Author Topic: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank  (Read 6324 times)

Moonsword

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Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« on: 10 September 2012, 18:52:10 »
Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank

The Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank is described as the Draconis Combine's primary light scout vehicle and while it might not have the speed of a hovercraft or VTOL, the Skulker is a fairly workmanlike reconnaissance design from Joint Equipment Systems.  Very widespread in the DCMS, with at least one in nearly every conventional DCMS unit, the Skulker is popular on the second hand market and had brisk sales when the Combine permitted exports; after the Fourth Succession War, the Free Worlds League and the remains of the Confederation were snapping them up.  Then the Clans came and Clan Ghost Bear took possession of Alshain, where the primary (and perhaps only) factory was.  The design isn't going extinct by any means judging from the MUL but exactly what's going on is a little hard to tell from the outside.  We do know that JES hasn't started any additional plants up in the Combine or the Federated Suns as of 3079 but what happened to the original plant is a giant question mark; hopefully, we'll get an Objectives: The Clans or the like to clarify the situation.  Whatever the case with the original, the refitting has gone on and JES's plant on Panpour has started turning out a brand new model, the Skulker Mk. II, itself based on their Jihad era X-5 prototype.

The original Skulker set a lot of the pattern for the design.  At 20 tons, it's in the middle of the pack for light vehicles, larger than the Centipede or Darter used by the Combine's neighbors and the same size as the Packrat, and uses a wheeled frame that's going to annoy some players by reducing the design's mobility options in ways that a scout vehicle might not be able to afford.  Either way, it's got a fair turn of speed for an introductory vehicle design with a 120-rated ICE that drives it up to 118 kph.  Four and a half tons of standard armor wraps the 'tank', layered on 18/18/18.  That's really not bad for the size, honestly, but pay attention to AC/20s - one of those lands a hit anywhere and you're just plain gone.  The only armament is a Standard Systems Meidum Laser fixed forward, lacking the infantry bay that a Darter, Packrat, or shanghaied APC could employ.  At the dawning of the Republic Era, the old Skulker has more competition in its field than ever with designs like the GAL-102 Galleon available and a new generation of faster, harder-hitting 'Mechs that make light scouts lives much more interesting, but it's still cheap, it's still widely available, and odds are a lot of second- and third-tier forces are still using it to do the same old job as ever.

Several variants have emerged over time even before you talk about the X-5 prototype and the Mk. II.  We'll start with the Introductory models. Unfortunately, both of the ones in RS3039U are a half-ton underweight; I've submitted errata but we need to see what comes back down the pipe.  One of them opts to get 2 tons of that missing cargo space by replacing the medium laser with a pair of machine guns fed by a ton of ammunition.  The other invests it all in an SRM 4 with two tons of ammo.

The strangest Skulker variant emerged during the Jihad, removing the laser and replacing the armor with four tons of ferro-fibrous plate arranged 18/18/17 to get a total of five tons free.  Then they stuffed a C3 master in there.  I'm not really sold on the validity of that idea.  Sure, it's fast.  No doubt about that and that sort of speed does offer you some opportunities.  But the only other vehicular C3 master in that speed range is a Maxim that's actually slightly faster and more heavily armored.  It's not that heavily armed but at least the Maxim (C3M) can at least do something other than paint a red dot on someone and hope they're so intimidated that they run.  That's right, the Skulker (C3M)'s only organic offensive capability is to light someone up using the C3M's TAG capability and hope there's something in range.  I've referred you to Monty Python's classic sketch on not being seen before.  Make sure your crews have seen it before you send them out in a Skulker (C3M).  It's a very accurate prediction of what the enemy is going to be trying to do if they spot it, so keep Skulker (C3M)s under cover and leave them with a clear line of retreat.  Their speed can make them hard to maintain ECM coverage on so the enemy isn't going to ignore one, they're going to go for 'disabled' or 'destroyed' to keep it from slipping free if they have the opportunity.

Also during the Jihad came the Skulker X-5, Joint Equipment Systems of Panpour's bid to fix their reputation after making a laughingstock of themselves with the JES I.  This one is a little closer to type but the devil is definitely in the details.  The engine was replaced by a 140-rated fusion plant, sufficient to drive the design to an 8/12 speed curve - matching the classic Locust or Cicada designs (or the C3M Maxim I just mentioned, for that matter).  It also offered the heat sinks to replace the laser with an ER version while saving a considerable amount of tonnage.  All four tons left were invested directly into then-prototype electronics, a Bloodhound active probe and Angel ECM suite, refined, more sensitive versions of the mainstream Beagle and Guardian systems.  Overall, looking at the basic specs in hindsight (or at least with TRO: Prototypes' commentary on the two systems entering production), in my opinion, this is one of the most practical, pragmatic designs in the XTRO series, standing in contrast to boondoggles like the Partisan Hull Defense (personally, I subscribe to the theory that one had a fatal case of gravity poisoning from orbit).

