Golden Age Weaponsmiths M113 Armored Personnel Carrier:

While the M2 Bradley garnered the attention in its heyday, often being mis-described as a tank, the M113 could be considered the true workhorse of the United States army and countless others with over 100,000 built before production came to a halt. While the M2 Bradley can only carry six troops, the M113 could carry eleven troops in addition to the crew. It also requires a crew of only two compared to three for a Bradley. Designed in the late Nineteen-Fifties, the M113 was far simpler design and considered by many to be more reliable. There were also a great many different variants of the M113 including a mortar vehicle, several missile carrying variants, and cargo variants.

Because of the huge number produced, it was almost inevitable that many survived the coming of the Rifts. Some survived in long forgotten armories, others were left in military vehicle graveyards, while yet others survived in museums. Since they used aluminum in their construction, they resisted corrosion far better than they otherwise might. There were recovered and many were refitted with additional armor by various groups with Golden Age refitting a number of them, both the standard version and various variants.

These upgrades include the repair of engines, adding additional composite and alloy armor so that the vehicles can survive the more dangerous environment after the coming of the Rifts, and the use of Wellington Industries' ammunition for the main weapon. These have sold quite briskly, especially to Mercenary Companies, and there has been interest expressed in Golden Age actually manufacturing a variant of the vehicle which uses all new materials. It would allow a break into the new military vehicle industry and the vehicle's relatively simply construction means that this would be relatively simple.

In addition to plating the vehicle itself with new armor materials, the refit includes the replacement of the tracks with tracks made from these strong composites. While these materials make the design far tougher, it is still not the equal of newly built vehicles. It still does offer much greater protection to the crews. Electronics and optics are also considered primitive compared to later designs. As far as speed, the vehicle is powered by a diesel engine which gives a maximum speed of just over forty miles per hour with a maximum range of around three hundred miles. The M113 in amphibious with a top speed on the water of around four miles per hour on water using its tracks for propulsion. It is likely that a new built version would carry a hybrid diesel-electric propulsion which would virtually double range.

Standard weaponry includes a single .50 Caliber machine gun although even while in service, many were replaced by automatic grenade launchers. With the Wellington ammunition, the heavy machine gun is capable of damaging heavy armor but is still considered underpowered compared to most Rifts Earth vehicle mounted weapons. The single most common replacement is with the Wellington automatic grenade launcher and it likely that over half of those rebuilt by Golden Age have their machine gun replaced by this weapon. In that case, instead of two thousand rounds of ammunition able to be carried, only around eight hundred can be carried. Other modifications to the vehicle include the addition of mini-missile launchers, smoke grenade launchers, and the additional of Wellington Claymore Mines as anti-personnel protection. The vehicle has no firing ports for the troops to offer fire support themselves.

Model Type: GAW M113A3
Vehicle Type: Armored Personnel Carrier
Crew: Two (Driver and Gunner)
Troops: 11 in Full Gear

M. D. C. by Location:

	[1] Tractor Treads (2):	30 each
	12.7 mm Machine Gun:	20
	Headlights (2):	5 each
	Rear Hatch:	40
	Reinforced Crew Compartment:	40
	Reinforced Personnel Bay:	40
	[2] Main Body:	200

Notes:
[1] Depleting the M.D.C. of a tread will immobilize the platform until it is replaced. Replacing a tread will take 1D6x10 minutes by a trained crew (2 replacements are carried on board) or three times as long by the inexperienced. Changing the tread is only advisable when the vehicle is not under attack.
[2] If all the M.D.C. of the main body is depleted, the vehicle is completely shut down and is unsalvageable.

Speed:
Ground: maximum speed on land is 37.7 mph (61.7 kph.) The vehicle is designed to traverse virtually all terrain and can climb at up to a 60% grade although at a much slower speed (About 10% of maximum road speed). It can also climb barriers and ford trenches. The vehicle can also handle side slopes of up to 40%.
Water Capabilities: The M113 Armored Personnel Carrier is designed to be amphibious and can cross small bodies of water. It is not designed for deep water use. The M113 can travel in this manner at 3.6 mph (5.8 kph/3.1 knots).
Maximum Range: 298.25 miles (480 km)

Statistical Data:
Height: 6.06 feet (1.85 meters) to hull top and 8.27 feet (2.52 meters) overall
Width: 8.81 feet (2.866 meter)
Length: 15.95 feet (4.863 meters)
Weight: 21,951.4 pounds (9,957 kg) empty, 24,808.6 pounds (11,253 kg) combat loaded, and 31,000 pounds (14,061 kg) maximum load.
Power Source: Conventional, Diesel (Detroit Diesel 6V53T - 275 hp)
Cargo Capacity: Without troops, can carry up to 3.0 tons (2.72 metric tons)
Black Market Cost: 90,000 Credits.

Weapon Systems:

12.7 millimeter Browning M2HB Machine-gun: Located outside of M113 meaning that the gunner must be outside of the vehicle when using the Machine gun. Uses WI-20 Heavy Ramjet rounds. While the weapon has been refitted using Wellington ammunition, it is still considered underpowered by most crews. As a result, the weapon is commonly replaced by a rail gun or a Wellington automatic grenade launcher.
Maximum Effective Range: 3,000 feet (914.4 m)
Mega Damage: Single shot does 1D4 and 40 round burst does 5D6.
Rate of Fire: Equal to combined hand to hand attacks of gunner
Payload: 2,000 rounds (50 bursts).

Sensory Equipment:

NBC Protection: While not full life support, the Armored vehicle is equipped with protection for the crew from most gas, radiation, and biological attacks.
Nightvision Optics: Range: 2,000 ft (609 m). Uses light amplification to make a picture. Emits no light but will not work in absolute darkness. System can be dazzled by sudden bright lights but does not physically blind the pilot.
Thermo-Imager: Range: 2,000 feet (609 meters). Finds the infra-red radiations of things that are warm. Also enables pilot to see in smoke, shadows and darkness.

[ Altarain TM, Bandito Arms TM, Brodkil TM, Chipwell Armaments TM, Coalition States TM, Cyber-Knight TM, Federation of Magic TM, Free Quebec TM, Golden Age Weaponsmiths TM, Horune TM, Iron Heart Armaments TM, Kankoran TM, Kittani TM, Kydian TM, Larsen’s Brigade TM, M.D.C. TM, Mechanoids TM, Mega-Damage TM, Megaversal Legion TM, Millennium Tree TM, Mutants in Orbit TM, Naruni Enterprises TM, Naut’Yll, New Navy TM, New Sovietskiy TM, NGR TM, Nog Heng TM, Northern Gun TM, Phase World TM, Psyscape TM, Rifter TM, SAMAS TM, S.D.C. TM, Shemarrian TM, Splugorth TM, Stormspire TM, Sunaj TM, Tolkeen TM, Triax TM, Wellington Industries TM, Wilk’s Laser Technologies TM, Xiticix TM, and Zaayr TM are trademarks owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc. ]

[ Beyond the Supernatural®, Heroes Unlimited®, Nightbane®, Ninjas & Superspies®, Palladium Fantasy®, and Rifts® are registered trademarks owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc. ]

Writeup by Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).

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