The Excaliber MK VI destroid was prduced for the RDF in response to the need for a frontline combat unit capable of mounting the heaviest weaponry available. The RDF was expecting a design very similar to the incredibly successful M1E2 Abrams MBT of the US, or the Merkava from Israel. What they got was completely unexpected. The Excaliber design team was the first to actually realize that a bipedal design was more versatile than the traditional tank.
The rotational torso would replace the turret on a traditional tank giving a 360 degree field of fire, and the motive system of articulated legs would give greater mobility with regard to ground slope and vertical clearance than a tread system. With a greater forward surface area the amount of weaponry that could be mounted was increased, and the fact that the layout was along the vertical axis insted of the horizontal meant that weapons could be mounted higher above the ground than on a traditional tank, which would aid in the angle of attack for impacting rounds vs. targets with sloped armor, increasing penetration. The bipedal symmetry also allowed heavier weapons to be mounted in pairs, one per side, rather than singly as on a traditional tank design.
The obstacles that faced the design team were formidable, however. With the vertical layout, ground pressure was a large factor in determining maximum weight, as the feet of the mecha could only be made so large, without becoming a hinderance to performance. The recoil of the larger weapons was also a large concern due to the fact the recoil impulses were not able to be sent along the long axis, they were transmited perpendicular to it, causing massive torque related stability problems. The last obstacle to be overcome was the balancing act that had to be performed. The bipedal design, when moving, was constantly having the center of gravity shift during each incremental change in body position.
The vertical design, while providing maximum height which greatly improved fields of view and fire, also had the disadvantage of being almost unconcealable. The common tactic of going hull down in defilade was rendered impotent against the height advantage of the Excaliber, but it also made the mecha unable to utilize this tactic as well.
Any of these problems should have sunk the project before it was begun, but with the vast amounts of money the UN was dedicating to the project, and the combined brain trust of Doctors Emile Lang and Richard Burke, these proved to be moot points. The weight issue concerning ground pressure was solved by the neccessity to use only the lightest, strongest alloys available in the structure and armor of the mech. The weight factor was also solved by having the armor be an integral factor in the design. No longer could a frame be built, and armor added, the armor was the frame, and it was a load bearing structure. This greatly reduced both weight and volume, which only increased the weight reduction.
The recoil/rotational problems were solved first by installing massive muzzle brakes, a recoil reduction system, and having the weapons fire simultaneously. When the decision to use a nuclear power source over a hydrocarbon alternative, the concept of vehicular mounted energy weapons became a reality. The use of energy weapons eliminated the entire problem of recoil, and thus was solved by nullification.
The center of gravity issue was solved by the judicious use of ergonomics, body mapping, fuzzy logic AI processors linked in series, and prosthetic technology suitably scaled up. This resulted in having the center of gravity be fixed. Essentially the center of gravity is the exact center of the mecha, and the motive system software ensures that it stays centered. This has the effect of making the Excaliber, and indeed all bipedal mecha designed to date, have a decidedly strange "walk". Instead of the bouncy gait that one would expect of walking and running, the only movement taking place during movement is located in the legs. The upper body remains totally motionless, and is not involved in the movement process at all.
The vertical height problem was solved simply by having legs. In order to go "hull down" and reduce the target silhouette the mech simply "gets on it's knees". This manuever also has the added benfit of increasing the stability of the firing platform (the mech) and thus increasing accuracy.
The only disadvantage was the incredible costs involved in the manufacture of this machine. By virtue of having so many parts and from such diverse makers, the prototype of the Excaliber, the Excaliber MK I is estimated to be well over $600 million.
Thus through the requirement to have a more mobile, more heavily armed tank came the Excaliber, the first of a new type of war machine, the Destroids.
Vehicle type: Excaliber MK VI (also sold under the designation Tomahawk MBR-04-VI to other military forces).
Variants of note: MK I (armed with 2 x 120mm cannons in place of PBC's, no MRM launcher), MK II (armed with 2 x GAU-8A 30mm rotary autocannons in place of PBC's, no MRM launcher), MK III (no MRM launcher)
Crew: 1 pilot, 1 gunner
MDC and SP by location:
Speed: under optimal conditions on flat ground, 50 mph (88 kph)
Vaccum speed: delta-v of approximately 0.2 kps.
Height: 11.27 m
Weight: 31 metric tons fully loaded
Length: 5.1 m
Width: 7.9 m at shoulders
Engines: 1 x MT 828 fusion reactor (2800 SHP) or a RT/PS-2a (3200 SHP)
Reserve generator: GE EM9G hydrogen/oxygen fuel cell, 450 kW for twelve hours.
Thrusters for space maneuvering: (main) 2 x AST-04 dual thruster banks on the back, total thrust 14 kN
Thrusters for space maneuvering: (vernier) 14 x Nakajima NBS-1 high-thrust vernier thrusters, located on the heels (4), calves (2), forward waist (2), chest (2). The remainder are on the shoulders (4).
Range: Effectively unlimited. The only requirement would be the periodic overhaul of the hydo/pnuematic motive systems after every 3000 nm.
Weapon Systems:
Fire Control, Communications and Other Systems
Combat Bonuses: