Kríertor Conglomerate [MT/PMT]

by **The Macabees** » Thu Aug 17, 2017 9:34 pm

For a century, the republics and monarchies of the Kríerstat Epok fought and squabbled between each other, until, finally, the Kingdom of Macabea emerged as the absolute victor. Her armies were supplied with tanks, aircraft, rifles, and a torment of other weapons, produced by an impressive array of companies looking to profit from the wars. If one traces their ownership all the way to the top, they would find one name: Kriegzimmer.

As the Empire of the Golden Throne entered into its second iteration, Kriegzimmer found a growing domestic customer, along with a rapidly expanding list of international clientele. By the ascension of His Imperial Majesty Fedor I to the imperial throne, hundreds of nations had been furnished with some of the finest military equipment the world could offer at the time. She became a global household name, and so did perhaps the most famous — or infamous — of her products, the Nakíl.
Within a decade, Kriegzimmer was manufacturing the tank in dozens of different countries and exported over twenty million models worldwide. The Nakíl has claim to be one of the most widely exported tanks in history.

All good things must come to an end. Months into Fedor's regime the empire broke into a brutal war of secession that soon transitioned into a regional, and then global, war. It ended well for Fedor, but his displease with Kriegzimmer's prolific export policy soon gave him cause to intervene into its fortunes.

Soon after the war, Kriegzimmer was ordered to close. Her subsidiaries became independent companies. But with a soon-to-come financial depression — one that would push the empire to the brink of bankruptcy —, the severe postwar demobilization, and growing skepticism of military exports, these companies' revenue streams dried up and so did the Macabean name.

It has come time for a revival.

Kríertor cannot claim the fame and power of Kriegzimmer, but we don't want it. We come to do what Kriegzimmer should have done: provide a common forum and marketplace for all Macabéan military industry.

Export Restrictions: By default, none. Exceptions are unique to the product and will be stated on the product brochures.

Critique: All products have gone through a peer review. Still, nothing is ever perfect (especially what I designed early on vs. what I designed later in my 'NS tech career') and some things are PMT. Please communicate critiques and advice privately, via telegram.

Images: I am working on making all the images 'Dark Theme' friendly.

Official partner.

Payment is expected upon order confirmation, in full. We accept only domestic currency and Universal Standard Dollars.

Credit: If you cannot fulfill payment in cash, we offer a secure credit line through our partner Díenbank. A domestic clearinghouse union and important international investment bank, Díenbank offers low interest rates for wholesale credit lending, with 1-, 10-, and 30-year loans.

Collateral is preferred in the form of government bonds, which garners a 1, 1.5, or 2 percent haircut on interest, depending on the weighted credit rating of the collateral.

Corporate bonds must be A-rated or higher, in accordance with Díenbank's internal rating system.

Simplified rating qualifications:

AAA: Extremely high stability-rating. Highly information-insensitive (liquid). 1- (4.1%), 10- (3.2%), 30-year (1.5%) loans available.
A: High stability-rating. Highly information-insensitive (liquid). 1- (5.2%), 10- (4%), 30-year (2.1%) loans available.
B: Short-term stability-rating. Short-term liquidity predicted. 1- (7.4%) and 10- (5.3%) loans available.
C: Unstable, but presently capable of meeting short-term liabilities. 1- year loans available (11.3%).*

* These prices will be influenced by the aggregate volume of collateral, determined via a near-future Díenbank storefront.

Armor:

Other Armored Fighting Vehicles:

Artillery Systems:

León Self-Propelled Howitzer

Other Vehicles:

Tiznao-60 Armored Truck

Infantry Weapons:

Hali-53 Assault Rifle

Components:

Capital Warships:

Dienstad class Strategic Projection Vessel

Escorts:

CLN-68 Morsky-Orol Class Light Cruiser

Brown Water:

Vic de Chassenay class Gun Boat

Logistics & Other:'

Catamaran Landing Craft (CLC)

Submarines:

Diesel Attack Submarine Type A

Missiles:

Fighters:

Lu-45 Hawk Air Superiority Fighter/Air Attack
GLI-76 Falcon
GLI-23 Attack Aircraft

Bombers:

GLI-34 Albatross
GLI-113 Ank'ríat Super Heavy Bomber

Support:

GLI-44 Blackjester IRBC

Transports:

Helicopters:

RoLu-17 Galicia Attack Helicopter
RoLu-21.A Boneharvester Attack Helicopter

UAVs:

GF11 Archer Tactical UAV
GF15 Valkyrie Anti-Armour UCAV

Missiles & Munitions:

RGW.76 'Moonlit' Ground Based Interceptor
AAM Series Air to Air Missiles
LN.17 Advanced Long Range Cruise Missile

by **The Macabees** » Thu Aug 17, 2017 9:43 pm

reserved for a future post detailing my policy on use of this equipment in RPs and how to deal with situations where tech becomes a major OOC obstacle in your RP

by **The Macabees** » Thu Aug 17, 2017 9:46 pm

[Image Credits: The turret was drawn my Mekugi and the hull resized to make it fit right.]

Brief History & Overview
Between the first month of export, February 2017 [N.B.: All dates are in accordance to the Imperial calendar], and the first showcasing of the new upgrade over four million [over 4.7 million to be exact!] Nakíl 1A1s had been cleared for export. By the time production of the 1A1GU and the 1A1+ was cleared several hundred thousand Nakíl 1A1 were still being produced for already placed orders. In fact, production of the Nakíl 1A1 would not truly end until May 2022, even though production of her upgrades had begun just under a year earlier. Between the Nakíl 1A1 and the Nakíl 1A2 the Nakíl tank had easily earned its rank as the most widely exported tank in history with over six and a half million models ordered between sixty-two nations. Furthermore, around four hundred thousand models of both types [11,000 Nakíl 1A1s were produced for the Empire between September 2016 and February 2017] had been produced for the Empire of the Golden Throne. The wide proliferation of the Nakíl 1A1 became her bane, however. Sales quickly dropped due to the fact that purchasing the tank became redundant with even your foes were likely to use it. Consequently, Kriegzimmer contracted several of the defense companies which had worked on the Nakíl 1A2 [the Nakíl 1A1 had been a sole Kriegzimmer venture, as at the time Kriegzimmer was still the sole armaments manufacturer of the Empire] to concoct two separate upgrades for the Nakíl 1A1.

These were the Nakíl 1A1GU and the Nakíl 1A1+. The Nakíl 1A1GU is a general upgrade [GU], open to all nations, while the Nakíl 1A1+ is designed to be available to only selected nations. Although the two signs are almost the same the 1A1+ incorporates a lot more technologies from the 1A2 development, making it a closer rival to the tank which was only eventually sold to eight nations [technically only seven, but Hailandkill acquired 300,000 models of the Nakíl 1A2MC from Mekugi].

Development of the two separate upgrades began simultaneously, July 2018. At the time it was not a priority and so progress remained relatively slow paced. Nevertheless, as early as December 2019 four prototypes of the Nakíl 1A1GU had been introduced to Kriegzimmer for trials. The prototypes were found adequate, but further development was required to fix any teething problems. Despite this early introduction and clearance it was not until January 2021 that both the 1A1GU and the 1A1+ were unveiled to the public in a military exposition. By February 2021 they had begun production.

Both the Nakíl 1A1+ and Nakíl 1A1GU are appliqué [add-on] upgrades to the existing 1A1 chassis and turret. Of course, a manufactured upgrade will have superior protection to an upgraded turret due to the fact that during manufacture the armor can be integrated - there is no difference in the quality of engineering. Nevertheless, the cost difference between an upgraded tank and a newly manufactured tank is clear and dramatic [the cost is visible in the statblock]. The upgrades are not revolutionary - they are meant to increase effectiveness per cost. Furthermore, they are designed as general incentives for the possibility of more specific upgrades per any given country's wishes at a later date.

Lethality
There have been several upgrades in terms of firepower. Both the 1A1+ and the 1A1GU versions have disposed of the original AGS 175 and replaced it with the newer AGS 250.A and AGS 250.B, a variation of the AGS 225 introduced with the Nakíl tank. The new gun weighs roughly 300kgs less than the AGS 175; the AGS 250.B weighs 2,872kgs - it is the lightest 120mm gun in existence and currently being produced. The AGS 250.B is an export version of the AGS 225 and retains the exact same characteristics. It has a slightly smaller lifespan, as compared to the AGS 225, of roughly 750 rounds. The AGS 250.B is similar to both the GS 225 and the 250.A, but is much lighter. The AGS 250.B is largely an experimental design, but between 2019 and 2020 it has been refined and perfected. Unlike the AGS 225 and AGS 250.A, the AGS 250.B includes laser ignition of the liquid propellant like the AGS 175. This laser ignition causes the ignition of four helium cartridges arrayed around the combustion chamber. The explosive causes the implosion of the helium cartridge turning it into a plasma. From there the plasma pumps itself out at high velocities into the combustion chamber where it can regulate the expansion of the liquid propellant. The AGS 250.B is mechanically simpler and more convenient, and offers the same ballistic advantages [with the multi-cartridge system].

The original XG.784 APFSDS introduced with the Nakíl 1A1 has been redesigned to be used only in a liquid propellant round - it has been renamed the XG.784.A. Furthermore, the penetrator itself has been redesigned to increase penetration. In fact, the upgrades to the XG.784 are based entirely on the XG.457 round introduced for the Nakíl 1A2 [OOC: and still not cleared for export - it never will be]. This includes a depleted uranium core jacketed by an amorphous metal matrix jacket. The rocket assist is kept as in the original XG.784 and then in the XG.457.

The Nakíl 1A1GU retains the same co-axial weapon, rechambered to fire the new Orchomenos 6.64mm round which is ballistically superior to the Orchomenos .221 used previously. The 1A1+, however, has exchanged the small caliber co-axial weapon and replaced it with a cased telescoping ammunition [CTA] 20mm auto-cannon named the AGS 23. The AGS 23 uses a dual feed system and fires APFSDS, high explosive and AHEAD ammunition. The AGS 23 can be elevated up to 40 degrees and depressed up to 8 degrees. It is almost fully encased in the increased mantle armor of the 1A1+ upgrade package. In both versions of the tank the tank commander has been given an Imperial designed 12.7mm machine gun which can be remotely controlled while buttoned up, like on all versions of the Nakíl main battle tank. This gun can be interchanged for another gun of the same caliber or anything between the caliber ranges of 7.62mm and 15mm. A larger caliber requires a different turret mount ring for the commander's weapon station [CWS].

In addition to the secondary armament of the Nakíl tank the original automatic grenade launcher has been replaced with a 60mm mortar, like the Nakíl 1A2. The turret holds 30 mortar rounds which include high explosive/fragmentary and illuminating bombs.

The tank commander has been given a commander's independent thermal viewer [CITV], like on the Nakíl 1A2, and both the gunner and the tank commander have been given the same controls as those used on the Nakíl 1A2. Although the CITV has been included in both versions, the new controls are only offered in the 1A1+ upgrade package.

Protection
The 1A1GU upgrade package looks exactly the same as the 1A1+ on the outside. The new turret offers much thicker armor, which is completely appliqué. The appliqué armor consists of a steel initiator covering the original heavy explosive reactive armor of the Nakíl 1A1. The HERA has been upgraded, although it is not Asteriox ERA. The separate plates inside the original ERA remain the same, composed of steel, however, the backplate has been made thicker and is composed of a titanium alloy. Despite the increased thickness it is still a bit lighter than the original backplate and provides far more protection in terms of mass efficiency. Behind the ERA, which is no longer integrated, is the new appliqué armor. This is composed of three spaced perforated titanium plates. The total thickness of this new appliqué varies, but the turret front has increased by roughly 70mm and the turret sides by around 50mm. The 1A1+ upgrade uses Asteriox ERA, instead of the upgraded original heavy ERA used by the 1A1GU.

Although the 1A1GU uses the original CAM armor package, the 1A1+ has been upgraded with CAM II. CAM II replaces the rear steel encasement with titanium due to superior mass efficiency. The front plate, however, is not replaced because IRHA retains a slight superiority in thickness superiority as compared to the titanium current in use (only a very slight difference). However, weight savings are largely negated by the fact that the titanium di-boride has been replaced by titanium carbide which has been found to be largely superior to common ceramics currently in use in armor around the world, although it has almost twice the density as steel. The ceramics have been further strengthened by means of embedding them in an elastomeric matrix attached to composite fibers and a metal base. In testing this has proven to allow the ceramics to better resist shattering on impact, thus giving them a better chance to defend against multiple shots. The depleted uranium rods used to reinforce the armor and give additional protection versus kinetic energy threats was replaced with depleted uranium rods jacketed in thin layers of titanium – the end result being an increase in theoretical protection. Armor Solutions International began testing with IF nanospheres in early 2010, but they were only applied to armor after the release of the Nakíl 1A1. The Nakíl 1A2 represented the first usage of IF nanospheres in any tank’s ‘special armor’ and now it has made an export appearance in the Nakíl 1A1+. During testing IF nanospheres “[withstood] severe shocks generated by firing shots at it with impact velocities of up to 1.5km per second.” This material has been rated at five times the strength of steel and at least twice as impact-resistant, and it has reinforced much of the steel in use with the Nakíl 1A2 and Nakíl 1A1+ for experimental purposes. It is very likely that future versions of the tank will see a greater use of the material.

The rear area of the turret, as well as the roof, and additionally the sides and rear of the chassis have seen a much greater use of composite armor to increase protection against chemical energy threats. Unfortunately, this also increases the cost of the upgrade package. Both packages offer an appliqué armor increase to the rear of the chassis composed of thin plates of perforated and spaced steel. The spaces are filled with S-2 glass bonded to a Phenolic resin. The results in armor increase have been phenomenal, against both kinetic energy impacts and chemical energy impacts. The new bolt-on side-skirts of both 1A1 upgrade packages also offer this protection in the physical form of bolt-on appliqué boxes. The forward five boxes of the Nakíl 1A1+ upgrade are heavy explosive reactive armor to offer higher protection levels during maneuvers.

The lower front area of the turret and the side-corners are further protected by 'bag armor', which is simply an appliqué wedge. This is reportedly 25mm thick at 80 degrees incline and has increased protection against chemical energy threats by about 300mm and against kinetic energy threats by around 150mm. The appliqué is composed of perforated titanium embedded with steel nuggets. The armor increase has added two and a half tonnes of weight to the 1A1GU upgrade package and two tonnes of weight to the 1A1+ package.

The 1A1+ upgrade also has two spaced titanium plates on the belly for protection against mines, and includes the same mine protected chairs for the crews which were introduced with the Nakíl 1A2.

The 1A1+ includes the GIOD Mk. II active protection system first introduced with the Nakíl 1A2. The Giod Mk. I provided with 360 degree protection versus chemical energy threats with a superior chance of interception than must existing active protection systems. The Mk. II takes his to the next level by introducing a new layer oriented defense system. The original turret mounted grenade launchers were replaced by two large packs of three grenades each on the side of the turret, offering 360 degree protection. These ‘packs’ can move rapidly to meet the threat and offer a higher rate of interception than the previous design. Furthermore, the turret’s profile offers a glimpse at the next level of defense – a small missile launcher designed to engage the threat at longer ranges than the grenade launchers. The third level, or element, remains the same as on the original tank – light explosive reactive armor along the turret’s roof. One of the best things about the Giod Mk. II is the relatively low cost of around $560,000 per system on the first production models and then a quick-paced decline as more are produced.

Mobility
The 1A1GU retains the original gas turbine engine, however, it packages it with a new lithium-ion auxiliary power unit. In newly produced vehicles this is an under armor APU, otherwise it's not. The 1A1+ offers the use of the new GRS-100 gas turbine, introduced with the Nakíl 1A2. It offers 1,700hp, as opposed to 1,690, and is paired to the new transmission which offers ~80% of the power to the sprocket. This new turbine features a volume reduction of 15%, for superior horsepower output, a reduced parts count of 43% and improved reliability by at least 400%. With the same fuel capacity as on the 1A1 this new engine can allow a further 140 kilometers of travel distance. Heat output has also been reduced by a superior cooling system. The best of all is that this engine is not more expensive than the prior engine and includes all of the advantages and computerization of the prior gas turbine! The gas turbine remains much more quiet, while the gas expenditure disadvantage is almost no longer existent.

Both upgrade packages exchange the polymer pieces of the hydrogas suspension of the Nakíl 1A1 with all steel parts. This improves the ride as well as the maintenance record of the tank. Furthermore, the 1A1+ offers the same road wheels as the 1A2 which are much lighter and much more durable.

Incorporated Stealth Features
The appliqué additions to the turret make the turret shape much smoother and give it a far better stealth characteristics. These characteristics can be enhanced through the use of camouflage patterns which are intended to protect against radar guided munitions. Furthermore, the turret shape helps protect against long-range target acquisition by various targeting sensors and applications used by any given foreign tank design. The thicker bolt-on side-skirt also decreases the infra-red signature of the tank, as does the cooling system for the GRS-100 turbine on the Nakíl 1A1+. Stealth allows to further enhance the fightability of the Nakíl tank as it protects against target acquisition by both enemy armored vehicles and munitions fired by said armored vehicles.

Stablock
[Note: All information pertaining only to the 1A1+ upgrade is in blue.]

Statblock:
Manufacturer: Imperial Land-Systems/Kriegzimmer
Crew: 3
Weight: 66,845.2kg/66,230.75kg
Power to Weight Ratio: 25.3 hp/t/25.7
Length: 7.97m
Length of Gun: 6.96m
Width: 3.8m
Height: 2.6m
Ground Clearance: .4m
Engine: 1690hp Gas Turbine/1700 hp Gas Turbine
Maximum Velocity: 74km/h
Range: 500/640km
Range With External Tanks: 1,130km
Trench: 5.6m
Step: 5.6m
Vertical Obstacle: 1.4m
Ford Unprepared: 1.8m
Ford Prepared: 6m
Climbing Gradient: 40x
Fire and Control Computer: Cornerstone
Armament:
120mm Light Weight High Breech Pressure Liquid Propellant ETC
1x 6.64mm Co-Axial/CTA 20mm autocannon
1x 12.7mm HMG
1x 60mm mortar
Ammunition:
48 Rounds in turret
1,200 Rounds
700 Rounds
30 Rounds
Main Gun Depression: -10/+38 degrees
Suspension: Active Hydropneumatic Suspension System of all steel parts
Sensors & Range:
4th Generation FLIR @ 13km targeting range; 8km classification range
3rd Generation LADAR @ ~10km classification range
3rd Generation CITV
Mast Millimeter Wave [MMW] RADAR @ 11km classification range
Night Vision: Integrated with sensors.
NBC Protection: Air-tight chassis and turret, air filtration and overpressure air conditioning system, masks and uniforms.

Cost for Upgrade: $1.7 million / $2.1 million
Cost for New Production: $7 million / $7.5million

by **The Macabees** » Thu Aug 17, 2017 9:49 pm

Development history
The BSI-122 is born from an operation requirement specified by the Tercio Blindado de la Armada (TEAR), now forming part of the 1º Legión Naval. Given that the BSI-37 will be introduced into service with TEAR, replacing obsolete MAD.II medium tanks, TEAR requested a complimentary fire support platform. Sistemas Terrestres Segovia’s (STS) solution is the BSI-122, sporting a 122mm high velocity tank gun in a narrow mantlet, low profile, gun turret. TEAR’s request for a new amphibious infantry combat vehicle was put through in the mid-90s when the modernization program of the armed forces finally allotted money to the armada. Ultimately, TEAR’s amphibious vehicle project was grouped with a Tyrani request for an airmobile infantry combat vehicle. From that merging the BSI-37 was born. Unfortunately, the weight restrictions of the BSI-37 put a severe handicap on the possible armor protection levels of any vehicle. STS managed to increase armored weight through the reduction of dismount volume – the BSI-37 can only carry five dismounts – and through the use of add-on armor panels which can be employed in the field. Although these add-on panels work on BSI-122 and BSI-37 alike, the BSI-122 has different armor requirements.

TEAR requested a light armored fighting vehicle with a large caliber tank gun with the ability to defeat enemy tanks, and with enough protection to guarantee a minimal protection difference between them and the enemy. However, the BSI-122 still has the requirement of being airborne friendly due to its partnership with the BSI-37 on the export market. Consequently, STS created a separate development group for the BSI-122 which specialized on the turret and vehicle add-on plates for increased armor protection, while the first group focused on the BSI-37. The BSI-122 uses the same chassis, thus the classification as ‘BSI’ (which refers to the family of vehicles). The armor development was ultimately subcontracted to Blindés – the same developer for the Lince’s armor package.

TEAR has ordered eighty BSI-122 fire support vehicles (FSV). These will be organized in platoons of four vehicles, and each bandera has two platoons worth of light armor. The tank platoons are designed to work cooperatively with unit sizes down to fire teams. The BSI-122 is expected to be a formidable line-of-sight artillery piece during amphibious landings, as well as have the ability to defeat a tank (although it’s not expected that the BSI-122 will be on par with any main battle tank). The kingdom’s airborne brigade has put in a purchase for a tank platoon per orden, amounting to a total of four hundred and eighty light tanks. Unlike with the BSI-37, all companies will have an active light tank service which means that if required tank squads from non-operational orders can be attached to operational orders to increase firepower.

The BSI-122 was originally considered by the mechanized infantry brigades of the army, but they have decided to wait for the Tigre armored gun system. Nonetheless, the BSI-122 makes a superior system for armies which use tactical transports with lower carrying capacity – around the twenty ton limit.

Design
The turret is designed to be a narrow mantlet turret, and there is no ammunition stored above the turret ring. The ammunition stowage has replaced the dismount compartment, and there are eleven 122mm rounds stored in the vehicle which can be autoloaded. Another twenty rounds are stowed farthest to the rear and can’t be accessed by the robotic loading arm (RLA). The gun is a high-velocity powder gun which incorporates electrothermal-chemical technology. Consequently, the turret is wedded to a lightly protected (against machine gun fire) bustle which can’t be accessed from the inside – the bustle holds the required battery and capacitor system which adds around 230kg of mass to the vehicle. The gun itself is low-recoil, although high weight, and is relatively compact. The extended recoil length has been increased to 650mm and the gun features a single chamber muzzle break with about 65% efficiency. Gun depression, which isn’t a priority for the design, is done through an independently moving mantlet and armored breech which literally sticks above the turret roof when depressed. The gun can elevate up to 57º, which is enough to engage high building structures and engage low-flying aircraft.

The turret, with gun and gun mount, weighs 6,300 kilograms without add-on armor and is constructed from high-carbon armored steel and titanium which guarantees protection versus 15mm armor piercing ammunition along the frontal arc. In shape, the turret is a long rectangle, although it abruptly ends about a meter from the end of the gun breech (in order to install the fire control system and the ballistic computers). All sights are retractable to ease air transportability.

Phase II and Phase III armors are field applicable. Phase II is a high strength ceramic/titanium module, similar to the armor applied to the Tiznao-60. However, it doesn’t use boron carbide as the principle armor and instead uses alumina ceramics. This armor, arrayed on the front, protects against 60mm APFSDS and is designed to be fitted on the turret front, front side turret and glacis plate. The rest of the chassis applies the same Phase II armor as the BSI-37. Phase III armor is the application of heavy explosive reactive armor which can defeat many 120mm APFSDS, although it’s rated at only 400mm worth of RHAe against APFSDS and 680mm against ERA (therefore, the ability to stop the APFSDS is dependent on the ability to break the long-rod penetrator). It’s rumored that this ERA is similar to the ERA which will be used on the Lince. These field add-on modules are much heavier than those of the BSI-37. The Phase I add-on armor for the frontal arc weighs roughly 1,700kg, while with the BSI-37 Phase II armor applied to the sides the weight increase is around 2,300kg. The Phase III armor adds another 1,500kg of weigh. Therefore, BSI-122 fully armored weighs 25,300kg – or 25 metric tons! A Phase II improved (Phase IIi) will be introduced in the near future, after the beginning of production for the Lince, which will enhance protection level without terribly increasing weight. This armor will be shared by the Tigre, Puma and BSI-122, amongst others.

The BSI-122’s gunner/commander also has access to a remotely operated weapon station (RWS) fielding the S4 13.3mm heavy machine gun. This gun performs anti-personnel work, can engage low flying aircraft and is useful for defeating soft-skinned vehicles. In an aluminum stowage box held on the opposite side of the ejection port there are six hundred rounds, and a further three thousand rounds are stored in three separate aluminum sponsons attached to the turret side. The vehicle makes use of eight 76mm grenade launchers to lay tactical smoke screens, and can also produce smoke through the engine grill to provide larger smoke screens for moving infantry. However, the forward position of the engine makes this action awkward.

Specifications
Manufacturer: Sistemas Terrestres Segovia
Dimensions: 2.95m (width) x 5.9m (length) x 1.8m (height to top of chassis/top of turret is 2.24m)
Weight: 21,500kg
Weight of Turret: 6,300kg
Weight of Transmission: 950kg
Weight of Tracks: est. 870kg
Dismount Capabilities: 0
Motor: MC serie 700 1.4MW gas turbine
Motor Volume: 1.26m3
Water Propulsion: 2x high-speed high-volume capability waterjets
Velocity (amphibious): 15 knots
Velocity (on-road): 78km/h
Velocity (off-road): 60km/h
Transmission: IMR-8020-10 automatic transmission
Suspension: Active hydropneumatic
Armament:
- 122mm L/50 low-recoil compact tank gun
- 13.3mm heavy machine gun remote weapon station
- x8 76mm grenade launchers
122mm Ammunition (ETI; electrothermal ignition):
- BM.122AP: Armor piercing fin stabilized discarding sabot.
- BM.122HE: High explosive.
- BM.122APER: Anti-Personnel
- BM.122DR: Demolition Round
- BM.122HEAT: High-explosive anti-tank
Ammunition Stowage:
- 11 120mm ready-rounds; 20 stowed rounds
- 3,600 13.3mm rounds stowed in four storage-bins.
Main Armament Angle of Fire: -5º, +57º
Rate of Fire: 10 rounds per minute
Armor:
Phase I:
- Frontal arc: 13mm IRHA/titanium @ 60º vs. 15mm API
- All-around: 15mm IRHA vs. 8mm API
Phase II:
- Frontal arc: 50mm ceramic/titanium armor @ 60º vs. 60mm APFSDS @1,000m
- All-around: Protection vs. 15mm API.
- Weight of package: 2,300kg
Phase III:
- Frontal arc: Heavy explosive reactive armor rated at 400mm versus APFSDS and 630mm versus shaped charges.
- Side chassis: Non-energetic lightweight reactive armor (NERA) adding roughly 150mm versus shaped charges.
- Weight of package: 1,500kg
Self-Protection System: Matador soft-kill/hard-kill active protection system using millimeter wave radar and eight 76mm grenade launchers. 360º protection.
NBC Defense: Air conditioning system, in conjunction with two air filters. Chassis and turret are sealed and electric hatches are lined with rubber.
Sensor Equipment:
- Retractable commander’s independent thermal viewer
- Retractable main sight
- 4 driving cameras
- Driver’s periscope

Cost: $8.2 million

by **The Macabees** » Thu Aug 17, 2017 9:56 pm

A Joint Mekugian-Macabee Design

Variants [SEoTG Terminology]:
Ausva. A: Shalmaneser
Ausva. B: APV-30 Jaguar

Mekugi, once again!

Abstract
The project found its beginnings in 2013, three years prior to the War of Golden Succession, in the form of minor dabblings into the realm of armoured personnel carriers and such by a team of Kriegzimmer engineers and Mekugian mechanics. Through then and 2015, the 'project' designed and introduced a series of theoritical possibilities for a replacement to the SOV-6 Infantry Fighting Vehicle that had been outclassed since its introduction, since the original intent of the vehicle was as a heavy siege vehicle for national special weapons and tactics forces. However, no design was truly capable enough to be considered a practical replacement, and no design that could be considered a replacement was within the restrictions of Mekugian design aesthetics, meaning by the end of 2015 the two nations had still failed to progress further in the design of a new armoured personnel carrier. Fortunately, in early 2016 all viable solutions were merged into a single design, and after undergoing three months of intense 'runs through the gauntlet', and a final two months of pure testing, ending in another month of final theoritics, the first proper prototype of the end product rolled off the line on 23 September, 2016, and the consequent Shalmaneser began mass production on 1 October.

The name Shalmaneser stems from the namesake of the Assyrian king Shalmaneser II. Heir to a kingdom plagued by a rebellion led by Shattuara II of Hanigalbat, he hammered the Mitanni rebellion, and their Hittite allies, and then claimed to blind fourteen thousand men. In his lifetime and according to the tablets, he laid waste to nine fortresses and one hundred eighty cities. Like its namesake king, the Shalmanesar Armoured Personnel Carrier provides a well formed fist on the battlefield.

The design offers a blend between the infantry fighting vehicle and the armoured personnel vehicle, keeping the latter's high personnel carrying capacities, and offering the former's firepower - to a certain extent. The Shalmaneser was never designed to stand up to heavier armoured designs, but it could most certainly hold its own against an enemy armoured personnel carrier or even an infantry fighting vehicle, providing the infantry within it a safe ferry to the battlefield, and allowing for simpler mechanization, especially in the form of logistics. The justification for the latter being, the Ejermacht, or foreign equivalents, does not need to field two or more designs for different roles when it can field the Shalmaneser, regardless of its lesser qualities in specific areas. Nonetheless, this does not mean the Ejermacht was looked into different variants. Nonetheless, users of the design have returned with very positive feedback to Kriegzimmer.

The Shalmanesar saw its first combat in the War of Golden Succession in October 2016 against Havenite [SafeHaven2] forces in northern Haven and southern Ruska. It made its debut in combat in the Battle of Ishme-Dagan, one of the largest tank battles in history, with over fifteen thousand armoured vehicles participating in the slaughter, both Mekugian and Macabee. The Shalmanesar failed to preform well, simply due to the high cocentration of heavier armour, and did even worse in situations in which the battle was 'layered', and confused. Nonetheless, in infantry only portions of the battle it did splendidly, marking its success in the situations it was originally built for. In the end, it's suspected that the Arica I will mirror the lifespan of what it's replacing, the SOV-6, and perhaps extend to even more than that.

Armament
Both the Macabee and Mekugian version of the vehicle equip a 35mm chaingun as the primary armament, feeding off four modular ammunition bins within and under the turret. The gun features a dilutable coolant, first introduced by Shell for manufacturing purposes, which enables the chaingun an outstanding rate of eight hundred rounds per minute, although there are little viable reasons why the gunner would reach such a rate. Nevertheless, if the gun's ammunition is swapped for minor depleted uranium sabots [albeit, with a smaller storage number], it is said that it can penetrate the top armour of light and medium tanks if enough rounds are expended accurately on the side, rear or top armour. This failed to be proven at Ishme-Dagan, but there was not a very large contingent of armour that fitted the requires of being medium or light, which may attribute to the fact. Regardless, the Arica I is certainly not undergunned in any way, shape, or form.

Sometimes, the Mekugian field version can be seen with a larger turret and a 40mm ACP cannon. The export and Ausfva. A versions, however, remain with the 35mm chaingun as their primary armament.

Secondary armament manifests itself in the form of two machineguns mounts, crewed by the personnel of a squad riding in the back, fitted into two advance firing ports. The Advanced Firing Ports (AFP’s) are built into the armored hide of the Shalmanesar. The traverse and elevation are somewhat limited, but only just slightly allowing for a wide defensive fire arc to be laid down for debussing and in transit units. The AFP’s true ‘advanced’ feature is the addition of a spent round collector, which unlike the brass bags used by other countries spent rounds are collect and transferred out of the port to a exit point below the vehicle allowing for uninterrupted fining without covering the floor (and surrounding infantry) with hot brass. An integral ventilation system draws away any additional gasses from the gun preventing a ‘smoke-up’ of the fighting compartment, and keeping the weapon cooler without adding a complex system, or forcing changes to be made to the gun itself.

The gun ports can be opened to narrow or large size to accommodate different gun sizes, so that fragmentation cannot enter the cabin via the gun ports. The rotating gun port doors are lockable to prevent opening or enlarging the aperture from outside. The gun is aligned using a small clip which holds it in a pintle mount, offering very good handle on the design. Vertical stabilization and recoil attenuation as can be found on many vehicle mounted weapons allow for comfortable and accurate firing while on the move, yet allows for the weapon to be quickly removed for field use without comprising the systems capabilities in or out of the vehicle.

