T.W. "King Tiger" Battle Tank:

"Damn,"exclaimed Gretchen Rommel, the Commander of the King Tiger which was now lost. The inertial navigation system on her tank had a glitch in it and she had no idea where the other five tanks she was operated with were at. She knew that she was certainly not living up to the last name which she had chosen for herself. She knew that her Commanding Officer would take her skin off in strips for this. It seemed he could do this with just his voice. Well, still it would be better than what the enemy wanted to do to her literally and the whole area was crawling with enemies. She did not have anything particularly against Dee-Bees but the land was for humans, not to be invaded by hordes of supernatural creatures which half of them want to kill you.

She had lost the trail but thought she found the trail again. There was several clear sets of tank tracks which she could follow. She kicked her tank up to full speed in the hopes that she could catch up with her platoon.

Suddenly, she had a sense of danger. She reactive instinctively and activated the tank's impervious to energy enchantment although she did not know if would do any good. Multiple plasma explosions had burst over the tank. She could see four tanks now under cover in the woods. Two of them appeared to be Russian T-255 while two others appeared to be ancient T-80 tanks. Plasma rounds could be devastating but the impervious to energy enchantment had protected her tank.

She knew she had to conserve most of her missiles for later combat so she could not just let missiles fly. Besides, those Russian tanks had missile jammers which might cause many of her missiles to miss. Her tank had a full load of 85 mm rounds and they would not like being on the receiving end. The T-80s being the weakest would be the best to take out first. He gunner was already aiming at the turret of one of the old Russian tanks. The load thunk of the rail gun firing propelled super strong alloy round into the turret of the lead T-80. The armor held but just barely. She called to the gunner to switch to the other two T-80 while she sprayed her machine gun into the hole created by the rail gun round. It did not take much for the pulse laser to claw the rest of the way through the armor and smoke to start coming from the turret.

While the King Tiger's turret was traversing, the two T-255 tanks opened fire with mini-missiles. She activated the magical chaff and flare cloud but the missiles ignored it. The warheads were armor piercing and the missiles knocked her shields flat as well as doing minor damage to the tank itself. A round from the remaining T-80 tank inflicted more damage to the King Tiger. A second later, her gunner fired a second 85 mm round and the turret of the second T-80 tanks came flying upwards like a bottle cork under too much pressure.

It was now only two against one with only moderate damage to her tank and he driver managed to reactivated the force field protecting the tank. She turned her pulse laser towards one of the remaining tanks and sprayed at random at the two mini-missile launchers. The gunner of the tank she was spraying chose not to fire any more missiles, apparently fearing that the warheads would be detonated when launched. He instead chose to fire a 152 mm round which the force field around the King Tiger was able to absorb. The other tank fired four more mini-missiles but these were detonated inside of the magical chaff and flare cloud.

The King Tiger's gunner decide to not worry about his payload of missiles and fired eight mini-missiles on the T-255 which had fired missiles at him. The eight missiles struck the front of the turret completely destroying it. The tank could still have four medium range missiles in side mounted launchers but the gunner and commander had probably died with the destruction of the turret. Gretchen concentrated her pulse laser on one of the remaining tank's mini-missile launchers in a bid to destroy it. Both of the enemy tanks, in a bid to destroy the King Tiger fired medium range missiles. She fired four medium range missiles at the incoming missiles in an effort to protect herself from the incoming missiles. Only one missile made it though her missiles and luckily it way decoyed by her magically chaff and flare system.

Her gunner fired another 85 mm round, this at the turret of the undamaged T-255. Unfortunately, the round missed. Four more medium range missiles streaked towards her tank from the two T-255 tanks. She again fired medium range missiles to intercept them. This time, the enemy was luckier and two missiles got by with only one detonating in her chaff and flare cloud. The remaining missile again knocked her shields flat and her tank took additional damage. Luckily, both tanks were at least out of medium range missiles and the tanks only had one mini-missile launcher in working condition between the two tanks.

