Hydra

Specifications
Use	Submersible Fire Support Strider
Production Code	OWCS-03/SW
Manufacturer	Republican Heavy Industries
Height	7.2 meters

Originally developed for the marshlands and swamps of the Lake Esperance region, the Hydra is one of the few Striders capable of operating in the amphibious conditions prevalent in the South.

The Hydra was created to assist the maritime regiments combat insurgents in the bayous and marshes after the Naga failed to perform well in the region’s wetlands. Republic Heavy Industries was tasked with producing a viable alternative for the Naga, and within a few cycles the company had produced a lumbering behemoth capable of submersing itself into the murky swamps and layout a wide barrage from its heavy armaments.

Mounted on the Hydra’s turret are a number of weapons systems that give the Strider an impressive array of firepower. The SRWI HI-ARK IV heavy guided mortar and the SRWI RFGL-C grenade launcher provide the Strider with heavy hitting indirect fire at mid to long range, while the 40mmMR60mt autocannon provides the Strider direct fire capability against most classes of Gears. Rounding out the weapons compliment on the Strider are a pair of 10mm gatling machineguns and an SRWI AIM-5 light anti-personnel mortar.

Over the decades that the strider has been in use, the Hydra has seen a significant amount of use in the swamps of the Humanist Alliance and Eastern Sun Emirates as well as the jungles of the Mekong Dominion, but the sales of the strider have never met the same level as the Naga.

In TN1934, Republic Heavy Industries modified their Hydra production facilities to create an improved variant of the strider. Borrowing from the Naga’s design, the leg actuators received the Brahmin system upgrade and a secondary movement system to enable the strider to extricate itself from hostile environments. Jossie McInrow, RHI’s lead engineer on the Brahmin upgrade for the Naga, spearheaded the redesign of the Hydra and advocated the changes to the amphibious Strider’s design. McInrow’s work on both the Naga and the Hydra would eventually lead him to work on the Drake Gear Strider program at Avesta’s Innsmouth facilities.

Usage

The original design of the Hydra served the maritime regiments well for decades, but the design did have its shortcomings, principally the lack of speed and maneuverability. In order to overcome these flaws, Hydra pilots used their Strider’s ability to nearly submerge completely to hide their profile from sensors as they quietly waited for their enemy to come into range. This hide and destroy method became the standard operating procedure for the Strider, but the tactic did little for the unit if it were caught in the open or on the move.

Since its refit, the Hydra is now capable of operating outside of its original environment. The strider has seen a slow, but steady increase in use across strider compagnies in the Southern Republic Army and the MILICIA. Republic Heavy Industries has sold refit kits to other AST leagues in the last decade which has allowed the Peacekeepers and Emirate retinues to upgrade their Hydras as well.

Rumors persist that the Humanists Alliance has acquired and reproduced the design for their own fleet of Hydras as well.

Gallery

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  Hydra Miniature