Whoami

Critical Shell - A Mecha Roleplay

Alternatively I could swap out the 90mm gatling for a sort of light rotary rail gun. Less moving parts and smaller (much faster) ammunition in an arguably lighter system would pretty much alleviate all the concerns of the Ravager, and would also require more power to use, this making E/M targetting easier against the Zephyr. Thoughts?

Of course this'd mean a more accurate, more powerful shot since Newton dictated fast mass is a fast blast.

Critical Shell - A Mecha Roleplay

Apologies for prolonging this debate, I realized with that last post that I was getting a bit worked up over something that really doesn't matter. I'll come back to my original statement that I am open to edits, and leave it up to the group if this silly gatling should be scaled down or if it's fine as is. I personally don't think it's that offensive of a weapon, but it is what it is.

Critical Shell - A Mecha Roleplay

Well the same thing could be said about Halo 2's SMG, that it had caseless ammunition to justify it's huge magazine size in such a small, lightweight container. So like, it's not like I'm just materializing these numbers outta nowhere. As for it's effect on mobility when firing, sure, but the zephyr is equipped with massive boosters on the back to maintain it's forward momentum, kinda how the A10 has large engines to counteract the back force of the GAU's recoil.

So yes, rule of cool future tech exists, but there are definitely some more ridiculous examples of 'too much' out there. I also wasn't anticipating to debate semantics in something that is purely meant to be fun fantasy escapism. So really, why does it matter that.much in the first place? Are giant super powered robots not too much already? Why not just make this an RP about tanks since they're so much more practical than humanoid war machines? I guess that wouldn't be as cool.

Critical Shell - A Mecha Roleplay

Like... Yeah...

Critical Shell - A Mecha Roleplay

The A10 uses a 30mm and is designed to account for the monstrous recoil by off setting it. So larger than a Vulcan. HELIX frames are much larger and more advanced than a modern day fighter, and it'd be safe to say that as the machine is upsized, so too are the weapons. There's also the consideration that technology has rapidly advanced too. A simple solution for the magazine capacity would be that the ammunition is cashless, and thus is easier to store and lighter in weight. The A10's 30mm cannon also fires like... 30% faster than what the 90mm is spinning at.

On top of all that, this setting is based on the Armored Core universe, and some of the ballistic weaponry in that series is straight up completely impractical and not feasible. In that instance, the rule of cool applies. :P

Critical Shell - A Mecha Roleplay

I based the size of the ammunition off of the GMs earlier statement that 120mm was the standard for HELIX frames. So in relative terms, a 90mm weapon would be sub caliber and fitting for a 'lightweight' rapid fire weapon. Couple that with advances in lightweight durable materials and weaponry as well.

Critical Shell - A Mecha Roleplay

Pilot: Cpt. Crenshaw

Rachel Crenshaw

Age
30

Country of Origin
Great Britain

Personality
Rachel is a sharp woman who can easily switch between being your best friend and your greatest rival. Being an elite fighter pilot of Britain's 404 Squadron, a unit formed shortly after the rise of the United Empire, Rachel has a level of pride that she maintains among her peers. Rachel knows her capabilities, and isn't afraid to apply them when necessary. Rachel has a sort of 'wingman first' mentality, where she will prioritize her partner's needs over others, whether that be in a combat situation or in everyday life. Rachel finds fun in competition, as entering into 404 Squadron took a great amount of competing against other candidates. In combat, Rachel tends to try and one-up the enemy, and it has led to her being quite the showman in battle. Prior to becoming a HELIX pilot, Rachel was known for being a hotshot pilot who challenged herself with maneuvers deemed too dangerous for standard operating procedures. Now as a HELIX pilot, she is determined to master it and double down on her reputation. Rachel is also very good at billiards, but she claims that she is terrible at it.