Her gunner fired his 85 mm rail gun again, this time he hit the turret of the T-255. While the turret still appeared operational, another good hit might do it. Luck was with the abused King Tiger. This time, the Russian tank fired another 152 mm round but missed. Her gunner fired an additional 85 mm rail gun round at the Russian tank, this time disabling the turret. Well, it was time to get away while she could. She also knew that she was lucky to be alive.

Background:

Techno-Wizards are an interesting and very creative group of individuals. Some of them chose to create enchanted designs based on famous military vehicles from history. While some prefer aircraft or naval vessels, others prefer tanks and other armored vehicles. As might be expected, the inspiration for many of these designs come from designs of World War One and Two. While most Techno-Wizards in North America generally prefer American designs, there are many designers in mainland Europe who prefer World War Two German designs as a basis for their vehicles.

One of the most feared and famous tanks of World War Two was the King Tiger Tank. It was incredibly heavily armed with a long barrel 88 mm cannon and exceptionally heavily armored with over 7 inches of armor on the turret. For the time they were built, they can only be considered super tanks. Unfortunately, the tanks was very expensive to built and came into service too late to change the end of the war. German fuel stocks were also virtually non-existent so the tanks could not operate freely. It is only natural that the King Tiger be used as a basis for a German Techno-Wizard design.

When the New German Republic developed an interest in North America, they sent researchers and engineers to more than just Coalition Territories. In fact, they sent personnel to all over North America. One of them, an engineer named Roland Mohkenhoff, was sent to learn about techno-wizardry. He had previously worked in a facility which refitted pre-Rifts Russian / Soviet tank designs. The New German Republic got more that they bargained for when he decided to learn the skills of a techno-wizard. When he got back to the New German Republic, he decided to see how techno-wizardry could be integrated into German designs. He had looked at the American Techno-Wizard tank designs and considered them to be horribly underpowered and too lightly armed and armored. He could not use Triax facilities to build his new design so he decided to leave the NGR and went to Poland to use their factories to build his new design. Along the way, he gathered a group of mercenaries who were interested in his designs and several techno-wizards from North America came over to help him with his new designs as well. The mercenary company became known as the "Prussian Liberation Force" and work to get rid of Brodkill and other supernatural creatures in what was Northern Poland. They have had some incredible successes and have rolled back the supernatural creatures in several places. There are examples where the King Tiger has managed to destroy two Russian T-255 tanks in battle. Many of the crews have adopted a uniform similar to the German army uniform from World War Two in the same fashion which several American Techno-Wizard groups have adopted American uniforms from the same time period. While the Techno-Wizard King Tiger shares the same name as the New German Republic Tiger tank, it should be noted that the designs look nothing alike and the King Tiger is outwardly almost a direct copy of the World War Two Tank.

When creating the Techno-Wizard King Tiger, designer Roland Mohkenhoff wanted as powerful and effective cannon as he could work into the design. He considered the 120 mm cannon carried on the American Techno-Wizard Sherman to be completely inadequate for his heavy tank design. He first considered the 140 mm tank carried on the Leopard III but it was too large to mount on the design. He then considered the Annihilator Railgun from the Gun Griffon and Skorpion robots as well as the 88 mm cannon carried on the NGR Tiger Tank. While either cannon would work, he was concerned that severe repercussions would come from the New German Republic and Triax. He also did not know if he could get the plans or a working copy of the weapon. Even if he could have, development time would increase due to the need to set up equipment to construct the weapon. Instead, he chose to use the Soviet 85 mm rail gun from the T-284 tank and HT-281 hover tank. While less powerful than the Triax cannon designs, the cannon is still very powerful and was already being manufactured by factories in both Germany and Poland and was readily available. Like the Soviet designs, the cannon has an automatic loading system and does not require a separate loader. He looked at a variety of weapons for a coaxial mount including a variety of rail guns and the Plasma Cannon carried on the T-284 tank. Eventually, the TX-43 Triax Light Assault Laser Rifle was selected. The weapon was modified for extended range and can fire controlled three round bursts or be fired in fully automatic mode like a machine gun. Above the turret is mounted a cupola which the commander of the tank has a secondary weapon. The weapon is a laser mount similar to the coaxial mount with shorter range combined with an automatic firing weapon which uses Triax pump rifle cartridges. This weapon is very effective against targets which are impervious to energy weapons but are too small a target for the main gun to engage. On either side of the rear of the turret is a mini-missile launcher which retracts into the turret and only extends when fired. Each launcher can fire four missiles at a time and the tank has an automatic reload system with a total missile payload of twenty-four mini-missiles. In the main body of the tank are two retractable medium range missile launchers. They are mounted near the rear and like the mini-missile launchers are almost concealed when fully retracted. Each launcher can fire two missiles simultaneously and the weapon has four additional missiles as reloads inside the tank for each launcher. For defense against incoming missiles, the tank carried a Techno-Wizard "Fireworks" anti-missile chaff/flare dispenser on either side of the turret. Enchantments protect the tank against energy weapons and does not require prismatic aerosol generators like most purely technological tanks.

