Customized Ace Exo-Armors
for Lightning Strike 2nd Edition

By Wunji Lau

EAH-04JG Jagd Hector

Beware of entrance to a quarrel; but being in,
Bear't that the opposed may beware of thee.

The Newhome branch of the Gardiens d’Honneur is known colloquially as the Home Guard. In addition to bodyguard duties inside colonies, the Home Guard are also charged with escort and protection of dignitaries traveling the vast reaches of Newhome’s space. When performing these duties, the Home Guard use customized limited-production versions of the popular Hector exo-armor manufactured by Newhome-based Dzechek Cosmoves.

Painted in the same white-and-gold ceremonial scheme used on their uniforms and exo-suits, the Jagd Hector is so different from the basic Hector as to be a completely new machine. While sharing the Hector’s lack of legs, the Jagd’s structural and actuator reinforcements allow for more efficient placement of the Hector’s thruster pods, resulting in enhanced performance despite the exo’s greatly increased size as compared to the Hector. The Jagd’s powerful electronic warfare suite is mounted on several booms extending from the exo’s body; internal space is used for fuel and armor. The Hector’s standard armament is dispensed with. The Jagd’s arms are used strictly for grappling and close combat; primary firepower consists of three linked particle cannons mounted on magnetic gimbals, providing weapons coverage in all directions. The result is a superb escort and hunter-killer unit, superlative in the execution of its assigned tasks and far too expensive to mass-produce; only a dozen Jagd Hectors are known to exist.

Modeling Notes

Start with an Hector's body and head; add antenna with thin plastic card and putty. The arms are made from two Hector right shoulders, and two cleaned-off hands and forearms. The "codpiece" and armor skirts (each skirt incorporates one Hector thruster fin at the bottom, forming the edge of a maneuver vernier) are made from epoxy putty (sheet styrene would have worked as well). The chest thrusters from a Cerberus are tucked deep under the skirts. The lower body boom is the front of a Wing Gundam Zero beam rifle with added plastic gubbins; it's the only part that's not from a DP9 miniature or completely scratchbuilt (it could be replaced by a styrene piece, though). The metal rod for the display stand runs up through the bottom particle cannon, up through the boom, and anchors high into the Hector's torso for maximum resistance.

The back was smoothed off and puttied over. The center thrusters come from a Cerberus backpack; the center fuel tank is from the same Cerberus. There are three Heavy Gear HT-68 Hovertank thrusters, one on each side and one tucked lengthwise between the "leg" pods. Three Pathfinder thruster fins are glued around the center fuel tank, and Naga (Heavy Gear) sensor stalks were fitted into drilled holes on the backpack and bottom boom. The large main fuel tanks are the plastic stalks from standard flight bases (since I use metal rods to support my figs, I've got dozens of these) rounded off with putty and detailed with plasticard. Decals were scavenged from the bits box.

EAH-04JG Jagd Hector
TV: 19	Actions: 1	Size: 3
Electronics: +3	Move: 15/30	Facing: Exo
Avoidance: +1/0	Protection: Front 5/12/15, Rear 5/12/15
Close combat (2), Missile Defense (2), ECM(3), ECCM(4)
Attacks
Particle Cannons	T, C/30, +1/0, 4E, R1, Sk1
Notes May not use add-on weapons. The Jagd Hector is Special-Duty Unit, with the same fleet selection restrictions as the Pathfinder Sniper. In Campaigns, Jagd Hectors may be built only in Zones 32 and 33 (see Lightning Strike Companion).

G-1a Ryu Elite

And oftentimes, to win us to our harm,
The instruments of darkness tell us truths,
Win us with honest trifles, to betray us
In deepest consequence.

The Ryu Elite is a standard Ryu with an extensive array of add-on systems. It was created out of a need for group leaders to maintain communications between teammates and command vessels as well as provide heavy fire support (although most analysts agree that a degree of one-upmanship amid the ranks of combat pilots was also at work during the inception of the Elite upgrade project). The enhancements include an arm-mounted shield with a built-in ECM pod, extra thrusters, two large propellant tanks, and a large dual-mode railgun (which replaces the Ryu’s normal beam cannon armament). While somewhat less effective in dogfights than the Sakura command exo, the Ryu Elite has the advantage of relatively low cost and versatility, making continued production of the upgrade package a virtual certainty.

As of late 2214, only a few Ryu Elites have been fielded, and then only under strict secrecy in Venus-local space. The Elites operate out of corporate space stations as squad leaders; VenusBank and WNCT currently operate the largest number of these units. Negotiations are under way to assign Elites to CVNA vessels, which would present CVNA commanders with a viable alternative to the temperamental and unwieldy Sakura.

