French Weygand Missile Vehicle:

Because the French government had not upgraded much of its military during the first half of the Twenty-First century, the state of their forces dropped to deplorable levels. The majority of their equipment was old, worn-out, and outdated. The resurgence of colonial Britain in 2055 "woke up" the French government and made them realize that they had lost their status as a world power. To make up on lost ground, the French government funded and enormous military build-up program to re-equip its military in all areas. The army, navy, and air force all received funding for projects, especially those dedicated to colonial expansion and enhancing global presence.

In 2058 the French army put out a requirement for a missile artillery vehicle capable of being transported by air and deliverable by parachute to support armored and infantry units. The Weygand Missile Vehicle was named after General Maxime Weygand, Chief General Staff Army (1931-1935), Vice-President Supreme War Council (1931-1935), Inspector of the Army (1931-1934), Commander in Chief Orient Theater of Operations (1939-1940), Commander in Chief Allied Forces in France (1940), and Commander in Chief North Africa (1940-1941).

The design was required to be capable of providing fire support for ground troops and armor. In addition to being used as artillery, missile vehicles also filled important air defense functions. To make production easier and to reduce costs, it was decided that a standard chassis would be used. The hull of the Giat Industries Chevillon Light Tank was chosen for its light weight, multi-armor capability, and relatively inexpensive price. Like the Chevillon light tank, the Weygand can be fitted with three levels of protection. In combination with the new series of super-strength armor materials, the design was capable of being configured for the type of combat expected. An added bonus was that the armor was easily replaceable when damaged in combat.

Level I against armor piercing small arms, small cannon fire, and indirect fire splinters
Level II against cannon up to 30mm and light warhead missiles
Level III against cannon up to 120mm and medium warhead missiles

In its base or Level I armor configuration, the Weygand could be low-velocity airdropped from a transport aircraft. Utilizing the Low Altitude Parachute Extraction System (LAPES) developed by the Americans, a Level II armor configured vehicle could be delivered to the battlefield by aircraft. Level III vehicles were delivered by landing ship or actually landing the transport aircraft. The vehicle’s standard configuration was with Level II armor.

The profile of the vehicle was very low with the entire front end sloped with the missile turret mounted low on the hull. Both crew members were seated side by side in the hull with the turret behind them. A small but powerful nuclear reactor was located in the rear of the vehicle and powered all the systems and propulsion.

The vehicle mounts a large missile launcher in place of the main turret on the on the Chevillon. This launcher does not have a reload but has a total of eight cells for missiles. A long range missile can be replaced by two medium range missiles, but long range missiles were the most common carried ordnance. Behind the turret on either side of the hull was a raised section that housed a mini-missile launcher. Each of these flush mounted launchers carried sixteen missiles. Intended primarily for anti-missile defense, crews would switch some of the fragmentation rounds for AP or Plasma rounds, giving the vehicle a considerable anti armor punch should it encounter enemy armor. Also during the 2080s, an anti-personnel system similar to the British Claymore mine system was installed after several tanks were lost to mass infantry attacks. Lastly, a pair of smoke dispensers were mounted on the turret to help confuse laser-guided missiles and to conceal the vehicle.

The new Inter-Vehicular Information System allowed targeting data from one vehicle to be transmitted to every other vehicle fitted with the system within a 6 mile radius. This allowed incredible force multiplication for the French armored, power armored and airborne forces. One very common tactic was to have one or two vehicles keep their sensors active and transmit targets to other vehicles who's sensors were off. Once enemy fire began targeting those vehicles, they would shut down their sensors and exit the target area. Other vehicles would activate their own sensors and take the place of the first vehicles. The ability to track and fire on enemy targets without exposing themselves to active sensor detection kept many of the French forces from enemy detection. Only when open combat came about would every vehicle within a unit have their sensors on.

Model Type: Giat Industries Weygand Missile Vehicle
Vehicle Type: Light Tracked Missile Vehicle
Crew: Two (Driver and Commander).

M.D.C. By Location:

Level I:

Level II:

Level III:

[1] Tractor Treads (2):	80	80	80
Tread Skirts (2):	---	80	120
Multiple Missile Battery:	150	250	300
Mini Missile Launchers (2):	75 each	100 each	150 each
[2] Smoke/Gas Dispensers (2):	20 each	20 each	20 each
[3] Main Body:	325	425	525

Notes:
[1] 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 advisable when the vehicle is not under attack.
[2] These are small and difficult targets to strike, requiring the attacker to make a “called shot,”, but even then the attacker is -4 to strike.
[3] If all the M.D.C. of the main body is depleted, the vehicle is completely shut down and unsalvageable, but crew and troops may survive in their reinforced compartments.

