ROBOMECK MECKA
Space War II Era: Army
of the North Star Mecka
The
Earth Expeditionary Force did not leave earth undefended before their
departure, but the Army of the North Star (ANS) which succeeded the EMDF, was
far more vulnerable to politics and economics than their predecessors. In fact, the earth government had essentially
outsourced planetary defense to a mercenary army and simply officially called
them their defense department.
The
EEF would send back missives about faraway wars, eventually requesting
reinforcements along with the Orbital Factory.
As the years wore on, emigration to new worlds discovered along the
supply trail would further deplete earth’s reserves. The EEF would eventually become
self-sufficient in manpower and equipment.
By that point, the earth’s defenses were a shell of its former self.
Without
any sort of immediate threat, in spite of the seeming disappearance of the
Overlords from their homeworld, the forces of the North Star became subject to
budget battles. Their expensive
Proto-fueled based weapon systems and maintaining a fleet in orbit seemed
extravagant. Conventional weapon
systems, dual-purpose mecka, and old weapon systems endlessly refurbished
became their standard. Much of the fleet
was parked and mothballed on airbases, theoretically available for quick
redeployment (which they weren’t).
The
North Stars’ main investment was in early warning detection and outposts in the
Solar System. With enough warning,
leadership was confident they could quickly reassemble their forces and call
for help outside the System. This may have
been the only thing that saved them from being quickly annihilated when the
Overlords appeared and ransacked Lunar and satellite assets. With some small warning, the North Star was
on alert and was able to stalemate the Overlords’ initial military probe into
earth orbit.
The
Overlords would halt and reconsider their strategy, unsure, an indecisiveness
which would plague them for the rest of the war. Though the North Star lost virtually all of
their outer space holdings and was ill-prepared for war, they were prepared to
fight. As the Overlords hesitated, the
North Star seized the offensive and attacked with whatever was available to
keep the Overlords off-balance and buy time for their capital ships to come
back online. The Overlords’
irreplaceable resources dwindled, while the North Star forces got stronger
until it was nearly a fair fight between them, which led to a final
catastrophic battle for both.
Legionnaire AG Tank (Armored land
assault/defense)
The
AG Tank was developed by the EMDF for use against the Zee during their uprising
on earth after the war. The Army of the
North Star was a mercenary group, who took on a consignment squadron to aid in
the counterinsurgency effort. They
enjoyed great success when deployed against hidden Zee bases in such diverse
environments as the Arctic and the Amazon jungle.
A
squadron went with the EEF, but against the Hive, it lacked the ability to take
on swarms of disposable enemies and soon fell out of favor. Back on earth, the super-durable, heavily
armored, but still very quick in deployment, the Legionnaire quickly became a
mainstay. While very expensive to build,
they could be endlessly rebuilt. Lacking
an expensive missile capability, they could be fielded very cheaply. Lastly, they looked large and impressive in
action, which allowed military leadership to project an illusion of power.
All
the politics aside, the Legionnaire was tremendous in capabilities. It could take a pounding and deal massive damage
at long and short range. A squad of
veteran AG Tanks could hold virtually any ground position against Overlord or
Zee attacks and usually batter their way into any of their fortresses.
The
Legionnaire has three modes of operation.
Cruiser mode is a hovercraft mode with the Plasma Gun Pod deployed. Tank mode sits the craft on a pair of squat
legs to deploy the Main Plasma Cannon and the Secondary Cannon. Battler mode is a full humanoid robot form
using the Gun Pod.
Mecka HP: 25
Mecka Armor Class: Base 12 + Dex Bonus
+ ½ level
Speed: Cruiser F, Tank S,
Battler M run
Sensors: L Range Radar
Typical NPC Stats
Level: 1, +2 Int, Dex
MAC: 15 (Base 12, +2 Dex,
+1 ½ level)
To Hit: +3 (+1 level, +2
Dex)
Pilot Check: +2 (+1 ½ level, +1
(+2 Dex, 0 Wis)/2)
Unarmed M1d2+3
Shimmer Blade M1d4+3, only usable in
Battler mode. (Note: This is not
canonical. It is just to give the mecka
some needed HTH capability.)
Plasma Gun Pod M1d8, S, 10 shots
(Cruiser and Battler modes. The Gun Pod
is recharged in 1 turn when it is holstered.
It can be quick charged at a rate of 1 shot/1rd.)