Additional secondary armaments include the VAPS system on the non-export version meant exclusively for the Empire and Mekugi, or a multi-barreled grenade launcher in its place - both offering an excellent fire suppression device for nearby infantry and trenchlines. Finally, the Shalmanesar has two anti-tank guided missiles in a launcher on the right side of the turret of the main gun, offering another possible solution against heavier armour designs, such as main battle tanks.

Armour
The lower layer of the armour is formed of a 300mm plate of ceramic armour, which is fully modular and made out of light ceramics and alloys. This offers the design an excellent defense against high velocity impacts from kinetic energy weapons, including armour piercing fin stabilized discarding sabots. The armour is considerably lighter than its counterpart used on the Leopard A6, and variant E [Spain's self designed variant of the Leopard A6], but it also offers lesser protection against KE threats; nonetheless, the version featured on the Arica I provides enough to protect against anything save a main battle tank and some high velocity medium tank guns. This is layered with a soft insulation on the top to avoid cracking and stress due to the expansion of the top layer.

This top layer is formed of either modular expandable armour system, or an enhanced appliqué armour kit, depending on the customer and weight prerequisites. Although the MEXAS offers greater ratings, the EAAK is also much, much lighter - each offers its own distinct advantages. Regardless of which used, the entire armour system offers very fine protection against both kinetic energy threads and chemical energy threats, making it viable for the vehicle to complete the tasks it was designed for.

Optionally, sometimes witnessed on Mekugian tanks, the MEXAS is covered by an anti-spalling layer which is capped off by a minor ceramic appliqué, which offers minor protection against chemical energy threats. On top of this, hexagons of captive explosive reactive armour are placed on slats, making the CERA largely appliqué as well. Other times, the CERA replaces the MEXAS altogether. The exact composition of the Ausfva. B remains classified within the Mekugian military.

Engine
The Shalmanesar is powered by the Q-300-J, although the Mekugian design might employ it's own engine for preference and logistical purposes. Nonetheless, it's safe to say that the Shalmanesar relies on one thousand two hundred break horsepower, meaning, what is not lost on ignition and through the propulsion of the shaft. The outer encasement is made out of a tough, but flexible, titanium based superalloy, while several turbine components are manufactured out of ceramic. The engine has three major subcomponents throughout the Arica I, including a 200v battery in the turret, and two 125v batteries in the back. And of course, all ot her minor subcomponents. Although the engine is rather large for the weight, especially considering that the Shalmanesar does not feel the requirement of ultramodern MBTs in having overly large engines to allow for greater velocities, the engine does serve the purpose to deal with crew accomodations, specified below.

The transmission offers a dual stick, group and gear, transmission with a total of twenty-four gears, including three groups and six foward gears and two rear gears. The drivetrain is fully electromagnetic, allowing for almost a greater conservation of energy, which in turn maximizes the effeciency of the engine. The drivetrain was also featured in the Arca. I Cougar.

Rear Accomodations
The personnel being ferried by the APC are amongst the most important parts of the APC. For them the Shalmanesar and other variants boast of a very well designed accomodation system to best serve the cabin. In fact, in testing and in combat personnel carried often claim that the best ride they've had was on the Arica. For one, seating is divided by a series of cushioned 'chairs' whie lie on the floor to take as little space as possible, providing comfortable seating. The seats are springed for bumps, and avoid having the men in the back jolt around, while they also have reduced pitch input, allowing them to absorb shock. The two machinegunners are not seated, and instead are harnessed into place to avoid rabid moving, and two kneepads cushioned for them to kneel on, as well as a foward footpad in both cases for the soldier to rest a leg, if need be. The ground is reinforced, allowing soldiers to point their guns down so that if a rifle is accidently fired it will penetrate the bottom armour and stay there without fear of the shot ricocheting. The APC is air conditioned both for the crew and what is being carried, while there is a temporary water dispeser so that soldiers need not use the little water they carry for missions.

Although many believe all of this luxury as just that, and extraneous, it has been tested before that better preforming soldiers are those that are more relaxed before entering combat. History in design has proved it; in fact, one of the faults attributed to early Soviet armoured design was crew conditions, especially crampness, which reduced lethality of Soviet armour. Although not necessarilly within the same context, the same can be said for the soldier within the APC. Not only that, but the 'luxury' comes at relatively little cost, as opposed to the huge cost of the armour, turret and armament. Therefore, it is just a minor way to pay soldiers for the duties they have done.

For this, the Shalmaneser has been called the 'Cruise Liner' by many Macabee soldiers, on the field. Automobile magazines have also awarded it as the most confortable all terrain vehicle design on the public market. But for all the satire, the Shalmanesar cedes the point and is proud of it.

The soldiers are let out through a rear hatch which is a ramp door, offering an easy unloading process. The rear hatch, to avoid lightening the armour load on it, is powered through an extremely powerful set of electrical mechanics, which is one of the major things that warrants such a large engine in use for the APC, when something of 800 bhp would have done perfectly. For emergency dismounting there are two roof mounted hatches.

Sensor Equipment
Sensor equipments include a foward-looking infrared [FLIR] rangefinder for close range engagement accuracy; especially since most engagements will be from close range, given the armament. On top of the minor turret there is a minor short-range, short-wave, radome for near complete radar coverage for up to eleven thousand meters, although expected usage is two thousand meters and less. There is also a laser radar [ladar] transmitter independence from the main array to further guide the ATGMs, while and independent transmitter is for the tank in general. Two side looking miniature LIDAR guassian transmitters aid in target and foe indentification.

The fire and control system is based on the larger Cornerstone program. The program is able to receive, condense, and process information from all sensor systems simultanuously, and thus offer a host of possible targets on a black background liquid matrix display screen for both the gunner and the commander [two seperate screens]. The Arica I can have up to eleven targets for possible engagement, and once one is deemed appropriately knocked out a new target is processed into the system.

Statistics [Export Version]:
Crew: 3 [Driver, Commander and Gunner]
Carrying Capacity: 15, including crew
Vehicle Armament:
-1x 35mm Chaingun
-2x portmounted 7.92mm machineguns
-2x anti-tank guided missiles
-1x 60mm grenade launcher
Ammunition:
-1,600 rounds for the 35mm [dispensed into four modular bins]
-800 rounds per portmounted machineguns
Length, Hull: 8.7m
Width: 3.57m
Height Overall: 2.3m
Ground Clearance: 0.51m
Weight, Combat: 51 tons
Weight, Empty: 45 tons
Turret Traverse: 360
Engine: Q-300-J 1200bhp Quasiturbine Diesel
Maximum Horsepower: 1200bhp
Maximum Road Speed: 76 km/hr
Maximum Reverse Road Speed: 25 km/hr
Maximum Off-Road Speed: 55 km/hr
Acceleration, 0km/hr to 65km/hr: 17 sec
Maximum Range: 620 km
Fuel Capacity: 600 lit
Fording: 2.5m
Tracks: 450mm single pin metalic tracks with rubber inset roadwheels
Vertical Obstacle: 1.13m
Trench: 3.3m
Gradient: 60%
Side Slope: 40%
Armour Type: Composite
RHA: ca. 600mm RHAe vs. KE; ca. 1,600mm vs. CE
NBC System: CC/COP-30, 3+12x IDV-14
Night Vision Equipment: Yes (Driver, Commander, And Gunner)
Cost: 3.2 million USD

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 4:35 pm

Born of a contract awarded to Sistemas Terrestres Segovia (STS) by the government and armed forces of Tyrandis, the BSI is designed to provide a fully amphibious and air-mobile family of lightweight tracked vehicles. The principle component of said family is the BSI-37, a compact, lightweight and mobile infantry combat vehicle (ICV) for airmobile and amphibious forces. The BSI-30 has three outstanding contracts – one with the Tyrani government, another with the Tercio Blindado de la Armada (TEAR) and the last with the single parachute brigade in active service in the Castillian army. In the latter’s case, the vehicle will replace antiquated and obsolete MAD.II medium tanks which were originally supplied to the Castillian government in the late 60s, during the Castillian Civil War. The new vehicle is scheduled to be partnered with the BSI-103 light tank in the unit for additional firepower support during amphibious operations. The BSI-37, as well as other vehicles of the family, will be available on the export market and STS is capable of fulfilling several orders simultaneously. For TEAR the BSI-37 introduces an all new facet of warfare and is the first infantry combat vehicle in use with the Castillian armed forces (the Ejército de Tierra will be armed with the Puma infantry combat vehicle, based on the Lince main battle tank’s chassis).

The vehicle is based almost entirely on the requirements of the Tyrani air force and army. Although their tender had already been fulfilled by rival defense companies, none of the designs presented to date were considered correct for procurement and therefore they turned to Sistemas Terrestres Segovia. The army and air force jointly required a lightweight infantry combat vehicle, with the volume to carry an infantry fireteam, and the ability to be completely airmobile in a small, tactical rotordyne. Armor protection was required to be ample against infantry small arms, including against 15mm armor piercing ammunition (AP or API) in the front and against 8mm all-around. At first there was a conflict between STS and TEAR over armor protection, but STS has solved the armor problem through the use of add-on armor modules which can be applied before going into combat. Consequently, TEAR’s BSI-37s (denominated BSI-37Cs) don better armor protection, although the vehicle is considerably heavier. Finally, in order to satisfy TEAR’s need for an amphibious infantry combat vehicle, the BSI-37 is fully amphibious through a trim vane on the toe glacis.

The BSI-37 has another important distinguishing factor. It’s the first armored fighting vehicle designed indigenously by the Kingdom of Castilla y Belmonte since the beginning of the Castillian Civil War, and insofar with just one foreign order it also may be one of the most successful internationally.

Organization within TEAR and the brigada paracaidista
TEAR, with the introduction of the new vehicles, is completely reorganized. The Tercio, now forming part of the naval legion, is composed of ten mechanized banderas of one hundred and seventy-one infantry each. Each bandera has to have the ability to be deployed anywhere anytime, and so each infantryman must have a constant means of transportation. Consequently, each bandera has thirty-eight BSI-37s, for a total of three hundred and eighty BSI-37 infantry combat vehicles. Beyond this, each bandera has its own tactical artillery support which will be provided by a battery of ten BSI-110 self-propelled howitzers based on the BSI-37 chassis and each bandera will have two platoons of amphibious light tanks (BSI-103) with a total of eight of these per bandera. Consequently, TEAR will have a total of three hundred and eighty BSI-37s, one hundred BSI-110s and eighty BSI-103s, amounting to five hundred and sixty BSI chassis produces for TEAR. There is the potential of the integration of other vehicles of the family into TEAR at a later date, such as an ambulance and a rocket launcher vehicle.

Within the next two years a second tercio will be established (2º Tercio Blindado de la Armada) within the Naval Legion, and it’s planned to completely reorganize the Naval Legion with just five tercios. This would be a dramatic expansion of the Castillian marines, who would then have over six thousand men serving.

The parachute brigade is composed of roughly five thousand men and is subdivided into two battalions with fifteen companies a piece. Each company has seventeen squads, and there are four ordenes. Each company is expected to have at least two ‘orders’ with the capability to be operational at any one time and each order must have enough vehicles to mechanize five squads (even though three out of four orders within a company will have four squads). This means that each company has to have twenty BSI-37s in working condition at all times, so the number augments to thirty to make-up for the potential of out-of-service vehicles. This means that the parachute brigade has a total of nine hundred BSI-37s! At the moment, there is no planned expansion of the Ejército de Tierra except the creation of two new armor brigades and a new mechanized infantry brigade (which will be mechanized with the Puma). Parachute BSI-37s will be armored at Phase I, with the option to armor on the field to Phase II status. However, even at Phase II and Phase III the BSI-37 should be able to be airlifted in the majority of tactical aircraft and rotordynes, at the cost of a lower air range.

Specifications
Manufacturer: Sistemas Terrestres Segovia
Dimensions: 2.95m (width) x 5.9m (length) x 1.8m (height to top of chassis/top of turret is 2.44m)
Weight: 17,900kg
Weight of Turret: 2,700kg
Weight of Transmission: 950kg
Weight of Tracks: est. 870kg
Dismount Capabilities: 4/5
Motor: MC serie 700 1.4MW gas turbine
Motor Volume: 1.26m³
Water Propulsion: 2x high-speed high-volume capability waterjets
Velocity (amphibious): 17 knots
Velocity (on-road): 85km/h
Velocity (off-road): 75km/h
Transmission: IMR-8020-10 automatic transmission
Suspension: Active hydropneumatic
Armament:
- 37mm hypervelocity automatic cannon
- 7mm S3 light machinegun remote weapon station
- x8 76mm grenade launchers
37mm Ammunition (ETI; electrothermal ignition):
- BM.14AP: Armor piercing fin stabilized discarding sabot.
- BM.14HE: High explosive.
- BM.14APER: Anti-Personnel
Ammunition Stowage:
- 266 37mm
- 3,200 7mm rounds stowed in four storage-bins of 800 each.
Main Armament Angle of Fire: -11º, +60º
Rate of Fire: 600-1,000 rpm
Armor:
Phase I:
- Frontal arc: 13mm IRHA @ 60º vs. 15mm API
- All-around: 15mm IRHA vs. 8mm API
- V-shaped hull with spaced titanium floor plates
Phase II:
- Frontal arc: 25mm energetic ceramic matrix encased with aluminum foam and titanium @ 60º vs. 30mm APFSDS @1,300m
- All-around: Protection vs. 15mm API.
- Weight of package: 1,000kg
Phase III:
- Frontal arc: Light aluminum explosive reactive armor tiles adding roughly 300mm versus shaped charges.
- Side chassis: Non-energetic lightweight reactive armor (NERA) adding roughly 150mm versus shaped charges.
- Weight of package: 700kg
Self-Protection System: Matador soft-kill/hard-kill active protection system using millimeter wave radar and eight 76mm grenade launchers. 360º protection.
NBC Defense: Air conditioning system, in conjunction with two air filters. Chassis and turret are sealed and electric hatches are lined with rubber.
Sensor Equipment:
- Retractable commander’s independent thermal viewer
- Retractable main sight
- 4 driving cameras
- Driver’s periscope
Cost: $7.1 million

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 4:37 pm

The G11 series, featuring G11/A through G11/H, is a complete set of light vehicles, based on the same chassis, designed to fulfill different roles, such as reconnaissance, and electronic warfare. The entirety of the G11 series is tracked. The final decision between tracked vehicles and wheeled vehicles came after an analysis of warfare envisioned by the Empire, and examples in the mainland, the colonies, and the Skiberdeenian colonies. It was decided that most of the warfare, especially for the grand majority of these vehicles, would take pleace off-road, where tracks were superior in ruggedness over the same wheeled variants, and so the ability to safely travel off-road was considered as more of a priority than the ability to travel faster on road. A wheeled set would be released sometime later by Kriegzimmer in the G24 series, for clients that found wheels superior over tracking. The tracks include seven road wheels, with interspersed support rollers, which carry a box like hull, with a steep glacis at the front, with a flat, round turret on the rear half. The suspension is a hydropneumatic suspension system, which is best for road irregularities and maintaning high velocities, despite poor road conditions. Unfortunately, hydropneumatic suspension is also more expensive to maintain than a torsion bar with a MacPherson strut.

The hull is constructed from a high grade atomized steel alloy, and protected by a thin ceramic layer, sandwhiched between two lightweight titanium plates, offering relatively high resistance per mass. The top titanium layer is covered by a thin layer of honeycombed titanium aluminum alloy, which in turn embeds support structures for the possibility of adding appliqué armours, at an expense in weight, or slat armour. Possible appliqués that can be fitted onto the G11 series include advance modular armour protection, modular expandable armour system, explosive reactive armour, non explosive reactive armour, and enhanced appliqué armour kit, as well as most other indegenous appliqué armour designs.

In all variants most computer hardware is EMP protected, and all inner computer hardware is insulated against heavy jolting, an effect of high speed reconnaissance in force. The crew has an assembly of high quality active matrix liquid crystal displays, included in an overhead system, a helmet mounted system, and a frontal displayed system. Most of the vehicles in the series can be noted on the battlefield with a relatively large, for the hull, circular sensor mounted on the low turret to the rear, which is a foward looking infra-red sensor kit, with a co-axially mounted ladar receiver for passive light detection. Sights are a digital camera, with high magnification and focus possiblities, as well as the ability to see both day and night. Each vehicle includes an inter-vehicle short wave communication system, and a intra-vehicle broadband communition system.

Length: 7.3m
Width: 3.47m
Height: 2.56m
Armour [without appliqué - all RHAe vs. KE]:
Glacis: 425mm - 475mm
Turret: 501mm
Side: 163mm - 205mm
Rear: 58mm - 76mm

G11/A Armored Reconnaissance Vehicle
Armament:
1x 12.7mm Heavy Machinegun
1x Automatic Grenade Launcher
Crew: 3 + 4 (squad)
Weight: 26 tonnes
Powerplant: 590hp diesel
Velocity: 95km/h maximum
Sensors:
FLIR [Foward Looking Infra-Red]
FLLR [Foward Looking Ladar Receiver]
SWTR [Shord Wave Tactical Radar]
IFF [Indentifiation Friend or Foe]
Cost: 2.3 million
Production Rights: 2.1 billion

G11/B 80mm Self-Propelled Mortar
Armament:
1x 80mm Mortar
1x 7.92mm Light Machinegun
Mininum Range: 123m
Maximum Range: 4,000m
Maximum Range Supported: 5,230m
Crew: 5 [Driver, Commander, Mortar Crew]
Weight: 33 tonnes
Powerplant: 590hp diesel
Velocity: 83km/h maximum
Sensors:
FLIR [Foward Looking Infra-Red]
FLLR [Foward Looking Ladar Receiver]
SWTR [Shord Wave Tactical Radar]
STR [Satellite Target Receiver]
Cost: 2.6 million
Production Rights: 3.1 billion

G11/C Artillery Command Vehicle
Armament:
1x 7.92mm Light Machinegun
Crew: 3 [Driver, Commander, Artillery Commander]
Weight: 24 tonnes
Powerplant: 590hp diesel
Velocity: 95km/h maximum
Sensors:
SWTR [Shord Wave Tactical Radar]
STR [Satellite Target Receiver]
Cost: 2.3 million
Production Rights: 2.1 billion

G11/D Smoke Generator Vehicle
Armament:
1x Smoke Generator
1x Quadruple Head Automatic Grenade Launcher
Crew: 2
Weight: 24 tonnes
Powerplant: 590hp diesel
Velocity: 95km/h maximum
Sensors:
FLIR [Foward Looking Infra-Red]
FLLR [Foward Looking Ladar Receiver]
SWTR [Shord Wave Tactical Radar]
Cost: 2.3 million
Production Rights: 2.1 billion

G11/E 80mm Automatic Mortar
Armament:
1x 80mm automatic mortar [conventional artillery carraige with split trails and an emplacement jack located at the front]
1x 7.92mm light machinegun
Crew: 6
Weight: 36 tonnes
Powerplant: 590hp diesel
Velocity: 73km/h maximum
Sensors:
FLIR [Foward Looking Infra-Red]
FLLR [Foward Looking Ladar Receiver]
SWTR [Shord Wave Tactical Radar]
STR [Satellite Target Receiver]
Cost: 2.7 million
Production Rights: 3.2 billion

G11/F Electronic Warfare Vehicle
Armament:
1x 7.92mm Light Machinegun
Crew: 6
Weight: 33 tonnes
Powerplant: 590hp diesel
Velocity: 90km/h maximum
Sensors:
FLIR [Foward Looking Infra-Red]
FLLR [Foward Looking Ladar Receiver]
SWTR [Shord Wave Tactical Radar]
STR [Satellite Target Receiver]
Equipment:
Shortstop antenna signal
Wave Transmitter
Wave Receiver
Additional Protection: Bolt on roof appliqué to avoid incoming shrapnel.
Cost: 3.1 million
Production Rights: 4.1 billion

G11/G Light Tank Hunter
Armament:
2x Tagus Missile Launcher Tubes
1x 12.7mm Heavy Machinegun
1x 7.92mm Light Machinegun
Crew: 4
Weight: 37 tonnes
Powerplant: 590hp diesel
Velocity: 73km/h maximum
Sensors:
FLIR [Foward Looking Infra-Red]
FLLR [Foward Looking Ladar Receiver]
BTR [Broadband Tactical Radar]
STR [Satellite Target Receiver]
Cost: 3.2 million
Production Rights: 3.3 billion

G11/H Ambulance
Armament:
1x 12.7mm Heavy Machinegun
Crew: 2 + 3 [wounded on stretchers]
Weight: 34 tonnes
Powerplant: 590hp diesel
Velocity: 82km/h maximum
Sensors:
BTR [Broadband Tactical Radar]
STR [Satellite Target Receiver]
SCS [Satellite Communications System]
Cost: 2.6 million
Production Rights: 2.9 billion

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 4:40 pm

The High Mobility Armored Car (HIM-TAC) is MecániCas’ second military vehicle developed and manufactured by the company’s Defense Industry Division (MecániCas DID). In Spanish, the vehicle is called the ‘Vehículo de Alta Mobilidad’ (VAM) and about nine hundred will be acquired by the Castillian Ejército de Tierra, although information on which versions is unknown. The HIM-TAC is a next-generation high mobility armored vehicle, designed primarily for reconnaissance, exploration and the transport of fireteam sized units. However, the modular design of the vehicle makes it completely multi-purpose, and therefore the HIM-TAC is able to operate over a wide range of mission profiles over a myriad of different terrains and against different enemies. One day the vehicle can be prepared for high intensity urban fighting, with complete protection against small caliber autocannon ammunition (20mm), and the next day the vehicle can be ready for humane peace-keeping operations with ballistically protected glass windows. Its usefulness has been underscored by the recent decision by the Macabee Army (Ejermacht) to procure around one hundred and twenty thousand HIM-TAC vehicles for foreseen peacekeeping operations in areas such as Theohuanacu, Zarbia or now occupied Guffingford. The vehicle also foresees high export success to other countries, now that these have expressed certain interests in such a vehicle. Furthermore, the HIM-TAC enjoys the fact that it has been preceded by the Tiznao-60 advanced armored truck, which has provided MecániCas with a debut of the quality of its engineering and production. The HIM-TAC, or the Tiznao-10, is no short in quality and perhaps is even one step ahead of the Tiznao-60, given that the HIM-TAC has truly been designed to cater to the necessity of every possible international client interested.

In the face of modern asymmetrical warfare, and even conventional warfare, the threat of large land mines and cheap improvised explosive devices (IED) has risen exponentially over the last four decades. The first great use of land mines and improvised mines using old artillery shells was first witnessed by Castillian forces during the Civil War (1967-1973), and although the Castillian Army has not been in any major war since that terrible conflict, it’s evident that such styles of resistance have seen more and more use throughout the world as the years progress. For this reason, vehicles designed during 1970s, 1980s or even the 1990s do not boast of a high level of protection against land-mines, and during conventional warfare such vehicles are not entirely expected to run into daily ambushes. Therefore, new vehicles must go by new standards of protection in order to insure survivability on a battlefield where one day nothing will happen, and the next the convoy will be ambushed by dozens of insurgents. On the other hand, the fluctuation between conventional warfare and asymmetrical third-world conflict means that one vehicle will find it difficult to excel in both types of battle. For this reason, new vehicles must be designed to be as modular as possible, without handicapping protection or mobility. This is a theory embraced by MecániCas and is what has led to the design and development of the HIM-TAC. The HIM-TAC can made to be conventional, with low-protection and lightweight for conventional operations, or even civilian law-enforcement necessities, or it can be completely protected against large caliber small-arms armor piercing ammunition and against improvised explosive devices. Furthermore, modularity allows the client organization to change roles within a matter of hours, or even minutes.

In a sense, protection can be found in mobility. New wheeled armored fighting vehicles, whatever the size, must find solutions for problems including flat tires, bad terrain or damaged suspensions. MecániCas has attempted to introduce a series of ‘new’ technologies to make the HIM-TAC superior to all other vehicles in its sector. Several of these have already been introduced by the Tiznao-60 truck, but their application into the HIM-TAC will ensure increased survivability by guaranteeing the vehicle’s mobility even when it has been damaged. This will allow the vehicle to run away if it has been severely damaged during an ambush, and to save the lives of the soldiers inside of it. It also means that the vehicle makes a great ambulance, given that it will be able to run even when certain components have been destroyed. Furthermore, the vehicle’s motorization is one of the best areas to lose important kilograms worth of weight, including a modern multi-fuel diesel engine, a modern mechanical transmission with a high power transfer efficiency level and an ultra-modern suspension offering a lightweight and a high ride tolerance for the vehicle’s crew. Saving weight in some sectors will allow weight increments in others – this includes more armor protection and extraneous systems which will increase survivability in other ways, such as a central inflation unit for the vehicle’s tires. Although such technology has been used before, namely in 6x6 and 8x8 armored fighting vehicles, volume efficiency of the mechanics in the HIM-TAC allow for the installation of a smaller system into said vehicle. This will make damaging the vehicle’s tires increasingly more difficult and time consuming and expensive.

This introduction alludes to the fact that MecániCas’ principle goal is to increase the survivability of the crew. This is not only achieved through a modular ‘crew central cell’ with high armor protection, but by improving the vehicle’s mobility and introducing new mechanics that will be far more difficult to damage enough to score a mobility kill on the HIM-TAC. Ultimately, MecániCas hopes that its dedication to the soldiers which will be fighting in its new vehicle is what provides the argument to export the vehicle abroad. With over one hundred thousand sales to date, it’s hoped that these will be opening customers who open the doors to the international market. Furthermore, it remains true that the HIM-TAC is possibly the first vehicle of its kind to be devised with this level of dedication. Of course, dozens of tactical vehicles have entered the market, but few of these show the quality that the HIM-TAC does. This quality, admittedly, is something that has been shown to be true for all weapon systems currently sold in Sistemas Terrestres Segovia Land System’s catalogue.

Survivability
A vehicle like the HIM-TAC can complete a wide array of jobs, including reconnaissance missions, ambulance duties and also has logistical capability. Therefore, ideally the armor of the vehicle should be designed in a way in which it can be changed according to the needs of the client and the operation. Consequently, MecániCas has decided to offer the armor as a modular ‘option’, while the structure only provides basic protection levels – such as against anti-personnel assault rifle (4mm – 7mm) projectiles. The panels can be bolted on within hours (which is an overstatement, depending on the mechanics crew) and there are three major armor kits for the HIM-TAC; ‘standard panels’, ‘medium weight’ and ‘heavy weight’. Standard panels only offer protection against small-caliber anti-personnel ammunition, while medium weight panels will offer protection against up to 8mm tungsten cored armor-piercing projectiles and heavy weight panels offer protection versus up to 15.5mm (15-16mm) heavy machine gun tungsten cored armor-piercing rounds. Although the panels are lightweight, normally a logistics vehicle will be fitted with either standard panels or medium weight panels (depending on the threat; in a conventional war, the logistics vehicles probably don’t need armor protection, since they will be behind friendly lines). However, two different types of doors are offered at structural levels – a peacekeeping and standard door, with larger windows, or what are called ‘battle rattle’ doors which include firing ports. In the latter’s case, embedded cameras can be included in the vehicle to increase the crew’s visibility. Nevertheless, the latter’s door offer increased armor protection by reducing window sizes, which are not armored to the same level as the rest of the vehicle. The ballistic windows come in two standards, as well – non-armored (polycarbonate to protect against artillery and grenade fragments and anti-personnel rounds) and armor (protected against up to 8mm tungsten cored or up to 15mm steel cored projectiles). The vehicle also includes two floor panels – a flat panel and a v-shaped hull multi-layer panel. In general, therefore, the vehicle can be changed according to varying needs. The modularity of the vehicle also allows for easy future armor upgrades and new armor kits of varying weights, if another more specific armor kit is needed.

The structure is designed for ballistic ‘efficiency’ – versus the minimum expected threat – and is actually designed in two parts. The vehicle has a modular ‘crew cell’, which is fitted onto the ‘propulsion unit’, which is formed by the engine bay in the front and the equipment compartment in the rear, united by the transmission and the supporting floor structure. Therefore, new crew cells can be designed with superior structural protection as the threat changes. Thanks to the decreasing costs of titanium and new welding techniques (see: Montgomery, Jonathan S., and Wells, Martin G.H., Titanium Armor Applications in Combat Vehicles, Journal of Metallurgy, April 2001 and Henriques, Vinicius A.R., et. al., Production of Ti-6%Al-7%Nb alloy by powder metallurgy, Journal of Material Processing Technology, 118, 2001) much of the steel structure can be replaced, and this means about a 50% decrease in the overall weight of the structure! Certain parts of the structure are still built of steel, however, especially those related to the suspension to withstand higher fatigue (due to the vibrations of the suspension). Although the crew cell is entirely constructed out of titanium and steel, to keep ballistic efficiency, parts of the engine bay and the rear module is also constructed out of high-strength aluminum alloy to save weight and cost. It should be noted that the structure outside of the crew cell is thinner than that of the crew cell, as survivability priority has been put on the vehicle’s occupants. ‘Special armors’ have been avoided to reduce cost and because given the modular protection kits which are available for the vehicle, high ballistic protection of the structure is deemed unnecessary – therefore, materials like engineered aluminum are avoided.

The most difficult parts of the vehicle to be armored, as found by the design team of the HIM-TAC, are the ballistic window panels. The windows are fabricated in modular ‘boxes’, surrounded by a titanium frame which is bolted-on to the vehicle. These window cells are fabricated to fit the standard door pieces for the HIM-TAC and for the windshield of the vehicle. The problem found in glass protection is that the thicker the glass the more it will hamper visibility, and different materials have different coefficients for the transfer of light. Consequently, until new materials are found, giving a window panel protection against the same threat as a standard armor module for a vehicle is very difficult. According to a research effort funded by Sistemas Terrestres Segovia Land Systems (STSLS), the most common armor piercing ammunition found is the medium caliber tungsten-core (WC) projectile, with a much smaller distribution of heavier projectiles. Some depleted uranium core (dUC) projectiles were found to be distributed, but for the most part these were issued to conventional units – such projectiles have not made a substantial appearance (at least, not to be noticed) in guerilla and terrorists organizations. Given these statistics, a prioritization of ballistic protection can be made and the ballistic window panels can be made to protect the crew from the majority of known threats. Furthermore, the armor can be designed to substantially lower a projectile’s ability to harm someone inside the crew cell by decelerating it – this can be achieved through new materials or by increasing panel thickness (an optimum has to be found between protection and visibility). The key is to study the probability of an impact by a 15mm armor piercing projectile, and this is completely dependent on the type of situation the vehicle will be put in. For example, it’s more unlikely that the vehicle will be impacted by this size of a round if in an asymmetrical conflict due to the low probability that advance ammunition for high caliber machine guns will be distributed. In a conventional war, it’s not likely that a vehicle such as the HIM-TAC will be used to directly engage major enemy forces (unless it’s used in an ambush or hit-and-run tactics) and therefore the probability of being engaged (in general) is much lower than the former example. Nevertheless, although absolute protection would be optimal, engineers have currently concluded that this is impossible with today’s materials.

