Today on 'What the Hell is That Doing on Niops... The Crockett CRK-5003-1
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Some Time in the 3140's...
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It was the moment all the mechwarrior students at the Central Military School strove for.
Countless hours in the classroom, countless more in the study hall, and still more in the simulators. Shunning the easier tracks of the more highly regarded, not to mention better funded, Nighthawk infantry platoons. Turning their noses from the NAM's Aerospace Corp, where the academy's best were placed into Spads and Stukas before they could toss their mortarboards. There were easier tracks at the CMS. The mechwarrior track was underfunded and overlooked, the veritable red-headed stepchild of the NAM.
It was easy to see it's appeal when the latest batch of students were led past the lance of training mechs in the school's outdoor tarmac.
Cadet Alphonse Li looked up in awe at their looming form, struck by their sheer bulk, the symmetry of its slab-sided plates and subtle curves, bristling with all sorts of strange weaponry. For training mechs he expected something simpler, maybe an industrial mech or a Locust, not an actual assault-grade mech.
"About time, huh 'Phonse?" An elbow jabbed Alphonse in the ribs, as much an unwelcome intrusion as the cocky voice behind it. Cadet Liam Chase, by the big stupid grin on his face, held none of Alphonse's reservation about piloting these giants. Liam stared up the giant mechs with a casual air of self-entitlement. "I was wondering when they were gonna let us pilot some real heavy metal."
Cadet Li sighed with more apprehension. "The NAM sure believe in tossing us into the deep end, huh?"
"Oh please!" Cadet Chase snorted. "Haven't you heard? They're Crocketts. Practically dummyproof, which should be a real bonus for you." He slapped Cadet Li on the shoulder, pleased at his own amusing remarks. "But for me, this is temporary. Once I qualify on this I'm going straight for the Highlander..."
The bawl of the instructor cut through the cadet's chatter. By trained reflex, the pivoted to their instructor and stood at attention to listen.
"Cadet Numbnuts here is partially correct." Instructor Zhang shot a withering glare at Cadet Chase, cowing the cocky aspiring mechwarrior before he returned his attention to the rest of the training lance. "What you see before you is the Crockett CRK DASH 5003 DASH ONE Assault Class Training Mech. Meant to teach scrubs like you the basics of piloting, formation movements, and weapons handling at nearly all ranges. She's tough enough to crash into the Commandant's office after a Frosh Week bender and still not scratch the paint, so you bumbling morons probably won't do much more than give her a few dents. Don't expect speed demons here, but they're so easy to handle even Numbnuts can drive her in a straight line blindfolded." He shot one last glare at Chase. "Which doesn't give you license to show off in these things! The Crockett is dummyproof, which is unfortunate 'cause you scrubs prove that God builds better dummies, so treat your assigned mech with respect, got it?!"
A chorus of 'Yes Sir!' from the training lance quickly replied.
"Good..." Instructor Zhang nodded his approval. "The following cadets will be assigned to their coorespending Crocketts as follows... Kirpisuu, you get The Proctor. Sandoval, I'm assigning you to The Dean. Li, you're going to The Professor. And as for you, Cadet Chase..." His pause, long and savored under the sweat of a nervous Cadet Chase, cut when he spoke the words with extra relish. "...you get The Invigilator. Cadets, to your mechs!"
The cadets, hit with the excitement, and in Chase's case confusion, were slow to react.
"Well?!" Instructor Zhang barked, "Act like you WANT to become mechwarriors! In the cockpits! Double time!"
The pilots ran to their respective Crocketts. Li found himself jogging stride for stride with a still confused Chase.
Chase muttered, "What's up Zhang's butt today?"
Li shook his head and chuckled. The worst kept secret of the lance was Chase, for all his attitude and self-confidence, was more style than substance. As a student he was middling. As a pilot in the simulators he was actually dead last, and always quick with the excuses as to why. Cadet Chase was a legend to be, but only in his mind. To everyone else he was just a big man with a big mouth. The same mouth that claimed to pilot anything on two legs and stop holding him back so he could get himself in a Highlander in record time, so what was the hold up?
No wonder he was Instructor Zhang's butt monkey.
"Whatever it is," Li said, keeping the more honest parts to himself, "he must have it out for you. He gave you The Invigilator."
"So?"
"So, it's the faulty one. Something always goes wrong with it at the worst possible times. Why do you think the older cadets call it 'The Washout Machine'?"
Cadet Li sprinted away towards his assigned mech. He'll let reality percolate in Cadet Chase's delusion-addled brain without any further assistance. He wanted to crawl into his mech and get piloting right away, relieved that he wasn't assigned the problem mech in the lance.
Still, he worried how he would handle The Invigilator, because everyone eventually had a turn.
He was relieved that he, unlike Cadet Chase, wasn't first.The Crockett, an advanced training mech made too good and practical for its original purpose. This popular machine is easy to pilot and brings a versatile suite of weapons capable of engaging at a variety of ranges. Some critics will say its firepower is too spread out among the ranges, but that was not its purpose. It was supposed to teach prospective mechwarriors about range engagements, heat management, and weapons handling. It just so happens that its firepower is enough to take on a variety of tasks, at the expense of concentrating that firepower.
Still, the NAM knows the value of a good mech when it sees one and has fielded the Crockett as both a trainer and a frontline unit since its inception. It's served alongside the Highlander as a bodyguard mech in heavy assault and battle line formations. Though many were lost in conflicts with the Marian Hegemony, Black Heart Roses, and the Word of Blake, a few are still in service.
As of the ilClan era the largest formation of Crocketts are at the Central Military School, still serving as pilot trainers. As per their educational purpose, each has the name suitable for the task; The Proctor, The Dean, The Professor, and most notorious of all, The Invigilator.
The Invigilator actually has an incredible service record when repurposed for the frontlines during times of conflict. Lieutenant Tiffany Zhang became an Ace during 'The Troubles' (the period between the 3070's until the 3090's) by racking up multiple kills against the Marians and the Word of Blake. When well maintained and piloted by a real pro she's the best Crockett in the NAM fleet. What's unique is her instructor modifications, removed in wartime, but kept when training the next generation of mech pilots. An instructor can manipulate The Invigilator from the school's control tower to simulate damage and component failure, whether it's myomar muscle failure, broken circuitry, or power issues with its fusion plant. An instructor has to have a deft touch when it comes to simulating failures without putting the student's life or the mech at risk, but by the end of it they have a better idea of how a student handles an emergency. It's up to the student themselves whether to persevere in adversity, know when to bail out when the danger is too great, or keep their composure. Either way, 'The Washout Machine' separates the true mechwarriors from the wannabes.
