Centipede

The Centipede Scout Car was produced by Gienah Combat Vehicles & Red Devil Industries in 3053. The vehicle is intended for reconnaissance ahead of its command unit, spotting hidden units.

It was originally created as a replacement for the Skulker Scout vehicle, since Clan Ghost Bear had captured Alshain and, subsequently, the older vehicle's production facilities, in 3051. The design evolved from a simple Skulker upgrade to a completely new vehicle. It first saw service with AFFC forces in 3054. The vehicle was produced at Gienah's plant on Gienah and Red Devil's plant on Pandora. However, the vehicle earned a reputation for the poor quality of Red Devil-produced vehicles.

During the Jade Falcon Incursion in 3064, the vehicle's Pandora factory fell to Clan Jade Falcon. Vehicle production completely stopped in 3068, when the Gienah plant was severely damaged by Free Worlds League mercenaries.

Deployment
On test runs the vehicle was deployed with the AFFC. The first notable action came from the vehicles used on Saiph in 3054 by 5th Lyran Guards. The 5th Lyran Guards fought off a raid by the Free Worlds League's 1st Free Worlds Guards. The outnumbered Lyran forces utilized their Centipedes to scout ahead and keep League forces from ambushing them. The Centipedes were used during the two-week siege to scout the League forces' rear areas.

Weapons and Equipment
The Centipede is protected by 3.5 tons of Standard Armor. The vehicle is equipped with a single Defiance B3M Medium Laser in the front. It is also fitted with a rear-mounted Zippo vehicular flamer for anti-infantry use, with a ton of fuel. However, for the Centipede's principle task of scouting, it has been fitted with a Beagle Active Probe. Using its 130 kph maximum speed, the hover car is able outrun anything it may conceive as threat and report back to its allies.

Variants

 * TAG : Introduced during the FedCom Civil War in 3067, this customer-ordered variant was first provided to the 7th Donegal Guards's Armor Brigade. This variant replaces the vehicle's Medium Laser in favor for a TAG. The vehicle has increased armor protection and receives a Guardian ECM. BV (1.0) = 149, BV (2.0) = 325


 * SRM : Also introduced during the FedCom Civil War in 3062, this is a battlefield-created variant. All the Centipede's original equipment is removed in favor for six front-mounted twin-tubed short range missile launchers and a ton of ammunition. The vehicle's armor has been slightly increased from the base model. BV (1.0) = 301, BV (2.0) = 431


 * Commando : An updated variant, this version of the Centipede was released in 3074. It carries four tons of Glazed Armor for protection, as the engineers thought it would likely take fire from energy weapons. A Guardian ECM Suite confuses enemy targeting systems as well. Additionally the Centipede Commando is equipped with an Armored Motive System that makes it less vulnerable to destroyed hoverskirts. Engineers also replaced the expensive fusion reactor with a Fuel Cell power source that can propel the Centipede Commando at up to 140km/h. The standard weapons were replaced by a pair of turret mounted Magshots. These ballistic weapons allowed engineers to remove the power amplifiers and heat sinks needed by other Centipede versions while still providing some harassing fire capability. BV (2.0) = 455