Background
Rachel was born in an upper class family in Great Britain. Her family had a long history of serving in the RAF as distinguished pilots. Despite her family's renown, it certainly also had its fair share of infamy too. Her grand father was the pilot who had so gracefully donated his legendary flight data to drone engineers before the AI war, which led to the rebel AI having a vast fleet of fighter drones mimicking the Allen Crenshaw's flying ability. After the AI war, it took a lot of work for the Crenshaw family to regain the trust of the people. Naturally, Rachel joined the RAF to restore her family's honor. Her family ties certainly had helped her get the position she wanted in one of the country's many combat air wings. While she took much from her training, Rachel had shown to her instructors that she was a natural at flying, and when her training was complete, she found herself flying for the elite 404 squadron. The 404 received the best equipment and planes that the country had to offer. Fresh off training, Rachel was keen to prove herself as a hotshot pilot. She knew she was a talented pilot, and she let that get to her head, often times rushing ahead of her element on exercises to be the first into the fight.

Rachel was deployed to the West Asian theater where she fought against a small but very well equipped insurgency. This insurgency was unlike the ones that came before, they were well funded and had the numbers to fight in open war against the United Empire. The insurgency called themselves the 'Maroon Dragon Initiative', and they had a surprising amount of infrastructure and organization which required a far greater devotion of assets and resources from the empire. 404 Squadron was deployed to where the MDI forces were the thickest. The insurgency had air power, and until the 404's arrived, they even had air superiority. 404 Squadron had recently been equipped with brand new F-40 Hellcat stealth fighters, aircraft which hadn't even seen any real combat by then. Their debut was monumental, as 404 squadron was able to enter directly into the MDI's complex radar space and strike at sensitive facilities before their air forces could scramble. With the MDI's air defense network in ruin, 404 took on general air combat missions, engaging in close quarters with enemy air units to claim air superiority. The Hellcats were far more advanced than what the MDI had. The insurgent aircraft couldn't keep up with the new fighters.

Rachel was part of the final offensive on the MDI headquarters, a captured space elevator in the middle of a heavily fortified city. Rachel was in the vanguard force to hit the city's outer layer of defenses. As they approached the city, Rachel saw a gap in their air defense network, and brought the new information up the chain of command. She and her flight were the only ones close enough to exploit the gap before it was covered up. Before she could get new orders, Rachel's flight leader took the initiative and ordered the flight to advanced ahead of the vanguard and fly through the gap. The radar wall was tight, and a single mistake would have Laser-AA shredding them to pieces. Once the flight was in, they were committed. The six hellcats flew in a single file line, the ones to the rear following the lead plane's lead in the radar tunnel. Things were going well until the flight lead's plane just barely grazed the radar wall. Within seconds, Laser-AA had locked on him, and he was shot down. Rachel was the second in the tunnel, and so she took the lead on guiding the flight through. The flight lost four more planes on the way through, leaving just her and her wingman in the tunnel. By the time they broke through, the two planes were within striking range of the MDI headquarters. The enemy knew there fighters in the airspace, and they scrambled a pair of fighters to meet them. The dogfight was tense as they weaved in and around the complex construction of the space elevator's base. But 404 had better pilots, and she and her wingman overcame the enemy fighters. Then the MDI deployed a HELIX frame against them.

Until that point, the MDI hadn't had HELIX frames. The frame they were up against was very clearly a Vertex HELIX frame. It engaged Rachel and her wingman. They both knew that one hit from the HELIX would be enough to take them down, so they kept an evasive posture and fired missiles from a distance. The HELIX evaded just as easily, and it had longer lasting firepower than they did. With a single accurate shot from the HELIX frame's 120mm rifle, Rachel's wingman was shot down. On her own, Rachel decided to go toe to toe with the HELIX. She turned and headed straight for the frame, putting on an impressive display of skill as she dodged the incoming 120mm rounds. Rachel wanted to remind the frame that she was on a suicide run by returning fire with her own cannon. The rounds were harmless against the HELIX frame, but it served to send the HELIX into a sort of tunnel vision. How dare a pest think it can win against a HELIX?! Rachel was unknowingly stripping down the HELIX frame's phalanx shield while spraying it with her cannon fire. Her intention to eject and send the fighter right into the frame wouldn't have worked if not for that. Before ejecting, Rachel set the fighter's small scale phalanx core to detonate. She pulled the ejection handle, and launched into the sky, watching her fighter collided with the HELIX frame. The fighter itself didn't cause enough damage to take down the HELIX, but the detonation from the fighter's core certainly did. With a bright blue flash and a powerful gust of wind, the HELIX was destroyed. Rachel touched down not far from the ruined Helix. She knew MDI forces would come to capture her and secure the wreckage of the HELIX, the best she could do was hold out in the wreckage for as long as possible.

