Sector Transfer Transport.
Added 2023-10-06 11:53:09 +0000 UTCIf you thought the Moose was the limit of Black Factions transport Capacity you were wrong. This massive transport is mostly used for moving equipment and supplies around. The Moose can be used for smaller consignments but these things, the STT can move an entire sector, full Cache in each container, plus 250 in the upper deck for rapid deployment and a rotunda in ZT-90s as escorts (noramlly 2 or 3).
These have never been used for sector sized drops, only dropping multiple Caches. There are doctrines in place for raids involving these transports and large unit assaults.
There are few scenarios where this is practical as typically the locations of interest such as major CPD bases where one of these could land, have very active air defences. They were not able to be deployed for the Zuvic incursion as they could not fit on the platform however they were used to move large numbers of units around during Mallera-deep.
Black Faction has 12 of these carriers however it is believed that there is only 3 operational. Since Zuvic was the manufacturer, parts have not been available for some time now. The general availability of them is low relative to maintenance also, with about 18 hours maintenance per hour of flight time. The dormant 9 are believed to be used as spare parts to be harvested for the others.
The massive hydraulic packs for the engine actuators are the most unreliable component on the craft with repeated failures due to radiation in the zone. Getting to these is difficult due to height but also the other parts in the way. The handful of engineers and mechanics who work on these machines, and the other craft are some of the highest paid units in Mallera-9, with heavy guard presence at all times. Destroying the assets is one thing, but taking out the mechanics would eventually ground all of Black Factions air wing.
Another interesting feature is the quad-pilot set up. There are 4 pilots for 4 different flight stages.
Take off- cruise, hover, land. Every pilot can perform the other tasks, but they are there as redundancy as they are prime targets.
In another fragment, Vanessa convinced the Mistress to mount an immense raid on CPD HQ. What do you think happened there?
Comments
This is good thinking as mechanics are highly skilled and receive much expensive training. Screw drivers are consumables, much like expendables and torque wrenches are able to be re-calibrated much like mechanics receive update training.
Edwardo
2023-10-09 11:55:15 +0000 UTCNow that I've imagined a rough & ready melee between Mechanics and enemy units using screwdrivers as shanks, I can't get the image out of my mind! Some of those tools are quite precision-made though. To avoid the risk of damaging them, it might be wise to equip Mechanics with non-lethal versions of the combat units' armaments, so that they can subdue any intruders without putting themselves at excess risk should they forget how to handle the weapon. But in a pinch, I dare say a blow to the trachea with a torque wrench wouldn't harm the tool's function too much.
DomZ
2023-10-09 11:14:09 +0000 UTCPilots and Mechanics seem to be slightly less... expendable, than the standards or SCUs. I think BFC deliberately uses four Pilots to an STT to send a message 'We have no immediate plans to expend you, but we do have contingency plans in case of need...'
DomZ
2023-10-07 06:24:40 +0000 UTCWaow ! huge ! Fun fact, it is needed 4 pilots to one craft, 1 pilot for each phase of flight .... So Neon Dark ! Will be eager to see pilot design, surely with helmet and visor .... And congrat for your 3D renders !
secteur-x7
2023-10-06 20:00:32 +0000 UTCWow, that is quite the scenario you have imagined! All very interesting, however. A long drawn out ground battle is more likely a scene to occur. Envision a successful large scale landing and the ensuing results. This would be an awesome event!
Edwardo
2023-10-06 15:58:12 +0000 UTCThe STT is an awe-inspiring feat of engineering. It must be an honour for any unit fortunate enough to be assigned to one. This is what I think happened. If Alt-Vanessa managed to persuade The Mistress to invade CPD HQ, then I imagine there was an understanding that whilst success would result in Vanessa being richly rewarded, failure would be harshly punished. Somewhere in a sealed area, there is a lake of liquid earth, with a pet Azologoth nesting at the base. Being forced to walk the length of a narrow girder across the lake wearing heels is not the worst punishment The Mistress has prepared, but it's not far off. Vanessa would therefore use all of her natural cunning and finesse to ensure victory. In addition to an STT, supported by 2 groups of ZT90s, she also concocted a most calculating strategy involving 3 Moose Lifters. Knowing that the Moose would be a priority target for the CPD Anti Air Artillery, she sent out 3, of which only one carried a full complement of 90 units. The other two were empties, and would serve to draw CPD ordenance away from the single laden carrier, giving it the opportunity to make a landing directly on CPD HQ's command platform. Or so went the plan anyway. Jordanna, flying intercept for CPD, immediately noticed that the three fliers were moving differently through the air due to their disparity in weight and centre of gravity. Finding herself instantly irritated by this transparent ploy, she decided to make an example of her enemy's poorly executed tactic, and initated a counter-strategy. At first, it appeared that she was hesitating to act, perhaps confused and bewildered by the appearance of three Moose carriers at once. Vanessa was watching from the STT Bridge, and showed her crewmates a girlish grin of amusement. This cheeky smile however changed to a fixed expression of mortified horror, as Jordanna waited until just the right moment to launch her gambit. When she felt the expected Noonday gust of wind against her own craft's rudder, she fired two fluff canisters at the two unladen Moose carriers, right at the moment when their auto-pilots were adjusting speed and trajectory to regain their course. Both canisters hit at the exact same moment, taking out one engine each on both fliers. Both fliers dropped their containers, and accelerated away... directly colliding with the single laden Moose transport, causing a sky shattering mid-air explosion. Vanessa was so frustrated that her clever plan had been so easily thwarted, that she was close to tears as she watched the wreckage of the three transports plunge into the liquid depths of the planet's surface, closely followed by a black rain of flailing terrified bodies. The shockwave from the blast had torn apart the units' container, deactivated their ORC chips, and propelled them into the atmosphere over the span of a little over a hectare, either singly, or in clumps of 2 or 3 units desperately clinging onto each other out of sheer panic. Those were the lucky ones, as they would have something to hold onto for comfort when they inevitably sunk beneath the ground. The ones who were alone, would have nothing to hold onto but their regrets. Jordanna had no regrets about the lives that her actions had expended. Expending 90 units had given her an appetite, and looming on the horizon, was her main course...
DomZ
2023-10-06 14:19:55 +0000 UTCA large scale raid on CPD HQ would certainly result in large scale expenditures on both sides. All groups of combat units from both sides must be involved. Perhaps some air to air fighting between units en-route and units in defensive positions. Then we have large scale skirms of attrition in the HQ! Bring it on!
Edwardo
2023-10-06 14:05:31 +0000 UTCNice 3D ass!
Yu-Chun Hsieh
2023-10-06 12:27:21 +0000 UTC
