed before the gunships were in position to engage, so the Vargr were forced to engage the helicopters while in flight. Gunship crews learned quickly that the ungainly vehicles could at best get off a single aimed shot, at which point the recoil of their heavy guns sent them into uncontrolled flight.
Construction is fairly typical for low tech armour in contact with hich tech cultures - there is no point in building a "tank" that can be destroyes by an imported man-portable weapon, or that carries a main gun incapable of engaging battledress armoured troops. As a result, the armour is sufficient to take a direct hit from a man-portable fusion gun and carries a main weapon capable of penetrating the mainline battle armour of the local higher tech polities (in this case both the Imperium and the Zhodani Consulate). The invariable trade-off is mobility, since the mass of armour and weapons support equipment required is considerable.
In truth, this is not actually a homogenous "class" of armoured vehicle due to the construction methods (and radical differences in equipment) that are employed by the Vargr stronghold to construct them. There are four defining components in the construction of the "One Shot" platform:
Lift is provided by a commercial contragrav generator originally used for lifting cargo pallets
Armouring is extensive, sufficient to withstand man-portable energy weapons
The main armament is a turreted heavy calibre slug thrower
Thrust is provided by low tech methods, generally turbofans but propellers and plasma thrusters have bot been observed
While tempting to define this class of vehicle as a "Grav Tank", the tactical doctrine is for these platforms is telling: they are intended to land and act as mobile "pillboxes". This doctrine was re-enforced by the battle of Clement's pass, and underscored the fact that their lateral movement is controlled entirely by (generally unarmoured) thrust nacelles. In "flight" this means that a hit by light weapons will often result in a mission kill. This weakness in design is compounded by the general unmaneuverability of the platform - the weight of the vehicle is offset by the onboard contragrav modules, but the thrust agents must still act to counteract the mass of armour invariably mounted by these vehicles making them slow and sluggish in the best of circumstances, and "floating targets" in a combat environment.
The "One Shot" is a powerful weapons system when deployed in advance of an engagement: the heavy main guns (ranging from a 120mm to upwards of 200mm) and massive frontal and turret armour allow these platforms to take, and dish out an incredible amount of punishment. The (general) lack of weapons stabilization is not an issue when the unit is emplaced, and the ability to place the weapons system in areas that are inaccessable to ground troops makes them very difficult to disable with conventional tactics - flanking these fortifications and waiting for their supplies to run out, or engagement with heavy indirect artillery being the two preferred methods for local units to deal with these fortifications when emplaced. Higher tech units generally employ light armour or anti-armour systems, since a direct hit from a field grade energy weapon will generally destroy one of these units, or massed fire from man-portable energy weapons can raise the internal tempareture enough to "cook off" the carried ammunition.
This is a chunk of hardware currently in my PBEM game here:
http://www.guildportal.com/Guild.aspx?GuildID=213934&TabID=1804610
And we're looking for new players as we ramp back up for fall - going on 2 years now starting from Far Trader's "30th Anniversary game"
I'll probably post the Shrike interceptor as well, another mixed tech hybrid which is a TL 12 design built with (mostly) TL-7 components.
________________________
One Shot (Enclave Mobile Fortification)
The name "One Shot" was coined by Republic troops engaging these platforms with helicopter gunships at the battle of Clement's pass. The fortifications had not been deployed before the gunships were in position to engage, so the Vargr were forced to engage the helicopters while in flight. Gunship crews learned quickly that the ungainly vehicles could at best get off a single aimed shot, at which point the recoil of their heavy guns sent them into uncontrolled flight.
Construction is fairly typical for low tech armour in contact with hich tech cultures - there is no point in building a "tank" that can be destroyes by an imported man-portable weapon, or that carries a main gun incapable of engaging battledress armoured troops. As a result, the armour is sufficient to take a direct hit from a man-portable fusion gun and carries a main weapon capable of penetrating the mainline battle armour of the local higher tech polities (in this case both the Imperium and the Zhodani Consulate). The invariable trade-off is mobility, since the mass of armour and weapons support equipment required is considerable.
In truth, this is not actually a homogenous "class" of armoured vehicle due to the construction methods (and radical differences in equipment) that are employed by the Vargr stronghold to construct them. There are four defining components in the construction of the "One Shot" platform:
Lift is provided by a commercial contragrav generator originally used for lifting cargo pallets
Armouring is extensive, sufficient to withstand man-portable energy weapons
The main armament is a turreted heavy calibre slug thrower
Thrust is provided by low tech methods, generally turbofans but propellers and plasma thrusters have bot been observed
While tempting to define this class of vehicle as a "Grav Tank", the tactical doctrine is for these platforms is telling: they are intended to land and act as mobile "pillboxes". This doctrine was re-enforced by the battle of Clement's pass, and underscored the fact that their lateral movement is controlled entirely by (generally unarmoured) thrust nacelles. In "flight" this means that a hit by light weapons will often result in a mission kill. This weakness in design is compounded by the general unmaneuverability of the platform - the weight of the vehicle is offset by the onboard contragrav modules, but the thrust agents must still act to counteract the mass of armour invariably mounted by these vehicles making them slow and sluggish in the best of circumstances, and "floating targets" in a combat environment.
The "One Shot" is a powerful weapons system when deployed in advance of an engagement: the heavy main guns (ranging from a 120mm to upwards of 200mm) and massive frontal and turret armour allow these platforms to take, and dish out an incredible amount of punishment. The (general) lack of weapons stabilization is not an issue when the unit is emplaced, and the ability to place the weapons system in areas that are inaccessable to ground troops makes them very difficult to disable with conventional tactics - flanking these fortifications and waiting for their supplies to run out, or engagement with heavy indirect artillery being the two preferred methods for local units to deal with these fortifications when emplaced. Higher tech units generally employ light armour or anti-armour systems, since a direct hit from a field grade energy weapon will generally destroy one of these units, or massed fire from man-portable energy weapons can raise the internal tempareture enough to "cook off" the carried ammunition.