The windows are composed of a multi-layer transparent laminate, made-up of several different materials. The principle make-up of the panels is laminated float glass, united through thin layers of polyurethane. These layers are 9mm thick, each, and a total of five layers complete a thickness of 45mm worth of float glass. The problem with increased thickness of the glass is the green tint that is created by the iron oxide content of the glass (see: Hazell, Paul J., The Development of Armour Materials, Military Technology, April 2006, pp. 60-61), which also ultimately means that other materials are needed to provide the majority of the strength. On the other hand, there are considerable problems with increased weight of the panels which include the destabilization of the vehicle due to the movement of the center of gravity. Lately, new ceramic materials have begun to be introduced to provide the front plate of a laminate transparent armor – these have been used on several vehicles of the same type. These ceramics include sapphire (single crystal aluminum oxide) and magnesium aluminate spinel (referred to as spinel) – only the former provides sufficient enough protection to be considered a dramatic improvement and sapphire is rare in armored vehicles due to the fact that new processes for material manufacturing which are affordable have only been introduced recently. Perhaps one of the most used ‘new ceramics’ is quartz glass, and this is much more widely used than sapphire. None of these ceramics, however, provided MecániCas with the necessary protection to maximize survivability. Instead, the front plate of the multi-layer window panel is composed of aluminum oxynitride (AlON), a dense, but tough, transparent ceramic material – the front plate is 10mm thick (therefore, between the front plate and the glass the armor is 54mm thick). Finally, traditionally the backing layer is composed of polycarbonate, but polycarbonate only forms about 2mm worth of the back layer, with the rest composed of E-glass which has superior ballistics – total thickness of the window panels are 63mm (for information on all of these materials see: Patel, Patrimal J., et. al., Transparent Armor, The AMPTIAC Newsletter, Fall 2000, pp. 1-6; Klement, R., et. al., Transparent Armor Materials, Journal of the European Ceramic Society, Number 28, 2008; Wright, S.G., et. al., Ballistic Impact of Polycarbonate – An Experimental Investigation, International Journal of Impact Engineering, Volume 13, Number 1, 1993; Hazell, Paul J., The Development of Armour Materials, Military Technology, April 2006; and Sternberg, J. and Orphal, D.L., A Note on the High Velocity Penetration of Aluminum Nitride, International Journal of Impact Engineering, Volume 19, Number 7, 1997). The glass offers enough protection to offer multi-hit impact (as long as the part of the panel remains intact – this doesn’t include cratered panel) against up to 10mm tungsten-core (WC) armor-piercing projectiles, and therefore is proof against all small-caliber and medium-caliber automatic weapons. Hopefully, one day in the future new materials will allow the augmentation of protection to cover fire from heavy machine guns.

However, this protection can be offered for the rest of the vehicle for a relatively light weight. As mentioned before, there are three principle packages for the HIM-TAC. The most basic are ‘standard panels’ which only offer a very small increment in protection, next there is the ‘medium weight’ armor package which is a thinner version of the ‘heavy weight’ armor package (and the use of more metal – improved rolled homogenous armor and titanium - versus ceramic and plastic). The armor is very similar to ArmorMaxx, used on the Tiznao-60 truck, although it exchanges some of the materials for what is considered more proper for a vehicle such as the HIM-TAC; nevertheless, much of it is the same. Apart from designing armor that can withstand multi-hit impacts upon a single panel, multi-hit capability can also be established by introducing modular cells. Each cell has a predefined optimal surface area to distribute the energy of the attacking projectile, and this depends largely on the projectile. Larger long-rod penetrators, commonly used by tanks, are countered through much larger modular panels, but smaller caliber ammunition allows for the use of ‘mini-panels’; for example, a 7.62mm projectile can be defeated through a ceramic tile roughly 5x5cm in dimensions (probability of single cells receiving multiple impacts, based on cell size, is discussed in: Bless, S. J. and Jurick, D. L., Design for Multi-Hit Capability, International Journal of Impact Engineering, Volume 21, Number 10, 1998. See also: de Rosset, William S., Patterned Armor Performance Evaluation, International Journal of Impact Engineering, Volume 35, 2005). Against larger calibers, like a 15.5mm heavy machine gun, larger tiles are recommended. In the HIM-TAC’s case, the panels are of similar size to those used on the Tiznao-60. Furthermore, door panels are manufactured as single-piece modules to make application to the vehicle easier; depending on the threat, single-piece modules can also be considered multi-hit capable if the ammunition hits in different areas of the panel (where the ceramic isn’t cracked). Furthermore, the armor used can be considered multi-hit capable through the application of a rubber or aluminum foam back layer to the ceramic (in reality, a spacing layer).

The ‘heavy weight’ kit is composed of a front-plate of titanium, offering enough protection (at a low weight) to stop 155mm artillery fragments and nearby grenade blasts, without damaging the composite armor underneath. The main defeat mechanism of the armor is the titanium-diboride (TiB₂), encased in titanium – the ceramic is manufactured through ‘spark plasma sintering’, since it has been found that titanium-diboride is overall more efficient when manufactured through this processes (over hot isostatically pressed titanium-diboride, for example; see: Patterson, Annika, et. al., Titanium-titanium diboride composites as part of a gradient armour material, International Journal of Impact Engineering, Volume 32, 2005). To improve the material’s fracture toughness the titanium diboride has been ‘prestressed’, which means that is has been shrunk and compressed during manufacture to increase the ceramic’s ability to better withstand an impact without fracturing (see: Bao, Yiwang, et. al., Prestressed ceramics and improvement of impact resistance, Material Letters, Volume 57, 2002; Holmquist, Timothy J. and Johnson, Gordon R., Modeling prestressed ceramic and its effects on ballistic performance, International Journal of Impact Engineering, 2003). Thereafter, a thin back layer of aluminum foam is included for multi-hit capability. The aluminum foam also absorbs a large portion of the stress waves related to penetration and decelerates the rest, meaning penetration has less of an impact on the armor’s back plate, increasing resistance to penetration. Originally, this layer has been attributed to rubber or polyurethane, but it has been found that closed-cell aluminum foam performs better and hardly increases weight (see: Gama, Bazle A., et. al., Aluminum foam integral armor: a new dimension in armor design, Composite Structures, Volume 52, 2001). This is followed by a thicker backing-plate, which is normally composed of a hard material, although recently replaced by composites such as S-2 glass. On the HIM-TEC, the backing layer is composed of carbon-nanotube-doped poly-vinyl-ester-epoxy matrix reinforced by E-glass. Although this sounds like something of the future, and is indeed expensive to produce in small quantities, carbon-nanotubes will help increase protection levels while decreasing weight. High hardness carbon-nanotubes will help increase the material’s ability to deflect incoming projectiles, while their ductility will help absorb the projectile’s energy. In other words, they achieve what very little other materials can – both aspects of armor protection. Given these characteristics, such a composite backing layer is a superior substitute to metal (steel or titanium) and give the HIM-TEC high protection for low weight (see: Grujicic, M., et. al., Ballistic-protection performance of carbon-nanotube-doped poly-vinyl-ester-epoxy matrix composite armor reinforced with E-glass fiber mats, Material Science & Engineering A, 2007). Together, this laminate composite armor can achieve protection against heavy machine gun fire (even against depleted uranium core armor piercing projectiles) with a light weight penalty, meaning the vehicle’s size and mobility will not be hampered as a consequence (for more information on the materials used, see: Hogg, Paul J., Composites for Ballistic Application, Department of Materials, Queen Mary, University of London; Nemat-Nasser, S., et. al., Experimental investigation of energy-absorption characteristics of components of sandwich structures, International Journal of Impact Engineering, Volume 34, 2007; Kwok, Richard W.O. and Deisenroth, F. U., Lightweight Passive Armour for Infantry Carrier Vehicle, 19th International Symposium of Ballistics, 7-11 May 2001; Übeyli, Mustafa, et. al., On the comparison of the ballistic performance of steel and laminated composite armors, Materials and Design, Volume 28, 2007; Reaugh, J.E., et. al., Impact Studies of Five Ceramic Materials and Pyrex, International Journal of Impact Engineering, Volume 23, 1999; Gower, H.L., et. al., Ballistic impact response of laminated composite panels, International Journal of Impact Engineering, 2007).

Laminate composites armor should have a greater thickness efficiency (and mass efficiency) as compared to armored steel (RHA), and so the armor required should be less than it would be if the armor was composed of steel. If a tungsten-core 15mm armor piercing projectile can penetrate an estimated 40mm at 1km (it should be noted that engagement ranges expected are probably less than 100m), then necessary protection equivalent to armored steel should be 50-70mm. If we estimate a thickness efficiency of the multi-layer composite to be approximately 1.6 (a guess which might not be correct for this specific armor; but, it should be over 1.5 and probably at around 2.0) then we can say that the required armor thickness to defeat a 15.5mm WC API threat is between 30-50mm. For thickness of specific locations, the armor will be thinner where structural protection is higher (for example, the lower area of the door). Nevertheless, all-around protection against 16mm depleted uranium cored armor piercing projectiles is to be expected (therefore, a maximum of around 50mm of armor). Against less powerful rounds, this armor is also multi-hit capable and will stop multiple medium-weight small arms projectiles (around the 7.62mm caliber). The ‘medium weight’ armor package is similar in make-up, but – as mentioned before – will only offer protection against 8mm WC armor-piercing projectiles (therefore, around 15-30mm thick at most). In terms of mass gain, this armor is much more efficient than other existing armor modules and will cost less in weight – the ‘heavy kit’ will add about 1,000 kilograms (based on values provided by: Iveco LMV Para el Ejército de Tierra, World Military Forces, Number 65, 2008, pp. 21-29). The medium weight appliqué panels will add considerably less (less than half the weight), and therefore will increase the available transportation weight.

On the modern battlefield, however, ballistic protection against armor piercing bullets is no longer the only necessity. The use of land mines to defeat mounted warriors has existed even before the invention of the anti-tank shaped charge, as medieval infantry used sharp metal spikes littered throughout the battlefield to defeat charging horsemen and knights. However, it is true that only recently has the necessity to defend armored vehicles from anti-vehicle land mines become a priority, as only recently have these weapons been manufactured in homes and have been distributed enough to impact mounted warfare. Therefore, new vehicles are showcasing increased protection against land mines; the HIM-TEC is, as expected, in the vanguard of this movement. Several anti-mine features were included in the Tiznao-60, including laminate floor panels. For example, the wheels are placed as far away from the crew cell as possible, as when the explosive is triggered it will be less probable that it will harm the vehicle’s crew. Furthermore, all mechanical components are arrayed in such a way that if the vehicle undergoes the compressive shockwave of an explosion these components will be flung away from the crew cell, instead of at the crew cell. The spacing between the crew cell and the ‘chassis’ also decreases the rate and strength of the transfer of mechanical shockwaves to that specific part of the vehicle, meaning the crew will feel less of an impact. The HIM-TEC is also protected through a laminate, lightweight, v-shaped floor panels which basically look like a wedge projected towards the floor – although not as steep as is evident on larger and taller vehicles, these floor panels will both absorb the energy (through the composite materials used) and deflect (the v-shaped hull) the explosion – it will also increase the depth of penetration (DOP) necessary of a shaped charge or explosive formed penetrator (EFP) to perforate into the engine bay or crew cell. The HIM-TEC can survive a 10-17kg charge, depending on the location in which the charge is detonated (related to the position of the crew) – by survive, this means that the crew will stay alive, although the vehicle may be destroyed. Finally, all crew members have suspended seats – similar to those used in the Tiznao-60 and Lince main battle tank – to protect them and to reduce the snapping movements of their body parts, especially the neck. (For further reading, see: Kahl, Dieter, Conceptos de protección actuales y futuros para vehículos blindados ligeros y medios, Tecnología Militar, Number 2, 2007; Iveco LMV Para el Ejército de Tierra, World Military Forces, Number 65, 2008; and, Bianchi, Fulvio, Mine Protection for AFVs, Military Technology, February 2005.)

Unfortunately, all this armor has a tendency to spall, especially ceramics – normally, materials with more yield strength and the ability to compress more than others will fracture less and thus spall less. Nevertheless, spall protection is an important concept of survivability, as the armor can be a threat to the crew if pieces of armor are flung into the crew cell. Furthermore, the penetrating projectile can spall itself, as pieces of the projectile erode and are separated from the main body. Even if not fatal to the crew – which it can be – it can seriously wound crew members and even blind them, if pieces perforate the eyes. Therefore, modern armored fighting vehicles use certain materials to ‘catch’ spall or reduce the area of the spray. On the HIM-TEC, the spall liner is composed of aramid fabric due to its high elastic modulus, high specific strength (five times that of steel), low density (one fifth that of steel), low elongation, flame resistance, ease of fabrication and excellent fatigue characteristics. This fabric is included throughout the vehicle, even along the floor (to protect against fragments of mine and floor panel which may shoot upwards into the crew cell), although it’s specifically used to protect the crew (so it’s not used near the engine bay or the in rear of the vehicle). Furthermore, aramid is cheap and is used in many other ways, including as encasement material for bullet proof vests (for more information, see: Meffert, Bernd and Milewski, Gerhard, Aramid Liners as Armor Augmentation, Proceedings Annual Reliability and Maintainability Symposium, 1988).

Stealth Features
Although advanced night vision devices (NVD) are still characteristic of well trained and supplied conventional ground forces, ‘low technology’ infra-red devices are widespread enough so that one can expect them to be used by an insurgent group. Furthermore, in case of an ambush during a conventional war, one can expect more advance night vision devices. This isn’t the only major threat, either, as some vehicles have thermal imaging systems (such as the TI devices on tanks) that can detect the recent presence of a vehicle (such as the M1 Abram’s: Green, Michael and Stewart, Greg, M1 Abrams at War, Zenith Press, 2005, p. 43)! New anti-vehicle missiles can be locked on through heat, or an insurgent can decide when to blow up an improvised explosive device by what he sees through his night vision device. Therefore, reducing the heat signature of a vehicle is paramount for survivability, and the HIM-TEC has incorporated many existing technologies to reduce the signature as much as possible. This may come in handy if the two-door version is used for reconnaissance or for screening, and you need to hide the presence of the vehicle – even after it has left the area. On the other hand, it’s also important when establishing ambush points, now that 3rd generation thermal imaging devices can detect heat even after the engine has been turned on (for a limited amount of time, of course). Establishing a low heat signature is not only a goal of a light armored vehicle, like the HIM-TEC, but it has also been a goal of even heavy main battle tanks.

Reduction of the vehicle’s radar signature is also paramount, especially with the newfound threat of tank borne high-efficiency radars with line of sight ranges of up to ten to eleven kilometers. Although many of the new radars offered on today’s tanks have overstated capabilities – such as the millimeter radar’s ability to detect threats up to eleven kilometers away –, they still provide an important threat to consider. This threat escalates in open areas, where foliage doesn’t exist to hide the presence of an ambushing vehicle. Although conventionally ground-based anti-vehicle radar has never been considered a real threat, the battlefield is changing with new technologies. New light vehicles are being designed to reduce radar signature, and even main battle tanks are looking to reduce their signature. The threat, of course, isn’t only detection by an enemy vehicle or soldier, but detection by top-attack submunitions. These top-attack submunitions are often armed with small explosively formed penetrators, which perforate the vehicle’s roof at a velocity of up to 1,800 meters per second, and can penetrate at least 100mm of steel armor (see: Weickert, C.A. and Gallagher, P.J., Penetration of Explosively Formed Penetrators, International Journal of Impact Engineering, Volume 14, 1993). These submunitions are mostly guided by independent radar seekers, which are fitted to each device, and others are guided by infra-red seekers (see: Boschma, James H., STAWs: New Threat from Above – Smart Top Attack Weapons, ARMOR Magazine, September 1996). These can be fired from mortars, tank guns, field artillery pieces and howitzers, and the round can carry up to a dozen submunitions! Reduction of the vehicle’s radar signature, even the roof’s flat panel, is paramount to ensure the survival of the vehicle against these threats (if its presence is found).

The oldest threat is, by far, visual profile. The profile of a vehicle has been an issue since the introduction of the armored car in the late 18th century, and is even more a problem today. In most cases, the lower the roof, the better its survivability, given that the harder the vehicle will be to see by either insurgents or even conventional armed forces. This isn’t only important for tanks, as even light armored vehicles like the HIM-TEC avoid visual detection during reconnaissance missions. Furthermore, the smaller the vehicle, the easier it is to hide in the foliage during an ambush mission. Therefore, the HIM-TEC has been designed to be as low as possible without sacrificing protection and mobility. Due to the steeper v-shaped plates on the hull floor, the HIM-TEC is a couple of centimeters taller than some other small high mobility trucks, which might present a disadvantage – the roof is shaped, on the other hand, to minimize the visual effect of this height, which decreases internal volume but increases survivability. Nevertheless, the vehicle’s carrying capacity is not jeopardized now that the vehicle can carry up to six passengers in its stretch version. The HIM-TEC also has small mounting points along the vehicle to hold tight a camouflage netting, such as Castillian ‘Jungla’ – such netting also reduces the heat signature of the tank and can absorb the radar waves of top-attack ammunition. This might be more important during a conventional conflict, but can also be considered important in uneven terrain, where the vehicle’s movement can be hidden by low rise hills and where height might have an impact when the vehicle is smaller than the hill it’s moving behind.

To defeat the previous two threats – radar and infra-red signature – the HIM-TEC incorporates new materials to absorb its emissions and deflect foreign detection waves. None of these materials are innovative or unique to the HIM-TEC, but the HIM-TEC does a very good job of using them in opportune locations to increase its survivability. For example, absorbent materials are used around ‘inevitable hot spots’ of the vehicle – exhaust pipes, engine bay, transmission parts and the wheels. Ideally, the temperature difference between the vehicle and the surrounding area should be less than 5º C! Metal parts have to be covered with special paints to absorb heat, and special fiber reinforced materials used along the vehicle’s surface (especially around the engine bay). To hide the heat produced by the transmission and even by the exhaust pipes, other than special materials these are hidden between two ‘rails’ of the chassis which work to absorb the heat produced. On the outside of the vehicle, radar absorbent materials are used in conjunction with infra-red absorbent materials (depending on the surface of the vehicle) – this is especially true for the roof, to avoid detection from top-attack submunitions. The fact that the vehicle is light and small is also important, now that this means that the engine can be made to be less powerful and thus produce less heat. Furthermore, absorbent materials around the engine and exhaust pipe don’t only absorb heat, but also absorb noise to hide the vehicle’s movements from nearby detection. Overall, the HIM-TEC is one of the stealthiest vehicles on the market, or at least on par with several other advanced high mobility vehicles (generally, information is based on: Kahl, Dieter, Conceptos de protección actuales y futuros para vehículos blindados ligeros y medios, Tecnología Militar, Number 2, 2007; and Iveco LMV Para el Ejército de Tierra, World Military Forces, Number 65, 2008).

Mobility
The HIM-TEC uses a 190 horsepower diesel engine, coupled to a hybrid electric drive train (for similar information, see: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/sys...d/hmmwv-he.htm), which doubles fuel economy, increases the vehicle’s range, accelerate fasters, decreases emissions by almost 75% and is substantially lighter. The HIM-TEC is not the first vehicle in the Castillian arsenal to have an electric drive train, given that the Lince main battle tank also uses one. Nevertheless, it’s the first vehicle in the country to be designed with an electric drive train and a diesel engine. Most hybrid automobiles in Castilla y Belmonte, now entering the market with a greater vigor (hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are also beginning to enter production for civilian usage), use two gas turbines between 5kW and 16kW in power (depending on vehicle weight) and a 100kg battery – these are the direct competition of the new fuel cell vehicles (see: Capata, Roberto and Sciubba, Enrico, The concept of the gas turbine-based hybrid vehicle: System, design and configuration issues, International Journal of Energy Research, Volume 30, 2006). Unfortunately, the lack of a gas turbine for a combat vehicle of the weight class of the HIM-TEC is currently unavailable, and it’s thought that for the time being a diesel engine would be more desirable. Furthermore, for the sake of export potential, the diesel was chosen due to the greater affinity towards diesel engines on the international market. Although there have been worries about greater mechanical necessity (see: Sharoni, Asher H. and Bacon, Lawrence D., The Future Combat System (FCS): A Satellite-fueled, solar-powered tank?, ARMOR Magazine, January 1998), actual testing on the HIM-TEC has proved otherwise. Perhaps just as important as fuel economy, logistics and velocity is the fact that noise and thermal emissions are reduced considerably, enhancing the vehicle’s survivability.

The diesel engine itself, designed by MecániCas, occupied roughly 2,700cc and is variable geometry turbocharged engine, providing 136kW of power at 3,500rpm and 450Nm of torque at 1,700rpm. The engine works without problem within a temperature range of -32º and +49ºC, even in areas with high humidity. This engine provides the vehicle with a power to weight ratio greater than twenty (to one), although the engine is heavier than MecániCas originally envisioned (it’s standard when taking into consideration diesel engines, but MecániCas was looking for something similar to the TA series 600 gas turbine used on the Lince and Lynx, which does not work for power outputs of less than 900hp). The HIM-TAC has an automatic transmission providing for five forward gears and one gear in reverse, with a final drive within a differential in the rear area of the chassis (the engine is based on information provided in: Iveco LMV Para el Ejército de Tierra, World Military Forces, Number 65, 2008; and http://www.army-technology.com). In the engine bay, along with the motor generators which form part of the hybrid electric drive train, there is a battery which not only transfers power to the transmission and differential, but gives the possibility of silent over watch (normally provided by an auxiliary power unit [APU]). Furthermore, using an electric transmission decreases the chances of a large metal piece entering the crew cell and hurting one of the vehicle’s occupants. Apart from considerations detailed above, hybrid engines also make it easier to convert the two-door version of the HIM-TEC into a command vehicle, radar vehicle, or other systems, and reduce the necessary logistics for these conversions (see: Axe, David, Engine Tests: U.S. Army diesel-electric hybrid motors get a reality check, Defense Technology International, September 2007). For example, the vehicle could be used to recharge electric unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) for tactical reconnaissance by mounted infantry. It should be noted that the demand in the commercial sector for hybrid vehicles has increased the cost-effectiveness of introducing this technology into military vehicles, and therefore it’s a cost effective solution that can now be realistically considered (in a world [real-world, for example] where only the military has a demand for lithium-ion batteries, a lithium-ion battery can cost up to $3,500 per kilowatt of power).

Convention dictates that an armored vehicle should only be wheeled when their expected terrain of travel is composed of at least 41% road or weigh less than ten metric tons; this fits the characteristics of the HIM-TEC and vehicles like it, especially when taking into consideration the ideal road-speed of the vehicle (see: Hornback, Paul, The Wheel versus Track Dilemma, ARMOR Magazine, March 1998). However, the HIM-TEC still tries to maximize off-road travel by incorporating new technologies to improve mobility. The large wheels have an angle of attack of 60º and an angle of departure of 52º, and the vehicle has four-wheel drive (4x4 or 4WD) for off-road travel. Each wheel has an independent hydropneumatic suspension, taking advance of the vehicle’s weight class, allowing for a faster off-road velocity, greater stability and the ability to reduce the vehicle’s height by up to four-tenths of a meter. The tires are of the run-flat type, allowing the vehicle to escape from the area even if the tires have been punctured – run-flat tires have been proven to be able to travel up to 20km whilst flat – and a central inflation unit (CIU) keeps the tires at their ideal pressure, which is important for off-road travel. The hydropneumatic disc anti-lock brakes (ABS) are designed close to the differential and away from the crew cell, while still providing a superior reaction time for the driver; the brakes are also fixed elastically to the chassis. While each part of the suspension and brake system is designed to be efficient, they are also designed to enhance survivability, explaining the locations where these are installed.

The high ballistic protection offered by the windshield panels is important when considering the field of view of the driver. Ensuring that the driver has a large field of view means that the driver will be able to see more of the terrain in front of him, improving his reaction to non-ideal terrains or even against improvised explosive devices. Apart from enhancing survivability, it also enhances mobility. Just as important, the hydropneumatic suspension increases the ride tolerance of the crew – as proven by the suspension’s integration into tracked vehicles, such as the Lince – meaning that the driver has less of a chance of being fatally fatigued by the vibrations of the vehicle. All of this will enhance the driver’s reaction time, also affected by the high efficiency hybrid diesel drive train (these last two paragraphs are based largely on: Bianchi, Fulvio, Off-Road Mobility: Problems & Solutions, Military Technology, March 2007). As is witnessed, most of the components on the vehicle are designed to improve the vehicle’s survivability, which is the single most important priority in the HIM-TEC. In essence, the vehicle might come out of the battle almost completely destroyed, but its occupants will come out alive and ready for the next fight. This not only decreases costs by making sure one’s soldiers survive a battle, but it also means that soldier’s confidence will increase as they see that their equipment guarantees the wellbeing of their lives. In that sense, the high protection for low weight, new mobility features and stealth features are probably worth the cost. It should further be noted that the vehicle has the capability to wade through up to 90 centimeters of water without preparation and can be driven with night vision devices or thermal cameras.

Lethality
The product includes no remote weapon station, although the roof panel includes a mounting area for a remote weapon station. For example, combat versions of Castillian and Macabee HIM-TECs will be armed with the HammerFist remote weapon station, mounted on a wide variety of other vehicles sold by Sistemas Terrestres Segovia Land Systems (STSLS). The mounting area allows for a wide variety of these remote weapon stations to be added – effort is dependant on the design of the remote weapon station. For example, thanks to the design of the HammerFist intrusion into the vehicle is minimal, so the impact on protection is almost none. On the other hand, other remote weapon stations may need more modifications inside the vehicle, making application more difficult and perhaps putting in danger the ballistics of that particular part of the panel. Nevertheless, due to the wide proliferation of remote weapon systems this option is available. Of course, STSLS and MecániCas prefer the HammerFist remote weapon station of national fabrication due to its high quality and the ability to mount it on any given vehicle without requiring heavy modifications inside of it (except for a fiber optic cable). HammerFist is also lightweight and can mount a wide variety of weapons. By far, it’s far simpler to mount a machine gun used by your armed forces, then an all-new remote weapon station. HammerFist is also very affordable for the amount of technology offered with the system. The Tiznao-60 can also mount a HammerFist remote weapon station, and this is done on Tiznao-60s manufactured for the Castillian Armed Forces (CAF).

Apart from a remote weapon station, the roof hatch ring allows for the mounting of a machine gun or an automatic grenade launcher of similar proportions. Depending on the design of the machine gun, mounting and dismounting operations is simple and the machine gun can be dismounted in order to provide fire support for infantry units on the ground. Automatic weapons of up to 20mm can be mounted (in other words, infantry heavy machine guns) and automatic grenade launchers of up to 40mm. Macabee HIM-TACs will mount the S30 13.3mm heavy machine gun (manufactured by HTC and designed by Mekugi), while Castillian VAMs will mount the indigenous G4 heavy machine gun of the same caliber (different cartridge length). More so than the HammerFist, the ring mount can accommodate any national weapon and can double the vehicle’s firepower, or reduce the necessity for a remote weapon station (reducing costs; a remote weapon station will cost over $100,000) – the versatility of both the ring mount and the remote weapon station allow client nations to customize the vehicle with their own automatic weapons. The modular design of the hatch and roof panels allow redesigns to allow for heavier weapons, if the client nation decides that this is a necessity. The roof hatch is large enough to allow for the use of light ceramic composite armor and to allow a fully armored infantryman to escape without problem. Soldiers can also post guard through the hatch when the vehicle is not moving, or use it to increase the field of visibility.

Apart from the grenades mounted on a remote weapon station, MecániCas’ HIM-TEC includes two mounting points – one on either side – for two heavy grenade launching packs. Castillian vehicle mounted electric grenade launchers are normally built to accommodate 76mm grenades, but the grenade launchers can be manufactured indigenous to fit the indigenous grenade caliber as long as the pack fits on the mountings. Nevertheless, the mounting allow for grenades between 40mm and 100mm to be mounted without the reduction in the number of tubes (unless the tube firing mechanisms are bulky). For example, the grenade packs issued on Castillian and Macabee HIM-TECs include six grenades per group, for a total of twelve grenade launchers (each grenade launcher carries at least two grenades). The type of grenades launched is up to the client. The HIM-TEC is perfect for modification into surrogate vehicles – UAV launchers, et cetera. Put it can be modified into other types of armament carriers; for example, an anti-tank vehicle fitted with a number of anti-tank missiles, or even a light mortar carrier. Normally, these modifications are done to the two-door variant.

Conclusions
As mentioned before, the vehicle itself comes in two main variations – a four-door stretch version and a two-door version. Both can be armored to three different levels (for now); standard ballistic panels for minimum protection, medium weight ballistic panels and heavy weight ballistic panels. Furthermore, MecániCas offers two different types of doors – one with large windows for peacekeeping operations and one with firing slots for the vehicle’s passengers. Two different types of floor panels are also available – a v-shaped laminate composite armored floor and a standard panel floor. Therefore, a total of twenty-four different variants exist for the vehicle, while the modular nature allows for indigenous companies to play a part in the manufacturing by building their own armor modules for the different parts of the vehicle. Furthermore, armor modules manufactured by MecániCas can be intermixed – for example, a highly protected roof can be issued to a vehicle with standard ballistic panels for the side. These modifications can be done easily and quickly by the crew or by mechanics crew. The only integral part of the vehicle is the structure, and even that comes in modules – the lower chassis (including the engine bay and rear area of the vehicle) and the crew cell. This also makes it cheaper and easier to convert the vehicle into surrogates, such as discussed in the lethality section. It makes the HIM-TAC a very versatile vehicle.

In terms of cost, the first initial batch of vehicles will likely be expensive. Nevertheless, the guaranteed procurement of over one hundred thousand vehicles by the Macabee Fuermak has lowered the cost of production considerably. Therefore, the price of the HIM-TAC is comparable to other existing vehicles, despite the technological advantage. Furthermore, new technologies – such as a hybrid power pack – decrease the cost of logistics, while the easy bolt-on armor panels make superficial repairs quick and cheap. For the most part, unless the vehicle is completely destroyed, repairs can be done in shops behind the lines or in allied camps. Some new technologies enjoy considerable production for the civilian sector, meaning that they are more economical to apply to military vehicles (such as an electric transmission of this size). Production will be the key to lower costs, but as has been mentioned, the HIM-TAC is already as cheap as any other vehicle of its class. On the other hand, whatever the price, the vehicle is worth it due to the amount of engineering MecániCas has put into the Tiznao-10 HIM-TAC to make it the best vehicle of its type.

Although no special attention has been paid to fightability, this also enjoys priority in the HIM-TAC. The vehicle includes an air conditioning system for the crew, and the control panel in the front of the vehicle is accessible to the driver without strain. The automatic transmission makes driving easy for the driver, allowing him to focus on the road ahead. The fact that the HIM-TEC is one of the safest vehicles of its class means that the driver and the passengers will feel reassured for their safety. In tests conducted, even when the vehicle has been completely mangled, the crew has left unscathed. This type of ballistic quality is what differentiates the HIM-TAC from other high mobility tactical trucks. High protection against all known threats possible and lightweight design make any price affordable for an army truly interested in the best tactical truck on the market.

Specifications
Manufacturer: MecániCas
Distance Between Axels: 3.2m
Angles of Attack/Departure: 60º/52º
Height: 2.15m
Width: 2.05m
Gross Weight (Basic Two-Door/Medium/Heavy): 3.1t/3.7t/4.1t
Gross Weight (Basic Four-Door/Medium/Heavy): 3.8t/4.25t/4.9t
Maximum Weight: 7.5t
Towing Capacity: 4t
Maximum On-Road Velocity: 140km/h
Slope: 60%
Engine: 136kW hybrid diesel
Transmission: Automatic; 5+1
Brakes: Hydropneumatic disk brakes
Tires: Run-flat
Passenger Capability (four door stretch): 6+1 (driver)
Costs –
Two-Door: $220,000
Four-Door: $270,000
Basic Panels: $25,000
Medium Weight Panels: $50,000
Heavy Weight Panels: $100,000

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 4:46 pm

Note: Made for a PMT world.

