MACU-ID [DONE]

[HK-36]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Intent: To update standard mass produced battle droids manufactured by ARGH
• Image Source: Google Image search for "Necron Warriors" link here
• Canon Link: N/A
• Restricted Missions: N/A
• Primary Source: Forged using Abregado's Replicators, utilizes the new Abregado Combat Shields, based off of previous ARGH Legionnaire Droids

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

• Manufacturer: Abregado-Rae Guild of Hammers
• Model: Mechanical Autonomous Combat Unit- Infantry Drone
• Production: Minor
• Affiliation: Closed Market, ARGH, Firemane, Barony of Abregado, GA, Omega Pyre
• Modularity: Components can be modified to suit different roles and scenarios by technicians with the knowledge of drone's design, comes in different color patterns for minor camouflage and aesthetic purposes
• Material: Duranium Skeleton, Durasteel Body Plates and Components, Electrum Internal Components, Asbestos Insulation Layer, Inner Copper Farraday Cage, Internal Duranium Protection Capsules.

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

• Classification: Class 4 (War Droids)
• Weight: Around 150 kilograms
• Height: Around 2 meters
• Movement: Bipedal
• Armaments: Augmented strength and speed due to built-in rotors, built-in one blaster repeater side-arm and one wrist vibroblade
• Misc. Equipment: Military grade Omega Pyre heat sensors and scanners based on latest Iron Legionnaire droid systems (75 meters of range)
  HUD with tracking and targeting systems based on latest Iron Legionnaire droid systems (75 meters of range)
  Sound dampening attachment
  Build-In Communication Systems
  Abregado Combat Shield
  
  Density projector.
  Magnetic sole anchors
  Internal coolant systems.
  Redundant droid brain and programming systems.
  Self-destruction systems.
  Tracking unit.
  Kill switch.
  Copper Farraday Cage
  
  

SPECIAL FEATURES

• Armor Plates and Skeleton
• Combat sensors and scanners
• Sound dampeners
• Communication systems
• Abregado Combat Shield
• Density Projectors and magnetic anchors
• Redundant systems
• Internal coolants
• Kill switch, tracking, and self-destruction
• Build-in Weaponry
• Augmented Strength
• Vacuum Sealed
• Copper Farraday Cage

DETAILED SPECIAL FEATURES

• Armor Plates and Skeleton- tough outer armor plates and inner metal structure and skeleton make this drone rather durable compared to older mass produced battle droids like B1's, they are manufactured with built-in class 7 armor which in turn makes them unable to wear additional armor suits, cutting down on their versatility.
• Combat sensors and scanners- based on designs found in previous Iron Legionnaire models, these combat sensors and scanners allow the drones to target and accurately engage multiple targets, now with upgraded range by 25 meters from the previous models, however this covers only their hip fire and snap shot range and accuracy, firing without need to augment aiming by use of scopes of other assistance mechanisms in weapons, so this range could potentially be extended based on what kind of weapon they are using. Only applies to Abregado-manufactured weaponry.
• Sound dampeners (Inherited from Iron Legionnaire Models)- stealth systems that stabilize air around the drone to hush its footsteps and movements by limiting the air vibrations it causes, at least to a degree as it cannot completely drone out the sound of a loud weapon firing. It also grants a degree of resistance against sonic weaponry once active as the air in the droid's immediate vicinity resists sound traveling through it.
• Communication systems (Inherited from Iron Legionnaire Models)- equipped short and long range wireless communication systems the drones can send text, voice, and holo messages to each other and their command, actively coordinating during battle like a swarm to maximize their group cohesion and fight better as a team.
• Abregado Combat Shield- the previous standard issued deflector shield has been replaced with the new Abregado Combat shield, boosting their initial defenses and granting them increased resistance against electrical and ionic attacks, even one time protection against electromagnetic pulses.
• Density Projectors and magnetic anchors (Inherited from Iron Legionnaire Models)- systems to increase the weight of the drones exponentially and/or anchor themselves to metal surfaces for stabilization or climbing purposes, mostly used as defense against telekinetic manipulation or shock-waves, can be potentially used to crush somebody.
• Redundant systems (Inherited from Iron Legionnaire Models)- redundant processing, power, and memory systems location in the chest and the head of the drones, meaning the machine can remain active, and be potentially repaired, when its head or chest is destroyed or incapacitated, to fully deactivate the machine both its head and chest need to be destroyed.
• Internal coolants (Inherited from Iron Legionnaire Models)- internal cooling systems that minimize damage from overheating, whether caused by malfunction or technical issues, environmental damage for example heat from a lava planet's surface, or enemy fire based attacks like flamethrowers.
• Kill switch, tracking, and self-destruction (Inherited from Iron Legionnaire Models)- means of keeping the drones under control, a tracker to keep position of every drone connected to the same commander or command unit, kill switch to remotely deactivate it, and a self-destruction feature in case the machine is captured while still activated. Self-destruction overloads its power units, quickly turning them critical and causing an energy-based explosion, this explosion melts and disintegrates most of the droid's components, leaving behind only scorched metal husk of its skeleton and outer armor plates as well as damaging beings around it similar to a standard thermal detonator exploding.
• Build-in Weaponry- the machines received wrist built-in standard grade blaster repeater in right forearm and a vibro-blade in the left as side-arms, the repeater taps into the machine's energy core for power and plasma magazine can be reloaded by first ejecting the used container and then placing in the new one into a special slot on its right arm.
• Augmented Strength (Inherited from Iron Legionnaire Models)- Due to the rotors and artificial muscles that make up the drone's body it is much stronger than an average human being, able to use this strength to benefit it in close combat, much like its predecessor Iron Legionnaire drones or most war droids ever manufactured.
• Vacuum Sealed (Inherited from Iron Legionnaire Models)- The vital systems of the drone, its droid brain, memory core, processing center, et cetera, have been vacuum sealed within its inner structure, as a result the machine does not receive damage from liquids seeping inside and affecting these systems, for example submerging into water, rain, or napalm.
• Farraday Cage (Inherited from Iron Legionnaire Models)- a copper based defense against electrical and ionic attacks, however due to being built into walls of inner droid structure it only covers vital inner systems like memory core, power units, processing center, et cetera, the muscles and rotors of the droid can still be affected should other protections against such attacks fail.

