THE WHOLE OGRE CATALOG(tm)
__________________________________________________________
A discussion of the various types of OGREs fielded by all sides during The Last
War
OGREAPER MARK I- “Walker Bulldog”-
Combine dedicated anti-personnel platform
General George T. Walker was the director
of Combine Military Technology Research and Application Center (MTRAC) for over
two decades. Under his command, the MTRAC formulated, tested, and fielded many
different designs for use by the Combine armed forces in the field. The MTRAC
and Walker’s hand picked team of engineers and ex-military personnel were
legendary for their designs and their speed of ‘concept to combat’ production.
When The Last War started in earnest, it was with great alarm that the Combine
discovered that the Paneuropeans were relying on massive amounts of infantry in
a blitzkrieg-style lightning war mode of operations.
Initial Combine losses were heavy and due primarily to the high speed overrun
combat capacity of massed enemy infantry assaults at close quarters. What the
initial waves of infantry didn’t neutralize in the first pass, the follow-up
Paneuropean heavy armor units did when they closely followed the rapidly
advancing infantry screen.
The key to early Paneuropean victory during the opening segments of The Last War
was the tried and true doctrine of combined arms, elevated from a science to an
art. Infantry, normally slow on the battlefield, were greatly aided in their
mobility by the new designs of Paneuropean power armor as well as hover,
wheeled, and tracked armored personnel carriers which could keep up with the
other armor units. Once the enemy formations were sighted, Paneuropean
commanders deployed their infantry from their carriers and operated on the basis
of infantry speed; instead of trying to get the infantry to keep up with their
armor units, the Paneuropeans merely kept their armor moving at the speed of the
infantry. Facing a numerical superiority of two or more to one against infantry
alone, Combine commanders were fighting a rapid retreat back toward England and
the Combine bases there, leaving smashed and broken assets littering the
battlefield as they went.
It came to MTRAC and Walker’s teams to not only compensate for the numerical
superiority of Paneuropean infantry, but also to neutralize that tactic. The
Combine Armed Forces Command (CAFC) demanded a solution to the problem, before
the CAFC got its ass pushed all the way off the Neuropean continent and into the
ocean. Walker and his staff reviewed combat data and logistics obtained from all
of the engagements and produced the OGREAPER class of CLAWS.
But OGREAPERs took time to produce, and were hard to transport. Despite the
effectiveness of the OGREAPER, it was still a case of ‘just right, too late’.
While the OGREAPERs were brunting the force of Paneuropean infantry assaults in
Neurope, there were simply not enough OGREAPERs to fill all theaters. Walker
began to think small, easily transportable, and rapid production. Reworking the
template of a Mark I OGRE, Walker’s team was able to design and produce a much
smaller, lighter, and highly effective anti-personnel weapons platform. The key
specification was that it had to be an OGRE, which was the trick in the request.
OGREs had existed for decades, but the research and field experience said that
there were finite gains in effectiveness for larger amounts of mass. Going in
reverse presented its own problems, how to produce a smaller, yet highly
effective anti-personnel system. For the solution, Walker and his teams went to
the next smaller combat chassis in the CLAWS systems, in essence, taking a step
backwards in order to take a step forward.
The Walker Bulldog was a Mark I OGRE modified with a new sensor and target
acquisition system. The older Pale Tint class 1 software was upgraded to the
newer Fast Blink grade 3 integrated software along with a new and improved
heuristical filters for the data core systems. The older drive train was
strengthened and all structural load bearing points were reinforced within the
chassis. A smaller, high capacity GE Phase IV nuclear power plant was installed,
replacing the older GM Dynorad model. This modification, coupled with a new
twenty speed viscous coupling variable shift electronic transmission gave the
older chassis a newer footing and higher maneuverability as well as better cross
country speed. Active suspension technology was incorporated into the new
upgrade, using microprocessor controlled components to provide the most stable
operating platform at all speeds and terrain.
The traditional NORINCO 90mm conebore repeater along with all of its attendant
hardware was removed and the primary turret modified to accept a triple battery
of the newer NORINCO Gideon-III AP batteries, complete with high speed electric
feed and heavy duty ammunition storage cassettes. Extra integral component armor
was built around all vital parts, proof against most small arms fire that were
infantry portable. Even so, the best electric drive motors of the time labored
under great strain to feed the hungry AP batteries. The AP batteries were also
stabilized so that the unit could fire while at full speed and on any terrain.
The standard four AP batteries were upgraded to the newer high capacity rapid
fatigue units, allowing for increased ammunition storage once the older, bulkier
feed and traverse units were removed. High speed electric rotational mounts were
installed to replace the older units, giving the four AP batteries a much wider
coverage.
All leftover space within the chassis was filled with liquid BPC (ultra-high
compression application process) and proto-bonded to the material surface,
resulting in further bracing and armored bulkheads between vital components,
resulting in higher field survivability ratios.
The name “Bulldog” was chosen for Walker’s favorite type of pet, of which he had
a hobby of breeding and raising award winning, pedigreed English bulldogs. The
smaller anti-personnel unit fit its name perfectly as it was tenacious in its
endeavor, diligent in its assigned duties, and persevered even when severely
damaged. The first Walker Bulldogs rolled off the assembly lines in Detroit and
were immediately shipped with their support teams and spares to Neurope in time
for the siege of Sheffield. The first eight Walker Bulldogs were instrumental in
bracing the Combine forces which had retreated there.
The appearance of a highly modified Mark I OGRE, specially modified for
anti-personnel operations and urban warfare was a severe shock for the
Paneuropean commanders who lost tremendous amounts of infantry and personnel
during the urban pacification of Sheffield and the surrounding areas. The Walker
Bulldogs saw some of the fiercest urban fighting yet witnessed in The Last War,
losing three units in three days. Six additional units arrived two weeks before
Sheffield fell, and after being integrated into the Combine table of assets, no
further losses were sustained though two units managed to limp back to their
bases and another one had to be salvaged with an OGRECOVERY vehicle when it was
surrounded and disabled in the ruins of a shopping mall in the North End Zone.
When the OGRECOVERY vehicle arrived, supported by the Sixth Lift Infantry and
the Third Light Armor, found the Walker Bulldog covered in and surrounded by
over two hundred destroyed Paneuropean infantry scattered throughout the ruins
and littering the field around the disabled Walker Bulldog.
After Sheffield fell, the brutish Walker Bulldog continued to be produced in
relatively large numbers and shipped to Combine forces in Neurope where it
worked well to help blunt and diffuse the Paneuropean tactic of massed infantry
assaults against Combine assets. After The Last War, the Walker Bulldog was used
in riot control and even by some of the wealthier warlords during the Factory
States era as a tool for terror and compliance.
Special Rules:
When using Combine OGREAPERS, the 'Infantry Fear' rule (The
OGRE Book, Second Edition, P.56, ADDING FEAR AND LOATHING TO G.E.V., by
Timothy Wiedel, Infantry Panic OP 10.01) is generally a
good idea.
Combine Walker Bulldog- OGREAPER Mark I
Structure Points (15)
O O O O O O O
O O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O O O O
18 treads (M3, D1) (D2 if blisterskin ablative
armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O O (M0)
_____________________________
OGRECON-
(Combine Modified Mark I OGRE Cyber Scout, OGre RECON Unit)
The Last War was a data / information intensive conflict if any such thing ever
existed. Information was worth more than ammunition during this time and the
ability to gather information on the enemy was just as important as the ability
to prevent the enemy from gathering any information on you. As electronic
warfare grew in strength, so to did the need to have a fast, agile unit that
could accomplish both recon and intelligence gathering missions. These missions
were different than the more cloak and dagger espionage missions that were so
popular for use with rear echelon raider type units, the real time recon of
enemy positions and capabilities was absolutely required on the battlefield from
2070 AD until the end of The Last War, and even beyond in the limited police
actions and bush conflicts that erupted with the collapse of empires. All the
guns, ammunition, and tactical missiles in the world wouldn't do you any good if
you couldn't find your target!
The Combine had a very definite need for real time battlefield intelligence
during The Last War what with the extensive use of sky sweeping to clear
surveillance satellites from orbit on a regular basis by all enemy powers, the
only thing left was a mobile, survivable ground based intelligence gathering
system. The need for accurate and up to date intelligence on the enemy fell to
disposable drones, scout teams, and a variety of cheap sensors that could be
delivered from fast hovercraft and even artillery. The Combine took their CLAWS
designs and modified a Mark I OGRE to be a recon unit. Engineers used a basic
raider unit type chassis and added the '-Fox' electronics upgrades to produce a
very quick and agile, highly survivable battlefield scout. The new designation
was "-Fx" with the 'X' being an eXperimental or limited production run model.
The Mark II-Fx traded some of its armament for better speed and maneuverability.
The primary battery and all attendant hardware was removed and a pair of
secondary batteries were added to a new design of turret. A third secondary
battery was added to the unit in a 'bob tail' turret mount. The tertiary
batteries were moved to different locations to provide extended coverage and to
augment both the two frontal secondary batteries and the rear secondary battery.
The AP batteries were arranged for better coverage as well. A single pop-up
missile rack was installed on the rear deck but the internal storage capacity
was initially designed for the smaller (3/4) TAC missiles only, of which 10 were
carried in an armored bay.
Heavier drive motors and wider treads were also incorporated into the design as
well as a fully stabilized microprocessor controlled active suspension system
which allowed the unit to maintain full speed even in broken terrain. OGRECON
units were also usually equipped with BLISTERSKIN ablative defensive compound
for the treads, especially during the closing stages of The Last War when these
units needed to remain mobile for the maximum time possible.
The high rate of movement allowed the OGRECON to cover a large area of geography
quickly while its larger number of onboard drones allowed it to maintain a
comprehensive network of information with other units and the various command
posts. It's lower grade weaponry still allowed it to engage mainline targets
where the more expensive ESPIONOGRE took a more cautious approach to tactics and
lacked the general brute force of the OGRECON units.
Over fifty OGRECON units were produced during The Last War. Most of those saw
action in the Paneuropean theater of operations, but fourteen were known to have
crossed Panama and traveled down into South America to the combat zones there
during the closing stages of The Last War. Five of these were later modified to
carry one main battery and to carry 10 regular (6/5) missiles internally with
the regular TAC missile system being replaced. These units carried the "-Fz"
designation when so deployed but otherwise operated in all capacities as a
regular OGRECON unit.
OGRECON units served with distinction in many theaters and were awarded many
unit awards during The Last War. Two surviving examples of the OGRECON unit are
displayed at the Seattle Armed Forces Museum, but one is merely a hollow shell
and badly in need of restoration. No surviving examples of the 'Z' model remain.