VenusBank allows its elite pilots a great deal of leeway in decorating their machines, a permissiveness that is often taken to extremes. In addition to their flashy paint schemes, many VenusBank exo-armors and fighters sport “banners” made of thin, heat-resistant film. The banners can be furled into small housings, can light up or change their displayed images, and can even be made to “billow” in space with the use of tiny arrays of electric actuators.

Modeling Notes

Some old RAFM pewter Syreen fuel tanks and thrusters were used, but they can be replaced by similar parts from existing models. Bits box and plasticard form the base for the giant thruster flaps, shield, and gun.

G-1a Ryu Elite
TV: 20	Actions: 1	Size: 3
Electronics: +2	Move: 20/30	Facing: Exo
Avoidance: +1/0	Protection: 7/13/16, 6/12/15
Perks/Flaws: Close Combat (2), Missile Defense (2), ECM 4, ECCM 4
Attacks
Railgun	F, C/30, +1, 4P
Railgun (Sniper Mode)	F, 30/70, -2/-1, 3P, Slw, AD
Notes: The Ryu Elite is a Command Unit. Fleet Restriction: A Venusian fleet may not have more than two Ryu Elites at any time.

EAL-04A Pathfinder Sniper Custom

Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice;
Take each man's censure, but reserve thy judgment.

Although not a particularly common unit, the Pathfinder Sniper, due to its operational role, is often the subject of customizations and modifications seldom applied to general-purpose exo-armors. Usually, the modifications are minor, such as increasing fuel capacity or communications range, but occasionally, some highly enhanced units have managed to pass muster with local commanders and remained in service.

One such unit is the machine piloted by Lt. Terina Krakauer, a Gamma-division pilot on “permanent loan” to the JIS for “miscellaneous foreign liaison duties.” Usually assigned to remote outposts or JIS vessels, Krakauer and her tech/maintenance crew are always far from official JAF observation, and her ever-changing JIS superiors and briefing personnel care more about the results of her missions than equipment modifications or even the occasional inflated expense report.

The result is that Krakauer’s Pathfinder Sniper has become a highly-customized unit equipped with extra sensors, a booster pack, a small antiballistic shield and a stealth system acquired and provided by the JIS under a no-questions-asked caveat.

Most noteworthy, however, is the unit’s railgun, a massive weapon nearly fifteen meters long. The weapon is powered from a pair of large capacitors on the exo’s legs, and is capable of hitting targets out to nearly sixty kilometers with precise accuracy. At the gun’s core is the exo’s original massdriver, modified and upgraded beyond recognition. The weapon is cranky and fragile, requiring large amounts of maintenance time and fine-tuning; luckily, in Lt. Krakauer’s current line of work, there is often a great deal of time available to spend quietly tinkering.

Modeling Notes

Plasticard was used to make the 'Snoopy Pod' fins, but most of the conversion material came from other miniatures: Hector shield, Heavy Gear snubcannon barrel, RAFM fuel tank, chopped-up Jovian Chronicles missiles used as capacitors. Most of the work involved lots of drilling, pinning, putty, and plasticard to properly position the figure. The asteroids are papier-mache. The unit wasn't a major conversion; it was mostly just getting the sniper shooting pose right (had to redo the fingers to wrap around the barrel).

Terina Krakauer’s Pathfinder Sniper
TV: 19 +14 (Ace Cost) = 33	Actions: 1	Size: 3
Electronics: +3	Move: 15/25	Facing: Exo
Avoidance: 0	Protection: Front: 5/11/13 Rear: 4/10/12
Perks/Flaws: Close Combat (2), Stealth (1), ECCM(4), Exposed Fire Control
Attacks
Custom Railgun*	F, 120, -2, 8P, Sw2
Plasma Lance	F, C, +1, 4E
Notes Add-ons: Sentry Pod, Snoopy Pod Terina Krakauer’s Pathfinder Sniper is an Elite Unit. Furthermore, a fleet may only have one of this unit. Terry Krakauer is an Ace with Skill Level 2, Skill Bonus +1, and the Nerves of Steel Perk. She always operates as an independent unit, and may never use Command Points. *The Custom Railgun is an extremely unwieldy piece of equipment; if it is used by a pilot who does not have the Nerves of Steel perk, it gains the Slow characteristic. The Custom Railgun’s Sweeping characteristic represents its ability to fire cluster projectiles that do less damage but increase the weapon’s chance of hitting.

Online Store | The Company | Miniatures | Support | Goodies | Our Worlds | Home | Sitemap