Strengths:

• Durable- the strong skeleton and armor plates makes this machine rather durable in combat, granting them built-in armor class of 7 and considerable protection from energy and physical attacks with it. While this protection extends to personal grade weaponry like rifles, pistols, and shrapnel, it can still be broken through by high damage weapons like lightsabers, turbolasers, tank cannons, et cetera. This durability combined with their redundant systems and minor protection against sonic attacks and shock-waves granted by the sound dampeners, density projectors, and magnetic anchors makes these drones rather persistent as both their torso and head needs to be destroyed to fully deactivate them.
• Expendable- These machines are meant to be mass produced cheaply, their costs cut down by the use of Replicators to 3d print majority of their components out of recycled scrap and refuse from Abregado, combined with the new Abregado foundries and smelteries these drones are extremely expendable. As such ARGH is not afraid to field large numbers of them for the sole purpose of serving as a canon fodder, to distract the enemy, or simply overwhelm them in numbers, much like their spiritual predecessors, the CIS B1 droids, did.
• Combat Efficient- Due to the augmented strength and speed of their durable metal bodies, along with built-in back up weaponry like their wrist-repeaters and wrist-blades, these machines are very effective in combat. In melee they rely on strong attacks and quick blows to overwhelm their opponent with brute, although rather simple, ferocity, in range their accuracy is supplemented with their trackers and scanners, along any scopes attached to their weapons, to make them challenging sharpshooters.
• Swarm- These drones fight most efficiently as a group, working well together and often in total silence as all commands and information about the enemy is constantly relayed between each unit by their built-in communication systems, it is a common sight for them to reform and adapt their formations on the fly to maximize their efficiency. As a result, if one of these drones spotted an enemy and begun to shoot towards them, chances are that its whole phalanx is aware at that moment of their location and more drones are bound to engage as well.

Weaknesses :