The production model, known as the Skulker Mk. II and only available to the Federated Suns and a handful of mercenary units, trades capability for a lower price tag.  I'm not really of the opinion that the Republic's analysis that the fusion engine made the X-5 too pricy is correct but I'll save that argument for another venue.  Trading the fusion reactor for the new hotness of a 120-rated fuel cell, freeing up tonnage that went directly to the difference in weight to mount a standard medium laser on a fuel cell's single heat sink and power amplifier requirement.  Deployment of this design has been fairly prolific inside the AFFS to date.  A variant with mission-swappable equipment and another that are environmentally sealed exist but little information is available to date since we still lack an Unabridged record sheet volume for TRO: Prototypes.

Skulkers can be used as light (very light) raiders as they were against Spicher's Strikers on Dieron but their primary role is reconnaissance, figuring out where the enemy is and, in turn, denying that information to the enemy by keeping you one step ahead of his own scouts.  The advanced models bring their own quirks; I covered the C3M above but the others deserve a little forethought as to how you're going to use the sensors and jamming capability.  If you're using ghost targets, I suggest pumping them out as well as a standard jamming field if you can.  The Bloodhound's main use is springing ambushes.  Make sure there's something else there to deal with whatever you find, though!

Fighting Skulkers is simple.  Bring accuracy-enhancing weapons and hopefully something with at least a prayer of bringing them to bear on the target.  Cluster cannons (LB-Xs or an SB Gauss in particular) will help slow them down.  Failing that, you can always apply an AC/20 to anywhere on the Skulker.  One hit from one of those and it's going to be slowed down forever.

Reference: The Skulker and Skulker Mk. II have different root URLs on the MUL.  Appropriately for the design's origins, the only Skulker on CamoSpecs is in the colors of the 1st Genyosha.
« Last Edit: 10 September 2012, 19:12:20 by Moonsword »

Scotty

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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #1 on: 10 September 2012, 19:02:05 »
Uh, how does four tons of standard armor give 18/18/18, but four tons of Ferro-Fibrous only give 18/18/17?
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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #2 on: 10 September 2012, 19:12:38 »
It doesn't.  I forgot to include "and a half" in that sentence.

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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #3 on: 10 September 2012, 19:17:16 »
My ideal use of a Skulker would be as a strategic scout. Not the kind that winds up on the same battlefield as your combat units to spring ambushes or spot for IDF, but the kind that operates alone or in small groups to find the enemy army, then immediately scot to a safe distance and radio their position in. It(and the other intro-tech variants) can also be used as an aforementioned light raider, it it comes across a very lightly defended convoy or supply dump, or maybe it's own counterparts among the enemy's number. Honestly, firing the weapons should be very rare, and you'd probably get the most use out of them, igniting some convenient foliage to make good your escape. I suppose if nothing else is available, the Skulker(MG) mgiht make a decent light IFV, providng backup to a few rifle infantry platoons.

I love the Skulker(C3). It has one job, which is keeping that C3M alive. It has no business fighting, that's what the lancemates are for. They do the shooting, and your rolling server node finds a nice unassuming hole in the ground, and pulls the rest of the mapsheet over it(with the obvious preparations for running if/when it becomes needed. Slightly metagaming, this thing is also extremely cheap, giving you the possibility to assembling a decent C3 force without paying an arm and a leg in BV. In Battleforce or other strategic games, the Skulker can also make a passable HQ truck. C3 gear gives you the same benefits in BForce as HQ comm equipment, and back at normal scale, the ability to monitor a larger number of remote sensors at once means you can use it as a pretty good(if expensive) picket, watching large areas of terrain without actually having to patrol all of it.

I'm not a really big an of the X-5 or Mk. II, but they have their uses. In both cases, I'd use the laser for the same uses as the original model's: None at all if possible, or to light smoke and cover your escape. I'd still use them as strategic scouts instead of tactical ones, as this thing is still far too fragile(and now far too expensive) to risk throwing into the middle of an ambush. The Angel can be used to generate ghost targets for defensive reasons, and the regular ECM abilities can be used to jam enemy remote sensors, either to allow a strike force to penetrate their sensor net, or to troll your enemy by making them think a strike force is now behind their lines, but in reality your Skulker simply sat on the sensors for a while, then moved away before a patrol could chance upon it. Either variant can also be used as the same kind of picket as the Skulker(C3), as the Bloodhound as lets it monitor numerous remote sensors.
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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #4 on: 11 September 2012, 04:52:34 »
A C3 master installed like that is good for bending C3 around ECM nets.