When she made it to the wreckage, Rachel found that the frame's black box was still intact. She jacked in her flight suit's personal comms into the black box and began to transmit its data to the United Empire. While transmitting, MDI ground forces arrived. She returned fire with her pistol, but she was vastly outgunned, and not very effective on the ground. The best she could do was slow them down. Just before she was overwhelmed, a missile struck the bulk of the infantry force coming to capture her, followed by a deadly spray of cannon fire. Another 404 flight had broken through the radar tunnel. With the space elevator effectively held hostage by 404 squadron, the MDI were forced to stand down. The United Empire forces moved further into the city and cleared up any enemy force that decided to keep on fighting after the stand down. It was during the consolidation that Rachel had learned what she had achieved. The data pulled from the HELIX's black box contained IFF frequencies for the city's automated defenses, which allowed Imperial forces into the city with little resistance. Beyond the IFFs, they also found out that the HELIX frame was supplied from deep within the heart of Vertex territory, fresh off of the assembly line. Months passed, and after some intelligence acquisitions, that black box information revealed that Vertex was funding and supplying the Maroon Dragon Initiative to weaken the Empire's influence in the West Asian countries so it could commit to an aggressive offensive. Word of Vertex's plans never reached the public, but it began the cascade that followed in the wake of the West Asian Conflict, which rattled the already tense relations between Vertex and United Empire.

Rachel was promoted to the rank of captain after her tour of duty. Not much longer, she was selected as a possible candidate for a top secret HELIX program. She was vetted through the process and eventually chosen to be the pilot of a prototype HELIX frame. She was introduced to the Zephyr model, and was asked to name the first of its kind. Rachel named it after her fallen wingman's callsign, Storm Rider. She underwent the complex surgeries to become compatible with the HELIX frame's neural architecture. Now, after two months of recovering from the surgeries, and another month of work-up training in the Storm Rider, she is being deployed to Alaska as a member of the renowned Canadian Snowbirds for more in depth HELIX training.

Misc Info
Rachel has a thing for street bikes, crotch rockets especially.
Off duty, Rachel is used to the affluent life of the upper class. She likes to find herself in elite venues, and will gladly cover the costs for her less fortunate "+1's".
Rachel has a pet German Shepherd named Cloud. And no, not after the video game character.
She has a profile on 'Cinder', she claims she doesn't go on it. Regardless, she can often be seen swiping left and right on her phone.

HELIX: E-HLX 00 Zephyr

The first HELIX of its kind, the Zephyr is the RAF's prototype HELIX designed to bridge the gap between the tried and true fleet of fighter craft, and the hyper advanced capabilities of the potent HELIX frames. This unit has been designated as 'Storm Rider', and has been given to the RAF's first HELIX pilot, Rachel Crenshaw. The Zephyr stands at 15 meters in height, which also contributes to its length when in flight mode.