Specifications
General Information:
Manufacturer: Kriegzimmer, Ejermacht & Atmos Gun Systems Production Cost [Export Cost]: $950,000 [$2.5 million]
Length: 17m Width: 5.9m Height: 3.7m
Weight: 49,000kgs

Engine and Drivetrain
Power plant: 1,690hp gas turbine Power to Weight: 34.5hp/mtn
Drivetrain: Dynamic & Variable Active Hydropneumatic Suspension System
Maximum Velocity: 85km/h Range: 650kms
Trench: 6.2m Step: 6.2m Vertical Obstacle: 2.1m Ford Unprepared: 1.4m Ford Prepared: 6m Climbing Gradient: 40x

Armament
Fire and Control: DETONATION System
Main Armament: 370mm Smoothbore High Velocity Calibre Length:L/48.892 Depression & Elevation: -12/+40
Secondary Armament: 2 Pilum Anti-tank Missiles
Ranging and Detection Sensor: 4th Generation FLIR @ 13km targeting range; 8km classification range Ranging Sensor: 3rd Generation LADAR @ ~10km classification range

Armour
Lower Hull: 450mm Upper Glacis: 710mm Front 1/3 Side Hull: 510mm Rear Hull: 370mm Side Hull: 465mm Foward Gun Bulges: 770mm Side Gun Bulges: 700mm Rear Gun Bulges: 550mm

Mosnoi Bor and the Morrigan
The Xarc, in all respects, is designed to defeat the widespread usage of Super Heavy Battle Tanks and Ultra Heavy Battle Tanks in the War of Golden Succession. In order to understand the emergence of these behemoths we need to study from the beginning, and in respect to the War of Golden SUccesion the first UHBT was the Arca. III Morrigan Ausf. A, which will see its remanifestation as the Ausf. B by the end of 2016. The introduction of the Morrigan as a self-propelled castle planted near the northern banks of the River Styx and the consequent halt of the Havenic drive north is was prompted this sudden influx of other super heavies on the battlefield - specifically, the New Imperial Ogre series, which were exported to Safehaven prior and during the war. However, the rise of the super heavy in the war, in general, will be described below. This section is reserved for Mosnoi Bor and the Morrigan.

The Battle of Mosnoi Bor, which would claim over 80,000 lives, began in early August, 2016, after a series of air duels had succeeded the sudden stop of the Havenic army south of the River Styx. The original operation called for the Havenic army in that sector of the Ruskan Front to simply hold back any Imperial attempt to dislodge the Havenic armed forces from Ruska. Unfortunately, the large deployment of over one million personnel to just that sector alone forced the Havenic High Command to rethink their policy concerning the future of Mosnoi Bor. Ultimately, they decided to occupy the Imperial army by launching a limited crossing over the River Styx using the 48th Mechanized Division, led by Major General Rafael Fernández. The attack was to be supported by massive bombing operations carried out by Havenic EB-9s at high altitude, and by constant close air support using Valkyrie and Rain fighters. The attack was launched on August 11th.

The attack was catastrophic. Havenic close air support was torn to shreds by well placed towed anti-air artillery, ranging from 37mm to 155mm, and by mobile Praetorian II systems which were coming in from the north as reinforcements. Havenic bombing attempts were thwarted by the lack of accuracy, given the bombing altitude, and by hit and run tactics pursued by the squadrons of the then brand new Lu-27 Condor Hypersonic Interceptors. Worst of all was the apathetic crossing operation put up by the 48th Mechanized Division. Maj. Gen. Fernández highlighted as crossing points the shallow areas of the river, allowing no major bridging attempt to take place. The consequences were severe. Havenic IFVs and tanks attacked where it was most obvious and they were slaughtered by wave upon wave of anti-tank missiles and heavy small arms gunfire. For over seven days the 48th constantly pressured the river defenses, but their lack of initiative and poor choice of ground caused the division to literally cease to exist by the time the Imperial counterstroke began on August 18th.

One of the major protagonists of the defense of the River Styx at the Mosnoi Bor sector was the Morrigan. The Morrigan's 380mm gun which opened fire on the last day of the Havenic offensive literally stopped enemy armor in its tracks. The counterstroke began as an improvisation directly after the Morrigan had stopped the Havenic armor across the river. Immediately thereafter the Morrigan crossed the river without problems and forced the 48th and flanking units to flee in fear. The effect of the advance of this tank and aiding artillery bombardments caused the immediate disintegration of the Havenic deployment to the front. This gap was widened by the 12th Arca Division in Operation FESTIVAL, the continuation of the Morrigan's counterstroke at Mosnoi Bor. Within days at least two thousand tanks and twenty thousand infantry exploited the gap, widened it, and managed to bag at least 60,000 Havenic troops before FESTIVAL was forced to suddenly halt due to a lack of logistical rope.

The only possible conclusion to Mosnoi Bor is that the Morrigan ultimately was the weapon that turned the initiative over to the Empire. Although it was a lack of coordination, vision, and initiative that doomed the 48th's offensive over the Styx, it was the super heavy tank that allowed FESTIVAL the unprecedented success at Mosnoi Bor.

Renaissance of Mammoth Proportions
The debut of the super heavy in the War of Golden Succession, manifested by the coup of the Morrigan on the battlefield, brought upon the war a revolution in armament. New Empire, a heavy manufacturer of tanks of this type, was quick to profit from weapons imports in SafeHaven2, who quickly procured several of his own Ogre Mk. X superheavy tanks. In fact, the official procurement telegram stated 'as many as possible'. There was also widespread fear that Haven's allies, including Stevid and Independent Hitment, would procure or design their own. Consequently, Fedala began work on ideas on how to defeat a weapon that they introduced in the first place. The first result was the Xarc.

Pre-battle estimates, in September 2016, on numbers deployed inside the Ishme-Dagan salient, occupied by Havenic and allied armies, gave numbers including over 50,000 main battle tanks, two million infantry, and hundreds of thousands of other materials. Numbers surrounding the salient from only the Empire more or less equaled this force. All in all, there were over 110,000 main battle tanks deployed at Ishme-Dagan, and given these massive proportions it was very likely that there would be a large number of super heavies as well. The Xarc was a quick, improvised response to deal with the issue. Along with the Xarc the RIT.99 and other recoilless weapons would also make their debut.

Given this 'revolution', or 'renaissance', the War of Golden Succession would become the prime example of warfare between super heavy tanks and anti-tank warfare. The latter would begin with the saga of the Xarc.

GS.35 370mm 'Ogre' High-Velocity Smoothbore Cannon
The first production series of the Xarc are fitted with the GS.35 recoilless 370mm Ogre smoothbore cannon. The name Ogre was simply chosen since the primary foe of the Xarc would be the New Imperial Ogre series. Because of the experimental nature of the Xarc, the GS.35 is perhaps one of the most advanced cannon technologies that currently exist in the Empire. Indeed, the Xarc is used an experimental test platform to achieve higher and higher muzzle energies by experimenting with new technologies. Since the appearance of the Nakíl prototype in August 2016 [of which, the Nakíl 1A1 is almost a direct copy of; rushed into production] liquid propellant technologies have become one of the Empire's favorites, and it would be non-natural to not employ it with the GS.35. However, the GS.35 does not use the same HAN based monopropellant used by tanks such as the Broadsword-Tizona and the Nakíl. Instead, it uses a bipropellant mix in order to achieve even higher muzzle velocities. The hyperbolic bipropellant is stored in two separate cells - one for each compound. The right cell stores nitric acid while the left cell stores various types of hydrocarbons. The problem of lack of control of the expansion when the two separate liquids mix is solved by adding an electrical switch behind the breech, which then stimulates a plasma cartridge - in other words, a return to electrothermal-chemical technologies, which had been abandoned after the Cougar. The plasma simply controls the extent of the reaction throughout its expansion up the barrel.

Note to the wise, however. Bipropellants are not considered viable technologies for main battle tanks by the Empire, given the logistical problems of shipping both parts of the propellant in separate cells, and the dangers of a violent reaction if any foreign element or compound mixes by accident - for example, oxygen or water. However, the Xarc is considered a special case given the low numbers of Xarcs that will see production, and is experimenting the idea of bipropellants to enrich the Empire's engineers with more information on liquid propellants - especially when monopropellants are so widely used in the Empire at this point in time. The Xarc is also an important experiment testing the relationship between electrothermal-chemical technology and liquid propellants.

The GS.35 is mounted on a gun ring which can pivot; a 'mini-turret' if you will. This allows the Xarc to maneuver itself into more favorable grounds, even if they don't particularly point towards the direction of the incoming SHBT. The turret ring is protected by bulging armour which surrounds the base of the gun, and also partially protects the hydraulic elevation gears - the hydraulics are inaccessible, except from the inside, while the rear section of the elevation gears can be accessed by an enemy round - small arms fire exempt. However, the Xarc's mission is not to engage smaller tanks, except only under special circumstances, and even if did engage range imparity would be obvious - the enemy MBT would not be in range to aim at that specific point of the Xarc.

Ammunition [Some]
High Explosive, Nuclear -

The 'HEN' is an all new nuclear explosive designed to simply incinerate the affected armour of an ultra heavy or super heavy. The idea is that this round, moving at slow velocities, strikes the armour with the armour piercing cap, which both protects the fissionable material inside the warhead and acts as an initiation layer. The subsequent chemical reaction from the explosions in the rear, set off by the initiation, will cause a fission reaction in the nuclear warhead. The consequent explosion will not only create a plasma which would burn through the armour, but will create several shockwaves large enough to simply shatter the armoured panels. Two overly large waveshapers, such as the smaller ones used on high explosive anti-tank [HEAT] shells, would direct axial waves parallel to the armour; in other words, full force would be literally directed into the armour. The idea being that the explosion would happen completely adjacent to the armour, and thus would receive the full extent of the mechanical shockwaves. The entire process would take mere microseconds to complete itself, meaning there's little chance of the round 'detaching' itself from the armour before the explosion. The nuclear explosion itself, of 10.7t, would have an area effect of around five hundred meters. It's expected that it would result in an automatic kill, although one could expect five or six HENs shreaking towards the enemy tank simultanuously.

Armour Piercing, Ballistically Capped -
Accepting the fact that tactical nuclear weapons brought into play can spiral into an unwanted strategic exchange where the Empire would obviously be at a disadvantage the Xarc also has a specially made armour piercing, ballistically capped [APBC] round for conventional engagements. However, Xarc gunners still prefer the HEN round since it doesn't force them to work in large groups in order to overwhelm defenses and get enough accurate hits to put the enemy SHBT out of action. Nevertheless, this high velocity APBC round is a very powerful alternative. The heavy steel cap is capable of ploughing through parts of the frontal armour of any SHBT or UHBT design, and decisively through the side and rear armours. The extent of damage can be considered higher as the steel cap has a thick dU core with a tungsten jacket. The mass of the entire penetrator is 50kg+. The 150kg high explosive [HE] deals sufficient damage inside to effectively knock the target out.

Fired from the Xarc at a velocity of around 1,700m/sec the APBC can penetrate ~3,000mm+ of RHAe at 2,000m, and the subsequent explosion should be able to simply shatter remaining armour if full penetration failed - meaning reinforcing rounds should quickly put the tank out of action, anyways. However, given the lack of guarantee of a quick kill this round does require Xarcs to operate in large teams and with large amounts of supporting artillery and general armour. This is certainly not a quick kill system.

Drivetrain:
The Xarc uses an expensive active and dynamic hydropneumatic suspension system. The ideal reason for the use of what would normally be categorized as inefficient, expensive and superfluous is to allow the Xarc to hide behind the hills of Ruska and Northern Safehaven and simply elevate itself without showing too much of a profile by actively lifting the suspension in the rear road wheels of the track. It can also be used to hide behind other large objects, and even defending super heavies as super heavies from both sides of the battle begin to engage each other. The actual suspension units are almost identical to those used on tanks such as the Nakíl or Broadsword-Tizonia, albeit a bit larger, although the electronics are unique to the Xarc.

The suspension and tracks are all ran by a large 1,690hp gas turbine, identical to that used by the Nakíl, which powers a large auxiliary power unit which can run the suspension, fire and control and gun mechanism without the engine having to be turned on, aiding in achieving surprise for the Xarc

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 4:56 pm

The León is a lightweight self-propelled 160mm L/50 howitzer, designed to be air transportable in tactical aircraft. The chassis is the same as the Lince’s, although in internal structure it closely resembles the Centauro armored personnel vehicle. In fact, the Leon’s turret is designed to be easily fitted into a modified Centauro – although, such an upgrade would require the modification of the vehicle’s armor panels, and some minor modification of the internal volume. The turret can incorporate a 155mm howitzer, as well, and anything smaller. The León is designed, specifically, to be deployed in airmobile and airborne brigades and divisions world wide, and therefore the turret can only hold a single gun. The León’s brother, the heavier Titán, has a double howitzer turret and will be slated to be deployed with heavier mechanized infantry brigades and divisions. The idea for the León stemmed from the Lince’s increasing importance in foreign airmobile divisions, in armies that are keeping their older and heavier main battle tanks for heavy mechanized battalions. The León is the perfect howitzer to partake a similar role in the same units, and works hand in hand with the Lince. Furthermore, both use the same propellant and the same engine (although the Leon’s engine is smaller – the same as the Centauro’s), and therefore the vehicle presents itself as a wiser solution for the need of a lightweight air transportable self-propelled howitzers. Airborne divisions will no longer have to rely entirely on lightweight fixed howitzer batteries for artillery support. Furthermore, despite being a lightweight design, it should be noted that the León is one of the most advanced single-howitzer systems currently on the market.

Castilla y Belmonte will be acquiring four batteries of eight howitzers a piece for its sole airborne brigade, totaling thirty-two pieces. As the Castillian Ejército de Tierra continues to grow the parliament may acquiesce to a further procurement of another thirty-two pieces for a second airborne brigade. The army is also exploring the adoption of the howitzer for its mechanized infantry brigades, which will receive a large number of other Lince variants – including the Centauro armored personnel carrier – and may be transformed into lightweight mechanized infantry brigades. These eight brigades may be allotted a total of eight batteries each, for a total procurement of five hundred and twelve more. The three armor brigades are also considering the León and may outfit two batteries per brigade or one if the Titán is adopted. Currently, these heavier brigades are juggling between the heavy Titán and the lightweight León. Although the Titán offers insuperable firepower, the León is far more lightweight and may offer the army more operational flexibility. Some believe that the mechanized brigades should adopt a majority of lightweight artillery batteries, and a number of heavy weight artillery batteries which would need strategic air lifters. In total, the kingdom may procure six hundred and twenty-four units – this is if the Titán is not chosen in its place. Sistemas Terrestres Segovia is hoping to sell the unit to a number of foreign armies, especially those who have adopted the Lince as their tank of choice. Like all other Lince variants, the León will also be offered on the open market. STS is hoping to cater to clients with large airmobile formations, or the general need of lightweight self-propelled howitzers.

The León incorporates a number of design priorities and ideas that maximize its utility in both conventional warfare and asymmetrical combat. The vehicle itself is designed to be as lightweight as possible, but with enough protection to defeat relevant anti-artillery threats. As a consequence, Sistemas Terrestres Segovia has incorporated a number of light-weight armor innovations, and has designed a lightweight gun similar to that used by the Lince. High mobility is also imperative, especially when supporting quick-moving armor units, and therefore the León introduces a mix between a capable suspension and a high-power engine. Just as importantly, the modular nature of the vehicle allows easy modifications for different clients – in other words, the León can be customized to your needs. Besides, the León has a large growth potential, meaning that it will most likely be modified and modernized throughout its lifespan, improving its capabilities and eliminating disadvantages as new technologies are developed. These include improved liquid propellants (perhaps a liquid propellant modular charge), improved barrel liners to increase barrel pressure, new types of ammunition and superior fire control radars. Given that the León will definitely be deployed within the Castillian Army, clients can be reassured that new technologies will always be integrated to improve system performance. There are few self-propelled howitzer systems available on today’s market which offers this type of firepower, mobility, protection and the reassurance of cheap replacements – modification. This is all compounded by the light weight of the vehicle and the gun, which make the system easily deployable.

Sistemas Terrestres Segovia will begin producing thirty-two pieces per year for the airborne brigade, and will increase production depending on further orders from the Castillian Army or Navy. As a consequence, Sistemas Terrestres Segovia has the ability to fulfill large orders for foreign nations. Recently, Sistemas Terrestres Segovia has also acquired a number of large factories in Malatose and Doomingsland, which are fulfilling orders in those countries for the Lince main battle tank. Despite the simultaneous production of this tank for its respective country, Sistemas Terrestres Segovia is now able to produce in very large quantities any piece of equipment it sells. Otherwise, Sistemas Terrestres Segovia also makes available ‘limited’ indigenous production of the León – a nation can produce a preordained number of units, established in a contract with Sistemas Terrestres Segovia. Simultaneous production split between STS and home factories is also possible. STS makes procurement very flexible and production easy, and aims towards arming your military as fast and as comfortable as possible. Future modification packages (starting at the León A) will also be made available for indigenous production and application, given the proper contract is established. Nevertheless, STS guarantees that equipment purchased from their engineers will always be maintained and modernized to stay at the top of the line.

The principle weapon is Calzado y Bayo’s CBH790 160mm L/50 rifled howitzer, designed for long-range and precision strike using base-bled artillery munitions. The CBH790 uses a HAN-based liquid propellant for ignition and is stored and pumped in large volumes to increase range and velocity. In order to withstand higher barrel pressures, therefore allowing for a larger volume of propellant to be used per shot, the cannon’s barrel is lined with chromium. This propellant is the same propellant currently being used with the Lynx and Lince main battle tanks, and actually commits less barrel wear than an equal volume solid propellant. Using an extended-range base-bled high explosive projectile, the León has a maximum range of fifty-two kilometers – it has been proven that rocket assisted projectiles (RAP) can reach ranges of almost eighty kilometers, and this may be integrated into a future version of the León. The gun’s recoil cylinders and part of the breech are constructed out of lightweight titanium alloy. This substantially decreases the weight of the breech and the gun mount inside the turret. Despite the caliber of the gun, a lightweight design is imperative to allow for the vehicle to be airmobile. The León’s gun features a single-baffle muzzle break with 70% efficiency, much like the Lynx main battle tank, and a longer recoil travel. An efficient gun-based recoil dampening system (muzzle break and recoil travel), matted with the hydropneumatic suspension system, allows the gun to fire at a high rate of fire without relying on spades to fix the vehicle in its firing position. Furthermore, with the high-efficiency muzzle break the Lynx chassis can survive the impulse of the recoil without problems.

The gun is mounted in an aluminum turret, designed only to offer enough armor to defend against relative threats – light small-arms ammunition and counter-battery fire large-caliber artillery shrapnel. Therefore, the sides and front of the turret are less than 100mm thick on all sides, constructed out of aluminum, and the aluminum structure of the turret has an Aramid backing plate to protect against excessive spalling. The turret can be fitted with mounting points for a lightweight explosive reactive armor to protect against man-portable shaped charge warheads on the field, and this armor is designed to limit the velocity of the back-plate to make it fully compatible with the lightweight design of the turret’s structure and armor. A similar lightweight explosive reactive armor, although with a much more limited reaction caused by a less impulsive explosive, is mounted on the vehicle’s roof to protect against top-attack small shaped charge submunitions and explosively formed projectiles. Using two thin titanium flier plates, and two more thin plates backed by S-2 glass, this lightweight explosive reactive armor is composed in very small bricks to increase multi-hit impact – however, the small size makes them relatively worthless against kinetic energy weapons. Nevertheless, the explosive reactive armor can defeat top-attack shaped-charge submunitions and their weaker brethren, explosively formed penetrators. This doesn’t include man-portable top-attack anti-tank missiles, and if these become a threat an active protection system can easily be applied to the vehicle. The chassis has a similar protection level, with all-around protection versus 15mm armor-piercing small-arms ammunition (the turret only against 12mm armor-piercing bullets). This armor is composed of laminated aluminum, titanium and very hard steel (VHS; between 550 – 630 BHN), and has a total thickness of around 60mm on the glacis plate up to around 80mm on the sides and rear of the vehicle. The vehicle’s hull is protected by laminate titanium and triple-hardness steel (laminated steel plates composed of rolled homogenous steel (RHA), semi-hard steel (SHS) and high-hardness steel (HHS)) and can deflect (due to bulging) and absorb a blast from an improvised explosive device or an anti-tank land-mine.

CBH790 160mm howitzer is joined by an advanced fire control system (FCS); both the commander and gunner have retractable (during flight) independent sights, including thermal sights, infra-red sights and a laser rangefinder. The fire control system monitors a number of variables and factors them into the ballistic equation to increase the accuracy of the León. A radar sensor near the muzzle computes muzzle velocity, while the fire control system also has a wind sensor, a global positioning system, a satellite communications ‘radio’, a sensor to measure the temperature of the barrel, and more. Together with the -3º and +70º of the barrel, an automatic gun laying system can aid to provide an accuracy of a 1 millimeter probability of error! This accuracy and efficiency is increased by the use of a laser inertial artillery pointing system which gives the gunner information relevant to the exact position and bearing of the barrel, and how it relates to the target. The fire control system can also guarantee simultaneous impact of up to six to eight rounds, and coupled with the automatic loader can fire a total of twelve rounds in the first minute.

The León stores up to fifty 160mm howitzer rounds throughout the chassis – thanks to the compact hybrid gas turbine power pack – and these are robotically loaded to a center carousel, with the ammunition facing face-down. A robotic loading arm unloads the ready-ammunition from the carousel into the chamber. The entire operation is done electronically, with brushless servo electric motors – there is no hydraulic system mounted on the vehicle. The autoloader can be loaded with different types of ammunition and the system includes a computer to sort the type of ammunition available – all the gunner has to do is select the ammunition he wants to use. Ammunition cases are automatically ejected through a fairly large elliptical hatch on the right side (looking from the rear) of the turret to avoid the build-up of gasses inside the turret. Ammunition can be loaded manually through the rear door on the vehicle, which normally refers to manual loading during war-time operations from ground stocks (for sustained fire). This ammunition is simply autoloaded into the center carousel; of course, once the carousel is relying only on manually loaded ammunition the rate of fire will decrease. Otherwise, ammunition can be automatically loaded by the artillery re-supply vehicle (ARV) designed specifically for the León, and also designed on the tracked Lynx chassis. Automatically, loading fifty rounds of ammunition will require about five minutes completing, as opposed to perhaps double from a human crew. The autoloader’s computer will sort the ammunition in the carousel, once the round is due to pass through the carousel.

Apart from the howitzer, the León also counts on the tank commander’s remote weapon station mounted on the turret (not seen on the picture) with a heavy G4B 13.3mm machine gun – like always, this machine gun can be changed with another caliber, or another weapon system which can fit the HammerFist remote weapon station. The turret also mounts a total of eight 76mm grenades per side (also, not seen in the image) which can fire fragmentation grenades, high-explosive grenades, smoke grenades and signal grenades. The commander, driver and gunner all have at their disposal an Iral model R short assault rifle, similar to the Lince’s tank crew, for self-defense in case the crew needs to evacuate the vehicle. As mentioned before, the vehicle can mount an active protection system and the modular armor system allows for the application of heavier protection if this is found necessary. The vehicle is currently protected against EMP charges and is prepared for NBC warfare. Its signature can be reduced through the application of Jungla netting – the same camouflage netting on the Lince. Furthermore, the chassis and turret mount two fire suppression systems, and the liquid propellant cells are located under the breech to avoid breaching the cells from the breech’s overpressure. Currently, the Lince is a very safe vehicle, although it is not designed to operate behind enemy lines or in areas where ambush by infantry is a very real possibility. For these scenarios, the Lince’s protection can be radically bettered to improve its survivability in these situations.

Perhaps another important consideration is the 900hp engine – the same as used on the Centauro – and the hydropneumatic suspension system. Apart from decreasing the effect of the recoil on the vehicle and suspension, the hydropneumatic suspension matted with a low-volume and high-output gas turbine can achieve cross-country and on-road velocities similar to that of the Lince and Lynx, meaning that the León can keep up with the operational velocity of mechanized and armored brigades and divisions without a problem. In other words, the León can provide direct and indirect fire support for fast operations – this is joined by the fact that, due to its weight, the vehicle is also airmobile. Finally, the vehicle has an on-road range of five hundred and fifty kilometers.

Specifications
Manufacturer: Sistemas Terrestres Segovia
Crew: 3 (commander, gunner and driver)

Dimensions –
Length (hull): 7.1m
Contact with the Ground: 4.9m
Width (hull): 3.65m
Height (to roof): 2.25m
Vertical Deflection Range: 550mm
Weight: 23,700 kilograms

Main Armament –
Gun: CBH.790 160mm L/50 liquid propellant howitzer
Length: 8m
Extended Recoil Length: 550mm
Muzzle Break: Single-chamber muzzle break (70% efficiency)
Angle of Fire: -3º - + 70º
Traverse: 360º
Rate of Fire: 12 rpm
Ammunition: 50 rounds in the chassis

Secondary Armaments –
HammerFist remote weapon system
16x 76mm grenade launchers
3x 7mm short assault rifles

Engine: TA series 600 900hp hybrid gas turbine
Volume: .63m3
Output: 900hp (minimum)
Transmission: Industria Mecánica Real IMR-8020-30 hydrokinetic transmission
Efficiency: 83%
Suspension: Hydropneumatic
Tracks: MecániCas Type 640
NBC: One filter. Air conditioning system. Sealed.
Fire Protection: Two fire extinguishers.
Range: 550km
Slope: 65º
Vertical Obstacle: 1.4m
Wading Capability: 1.5m
Amphibious capability with preparation: 4.5m
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Cost: $4.3 million

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:01 pm

With the larger, heavier and bulkier Arica. I Shalmanesar armoured personnelcarrier slowly replacing the SOV-6 infantry fighting vehicle, especially accelerated after the battle of Ishme-Dagan, Kriegzimmer decided to convert them majority of its SOV-6, including those used by the Ejermacht, into a much needed self-propelled mortar system, which was smaller than the G17, and could be employed in larger numbers, and in different missions. It would, in other words, be used in scenarios that didn't necessarilly need the heavy explosive power of a 240mm mortar. But because of the similarity between the two projects, the G6 and G17 would be roughly similar in manufacturing technologies, meaning barrel technologies would remain relatively the same - a steel constructed chrome plated mortar. The first of the G6s would begin to be used by the Ejermacht August 2016, before the Battle of Ishme-Dagan, but it would not truly begin to be fully deployed and manufactured until March 2017, since it would need all the SOV-6s post-Ishme Dagan in order to fulfill requirements. Nevertheless, it was worth the wait, and it would become the new mortar of the mechanized portions of the Ejermacht.

The mortar is breech loaded by an autoloader to keep up a continous rate of fire, rating the autoloader to the human loader due to real time human fatigue during fast reloading. The gun is also water cooled, like its larger partner, and keeps a rate of fire of ten rounds per minute, with 6 seconds required to reload per tube. The projectile weight is roughly 16 kilograms and can be fired at a range of up to 7,500 meters, or around 13,200 meters with extended range support. The mortar has a mininum range of 425 meters. When the round is loaded, it trips a tab on the tube, preventing another round from being loaded; the tab shifts to the ready position when the round fires. To load the power-assited rammer pushed the round, previously stowed in the vehicle's hull, into the breech, and the bomb pivots on the trunnions, placed on either side in cylindrical canisters, to bring the breech near the rear of the hull for loading.

Limitations include a limited traverse capability, and this time, to prioritize a lower weight, the open mount provides no protection for the crew in firing position. The baseplate has four flat sides, rounded corners, and a star pattern, and it's folded at a foward angle above the breech in travel position. The hydraulically controlled elevation of the gun also proves to be rather heavy, although a cheaper and easier alternative to others.

Specifications:
Length: 6.4m
Width: 3.2m
Height: 3.01m
Chassis: SOV-6 IFV
Weight: 21t
Crew: 4
Power Plant: 500 bhp disel
Range: 575km
Velocity: 75 km/h
Gross Horsepower to Weight Ratio: 23.8hp/t
Trench Crossing: 153.31cm
Vertical Wall Climbing: 54.7cm
Armament:
120mm Mortar
Quadruple head 30mm auto-grenade launcher system
Range: 16kg HE round @ 7,500m
Extended Range: 13,400m
Barrel Life: est. 1,200 launches
Procurement Cost: 2.6 million
Production Rights: 14.4 billion

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:02 pm

Description: The G17 is the first in a line of self-propelled mortars released by Kriegzimmer, and is one of the largest mortars to be actively fielded by any modern army in extensive numbers. That said, the weapon is loosely based off the 2S4, the largest self-propelled mortar to be fielded prior to the fall of the Soviet Union, although restricted by severe limitations forced upon it by poor Soviet engineering in the area, including a very limited traverse, and a lack of general protection for the crew do to the open mount. The G17 looks to improve and generally outdo its Soviet counterpart, as well as provide the Empire with what would be its first true indegenous mortar design. The G17 also has improved shell (bomb) technology, and is immensely more accurate than any of its predecessors. That said, the G17 also sports a higher rate of fire, a better built water cooling system, and increased range. The first units began to roll off the production lines by August 2016, comissioned for the Ejermacht.

The gun's bore is 254mm wide, or 10in, while it rises to a length of 5,340mm [5.43m]. The gun is contructed out of high grade steel, and lined with lightweight chromium, increasing the amount of barrel pressure applicable from the propellant. The G17s gun can withstand a tested 675MPa worth of pressure, allowing for larger propellants to fire larger rounds, and increasing barrel life. The solid propellant uses the full length of the barrel and the full volume of the gun to achieve maximum range if needed, and to allow greater weights worth of high explosive shells. The solid propellant itself is detonated when the shell is loaded into the breech, and the pressure of the round sets off a pin which sets off the propellant. This makes the system slightly more complex than a standard mortar tube, but allows for much simpler insertion mechanics. That said, the gun still acts as a mortar by keeping high-arcing ballistics. The trunnions are located on either side of the tube, in two vertical cylinders around the collar.

The entire vehicle is protected by a thin 18mm layer of advance modular armour protection [AMAP], offering roughly 36mm worth of RHAe on the glacis, around 17mm RHAe on the side, and around 8mm in the rear, providing enough protection against small arms, although higher calibre rounds can still penetrate the hull. That said, the system is not designed as a frontline vehicle, and is designed to operate in a protected artillery company. The crew is protected by a thin roof, which forces the rear of the gun to be elevated, but allows the crew protection. The roof is covered by blast shields, while any windows are strong enough to withstand the overpressures and other effects associated with the firing of 254mm mortars.

The G17 can receive accurate information from aerial reconnaissance, and from ground based surface search penetrating radars. Fire and control is normally battery oriented, and a single gun, or a battery, can be called on by infantry and use coordinates to base fire. More modern alternatives include laser targetting and designation, as well as radar and other light based targetting systems, such as ladar and lidar, the former being the most used. That said, the rounds used are normally rocket propelled high explosive bombs, and the G17's nominal enemies include infantry in an open field or enclosed battle, as well as close range, or even point blank, artillery duties against fortifications in urban combat. The large calibre gun can also knock out light armoured fighting vehicles, such as many armoured personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles, and the range of the gun gives the G17 an advantage over similar systems in this case.

Specifications:
Length: 9.2m
Width: 3.8m
Height: 2.45m
Chassis: Arca. I Cougar Ausva. A
Weight: 43t
Crew: 4
Power Plant: 700 hp disel
Range: 615km
Velocity: 75 km/h
Gross Horsepower to Weight Ratio: 25hp/t
Trench Crossing: 187.96cm
Vertical Wall Climbing: 63.5cm
Armament:
254mm Mortar
Quadruple head 30mm auto-grenade launcher system
Range: 150kg HE round @ 10,400m
Extended Range: 22,370m
Barrel Life: est. 1,200 launches
Procurement Cost: 3.1 million
Production Rights: 17.4 billion

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:15 pm

The landmine threat has been in constant evolution since the 19th century. New technologies, which can be applied to improvised explosive devices (IED) in ad-hoc factories at one’s house, have allowed high-lethality in a compact volume. An IED, armed with a relatively small and light explosively formed penetrator (EFP), can penetrate up to 150 mm of rolled homogenous steel (RHA). This figure for penetration can mean several different things to several different types of vehicles. More modern armored fighting vehicles have been designed to withstand mine blasts, and several older vehicles have been retrofitted. It’s far easier to protect a 60 metric ton (from now on simply referred to as ‘ton’) tank against 150 mm of penetration with floor armor than it is to protect an armored truck with specific weight limitations. A supply truck’s engine can supply a certain amount of torque to pull a certain amount of weight – the less heavy the vehicle is the more it can pull. Nevertheless, the increasing casualty count in international warzones due to the use of IEDs has made protection from these threats imperative. Unfortunately, these vehicles aren’t cheap. Nevertheless, it’s cheaper to purchase a $500,000 armored truck – or even a $750,000 armored truck – than it is to lose four soldiers. In an average first-world nation each enlisted soldier can cost up to $500,000 to train and put in a warzone. So, if a vehicle is destroyed and two or more soldiers are killed their deaths have just justified the cost of an advanced mine-resistant armored truck! It should be noted that the majority of this cost comes from the integration of advanced global positioning systems and battle management systems, however.