The armor of the King Tiger is substantially heavier than the armor on the American Techno-Wizard Sherman and is also protected by a force field. When the force field and armor are considered together, the King Tiger is about as tough as the New German Republic Tiger and is one of the toughest tanks ever built. Since the armor is made from advanced composites, the Techno-Wizard tank is actually lighter than the original King Tiger even though it is virtually exactly the same size. Power is provided by a powerful fusion reactor located in the back of the tank. The fusion reactor and transmission are both smaller than in the World War Two King Tiger Tank and part of the space freed up is used for the medium range missile launchers mounted beside the engine. While improved, speed of the tank is a bit slow compared to most tank designs with a top speed of 80 kph on roads and 65 kph off-road. The King Tiger can also operate underwater and has full life support to allow it to traverse rivers and lakes. Electronics are fully up to Triax standards and are purchased directly from the company. Additionally, the tank carries magical "See the invisible optics." Instead of a crew of five like the original, the Techno-Wizard King Tiger only has a crew of three. The tank has a driver, commander, and gunner. The tank does not have space for additional passengers but is fairly roomy and comfortable.

Based on the new enchantments of the Panther tank, a Mark Two version of the King Tiger has been developed. New King Tiger tanks are built to the Mark Two standards and an upgrade is available for old tanks as well. Enchantments include both the horror aura around the tank itself and dimensional pockets to store additional ammunition. The dimensional pockets increase the ammo carried on the King Tiger by around double and have an unlimited durations. Otherwise, the Mark Two version of the King Tiger is unmodified.

Model Type:"King Tiger" Techno-Wizard Tank Mk I
"King Tiger" Techno-Wizard Tank Mk II (Improved)
Vehicle Type: Magical Heavy Tank
Crew: 3 (Driver, Commander, and Gunner)

M.D.C. by Location:
[1] Tractor Treads (2):135 each
Weapons Turret:400
Main 85-mm Rail Gun (Turret):120
[2] Coaxial Automatic Laser Cannon (Turret):60
[2] Commander Combination Weapon Mount (Top of Turret):80
[2] Retractable Mini-Missile Launchers (2, Side of Turret):65 each
[2] "Firework" Magic Chaff and Flare Dispensers (2):20 each
Retractable Medium Range Missile Launchers (2, Side of Hull):120 each
Magical Armor of Ithan Force Field (3 times per day):200
Reinforced Crew Compartment:180
[4] Main Body:750

Notes:
[1] Depleting the M.D.C. of a tread will immobilize the tank until it is replaced. Replacing a tread will take 1D6x10 minutes by a trained crew (2 replacements are carried on board) or three times as long by the inexperienced. Changing the tread is only advisable when the vehicle is not under attack.
[2] These are small and difficult targets to strike, requiring the attacker to make a "called shot," but even then the attacker is -4 to strike.
[3] Once the missiles have been expended, or in an emergency, before they have been fully expended, the launcher can be ejected from the tank. Though disposable, they do not have to be disposed, and can be re-used indefinitely.
[4] If all the M.D.C. of the main body is depleted, the vehicle is completely shut down and unsalvageable, but crew may survive in their reinforced compartments.