Designation
Storm Rider

Class
Light

Role
Air Superiority
Interceptor
Recce

Equipment

Weaponry

Left Arm - Integrated Hyper-Rapid Magnetic Cannon [HMC]
Capable of spitting out magnetically accelerated rods at a high rate of fire, the HMC is the ultra-modern alternative to aging conventional ballistic weaponry. Instead of using a striking hammer and propellant, the HMC uses three arrays of magnets to sling rods at extreme velocities toward the enemy. At such speeds, the light rods hit with a mass far greater than the rod itself actually has. The HMC is integrated directly into the forearm of the Zephyr to allow for easy feeding of the ammunition and powering of the electronics. The HMC can be fired at different rates, using less power to fire a staggering volley of many shots, or more power for a single powerful shot over long distances. The weapon's lack of moving parts compared to a conventional weapon allows for greater control of the weapon. However, the heat generated both from the friction of the projectiles, and the electricity surging through it mean that the longer this weapon fires, the easier to is to track via infrared. If the weapon sustains long periods of fire, or charged for a high powered shot, the zephyr's electromagnetic signature grows as well. When the zephyr enters flight mode, the weapon stows into the HELIX and is used much like a fighter's cannon.

Right Arm - EB-1000 Excalibur
A potent energy blade with an intense power output. The blade is short but very focused, allowing for the blade to slice through most targets with ease. The drawback of the Excalibur is that the heat generated by the blade allow for IR locks to easily be acquired on the HELIX using this blade. The relatively short blade also means that the HELIX must get within a dangerous distance of the target for an effective strike. While mounted on something like a Zephyr, the Excalibur is used more as a sidearm when the main weapon is out of ammunition.

Right Shoulder - 20x Missile Pylons
The zephyr has room to mount up to twenty missiles on its shoulder. These missiles are the same as ones used by fighters. The missiles are loaded before the zephyr departs for a mission. If the mission requires air to ground support, AGMs can be loaded. If the missions foresees a large air presence, AAMs can be mounted. The zephyr can have a mix of missiles mounted on its pylons for mission flexibility. Essentially, if a missile can fit on a fighter, it can fit on the zephyr. Perhaps more specialized HELIX missiles can be mounted onto it later if they are ever designed.

Defenses & Countermeasures

Left Shoulder - Enhanced Radar Suite
A boosted radar system allowing for ground penetration and location of stealth capable targets. The radar can be used both as an active ping, or as a passive scanner. When used actively, the power of the radar is doubled, allowing for it to scan up to fifty kilometers out with detail, and one hundred kilometers out with the ability to detect -something-. As a passive scanner, the radar can provide detailed information up to 30 kilometers, with less detailed information up to fifty kilometers. Active pings have the unfortunate knock-on effect of also broadcasting to listening posts that there is a radar system (and something along with it) in the area, and should be used when discretion is less important or lost. Passive scanning can help the HELIX maintain a low profile, and works well in conjunction with stealth capabilities. For missiles, this radar can track and acquire multiple locks, allowing for the HELIX to fire more than one missile at more than one enemy.

Frame - Radar Absorbing Materials
The lightweight materials and overall design of the Zephyr HELIX allow for stealth capabilities. The Zephyr's intent is to integrate with squadrons of F-40 Hellcat stealth fighters, so this was a core design principle for the Zephyr. The angles allow for radar pings to deflect away from the radar, and what is bounced back to the radar is mostly absorbed by the paint and materials. The small amount of information that is passed back to the radar is muddled and hazy at best, meaning that the Zephyr is very difficult to lock onto unless it is in close combat with the enemy. This also means that the Zephyr can approach an enemy at high speed and close the distance before being detected, making it ideal for lightning fast raids and reconnaissance. While airborne, the Zephyr can orbit a target and monitor its movements undetected for extended periods of time, feeding information back to the main force as it does. There is a downside of course, the materials that went into the construction of the Zephyr are expensive, and don't provide the most protection against enemy fire. The Zephyr's armor is rated to take only five 120mm rounds before it is considered to be compromised. This means that agility and evasion takes priority over brute force. This is all not including the protective ability of the HELIX frame's Phalanx shield.

Legs - External Heatsinks

To counteract the heat generated by the HMC, the zephyr has been fitted with heatsinks in an attempt to absorb and bleed off the excess heat. When the HMC is not in use, these heatsinks can be used to mask the zephyr's overall heat, and contribute to maintaining a low profile. If the heatsinks reach critical temperatures, they can be purged from the zephyr to prevent damage to other systems, but this will drastically reduce the longevity of the zephyr's HMC.