A second, equally as dangerous, threat is the rocket propelled grenade (RPG). This is especially true when they are being manufactured and distributed by world-class armament manufacturers. Some distributed RPGs boast of depleted uranium liners, with penetrations of around 1m! This is effectively 200-300 mm more than older RPG designs. Unfortunately, these new RPGs and even light anti-tank missiles are much more difficult to protect against. A main battle tank has a protection equivalent to rolled homogenous steel (RHAe) of around 1,500-1,700 mm, requiring around 35 tons of armor weight. It’s simply impossible to provide a truck with the necessary armor thickness to defend against rocket propelled grenades. Furthermore, newer, more lightweight systems such as active protection systems are hard to apply due to cost considerations. The application of an active protection system into a $750,000 vehicle would increment this cost by at least another $400,000. This makes the truck more expensive than a main battle tank from the late 70s! But, to judge the threat of RPGs versus IEDs it should be noted that during the Castillian Civil War 9% of deaths in supply trucking could be attributed to rocket propelled grenade attacks, while 36% were attributed to landmines.

MecániCas’ Tiznao-60 is an attempt to provide world militaries with a state-of-the-art armored truck for supply and logistics using advanced armor compositions, advanced engines and suspensions, and allowing the truck to pull the maximum amount of weight as possible. The project’s birth is the responsibility of the Northfordian government and military, which required an advanced mine-resistant ambush protected (MRAP) supply truck for use in a jungle environment – ‘ambush’ territory. A few months into the development process MecániCas was awarded a contract to develop the vehicle for future procurement by the Ejército de Tierra, as well. The exact number to be purchased by the Northfordian military is still unknown, although it’s estimated at around 8,000. The much smaller Castillian Army has declared intentions to procure a total of 2,400 to equip the logistics sectors of the nine currently existent brigades and the three which will join the Ejército de Tierra within the next year. The total cost of the Tiznao-60 program for the government of Castilla y Belmonte is estimated to be at around 570 million pesetas! This includes spare parts and test facilities, as well as the procurement of any new tools required for the maintenance of these new trucks. The Northfordian purchase can be worth as much as 500 million universal standard dollars (USD). The Northfordian military has plans to convert several of the base vehicles to surrogate designs for different mission profiles.

Protection
The protection requirements outlined by both the Castillian and Northfordian governments urged protection against high-caliber small-arm armor piercing (AP) munitions around the crew cabin and body perimeter. Furthermore, the crew cabin’s overhead armor had to be immune to penetration by 155 mm artillery fragments. Finally, in regards to mines and improvised explosive devices the vehicle would have to have maximized protection against these threats in order to protect the lives of the crew and the integrity of the cargo. Protection against rocket propelled grenades is not being pursued seriously at this time given the elevated penetration capabilities of a 105 mm (in diameter) rocket propelled grenade. The passive protection mass and thickness required to defeat these threats has been deemed out of the question, and currently MecániCas cannot offer newer technologies. The use of an active protection system has also been excluded as an option due to cost considerations – a state-of-the-art active protection system can cost up to just fewer than one million universal standard dollars. This would effectively double, or even triple, the price of an armored truck!

The crew cabin and truck frame is constructed out of improved cast homogenous armored steel (IRHA) with low ballistic importance – the material isn’t thick enough to provide the weight of the armor. Steel with .26% carbon is used due to weldability, given that high hardness steel (HHS) with carbon levels of around .30% suffer from poor weldability. The principle armor component is manufactured before being applied to the vehicle and comes in modular packages of different sizes to fit correctly on different surface areas of the vehicle – the modules are called ArmorMaxx. This armor package is available for export, as well, as an armor add-on kit for foreign armored trucks whose owners can’t afford brand-new vehicles. ArmorMaxx has the capability to withstand several armor piercing hits on the same module and is lightweight as compared to other armor schemes. The first layer, looking at the armor from a perspective ‘outside’ the vehicle, is a thin titanium initiator plate to keep the integrity of the module in case of a nearby artillery explosion. Backed by a composite, this initiator plate also decreases the heat signature of the vehicle. The titanium encases a thick layer of boron carbide ceramic which provides most of the ballistic protection of ArmorMaxx. Boron carbide, although cheaper to manufacture than it was a decade ago, is still expensive compared to alumina or silicon carbide. However, it’s ballistic properties are superior in many ways – boron carbide has a low bulk density (an average of 2,510 kg/m3 compared to an average of 3,150 kg/m3 of silicon carbide and an average of 3,870 kg/m3 for alumina), while it has a high hardness value (2,800-3,400 Vickers hardness [HV], 1,800-2,800 HV and 1,500-1,900 HV for boron carbide, silicon carbide and alumina respectively). Multi-hit capability is established through the use of an aluminum foam backing layer. Finally, a final thick layer of armor for further ballistic protection is established through the use of S-glass. Thickness of the modules depends on the required protection. For example, for protection against the 15 mm armor piercing threat the ArmorMaxx module would be at the very least 95 mm thick, plus the thickness of the aluminum foam backing layer which can be between 2.5-4 mm thick. Therefore, against high-caliber small arm armor piercing ammunition the standard module thickness is 98 mm (average/estimation). Finally, the vehicle’s interior is protected by a metal matrix composite spall liner.

To specify, the areas with the greatest protection – that is, protected against 15mm armor piercing small-arms ammunition (API) – are the crew cabin, the vehicle frame perimeter (specifically surface areas which cover the volume of the vehicle reserved for cargo (or personnel) and the fuel tanks. It should be noted that the modular nature of the armor allows the dismantling of thick armor panels in favor lighter armor panels for operations behind the front-lines or in relatively safe areas. This allows for a higher cargo weight. The engine bay and areas of secondary priorities are protected against 8mm API, while areas of least priorities are protected against 8mm ball ammunition. One of the current problems with ArmorMaxx is the minimum thickness requirement to defeat tungsten-cored armor piercing ammunition. This problem is attributed to the use of boron carbide. Future versions of ArmorMaxx may use a different ceramic and confinement material to decrease weight further.

Like most modern vehicles built to the newest requirements, the Tiznao-60 has a V-shaped hull bottom to deflect an IED’s or mine’s blast. The use of very steep angles to form the ‘V’ also maximizes the line-of-sight (LOS) thickness of the hull bottom’s titanium armor plating – in the case of the Tiznao-60 the thickness of the bottom plate assuming that the shaped charge or EFP is penetrating near the center of the vehicle (part of the hull closest to the ground) is around 100mm thick! The armor plating is not homogenous. The bottommost layer features a gradient hardened triple-hardness steel plate separated from a titanium plate by a thick layer of aluminum foam to soak up most of the mechanical energy induced by the blast. Therefore, structural damage to the metal is kept at a minimum and protection against the actual explosively formed penetrator kept at a maximum. Although not as heavy as a homogenous steel plate of equal thickness, a weight penalty is still incurred. To protect from spalling, the metal matrix composite spall liner also covers the floor boards of the vehicle. The two-man crew in the cabin is protected from mines due to the V-shaped floor panels of the hull and a cabin-behind-engine design. Furthermore, the crew’s seats are suspended from the floor panels and are designed to protect the body from unnatural snapping movements during an explosion or from unnatural positions.

Mobility
The Tiznao-60 is powered 380 hp diesel engine occupying about .66 m3 worth of internal volume. The amount of torque produced by the engine allows the vehicle to carry eleven tons of material over its empty weight (twelve tons – metric tons should be assumed in all cases) on-road, and seven tons over its weight off-road. The greater ability to carry more weight off-road is provided by a brand-new cross between an air-suspension and leafspring suspension. Originally, MecániCas had preferred a hydropneumatic suspension but the former provides a cheaper solution. Off-road mobility is improved through the application of a central backbone tube which avoids twisting of the vehicle. According to company sources the Tiznao-60 can operate on over 70% of current soil types.

To maximize the truck’s capabilities to survive an ambush it uses run-flat tires. The truck can still move at an ample place with all eight tires popped for about 700 m. In a more open environment this distance can mean little, except to allow for combat units to have an open area to engage the enemy. In a closed area this distance is quite a bit, as it can mean that the truck has left the line of sight of the ambushing unit!

Vehicle Specifications
Manufacturer: MecániCas
Dimensions: 2.3m (width) x 7.2m (length) x 2-6m height.
Weight: 12 tons (metric)
Armor Protection:
- Against 15mm API around crew cabin, fuel tanks and cargo perimeter.
- Versus 8mm API around engine bay and suspension.
- Versus 8mm ball ammunition all-around.
- Protection from 155mm fragments around the crew cabin, cargo perimeter, engine bay and suspension units.
- Belly protection from large anti-tank mines and improvised explosive devices.
- Suspended crew seats.

Engine: DC serie 200 380 hp high-output diesel engine.
Transmission: IMR-7080-90C automatic transmission.
On-road maximum velocity: 55 km/h
Off-road maximum velocity: 27 km/h
Maximum cruising range: 530 km
Suspension: IMR lightweight air-suspension leafspring.
Automobile capabilities:
- Antilock brakes.
- Run-flat tires.
- Anti-twist backbone tube.
- Traverse over 70%+ terrain type.

Maximum On-Road Weight: 23 tons
Maximum Off-Road Weight: 19 tons
Navigation: Global positioning system (GPS) linked to a compact computer for eased land navigation (landnav). This system is optional.
Cost: $840,000 ($210,000 without navigation electronics)

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:21 pm

Abstract:
The DNR-13 is a product which stems from a better understanding of weight issues in real time combat, and further information regarding rocket propelled grenades and their potential. The Ejermacht fields the Tagus anti-tank missile launcher, which is slightly larger and heavier than the Javelin, while packing a much larger punch, and the design played havoc on Havenic [SafeHaven2] light and heavy armour at Mosnoi Bor and thereafter. When in hands of the Weigari Rebels during the Second Battle of Mons Dei, captured from elite loyalist divisions during the First Battle of Mons Dei, the missile chewed through Killian [Hailandkill] Panzerkampfwaggen XIs, despite the tank being one of the most capable in the war. Despite the success, it was impossible to deploy the Tagus in large enough numbers where infantry could successfully hold off a determined and tenacious armoured offensive. The Tagus' size made it suffer from poor production, as opposed to other small arms, and its weight did not make it a favorite amongst troops that had to carry it, despite it being a two man weapon. That said, the simple fact that it was a two man weapon made some NCOs rather critical of the design, and instead opted to equip the two men with other armaments. Although the Tagus expects a rather long life in the Ejermact, Kriegzimmer has introduced a brand new anti-tank design. It will be lighter, although less potent, and it will be able to be cheap enough to deploy in enough numbers to provide all squadrons and platoons with a hefty amount of the recoilless rifle. In other words, it will be a worthy supplement to the Tagus anti-tank missile launcher.

The DNR-13 is a muzzle loaded, recoilless rifle, light enough to be deployed with one man. Nevertheless, the user can be susceptible to suppressing fire, and thus it's extremely common that he be flanked by a friendly gunner. The program actually began in late '89 under the auspices of the Kingdom of Sarcanza, but was halted in '94 after its occupation by Macabee forces. The program was discovered by the Empire in 2001 and restarted after the Great Civil War, in 2006. In '11 the first variant was released, but it wasn't until the beginning of the War of Golden Succession, 2016, that the program was truly accelerated. The first DNR-13s arrived at the front in 2017, supplementing around five hundred Tagus anti-tank missile launchers already in use around the area. The DNR-13 was also sent in heavy amounts to the jungles of Zarbia, where the Imperial offensive had stalled in the face of a tenacious and ferocious defense, and disease. The only limitations found on the design was the fact that it could not penetrate the front armour of a newer tank, and thus forced to aim for the side armour and rear armour of a tank. That said, it was also a cheaper alternative to the Tagus in knocking out infantry fighting vehicles and armoured personnel carriers, as well as other lighter armoured fighting vehicles.

Warhead:
The tube has a diameter of 110mm, and with a respective 70/110mm warhead, at its thickest point. For propulsion, the round relies on a small rocket engine, whilst the propellant uses the tube's full volume to effectively burn the fuze and give the jet engine maximum efficiency. The round impacts its target at around 1700 meters per second and has incredible penetration. The warhead uses a tandem HEAT complex for anti-armour penetration. Depleted Uranium forms the metal for the outer casing; it's high density allows the maximum inertia to focus with the blast. The depleted uranium is alloyed with molybdenum, for its suitable melting point - interestingly, tungsten, with a melting point of 3422° C, was found not to be suitable for the round. Reloading the round occupied around 18 seconds for the gunner. Additional variants of the warheads include a thermobaric design and a chemical design, used specifically to spread chemical products into small rooms for micro-chemical warfare. The actual substance mass is low to avoid high contamination, but it's yet another form of expanding non-conventional warfare to the basic infantry.

Caliber: 110mm
Initial velocity of grenade: 190 m/s
Mininum Range: 100m
Range: 600m
Weight: 14.5kg
Round weight: 7.2kg
Fully Loaded Weight: 21.7kg
Warhead: Tandem HEAT
Max Penetration:
RHAe penetration after ERA: 850mm
Reinforced Concrete: 1,600mm
Brick: 1,600
Log-and-Earth: 4,000
Operational Temperature Range: ±50° C
Scope: Photonic Surveyor, with laser designator.
Cost: 1,200 USD

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:22 pm

Program Background
The necessity for a man-portable light anti-tank weapon for Castillian infantry forces can be traced back to the mid-1920s, although at the time these were mostly crude and revolved around tungsten-core armor-piercing projectiles. However, lack of funding for relevant military programs in the late-1930s all the way to the mid-1960s meant that the infantry received little in the way of the required equipment to defeat the evolving armored threat. Even during the Castillian Civil War shaped charge warheads for infantry weapons were not issued in large quantities and in no way played a major role during the war, on either side. Arguably, had they been introduced in large numbers to any of the two fronts their impact may have been decisive enough to restrict mechanized operations, given that neither military had the ability to produce modification packages for the tanks which were imported from Questers, Doomingsland or Juumanistra. Furthermore, none of these providers were active enough to spend money on modifying the tanks in service during the war, given that for the most part neither side was truly making a profit from the equipment handed over. Although shaped charge tank-rounds were pressed into service, even though the kinetic energy penetrator took a more dominant role in tank versus tank fighting during the war, these were never fashioned into infantry weapons indigenously. At the time, a well-manufactured shaped charge of around 80mm diameter could have penetrated a Doomani MAD.II main battle tank on all sides, without problems – the same remains true for the MBT-8/E supplied by Questerian forces. Nevertheless, hand-held anti-armor weapons may have increased chances for RUAC to win the war against royalist Castillian forces.

Post-war, the requirement continued to exist but there was no concentrated effort to provide infantry with this capability, despite the lessons learned during the war. The fact remains that there were no efforts to modernize or introduce anything, really, as generals, politicians, and nobility were more interested in carving out their political future in a deteriorating kingdom. The foreign military threat, at the time, was not relevant as the two major regional powers were ‘friendly’ (with no government in particular) due to their overwhelming control of the Castillian economy – these were Mekugi and Juumanistra. Due political turmoil in the reunited ‘kingdom’, after the Castillian Civil War (1967-1973), there was little activity in regards to military modernization between 1973 and the late 1980s, until the coronation of King Alfonso VI and the end of the military dictatorship. In the early 1990s, even despite the army’s reduction in size, several initiatives were taken to begin a steady modernization of the armed forces, which would work in tandem with the ‘economic miracle’ of the country. For example, these initiatives led to the development and production of the carro de combate Lince and other vehicles based on the same chassis. With the decrease of the armor corps, given the retirement of antiquated tanks such as the MBT-8/E and the MAD.II, in the late 1990s the question of a next-generation anti-tank weapon was again brought to the forefront. This requirement led to development of the TA-100, already in production to equip Castillian infantry forces, and offered for export through Sistemas Terrestres Segovia Land Systems.

The TA-80 project is a co-development with the TA-100, despite the former’s later introduction. The TA-100 is a dedicated anti-tank guided missile, normally fired from a bipod or a tripod, and is meant to be fired multiple times and requires dedicated maintenance from its operators. Furthermore, TA-100 operators generally take a two-week long ‘school’ in order to become certified operators and be included as full-time anti-tank grenadiers. On the other hand, the TA-80 is not designed to require this level of training and generally, all infantry will go through the training to use the TA-80 during the ‘special weapons’ course during basic training and ‘infantry school’ (a combined sixteen-week course in the Castillian Army). The TA-80 is also meant to be short enough and light enough to be used by the parachute brigade and the tercios de la armada (Castillian Marine Corps). This lightweight anti-tank weapon is meant to be fired and tossed, or in other words the TA-80 is a one-time-use disposable rocket launcher – therefore, construction is cheap, electronics are simple and it does not require maintenance. At the most, the ‘soldier’s training guide’ suggests that the ‘next-generation infantry rocket system’ (NIR-S) should be used only up to two-times, depending on the amount of rockets carried by the soldier. Besides the rocket launcher itself, the prerequisites for the warhead itself dictated that it should be light as possible and that the missile should ‘intelligently’ choose the easiest surface of the enemy tank to penetrate. Therefore, both the launcher and the warhead are light, cheap and efficient.

The decade-long development effort (approximately between 1997 and late-2006) focused mostly on the development of the shaped charge, and it has not been specific only to the TA-80. The shaped charge developments achieved within this time period have been applied to the shaped charge used by the carro de combate Lince and to the warhead of the TA-100, and will be used in a gun-launched anti-tank missile fired from the short-tube 160mm tank-gun which will be mounted on the Puma anti-tank cavalry vehicle based on the Lince chassis (or, alternatively, the Lynx chassis for export). Other priorities during the development phase include the design of an optical sight for the system, subcontracted to the Castillian company Indra-Begón – the TA-80’s optical sight is based largely on technology developed for Industria Real de Armas Ligeras’ F40 fusil automatico de próxima generación. The fact that much of the development effort of the TA-80 is shared with partner weapon systems, being developed conjunctly, means that much of the technology applied can be done so at low-cost which is an important advantage. This means that the TA-80, unlike the TA-100 (which is more unique), will be very affordable for the Fuerzas Armadas Castellanas and for potential export clients. As a consequence, the TA-80 will likely be issued to Ejército de Tierra infantry units, Reserva del Ejército units, both tercios de la armada (and any future tercios which may be founded) and to airborne and special forces units. Overall, the Ministry of Defense has claimed that the first-order will most likely be of around twenty thousand units for all services, including reserves and for replacement.

Warheads
The principle warhead is the CGM.14 (cabezas de guerra modular) high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT), which can perforate up to eight hundred millimeters of armored steel (also known as rolled homogenous steel, or RHA). As opposed to the TA-100, which has the advantage of having two full shaped charges vertically stacked, the CGM.14’s shaped charge focuses on maximizing the behind armor blast (BAB) after perforation, thus maximizing the damage to the vehicle’s turret and to the crew members of the tank. Behind armor blast is not a phenomenon that occurs with all shaped charges and has a lot to do with the material used for the shaped charge liner – for example, it is noticeable that copper (Cu) liners normally only produce behind armor debris (BAD). The TA-100’s first shaped charge was primarily designed to increase jet-tip velocity and therefore was considered a ‘low-mass liner’, which reduces the behind armor effectiveness of the warhead. On the other hand, the CGM.14 instead opts for a greater mass liner with a lower jet tip velocity of around 12.5 kilometers per second (with a low-mass liner jet tip velocities of over 14 k/sec can be expected for copper stretching penetrators) and therefore accepts more ‘mediocre’ penetration performance for greater lethality after penetration. Although at first sight this may be considered a disadvantage, in the TA-80’s case it’s otherwise due to the fact that the TA-80 offers an ‘overly top-attack’ (OTA) engagement mode. Generally speaking, roof armor tends to be thin, despite recent efforts to increase thickness and even add light explosive reactive armor tiles to offer protection against top-attack munitions, such as the dreaded guided self-forging fragment (otherwise known as an explosively formed penetrator). Although the thickness is not a problem for the TA-80, or specifically the CGM.14 warhead, explosive reactive armor can destroy a large portion of the jet and therefore the CGM.14 includes a lightweight plastic cap for penetrating explosive reactive armor without setting off the reaction. As a consequence, the CGM.14 can be considered to have a maximum penetrative performance of 800mm of rolled homogenous armor equivalent (RHAe) after explosive reactive armor. It should be noted that like all other Castillian anti-tank shaped charge liners, the CGM.14 uses a gold liner.

The two other principle warheads include the CGM.20 thermobaric warhead and the CGM.70 fragmentation warhead. The former is designed principally to engage and defeat enemy personnel and buildings - specifically, engage inside buildings. The warhead is not designed to completely destroy a small room or building, but more so to kill everyone inside without committing major structural damage to avoid turning the building into a potential bunker. Furthermore, Castillian doctrine dictates that if possible collateral damage should be reduced as much as possible during a war, to decrease the chances of inciting further resistance from the locals. The second warhead, the CGM.70, contains a large amount of tungsten shrapnel and is for antipersonnel work against large groups of enemy infantry, or even to scratch the back of nearby friendly mechanized units. Indeed, the warhead can clear enemy personnel from nearby vehicles without damaging the vehicle itself. In most cases, these warheads are only issued during urban operations and for the most part the CGM.14 HEAT is a much more common projectile to witness in Castillian stocks.

The compact size of the NIR-S makes it useful for other applications, as well. These applications began to truly show themselves during the late 1990s and especially during NATO’s protracted occupation of British Londinium, which featured far more urban warfare than any previous conflicts which Castilla y Belmonte could directly witness. Although the kingdom did not partake in the occupation, as it was not considered NATO at the time, it has had the pleasure of partaking in the post-war learning effort which has resulted from the conflict. The TA-80 can be used by infantry to breach walls or even heavy doors using different warheads, which is an advantage of the modular warhead system incorporated into each individual rocket manufactured.

The TA-80 NIR-S’ firing sequence is a two-man operation, shared between the firer and the assistant gunner (AG), although potentially it can be operated by a single soldier if required – in this feature, it’s similar to a light machine gun. The venturi has a back blast cone of 70º for a bit over twenty meters distance and it’s discouraged to use the weapon within three meters of a wall or another solid object for safety reasons. On the other hand, normally a soldier will use a wall or a hill, or some other type of visual obstacle, to hide the signature of the back blast to avoid being targeted by enemy forces after the operator has fired the weapon. These, however, are all tactical considerations for the operator’s army to consider and issue training for. Normally, the assistant gunner will clear and load the tube and prepare it for launch – in the NIR-S this takes less than five seconds. The gunner’s operation remains similar to older rocket launched warheads in foreign armies, meaning that before firing he has to cock the hammer, press the safety near the trigger and finally squeeze the trigger – in total, the system has two safeties (the safety pin, applied during travel, and the firing safety). Upon a successful fire the gunner can either call for another round, if one is available and is necessary to finish the target, or can dispose of the tube and kick the sights off; the sequence is largely the same upon three consequent misfires, for safety concerns.

Electronics
In terms of guidance, the TA-80 is ‘dumber’ than its bigger brother, the TA-100, and therefore is cheaper and easier to manufacture. However, the TA-80 is completely a ‘next-generation’ missile launcher in the way that it maximizes first-hit probability by using ‘basic’ technologies to increase accuracy and effective range (even if only by one hundred or two hundred meters). First, it’s important to note that the tube includes two flip-out iron sights if the red-dot sight is not available, and normally under these conditions, the TA-80 will have a maximum effective range of about one hundred and fifty meters against a moving target and three hundred and fifty meters against a fixed target. Using a red-dot sight, connected to a small computer located on the tube, the operator can use a targeting system known as predicted line of sight (PLOS) for accurate engagement against targets at up to six hundred meters! Predicted line of sight allows the soldier to track the target to be engaged for anywhere between three to five seconds and then fire, making the TA-80’s rocket fire and forget. In other words, the soldier does not need to continue tracking his target after firing to compensate for movement, perfecting the system for ambushes and other dangerous anti-tank missions. This reduces the enemy’s ability to counter attack against the threat, even if the back blast can clearly be seen. The missile’s onboard computer tracks the target based on movement patterns calculated during the initial tracking period aided by the firer and can reach the target independently of distance.

True maximum effective range of the rocket is relative to the training of the soldier and to the accuracy of the computer, which is not a fixed variable. It’s true that in some cases a CGM.14 warhead can accurately and successfully engage a target at the maximum envelope range of 600 meters, but ‘true’ effective range is probably between 400 and 500 meters, depending on the mission’s situation. Vehicles moving in strange patterns, for example, will be more difficult to lock-on after launch (LOAL) by the missile and therefore the maximum effective range will be affected dramatically. The use of a reflex sight for more accurate and faster targeting is truly a matter of personal choice and a soldier can still use the predicted line of sight feature with the iron sights – the computer will base the target’s movement patterns on the angle and velocity of movement of the launching tube (the only difference is that the soldier will not have the information on display through the eyepiece). Contrary to popular belief, the electronic sights will require more training than the iron sights. During studied foreign wars, which had a large impact on the development of both the TA-80 and TA-100, it was found that soldiers were suggested to throw away their optical sights during combat situations due to the increased complexity. Regardless, with a well-trained operator, an electronic sight paired with a range finder can increase the range of a crude weapon from three hundred to five hundred meters distance against a non-moving target. With this taken into consideration, one can expect that active army units will most likely receive a complete compliment of sights, while some reserve units will probably only receive the tubes with the built-in iron sights due to the fact that reservist are normally less well trained than their active army counterparts. Furthermore, there are cost considerations from unit to unit, since most of the time the decision to purchase the sights is made by the unit’s commander himself as opposed to by the government.

There are two modes of engagement for the TA-80, for use against different targets. Due to the increased thickness of a main battle tank’s front armor and even side armor it’s no longer a viable option to directly engage these surface areas. As a result, the TA-80 includes the option for overfly top attack, as has been mentioned above. Using a tandem shaped charge warhead the CGM.14 can easily penetrate light reactive armor, whilst the 800 mm of penetration is more than enough to completely perforate a tank’s roof armor and cause massive damage inside the turret – perhaps even completely destroy it, depending on the behind armor blast of the particular warhead given the unique features of each tank (such as armor thickness or the direction of the shockwaves during impact). A fairly important advantage of the TA-80’s rocket is its size and velocity, which makes it more difficult to destroy or knock off course by means of an active protection system. However, tactically it’s suggested that more than one is fired simultaneously to overwhelm the defending tank’s active protection system. The second mode of attack is direct attack (DA) which is used mostly against lightly armored vehicles, non-armored vehicles or other targets such as bunkers, doors and walls. During direct attack the missile follows the line of sight of the soldier, a much more simple trajectory. Normally, during direct attack the missile will have a shorter effective range than one flying above the line of sight to engage the target from the top.

The TA-80 has a minimum range of fifteen meters, which means that it can easily be used in an urban conflict by defending or attacking soldiers. During the Imperial invasion of Safehaven, during the War of Golden Succession, Havenic infantry were known to use their crude rocket propelled grenades (RPG) and light anti-armor weapons (LAW) against Imperial armor at ranges of less than one hundred meters inside the city. After the Battle of Ishme-Dagan and the destruction of the Havenic army as an effective conventional fighting force in early 2017 (n.b. all dates concerning the War of Golden Succession are given in accordance with the Imperial calendar, and not to the Gregorian calendar) the rocket propelled grenade became the single most effective weapon against Macabean armor – improvised explosive devices were not widely used due to the velocity of the Imperial advance into Northern Safehaven.

Other Information
Manufacturer: Industria Real de Armas Ligeras
Seeker: Predicted Line of Sight
Length: 1m
Warhead Diameter: 80mm
Range: 20-600m
Penetration: est. 800mm post-ERA
Propulsion: Two-stage solid propellant rocket
Cost: $10,000

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:23 pm

Restricted to allied states.

With the hope of the Castillian Ejército de Tierra acquiring a large number of anti-tank attack helicopters and due to the lack of a dedicated advanced anti-tank missile within the infantry the Ministry of Defense opened discussion for the development of an advanced anti-tank guided missile of the ‘next generation’ which was to come in up to four shapes and sizes – medium range (MR) and long range (LR) variants for infantry and armored vehicles and then an extended range (ER) version for the ‘future Castillian helicopter’ (FCH). All three were to carry the same warhead, although each would have a different sensor package for their different mission profiles. The program was eventually awarded to Industría Real de Armas Ligeras (IRAL), the creator and producer of the armed forces’ common assault rifle – the Iral modelo A. This contracted subcontracted a large portion of the program to the electronics company Indra-Begón and the rocket was subcontracted to Aviónica, Castilla’s largest aircraft manufacturer. The program has perhaps come out more expensive than it should have been; the Ministry of Defense pumped money in to guarantee a speedy introduction of the missile and the launcher for infantry forces. The initial TA-100 program took only five years to complete, between 1996 and 2001, with an additional two years worth of refinement (2002-2003) and finally one year of pre-production tests. Production was postponed until 2006 due to the lack of an extended range missile variant and the funding of the Lince program, which ate much of the army’s funds for procurement. Nevertheless, between 2004 and 2005 some TA-100s were delivered to the Ejército de Tierra for training purposes.

Tactically, the TA-100 offsets the lack of substantial numbers of main battle tanks. Only nine hundred Lince tanks have been acquired, with hopes of acquiring another nine hundred in the next two years – still, this doesn’t compare to the multiple tens of thousands acquired by allied states. In terms of attack helicopters, economically the army can only afford a small amount which will probably be rounded to one hundred. Therefore, the Ejército de Tierra lacks the substance to stop a large armored assault either from the north or amphibiously, or in a foreign country. It’s hoped that weapons such as the TA-100 will offset this disadvantage by offering the infantry an anti-tank weapon which can handle any piece of heavy machinery currently on the battlefield, and that that will be on the battlefield in the future. Therefore, the medium-range missile will most likely be the most widespread; it will be deployed in multiple numbers per platoon. The long-range missile will deployed to dedicated and trained anti-tank infantry teams, which will serve as attachments to platoon or company-sized units, depending on the mission. The extended range version will equip Castilla’s future helicopter and lightweight anti-tank vehicles; for example, it’s expected that the TA-100-ER will equip the Puma cavalry vehicle, based on the Lince chassis. For sure, however, the TA-100 will offer an anti-tank capability never before perceived in the Ejército de Tierra, except amongst its tank arm. The TA-100 will almost completely replace the unguided shoulder-launched anti-tank rocket, which boasted of penetration levels of only 250-300mm of armor. This new missile will give the infantry an unprecedented level of lethality against heavy armored fighting vehicles and will increase their survivability on the conventional battlefield.

However, combat has proven that these weapons are not only valuable against armored vehicles. Shoulder-launched missiles have proven valuable against bunkers and light structures, as well – especially to put holes in the wall or through doors. Originally, it was feared that complete replacement of older weapons would eliminate this advantage, but ultimately the TA-100 was designed to take these tactical uses into consideration. The missile is completely modular, meaning the warhead can be changed without exchanging the entire missile – of course, these changes must be done before entering the combat kill zone. The seeker capsule is also modular, as well as the engine module – all of this allows for easy replacement, maintenance or installment. It also allows a medium-range missile to be turned into a long-range missile (extended range missiles are also wider, however) behind enemy lines and it gives the infantry this added advantage if the mission profile suddenly changes. However, the most important part is that with the warhead module an infantry man can change the high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) charge with a high-explosive (HE) or phosphorous warhead for anti-infantry or anti-structure usage. Therefore, the TA-100 is turned into a multi-mission platform. The major disadvantage is cost, given that the cost of the rocket will still exist. The seeker capsule, however, can be eliminated for short-range anti-structure uses which don’t require expensive guidance. Nonetheless, the cost disadvantage has driven the development of a new semi-guided shoulder-launched rocket which will be called the TA-80 – this will also be considered an anti-tank weapon and will be issued to reserve units.

