Iron Heart Armament Iron Axe Tank Killer:


Iron Heart Armament produced a variety of combat vehicle designs before the coming of the Rifts including several tank designs. The problem was that several purchasers were interested in a lighter design which could carry the same main gun as the Iron Hammer heavy tank. The 200 mm cannon was one of the most massive cannons ever carried on a tank and is extremely powerful for a conventional cannon. This was selected for the lighter design using the frame of the Iron Fist tank with the cannon mounted in a fixed forward position. The design was designated a "Tank Destroyer" instead of being considered a tank. Really it is designed to attack any heavily armored vehicle including robot vehicles. Some believe the design is in competition with the Iron Armory "Storm Tiger" tank with a 380 mm heavy rocket launcher but in this case, the Iron Heart design was much more flexible. The Iron Axe design was developed just a short time before the factories were captured by the Coalition and only a handful were built. An interesting tactic tried by several mercenary companies that have several Iron Axes in their inventories is to escort them with the lighter Iron Thunder light tank and use the Iron Axes for heavy assault. Unfortunately, a large amount of the Tank Destroyers were captured while still under construction and were scrapped by the Coalition due to a preference for robot vehicles. This design has attracted a lot of interest by combat crews due to its firepower combined with good mobility and several companies have designed vehicles similar.


As previously listed, the Iron Axe shares the same frame and chassis as the Iron Fist. This allowed a large reduction in design and production. The Tank destroyer also carries about the same amount of armor as the Iron First tank but the profile of the tank destroyer is slightly lower and the armor is thicker in areas due to the tank destroyer not mounting a turret. The engine and power train are also identical to those on the Iron Fist and the Iron Axe is available with a conventional power source, electrical propulsion powered by batteries, and by a small fusion reactor. Fusion reactors were not produced by Iron Heart Armament but were instead purchased from outside sources. About half of all remaining Iron Axe tanks carry fusion reactors as their power supply. Weight of the tank destroyer is around 36 tons and the Iron Axe has a top speed of 60 mph on roads. Electronics are identical to other Iron Heart designs and are limited compared to those carried on designs from other manufactures like Iron Armory and Northern Gun. Still, they are adequate for most requirements. A crew of three is carried like the Iron Fist but the tank destroyer does not have space for any passengers.


The 200 mm cannon carried on the Iron Hammer is mounted in a fixed forward position on the Iron Axe. It can angle up to 20 degrees upwards but otherwise is moved by maneuvering the tank destroyer. Due to the huge size of each round, the tank destroyer uses an auto-loader system. The auto-loader system from Iron Hammer could not be fitted into the design and the system from the Iron Fist was too small so a new auto-loader had to be developed. Also due to the large size of each round, only a limited payload can be carried on the Iron Axe. As the tank destroyers main roll is to kill tanks, normally anti-tank rounds are carried exclusively. The tank Killer does not mount a light rail gun co-axial to the main gun but does mount a light rail gun which is controlled by the tank commander. As well, the forward laser is retained in the Iron Axe tank killer. Both light weapons are most often used against attacking troops and light vehicles which do not warrant the use of the main gun. The top rail gun is also used against attacking aircraft due to the fact that the main gun cannot elevate enough to engage attacking aircraft and is limited in movement. The tank destroyer mounts the box mini-missile launchers carried on the Iron Maiden APC to give the tank destroyer more flexibility and good short range firepower. The designers were considering back-fitting the launchers to the Iron Fist tank but the facilities were captured by the Coalition before this was implemented.


Model Type: IH-15-TD
Class: Tank Destroyer
Crew: Three: one driver, a gunner, and a commander.


M.D.C. by Location:

Cupola on top:75
Rail gun on Cupola:60
Reinforced Crew Compartment in the Turret:50
200 mm Smooth Bore Cannon:150
Forward-mounted Laser:25
MLRS-24 Mini-Missile Launchers (2, Sides):40 each
Smoke / Gas Dispensers (2):15 each
[1] Main Body:525
Reinforced Crew Compartment (main body):120
[2] Track Treads (2):90 each


Notes:
[1] Depleting the M.D.C. from the main body will shut the tank down completely, rendering it useless.
[2] Depleting the M.D.C. of a tread will immobilize the tank 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 possible when the vehicle is not under attack.


Speed:
Ground: 60 mph (96 km) on land. 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 30%. Buttoned up, it can travel under water at 25 mph (40.2 km)!
Maximum Effective Range: 600 miles (960 km) on conventional fuel or via electric motor before needing refueling; unlimited if nuclear (10 year life).