Main Plasma Cannon M2d10, L (cannot fire
at C Range), Tank mode, can be used in Battler mode, but it can’t be aimed
accurately in this mode, S range only, no attack bonus
Secondary Cannon M3d6, S, 10 bursts,
Tank mode, can be used in Battler mode, but it can’t be aimed accurately in
this mode, S range only, no attack bonus
Invader (Air/Space fighter)
This
was the main TMASC (Tactical Mecka Aerospace Corps, of course) mecka fighter at
the start of the war. Its design was a
severe compromise to make it an adequate air and space mecka fighter on a budget. The Delta/Omega fighters, with their large
missile magazines, were deemed too expensive to maintain without an actual war
going on. As the Deltas became old and
needed replacement, a new, cheaper fighter was mandated. No one was happy with the Invader, except for
government accountants, who loved the craft’s durability and inexpensive to
field weapons systems. (The ANS would
later regret sending the last of their Deltas and the Orbital Factory to the
EEF in response to their request for reinforcements. Restarting production wasn’t even an option
after that point.)
The
Invader has two modes. In flight mode,
it looks like fighter craft, a really ugly one.
In Battler mode, it’s uglier with the arms and legs deployed.
Notes:
Okay, I’m going to have to insert some meta-commentary here. This mecka wasn’t even named in the
series. The name it was given elsewhere
never made any sense, but that’s okay, neither did the mecka. Its gun pod isn’t usable in flight mode, but
the nose guns are available in both.
Without a full humanoid-ish battler-mode, even hand-to-hand combat is
questionable. The official game version reluctantly
added a few missiles to keep it from being completely gimped in combat, though
putting missiles on the wing hardpoints inhibited transforming, which I’m
ignoring. The missiles in my version are
stored internally. They can’t be used in
Battler mode, but the craft can still transform with them.
Mecka HP: 20
Mecka Armor Class: Base 11 + Dex Bonus
+ ½ level
Speed: Fighter M, Battler S
run
Sensors: M Range Radar
Typical NPC Stats
Level: 1, +2 Int, Dex
MAC: 14 (Base 11, +2 Dex,
+1 ½ level)
To Hit: +3 (+1 level, +2
Dex)
Pilot Check: +2 (+1 ½ level, +1
(+2 Dex, 0 Wis)/2)
Unarmed M1d2+2
Shimmer Blade M1d4+2, only usable in
Battler mode. (This is not
canonical. It is just to give the mecka
some needed HTH capability.)
Plasma Pistol Pod M1d6, S, 10 shots, can
only be used in Battler mode, it can be recharged in 1 turn when it is
holstered. It can be quick charged at a
rate of 1 shot/1rd.
Tri-Laser Nose Cannon M3d4, S, can be used
in either mode
8 Medium Missiles M1d10 (+2/missile
volley), M, can only be used in Fighter mode
Variant: Eagle Eye Radar Intercept Version
Has
a VL range radar dish on top and a second seat for a RIO (Radar Intercept
Officer). Cannot change out of fighter
mode unless the dish is jettisoned. A
squadron may be deployed with an Eagle Eye to provide radar support in the
field away from a ship or base. Later in
the war, when the fight was mostly in space, the Invader was mostly used in the
role.
Hornet (Space fighter)
As
control of the high ground became paramount later in the war, the Hornets
became the primary ANS space fighter.
There were prototypes in use at the beginning of the war. The Invader had proven so inept in space
combat that the generals in charge demanded a true space fighter. The Hornet was designed, but only single test
squadron was in operation in orbit.
Further production orders were on delay, pending funding.
It
was good for the program and earth that the Overlords ran into that squadron in
their initial incursion into earthspace.
The Hornets performed well enough to hold the line. Mass production began soon thereafter. The Invader would continue as the North
Star’s atmospheric mecka fighter, until the fight could be taken on in large
scale in space, where the Hornets could shine.
The
Hornet has two modes of operation. In
flight mode, it looks like a prop-less helicopter. In Battler mode, it is in full humanoid robot
form.
Notes:
Admittedly, the concept of a space helicopter is kind of dumb, but it is
actually one of the best-looking mecka designs of the series. In the show, they were used solely in
space. I remember the official game version
actually had a prop on top of it for atmospheric travel. I’m not sure if that was part of the original
animation design or not, but I’m ignoring it.
Mecka HP: 20
Mecka Armor Class: Base 11 + Dex Bonus
+ ½ level
Speed: Fighter F space
flight, Battler M run
Sensors: M Range Radar
Typical NPC Stats
Level: 1, +2 Int, Dex
MAC: 14 (Base 11, +2 Dex,
+1 ½ level)
To Hit: +3 (+1 level, +2
Dex)
Pilot Check: +2 (+1 ½ level, +1
(+2 Dex, 0 Wis)/2)
Unarmed M1d2+2
Shimmer Blade M1d4+2, only usable in
Battler mode. (This is not
canonical. It is just to give the mecka
some needed HTH capability.)
Pulse Laser (built into right
arm/wing) M1d8, S
16 Medium Missiles M1d10 (+2/missile
volley), M
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