SPECIAL RULES
Cyberscouts possess superior electronic
countermeasures and electronic counter countermeasures (ECM/ECCM). This allows
the units to 'spoof' other combat units and to lend aid to friendly units. Any
friendly units within five hexes of a cyberscout attacking an enemy unit
within five hexes of the cyberscout receives a positive shift on the CRT by
one level in their favor. Thus, if a friendly unit three hexes away from the
cyberscout was attacking a enemy unit two hexes away (attacker and defender
both within five hexes of the cyberscout), and the CRT column showed a 2:1
attack, then the electronics of the friendly cyberscout would shift the CRT to
a 3:1 line.
Any unit attacking a unit friendly to a
cyberscout within 5 hexes receives a negative shift on the CRT. If a
Paneuropean unit were to attack a Combine unit, and a cyberscout was within 5
hexes of the Combine unit, if the attack line on the CRT read 2:1, then the
electronics of the cyberscout would protect the Combine unit by shifting the
Paneuropean attack column from 2:1 to 1:1.
A Cyberscout counts as a Mark II OGRE
for purchase / victory conditions due to its enhanced capabilities. In all
other respects, it is treated as a Mark I OGRE.
Attacks against a cyberscout are
adjusted down by one column in favor of the cyberscout.
Cyberscouts may try to intercept and jam
cruise missiles. Treat each jamming attack as if it were a laser attack
resolved normally. Note, the cyberscout is not firing a laser at the cruise
missile, instead it is using its electronics to spoof the missile guidance and
cause it to crash. The cruise missile may detonate prematurely per normal
rules. A Cyberscout may attempt to jam any number of
missiles within a single turn but each missile must pass within ten hexes of
the cyberscout.
OGRECON units automatically identify any
'hidden' units or turned over, camouflaged, or similar units if the OGRECON
moves to within 5 hexes of such a unit. The hidden or unidentified unit is
revealed as soon as the OGRECON moves to within 5 hexes or less of the enemy
unit.
The OGRECON unit was based upon a Mk. I
unit, and as such, it was as easy to transport or work on as the standard
Combine unit. OGRECON units fought right along side Combine forces while
ESPIONOGRE units maintained a hide and seek tactical doctrine.
COMBINE OGRECON Mk I-Fx
Structure Points (10, D3)
O O O O O O O O O O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2)
O O O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O
Pop-Up Missile Rack (D4)
O
10 Light TAC Missiles (3/4)
O O O O O O O O O O
20 treads (M4, D1) (D2 if
blisterskin ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O (M3)
O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O (M0)
OGRECON TYPE Fz MODEL- (Improved 'Z' Model,
five units built from 2070 to 2081
AD)
Structure Points (15, D3)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Primary Batteries (4/3), (D3)
O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2) (rear
bob-tail mount)
O
O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1,
effective against D0 or infantry targets only)
O O O O O O
Pop-Up Missile Rack (D4)
O
5 Standard TAC Missiles (6/5)
O O O O O
20 treads (M4, D1) (D2 if ablative armor
material applied to treads)
O O O O O (M3)
O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O (M0)
______________________
Combine Mark VII-A "Defiant" class OGRE / Combine Mark
VIII-A "Vehement" class OGRE
The -A designation does not exist in many Combine order tables primarily because
it was a hasty designation that only applied to a handful of units and then only
at the closing end of The Last War. The first OGRE to generate the nickname
"Crawling Thunder" was the Combine Mark VII units. The Mark VII units were so
huge, that they could not be transported by any other units to the theater! It
might have been possible to transport the component pieces to the theater, but
the degree of precision required to assemble this unit was only found in the
heavily automated and technologically advanced Combine industrial sectors like
the assembly ring in Seattle or Vancouver. These units were assembled in heavily
guarded and armored factories on the North American continent. The whole process
of assembly took place in one installation ring and the CCPC was constructed,
programmed, and brought on-line at the same time the chassis was certified for
field use.
For size comparison, a Mk. VII and VIII OGRE were about forty percent bigger in
length and width than a Mk. VI! The deck was kept as low as a Mk. VI, but this
was rather a moot point since the Mk. VI was a big enough target to shoot at to
begin with!
Mark VII units were built in the special coastal Combine advanced manufactories,
and when deployed, the Mark VII units literally 'drove' to the theater of
operations. This was accomplished via special underwater locks where the units
were flooded, a huge cliff side lock door was opened, and the mighty fighting
machines simply started on their long journey underwater
to the theater.
This journey took them away from the factory, down the continental slope, into
the deepest oceans, along the floor of the ocean, and then crawled their way
back onto the continental shelf and emerged in the area of operations. Few
things will be remembered as long as the sight of the Combine Mk. VII unit 3
coming ashore on the North coast of Africa, as witnessed by three squads of
Combine MI and a reinforced group of Combine armor.
The Mk.VII and VIII were so large and massive, that they threatened to draw
strategic nukes directed at them! To protect against this, they were heavily
defended by close defense systems and their dedicated tactical computers were
loaded with special software that allowed their secondary batteries, tertiary
batteries, and missiles to act as intercept for incoming strategic class
warheads.
Mark VII and VIII were so huge and so heavy, that they actually destroyed city
and town areas that they passed through, 'steam rollering' or 'bulldozing' into
rubble anything that stood in their way. No bridge could support their weight,
and they effectively cut rails and highways simply by traveling over them! They
ignored streams and rivers, and had a much greater chance of getting stuck in
swamps. Mk. VII and VIII units learned that swamps presented a guaranteed end to
the current mission if they should ever try to cross one. Smaller armor units
were simply smashed flat in ramming attacks, and little damage was done to the
tread assemblies. Light tanks, any GEVs, and any soft targets were found to not
affect the durability of the massive nuclear powered tread assemblies.
The Mark VII OGRES were very unique, in that these cybertanks were equipped with
two (!!) CCPCs which acted in collaboration. The cost to produce a Mk. VII OGRE
was exorbitant, and the production runs amounted to just seven Mark VIIs. All
saw action in the last five years of the war but none were left in active
service two years before hostilities formally ended. A eighth Mark VII OGRE was
73% functional by the time of the collapse of the Combine. The plans and details
for these behemoths are available on display in the Historical Archives, along
with interviews of the design team, and some of the molds used to form the
component parts. A full scale holographic mock-up is also on display in the
Historical Archives Armor Collection.
The Mark VII was the first RPO OGRE unit to mount both missile racks and missile
launchers. It used a entirely new sensor array instead of the characteristic
OGRE tower, and its treads were coated in a special blister skin, giving it a
higher defense value than RPO treads. This material was designed to ablate or
vaporize and flake off under attack, and depot maintenance on Mk. VII treads was
a nightmare until an automated process was developed (late in the production
run, and just at the time when it was still cost practical to employ on the
remaining units in operation) which greatly aided the field mechs in replacing
this ablative material.
The Mk. VIII was actually an upgunned Mk. VII, and it was the first OGRE to
mount Cruise Missiles for attacking strategic targets. The size of the Mark VII
and VIII OGREs hulls were just enough to squeeze in the armored, retractable
launchers for the sizably larger cruise missiles, as well as the armored
magazine and loading mechanism for the launchers. The Mark VII and higher line
redefined the term "Heavy Launch Vehicle".
The last Mk. VIII wasn't really a Mk. VIII at all but rather a hastily converted
field modified Mk. VII with two cruise missile racks mounted on the exterior
(the last two Combine mobile launch racks still operational in the African
theater!). These racks have a lower defense, due to their jury-rigging on the
hull of the fighting unit, but the unit retains the TAC missile batteries and
ammunition. This unit, sometimes referred to incorrectly as a Mk. IX OGRE, was a
hasty field modification of the last existing Mk. VII unit, and the unit only
carried two cruise missiles in the exterior racks. On RPO Mk. VIIIs, the Cruise
Missile racks were adapted launchers, taken from the last remaining heavy
missile crawlers left in operation and represent the last of the Combine's
military capability to launch this class of weapon from a front-line battlefield
unit.
The twin CCPCs of the Mk. VII and VIII OGREs were in satellite communication
(when available) with several dedicated tactical and strategic Artifints in the
Combine. While this satellite link was limited to the amount of time that the
Combine could keep a comsat in orbit, it nonetheless allowed the Mk. VII and
VIII OGREs a great advantage in being able to transmit and receive tactical and
strategic information in mutual reality. The added processing power of the
Combine's dedicated military Artifints would prove to be vital to keeping the
Mk. VII and VIII OGREs operational as long as they were. The full history of
these great machines is available for download from the Historical Archives
Public Section;
History.Archive.Military.Combine.Cybertank.LastGen.OGRE.Public.FAQ.
Special Rules
Mk. VII and VIII OGRES cannot cross bridges, even the heavy river bridge. Doing
so automatically destroys the bridge. The unit takes no damage in the process.
If the owning player desires to destroy the bridge in question, then simply
expend a movement point, enter the bridge hex, and make a notation that the
bridge has been destroyed.
Mk. VII and VIII OGRES automatically reduce town and city hexes to rubble simply
by passing through them. The unit suffers no damage from this action.
Mk. VII and VIII OGRES do not gain the benefit of defense mods in town or city
hexes. They are just too big, and they are on 'top' of the rubble, since it is
probably the unit which caused the rubble in the first place. A Mk. VII and VIII
OGRE really has no where to hide, unless its underwater and it has to be DEEP
water. Rivers and streams offer no protection or defense bonuses!
Mk. VII and VIII OGRES automatically cut rail lines simply by passing through
the hex. If the player wishes, the Mk. VII and VIII units may run 'parallel' to
the tracks and as long as they do not cross the tracks, they may declare that
the OGRE is not cutting the lines. If these units ever do cross the rail lines,
the rails are considered to be 'cut' for the rest of the scenario.
Mk. VII and VIII OGRES automatically destroy roads and highways (negating the
benefits of paved surface travel for other units) simply by traveling through
the hex. If the player wishes, the Mk. VII and VIII units may run 'parallel' to
the highway or road and as long as they do not cross the highway or road, they
may declare that the OGRE is not cutting the highway or road.
The only way to destroy a missile or cruise missile on the Mk. VII and VIII
OGRES is to destroy the rack it is mounted in. Destroying a rack also destroys
one of the appropriate missiles. This is the only way to destroy a missile on a
Mk. VII and VIII OGRE. Any spare missiles not fired are considered to be inside
a well armored magazine beyond the reach of normal tactical weapons. These
unfired missiles cannot be targeted or destroyed nor may the owning player
launch them or detonate them in any fashion.