Utilities

Lower Back - Linear Over-Boosters
The primary engines which give the Zephyr it's ability of sustained flight. These boosters are powerful enough to propel the Zephyr at high speeds in one direction, similar to that of fighters that the Zephyr is meant to fly with. When the Zephyr is in its flight configuration, these engines can allow the Zephyr to travel up to a max speed of Mach 5 while sacrificing handling. When the Zephyr is in its combat configuration, they allow the HELIX to hover and maintain its altitude. A clever pilot could use these engines as retro boosters to rapidly slow the HELIX in one direction, and pull off some very tight, albeit high-G maneuvers.

Frame - Variable Configurations
Another primary design principle of the Zephyr frame is to allow for it to maintain its aerodynamics when flying in a fighter wing. Engineers who were designing the HELIX agreed that a humanoid shape isn't very conducive for aerodynamics. To counteract this, they designed the Zephyr to be able to 'transform' into a tighter, sleeker shape for high speed flight. The two configurations are flight mode and combat mode. Flight mode allows for extremely fast linear travel and dogfighting, whereas combat mode allows the Zephyr to engage targets on the ground like a normal HELIX. The Zephyr cannot land while in flight mode, and must change into its combat mode to land. Of course, it could make an emergency landing if it had to, but some of the equipment might be worse for wear in that case.

Critical Shell - A Mecha Roleplay

And finally, here is my CS! I was originally intending to go for a medium class Urban Warfare specialist HELIX, but after seeing that we had 3 mediums already, I went with this fun alternative! Hopefully things are alright with this CS. Feel free to critique and help me align things to the world's rules and history. I might have muddled some things up on accident. I am not worried about criticisms as I really love mech RPs and wanna be in this. If I need to make edits, don't hesitate to let me know!

Pilot: Cpt. Crenshaw

Rachel Crenshaw

Age
30

Country of Origin
Great Britain

Personality
Rachel is a sharp woman who can easily switch between being your best friend and your greatest rival. Being an elite fighter pilot of Britain's 404 Squadron, a unit formed shortly after the rise of the United Empire, Rachel has a level of pride that she maintains among her peers. Rachel knows her capabilities, and isn't afraid to apply them when necessary. Rachel has a sort of 'wingman first' mentality, where she will prioritize her partner's needs over others, whether that be in a combat situation or in everyday life. Rachel finds fun in competition, as entering into 404 Squadron took a great amount of competing against other candidates. In combat, Rachel tends to try and one-up the enemy, and it has led to her being quite the showman in battle. Prior to becoming a HELIX pilot, Rachel was known for being a hotshot pilot who challenged herself with maneuvers deemed too dangerous for standard operating procedures. Now as a HELIX pilot, she is determined to master it and double down on her reputation. Rachel is also very good at billiards, but she claims that she is terrible at it.

Background
Rachel was born in an upper class family in Great Britain. Her family had a long history of serving in the RAF as distinguished pilots. Despite her family's renown, it certainly also had its fair share of infamy too. Her grand father was the pilot who had so gracefully donated his legendary flight data to drone engineers before the AI war, which led to the rebel AI having a vast fleet of fighter drones mimicking the Allen Crenshaw's flying ability. After the AI war, it took a lot of work for the Crenshaw family to regain the trust of the people. Naturally, Rachel joined the RAF to restore her family's honor. Her family ties certainly had helped her get the position she wanted in one of the country's many combat air wings. While she took much from her training, Rachel had shown to her instructors that she was a natural at flying, and when her training was complete, she found herself flying for the elite 404 squadron. The 404 received the best equipment and planes that the country had to offer. Fresh off training, Rachel was keen to prove herself as a hotshot pilot. She knew she was a talented pilot, and she let that get to her head, often times rushing ahead of her element on exercises to be the first into the fight.

