Urbanmech "Zombie" UM-RZX
Mass: 30 tons
Tech Base: Inner Sphere
Chassis Config: Biped
Rules Level: Experimental Tech
Era: Clan Invasion
Tech Rating/Era Availability: E/X-X-F-A
Production Year: 3070
Cost: 2,821,000 C-Bills
Battle Value: 1,002
Chassis: Unknown Endo-Steel
Power Plant: Unknown 60 Compact Fusion Engine
Walking Speed: 21.6 km/h
Maximum Speed: 32.4 km/h (21.6 km/h)
Jump Jets: Unknown
Jump Capacity: 60 meters
Armor: Unknown Hardened
Armament:
5 ER Medium Lasers
1 Guardian ECM Suite
Manufacturer: Unknown
Primary Factory: Unknown
Communications System: Unknown
Targeting and Tracking System: Unknown
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Equipment Type Rating Mass
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Internal Structure: Endo-Steel 51 points 1.50
Internal Locations: 5 LA, 5 RA, 2 LL, 2 RL
Engine: Compact Fusion Engine 60 2.50
Walking MP: 2
Running MP: 3 (2)
Jumping MP: 2 Standard
Jump Jet Locations: 2 CT 1.00
Heat Sinks: Double Heat Sink 11(22) 1.00
Heat Sink Locations: 1 CT, 3 LT, 3 RT, 1 LA, 1 RA
Gyro: Compact 1.50
Cockpit: Standard 3.00
Actuators: L: SH+UA R: SH+UA
Armor: Hardened AV - 104 13.00
Internal Armor
Structure Factor
Head 3 9
Center Torso 10 15
Center Torso (rear) 4
L/R Torso 7 10
L/R Torso (rear) 4
L/R Arm 5 10
L/R Leg 7 14
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Equipment Location Heat Critical Mass
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ER Medium Laser HD 5 1 1.00
Guardian ECM Suite CT 0 2 1.50
2 ER Medium Lasers RA 10 2 2.00
2 ER Medium Lasers LA 10 2 2.00
Free Critical Slots: 6
BattleForce Statistics
MV S (+0) M (+2) L (+4) E (+6) Wt. Ov Armor: 7 Points: 10
2j 3 3 0 0 1 0 Structure: 3
Special Abilities: ECM, ENE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA
Overview: Built for what would have been the 3070 Solaris games, the Zombie was an attempt to make a 'mech as durable as possible. A team from the New Avalon Institute of Science used the Zombie as a test bed for new technologies. Sadly it is not known how the Zombie would have fared, as it was destroyed during the Blakist bombardment of the NAIS during the first battle of New Avalon.
Capabilities: The Zombie was build to be tough. Ridiculously tough. Engineers from the NAIS wanted a best-case scenario for deploying three different technologies that it was developed following the appearance of the clans: the compact fusion engine, the compact gyro, and hardened armor.
The concept was relatively simple. Take the Urbanmech, a light 'mech known for having the armor and firepower of a medium 'mech, and make it as hard to kill as a heavy 'mech. To do this engineers applied all three of these technologies to a lightened endo-steel chassis.
The result is...strange. The Zombie has even less mobility than a Urbanmech usually does, owing to the complication of using hardened armor on the legs as well as arms and torso sections. It does retain the standard jump jets, allowing the Zombie a meager but important 60 meter jump range.
The mass for the standard Urbanmech's autocannon simply was not available, even with the use of a lightened chassis. Instead, the designers went back to the drawing board. Realizing that they had very little mass to work with they installed a suite of highly mass-efficient extended-range medium lasers.
To sink the heat, a set of dual heat sinks was installed. Despite their use it was possible for the pilot to overheat the Zombie with injudicious use of his weapons. These had the added unintended benefit of allowing the Zombie to soak even more damage, as the bulky dual heat sinks were lightly to prevent damage to other systems if a shot were to go internal to the 'mech.
Deployment: The Zombie never saw use. The team from the NAIS intended to test their design by entering it into the 3070 Class Two Grant Tournament on Solaris. This was prevented by the fall of the second Star League, and the beginning of the Word of Blake's Jihad.
The Zombie was unable to participate in the First battle of New Avalon. Though the cadets and engineers from the NAIS intended to field it against the Blakists, it was destroyed by an orbital strike from the WoBS Divine Forgiveness.
The oddity of the design has led to some speculations. Supporters of the design praise the Zombie's ridiculous durability. Thirteen tons of hardened armor mean that even a Gauss slug at point blank range to the head was survivable. In the close ranged environments of urban combat for which it was designed, an alpha strike of the Zombie's laser array would be devastating to anything its size or smaller.
Critics point out that the lack of long-ranged weapons and the extremely limited mobility of the Zombie would have left it helpless on the open field. In simulations something as humble as a Marik Hammer was able to outmaneuver and destroy the Zombie by simply staying out of range of its weapons.