Attacks against the treads of Mk. VII and VIII OGRES is at 1:2 due to the
special experimental ablative armor coating. Due to problems in depot
maintenance, and the continual use of the Mk. VII and VIII OGRES in the theater,
the players may decide that either the coating has been removed from previous
combat, or that it simply hasn't been reapplied. The coating on the treads is an
option. In many instances, the treads were replaced with factory OEM treads,
uncoated (there wasn't enough time to replace damaged treads *and* coat them)
and therefore the treads have the normal D1 defense in this instance.
Mk. VII and VIII OGRES launch Cruise Missiles using the Cruise Missile rules
found in the SHOCKWAVE(tm) supplement. For each cruise missile rack destroyed on
a Mk. VII and VIII OGRE, treat this as a destroyed missile crawler for victory
points. At the time of the introduction and use of Mk. VII and VIII OGRES, the
ability to launch large scale munitions was at an all time low by all combatants
and only the three remaining 'superpowers' had the facilities to mount
battlefield front-line strategic weapons launchers. The Mk. VII and VIII OGRES
represented the last of the Combine's capability to deploy these munitions.
That's why these behemoths have so many weapons! They were basically mobile
launch sites for strategic yield weapons!
Mk. VII and VIII OGRES ignore streams and rivers. They can ford them with no
penalty. They treat rivers as per RPO rules.
Mk. VII and VIII OGRES get stuck in a swamp on a roll of 1-4 on D6. No
OGRECOVERY vehicle existed that could remove a bogged down Mk. VII or VIII, so
tactical doctrine for these units prohibited them from entering swamps unless it
was critical to mission success.
Mk. VII and VIII OGRES suffer no damage from ramming attacks against normal
armor units. Their drive assemblies are so tough and so large, that smaller
vehicles simply do not damage the Mk. VII and VIII OGREs! Mk. VII and VIII OGRES
only lose treads when ramming other OGREs of size class 3 or more or due to
mines (shaped charges).
A Mk. VIII cannot be deployed in the same game that the Combine player has
purchased missile crawlers. The last functioning missile crawlers were scrapped,
and their launch hardware / operating systems incorporated into the few Mark
VIII units produced. Also, players may agree that during a particular scenario,
the Mark VII or VIII enters the game with previous damage, or with lowered
munitions stocks and / or no onboard cruise missiles (but functioning racks!).
Racks would still count as victory points toward the players if they were intact
or destroyed by the end of the scenario!
Even if an OGRE Mark VII or VIII should fall to 1 movement point, it may still
enter any terrain that it normally could despite the cost. It may always move
one hex into any terrain that it normally could move into as long as it has one
movement point left.
Mark VII and VIII are always detected if moving underwater or along river beds.
They generate a very visible 'wake' and their seismic footprint is unmistakable.
When self destructing, treat a Mk. VII and VIII as two Mark VIs. The powerplants to move these monsters was nothing short of huge. Civilian municipal
power reactors sometimes generated less output than the onboard reactor and
coreactor of the Mk. VII and VIII OGREs.
Combine Mark VII OGRE- "Defiant" Class- Loadout Alpha RPO 03
Structure Points (40)
O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O
Primary Batteries (4/3, D4) O O O O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2) O O O O O O O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2) O O O O O O O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets only) O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Pop-Up Missile Batteries (D2) O O O O
40 Light TAC Missiles (3/4)
O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O
Pop-Up Missile Racks (D4) O O O O O O
30 TAC Missiles (6/5)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
110 treads (M2, D1) (D2 if ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O (M0)
Combine Mark VIII OGRE- "Inviolable" Class- Loadout Alpha RPO 05
Structure Points (45)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O
Primary Batteries (4/3, D4)
O O O O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2)
O O O O O O O O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O O O O O O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Pop-Up Missile Batteries (D2)
O O O O O O
60 Light TAC Missiles (3/4)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Pop-Up Missile Racks (D4)
O O O O O O
30 TAC Missiles (6/5)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
2 Cruise Missile Launchers (D4, special rules, counts towards victory points)
O O
2 Cruise Missiles (special, see rules in SHOCKWAVE(tm) supplement for details)
O O
120 treads (M2, D1) (D2 if ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O (M0)
_____________________________
COMBINE LOGRE-
Light Ogre( Unit suggested a long
time ago by Charles
R. Bowles. Actual application,
background and design of unit by Christopher Shields)
The first of the variant cybertanks experimented with by the Combine Ogre Design
Committee (CODC) was the LOGRE. A very light OGRE, designed for high speed all
terrain movement and rapid exploitation of weaknesses in enemy fronts. From the
very start, the LOGRE was designed to be the ultimate CLAWS raider unit. The
LOGRE was built to sneak past enemy armor and security units and to raise hell
far and wide in the rear areas. It was a guerrilla cybertank, and its
programming was such that it often attacked at night, or from deep cover,
sniping at single units and roaring through maintenance depots, rear command
posts, and other 'soft targets. The LOGRE was an assassin, using every bit of
stealth and cunning possible to hunt the enemy where the defense was weakest and
the targets were the choicest, thus the LOGRE became a very much hated and very
much feared unit among Paneuropean combat operatives, especially in the Sahara
Combat Zone where it roamed the debris littered deserts, hiding among the hulks
and wrecks, or in the craters left behind by the massive battles, only to pounce
on retreating supply forces, stragglers, or 'relocating' command and
headquarters units (generals never retreated, they always 'relocated' to a
better position, as one Paneuropean officer quoted in an interview).
The LOGRE could be (and often was) sent into the super hot gasses of strategic
nuclear detonation micro-seconds after the explosion in order to exploit the
sudden break in the enemy front. The confusion following a strategic nuke
detonation would invariably draw attention away from the LOGRE, and very few
units were left at the heart of a strategic nuke to make a report that a LOGRE
had just penetrated the front. Using the loss of communication and the ensuing
chaos of a strategic strike, the LOGRE could roll into the line breach, and then
make for cover and wait until the front had healed itself again. Once
hostilities were reinstated, the LOGRE would begin its campaign of guerrilla
warfare among less defended rear echelon areas.
It should be noted that the LOGRE was never intended to fight against other OGRE
units (though it would make a good showing against lower Marks, higher Marks
would have little trouble smashing the smaller LOGRE) or for extended duels with
even lighter armor. The LOGRE was a commerce raider, a terror unit, and rear
area disruption tool, not a front line combat unit. It's weaponry was designed
around dealing very quickly with limited or unprotected targets far from the
main forces. This was Standard Combine Operational Tactical Doctrine (SCOTDOC),
but at least one recorded instance or a LOGRE being sacrificed on the front line
exists. This example by a desperate Combine depot maintenance commander who,
having his staging area overran by Paneuropean raiders, took direct control over
a LOGRE stationed at his depot for repair and fielded the unit in direct defense
of the depot and personnel. None survived the attack, but the Paneuropeans were
also denied the knowledge of the LOGRE. Maintaining a operational efficiency of
13% at the end, the unit slowly retreated, heavily damaged, back into its
underground armored repair bay where it initiated a level four intentional core
breach and successfully self destructed. The detonation collapsed thousands of
tons of rock and radioactive debris on top of the wrecked LOGRE, negating any
benefit of digging out the technology and insuring that the Combine LOGRE would
remain a mystery for a while longer.
Primary attack modes of the LOGRE were limited to sniping, surprise attacks, and
hit and run style raids. The LOGRE's light armament was supplemented by its
speed, some of the highest figures of any RPO.
The LOGRE is most notable as being remembered as the 'hot rod' cybertank. The
suspension was tuned to the limit, redundantly stabilized and designed to
maintain the maximum amount of maneuverability at the top speed of the unit.
Duplicated tread assemblies, extendible high speed maneuvering treads, and high
speed stabilizers were also incorporated into a full floating design suspension
riding on a magnetic gel cushioned BPC armored lower hull. Magnetic and
hydraulic control assemblies provided a stable firing platform, even at the top
speed of the unit, and each weapon was stabilized in elevation, deflection, and
traverse.
The LOGRE was the ultimate cybertank raider, designed for fast hit and run
attacks, it lacked the characteristic OGRE 'tower' and also it was missing the
larger missiles and racks that the Regular Production Ogre (RPO) would carry.
It's chassis was articulated, actually constructed in two parts and linked
together through a dynamic armored link. This gave the chassis a much higher
degree of flexibility in rough terrain.
The LOGRE could attain a top speed of close to 100kph on good surfaces, and a
little over 70kph on broken terrain. The powerplant was also a work of hot rod
mechanics. Who would have thought the time honored hot rodding adage of "No
Substitute For Cubic Inches" would apply to OGREs! The LOGRE's powertrain was
none other than the very same unit mounted in the Mk. III, thus proving the
Combine's philosophy of parts interchangeability! This increased powertrain
provided a superior transmission and drive assembly, much tougher than that
found in a normal Mk. II unit, and while the larger powerplant allowed the LOGRE
to attain higher speeds than any other RPO.
The LOGRE was based upon a 'chopped and dropped' Mark II chassis, further
indications of the hot rod enthusiasm that the designers shared. It's core
command processing center (CCPC) was highly insulated, deep within a
multi-layered armored shell of BPC with multiple redundant systems and a
coprocessor slaved to several dedicated tactical computer subnets. It took a lot
of collateral and sustained damage to halt a LOGRE. Its electronics and target
search hardware was extensive, with multiple backup systems. All forms of audio,
visual, and sensory amplification were present.
It carried a cache of twenty onboard multi-purpose drones for recon purposes,
and these were kept in an retractable, armored launcher inside the chassis.
Reloading of the drones (which were considered expendable) was done by simply
replacing a large magazine of pre-loaded drones. With a powered loader, this
could be accomplished in under five minutes. The sensors and scanners of the
LOGRE were triplicate, a first for a OGRE unit, and would not be repeated until
the super heavy Mark VII and VIII units were produced. The LOGRE was designed to
finish it's mission, and was given every bit of technological help that it could
in order to do so. Special extensions allowed the LOGRE to 'periscope' its
sensors over obstructions and around from cover in order to find targets. A
LOGRE could use its drones as scouts, sending drones off in each direction in
order to find targets or to blaze a trail for the LOGRE, which could 'see'
directly from the drone(s) relay(s). Thus, the LOGRE gained the nickname of "Old
Ten Eyes" or "10-I" as garage talk went.
