Name: Dallas Age: 52 Gender: Male
Height: 5’ 10” (8’ 4” in ATCP) Weight: 170lb (1,200 in ATCP)
“Every moment has something to teach us, perhaps even battle. Perhaps especially battle.”
Appearance
Beneath one set of armor and a much larger set of armor? Probably somebody’s favorite uncle with a cybernetic left arm wearing jeans and a t-shirt.
Personality
The sort of war-ridden life Dallas has led only ever produces two kinds of people, those that believe nothing in life matters, and those that believe everything in life matters. Dallas has been fighting since he was a teenager, and perhaps there was a time when he didn’t see the value in living, but one day he started wondering why he fought so hard to hold onto a life that didn’t matter to him. He wasn’t sure he’d know what to do if the fighting ever stopped, he didn’t think he had any real ambitions in life, there was nothing he wanted to do, so why did he want to live? Perhaps, he thought, that was all he wanted. To live. Then he began to realize, even though all he had ever done was fight, he had experienced so much. He had grown, he had changed, he had improved, not just from fighting, but from simply living. Since then that has been all there is to it for Dallas. He fights for his life because he wants to live, because living is a beautiful versatile thing. Every tiny event affects every single event to come after it, and every event affects every action of every person. Life matters because you can’t change even the smallest aspects of it without affecting every single part of it. Fighting is all Dallas will ever know, so it’s a good thing it has so much to teach him.
Equipment
ATCP
The ATCP (All Terrain Combat Platform) represents Dallas’s first line of defense. Less a suit of armor than a bipedal vehicle, Dallas is at his most powerful when piloting the ATCP, in terms of both offense and defense.
Defense
Armor
The ATCP is surprisingly light for it’s size, only weighing a little over half a ton. This is because, unlike most vehicles of its type, the heavy metal outer shell of its armor is the thinnest layer, rather than the thickest. Said outer shell is made up of a solid inch of depleted uranium covering the whole of the suit save the joints and optics. Most of the armor is made up of two layers of ballistic protective ceramics separated by two half inch layers of graphene. Beneath all of that is a comparatively tiny layer of insulating gel designed to protect Dallas and his instruments from electrical discharges. All in all, the ATCP’s armor plating is exceptionally strong and light, but has it’s drawbacks. It was designed to protect against mundane, albeit advanced weapons, and may be vulnerable to creative use of magical energies.
Tactical Scanners
Additionally, the armor’s design forgoes glass or visors in any form to preserve structural integrity, and thus Dallas must rely on powerful but (comparatively) delicate scanners to see. Said scanners are located mainly in the ATCP’s primary optic, a large circular dot in the center of its torso that provides Dallas with a basic visual of the battlefield. Designed to be faster and more precise than the rest, this scanner is capable of tracking targets moving upwards of 200 mph. Less tangible information about Dallas’s environment and opponent can be acquired from several smaller scanners of various types dotted across the armor’s frame. These scanners are even capable of monitoring his opponent’s vitals, provided both the target and Dallas are not currently moving. The ATCP’s “eyes” are simply decorative decoys that perform no function, much like the entire head.
Hail Mary System
The Hail Mary is Dallas’s personal codename for the AI that aids in operating the ATCP. So named for its ability to override Dallas’s controls to react with superhuman reflexes in moments of extreme danger. However, again as the name implies, this is primarily a last resort. The Hail Mary is responsible for the ATCP’s function as a whole, (operating scanners, priming weapons, etc.) and it must abandon these tasks entirely to perform a saving throw, the ATCP will at best be left vulnerable and at worst directly harmed.
Ejection
In the event that the ATCP’s cockpit spontaneous stops being habitable, Dallas (or the Hail Mary) can eject himself from top of the vehicle to fight on foot.
Mobility
Legs
The ATCP is not necessarily slow, in theory it could move its legs as fast as any human, but moving at any speed faster than a slow walk without proper preparation is prone to toppling. However, if Dallas can still the vehicle long enough to plot a course and rationalize weight distribution on the current terrain [1 prep], it can move with surprising speed. Beyond basic locomotion, the legs of the ATCP can perform two additional function. Both functions utilize a system of two hydraulic pistons in the soles of each foot. A fan-like structure on the head of each piston allows them to expand to around three times their original surface area. If the pistons are fired, then the fans deployed, the ATCP can anchor itself into the ground in the face of significant force. If the fans are deployed, then the pistons fired, the ATCP launch itself in jumps of up to thirty feet. Of course, doing the latter without proper preparation [1 prep] would almost certainly result in a debilitating crash.