Since the TA-100 is primarily an anti-tank missile we will discuss the HEAT warhead. Technically, the TA-100 has three separate warheads, although one is not explosive. To defeat explosive reactive armor by perforating without setting off a reaction (explosive reactive armors are hampered by the fact that they have very specific initiation velocities, to avoid initiation against irrelevant threats) the TA-100’s HEAT warhead module includes a lightweight plastic penetrating cap. A plastic tandem warhead has the advantage of being cheap to manufacture (compared to a shaped charge liner), it’s lightweight and it requires less warhead volume. The TA-100’s warhead is fairly longer than most other anti-tank warheads of the same caliber, because the TA-100 is one of the first anti-tank missiles that features a ‘true’ tandem warhead. In other words, instead of using a smaller warhead to force enemy reactive armor to react this warhead acts as a full second shaped charge liner (for literature on the idea see: Ferrari, Giorgio, The Hows and Whys of Armour Penetration, Military Technology, October 1988, pp. 86-87). It should be noted that the increase in penetration is not dramatic, especially due to the fact that this type of shaped charge has not matured technologically to that point. Some basic problems include the fact that the jet tip of the second shaped charge may interfere with the jet base of the first liner (the second shaped charge, of course, begins penetration after a period of time, to allow the first shaped charge to do as much damage as possible) and that the second shaped charge will be operating at a non-ideal stand-off distance (the two shaped charges are of the same caliber, so the optimal stand-off distance is likely to be the same). On the other hand, what the second warhead does offer is more explosive force once the armor has been perforated (assuming that the first shaped charge succeeds in perforating the tank’s armor) – this is especially useful for rear or side hits (against top-armor it’s overkill). It also allows the make of the first shaped charge to optimize for armor penetration, without worrying about behind-armor effects. In other words, the TA-100’s warhead can opt for a low-mass primary liner with a greater penetration, and use the second warhead to maximize behind-armor effects. Of course, reality is not as beautiful as what is suggested in literature and therefore perfect results can never be expected. The liners are constructed out of gold, due to the material’s propensity towards deep-draw (the ability to withstand higher jet lengths) and its density – gold liners were already experimented with in the Lince tank’s high-explosive anti-tank shell (see: Ferrari, p. 85; results of an experiment using hypervelocity gold rods was conducted in – Behner, T., et. al., Hypervelocity Penetration of Gold Rods into SiC-N for Impact Velocities From 2.0 to 6.2 km/s, International Journal of Impact Engineering, Volume 33, 2006, pp. 68 – 79; however, these results are not entirely relevant due to different penetration dynamics).

Taking both warheads into consideration, the 160mm diameter TA-100 can penetrate an estimated 1,900mm of armored steel (RHA; [160 x 11] + est. 100-150mm of the second warhead). This seems like lost penetration given the fact that the missile has a top-attack mode, but technically the greater the penetrable surface area of the enemy tank the greater the chance for success will be. Still, penetration along the frontal arc seems only possible in what are considered ‘3rd generation’ main battle tanks – although, ‘real’ armor values for existing 4th generation main battle tanks are hard to come by. On the other hand, one can consider the extra penetration as a ‘just in case’ figure (besides the fact that achieving penetration equal to the stated figure repeatedly is not possible), especially as tanks begin to shift frontal armor to the turret roof, especially with the introduction of new all-electric hatches or the elimination of hatches (for example, the Lince does not have any hatches in the turret due to the fact that the crew is in the chassis and there are no base plates for the ammunition). It has become a recent trend, as well, since the introduction of the Nakíl main battle tank to include lightweight explosive reactive armor to increase roof protection against shaped charges, although these are more oriented towards defeating explosively formed penetrators (EFP). For irregular penetration of these types of armors used on the roof, knowing that penetration will not occur perfectly, the more penetration that the missile is capable of the better the chances of a successful perforation of the roof armor. Besides, continuing developments in shaped charge technologies may allow for ‘quantum jumps’ in penetration (perhaps even perfection of this ‘tandem warhead’ concept, whereas penetration can be doubled).

The AT-100 is best fired from a tripod, from a fixed location, or from a vehicle – it is not a ‘lightweight infantry anti-tank weapon’ (this job will be fulfilled by the AT-80); the AT-100 is a high-precision, highly-lethal anti-tank guided missile. The missile has several forms of attack, but the infantry versions (medium-range and long-range) use lock-on before launch (LOBL) guidance, while the extended range version offers both LOBL and lock-on after launch (LOAL) guidance; the advantage of the latter is mostly for helicopters, which allow them to fire the missile from the lowest possible altitude. The missiles use fire and forget guidance, taking advantage of a computer in the launcher and the warhead’s sensors to direct the missile without having to use the soldier to guide it by wire – the soldier follows the target for a few seconds and then fires. Two attack modes exist – direct attack (DA), meaning line of sight engagement (20 to 600m distance), and Overly Top Attack (OTA), with a maximum range of four and a half kilometers for the long-range variant of the missile (two and a half for the medium-range variant). Effectively, the TA-100 medium range missile is a 3rd Generation missile (fire and forget), while the TA-100 long range variant is a 4th Generation missile. 4th Generation missiles offer fire and forget, fire, observe and upgrade and fire and steer modes; the advanced seeker module also includes day sights (CCD) and night sights (IIR) and has advanced weather capabilities. The electro-optical seeker allows the missile to engage dug-in and entrenched targets, as well. Similarly, the extend-range version has a maximum range of eight kilometers! Fire and steer mode is mostly useful for vehicles and helicopters, since it allows the operator to steer the missile until the seeker can see the target through a wireless data link (this would still be considered LOAL).

For the Castillian Ejército de Tierra the AT-100 represents a leap from using 1st generation anti-tank missiles (largely unguided) to using 3rd and 4th generation anti-tank missiles. The AT-100 provides the army with unimagined anti-tank capability and the extended-range version will most likely be issued to the anti-tank cavalry vehicle version of the Lince, as well as to the army’s future attack helicopter and to an anti-tank version of the HIM-TEC and L113 Centauro. The AT-100 will also be offered for export through Sistemas Terrestres Segovia Land Systems, the export consortium which through Industrial Real de Armas Ligeras makes public its new ordnance.

Statblock
Manufacturer: Industria Real de Armas Ligeras
Seeker: CCD/IR or dual CCD/IR
Length
MR/LR: 1.3m ER: 1.74m
Range
MR: 2.5km LR: 4.5km ER: 8km
Weights
MR/LR (canister): 15kg ER: 35kg
MR/LR (firing post): 8.5kg ER (launcher): 30kg
Tripod: 3.5kg
Penetration: est. 1,900mm post explosive reactive armor
Guidance: LOBL/LOAL
Propulsion: Two-stage solid propellant rocket
Maneuverability (LR/ER): Thrust Vector Control
Cost
MR: $75,000 LR: $85,000 ER: $100,000

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:30 pm

Drawn by Cravan

Saga of the .221 Orchomenos
The .221 was introduced as the principle round of the Ejermacht with the release of relatively unconventional Hali-42 assault rifle. In fact, the entire package had spiraled away from prior rifle convention (the Hali-21). This rifle completely replaced the Ejermacht's rifle by 2014 and saw wide export. Ultimately, the rifle would see service in the War of Golden Succession (May 2016 - May 2018) in which several of its faults would be revealed - most of these faults were relevant to the .221 Orchomenos, not surprisingly. Almost immediately after the Treaty of Aurillac a general review of the rifle was funded by the Fuermak (armed forces). This review was tasked with pinpointing the problems of the Hali-42 and assisting the Ejermacht in providing a number of requirements for a future assault rifle. The task force operated between August 2018 and November 2019, with a white paper prepared for the government by January 2020.

Generally, all criticism of the .221 suggested that the round was by far too small for successful application as an assault rifle caliber. It was found that there were literally tens of thousands of complaints that in close quarter battles the .221 round was far too fast, and far too small, and would normally end in a through-and-through hit of the enemy soldier. Even though the round used a barbette in order to increase the damage inside the body, the barbette was not large enough to slow down the bullet, or damage the man enough to take him down in one shot. Consequently, it was found that many times it would take three to four bullets to bring down a man, ending in many more Imperial deaths - given that the enemy had more time to fire back, between the time of the first shot and the time he was taken down. Moreover, there were examples of wounded Havenic soldiers being tended to and being sent right into battle after they had been shot once or twice.

At longer ranges the .221 was found to be far more successful, as the bullet had time to slow down prior to impact. In fact, during the war there was an attempt to supply new .221 ammunition to troops destined to fight in Havenic cities during the Second Empire's advance south. It was found that logistically this was all but impossible, and not entirely feasible.

The task force also noted that the rifle within itself was far too complicated. For example, troops in the field found it hard to fix small problems and most of the time the rifle had to be exchanged for a brand new rifle, while the old rifle was sent back to the factory to be rebuilt. Ultimately this meant time and money - money that was not necessarily available. The main problem was the fact that the rifle used a binary liquid propellant with a caseless round. This meant that the liquid had to be stored in the rifle (making it less ergonomic) and pumped into the combustion chamber. Frequent problems with the pumps plagued early production versions of the rifle, and although the problem was tended to over the years the system was never liked by the personnel on the ground. Furthermore, despite the fact that the rifle fully armed was lighter due to the use of a liquid propellant, the fact remained that the storage cells in the rifle were bulky, making the rifle less ergonomic and harder to handle. In fact, it took a lot of experience and training to work around the poor physical design of the rifle.

The principle problems found in the Hali-42 soon found themselves as key points for the requirements outlined by the Ejermacht.

New requirements for a future rifle
Between January and March 2020 the Ejermacht outlined a series of requirements for various small-arms companies. These included:

- A new rifle caliber, superior in performance to the .221 Orchomenos and to existing 5.56mm assault rifle ammunitions.
- No more than 4.5kg empty.
- Solid propellant.
- Low recoil.
- Suppressed muzzle flash.

Two foreign companies and four indigenous companies offered their prototypes to the Ejermacht by February 2021. The two foreign companies were Izistan's Robertson Arms and Spizania's Confederate Armaments Incorporated. Despite the purchase of four X-4 (X denotes that the rifles were prototypes. Each of the three indigenous rifles were named X-1 through X-3, and Spizania's the X-5) rifles from Robertson Arms and fairly successful testing between March and July 2022 it was decided not to purchase the X-4 due to inferior ballistic performance of the Izistani round to the 6.64x51mm round used by the X-2 and X-3. Furthermore, the X-4 used a caseless round which after the experiences with the Hali-42 were not favored. The same remained true for Confederate Arms Incorporated's X-5, as well as the fact that it was far too unconventional for the taste of the Ejermacht - especially after the experience of using the Hali-42.

Ultimately, it was found that the best rifle with the best balance of old and new technologies was the X-2.

Birth of the Hali-5X project
In August 2021 the Ejermacht signed a contract in which it was stated that the government would fund the remainder of the development of the X-2 and would promise to purchase at least 100,000 rifles upon completion of the prototype. It was also agreed upon that the company designing the rifle (Gíert et Ber) would make substantial changes to the prototype. These included:

- Changing several materials in rifle construction to lighten its weight.
- Changing the standard cased round for a cased telescopic round to decrease weight further.
- Development of at least three separate rounds for the rifle.
- The rifle would have to be complete for production by January 2022.

The new rifle was given the name of Hali-5X and by September 2021 a new prototype had been delivered to the Ejermacht. In early October a further ten rifles were produced for testing, which continued until the end of the month. Minor modifications were made to the rifle between late October and December 2021, in preparation for production in January, unfortunately several glitches were found. The most important was the fact that the cased telescopic round designed for the rifle did not fully extend during flight, severely limiting the effectiveness of the round. Furthermore, the round was using an older solid propellant as opposed to the new solid propellant which had been offered to Gíert et Ber for modification into the ammunition. Fortunately, the contract was extended for another four months.

Modifications and testing continued and the round was finally ready for production by June 2022. Upon production the rifle was dubbed the Hali-53.

A new caliber is chosen
The Ejermacht ultimately chose the 6.64x51mm cased round as its next small-arms caliber, with the idea of equaling the power of a larger round in order to increase lethality. Ultimately, the increase in weight and the decrease in the amount of rounds in each magazine was solved with the use of cased telescoping ammunition which saved around 30% of the volume in comparison to a magazine holding conventional rounds of the same caliber. To further decrease weight each round uses a new polymer case which reduced individual round weight by over 20%.

The new case is manufactured out of two separate polymers. A 60% glass fiber filled polymer is the principle component, injected by the low-core technique. This polymer is reinforced by minor metallic inserts. A more ductile polymer is subsequently injected to fill the shoulder, mouth and neck areas of the round. This system solves several problems of existing polymer cases, including poor reliability. Furthermore, the system is not more expensive than using a brass case and saves more weight.

Ultimately, the use of both polymer casings and CTA technology allow the rifle to save a lot of weight in regards to its ammunition. Most importantly, it allows the rifle to be just as effective as other contemporaries (or more effective, even).

Three rounds were introduced along with the Hali-53. The first is the 6.64x51mm Orchomenos. This round is designed as the general use all-around bullet to be supplied in the most quantities. It is designed for penetration of the majority of existing infantry armors protecting the troops of foreign threats. The round is a tungsten-cored. copper jacketed round. The purpose of the round is speed and penetration. The round weighs ~7.8 grams and uses a 2 gram propellant. The second round is the 6.64x51mm PELE, which is designed with a high density jacket and a low density core. The idea is during impact the jacket bursts due to the low-compressibility of the core's material. The end result is a large amount of fragments bursting into the body, increasing the lethality of the weapon. This round is specifically designed for use against unarmored opponents. The third major round is the armor piercing 6.64x60mm flechette designed for penetration of thicker battle suits and power armor.

Several other rounds were also designed, including:

-6.64mm grenade
-6.64mm tracer
-6.64mm NL (non-lethal)

All combat rounds use a newly designed solid propellant to decrease weight and increase power. The best solid propellant for small arms use was found to be one composed of 25% nitrocellulose (NC), 45% cyclotrimethylenetrinitrimine (RDX) and 6% Glycidyl Azide Polymer (GAP), with other components. Originally a substance called TAGN had been included, but a low flame temperature was found not to be suitable for assault rifle application to avoid cook-offs. The main purpose was to find a highly dense solid propellant with high energy and a high rate of expansion - in other words, more velocity.

Rifle Operation
The Hali-42's operation was delayed blowback, and the original X-2 prototype by Gíert and Ber used the same system. However, in an effort to reduce recoil and improve accuracy it was decided to change the rifle operation to what is regarded as 'balanced automatics'. Balanced automatics is an extension of the short-stroke gas-operated, rotating-bolt mechanism of the AK-47. Instead of having just one gas-piston, balanced automatics uses two gas-pistons moving in opposite directions, meaning that the operator only feels the recoil created by the momentum of the forward moving bullet. The addition of this new system was a factor to the run over costs of the rifle program and to the retardation of the date for initial production. However, testing in early 2022 proved the value of 'balanced automatics'.

The Hali-5X was tested against the Hali-42 and the original Hali-5X using the same operating mechanism as the Hali-42. All three rifles were tested with a thirty-round mag of their respective calibers and were all tested on automatic fire. The Hali-42 managed to put three out of thirty rounds on target, while the original prototype of the Hali-5X put five out of thirty rounds on target. However, the new Hali-5X using balanced automatics successfully trained nineteen out of thirty bullets on target (all at 100 meters).

The ejection port of the rifle is located at the front of the weapon, and empty cases are ejected forward, allowing the rifle to be ambidextrous.

Scope
When the Ejermacht offered its requirements for a brand new assault rifle to several armaments companies, foreign and indigenous, it offered a separate list of requirements for new optic system for the rifle. The only company able to meet up to the Ejermacht's expectations proved to be Eldíen Electro-Optical Works. Eldíen had existed under the Kriegzimmer Conglomerate and then had become an independent company post-break up. It had worked on much of the electro-optics used on Kriegzimmer battleships and super dreadnoughts. A series of six different optics were offered, the differences dependent on cost. These competed against a total of thirty-nine other optics systems, including sixteen which were designed by foreign companies.

Eldíen's optics, which were ultimately chosen for contract, included a 1X red dot mode for close quarter combat (CQB), with the option to switch to up to 4X magnification using a cased reticule with adjustable brightness. The sight also included bullet drop compensation for ranges beyond 700 meters. The sights can be used with both eyes open, and is completely shock proof. Furthermore, even if part of the lens is covered with mud, or is shattered, the shooter can still accurately use the system if he/she can see through any surviving piece of the lens. The rifle operator can see this because a laser diode projects the target as a hologram image onto a hardened, three layer laminated glass window. This optical sights measures ~156mm in length and weighs ~390 grams.

For greater tactical flexibility an off-axis viewing device (OAVD) is also standard with the rifle. The system works by using two oval-shaped mirros to reflect the image from the rifle's optical sight to the soldier. This allows the soldier to literally look around corners. OAVDs within the Ejermacht are normally issued only during urban operations to provide soldiers with greater protection. Each OAVD extension measures 150mm and weighs 500 grams and can be clipped to the existing sight.

Rifle Construction
The rifle is relatively light due to the increased usage of plastics as construction material. The barrel, however, remains of steel construction, although the bolt and bolt carrier are manufactured out of titanium. The receiver is built out of composite polymer. The ultimate aim was to construct a rifle with the least weight possible for greater ergonomics.

Specifications
Rifle Dimensions
Length: 980mm Length of Barrel: 718mm
Weight [Empty]: 3.4kg Weight [Loaded]: 3.56kg Weight [With Optic Sight & Sling]: 3.93kg
Configuration: Bullpup

Armament Specifications
Caliber: 6.64x51mm Principle Round: 6.64mm Orchomenos Cased Weight: 7.82 grams Propellant Weight: 2 grams
Round Velocity: 1,070 m/s
Firing Modes: Safe, Single and Automatic Rate of Fire: 800 to 1050 per minute
Operating Mechanism: Gas-Operated Balanced Automatics, Rotating Bolt Feed System: 28-round curved detachable box magazine Effective Range: 800m

Other Information
Main Contractor: Gíert and Ber Electronics Contractor: Eldíen Electro-Optics Export Contractor: Kriegzimmer
Unit Cost: $3,600 (to decrease depending on the amount of exports)

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:34 pm

[Click on the image for a larger version; all images in this write-up are drawn by Mekugi.]

Introduction to Swift Kill
The Mark 30 modelo 451 Swift Kill is forty-five (45) millimeter multi-chambered autocannon gun system, designed between Sistemas Terrestres Segovia (STS) and Argus Industrial Manufacturing (AIM). Although designed primarily for a close-in weapon system (CIWS), Swift Kill will ultimately be employed in a number of ground defense and naval programs, although undertaken privately by each of the two partners for the gun. The Mark 30 is designed to provide a high level of firepower through the use of a larger caliber (forty-five millimeters, as opposed to twenty or thirty-five millimeters), the large number of types of ammunition made available for the gun system and similar gun performance technology as that integrated into other gun systems such as Calzado y Bayo’s CB.125 125mm advanced tank gun. These technological enhancements include electrothermal-chemical ignition and control, chemically augmented combustion and the use of a much more advanced solid propellant. By providing this level of technology these two defense companies assure their nation’s safety in foreign wars and guarantee themselves a niche in the naval defense and ground defense markets. As aforementioned, this gun will complete a number of important systems designed by Sistemas Terrestres Segovia, not to mention by AIM. Some of the former’s programs include a close-in weapon system for Castilla y Belmonte’s future modular frigate program (FMF) and a short-range air defense (SHORAD) vehicle based on the chassis of the carro de combate Lince. Both of these will be reserved for analysis in separate papers, at a future date.

Sistemas Terrestres Segovia’s partner, Argus Industrial Manufacturing, is a small defense company based in the nation of Amastol. AIM is currently dedicated to small, local programs although the experience it gains with these projects is allowing it to build-up the capabilities to design and manufacture state-of-the-art equipment. The Swift Kill program represents an important stepping stone into the international market for this company, and its partnership with Sistemas Terrestres Segovia will give it a jump start. It should be noted that the Mark 30 modelo 451 gun system has already secured a large number of orders at home, guaranteeing the company a relatively large score. This is similar to Sistemas Terrestres Segovia’s situation, whereas large export success is unnecessary to pay-off the cost of the research and design. Nevertheless, it’s expected that the Mark 30 will propel AIM into the world of large defense contractors and will introduce STS into the gun market, allowing it to compete against other Castillian companies and pushing it forward in its aim to become the principle contractor in the nation. The Swift Kill is also the first major defense contract completed with a foreign defense company, and has opened a multitude of doors for future possibilities between STS and other defense businesses around the globe (for example, a possible multi-nation multi-mission helicopter program).

Production of gun parts and final assembly will be split equally between Argus Industrial Manufacturing and Sistemas Terrestres Segovia, as far as foreign exports are concerned. On the other hand, production for national procurement requirements will be dealt with privately, regardless of production numbers. It’s likely that both companies will market the system independently and in vigor, although up to date the only export conglomerate which has declared intentions of selling the weapon is Sistemas Terrestres Segovia Land Systems (STSLS), while Navantia will be selling a weapon’s mount and turret, as part as an overall close-in weapon system (Sistemas Terrestres Segovia is partnering with Calzado y Bayo for this particular program, with Astiversal as a subcontractor). If AIM decides not to sell the gun as a stand-alone unit, it is very possible that in the near future the company will present a SHORAD vehicle mounting the Mark 30 mod 451 gun system. It should be reminded that even assuming that AIM decides not to sell the gun system as a stand-alone product; half of the contracts achieved by STSLS will be referred to AIM for manufacture. It can be considered profitable for AIM to allow STSLS to sell the product, given STSLS’ greater international fame. Some ‘third party’ nations, such as clients, may receive rights to sell the gun system in indigenous vehicle defense systems (such as air defense vehicles), but then both AIM and STS would act as subcontractors, supplying the actual machinery. This decision to leave production between AIM and STS is for a number of reasons. The more prominent reasons are that AIM and STS, both, rather not risk having foreign companies produce more than them (that would be like shooting themselves in the foot) and the manufacture of such a large revolver automatic cannon will require inevitable particularities and strict quality-control, which only AIM and STS feel that they can provide.

The Mark 30 Swift Kill is one of the largest guns in its class, providing enhanced capabilities against airborne threats, including heavy anti-shipping missiles, low-flying aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles and much more. Through the use of new technologies, a revolver operation system and advanced ammunition types the Swift Kill gun system guarantees quick and efficient gunnery, no matter what its job. As already alluded to by Sistemas Terrestres Segovia, the Swift Kill makes a great gun for a close-in weapon system for defending naval platforms, including small and large ships, or for a short-range air defense system based on a tracked vehicle platform. In the former role, it has the added advantage of having a large firepower potential against smaller surface craft, including both assymetrical and conventional threats. Much of the technology introduced into this system has already been proven elsewhere, including in Calzado y Bayo's tank main guns, such as the CB.125. Furthermore, at the cost of $320,000¹ with the opportunity of decreasing prices as orders increase, the Mark 30 is economical; in other words, it provides 'high bang for the buck'. Just as important, Sistemas Terrestres Segovia and its partner, Argus Industrial Manufacturing, guarantees that new technologies will always be integrated into existing systems to make sure that these systems remain on the cutting edge. Over the long run, this not only means continued efficiency, but it also means that ultimately the lifetime costs will decrease since new units will not have to be procured. All in all, the Swift Kill is the gun for you!

Gun Mechanics
The Mark 30 is a revolver, preferred over the gatling gun type configuration for the sake of initial velocity, given that a revolver has less mass than a gatling gun and therefore is easier to spin. Although, unfortunately, the rate of fire decreases due to bore pressure and barrel heat issues, it's considered a pertinent trade-off given the task of the gun and the miniscule amount of time given to react.² In this gun's case, the chamber module contains five seperate chambers, allowing for a lower mass over only having four chambers but accounting for the heat related issues of having six chambers. In regards to mass, the 'chamber module'³ can include up to six chambers in its given volume and so only four chambers would mean that the two volumes that could otherwise hold more chambers would be solid masses - so a five-chambered module is considered to be the 'best of both worlds'. The modelo 451 is gas-operated, as inferred, and offers a rate of fire of a maximum of one thousand [1,000] rounds per minute, which is on par with similar-type gun systems of the latest generation.⁴ The breech supports a dual-feed system, although this should not be confused with 'simultaneous feed'. The dual-feed allows for two separate ammunition stowage bins feeding two separate types of ammunition, consequently either the fire control system (based on the type of detected threat) or the manual user overriding the automatic fire (more likely in a ground-based air defense vehicle) can select the type of ammunition and the gun can load either. Such selective fire gives the weapon system much more operational flexibility and tactical versatility, although the gun must slow or stop in order to change type of ammunition.

As already indicated, the fact that the multiple chambers are all leading into one barrel for repeated and automatic fire means that the barrel will receive a high rate of barrel wear. In order to offer some protection against the inevitable wear of the barrel due to the pressure of expanding propellant gasses, apart from the inclusion of electrothermal-chemical technology - to be explained below -, the Mark 30 includes a chrome-lined barrel. Normally, especially in tank guns and naval guns, this is done to allow the barrel to withstand greater barrel pressure so that the propellant grain can be enlarged, allowing for much greater muzzle velocities; in ground-based and naval-based artillery this means much greater range, while for tanks it means either greater penetrator mass or greater muzzle velocity (generally speaking, equating to greater penetration). On the other hand, both Sistemas Terrestres Segovia and Argus Industrial Manufacturing were more interested in chrome-plating to extend the lifetime of each barrel to make the gun much more economical, given that the companies have agreed that lethality is at an optimum (in the future, given the threats, priorities can be changed). Although the increase in life-span is only a small percentage of the lifespan without chrome plating, the hundreds of extra rounds may still be important in an extended naval engagement, where barrel replacements might not always be possible. This is more true in larger, more conventional naval battles than against assymetric threats, but conventional warfare is still far more prominent than its assymetrical cousin.

As mentioned above, the Mark 30 model 451 uses electrothermal-chemical enhancement of its solid propellant. The 'plasma initiator' is embedded inside the round itself, coming into contact with the breech and the electric catalyst as the revolver closes the air gap as it brings the next chamber to the breech. A standard 45mm projectile, in the Swift Kill, will require a 55kJ charge, although ultimately given the rate of fire the required pulsed power supply [which has to be integrated into the combat system and not into the gun] is larger than 100kJ. The pulsed power supply can either be a separate battery system, such as on the Nakíl or the Lince or it can be integrated into the vehicle if that vehicle uses hybrid propulsion [although the Lince has an electric transmission, it uses a separate pulsed power supply for the main gun - in the future Lince 1A1 this will resolved]. In any case, the plasma is created by a copper [Cu] diamond string, in the form of a chord, wrapped around the propellant in each individual projectile case [see: 45mm closed telescoping ammunition images]. This string normally vaporizes and iniozes and thereby creates a plasma, which both ignites the propellants [described in the ammunition section] and makes the gasses' expansion much smoother.⁵ This type of electrothermal-chemical plasma initiation process is known as a flashboard large area emitter, or FLARE - although perhaps not the most modern type of initiation method, it requires a lower amount of energy and is more desirable for a low energy requirement electrothermal-ignition [ETI] round, like the 45mm CTA used by the Swift Kill. In the case of this particular gun, unlike many other systems which take advantage of electrothermal-ignition, the interest is in increasing barrel life, as opposed to increasing muzzle velocity. Due to the fact that the plasma will better control the expansion of the propellant gasses, the propellant will expand in a much more stable matter thereby decreasing pressure on the barrel's inner walls. Some increase in velocity has been attained by this technology, and through the new solid propellant being used, but that has not been a priority.

As introduces in Calzado y Bayo's recent CB.125 and in Atmos Incorporated's AGS.250 for the Nakíl main battle tank, the Swift Kill also incorporates chemically augmented combustion [CAC], more specifically referred to as hydrogen augmented combustion [HAC].⁶ In HAC, hydrogen interacts with the molecules of the expanding propellant gasses, decreasing their molecular weight exothermally. This results in a higher number of species and a higher velocity of sound, thereby resulting in a higher impetus [i.e. force], which concludes in higher gun performance. A convinient side effect is also a reduction in barrel pressure, increasing the gun barrel's lifespan by a notable factor. In this way, the technology is actually very similar to electrothermal-chemical propulsion in the way that it helps to control the expansion of the propellant, thus increasing muzzle velocity and spreading the pressure more evenly along the surface of the barrel's interior walls. On the other hand, HAC does not require electrical input and can normally be integrated into the cartridge of the projectile, making it more 'volume efficient' [E_s]. As experienced both here, in the Mark 30, and in the CB.125 HAC technology can be easily integrated together with ETC technology, since they are not mutually exclusive. Although the Mark 30 is built as a solid propellant gun, HAC and ETC [which together may be referred to as HYPEC] can be also used with liquid propellants - such as on the AGS.250 and its 125mm brother, the CB.125.

Recoil is dampened by a dual-cylinder recoil mechanism, with an extended recoil length of thirty-five millimeters [35mm]. The recoil cylinders are contructed out of titanium, in order to save weight. The barrel and chambers are manufactured out of quality steel, in order to guarantee the system's ability to survive constant pressure in areas which will come in contact with the expanding propellant gasses. The gun's barrel weighs roughly 110kg, while the recoil mechanism weighs 230kg; the gun system, as a whole, weighs 580kg.⁷ Apart from the recoil mechanism, weight is saved through the use of composite materials in breech manufacturing.⁸ These manufacturing techniques have also been used on the AGS.250 and the CB.125 tank cannons, where they have saved between 300 and 600kg worth of weight. Unfortunately, such radical weight savings have not been found easily in the Swift Kill, given the delicacy of its operation and the requirement for a sturdy gun barrel, as well as combustion chamber. Weight savings can be much more radical when it comes to the mount for the close-in weapon station system, and for the short-range air defense vehicle's turret; such weight savings will be witnessed in the product sheets for both future Castillian systems. Then again, mass is important in an air-defense gun due to the requirement for fast traverse to meet the threat as quickly as possible. Indeed, the reason to choose an autocannon over a gatling gun is particularly for this reason! It's safe to assume that future models of the Swift Kill will integrate new manufacturing processes and materials to make the gun lighter.

Ammunition
As indicated beforehand, the Mark 30 is designed to acknowledge, engage and defeat a wide variety of threats. On the conventional [naval] battlefield these include light anti-shipping missiles and heavy anti-shipping missiles, which can have various different flight paths, including high angles of attack (AoA) or sea-skimming engagement paths. Furthermore, new heavy anti-shipping missiles, designed to defeat heavily armored capital warships, offer thick ballistic penetrating caps built out of tungsten [W] or depleted uranium [dU], which are difficult to defeat using lower-power armor piercing discarding sabots [APDS] or even advanced hit efficiency and destruction [AHEAD] projectiles. Apart from the missile threat, conventional threats include low-flying reconaissance, utility or attack helicopters, as well as low-flying fixed-wing aircraft. A modern close-in weapon station must be designed to cope with all the relevant threats, or else it will quickly become antiquated. Furthermore, there is also an assymetrical threat posed by terrorist organizations or low-intensity third world government forces. These threats include fast patrol craft and suicide explosives craft, with skeleton crews, and their potential has recently been made very obvious, as more and more large ships are temporarilly lost to these types of attacks. Consequently, the Swift Kill must be designed to defeat the assymetrical dimension, as well. To accomplish this, both Argus Industrial Manufacturing and Sistemas Terrestres Segovia have introduces three principle types of ammunition for the gun, depending on its eventual use in any given weapon system. More specific types of ammunition may be developed as new roles are provided, but until then the main 'loud out' remains: high explosive [HEI], armor piercing discarding sabot [APDS] and advanced hit efficiency and destruction [AHEAD]. Furthermore, apart from the improvements in the gun's propulsion system -as explained above - all the rounds are manufactured with a new solid propellant to maximize efficiency and increase lethality.