Rachel was deployed to the West Asian theater where she fought against a small but very well equipped insurgency. This insurgency was unlike the ones that came before, they were well funded and had the numbers to fight in open war against the United Empire. The insurgency called themselves the 'Maroon Dragon Initiative', and they had a surprising amount of infrastructure and organization which required a far greater devotion of assets and resources from the empire. 404 Squadron was deployed to where the MDI forces were the thickest. The insurgency had air power, and until the 404's arrived, they even had air superiority. 404 Squadron had recently been equipped with brand new F-40 Hellcat stealth fighters, aircraft which hadn't even seen any real combat by then. Their debut was monumental, as 404 squadron was able to enter directly into the MDI's complex radar space and strike at sensitive facilities before their air forces could scramble. With the MDI's air defense network in ruin, 404 took on general air combat missions, engaging in close quarters with enemy air units to claim air superiority. The Hellcats were far more advanced than what the MDI had. The insurgent aircraft couldn't keep up with the new fighters.

Rachel was part of the final offensive on the MDI headquarters, a captured space elevator in the middle of a heavily fortified city. Rachel was in the vanguard force to hit the city's outer layer of defenses. As they approached the city, Rachel saw a gap in their air defense network, and brought the new information up the chain of command. She and her flight were the only ones close enough to exploit the gap before it was covered up. Before she could get new orders, Rachel's flight leader took the initiative and ordered the flight to advanced ahead of the vanguard and fly through the gap. The radar wall was tight, and a single mistake would have Laser-AA shredding them to pieces. Once the flight was in, they were committed. The six hellcats flew in a single file line, the ones to the rear following the lead plane's lead in the radar tunnel. Things were going well until the flight lead's plane just barely grazed the radar wall. Within seconds, Laser-AA had locked on him, and he was shot down. Rachel was the second in the tunnel, and so she took the lead on guiding the flight through. The flight lost four more planes on the way through, leaving just her and her wingman in the tunnel. By the time they broke through, the two planes were within striking range of the MDI headquarters. The enemy knew there fighters in the airspace, and they scrambled a pair of fighters to meet them. The dogfight was tense as they weaved in and around the complex construction of the space elevator's base. But 404 had better pilots, and she and her wingman overcame the enemy fighters. Then the MDI deployed a HELIX frame against them.

Until that point, the MDI hadn't had HELIX frames. The frame they were up against was very clearly a Vertex HELIX frame. It engaged Rachel and her wingman. They both knew that one hit from the HELIX would be enough to take them down, so they kept an evasive posture and fired missiles from a distance. The HELIX evaded just as easily, and it had longer lasting firepower than they did. With a single accurate shot from the HELIX frame's 120mm rifle, Rachel's wingman was shot down. On her own, Rachel decided to go toe to toe with the HELIX. She turned and headed straight for the frame, putting on an impressive display of skill as she dodged the incoming 120mm rounds. Rachel wanted to remind the frame that she was on a suicide run by returning fire with her own cannon. The rounds were harmless against the HELIX frame, but it served to send the HELIX into a sort of tunnel vision. How dare a pest think it can win against a HELIX?! Rachel was unknowingly stripping down the HELIX frame's phalanx shield while spraying it with her cannon fire. Her intention to eject and send the fighter right into the frame wouldn't have worked if not for that. Before ejecting, Rachel set the fighter's small scale phalanx core to detonate. She pulled the ejection handle, and launched into the sky, watching her fighter collided with the HELIX frame. The fighter itself didn't cause enough damage to take down the HELIX, but the detonation from the fighter's core certainly did. With a bright blue flash and a powerful gust of wind, the HELIX was destroyed. Rachel touched down not far from the ruined Helix. She knew MDI forces would come to capture her and secure the wreckage of the HELIX, the best she could do was hold out in the wreckage for as long as possible.