The LOGRE's lack of 'front line' engagement weapons was not seen as a handicap
to its mission operation parameters. Remember, the LOGRE was a fast strike unit,
designed to smash rail links, bridges, depots, auxiliary command posts, AAA and
air defense units, and other 'soft units and emplaced logistics structures. To
this end, the main cannons were removed, and the secondary, rapid fire HyVeloc
smoothbores were retained. Internal magazine stores for the expendables were
upgraded for extended periods of operation and a brace of TAC missile launchers
was included for true 'fire and forget' attacks on targets.
The number of close defense systems and internal magazines were increased by 33%
in order to deal more effectively with targets such as cargo lorries, unarmored
trains, and depot storage areas as well as soft personnel. Each CDS was
controlled by a dedicated tactical computer, capable of independent action,
under direct control of the CCPC. Three units were mounted to each side, with
another unit mounted fore and aft. LOGREs were known to enter an area at full
speed, sweeping their CDS in a blistering firestorm of destruction, and when the
LOGRE left the area, nothing around it was left intact.
The lack RPO missiles was solved by mounting four smaller, retractable missile
launchers, using the same TAC missiles that the Combine missile tanks used. This
was an advantage later in the war when the larger RPO missiles were hard to come
by in depots, but the smaller TAC missiles were still readily available. These
four launchers were fed by a pair of internal armored magazine each with a
special loading hatch. Each pair of launchers fed from a single, shared
magazine. While not as powerful as the RPO missiles, the smaller missiles were
suited for smashing the targets that were the domain of the LOGRE's operational
doctrine. The loading hatch was constructed of lighter armor than the rest of
the chassis, so a critical hit to the missile magazine would be directed out of
the 'weaker' loading hatch, venting away from critical systems. The result of
such a critical hit was simply that the LOGRE lost it's remaining missiles and
the storage capacity.
Using its missiles and drone guidance, a LOGRE could wipe out a typical
Paneuropean truck convoy and the dedicated convoy defenders in under fifteen
seconds. The drone would provide advance target designation of the convoy, and
the LOGRE would ripple fire its TAC missiles, while still three kilometers away
and in cover. Flight time to the target became the only concern, and later
designs of Combine TAC missiles with improved propellant and two stage boosted
acceleration to target greatly reduced this time. Many a convoy or depot's only
warning that they were about to be removed from the theater of operations was
the whine of the incoming detector sensors tracking the descending missiles.
LOGREs carried several types of warheads for the onboard missiles and the exact
warhead was tailored to the desired effect. Anti-personnel, anti-armor, cluster
bomblet, armor piercing, incendiary, or nuclear. The cluster bomblet munitions
were perfect for long stings of convoys or grouped together or for depot and
munitions stores. These launchers were mounted in retractable armored box style
mechanisms on the rear hull. The secondary batteries were mounted in independent
turrets with a much larger coverage than RPO units shared.
The LOGRE was lower, and wider than RPO units were. The difference was
unmistakable. A wider platform with a lower silhouette provided better cover and
a more maneuverable platform for which the LOGRE conducted its operations. The
tactical processors of the LOGRE dictated a very NOE (Nap Of Earth) operations
protocol, the LOGRE uses every nook, cranny, and ravine as cover, preferring to
snipe at targets and armored units, or to do high speed strafing runs against
it's rear area and rear echelon targets. The LOGRE was a nightmare for convoy
personnel, where it's high speed could easily match Paneuropean cargo hovers,
tracks, and crawlers and it's massed close defense systems could shred the soft
targets in a very short time. Infantry who drew convoy protection were
particularly wary of encountering a LOGRE on a raiding mission.
The Paneuropeans feared the LOGRE so much that in one instance a LOGRE had
become such a problem in the African theater that it was finally hunted down and
systematically destroyed. But the destruction of the LOGRE came only after two
Paneuropean Fencers had been removed from the front line and dedicated to
tracking down and the removing the threat! This was the first search and destroy
mission undertaken in the war by two to one odds with cybertanks. The hunt went
on for six days and was of the same level of tension as the hunt for the
battleship Bismark had been over a hundred years earlier.
The end result was one destroyed Fencer, one destroyed LOGRE and one heavily
damaged Fencer that took the Pans six weeks to put back into service.
The Combine fielded exactly 65 LOGRE units during The Last War. Of this,
fifty-one were LIA (Lost In Action), seven were scrapped due to lack of repair
parts in the closing stages of the War (each chassis was combat lossed, the
CCPCs were removed and transferred to Combine research centers for later
installation, but by the end of the War, they were all still accounted for
awaiting installation), one was eventually captured in the closing stages of
hostilities (its damaged shell still housed an on-line CCPC but its
combat weary mechanics
abandoned it in the heat of battle and left it disconnected from its chassis, in the midst of a Paneuropean
hit-and-run on the repair depot therefore it could not self destruct
but could initiate a form of self-termination which it carried out in short
order), three
self destructed (two crippled and well within detonation range of very choice
rear area targets), two were unarmed and used in advanced research projects
after hostilities ended, and the last LOGRE has become a permanent part of the
Historical Archive Armor Collection.
Special Rules
When a LOGRE self destructs, treat it as a Mk. III as this is the power plant
that it was equipped with.
The LOGRE treats all terrain as costing 1 mp to enter, other wise it operates as
per normal OGRE roles.
LOGRE's ignore river and stream hexes. They do not have to stop to cross,
instead, they plow on through and treat the hex as containing the dominant
terrain instead.
An undamaged LOGRE can fire four TAC missiles per turn. Each launcher destroyed
also destroys one TAC missile and the ability to launch one missile per turn.
At a CP or DEPOT, a LOGRE may have 5 TAC missiles reloaded per turn. It may also
fire four of these in the same turn, such is the design of the TAC missile
launchers.
LOGREs are very hard to hit. Any attack against a LOGRE component is shifted by
one column on the CRT in favor of the LOGRE. Damage, however, is still resolved
normally. Thus, if an Paneuropean heavy tank fired on a LOGRE's treads, the
attack would normally be 2:1 and four treads would be lost if the attack
succeeded. However, due to the nature and natural defense capacity of the LOGRE,
the attack would instead be resolved at 1:1 odds (shifted one column in favor of
the LOGRE). However, if the attack succeeds, four tread units are still
destroyed (the full strength of the attack).
The LOGRE (Heavily Modified Combine Mk. II Commerce and Industrial Raider Unit
- Type Romeo)
Combine LOGRE Mark II-Romeo Class
Structure Points (15)
(D3)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2)
O O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O O O O O O O
Pop-Up Missile Racks (D4)
O O O O
40 Light TAC Missiles (3/4)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
40 treads (M4, D1) (D2 if ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O O O O O O (M3)
O O O O O O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O O O O O O (M0)
_____________________________________________________________________________________
The Dark Horse (Heavily Modified Combine Experimental Stealth LOGRE- Sierra
Romeo class)
Much controversy and misinformation exists about one of the best kept secrets of
The Last War ... Project Code Name: Faint Whisper; the Combine's creation of an
effective stealth capable variant of their already highly
successful cybertank raider. The Dark Horse was just
that, a matte black alloyed highly modified LOGRE. Its surface was covered with
a Special Advanced
Radiation Absorbing
Material (SARAM) wrap that allowed
tactical and strategic sensors to 'miss' the unit in their sweeps. The
electronics of the Dark Horse were such that it could spoof any tactical combat
acquisition systems then employed by opposing forces. The power
plant was much
larger than normally required, and the chassis was actually segmented, a double
hull design capable of even better cross-country and all terrain maneuverability
than the LOGRE possessed. All of this wizardry came at a bitter price though,
and the Dark Horse cost fully as much as a Mark V OGRE, even though it was only
a modified (and de-gunned) Mark II!
It took a hell of a lot of advanced (almost eldritch, some would say...)
electronics and technology to hide something as big as a Mark II OGRE (larger
models proved to be impossible to adapt to stealth). The Mk. II was at the
limit of then current technology and was probably pushing the accepted
parameters of the CLAWS design envelope in certain aspects! The benefit of
stealth, for all its beauty, certainly did not come cheap! Official Combine war
records indicate that there were a total of seven Dark Horse units produced,
only six of which actually saw field use (the first was the prototype and
continued to be a test bed during the duration of the hostilities up until the
fall of the Combine. Unit X01 is on loan to the Historical Archives and is
available for the public to view today. This unit still retains it's
experimental number sequencing signifying that it was never intended for field
use).
The Dark Horse was a much redesigned LOGRE using the latest in technology to
make it virtually undetectable to enemy sensors and scanners. What the Combine
learned from the LOGRE project (Project Code Name: Sharp Feather) Like the LOGRE
it was based upon, the Dark Horse had a Mark III power plant but that power
plant was very heavily shielded and baffled, with all manner of exchangers, flux
stage intercoolers, and thermal purge dissipaters. The core was even neutrino
shielded in order to lower the emissions of the fusion process down to a
sub-tactical level. This increased power allowed for higher top speeds, as well
as ample juice to operate the high powered spoofing countermeasures incorporated
into the Dark Horse's design.
Electromagnetic, thermal, and other across the board emissions from this complex
war machine were kept to that of a regular production light tank or less (the
actual figures arc still classified, but some claim it to be even as low as a
command or scout suit equipped MI trooper)! Complex cryogenic cooling, thermal
baffles, infra-red dissipaters, mimetic coloration RAM exterior coating,
camouflage screening, and the cleanest, most aerodynamic surface of any RPO were
instrumental in achieving this. The Dark Horse looked like no previous RPO, and
certainly none after the Dark Horse looked similar to this unique, low
production cybertank. Critics charged that the Dark Horse had been designed in a
wind tunnel instead of for a battlefield, but they all agreed that the
implications of the Dark Horse, despite it's cost, were worthy of fielding the
unit. Of all the RPO models, the Dark Horse was the most distinct and had the
most radical departure from the family outline of the familiar cybertanks. Like
the LOGRE, its sensors were mounted on retractable extensions that could look
over hills, up out of water while the unit was submerged, and around
obstructions while maintaining a 'hull down' position for the Dark Horse.
Sensors were also triplicated and every other system essential to CCPC
operations were reduplicated. This made the Dark Horse a nightmare for field
techs (those who had the clearance to even work on this model or understand its
highly complex design). In the entire Sahara combat zone, there were only four
field depots with the parts, the technicians, and the databases required in
order to properly service these complex cybertanks. These bases were staffed by
personnel of the highest security clearance and were not on any map. They
existed only on the references of key Combine officials, with the tech crews,
and in the memory cores of the Dark Horse units themselves.