The propellant has been designed to maximize performance over a longer-range of ambient temperatures, both inside the combustion chamber and in the barrel. For the past century, or so, solid propellants have been designed almost exclusively out of nitrocellulose [NC], but recently chemical compounds such as cyclotetramethylene tetranitramine [HMX] and triaminoguanadine nitrate [TAGN] which have much larger energy densities. In specific, the solid propellant used by the Swift Kill's ammunition is referred to as TX90 and is primarilly composed of HMX, since this has a higher energy density than TAGN and a lower burning rate. Temperature sensitivity is reduced considerably through the bonding of glycidyl azide polymer [GAP]. TX90 has a specific impetus of 1,300J/g+ and a loading energy density of 1.5g/cm³+, which is superior to most current solid propellants. However, in the sense of its low burning rate TX90 can be characterized as a low vulnerability [LOVA] propellant, much like CL20. The TX90 is a unicharge, similar to the modular charge concept, which means that each submodel is identical [this is not true for modular charges]; each submodel is self-contained with its own igniter, flash suppressant and wear-reducive additive. The propellant charges are manufactured in sticks [contrary to what the images represent, by the way] and are perforated for 'tailored burning'; this has the effect of making the propellant burning rate more progressive, thus increasing gun performance without increasing pressure, by using the perforation to control the burning rate at the beginning and cause a sudden increase after the perforation has been passed. As a consequence, TX90 is a powerful charge meant to decrease temperature sensitivity and increase muzzle velocity, without increasing pressure on the barrel's interior walls.⁹

The high explosive incendiary [HEI] projectile is a general purpose round which can be used against a wide variety of threats. In most guns of similar caliber to the Swift Kill [20-50mm] they have been replaced largely by rounds such as AHEAD and APDS, although they are still manufactured. Due to the projectile type's simplicity and cheapness, the HEI is still offered as an option for the Swift Kill in the form of the MCP790. This round uses a mechanical proximity fuse and focuses on 'area effect' over penetration, since both the AHEAD and APDS projectiles are clearly superior to the HEI round in this area. It can be used as an anti-personnel projectile, or even as an anti-air projectile, defeating missiles and low-flying aircraft. However, due to its weight and its inferiority to AHEAD in terms of volume of effect it has generally been supplanted in naval close-in weapon systems. Calzado y Bayo, although not relevant to the development of the Swift Kill and her ammunition insofar, has expressed interests in designing, manufacturing and marketting what has been named the XMCP790A, which will include a new fuse to allow for greater muzzle velocities, a decreased high explosive weight and the addition of a penetrating cap. This type of projectile is usually known as a high explosive incendiary/armor piercing [HEIAP] round. Although these type of rounds generally have less penetration than their brethren the sabot, they have the added effect of increasing damage assuming perforation - due to the high explosive. In this respect, they are imilar to the older armor piercing ballistically capped [APBC] projectiles used by large caliber guns.

Round Type: High Explosive [HEI]
Projectile Weight: 2.1kg Explosive Weight: .67kg Bursting Charge: .120kg
Projectile Length [Complete Round]: 31.5cm
Muzzle Velocity: 1.25km/sec

A more common projectile to see in service, at least in the Macabee and Castillian navies, is the advanced hit efficiency and destruction [AHEAD] round. Given the size of the diameter and the larger length of the projectile, as opposed to a 35mm AHEAD round, more subprojectiles are carried - one hundred and eighty [180] as opposed to one hundred and fifty-two [152]. The submunitions are tungsten-alloy [WHA] spheres, designed for both penetration and 'mass effect', to increase the likelyhood of engaging the incoming 'vampire' or 'bogie'. The round is termed the MCP170 and uses a programmable magnetic fuze which uses information provided by the coil velocity gauge near the gun's muzzle in order to automatically compute the correct estimated time to target. The MCP170 has, generally speaking, replaced the MCP790 as the principle cannon round and can be seen stored in conjunction with the MCP35 [see below], the armor piercing discarding sabot. As aforementioned, the MCP170 offers a larger area of effect over the MCP790 and the ability for some penetration of the thicker surfaces of an aircraft or helicopter. For targets which will require much penetration, normally the Mark 30 will switch feeds to the MCP35. However, the MCP170 can also target assymetrical threats, such as light patrol craft or any type of craft which may be used to attack shipping or targeatable surface equipment.

Round Type: Advanced Hit Efficiency and Destruction [AHEAD]
Projectile Weight [Complete Round]: 2.35kg Projectile Weight: .9kg [180 sub-projectiles]
Projectile Length: 31.5cm
Muzzle Velocity: 1.17km/sec
Effective Range [Surface Shipping]: 5km Sea-Skimming Missiles: 2km Cruise Missiles: 2.5km Low-Flying Aircraft: 4km

The MC35 developmeny program originally began as the XMC20 frangible armor piercing discarding sabot program, but ultimately it was decided to design and manufacture a full-fledge sub-caliber armor penetrator to provide the Swift Kill with the ability to puncture through the thick penetrating caps, in order to reach the electronics or destroy the high explosive warhead, of the more modern 'heavy anti-shipping missiles' pressed into service in recent years. Originally, the actual penetrator was to follow the rod-tube extension concept of its larger armor piercing fin stabilized discarding sabot for the Nakíl's 120mm and 140mm main guns. However, it was decided to go with a penetrator which fit in the non-extended length of the closed telescoping cartridge of the MCP35. As a consequence, the penetrator has a diameter of 14mm and a length of 300mm, with a nose profile roughly 20% of the length - or 60mm. The penetrator is not cylindrical and instead is cruciform shaped to increase penetration, although not dramatically, and is manufactured out of depleted uranium like its larger cousins. Theoritically, at 4,000 meters the MCP35 can penetrate over 200mm of armored steel [hardness of roughly 350BHN]. Normally, the MCP35 is not stored as a stand-alone round and is only issued to one stowage bin. It's a special purpose projectile - it's designed to defeat heavily armored missile threats. It can also be used against helicopters and armored aircraft. It should be noted, however, that this type of round relies heavily on rate of fire to score multiple impacts, in order to hit key targets.

Round Type: Armor Piercing Discarding Sabot [APDS]
Projectile Weight: 1.7kg Penetrator Weight: .6kg Penetrator Material: Depleted Uranium [dU] Projectile Length: 31.5cm
Penetrator Diameter: 1.4cm Penetrator Length: 30cm
Effective Range [Sea Skimming Missiles]: 2-2.5km Cruise Missiles: 2.5-3km Surface Targets: 5-5.5km Aircraft: 4-4.5km
Penetration¹⁰ [0m]: 239.727mm @ 0º 500m: 234.752mm @ 0º 1.5km: 224.885mm @ 0º 4km: 200.882mm @ 0º

Product Overview
Manufacturers: Sistemas Terrestres Segovia & Argus Industrial Manufacturing
Designation: Mark 30 modelo 451 Swift Kill
Weight [Barrel]: 110kg Weight [Gun]: 580kg Caliber Length: 65
Grooves: 27 Twist: Progressive Rate of Fire: 1,000rpm
Cost: $320,000

Notes

1. Based on the cost of one hundred and fifty [150] 35mm Bushmaster chain guns, procured by the Dutch.
2. See: Revolver cannon [Wikipedia]
3. Note that this term is made up by me.
4. The same as Rheinmetall's and Oerlikon's Millenium Gun.
5. See: Diamond, P., et. al., Electro Thermal Chemical Gun Technology Study, The MITRE Corporation, March 1999, pp. 11-15 ;Jung, Jaewon, et. al., Overview of ETC Program in Korea, IEEE Transaction on Magnetics, Volume 37, Number 1, January 2001, pp. 39-41.
6. For information see: Klingengberg, G., et. al., Gun Propulsion Concepts. Part I: Fundamentals, Propellants, Explosives and Pyrotechnics, Volume 20, pp. 307-308.
7. See: Notes for pages 61, 96 & 248 in AMENDMENTS AND ADDITIONAL NOTES TO "RAPID FIRE", by Anthony G. Williams.
8. See: XM291 120mm main gun. Some resources relevant to this gun: Pengelley, Rupert, A New Era in Tank Main Armament: The Options Multiply, Janes International Defense Review, November 1989, pp. 1521-1531; Sharoni, Asher H. and Bacon, Lawrence D., The Future Combat System (FCS): Technology Evolution Review and Feasibility Assessment, Armor Magazine, September-October 1997, pp. 29-33, 49.
9. Gonzales, A. and Shimm, H., Spheroidal Propellant Stabilizer Studies, 19th International Symposium on Ballistics, 7-11 May 2001, pp. 147-153; Horst, A., et. al., Insensitive High Energy Propellants for Advanced Gun Concepts, 19th International Symposium on Ballistics, 7-11 May 2001, pp. 17-24; Klingengberg, G., et. al., Gun Propulsion Concepts. Part I: Fundamentals, Propellants, Explosives and Pyrotechnics, Volume 20, pp. 307-308; Kubota, Naminosuke, Combustion of GAP/HMX and GAP/TAGN Energetic Composite Materials, Propellants, Explosives and Pyrotechnics, Volume 25, 1997, pp. 86-91.
10. It should be noted that all figures are for penetration into armored steel, also known as 'rolled homogenous armor'.

by **The Macabees** » Fri Aug 18, 2017 5:35 pm

Program Details
The CB.125 is a further development of the AGS.250C, designed originally between Calzado y Bayo and Atmos for the Nakíl 1A3 main battle tank, to provide clients with what is considered the ultimate in tank gun technology besides electromagnetic acceleration – which is not considered currently feasible, given electricity storage issues. The Nakíl is a widely exported main battle tank, with close to ten million vehicles of all six known production models (1A1, 1A1GU, 1A1+, 1A2, 1A3 and 1A3HA) sold to date (not including modification packages to upgrade already-assembled tanks), and continues to be substantially popular on the export market, especially in its latest incarnations – the Nakíl 1A3 and the Nakíl 1A3HA. Therefore, it wasn’t a surprise to either Kriegzimmer or Sistemas Terrestres Segovia when new customers arrived, but without the intention of changing calibers - the first such customer was Cotland, with a contract for seventy-two thousand Nakíl main battle tanks. Although technically the change in caliber, from the perspective of retrofitting the 120mm gun, is economically feasible given that it’s part of the modification package, the change in ammunition and the redistribution of millions of shells might not be. Historically, this issue has played a major role in limiting the sale of the Nakíl to historical users of the 120mm caliber and only to those willing to change, and has not allowed the Nakíl to make a large impact in the mainstream 125mm market – where tank companies from nations such as Doomingsland, Soviet Bloc and Aequatio still remain supreme. Calzado y Bayo’s CB.125 not only opens the Nakíl to a much larger tank market, but also allows Calzado y Bayo to play a major role in foreign tank industries by marketing the tank gun for foreign indigenous tank programs.

In the latter’s regard, the Castillian defense company has already scored a major contract with Doomingsland Defense Industries for the sale of production rights to the CB.125 for the modification program of the country’s current main battle tank and the possibility of using the tank gun in a future tank. This not only affects sales to the Doomani military, but also any exports which the MAD.V may be able to contract abroad. In this case, the CB.125 is actually a separate development to that offered for the Nakíl 1A3, although the technology remains basically the same. The version of the gun offered on the general export market is the CB.125E (Exportación) and comes with a dual-caliber breech, but with the capability of fitting either a 120mm or 125mm cannon. This is largely meant to suggest an effort for the eventual conversion to 120mm for customers, even if some may never commit to it – it gives them the option to easily modify existing tanks, if they feel that they can handle the remanufacture of ammunition. The CB.125, offered for the Nakíl, on the other hand offers the dual-caliber breech for either a 125mm gun tube or a 140mm gun tube. In all actuality, this is not completely accurate as either breech can be offered, depending on the client nation’s chance of being able to receive the larger gun caliber in the future – for example, Cottish Nakíl 1A3Cs will receive the 125/140mm dual-caliber breech, foreseeing a possible future decision to modify all tanks in service to 1A3HA (heavy armor) standards (currently, Cottish forces operate 70,000 Nakíl 1A3Cs and 2,000 Nakíl 1A3HAs for elite forces). The decision to not offer this option on the CB.125E is for a number of reasons, including the fact that 140mm might not be the preferred ‘larger caliber’ of the client nation (as opposed to 135mm or 152mm, for example) and Calzado y Bayo is not readily willing to facilitate this modification, given that it will allow foreign designs to compete with the Nakíl 1A3HA at the same low cost.

In the Nakíl’s case, the modification of the gun comes with other challenges as well. The autoloading system, including the two FASTDRAW revolvers near the rear of the turret, is designed specifically for either 120mm ammunition or 140mm ammunition, and there is no major production line for a 125mm variant. Regardless, Calzado y Bayo currently works in conjunction with the Castillian defense company Cibeles Dynámica, which focuses on autoloading systems for different systems (including naval cannons), for the production of a 125mm version of the Nakíl’s autoloader. The cost is the depression of the revolvers and their slight increase in size, and the depression of the robotic autoloading system (RALS), which means there is less available volume in the turret basket. As a consequence, Sistemas Terrestres Segovia and Imperial Land Systems instead decided to decrease the amount of available spare ammunition in fireproof cases suspended near the turret basket’s floor. In terms of length and required volume, the breech is similar given that in the original version of the gun it’s designed also for a full long-rod penetrator of the 140mm caliber and in the E version it’s designed for an extended length long-rod of the 120mm caliber; in other words, in the latter’s case penetrator length is likely to be similar. The gun tube is similar in length, as well – a 120mm L/57 compared to a 125mm L/55. Consequently, no major changes in the internal volume of the Nakíl are necessary, while the breech is designed to easily replacing existing 125mm breeches. In other words, for the most part complicated turret remodeling is not necessary in this case.

The gun, in all variants, will be produced by a number of different companies. These include Calzado y Bayo, Sistemas Terrestres Segovia (which has a much more extensive industrial complex around the world), Kriegzimmer (which is a co-producer of the Nakíl tank) and Atmos. The CB.125E for Doomingsland will be manufactured by Sistemas Terrestres Segovia and by Kriegzimmer in a joint-assembly program, mostly due to the fact that the latter has much more extensive capabilities to produce the gun in large numbers. Both companies, however, will use exclusively factory grounds in Doomingsland, as the contract requires. The gun, when manufactured for exported Doomani tanks, will most likely be produced in Doomani territory as much as possible, although it’s likely that production will spill to ‘overseas’ factories if the demand for the MAD.V is high. Guns manufactured for the Nakíl 1A3C will be manufactured exclusively by Calzado y Bayo and will be shipped to Kriegzimmer assembly plants for final installation in the Nakíl 1A3C turret, before the tank as a whole is shipped to Cotland. Future, independent, sales will most likely be co-produced between the Castillian gun company and Atmos, its Macabee counterpart, depending on the amount of sales it receives. It’s entirely possible that production rights will be awarded to foreign companies to market the gun in other nations, arguing that the gun is completely indigenous (since it will be produced indigenously). Similar marketing strategies have been followed in nations such as Juumanistra to sell a wide array of technology to a country largely unwilling to adopt foreign weapon systems, especially in regards to tank technology (the Juumanistran Kyton main battle tank has cost the country anywhere between $25 and $35 million per vehicle, and costs have continued to spiral as indigenous companies continue to develop modification packages to upgrade the tank to international standards).

Propulsive Technology
Today’s armored threats require extremely high powered main guns to have any hopes in perforating their armor. This gun versus armor race has led to a speedy development of ‘next-generation’ technologies, although many of these are still not viable – such as electromagnetic acceleration. Originally, the goal was to reach previously unattainable velocities in order to engage the target faster and increase the accuracy of the projectile, but recently there instead has been a decision to increase projectile mass by increasing its diameter. Regardless of whether the goal is to increase projectile velocity or projectile mass, they both require one thing – increased muzzle energy. There are a multitude of ways that this can be accomplished, including increasing the volume of the propellant charge in a conventional powder (solid propellant) cannon. Normally, each barrel, in accordance with the internal surface area of the tube, has a specific pressure it can withstand from the expanding propellant and therefore it’s normal to see an increase in caliber when the propellant charge has been enlarged to such a degree that it is no longer viable to use in an existing diameter gun barrel. Consequently, it’s not rare to find tanks with larger caliber tank guns, which unfortunately also require larger volumes inside tank turrets. There are, of course, alternative technologies – as mentioned – and the CB.125 follows this such school of thought, preferring new technologies to having to increase barrel caliber. In accordance with this, Calzado y Bayo have decided to offer what they consider the most advanced tank gun propulsion technology currently technologically feasible or known in the CB.125 – for many, this will be the best tank cannon (in this caliber) available on the market and it will certainly give the Doomani MAD.V an edge over competitors that do not use this gun.

Perhaps the most outstanding feature is the fact that it uses electrothermal-chemical (ETC) augmentation. Ultimately, this can be achieved in several different ways, but in the CB.125 specifically the round is designed to have an electrothermal ignition (ETI) charge which requires less than 100kJ per shot (the power supply is not an issue with the gun and is up to the client to decide how to provide this power – in the Nakíl 1A3, for instance, there is a pulsed power supply to the rear of the turret, while in the Nakíl 1A3HA the power is provided by the batteries which form part of the electric transmission). Consequently, the round or combustion chamber is likely to have a series of copper wires with embedded diamonds, or any other material which will provide the same effect, which will discharge plasma due to the vaporization of the material if electrically charged. Specifically, this type of plasma emitter is known as a flashboard large area emitter (FLARE) or a variation thereof. Due to the propellant type used in the CB.125 (discussed below), the plasma emitter is located as part of a completely combustible modular cartridge that forms part of the round (in solid propellant guns, for the most part semi-combustible propellant cartridges are used), containing only the emitter. The plasma completes a number of important jobs, including decreasing the molecular volume of the propellant and therefore increasing muzzle energy. The plasma is also used to ignite the propellant, to catalyze its expansion, and to control the rate of expansion of the propellant to make it much more effective in regards to maximizing its potential. In a 120mm solid propellant gun, for example, electrothermal-chemical combustion is known to increase muzzle energy from 9mJ to 18mJ, which effectively doubles the energy of the gun (more accurately, it can increase muzzle energy anywhere from 15mJ to 18mJ, approximately – exact figures are difficult to come by).

As already mentioned, the CB.125 – like in most tank guns produced by either Atmos or Calzado y Bayo – uses a hydroxyl ammonium nitrate (HAN) based liquid propellant, instead of a solid propellant. Contrary to popular belief, although liquid propellants do increase the piezometric efficiency – that is, the advantage of having a higher mean to peak chamber pressure – and therefore may have an increase in muzzle velocity (perhaps around 10% higher), they do not have a higher ballistic efficiency as compared to solid propellants. Therefore, technically, in order to achieve the same muzzle energy a liquid propellant needs more mass than their solid propellant counterpart, but it is also true that a liquid propellant requires less volume – in this case, the amount of energy per gram of the propellant is similar to a solid propellants (a little over 5,000kj/g), but require only about 70% the volume. To give an idea on the volume advantages a solid propellant has, at best, a loading density of 1,000kg/m3, while this specific liquid propellant (based on the real-life LGP 1846) has a loading density of over 1,500 kg/m3. Further savings in space arise from the fact that a liquid propellant is stored in closed cells, in bulk, while solid propellants must be stored with their respective ammunition in charge modules or bags. Specifically, the CB.125 uses a regenerative liquid propellant gun (RLPG) which has the liquid propellant metered into the combustion chamber by means of an injection pump – it should be noted that liquid propellants are easier to manufacture than solid propellants and are also cheaper (30-50% so). Unfortunately, regenerative guns are mechanically complex, but trade complexity for increased control of the propellant – a worthwhile trade. Just like its 120mm brother, the CB.125 uses a high-breech pressure charge, which means that the charge volume is larger than what is necessary in order to increase muzzle energy. This is possible not only because of the burn efficiency of a liquid propellant, but also because the gun barrel is coated with chrome to allow for increased barrel pressures. There are certain safety concerns with liquid propellants, and these should be addressed. Since liquid propellants can be separated from their respective projectiles and stored in protected and closed cells inside the turret, they have an added advantage over solid propellants – as mentioned above. Therefore, they can be better protected by the turret’s armor and if the ammunition compartment is breached it means that the ammunition will not react violently, unlike in many solid propellant tank designs (especially designs with carousel autoloaders, or ammunition in the turret basket). Furthermore, bipropellants such as HAN-based propellants cannot react on their own and require both parts of the propellant to interact in order to allow the reaction (which is truly catalyzed through the electric discharge, regardless). Therefore, it can be considered stable and less vulnerable than their solid propellant competitors.

A recent addition to the union of liquid propellants and electrothermal chemical technology, also known as a liquid propellant electrothermal-chemical (LPETC) gun, is chemically augmented combustion (CAC). This is similar to electrothermal-chemical combustion, but less radical, and can be used to increase the potential of electrothermal-chemical reactions even further. Chemically augmented combustion has been a very recent addition to the Nakíl, and is only present in the AGS.250C and the AGS.300 (the 140mm version) – this technology is likely to be retrofitted into a future variant of the CB.54 103mm gun present on the carro de combate Lince, used by the Castillian Ejército de Tierra. Technically speaking, chemically augmented combustion is not either new or old, and was ‘developed’ around the same time as electrothermal-chemical technology – as said before, it’s simply a much less radical approach, although with many less benefits (if applied alone). This technology can be known under many other names including hydrogen augmented combustion (HAC) and propellant energizing technology (PET). When applied to an electrothermal-chemical gun is can also be known as hydrogen propellant electro-chemical (HYPEC) combustion. In essence, this behaves similar to electrothermal-chemical technology in one respect, in which that it can convert high molecular weights to low molecular weights through chemical means, which means in high produced muzzle velocities or energy. This technology is somewhat easy to apply given that the hydrogen can be produced by an electrothermal reaction in the combustion chamber, which forms part of the electrothermal-chemical process. Despite the less radical approach, this technology is relatively unheard of since it has not been widely marketed and this is one of the first times it has been applied to an actual field gun (the AGS.250C and the AGS.300, before the CB.125).

All of this technology integrated into the gun makes the CB.125 what is most likely the most powerful gun of this caliber, although it’s also true that it also makes the CB.125 very mechanically complex. However, it all has to do with a series of trade-offs which one country might see as justifiable and the other may not. The most mechanically complex portion of the gun is the regenerative liquid propellant, which unfortunately is currently difficult to solve using other liquid propellant combustion techniques due to control problems of bulk-loaded liquid propellant guns and the instability of most monopropellants. Alternatively, one can revert back to the solid propellant and use new solid propellant techniques, including new modular charges, but neither Calzado y Bayo nor Atmos see this a possibility in their own school of thought. Both see enhanced performance and increased survivability as enough justification for the continued use of the regenerative liquid propellant gun. In many ways, it is completely necessary due to the design of the tank – for example, the Lince’s survivability (which uses a carousel autoloader) depends on the fact that the propellant is stored separate from the ammunition. As a consequence, the procurement of the CB.125 should depend entirely on the nation’s or army’s perspective on the technologies in use, as opposed to simply looking at the CB.125 as a very powerful tank gun – it’s a similar issue as the decision to use depleted uranium for a tank’s kinetic energy ammunition or not.

[OOC: Electrothermal-Chemical Technology for Tank Guns]

Recoil
Lighter vehicle platforms have recently been fielded with larger guns, and it’s understood that the CB.125 may be a chosen main gun for one such vehicle. Similar usage of its 120mm and 122mm (Castilla’s indigenous caliber) has already taken place, and therefore Calzado y Bayo has taken precautions to make this a possibility for the CB.125 as well. Recoil dampening is done in two principle ways, including the elongation of the recoil mechanism and the use of a muzzle break. In both case there are important things to take into consideration and generally this is one of the ‘weak points’ in some of Calzado y Bayo’s gun designs – long recoil mechanisms. However, it allows powerful guns such as these to be mounted in light anti-tank vehicles, such as reconnaissance cavalry armored vehicles (whether tracked or wheeled), or in mobile gun systems. Therefore, it’s logistically simpler since the same gun is used in multiple systems, as opposed to having to use an all new gun system. Furthermore, as mentioned and alluded to, it provides very light vehicles with before unforeseen firepower. Although these vehicles can’t compete with a main battle tank on a one on one basic, given that they lack of the main battle tank’s protection, mobility and hunter-killer abilities, it still provides them with an edge that they did not dispose of before. Another advantage is that it makes the gun available to nations that have chosen not to acquire any main battle tank under the argument that these are obsolescent and should be replaced by lighter, airmobile platforms. Truth to this ideology is not relevant to this discussion, and the important fact is that it widens the gun’s export market even beyond the main battle tank.

Muzzle brakes are difficult to add to guns mounted on armored vehicles due to noise production issues. On a tank destined to fight in large tank formations, against other tank formations, this might not necessarily be a major problem and in fact there might not be a need for a muzzle break at all, given the weight of the platform (generally at least fifty-five tons in weight). Muzzle brakes become much more relevant in lighter vehicle platforms, where the recoil impulse on the vehicle’s structure can cause major and permanent damage – enough to force the vehicle out of action. However, the issue remains tricky because these vehicles are designed primarily to operate with nearby dismounted infantry and enhanced noise production due to the muzzle break can be harmful to the soldier. Therefore, many designs which have previously included muzzle brakes have opted to remove them for the sake of the infantryman operating near the vehicle. On the other hand, efficient muzzle breaks are a ‘must’ for low-recoil weapons. Therefore, Calzado y Bayo have reverted to one of Atmos’ multi-hole pepperbox muzzle breaks, designed to decrease recoil and to reduce the firing and noise signature produced. Apart from reducing the noise signature and having an efficiency of around 40%, this type of muzzle break also helps in reducing the firing signature by means of lateral venting of the escaping propellant gasses. Furthermore, this muzzle break has no impact on fin-stabilized ammunition due to the attenuation of produced shockwaves as the round passes through the muzzle. Like always, it’s a trade-off between higher recoil efficiency and the added benefits of reduced noise and firing signatures. For example, the single-chamber muzzle break used on the Nakíl 1A3HA’s 140mm AGS.300 gun tube has an efficiency level of 70%! However, this gun is not expected to be mounted on a lighter vehicle and therefore it’s a reasonable choice.

The gun’s recoil mechanism is also longer ‘than usual’, as has become commonplace in guns designed by the same manufacturers. Usually, a gun of this caliber will have an extended recoil length of around 400-420mm, designed for a vehicle of generally the fifty ton class. In the case of the CB.125 the recoil length has been extended to 540mm, which is comparable to other guns meant for the twenty-five ton class, although there are some guns with extended recoil lengths of up to 710mm! It should be noted that this doesn’t necessarily make the CB.125 adequate for a twenty-ton platform, as the fact that it produces a high muzzle energy should be taken into account – although basic, basic recoil force is the same as the force of the round and of the propellant gasses leaving the barrel (conservation of momentum). Therefore, although recoil is attenuated to a fairly high degree for the energy produced by the gun, it doesn’t make the gun capable of being mounted on any lightweight vehicle. The CB.125 and CB.125E are best mounted on the vehicles of at least thirty metric tons of weight, or no lower than twenty-seven tons. Alternate versions of the gun, of course, can be designed with even larger extended recoil lengths to bring down recoil force even further, if a client is looking to apply the gun to a very low weight platform (even lower than twenty metric tons). The hydropneumatic recoil mechanism is housed in a titanium cylinder, while the mechanism’s trails are also manufactured out of titanium – this has already been done in lightweight artillery systems. It must be taken into consideration that an extended recoil travel means that the gun will require much more space between the breech and the vehicle’s roof or the turret basket’s floor (or whatever blocks the elevation of the gun) because that volume has to take into consideration the length of the recoil mechanism fully extended (when it’s absorbing the recoil of a shot). Consequently, it will affect turret height or the ability to depress the main gun. In the Nakíl 1A3 this is ‘solved’ (although, again, it’s a trade-off) through the use of a hydropneumatic suspension which allows the rear suspension components of the vehicle to lift, and therefore increase the level of depression by moving the tank as a whole.

As alluded to beforehand, similar techniques have already been retrofitted into existing tank guns and both Calzado y Bayo and Atmos Incorporated have integrated these ‘technologies’ into past guns. For example, the original AGS.250, mounted on the Nakíl 1A1 could be mounted on a twenty ton vehicle, and these trains continued to present itself on each successive Nakíl model. Due to the carro de combate Lince’s low weight of forty-five tons (light considering the amount of armor on both the turret and the chassis) similar techniques were used to lower the recoil of the advanced 103mm high-breech pressure gun, which affords the Lince an extraordinary amount of lethality for the caliber of the gun. In terms of attenuating recoil, in the CB.125 it’s not a priority besides attenuating it enough to make it possible to mount the gun on a lighter chassis. As has been underscored continuously, gun design is all about a series of trade-offs and in this case (recoil specific) both Calzado y Bayo and Atmos have agreed to form some sort of balance between weight, recoil attenuation and breech volume. Because it’s impossible to fulfill all objectives this is seen as the best possible solution, although individual nations may have individual requirements, prerequisites or ideologies on the subject.

[OOC: Large Caliber Tank Guns for Lightweight Platforms]

Weight
Total weight of the gun system has always been a very important consideration, in all tank designs – regardless if the tank weighs forty-five tons or if it weighs sixty-five tons. Nations have spent millions of dollars on introducing new tracks which save much less than what a lightweight gun system can possibly save – for example, nations have willingly modified entire tank fleets to apply tracks such as MecániCas’ Type 640 lightweight tracks (which for a sixty-five ton tank will shed around six hundred kilograms worth of weight). In a gun system the weight savings are similar, or potentially even greater, and depend entirely on the engineering applied to the gun and how much one is willing to spend on said gun system. Due to the nature of where the weight is saved, these weight savings might also make the gun system lighter and more compact which are equally as important (especially in a breech which has a greater recoil length). Lighter guns are also more acceptable to mount on lighter platforms, such as thirty-ton vehicles. Furthermore, all vehicles, regardless of their weight, have weight limits and therefore small weight savings are imperative to keep vehicles under their maximum allowable weight. This is most true for a main battle tank, despite the fact that it remains one of the heaviest ground vehicles in any army. Many times governments have the idea that since it already weighs sixty-five tons five more won’t hurt, and this is a fallacy – all nations have specific bridging requirements, and even one ton can affect the mobility of the tank over rivers, especially as tank designer teams increase armored thickness in order to defeat the evolving gun threat. These limits have always played an impact in tank design in both Castilla y Belmonte (especially with a tank that weighs forty-five tons) and the Second Empire of the Golden Throne (although bridging laws had to take into account that the Nakíl’s predecessor weighed almost ninety metric tons), and have affected the tank gun industry.

The tube itself is lightweight and comparable to barrels of the same caliber and length. It should be remembered that larger diameter betters are normally built thinner, because the barrel pressure per given volume or mass of propellant will be less than in a smaller caliber barrel. This explains the willingness of armies to upgrade calibers, instead of simply increasing propellant mass. To a point, it is no longer viable to continue strengthening the barrel to withstand higher pressure since this will result in more expensive manufacturing techniques and there is the chance that thicker materials are more likely to fail and therefore the barrel will still have a much lesser lifespan than a larger caliber gun barrel would have. This was an issue during the development of the Lince, especially when Castilla y Belmonte entered the design consortium formed between Vault 10, Lyras, The People’s Freedom and Castilla y Belmonte. Originally, the first and last nation argued about the possibility of a 70mm gun firing a sub-caliber projectile meant for the 103mm caliber, with the same muzzle energy. The latter country discarded the idea as unrealistic, given the already stated parameters of gun design, and therefore opted to adopt the indigenous CB.54 103mm tank gun on its own Lince. Vault 10 still has not completed its own tank design and there is no news on whether it will opt for the Lince or it will continue on its own indigenous tank program (possibly even more radical than the Lince). Regardless, given the information provided it can be assumed that the gun barrel is lightweight and comparable to the weight of a 120mm L/55 gun barrel (estimated at 1,347kg). Indeed, the gun barrel has a weight of roughly 1,470kg (taking into account the added length and total surface area, due to the larger barrel diameter). This compares favorably to the 2,500kg of weight of older 125mm gun barrels (125mm L/50).

Much weight has been saved in the breech, however – specifically, around 700kg! This is garnered through the increased use of titanium (for example, the recoil cylinders) and also through the elimination of redundant parts in the breech and the gun’s mounting. The elimination of these parts also represents a decrease in the volume of both the breech and the mounting system in the turret basket, which opens volume for other necessary items, such as electronics systems and battery units (for example, for the electric turret traverse brushless servo motors). The fact that a regenerative liquid propellant follows the ‘traveling charge concept’ and therefore increases pressure further down the barrel, as opposed to a solid propellant (in powder guns greater barrel pressure is established nearer to the breech, since the energy of the propellant dissipates), this allows weight savings in the barrel, as well, since the barrel can be designed to be lighter in different sections – the barrel’s geometry can be specifically designed to maximize its weight and the distribution of liner thickness. All of this makes for a dramatically lighter design. Between the breech, the gun mount and the barrel the CB.125 tank gun system weighs 3,210kg. When taking in mind the weight of the entire gun system the role of the muzzle brake becomes doubly as important, as it reduces shock induced stresses on its construction due to the recoil impulse. It should be reminded that the recoil length will not decrease the impulse felt by the gun (or by the crew) due to the recoil, although it will decrease the impulse of the recoil felt by the vehicle as a whole.