When she made it to the wreckage, Rachel found that the frame's black box was still intact. She jacked in her flight suit's personal comms into the black box and began to transmit its data to the United Empire. While transmitting, MDI ground forces arrived. She returned fire with her pistol, but she was vastly outgunned, and not very effective on the ground. The best she could do was slow them down. Just before she was overwhelmed, a missile struck the bulk of the infantry force coming to capture her, followed by a deadly spray of cannon fire. Another 404 flight had broken through the radar tunnel. With the space elevator effectively held hostage by 404 squadron, the MDI were forced to stand down. The United Empire forces moved further into the city and cleared up any enemy force that decided to keep on fighting after the stand down. It was during the consolidation that Rachel had learned what she had achieved. The data pulled from the HELIX's black box contained IFF frequencies for the city's automated defenses, which allowed Imperial forces into the city with little resistance. Beyond the IFFs, they also found out that the HELIX frame was supplied from deep within the heart of Vertex territory, fresh off of the assembly line. Months passed, and after some intelligence acquisitions, that black box information revealed that Vertex was funding and supplying the Maroon Dragon Initiative to weaken the Empire's influence in the West Asian countries so it could commit to an aggressive offensive. Word of Vertex's plans never reached the public, but it began the cascade that followed in the wake of the West Asian Conflict, which rattled the already tense relations between Vertex and United Empire.

Rachel was promoted to the rank of captain after her tour of duty. Not much longer, she was selected as a possible candidate for a top secret HELIX program. She was vetted through the process and eventually chosen to be the pilot of a prototype HELIX frame. She was introduced to the Zephyr model, and was asked to name the first of its kind. Rachel named it after her fallen wingman's callsign, Storm Rider. She underwent the complex surgeries to become compatible with the HELIX frame's neural architecture. Now, after two months of recovering from the surgeries, and another month of work-up training in the Storm Rider, she is being deployed to Alaska as a member of the renowned Canadian Snowbirds for more in depth HELIX training.

Misc Info
Rachel has a thing for street bikes, crotch rockets especially.
Off duty, Rachel is used to the affluent life of the upper class. She likes to find herself in elite venues, and will gladly cover the costs for her less fortunate "+1's".
Rachel has a pet German Shepherd named Cloud. And no, not after the video game character.
She has a profile on 'Cinder', she claims she doesn't go on it. Regardless, she can often be seen swiping left and right on her phone.

HELIX: E-HLX 00 Zephyr

The first HELIX of its kind, the Zephyr is the RAF's prototype HELIX designed to bridge the gap between the tried and true fleet of fighter craft, and the hyper advanced capabilities of the potent HELIX frames. This unit has been designated as 'Storm Rider', and has been given to the RAF's first HELIX pilot, Rachel Crenshaw. The Zephyr stands at 15 meters in height, which also contributes to its length when in flight mode.

Designation
Storm Rider

Class
Light

Role
Air Superiority
Interceptor
Recce

Equipment

Weaponry

Left Arm - 90mm Ravager Ballistic Gatling
Favoring rate of fire over raw stopping power, this weapon is lightweight and capable of spitting out rounds at 3000 rounds per minute. The Ravager is best used in air-to-air engagements as its light weight can bring the deadly weapon to bear on targets easily, and fire with stability when mounted on a HELIX frame. The ammunition can be changed out when landed, and can use either armor piercing incendiary rounds against other HELIX frames, or high explosive incendiary rounds against softer targets. The ammunition that the Ravager is loaded with is determined before a mission. The HELIX can carry up to 7500 rounds belt fed directly into the gatling, allowing for two and a half minutes of sustained fire.

Right Arm - EB-1000 Excalibur
A potent energy blade with an intense power output. The blade is short but very focused, allowing for the blade to slice through most targets with ease. The drawback of the Excalibur is that the heat generated by the blade allow for IR locks to easily be acquired on the HELIX using this blade. The relatively short blade also means that the HELIX must get within a dangerous distance of the target for an effective strike. While mounted on something like a Zephyr, the Excalibur is used more as a sidearm when the main weapon is out of ammunition.