The Dark Horse was a work of art, sleek, low, but wide (for superior
maneuverability), and with no flat surfaces. Every exterior surface of the Dark
Horse was curved and sloped, not only to help defend against incoming attacks,
but to break up detection signals, and to 'blend' the Dark Horse into the
electronic background that was the modern battlefield. Signals could not be
reflected back to their source by the design of the Dark Horse, rendering the
Dark Horse all but invisible to everything including the naked eye (and enhanced
visual optical tracking systems). Weapon systems were mounted on retractable
mounts that extended only to fire and then were retracted back into the hull in
order to preserve the defensive envelope. The two secondary batteries (the
primary batteries of the Dark Horse!) were actually mounted in fixed mounts,
firing straight ahead with only limited elevation / deflection and no traverse.
They fired through special experimental baffles which greatly reduced their EMS
signature and footprint. The Dark Horse aimed its two main (RPO secondary)
batteries by turning to face its target, much like a jet fighter from decades
before. Able to turn quick as a cat, even at full speed, the Dark Horse was not
hampered by its lack of turreted main guns! Many an unsuspecting opposing force
armored unit found itself outmaneuvered, suddenly staring down the angry frontal
aspect of the Dark Horse, straight into the baffled maws of the twin (still very
large compared to regular armor unit weaponry) secondary batteries! The four TAC
missile batteries were also mounted on retractable launchers that were recessed
smoothly into the hull of the fighting unit. In keeping with the design of the
Dark Horse, each set of two TAC missile launchers drew from a shared magazine,
and two magazines were housed inside the BPC armored chassis, each magazine
holding 20 standard TAC missiles. The AP batteries were of a new, low profile
turret design and offered complete circumferential defense of the unit while not
breaking up the smooth outline. The AP turret design was never duplicated on any
other design of OGRE.
The Dark Horse was a superior guerrilla fighting machine. It was used to
penetrate deep into the Paneuropean rear echelon areas and as an assassin unit
to surgically remove key command personnel, staff, and command posts or critical
targets (reactors, municipal utilities, choke points, bridges, rail lines,
etc.). Missions at which the Dark Horse excelled! Because of its 'quiet' nature
and the dedicated operational doctrine required of the design, the Dark Horse
was de-gunned from the Mark II model RPO. The Dark Horse lost it's main battery
(which not only freed up enough interior space, magazine, weapon, operating
system, loading mechanism, and hardware, but generated a large spike on any
enemy sensor when fired) kept its secondary batteries (static mounted), and
added more tertiary batteries.
All in all, once the Dark Horse maneuvered to within range, it was quite a
handful for any defending force. Usually this defending force consisted of only
a handful of armored units and a few squads of MI or more than likely soft
skinned regular infantry. The rest of the opposing force was out in the field,
looking for the Dark Horse! Usually, the sign to the Paneuropean armored forces
field commander that he had been outmaneuvered and had missed contact with the
Dark Horse was the instant that his CP stopped transmitting!
The Dark Horse preferred to hunt by stealth, and avoid direct engagements. The
Dark Horse would sneak around the main Paneuropean armored forces, and attack
the CP from behind. It would directly attack an opposing force armored unit only
when it deemed the unit to be a threat to its current mission or when the unit
could transmit the current location of the Dark Horse. The speed of the Dark
Horse made it easy to outrun other armored units, and it could hide from faster,
hover based units if given a good head start. After destroying a CP and its
defending force and staff, the Dark Horse would use the resulting loss of
command and the chaos that inevitably ensued to make good its escape. Dark Horse
units were even known to hide in ambush at the bottom of riverbeds, attacking
mobile command posts and supply convoys that crossed river bridges.
All six remaining Dark Horse units were still operational (in various stages or
repair) at the close of hostilities. No Dark Horse was ever destroyed by enemy
action nor were any captured. The Paneuropeans never fielded a unit similar to
the Dark Horse (whether for operational, tactical or engineering doctrine, it
isn't clear as to why, but many speculate that the development of the Dark Horse
was simply beyond the capacity of the Paneuropeans to produce.
Special Rules
Dark Horse's ignore river and stream hexes. They do not have to stop to cross,
instead, they plow on through and treat the hex as containing the dominant
terrain instead.
An undamaged Dark Horse can fire four TAC missiles per turn. Each launcher
destroyed also destroys one TAC missile and the ability to launch one missile
per turn. This is the only way to destroy a Dark Horse
missile as the missiles are carried inside in an armored magazine.
At a CP or DEPOT, a Dark Horse may have 5 TAC missiles reloaded per turn. It may
also fire four of these in the same turn, such is the design of the TAC missile
launchers.
Dark Horse's are very hard to hit. Any attack against a component is shifted up
by one column on the CRT in favor of the Dark Horse. Damage, however, is still
resolved normally. Thus, if a Paneuropean heavy tank fired on a Dark Horse's
treads, the attack would normally be 2:1 and four treads would be lost if the
attack succeeded. However, due to the nature and natural defense capacity of the
Dark Horse, the attack would instead be resolved at 1:1 odds (shifted one column
in favor of the Dark Horse). However, if the attack succeeds, four tread units
are still destroyed (the full strength of the attack).
HIDDEN MOVEMENT- The Dark Horse moves by hidden movement. The movement is
recorded on a sheet of paper and the location of the unit is revealed only when
it enters the same hex of any opposing force unit. The Dark Horse is positioned
on the map and moved normally while any opposing force unit is within one hex
distance in any direction of a Dark Horse that has been detected. The Dark Horse
counter is removed the turn that it ends its movement in a hex where the enemy
player does not have a unit within one hex (the six hexes surrounding the Dark
Horse occupied hex) and hidden movement is once again instituted.
Dark Horses were usually hunted down by having faster units shadow the Dark
Horse (thus keeping it visible) while heavier units moved to trap it in range of
their weapons. This usually cost a lot of lighter, faster units for the enemy
commander.
The Dark Horse is immediately exposed if it fires, launches missiles, or is
overrun by any unit.
A Dark Horse is treated as a Mk. II for purposes of overran and all overran
attacks are conducted as per the rules above. Even at point blank range, the
speed, maneuverability, and defensive countermeasures of the Dark Horse gave it
a tactical edge in 'knife fights'.
A Dark Horse unit caught in a exploding cruise missile blast is affected
normally. The electronics do *not* reduce the damage from blasts and attacks,
only the ability to *hit* the Dark Horse. Collateral damage (such as from a big
nuke) will damage the Dark Horse just like any other unit, and the odds are
treated as if the Dark Horse had *no* electronics (normal Dms). The electronics
might keep the opposing forces from witnessing the damage or destruction of the
Dark Horse, but it will be damaged normally!
Pan CP Commander: "Did we get it?"
Pan Field Commander: "I don't know, nothing on the scopes, better send out McRider and his platoon to
see if that thing is still out there! Tell them that if its not moving, even if
it looks dead, to put rounds into it anyway! I don't want
anything left of that thing but superheated wisps of metallic vapor in a molten
crater!"
If a Dark Horse becomes immobilized (stuck in a swamp, or from other reasons),
it remains hidden if it became stuck while it was using hidden movement. A
immobilized Dark Horse unit's position is only revealed if a opposing force unit
enters into the same hex as the disabled unit of if the Dark Horse reveals
itself. If a Dark Horse became disabled due to an attack by an opposing force
unit then the now disabled Dark Horse's position is revealed and will remain so
until the Dark Horse becomes mobile again and move away from its current (known)
position. Until then, it's a good bet that the mobile howitzers are being
brought up to finish the Dark Horse! The Dark Horse relies on its superior
maneuverability and electronics to hide it. If it was disabled by a opposing
force unit, that unit will have transmitted its target position to other units,
and since the Dark Horse can't move, it can't hide.
An immobilized or disabled Dark Horse unit that is exposed is attacked at normal
CRT modifiers. The special defenses of the Dark Horse are not applied as the
enemy knows its exact location and can rain down munitions on it all day long as
well as the Dark Horse is immobile and can't use it's speed and maneuverability
to its defense.
Dark Horse units in town benefit from all applicable modifiers, in addition to
any special rules supplied here.
Dark Horse units are treated as RPOs for all other rules. For self destruct, the
Dark Horse is treated as a Mark III due to the larger power plant.
Needless to say, a self destructing Dark Horse automatically reveals its
position (for a brief but glorious instant at least).
The Dark Horse (Combine Stealth OGRE, Modified Mk. II-Sierra Romeo)
Combine OGRE Mark II-Sierra Romeo Class "Dark Horse"
Structure Points (15)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2)
O O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O O O O O
Pop-Up Missile Racks (D4)
O O O O
40 Light TAC Missiles (3/4)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
40 treads (D1) (D2 if ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O O O O O O (M3)
O O O O O O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O O O O O O (M0)
___________________________________
ESPIONOGRE- (Combine Artifint Cyberspy)
The ESPIONOGRE was the answer to the Combine's need for a reliable scouting and
long range espionage unit, a cyberspy. The modern battlefield had become a
electronics intensive theater of operations and unit operations were not only
determined by the amount of fuel that they could carry, the number of rounds of
ammunition they carried, but also by the amount and quality of the information
that they had access to. All units incorporated some form of 'stealth' or sensor
jamming just to survive. Orbital recon satellites were easy targets for surface
to near orbit (STNO) launched anti-satellite missiles, directed high energy
laser beams from the rim of the planet, and even RPV and automated hunter killer
orbital equipment. Battlefield intelligence became an art, and the communication
became relay linked through tactical drone and line of sight. Communications
lasers, masers and other LOS methods appeared. Incredible amounts of data could
be sent in optic pulses, and the sophistication of onboard vehicular computers
to receive, decode, translate, and provide this information in a user friendly
interface was nothing short of astounding. Forward scouts would transmit data
through LOS infra-red laser or maser communications to a drone which would relay
the info and data pulses to another drone or drones that were loitering on
station. The whole battlefield was fluid, and the network of communications was
always changing, a web that changed shape instantly in order to keep up with the
changing conditions. It wasn’t long before both sides realized that a computer
controlled intelligence gathering source could be an incredible asset to the
front commander. The Combine was at least two years ahead of the Paneuros in
this decision, and true, the Paneuros seem to have copied their various
cyberscouts from captured or destroyed Combine units, but the Paneuro models
were larger, and less effective than their Combine counterparts.
