THIRD INVID WAR: NEW INVID MECHA Next Previous Top Index
The following material is from THE THIRD INVID WAR, a fan supplement by Dave Deitrich and Chris Meadows. Please feel free to use, copy, and distribute it as you see fit. All we ask is that you give proper credit to us and do not claim that it is your own work. Comments and suggestions are welcome.

THE INVID SPACE TROOPER

BACKGROUND

The Invid Space Trooper was the hardest of the new Invid designs to analyze during the Third Invid War. The reason for this was simple; pilots who encountered the new mecha seldom lived to report their observations. Long range sensors had revealed that the Invid had a new space mecha as early as mid-2042, but data on the new design was sketchy at best. It was not until the summer of 2043 when the new VAF-8R Reconnaissance Veritechs began to arrive on Earth that the Resistance was finally able to get some hard data on the Space Trooper.

In its element, the Invid Space Trooper is a deadly design almost without peer. The basic design for the mecha is large and flat, and laid out much like a Manta Ray, or "Devilfish". There are two large wings on either side of the main body, which can fold up to 80 degrees up or down in order to adjust the center of gravity for the mecha; a very important ability in zero-gee combat which allows for tight-radius turns. There is also a long, thin tail extending behind the main body of the mecha, ending in a sharp barb. This tail is fully dexterous and can actually strike at mecha around the Trooper, like a scorpion. There are also two arms on the front of the mecha that end in a LARGE claw, designed especially for melee combat. Each hand also has a smaller claw for use in grappling. The Space Trooper does have six small insect-like feet underneath the main body, but these are normally retracted when in flight. The legs are very thin and small, and end in points instead of actual feet, making the mecha very poor at walking and jumping. However, the legs are very strong and the feet have retractable barbs, which make them perfect for digging into enemy spacecraft and holding the mecha in place. In combat with smaller starships and shuttles, the Space Trooper will often attach itself to the hull of the ship, and then use its claws, tail, and energy weapons to literally rip the shuttle apart.

The firepower of this new mecha is equally as deadly as its hand-to-hand abilities. The main armament of the mecha is a pair of Heavy Plasma Cannons, identical to those on the new Combat Trooper design. These cannons are mounted on either side of a small rotating turret on the back of the mecha. This gives the cannons a superior firing arc, as they can rotate 360 degrees around the mecha. The secondary armament of the Space Trooper is a set of SIX mini plasma weapons; three on either side of the sensor eye. These cannons are likewise very similar to those on the Combat Trooper. Also, there are two small missile launchers, one on the front of each wing. These missile launchers are normally retracted into the wings when not in use, and pop up when ready to fire. Each launcher can fire 5 missiles at once and can hold 15 missiles total (including reloads). Finally, there is a high powered laser on the tip of the tail of the mecha. While not really suited to combat, this cutting laser is perfect for the Space Trooper's favorite tactic of cutting open spacecraft and larger mecha.

Perhaps the most impressive features of this new enemy mecha is the propulsion system. There are actually THREE main engines on the Space Trooper. The largest is mounted on the belly of the mecha, between the legs and just in front of the joint where the tail meets the main body. There are also two only slightly less powerful engines; one on each wing of the mecha. By varying the thrust of these three engines and combining them with wing movements, the Space Trooper can make sharp turns even at high speeds. There are also banks of maneuvering thrusters located all over the body of the mecha (mostly in the wings) which help to give the Space Trooper superior mobility.

An intriguing weakness about this new mecha is that some of the same features that make the Space Trooper a superior space combatant greatly decrease its performance in a planetary atmosphere. The turret, claws, and tail create so much aerodynamic drag that the mecha's airspeed is greatly decreased in atmosphere. Plus the engines of the mecha are designed such that the Trooper CANNOT hover in gravity greater than 0.5 G. The legs of the mecha are poorly designed for movement on land, and the mecha's movement is greatly slowed by Earth's high gravity (compared to outer space). It is probably for this reason that Space Troopers RARELY venture below the highest layers of Earth's atmosphere. There have been documented incidents where REF pilots have escaped pursuit by Space Troopers by rapidly diving into the atmosphere. 4 out of 5 times the Space Troopers will break off rather than risk being caught in Earth's atmosphere.

Space Troopers rarely operate alone. They are usually encountered in groups of 5 or more, and are often accompanied by either Attack Scouts or Armored Scouts with space boosters. REF pilots and resistance fighters are warned to avoid contact with Space Troopers whenever possible.

SCHEMATICS

Click on the icon to the left to view the schematics of the Space Trooper, based on data collected by REF Intelligence.