Thrusters
On the rare occasions when Dallas has time to prime them [2 preps], he can use these two microturbines on the ATCP’s back to dash forward at high velocity. Multiple uses exist for such an ability depending on the vehicle’s current position. They can be used on foot to propel it several yards straight ahead , or in the air to add additional range to a jump or punctuate a landing with a devastating slam.
Offense
Gauss Rifle
Rather than a hand and forearm, the ATCP’s right arm transforms into a long barreled projectile accelerator below the elbow. The weapon uses electromagnetic coils to launch projectiles of various types at deadly speeds. The loading system is somewhat inefficient, however, and it requires a great deal of time to load larger projectiles. Said projectiles come in the following forms:
Barrage ~12, 1cm long metal shards, minimal stopping power & accuracy, time between shots is preset, cannot fire at will [0 preps]
Insurance claim ~ 6” metal ball bearing, 10’ impact radius, moderate accuracy [1 prep]
Shieldbuster ~ 3’ metal “bullet”, armor piercing, pinpoint accuracy [2 preps]
Ferromagnetic Lance ~ 6’ metal rod, 40’ impact radius, high accuracy [3 preps]
MMB System
Though it’s methods are entirely different, the MMB system versatile in much the same way as the Gauss Rifle. Appearing as a sort of backpack, the MMB system is composed of four primary structures. The ammo storage that occupies most of the “pack,” the firing chambers at its top, and a retractable scanner atop each of the ATCP’s shoulders. The system may have multiple firing options, but only two settings, highly destructive and catastrophically destructive.
Hailstorm ~ Unaimed barrage of 20 micro-missiles, producing 15’ fan of tiny explosions [1 prep]
Flyswatter ~ 15 tiny surface-to-air explosives that use predictive algorithms to track fast moving targets [2 preps]
Thermobaric Conflagration ~ Massive barrage of incendiary explosives in all directions. 40’ impact radius with 10’ safe zone around the ATCP [3 preps]
Pneumo-fist
On the rare occasions when the ATCP must participate in melee combat, a hefty swipe of either upper appendage is usually the last word on the matter. On the even rarer occasions when that fails, the pneumatic system encased in its left forearm can pick up the slack. With even a minimal priming [1 prep] the piston-like structure can fire off a punch capable of flipping a tank. The weapon generally makes an effective solution for heavily armored opponents.
On-foot
Being forced out of the ATCP isn’t always a downgrade for Dallas. Though it usually does come with reduced survivability, and he rarely ejects before sustaining some damage, there are advantages to such a change.
Defense
Armor
Essentially a simplified version of the ATCP’s armor, Dallas’s armor is composed of a single layer of ballistic ceramic sandwiched between two layers of graphene. Again there is a final gel layer, but this time it exists to help disperse impact force. The armor is more vulnerable to melee weapons, and is thus designed to be light enough to allow Dallas to keep his distance, but heavy enough to survive most small arms fire. His helmet is the only part designed to withstand any significant force.
Sonic Disrupter
The defensive effect of Dallas’s cybernetic left arm is two fold. It is nerveless, and strong enough to block most mundane melee attacks, but of more interest is the device in its palm. The sonic disrupter is capable of producing a wave of infrasonic vibrations strong enough to divert most high velocity projectiles. The internal structure of the rest of Dallas’s arm are designed to insulate these vibrations and prevent them from affecting him in any significant way beyond mild discomfort. The device can also produce a sudden sonic pulse with an effective range of roughly 15 ft. [1 prep]
Mobility
Though he had access to substantial physical augmentations, Dallas has thus far refrained from any major cybernetic enhancements. Instead only accepting enough to keep him at his physical peak even in his old age.
Offense
Steelcaster
Dallas’s primary weapon outside the ATCP is a lightweight assault weapon that launches 8” titanium spikes at high velocities using hypercoil cartridges. Designed to be wielded with two hands, but easily maneuverable with one, the weapon isn’t superbly versatile, but it suits his style just fine. Dallas’s experience with the weapon is extensive enough to make his aim impeccable, if only human. When that isn’t enough, it’s just a matter of buying enough time [1 prep] to use the weapon’s ballistic cpu and score hits on especially small or fast moving targets. The Steelcaster’s handle is inlaid with magnetic materials that make it easy for Dallas to retrieve it with a powerful magnetic device in his right gauntlet.
Shock Baton
Only if melee combat is unavoidable will Dallas deign to use the collapsible baton strapped to his right thigh. The weapon is capable of delivering debilitating shocks on physical contact by default, but if given the time to charge [1 prep] it can deliver equally powerful shocks at distances of up to a meter. While Dallas does have extensive experience with the weapon, it was only ever used to keep enemies at bay until he could recover his Steelcaster. As such, he is far moure adept at blocks and parries than any sort of intricate offensive maneuvers.