The Combine ESPIONOGRE was based upon a Mark I chassis with a tremendous amount
of modifications. The unit was designed along similar lines to the LOGRE and the
Dark Horse, built low, and for speed. Being without human crew, it could travel
at high speed over very rough terrain indefinitely. Its array of data gathering
electronic sensors and scanners reacted with machine quickness. A variety of
encoded subroutines filtered the information and made time saving ‘assumptions’
given known criteria and past references. The ESPIONOGRE used its speed and all
available terrain to its advantage. Power came from a modified Mk. I power plant
using new catalyst cells and a quick firing ignition actuator for the hydrogen
spark plugs that fired the Gen3 reactor. A smaller coreactor was installed which
powered the extensive array of sensors and scanners that the ESPIONOGRE employed
to carry out its mission.
The electronics of the unit allowed it to digitally map with unheard of accuracy
and speed the terrain around it, even when maneuvering at full speed and dodging
enemy units. It's massive ECM / ECCM generators could lend aid to friendly
units, and jam enemy units. The advantages of letting a computer, a very fast,
very mobile hardened computer, provide recon for Combine units were many. The
ESPIONOGRE differed from other RPOs in that it also had no OGRE tower. Instead,
its hull was equipped with many extendible sensors and scanner apertures. Its
weapons were limited to self defense only as direct engagement of enemy forces
was never intended. The ESPIONOGRE was a tactical scouting unit, designed for
speed and data processing and intelligence gathering not combat. It was a intel-utility
unit and a vital part of the C3 structure of the field.
The chassis and suspension were greatly modified from RPO Mk. I units, and the
unit could take vibrations and impacts from maneuvering that would have
shattered a normal RPO Mk. I's suspension, disabling the unit. The whole unit
was cushioned in a comfortable magnetic gel that was a Combine breakthrough. The
specialized gel, later used on the LOGRE and to a limited extent, the Dark
Horse, allowed kinetic force to be distributed evenly over the entire chassis,
rather than in a single area. This allowed the impact from rapid speed over
rough terrain to be evenly distributed over the entire suspension and chassis,
instead of only on one particular part or assembly.
All internal assemblies were mounted in shock absorbing mounts, and the CCPC was
shielded from EMP and other battlefield emissions. Vital electronics were
shielded and armored, and redundantly duplicated. The ESPIONOGRE mounted five
independent data pulsers, enough to broadcast its entire storage capacity in
less than a second using ultra high speed compression and tight beam
transmission. An emergency survival drone could receive the entire data download
in less than a second and be launched two seconds later. This drone would then
home in on the nearest friendly node of the C3 web and transmit its entire data
pulse to that node. The emergency data pulse drone was designed to use terrain
and speed to its advantage.
The ESPIONOGRE was easy to transport, and it actually cost only twice as much as
a regular RPO Mk. I, so the Combine fielded many ESPIONOGRE units during The
Last War. A special armored launcher held twenty tactical drones, each
expendable, and the whole unit could be reloaded at any forward service depot.
These drones enabled the ESPIONOGRE to gather its data quickly, as well as
providing increased defense during operation.
The weapons of the ESPIONOGRE were intended for self defense only. The main
battery was removed, and a secondary battery installed instead. The main battery
software was retained, however, giving it better than average performance in
close range combat. The AP batteries were moved to different parts of the hull
for better coverage and a limited point defense subroutine was installed.
The ESPIONOGRE gathers intelligence very quickly, faster than any human
mechanized scouts ever could. It used its cache of drones as eyes, giving the
ESPIONOGRE a very wide range of gathering information.
SPECIAL RULES
The Combine ESPIONOGRE costs as much as a Mk. II unit due to the extensive
electronics and modifications.
The ESPIONOGRE preferred to avoid combat, and instead used its speed and agility
to gather info quickly and then run for the safety of friendly armor units.
Information was no good if it wasn't delivered.
The ESPIONOGRE is treated as a heavy tank for ramming, movement purposes, and
all other rules such as infantry riding, etc.
The ESPIONOGRE carries an internal cache of information vital to the Combine
player. This cache holds fifty (50) information points. The ESPIONOGRE can
gather 1D6 worth of information points per turn. The ENEMY player rolls the D6
to determine how many information points the ESPIONOGRE receives this turn. If a
'6' is rolled, then no information is gathered that turn by the ESPIONOGRE. When
all the cumulative die rolls have reached a total of 50 or more points, then the
ESPIONOGRE has obtained the desired information and may return to a friendly
base.
Each information point is worth one victory point. The onboard cache limit can
be adjusted to suit scenario requirements.
The encrypted information may be transmitted at a speed of 1D6 points per turn
(Combine player rolls the dice) to represent the difficulty in transmitting
information over long distances due to enemy jamming, etc. If a '6' is rolled,
then no information was received by the Combine HQ and the ESPIONOGRE must
re-transmit again next turn.
The information in the encrypted cache may be downloaded to a friendly unit in
one turn if the ESPIONOGRE cannot complete its mission (movement reaches 0,
etc.). The enemy player cannot retrieve the information or the victory points.
If the Paneuropean player may destroy the ESPIONOGRE (and the information) but
this is the only way to prevent the Combine player from gaining any VP from the
information.
Entire battles were fought to either protect or destroy information retrieved by
a Combine ESPIONOGRE unit. This information may not be transmitted off the
board, but must be physical carried by a armor unit which must transport the
information off the map board and back to a friendly line. The information may
be freely transferred to any friendly armor unit at any time but a record must
be maintained of which armor unit is carrying the information. If an armor unit
is destroyed while carrying the information without transferring the information
to another armor unit, the information is lost. The transfer range is one
kilometer (one hex) due to the encryption and security required for the tight
beam high band width pulse. Both the transferring unit and the target unit must
remain stationary for a single turn for the transfer to be complete.
Combine OGRE modified Mark I- Fox class "ESPIONOGRE"
Structure Points (10)
O O O O O O O O O O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2)
O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O
15 treads (D1) (D2 if ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O (M0)
_____________________________________
OGREAPER (OGRE
Anti-PERsonnel)
Modified Combine
AIAIU (Artificially Intelligent
Anti-Infantry
Unit)
The OGREAPER was a heavily modified, highly specialized, hastily built Mk. II-
OGRE designed and built for one purpose and one mission only; the complete
destruction of all Paneuropean infantry within its operational range and theater
of operations. The OGREAPER, the last versions, had no main guns, only four
secondary batteries, no missiles, and far more AP than any other OGRE on a
comparative scale including more AP batteries than some larger OGREs. The
OGREAPER operated in two modes, subservient and autonomous. Under subservient
mode, they were used as force multipliers and operated as mobile weapon systems.
Under autonomous command, they 'roamed'. The OGREAPER was a specialized Combine
model designed to eliminate and negate the threat of the Paneuropean 'avalanche'
style infantry assaults. The Paneuropeans had more MI than the Combine did, but
their suits were inferior to the Combine units. Inferior, but cheaper to produce
because of this. That meant that the Paneuropean MI usually outnumbered Combine
MI on a 3:1 to 5:1basis, easily, and this simple numerical superiority was
enough to turn the tide of several decisive campaigns. Combine MI were literally
swept under a wave of assaulting Paneuropean MI, and even superior technology
could only go so far in deflecting the weight of sheer numbers. Having gotten
bitten once, hard, in the short and curlies, the Combine was quick to adapt its
AI programs to counter the waves of infantry that the Paneuropean command saw
fit to throw at allied forces and bases. Advancements had already been made to
the targeting and FiConSys of the standard OGRE AP batteries, but the
implementation of these software upgrades had yet to be scheduled for a field
test. The OGREAPER was designated as the official field test vehicle, and the
template for the OGREAPER design was constructed in record breaking time. The
first OGREAPERS unit was produced at the Vancouver Manufactory and immediately
shipped to the front lines for field trials. The normal AP batteries that the
cybertanks carried were usually an afterthought to the design on main line OGRE
cybertanks, but they would be the main weapons of the OGREAPER units. With the
addition of a second coprocessor the the main AI unit, one dedicated to nothing
but AP work (a modification that would eventually be included in later cybertank
designs, along the same time as the Descartes Revisions), the groundwork was
laid for the answer to the Paneuropean massed infantry assault problem. The
foresight of Combine doctrine planners on developing and fielding a specialized
anti-infantry cybertank known as the 'Reaper' stands to this day in the annals
of many documentaries.
The OGREAPER, or OGRE Anti-PERsonnel, as the military classification was
designated, also had the nickname of "roach", as it lacked the traditional OGRE
tower, but the placement of the two secondary batteries on the front glacis made
it look like the unit had feelers or antennae. The sides and rear of the
OGREAPER held the coprocessor controlled AP batteries, and a pair of AP
batteries were located up front to each side. What made the OGREAPER so
terrifying was that the OGREAPER was the same on both ends! Each end housed a
pair of AP batteries and a dual secondary battery array. The OGREAPER could go
either direction, it truly had no rear or front. Front was whichever direction
it was traveling in at the time! The OGREAPER was squat, wide, and could
negotiate debris and rubble with ease due to its twin independent sets of
treads, each of which was independently steerable and self powered.
The 'Reaper', or OGREAPER, was a fearsome weapon of war, a vast rolling
juggernaut bristling with AP weapons and programmed with the sole purpose of
hunting enemy infantry formations and decimating them. The OGREAPER was the
most feared unit in the Sahara and Paneuropean Combat Zones according to
recently released Paneuropean infantry data. Moral would not hold for long when
the massed Paneuropean MI groups pinged a Combine OGREAPER or two entering the
area.
OGREAPER existed for one purpose and one purpose alone; to hunt down and
destroy without mercy or second thought, Paneuropean infantry (regular, mobile,
it didn't matter...). Even depot personnel were known to abandon their posts
when an OGREAPER entered the sector.
The OGREAPER was a very feral unit, its programming and tactical routines
could only be described as homicidal to the point of being enthusiastic about
its job. The onboard AP batteries were actually controlled by a spare
subservient CCPC that operated under its own routines. The primary CCPC hunted
the infantry groups, steering the juggernaut into range, and the secondary CCPC
executed its mission by bringing the AP batteries to bear on targets of
opportunity. Many a Paneuropean MI unit was decimated by the massed AP batteries
of an OGREAPER, or smashed under the lumbering treads. The success of the
OGREAPER was so horrific, that the introduction of this one
cybernetic unit changed the entire Paneuropean
armed forces combat doctrine regarding massed and close infantry assault
tactics. This change allowed the Combine to regain success in its many theaters,
recouping earlier losses to massive Paneuropean infantry numerical superiority.
The Paneuropeans soon learned to fear this unit, for though it wasn't very
effective against heavy armor, it was sudden death to any softer skinned target.
