Infiltrator Mk. I Battle Armor (OstSuit)
Type: Infiltrator Mk. I Battle Armor
Manufacturer: Niops New Project Workshops
Primary Factory: Niops V
Year of Manufacture: 3150
Overview:
After the loss of their Nighthawk PA(L) suit production, the Niops Association spent the second half of the 3140s exploring alternative options for powered-armor for their infantry forces. While the Niops engineers continued to work on a new basic PA(L) suit, an unusual alternative basically fell into their laps, thanks to trade agreements with the Lyran Commonwealth: the Infiltator Mk I, ie. the "Waddle".
Capabilities:
Receiving tooling for the basic, unarmored chassis of the Infiltator, Niopian engineers decided to mirror the "Waddle's" manipulator arm on both sides of the suit. This improved combat engineering abilities of the suit considerably. Like the Special Ops version of the Waddle, anti-personnel weapons mounts were chosen as the primary armament of this suit as well, with a single mount underslung on each forearm, and two shoulder-mounted AP mounts for additional weapons. Standard loadout are twin Mauser 960s, still produced locally, joined by a combat shotgun and infantry-portable TAG unit.
Armor proved more problematic, as engineers couldn't duplicate the stealth features built into the original Infiltrator Mk I's armor, and production of this prototype early stealth armor in the Inner Sphere has long since fallen by the wayside. At present, Niopian engineers have mounted 500 kg of armor plating comparable to primtive BattleMech or industrial armor and hope to, as their industrial processes improve, replace this with more conventional armor plating, freeing up more space for anti-Mech weaponry.
While the 21 kph ground speed of the Waddle is better than an infantry trooper on foot, NIopian engineers wanted to improve the mobility further. The leg struture of the Waddle made faster ground speed difficult to achieve, so instead they focused on adding a jump pack capable of propelling the suit 90 meters in a single jump. Oddly, this resulted in a shift in the suit's overall profile, more closely resembling the OstScout, and earning the new suit the nickname "OstSuit".
Deployment:
Production of the new suit has initially been slow, with a single battalion of suits produced. However, one full company of 36 suits was deployed with the NMS Beer Keg of Science! on its exploration mission, leaving the Niops Association Militia ground forces only two companies domestically. These have, in turn, been split up between Niops V, VI and VII. It's hoped that newly-produced Nighthawks will help supplement these numbers.
Infiltrator Mk. I Battle Armor (OstSuit)
Type: Infiltrator Mk. I Battle Armor
Manufacturer: Niops New Project Workshops
Primary Factory: Niops V
Tech Base: Inner Sphere (Experimental)
Chassis Type: Biped
Weight Class: Light
Maximum Weight: 750 kg
Battle Value: 105
Swarm/Leg Attack/Mechanized/AP: Yes/Yes/Yes/Yes
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Equipment Slots Mass
Chassis: 100 kg
Motive System:
Ground MP: 2 30 kg
Jump MP: 3 75 kg
Manipulators:
Left Arm: Manipulator (Basic) 0 kg
Right Arm: Manipulator (Basic) 0 kg
Armor: Standard (Prototype) 4 500 kg
Armor Value: 6 (Trooper)
Slots
Weapons and Equipment Location (Capacity) Mass
Anti Personnel Weapon Mount Left Arm 1 5 kg
Anti Personnel Weapon Mount Right Arm 1 5 kg
Anti Personnel Weapon Mount Body 1 5 kg
Anti Personnel Weapon Mount Body 1 5 kg
The Infiltrator Mk. 1 is, amusingly, piloted a lot like the Regult battle pods from Macross, so I found I couldn't help myself.