• Dumb- One of the biggest problems HK ran into was ethics of advocating droid freedom of will and equality with organics while manufacturing war droids for combat, their whole purpose in existence being servitude to Abregado as soldiers. While he did try to address this by creating army of droid volunteers, this army wasn't as numerous as other enslaved droid forces around the Galaxy. So, he decided to supplement their numbers by creating war droids with extremely low intelligence, so dumb they could barely be qualified as sentient, and therefore being more or less mindless drones rather than droids. Drones compared to droids are more like dogs compared to humans, they can follow their programming and carry out simple instructions, but they are not complex thinkers, the most extensive plan they can follow is run or walk and shoot. As such, they can be seen most often standing out in the open and firing at their target without really worrying about things like taking cover. While this is fine when working as a group in large numbers, when caught alone these drones are not that hard to outsmart and defeat by a properly trained soldier, unless of course one gets too close to them and gets caught off guard by the strength of their melee attacks.
• No Survival Instincts- as mentioned before these drones do not worry about things like taking cover while in combat unless they just happen to be standing behind a conveniently sized wall or in a trench while firing at their enemy. They have no problem walking straight at a machine gun nest while firing even though it will probably get them mowed down as long as it is their whole phalanx pushing towards it. While this fearlessness does have its advantage sometime, it also means they have no survival instincts and are individually pretty easy to pick off most of the time.
• Electromagnetic weakness- EMP grenades and the like are still the most effective weapon against them, while their Abregado Combat Shield, can neutralize one such attack, second in a row would deactivate them temporarily, although their redundant systems would get them rebooted soon enough, it would create a window where these drones could be attacked without repercussion.
• Abregado Limited- due to their low intelligence these drones can only really use weapons manufactured by Abregado and common stationary weaponry like E-Webs or stationary machine guns, although their aim is reduced with those. So they can't really just pick up any gun laying around if they run out of ammunition, which could be a problem in prolonged combat.
• Limited Ionic/Electric resistance- While their Abregado Combat shields grant them more or less immunity to ionic and electrical attacks, should those be deactivated the droids only have limited resistance against them. The built-in Farraday cage and insulation protects only their internal vital systems while leaving their motor systems vulnerable to attacks, so while these attacks would not deactivate them completely, they can cause them to paralyze or seizure long enough to be destroyed or deactivated.
• Too big for armor- due to the tougher armor plates they are built in with compared to previous Legionnaire droids, these drones are too big to use additional armor suits like most Abregado droids do. As such, the cost for their natural armor is loss of versatility of having systems like jetpacks, another deflector shield, or simply another layer of armor around them.
• Eyes- just like in HK's Phrik body the weakest point of these droids are their eyes, being made only out of transparisteel they could be blinded with sufficient precise attacks, although doing so will not stop them from attacking as they will either lash out blindly or utilize data from other nearby drones to use them to supplement their loss of accuracy.

DESCRIPTION
Intro: Abregado has always employed large number of droid and mechanized forces to supplement their forces, from numerous spider droids and spider tanks to legions of war droids and drones in form of Iron Legionnaire project. It was no wonder then that as their technology developed further so did their mechanized forces were upgraded and restructured to modernize them for contemporary battlefields. These new drones have been given acronym MACU-ID, the Mechanized Autonomous Combat Unit- Infantry Drones.

History and Technical Details: The MACU drones have been heavily based on the previous Iron Legionnaire drones and droids used as standard infantry units for Abregado, inheriting majority of their design and systems, including the redundant systems layout, built-in communications, and sound dampeners, as well as being manufactured by similar methods, with large portion of their components forged on mass scale by the Replicator 3-D printers from recycled material to cut down on their costs so that the drones could be made cheaply in large numbers. Their costs are further cut down by the new forging and smelting compounds built on Abregado, based on Geonosian forge spire designs. Although their colors are often changed for minor camouflage purposes, standard MACU drone is black or steel grey in color and resembles a sort of armored skeleton in appearance, their bare skeleton and inner workings are completely encased in inner body plating which is then covered with thicker duranium and durasteel outer armor plates. Each drone has the same voice as HK does, while the machines themselves can distinguish who is speaking, it could be potentially confusing to organics listening in on their conversations, and that is exactly the point. These drones are usually deployed in rectangle phalanxes of 6 by 10 droids, 60 in total, it is their standard formation for marching.

Mass Production: Because of low expenses that go into producing each unit there is a large standing army kept by ARGH of these drones with a garrison on each of their ships and colonies ready for deployment or defensive purposes along with even more drones waiting deactivated in reserves or being constantly forged in ARGH replication and manufacturing compounds. Their legion seems to be never ending as even when multiple phalanxes perish in combat after the engagement they seem to be already replaced and replenished by ARGH, ready for more fighting. As such the utility of these drones is not limited only to combat as they are seen assigned to more menial tasks around ARGH ships and facilities, such as cleaning floors, moving supplies, or just attending to higher ranking officers and commanders as manservants, making them not only soldiers but just general henchmen staff as well. Going along with this vast production their combat effectiveness is based around being deployed in large numbers and working as a group, due to their built-in communication devices the drones constantly share information with each other without the need to actually speak, although they do have capability to communicate verbally if there is a need for it, so if there is information one of the drones acquired, for example new position of the enemy, it is immediately shared with others. The drones are capable of adapting their formations and group tactics on the spot, working together like a swarm to overwhelm the enemy through team work rather than personal perseverance, although lone drone could cause some damage as well, with their accuracy boosted by their sensors and trackers, upgraded from the previous models used in Iron Legionnaire models, and strong mechanical body to deal some serious damage in melee with a proper weapon.