In later stages of the hostilities, many OGREAPER units actually were used to
quell riots in subjugated and pacified cities and were used as makeshift
commerce raiders, destroying convoys, supply depots, and other 'soft' targets.
Later variants of the OGREAPER were used as infantry C3 points during
occupation and worked closely with Combine infantry to maintain defensive
positions and to hold taken ground. The OGREAPER was also
colloquially known by Combine
troops as the "OGRIMREAPER" due to its capacity to scythe through massed enemy
infantry attacks. The Paneuropean forces called the OGREAPER "Superstes", Latin
for "Survivor of another's death". The manner that a OGREAPER went about its
business was disturbing to watch, even by friendly forces, such was the extent
of the single minded carnage. Whether by the secondary batteries, the AP
batteries, or by crushing the enemy personnel under its huge treads, the
OGREAPER apparently enjoyed its duty. Its displayed behavior fully amounted to
that of a homicidal maniac, a barely controlled AI one at that.
The OGREAPER was also a very specialized urban assault unit. Inside a city,
it's AP batteries and its armor could decimate infantry and other softer units
using the city and rubble as cover. Its twin arrays of dual secondary batteries
were proof against most armor units hunting it in the city or among the ruins.
The Paneuropean forces never fielded a unit like the OGREAPER, there was no
need to, but it's ability in urban assaults was studied extensively and no doubt
that somewhere, some plans were made for prototypes for a urban assault /
fighting unit.
The closest the Paneuropeans ever got to a vehicle like the
OGREAPER was the Avlaute Metzer, a modified super heavy tank chassis with no
main guns and four AP batteries located on two elevating turrets. The Avlaute
Metzer was a specialized urban fighting vehicle but it was still crewed by a
human crew, and while it never enjoyed the success of the
OGREAPER in the open field, it did perform well in the
Paneuropean urban combat actions seen in the later years of The Last War.
The OGREAPER unit costs as much as a RPO Mk. II unit and is treated as such in
all other regards.
First run OGREAPER were equipped with three secondary batteries mounted in the
front. Later variants moved one of the batteries to the rear, added another
secondary battery to the rear, added an extra pair of AP batteries, and increased total
munitions storage capacity by 20%.
Ver2.0 and later templates for the
OGREAPER
were the most numerically produced units of the template run. The template was
never at Sheffield when Sheffield fell.
OGREAPER were finally outlawed from Combine use by the Joint Manchester
Accords, under which these units were ruled as 'horrors of war' along with the
use of the infamous Five-5 biotoxin by Paneuropean forces.
Special Rules
In overran conditions, use the optional infantry fear rule
(found in the OGRE BOOK) due to the loss of
moral upon Paneuropean forces seeing or having to fight such a
dedicated anti-personnel unit. The
Paneuropean infantry forces were highly demoralized by the appearance of a
OGREAPER in the theater scenario and as such, they were less likely to stand
and fight than to run and seek cover, even breaking down from squads into 'every
person for their self' style panic on at least three
documented instances.
OGREAPER (OGRE Anti-PERsonnel Weapon
System)
Modified Mk. II (Specialized Anti-Infantry / Urban
Assault Unit) (Version 1.0 to Version 1.9AA)
Combine OGRE A(nti)
PER(sonnel) Modified Mark II-(Specialized Anti-Infantry /
Urban Assault Unit)
Structure Points (15)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2)
O O O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O O O O O O O
30 treads (M3, D1) (D2 if ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O O O O O O (M0)
OGREAPER (OGRE Anti-PERsonnel) Modified Mk. II (Specialized Anti-Infantry / Urban Assault Unit) (Version 2.0 to Version 5.9AA)
Structure Points (15)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2)
O O O O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O O O O O O O O O
30 treads (M3, D1) (D2 if ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O O O O O O (M0)
_________________________________
OGRENGINEERING UNIT
The OGRENGINEERING unit was a strange variety of OGRE, but one that was employed
by both sides during and after The Last War. Many variants existed, but they
were all produced from badly damaged or salvaged OGRE chassis ranging from the
lowly Mk I all the way up to the larger Mk. VI units. The one portrayed here is
typical of designs present in all nations that deployed cybertanks during The
Last War and is built upon a modified Mark II chassis. Unit 517, a Mark II-Delta
OGRE of the Combine Advanced Armored Division, Sahara Combat Zone, 2075, was
very heavily damaged in the action that preceded the Combine occupation of the
Southern Nile Basin.
An OGRECOVERY unit managed to tow the unit back to base where the damage was determined to be beyond reasonable repair. The chassis was still intact, but the weapons systems were scrap, and the drive motors needed extensive repair. Unit 517 of the Line was transferred to AIM 12 Bravo, where it was modified into a OGRENGINEERING unit and returned to the Combine AAD within a week. Unit 517 was armed only with its full compliment of Tertiary and AP batteries, and then only during wartime, it had its primary, secondary, and missile weapon mounts replaced with civil engineering and construction tools. A massive dozer blade was mounted on the front, powered by huge hydraulic cylinders and enclosed myomer strands. A retractable grader blade was also installed, as well as extensive civil engineering sensors and electronics. Heavy industrial cranes and waldoes were also mounted on the body, and various other construction implements were installed, from plasma torches, rotary high speed saws, powered drills, fine arm manipulators, high tensile strength cable spinners, all the way up to liquid 'crete spreaders and shapers. Unit 517 was instrumental in the rebuilding of the Nile hydroelectric station in 2076, along with the 25th Combine Combat Engineering Platoon of MI, after the Paneuropean forces had combat lossed the HES due to the Combine's rapid advance on their positions. The rebuilding of the Nile HES itself was the key element in the strategic step toward the brief occupation of Jordan by Combine elements of the 5th Expeditionary Reaction Forces. Exactly fifty-seven OGRENGINEERING units were built or modified by the Combine, and an equal or greater number by each other Empire that used OGREs during The Last War.
Post War civilian heavy construction units grew out of salvaged OGRE units and projects. Many AIMs during the time of the Factory States had their own cadre of OGRENGINEERING units. The surviving non-sentient OGREs left after The Last War were snatched up by the respective AIMs, disarmed, and lobotomized before being turned into OGRENGINEERING units. The sentient OGREs learned not to trust AIMs, who often had their own hidden agendas, much like a spider to a fly, and since a AIM could only be destroyed by a unit with the firepower, armor, and mobility of an OGRE, it was obvious to the self aware OGREs that AIMs were not to be trusted. Alliances between AIMs and OGREs were cautious at best.
OGRENGINEERING units were never 'self aware', but the AI that controlled them
was close enough to be hard to tell the difference. Most post-War OGRENGINEERING
units were under direct AIM control, or control of the military and government
forces that survived with at least the important parts of their command
infrastructure intact. Very few urban and civilian population centers had access
to one of these giants, and if they did, none were ever greater than a Mark II
chassis. Some heavy and super heavy tanks were converted to civil construction
units, but these were no where near the operating capacity of the OGRENGINEERING
units.
The OGRENGINEERING UNIT was used during and after The Last War to lay
rail, repair roads, repair and build bridges, etc. in a much quicker
time than would normally be possible. The OGRENGINEERING unit was used
to repair the various underwater colonies, tidal generators, municipal
utilities, and to rebuild the massive bridges that had been some of the
first victims of The Last War. For what the wartime OGREs had wrecked
or destroyed, the peacetime OGRENGINEERING units labored to repair or
rebuild. It was a strange time after The Last War, and what once caused
fear in man now caused a certain fascination. Crowds would gather to
watch the huge civil construction machines work, and the arrival of an
OGRENGINEERING unit to lesser populated civil centers was often cause
for celebration, as repairs to the urban infrastructure long out of the
hands of the local construction units, would soon be started.
OGRENGINEERING units were instrumental in reconstruction around the world after
The Last War. For this reason, for victory purposes, OGRENGINEERING units count
double. They are one of few units with a dual role, and the very need to
preserve them for after combat duty.
Special Rules
OGRENGINEERING units can repair bridges, roads, and rails. It takes two turns to
repair one hex of road, rail, or bridge. City hexes or other types of hexes
cannot he repaired during the course of the game. The OGRENGINEERING unit may do
nothing else but defend itself and remain 'immobile' in the hex to be repaired
for the two turns.
OGRENGINEERING Units can prepare fortified positions for infantry and armor
units. These positions take one turn to complete and will allow one hex of
normally stacked units to have 'prepared' positions. A prepared position allows
the defending unit to add one (+1) to their DEF. Mark the hex as having prepared
positions. Infantry in prepared positions are treated as if they were in city or
town hexes.
OGRENGINEERING units can prepare heavily fortified positions for infantry and
armor units. These positions take three turns to complete, and will allow one
hex of normally stacked units to double their defensive rating as long as they
stay in that one hex. Heavily fortified hexes must be marked as such by mutual
agreement.
OGRENGINEERING units can sweep minefields. A OGRENGINEERING unit can detect
mines at a radius of 1km, that is, one hex in a ring around the hex that the
unit occupies (the central hex and the six hexes surrounding it). Upon
detection, the OGRENGINEERING unit may move into the mined hex and attempt to
clear the minefield. It takes one turn per hex for an OGRENGINEERING unit to
clear a hex. Roll two dice. If the result is a exact double (1,1; 2,2; etc.)
then the OGRENGINEERING unit has managed to set off the minefield in that hex
and is damaged appropriately. An even result (2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12) clears the
mine safely, an odd result means that another turn must be spent and another
roll made.
OGRENGINEERING units can attack enemy CPs by simply running over them like RPOs.
OGRENG1NEERING units may also engage in overrun attacks against infantry and ram
lighter vehicles.
An OGRENGINEERING Unit can be used to demolish bridges (two turns per hex of
bridge), to cut roads and highways (one turn per hex cut), and to cut rails (one
turn per hex). This is the combat engineering duty of the OGRENGINEERING Units.
An OGRENGINEERING Unit may turn any hex into rubble, clear forests, reduce town
and city hexes, etc. It has an 'attack strength' of twelve for this purpose
only. An OGRENGINEERING unit may reduce a hex of WOODS to LIGHT WOODS in two
turns, and LIGHT WOODS to RUBBLE in two turns, and RUBBLE to CLEAR in two more
turns. Hexes that are changed are noted by mutual agreement.
An OGRENGINEERING unit could rechannel a river to form a protective buffer, but
this would take days and is pretty much beyond the scope of the game, but if you
wanted an OGRENGINEERING unit to have this project underway as part of a
scenario...
OGRENGINEERING units work separately according to normal stacking rules.
OGRENGINEERING units operate as OGREs in all other respects.
