Combat Walker

Combat Walkers (TL9)

These early designs have a barrel-shaped torso that blends into the head. There is no neck or waist articulation; the user must rely on sensors to see behind him and cannot twist his torso around. The suit's hands are also crude (but very strong) grippers. Combat walkers built for humans stand eight feet tall (SM +2).

A combat walker is more mobile than a tank, but its agility remains limited. The suit can sit or kneel, but the user cannot crawl, get up from a prone position, jump, or swim. On the other hand, the walker is covered with depleted uranium composite laminate over high hardness steel alloy, and can shrug off fire from light anti-tank weapons.

The suit's exoskeleton provides Lifting ST+20 and Striking ST+20. Due to its longer legs, it also adds +1 to Basic Move. While wearing the suit, the wearer suffers Bad Grip 2. The entire suit's weight is ignored for encumbrance. However, if the combat walker loses power, the wearer is effectively paralyzed until he leaves the suit. The suit has several standard accessories: a GPS, hearing protection, biomedical sensors, and a waste relief system. Its helmet electronics include a hyperspectral visor, a medium radio, and a small laser comm. The helmet has audio sensors so the user can hear outside the suit, but it lacks olfactory sensors; unless the hatch is opened, the user suffers from No Sense of Smell/Taste when dealing with the outside world. The suit's surface has a tactical ESM, and incorporates infrared cloaking and radar stealth.

A combat walker is slightly more roomy than most other battlesuits. This means that it is a "one size fits all" suit that does not require special fitting to each user. It has a hatch at the back that the user must climb into; due to its height, the suit should be in a kneeling posture to enter, or it takes an extra second to clamber into it. Entry and exit are otherwise similar to most battlesuits.

Different variations of combat walker are described below. Combat walkers become obsolete at TL10+, and are replaced with heavy battlesuits.

Infantry Combat Walker (TL9)

This is the standard model, designed for operations in terrestrial conditions. It is sealed, with a filter mask, climate control (-20° F to 140°F), and radiation protection (PF 10). It can be equipped with air tanks, but these add to its weight.

Marine Combat Walker (TL9)

This model can swim underwater using ballast tanks and a waterjet propulsion system. It has Water Move 4, and a built-in small sonar. It is sealed, and provides climate control (-20° F to 150°F), pressure support (10 atm.), and radiation protection (PF 10). It has a large air tank, giving a it a 24-hour air supply at TL9.

Space Combat Walker (TL9)

This battlesuit is designed for operations on hostile alien worlds. It can walk underwater, but cannot float or swim. It has vacuum support, and can operate underwater or in superdense atmospheres. It is sealed, and provides climate control (-459° F to 300°F), pressure support (30 atm.), radiation protection (PF 10), and vacuum support. It has two large air tanks, giving a it a 48 hour air supply at TL9.

Combat Walker Table

TL	Armor	Location	DR	Cost	Weight	Power	LC
9	Combat Walker	all	200/120	$300,000	800	E/24 hr.	1
9	Marine Combat Walker	all	200/120	$320,000	900	E/24 hr.	1
9	Space Combat Walker	all	200/120	$330,000	950	2E/48 hr.	1

Battlesuits with split DR use the higher DR against attacks to the torso (and skull, for helmets or suits that cover all locations); the lower DR protects other locations.