Durability: The hard duranium and durasteel plates and skeleton grant the drones a natural armor of class 7, giving them reasonable protection against energy and physical small arms like pistols and rifles, and helping them deal with standard unarmed or melee attacks. This protection has its limits however as higher grade weapons like lightsabers or turbolasers can still push through this armor. On top of their armor plates these drones can also utilize additional protection from Abregado Combat Shields they are outfitted with, as well some other minor resistance from other pieces of equipment, like limited protection against sonic based attacks when their sound dampeners are engaged due to the air around their skeleton being more resistant to vibrations traveling through it, resistance against shock-waves or telekinetic attacks when their density projectors or magnetic anchors are activated, or limited resistance against being overheated or deactivated by ionic and electrical attacks due to the built-in Farraday cage from special copper wiring and asbestos insulation beneath their inner hull.

Other Strengths: Some of their other strengths include vacuum seal protecting their inner workings from being affected by liquids like napalm or water, otherwise they could have been short circuited by rain or being submerged, built-in wrist vibro-blade and blaster repeater as their side-arms, should they be disarmed they can always rely on those weapons to do some more damage, however they are far from the most useful or devastating infantry weapons Abregado has to offer. Should the drone be sliced or otherwise manipulated and compromised, each unit is equipped with a tracker, to keep track of its current position, remote kill switch, to deactivate it, and a self destruct device that overloads its power unit and disintegrates its internal workings, including the memory and processing units to wipe its knowledge, leaving behind nothing but a husk of its duranium and durasteel skeleton and armor, along with a minimized explosion similar to a thermal detonator going off. The drones are also equipped with internal cooling systems to prevent damage from their systems overheating as a result of malfunction, too much strain on power supply, or a heat based weaponry being used against them. This system has its limits, meaning its not an immunity to these weapons, but it gives them resistance to make them more resilient to such attacks, it's also deactivated when the self-destruct sequence goes off to make the power units go critical faster.

Low Intelligence: As before when manufacturing the Iron Legionnaire drones the ethical issue HK came across was creating large armies of war droids for the sole purpose of serving him as soldiers while advocating for freedom of will for droid kind. So, just like before the war droids became volunteers while another kind of machine was created to supplement their numbers as the grand army of ARGH. The drones, with their minds controlled by the GaDOS, an operating system designed by Gados researches, a relatively simple programming compared to common artificial intelligence every droid has, it was so simple in fact that the drones are qualified only as semi-sentient beings, more like animals than normal droids. While HK's mind was clear from this cognitive dissonance, their combat prowess did suffer from this lack of intelligence, for starters drones could follow only basic commands, for example standing in one spot and shooting, or moving and shooting, as such there is usually a noticeable pause when their orders are changed, for example when they change their formations or position for a flanking maneuver, when they stop shooting at their current target to carry out the new string of orders. However, this is usually done with support from other phalanxes of drones to rain suppression fire, as they are usually controlled by commanders who could plan for such maneuvers, to protect the phalanx that stopped engaging to reposition. As such their efficiency in combat is based on their numbers, otherwise a lone drone, or a lone phalanx even is considerably weakened as it does not have other drones to support and protect them should they lag in their orders and be caught defenseless. Due to their low intelligence these drones do not carry much for their survival, often marching fearlessly into well defended enemy positions to overrun them and follow their orders, while this is often a boon it also means that individual drones can be picked off fairly easily as they do not really care much for taking cover or evasive maneuvers while under fire. Also, they can only use weaponry manufactured by Abregado, unless it is a standard mounted E-Web or high caliber machine gun, they would be able to use those as well, after assaulting trench lines on Kaeshana HK realized how useful it is for his forces to know how to take over and use such positions.

Other Weaknesses: Their other weaknesses include weakness to electromagnetic pulses, like EMP grenades, while their Combat Shields can resist one such attack, the second one would deactivate the machine temporarily, their resistance against ionic and electrical attacks is also limited as their protection in form of a Farraday cage covers their internal vital systems but leaves their motor functions like mechanical muscles and rotors vulnerable. These drones are also too big to utilize additional armor suits because of their armor plates, cutting down on their versatility as most Abregado armor suits have additional systems in them like jet systems or flamethrowers, along with additional layer of protection. They also inherit the same weakness as HK's body still has, the weakened armor on their eyes, as it is only made out of transparisteel, which means the drones could be blinded by sufficiently strong precise attacks, when that happens they rely on data fed to them by other drones in their phalanx to supplement their loss of accuracy, or simply lash out blindly towards last known position of their enemy.

Conclusion/Summary: In conclusion, the new drones are upgraded versions of previous Iron Legionnaire drones built on the same tactics and philosophy of B1 battle droids from Clone Wars. Cheaply manufactured they are meant to be deployed in large numbers, and although their bodies are durable and come with potent armor plates, they very unintelligent and perform well only when there are more drones around to back them up and they are still very much vulnerable to electromagnetic attacks like EMP grenades.