Right Shoulder - 20x High Act Missiles
These missiles are fast and agile, able to change their direction of travel quickly should the target be as agile as a HELIX frame. These missiles can pierce upwards to 900mm of armor, and detonate with a secondary high explosive charge. The downside to these missiles is that their lock is acquired within visual range, meaning that the craft using these missiles is already sighted by the enemy as well. On fighters, these missiles are great for last resort dogfighting, but on a HELIX frame, which is rarely inconspicuous to the enemy anyways, these missiles find a far more fulfilled niche. Thanks to advanced suspension of a HELIX, and the obvious size difference, a HELIX can carry far more missiles on it than a fighter.

Defenses & Countermeasures

Left Shoulder - Enhanced Radar Suite
A boosted radar system allowing for ground penetration and location of stealth capable targets. The radar can be used both as an active ping, or as a passive scanner. When used actively, the power of the radar is doubled, allowing for it to scan up to fifty kilometers out with detail, and one hundred kilometers out with the ability to detect -something-. As a passive scanner, the radar can provide detailed information up to 30 kilometers, with less detailed information up to fifty kilometers. Active pings have the unfortunate knock-on effect of also broadcasting to listening posts that there is a radar system (and something along with it) in the area, and should be used when discretion is less important or lost. Passive scanning can help the HELIX maintain a low profile, and works well in conjunction with stealth capabilities. For missiles, this radar can track and acquire multiple locks, allowing for the HELIX to fire more than one missile at more than one enemy.

Frame - Radar Absorbing Materials
The lightweight materials and overall design of the Zephyr HELIX allow for stealth capabilities. The Zephyr's intent is to integrate with squadrons of F-40 Hellcat stealth fighters, so this was a core design principle for the Zephyr. The angles allow for radar pings to deflect away from the radar, and what is bounced back to the radar is mostly absorbed by the paint and materials. The small amount of information that is passed back to the radar is muddled and hazy at best, meaning that the Zephyr is very difficult to lock onto unless it is in close combat with the enemy. This also means that the Zephyr can approach an enemy at high speed and close the distance before being detected, making it ideal for lightning fast raids and reconnaissance. While airborne, the Zephyr can orbit a target and monitor its movements undetected for extended periods of time, feeding information back to the main force as it does. There is a downside of course, the materials that went into the construction of the Zephyr are expensive, and don't provide the most protection against enemy fire. The Zephyr's armor is rated to take only five 120mm rounds before it is considered to be compromised. This means that agility and evasion takes priority over brute force. This is all not including the protective ability of the HELIX frame's Phalanx shield.

Utilities

Lower Back - Linear Over-Boosters
The primary engines which give the Zephyr it's ability of sustained flight. These boosters are powerful enough to propel the Zephyr at high speeds in one direction, similar to that of fighters that the Zephyr is meant to fly with. When the Zephyr is in its flight configuration, these engines can allow the Zephyr to travel up to a max speed of Mach 5 while sacrificing handling. When the Zephyr is in its combat configuration, they allow the HELIX to hover and maintain its altitude. A clever pilot could use these engines as retro boosters to rapidly slow the HELIX in one direction, and pull off some very tight, albeit high-G maneuvers.

Frame - Variable Configurations
Another primary design principle of the Zephyr frame is to allow for it to maintain its aerodynamics when flying in a fighter wing. Engineers who were designing the HELIX agreed that a humanoid shape isn't very conducive for aerodynamics. To counteract this, they designed the Zephyr to be able to 'transform' into a tighter, sleeker shape for high speed flight. The two configurations are flight mode and combat mode. Flight mode allows for extremely fast linear travel and dogfighting, whereas combat mode allows the Zephyr to engage targets on the ground like a normal HELIX. The Zephyr cannot land while in flight mode, and must change into its combat mode to land. Of course, it could make an emergency landing if it had to, but some of the equipment might be worse for wear in that case.

Anyone Looking for a Modern Fantasy RP?

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Critical Shell - A Mecha Roleplay

I'm busy today and tomorrow, but I'll finally be able to get on this on Sunday