OGRENGINEERING Unit- (Modified Mk. II Combat Construction Unit)
Combine OGRE Mark II-Combat Construction Unit- "OGRENGINEER"
Structure Points (15)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O O O
30 treads (M3, D1) (D2 if ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O O O O O O (M0)
__________________________________
OGRECOVERY Unit- All nations that fielded OGREs as combat units had to have some
way to recover disabled or badly damaged units in the field. OGREs were simply
too expensive to combat loss or leave behind for the enemy to salvage / scrap or
for scavengers and deserters to strip for profit, and very few armored recovery
vehicles were built for the task of recovering something the size of an OGRE!
The solution, as always, was to use another OGRE chassis and variant for this
duty. The Combine seems to have been the first to foresee this situation, with
their modification of a Mark II OGRE as a OGRECOVERY unit for use in field
salvage and repair of existing Mark I and Mark II units. The design worked, but
when larger OGRE models started appearing, the need for a better unit became
obvious.
The OGRECOVERY unit was built on a modified Mark V chassis, it had to be big to house all of the field repair equipment and the supplies to conduct the repairs. It retained its secondary and AP batteries, but dispensed with main batteries and any missile armament entirely, giving up space on the hull and internally for massive lathes, repair bays, and automated repair systems. The OGRECOVERY units were equipped with a towing rig that could be attached to a disabled OGRE and used to tow the damaged unit back to base for repair. A backup towing system was also installed.
OGRECOVERY units were part of every OGRE battalion, usually one OGRECOVERY
unit was stationed with every 5 OGRES, less so in the Paneuropean theaters where
the ratio was about one OGRECOVERY unit per
ten to fifteen OGREs. The OGRECOVERY units,
while massive, never truly presented the menacing presence that their larger
brethren did and as such, were often the center of attention at rear echelon
areas, especially with the mechanics and technicians. Some long lived models
actually drew nicknames from their assigned staffs. In actual duty, a OGRECOVERY
unit would enter the battlefield, escorted by a dedicated screen of armor units
and infantry squads.
This operation usually took part in two prongs. A expeditionary force would fan
ahead, to remove any resistance and try to reforge links to any surviving armor
units that might still be holding defensive station around the disabled
cybertank, itself very hazardous duty! Immobile cybertanks were a hot target for
the enemy and the defenders were really just playing a delaying game of the
inevitable. The expeditionary force would speed ahead of the OGRECOVERY unit and
its flanking screen, establish security for the area, engage or chase away any
enemy units looking to prey on the immobile OGRE, and then reinforce and secure
the area. The OGRECOVERY unit would arrive, link up with the disabled cybertank,
ascertain the extent of damage, and start field repairs. This was a lengthy
process... Many operations resulted in massed enemy counterattacks against both
the disabled OGRE and the OGRECOVERY unit. OGRECOVERY units were critical to
continued OGRE operations and as such, were a very inviting target in and of
their own right! If the enemy could knock out an OGRECOVERY unit, it could
prevent OGREs out in the field from receiving emergency repair or refurbishing,
and the enemy could put a very big crimp in continued OGRE operations within the
sector. Little wonder why the OGRECOVERY units retained more of their weapons
systems than the OGRENGINEERING units did.
OGRECOVERY units were often attended by specialized MI Combat Engineers (a sub-variant of the MACE units), trained in battlefield OGRE repair and technical databases, acting as human overseers for the project. The repair databases available and carried by the OGRECOVERY unit included all OGRE types and models and variants operating in the order of battle at that time.
OGRECOVERY units were equipped with batteries of repair drones, under direct control of the CCPU of the OGRECOVERY unit, these drones were the 'hands' of the OGRECOVERY unit. Each drone was a multi-limbed autonomous tool box on legs, able to climb over and under a crippled OGRE like so many mechanical spiders. Usually six times the mark of the OGRECOVERY unit was the amount of drones carried.
Extended OGRE recovery operations saw the emplacement of MAPDS and even light
CPs established as well as fortified positions being erected near and around the
crippled OGRE.
Special Rules
An OGRECOVERY unit is based on a Mark V chassis. It retains full secondary and
AP batteries (but no primary or missiles) and in all other aspects and respects is treated as a Mark V OGRE.
An OGRECOVERY unit operates under all rules given for OGREs.
An OGRECOVERY unit may attempt to combat repair a damaged or disabled friendly OGRE. To do so, the OGRECOVERY unit moves into the SAME hex as the disabled OGRE and ends its movement for the turn. The next turn, the OGRECOVERY unit spends the entire turn immobile, setting up shop, conducting diagnostics, readying supplies, setting priorities, etc. for the repair process. During this process, the OGRECOVERY unit may NOT move, but may use any weapons systems it has available to defend itself, attack targets of opportunity, etc.
An OGRECOVERY unit may 'tow' a crippled OGRE at a rate of one hex per turn, subject to all normal terrain and OGRE rules. While being towed, each OGRE is considered a separate target for attacks, and any weapons or component on either OGRE may be targeted and attacked individually. OGRECOVERY units towing OGREs are subject to spillover fire and all other attack rules including cruise missiles (which was a favorite way of getting rid of OGRECOVERY units towing damaged OGREs!)
An OGRECOVERY unit may repair itself normally.
An OGRECOVERY unit carries enough internal stores and caches of repair parts to repair a Mark V OGRE to 100% capacity. These items must be kept track of on a piece of paper and are "used up" when an OGRECOVERY unit repairs a damaged OGRE. There is no limit to the amount of OGREs that an OGRECOVERY unit may repair, other than the supplies that it has on hand.
An OGRECOVERY unit is assumed to start with a full load of supplies and repair parts at the beginning of the game. It may not reload these supplies during the course of the game as the time it would take to stock an OGRECOVERY unit is high and not within the realm of the duration of a typical game.
An OGRECOVERY unit may not ADD or modify any OGRE, it may only repair existing systems. It may not take a main battery from one of its repair caches and ADD this to a unit that did not have a main battery, or a unit that has all of its main batteries fully functional.
An OGRECOVERY unit may tow a mobile OGRE, so long as the OGRE (owning player) agrees to this.
The TOWING EQUIPMENT is a separate component and may be attacked individually. Disabling the towing equipment drops the towed OGRE and the OGRECOVERY unit must reattach the OGRE to continue towing it. Destroying the towing equipment prevents the OGRECOVERY unit from towing any OGREs (it can be repaired back at the field depot, but this is beyond the scope of the scenario / game). A OGRECOVERY unit with its towing equipment destroyed may not 'push' an OGRE.
The OGRECOVERY unit may not repair any other unit but another OGRE unit, but it can repair and even transfer supplies over to another OGRECOVERY unit. Up to three components and up to 15 tread units may be transferred from one OGRECOVERY unit to another OGRECOVERY unit per turn. If the other unit is also a OGRECOVERY unit, it may transfer three components and up to 15 tread units to the first OGRECOVERY unit mutually. Two OGRECOVERY vehicles exchanging or trading supplies had the bizarre look of two giant metal ant hills with their workers scuttling back and forth between them.
An OGRECOVERY unit may repair another OGRECOVERY unit, at the same time that the
other OGRECOVERY unit is either working on itself, the repairing OGRECOVERY unit
(mutual repair) or working on repairing another OGRE.
Each turn, an OGRECOVERY unit may attempt to repair one component and 1D6+2
tread units, or two components (weapons), or 2D6+4 tread units, subject to the
above rules. For each repair attempted, roll one die and consult the CRT at 1:1
odds. A "NE" result means the repair is not possible this turn on that component
but may be tried again next turn. A "D" result repairs the component selected on
the target OGRE, but takes a spare from the internal stores to do so, mark the
component from the internal stores as being used and no longer available. A "X"
result repairs the selected component without using any onboard supplies from
the caches (the component was just off line, slightly damaged, etc. and easily
repaired by the facilities and tech repair drones available to the OGRECOVERY
unit).
No OGRE may be repaired to greater than 100% capacity.
No additional items, weapons, or components may be added to an OGRE. Components cannot be substituted (i.e. replace a main battery with a secondary battery or vice versa, or add in a few more secondary batteries and a few AP batteries). Only original equipment can be repaired, and only back up the original capacity.
An OGRECOVERY unit may not strip its own weapons to use as repair parts for another OGRE. If an OGRE under repair needs a new secondary battery and none are in stock, the OGRECOVERY unit may not strip one of its own secondary batteries for use. The OGRE under repair will just have to do without until the OGRECOVERY unit can restock or another friendly OGRECOVERY unit arrives on the scene.
OGRECOVERY units may not carry any more than what they list as internal stores. They might carry fewer spares as part of a scenario, but they won't carry more. There is no room to store them.
For OGREs that use CRUISE MISSILES as weapons, the OGRECOVERY unit can not carry spare CRUISE MISSILES.
OGRECOVERY units cost twice as much as regular OGRE units, due to their very nature. They count triple for victory point conditions due to their specialized nature. Losing an OGRECOVERY unit in a theater of operations could be a major turning point in the conflict for that theater!
OGRECOVERY Unit (modified field repair / retrieval / salvage Mark V OGRE)
Combine OGRE Mark V Battlefield OGREPAIR / OGRECOVERY Unit
Structure Points (30)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Primary Batteries (4/3, D4)
O O
Secondary Batteries (3/2, D2)
O O O O O
Tertiary Batteries (2/1, D2)
O O O O O O
Anti-Personnel Batteries (1/1, D1, effective against D0 or infantry targets
only)
O O O O O O O O O O O O
Pop-Up Missile Racks (D4)
O O O O O O
20 Light TAC Missiles (3/4)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
20 TAC Missiles (6/5)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
75 treads (MA3, D1) (D2 if ablative armor material applied to treads)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O (M2)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O (M1)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O (M0)
Onboard Repair Parts Cache (Mark off as they are used during repairs of
battlefield units)
3 Main Battery Replacement
O O O
6 Secondary Battery Replacements
O O O O O O
6 Tertiary Battery Replacements
O O O O O O
12 Anti-Personnel Battery Replacements
O O O O O O O O O O O O
6 Pop-Up Missile Turrets
O O O O O O
6 Disposable Missile Launchers
O O O O O O
6 Pop-Up Missile Racks
O O O O O O
30 Light (3/4) TAC Missiles (only for reload, unit cannot transfer to own stores)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
30 Regular (6/5) TAC Missiles (only for reload, unit cannot transfer to own stores)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
Enough Blisterskin material to coat 75 tread units (if Blisterskin rules are
used)
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
75 Replacement Treads
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
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