Lodestone TLR-99

The following is Classified Top Secret for perusal only by ranking commanding officers of the 1st Mechanized Research Division.

Not if I've got anything to say about it. They NEED these specs if they're going to keep her running. --A.Z.

The Taisho-Berenger contract, held jointly by the Armed Forces of Sunnr 1st Mechanized Research Division and the Taisho-Berenger Heavy Industry Company of Mimisbrunnr, is centered around design, construction, deployment, and support of one Mobile Weapons Platform designation TLR-99, codename "Lodestone." The contract consists of the following articles:

• Mechakinetic bipedal armature with corresponding interface harness, approximately 35 meter height. Fully articulated legs, arms, wrists, hips, torso, head.
• Mechakinetic interface harness calibrated to detect and reproduce muscle movements one-to-one between pilot and armature. Force-feedback system included with internal motion limiters for pilot's safety; linkages are 100% non-mechanical to prevent dangerous blowback. This never sat well with me. The specs sheet says there's limiters, but there's still injury potential. I'd just as soon switch that crap off.
• Mobility systems: "Serpentine" high-torque electric motorized foot wheels, full-body thruster arrays, mountings for deployable launch thrusters. It defeats the point of a walking weapons platform if it doesn't have to walk. I'm sure K.N. agrees. --A.Z.
• Anti-mobility systems: Retractable cleats built into foot assemblies, grant high degree of traction while walking in sand or up steep hills or dunes. Reusable "Icarus" force-chute system to soften hard landings automatically, and deployable emergency industrial-strength parachute to slow longer falls in the event of unintended long drops.
• Advanced sensing and vectoring system, short and long range radar, lidar, sonar, with computerized object-permanence calculation.
• Appropriately sized melee weaponry, purpose-built to armature's scale. Tonfa with embedded explosive slug, pile bunker spike with strong electrical conductivity.
• Multiple projectile weapons hard points: anti-personnel small-caliber machine guns, anti-armor high-caliber cannons, mounted around unit's torso.
• 6DOF gimbal turrets mounted around shoulders and optional backpack: UV pulse cannons, anti-missile slugthrowers, backpack-mounted self-loading missile rack. -- Additionally, external loudspeakers for communication with nearby units, without necessitating radio or other wireless connection.
• Experimental telepresence support hardware: armature's head unit connects over long-range, encrypted wireless signal to highly experimental "virtual cockpit" enabling second-pilot backup and support without sacrificing unit mobility or protection to fit two pilots inside. -- Additionally, articulated diagnosis tools on both physical and virtual cockpits, enabling remote medical attention from one pilot to the other in emergency situations. Tools range from scalpels to gauze and tape dispensers to articulated hands, all controlled via the interface harness.

Design goals and guidelines as set by Taisho-Berenger include:

• An overall weight of no more than 40 tons fully loaded.
• Passive cooling wherever possible. Those air vents are like big glowing weak spots, so I don't blame them for not including fans on it... -- In the event of excessive heat levels that risk endangering the pilot, power core may be forcibly ejected through rear-center torso. Pilot must be given ample warning before this happens, as unit obviously cannot operate without power.
• Reduce appearance of obvious "weak spots" by enclosing main pilot inside armored torso; use of glass or polycarbonate kept as close to zero as possible to prevent shattering and pilot injury. Because no pilot wants a face full of glass, no matter how snazzy those reflector sights are.
• Resistance to external heat sources. Lodestone is intended to operate primarily in arid deserts; this is largely a consideration for pilot comfort and mission longevity more than it is intended to defend Lodestone against fire attacks. Not that it terribly helps; I've seen how sweaty the pilot gets after a long sortie.
• Legs and wheel units designed for traction more than speed or strength. Sand is not terribly conducive to speed-focused designs, with a high degree of slippage. It is important that Lodestone be able to stand as stable as possible at will.

I admit I can only barely make sense of the pages after this, but there's a lot in there about how the connection to the on-base data center works, and close to fifty pages on mil-spec encryption protocol. I risked my ass getting an unredacted version of that chapter, so M.S., whoever you get to reverse engineer the thing, make EXTRA DAMN SURE they can be trusted not to leak it! --A.Z.

p.s. I haven't forgotten about you stealing my badge last month. whichever of you two did it, you WILL pay me back about that, but that hinges on you still being alive, so do me a favor and don't fucking die.