Water Viper

Specifications
Use	Water environment Gear
Production Code	OACS-02M/AQ
Manufacturer	Mandeers Heavy Industries
Height	4.7 meters
Speed	Walker: 43 kph Submarine: 39 kph

Developed by Mandeers Heavy Industries as a competitor for the Territorial Arms Wasserjäger aquatic Gear, the Water Viper’s entire design philosophy is based on the premise that it would spend most of its service time in or around water. Thus, the machine is entirely water-proof and is equipped with a back-mounted snorkel attached to its air-breathing engine so it can operate when partially submerged.

The engine also uses banks of superconducting batteries for operation when the vehicle is completely underwater. An oxygen tank provides breathable air for the pilot and can be refilled with an ordinary compressor. Like the Desert Viper on which it is based, the Water Viper has no wheeled movement system in its feet, which was judged unnecessary considering the Gear’s operational theater. Instead, water turbines allow it to virtually match its walking speed while submerged. The Gear’s omnicameras and sensors are mounted behind tough acrylic plastic plates and have been adjusted to function equally well above and underneath water.

Secondary sonar and thermographic imaging sensors are placed in the head and chest of the Gear, allowing for long-range scans while submerged. The main characteristic of the Water Viper is the thick armor used on all facings. Since wetlands and marshes provide excellent cover, most jungle combat occurs at short range and in ambush attacks, hence the necessity for heavy protection. The armor is especially thick over the pilot compartment, which makes the Water Viper a popular assignment.

The Water Viper was not designed with actual underwater combat in mind and it lacks any form of torpedo rack. The Gear’s main armament is a SRWI-75 fragmentation cannon, best suited for the close-quarters swamp combat that is the Water Viper’s specialty. Although relatively few variants of the Water Viper exist, it is common for cadres of the Gear to use a variety of weapons. Longer range direct-fire weapons like autocannons are common place and manipulator-held grenade launchers are also sometimes employed. The AST protectorate of New Baja is rumored to have produced several limited-distribution variants based on the Water Viper.

Usage

Mandeers Heavy Industries released the Water Viper in TN 1921 as part of an effort to rejuvenate its product line. On a planet where the lion’s share of combat takes place on dry land, the Water Viper was sure to appeal only to a niche market in the military, but the amount of swampland and deep lakes in the Southern Hemisphere did make the design potentially profitable. The Southern Republican Army made significant purchases of the new design in an effort to strengthen their swamp and jungle fighting units.

The amount of combat which had recently occurred in the jungles of the Mekong Dominion was particularly worrisome to Republican high command because it left a post-war heritage of an armed population and a great deal of military surplus available to bandits and revolutionaries. The MILICIA made purchases for similar reasons and many of the units stationed in the Melong Dominion count some of the Mandeers Gears among their forces.

Encouraged by these sales, Mandeers invested money to expand their Gear production lines to reduce the cost of the Water Viper — a decision that would cost them dearly. Shortly thereafter, sales of the Water Viper took a sharp dive because of a saturated market and (rumor has it) political maneuvering on the part of Territorial Arms and several Mekong Dominion conglomerates. Mandeers executives suddenly found themselves with a large debt on their hands, much of their military production budget being tied up into production lines for a Gear that suddenly was not selling. As part of the restructuring plan that ensued, Mandeers signed an agreement with New Baja which saw the AST protectorate buying dozens of Water Vipers at favorable pricing and providing expertise for the design of several variants.

The deal was approved by the appropriate Allied Southern Territories officials who were anxious to solidify the recent treaty with New Baja. Most of the variants produced by Bajan engineers have been civilian models designed for duty in the MacAllen cave mines that are the city-state’s principal source of revenue. A few military models have emerged, however, leading, in some circles, to paranoid fears of Bajan Water Vipers swarming through the MacAllen cave network all the way from Pioneer to Perth.

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