In terms of weight the CB.125 is one of the lightest guns in its caliber, similar to how the AGS.250C, the AGS.300 and the CB.54 are also some of the lightest gun systems in their caliber class. The technologies used to reduce the weight of the gun system, however, are not necessarily unique and have been applied to other gun systems around the world. What is true, on the other hand, is that both Calzado y Bayo and Atmos Incorporated have united all aspects of weight savings in order to minimize the weight of their gun systems. Furthermore, as two of the leading artillery-sized gun manufacturers in the world their respective engineers are some of the most adept to take into consideration all these different factors to decrease weight, and the quality of their gun systems have been manifested time and time again by the amount of clients the Nakíl receives. There is no doubt that the CB.125, as a gun system, will receive a similar amount of international attention. Boasts and ego aside, the CB.125 is likely to become a standard around the world, and even if it’s not directly acquired by foreign states it’s likely to be used as an example for indigenous tank gun development. These characteristics are what make these two gun companies world class leaders in their fields.

Conclusions
Whatever the features of the CB.125 it must be remembered that tank cannon technology is not everything that dictates a tank’s lethality. Although velocity and energy may play large and important roles in what is the accuracy of the round, so will the tank’s electronics. For example, some companies have claimed an increase of 35% in first-round hit probability (accuracy) through the addition of current-generation image intensifiers (II) and thermal sights. The tank’s fire control system, in general, including the dozens of sensors which the tank may include to maximize accuracy by taking into consideration minute details such as the gun trunnion’s axle cant, barrel droop, atmospheric pressure, et cetera, will also have a very big impact on the gun’s eventual accuracy. The gunner’s training, of course, cannot be ignored or taken out of the picture, and crew training in general will perhaps be the single most important aspect in any tank battle – as history has proven. In any case, it comes as no surprise that 60%+ of a tank’s cost is attributed to electronics, given the role these play in the tank’s lethality, survivability and mobility. The fact remains that clients should not take the CB.125 as the manifestation of accurate gunnery as there are a wide amount of variables that play in this factor. Nevertheless, the CB.125 is certainly one of the best guns in its class that can take into account all of these other factors and deliver the best performance it possibly can itself. In other words, each system must be refined individually and the CB.125, as a gun system (not including the electronics), is possibly the best a client can choose to use. The number of sales of the Nakíl and already signed contracts with foreign tank developers for the use of the gun has provided enough evidence.

Any client also has the guarantee that Calzado y Bayo will continue the development of tank gun technology, as has already been witnessed in the evolution of Atmos’ AGS.250 on the Nakíl main battle tank. This means that the company will always be working to provide its client with the best possible in the field – both Atmos and Calzado y Bayo have already been continuously been presenting the best gun options for the tank programs that they have partaken in, whether this be the Nakíl, Lince or Doomani MAD.V. Therefore, future improvements in liquid propellants, solid propellants, plasma emitters or any other technologies which can be applied to the gun are likely to be introduced as soon as possible – as research and feasibility allows – always putting the gun one step ahead of that of its competitors. Both companies have production history on their side to show facts, as opposed to promises. These companies will always have a vested interest in providing these improvements, given that they are constantly working on developments for their nation’s indigenous tanks, whether it be the Nakíl or the Lynx, and have almost always been willing to offer these to the general public. Of course, exports can be considered limited by the political policies of the Second Empire and of Castilla, but the gun systems can be purchased through ‘third parties’, including Doomingsland Defense Industries (by procuring the MAD.V) and through Sistemas Terrestres Segovia Land Systems (STSLS) by acquiring the Nakíl 1A3/1A3HA. The gun is also likely to be made available once it’s chosen by other tank producers for their own indigenous main battle tanks. Atmos’ gun-technology found on the Nakíl 1A1/1A1GU/1A1+ has already found itself on tanks such as the Lariat and possibly a wider array of main battle tanks across the world. It’s this resumé which clients can trust.

Beyond ‘conventional’ (or relatively conventional) improvements in the gun system, future possibilities include electromagnetic acceleration. Calzado y Bayo has been researching electromagnetic-chemical acceleration as a possible merging between electrothermal-chemical and electromagnetic propulsion concepts, and although it requires a larger source of energy than current guns it may become possible as electric parts for main battle tanks become more widespread – including new engine types and so forth. The coming of the electric transmission has already foreshadowed this possible transition in the future and Calzado y Bayo is sure to follow evolutionary trends, given that it has been this that has guaranteed the company’s success around the world. Pure electromagnetic guns have also been explored and both Atmos and Calzado y Bayo have partaken in some of the largest and most extensive rail gun tests around the world, but currently it’s not seen as a viable alternative due to the excessively large energy requirements. Unlike electrothermal-chemical propulsion, electromagnetic propulsion requires more energy input than it will eventually give out! With current energy storage capabilities it’s not feasible to mount such a weapon system in a tank, where volume is an important factor – perhaps with advancements in compulsators it will one day become possible. The Castillian artillery cannon company has been working with Astiversal, an important naval contractor in the kingdom, on a 400mm electromagnetic coastal gun which uses fixed power plants to provide the required energy and this program will offer very important insights in rail gun innovation that may play a role in the future to integrate the technology into a combat vehicle.

What is certain is that Atmos Incorporated and Calzado y Bayo are always looking at the future.

by **The Macabees** » Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:03 pm

The Dienstad class Strategic Projection Vessel [N.B.: From now on the term 'strategic projection vessel' will be abbreviated SPV] was born of a requirement within the Maríenen [OOC: Imperial Marines] for a multi-mission amphibious ship capable of transporting them to the area of amphibious landing and to support them during the operation. This requirement was developed during the War of Golden Succession, when a similar vessel was not in service. In fact, during most amphibious landings during the war all landing units found themselves inadequately supported by allied naval forces behind them. For example, during the initial landings at Pir-Sar the Ejermacht infantry were decimated by coastal artillery and the numerical superiority of the enemy. Although three Vic de Chassenay class gun boats had consequently been constructed out of older merchant ships in order to provide naval fire support for a second landing undertaken by the Maríenen it was found to be only rudimentary, although these operations were successful in establishing a front in the northern areas of the city, and ultimately the Sarcanzan resistance in the city was crushed.

Similar problems were found to exist during special amphibious landings up and down the Havenic [Safehaven2] coast, and even during the amphibious landings along the Guffingfordi coast - Imperial troops 'hopped' from port city to port city to deny Stevid as much coast of Guffingford as possible. The problem was usually more persistent during the Guffingfordi operations where there was no Kriermada support and all naval support was conducted with captured Guffingfordi merchant ships hastily converted to gun boats. Interestingly, their crews would remain the Guffingfordi crews - paid by the Empire [at very high rates] - while their guns would be controlled by the more skilled artillerymen of the Ejermacht - sometimes small radio controlled unmanned aerial vehicles [UAV] had to be used as artillery spotters during the artillery duels with the coast.

The idea for the Dienstad was probably born after the Siege of Pir-Sar, although serious development did not begin until June 2018, after the end of the War of Golden Succession. Interestingly, as early as November 2016 [around two months after the end of the Siege of Pir-Sar] there was an attempt to use a newly constructed super merchant ship hull [~500m long] to be used as an amphibious ship with the capability of carrying at least twenty-six short take-off and landing aircraft. This project was developed between November 2016 and March 2017, but with the end of the naval war [with Stevid] in sight the project was dropped. Only during the resurgence of amphibious operations against Safehaven was there also a rebirth of interest within an amphibious ship. This requirement was mostly necessary within the ranks of the Maríenen, which had expanded in size, and had begun to be the sole group of soldiers responsible for amphibious operations with the Navy [although the Ejermacht's size guarantee it the largest role in any large-scale amphibious landing, since there wouldn't be enough Maríenen available].

The Dienstad project was delayed by the fact that by the end of the war the Empire had run out of money. The Ejermacht had expanded from a force of less than a half a million men to thirty-three million personnel, including twenty-four to twenty-six million combat personnel alone. Most of the Empire's coffers had gone into arming the massive ground army which had been mobilized between May 2016 and May 2018 - most of this army remained motorized even at the end of the war, as it was found impossible to mechanize it in time without putting the Empire into a massive debt with Kriegzimmer [a political consideration, given that the administration did not want to give Kriegzimmer the leverage to return to its super conglomerate powers that it held before the war - although, it ultimately will return to this status]. However, by the end of the war the Empire had begun to pursue a drastic naval modernization program and this included the Maríenen - a department of the Kriermada. The Dienstad project, or Project K456, was officially opened 14 June 2018 and as early as 13 November 2020 a design was introduced to the Maríenen - this was consequently accepted, and the first keel was laid down 1 January 2021. The first ship of the class, the HES Dienstad, was completed by 17 December 2022. Three more ships were laid down a month after the Dienstad and completed three months after the finishing of the Dienstad - these were the Pir-Sar, San Anton de la Luz, Ferrol and the Valenziaco. All four were named after amphibious operations during the War of Golden Succession, the last three being in Safehaven. Four more ships were completed by the following year, marking a total of eight ships completed, with two more arriving by 2025, for a total fleet of ten. These were:

- Dienstad
- Pir-Sar
- San Anton de la Luz
- Ferrol
- Valenziaco
- Halendoos
- Tercel
- Tashar'dobli
- Saint James of Riverine
- Greater Dienstad

By the time the fourth ship was completed the Kriermada had decided that it was not necessary to procure more, and cooperation with the Ejermacht failed as the ship was seen as incapable of transporting the sufficient amount of me - it was seen as too general. Consequently, a separate project was conducted in order to design several ships in order to support amphibious operations on a much larger scale. These ships would specialize, as opposed to combine as with the Dienstad class. Nevertheless, the Dienstad class found great success within the Maríenen, and would first be used to transport several thousand Maríenen to Scandavian States to reinforce allied armies against an expected Questerian invasion.

Armament
The Dienstad's armament dossier is dedicated entirely towards self-defense. She carries forty-eight [24] P.746.B surface to air missiles arrayed in launchers of four blocks. There are six launchers on each side of the ship. The P.746.B is a medium-range surface to air missile of the P.746.X series of surface to air missiles. It has a maximum range of one-hundred and thirty [130] kilometers and a maximum altitude of eleven thousand [11,000] meters. The P.746.B has been a common 'box launched' surface to air missile of all Kriermada ships, although normally it's paired with the P.746.A which is fired from a vertical launch tube. In the Dienstad's case, it's expected that the amphibious group will be dependent on ships like the Taníat class Anti-Air Warfare Battlecruiser [BCGN]. As a final layer of defense against the missile threat each ship is outfitted with three Cohort Mk. II close-in weapon systems. This system is a six-barreled 35mm electromagnetic system - it's standard within various international navies.

For protection against smaller crafts which include suicide boats and boarding parties the Dienstad carries six S-30 of Mekugian design. These are 13.3mm in caliber. Boarding was actually fairly common during the War of Golden Succession by Havenic marines who attempted to board Imperial fast attack crafts patrolling the Havenic coastline and enforcing a blockade on the nation.

Apart from these three systems the only other armament of the ship can be considered its air arm when it's in carrier mode, or it's outfitted with aircraft for any given amphibious operation. The Dienstad is not an offensive oriented ship, except through its air-arm, and most of its volume is taken up by deck space for transport.

Statblock
Length on the Waterline: 307m Length Overall: 340m Beam: 38.4m Draft: 9.68m Displacement [Full Load]: 68,469 tonnes
Block Coefficient: .6
Propulsion: Combined Diesel-Electric and Gas Turbines Screw Type: Azimuth Thruster Motors: Advanced induction motors Horsepower: 116,397shp
Cruise Speed: 22 knots Flank Speed: 28 knots
Range: 9,700nm @ 20 knots

Armament:
- 6x Cohort Mk. II naval CIWS
- 48x P.746.B surface to air missiles
- 6x 13.3mm Mekugian S-30 machine guns

Cargo Distribution:
- Heavy cargo garage. [1,700m²]
- Hangar. [3,175m²]
- Garage & hangar for light cargo. [2,300m²]
- Flight deck.

Transport Capabilities:
- 2,000 troops & equipment
- 36 GLI-76 [or future VTOL aircraft] [carrier mode]
- ~80 transport helicopters [amphibious assault]
- 50 'heavy vehicles' [including the Nakíl 1 and Nakíl 2]
- 8 LCMs or 2 LCAC

Crew Compliment [Officers]: 29 Enlisted: 268
Electronics:
- RT.99 Multiband short-range air defense radar
- RT.78 coordinating radar & software
- GT.23 GPS Software

Procurement Cost Per Unit: $2.7 billion USD

by **The Macabees** » Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:08 pm

After the results of the Battle of Otium Aqua Sea, August of 2016, the Kriermada conducted a naval review of the older ships in serve, including (although not limited to) the Elusive class Battleship. This had been hailed as the new and long life serving battleship under the rule of Jonach I, but it was quickly found that alternate vessels of the same type were of necessity. Ultimately, the Kriermada went to Kriegzimmer for three new designs, the first of which was the Kristík (pronounced kris-tique; note the lack of an accent on the e), followed by the Establías and Gepár classes. They were designed to fulfill three roles, one of a lighter battleship, one of a generic medium battleship and the last as a command battleship, respectively. The first ship of the class, the HES Kristík, would be comissioned in 2020 and would effectively fulfill the role of all Elusives by 2025, along with the Establías and Gepár. The Kristík is truly a light battleship in the ultra-modern sense of the word, displacing 145,000 tonnes and having relatively light armaments for similar ships of its class. It's designed to fit the doctrinal dogma of the Kriermada, which has been shifting ever since the Battle of Targul Frumos and most likely will continue to shift throughout the entire War of Golden Succession. Nevertheless, the Kristík has a long service life ahead of her, not only in the Kriermada but in other international navies.

Specifications:
Type: Trimaran Battleship
Displacement: Approx. 145,000 tonnes
Length: 313.4m
Beam: 39.1m
Width [Outriggers]: 78.35
Draft: 14.5m
Powerplant: 2x 400MW Pebblebed Reactors
Sprint Speed: 38 Knots
Cruise Speed: 33.5 Knots
Armaments:
4x Triple-mount 508mm Hypervelocity [EM] Cannons
20x Dual-mount 155mm Dual-Purpose Cannons
4x Sixty-Tube VLS [240 tubes; 260 P.746.Fs + 480 on belts - 120 Sledgehammer IIs + 240 on belts]
8x P.746.A Deck Launchers
18x Conhort Mk. II CIWS
10x Maniple ASHuM
Projectile Weight: 1,673kg
Elevation: +48/-8
Rate of Fire: Five rounds per minute
Armor [Actual Thickness]:
476mm @beltline
645mm @turret faceplate
432mm @turret side
98mm @secondary turrets
234mm @deck
489mm @superstructure
354mm @bulkheads
Sensors:
AGP.17 Navigational Radar
AGP.23 Surface Search Array
AGP.24 Surface Search Array
AGP.8 Fire Control Radar
AGP.117 Air Search Radar
LRP.16 Integrated Ladar Array System
SNG.76 Hull Mounted Sonar
E.90 Electronic Warfare Suite
TB.116 Thin-Line Towed Array Sonar
Decoys:
R.117 Chaff Dispensers
R.118 Noisemakers
ARBB 33 jammer
SAIGON radio emission detector
Air Arm:
2x SeaSerpent LAMPS
2x GF-11 Archer UAVs
Crew: 3,150
Procurement Cost: $8.6 Billion; Ŗ5.742 Billion [as of April 25th]

by **The Macabees** » Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:10 pm

Joint Design Between Hailandkill & The Macabees

The Establías is the midweight battleship of the Empire and designed for a similar role for the Killian Navy. Within the service of the Kriermada it will probably be one of the most widely used battleships and is going to complete the replacement of the Elusive class, along with the Kristík class Battleship and the heavy Gepar class Command Battleship which will field over four hundred thousand tonnes. The Establías is designed to be different and unique, but at the same time on par with the dreadnoughts of other naval powers and perhaps even superior. For that reason the Establías has established a healthy relationship between old technologies and newer technologies, hoping to use a mix of the two to truly manifest itself as one of the better heavy battle of the line vessels of this age - or at least until it's replaced. With this hope, the Establías will enter service with the first of its class commissioned in 2020, and over forty built in the future. The ship truly deserves the honor of her class name, as she receives the title of one of the best admirals in the history of the Empire who found during the Great Civil War. With all the money put in the class, it's truly expected that the name metamorph itself into true superiority on the naval battlefield.

In terms of armament, the Establías showcases sixteen bristling 53.32cm cannons, or 21". Although recently designed Kriegzimmer ships have used some sort of electromagnetic acceleration to fire larger mass rounds over the same distance, the Establías is designed with the idea that smaller guns can be deployed in more plentiful numbers, and a different propulsion was considered. Liquid propellants were becoming more and more a favored technology, especially with the sudden appearance of liquid propellants on the Nakíl main battle tank in February 2017, and then on the Cougar 1A3 Heavy Battle Tank that same year. In fact, there's a lot of good to speak of liquid propellants and using the same liquid propellants used for ground applications, a HAN based liquid propellant the ship allows for survivability in case of impact, including a much lesser chance that the magazines will blow since technically the main magazines should not be containing any sort of propellant, but also faster muzzle velocity. Using a standard APCB projectile for the twenty-one inchers, with some sort of rocket assist or base bleed configuration, the Establías should be able to fire at a range exceeding 110 kilometers with better accuracy. With this in mind, she becomes a true contestant for supremacy of the seas in any war.

Her other most unique feature is the armor which reintroduces an old idea for newer application. The armor of the ship is as simple as any other Kriegzimmer ship; a layered steel armor between armored steel and high hardness steel, with low concentrations of carbon, vanadium, and manganese. However, on the Establías the armor is uniformly designed with a base armor of layering, and then three successive layers that are all divided by empty space. This extends throughout the entire ship, and especially under the waterline. It is spaced armour in its essence. The idea, of course, being that the mechanical shock waves will be isolated, meaning the impacted area will not all become a weakened zone, increasing the chances of ricochet or just plain stopping power against incoming missiles and naval rounds. Another principal advantage is the cheapness of the configuration, as compared to the fancy armoured schemes of other ships. Cheap, strong and able.

The rest of the ship can be seen below. However, it is safe to say that the Establías will become the mainstay battleship of the Empire, and even perhaps of the Empire's partner, Hailandkill.

Specifications:
Hull Type: Trimaran
Length: 449 meters
Beam: 32 meters
Beam[with outriggers]: 62 meters
Draught: 14.8 meters
Displacement: 250,000 tonnes
Power plant: Three Pebblehead reactors providing 596.8MW
Propulsion: Six water jets
Speed: 38 knots
Weapons Systems:
4x Quadruple mount turrets of 53.34 centimeter liquid propellant cannons
10x Dual mount turrets of 155mm dual purpose guns
6x sixty tube VLS blocks all amidships
16x P.746.A Deck Launchers
16x Conhort II CIWS
Armor:
513mm @beltline
705mm @turret faceplate
467mm @turret side
112mm @secondary turrets
312mm @deck
554mm @superstructure
401mm @bulkheads
Sensors:
AGP.17 Navigational Radar
AGP.23 Surface Search Array
AGP.24 Surface Search Array
AGP.8 Fire Control Radar
AGP.117 Air Search Radar
LRP.16 Integrated Ladar Array System
SNG.76 Hull Mounted Sonar
E.90 Electronic Warfare Suite
TB.116 Thin-Line Towed Array Sonar
Air Arm:
2x SeaSerpet LAMPS
2x GF-11 Archer UAVs
Crew: 3,300
Procurement: $12.3 billion

by **The Macabees** » Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:12 pm

Skyan Nomenclature: Hyperion

The Aristaqis was named after a demon of that name and one of the fallen angels. He was a Nephilim, or a race of giants conjured when a son of God mated with a daughter of men, son of Betrayal who never knew his son. Aristaqis' soul was tainted by the dark and thereafter brought back to the light by another fallen angel, as mythology tells. Aristaqis became the guardian of the human soul after being saved from Lucifer by an unknown fallen angel. In the same way, the Aristaqis befriends the evil [war], but is no less than the guardian of the Empire and of her allies. In that way she redeems herself, just as Aristaqis, the demon, once did thousands of years past. At just over a thousand meters of length, the Aristaqis is one of the larger ships in the Kriermada's arsenal, save for the Feathermore, and is the product of cooperation between the Silver Sky and the Second Empire of the Golden Throne. The result truly fits the categorisation of a demon and of a guardian, as said before. Some of the older Zealous class Super Dreadnoughts will be replaced by Aristaqis class Assault Dreadnoughts by 2019 to 2020, while the rest will be replaced by smaller dreadnoughts in the hundred thousand ton range, as opposed to millions of tons range. Despite the advent of such ships like the Aristaqis or the Feathermore, both of which are over a kilometer in length, the super dreadnought has been cast as obsolete, due to the fact that the smaller and cheaper dreadnought can mount smaller sized guns in larger numbers, with the same ranges, and do the same amount of damage through the use of electromagnetic acceleration. Both of these larger ships are remnants of the need for national pride and the sheer morale effects of huge shipping in gun blazing naval battles. The sister class is a Skyan vessel by the name of the Hyperion, and offers a somewhat different array of ordnance and armaments.

The Aristaqis boasts seven turrets of 635mm GS.19 hyper velocity naval guns, which use complete electromagnetic acceleration through the use of coiling, offering a total of twenty-eight guns. The Hyperion offers the same caliber, but instead exchange gun type to the Mk. X electrothermal-chemically accelerated cannons, using a solid propellant. The Hyperion also offers more smaller caliber dual purpose guns, although the Aristaqis simply added more 155mm dual purpose guns for work as anti-air artillery. Both offer the same number of close-in weapon system mounts, although the Aristaqis uses the Conhort Mk. II, and the Hyperion the Conhort Mk. III which displays smaller surface to air missiles on the mount, as opposed to just a single 35mm gatling. The Aristaqis also boasts more verticle launch tubes due to the decrease in secondary turrets. In other words, the Aristaqis is curtailed to the Kriermada's needs, as is the Hyperion to the Silver Sky. Armor wise both ships are incredibly well protected although the Aristaqis has half the armor, which it sacrifices knowing that the equivalence armor will still be strong enough, while it has the ability to reach much higher speeds, especially in sprint. Once again, a judgment of doctrine. The Aristaqis also sacrifices its torpedos and instead makes the weight up by adding several adaptable high-speed underwater munitions [ASHuM] mounts. Nevertheless, both are very sound designs, built to kill.

Under the auspices of the post-Targul Frumos and Otium Aqua Sea battles Kriermada revampment program, the Aristaqis will find a welcome home beside her larger cousin the Feathermore, and the smaller ships of the Kriermada.

Aristaqis class [The Macabees]:
Stats:
Length: 1,047 m
Beam: 238 m
Width With Outriggers: 337m
Draught: 27.3 m
Displacement: 2.56 Million Tons Full Load
Armament:
7x 4 635mm (25”) L/40 GS.19 Hyper Velocity Naval Guns in A, B, C, D, X, Y, and Z positions,
28x 2 155mm (6”) GS.26 Anti-Air Artillery Guns
64x Conhort Mk. II CIWS
28x Maniple ASHuM Cannons
17x 100-cell VLS
Protection: Layered -
Hardened Steel
Semi Hardened Steel

Alloyed with low concentrations of carbon, vanadium and manganese
1,296mm @beltline
1,532mm @turret faceplate
1,172mm @turret
662mm @secondary turrets
912mm @deck
959mm @superstructure
1,015mm @bulkheads
Aircraft: 8 LAMPS; 4 GF-11 UAVs.
Complement: 11,300 naval; 2,000 Naval infantry
Propulsion: 16x 1GW Pressurized Water Reactors [21,447,721shp] powering 12 internalised waterjets. Compulsators provide power from central power system to turrets. Extensive thermal insulation surrounds each reactor to reduce noise emissions and infrared signature. Twelve CODAG Engines provide emergency propulsion.
Max Cruise: 33 knots
Max Speed w/sprint jets: 38 knots
Max CODAG Speed: 14 knots
Sensors:
AGP.17 Navigational Radar
AGP.23 Surface Search Array
AGP.24 Surface Search Array
AGP.8 Fire Control Radar
AGP.117 Air Search Radar
LRP.16 Integrated Ladar Array System
SNG.76 Hull Mounted Sonar
E.90 Electronic Warfare Suite
TB.116 Thin-Line Towed Array Sonar
Decoys:
R.117 Chaff Dispensers
R.118 Noisemakers
ARBB 33 jammer
SAIGON radio emission detector
Procurement Cost: 311 Billion USD
Procurement Limit: 3

by **The Macabees** » Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:13 pm

The Grospek ship is designed to preform just the opposite of the Ingerier, being fitted with a larger verticle launch system, with wider and longer tubes, for the capability of launching the Sledgehammer II, a heavy anti-ship missile designed with special regards to super dreadnoughts and dreadnoughts. In fact, the Grospek uses three key design principles to attain the edge in such a battle: velocity, range and countermeasures. Due to the light armour of a battlecarrier, the Grospek at first sight is not substantially adept at engaging larger, more armoured, larger armed shipping, and on in a gunfight the Grospek would not be expected to return alive. For this reason specifically, it's designed to carry the missiles it proudly shows off - the Sledgehammer II. This latter missile is a huge anti-shipping missile, capped with a steel penetrator, designed to arc up and in parabolic fashion crash into the decks of super dreadnoughts and other ships. Height of the arc depends on the ship and whether or not the missile can make it in time with the current slope, but in every engagement it operates in a similar fashion. The missile capitalizes on acceleration due to gravity and its own massive ducted ramjet engine. In any case, the two make a perfect match and this most solemn wedding of knight with sword debuted on March 2020, when the HES Grospek set sail.

The armament includes four blocks of forty verticle launch tubes, equipped with the Sledgehammer II, and a fifth block of forty tubes carrying three P.746.F surface to air missile each. Aft there's two more blocks of forty tubes each carrying the Sledgehammer II, making the ship's entire missile inventory equal to two hundred Sledgehammer IIs and one hundred and twenty surface to air missiles. A conveyor delivers another two surface to air missiles per tube, and one Sledgehammer per tube, meaning the ship carries a total of four hundred anti-shipping missiles and two hundred and forty surface to air missiles. Additionally, there are eight dual purpose 127mm turrets, although they act mostly as air defense cannons, firing CAPMES rounds. Six deck launchers fire the smaller P.746.B missile for short range engagements, while there are eight close-in weapon mounts. Other than that, the Grospek carries one unmanned aerial vehicle for reconnaissance, as well as a LAMPS type helicopter [most likely the Sea Serpent II] as an advance warning flight and reconnaissance, as well as for anti-submarine operations. In that respect, the Grospek also fields two hedgehog munition devices and four torpedo tubes designed to carry the Av.36, and changes for three per tube, meaning a total of twelve torpedoes. The torpedo tubes feature an armoured cover, much as on the Deutschland BC. Nonetheless, her primary features rely on range and the ability to produce quite a bit of firepower at this range.

Statistics:
Length: 266.8m
Beam: 33.35m
Draught: 9.52m
Displacement: 44,446 tonnes [48,993.7 short tons]
Hull Type: Monohull
Machinery:
2x Helga pebblebed nuclear reactors [352,000 shp]
4x Waterjets
Maximum Speed: 42 knots
Range: Limited by consumables.
Armour:
381mm belt
406.4mm turret plate
93.98mm deck
Armament:
8x 127mm doublemount dual purpose turrets
8x Conhort CIWS
6x Praetorian Batteries
2x Hedgehog Mk. II Mortars
6x 20 cell VLS
4x 500mm torpedo tubes
Electronics:
Vertically deployed TB-2016
TB-163 thin line array
TB-87 short line array
MRT-1 multifunction search radar
MRT-4 surface search radar
KRS-82 fire and control radar
KRS-11 navigation radar
KRS-13 multifunction search radar
MLT-1 lidar array
BST-7 multiple interfece ladar arrays [four total]
KIR-66 infra-red fire array
Aircraft:
1x LAMPS
2x UAV
Crew: 547 naval
Cost: 5.4 billion

by **The Macabees** » Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:14 pm

The Taníat is a variant of the Ingerier class Battlecruiser, and the second of three designs that Kriegzimmer proposed for release, including the Grospek class Battlecruiser. The design features three of the three turrets removed off the Ingerier, instead using the volume and surface area for a wide array of verticle launch systems, equipped with the P.746.A surface to air missile, while the Praetorian batteries on the decks are shortened to equip the P.746.B missile variant, which is the mid-range missile variant of the P.746.X series. The Taníat also has a bow and stern turret with a dual-mount of 127mm guns, which also act as dual purpose guns. That said, the rest of the volume and surface area is taken up by batches of verticle launch system grids, including eight batches of nine tubes, three by three, adding to a total of seventy-two tubes per lost turret, all filled with the P.746.A surface to air missile. The tube is fitted for the Shockhound Avenger anti-shipping missile, but also fits many Praetorians. The tubes are meant to fit a single Shockhound Avenger or a single P.746.A surface to air missile and a conveyor feeds the tube, feeding it from a stock of another two missiles per VLS. That said, there are three new groupings, and the previously held twenty verticle launch tubes, translating to a grand total of two hundred and thirty-six tubes, which means seven hundred and eight missiles.

The Taníat plays the role as a pickett ship, especially in anti-air roles, and can do minor shore bombardment duties, especially if the ship is outfitted with smaller, but more, surface to surface missiles. Other than that, the ship is almost exclusively for escort duties, providing valuable anti-air warfare duties.

The ship earns its class name after Grand Admiral Taníat who commanded the first fleet ever commissioned by the First Empire of the Golden Throne in 432 Before Common Era. The fleet, formed of seventy-two triremes, and fifteen of the then rare quinqueremes, and him in his flagship, a septereme. The fleet was built as a response to the Birinthian fleet which had began to harass the Empire's coast during the First Reactionary War, and the two met off what used to be known as the Catrocian Islands. Although outnumbered Taníat managed to rout the enemy fleet, while sinking over thirty ships, although he himself lost around twenty of his own triremes, and two of the quinqueremes. Nevertheless, the Birintians had faced their first naval defeat, although minor, which would ultimately lead to the end of the First Reactionary War, and the beginning of the Second Reactionary War. The Birinthian War would not end until 276 B.C.E., when their kingdom's capital was sacked and taken. Nevertheless, Taníat became the Empire's first admiral in history, and began the Empire's route to naval splendor, although always underrated in history because of the predominance of land campaigns.

The HES Taníat was commissioned in 2019, and launched late that year. The Kriermada hopes to launch a total of some fifteen for escort purposes and such.

Statistics:
Length: 266.8m
Beam: 33.35m
Draught: 9.52m
Displacement: 42,446.3 tonnes [46,789 short tons]
Hull Type: Monohull
Machinery:
2x Helga pebblebed nuclear reactors [352,000 shp]
4x Waterjets
Maximum Speed: 43 knots
Range: Limited by consumables.
Armour:
381mm belt
406.4mm turret plate
93.98mm deck
Armament:
2x 127mm doublemount dual purpose turrets
8x Conhort CIWS
6x 88mm AAA
4x Praetorian Batteries
2x Hedgehog Mk. II Mortars
4x 5 cell VLS
6x 20 cell VLS
3x 30 cell VLS
Electronics:
Vertically deployed TB-2016
TB-163 thin line array
TB-87 short line array
MRT-1 multifunction search radar
MRT-4 surface search radar
KRS-82 fire and control radar
KRS-11 navigation radar
KRS-13 multifunction search radar
MLT-1 lidar array
BST-7 multiple interfece ladar arrays [four total]
KIR-66 infra-red fire array
Aircraft:
1x LAMPS
2x UAV
Crew: 536 naval
Cost: 5.2 billion

Kríertor Conglomerate [MT/PMT]

Kríertor Conglomerate [MT/PMT]

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