NIKE
Overview
The third phase of Khan Djerassi's reforms of the Clan Touman was the introduction and inclusion of conventional vehicle/Elemental Trinary within the structure of the Clan. This concept, however, met with
considerable resistance from the Warrior rank-and-file. To many Scorpions, the use of vehicles (despite the heavy Star League Defense Force reliance upon them!) was akin to heresy . . . and their Bloodnamed leadership made their own feelings on the matter quite public.
However, the success of the 13th Scorpion Shock Cluster and the acceptance (albeit grudgingly) of the new Reserve Artillery Trinary (s) gave Djerassi
some political capital which he spent heavily to calm the waters. In the end, the Scorpion Bloodnamed Council voted in favor of Djerassi's proposal . . . but it passed by a mere
three votes!
None called for a Trial of Refusal, though.
Thus was born the
Nike, a fast tracked Pursuit Tank . . . but the future employment of that vehicle in Clan Goliath Scorpion remains in question. Djerassi was allowed to design, develop, and build enough of the vehicles to outfit five Trinary . . . but by the time that the last of the initial production run was complete, the Invasion had been halted and the Khan had resigned.
His replacement (Ariel Suvorov) was not his choice of successor, but the Pilot had campaigned very well and handily won enough votes to be elected. While Jackson Schaffer did call for a Trial of Possession for the Khanship, a lucky strike by Suvorov early in the combat penetrated the cockpit of his
Desert Tiger and killed the man that Djerassi had hand-picked to lead the Clan.
To make matters worse, Suvorov was not too fond of many of the changes that Djerassi (and Kirov before him) had made to the Touman--and she viewed Combat Vehicles as abominations only fit for third-rate Warriors!
Although she retained the five existing Trinary (permanently assigned to Garrison duty), she ordered the production lines shut down and the assembly factory disassembled. However, at the request of the Horse Khans (who had expressed considerable interest in the design), she delayed this order to produce a few dozen
Nikes for Fletcher and his Clan leadership to examine in detail. Should the Horses remain interested, she may allow the plant to continue manufacturing the tank . . . but for export only.
Capabilities
The
Nike is a 50-ton design that is based largely upon the
Vedette of the Inner Sphere. During the first 'supply run' by Wolf's Dragoons, three examples of this ubiquitous 50-ton tank were shipped back to the Homeworlds. After some study of the examples, two were scrapped and melted down . . . but the third ended up in a Scorpion museum on Roche! And when Khan Djerassi needed a proven tank chassis, he ordered his Scientists to dig up the files from when these vehicles were first appraised and examined . . . and build him a working modernized Clan OmniTank from this starting point!
While the
Vedette had been (in the Inner Sphere, at least) considered a fast tank, the other requirements that the Khan mandated would see that asset boosted considerably. He ordered that the new OmniTank must be compatible with the current Scorpion military production . . . hence it needed to use the Skorpion Type I 350XL engine or the Skorpion Type II 360XL engine for power generation.
This choice (and the decision to base the tank on the 50-ton
Vedette) led to a cruise speed of 75.6 kilometers per hour and a flank speed of 118.8 kph--an incredible pace for a tracked vehicle of this weight, either in the Homeworlds or the Inner Sphere! Seven and one-half tons of ferro-fibrous armor plating was considered more than adequate by the Clan Scientists (although many in the Inner Sphere would have been concerned it was too low). Still, the front, sides, and turret were all able to resist penetration by two Gauss slugs or a pair of Clan ER PPC strikes; the rear was slightly less well protected and only resistant to three IS Large Laser hits. Provisions were made for the inclusion of a one-ton turret . . . leaving a mere eleven and one-half tons of pod-space available for weapons and equipment.
This, combined with the high price tag as well as the general disdain amongst the Scorpion Warriors for vehicle crews, was what ultimately doomed the
Nike and prevented it's acceptance within the Touman.
Code:
BattleTech Vehicle Technical Readout
VALIDATED
Type/Model: Nike (Base)
Tech: Clan / 3047
Config: Tracked Omni Vehicle
Rules: Level 2, Custom design
Mass: 50 tons
Power Plant: 350 XL Fusion
Cruise Speed: 75.6 km/h
Maximum Speed: 118.8 km/h
Armor Type: Ferro-Fibrous
Armament: None
Manufacturer: (Unknown)
Location: (Unknown)
Communications System: (Unknown)
Targeting & Tracking System: (Unknown)
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Type/Model: Nike (Base)
Mass: 50 tons
Equipment: Items Mass
Int. Struct.: 25 pts Standard 0 5.00
Engine: 350 XL Fusion 1 15.00
Shielding & Transmission Equipment: 0 7.50
Cruise MP: 7
Flank MP: 11
Heat Sinks: 10 Single 0 .00
Cockpit & Controls: 0 2.50
Crew: 4 Members 0 .00
Turret Equipment (Locked): 0 1.00
Armor Factor: 144 pts Ferro-Fibrous 1 7.50
Internal Armor
Structure Value
Front: 5 30
Left / Right Sides: 5 30/30
Rear: 5 24
Turret: 5 30
Weapons and Equipment Loc Heat Ammo Items Mass
--------------------------------------------------------
1 C.A.S.E. Equipment Body 0 .00
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TOTALS: 0 2 38.50
Items & Tons Left: 13 11.50
Calculated Factors:
Total Cost: 9,275,000 C-Bills
Battle Value: 175
Cost per BV: 53,000.0
Weapon Value: 0 / 0 (Ratio = .00 / .00)
Damage Factors: SRDmg = 0; MRDmg = 0; LRDmg = 0
BattleForce2: MP: 7T, Armor/Structure: 0 / 6
Damage PB/M/L: -/-/-, Overheat: 0
Class: GM; Point Value: 2
Specials: Omni