Acid (AX) Warhead

The Acid (AX) Warhead is an alternate SRM ammunition type.

Developed by the New Avalon Institute of Science starting in 3050 in response to the heavy use of Ferro-Fibrous armor by the invading Clans and increasing use by the various Successor States, this warhead replaces the normal explosive charge of the standard short-range missile with a small tank of a gelled chemical. This chemical becomes a highly corrosive acid which targets the foamed aluminum structure of Ferro-Fibrous plating, dealing a third more damage than a standard SRM hit per missile.

While a highly effective first-fire weapon, the acid only works against Ferro-Fibrous and similar armor, inflicting only half the damage of a standard SRM missile against standard armor, and standard and Endo Steel internal structures, making them of only limited use during extended combat. While rumored to be aerodynamically unstable due to the liquid-filled warhead, the technical reason for the lower accuracy (compared to a standard missile) is the removal of the guidance equipment, allowing for both an enlarged warhead and the necessary secondary explosive charge to catalyze chemical saturation.

Availability
With production availability starting in 3053, it is unknown to what extent these early systems ever ended up in production, and the term "availability" should be taken with a grain of salt. Nonetheless, at the time of their development the main Successor States listed here each had, at the very least, a technical understanding of these systems.


 * Federated Commonwealth
 * St. Ives Compact

Models
The Acid (AX) Warhead is manufactured on the following planets:

Specification

 * Item: Acid (AX) Missiles
 * Equipment Rating: E/X-X-F
 * Affiliation: Federated Commonwealth
 * BV Modifier: 1.0
 * Used By: SRM, MML
 * Range: 0/3/6/9 (short)
 * Ammo (per ton): x0.5
 * Level: Experimental
 * Cost/Reload: x2
 * Weight (tons)" x1
 * Rules:
 * -2 modifier on Cluster Hits
 * 3 damage points agsinst Ferro-Fibrous, Ferro-Lamellor, Laser-Reflective, Reactive armor or BAR less than 6.
 * 2 damage points all other armor and structure
 * Conventional infantry multiplies damage by 1.5 (rounded up)
 * Damage does not transfer into internal structure; such damage can only be dealt directly
 * Incompatible with Artemis, Narc or Streak