Statistical Data:
Height: 9.6 feet (2.9 meters)
Width: 10 feet (3.0 meters)
Length: 32 feet (9.8 meters)
Weight: 36 tons (33 metric tons) fully loaded
Cargo: Minimal storage space; about four feet (1.2 m) tor extra clothing, weapons, and personal items. Three Wilk’s 447 laser rifles and two WI-23 missile launchers with five loads each are stored in a compartment behind the driver's seat.
Power System: Combustion, electric or nuclear fusion (10 year life span).
Black Market Cost: 3 million with combustion engine, 4.0 million for one with an electric motor, 22 million with nuclear engine (life-span of 10 years).


Weapon Systems:

  1. 200 mm IH-B Smooth Bore Cannon (1): This is same cannon as is carried on the Iron Hammer Heavy Tank but is in a fixed forward mount and is much heavier than the cannons on most Post Rifts Tanks. The cannon has an auto loader system. The cannon has a variety of loads, including high explosive (HE), high explosive anti-tank (HEAT), armor-piercing explosive (AP), and armor piercing, sabot-discarding solids (APSD). The APSD round consists of a metal dart that flies at enormous speeds towards the target: it is not as fast as a rail gun, but makes up for it with the greater mass of the slug. The cannon can only move side to side at up to a 10 degree angle but can elevate up to 20 degrees and depress 10 degrees. The cannon is controlled by a gunner inside the main compartment.
    Maximum Effective Range: 13,100 feet (4,000 meters) for direct fire with discarding sabot round, 7,400 feet (2250 meters) for direct fire with all other rounds, and indirect fire range of 33,000 feet (6.2 miles / 10,000 meters).
    Mega-Damage: High-Explosive (HE): 2D6x10 M.D. with a blast radius of 30 ft (9 m), High-Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT): 3D6x10 M.D. with a blast radius of 12 ft (3.6 m). Armor Piercing (AP): 2D6x10 M.D. and APSD: 3D6x10 M.D. (optional rule is that cannon gets a critical on a natural 18, 19, or 20 due to its high penetration)
    Rate of Fire: A Maximum of two attacks per melee round regardless of the gunner's hand to hand combat numbers.
    Payload: The tank destroyer can carry up to 20 rounds. Usually all rounds are APSD rounds.
  2. IH-100 Rail Gun (1): This gun is a copy of Northern Gun's NG-202, modified for a higher rate of fire. It is located in the cupola (mini-turret) over the main turret, and has a 360 degree rotation of fire and elevate up to 90 degrees to engage aerial targets. The rail gun is normally controlled by the tank’s commander
    Maximum Effective Range: 4,000 feet (1,200 meters)
    Mega-Damage: A burst is 60 rounds and inflicts 1D6x10 M.D. One round does 1D4 M.D.
    Rate of Fire: Equal to number of combined hand to hand attacks (usually 4-6) of the gunner.
    Payload: 12,000 round drum, that's 200 bursts! Up to five drums can be carried by the tank. Reloading the drum takes 15 minutes if done by hand, 5 minutes if done with robots and special equipment.
  3. IH-34L Laser Turret (1): This weapon is mounted on the bow of the tank and can he fired by the driver or the tank destroyer's commander as a secondary weapon. The weapon consists of two laser cannons firing simultaneously at the same target. In vehicles without nuclear engines, the laser is powered by a rechargeable battery.
    Maximum Effective Range: 4,000 feet (1,200 meters)
    Mega-Damage: 6D6 M.D. per dual blast.
    Rate of Fire: Can shoot up to six times per melee.
    Payload: 1000 dual blasts if combustion or electrically powered. Unlimited if vehicle has a nuclear engine.
  4. MLRS-24 Multiple Launcher Rocket System (2): An MLRS-24 mini missile launcher is built into each side of the combat vehicle. Launcher is primarily controlled by gunner but can be controlled by the pilot or commander as well. Each holds 24 mini-missiles and can rotate 360 degrees and can be raised 60 degrees.
    Maximum Effective Range: Varies with mini-missile type (See revised bomb and missile tables for details.)
    Mega-Damage: Varies with mini-missile type. Typically armor piercing and plasma (See revised bomb and missile tables for details.)
    Rate of Fire: Can fire mini-missiles one at a time or in volleys of two (2), four (4), or six (6) mini-missiles.
    Payload: 48 total, 24 mini-missiles in each launcher.
  5. Smoke/Gas Dispensers (2): A smoke/gas dispensing unit is attached to each side of the Light Tank. The dispenser releases a dense cloud of smoke that covers a 40 foot (12.2 m) area in front of the vehicle, It can also release tear gas.
    Payload: 20 total; 10 charges each; typically all smoke.


Special Equipment:



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Writeup by Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).


Copyright © 2003 & 2009, Kitsune. All rights reserved.


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