Four different people have requested this one over the past year, and I've put it off- after my last quest into support vehicles, I wanted to stay away from them for a while. But, there's interest in this beast, and I'm happy to put it out there at last after too long of a wait. It's an unusual article in that we're going to be working on something bigger than usual, and an Omni to boot... it also means that since I had no way of testing it as usual, so if errors show up I apologize in advance. In the interests of being completely honest... I hate support vehicles. The rules for them are a disaster in my opinion, and it makes it hard to want to use them. Your mileage may- and judging from requests, DOES- vary.
Lockheed/CBM found a need in the post-Jihad climate that needed filling- a fixed wing support aircraft. While they were the corporation behind the massive King Karnov already, that aircraft had been produced at the turn of the millenium. In that time, the King Karnov had seen every modification one could imagine- cargo hauler, flying ambulance, gun truck, command platform... now, Lockheed planned to build a replacement that could perform all those jobs at once- by using Omni- technology, the new plane could be modified a thousand and one ways to perform whatever job might be needed at the moment. The result was one of the most intriguing weapons in the Lyran arsenal, the Zugvogel.
Our Zugvogel test subject has landed at our test site, and we're ready to start testing it. We find that the big beast is powered by a commercial-level fusion engine, propelling the 200 ton plane to a 4/6 speed. Nothing magnificent- actually quite slow- but this isn't a quick-strike plane anyway. Worth noting, of course, is that this makes it a bit faster than the King Karnov it replaces. That engine's relative lack of power means more weight to be put into other systems, after all. Of course, at 45 tons, the engine still takes up a massive chunk of space as it is. With advantages such as XL engines not really being available to this size of unit, that's just how it goes. You aren't outrunning trouble- even the most hopeless aerospace fighter will run rings around you- so you'll need to find another way to get enemy units to go away. (Note that as a non-combat engine, no heat sinks are included.)
Armor isn't exactly going to dissuade trouble either. 11.5 tons of armor (BAR 10) gives a modest coating that will take a few hits here and there, but not really stop a determined attack for long. All four locations get 51 points (threshold of 6), and while that's plenty for surviving a pass or two from an attacking fighter, either your escorts get the heat off of you (you DID bring escorts, right?) or you're in some serious trouble. In particular, attacks from the sides mean that even the more 'toothy' versions of the Zugvogel will simply not be able to fight back, so if you find these birds in your enemy's forces, always try to hit from the side if you're not sure what the config is.
And those configs... with 71.5 tons of space to use (only slightly less than the King Karnov), there's no shortage of dirty tricks one can come up with for a Zugvogel. Interestingly, none of the canon configs attempt to recreate the simple heavy-lift aircraft role the King Karnov performs, though it wouldn't be hard to justify such a configuration either by simply devoting most of the pod space to the job. All versions with weaponry benefit from advanced fire control.
Prime: An armed transport version, the Prime starts with bombardment capability in the form of twin LRM-15s in the nose. These are fed by a cavernous five-ton ammo bay, allowing for alternate ammo types if you so desire. Speaking of alternate ammo, consider bringing some for the twin LAC-2s mounted along with the LRM racks. You have two tons of ammo for those guns, so go nuts. A single medium pulse laser rounds out the nose weaponry, with the four heat sinks that weapon requires. The rear of the aircraft has a surprise for those looking to avoid the forward weaponry- a light Gauss rifle is an unpleasant thing to find firing at the pilot trying to sneak up behind the Zugvogel. With only one ton of ammo, one hopes the enemy isn't TOO determined. And of course, that leaves us with 23.5 tons of cargo space to get the original transport job done- not near what the King Karnov can do, but still respectable, and with a pretty hefty weapon loadout to keep it safe. While the LACs aren't all that handy in the author's opinion, this is a very dangerous plane to deal with.
A: The command bird is intended to be a flying command post the likes of which haven't been seen before. The list of equipment to go with the command center reads like a who's-who of advanced technology- look-down radar, C3 master system, hyperspectral imager, hi-res imagers in all arcs, ten tons of communication equipment... if your commander lacks information when in a Zug A, he's not trying. Two rear-mounted LB-2X with a three-ton ammo bay keep the bird clear of tailing fighters, while a single medium VSP forward helps a bit there, but this is a very vulnerable beast- and with the obvious importance it carries, it's probably best to never, ever leave your commander's plane unescorted.
B: This one is a flying hospital, and while that makes for a very useful campaign objective it's not going to do you much good in most Battletech games. On board we find a ten-unit MASH hospital, paramedic equipment, searchlights, and a field kitchen- the kind of plane that every regiment would kill to have in the event they need it. While it's considered unsporting to fire at an enemy's medical units, one can't help but wonder how enemies view a Zug B- after all, today it's a MASH unit, but tomorrow it could have turned into a Prime and be dropping LRMs just as easily.This version, however, is totally unarmed, as befitting a medical unit... well, other than the light vehicle bay (likely carrying an ambulance unit rather than a tank), and the four-ton infantry bay for at least a minimum of security personnel to keep the hospital-site safe.
C: Another must-have for campaigns, the mobile repair station has a pair of mobile field bases crammed into its body, along with a lift hoist and searchlight for working well into the wee hours. 20 tons of cargo space for spare parts and ammo allow the MFBs to do their job, but the big surprise is the twelve-ton infantry bay, allowing for troops to secure the LZ and keep the enemy from getting their hands on their own handy flying repair station. This version is, as with the MASH unit, totally unarmed outside of its infantry complement. An aircraft like this, able to land and assist forces with repairs from even moderately-prepared sites, is a massive boost to an army's effectiveness- perhaps no other version is as intriguing to a campaign commander than this one.
D: While the Prime was a transport with guns, this time we've left off the cargo and gone with a pure gunship. Zug D (the 'Raubvogel') starts with twin Gauss rifles in the nose, fed by an enormous seven-ton ammo bin- feel free to take wild shots. A heavy PPC is mounted along with them, giving yet more punch with no need for ammo. The author can't help but feel that the heat sinks needed mean the Zug D should have used a third Gauss instead. A near-afterthought RL-10 joins the big guns for a little added punch. A single Ultra AC-2 is mounted aft to discourage pursuit, though it's hard to imagine what fighter pilot would be spooked away by an Ultra AC-2- this weapon is fed by two tons of ammo. Obviously, if a Zug D stoops out of the skies towards you, you have a major problem.
F: In 3145 we get a new version, another gunship. This time we find the show starts with three nose-mounted LRM-15s instead of the two the Prime got- but this time they're Clan-tech! And another one is mounted in each wing to cover the sides, for the first time. These launchers are fed by ten tons of ammo, for plenty of combat endurance. But the heaviest punch comes from the pair of nose-mounted Thunderbolt-20 launchers. That's not right. With ten shots each, you can't be quite as free to fire as the LRMs are, but a pass from an angry Zug F is breathtakingly powerful and deserves every bit of respect it commands. For those fighter pilots wishing to keep this soaring murder-machine from making a second pass on the ground troops, three Clan medium pulse lasers are a pretty sobering 'go away' notice.
One more thing- the writeup for the Trireme VTOL in 3085 Supplemental notes that a bid was made for Lockheed to produce pods that could carry a full company of battle armor. A COMPANY. That's evil. No record sheet exists for what this version ended up looking like, but one can make a pretty basic guess regardless.
So, there you have it. A magnificent, very useful bird with no shortage of fun tricks up its sleeve, any military would be proud to call such an aircraft their own- but, at least as of the TRO, only the Lyrans have them. Any ideas you have for configs? Sound off as usual. See you next time when we get back to more 'conventional' vehicles!