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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #5 on: 11 September 2012, 19:28:50 »
The base version is the reason scout 'Mechs are a bad idea, at least all it's hit locations can take a GR slug, a better choice then taking, say a Locust

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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #6 on: 12 September 2012, 22:09:42 »
A C3 master installed like that is good for bending C3 around ECM nets.

The problem being the C3 rules limit you to a maximum or twelve units in the net, and having an 'all computer, no boom' is an empty slot in your net.  It can work with a spotter design, but that is something you put on a speed demon that can build hellacious TMM numbers and is ultimately expendable if it sets up the rest of the unit long enough.

That is NOT a job to risk a C3M on.  I generally fold the C3M carrier and firesupport role onto the same machines.  That keeps them protected by range, since they can hang back and lob fire from the edge of battle into the heart due to the C3 net, and since a firesupport platform is generally a heavier mech just to mount a useful amount of long range guns it is generally well armored as well.  Putting a C3M on something that is a sure kill by a pair of PPC hits (headcaps aside) is a serious design flaw.

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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #7 on: 12 September 2012, 22:19:43 »
The problem being the C3 rules limit you to a maximum or twelve units in the net, and having an 'all computer, no boom' is an empty slot in your net.

if it's a slave terminal, i could see your point, but a master is something i am REALLY loath to draw fire on because of how the rest of the system works. i don't see master units as firepower, i see them as coordinators that might also happen to have some (oh please me long ranged) supporting fire. and a cheap(ish) way to get the master units on the table and mobile is something i can get behind.

this little guy can go ahead and move someplace safely out of the way while providing a "satellite" connection for the rest of the network without pulling much of any firepower along with it means it can avoid combat entirely while conducting its function on the field. sounds like a well-filled network slot to me.  8)
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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #8 on: 12 September 2012, 22:53:16 »
A C3 company with a Skulker as the "main" connection wouldn't lose too terribly on the firepower front (one unit isn't too terribly much, when it comes right down to it), and is dirt cheap and fast enough to hide somewhere out of the way.  I'd use one, especially if I need a fourth master and the BV is an issue.
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Fallen_Raven

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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #9 on: 13 September 2012, 00:49:52 »
The fun of having a C3 Master on something that fast is that you have an Ostscout OTT-7K in addition to C3. While everyone else in the company is busy fighting, your valuable master can stay at range TAGing for artillery support. TAG at 15 hexes through short range C3 gives this 20-ton scout some very nasty teeth.
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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #10 on: 13 September 2012, 02:14:50 »
How the blazes does this count as a 'tank'? Some kind of budgetary shenanigans?

SCC

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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #11 on: 13 September 2012, 05:23:11 »
The fun of having a C3 Master on something that fast is that you have an Ostscout OTT-7K in addition to C3. While everyone else in the company is busy fighting, your valuable master can stay at range TAGing for artillery support. TAG at 15 hexes through short range C3 gives this 20-ton scout some very nasty teeth.
I'd hardly call 15 hexes short, few weapons are longer ranged and I doubt that EVERY 'Mech carries one of those few

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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #12 on: 13 September 2012, 10:40:34 »
I wonder now about that X-5 model.  Team it up with Maxims as a scout for a heavy infantry or BA force, perhaps - bring the one thing that the battlesuits and meatbags don't; the heavy duty electronics to do Very Bad Things supporting its force.  It's not GREAT...but in the end, the real target is likely to be the hidden and ambushing troops.  It can keep up with the big APCs, and the Maxim II especially would be delicious fun to tag along with.  Hm...perhaps a pair of those, a pair of Regulator IIs, and then eight Maxim IIs with Ying Longs would be hilarious fun.

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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #13 on: 13 September 2012, 12:03:11 »
I'd hardly call 15 hexes short, few weapons are longer ranged and I doubt that EVERY 'Mech carries one of those few
15 hexes THROUGH short range, via the c3 network.
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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #14 on: 13 September 2012, 18:08:03 »
I'd hardly call 15 hexes short, few weapons are longer ranged and I doubt that EVERY 'Mech carries one of those few

I meant having short range modifiers thanks to the c3 network.
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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #15 on: 14 September 2012, 07:56:12 »
A C3 master installed like that is good for bending C3 around ECM nets.

Lorcan used one in a tourney we had her recently. It was very effective.
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I hated it in game.
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Re: Vehicle of the Week: Skulker Wheeled Scout Tank
« Reply #16 on: 14 September 2012, 09:04:51 »
I did indeed.  The Skulker hid at the back of my table edge (one time I deployed it behind a river it couldn't cross), while the other three units went forward a-killing.  It's so cheap that in a BV-limited game it's a really smart place to put a C3M because it gives you more points for better combat units or pilots.
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