Speed:
Ground: Cruising speed on land is 49.7 mph (80 kph) on roads and 40.4 mph (65 kph) off road maximum. The vehicle is designed to traverse virtually all terrain and can climb at up to a 60% grade although at a much slower speed (About 10% of maximum road speed). It can also climb barriers and ford trenches. The vehicle can also handle side slopes of up to 30%.
Underwater: Buttoned up, it can travel under water at 15.5 mph (25 kph).
Maximum Range: Effectively Unlimited (Nuclear Fusion power supply with 20 year duration) Armored Vehicle carries about three weeks worth of emergency supplies onboard.

Statistical Data:
Height: 10.1 feet (3.09 meters)
Width: 12.3 feet (3.76 meters)
Length: Main Body: 24.3 feet (7.4 meters) and With Gun Forward: 35.4 feet (10.8 meters).
Weight: 68.5 tons (62.1 metric tons)
Power Source: Nuclear fusion reactor; Must be refueled every twenty years, otherwise effectively unlimited.
Cargo Capacity: Minimal storage space in pilot's compartment; about four feet (1.2 meter) in side dimensions for extra clothing, weapons, and personal items. Four carbines and two hand-held missile launcher with four loads each.
Black Market Cost: Mark I: 48 Million Credits. Mark II: 50 Million Credits. Upgrade Mk I to M II costs 4 million credits.

Weapon Systems:

  1. High Velocity 85-mm Heavy Rail Gun (1): A powerful rail gun mounted on the right side of the pulse laser cannon mount on the main turret. The weapon is normally used against tanks and heavy armor. This rail gun normally fires a solid dart of MDC materials that does massive damage to targets that it hits but can also use explosive warheads. The barrel can angle 45 degrees up and down and the turret has a 360 degree rotation. The weapon system is also gyrostablised and has an advanced fire control computer.
    Maximum Effective Range: Direct fire range is 11,500 feet (3,500 meters) and can fire indirectly out to 41,000 feet (12,500 meters).
    Mega Damage: A single round inflicts 3D6x10+20 (optional rule is that cannon gets a critical on a natural 18, 19, or 20 due to its high penetration). Can use High Explosive rounds that do 1D4x10 with a blast radius of 20 feet (6.1 meters). High Explosive Anti Tank does 1D6x10+10 with a blast radius of 10 feet (3.05 meters)
    Rate of Fire: Maximum of four per melee.
    Payload: Mk I: 120 rounds (smaller and require no propellent) Mk II: 240 rounds (Dimensional Pocket)
    Bonuses: Has a special fire control computer that helps to aim the cannon. Gives +2 to strike with rail gun and vehicle does not have minuses to fire when tank is moving.
  2. Co-axial Automatic Laser Weapon: Mounted beside the 85 mm rail gun and used against targets which the main gun is considered to heavy to engage. Modified version of the TX-43 laser rifle sometimes used by troops as a combat weapon except modified for a greater rate of fire, extended range, and the ability to fire three round bursts. Unlike the troop carried version of the weapon, the laser weapon plugs directly into the Tank's fusion power system and has virtually unlimited shots. While the pulse laser can be fired with the main gun, it rarely is due to the difference in range and the slightly angled trajectory of the 85 mm round compared to the straight beam of the laser.
    Maximum Effective Range: 4,000 feet (1,220 meters).
    Mega Damage: 4D6 per single shot, 1D6x10+10 for a rapid fire three shot burst, or use machine gun burst rules for higher burst setting.
    Rate of Fire: Equal the gunner's number of hand to hand attacks - Single Shot, Three Round Burst, and Extended Bursts (Use Machine Gun burst rules).
    Payload: Effectively Unlimited.
  3. Commander Combination Weapon Mount: Combines an automatic laser mount with a weapon which is fully automatic and fires the same rounds as the Triax pump pistol and pump rifle. The secondary weapon acts in much the same fashion as an automatic grenade launcher. The mount was designed so that it can be controlled from within the turret so the commander would not be exposed to hostile fire.
    Automatic Laser Mount: Triax TX-160-T Pump Pistol Cartridge Automatic Rifle:
  4. Medium Range Missile Launchers (2): Mounted in retractable launchers on either side of the tank. The launchers only extend when about to be fired and are virtually concealed when not in firing mode. Each launcher has two ready to fire missiles. The launchers are reloaded from a magazine by an automatic reload system within the tanks body.
    Maximum Effective Range: Varies with medium range missile type; Usually plasma or armor piercing are carried (Go to Revised bomb and missile table).
    Mega Damage: Varies with medium range missile type; Usually plasma or armor piercing are carried (Go to Revised bomb and missile table).
    Rate of Fire: One at a time, or in volleys of 2 or 4.
    Payload: Mk I: Four missiles in magazine for each launcher plus two in each of the launchers. Mk II: Eight missiles in magazine for each launcher plus two in each of the launchers (Missiles carried in a dimensional pocket)
  5. Turret Mounted Mini-missile Launcher (2): Mounted on the sides of the tank's turret are retractable mini missile launchers. The launchers only extend when about to be fired and are virtually concealed when not in firing mode. Each launcher has four ready to fire missiles. These launchers are designed for rapid fire use to engage heavy tanks and giant robots. These weapons are designed to be able to destroy enemy vehicles quickly. Smoke warheads are often carried for special purpose uses. Weapon is mainly controlled by the tanks gunner but the pilot and commander also have controls.
    Maximum Effective Range: Varies with mini-missile type; Usually armor piercing or fragmentation are carried (Go to Revised bomb and missile table).
    Mega Damage: Varies with mini-missile type; Usually armor piercing or fragmentation are carried (Go to Revised bomb and missile table).
    Rate of Fire: One at a time, or in volleys of 2, 4, or 8 (4 per launcher).
    Payload: Mk I: Each launcher carries 12 mini-missiles for a total of 24 Mini-missiles. Mk II: Each launcher carries 24 mini-missiles for a total of 48 Mini-missiles (Missiles carried in a dimensional pocket)
  6. Fireworks Anti-Missile Chaff/Flare Dispensers (2): The system is mounted on either side of the tank behind the main cannon. In many ways this system is similar to technological versions of the Chaff/Flare system. When the system fires, it looks like fireworks firing. The anti-missile system works by combining three spells. The three spells are Fire Bolt, Apparition, and Telekinesis. The physical effects of the system are similar to the Triax Anti-Missile chaff but instead of being reloaded, it is recharged by spells.
    Effect: Also note that the chaff cloud will also blind flying monsters that fly through cloud. They will suffer the following penalties: reduce melee attacks/actions, combat bonuses, and speed by half.
    Duration: 1D4 melee rounds.
    Payload: 10 Uses before being recharged. Each launcher is recharged by the spells Apparition (20 P.P.E.), Fire Bolt (7 P.P.E.), and Telekinesis (8 P.P.E.).
  7. Aura of Horror (Carried on Mk II Version Only): This enchanted is similar to the spell of fear (Horror Factor 16) but surrounds the tank and can be activated at will. A failed roll against horror factor will mean that observers will run in fear from the tank, usually screaming in terror. The crew is not effected by the spell.
    Maximum Effective Range: 500 feet (152.4 meter) globe around tank.
    Mega-Damage: None but aura cause anyone within the area of effect (does not affect the crew) who fails their horror factor roll (HF 16) will run in fear. Does not effect the crew of the tank.
    Rate of Fire: Can be activated at will
    Payload: Effectively unlimited
  8. Techno-Wizard Modifications: The King Tiger has the following Techno-Wizard Modifications built into the Tank. These require P.P.E. or I.S.P. from the pilot or crew
    Special Features:

Special Equipment:
The Tank has all the standard features of a standard robot (including long range communication, radar, and radar tracking) plus these special features listed.

[Coalition TM, Iron Heart Industries TM, Northern Gun TM, Phase World TM, and Triax TM are trademarks owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc.]
[ Rifts® is a registered trademark owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc.]

By Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).

Copyright © 2003 & 2004, Kitsune. All rights reserved.

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