Speed:
Ground: 93.2 mph (150 kph) maximum road speed; 74.6 mph (120 kph) maximum off-road speed. 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%.
Water: On the surface at 40.4 mph (65 kph) or underwater (Buttoned up) at 19.9 mph (32 kph)
Maximum Range: Unlimited (Nuclear Fusion power supply with 10 year duration)

Statistical Data:
Height: 14 feet (4.2 meters)
Width: 10 feet (3.0 meters)
Length: Main Body: 27.5 feet (8.5 meters)
Weight: Level I: 34 tons
Level II: 36 tons
Level III: 39 tons
Power Source: Nuclear (Should have an average lifespan of 10 years).
Cargo Capacity: Minimal, enough for equipment with crew.
Black Market Cost: Not available, should go for about 45/55 million credits when in good condition.

Weapon Systems:

Long Range/Medium Range Missile Launcher: Mounted as a box launcher where the Chevillon Light Tank has the main turret. The box launcher can rotate 360 degrees and has a 75 degree arc of fire. The launcher mount has two quads of four launchers immediately ready to fire (8 tubes total) but does not carry any reloads. Each launcher cell can fit one long range missile or two medium range missiles which use a special adapter to use the same launcher. Long range missiles are normally used against large targets and aircraft further out and the medium range missiles will normally be used to engage closer targets.
Maximum Effective Range: As per long or medium range missile type (See revised bomb and missile tables for details.)
Mega Damage: As per long or medium range missile type (See revised bomb and missile tables for details.)
Rate of Fire: Can fire missiles one at a time or in volleys of two (2), four (4), six (6), or eight (8) missiles.
Payload: 8 missile cells in the launcher (maximum of 8 long range missiles, 16 medium range missiles, or a combination of both). No Reloads are carried
Mini Missile Launchers (2): One mounted in the hull of the vehicle on either side of the missile battery. They are recessed to the surface armor. When launched, armored panels slide out of the way, exposing the launchers and missiles arranged at a 45 degree angel. These missiles are supposed to be used to protect the vehicle from enemy missiles, and as such fragmentation warheads are standard issue. Usually crews will switch some of the fragmentation rounds for AP or Plasma rounds, giving the vehicle a considerable anti armor punch should it encounter enemy armor.
Maximum Effective Range: Varies with missile types, mini-missiles only (Seerevised bomb and missile tables for details.)
Mega Damage: Varies with missile types, mini missiles only (Seerevised bomb and missile tables for details.)
Rate of Fire: Can fire missiles one at a time or in volleys of two (2), four (4), six (6), or twelve (12) missiles.
Payload: Each launcher carries sixteen (16) mini-missiles for a total of 32 Mini-missiles.
Claymore Mines (16): Five mines are mounted on the sides of the tank, and three more on the front and the back. Unlike the British system, these launchers are manually controlled and do not rely on quirky computers that can be easily confused by such mundane things as mud or dust on uniforms.
Maximum Effective Range: a cone 50 feet (15 meters) long and 30 feet (9 meters) wide.
Mega-Damage: 6D6 for targets 30 feet and further away, 1D4x10 for targets closer than that.
Rate of Fire: Can activate one (1) mine at a time.
Payload: 16.
Smoke/Gas Dispensers (2): A smoke/gas dispensing unit is attached to each side of the missile vehicle. 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. The dispenser can dispense prismatic aerosol for dispersing laser beams. This has the same effect as prismatic aerosol grenades.
Payload: 20 total; 10 charges each; typically 10 smoke, 5 prismatic aerosol, and 5 tear gas.

Sensory Equipment:

Radio/ Video Communications: Long range, directional, has a range of 500 miles with short range directional radio of 5 miles.
Laser Targeting System: Range is 6 miles and gives +1 to strike with long range weapons. Not applicable to hand to hand
Combat Computer/ Targeting Computer: Assist in the tracking of targets.
Inter-Vehicular Information System: Revolutionary system that allows the sensors of one vehicle to transmit targeting information to other vehicles within the unit. Range is 6 miles.
Radar: 50 miles, can identify 96 targets and track 48 as low as 500 ft.
Full Life Support: Protects pilot and tank from heat and radiation and gives a breathable atmosphere inside the tank.
Spotlight: Range: 600 feet (182.9 meters)
Thermo-Imager: Range: 2,000 ft (609 m). Finds the infra-red radiations of things that are warm. Also enables pilot to see in smoke, shadows and darkness.
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.

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Writeup by Kamikazi (co366thaw@hotmail.com).

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