RPG STATS

Invid Name: "Varrab"; REF Nickname: "Devilfish"
Vehicle Type: Space Combat Unit
Crew: One; Stage Two Invid Pilot

M.D.C. BY LOCATION 

       Large Claws (1 per Forearm)         75 each
       Small Claws (1 per Forearm)         25 each
       Forearms (2)                        150 each
       Upper Arms (2)                      75 each
*      Legs & Feet (6)                     50 each
       Main Engine Thruster (lower rear)   100
       Wings/Secondary Thrusters (2)       120 each
       Tail                                75
       Tail Laser                          50
       Heavy Plasma Cannons (2)            150 each
**     Plasma Cannon Turret                100
       SRM Launchers (1 per wing)          100
***    Pulse Beam Cannons (6)              20 each
****   Sensor Eye                          25
*****  Main Body                           240
       Pilot's Compartment                 100
Notes:
*
The legs of the Space Trooper can retract into the main body. When they are retracted they are effectively immune from attack; attackers must destroy the main body to get at them.
**
Destroying the Plasma Cannon Turret will disable both Plasma Cannons. However, the turret is a difficult target to hit (being low on the back and between both cannons); -3 penalty.
***
The pulse beam cannons are slightly difficult to hit; -2 penalty.
****
The sensor eye is the most vulnerable place on the Invid's mecha body. Destruction of the sensor eye will kill/destroy the mecha and pilot (goes right through crew compartment). However, it is a small target protected by surrounding shielding, thus, to hit it the player/character must make a called shot and is at -3 to strike.
*****
Depleting the M.D.C. of the main body will shut the mecha down completely. Depleting the pilot compartment M.D.C. will blow the Invid to pieces.

SPECIFICATIONS

Flight:
Can accelerate up to a maximum speed of 5360 mph (Mach 8) outside of an atmosphere. However, due to its poor aerodynamic design the maximum speed drops to 2010 mph (Mach 3) in an atmosphere. Also, the Space Trooper CANNOT HOVER while in an atmosphere; minimum airspeed to remain aloft is 200 mph (320 kmph).

NOTE: I KNOW there's no such thing as a "maximum speed" in space. This junk was added to make the mecha fully compatible with the Robotech RPG. If you have a vector-based space combat system that can use thrust instead of velocity, then by all means please ignore these stats.

Thrust:
[To be calculated]
Running:
20 mph (32 kmph). Rarely runs.
Jumping:
10 ft (3 m) up or across. Rarely jumps.
Height:
16 ft (4.8 m) with legs extended. 10 ft (3 m) with legs retracted.
Width:
25.5 ft (7.8 m) with "wings" fully extended.
Length:
40 ft (12 m)
Weight:
25 tons fully loaded.
Cargo:
Can carry up to 6 tons (in Earth gravity).
Abilities:
Pilot Mecha - 75%
Recognize Human Machinery - 50%
Navigation: Space - 85%
Prowl - 45%
Detect Ambush - 45%
Detect Concealment - 45%
Track - 55%

WEAPON SYSTEMS

  1. HEAVY PLASMA CANNONS. These large plasma cannons are updated versions of those originally found on the old Invid Shock Trooper. However, they are much more powerful and have a far greater range than the older models. The cannons are mounted on a "turret" on the back of the mecha, which allow them to rotate 80 degrees up, 40 degrees down, or 360 degrees around the unit. Both cannons can fire independently or simultaneously. The plasma energy is still released in Frisbee-like "annihilation discs," just like the older models.

  2. PULSE BEAM CANNONS. Six small Invid beam cannons are mounted in the main body of the mecha, three on either side of the sensor eye. The weapons can rotate to a maximum of 30 degrees in any direction. All six cannons can fire in unison or independently of one another.

  3. SRM MISSILE LAUNCHER. A small missile launcher is built into each wing of the mecha, near the front. They are normally recessed into the mecha, and pop out to fire.

  4. TAIL LASER. The Invid Space Trooper has a high-powered laser mounted on the tail. However, the laser seems to be designed more for cutting than as an offensive weapon. In combat, the Space Trooper will often attach itself to a mecha or the hull of a starship with its legs and then used the tail laser to literally cut into its prey. The laser is powerful enough to cut through starship hull in less than 30 seconds (2 melee rounds).

  5. HAND-TO-HAND COMBAT. The Space Trooper has been specially designed to do lots of damage in hand-to-hand combat. This fact combined with its high speed make it a deadly combatant in space. However, in an atmosphere the Space Trooper is a mediocre combatant.

THIRD INVID WAR: NEW INVID MECHA Next Previous Top Index
DAVE DEITRICH
http://www.mcs.net/~deitrich/index.html
deitrich@mcs.net		 Last Updated: Friday, 18-Jan-08 02:59:14 PST

This document was originally converted to HTML by Joshua Megerman
megermjs@newton.physics.drexel.edu
st92bb10@post.drexel.edu