HERCULAN

A HERCULAN are a type of mecha that feature in Earthsiege.

History

Humaniform-Emulation Roboticized Combat Unit with Leg-Articulated Navigation (HERCULAN) were a type of large mecha that developed by mankind. They were created to serve as the latest generation of machines to fight their wars. These were two legged mecha that contained large weaponry and ranged from small models to larger battle machines.

The Cybrids were created to later man the machines and resulted in Prometheus taking control of many units to overthrow his Human masters.

Overview

In appearance, HERCULANs were towering, heavily armored weapon systems that utilised a revolutionary bipedal walking drive that was designed for all-environment operations. They were noted for being similar to the armored fighting vehicles known as 'tanks' developed during the 20th century. Their main body consisted of a power source, fuel and support electronics. Energy requirements were provided by a fusion reactor where the output was collected in a Master Energy Pool that was an advanced capacitator. It allocated power as needed to the drive motors, weapon systems, shields and instrumentation. At its head was the pilot compartment where a heavily armored turret could rotate and elevate separately. Weapons were modular and mounted on hard points so that the pilot could aim and fire them through turret control without changing the vehicle's course. It allowed for faster target acquisition and a finer degree of aiming control than a fixed body design. Bipedal drive systems allowed the HERC to manage varying terrains where they could turn right or left, forward or reverse and pivot like a tracked vehicle.

The bipedal drive system allowed the HERC to manage varying terrains, turn right or left in forward or reverse, and pivot in place like a tracked vehicle. Its main drawback is its relative vulnerability — Human HERC designs must devote shielding, armor, and life support systems to sustaining the pilot, while Cybrid units need only protect vital systems like the reactor or weapons. Nevertheless, the wreckage of Cybrid units provides valuable salvage, readily adaptable for repairing and building Human

The only perceived limitations of these machines was the fallibility of the human pilots controlling them. Its main drawback was its relative vulnerability as Human HERC designs must devote shielding, armor and life support systems that sustained the pilot.

Among the types of HERC's created included:

• Roadrunner : the fastest scout HERC fielded by the Resistance, the Roadrunner was ideally suited for light recon and scouting missions where speed was essential.
• Outlaw : mounting more armor and the ability to carry heavier weaponry than a Roadrunner, the Outlaw can stay in a fight longer than its counterpart. It was also the lightest HERC that can mount an EMP cannon.
• Raptor : a medium weight HERC with good maneuverability and firepower with its specialty being armed reconnaissance.
• Tomahawk :
• Patriot :
• Rhino :
• Samson :
• Colossus :
• Ramses : the most common medium Cybrid HERC, it was deployed in nearly every combat theater in a variety of roles.

There are three main types of HERC weapon systems: Energy (divided into beam or pulse systems), Projectile (cannon), and Missiles. Each has comparative strengths and weaknesses with energy weapons requiring a minimum charge to fire. A weapon not in use will automatically recharge from the HERC's Master Energy Pool, the same power source that runs the HERC's motors, shields, radar and other systems. Among weapons capable of being mounted on HERC's included:

• Lasers :
• Electron Flux Weapons :
• Particle Beam Weapons :
• Electromagnetic Pulse Cannon :
• Automatic Cannons :
• Missile Arrays :

Shields are powered from the onboard fusion generator and run through a capacitance energy matrix standard on all HERCs. The bigger the HERC's generator, the stronger the shield. Two weapons are effective against shields: EMP cannons disrupt the shield matrix, and the ELF is so incredibly powerful that it punches through shields as if they are not even there.

HERCs were normally dropped near mission objectives by airborne carriers and picked up afterwards though in some cases they originated from bases for certain missions.

It was noted that they were astronomically expensive to build and required a vast expenditure of precious resources.

Notes

• HERCULANs were created by Dynamix where they featured in the Earthsiege universe.

Appearances

• Metaltech: Earthsiege:
• Earthsiege 2:
• Starsiege:

External Links

• Starsiege Universe Wiki Entry

This article is a stub. You can help Multiversal Omnipedia by expanding it.